Page:Diary of ten years.djvu/450

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viii
PREFACE.

the shade), is with them, "Malloka nginnowka." To the eastward the sound of E is often used where O is used at Perth; as, Kot-ye, a bone, hecomes Kwetje to the East, and Kwetj at King George's Sound. So Kole becomes Kwele and Kwel. And very generally O is used for U; as Gort for Gurt, the heart; Goya for Guya, a frog. E is often substituted for OW in many districts; as, Yuke for Yugow (to be); Wanke for Wangow (to speak). About King George's Sound, also, the word Gur, according to Captain Grey, is used as an affix to many of the verbs. This appears analogous to the word Kolo (if, indeed, it be not an indistinct pronounciation of the same word, with the final syllable cut off), which is used in all the Swan River districts as an occasional or optional affix expressive of motion; as, Dtabbat (to fall down) is often sounded Dtabbat kolo (to move falling down); Darbow (to stoop); Darbow kolo (to move stooping); Murrijo (to walk); Murrijo kolo (to move walking); so that, probably, it may be found, on attentive examination, that Kolo, Gulut, Gulbang, Gulbat, all expressing motion, and Gur, also, are but various modifications of the same radical word.

There is another variety of pronunciation which occasions a difference in sound that is more apparent than real; namely, the sound of B for P, and P for B; the sound of D for T, and T for D; of G for K, and K for G. These letters, respectively, are in so many instances used indiscriminately, or interchangeably, that it is frequently difficult to distinguish which sound predominates; even in the same district; but the predominant sound varies in different districts; as Barduk, Parduk; Gatta, Katta; Tabba, or Dappa; which last word may be heard occasionally in all the different forms; Dappa, Dabba, Tabba, or Tappa. But, bearing in