The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1951-04-02
This Rock
Of Ours y
BY BILL GLIB

Whether you read the Chris
tan Science Monitor or the Hong
Kong Telegraph, The Key West
Citizen or the Havana Post, you'll
find they have one thing in COM
monte, good old typographical
errors.
The amazing thing is that if
you try to trace down the source
of these typos, you'll never find
the responsible party. Hunting in
a newspaper plant for the guy
who caused an error to be printed
is like hunting in penitentiary
for someone guilty of a crime.
There just amt no such animal"
Have you ever wondered how
a typographical error gets into
print?
My column is too short to go
into the subject thoroughly but
perhaps we can hit a few of the
nigh spots. Some typos are
humorous. some are sad. A lot of
hem can't be printed--or should
| say reprinted? This latter kind
ceally causes headache because
papers that are already on their
way to the customers and news
stands must be recalled if posi-
BILE.
One of the most common typos
goes something like this The
Commissioners decided to etaoin-
shrdlufwyp =" AT this point,
you readers start cursing out the
linotype operators or the proof
readers-whichever one you hap
pen to dislike the most. Here's
how the error came about. The
linotype operator makes a mis-
take. The quickest way to correct
it is to start on new slug so he
lust ribs his first three fingers
down the keyboard of his ma
chine. It's something like pulling
your fingers oyer the keyboard of
piano. Etaoin Shrdulu Cmfwyps
is thus born. When the story is.
oroof-read, the reader will indi-
cate with an appropriate sign that
The slug should be discarded. The
error results when he either fails
to mark his proof or the man cor
recting the galleys' fails to fol-I
low directions.
Etaoin Shrdlu Cmfwyp is the
most common mistake found IN
all newspapers. It's also less seri-
Gus than the others because the
line following it picks up the cor
rect version of the story.
Errors really begin to get hor-
rible when they involve a mix-up
IN titles for two pictures. For in
stance, a society matron's picture
will have below it: "Prize-Win-
ming Hog" Somewhere in the
newspaper you'll find a picture
Of a pretty pig entitled: Mrs.
So-and-So." When you see this
Kind of error don't look Cor the
guy in the composing room who
mixed up the titles. He's prob
ably already tied a weight around
his neck and jumped overheard.
PSychiatristS like to explain
transposed lines or letters, They
say it's caused by a writer's SUBJ
conscious mind. For Instance
The cast were explaining ID
may become The cats were ex-
planning =" Or, ''He told about
the various angles - appears
in print ''He told about the vari-l
Gus angels E" Regardless of.
what psychiatrists say, the proof
reader should catch the mistake.
Of course it happens on occasion
that he will mark an error and
the composing machine operator
viii still repeat the error in the
correction of the copy. Perhaps
you yourself have had the ex-
perience of repeatedly mis-
spelling the same word.
All errors aren't due to the
mechanical department and proof
readers, however. Quite often
reporter will simply get his ideas
twisted up into one sentence and
it will turn out to be a real lulu
For instance, here is one from a
Kansas newspaper quoted in
Editor & Publisher, Jan. 20, 1885,
"a woman was overcome by
gas while taking bath but owes
her life to the watchfulncsS of
the janitor."
Maybe sometime later We
can continue this, subject again.
We can tell about broken records
We can tell about broken records
We can tell about broken records
bah! see what l mean?
.taoin Shrdl cmfWyp etaoin shrlI