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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..3d6b253 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #61900 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/61900) diff --git a/old/61900-0.txt b/old/61900-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index a7935da..0000000 --- a/old/61900-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,8021 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Educational Writings of Richard -Mulcaster, by Richard Mulcaster - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll -have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using -this ebook. - - - -Title: The Educational Writings of Richard Mulcaster - -Author: Richard Mulcaster - -Editor: James Orin Oliphant - -Release Date: April 23, 2020 [EBook #61900] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK EDUCATIONAL WRITINGS *** - - - - -Produced by Turgut Dincer, John Campbell and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - - TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE - - Italic text is denoted by _underscores_. - - Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been - corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within - the text and consultation of external sources. - - No other changes have been made to the text. - - - - - THE EDUCATIONAL WRITINGS OF - RICHARD MULCASTER - - - - - PUBLISHED BY - JAMES MACLEHOSE AND SONS, GLASGOW, - Publishers to the University. - - - MACMILLAN AND CO., LTD., LONDON. - - _New York_, _The Macmillan Co._ - _London_, _Simpkin, Hamilton and Co._ - _Cambridge_, _Macmillan and Bowes_. - _Edinburgh_, _Douglas and Foulis_. - - - MCMIII. - - - - - THE - - EDUCATIONAL WRITINGS - - OF - - RICHARD MULCASTER - - (1532-1611) - - - _ABRIDGED AND ARRANGED, WITH A CRITICAL ESTIMATE_ - - BY - - JAMES OLIPHANT, M.A., F.R.S.E. - - AUTHOR OF “VICTORIAN NOVELISTS,” ETC. - - - GLASGOW - JAMES MACLEHOSE AND SONS - Publishers to the University - 1903 - - - - - GLASGOW: PRINTED AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS BY - ROBERT MACLEHOSE AND CO. - - - - - TO MY SISTER - - AMY M. SMITH - - - - -PREFACE. - - -Some apology is needed for the presentation of an Elizabethan -writer to English readers in any form but that of the original -text. The justification of the present volume must lie in the -fact that in the three centuries and more that have elapsed since -the educational writings of Richard Mulcaster were given to the -world, they have entirely failed to gain acceptance as literature. -This neglect of one of our most interesting and important -educationists is no doubt chiefly to be regarded as part of the -general indifference which until recently the British public has -consistently shown to all discussion of educational problems, -but when we consider the reputation of Mulcaster’s contemporary, -Roger Ascham, who had far less to say, but knew how to say it with -lucidity and grace, we are constrained to admit that Mulcaster -has lost his opportunity of catching the world’s ear, and that -if his writings are to be known and appreciated as they deserve -by this generation, it must be rather for their substance than -for their literary style. It is true that the serious student may -now be trusted to investigate for himself the thoughts of earlier -authors in spite of difficulties of form and expression, but the -general reader will expect more help than, in the case of Mulcaster -at least, is at present available. The earlier of his two chief -works, the _Positions_, published in 1581, was out of print for 300 -years, until the issue in 1888 of an almost facsimile edition by -the late Mr. Quick, to whom the credit of discovering this author -is mainly due, while the second work, the _Elementarie_, has never -been reprinted at all. It is safe to assume that not many readers -will care to possess themselves of the somewhat expensive reprint -of the former work, or to institute a search for one of the rare -copies of the original and only edition of the latter. And if these -books were to be made more accessible, it seemed worth while at -the same time to present them in such a form that they should be -readily intelligible to the ordinary reader. In the case of an -acknowledged literary classic it may be inadmissible to tamper -even with the type and spelling, far more with the phraseology and -arrangement of sentences, but such scruples would be out of place -with the author now in question. An attempt has been made to remove -all gratuitous hindrances to a full understanding of the author’s -meaning, while omitting nothing that is at once characteristic -and significant. It is hoped that in the process of adaptation -as little as possible has been lost of the quaint flavour of the -original, and of the gifts of expression that Mulcaster undoubtedly -possessed, however much these were obscured by the euphuistic -tendency and the somewhat laboured construction that marked the -prose of his time. - - J. O. - - - - - CONTENTS. - - - PAGE - - THE METHOD OF TREATMENT, 1 - - THE PURPOSE OF WRITING, 2 - - REASONS FOR WRITING IN ENGLISH, 4 - - FIRST PRINCIPLES, 4 - - THE USE OF AUTHORITY, 7 - - THE IDEAL AND THE POSSIBLE, 11 - - WHEN SCHOOL EDUCATION SHOULD BEGIN, 12 - - RISK OF OVERPRESSURE, 13 - - MENS SANA IN CORPORE SANO, 14 - - PHYSICAL EXERCISE NEEDS REGULATION, 15 - - PHYSICAL AND MENTAL TRAINING SHOULD GO TOGETHER, 15 - - EXERCISE SPECIALLY NECESSARY FOR STUDENTS, 16 - - THE BEST KINDS OF EXERCISE, 17 - - FOOTBALL AS A FORM OF EXERCISE, 17 - - IS EDUCATION TO BE OFFERED TO BOTH SEXES? 18 - - ALL CANNOT RECEIVE A LEARNED EDUCATION, 19 - - CHOICE OF SCHOLARS BOTH FROM RICH AND POOR, 20 - - THE NUMBER OF SCHOLARS LIMITED BY CIRCUMSTANCES, 21 - - THE NUMBER OF SCHOLARS KEPT DOWN BY LAW, 22 - - TALENT NOT PECULIAR EITHER TO RICH OR POOR, 22 - - CHOICE OF THOSE FIT FOR LEARNING, 23 - - HOW THE CHOICE OF SCHOLARS, SHOULD BE DETERMINED, 24 - - GROUNDS FOR PROMOTION, 25 - - CO-OPERATION OF PARENTS, 27 - - ADMISSION INTO COLLEGES, 28 - - PREFERMENT TO DEGREES, 29 - - NATURAL CAPACITY IN CHILDREN, 30 - - ENCOURAGEMENT BETTER THAN SEVERITY, 32 - - MORAL TRAINING FALLS CHIEFLY ON PARENTS, 32 - - ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTION--READING, 33 - - THE VERNACULAR FIRST, 34 - - MATERIAL OF READING, 35 - - WRITING, 36 - - ELEMENTARY PERIOD A TIME OF PROBATION, 37 - - DRAWING, 37 - - MUSIC, 39 - - FOUR ELEMENTARY SUBJECTS, 42 - - STUDY OF LANGUAGES, 44 - - FOLLOW NATURE, 45 - - EDUCATION OF GIRLS, 50 - - AIM OF EDUCATION FOR GIRLS, 53 - - WHEN THEIR EDUCATION SHOULD BEGIN, 54 - - ALL SHOULD HAVE ELEMENTARY EDUCATION, 55 - - HIGHER STUDIES FOR SOME, 57 - - WHAT HIGHER STUDIES ARE SUITABLE, 58 - - WHO SHOULD BE THEIR TEACHERS, 60 - - THE EDUCATION OF YOUNG GENTLEMEN, 60 - - PRIVATE AND PUBLIC EDUCATION, 61 - - WHAT SHOULD A GENTLEMAN LEARN? 