One result of his study became immediately apparent to him. The constant agglomeration of consonants without the intervention of a vowel proved that in some cases the vowel must be inherent in the consonant. He arrived at this conclusion from the word ‘Çprd,’ which he found as the name of a country in his inscription, and which he concluded was Çapardia, or the Sapeires of Herodotus.[446]. We have seen that Burnouf was led to the same inference from the appearance of such forms as ‘izrk’ and ‘Aurmzda.’[447] Lassen also observed instances, such as the word ‘imam,’ where the word is sometimes written with and sometimes without the _a_ (𐎠).[448] He at length laid down the rule that an _a_ is only distinctly expressed at the beginning of a word, and in the middle before _h_ or another vowel. On all other occasions, he says, it is inherent in all the consonants, unless distinctly excluded by the occurrence of another vowel.[449] This rule he afterwards applied more distinctly to the short _a_ (𐏃), and adds that it is expressed when it follows the long _â_ (𐎠), never after _i_ or _u_.[450] In his transliterations he assumes the truth of this rule, and he invariably separates two consonants by the interposition of an _a_. We have said that he may indisputably claim to have added six new values correctly to the alphabet, _i_, _t_, _m_, _d_, _g_ (25), _g_ (44).[451] The sign for _i_ is the second letter in ‘Hystaspes,’ and it had been variously given the value of _o_ by Grotefend and _y_ by St. Martin, according as they followed the form ‘Goshtasp’ or ‘Vyschtaspo.’ But Lassen pointed out that the correct Zend form is ‘Vistaçpa,’ and he consequently, preferred _i_, a rendering confirmed by the word ‘imam,’ ‘this,’ which corresponds exactly to the Zend and Sanscrit word.[452] This alteration got rid of Burnouf’s _(h)ôma_ (‘excellent’), which went to join the goodly company of Jamshid and the constellation of Moro. The name ‘Katpatuk’ for Cappadocia, which Burnouf had already cited with good effect, was turned to farther account by Lassen. He not only used it to confirm the sign for _k_ (𐎣) with which it begins and ends; but it enabled him to find a true sign for _t_, by comparison with other words in which it occurs.[453]