The morning call., 1894-06-24
AN AMERICAN SAVANT.

The death of William Dwight Whitney
of Yale College, which took place about a
fortnight ago. should not be passed over
without word of tribute. In his own
branch, which was linguistics, Professor
Whitney had no peer in this country. and
few equals in the broader science of
phiology.
The taste for languages developed in
him early. He was only 81 when be
undertook the study of Sanskrit He
prosecuted it for six years at New Haven,
Berlin and Tubingen, and became so
thorough a master of that valuable dead
tongue that he was selected by the
scholars of Germany TO prepare Sanskrit
grammar, and by the University of ST.
Petersburg TO collabOrate with the Rus
sian savants in the preparation of the
great Sanskrit Dictionary which is now in
general use. Unfortunately the demand
for Sanskrit is limited. A chair of San
skirt which was established for him at
Yale was meanly remunerated. He had
to give private lessons in the languages TO
keep the wolf from the door. He was
marvelously we'll equipped for such a
duty. lie spoke all the modern languages
with fiuency, and compiled German die
tiOnary and grammar which are textbooks
in colleges. His circum stan ces improved
when be gave his series of lectures on
The Study of Language"-a work which,
after being repeated before the Smithso-
man Institution and the Lowell Institute,
was issued in the International Scientific
series. and has been translated into all the
modern languages. De became comfort
ably we'll off when he was appointed
editor of the Century Dictionary. but the
livelihood exacted unremitting toll.
To observe that his surprising acquire
ments nearly failed to insure him the ordi-
nary comforts of life would merely be to re-
peat trite commonplace. John Tyndall,
too, barely escaped the necessity of giving
up his studies through the kindness of gen
erous friends. Learning and scholarship
do not pay. There are corresponding
clerks in bankers Offices vino get more for
writing foreign letters than Whitney Ie-
ceived for being the profoundest Sanskrit
scholar in the world, and this is not an
illogical anomaly, for the clerk who can
write letter in German or Spanish often
performs ii service of higher commercial
value than a translation of the Vedas.
Professor Whitney well knew when he de-
voted his life TO the study of languages
that he embarked in an improbable pur-
suit. Such men have inches provided for
them in Europe, where it is deemed sound
policy TO support high learning at the pub
lie expense; in this country we have not
yet reached that stage of developme
Ii is curious fact that knowledge of
languages, like a knowledge Of music, is
rarely accompanied by knowledge of any
other kind or by intellectual activity. The
greatest nguists are often very common
place persons, who are rather stupid out
side of their particular calling. The great
MeZzofanti, who spoke fifty languages and
was librarian of the Vatican under Greg
DRY XVI, was a very dull person, and
people who went to see him in conse quence
of his celebrity were surprised at his linz
tied scope. II seems that acquisition of a
foreign tongue requires a sort of knack
which is not necessarily accompanied by
reasoning power. Some people possess the
knack to surprising degree. and it is
noticed that those who learn easily to
speak one foreign language readily acquire
others. In some cases a man of extraor-
binary general ability will combine with
talent in various directions the aptitude
for languages. Such a one was Kossutb,
who could address an audience in five or
six tongues.
To be able to speak and write in various
languages is in itself nothing a language
is key to a closed closet. If it is desired
to master the contents of the closet it is
very convenient to have the key. But the
mere possession of the key will not neces-
sarily enable its holder to add the contents
Of the closet to his possession unless he is
gifted with the ability to grasp them.