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To the Editor:

Morning, Sue. I enjoy reading the Gazette, but I think you’re off base on your “Attorneys General” commentary in the April issue. Please think back to diagramming sentences in grade school. In this case, we’re concerned with compound nouns.

In the phrase “Attorney General,” the noun is Attorney and the adjective (modifier) is General, meaning broad, diverse, much authority. So, to make it plural, we need to address the noun, so Attorneys General is correct and not Attorney Generals.

Similarly, in “Four Star General,” the noun/title is General, modified by the term Four Star, to signify difference from other ranks of General. It follows that the plural is Four Star Generals.

Another interesting example: If one has two married daughters, do you have two sons-in-law or two son-in-laws?

I agree that contemporary grammar is awful. Just read the Strib on an average Sunday for examples. Still, this usage of Attorneys General is correct. I’m attaching wikipedia pages that have good information for you.

Randy Katz

Victoria, Minnesota

EDITOR’S NOTE: Thank you for writing, Mr. Katz. I love it! Interesting that you’re the only person to “correct” me. Back in the old days Father Elstan Coghill of happy memory would have gleefully joined you, and I would have just as gleefully defended myself.

First off, I never said in my editorial which usage was correct or incorrect. I simply said, “It sounds strange to my ears.” In that same vein, I quote Jim Tierney, Director of the National State Attorneys General program at Columbia Law School, “I am all for ‘attorney generals.’ Attorneys general is stupid, silly, and not the way we talk.” He suggested that a movement be started to change it to ‘attorney generals.’

Secondly, according to my American Heritage Dictionary, “general” is a noun as well as an adjective. “General” can be defined as “an officer.” An Attorney General is an officer -- a general -- in the President’s Cabinet on the federal level or an officer -- a general -- in the Governor’s Cabinet on the state level. Not just any general, mind you, but the chief law officer. In this case, attorney serves as the modifier.

Thirdly, you neglected to say that those self-same wikipedia pages also display a hyphen in the label Attorney-General which signifies it, not as a compound noun as you say, but a compound phrase. Rules are different for compound phrases. When diagramming sentences, all of a hyphenated phrase occupies the same line position, including your son-in-law.

Thank you again for writing. I would be happy to hear from you again about errors, perceived or otherwise, in the paper.

To the Editor:

Happy Mother’s Day to you and all my friends. Have a wonderful day. The fishhook is on page 6 in the City Hall scoop.

Life is filled with many gifts

Beyond our fondest dreams --

The shady trees, the meadowlands,

The silver lakes and streams ...

The morning sun, the evening stars,

The blue sky high above,

The breezes of a summer day,

The cooing of a dove ...

But in my mind, the greatest one

That there could ever be

Is friendship -- the most precious gift

That you have given me.

Ethel Schneider

Shakopee, Minnesota

To the Editor:

Hello, Sue. Our family really enjoys reading the Victoria Gazette when it hits our mailbox. I was wondering, how do we go about submitting a picture of my son’s Victoria Moment when he organized a food drive for the Carver Scott Humane Society through his school? I thought it would be great to get it in the Gazette if possible. Thanks so much.

Sybil Druce

Victoria, Minnesota

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