The compositor is recommended to study attentively a good treatise[49]on the whole subject. He will find some knowledge of it to be indispensable if his work is to be done properly; for most writers send in copy quite unprepared as regards punctuation, and leave the compositor to put in the proper marks. ‘Punctuation is an art nearly always left to the compositor, authors being almost without exception either too busy or too careless to regard it.’[50]Some authors rightly claim to have carefully prepared copy followed absolutely; but such cases are rare, and the compositor can as a rule only follow his copy exactly when setting up standard reprints. ‘The first business of the compositor’ says Mr. De Vinne, ‘is to copy and not to write. He is enjoined strictly to follow the copy and never to change the punctuation of any author who is precise and systematic; but he is also required to punctuate the writings of all authors who are not careful, and to make written expression intelligible in the proof.... It follows that compositors are inclined toneglect the study of rules that cannot be generally applied.’[51]
It being admitted, then, that the compositor is to be held responsible in most cases, he should remember that loose punctuation,[52]especially in scientific and philosophical works, is to be avoided.[53]We will again quote Mr. De Vinne: ‘Two systems of punctuation are in use. One may be called the close or stiff, and the other the open or easy system. For all ordinary descriptive writing the open or easy system, which teaches that points be used sparingly, is in most favor, but the close or stiff system cannot be discarded.’[54]The compositor who desires to inform himself as to the principles and theory of punctuation will find abundant information in the works mentioned in the footnote onp. 55; in our own booklet there is space only for a few cautions and a liberalselection of examples; authority for the examples, when they are taken from the works of other writers, being given in all cases.
The Comma.
Commas should, as a rule, be inserted between adjectives preceding and qualifying substantives, as—
An enterprising, ambitious man.
A gentle, amiable, harmless creature.
A cold, damp, badly lighted room.[55]
But where the last adjective is in closer relation to the substantive than the preceding ones, omit the comma,as—
A distinguished foreign author.
The sailor was accompanied by a great rough Newfoundland dog.{55}
Whereandjoins two single words or phrases the comma is usually omitted; e.g.
The honourable and learned member.
But where more than two words or phrases occur together in a sequence a comma should precede the finaland; e.g.
A great, wise, and beneficent measure.
The following sentence, containing two conjunctiveand’s, needs no commas:
God is wise and righteous and faithful.{55}
Such words as moreover, however, &c., are usually followed by a comma[56]when usedat the opening of a sentence, or preceded and followed by a comma when used in the middle of a sentence. For instance:
In any case, however, the siphon may be filled.[57]
It is better to use the comma in such sentences as those that immediately follow:
Truth ennobles man, and learning adorns him.[58]
The Parliament is not dissolved, but only prorogued.
The French having occupied Portugal, a British squadron, under Rear-Admiral Sir Samuel Hood, sailed for Madeira.
I believed, and therefore I spoke.
The question is, Can it be performed?
My son, give me thy heart.
The Armada being thus happily defeated, the nation resounded with shouts of joy.
Be assured, then, that order, frugality, and economy, are the necessary supporters of every personal and private virtue.
Virtue is the highest proof of a superior understanding, and the only basis of greatness.{58}
When a preposition assumes the character of an adverb, a comma should follow it, to avoid awkwardness or ambiguity: ‘In the valley below, the villages looked very small.’
The Semicolon.
Instances in which the semicolon is appropriate:
Truth ennobles man; learning adorns him.
The temperate man’s pleasures are always durable, because they are regular; and all his life is calm and serene, because it is innocent.
Those faults which arise from the will are intolerable; for dull and insipid is every performance where inclination bears no part.
Economy is no disgrace; for it is better to live on a little than to outlive a great deal.
To err is human; to forgive, divine.[59]
Never speak concerning what you are ignorant of; speak little of what you know; and whether you speak or say not a word, do it with judgement.{59}
Semicolons divide the simple members of a compound sentence, and a comma and dash come after the last sentence and before the general conclusion:
To give an early preference to honour above gain, when they stand in competition; to despise every advantage which cannot be attained without dishonest arts; to brook no meanness, and stoop to no dissimulation,—are the indications of a great mind, the presages of future eminence and usefulness in life.[60]
The Colon.
This point marks an abrupt pause before a further but connected statement:
In business there is something more than barter, exchange, price, payment: there is a sacred faith of man in man.
