English language--Orthography and spelling

Despite having just written to Harry Johnston, President Roosevelt finds his letter interesting and writes again. He is delighted Johnston is visiting America in the fall and invites him to stay at the White House. Like Johnston, Roosevelt “loathe[s] mere sentimentalism…but I abhor scoundrelism, iniquity, injustice in all its forms, even more.” Concerning African Americans, Roosevelt wants the truth and “how to expound and apply” it “in the interests of practical statesmanship.” Roosevelt is amused that Johnston similarly prefers simplified spelling.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1908-08-18

President Roosevelt tells Brander Matthews that he was unable to keep “the new spelling in.” He feels that the new spelling version of the word “thru” was “more responsible than anything else for our discomfiture.” He is glad he made the attempt, and will continue using new spelling in personal correspondence.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-12-16

James Jeffrey Roche shares his views on a range of topics with President Roosevelt, including Roosevelt’s handling of Bellamy Storer’s “indiscretion” in Rome, the public’s response to the Brownsville case, and Roche’s support for Roosevelt’s simplified spelling idea.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-12-28

President Roosevelt holds a gun labeled “Simplified” and cartridges on his belt labeled “The New Way”: “Tho,” “Tapt,” “Thru,” “Topt,” “Blest,” and “Fixt.” Opposite is a man labeled “Congress” with a belt labeled “The Old Way” and cartridges labeled “Though,” “Tapped,” “Through,” “Topped,” and “Blessed.” The two are firing words at the feet of the “Public Printer” – “Dropt,” “Ript,” “Mixt,” “Mixed,” and “Ripped” – who jumps into the air to avoid getting shot. A diminutive Andrew Carnegie stands in the foreground.

comments and context

Comments and Context

Cartoonist “Scar” (Alonzo W. Scarborough) of the newly energized New York Globe drew memorable cartoons about Theodore Roosevelt in his second term. As with many cartoonists, the Republican Scar milked the Simplified Spelling matter for all it was worth. In fact it was not worth much, except as a curious distraction in a very contentious political year.

Andrew Carnegie, dressed in a Scottish kilt with a hat labeled “Andru” with the “u” crossed out and replaced with “ew,” looks at a man fallen on the ground labeled “Simplified Spelling Order” kicked down by the U.S. Capitol building. A teddy bear runs off into the distance.

comments and context

Comments and Context

Among the playthings of Andrew Carnegie, having sold his steel businesses and reputedly the richest man in the world, was a faddist obsession with changing — “simplifying” — the spelling of words in the English language. Apparent anomalies in English are to due its origins in diverse language groups, yet rules that seemed challenging, flummoxed people like Carnegie, Mark Twain, and Theodore Roosevelt.

President Roosevelt and Andrew Carnegie bring flowers to a grave that reads, “Sakrud to the Memory of Simpul Speler Born Nu Yawk March 06 Died in Washington December 1906.”

comments and context

Comments and Context

This cartoon mocking the effective demise of the Simplified Spelling movement — at least as far as United States government policy, having been explicitly and unanimously rejected by the House of Representatives, was concerned — was drawn by the New York Globe‘s Alonzo W. Scarborough, who ironically simplified the spelling of his own name, professionally, to “Scar.”

Andrew Carnegie comforts President Roosevelt who is looking toward the U. S. Capitol building and a man labeled, “Reformed Spelling.” Caption: Mr. Carnegie–“He seems to have been among some bad company, Theodore.”

comments and context

Comments and Context

At the time of this drawing’s publication, the United States Congress formally resisted President Roosevelt’s executive orders that government bodies, including the Government Printing Office, adopt Simplified Spelling in all documents and publications.

