79.-f is not sounded in :-clef, chef-d'œuvre, bœuf-gras, bœufs, œufs, nerfs. 80.-1 (see §§ 47 and 48). 81.-r is not sounded in the termination er of the 5,000 verbs of the first conjugation, and in a great number of other words ending in er. 82.-The only words ending in er in which the r is sounded are:-amer, Antipater, Auster, avant-hier, belvéder cancer, cher, cuiller, cutter, Enfer, Esther, éther, fer, fier, frater, Gessner, hier, hiver, Jupiter, Kléber, Lavater, Lucifer, Luther, magister, mer, Necker, Niger, Oder, outremer, partner, pater, Scaliger, Stathouder, kreutzer, thaler, ver. (We give the well known proper names only.) Monsieur is pronounced Mocieu or Mecieu; Messieurs Mécieu. 83.-b, d, g, p, s, t, x, z, are not sounded at the end of words, except in the following: 84.-b is sounded in :-Achab, Joab, Moab, nabab, Jacob, Job, rob, radoub, club. 85.—d in Cid, David, Joad, Sud, Sund, Talmud. 86.-g in zigzag, grog, joug. 87.-p in cap, Gap, jalap, hanap, alep, cep, julep, salep, (a) Proper names in as, ès, is, os, us :—Pallas, Gil Blas, Cérès, Pâris, Minos, Sémiramis, Cyrus. (Howdo not pronounce s in Damas, Dumas, Thomas, Nicholas, Denis, Paris, Jésus.) ever, (b) Ambesas, as, atlas, hélas, vasistas, aloès, kermès, ad honores, ad patres, florès, bis, cassis, gratis, fils (son, sons), iris, lis (lily), maïs, métis, oasis, tournevis, vis (screw), albatros, albinos, lotos, mérinos, pathos, rhinocéros, tétanos, agnus, angelus, blocus, calus, cholera-morbus, chorus, cosinus, habeas corpus, hiatus, humérus, humus, lotus, mordicus, motus, obus, omnibus, papyrus, prospectus, radius, rasibus, rébus, sinus, sus, typhus, unigenitus, us, virus,-plus (in plus-queparfait, je dis plus), tous (at the end of a sentence), cens, mœurs, laps, relaps. 89.-t is sounded at the end of :-exeat, fat, Goliath, mat, vivat, sept, Est, Brest, fret, lest, Ouest, test, zest, Christ, antechrist, obit, deficit, Judith, aconit, zénith, introït, rit, prétérit, prurit, accessit, transit, huit, Sabaoth, Loth, Astaroth, dot, Plymouth, Beyrouth, knout, azimuth, bismuth, luth, Ruth, Belzebuth, brut, chut, comput, lut, occiput, préciput, sinciput, ut. 90.x is sounded like ks in Ajax, Astianax, contumax, thorax, Aix, ex, index, murex, silex, Cadix, préfix, Félix, hélix, phénix, larix, onix, Styx, Béatrix, Sphinx, 91.- Is sounded like sse in six, dix, when these two words are at the end of a sentence. 92.-Z is sounded like s at the end of proper names:-) -Rhodez, Suez, Fernand Cortez, Natchez, Metz, de Retz. FINAL CONSONANTS PRONOUNCED WITH THE FIRST SYLLABLE OF THE NEXT WORD. 93.-When a word ending with a consonant is followed by a word beginning with a vowel or an h mute, we must generally pronounce the consonant with the vowel, as: Quand vous_arrivâtes à l'école, vous rendit-elle vos_exercices ? 94.—All consonants preserve their usual sound, except d, f, g, S, X. 95.-d sounds like t:-Quand on a vu ce grand homme on est content. Pronounce:-Quan ton a vu ce gran thomme, on est content. 96.-f sounds like V only in neuf (nine): -Neuf hommes, neuf oranges. Pronounce :-Neu vhommes, neu voranges. But in neuf (new), and at the end of any other word (when sounded) it preserves its usual sound. 97.-g sounds like k:-Sang impur. Pronounce:-San kimpur. 98.-s sounds like Z:-Les brebis égarées sont rentrées au bercail. Pronounce:-Les brebi zégarées sont rentré(e) zau bercail. 99.- sounds like z:-Heureux homme! Pronounce :Heureu zhomme. 100.-Observe that the t in est (is) is always pronounced be fore a vowel; but the t in et (and) is never pronounced. 101.-Observe again that onze, onzième, oui, must be treated as if the word began with an h aspirate. We write:— le onze, la onzième, je dis que oui; and not:-l'onze, etc. We pronounce them :-le-onze, la-onzième, je dis que-oui; and not:-lonze, lonzième, je dis quoui. The teacher ought to go over the above rules with the pupils, and refer to those rules, according to their respective numbers, as often as necessary whilst reading. The pupils having prepared (out of class hours) one of the following fables, by means of the literal translation, the teacher should first read each sentence and have it repeated by the pupils, till they can pronounce it well. Then he should make them translate it literally, but without the help of the literal translation. My experience has proved that all beginners like such work; and most of them are able to repeat by heart, without much trouble, at the next lesson, the fable or part of the fable so translated. I can assure teachers, that if they succeed in making beginners say only four fables by heart, they will have imparted to them pretty well all the sounds of the French language. LA PATIENCE ET L'ÉDUCATION CORRIGENT BIEN DES DÉFAUTS. Une ourse avait un petit ours qui venait de naître. Il était horriblement laid. On ne reconnaissait en lui aucune figure d'animal: c'était une masse informe et hideuse. L'ourse, toute honteuse d'avoir un tel fils, va trouver sa voisine la corneille, qui faisait grand bruit par son caquet sous un arbre. Que ferai-je, lui dit-elle, ma bonne commère, de ce petit monstre? j'ai envie de l'étrangler. Gardez-vous-en bien, dit la causeuse : j'ai vu d'autres ourses dans le même embarras que vous. Allez, léchez doucement votre fils; il sera bientôt joli, mignon, et propre à vous faire honneur. La mère crut facilement ce qu'on lui disait en faveur de son fils. Elle eut la patience de le lécher longtemps. Enfin il commença à devenir moins difforme, et elle alla remercier la corneille en ces termes: Si vous n'eussiez modéré mon impatience, j'aurais cruellement déchiré mon fils qui fait maintenant tout le plaisir de ma vie. O que l'impatience empêche de biens et cause de maux! LE CORBEAU ET LE RENARD. Maître corbeau, sur un arbre perché, Se rapporte à votre plumage, Vous êtes le phénix des hôtes de ces bois. Il ouvre un large bec, laisse tomber sa proie, Vit aux dépens de celui qui l'écoute: Le corbeau, honteux et confus, Jura, mais un peu tard, qu'on ne l'y prendrait plus. C |