THE DESIGN OF INTERGLOSSA

latter is no sinecure (193). Let us forget the turbulent (443) times ahead, and stick to our agenda (809). A satisfactory (25) (471) world-auxiliary cannot limit (236) its appeal to the confines of christendom (820). It must not frustrate (241) the hopes of myriads (39) in the Orient (94) by perpetuating local (53) and unnecessary (133) intricacies of Occidental (93) accidence. More reciprocity (10) between east and west is imperative (266). So the grammar of Interglossa is as elementary (212) as possible (136). Separate words mark what many languages express by a multitude (8) of final (229) syllables. Thus no endings distinguish the noun-equivalent (469) (449) as subject (11), accusative or dative (466) case-forms, nor the verb as past or present. We distinguish unity (12) and plurality (13) of the former or the temporal (75) relations— predated (73) or postdated (72)— of the latter by words which, like all words Interglossa (87) (509), are immutable (314) and invariant (314). Thus learning Interglossa is merely learning the use of each item of its verbal (860) stock-in-trade.

What most facilitates (224) learning is the source of its word-material (54). Interglossa profits (374) by the impact (265) of science on daily speech during the half-century (37) since Zamenhof put forward Esperanto (130). Every vocable (459) of Interglossa is a brick taken from some internationally current word such as periscope (96) (411), chronometer (62) (114), megaphone (22) (357), telegram (99) (833), micrometer (23) (114), ballistics (465), autocracy (9) (826), kinema (475) or photo (359). Thus the meanings of microscope (23) (411), micrometer (23) (114), microphone (23) (357) and microbe (23) tell us that micro means small(ness). So learning Interglossa is learning semantics (412) and etymology (289) hand-in-hand. Where the beginner cannot detect (467) the semantic (412) value (449) of an item, the pedagogue (349) can bring school (409) biology (161) (289), geography (645) (250), geometry (645) (114) and chemistry or names of inventions and proprietary (847) products to his aid. In this way, learning its vocabulary (459) is getting more familiar with an existing, international language of navigation (764), horticulture (647) (192), agriculture (631) (192), astronomy (633) (324), meteorology (638) (289), and manufacture (471).

The source of these words makes things as easy for an older generation with a classical orientation (334) as for the adolescent imbibing (160) the scientific attitude (334). The nonagenarian (35) has the consolation (184) of knowing that he was flagellated (233) through the mazes of Mediterranean grammar to some purpose; and the modern child with no pretensions to humane (262) learning will be none the worse for meeting a few