The English Language

Dominion, Volume 24, Issue 199, 20 May 1931, Page 10

The English Language

Sir, —The plea for pure English in the “talkies” and the protest against our own prevailing practice of contracting numerous words, made by “Purist” in “The Dominion” of May 16, are of more than passing interest. “Purist's” alarm, however, would 'be intensified considerably should he, as an admirer of pure English, be called upon to attend an international conference, where delegates of various nations, in many cases surmising they have a command of English, would by their efforts to make themselves understood give him indubitable proof that our mother tongue, due largely to its constructional difficulties, has already become “mutilated, corrupted, and spoiled” at the hands (or tongues) of the various nationalities who attempt to use it.. A direct step toward the degeneration of written English is evidenced by a recent attempt to remove the barrier of language diversity by the use of what the inventor (a Swede) calls a world English, or “Anglic”; and “Purist” will, no doubt, be perturbed to learn that a text-book has been published advocating the use of the language of Shakespeare in the following form: —Anglic, the nue, simplified English speling, orijinaeted. and araenjed by Prof. R. E. Zachyisson, of Upsala, has met with the graetest enthueziazm thruuout the wurld, and you hav probably aulredy desieded upon your atitued tordz this skeem for establishing English as the augzilyery wurld langgwij.” (If your readers have not yet decided, no doubt they will quickly do so) Would it not be an infinitely more reasonable and logical method of solving the ancient language problem—and simultaneously preserve the purity and beauty of our mother tongue—to adopt Esperanto, freely and officially, for the reason for which a linguist of outstanding ability specially designed it, i.e.< a neutral, auxiliary instrument of international understanding, than to attempt to modify English, or any other national language, to serve the same purpose?— I am, etc., _ „ WM. H. KING Hon. Sec., N.Z. Esperanto Assn. Wellington, May 18.