— Mr. W
e b s t e r and H i s Book - I t may be t h a t
the B i b l e i s
the most w i d e l y s o l d , r e a d ,
ted volume i n the w o r l d . But r i g h t behind i t ,
and a u t h o r i t a t i v e l y quo
and i n some i n s t n a c e s
p a s s i n g i t , c m m e s t h e d i c t i o n a r y . There a r e many d i c t i o n a r i e s ,
tin g a
w o r l d - w i d e viL#8 tc g & h
new e d i t i o n s ,
good many # o r e . Here i n A m e r i c a ,
and
p a rticu la rized
i n terms o f
t r e a t m e n t s add up t o a
we a r e most l i k e l y t o be a c q u a i n e d w i t h the
d i c i t i o n a r y i n i t s W e b st e r b e a r i n g na m e, wh et he r t h a t be
C ollegiate,
in i t s
a k i n t o t h e word s t e r l i n g a s a p p l i e d
a Webster d i c t i o n a r y w i t h
fu ll
trust
wo rd s, an d f e e l i n g q u i t e a s s u r e d
, b a n k i n g on
to s i l v e r .
t h a t when c o r n e r e d w i t h th e meaning or
I n a TH^y r e c e n t & s s u e o f t h e S a t u r d y R e v i e w ,
bu t c h i d i n g l y , t o o k John C i a r d i ,
a colum nist f o r th a t
p o&kly j o u r n a l , t o t a s k ,
l y " a s meaning " a t p r e s e n t " . T h i s ,
*'e t u r n t o
i t s d e r i v a t i n and d e f i n i t i o n
u s a g e / / ? a word we can a l w a y s s a y , " a c c o r d i n g t e W e b s t e r " ,
very kin d ly,
In tern atin al,
or some o t h e r ^ f o r m . T^e name W e b s t e r i n our a c q u a i n t a n c e w i t h
d ictio n aries is a w
of
of c p u r a e ^ r e f le c
o f l a n g u a g e and t h e r i
abridged v e r s io n s ,
even s u r ­
or "websters spys'
some woman i n H a m p t o n , V i r g i n i a ,
the fo r m e r p o e t r y e d i t o r and now
f o r h a v i n g used t h e word " p r e s e n t ­
she h e l d , w a s
a^gM a s e r r o r , a n d whe v^ice^L_
tww " t u t s " f o r & C i a r d i ,
i n s o f a r as he had d o u b le d h i s e r r o r i n a s i n g l e
(A " t u t " i n c i d e n t a l l y ,
a c c o r d in g to Webster,
a rticle .
i s an exca&Rmation e x p r e s s i n g
" i m p a t i e n c e a t s o m e t h i n g t r i v i a l " and/ o r^ " m il d r e b u k e " ) T h e e d i t o r s o f
the
S a t u r d c y R e v i e w , h o w e v e r , v e r y gjfuiq^ly d i s p o s e d o f t h e i s s u e by s i m p l y makeing
note
t h a t a c c o r d ng t o W eb ste r^ s I n t e r n a t i o n a l D i c t i o n a r y (
Editj&hn)
" p r e s e n t ly " in i t s
spoe kn,
2
t he m a t t e r i n a l l
Such p r e s t i g e ,
b le , but l i t t l e
means " a t p r e s e n t ? n o w . . . " Having thu*
second d e f i n i t i o n
likelih o od
how eve r,
is closed.
has n o t sp ru n g f u l l - b l o w n . Behind i t
known d e v e l p m e n t .
l i t t l e known i n f a c t
lie s
a re m a r k a ­
t h a t many who r e a d i l y
r e f e r t o Webster have ho know led ge of the man h i m s e l f and are e v en c o n f u s e d i n
th eir id en tifica tio n
o f him . A c c o r d i n g
to Bergen Evans,"one
of t , a
s a d d e s t com
La­
ments on human g l o r y i s t h e l a t t l i n e
o f the b r i e f n o t i c e
(made)oS*a i n "Web­
s t e r ' s B i o g r a p h i c a l D i c t i o n a r y " . A hand w i t h a n e n t e n d e d , e m p h a s i z i n g f o r e f i n g e r
admonishes t he r e a d e r : ' D o n o t c o n f u s e Noah Webs te r w i t h D a n i e l W e b s t e r ' . *
S t i l l more, the r e c e n t l y p u b l i s h e d
t h i r d e d i t i o n o f " W e b s t e r ' s New I n t e r n a ­
t i o n a l D i c t i o n a r y " h a s o c c a s i o n e d a st o r m o f p r t ^ e s t . A ng ry c r i t i c s have s i a d
t h a t t h e y w i l l have n o t h i n g t o do w i t h i t ,
t h a t t h e y w i l l s t i c k w i t h t h e second
e d i t i o n where Webster " r i g h t l y s a y s " . Even such somewhat v e n t u r e s o m e j o u r n a l s
a s t h e New R e p u b l i c and The N a t i o n have e x p r e s s e d s t r o n g d i s a p p r o v a l o f the
new e d i t i o n . What i s
involved
i n the c u r r e n t f u r o r e can b e s t be u n d e r s t o o d by
l o o k i n g a t some o f the p a s t d e v e l o p m e n t , f o r l i k e
e l e m e n t s were t h e r e p r e s e n t
and f u r o r e o v e r Mr. W e b s t e r ' s book i s n o t h i n g new.
