Of course the rot started with Webster’s Dictionary and the Simplified Spelling Board in 1906, and it’s been downhill ever since.
Rupert Gamlen
Auckland NZ - a bastion of the King’s English
Trying to remember to spell words incorrectly in my articles
From: CBQ@groups.io <CBQ@groups.io>
On Behalf Of David Pease via groups.io
Sent: Saturday, 15 August 2026 12:58 pm
To: cbq@groups.io
Subject: Re: [CBQ] Frate vs. Freight
Well that makes sense. So the Chicago Tribune was using George Orwell’s 1984 book's "easy speak" also know as Newspeak.
Who would have thunk it!
David
On Friday, August 14, 2026 at 06:06:07 PM MDT, Douglas Hosler via groups.io <dehosler40=gmail.com@groups.io>
wrote:
There was a period in which the Chicago Tribune substituted phonetic-looking spellings to create standard spellings like “thru” for “through.” It would seem
“frate” for “freight” would be one of those' Googles AI search came up with this: “The Chicago
Tribune ran a famous simplified spelling campaign from January 28, 1934,
until September 28, 1975"
Doug Hosler
On Aug 14, 2026, at 5:56 PM, Leo Phillipp via groups.io <qutlx1=aol.com@groups.io> wrote:
Well David I can’t explain the Chicago Tribunes’ use of the word frate. AI defines it as Italian for brother,monk or friar.
As to caboose and waycar they are not regional terms for the thing at the end of a freight train back in the day. Each RR had its own term for that car, there were many variations. But on the Burlington and on the BN at least on the Chicago and Aurora divisions
the term was waycar. If as a new hire you said “caboose” everyone knew you were a new man and a “pigeon”. “Pigeon” will defined in part 2 of the new series “Not in the rule book”that premiered last night in Zephyr #103 for BRHS members.
For those interested part 2 will be about that first call in “emergency” to work as a Conductor while still a brakeman. It will discuss what happened top you if you said “no I'm not going”. Also what life was like for a brand new qualified,examined man who
didn’t yet have the seniority to hold a regular Conductors position.
Leo Phillipp
On Aug 14, 2026, at 5:32 PM, David Pease via groups.io <david_f_pease=yahoo.com@groups.io>
wrote:
I noticed in newspaper article of the Chicago Tribune on page 30 and 31 in Burlington
Bulletin no. 78 on the wreck of 1947 any spelling of the word Freight was spelled Frate. I found six examples, "roadgrader fallen from a frate car", "A long frate of more than 100 cars was rolling westward", "far back from the frate engine", "any of the frate
train crew knew of the accident", "the grader fell from the frate car near Foster av", "and the frate train was quickly stopped".
Is this a regional spelling of the word freight? Like caboose vs. waycar?
I tried asking Google but it kept changing frate back to freight like I was some kind nut job, which of course I am.
David
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