Page:Dictionary of the Foochow Dialect.pdf/1

 PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION

As two names appear on the title-page of this dictionary, it is proper to indicate our respective shares in its preparation; and the more so, as it is due to the Rev. Mr. Baldwin to state that the larger portion of the labor of authorship has been freely performed by him, and that to his correct scholarship, extensive knowledge of the Foochow dialect, and indomitable perseverance, the dictionary is mainly indebted for the degree of thoroughness and accuracy it may possess. The manuscript for that portion of the dictionary comprised in pp. 1-631 was originally prepared by myself, but it was subsequently very carefully revised and improved by Mr. Baldwin, and a considerable portion of it (pp. 403-631 ) was entirely rewritten by him. The portion comprised in pp. 632-1014, together with the Introduction to the dictionary, was prepared by Mr. Baldwin, and, as it was impracticable for me to revise his manuscript, it was printed just as it came from his hands. The general plan of the work and the responsibility for the whole are mine.

The design and scope of the dictionary are so fully set forth in the Introduction, given no subsequent pages, that it is unnecessary to make any extended remarks on the subject in this place. The aim has been to present a work on the subject in this place. The aim has been to present a work that shall at once illustrate the Foochow dialect, and prove a valuable help to all students of the Chinese language. The definitions of the characters, and a large number of the phrases given under them will apply equally well to any dialect, through which the student seeks to acquire a knowledge of the general written language of China. Everything in the work that is peculiar to the Foochow dialect has been carefully marked, so that the student cannot be misled on this point. The large number of Romanized words appearing in the dictionary, and for which the written language furnishes no characters, is an interesting feature of this dialect, and indicates that modern Chinese thought is outgrowing the stereotyped forms of this ancient language. The same feature appears in other dialects.

It is difficult to assign exact geographical limits to the Foochow dialect, or to estimate with precision the amount of the population by whom it is spoken. In Foochow city, the capital of the Fukien province, and throughout the Foochow and Fooning prefectures, it is, with considerable variations, the vernacular of the people. Beyond these limits, it is spoken only by the Foochow merchants, artisans, etc., etc., who reside in most of the important cities of