The Catholic times. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1951-current, 1953-10-23
Just Among Ourselves
Passins Comment Considered or Ineensidsrats

VINO wrote the pre-Cnauceflan CUCKOO Song. Sumef,
he remarks, lis icumen in, Lhude sing cuccui" Old
Man Anonymous never wrote anything sillier. Nor
anything more permanent. For more than 700 years
now, pupils in Middle English-A have had to exclaim
over that abandoned ctcc and TO admire the quaint
of spelling which is less orthodox, if pos
sIble, than their own.
What is the secret of this enduring power in
rifle? If the unknown author of these lines should
someday appear and prove title, he could collect
enough back royalties to make him shining target
for the Internal Revenue Boys and have enough left
over after taxes to start his giyeaway program
on TV. The Cuckoo Show fire title!
What makes me think bitterly of this Cuckoo Song
is not merely the fact that ii was thing to be
orzed CGod knows Why in youth but that its ending
line, vsriously adapted keeps recurring, despite all
efforts TO keep it out TO meet the exigencies of
modern living. Right now, find myself mutterng,
as the mail comes in daily that something else is
lcumen IN that is TO say, Christmas.
For, since mid-August. the fruitgrowers of Cali
forna and Oregon, the Quaint People up in New
England, and the proprietors of Old Mills and Old
Country Stores have been bending the back of the
postman with cute little folders and booklets repete
with proclamstionS and pictures of products caIcu-
lated TO make Christmas giving rocking, if some
what expensive, adventure. Lhude sing euccu!
You don't want TO have to join the press and
throng in crowded stores, do you? OF course
not Just sink back in your easy chair and make your
selections from these dainty booklets. Afterwards,
when you have gone TO the trouble of sitting down
at desk or table you can write out an order, and
send II, with check, and your Christmas shopping
is all finished Be an armchair giver! Get rid of your
duties the easy way Charm all your Christmas donees
with unusual gifts, and make them understand that
you are thoughtful enough of them to avoid all care
and labor their behalf, and send them something
out of a mail-order book
Well, il is just appropriate to send gifts in this
fashion TO send a printed or engraved card with
copyrighted sentiments it. And the advertisements
would not be oppressive il they were straightfor-
ward statements of goods for sale. But this is by no
means the case. The ads more and more tending
to the coy, the cute, the demure the tricksy.
For instance the fruitaowers of our far west
and northwest who do a massive trade by express,
especially at Christmas time apparently tick
led with their fruits and their fortunes that they
cannot tell person about their merchandise; they
have 10 otSh about it in grlish glee. If they have
big and juicy pears for sale they describe them as
fat n iusciousw An interesting inability TO use
the word and has hit the fruitmen like a growing
blight in their orchards; they seldom say and they
shorten il TO IN, especially in paired adjectives,
and pun intended
Sometimes hey assume the folksy tone and say,
Jim n Jerry have been scurrying like rabbits all
over this great fruit paradise TO find something ex-
traspecial for you and your friends this Christmas.
N what do you think They have found half doz-
en- dandy items that you just won't want to miss.
For example. way off there in Obelumbee Wash
ington they found a new kind of marinated melon
rnd that you simply gotta taSte-ummmmm We
have packed up nice lot Of this gourmetS special
L. rFa..
in a wonderboX designed by Schmalz, the noted
architect, will come to you gay bedecked with
yards n yards of red n green ribbon n hollyberry,
for $4s8!'
From the lower valleys of the date and palm
comes rustic rumble Bucolic Ben puts in his
two-cents worth. wal folks the ads read Il just
in from trip around my orchards, and if
this amt the mdandiest year fer fine eatin' fruits,
my name amt old Ben Perkins, Say, you oughta
my cots Golden yellow charmerS that yer eye lights
up TO behod And big! Gosh Almighty, you'll never
believe it till you see EN- And full o. juice! Land
sakes, you eat these cots out o. yer hand;
git bowl big un, n a spoonl Yes, mean fer
one cot But wait till you git glimpse o my pruneS!
Big ostrich eggs and twice wrinkled!"
80
Now there may be advertising pull in such
stuff this There must be for the advertisers stay
in business year after year But for one lone sub
ket, this sort of advertising evokes only the sad
frain of "lhude sing cuccu' hate that doggone
poem, but what else is there TO say?
Down Maine and Vermont way, the quaint old
country stores send out notices of wonderful bar
gains in quaint old Sap-bucketS, and quaint old
braided rugs, and quaint old hurricane lamps, and
quaint old allmottoes and quaint old antmseas-
sars for your non-exstent quaint old chairs. Bar
gains, do we say? Well yes If YOU don't care much
about the meaning OF your quaint old words.
All, what nostalgia remniscence stirs in the
hearts of people who never country store,
they look al the cover picture OF the Christmas
Catalogue! There's the old store, sure enough.
Big round stove in the middle of the floor Cracker
barl right handy. Old showcase with oIdfaShioned
candy in it, and in oldfashioned jars back
on the shelves behind the counter. You al
most catch the mingled odors Of dried fish, kero-
sene coffee-berries and eorned beef All, welta-day
What in view of this. is all vaunted progress?
What after all, airplanes and automobiles, and
AbombS?
sighed "Quaintness is icumen in cuceu,
cuccut" Said Miss X English major IN a university
she plans to teach Middle English TO those in whom
Middle English is felt need) and wears flat heels,
and enormous dark-plastic-shelled glasses and has
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