NOTES 149 



modern Greek than like Cockney English. For example, the vowels have much 

 the same sounds in all the romance languages but quite different sounds in 

 modern English. Reforms are now certainly being made, but we still hear 

 dominus pronounced with an English u at the end and a/no, amas, amat given an 

 appalling pronunciation. Yet our public schools and universities even award high 

 marks for writing verse in these languages. What are we to think of the following 

 doggerel which makes patria rhyme with atuay ? 



Qui procul hinc, the legend's writ— 



The frontier-grave is far away — 

 Qui ante diem periit : 



Sed miles, sed pro patria. 



Shelley, who certainly ought to have known better, makes Urania rhyme with lay, 

 and our diphthongs are impossible. We once heard a Greek play at a university, 

 but our pleasure in it was spoilt by the shouts of laughter indulged in by some 

 Greeks who were sitting behind us. The Greek of Oxford-atte-Bowe appears to 

 belong to that exclusive university ; for when a modern Greek reads a bit of 

 Homer one can really quite appreciate the rhythm ! But if this matter is men- 

 tioned to a classical scholar he shudders with horror and demonstrates (what the 

 modern Greeks deny) that the old accentuation was entirely wrong. However 

 we had better not plunge any further into this thorny wood. 



It is time also to make a strong protest against the pronunciation of English 

 blank verse on the stage. Evidently in the age of Marlowe and Shakespeare, the 

 rhythm was given its full force, with the swing intended by the authors ; but our 

 actors love to jumble all the words just as people do in ordinary conversation 

 round a tea-table — so that one does not know whether the character is intended to 

 be talking verse or not. It reminds us of the clown's remark after a pathetic 

 piece of music, " Say, are you singing a song or lodging a complaint." Probably 

 poor Poetry is as dead as mutton in the England of to-day, and for the same 

 reason that poor Science lives in the kitchen like Cinderella — while their prosperous 

 sisters, Maleducation and Impolitics, go to all the balls and enjoy a place in 

 the sun. 



Trade after the War 



It would be well if many or all economical affairs could be treated as open 

 scientific questions instead of political ones as they are now treated ; and the 

 question of trade with Germany after the war is a case in point. Should we or 

 should we not build up tariffs against her ? Speaking on March 30 on behalf of 

 Messrs. Lever Bros, Sir William Lever, whose immense experience (not only in 

 commerce but also in art) always commands the closest attention, thinks not. He 

 said, "The question arose as to what should be their national policy when the war 

 was over in order to reap the full advantage of victory that would surely be ours 

 in the field. Some are nervous that we shall lose in commerce the advantage 

 that our brave soldiers had won in the field. What they all desired was to reap 

 fully and completely for our Allies and ourselves the full reward of victory. They 

 were all agreed upon this, but differed vastly in the methods by which they 

 thought they would best achieve this. . . . The policy of tariffs and restrictions 

 could only stimulate a false Imperialism, founded upon injustice and disregard of 

 the rights of others. Then we were to insist upon Germany paying huge indemni- 

 ties to Belgium, France, Russia, and Serbia. There was not cash in all the world 

 to pay these indemnities. Germany could only pay in goods, and pay she must. 



