Rule I. Divide the brief into three parts, and mark them respectively, Introduction, Discussion, and Conclusion.
A brief, as has been explained, is an outline that contains all the reasoning to be found in the finished argument. Reasoning processes are carried on, not with vague ideas and general suggestions, but with specific facts and exact thoughts. For this reason, only complete statements are of value in a brief. Mere terms must be avoided. A statement, it should be remembered, is a declarative sentence; a term is a word or any combination of words other than a sentence.
The following examples of terms plainly show that no reasoning process can exist without the use of complete statements:—
Strikes during the past twenty-five years.
Percentage of strikes conducted by labor organizations.
Building trades and strikes.
Since such expressions as these give no information, they are manifestly out of place in a brief. Each term may call to mind any one of several ideas. No one but the author knows whether the first term is intended to indicate that strikes have been of frequent or of infrequent occurrence, beneficial or detrimental. The second term does not indicate whether the percentage of strikes conducted by labor organizations has been great or small, increasing or decreasing. The third term is equally indefinite. Notice, however, that as soon as these terms are turned into complete sentences, they may well serve as explanation or as proof:—
During the twenty-five year period ending in 1905 there occurred in the United States 36,757 strikes.
Labor organizations directed about two-thirds of these strikes.
The building trades have had more strikes than has any other industry.
This explanation gives rise to the following rule:—