(UNCLASSIFIED)

[Mullins, Bill AMRDEC]

Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Caveats: NONE

Andrew Jackson died 1845, so any use he made of the phrase would certainly antedate the 1855 cites below.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On
> Behalf Of Victor Steinbok
> Sent: Thursday, January 14, 2010 11:51 AM
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> Subject: Re: (Further) antedating quote about spelling
>
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header ---------------
> --------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Victor Steinbok <aardvark66 at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Re: (Further) antedating quote about spelling
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------
> --------
>
> I did a modified search on GB and found a few interesting things, but
> no
> further antedating. A brief summary--I'll have a long post likely
> tonight.
>
> 1) Some alleged Mark Twain quotations are slightly different in that
> they include "little genius" to describe the target. That may either
> make the attribution possibly authentic--to that particular wording--or
> that someone got creative both with language and with attribution and
> others quickly copied.
>
> 2) A number of attributions are to Andrew Jackson or, simply, to
> General
> Jackson.
>
> 3) Yet more attributions are to "Josh Billings" (Henry Wheeler Shaw),
> and not without reason. But "Billings" is assumed to have started
> writing as a journalist in 1858 and added satire almost a decade later.
> It is certainly possible that he penned the 1855 versions, but there is
> no evidence of that. Conversely, some of his humor might have been
> influenced by the expression.
>
> 4) A number of citations attribute the expression to "the Irishman", a
> couple more to "the negro".
>
> 5) Marshal Brown's book suffered a number of editions, some of which
> predate the 1880 citation. The version of the story refers to "Hon. Mr.
> R--" and duplicates nearly verbatim the Harper's version with Huram
> Runnels--of course, now there is a problem that the citation below uses
> the same language and the name of Nyrum Reynolds. In particular, all
> contain the expression "successful pettifogger", which the Dec 1855
> Liverpool version does not.
>
> 6) "History of Wyoming County, NY" identifies a real lawyer and
> associate judge Nyrum Reynolds as being an early and long-term resident
> of Gainesville, NY. The citation is from 1880, but it also attributes
> the quip to Reynolds.
>
> 7) A number of autobiographical sketches and other comments on
> potential
> spelling reforms attribute the quip to random people from their lives,
> unnamed ministers, congressmen, etc.
>
> Overall, the Nyrum Reynolds bit looks the most authentic from
> literature, but it's likely the expression had already acquired
> proverbial nature when he used it. It's also possible that Andrew
> Jackson and Mark Twain both used modified versions of the phrase later,
> but there is no direct evidence for this and the original quip clearly
> predates both of them.
>
> VS-)
>
> On 1/14/2010 9:02 AM, Joel S. Berson wrote:
> > At 1/14/2010 07:47 AM, Stephen Goranson wrote:
> >
> >> Here's an apparent slight antedating:
> >>
> >>     The Carlisle Journal Friday, October 19, 1855
> >>
> > And one slightly earlier than that, from Sept. 13, 1855:
> > Farmer's Cabinet, published as The Farmers'
> > Cabinet.; Date: 09-13-1855; Volume: 54; Issue: 6;
> > Page: [1]; Location: Amherst, New Hampshire. [EAN]
> >
> > The narrative is reminiscent of Garson's 1855
> > November, Harper's Magazine, citation, but there are variations.  It
> begins:
> >
> > Spelling Words More than One Way.---Several years
> > ago, "when the country was new," Hon. Nyrum
> > Reynolds, of Wyoming county, enjoyed quite a
> > reputation as a successful pettifogger.
> >
> > Further down, we read:
> >
> > "Gen'l'men of the Jury," said Reynolds, when he
> > "sumed up'"--and every word weighed a
> > pound---"the learned counsel on the other side
> > finds fault with my ritin' and spilling', as
> > though the merits of this case depended on sich
> > matters! I'm agin lugging in any sich outside
> > affairs, but I will say that _a man must be a
> > great fool who can't spell a word more than one
> > way._" The Jury sympathized with Judge R. and
> > rendered a decision in favor of his client."