Born i n West H a r t f o r d ,
W ebster,Junior,E squire,
Yankee v i r t u e s ,
also
C o n n e c t i c u t i n O c t ob e r of
1 7 5 8 . Nah W e b s t e r , 6 r Noah
as he l i k e d t o d e s i g n a t e h i m s e l f ,
some would s a y v i c e s ,
e a r l y a J u i r e d the
of i n d u s t r y , f r u g a l i t y ,
and r e c t i t u d e ,
and
i n h i s c a s e a "pompous d i s p o s i t i o n t o se r m o n iz e upon such m a t t e r s f o r the
b e n e fit of
his
the world a t l a r g e and the y a u n g e r g e n e r a t i o n l r j p a r t i c u l a r . " - v e n
k i n d e s t b i o g r a p h e r s f i n d him t o have be en gri m and s o b e r , c o n t e n t i o u s and
a n t a g o n i s t i c . Th ro ugh out h i s l o n g l i f e
s i t i o n . He was,
ho we ve r,
he had a n e a r g e n i u s o f a r o u s i n g oppo­
t o u g h enough and s e l f - a s s u r e d
enough t o b a t t l e h i s
way s i n g l e h a n d e d a g a i n s t a l l o p p o s i t i o n i s t o n l y s p u r r e d him on t o p r o d i g i e s o f
l a b o r and a c c o m p l i s h m e n t . I t
accomplished
i s a lm o s t i n c o n c e i v a b l e t h a t
so much , e v e n i n a l i f e - s ^ a n
tremendous work a s a l e x i c o g r a p h e r ,
te d t o t h e b a r a t H a r t f o r d
in 1781);
of eig h ty fiv e
anyone could have
y e a r s . Beyond h i s
he was a s c h o o l - t e a c h e r and a l a w y e r ( a d m l t i n l 78 $ he w r o t e and p u b l i s h e d S k e t c h e s o f
A m e ri c a n P o l i c y i n which he a rg u ed f o r a c o n s t i t u t i o n a l government whose a u t h o r ­
i t y s ho ul d be v e s t e d i n C o n g r e s s . T h i s he r e g a r d e d a s th e
s a l f o r a United S t a t e s C o n s t it u io n ,
of
d i s t i n c t propo­
and when i n 1 7 8 7 the work o f the commis­
s i o n e r s was comp lete d a t p H i i a d e l p h i a ,
intendent
first
where W e b s t e r was t h e n s e r v i n g as s u p e r -
o f an academy, he w r o t e i n b e h a l f o f t h e c o n s t i t u t i o n an E x a m i n a t i o n
t he L e a d i n g P r i n c i p l e s o f t h e F e d e r a l C o n s t i t u t i o n . H g w a s l i k e w i s e
^ s t a r t i n g t h e A m e ri c a n M a ga zin e which f a i l e d
an e d i t o r ^
a f t e r a y e a r ) (but l a t e r ^ e s t a b l i s h e # (
1
a d a i l y and a l s o a s e m i - w e e k l y p a p e r . S t i l l more, he s e r v e d i n t he C o n n e c t i c u t
House o f R e p r e s e n t a t i v e s f o r a number o f y e a r s and was a c o u n t y judge f o r a
f o u r y e a r p e r i o d ; ^ h e p was a l s e ^ e l e c t e d and r e - e l e c t e d
M assachusetts;
to the L e g i s l a t u r e o f
and w h ) l e l i v i n g i n A mh er st, M a s s a c h u s e t t s , he was P r e s i d e n t
o f t h e Board o f T r u s t e e s o f
the town academy and i n s t r u m e n t a l i n h a v i n g i t
t r a n s f o r m e d i n t o Amherst C o l l e g e and he was e l e c t e d
f i r s t p residen t of i t s
Board o f T r u s t e e s .
It
i s however w i t h h i s work a s a l e x i c o g r a p h e r
t h a t h i s name i s most
a s s o c A & t e d . His f i r s t v e n t u r e i n t h i s d i r e c t i o n a r o s e out o f a y e a r ' s t e a c h i n g
s c h o o l a t Goshen,
of b e tte r
New Y ^ rk . T^ere he became c o n v i n c e d o f t h e need
t e x t b o o k s o f E n g l i s h , and b e i n g Noah W e b s t e r ,
upon h i m s e l f t h e m i s s i o n o f r e m e d y i n g the
situ atio n .
t h e p e i r o d 1783 t o 1 7 8 5 * was A G r a m m a t ic a l I n s t i t u t e
three p a rts,
a spelling-book,
t h e s e was the s p e l l i n g - b o o k ,
lin e
The r e s u l t , p u b l i s h e d
in
o f the E n g l i s h L n a g u a g e , i n
a grammar and a r e a d e r . T^e most s t r i k i n g o f
i n s o f a r a s i t ga v e a s i m p l i f i e d
words over t j g a i n s t t h e u s u a l s p e l l i n g
e f f o r t s along t h is
he i m m e d i a t e l y t o o k
started
s p e l l i n g of many
so l a r g e l y i n h e r i t e d from E n g l a n d . His
a r a i n o f abuse and c ont em pt t h a t was n e v e r t e
derided
cease throughout h i s long l i f e .
was
a " l i t e r a r y puppy" ,and lam­
pooned a s a " h a l f - b e g o t t e n , s e l f - d u b b e d p a t r i o t " . E b e n e z e r H a z a r d , t h e P o s t m a s t e r
G e n e r a l , w r i t i n g t o t h e P r e s i d e n t o f the M a s s a c h u s e t t s H i s t o r i c a l S o c i e t y i n
1 7 9 0 ,said
" I j o i n w i t h y o u i n r e p r o b a t i n g the new mode o f s p e l l i n g recommended
and e x e m p l i f i e d
i n t h e f u g i t i v ( s p e l l e d w i t h o u t the f i n a l e) E s s a y s , e v ( s p e l l e d
o - v ) N o - u r ( s p e l l e d N - o - u - r ) W e b s t e r . . . c r i t i c k and co^xcomb g e n e r a l o f the
United S t a t e s . "
N evertheless,
t h i s p i o n e r r Ame rican work i n i t s
field ,
had a tremendous
s a l e and soon found a p l a c e i n most o f the s c h o o l s o f . t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s .
1^
c o n t r i b u t e ! g r e a t & y t * a u n i f o r m i t y of p r o n u n c i a t i o n
helped secure a sim p ler system o f s p e l l i n g than t h a t
a!opte!
in the U n it* ! S t a t e s , a n !
c u r r e n t i n EAgjhan! an!
i n the S t a t e s . S t i l l more t h e income from the work,
although m o!est,
e n a b l f ! W eb st e r t o embark upon a much more a m b i t i g u s p r o j e c t , n a m e l y the compi­
lin g
o f an Ame ric an ! i c t i o n a r y o f the E n g l i s h l a n g u a g e .