65 - - WHAT MAKES A GENTLEMAN? 68 - - LEARNING USEFUL TO NOBLEMEN, 70 - - COURSE OF STUDY FOR A GENTLEMAN, 72 - - FOREIGN TRAVEL, 73 - - GENTLEMEN SHOULD TAKE UP THE PROFESSIONS, 77 - - THE TRAINING OF A PRINCE, 78 - - BOARDING-SCHOOLS, 79 - - SCHOOL BUILDINGS, 82 - - BEST HOURS FOR STUDY, 84 - - ELEMENTARY TEACHER MOST IMPORTANT, 85 - - THE GRAMMAR SCHOOL TEACHER, 87 - - THE TRAINING OF TEACHERS, 90 - - UNIVERSITY REFORM, 91 - - A COLLEGE FOR LANGUAGES, 92 - - A COLLEGE FOR MATHEMATICS, 93 - - A COLLEGE FOR PHILOSOPHY, 95 - - PROFESSIONAL COLLEGES, 96 - - GENERAL STUDY FOR PROFESSIONAL MEN, 96 - - A TRAINING COLLEGE FOR TEACHERS, 97 - - USE OF THE SEVEN COLLEGES, 98 - - UNITING OF COLLEGES, 99 - - UNIVERSITY READERS, 100 - - EVILS OF OVERPRESSURE, 101 - - LIMIT OF ELEMENTARY COURSE, 103 - - DIFFICULTIES IN TEACHING, 104 - - UNIFORMITY OF METHOD, 105 - - CHOICE OF SCHOOL BOOKS, 110 - - SCHOOL REGULATIONS, 113 - - PUNISHMENTS, 113 - - CONDITION OF TEACHERS, 117 - - CONSULTATION ABOUT CHILDREN, 118 - - SYSTEMATIC DIRECTION, 121 - - THE STANDARD OF ENGLISH SPELLING, 124 - - - THE PERORATION, 171 - - - CRITICAL ESTIMATE, 209 - - - - -BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. - - -Richard Mulcaster came of a border family that could trace its -descent back to the eleventh century. On his wife’s tomb he -describes himself as “by ancient parentage and lineal descent, an -esquire born,” and there is evidence that some of his ancestors -held positions of importance, both administrative and academic. -In the fourteenth century we hear of a Richard de Molcastre, who, -as the second son, inherited from his father, Sir William, the -estates of Brakenhill and Solport, and the family retained its -consideration up to our own time. But in the reign of Elizabeth -the ancestral lands were no longer in the possession of the branch -to which our author belonged. He was probably born in the border -district, and the date of his birth must have been about 1532. He -was sent to Eton, then under Nicholas Udall, who as a headmaster -was known alike for his learning and his severity, and who as -the writer of the first regular English comedy, may have given -Mulcaster his taste for the drama. In 1548 he went to Cambridge as -a King’s Scholar, but in 1555 we hear of his election as a Student -of Christchurch, Oxford. In the following year he was “licensed to -proceed in Arts.” He had a reputation for a knowledge of Hebrew as -well as of Latin and Greek, and seems shortly afterwards to have -chosen the profession of a schoolmaster, making his way to London -about 1558 or 1559. - -In 1560 the Guild of Merchant Taylors decided to establish the -well-known day Grammar School for boys which still bears their -name, and in the following year Mulcaster was appointed the first -headmaster, having charge of two hundred and fifty scholars, with -the assistance of three undermasters. The school hours were from -7 to 11 a.m. and from 1 to 5 p.m., with one half holiday in the -week, besides the ordinary church festival days, and for this -the headmaster received the salary of £10 (equivalent to £80 or -£100 now), besides a dwelling in the school and a small sum from -entrance fees. He was granted twenty days’ leave of absence in the -year, but was not allowed to hold any other office, though his -appointment was only held from year to year. - -The reputation Mulcaster had already gained as a teacher before -his appointment is shown in the fact that the post was offered to -him without his application, and that he accepted it only after -some hesitation, when he was promised an additional £10 of salary, -on the private and personal guarantee of one of the Governors. -He held the position for twenty-five years, and his successful -conduct of the school is fully attested by the verdict of eminent -scholars who acted as examiners, by the expressions of satisfaction -in the minutes of the Council, and by the testimony of the pupils -themselves, many of whom attained distinction in after-life. - -Of Mulcaster’s scholars at Merchant Taylors’ School the most famous -was Edmund Spenser, but in the absence of any reference to his -teacher by the poet, we have to be content with the direct evidence -of Lancelot Andrews, Bishop of Winchester, and Sir James Whitelock, -Justice of the King’s Bench. Of the former it is recorded that he -“ever loved and honoured” his former headmaster, befriending him -and his son after him, and keeping his portrait over the door of -his study. The latter tells us that Mulcaster besides instructing -him well in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, was careful to increase his -skill in music, and chose him to act with other scholars in the -plays he presented at Court, by which means the boys were taught -good manners and self-confidence. The account of him in Fuller’s -_Worthies_ may perhaps represent the impressions of less gifted -scholars--“Atropos might be persuaded to pity, as soon as he to -pardon, where he found just fault. The prayers of cockering mothers -prevailed with him as much as the requests of indulgent fathers, -rather increasing than mitigating his severity on their offending -child.... Others have taught as much learning with fewer lashes, -yet his sharpness was the better endured, because impartial, and -many excellent scholars were bred under him.” - -But while Mulcaster was building up securely the reputation of the -school, his own position was not always comfortable, and in the -end the friction between himself and the governing body became so -great that he felt constrained to resign the headmastership. This -was no doubt partly due to his own somewhat hasty and masterful -temper, for on one occasion at least it is recorded in the -minutes of the Council that he had made open apology for things -said and done in anger, but there were more lasting causes of -dispute. After the first eight years the promised supplement to -his official income was no longer forthcoming, apparently owing -to the declining circumstances of the member of