The Magnolia gazette. [volume] (Magnolia, Miss.) 1872-current, 1886-05-14
A LITTLE TALK.
Jack Has Desperate Struggle with the
English Language.

"What did you sayp" asked Mr..
Trusty, turning to look at his nephew,
as Jack stood in the doorway.
.I said I didn't know, uncle" an
swered the boy.
"Oh, no, Jack; what you said was:
'Id'n know and this is the way that
you often say things. You must re-
member that it is the French words
that 60 skating along in one grand
sweep. We English-speaking nations
walk off our words one step at time"
"You mean we ought to, uncleP"
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 you meant by 'cabbing
out you know best yourself"
81 meant didn't care aboutit what
ever it was," cried the boy.
SIS it possibleP" exclaimed Mr..
Trusty; s'then why didn't.you say SOP"
tI did, or something that meant that.
But l wanted to ask you something
very particular this morning. May go
out camping with some of the fellows
this weekP"
when do you want to goP'
"Sat' day."
81 don't know any such day."
Jack opened his eyes a moment;
then he answered, demurely: "It's the
last day of the week, you know. And
| then he corrected his slovenly way of
saying the word. "And bimeby some
more fellows are coming" he added.
"When did you sayp"
"By and by-uncle, you're hard on
me!''
''Do you remember, Jack, the day
that we went to inquire for my old
chum, how somebody came to the
door, and we looked at her first and
doubted whether she was a lady or 6
servant, she looked so very common,
although she was almost too simply
dressed for the latterP Then she spoke
and we knew at once she was 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 he
words so well. Do you remember, a
we went down the steps, asked yol
what you thought of her, and you sait
that she was very politep could Sc
that you felt the charm, although yo1
could not quite tell what it was"
"But it's different" returned Jack
"I'm boy, you know, and dom
. want the ars-fellows--to call m
. an old duffer or muff."
"Oh, that's it! So, you are oblige
to say cab out and .Sat'd an
,, 'bimeby,' and things like thesep''
,, Jack colored, and then he laughed
81 don't believe they'd notice an
way" he said. "Do l talk much lik
,, thatp"
"A good deal. And when you com
! to making after-dinner speeches, yo
: will wish that you hadn't this habit
! break up"
: "After-dinner speechesp' echoe
3 Jack.
! sit was only last week." pursue
. Mr.. Trusty, ''that saw boy thro
that some day he was going into publ
life."
"That was about election time" co
TecCeu Ll6 DOys Dub, uucle, uOu
6 cab--care about-that now. want
know about the camping out"
ii "That's week off, and this
a now"
- "Oh, no, not'z much "a week off
'h "Jack, what is 'zmuch ZAP"
$. "As mach as ar returned the bo
a with sigh of despair.
al "Ah, yes; now l understand. 4
ID are in hurry to have the week go /
es and so you hurried your words as if y
IS. would hurry the sunP''
We "That's so,' said Jack, laughir
IS, "you know l always talk nicely VIII
So I'm not in hurry"
n "But then you usually are in
dp hurry"
as swell, uncle, it's such busy wor
of One thing tumbles on top of anotl
as so, and that the reason, depend up
ed it."
vn "And then, you see," returned \
en- Trusty, smiling, "you always get
to SO much faster in this way-just as J
of have done to-day IN finding out abb
is the camping. Do you remember the
sse proverb: THE longest way round
if the shortest way homer. You thou
ng the day that you tried the short
nd through the bog that you would ne
ks forget it Now, can't you see that
S. kind of talk is the short cut throl
The bogp 1t 10 o sort OF thing that