The Opelousas courier., 1888-04-28
English as She is Spoke.
SOUTHERN PROVINCIALISM TRAC-
ED TO OLD ENGLISH AUTHORS

his first lecture on this subject
by showing how difficult it is to
be a thoroughly correct speaker
Of English. He then referred to
the Southern pronunciation Of
such words as dear, clear, fear,
etc. (e long), which in the South
are sounded dear, fear, clear,
etc, e short). Here, he said, is
commonly hyer. This pronun-
citation, as we'll as the South
Carolina pronunciation, of air.
fair, prayer, bear, there. namely,
ear, fear, pear, bear (e SHORTY,
was claimed to be a survival of
the speech of Chaucer's time.
Another popularity alluded to
was that which obtains in Virgil
MIA, and to some extent also in
South Carolina, i. e., cyar gy,ar-
den, kyind, ETC., which is also a
survival from early English.
Another habit of speech not
peculiar to our section, but more
comfnon here, perhaps, than any
where else is a carelessness in
enunciating final syllables, pro-
nunciation of Winder for window;
dropping T and re, namely do
for door, mo- for more; the drop
ping of final g, and even the t,
e. g, thinkin,' roun', won do it.
But Richard Grant White has
shown that the English nobility
drop their final SIS, and Mr.. Low
eli cited from Cromwell, Minis
of Henry VIII, worle for world,
and from a letter Of Queen Mary
to William Ill, dear husban'."
Still other peculiarities are the
omission of Ii in the pronuncia-
1 ton Of such words as shrill,
4 shrek, shroud. Almost uniyer-
sal among Southerners, outside
of Virginia. is the pronunciation
calm "a short) calm, palm IA
short) for palm.
Some words that are almost
Systematically accented on the
wrong syllable are exquisitely,
exquisiteness, peremptory, obi
gatory, inquiry, ally, acumen,
albumen, vagary. AS to the
pronunciation of proper names a
gentleman told the lecturer that
he had recently heard a preacher
in reading a part of the last
chapter of Romans mispro.
nounce ming out of fifteen pro.
per names. The speaker himself
had heard preachers put the &C,
cent on the antepenult inAphro.
dite, Hgean, Achilles, Ulysses.
and on the penult of Boreas.
The survival in the South OF
certain words or forms of words
that are now obsolete elsewhere.
was next discussed. AMONG
these are to bat Ito wink the eye,
certain for certainly, drouth and
heighth for drought and height:
to fair off, to favor (resemble), te
feaze orLhe issaR feaze, heap 81
much, lily forsll, low for shsrt
mighty for very, pert for Esaay
plead for pleaded, to pleasure
poor (pron.pore), rising for swell
ing, soon for early and vice
versa, to summons, to suspicion
to use for frequent.
Next it was shown how ole
are many of the forms and usa.
ges which we now consider vul
garisms or corruptions, g. g.
Chaucer said hit for it, shet fol
shut, bet for heated; Dryden
giz for rose Drayton, thriv fol
throve Lord Leicester said be.
caise for because; Walter A
bion's "England"Aas git for get.
Margaret, mother of Henry VII
wrote seche for such, and Ohau
Ger wrote SIGH Dryden's wife
an eagI's daughter, wrote tell 70,
till, and the great Duchess o
Marlborough sepce for since
Shakespeare renched for rinsed
Sir Philip Sidney wrote furr TO
far, and Lord Bacon furder TO
further. TindalI has scace, an,
."Jack Jugler' scacely. Dryden
wife spells worse Wosce, AM
Warner pronounced worst wust
The best society in England il
Voltaire's time said hankercher
and in Pepys' time they sal,
chaW.
J The lecture was conclude,
with some remarks on the ridi
culous substitution, which is be
coming more and more common
) of lady for woman or wife an
) gentleman for man. Man,
amusing and absurd example
) of such substitution were given
! e. q, driver to the Duke of Sax
I KTT u - @