Criterion

Contents

PAGE.

• 9

Translator’s Preface.

CHAPTER I. Preliminary Observations. 13

§1. On thinking correctly. What is truth?—§2. Diverse ways of knowing truth ?—§3. Diversity of minds.—§4. Our perfection in an art depends on the knowledge we have of its various parts.— §5. It is important for all men to think correctly. —§6. How the art of thinking correctly is to be taught.

CHAPTER II. On Attention. 19

§1. Definition of attention ; its necessity—§2. Advantages of at¬ tention ; evil consequences that flow from the opposite fault— §3. How we are to be attentive ?—§4. Interruptions.

CHAPTER III. Choice of a Profession ... . 23

§1. Indefinite meaning of the word “talent.”—§2. Instinct shows us the profession for which nature has most fitted us.—§3. How the talent of a child may be discovered.

Chapter IV

§1. Classification of our intellectual acts ; questions that may pre¬ sent themselves. —§2. Classification of the ideas of possibility and impossibility. §3. In what does absolute impossibility consist ? —§4. Absolute impossibility and divine omnipotence.—§5. Abso¬ lute impossibility and the doctrines of faith.—§6. Physical or na¬ tural impossibility.—§7. How we can know that a thing is natur¬ ally impossible.—§8. Solution of some objections against the mir¬ acles of Christ. —§9. Moral or ordinary impossibility.—§10. The impossibility of common sense. It is improperly confounded with moral impossibility.

Chapter V

Questions regarding existence. Knowledge acquired through

the immediate testimony of our senses. 37

§1. Necessity of the testimony of our senses. Different modes in

IV

CONTENTS.

which they show us objects.—§2. Errors into which our senses may lead us. Means to avoid these errors. Examples.—§3. In some cases it is necessary to compare the testimony of several senses ses with each other before we form an opinion.—§4. Men who are healthy in body and sick in mind.—§5. Sensitive impressions that are not produced by any external object. Explanation of this phenomenon. — §6. Maniacs and persons absorbed in themselves.

CHAPTER VI. Knowledge acquired indirectly through the medium of our

senses. . 46

§1. Transition from that which our senses perceive to that which they perceive not. §2. Coexistence and succession. —§3 Two rules regarding coexistence and succession. — §4. Observations on causality. A law of dialectics. — §5. An example. §6. Reflec¬ tions on the foregoing example. —§7. The cause of an act which seems to be the result of mere instinct.

CHAPTER VII. Logic in harmony with charity. 57

§1. Wisdom of the law which forbids rash judgment. §2. Value of the maxim : Believe evil and you will not err.—§3. Some rules for judging of the conduct of men.

Chapter VIII

§i. Two conditions to be observed in order that the testimony of men may be trusted.—§2. Examination and application of the first rule —§3. Examination and application of the second rule.— §4. A remark on self-interest in deceiving.—§5. Difficulty of discovering the truth regarding events that took place in remote places and times.

CHAPTER IX. On Newspapers . 78

§1. An illusion. —§2. Newspapers do not tell us all about men and things — §3. Newspapers do not tell us all about things or facts.

CHAPTER X. Reliance to be placed on accounts given by travellers. 83

§1. Distinctions that must be made. — §2. Sources from which some travellers draw their information.—§3. The true manner of study¬ ing a country.

CONTENTS.

v

Chapter XI

§i. A means that will save time, aid the memory and preserve us from error in the study of history - §2 Distinction between the substance of a fact and the circumstances connected with it. Ap¬ plications.—§3. Rules to be observed in the study of history.

Chapter XII

General considerations on the manner of knowing the nature,

properties and relations of things. IOO

§1. Classification of the sciences. — §2. Scientific prudence ; how it is to be acquired. -§3. Sages recalled to life.

CHAPTER XIII. On the faculty of perception. no

§1. The idea.—§2. A rule for correct perception.—§3. Danger of adhering too rigidly to the analytic method. — §4 The dyer and the philosopher.—§5 Objects seen from only one point of view. —6. Disadvantages that may result from quickness of perception.

Chapter XIV

§1. Nature of judgment Sources of error —§2 False axioms — §3, Propositions that are top general —§4 Inexact definitions. — §5. Words whose meaning is not sufficiently defined. Meaning of the word equality —§6 Gratuitous suppositions. The preci¬ pice.—§7. Prejudice in favor of a doctrine,

Chapter XV

§1. Value of dialectic rules —§2. The syllogism.—Remarks on this form of reasoning. - §3. The enthymeme —§4 Remarks on the middle term. — §5. Utility of dialectics.