> >
> > And there is more of the trail to be followed --
> > at the end of its article the Farmers' Cabinet of
> > Amherst, NH, credits the "Olean (N. Y.)
> > Journal."  (EAN disclaims holding more than 5
> > titles throughout the U.S. in 1855.)
> >
> > Joel
> >
> >
> >> Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
> >> Content-Disposition: inline
> >>
> >> Quoting Garson O'Toole<adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>:
> >>
> >>
> >>> Fred Shapiro in The Yale Book of Quotations‎ (YBQ) discusses a
> quote
> >>> about spelling that is often attributed to Mark Twain:
> >>>
> >>> I have no respect for a man who can spell a word only one way.
> >>>
> >>> Attributed in Chicago Daily Tribune, 22 May 1932. Without
> attribution
> >>> to Twain, this appears as early as 1880, in Marshall Brown, Wit and
> >>> Humor: "A man must be a great fool who can't spell a word more than
> >>> one way."
> >>>
> >>> Based on a check that included the ADS archive, WikiQuote,
> >>> TwainQuotes, YBQ, Ralph Keyes work, and Barry Popik's website these
> >>> cites appear to be the earliest currently known for this quote. The
> >>> TwainQuotes site of Barbara Schmidt includes an excellent webpage
> on
> >>> the theme of spelling, but none of the quotes featured really match
> >>> the joke.
> >>>
> >>> http://www.twainquotes.com/Spelling.html
> >>>
> >>> Below we present an attribution of the joke to Mark Twain in 1895,
> to
> >>> Nyrum Reynolds in December 1855, and to Hiram Runnels in November
> >>> 1855.
> >>>
> >>> Citation: 1895 November, The New Education, Vol. 8, No. 6,
> Concerning
> >>> Spelling by Caroline Martin, Page 94, Snap Shot Publishing, New
> York.
> >>>
> >>> Addison tells us that Will Honeycomb claimed to spell like a
> gentleman
> >>> rather than like a scholar; and Mark Twain says it isn't much of a
> >>> genius who can only spell a word in one way;
> >>>
> >>>
> http://books.google.com/books?id=6PoBAAAAYAAJ&q=Twain#v=snippet&q=Twain
> &f=false
> >>>
> >>> Citation: 1855 December 8, The Latter-Day Saints Millennial Star,
> Vol.
> >>> 17, No. 49, Page 784, F. D. Richards, Islington.
> >>> (I have attempted below to preserve the spelling in the original
> document.)
> >>>
> >>> The Hon. Nyrum Reynolds, of Wyoming county, one of the American
> >>> barristers of a former generation, was one day accused in court of
> bad
> >>> penmanship and worse spelling. "Gent'l'men of the jury," said he
> "the
> >>> learned counsel on the other side finds fault with my writin' and
> >>> spellin', as though the merits of the case depended upon such
> matters!
> >>> I'm agin luggin' in any sich outside affairs, but I will say that a
> >>> man must be a great fool who can't spell a word more than one way."
> >>> The jury sympathised with Reynolds, and rendered a decision in
> favour
> >>> of his client.
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> Citation: 1855 November, Harper's Magazine, Vol. 11, No. 66,
> Editor's
> >>> Drawer, Page 860, Harper's Magazine Company.
> >>> (Again I have attempted below to preserve the spelling in the
> original
> >>> document.)
> >>>
> >>> Some years ago the Hon. Hiram Runnels, of Wyoming, Pennsylvania,
> had
> >>> quite a reputation as a pettifogger. His knowledge of books was
> very
> >>> small, and his main reliance was upon his own tact and shrewdness,
> >>> which rarely failed him, and lasts to this day. On one occasion he
> was
> >>> pitted against a smart, well-dressed limb of the law from the city,
> >>> who made fun of a paper which Runnels had submitted to the court.
