=Routine Clerical Work. Type-writing.=--There has been a great increase of late in the variety of routine clerical work open to women. The type-writing machine might have been designed for their especial benefit, since it has brought within their reach a number of occupations well suited to their capacities. The lady typist and shorthand writer is a recognised institution in American commercial houses; American women, with their superior adroitness, having promptly seized upon an opening so favourable to their interests and adapted it to their own use. The difficulty as to the two sexes working together is not as much felt in America as here, and where special arrangements have to be made or accommodation provided for women clerks it is done without demur. For type-writing to be satisfactory as an occupation it should be combined with shorthand, for a typist pure and simple can seldom rise beyond a clerkship in a type-writing office, and must not expect more than clerk’s pay; and in this case her weekly wages will certainly be counted by shillings, not by pounds. The addition of shorthand renders many kinds of secretarial work available, and here, as in other occupations, any special skill or knowledge may lead to a considerable increase in wages. An industrious typist who can secure a good connection may make a fair, though not a large, income by working on her own account. Authors and journalists often dictate their work to a shorthand writer and typist, receiving it back in a few hours in a handy and legible form. The usual fee is from 2_s._ to 3_s._ 6_d._ an hour. Doctors, literary and public men, often give permanent employment to a typist, and this kind of work is specially suited to women. Here again, however, brains as well as manual skill are needed. Mere routine work can never earn more than low wages.