Thibodaux minerva. [volume] (Thibodaux, La.) 18??-1858, 1856-03-29
Phonotypy.

This is rather an odd word, but means simply
printing BY sound. 1t comes from the Greek words
phone, speech or sound, and tupos type. It Is
system, then, where all the words are printed as
they are pronounced. There are about forty ele-
mentary sounds in language, with but twenty
six letters to represent Them hence is plain that
some of the letters will have to represent several
sounds This renders reading and spelling exceed
ingly difficult The child never knows when he
has spelt word correctly only as he has learned
it by mere dint Of memory. Out of almost $4,000
words in our language, only some fifty words are
spet as they are pronounced. Now, we ask, is this
not barbarous? What is the use Of employing so
many silent letters? Why not have every word
spelt as it is pronounceds We say this ought to
be the case and is the very thing which the fonetik
system proposes to accomplish. 1t has introduced
character for each sound, and thus when the
child has learned the character he has learned
it forever. Whenever and wherever he meets with
it be recognizes it as an old friend and is ready at
once to pronounce it with accuracy. By this sys-
tenn children will learn .e spell just naturally as
they learn to talk. 1t is found by experiment that
children will learn to read in one-sixth Of the time
now spent, if they use the fonetk alphabet Why,
then, do not the Directors of our common schools
adopt the system and compel teachers to carry it
out? The answer is obvious. In the first place,
people are ignorant in regard to this noble system.
But very few have taken pains to examine its
claims. In the second place, they are too eoaser-
vatve to do anything about the matter. They hate
change and yet change the only regular thing in
the universe. They are just about as consistent
as the man who tied stone in one end Of his bag
of wheat in order to make it balance on his nag 5
back. The thought had never occurred to him
that he could divide it half and half and thus save
carrying the stone if he thought oft, it would
not do to break over the customs Of his ancestors
1t is indeed strange that people are so blind about
this system that would save their children years Of
hard labor-but so the world goes. Men love the
old false though be; they despse the new though
it be true. If it had always been the fashion to
bandase one eye, the man who should presume
first to look at the world with both, would be
secuted as dangerous innovator. The world is
afraid Of reform, though reform it must continually
meet This system must and will succeed. 1t Is
SO founded upon principle that conservatism, with
his wrinkles and frowning brow cannot stop it. 1t
is destined to entirely supersede the present bung
ling barbarous system. There are many omens OF
SUCCESS Massachusetts, has introduced it into
Of harc
and finds that it works most admirably.
The child can learn both the fonetik and the
common system in much less time than it now takes
to learn the latter, provided he commences with
the fonetk; hence it would be policy to introduce
it into our schools for the purpose Of learn
ing our common system, if nothing more.
Much has been done, and much is being done to
s'ivanc. the cause. A publishing house has been
mating knowledge upon so important subject, and
thousands Of publications are yearly scattered
throughout the country. The New Testament has
been printed in the fonetk style, and within few
months the Longley Brothers have published
fonetic dictionary. Among their other publications
the Type of the Times stands most prominent. 1t
il entirely devoted to the fonetk reform, and is
printed in the new style. Closely allied to the
printing reform is the writing reform.
Want of space will not allow rs to enlarge on
the further utility Of the system. We refer teachers
and directors to the above works, in connection
with Ben Pitman's Manual of Photography.