284 THE GREAT NORTH-WEST 



words that I take the greatest exception. In many parts 

 of the States there are, and have been for more than a 

 hundred years past, isolated colonies of foreigners who 

 cannot speak a word of English. These people, who 

 are principally pure bred Dutch and Germans, live and 

 keep to themselves, forming isolated communities in the 

 land. So far, so good. These interfere not with the 

 English language, but there are other Germans, and 

 Dutch and Russians, Jews principally, with riff-ratf and 

 scoundrels from every part of the world, none of whom 

 speak their mother-tongue correctly. These people have 

 imported a large number of continental slang words 

 among a community which delights in slang, and many 

 of these have, during the last half century, been re- 

 transported to England to the no small corruption of 

 the language. Take an example. The East End coster 

 no longer has a girl. She has become " My donar," 

 or donah, an evident corruption of the Italian donna, 

 or lady. 



But a far worse abuse is the use of words of a profane 

 nature. When I first went to the States I have often 

 heard American gentlemen use abominable language, 

 even in the presence of ladies, without arousing the least 

 symptom of disgust or even surprise ; while to describe 

 the land as " Well ! this is an infernal country," or, " Well ! 



I'm jiggered ! this is a h of a track," was a common 



figure of speech : track, by-the-by, being used for " tract " ; 

 and this not in the mouths of vulgar cowboys, but the 

 everyday language of men of position. The word infernal 

 is to this day in common use in the sense of had ; as, " This 

 timber is infernally rotted," " This is an infernal path," 

 " The roads are infernal," " He is infernally ill;" the thought 

 of the infernal regions probably never entering the speaker's 

 mind. This abuse of the word is becoming common 

 among the lower and middle classes in England ; while, on 

 the other hand, the superior classes in America have 

 during the last twenty years or so greatly improved and 



