Page:The American Language.djvu/256

240 American that differ very widely from the meaning of chasse. How widely it is dispersed may be seen by the fact that it is re- ported in popular use, as a verb signifying to prance or to walk consciously, in Southeastern Missouri, Nebraska, Northwestern Arkansas, Eastern Alabama and Western Indiana, and, with slightly different meaning, on Cape Cod. The travels of cafe in America would repay investigation; particularly its varia- tions in pronunciation. I believe that it is fast becoming kaif. Plaza, boulevard, vaudeville, menu and rathskeller have entered into the common speech of the land, and are pronounced as Amer- ican words. Such words, when they come in verbally, by actual contact with immigrants, commonly retain some measure of their correct native pronunciation. Spiel, kosher, ganof and matzoh are examples; their vowels remain un-American. But words that come in visually, say through street-signs and the news- papers, are immediately overhauled and have thoroughly Amer- icanized vowels and consonants thereafter. School-teachers have been trying to establish various pseudo-French pronunciations of vase for fifty years past, but it still rhymes with face in the vulgate. Vaudeville is vawd-vill; boulevard has a hard d at the end; plaza has two flat a's; the first syllable of menu rhymes with bee; the first of rathskeller with cats; fiancee is fy-ance-y; nee rhymes with see; decollete is de-coll-ty; hofbrdu is huffbrow; the German w has lost its v-sound and becomes an American w. I have, in my day, heard proteege for protege, habichoo for habitue, connisoor for connisseur, shirtso for scherzo, premeer for premiere, eetood for etude and prelood for prelude. Divorcee is divorcey, and has all the rakishness of the adjectives in -y. The first syllable of mayonnaise rhymes with hay. Creme de menthe is cream de mint. Schweizer is swite-ser. Rochefort is roke-fort. I have heard debut with the last syllable rhyming with nut. I have heard minoot for minuet. I have heard tchef doover for chef d'ceuvre. And who doesn't remember As I walked along the Boys Boo-long With an independent air and