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 40 of entering Harvard, but instead he entered the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. He also studied with Dr. Louis Maas former conductor of the Philharmonic Society of Boston. He tutored in literature classes of teachers from the Cambridge (Massachusetts) high school. He continued the study of music in New York city and at the same time took a course in stenography at Walworth's institute in 1883, completing the course in four and one-half months and becoming an assistant in the school. He then reported the clinical course in the New York Hospital.

In 1884 he passed the examination for stenographer and private secretary to the appraiser of the port of New York and remained there until a change of administration, resigning in 1885 to become a general law and verbatim reporter in association with James E. Munson, the author of the Munson System of Stenography. He became the principal of a college preparatory school in New York in 1885 and continued in that position for four years; and in 1889 he became private secretary to the post-office inspector in charge at New York city. He was appointed confidential stenographer to the surveyor of the port of New York in March, 1891, and in July of that year he accepted the position of private secretary to Estes G. Rathbone, the fourth assistant postmaster-general. Upon the accession of Grover Cleveland to the presidency in 1893, Robert A. Maxwell became fourth assistant postmaster-general, and that official requested Mr. Cortelyou to withdraw his resignation and to remain as private secretary. He also performed the duties of acting chief clerk of the office and for a time was acting fourth assistant postmaster-general. His efficiency came to the attention of President Cleveland, and in November, 1895, he was transferred to the executive mansion as stenographer to the president, and three months later he was made executive clerk to the president. When congress provided President McKinley with an additional assistant secretary in 1898, Mr. Cortelyou was promoted to that office, and on April 13, 1900, when Mr. Porter resigned from the secretaryship, Mr. Cortelyou was made secretary to the president, an office which had grown to something of the dignity of a cabinet position, the former title of private secretary in no way indicating the duties or responsibilities of the office.

His duties as executive clerk included the supervision of the clerical force and of the vast amount of correspondence received at