Comp. Eng. unjustifiahleness, unalteraMeness, etc., etc. Good
writers endeavor to avoid such awkward forms, which not only
hinder rhythm and perspicuity, but whicli may also cause the
loss of a syllable (see Phonetic Decay ). With the com-
parative and superlative of adjectives of three or more syl-
lables English avoids this disproportion by means of periphras-
tic comparison : a more interesting girl, the most insulting
reply, a more beautiful house, etc., etc. Comp. German: @S
giebt faum eine me^v tiertoifenbe ©elegen^eit, there is scarcely a
more enticing opportunity, etc., etc.
PHONETIC VARIATION.
Phonetic variation is due to a multiplicity of causes. Such
are : a preference for certain sounds, the power of analogy, a
difference in the conception of sound by the ear, a tendency to
conformity, parasitic or intrusive elements, contraction and
expansion. It may be due to causes purely physiological, as
inability in production or indolence in utterance ; to causes
which have never been satisfactorily explained, as with Grimm's
Law (see ) ; or to the influence of other sounds, i. e. eu-
phonic, as with Assimilation (see ), etc. It exists in the
midst of the highest civilization, even where uniformity of
speech is claimed, in the same district or community, often
even with members of the same household. It is just here that
with our own English an insurmountable barrier is offered to a
thorough reform in spelling

Phonetic variation may be: 1) simple, pure, which involves
all the changes suffered in thfe history of language by the ma-
terial which constitutes words and word elements (letters, syl-
lables, roots, and stems), so far as these changes have no in-
tellectual significance ; 2) phonetico-intellectual, which is not
only a phonetic or material, but also an intellectual process.
