C
72
59
have had opportunities of observing
tion to as to be able to
the interpretation
Jorne
3
opinion.
Supreme Court - I regret to
Notice the fact that the interpretation in this Court is deplorably defective. This arises in my opinion, from
two facts. First, the amount of knowledge of the Chinese language possessed by the present Interpreter of the Court is so limited that it is impossible for him to discharge his interpretorial duties in a satisfactory manner. He speaks Chinese very fluently and for ordinary purposes, his knowledge
would carry him through smoothly; but
to undertake the responsible duties of an interpreter in a Court of Justice, where questions of great nicety and
precision are often put and where it is required that the least shade of difference in the meaning of a phrase should be distinguished, he is utterly incompetent. The English and Chinese are too totally different languages, not only in pronunciation
but also in idioms and construction.
sentences, and no one is capable
of giving a proper rendering of the
one into the other or vice versa -
without a competent knowledge
of them. Many a time have I heard a simple and plain English question put.