The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1897-12-16
ANOTHER'S VIEWS.
GENTLE ARGUMENT BEST.
SAY, "DoN'T YOU THINK"
Some Rambling Thoughts.
BY "NEMO."

opposition. Given a man who is UNI
Wiling to be convinced and you have
ess OF an opponent In him than you
have in yourself In your careless meth
ID of approaching him. In fact, it
sometimes seems as though many good |
people hold to most excellent ideas,
more to crafty their sense of pride at
having ideas at all, than to persuade
others less enlightened. At any rate
there are many who approach their
fellows in such harsh, unsympathetic
ways that they repel rather than win
them. The impression a subject makes
depends on the way it is presented
which is true whether the one who is
to make a point is moral
teacher or an irate bull. Parleylng is
difficult when your victim is running
away from you as fast as his legs will
carry him.
It is told of BENJAMIN Franklin that
he ascribed his extraordinary powers OF
persuasion to the fact that his manner
always showed respect for the opinions
of others. Having secured his listener,
he would gradually lead up to the tell
ing points by saying, Don't you
think ?" rather than II think" He
thus won by leading his opponents
judgment onward to the point of con-
vincing itself. Whatever truth there
is in this-and I imagine there is a
great dealt Is worthy of even more
than partial imitation by every one
who attempts to mould the thoughts
of others. But the Difference we show
to the opinions of others must be real
~ sincere-and there is no reason why
it should not be, for not one of us alb
sorts in one small brain all vast truth
-or we shall fail to convince; for the
snare is set in vain in the sight of any
bird, and the pit along line of argu-
ment is never to be digged in the sight
of the victim.
Approach a man in a way that be-
tokens belief in your own superior
ity; or with manner that seems
patronlzlng, and he is almost sure to
resent it. You have for the moment
forgotten the veneratlon due to his in
dividuality. With both OF you, the
whole universe is centered on the epot
of ground that each occupies, and
| neither must forget the others view.
Respect the thought of others !; believe
in>advance that every man has IDEAS
or thinks he has, which comes to the
same thing; and you will find your
self moving steadily toward the win
ming OF him, if he Is less t1rm in his
facts and thought and logic than you
It Is true Indeed that a successful at
tack on some one else's thought Is moi
brought about merely by force O
thought,-for force is too often me-
with force, but by careful prepare
ton beforehand suited to the person
attacked, much as general disposes o
his troops differently at every separate
fort assaulted. This ability to reinforcs
strength with skill IL one of the secrets
of power among leaders of men.
remember reading somewhere of {
misguided enthusiast who looked ovel
q fence and hailed young fellow il
such an alarming tone OF voice that tn.
youth incontinently fled. What die
the stranger then do but jump tn,
fence and set off in pursuit After !,
long chase he winded his frightened
fugitive, and then gave him a tract
with some religious advice between
} breaths. History does not record tn,
effect presumably it Is better imagin
ed than described but it Is to be hopes
} that the recording angel used fittin,
leniency. Such well-intentioned on
lis he not common apart altogethe
from tracts ?-such one needs to folloy
the Confucian advice which suggest
. that "In archery We have something
like the way of the superior man
When the archer misses the center Q
J the target, he turns round ana seek
, for the cause of his failure in himself.
In matters OF religion and of polite
] is it especially true that many of us d
moro harm than good by arguing an
persuading. In the first place We ofte
forget that our opponent, however mil
!. taken he may appear to US, has in a
: probability fully justified to himself hi
own line Of action or belief. THIS
true in relation to the fanatical follow
. ems Of the oldest vagar1es, as we'll as t
!, tdevout believers In religion, pure an
r undeiled. But forgetfulness of thi
4 fact produces hates and distrusts an
Q cruelties and miseries immeasurabli
: In prolonged walking tour in VII
ginia I came across peculiar sect o
!. Chincoteaque Island. Their membe
/. ship was less than hundred, yet the
: felt that they alone OF all the myriad
on earth would get to Heaven. Strana
as It may sound, they were quite sl1
oAn0 in their intaFnrakafior, IF ~,