AMERICAN SLANG.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXV, Issue 1163, 25 October 1913, Page 4

AMERICAN SLANG.

The average American worships a “cute” newspaper or advertising title, as he adores one that will confer upon him an “Open sesame” to society. His vocabulary is enriched by numberless catchy headlines, designed to attract. “The living thing on earth” he describes himsell. If he doesn’t think a deal of your ability, “You cut no ice.” Items of popular interest are neatly labelled, “Thought food in tabloid form.” When he tires of your company he says, “Git!” or “Well, you wont exude genius on the first floor, anyway !” When he “makes good” in a business deal, he remarks that “he has got a cinch”—slang for pack-saddle knot. He thanks his stars that “there’s a sucker born every minute,” for whom he “keeps his eye skinned.” The gentleman who doesn’t pay his bills is “a quitter from way back,” and his disappointment at not receiving payment is as sad as a “hire system funeral stunt.” “If you lack “savvy”—a contraction ol savoir faire—you haven’t the “grip” to instruct your “stenographer,” or the “nous to run a five cent candy outfit.” “Bully,” is a synonym for first rate; and if your American dislikes a business proposition he “gives you the frozen face,” and you “are up against trouble.” Then it “is up to you” to set things right, or you will “be turned down.”