Page:Ralcy H. Bell - The Mystery of Words (1924).pdf/204

 among that bunch.” Bunch as applied to a number of unpleasant persons is not a bad use of a very good word. Professor Virginia C. Gildersleeve is of the opinion “that slang is all a question of taste”; perhaps she is right.

The prize ring made “to come back” popular. The old fighter who had been out of training for several years is said to be unable “to come back”; but the young bruiser who has not been “away,” because still in training, does not have “to come back.” This phrase also is much used in political discussions. As the usage of words tends toward the metaphorical, there can be but little objection to such popular forms.

“Swinging round the circle” was employed by President Johnson on several occasions, among others during a famous speech-making tour. He used it in this sense: “I have opposed traitors in the South, and now I am swinging round the circle and fighting traitors at the North,” meaning the “radicals” in the Congress and outside. Through carelessness