The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-04-22

dend.
A factory door. One time
bold, black letters, SCOT
smeared now, placard it's Intel
Employment Office"
The line juts out from the en-
trance a block or two a spoke in
the human wheel of enforced idlers.
Suits shiny. some ragged, all hope
full. they lockstep forward as
Candidate" emerges. A smile hides
his disappointment little.
He's Requested
ANY luck, buddy?" calls one.
Nope, Is requested" He sinks
away.
The bell rings at the back door.
A South Bend housewife shuts off
the groan of her vacuum cleaner.
It's Frank, the grocer's boy.
AN a can of tomatters. You got
it?"
"Sho, sho," replies Frank. He
slips round front to the parked Ford.
The woman goes back to her clean
ing
Don mess wild dat" she yells.
Junior is fussing with the gadget
that turns on the current.
The ubiquitous Amos n Andy
isms. Two men, Freeman F. Cos
den and Charles J. Cornell, are
coming the colloquialismS of the
nation.
From president to pauper, debut
tante and dowager, scrubwomen to
savantS, the nightly "sitchiations,"
as radios gold dust twins unfold
them in their salty dialect, are sea-
Soning the conversation of the
country, influencing the talk of
dinner table and Office.
Coin Many Phrases
Accompanying this article is list
of words and phrases currently trip
ping from the tongues of millions
catchwords of lotteries in the forty
eight states; conversational open
sesames; 'fce-breakers" for smoking
room or church social.
Where do We get them? GoSden
repeated the question. We'll, for
the most part We make EN- up. But
don't forget they're good southern
Negroisms inherent in their pSychol
pardon me-cyrology.'
The boys, in their peregrinations
into Harlem and the south in search
of material. give as much attention
to the dialect they hear as they do
to the study of characters and
scenes. Witticisms and accents
heard are promptly appropriated for
the act.
Mouths Big Words
THE southern Negro mouths a
big word with all the relish of a
scholar tossing it off at a lecture"
Correll commented. His mispro-
nunciations are not alone interest
ing from the comic standpoint;
they are interesting as we'll as a re-
Election of his nature.
80 when We incorpolate' these
accents and miSpronunciations into
the Skit, we are carrying out our at
tempt to portray our characters as
faithfully as We can"
Scholars, experts, psychologists
vouch for the truth of the boys
statements.
For example. there is DR.. Frank
Fl. Vizetelly. who thumbs his Stand
ard Dictionary in Funk & WagnallS'
office, a watchdow of the English
language, authority on American
iSmS.
Though he hasn't succumbed to
incorporated yet. the learned doc
tor admits check and double
check" is a part of his daily speech
"a phrase, he says. that may creep
into the next complete photography
of America. AS an Amos n Andy
fan he has followed their skit for
months.
Praises Their Words
Some of the words they use are
wonderful" said DR.. Vizetelly. 1T
is in Just such ways that words are
added to the English language.
Some one invents a word that
strikes the listener as being re-
markedly fitting. The nearer files
the expression away in his mind
and determines to use 1t when the
next opportunity offers. The word
is then passed on. and it becomes a
part Of the language.
1t is too early yet to tell what
influence Amos n Andy will have
on the language. But it is certainly
possible that out of their vocabulary
some of their words will be so ex-
quiSite they will remain forever with
us
Amos n Andy" he continued,
ARE popular because they bring
home to us a style of humor We had
forgotten. It is true, also, that We
live in a word-ridden age. which has
something 10 do with it," More
over. We are also full of wonderment
of what the colored man can do. and
Amos n Andy attempt to interpret
MIN for us"
Explains Nations Reactions
The psychological hint in DR.. vi
zetelly'S comment today was devel-
oped from a professional standpoint
by DR.. Ira Vile. well-knowa psyche
analyst. who explained that intense
reaction by the nation to their act