The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1908-06-12
A PRON0UN We Lack
One Of the Grammatical Difficult
ties Of Our Language.
A RATHER PRETTY PROBLEM.
And One; BY the Way, Whose satis.
factory Solution Probably Nsvsr
Will 30 Found-Phrasss That illus
trats this Difficult Point At Issue.


trate this Difficult Point at Issue.
We have a number Of words and
phrases In our tongue which require
the employment Of pronoun that
does not exist. As representatives of
this class can be taken each and every,
with the combination into which they
enter. The popularity about them is
that as regards form they are singular.
as regards meaning they are plural.
Consequently the construction, accord
ing to sense, is always coming into
conflict with the construction according
to strict grammar. One of these ex-
pressions-everybody, for instance
may be used to bring out the point
distinctly. 1t, is desired, for example.
to make statement to the effect that
at some specific gathering all persons
present had seen there those whom
they knew we'll. With the employ
ment Of the word just selected gram
NAUTICAL difficulties at once arise and
the troubles of the writer begin.
Three ways are open to him in which
he can overcome them after fashion.
But not one of them answers fully all
the conditions existing. In the first
the masculine form can be made to
represent both itself and the feminine.
Consequently such q sentence as the
following could be framed: There
everybody met his friends. Women
as we'll as men would be included I'M
der his. Though never really satisfac-
tory, this was once the preferred usage.
For time it served the purpose fairly
we'll, and it still does SO occasionally
and perhapS frequently. But there
has been for good while past dis
tinct dislike to this construction. One
result of the increasingly important
part that the female sex plays in life
and literature is the growth of repug-
nance on the parthof the feminine ele-
ment to have its identity merged in
the masculine. Subconsciousness of
the injustice of it has now passed
over into full consciousness that under
this form Of expression its claims are
not really recognized; hence, while wo-
men may use it, they do not like it.
and men have come to share largely
in the same feeling.
Another way out of the difficulty
was devised. To satisfy the claims of
both sexes resort was had to two rep
resentative pronouns. The sentence
previously given would accordingly ap-
pear in the following shape: There
everybody met his or her friends. But
such form of expression pleased no
one. 1t was felt TO be formal, to suffer
from that stiffness which is always
sure to manifest itself when natural
ness of expression is sacrificed to mere
precision of statement Besides being
Objectionable ON the score Of clumsi-
ness 1t was subject to exception on
other grounds. In words with feminine
Examinations. like heiress or heroine.
the fact of sex is indicated, indeed, but
it is not made. obtrusive When, how
ever. we have distinct contrasted
forms. as in "his or her." it is lifted
into an undue and almost aggres-
sive prominence, where there is nei-
Their desire nor occasion to make it
prominent; hence this particular usage
while serviceable in certain documents
and acceptable always to the devotees
Of strict grammar, is usually detested
by everybody else.
n A third way out of the difficulty
there is, and it was long ago taken by
the holder spirits. This was the con-
struction according to the sense. The
plural pronominal forms were used to
correspond to the idea of plurality ex-
listing in the singular subject; hence
men said in the sentence quoted: There
everybody met their friends. Exam
pies Of this usage can be found album
dainty in works Of high reputation, but
those given here for the purpose Of H.
Illustrating it will be taken from q sin
gle one. This writer is Jane Austen.
She Is chosen not for her eminence
but for her sex, for as general rule
Highly cultivated women speak and
write the language nQt only with more
6aturalness. but with greater scrupu--
lousness and purity, than the CORE.
spending class Of men. Examples from
their works are in consequence more
convincing. Here are two or three
taken out Of many. 1T is very un-
fair" says Miss Austen in emma" ito
Judge Of anybody's conduct without an
intimate knowledge Of their charac-
ter" Again in the same work the re-
mark is made that ''they say every
body is in love once in their lives" In
Mansfield Park" she observes that
nobody could command attention when
they spoke" These examples, which
might be multiplied from numerous
other authors, are sufficient to indicate
the attitude Of those who adopt the
third course. Every one can sec that
the problem is very pretty one as 1t
stands and that the interest in It will
never die because no satisfactory solu-
ton Of 1t will ever be found. -Thomas
b. Lounsbury, Professor Of English.
Yale University, in Harpers Maya
zine.
Difficult Things.
TO supply clean aprons for the lapse
4 Of time III 4. r