WRITING OF SPEECH, A , icable to all Languages, as demonstrated by examples in the WRITING OF SOtSDS. DIVIDED INTO TWO PARTS/ Viz.: jOGOGraph y 7 French and English tongues ; •t a few abbreviating rules,/reducing this writing to the Shortest Hand, as yet devised ; /A ND 5 tUSICEGRAPHY WUIT1\S! OF MUSIC, On a principle^wticularly simple and expeditious. V. D. S. LONDON: EFFINGHAM WILSON. 1839. * Price Is. Gd, •* • « * \ JfSsN'OR WRITING* OF SOUNDS. DIVIDED INTO TWO PARTS, Viz.: LOGOGRAPH Y OR WRITING* OF SPEECH, Applicable to all Languages, as demonstrated by examples in tlie French and English tongues ; With a few abbreviating rules, reducing this writing to the Shortest Hand as yet devised ; AND MUSICEGRAPHY OR WRITING OF MUSIC, On a principle particularly simple and expeditious. y. d. s. LONDON: EFFINGHAM WILSON. i83y.ROCHESTER; PRINTED BY S. CADDEE, Gazette-Office, ShsUhan<PHONOGRAPHY. The author does not anticipate much pecuniary advantage from this, his first publication; and, with regard to a more honourable compensation, though a little credit may be due to him for having developed a system, by means of which, reading, writing, and music might be learned in less than a month, yet he considers the following work far below Jiis first conception of a UNIVERSAL WRITING. Enraptured in his thoughts, he has spent many hours in tracing the first outlines of an algebraical language, which w7ould have laid before the eyes the operations of the mind, free’d from the encumbrances of the grammar. In that truly philosophical writing, rhetoric and eloquence would be of no other use than to teach us to read ; mind and soul alone having the power to combine the characters representa- tive of their operations. There, nothing could be written but what wras well understood and the4 spelling dictionary of that language would be the rery eyclopoedia of hu- man knowledge. There, every sub- stantive should be a definition of the substance named, as are the mathe- matical demonstrations, the formulas of Chemistry, the names of Botany, Mineralogy, &c. See., which names, formulas, and demonstrations are un- derstood by all learned men, in what- ever language they may choose to speak them. And, if tl ose sciences could be analysed, why not the operations of the mind ? Why could not their prin- ciples be reduced to a few’ radicals, expressed by arbitrary signs, repre- senting, in their numerous combina- tions, all the multifarious and com- plex ideas that mind can conceive ? But a man’s life is too short for such an undertaking, and, though the author began with a stout heart, he soon found the task too, great for his men- tal powers. However, if he has sunk under t the weight he had raised, yet he will not let the block fall back into the earth, but, with this little pamphlet under it as a5 stop-stone, place it by the road side, hoping, some young traveller, full of enterprise and strength, struck with its magnificence, after trying its weight, will take it at once and carry it to the top of the mount, where it will make the most glorious temple ever erected to human knowledge. Falling now from these heights, he concludes in all due humility, with re- commending the following pages to the perusal of the friends to literary improvement and useful knowledge.PART 1st. LOGOGRAPHY. The reader must not expect to find, in a Work of this nature, aiming at the greatest simplicity and preciseness, anything, however interesting in itself, that would not tend directly to the purpose, vi?; furnishing him with the means of writing accurate- ly, concisely, and plainly, any language he may happen to speak. It matters little to him to know how he came by that language, transmitted from generation to generation, and so completely dis- figured through its successive modi cations, that no original sound is now to be identified, not even the four hissing ones which Palamedes was clever enough to learn from the cranes during the siege of Tioy ; and, what is still mere clever, to express in four letters, added since then, to the Greek alphabet. The Greek language is now no more, and its letters are almost forgotten. The Roman letters, adopted by most European nations to write their various languages, might have suited the Latins 2000 years ago, but, with regard to our present sounds, they are eertainly so deficient and ill-contrived, that no human brain can account for their numerous and contradictory acceptation ; not only among the various nations who have adopted them, but in the same language, and even the same word, as so happily exemplified in those fascinating spelling books with which we open the