The Idaho world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1864-1918, 1871-05-25
IDAHO CITY. THURSDAY. MAY 25, 1871
sTENOGRAPHY.


origin, none, perhaps, can claim it more justly
than that of shorthand writing. While the
origin of many arts is shrouded in mystery,
stenography may be traced to the days Of Ci-
cero, If Plutarch be conceded as reliable au-
rhority as a historian. Some even state that
the sayings of Socrates were taken down by
Xenophen i'm shorthand, and that it was bro't
from Greece to Rome. Plutarch calls it "signs
Of minute and short figures having the force of
many letters" He attributes the principal
system of abbreviated writing to Cicero. The
noble orat:on of Cato, the only one OF that
great man extant, against Cesar, is mentioned
by Plutarch in the following words:
"Cicero had selected number of the swift
est writer's, to whom he taught the art Of ab-
breviating words by characters. and placed
them in different parts of the Senate-house.
Before his consulate they had no short hand
writer's"
Eusebius, however, attributes it to Tyro, the
slave of Cicero. This may be probable, as the
acts of slaves were attributed to their masters.
Cicero is said to have corresponded in short
hand. In n letter to Atticus he says: 81 am
not surprised that you could not decipher a
passage in my last letter, for wrote to you in
abridged signs" Julius Caesar wrote in short
hand for the sake of secresy. Ovid says of
over sea and land" Seutonius says that Yes
pasian could follow speaker with great ease,
and that his son. Titus, would sometimes chal.
lenge his Secretaries to combat in the art.
Pliny, we are informed, always had some slave
with him in bis travels, to record what matters
of interest he might witness; and there were
but few masters who had slaves not skillful in
the art. At the time Of Augustus, there were
In the empire 300 schools where stenography
was taught
The cultivation Of the art was continued un-
til the middle ages, when it was considered as
a work Of magic, and prescribed as such. The
Abbi Trihomes, whose works were burned,
says that in those days of barbarism stenogra-
ply was taken for the elements of Armenian
tongues, the language of sorcery, and many of
his followers expiated upon the burning pile,
notwithstanding Archbishop Spanlding's pro-
testations that, were it not for the Catholics,
most of the arts would not exist.
After the middle ages, England took the lead
in reviving stenography, in the person OF DIR.
Bright, in 1888. His system differed little from
that of Tyro, being also IN characters. In the
year 1902 John Wallis invented the art of short
hand by letters. 1t is related of Wallis that,
in publishing his book. he requested DR.. John.
son to write preface for it. processing to write
as last as iuaH couie spcah. ~ oooh was
brought, when the Doctor read, but the stenog
rapher could not follow him. Whereupon DR..
johnson is said to have remarked that writing
ms fast as a man could speak was an impossi.
bility. Pitman. in relating this, says: The
Utopia of his day is the reality of ours" The
system of Pitman is the most favored ut the
present time, both in this country and England.
1t is used in reporting in Congress. Some Ste
nographers can write at the rate Of 80 to 200
words per minute. This will be considered by
some as really enormous.