2. Household uses of electricity. 12. The clearing house.

3. The Const.i.tution of the United 13. Business.

States. 14. Honesty in business.

4. Why we celebrate the Fourth of 15. Physicians should July. advertise.

5. The destruction of our forests. 16. Paper.

6. Europe. 17. How an electric bell works.

7. The westernizing of China. 18. Electrifying the railroads.

8. How railroads build cities. 19. How to make candy.

9. The fire drill at school. 20. Vocational education in 10. Education. Germany.

=Exercise 155--The Divisions of the Subject=

After you have selected your subject, decide into what divisions it naturally falls. If it is of the proper length, it probably will divide itself into two or three divisions. Each of these will const.i.tute one-half or one-third of your composition, and within each division ill.u.s.trations, reasons, and explanatory details will appear. Arrange the divisions in the order in which they naturally come, according to their relative time of happening or according to their relative importance, reserving the most important for the last.

Sometimes this sort of division is difficult to make, because a subject can frequently be treated from different points of view, the point of view deciding the divisions. Sometimes you will find that you have made a number of small divisions, in each of which you can say only one or two sentences. This will at once suggest that you have not found the main parts of the subject, but have made unimportant divisions. Again, it may seem that you cannot divide your subject into satisfactory parts.

In that case, you probably do not know enough about it. Think about it again, and, if you find that you really cannot divide it, choose another.

Choose one of the following subjects. Is the t.i.tle definite and clear?

If it is not, change it so that it will be. For example, _Photography_ (5) is not a definite t.i.tle. No one could attempt to explain the entire subject of photography in a few minutes. A better t.i.tle for a theme would be one of the following: _How to Develop a Negative_; _How to Intensify [_or_ reduce] a Negative_; _Our Camera Club_; _The Photography Exhibit at the Art Museum_; _Kinematography_; _Flash Light Pictures without Smoke or Odor_; _The Conditions Necessary for a Good Snap Shot Picture_; _The Advantages of Using a Developing Machine_; _How My Camera Helped Pay for My Vacation_. Can you suggest still others?

After having selected your t.i.tle, decide into what divisions the subject naturally falls. For example, let us take (2) below. _A Ball Game_ is not a definite t.i.tle. Instead, let us choose _Last Sat.u.r.day's Football Game_. As stated above, a subject may be treated from different points of view, the point of view deciding the divisions. Thus, in treating _Last Sat.u.r.day's Football Game_, we may divide:

_a_

LAST SAt.u.r.dAY'S FOOTBALL GAME

I. The first quarter.

II. The second quarter.

III. The third quarter.

IV. The fourth quarter.

_b_

LAST SAt.u.r.dAY'S FOOTBALL GAME

I. The excitement for a week before the game.

II. The tension during the struggle.

III. The celebration after the game.

_c_

THE TWO DECISIVE PLAYS IN SAt.u.r.dAY'S GAME

I. The long forward pa.s.s.

II. The end run to the five-yard line.

Still other divisions may be made if we consider the subject from the point of view of the teams or the players themselves. Can you suggest any such divisions?

In the same way choose one of the subjects given below. Change it, if necessary. Then write out the topic of each division in as few words as possible.

1. An important electrical device.

2. A ball game.

3. Getting dinner.

4. The aeroplane.

5. Photography.

6. How styles change.

7. The back-to-the-farm movement.

8. Why oriental rugs are expensive.

9. Wireless telegraphy.

10. The business course in this school.

=Exercise 156--The Outline=

If your theme consists of more than one division, before you begin to speak or write you should prepare a definite working plan or outline. It should include enough to suggest the first sentence of each division and the more important details within each. The outline will help you in speaking or writing to arrange the topics so that they will follow one another clearly. If you have an outline, there will be much less danger of including details which do not belong to the subject and of omitting details which should appear.

In the following very simple outlines notice the use of indentation:

1

THE PROBLEM OF KEEPING OUR CITIES CLEAN

I. The cleaning of streets.

(_a_) In summer.

(1) The cost of sprinkling.

(_b_) In winter.

(1) The cost of removing snow.

II. The cleaning of alleys.

(_a_) The disposal of garbage.

III. The smoke nuisance.

(_a_) Smoke consumers.

(_b_) Smoke inspection.

2

PUBLIC GYMNASIUMS

I. Definition of a public gymnasium.

(_a_) Location.

(_b_) Equipment.

(_c_) Management.

II. Benefits to the public.

(_a_) Keeps children off the streets.

(1) Congested districts.

(_b_) Develops them physically.