23 OCTOBER 1926, Page 29

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Sir Richard Burton, who spoke seventeen languages with fluency, took only three' weeks to acquire a new speech. He studied in short, intense snatches of not more than a quarter of an hour at it time, .spread- over the working day ; and although he had at his command a memory such as few men have ever possessed, his methods can be profitably imitated by everybody. There are certain mechanical aids, how- ever, since Burton's day. I cannot explain these in detail, liut a -Linguaphone, recording speech on a gramophone disc, and therefore-making-possible the reiteration of a difficult phrase or a correct inflexion with a tireless -patience that no human teacher could emulate, is one Or the most:ingenious and useful of these modern methods. I have a-Liagnaphone myself and have acquired a working knowledgeof Spanish-by its use. - .

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