《读书》一九八三年五期《编后絮语》末句:“《读书》杂志当为此竭尽棉薄。”其中“棉薄”当为“绵薄”。《说文段注》曰:“为薄弱之称。如淮南王安谏伐闽粤曰:‘粤人緜力薄材,不能陆战’。”(见《汉书·严肋传》)按“緜”同“绵”。而“绵”不同“棉”。一来自蚕茧,一生由植物。不知何为以“棉”代“绵”。查《辞海》和《现代汉语词典》皆作“绵薄”,无“棉薄”一词。但“棉薄”非只《读书》独误,尚见于其它书籍。如花城出版社所译佛斯特《小说面面观》一书中,便有“稍尽棉薄”。或以为“绵“棉”无差,况自谦之辞,“棉”较之“绵”又谦甚。然不知“绵薄”之自谦,非指其质卑,乃取其经薄柔弱之 “Reading” in 1983, five “editorial” last sentence: “Reading” magazine to do when it is cotton. “Where” cotton thin “as” thin. “ ”Said text segment note,“ said: ”as the weakness, such as Huainan Wang An inspection Fujian and Guangdong said: ’Guangdong people cotton thin, can not land war.’“ (See ”Han Yan Yan rib“) press ”Cotton“ with ”cotton.“ The ”cotton“ different ”cotton.“ One comes from cocoon, a lifetime from the plant. I do not know what to ”cotton“ on behalf of ”cotton.“ Check the ”Cihai“ and ”Modern Chinese Dictionary“ are made of ”Mianbu“, no ”thin cotton“ word. But ”thin cotton“ not only ”reading“ alone, but also found in other books. Such as Flower City Publishing House translated Foster’s ”novel“ in one book, there will be ”a little cotton pad.“ Or ”Cotton“ is no difference, since the modesty of the words, ”cotton“ than the ”cotton“ and modest even though I do not know ”modest" self-modesty, non-refers to its inferiority base, is to take its thin and weak