THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.

To students and scholars this will always remain a fruitful theme for discussion, and especially to those upholders of the American claim to superiority residing at the "Hub of the Universe" and classic shades of neighboring Cambridge. The Transcript in an interesting article carries on the discussion in an able manner:

"The open question; who speaks the better English, the subjects of Queen Victoria, or the fellow citizens of President Arthur? still remains open for discussion. Perhaps it will never be determined, but for Americans, for those at least who pretend to be careful in their speech, it may be claimed that they offend no oftener than do their English cousins. Good, or what are called good, English writers say "different than," for which there appears no authority in either etymology or syntax. They persist in the use of "whilst" as firmly as they do in their spelling of "favour," labour," "honour" and "cheque." Whatever modifications in English orthography have been the result of a desire to expunge useless letters. The Englishman replies that in these cases we destroy all trace of the origin of the word. But "favor," "labor" and "honor" are pure Latin, and the insertion of the letter "u" is a bit of spurious orthography, while "check" certainly comes near the French source (echec) than when spelt "cheque."

Slang, by whatever class of people it may be used, should not, of course, enter into the controversy. still, it is not always easy to draw the line between the irregular or distorted use of words or phrases (which is one definition of slang) and speech that may be said to have the hall mark."

The writer then makes the assertion that Matthew Arnold, the apostle of "sweetness and light," as well as Mrs. Langtry are both guilty of having used the phrase "pull myself together," but says in defence of its use that such a phrase is hardly slang when it "has passed as current by writers who have been set up as example of style." On the other hand, he continues: "It were to continue the discussion to an undue length to cite instances where certain words or phrases put under the ban, charged with being Americanisms, have been proved to be English, and good, old English at that. Our use of the words "guess" and "well" is one of the most familiar of these. Indeed, we must not look to London (pace Mr. Richard Grant White) if we would like to hear English as she is spoke by those who know how to speak her. The Irishman who tells you that the church was "thronged" at early mass, or that he "wrought" two hours for you, uses finer Saxon than the dwellers on the Thames who write on his "honour" that the "labouring" classes are highly "favoured" in these days. And we Americans who call the monthly periodicals "magazines," or who sell them in "stores" have quite as good warrant for our terms as the Englishman who keeps a "shop" where "serials" may be bought."