The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1915-08-22

gzzss) tion of this article may lead to
Its being voluntarily revealed-there is
living quietly with his l<insfolk an
elderly man who is the central figure
IN the strangest story that has been
told in many a long day.
This story. which is now in print for
the first time, is closely Connected with
what is undoubtedly one of the great
est, if not actually the greatest work
of literary kind ever undertaken.
Namely. the production of the new
English dictionary or "Murrays die
tionary," as it has come to be called
after its distinguished editor, Sir James
A. H. Murray 1t was begun as Ions
ago as 1857, and Is not complete yet.
though Sir James tells me that in spite
of the war, which has cut him off en-
tirely from his German correspondents
he hopes to complete the tenth and
last of his mighty volumes. namely
1T to n some time in the present
year.
This is easily the biggest thing in
the dictionary line, anyway, ever UNI
dertaken Just to collect the quota
tions which are used in it has engaged
the-energies of over 1900 volunteer
readers, resident all over the world and
including many Americans. and since the
work began they have turned in over
three and a half millions of quotations,
representing the works of over 5000
authors, of all periods. Richard Grant
White, the famous author of Words
Their Use and Abuse" was among the
American helpers who also include
Prof. f. A. March of Lafayette college,
Pa, who superintends and organized
the American contributors, and a num-
Der of ciergymen, one of whom being
the Rev. J. Pierson of Ionia Mich
who it appears, sent in the second larg-
est number of quotations received,
namely. $4,000. CA resident of Hornsey,
England. holds the record with loo, 0O0)
A complete list of the American helpers
will, Sir James tellS me- be publishe ed
when the great work is completed.
The project of compiling the new
English dictionary originated in res
oluton by the biological society OF
Great Britain in 1857, the mover of
which was the late Archbishop Trent.
The original plan was that the Philolo-
gical society should finance the work.
but some years later the famous OK
ford University Press undertook to do
this, and to bring out the great diction-
airy. Meanwhile an appeal for volun-
teer readers was issued, and met with
a large response. For several years
the thing dragged along. two editors
and many of the original projectors
having. in the meantime, died. Finally.
Sir James Murray was chosen as edi-
tor and probably no better man for
bossing the job could have been Sc
lected.
Sir James, who was knighted in 1908.
has most of the alphabet after his
name. He is B. A., of London, an
M. A, of Edinburgh. Phi. d., of Erie
burg. and d. Lift of Cape Town. Also
a member of the Institute of France,
the Imperial Academy of Sciences, vi
emma, the Royal Prussian Academy.
The Royal Flemish Academy, the
American Philosophical society and
ever so many more learned bodies.
Born in Scotland in 1897. he has many
profound works to his credit, and is the
author of the article on 1.-THE English
Language in the Encyclopedia You
will gather that what Sir James doesn't
know about words nobody does. and of
all his many distinctions that of which
he is avowedly proudest is that of edi-
tor of the greatest of all dictionaries.
When he took hold he found him
sef confronted with a formidable job,
some 100000 quotations having al
ready been got together and needing
~
tackled the job energetica1ly. however,
and for the first five years. carried on
his labors at "rhe Scriptorium" Mill
Hill, near London, eventually, how
ever, Gin 1850 transferring his head
quarters and staff to oxford, where the
making of the dictionary has gone on
ever since. And so, with these neces-
sary preliHlinaries. to our story. which
might well be deemed incredible were
1t not ahundantly authenticated.
1t was Sir James Murrays custom,
whenever he was ready to start on a
new word. (and the genesis of a single
one mostly takes up several pages In
the new English dictionary, to send
1t out to all of his army of volunteer
readers who. forthwith supplied the
earliest possible quotation which they
could discover In which the word in the
quotation was used.
When this had been going on for
some time Sir James discovered that
some of the most valuable EQUATIONS
that reached him, together with some
Of the most scholarly comments there
upon. were forwarded by one DR.. w. G..
Minor, who wrote from Crowthornes
a small village In Berkshire. This
contributors identity puzzled Sir James