The Emmett index. [volume] (Emmett, Idaho) 1893-1925, 1894-03-17
HISTORY OF vOLAPUK
PROGRESS OF THE UNIVERSAL LAM
cUAcE DURING TEN YEARS.

All Over the WorId-Its Recognition
In Many Countries Has been Rapid
Al the peace congress Ia Rome much OF
what the English speaking orators had TO
my was lost upon their hearers and II goes
without saying that language common
10 all would have very much facilitated
matters In III thousand other different
directions the utility Of a cosmopolitan
tongue can be easily made apparent. The
reader who follows the current activities
OF the day will need To tax his memory i
but slightly TO satisfy himself that the
consideration OF all great subjects-sociaI,
political, scientific and religious-is inter /
national. Within y comparatively short /
time have been held international con- /
gresSes OF the geographers at Washington,
the biologists at Washington, the hygien- /
lists at London. the postal union at Vienna.
the humanitarians Mt Brussels the Young
Mems Christian association ut Amsterdam
the Congregationalists at London, the
Methodists at Washington and the WON
ems Christian Temperance union at Boston.
To each OF these congresses came people
from every civilized country. and probably
no want was more distinctly felt than that
OF a common medium OF exchange OF
thought. Not only Is there to be "A need OF
an international language, but that need
Is already existent The need has been ex-
istent ever since International relations
have been existeat. and while the interna-
tional relations OF the world were commit
ted to the mediation OF the few who were
the depositaries OF learning Latin served
the need, and later French supplanted
Latin ~ the language Of diplomacy. and
to some extent the language OF commerce,
science and art.
Yet in all this labor OF the centuries
there has been a presumption In favor OF
ultimate success. and the latter half OF the
Nineteenth century has seen many dream
OF the ages realized. even 10 Puck's once
mythical girdling Of the earth. Has 1t
, likewise seen the birth OF n practical world
, language whose universal use IL TO be
certain and "a useful - shorthand or tel
egraphys The champions OF Volapuk can
claim all this for IL. Let see on what
their claim Is based.
; Volapuk il not an arbitrary name IL Is
derived from vol. world, and puk, Ian
, guage, and signifies language OF the world.
I While IL has passed its thirteenth birth
day. il was not sudden conception Of its
author, but the slow and laborious out
come Of years OF weary study. More than
fifty languages and dialects were studied
. and examined by the patient worker who
1 devised this language. Through thirty
Y years he resolutely pursued his work, seek
:. ing the simplest forms Of infection and
e construction. familiarizing himself with
/ those sounds which were common TO the
many languages OF civilization. appropri-
!, ating such roots were general among
!, native tongues, devising system Of pre-
= fixes and suffixes best suited to afford the
i largest expansion Of vocabulary on the
J. smallest basis Of roots aiming always az
simplicity and expressiveness through
means as largely appropriative and As Lit
tie revolutionary AS possible.
-, The accumulative material for his Ian
) condition chaotic. The process Of selec
o tion. rejection and assortment was labori
II Gus. One after another plans were mapped
e out and found to be homogeneous Assert
q ment and reassortment failed to produces
y an orderly system. but the work was never
- relinquished and order came at last.
~ The system framed il was still withheld
u from the world until its author had pre-
r pared large vocabulary covering th'
in principal fundamental symbols for expires
W sion OF ideas. Then be announced his Ian
guage, presenting at once its grammar ans
vocabulary and challenging the world
n criticism. This he did in the spring o
" 1879 The world was ready for him as !
has been always ready for those OF whom
the world was not worthy'-ready witt
ridicule with abuse. with lsmpooning
with sneer with that worst OF reflections
20 voiceless ignoring. Then Volapuk lapse
its into temporary forgetfulness, and wa
ire without a following during two OF thre
cal years Therefore. in considering the az
Ts QUESTIONS OF Volapuk we may properl
tly date the beginning of language to ten year
m, ago and represent here what il has {
mn show for the ten years OF its existence.
ng The first approval which Volapuk n
ith ceived was in Vienna, Austria. where
~, body OF learned men associated themselvs
In "A club for its study and promotion
}. speedily spread to France and WAS thei
championed by the government director
technical instruction in the schools Of Pa
is Presently IL cropped out in St Peter
rill burg under the guidance Of the supervise
be OF English instruction in the Russia
schools. Its welcome to the Scandinavia
trinity Of nations was next given, aud the
: adown the western shores OF Europe
found home in Holland and Belgium
III IL entered Germany and conquered Il
Of prejudices Of all the Continent. nor sta
eat its victorious march until Turkey al
ing Syria and far away China and Japan ne
ognized the blessings IL had TO oder Al
eagerly appropriated them
England signalized its appreciation
bu- the language by Offering as its enthusiast
mn adherents the renowned Max Mueller al
all Alexander John Ellis, while in sever
'ale schools the language has long been an a
vertised study In their curriculum Il
United States and Canada have long sin
given TO Nolapuk the recognition OF pi
-, gressive scholars. several OF whom ha
'e" edited works in this invented tongue, a
. In Australia il has a journal wholly {
voted to its interests. Indeed. to empt
size the approval Of Volapuk which {
English speaking world has afforded
may be noted that the London Philologi'
society As long ago as 1888 declined
overtures OF the American Philosophi'
y society TO join in a congress TO consie
The perfecting OF a universal Language
on the declared and published ground Il
there already exists a universal langua'
Volafnk. which has large number Of 4
berentS In all countries Of the world a
which il completely elaborated In gra
mar aud vocabulary"
T But not only has Voiapuk gained
approval OF numerous Intelligent follow
ali over the world, Il has also establish
IN In