314 SCIENCE PROGRESS 



five vowels. No word can be written without a vowel. If the consonants 

 form the body of a word the vowel is its soul. Numerically the sum of their 

 letters exceeds the sum of T S N H and R, which are the next five letters 

 having the highest powers. Therefore, the vowels require especially careful 

 grouping. There is no greater fallacy than to suppose that any advantage 

 is gained by scattering them all over the keyboard. Such an arrangement 

 is the worst possible. On our keyboard they are all taken by the two efiicient 

 fingers of the right hand. This is as it ought to be. In ordinary writing it 

 is the universal habit to use the right hand, and in all the usual avocations 

 of life the right hand is par excellence the capable hand. The left is the 

 steadying or supporting hand, the right is the active, cunning, and efficient 

 hand for doing essential work ; and we believe that in the division of work 

 between the two hands in typing this superior efficiency of the right hand 

 can and must be taken into account. 



In order to facilitate the process of fingering, keyboards are divided, 

 menioriter, into two equal areas, one of which is assigned to the right, the 

 other to the left hand. On our Diagram the dividing line is shown on both 

 the " Standard " and " Combinational " keyboards ; but, on a comparison 

 being made, it will be seen that, whereas on the "Standard " the right hand 

 area has only a numerical word-making power of 457, the " Combinational " 

 has a power of 602. Conversely, on the " Standard " the left hand is burdened 

 to the extent of 613, but only to the extent of 468 on the " Combinational " ; 

 so that on the " Standard " the less efficient hand is given the stress of work 

 to do, while on the " Combinational " the more efficient hand is so taxed. 

 The full significance of these figures will only be understood when we come 

 to deal with them in connexion with the middle line of the keyboard — the 

 point on which it is now desired to focus attention being that, on the" Com- 

 binational " keyboard, the really vital part of the work assigned to the right 

 hand is a complete control of all the vowels, and of all the semi-vowels except 

 two. It soon learns that the duty of providing the vowels falls solely to 

 its care, and their arrangement is such that it can type them rapidly in 

 any order of combination in which they may be required. On the left hand 

 is thrown the duty of providing the leading consonants and consonantal 

 combinations ; and in this way the two hands conspire together to turn out 

 words in the most workmanlike fashion. In typing words on the "Standard" 

 containing several vowels, the mind, eyes, and fingers are sent fleeting all 

 over the keyboard to pick them up at relatively wide intervals, mostly in 

 inefficient positions, and the words refuse to " come together " naturally 

 and easily. If an English dictionary be taken and examined from A to Z, 

 it will be found (see footnotes, ante) that the great majority of words begin 

 with a consonant followed by a vowel or diphthong, and the mind is attuned 

 by the law of association to this requirement of the Language. Now on the 

 " Combinational " keyboard the left hand first picks up the consonant or 

 consonantal combination, the right hand following on with the vowels, and 

 the general flow of producing words, wholly sometimes, largely at all times, 

 is serially from left to right, as it would be if written by the pen according to 

 customary habit. This feature, in conjunction with all the other good 

 points of the new keyboard, gives a great psychological value to its writing 

 powers. In other words, there is much less reverse action or travel of the 

 mind and eyes, when typing, than on the " Standard " keyboard. 



It must not be overlooked, and too much stress cannot be laid on this fact, 

 that the eyes are continually following the fingers, and that the mind is 

 always precedent in its action to the movement of both eyes and fingers : 

 for it is certain that not a movement of the eyes or fingers can take place 

 without the prior consent of the mind, even though it may seem to act with 

 unconscious instantaneity. Nor can the mind think of two things at the 

 same moment. 



