Pumpernickle Bill

Every day on the editorial page of the Allentown, Pa., Call (circulation 40,868, largest in the Lehigh Valley) appears a column set in what looks, at first glance, like an incredible amount of pied type. Closer inspection reveals a few recognizable proper names and some German-sounding words, but all set in English characters. The column carries the head Pumpernickle Bill, with a small drawing of a hayseedy fellow with stringy beard, corncob pipe, pencil behind ear. But no hayseed or pie-eyed compositor is Columnist Pumpernickle Bill. He is serious-minded William Stahley Troxell, 44, an ex-school teacher, now probably the most loved and certainly the best known man around Allentown.

The language in which Pumpernickle Bill writes his column is neither German nor Dutch nor English, but a mixture of all three. It is the dialect of the ''Pennsylvania Dutch," who number more than 150,000 in that part of the Lehigh Valley. The experts, of whom Mr. Troxell is No. 1, resent the common designation of "Pennsylvania Dutch," insist that Pennsylvania Germans is correct. The language is better suited to the ear than to the eye, hence Pumpernickle Bill's column is read aloud to family groups in over half the homes reached by the Allentown Call.

Last week was a full one for Pumpernickle Bill. Thousands of his readers welcomed him at the annual Pennsylvania Folk Festival at Lewisburg, where they made merry with "shigs" (jigs), songs and games. His entry, the Martztowners. captured the $100 prize for the best square dance team. In the course of his rounds Pumpernickle Bill collects his people's folk lore, preserves their songs on his ubiquitous recording machine.

Pumpernickle Bill's car is a familiar sight on Pennsylvania roads. He averages about 30,000 miles a year, taking in Grange meetings, bee inspections, potato demonstrations. He has been writing his friendly column of anecdotes since the death in 1924 of Obediah Crouthamel (real name: Solomon DeLong), to whose column he was a contributor. Pumpernickle Bill's slogan is: "Fergess net, un schreib alsa mohl" (Don't forget to write sometime). A feature of his column is: "Glawwas Odder Net, Ow'r" (Believe It or Not). Sample:

"Der Abie Walbert fon drous hinnich da Lechaw Kerrich drin secht, er gaibt gore nix drum fer maid hame nemma fon da picknicks, yusht's dade'n so narafich mocha bis er sie g'frok'd het. Da onner owet hot er aenie hame shnarra wolla fon dons on Shamrock, ow'r in blotz fon sawga 'Darf ich mit d'r hame lawfa, 'hot er g'sawt. 'Its akinda feicht tonight.' 'S maid'l is noh laenich hame, un so is aw der Abie." Translation: "Abie Walbert from out in back of Lehigh Church says he likes to take a girl home from a picnic, only always makes him nervous until he has asked her. The other night he was going to take one home from the dance at Shamrock, but instead of saying, 'May I " walk home with you,' he said, It's akinda damp tonight.' The girl went home alone and so did Abie."

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