The magistrate said "Merry", the defendant said "Mary"

[Joel S. Berson]

At 6/11/2010 01:39 AM, Wilson Gray wrote:
>In the Southern BE of Marshall, TX, It's
>
>Mary [merI], merry [mErI], marry [m&rI]

And how do they pronounce "Murray"?  (FYI: I distinguish all four.)

>But, in Saint BE, it's
>
>Mary, merry [mEri], marry [m&ri]
>
>St. Louis joke from at least as early as the '50's:
>
>It was a Christmas party and everybody was feeling merry. Till Mary
>got mad and left.

Even in the Northeast, I've heard -- or perhaps only seen? -- this joke.

Or:  It was a Christmas party and everybody was feeling Murray. Till Mary
got mad and left.

>Of course, the joke is spoken, not written. Buh chawl gnome sane.

Ditto.

Joel

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org