The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-04-13
]. SECOND !
PAPER.

- - E-s
B have found in my investigations that
the South is rich in linguistic treasure,
though most of her scholars seem to have
been careless Of the fact. We take grea
delight in the ..Braid Scott Of Burns
and, the quaint forms of Chaucer, bur
most OF US have never taken the trouble
to discover the richer veins of our own
tongue Ours is the most cosmopolitan
language Of all English-speaklng3 people.
We, even more than mother Enslano,
have drawn from all sources for our
speech. We have taken the material
thus gathered together and woven5it into
one broad comprehensive language ana
called 1.-THE English tongue. E While this
Is true for the! language of the lsch ools,
dictionaries, and scholars, it is equally
true for the language Of the common
people, I mean by the term common
people. the great mass Of our people,
who have never had their languase
modified by contact with cultured So
ciety. rs. - AT
A second source from which these OLD
and unusual words, Of (which mention
has beers rlade.5 come. is the old Engilsh.
In the rural districts, of several. South.
ern States are used the same forms OF
words which I find in Langland, 5Chau-
Ger, Ben Jonsou, Shakespeare and IN
fact scattered throughout the literature
of England for the past six or seven
centuries. Pronuncations which are
considered barbarisms received the sane
ton of the best writers at some time
since Chaucer. There are many old pro-
nunciations, as well as forms OF spell
ing, In common use, some of which seem
to belong both to tlles;Engish and Scotch
stock. In examining the history Of these
words. / am forced to the conclusion
that the border sections of England and
Scotland We're peopled by a common
race.
"I<iver' for cover both a. noun and a
verb. is heard quite frequently in Viz
ginia and North Carolina, but Burns and
Walter Scott both used it. The latter
says in the "Antiquary:" "It will be but
a muckle-through-stan laid down to
kiver the gowd," "K.iver-lid" for cover
let is also used s.Kith" for relatives is
Anglo Saxon. but Scott says in Guy
Mannering; TT was a sair vex and grief
to a her kith.'' .'keeler,'' a small tub,
Is heard among us and is also found
among the peasantry of Northern Eng
land. A favorite Towering shrub in the
old days, in The South, was the lilac,
which was then nearly always called
''laploclS.". This is simply the old Eng
Jish retained 7 hear, even now in many
places the pronunciation, "cowcumber''
for cucumber. Walker in an old edition
Of his dictionary has this to say of it:
Evidently this word should be pro-
nounced as it is written. but cowcumber
is so universal, it would be considered
pedantic to use anything else" A
modern housewife would feel insulted il
her choice gravy was called grease
or her lard fat but so it is called in
many southern homes to-day. This is
sanctioned by "Wife of Baths Pro-
loguc,' in the couplct,
in his own grease ] made him frye,
For anger and for very jealousie."
Pint tint. ''s.histe," ''jiste" are in
common use for. point, joint, hoist. anu
joist. but these arc not ignorant perver-
sons of the rules of pronunciation. They
are warranted by most excellent author
ity in English literature. 'Pnt and
s'jiste'' are both of French origin and no
doubt came into the Language under the
Norman influence. II would be we'll for
us to keep in mind that most Of the pro-
nunciatious which we hear among the
people of little or no culture are simply
the old forms which their conservatism
has retained, while the polishing pro-
cesses Of the schools have obliterated 1t