Зображення сторінки
PDF
ePub

Præterperfect Tenfe, as in the Words drown'd, walk'd, arriv'd, for drowned, walked, arrived, which has very much disfigured the Tongue, and turned a tenth part of our smoothest Words into fo many Clufters of Confo nants. This is the more remarkable, because the want of Vowels in our Language has been the general Complaint of our politeft Authors, who neverthelefs are the Men that have made thefe Retrenchments, and confe quently very much increafed our former Scarcity.

THIS Reflection on the Words that end in ed, I have heard in Converfation from one of the greateft Genius's this Age has produced. I think we may add to the foregoing Obfervation, the Change which has happened in our Language, by the Abbreviation of feveral Words that are terminated in eth, by fubftituting an s in the room of the laft Syllable, as in drowns, walks, arrives, and innumerable other Words, which in the Pronunciation of our Fore-fathers were drowneth, walketh, arriveth. This has wonderfully multiplied a Letter which was before too frequent in the English Tongue, and added to that hissing in our Language, which is taken fo much Notice of by Foreigners; but at the fame time humours our Taciturnity, and eafes us of many fuperfluous Syllables.

I might here obferve, that the fame fingle Letter on many occafions does the Office of a whole Word, and reprefents the His and Her of our Fore-fathers. There is no doubt but the Ear of a Foreigner, which is the best Judge in this Cafe, would very much difapprove of fuch Innovations, which indeed we do our felves in fome measure, by retaining the old Termination in Writing, and in all the Solemn Offices of our Religion.

A S in the Instances I have given we have epitomized many of our particular Words to the Detriment of our Tongue, fo on other Occafions we have drawn two Words into one, which has likewife very much untuned our Language, and clogged it with Consonants, as mayn't, can't, fha'nt, wo'nt, and the like, for may not, can not, fhall not, will not, &c.

IT is perhaps this Humour of fpeaking no more than we needs muft, which has fo miferably curtailed fome of our Words, that in familiar Writings and Converfations they often lofe all but their firft Syllables, as in mob. rep.

[ocr errors]

pos. incog. and the like; and as all ridiculous Words make their firft Entry into a Language by familiar Phrases, I dare not anfwer for thefe that they will not in time be looked upon as a part of our Tongue. We fee fome of our Poets have been fo indifcreet as to imitate Hudibras's Doggrel Expreffions in their ferious Compofitions, by throwing out the Signs of our Subftantives, which are effential to the English Language. Nay, this Humour of fhortning our Language had once run fo far, that fome of our celebrated Authors, among whom we may reckon Sir Roger L'Eftrange in particular, began to prane their Words of all fuperfluous Letters, as they termed them, in order to adjust the Spelling to the Pronunciation; which would have confounded all our Etymologies, and have quite deftroyed our Tongue.

WE may here likewife obferve that our proper Names, when familiarized in English, generally dwindle to Monofyllables, whereas in other modern Languages they receive a fofter Turn on this Occafion, by the Addition of a new Syllable. Nick in Italian is Nicolini, Jack in French Janot; and fo of the rest.

THERE is another Particular in our Language which is a great Inftance of our Frugality of Words, and that is the fuppreffing of feveral Particles which must be produced in other Tongues to make a Sentence intelligible: This often perplexes the best Writers, when they find the Relatives whom, which, or they, at their Mercy whether they may have Admission or not; and will never be decided till we have fomething like an Academy, that by the best Authorities and Rules drawn from the Analogy of Languages fhall fettle all Controverfies between Grammar and Idiom.

I have only confidered our Language as it fhews the Ge nius and natural Temper of the English, which is modeft, thoughtful and fincere, and which perhaps may recommend the People, though it has fpoiled the Tongue. We might perhaps carry the fame Thought into other Languages, and deduce a great part of what is peculiar to them from the Genius of the People who fpeak them. It is certain, the light talkative Humour of the French, has not a little infected their Tongue, which might be fhewn by many Inftances; as the Genius of the Italians, which is fo

1 4

much

much addicted to Mufick and Ceremony, has moulded all their Words and Phrafes to thofe particular Ufes. The Statelinefs and Gravity of the Spaniards fhews it felf toPerfection in the Solemnity of their Language, and the blunt honest Humour of the Germans founds better in theRoughnefs of the High Dutch, than it would in a Politer Tongue.

C

[ocr errors]

Monday, Auguft 6.

N° 136.

- Parthis mendacior

Hor.

CCORDING to the Request of this ftrange Fellow,
I fhall Print the following Letter.

Mr. SPECTATOR,

Shall, without any manner of Preface or Apology, acquaint you, that I am, and ever have been from my Youth upward, one of the greateft Liars this Ifland has produced. I have read all the Moralifts upon the Subject, but could never find any Effect their Difcourfes had upon me, but to add to my Misfortune by new Thoughts and Ideas, and making me more ready in my Language, and capable of fometimes mixing feeming Truths with ' my Improbabilities. With this ftrong Paffion towards, Falfhood in this kind, there does not live an honefterMan, or a fincerer Friend; but my Imagination runs with me, and whatever is ftarted I have fuch a Scene of Adventures appears in an Inftant before me, that I cannot help uttering them, tho' to iny immediate Confufion, I cannot but know I am liable to be detected by the first Man I meet.