understanding of our children. So far has the writing cf sounds gone from its primitive simplicity. What the author claims for this little work is not so much the invention of any system, as the exact application of the only method of7 writing which can be said with accuracy to express the human language; furnishing the pen with a series of signs in perfect relation to the series of sounds given by the voice. A system, which, analysing the organ of speech in all its most intricate compartments, and pointing out, as it were, by a distinct sign, every distinct seat ot sound, will follow, in all their varied successions, the single or combined operations of that organ. The learner need not be afraid of any great multiplicity of signs ; the processes of nature are so very simple, that he who will but follow her closely, may always be certain of contriving, by the simplest means, the most intricate operations: which accounts for the author having represented all the sounds of the French and English languages with a few strokes of the pen, so simple in their execution that they may be learned in a few mi- nutes, by any individual accustomed to a little mental exertion. Ajs to its universality, it may be observed, that, though the system does not give a distinct expres- sion for every possible sound of the speech, yet it expresses so very accurately those comprised in the two languages most extensively spoken, that, any new sound, being but a new combination of the operations of the organs already described, may be* easily expressed by a new combination of the signs representing these operations. Thus the four nasal vowels, unknown to the English tongue, are represented by the four vowels which form the basis of their sounds, run through by the na- sal consonant which is to be heard simultaneously with them in a combined sound or vocal chord. (Even the Chinese tongue might be pretty accu- rately written with our signs, provided a continual nasal bass be expressed all the way through; a harmony not unlike that of the bag-pipe.)8 The four nasal sounds above mentioned,, with the two vocal ones written in French u9 cu, complete the six sounds peculiar to that language; the English sounds being more than suf- ficient to pronounce Italian, Spanish (with the exception of the/), and almost all European lan- guages. What assistance, therefore, would- it be in their studies, to transcribe (under the direction ofaiiative), in logographic signs, easily pencilled between the lines, an invariable pronunciation to which we could always refer ! Accuracy and intelligibility being secured, the next point to attain is conciseness and consequently rapidity. Had not the author had this point in view, he certainly would have adopted such characters as might have given the reader, at first sight, an idea of their sounds, by some representation, either of the human Organ, or of the animals whose voices are imitated in the sound. Thus B, profiling the mouth closed ; the under lip protruding as in a well proportioned figure, would have been preserved as the best represen- tative of its sound. P, against which the breath pushes with more violence, requires a closer contact of the lips, whose inward contraction is not badly repre- sented by the under one having totally disappeared in the pressure. From P, we come to F, through which the breath forces its way as explained in the figure, which shows us the upper lip drawn upwards in a hori- zontal direction, and disclosing the upper teeth, between which the breath escapes in a fine stream. There is also a great deal of ingenuity in the form of S, (particularly the Greek character), curved as a serpent hissing, and ready to dar£ upon its prey.9 77/, By which the tongue is drawn to the orifice ■of the mouth, as for the action of mucking, would have been represented by the Greek 7V*, (as formed in the ancient manuscripts), whose very sight would have made the young babe smile and curl its little tongue. Bpt such a series of signs, however ingenious in themselves, would fee far too complicated to ad- mit of a clear and easy combination of their, forms into words. The author, therefore, adopting at first, the method of all short-hand writers, has preferred arbitrary signs taken from the sim. :plest and most easy .strokes of the pen. The triangle, a sharp, firm, unalterable figure, sup- ported by an upright, has given in the consonants the frame work, the in alterable skeleton of the language. The vow'els, harmonious, soft, and waving sounds are represented by various little curves thrown as so many ornaments into the body of the writing; they may be