New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-12-24
n RE SPECIALITY VERSUS SPECIALITY
HOW LEGAL FORM ACCIDENTALLY NrrPLAN1
I'D IT'S CoNGENER Is AMEIutN

HOW 4 LEGAr. FOEN ACCIDENTALLY SrPPLANT.
I'D IT, coNGENEG IL AMERICA
TO the Editor Of The Tribune
Sir. Y,nr correspondent \. T.. g. will 20 doubt be
interested I'm an account u tie way no which tie worn
speciality" came into vogue In this country instead
Of speciality a. j. heard among English 'pehhinG
people In other countrc,. Up - the year leo the
form of this word Wa, In speech and print. IN thH
country a, el,eHIcrc speciality though with ~ f.
coulparaivcly a ncV word In the s"nse Of a special
pursuit The law term. speciality, denoting nn oblsa
ton under seal is however centuries old 1t l. seen
occasionally In legislative enactment notably In the
late General bankrupt law.
Speciality may Dee found In some n the French
English dictionaries as the CORES pondng word To- the
French specialize, and thi, even before The present
century 1t l. doubtful If it was ~ placed ~ Ia
the SENSE Of special pursuit being rather generic
tcrn-tlc converse Of generality.
The first ca,e have met with Of spccality n,ed In
the borrower sense I, IN pa,sags translated
from the French In medical book pub
~hcd ia 1917. in Philadelphia. 10y Carey
Lea 4 Blanchard; aud there the translator seems f.
have considered IT Vet somcha, foreign word. as
II {, In italics The nest OF II have met IS In The
Edinburgh Review Of the year iS2- the next IN one
Of sir Walter SCOTS novels, publish about ls32 In
both the form Is speciality and denotes special
pursuit The first extensive introduction Of the word
speciality In this country took place along about -1O.
The rising tide Of prosperity, then following the long
pro-trtiOn Of business after The financial panic Of
s3G'37 brought to th, country from England aud
France number Of small importers agents of manu-
facturcrs and the like. each. less, with hi,
.pccia article Of manufacture which he introduced =
| the trade his speciality, claiming peculiar advau-
tages 10 the dealers from thus dcvOting III, time 10
one line Of goods The word seemed 10 meet a long
! felt want and duicilly caught mp by our home
| dealers. From this time to i-GO the word spccial,
newer speciality was in every dealers mouth and
was made much of in advertising, being somewhat t!cn
titled then with bargains The word rapidly spread
| into Ia" professions. well in literature. Phy-i
clans hal their speciality IN certain disease who are
now specialists, Lawyer spoke OF making a pcciaty
Of certain limo, Of their profcs,on a. patents rsad,
| etc II was the beginning Of era of division Of
pursuits, and the word Wa, Appropriate t. express a
mans cNcluslvcncs, in the pursuit.
do not believe an instance can he found in
print OF speciality in this sense iii after Loo. In
| a copy Of Anglo saxon grammar own, pub
| li~hCd in 1897 by George T.. Putnam the word
is used in the plural form pccialucs-aud SD
| Throughout all the literature Of that decade
| Int IN the year l-50, new edition Of "Wcbscr',
Cuato Dictionary WAS published In the appendix +,
thi, an additional definition given (, tie old word
"spcc atty SPECIAL pursuit o. occnpatiln viii
! an example Of It's use 10y g. Kingsley. Th, citation
Of authority was. however, Incorrect that author usnl
! the word speciality, not speciality. Webster being in,
standard authority among editors and publishers Ga,
| abbreviated form gradually thcnccfDrward inf.
use IN printing Offices. and naturally In the spokcr
word, especially with children In schools 50 tlot
| the rising generation, the men and women OF IA,
day. were trimmed TO say and to writ. specially rathc
| than speciality few authors chung 10 the longc,
M"Id notably among them remember The Rev N
H. II. Murray, OF BOstOn who seemed To delight In
bringing the word speciality 10 the fr,nt In his mac
~lhc aruc4eS' III Its full sonorCuS form-even wheI