The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1872-03-27
VOL. I.--NO. %.
Aunixsrsal age.

A univers al Language.
A want OF knowledge OF a language at
once brings the philosopher and the fool
| very much on par when they both attempt
to communicate with the foreigner who
| speaks that language alone. Also. II stu
pid person speaks foreign language veil,
and clever person speaks 1t badly. the stu
pid person has the better chsnce Of telling
most to the foreigners, while the clever per-
son is like one who Is dumb.
From a very considerable experience In
connection with education, we are convinced
that II requires very small amount Of
brain power to be good linguist. 1t NJ
qHires ear, and a sort of parrot-like method
of imitation; but it does not require reason,
nor deep thought; in fact, there are 20
many absurdities in connection with Ian.
guage, so much that is really arbitrary both
in construction and in other details, that,
the reasoner is often stopped where the
thoughtless will advance rapidly. Let ~
take n few examples in connection with
msscuiines and feminineA. in French and
German. The French have but the mascu-
line and feminine, while the Germans have
also the neuter. Now, a. things may be
masculine, ftminlne or neuter, the common
sense appears Wi h the German const q1ent-
lv, student has to learn, when studying
French, what the French people have cho-
sen to call masculine and what feminine,
and in this there is no reason to guiae him.
It is tue a man Is cslled masculine and q
woman feminine; but why the sun should
be called masculine, and the moon feminine,
is inexplicable on no reason whatever; and
so we may proceed, finding the most arbi-
trary rules for this selecrion. breach ofany
one of which causes the breaker to become
subj ct for ridicule But, again, If this
selection of the sexes Of words we're univer-
of many languages, bur what the French
class as feminine the Germans often put
down as ntuter, and the Italians as mascu-
line /; thus the sun in German Is feminine
and the moon masculine, for what reason It
Ia imp Dssible to say and thus confusion
rpigns supreme on this subject, to the total
exclusion Of reason.
Our own case will, we believe, be found
similar to that of hun 'reds Of thousands Of
other people. As boy. we were taught
Greek and Latin, such en amount a. ena-
bled US to read Greek Testament with the
use occasionally of lexicon, and to read
freely Ovid and Virgil. But our future CO.
reer was selected to be one in which Greek
and Latin were not subjects for examination;
but French and German ''paid we'll :" con-
four years were devoted to the
study If these two languages-at the end Of
which time we found ourselves In South Az
rica, where the only languages of any prac-
tical use we're Dutch and Csffree. ToDutch
and Caiffea. consequently, we turned our At
tentiOn, and after rather more than years
study We were able to converse imperfectly
In both these. But again were we on the
point of finding these later lab0rs useless,
for there WIS every prospect of our services
being trasftrIed to India. and we heard
from good autority that we were not likely
TO gst on there unless we could speak Him
dusrani. and perhaps understand Sanscrit or
Persian.
Here, then, were Greek, Latin, French,
German. Caffree, Hiudustani, Persian, San
scrit, all TO be learned, in order that ones
own thoughts and wishes should be made
Ineligible to another person. In our judg-
ment this is not only mistake, but 1t Is .
mistake which Is remediable, and which is Q
slur upon the common sense and civilization
of the world.
In music there Is but one language. The
of German composer can be
at once read and translated into sounds by
the musicians of the whole world. To an
English musician it is matter Of indiffer.
ence what was the nationality OF the COM
poser; there Is in music but one language.
and that one simple and intelligible; and
yet, what is the Importance Of making mu-
our thoughts to other people and
making them Ineligible: yet there are .
different ways of doing the latter,
instead of one, and unless a person know
at least four or five OF these-that is, unless
he employ some four or five years OF bis
life in acquiring knowledge Of these lam
guages-he Is dumb In many countries.
Unfortunately, also unless a person keep
practicing language, he soon
forgets it. and all his past labor, or at least
4 great part of it has to be gone over again.
Chamber Journal.