written at the same time as the con- sonants, or left aside, to be expressed afterward, if necessary, as the accents in the Hebrew language. But, previous to entering into the explana- tion of our signs, it may be of interest to examine in their mechanical organs, the sounds we have to express. The speech may be divided into two very dis- tinct. parts, viz., the intonated and the articulated, or, to use for once the common appellation, the vowels and the consonants. In order to illustrate that very essentialdistine,. tion by a comparison, let us consider the voice, as a stream, running through the organ of speech,which forms its conduit, and allows it to flow broad or narrow, deep or shallow, in a variety of strains, every one of which may continue undisturbed till the breath, the source of sound, is exhausted.10 These are the vowels, the intonations properly speaking; being the only ones with which music is ■ever sung. In certain and distinct points of that conduit, are placed various contrivances which, opening and shutting upon the stream, as so many locks, obstruct its flood entirely or partly, according to their various constructions. These are the conso- nants; more properly the articulations. It is obvious that the intonations may always flow freely without touching any of the articula- tions, whereas no articulation can be heard unless a sound, a stream, be running for that lock to act upon. There is another sound, neither intonated nor articulated, but the principle of both, since it is the breath issuing in an expiration, (commonly called aspiration); w’e will class it amongst the ar- ticulations, as it replaces them in the sounding of many intonations. ON THE ARTICULATIONS. Three articulations stop entirely e.very particle of sound in three very distinct parts of the conduit, viz., the first at the source of every sound, in the deepest part of the organ, as k, the second in the middle of the stream on the palate, as t, and the third at the outlet on the lips, as p, such as are heard in coat, two, paxc. But these three locks, though they join per- fectly, and stop every particle of breath, can- not, however, prevent it, when accompanied by an intonation, from being heard gathering behind their sonorous partitions; in such cases they are softened, as.it were, by this internal murmur, and the k, t, p, are changed into g, d, b, as heard .iu .God, dog, bag.11 jCsT3X.t in order cams four hissing articulations which, imperfect locks, suffer the breath to force its passage through their loose joints in four various j.ets, as heard in say, shoe, thick, jish. But these four unpleasant sounds may likewise he softened by the mixture of an internal murmur with thempin this case the s, sft, th, J, are changed into z, zh, tih, v, as heard in zed, azure, the, visit. In order to convince the young pupil that each of these seven sounds, whether harsh or softened, is one and the. same articulation, we will simply ask him if he can make any diffe- rence between them in whispering—“ No”—then the only difference is in the intonation. Conse- sequently, if the boy who whispers to his little friend in the school-room, contrives to be under- stood with seven articulations instead of fourteen, we may very well do with seven signs.—But accu- racy ?—Then for the sake of accuracy we wifi make them a little longer, and even dot them i.i their terminations if necessary. The following sound is the lingual articulation, an operation, by which the tongue touches the palate in a soft pressure, as / in to:e, or in a rapid succes- sion of slight blows, as r in ren'; for these two, one sign, longer and dotted in /. The last articulation is the nasal sound, an opera- tion by which a lock being hermetically shut in any of the three parts pointed nt in /, p,k; a safe- ly valve is opened through which the stream o£ sound is permitted to flow at liberty, with such a fluency that wre may even sing by it (which may be called humming a .tune). These sounds are very distinctly heard in nay, mean, smg. For these three we have only one sign, simple in n, longer and dotted in in, and doubly dotted in ns, or for the sake of rapidity ending in a round backward stroke.12 When immediately followed hy any other ar- ticulation, the simple nasal sign may do without •any dot; for n is generally followed by t or d, as In intend, m by p or b, as lump, amber; and ng by k, or g, as ink, hanger ^pronounced /mugger.