Part 1
HAND-BOOK OF PUNCTUATION,
WITH INSTRUCTIONS FOR
CAPITALIZATION, LETTER-WRITING, AND PROOF-READING,
BY W. J. COCKER, A. M.
A. S. BARNES & CO., NEW YORK, CHICAGO, AND NEW ORLEANS. 1878.
Copyright, 1878, by W. J. Cocker.
PREFACE.
As the pronunciation of words is determined by the usage of the best speakers, so, in a great measure, the punctuation of sentences is based on the usage of the best writers. Recognizing this fact, the author has aimed,—
1. To state such general rules as are recognized by most writers of good English.
2. To illustrate these rules by examples taken from many of our best English classics.
3. To give some of the differences in usage that exist even among the best of writers.
It is frequently asserted that even good writers differ so much in their use of punctuation marks that it is impossible to lay down any general rules, and that it is better for each one to consult his own taste and judgment. With equal reason it might be said that inasmuch as good speakers, and even lexicographers, differ in the pronunciation of words, therefore each speaker should make his own taste and judgment the standard for correct pronunciation. A writer’s mode of expressing his thoughts will determine the character and number of the punctuation marks that he uses, and it is chiefly owing to this that even good writers differ somewhat in punctuating what they have written. There are some rules that are invariable under all circumstances; the use of others depends on the mental characteristics of the writer; and there are still other rules, the application of which is determined by the writer’s taste alone.
By gestures, tones of voice, oratorical pauses, emphasis, and in various ways, a speaker can make his meaning clear to his listeners; and so a writer should certainly use all the aids which punctuation, capitals, and italics afford, in presenting clearly what he has written for the perusal of others. Business men, however, seem to think that they are not amenable to the rules that govern good writers. They affirm that they have no time to punctuate their letters, and yet they subject others to the necessity of expending time and patience in trying to make out their meaning. Serious misunderstandings have arisen between business men, in consequence of the omission or incorrect use of punctuation marks, and expensive lawsuits have originated in the careless punctuation of legal instruments.
Very little attention is paid in our public schools to punctuation, and the rules usually given in English Composition are either disregarded or not properly understood. This may, perhaps, be accounted for by the fact that the rules are wanting in clearness, and are not sufficiently illustrated by examples. The aim of this volume is to remedy, in some measure, these evils, and to secure more attention to what ought to be a prominent part of school instruction. The evils of bad punctuation are really more serious than the evils of bad spelling, and no student can be said to have learned to read well, much less to write well, who has not studied punctuation intelligently.
We would suggest that this hand-book be used at Rhetorical Exercises, and that when essays, orations, criticisms, &c., are handed to the teacher for correction, he should use a red or a blue pencil, so that corrections may be the more readily recognized. Besides the corrections in grammar, spelling, &c., he should be careful to supply punctuation marks when needed, cross out needless ones, and, of course, make such other corrections as may be necessary. When the productions are returned to the pupils, the teacher should first point out the necessity of using certain marks, in order to define and bring out the meaning, and to show the relation between the different members of a sentence. Having thus shown the need of punctuation marks, then reference should be made to some of the simpler rules, to impress this need on the mind. Great care should be taken not to perplex the mind with too many rules before the necessity is created for their use. The great difficulty in the study of punctuation has been that many rules are committed to memory before the need of their use has arisen, so that the mind is perplexed and bewildered instead of enlightened. The rule, it must be remembered, does not create the necessity; the necessity creates the rule. Then, again, we think a great mistake is made by having the beginner punctuate what some one else has written. The better plan is for the pupil, at the very outset, to punctuate what he himself has composed, and in his effort to bring out his own meaning clearly, he will, with the aid of a few rules, almost intuitively fall into the habit of punctuating correctly.
The following suggestions may be of service:—
1. Do not give a pupil a rule to learn, unless it is clearly founded upon examples taken from what he himself has written.
2. Take, at first, the simplest, most frequently used, and most readily understood rules.
3. Advance slowly, remembering that a few simple principles clearly understood, are of much more practical benefit than a number of misty rules hastily committed to memory.
