Roseburg review. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 1885-1920, 1885-11-06
SOME LASG OAGE NEEDS.

| Gilbert NJ. Tucker discusses in late
number Of the New Englander some
Language Needs, saying; Our list Of
words, numerous as it is. is yet not COM
prehensive enough to fulfil the highest
ideal of a perfect tongue. We need
more tools, a good many Of them, and
it sometimes seems pity rather that
we cannot manufacture and introduce
them when the need is perceived, than
that some of those We have offend In
their composition the strict require
ments of congruity. We badly need,
for instance, epicene pronouns In the
singular answering to they, them and
their in the plural. True it is, onti
can often use he, him and his, ex.
pecting hearers or readers to remember
that "the brethrenembrace the sistern.
True it alsois, one can often get around
the difficulty by rearranging sentence;
but there is a difficulty, for all that.
A man wishes to say that each of his
two children, a boy aud a girl, has the
exclusive use of bedroom. He nat
ura1ly begins: each of my children
has room to-" how shall he fnish9
1t Is moi quite right to say that each
has room to himself, or to herself,
and it is certainly far from grammatic-
al or pleasing to say themselves
What shall he dol The problem is of
daily occurance, as any one will find
who will take pains to watch for it.
We need, too, a preterit for the vers
ought. We are compelled to cay .you
ought to have done such and such
things"-wllich is by no means
what we really mean. One can not
possibly be under obligation to have
done anything the phrase is absurd.
All obligation is to do, and it would
be an important gain in the direction
of clearness and conciseness if We
might say, when speaking of past time
"you oughted."
We need word almost synonymous
with many, but having slightly difor-
ent shade of meaning lack which
is often supplied. awkwardly and In
correctly, by the use of numerous With
a plural noun. People say, aFhers
are numerous books on that subject
which is clearly ungrammaticaI;
there may be numerous List Of books
but that expression, correct in syutax,
does not seem quite TO express the idea;
and to say there are many books may
be rather too stronga statement.
We need, once more, verb for
which replace is commonly substituted
there being nothing better at hand.
One removes painting from the wall
and hangs up an engraving in It's stead
For brief statement Of this action,
We have at present nothing better than
to say that the painting was replaced
by the engraving. Yet this is really
nonsense. To replace thing is to
put it back where it was before.
Of course this list might be pro-
longed indefinitely and the poverty Of
the English language, redundant as the
language is, might still be, upon occa-
sion deplored. Let us console ourselves.
however, with the reflection that with
the present vocabulary at our disposa;
we can manage to make our ideas tol.
erably clear to others if they are at all
clear to ourselves.
The printing press has made presi-
dents, killed poets, furnished bustles
for beauties, and finished with the sand
paper of criticism. It has made worlds
get up to roll call every morning, given
the pulpit lungs of iron and voice Of
steam. 1t has set the price of bnshel
of wheat, aud made the country post
office the glimmering goal of rural
scribes It has curtailed the power Of
kings, embellished the pantry shelves
and busted rings; it has converted bank
crs to paupers, made sawyers of college
presidents, it has educated the homeless,
androbbed the ephilosopherof his reason.
Itsailes AMI kicks, cries and dies, but
it can't be run to suit everybody.