—Walker). OF THE INTONATIONS. This second component of speech being the 'inusical part of our wt ice, varies with every cli- mate, every country, every town, every individual; and therefore, cannot be easily brought under the sway of fixed rules: a reason, probably, why the vowels are never written in most of the Eastern languages. But since we have undertaken to write with the greatest accuracy attainable all spoken sounds, let us try to class the inarticulated ofies in a certain order, according to the various forms the organ takes in uttering them. Some of them, as it will be perceived, are heard from the deepest recess of the mouth, as oh, aw, others quite on the margin, as n, e. In order to follow this graduation of sounds, from the deepest to the thinnest tone, let us, for a moment, compare the organ of speech to a flute, and ascribe to each note its proper place on this new gamut. Thus, beginning with the sounds uttered in the deepest part of the mouth broadly open, and fol- lowing the others, gradually decreasing 'in depth and fulness as the tongue gradually advances to- wards the .orifice, and the mouth gradually closes its aperture, we find all the intonations in the following order: oh, o (in hot), ah, a (in at) ay (in hay), a, e (in her), ea (a French sound), iVO# u (a French sound), ee.13 The two last ones are so very near the lips and! teeth, that they have often been confounded with the* two articulated hissing sounds which hatfe their seats on these parts of the organ. Such as u with v ; i (pronounced re). with j ; and it is quite pro- bable that the Romans had but one sound, hav^ ing only one letter for each two of them’. The great analogy which exists between many sounds, as previously explained, has enabled the author to couple most of them, and thereby to have only one figure for every two thus united, ex- pressing the slight difference existing in their ut- terance by an analogous distinction in the sizes of their characters. However, to make the diffe- rence more perceptihle, a dot may be added at- the end of the larger character. The order followed itv the collection of the* v'ords representing all the successive sounds, is that ot the articulations; as they belong to all European languages, (excepting the th characteristic of the English tongue). The- intonations are intermixed with the articulations* in a certain order which introduces them to the ear two by tw’o. a heavy and a light one of alike nature, as they are coupled in the French, Italian, and other grammars: (a, a.; 6, 6 ; e, c), the six French nasal being the last of them. The reader, if he be a French scholar, has only to ascertain the proper pronunciation of these, to read in that language as w'ell as in his own, provided it be accurately expressed by oUr chat aclers. The English scholar has no occasion to trouble himself with the French column on the platen un- less he chooses for his amusement, and as a test for the accuracy of the present method, to. read before a native, the w’ords written with the cha- racters common to both; in which case he will read as well as in his own language.u Having thus analysed the organ of speech, in order to render the representation of the voice more complete, vve would suggest the introduction of a little mark- above the syllable on which the accent is felt; this sign mi_;ht be varied in its form, and thereby express not only the prosody of the word spoken, but also the spirit and fee ings of the speaker. ON SHORT-HAND. Having gone thus far in the Logography, we may now turn our ideas to a Short-hand- or ab- breviation of the common hand for the sake of rapidity. There is another sort of writing, improperly coupled with Short-hand, which consists in re- placing words by emblematic signs* such as a straight line for honesty, a cross for Christianity, a round O for the world. The ingenuity of our readers will furnish them with a quantity of those hieroglyphics ; but as our purposed speech writing, let us keep to that science. The first process generally adopted in every language is to drop all intonations except those be- ginning words, reserving only the skeleton of the language. To that we are already prepared ; since we seldom place them in the body of the writing, the size and shape of tbe words will not be altered if we drop all those exter- nal ornaments, and, with the intonations we will leave (gradually) all dots between hard and softened articulations. We may also dispense with the dots placed over the sign of sh and tk, to distin- guish them from those of s and t; the two anala- gous sounds being presented, as it were, to the tougue, in the same sig n, the reader will judge, from the sense%f the phrase, which of the two he is to utter.15 The various consonants joined together in each word may be run in a variety of easy