[CW] (no subject)

[D.J.J. Ring, Jr.]

Bill's call was N0HFF.

Sorry for the typographical error.

HFF = Happy Friendly Fellow.

I am the Happy Friendly Grouch = HFG perhaps.

73

DR
 On Dec 22, 2013 11:48 AM, "D.J.J. Ring, Jr." <n1ea at arrl.net> wrote:

> Howard,
>
> Many of you have read the book by Bill Pierpont, N0HFG
> http://www.zerobeat.net/tasrt/c30.htm
>
> Here's what my friend has to say, which I reprint here with his permission
> which he gave before he passed.  Bill loved Morse and he was the main
> author of the Robinson Pierpont majority textform of NT Greek, he was self
> taught expert in Koine Greek - biblical Greek that was used in the New
> Testament, how fitting to remember him so neat the birth of our Redeemer.
>
> The Art & Skill of Radio-Telegraphy
>
> -Second Revised Edition-
> William G. Pierpont N0HFF
> Previous Chapter Table of Contents Next Chapter
> Chapter 30 - The Candler System
>
> No treatise on learning the code would be complete without a summary and
> discussion of this famous and formerly long-advertised course.
> By 1904 Walter H. Candler had learned the American Morse code and worked
> for two years as a telegrapher.  He had practiced diligently and felt
> qualified to apply for a job as commercial relay operator in the Western
> Union office at Atlanta GA.  But he didn't last out there even one day, and
> had to take a night shift job as telegraph operator at a small town R.R.
> station. He was deeply hurt and puzzled.  What was the matter?  What
> mysterious ingredient was missing?
> As was the custom at the best telegraph schools, he had visually memorized
> the Morse code from a printed table of dots and dashes, and then practiced
> and practiced.  (This "standard" procedure was confirmed by a former
> teacher at the well-known Dodge's Institute -- no connection to the later
> C. K. Dodge "Radio Shortkut".)  One night on the job, quite by accident, he
> discovered that when once in a while he dozed off at the operating table,
> he could read the fastest code coming over the lines to his sounder. Yet
> when he was awake and alert he could catch only a word here and there.
> It was then that he began to realize that telegraphy is primarily a mental
> process, and that the so-called "sub-conscious mind" must play a vital part
> in it.  (At that time here was quite a bit of popular writing about the
> "sub-conscious mind," which no doubt helped him put it all together.)  He
> began experimenting until he had solved his own problem and mastered the
> code himself, and in time he became qualified to teach others how to do it,
> too.  By 1911 he had established his own "school" in Chicago to teach "The
> Candler System," later moving it to Asheville, NC.
> Although he died on 23 April 1040, his wife,  who was already an
> experienced telegrapher herself when they were married in 1924, and had
> worked with him since, continued to handle the course for a number of
> years.  (It was last advertised in QST in 1959.)
> THE COURSE
>
> Originally his "High Speed" course was designed for operators who already
> "knew" American Morse, but were stuck at some too low speed.  Later he
> added the International code to it, covering both codes.  Still later a new
> course, called "The Scientific Code Course," designed to be successfully
> used by beginners working alone, was created from the regular "High Speed"
> course by modifying it to add helps to get the beginner started.  (Thus it
> contained all that the "High Speed" course contained.)  That new course was
> later renamed "The Junior Code Course," and was the one I obtained in
> October 1939, and made extensive notes on.
> There is evidence that, although the essentials stood out strongly and
> firmly, over the years the details varied in minor ways.  His basic
> philosophy may be stated as:-  "This system trains you to use your MIND" to
> develop "scientifically your coordination, concentration and confidence" --
> your responsiveness.  The course consisted of ten lessons plus considerable
> valuable supplementary material, mostly as letters.  It is summarized below.
> THE ESSENTIAL PRINCIPLES
>
> Since Candler was concerned with those training to become commercial
> operators, he first emphasized the importance of healthy living: eating,
> exercise, breathing, etc.  This emphasis was needed in those days because
> the typical city operator worked long hours in unhealthy smoke-filled,
> darkish, crowded and poorly ventilated offices.
> Develop "SOUND CONSCIOUSNESS."  -- In Lesson 7 he wrote: "In learning code
> it is necessary to consciously count the dits and dahs of the various
> signals, both in sending and receiving.  By repetition, the sub-conscious
> mind gradually assumes this burden of counting them.  As long as you must
> consciously count them, work will be slow, but as the sub-mind takes them,
> they go faster and faster."  "As you progress," he wrote elsewhere, "Begin
> to respond more readily to the sound patterns than to visual ones: learn to
> shift from what you mentally see to what you hear.  So long as you must
> consciously remind yourself that so many dits and dahs 'stand' for certain
> letters, you are not learning code."  So, "when you hear  didah, no longer
> say to yourself: 'didah stands for A.'  Instead, when you hear  didah,
> hear A.  Do not translate."   "In learning code you do not have to relearn
> words, but you do have to change the approach...from visual to
> auditory...   Once you have mastered this consciously, your sub-mind will
> handle that detail, and do a faster, better job than your conscious mind
> possibly can."
> Critique:  We must remember  that he and most of his students had already
