the harmony of the whole.

Another advantage in the theme is that, when once chosen, it will go
far toward writing the essay. One great trouble with the young writer
is that he is not willing to rely on his theme to suggest his
composition. Mr. Palmer well says:--

"He examines his pen point, the curtains, his inkstand, to
see if perhaps ideas may not be had from these. He wonders
what the teacher will wish him to say, and he tries to
recall how the passage sounded in the Third Reader. In every
direction but one he turns, and that is the direction where
lies the prime mover of his toil, his subject. Of that he is
afraid. Now, what I want to make evident is that his subject
is not in reality the foe, but the friend. It is his only
helper. His composition is not to be, as he seems to
suppose, a mass of laborious inventions, but it is made up
exclusively of what the subject dictates. He has only to
attend. At present he stands in his own way, making such a
din with his private anxieties that he cannot hear the rich
suggestions of his subject. He is bothered with considering
how he feels, or what he or somebody else will like to see
on his paper. This is debilitating business. He must lean on
his subject, if he would have his writing strong, and busy
himself with what it says, rather than with what he would
say."[20]

The Title.

Having selected a subject, and with care stated the theme, it yet
remains to give the essay a name. There is something in a name, and
those authors who make a living by the pen are the shrewdest in
displaying their wares under the most attractive titles. _The title
should be attractive,_ but it should not promise what the essay does
not give. Newspaper headlines are usually attractive enough, but
shamefully untruthful. Next, the title should _indicate the scope of
the essay._ When Mr. Palmer calls his little book "Self-Cultivation in
English," it is evident that it is not a text-book, and that it will
not treat English as literature or as a science. Then, the title
should be _short._ The theme can rarely be used as a title; it is too
long. But the paramount idea developed in the essay should be embodied
in the title. "Partisanship and Patriotism" would be a good subject to
give the essay we have spoken of. The title, then, should be
attractive; it should be short; and it should truthfully indicat