The g r e a t E ^ l g i s h d i c t i o n a r y o f the time Mgs the work o f Samuel Johnson,
famous D r. Hohhson o f whom the s t o r y i s t o l !
t h a t h i s w i f e coning i n t o h i s
*
s t u d y one da y and d i s c o v e r i n g him w i t h j p t h e housemaid
! ! : " W h y Samuel,
I am s u r p r i s e d . " To w h i c h he r e p l i e d
l e x i c o n b a c k g r o u n d , " N o t * 33rx a t a l l ,
§
s e a t e d o dh is i * p , e x c l a i m with a l l
the n i c e t y o f h i s
my d e a r . I t was I who was s u r p r i s e ! . Y o u
were a s t o n i s h e d . " Webster had be en r a i s e !
his w ritin g s.
the
on Johns on an ! h a ! a h i g h r e g a r d f o r
At the same t i m e , W eb st e r was an
a r d e n t p a t r i o t who s ^ ) r e !
w i t h many o t h e r A m e ric a ns o f the da y the ^ i A f ^ o f an i n d e p e n d e n c e from B r i t a i n
com plete,not ju s t p o l i t i c a l l y ,
instancy,
but i n e v e r y
s e n s e . He was not one
o r Hebrew a s a d v o c a t e d by some t h e o l o g i a n s . B^t
o f the e x t r e * *
he b e l i e v e d w i t h
s u c h l e a d e r s a s F r a n k l i n and J e f f e r s o n t h a t the Ame rica n l a n g u a g e was bound to
i n c r a s i n g l y grow apa^ from t h e E n g l i s h ,
Spanish,
and Sw edi sh from D a n i s h ,
r e s p e c t to the l a b o r s o f i t s
still
even a s P o r t u g u e s e had s e p a r a t e d from
^re
J o h n s o n ' s d i c t i o n a r y , w i t h a l l due
one-man a u t h o r , had the i n h e r e n t d e f e c t s o f t h a t
a u t h o r ' s i n d i v i d u a l g e n i u s ; i t s d e f i n i t i o n s were i n many c a s e s i n e x a c t and i t s
etymology in
b
many M n t a n c e s was i m p e r f e c t .
was a m a t t e r o f m a jo r i m p o r t a n c e ,
it
F a r t h e r , and w i t h Webster t h i s
was a l r e a d y f a r
behind t h e t im e s a s the
l e x i c o n o f a r a p d i l y grw o in g l a n g u a g e . I* was l a r g e l y l i m i t e d
b o o k i s h wo rd s,
avo id in g almost e n t i r e l y
n^ ve r c a u g h t up w i t h the e n la r g e m e n t
the a r t s and s c i e n c e s ,
to the l i s t i n g o f
the words o f commerce and t r a d e , i t had
o f v o c a b u l a r y a t t e n d e n t upon
gro w t h i n
and i n t r a d e and commerce. T h er e were hu nd re d s o f words
b e i n g used i n e v e r y day a f f a i r s ,
being printed
i n m a g a z i n e s , p a m p h l e t s , and bo ok )
b u t which had no l i s t i n g or d e f i n i t i o n i n any d i c t i o n a r y . A d s t i l l m o r e , h e r e
i n America and u n i q u e l y A m e ri c a n , were hundreds o f l u s t y new word)and com­
pounds, used e v e r y d a y , b u t ,
as y e t ,
a p p e a r i n g i n no d i c t i o n a r y — words and
compands suh a s s k u n k , h i c k o r y , c h o w d e r , s c o w , h a n d y , a p p l e - s a u c e , b u l l - f r o g . . . .
What was nee ded,
la n g u a g e *
i n W e b s t e r ' s v i e w , was an Ame rican d i c t i o n a r y o f
a d e qu a fb t o the n a t i o h and the
tim es,
the E n g l i s h
a d i c t i o n a r y t h a t would shape
and mold our n a t i o n a l l a n g u a g e i n a f o r m a t i v e p e r i o d , and e f f e c t c e r t a i n r e ­
form s i n s p e l l i n g and u s a g e a s i t d i d s o .
1^ was a tremendous u n d e r t a k i n g f o r
Noah W eb st e r would have da re d t a c k l e
a single
it.
i n d i v i d u a l , and no one b u t a
H^, and p o s s i b l y he a l o n e ,
had the
n e c e s s a r y c o m b i n a t i o n o f z e a l and p a t i e n c e , and u n l i k e D r . J o h n s t o n , he fottn.d?>
the work f a s c i n a t i n g r a t h e r
than d r u d g e r y . S t i l l more he was a n a t u r a l l i n g u i s t
from h i s y o u t h and t h r o u g h o u t h i s e d u c a -
t t p n a t Y a l e . A ^ d i n the words o f S i r James M u r r a y , t h e S c o t t i s h l e x i c o g r a p h e r o f
Oxford E n g l i s h D , c i t o n a r y fame, he was
"a born d e f i n e r of w o r d s . "
, Even so ,
the
7
amount o f w o rk ,d o ne a l m o s t c o m p l e t e l y a l o n e ,
o n l y did he do a l l the r e s e a r c h ,
ning,
tracin g e ty m o lig ies,esta b lish in g u sag e ,d e fi­
and d e t e r m i n i n g o r d e r o f p r e c e d e n c e among m u l t i p l e mean n g s , but he w r o t e
out the e n t i r e m a n u s c r i p t i n l o n g - h a n d ,
alph ab etizin g,
I a June o f
1800 ,
he
the e d i t i n g ,
made announcement o f h i s p r o j e c t t h r o u g h the New Hava,
he s a i d ,
d ic tio n a r y fo r schools,
and
and beyond t h a t d i d
and most of the p r o o f - r e a d i n g .
n e w s p a p e r s . H^s pla^f,
house,
i s a p p a l l i n g to c o n t e m p l a t e , ^ o t
then,
called
f o r the p u b l i s h i n g f i r s t o f a s m a l l e r
s^nore s p e c i a l i z e d d i c t i o n a r y f o r t h e c o u n t i n g -
a f t e r t h a t a l a r g e d i c i t i # n a r y f o r men o f s c i e n c e . A c t u a l l y the
o r d e r was somewhat r e v e r s e d .
the E n g l i s h l a n g u a g e ,
T^e f i r s t ,
dl^^hppear^#i r a t ,
c a l l e d A cOmpendious D i c t i o n a r y o f
i n 18 06. B ut t h e n e x t t o a p p e a r ,
and
n o t u n t i l 1828, was the l a r g e work-An Ame ric an D i c t i o n a r y o f t he E ^ g l s h Lan­
guage* and the s o - c a l l e d
c o u n t n g house d i c t i o n a r y f o l l o w e d
some y e a r s l a t e r
in
1841 .
