Again, in virtue of their very detachability,the slips, or loose leaves, are liable to go astray ; andwhen a slip is lost how is it to be replaced ? Tobegin with, its disappearance is not perceived, and,if it were, the only remedy would be to go rightthrough all the work already done from beginningto end. But the truth is, experience has suggesteda variety of very simple precautions, which we neednot here explain in detail, by which the drawbacksof the system are reduced to a minimum.

The method of slips is not without its drawbacks.