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My ancestor was reported to say the following statements:

Example 1

Example 2

"Don't ??? kill me"

"Oh do ??? spare my life!"

At first I wondered if the word I can't decipher stood for you all but then the abbreviation would have been y'all and all I can see is '??.

Related citations:

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    Probably 'ee (meaning "you") in both cases.
    – sempaiscuba
    Commented Aug 17, 2019 at 11:40
  • @sempaiscuba I saw this en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ye_(pronoun) web page and I notice that it refers to thee. So I assume that 'ee was abbreviation for that word. With you being the modern rendering. Correct?
    – Andrew Truckle
    Commented Aug 17, 2019 at 11:49
  • Yes. See my answer below, with an example.
    – sempaiscuba
    Commented Aug 17, 2019 at 11:53

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It's actually probably 'ee (meaning "you") in both cases.

This would be an attempt to transcribe the speech mannerisms of the patient. In this case "thee" (for "you") in a regional dialect.

You can see many similar examples in books like, for example, The Way to Penwellard by Claire Collard.

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  • Thanks for the extra information. I am nearly complete with this document. I have about 6 issues left (excluding the current outstanding one that you already commented on). I will ask one or two of those later on. Do you have a email address? I think it was you who wanted to see the original documents. I am happy to share them with you for your personal use.
    – Andrew Truckle
    Commented Aug 17, 2019 at 11:59

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