Sword and shield. (Clinton, Miss.) 1885-1888, 1885-09-05
March, in his opening address, spoke

March, in his opening address, spok'
as follows:
''Three years are spent in oul
primary schools III learning to reat
and spell little. The German ad
vances as far in a twelvemonth. 4
large fraction Of the schoo!time O
the millions is thus stolen from use
ful studies and devoted to the most
painful drudgory. Millions Of years
are thus lost in every generation.
Then it affects the intellect Of begin
ners. The child should have its reas-
on awakened by order, proportion,
fitness, law in the objects it is made
to study. But woe to the child who
attempts to use reason in spelling
English. 1t is mark Of promise not
to spell easily. One whose reason is
active must learn not to nse it. The
whole process is Supplying and per-
verting it makes great numbers Of
children finally and forever hate the
sight of book. There are reported
to the takers Of the last census
5,500,000 ilGteratcs III Che United
States. One half Of those at least
who report themselves able to read,
cannot read well enough to get much
good fromit. But moral degeneracy
follows the want Of cultivated intelIi-
gence. Christianity cannot put
forth half her strength where she
cannot use her presses, Republics
fall to ruins when the people become
blind and bad. We ought, then, to
try to improve our spelling from pa
triotic and philanthropic motives.
If these do not move Us, it may be
worth while to remember that it has
been computed that we throw away
SIS, 900, 600 a year paying teachers
for adding the brains Of our child
rem with bad spelling, and at least
s100,000,0 600 more paying printers
and publishers for sprinkling our
books and papers with silent let
ters."
In 1873, in England, the Duke Of
Richmond and Gordon, il speaking
on this subject, said:
.It is Of such vast importance and
50 large extent that it would not be
dealt with in any satisfactory way
other than by the Crowns being al
vised to issue a commission to IN
quire into the matter.
The main point urged vas the rc-
lief Of the people and the removal Of
illitertcy. Tie bulk Of children in
the government schools passed
through without learning to read and
spell tolerably. 1t was fully recog-
nized that the trouble lies in the II
regular and unreasonable spelling OF
the language. Said Prof. Max Mul-
Ter:
"The question, then, that will
have to be answered sooner or later
is, Cen this unsystematic system Of
spelling English be allowed to 60 on
forever? Is every English child, as
compared with other children, to be
mulcted in two or three years OF hls
life in order to learn it? Are the
lower classes to 50 through school
without learning to read and write
Their own language intelligently?
And is the country to pay millions
every year for this utter failure OF
national education? donot believe
that such state Of things will be
allowed to 90 on forever, particularly
as remedy is at hand. ! consider
the sooner it is taken IN hand, the
better. There is 4 motive power
behind these phonetic reformers
which Archbishop Trench has hard
ly taken into account. | mean the
misery endured by millions Of child
rem at schools who might learn in
one year and with real advantage to
themselves, what they now require
four or FIVE years to learn, and sci.
dom succeed in learning after all.
The above extracts are simply
specimens of what the progressive
thinkers Of England and America
are saying in reference to Spelling
Reform and its necessity. Nearly
all the learned professors Of the
great universities both in England
and America are identified with or
Geographic reform. The statesmen
are growing mere and more inter
ested. The late Alexander Stephens
was a strong advocate of all measures
looking to spelling reform, as we'll
as to those looking to metric reform
and the establishment Of the Metric
system. The great Gladstone also
fayors a reform in English spelling.
Press conventions should take action
in this matter, and lead the way to
this most desirable result. Why
may not our newspapers discuss the
subject till all prejudice shall be re-
moved, and the great body of tie
people shall become ready to ap-
prove a measure fraught with 50
much interest and Importance to
themselves and their posterity! By
concerted action on the part Of our
national government and that of
Great Britain, measures could be
taken which would soon render En-
glish spelling as uniform and regular
as German, or even as Spanish since
its photographic reform.
X. Y. z.