)
5.452 The introduction of any new device into the symbolism of logic is
necessarily a momentous event. In logic a new device should not be
introduced in brackets or in a footnote with what one might call a
completely innocent air. (Thus in Russell and Whitehead's Principia
Mathematica there occur definitions and primitive propositions expressed in
words. Why this sudden appearance of words? It would require a
justification, but none is given, or could be given, since the procedure is
in fact illicit.) But if the introduction of a new device has proved
necessary at a certain point, we must immediately ask ourselves, 'At what
points is the employment of this device now unavoidable ?' and its place in
logic must be made clear.
5.453 All numbers in logic stand in need of justification. Or rather, it
must become evident that there are no numbers in logic. There are no pre-
eminent numbers.
5.454 In logic there is no co-ordinate status, and there can be no
classification. In logic there can be no distinction between the general
and the specific.
5.4541 The solutions of the problems of logic must be simple, since they
set the standard of simplicity. Men have always had a presentiment that
there must be a realm in which the answers to questions are symmetrically
combined--a priori--to form a self-contained system. A realm subject to the
law: Simplex sigillum veri.
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