Study to acquire a habit of thinking: no study is more important.[61]
Always remember the ancient maxim: Know thyself.
The Period or Full Stop.
Examples of its ordinary use:
Fear God. Honour the King. Pray without ceasing.
There are thoughts and images flashing across the mind in its highest moods, to which we give the name of inspiration. But whom do we honour with this title of the inspired poet?
The Note of Interrogation.
Examples of its ordinary use:
Shall little, haughty ignorance pronounceHis work unwise, of which the smallest partExceeds the narrow vision of the mind?
Shall little, haughty ignorance pronounceHis work unwise, of which the smallest partExceeds the narrow vision of the mind?
Shall little, haughty ignorance pronounce
His work unwise, of which the smallest part
Exceeds the narrow vision of the mind?
Was the prisoner alone when he was apprehended? Is he known to the police? Has he any regular occupation? Where does he dwell? What is his name?
What does the pedant mean?
Cases where the note of interrogation must not be used, the speaker simply stating a fact:
The Cyprians asked me why I wept.
I was asked if I would stop for dinner.
The Note of Exclamation.
Examples of its ordinary use:
Hail, source of Being! universal Soul!
How mischievous are the effects of war!
O excellent guardian of the sheep!—a wolf![62]
Alas for his poor family!
Alas, my noble boy! that thou shouldst die!
Ah me! she cried, and waved her lily hand.
O despiteful love! unconstant womankind!
Marks of Parenthesis.
Examples:
I have seen charity (if charity it may be called) insult with an air of pity.
Left now to himself (malice could not wish him a worse adviser), he resolves on a desperate project.[63]
The Bracket.
These marks are used chiefly to denote an interpolation or explanation. For example:
Perhaps (alarming thought!), perhaps he [Death] aimsEv’n now the fatal blow that ends my life.[64]
Perhaps (alarming thought!), perhaps he [Death] aimsEv’n now the fatal blow that ends my life.[64]
Perhaps (alarming thought!), perhaps he [Death] aims
Ev’n now the fatal blow that ends my life.[64]
They [the Lilliputians] rose like one man.
The Dash.
Em rules or dashes—in this and the next line an example is given—are often used to show that words enclosed between them are to be read parenthetically. Thus a verbal parenthesis may be shown by punctuation in three ways: by em dashes, by ( ), or by commas.[65]
Omit the dash when a colon is used to preface a quotation or similar matter, whether at the end of a break-line or not.
The dash is used to mark an interruption or breaking off in the middle of a sentence.[66]
Marks of Omission.
To mark omitted words three points ... (not asterisks) separated by en quadrats are sufficient; and the practice should be uniform throughout the work. Where full lines are required to mark a large omission, real or imaginary, the spacing between the marks should be increased; but the compositor should in this case also use full points and not asterisks.
Punctuation Marks generally.
The following summary is an attempt to define in few words the meaning and use of punctuation marks (the capitals are only given for emphasis):
A Period marks the end of a sentence.
A Colon is at the transition point of the sentence.
A Semicolon separates different statements.
A Comma separates clauses, phrases, and particles.
A Dash marks abruptness or irregularity.
An Exclamation marks surprise.
An Interrogation asks a question for answer.
An Apostrophe marks elisions or possessive case.
Quotation marks define quoted words.
Parentheses enclose interpolations in the sentence.
Brackets enclose irregularities in the sentence.[67]
Quotation Marks, or ‘Inverted Commas’ (so-called).
Omit quotation marks in poetry, as instructed onp. 45. Also omit them in prose extracts broken off in smaller type, unless contrary instructions are given.
Insert quotation marks in titles of essays: e.g. ‘Mr. Brock read a paper on “Description in Poetry”.’ But omit quotation marks when the subject of the paper is an author: e.g. ‘Professor Bradley read a paper on Jane Austen.’
Single ‘quotes’ are to be used for the first quotation; then double for a quotation within a quotation. If there should be yet another quotation within the second quotation it is necessary to revert to single quotation marks. Sometimes, as in the impossible example in the footnote, quotation marks packed three deep must be omitted.
