de sɛm wid akurasi. Wel me Mr Forster and Lord Ripon ekspres der dissatisfakfon wid điz miger rezults! Whį ar diz rezylts se snsatisfaktori? Msg, doutles, iz ơiŋ tu đe brøken atendans ov de gildren and de erli ej at whiç de ar wiđdron from skul; bst dis wil not akount for ol de defisensi. Ol tigerz ar agrid, houever, in tresin tu de irregularitiz ov đe ortografi veri msg ov de bakward stet ov edukefon in our skulz. Her Majesti'z Inspekterz from tịm tu tim point tu dis az a sors ov de gretest perpleksiti tu lernerz. In de report jsst psblift, Dr Morél riiterets de oft-repited komplent on dis ssbjekt; and it wud bi izi tu fil a volum ov protests agenst de anomaliz ov Inglif spelin bį meni ov de mest eminent riterz in de langwej. de inditment ov de Prim Minister iz perhaps de mest emfatik ov ol de çarjez whig hav bin leveld agenst de ortografi. Mr Gladston, in won ov hiz spicez, sed : I am afred our laŋgwej boderz a forener dredfuli. Fofen fiŋk dat if į wer a forener and had tu set about lerniŋ tu pronouns Iŋglis į sud go mad. Fonestli kan sɛ į kanot konsiv hou it iz dat a forener lernz hou tu pronouns Inglis, when į rekolekt de total absens ov rul, metod, sistem, and ol de okziliariz whic pipel jenerali get when de hav tu akwir samtiŋ dat iz difikɣlt ov atɛnment. diz difikɣltiz, ov kơrs, most bi enkounterd bį ol Inglif gildren in lerniŋ tu rid and tu rit and spel der nɛtiv tsŋ, and dɛ ar not les formidabel tu đem đan tu de “intelijent forener." Meni atempts hav bin med tu prøvįd a remedi for dis ivil, whiç iz universali felt, til de psblik ar olmost wirid wid de kwestion; and yet in eni edukefonal efort dis irrepresibel difikslti olwez krops xp, houever onwelkom and houever insolubel de problem me apir tu bi. Nou wi apir tu hav kèm tu a ded-lok, edukɛsonali spikiŋ, for if wi komper de idial ov Mr Forster, kwoted at de komensment ov dis peper, wid de rial stet ov fiŋz az fen in de last report ov de Department over whig Mr Forster se ɛbli prezįdz, wi si der iz a gret gölf betwin de tú; and dis wil giv зs an įdia ov de magnitud ov de task whic liz befor xs az tigerz, and memberz ov Skul Bordz, and de frendz ov edukɛfon jenerali. Akordin tu de report ov de Rejistrar-Jeneral, it apirz dat about 400,000 Gildren pas from de skul ɛj tu de work ej anyali—đát iz, from de ej ov fertin tu førtin. Ov diz, 30,000 onli, akordiŋ tu đe last report ov de Edukɛson Department ar tot tu rid a nuzpɛper and tu spel wid akurasi in de Government skulz frшout de kontri. In order, den, tu overtek dis moderet standard, de efifensi ov de prezent mafineri most bi inkrist mor dan tenfold, tu se nstiŋ ov de "hjer subjekts" agrid spon tu bi tot in primari skulz bį de London Bord, whiç ol wil admit tu bi most dezirabel, older most edukefonists wil bi dispozd tu konsider dat ferst ov ol wi ot tu deviz som minz bį whiç ol our gildren me bi tot tu rid ordinari buks. Hou iz dis speliŋ difikɣlti tu bi met? Dr Morél and Mr Miklejon propez, bį konstrsktig skul buks in whiç de anomalss wsrdz ar kept out ov sjt til a leter stej ov de gild'z progres, tu get over de difikölti in som mezur. Bst it iz wel non dat som ov de most pozliŋ wordz tu gildren ar de nemz ov fiŋz "familiar in der moudz az houshold wordz," az ni, tsŋ, í (knee, tongue, eye), and xder wordz in konstant us, sog az hi, rit, nó, tú, et, frend, kof, ref (high, right, know, two, eight, friend, cough, rough), ets. And