lard = _ngai_; so_n go_sier = _ngo_.

_p_ as in English.

_p'_ The Irish pronunciation of _p_arty, _p_arliament. _Sla_p-ha_rd_
without the italicized letters = _p'a_.

_s_ as in English.

_sh_ as in English.

_ss_. Only in _ssu_. The object of employing _ss_ is to fix attention
on the peculiar vowel-sound _u_ (see above).

_t_ as in English.

_t'_ The Irish _t_ in _t_orment. _Hi_t-ha_rd_ without the italicized
letters = _t'a_.

_ts_ as in _jetsam_; after another word softened to _ds_ in _gladsome_.

_ts'._ The aspirate intervening, as in _ch'_, etc. _Be_ts-ha_rd_
without the italicized letters = _ts'a_.

_tz_. Employed to mark the peculiarity of the final _u_; hardly of
greater power than _ts_.

_tz'_ like _ts'_. This, _tz_, and _ss_ used only before _u_.

_w_ as in English; but very faint, or even non-existent, before _ue_.

_y_ as in English; but very faint before _i_ or _ue_.

Tone

The correct pronunciation of the sound (_yin_) is not sufficient to
make a Chinese spoken word intelligible. Unless the tone (_sheng_),
or musical note, is simultaneously correctly given, either the wrong
meaning or no meaning at all will be conveyed. The tone is the key in
which the voice is pitched. Accent is a 'song added to,' and tone is
emphasized accent. The number of these tones differs in the different
dialects. In Pekingese there are now four. They are best indicated
in transliteration by numbers added to the sound, thus:

_pa_ (1) _pa_ (2) _pa_ (3) _pa_ (4)

To say, for example, _pa_ (3) instead of _pa_ (1) would be as great
a mistake as to say 'grasp' instead of 'trumpet.' Correctness of tone
cannot be learnt except by oral instruction.

Rhythm

What tone is to the individual sound rhythm is to the sentence. This
also, together with proper appreciation of the mutual modifications
of tone and rhythm, can be correctly acquired only by oral instruction.

NOTES

[1] The inventions of the Chinese during a period of four thousand
years may be numbered on the fingers of one hand.

[2] _East of Asia Magazine_, i, 15-16.

[3] _Cf_. Aristotle's belief that bugs arose spontaneously from sweat.

[4] For the Buddhist account see _China Review_, xi, 80-82.

[5] Compare the Japanese legend, which relates that the Sun-goddess was
induced to come out of a cave by being tempted to gaze at herself in a
mirror. See _Myths and Legends of Japan_, F. Hadland Davis, pp. 27-28.

[6] See _Myths of