striped, pronounced stripe-id

[Peter Richardson]

I think this feature is listed in the DARE preface as one of the
characteristics of American folk speech, so I'm a bit surprised by the
association with upper-class East Coast lingo. It's certainly alive in a
verse of that song known to us all, "He's a-movin' on" --

There was a smart guy from the city
And he grabbed hold of a strip-ed kitty,
He's a-movin' on, he's a-movin' on.
We held our nose as we buried his clothes,
He's a-movin' on.

I like especially the use of the collective _nose_. Noses and Clothes-es
would be a bit busy.

Peter Richardson


> Is anyone familiar with the extent to which /straIpId/ is still used for
> "striped?"  I had thought that it had been upper-class, East Coast, but
> outdated.  I've heard it twice recently in New Haven and in Seattle.
>