CHAPTER XVI. It is not by reasoning alone that truth is discovered.. 146

§1. Inspiration §2. Meditation.—§3. Invention and instruction.— §4 Intuition. —§5. Difficulty of discovering truth. The chess¬ players. Hannibal’s serpent —§6 Rules for meditating.—§7. Nature of gifted intellects. A remarkable doctrine of St. Thomas ofAquin.—§8. Necessity of study.

CHAPTER XVIT.

§1. The two-fold object of instruction. Professors.—§2. Talents

VI

CONTENTS.

that are hidden from others and from ourselves.-§3 Means for discovering hidden talents. How they should be appreciated.— §4. Necessity of elementary studies.

CHAPTER XVIII. On invention . . 166

§1. What they have to do who possess creative talent.—§2. Scien¬ tific authority.—§3. How scientific authority has been modified in our times. —§4. The talent of invention. The career of genius.

CHAPTER XIX. The intellect, the heart and the imagination. 171

§1. Discretion to be observed in the use of the faculties of our soul. Queen Dido. Alexander.—§2. Influence of the heart on the mind. Causes and effects —§3. Eugene. One day’s life. - §4. Don Marcellino and his political changes —§5. How Anselm changed his opinions on the subject of capital punishment.—§6. Some obser¬ vations calculated to put us on our guard against the evil influ¬ ences of the heart. - §7. Sudden transition from friendship to en¬ mity.—§8. Political opinions.—§9. The danger of extreme sensi¬ tiveness. Great talents Poets.—§10. The poet and the clois¬ ter.—§11. Necessity of having well settled ideas.—§12. Duties of orators, poets and artists.—§13. Ideas clothed in images. Il¬ lusions.

Chapter XX

§1. In what the philosophy of history consists. Difficulty of master¬ ing it —§2. A means for making progress in the study of the philosophy of history.—§3. Application of the foregoing to the history of the human mind - §4 An example taken from the physiognomy of man, which illustrates what has been said about the study of the philosophy of history.

Chapter XXI

§1. Folly of those who are indifferent about matters of religion.— §2. Indifferentists confronted with the human race.—§3. Transi¬ tion from indiffeientism to inquiry.—§4. It is impossible that all

CONTENTS.

vii

religions should be true.—§5. All religions cannot be equally ac¬ ceptable to God.—§6 It is impossible that all religions should be purely human inventions. -§7. Revelation is possible.—§8. So¬ lution of a difficulty against revelation.—§9. Results of the pre¬ ceding paragraphs. -§10. Existence of revelation - §11. Histori¬ cal proofs for the existence of revelation.—§12. Protestants and the Catholic Church.—§13. An erroneous method of reasoning pursued by some enemies of the Catholic Church.—§14. The highest philosophy in harmony with religion—§15. He who leaves the Catholic Church, does not know where to go.

Chapter XXII

§1. Classification of our actions. §2. Difficulty of proposing to ourselves a proper end. - §3. Examination of the saying : Every man is a child of his own actions. — §4 The hated man. — §5. Fi¬ nancial ruin.—§6. The learned beggar and the ignorant million¬ aire.—§7. Observations. Sophistry and good sense.—§8. Deli¬ cacy of some intellectual phenomena. Their influence on our conduct.—§9. Blunders.—§10. Extravagant intellects. -§11. Un¬ fitness of such men for business. -§ 12. These defects ordinarily proceed from a moral cause. -§13. Christian humility in its rela¬ tions to worldly affairs. §14. Evils caused by vanity and pride. —§15. Pride.—§16. Vanity.—§17. In practical life the evils of pride are greater than those of vanity.—§18. Pride contrasted with vanity — §19. How common the passion of pride is among men.—§20. Necessity of struggling incessantly against this vice. §21. It is not pride done that hinders us from proposing to our¬ selves a proper end in what we do. §22. Development of our hidden forces. —§23. In proposing an end to ourselves, we must be on our guard against presumption and excessive diffidence of our¬ selves.— §24. Laziness.—§25. An advantage which laziness has over the other passions.—§26. Source of laziness. — §27 Intellec¬ tual sloth.—§28. Reasons that confirm what we have said re¬ garding the origin of sloth. - §29. Inconstancy. Its origin. — §30. Proofs and applications.—§31. The medium between the two extremes —§32. Sound morality is the best guide of the practical intellect.—§33. The harmony of the universe preserved through punishment. —§34. Remarks on the advantages and dis-

