Page:Studies in Lowland Scots - Colville - 1909.djvu/231

Rh (Ger. Jacke, jacket). In the Taal it is applied as in the sentence, "Is die Heere nie bang dat het sal gaan reen? Né, ons hêt almaal reên-baatjes"—Are you gentlemen not afraid that it is going to rain? No, we have always waterproofs. Calvary, again, in the Gothic is hvairneistaths or harn-stead (Du. hersen-pan, Sc. harn-pan), the pot which holds the harns or brains. This renders the phrase, "the place of a skull," in the English version.

The homely aspect of life and its relations are naturally prominent. The patriarchal head is the huis heer, or, generally, the baas, based on the figure of the boss on a shield or the Scotch bush, the nave or hub of a wheel on which the spokes (children), felloes (dependents), and rim (outer world) all depend. Vrouw, the housewife, is the term of honour in preference to wife. The children are the kleintjies, the little ones (Ger. Klein). Broers and broederen preserve the distinction in brothers and brethren. Kindly inquiries take such forms as these: "Maarie, waar (whaur) is jou zussie? Is dit jou dochterjie?" Conventional address is equally patriarchal. One younger than the speaker is son; of his own age, neef (knave, in Ger. boy, lad); if a lady, tante; if younger, nicht (Ger. nephew). Ou is familiarly addressed to anyone, like our old, old boy. Parts of the body are quite intelligible, such as the "luff (or palm) van de hand," the oor (ear), and the oksel, or armpit (Sc. oxter).

In the domestic series the Boer comes equally close to the Scot. He mends the vuur (fire) with tangs (tongs), hoests (coughs), has a kinkhoest (whooping-cough), snotters or snivels, knows the virtue of a steek in time, taps his beer with a kraan, admires a breed shouder and sound lids (Du. leden, C. Du. le'e, joints, "lith and limb"), and prides himself in being slim (Sc. slim, Du. slem, Ger. schlimm), believes himself to be kloek (Ger. klug, clever) or gleg i' the uptak like the Scot. His huis has a roef, and a gevel (Gothic gibla, pinnacle of the Temple). From the stoep one enters the one large common room, the kitchie (Aberd.) of this ha'-house, with sleeping chambers leading off it. The bultong and the mealies hanging from the rafters represent the Scottish braxy and the weel-hained kebbocks. The loft above is reached by a trap (Ger. Treppe).