English as she is written — 1. Punctuation Available to Purchase

The Editor has asked me to contribute a few articles on various pitfalls in English into which overseas students, in particular, tend to fall. I am not sure how useful articles on various aspects of English can be; for the acquisition of a language is a slow business, like the building of a coral reef, and short‐cuts are of little value. Those of us who have spent much of our lives in learning and teaching languages know only too well that it is a never‐ending process. One is constantly learning one's own mother tongue; and when it comes to a foreign language it seems as if the more you know, the harder it becomes. Persistence, concentrated effort, and attention to detail are the only weapons that in the end produce results. Close reading and a handy notebook are essential.