on good grounds made up my mind to a thing, I always feel as if I had
promised God to do it; and indeed it amounts to the same thing very
nearly. Such a resolve, then, is not to be unmade, except on equally good
grounds with those upon which it was made.’”—_George Macdonald._
REMARKS.
1. Punctuation marks are sometimes required, when the brackets are used.
The same remarks apply to the brackets that apply to parenthetical marks.
2. In reporting speeches, brackets are used, when words are introduced by
the reporter which do not form a part of the speech; as,—
“We would have our Union to be a union of hearts, and we would have our
Constitution obeyed, not merely because of force that compels obedience,
but obeyed because the people love the principles of the Constitution
[long continued applause], and to-day, if I am called to the work to
which Abraham Lincoln was called sixteen years ago, it is under brighter
skies and more favorable auspices. [Applause.] I do hope, I do fervently
believe, that, by the aid of divine Providence, we may do something
in this day of peace, by works of peace, towards re-establishing,
in the hearts of our countrymen, a real, a hearty attachment to the
Constitution as it is, and to the Union as it is. [Long continued
applause].”—PRESIDENT HAYES.—_Chicago Tribune._
3. Parenthetical marks are frequently used instead of brackets.
QUOTATION MARKS.
RULE I. _Direct Quotation._—When the exact words of another are given,
they should be inclosed in quotation marks.
EXAMPLES.
“He had the longest tongue and the shortest temper of any man, high or
low, I ever met with.”—_Wilkie Collins._
Prescott, in his “Conquest of Mexico,” tells us that intemperance among
the Aztecs “was punished in the young with death, and in older persons
with loss of rank and confiscation of property.”
REMARKS.
1. When the exact words of another are not given, quotation marks should
not be used; as,—
Longfellow says,—
“Deeds are better things than words are.”
Longfellow somewhere says that deeds are better than words.
2. When words are quoted from a foreign language, they should be
printed in italics, and the quotation marks omitted; as, “They have
their good glebe lands _in manu_, and care not much to rake into title
deeds.”—_Lamb._
3. When words are to be italicized, a straight mark should be drawn
underneath the words.
4. When a quotation is followed by a comma, semicolon, colon, or period,
the punctuation mark should be placed within the quotation marks; as,
“Mr. M’Adam writes sometimes with genuine humor, and an occasional
entirely original simile shows evidence of the possession of what
phrenologists call the faculty of ‘comparison;’ but the charm of the book
is its rare perspicacity.”—_Harper’s Magazine._
5. When a quotation is followed by an exclamation or an interrogation
point, the punctuation mark should be placed within the quotation
marks, if it forms a part of the quotation; as, “I feel almost like
groaning, when a young mother shows me some marvel of embroidery or
machine-stitching, saying triumphantly, ‘There, I did every stitch of
that myself!’”—_Scribner’s Monthly._
6. When a quotation is followed by an exclamation or an interrogation
point, the punctuation mark should be placed outside of the quotation
marks, if it belongs to the whole sentence and not to the quotation; as,
“We wonder what Handel would have said to Mozart’s scoring of ‘I know
that my Redeemer liveth’!”—_Atlantic Monthly._ “Why cannot we hear, for
instance, the wonderful curioso, ‘He gave his back to the smiters,’ that
forms the second part of the air, ‘He was despised,’ and the duet for
contralto and tenor, ‘O death where is thy sting’?”—_Atlantic Monthly._
RULE II. _Titles of Books._—Titles of books are generally inclosed in
quotation marks.
EXAMPLES.
Morris’s “Story of Sigurd.”—_Scribner’s Monthly._
“The Mikado’s Empire.”—_N. A. Review._
“Daniel Deronda.”—_Contemporary Review._
The Rev. W. W. Capes’s history of “The Early Roman Empire.”—_Appleton’s
Journal._
REMARKS.
1. The names of magazines and papers are generally printed in italics;
as, _The Atlantic_, _N. Y. Nation_, _Fraser’s Magazine_, _Appleton’s
Journal_, _Nature_, _Popular Science Monthly_.
2. In examining _The Atlantic_, _Nation_, _Scribner’s Monthly_,
_Harper’s_, _Appleton’s Magazine_, _Lippincott’s_, _Popular Science
Monthly_, _Galaxy_, _Eclectic_, _N. A. Review_, _New Englander_, _London
Quarterly_, _British Quarterly_, _Westminster Review_, _Edinburgh
Review_, _Contemporary Review_, _The Fortnightly Review_, we find that
thirteen of these use quotation marks, and four use italics, in referring
to the titles of books; eleven use italics, and six use quotation marks,
in referring to magazines and papers.
