Thanks to David Goldfarb and Mary for clarifying that pecho=pox. That makes a lot more sense. Now I'm wondering how it came to mean 'breast' in modern Spanish.
Of course the 'gee' is just a spelling convention of English. The sound spelled by 'ng' is a unitary phone, a velar nasal, represented in the International Phonetic Alphabet as a single symbol. Font limitations keep me from producing it here, but it looks like an 'n' with the right leg dropping below the line and curling in toward the center.
Thus the [-ing]/[-in] variation is just a variation between two nasals, not a "dropping" of anything. It's just English spelling that makes it look otherwise. Nobody accuses anybody of being lazy when they say 'impossible' instead of 'inpossible', but that's just another case of a variation between two nasals in the pronunciation of a single prefix "in-", as in 'ineffective' or 'inability', no different linguistically (in ways relevant to this discussion) than the one between the [-in] and [-ing] pronunciations of the suffix "-ing".
csg's final question is at the heart of much linguistic research, and you'll get different answers to it from different people, each with lots of evidence to back them up. I think it's safe to say that all would agree that nurture operates within the constraints provided by nature, but getting much more specific than that will quickly lead to noisy arguments.
"I had the opportunity to kiss her and touch her below with my hand. She is pretty still, but had no mind to be seen, being not dressed as she would be. My wife did tell me the other day that she heard she had had the large breast, but I hope no such thing. I am certain that I should have been glad to have time and place to have done something with her..."
I don't understand the part about the "large breast." Presumably Miss Tooker is growing breasts by now. Why would Sam hope otherwise? He does like touching breasts, as we know. Or have I misunderstood the phrase?
The anecdotal approach to social problems, still very much with us, as politicians exhort the use of private charity to solve problems that result from poor public policy, and try to justify their arguments by recounting stories of individuals rather than accounting for society at large.
@Carl in Boston, "he" in this context has to be Carcasse who was being discharged from his office. The next sentence relates how Bruncker, against his will, had to sign the order to confiscate ("secure") the tickets that Carcasse was holding.
"I could set words in English, and make musique of them more agreeable to any Englishman’s eare (the most judicious) than any Italian musique set for the voice, and performed before the same man, unless he be acquainted with the Italian accent of speech."
I don't think so, Sam. There's a reason why Monteverdi's madrigals are performed more often than "Beauty, Retire" - even in England.
"We had much talk of our old acquaintance of the College, concerning their various fortunes; wherein, to my joy, I met not with any that have sped better than myself."
CGS/csg, I think Background Lurker's point was that at the time you were wearing the khaki in the 40s, the reigning monarch was male, hence you would have been receiving the king's shilling, not the queen's.
Thanks to CGS (or csg) and TF for those valuable posts. i note that a couple of the acts are listed with the addendum "Le roy le veult" ('the king desires it'), or an expansion thereof. Can someone explain the import of this? Evidently it wasn't required for the act to become law, like a President's signature in the U.S., since the acts listed without it also appear to be official. Did it mean that the particular act was one that the king asked the Parliament to pass?
A. de Araujo has it right at 11:39 AM. Algo = 'something' (in Spanish). The fact that Sam has gone polyglot about it shows just what the "something" was that he hoped to get from her - but she wasn't home, darn the luck.
Folks, we have more than two years to go before the end of the diary. I recommend we emulate my Buddhist friends and relatives and try to live more in the present moment. When the end starts drawing near in a couple of years, it may be entirely clear what if anything comes next. And of course, anyone can start again at the beginning at any time - it's all on line.
That said, I would surely like to meet all of you before we go our separate ways.
So we've survived the plague, the fire, and (so far) the Dutch and the French, and are 1800L richer than last year, but still it was a year "generally wished by all people to have an end." Not a whole lot different from 2009, I'd say, with a few substitute nouns.
Happy New Year and New Decade to all on this blog, one of the good things of the year past and the year to come.
Comments
First Reading
About Friday 15 March 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
Thanks to David Goldfarb and Mary for clarifying that pecho=pox. That makes a lot more sense. Now I'm wondering how it came to mean 'breast' in modern Spanish.
About Wednesday 13 March 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
Of course the 'gee' is just a spelling convention of English. The sound spelled by 'ng' is a unitary phone, a velar nasal, represented in the International Phonetic Alphabet as a single symbol. Font limitations keep me from producing it here, but it looks like an 'n' with the right leg dropping below the line and curling in toward the center.
