Page:The Works of the Rev. Jonathan Swift, Volume 8.djvu/270

260 projectors; I mean, that I may have the sole profit of giving a licence to every school to read my grammar for fourteen years.

The reader cannot but observe what pains I have been at in polishing the style of my book to the greatest exactness: nor have I been less diligent in refining the orthography, by spelling the words in the very same manner as they are pronounced by the chief patterns of politeness at court, at levees, at assemblies, at playhouses, at the prime visiting-places, by young templars, and by gentlemen commoners of both universities, who have lived at least a twelvemonth in town, and kept the best company. Of these spellings the publick will meet with many examples in the following book. For instance, can't, han't, shan't, didn't, couldn't, wouldn't, isn't, en't, with many more; beside several words which scholars pretend are derived from Greek and Latin, but now pared into a polite sound by ladies, officers of the army, courtiers, and templars, such as jommetry for geometry, vardi for verdict, lard for lord, learnen for learning; together with some abbreviations exquisitely relined; as pozz for positive; mobb for mobile; phizz for physiognomy; rep for reputation; plenipo for plenipotentiary; incog. for incognito; hypps, or hippo, for hypochondriacs; bam for bamboozle; and bamboozle for God knows what; whereby much time is saved, and the high road to conversation cut short by many a mile.

I have, as it will be apparent, laboured very much, and, I hope, with felicity enough, to make every character in the dialogue agreeable with itself to a degree, that whenever any judicious person shall read my book aloud for the entertainment and instruction