He speaks whole sentences, but without connectives, e. g., Niana Braten holen (nurse bring roast); Caro draussen wauwau (Caro outside, bow-wow); Mamma tuddut (sleeps, inflected correctly); Decke um (cover over); Papa koppa Stadt (Papa driven to city); Mamma sitzt tuhl (Mamma sits chair); Adolph bei Mama bleiben (Adolph stay with mamma); Noch tanzen (more dance); Pappa Fuchs machen (Papa make fox).
Certain words make him nervous. He does not like the refrain of the children's song of the goat. If I say "Darum, darum, meck, meck, meck," he looks at me indignantly and runs off. Sometimes he lays his hand on my mouth or screams loudly for the nurse. He gives up any play he is engaged in as soon as I say "darum, darum." Pax vobiscum has the same effect.
The songs amuse him chiefly on account of the words, particularly through the imitations of the sounds of animals.
He knows the songs and asks of his own accord for Kucku Esaal, Kater putz, Kucku tralla, but commonly hears only the first stanza, and then wants a different song. Lately, however, he listened very earnestly to the three stanzas of "Möpschen," and when I asked "What now?" he answered Noch Mops (more Mops). Playing with his puppets, he hummed to himself, tu, tu, errsen, tu tu errsen. I guessed that it was "Du, du liegst mir im Herzen," which he had on the previous day wanted to hear often and had tried to repeat.
20th Month.—Now for the first time ja is used for affirmation, chiefly in the form ja wohl (yes, indeed, certainly), which he retains. "Do you want this?" Ja wohl.
Being asked "Whose feet are these?" he answers correctly, Mine; but no personal pronouns appear yet. He often retains a new and difficult word that he has heard only once, e. g., "Chocolade."
To my question, after his grandfather had gone away, "Where is Grandpapa now?" he answers sorrowfully, verloren (lost). (Cf. p. 145.)
In his plays he imitates the doings and sayings of adults, puts a kerchief about his head and says, Adolph go stable, give oats.
Not long ago, as he said good-night to us, he went also to his image in the glass and kissed it repeatedly, saying, Adolph, good-night!
24th Month.—He knows a good many flowers, their names and colors; calls pansies "the dark flowers."