Rosenberger to Peano
Idiom Neutral
3/16 septembr 1908
A s. prof. G. Peano in Turin
Sinior multe estimed!
Ko gaudi grand mi resivav plupresidiurne votr letr afabl datu 9 sept. ko proyekt de statut de „Academia pro Lingua inter Nationes” kause ist letr don esper pro vit nov in nostr Akademi dormant.
Vo preg mie opinion di punkti mult; sidiurne mi respondero sole di punkti prinsipal. Generale votr proyekti es multe simpatik e mi esper, ke vo avero sukses efektuar votr proyekti:
Pardona, if mi fasiero kelk obyektasioni relativu flank formal de votr proyekt: If mi no er, vo av intension proposar statut nov pro „Akademi Internasional de L. U.” Ma statuti de ist Akademi, statued 19-21 aug. 1889 per kongres internasional de volapükisti in Paris, sekuantu §21, potes esar muted sole per kongres internasional. Relativu kongresi, Kongres nomed de Paris resolvav, ke „Akademi deb resolvar, keloke e kuande kongres sekuant deb avar lok; Akademi deb esar komited[1] preparativ pro Kongres”. — Eske vo pens efektuar istkos sitempe? Mi pens, ke it esero neposibl sitempe.
Ma if noi aut aksept statuti nov loku sine formalitet nomed — it esero ekivalent a fundasion de Akademi nov,[a] kekos mi no potes rekomendar. — Mi deb adyunktar, ke, it sembl, nesesitet no eksist pro mutasion de statuti 1) kause sistem de labori, proposed per vo, no es kontrar, u nemulte kontrar, a statuti eksistant 2), keli es multe brev e don libritet grand pro detalii 2) kause pro regulasion de detalii noi es libr statuar Regulativi; tal regulativi eksist ya (cf. Sirkulari NN. 72, 73, 74 and 92, keli mi pregav presidiurne s. Holmes mitar a vo), ma if vo truv, ke on deb mutar kelkkos u adyunktar, proposa it e mi es konvinsied, ke Akademi akseptero volontare meliorasioni.[2] Hic Rhodus, hic salta!
Ko votr permitasion mi eksprim mie opinion, ke direktor deb aktar energie sekuantu statuti (e regulativi) ma il deb evitar severe omni arbitraritet. Nostr direktor prim, Kerkchoffs, esav arbitrar e sie labor kausav pretensioni[3] yust de membri de Akademi e de otr personi, ma it no avav resultat,[4] durante ke in mie kuinkanuad protesti no eksistav kause ili no potesav eksistar e mi avav resultat sine mutasion de statuti. — Mi pensav, ke omnikos es permited, kekos no es inhibied. Talmaniere p.e. korporasion de Protektori de Akademi (§26 de Reg.) esav kreed, keli av protekted multe aferi finansik.
Mi pens, ke noi potesero amplifikar ist korporasion e donar a it sert funksion, p.e. relativu skribasion de artikli pro diurnal fundand de Akademi u pro imprimasion nemediate in sirkulari de direktor (Mi av introduked sirkulari no periodik [loku diurnal omnimensik de Kerckhoffs, kel no potesar[5] eksistar] a esar libr relativu temp de publikasion, kause moment pro publikasion de periodik frekuente no koinsid[6] ko resivasion de omni voti desired e.s.) u relativu propagasion de lingu ekslabored per Akademi, kel funksion no es prevised per §1 de statuti (i.e. it no es in program problemi de membri de Akademi,[b] ma sine dubi it es desirabl, ke lingu ekslabored per Akademi es propaged, sikause it eserio multe konvenabl avar sue korporasion de propagandisti, kel potes esar ad Akademi e funksion de kel potes esar indiked detalie in Regulativi, statued per Akademi.
Numr de membri de Akademi es limited — maksimum 196 personi (§4 de statuti e §28 de Regulativi), ma numr de protektori (posible vo inventero otr nom pro ili)[c] no deb esar limited. Kontribuad anuik de membri es fiksed per statuti (§20) — 10 franki e no potes esar muted (setre §20 don libritet a direktorad de Akademi resolvar kuestioni finansik; sikause direktorad potes donatar a membri, p.e. a mebri povr, lor kontribuad), ma kontribuad de protektori, 3 franki, es fiksed per §26 de Regulativi e potes esar muted per Akademi aut. — Prova ekslaborar proyekt de mutasioni de Regulativi in spirit de votr statut-proyekt e proposa it a Akademi!
Nom de Akademi es kuestion no multe important. Mi pens, ke nom es parti de statuti, kekause it no deb esar muted. — Kuinkanuad de direktor es et parti de statuti; mi no potes rekomendar mutasion. — „Visedirektor es vikar de direktor” (§20 de Reg.)
Ko salut respektos, votr serv leplu devot
Rosenberger
_______
[a] e abandonasion de institut bon eksistant!
[b] keli deb esar plu linguisti ka propagandisti.
