Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-08-10
THE GENTLE PASTIME
OF TONGUE TWISTING
It's Virtues Are Only to Be Known
by Giving 1t Fair Trial--He Who
Doesn't Hesitate Is Lost-"Sister
Susie's" Sibillant Ancestors.
Bv RoBERT HILpRETH


tor, or victim, as the case may be, Is prett
sure to tell another And on similar prir
ciples, It is with considerable trcpidatlon, g
the orators often begin by saying that ven
ture upon the present subject-the gentle al
Of tongue twisting. For feel very sure tina
any one of my readers can come back at m
with more twistable examples than thos
which am myself able to quote. Howeve
that may be, I am reconciled to the proba
bilities by the reflection that contributions t
the subject from Whatever source must hav
the effect Of adding to the gaiety Of a war
irritated public.
Among the simplest Of tongue twsters Il
one which, as l remember It, was imposed OF
the comedian of The Sunshine Girl" who
got away with II with flying colors. ] saw
nothing difficult in the test until l attempted
to show my companion how easy it was, and
then commented inwardy but trucuently on
the faulty enunciauon with which so many
of us are cursed. The comedians line ran as
follows: she stood at the gate welcoming
him in Reads all right Of course, but say it
| aloud several times as rapidly as possible,
/ Not nearly so unlucky for the unwary as
that ancient stumbling block The sea
ceaseth and 1t suflceth us"
Try This on Your Vocal Cords
Many of the commoner tongue twisters
have been introduced or popularzed through
the medium of comic opera Take the recent
instance from Dancing Around" That lit
tie dtty about Sister Susie surely did sing its
way into a terrible muddle:
Sister susie's sewing shirts for soldiers
Such skill at sewing shirts shy young
sister Susie shows,
The soldiers send cpistles,
Say they'd rather sleep in thistles,
Than the saucy soft short shirt for soldiers
s ster Susie sews.
The tongue-twistinE type Of song attained
a great vogue in musical comedy about half
dozen years ago, when She sells sea shells
on the seashore" was all the rage little
later came (which switch is the switch. miss
for Ipswich?" Jack Norworth, the American
comedian, who has lately taken the shirt
song to London, sang in the British music
halls:
Which switch is the switch, miss, Tor
Ipswich?
IT'S the Ipswich switch which require.
Which switch switches Ipswich with this
switch?
You've switched my switch on the wrong
You've switched me on Norwich, not
Ipswich,
So, now, to prevent further hitch
If you'll tell me which switch is Norwich
and which switch
Is Ipswich, I'll know switch is switch
The origin of not a few tongue twsters
must be sought in antiquity like that favor
lite one of everybodys youth:
Peter Piper picked peck of prickly picked
peppers;
If Peter Piper picked a peck of prickly
picked peppers
Where's tho peck of priclsly picked peppers
Peter Piper picked?
If this is alliterntlon make the most of it,
But very likely l have misquoted the ancient
classic, and If anybody can set me right 1
shall be very much Obliged.
The Three Tiny Tree Toads
There also is a pleasant story about how
Three tiny tree toads tried to trot to Troy"
but all remember Of it is the first line, It's
"vers libre" of a sort, like the Peter Piper
poem, but that's nothing. for f. p. A. has
demonstrated that the weather report can be
turned into free verse.
Some of the tongue twisters are especially
adapted to serve as tests of ebrlety Curl
Gus fact by the way about that word
'ebriety' Thought it was anonymous to
'inebrety." After ALL neither word is the
ever, may be fairly well determined by goad- |
ing the subject with some such tongue
twister as He started straight up state
street." until he Indignantly accepts your
challenge and says-never mind but even
sober man might fall down on a task no
harder than saying shave a cedar shinple
thin" several times in rapid succession.
Try another Try Toy boats, toy boats,
toy boats toy boats, toy boats" and keep 1t
up till you see what happens If that's too
easy learn this by heart: II say, John peo-
pie say you say I say to everything l do
say, l say, John; but even If I do say I say
10 everything | do say, ! say, John, it's
no reason for you to say | say I say to
everything do say, l say, John"
On the same order is the story of Esau:
"Esau sawed wood. Esau Wood would
saw wood All the wood Esau Wood saw.
Ssau Wood would saw, In other words all
he wood Esau saw to saw Esau sought Ia
saw All the wood Wood would saw! And.
oh! the wood-saw with which Wood would
saw wood, But one day Woods woods saw
would saw no wood, and thus the wood Wood
sawed was not the wood Wood would saw
Woods wood-saw would saw wood. Now.
Wood would saw wood with wood-saw that
would saw wood. So Esau sought a saw
nat "oulu saw WOOD and one day Esau saw
l saw saw wood as no other saw would
saw wood, In fact, of all the wood-saws
Wood ever saw saw wood, Wood never saw
wood-saw that would saw wood as that
Vood-saw Wood saw saw wood; and so |
Jaw Esau Wood saw wood with the wood
Jaw Wood saw saw wood"
The Duel of Shot and Not
once there was duel between two men
FAMED Shot and Not. Not that there ever
we're two men named Shot and Not, but the
Iuel is described thus;
"shot shot the hrst shot and tha L.. -.