Watsonville High School - Manzanita Yearbook (Watsonville, CA)

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12 THE MANZANITA Some Business Requisiies MR. G, O. MUNSON. inertial education that ,v seem the most 1ll1pO1taI1if aim to the business man ap- pear t.l1e most trivial to the student. For instance, spelling is usually con- sidered something that must be 'ttaken in order to procure a di- ploma of graduation. The business man, on the other hand, considers spelling one of the most important qualifications of his stenographers FTEN the features of com- ing!! ill - ,fx I I 1 . and clerks. True, he may not, him- self, be able to spell the ordinary words of business, but he is gener- ally able to detect a misspelled word in l1is letters and so demands accuracy on the part of his steno- grapher in that regard. And he is amply justified in requiring his letters to be free from errors in this respect as a carelessly written let- ter does not receive the careful con- sideration 'that the Well-written let- ter receives. Closely related to spelling is the use of words. Every stenographer should have a generous vocabulary. This is necessary for the proper ex- pression of what is desired to he communicated, bo-th in regard to meaning and to cuphony. It is of- ten impossible for the dictator to avoid repetition of certain words while framing a reply to a letter re- quiring considerable thought. That is left for the stenographer to rect- ify later in the preparation of the letter for the mail. Every steno- grapher should have a good diction- ary ill a convenient place, but that does not mean that it should be necessary to use it for the spelling or the meaning of the Words com- monly used in business phraseology. Another matter that is general- ly viewed very lightly by the stu- d611t is the ability to write iiuently and legibly. Any sort of penman- ship seems to answer for the require- ments of the student-until he seeks a position. Then he finds that one of the first qualifications demanded by the business man is good penmanship, written at a fair rate of speed. That is the reason Why so many of the advertisements for stenographers and other clerks call for replies in the handwriting of the applicant, and at the same time explains why so many of the applicants never receive a favorable reply. The business world, as a general rule, does not demand extensive lfnowledge in mathematics, but it does require intensive knowledge of the branches connected with any particular business. The ability of accurately use the four fundament- als is absolute. The student is very likely to consider that adding simple numbers, performing rapid calcula- tions in multiplication and division, estimating common percentages, and seeking to become proficient in short methods used in mathematical calculations is of very little practi- cal worth. But the business man who has to do with accounts will tell him that not only are they great time savers, but that they are also, effective cheeks against errors. In fact, there are numerous com- plaints from business men in all lines of business that too many of

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THE MANZANITA The Frost llpon my little window glass Tl1e frost has etched a thousand things, Designs of wonder that surpass The master works ol' fairy kings. Beneath a eloudless silver sky A wintry world with many charms, All wrapped in fleeey drifts, doth lie Asleep in VVinter's ehilly arms. l see a crystal castle there, With diamond domes and sparkling spires That point up high into the air, Like sentinels in jew'l'd attires. And silent imitations fair, Of Nature's beauties he had drawn, With dexterous skill and wondrous care, Retwixt the sunset and the dawn. Majestic oaks and pointed pines Created in a single night, And Howers, ferns, and trailing vines, Are clothed alike in raiment white. Alas! Great NViza1'd, oh, alas! The beauties, which thou left with me Have heen expunged from my small glass By one who is thine enemy. Ah! far away in Heaven's sky With glee the guilty golden Sun Doth like a truant kite sail high, In vain pursued, yea, never won. 0 sweet recalling Memory! VVithin n1y musing halls l'll store These visions dearly prized hy me, Till mine own Temple is no more. -LARS BENNETT, '17

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THE MANZANITA 13 the boys and girls graduated from the high schools are woefully de- ficient in ability to perform even the simplest calculations with 'ac- curacy and dispatch. ln stenography, it is not the writ- ing of one hundred twenty-live or one hundred fifty words a minute tl'at counts. It is the ability to transcribe the matter so written ae- curately and with a fair rate of speed. Of course, it is essential that the stenographer be able to record dictation at that rate in many cases, but unless she can make a correct transcript of it later, her ability to take it is of little value. Not only must the work be accurately and quickly done, but it must be artistically arranged as well. lt is useless to add that the successful typist must be a touch writer and not addicted to the eraser habit. ln bookkeeping it is, also, the small things that count. The aver- age high school, and particularly the high school with a two year's course, cannot attempt to make certified public accountants, not auditors, not bookkeepers with a full understanding of corporation, banking, or other forms of higher accounting. lint they can give the pupil a thorough knowledge of the theory of dehits and credits as ap- plied to common business transac- tions together with a knowledge of the usual commercial terms and usuages. As there are scarcely any commercial houses that conduct their bookkeeping records similarly in all their details, it is obviously impossible to drill the pupils on forms that would exactly fit all lines of business. However, if the pupil has thoroughly mastered the prin- ciples as above stated, he can, with very little effort, fit himself into any clerkship that may he open to him. He must not, of course, ex- pect to land on the top notch of his profession at the first effort. ln fact, it is much better for him to ae- cept a subordinate position at first so as to become accustomed to the system in use. Now. these few requisites are not meant to cover the entire field of business essentials. They are simply a few of the qualifications demand- ed by business men as first require- ments. The boy or girl who wants to train himself or herself for a bus- iness career, whether for a clerk- ship or for personal reasons, should take a four year's course and should include such subjects as commercial and industrial geography, com- mercial law, commercial arithmetic, office training, salesmanship, book- keeping and higher accounting. business English and correspond- ence, stenography and typewriting, spelling and penmanship, and Span- ish. These are all highly important considered from a broad commercial point and should constitute the main part of the commercial train- ing, but others such as algebra, geometry, history and civics, do- mestic science, manual training, and chemistry should also be taken, in part, according to the particular end sought. lt is evident that our commercial relations in the future will be largely with the South A- merican republics. Since the com- pletion of the Panama Canal Flllll our attendant interest there, they have come to our very doors. They are rich in their resources but very limited in capital and population. Travelers from those countries in- form us that they present various opportunities for the investment of American capital and American