The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-03-26
THE WELSH ~ AMERrCa.
They have no Desire 10 be n Distinct People
or 10 Tain their Lnmqmnpe.

or 10 TaIk their Language.
To THE EDITOR OF THE SUN-Sir. As a
welshman, / cannot allow to pass bv without
notice an article in the Atlantic MnHuly for
March, on 1.-THE Welsh In America" by Mr.
Jones.
The statements Of Mr. Jones may lead some
credulous persons to believe that we have no.
thing else to aspire 10 nut the perpetuatinn OF
language of our own, when every educ tted man
in Wales knows fun well that the Welsh
have no literature to speak Of; that "a to say,
literature mart from a sort Of doggerel poetic
mass relating to their history, and which onlJ
serves to confuse the student IT he has
the hardihood to attack 1t. Mr.. Jonos
exploits an old, marrow, and bizoted
idea of some OF the Welsh people, that 1t
Is wrong to be a welshman at all unless
one Is well qualified to speak language used
for no purpose in the world except to raise a
distinction. That the language is pure and dis
tinct Is no, true, for in Wales there are as many
dialects as the NUMBER Of counties will allow,
and as 1t is difficult for a North Riding Of York
shire man to comprehend Somerset or Dorset
man, SO IT is between the divisions Of Wales. In
flct tue possession OF any lang iaEc IN wales
other than English for use II only true In 80 far
IA this-in the mount 'ius of Wales. a. m
almost every other country that has mountains
tue inhh'itants are not 50 ftr advanced In civil.
t1atton ~ those living in more open portions. II
N necessary
have some knowledge of the language.
sh III never forget the drilling / received
when small hoy and for week or prior to
my departure for the hills on journey for
my health. The properties of the language, its
deadness - to its susceptibility to progress its
harsh com biuatiOns in fact every one OF its liz
tinctive points. including the necessity ~ places
orators under OF SINGING their lines, utterly ure
clude II from being the medium Of conveying
broad. comprehensive, and progressive ideas.
lhat the language IS not used Tor these purposes
settles the matter.
MIR fal. ,ac fnp M "A vii pf ~ RI
the Welsh take in the make M Of our country.
Tue few communities Of central New York, the
Minnesota Valley In Missouri. PennsVlvania.
and Other pl ICES do not show us where the up
ward II 7O.TO Welsh voters are, which number
Is shown by the last census OF the nation. II AL
the Wslshmen who come 10 the United states
were OF that Kind described 10y MIR. Jones, We
should never have heard Of hundreds aud thou-
sands of men who figure In the front ranks II
the learned professions. IN politics. In journal
ism, the arts and sciences in our country. The
very opposite or Mr. Joncss tnferences Is the
case. The vast majority OF the Welsh lmmigra-
ton TO this country (all excepting that portion
coming from the more mountainous and back
waid sections -; The country when arriving out
side OF Sandy HOOK throw overload, with the
litter of the paasage ali the brocue ali tho pre-
judices In, fact everything that tends TO dis
tinguish them from the average American aud
there can be but little DOUBT that the Welshman
stands alone, among the many who come here,
a. the man VINO but few days from the date o (
his arrival Is undisunguishable from an old resi-
dent.
1t is well known that there are no distinctive
ly Welsh societies, not even for eXtraneOus pur-
poses. cAreit IefnhpS lew Unattended
churches or chapels ~. Mr.. Jones calls them
aud the St Davu's Benevolent society and one
or two others, which latter were formed for OBJ
jects which happily there has been no necessity
to accomplish. In word the Welsh people are
not cidnnish every true Welshndn when he
goes to Rome becomes a Roman, and no less
does ne become an Americ n for ave when he
comes here. Our cOuntrNmen are the most
liberal Of men IN religion aud do not believe In
the dOc rines Ut the Trinity, the vicar Gus atone
mcnt. the resurrection OF the body. eternal pun
shment ana the like with any degree OF unan-
unity sufficient to distinguish them IS n class.
They are not all Republicans. though but few
are Democrats ami finally II you WISH to arouse
about the only latent n tional cha acteristic Of
an Amcric niXcd Wclshman you have only TO
accuse him Of being radical In anything admit
thug of two sides.
In relation TO the feature attempted to he
ma mArkahlc, namely, the holding OF must
c1l festivals. Nc., tits only necessary to sar that
they are never held anywhere except in the
mountains. and that ii Is only quite recently that
they have been revived. and tnlt IN the interest
of certain persons-luasi nobility who enjoy
thr yearly opportunity Of EXHIBITING their con-
descensiOn Oy p,trOnizing them. At any rate
no EiG;eddf od held IN Wales ever surpasses If il
ecu Is the cOmmone-t congregations ii singers
and would he poets in the mountains OF Ger
many or the ivroi.
In my opinion, there csn be but very little
doubt Is to the future OF the Welsh people in
America. In fact. II rs Verv plan that AS dis
tine, people there Will be no future tor them
notwith standing the pugy Ell Jris OF a few
Welshmen to deprive their children of the ad -
vantages of present eau 'ation by employing
their time In acquiring and perpetu1tin- dead
language. CHARLES LEWIS FRANCIS.
BROoKLYN. March -.