The Washington times., 1916-01-19
Says photographers" Letter To
The Times Mail Bag Has Proved
His ITndOinp.

To the Editor of THE TIMES:
congratulations to the Mail Bag! 1t
has been honored by a communication
from "LeSicographer" OF the Literary
Digest, that dignifed bighbrow who,
as he himself declares, cannot "un-
dertakc to consider, discuss, and de-
fend all the questions submitted to
him." but who. nevertheless. devoted
nearly column OF Saturday Even
ing's Times to considering. discuss
ing, and defending the People vs.
Persons problem. IT was an unfortu-
nate moment fnr the Funk & WaR-
nails Company when the "Lexicos-
rapher" wrote his letter OF January
Ii. He is at home in the "casy
chair" department OF the Digest but
his first appearance in The Times
Mail Rag Department has been the
undoing OF himself and his employers.
The "LexicOGrapher" has q standing
paragraph at the hNnd OF mis- column
IN the Digest stating that in his de-
cisions Of questions concerning the
current use OF words he Consults the
fInk ~ Wagnalls New Standard Dis
tionary as arblter. 1t is a pity lie
departed so FAR from his custom in
the case at issuo. | have before me-
now a cory OF Errors in English -
by the managing editor OF Funk d
Nagnalls' New Standard Dictionary
Frank II. Nizetelly, Lit. -. LII. D..
who is also the author Of "lGssentials
Of English Speech aud Literature
Declaring that the one besetting sin
Of English speaking people IL a
tendency to use COlloGuial ineleGan
clcs. slang, vulEarlsms. or to aLuS"
and misuse words,' and that the pur-
rose pi his book is "to correct care
less diction and to point out common
errors and vulgarisms that have crept
mt" the language pr. Nizetclly says
tpagc 1G4):
''Peoplc--Where individual persons
OF number Of such. are intended
this word should be discarded in favor
or persons, as Inu.j persons are of
this opinion People means persons
collectively. as people say"
Alas for the Funk & Wagnalls Cont
rany' Here we have the managing;
'ditor of their dictionary conde mnin%.
, rs ap "errur in English" tho uCc OF
the word people after a numeral ad-
Je"tive. and on the other hand the
Master mind OF tLn easy chair de-
part nicnt OF the Digest declaring TINT
tho Stnt"mcnt, "pO what ] 500, ,0Jt
other People are doing" is ESQ clear
| SO definite. 50 in, isivo that h" must
be poor linguist ind,cd. who would
a"Sail it.. The surprising DRrt OF the
'Le&iCoGrapher' stand. however. il
i'at instead Of quoting from the Now
STANDARD Dictionary, which, accord
ing TO his standing announcement nj
the 1l"ad Of his Digest column. he con
salts "a ar5iter in such matters, i've
quotes from: III" Bible He was IA rd
Pressed, indeed!
IN conclusion. let me say that whila
the "I"NiCOgrarh"r NAV nut aside
p'an'mar as cWid" :"curr"Ct English
he VIII he wasting energy in tryin.,
t. put his opinion ahOv" trr dacisions
the New standard. tho Century the
! Imperial. aud WebSt"r'S dictionaries
Funk & WaEnaliS Company should
cull "A st@rf meeting and have Dr. vi.
Z"t"ll". tine manuging editor Of thcir
Dictionary. and one OF tn" IrHdin.;
authorlties on English In this COuu-
try, put the "LCNicOc rapkCr" on tho
! i~ht track before he succeed, In
making n Joke of the r'hui" concern
FRANCIS DT SALTS RYAN,
Washington, Jan. -.