ough, so I am simply saying that
I can see through glass because I can see through glass. The same
error often occurs in arguments or syllogisms. For instance, suppose I
make the following statements:

No unsportsmanlike act should be done;
Smith's act was unsportsmanlike;
Therefore, Smith's act should not have been done.

Now, this of itself is not correct reasoning, for the reason that the
word "unsportsmanlike" simply means something which no sportsman should
do. The conclusion, therefore, is simply a repetition of the second
statement. The real thing to be proved in this case is whether Smith's
act was or was not unsportsmanlike.

[1] "General ideas and great conceit are always in a fair way to bring
about terrible misfortune."--_Goethe_.

[2] "I tell you earnestly and authoritatively (I know I am right in
this) you must get into the habit of looking intensely at words, and
assuring yourself of their meaning, syllable by syllable--nay, letter
by letter."--_Ruskin: Sesame and Lilies_.

"Neither is a dictionary a bad book to read--it is full of
suggestions."--_Emerson_.

Benjamin Franklin, writing to a lady who asked him to give her advice
about reading said:

"I would advise you to read with a pen in your hand, and enter in a
little book short hints of what you find that is curious or that may be
useful ... and as many of the terms of science are such as you cannot
have met with in your common reading, and may therefore be unacquainted
with, I think it would be well for you to have a good dictionary at
hand to consult immediately when you meet a word you do not know the
precise meaning of. This may at first seem troublesome and
interrupting, but it is a trouble that will daily diminish, and you
will daily find less and less occasion for your dictionary, as you will
become more acquainted with the terms; and in the mean time you will
read with more satisfaction because with more understanding."

[3] "A man who has no acquaintance with foreign languages, knows
nothing of his own."

[4] "The Principles of Argumentation" by Baker and Huntington, is
another excellent book, not treating of formal logic, but discussing
the general principles which should govern the preparation of a paper
or argument, the principles of evidence, and the logical fallacies in
reasoning. It is recommended to readers. This book is, or has been,
used in the course in English at Harvard University, and similar books