RULE III. _A Quotation within a Quotation._—When there is a quotation
within a quotation, single marks should be used in addition to double
marks.
EXAMPLES.
“Who was the blundering idiot who said that ‘fine words butter no
parsnips.’ Half the parsnips of society are served and rendered palatable
with no other sauce.”—_Thackeray._
“There is a small but ancient fraternity, known as the Order of
Gentlemen. It is a grand old order. A poet has said that Christ founded
it; that he was ‘the first true gentleman that ever lived.’”—_Winthrop._
REMARKS.
1. Sometimes the quotation within a quotation has a word or phrase that
is quoted. The word or phrase must be inclosed in double marks.
2. In quoting Scripture, it is customary to place only double marks
at the beginning and end of the quotation; as, “And Jesus, moved with
compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I
will; be thou clean.”—_Mark i. 41._
RULE IV. _Paragraphs._—When several paragraphs are quoted in succession,
double marks should be placed at the beginning of each paragraph, and at
the end of the entire quotation.
EXAMPLE.
“The children woke. The little girl was the first to open her eyes.
“The waking of children is like the unclosing of flowers, a perfume seems
to exhale from those fresh young souls. Georgette, twenty months old, the
youngest of the three, who was still a nursing baby in the month of May,
raised her little head, sat up in her cradle, looked at her feet, and
began to chatter.
“A ray of morning fell across her crib; it would have been difficult to
decide which was the rosiest, Georgette’s foot or Aurora.”—_Hugo._
REMARKS.
1. A paragraph usually consists of several sentences. It begins on a
new line, and is distinguished by a blank space on the left, at the
commencement of the paragraph.
2. When parts of a quotation are omitted, use several stars to indicate
the omission (* * * *), or place double marks at the beginning and end of
each detached part of the quotation.
THE APOSTROPHE.
RULE I. _Letters Omitted._—The apostrophe is used to indicate the
omission of a letter or letters.
EXAMPLES.
“O Marcia, O my sister, still there’s hope!”—_Addison._
“Thou knowest ’tis common; all, that live, must die,
Passing through nature to eternity.”—_Shakespeare._
REMARK.
The apostrophe is made like a comma, but is placed above the line.
RULE II. _Possession._—The apostrophe is used to denote possession.
EXAMPLES.
Taine’s “English Literature.” Rawlinson’s “Ancient Monarchies.”
REMARKS.
1. The apostrophe and _s_ should be used with nouns in the singular, even
when the word ends in _s_ or _x_; as,—
“Dickens’s Works.”—_Appleton’s Journal._
“Cox’s General History of Greece.”—_Harper’s Magazine._
“Evans’s observations.”—_Edinburgh Review._
“Mr. Hayes’s responsibility.”—_N. Y. Nation._
In addition to the periodicals given above, _The Atlantic_, _Scribner’s
Monthly_, _Lippincott’s Magazine_, _Popular Science Monthly_, _Galaxy_,
_N. A. Review_, _London Quarterly_, _British Quarterly_, _Fortnightly
Review_, use the additional _s_. The _Westminster_ omits the additional
_s_. In the _Contemporary_ and _Edinburgh Review_, the _s_ is used by
some writers and omitted by others.
2. In the plural of nouns, the apostrophe and _s_ are used to denote
possession, when the word does not end in _s_; as, men’s deeds. If the
word ends in _s_, the apostrophe only is used; as, my neighbors’ house.
3. The apostrophe should not be used before _s_ in ours, yours, hers,
theirs, its.
THE HYPHEN.
RULE I. _Compound Words._—The hyphen is used to connect the parts of a
compound word.
EXAMPLES.
“My household-gods plant a terrible fixed foot, and are not to be rooted
up without blood.”—_Lamb._
“The breezy call of incense-breathing morn.”—_Gray._
REMARKS.
1. A compound word is formed by placing together two simple words.
2. Sometimes several words are connected together by hyphens; as, “He
had a lively touch-and-go-away with him, very pleasant and engaging I
admit.”—_Wilkie Collins._
3. When a compound word comes into very general use, the hyphen is
sometimes omitted; as, railroad, steamboat, bookstore.