> "learned" visually,   and  now  this must be REPLACED  by direct auditory
> recognition.   Here  was the real reason  they all had gotten stuck at some
> slow speed.     This traditional approach must have blinded his thinking
> so that it did not occur to him to START THE BEGINNER WITH SOUND ALONE, and
> so save the beginner from having to cross that annoying hurdle with its
> discouragement.
> Your sub-mind will only do what you have consciously trained it to do.
> Therefore, teach it the RIGHT WAY and the SAME WAY consistently from the
> beginning.  Think and act POSITIVELY: (The "I can do it" attitude).  If you
> maintain a positive attitude as you think and consistently practice,  the
> sub-mind will take over the task more quickly, and it will become easier
> each time you do it.  Conscious effort is needed until it becomes
> automatic.  First you learn by consciously employing the principles in your
> regular daily practice.  Then gradually, if you practice as directed, your
> sub-mind will take over the job with less and less conscious effort, and
> you will make good progress.
> Learning to READ CODE, to RECEIVE, is the important thing. That is, to
> understand without having to write it down.  Reading means listening and
> understanding what is being said, just as in reading ordinary print or when
> listening to someone speak. Reading code must never depend on copying.  As
> soon as you have learned all the letters, start listening to good code on
> your receiver (or nowadays, practice tapes, etc.) for 5, 10, 15 minutes at
> a time, or until you become tired -- even if you cannot put together enough
> consecutive signals to form  words.  Keep on, and soon you will be catching
> small words and then larger ones.  But do not practice too long at one time
> - never when fatigued.
> "I am acquiring the ability to read words subconsciously now.  When
> reading code, I know, as soon as a word is sent, what the word is, although
> I didn't consciously spell it out to myself as it was coming in,"  wrote a
> student.
> YOU CANNOT WRITE DOWN WHAT YOU CANNOT READ (RECEIVE).  This is step two
> after learning to receive.  Writing down what you receive is a routine
> matter that will take care of itself if you are properly trained.  Of
> course, in the initial stages of learning the alphabet and numbers, etc.,
> you must copy letter by letter, slowly, just as you had to learn to read
> that way. After this stage,  stop until:  When you get so you can listen to
> code and read it at 15 to 25 wpm without copying, you must begin copying
> some at each practice period.  Commence this way:  each day copy for 10 -
> 15 minutes, striving to copy one or more signals behind, then spend a
> similar period just listening to good code without writing.
> When you do copy, learn to COPY BEHIND.   If you have been copying letter
> by letter you must begin systematically to overcome it, and the best way is
> to listen to good code and form the habit of reading it without copying.
> As you acquire the independent code reading habit, by daily practice, you
> will find it easier to drop behind a few signals without confusion or fear
> of losing out when you are copying.  You must break the bad habit of
> copying letter by letter.  Get in the habit of carrying the letters in your
> mind, forming them subconsciously into words and sentences, without writing
> them down.         "When I found I could begin to read small words as
> easily by sound as by sight, I was delighted.  I soon learned to read words
> 'in my head.  After that, copying them by pencil was easy. Previously, I
> had been writing words down letter-by- letter: that was wrong!" wrote a
> student.
> Practise intelligently: in the RIGHT way, daily, regularly, in short and
> well- spaced periods, purposefully.  Never practice error.  Practicing when
> tired is not efficient use of time.  A good schedule is 30 minutes daily,
> 15 minutes in the morning and 15  minutes in the afternoon or evening.  The
> time between practice periods is important - use it to prepare yourself to
> be receptive by cultivating a positive attitude toward yourself and what
> you are trying to do.   THE TEN LESSONS  With these statements of basic
> principles in mind, let us look at the lessons for the beginner.  Note that
> each new group of code letters was presented in the old visual dots and
> dashes manner, but the student was told to THINK of the letters in terms of
> dits and dahs as they sound.  He seems to have anticipated that a typical
> student would take a week or two to complete each lesson.
> LESSON ONE: Emphasis on sound units.  The first group was  E I S H, to be
> sent smoothly and in accurate, regular timing by the student with his key,
> saying the dits as he pounded them out. Candler recommended that two or
> more beginners work together so each could send to and receive from the
> other.  As soon as he can recognize them easily and send them smoothly, he
> was to form words, such as "he, is, see, his, she."  Next to take the
> letters  T M O, and do the same way, saying the dahs as he sends them, and
> then to make small words using both sets of letters, as before.  Lastly the
> letters: A N W G.  Then practice small words, including as many of the 100
> most common words as can be formed from these eleven letters.     At one
> period Candler either supplied or recommended the use of mechanical
> senders, such as the Teleplex, with his course for the student studying
> alone.  This would provide an accurate timing sense as well as good hearing
> practice.  With a machine or companion, he would be able to listen and,
> during this initial period, copy letter by letter as he heard each
> character.