All signs of punctuation used with words in quotation marks must be placedaccording to the sense. If an extract ends with a point, then let that point be, as a rule,[68]includedbefore the closing quotation mark; but not otherwise. When there is one quotation within another, and both end with the sentence, put the punctuation mark before the first of the closing quotations. These are important directions for the compositor to bear in mind; and he should examine the examples which are given in the pages which follow:
‘The passing crowd’ is a phrase coined in the spirit of indifference. Yet, to a man of what Plato calls ‘universal sympathies’, and even to the plain, ordinary denizens of this world, what can be more interesting than ‘the passing crowd’?[69]
If the physician sees you eat anything that is not good for your body, to keep you from it he cries, ‘It is poison!’ If the divine sees you do anything that is hurtful for your soul, he cries, ‘You are lost!’[70]
‘Why does he use the word “poison”?’
But I boldly cried out, ‘Woe unto this city!’[71]
Alas, how few of them can say, ‘I have striven to the very utmost’!{71}
Thus, notes of exclamation and interrogation are sometimes included in and sometimes follow quotation marks, as in the sentences above, according to whether their application is merely to the words quoted or to the whole sentence of which they form a part. The sentence-stop must be omitted after ? or !, even when the ? or ! precedes the closing ‘quotes’.
In regard to the use of commas and fullpoints with ‘turned commas’, the general practice has hitherto been different. When either a comma or a full point is required at the end of a quotation, the almost universal custom at the present time is for the printer to include that comma or full point within the quotation marks at the end of an extract,whether it forms part of the original extract or not. Even in De Vinne’s examples, although he says distinctly, ‘The proper place of the closing marks of quotation should be determined by the quoted words only’, no instance can be found of the closing marks of quotation being placed to precede a comma or a full point. Some writers wish to exclude the comma or full point when it does not form part of the original extract, and to include it when it does form part of it; and this is doubtless correct.
There seems to be no reason for perpetuating a bad practice. So, unless the author wishes to have it otherwise, in all new works the compositor should place full points and commas according to the examples that follow:
We need not ‘follow a multitude to do evil’.
No one should ‘follow a multitude to do evil’, as the Scripture says.
Do not ‘follow a multitude to do evil’; on the contrary, do what is right.
When a number of isolated words or phrases are, for any reason, severally marked off by ‘turned commas’ (e.g. in order to show that they are not the expressions which the author would prefer to use, or that they are used in some technical sense), the closingquotation mark should precede the punctuation mark, thus:
‘Such odd-sounding designations of employment as “scribbling miller”, “devil feeder”, “pug boy”, “decomposing man”, occur in the census reports.’
in my voice, ‘so far as my vote is concerned’.parlous, ‘perilous’, ‘dangerous’, ‘hard to deal with’.
But when a quotation is complete in itself, either as a sentence or a paragraph, the final quotation mark is to be placed outside the point. For example:
‘If the writer of these pages shall chance to meet with any that shall only study to cavil and pick a quarrel with him, he is prepared beforehand to take no notice of it.’ (Works of Charles and M. Lamb, Oxford edition, i. 193.)
Where a quotation is interrupted by an interpolated sentence, the punctuation must follow the sense of the passage, as in the following examples:
1. ‘At the root of the disorders’, he writes in the Report, ‘lies the conflict of the two races.’ In this example the comma is placedoutsidethe quotation mark, as it forms no part of the original punctuation.
2. ‘Language is not, and never can be,’ writes Lord Cromer, ‘as in the case of ancient Rome, an important factor in the execution of a policy of fusion.’ In this example the comma is placedinsidethe quotation mark, as it forms part of the original punctuation.
In the case of dialogues, the punctuation mark should precede the quotation mark, as:
‘You hear him,’ said Claverhouse, smiling, ‘there’s the rock he splits upon; he cannot forget his pedigree.’
Punctuation in Classical and Philological Notes.
In notes on English and foreign classics, as a rule[72]follow the punctuation in the following examples:
5.Falls not, lets not fall. (That is, a comma is sufficient after the lemma where a simple definition follows.)
17.swoon.The spelling of the folios is ‘swound’. (Here a full point is used, because the words that follow the lemma comprise a complete sentence.)
Note, as to capitalization, that the initial letter of the word or phrase treated (as inFalls notabove) should be in agreement with the text.
The lemma should be set in italics or clarendon, according to directions.
Punctuation Marks and References to Footnotes in juxtaposition.
The relation of these to each other is dealt with onp. 70. Examples of the right practice are to be found on many pages of the present work.
Points in Title-pages, Headlines, &c.
All points are to be omitted from the ends of lines in titles, half-titles, page-headings, and main cross-headings, in Clarendon Press works, unless a special direction is given to the contrary.