The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1910-08-12
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Curious 75f confroyesrsy s RACES AM 'aalmong
PEngiish, cRE2rfcbmNestp, and SO SO bitter has
it become that statesmen have been
drawn into it, and it threatens to pro
woke a debate upon the floor OF. the
House of Commons. 1t has to do not
with the coronation oath nor with any
'other important matter Of faith and
creed, But With the punctuation OF the
| Lords Prayer. Should there be a
comma III the sentence beginning
Thy Viii be done" and, if SO, where
Should it 60? In other words, which
Of the following forms is correct?
TThy will be done in earth as it is in
r. {'baaVan s7i" 100 H ."si) go
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Thy will be done, in earth as IT is in
q" heaven, ~" 2" '''''"' a1'''
OIL a'M td .haamGt7 fn -
Thy will be done in earth, as it is in
heaven, .''.'' ''i'i' -
To understand the controversy it
must be remembered that, in England,
the privilege of printing the Bible and
the Book of Common Prayer. isia mon.
opoly conferred by ancient statute
upon the Kings Printer and the Ok,
ford and Cambridge University
Presses. In this country any printer
is free to publish an edition of the
Bible and to make any changes in the
text that he desires to make, But not
SO among the English. A London
Gutenberg who sought to invade the
monopoly of the three presses men
1tionneed Would see hfs Bibles seized and
destroyed BY the police, 1aanrSd and, H5inl'a IN ad
1idition, he '&odld probably get 81,
months in Jail for his pains: q The idea
/ is that, the monopoly safeguards the
fpurfty 'oof the. Sacred text. -@" '''@S' 4
T. Not fohg ago some one discovered
in an English library manuscripi
prayer book bearing date Of 1862, and
soon afterwards Representatives, of the
three presses met. to examine, this
manuscript aand to compare it with
the prayer book, of today for the pur
pose of rectifyfng any errors or cor
fuptfohs that the fatteirS might reveal
This work accomplished, a new edi
ftioh1 or rene Player book was Issued
and at once a Humber of afgus.eyed
'Ereadefs Sdiseovered' that a comma 'ap
fpeared, FOR tie first time, III the pass
.fage iniehtfohed above. e'fn@ previous
EDITIONS thepe Had been no comma al
'Fai1ofn the sentence, but nov there was
J. one after the word "done.f''F ii'2-s'
7tfhus the row began; with a loud
tprotest from Dr. H. c. Beeching, 8
4 canon OF Westminster Abbey DR.
EBeeching protested that the comma
destroyed the traditional rhythm o.
1.-THE SENTENCE and thus outraged every
I English Christian. Going further, he
showed that there was no justification
for it in the seventeenth century man
I uscript that the representatives of the
7 three presses had examined, for il
that manuscript, though a comma act
s ually' appeared in the sentence, it wa!
not after "done," but after "earth."
. food of letters denouncing and de
Tending the invading comma then be
gan to appear in the newspapers, ant
: one day lord Hugh Cecil, that towe
of orthodoxy arose in the House o
: Commons and demanded that Winston
Churchill who, as Home Secretary, i
Eofficially the secular head of the All
:, glican Church, explain the sacrilege
! Mr. Churchill gingerly side-stepped-
: and so the controversy continues, wit
:. great emission of abuse and man
: letters in the newspapers. The foe
of itheg comma threaten to take tn
:; matter to the Courts, and even talk G
: besieging Parliament with a monste
petition for redress, signed by mil
3 ions of the orthodox. And meanwhil
: the friends of the comma defend /
l. alleging that it improves not only tn
!, rhythm, but also the sense of the di
y puted passage.Cs O s2,a1or E7r
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p Fssi When the Barber Was a Wit.
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