☛These are books that propose to reform spelling, usually in some hopelessly logical way.
Bullokars Booke at large, for the Amendment of Orthographie for English speech: wherein, a most perfect supplie is made, for the wants and double sounde of letters in the olde Orthographie, with examples for the same, with the easie conference and use of both Orthographies, to save expenses in Bookes for a time, untill this amendment grow to a generall use… [By William Bullokar.] Imprinted at London by Henrie Denham. 1580. —We have left out most of the title, which goes on for quite a few lines. This is a facsimile of the original edition.
The Problem of Spelling Reform. By the Rev. Professor W. W. Skeat. New York: Oxford University Press American Branch, [1906].
On the History of Spelling, by the Rev. Professor Skeat. Simplified Spelling Society, [1902]. —Extracts from a lecture. Professor Skeat was the president of the Society.
“Once more, we spel oak with oa, and broke with o, and no one cares. It is lookt upon as a meaningless eccentricity. But if anyone shoud dare to say, ‘Then let us by all means disregard it, and spel both words alike’, the cry is immediately raisd that the spelling is sacred, and must be kept up in the interests of etymology. The retort is obvious, that in that case the etymological meaning of such spellings ought to be studied. But no; Englishmen wil not do that either. They are only satisfied with their spelling as long as they feel that they must helplessly acquiesce in it. They refuse to change it, and they equally refuse to understand it. Let us all lern it by rote, like parrots, is the parrot-cry herd around us; and with that we are commonly content.”