Ninety years ago, in April 1927, a new publication hit the newsstands: The Countryman. Buy a copy of the April 2017 issue (out now) and you’ll find it comes with a facsimile copy of that first 1927 issue.
Inside this, there’s a request from the editor, which says:
Crystal clear: thats what the rules of punctuation are not. But David Crystal’s journey through the history of punctuation is, and this guide not only clarifies when is the right time to use a specific punctuation mark but it also explains the history of how these marks came into existence. It also clarifies why confusion reigns about usage.
Do you remember being taught that you used a comma when you needed to stop and take a breath? This was important advice at one time … especially if you were a monk being given a new piece of text that you were going to have to chant with fellow monks in the next 15 minutes. It was handy to know then, when to pause for a breath, so that you spoke in unison with your fellow monks. But if you were in a silent order, then the need for commas to denote breaths was …
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