Date:  Sat, 14 May 1994 18:16:22 -0500

From:  Dennis Baron <baron[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]UX1.CSO.UIUC.EDU>

Subject: Re: genitive in names of businesses



>

> Dennis--just where is your part of central Illinois? Everyone come to Dennis'

> to learn the answer.

>



Well that should be evident by the return address. Busey Bank is a family

name locally, but never Busey's. Ditto Bacon and van Buskirk Glass. Ace

Hardware never inflected, though Black's is. May's True Value is. Now

that I think about it, we do say Osco's for the drug chain from time to

time. But still never Jewel's for the attendant grocery (not groshery).



But then, who is we, anyway? A bunch of transplants from other part s

of the country.



And of course, the answer to Does Macy's tell Gimbel's has to be "no,"

since Gimbels is no more.



--



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