The morning journal-courier., 1908-11-02
TO COIN NDw CHINESE WORDS.
Appeal to the Throne to Adopt West-
 ern Phrases.

ern Phrases.
 A group of influential Chinese schol- ars of tbe western learning has mem- orialized the throne asking for the ap- polntment of commission wnoee duty 1t shall be to decide upon the proper manner of rendering all for eign terms of common use in the Oc- cldentkl world Into the Chinese ideo- graphic script and the Chinese tongua What this group of students wants Is some standard dictionary of pronun- ciation which will lift the Chinese over such hards words as telephone. ultimatum, typewriter and osteopath- ic.
 The Chinese tongue Is ono of the most elastic Of all the languages, say European scholars who have studied It from the viewpoint of philology. It Is great treasure house of monosyl- fables, each with Its distinct meaning, which can be compounded into the | convenience of any Idea that strikes the Chinese mind. Yet the Chinese never dreamed that they would have to use the words of barbarians from under the edge of the world, and as a consequence the infusion of foreign knowledge has brought for It's devo- tees in the greatest Kingdom intending discomfort
 As the memorial sets forth the only Chinese equivalent yet evolved for the English word telephone Is "telufeng." combination of monosyllables which means anything but wire through which to talk Again, when the Chi nese papers say that "yuantimeitun" has been voiced by the Japanese gov- ernment in reference to Yalu timber claims, for instance. 1t could hardly be expected, as the memorialists point out, that the average man in the street would take that for an ultimatum.
 The Japanese, quick to adopt their language to the needs of the awaken ing into civilization fifty years ago. have progressed much further than the Chinese along the path of lin- guistic reform. The Japanese took freely from the French and English in their efforts to fit handles onto strange objects and terms that came within their purview under contact with the western nations. For ex- ample, there was never such thing as bread in Japan before the foreign CT came, but after that there was bread, and if was called pan after the French pain. lamp burning kero- sene Is rampu in Japanese, because the Japanese tongue cannot twist it. self about an Anglican R; matches nave become matche, tobacco is plain tobacco, and there is even tho highly specialized word spongecake to indi- cate a delicacy that was first introduo- cd into Japan by the Duth traders in the seventeenth century
 The Chinese memorialists In their plea to the throne include call to patriotism, and say:
 During the past century scores of dictionaries of Chinese have been made by English, French, Germans, Russians and Americans, but with one admirable exception all dictionaries have been made by foreigners. This vL llic dullioisihP Dl ul~ tionares of the Chinese having been made for more than a century almost exclusively by foreigners we believe to be without parallel in any other country in the world. Does 1t not show that while we ar, trying to pro- tect our material interests we are al- together neglecting the far moro , precious intellectual interests of Chi na?
 It ls to be recolected that the posi- tion of Japan Is peculiar. She receive , ed ages ago the Chinese literature. language anu civilization as a gift. Now the Japanese are our teachers, using our Chinese characters, making them into new phrases, giving them strange meanings inundating China , with their books, while no Chinese : scholars protest.
 "The beginnings of the Ia Ching dynasty were ilustrious by reason of the immense literary activity of their Majesties klang fIsi and Ch-ien Le It would redound to the reputation l and excellence of the present dynasty , if this matter were taken in hand and were brought to successful issue. '- ! Charlestown News