The Grenada gazette., 1888-06-30
SLANG As A WEAPON.


Antiquity Of Msey Of the Expressions Nov
| In Common Use
The use Of slang affords an excellent
field for emotions, and an infnitesimal
David can demolish the biggest sort Of
q Goliath in half a dozen sharp and
Jagged words There was time once
in the United States Senate, when
Charles Sumner had delivered mas.
terly grafton on Bleeding Kansas"
which no one Of his contemporaries
cared to answer. Only an exhaustive
speech or an apt arrow Of epigram
could fill the bill at sight. Stephen A.
Douglas. the "little giant" saw his
opportunity. and remarked in the hear.
ing Of the entire Senate that the speech
"would be all we'll enough If every.
body had not known that the Senator
from Massachusetts, had been practic-
ing it for days in front Of his looking
glass, with little nigger holding a
candle.' The Senate was convulsed
with laughter. Sumner was speech.
less with rage and his Grafton was al
ready answered.
The old English writer's rejoiced in a
vigorous style Of Anglo-Saxon which
took the form of slang in proverbs
One can not read their works without
realizing how old are many Of our
common sayings. A large number Of
our slang phrases antedate Shake.
speare by two centuries and English
men of the time of Edward III. con-
densed their sturdy wit in the pithy
proverbs that are heard in our homes
at the present day.
Old Chaucer. father Of English
poetry, who died in the year 1400,
makes use in his "Well of English Un-
defled' of many familiar expressions.
such as "Wet the whistle" the sup.
posed Yankeeism II guess" "Blow,"
in the sense of inform. mot worth a
bene," Right here,' Murder will
OUT" etc.
To him can be traced the saying,
''ln at one ear, out at the other"
though, in the quaint language of his
day, he said: Zone ear it heard, at
the other out it went" To Thomas
Kempis, who died in 147l, we are in
debted for the household proverbs,
"Of two evils the less is always to be
chosen" and "When he is out of sight,
quickly also is he out of mind"
Thomas Tusser, who died in 1880, when
Shakespeare was lad of sixteen, gave
us. Better late than neyer,' ''Look
ere thou leap, see ere thou co. ut is
an ill mind that turns none to good"
and christmas comes but once year."
1t was Chaucer who first put in print
the favorite couplet of pert children
How do you dos How do you doi
None the better for seeing you
for in his "Troylus and Criseyde," a
niece makes reply to her uncle's in
quiry. as to her health. "Never the
bet for you, fox that ye ben" In his
"Romaunt o the Rose" written more
than five hundred years ago, occurs
the line. Brent child of fer hath
much drede," which now reads: "a
burnt child breads the fire, and the
common slang saying, "Two's COM
pany. three's a crowd" appears in the
same poem:
For tway in number is bet than three.
The original of Shakespearc's "All |
that Glitters is not Gold" is found in
the prologue of the "Yeoman's Tale"
reading thus, ...
But al thing which that shineth as the gold,
Is nought gold as that have heard told. |
The latter half of the last line might |
readily be transmitted into the modern
slang expressions: $50 I've been told"
The old fathers of literature are the
self-confessed fathers of slang rs we'll,
and it must be conceded that there are
times when the use of Anglo-Saxon
vigor Of expression becomes positive
virtue. Rare Bits.