Kansas City daily journal., 1896-12-27
4 Purist After washington.

From the Chicago Chronicle.
There are some people who are such pur-
lists in language that one would hesitate
to speak in their presence. The late Rich
ard Grant White was one of these, and
We can now imagine him expostuiating
with the shade of Shakespeare upon ''the
most unkindest cut of ALI and kindred
breaks of the bard. Whites book on the
use of words becomes comic. so angry-we
had almost said mad. which he abominates
does he become at those who drag In
long Latin words and misuse them. In
one instance he eXclaims: "A man guilty
of this misuse is unworthy the respect due
to a vertebrate animal" White has some
successors in New York now and one OF
these. upon the Times newspaper, has this
to say:
In letter soon to be sold at London
George Washington. writing from Mount
Vernon, under date of August 6. 1TS6. to
Arthur Young. author of the famous
Travels in France makes this quantity
ever been amongst the most favorite
amusements of my life" This statement
suggests two inQuires-first. what the 9TH
er most favorite amusements were. and.
second, why man so sensible should have
preferred to make the not too beautiful
word among into one of needlessly hideous
ugliness by adding st to it, Either of these
considerable essay, but the latter is espe-
cially important, since there are many
stupid people in England and few in
America who still cling to the same wretch
ed habit. Amongst doesn't have even the
merit of being old. The Anglo-Saxons. who
committed most of the possible sins against
harmony, were guiItless of that one nor
did 1t prevail in either early or middle En-
slish. The affix is a mere gratuitous in
suit to sensitive ears. adding absolutely
nothing to the meaning of among in any
case. 1t is easy to forgive Washington for
finding amusement in farming, but that he
should have given the weight of his au-
thority to word ending in four consonants
is unpardonable.'
Undoubtedly Mr.. White has had it out
with President Washington long ago and
the latter has apologized and promised
never again to use word ending In four
consonants. 1t may be, however, that the
father of his country, who always was a
little obstinate. referred his critic to
Shakespeare, who. in Henry w." says:
"a son who is the theme of honour's
tongue;
Amongst a grove, the very straishtest
plant"
Or to Marlowe. who says:
divide that gold amongst you"
. The Times purist says that the affix "st'
was not in use with the Anglo-Saxons and
that it did not prevail in either early or
middle English. According to Webster's
dictionary, however. the old English form
of the word is given as amongst" which
indicates that our ancestors had some au-
thority at one time for the forbidden SPELL
ing. 1t Is just as well that the irascible Mr..
White Is not able to wreak vengeance upon
the Times writer for the latter's use of
'gratuitous."
There is great deal of flubdub over the
alleged misuse of words. Language is
largely a matter of custom and changes
as rapidly and unreasonably as fashions
do in clothes. The best dictionaries of to-
day give custom made definitions which
make Mr.. Whites objections ridiculous.
Language is an instrument of man to be
put to his best use. There are few sim
pie, grammatical rules which must not be
broken, but the general use of words is
governed by custom, and because
amongst" seems awkward to US to-day
there is no reason why at one time IT
might not have been as euphonious as
among" is now. And, by the same token,
what is the matter with 'amidst?"