MSGID: 1:153/716.0 ebdfdfc2   
   REPLY: 2:221/6.0 5eb3d13a   
   CHRS: IBMPC 2   
   Hi, Anton!  Recently you wrote in a message to Ardith Hinton:   
      
   AS>  Things have changed since 1913 -- the year of the classic   
   AS>  edition of M.-W, which I had the honor of consulting.   
      
   AH>  Uh-huh.  If you're referring to the work of Konstantin   
   AH>  Paustovsky, who was born in 1892 & wrote a lot of historical   
   AH>  fiction, this spelling may reflect the language his characters   
   AH>  would have used.   
      
   AS>  I am finishing his collected works and have not encountered a   
   AS>  lot of historical fiction, except the historical parts of   
   AS>  "Tale of the North" and "Story of the woods", both of which   
   AS>  continue roughly at the time of writing.   
      
      
             Okay.  Maybe "a lot" is an exaggeration, but I hadn't read his works   
   for myself & was extrapolating from other people's comments....  :-)   
      
      
      
   AS>  There is of course the long poetico-romantico-impressionist-   
   AS>  quasi-autobiographical novel "Story of a Life", but I skipped   
   AS>  it because I had spent too much time, and too recently,   
   AS>  listening to it on radio.   
      
   AH>  Since his name is not a household word in North America, you   
   AH>  may need to explain to your readers in E_T that what you are   
   AH>  asking about is a bit different from what they would   
   AH>  generally do.  :-Q   
      
   AS>  Good advice, but this time I was not trying make it sound   
   AS>  dated.   
      
      
             In that case I reckon "syrup" would be a better choice because AFAIC   
   it's sweet, thick or heavy, and translucent.  The description of "sirop" seems   
   to indicate it might contain recognizable bits of fruit as well....  :-)   
      
      
      
   AS>  [ Syrup / sirup ]   
      
   AS>  Although based on an accidental spelling variation, the   
   AS>  distinction is quite useful   
      
      
   AH>  ... if your readers are aware of it, which the majority   
   AH>  may not be.  I didn't know about it until Dallas pointed   
   AH>  it out.  But when the author uses the word "treacly", I   
   AH>  think of the former because "treacle" [UK] = "molasses" [US].   
      
   AS>  And I was certain the adjective had become more general than   
   AS>  the noun, i.e.: adj. cloyingly sweet or sentimental.   
      
      
             Not in this part of the world, at any rate, although something which   
   is cloyingly sweet or sentimental may be described as "treacle".   
      
      
      
   AH>  While it was originally derived from sugar cane, some folks   
   AH>  equate it with corn syrup.  Most types are already quite sweet   
   AH>  & thus no added sugar is needed.  In the US & Canada we also   
   AH>  have maple syrup derived from the sap of trees....  :-)   
      
   AS>  Not specifically from maple sap? I like its taste but don't buy   
   AS>  it frequently because the imported product is expensive here.   
      
      
             Yes... specifically from the sap of the sugar maple tree which grows   
   in Vermont & Quebec (and possibly in a few other places).  It's expensive here   
   too, so Dallas & I reserve it as a treat for use whenever we go camping.  :-))   
      
      
      
      
   --- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+   
    * Origin: Wits' End, Vancouver CANADA (1:153/716)   
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