第6部分(第4/6 頁)

niversities　and　public　schools　who　can　turn　a　Latin　verse　with　a　facility　which　would　make　the　old　Romans　squirm　in　their　tombs。　How　few　there　are　who　can　construct　a　few　good　sentences，or　still　less　a　few　good　paragraphs　of　plain，correct，and　straightforward　English。　Now，I　am　a　great　admirer　of　the　Greeks，although，of　course，I　h*e　to　depend　up－on　what　others　tell　me　about　them，…and　I　would　like　to　see　our　educationists　imitate　in　one　respect，at　least，the　Greek　example。　How　is　it　that　the　Greeks　made　their　language　the　most　graceful　and　pendious　mode　of　expression　ever　known　among　men？Did　they　spend　all　their　time　studying　the　languages　which　had　preceded　theirs？　Did　they　explore　with　tireless　persistency　the　ancient　root　dialects　of　the　vanished　world？Not　at　all。　They　studied　Greek。　They　studied　their　own　language。　They　loved　it，they　cherished　it，they　adorned　it，they　expanded　it，and　that　is　why　it　survives　a　model　and　delight　to　all　posterity。　Surely　we，whose　mother－tongue　has　already　won　for　itself　such　an　unequalled　empire　over　the　modern　world，can　learn　this　lesson　at　least　from　the　ancient　Greeks　and　bestow　a　little　care　and　some　proportion　of　the　years　of　education　to　the　study　of　a　language　which　is　perhaps　to　play　a　predominant　part　in　the　future　progress　of　mankind。

特質三　寫口（8）

Let　us　remember　the　author　can　always　do　his　best。　There　is　no　excuse　for　him。　The　great　cricketer　may　be　out　of　form。　The　general　may　on　the　day　of　decisive　battle　h*e　a　bad　toothache　or　a　bad　army。　The　admiral　may　be　seasick—as　a　sufferer　I　reflect　with　satisfaction　upon　that　contingency。　Caruso　may　be　afflicted　with　catarrh，or　Hacken…schmidt　with　influenza。　As　for　an　orator，it　is　not　enough　for　him　to　be　able　to　think　well　and　truly。　He　must　think　quickly。　Speed　is　vital　to