Notes. Part IL, English into Corean. Pp. x. and 425.
uage, into parts, Corean-Englishand Englis!
'A Concise Dictionary of the Corean Long: Corean, by Horace Graxt UNDERWOOD, A.M., assisted by Hower B. Horzerr, A B., and James S. Gate, A.B. Pp. x., 196 and 293, Kelly and Walsh, Limited; London, Tritbner Ca,; New York, A. D. F. Randolph & Ca., 1890, ANERLIER proof of the rapidly extending influence of the United States in Corea is afforded by the two volumes before us. Their authorship does honour to American missionary enterprise and erudition, while the neatness of their typography and the elegance of their binding reflect credit on the "Yokohama Seishi Bunsha," the Japanese firm to whom the printing was entrusted. A few compositors' blunders will be found here and there, which remain unnoticed in the short list of Errata, but on the whole the result will compare very favourably with similar work produced by foreign firms in China The Corean type employed is apparently from s new fount, and, though scarcely as clear and handsome as that used in Mr, Jaines Scott's '*Corean Manual," Department of the Chinese Tniperial Mari-published three years ago by the Statistical
time Customs, it is sufficiently distinct for all practical purposes and more suitable for works which aspire to pass beyond mere rudiments, In the Preface to the "Introduction to the Corean Spoken Language," Mr. Underwood gives the student sume excellent advice on the best method of approaching and carrying out the study of the language. "The test of exactness in pronunciation in the ability to make one's self under-od, not merely by one's own teacher and native associates, who will soon become accustomed to wrong pronunciations and mistakes of a foreigner, but by strangers and outsiders, "A Corean teacher is of course indispensable, but he cannot be expected to teach in any sense of the word as we understand it... From him the learner is to get all he can, and upon him to practi every opportunity... As far as pos aman... having no knowledge of English, so that the student shall from the start be thrown upon his own resources.
"Ho {the student} must. learn to hear with Corean ears, to see with Corean eyes, to enter heartily into the life and surroundings of the Corean, to appreciate fully all their circumstances, and as far as possible, in fact, to think in Corean."" Mutatis mutandis, this advice applies equally well to the study of Chinese, and every conscientious student of the language on this side of the water will readily admit its soundness, Beginning naturally with the alphabet, the grammatical notes proceed to deal with the Corean parts of speech, most of which are made to coincide with those used in European grammars; the exceptions being Postpositions, which occupy the place of our own prepositions, and, most important of all, honorifics, or modifications of all the patts of speech honors caus@. It is barely necessary to point out to the sinologue that Chinese bristles with similar modifications of address, according as the person spoken to, or of, is an inferior, equal, or superior. But in Corea the system appears to have been carried to an extreme pitch of refinement, "Not only," says Mr, Underwood, is the person spoken fo, to be considered, but in many cases he must also consider the special rank of the person spoken of, or the subject of the verb. An honorific of the verb must then be formed." This reminds us of nothing so much as the nicely graduated bows with which princes and potentates are taught to return the salutes of various classes of their subjects, and must be a sore trial to the tyro. Fortunately though honorifics " at first sight appear so numerous and varied that the student is almost discouraged, he will soon learn that, with some trifling exceptions, the whole matter is governed by but a few rules." Still, the learner is warned that these niceties are not to be trifled with. "It is important that he address servants and attendants in low terms, and in their presence speak of himself in high terms, while in the presence
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.