President Roosevelt looks into a schoolroom that has the words, “Thro,” “Thru,” and “Thrun” with misspellings and a picture of a boy drawn on the wall. Uncle Sam and a woman clad in the stars of the Stars and Stripes lean against the door to keep Roosevelt out. There is a book opened to the words “Simplified Spelling” at their feet.

comments and context

Comments and Context

This cartoon is from the high-point of the Simplified Spelling crusade of President Roosevelt. He joined the reform movement headed by Andrew Carnegie and others to adopt largely phonetic forms of English words. Despite an executive order to the Government Printing Office, neither the public nor the government itself (especially the Senate, whose members were witheringly dismissive) fully or permanently adopted the reforms. For a time, the Public Printer used the Simplified Spelling Board’s recommendations. For instance, the president’s message to the Congress on Panama Canal progress was typeset according to the reforms.

President Roosevelt holds a chalkboard with two words written on it in cursive: “dropt” and “dropped.” “Dropt” is crossed off. He stands on the steps of a school building labeled “Congressional School.”

comments and context

Comments and Context

Of the many extra-curricular campaigns and crusades of President Roosevelt — his eclectic interests did not abate during the White House years — were challenging writers of children’s books who imbued animals with human characteristics, the charm of ancient Irish sagas, and the reform of spelling.

President Roosevelt tells William Bayard Hale he is amused with the preface and agrees with the author that printers are “especially blameworthy in the matter of much of our spelling.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-10-06

President Roosevelt asks Jacob A. Riis for information about the Roosevelt Boys Club in San Francisco. He comments on public opinion regarding the spelling affair.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-09-26

President Roosevelt believes it wise for Secretary of the Navy Bonaparte to accept the offer of serving on the honorary committee in France. He informed Clarence C. Pusey he is to take office on November 15. Roosevelt will briefly consider the use of “passed” or “past.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-09-21

President Roosevelt tells Public Printer Stillings to direct that all government publications use the simplified spellings of three hundred words provided by the Simplified Spelling Board. Roosevelt explains his advocacy for simplified spelling, stating that he believes that it is important for the government to advance ahead of popular sentiment, rather than lag behind. If the changes meet with popular approval, they will naturally become permanent. Roosevelt maintains that the simplified spelling movement is a continuation of former simplifications and alterations of English spelling, and believes that it will make certain spellings “a little less foolish and fantastic.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-08-27

“I only hope your spelling is correct!”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-17

The White House hosts winter musicales, but President Roosevelt does not approve of the word and would prefer to use “musicals.” However, he cannot find the word “musicals” in the dictionary. Roosevelt would like to use the correct word and asks Brander Matthews what spelling should be used.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1903-07-30

Charles P. G. Scott informs members of the Simplified Spelling Board of the upcoming annual meeting on April 4 and 5 and gives a brief overview of the itinerary. A provisional program is also included.  

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-03-28

James W. Shearer would like to arrange a meeting with Theodore Roosevelt to discuss his missionary work and the possibility of incorporating spelling reform into it. He hopes to be able to secure the use of the “Anglophone Missionary New Testament” for use by all denominations, and believes that incorporating simplified spelling would help spread Christianity because it would be easier for people to sound out.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-02-25

Jacob A. Riis thanks President Roosevelt for clarifying and thinks Roosevelt is entirely right. Riis asks if Roosevelt has seen that Nathan Straus has come out publicly in support of William Randolph Hearst. Riis believes that Straus’s brother, Oscar S. Straus, is all right. Riis tells Roosevelt that the word cat is not spelled with a K but thinks Roosevelt should spell it that way for consistency.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-11-01

Brander Matthews hopes President Roosevelt will read his paper “Reform and Reformers” in today’s North American Review. He wrote it using his memory of things Roosevelt had said. Regarding simplified spelling, Matthews thinks that “as long as the foreign voter can’t read he is the prey of the henchmen.” If it is easier for men to read they will think for themselves more. He is glad that “Kwig” (perhaps Lemuel Ely Quigg) is down and out.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-09-22

John St. Loe Strachey thanks President Roosevelt for his letter, with which he agrees. Strachey does not understand how people think civil liberties do not need protecting. He worries that autocrats like Napoleon will feed on people’s unwillingness to stand up for what is right. Strachey hopes that they will meet again in October when he visits.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-09-21