EXTRAORDINARY FIGURE WORK.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXVII, Issue 5558, 8 April 1905, Page 15

EXTRAORDINARY FIGURE WORK.

In fifteen minutes and twenty-one seconds, and without a single mistake, Richard Williams, a clerk in tlio First National Bank, Denver, IJ.S.A., totalled five hundred cheques on an adding machine the other day, getting a sum of 163,969.075 dollars. The Chicago hank record, which was tho world’s record,- for the same number of cheques of about tho same amount,.was twenty-one minutes and eighteen seconds. Williams broke the record by five minutes and forty-seven seconds. The contest was held in the bank, each candidate being given tlio same number of cheques. Bach used an automatic adding machine and tho contestants were required to read every cheque, key the amount and get a correct total. Borne of the contestants made better time than Williams, but only three of tho totals wero correct. Eugene Elder made it in nineteen minutes, and thirty-five seconds, while George P. Christie ended in nineteen minutes and forty-five seconds. I. Selovcr finished tho 500 cheques in thirteen minutes and twenty-eight seconds, but made a mistake of 30 dollars; while J. Askling finished in thirteen minutes, but made two mistakes. A. Cliff had an error of ■ one dollar, finishing in fifteen minntes and fiftyeight seconds, while N. L. Zeaglor made a 12 dollar mistake and finished in fifteen minutes and twenty-three seconds. Although the adding was done by machines, the chief difficulty on the part’ of the operators was in reading- tho amounts correctly and striking the right keys on the, machine. A mistake of ono cent, although it might be immediately noticed by tho operator, could not be rectified and Williams’s performance is therefore thought remarkable.