Date:    Tue, 5 May 1998 08:33:18 -0400
<br>From:    Larry Horn <laurence.horn[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]YALE.EDU>
<br>Subject: Re: Regional distribution -- 100 Bottles of Beer....
<br>
<br>Speaking of feet (cf. David Sutcliffe's green-bottled British variant),
<br>
<br>At 11:43 PM -0500 5/4/98, Dan Goodman wrote:
<br>>On ADS-L (the American Dialect Society list), a discussion of regional
<br>>variation in "100 Bottles of Beer on the Wall" has started up.
<br>>
<br>>The version I recall (1950's, Ulster County NY -- 10-15 miles west of
<br>>the Hudson River, about 100 miles north of New York City):
<br>>
<br>>Ninety-nine bottles of beer on the wall,
<br>>Ninety-nine bottles of beer.
<br>>And if one of those bottles should happen to fall
<br>>There'd be ninety-eight bottles of beer on the wall.
<br>>
<br>
<br>My NYC version I mentioned yesterday--while essentially the same,
<br>subjunctive and all--has slightly fewer feet and slightly more elliptical
<br>syntax:
<br>
<br>...
<br>If one of those bottles should happen to fall
<br>Ninety-eight bottles of beer on the wall.
<br>
<br>>And then there's the one which begins:
<br>>
<br>>Aleph-null bottles of beer on the wall,
<br>>Aleph-null bottles of beer.
<br>>And if one of those bottles should happen to fall,
<br>>There'd be aleph-null bottles of beer on the wall.
<br>>
<br>Love it.
<br>
<br>Larry
<br>