PEN

THE GOOD OLD FOUNTAIN PEN Today’s generation may not have heard of it. The ball pointed pen has revolutionized writing tools, like the holder and nib, which I first saw when I joined Government service. Each member is allotted a table and chair, with an ink stand and blotting paper fixed to a semi-roller, and, of course, the paper weight. One ink well is filled with blue ink for normal use and red ink for making corrections. The wooden holder, very long, has a split, at the broad end, for inserting the nib which allows ink to come down to the paper. Every now and then, one has to blot the ink, as otherwise it may spoil the paper. The fountain pens have the ink stored in a chamber, with a channel directing the ink to the nib, supported by a feeder. It was costly and a valuable item for the literate people. Because of a tremor of my right hand, I would spoil a pen soon enough and the ball pointed pen saved my agony. But now I find a number of them in a tumbler; NONE IN A WORKING CONDITION!