Evening journal., 1897-06-16
ENeLIsH.sPeAKINe NATIONS
They Have Long Deen Leaders Sf the
world in the Arts OF Civilization.


They Have Long Deen Leaders Sf the
world in the Arts of Civilization.
One of the great facts set forth in
modern history is the rise in power.
glory and dominion of the Anglo-Sax-
ons. Yet, much as the word has been
used. it is not everybody as yet under
stands precisely what "Anglo-SaXon"
means. Suppose that instead Of talk
ing about "AngloSaxon" expansion,
the word is taken up concerning the ex-
pansion of the English language in the
earth. Then the most brief and care
less reader of history will have no
trouble in getting hold of some i'm
pressive facts.
1t is commonly asserted th0t the
English language owes much OF its pres
ent form to Shakespeare and u the
King James version of the English
Bible. It is by considering how many
people could read in English these two
works at the time of their publication,
and how many may read them now,
that the spread of the English Ian
guage in about 500 years can best be
realized. Shakespeare wrote and the
translators of the King James ver-
sion" labored for the people of Eng
land, a portion of Wales and Scotland
and small part of Ireland, and for
handful of English colonists in North
America. A century ago the United
States, an English-spealdng country.
had not crossed the Mississippi and
England held only Canada, a fraction of
her present Indian empire, few West
Indian islands, convict settlement
in Australia, and military and naval
stations here and there over the surface
! of the earth. Mark the British empiH
now and you recognize the dominion of
the English language, for wherever the
! British flag goes the English tongue
goes and becomes the language of do
minion, law and business. As it now
happens, English is the governmental
language of one-fourth of the land area
of the globe, third of the population
of the globe, and those who talk Of
pounds" and dollars" own one-third
of the capitalized wealth of the globe.
Many circumstances have tended to
bring about this advance, the foremost
being that for centuries the best and
boldest sailor in the world has spoken
English. He voyaged first over all the
world and sailed into every sea and
took his language with him. Wherever
the English speaker has established
himself in the world in the last 200
years he has insisted on his language
being accepted. It must be accepted,
too, in its entirety. There is nowhere
such thing as an English patois. Eng
lish has no derivatives. 1t is English or
nothing. '-
English is the growing language in
the world. What has been done in the
last century shows what is to be done in
English is the language of the most
books. the most travellers and the most
schools-common schools-which set
people up in.their firstlanguage. Eng
disappearing people have been in the
habit of learning other modern Ian
guages. but they are considered sc-
complishments. In our time what we
call foreign peoples learn English as a
necessity, because it is the language ol
travel of commerce, of business. One
can journey around the world and stoI
every night at a hotel where English is
spoken. This is not true of any other
language.
1t is easy for English-speaking peo
pie to believe that this spread of Tho
ever-gaining. never-losing language has
something to do with the world that il
TO be; that perhaps English is to be The
language of that parliament of man
which is to assemble some time. II tn,
I world is to adopt the principles of gov
I | ernment of, by and for the people, WHY
, should it not adopt the language II
which the great constitutions have beer
( written upon which the form OF gov
ernment has been established?
CITY Star