22 THE IMPROVEMENT OF THE MIND. VIII. Do not hover alwunys on the surface of things, no, take up suddenly with mere appearances; but penetrate into the depth of matters, as far as your time and circumstances allow, especially in those things which relate to your own profession. Do not indulge yourselves to judge of things by the first glimpse, or a short and superficial view of them ; for this will fill the mind with errors and prejudices, and give it a wrong turn and ill habit of thinking, and make much work for retraction. Subito is car- ried away with title pages, so that he ventures to pronounce upon a large octavo a`t once, and to recoinmend it wonderfully when he had read half the Preface. Another volume of controversies of equal'size, was discarded by him at once, because, it pretend- ed to treat of the Trinity, and yet he could neither find the word essence nor subsisteneies, in the 12 first pages ; but Subite changes his opinions of men and books and things so often, that nobody regards him. As for those sciences, or those parts of knowledge, which either your profession, your leisure, your inclination, or your incapacity, forbid you to pursue with much application, or to search far into them, you must be contented with an historical and superficial knowledge of them, and not pretend to formmany judgments of your own on those subjects which you understand very imperfectly. IX. Once a day, especially in the early years of life and study, Call yourselves to. an account what new ideas, what new proposition or truth you have gained, what further confirmation of known truths, and what advances you have made in any part of knowledge; and let no day if possible pass away without some intellectual gain : such a course well pursued, must certainly ad- vance us in useful knowledge. It is a wise proverb among the learned, borrowed from the lips and practice of a celebrated painter, nulla dies sine lines ; let no day pass without one line at least ; and it was a sacred rule among the Pythagoreans, that they should every evening thrice run over the actions and affairs of the day, and examine what their conduct had been, what they had done, or what they had neglected ; and they assured their pupils, that by this method they would make a noble progress in the path of virtue. Nor let soft slumber close your eyes, Before you've recollected thrice The trainof actions thro' the day: Where have my feet choseout the way ? What have I learnt, where'er I've been, From all l've beard, from all l've seen ? What know I more that's worth the knowing? What have 1 donethats worth the doing? What have I sought that 1 should shun? What duty have 1 left undone Or into what new follies run ? These self-enquiries are the road That leads tovirtue and to God.
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