Bonto to Peano
Instead of annotating individual words in this letter, it may be quicker to state that M. Bonto van Bÿlevelt's Idiom Neutral is nonstandard in comparison to the 1902 grammar and vocabulary. Such variations are to be expected given that Rosenberger's lingu universal project was ever-evolving. Only a few years after his 1902 publication, Rosenberger is writing about a reformed version of the language (and in later correspondances, he uses spelling and vocabulary that are to be found in his Reform-Neutral project, as does Bonto here).
In this letter in particular we have:
The use of the letter x in place of Idiom Neutral's ks — extr (ekstr), laxitet (laksitet), existant (eksistant).
The use of -ation instead of -asion — direktion (direksion), rekomendationi (rekomendasioni), international (internasional).
Vocabulary for which a different form is given in the 1902 dictionary (shown in brackets) — inkapabl (nekapabl), nihil (nokos), malkontent (nekontent), kolaboreri (kolaboratori), independent (nedependant), lingua (lingu), korespondent (korespondant), lektur (lektasion).
Vocabularly for which there is no explicit word in the 1902 dictionary: autoritar (autoritetik?), payament (pay, payasion?)
Idiom Neutral
Brusel, 2 yuli 1906.
Hobbema-Strad 73.
Sinior G. Peano, Torino (Italia)
Pardona mi, kar sinior e amik, ke mi fasiav atendar vo. Multfoa mi es sufrant e totale inkapabl korespondar. Extr it mi es diskurajed sitempe di laxitet de mie fratri neutralist. Ili fasi kuasi nihil. E labor fasied es ankor fasied in manier autoritar. Mi es malkontent de direktion de s. Holmes, kel remov omnikos in respondi de membri kekos no plis. Multe scientifik!
Mi es excesive rekonosant pro votr paroli e rekomendationi. If mi potes[ao?] truvar kolaboreri e el mon neses pro payament de ili, mi komenserio ko plesir revu independent pro lingua universal. On aksepterio texti in omni versioni existant de sistemi, keli volu konstruar lingua universal ko paroli international e gramatik leplu konsis, kuale vo av exprimed it.
Provisore mi av finied labor pro lingua universal. Mi skrib in revui de laboreri, ma in lingu nederlandik e di otr subytekti.
Vo resiv simultane nr. 2 e 3 de Progres. Volua retromitar ili po lektur. Ili aparten a grup.
Korespondent in Trieste av komuniked ke s. prof. Niceforo av skribed di Idiom Neutral in jurnal de el urb Il Piccolo.
Ko saluti kordial, et a votr marita, da omni noi:
W. Bonto v. B.
Lingu anglik
Brussels, 2 July 1906.
Hobbema-Strad 73.
Mr. G. Peano, Torino (Italy)
Pardon me, dear sir and friend, that I have made you wait. Many times I am suffering and totally incapable of corresponding. Besides this, I am discouraged at the moment by the laxity of my neutralist brothers. They do almost nothing. And the work that is done is still done in an authoritarian manner. I am unhappy about the course Mr. Holmes is taking, who is removing everything in the responses of members which does not please [him]. Very scientific!
I am exceedingly grateful for your words and recommendations. If I could find collaborators and that money needed to pay them, I would start an independent periodical for the universal language. They would accept texts in all existing versions of the systems (?) which want to construct a universal language with international words and the most consise grammar, as you have expressed it.
I have provisionally finished the work for the universal language. I am writing in the workers' periodicals, but in Dutch and concerning other subjects.
You [will] simultaneously receive issues 2 and 3 of Progres. Would you please return them after reading. They belong to the group.
A correspondant in Trieste has communication that prof. Niceforo has written about Idiom Neutral in a journal of that town Il Piccolo.
With cordial greetings, and to your wife also, from all of us:
W. Bonto v. B.
