Page:U.S. Government Printing Office Style Manual 2008.djvu/220

This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
204
Chapter 8

8.59.

Wherever possible without danger of ambiguity.

$2 gold
Executive Order No. 21
General Order No. 12; but General Orders, No. 12
Public Law 85–1
He graduates in the year 2010 (not the year 2,010)
My age is 30 years 6 months 12 days.
John Lewis 2d (or II)
Murphy of Illinois; Murphy of New York (where only last :name is used)
Carroll of Carrollton; Henry of Navarre (person closely identified with place);
but Clyde Leo Downs, of Maryland; President Levin, of Yale University
James Bros, et al.; but James Bros., Nelson Co., et al. (last element of series)
Dash

A 1-em dash is used—

8.60.

To mark a sudden break or abrupt change in thought.

He said—and no one contradicted him—"The battle is lost."
If the bill should pass—which God forbid!—the service will be wrecked.
The auditor—shall we call him a knave or a fool?—approved an inaccurate statement.
8.61.

To indicate an interruption or an unfinished word or sentence. A 2-em dash is used when the interruption is by a person other than the speaker, and a 1-em dash will show self-interruption. Note that extracts must begin with a true paragraph. Following extracts, colloquy must start as a paragraph.

"Such an idea can scarcely be——"
"The word 'donation'——"
"The word 'dona'——"
He said: "Give me lib——"
The bill reads "repeal," not "am——"
Q. Did you see——A. No, sir.
Mr. Brown [reading]: "The report goes on to say that"—Observe this closely—"during the fiscal year * * *."
8.62.

Instead of commas or parentheses, if the meaning may thus be clarified.

These are shore deposits—gravel, sand, and clay—but marine sediments underlie them.