4. To-day, to-night, to-morrow, should always be written with a hyphen.
5. When there is any doubt whether two words should be united by a hyphen
or written as one word, some standard dictionary should be consulted. It
will, however, be found that even dictionaries differ somewhat in the use
and omission of the hyphen in compound words. In order to preserve some
uniformity in spelling and in the formation of compound words, every
writer should make either Webster or Worcester the final authority.
RULE II. _Prefixes._—When a prefix ends in a vowel, and the word to which
it is joined commences with a vowel, they should be separated by a hyphen.
EXAMPLES.
Re-admit, co-ordinate, pre-existence, pre-eminent.
REMARKS.
1. A prefix is a letter, syllable, or word, placed before some word, thus
forming a new word.
2. If, instead of two vowels, a vowel and a consonant come together, the
prefix and the word to which it is joined should usually be written as
one word; as, rewrite, predetermine.
3. Vice-president, and most words with _vice_ as a prefix, should be
written with a hyphen.
4. Some writers use the diæresis instead of the hyphen. With prefixes it
is better to use the hyphen, but in other words containing two vowels
that do not form a diphthong, the diæresis should be used; as, Zoölogy.
RULE III. _Division of Words._—When it is necessary to write part of a
word at the end of a line and part at the beginning of the next line, the
division should be made at the end of a syllable, and the parts should be
connected by a hyphen, at the end of the line.
EXAMPLE.
“Knowledge is of two kinds. We know a sub-
ject ourselves, or we know where we can find in-
formation upon it.”—_Dr. Johnson._
REMARKS.
1. It is better to divide a word as near the middle as possible.
2. When two words one at the end of a line and the other at the
commencement of the following line, are separated by a punctuation mark,
it should be placed at the end of the line, and never at the beginning.
MISCELLANEOUS MARKS.
I. _Two Commas_ (”) indicate that the word under which they are placed is
to be repeated.
Charles Harrison, Adrian, Mich.
Clinton Hardy, ” ”
II. _The Caret_ (^) indicates that something is written above the line
that forms a part of the sentence. It is only used in writing.
[Illustration]
III. _Marks of Ellipsis_ (—, ....., * * * * *) indicate the omission of
letters, words, or sentences.
1. “I was the true descendant of those old W—s.”—_Lamb._
2. “I have a belief of my own, ... that by desiring what is perfectly
good, even when we don’t quite know what it is, ... we are a part of a
divine power against evil, widening the skirts of light, and making the
struggle with darkness narrower.”—_George Eliot._
Four words are omitted where the first dots are, and five where the
second are.
3. “My lov’d, my honour’d, much respected friend!
* * * * * * * * *
To you I sing, in simple Scottish lays,
The lowly train in life’s sequester’d scene,
The native feeling strong, the guileless ways;
What Aiken in his cottage would have been.”—_Burns._
In the above, three lines are omitted.
IV. _Leaders_ (......) are used to indicate a connection between words at
the beginning of the line and what is at the end of the line.
Winnowed Wheat..................._Nellie R. Luck._
Dreams, a Poem..................._Octa E. Wise._
V. In writing, one line drawn under a word indicates that it is to
be printed in italics; two lines, in small capitals; three lines, in
capitals.
VI. _Marks of Reference_ are used to refer to notes at the bottom of the
page, or to remarks in the margin. They are the following:—
The Star (*), the Dagger (†), the Double Dagger (‡), the Section (§),
Parallel Lines (‖), the Paragraph (¶).
The above marks are given in the order in which they are used.
The Paragraph (¶) is also used, in written compositions, to denote that
what follows should commence a new line.
[Illustration: Capitals.]
INTRODUCTION.
It has been the custom among some writers to commence every important
word with a capital, so that some printed productions have fairly
bristled with capitalized words; as,—
“Modern authors have with unwearied Pains made many useful Searches into
the weak Sides of the Ancients, and given us a comprehensive Lift of
them.”—_Swift._
“There were a Race of Men who delighted to nibble at the Superfluities
and Excrescences of Books.”—_Swift._
The custom of commencing all nouns with a capital is still prevalent
among the Germans of the present day.
It is a somewhat interesting fact that the use and value of capitals
has been subject to a rise and fall in the literary market, written
productions during some centuries abounding in them, while in other
centuries they have, in a great measure, been discarded, and have become
comparative strangers in English composition.
