The ss between two vowels was imperfect, reminding one of the English "th" and the German "sch" and "s." The child could not at this time be brought to learn by heart.
We see, from these three versions, how unequal the capacity for articulation is in its development, and how varied it is in regard to the omission of difficult consonants and the substitution of others in place of them, as well as in regard to transposition, e. g., in wand, walt, wlad (Wald), wenn, wid, wiĕds, fint (Wind)—and this even in the same individual.
As no one thus far has instituted comparisons of this sort, one more example may be given. The verses taught by Sigismund to his child (for whom I use the sign S) of twenty-one months, were often repeated by my boy (A), of twenty-five months, to me, and by the boy from Düsseldorf (D), in his twenty-fifth month, to his mother:
| S | A | D |
| 21st month | 25th month | 27th month | 25th month | |
| Guter | tute | tuten | tuter | guter |
| Mond | bohnd | monn | mond | Mund |
| Du gehst | du tehz | du gehts | du dehst | du gehs |
| so stille | so tinne | so tilte | so tille | ho tille |
| durch die | duch die | durch die | durch die | durch die |
| Abendwolken | aten-bonten | aben-woltn | abendwolkn | abehtwolken |
| him | in | in | in | hin |
| gehst so | tehz so | gehts so | dehst so | gehs so |
| traurig | tautech (atich) | treuja | trauig | terauhig |
| und ich | und ich | unn ich | und ich | und ich |
| fühle | büne | felam | fühle | fühle |
| dass ich | dass ich | dess ich | dass ich | dass ich |
| ohne Ruhe | one ule | ohno ruhge | ohne ruhe | ohni ruhe |
| bin | bin | bin | bin | bin |
| Guter | tute | hotten | tuter | guter |
| Mond | bohnd | mohn | mond | mond |
| du darfst | du atz | du dafp | du darfst | du darf |
| es wissen | es bitten | es witsen | es wissen | es wissen |
| weil du so | bein du so | leil du so | weil du so | weil du ho |
| verschwiegen | bieten | wereidsam | verwiegen | werwiegen |
| bist | bitz | bits | bist | bits |
| warum | amum | wa-um | warum | wahum |
| meine | meine | meine | meinhe | meine |
| Thränen | tänen | tänen | thränen | tänen |
| fliessen | bieten | flietjam | fliessen | fliessen |
| und mein | und mein | und mein | und mein | und mein |
| Herz so | ätz so | hetz so | erst so | hetz ho |
| traurig ist | atich iz | treutjam its | trauig ist | taudig ist |
| Errors | 24 | 26 | 13 | 18 |
The errors are very unlike, and are characteristic for each child. The fact that in the case of A the errors diminished by half within two months is to be explained by frequency of recitation. I may add that the inclination to recite was so often lacking that a good deal of pains was required to bring the child to it.
From the vocabulary of the second year of the child's life, according to the observations of Sigismund and myself, the following words of frequent use are also worthy of notice:
| { | Vater | Mutter | Anna | Milch | Kuh | Pferd |
| { | (father) | (mother) | (milk) | (cow) | (horse) | |
| S.{ | atte | amme | anne | minne | muh | hotto |
| { | ätte | ämme | dodo | |||
| { | tate | ämmäm | päd | |||
| { | fatte | mämme | ||||
| matte |
| { | va-ata | mama | anna | mimi | mumuh | otto |
| P.{ | papa | mukuh | pfowed | |||
| fowid |
| Vogel | Mund | Nase | Ohr | Haare | Finger | Da | |
| (bird) | (mouth) | (nose) | (ear) | (hair) | (there) | ||
| S. | piep-piep | mund | ase | ohn | ale | finne | da |
| P. | piep, pipiep | mum | nane | o-a | ha-i | {finge | da |
| {wi-er |