The morning times., 1896-02-08
ABsURDIT1Es OF SPELLING.
Rules of Orthography Contrary TO
Etymology and Pronunciation.

Etymology and Pronunciation.
That proofreaders and compositors should
be anxious for fixed rule of spelling IS in
telligibie, and one can easily sympath1ze
with their difficulties when dealing with
words which may be spelled in more than
one way. Nevertheless, the proposal re-
Gently made that all these doubtful spell
ings should be determined, has met with
most vigorous opposition from men ofletters
and students OF the English language.
Scholars. like Prof. Skeat, strongly object
to any attempt to further fix system OF
spelling, which cannot be defended On any
rational or scientific grounds.
To good many people, WHO as boys and
| girls were taught to regard correct spell
ing as almost more important than correct
Speaking, this questioning of the whole basis
of our orthography will come with shock
| of surprise 1t neds, however, only little
| careful reflection to enable one TO realize
| that the scholars are right. The popular
| notion that our spelling indicates the ETY.
| mology of words, and that this is task
which spelling ought TO perform, VIII not
| bear serious examination. All that our
spelling really does is to retain archaic
| forms of words, which are now in use with
changed pronunciation. But these forms
We're themselves changes from something
1 that had gone before, and if we consider
| the profound antiquity OF the language, IT
| is easy to understand that the assistance
| which philologists can get from an Eliza
! bethan or a Georgian spelling is practically
worthless.
AS a matter of fact. however, many Of
these older spenings are positively miselad-
| ing In the last century, for example. our
| ancestors spelled lantern, lanthorn. not be-
cause they so pronounced it. but because
some ingenious person thought that tue sides
of a lantern had originally been made OF
horn and that the name had thus arisen.
| The word, of course. comes from the French
| lanterne. This particular instance OF pc
! dantic folly the present generation has
dropped. but We have preserved many
| Others We stin for example. have rhyme
as IL the word were connected to rhythm.
while, in fact. it is nothing but the French
rime. Could is another abSurdity. The
! word nevers and never has been pronounced
| with an l. Its old English or ADglC-SaXoD
| forms are coud ard couthe, and the has
| crept into the modern spelling solely from
false analogy with would aCd should. Yet
girl who left out this unhistoric and mac
curate l in an examination paper would
| probably be ridiculed.
/ In other cases modern spelling, though
| not absolutely Inaccurate, is still miSlead-
ing. The word debt is a case in point. Here
| the insertion of the silent b obScures the
| fact that the word comes to US through the
| French dette, and not direct from the Latin.
| Our French peighbors, by the way, have
| little more reason to be content with their
| spelling than we have, though cur blunders
are not always Identical. We, for instance.
| spell marriage with two RS, and they. more
| correctly, with only one; but, in revenge,
we have only one in literature, while
/ thew have two. :
| The truth OF the whole matter is that OuT
spelling, like most of our other institutions,