the Council who -had contributed it, and Mulcaster having on the strength of this -extra sum increased the salary of his first assistant, conceived -that he was entitled to its continuance from the Company. There -were besides disputes between the Council and the authorities of -St. John’s College, Oxford, where its founder, a member of the -Guild, had reserved certain free places for orphans coming from -the school, and in these Mulcaster was involved. While the Council -seems to have acted throughout within its rights, and in the end -showed a desire to deal even generously with its headmaster, it is -easy to understand the difficulties of the situation, especially -to a man like Mulcaster, whose natural impatience of control would -not be diminished by his evident sense that in birth as well as -in learning he was above his official superiors. So necessary did -he feel it to regain his freedom that in 1586 he tendered his -resignation, without apparently having any definite prospect of -other work. - -During the next ten years scarcely anything is known of Mulcaster’s -life, except that he was in straitened circumstances. By 1588 -his claim on the Merchant Taylors’ Guild had been adjusted by a -compromise, and friendly relations must have been restored, for we -find him acting as examiner to the School in that year. For part -of this time at least he was out of London, for he seems to have -been for a year vicar of Cranbrook in Kent, and he was afterwards -granted by the Queen the prebend of Yatesbury, in the diocese of -Salisbury. - -In 1596 came a return of prosperity in a settled position. The -headmaster of St. Paul’s School, which had been founded at the -beginning of the century by John Colet, and bequeathed by him to -the management of the Silk Mercers’ Guild, had resigned his post, -as a result of similar differences with the governing body to those -which occurred in the Merchant Taylors’ School, and Mulcaster, -whatever misgivings he may have had, had learned enough from his -recent experience not to decline the vacant office when it was -offered to him. He was already in his sixty-fourth year when he -received the appointment, and he continued to hold it till he was -seventy-six. The conditions were much the same as those under which -he had formerly worked, the statutes of St. Paul’s School having -indeed served as a model to the later foundation, but the number -of scholars was limited to 153, and the salary of the headmaster -was £36 (equal to about £300 now), in addition to a residence in -the school. In 1602 the salaries of all the teachers were doubled, -in recompense for certain restrictions imposed by a new set of -regulations, and when Mulcaster resigned his position in 1608, -presumably on account of failing strength, he received a yearly -pension of £66 3s. 4d. until his death three years later. There is -little to record of his labours during his twelve years’ service at -St. Paul’s School, the only outstanding event being in connection -with the accession of James I. in 1603. It was the privilege of his -scholars to welcome the Sovereign to the capital, and we read that -on this occasion a Latin speech, prepared by the headmaster, was -delivered by one of the scholars at the door of the School. - -It is painful to learn that the closing years of Mulcaster’s -life were clouded by distressing poverty. Nor is this easy to -understand, for besides his pension, he was not without resources. -He had some time before been granted by Queen Elizabeth the living -of Stanford Rivers in Essex, but had been precluded from entering -on it while he remained at St. Paul’s School. On his retirement -from the headmastership he took up the duties of his country -charge, notwithstanding his advanced age, though without striking -success, according to Fuller’s account: “I have heard from those -who have heard him preach that his sermons were not excellent, -which to me seems no wonder, partly because there is a different -discipline in teaching children and men, partly because such who -make divinity not the choice of their youth but the refuge of their -age seldom attain to eminency therein.” In spite of these two -sources of income we find Mulcaster in 1609 making a pitiful but -unsuccessful appeal to his old patrons, the Merchant Taylors, and -when he died two years later he left his son burdened with debts, -from which he was only relieved by the aid of some of his father’s -former scholars, and of the two Guilds under which he had served. -His wife had died two years before him, after fifty years of wedded -life, and her virtues are recorded in a commemorative tablet. - -Mulcaster’s educational writings were produced towards the close -of the period spent at Merchant Taylors’ School, the _Positions_ -appearing in 1581, and the _First Part of the Elementarie_ in 1582. -The completion of the latter, and the further works promised on -higher education, were never accomplished. He also wrote numerous -Latin verses, including an address to Queen Elizabeth at the -Kenilworth pageant of 1575, and a catechism, also in Latin, for -the use of his pupils at St. Paul’s School, while he is mentioned -as the author of a work entitled _Cato Christianus_, which has not -come down to us. - -All the sources of information regarding Mulcaster’s life and -writings have been collected and compared with exhaustive industry -by Dr. Theodor Klähr in a pamphlet entitled _Leben und Werke -Richard Mulcaster’s_ (Dresden, 1893). - - - - -THE EDUCATIONAL WRITINGS OF RICHARD MULCASTER - - -The Method of Treatment. - -Whosoever shall consider carefully the manner of bringing up -children which is in general favour within this realm, cannot but -agree with me in wishing that it were improved. I do not think -it well, however, in this place to lay bare its special defects, -because I am in hope of seeing them healed without so strong a -measure. If I should seek to expose all the inconveniences which -are experienced between parents and schoolmasters, and between -teachers and learners; if I should refer to all the difficulties -through which the education and upbringing of children is seriously -impaired, I might revive causes of annoyance, and thereby make the -evils worse. And even though I were to remedy them, the patient -might bear in mind how churlishly he was cured, and though he -should pay well for the healing, he might be ill-satisfied with the -treatment. Wherefore in mending things that are