New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-12-10
WHAT WOMEN SAY AND DO.
IMPORTANT ARTICLE IN THE SERIES BY
NOTED WORKERS OF THE WORLD.
CONSTANCE HosTER. OF LONDON. REFUTEs THE
IDEA THAT THE ART OF TYPEwR1TING
-CThe Gentlewoman.

CONSTANCE rrosrER OF LONDON. REFUTEs THE
IDEA THAT THE ART OF TYPEwRrTING
REQUIRES NO TEACHING.
Mrs Constance Hoster the organizer Of the
many typewrting, shorthand and translation Of
fees In the city Of London. furnishes for The Trib-
une the following important article on special
training In these particular lines OF study.
Mrs Hoster is woman OF great executive ability.
a quick thinker and an able speaker
TRAINING IN SHORTHAND AND TYPEwRIT-
ING.
My chief object in undertaking an article on the
training for my profession is 70 try TO refute me
dea nbn bg $? be ~ af Of ypne requires
teaching. that any one In fact can sit down pc
ton arise qualified operator. How often am
asked to find good posts" for women VINO. nav
ing typed the family correspondence more or less
incorrectly for month or two. consider an app
pointment AT 30 shilngs week TO represent but
faint appreciation Of their merits. Their astonsh-
ment when enlightened would be ludirrous we're
It not sad-money having been spent ana ilhne Iost
times Impossible to convince the disappointed ap;
plicants that they are not fitted to be intrusted
Now. the sooner it becomes an established fact
that shorth hand and typcwritng in all their branch
the better for our profession. therefore give,
brief sketch Of what, in my opinion, this special
training should consist-an opinion gained by years
of real experience in practical work
QUALIFICATIONS.
The necessary qualifications for the intending stu
dent of shorthand and typewriting are essentially
Identical with those required for all clerical work.
so ably set forth by my predecessor-namely quick
finger; but even these-invauable az they are-must
lie accompanied by a thoroughly good all round
education. Therefore point which wish specially
to emphasize T. that the class from winch the
shorthand writer's and typsts are TO be drawn must
be the educated cass-not the semi,edueated, Dut
the thoroughly educated-weil acquainted with the
at home I'm history and geography and generally
well read. You may think that am making I'M
uneducated stenographer avoid errors In tran
Now as regards the training First and fore
most the time TO be devoted TO the training should
not bc less than one year. There are a thousand
ana one things to De learned. ana all pupils who
wish TO become thoroughly qualified should spend
AT least one year and more il possible ia a type
writing Office where they Will SCI, ali kinds of work
and so be fitted for any position that may offer.
mastered gr that is to say when the students can
copy fairly correctly and have the more advanced
work given to them, 1t becomes necessary to teach
them to think In order TO acquire complete
knowledge Of the setting out and Arrangement OF
the various bIanchts OF me once HOrk,UIeedl,
scientific. artistic, and 50 Onto grapple with the
ntricacies Of legoly written manuscripts 6ristlng
hciencies and omissions in the matter Of punctua,
t to use e' their own amgnagcR fact to thin
II is an absolute necessity that the Shorthand
writer and typist should not be trained in school.
but in an office, where actual work has to be typed
examined and corrected In given time Tor clients.
copies 'were being redone. | would neither engage
nor would I recommend clerk whose experience
good the instruction given In that school might be
1t Is a great mistake to aim at too high rate Of
stress cannot be laid on correct and neat work
Students are often inclined to think when they
matter This wrong. all errors should be Dointed
out and corrected soon as the pupil is sufficiently
at home with the machine
The training is not complete until the pupil is
machine from any document in manuscript or
from type and has also learned to examine the
typed copy with the orlgnal-matters which sound
a
deal OF training Of eye and mind.
CHARGE BROUGHT AGAINST TYPIsTs.
| A grave charge has been brought against the
body of typis,s-that many Of them are Incapable
Ing Il unsafe to employ them when anything of a
| say that if # be true such n state Of things re-
| veals low standard OF honor IN those members
| corporate matter. and the only remedy that can be
suggested is that any clerk or secretary commit
| prompt and condgn punishment In the shape Of
| immediate dismissal.
EXAMINATIONS
| think examinations are a great help to teach
| ing. They give the student something to work
| for. and the teacher definite idea Of the course
| Society Of Arts and the National Union Of Typsts
hold, which consist of papers on various kinds Of
these examinations the student can gain a FIRST
| c,ass ceruhcate II shows that she must have n
thorough knowledge Of typewriting in all its
In order to insure efficient training II is essen
! tal that there should be properly prepared and
| qualified teachers. but up TO the present time we
| nave had no means OF gaugng the quahcat ions
| OF those undertaking the training in our profess
sion; Now, however. the Typists' Union has
| q tablished tea hers exam nation and only
those who have Iassed this test receive proper d.
pIomas. Therefore we can now be sure " efTlci mi
training by intrusting our pupils to such certified
| teachers
| SHORTHAND
AT present have only spoken TO you abou,
| training In typewritng, but now ] come to its
twin study, shorthanel to which from the very
| or three hours day These studies should always
| be taken together, and so strongly do / feel on
| this point. that myself Except In very rare in
stances) never undertake TO train pupil in either
| Of these subjects separately.
| ! cannot here enter into very detailed setting
forth OF the system TO be adopted. for should
| cient to state that from the beginning the pupil
| should be trained 10 take dlctatlon, and TO
| transcribe this to the machine. which means type
| II In longhand. Even exercises should be treated
| thus and great attention must be paid 10 the
! shorthand outlines being clearly written The
| student will in this way lmpeTcepubly grow ac-
| customed 10 take shorthand In a businesske man
| an absolute matter of course: This system there
| fore. insures practice in reading az well In
| taking dctation. ] must emphasize that accuracy
| in shorthand, as In typewriting, Is undoubtedly
the first consideration, and speed but secondary
| one; but where the writer has been accustomed
TO dctation from her earliest introduction to the
| her dictator be words in advance.
| a thorough commercial knowledge of foreign
| languages is OF immense value. therefore always
| advise this study TO be taken up In addition TO
| thus carefully and practically trained in all
| branches can easily command 9 good appointment
| taking post where low rate Of remuneration
Is offered in spite CT all that Is being said that
h h Ea " for Sh ASSURE
Good work can always command good wages.