An idea in 200 words

The following letter was written by Eric Hoffer on the importance of being precise:

Wordiness is a sickness of American writing. Too many word dilute and blur ideas. An average American book is twice as long as a British book on the same subject. The same is true of articles. (Compare commentary with encounter).

There is not an idea that cannot be expressed in 200 words. But the writer must know precisely what he wants to say. If you have nothing to say and want badly to say it, then all the words in all the dictionaries would not suffice.

Do not count a, of, the, and, etc. Averaging the number of words in a line is O.K.