One of the mistakes often made in beginning the study of birds with
small children, is in placing stress upon learning by sight and name
as many species of birds as possible.
7. Participial and adjective phrases and adverb phrases out of their
natural order should be separated from the rest of the sentence by commas.
A knight, clad in armor, was the most conspicuous figure of all.
To the mind of the writer, this explanation has much to commend it.
8. When negative expressions are used in order to show a contrast, they
are set off by commas.
They believed in men, not in mere workers in the great human workshop.
9. Commas are used in complex sentences to separate the dependent clause
from the rest of the sentence.
The great majority of people would be better off, if they had more money
and spent it.
While the flour is being made, samples are sent every hour to the
testing department.
If the connection is close, the comma is usually omitted, especially when
the dependent clause comes last.
I will be there when the train arrives.
10. When a relative clause furnishes an additional thought, it should be
separated from the rest of the sentence by a comma.
Hiram Watts, who has been living in New York for six years, has just
returned to England.
If the relative clause is restrictive, that is, if it restricts or
limits the meaning of the antecedent, the comma is unnecessary.
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