Inquiries concerning the intellectual powers and the investigation of truth / By John Abercrombie.

  • Abercrombie, John, 1780-1844.
Date:
1830
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Inquiries concerning the intellectual powers and the investigation of truth / By John Abercrombie. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The University of Leeds Library. The original may be consulted at The University of Leeds Library.

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    tend to illustrate each other. This, as we have formerly seen, is one of the principal means of improving- the memory ;—particularly of the kind of memory, which is an essential quality of a cul- tivated mind, namely, that which is founded, not upon incidental connexions, but on true and im- portant relations. Nearly allied to this, is the habit of reflection, or of tracing carefully the re- lations of facts, and the conclusions and princi- ples which arise out of them. It is in this man- ner, as was formerly mentioned, that the philoso- phical mind often traces remarkable relations, and deduces important conclusions; while, to the com- mon understanding, the facts appear to be very remote or entirely unconnected. V. A careful selection of the subjects to which the mind ought to be directed. These are, in some respects, different in different persons, ac- cording to their situations in life ;—but there are certain objects of attention which are peculiarly adapted to each individual,—and there are some which are equally interesting to all. In regard to the latter, an appropriate degree of attention is the part of every wise man ;—in regard to the former, a proper selection is the foundation of excellence. One individual may waste his powers in that desultory application of them, which leads to an imperfect acquaintance with a variety of subjects ; while another allows his life