The above remarks on the imitation of sounds and speech by infants, besides illustrating an unwritten language, will enable a reader, to whom the subject really is new, to understand how languages that are of the same family, may yet differ immensely. It is to be remembered that different individuals imitate differently. While some find it easier to throw out consonants, others put them in, as some men find it easy to say _Amelia-r-an_ for _Amelia Ann_. Again, children often modify their vowels to compensate for some consonant they cannot pronounce. When a child says _tate_, for _blanket_, the _a_ is emphasised through an effort to embrace the _n_. Some African races say Nyansa, others Nyasa, with the _a_ so modified that we might write, Nyaasa, or Nyassa. Like children beginning to speak, certain races have few consonants, and are obliged to throw much work upon them. Thus one tribe had to call Captain Cook, the first Englishman that they met, Taptain Toot, making the _t_ do duty for the _c_ (_k_). When we think of the various ways in which a language may be modified, we are much struck by studying a work like Koelle’s _Polyglotta Africana_, which points to striking affinities, traceable among African tongues. Moreover, such works are liable to be at first obscured through misleading data. Perplexity is caused by words from languages that had not been perfectly studied at the time. Thus where there are two words for “woman,” the philologist may hear only one, which instead of being the proper instrument for tracing affinities, may be derived from another word within the special dialect. Again in one language an old word for “woman,” may have been superseded, although some derivatives from it yet remain. As more languages are gradually reduced, a rich harvest awaits the philologist in Africa. These illustrations from the speech of children, include nearly all that will be expected from one giving a general account of an African language. We are aware of the danger of converting illustrations into principles without stating their limitations: as did the man who wanted to prove that all speech was but a development of the utterances of the lower animals. After making observations on two of his children, he found his theory much confirmed; but when he tried the third child, its first utterance was, “Don’t tease, go away”. This wonderful sentence brought his theory into discredit; but it is clear that I may claim this child in confirmation of what I have adduced. Its first utterance is made up of imperatives, and this on our principles, is just what it ought to be! It remains only to give a short account of points not yet touched on. _Sounds._ Vowels and consonants are much modified for euphony. The consonant changes may be exemplified in connection with the letter _n_, _e.g._, ku-n-lola becomes kundola; and in ku-n-sosa the _n_ is entirely dropped, but the preceding vowel is lengthened, and the word might be written kuusosa. In this way,