[ocr errors]

away

· UPON Occafion of the mention of the Battel of Pultowa, I could not forbear giving an Account of a Kinfman of mine, a young Merchant who was bred at Mofco, that had too much Metal to attend Books of Entries and • Accounts, when there was so active a Scene in the Country where he refided, and followed the Czar as a Volunteer: This warm Youth, born at the Inftant the thing ' was spoke of, was the Man who unhorfed the Swedish

[ocr errors]

General,

[ocr errors]

• General, he was the Occafion that the Muscovites kept their Fire in fo Soldier-like a manner, and brought up thofe Troops which were covered from the Enemy at the beginning of the Day; befides this, he had at last the good Fortune to be the Man who took Count Piper. With all this Fire I knew my Coufin to be the civilest • Creature in the World. He never made any impertinent • Show of his Valour, and then he had an excellent Genius for the World in every other kind. I had Letters from him (here I felt in my Pockets) that exactly spoke the Czar's Character, which I knew perfectly well, and I could not forbear concluding, that I lay with his Imperial Majefty twice or thrice a Week all the while he lodged at Debtford. What is worfe than all this, it is impoffible to fpeak to me, but you give me fome occafion of coming out with one Lie or other, that has neither Wit, Humour, profpect of Intereft, or any other Mo<tive that I can think of in Nature. The other Day, when ⚫ one was commending an Eminent and Learned Divine, what occafion in the World had I to fay, Methinks he would look moreVenerable if he were not fo fair a Man? : I remember the Company fmiled. I have feen the Gen<tleman fince, and he is Cole Black. I have Intimations every Day in my Life that no Body believes me,yet I am never the better. I was faying fomething the other Day to an old Friend at Will's Coffee-houfe, and he made me no manner of Anfwer; but told me, that an Acquaintance of Tully the Orator having two or three times together faid to him, without receiving any Anfwer, That upon his Honour he was but that very Month forty Years of Age; Tully answer'd, Surely you think me the moft incredulous Man in the World, if I don't believe ⚫ what you have told me every Day this ten Years. The • Mischief of it is, I find my felf wonderfully inclin'd to have been prefent at every Occurrence that is spoken of before me; this has led me into many Inconveniencies, but indeed they have been the fewer, because I am no <ill-natur❜d Man, and never speak Things to any Man's Difadvantage. I never directly defame, but I do what is as bad in the Confequence, for I have often made a Man fay fuch and fuch a lively Expreffion, who was born a mere elder Brother. When one has faid in my

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

15.

Hear

[ocr errors]

my

Hearing, Such a one is no wifer than he should be, I immediately have reply'd, Now 'faith I can't fee that, he faid a very good Thing to my Lord fuch a one, upon fuch an Occafion, and the like. Such an honeft Dolt as this ⚫ has been watch'd in every Expreffion he uttered, upon Recommendation of him, and confequently been fubject to the more Ridicule. I once endeavoured to cure my felf of this impertinent Quality, and refolved to hold my Tongue for feven Days together; I did fo, but then I had so many Winks and unneceffary Distortions of my Face upon what any Body else faid, that I found I only forbore the Expreffion, and that I ftill lied in my Heart to every Man I met with. You are to know one Thing(which I believe you'll fay is a Pityconfidering the Ufe I should have made of it) Í never Travelled in my Life; but I do not know whether I could have spoken of any Foreign Country with more Familiarity than I do at prefent, in Company who are Strangers to me.. I have curfed the Inns in Germany; commended the Brothels at Venice; the Freedom of Conversation in France; and tho' I never was out of this dear Town, and fifty Miles about it, have been three Nights together dogged by Bravoes for an Intrigue with a Cardinal's Miftrefs at Rome.

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

IT were endless to give you Particulars of this kind, but I can affure you, Mr. SPECTATOR, there are about Twenty or Thirty of us in this Town, I'mean by this < Town the Cities of London and Westminster; I fay there ⚫ are in Town a fufficient Number of us to make a Society among our felves; and fince we cannot be believed any longer, I beg of you to print this my Letter, that we may meet together, and be under fuch Regulation as there may be no Occafion for Belief or Confidence among us. If you think fit we might be called The Hiftsrians, for Liar is become a very harfh Word. And that a • Member of the Society may not hereafter be ill received by the reft of the World, I defire you would explain a little this fort of Men, and not let us Hiftorians be ranked as we are in the Imaginations of ordinary People, among common Liars, Make-bates, Impoftors and Incendiaries. For your Inftruction herein, you are to know that an Hiftorian, in Converfation,is only a Perfon of fo pregnant a Fancy, that he cannot be contented with ordinary

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

Occur

« НазадПродовжити »