The father of President Hadley, of Yale, is reported to have said to
certain members of one of his Greek classes who were guilty of a filthy
habit:
Gentlemen, those of you who expect to rate high in my esteem
must not expectorate on the floor. This matter of expectoration
is a very serious problem. If you do it in China, you should
not do so toward the north. In certain sections of Africa, you
may, if you like, expectorate upon a person, because in that
particular language, the Benga, the word for bless and spit are
precisely the same. It is the way in which you bless a person.
But one must know the customs; for there are few places where
men deem themselves blest when spit upon, no matter how sincere
may be the missionary’s desire to bless everybody.--H. P.
BEACH, “Student Volunteer Movement,” 1906.
(988)
=Expense Account=--See BALANCE, A LOOSE.