curves, which will often contract three or four of them in a si - ole stroke of the pen; thus the curve ( represents three consonants, or thi'ee straight lines drawn downward; viz., the first to the left, the second perpendicularly, and the third to the ripht; these" three lines, expressing the sounds mrk in our Short-hand, or the word mark, if the intonation tf.be added. This alone may serve as a point of comparison with all other systems of steno_raphy, in every one of which the same curve represents only one letter. In order to save time we may also dispense with expressing the intonations placed at the beginning of words, if we write upon ruled paper, which will enable us to indicate the words beginning with an intonation by writing their first articulation a little out of the line upon yehich all the other words must begin. This process will express all intonations with sufficient distinct: ess to enable us to decipher them, and we would advise those who have Short- hand in view, to use at once the ruled paper in the perfect hand on all occasions. That, however, must not prevent them from expressing the correct sound by the known accent, unless the part of the first consonant which will project out of the line *be in the identical form of that accent. But we must not think of writing Short-hand before we have left off spelling, and it is only when one is proficient enough to know the words by their forms, as individual characters, that he may venture to write or even to read Short-hand.16 Explanation of the plate. Tiie articulations and intonations are classed and numbered in the same order as adopted for their analysis in the foregoing pages. The letters placed above the signs arfe there only as references to the same written in tne example-,• where they have their most frequent pronunciations; the articulations being numbered at the sides, and the' intonations above the letters they are to ex- press. REMARKS ON THE ARTICULATIONS. The sound of z in azure, is the same as that of j Freneh which letter is pronounced in English diz k. The J having there a double articulation, must be written with a double sign; for the same reason that we should write the Italian c in cenerentala by the double articulation tch, or the* English sound of ch in choose. {See Walker’* Pronouncing Dictionary.) ON THE INTONATIONS'. I. The comparative sounds of both columns are not all ilentical in both languages, though expressed with the same characters: a slight difference is to be observed by an acute ear, yvliich consists in rather a fuller tone given by the English voice to the broad' sounds of oh, ah, and ay. II. The French e mute, is rather shorter than the English. Jt is useless to remark that the two loops expressing f v ; p h, may be run upwards or downwards, as necessary to facilitate their junction with other consonants. Th® specimen we have given in the Lord’s Prayer of our Fhort-har.d may at any time be transformed into perfect hand, by adding the intonations..HaIWtmpfrg. ArUctU-a^corvs. _Z _c? _21 _£ _J> ^2. V,z AtA,zAo 2. 0. «. 02,40. o ___,__.___2__i__a____„__wl 7 6 & to on- Jro ton. Artis —x / / Jlccample*?. £ At GUSH Atari- articuZtvt.- tail LTLtonsil: (!<%/- \z tiov i. ,/uvua- ______p_ jA&e/____l Ma%£ y\ yokes snooty—y tksrip, __^ foil arttcioUot: flight intoruot: / 2 3 A J\ dU ^ _ 't*? \ - $U ------1 4 cmuvu/ > • y' 'inJoA $ i snotasns Aoum, V THE loro’s Pit AYE ft. ,/i^.-vV Q/^1 -Qt/f/ \y-/^ //> \ . A o s S' ~'V^ TTV 7^ fHSNCH. hard, aAtutHat: HiZL zn&mat: CnAis __ ^04O£ _ 2 ^uuf - & _ cAotU& . y&cXes rtAA/ ____ '« ^ J4tasn£/——^- * j eXtotsrs / 4y. _*_ soft artocuZai: flight vnijonat: pJtAes cAp/es . "V /AapuEe _______ - 2 ^ess^tffs > si/ikiAe/ ft / Aerf&s ____ V A / t? 'Articles'. sAotsm/ s AASrtAS cAriA' ______ fytA,. 3. HWZmf&m St*StY*in£l-P ART 2nd. MUSICOGRAPHY. The following pages relate to music, for the writing of which are proposed seven distinct signs, expressing by their various forms their relative intonations, and by their various sizes their relative durations; thereby giving in one stroke of the pen both ideas of tone and time. The author has in this also made a distinction between the straight and the curved lines, which he trusts will be appreciated. The triangle, the most simple and perfect of all geometrical figures, mysterious emblem of a mys- terious harmony, represents the perfect chord. The circle will express in its four equal divi- sions the other four round about notes in which the harmony may dwell but not the melody terminate. Thus the young musician will have only to learn seven notes, combined in two modes, the major and the minor, which