From an NSRA Speed Winner
Analysis by Andrew Owen

     This is the first page of Martin J. Dupraw's champion notes on material being dictated at 280 WPM in the annual speed contest held by the National Shorthand Reporters' Association in 1924.  The association is now known as the National Court Reporters' Association, and still holds their annual speed contest, at which there are tremendous competitors, each using machine shorthand.  The rules and speeds in the contest remain fairly unchanged since the days of Dupraw and Swem.  The NCRA still allows pen stenographers to try their hand at the contest.  This page is written with a quite advanced style of Gregg Shorthand, with a graceful and full style of writing.

Analysis

     Here, I have analyzed carefully the facsimile.  Each outline is dissected according to its meaning.  The transcriptions are a mixture of ASCII Gregg and the easier-to-read letter equivalents.  When it is not evident, "{" is a loop a, "}" is loop e, "ð" is the over th, "F" is the t-m blend, "S" is the left s, "Y" is the d-t blend, "D" is the t-n blend, "W" is the m-n blend, "č" is ch, and "þ" is the under th.

	otuna    čAls tomaS	Q. What is your name?      A. Charles Thomas.
	dle er nðsete    no alen    rečm va	Q. Do you live here in this city?      A. No, I live in Richmond, Virginia.
	otprfes or bS    am nð    kmš bS	Q. What is your profession or business?      A. I am in the commission business.
	kmš bS    }	Q. Commission business?      A. Yes.
	luteme u aj    am paS 60	Q. Will you tell me your age?      A. I am past sixty.
	aulbn nga nu preS ocup     ð laS firS	Q. How long have you been engaged in your present occupation?      A. The last five years.
	h pra ðaF otoS u bS    akpt h stor    nðsete fnumerS	Q. And prior to that time what was your business?      A. I kept a store in this city for a number of years.
	oki o h stor    groSS mets	Q. What kind of a store?      A. Groceries and meats.
	ars u stor lok    227    es 5s	Q. Where was your store located?      A. 227 East Fifth Street.
	rumA    }S	Q. Are you married?      A. Yes, sir.
	vune gron čel    tu boeS	Q. Have you any grown children?      A. Two boys.
	vune prs|n one oð|fs nðska    nun to	Q. Have you any personal knowledge of any of the facts in this case?      A. None at all.
	or vune prs aka eð ne oð aDes kekt eððska    noS	Q. Or have you any personal acquaintance with any of the attorneys connected with this case?      A. No, sir.
	il uE nbS Yukm|k eð vars WbS oð po|d    ano h gWe    oðm	Q. While you were in business did you come in contact with various members of the police department?      A. I know a good many of them.
	d ð|f ða ur aka eððm nnua nf u ks oðska    t dn	Q. Would the fact that you are acquainted with them in any way influence your consideration of this case?       A. It would not.
	ukd ge eč oðdS h f/md    }S	Q. You could give each of the defendants a fair and impartial trial?      A. Yes, sir.
	h aket ne or o oðm efþs h rsd o gt numi    abe akd	Q. And acquit any or all of them if there was a reasonable doubt of guilt in your mind?      A. I believe I could.

     I believe this specimen to be an outstanding example of several great abbreviations and methods for fast writing.  Of course, several of the proportions are a bit off on the part of Dupraw, but it is exceptional considering the fact that he was writing at a rate of 280 words per minute.  If written with ample time and with the same shortcuts, it could be written as it is the following image.