This statement, however, is nothing like so general as the one that, after a comparison of the older forms and the allied languages, we are enabled to make. Here we are taught,
1. That, in the words bind, &c., the i was once pronounced as in till, fill; in other words, that it was the simple short vowel, and not the diphthong ey; or at least that it was treated as such.
| Mœso-Gothic. | |||
| Binda | Band | Bundum | Bundans. |
| Bivinda | Bivand | Bivundum | Bivundums. |
| Finþa | Fanþ | Funþum | Funþans. |
| Anglo-Saxon. | |||
| Bind | Band | Bundon | Bunden. |
| Finde | Fand | Fundon | Funden. |
| Grinde | Grand | Grundon | Grunden. |
| Winde | Wand | Wundon | Wunden. |
| Old Norse. | |||
| Finn | Fann | Funðum | Funninn. |
| Bind | Batt | Bundum | Bundinn. |
| Vind | Vatt | Undum | Undinn. |
When the vowel ĭ of the present took the sound of the i in bite, the ŭ in the præterite became the ou in mouse. From this we see that the words bind, &c., are naturally subject to the same changes with spin, &c., and that, mutatis mutandis, they are so still.
2. That the e in swell, &c., was once ĭ. This we collect from the following forms:—hilpa, Mœso-Gothic; hilfu, Old High German; hilpu, Old Saxon; hilpe, Middle High German; hilpe, Old Frisian. Suillu=swell, Old High German. Tilfu=delve, Old High German; dilbu, Old Saxon. Smilzu, Old High German=smelt or melt. This shows that originally the vowel i ran throughout, but that before l and r it was changed into e. This change took place at different periods in different dialects. The Old Saxon preserved the
i longer than the Anglo-Saxon. It is found even in the middle High German; in the new it has become e; as schwelle, schmelze. In one word milk, the original i is still preserved; although in Anglo-Saxon it was e; as melce, mealc=milked, mulcon. In the Norse the change from i to e took place full soon, as svëll=swells. The Norse language is in this respect important.
3. That the o in swoll, holp, was originally a; as
| Hilpa | Halp | Hulpum | Mœso-Gothic. |
| Suillu | Sual | Suullumês | Old High German. |
| Hilfu | Half | Hulfumês | Ditto. |
| Tilfu | Talf | Tulfumês | Ditto. |
| Hilpe | Halp | Hulpun | Middle High German. |
| Dilbe | Dalp | Dulbun | Ditto. |
| Hilpe | Halp | Hulpon | Ditto. |
| Svëll | Svall | Sullum | Old Norse. |
| Melte | Mealt | Multon | Anglo-Saxon. |
| Helpe | Haelp | Hulpon | Ditto. |
| Delfe | Dealf | Dulfon | Ditto. |
4. That a change between a and o took place by times. The Anglo-Saxon præterite of swelle is sweoll; whilst ongon, bond, song, gelomp, are found in the same language for ongan, band, sang, gelamp.—Rask's Anglo-Saxon Grammar, p. 90.
5. That run is only an apparent exception, the older form being rinn.