T e announcement,
in i t s e l f ,
T^e ^ a z e t t e o f the U n i t ed S t a . e s
its
t r u s t that
t o u c h ed o f f a new wave o f s c o r n and r i d i c u l e .
c a l l e d W e b s t e r abs ur d and v a i n and i a
the p ro p o se d work would
a l l f r i e n d s of l i t e r a t e . "
"meet w i t h the contempt i t d e s e r v e s from
The P h i l a d e l p h i a A u ro ra r e f e r r e d t o Webster a s
an " o d d i t y o f l i t e r a t u r e " , " a g e n u i s o f i g n o r a n c e " , " a w r i t e r o f p s e u d o - p o l i t i ­
c a l and p s e u d o - p h i l o s o p h i c a l n p n s e n s e . . . . , w h o o u g h t t o go to s c h o o l f o r the
r e g u la t io n of
h i s understandng.
"The p l a i n t r u t h i s " s a i d the A u r o r a " t h a t he
m eans to make money by a scheme w hich o u g h t to be an* w ill be d isc o u n te n a n c e d
by e v e ry man who a d m ire s th e c la s s i c E n g lis h w r ite r s and h a s se n se enough to
see th e c o n fu s io n w hich m ust a r i s e from such a s i l l y p r o j e c t ." The B oston P a l­
la d iu m tu rn e d in d is g u s t from the p e r t h y p e r - c r i t i c who had th e in s o le n c e to
su g g e st th a t a new d ic tio n a r y was n e e d e d . T ^ is was p la in f o lly ,b e c a u s e " a
lan g u ag e a t i t s z e n ith , l^ ik e o u rs , and c o p io u s and e x p r e s s iv e in th e e x tre m e ,
re q i r e s no in tr o d u c tio n o f new w o rd s."T ^ a t th e la n g au g e was " c o rru p te d " by th e
v u lg a r was a s o b v io u s a s th a t i t was th e d u ty o f th e c u lt ita e e d to m a in ta in
i t s pg% ^ty:"C olloq& & ai b a rb a ris m s abound in a l l c o u n tr ie s , b u t among no c i v i l i ­
zed p e o p le a^e^h ey a d m itte d w ith im p u n ity in to b o o k s." ^ d i t co n clu d ed th a t
s in c e th e announcem ent made i t c le a r th a t " th e v u lg a r p r o v in c ia lis m s o f unde4
a--
c a te d A m ericans a r e to be q u o ted a s a u t h o r i t i e s f o r la n g u a g e " , th a t th e "p ro i
je c te d volume o f f o u l and u n c le a n th n g s should be c a lle d N ah h 's A rk ."
W ebster made a n s w e r^ fp o in tin g o u t to th e P a lla d iu m th a t i t made use in i t s
own colum ns o f many w ords w hich were n o t in J o h n s o n 's d i c tio n a r y and hence came
u n d er i t s own c o n d e m n a tio n .S ^ c h jp e n e th e ^ e s s ^ w e re used d a il y in A m erica,and i f
some w ere b a rb a ris m s s t i l l common us^fage m^ght in tim e make them a s a c c e p ta b le
a s any o th e r w o rd s. Agd r e l a t i v e to th e e d i t o r e x p r e s s e d f e a ^ f o r th e c o l­
la p s e o f th e la n g u a g e , W ebster r a h e r t a r t l y s ta te d th a t le x ic o g ra p h e r s no more
d e b a se th e lan g a u g e th a n j o u r n a l i s t s im prove i t .
W^en th e d ic tio n a r y , i n i t s f i r s t v<%ersi n, f i n a l l y ap p eared in l 8 0 6 , i t was
sa v a g e ly a tta c k e d . T^e e a s i e s t im m ediate p o in t o f a t t a c k w ere th e s p e l l i n g s .
had red u ce d many o f th e -o u r e n d in g s to - o r , i n w ords such a s f a v o r ,la b o r ,
and h o n o r, and had dropped th e f i n a l -k from w rods such a s m u s ic k ,lo g ic k ,a n d
o u tra g o u s ly
p u b lic k , and even more absaydby he had d r o p p e d many s i l e n t f i n a l l e t t e r s from
w ords su ch a s im a g in e ,d e f in ite , and thum b, and even some
a s in f e a th e r and h e a d .
s i l e n t I n te r n a l l e t t e r j
The l a t t e r c re a te d such a hue and c ry , th a t W ebster^
who g n e r a lly ifirnUpg rem ain ed u nshaken in h is s p e llin g re fo rm , r e s to r e d the
c o n v e n tin a l s p e ll in g s o f w ords w ith s i l e n t l e t t e r s in l a t e r e d itio n s .T o th e
word thum was r e s to r e d th e -b , and to th e word hed was in s e r te d th e s i l e n t - a .
A^d beyond h is o u tra g e o u s s p e ll in g s , he had throw n out su ch s p le n d o rs a s "decum b i t u r e " and " d e u te rs c o p y " , and in s e r te d such v u l g a r i t i e s as " a d v is o r y " ," p r e s i­
d e n t i a l " , and " d e m o ra liz e " . And th e n , of-rir^ursa, he had
p u t in su ch u n s p e a k a b lt
w ords a s sn ack , s p ry ,p e c a n , hom iny, and b an jo * Obv o u sly he was a m ad-m an,un­
s e t t l i n g and d e s tr o y in g " th e w hole o f our ad m irab le la n g a u g e " .
