colossal display
of such professorial
bombast, flatulence
The Mencken Project
From the American Language, HL Mencken, 1919
Commenting on the “Reorganization of English in Secondary Schools,” compiled by James Fleming Hosic and issued by the National Bureau of Education, “Reorganization of English in Secondary Schools,” compiled by James Fleming Hosic and issued by the National Bureau of Education, Mr. Mencken writes, “The aim of this pamphlet is to rid the teaching of English, including grammar, of its accumulated formalism and ineffectiveness–to make it genuine instruction instead of a pedantic and meaningless routine. And how is this revolutionary aim set forth? By a meticulous and merciless splitting of hairs, a gigantic manufacture of classifications and sub-classifications, a colossal display of professorial bombast and flatulence. “
No Haiku For You 