, 1879-03-09
From Our Otg1I CurTtspoudknk

II 1t indeed is misnomcr in the American a,
ceptance and adaptation. Never mind il 5-o'cfoc
tea means 5-o'clock tea in England, wher
dinner is served so much later that 1t is net
essary tea, and not merely an ornamental or 4
occasional one. Never mind all this, wicn on
cars are tickled with the fine English sound
and our ambition wakes to the effort Of in
augurating something that shall seem to sho1
our familiarity with sovcr the water"
We HAVE TAKEN UP KErTLE-DRuMs
with the same ignorance Of their origin, Q
ignoring their origin. And here, there, and every
where they break out in entire independence Q
oil military associations. We haven't so man,
military interests and military towns as En-
| gland, and we can't afford to throw By m op
portunity for that reason for appropriatfng Q
fashion. What does it matter that kettle-drums
nre the product Of military stations, where the
| kcttle-drum proper-the musical band property
itself,-a certain hour gives signal that at thai
hour the jolly and desirable stGuardsman," the
happy "P1unger," or other officer Of England's
| soldiers, is free to wander into his admiring
friends drawing-rooms. and assist at any
os tts waEy 1y docs 81 all ft0p sas naef tat to
! Not q jot. We are delightfully."- independent
| Of all reasons in the matter, except the grand
| one of copying our English cousins So We
start up
RIGHT IN THE THICK OF OUR C1TY LIFE,
and at the very hour when our masculine
friends are ready to sit down to their amply
supplied dinuer-tables, We summon them to our
5-o'clock teas While, over the water, the
English Guardsman and the Plunger are glad to
vary the monotony Of drill, in their days OF in-
action, BY handing about tea-cups and bread
pated from stocks and other dollar-and-cent in-
tcrests, wherein his daily bread and butter are
very deeply involved, just escaped from his
WearyiDg work is looking forward to his late
dinner at Or 6 as q rest and needed refresll-
mcnt. II he dons a, fresh tie and a better
coat, and salles forth to assist at tca-lrinking,
he loses his dinner and misses his hour Of rest.
The result, then, of the trausplauted 5-o'clocl
tea or kettle-drum in this country is not
brilliant success so fur as men are con-
cerned. tor we have not q large stock
OF idle men or men of leisure and the so clocks
then, show large percentage Of rather callow
youths, students, and others of that ilk for the
masculine portion, and which is pitifully small
compared to the feminine portion. And all this
we ignore, and still 20 on with our attempts at
English teas and kettle-drums. Perhaps it is
this tendency to servile imitation on the part Of
.s americans that brings ont an opposite
like 1lr. Howells, for instance, against
what he thinks is an unlawful use Of English
expressions. he is continually criticising words
like "lad," and similar words that simply are
fHA1 v VI luE atlA ulEIElUrt UuT
right as much as any other. But these critics
sLoP OVER IN TUE OPPOSITE DIRECTION
quite Us much as those who follow b1indlY the
fashion of customs. And there is no sort OF
parallel between the two. The one is silly
subservience to an old-country custona fashion,
the other is perfectly rightful use of our own
language.
Mr.. nowELLs AND CRITICS or HIS ORDER
seem to assume by their protests that there is,
or ought to be, an american language. OF !
course there arc dn.ericansms so-cailcd, but the
experts in this direction generally give US con-
isms have their origin in the old country. 1t is |
amusing. for instance, to find one Of these
purists, in critcising novel in the Alattic,
oring 2 il up at the word 1lad," as if
BOY being only allowable, when
in fact lad and boy are both good old English
words OF in old English use, and VIC have as
much right to one as the other: Mr.. Howells,
rho M ehs at sosh s,nn wr p puts R into The the mouth
felt little nasty, that was all''
ind in another chapter, "you'ye spoilt pretty
svers." The italics are my own.
ust1y criticised than slad," because they
re both English colloqu1alisms. In another !
,lace be says Of Dunham, "'Lad was the last
English word which Durham had got himself
ssd TO-" "Lad beng IN the same category
urism OF this sort will come to grief, and how
title ground such purists have to stand on.
oEoRGE WILLIAM CURTIS
ereral vears aco wrote Tins to o,a in !
esnonse to n letter Of rnina concern;nn
nd Engish IiteraTv wark and ernrcs sion 4 Tha
oint r. t1,at American iitera;nro ;e E,,,-,iah
1st an T'hencr,tns vac Groet Mr Willisna a.,
lefon onca sa;1 r. M ani nmt - ;n+n
otns Eating, america is splendid exile for !
ma and that ia that mcr;ca ia tha adr5,,oad ad
1ard Of Saxon cirilization-if hv SaTon wa =
ean Enp)ish.ManG that ia evoctiy nv u 1;atv nf :
le matter" Now, having knocked the bcliey- {
s 10 American literature down with Mr.. Curtis, | e
ieel that l can proceed in triumph to '