The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1867-10-31
Slang, and Things ImpOlite.

readers of the Home Journal, and, ma,
be, some old ones will not be hurt by
perusal. lis impolite, lst--
TO stare at ladies and strangers o.
they pass along the street, or enter pub
lie gatherings. Men are especial.
guilty of this, but we have seen bcvies
ofyoung ladies pass each other, and at
ter passing, every head-and some o
the heads very pretty-was turned to
scan some real or fanced innovation o.
cccentricity ofa ribbon, ora bit oflace
Eyes. met, Of course; and, equally o.
course, there WAS naughty tossing O
heads.
2d.-To use indelicate expressions
about young ladies. We have hear(
young men do this, and we wanted tC
remind them of the fact that they hat
sisters themselves. A. young man
should always ask himself this ques
ton: How would ! like to hear NJ,
sister, or mother, thus spoken of.
3d.-To occupy the end of pew
next the aisle, and force others to
squeeze by you, or hunt elsewhere for
4 seat. Young ladies are guilty Of this
impolitcness, and it is as bad as to neg
lect to thank a gentleman who vacates
his scat for you.
4th.-To pick your teeth at the Ia
bic, and to belch in company.
5th.--To leave water in q basin af-
ter washing your hands or face in it.
This is dirty and lazy habit,
Gth.--To use commonplace vulgar
isms in conversation. We have heard
young men say "bully," "you bet"
cant see it," "somc punkins," cup to
snuff and like nonsense, in presence
Of their sisters and mothers. Yes, we
have heard young ladies use these slang
phrases.
The use Of such words, both in con-
versation and the public prints, is dis
agrecably common. We suppose they
had their birth in the brains Of vulgar
persons, and that they are continued in
circulation because Of the supposed
zcst and effect they impart to conver-
saton.
But words import coloring to thought
and to character. Constant use Of i'm
pure words begets impurity ofthought,
while as constant disposition to be
careful in the selection and use Of our
words helps us to the formation of cor
rect frames Of mind. SO, also, the hab,
it of using slang words begets q disa-
greeable state Of mind-a sort Of con-
dition, possibly, Of which the posses
sor is unconscious, but which is very
apprccable to his associates.
a lady friend said Of another lady
friend that she never heard her speak
of an omnibus, but alwaysa bus. "And
why not bus as well as an omni- bus "
Because responded the lady, 81
have always found that omissions in
one small thing reveals carelcssnes in
other small things. Now that same
lady was always calling her husband
Bob instead Of husband or Robert,
and woman who niCknamcs her hus-
band ann adhcres to the habit in pub
l.c, is wanting in that delicacy and re-
iinement which is the real ornament of
the SEX
In the pulpit Of certain church
where, not long since, we worshipped
rs hearer, the preacher said in his
description of the artful power of Sa-
tan, that "as to many a young man in
this audience he had got the 'dcadwood
on" For the moment, We did not
catch the meaning, and should not, had
not the brother Strengthened himself
up suddenly and exclaimed, "Yes.
friends, in all the successes which the
devil has had with you, he Las piled the
deadw ood, and will pile it, unless you
reform in your habits of lying and
drunkenness" Now, the preacher was
not Methodist nor Presbyterian.-
lie vast is no matter just now of
what persuasion, but he was man .Of
very considerable vigor of thought and
strength Of piety, but every now and
then a phrase that had its origin in the
bar-room, was lugged in to give weight
to the discourse delivered.
We suggest most respectfully that
slang, whether used in the pulpit or
private life, is not the thing needed for
the further development of American
refinement. A man can 60 to his
breakfast, or dinner, or supper, with
out its being sail that he has gone to
grub cheating can be characterized by
a better word than that Of "shenana-
gin,' and picture can be describcdf