W eb ster,h o w ev er, w ent r i g h t ahead in h is work on a la r g e r d i c t io n a r y . YHth
l i t t l e money, w hich was to rem ain h is s t i u a t i o n a s lo n g a s he li v e d , he a p p e a l­
ed f o r su p p o rt f o r the p r o je c t,b u t was tu rn e d down r i g h t and le f t.H a r v a r d
C o lle g e iNxmgdx&xmxiEnm among o th e r s , tu rn e d him down f ir m ly , and n o t j u s t be­
cau se he was a Y ale man, b u t r a t h e r b e cau se he was d e s tr o y in g th e la n g a u g e .
The p u b l i c a t i o n o f t h e l a r g e d i c t i o n a r y i n 1828 h e i g h t e n e d th e f u r o r e , a n d more
pronounced t h a n e v e r i n the c r i t i c i s m was a background of
class fe e lin g .
I t was
p a r t i c u a l r l y d i s t a s t e f u l to th o se who looked to England f o r a u th o r ity in s o c ia )
ta s.
B rahm ins o f the B o sto n a re a
and i n t e l l e c t u a l m a tte r s , and to
who re s e n te d h is use o f o rd in a ry New England p r o n u n c ia tio n a s n o r m a tiv e ." I t was
to be th re e q u a r te r s o f a c e n tu ry b e fo re B efto n H i l l and C am bridge could b rin g
th e m se lv e s to open th e p ag es o f W eb ster w itn o u t a w e ll-b re d s h u d d e r."
Not th b t W ebster was alw ays r i g h t . In so % s t a sin g le -h a n d e d u n d e rta k in g ,n o
one could p o ^ s s i^ ^ y b e . H^s e f f o r t s a t s p e llin g re fo rm were n o t c o n s is te n t and
n o t alw ays based on^ound p h o n e tic p r i n c i p l e s ; x z x tz ix x z x X z z E z x ix x k iB x ix n iz tz z z K
t&Klxih&xNEX&xdHaixskaKidx&BxpxmnmxxKKdxiE and h is
p r o n u c ia tio n s ,s u c h a s in ­
s i s t i n g th a t d e a f sh o u ld rhyme w ith l e a f , l e f t so m eth in g to be d e s i r e d . A^d h i s
fo n d ly co n ceiv ed and la b o r io u s ly p re p a re d th e o ry o f e ty m o lig ie s , was shown in
th e l i g h t o f d e v e lo p e in g s c h o la r s h ip
to have been b u i l t upon m ista k e n con-
c e p ts and i n s u f f i c i e n t d a ta , w ith th e r e s u l t th a t a good numer of h i s in d iv id u a
e ty m o lo g ie s were in d eed u n so u n d . N e v e rth e le s s , and w ith th e se f a u l t s l a t e r t*
be rem edied by o th e r s ,
hd had
s e t up s ta n d a r d s f o r what c o u n ts m ost in any
d ic tio n a r y ,n a m e ly ra n g e , a c c u ra c y , and tim e lin e s s . At th e tim e o f h s d e a th in
l8 4 3 he had w itn e sse d no g re a t s a le o f h is d i c t i o n a r i e s , p a r tic u la r ly ^ lh e la r g e
d i c t io n a r y , b u t its ^ tn flu e n c e a s th e r e f e re n c e work f o r w r ite r s , p u b lis h e r s ,
s c h o la r s , and o th e r s w^s r a p id ly s p re a d in g n o t only in t h i s c o u h n try , b u t
in o th e r c o u n tr ie s , such a s Germany, and even E n g lan d .
W^th th e d e a th o f W eb ster, th e f a t e o f h i s A m erican D ic tio n a ry o f th e Eng­
l i s h Language m ight v e ry w e ll have been th a t o f J o h n s o n 's d ic tio n a r y - g ra d u a l
o b so le sc e n c e u n t i l th e work became no more th a n a monument, and i t s e x is t in g
c o p i e s mere c o l l e c t o r ' s
remarkable chapter
i t e m s . That
suc h l i t
i n Am e ric a n h i s t o r y .
In l
not occur c o n s t i t u t e s a r a th e r
843*foll*w in g
upon W e b s t e r ' s l e a t h ,
h i s h e i r s s o l d the unbound s h e e t s o f t h e 18 41 e d i t i o n o f t h e A e r i c a n D i c t i o n ­
ary
t o a f i r m i n Amh er st, M a s s a c h u s e t t s . T h i s f i r m , h o w e v e r ,
the d i c t i o n r a r y ,
move w e l l .
i n two l a r g e vo lu m es ,a n d
They o f f e r e d a l l
f i 6)#l i n S p r i n g f i e l d ,
pr^ged a t $ 1 5,
soon found
that
was t o o e x p e n s i v e t o
rem aining s h e e t s o f the d i c t i o n a r y to a l i t t l e
M a s s a c h u s e t t s , m a d e o f up two b r o t h e r s named Geor ge and
C h a r l e s Merriam who d i d a b r e a d - a n d - b u t t e r
o f s c h o o l b o o k s and B i b l e s .
t r a d e a s b o o k s e l l e r s and r e - p r i n t e r s
The Merriams bou h t the s h e e t s , and a t t he
same
time made a c o n t r a c t w i t h t h e W eb st e r h e i r s , whereby
the M eririam b r o t h e r s
* ^
'tA
wi7n r r r o f W e b s t e r ' s d i c t i o n a r y . I ^ s f a t e now r e s t e d w i t h a pa)H o f
o b s c u r e , p r o v i n c i a l p u b l i s h e r - b o o k s e l l e r s , t w o men whose e d u c a t i o n had n e v e r
gone beyond t h a t o f t h e r u r a l common s c h o o l s ,
and whose r e c o r d up t o t h a t time
p o i n t e d t o t h e d i c t i o n a r y be com ing m e r e l y a n o t h e r r e p r i n t a b l e
be i s s u e d and r e i s s u e d ,
w ith ou t change,
p rop erty,to
u n t i l no one would want i t s
musty
d e f i n i t i o n s and d i s p r o v e d p h i l o l o g y .
