and thumb. While writing on the last part of the page shift the leaf by degrees until it is about halfway up the book; when it is convenient, lift the first finger and thumb and the leaf will turn by itself. This is the best plan while writing on a desk or table. When writing on the knee, the first finger should be introduced instead of the second, and the leaf be shifted up only about two inches. The finger should be introduced at the first pause the speaker makes or at any convenient opportunity that presents itself."
Mr. Isaac S. Dement, one of the most expert shorthand writers the world has ever known, preferred handling the notebook much as Mr. Reed has described, but he kept shifting constantly upward the page upon which he was writing so that when the writer finished one page he would be in a position to begin the second page without having to move the hand from the bottom of the notebook to the top of the next page.
Passing from One Outline to Another.—The writer should cultivate from the start the art of passing directly from one outline to another without any preliminary or useless movements. It is axiomatic that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. The best time to practice this method is while taking dictation which has been practiced, as the attention can then be concentrated entirely on the movement used in passing from one word to another, and the mind not diverted by trying to recall unfamiliar outlines or in constructing new ones.
By observing the work of poorly trained writers it will be seen that the pen makes several unnecessary movements at the completion of each wordform—the writer seemingly trying to get a running start by making several movements in the
