The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-11-05
PERt EcrEp ~SnoRrKANp.
The Genius Of Andrew Graham Said TO
Have Made n q Fact

To THE EDrroR OF The SuN-Sir: In the
interesting controversy as to the paternity
| OF shorthand 1t seems to me the situation may
be cleared up by a simple statement OF facts.
|. The one important object Of shorthand,
ever since some men were eloquent and other
men were liars. through centuries OF expert
ment, has been verbatim speed. the exact
recording OF spoken words, no matter how
rapidly uttered. When twenty specialists, in
medicine. law. ra~ilrOading or any other high
pressure work. talk to each other In haste and
heat, their words being emitted like the swift
cracklinRs OF a static machine. the man who
puts on paper a perfect record of their spoken
thought is performing a little miracle. And
this is done daily in every city large enough
to support shorthand experts. IL you put
10000 half baked stenographers into the
C~hantauqua auditorium. and let them all
take notes OF a rafting speech by Represen-
tative Littlefeld. the combined product Of
their failures will not be ianything like a per-
feet report. because they will all break down
at about the same places. One real reporter
will make an absolutely reliable record OF
what is said, In this view of the case the
work Of the one good reporter il of more
Importance TO the world. and to the anthem
ITCHY of history. than all the inefficient moil-
ing OF the 10000 incompetents.
Toward this end. verbatim accuracy. gen
e~rations OF experimenters had painfully
tOleu,W men lNdBC flJ0lHn toOh uNhUNREt Vi
the work of his predecessors. He made .
long step forward when he published pho
biography. Some OF the things in that great
system were original. Most OF them were
merely a more ample perception OF things
that other men had half discovered. The
simplicity OF the system attracted the atten-
ton OF many able young men, and they
learned II. But no one can for a moment
pretend that the early photography Of Isaac
Pitman was q reporting vehicle. 10 was. too
long. and It did not sufficiently grasp the idea
one swiftly written character. In the early
days OF the system a group Of its writers.
called the Phonetic Council. attempted :;
every bright idea that tended toward greater
facility Of execution. Among the men who
We're Thomas Alien Reed IN Ensisnd' aud a
young, American reporter Of great skill and
ter especially saw the value Of a lot Of abbre-
WAITING principles that had been rejected by
Isaac Pitman. He took the Pitman system
and arran ged IL IN logical form. trimmed u
down., made il facile aud sure. and published
a handbook in 1855 which was 80 perfect in
no one has ever been able 10 add anything g
y. some OF those who studied this 3ook,
proficiency that had been so long and ear
nestly sought. They became verbatim re-
%porters. When Graham's handbook was
ten men who could do the work Of modern
verbatim reporting. Among those who could
The only shorthand that has endured fer
nearly sixty years unchanged in form IL
Oraham's revision and Improvement OF Isaac
Pitman's photography. Old Isaac himself
never was a reporter. IL yas not so much
the fact that Graham originated forms. He
pushed the principles OF word construction
to their ultimate end, and 40 impressed his"
constructive genius upon American phonog-
raphy that nine shorthand writer's out OF
ten in this country, whether they know IL or
not, owe what skill they have to the fact that
Mr., Graham, invented ~phonoRraphlc lubri-
eating nil and nnAD fnRfip tires. and made the
cylinder engine OF expression a practical
success.
1t cannot be denied that in communities
respected as a high priced expert. the nem-
DRY of Andrew j. Graham is revered as the
greatest name in American shorthand author
ship. II he had not licked the Isaac Pitman
system into shape some one else undoubtedly
would have done IL, for verbatim reporting
was an absolute necessity of modern court
rooms and consultation chambers; but Ora
shorthand students what Bach is to those
who play the piano. The man who learns the
Graham system, may write short forms or
hand; but he will write legibly and swiftly.
and he will not be ashamed when the lawyer
looks. over the typewriter report in the
Shorthand is the result of thousands Of
experiments by hundreds Of reporters Thetwo
greatest names in its history are those OF PITT
man and Graham, Benn Pitman refused to go
ments. which led nowhither' Benin Ia to-day
the most interesting living figure In the short
hand world, and he has the blessing Of per-
petual youth. for at 81 his mind and eye are
undimmed, May he long be with usl But
let no American reporter repudiate or forget
the everlasting debt he owes TO Andrew J.
Graham. FRED IRLAND.
Representatives, Washington. November 3.