Flying Fingers

Clyde D. sandgren Flying Fingers By Professor Harrison R. Merrill IF a word of five letters is half an inch long, then Clyde D. Sandgren, of Provo, a freshman at Brigham Young Univer- sity, could write a line a mile long in twenty-four hours. In other words, this young man with the flying fingers can write more than 92 words a minute without mis- take and can keep up that speed for fifteen minutes and perhaps much longer. Now those who have labored over the keyboard of a typewriter using the "hunt and bunt" system cannot fully appreciate just what that means. To them I sug- gest that they take a pencil and piece of paper and dot the paper as rapidly as possible. Then when they have timed themselves and have dotted for ten seconds by the watch, they are to count the dots. That will give them some idea of how rapidly young Sandgren's fingers must fly in order to make 92 words per minute for fifteen minutes, as he did in December to win the beautiful pin offered by one of the typewriter companies. Those same people should remem- ber that the typist must read the words, making letter for letter, punctuation mark for punctuation mark, space for space, and must do it without mistake or almost without mistake. If the average length of the words is five letters, the young typist must have struck four hundred sixty keys every minute of the fifteen, a fraction more than seven and a half keys each second. Young Sandgren has received notice in The Gregg Writer, a magazine for "secretaries, stenographers and typists," of which John Robert Gregg, of the Gregg short-hand system, is editor. That magazine states that "Clyde D. Sandgren, a Provo high school student, has hung up a typewriting record that is unique in its brilliancy and its inclusiveness. His accuracy on the typewriter at high rates of speed has won for him three portable typewriters and twenty-five medals and pins offered by various typewriter companies through their educational departments. "On May 12, 1927, the Remington Typewriter Company awarded him a portable typewriter for writing for fifteen minutes at the rate of 68 words a minute, without error. Nineteen days later he wrote again without error for fifteen minutes, making 63 words a minute. His reward was a new Corona typewriter. In

Mac, 1929 FLYING FINGERS 385 December, 1927, in competition with all high school students using Royal typewriters, Sandgren was declared National Royal Type- writing Champion. His record for fifteen minutes was 86.4 words a minute perfect. In the 1928 Utah State Commercial Contest, he placed first. An unusual typewriting record." The article goes on to say that young Sandgren, upon being asked how he accounted for his phenomenal success returned: "My parents have always maintained that clean living, wholesome food, and plenty of sleep will bring its reward. I have never tasted tea, coffee, tobacco, or strong drinks, and this, I believe, accounts for my nerve control during times of stress and excitement. I have been playing the piano for several years and this has helped me a great deal." But that was not all, though much of the secret. Keeping the Word of Wisdom does not train a man at all, it merely puts him in condition to receive training well. Those three typewriters and those twenty-five pins and medals were not just showered upon this young man — he worked for them. Here is the conclusion of his statement: "I started typing in my freshman year and took regular class work until this year, when student-body activities inter- fered with my practice. One who wishes to make a success of any- thing must go into it wholeheartedly, and to that one thing I owe my success — practice." There is the simple story of high achievement. Now that young Sandgren is in college he is still carrying on. In December, 1928, just to keep his fingers in trim, he tried the 90-word test. He came through his fifteen minutes with an average of 92 words a minute. There is just one more pin that has ever been won in Utah, and that was won first by a student of Brigham Young University — the 100- word diamond pin which was won about a year and a half ago by Miss Norma Christensen, of Richfield. "I am going to try the 100-word test soon," said Cylde, smiling in his friendly way. "I believe I can take it." I believe he eventually will take it, for he is still living the same sane, wholesome life that he lived when he won his typewriters. His nerve control should be just as good for it has not been impaired by the use of any narcotics whatsoever. Clyde Sandgren has come up through Scouting and the organ- izations of the Church. No football man. no track athlete, no basketball star ever spent more time training for his work than Clyde Sandgren has spent in order to become a national Royal champion. He has attended to his diet, he has secured his sleep, he has avoided those things which seem to give efficiency only to deceive in time of stress, but instead of training his heels he has been train- ing his hands. He has become the youth with the "flying fingers."