Little Falls herald., 1901-01-04
: SECRET LANGUAGE,

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n. Il SECRET LANGUAGE, -. -:
-: 80 = e 81. r .$.l'..a
r1,s Jarsoa That Childrea Make d
ts Convey Their Momen tons Sc 5,
= sretss 4no.s Then.e,ve., y.
The secret language period is 1 thinx
Of child nature. There DIRE three dis.
tinct periods In language learning BY
the child: The first ID the acquiring 81
the mother tongue. The second; period
comes shortly after the time Of begin
ming to learn the mother tongue, and l,
q language made up by children who
perhaps, find themselves unable to mas.
ter the mother tongue. Very few chill.
dren have q complete language 'of this
kind, but all children have q few words
Of such. Then comes the secret Ian
guage period. Although in a very few
cases the learning Of secret languagea
began about the sixth year, and in some
instances the period ran till after the
eighteenth year, yet the vast majority
of cases are covered by the period be
tween the eighth and the fifteenth yea.
while the greatest use is, between the
tenth and the thirteenth year.
There are many reasons why children
learn and use these languages. One
lady confesses that she originated a Ian
guage, and introduced::it into.ra mys
terious set of ten, in order to writ.
notes in school; and she truly adds thai
had their teachers discovered the key
they would have learned many truths
It can never be known whether thes%
languages originated in the very frs
cases with children. The names woul<
In many instances imply that children
had to do with them, 40 they SHOW
things familiar. to the child and lovei
by him. So in the secret languages, w
find animals playing an important par
In the naming. The hog, dog, goose
pigeon, pig, fly, cat and other animals
are attached to these languages. Th.
child in the old-fashioned school, wher,
all sat together. hearing the Ito him,
senseless and unknown Latin, woui.
naturally attach the name to his lan
gnage, and thus give birth to Hog Latin
Goose Latin, etc. Seeing Or hearing {
language, one letter may strike ths
childs fancy, as in one the letter b i!
'hash," and so Hash language Is tn,
result. In another "bub" (b) finds th'
funny spot in child nature, and so Dul
talk comes forth. The child in forn.e1
days, so frequently hearing of the Alb
c's, would, upon the construction at u
alphabet language, at once recur Is
such, and so name this the A-Bub-C: q
Dud language.-Oscar Chrisman, IL
Century.
Only one ont of every 1000 ,narrie>
couples live to celebrate .he;s goldee
wedding.
"'Why do you hurry to catch the 6: 3:
train, when you know there's anotiv:
that leaves at S:45, which would get u:
into town in plenty of time?' asked
one young lady Of another, as the two
were fastening toward a suburban rail:
road station.
Because, replied the other, with a
little apologetic laugh, II always like
to get in on the sunshine mans train.
"Pray, who is the sunshine man ?" in.
puired her companion. 1.-The conduc-
hr?''
"Oh, my, mol" was the laughing re-
+hA%
ever was. But there's the dearest little
old gentleman who goes into town
every morning on the $3.50 train don'1
know his name, and yet it does seem as
if knew him better than anybody else
in town. He just radiates cheerful
ness as far as you can see him. There
Ia always a smile on his face, and
never heard him open his mouth excep,
to say some kind or courteous or good
natured thing. Everybody bows to him
even strangers, and he bows to every
body, yet never with the slightest hint
of presumption or familiarity: 1t JUS
warns the cookies of ones heart to set
his shining face, the twinkle Of his eye
and the bright little flower he alway,
wears in his buttonhole. If the weather
is fine, bis jelly compliments make il
seem finer; and if it is. raining, thu
merry way IN which he speaks of it II
as good as rainbow: Everybody WHIT
goes In regularly on the $3.50 trair
knows the sunshine man. It's his train
There's nothing else to distinguish j,
from the 8:45, or any other. You jus,
hurry up a little, and I'll show. you the
sunshine man, this morning. It's foggJ
and cold, but 1t one look at him doesn'f
cheer you up SO that youth want te
whistle, then I'm no judge, of human
nature"
Itwas sweet and genuine tribute o1
human sympathy which this young
lady paid to the overflowing kindliness
Of the Sunshine man." There are q
few such men-and women, too--in
every community, and God seems . te
have set them there to keep the rest o1
the people from getting too sour and
respondent and f-absorbed and un
neighbotly. They are the divin ely-ap
pointed promoters of optimism, these
sunshine folk. Most people shave q
tendency to grow somber as they grow
older-especially when they are abroad
among Strangers One glance at the
faces of people in any st1 eet car VII