Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-06-22
NAMES In ENGLAND.
Tourists Mustn't Expect to Pronounce
Them as They're Spelled.
SOME VERY AMUSING INSTANCES.
An Election Affected BY the Unfortunats
MOuthing Of Word.
SOME VERY AMUSING INSTANCES
HINTS FOR EUROPEAN TRAVELLERS
WRITTEN FOB THE DIsPArcHI

WRITTEN FOE THE DrsPATCHI
When the long-looked-for tide of repub.
licanism sweeps over conservative England.
an effort will no doubt be made to reform
the spelling and pronunciation of British
proper names. Unt1l that somewhat doubt
ful epoch arrives, however, the average
foreigner will nave to wrestle as best he can
with the extraordinary orthograpny which
now distinguishes the parent country.
Americans are particularly "disgruntled"
by these English names. The child Of
Columbia is taught economy of the alpha
bet as well as of the pocket book. He
thinks it positive sin to spell q mama
Worcester" or Gloucester" and pro-
nounee it wooster" or "Gloster" The
idea of man writing himself "Cholmonde-
lev and expecting the world to call him
Chumley," is too much for the letter.
sparring Westerner But John Bull ac-
cepts this ridiculous system of nomenclature
with the utmost good humor, and even takes
pride in the stumbling block he has created
for those not reared in Merrie England.
And these names of places and great
families prove veritable stumbling block
to the uninitiated. Take for instance the
sad mistakes which Mr.. Steelrail. of Pitts
burg, and NJ. Jacques Bonhomme, of Mont
martre, are bound to make when they start
Oh their tour through Great Britain. It is
just possible that these distinguished citizens
may obtain an audience with the Most Noble
Marquis, who is now Prime Minister, If
they are so lucky they must not call him
Lord Salisbury" but rather Lord Sawls-
berry, Do they wend their way to EPSON
Downs to witness the greatest horse race in
the world? II so, it were we'll to remember
h0t ho 1F 81 f1ok- l..
Derby. Is Oxford, that "city of palaces"
the object of their desires? Then let them
note carefully that pronunciation and SPELL
ing do not walk hand in hand
by the banks of Isis. For instance,
Magdalen College, Joseph Addison's
alma mater, is called "Maudlin College,
and Caius, another famous college of the
university, is always pronounced 'tKeys."
In the metropolis it is just as bad. Good
Mr.. Steelrail, of Pittsburg; worthy N. Bon
homme, from Montmartre, don't, unless you
want to give the cabmen fits, pronounce
Marylebone or Holborn as they are written.
MarylebOne is "Marrabun," and HoIboru
"Hoban."
SOME FAMILY NAMES.
Suppose our voyagers have the entree to
good society, 1t is necessary that they
should learn how to pronounce the great
family names. Here is a list, over
which it may pay them to ponder,
Grosvenor, is pronounced "Grovenor;'
Colquhoun is Cohoon; and Knollys
knowles. st. Leger, st. John, and st.
Clair, are respectively "Sallinger," "Sin-
jim, and "SInclair." Beauehamp must be
called "Beecham," and Brougham.
Broom" On this side of the Atlantic it
may surprise many to learn that Bulwer is
called "Buller;" and Cowper, Cooper"
Msjoribanks, in an English mouth. is ab-
breyiated to "Marchbanks; while Cockburn
and Wemyss become "Coburn" and
"Weems."
If N. Bonhomme and his transoceanic
friends visit the country houses after the
London season they will have to open their
ears very wide in order to catch the pro-
nunciation of many historic halls and
castles. Mr.. Glsdstone's place in Wales is,
as everybody knows, Hawarden Castle. But
this Hawarden is pronounced Harden"
although Lord Hawarden, prominent Irish
peer, is called "Haywarded." Then the
magnificent home OF the Duke of Rutland,
Beauvoir Castle, in Lincolnshire, is spoken
OF as Beaver" which seems a meaningless
corruption of fine old Norman name.
Among the shires and country towns the
case is quiet as bad. Norwich" one must
call "Norridge;" Cirencester is pronounced
DlsSlSleIJ Wnlle AOeEgaTenny anu Dol
ingbroke are turned into "Abergenny" and
"Bullingbrook. Then one must say Bark
shire" and "Darlyshire;" and instead Of
Alnwick and Berwick-speak of "Annick"
and Derrick"
AN ENGLISH ELECTION STORY.
Some years ago near relative of the
writer happened to be wooIng the gentle
parliamentary electors of Warwickshire.
The campaign brought the future NJ. P.
to a certain quarter Of the shire, whereof
the squire and overlord was one Sir Stuke-
ley Shuckburgh. Sir Stukeley was fine
young fellow, and the Shuckburghs have
lived at Shuckburgh since Edward the Con-
fessor's time. But unfortunately there was
Dowager Lady Shuckburgh who was
touchy in the extreme. The canvassing NJ.
P. was good Tory, SO Shuckburgh's gates
were open to him; but on the very first day
of his visit he spoiled all by pronouncing
the name of his host as it was spelled. Il
seemed that Shuck burgh was not called
Shuckburgb, but 'Shuckbro'." This ap-
parently trivial mistake so incensed old
Dame S. that the Shuckburgh interest was
lost to the Tory cause at election time.
1t will thus be seen that the foreigner has
no easy time with England's big names. By
the time NJ. Jacques Bonhomme and the
aforesaid Mr.. Steelrail, of Pittsburg, get
through their study of English proper
names they will be very fairy tired.