amiss, I take that -to be the most advisable way which saveth the man without making -the means unpleasant. If without entering into controversies I set -down what seems to me on reasonable grounds to be the right course -as being not only the best, but most within compass, the wrong -course will forthwith show itself by comparison, and will thus -receive a check without any need for fault-finding. - - -The Purpose of Writing. - -I have taught in public now without interruption for two-and-twenty -years, and have always had a very great charge committed to my -hands, my fulfilment of which I leave to an impartial judgment. -During this time, both through what I have seen in teaching so -long, and what I have tried in training up so many, I well perceive -that, with the disadvantages which myself and other teachers have -been subject to, none of us have been able to do as much as we -might. I believe I have not only learned what these disadvantages -are, but have discerned how they may be removed, so that I and -all others may be able to do much more good than heretofore. And -as I write for the common good I appeal to the reader’s courtesy -to give me credit for good intentions, though my hopes should not -be realised. For I am only doing what is open to all, namely, to -give public utterance to my personal convictions, and to claim -indulgence for what is intended for the general good. As I am -myself ready to give favourable consideration to others who do the -same, I expect any who make use of my work to their own profit -to give me credit for it, and those who get no benefit from it -at least to sympathise with me in meeting so little success for -my good intentions. I may be told--You are alone in raising this -matter; you do but trouble yourself; you cannot turn aside the -course, which is old and well-established, and therefore very -strong for you to strive against. This thing which you recommend -is not every man’s wares; it will not be compassed. Do you let it -alone; if you must needs write, turn your pen to other matters -which the State will like better, which this age will readily -approve of, which you may urge with credit if they be new and -suitable, or confirm with praise if they be old and need repeating. - -If such objections were not invariably raised to all attempts to -turn either from bad to good, or from good to better, I would -answer them carefully, but now I need not, for in order to gain -any advantage he who wishes to have it must be prepared to wrestle -for it, both in speech and in writing, against the corruption -of his age, against the loneliness of attempt, against party -prejudice, against the difficulties of performance. Nor must he -be discouraged by any ordinary thwarting, which is a thing well -known to experienced students, and of least account where it is -best known, however fearful a thing it may seem to timid fancies to -stem corruption and strive against the stream. For the stream will -turn when a stronger tide returns, and even if there be no tide, -yet an untiring effort will make way against it till it prevails. -And surely it were more honourable for some one, or some few, to -hazard their own credit and estimation for the time in favour of -a thing which they know to be deserving of support, though it may -not be held of much account, than through too timorous a concession -to public opinion, which, in spite of its influence, is not always -the soundest, to leave excellent causes without defence if they be -opposed. For may it not fall out that such a thing as this will be -called for hereafter, though at present it may be out of favour, -because something else is in fashion? I had rather, therefore, -that it were ready then to be of use when it is wished, than that -posterity should be defrauded of a thing so passing good, for fear -of its being disliked at the first setting forth. - - -Reasons for Writing in English. - -I write in my natural English tongue, because though I appeal -to the learned, who understand Latin, I wish to reach also the -unlearned, who understand only English, and whose interests are to -be the more considered that they have fewer chances of information. -The parents and friends with whom I have to deal are for the most -part no Latinists, and even if they were, yet we understand that -tongue best to which we are first born, and our first impression -is always in English before we render it into Latin. And in -recommending a new method of attaining an admitted benefit, -should we not make use of all the helps we can to make ourselves -understood? He that understands no Latin can understand English, -and he that understands Latin very well can understand English far -better, if he will confess the truth, however proud he may be of -his Latinity. When my subject requires Latin I will not then spare -it, as far as my knowledge allows, but till it do, I will serve my -country in the way that I think will be most intelligible to her. - - -First Principles. - -My purpose is to help the whole business of teaching, even from -the very first foundation, that is to say, not only what is given -in the Grammar School, and what follows afterwards, but also the -elementary training which is given to infants from their first -entrance, until they are thought fit to pass on to the Grammar -School. In my manner of proceeding I propose to follow the -precedent of those learned authors who have treated with most -credit of this and similar subjects, in first laying down certain -principles to which all readers will agree. By this means it -is possible to pass on to the end without challenge, or if any -difficulty should arise, it can always be resolved by a reference -to these principles. In mathematics, which offers the best model -of method to all the other sciences, before any problem or theorem -is presented, there are set down certain definitions, postulates, -axioms, to which general assent is asked at the outset, and on -which the whole structure is built up. I am the more inclined to -adopt this method, because I am to deal with a subject that must at -the first be very carefully handled, till proof gives my treatment -credit, whatever countenance hope may seem to lend it in the -meanwhile. - -I mean specially to deal with two stages in learning, first the -Elementary, which extends from the time that the child is set to -do anything, till he is removed to the higher school, and then -the Grammar School course, where