But the Merriams u p s e t e x p e c t a t i o n .
ad d ition
T^ey were f a r from
t o a h i g h sene o f p u b l i c r e s p o n s i b i l t y ,
ignorant,
t h e y p o s s e s s e d a keen b u s i ­
n e s s s e n s e . A lm o s t a s soon as t h e y acquired p u b l i s h i n g r i g h t s ,
r e v i s i o n and e n l a r g m e n t o f the d i c i t i o n a r y ,
t o be s o l d a t
$6
and i n
t h e y proposed
t o be produced i n one volume and
a c o p y . The new r e v i s i o n was t o be p r e p a r e d under th e c h i e f
e d i t o r s h i p o f Prof.Chauncey A .Goodrich of Y a le ,a n
ut^ tandm g scholar,w ho a ls a
was W e b s t e r ' s s o n - i n - l a w and l i t e r a r y e x e c u t o r . W^th him w o j l d be a s s o c i a t e d
W e b s t e r ' s s o n, W i l l i a m G. W e b s t e r , and a whole c o r p s o f s p e c i a l i s t s , m a n y o f
them drawn from the Y a l e f a c u l t y .
Thus was e s t a b l i s h e d
by t h e two Merriam
b r o t h e r s the two g r e a t e s s e n t i a l s o f modern l e x i c o g r a p h y ,
namely c o n t i n u i t y
i n e d i t o r s h i p and the c o m p i l i n g o f m a t e r i a l s by a body o f e x p e r t s . T^e new
work appeard i n l § 4 7 , t h e
i o n a r i e s whi ch s t i l l
first
o f a l o n g s u c c e s s i o n of M er ri am -W eb ster D^c-
c o n t i n u e to be p u b l i s h e d by t he G.and C. Meririam Company
of S p r in g fie ld , M assachusetts. I t s
$6
s u c c e s s was c o n s i d e r a b l e ,
and i t s
s a le at
a c o p y was more than eno gh t o j u s t i f y the Merriam b o r t h e r s and to p l e a s e
the Webster h e r i s .
C o n t i n u i n g s u c c e s s t h r o u g h the n e x t two d e c a d e s ,
howel/er, had t o be a c h i e v e d
i n the f a c e o f some u n u s u a l l y v i g o r o u s c o m p e t i t i o n . T ^ is t o o k the form o f a
r i v a l d ic tio n a ry ,p u b lish e d in se v e ra l e d itio n s ,
and a u t h o r e d b y J o s e p h E.Wor­
c om p ile
c e s t e r . W o r c e s t e r had
be en a s s o c i a t e d w i t h Noah W e l b s t e r , h e l p i n g t o
the A b r id g e d e d i t i o n o f l
accepted,
8 2 $,but
t e m p e r a m e n t a l l y he was a p r e s e r v e r o f the
and i n 1835 he had put t o g e t h e r ( s o m e s a i d
"shoveled to g e th e r " ) a
condensed d i c t i o n a r y o f h i s own. Much o f i t , h o w e v e r m o d i f i e d ,
been drawn from W e b s t e r .
1^
seemed t o have
1846 he p ro d uc e d an e n l a r g e d v e r s i o n ,
a p p e a r a n c e o f the new Webster the f o l l o w i n g y e a r ,
and w i t h t he
t h e r e was the b e g i n n i n g o f
a b a t t l e - r o y a l , o f what was co*mmonly r e f e e r e d t o a s the "T& B a t t l e o f the D i c ­
t i o n a r i e s " . T b ^ b a t t l e was no t w i t h o u t i t s humrous a s p e c t s . T^e c o n d u c t o r o f a
l o c a l p assen ger t r a i n running i n t o W orcester,
M assachusetts,
f ro m which c i t y
b r a n c h l i n e s r a n out t o v a r i o u s towns i n - c l u d i n g W e b s t e r , M a s s a c h u s e t t s ,
g r e a t f u n i n a n n o u n c i n g a s the
t r a i n slowed d o w n , " W o r c e s t e r , W o r c e s t e r . A l l
change f o r W e b s t e r . " At the same time i t was a h o t l y waged b a t t l e ,
c h a rg e s o f "f(^ u d " h urled a g a in s t W orcester,and
hurled a g a in s t
t h e M er r ia m s,
theprevious l i n e s
Johns on, and
had
with
chages o f m ercantile n o t r i e t y
w i t h the p u b l i c Y a k i n g s i d e s more or l e s s a l o n g
t h a t had s e p a r a t e d them i n the c o n t o v e r s y o v e r Webster or
with
the c o m p e t i n g p u b l i s h e r s s e e k i n g t o outdo ^ e a c h o t h e r
w i t h w r i t t e n e n d o rs e m e n t s o f p ro m in en t men. The Merriams p r i n t e d l o n g l i s t s
statesmen en d orse rs,
and W o r c e s t e r ' s p u b l i s h e r s c o u n t e r e d w i t h a n e a r l y s o l i d
l i n e - u p o f New England c o l l e g e p r e s i d e n t s . True
dent of Yale,
of
t h e y did not ha v e the P r e s i ­
b u t t h a t t h e y f e l t was more t h a n a t on e d f o r by t h t - p r e s e n c e o f
no l e s s t ha n t h r e e p r e s e n t and p a s t p r e s i d e n t s o f H a r v a r d , who we re a l l pu L i n g
f o r W o r c e s t e r . The b a t t l e
even tually
was
r a t h e r d e c i s i v e l y won b y W e b s t e r .
gain
^ * -3
Even i n M a s s a c h u s e t t s , w ^ g g g E w a s W o r c e s t e r ' s g x s x X s t r o n g h o l d ,
d i s t r i c t s were g i v e n t h e i r c h o i c e
when the
b e t w e e e n the two d i c t i o n a r i e s ,
school
t h e i r vote
went t o W e b s t e r , 3132 t o 1 1 2 . Thr oug ho ut the r e m a i n d e r o f rhe c e n t u r y t h e r e was
a gr o w in g a c c e p t a n c e o f the c o n t i n u a l l y imp^&ved W e b s t e r ( w i t h W o r c e s t e r b e com g i n c r e a s i n l y o b s o l e t e ) and i t was somewhat c a pp ed ,
perhaps,
to-gBaga==a^ C h a r l e s W. E l i o t , P r e s i d e n t o f Harvard,who wrote i n
mer e d i t i o n ha s been i n use i n my o f f i c e
by t h e oooaig-
1 9 0 0 :"T^e
f o r t h e l a s t ten y e a r s .
