The news-democrat. (Providence, R.I.) 1906-1909, 1906-09-07
MAY RECOMMEND
THE NEW SPELLING
FOR HIS SCHOOLS

Boston. Sept THE recommendation
OF the Slmplihed Spelling board are like
ly 10 receive official recognition I'm the
Boston public schools. Supt Stratton ID.
Brooks back yesterday after summer
spent In the country. stated ;hat he was
decidedly I'm favor OF the changes pro-
posed by the board and approved OF Presl-
oent Roosevelt's order introducing the
new forms In executive documents; more
over that he might make some recon-
mendations along this line for the Boston
schools.
"Do you mean that you would favor
substituting the slmpllhed forms alto
gtther for the older ones?' Mr.. Brooks
was asked.
mo, not that. My policy would be TO
place this list OF words recommended by
the simplified spelling board before the
pupils and TO instruct them that these
forms are pust as good and sustained by
and by the historical development of tho
language.
Then they could use whichever they
wished. The fact Is that the matter Of
spelling in the Boston schools has never
been regulated by the central authority,
and some OF the headniasters have used
many Of these simplified forms for years.
one OF the headmasters told me today
that he had looked over the list OF 300
words and found that he had been teach
ing the greater part of them right
along"
Mr.. Brooks added. however, that he did
not favor any general spelling reform
and did not believe that a thoroughly
phonetical system OF spelling was pos
sible.
MY approval of the spelling REFORM"
he said. goes just as far as the recon-,
mendations OF the simplihed spelling
board, and no farther. l don't believe in
radical changes. / believe that a Ian
guage is sloY, historical growth, and
believe that these changes are in the line
OF natural development and should be
encouraged.
MANY OF the changes have been used
In educational journals and among edu-
Gators for years; the spelling Of 'thro in
stead OF though. for instance. ] haven't
spelled the word which some write pro-
gramme with a final me for 20 years.
Simpllfications OF that kind are natural
and proper enough and they are nothing
at all like the stuff that some OF the
newspapers have been printing
The attention OF the superintendent was
called TO the position taken by an ad-
vocate Of spelling reform In an address
Il Harvard a few years ago. that I'm
course OF time II a schoolboy should spell
cat" for instance. kat" the teacher
should tell him that his manner OF SPELL
ing the word had not been customary.
but II 1t seemed to him preferable he
might spell IL that way. Mr.. Brooks re-
piled that such position. OF course, was
extreme. and again emphasized that he
did not stand for any radical reforms,
Asked IL his proposed policy with re-
gard TO the official slmplfed spelling
would make the matter OF spelling easier
for the children. he replied that he did not
think that IL would make any apprecia-
BILE difference, as the number Of words
In the list that are commonly used is
small. He did not consider either that
forms as alternative for the older forms
elasticity. The children would merely be
told that these particular forms might
be used, as they were sanctioned by good
authority.