G. W.

“ Z is scarce us’d in vain, but as many consonants are double to make a short vowel, as Buzze, but is most us’d for s after all Letters but p, c, t, for plurals and t [h] e like, s and z seem to cross one another, as raze and raise, and x for z, as beaux.
Since renoun’d Aut [h] ors of late [h] ave left out ugh, as t [h] oug [h] and the like, writing t [h] o’, if they [h] ad left out w and y superfluous, as know, row, da, t [h] are, and put out all vain letters, and cambril the vowels, the idle Letters would never [h] ave come in again. ”

“ But it hath been long enough freely us’d amongst us, that it may claim prescription for a Licence to put on the English garb, and suits pretty well with the Original φραζω 7 A4 and hath it not a single f in Greek? So might be frâz, and take with it the Greek Precispomene, its right.
But if we spell praise thus, prayes we alter the sense. Why the Eyes are as much in the dark to distinguish sound, as the Ears are put to silence at the shape of Letters, and which of these is the fitter judge in this Controversy, to bring knowledge to the Understanding? ”

“ In a Rail of Pales, if one be out to let in one Hog, ’tis enough to let in the whole Herd into the Close, is an observation applicable to the premisses.
E long and short, and we can see no cause for’t in equally and equity, in cement, regard, torment, rebell, register, long and short in the same words being Acute when Verbs, and penacute when Nounes. But any Child or Foreigner, that never heard the words spoken, might uneasily guess 13 at the true pronunciation by the sense, That an Acute would be a great ease and comfort to the Reader and Teacher, and no great trouble to the Printer. ”

“ Secondly, There was as good reason for amendment an Hundred Years ago, as there is now, and will be as good reason an Hundred years hence to delay the amendment, as their is now; not altering a tittle of the known Pronounciation of the words, but only of the spelling. That the Letters may be of good use, and we need not to Read all by authority, as the very Learned Men are forc’d to do in yet unknown words still; so little assistance do the Letters yield them, that they the more might pitty young beginners. ”

“ Next, if it would please the wisdom of foolish custom (in whose errors of this kind (though in nothing else) all Religions meet) being long enough advis’d in time, to think fit to amend in the Copy, or at least in the Margin, where 12 words are far otherwise spell’d, than they are pronounc’d (which the Hebrews call Kery and Kethiu; the Copy as written, but Kery the Margin as read, mark’d with Asterisk, one to the other) B I believe our Printers could as easily Cambril our English Vowels, as Circumflex the Latin, which would be a sure guide for reading. ”

“ Why should we keep their spelling, having lost their speech, and why should they not still keep their spelling of old, who still keep the speech? ’Tis this thought by some of the Learned, that English is the hardest Language in the World ”

“ On the whole, we find the vowels much less systematically tackled than the consonants, and it is proposed that accents (“cambrils”) should for the most part be used to provide extra symbols; the pamphlet, however, only exemplifies this sporadically.
Magazine contains a considerable number of words, and a few consecutive texts, transcribed partly or wholly in the new system of spelling, and these necessarily will have to be assessed as evidence of contemporary English pronunciation by students of the subject. ”

“ Our folk being 8 a mixture of many Nations, is so of Languages: But ’tis a wonder, so free as we are to take in their words, we take not in their Letters also. The Latines have but Twelve Consonants, and Five Vowels, and h, but the Greek and Hebrew may furnish us with Letters. The Neighbouring Countries are at a loss for them as well as we. If our credit be good, we want to borrow Two letters of the Greek, Gama, and Theta, and Four of the Hebrew, Thaleth, He, Aim, and Shin, and we should be set up, and with what shift we can make of our own. ”

“ Whether the old use and custom of the Letters for an hundred Years or more, be sufficient for justifying the mispelling most words, us’d to this day, or whether we had not better mend late than never.
Hereupon we argue. First, It is granted that we have not yet proper English for all words in other Languages, nor Letters sufficient to express our own; as Authors from time to time do justifie, who have bin so little taken notice of by the publick (though there is 10 some small amendment made, that can scarce be perceiv’d) . ”

