THK coNi'LicT OF lanc;uagp:s. 135 



tioii, slavery or iiitennarriajie. Only under these conditions 

 can the foreion tong-ue affect the essential granimatic structure 

 and vocabulary of the vernacular. The disturbance must be 

 vital. Commercial, political and imperial power do not reach 

 this social depth. 



These considerations naturally culminate in the ev^er attrac- 

 tive questions : Will there be a universal lano^iage ? If so, 

 which language known to us is it likely to be ? 



The possibility of a common tongue throughout all man- 

 kind is no new idea. The belief in one original language, 

 diversified into dialects by the dispersion of its speakers, is 

 the traditional notion sanctioned among us by religious cult 

 and literary .inheritance from the past. Turned toward the 

 future, the idea gathers round it strong personal and national 

 sentiments. The scholar wishes that the literature he admires 

 may be peipetuated in a language ennobled to him by the 

 culture it has brought him. The practical man is impressed 

 with the material advantages to be gained by a means of 

 communication common to all the world's workers. To the 

 imperialist the universality of his language is an essential 

 element of ihe dominance of his own people. 



The confidence with which the publicist proclaims English 

 as the future world language is born of these aspirations, not 

 of knowledge. His view of the subject arises from the pre- 

 dominating part the vernacular plays in the making of one's 

 self, and the political, commercial and geographical expansion 

 of Knglish-speaking peoples. 



Our present kncnvledge may only predicate the controlling 

 conditions under which the solution of these questions will be 

 worked cmt in fact. We know something of the conditions 

 iinder which languages have survived or perished in the past, 

 and an attempt, io apply this knowledge to the present and 

 future, while leaving the particular questions unsolved, may at 

 least enlighten us on the real significance of the problem. 



It may be assumed that a universal language that would 

 still require or admit of the \'ernactilar's continued u.se would 



