Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1876-05-12
Pronunciation Of w Ords.

Here are some of the commonest words 10
the language that are habitualy mlspronounced
by meu of the legal profession.
The entire class of words, like prog, ress, proc
ess, product preface, predecessor, are pro-
nouuced progress, process pro duct, preface,
predecessor, 10 violation of the rules laid down
by our two highest authorities. So IN the
words ep oeh, ten-ets tribune, ven ue, nom-
ad the consouant il common practice, is i'm
uroperly Joined to the last syllable instead of
The first In the words obligatory, tx emplary,
interesting, per-tmptory, construed, the au'
thorities require that the accent should be
thrown forward on the first syllable. lu large
class of words like ductie, fertile, reptile, hos
tile puere, engine, mercantile, maratlme, er-
mine, the buuder is usually committed OF CIV
ipg the ~ the long lpstead Ut the short
sound.
And we daily hear resources for resour ces,
the penult being accented; noncom bat al IS tor
uoucom. batants; against, giving the "a the
long sound when the proper pronunciation is
'a2enst;" we hear the iulpropsrly sounded
in often, where it is silent; the z sound is sci.
dom given to the fna 10 such words as suthc'
and sacrifice; appellant is pronounced every
way, including the right way, which is with
the accent Oh the penul; pre-tense Is wrongly
accented on the last syllable; statutory is called
statu ury; the long 10 the penult OF aspirant
is seldom given the accent as 1t should be, and
a similar error is committed IL pronouuclog op-
DO nent by throwiog the accent too tar forward.
Irrevocable should, OF course, have the &C
cent on the rev" aud iud;sputable 90 the
dis" while in lamentable authority requires
that the first syllable shall be accehted. There Is
no excuse for mispronounciug such words as
archives, where the has the long Engllsh
sound; or huance, 10 which the has the short
sound, and has the consoDant lolued to 1t; the
l.alp words deficit aud suf-iclt can be pro-
bounced iu but one way namely, with all the
vowcls short aud the joined to the first sy-
able which is accented. de is grossly llllte-
rate lawyer who, at this day, would pronounce
Magma Charta u any other manner than with
the ch as k, or pronounce 6de in the phrase
bona fde, as word Of one syllable How the
lawyers can get dam" out of the word man
da. uus 10 de6auce of all the rules OF the Eog-
lsh and the Latan languages, we abandon as
hopeless inquiry Que would suppose that
law student could not bunder In the pro0unca
ton o.! the French word laches, which is lden-
tcal with our Euellsh sword lashes IN sound,
but there are such lnDumerable 'latches 10
every forum that attorneys must think that
door lutctas, or the absence olthem, have every
thing to do with the question OF neglect.
One word only-whch, by the way, Is not
unly, but only, with the o long-and we dismiss
this branch of the sui Jet. The proposition to
pronounced like the last syllable in the word
canoe, or, if DOT emphatic, little shorter-is
pronounced by many learned gentlemen like the
word tow. Whether the learned counsel have
IN mlDd anything SO com bustible as tow aod
flax, or only low toats, ii is nevertheless mani
fest that they two often try in vain to tow their
clients barks over the uiue judicial breakers
which mus, b, safely passed before reaching
a haven Wash Capitol.