The package files assume that you have already made the choice of
which text font encoding scheme you prefer (T1 or OT1), and that it is
the default when the LATEX job starts. If you end up using
older OT1 tfm files distributed with dvips before mid 1995,
you'll find some characters are not in the expected places.
Similarly, older Textures users will find things not quite right. Y&Y
users may be loading reencoding packages which moves things around.
Prior to 1995, PSNFSS provided
a package ot1var to cope with this sort of situation.
It is now not supported or maintained. The remnants are in
the obsolete subdirectory for the curious.