s their very business. It is true that there are a great many other men
besides lawyers who think precisely; and there are some lawyers who
think and reason very loosely, and come to hasty and incorrect
conclusions. Still, you are more likely to get a good opinion on such a
subject from a lawyer than from other men taken at random. So, if you
please, you may go down and state the question to Mr. Hall, and I will
abide by his decision."

"Well, sir," said Rollo, "I will."

"Only," said Mr. Holiday, "you must state the question fairly. Boys
generally, when they go to state a question of this kind in which they
are interested, state it very unfairly."

"How, for instance?" asked Rollo.

"Why, suppose," said Mr. Holiday, "that you were to go to Mr. Hall, and
say, 'Mr. Hall, father promised me that he would take me out on a sail
upon the lake, as far as I wanted to go, and don't you think he ought to
do it?'"

Rollo laughed heartily at this mode of putting the question. "Yes," said
he, "that sounds exactly like a boy. And what would be a fair way of
stating it?"

"A fair way would be," said Mr. Holiday, "to present the simple question
itself, without any reference to your own interest in it, and without
any indication whatever of your own wish or opinion in respect to the
decision of it; as, for example, thus: 'Mr. Hall, I have a question to
ask you. Suppose one person promises another that he will take him out
to sail on the lake on a certain day; then, when the day comes, the
promiser proposes to go in the steamboat. Would that be a good
fulfilment of the promise, or not?'"

"Well, sir," said Rollo, "I will state it so."

So Rollo went down stairs into the dining room. There were various
parties there, seated at the different tables. Some were taking tea,
some were looking at maps and guide books, and some discussing the plan
of their tours. One of the sofas had half a dozen knapsacks upon it,
which belonged to a party of pedestrians that had just come in.

Rollo looked about the room, and presently saw Mr. Hall, with his wife
and daughter, sitting at a table near a window. He went to him, and
stated the question.

The lawyer heard Rollo attentively to the end, and then, instead of
answering at once, O, yes, or O, no, as Rollo had expected, he seemed to
stop to consider.

"That is quite a nice question," said Mr. Hall. "Let us look at it. The
point is, whether an excursion in a steamboat is a _sail_, in the s