> "All
> >>> law papers," said the learned counselor, "ought be written in the
> >>> English language, but I submit to the court that there are no words
> in
> >>> the language spelled as these in the document now before us. I
> insist
> >>> that it ought to be excluded." Runnels replied: "The learned
> counsel
> >>> on the other side finds fault with my spellin', as though the
> merits
> >>> of the case depended on sich outside matters. I'm agin luggin' in
> any
> >>> sich forin' affairs, but I will say that a man must be a great fool
> >>> who can't spell a word more than one way."
> >>>
> >>>
> http://books.google.com/books?id=C3cCAAAAIAAJ&q=%22great+fool%22#v=snip
> pet&q=%22great%20fool%22&f=false
> >>>
> >>> Garson
> >>>
> >>
> >> Well done! And a self-illustrating case, spelling the speaker's name
> more than
> >> one way. But, rather than Hiram Runnels, I currently prefer Nyrum
> Reynolds.
> >> Here's an apparent slight antedating:
> >>
> >>     The Carlisle Journal Friday, October 19, 1855
> >>
> >>
> >>          Borrowed Trifles.
> >>
> >> The Spanish Priest and the Soldier.
> >>
> >> A Spanish priest once exhorting the soldiers to fight like lions,
> >> added, in the
> >> ardour of enthusiasm: "Reflect, my brethren, that whosoever falls
> to-day in
> >> battle sups to-night in Paradise."  Thunders of applause followed
> the
> >> sentiment.  The fight began, the ranks wavered, the priest took to
> his heels;
> >> when a soldier, stopping him, reproachfully referred to the promised
> supper in
> >> Paradise.  "True, my son-true, "  said the priest, "but I never eat
> suppers."
> >>
> >> A sensible Patient.
> >> Dr. ABERNETHY, the celebrated physician, was never more displeased
> than by
> >> hearing a patient detail a long account of troubles.  A woman,
> knowing
> >> ABERNETHY'S love of the laconic, having burned her hand, called at
> his
> >> house. Showing him her hand, she said "A burn." "A poultice,"
> quietly
> >> answered the
> >> learned doctor.  The next day she returned and said "Better."
> "Continue
> >> poultice," replied Dr. A.  In a week she made her last call, and her
> >> speech was
> >> lengthened to these words "Well your Fee?  "Nothing," said the
> gratified
> >> physician, "you are the most sensible woman I ever saw."
> >>
> >> Spelling Words more than one Way.
> >> Several years ago "when the country was new," Hon.  Nyrum REYNOLDS,
> of Wyoming
> >> county, enjoyed quite a reputation as a successful pettifogger.  He
> >> wasn't very
> >> well posted up either in "book larnin" or the learning of the law;
> but relied
> >> principally upon his own native tact and shrewdness, his stock of
> which
> >> has not
> >> failed him to this day.  His great success created quite an active
> demand for
> >> his services.  On one occasion he was pitted against a "smart
> >> appearing,"  well
> >> dressed limb of the law from a neighbouring village, who made
> >> considerable sport
> >> of a paper which Reynolds had submitted to the court, remarking,
> among other
> >> things, that "all law papers were required to be written in the
> English
> >> language, and that the one under consideration, from its bad
> spelling and
> >> penmanship, ought in fairness, therefore, to be excluded."  "Gen'l
> men of the
> >> jury," said REYNOLDS, when he "summed up," and every word weighed a
> >> pound, "the
> >> learned counsel on the other side finds fault with my ritin" and
> spellin", as
> >> though the merits of the case depended upon such matters!  I'm again
> luggin in
> >> any sich outside affairs, but I will say that a man must be a great
> fool who
> >> can't spell a word more than one way."  The jury sympathized with
> Judge
> >> REYNOLDS, and rendered a decision in favour of his client.
> >>
> >> http://groups.google.co.nz/group/Genealogy-
> Cumberland/browse_thread/thread/856679fed3403361
> >>
> >> Stephen Goranson
> >> http://www.duke.edu/~goranson
> >>
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> >>
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> >
> >
>
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Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
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