The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-09-20
The Sun and the Associated
Press, Says Mark Twain
APPEAL FOR SIMPLE SPELLING
The New System, Says Clemens, Can
Convey Any Fact and Can Pour
Out Emotions Like
a Sewer.

New York. September 19.-The annual
meeting of the members of the Associated
Press was held in this city today. I'm
portant matters in connection with the
service were disposed Of.
The members met with several guests at
dinner at the Waldorf Astoria. Melville
E. Stone. general manager of the Asso-
ciated Press. presided, and with him at
the guests table were Samuel L. Glenn
ems, who did Reform Speaking Gen.
Horace Porter, former ambassador to
France who responded to the toast, Our
Guests" Henry A. Shute, the author, who
talked of Critics." and Prof. George E.
Vincent of the University of Chicago, who
spoke on purely Academic"
After the guests and members We're
seated, after the custom Of the Associated
Press dinners, the loving cup was passed.
and each member drank, each in turn be-
ing introduced to the other guests. The
toastmaster then introduced Gen. Horace
Porter.
General Porter paid a high and graceful
tribute to the work of the Associated
Press and of newspaper men in general
He spoke of the improvements in the
/ handling of news in foreign countries
brought about by the energy of the mem
bers of the Associated Press. In eonclu-
sion, General Porter said
1--WE all criticlse the paper; We all abuse
It, and we all take 1t. We can't eat our
breakfast without 1t; we have no appe-
tite for our dinners until we have seen
its contents If you wish to know the
value of the freedom of the press we have
4 4I,af oil
country is the most prosperous in all
the annals of history with a free press;
that great empire In the east in which
the red hand of anarchy is seen through
out its borders has a press muzzled by
censor"
Mr. Stone next introduced Mark Twain,
who was greeted with enthusiastic ap-
plause Mr.. Stone said of Mr.. Clemens
among other things, that he was the in
spiration of the first press club In this
| country"
''The. truth is" replied Mr.. Clemens.
"the inspiration was due to jug that
some one carried"
Mr. Clemens continued
'I am here to make an appeal to the
nation in behalf of the simplifed spelling.
have come here because they cannot
all be reached except through you. There
are only two forces that can carry light
to all the corners of the globe. Only two.
/ the sun IN the neHNeIlS anu TIE ASSoCidleu
Press down here. I may seem to be fat
tering the SUM- but do not mean it so:
am meaning only to be just and fair all
around. You speak with a million voices;
no one can reach so many races, so many
hearts and intellects as you, except Rud-
yard Kipllng and he cannot do 1t with
out your help. If the Associated Press
| will accept and use our simplified forms,
and thus spread them to the ends of the
earth, covering the whole spacious planet
with them with garden of flowers
our difficulties are at an end.
Clemens PeIa.
EVERY day of the 365 the only pages of
the worlds countless newspapers that are
read by all the human beings and angels
! and devils that can read, are those pages
| that are built out of Associated Press lam
guage dispatches And SO / beg you, be-
| seech you-oh, | implore you-to spell
them In our simplifed forms. Do this
daily, constantly, persistently for three
months-only three months-it Is all
ask. The infallible result victory victory,
victory all down the line.
'For by that time all eyes here and
| above and below will have become ad-
| ,usted to the change and in love with 1t.
and the present clumsy and ragged forms
| will be grotesque to the eye and revolt
ing to the soul And we shall be rid of
phythyss and phthysc and pneumonia
and pneumatic and diphtheria and ptera-
dactyl and all other insane words which
no man addicted to the simple Christian
life can try to spell and not lose some or
the bloom of his piety In the demoralizing
attempt Do not doubt it. We are chamsl-
cons and our partialities and prejudices
change places with an easy and blessed
| facility, and we are soon wonted to the
change and happy in 1t. We do not regret
our old yellow fsngs and snags and tushes
after we have worn nice fresh. uniform
teeth awhile.
Seeks Worlds Good.
"Do I seem to be seeking the good of the
world? That is the idea. 1t is my public
attitude-privately, | am merely seeking
NV own profit, we all do it, but 1t is
sound and it is virtuous. for no public
interest is anything or nobler than
amassed action of private interests. In
1888 when the simplifed spelling move
ment first tried to make a nonse | was
Indifferent to II. more, l even sconed at
it. What | needed was an object lesson
and / got it."
Here the speaker related an anecdote
of having once been required to write
ten pages of copy for a magazine where
words of not less than from ten to twenty
letters were employed, at cents
word, thereby suffering great pecuniary
loss. and continued:
From that day to this l have been
devoted and Woodworking member Of
the Heaven born. member of the Inter-
national Association for the Prevention
of Cruelty to Authors and now | am
laboring with Carnegie's simplified COM
mittee and with my heart in the work.
'Simplified spelling can convey any fact
you need to convey, and it can pour out
emotions like sewer. / beg you, I be-
seech you, to adopt our spelling and print
all your dispatches in it,
------s--