Let us begin with the figure called Synecdoche. The advantage sometimes gained by putting a part for the whole, is due to the more convenient, or more vivid, presentation of the idea. If, instead of writing “a fleet of ten ships,” we write “a fleet of ten _sail_,” the picture of a group of vessels at sea is more readily suggested; and is so because the sails constitute the most conspicuous parts of vessels so circumstanced. To say, “All _hands_ to the pumps,” is better than to say, “All _men_ to the pumps;” as it calls up a picture of the men in the special attitude intended, and so saves effort. Bringing “_grey hairs_ with sorrow to the grave,” is another expression, the effect of which has the same cause. The effectiveness of Metonymy may be similarly accounted for. “The low morality of _the bar_,” is a phrase both more brief and significant than the literal one it stands for. A belief in the ultimate supremacy of intelligence over brute force, is conveyed in a more concrete form, and therefore more representable form, if we substitute _the pen_ and _the sword_ for the two abstract terms. To say, “Beware of drinking!” is less effective than to say, “Beware of _the bottle_!” and is so, clearly because it calls up a less specific image. The Simile is in many cases used chiefly with a view to ornament; but whenever it increases the _force_ of a passage, it does so by being an economy. Here is an instance. ―― The illusion that great men and great events came {351} oftener in early times than they come now, is due partly to historical perspective. As in a range of equidistant columns, the furthest off seem the closest; so, the conspicuous objects of the past seem more thickly clustered the more remote they are. To express literally the thought thus conveyed, would take many sentences; and the first elements of the picture would become faint while the imagination was busy in adding the others. But by the help of a comparison much of the effort otherwise required is saved. Concerning the position of the Simile,[54] it needs only to remark, that what has been said about the order of the adjective and substantive, predicate and subject, principal and subordinate propositions, &c., is applicable here. As whatever qualifies should precede whatever is qualified, force will generally be gained by placing the simile before the object or act to which it is applied. That this arrangement is the best, may be seen in the following passage from the “Lady of the Lake:”― “As wreath of snow, on mountain breast, Slides from the rock that gave it rest, Poor Ellen glided from her stay, And at the monarch’s feet she lay.” Inverting these couplets will be found to diminish the effect considerably. There are cases, however, even where the simile is a simple one, in which it may with advantage be placed last; as in these lines from Alexander Smith’s “Life Drama:”― “I see the future stretch All dark and barren as a rainy sea.”