The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1879-10-09
MILAN EXCHANGE,
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 9. 1879.
The Spelling Reform

To the American
VIII YOU allow a brief plea for the
spelling reform, as it has now shaped
itself, and be kind enuf to print this
articl just as it is speldY
This movement, looking tord the
fonetic representative ov every word
in type and in correspondents, has as
sumed such dimenshuns, and has con-
nected with it so many respectabl
names, that it can no longer be kept
down by ridicul or silent content.
A host ov names, prominent amung
which ar Prof. March, LII. d., Ov
Lafayette College; Prof. w. d.
Whiting, Ii. D., of Yale College;
Prof. S. S. Haldeman, ov the Univer-
sity ov Pennsylvania; Prof. f. }.
Child, Phi. D., ov Harvard Universe
ty; Hon. w. T. Harris, Superintend>
ent ov Schools ov st. Louis, Mo-, Civ
us the assurans that the caus has bin
taken in hand by men who hav the
ability and infuens to push it 10 final
victory.
Professors in more than fifty of the
leading colleges in the United States
hav given their names and inf1uens to
the caus ov spelling reform.
The relijious and secular pres ar
taking an active interest in the sub
ject, and ar discussing it as it has never
been DISGUST befoor.
The Chicago Tribune has been
amung the foremost in the West and
has adopted a list ov words which ar
to be spelt fonetically. The New
York Independent, ov Aug. IA, has
devoted eight columns to an addres on
"The Present State ov the Spelling
Reform in America" by Prof. Fran
els A. March, Ii. D., President ov
the Spelling Reform Associashun.
Articles on the subject hav appeared
in Scribner, for September and Octo-
Der. Thus it will be seen that the
movment has now weight and mo-
mentum which insure constantly in
creasing power over public opinion.
The Spelling Reform Associashun
starts out with this principl: That 1t
will make the attack on the old sistem
in the line of the least resistans.
1t does not propose to adopt, at
once, full font Of type, representing
every different sound in the language.
The appearans Of a page thus printed
would shock the nerves ov that sensi-
tive being called the public to such a
degre that it would never recover.
The effort is to make the change
where it is the easiest and most natu-
raj. Hens the folding rules hav been
adopted by the Associashun:
l Omit from the diagraf ca, when
pronounce as short, as in helth, he'd.
If h, e, d does not spell head, what
does it spell?
2 Omit silent after short vowel,
as in hav, Civ, etc.
3 Write for phi, in such words as
alfabet, fantom, etc.
When word ends in double let
ter omit the last, as in shall, elf, eg,
etc.
Change ed to whenever it has the
sound ov t, as in lasht, imprest, etc.
The folding words hav also been
recommended for immediate use: ar,
catalog, defnit, gard, Civ, hav, infnit,
liv, tho, thru, visit.
These changes ar so simple and Sc
natural that anyone may contemplate
them without being especially horri
fed, and when the public becomes
familiar with the new spelling ov these
words it will ask, why not extend SO
good a rule to other words?
Their ar hundreds who would be
redy to enter upon this movement il
they only knew it would result Ill
something. Yours truli,
A FoNETIsHUE.