Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-04-01
LINCOLN SCHOOL
IS BEST SPELLER
It's Team Carries OFF Pennant
in First Contest Held Last
Night at Y. M. @. A.
WORDS USED NUMBER 5000
Joseph Cain Scores Highest Individ-
ual Records Splendid
Exhibition.

Spelling Champions, 1870" That
is the inscription on a blue and white
pennant which has been the goal to-
ward which the boys of the city
schools have been working for the
last six weeks. The long term of
preparation was brought to its cli-
max last evening when the boys from
seven schools met and contested for
the supremacy in spelling at the 1 &.
NJ. G. A. auditorium.
This morning Superintendent H. B.
Hayden and Secretary r. G. Smed-
ley of the Y NJ. c. A visited the
Lincoln school and left the coveted
pennant to decorate the walls of that
building. To Joseph Cain, also at
the Lincoln school. was given the
fountain pen which was offered for
the boy who made the best individual
record. There was a real celebra-
tion in which the whole school par
ticipated.
The second individual prize was
won by Eddie Johnson OF the Long
fellow school, and the third went 10
Harold LAUDER of the Horace Mann
school.
The contest was a splendid exhi-
bftion OF ability and training. For
more than two hours Superintendent
Hayden kept his place, giving the
words as fast as they could be SPELL
ed, and it took more than 1000
words to finish the match. After l.
500 words had been spelled, there
were still 20 of the 80 boys stand
ing.
Twenty Words Minute.
Big words and little words, short
words and long ones, all we're alike
to these spoilers, and at the rate of
20 words a minute they ratified them
of. At times. there would be round
after round in which not a single
word was missed and it was only af-
ter the contest had lasted so long that
the boys were tired and nervous that
they really began to miss seriously.
The spelling contest was the out
come OF plan preached some time
ago by the Y. NJ. G. A. for the pur-
pose of arousing new interest in
spelling In the schools. Nearly two
months ago Mr.. Hayden assigned
lists OF words amounting to 1900 in
all. to be used in preparing for the
contest. These words have been
thoroughly worked over by the chill
dren, and they were the basis of the
match. Lately Mr.. Hayden issued
a supplementary list OF another 1900
words which were used after the first
list had been exhausted. Thus the
children have studied at least 5000
words in preparation for their con-
test.
Large Audience Attends.
The Y. NJ. C. A. auditorium was
DIVIDED with the school children
md their friends. and the interest
IN the match was intense from the
first. A committee of teachers acted
as judges and Mr.. Walsh of the high
school was official scorer.
To stand UP and spell for two
hours is no slight ordeal, and when
the match was over those who had
stood up till the last felt as though
they had done a hard nights work
But 1t was a worthy work, for It
means something to earn the title of
champion speller" in Rock Island
schools.
Lincoln schools winning score was
lao points. Irving came second with
1913; Hawthorne was third with los;
and Horace Mann was fourth with
lot. Edmund Vogt of the Haw-
thorne team showed commendable
enthusiasm. He was almost sick,
and was unable to stand during the
entire match, but from his seat he