# Elementary Rules of Usage 
1. Form the possessive singular of nouns by adding 's. 
Follow this rule whatever the final consonant. Thus write, 
>Charles's friend 
Burns's poems 
the witch's malice 

**Exceptions are the possessives of ancient proper names ending in -es and -is, the 
possessive Jesus', and such forms as for conscience' sake, for righteousness' sake.**
But such forms as Moses' Laws, Isis' temple are 
commonly replaced by 
>the laws of Moses 
the temple of Isis 

### The pronominal possessives hers, its, theirs, yours, and ours have no apostrophe.
Indefinite pronouns, however, use the apostrophe to show possession. one's rights  somebody else's umbrella 

### A common error is to write it's for its, or vice versa. 
The first is a contraction, meaning "it is." The second is a possessive. 

It's a wise dog that scratches its own fleas. 
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Culled from the book ; The Elements of Style by Oliver Strunk![DQmcGTgE9ztQ7QmWESyE7uVqLrUqfbAa1fsTCod6dmsFYjP.gif](https://steemitimages.com/DQmcGTgE9ztQ7QmWESyE7uVqLrUqfbAa1fsTCod6dmsFYjP/DQmcGTgE9ztQ7QmWESyE7uVqLrUqfbAa1fsTCod6dmsFYjP.gif)
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