+ 
“Improvement in Orthography Defended. 
q0 the Enitor of the Monthly Magaxine. 
SIR, ' .' ; 
OUR Correfpondent V. O. V. (vol. 
4» Pp. 429.) appears to have mifun- ~ 
derftood my letter (p. 195). My purpole 
was not to refute objections to a new mode 
of {pelling, but to difprove an opinion of 
the Analytical Reviewers, which feemed 
to repre{s attempts at improvement. With 
this view, I endeavoured to: fhew how 
much fuperior the method propofed by 
-Mr. Elphinfton, was to that of Mr. Web- 
fter, in adapting orthography to pronun- 
ciation. 
In this I had nothing to do with the 
connection of orthography with etymo- 
logy. I left Meffrs. Elphinfton and Web- 
fter to examine and refute the objections 
which have been advanced againit altera- 
tion, and contented myfelf with expreffing 
a wlth that fuch improvements might be 
adopted, as appeared to be neceffary. 
Your Correfpondent thinks no change 
at all advifeable, and offers fome argu- 
ments in proof of his opinion, which he 
. feems to confider unan{werable. ‘To one 
or two of his objections I mean to reply. 
., The one on which he lays moft ftrefs 
is, that an alteration in the method of 
Spelling would deftroy all etymology. 
Etymology, though an amuting, is by 
no means a neceliary ftudy, it can only be 
ufeful fo far as it aflifts in fixing the 
meaning of words; now it is apparent 
that derivative words bear frequently fo 
very different a fignification from their 
primitives, that etymology is full as like- 
ly to miilead, as to aflift, in difcovering 
their meaning. Some examples, taken 
from Mr. Elphinfion’s work, are fub- 
joined. pe 
Englifh words derived Which fignifies 
from the French 
Phyfictan Phyficien A natural philofopher. 
Patient  Patient* © Afuffering malefaétor. 
Journey Journée =A day. : 
Voyage Voyage . A journey. 
Plate Plat A dith. 
Lemon Limon Citron. 
Citron Citron Lemon. 
Thefe are only a few of the many ex- 
-amples that might be given, to prove the 
variance of words from their primitive 
fignification, in all of which, a learner 
‘would be mifled by trufting to etymo- 
logy, the deitruétion of which, therefore , 
$$ 
* This word is likewife ufed in French to - 
fignify a perfon on whom the furgeon is per- 
forming an operation, but'‘never means what 
we mean by the word patient, as attended by 
a phyfician or apothecary. — 
MONTHLY Maa, No. VIII, 
89 
(even if it were effeéted by it) cannct be.- 
of confequence enough to prevent alteras, 
tion. 
But it does not appear that etymology 
will, or caz be dettroyed by a new or- 
thography, efpecially if in forming this, 
no new letters or figns are introduced : 
for inftance, the derivation of very many 
words would be as readily difcoverable in 
Mr. Elphinfton’s orthography, as in the 
prefent mode of {pelling, and many words, 
particularly:thofederived from the Frenchy 
would much more refemble their primi- 
tives: for as the French have made very 
confiderable improvements in {pelling, and 
have dropt unneceflary letters ina great. 
number of words, the adopting the fame 
plan in our language, would, in many 
inftances, keep us to a right etymology, 
whereas, at prefent, we are liable to mif- 
take the originals of many words, by fup- 
pefing them, on account of the fpellingy 
derivatives from the Latin, though, in 
fact, they came to.us from the French. 
Such miftaken derivations have former- 
ly been made. The earlier etymologilis 
- were chiefly acquainted with the Latin 
language; of French they knew little or 
nothing ; no wonder then, that in tracing 
etymologies, they overlooked. the medi- 
um, through which words were derived 
to us from'the Latin, and thinking this 
laft the immediate original, they fre~ 
quently introduced unneceflary letters in- 
to words, to fhew, as they thought, more 
effeCtually their derivations. ‘This is the 
reafon why we have written, and fll con- 
tinue to write, fuch words as feign, fove- 
reign, &c. with the unneceflary ¢- Some 
etymologift, ignorant of the #rench feiz- 
dre, fouverain, &c. derived thele words © 
from fingo, fupra regnum, &c. and inatre- 
duced. the g to preferve the etymology, 
In the Italian language, in which a re- 
formed orthography has been carried far- 
ther than in any other, the etymology of 
words is eafily difcoverable;-.neither -in 
the French is it more difficult to be traced 
than it was two hundred years ago, 
though ‘a very confiderable alteration in 
fpelling has likewile taken place in. that 
language. In no other European: Jan- 
guage, which I have been able toexamine, 
has eiymology been- deftroyed;. though 
in all, the {pelling has been confiderably 
altered. : 
But in cafe'a new'fyftem of crthogra- 
phy fhould deprive us of the means of 
tracing the derivation of words, ,ftill the 
old books would he quite fuicient to'pre- 
feryé all neceflary information concerning 
the etymology of our language, >< 
N What 
