Intermountain Jewish news., 1926-07-29
American Ghetto Inspires Folklore

oNxe Baby, by Milton Gross, George II. Dornn, 1920
The thrill that in a life the posses
sion OF M Gross whose Nixe Baby fables have become
the most talked of literary Of year Read
and weep. with laughter.
For more than quarter Of a century the picturesque
lingo Of the New York Ghetto-trsnspaned with some
degree Of acuering Harlem and the Bronxhs dnned
W the eur OF native New Yorker and visitor alike Oc-
casonay someone has taken the trouble to mock
y away from 1t generally 1t has remained for
Nit Gross to absorb It wholehesrtedly study its
nusances carefully and ransterae it for printed
page with such uncanny insight
As the story Of now it happened to us, Milt
Gross Is by trade cartOonst Who used illustrate the
Sunday column of one of the New York Worlds hunor-
lists One week the humorst too III to write his
column, and Mit Gross invited to I'LL in the gap.
he conceived the notion Of portrayng conversation
through the dumbwaiter of typical New York apart
ment between Mrs Feitlebaum the first Mrs
YiHnin the second. From the third noor the
voice Of Momma folding her Nize Baby that II baby
shall p de mnntimc lit opp oil de nse tapiyukka put
tink sometimes nize oitmil; other times the baby
is to lit opp oil de nze kerrets pzz) gonna
tell nize sturrie These stories psrodes
better known fables.
To the fables uaples in tree pots-Pot 1, Pot und
sometimess Pot tree) more than eminent critic has
already attached the label Of folk lore. They reflect
dialect which could not have been created Of literary
Imagination alone 1t is congomeraon of Yiddish In
Sections and iaxzy Amercanis growing spontaneously
suits achieved by Mr. Gross in ranspanng the dialect
the printed Is subject to abstract description
1T must be seen 10 be appreciated and excerpt from
his weekly contributions to ibe New York World
book form under the title Mise Baby will serve IS
conclusion:
So de hant he sad de gresshOpper-"Le
gresshopper-ts not mine beezness l should meek in.
hut teenk wat you should batter push away leede
hit something for rainy day so de gresshoprer gave
him henswer: 'Izzy comes izzy goes? lsh ka
hubble. Denks VERY notch for dc advice Slong!
got date for patting poddy !" SO de hsnt sad:
"Hmmm,mm He teenks wOt he's smot, Hill find
out"
So it came gredually dc weenter HIM Was 1t
cold wit frzzing wit rain wit hail wit wit slit!
So de hant seetng inside from de house
ftablc wit plainly to TIT wit stim h wit weechtrola,
wit A0wrxs chair. So while he seeting 1t came
gredually knock on de door-so de bother uppened
opp de door-so dere was steuding the gresshopper!
Hm. was he don witt out! ! 6heevcring witt
frizzing witt hiccles henging from him-witt holes
In de shoes-witt petches in de pants So de hant
sad: HIM! It's You. ha? penhsndler you be-
came already ha? Deedn't told you? /? So de gress
hopper sad Il jost walked in from Troy N Y. Could
YOU spare plizze two beets for cup cuny'' SO de
hant sad: What did you did in de sommer time,
dencing witt jezzing" So de hant sad: "A whole
sommer you seenging witt dencIng witt jezzng-
so now is de weenter. Go play wild VIOLIN
Ernest Sutherland Bates has called "Nze Baby" the
happest piece humor that America has produced in
years We shall merely add II already fat, don't
read Nze Baby