Their nature and properties being thus afcertained, in order to know the manner of their formation, it will be proper to divide them into feparate claffes according to the different feats where they are formed, whether the lips, teeth, palate, or nofe; thence denominated, labial, dental, palatine, and nafal.

The labial are four, eb ev

The next care fhould be to make chil

-dren pronounce them distinctly in the above

order, beginning with the labials, the manner of whose formation is the most easily perceived, as it is performed by the lips, and is therefore obvious to the fight. Here

they

they should be made to observe, that eb and ep are formed exactly by the fame action of the lips, which is by closing them and intercepting the voice; and that the only difference between them is, that in forming eb, the lips at first only gently touch each other, fo as not wholly to prevent fome found's iffuing, and are gradually closed till the voice be entirely intercepted: whereas in forming ep, the lips are at once fo forcibly preffed together, as to prevent the iffuing of any found. Children should therefore be taught to prolong the found of the b as much as poffible by closing the lips only gently at first, and gradually preffing them close, as, eb; and to pronounce ep as quickly as poffible, by a fudden and smart preffure of the lips, as ep. It will be neceffary too, in both cafes, to obferve to them, that the found of neither of them is complete, or perfectly diftinct, till the

lips after compreffure, are feparated. Thus if I fay blab, lap, keeping the mouth still closed, the founds are but half formed, and may eafily be mistaken the one for the other; but when I finish them by feparating the lips, as blab, lap, the founds are perfect and distinct. These are the only two genuine labial confonants; that is, entirely formed by the lips; the other two being partly labial, partly dental; that is, they are formed by the application of the under teeth to the upper lip, as ev, ef.

po

· Here it is alfo to be obferved that these two letters are formed by exactly the fame fition of the organs, and the only difference between them is, that ev, is formed by the voice and breath mixed; ef, by the breath only; as will be immediately perceived by continuing their founds for fome time as ev, where the voice and breath are prolonged together; ef, where the breath only iffues.

The

ว

The next in order are the dental, as the feat of their formation is nearest to the lips. In forming ed and et the tip of the tongue is preffed against the gums of the upper teeth, almost touching them; and there is no other difference between them, than what was before mentioned with regard to the labials eb and ep, that in the one the found can be continued, in the other it cannot. In forming ed, the tongue at firft only gently touches the gum, and is gradually preffed clofer, till the found is entirely obftructed, as ed; whereas in et, the tongue is at once fo forcibly and closely preffed to the fame part, that the found is instantly intercepted, as et. Here too, as in the other cafe, the founds are not completely formed till the tongue is removed from the feat of their formation; thus if I fay bad, bat, ftill keeping the tip of the tongue applied to the gum, the founds are

incomplete; but in removing the tongue as in bad, bat, they become perfectly dif tinct children therefore in learning these letters should be taught to remove the tongue after dwelling upon the found, ed, as long as they can, and inftantaneously after having formed the found, et.

Eth and eth are formed by placing the tip of the tongue between the teeth, and preffing it against the upper teeth, as eth, eth; and the only difference between them is, what was before observed with regard to ev and ef, that the one is formed by the voice and breath mixed, as eth; the other by the breath only, as eth.

Ez and efs are both formed in the fame manner, by turning up the tip of the tongue towards the upper gums, but fo as not to touch them, and thus the breath and voice being cut by the sharp point of the tongue, and paffing through the narrow chink left between

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