>I am translating some 19th c. French docs, and cannot think of the name for
>the script symbol that looks like an "f," but it is an "s."  (i.e., "sifter"
>rather than "sister") There is a name for this, but darned if I can think of
>it...  Thanks!
>
>Christine M. Dwyer
>Stanly County Museum & Historic Preservation Commission

========

Feb 21, 2002

According to "The Handwriting of the Renaissance" by Samuel A.
Tannenbaum, 1930, the "s" that looked like an "f" is called a "long
s", while the modern-type is called a "short" or "round s".  In my
experience with newspapers, the long version started dying out about
the time of the War of 1812, but many people used it for the rest of
their lives.  I have found it to be common among older people in the
1860s, but I don't recall having seen it in the '70s.

Here's something you're no doubt dying to know: on my Mac the long f
is found at option-f. ŸŸŸŸŸ.

Query:  When did the term "War of 1812" come into being.  I've
watched for it's introduction informally (i.e. = never really tried
to track it down) but haven't come up with any clues that would put
it within a decade of when it might have begun.  In my opinion it's
the most punk of all American war names.

Speaking of which: What will our current war be called?  I've been
calling it "The Terrorist War".  Thoughts?

-Jim
--
-Jim Lyons

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http://www.jimlyons.com

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