Page:Notes and Queries - Series 11 - Volume 2.djvu/445

 ii s. vm, NOV. 9, i9i3.] XOTES AND QUERIES.

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" Circus " (probably the smallest in London), now only awaiting a name, which, as already suggested, might well be " Portman," as distinctly appropriate to surroundings.

CECIL CLARKE. Junior Athenaeum Club.

Hotel 0n

Rustic Speech, and Folk- Lore. By Elizabeth Mary

Wright. (Oxford University Press.) THIS book, by the wife and collaborator of Dr. Joseph Wright, consists largely of material drawn from the ' English Dialect Dictionary,' selected with a view to illustrating the lighter, and, so to speak, more human developments in those minor branches of language which diverge from the main stem. It was well worth writing, and should thoroughly con- vince its readers that a dialect is not "an arbitrary distortion of the mother-tongue, a wilful mispro- nunciation of the sounds, and disregard of the syntax, of a standard language." Even yet many people of fair education fail to understand that each form of provincial English has distinct grammatical customs of its own, and that such phrases as " Him and her didn't nayther on 'em niver say nowt aboot it " are quite defensible, and not only defensible, but his- torically of great interest, while some apparent corruptions are old forms, frequently more correct than the words which have taken their place in what is considered polite English. Genuine dialect- speakers can utter their sentiments with a pic- turesque force which is scarcely ever the gift of people who use schoolmasters' English. Some dialects serve to express the most tender feelings. "Thou" or "thy," used instead of "you "or "your," may be either a verbal caress or a wilful provocation, according to the inflection with which it is uttered. The variety of terms used for one and the same idea is striking. For instance, why have the woodpecker, the missel-thrush, and the smallest pig of a litter so many names ?

The dialect-speakers liking for compound words is evident. To call a romping, boisterous child a " rip-stitch " or a "rive-rags " must have afforded relief to the irritated temper of many a mother who has had to repair the damaged clothing of a " torn- down bairn." Alliterative compounds, phrases containing two synonymous verbs, and riming compounds are also often used. The chapter on popular phrases and sayings might with advantage be taken as the groundwork of a collection of such expressions gathered from the many dialects of continental countries which abound in similar forms of speech. Our " A bloring cow soon forgets its calf r ' is good, but equally to the point is the German " An old cow very easily forgets that she has been a calf," which veracious observation has the ad- vantage of being in rime in the original.

It may be noted in connexion with the word " middling," when used in speaking of physical health, that to confess to being in a perfectly flourishing condition would be very indiscreet from the folk-lore point of view. Never draw to yourself the attention of the powers of evil by boasting that you are quite well. To invite the attention of envy and malice in this manner would be as foolhardy as to attract the devil by mentioning his name, instead of referring to him indirectly. The chapter on

phonology and grammar is in many respects the most valuable part of 'Rustic Speech.' Though most of it is already well known, the collection of folk -lore at the end of the book illustrates country life in its bearing on country language admirably.

The British Empire Universities Modern English Illustrated Dictionary, ivith a Reference Library and Treasury of Facts. Under the Chief Editorship of Edward D. Price and H. Thurston Peck. (Syndicate Publishing Co.) THE editors of this volume are justified in their claim to have produced a modern English dic- tionary, for in the body of it will be found such recent introductions into the language as " kimono," " Marconigram," " skiagram," and " Rontgen rays " or "X rays," besides phrases such as " Taxation of Land Values " and " Wo- men's Rights " ; while various forms of sport contribute " airman " and " aviation," " googly,' r and " road-hog." Indeed, the prominence given to sports is a feature of the work, for after the ordinary vocabulary come glossaries relating to automobiles, aviation, cricket, football (with separate treatment for Rugby and " Soccer "), golf, and lawn tennis, each compiled by an expert. The volume is easy to handle and well bound, the type is good and clear, and there are numerous helpful illustrations, both coloured and in black and white. The outstanding feature of the work is, however, the great amount of supple- mentary information it contains. The introduc- tory essays treat of the origin and history of dic- tionaries, the dictionary as an educational factor, English grammar, and English spelling ; and Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch contributes one on ' Great English Writers.'

The information following the vocabularies is of the most varied kind, ranging from Boy Scouts to ' Largest Cities of the Earth,' and including much about different aspects of the British Em- pire. ' Famous Characters in Poetry and Prose ' well illustrates the aim of the Dictionary to be up to date, for Meredith, Anthony Hope, Rider Haggard, Thomas Hardy, and Rudyard Kipling are all laid under contribution. An old classic, however, is misspelt in " Humphrey " Clinker, and a modern one in " Allen " Qua term ain.

These slips are, unfortunately, not alone. Sometimes the English of the definitions is faulty, e.g., a bishop is described as " below in rank to an archbishop, but above a priest." " Birth-rate " is said to be " the increase of popu- lation as shoivn by the percentage of registered births to the number of inhabitants in a district within a specified period," the words we have italicized obscuring the sense, besides being un- necessary. To define " Arminian," adj., a* " pertaining to the doctrines or tenets of the Arminians will not help the inquirer. Mis- takes occur in some of the main entries. " Aero- nautic* " is given as a form of the adjective as well as the noun. " Bombadier " and " Bom- badier-beetle " are not very serious misspellings ;. but "Ceen-stone" is likely to mislead the student,, and " Camieu " and " Cameraderie " are worse.

In order to save space, the pronunciation of a portion of a word is not repeated when the same- sound occurs in the following entry. Tliis^ some- times leads to confusion, e.g., " Kindred, kin'dred," is followed by " Kinemacolour, -ma'kul-er," where a syllable has got lost, and the change in