Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1904-04-01
HEARD IN EVERY REGION.
Growth of English Language a Marked
Sign Of the Times.


Sign of the Times.
The notion of universal Ian.
guage, to be devised from ele-
ments most nearly common to the
chief languages, is revived in re-
cent discussions in Germany. 1t is
a fascinating project, and one on
which no end of ingenuity can be !
expended, though with no immedi-
ate prospect of returns. Mean
while, says the New York Times,
1t is worth recalling thatIthe ten
dency toward a common tongue is
most strongly marked in the
steady and relatively rapid extern
sion of the use of English.
The latest estimate of the move
ment Of the different European
languages which has been re-
celved as approximately correct is
that of Mulhall i'm 1891, embOdy-
ing the figures for the nine dec
AIDES from the opening of the nine
teenth century. According to this
calculation the various languages
OF Europe were spoken in 1901 by
l6l, 100000 people, and in 1890 by
4Ol, IOO,0 900, an increase of about
$50 per cent. At the beginning of
the century the four chief Ian
guages were French, Russian,
German and Spanish, the French
speaking people forming 1914 per
cent. and the Spanish 1862 per
cent. The English-speaking peO-
pie amounted to only 1871 per cent.
By 1891 the different languages
stood in the following order: Eng
fish, p J per cent; Russian and
German, each 1871 per cent; Span
ish, 1917 per cent, and the remain
der divided between Italian and
Portuguese. The number of Eng
disappearing people had grown
from 20,250,000 to 100000
German and notwithstanding
people from about 30,000,000 to
$4,000, 000each, and French-speak-
ing people from 81 400, 900, to 81
200, 600. 1t will be seen that in
these 80 years the English Ian
Guage had advanced from the fifth
ITace TO the first, and at the close
was spoken by at least 80 per cent.
more persons than any other Eu-
rOpean tongue.
The increase in the number of
English-speaking people was in
round numbers 81, 100000, and of
this increase 70,O00,0O0 was in the
population of, the United States.
Some allowance must be made for
the immigrants into the United
States who do not speak English,
but this is not relatively impOr-
tant. What the figures show, and
1t is of extreme Importance, is
that the increase in the numbers
of English-speaking people is ont
of proportion to the natural in
crease and is largely due to the
number of emigrants who leave
their native countries and learn
to use the English language. Its
clearly process of conversion
that is going on. While In the sta
tistics of language it appears as
process of Adjudication, in real.
| ity it is one of Americanization.
Much has been written within the
last few years of the growth of
the United States as world
power and this in great measure
has been. due TO victory over
fOurth-rate European power and
the acquisition of the thinly peO.
pied and undevelOped islands of
the Philippine archipelago. But
the real seat of the power of the
United States To influence the
world lies within its continental
bOrdersA with the vast and con.
stantly growing population Of
varied origin gradually formed
into a homogeneous and progress
sive nation.