New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1873-12-26
NEW PUBLICATIONS.


I'M sornoxs OF STANDARD NeIIsE By r T. h"eroS
~ oS%s.ss H. A Ia.~ pa tcs Macmillan q Co.
The autbor of this volume is an Oxford grad
MAJ. vho seasons his discussions In phuology Win
s-aouent dash OF spicy comment He ia never duil'
.nS often amusing although his path leads through
,,derness OF words IN which every step is fmpeded
n, . thorny underground. Mr. Ohphant shows :
righteous wrath 10 the abuses Of good Engsh ana pro-
lasts against the affected absurdtes OF vulgar writer's
with NO less vehemence than vigilant countryman'
Ear. Grant White. with whose contributions TO the
subject however he does not appear to have become
acquainted. This is little remarkable as he Is iamar
with many American authors and makes great account
Of the pathological works both of DIR. Marsh and
Professor March OF the last named scholar he even
goes 20 far say that the man who shall hereafter
unde rtake write any work upon the English tongue
without having March's grammar always before him
must be the greatest OF fools" Professor March has
shown that Gin some things American scholarship aims
nj rivaling German thoroughness" But he has lance
70 break with the Professor on his American spelling
and challenges honor, labor, &c, instead OF the
GOOD old English fashion. "Our English hIroJr.'
he remarks "the French honure or hp~arsT takes us
back eight hundred years 70 bloody day, big with
eur islands DOOM when the French knights chsrg
rug up the slope seniac again and again when sriy
ing 10 break the stubborn English shield wall Inc
word honure which had already thriven In Gaul for
eleven hundred years. have been often in the con-
querors' mouths all through those long weary hours;
was one Of the first French words that we AFTER
wards admitted to English citizenship; and 1t
should abide with in the shape that 1t has
always hitherto worn. II we change 1t into honor
we pare down it's history. and we lower IL 10 inc
level of the many Latin words that came In at
the Reformation: from the Bastard Of Fslairo TO the
English Josiah ia great drop" But this we submit is
ardent patriotism rather than sound phiology Az Gil
events it cannot disturb the prevalent American spell
ing which founded rational ansloges OF language
rather than sentimental traditions Mr. Ohphant com
plains with more justice of the practice of slang and OF
clipping words which are vices common 70 potn
America and England Nothing in the speech OF tins
country he admits. can match the English lawfully
NICE" or "what say" though he was probably
not that the later expression Is IN frequent
nse among ourselves when 1t is not replaced by the sui
more detestable Hoo. The author exercises whoe-
some severity the fine writing which has set its
dingy mark upon America as well as England" but ne
might have found O more fragrant example OF its use
than the phrase OF President Pierce, who In his
inaugural address OF the Capitol, twenty wears ago.
spoke Of Slavery involuntary servitude." Among
the new words that come in with new habits, no
specifies to interview" spurious expression when
has been coined within the last few in the American
mint Nothing" be observes "can better express the
spirit Of our age, ever craving to hear something
new the verb calls up before us queer pair; on the
one side stands great man. not at all sorry at the
bottom OF his heart that the rest OF mankind are TO learn
what ne fellow he is the other side fussy hovers
the pressman, Boswell who sticks Of nothing IN the
way Of questioning, but who outdoes his Scotch model IN
Being wholly unshackled by weak feeling of venera
ton" The Americans, the author explains are not
always wrong in their innovations. Artemus Ward
made q lucky hit when he asked, "Why so much peepP
He little knew that he reviving the old English
word rop. But phology crops up in strange
places. 81 once" says Mr. Oliphant, "heard clown
IN circus propounds the question, IF you may
ray freeze, J,oze, why not also say, I sneeze,
snos Many OF the current Amercanisms, he adds,
are relics Of q former age. Thus where Engshman
sfsofrts TO do thing, American concludes TO do It.
Yet, Of the battle Of St. Adams written
1850 read that the King and Lords kept resy
dens concluding hold the parlement.' The fact that
America speaks OF the FAN and not Of the Autumn.
ought in philoogers eyes to atone for multitude OF
her sins OF the tongue" Nor with all their linguistic
vagaries are Americans ever guilty OF the revolving
habit Of dropping wrongly inserting the letter h.
THOSE whom We call 'selfmade men, are
given this hideous barbarism their hopes OF
Parliamentary too often nipped In the bud
by the speakers unlucky tendency to throw himself
upon the Ouse An untaught peasant Will OFTEN speak
better English than man worth half mluon."
great deal Of the mischief in the authors opinion ean
be traced the pennyaliners Of the press In their
vocabulary all the words are superfne. Tho place
where the offspring OF shopkeepers are taught bad
Erench and worse Latin is longer school, but All
educational estabLs bment An erners is a far gen
seeler word than riot farmer. when he
grows rich, prides himself on being al
eminent aorieuLturisk King David may be called
a finger but trier OF italian trlls must be known as
SOCIALIST Our fathers talked of hsaii'g waters but We
now scorn even the medicinal therapeutic is the
word beloved BY all professors of the high polite style
~Our ears are become polite that sins must be
called by new names, at which Wicklife and Tyndae
would stared see that hospital has lately been
founded not for drunkards but for tnebriates new
coined substantive Of which Bunysn's Mr.. Smooth
tongue might have been proud" In the graver discus
ATOMS Of the volume. the author gives evidence of dill
gent historical research and pathological sasacity. il
may safely be accepted a valuable aid In studying
the foundation and progress Of our mother tongue.
BLIcKwooDs MAGAZINE. December l. Scott Co
A paper by Mr.. William Story, the eminent
American sculptor this number Of Biaek0ood. vigor-
oasy eonbsts the opinion that the marble statues in tho
Parthenon the fragments Of which 10 the British MI
scum are the Elgn marbles were the work OF
Phidas or executed by his scholars after his designs,
and under direction Mr. Storys inqaires In regard
20 the subject bear the stamp OF great thoroughness
and his argument is no less ingenious than original He
rst brings the fact that during the execution
of the great public works Athens during the admins
tration OF Pericles, Phidss occupied with
che great chryscsphantine statue Of Athena. which
Was the chief ornament OF the ParthenoD, snd
which was amply sufficient 70 absorb ell his
sine and attention. In the next place. no contemporary
author asserts that any OF the sculptures OF the Parhe
non with the exception OF the statue just referred TO-
we're by Phdias. Had he been the author Of
any Of the other statues is wholly incredible that
mention fact the most distant alusion
over as Mr. Story arges whether Phidlas worker
- all In ka afafne IN his