Rensselaer Gazette, Volume 2, Number 38, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 12 January 1859 — Manliness of Speech [ARTICLE]

Manliness of Speech

A lecture recently delivered in Carlisle England, by the Rev. A. Mursell contained the following but instructive passage: The point to which I have next to direct my attention is manliness in speech. There are many young men who seem to consider it essential to manliness that they should be atterers of slang. The sporting world, like its brother, the swell m b, has a language of its own; but this dog English extends far beyond the sporting world. It' comes with its hoard of barbarous words, threatening the entire extradition of genuine English! Now just listen for a moment to our fast young man, or the ape of a fast young man, who thinks that to be a man he must talk in the dark phraseology of slang. If he‘does anything on bis own responsibility, he does it on his own ‘hook.’ If he sees anything remarkably good, he calls it a ‘stunner,’ the superlative of which is a ‘regular stunner.’ If a man is requested to pay a tavern bill he is asked if he will ‘Stand Sam !’ If he meets a savage looking dog, he calls him an ‘ugly customer.’ If he meets an eccentric man he calls him a ‘rummy old cove.’ A sensible man is a ‘chap’ ‘that’s up to snuff.’ A man not remarkable for good sense is a ‘cake—a flat'—a spoon,—a stick'—‘his mother does no know that lie is out.’ A doubtful assertion is to be ‘told to the marines.’ An incredulous statement is ‘all gammon.’ Onr young friend never scolds, but ‘blows up’— never pays but ‘s’timps up’ never finds it j difficult to pay but is ‘hard up'—never feels 1 fatigued but is ‘used up.’ He has no hat I but covers his head with a ‘tile.’ He wears no neckcloth, but surrounds his neck with a ‘choker.’ He lives nowhere, but there is a place where he ‘hangs out.’ He never goes away or withddraws, but he‘bolts'—he ‘slopes’—he ‘mizzles’ —rhe ‘makes himself scarce’—he walks his chalks’—he makes tracks’ —he ‘cuts his stick'—or what is the same thing, he ‘cuts his lucky!’ The highest compliment you can pay him is to call him a ‘regular brick.’ He does not pretend td be brave, but prides himself on being ‘plucky.’ Money is a word which he has forgotten, but he talks a good deal about ‘tin’ and the -needful’ the ‘rhino’ and, ‘the ready.’ When a man speaks he ‘spouts’— when ho holds his peace, he is ‘down a peg or two,’and‘made to sing small.’ He calls his hands ‘paws,’ his legs ‘pins.’ To be perplexed, is to be‘flumaxed’ —to be disappointi s to be ‘dished’ —to be cheated is to be ‘sold’ to be cheated clearly is to be ‘done brown.’ Whatsoever is shabby is‘seedy'—whatsoever is pleasant is‘jolly.’ He says‘Blessed if he he does this,’ blowed if he does that,’ ‘hanged if he does the other; or he exclaims ‘Aly eye!’ ‘my stars!’—lf you asked him which were his stars, he would be ‘flumaxed.’ Then he swears ‘ By George’—‘by the piper' —<>n select occasions he selects ‘the piper that played before Moses.’ Washington (Tazwell count ) Investigator learns that a little boy named Foster, twelve years of age, son of Elder Robert Foster, of Metamora, was accidentally killed a few days ago. He was playing on a shed roof with a leather strap. He put the strap around his neck and jumped off the roof, when the buckle caught in a crack of the boards, and his neck was dislocated immediately.

