Copied from my favorite time-kill web forum.
Speaking of language, did you know that a punctuation mistakes caused a war? Okay, not all by itself, but surprisingly enough punctuation was a significant factor in the outbreak of the Second Boer War.
In 1896, the following telegram was sent to Sir Leander Starr Jameson (who was waiting with a military force ready to come help out if necessary) concerning the condition of the British settlers in the Transvaal:
quote:
It is under these circumstances that we feel constrained to call upon you to come to our aid should a disturbance arise here the circumstances are so extreme that we cannot but believe that you and the men under you will not fail to come to the rescue of a people who are so situated.
That apparently is the telegram as sent. The lack of punctuation leaves it somewhat ambiguous as to its meaning. The addition of a period at key points could certainly clear up the matter:
quote:
It is under these circumstances that we feel constrained to call upon you to come to our aid. Should a disturbance arise here the circumstances are so extreme that we cannot but believe that you and the men under you will not fail to come to the rescue of a people who are so situated.
or perhaps:
quote:
It is under these circumstances that we feel constrained to call upon you to come to our aid should a disturbance arise here. The circumstances are so extreme that we cannot but believe that you and the men under you will not fail to come to the rescue of a people who are so situated.
The first pretty clearly says, "Things are horrible down here and we want your help now" while the second just as clearly says, "Things are bad at the moment but we don't need any help. We'll let you know when we do. Be ready."
It seems from looking at the way things unfolded that the second version is the one the senders actually meant. Unfortunately, somewhere between the telegram's sending and its arrival at Jameson someone inserted a period in the first position, prompting Jameson to take his men the (relatively) infamous Jameson Raid, which nobody actually wanted and deteriorated relations in South Africa enough as to make the Second Boer War almost inevitable.
So the next time a Grammar Nazi gets on your case remember that under the right circumstances a misplaced period can kill thousands of people.
In 1896, the following telegram was sent to Sir Leander Starr Jameson (who was waiting with a military force ready to come help out if necessary) concerning the condition of the British settlers in the Transvaal:
quote:
It is under these circumstances that we feel constrained to call upon you to come to our aid should a disturbance arise here the circumstances are so extreme that we cannot but believe that you and the men under you will not fail to come to the rescue of a people who are so situated.
That apparently is the telegram as sent. The lack of punctuation leaves it somewhat ambiguous as to its meaning. The addition of a period at key points could certainly clear up the matter:
quote:
It is under these circumstances that we feel constrained to call upon you to come to our aid. Should a disturbance arise here the circumstances are so extreme that we cannot but believe that you and the men under you will not fail to come to the rescue of a people who are so situated.
or perhaps:
quote:
It is under these circumstances that we feel constrained to call upon you to come to our aid should a disturbance arise here. The circumstances are so extreme that we cannot but believe that you and the men under you will not fail to come to the rescue of a people who are so situated.
The first pretty clearly says, "Things are horrible down here and we want your help now" while the second just as clearly says, "Things are bad at the moment but we don't need any help. We'll let you know when we do. Be ready."
It seems from looking at the way things unfolded that the second version is the one the senders actually meant. Unfortunately, somewhere between the telegram's sending and its arrival at Jameson someone inserted a period in the first position, prompting Jameson to take his men the (relatively) infamous Jameson Raid, which nobody actually wanted and deteriorated relations in South Africa enough as to make the Second Boer War almost inevitable.
So the next time a Grammar Nazi gets on your case remember that under the right circumstances a misplaced period can kill thousands of people.