JOHN BULL’S WOMANKIND.
I.
Flirtation — Sweethearting — Love in the open air — Où il y a de la gêne il n’y a pas de plaisir.
Seeing that the word flirtation seems to have been definitely received into the French vocabulary, it is natural to suppose that our language contained no equivalent for it, or that the thing itself never existed in France.
Flirtation is, in fact, an essentially English pastime. No one flirts in France: we are more serious than that in love affairs.
Some etymologists have thought that the verb to flirt was formed from fleurette in the expression conter fleurette; but the best authorities agree in thinking that it took its origin from fleardian, an Anglo-Saxon word which means to trifle; and thus it seems possible that it may have some connection with the verb fleureter, which, in old French, signified “to say little nothings,” whence plaisanter, badiner.
However this may be, let us leave to savants the task of deciding the matter, while we concern ourselves about the thing itself. What, then, is flirtation?
Flirtation is a very innocent little pastime. I have read in the confession albums of young ladies of good society, “What is your favourite occupation? Flirting.” The answer is not in exquisite taste, even from the English point of view, I admit; but no one would think of taking it amiss ... all the more so, I should add, because these confessions are not meant to be taken very seriously.