New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-08-06
A GREAT GREEK SCHOLAR.
PROFESSOR MAIAFFY, OF TRINITY cor.
LEGE, DUBLIN, AT CHAUTAUQUA
GUAGE AND THE WORK OF DISCOVERY
IN PROGRESS IN GREEcE-THE ToR
ETGN SCHOOLS AT ATHENS.
[Br TELEGRAPH TO THE TRIBUNE. ]


Chautauqua, aug 5.-A tall man dressed in gr,s
with gray slouci hat, HIS turned up at the
bottoms and showing several inches OF blue worsted
SOCK appeared the platform OF a which arrived
at Mayville a little before this evening" His face
broad and jolial with little strips OF side-whskea
about the color o. moasses candy extending half way
across his cheeks toward the nose His eyes wes
blue and twInklhg and hs teeth white and reguls
lie carried in his hand a leather hatbox and bulky
portmanteau and black silk umbrella. and his len
arm was buriered with striped travelling rug Of
about the hue and value Of a second hand horse
blanket, and the little party who had up from
ChautauQua TO meet him recognized him at once with.
out any introduction as Professor J. p Mahafy, q
Trinity College, Dublin, the famous Greek scholar
and investigator, ardent anti Home Ruler and ons
OF the first OF living Irish wits. He in
Vlted 10 America by Bishop Vincent especially 10
lecture at Chatauqua, and in the words Of ons
OF his travelling companions, AS he isn't afraid q
anything, he decided to cOme.' lie landed at Quebec
rom the steamer Vancouver week ago last Friday,
and on his way here he has visited Montreal dropped
In on Goodwin Smith at Toronto and lost himself in
dreams before Niagara. In conversation Professor
Mahay is rapid and fluent as becomes the author Of
iamous' handbook the art. saying quaint things
IN brilliant way and with delightful touch Of North
of Ireland broele
nave only recently returned from Greece hs
san 'hls evening during a stroll about the Assembly
siounus' In TACT, ever since early in March have
peen IN climates colder than this II was nv fifth
UP 10 Greece and spent twelve or fourteen DAYS
there principally at Mount Ahos in Macedonia
Durrowing among old manuscripts in the monas;ere,
OF the Greek Church and working I'M material for tina
DOCKS upon which / am busy My attention
at present occupied with the study
OF Greece under the Roman Empire, and I shall
propaoH return there after getting back to England
to complete my consideration Of that epoch,
a.
"hom 90 you regard as the leading authority
on ancient Greece!'
Undoubtedly DR.. d. Orpfed ~ the Cermar schoo,
at Athens. lie was formerly the architect OF tho
school, but now everybody looks up to him. He and
DIR. schemann have worked together Mr. Penrose.
Of the English School the gentleman who discovered
that there are no straight lines in the Parthenon,
has also done an immense amount 81
valuable work The American School | look
upon as an extremely good thing, and its work IS at
hactlng attention There are five schools altogether
In Gr,ece-the German, the French, the American tina
Italian and the English. They all have houses in or
near Athens, perhaps in order 10 be the Acropos
but that l regard in some aspects mistake In
fact, when they talking of the English school,
strongly recommended that the school should be In
yacht. Why, just think Of the opportunity. They
could have fitted it up with library and maintained
It, certainly no greater expense than the house and
then they could have gone cruising about among the
Islands and along the Turkish shore and worked
practically virgin field
do you believe in the existence OF mine Of
treasures at Delphi!'
"Well, not exactly. You see. Delphi buIh
the side Of very steep HILL and earthquakes and
other have rolled all its buildings and
mentS and statues 10 the bottom Of the valley. In
process they have become badly broken, and
they now covered with heavy stratum OF
soil and rock, l doubs whether the fragments TO be
recovered would really pay for the trouble Of an
excavation. The most important work in Greece Of
undoubtedly
Acropolis. This was done by the Greeks themselves
IL proved that the platform OF the Acropois as We
know II, is artificial The AcrOpOlls originally
a concal hin, and the amount Of rubbish that he
ancient builders put there 10 make its top broad and
statues and other relies of great value also IN
ST%S dg e e 6 and a baSS q 1AHs
history they have been of great importance IN MAJ
a wonderful collection. 1t is pity the Greeks
don't bring all their treasures there to be- stored
According the present law, objects are placad in
museums all over the country at the spots whers
they were discovered; there is one collection ior
Instance. at Olympia the worst possible place 10 keep
collection since olympia IS subject to earthquakes
and at moment might be the scene OF tremendous
smash"
:" Do YOU have tho Western ideas about the pro-
nunciatiOn of ancient Creek"
Not at ALL Our present pronunciation was in
vented by erasmus and IS entirely arbitrary. Tbs
pronunciation which the Greeks them,eves have re.
tained Is the contrary practically thar which tbs
Latin TRANSACTIONS and whenever there are two works
alike in sanscrt and Greek the sanscrt pronunciation
shows that are in the wrong. In other respects
the language used in Greece to-day is not much
unlike that WI, Which we study In n sci
learned Greek at College 10 read modern Athenlan
newspaper The differences is principally one Of
accent and quantity
Professor Mahafiy will deliver ten lectures during
the next two weeks: His subject for tomorrow IS
The Assembly programme to-day comprises lectures
on by the Rev r. w. Gu1 h o,
Vincent, and on Ideallsm' by c. f. Bishop.
.->