In the early part of this century, there was a tendency to use them to an
inconsiderate extent, owing principally to German imitators like Carlyle
and others, who adopted, in a somewhat modified form, the German method
of capitalizing words. Just at present there seems to be a reaction
setting in, and there is a tendency among some of our leading publishing
houses to dispense with their use as much as possible. In democratic
America, there has always been a somewhat unreasonable fear of official
titles, and when they are used, they are frequently belittled with small
letters. This has had a tendency to encourage the use of small letters in
many words that should properly commence with capitals.
There is no doubt that a judicious use of capitals assists the eye very
much in reading what another has written, and in understanding a writer’s
meaning. While, on the other hand, an injudicious use lessens their
value, and disfigures a printed page.
Although the taste and judgment of each writer may be consulted in the
capitalization of some words to which he may assign a special meaning,
there are a number of well established principles, sanctioned by long
usage, that should govern all writers in the use of capital letters.
CAPITALS.
RULE I. _Sentences._—The first word of every sentence should commence
with a capital.
EXAMPLES.
“The price we challenge for ourselves is given us.”—_Schiller._
“The elder brother of Franklin ventured to start a newspaper, though
warned that America could never support two newspapers.”—_William Russel._
“Trust in yourself, and you have learnt to live.”—_Goethe._
REMARKS.
1. A sentence is an assemblage of words making complete sense, and
followed by a period. Sometimes a sentence has an interrogation or an
exclamation point at its close; as,—
“For of the wholly common is man made,
And custom is his nurse!”—_Schiller._
2. Any expression that is equivalent to a sentence should commence with a
capital; as, Very affectionately. Price $5.00.
3. As a period indicates the close of a sentence, the word following the
period should commence with a capital; as, “The little soul is like a
vapor that hovers around a marshy lake. It never rises on the green hill,
lest the winds meet it there.”—_Ossian._
If, however, a period is used to indicate an abbreviation, it should not
be followed by a capital, unless it is at the close of a sentence, or
the word that follows it requires a capital; as, In Germany, the degrees
of M. D., LL. D., and Ph. D. are only gained after passing a severe
examination.
4. Although a capital is generally used after an interrogation or an
exclamation point, as they usually indicate the close of a sentence, this
is not always the case; as,—
“How poor! how rich! how abject! how august!
How complicate! how wonderful is man!
How passing wonder He who made him such!
Who centered in our make such strange extremes!”—_Young._
RULE II. _Poetry._—The first word of every line of poetry should commence
with a capital.
EXAMPLES.
“There is a day of sunny rest
For every dark and troubled night;
And grief may bide an evening guest,
But joy shall come with early light.”—_Bryant._
“But far more numerous was the herd of such,
Who think too little and who talk too much.”—_Dryden._
RULE III. _Persons and Places._—Names of persons, countries, cities,
islands, rivers, mountains, &c., should commence with capitals.
EXAMPLES.
“The finest thief of old history is the pirate who made that famous
answer to Alexander, in which he said that the conqueror was only the
mightier thief of the two.”—_Leigh Hunt._
America, France, London, New York, West Indies, Hudson, Rhine, Rocky
Mountains, Mount Vernon, Pacific.
REMARKS.
1. When North, South, East, &c., refer to political or geographical
divisions, they should commence with capitals; as, “But sectional
bitterness has in a great measure passed away; the fatal cause of discord
between North and South has been removed.”
When these words refer merely to the points of the compass, they should
be written with small letters.
2. Words derived from the names of persons should commence with capitals;
as, Socratic, Platonic, Elizabethan.
When words derived from the names of persons or places lose their
individual character, and are used as common words, they should commence
with small letters; as, god-like, hector, turkey, china-ware, laconic.
3. Heaven and hell are written with small letters in the Bible. Satan is
always printed with a capital, but devil commences with a small letter,
unless it stands for Satan; as, “Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into
the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.”—Mat. iv. 1.
RULE IV. _Nations._—The names of nations, or words derived from the names
of nations, should commence with capitals.
EXAMPLES.
“‘Simply to be poor,’ says my favorite Greek historian, ‘was not held
scandalous by the wise Athenians; but highly so, to owe that poverty to
our own indiscretion.’”—_Fielding._
American, German, French, Latins, Americanize, Latinize, Hellenize.
REMARK.
Italics and Italicize are frequently written with small letters.
RULE V. _Sects and Parties._—The names of religious sects and political
parties should commence with capitals.
