Linguistics in General
publishing his work—indeed without leaving notes of any material value on the subject. But his work lives in the minds and in the note-books of his disciples. As recently as 1916, thanks to their love and loyalty, some of his distinguished pupils and colleagues conserved in book form at least the spirit of the master’s thought. The unavoidable defects of a work of this kind are modestly acknowledged in the preface; and the brilliant achievements are in evidence throughout the 336 pages of the Cours de Linguistique Générale.
Much may be said of the work done in all the special fields of linguistic investigation. For immediate purposes it is sufficient to note that the requirements imposed by the several allied sciences render the subject hopeless of mastery by any one person—certainly by the general run of mankind. This truth seems all the more pointed by a contemplation of the failures of so many of the specialists whose very successes have not always been convinc-
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