regular sound is in the words busy, business, and bury. We laugh at the Scotch for pronouncing these words, as if written bewsy, bewsiness, bewry; but we ought rather to blush for ourselves in departing so wantonly from the general rule as to pronounce them bizzy, bizness, and berry.
179. There is an incorrect pronunciation of this letter when it ends a syllable not under the accent, which prevails not only among the vulgar, but is sometimes found in better company; and that is, giving the u an obscure sound, which confounds it with vowels of a very different kind: thus we not unfrequently hear singular, regular, and particular, pronounced as if written sing-e-lar, reg-e-lar, and par-tick-e-lar; but nothing tends more to tarnish and vulgarize the pronunciation than this short and obscure sound of the unaccented u. It may, indeed, be observed, that there is scarcely any thing more distinguishes a person of mean and good education than the pronunciation of the unaccented vowels. (547) (558) When vowels are under the accent, the prince, and the lowest of the people in the metropolis, with very few exceptions, pronounce them in the same manner; but the unaccented vowels in the mouth of the former have a distinct, open, and specific sound, while the latter often totally sink them, or change them into some other sound. Those, therefore, who wish to pronounce elegantly, must be particularly attentive to the unaccented vowels; as a neat pronunciation of these forms one of the greatest beauties of speaking.
Y final.
180. Y final, either in a word or syllable, is a pure vowel, and has exactly the same sound as i would have in the same situation. For this reason, printers, who have been the great correctors of our orthography, have substituted the i in its stead, on account of the too great frequency of this letter in the English language. That y final is a vowel, is universally acknowledged; nor need we any other proof of it than its long sound, when followed by e mute, as in thyme, rhyme, etc. or ending a syllable with the accent upon it, as buying, cyder, etc. this may be called its first vowel sound.
181. The second sound of the vowel y is its short sound, heard in system, syntax, etc.
Irregular and Unaccented Sounds.
182. The unaccented sound of this letter at the end of a syllable, like that of i in the same situation, is always like the first sound of e: thus vanity, pleurisy, etc. and if ear alone were consulted, might be written vanitee, pleurisee, etc.
183. The exception to this rule is, when f precedes the y in a final syllable, the y is then pronounced as long and open as if the accent were on it: thus justify, qualify, etc. have the last syllable sounded like that in defy. This long sound continues when the y is changed into i, in justifiable, qualifiable, etc. The same may be observed of multiply and multiplicable, etc. occupy and occupiable, etc. (512)
184. There is an irregular sound of this letter when the accent is on it in panegyric, when it is frequently pronounced like the second sound of e; which would be more correct if its true sound were preserved, and it were to rhyme with Pyrrhic; or as Swift does with Satiric:
"On me when dunces are satiric,
I take it for a panegyric."
Thus we see the same irregularity attends this letter before double r, or before single r, followed by a vowel, as we find attends the vowel i in the same situation. So the word Syrinx ought to preserve the y like i pure, and the word Syrtis should sound the y like e short, though the first is often heard improperly like the last.
185. But the most uncertain sound of this letter is, when it ends a syllable immediately preceding the accent. In this case it is subject to the same variety as the letter i in the same situation, and nothing but a catalogue will give us an idea of the analogy of the language in this point.
186. The y is long in chylaceous, but shortened by the secondary accent in chylifaction and chylifactive, (530) though, without the least reason from analogy, Mr. Sheridan has marked them both long.
187. Words composed of hydro, from the Greek ὕδωρ, water, have the y before the accent generally long, as hydrography, hydrographer, hydrometry, hydropic; all which have the y long in Mr. Sheridan but hydrography, which must be a mistake of the press; and this long sound of y continues in hydrostatic, in spite of the shortening power of the secondary accent. (530) The same sound of y prevails in hydraulics and hydatides. Hygrometer and hygrometry seem to follow the same analogy, as well as hyperbola and hyperbole; which are generally heard with the y long; though Kenrick has marked the latter short. Hypostasis and hypotenuse ought to have the y long likewise. In hypothesis the y is more frequently short than long; and in hypothetical it is more frequently long than short; but hypocrisy has the first y always short. Myrabolan and myropolist may have the y either long or short. Mythology has the first y generally short, and mythological, from the shortening power of the secondary accent, (530) almost always. Phytivorous, phytography, phytology, have the first y alway long. In phylactery the first y is generally short, and in physician always. Pylorus has the y long in Mr. Sheridan, but, I think, improperly. In pyramidal he marks the y long, though, in my opinion, it is generally heard short, as in pyramid. In pyrites, with the accent on the second syllable, he marks the y short, much more correctly than Kenrick, who places the accent on the first syllable, and makes the y long. (See the word.) Synodic, synodical, synonima, and synopsis, have the y always short: synechdoche ought likewise to have the same
