The partition is usually found in college debate because in a contest of this sort absolute clearness is a prerequisite for success. As but little interest customarily centers around the subject itself, each debater knows that if he is to make any impression on the audience he must so arrange his argument that it will, with a minimum amount of effort on the part of the listener, be clear to every one. To one reading an argument, a partition, unless of the simplest kind, will probably seem superfluous; to one listening to a speech in which he is truly interested, the partition may seem labored. But when the whole interest centers in the method of presentation, and in the processes of reasoning rather than in the subject matter, the partition does increase the clearness of the argument, and should, therefore, be used.
By way of summary, then, it may be said that the work of conviction in the introduction is to show the relation between the proposition and the proof. The arguer accomplishes this task, first, by defining all words the meaning of which is not generally comprehended; secondly, by explaining, in the light of these definitions, the meaning of the proposition taken as a whole; thirdly, by discovering the issues through a careful process of analysis; and fourthly, by making a partition when he is engaged in debate and has reason to think that the audience will not see the connection between the issues and the discussion.
HOW TO INVESTIGATE A SUBJECT.
A student will hardly have reached this point in the study of Argumentation before finding it necessary to search for information that will assist him in the construction of his argument. To one unfamiliar with a library, a search after facts bearing upon a given subject is likely to prove tedious. For this reason a few words of advice concerning the proper way in which to use a library may be of great help to a beginner. Nothing, however, can be given here that will even approximate the value of a few hours' instruction by the librarian of the college in which the student is enrolled. In the absence of such instruction, one can seldom do better at the outset than to become familiar with indexes to periodical and contemporary literature, encyclopaedias, government reports, and the library catalogue.
The best indexes are the Reader's Guide, Poole's Index, The Annual Library Index, and the Current Events Index. These give references to all articles published in the principal magazines and newspapers for many years. In these articles one will find almost limitless material on nearly every popular topic of the day— political, economic, scientific, social, educational. The writers, too, are often of national and even of international reputation, and the opinions and ideas given here are frequently as weighty and progressive as can be found. In searching through an index for articles upon a certain subject, one should invariably look under several headings. For example, if one is seeking material in regard to the abolishment of baseball from the list of college sports, he ought not to consult just the one heading baseball; he should in addition look under athletics, college sports, and similar topics.
Other valuable sources of information are encyclopaedias. They often give broad surveys and comprehensive digests that cannot readily be found elsewhere. Although they do not, as a rule, discuss subjects that are of mere local or present-day interest, yet the thorough searcher after evidence will usually do well to consult at least several. A fact worth bearing in mind is that in connection with these articles in encyclopaedias, references are often given to books and articles that treat the subject very thoroughly.
In the next place, official publications frequently furnish invaluable help in regard to public problems. Both state governments and the national government constantly publish reports containing statistics, the opinions of experts, and suggestions for economic and political changes. Some of the most valuable of these documents for the purposes of the arguer are Census, Immigration, Education, and Interstate Commerce Commission reports, the messages of the Presidents, and the Congressional Record. There are indexes to all these, and one can easily find out how to use them.
Furthermore, one should not fail to consult the library catalogue. To be sure, if the books are catalogued only according to titles and authors, one will probably get little assistance from this source unless he knows beforehand what particular books or authors to search for. If, on the other hand, the books are also catalogued according to the subjects of which they treat, one can see almost at a glance what books the library has that bear upon the matter under investigation.
EXERCISES
A. Define the following terms:—monopoly, free trade, railway pooling, income tax, honorary degree, tutorial system of instruction, industrial education, classical education, German university method of study, vivisection, temperance, Indian agency system, yellow peril, graft, sensational, mass play, monarch, civilization, autonomy.