Unfortunately, owing to the time lost by these well-turned
periods, both the speaker and my nephew merely figured as "also
ran."
In the "seventies" some of the curious tricks of pronunciation of
the eighteenth century still survived. My aunts, who had been born
with, or before the nineteenth century, invariably pronounced
"yellow" as "yaller." "Lilac" and "cucumber" became "laylock" and
"cowcumber," and a gold bracelet was referred to as a "goold
brasslet." They always spoke of "Proosia" and "Roosia," drank tea
out of a "chaney" cup, and the eldest of them was still "much
obleeged" for any little service rendered to her, played at
"cyards," and took a stroll in the "gyarden." My grandfather, who
was born in 1766, insisted to the end of his life on terming the
capital of these islands "Lunnon," in eighteenth-century fashion.
Possibly people were more cultured in those days, or, at all
events, more in the habit of using their brains. Imbecility,
whether real or simulated, had not come into fashion. My mother
told me that in her young days a very favourite amusement in
country houses was to write imitations or parodies of some well-
known poet, and every one took part in this.
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