The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1874-10-29

Last evening the Rev. Edward Eggleston
lectured in the Mercantile Library Association
course. 1t was his first appearance in Port
land, but he was scarcely regarded as stranger
for "The Hoosier School Master" the END of
the World" and 1.-THE Circuit Rider" have
made US all acquainted with him.
Mr.. EgglestoD makes an excellent appear
ance on the platform. His presence, though
not commaudingis prepossessing, and he has a
full, round, pleasing voice, which is a fitting
vehicle for his choicely rounded sentences. A
royal beard of a dark brown color, sets off his
kindly face, from which masses of dark brown
hair are swept away. Like the girl in the
nurses tale who was SO very, very good, curl
hung down in the middle of his forehead.
He began his lecture by stating that he made
no professions of being an elocutionist, or a
finished public reader, but, that, in accordance
with a favorite custom of the day, he had grad
ually fallen into the habit Of giving illustrative
readings from his own works. A critic in that
eminent critical authority, the New York Trl-
bune, said not long since that dialect peculIarl-
ties could only be explained by the voice, the
printed page with it's distorted spelling con-
veying but little idea of provincial pronuncia-
ton. That criticism suggested the lecture he
was delivering.
The lecture, said Mr.. Eggleston, is upon the
Hoosier dialect You Of New England are apt
to think that dialect is confined to other por-
tions of the country, regardless of the fact that
you furnish one OF the three great dialects of
the country. Even Boston, who prides herself
upon the pure English, has marked dialetieal
peculiarities. The lecturer here gave certain
illustrations of New England on Yankee dia-
lect, selecting the familiar ,sew as his example.
The common pronunciation moo was given,
Holmes Brahminical nieu, and a third pronun-
citation differing SO slightly from the. second
that not even the magnifying glasses of the
Spanish hidalgo could discern the difference.
Indeed not a few of Mr.. Eggleston's criticisms
were hypercritical, and he frequently INDUCED
in lecture platform English.
There are, he said, three great dialects in
this country, one which obtains in the East,
one in certain quarters O. the West, and one in
the South. Hepurposed to treat of the second,
that in use in the southern parts of Ohio, In
diana and Illinois. 1t has been said that the
Southern Ohio dialect is Hoosier, the Southern
Indiana Hoosierer, the Southern Illinois Hoosier
est. That with which he was most familiar
was the comparative degree. ae2 Aao1
The lecturer then entered upon the main por-
ton of his lecture, the Hoosier dialect and its
peculiarities. AS he treated the subject it
proved vastly entertaining. A certain quaint
humor, talent for anecdote, and q wealth of
illustrative imagery. combined to make up a
pleasing and novel lecture. The life, habits
and Characteristics of the people Of Southern
Indiana, descendants of emigrants from Penn
sylvania and the South, were Understandings
and forcibly sketched. Not the least entertaining
portion of the lecture were the readings, illus
trating dialect peculiarities from the lecturers
own works.