The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1883-01-22
The Spread of ,heEpgIish Language.

Campbell, President OF Bethany oouege,
In this State, delivered an address on the
character and destiny OF the English Ian
yuape, in which he predicted that the Eng
lish tongue would ultimately be the me-
dunn OF intercourse throughout the world.
He estimated at that day that seven:six-
,aenths of the human race either spoke the
language or were under the influence or
sway OF Englsh.speaking people. He
compared our Language to the Mississippi
river. which swallowed up oil its tributaries
and was greater and grander than any one
ofthen. 1t was, he said, the language OF
arts and sciences; and was spoken by the
greatest mixture OF people, tue Anglo.
Saxons, that had ever appeared on earth.
There was no thought in any other Ian
suape, ancient or modern, that could not
be perfectly expressed in English. 1t
was, he said, grand mosaic OF all other
tongues. 1t was to all all other languages
what Bishop Berkeley said las far back as
173O) America was to all other lands,
"Time's noblest offspring and the last"
rstrength Of Frame" said Mr.. Camp
hell. ''it has the bone and muscle Of the
Romans, the Goths and the saxons. 1t
has the patience and endurance OF the Ger
man and the Dutch. 1t partakes Of the
yiyacity Of the French, the genius Of the
Italian, the wit and sprightliness Of the
Greek and the Celt. There is nothing writ
ten in poetry, philosophy or history, or in
the. forms Of literature, ancient or modern,
that cannot be translated, body, soul and
spirit, into our language. We have been
Obliged 10 fabrirate myriad Of new words
from the dead languages and 10 form new
combinations Of the words Of dead and
living tongues in order to express all OF
our Anglo.Saxon sciences, arts and litera-
ture. We can translate all other learning
into our mother tongue, and do it 30 per-
fectly that the translation is fully equal to
the original" r,....
MIR. Campbell, in the address referred to,
laid down several postulates rs tho basis OF
his prophecy that the English language
was the sure and swift coming Language OF
the civilized world; prominent among
which were the extent OF country already
controlled by those who spoke it, their
commanding vigor of intellect, their genius
for the acts and sciences and their mission
ary spirit in commerce and religion. In
these they excelled all other people and
dominated all other people, In a word, 1t
was the problem Of "the survival Of the
tittest," and they had shown wherever
they were cast that they were the fttest to
lead and to govern.
This address aud this prophesy Of the
distinguished man Of letters who! uttered it
attracted great deal Of attention in Its
day, and was much discussed by writers OF
the time, and We refer to it now after a
lapse OF generation to show how clear was
his vision on the subject matter Of his dis
course. We find very much, If not all,
that he said as far back as 1910 confirmed
by recent interview in the New York
Sun with Russian priest who had made
the circuit OF the world, and was on his
way back 10 Russia from very extensive
missionary tour. We quote from that in
terview as follows
A Russian priest, Father Alexander Dill
gentsky, is now in this city, on his way
back 10 St. Petersburg. ~ was sent to our
church in San Francisco" he said to a re-
porter, and instead OF going west through
Europe and over the Atlantic, went east
by way OF Odessa and Nagasaki to San Fran.
cisco. Icame IRON that city by way OF the
Isthmus. Now, after two years service in
San Francisco, i am going home, and thus
complete my journey around the world."
"What bus struck you most during your
trip?p ,c........ a....,
''rhe lead that English speaking people
have taken everywhere. English has be-
come the international language. With my
limited knowledge OF English during my
trip have been far better of than any OF
my occasional German and French friends.
English has glorious future. 1t Is bound
to become the universal language OF science,
trade, and industry. There haye been
three great epochs In whitehall the educated
men talked Greek, Latin, and French,
respectively. Now we are entering the
epoch OF English. The Greek world was
too limited in both are and age.
The Latin world was larger than
the Greek, but its field, politics,
was too narrow. The French epoch was
diplomatic Now the English, rather Anglo.
American, epoch will embrace the whole
world. The English speaking nations lead
the world in the higher politics and indus
try and trade, and they are unsurpassed by
any nation in scientific, religious, or phi.
losophical thought. Our German friends
object to English on the ground that It is
in their opinion not an original Language,
being mixture Of German and Latin. In
my opinion, this is rather IN advantage,
for English is not, quite q, foreign tongue to
Germans andto thenations OF Latin origin
and 50 much the more easily eau be adopt,
ed by all Of them" .........ai
The recent campaign OF the English in
Egypt, terminating, as 1t did, in their con-
trol.of the mouths 81 the Nile and on the
termini OF the suez Canal, as also the dis.
coveries)ofthe English Livingstone in Africa
and the passage Of the headwaters Of the
Nile,and thejourneY clear across the conti-
nent 81 Africa by Stanley, another English
man. show. how controlling:is the character
ofthe Anslo.saxon spirit. The same ascend
ancy obtains IN China and Japan and in
South America, and New Mexico Is falling
;n,o ,ba hands OF the American branch Of
the English race. The Latin races are
fading out in the presence OF the arts, the
arms and the money Of the Anglo-ssSion.
Thus Il has been and,will continue to be,
It is Of a truth, as the distinguished West
yirainlat, WI whom we have Quoted long ago