who lay down an absolute code, or mistake the war-cry of some rising party for a complete and exhaustive statement of the truth. He should, therefore, so far adopt the scientific spirit as to begin by studying the facts as impartially as he can. Shakespeare was admired in one place, and Racine preferred in another. He should not set down one admiration as a mark of sheer folly and the other as a proof of sound taste, but try to understand the causes of preference and so to learn what were the real merits of each school. That is a very simple and sound principle, but rather difficult of application. If, seeking to be purely scientific, you keep to bare indisputable facts, you resign yourself to be a mere annalist or bibliographer. Theories, moreover, are things which have an awkward facility for intruding even when you are most on your guard against them. They slip in imperceptibly and colour your view of facts. You begin, of course, by clearing your mind of prejudices. You are to consider yourself simply as an observer, not as a judge. Therefore, you first resolve to discard mere local prejudices and show how the literature of any race or nation corresponds to its peculiar characteristics, and so candidly admit that what was good in Paris might
