The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1879-07-17
AMERICAN DI,LR rs.

II one would appreciate TIE d iTerent
dialects of the country he should sit
IN the gallery of the House at WASH
ingtop. He will ind writer for ip-
pietoa states;
a Pennsylvania often uses ''nor"
or than, after a comparative 40 ctive.
ODe thing is "more nor another" or
''be 7 nor another" 50 "tilr' is
y n substituted Tor Ito" In the Penn
syivapIs dialect. A horse comes till
the stable, or the boy till the school
house. Tue word unto" is much used
ioE 'in" in PennsylvsnIa. A horse will
ne said 20 have white spot into his
foseheai, or field & fiue spring of
water into it The Peunsylvanisns use
he wor Il "wheGever" to guIfy as soon
~. TITUS il will be sad "Ihenever
the carriage came the lady got in." n
Pennsylvsnia they ''lift collection"
and ''rake up church" and ride to
Town ''in a machine" with "horse
beast" drawing the machine. More
over, If the horse is lively animal,
what some call 49, kittish," he will be
cal ed in Pennsylvania 4 "wild beast. "
N3w, s'l these peCuliarities are evident.
" of Sec trt-lrIsh Origin, aud ty mea, $
Of them, aud Others like them, We car
trace in our ccunrv the movements %
the l. flaence OF this element If pupu-
lation. IL al ;he ) uth cou.
veIsation Is mDTe cultivated among
ducated people than at the North
1t is nOtewor ny TACT conversation
considered as an accOmp p.ishment,
scarcely exists at al in cur Northern
5 stes. ScsFcely cne educated person
IN a hundred is q sk,lifui and practical
talker in general soc ely. This is all
the more remark able when we remem
bor that the whole nation is given TO
public talking. Let almos: suy msn
who in psrlor Is wholly quiet, or
who speaks in an awkward or EN- a.
Isssed way, ouce mount q stump, AID
ue will hsTrangue crowd by the hour.
But at the Juth almost every educated
person of either will cnBverse in
mixed company with freedom, tact
and intelligence. CoLversatlon is cIl.
tivated. There is an ambition to ex
C IL it. From this, no doubt, IN part,
1t has come to pass that pronunciation
at the nth Is moIe Old-fashioned
than at the North. Conversation az
he ,uth has given the law to pronun-
citation, while at the North we have
followed books and changed the pro-
nunciation to suit the spelling. Thus
at the South it is common, If not uni
Versal, TO hear clerk pronounced clark
and James Jeemes, keer for care and
skeer for scare, and regiment and sini
nary for regiment and seminary. Aud
not only do the old-fsshioned pronun-
Citations prevail at the S nth, but also
old-fashioned phrases and expressions.
A young man attaining his majority
becomes lone snd-twenty" instead oi
twenty snd-one." Instead of dining
with friend, or taking tea, they eet
a meals vittles" with him.
Perhaps a sufficient plumber of illus
trations has been given of the connec-
tion of our modes of speech, yet 1t
would hardly answer to dismiss the
subj ct without some reference to
Westernism of lie and speech. Such
words as "clearings," and "diggings,"
and Openings" point out sufficiently
the character of the Western country.
There is that, however, in Western
language which is yet more significant
of pc. uliarty IN Western life. West
ern people are much in the habit ol
using words in odd and unexpected
ways, and of in, tuting grote. que cx-
pressions. They indulge IN a sort of wild
ffeedOm of spe ca which seems very
truly to harmonic with the freedom OF
life belonging TO new country. For
ex. mple, they prefer 10 Call whisky
''corn juice" because therein is the
conception Of the "lhake" of the artl-
Gle, and when they go further and call
it ''chaiu lightning," they very vivid
ly set forth the style of its working.
Fhey cay of man whose pretentions
have been exposed or who has egregi-
ously failed in carrying cut his pans,
that be has ''hat;ed cut" Then a
man of stsuach character is not only
there" but further, snd especially, he
will do to tie to-"
i western man, when travelling,
wb n he hip)ens to see church, and
desires ID know who is its pastor,
will ask the question, "Who
runs that concerU2'' It is common
everywhere to lar the word
"5ldly" used for "much" or
"greatly Bat see the emphasis
which the Western man obtains by
little twisting of the expression. He
says, II want an umbrella 'the worst
kind"
Yet, il at the game time we study
the dialects Of otner countries, we
shall find the people of this whole
land are one in language, in higher
and more perfect sense than is true of
any other nation-One also in race, his
tory, literature. religion, geography
and that nowhere under the sun are
seen so many un,!ies among people,
Of such high and costroiIap sort, as
exist in reference TO American people.