SPELLING REFORM.

Evening Star, Issue 13144, 28 December 1908, Page 5

SPELLING REFORM.

A Simplified Spelling Society (at the head | of which is Professor Skeat, of Cambridge) baa been established in England, and Mr William Archer, the wall-known critic, thus states its aims. "We intend to lay before the people a certain number of words, in which, as we sugest, a slight alteration in the spelling would not alter or impair their place in the history of the language, while it would make them more logical, more simple, more uniform, and more easy to remember. Individual suggestions are at present being considered by the Committee, but I will mention a few that may probably be adopted. For example, in a number of words we suggest the droping of the final ' e'—as in imperativ, ilhimin, expressiv, legslativ- The 'e' is there only by right of custom. Itserves no purpose of sound. Other uses of the 'e' will also be clipped in our list. Endings such as the ' me' in programme, or the ' ue' in harangue, or the ' to' in omelette, will probably go, and we shall substitute program, harang, omelet. The anomalies of the 're' and the 'er* will be put on a right basis, and ' center' will be substituted for ' centre.' The 'u' will disappear from ' honour * and from ' labour,' and we shall restore the 'z' to its rightful place, and con- j sequently we shall write ' organize,' and not ' organise.' It is the printers who have robbed the 'z' of its honorable and useful place in the language." " But it has been said that the printers are : the chief obstacles to spelling reform. How do you propose to deal with them?"—" Are • they such an overwhelming difficulty? In' the United States, where spelling reform, in spite of the opposfton to it, has made great j headway, the plan has been as effective as simple. A list of the altered words is hung | up before compositors in those periodicals | and newspapers which have adopted reformed I spelling, and, speaking generally, one may : say that the printers or the printers' readers 1 have shown great attention and respect to ! the alterations. But a point I particularly ! wish to make is this: Precise uniformity throughout a periodical is neither to be expected nor its absence deplored at first. It does not really matter if 'center' is spelt' ' centre' on the leader page and ' center in j the sporting column. There always hag been a want of uniformity in English spelling; and all that we wish to do at first is to pave the i way for the simpler forms by exhibiting them j to public notice. The experience of the [ United States has been that, provided the j spelling of a word is simple and logical, it stands a very good chance of a continually | widening adoption. The method employed by the Simplified Spelling Board of the United States baa been that of issuing an ' Alfabetie List (of Lists) of Simplified Spellings.' The first list contained 300 words which were spelt in twa or more ways; and a uniform spelling for these was suggested- . Shorter lists of words demanding the reformer's blue pencil were subsequently published; and it is some part at any rate of the reforms therein indicated that the English socity will probably commend to English readers and writers. America is not the only' innovator. A reformed spelling movement is afoot in Holland; it makes headway in France (especially in scientific Jftaratore, where everyone now drops the final, '<e' in sulphide' and 'bromide,' for example); and ini Germany, where only a few superfluous letters had esbabbahed themselves, even these Y ■ W " ed ß ., haYe of k*® s*« B ">««» k*gely