In bidding a last farewell to a subject in which I never took
more than a languid interest, I may be permitted to say that in
England, at all events, every man will accent his Greek properly
who wishes to stand well with the world. He whose accents
are irreproachable may indeed be no better than a heathen, but
concerning that man who misplaces them, or, worse still, altogether
omits them, damaging inferences will certainly be drawn,
and in most instances with justice.

H. W. Chandler A Practical Introduction to Greek Accentuation (Second ed.) (Oxford: 1881), from Preface to the Second Edition