4. Place correlatives so that there can be no doubt as to their office. Neither—nor, both—and, etc., are frequently not placed next to the expressions they are meant to connect. See §84.
| Wrong: He neither brought a trunk nor a suit-case. |
| Right: He brought neither a trunk nor a suit-case. |
| Wrong: He not only received money from his father, but also his mother. |
| Right: He received money not only from his father, but also from his mother. |
| Right: He not only received money from his father, but also received it from his mother. |
5. Omit no word that is not accurately implied in the sentence.
| Wrong: The man never has, and never will be successful. |
| Right: The man never has been, and never will be successful. |
| Wrong: It is no concern to him. |
| Right: It is of no concern to him. |
6. Use a summarizing word, in general, to collect the parts of a long complex sentence.
Republicans, Democrats, Socialists, Prohibitionists, and Populists—all were there.
7. Express similar thoughts, when connected in the same sentence, in a similar manner.
| Bad: I decided on doing the work that night, and to write it out on the typewriter. |
| Good: I decided to do the work that night and to write it out on the typewriter. |