The sun., 1908-11-22
HERE And THERE IN PARIS
HOW FRENCH rs TO BECOME
THE TONGUE or EUROPE.
Prosperity Of the women Cab Drivers
--aumOrs Of the Hunting Laws
An American IN Paris as Viewed
by a Rrenchman Nhe's Been Here.

calmly the editorial echoes that are COM
ing back from abroad, from the United
States and elsewhere, of the discussion
annually renewed by the publication OF
the statistics Of Frances falling birth
rate. They talk freely OF 1t. a. they do OF
most things. Indeed Parisiaps are told
frankly by some of their fellow townsmen
that the reason for the present estate OF
Frenchmen 10 to be found in the Ma
poleonio wars. on the theory that the
Emperor took away and spent the best
blood Of France and that modern French
men are the descendants of those who were
too weak for the Emperor's uses.
1t confuses foreigner here sometimes
the way the French speak of Napoleon, as
though he still persisted and were con-
temporaneous as well as historic. as
though they were speaking Of a living
man. He Is ever present.
But when one speaks OF depopulation
another says that France has invigorated
other nations, civilized Europe taught 1t
refined enjoyment, that she is now en-
tilted to enjoy herself and that intellectual
eminence will secure her her work and her
glory in respect and influence for count
less time. The English speaking peoples
are not alone in harboring dreams that
their tongue may some day be the IAN
guage of practically universal use.
And while some of the dubious here
alarmed by the tables OF vital statistics
| fear for the future, others encourage them
selves not only by their own hopes and
confidence but with the observations
Of foreign students who see great things
in store for this land and it's interesting
people. A recent comforter has appeared
from Russia. NJ. Novicow. former presi-
dent OF the International Institute of
Sociology and distinguished among Rus
sian men Of letters for his studies and his
works in several languages.
He has what the French call a mind
with the quality Of the universal, and he is
a polyglot, as are 30 many gifted Russians.
Looking forward to the close Of the century
M. Novicow tells the French that their
tongue will be spoken in the year 1900
by 22O. .000, 600 men.
Novicow points out that human Lam
guages have at one and the same time a
tendency to Diversity themselves and a
tendency to unite themselves or resolve
themselves into a common medium.
IL social groups isolate themselves the
idioms are differentiated; by frequent
communication local peculiarities dis
appear and a common medium becomes
ultimately dominant.
The &c ecton of the dominant factor
depends upon four conditions geographi-
cal situation. economic facts, intellectual
and ethical considerations. To furnish
the dominant tongue locality must be
central, an important market, a centre
of light and a place Of pleasures which
attract and arouse the sympathies. These
things in Greece and in Italy made the
Attic and the Tuscan dialect the domi-
nant and literary languages OF those
countries.
M Novicow treats modern Europe as
presenting equivalent conditions to those
which led to the formation and pre-
languages in their respective territories.
Europe has four great literary tongues, !
of which NJ. Novicow names English first
in his enumeration, the others being
French. German and Italian The situa- |
ton betwe them is the same as that just |
says that Of these there is no doubt That
the French has the best chance OF becom-
ing the accepted tongue.
Not only are his four conditions full
filed by the French. but a still more
potent factor is working for 1t in the
preference shown for II as an auxiliary
language among the people of all the
other groups Of the four. 1t should be
said that be includes the two Americas
and Australia in this grouping as apper-
tanning to the mother groups.
He counts It's. .0O0, 900 Of Latins. 10000 |
600 of Slavs. 10000. 600 of Anglo-Saxons
and IS 900 900 Of Germans. total Of S4o,-
French, giving a count OF SIS, ,000. 900
against 22s, ,O00, 900. but he says that even
the Germans prefer French to English,
giving the French 400. .000, 600 as against
14O. 900 900. Finally, the necessity of the |
Anglo-Saxons to take French as an auxili- |
ary language will make the victory Of
the French complete.
Estimating the population Of Europe
in the year 1000 and figuring that in that
happy stage of the worlds progress one |
person ii fifty viii have the means and the |
desire to acquire the international and
auxiliary tongue he foresees a body Of
1s, 900 900 Europeans outside Of France
reason Of their culture and ability at |
in ntercommunication forming the elite |
of society and exercising thus an influence |
greater than their num-
bers. He reaches his enormous figure |
Of 22O, ,oo0.0 600 Of French speaking. people
mated population Of the mother country
even II 1t remains stationary. he says
but that Of frances colonies, which he
says will make the speech of France their
own just as the indigenes In SO large
part OF the Americas made the Spanish
their language.
Speaking OF Napoleon and Of the ma
tional habit Of mentioning him as though
he still lived the public walls at this time
Of year bear curious trace Of his persis-
tence in the life of France. IL is the
season of hunting. and all the projects
in the land in posting the rules of the chase
name birds not one Of which Is to be found
In the France Of to-day.
1t was different when Napoleon had
spread his sway over far countries, where
So in the polite language Of this people
you are to-day invited to hunt the pelican
In the woods Of Versailles land elsew here)
in honor Of the victories of Napoleon.
1t is now two years since the woman
cab driver established herself in Paris
and. passing from the stage Of novelty,
she is now merely part Of the city's life
and passes without attention Talking
The other day, one OF those women, Mime.
said that the life OF the cochere
nowadays was rs agreeable as could be.
The oabbies had ceased to bother them
and gave them presents instead, often
also yielding them first place at the stands
The public had ceased to fear having a
woman drive, 80 business thrived, and
she made from or francs a day
IN the dull season to IL or 15 francs a day
in the good season, which Is most Of the
time here. or from 81 40 to So day, and
10 @ cochpr rs francs is better than S.