£S”A lover had been offered a kiss If he would prove his assertion that locomotives are accustomed to cli&w tobacco as well a» smoke out of their pipes: Giving his arm the proper gank, To imitate an engine crank, The motion forward first to show, : And then the backward motion too; Eager to press the promised prize, He puckered his lips and twin l ied his eyes To smack her: “Observe the sound As the crank comes round,” He archly said; “It’s choo—choo—choo To go ahead, And choo—choo— chew To—backher. ’ ’- (£7"The Boone county (Indiana) Expositor says that quite an excitememnt has been created in that county, and the vicinity of Perry township, by the arrest of two or three doctors and other citizens, on a charge of taking up he corpse of a Miss Smith, who was buried near Fayette last March. The parties were discharged. But since their discharge a new arrest has been made of the two doctors for taking up and dissecting the bodies of a Mrs. Shirley and her infant child. Dr. Edwards is one, and Dr. Grimes the other. Dr. Grimes was.held to bail in S3OO, to appear at the next term of the Court of Common Pleas of Boone county. (Kz”A new sect of Perfectionists has arisen in New Hampshire. Altogether, they number about 100. They believe in community of goods. Civil law they do not regard. Their laws are Bible laws. They hold that after one has once received the reviving influence of the Holy Spirit, it is impossible | for him even to be tempted to sin. They I believe in the speedy coming of the Savior. The time is not yet revealed, but soon will be. Three apostles, who are to have charge of their affairs, have been chosen, who are spoken of as very successful second-advent preachers in times past. 0O”A woman rushed into a store=-at St. Louis last week, saying that a man who had insulted her in the street was in pursuit. Storkeeper ran to the door, stared about, and returned with the announcement that the man was not to be seen. The lady thanked him gracefully and retired; and the storekeeper only ceased to congratulate himself on being a protector of female virtue, when he found that two hundred dollars worth of valuble goods had gone with her. The woman was subsequently arrested. a young man of color from Hayti, obtained the higirest prize-i-the prize of honor—at theconcourse of all the colleges in France, held at Paris. O*n the reception of this news, the Emperor immediately sent to him one hundred and fifty ho idsomelybound volumes. A company of National Guards were dispatched to wait upon him with a band of music, and he was invited to dine, and did dine with the Minister of Public Instruction, occupying a place between his lady and Prince Napoleon. 0O”A few days since the people of Anderson, Indiana, “asserted their sovereignty” and “cleaned out” fourteen liquor shops and low groceries. An effort has been made to inaugurate a revival in the churches, but poor success attending the religious eft'ort, it was thought the doggeries were the cause of it, and an organized crusade tvas made against them and their destr ction rnndi’ complete. Qgj’The wife of Warner Epes, of Chesterfield county, Va., retired to bed Saturday night, during the absence of her husbund, with a pipe in her mouth. The house took fire, and just as Mr. Epes returned‘ > iiie burning rafters fell in with a crash which sent up a volume of fire, adding fuel to the flames within. A search revealed the sad fact that his wife had perished. QO“The Lowell A<?rer/Zser says that in nearly all the bales of cotton opened there, from eight to twelve percen'. of sand, stones, nails, and other substances are found. Single stones, weighing twenty-eight pounds, have been found in these bales, which sell at from eleven to fifteen cents a pound to our manufacturers. (Uj-’ln Marseilles, France, one hundred electric clocks have been placed in various parts of the city, and in the street lamps, so that the hour may be known from them by night as well as by day. Such clockshave been on the street lamps in the city of Ghent, Belgum, for some years. (Uz’The wife of Thomas Roper, of Hartford, Conn., a tew nights since, was frigtitened to death by the sudden flash upon her window of the flames from a neighboring house which was on fire. It is supposed that she died instantly. She was in good health, and aged thirty-eight years. novelty is about to be introduced at the Crystal Palace in the shape of a specimen of the gorila—an animal said more nearly to approach to the human species than any yet discovered, and the existence of which was long deemed to be fabulous. editor of the Tallahassee (Florida) Republiccm had green pees ou Chriiemas.

ILTThere will be a public debate at the Court House to-night. Subject—slavery. U"The corporation election last Wednesday resulted in the affirmative—yeas, 46; nays, 8. tZCWe hope to hear from “Teddy,” our Indianapolis correspondent, every week. His letters are refreshing and interesting. ; ttj’The County Commissioners held a special session yesterday, to appoint, real estate appraisers under tho new act. John Ade, of Beaver, was appointed principal appraiser, and Thomas Antrim, of Gillam, and Thomas Lamborn, of Jordan, deputies. We will publish the law for the re-valuation of reap estate next week.