is the practice in England, in the Middle and Southern
States, and, what is higher authority, analogy warrants the practice."
He hesitates between _oblige_ and _obleege_, the weight of authority
being equally divided, but analogy persuades him to the former. Analogy
also requires European, though modern fashionable speakers have been
introducing the innovation of European. "In the Middle and Southern
States _fierce_, _pierce_, _tierce_, are pronounced _feerce_, _peerce_,
_teerce_. To convince the people of the impropriety of this
pronunciation, it might be sufficient to inform them that it is not
fashionable on the English theatre.... The standard English
pronunciation now is _ferce_, _perce_, _terce_, and it is universal in
New England." He arraigns the fashionable world for pronouncing _heard_
as herd, instead of by its true sound of _heard_, in analogy with
_feared_. "_Beard_ is sometimes, but erroneously, pronounced _beerd_.
General practice, both in England and America, requires that _e_ should
be pronounced as in _were_, and I know of no rule opposed to the
practice." He objects to the innovation of _woond_ for _wound_, and
enters upon a long discussion of the pronunciation of _nature_, finally
falling back upon his countrymen's _natur_.

Webster inculcated his views on orthography and pronunciation upon all
occasions. He wrote, he lectured, he pressed home his doctrines upon
persons and assemblies. He was one of the first to perceive the
importance of getting his principles adopted in printing-houses. Long
after the time of which I am writing he continued to act as a missionary
in philology. The present printer of "Webster's Dictionary" remembers
that when he was a boy of thirteen, working at the case in Burlington,
Vermont, a little pale-faced man came into the office and handed him a
printed slip, saying, "My lad, when you use these words, please oblige
me by spelling them as here: _theater_, _center_," etc. It was Noah
Webster traveling about among the printing-offices, and persuading
people to spell as he did: a better illustration could not be found of
the reformer's sagacity, and his patient method of effecting his
purpose.

His contemporaries were obliged to take sides when so aggressive a
spirit was among them. His doctrines were discussed in society and in
print. The [Greek: Ph B K] Society at Yale debated upon the adoption of
Webster's orthography, deciding in 1792 in favor of it, and reversing
their