In the preparation of this hand-book, the author is under obligations to various authorities, but he is more especially indebted to Wilson’s “Treatise on Punctuation.”
W. J. COCKER.
ADRIAN, Mich., Dec. 26, 1877.
Table of Contents.
I. PUNCTUATION pp. 1-53
II. CAPITALS ” 54-70
III. LETTER-FORMS ” 71-100
IV. PROOF-READING ” 101-114
Introduction.
The principal punctuation marks are,—
1. The Comma , 2. The Semicolon ; 3. The Colon : 4. The Period .
The comma indicates a somewhat close relationship between the parts of a sentence; the semicolon, a more distant relationship; the colon indicates that the parts are almost independent of each other; the period marks the close of a sentence, and indicates that a thought is complete.
In simple sentences, when the words are closely united together, and the relationship of the words to each other is readily perceived, there is usually no need of any punctuation marks, except a period at the close. It should always be borne in mind that punctuation marks are used primarily to assist in bringing out the meaning of the writer, and not to embellish a written or a printed page. In sentences made up of parts that are closely related to each other, but, at the same time, distinct in character, commas should be used. They are way-marks for the accommodation of the reader. A production unpunctuated presents as dreary a prospect to the reader, as the level plain of Chaldæa presents to the perplexed traveler who has lost himself among the sandy mounds on the banks of the Euphrates, and has nothing by which to direct his course.
When the different parts of a sentence are somewhat disconnected, and not closely related to each other, a semicolon or colon should be used. Sentences are sometimes very long and complicated. It is then necessary to separate the main divisions by semicolons, and the smaller by commas. Sometimes the smaller parts of a sentence are separated by commas and semicolons, and the main divisions by colons.
The other marks in use are,—
1. The Interrogation Point ? 2. The Exclamation Point ! 3. The Dash — 4. Marks of Parenthesis ( ) 5. Brackets [ ] 6. Quotation Marks “ ‘ ’ ” 7. The Apostrophe ’ 8. The Hyphen - 9. Miscellaneous marks.
THE COMMA.
INTRODUCTORY REMARKS.
In order to properly understand some of the rules that are given in the following pages, it is absolutely necessary to have a clear understanding of the difference between a sentence and a clause. A sentence is a combination of words expressing a complete thought, and usually followed by a period; a clause is a distinct part of a sentence. Some sentences are simple in form, and have but one subject and one finite verb; as, “Language is part of a man’s character.”—_Coleridge._ Other sentences are made up of clauses, each clause having a subject and a verb; in other words, several clauses are sometimes joined together to form one sentence; as, “New forms of beauty start at once into existence, and all the burial places of the memory give up their dead.”—_Macaulay._ It will be easily seen that clauses will be more readily recognized with the eye, and more easily comprehended, if they are separated from each other by punctuation marks. This will be especially so, if the clauses are long.
In preparing this hand-book, the aim has been to avoid, as much as possible, the use of technical terms. Whenever such terms are used, explanations will usually be found under the head of _Remarks_.
RULE I. _Independent Clauses._—Independent clauses should be separated from each other by commas.
EXAMPLES.
“Savage was discomposed by the intrusion or omission of a comma, and he would lament an error of a single letter as a great calamity.”—_Dr. Johnson._
“Man wants but little here below, Nor wants that little long.”—_Goldsmith._
“Take short views, hope for the best, and trust in God.”—_Sydney Smith._
REMARKS.
1. An independent clause is one that is not dependent on any other clause for the completion of its meaning; as, Take short views | hope for the best | and trust in God. Independent clauses are frequently connected by _and_, _or_, _nor_, _but_.
2. When the clauses are short and closely united, the comma may be omitted; as, “Death had lost its terrors and pleasure its charms.”
3. When the clauses are long and divided into smaller portions by commas, they should be separated from each other by semicolons. See Rule I. p. 23.
RULE II. _Dependent Clauses._—Dependent clauses should be separated from each other by commas.
EXAMPLES.
