The Geoffrey Bullough Collection - Temporary Home Page ...

Now the signor was what the world would call an exceedingly clever fellow.
He knew that he was perfectly uneducated, and was conscious of the
construction of his sentences being anything but strictly grammatical. To
conceal this, therefore, on the one hand, and to inspire the audience with the
belief of his being—what he represented himself to be—an Italian, on the
other, he had recourse to a jargon of his own composition—an indiscriminate
mixture of Cockney English and Yankee French—which never by any chance
failed him at a pinch. (p. 14)
Later, an example of this is given:
[the signor] addressed his audience briefly as follows: ―Ladi and
Shenteelmongs, I have de honnare to say dis, dat I sall go troo warious
parformong, and ven I sall svaller him sword town him troat, I vas give you
vong speciment ob venter et loquer, dat am to say, speak in him pelly.‖ What
was understood of this gave great satisfaction; but what was most applauded
was that which was most unintelligible. (p. 14)
7. Other points of interest
None noted
Bullough Collection No. 98 The Company‟s Servant: A Romance of Southern
India, by B.M. Croker
1. Publication details
Author: B.M. Croker
Author dates: not given
Title: The Company‟s Servant: A Romance of Southern India Publication: London:
Hurst & Blackett, 1907
First published:
Library reference: 200350674
2. Genre / subgenre
Literary fiction (colonial)
3. Brief Synopsis
Romantic entanglement of Vernon, a well-to-do British runaway who settles in India.
4. Overview of varieties / dialects
Irish English strongly represented.
5. Variety #1: Coffey, railroad worker
5a. Sample of dialect
―Shure, an‘ don‘t I know that? an‘ wasn‘t I often on one meself?‖ rejoined Coffey.
―Bedad, ‗tis I could tell ye many a quare thing of a troop train, and och! the tales I‘ve
heard aboard them would curl yer hair.‖
[…]
―They are so,‖ drawing out a short pipe, ―an‘ I mind them well, when they were out
before—lyin‘ next to us at Secunderabad. Nice ‗boyos‘ for racing, and gambling and
divilment! but a rale fine regiment. Faix, that‘s seventeen year ago, this cold weather.‖
(p. 5)
5b.1 Orthography
Eye dialect shure
Elision an‟; „tis; lyin‟
Respelling meself; ye; yer; divilment; rale
5b.2 Grammar
http://librarysupport.shef.ac.uk /bullough.pdf
Copyright © 2007, The University of Sheffield
42