The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1875-03-25
The Boston Spelling Match
The Reporters vs.. the High School Boys.

The spelling match in Boston, Tuesday night
between the boys of the High School on one
hand and party of compositors, proof read
ers and reporters on the other resulted in VIC
tory for the boys The Herald gives lively
account of the mattel, from which we select the
following:
The audience Is now impatient, and every
thing being ready, we begin. If age is to be
the criterion the school boys will soon 60 down;
but the youngsters face their middle-aged COM
petitors with confidence. Here goes the first
-"attorney." The press man smiles and
spells it without falter. A few minutes later
and then courtesy falls to the turn of small
boy who is nervous and stammers "C-u-r-t-e-
s-y' which causes him to retire, while the
man opposite corrects the error. The next VIC
tim is q compositor and Herald man, whose
sudden appearance before an audience confuses
him. and he mill put an 'e'' instead of the neces-
sary ''i' in the first syllable of millennium"
He steps out blushing, while the crowd laughs
and applauds as a youngster makes good the
breach. The trifling perplexties of ''proboscis,
'reprieve'' "proselyte'' and inveigle" cause
not stumble, but oD "pbysiology' a boy drops
from the ranks, having careessly skipped the
'i." "Farinaceous" has nameess terrors for
trembling press man, who stumbles over
'double r. in the first syllable, tries to correct
himself with ''phar," and retires discounted.
Now a companion goes down for introducing
an "a' into superintendent" and another
printer corrects his proof just in time, promp-
ted by the laughter of the audience, to substi-
tute ''e'' for 81" in "sustenance." There is
= Al. .a nonl
ted and the press man who uses an IS" retires.
'Turgescency" slays one of the men, who'll
now paired with boy who falls into fight
on the simple word "surfeit." Here is prin-
ter who can't spell 'lettuce," the pronuncia-
ton of the last syllable causing him to intro
duce fatal vowel. The word "condite," some
what out of use, promises to ''stick" the typo,
but he hits it right. ''Rarefy," and "resusci-
tate" make victims of one from each side, and
then, Oh, horror! printer ,,oiA spell "halibut'
with ''haul," which caused such jeers FROM
the crowd that he will probably never relish
meal from the fish again. Three are required
to give a correct spelling Of ''comatose," there
being "toes" and "touse." Two boys and
man give up on 'catacyslm," and then press
man gives 1t correctly. The words are now
rapidly growing perplexing. There was mucn
Iameness shown over "fiiigree," ''opodeldoc,"
"duet." 'calk," ''deleterious' and "anoma-
lous." An hours spelling has now reduced
the contestants to eighteen boys against fifteen
of the press men, Aud from this point they
dron off ia ster and faster, while the audience
GROWS enthusiastic and heartily applauds each
Side Prominent among the men is one from
the Advertiser Office, whose distinguishing
marks are white bat and his promptness in
meeting and battling the attacks. He
flinches not at "e ophagus " nor at sad
scitItious" though weaker companions fall thick
and fast at such trifles as 'foleaceous," sat
elite" and ''osseous.' Finally the word "syzy-
gy" comes to him, and he objects to it as "tech.
nical." A dozen boys protest and shout out
their ability to spell the word. The commit
tee, however, sustain the objection, and in
stead of the Objectionable word the man dashes
off "anthropophagous' without wink, while
the crowd shouts and cheers The ranks thin
out faster and faster, and when two on either
side have "slipped up on 'quahaug there
are but ten left-five facing five. The master
calls out "phocine'' and boy fails. 1t is the
turn OF "white hat" He is stuck. No chance
for an objection. He never saw the word
in his life. He hestates, looks every way,
and in sheer desperation gasps "fecin,"
which, of course, takes him from the lists
sSaaatory" and ''saecharine" carry of two
men, and now three boys face the sole suryiv-
ing representative of the press A hoy drops
off, then another, and now it is single-handed
boy to man. Who will give out frst9 Soon