String encapsulation for improved translation

I didn't think about it either, mea culpa. I'm actually somewhat surprised that my ~~Latin~~ C is robust enough that I didn't even bat an eyelid. (Admittedly, these are the very basics.) Like I indicated after further reflection,  `string.format()` combines inflexibility with obscurity. It's not a good solution. I will argue more in favor of non-cryptic variables later.