CHAPTER Iì. 517 sea from them with much more freedom, with greater variety, brighter evidence, and with a firmer certainty, than if you have but a slight and sudden view of them. 3. As you proceed in the connection of your arguments, to see that your ground be made firm in every step." See that every link of your chain of reasoning be strong and good ; for if but one link be feeble and doubtful, the whole chain of arguments feels the weakness of it, and lies exposed to every objector, and the original question remains undetermined. 4. " Draw up all your propositions and arguments with so much caution, and express your ideas with such a just limitation, as may preclude or anticipate any objections." Yet remember this is only to be done as far as it is possible, without too much intangling the question, or introducing complicated ideas and ob- scuring the sense. But if such a cautious and limited dress of the question should render the ideas too much complicated, or the sense obscure, then it is better to keep the argument more simple, clear and easy to be understood, and afterwards mention the objections distinctly in their full strength, and give a distinct answer to them. Rule II. Let your method be plain and easy, so that yotir hearers, or readers, as well as yourself, may run through it with- out embarrassment, and may take a clear and comprehensive view of the whole scheme. To this end the following particular directions will be useful. 1. "Begin always with those things which are best known, and most obvious, whereby the mind may have no difficulty or fatigue, and proceed by regular and easy steps to things that are more difficult." And as far as possible, let not the under- standing, or the proof of any of your positions, depend on the positions that follow, but always on those which go before. It is a matter of wonder that in so knowing an age as this, there should be so ninny persons offering violence daily to this rule, by teaching the Latin language by a grammar written in Latin, which method seems to require a perfect knowledge of an un- known tongue, in order to learn the first rudiments of it. 2. " Do not affect excessive haste in learning or teaching any science, nor hurry at once into the midst of it," lest you be too soon involved in several new and strange ideas and proposi- tions, which cannot be well understood without a longer andclo- ser attention to those which go before. Such sort of speed is but a waste of time, and will constrain you to take many steps back- ward again, if you would arrive at a regular and complete know- ledge of the subject. 3. " Be not fond of crowding too many thoughts and rea- sonings into one sentence or paragraph, beyond the apprehension or capacity of your readers or hearers." There are some pet- it k3
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