“ Thus to maintain a thing always unreasonable, will always be (as it hath bin) a thing unreasonable and after this rate an error everlasting.
But it is answer’d, that many words be thus Spell’d to shew their derivations. That need not be objected, when Scholars can find out the Etymologyes, when scarce one Letter remains of their Original, more than James from Jacob, Thaddæus and Lebbæus, from Jude the honest, or Judas, not Iscareat, and Didymus from Thomas, Giles, Ægidius. As for changing the Letters, I shall hope they will put the devines in; I fear not that they can put the Lawyers out. ”

“ But what’s Learnt in Childhood is uncontroulable, as good as prescription of an hundred years, and a School-Dames authority is irrefragable, as the Proverb says, Early crookes the Tree, that will good Cambrill be: That to unlearn a Youthful Error, is more than to serve an Apprentiseship, or take the Degree of a Doctor or Serjeant. ”

“ From about 1650 to 1750 there were few critics of our orthography, and they were usually neither very strong in their criticisms nor radical in their proposals for amendment. G. W. is thus a somewhat isolated figure, and his scheme for reform would appear, in its details at least, to be fairly original.
ii The greater part of the pamphlet is given over to expounding the illogicalities and inconsistencies of the established spelling, and here G. W.’s style of writing, which is colloquial, racy and allusive, is effective enough. ”

“ But why may not w serve after a and e, and y after o, I know not. Methinks the dead Letters should not be coye on what Cambril they’re 15 hang’d on; but I must ask the Butchers, and what doth e after Ile, for I will.
14th, E defective in seest, fleeth, freeest, agreed; that prodigal as e is of its company, should ever be wanting is a wonder; where there ought to be 3 ease, or ez, or thrice e, two for a diphthong, if it may be one for the syllable, that the distiction may seeme not heard between seeth, beholdeth, and see the boile, e is added. ”

“ Why if y doth no good, it doth nothing. But I have a mind it shall stand an out-side there out of the way, as daisy, is dayes. Doth (GOD) spell the Creator, it spells an Hebrew Letter as well. If you hold your book the wrong end upward. I’ve nothing to say against it, for ’tis your own, and you may hold it as you please.
But to go on according to Prescript.
2. Whether or no are our 24 LettersA sufficient to spell all the words of our English Tongue.
3. Whether or no if they be sufficient to spell all words us’d for English in our books, they be not sufficient to spell all Languages ”

“ So our Letters rat [h] er marr than mend our Language, w [h] en wrong spell’d: but more Letters would do well in the Alfabet, (w [h] ih is preparing) but fewer in most words to spell properly.
We is us’d t [h] ree ways, as a vowel, as now, [h] ow, as a consonant in we, went, as nothing, in know, show, and bo.
Ye is us’d four ways, as a consonant, as yea, yes, as a long and short vowel, as w [h] y, [h] oly and doubtful, as my, t [h] y, and as not [h] ing in may day. ”

“ But as for suc [h] as [h] ave t [h] eir for [h] eads no broader t [h] an t [h] eir Battledore, they must stic in the old nooke at q in the corner, not seven years, but seventy times seven.
’Tis not a sin sait [h] a P [h] ilosop [h] er t [h] at I cannot spel wel, but t [h] at I cannot live well. If we [h] ave t [h] is error from the Lawyers we [h] ope ’tis lawful; for to put in letters in a word or words in a deed, more t [h] an enoug [h] often. But the Lawyers English may be no better t [h] an [h] is Latin, t [h] e one as [h] ard to be spell’d, as t [h] e ot [h] er to be parsd. ”

