The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1896-05-13

al llCiS LIDS pUI - oUOSiN'."'y
fixing its style Of punctuation and
capitalization. The author may indl-
cate his meaning by placing the
necessary points and he may capital
ize with some degree of precision,
but the regularity and uniformity of
both is more often than otherwise the
handiwork of the copy editor and
proof reader of the printing shop
where the authors copy is put into
type. Each shop has standard OF
it's own that is almost certain to have
some. dissimiIarity to the standards Of
other shops. The general principles
may be laid down. however, that the
standard of both punctuation and
capitalization is much higher, more
precise, more uniform and more
nearly correct in. bookwork and in
the higher class of magazines and re.
views than is to be found elsewhere.
More care is exercised and more time
and attention are available to be de-
voted to these particulars that con-
tribute 20 the general excellence and
elegance of the finished product in
the establishments where typograph-
ical work of this high character is
produced, and higher order of in
telligence on the part Of the writer
and editor and greater skill on the
part of the craftsman are brought
into play. The tendency in these
printing shops is to adhere to close
punctuation, placing point wher-
ever one may be used correctly, leav-
ing nothing to be supplied by the
reader; SO with capitals, wherever
the use of capital letter will add to
the force or expIicitness Of the arti-
Gle. there it is placed
The oext lover standard would be
the lesser magazines. the transient Pc
riodicals and the books Of the day. writ
ten in haste. careiessly edited and
printed in rush for immediate circu-
lation There is some effort to preserve
a.standard Of punctuation and capitalize
ton aud an attempt in tine direction Of
uniformity, but much is sacrificed to
the necessities Of haste
Then come the newspapers. And
here is to be found less uniformity and
more widely divergent standards of
punctuation and capitalization than
found elsewhere in the entire range
Of literature. One paper may adhere to
the most rigid aud precise standard
with in6exibe uniformity, while others
have no uniformity from day to day.
The tendency 10 newspapers is. bow
ever, undoubtedly toward wide puctua'
ton aud the disuse Of capital letters, ex-
ceps when absolutely essential and
where to abandon them would be ay-
ing in the face Of accepted usage and
Insulting public opinion 90 the subject.
Everything is made to give way to the
urgent haste required 10 getticg out a
paper on time TO catch the first mails
A comma is never put where the read
er's common sense and supposed kuowl.
edge can supply it. A period is often
omitted after initials, and where COM
mas have been omitted in lengthy
sentence comma is made to DO service
for semi colon. Haste is the watch
word of the modern newspaper Office,
and if fraction Of time can be saved
by using lower case letter where a
capital has been the custom, 10 goes the
lower case letter, save where the use Of
the latter would possibly be regarded as
an evidence Of ignorance. The daily
newspaper is approaching uniformity.
but it is uniformity Dot at all deslr-
able, for it is the dead blank uniformity
that prevailed prior to the day of Ma
putius. the Venetian printer, who intro
duced the system Of punctuation that
has been generally used for the last
four or 1--WE centuries.
There is happy mean, a uniformity,
that is based upon time-houored usage,
the necessity for puctuation points and
capitals to assist the reader in obtaining
a clear, forcible and accurate conception
of the printed language. What the ap-
propriate gesture, the modulated voice,
the expressive couutenance are to the
spoken language the points Of punctua-
ton and capital letters are to the written
aud printed language. The excessive
employment Of either is offensive to
good taste and confusing to the inteli-
gence, but the entire abandonment Of
either or both bas nothing to recon-
mend it. As it is impossible to OBJ
tain uniformity, so is it impossible to
prescribe uniform end universal rules
for the application Of the principles of
punctuation Punctuation demands
for its successful application a
quick apprehension, good judg-
ment. cultivaed taste aud an
extensive and varied acquaintance with
the standard literature of the language.