After sifting 25,000 words submitted by more than 6000 contestants, Mr. Delcevare King of Quincy, staunch and ingenious disciple of Prohibition, has chosen the composite "scofflaw" as best describing those revolting, unregenerate citizens who delight in violating the Eighteenth Amendment. This word was selected because best of all it conjured up nauseating visions, true portraits of the lawbreakers, and suggested to every right-thinking person their deep and ignominious depravity. Just repeat "scofflaw" quietly several times; its deadly effect is immediately apparent. Anyone who applies the term to a fellow citizen will do well to follow the famous advice of "the Virginian",--"When you call me that--smile!"
Besides rendering the country the marked service of producing a cabalistic word eminently suited to turn bootleggers to stone and petrify rum-runners in their very tracks, Mr. King has set the fashion which undoubtedly will become popular of inventing expressive nick-names of sufficient repulsiveness to apply to nuisances and wrong-doors of every kind. If one is plagued by cigarette borrowers, one can wreak one's vengeance by calling them "ciggabars" or "gottabutts". Or if one's room mate insists on leaving the bath-room door open when the bed-room window is up, one might effectively insult him with the epithet "atmophile", or even in extreme cases "aerodome". The possibilities of this sort of thing are really unlimited. Mr. King little knows what potent forces he has unleashed.
But even if such new-coined words of opprobrium enjoy a short-lived popularity, it is probable that the good old monosyllabic terms of the Anglo-Saxon language will still retain their unquestioned away over man's emotions.
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