The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1897-06-17


sent for. They had not been notified be-
forehand and SO had no chance for prepa-
ration.
Mrs. Dement, was given typewritten
copy of some court proceedings and Mr..
Dement, was told to see II he could write
more than $50 words minute. He did it
with ease. At the end of the 60 seconds
he had written 312 words so distinctly
that any of the expert stenographers on
the committee could read his notes. He
would have come nearer his own record
had not a defect in the manifold COPY
from which his wife was reading caused
her to stumble twice, making it necessary
to have the sentence repeated. Her dicta-
tion was not only ineligible to her hus-
band, but was perfectly understood by the
judges
In view of all this Chicago allows itself
to indulge in satisfied smile as it surveys
the utter rout and sore discontinue of MIR.
Dana and his colaborers ON The Sun.
Mr.. Dement, who thus humbled his
eastern critics, has been known in Chicago
for many years as the fastest shorthand
writer living, and none of his acquaint-
ances was at all surprised at his perform
ance. He is no new hand at the business,
for stenography is something which is not
picked up in u few months. He has been
writing shorthand ever since he was
boy, and IL has taken him many years to
become expert
He was born OH farm in Missouri
about AZ years ago. His proficiency may
be due somewhat to natural aptitude,
but he acquired the greater part of his skill
by good, hard work. You have heard of
piano players who practiced four hours a
day for years That is the way Mr.. De-
ment went about it. When he was young
man, he copied hundreds of books of flc-
tion instead of reading them. This not
only gave him practice in speed, but en-
larged his vocabulary, so that now it Is
rarely that he runs across word which
he has never written before.
In tho meantime he had mastered six
or seven shorthand systems and had taken
from all of them what he thought best
suited to his purpose. Practically he con-
structed system of his own by the sim
pie process of elimination. Having once
perfected it, the act of transcribing spoken
sentences into series Of jerky pothooks
became almost mechanical. He tells of an
incident which illustrates this.
81 was reporting in court, " he said, "but
my mind was occupied with device l
was invonting. While was taking notes
with my right hand was drawing designs
with my left. l became so thoroughly abb
sorbed in what my left hand was doing
that was startled when one Of the attor-
neys asked me to read what the witness
had said about his conversation with the
defendant on the goth of May. had not
the slightest recollection that the witness
had mentioned any such date or oonversa-
| tion, and looked blankly at the attorney.
He wanted to know If had not been tax
ing notes, and was just about to confess
| my negligence when my eye caught the
date three or four pages back In my note
book. Greatly relieved, read the desired
paragraph"
Mr.. Dement, Is the author of several text
books on stenography, and has also IN
vented several mechanical appliances for
which steno sraphers find use. He does
not do so much shorthand reporting now
as he used to, but is ready at any moment
to write against time. MARK NORRIS.