it wud bi difikɣlt tu frem sentensez in dát natural, fleiŋ stil whig gildren delįt in, widout komin akros wordz lik điz. But de fetal objekfon tu dis plan iz de tasit konfefon whic iz implid in it, dat it iz hoples and usles tu atempt eni revizon ov Inglif ortografi. He enli anser tu søg a doktrin nided iz a kategorikal stetment ov whot meni pipel inwardli fiŋk-dát iz tu se, dat spelin iz a mater tu bi steriotįpt for ever in de prezent fafon. Tu dis won sobjekt de lo ov finaliti iz tu bi aplid; speliŋ iz akordiŋ tu de loz ov de Midz and Perfianz, a fiŋ whic genjet not! Gud hevenz! de fed ov Kadmxs and de gest ov Kakston wud bi fokt at ssg a doktrin sterd in de later hsf ov de nintin1 sentųri, and nowen wud bi mor surprizd dan Dr Samuel Jonson tu lern, đat hi woz tu bi instold az a literari Pop in perpetuiti snder a nų dogma ov leksikografikal infalibiliti. diz iz de mer ssrpriziŋ stil when it iz konsiderd dat Ingland iz about te onli kontri in Urep wher de ortografi haz not bin revizd bį sem rekognjzd otoriti, and dat spelin iz about de onli sobjekt in Ingland whic haz not bin adapted tu modern rekwįrments. Tek our sistem ov wets and mezurz. de adopfon ov a beter metod iz nou onli a kwestion ov tim and jeneral konviniens. Iz der eni argument in fevor ov an impruvd sistem ov wets and mezurz whic dsz not apli a fortiori tu impruvments in spelin? Ar der eni objek fonz agenst a revizon ov de ortografi whic wud not bi aplikabel in a stronger degri agenst a revizon ov de Skriptur translefon, or, indid, agenst eni impruvment whotever? HE SPELIW DIFIKÖLTI. Mis Ejwsro sez:-"Lerniŋ tu rid iz de most difikxlt ov human atɛnments; a dredful task tu lern, and, if posibel, a mor dredful task tu tig." Ser Bulwer Liton sez:-"A mor liin, round-about, pozel-heded deluzon đan dát bị whic wi konfuz de klir instinkts ov trud in our akɣrsed sistem ov spelin woz never konkokted bį de fader ov folshud. Hou kan a sistem ov edukɛfon flsrif dat beginz bi se monstros a folshud, whiç de sens ov hiriŋ ssfzez tu kontradikt ?" Rev. D. C. Ginsberg, LL. D.-"I hav had msc tu du wid spelin and literari work, and, az ekzaminer in several fiolojikal kolejez, į hav got ekzamine fon peperz from hili-eduketed students-som ov dem graduets in de universitiz-in whiç de spelin symtimz kriɛted perfekt amчzment. de speliŋ simz an insurmountabel difikölti in der lif." Ser C. E. Trevelyan, K.C.B.-" de Inglif sistem ov spelin (į protest agenst its biin kold ortografi) iz a labirint, a keos, an absurditi, a disgres tu our ej and nɛfon. It formz de prinsipal difikɣlti ov our langwej-whiç iz de mor provokiŋ, az der iz nstig in de stryktur ov Inglif whiç kolz for it-and kozez tu anuali-inkrisin milionz in ol de for kworterz ov de gløb an enormxs xnnesesari ekspenditur ov valuabel tim, and stil mor valuabel temper. de amount ov veksefon and disk rejment and los ov tim whic iz kozd everi yir, espefali tu forenerz (and tu moltitudz ov juvenil forenerz tu de wsrld ov leterz in our on land), bị đe ekstrimli inkorekt we ov spelin nou in ųs iz inkalkųlabel." Maks Müler.