XXVIII Never divide at all if you can help it.




IMPORTANCE OF SPACING


It must always be remembered that good spacing is the first consideration.
Nothing is more offensive to the eye of a good judge of printing than bad
spacing. "Rivers" of white, dark spots, crowded black text, are very
serious blemishes to a page. An ordinary book page is a study in color, the
colors employed being black and white. Proper combination, balance, and
proportion are as important here as in places where a variety of colors is
employed. Many of the foregoing rules must be held subject to the
exigencies of proper spacing. A rigid adherence, for example, to the rule
that not more than two consecutive lines should end with divided words will
not justify a badly spaced, unsightly line. There are many things that look
worse than a hyphen at the end of the last full line in a paragraph.
Avoidance of dividing the last word on a page, however, would justify even
bad spacing, because of the gain to the reader. In the last resort, the
interests of the reader must always have first consideration.

Division is greatly affected by the length of the measure. A long measure,
18 or 20 ems or more, gives greater opportunity for arranging the spacing,
but, on the other hand, makes division on short syllables conspicuous and
out of proportion. Very short register, as in two-column Bibles or in cases
where illustrations are inserted in the text, presents very great
difficulties and often calls for division which would not be allowable
elsewhere. Such cases often call for the exercise of the greatest care and