The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1879-08-14
WILL THE REFORM BLOT OUT
OUR NAMES AND uEMORIES9

WILL THE REFOKM BLOT OUT
OUR NAMES AND MEMORIES2
There are about 1000 daily and week.
y papers In the Unit ID States, and
1,S0O, 900, 900 copies are Issued annr-
ally. Every body reads newspapers. If
there were no schools every youth
would follow the rugged road to learn
ing 10 that turning point whence the
great worl1 of newspapers may be
scanned. Ways and means of reading
would be discovered. The very
ubiquitousness of newspapers would
compel it. None would live In dark
ness when such vast volumes of light
are diffused, when it costs almos. moth
ing and when it gives access to the
pulsebeats of time and eternity. There
is no such free school as the newspaper
and If governments expended as much
in promoting their diffusion as upon the
circulation of erraLt rustic pedagogues,
the country would be infinitely more
moral and intelligent than to-day.
Numerous as are the newspapers and
all-pervading as is their influence, they
become RAPIDLY more and more numer-
GUS and each day and hour their moral
and intellectual power is heightened.
Let as suppose, therefore, that this
process continue and that all people
become, like the most active business
men, readers of newspapers alone, Civ
ing over books to professional people
and to dusty libraries, how Infinite the
power of the press, moulding imper-
ceptibly the opinions and shaping the
codes and fixing the convictions of the
multitude. A learned lecturer says thst
the extent of this extraordinary force
welded by newspapers is discovered
10 modern changes wrought by it even
in spelling. tits alleged that phonetic
modes will be finally and universally
adopted, and before the year 1900
dawns upon the progress We world, the
masses of the people will be wholly
unable to read newspapers and books
of our time. 1t must be remembered
that Journalism is younger than the
English language. The writer referred
to says it has caught up with and
passed this sturdy tongue, and yet the
press rests under a bondage as slavish
as that which it has escaped, and is
the serf of the photography of the six
teenth century, aud yet the press can
dictate at will the spelling of the con-
tinept. II it adopt, simply as a mat
ter of economy, the phonetic mode of
spelling, the newspapers, using letter
only for each sound, would be illegi-
BILE. The economical change must be
wrought, therefore, very gradually,
and yet we are steadily approaching it.
How long before we have discovered
the saving even in emitting a from ca
in the words 'helth" and "welth2n
and why not omit the in SHAY" and
"givY" and why not write f for phi and
omit the latter of double letters and
change ed to { in ''impresst, ''caresst," :"
and like words2 Elitors of daily pa
pers soon learn to use arbitrary marks
comprehended by themselves and
printers that save time and labor. This
has lead to the disuse of capital letters
and italics. Silent letters ia long
words and in short, too, for that mat
ter, rapidly disappear. Why add the
useless "me" to program. and the
terminal ste" to "q laitet," aud why
add ''ugh" to "Wadesboro'," )" or sue"
to s'demagog," though each of these |
should have tail to his kite, and why |
use "ph" as in spelling the name of the |
Dallas Herdld's editor, when s'fn would |
serve the same purpose, and espe-
cially when the editor would smell |
as sweetly by any other name2
The philologist above quoted says |
that simple little omissions, like those |
indicated, would save printers letter |
for every line set up and in this age of |
habits. when all lands are |
invaded by Chinese parsimony and all |
peoples and forms OF industry must
finally compete with it, it is time that
We were sffecting reforms in language,
and in spelling and printing it. The
time Of readers and toll OF printers and
money OF publishers and labor of ed
itors viii be infinitely lessened.
1t may be objected that these eco !
nomical reforms will effect such radi-
cal changes in progressive literature
that the next will read neither books
nor newspapers Of this generation. The
objection signifies nothing. It is
enough, evsn now. 4 the busy citizen
have ting . keep psce vim progress
i've events. E>et 1.s. = hers- be-
fosc. every gla11 es<s. oce1.<.a& = |
any point en ,1s nl>a1. IS k.-Gle
abEoad b. he nersp&t1r. II.... oo.
stitnie the worlds Ais.osg. t<I.ts. 4.
The noment. and iAese are tsc boe..
Of the future and nQ.e Others I'll Be