CONTENTS.

viii advantages of virtue in practical life.—§35. Virtue defended against an unjust charge.—§36. Knowledge defended against a false accusation.—§37. Passions are very useful instruments, but dangerous counsellors.—§38. Hypocrisy of the passions.— §39. Examples. Vengeance under two forms.--§40. Precautions. —§41. Hypocrisy of man towards himself. —§42. Knowledge of one’s self —§43. Man dislikes the knowledge of himself.— §44. Happy results of the study of the passions. —§45. How wisely the Christian religion directs man’s conduct. — §46. Moral senti¬ ments a help to virtue.—§47. A rule to be observed in forming practical judgments — §48. Another rule. —§49. Man laughing at himself.—§50. Perpetual childhood of man.—§51. Internal vicis¬ situdes of Don Nicasio within a few hours. —§52. Sentiments alone are not a safe rule of conduct.—§53. Not sensitive impres¬ sions, but reason and morality must be our rule of conduct.— §54 A sentiment that is good in itself, may become bad by being

developed to excess—§55. Science useful in practical life_

§56. The inconvenience of embracing too much in our studies.— §57. Strength of will.—§58. Firmness of will.—§59. Firmness, energy, impetuosity.—§60. Conclusion and recapitulation.

TRANSLATOR’S PREFACE.

We deem it unnecessary to give a lengthy statement of the motives that have induced us to present the following work to the English-speak¬ ing public. J. Balmes holds an enviable position among the writers of the present century. As a profound, solid, original thinker, few, in his time, were his superiors. The writings of truly great men cannot be too widely circulated, especially at a time when books, that neither enlighten the mind nor improve the heart, issue from the press in such prodigious numbers. The “ Crite¬ rion ” has never, we believe, appeared in an English translation. We do not claim for it a place among the most important works of Balmes, but friends, whose opinions we deemed entitled to respect, urged us to undertake the translation of it into English. The fact, moreover, that the little volume has gone through numerous editions, in Spain, Italy, France and Germany, seemed to

Preface

us to prove conclusively that it serves a useful purpose, and supplies a want that has been wide¬ ly and deeply felt.

The book cannot properly be called a work on philosophy. It deals with no abstruse questions of Metaphysics, nor is it exactly a treatise on Logic or Ethics, though it enters somewhat into the sphere of both. It was chiefly intended for those who are unable or unwilling to go through a regular course of philosophical studies. It is not possible, nor is it perhaps desirable, that every man should be a profound philosopher, but it is important for every man to make a judicious use of the various faculties with which God has endowed him to lead him on through life; it is important for every man who thinks, to think soundly ; for every man who acts, to act according to the laws of prudence. The object of the present work is to show how this can be done by all, even the most ignorant and unlettered. The book might, there¬ fore, not improperly be called a practical philoso¬ phy for the people—for that very large class of men who cannot secure for themselves the ad¬ vantages of a thorough collegiate education. It points out the importance of thinking correctly on the various questions that daily present them-

PREFACE.

I selves in practical life, the errors of judgment into which men most frequently fall, the sources from which these errors ordinarily proceed, and it gives rules—neither numerous nor abstruse, but few and adapted to every one’s capacity— which will enable us to avoid these errors. It thus trains a man to logical habits of thought, and enables him to acquire, without much labor or severe application to study, a solidity of judg¬ ment that cannot be otherwise than beneficial in real life.

By following the rules which it lays down, every one will be enabled to extend his sphere of useful knowledge; he will generally judge correctly on all questions that concern him in politics, history, philosophy or religion ; he will acquire a praise¬ worthy independence of thought, and he will be in no great danger of being led into error by mere charlatans and sophists.

It will be observed, however, that the author’s aim in the work is to teach the reader how to act rather than how to think, conformably to the dictates of sound reason. In many chapters, but chiefly in the last, he points out the influences by which man is affected in his daily life ; he shows the power which passions have over him for good

PREFACE.

or evil—shows how dangerous they are when not properly directed, and how useful when under the control of enlightened reason.

