Show communicated A brother saint criticises criticizes a lecture the pure language mr J V longs bongs lecture on the science of sounds in in language editor VEDETTE inasmuch as your paper is the only one published in this vicinity at present perhaps you will ivill permit me through its medium to say a little blittle concerning tile the above lee lecture ture by mr long if it had been by artemus ward or professor simmons and they happened to teach a false principle it might pass for a good boak but anything of the kind proceeding from mr long one who assumed at the time so much assurance of his being 0 in the right 0 might possibly lead many astray 1 the lie lecture I 1 referred to was delivered at the seventies hall in this city last fliday evening to a respectable audience mr lonis long 0 is an able and eloquent speaker and lie he got along exceedingly well with liis his subject till lie he ti tided aed to prove that the english was destined to be the pure language spoken of by the prophet zephaniah th P M 1 iii I v 9 lie ile reasoned that the english elaish language 0 had bori borrowed owed a 4 groat great number of voids from almo almost stall all other languages that it was ivas the chosen medium through which the mormon gospel was revealed in this last dispensation and that too occur ing about the same time or at least only seven years previous to pitmans ditmans Pit mans spelling 0 reformation all went to prove as lie he would have it that the english is or will be the alie pure or universal language spoken in the last days I 1 of course mr long 0 strongly 0 ply urged liis his hearers to study the english and who now these are won wonderful delful times the other day professor simmons an lie he would cut his own head off put it in liis his pocket and then place liis his left leg through his mouth etc I 1 and many were credulous enough to believe that lie he would do so but were greatly disappointed when they found out that his head bead was not nothing hing more than a pigeons head and a sham one at that I 1 hope it will not be the same with mr longs I 1 pure language I 1 must now stop joking become sarious sc serious rious and say something about the ic pu to language Is it really the english I 1 I 1 once heard a welshman els binan obstinately pleading that it was the welsh however that may be I 1 will ask here can it be the mixing up of all languages that constitutes a pure one I 1 recollect reading in the old bible that at the tower of babel see gen xi the universal or pure language then was confounded or mixed up so that the people could not understand one another any more and if god had not done so nothing would be restrained from them which they imagined I 1 to do and they might have ye ached heaven longi longano lon gago ago now nov I 1 A ask again can such confusion or mixing up after being confused and mixed up over and over for thousands of deais at last become a pure language ua b e Vs 11 1 I suppose that the one mixed up tile the most must of necessity be the most pure and the one that borrows fi aiom om others the roost most must be the most perfect without borrowing I 1 let me not bo be misunderstood misun dei stood I 1 mean to say after all that the english z 1 language angui ge is about the best we lia leave ve at present if its orthography 0 were more sally reformed but I 1 must confess that no other language 0 lias has been mixed up mole moie than the english and if any one wishes to see the confusion or oi babel 1 repeated let hint him examine this language tui it the pages of websters unabridged dictionary and you will find many wolds having from one to twenty diffrient meanings meanings 0 and it is no wonder that the plesent pi chent generation canoot cannot accomplish so much as the babylonians of old could if they had retained their primitive Ian language guage because they united as one and each woid of thedis had only one meaning and they understood one another while ivi we ate not united and each one of our words lias has flom one to twenty meanings eanious 1 which causes mr lon long a and myself and thousands of ot licis to dis 0 so much but to come to the point Is tile the en english 0 fisli the pure language Y I 1 rather think not though mr long and two other lecturers at the seventies hall namely mr mcknight and mr harrison tried their best to make it appear so but I 1 will endeavor to show these gentlemen that they are arc greatly mistaken therefore I 1 shall call their attention to the holy bible which ought to bo be the standard for all and if they will acknowledge it as such I 1 need not be afraid of what I 1 shall say now we find in that book after adam was formed out of the dust that lie was endoN endowed ved with a pure lao language guage so that lie could give names to all ii liv ing creatures but I 1 wonder if tile the said gentlemen could tell me the names he gave no it is not likely for the names were lost at the tower of babel prom from adam down to that period the people were one and all had that one pure language 0 but it could not be the english nor any other language that sprung up since for they are all confounded and mixed and will remain so till they give way to what has been promised by zephaniah the prophet prop liet chap iii v 9 lie spoke of the latter days thus then will I 1 turn to the people of pure language that they may all call upon the name of the lord to serve him with one consent 11 which they could not do unless the primitive pure language were restored which would enable them like the people living previous to th the econ confusion fusion of babel Babol to accomplish wonderful things ry again the above is not all we read in the acts of the apostles oh ch iii vs 1921 19 21 as fall follows ow t repent ye there therefore fole and be converted that I 1 your sins may bo be blotted out wh when en the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the lord and lie he shall send jesus christ which before was preached unto you ali whom m the heaven must receive until the time of restitution of all things which god hath s spoken p by the mouth of all IH his H holy prophets since the world began now in the beginning of tile the world fruit only was the food of roan mail and green herbs the food of beasts fowls and creeping 0 tb things in gs b but u t ina in our days their food is more like the english language z a little of everything 0 P and all mixed up the land also was not the same then as it is now and cicat many other things that I 1 might mention not exactly the same at that time as t present but in tile the times of restitution of all things thing 11 everything will be restored as aa at first fira man mail will live on fruits and the other on dicen heibe as wo we may read in the alth chapter of isaiah Isai ali and other places then if all things 0 will bo be restored at that thai time can wo we for a moment imagine 0 that the english laii language 0 tia za e will be restored cd no for it never ever 11 was ili in existence till now lately latel y and it would never do to restore or to the people a pure langhage langaar lan gaage 0 e when the same saine was existing already perhaps mr lonz long 1 will ivill argue that his pure E english ri 0 lish is the chosen medium through which the lord reveals in our day and that co consequently ri it must be the pure or sal language ian 0 guage 0 in ili the same way anybody might have argued in the days of christ that his language t was destined to bo be tile universal one but that language is now dead and numbered among 0 what they call the classics 11 and so are arc many other languages that god spoke through at other times will yet at adise ise at jerusalem and god will speak through them but must that language of the jews be the pure one 1 I no and there is no sense in thinking so for the gospel has to be preached in all ian languages z D bages at the command of that god i who is no ic le specter of persons thew is no knowing but what the next prophet or seer may bo be a frenchman or a hindmo and besides wo we read that the apostle john will yet prophesy before many peoples and nations and tongues but we said ton tongues ties will no more constitute the pure language than will the eug eng lish do just because the lord may happen to speak through joseph smith or that apostle in each of those tongues I 1 shall now come to a close leaving other things in the lecture untouched for fear the VEDETTE will give orders to stop and hoping that mr long and others may bo be enlightened and converted I 1 subscribe myself yours respectfully HEARER A 0 S L CU feb m 1861 1861 |