maturely from a hard passage, but to hang far too long over it; the just pride that does not like to acknowledge defeat, and the strong will that cannot endure to be thwarted, both urge to a continuance of effort even when success seems hopeless. It is only by experience we gain the conviction that when the mind is thoroughly fatigued, it has neither power to continue with advantage its course in an assigned direction, nor elasticity to strike out a new path; but that, on the other hand, after having withdrawn for a time from the pursuit, it may return and gain the desired end.

"Perhaps the great embarrassment to beginners however is, not the obscurity of definite isolated passages, but the inability to discover what is the general drift of the processes, and consequently too often want of faith as to the existence of any distinct object to be attained.... The same perplexity is apt to bewilder the student when he enters upon any of the main divisions of the general subject.... Still the advice must be go on, and rest assured that the nature of the apparently unmeaning preliminaries will ultimately be understood and appreciated."*

VII. HANDWRITING,

Formerly much care was taken to acquire a good hand. Of late years, this has been greatly neglected by students. By some it is considered a matter beneath their notice; others suppose that it does not tell at University examinations. Both are greatly mistaken. In every position in life, a legible, rapid hand is a great advantage. Many students can expect only to become clerks in public or mercantile offices. In their case, good handwriting is of vital importance, Even in University examinations, as will be subse

* "Conflict of Studies," pp. 67-70.

quently shown, the handwriting exerts a considerable influence.

It has not unfrequently happened that a candidate for an office has failed through the slovenly handwriting of his letter of application.

In writing it is important to attend to the posture of the body and the manner in which the pen is held. Health is injured by bending over, and causing pressure on the lungs. The body should be kept nearly upright, resting somewhat on the left arm. The pen should be held between the first two fingers and the thumb. The fingers should not be stretched out too far, nor too much doubled up, and those which hold the pen should not pass below its open part. The pen in writing is to be pressed lightly, and to be held so as to point to the shoulder. Those fingers only which hold the pen should move on the formation of the letters. These small joints can move with much greater speed than the larger joints of the wrist and elbow. Very rapid writing is not possible otherwise.

There are three tests of good writing: (1.) Legibility, (2.) Rapidity, and (3.) Beauty. The chief points requiring attention are the following:-slope, height, width, thickness, curvature, mode of junction, and regularity of the lines.

(1.) Legibility. This is the first requisite. The Commissioners for the English Civil Service Examinations say that "good handwriting is held to consist in the clear formation of the letters of the alphabet."

Curved letters are more legible than those which are angular. Upright characters are more legible than sloping. A very slanting hand, to be legible, must occupy much space. Letters however should slope a little for the sake of expedition in writing. Very long loops and tails confuse the eye. Very short loops and tails are also unfavourable to distinct

ness.

Very thin lines, called a "scratchy" hand, and very thick lines, called a "heavy" hand, are both objectionable. A strong contrast between the light and heavy strokes, which makes the "jerking" hand, is still more unfavourable to distinctness.

Letters should be properly joined, whilst the words should be properly separated. The pen should not be lifted except when necessary. The last word of a line should not be crushed against the margin. If there is not sufficient room for the word, or for part of it, bring it to the beginning of the next line. Perfect regularity and straightness of line, and equality of space between lines, are conducive to legibility.

(2.) Rapidity. A learner must write slowly, but in the business of life rapidity is of great importance. Some clerks will write twice as quickly as others and equally well. In this case, supposing the salaries to be the same, the slow clerk is twice as costly as the other. Officers of Government and merchants will either not employ clerks who write slowly, or allow them only low salaries. A young man lately submitted a specimen of his writing to a Government officer, begging an appointment. The application was rejected on the ground that, though the writing was clear and neat, it was evidently not free. In University examinations, a student who can write expeditiously has advantages over one who writes slowly. The latter may be obliged to leave several questions unanswered from want of time. Competitors for the English Civil Service appointments are expected to be able to copy out correctly in good writing a printed passage of 500 words in half an hour.

To secure rapidity the body should be at ease and well supported. The round hand is more rapid than the angular because the lines glide into each other; whereas the angular hand is a series of jerks. Letters should be simple in form and all flourishes should be

avoided. Loss of time is caused whenever the peu is taken off the paper.

The following advice under this head, is judicious :"Quickness in writing is to be attained only by practice. No time need be exclusively devoted to it : for inasmuch as many other subjects must be practised on paper, this very practice is sufficient for the penmanship. But to make it so, you must, in the first place, execute all your writing carefully, and in the second place, as quickly as you can, consistently with the quality. Go through every exercise in fact, as if the goodness and quickness of your penmanship were to be finally tested by it; and though this may be troublesome at first, a little perseverance will make it your natural way of writing, requiring no effort at all."*

(3.) Beauty. This does not denote the ornamental style of writing. Flourishes are out of place. In business writing, the object is not to display skill in penmanship, but to secure legibility.

To please the eye, regularity is necessary. The letters should be of uniform size and thickness; the spaces between the letters should be equal; also those between the words, and those between the lines. The student should be able to dispense with ruling, and yet make the lines straight, and at equal distances from each other.

Beauty of form is another requisite. This especially depends on the curves. Some curves are much more pleasing than others. The ellipse is more graceful than the circle. A line doubly bending, somewhat like the letter f, is called the line of beauty by painters. In a good style of writing, the curves have an elliptical form. The ellipse, however, should not be too narrow, as this interferes with legibility.†

* How to Prepare for Civil Service Competition, p. 25. Many of the foregoing remarks are abridged from a lecture on Writing, by H. Grant, delivered at St. Martin's Hall, London,

VIII. GEOGRAPHY AND HISTORY.

GEOGRAPHY.-Macaulay says, "The importance of geography is very great indeed. I am not sure that it is not of all studies that which is most likely to open the mind of a native of India."

The Brahmans, to keep the people in blind submission to their sway, interdicted passing beyond the limits of the country. To cross the ocean involved the loss of caste. All other nations were regarded as Mlechchas, impure barbarians. The Mandarins of China acted in a similar spirit to preserve their power. China was called the "Celestial Empire"; Europeans were termed "red-bristled devils." Intercourse with foreign nations was forbidden.

People confined to their own country are like frogs in a well, without any idea of what is beyond. The best scholar in a village school is apt to be conceited; but if he goes to a large city, he soon finds that there are others who far surpass him, and he learns to be modest. In like manner, where nations mix with. each other, they see that excellence is not confined to themselves, and they can learn much that is valuable.

God designed that the nations of the earth should have free intercourse. In this way they may derive great mutual benefit. Cotton, indigo, sugar, coffee, tea, &c., will not grow in England. If English people never left their own country and other nations never visited them, the above-mentioned articles would be unknown in the island. England, however, contains large quantities of iron, and its people are very skilful in its manufacture. By means of machines, worked by steam-engines, they can also make cloth at a much cheaper rate than it can be woven by hand. English ships, with English goods, sail to all parts of the world, and bring back, in exchange, the produce of other countries. China