It thus takes in the whole man. By teaching him how to cultivate his mind and heart, Balmes shows him how to become perfect, how to be¬ come, as he expresses it at the end of the book, a man par excellence, who lives in a manner worthy of man as a rational and moral being, turns whatever powers God has given him to the highest use, and thus accomplishes the glorious mission marked out for him by his Maker.

In conclusion, we will add, that we have en¬ deavored to give the author’s thought faithfully. Perhaps we have succeeded, but if we have failed, we can only regret that the book did not fall into the hands of a more competent translator.

Chapter I. [^PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS

§. I. ON THINKING CORRECTLY.-WHAT IS TRUTH ?

Thinking correctly consists in knowing truth, or in giving to the mind the direction that will lead it to truth. Truth is the reality of things. He that knows things as they are in themselves, knows truth ; he that knows them differently, is in error. To know that there is a God, is to know a truth, because God exists; to know that the variety of the seasons depends on the re¬ volution of the earth around the sun, is to know a truth, for it is the sun that causes the various seasons of the year; to know that filial piety, obedience to just laws, honesty in making and observing contracts, fidel¬ ity to friends, are virtues, is to know so many truths, as, on the contrary, it would be error to assert that want of good faith, ingratitude, injustice are in themselves deserv¬ ing of praise.

Whoever "would think correctly must strive to know truth, i. e., the reality of things. Of what use are sub¬ tle and profound treatises, if there are no realities cor¬ responding to the ideas expressed in them ? The simple peasant and the modest artisan, who understand their re¬ spective professions thoroughly, will think and speak of them much more correctly than the self-conceited phi¬ losopher, who, in words of learned length and high

CRITERION.

sound, pretends to treat of matters of which he is pro¬ foundly ignorant.

§. 2. DIVERSE WAYS OF KNOWING TRUTH.

Sometimes we know truth only imperfectly, we do not see the reality as it is in itself, but in a changed, modi¬ fied form ; we attribute to an object qualities which it has not, or withhold from it those which it has. At some distance from us we see a group of men march¬ ing on ; we see their arms glittering in the sun, but we do not see their uniform ; we know that they are armed, but who are they ? Are they civilians or a regular bat¬ talion of troops ?—if troops, to what army division do they belong? We do not know ; not seeing their uni¬ form, we know the truth about them only imperfectly. The distance at which they aie from us, or other causes, may lead us to imagine that they wear a uniform, which they do not wear; we are deceived, because we attribute to them something which they have not. We may, moreover, change the object, take one thing to be an¬ other, a white covering, for instance, to be a red one ; here again we do not know truth, for we change the reality.

The mind that knows truth perfectly, may be likened to a mirror that reflects objects precisely as they are in themselves. The mind that is a prey to error, resem¬ bles a kaleidoscope that deceives our senses by represent¬ ing objects that have no existence. The mind, in fine, that sees truth only partially, may be compared to a mirror that has lost some of its quicksilver; it repre¬ sents real objects, but it represents them in a distorted condition.

PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS.

§. 3 . DIVERSITY OF MINDS.

A well-directed mind will see in objects that which is in them and no more. Some persons have the faculty of seeing a variety of things in each individual object; they hear a vague rumor and form a thousand conjec¬ tures ; the most insignificant event will furnish them matter for endless disquisitions. These persons have the misfortune to see whatever is not in an object, and nothing that is in it. They may, indeed, be fine schemers, but they generally spend their energies in building cas¬ tles in the air. Others, again, are subject to the oppo¬ site fault ; they see well, but little ; they look only at one s ide of an object : if that ^ side-vanishes^- the whole object disappears. Such persons generally abound in proverbial sayings ; theylfreT - obstinate in their opinions, they resembfe^persons who have never gone beyond the boundaries of the village in which they were born ; out¬ side of the horizon to which they are accustomed, no¬ thing exists im.their imagination. A well-balanced, clear and comprehensive mind will avoid both extremes; it seizes its whole subject^ looks at it from every point of view, considers it in all its relations. The conversations and the writings of these privileged minds are remark¬ able for clearness, precision and comprehensiveness; every word they utter contains an idea, and the idea ex¬ presses a corresponding reality; they enlighten us, con¬ vince us, and leave our minds perfectly satisfied. In admitting the correctness of their views we say without hesitation : It is as they say, they are right. It is not difficult to follow them in the development of their thoughts. We walk, as it were, on a road on which we

