The National tribune., 1888-05-03
sLANG as A WEAPoN.
Antiquity OF Many Of the Expressions Now IN COm-
mon Use-The Effectiveness Of Slang.
Enrs RiEs


The use OF slang affords an excellent field for
emotions and an infntesimal David can de-
molish the biggest sort of q Goliath in a half
dozen sharp and jagged words. There was a
time once in the United States Senate when
Charles Sumner had delivered q masterly ora
tou on Bleeding Kansas which no one Of his
contemporaries cared to answer. Only an ex-
haustive speech or an apt arrow of cPjgFam
could iiil the bill at sight. Stephen A. Douglas,
the Little Giant saw his opportunity, aud
remarked in the hearing of the entire Senate
that the speech would be all we'll enough If
everybody had not known that the Senator
from Massachusetts had been practicing it for
days in front of his looking-glass, with a little
niger holding the candle" The Senate was
convulsed with laughter Sumner was speech
less with rage, and his Grafton was already
answered
The old English writer's rejoieed in a vigor-
Gus style of Anglo-SaxOn which took the form
of slang in proverbs. One cannot read their
works without realizing how old are many Of
our common sayings. A large number of our
slang phrases antedate Skak5pere by two cen
turies, and Englishmen of the time of Edward
III condensed their study within 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 Undefiled OF many familiar ex-
posed Yankeeism Il guess" Blow" in the
sense of inform, IS Not worth a bene," Right
here" Murder will out" etc.
To him can be traced the saying /" In at one
ear, out of the other" though, in the quaint
language of his day he said 80 One ear it heard
at the other ont it went" To Thomas a KEN
| pis, who died in 1i71. we are indebted 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 1850, when Shakspere was
lad of IS, gave Us. Better late than never
| Look ere thou leap, see ere thou CO." " 1t IS
an i'll wind that turns none to good" and
Christmas comes but once year
1t was Chancer who first put IN print the
fayorite couplet Of pert children
How do you do How do You do
None the better for seeing you
for in his "Troyius and Criseyde," q niece
makes reply to her uncle's inquiry as to her
health. Never the bet for you fox that ye
ben." In his " ROmaunt o. the Rose written
more than 500 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 company,
three'5 crowd, appears IN the same poem:
For tway in number IS bet than three.
The original of Shakspere's " All that Gilt
ters is Not Gold" is found in the prolog of the
| YeOmans Tale" reading thus:
But ali thing which that shineth as the gold,
Is nought gold that have heard told
The latter half of the last line might readily
| be transmitted into the modern slang express
sion, 81 So I've been told" The old fathers of
literature are the selfconfessed fathers of slang
as well, and 10 must be confessed that there are
times when the use Of ABglO-SaxOn YigOr Of
expression becomes positive virtue.