10
THE REFAYNED TYPE The time is about ripe for some-
OF ENGLISH.
AN AMERICAN WRITER ON ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION.
one to write a skit for an American revue, in which are reproduced the sounds made by a group of British; juveniles such as come over here every year in plays of post-war younger-generationism, bounding on and off the stage carrying tennis racquets and giving off oxuberance to the point of combustion. If I
THE CAULIFLOWER EAR.
Reing by nature, writes Robert were writing such a sketch I would Benchley in the "Bookman," Home-open the scene with two or three thing of an Anglophile, the follow-young gentlemen and ladies lying ing rather bitter outburst is golog about on window-seats and porch hurt me more than it hurts chairs in careless fashion, with can- Britain. But for years we Amert-Veraution running something like cans have submitted too meekly to this:
to
the
the
We
in
charge, that
Basil: Wotjuthinkofrehddie? Hes- speak We English language badly. beanoillyapsehlletty. know that it
true Is why, that our voices are
harsh and loud, that some of us
Joan: Eheaidehntkneh hehesen- tehny fethleft.
bandminton and would call:
Elleuhyrbohddyweresahacle?
At this point Reggle would come roll our "r's" while others sayhursting into the room, with his "boid" and "erl," and we also know shirt open at the neek, fresh from that. in the mutter of vocabulary We are mere children lisping "eat," "doggie" and "O. K." exclusively. But the knowledge of these short- romings, together with the venom-a
ous scorn
Just British Sounds. Things would go on like this for minute or two with absolutely no with which our British word being spoken, just a series of friends paint them out, has bred at British sounds with a great deal of inferiority in us which is nothing bounding about and quick darting short of craven. We never think of movements of the head and arms. turning on our tormentors and way. The young men would stand with ing, "You're not so hot yourselves!" feet wide apart and hands jammed
The Talkies.
at
down into the pockets of their British nauses
American coats, while the young ladies would pronunciation has reached an almost stand with their feet not quite so active stage since the invasion of far apart and their hands jammed | Britain by Hollywood-made talking.down into the pockets of their pictures. London editorial writers sweaters. It would all have to be see the complete degradation of the played very fast and loosely and English language in 50 years if it might end with all putting the British children are allowed to their heads together and doing the laten at their movies to the horrid thing in harmony, still with no sound of Americans' talkings. There words. has been some idea of limiting the Is thut the kind of English we sale of tickets to those of his want our children to hear? If, and Majesty's subjects who are safely when,
Britain makes talking-pie established in, traditional British tures which are brought over to habits of speech, Others would Britain, are we to sit by and let have the pictorial parts of the films minors absorb this sort of distortion made in Hollywood but the sound of our mother tongue? We pay good tracts made in Elstree by strictly money to have them taught to say British voices, the two being syn "don't" and "donkey." Are they to chronized to produce a picture which be led by outlanders into saying may be listened to by British tots"dehn't" and "denkey"?· We have been brought up to believe that
without fear of contamination.
No one in America will deny that dropping the final "g" is the mark many of the beautiful young gentle of a vulgarian. Are our children to men and Indies of Hollywood should hear "nice people" from Britain never have been called upon to talk. say "runnin"" and "singin'" 7, Neither will anyone deny that n No, a thesushend tehms Neuh!
The fact is that neither Ameri- large number of American actresses, and actors who go to London in the cans uor britons have anything to spoken drama might well offend the boast of in the matter of pronuncia sensitive British car. They have tions of their common tongue. offended oven the cauliflower ear There are a few people in each coun- of New York.
try who have got the hang of it, but for the most part a pretty bad job
Some British Noises.
THE
SOVIET RULE.'
Death Knell May Be Sounded Soon.
LAST HOUR NIGH.
Stewart Brown, Special Correa- pondent. United Press, writes from Paris on April 22:—
The death knell of the Soviet hour of its demise is fast approach- ing. according to F. 1. Dan, uneon- tested chief of the Second Inter- national outside of Russia.
Dan, talking to his political friends in Paris, said that he was positive the Soviet rulers are fust tumbling from their thrones and the country will soon be in the throes of a new revolution.