“If a man does not make new acquaintances as he advances through life, he will soon find himself left alone. A man, Sir, should keep his friendship in constant repair.”—_Dr. Johnson._
“When Dr. Franklin wished to gain his enemy, he asked him to do him a favor.”
“Clap an extinguisher upon your irony, if you are unhappily blest with a vein of it.”—_Lamb._
“Although we seldom followed advice, we were all ready enough to ask it.”—_Goldsmith._
REMARKS.
1. A clause is said to be dependent, when it depends on some other clause to complete its meaning; as, When Dr. Johnson wished to gain his enemy | he asked him to do him a favor. The first clause of this sentence would not be complete in meaning without the second. Dependent clauses usually commence with _if_, _when_, _since_, _because_, _until_, &c.
2. When clauses are closely connected, the comma may be omitted; as, Mozart published some music when seven years of age.
RULE III. _Relative Clauses._—1. A relative clause should be separated from the rest of the sentence by a comma.
2. But the comma should be omitted, when the relative clause is so closely connected with what precedes that it cannot be dropped without destroying the sense.
EXAMPLES.
1. “Men in a corner, who have the unhappiness of conversing too little with present things.”—_Swift._
“The waters are nature’s storehouse, in which she locks up her wonders.”—_Izaak Walton._
“He had on a coat made of that cloth called thunder-and-lightning, which, though grown too short, was much too good to be thrown away.”—_Goldsmith._
2. “Althworthy here betook himself to those pleasing slumbers which a heart that hungers after goodness is apt to enjoy when thoroughly satisfied.”—_Fielding._
“A man who is good for making excuses is good for nothing else.”—_Dr. Franklin._
“Like Cæsar, Cortes wrote his own commentaries in the heart of the stirring scenes which form the subject of them.”—_Prescott._
REMARKS.
1. Relative clauses are generally introduced by the relative pronouns _who_, _which_, _that_, or _what_.
2. A comma should be placed before the relative clause, even when it is necessary to complete the meaning of the antecedent,—
_a._ When the relative is immediately followed by a word or an expression inclosed in commas; as, “As a man, he may not have deserved the admiration which he received from those, who, bewitched by his fascinating society, worshiped him nightly in his favorite temple at Button’s.”—_Macaulay._
_b._ When the relative has several antecedents that are separated from each other by commas; as, “All those arts, rarities, and inventions, which vulgar minds gaze at, the ingenious pursue, and all admire, are but the relics of an intellect defaced with sin and time.”—_South._
3. The words _of which_ are sometimes preceded by a comma, even when they are necessary to complete the meaning of the antecedent: as, “His mind was formed of those firm materials, of which nature formerly hammered out the Stoic, and upon which the sorrows of no man living could make an impression.”—_Fielding._
RULE IV. _Parenthetical Words and Phrases._ When single words and phrases break the connection between closely related parts of a sentence, they should usually be separated by commas from the rest of the sentence.
1. Words used parenthetically,—
therefore, indeed, perhaps, namely, finally, consequently, however, moreover, nevertheless, &c.
2. Phrases used parenthetically,—
in short, in truth, of course, in fact, in a word, you know, in reality, no doubt, as it were, &c.
EXAMPLES.
1. “As an orator, indeed, he was not magnetic or inspiring.”—_G. W. Curtis._
“There is, perhaps, no surer mark of folly, than to attempt to correct the natural infirmities of those we love.”—_Fielding._
“There is, however, a limit at which forbearance ceases to be a virtue.”—_Burke._
2. “I had grown to my desk, as it were, and the wood had entered my soul.”—_Lamb._
“In short, he is a memorable instance of what has been often observed, that the boy is the man in miniature.”—_Boswell._
REMARKS.
1. Words and phrases are said to be used parenthetically, when they obstruct, as it were, the flow of the sentence, and might be dropped without destroying the sense.
