The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1874-01-29

"Ileeeh' VI ulfeCteu, pLdeftty anu GeytOty-
TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRoRs,-so-CALLED
Nearly all typographical errors are
chargeable to the manuscript. The author
of course is the last person to admit this.
1t is so easy to accuse the printer of max
ing blunders. But the printers have a
law as Interchangeable as the law of the
Medes and Persians. 1t is this: "F0ELoO
copy" A poet in fine phrenzy, wrote ::
''see the pale martyr in sheet of fireP'
The printer, after soundly cursing the
chirography, set it up thus:
'See the pale martyr ,Cih his shirt on Jire!"
No doubt the author of this phrase: IA
purblind skeptc" tried to write it, but
he actually wrote, "a parboiled skeptic. )"
Again, "a Treatise on the Steam Engine
with Theological investigations on the
motive power of heat" might be an ap-
propriate tito to Fox S Book of Martyrs" F"
But the author imagined that he had
written, ''Iheoretical" A newspaper cor
respondent on the battle field wrote: ait
was fearful to see: men marched in
pantaloons to their final account. "Pla-
toonS' was what he thought he was writ
ing. The ignorance, or carelessness of
the printer is lame eXcuse-in fact it is
none at all l speak from experience.
The absence of errors in the proof, is in
direct ratio to the legibility of the copy.
The duty to write plainly is imperative.
Printers work by the fixed rate of SO
much per thousand ems All the time
spent in revising the authors manuscript
by the proof, (not the proof by the manu-
script as it should be) is lost, and comes
out of his wages every week. For in
stance, good composition, with plain legi-
bic copy, can set correct and distribute
5000 ems per day. At so cents per 1000.
this would be good wages, So per day.
But if he cannot make out his copy and
spends half his time consulting Gazetteers
and Dictionaries, and correcting proof,
he only makes half wages. Who is the
responsible party?
EACH PAGE OF YOUR MANUSCRIPT SHOULD BE
CAREFULLY. NUMBERED.
This proposition is self evident To
neglect this will send your MS. to the
waste basket quick, and the wrathful
editor-in his imagination-will boot you
down three fight of stairs.
BOOKS, CHAPTERS, SECTIONS, &C., MUST BE
NUMBERED CONSEQUENTLY.
Why? Suppose you have written a
book of forty chapters. After fifty pages
have been cast, it would be extremely
awkward to discover that you had mark
ed chap. V. twice. All the succeeding
chapters would really be one less, and
the changes would have to be made in
the plates at your expense. In giving
out copy to the comp mpositors it frequently
happens that page gets misplaced, but
this can be easily transnosed after it is
set up, provided it has been numbered
properly.
oRTHoGRAPHY, OR CORRECT SPELLING
is perhaps the most important item in
determining the value of an article
There are two or three thousand words
whose orthography, usage has not settled.
Avoid the use of such as much as possible
There is no excuse for reporters or the
telegraph for using slang phrases, or
words of doubtful authority, simply be-
cause they care more for haste than taste.
The miserable autobiography of any manu-
script-or even business letter, decides
its fate. Editors have no time to re-wrlte;
nor compositors to consult the dictionary,
neither would it be good sense to publish
it as it is. 1t is very important that you
should dot your is and cross your t's. l
have known compositors to puzzle for
hours over an ambiguous word and f.
nally in despair, set up word as near
like it as possible, but which did not
make sense, because the word in the
manuscript was nonsense. Inc e ana
is, Is and t's all looking alike. have
heard them swear, that if that author
would just come into the composing
room they would dot his eyes G's) for
him.
Nearly all manuscript is indebted to
the compositor and proof-reader for
proper punctuation. This is gross in
I. l..
what he means and yet all writers for
the press are either negligent or ignorant
about punctuation. Take case in hand
''WANTED to rent room by two young
ladies about II feet square" LOST q
poodle dog in Sixth Street market this
morning by a lady of black and tan
color" please send me ( doz. Standard
Poets by the bearer half calf. "Fo RENT
two rooms to a small family in good re-
pair" The Evening Express from Gin
cinnati was thrown from the track and
the fireman killed COW having got on
the track and the engineer badly bruised
the tender which broke loose and pitched
over the embankment the conductor who
was standing on the platform &c, &c"
81 John Smith having gone to sea his wife
respectfully respectfully requests the
prayers of this congregation. The gram
mars all lay down rules for punctuation,
which teachers generally ignore in writ
ing for the press, and in business letters.
Every mail brings letters to our desk,
from teachers all over the United States.
They constantly violate the simplest
rules of punctuation that they pretend
to teach. This negligence causes book
sellers and publishers great trouble and
annoyance. To remind them of their
carelessness, would get their i'll will and
lose their patronage.
THE USE OF CAPITAL LETTERS
This is another source of evil to the
typo l and ] are often mistaken for
each other w, NJ, n, U and Ii are made
tinguish them The wrong use of capital
letters is more frequent than the right
one. Flourishes obscure them. 1t may
look grand to the writer, but it is sure to
disgust the printer and the man of bust
ness.
PARAGRAPHS.
Make no paragraphs except at the be-
ginning of a new subject Nearly all
writers ignore this rule and make new
paragraph with every sentence. This
favors the printers at the expense of
taste or Judgment in the make up into
pages or columns. Yet if the matter has
to be over-run it will be at the expense
of the author
CoNDENsE YOUR THOUGHTS INTO THE FEwEsT
POSSIBLE WORDS.
That is to say: Drive straight at your
objective point A great many articles
that are written for publication will bear
pruning to the extent of every other line,
All superflous words should be left out.
This will make the style terse and vigor-
ouS Shnrt nrticlns nre nniN nrsallN rend