Of Accent, Emphasis, and Cadence. Accent is a forcible stress or impulse of voice on a letter or svllable, distinguishing it from others in the same word. When it falls on a vowel, it prolongs the sound, as in glory; when it falls on a consonant, the preceding vowel is short, as in habit. The general rule by which accent is regulated, is, that the stress of voice falls on that syllable of a word, which renders the articulations most easy to the speaker, and most agreeable to the hearer. By this rule has the accent of most words been imperceptibly established by long and universal consent. When a word consists of three or more syllables, the ease of speaking requires usually a secondary accent, of less forcible utterance than the primary, but clearly distinguishable from the pronunciation of unaccented syllables; as in superfluity, literary. In many compound words, the parts of which are important words of themselves, there is very little distinction of accent; as ink-stand, church-yard. Emphasis is a particular force of utterance given to a particular word in a sentence, on account of its importance. Cadence is a fall or modulation of the voice in reading or speaking, especially at the end of a sentence. Words are simple or compound, primitive or derivative. A simple word cannot be divided, without destroying the sense; as man, child, house, charity, faith. A compound word is formed by two or more words; as chimney-piece, book-binder. Primitive words are such as are not derived, but constitute a radical stock from which others are formed; as grace, hope, charm. Derivative words are those which are formed of a primitive, and some termination or additional syllable; as grace-less, hope-ful, charm-ing, un-welcome. Spelling is the art or practice of writing or reading the proper letters of a word; called also orthography. In forming tables for learners, the best rule to be observed, is, to divide the syllables in such a manner as to guide the learner by the sound of the letters, to the sound of the words; that is, to divide them as they are divided in a just pronunciation. *This is not a letter, but a character standing for and. Children therefore should be taught to call it and; not and-per-se. |