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Having dealt with writing, the next point
which claims our attention is premeditation, which
itself derives force from the practice of writing and
forms an intermediate stage between the labours of
the pen and the more precarious fortunes of improvisation; indeed I am not sure that it is not more
frequently of use than either. For there are places
and occasions where writing is impossible, while both
are available in abundance for premeditation. For
[p. 129]
but a few hours' thought will suffice to cover all the
points even of cases of importance; if we wake at
night, the very darkness will assist us, while even in
the midst of legal proceedings our mind will find
some vacant space for meditation, and will refuse to
remain inactive.
Quintilian. With An English Translation. Harold Edgeworth Butler. Cambridge. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1922.
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