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Jardinier
Right ho, what ho, land ho. What is this 'ho" all about?
Yes, most decidedly, Cannes was the point d'appui.
Right ho, then. Let me marshal my facts.
'Oh, Gussie's coming, is he? Well, give him my love.'
'Very goos, sir'
'Yes, sir'
'And a whisky and soda, and so forth.'
'Very good, sir.'
'Right ho, Jeeves.'
I then set off for the Drones.
'What-ho, Gussie,'I said.
Rummy, you'll admit. However, one masks one's feelinfs.
I betrayed no vulgar astonishment, but, as I say,
what-hoed with civil nonchalance.
'Well, Gussie.'
'Hullo, Bertie.'
'What ho.'
'What ho.'
These civilities concluded, I felt that the moment had
come to touch delicately on the past.
'What ho.'
...I will be your wife.'
Well, one has to be civil.
'Right ho,' I said.'Thanks awfully.'
'That is to say, some time after midnight.'
'Yes, sir.'
'Right-ho, then. At 12.30 on the dot, i will bong.'
(Right ho, Jeeves - Wodehouse)
It is spelled with '-' sometimes. And sometimes without '-'.
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Land ho! (Treasure island - Stevenson)
Nov 19, 2016 10:40 PM
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Answers · 6
Be careful here, P. G. Wodehouse is a humorist, exaggerating (and stereotyping) the verbal mannerisms of British aristocrats of the Edwardian era (1901-1910) or thereabouts.
"-ho!" can be added to some words things to convey a sense of excitement. "Tallyho!" is used in fox hunting as a yell to the dogs to run faster. Think about what things you can yell to make a lot of hose. The "H" is good for starting the breath, and the "o" vowel sound is open and you can yell it loudly.
In the Jeeves stories, Bertie is being sort of flippant and light-hearted.
One can imagine a modern U.S. speaker saying "righty-right." One of comedian Jim Carrey's signature lines is "all righty, then." They are ways of just adding a little more sound to the "right" for a kind of humorous emphasis.
November 20, 2016
The expression "ho" here is used as in interjection to call attention to something or convey emotion.
November 19, 2016
