This is an age of intellectual sauces, of essence, of distillation. We have conclusions without deductions, abridgments of history and abridgments of science without leading facts. We have animals for literature, Cabinet Encyclopaedias, Family Libraries, Diffusion Societies, and heaven knows what else! What is all this for? Not to add knowledge to the learned, but to tell points to the ignorant, without giving them the trouble to acquire the links. Oh! it is sad work. And the result will be injurious to all classes.

Summary

This quote criticizes the intellectual trends of the time, referring to them as an age of superficiality and simplification. The speaker highlights the abundance of condensed information and easily digestible forms of knowledge, which cater to the ignorant but fail to provide a thorough understanding. This obsession with brevity and convenience is deemed detrimental to all societal classes, as it undermines true knowledge acquisition and dilutes the value of insights. The quote expresses lament over the superficial and potentially harmful consequences of this trend.

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