Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1847-11-06
TO THE EDITORS.
"To sEAns c. WAIKEn, Esq"

ANNAPOLIS, OCTOBER %, lS47.
MEssRs. EDIToRs Will you suffer to make few
marks upon communication which appears your country
paper of this day. the signature of al F. T., the Hber
man." and which the latter offers trng addenda
the article Of your correspondent "a"
This " Hibemian writer, who TO judge Of the figured
pronunciation and the translation he gives Of few French
words has turn for learning foreign languages
to be anxious that no one should of hem and
pecay of the French than he does hmself hence his OPP
position to innovations in the English language" which
novaons he calls ridiculous, miserable, crabke mixture
hord argon &c., jargon, by the way, pure French,
not Saxon He willing that should introduce into our
vernacular either Latin Greek words but he determined
that so far as he can help it. French word shall
puzzle him. either newspapers, novels, scientific works
He manfuly opposes the introduction Of ecLd which he will
have pronounce eccia,c but is "hghy peased" with
panorama which, be consistent he ought pronounce
panoratcma,c. He the idea of American
pronouncing naS (mirz } "but," says he, the word
Kaleidoscope accords well with the standard Of simplicity, and
will hold deserved place in dictionaries, long as &C.
Yet while he wnks the addition Of Latin and Greek words
he decidedly opposed changing their termination for the
plural He insists that should say memorandums, and
memoranda !" would he not rather have follow
his example, and say ca memoranda" he writes ga tn
fling addenda" Is not this HIbernans" phlology quite
unique
He acknowledges that neither morals nor manners is
right translation for He may be supposed to believe
that the same deficiency exists with regard aid-cap
sang frod bon ton, ecia ci-deran &c, translation Of
which he takes care not to attempt Yet, says he, eve
ought rather TO content ourselves with deficiency than
tempt to graft so Heterogeneous and crabke mixture upon
our stock :" in other words Let rather fail exactly
pressing our ideas than suffer the French help in doing
it. With regard to bon mot "L. +. T. the Hbernian,
positively assures us that Wc gives all the
and deal more Of propriety" would take himself
judge Of the Of this assertion. have doubt
but after penning bis 'disquisiton' "innovaons
in the English language, he regarded the pg and the re
bra happy antthcsis and coming to the buffers
pantry the apannes shop, the dog and the teaboard,
and the turtle soup and the loy-pop, &C., he inwardy-
and, perhaps aloud--pronounced his " dsqusion as
pretty fair sample Of criticism yet doubt whether he
would have dream Of looking for bon moi in the whole
piece
He is still unfortunate respecting the French word
trait "Why, exclaims he, Indignantly, "why admit this
legma,e upstar when good old feature contains every
title Of the others meaning " Without inqunng what he
means by the word ups would ask those of your readers
who conversant with the French-and if did know
that you have many such would not trouble you with
this.o try substitute feature for trait in the following
sentences, and they will whether contains ery he
ofthe others meaning II but sa coupe toHc dun trait.
IOu pourries Femichu dun trait de plume. PifarQue
ournaie de traits aas ma fat des traits, dH u gri-
sefte' mas, nimporte t hG Jra mon tour. Does
the accuracy of your Hbenian correspondent remind
you Of the Brussels BOOKSELLER who announced being in
press translation of Miss Edgewor,hs work "SW rs tau
rcaux EIandais p suppose may be allowed to consider
the Irish gentemans translation another fduenu nndas
Innovations in language must and will take place so long
the human mind will be susceptible of improvement and
il we will indulge anpatby for Gallo friends and
will not take the trouble of studying their "horrd argon
must try to be ahead Of them in coming the necessary ex
pressicns. G.