The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1872-08-28
Reporting in England.

does not pay for reporting and print
ing of the proceedings Of its Cham
bers. It employs reporters only te
take down the doings of it's Commit
tees. and depends for an account O.
| its public debates upon the Londor
newspapers. From these an officia
account is compiled by Hansard-
rather by his successors now; ane
for years this daily compilation from
the Metropolitan press has been re
garded as only accurate and authori
tative reproductions Of the proceed
ings of Parliament. The COMMITTEES
reporting has been for generations il
the possession Of the famous Gurney
family, and many efforts to have tbi:
remuncrativc work distributed among
other equally competent reporters
have invariably failed. Tho Londor
Times has nineteen reporters in the
galleries of Parliament, tho STANDARD
thirteen, the Morning Advertiser nine
and other journals in proportion te
their standing. Each paper has also
in each House summary writer, ano
on the occasion of important debates
the various corps are considerably
augmented. 10 reach these galleries
and occupy seat rs an official note
takcr, is the ambition of every young
shorthand writer. Before he car
achieve this distinction, however, he
must 90 through chrysalis state
during which all..the qualities neccs
sary in an official reporter are to be
Developed. Before the Gurneys allow
photographers to take notes of com.
mittee proceedings, they require them
to 60 through a very tedious, though
careful preparation. They are taught
TO read each others notes, and by
transcribing them greatly expedite
the completion of reports. They are
paid e. Is. (about Sl) day for at
tending upon committees, and when
transcriptions of their notes are asked,
they receive an additional compensa-
ton of . shilling for every seventy
words. Notwithstanding the obnox-
ious law which we have mentioned,
Parliament recognizes the necessity
of having its proceedings made pub
lie, and has provided very fine accom-
modations for tho reporters.
At the opening of each session, q
copy of the "Rules for the Govern
ment of the Parliamentary Reporter"
is placed in the hands Of each pho
nographor, which give explicit in
instructions to him as to the length
of tho "turns" Ca word indicating the
timc the reporter takes short-hand
notes. and the manner of preparing
his copy to prevent confusion. The
largo ciock-said to be the largest in
the world-Yhich sHrmounts the
Parliament House, strikes the
quarter hours, and by its strokes the
regulate their turns. At
every stroke a fresh reporter takes
tho place of an old one, while the
first hastcns to write out the notes he
has taken during the previous fifteen
minutes. From the earliest days
men of remarkable talent, who have
risen to great distinction in the arts
and sciences, have occupied seats in
those galleries. Dr. Samuel Johnson,
Edward Care, Edward Burke, Haz-
lit, Dickens, Thackeray, were once
Parliamentary reporters. Of Pick
ems it is said, that "bcsides being one
of the finest descriptive writer's, he
was "a shorthand writer Of unusual
talent, and could outstriP any Of his
brethren in the gallery" Gladstone,
at the London Press Club dinner in
1867, said /: 'Is is true, in general,
that the skillfal hand Of the reporter
produces q considerable Improvement
in the speeches That are made in Par.
Lament, in point of grammar, in
point Of accuracy of expression, and
in 'retrenching undue fullness Of dc:
velopement.": :
Boswell tells US that it was consid.
cred a great achievmcpt by johnson,
when he wrote out three columns Of
Parliamentary speech in ono hour
for the Gentleman's Magazine; and
Dickens being compelled to condensc
q long speech of the late Earl of Der.
by, So accurately gave the pith and
marrow of what his iordship had
said, as not only to receive q public
compliment, but g perfamcd note,
asking the pleasure of his company
at dinner at the Derby mansion,
where moro practical acknowledge
mont of his services was rendered.
The Occupants of the gallery were
rarely in good odor with Daniel
O'Connell. lie once took the repor,
ters terribly to task for misreprcsent-
ing him. When he finished, the in:
dignant scribes rose in body, and
thor elected chief declared that until
the imputation agoinst their veracity
was withdrawn, they would make no
more reports. For an entire week
thr gallery was vacant, and then
O'Connell was pressed into q rcces,
sion of his charge, and his harangs
wero again reported. One of tho re:
markablo men who piled his pencil
here in 1907, was Mark Supple, a big,
bushy, jovial Irishman, who would
drink as much wine as four ordinary
topcrs, and then go into tho gallery
and report "li!se gentleman and a
man Of genius" One day, having
missed a portion of Lord Brougham's
speech, he boldly interpolated page
of one of Cicero's orations. Strange
to say that his lordship, in a reprint
edition of his addresses, did not refer
to the addition, but placed it all in,
without word of comment! Of