Thus the [-ing]/[-in] variation is just a variation between two nasals, not a "dropping" of anything. It's just English spelling that makes it look otherwise. Nobody accuses anybody of being lazy when they say 'impossible' instead of 'inpossible', but that's just another case of a variation between two nasals in the pronunciation of a single prefix "in-", as in 'ineffective' or 'inability', no different linguistically (in ways relevant to this discussion) than the one between the [-in] and [-ing] pronunciations of the suffix "-ing".
csg's final question is at the heart of much linguistic research, and you'll get different answers to it from different people, each with lots of evidence to back them up. I think it's safe to say that all would agree that nurture operates within the constraints provided by nature, but getting much more specific than that will quickly lead to noisy arguments.
About Friday 15 March 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
SP on "little Mis Tooker" -
"I had the opportunity to kiss her and touch her below with my hand. She is pretty still, but had no mind to be seen, being not dressed as she would be. My wife did tell me the other day that she heard she had had the large breast, but I hope no such thing. I am certain that I should have been glad to have time and place to have done something with her..."
I don't understand the part about the "large breast." Presumably Miss Tooker is growing breasts by now. Why would Sam hope otherwise? He does like touching breasts, as we know. Or have I misunderstood the phrase?
About Tuesday 12 March 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
"This day a poor seaman etc."
The anecdotal approach to social problems, still very much with us, as politicians exhort the use of private charity to solve problems that result from poor public policy, and try to justify their arguments by recounting stories of individuals rather than accounting for society at large.
About Friday 8 March 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
@Carl in Boston, "he" in this context has to be Carcasse who was being discharged from his office. The next sentence relates how Bruncker, against his will, had to sign the order to confiscate ("secure") the tickets that Carcasse was holding.
About Wednesday 20 February 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
"she tells pretty storms"
mis-scan for "stories"?
About Saturday 16 February 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
"I could set words in English, and make musique of them more agreeable to any Englishman’s eare (the most judicious) than any Italian musique set for the voice, and performed before the same man, unless he be acquainted with the Italian accent of speech."
I don't think so, Sam. There's a reason why Monteverdi's madrigals are performed more often than "Beauty, Retire" - even in England.
About Monday 11 February 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
"Cozenage": nepotism?
About Sunday 10 February 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
"We had much talk of our old acquaintance of the College, concerning their various fortunes; wherein, to my joy, I met not with any that have sped better than myself."
Why we go to college reunions.
About Thursday 7 February 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
CGS/csg, I think Background Lurker's point was that at the time you were wearing the khaki in the 40s, the reigning monarch was male, hence you would have been receiving the king's shilling, not the queen's.
About Friday 8 February 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
Thanks to CGS (or csg) and TF for those valuable posts. i note that a couple of the acts are listed with the addendum "Le roy le veult" ('the king desires it'), or an expansion thereof. Can someone explain the import of this? Evidently it wasn't required for the act to become law, like a President's signature in the U.S., since the acts listed without it also appear to be official. Did it mean that the particular act was one that the king asked the Parliament to pass?
About Thursday 31 January 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
"the interest which I wholly lost while in my trunk is a temptation while things look safe"
The eternal tradeoff between security and profit.
About Friday 21 December 1666
Paul Chapin • Link
to make mi mismo espender = to make myself come ('spend' in the English of the time)
About Wednesday 23 January 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
"and so away thence, pleased with this sight also, and specially kissing of Nell."
I would guess so! A little like going to the theater today and being invited backstage to kiss Angelina Jolie.
About Sunday 13 January 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
A. de Araujo has it right at 11:39 AM. Algo = 'something' (in Spanish). The fact that Sam has gone polyglot about it shows just what the "something" was that he hoped to get from her - but she wasn't home, darn the luck.
About Wednesday 2 January 1666/67
Paul Chapin • Link
Folks, we have more than two years to go before the end of the diary. I recommend we emulate my Buddhist friends and relatives and try to live more in the present moment. When the end starts drawing near in a couple of years, it may be entirely clear what if anything comes next. And of course, anyone can start again at the beginning at any time - it's all on line.
That said, I would surely like to meet all of you before we go our separate ways.
About Monday 31 December 1666
Paul Chapin • Link
"it being still a very great frost and good walking"
I guess the walking is better when the ground is frozen instead of muddy.
About Monday 31 December 1666
Paul Chapin • Link
So we've survived the plague, the fire, and (so far) the Dutch and the French, and are 1800L richer than last year, but still it was a year "generally wished by all people to have an end." Not a whole lot different from 2009, I'd say, with a few substitute nouns.
Happy New Year and New Decade to all on this blog, one of the good things of the year past and the year to come.
About Thursday 27 December 1666
Paul Chapin • Link
Australian Chris, a marvelous contribution. Come back often.
About Thursday 27 December 1666
Paul Chapin • Link
"several people spoiled"
I assume this means killed. First time I've seen this usage. I do miss my OED.