ies written by others, at one-half the price paid to him, was
more profitable than to write himself.

So with five journalists working at top speed to supply the hungry
lithograph presses, Mr. Knapp was likewise responsible for Edward Bok's
first adventure as an editor. It was commercial, if you will, but it
was a commercial editing that had a distinct educational value to a
large public.

The important point is that Edward Bok was being led more and more to
writing and to editorship.

CHAPTER IV

A PRESIDENTIAL FRIEND AND A BOSTON PILGRIMAGE

Edward Bok had not been office boy long before he realized that if he
learned shorthand he would stand a better chance for advancement. So
he joined the Young Men's Christian Association in Brooklyn, and
entered the class in stenography. But as this class met only twice a
week, Edward, impatient to learn the art of "pothooks" as quickly as
possible, supplemented this instruction by a course given on two other
evenings at moderate cost by a Brooklyn business college. As the
system taught in both classes was the same, more rapid progress was
possible, and the two teachers were constantly surprised that he
acquired the art so much more quickly than the other students.

Before many weeks Edward could "stenograph" fairly well, and as the
typewriter had not then come into its own, he was ready to put his
knowledge to practical use.

An opportunity offered itself when the city editor of the _Brooklyn
Eagle_ asked him to report two speeches at a New England Society
dinner. The speakers were to be President Hayes, General Grant,
General Sherman, Mr. Evarts, and General Sheridan. Edward was to
report what General Grant and the President said, and was instructed to
give the President's speech verbatim.

At the close of the dinner, the reporters came in and Edward was seated
directly in front of the President. In those days when a public dinner
included several kinds of wine, it was the custom to serve the
reporters with wine, and as the glasses were placed before Edward's
plate he realized that he had to make a decision then and there. He
had, of course, constantly seen wine on his father's table, as is the
European custom, but the boy had never tasted it. He decided he would
not begin then, when he needed a clear head. So, in order to get more
room for his notebook, he asked the waiter to remove the glasses.

It was the first time he bad ever attempted to report a