So certain ia Dan that the end of the Soviet regime is coming that he is devoting all his energics in taking measures which will pre- vant the monarchist or White Rus- sians from assuming power. The fight, he declares, will not be with the present Red rulers but with the diverse factions which will at- tempt to take control of Russia,
As the European leader of the Second International, a milder and more socialistic Third Interna- tional. Dan wishes the Russian Social Democrats to fall heir to control of Russia when the Rede fall."
"The Social Democrats" he said, "are being urged to do their ut- most to prevent the Bolshevist dic- tatorship from passing into the ship.
Peasants Lack Courage.
"The Red Army already possessen the elements capable of substituting a White or Monarch- ist dictatorship for the present Soviet regime. The peasants will never be able to oppose such a pos- sibility for they have neither the means nor the courage.
"The only road open to the So- cial Democrats is to prepare a Coup d'Etat in which the city workers will march against Stalin in the names of the principles of liberty and democrney, prin- ciples which Stalin has completely forgotten. If we do not succeed then Russia will be plunged into a long period of black reaction in which White monarchistic elements will fight for the unsteady throne of the Russiana.”
CHINA MAIL.
Alister MacDonald, won of the British Prime Minister, and Miss Mary Armstrong are seen here at the piano in Chicago's famous Kul! House, where Mr. Ramsay MacDonald and his bride, mother of Alister, spent part of their honeymoon 33 years ago.
having been drunk and disorderly on the Quai Auguste Bopp, French Concession, Tientsin, on April 17,
and
#
with having assaulted rikisha coolie named Li Te-jung at the same time and place.
Li Te-jung, rikisha coolle, said about 1.30 a.m. on the 17th he was told to pull accused from Ta Ching Li
A.P.C., Hotung, and when
French Concession, to the reached the International Bridge they accused told witness to take him back again. Accused then said he wanted a boy and witness replied he could not find one. Accused then struck him on the back of his head with his stick and he fell un Followers of events in Russin conscious in the street. Accused noted with cariosity that Dan's
was under the influence of drink. element in the Red Army which is
Sui Lion-sheng, C.P.C. 127, ready to assist a White invasion French Municipal Police, said, he statement that the White Army Bopp. Near the Wen Yuan Lum which he commands is relying on ber Yard he saw, the Indian who the Red Army to help them rld was sitting in the rikisha attack Russia of the Soviets,
the coolic and knock him uncon- Both General Miller's monarch-scious. Accused ran towards wit istic army and Dan's Social Demo- ness with his stick in one band cratic group are preparing actively and his turban in the other. Wit for the downfall of the Soviets. ness took him to the French Police It is a race between the two groups Station and he confessed to strik-
WOMEN JURY.
Precedent Established in U.S. Court,
Six American women of Shang- hai, including wives of two pro- minent lawyers and the wife of an American consul, established a sitting in a jury called before precedent in China last week by Commissioner A. Krisel in the into the sanity of an American U.S. Court for China, to inquire missionary woman of German ab atraction, engaged for some time in work in the interior.
Mr. W. S. Fleming was appoint- ed by the court to represent the subject of the inquiry, and there was also present, Dr. G. E. Sellett,
But is Britain entirely without has been made of the whole thing. bears out General Eugenie Miller's saw the affair on the Quai Auguste | the U.S. District Attorney. ain in the matter of language dis-Probably the best English is spoken by foreigners who have taken the Might New York never, justifiably be distressed by the pains to learn it correctly.
.tortion?
sounds made by the countless Bri-, 'tish casts which come over hore?
Of course there can be no argu-
OBJECTION TO MACHINERY.
Was
as to which will replace the So-ing the coolie. Scottish Council of the Union of Post Office Workers.
ment (and let us have this under- Criticism of the mechanisation
of the Post Office service stood at the start, please) over the comparative mellifluousnons of Bri-made at Ayr at a meeting of the tish and American speech. Even the most incompetent British actor, coming on to the stage briefly to announce the presence below of Lord and Lady Ditherege, gives forth a sound so soft and dulcet as almost ness is that to be a bar of music. times that is all there is,
!