the child doth continue in the -study of the learned tongues till at the time of due ripeness he -is removed to some university. The importance of the Elementary -part lieth in this, that a thorough grounding here helps the -whole course of after study, whereas insufficient preparation in -the early stages makes a very weak sequel. For just as a proper -amount of time spent here, without too much haste to push onwards, -brings on the rest of the school stages at their due season, -and in the end sendeth abroad sufficient men for the service of -their country, so too headlong a desire to hurry on swiftly, in -perpetual infirmity of matter, causeth too much childishness in -later years, when judgment and skill and ripeness are more in -keeping with grey hairs. The Grammar School course, while it is a -suitable subject for me to deal with, as I am myself a teacher, is -also very profitable for the country to hear of, as in the present -great variety of teaching, some uniform method seems to be called -for. To have the youth of the country well directed in the tongues, -which are the paths to wisdom, the treasuries of learning, the -storehouses of humanity, the vehicles of divinity, the sources -of knowledge and wisdom--can this be a small matter, if it be -well performed? If fitting occasion by the way should cause me to -attempt anything further than these two divisions of the subject, -though I should seem to be going beyond my school experience, I -trust I shall not be thought to travel beyond my capacity. In -seeking for the approval of men I may indeed find some who are -satisfied with things as they are, who think their penny good -silver, and decline my offer, being unwilling to receive teaching -from such humble hands as mine. There may be others who grant that -there is something amiss, but think my remedy not well fitted to -amend it, and look disdainfully on my credentials. I admit my lack -of authority, but till some one better takes the matter up, why -should I not do what I can? If the wares I bring prove marketable, -why should I not offer them for sale? As I am likely to encounter -such objections, I propose at the outset to meet all I can on -grounds of reason, with full courtesy to those who make them. - -Inasmuch as I must apply my principles to some one ground, I have -chosen the Elementary, rather than the Grammar School course, -because it is the very lowest, and the first to be dealt with, -and because the considerations that apply to it may easily be -transferred afterwards to the Grammar School or any other studies. -The points I propose to deal with are such as the following: At -what age a child should be sent to school, and what he should learn -there; whether all children should be sent to school; whether -physical exercise is a necessary part of upbringing; whether young -maidens ought to be set to learning; how young gentlemen should -be brought up; how uniformity can be introduced into teaching. I -shall also speak of courtesy and correction, of public and private -education, of the choice of promising scholars, of places and times -for learning, of teachers and school regulations, and of the need -for restricting the numbers of the learned class. In my views on -these and kindred matters I shall seek to win the approval of my -countrymen, before I proceed to deal with particular precepts and -the details of the upbringing of children. In my discussion of -all these matters, while in method I shall follow the example of -the best writers, I will, in the substance of my argument, make -appeal only to nature and reason, to custom and experience, where -there is a clear prospect of advantage to my country, avoiding any -appearance or suspicion of fanciful and impracticable notions. -I may hope that the desire to see things improved will not be -accounted fanciful, unless by those who think themselves in health -when they are sick unto death, and while feeling no pain because -of extreme weakness, hold their friends foolish in wishing them to -alter their mode of life. - - -The Use of Authority. - -Some well-meaning people, when they wish to persuade their -fellow-countrymen either by pen or by speech, to adopt a certain -course, if they can claim the authority of any good writers -favouring their opinions, straightway assume that their own -arguments are sufficiently supported to ensure their proposal being -carried out. This assurance, however, is checked sometimes by -reflection, sometimes by experience. Wise reflection may foresee -that the special circumstances of the country will not admit -of the proposed change, or after some trial the unsuitability -may be shown by experience. So that in cases where authorities -persuade, and circumstances control, those who would use earlier -writers to maintain their credit must always keep in view the -application to particular conditions. I see many people of good -intelligence, considerable reading, and facility of expression, -both abroad and at home, fall into great error by neglecting -special circumstances, and overstraining the force of authority. -In dealing with education, must I entreat my country to be content -with this because such a one commends it, or force her to that -because such a State approves of it? The show of right deceives us, -and the likeness of unlike things doth lead us where it listeth. -For the better understanding with what wariness authority is to -be used, let it be considered that there are two sorts of authors -that we deal with in our studies. Of the one kind are writers -on the mathematical sciences, who proceed by the necessity of a -demonstrable subject, and enforce the conclusions by inevitable -argument. Of the other kind are writers on the moral and political -sciences, who, dealing with human affairs, must have regard to the -circumstances of every particular case. With the former the truth -of the subject-matter maintains itself, without the need for any -personal authority, and is beyond debate; it is with the latter -that controversy arises, the writer’s credit often authorising the -thing, and in this case great injustice may be done by quoting -without discrimination as to difference of circumstance. It is no -proof that because Plato praiseth something, because Aristotle -approveth it, because Cicero commends it, because Quintilian or -anyone else is acquainted with it, therefore it is for us to use. -What if our country honour it in them, and yet for all that