In 1906, millionaire industrialist Andrew Carnegie was approached by
Melvin Melvil Dewey, the head of the New York libraries, and Brander Matthews, a
Columbia University professor, with a revolutionary plan to simplify spelling. Carnegie was enthusiastic. He believed that easier spelling could lead to world peace. Together, the threesome formed the Simplified Spelling Board; their expressed goal was to convince authorities to begin changing the spelling of 300 words.
President Theodore Roosevelt was an instant convert to the plan. On August 29, 1906, he ordered the U.S.
Printer to use the new spelling on all executive branch publications.
Roosevelt’s plan made front-page news, both here and abroad. Unfortunately for TR, most of the publicity was unfavorable. U.S. newspaper mocked the idea, and the London Times ridiculed him with a headline reading “Roosevelt Spelling Makes Britons Laugh.”
Congress was outraged by Roosevelt’s decree, too.
Roosevelt quickly withdrew his support for the plan.
clipped from: www.neatorama.com