Hum ply Dumpty explained to Alice the meaning of the

portmanteau words in 'Jabber- wocky.' Competitors were invited to compose a four-lined stanza containing original portmanteau words with not more than fifty words of explanatory notes.

I HOPE competitors enjoyed breeding these hybrids (demongrels?) as much as I did con- ning them. Too many, however, made the error of overcrowding their four lines of verse with examples, sometimes as many as a dozen, with the result that many of their inventions seemed to be far-fetched and strained; e.g., clipter for 'litter containing brooches'; yellshuddarks for 'men wearing dark suits with yellow shoes', fuvelacto- pliant for 'young elephant living on milk.' In the first stanza of 'Jabberwocky' Lewis Carroll more wisely perpetrated only three genuine portmanteau words.

Among the gems (of varying brilliancy) were: spreathered, 'spread in all direc- tions', frimble, 'fritter time ambling'; freep, 'frightening sweep'; spoddle, `spurt-waddle'; swithering, 'swimming hither and thither'; giggolous, 'giggling - frivolous'; mawked, `moaned-squawked'; gargulous, `garglingly garrulous'; rumpshed, 'rushed - jumped'; dithered. 'climbed writhing': brone, 'sun- bronzing prone'; bleathed, 'breathed bleat- ing'; cornpathic., 'competition-pathologic'; skimbled, 'ambled on skimpy legs'; spraddled, 'spreading addled', flub ble, 'flow- bubble'; quezzle, 'question puzzle'; trilight, 'darker than twilight.' Prithely: proudly and lithely.

Trund: to tunnel by turning round.

Snood: snake-like toad, or toad-like snake.

Swoothly: sweetly and smoothly.

Freet: to tread nesting material with the feet.

Stuv: starling-dove.

Glirth: glad mirth.

Rehode: bring to a new abode.

Prudulating: prudently and prudishly hesi- tating.

(ALBERICK)

DownsWove the glonky Jubjub bird Its crugly beak bescrooped his toe. 'Wurreye Wurrouhl Where am I now?'

He whizzled in his woe.

Swive: swoop down like an aeroplane diving. Glonky: gloomy and black as ink.

Crugly: cruel-ugly.

Bescroop: to seize with a scratchy, scooping grip.

Wurreye, wurrouh: exclamations of surprise and pain.

1Y/fizzle: to whine and grizzle like a crybaby.

(ADRIENNE GASCOIGNE)

'Twas twisct in the greerie glood With murid brunks. all blure and ghtm, Where crooded vampocks hurked and slood And ghirds Bast. one by one.

7'wiset: twilight-sunset.

Greerie: grey-eerie.

Glood: gloomy wood.

Murid: murky-lurid.

Brunks: branches and trunks of trees.

Blure: bleary-obscure.

Wpm: ghastly-dun.

Crooded: cruel-hooded.

Vampocks: a cross between vampires and warlocks. COMMENDED (L. s. c.) Crickerish With thrumbling bunge, furostile to ensnall, The throwler freeps, embeetled, o'er the vreen. Which merely means, dear Pibwob, after all, 'The demon bowler dominates the scene.'

Crickerish : cricket gibberish.

Thrumbling is a sort of thrustful tumbling. /hinge a bumping lunge.

Furostile breathes furious hostility, while ensnall is to ensnare with the ball.

A throwler is a threatening bowler.

To freep indicates progress in a frightening sweep.

Etnbeetled: with beetling brows.

Vreen: the village green.

(A. W. DICKER)

Tweekly I see an Episex, A tragiment of glust and thrime, I weeb into my damperchief, And have a simply morblid time.

7'weekly: twice weekly.

Episex: a film 'epic' with sex 'motif.' Tragiment: a sentimental tragedy. (lust: gilded lust.

Thrime: thrilling crime.

Weeb: combination of weep and sob. Damperchief: handkerchief for drying tears. Morblid: morbidly lovely.