Evening capital and Maryland gazette., 1912-10-11
ESPERANT|STS MEET
THE CRACOW CONGRESS
A Merchants Estimation Of the
international Tongue.
THIRD ANNUAL SESSION.
Encouraging Outlook Abroad and in
the United States.

kMG guttG0 OAdtGSs
The third annual meeting of the
MARYLAND Esperanto Association was
held in the Union Trust Building.
Baltimore, on Tuesday evening last.
The most interesting feature of
this meeting was the address of Mr.
Isaac L. Miller, who represented
Maryland at the Eighth International
Congress at Cracow, Austria, in
August. Mr.. Miller gave business
mans point of view, and showed how
the need of such an international
tongue had been impressing him with
eyer-growing conviction. He re-
viewed the growth of this conviction
substantially as follows:
AS a little child. when | first
heard a foreign language Oh the
street. I was greatly perplexed, and
asked my mother why that man talk
~ 50 queerly. She explained that
he had come from a land across the
graf ocean, where everybody spoke
that way. But, asked 1, How can
God understand those peoples
prayers?' 1t seemed to my young
mind that all men should use one
medium Of speech.
Later, in my business life, our
firm, doing an international trade,
constantly received letters in several
foreign languages. The consequence
was that one of cur clerks would be
obliged to carry these letters to an
office Of translators, where the charge
was sometimes thirty to forty cents
per letter. Again, | was deeply inn
pressed with the need of a good in
ternational language.
Visiting in South America, !
found the inconvenience of our mod
ern Babel of tongues. | was thirsty
or water and stepped into the onlv
available place-a wine shop. | asked
for water, but the bartender could
not understand and began guessing.
He first offered me beer, which / de-
clined; then whiskey. but shook my
head. In my perplexity ! pondered
whether Latin would be understood
and so | said i want aqua. 'Oh,
exclaimed the Spaniard, aqua, AID
hastened to fetch me a glass of the
best liquid for thirsty man-water.
but why should man have such
difficulty in being understood, when,
by the adoption of one pure language
al men could understand each other
around the whole globe. Such a me-
dunn would make for good FEELING and
would break down prejudice. In
Europe tried to get into conversa-
tion with peasant, and asked him
'Sprechen Sic Dedtsch' He shook
his head scornfully. 'Do you speak
English?' asked. Oh, he replied,
in good German, you are an Ameri-
can. Yes speak German to you. ;
The man despised the Germans so
much that he would not condescend to
address chem in their native tongue,
but he had no scruple in talking Ger
man to an American.
"This feeling of racial antipathy
finding expression in language, could
be greatly modified by the use of
such a neutral tongue as Esperanto.
At Jracow, Esperanto was the one
language of all the business and en-
tertainments at this eighth con-
gress.
Mr.. Miller concluded his remarks
WITH an eA ApTSoSAuh VI HSdIIy appEC-
citation for the courtesy shown him
at Cracow, and promised to give, on
another occasion, some reminis-
cences of interesting experiences in
this Polish city In speaking of the
propagation of Esperanto in Amer
lea, Mr.. Miller said that his business
partner is an enthusiastic Esper-
antist and that he is now in Oklahoma
endeavoring to get Esperanto into the
public schools. Recent correspon-
| dence indicates that Vermont and Cal
| lfornia have also earnest adherents
working at present along the same
/ lines.
The report of the Baltimore So
cIety showed that efforts are being
made to organize an Esperanto class
at the Young Mems Christian Asso-
citation and at the Young Women's
Christian Association. Annapolis re-
| ported past progress and earne st
plans for the future, and took occasion
to express cordial thanks to the
Evening Capital for opening its coli
umns to Esperanto news most gener-
| ously.