344 CANADIAN ENGLISH. 



troops were quartered. ' With respect,' said one of bis (Dr. Brace's) reviewers, 

 * to the little tobacco pipe bowls,we may observe tbat their comparatively diminu- 

 tive size may be well explained by the fact that, in the time of Queen Elizabeth 

 tobacco was sold at five guineas the ounce, and that, in aftertimes, those who 

 indulged in the expensive luxury of smoking tobacco, were accustomed, in buying 

 it, to throw five shilling pieces into the opposite scale.' He (Dr. Bruce) feared, 

 then, that the Elfin pipes — the Fairy pipes — the Danes' pipes — must be placed in 

 the same category with — ' Severus' Wall !' 



" At the conclusion of the paper, Mr. E. Spoor stated that he had seen turned up, 

 in building operations, hundreds of pipes together, smaller than any of those on 

 the table, near the town walls of Newcastle." 



From this it appears that the learned author of " The Roman 

 Wall," no longer accords to his mural Legionary the luxury of a 

 pipe ; and the defence of this venerable classic institution must be 

 resigned to the more chivalrous archaeologists of the Continent, and 

 especially to the Antiquaries of Antwerp, where Elfin tobacco-pipes 

 are still exhibited as Eoman relics ; and among whom, we trust, 

 still survives some collateral descendant of the venerable and praise- 

 worthy Aldobrand Oldenbuck, thejhappy progenitor of the Laird of 

 Monkbarns ! 



CANADIAN ENGLISH. 



EY THE E.EV. A. CONSTABLE GEIKTE. 



Read before the Canadian Institute, 28th March, 1857, 



It is a growing opinion that the English tongue is destined to 

 become, for many purposes at least, the language of the world. But 

 supposing such an extension of our vernacular to be probable, will 

 the world speak "English undefiled," or English very defiled 

 indeed ? I know nothing of the tendencies in Australia, New Zea- 

 land, or at the Cape ; but certainly, the English we often hear spoken, 

 and see written, in the United States and Canada, is by no means an 

 improvement on the original. That the American retains some 

 obsolete words, or uses current words in obsolete ways, cannot fairly 

 be objected to, though the very same reasons justify the language 

 of modern Quakerism. But this process will account for a small 

 fraction of the pecularities of his language. He is daily inventing 



