The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1908-07-26
ESPERANTO VERSUS LATIN
rcrxGs WRITER COMPARES
THEM ~ DIALOGUE FORM.
A Recent Publication to SHOW the supe-
rlority Of the Newly Invented Universal
Lausuage-whst q Railroad Accident
Looks Like when II Hits Dos Latin.

riority OF the Newly Invented Universal
Iausuage-whst q Railroad Accident
Looks Like when II Hits Dos Latin.
4 we'll known French ~Esperantist. DR..
y%allienne, has published a dialogue. sup
,osed to be carried on by Two ingenious
ropnp men named Henriko and A~leksandro.
Who discuss the international language, the
former being it's champion and the latter a
sceptic. As in most dialogues OF a Socraho
order, the participants are exceedingly
rolite and each waits patiently to the end
n the others paragraph. This Is an agree
ohio condition which does not usually OBJ
tain in real life, but DR.. Vallienne's "Por kaj
Kontrau Esperanto" is not q drama.
The opening shows Henriko alone in his
study. He is. reading the I%nierndeid Science
B,ruo. an Esperanto monthly. and on his
table there is a collection Of Esperanto
books. A knock is hoard. Enter says
penriko; and on seeing the visitor. 'Alek-'
sandrol' he exolaims. what happy wind
blew you hither?" :
- railroad accident" a Aleksandro.
and he proceeds to explain 1t with a pre-
rision Of detail that tells the reader imme-
diately how important to the plot 1t all is.
though it may not seem so.
.One of the left blow valves" tells Alex
sandro to Henriko. broke. An auxiliary
locomotive was asked for sby telegraph,
but the current was not working. Whether
the wires were broken or had crossed /
know not. Then the engine was COM
relied to reach the station with the one
piston on tho right. You can imagine that
its speed was crablike. At last I got here.
but after two hours delay. or course the
train | was to catch had gone an VI ago.
and since the next will not start for
four hours I thought the best way to pass
tho time would be to come here and shake
hands and have a little chat over old times.
But | hope I'm not disturbing you. You
seem to be busy
Heariko waves a hand and signifies that
it doesn't matter. He was only reading a
very interesting article on the chemical
theory of ether by Mendelejev, a Russian
professor. ~
Il didn't know you understood Russian
says Aleksandro. b
NO says Henriko unconoernedly.
shru gging his shoulders, -but I understand
Esperanto: 1t comes to the same thing
-~Esperanto7" repeats Aleksandro. What
kind Of a new animal is that?"
viii iho oio itho y
heard of Esperanto?' he says.
A%leksandro then remembers hat he has
heard something about it vaguely. But
he adds. I'm surprised that such an in
telligent man as you should care about
such nonsense
Henriko represses any inclination he
may have to bitin g repartee and goes into
an elaborate explanation Of what Esper-
- -l- L~..tR,l l,-,.a IL ta
how easily learned, bow exactly 1t trans
lates from any language under the sur,
how successful It has been for twenty years,
and ends up by advising Aleksandro not
to be prejudioed. 81,
Aieksandro denies prejudice. but he
maintains that such a project as Esperanto
cannot live. For il you think. he tells
unchanged and be written and spoken al
WAYS ia the same way by all peoples, just
look at history. Take the Latin language.
tongues as there were nations that used 1t,
heooming Italian. Spanish, Portuguese,
French, Rumanian and even English.
And these Ian uag differ as much from
each other as they do from their common
ancestor. Your dream Of Esperanto may
he realized for q short while, but In course
Of time there will be as many different Es-
~perantos as nations n all your trouble
will be lost"
This sounds convincing, but Of course DR..
tallienne is not going to allow Henriko to be
right replies Henriko. IF Esperanto aimed
TO destroy national languages In order to
replace them. as Latin did. But. as have
already told you. Esperanto is merely an
auxiliary language. Moreover. the preser-
strongest guarantee against changes in
Esneranto.p
How do you make that out'' asks Alex
sandro.
Because replies Henriko. Esperanto
translating language. for everybody. Who
would introduce changes into a language
not his own? When two persons Of the
same nation converse he continues. they
often disregard the gremmatical rules Of
portance. for they understand each other
just a. we'll. But when we talk in an idiom
not QUE own We. think the idea first in our
" language and then translate. We are
other language. for otherwise we would run
the risk OF being misunderstood
This reply does not floor A~leksandro.
Bat he veers on another tack and says:
why learn al artificial language when
there are 60 many good live languages. going
International language, why not adopt
either English or French. or English and
French both. the first for it's commercial
advantages; the other for its art and educa-
This argument against an artificial inter-
national language Henriko brushes by
asking Aleksandro how enthusiastically
ne would expect the Germans, the Scan
dinavians or the Spanish to indorse English
or French as an international medium.
Did he never hear OF the balance OF power
in Europe, and what chance would any one
OF the languages have to secure a governing
influence III the universe by being accepted
as International?
Aleksandro is properly abashed as having
made such a foolish remark, but thinks that
Latin, being practically International and
within reach already. would be better b
anything devised by moderns.
A very easy language smiles Henriko
Stirically, and SO suitable for these
modern times
Aleksandro contends that 1t may
be learned like anything else. you
were the best Latin scholar at college. /
remember" says Henriko. but there 10
much that neither you nor any one else
can translate into Latin. You couldn't
Keep up. a Latin conversation for five
minutes"
That proves nothing" replied Alex
sandro. Latin scholars do not learn
nowadays to speak the language, for the
custom died cut. But II used 70 be done