CRITERION.

find, at the proper time and place, a conductor who will direct our attention to the wonders that meet us as we go on. The matter of which they treat may be difficult, it may be abstract ; the path along which they lead us may be obscure, it matters not; our conductor is well ac¬ quainted with the route, he knows how to lighten our efforts, how to make time pass away almost impercepti¬ bly ; and though he should lead us into the darkest cor¬ ners of the subterranean world, he will hold in his hand a torch that will show us the spot where we are and the way we are to pursue.

§. 4 - OUR PERFECTION IN AN ART DEPENDS ON THE KNOWL¬ EDGE WE HAVE OF ITS VARIOUS PARTS.

A perfect knowledge of things constitutes, in the sci¬ entific order, the learned man ; in the ordinary business of life it denotes the prudent man ; in the management of public affairs it makes the thorough statesman. It may, in general, be said that he will succeed best in any ^^undertaking, who knows most thoroughly what he is about. Every art has its rules according to which it must be learned. However low a profession may be, there are, nevertheless, various truths connected with it ; he that would learn the profession to perfection, must strive to make himself acquainted with them. A few ex¬ amples will illustrate this. Who, for instance, will be the best husbandman ? Doubtless he who understands best the properties of the soil, the climate and the plants; he that knows best the mode of cultivating the soil and the instruments most adapted to this end ; he that can make the soil yield the most excellent products in

PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS. 17

the shortest time, the largest quantities and with the least expense; in short, he will be the best husbandman who knows the greatest number of practical truths con¬ nected with husbandry. Who will be the most clever carpenter ? Surely he that understands best the quali¬ ties of the wood ; he that knows the easiest and best mode of working it as well as the art of fitting it to the ends for which it is destined ; in a word, he is the best carpenter who knows the greatest number of practical truths connected with his profession. Who will be the shrewdest merchant ? It will be he who knows most thoroughly the goods in which he deals, he who knows where to get them with the greatest advantage to him¬ self; how to preserve them from being injured , how to dispose of them in the shortest time with the least trou¬ ble and the greatest profit ; he is the best merchant who knows the greatest number of truths connected with the mercantile profession, and who knows most thoroughly the realities of the business in which he is engaged.

§.5. IT IS IMPORTANT FOR ALL MEN TO THINK CORRECTLY.

It is clear that the art of thinking correctly is impor¬ tant, not for philosophers only, but for all men, what¬ ever their condition in life may be. Reason is a gift of our Creator ; a precious gift surely, yet a gift that is not without danger. It is the light that must show us our way in all our undertakings. To keep a watch over this light must be one of the leading cares of our life ; if it is extinguished we wander in darkness and run the risk of losing ourselves.

We must, therefore, keep our mind carefully exercised, for, by inaction, it grows dull and stupid. But on the i8

CRITERION.

other hand, whilst we supply this sacred flame with the nourishment it requires, we must see that it will not dazzle us; it must show us the way in which we are to walk, but it must not lead us astray.

§. 6. HOW THE ART OF THINKING CORRECTLY IS TO BE TAUGHT.

The art of thinking correctly is to be taught by exam¬ ples rather than by rules. We would ask those who pre¬ tend to teach it by a vast array of learned rules and an¬ alytical observations, what they would think of a nurse that adopts this method, in order to teach children to speak, or \talk ? We do not, however, condemn all rules , we only wish them to be used sparingly, and we pretend that in laying down these rules, we should be guided by practical common sense rather than by phil¬ osophical pretension. Let examples explain the rules. A child pronounces a word incorrectly—what will the father or teacher do to correct it? he pronounces the word himself and lets the child repeat it after him. Pay attention, he says, you must not move your lips in such a manner, touch your palate more softly with your tongue. Here we have the example accompanying the rule, we have the rule as well as the manner of reducing it to practise.

Chapter II. ON ATTENTION

There are means that help us to acquire truth, and there are impediments that prevent us from attaining it. The art of thinking correctly, shows us how we must use the one and overcome the other.

§. I. DEFINITION OF ATTENTION-ITS NECESSITY.

