Plain English

Dot your i's and cross your t's.

He seems unable to learn the table of 8's and 9's.

Do not make your n's and u's so much alike.

559. The apostrophe is used to mark the omission of the century in dates, as: '87 instead of 1887, '15 instead of 1915.

THE HYPHEN

560. The hyphen is used between the parts of a compound word or at the end of a line to indicate that a word is divided. We have so many compound words in our language which we have used so often that we have almost forgotten that they were compound words so it is not always easy to decide whether the hyphen belongs in a word or not. As, for example; we find such words as schoolhouse, bookkeeper, railway and many others which are, in reality, compound words and in the beginning were written with the hyphen. We have used them so frequently and their use as compound words has become so commonplace, that we no longer use the hyphen in writing them. Yet frequently you will find them written with the hyphen by some careful writer.

561. As a general rule the parts of all words which are made by uniting two or more words into one should be joined by hyphens, as:

Men-of-war, knee-deep, half-hearted, full-grown, mother-in-law, etc.

562. The numerals expressing a compound number should be united by a hyphen, as; forty-two, twenty-seven, thirty-nine, etc.

563. When the word self is used with an adverb, a noun or an adjective, it is always connected by the hyphen, as; self-confidence, self-confident, self-confidently, self-command, self-assertive, self-asserting, etc.

564. When the word fold is added to a number of more than one syllable, the hyphen is always used, as; thirty-fold, forty-fold, fifty-fold, etc. If the numeral has but one syllable, do not use the hyphen, as; twofold, threefold, fourfold, etc.

565. When fractions are written in words instead of figures always use the hyphen, as; one-half, one-fourth, three-sevenths, nine-twelfths, etc.

566. The words half and quarter, when used with any word, should be connected by a hyphen, as; half-dollar, quarter-pound, half-skilled, half-barbaric, half-civilized, half-dead, half-spent, etc.

567. Sometimes we coin a phrase for temporary use in which the words are connected by the hyphen. For example:

It was a never-to-be-forgotten day.

He wore a sort of I-told-you-so air.

They were fresh-from-the-pen copies.

ADDITIONAL MARKS OF PUNCTUATION

There are a few other marks of punctuation which we do not often use in writing but which we find on the printed page. It is well for us to know the meaning of these marks.

568. The caret (^) is used to mark the omission of a letter or word or a number of words. The omitted part is generally written above, and the caret shows where it should be inserted. For example:

The above examples illustrate the use of the caret with the omission of a letter, a word or phrase.

569. If a letter or manuscript is not too long, it should always be rewritten and the omissions properly inserted. Occasionally, however, we are in a hurry and our time is too limited to rewrite an entire letter because of the omission of a single letter or word so we can insert it by the use of the caret. If, however, there are many mistakes, the letter or paper should be rewritten, for the too frequent use of the caret indicates carelessness in writing and does not produce a favorable impression upon the recipient of your letter or manuscript.

MARKS OF ELLIPSIS

570. Sometimes a long dash (–) or succession of asterisks (* * * * * *) or of points (. . . . . .) is used to indicate the omission of a portion of a sentence or a discourse. In printed matter usually the asterisks are used to indicate an omission. In typewritten matter usually a succession of points is used to indicate an omission. In writing, these are difficult to make and the omission of the portion of material is usually indicated by a succession of short dashes (– — – —).

MARKS OF REFERENCE

571. On the printed page you will often find the asterisk (*), or the dagger, (†), the section (§), or parallel lines (||), used to call your attention to some note or remark written at the close of the paragraph or on the margin, at the bottom of the page or the end of the chapter. It is advisable to hunt these up as soon as you come to the mark which indicates their presence, for they usually contain some matter which explains or adds to the meaning of the sentence which you have just finished reading.

Exercise 1

In the following exercise, note the various marks of punctuation and determine why each one is used:

THE MARSEILLAISE

Ye sons of toil, awake to glory!
Hark, hark, what myriads bid you rise;
Your children, wives and grandsires hoary—
Behold their tears and hear their cries!
Shall hateful tyrants, mischief breeding,
With hireling hosts, a ruffian band,—
Affright and desolate the land,
While peace and liberty lie bleeding?

CHORUS

To arms! to arms! ye brave!
Th' avenging sword unsheathe!
March on, march on, all hearts resolved
On Victory or Death.

With luxury and pride surrounded,
The vile, insatiate despots dare,
Their thirst for gold and power unbounded,
To mete and vend the light and air;
Like beasts of burden would they load us,
Like gods would bid their slaves adore,
But Man is Man, and who is more?
Then shall they longer lash and goad us?
(CHORUS)

O Liberty! can man resign thee,
Once having felt thy generous flame?
Can dungeons' bolts and bars confine thee,
Or whip thy noble spirit tame?
Too long the world has wept bewailing,
That Falsehood's dagger tyrants wield;
But Freedom is our sword and shield,
And all their arts are unavailing!
(CHORUS)

    —Rouget de Lisle.

THUS SPAKE ZARATHUSTRA

I teach ye the Over-man. The man is something who shall be overcome. What have ye done to overcome him?