Question: Baruffio and the buffalo

[nkafkafi]

No: HPFGUIDX 90177

> Neri:
<snip>
> could someone please 
> explain to me (slowly, with diagrams) if there is a pun in:
> 
> SS/PS, Ch. 10:
> "Now, don't forget that nice wrist movement we've been practicing!" 
> squeaked Professor Flitwick, perched on top of his pile of books as 
> usual. "Swish and flick, remember, swish and flick. And saying the 
> magic words properly is very important, too - never forget Wizard 
> Baruffio, who said `s' instead of `f' and found himself on the 
floor 
> with a buffalo on his chest."


> Taryn:
> Flitwick is referring to mispronouncing the spell, which we don't 
know, which PRODUCED the buffalo on Baruffio's chest. The spell 
probably didn't have "buffalo" in it, he just mis-pronounced the 
spell and accidently ended up with it. So we don't know what the 
spell was.
> 

Neri again:
OK, I gather there wasn't a pun here (or at least I'm not the only 
one who haven't got it), but this puzzler still bugs me: what kind of 
charm, when you replace the 'f' with 's', will cause a buffalo to 
appear on your chest?????

I had this crazy picture in my mind of Baruffio meaning to say 
something like "accio basalo" but said  `f' instead of `s' with 
disastrous results... only it is written the other way 
around: "said `s' instead of `f' ". Another crazy idea: isn't the 
scientific (latin) name of animal the americans call buffalo is 
actually "bison"? So what if the original charm Baruffio meant to say 
included the word "bifon" (whatever that is...)? Or, what is the 
latin name of the african or asian buffalo? 


Neri, stopping before he suggests something *really* stupid.