s. 268. _The Order of the Alphabet._--In the history of our alphabet, we have had the history of the changes in the arrangement, as well as of the changes in the number and power of its letters. The following question now presents itself: _viz._, Is there in the order of the letters any _natural_ arrangement, or is the original as well as the present succession of letters arbitrary and accidental? In the year 1835 I conceived, that in the order of the Hebrew alphabet I had discovered a very artificial arrangement. I also imagined that this artificial arrangement had been detected by no one besides myself. Two years afterwards a friend[38] stated to me that he had made a similar observation, and in 1839 appeared, in Mr. Donaldson's New Cratylus, the quotation with which the present section will be concluded. The three views in the main coincide; and, as each has been formed independently (Mr. Donaldson's being the first recorded), they give the satisfactory result of three separate investigations coinciding in a theory essentially the same. The order of the Hebrew alphabet is as follows:-- _Name._ _Sound._ 1. _Aleph_ Either a vowel or a breathing. 2. _Beth_ B. 3. _Gimel_ G. as in _gun_. {211} 4. _Daleth_ D. 5. _He_ Either a vowel or an aspirate. 6. _Vaw_ V. 7. _Zayn_ Z. 8. _Kheth_ a variety of K. 9. _Teth_ a variety of T. 10. _Yod_ I. 11. _Caph_ K. 12. _Lamed_ L. 13. _Mem_ M. 14. _Nun_ N. 15. _Samech_ a variety of S. 16. _Ayn_ Either a vowel or--? 17. _Pe_ P. 18. _Tsadi_ TS. 19. _Koph_ a variety of K. 20. _Resh_ R. 21. _Sin_ S. 22. _Tau_ T. Let _beth_, _vaw_, and _pe_ (_b_, _v_, _p_) constitute a series called series P. Let _gimel_, _kheth_, and _koph_ (_g_, _kh_, _k`_) constitute a series called series K. Let _daleth_, _teth_, and _tau_ (_d_, _t`_, _t_) constitute a series called series T. Let _aleph_, _he_, and _ayn_ constitute a series called the vowel series. Let the first four letters be taken in their order. 1. _Aleph_ of the vowel series. 2. _Beth_ of series P. 3. _Gimel_ of series K. 4. _Daleth_ of series T. Herein the consonant of series B comes next to the letter of the vowel series; that of series K follows; and, in the last place, comes the letter of series D. After this the order changes: _daleth_ being followed by _he_ of the vowel series. 5. _He_ of the vowel series. 6. _Vaw_ of series P. 7. _Zayn_ ---- 8. _Kheth_ of series K. 9. _Teth_ of series T.