Evening star., 1935-09-01
September /. 1885

ability to speak at least one foreign language
preferably French - otherwise Italian,
German. or Spanish, has for generations been
a requirement exacted of all people of gen.
timely high cultivation. Unerring avoidance
of words and phrases and pronunciations that
are tabus of taste must also be learned by
child before he is seven.
There may be an occasional and exceptional
linguist whose ear is as sensitive as that of a
great violinist but no ordinary person is
likely to be able to make the French them
selves believe him also French, unless his
RS and his vowels and the cadence of that
lovely tongue was fixed in his hearing long
before he reached the age of three. At that age
it IS said to be lost forever; but once fixed in
memory and kept until his early teens it is
then kept forever
The English our children speak must also
be listened to very closely since lazy habits
OF slurred and distorted pronunciation are all
too easily fixed for life 1t takes more effort
to produce beautiful tone, and to enunciate
clearly than it does to make fiat illiterately
muInbled and jumbled sounds through immo-
bile lips and half-closed throat and stiff Jaws.
Merriage and het are both shut-jaw dis
tortions.
If mother is not sure that her own ear is
accurate she might make few tests by look
ing at her own mouth in hand glass and see
ing what shapes she makes with her lips and
how much she moves her jaws and how much
longer time she takes to say the long vowels
For example. say very slowly: Father,
may 90 out and look at the moon?' Saw
father" a." and 'at" with jaws opened an
inch. The in father is said with lips natural
and relaxed. and er at the end must be uttered
wit hout bringing teeth together and letting
the tongue burr. IL" is said with lips spread
slightly wider open. and wider open still for
the in 'at," or cat" or marriage" Say
all these sounds with teeth an inch apart.
GO" look. moon" must be said with
lips pouted. o is said with lips making a
perfectly round hole half an inch in diameter.
Look" with the 90 widened sideways into
shape like football. Moon" with lips thrust
further forward leaving perfectly round
opening half the size of the one that makes O.
Out" is said with mouth opened wide and
then lips drawn quickly together as though
pulled together on a drawing string.
Water and thought" can not be said
unless lips are brought together in the shape
ofan O, about three of an inch in diam
eter. This suggestion is given merely because
it Is sometimes helpful in determining true
tone.
Other conspicuous vulgarities to avoid are
thoid for third, gonna for going to. erl for
oil. form for foreign, and luggsry for luxury
and so on. Don't let the child say Toosday
for Tuesday (tyou-sday) moo for new (n'you)
wen for When, and witch for Which, and
wot for what
The next step on the road to culture is
learning to avoid doing anything cheap,
vulgar low or unfair. 1t is hard to define
cheapneSs further than to say it is the doing
of something that is not in accord with the
code of gentleman. 1t is cheap to make one
self conspicuous, to tell ones private con-
Germs to strangers, to speak disloyally of
friends, to have no proper pride. 1t is cheap
to be willing to accept favors without any
attempt to give them in return. 1t is cheap to
be willing to 60 anywhere on the invitation of
any stranger who happens to come along. or
to join the party of an acquaintance no
matter how enthusiastically or even i'm
politely one may be welcomed.
Translate this into precepts for the nursery:
the well-bred child is not allowed to ask for a
present or Tor money - not even for penny
- 0XCent from his rarpntS Or parhaDS his