Learn More about the Book
This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1860. Excerpt: ... SELECTIONS FROM THE WORKS OF THE LATE T. W. HILL. A Lecture On The Articulation Of Speech, Delivered before the Birmingham Philosophical Society on January 29th, 1821. Among the variations of sound which our senses distinguish, there are certain grand and important modifications that can be explained as to their nature and causes. The following letter from Dr. Guest, Master of Caius College, Cambridge, to the Editor, emboldens bim to print this Lecture: --Caius Lodge, Dec. 17th, 1858. Dear Sib, --When writing the History of English Rhythms (published in 1838), I had occasion to examine Such, particularly, are those differences betwixt one tone and another which constitute the essence of music: deepness or gravity contrasted with height or shrillness, and weakness or faintness in opposition to strength or loudness. We know that a grave with care the formation of our letter sounds; and convinced myself that the only distinction between the sounds represented by b, g, d, v, and those represented by p, c (k), t, f, consisted in the presence or the absence of the voice--in other words, that the first set were vocal and the latter were whispered sounds. The late Mr. T. "W. Hill happened to call on me, as I was revising the sheets, referring to this matter, and I mentioned to him the purport of my remarks. He told me he had long been of the same opinion, and reminded me of a conversation that had passed between us many years before upon the subject. I felt no doubt that the hint had been borrowed, and accordingly added a note attributing to him whatever merit might belong to the discovery. Vide History of English Rhythms, 1, 9., It appeared that the distinction taken was an important one, and that it had never been noticed by any previous writer; and I still feel ...
