Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1885-11-01
MIND-Srt WING.
A PROTEST AGAINST THE LAWLESS.
NESS OF ENGLISH SPELLING.
the ysranch Of Study Which Brings Only
discontinue and Bewilderment to
the PupiI-''A Lying, Hound about,
Puzzle Headed Delusion."
iFrcderik 4. Fernald.i

Learning to read the English language is
one Of the worst inind-stunting processes
that has formed part of the general edu
cation OF any people, Its evil influence
arises from the partly phonetic, partly law
less character OF English spelling. Although
each letter represents some sound ofteaer
than any other, there is hardly letter in
the alphabet that does not represent more
than one sound, AMI hardly a sound in the
language that is not represented in several
ways, while many words are written with
Is many silent letters significant ones.
There is nothing in any word to indicate in
which Of these ways its component sounds
are represented, nothing III the written
group Of letters to show which sounds they
stand for, and which If them, If any, silent,
so that a learner can nsver be sure OF pro
nouncins rightly English word that he
has not heard spoken, nor Of spelling cor
rectly one that he has never seen written
The spelling of each word must DO learned
by sheer forcs If memory. La this work The
pupils reasoning power can not be- utilized,
but must be subdued, while tsis memory is
sadly overworked.
In the affairs OF the child's daily life, the
logical following out OF rules is rewarded;
in learning to SPELL it brings him only dis
comiiture and bewilderment He is taught
that bone stands for bon mot bone and
tome for ton. bat that d-5-n-s stands
for dun. that gone spells gon, m-o-v-e
spells moov, ami b-r-o-n re hronz Now
when he COMES in reading to another similar
word, as none. he has no means of telling
whether 60 call it non, num- non, noon, or
non; he can only look up at his teacher and
wait to bs told. The influence of the SPELL
ing class quickly drive, him TO repress any
II. IL
up 10 "A blind following OF authority.
SO much attention is given to spelling that
children obtain false ideas Of its impor
tance. The spelling. representation, be-
comes 10 them the word, while the real
word is called the pronunciation, and is
thought OF as an appendags. They learn TO
despise the poor speller. a prejudice which
/, never outgrown, and above all they be-
come so absorbed in the manipulation Of
words that they have little chance to grasp
the ideas which the words stand for.
If cur notation Of numbers were as irreg-
ular as our notation Of speech, so that tn,
numbers from forty to forty five, for instance
should DO written. say follows: 10. Al,
40, AZ. ala, 225; and if no one could tell
at sight whether number Ike I, 2i3 Sl2
contained several figures which were
silent" had exceptional values, who can
doubt that the study of arithmetic instead
of being valuable discipline, would be
mere mentally enervating drudgery9 If it
were proposed that children should learn
style of writing music which gave different
values to the same characters, similarly
placed, in different pieces, and added a host
Of silent" notes, the evils OF learning such
-ystem would be plainly seen. Yet many
people, who have forgotten their own suffer
,n0 i,,f ha 81. Int
children are so very much perplsxed in
learning to spell, or perhaps maintain that
the struggle involved is good for them"
Il know" says Max Muller, there are
persons who can defend anything, and VIII
hold that it is due to this very discipline
that the English character is what it is; that
it retains respect for authority; that it does
not require IA reason for everything; and
that i. does aot admit that what is incon-
caivablc is therefore impossible" Lord
Lytton says: "A more lying. roundabout,
,alzzle- headed deluSicn than that by which
we confuse the clear instincts of truth in
oar accursei system "f spelling was never
concocie by the father Of fslsehood
How can a system Of education flourish that
begins by SO INDUSTRIOUS a falsehoo1, which
the sense OF hearing sui'iccs 70 contradictir
Mr. J. H. Gladstone, member OF the Eng
lish school board for London. has computed
the number of hours spent by the children
IN learning to read and spell English Il b.
$3.50. while in gaining equal knowieig.
II their native language Italian chilirsa
.psni only 9I5 hour. The difference
amounts {, nearly two school year, AMI
shows under what Il Disadvantage EHgli-a,
speaking chiliren labor Can any one
believe tina; 4 925, AL or lSi per cent, of
our manhattan ,.ysr 10 wears # acs woult