Thanks for your well-researched comments, Gene! I agree. Another "rule" that I think can lead to abominable sentences is that infinitives should not be split. Example from a recent letter: ". . . we have the resources, talents, and abilities to accomplish successfully these objectives." Would you care to look this one up in Fowler et al. and report back to us? Now I'm glad I never bothered to buy Strunk & White. I do have Fowler at home, a gift from my editor father (who never harped on sentence-ending prepositions or split infinitives). Ann Harlow