number of topics to be discussed.

_Rules for the Use and Arrangement of Words_

The following rules for the use and arrangement of words will be found
helpful in securing clearness and force.

1. Use words in their proper sense.

2. Avoid useless circumlocution and "fine writing."

3. Avoid exaggerations.

4. Be careful in the use of _not_ ... _and_, _any_, _but_, _only_, _not_
... _or_, _that_.

5. Be careful in the use of ambiguous words, e. g., _certain_.

6. Be careful in the use of _he_, _it_, _they_, _these_, etc.

7. Report a speech in the first person where necessary to avoid
ambiguity.

8. Use the third person where the exact words of the speaker are not
intended to be given.

9. When you use a participle implying _when_, _while_, _though_, or
_that_, show clearly by the context what is implied.

10. When using the relative pronoun, use _who_ or _which_, if the
meaning is _and he_ or _and it_, _for he_ or _for it_.

11. Do not use _and which_ for _which_.

12. Repeat the antecedent before the relative where the non-repetition
causes any ambiguity.

13. Use particular for general terms. Avoid abstract nouns.

14. Avoid verbal nouns where verbs can be used.

15. Use particular persons instead of a class.

16. Do not confuse metaphor.

17. Do not mix metaphor with literal statement.

18. Do not use poetic metaphor to illustrate a prosaic subject.

19. Emphatic words must stand in emphatic positions; i. e., for the most
part, at the beginning or the end of the sentence.

20. Unemphatic words must, as a rule, be kept from the end.

21. The Subject, if unusually emphatic, should often be transferred from
the beginning of the sentence.

22. The object is sometimes placed before the verb for emphasis.

23. Where several words are emphatic make it clear which is the most
emphatic. Emphasis can sometimes be given by adding an epithet, or an
intensifying word.

24. Words should be as near as possible to the words with which they are
grammatically connected.

25. Adverbs should be placed next to the words they are intended to
qualify.

26. _Only_; the strict rule is that _only_ should be placed before the
word it affects.

27. When _not only_ precedes _but also_ see that each is followed by the
same part of speech.

28. _At least_, _always_, and other adverbial adjuncts sometimes produce
ambiguity.

29. Nouns should be placed near the nouns that they define.

30. Pronouns