may -not use it herself, because the circumstances forbid? Nay, what -if the writers’ authority be cited without considering in what -circumstances the opinion was originally expressed? Is not a great -wrong done by him who wresteth the meaning of the author he quotes? -He that will deal with writers so as to turn their conclusions to -the use of his country must be very well advised, and diligently -mark that their meaning and his application are consistent, and -must consider how much of their opinion his country will admit. -Whether I shall myself be able to carry out what I demand from -others, I dare not warrant, but I will do my best to use my author -well, and to take circumstances into account, never, if I can help -it, to offer anything that has not all the foundations that I -promised before, namely, _nature_ to lead it, _reason_ to back it, -_custom_ to commend it, _experience_ to approve it, and _profit_ to -prefer it. - -I think a student ought rather to invest himself in the habit of -his writer than to stand much upon his title and authority in proof -or disproof, as it is well understood that all our studies are -indebted to the original devisers and the most eloquent writers. -Therefore, to avoid undue length, I will neither give authorities -nor examples, as it is not a question of a man’s name, but of -the real value of the argument. I shall not busy myself with -citing authors, either to show what I have read or how far I am -in agreement with others. It is not needful to heap up witnesses -where nothing is doubtful; the natural use of testimony is to -prove where there is doubt, not to cloy where all is clear. In -such cases, for want of sound judgment, a catalogue of names and -a multitude of sentences, which only say what no one denies, are -forced on to the stage to seem to arm the quoter, who is fighting -without a foe, and flying when there is no cause for fear. - -In points of learning which are beyond controversy, I appeal to the -judgment of those who have gone over the same ground, and can test -the truth of what I say without being told the name of the author, -whom they will admit to have been well cited when they find me -saying as he saith, whether it be through recollection of what I -have read or from coincidence of judgment where I have not read. I -do honour good writers, but without superstition, being in no way -addicted to titles. But seeing that Reason doth honour them, they -must be content to remain outside themselves, and use every means -to bring her forward, as their lady and mistress, whose authority -and credit procure them admission when they come from her. It is -not so because a writer said so, but because the truth is so, and -he said the truth. Indeed, the truth is often weakened in the -hearer’s opinion, though not in itself, by naming the writer. If -truth did depend upon the person, she would often be brought into -a miserable plight, being constrained to serve fancy and alter -at will, whereas she should bend to no one, however opinionative -people may persuade themselves. This is known to the learned and -wise, whose courtesy I crave. As for the unlearned, I must entreat -them, for their sakes if not for mine, not to debate with me on -points where they cannot judge. In matters that are intelligible to -both, I must pray them to weigh my words well, and ever to give me -credit for good intentions. - - -The Ideal and the Possible. - -Those ancient writers, who have depicted ideal commonwealths, and -have imagined the upbringing of such paragons as should be fitted -for a place in them, before asking when their youth should begin -to learn, have commonly laid down the conditions of their training -from a very early stage. They begin by considering how to deal with -the infant while he is still under his nurse, discussing whether he -should be nursed by a stranger or by his mother, what playfellows -should be chosen for him while he is still in the nursery, and -what exquisite public or private training can be devised for him -afterwards. These and other considerations they fall into, which -do well beseem the bringing up of such an one as may indeed be -wished, though scarcely hoped for, but can by no means be applied -to our youth and our education, wherein we wish for no more than we -can hope to have. Nay, these writers go further, as mere wishers -may, and appoint the parents of this so perfect a child, to be so -wise and learned that they may indeed fit into an ideal scheme, -but too far surpass the model that I can have in view. Wherefore -leaving on one side these ideal measures and people, I mean to -proceed from such principles as our parents do actually build on, -and as our children do rise by to that mediocrity which furnisheth -out this world, and not to that excellence which is fashioned for -another. And yet there is a value in these fine pictures, which by -pointing out the ideal let us behold wherein the best consisteth, -what colours it is known by, what state it keepeth, and by what -means we may best approach it. It may perhaps be said that despair -of obtaining the very best is apt to discourage all hope, for by -missing any one of these rare conditions--and our frailty will fail -either in all or in most--we mar the whole mould. Howbeit we are -much bound to the excellent wits of those divine writers who, by -their singular knowledge approaching near to the truest and best, -could most truly and best discern what constitution they were of, -and being anxious to serve their race thought it their part to -communicate what they had seen, if only for this, that while we -might despair of hitting the highest, yet by seeing where it lodged -we might with great praise draw near unto it. - -But to return from this question of ideals to our ordinary -education, I persuaded myself that all my countrymen wish -themselves as wise and learned as these imaginary parents are -surmised to be, though they may be content with so much, or rather -with so little, of wisdom and learning as God doth allot them, and -that they will have their children nursed as well as they can, -wherever or by whomsoever it may be, so that the beings whom they -love so well as bequeathed to them by nature, may be well brought -up by nurture; and that till the infant can govern himself, they -will seek to save it from all such perils as may seem to harm it -in any kind of way, either from the people or the circumstances -that surround it, and