Digger Dialects. By W. 1-1. Downing. (Melbourne : Lothian Co.)—This
little book will delight all who care for new words. It is a collection of Australian soldiers' slang, made while the war is still fresh in the memory of the author and his collaborators. Many of the words are, of course, familiar to the British Army, but many others, like " di.:kum," are peculiar to the gallant " Diggers." It is curious to observe how many Arabic words the Australians picked up in Egypt, and how many French words they adapted in a more or less recognizable form. " Cadorna—see Gutzer " is a puzzling entry ; " Gutzer," it seems, means a disappointment, but we are not told why the Italian Commander-in-Chief had his name taken in vain. Some British veteran of the war ought to make a similar collection of Army slang, with annotations. The lively staff of the Wipers Times knew a great deal about trench dialect ; some of their wittiest productions needed a glossary.
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