Even if this distinction were firmly established, to insist upon its observance by young writers might lead to the neglect of things vastly more important; but it is far from being established. Its warmest advocates admit that there are important exceptions to it, and that it is often transgressed by reputable authors. In this matter, the ear is a surer guide than any theory; and the ear often decides against the theory in question. There may be ears which prefer "that book that you spoke of," to "that book which you spoke of;" but hardly any would prefer "that that you spoke of " to "that which you spoke of."

Euphony decides between WHICH and THAT.

It or That. "It" is sometimes used in sentences in which "this" or "that" would be better.

I.

Of his positive acquisitions, only one is known; but that is by far the most important.

II.

Of his positive acquisitions, only one is known, but it is by far the most important.

"That" emphasizes the reference to "only one."

I.

To be so near the ocean and

not always within sight of it, —I could never stand that.

II.

To be so near the ocean and not always within sight of it - I could never stand it.

In this sentence as originally written, the second it is ambiguous as well as unemphatic.

Distinguish between IT and THAT.

Either or Any one, The latter or The last.

nouns are to be preferred when the persons spoken of are only two; others, when they are more than two.

Whenever more than two persons are spoken of, ANY ONE and THE LAST are preferable to EITHER and THE LATTER.

Each or All. "All" is sometimes used for "each."

I.

Election gave the governed some choice in the selection of the governors, and lot gave each a chance of being made one of the governors.

II.

Election gave the governed some choice in the selection of the governors, and lot gave all a chance of being made one of the governors.

The meaning evidently is, that lot gave a chance to be a governor to "each" person concerned, not to all.

Beware of using ALL for EACH.

Each other and One another. Some grammarians maintain that "each other" should always be used in speaking of two persons or things, and "one another" in speaking of more than two; but many good writers use the two expressions interchangeably.

EACH OTHER and ONE ANOTHER may be used interchangeably.

Some grammarians hold that in a sentence in which "the one" and "the other occur, "the one " refers to the person or thing last named, "the other" to that first named; others hold that "the one " refers to the person or thing first named, "the other" to that last named. The latter opinion is supported by the best usage; but in the present state of the question the safe rule is not to use the one and the other in any case in which the one is intended to refer specifically to one of two persons or things. In such cases, "the former" and "the latter" cannot mislead anybody, and are therefore preferable.

Use THE ONE, THE OTHER, with caution.

It is improper to say the ones; but expressions like "the little ones," "the Shining Ones," "my pretty ones," are supported by the best usage.

Beware of THE ONE and THE ONES.

Change of Pronoun. — Different pronouns are sometimes made to stand for the same person or thing.

I.

When one comes (or, When we come) to think of it, the power to express one's (or, our) thoughts in language is, perhaps, the most wonderful thing in the world.

II.

When one comes to think of it, the power to express his thoughts in language is perhaps the most wonderful thing in the world.

"One" is a pronoun to be avoided when possible, for it is vague, clumsy, and un-English. In most cases, either "we," "you," or "a man" is preferable.

66

If, however, one is used in one clause of a sentence (as in the last example), "one's " is better than his in a succeeding clause. To change from an indefinite to a definite pronoun is always clumsy, and is sometimes misleading; but sentences that have this fault are very common.

On the other hand, we instinctively couple "his," not one's, with "every one," "no one," "many a one: 99 e. g., "Every one loves his mother;" "With this sauce no one could help eating his fill." In these sentences, "every one" and "no one are less indefinite than "one" would be. "Every one loves one's mother" would, moreover, be ambiguous.

A reader of the sentence as originally written is not sure at first that one and "you" do not refer to different persons; but, on reflection, he sees that the man who shudders and the man who feels for the wounded are the same.