The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-11-07
NOT NOW IN THE DICTIONARY.
Words That Have Gone Out of Csc and
Are Merely Curiosities.

<ATe merely NuTiOSiLieSe
Words, like dogs and bonnets. have
their day, and when that day is past
they seem to be laid on the shelf like
old-fashioned pieces of china, to be re-
garded only as curiosities- The die.
tionary that still keeps them in re-
mem brance, but marks them with the
fatal ''obs" (obsolete), represents the
closet shelf where the old china is still
tolerated, not for its use or beauty, but
because of its very antiquity. Even
the presence of these words in the
dictionary does not argue that they
are known outside of it. For only a
few weeks ago in an article describing
the old piece of embroidery known as
sampler, the word ''accend," in the
motto worked upon the sampler, was
corrected by the printer to accent. "
MAY heaven accend thy words with
power" Less than hundred years
ago accend meant to kindle, to set on
fire. Now it is marked obsolete in the
dictionary and no new word has come
to replace it. There seems no more
reason for it to be laid on the shelf
than for that little old-fashioned cream
pitcher with its quaint form and in
describable decoration of green lines
and purple dots that represent no vine
and flower known to botany, to be set
upon my chimney piece. 1t has not
outlived its usefulness just because it
is old. There are other words the
dictionary marks obsolete that are cur
rent in old-fashioned country places,
such as outlander, foreigner, which,
like its neighbor, outlandish. has taken
meaning slightly uncomplimentary.
Aroynt, or aroiut, meaning stand back
or get behind, is still used by the
milkmaid in speaking to the cow that
will not stand in her place to be MIXED.
Contrast that fellow.'' one boy says of
another who leases him and the die
tionary says it means to make sad, but
that it is obsolete.
We should not ascribe any departure
from what we are used to either in
grammar or pronunciation, or meaning
Of words, to the ignorance or stupidity
of the speaker. 1t may not be bad,
but only Anticipated English. Such as
ourn for ours, umbril for umbrella,
sfeard for afraid, riz for risen, to ak
for ask, outen for put out or extin-
guish, even put them things away
for those things. However, these ex-
pressions have had their day and are
no longer good English, as they do not
conform to the present use and custom
that must be the standard in speaking
and writing. The same may be said of
certain ways of pronouncing words
now used only by uneducated or old
fashioned people, as contrary. mis-
chsevous, blasphemous. instead of con-
trary, naischievous, bkasphemous. 1t is
easy to prove that these are not mis-
but only an old pro-
retained by the people
after the educated classes had given it
up.
In southern Pennsylvania, where
many examples of metonomy have been
observed, cucumber is often replaced
by the general name Of pickle, as the
thrifty gardener, anticipating the
briny fate that awaits it. designates
the vine and It's fruit. Lantern, DIR.
J Johnson says, is by mistake often writ
ten lanthorn, because transparent
cases for candles were generally made
Of horn, and those who did not know
the derivation of the word from the
Latin lanterna were satisfied that this
was the true etymology. The wicket
basket-covered glass jars, used by
European peasants and sailors. We're
by them called Dame Jeanues.''
into demijohn, and known
TO the colored servants on an old south
ern home as the Jimmy John" Ar
chaic is another word that in common
use has lost its classic pedigree, and
has degenerated into ''arkey,' denot-
ing something very old-fashioned, with
an imaginary reference to Noah's ark.
Words spelled one way and pronounced
another by some people who are what
some other people would call heavy"
ire wreck, pronounced wrack, which
gives us ''wrack and ruin weapon.
which they turn into weepon, and
which they rhyme with sound.
following the old lexicograph who
tells us wound, woond, is capricious
novelty."
Another of this class of words is chap,
n some localities still pronounced chop.
Walker says the etymology of this
word will not suffer us to write it chop:
md universal usage will not permit us
o pronounce it chap. So it must be
,lassed among those incorrigible words.
he pronunciation and photography of
which must ever be at variance. On
he other hand the Irish are reproved
oy the same authority. in the year 1915.
or pronouncing palm, balm and psalm
Is if spelled pawn. bawm and psawm.
md now with little less breath that
S the accepted way in England and
in America. But will the
lay ever come when 2 collision will
mean, as il does in some places, anv
srge or remarkable kind of gathering.
wen funeral? 1t is probab a cor
upton of collision. for in the same
two wagons running into
ach other would be called collision.
1ere, also. they say. instead OF Light
ug a lamp, making candle and
uything that burns easily is com bus
ious.' But the same prophecy was
nee made in regard to clever and
fun" neither of which could now be
pared from the Language. Philadel-
,hia Times