> LESSON TWO: Emphasis again on thinking of the letters in terms of dits and
> dahs as they sound, not as they appear in dots and dashes.  Groups of new
> letters to be learned the same way: D U V J B;  R K L F;  P X Z C Y Q.
> Words to be practiced included the rest of the shorter 100 most common
> words.  Emphasis on accuracy of timing, and that repetition builds habit
> (whether good or bad).
> LESSON THREE:  Emphasis on knowing you are right, then going ahead and
> making it a habit by repetitive practice.  Analysis of the letters in code,
> accuracy of signal, spacing and speed: precision.  Get in the habit of
> instantly recognizing each and every letter when you hear it, without
> having to stop and think: automatic association of each signal with its
> letter.  Also now learn the numbers and commonest punctuation.  When you
> have learned the letters so that you do not have to "stop and think" of
> what character any combination of dits and dahs represents, begin listening
> to good code every day regularly without copying, even if only for 5
> minutes at a time. (The radio was his favorite source of good code:
> commercial press and government stations were on 24 hours a day.  Now we
> have ARRL code practice, tapes. etc.)  Catch everything you can as you
> listen.  You may not get much at first, but keep trying and you will soon
> begin to hear letters and words.
> LESSON FOUR: Think of the code as being easy to learn.  Trust your
> sub-mind to do its work.  Review and practice, especially any characters
> you tend to miss or confuse, until they are automatic.  Every character
> must stand on its own feet.  Keep drilling on the 100 most common words,
> both receiving and sending.  Begin using the "two-column drill" where you
> set up two parallel columns of three or four letter words, each having the
> same number of letters; then go down the columns spelling the word in the
> first column out loud while simultaneously writing down the other.  Then do
> the same, reversing the columns.  (See Chapter 8, "Conquering Our Fears of
> Losing Out," third paragraph.)   These are the first easy drills on
> learning to copy a word or two behind.
> LESSON FIVE: practice each letter and character until you know them all so
> well - whether receiving or sending - that you don't have to stop and think
> about them at all.  Do the same with the 100 most common words.  Keep up
> the practice of the two-column exercise started in Lesson 4, going on to
> words with a few more letters as you find it easier.  This is to HELP
> DISENGAGE CONSCIOUS ATTENTION from the proper functioning of the
> sub-conscious mind so that it can do its work unhindered.  Learn to trust
> it by continuing this kind of practice until it becomes easy.  This is a
> highly successful method of training to shift the effort from conscious to
> automatic, that is, subconscious, making it a useful habit.
> LESSON SIX:  Development of skill is developing coordination, where
> everything runs smoothly.  It begins by constant practice listening to and
> sending consistently and perfectly formed code characters, learning to
> recognize each code signal instantly, learning to read it all easily, and
> when copying, to write it down in a uniform, simple style of handwriting.
> Watch for any step along the line where there is any hesitation or
> question, and practice to overcome that block.  Give this your attention,
> and allow time for it to develop until it becomes automatic, habitual. This
> is the scientific way.  Do some practice copying mixed five-letter groups,
> but do not write down any letters of a group until the whole group has been
> sent.  Have wide enough spaces left between groups to allow you to write it
> down before the next group starts.  (His emphasis throughout the course is
> on receiving and copying normal English, not ciphered groups.)
> LESSON SEVEN: Emphasis on proper timing while sending.  Start by sending a
> series of letter E's  with wide spaces between them, first with six counts
> between letters, then gradually reducing the space to normal one letter
> space.  Then do the same way with S,  T,  H,  O, etc.  (Here he discussed
> "counting" as given above under "1 - Sound Consciousness, Critique.")
> LESSON EIGHT: A discussion of "glass arm," or telegrapher's paralysis, and
> its prevention by certain exercises, relaxation and proper warm-up.
> Continuing practice of fundamentals.
> LESSON NINE:  Obstacles to progress listed as:
> lack of practice,
> thinking visually rather than by sound,
> hesitation over poorly learned signals, causing loss of the following ones,
> looking back over one's copy while copying,
> negative attitudes.  One must force oneself to copy behind by degrees,
> gradually.
> LESSON TEN:  Learning to carry words in your mind by continuing the
> copying behind practice.  Learning to write rapidly and legibly as an aid
> to receiving.  Learning to copy on the typewriter.  (He had a separate
> course specifically for this.) Learning by doing until it become second
> nature.
>
> The Art &Skill of Radio-Telegraphy-Second Revised Edition-
> ©William G. Pierpont N0HFF
>
> 73
> On Dec 22, 2013 11:07 AM, "Howard" <wa2afd at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Hello to all and a Merry Christmas...
>
> I am looking for a copy of the Candler Code Method for learning the code.
> The original would be nice, but a copy is fine as well as a copy in PDF
> format. Any direction or help in obtaining more info greatly appreciated.
>
> 73 de W4AFD Howard
>
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> =30=
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>
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