2. Whenever parenthetical words and phrases readily coalesce with the rest of the sentence, it is better to omit punctuation marks; as, “I am therefore exceedingly unwilling that anything, however slight, which my illustrious friend thought it worth while to express, with any degree of point, should perish.”—_Boswell._
3. A distinction should be made between words used parenthetically, and adverbs qualifying particular words; as, “And with learning was united a mild and liberal spirit, too often wanting in the princely colleges of Oxford.”—_Macaulay._
“That, too, has its eminent service.”—_Burke._
RULE V. _Parenthetical Expressions._—Expressions of a parenthetical character should be separated from the rest of the sentence by commas.
EXAMPLES.
“She was tumbled early, by accident or design, into a spacious closet of good old English reading, without much selection or prohibition, and browsed at will upon that fair and wholesome pasturage.”—_Lamb._
“He [Sheridan] who, in less than thirty years afterward, held senates enchained by his eloquence and audiences fascinated by his wit, was, by common consent both of parent and preceptor, pronounced a most impenetrable dunce.”—_Moore._
“It is clear that Addison’s serious attention, during his residence at the university, was almost entirely concentrated on Latin poetry.”—_Macaulay._
REMARKS.
1. A distinction should be made between parenthetical words and parenthetical expressions.
_a._ Parenthetical words can be omitted without destroying the sense. See examples under Rule IV.
_b._ Parenthetical expressions obstruct the flow of the sentence, but can not be omitted without either destroying the sense, or changing the meaning intended to be conveyed. See examples given above.
2. When parenthetical expressions are short, or closely connected with the rest of the sentence, it is better to omit punctuation marks.
3. Writers differ very much in omitting or using commas in parenthetical expressions. It is sometimes immaterial whether punctuation marks are used or not, but, in many cases, there are few rules so well adapted to bring out the meaning of the writer.
RULE VI. _Inverted Expressions._—Expressions which are not in their natural order, are frequently separated from the rest of the sentence by a comma.
EXAMPLES.
“In everything that relates to science, I am a whole Encyclopædia behind the rest of the world.”—_Lamb._
“In all unhappy marriages I have seen, the great cause of evil has proceeded from slight occasions.”—_Steele._
REMARKS.
1. The natural order of the first sentence is, I am a whole Encyclopædia behind the rest of the world in everything that relates to science.
2. When the inverted expression is closely connected with what follows, the commas should be omitted; as,—
“Of Addison’s childhood we know little.”—_Macaulay._
“That inward man I love that’s lined with virtue.”—_Beaumont and Fletcher._
RULE VII. _Short Quotations._—Short quotations should be separated from what precedes by a comma.
EXAMPLES.
The Italians say, “Good company in a journey makes the way to seem shorter.”
A writer in _Lippincott’s Magazine_ says, “It is the little courtesies that make up the sum of a happy home.”
Schiller has said, “Men’s words are ever bolder than their deeds.”
REMARKS.
1. An expression resembling a quotation should be preceded by a comma; as, “Therefore the question still returns, What is the First Principle of all things?”
2. Quotations and general statements introduced by _that_ are frequently preceded by a comma; as, “Tacitus says of Agricola, that he governed his family, which many find to be a harder task than to govern a province.”—_Arthur Helps._
3. When single words or a part of a sentence are quoted, a comma should not be used; as, “His wife was a domesticated, kind-hearted old soul, who had come with him ‘from the queen city of the world,’ which, it seemed, was Philadelphia.”—_Dickens._
4. Quotation divided. “A man could not set his foot down,” says Cortes, “unless on the corpse of an Indian.”—_Prescott._
5. When the quotation is a long one, it should be preceded by a colon.
RULE VIII. _Person or Thing Addressed._—The name of the person or thing addressed, together with its modifying words, should be separated from the rest of the sentence by commas.
EXAMPLES.
“Now, Macaulay, when I am gone, you’ll be sorry that you never heard me speak.”—_Sydney Smith._
“Why, Romeo, art thou mad?”—_Shakespeare._
“My lords, we are called upon, as members of this house, as men, as Christians, to protest against such horrible barbarity!”—_Pitt._
REMARK.
When strong emotion is expressed, an exclamation point should be used; as, “O Hamlet! thou hast cleft my heart in twain.”—_Shakespeare._
RULE IX. _Participial Clauses._—Participial clauses, having no grammatical connection with the rest of the sentence, should be separated from what follows, and, if they do not commence a sentence, from what precedes, by commas.
