The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1900-01-07
A PHILIPPINE GLOSSARY
sRAND NEW EXPIRE SSioNS BROUGHT
HOME BY THE VOLUNTEERS.

and Edification OF People Who Have
Not Had the Advantage OF Recent
Philippine Travel.
Now that the volunteers are re-
turning from the Philippines there is
trouble ahead for the dictionary
makers. 1t is peculiarly of Ameri-
ran slang that it is at once so concise,
picturesque and graphic that most
new words of this kind eventually
force their way, despite dissent, into
The lexicon. The volunteers will
bring back with them so many brand
aew expressions of this character that
their vocabulary may prove all but ln-
J comprehensive. For the convent
ence of people who have not had the
advantage of recent Philippine travel,
aud also for the future reference of
our photographers, short glossary,
with comments may be valuable.
| One of the words most commonly
used in this dialect is "hike." It's
derivation is doubtful, but its de-
scriptive power great and swift. ''To
hike" means to travel with amazing
speed. 1t is generally used to give
some idea OF how fast the Filipinos
can run when defeated in battle. Iu-
sidentally, hiking" is term APP
piled to the speed which American
folders are obliged to develop when
trying to catch the fleeing Filipino.
So, in more general way, linking"
is applied to any swift and fatiguing
travel, While ''hiker" is obviously a
man of hustling and enduring powers.
Gold feet" is an expression often
heard in Manila It's plain Anglo
Saxon synonym is cowardice. Just
how the two became identified may
not at once be apparent, but he who
talters and fears in battle is apt to feel
told chills chasing down his spine. 1t
is the most natural anatomical result
for these cold chills to settle
in the feet. Hence the term.
"Woolen socks" or, more briefly,
'socks," means any thing that will
cure or overcome ''cold feet"
Coffee coolers" are those who man
age to get detached from their regi-
ments in the field and assigned to
more or less easy aud eminently safe
berths in Manila A coffee cooler"
is supposed to be unable to swallow
his boiling hot coffee on the morning
of battle. Obviously, if he wants to
drink his coffee, he must remain be-
hind and cool it while his regiment is
moving ont to the fray. Needless to
say, "coaee coolers" are not esteemed
by their comrades.
A ''googoo" is a Filipino who fol-
lows the cause of the revolution.
While the derivation of this term is
rather obscure, it is limited that it
must be sought in the annals of Am
erican political history. An ''ami-
CO." by contradiction, is a Filipino
who protests his loyalty to the United
States and his Discrimination to fight.
According to tue soldiers, the only
difference between ''googoo" and
an ''amigo" is that the former wears
the blue AID white uniform OF the in
surrecto, while the latter wears the
white cotton garments of peace. Each
is equally at heart a rebel against
Uncle Sam. Hence, in the American
soldiers vocabulary, amigo" has
come to signify false friend.
Grain maker" is not a term of
Philippine birth, but it is here that it
has gained its vogue, and so is worthy
of place in this description. When
thu Third infantry went on its Leech
Lake Indian campaign, just previous
to embarking for these islands, there
were several doctors along with
the regiment. While the pow-w VOWS
with the indians were going on the
redskins manifested some interest in
our army surgeons. The red healer
could prepare medicine" which was
warranted to bring about copious
rainfall in time OF drouth. Could orr
medicine men do as much? Of course
it would never do to confess our doc
tors to lie inferior 10 the untutored
savage, and SO the Thirds officers I'M
hesitatingly asserted that our sur
geons, too, could make rain. That
fastened the name of "rain- maker"
to our army surgeon, and the term
has gained great favor on Luzon is
land.
"Bom- bonn is a noun of strictly
native invention. The more accurate
term would perhaps be native imita-
ton. A cannon on being discharged
gives forth an angry roar OF ''bom!'
In second or two the shell expiodes
with fainter ''bomw Coupling
cause and effect gave us ''bom- bonn. -
If a native desires to explain that a
big fight is on, be plaintisely says,
''mucho bonn bom.' This phenome-
non of artillery fire is a good deal OF
q tragical puzzle to the little browny.
/ remember seeing a couple in Melo.
5an, man and wife, who found an I'M
exploded navy she'll in their back yard.
Full of desire TO penetrate the mys-
terry of the bom-bom, they placed the
shell in a mortar used for grinding
corn. and treated it roughly with the
pestle. The doctor who was called
recovered all the fragments of the
shell from their bodies, but, in spite
of his tenderly humane care, both
unfortunates soon penetrated the
greatest mystery conred by man.
"Aqui' is not really slang. 1t is q
Spanish word for there" aud is also
used in the sense of "come here" but
it has gained SO firm a place IL
the soldiers vocabulary that it mus
L.