for­
T^e r e v i s e d
e d it io n now takes i t s place."
a CI
Things ^ a e
beep r a t h e r q u i e t on t h e d i c t i o n a r y b a t t l e f r o n t ^ o v e r t h e p a s t
ha&f c e n t r u t y o r so^
I n 1890 W e b s t e r ' s I n t e r n a t i o n a l D i c t i o n a r y made i t s a p ­
p e a r a n c e w i t h no g r e a t f u s s ,
an# l i k e w i s e
w i t h t he Second E d i t i o n o f
t h i n g s b e g an t o warm up w i t h the a p p e a r a n c e ,
late
1934*
i n 1 9 & l , o f t h e new t h i r d
e d i t i o n o f " W e b s t e r ' s U na br idg ed I n t e r n a t i o n a l D i c t i o n a r y " and t h e r e
ha s been
a b i t o f a b a t t l e g o i n g on a b o u t the m a t t e r e v e r s i n c e . At i s s u e i s not
l i s t i n g o f a m u l t i t u d e o f new t e r m s ,
t e c h - n o l o g i c a l and o t h e r w i s e ,
enter# the language in r e c e n t y e a r s .
as a l s o f o r l i s t i n g ,
t h a t ha ve a c q u i r e d
So,
the
t h a t have
That i s s u e h a s r a t h e r l o n g be en s e t t l e d
and even c r i t i c s o f the new T h i r d E d i t i o n commend i t
terms,
Dut
for its
l i s t i n g o f new
w i t h f u l l d e f i n i t i o n s and e x a m p le s , word c o m b i n a t io n s
s p e c i a l c o n n o r t a t i o n s n o t i n h e r e n t i n t h e i r component p a a t s .
f o r i n s t a n c e , w h e r e the second e d i t i o n d e f i n e s b o t h " g j i l t " and " a s s o c a i t i o n
the t h ir d e d i t i o n a l s o d e f i n e s
some o t h e r s ,
" g u i l t by a s s o c a t i o n " .
In
this respect,
as
in
the new e d i t i o n i s admtted t o be a h a n d i e r t o o l t h a n the f or m er
ed ition .
Where t he b a t t l e
c e n t e r s i s on t he m a t t e r o f c i t i n g usage r a t h e r
than f o r ­
mal r u l e o r c o r r e c t n e s s a s the a u t h r o i t y f o r a g i v e n wo rd.
A c c o r d i n g t o an
ed ito ria l
has been d e r e l i c t i f /
in the N a tio n ,D r .G o v e ,e d ito r
h i s duty to defend "the n i c e t i e s " o f
usage".
In
so s t a t i n g ,
o f t he new e d i t i o n ,
E nglish "ag a in st
the e d i t o r i s l p o n t s o u t ,
it
the e r o s i o n o f v u l g a r
i s not b e i n g " s n o b b i s h " . I t
i s o n ly tr y in g to p re s e rv e " c r is p n e s s " o f e x p r e s s io n , and a c c o rd in g ly w ill n o t
ev en use th e T h ird E d itio n , b u t w il l s t ic k w ith th e S econ d. In s im ila r v e in ,
f.A
th e New R e p u b lic ,in an e d i t o r i a l e n t i t l e d " I t A in 't R ig h t",iw & d s th a t th e
d i c t i o n a r y '^ c o m p ile rs "have abandoned a f u n c tio n in d is p e n s a b le in any advan­
ced s o c i e t y ,t h a t of m a in ta in in g th e q u a li ty o f i t s la n g u a g e ------The new e d it io n
b a s e s i t s d e f i n i t i o n s sim p ly on c u r r e n t u sag e , r e f u s in g to d i s t i n g u i s h good
from b a d .... S p th e lan g u ag e is a llo w ed to d e g e n e ra te . The f u n c tio n h i t h e r t o
perfom red by W e b s te r's I n t e r n a t i o n a l in th e U .S .............i s so v i t a l th a t we d a re
n o t a l ow i t to la p s e f o r lo n g . Some o th e r company of le x ic o g ra p h e r s w il l soon­
e r o r l a t e r have to ta k e i t up.A new d is c r im in a tin g d ic tio n a r y o f th e ^ r e r i c a n
la n g u a g e ,b rin g in g th e old W e b s te r's up to d a te , w ill be in c r e a s in g ly n e e d e d ..."
A^d th e New Y§rk Throes, in i t s e d i t o r i a l condm en ati n, w ro te?
" A p a s s e l of double-dom es a t th e G.and C .M erriam Company j o i n t in
S p r in g fie ld ,M a s s a c h u s e tts ,h a v e been c o n fa b b in g and y a k k in g f o r tw e n ty seven y e a r s - - w hich i s n o t in te n d e d to i n f e r th a t th ey have n o t been
d o in g p le n ty w ork— and now th e y have f in a li z e d W e b s te r's T h rid
New In & e rn a tin a l D ic tio n a r y , U n ab rid g ed , a new e d it io n of th a t
sw e ll and esteem ed word b oo k.
Those who re g a rd th e fo re g o in g p a ra g ra p h a s a c c e p ta b le E n g lis h
p ro se w ill fin d th a t th e new W e b s te r's i s j u s t th e d i c t io n a r y f o r
th em ."
D r. Gove, in r e p ly h a s sa id th a t a d i c t i o n a r y 's f u n c tio n i s to re c o rd th e I a n -
16
g u a g e , n o t t o judg e o r p r e s c r i b e
it.A
diction ay
" s h o u ld have no t r a f f i c
a r t i f i c i a l n o tio n s of c o r r e c t n e s s or s u p e r i o r i t y .
not p r e s c r i p t i v e . " Dr. G ove's p o / s i t i o n
w ith ...
