O blessed be the Comma’s curl, that keeps the breath of thought alive,
And Semicolon’s stately bridge, where kindred clauses leap and thrive;
The Colon stands with trumpet blast to herald lists in grand parade,
While Hyphens yoke bold steeds of sense, and Dashes carve a cavalcade.
The humble Bracket guards aside the muttered word or whispered jest,
And Quotation Marks, like lanterns lit, bring other voices to our quest;
The Apostrophe, sharp and sly, will show where letters fall or flee,
And mighty Question Marks demand: "What truth lies here for all to see?"
The Exclamation, sabre-bright, will charge the lines with roaring flame,
The Period sits, a watchful king, to end the race and crown the name;
The Slash divides, the Ellipse dreams... three sighs to trail across the skies,
While Cursive's silver rivers run where beauty in the pen-stroke lies.
Nota Bene! in careful script, the scholar's finger points the way,
While Post Scriptum, sly and spry, will spring a jest at close of day;
Yet dangling participles flail, and fragments wail in broken flight,
'Tis grammar’s forge, with Latin fire, that tempers words to speak with might!
Now mourn we must, yet hope we may, for penmanship’s declining art,
The youth who swipe and text their dreams forget the long and loving part;
Yet poets still, with quill in hand, will keep the ancient banners furled,
And stitch with gold the English tongue, the fairest standard of the world.
(By John Shenton)