[c] protektori debero esar plu propagandisti ka linguisti.
Lingu anglik
3/16 September 1908
To Prof. G. Peano in Turin
Much esteemed sir!
The day before yesterday, I received with great joy your kind letter dated 9 September with the statute plan of the “Academia pro Lingua inter Nationes” because this letter gives hope for new life in our dormant Academy.
You ask for my opinion about many points; today I will respond only concerning the principal ones. Generally, your plans are very congenial and I hope that you will succeed in effecting your plans:
Excuse me if I should make some objections regarding the formal side of your plan: If I am not mistaken, you have the intention to propose a new statute for the “International Academy of the Universal Language.” But the statutes of this Academy, enacted 19-21 August 1889 by the international congress of Volapükists in Paris, according to §21, can be changed only by an international congress. Regarding congresses, the named Congress of Paris resolved that “the Academy must resolve where and when the following congress should take place; the Academy should be the preparatory committee for the Congress”. — Are you thinking of effecting this now? I don't think it will be possible at the moment.
But if we ourselves accept the new statutes without the named formality — it will be equivalent to the foundation of a new Academy,[a] which I can't recommend. — I should add that it seems there is no need to change the statutes 1) because the system of labours, proposed by you, is not contrary, or not very contrary, to the existing statutes which are very short and give great freedom for minutiae, 2) because for the regulation of the minutiae we are free to enact Regulativi; such regulativi already exist (cf. Circular № 72, 73, 74 and 92, which I asked Mr. Holmes to send me yesterday), but if you find that one must change or add something, propose it and I am convinced that the Academy will voluntarily accept improvements. Hic Rhodus, hic salta!
With your permission I express my opinion that the director must act with vigour according to the statutes (and regulativi) but he must rigorously avoid all arbitrariness. Our first director, Kerkchoffs, was arbitrary and his work caused just pretensions of the Academy's members and of other persons, but it did not bring results, while in my five-year term there were no protests because there were not able to exist and I had results without changing the statutes. — I thought that everything was permitted which was not inhibited. In this way, e.g., the corporations of the Supporters of the Academy (§26 of Reg.) was created, who have greatly supported financial affairs.
I think that we will be able to enlarge this corporation and give it a certain function, e.g. regarding the writing of articles for the journal to be funded by the Academy or for immediate printing in the director's circulars (I have introduced nonperiodic circulars [in place of the monthly journal of Kerckhoffs, which cannot exist (?)] in order to be free regarding the time of publication because the moment for printing of the periodical frequently does not coincide with receiving all desired votes, for example) and regarding the propagation of the language developed by the Academy, which function is not anticipated by §1 of the statutes (i.e., the tasks of the Academy's members[b] are not in the programme, but without a doubt, it is desirable that the language developed by the Academy is propagated, therefore it would be very suitable to have its own corporation of propagandists, which can be with the Academy and whose function can be specified in detail in the Regulativi, enacted by the Academy.
The number of the Academy's members is limited — a maximum of 196 persons (§4 of the statutes and §28 of the Regulativi), but the number of supporters (you might invent another name for them)[c] must not be limited. An annual contribution of the members is fixed by the statutes (§20) —10 franks and this cannot be changed (moreover, §20 gives freedom to the Academy's directorship to resolve financial questions; therefore, the directorship can gift members, poor members for example, their contribution), but the contribution of the supporters, 3 franks, is fixed by §26 of the Regulativi and can be changed by the Academy itself. — Try to develop your plan for changes of the Regulativi in the spirit of your statute project and propose it to the Academy!
The name of the Academy is not a very important question. I think that the name is part of the statutes, which is why it should not be changed. — The five-year term of the director is also part of the statutes; I cannot recommend a change. — “The vicedirector is the deputy of the director” (§20 of Reg.)
With a respectful salutation, your most devoted servant
Rosenberger
_______
[a] And the abandonment of an existing good institution.
[b] who should be linguists more than propagandists.
[c] the supporters will need to be propagandists more than linguists.
NOTES:
[1] This seems to be a misspelling of komitet (committee) since the original Volapük (rigik) reads „kademalef osludom kiöp e kiüp Kongef nilikün ozitom: obinom komitef (committee, commission) plepalöl.”
[2] Meliorasioni presupposes a root meliorar which is nonexistant in the original 1902 dictionary. In Idiom Neutral klasik this might be rendered plubonifikasioni (improvements). The supposed root meliorar is reflected in ameliorate (e), améliorer (f), migliorare (i), meliorare (l).
[3] Pretensioni appears to be a more international variant of pretendasion.
[4] Resultat comes to be used as the Reform-Neutral version of the original resultad in Idiom Neutral.
[5] This seems to be an incorrect use of the infinitive, perhaps potes, potesav, or potesero was intended.
[6] Koinsidar is not in the original 1902 dictionary nor in the 1912 Reform-Neutral one; see, coincide (e), coïncider (f), coincidir (s), coincidere (i l).
