Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1899-11-09

guages Glow Dutch); German Is the
only surviving written language of the
other group (Hlgh Dutch). This once
understood, 1t is not difficult, especially
IL one has read little Chaucer, or even
Spenser, to guess correctly the mean
ings of the Transvaal names which
will soon fiji all the European dis
patches. "Bloemfontein," for instance
pronounced "Bloom-fone-tine" - is
Bloom Spring, or Flower Spring
Laing's Mex needs no explanation
Majuba-pronounced of course, Ma
yoo-be-is not Dutch word. except by
right of adoption and conquest, but
KafIir. A Loer general is called a
"veldheer, or field lord" "The weld"
Is simply the fielu the open country,
as when 1t Is said an army takes the
field" The rural guard or military
police Of the Transvaal are the weld
wachteren," or field watchers. The
weld in many parts of the Transvaal is
much cut up by slefts or ravines, which
the newspaper correspondents are sure
to call by the Cape name Of "kloofs"-
pronounced "klofes," as, by the way,
President Kruger's pet name should be
pronounced "Ome Powl." You must
also be sure, II you would do the proper
thing, to speak Of Dom Paups general
not as IL Joubert were French name,
but with the pronunciation Yow-bert.
The members of the first and second
"Raads," or orders, OF the Legislature
are called ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
"Yonkhairen"-or young lords" and
they assemble in "Raad Huis," pro-
nounced "Rahd Hoys." The much
banded name of the individuals who
are excluded from voting, spelled "uit-
lander" is pronounced "oytlahnder."
That part of the Transvaal territory
which has been found to contain the
wealth of Ohpir and of Golconda COM
bined is the Rand" the word menas
division" or border line"-the line
that renders or sewers one state from
another, "Witwatersrand" means
edge of the White Water" Many Of
the Boer names of places end In "dorp,"
which Is neither more nor less than
"thorp," the Yorkshire name for ham
let; German "dorf." "Stad" is like the
German "stadt," "a city" "stroom,"
sometimes printed "strom," Is
stream Berg" means mountain
but "kopje," or little head" Is also
used for smaller eminences
One feature of the South African
10 u,htn q
to be heard Is the ''mealie field" The
English speaking colonists often pro-
nounce the former of these two words
as 1t would be in English; the Dutch
pronunciation Is more like NELLY;
1t means just what 1t looks-a field
where you get the vegetable material
for meal, which material In those
parts Is chiefly what Americans call
corn and Englishmen maize. The I'M
fortunate young Prince Imperial was
killed in q mealie field in the Zulu war.
He had gone on reconnaissance sever
al miles away from his "laager
nounced something like lah-her--
which means camp, or, as 1t would be
called If the host were host OF wild
beasts, his layer" in modern spelling
clair" When hunters or soldiers in
the veldt are not In "laager" they are
on the trek" or making tracks, as
the Forty-niners We're in the habit or
saying. And the Dutch settlers who
made the Great Trek" across the Vaal
river 65 years ago, because the British
authorities suppressed their peculiar
institution" of slavery, and who have
been blocking up the trek" of advanc-
ing civilization ever since, pronounced
their distinctive name Doors" which,
like the German bauer" and the iden'
teal English word, means "rustics.'
1t seems little paradoxical to read OF
1.-The Boer burghers," because burg
her" bourgeois, or man of tho city,
Is essentially contradistinguished from
"boer."-New York Tribune.