The daily comet. [volume] (Baton Rouge, La.) 1850-1856, 1854-07-21

The KINGS ENGLlsH.-Some tint
ago we cut out of the New OrleanI
Republican, letter addressed t.
Messrs. jerks Hickling & Swan Pub
fishers of Boston. q letter Of Dr.. Dow
Ter, in reference to the Merriam at
tack on thecharacter of DR.. Worces
ter and his dictionaries. The letter il
eloquently bold. and contains many
facts. that stand as yet unrefuted, and
as We like to approach anything that
contains glimmer Of truth, at the
hazard Of loosing our wings in the
light; we shall make Dr.. Dowler's
letter the subject Of a "leader."
1t is we'll known to our readers thai
We do not fear the English, yet we
pity the pure parent branch Of the
mother tongue" that so many awk-
ward excrescences have grown upon
the classic philology, Of that nation
Uncle Bulls Foster "Johna-
than" is responsible for this; for whilst
the English" at home, remains near
ly the same noble language Of the Po-
cts and Philosophers of the golden
era, here we have a language branch
ing out and expanding with such a
luxuriance "of verdency" that the pi-
GUS fears Of DR.. Dillworth might be
renewed; for it certainly has ten
dency like every thing else in the
''land ofliberty" to 60 to seed.
With DR.. Bowler. we believe that
no one has made greater Innovations
unwarranted than Mr.. Noah Webster.
His revised dictionaries have fol-
lowed one another in rapid success
sion, for the same reason that all Of
the last words Of the late Mr.. Baxter,
were not published to the world in one
edition. This is radically wrong. We
have no objection to new edition now
and then, to let in the last Yankee
isms," but for the mere sake of put
ting in an E in Chemistry or discon-
Meeting ty in centre, metre and thea
tire, so as to make the vast difference
in the photography Of such words, by
writing them tire, we do think that it
is unwarranted-even to suppose as a
doceur that it docs throw q few thou
sand into the hands of "Mr. Merriam"
and other publishers.
What is the fact-Webster has been
correcting Webster for the last twenty
years. to our certain knowledge, and
his friends have said: to differ with
him is an eighth mortal sin. and the
cap-sheaf to the seven regular ones, in
volving not only the damnatory charge
of want of scholarship, but also that
ola total want of common honesty.
DR.. Dowler says of Webster:
In regard to pronunciation, Webs
tel has done little else than to so al
ter, pervert, and spoil the polite sys-
tenn of Walker, as to fill his spelling
books and dictionaries including the
Merriam quarto-with vulgarities,
which if children unfortunately. learn,
they must afterwards unlearn; as for
instance, in the words containing what
Walker very well designates as the
fourth or short sound of a, and which
Worcester more correctly designates
as fifth, or intermediate sound Of a; ,.
viz such words as ask, ass, cast, class,
dance, last, nasty; constituting a
large class. Now every child who
plods our Webster's speIling-book, or
over the Merriam 4to; and pro-
nounces according to the key to the
vowel sounds inserted for his instruc-
ton. will necessarily pronounce these
words as if written, ausk, 0us, canst,
clauss, dauasce, laust, ssausty. A
young lady who cannot dance would
say; II cau,st dauace .": The whole
at the risk Of being laughed at! The
truth is, Websterism has been during