Page:A Manual of the Foochow Dialect in Twenty Lessons.pdf/14

Rh for oneself the reputation of being illbred. Please, Mr. Ma, what is this character? 請問馬先生嚽是世乇字 Chiāng muóng Mā sĭng-săng, cuòi sê sié-nó̤h cê? Chiāng is used before most verbs in the sense of "to request", and as the equivalent of "please". It is not used to servants and laborers. Please be seated, 請坐 chiāng sô̤i. Please, ask him, sir, 請先生問伊 Chiāng sĭng-săng muóng ĭ.

Kī-dâe̤ng is the equivalent of "I'll trouble you", and is used in requesting or acknowledging assistance given, as in asking the road, etc. It is better not to use this expression to one's own servants, unless in the case of services rendered beyond their proper duties. Missionaries do well to teach their children to say kī-dâe̤ng to the household servants in asking them for their assitance. Please, sir, read aloud from this book. 起動先生讀者書 Kī-dâe̤ng sĭng-săng, tĕ̤k ciā cṳ̆. Thanks! (for assistance given) 起動 Kī-dâe̤ng. No trouble! 毛起動 Mò̤ kī-dâe̤ng!

4. Verbs often include prepositions in their meaning. Thus 坐 sô̤i to sit down, also means to sit upon. He sits upon the chair, 伊坐椅 ĭ sô̤i iē.

5. It has already been stated that cuòi and huòi, the demonstrative pronouns "this" and "that", are not applied to persons. In speaking of persons, 只隻 cī ciáh, this one, and 許隻 hṳ̄ ciáh, that one, are used. THey are also used in the more extended forms 只一隻 cī siŏh ciáh and 許一隻 hṳ̄ siŏh ciáh. Who is this? It is my younger brother. 只隻是世乇𠆧 Ci ciáh sê sié-nó̤h nè̤ng? 伊是儂家其弟 I sê nè̤ng-gă gì diê.

NOTE. While 燈馬 dĭng-mā is the generic name of lamps in Foochow colloquial, it is well to know that the natives of Foochow apply special names to different varieties of lamps. A table lamp, such as can be carried in the hand is called a dò̤dò̤h [sic]-guóng, literally a light that can be