Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-10-02
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL y. COLLINS.

Imitation is the sincerest flattery
| and Occidental civilization is receiving
one of the finest compliments ever Of
fered by Orientals. for the East is adopt
ing the Roman alphabet In place of the
Oriental Geographic symbols of China
and Japan. and the equally confusing
| Arabic writing of the Turks and othei
Eastern races, all of whom are WISHING
they could use our plain letters, even
for recording their peculiar messages.
| We Occidentals assume, of course
| that that adoption of our alphabet BY
/ the peoples of Asia Is no more than
! tardy recognition of our superiority in
education. To us. no language will CON-
! pare in simplicity and music with thu
language of Shakespeare-although
literally, most Of us would need die
! tionary. close by, when hearing it spoken
as 1t was in Shakespeare's day. But, OF
| course, the English of today must be SC
fine that it is no wonder that gibberins
! "furriners" envy us who really speak il
correctly-if we do.
Let foreign nations Of their Language
| boast.
What fine variety each tongue affords
like our language, as our men ant
coast:
Who cannot dress it we'll, want wit
not words.
| n
! Just as men differ in what they ses
in block of marble. so they diverge il
reading dictionary: a mason sees q
great corner stone for q building; 4
Michelargelo sees an angel or a
Moses. A philosopher finds logic in the
/ tor al
an anthem or a sonnet. A japanese
loves his Geographic symbol (even his
5000 such ideographs) because they SO
Subtly express the exact idea In his
mind.
When all the world records its ideas
with the same tools the time will not
be long when the world will be record
ing" similar thoughts. and will think
more tremendously than in the age:
when every foreigner was spoken Of a:
| a barbarian"
Improvements in transportation have
made the globe small: improvements in
communication will tend to bring oil
peoples into one brotherhood, and thc
! conditions will be In contrast with tbs
famous incident in which Charles Lamb
| taught lesson:
See that man over there? hate
| him.
why. that's a stranger; you don:
know him.
"Of course I don't know him: never
saw him before. That's why hate him
If knew him could not hate him."
* y
When the japanese or Chinese news
paper ceases to set up its news and
editorials In telegraph, and clothes its
thOIIOhtc aiV ieI1 lokfa
long will 1t be before inquisitive lin
gusts will spell out the words, learn
to speak according to the sounds ex-
pressed by those letters, and acquire
ability to read the thoughts of the
Orient?
Americans are not good linguiSts, but
how asham | ought we to be to dis
| cover that In Japan, where the alpha
bet" means 5000 units. while ours
means only rs. what every schoolbov
Knows" after learning his 5000 "a. B
and Cs," would make learned a Judge
upon our bench or a preacher in the
highest pulpit!
The Army test OF literacy in the
United States at our entry into the
World War showed that 24.9 per cent
OF our young men could not read a
newspaper. nor write an answer to the
letter they received from home. That
was In spite of our public schools and
compulsory" school laws. And the
worst illiterates were not descendants
of immigrants, but were native Ameri-
cans. born of long line Of unmixed
natives. Twenty-Five per cent illiterate!
Some companies from regions of pure
Americans" showed 60 per cent who
could neither read nor write.
Our census reports show a different
percentage of illiteracy, because the
census recognizes as "literate" all who
have had any schooling at all-even
a single day So the census average
for all illiterates in the United States
was found. in 1920. to be II per cent.
But in Japan the average of illiterates
is only per cent. and In certain
provinces only little over per cent
Skeptics ask how the Japanese
census was taken. by what definition of
illiteracy. The same query may be
asked about the American definition of
illiteracy which enables one test to
show 24.9 illiterates and another only
~ per cent.
In Japan they have compulsory edu-
cation laws, and the laws are obeyed.
In 1874 81 per cent of the children
attended public schools; in 1900. 30
per cent. In 1910. SO per cent. ana
since 1921, 100 per cent. This excludes
imbeciles and incapables of all kinds.
Here is a sample of English as she
is Tapped" Gt might be found useful
in some American cities If printed with
English Roman letters instead of ideo-
graphs):
japanese police force consists Of nice
young men.
But 1 regret that their attires are
not perfectly neat.
When a constable come In conduct
with a people, he shall be polite and
tender in his manner Of speaking and
movement
IF he will terrify or scold the people
with enormous voice. he will become
himself an object of fear for the people.
Civilized people Is meek. but BAR
barouS people Is vain and haugty."
AS Washington is endeavoring to re-
form its police. here Is useful tip
from the Land of the Rising Sun.
y \ u X
China is quite as eager tn overcome
iiJieracy IS was Jspau. The recent
victory of the Nationalist army, which
represents thu prorressiyes OF China