I t hhoud be d e s c r i p t i v e and
not s o m e t h in g r a d i c a l l y new. The
same was s a i d o v e r a c e n t u r y ago by t h e Dean o f W e s t m i n s t e r i n an a d d r e s s t h a t
stared
t he Oxford E n g l i s h D i c t i o n a r y on i t s way. A d i c t i o n a r y ,
he s a i d
i s an
i n v e n t o r y o f the l a n g u g e , and the l e x i c o g r a p h e r " i s an h i s t o r i a n o f the la n ­
g u a g e , n o t a c r i t i c . " And e v e n the Dean w a s ' n t
s a y i n g a n y t h i n g new, f o r
g r e a t D r. Johnson had s a i d t h a t he did no t " f o r m , b u t o n l y r e g i d t e r e d
g u a g e " , t h a t he d i d n o t " t e a c h men how t h e y should
t h e y have h i t h e r t o e x p r e s s e d
e d i t i o n o f Th
"...
t h e i r t h o u g h t s . " A&d
Encyclopedia B rita n n ic a ,
the modern v i ew i s t h a t
should be a r e c o r d o f a l l
t h e i r meanings and u s e s ,
bu t o n l y r e l a e how
in cid en tally,
published in
the la n ­
1910 ,
the e l e v e n t h
says
the g e n e r a l d i c t i o n a r y of a language
t h e words o f t h a t l a n g u a g e , w i t h a l l
bu t should n o t a t t e m p t t o b e . . . . a
to "go-od" usage. A "standard"
an i m p o s s i b i l i t y ,
think,
the
guide
d i c t i o n a r y h a s been r e c o g n i z e d to be
i f no t a n a b s n r d i t y . "
N e v e r t h e l e s s , o b j e c t o r s to the t h i r d e d i t i o n c on te nd t h a t t h e r e are d i f f e r e n t
l e v e l s o f usa^e w h ic h i t
i s t h e d u t r y o f a d i c t i o n a r y t o i n d i c a t e . But the new
e d i t i o n b l u r s t o the p o i n t o f o b l i t e r a t i o n the
standard,
o l d - e r d i s t i n c t i o n betw een
s u b s t a n d a r d , c o l l o q u i a l , v u l g a r , and s l a n g . W rite s one o b j e c t o r - -
" t h e r e i s no d o ub t i n my mind t h a t w i d e s p r e a d l o c a l i s m , s l a n g , v u l
g a r is m ,c o llo q u ia lis m s , even 17
o b s c e n itie s an* im p r o p r ie tie s , should be
d u ly n o te d in a co m p reh en siv e d i c t io n a r y , whose f i r s t d u ty i s to re c o rd
w hat g o^es on in th e f i e l d of la n g u a g e . Should su ch form s be la b e le d
and d e s c rib e d f o r w h a t/th e y a r e ,n o t in a s p i r i t of r-am m nnioption,but
m erely f o r th e g u id a n ce of the r e a d e r ? T hat too seem s re a s o n a b le *
^ ^ O th e r s a re r a th e r w illin g to
a c c e p t th e new e d i t i o n f o r what i t i s , a u s e fu l
to o l among many o th e r to o ls in the a r e a of la n g u a g e , ***f th e new e d i t i o n in ­
d i c a te s th a t
" a i n 't 2 " i s a word of r a h e r common u sa g e , th a t i s a f a c t ,b u t
i t d o es n o t o b lite r a e th e p r in c ip le s of grammar or th e d e s i r a b i l i t y o f c r a f t s ­
m anship
in th e h a n d l i n g of th e spoken o r th e w r itte n w ord. An E n g lis h te a c h e r
r e c e n tly w r itin g on th e m a tte r has s a id :
"T each in g E n g l i s h . . . . i s ch an g in g le v e ls o f usage . . . . l e a d i n g fro m
b u t n o t condem ning th e th e s t u d e n t 's own l e v e l , t o a h ig h e r l e v e l ;
in w r itin g , from an o r a l le v e l to a more l i t e r a r y l e v e l . I t is th e
te a c h in g o f d i s c i p l i n e and c o n tr o l of th e la n g u ag e s t r u c t u r e , f i r s t
to re c o g n iz e i t , th e n to be a b le to use and m a n ip u la te i t ; i t
i s th e te a c h in g o f t a s t e in s e l e c t i n . ...A s th e re a re o p e r a tin g
p r in c ip le s to become f a m il ia r w ith , so th e r e a re le v e ls o f
b e t t e r or w orse se n te c n e s t r u c t u r e , word c h o ic e ,p h ra s e o lo g y ,
and o r g a n iz a tio n ....S ta n d a r d s o f what is b e t t e r or w orse a re
th e r e s p n s i b i i t y o f th e te a c h e r and a re a m a tte r of ta s te .T o
19
l a b e l t h i s 'p e r m is s iv e n e s s ' w ith th e w o rd 's c o n n o ta tio n o f a
r e g r e tt a b l e lo o s e n in g o f a u t h o r i t y i s n o t to g ra sp th e n a tu re
o f th e E n g lis h t e a c h e r 's jo b ."
I f th e new t h ir d e d it io n r e f l e c t s a r a t h e r p r e v a ilin g slo p p n e ss in th e use
o f E n g la is h ,th t i s c e r ta in l y n o t so m eth in g xacx th a t can be ch arg ed a g a in s t
D r.G ^ve and h is a s s o c i a t e s . T h e ir r e c o r d in g o f th e s i t u a t i o n may be d i s t a s t e ­
f u l to some, b u t i t s sh ock v a lu e may have th e s a lu t a r y e f f e c t
of sh a rp e n in g
o u r a w are n ess o f th e la n g u a g e , and m aking us more a p p r e c ia tiv e o f th e fa c d
th a t i t s f u l l n e s s and r ic h n e s s o f e x p r e s s io n e x te n d ^ fa r beyond " i t a i n 't so "
and h as to r s t in our own d e v e lo p e d t a s t e r a th e r th a n in any p a r t i c u l a r d ic tio n a y . I f th e new t h ir d e d it io n , how ever u n w ittin g ly and u n in te n tio n a lly were
to c o n tr ib u te
to su ch en d s i t s p la c e in th e lo n g s u c c e s s io n o f A e r ic a n d ic ­
t i o n a r i e s i n i t i a t e d by Noah W ebster would be v e ry h ig h