6. The use of a for 9. No Asamese manuscript that we have seen makes any distinction between these letters. 7. The use of for . The alphabet being thus far simplified, it was discovered that only two redundant letters still re- mained; to express the united sound of r and i; and, used to represent the sound of j. To these therefore the knife was applied without hesitation, and the written character brought to as exact a cor- respondence with the pronunciation, as the nature of the language will admit; every radically different sound having one and only one distinct symbol as its representative. In accomplishing this desirable end, not a single new character has been introduced; so that the language, as now printed, is read at once, and with entire case, by natives who had. previously been acquainted only with their own manuscripts. That the priests and pundits, who despise the ver- nacular, and would gladly lock up all knowledge in Sanskrit and Bengali, should unite in any effort for improving or systemizing their own language, is not to be expected; yet even they, from the constant perusal of our printed books and papers, are begin- ning to regard the vernacular with respect; while amongst the common people, our efforts to give them their own language in a simple and uniform dress, have met with universal favor.
