Memory Monday: Grammar in the Mid-19th Century and How It Differs from Today

My great-great uncle, born in 1833

GRAMMAR IN THE MID-19^TH CENTURY AND HOW IT DIFFERS FROM TODAY

Since May of last year, I have been putting together and publishing a magazine titled Worbly’s Family Monthly Magazine. I date each edition 150 years ago, so last month’s magazine was dated August 1866. As I read through books from that time period (and before), I have noticed several interesting things concerning grammar and punctuation. I “correct” them in my magazine so the reader of today will have fewer problems reading the magazine.

Below are a few of the differences in the way they did it back then and how we do it today.

Contractions: Back then, do n’t or is n’t, now don’t or isn’t

Compound words: (they didn’t seem to use them) Back then, any one, now anyone

Open quote marks: Back then, there is a space between the opening quote marks and the first letter of the quote, now there is no extra space

Question marks and Exclamation points: Back then, there was an extra space between the last letter of the sentence and the ? or !. now there is never an extra space after those two punctuation marks

Semi-colon: Back then, there was an extra space in front of a semi-colon, now there is not that extra space.

Not every one of these differences appears in all books. Each book or magazine seems to have its own set of rules. I know that I spend a lot of time in the editing process of putting the magazine together “correcting these “errors.”

If you like things from the 19^th Century, I invite you to take a peek at Worbly’s Magazine. There are over a year’s worth of editions archived here: http://worblysmagazine.com/

By the way, everything in the magazine with the exception of “Manners Matter”, “Letters to the Editor”, a few of the ads, and the tidbit on the front page is right out of books and magazines actually published prior to 1867. So the things in the stories, poems, book chapters, and recipes are things my great-grandparents or my great-great-uncle (like the man in the picture above) might have read.

Blog Editor's Note: Grammarly was used in the editing of this post, so I didn't have to worry about grammatical mistakes. :)

Throwback Thursday: Little Girl in Car

Little girl—“When do you think they will let me drive this?”

There's my caption, what's yours? Leave it in the comments below.

Memory Monday: Mary Had a Little Lamb

My great-grandparents and their children

MARY HAD A LITTLE LAMB

As I have said in a couple of earlier posts, my daughter and her husband are adopting a little girl. When we are privileged to babysit her, we like to play some of the children musical CDs we have collected. One of the songs on them that we (and our granddaughter) really like is “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” This is one of the songs that I sang to my children when they were small (we used cassettes back then), and at the time I didn’t really think about where or when it came about. It was always just there in my memory from my childhood.

Because I write historical romance, one of the interesting (and fun) things that happens is that I sometimes stumble across an interesting tidbit from years ago that is tied to the present. When I started researching fashions of the 19^th Century, I came across a magazine called Godey’s Lady’s Book. It was the premier women’s magazine for many years. Sarah Josepha Hale was the editor from 1837 to 1877. The other interesting thing about Sarah Hale was that she wrote the poem Mary Had a Little Lamb and it was first published on May 24, 1830.

In the picture above, my great-grandmother sits with her husband (who fought in the Civil War). Her parents were born in 1831 and 1833, which means my great-great-great grandmother might have sung Mary Had a Little Lamb to her children and grandchildren just like I have in the past and still do today.

I wonder how many more generations in my family will sing that song to their little ones.

Throwback Thursday: Candid Color Family Pic

Woman on left wagging her finger—"For the last time. The photographer is ready to take our picture. Everyone, look up and smile at him."

There's my caption. What's yours? Leave it in the comments.

Memory Monday: Matters of Etiquette

My Great-Grandmother

MATTERS OF ETIQUETTE FROM YEARS AGO TO NOW

It seems that today “everything—but everything” is subject to inquiry: whatcha doin’? Where ya been?” What’s up?” And if you read posts on the Facebook and tweets on Twitter, you can find out everyone’s (at least, it seems like everyone’s) thoughts on any and all subjects. How things have changed!

I came across a section in a book—Martine’s Hand Book of Etiquette, published in 1866. By the way, that was four years after my great-grandmother was born. I want to share a bit about how people in that time period viewed speaking to one another. My comments are in bold.

--Whatever passes in parties at your own or another's house is never repeated by well-bred people. Things of no moment, and which are meant only as harmless jokes, are liable to produce unpleasant consequences if repeated. To repeat, therefore, any conversation which passes on such occasions, is understood to be a breach of confidence, which should banish the offender from the pale of good society. If we did this today, there would be nothing on Facebook or Twitter, but videos of cute kitties and recipes.

