The independent press. (Abbeville C.H., S.C.) 1853-1860, 1860-02-10
THE NDEPENDE PRESS.
THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE

Sir James Macintosh in the first volume
of his History OF England makes tho fol.
lowing remarks, which may offer useful
suggestion 10 public speakers:
From the Anglo.Saxons we derive the
''a'nes OF The most ancient officers among
us, OF the greater part of the division OF
Tue Kingdom, and Of almost all our towns
and villages. From them also we derive
our language; Of whi b the structure, ard
m'Jo'Ity it its words, much greater than
those who have not thought on the suhicc,
would at first earlyssbeIieve, are Saxon. OF
s'xty-nlne words which make up the Lords
Prayer, there are only five not Saxon the
best example Of the natural bent Of our
language; and of words apt to be chosen
ny those who speak and write it without
design. Of eighty-one words in the solili-
guy OF Hamlet, thirteen only are OF Latin
origin. Even IN passage OF ninety words
IN Milton, whose diction is more learned
than that of other poets, there arc only six
Teen Latin words. In four verses of the
authorized version Of Genesis, which con.
tam about hundred and ,hi,ty words
there are no more than five Latin. In
seveniy-nlnc words of Addison, whose per-
tcct taste preserved him from Il pcdan,i: or
constrained preference for any portion Of
the language, we find only fifteen Latin. In
later times the language has rebelIed against
the bad taste Of those otherwise vigorous
writers, who, instead Of cannoblinr their
style, like Milton, by the position and
combln alton Of words, have tried to raise it
by the position and combination of words,
have tried it 10y unusual and far-fc,ched
cxpresson. DR.. johnson himself, from
whose corrup'ions English alyIe is only re-
covering, in eighty seven words Of his fine
parallel between Dryden and Pope, has
found means TO Introduce no more than
twcnty'one Of Latin derivation. The Ian,
guage Of familiar intercourse, the term Of
get and 'santry, and those of necessary
business the ldioms ofrecuiar phrases into
'hrch words naturally run, the proverbs,
which arc the condensed and pointed sense
OF the people, the PARTICLES on which our
syntax depends, and which are of pcrpct-
uai recurrcnce-all these foundations of a
language are more decisive proofs of the
Saxon origin Of ours, than even the great
majority OF the Saxon words in writing. and
the still grea'erInajortiv in speaking. In
all cases where we have preserved a family
OF words, the superior significancy of Sax
on over the Latin term is most remarkable
'Wcli-bcing arises from wcIlLoinp,' is a
Saxon phrase, which may be thus rendered
INTO the Lotin part Of the Language =:
Felicity attends virtue = but how inferior
IN force Ia the latter! In the parts or roots
of words being significant in our language,
and familiar to our eyes. throw their whole
meaning into the compounds and depri- |
the Latin words of the
same import, having their roots and ele-
nents in foreign language, carry only a
cold and conventional Specification to an |
English ear. 1t must not he a subject of |
wonder that language should have MANY !
closer connexions with the thoughts and |
feelings which it denotes, that our pl.iloso |
ply can always