“You would certainly oblige me, my dear, if you send me a copy of that interesting account of the Chinese about my country. Do you remember that Mr. Hirsch’s translation?“My grammar about the Tagal is long ago finished. I intend to publish it as soon as I shall be set at liberty. It will bring to light so many things that I believe nobody thought of. I make references to bisaya, Malay, and Madecassis* according to Dr. Brandstetter.** Greet him, if you ever write to him“My life now is quiet, peaceful, retired and without glory, but I think it is useful too. I teach here the poor but intelligent boys reading, Spanish, English! Mathematics and Geometry, moreover I teach them how to behave like men. I taught the men here how to get a better way of earning their living and they think that I am right. We have begun and the success crowned our trials.“This Gewaltthat*** exerted upon me gave me a new language, the bisaya; taught me how to steer a vessel and to manage a canoe; made me better acquainted with my country and presented me with some thousands of dollars! God can send you your fortune amidst the persecutions of your fiends! How do you find my English!”
Master Alfredo HidalgoMy dear Alfredo,Your letter pleased me very much and I see that you are very much advanced. I congratulate you on it and on your excellent grade.I believe it is my duty to call to your attention to a little mistake you have committed in your letter, a mistake that many commit in society. One does not say, "I and my brother greet you" but "My brothers and I greet you". You must always put yourself in the last place, you should say, "Emilio and I; You and I; My friend and I." etc.As to the rest, your letter leaves nothing to be desired with respect to clarity, conciseness, and orthography. Go ahead then; study, study, and meditate well what you study. Life is a very serious thing and only those with intelligence and heart go through it worthily. To live is to be among men and to be among men is to struggle. But this struggle is not a brutal and material struggle with men alone; it is a struggle with them and one's self, with their passions and one's own, with errors and preoccupations. It is an eternal struggle with a smile on the lips and tears in the heart. On this battlefield man has no better weapon than his intelligence, no other force but his heart. Sharpen, perfect, polish then your mind and fortify and educate your heart.[I have written] enough for the present. I wish you Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.[I am] your uncle who loves you,José Rizal
I was copied by Dr. Placido Calderon this morning with the e-mail below from “Ka Tasio” on the question, “Did Jose Rizal write and speak in English—and if he did, was he any good at it?” “In the whole of Epistolario Rizalino, there is only one letter in English, a letter to his nephew, in the form of an advice. Maybe Dr. Yoder* can help us on this matter. “Of course, his command of English had much to be desired. He seldom used it. He used the English language reportedly when he told his sister, “‘There is something inside the lamp?’”-----*The Reverend Dr. Robert L. Yoder, who maintains a website on the Philippine national hero, “The Life and Writings of Dr. Jose Rizal.”