The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1899-01-12
.iAlISS'5IlAl WORD. ON . Tow ORIGIN
1tFillcd n Long.Eclt Want and Di.
L.. .,..t -

1tFillcd n Long.Eclt Want and Dis
placed "Nlrs.nt to Designate Girls. Z
London Spectator; Miss" is COM
monlytassumed to be an abrevIatlon or
"mistress"-and this may be true; but
twas not a corruption nor form
unconsc'onsly8in introduced. John Eve
lyn has left a record OF the date and
circumstances.1 In 1862 he goes to see
the "'fair@ and famous comedian called
Roxalan. from the part she performed"
and learns that she has been taken
FOR the Erie bf oxford's MISE, as at
that time they began to call lcwI wo-
men," In;1Ge6 he speaks OF the "fowle
and lfundecent women, who became
misses and sometimes wives of the
young gallants." Again Evelyn wit
Messed drunken entertainment In 1871,
when the king attended with "a MISE,
as they call those unhappy creatures"
Never did a word undergo q stranger
revolution. 1t&would have been the
aeadtiest Of: Insults to call Il young lady
Miss at. that ime.F But here is u very
strong Illustration of the rule that
v
the language. Hitherto there had been
no distinguishing title for young girls,
saving those ranks OF life where mad :,
emoisel!e"--more commonly "demoi-
seile"--was current, Elsewhere mar
rled woman and her daughter had
mistress In common.
.4lSVe do not recall any illusions to
the Inconvenience which must have
followed. but the eagerness with which
Miss" was accepted. In spite Of the
gravestl disadvantages. is{ the best
proof that twas felt. An attempt had
been made, apparently, TO naturalizc
madame as the title OF married
woman, thus freeing mistress" for the
use of girls. exclusively But it never
succeeded with the middle class. and 1t
had become told-fashioncd In the time
of the Stuarts: nevertheless some of us
can rccoiiect OF old villagers speaking
or the great lady Of the nelghborhood.
III the days of their youths, rs Mad
anne So-and- SO" But there was lit
tie, help, there, and the embarrassmenls
mist have grown continuously rs So.
ella! intercourse became more general.
1T Is, not extravaganza to suppose that
the custom of designating mans wife
as his "lady"ewaS an effort to escape
1T. One must turn half hundred pages
Of Evelyn's diary3to find the name Of
n married woman. unless she had a
tile of .nobllity-always 1t is This lady,
But in the upper circles Miss" won
its way slowly. We may venture to
say that 1t does not occur In Lady
Mary Stuart Nortley's correspondence,
nor docs Madam" applied to an Eng.
isl. woman Little! girls and their
Erandmothers are Mrs alike. ItEis
to be observed. however. that Pope uses
Hiss freely in the same era. Lady
Mary, and others of her rank, may
probably have learned OF the shameful
origin of the word in It's youth, and
eschewed 1t on that account, while Pope
would never hear the story, unless by
chance. X; N 81 81
Steele, in the Guardian. addressed
girl OF fifteen as Mrs. and Lady Butte
lcft,it on record that she, born in IT'S,
remembered some old ladies' who al.
ways called herr"Mrs." In the nursery.
Under such circumstances. 1t is no
wonder that Miss" triumphed over It's
evil associations. A word was never
so badly wanted for the convenience
of life and the purposes Of civilized
society. Nos ~ a4- .t5 j,..r-a