Let us not lose the power to speak, write, and think with plain words.

All genuine feeling demands adequate expression, but even genuine feeling is

neither proof nor evidence.  The words 'I feel' often introduce serious

'When we catch ourselves thinking in emotional phraseology, let us form

the habit of translating our thoughts into emotionally neutral words'.

Look at the following list of words, both having much the same meaning when

reduced to cold fact, but likely to have very different effects upon the mind

of the ordinary reader unless he is prepared:

'The spirit of our troops'.

'The mentality of the enemy'.

'Their unquenchable heroism'.

'Their ponderous foolhardiness'.

'Summary execution'.

'Base assassination'.

'Wise severity'.

'This fluent and forcible speech'.

'This rhodomontade of extremists'.

'These practical proposals'.

'This suggested panacea'.

A sophistical formula.  A fairly common way of avoiding or

ignoring a sound refutation of an extreme position, is to say that 'the

exception proves the rule'.  How often has valuable evidence been disposed of

by a solemn quotation of this equivocal formula.  Yet, if we thought for a

moment about it, we could hardly fail to realize the falsity of the whole

argument.  If there be an exception, then the rule ceases to be universal.

We have been misled in allowing ourselves to be persuaded that the verb 'to

prove' necessarily means 'to prove true'.  It does not necessarily mean that;

and in this case it means 'to test' whether the statement under consideration

be true or false.  If there is an exception, that exception proves the rule

to be false.

The power of suggestion.  It is a psychological fact that if

statements are made again and again in a confident manner without argument or

proof, the hearers will tend to believe them quite independently of their

soundness, and of the presence or absence of evidence for their truth.

If any reader doubts the power of 'repeated affirmation', let him think

of the great business houses who spend thousands of pounds annually in

placarding the country with advertisements; or of the practice, in 'faith -

healing' campaigns, of getting the assembly to sing the same choruses until

they are all rocking to and fro and emotionally plastic.  We earnestly plead

with any who are responsible for meetings resolutely to forbid this unhealthy

Another method of gaining an unfair victory is that of 'suggestion by

prestige'.  This may take the form of the use of imposing titles, or

reference to one's qualification or years of study.  While we must, as

believers, render to all their due, we must resolutely withstand any attempt

to overwhelm the argument by mere prestige.  Truth is independent of the

channel through which it comes.  Mere years of study may mean mere years of

bias; and even the world has the proverb, 'No fool like an old fool'.