Step by Step in Esperanto

*FOR THE TEACHER— Instruction on the vowel-sounds must be adapted to the local pronunciation of English. This varies so much, that an explanation which is helpful and necessary in one part of England may be useless or misleading in another.

The Esperanto e and o are heard in the Italian re_t do, as sung by a good singer on a prolonged note. In Southern England pure e and o hardly exist, and the vowel-sound in the words may, ray, if analysed, is found to consist of e glided into a short i (as in it), and that in the words go, doh, to consist of o glided into a short oo (as in look). The Esperanto e and o are these initial vowels ivithout the final glide. The glides heard in the words may go of Southern English would be represented in Esperanto spelling by mej goŭ<

The difficulty lies not in Esperanto, but in English, and faces the English learner of any foreign language. But whereas in other language6 small variations of vowel-sound may render the speaker unintelligible, in Esperanto the five vowels are so widely distinct that even at the worst the risk of misunderstanding is negligible. But a careless beginner from London might be told: " I can guess you are English, because your vowels are not pure

In theory, each vowel has a uniform pronunciation, and an effort should be made to attain this. In practice, however, in Esperanto as in other languages, certain consonants (notably " r ") inevitably influence the vowels they follow; moreover, in rapid speech the vowels tend to become shorter—e, for example, may sound almost as in met; i as in bit; and u as in good.

To pronounce doloro with the three sounds doll-law-roe_t or with the glides heard in dough-law-roe_y would be incorrect. An approxima- tion (for a Londoner) is daw-law-raw, said lightly.

FOR PHONETICIANS.—The corresponding symbols of the International Phonetic Association are: a, e, i, o, u (cardinal vowels). In practice, the sounds of a, e, o, may vary between a and a_% between e and Ј, and between o and o, respectively.

*So Zamenhof and general use. Certainly, if it introduces a non- defming clause (one complete in itself, which, if omitted, would still leave sense). La knabo, kiu estas mia filo, kantas : The boy_y who is (= and, by tlie way_f he is) my son, sings. But much can be said for the English omission of the comma before a defining (adjectival) phrase. La knabo kiu kantas = the boy that sings^the singing boy.

• The early worm goes forth toith zeal To give the hungry bird a meal. His brother has no such intention, And lives to draw his old age pension. (or)

The earliest winged songster soonest sees, And first appropriates, th* annelides.

'\Desiccated herbage must submit to perturbation While the radiant orb of day affords illumination

*Miscalculations multitudinous Co-operate with utter rnalice Twixt labial orifi.ce and chalice To shatter all the hopes imbued in us.

[1]In Esperanto there is no letter x. The English x is transcribed by ks. (But ex- before a vowel becomes ekz-. E.g., ekzameno).

fKN. Sound each letter, as in picnic, technical, L«cknow, look n ice.

[1]Words like pantalono, a pair of trousers; tondilo, a pair of scissors; bilardo, billiards; fiziko, physics\ matematiko, mathe- matics; politiko, politics; are singular : each v/ord names one thing

only. »

j

^lnfanoj, (like brethren in " Dearly beloved brethren ") may include both sexes : the one embraces the other !

♦Follovving international custom, it is usual to say S-ro B for Mr. B_y married or single; but to call a lady S-ino (Mrs.) or F-ino (Miss), as the case may be. Like lady in English, hovvever, the word sinjorino does not necessarily mean a married lady.

[3]It would be logical and correct to say Kioj estas kokinoj ? (or even Kioj estas tioj ?). But the singular form (Kio) is usual.

[4]Two formulae are especially useful.