The sun., 1901-04-20
Some Ill.Ised words.

Mr. Alfred Avres IA critic Of the English
language His method is strong and simple,
a. anybody may see Sho look, over the little
book. some I'LL seI Words" ID Appleton
4 CO.. When he ~ees a which" he changes
f. ~ n that and when he SeeS a would"
hn change. It 10 should He corrects
Shakespeare, Addison. Thackeray and all
the dictionaries Hn knows but one au-
thorlty, and knowing that he honor, the Greek
MAXIM which says Know thyself lie is
particular about the termlnauons of words
lie sweeps out al the "t-i-o-R-shuns" and
replace them with "Ings The English
language seems little formal and queer
wrcu ne has an,shcd WIKI
GA page ?S We learn that II vas not proper
g. say, Queen Victoria fears she will not
cutlyr 1905 The construction should have
been, Queen victoria fears sh. shall not
outlivc 1870 We think u possible that Mr.
Ayrcs is the celebrated Trenchman who once
uron A tim. fell into the river and cried,
i will drown, will drown. and nobody shan
holp me- OupaEc ii3 We ind tho quotation.
4 Richard Mnushcd would have intbued
the mob. and coartierS who wandered wood
enly through IN" acts with enough or his
own fire 60 hnye made them seem almost
human Here Mr. tyres cast out the TO
have madn" and puts TO make in its place
Personally. Ne have no objection. still Thack-
cray i- full NJ this form and there Is almost
INFINITE sanction for it besides Thou hadst
been hNttHr have bsrn born a dog 1t Is awful
To think u some Il tho prickles of .suguags
u " hich Mr. Ayree Exposed.
The word anxious" q straityacketed and
confined in 4 padded cell by MIR Ayres He
will not have It DO duty for -dCsirou,' or
-sohctoua" or concerned The person
who l. anxious 10 plna>" viii keep away from
Mr Ayrcs To be sure tAc dictionaries
countrnaucc these forbidden meanings. but
what ara the dictionaries aglinst the con-
clusons Of an independent and in1enble
m.ndY Mr.. AJrcs mas four pages or Cat con-
tradiction Of tho dictionaries In bis chapter
dc1iins with the word "cnplbl"
How can capable" b. used In any but
An actiye sense hr asks lie quotes
A vivId-hupd, sometimes a many-Colorod
scarf. often Of immodcrute length. capable
Of being wound around and around the youth
ful npcA OF over the head ard ears and usok
that was a 'pprt How can a rppct be
cipabe5 hn would like 70 know Plainly
tLr word susceptible - he word 'Eat should
be used 4 tipp~t 4. not capable, II - sus-
cepuh.e To ny surprise. says Mr Ayres.
"I ind that not only N" standard, Worcester
md Webster w." capable ~ the passive
sense. hu' he word ia used in like manner
in tho En,yclormdc and In the Century and
by JohL,or and hy Murray Indeed. in all
tho dictionaries capable is made to do
double duty for itself and for susceptible.
NOW. II the dictionary way Of uslLg capable
he correct, it Is also correct 20 say that coffee
is capab, of beng ground. that sugar IS
clpahe Of haiIg dissolved. that lead Ia Capa-
hr Of hciuS melted. and that iron IL capable
y, nsins welded II Il hr propc. to use cupa-
bic In passive seuse. what use hsvH We for
susceptible
Probably nobody cnu anFwrr MIR. AyreS
20 his own satisfaction II Is likely that he
does not wiah 20 be satisfied II is hi, pleas
urr To stand solitary and Ike giant against
the facts of the English language. Nothing
should please reformer ot hts turn better
than to be enabled 10 engage with something
at once false and unalterable, In such