being acquired, let us say in three weeks, though some musical subjects might do the same in three hours, he will be able to read at first sight any music given. The relation between the two modes might also be compared to the relation between the triangle and the circle, one of the many stumbling blocks of human knowledge ; it might be saidthat whilst the one derives its noble and complete harmony from the rigorous proportions of a straight line, be it a string or a bar of steel; the other borrows its mournful and trying ones from the inexplicable proportions of a circle, be it a drum or a bell. That would account, perhaps, for musical glasses being so distressing to the nerves of many individuals, (shall we say natural mathematicians ?)18 In corroboratioh of this, the author may adduct a fact he has observed, and which he will leave to the investigation of better musicians, viz., that whilst we may in the sound of a single string hear the seventeenth major above the note struck, we may distinguish in the sound of a single bell-Me seventeenth minor, above the base note; the first being a major, and the second a minor chord. It may be objected that the various keys will do away at once with that emblematic writing of music, since every note may become fundamental in its turn. To this the author answers: which- ever note be your fundamental write it as such, there is no music otherwise; write not the instru- mental but the musical proportions. If you strike A sharp on the same string as B flat it is because your instrument is unnatural and false; but the voice, which is a perfect, because a natural one, knows the difference and will make you feel it; therefore, whatever instrument you may happen to play, write the note perfect; you will at least please the eye, if you do not satisfy the ear. The only difficulty is, that you will have sometimes to transpose; but that is not an insurmountable one, since a little girl six years of age, who begins the piano, does a much more difficult thing in reading in two different keys simultaneously; thereby, always transposing w ith one hand or the Other. However, those who prefer writing for the instru- mentswith all the various keys, which have cost them so much trouble to acquire, are quite at li- berty so to do with our signs, and need not find fault with the system under that pretence. Another unquestionable advantage of these characters is, that they may be cast and printed aa Other letters of the press, which process will afford 1 an uncommon correctness of type, and a consider- able reduction in price.10 The last observation, which tlm author submits, in all humility, to his better judges is, why should not musical sounds be designated by musical names taken from pur spoken language ? Seven of our intonations might give their names to the seven notes which could be then run up and down in the greatest rapidity, without being tormented, as it were, by consonants stuck in them as so many nails hooking or scratching everywhere on the organ.20 EXPLANATION OF. THE PLATE. This method of music writing is so very simple, that the mere' inspection of our plate will convince any unprejudiced person of its advantages as to perspicuity, conciseness, and expeditiousness.. For the young student we have added a few instructions: I. Previous to your writing any music, have your paper well divided into equal spaces. II. Express the mood in which you are by one of our signs,, before described, viz., a triangle for the major; or a circle for the minor. * Ilf. Inside this key, drawn in the margin, write the note of your instrument, which is fundamental in the piece, and express the time by a few dots under that character. IV. Take care that every note you write, occupy as much space in the horizontal line as its sound has duration in the measure; a very small space, however, ought to be left between the notes that are not united in the melody. To show the usefulness of our characters we will transcribe here the first verse of the national anthem, with the music written above the words. We will not disturb the print in order to space the letters according to the music; but, taking them as they may be written in any book of poetry, place the notes above the vowels sung; taking care in this case to express their dura- tion by small dots written over them:—. m9 I - - 0.10 - ^ 1 God save our gracious Queen ! I /^l— 1 God save our noble Queen ! I JA* ii | God save the Queen ! CADDEL, PRINTER, GAZETTE-OFFICE, ROCHESTER./Joufi/r farm/e/ /r? sAe nmting. - • # f- f = R 5 v MuAicsyraphy. Example : THE HUNTERS fm&erj 2’/te tame irv J/Ueieeigrapty.