But Rome
The
The secretary's annual report, commenting on the matter, stated: "The tragic feature of the busi- many trade union leaders have decided that displace- ment of men and women not, is inevitable. machinery, whether desirable
viets, arid Russian observers in Paris belleve that if neither party has to fight the Red, then they will end by fighting each other.
by SIKH JAILED.
or
"They apparently agreed that Bad Behaviour in French
Concession.
STRIKES A COOLIE.
words are lost in the graceful sweep of the notes. I have heard entire scenes
played by British actors
because the Ludditles made a (especially juveniles) in which absolutely nothing was distinguish of man to machine must be regard- mistake and failed, the subjection able except a series of musical notes ed as Kismet. To this fatalistic ranging in cadenzas from B to Gview we refuse to subscribe."
Tientsin, April 26. very pretty, but is it the English the Post Office was concerned, the terday afternoon before Mr.
Labour-saving devices, so far as At H.B.M. Consular Court yes- language?
A. report declared, had not lessened G. N. Ogden (Consul), Sabhan
sharp and back to B again. It is all
Singh, a Sikh, was charged with
C.P.C.
120,
a)80
Chang Pao-kuei, French Municipal Police, gave evidence.
His Honour (to accused): You have admitted being drunk and assaulted this man. About a month ago you appeared in this Court on a similar charge. What have you got to say for yourself?
Accused: Nothing, sir.
His Honour said that this time be should sentence accused to fourteen days' imprisonment and he would be bound over in the sum of $50 to be of good behaviour for six months in addition to paying $5 compensation to the rikisha coolie.
Accused asked the Court where
WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 1930.
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The jury listened intently to everything the witnesses said and plied them with questions- The court adjourned at the tiffin hour FOOK WENG & CO. when it was announced that the court and jury would go hospital in the afternoon, to see the subject of the inquiry.
to the
The members of the jury were; Mrs. Josephine Hoyt, Mrs. Ruth Schuhl, Mrs. Ella Elly, Miss Vir- ginia Cowper, Mrs. Jean Davies, Mrs. Louise M. Meinhardt,
Interesting medical evidence was furnished by Dra. C. Schwart- Collina and a trained surse who zenburg, W. K. Nance, Martha had attended on the subject of the inquiry, since her arrival.
he would have to go to jail and His Honour replied that he would be sent to the B.C.M. jail. Ac- cused then began to raise ques- tions as to where his supplies of food were to come from when he was called to order by the Court officers.-P. & T. Times.
WHERE TO FIND SHIPS IN HONG KONG HARBOUR-CHART OF THE PRINCIPAL MOURING BUOYS.
This slurring of words into a re their labours by one minute. fined cadence until they cease to be words at all is due partly to the Britons' disinclination to move his lipa. This lethargic attitude to ward articulation makes, more or lens of a fool out of a word which is Jependent on pronunciation for its 3uccess. It makes a rather agree- able sound of it, but practically eli- ninates it as an agent for express ing thought.
The "Refayned" Accent
I am not now dealing with cock. ney or other perversions of the Bri-
ish manner of speaking, although: 3ritons are not so fair as to remem- ber that much of the speech which key call "American" on the stage and in the pictures is deliberately volgarized and harshened by the American actors themselves
mitaté gangsters, newspaper re- porters, and others of the nonclass.
to
cal group. I am speaking of the, more "refayned" type of British ctor, and even of the ordinary well- educated Briton whom one meeta in London and on, the Riviera. They listort good old Anglo-Saxon words nto more blobs of sound, eliminat- ng letters and syllables at will And what they do to French words must not be mentioned here because hat is not strictly within the range of this thesis es
by America - Would “Lead- But it is safe to predict that a >omparative tabulation of words in “gmmon use in Britain and Americi, "nalyzed phonetically as pronoune- din, each country, would give America a afartling lead over the other country in accuracy? Say ag them through the nose, as many Americans do, may not be-80 tgagent as saying thơm: through te large palate, es many Britom
, but the words themselves get n etter break and, at least, the inte grity of the sentence is preserved.
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