One hundred years ago
HOWLERS
TO THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR" Sir,—The following extracts from exam- ination papers may be considered wor- thy of a place among the "howlers" which you have given. They are genuine answers which have recently come under my notice. In an account of Queen Mary, one pupil added: "At my death, the name Calais will be found in my stomach, graven on my heart," evidently due to a remark in Collier's text-book. Another defined an abstract noun as "the name of something which has no real existence, as the virtues." "Q. Name some of the chief instruments of tyranny under the Stuarts. — A. The axe with which Charles I. was beheaded was one of these." A more advanced student wrote: "In Old English, the pro- nouns of the first and second person had a duel [dual), and both perished in Middle English." In explanation of "Tam O'Shanter," "catch'd by warlocks in the mirk," "warlock" was defined as "the tuft of hair left on top of an Indi- an's head." The psychology of students' blunders is a subject not yet thoroughly investigated. Frequently answers are given which the candidate certainly knows are made for the occasion, and he must have some expectation of deceiving the examiner in some way. I am, Sir, &c., Sackville, Canada, January 29th. W.M.T.
The Spectator 3 March 1894
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