The Parma herald. (Parma, Idaho) 1903-1917, 1903-11-07
OUR ALPHABET FOR JAPAN.
Roman Script Is Hereafter to Be Use
In the MfKadots Domain.

Roman Script Is Hereafter to Be Used
In the Mikado's Domain.
Japan seems to be about to take one
of the most remarkable and not least
important Of all her steps toward har-
monizing herself with the highest civil
ization of Europe and America. That
is nothing less than the adoption OF
Roman script-our own English alpha
bet-pari passu with, If not as sub
stitute for, her own ancient system OF
biography. For the last dozen years
knowledge of Roman script has been
increasing in Japan among the most
highly educated But now it is pro-
posed by the most influential e--ca.
tional organization in the empire to
make the teaching of our alphabet and
of our mode OF word formation COM
pulsory and universal in the public
schools. 1t seems probable that the
government will adopt the proposal.
In which case, of course, all private
schools will have to do the same. with
the result that all the children of ia
pan will presently be learning. not
necessarily the English language, but
at least to write and read their own
language in English fashion.
That will be a great thing for Amer
leans and Europeans who want to
learn the japanese language. 1t will
make that language little harder to
learn than French or German and will
enable people to learn it in the same
way that they learn the European
tongues At present the great STUN
bling block in the way of mastering
Japanese is the necessity of learning
multitude of different ideographs
Once japanese words are expressed In
letters like our own the task of learn
ing will become immeasurably easier
1t will then also be much easier fol
the Japanese to learn our language
for of course our alphabetically form
ed words seem as strange to them a
their ideographs do to us Moreover
1t will cause a change amounting al
most to transformation in the Japa
nese mind. or in the linguistic func
lions of that mind. The Japanese vii
for the first time regard words not a
indivisible integers of speech. but a
composite things formed of letter:
Perhaps we can partly realize tn
magnitude of that change by ourselve
trying 10 regard words as not forme
of letters, but as indivisible units.
Nor is that all. Dual systems o
languages are denominations. Wher,
fore it Is to be expected that. havin
adopted alphabetical script by the sid
of topography, the japanese will 500
substitute the former for the latte
altogether. 1t will be greatly to thei
: advantage so to do. and also to our &C
vantage to have them do 1t. But
will none the less be an extraordinar
thing. For the mother tongue. in a
, its details, is one of the things
| which men cling most tenaclously
We need, to convince ourselves Of tina
: to recall only the language controvel
sizes in Canada, in Bohemia. in Sout
, Africa. in Malta and elsewhere, nc
mentioning the recent clamor abor
, the teaching of German in New Yor
= public schools. We may also reca
Bismarcks memorable opposition
3 the introduction Of Roman script int
i Germany in place of the far less leg
: Bile German characters. That the Jal
anese should voluntarily make TIL
l revolutionary change in their nation;
I script indicates their possession Of a
; exceptionally high ambition to plaC
= themselves abreast OF the best civil
: zation of the world-and all this enc
!, gence from savage seclusion With
the memory of men not yet grown OLE
New York Tribune.