Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-04-15
.Bowdoin |ntersCho|astic
Lssgss Debate Debate.
Sim |ified Spelling The Sub
ject Under Discussion. (
Portland Champions Affirmative
And cony the Negative.

/
ond annual debate between that insti-
tuticn and Cony High Of Augusta
which was held Wednesday night at
Cry hall This debate was also the
first in the Bowdoin Interscholastic
| League The audience was disappolnt-
ingly small on account of the stormy
| weather, hut those who attended were
amply repaid for Drawing the elements,
| for the arguments We're far above those
of the average school debates.
| Cony High had an entirely new team
| for the debate, and while the Augusta
speakers presented many telling points
they We're unable to unite all points of
the argument in the connected man
ner which their opponents followed,
The Portland High speakers were aided
| by previous experience and the ap-
parent use Of a wider range of material
| than the Cony High debaters.
Hon. Trcby Johnson, mayor of Au-
gusta, presided and the judges We're
Prof. j. w. Black of Colby College,
Prof. II. b. Hastings of Bowdoin Col
lege and Principal George S. Stevenson
| of Coburn Classical Institute, Water
| vile.
The proposition for debate was: ere
solved, That the Recommendations of
| tie Smplificd Spelling Board Should
BE Adopted by the American People"
Portland High had the affirmative of
the proposition with James p. Bax-
ter Cd, Edward r. Roberts and Fred
| D. Wish, Jr.. as the disputants. while
| Cony High had the negative with EV-
erett s. Mcdonald, Erldon S. Turner
and Elwyn f.. Gage as the disputants.
William Mulhall acted as timekeeper
for Portland High and Reucl b. Soule
as tinlel1eo per for Cony High.
! The opening speaker on each side
was allowed If minutes and the other
two speakers 10 minutes each, while
| in rebuttal each speaker was allowed
| five minutes. On assuming charge of
| the debate Mayor Johnson announced
that according to the rules governing
the debate the merits of the argument
would be considered rather than the
merits of the question, and that the
material used by the speakers would
| count for more than the delivery.
Ny. Baxter in opening the debate for
| the affirmative argued that the recon-
mendatiors Of the simplified spelling
| board would if adopted save money,
| time and labor to the learner and user
Of the English language and would also
greatly aid foreigners learning English
spelling and defective children as well.
Mr.. Macdonald of Cony High opened
the negative Of the debate by arguing
that the board of simplfied spelling
has violated the principle laid down in
its original circular and recommended
in it's later circulars radical and revo-
lI,IiI ,,1f To 1aI hot
the smplified spelling methods were
| impractical BILE and inconsistent, did not
simplify the words and obscured thei,
meaning ana origin.
Mr.. Roberts, the second Portland
speaker, argued in favor Of the recon-
mendlticns of the Simplified spelling
board a. business proposition, saving
space and cost of composition in print
ed matter, and time to the stcnogra-
ph"r.
Mr.. Turner, the second Cony High
school speaker gave as some of the
| reasons why the recommendations OF
the simrlihed spelling board were i'm
practicable, that they involved undc-
| sirablc phonetics, return to the con-
fusion of the early English photography.
the destruction of the esthetic beauty
of the written and spoken English Ian
| suase and the unsettling of literary
| standard.
Mr.. Wish, the third Portland High
school speaker, argued that the recon-
mendations were in accordance with
the, sound principle of the English Ian
gnage and would not destroy the
| eSthctic beauty of the language
Mr.. Gage, the closing speaker for
Cony High school. argued that the
| recommendations of the simplified
spelling board We're impracticable be-
cause such changes must come spon-
taneously, because the majority of the
American people We're opposed to
spelling reform, and because the
changes to be practicable must be
adopted hv ell the English speaking
people.
The hrief'but lively rebuttals On both
sides proved quite as interesting to the
audience as the main part of the de-
bate and the student speakers were
listened to with the closest attention and
warmly applauded in this, part of the
debate.
1t took the judges but q very few
moments to announce their decision.
which was unanimously in favor of the
affirmative speakers.