2. (a) Every participle, like every adjective, must agree with its noun in person and number. But furthermore, every participle has an indisputable right to have something to agree with. Too often the poor word is left dangling in mid air. Shun the unrelated participle and the misrelated participle. The best of us are only too prone to such slips as this: “Coming up stairs, it was seen that the great window fell,” instead of, “Coming up stairs, we saw the great window fall.” Or this: “Coming up stairs, the window fell on him,” where the coming may belong to the window or to the him. In the first of the two incorrect sentences the participle is unrelated; in the second it is misrelated, or at least ambiguously related.
(b) Care should be taken not to use a participle when a verbal noun in ing is needed. “The fact of Poe being intemperate should not blind us to the fact of his genius,” is wrong for “The fact of Poe’s being intemperate,” etc.
3. Particularly avoid a singular adjective with a plural noun, in such expressions as, “A long way” [not ways]. Note here that sidewise, not sideways, is correct.
Concord of Pronoun and Antecedent.
1. It should be remembered that every singular antecedent takes a singular pronoun. “Everybody came forward and laid his contribution on the table”—not “their contribution.”
2. Before writing the verb of a relative clause, think whether the antecedent is singular or plural. “Her voice is one of the sweetest that have [not has] been heard in this town.”
3. When a number of persons, men and women, are spoken of distributively, the pronouns he and his are proper forms of reference—not their, not his or her. “The audience rose and each person waved his applause” would be correct, even if there were ten ladies to each man. The he or his may here be called the neutral pronoun. What pronouns should fill the blanks in the following sentence? “Let every man and woman who would like to join our picnic betake —— to the pier at three o’clock, and give —— no anxiety about —— lunch; —— will find plenty of sandwiches and cake and coffee on the picnic-boat.”
Such expressions as “every man and woman” are however undesirable whenever the neutral pronoun is to be used. A neutral antecedent, like every person, everybody, every one, is preferable.
4. When the indefinite pronoun one is used, there is often ambiguity in referring to it later by he, his, etc. Repeat the one. Thus, “One does not always know one’s own mind.” Better still, use an expression like the indefinite you, or, a person, which has its own representative among the pronouns. Thus, “A person doesn’t always know his own mind.”
5. Use sparingly, if at all, the Latin construction—which fact, which idea, etc. Say rather, a fact which, etc. E.g. “He was slightly deaf, a misfortune which he bore without whimpering.”