“ A as a, Manna, Joshua, Asia, Judah, Hannah; why ma we not cast awa the Hebrew He out of words, as well as the Latins and Greeks have done? Day, say, their, they, fair. These Letters that be, not pronounc’d are very wellcome to be gone, the door stands wide open.
E, as be, the, Phebe, yea, weigh, key, holy. If propagating Error be lawful, ’tis lawful to teach wrong.
I, as Ivi; lie, lye, thy, why, thigh, buy, for the first might as lawfully be spell’d like the last, as UYe I, as the last is wrong spell’d, but more lawfully ma the last be spell’d as your first. ”

“ Is not the as ancient as weigh, yea, sea, holy, key. Then ’tis wit to use the proper spelling, and leave off impertinencies; and if fewer Letters will serve the turn, ’twill save Paper and Ink, and ’tis strange, if not labour too, for Writers ”

“ Although there is no indication there of the value each symbol should have, that of most of them can be worked out, with some labor, from the rest of the pamphlet (though a few must probably remain mysteries) . I have commented elsewhere3 on this scheme of reformed spelling; it appears to us today to be theoretically quite creditable, at least as far as the consonants are concerned. The traditional alphabet is enlarged by providing a separate symbol for the italicized sounds in each of the following words: thin then church judge shall measure when sing ”

“ But most abominably i is us’d for g, which is unpardonable, when g being a letter of a double meaning can do without, as gaol, or goal; why should it infect i with its own distemper, to be double minded.
17 B Lastly, W [h] y g [h] ma not make all vowels long as well as i, and w [h] y ma not ye and we make vowels long, as well as a, e, and o; we must ask t [h] e natural P [h] ilosop [h] ers w [h] at sympat [h] y or antipat [h] y is in t [h] e Lettrz; and w [h] et [h] er an occult quality ”

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All correspondence concerning subscriptions in the United States and Canada should be addressed to the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, 2205 West Adams Boulevard, Los Angeles 18, California. ”

“ E. Phebe, key, the, sea, yea, weigh, either, holy.
I. Why, I, high, try, tie, buy.
O. Who, know, bow, toe, tow, dough.
U. True, dew, Hugh, neuter, give, you, gaol, jaylor, goal, John, gives dat; gives compedes, gill of fishes, gill of water, ague, plague, anger, and danger, guard, reguard, spring, a well, spring of steele, jet, and ginger, and finger, ghost, god, and Ghurmes, and age, ages, cares.
Our Children are not Witches, that they should guess to Read right by the Letter, such stuff as this, and the Masters are no very great Conjurers, to perceive nothing ”

“ And why is not i and e cast out of praise and raise, and e from wife and strife, which adorn the words no more than Beauty-spots do a Whore’s Face: And why is not w for a black Patch, cast awa from know and blow, as well as da, and wa hav cast awa their Pock arr-y ”

“ Men tno not דat דa er.
And דat men luv darcnes stil,
No faot in endless fir.
Page 32, full alphabet:
[A] [a] A a B b D d ד E e F f G g Γ γ H h ה I i J j C c K k [F] [f] M m N n ע O o P p Q q R r S s ש T t Θ θ U u V v W w [W] [w] X x Y y z &. †
[A] [a] , [F] [f] and [W] [w] are not explained in the text. [F] occurs in place of L, which seems to have been omitted by mistake, as noted in the Introduction. Capital Z is missing. ”

“ It is not clear whether he intended to use the actual Greek and Hebrew letters where the printed text shows upside-down Roman letters.
The substitutions would be (note that [c] is used for [d] and [Y] for [H] ) :
Page 8, “Gothám” paragraph, with silent correction of apparent typographic errors:
Gôtham, Γôtham, Gótham, Γótham, Gôθam, Γôθam, Góθam, Γóθam, Gôדam, Γôדam, Góדam, Γóדam, Gothâm, Γothâm, Gothám, Γothám, Goθâm, Γoθâm, Goθám, Γoθám, Goדâm, Γoדâm, Goדám, Γoדám.
Page 21, “A Rule useful for School-Teachers,” with conjectural corrections:
Page 22, entire poem. ”