Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1858-05-19
BY W. d. WALLACH,
MANLiNEsS OF SPEECH

lecture recently delivered in Carlisle, Eng
land, by the Rev. A. Mursell, contained the
l0iioWIng amusing but instructive passage:
Inc point to which L have next to direct atten-
ZION Is maniiness In speech. There are many
young men who seem to consider essential to
msnliness, that they should be masters of slang
The sporting world, like its brother, the swell
mob, has language of its own !; but this dog
English extends far beyond the sporting world
1t comes with its hordes of barbarous words
threatening the entire extinction Of genuine
English! Now just listen for O moment to our
last young man, or the ape Of a fast young
man, who thinks that to be q man be must talk
In the dark phraseolOgy of slang If he does
anything on his own responsibility he does il
on his .wn " hook" If he sees ANYTHING re-
markably good, hs calls it a 'stunaer.S the
superiative OF which is regular sumner -
IL man is requested to pay a tavern bill. he
Is asked if he will Stand SAM" IL he meets
savage looking dog, he calls him an ugly
customer" Ii he meets On eccentric man, he
calls him ''rummy old cove" A sensible
man Is ''chap that's up to snuff" man
not remarkable for good sense is ';caks"-a
hatL "spo"n-a stick e.. his mother
does not know he is out A doubtful asser-
tCn Is to be told to the marines An in
credible statement ia ''all CANNON" Our
young friend never scolds but elbows up''-
never pays, but "stumpS up''-never finds il
difficult to pay, but is Z" hard up''-never feels
fatigued, but is used up" lie has no hat,
but shelters his head beneath n sstiIe." He
wears no neckclOth. bnt surrounds hi, throat
with "choker.' lie lives nowhere, but there
Is some place where he . hangs out" He neysr
goes away or withdraws but he "bolts''-he
slopes he ''mizzles''-hs makes himself
scarce-he ''walks his chaIks'-he makes
tracks-he ''cuts his stick''-Or what is the
same thing he "cuts his lucky" The highest
compliment you can pay him is to tell him that
ne Is regular brick" He does not profess
TO be brave, but he prides himself on being
piueky Money is a word which he has for.
gotten, but he talks good deal about 'tin,"
ana = the needtul, 1.-The rhino," and the
ready ready. when a man speaks, he ''spouts' -
when ne holds his peace, he shuts up''-when
ne L. Inundated, he is taken down PEI or
two, and made to sing SMALL He calls his
hands paws, his legs pins" To be per-
picked, Is to be fummsxed''- be disap-
pointed, is to be ''dished'-to be cheated is TO
Dc "soid to be cheated clearly, is to be
done brown" Whatsoever is fine. il "1ob
by'-whstsOever is shabby is ''secdy dy''-wbat-
soever IS pleasant. is jolly" He says BLESSED
II be does this, - blowed if he does that. y
hanged II he does the other thing; or he
exela'ms Ny eye" my stars.' If YOU
asked him which were his stars, he would be
"hummaxed' Then he swears - By GEORGE
=" by the piper r'-on select occasions he selects
. the piper that played before Moses" Now.
good deal OF this slang is harmless; many of
the terms are, think, very expressive: vet
there Is much in slang that is Objectionable
For example, a. ArchdeacOn Hare observes in
one OF his sermons, the word governor" as
applied to father, is to be reprehended. /
have heard young man call his father the
relieving oihcer.' Does il not betray on the
part OF young men great ignorance of the pa
ternal and hlial relationships, or great con-
tempt for them Their father j. TO such youny
men merely governor merely the represen-
tatiVe OF authority. Innocently enough, the
expression Is used by thousands of young men
who venerate and love their parents; but only
think OF II, and am sure you will admit that
IL Is cold, heartiesS word when thus applied.
and one that ought forthwith to be abandoned