The sun., 1907-12-03
ESPERANTO MAS A B1RTHDAr,
Exercises 70 Celebrate IS Held at NoFmal
CelloGe.


Edmond Privat. -Hop. Secretary Of
the Second Universal Esperanto Congress
and OF the International EAperantist Press
Association" as the advance notice styles
him. celebrated yesterday the twentieth
anniversary Of the Esperanto language.
which ID tVlGt one year older than no Is. by
speaking on -The Progress and Construction
OF Esperanto" at tho Normal College OF the
City OF New York.
Tho advance notice said also that the
meeting was for the ci6iEens Of New York.
This ls misleading. Thsre were about lS0
school maids and maams In attendance,
but the citiSsnry wasn't as numerous as the
Roman mob In Julius Caesar" when Dan
Ryan puts Il on at WilIimantIc. Conn.
Before the platform work cOmmenced a
number Of copies Of Esperanto Made Easy"
or something like that. which had been re-
printed from the lessons that run In the back
part Of the North American ReuiesD, got 10
circulating among the schoolma ans. The
game with this book was for some one un-
acquainted with Esperanto to open the book.
say why. this is 30 much like Italian. and
then. by the light Of her own reason, to read
on q PEACEFUL ..
Mr.. Privat told all about Esperanto. and
Prof. Charles M. Walker. who teaches
French In the college. took the language
apart for the audience and explained its
innards. IL is built UP like German, only
more 30, with no end OF preftxes and suiYixes
tacked onto root words. which latter to use
Mr.. Privat 8 adjective. had been borrowed
from about every -civilizated" language in
Europe The alphabet and prOnuncia tion
Of the new language were both lifted from
the Romans, who are dead and wouldn't
care. The language is spelt as il is pro-
nounced, but the work comes in trying TO
pronounce il.
The feature of the programme was when
Mr.. Privat in his quaint English and ex-
traordinary accent offered the services of
"Mr. Walker. which has been 500 kind
who was to translate you into the English"
MIR. Privat then turned and addressed few
words to the lecturer on the innards Of
Esperanto. He spoke with the purest
Esperanto accent-in a choking guggling,
slbilant. last gasp OF the bath plug tone.
that is-some words that sounded more
than anything else like the conversation
that Gulliver heard among the Lilliputians
The doctor wore a stunned look and asked
Mr.. Privat TO come again.
I've only a reading knowledge of the
language" he explained, "and when any
body addresses me in it I've got to dc some
thinking first"
After some moments OF prayerful medi-
tatiOE he seemed TO get the drift of Mr.
PrivaE's talk and then he was able to trans
late it right along without much trouble.
But the effort threw a great big wrinkle
into his forehead that didn't iron out for
several minutes after he sat down again.
Mr. Privat told tho audience a story in
Esperanto which they had TO translate for
themselves. IL WAS a very good story and
very FUNNY The hrst time the Sun man
heard that story he almost kicked the Stats
out of the cradle.
Several Esperanto songs were sung and
after everything was all over an Esperanto
class numbering twenty-five or thirty was
formed among the high school pupils.
Mr.. Privat will stay in town for about
month more. Then he intends TO stump
his way TO Chicago, whence he will diva
gate TO New Orleans. Montreal and wherever
else the sDirit and the shekala move