Dear Jane
We get some interesting variations in other editions
as well:
"Barrack Room Ballads" (Methuen 10th Edn 1896) uses
'slippery', and this is also how it appears in the
43rd 1915 Methuen Service Edition.
In "The Vampire and Other Verses" (H M Caldwell NY &
Boston about 1911 I think) it is 'slippy' but
italicised in the same manner as the indian words used
in the poem.
The Inclusive Edition of 1926 (1929 4th Impression) it
is 'Slippy' - note the capitalised 'S'.
The 1928 Edn of 'The One Volume Kipling Authorized' by
Doubleday, Doran & Co we are back to 'slippery' with
no italics used at all.
My feeling is that RK originally wrote it as
'slippery', but when reading it aloud, 'Hi! slippy
hitherao!' comes more readily off the tongue.
With best regards
David Page
Harrow UK
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