Those of a certain age will remember James J. Kilpatrick (1920-2010), a true political pundit (“learned man”) before the term came into popular use. He and Shana Alexandra were sparing partners on 60 Minutes, and that’s how he’s remembered. For years, though he wrote a syndicated column on English and English usage. I remember reading
There is no more faulty method of discipline than that of severely punishing a child for some outbreak against moral or school law before a hearing has been given him… . Practical School Discipline–Applied Methods Part 2 , Beery, Ray C., 1917. That’s from one of the projects I’m working on at Distributed Proofreaders (DP).
Human virtues are plants which never strike a deep root unless shaken by misfortune. Virtue consists in the directing of our intellectual and physical energies to a praiseworthy end; but if our energies be naturally feeble, or dwindle and wither away through lack of exercise, our virtue, by a necessary consequence, must become dwarfish and
I picked up The Literature of American History: A Bibliographical Guide (1902, reprinted 1966) and was skimming through the section on “Educational History,” and came across these two titles (grabbed screen shots at Archive dot org). Here’s the blurb in The Literature of American History: Together these two works, which are really companions, present a
June 6, 1944– Tonight’s communiqué just in from D-Day invasion headquarters summarizes the news. “Allied forces,” it says, “have succeeded in their initial landings in France; and fighting continues.” Lowell Thomas was the Walter Cronkite of radio. Beginning in 1930, he broadcast twice each evening on CBS radio. It was said that his voice had
Let the fragrant summer breeze,And the leaves of locust trees, And the apple-buds and -blossoms, and the wings of honey bees,All palpitate with glee,Till the happy harmonyBrings back each childish joy to you and me from “A Song of Long Ago,” in Riley Farm-Rhymes with Country Pictures by James Whitcomb Riley (1883)
Oh. It’s become silly alright! Well beyond silly if you ask me.
The Crisco Kitchen is a practical sort of kitchen. Our team of Home Economists are more than scientific. They themselves keep house and understand the problems of preparing home-cooked meals. All of these recipes were tested in the Crisco Kitchen. Practically all were tested at home, as well. Forward to New Recipes for Good Eating
Back in the crappy olden days, making a home for your family was not considered drudge work. At least that’s the belief Meredith Publishing, publishers of BH&G books, were selling to women. I am of two minds about this. Better Homes and Gardens Decorating Book, Meredith Publishing Company, Des Moines, Iowa, 1961. As person who
Swearing, of course, is not the prerogative of all men. Many lack the natural gift for it, and others are too timorous. For such toters of inferiority complexes there is a repertory of what may be called denaturalized profanity. H.L. Mencken, The American Language: An Inquiry into the Development of English in the United States
Charles Beard: Punished for Seeking Peace His reputation was savaged because he had the temerity to question the ‘Good War’ narrative. [Andrew J. Bacevich, The American Conservative, March 21, 2019] Bacevich’s review of Charles Austin Beard: The Return of the Master Historian of American Imperialism (Richard Drake, Cornell University Press, 2018) caught my attention because
A period of unfavorable weather set in. He showed satisfaction as he took possession of his well-earned reward. It rained every day for a week. He grinned as he pocketed the coin. The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr., With Revisions, an Introduction, and New Chapter on Writing by E.B. White (1959)
Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts. This requires not that the writer make all his sentences short, or that he avoid all detail and treat his subjects
They cared so little for plain fact, these people, and were in that advanced state of degeneracy on the subject, that instead of being impressed by the speaker’s strong common sense, they took it in extraordinary dudgeon.
That’s what I said. I said, “I’ll do Harbrace, Little-Brown, and Strunk & White, but not Google.” Some background is in order. Mr. Big Food and I had a terrible row this morning. We are in full agreement on noun-pronoun agreement (e.g., “Every child has their his or her favorite toy”; alt. “All children have
The McChoakumchild school was all fact, and the school of design was all fact, and the relations between master and man were all fact, and everything was fact between the lying-in hospital and the cemetery, and what you couldn’t state in figures, or show to be purchasable in the cheapest market and salable in the
This month’s Crappy Old Book of the Month was Miss Manners’® Guide to Rearing Perfect Children: A Primer for Everyone Worried about the Future of Civilization (Judith Martin, Atheneum, New York 1984). Unfortunately, this month slipped away from me and I only posted two measly posts about this delightful– and truly funny–book. I am a
“All warfare is based on deception. “Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near. 20. Hold out baits to entice the
Obviously, have coffee and check Windy for the weather. But not according to Heloise who says, The first thing to do in the mornings is to put your dishes in the sink to soak and then make the beds! I don’t know why, but this is most important. It gives a woman a feeling of
Marie Kondo, guru of the “don’t be afraid to grab another trash bag” movement, recently drew ire from book-lovers. Kondo recommends we keep no more than 30 books in our homes, 30 books that “spark joy.” But who is to say what sparks joy today will spark joy tomorrow? https://www.frontporchrepublic.com/2019/02/the-american-bookstore-a-list/ There’s more but I need