authority, it is the compositor's duty to follow it. If it is misspelled or
illegible he is to correct it according to the office style unless
otherwise directed by the author in writing. If furnished with such a
direction he is to follow it. This procedure will clear the compositor of
all blame. Any questions which then arise lie between the author and the
proofreader.

In the case of the reformed spellings, however, the departure from the
ordinary appearance of the words is so great that the author cannot be
allowed full freedom to set aside the office style. If he is paying for the
printing he may insist on his spelling. If he is contributing to a
periodical and the printing is done at the publisher's expense it is for
the publisher to determine the style of printing to be used.

Any full consideration of the question of reformed spelling is hardly in
place in this book. The author may perhaps be permitted one observation.
Innovation in the use of the English language would appear to be primarily
the work of scholars, and the adoption of such innovations would seem to
belong to the book printer rather than to the commercial printer. The
public mind as a whole is conservative. It is not hospitable to changes and
does not soon become aware of them, much less familiar with them. The
commercial printer makes his appeal to the mind of the general public. He
will do well to use a vehicle familiar, intelligible, and acceptable to it.

Correct spelling is mainly a matter of habit and observation. To a certain
extent it is a matter of careful pronunciation, but this is not always a
safe or even a possible guide. The vowels preceding or following the one on
which the primary accent falls, sometimes called obscure vowels, are so
slurringly pronounced that even a pedantic precision will hardly make it
possible to indicate clearly which vowel is used. The writer remembers