The Western Times of 8th January 1842 published a spurious letter from 'one of the pretty servants of Southernhay'. The background events seem to have been true enough. Someone in Southernhay had been stealing watches. The Southernhay servants were suspected. The thief turned out to be a housemaid whose master dismissed her but did not bring her to court. The other servants in Southernhay were said to be furious and some bright spark at The Times contrived this 'complaint' and presented it to the readership as a genuine letter-to-the-paper.
Sir,
"- Sarvis be no harytig and them as lost their karytur lost ther aul. Sir Pleas to Contredik that I tuk the gentylmens wach - I Wundur the poleiss did not bring the nasty Ussey b Four the Wurshipfool justics Binch & exposed her person to the wid Wurld for the Benny Fit of wee pore inocent Sarvants to Soudnay wot be most presumshusly suspekted in the dirty bisnis. Muster F-----, esqr noss hoose wikid survunt it was for he turned her to doors instantanous and wi doant he cum fowurd lik a gvntylman and releave us pore suspektid innosense from the degraydid suspektification.
"ANNE HOUSEMAID
"Sectry of the feemail Sarvant Assocyvashion, Soudney."
*
I blog this silliness chiefly because of 'Soudny'. This is the first time I have seen the contraction 'Soudny' for Southernhay although 'Norny' for Northernhay was common and not just for the dialect speaking Exonians. I like to think of Exeter people speaking and writing of Soudny and Norny. We seem to have lost something jolly!
I have noted before how disgraceful was the manner in which the literate mocked the illiterate in Victorian England. This 'liberal' newspaper, The Times, was the worst offender.
It took me a while to read 'harytig' as 'heritage', if indeed that is what is meant.
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