Men of great parts are often unfortunate in the management of public business, because they are apt to go out of the common road by the quickness of their imagination. the clerks in [Lord Bolingbroke's] office used a sort of ivory knife with a blunt edge to divide a sheet of paper, which never failed to cut it even, only requiring a steady hand; whereas if they should make use of a sharp penknife, the sharpness would make it go often out of the crease and disfigure the paper. (Jonathan Swift)

Men of great parts are often unfortunate in the management of public business, because they are apt to go out of the common road by the quickness of their imagination. the clerks in [Lord Bolingbroke's] office used a sort of ivory knife with a blunt edge to divide a sheet of paper, which never failed to cut it even, only requiring a steady hand; whereas if they should make use of a sharp penknife, the sharpness would make it go often out of the crease and disfigure the paper.

Jonathan Swift

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apt blunt business common crease cut disfigure divide edge great hand imagination ivory men knife lord management office paper penknife public quickness requiring road should sharp sharpness sheet sort steady unfortunate use whereas parts

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