tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post5181869456752459477..comments2024-03-14T13:25:20.613-05:00Comments on Boston 1775: “The Art of SHORT-HAND taught to Perfection”Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post-25608911431622432762011-09-22T13:14:48.610-05:002011-09-22T13:14:48.610-05:00The use of shorthand in the colonies was well esta...The use of shorthand in the colonies was well established prior to Hodgson's advertisement and there is evidence of its use for private correspondence within ten years of the landing of the Mayflower. Roger Williams, the founder of Rhode Island, for instance, was employed by the famous lawyer Sir Edmund Coke to record the proceedings of the Star Chamber prior to emigrating to Massachusetts. John Winthrop Jr and his wife Martha corresponded in shorthand. In the seventeenth century in England, churches held well attended classes for women to learn shorthand. <br /> In addition to the obvious ability to record matters rapidly, but, perhaps more importantly, shorthand was seen as a means to keep communications secret - a cipher, if you wish. Those not familiar with a particular shorthand system would only see squiggles while those who had studied the system and used it could "read the cipher."<br /> Thomas Jefferson, for instance, who actually invented a very effective cipher wheel, wrote a famous letter to a friend in 1764 suggesting that he send to him a copy of the Shelton shorthand system so that they could communicate their thoughts to each other "wholly unintelligible to every one but ourselves." What Jefferson was most anxious to commununicate was his efforts to court a young lady. Unsuccessful, alas.EJWitekhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05796418061787943596noreply@blogger.com