82 THE IMPROVEMENT Ox THE MIND. A. Doubtlessthere must be aproper time, wherein God will make that goodness and that righteousness to appear. 'Q. if this be not before their death; how can it be done ? A. I can think of no other way, but by supposing man to have some existence after this life. Q. Are you not convinced then, that, there must be a state of reward and punishment after death ? A. Yes surely, I now see plainly that the goodness and righteousness of God as governor of the world, necessarily require it. III. Now the advantages of this method are very consi- derable. 1. It represents the form of a dialogue or common conver- sation, which is a much more easy, more pleasant, and amore sprightly way of instruction, and more fit to excite the attention and sharpen the penetration of the learner, than solitary reading or silent attention to a lecture. Man being a sociable creature, delights more in conversation, and learns better this way,, if it could always be wisely and happily practised. 2. This method hath something very obliging in it, and car- ries a very, humble and condescending air, when he that instructs seems to be the enquirer, and seeks information from him who learns. 3. It leads the learner into ,the knowledge of truth as it were byhisown invention, which is a very pleasing thing to human nature ; andby questions pertinently and artificially proposed, it does as effectuallydraw him on to discover his own mistakes, which he is much more easily persuaded to relinquish when he seems to have discovered them himself. 4. It is managed in a great measure in the form of the most easy reasoning, always arising from something asserted or known in the foregoing answer, and so proceeding to enquire something unknown in the following question, which again makes way for the next answer. Now such an exercise is very alluring and entertaining to the understanding, while its own reasoning powers are all along employed ; and that without labour or diffi- culty, because the querist finds out and proposes all the interme- diate ideas or middle terms. IV. There is a method very near a-kin to this which has much obtained of late, viz. writing controversies by questions only, or confirming or refuting any position, or persuading to or dehorting from any practice by the mere proposal of queries. The answer to them is supposed to be so plain and so necessary, that they are not expressed because the query itself carries a convincing argument in it, and seems to determine what the an- swer must be. V. If Christian catechisms could be framed in the manner
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