Arizona republican., 1919-12-17
How Words Change


 language is the change it has undergone in the form of words from one period to another. Between ChahIcer and Spenser there startling change and since the time latter the change has been continuous though of decreasing rapidty until within the last hundred years the changes have been rather inconsequental
 We have been told that the dictionaries have been responsible for the arrest of the change. No doubt the dictionaries greatly stabilized spelling and havetended preserve forms but think that with out the dictionaries the frequency with which words are presented printed page. would have resulted in stabilization.
 In Chaucer's time and long after. comparatively few persons ever the forms of words. They only heard the words and those who wrote them aft erward translated the sounds of the words into forms which differed widely from the original.
 The masses of the people what would aovi call ierate Tn fact literacy the exception ,hen. It was in fact a badge of inferior station It blonged to clerks and scrveners. The priests of course, learned. But many of the nobes dd not believe that learning noble. In "ATarmion7 an Earl of Douglas was thankful that his eldest and ,avdfe warrior son had never learned to write.
 The attitude of the nobles to learning per haps conveyed in the ancient verse:
 "A steed steed of matchess speede.
 A sword of metal kene.
 All else to noble hearts is drosse;
 Y All else earth is mean
 If we were now suddenly deprived of books papers printing presses that printed written forms would be infrequently the next genera would have forms quite different from those with which familiar.
 This suggested to us in letter from little six year old girl in which she used the word "snog- gerfur" for "stenographer" It seemed funny first but the more studied about it the less natural the spelling seemed to be the part of who had though she had heard the word, Probably a majority of the people pronounce it very much as the little girl spelled it. We suppose half the stenographers themselves it rather cording to that spelling
 We have since noticed that great many people in pronouncing either leave out 't entirely so sur it over that only those familiar with the form of the word catch it all. The omission of the 't' sound means the elimination of syllable, that instead "stenog' have "snog" just as the little girl wrote it. Most people pronouncing the word sound the ''r' but pass the succeeding vowel that instead of "ra' we have only TT So, then have either "snogger' or at the best by those who little less hurried careless. "snogger" The last syllable "pher" fur" is purely matter of taste who has but has only heard. Thus according her lights the little girl right
 If we listen closely we will find hundreds of words mutilated by persons who know better. Many edu- cated people equally guilty. Most children who attend school taught for short time the i'm portance of correct enunciation in reading speak ing But unfortunately this instruction is given the pupils at time when they themselves do realize inc importance of it and by the time they have ar rived at age when they would appreciate it. this instruction has been superseded by something else.
 Changes of pronunciation in the course of century That may be attributed in part to the varying forms which words take. that the people of one period speak language which sounds quite different from the language spoken at an earlier period.
 There of course. other reasons for variations of form and pronunciation but very potent one is the careessness and indistnctness with which words are pronounced Our present forms are pretty well cnbamed by the printing press but that is no reason why should still be careless