The Logan County banner. [volume] (Logan, W. Va.) 1889-1903, 1889-10-31
PuncTuATion POINTS.


tAkrcnkn l6Mlufye
It is strange that the use Of points
for purposes of punctuation should be
such comparatively modern inven-s
ton. or the four generally used
points, only the period dates
earlier that the fifteenth century. Tho
colon Is said to have been4iisst in.
troduced about 1885. the comma &
some thirty-five years later, and the
semicolon % about 1870 1t is difficult
to understand how the literary world
dispensed for so many centuries with
the useful points," and their lack
must have added to the toll OF the do
cipherer of written documents Whom
we remember what curious diversions
Of meaning may be caused by the mis-
placing OF a comma, we marvel how
early authors contrived TO escape
strange misreadings ofstlaeffi avorls. In
which 10 points gdi1ed the students.
No epointn is so hardly worked as The
eYtnina. Some writer's rarely use any
other stopss Many epistolary corgcs-
pondents stflf cling to the ancient
usages. and dispense as entirely with
points as did the writer's of the carly
ages, This sometimes renders their
disp<tches enigmatical. But it il
easier TO comprehend an unpunctuatcl
thana mispunctuated epistle- Points
showered with a Nfrees@ and careless.
hand generally in wrong places are
perplexing to reader
The work done by the various points
is very unfairly divided among them.
Some signs are in constant use. others
unknown to the general writer. Tho
comma is slave. the parenthesis
| nearly as toilwern. The latter might
| justly complain of ovcrwork. for it is
frequently pressed into service with
out any real necessity. While tiae
pampered mark OF Interrogation, the
idle colon, tho rarely used semi-coton
are most unfairly excused by The mn
! jority OF letter writer's. the comma is
| brethren, and the parenthesis utilized
to make bad grammar comprehensive.
The old definition OF a parenthesis as
| s.certain words introduced intosa dis
cussion which are independent of the
rest and may be omitted without any
injury to the sense or grammar" would
not apply -te-the- parenihGsis of some
correspondents. Often the parenthesis
carries the whole sense of the SEN
tence. or serves to make involved
| phrases comprehensive, and to omit
the parenthesis-weu be to play Ham
let without representing the Prince OF
i Denmark. There is the old legend OF
the epitaph to one John Bum who
was killed by gum with the explain
] atory parenthesis, "His real name
/ wasn't Bum; his real name was Wood;
hut as Wood didn't rhyme with gun
| thought Bum would"
Apostrophes are points whose dato
appears uncertain. Points have been
the subject of many curious and in
genious definitions. There was wicked
wit in the speaker who told adeformed
and inquisitive lady that mark of in
terrogation was CROOKED little thing
that asked questions More poetical
was the printer who became an timer
ant preacher, andinformed his hearers
tn, outh might be likeneE to- n
comma, middle life to semico on, old
age to colon, and death to period. y
Modern writer's. or. at least, modern
j printers, are less profuse in their use
of marks OF exclamation @ and dashes
O. than were earlier authors and
publishers. What an amount of these
signs are found in the novels and
plays OF some fifty and seventy years
ago!
| 1t is said that English printers were
the last to use the semicolon, English
| typographical works appearing as late
as f590-92 without this asefnl-p point,
adopted by foreign printers some years
previously 1t is said that the English
Bible of 1892 is printed without a
semicolon; but in 1858 the "full rights
of the semicolon were established by
Buffers English Grammar. '-Londor
/ Standard.