Plutarch tells us, that the celebrated speech of Cato, relative to the Catalinian conspiracy, was taken and preserved in short-hand. We are likewise informed, that Seneca made use of a system of short-hand writing, which consisted in the use of about 5000 characters.
The first publication upon the subject, of which we have any correct information, was about the year 1500, from a Latin manuscript, dated 1412. Various other publications followed in succession, without materially advancing or changing its character, till about the commencement of the 18th century; nor were the principles, till many years afterwards, settled upon a basis which could insure stability to the art.
Byrom was the first who treated the subject scien tifically, and to him we are indebted for the promulga tion of those fundamental principles, which will ever constitute the true foundation of every rational system of stenography. His first edition appeared in the year 1767, previous to which, many systems had been pub lished under the name of short, or swift-hand, which were so involved in philological refinements, or super fluous arbitrary signs, as to be more tedious in the acquirement and practice, than the usual long hand, and scarcely intelligible, except to the inventors, or those who devoted their lives to practice it. Nor did Byrom rest, till he had much obscured the merits of his original plan by the introduction of numerous grammar rules, plausible in theory, but useless in practice. Much difficulty was experienced by him and later writers, in selecting appropriate characters, and assigning their respective functions; but a still greater difficulty by learners, from the too frequent introduction of arbitrary signs, and subtle theories, which have rendered useless to the world much that was otherwise valuable, in the elementary principles of Byrom and his successors.
Books upon short-hand have been rendered vo luminous, intricate, and expensive, by theoretical niceties, which serve only to discourage the learner, to keep the art from schools and colleges, and thus prevent its general extension and usefulness.
Under these circumstances, few individuals have been successful in acquiring a knowledge of the sub ject; and while these have generally found an interest in suppressing its dissemination, the multitude have ignorantly rejected it, as a mystic and useless art.
ThiS neglect was just, while confined to some of the ponderous volumes of crude and unintelligible hiero glyphics, which appeared between the 16th and 18th centuries, but when applied to the more improved systems of a later date, it is grossly illiberal and unjust. Still, the prejudices excited previous to the publication of those scientific principles, which now characterize the art, are unjustly kept up, by those who are more ready to condemn what they do not un derstand, than to acknowledge their ignorance of a subject with which others are familiar.
Under these embarrassments, the subject received, comparatively, little attention in the United States, till within the last few years; and there arc many yet unaware of the simplicity and practicability of the art, or of the facility with which it may be acquired.
Without descending to other particulars, it may be remarked, that since the appearance of Byrom's sys tem, not less than one hundred treatises have been published, in the English language, besides a number of elaborate works in French, German, and other languages,—each professing superiority over all that had preceded; but, in fact, adding little to which the term improvement can be justly applied.
The most distinguished English writers upon this subject are the following, viz. Addy, Aldridge, Angell, Annet, Blandmore, Blosset, Body, Bridges, BYROM, Coles, Cross, Dix, Everardt, Ewen, Facey, Farthing, Gibbs, Graime, GURNEY, Heath, Holds worth, Hopkins, Jeake, Labourer, Lane, Lyle, Macauley, Mason, MAvou, Metcalf, Nicholas, Palmer, Rich, Ridpath, Shelton, Steel, Turner, TAYLOR, Thickness, Tiffin, Webster, Weston, Williamson, Wills, and Willis.
The systems now principally used in England, Ire land, and Scotland, are those of Byrom, Mayor, Tay lor, and Gurney. In the United States, Gould's System has nearly superseded all others, and may be pronounced the standard of American Stenography. This plan combines %%Rhin narrow limits the prac tical merits of the four last mentioned systems, and appears to be peculiarly adapted, not only to the genius of our language, but to the present condition of the American people—being more concise and less expensive; and at the same time adequate to all the demands of literature, arts and sciences, so rapidly spreading through this mighty empire of independent communities.