EXAMPLES.
Christian, Mohammedan, Lutheran, Catholic, Protestant, Episcopal,
Presbyterian, Baptist, Unitarian.
Republican, Federalist, Democrat, Whig, Tory, Radical.
REMARKS.
1. When republican, radical, &c., are used as common words, and not as
the names of political parties, they should commence with small letters;
as, republican institutions, radical measures.
2. Some writers use small letters, when referring to political parties.
If, however, it is incorrect to write Congregational, Methodist, with
small letters, why is it not incorrect to commence Republican, Whig, with
small letters?
3. Church should be written with a capital, when it refers to a religious
sect; as, the Episcopal Church, meaning the whole body of Christians
belonging to that denomination. When the word refers to a place of
worship, it should commence with a small letter.
RULE VI. _Months and Days._—The names of months and days should commence
with capitals.
EXAMPLES.
“No one ever regarded the first of January with indifference. It is that
from which all date their time, and count upon what is left. It is the
nativity of our common Adam.”—_Lamb._
February, March, April, May; Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Sunday, Good
Friday, Easter.
REMARK.
Spring, summer, autumn, winter, should be written with small letters.
RULE VII. _Titles of Books._—All the words, with the exception of
articles, conjunctions, and prepositions, in the titles of books, should
commence with a capital.
EXAMPLES.
Forsyth’s “Life of Cicero.” “The Fall of the Roman Republic,” Rev. C.
Merivale.
REMARKS.
1. It is just as necessary to capitalize the title of a book, as it is
the name of a person.
2. The title of an oration, essay, article for a newspaper, or of any
written production, follows the same rule as the title of a book.
3. Names of sacred writings should always be capitalized; as, Bible, Old
and New Testament, the Scriptures, Acts, Revelation, Gospel of John,
Koran, Vedas.
RULE VIII. _Title-Pages._—The title-pages of books are generally printed
entirely with capitals. The title-page of any book will illustrate this
rule.
REMARKS.
1. This rule concerns more especially the printer.
2. The first word of a chapter is generally printed in small capitals,
the first letter of the word being a large capital.
3. In handbills and advertisements, all important words are capitalized,
so as to attract special attention.
RULE IX. _Titles of Persons._—All titles of respect or honor should be
capitalized.
There are three classes of titles:—
1. Common Titles.
Mr., Mrs., Miss, Master.
2. Professional Titles.
Prof, Dr., D. D., LL. D., &c.
3. Official Titles.
Hon., His Excellency, His Honor, President, Secretary, Senator,
Mr. Chairman, &c.
EXAMPLES.
President Hayes, Senator Morton, Hon. Thomas W. Ferry, Dr. Chas. Rynd,
Mr. Fred. J. Todd.
REMARKS.
1. A distinction should always be made between words used as titles, and
words used in a general sense. For example, senator should commence with
a small letter, if it is not placed before the name of a person as a
title, or does not refer to a particular individual. This is the same
with president, secretary, doctor, &c.; as, “A patient owes some thanks
to a doctor who restores him with nectar smooth and fragrant, instead of
rasping his throat and flaying his interior with the bitters sucked by
sour-tempered roots from vixenish soils.”—_Winthrop._
2. Father, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, cousin, &c., should commence
with a capital, when they are used like titles with the names of persons;
as, Father Pierce, Cousin Blackmar.
3. Sir, father, brother, friend, &c., when used as introductory words to
a letter, should commence with capitals, as a mark of respect; as, My
dear Sir, My dear Friend.
4. In writing such titles as the President of the United States,
Secretary of State, Alexander the Great, all the words in the title
should commence with a capital, except _of_ and _the_.
RULE X. _The Deity._—All names of the Supreme Being or his Son should
commence with a capital.
EXAMPLES.
“But it is now time to depart,—I to die, but you to live. But which of us
is going to the better state is unknown to every one but God.”—_Socrates._
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that
whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting
life.”—_John iii. 16._
REMARKS.
1. Writers differ somewhat in the use of capitals in words referring
to the Deity. Some capitalize all words in any way referring to the
Supreme Being, while others simply capitalize the words that to them seem
important. There should be some uniformity in the use of capitals in
words of this character. As a general rule, it is better to follow the
usage of an authorized version of the Scriptures.
2. Such words as First Cause, First Principle, Almighty God, Supreme
Being, Lord God Almighty, Infinite One, should always be written with
capitals.