Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1880-11-20

letter without running the word
least Of all can we afford to spell it
just as we do the French corps, sig
nifying badge, it is true, but not
a dead body. Another proposed
change is to drop k, as a prefix in
words like knight and knave. In
the latter case we would have nave,
a rascal, instead of part of a church,
and naively remarks Miss A., II
am opposed to that evil" The word
nave, SO well named by the Roman
architects presents likeness of the
invented hull of ship.
Take the word money, and it be-
comes changed currency by the new
spelling, and we destroy it's local
historic and value. 1t too, is Ro-
man, and so called from Moneta, a
surname of Juno. in whose temple
at Rome money was first coined.
Take the word love, spell it ac-
cording to proposed change, and we
have katu, or as the Saxons said luf,
and at once your lovely lady loves
half her charms. And who among
you are in favor of shortening kiss
by even so much as a fourth. The
field of etynaOtogy is too wide and
too important for the imperfect sur
vey to be given in short paper.
We notice in the last place, that
the change is opposed to sentiment.
AS Bayard Taylor has sweetly
sung
"a" Al outward wisdom yields to that within,
key
The advocates of the old style of
spelling may be sneered at as "mere
sentimentalists," but when the
laugh is over sentiment remains en-
trenched in the heart so firmly that
no foe can dislodge her. There are
words which the proposed change
would destroy as dear to this gen.
Grafton as the graves of their dead.
They are embalmed in the heart,
and there they will remain. A few
years ago cremation was a popular
theme, but the difference between a
burning and 6u1yipg, even in the
the announcement, was a shock to
the sentiment of the bereaved, and
the plan persisted. The Cave of
Machpelah where Abraham buried
Sarah is hallowed spot, but if the
patriarch had said, land there /
burned Sarah," the place would be
invested with horror.
All in all, sentiment is a control
ing power, and as Col. Bailey wisely
said of reputation, ''no man, or set
of men can afford to ignore senti-
ment. When sentiment sets itself
squarely against a change, it can
not be successfully made"
In short, the reasons for the new
system, Or as it assumes the reform,
impress me as did the hearty young
mans reason for taking two plates
full of potato pudding. You seem
fond of it, remarked l, as 1 saw my
own chance for a share slipping
away under his repeated attacks.
eyes, Marin, 1 am" replied he, SIT
is so soft and easy to chaU on"
Upon the whole, Is it not best to
accept the old compromise be-
tween the Saxons and Normans,
and thus hold in memory both,
when we spell one way and pro-
nounce another. That is doubtless
the key to many words which need
lessly perplex us,
One more thought as touching
upon the query "Origin of Printers
Devil" The advocates for reform
spelling claim that when printing
was introduced into England,
the printers were ignorant Ger
mans. That in the spelling they did
not follow the English copy or
manuscript at all that they print
ed as sounded right to them, hence
a multiplicity of mistakes, until in
his prOvOcatiOn an exasperated
author cried out: "The very Devil
is at work in the printing press ~
So say they, many of our boosted
old English words are not in the
printed form as they appeared from
the authors hands, and ought not
therefore be received as heir-looms
from the learned-at least they are
jewels with a false setting. This is the
most plausible reason for reform, for
we all know that even now very
startling spelling sometimes greets
us in the printed page, and when /
once complained to an erudite ed
itor that Caesar was spelled wrong in
little item had furnished him,
he replied, "My dear madam, the
printer ranks both editor and cor
respondent" However, "the Print
er's Devil' had a local habitation
and name before the days of Eng
fish spelling. He is as old as the art
of printing. This was known and
practiced in China at very early
date, and even there and then this
merry imp was recognized.
But the art as known by US was
not received from the Chinese. 1t
was discovered by Laurentius of
Harlan, 1896, who walking in the
wood one day amused himself by
cutting letters into the rend of a
beech tree. These being pressed On
paper suggested to him the idea of
printing from wooden types. The
use of movable types, metallic types,
was invented by Gutenberg, at
Mentz, in company with his broth
er and Jno. Faust. 1445. The art of
casting types in a mould was in
vented by Peter Shoeffer, an assist
ant of Faust. 1458. One of the first
books printed was the Bible. Faust
having printed off number of
copies toimitate thosesold in manu-
script, undertook the sale of them |