-"Fot not tu emit hir ["Lekturz on de Sjens ov Langwej," deliverd at de Roial Institufon, London, 1863, sekond siriz, 8vo., pej 97], tu menfon de valuabel servisez renderd bị dơz hu, for nirli twenti yirz, hav bin leborin in Ingland tu torn de rezslts ov sjentifik reserę tu praktikal us, in devizin and propagetin a nu sistem ov Brif Ritiŋ and Tru Spelin,' best non vnder de nem ov de Fonetik Reform. I am far from snderretin de difikɣltiz dat stand in de we ov ssc a reform, and į am not so sangwin az tu indslj in eni hops ov siin it karid for de nekst fri or før jenere fonz. Bxt į fäl konvinst ov de truf and rizonabelnes ov de prinsipelz on whic dát reform rests, and az de innet regard for trut and rizon, houever dormant or timid at timz, haz olwez pruvd irrezistibel in de end, enɛblin men tu part wid ol de hold most dir and sekred, wheder korn loz, or Stuart dinastiz, or pepal legets, or hiden įdolz, į dout not dat de efit and korspt ortografi wil fole in der tren. Nefonz hav befor nou genjd der numerikal figurz, der leterz, der kronoloji, der wets and mezurz; and de Mr Pitman me not liv tu si de rezsits ov hiz persevirin and disinterested ekzerfonz, it rekwirz no profetik pouer tu persiv dat whot at prezent iz pu-puud bį de meni, wil mek its we in de end, snles met bį arguments stronger dan doz hidertu leveld at de Fonetik Nyz. Wan argument whic mit bi sspozd tu we wid de student ov langwej, nemli, đe obskurefon ov de etimolojikal straktųr ov wsrdz, į karot konsider veri formidabel. de pronsnsiefon ov langwejez çɛnjez akordiŋ tu fikst loz, đe speliŋ iz genjd in de most arbitrari maner, so dat if our spelin folod de pronsnsiefon ov wordz, it wud in rialiti bi a grɛter help tu de kritikal student ov langwej dan de prezent snserten and snsjentifik mod ov rįtiŋ." Out ov 1,972 felurz in de Sivil Servis Ekzaminɛfonz, 1,866 kandidets wer plskt for spelin. CONTENTS. PAGE SECTION 1.-Prefatory Remarks SECTION 2.-The value of the present time for action and co-operation ... ... ... ... SECTION 6.—The pronunciative objection. The defects of French ortho- SECTION 9.-Original insufficiency of letters-orthographic expedients SECTION 12.-The alphabet in its earliest forms SECTION 13.-Is there more than one primitive alphabet ? ... ... SECTION 14.-Capital and small letters-monumental, cursive, and printed styles SECTION 15.-The Phonetic as opposed to the Etymological principle SECTION 16.-Alphabets undoubtedly derived from the Phœnician. (a) The Eastern or Asiatic Group SECTION 17.-Alphabets undoubtedly derived from the Phoenician. 36 36 38 (b) The Western or European group. The Greek and its derivatives... SECTION 18.-General view of the four classes of alphabets-the Phoni SECTION 19.-General view of the Greek group SECTION 21.-General view, etc., alphabets of Latin origin SECTION 22.-The Latin alphabet 48 SECTION 23.-The Latin alphabet-The order of the letters 49 50 ... SECTION 25.-The demerits of the Latin alphabet 50 SECTION 26.-The substitution of the letter C for K-K and S as sounds SECTION 29.-The substitution of C for K continued.—The parallelism between C and G, CH and J ... SECTION 30.-The reducibility of non-natural modes to rule, of little .. ... ... ... ... SECTION 33.-Limitations of the Phonetic principle continued—its influ- ... ... 97 100 SECTION 38.-The Early Alphabets of the British Islands alphabet. SECTION 40.-The Anglo-Saxon alphabet 111 113 SECTION 41.-History of the Anglo-Saxon Alphabet SECTION 43.-Historical Sketch, etc. (continued). The Apostrophe (') as SECTION 44.-Dialects of the Anglo-Saxon and Old English SECTION 47.-The Working Alphabet Elementary Education |