The Prose Works of Jonathan Swift, D.D. - Volume 07: Historical and Political Tracts-IrishSwift, Jonathan
General
The Prose Works of Jonathan Swift, D.D. - Volume 07: Historical and Political Tracts-Irish
Swift, Jonathan
Ireland -- Politics and government -- 18th century
It is true, that, in the city parts of London, the trading people have
an affected manner of pronouncing; and so, in my time, had many ladies
and coxcombs at Court. It is likewise true, that there is an odd
provincial cant in most counties in England, sometimes not very pleasing
to the ear; and the Scotch cadence, as well as expression, are offensive
enough. But none of these defects derive contempt to the speaker:
whereas, what we call the _Irish brogue_ is no sooner discovered, than
it makes the deliverer in the last degree ridiculous and despised; and,
from such a mouth, an Englishman expects nothing but bulls, blunders,
and follies. Neither does it avail whether the censure be reasonable or
not, since the fact is always so. And, what is yet worse, it is too well
known, that the bad consequence of this opinion affects those among us
who are not the least liable to such reproaches, farther than the
misfortune of being born in Ireland, although of English parents, and
whose education has been chiefly in that kingdom.
I have heard many gentlemen among us talk much of the great convenience
to those who live in the country, that they should speak Irish. It may
possibly be so; but I think they should be such who never intend to
visit England, upon pain of being ridiculous; for I do not remember to
have heard of any one man that spoke Irish, who had not the accent upon
his tongue easily discernible to any English ear.
But I have wandered a little from my subject, which was only to propose
a wish that these execrable denominations were a little better suited to
an English mouth, if it were only for the sake of the English lawyers;
who, in trials upon appeals to the House of Lords, find so much
difficulty in repeating the names, that, if the plaintiff or defendant
were by, they would never be able to discover which were their own
lands. But, besides this, I would desire, not only that the appellations
of what they call _town-lands_ were changed, but likewise of larger
districts, and several towns, and some counties; and particularly the
seats of country-gentlemen, leaving an _alias_ to solve all difficulties
in point of law. But I would by no means trust these alterations to the
owners themselves; who, as they are generally no great clerks, so they
seem to have no large vocabulary about them, nor to be well skilled in
prosody. The utmost extent of their genius lies in naming their country
habitation by a hill, a mount, a brook, a burrow, a castle, a bawn, a
ford, and the like ingenious conceits. Yet these are exceeded by others,
whereof some have contrived anagramatical appellations, from half their
own and their wives' names joined together: others only from the lady;
as, for instance, a person whose wife's name was Elizabeth, calls his
seat by the name of _Bess-borow_. There is likewise a famous town, where
the worst iron in the kingdom is made, and it is called _Swandlingbar_:
the original of which name I shall explain, lest the antiquaries of
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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