(d) و ,ا and ي is are used more and more as medial vowels in closed syllables—except again in the case of some common stereotyped words like منتا minta, مليا mulia, ايسق esok, راتس ratus. ‘The use of these letters و ,ا and ي and the huruf saksi, as they are called, is opposed to Arabic alphabetical theory. The syllable should consist of two letters; the introduction of a third,’ started even in our earliest MSS. ‘must have been a bold innovation … The innovation may have been to some extent countenanced by the disuse of case-endings in Arabic words such as kitab, islam, &c., but it was certainly developed, if not introduced by European influence. It must be remembered that until recently the printing of Malay books has been entirely in the hands of Europeans, especially in those of missionaries, and that the influence so exercised must have been great. The power of public instruction under European direction has also to be reckoned with … It may be predicted that if nothing is done to check existing tendencies the use of the huruf saksi as English vowels will extend to all words. This solution of the present system would not be an unsatisfactory one. It would certainly make Malay spelling consistent and easy.’ At present, the extended use of the huruf saksi is commoner among police and clerks trained on European lines than among pundits proud of a little Arabic learning. The latter propound three theories, which pretend to be practical rather than scientific but fail even of their limited object:
(1) و and ي and should be inserted in closed syllables, except that when the vowel sounds of the two syllables are alike, the و or the ي should be inserted only in one of the two syllables: بيڠوڠ bingong, بوتير butir, کوتيڤ kutip, کمڤوڠ kampong, تنجوڠ tanjong, بيمبڠ bimbang: but تڠگي tinggi, دنديڠ dinding, بورڠ burong. Apply this theory to the case of tulang bones and tolong help or tunggal solitary and tunggul tree-stump; either the spelling of each pair