--Men of all sorts of occupations meet in society. As they go there to unbend their minds and escape from the fetters of business, you should never, in an evening, speak to a man about his profession. Do not talk of politics to a journalist, of fevers to a physician, of stocks to a broker, —nor, unless you wish to enrage him to the utmost, of education to a collegian. --The error which is here condemned is often committed from mere good nature and a desire to be affable. But it betrays to a gentleman, ignorance of the world,—to a philosopher, ignorance of human nature. Not talk politics to a journalist at a party? Where would the journalist get all the juicy leads then, especially in Washington D.C.?

--If you wish to inquire about anything, do not do it by asking a question; but introduce the subject, and give the person an opportunity of saying as much as he finds it agreeable to impart. Do not even say, "How is your brother to-day?" but "I hope your brother is quite well." But what if the person doesn’t tell me what I want to know? I have to find out so I can tell others.

--Never ask a lady a question about anything whatever. This last on would never, ever work in today’s world and that’s all I’m going to say on that one.

What are your thoughts about the way people speak (post, tweet) today? How about the etiquette a hundred and fifty years ago?

Throwback Thursday: A Woman, a Young Man, and a Little Boy

From the person questioning the people, “Well, which way did it go—left, right, or down?”

That's my caption. What's yours? Leave your caption in the comments below.

Memory Monday: Toy Trucks - Now and Then

My granddaughter and the truck her granddaddy played with as a boy

TOY TRUCKS—NOW AND THEN

I remember my father-in-law talking about the blue glass bottle that he pushed for “miles” as a kid. He pretended that bottle was a truck and he had a lot of fun playing with it. When my husband was a boy, his parents got him several metal trucks—several of which we still have today.
When our children were small, our town was known for its garage sales and I found the “wonder” of shopping at them. I bought (well, maybe over-bought might be a better way of describing it) Fisher-Price little people with all sorts of accessories, like trucks. By the time my children were old enough to stop playing with them, I had a 55-gallon trash bag full of them. Needless to say, my two little ones didn’t care to play with my husband’s metal trucks, so they stayed boxed up for another twenty-five years. Today, my husband is in his late sixties and those trucks have been stored away for well over a half-a-century. They might have stayed that way, except I created my library with a place for future grandchildren to play. I cleaned up those old trucks and put them in the room.
The other day when my precious two-year-old granddaughter came over to play, I pulled out a bag of small finger puppets. She asked for the cow and bunny, then took off. The next thing I knew, she was hauling in one of the old metal trucks into the living room where we were sitting. To be truthful about the matter, I had forgotten about the truck since it was wa-a-ay under a buffet I had in my library. She immediately worked the finger puppets into the seats of the truck and started pushing it—squeaky wheels and all. My husband quickly sprayed the wheels with WD40 and she continued to play with it.
She has been over a couple of times since then and has played with the truck (and finger puppet passengers) over and over.  Funny thing about the finger puppets, she will only use the cow and bunny, trading them out as driver and passenger. And I have over twenty other finger puppets, including “people” ones, but she won’t put any of them in the truck. I really wish I could see into her mind and learn why she does it that way.
Oh well, at least after more than that half-a-century I talked about a moment ago, the wonderful old trucks are being played with again, they will probably last until the next generation, and maybe the next.

Throwback Thursday: Little Boy in Pressed Overalls

"I’ve got the best mom ever. She even irons my cover-alls—see the creases."

That's my caption, but what's yours? Leave it in the comments.

Memory Monday: More Household Hints from the Past

My Great-Grandmother

MORE HOUSEHOLD HINTS FROM THE PAST

I love looking at household hints from years ago. Here are some from a book, A Practical Cook Book, from 1899. My great-grandmother might have used some of these since she married my great-grandfather in 1895.
A little vinegar, boiled in a dish when cabbage and onions are cooking, will prevent the odor going through the house.
Wash the outside of poultry in warm water and soap, rinse it thoroughly, and wash the inside in clear water. Try it once.
To singe fowls, put 1 tablespoon of alcohol into a saucer, light it; this will singe 1 or 2 chickens without any smoke.
For a cough cure, take 1 red pepper, put water over it and let it stand on back of stove until the strength comes out, strain, and add 1 1-2 cups sugar, and 1-2 cup vinegar; let it simmer until thickened.
Wash gilding with water in which an onion has been boiled, and dry with a soft cloth.

Remove ink from white goods with ripe tomato.

I think I have the most trouble with the last one, since I always have problems getting spots containing tomato (sauce, paste, juice, enchilada sauce, well anything with tomato in it) out of my white shirts. Who knows maybe tomatoes were different back then, but I don’t think so.