From: LouisFors <LouisFors@aol.com>
Message-ID: <88941899.35658d30@aol.com>
Date: Fri, 22 May 1998 10:35:27 EDT
To: emweb@fmgmt.mgmt.utoronto.ca
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Subject: Re: # 1393
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Andrew wrote:
 
>  Ah ha! Vail with an A:  four and a half columns in the OED.  A word
>  with a long and proud history, dropping out of usage recently
>  presumably because it had so many meanings it became too darn
>  confusing.  I'm betting on the group of meanings meaning "to allow to
>  fall, or drop". 
>  
A factoid to add to our meditative material.  Webster (1828) lists both "veil"
and "vail."  (I'm assuming this is relevant, given information that ED
deliberately examined the dictionary, searching for interesting material,
often leading to her poetic verbal behavior.)  No four and a half columns as
in OED, but interesting.  Webster makes the point, under both "vail" and
"veil" that "vail" is the preferred spelling: "It is correctly written vail
for e, in Latin, is our a."  Webster's "veil" is limited to hiding &
concealig.  His "vail" includes those & also expands to include "to let fall."
And he includes under "vail" "A piece of thin cloth or silk stuff, used by
females to hide their faces." [Well now, ED may have stopped a moment to
ponder that.]  In any event, ED may have played with both spellings in her
drafts and final form.  Why not?


Lovely but chilly morning here in Santa Fe.

Louis Forsdale