code: def remove_and_record_multiple_spaces_in_line(line):
      
      removed_spaces = {}
      # get a collection of match objects for all instances of
      # multiple-spaces found in the line:
      multispace_matches = re_group_captured_multiple_space.finditer(line)
      # record the number of spaces found at each match position:
      for multispace in multispace_matches:
          removed_spaces[multispace.start()] = \
              (multispace.end() - multispace.start() - 1)
      # now remove the multiple-spaces from the line, replacing with a
      # single space at each position:
      line = re_group_captured_multiple_space.sub(u' ', line)
      return (removed_spaces, line)
docs: For a given string, locate all ocurrences of multiple spaces
         together in the line, record the number of spaces found at each
         position, and replace them with a single space.
         @param line: (string) the text line to be processed for multiple
          spaces.
         @return: (tuple) countaining a dictionary and a string. The
          dictionary contains information about the number of spaces removed
          at given positions in the line. For example, if 3 spaces were
          removed from the line at index '22', the dictionary would be set
          as follows: { 22 : 3 }
          The string that is also returned in this tuple is the line after
          multiple-space ocurrences have replaced with single spaces.