Local accents were the subject of discussion in the Leamington Courier in February 1922 with local residents seemingly impervious to received pronunciation. The Courier acidly remarked, ‘It has been said that the Leamington Education Committee never discusses education. The members got within range of that subject, however, on Tuesday when they considered how to best improve the pronunciation of the schoolchildren. “Appalling” was the description applied by Capt. H.P. Smith to the boys’ pronunciation of their mother tongue. We certainly dislike the local account which converts “saw” into “sore”; but we must not forget that Warwickshire people not only “speak the tongue that Shakespeare spake” but that probably his accents are theirs. It has been said of the great dramatist, “The Warwickshire burr is like an afterwards of thunder when he’s angry in his speech.”’
A deputation of the local unemployed had a meeting with the
Out-Relief Committee. The chairman of the deputation ‘frankly
expressed disappointment at what had occurred.
The deputation asked the committee to state a single case where adequate
relief was being given, but no answer was provided. The Committee also refused to consider the
adoption of any scale of relief. Mr
Allonby declared that the Guardians appeared to base their relief on the wages
of agricultural workers, which in the district amounted to 31 shillings a week
[approximately £90 a week in current prices], but the unemployed of Leamington
had a right to be treated as industrial workers. It was impossible to live as cheaply in
Leamington as in the country. “This
only confirms the suspicion that the Farmers’ Union are behind this affair,
they are trying to treat us like they did the farm labourer,” said the
speaker. Mr Allonby also said they got
to very high words in places. “I was
told they weren’t deaf,” he said, “but I couldn’t help it. I had got my back up.”’
The Society of Warwickshire Folk in London held its annual
dinner. Mr L S Amery said that the society was doing
a great work in keeping friends together and keeping alive the old county
feeling even in a great city like London.
It was a wonderful thing in this country how we were able to have many
patriotisms, the patriotism of the county feeling, the patriotism of England
and of the British Empire. The Mayor of
Leamington invited the Warwickshire folk ‘who are making their fortunes in
London’ to spend their retirement in Leamington.
[Written for the Leamington FC programme]
