Cap. 3.
1. Of a, in our tongue we have four soundes, al so differing ane from an
other, that they distinguish the verie signification of wordes, as, a
tal man, a gud tal, a horse tal.
2. Quherfoer in this case I wald co_m_mend to our men the imitation of
the greek and latin, quho, to mend this crook, devysed diphthongs. Let
the simplest of these four soundes, or that q_uhi_lk is now in use,
stand with the voual, and supplie the rest with diphthonges; as, for
exemple, I wald wryte the king’s hal with the voual a; a shour of hael,
with ae; hail marie, with ai; and a heal head, as we cal it, quhilk the
English cales a whole head, with ea. And so, besydes the voual, we have
of this thre diphthonges, tuae with a befoer, ae and ai, and ane w_i_th
the e befoer, ea. Ad to them au, howbeit of a distinct sound; as,
knaulege with us, in the south knowlege.
3. These and al other diphthonges I wald counsel the teacheres not to
name be the vouales quherof they are maed, but be the sound q_uhi_lk
they maek, for learneres wil far maer easelie take the sound from the
mouth of the teacher, then maek it them selves of the vouales
ingredient.
4. Of e, we have tuae soundes, q_uhi_lk it is hard to judge q_uhi_lk is
simplest; as, an el, ulna; and an el, anguilla; hel, infernus; and an
hel, calx pedis. Heer I wald com_m_end to our men quhae confoundes these
the imitation of the south, q_uhi_lk doth wel distinguish these soundes,
wryting the el, ulna, with the voual e, and eel, anguilla, with the
diphthong ee. I am not ignorant that sum symbolizes this sound w_i_th a
diphthong made of ie; eie, oculus; hiel, fiel, miel, _et_c. Here I am
indifferent, and onelie wishes that the ane be used; let the advysed
judge make choise of q_uhi_lk, for my awne paert I lyke the last best;
1. becaus eie, oculus, can not wel be symbolized ee; 2. because the
greekes expresse η be εε, q_uhi_lk, as appeares be the Ioneanes
and Doreanes, drawes neerar to α, than ε.
5. Of i, also, our idiom receaves tuae soundes, as in a man’s wil, and
the wil of a fox. Heer, also, I wald have our men learne of the south,
for these soundes they wel distinguish, wryting wil, fil, mil, stil,
with i; and wyl, fyl, myl, styl, with y.
6. Heer I see be Barrat, in his Alvearie, that sum wald be at
symbolizing these soundes, the ane with the greek diphthong ει, and
the other with ᴉ inverted; as, rειd, equitare; bειd, manere;
rᴉd, legere; hᴉd, cavere. In this opinion I se an eye of judgement,
and therfoer wil not censure it, except I saw the auctour’s whole drift.
Onelie for my awn parte I will avoid al novelties, and content my self
with the letteres q_uhi_lk we have in use. And seeing we have no other
use of y distinguished from i, condiscend to the opinion of the south
using i for ane, and y for the other.
7. O, we sound al alyk. But of it we have sundrie diphthonges: oa, as
to roar, a boar, a boat, a coat; oi, as coin, join, foil, soil; oo, as
food, good, blood; ou, as house, mouse, &c. Thus, we com_m_onlie wryt
mountan, fountan, q_uhi_lk it wer more etymological to wryt montan,
fontan, according to the original.
8. In this diphthong we co_m_mit a grosse errour, saving better
judgement, spelling how, now, and siklyk with w, for if w be (as it sal
appear, quhen we cum to the awn place of it) a consonant, it can noe
wayes coalesse into a diphthong sound, sik as this out of controversie
is.
9. U, the last of this rank, the south, as I have said in the latin
sound of it, pronu_n_ces eu, we ou, both, in my simple judgement, wrang,
for these be diphthong soundes, and the sound of a voual sould be
simple. If I sould judge, the frensh sound is neerest the voual sound
as we pronu_n_ce it in mule and muse.
10. Of it we have a diphthong not yet, to my knawlege, observed of anie;
and, for my awn parte, I am not wel resolved neither how to spel it, nor
name it. Onelie I see it in this, to bou, a bow. I wait not quhither I
sould spel the first buu, or the last boau. As, for exemple, if Roben
Hud wer nou leving, he wer not able to buu his aun bou, or to bou his
aun boau. And therfoer this with al the rest, hou be it in other I have
more for me, I leave to the censure of better judgement.