The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-01-24
Hard sided Words Bowl over
Public schools in Brook
lyn Bee.
100 LINE TIP FOR THE FRAY
Families and Teachers Cheer
Contestants in Crowded
Academy Of Music.


Of more than 100 schools Of Brooklyn.
Queens. Nassau and SUFFOLK counties.
when with fine marching precision they
swung onto the stage of Brooklyn
Academy of Music last night to hght It
out to the last vowel and consonant in
the biggest spelling bee perhaps this land
has seen
Each little lad. or each little girl. first
of all was to receive from the hands OF
Prof Franklin W. Hooper. head Of the
Brooklyn Institute. a medal donated by
the Brooklyn E1gic. the publishers Of
which arranged last nights battle Of tho
| consonants. The medal showed that the
boy or girl had defeated every other
lminsrics and therefore was entitled to
do battle last night
Perhaps the late Mr. Mendelssohn would
have written his war march for his priests
OF Alfalfa" even more stirringly had he
seen the stony eyes and .ightened lips OF
the tiny warriors Of last night as they
tramped across the stage to that same
alfalfa" clang and clash Maybe they
heard the thunders OF applause rolling
down upon them from AN audience of
mothers and fathers. sisters and cousins
and aunts and teachers. who packed the
great amphitheatre from pit TO dome.
And the pent up signs would burst forth
TREMENDOUSLY from these same teachers,
parents and playmates In the audience
Just "a excitedly az they came from the
rosy lips on the stage. When the bigger
boys and girls Of the orchestra Of the
Commercial High School had played THE
star Spangled Banner" when the medals
/ for the prelim!naries had next been pre-
scented and when DIR. Hooper had made an
ehA,. hu he
fore the avalanche.
And Then the battle Broke.
The strain was terrific. Pronouncer
| Henry Gaines Hawn arose beside an awe
some websters unabridged. Near by sat
the three judges-Mgr. T.. W. McCarty.
rector Of St Augustines Catholic Church
Miss Grace &. Strachan. district superin-
| tendcnt, and Principal william l.. Felter
| OF the Girls High School
From one of the many boxes hung a
blue and white silk banner bearing the
legend that behind IL sat committee
from the Brooklyn Spelling Reform So
| ciety. Next door to the stage was an
| other banner disclosing the whereabouts
| OF the "Simplined Spelling Board"
And when,' cried Or. Hooper at one
time during his speech before the battle
perhaps the doctor hadn't noticed the two
banners-"we seek to change our his
| torc spelling by these letter day 'simpli-
ned or other so-called reform methods,
We do violence TO the English language
Il statement greeted with much happiness
while all eyes turned toward the two
boxes containing the reformers.
But the warriors can't stand much
more OF this tremendously awful sus-
pense. so let's up and at II. You can see
their lips moving. eyes staring into space,
az mentally they are running over and
A.. -. 49, st.s~~
and which. dogsone II! doubtless will be
the very words Nistah Hawn will ask
Sweaty hands are twisting and turning
Mt skirts 40 abbreviated TO begin with
,hoi soon along tho front rows nickel
g,r,.r clasns vsr. ylin,inp uloiulv among
c,,r,. ,,a aource. ana h,Iow. a, ur,nar,
,,anah. ,h,n~.
'''''"''N '"
"MisspeII and You're Down,
Each young lady or young gentleman
explained Fronouncer Hawn. VIII rise in
without going back after once starting.
naH we "o ' "S"',' , anu -, uom, ~, - 'ae
80, r"r'' 80.
rom t"e s'"se, : s""" sNe vac" " You
"oru uhti! All nav" suc'eeued or faiIed
III 'h's n'N iouia, anu 'hai' thefe VIII he
a second ana Il 'h'Iu i"uhV AS outlined.
IN" mrs. iounu consisted or words
taken IRON list or i'ooO used IN the
school preliminary trias me second list
vas made up OF 400 words handed To the
champs only last Monday. Then there
was the whirlwind last round In which
| the thin pale line OF survivors had to walk
right up and throttle words they never
had studied IN school
That's where the Sroans and death rat
ties were friGh;fulest. And no matter
how indignant pop or nom out In the
audience might be when their offspring
bit the dust It's safe TO say that when
they led their children home toward mid
night there was no paternal unheaval.
How are you going TO iace into your child
for falling down when any moment said
offspring might turn on YOU an a DeKalb
avenue car and ask sivagely:
well. IL You know 80 much. pop how
would you spell that there word Mistah
Hawn gimme to SPELL
Yes, old top. how do You spell
icosl dodec a hebron" Come avn the whole