laide diceluy, procedant
par le

counsayle of Orace, whiche is as shorte as possible shalbe.
conseil dOrace, qui est le plus brief que possible sera.

Page 899

HERE FOLOWETH THE FYRST BOKE OF SEVYN RULES FOR TO REDE
AND TO PRONOUNCE FRENCHE TREWLY.

THE FYRST
is howe the fyve vowels, that is to saye _a_, _e_, _i_, _o_, and _v_,
shalbe sounded in redyng french.

Ye shal pronounce your _a_, as wyde open mouthed as ye can; your _e_,
as ye do in latyn, almost as brode as ye pronounce your _a_ in englysshe;
your _i_, as sharpe as can be; _o_, as ye do in englyssh, and _v_ after
the Skottes, as in this worde _gud_. These fyve uowels be consonantes
when they receyve nat their full sounde, as in this worde _jamais_ the
fyrst _a_ is a uowell, and the seconde is a consonant.

Example of _e_, as _deite_ and _mageste_, where bothe _ees_ of _deite_ be
uowels, and the fyrst of _mageste_ is a consonant and the seconde is a
uowell. Wherfore ye shall understande that the moste parte of _ees_ in
french be consonantes, save fewe with suche wordes as come out of latyn.
Example of
me, the, hym, that, of, the, do, to say,
to put, oure, your,

consonantes _me_, _te_, _se_, _que_, _de_, _le_, _faire_, _dire_,
_mectre_, _nostre_, _vostre_,

wher is never a uowel. All the _ees_ that shalbe uowels in this present
boke shalbe marked as the dyptong is in latyn, thus _e_.

THE SECONDE RULE.

Also in redyng frenche ye shall leave the last letter of every worde
unsounde, endyng in _s_, _t_, and _p_, save of the same worde wherupon
ye do pause or rest, for if ye do pronounce every worde by hymselfe,
that is to say, restyng upon the same, ye ought for to pronounce and
sounde him thorowe. And if any word endyng with an _s_, have the next
worde folowyng begynning with a uowell, than shall ye sounde the said
_s_, lyke a _z_,

never others

as in these wordes _jamais aultres_ ye shal rede _jamaiz aultre_, as it
were but one worde, but if the next worde commyng after the _s_ be a
consonant, than shall the said _s_ remayne unsounde, as in these wordes
_jamais nares_, (never shall ye have) the _s_ of _jamais_ shall nat be
sounde. Provyded alwayes, as is sayde before, that ye do nat pause nor
rest upon the worde, for so doyng ye must sounde it parfitely.

THE THYRDE RULE.

Whan one worde doth ende with a uowell, and the next folowyng after

Page 900

begyn with