THE COMBINATIONAL KEYBOARD 317 



usual diphthongal order of these letters is also reversed — point four. All these 

 points, in continuous writing for any length of time, tell a strong tale against 

 the psychological habits of the mind, and are bound to induce more brain 

 fatigue, besides being less accessible to the fingers. As regards the remaining 

 vowels, I O U, the U is transposed reversely from its natural order in the 

 most frequent of all the diphthongs, OU, and is assigned a position of advant- 

 age on the keyboard in excess of its value as a word-maker, whilst its com- 

 panions I and O, two of the most powerful word-makers, are thrust towards 

 the outskirts of the keyboard. These are most serious defects with respect 

 to the collectively five most important letters in our Language, and operate 

 strongly against mental ease of writing. And when, in addition, the strong 

 combinational sinews of our Language are seen to be ignored, it is scarcely 

 necessary to carry our critical analysis further. The whole of our argument 

 may be summed up in a small compass. Within the central area of the 

 new Keyboard go out of every loo English words are written by the only 

 two naturally firm-touching fingers of each hand. It is the sole Keyboard 

 on which the most efficient letters, the most efficient structural combinations 

 of our Language, and the most efficient area of the Keyboard, are all brought 

 together under the direct manipulation of the most effective fingers for 

 quickest writing. 



Yet, notwithstanding this truly scientific linguistic-structural arrangement, 

 it should be noted that every letter of the alphabet is assigned its exact 

 position on each line of the keyboard towards the central E, in accordance 

 with its strict numerical value as a word-maker ; with the exceptions that, 

 for combinational purposes, the positions of S and T, C and P, X and K, are 

 interchanged, resulting in S and P being advanced one key nearer and K one 

 key further from the centre than is warranted by their numerical values ; 

 but in ease of fingering there is little to choose between the first and second 

 positions from the centre. 



In connexion with the highly important question of " combinations," it 

 is necessary (in order to anticipate a possible objection) to add a few more 

 words on what we have already termed the reverse action or travel of mind, 

 eyes, and fingers. Bearing in view the necessity of all letters being located 

 towards the centre of the keyboard in the order of their numerical values, 

 it was not possible to get all the combinations arranged in their natural serial 

 order from left to right, as in the cases of EA, OU, lOU, EOU, 10, AU, EU, 

 EO, WH, MB, LY, XP, BJ. Some of the most important combinations are 

 taken in the reverse order of fingering, but this drawback is ameliorated, if 

 not indeed altogether quite abolished in effect, by the central position of these 

 combinations and the togetherness of their component letters. Notwith- 

 standing that TH, vST, ND, and others are taken in reverse, they are scarcely 

 felt so by the mind, since the fingers come together on them almost simul- 

 taneously. Had, for instance, the T of the TH combination been so located 

 that T should have been at the centre next to E on the middle line of our 

 keyboard, and its other component H at the extreme reverse end of the line 

 (where V now is), then there would have arisen a distinct feeling in the mind 

 of having to travel backwards or reversely to write this most frequent of all 

 combinations, instead of which the two letters TH are next each other on 

 the same line within the central area, and the mental, visual, and digital 

 action at a minimum. Other combinations — such as GH, NS, CT, SP, IE, OA 

 are neutral as regards either backward or forward movement, their letters 

 being located one under the other. In the writing of all the combinations 

 there are, for reasons just given, no awkward movements of the fingers, and 

 especially is this so in the central area, where so much word-making is done. 

 The two efficient fingers of each hand are there strictly kept to the left and 

 right hand sides of the tnemoriter dividing line, and it is as impossible for 

 the hands or fingers to conflict with each other as for those of a pianoforte 



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