The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1884-03-16
Horizontal Reduction Of the English
Language.

| ASnukuokCs
We ore indebted u Mr.. CHARLES p. q.
Scorr. Trezurer and Corresponding Secre-
tary Of the Spelling Reform Association, for
documents illustrating the aims and work
Of that band Of earnest reformers. We are
Informed, for instance, that at the last annual
meeting the headquarters wer transferd
from st. Louis to New York, in tho hope that
the concentration Of tho exccutiv officers In
or near New York would lead to more efIectiv
efforts In behalf of the Reform. 1t seems
probabl that this hope will 10 fulnld." We
arc also happy to learn that "thc Affairs Of
the association ar on satisfactory basis"
This is encouraging; md while VIC are not
prepared to respond to the Society's invita-
ton to spell heart hart, and beauty beuty,
and women wmen, and tongue tung, and
lamb lam, and whole hole. hereafter In tho
columns OF THE Sun, we shall, nevertheless,
watch the progress Of the movement with
impartial interest These are the same
apostles OF reform, we suppose, who recent
ly urged Western editor to drop the final
NC In words ending with those letters; q re-
quest to which he replied that while he
would cheerfully spell demagogue demagog
and colleague colleag, when it came to SPELL
ing glue ri his whole inner nature protested
against the innovation.
What strikes US most forcibly, however.
In this movement for tho reform OF the Eng
lish language-this campaign on platform
of Spelling for Sound Only--is the parallel it
affords to another movement conducted by
another band Of earnest reformers. They
have not yet transferd their headquarters
from the West to New York city, but they
hn,,a us,xA L1t- To-
politics, and the result remains to be seen.
Like the Tariff reformers, the Spelling re-
formers include q great number Of distin-
guished men, among them many professors
in the American and English universities.
Here, for example, are Professors WHITNEY
Of Yale. CHILD of Harvard, MAX MILLER
and SAYcE OF Oxford. and SKEAT of Cam
bridge, all in favor Of reducing the orthogra-
ply OF the language to q phonetic standard.
Clergymen, lawyers. physicians, and editors
appear In the rolls os adhercnts to the doc
trines Of the reform. Even the Tariff for
Revenue Only propagandists can hardly pre-
sent more imposing list OF converts
In theory, moreover, tho Spelling reform
ers, like the FREQ traders are logically sound
in their arguments. A great deal Of time Is
wasted In writing the silent and insignificant
letters which swarm In English words. Tho
photography of the language is full Of pre-
pOsterous Inconsistencies. The logical way
to spell English words is as they sound, not
as our fathers and grandfathers wrote them.
Nevertheless, there are practical objections
In the way Of the immediate adoption OF
radical change. The principles OF the re-
formers are not likely to make much head
why during the present generation.
Finally, both the Tariff and tho Spelling
reformers come down from the high level Of
pure and uncompromising principle, and ex-
press their willingness to accept small con-
cessions on the part Of the general public.
Instead OF the demand for FREQ trade. pure
and simple, we hear now OF a horizontal re-
duction of twenty or even Of fifteen per cent.
In the schedule Of customs duties Instead
Of the demand for logical, consistent, and
strictly phonetic spelling, we are merely
asked to drop a few letters here and there,
while retaining the more conspicuous alb
surdities of the present system. Is this true
courage? Is this fidelity to conviction
We advise the Spelling reformers to turn
their attention to politics. They may sue
coed in that field as well as the Tariff re-
formers have done.