
AREN’T THEY BEAUTIES! 
MY WINTER SPORT 
Inspecting and admiring the bulbs and anticipating 
the beauty they will produce next summer. This 
is the best tonic for fatigue that I can find. 
WHAT'S IN A NAME? 
There seems to be confusion aplenty about what our favorite flower 
should be called. Now and then we see in print the word “gladiola” used 
to designate our flower, and many feel some sort of disgust with it. However, 
Webster’s Dictionary lists such a word, and defines it as meaning a gladiolus. 
So perhaps some of us should be a bit more lenient with those who use the 
word ending with an “a”. The dictionary says that general usage spells the 
word with an “us” ending for the singular, and a “li” ending for the plural, 
the “i” having the long sound. However, the American Gladiolus Society in 
1925 voted to discontinue the use of the Latin pronunciation, and call our be- 
loved flower, for both singular and plural, by the word “gladiolus”, with 
accent on the last syllable, “lus”, thus eliminating the tongue twisting re- 
quired to pronounce it in the manner of Latin. So our pronunciation is thus, 
“slad’i-o’lus”, and let us thank Mr. Webster for favoring this pronunciation 
over-the Latin. 
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