Randolph County journal. [volume] (Winchester, Randolph County, Ind.) 1855-1862, 1858-02-25

NltICc W tHS uetSA niOSe b"-eo Va sAN
earth, and to say, changing but one
word of one of the British national
songs
aColumbia needs no bulwarks,
No towers along the steep;
Her home is on the mountain wave,
Her march is on the deep"
And, from the native courage of all
these races, he has drawn that indom-
liable resolution which carries him
triumphantly through the gloomiest
periods of campaign or the ferccSt
storms of the battlefield.
When | claim that the character of
the American people, as a whole, is
derived from the three races named, |
am not insensible to the fact that a
very considerable part of the popula-
ton of the United States is, in popu
lar language, of German and Irish
extraction; but this does not alter the
case at all, it is only recurring to the
original stock-for they are the de-
scendants of the Teutonic races of
which / have been speaking. The
small number of those of other races
who have settled here, has not produced
any appreciable effect upon our charac
ter They have either been absorbed or
overlaid by the superior energy of the
mother races, and only, perhaps, in
Louisiana and Florida retain their
individuality.
Having thus shown the origin of
the American, as man-briehy and
therefore imperfectly-I feel that this
essay would but half accomplish its
object if l did not point out to you
that to this same union of races we
are indebted for the language we
speak, as well as for the laws of
which we are Justly proud as the cor
ner-stone of our liberties The an
cient language of Britain, the Celtic
or branch of it, is now only spoken
by the inhabitants of the mountainous
parts of Wales, to which country the
aborigines Of Britain fled from their
invaders. Saxon became the language
of the people from that time till the
Normans came, and it was the Ian
guage of the masses long after that
Then began that curious amalgation,
which, being centuries in progress, at
length resulted in the English tongue.
| can not give better example of the
manner in which this was accomplish
ed, than by few illustrations drawn
from the commonest words. Take,
for instance, the names Of the meats
which we eat The Saxon was q
: slave; he had the care of the various
animals, and he naturally gave to
l them the names to which he had been
> accustomed. Thus, he called the
: hog, Swine" and the meat, "swine' S
{ flesh" But the Norman was the
> master; his only care was to eat the
: flesh of the animals his slaves slaugh-
d tered, and he gave to the meat the
g name Of pore" which was its Nor
1t man French name. Thus you see il
> was called "pork" in the house and
&c when ready for use, and "swine" ol
> "hog'' out of doors. 1t was the sam,
q with other kinds of meat. The Saxor
u called an OK, "an OK" the Norman
ie called him, "beeuf," from whence ou
y "becf." The former spoke of "calf;'
ie the latter called it "le veau," which
D moderns have altered into "veal. -
Sheep was, Saxon, "mouton," whenc
ie .mutton" was Norman. So we fine
y that the Saxon name is still applle'
III to many things in an unprepare'
. state, and that when ready for use tn
ie Norman appellative is retained. Th
~ court, the nobility, spoke Norman
s the people. Saxon; but the necessity c
Us intercommunication produced union
D. in which the latter being in the major
'o ity, have given the greater number c
Ut words to the language.
no And here, perhaps, you will cxcus
me, if ! pay to the language thus sir
gularly compounded. the tribute {
praise / feel TO be its due. il is I'll
fashion to decry the English tongu'
nix TO call il harsh and uncouth, to declal
mt that il il without beauty. and witho'
ID grace--io say that IL wants the 81
nd norous roll Of Greek syllabization, thI
il lacks the smoother elegance Of Il
cf. Latin tongue-that il is not so cop
he Gus as the German, so graceful as u
tly French. nor so swcctly musical MS Il
cir Italian. This may oil be so. but it
ate only saying that il is in one particul
on, only, inferior TO those ] have name
The do not believe the charge to be a tr
Of one. Passages may DO found in tn
Sc book, which is on the whole the be
es, and purest example Of the Anglo-s sa
ac. on tongue. the translation of the Bit
YES in common use. that fairly rival {
tly most celebrated orations of Demo
md themes or Cicero in those particula