Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-05-14
A LITTLE TALK.
Jack Has n Desperate Struggle with the
English Language.

A LITTLE TALK.
Jack Has a Desperate Struggle with the
English Language.
t'What did you say?:" asked Mr..
Trusty, turning to look at his nephew,
as Jack stood in the doorway.
81 said I didn't know, uncle" all
swered the boy.
ooh, no, Jack; what you said was:
'ld'n know and this is the way that
you often say things. You must re-
member that it is the French words
that go skating along in one grand
sweep. We English-speaking nations
walk off Il words II step at a time"
"Iou mean we ought to, uncle2"
eyes, that is exactly what I mean,"
laughed the other Seriously, Jack,
don't slur and mispronounce your
words. The other day 1 heard Nat
Williams asking you something, and
you answered him: I don't cab out
it, Now, what youmeant by scabbing
out you know best yourself"
ilCdilC ulOll u CU/C UOOHt lUy WudV-
ever it was" cried the boy
SIS it possible?:" exclaimed Mr..
Trasty; s'then why didn't you say SOP"
81 did, OF something that meant that.
But l wanted to ask you something
very particularthis morning. MayIgo
out camping with some of the fellows
this week?"
when do you want to go;"
"~Sat'day."
81 don't know any such day."
Jack opened his eyes u moment;
then he answered, demurely: 'sIt's the
last day Of the week, you know. And
then he corrected his slovcnly way OF
saying the word. 'tAnd binleby some
more fellows are coming" he added.
when did you say?"
'By and by-uncle, you're hard ON
met"
"Do you remember, Jack, the day
hat we went to inquire for my old
chum, how somebody anne to the
door, and we looked at her first and
doubted whether she was a lady or a
servant, she looked SO very common,
although she was almost too simply
dressed for the 1atter?: Then she spoke,
and we knew at nce she was a lady,
not from what she said, because she
only answered our questions, but from
the way in which she said it; her voice
was trained, and she pronounced her
words so well. Do you remember, as
we went down the steps, | asked you
what you thought of her, and you said
that she was very polite? 1 could sec
that you felt the charm, although YOU
could not quite tell what it was"
"But it's different returned Jack.
"l'm a boy, you know, and l don't
want the fellars-fellows--to call me
an old duffer or a mutf."
ooh. that's it! So, you are obliged
to say cab out and 'Sat'day' and
'bimeby,' and things like these?:'
Jack colored, and then he laughed.
Il don't believe they'd notice any
way" he said. edo l talk much like
that?'
ga good deal. And when you come
to making after-dinner speeches, you
will wish that you hadn't this habit to
break up"
"After-dinner speeches?" echoed
Jack.
..It was only last week." pursued
MI. Trusty, ''that [ saw q boy throw
down a newspaper with the assertion
that some day he was goinginto public
life
THAT was about election time," cor
rected the boy. "But, uncle, [ don't
cab-care about-that now. want to
know about the camping out"
"That's a week Oft, and this is
now.n
ooh, no, not'z much IA week off,"
sJack, what is 'zmuch 'za'?'
'.As much as 0!n returned the boy,
with a sigh Of despair.
"Ah, yes; now L understand. You
are in a hurry to have the week go by,
and so you hurried your words as if you
would hurry the sun?n
"That's So" said Jack, laughing;
"you know l always talk nicely when
Tn not in a hurry"
"But then you usually are in a
hurry"
swell uncle, it's such busy world.
One thing tumbles on top OF another
50, and that the reason, depend upon
it,"
"And then, you see," returned Mr..
Trusty, smiling, "you always get on
SO much faster in this way-just asyou
have done to-day in finding out about
the camping. DO you remembert the old
provcrb: The longest way round is
the shortest way home:9' You thought
the day that you tried the short cut
through the bog that you would never
forget it. Now, can't you see that this
kind of talk is the short cut through
the bog? 1t is q sort OF thing that it is
much easier to leap into than to tloun-
der out OF. Suppose you keep clear Of
it, Jack; how does that strike You?"