| I said they were useful, not essential. In any event, it is like having a map of Manhattan. When visiting, it helps you get around, makes it easier to plan your day, and keeps one from constantly having to accost strangers for help. More than that, one cannot know in advance when having the map will be the difference between a successful trip and a failure, as, for example, because it was necessary to have the relations of things in front of one to make a rational plan. It would be a bad idea to plan on visiting the Cloister, in the far northwest corner of the island, the same day that one wanted to go to Liberty and Ellis Islands. Similarly, one cannot know in advance how useful a piece of knowledge will prove to be, one can only determine how reasonable it is is to gain it as a matter of economy (so much to know, so little time).......... |