By attention we mean the application of the mind to a given object. Whoever would acquire the art of think¬ ing correctly, must accustom himself to consider atten¬ tively what he is about. The axe that is not laid to the tree will not cut; the sickle is useless in the hands of the reaper, if it is not applied to the wheat. Our mind at times sees objects without paying attention to them ; it in a manner sees without looking and hears without listening, but knowledge thus acquired is always super¬ ficial, generally indefinite and frequently erroneous. The mind that is not attentive, is distracted, is, as it were, outside of itself and fails to see what is shown to it. It is therefore of the greatest importance that we accustom ourselves to regular habits of recollection. This recol¬ lection is necessary, not only when we are in the studyroom, but likewise when we are discharging the ordi¬ nary duties of life. If we examine matters closely, we will find that the reason why we so frequently fail to un¬ derstand fully what we hear, see, or read, is not because

CRITERION.

nature has not endowed us with sufficient talent, but be¬ cause we are too much accustomed to look at things superficially. We pay no close attention to what we are about; we are in a conversation with a friend ; we hear a narration ; our thoughts are wandering about at ran¬ dom, our eyes are fixed on a variety of objects, we inter¬ rupt the speaker by questions that are not to the point; the result is that important circumstances escape our ob¬ servation ; when the conversation is over, we have only vague, confused 'ideas of the subject spoken of, we are not able to repeat it properly. Does the fault lie in a want of talent, or in a want of proper attention ?

§. 2. ADVANTAGES OF ATTENTION-EVIL CONSEQUENCES

THAT FLOW FROM THE OPPOSITE FAULT.

The habit of attention develops the powers of the mind wonderfully, it in a manner prolongs the hours. By means of habitual attention we constantly increase the stock of our knowledge ; to it do we owe the clearness and precision of our thoughts; in fact even memory it¬ self is aided and made perfect by attention. Habitual attention produces order and method in our ideas.

Those who have not acquired this habitual attention, do in a manner divide their intellectual forces by apply¬ ing them at one and the same time to a variety of ob¬ jects ; here they receive one impression, there another, and neither is either deep or lasting. As their ideas are not intrinsically connected with each other, it follows that one does not perfect or throw light on the other— not only do these ideas not aid the memory, but they confuse the intellect by leaving it nothing definite to lay hold on. Every book or pamphlet we read, every con-

ON ATTENTION.

versation we are engaged in, every event that takes place before our eyes, can convey instruction of some sort; no matter how insignificant they may be apparently, the at¬ tentive mind discovers rich treasures in them and appro¬ priates them to itself; the dissipated mind passes by pre¬ cious stones and pearls and takes no notice of them, for it knows not their value.

§. 3. HOW WE ARE TO BE ATTENTIVE.

Some persons may imagine that the attention we speak of, requires great effort on our part. This is a mistake. By attention we do not mean what might be called a cer¬ tain immovability of mind. The mind is not required to rivet itself so closely on an object as not to be able to give it up at any moment and with ease. What the mind must do, is merely to think seriously and calmly on what it is about. This attention is by no means incom¬ patible with change or interruption of study or other em¬ ployments, or even with recreation. The scholar who takes his recreation, does not cease to think ; he only leaves off for a time, more severe studies and applies him¬ self to others that are less fatiguing. The philosopher leaves off the profound study of philosophy in order to enjoy for a time the delights of country life. He does not give up his habits of recollection ; in the country he observes the state of the crops, he observes the country people at their work, he sits down and listens in silence to the gentle murmurings of springs and brooks or to the enchanting music of birds ; this attention relieves his mind but does not fatigue it. Not only do I not as¬ sert that attention requires such an intense and uninter¬ rupted application to any objects as would render the

CRITERION.

mind unable to give it up at any moment, but I will go further and say, that by distracted persons I mean not only those whose great fault is levity of mind, but like¬ wise those who are ever absorbed in themselves; the former are distracted outside of themselves, the latter are lost in themselves, in the darksome recesses of their own dreamings. Neither possess the habits of recollection of which I speak, the habits of recollection which en¬ able us to attach to each particular object the attention it deserves. We will invariably find that those persons who are habitually recollected, are the most polite in their intercourse with their fellow-men. A man’s self-love is wounded if we pay no attention to him when he speaks to us. It is certain that an act of politeness shows an attentive mind, even as a contrary act shows a want ot habitual recollection.