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4. For the same reason, avoid too many subdivisions. Contrive your scheme of thoughts in such manner as may finish your whole argument with as few inferior branchings as reason will admit; and let them be such as are obvious and open to the understanding, that they may come within one single view of the mind. This will not only assist the understanding to receive, but it will aid the memory also to retain truth: whereas a discourse cut out into a vast multitude of gradual subordinations has many inconveniences in it; it gives pain to the mind and memory, in surveying and retaining the scheme of discourse, and exposes the unskilful hearers to mingle the superior and inferior particulars together; it leads them into a thick wood, instead of open daylight, and places them in a labyrinth instead of a plain path.

5. Give all diligence to obtain a clear and easy way of expressing your conceptions, that your words, as fast as you utter them, may stamp your ideas exactly on the mind of the hearer. This is a most happy talent for the conveyance of truth, and an excellent security against mistakes and needless controversies.

Rule 28.-Let your method be distinct, and without the perplexing mixture of things that ought to be kept separate, and this will be easily practised by observing the following directions.

1. Do not bring unnecessary heterogeneous matter into your discourse on any subject; that is, do not mingle an argument on one subject with matters that relate entirely to another, but just

so far as is necessary to give a clearer knowledge of the subject in hand.

2. Let every complicated idea be divided into its distinct single parts, as far as the nature of the subject and your present design require it. Though you must not abound in needless subdivisions, yet something of this work is very necessary. Thus, if we say, that a poet must possess great powers; we express an idea, complicated or compounded of many others; therefore, if this complicated idea be material to our discussion, we should divide or explain it, by enumerating the several powers of which a poet must be possessed, viz. brilliant genius, profound and acute observation, deep learning, great command of language, &c. &c.

3. Keep each part of the subject in its own place. Put those things all together that belong to one part or property, one consideration or view of your subject. This will prevent needless repetitions, and keep you from intermixing things which are different. We must maintain this distinction of things and places, if we would be safe from error. It is confusion that leads us into endless mistakes, which naturally arise from a variety of ideas ill-joined, sorted, or illdisposed.

4. In the partition of your discourse into distinct heads, take heed that your particulars do not interfere with each other.

Rule 29.-Your method must be full without deficiency, and it must be short, or without superfluity. The fullness of a discourse enlarges our knowledge, and the well-concerted brevity saves our time.

Have a care of tedious prolixity, or drawing out any part of your discourse to an unnecessary and tiresome length. It is much more honourable for an instructor, an orator, a pleader, or a preacher, that his hearers should say, "We were afraid he would have done," than that they should be tempted to show signs of uneasiness, and long for the conclusion.

Do not multiply explanations where there is no difficulty, or darkness, or danger of mistake. Be not fond of proving those things which need no proof, such as self-evident propositions and truths universally confessed, or such as are entirely agreed to and granted by your oppo

nents.

As there are some things so evidently true, that they want no proof, so there are others so evidently false, that they want no refutation. It is mere trifling, and a waste of our invaluable time, to invént and raise such objections as no man would ever make in earnest, and that merely for the sake of answering and solving them; this breaks in notoriously upon the due brevity of method.

Do not suffer every occasional and incidental thought to carry you away into a long parenthesis, and thus to stretch out your discourse, and divert you from the point in hand.

A man, who walks directly but slowly towards his journey's end, will arrive thither much sooner than his neighbour, who runs into every crooked turning which he meets, and wanders aside to gaze at every thing that strikes his eyes by the way, or to gather every gaudy flower that grows by the side of the road.

To sum up all: there is a happy medium to be observed in our method: so that the brevity

may not render the sense obscure, nor the argument feeble, nor our knowledge merely superficial; and on the other hand, that the fullness and copiousness of our method may not waste the time, tire the hearer, or fill the mind with trifles and impertinences.

Rule 30.-All the parts of an argument should be well connected; and these few short directions will probably suffice for this purpose:

Keep your main end and design ever in view, and let your discourse have a tendency towards it, and as far as possible make that tendency visible all the way: otherwise the hearers will have reason to wonder for what end this or that particular was introduced.

Let the mutual relation and dependence of the several branches be so just and evident, that every part may naturally lead onward to the next, without any huge chasms or breaks, which interrupt and deform the scheme. The connection of truths should arise and appear in their successive ranks and order, as the several parts of a fine prospect ascend just behind each other, in their natural and regular elevations and distances, and invite the eye to climb onward with constant pleasure till it reach the sky. Whatsoever horrid beauty or sublimity a precipice or a cataract may add to the prospect of a country, yet such sort of hideous and abrupt appearances in a scene of reasoning are real blemishes and not beauties. When the reader is passing over such a treatise, he often finds a wide vacancy, and makes an uneasy stop, and knows not how

to transport his thoughts over to the next particular, for want of some clue or connecting idea to lay hold of.

Finally, where the ideas, propositions, and arguments, are happily disposed, and well connected, the truth is secure; nevertheless, the discourse becomes much more agreeable, when proper and graceful expression joins the parts of it together in an inviting and entertaining

manner.

STYLE OF LANGUAGE.

Having thus prescribed a plain and easy discipline for reasoning, this, in addition to the preceding instructions for delivery, discrimination and retention, would render the present system complete. But, in order to give the student every possible assistance in his attempts to attain true oratory, the following instructions are added, to aid him in the acquisition of correct and elegant phraseology.

Rule 31.-Make no effort at elegance of expression, until strict accuracy of language shall have been obtained.

Strict accuracy of language includes, not only a faithful observance of all the rules of grammar, but a rigid attention to perspicuity.

It has already been suggested, that no one should attempt the art of public speaking, who has not previously attained a practical knowledge of grammar, and facility in written composition. But as there may be many who con

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