The Withhold System of When, All, Appear, Who must not be applied to the overt found for the formulation of the What Question. This System is only applied to the earliest overt one can discover on the chain opened by the What Question.

The exact Prepcheck procedure becomes as follows:

1. Ask the Zero Question. (See HCO Policy Letters and Information Letters for Sec Check Forms. These are “Zero Questions”.)
2. If the Meter gives an Instant Read (see HCO Bulletin May 25, 1962 for Instant Read) then the auditor says, “That reads. What have you done?”
3. The pc gives the overt. (If the pc doesn’t, the auditor can coax or demand until an overt is given, saying such as, “But you must have done something because the Meter reads — What have you done?” until the pc does give the overt on the subject of the Zero Question. A pc well in session will give it. (Note: A severe ARC Break can cause a Meter to react on a Zero Question. Just ask if there’s an ARC Break if you suspect it and ask the Zero again.)
4. The auditor says, “I will check that on the Meter” and reads the Zero Question again. If the Zero Question still gives an instant read the auditor says, “I will formulate a broader question.”
5. The auditor forms and tests What Questions until one gives an instant read the same as the Zero Question did.
6. Addressing the pc directly, the auditor asks the What Question he has composed and verified by Meter test.
7. The pc is permitted to answer the What Question, giving as many incidents in a general way as he cares to. He is never cut off short. Let him talk as long as the pc can give overts.
8. The auditor asks if there are any earlier incidents. The auditor, without a Meter, gets the pc down the track until the pc says that’s the earliest.
9. The auditor now applies the Withhold System, When, All, Appear, Who, to this earliest incident, going through When, All, Appear, Who several times.
10. The auditor now says, “I will check the What Question on the Meter,” and does so, asking it and watching for a read.
11. If there is an instant read, the auditor repeats steps 8, 9 and 10 above until there is no instant read on the What Question.
12. When the What Question reads nul the auditor says, “That is clean. I will now do the Middle Rudiments.” Note: Various end rudiments can be added to Middle Ruds in extreme cases of pc ARC Breaks.
13. The auditor checks the Middle Rudiments and gets them clean.
14. The What Question is tested again. If clean, the auditor says, “It is clean.” And then reads the Zero Question. If it is clean (gives no instant read), the auditor goes on to the next Zero Question. If it is not clean the auditor repeats steps 4 onward to 14 until the Zero Question is clean, at which time he goes to the next Zero Question on the list.

All What Questions are asked to expose and clean a chain of Overts. If the Zero didn’t clean at once originally, there is a Chain of such overts. Therefore the What Question must be asked so that it can be answered with a number of overts if they exist.

It is fatal not to permit the pc to fully answer the What Question to his complete satisfaction before shoving at him with demands for earlier material. To cut off his effort to give several incidents is to leave him with missed withholds and a probable ARC Break.

Don’t ask the Withhold System of When, All, Appear, Who, on any late incidents. Use this system only to blow the earliest incident the pc can easily recall. This opens Up earlier track if any exists. And if none exists it blows the whole chain.

The pc can experience the effect of collapsing track if the auditor applies the Withhold System, When, All, Appear, Who, to an incident late (closer to pt) on the chain. Or if the auditor won’t let the pc fully answer the What Question when found.

The formulation of the What Question is done as follows:

The pc gives an overt in response to the Zero which does not clean the needle of the Instant Read on the Zero.

The auditor uses that overt to formulate his What Question.

Let us say the Zero was “Have you ever stolen anything?” The pc says, “I have stolen a car.” Testing the Zero on the Meter, the auditor says, “I will check that on the Meter. Have you ever stolen anything?” (He mentions nothing about cars, Heaven forbid!) If he still gets a read, the auditor says (as in 4 above), “I will formulate a broader question.” And, as in 5 above, says, to the Meter, “What about stealing cars? What about stealing vehicles? What about stealing other people’s property?” The auditor gets the same Zero Question read on “What about stealing other people’s property?” so he writes this down on his report. All of 5 above is done with no expectancy of the pc saying a thing.

The auditor does it all in a testing tone of voice with a testing attitude.

Now in 6 above, as he has his question, the auditor sits up, looks at the pc and says, meaning it to be answered (but without accusation), “What about stealing other people’s property?”

Now, as in 7 above the pc will probably mention the car, the auditor gives a half acknowledgment (encouraging mutter), the pc then recalls an umbrella and then a dressing gown and seems to think that’s it. The auditor now fully acknowledges all of these with an “All right!” or a “Thank you, that’s fine.” The auditor does this only when the pc appears to be sure that’s it.

And then the auditor goes into 8 above with, “Now are there any earlier incidents of stealing other people’s property?” and 7 and 8 are played out until the pc finally says something like, “Well, I stole a mirror from a little girl who lived in our block, and that really is the first time.” The auditor now does 9. The pc with track opened by the

When, All, Appear, Who Questions, is again asked, as in 10, “I will check that on the Meter. What about stealing other people’s property? That still reads. Is there an earlier incident (as in 8)?” The pc recalls one, saying, “I almost forgot. In fact I had forgotten it. I used to steal my father’s car keys when I was three!” The auditor says (as in 9), “When was that?” “Is there any more to that?” “What might have appeared there?” “Who failed to find out about it?” asking these four questions in order and getting an answer each time, asking them again and perhaps again. The auditor then says, “I will check this on the Meter (as in 10). What about stealing other people’s property? That’s clean.” And goes on into 12.

The auditor says, “I will now do the Middle Rudiments” (HCO Bulletin June 23, 1962), cleans them and again says, “I will check the What Question. What about stealing other people’s property? That’s clean. “ And immediately does the Zero Question asking, “Have you ever stolen anything? That’s clean. Thank you.” And then asks the next Zero Question on the list.

Note: The pc can go back track as far as he likes without auditor interference.

To test any auditor’s auditing, and to be sure all is well with a field or HGC pc, the What Questions should be checked out on the pc by another auditor and the pc turned back to the auditor to get them flat. Don’t test Zeros for flatness. Increasing responsibility will unflatten Zeros. Only What Questions become forever nul if done right. So only test What Questions for nul reads. A What Question left alive can really raise mischief, as it constitutes a series of missed withholds.

So test all What Questions formulated for that pc after an intensive or close to its end to be sure. And be sure every What Question used is written legibly on the auditor’s report.

This improvement in Prepchecking will increase speed, save ARC Breaks and make an easier and more thorough job of it.

Use this version of Prepchecking for all Theory and Practical tests and drills and on all pcs.

Prepchecking still combines with the CCHs more or less session for session. Form 3 and Form 6A are the most productive Zero Question Lists. For auditors, “The last two pages of the Joburg (Form 3) and Form 6A” is a required prerequisite for higher classes.