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“Some words and forms, which in ordinary speech have gone out of use, have, when introduced into written discourse, a quaint effect, as if the writer were trying to imitate some old model. Herein lies the objection to the employment of such obsolete words. They do not sound as if the user were fully in earnest; they draw attention to the oddity of the form and by so much, withdraw it from the importance of the object that the writer has at heart.” 6

Such use of terms beyond the call of the occasion is peculiarly the fault of those who, with little experience in writing, think that the distinction of a subject lies in words about it rather than in its own inherent character.

“By ‘Prosaic work’ is not meant here merely work in prose, for prose may sometimes be applied to subjects not prosaic. The meaning rather is, prose expressing common homely ideas, and in the spirit of ordinary life.”

“The ruling standard of choice made imperative by the dominating prose mood, is utility.

“As long as this standard of utility dominates, any expression that promotes the end is open to prose.

“The staple of a diction governed by such practical mood will, of course, be the words of ordinary life and the recognised usage of the lay. Any departure from this into a more abstruse or dignified region caffies with it its sober justification. The hardest words to reconcile with this utilitarian vocabulary are the archaic 1362 Minute of Dissent