Chapter L: L. L

[The inquiry will be found in our 5th Vol., p. 465.]

_Irish Rhymes_ (Vol. vi., and Vol. vii., p. 52.).--CUTHBERT BEDE, in his notice of the Irish rhymes in Swift's poetry, quoted one couplet in which _put_ rhymes to _cut_. Is this pronunciation of the word _put_ an Irishism?

A late distinguished divine, who, although he occupied an Irish see, was certainly no Irishman, and who was remarkably particular and, I believe, correct in his diction, always pronounced this word in this manner (as indeed every other word with the same termination is pronounced: as _rut_, _cut_, _shut_, _nut_, _but_, &c.).

The bishop to whom I allude pronounced the word thus, long before he ever had any communication with Ireland: and it is strange that, although I have been in Ireland myself, I never heard _put_ pronounced so as to rhyme with _cut_ by any native of that island.

RUBI.

The following extract is a note by Lord Mahon, in vol. i. p. 374. of his edition of Lord Chesterfield's _Letters to his Son_ (Bentley, 1847). I cannot see how the quotation from Boswell bears upon either _accent_ or _cadence_; it appears to relate entirely to different modes of pronunciation:

"It may be observed, however, that the questions of what are 'false
accents and cadences' in our language appear to have been far less
settled in Lord Chesterfield's time than at present. Dr. Johnson says:
'When I published the plan for my dictionary, Lord Chesterfield told me
that the word _great_ should be pronounced so as to rhyme with _state_;
and Sir William Yonge sent me word, that it should be pronounced so as
to rhyme to _seat_, and that none but an Irishman would pronounce it
_grait_. Now, here were two men of the highest rank,--the one the best
speaker in the House of Lords, the other the best speaker in the House
of Commons--differing entirely."--Boswell's _Life_, Notes of March 27,
1772.