EXAMPLES.
“Success being now hopeless, preparations were made for a retreat.”—_Alison._
“Such being their general idea of the gods, we can now easily understand the habitual tone of their feelings towards what was beautiful in nature.”—_Ruskin._
REMARK.
_Being_ or _having been_ is usually the sign of a participial clause.
RULE X. _Verb Omitted._—When a verb, previously used, is omitted, a comma usually takes its place.
EXAMPLES.
“Histories make men wise; poets, witty; the mathematics, subtle; natural philosophy, deep; moral, grave; logic and rhetoric, able to contend.”—_Bacon._
“Chaucer painted persons; Spenser, qualities.”
REMARKS.
1. When the comma takes the place of an omitted verb, the main clauses or numbers should be separated by semicolons.
2. Sometimes a comma does not take the place of an omitted verb; as, “Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.”—_Bacon._
“Reading maketh a full man, conference a ready man, and writing an exact man.”—_Bacon._
RULE XI. _Appositives._—A noun in apposition and its modifiers should be separated by commas from the rest of the sentence.
EXAMPLES.
“When death, the great Reconciler, has come, it is never our tenderness we repent of but our severity.”—_George Eliot._
“The exploits of Mercury himself, the god of cunning, may be easily imagined to surpass everything achieved by profaner hands.”—_Leigh Hunt._
REMARKS.
1. An appositive is a word, placed by the side of some other word to explain or characterize it.
2. The comma should be omitted,—
_a._ When two nouns without modifiers are in apposition; as, Cicero the orator was born near Arpinum. If the sentence was, Cicero, the greatest of Roman orators, was born near Arpinum, commas would be necessary.
_b._ When a noun and a pronoun are in apposition; as, Mercury himself surpassed everything achieved by profaner hands.
_c._ When two pronouns are in apposition; as, He himself did this.
_d._ Between the parts of a person’s name; as, George William Curtis.
3. In annexing titles to a person’s name, whether the titles are abbreviated or written in full, commas must be used; as, Richard Whately, D. D., Archbishop of Dublin.
RULE XII. _Words in Pairs._—Words in pairs should have a comma between each pair.
EXAMPLES.
“In all the characters, patriots and tyrants, haters and lovers, the frown and sneer of Harold were discernible in an instant.”—_Macaulay._
“Liberty and union, now and forever, one and inseparable.”—_Webster._
RULE XIII. _Unconnected Words._—When two words, of the same part of speech, are not connected by a conjunction, a comma should be placed between them.
EXAMPLES.
“He had in himself a radiant, living spring of generous and manly action.”—_Burke._
“A still, small voice.”—_Kings._
“Where sits our sulky, sullen dame, Gathering her brows like gathering storm, Nursing her wrath to keep it warm.”—_Burns._
REMARKS.
1. When two nouns, the subjects of a verb, are not connected by a conjunction, a comma should be placed between the two words and also after the second; as, “Indignation, expostulation, were powerless upon him as a mist upon a rock.”—_Macdonald._
2. When two adjectives come together, the first qualifying the second adjective and also the noun, a comma should not be used; as, A beautiful white horse.
3. A word repeated for emphasis usually has a punctuation mark before and after it; as,—
“Water, water, everywhere, Nor any drop to drink.”—_Coleridge._
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also.”—_John xiv. 12._
RULE XIV. _A Series of Words._—1. When a series of words, of the same part of speech, are connected by _and_, _or_, _nor_, they should not be separated from each other by punctuation marks.
“The fruits and flowers and shrubs sent forth grateful perfumes.”—_Irving._
Some writers place a comma before each _and_. This, however, is not necessary.
2. When a conjunction is used only with the last word in the series, a comma should be placed before the conjunction and between the other words.
The fruits, flowers, and shrubs sent forth grateful perfumes.
3. When the conjunctions are omitted, a comma should be placed between each word and also at the end of the series.
The fruits, flowers, shrubs, sent forth grateful perfumes.
REMARKS.