O'NEILL'S GREAT PLANS.--HUNTING IDIOMS IN THE DARK.--MASTERING DUTCH IN A FORTNIGHT.
We were seated one November evening in O'Neill's rooms in Trinity College Dublin when the conversation turned on modern languages.
Each had his own story to tell, but we waited in vain for our host to unbosom himself on the subject of Dutch. Yet he was understood to have had thrilling experiences in the Hague in August.
By a few gentle hints we endeavoured to elicit from him some talk about his linguistic adventures, and, not succeeding very well, I at last asked him point-blank if he didn't find Dutch hard.
"Yes", said O'Neill promptly, in answer to my question. "Yes: it certainly _is_ hard!" he repeated, as he balanced the poker, preparatory to smashing the biggest piece of coal on the fire. "Why the whole thing's next to impossible!"
There was something in his tone that sounded promising. He had a grievance evidently against the language; and there was a sufficient amount of suppressed irritation in his voice to indicate that there might be entertaining disclosures at hand.
Jack O'Neill had worked too closely at his mathematics the winter before, and had taken a long holiday in summer. A month of this he had spent in Holland to master the Dutch language, he said, and get a good general acquaintance with Dutch Literature. These had been great plans, and we were naturally eager to learn how they had succeeded. We had seen, however, very little of Jack since his return, as he had been most of the time at his aunt's place in Connemara. Now that he was back at Trinity safe and sound, we naturally expected to get the news sooner or later. The conditions were so favourable that evening for a talker to spin his yarn, that we were all impatience for Jack to begin. We settled ourselves comfortably to listen; but he did not seem in a hurry to unfold this particular tale.
We had already heard from him a great deal about William the Silent, and more than a great deal about Dutch art, but not a word about the Dutch language.
Our next-door neighbours, the "Professor" and the "Philosopher"--two students from the Cape who were working for their degree--were as interested as I was, in O'Neill's Dutch, and they used to drop in to hear what was going on.