72 FROM AN EASY CHAIR 



intelligent but ignorant listener is to feel happy and is 

 really to understand what is said and done for his 

 instruction. A special difficulty also arises from the 

 fact that the lecturer often feels himself called upon to 

 address and to say something to those among the 

 audience who already know a good deal about his subject, 

 as well as to make things clear to those who are absolute 

 novices. 



Some people have made this discussion the oppor- 

 tunity for attacking on the one hand the English 

 language, and on the other the use of special names 

 applied by men of science to special things and special 

 processes. We cannot at once change the English 

 language, even did we wish to do so. But the creation 

 of special names to distinguish things not distinguished 

 from one another in common speech is a necessity. It 

 cannot be avoided. It is mere impatience and temper to 

 call the names and terms which are necessary as 

 counters of thought "jargon."" No doubt there may 

 be in some lecturers and writers a tendency to excessive 

 use of special terms and names, but the real trouble in 

 the matter arises from the too rapid thrusting of a large 

 number of such unfamiliar words upon an untrained 

 audience. If new words are introduced in moderation 

 they can be assimilated. They cannot be dispensed 

 with altogether. A correspondent lately complained 

 to me that I wrote of the minute creature which causes 

 the sleeping sickness as a Trypanosome, whereas, had I 

 called it " a blood-parasite " he would have known what 

 I meant, and been able to follow my statement more 

 easily. I am sorry to say that I cannot agree with him. 

 There are many kinds of blood-parasites ; there are the 

 worms known as Filariae, there are the vegetable 

 microbes known as bacteria and bacilli and spirilla, and 

 there are minute creatures of an animal nature called 

 pyroplasma and trypanosoma (beside some others). 

 These must be distinguished from one another if we are 



