A continuation indicator is any character, except a zero or a space, in column 6 of a Fortran line, or any digit, except zero, after the first tab. The compiler considers the characters after the continuation character to be the characters following the last character of the previous line, as if there were no break at that point. Although FORTRAN-77 permits up to 19 continuation lines in a program, Compaq Fortran 77 allows at least 99 continuation lines.
If a continuation indicator is a zero or a space, the compiler considers the line to be an initial line of a Fortran statement.
Comment lines can appear between an initial line and its first continuation line, or between successive continuation lines. You cannot use a continuation indicator to continue a comment line.