THE LETTER "H" AND H. H. MURDOCH.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXXII, Issue 10627, 4 June 1897, Page 4

THE LETTER "H" AND H. H. MURDOCH.

Sir,— lt 1b an eaay thing to pretend to be critical. When a man has leisure and the ooltmne of a newspaper ere open to the Incursions of his pen it Is not dlliioalt to achieve a local and temporary reputation or a particular kind. As some people are counted whe became they hold their peace, no others are esteemed authorities beosnse they take it npon theineelVes to pronounce judgments. And when b man of the latter class ntterß an opinion on some Immaterial detail of a snbjeot he does so with a gravity that Implies that this pittlonlar snbjeot Is no* disposed of. Mr Murdoob, if judged by his latest contribution to the HEItALD, sins in this way about the latter " H " and abont what be is pleased to cull grammar, If he is to be taken netionsly he means people to believe that a man who haß not been trained to 'bs oarefnl abont bis aspirates, or a man who does not pay ecrnpulons attention to the rules of syntax, is unfit to hold a high public position. If ho does not mean this be is needlessly and snobbishly offanslve and insulting. If he does mean it he is talking nonsense and ought to know It. As to grammar, I doubt if one speaker in ten is consistently grammatical, And if Dean Alford and G. W, Moon are to be believed as witnesses, grammarians themselves are not Immaculate. And us to aspirates. The sensitiveness of the British ear with regard to the letter "H"lb of comparatively recent date. Does not Mr Murdooh know that within living memory English judges have ? Bat I forbear. I hesitate to refer to the peoadllloas of worthy and famous men. Hnw trumpery are mere questions of fashion and style compared with those of onbstauce and ueeinlnens ! If pnbllo msn nre to be condemned for mere elovenllness of ntteranoe some famous reputations will lose much of their lustre.— l am, &0., Harnspex (Or ARNSPBX). Napier, Jane 3rd, 1897.