verbatim quotations, combined often with summarizing paragraphs. As the interest lies not only in what a man says but also in the way he says it, verbatim quotations are usually preferred to indirect ones. It is frequently necessary to condense speeches and reports so much that large portions must either be omitted or be briefly summarized. It is desirable, as far as possible, to avoid combining in the same paragraphs both direct and indirect quotations, or both direct quotations and summarizing statements.
In paragraphs of direct quotation it is often necessary to insert explanatory phrases, such as, "said Mr. White," "declared the speaker," "the report continues," "explained Mr. White in conclusion," "the report concludes," etc., but such phrases should be buried in an unemphatic position in the first sentence of the paragraph. Paragraphs of direct quotation should not begin with such unemphatic phrases as, "Mr. Blank continued by saying, etc.," "The speaker then said," "The report continues." It is likewise ineffective to begin with phrases like, "I believe," "I feel sure," "I think," "I know." The newspaper reader will take for granted that what the speaker says is what he "thinks," "believes," "knows," or "is sure of," and the reporter, therefore, may omit these needless phrases entirely or may put them in a less prominent place. Instead of beginning a paragraph with,
"I believe that the income tax is
the fairest of all taxes," said Senator
Borah.
It is preferable to omit entirely the phrase "I believe,"
or else to put the quotation in the following form:
"The income tax, I believe, is the
fairest of all taxes," said Senator
Borah.