that this will be done with such forethought -as ordinary circumspection can suggest to considerate and careful -parents; and finally, that for his proper schooling, all who can -will provide it, even if it be at some cost. - - -When School Education should begin. - -One of the first questions is at what age children should be -sent to school, for they should neither be delayed too long, -so that time is lost, nor hastened on too soon, at the risk of -their health. The rule therefore must be given according to the -strength of their bodies and the quickness of their wits jointly. -If the parents be not wanting in means, and there is a convenient -place near, wherein to have the child taught, and a teacher with -sufficient knowledge, and with discretion to train him up well -by correction and teaching him good manners, and fit companions, -such as so good a master may be able to choose; and if the child -also himself have a good understanding and a body able to bear the -strain of learning, methinks it were then best that he began to be -doing something as soon as he can use his intelligence, without -overtaxing his powers either of mind or body, as the wise handling -of his teacher will direct. What the age should be I cannot say, -for ripeness in children does not always come at the same time, any -more than all corn is ripe for one reaping, though it is pretty -nearly at the same time. Some are quick, some are slow; some are -willing when their parents are, and others only when they are -inclined themselves, according as a wise upbringing has disposed -them to do well, or foolish coddling has made them prefer their -play. - - -Risk of Overpressure. - -Anyone who deserves to be a parent should be prepared to judge -for himself as to his young son’s ripeness for school life, and -surely no one is so destitute of friends that he has not some one -to consult if necessary. Those who fix upon a definite age for -beginning have an eye to that knowledge which they think may be -easily gained in these early years, and which it would be a pity -to lose. I agree with them that it would be a pity to lose anything -needlessly that could be gained without much effort and without -injuring the child. But it would be a greater pity for so small a -gain to risk a more important one, to win an hour in the morning, -and lose the whole day after. If the child has a weak body, however -bright his understanding may be, let him grow on the longer till -his strength equals his intelligence. For experience has taught -me that a young child with a quick mind pushed on for people to -wonder at the sharpness of its edge has thus most commonly been -hastened to its grave, through weakness of body, to the grief of -the child’s friends and the reproach of their judgment; and even if -such a child lives, he will never go deep, but will always float on -the surface without much ballast, though perhaps continuing for a -time to excite wonder. Sooner or later, however, his intelligence -will fail, the wonder will cease, while his body will prove feeble -and perish. Wherefore I could wish the brighter child to be less -upon the spur, and either the longer kept from learning altogether, -lest he suffer as the edge of an oversharp knife is turned, or at -least be given very little, for fear of his eagerness leading to a -surfeit. - - -Mens Sana in Corpore Sano. - -As in setting a child to school we consider the strength of his -body no less than the quickness of his mind, it would seem that our -training ought to be two-fold, both body and mind being kept at -their best, so that each may be able to support the other in what -they have to do together. A great deal has been written about the -training of the mind, but for the bettering of the body is there -no means to maintain it in health, and chiefly in the student, -whose occupation treads it down? Yea, surely, a very natural and -healthful means in exercise, whereby the body is made fit for -all its best functions. And therefore parents and teachers ought -to take care from the very beginning that in regard to diet the -child’s body is not stuffed so that the intelligence is dulled, and -that its garments neither burden the body with their weight nor -weaken it with too much warmth. The exercise of the body should -always accompany and assist the exercise of the mind, to make a -dry, strong, hard, and therefore a long-lasting, body, and by this -means to have an active, sharp, wise, and well-learned soul. - - -Physical Exercise needs Regulation. - -It is not enough to say that children are always stirring of their -own accord, and therefore need no special attention in regard to -bodily exercise. If it were not that we make them keep absolutely -still when they are learning in school, and thus restrain their -natural stirring, then we might leave it to their own inclinations -to serve their turn without more ado. But a more than ordinary -stillness requires more than ordinary exercise, and the one must -be regulated as much as the other. And as sitting quiet helps -ill-humours to breed and burden the body, relief must be sought in -exercise under the direction of parents and teachers. - - -Physical and Mental Training should go together. - -The soul and the body, being co-partners in good and ill, in sweet -and sour, in mirth and mourning, and having generally a common -sympathy and mutual feeling, how can they be, or rather why should -they be, severed in education? I assign both the framing of the -mind and the training of the body to one man’s charge. For how can -that man judge well of the soul, whose work has to do with the body -alone? And how shall he perceive what is best for the body, who -having the soul only committed to his care, hands over the body to -some other man’s treatment? Where there is too much distraction and -separation of functions, each specialist tends to make the most -of his own subject, to the sacrifice of others that may be more -important. Wherefore in order to have the care which is due to each -part equally distributed, I would appoint, I say, only one teacher -to deal with both. For I see no great difficulty either in regard -to the necessary knowledge, or to the amount of work. Moreover, as -the disposition of the soul will resemble that of the body, if the -soul be influenced for good, it will affect the body also. - - -Exercise Specially Necessary for Students. - -For though the soul as the fountain of life, and the stimulus -of the body, may and will bear it out for a while, by force of -courage, yet weakness cannot always be dissembled, but will in the -end betray itself, perhaps just when it is the greatest pity. Many -people of high spirit, notable for their learning and skill in the -highest professions, have failed, owing to want of attention to -bodily health, just when their country had most hope of benefiting -by their services. It is needful, therefore, to help the body -by some methodical training, especially for those who use their -brains, such as students, who are apt to consider too little how -they may continue to do that for long which they do well. They -should eat very moderately, and their exercise should also be -moderate, and not vary too much, and their clothing should be -thin, even from the first swaddling, that the flesh may become hard -and firm. - - -The Best Kinds of Exercise. - -[Mulcaster gives a list of the forms of exercise which he thinks -most suitable, both for indoors, and for out of doors. In the -former class are--speaking and reading aloud, singing, laughing, -weeping, holding the breath, dancing, wrestling, fencing, and -whipping the top; in the latter are--walking, running, leaping, -swimming, riding, hunting, shooting, and playing at ball. These -of course are not all considered suitable for children, but a -selection could be made from them to be practised in school under -the regulation of the master. He then enters upon a detailed -and curious examination of the value of each of these forms of -exercise, considered mainly in regard to their physiological -effects. In all this it has been pointed out by Schmidt -(_Geschichte der Erziehung_, Vol. III., Pt. I, pp. 374-6) that -Mulcaster followed closely, though without special acknowledgment, -the _De Arte Gymnastica_ of Girolamo Mercuriale, a contemporary -Italian physician. As the science is mostly of the traditional -and somewhat fantastic character then prevalent, the discussion -is not particularly profitable from a modern standpoint. It will -be interesting, however, as an illustration of his treatment, to -see how he deals with a game that seems to have had much the same -features in his day as in ours.] - - -Football as a Form of Exercise. - -Football could not possibly have held its present prominence, nor -have been so much in vogue as it is everywhere, if it had not been -very beneficial to health and strength. To me the abuse of it is -a sufficient argument that it has a right use, though as it is -now commonly practised, with thronging of a rude multitude, with -bursting of shins and breaking of legs, it is neither civilised, -nor worthy the name of any healthy training. And here one can -easily see the use of the training master, for if there is some -one standing by, who can judge of the play, and is put in control -over the players, all these objections can be easily removed. -By such regulation, the players being put into smaller numbers, -sorted into sides and given their special positions, so that -they do not meet with their bodies so boisterously to try their -strength, nor shoulder and shove one another so barbarously, -football may strengthen the muscles of the whole body. By provoking -superfluities downwards it relieves the head and the upper parts, -it is good for the bowels, and it drives down the stone and gravel -from the bladder and the kidneys. The motion also helps weak hams -and slender shanks by making the flesh firmer, yet rash running -and too much violence often break some internal conduit and cause -ruptures. - - -Is Education to be offered to both Sexes? - -We are next to consider who are those to whom education should be -given, which I take to be children of both sorts, male and female. -But young maidens must give me leave to speak of boys first, -because naturally the male is more worthy and more important in -the body politic; therefore that side may claim learning as first -framed for their use and most properly belonging to them, though -out of courtesy and kindness they may be content to lend some -advantages of their education in the time of youth to the female -sex on whom they afterwards bestow themselves, and the fruit of -their whole training. - - -All cannot receive a Learned Education. - -As for boys, it has been set beyond doubt long ago, that they -should be sent to school, to learn how to be religious and loving, -how to govern and obey, how to forecast and prevent, how to defend -and assail, and in short, how to perform excellently by labour the -duties for which nature has fitted them only imperfectly. But in -the matter of this so desirable a training, two important questions -arise; first, whether all children should be put to school without -any restraint upon the number, and secondly, if any restriction is -needful, how it is to be imposed. In the body politic a certain -proportion of parts must be preserved just as in the natural body, -or disturbances will arise, and I consider that it is a burden to -a commonwealth on the one hand to have too many learned, just as -it is a loss on the other hand to have too few, and that it is -important to have knowledge and intelligence well adapted to the -station in life, as, if these are misplaced it may lead to disquiet -and sedition. - -There is always danger to a State in excess of numbers beyond the -opportunities of useful employment, and this is specially true in -the case of scholars. For they profess learning, that is to say, -the _soul_ of the State, and it is too perilous to have the soul of -the State troubled with _their_ souls, that is, necessary learning -with unnecessary learners. Scholars, by reason of their conceit -which learning inflames, cannot rest satisfied with little, and -by their kind of life they prove too disdainful of labour, unless -necessity makes them trot. If that wit fall to preach which were -fitter for the plough, and he to climb a pulpit who was made to -scale a wall, is not a good carter ill lost, and a good soldier ill -placed? - -All children cannot get a full training at school, even though -their private circumstances admit of it, yet as regards writing -and reading, if that were all, what if everyone had them, for the -sake of religion and their necessary affairs? In the long period -of their whole youth, if they minded no more, these two would be -easily learned in their leisure times by special opportunities, if -no ordinary means were available and no school nigh. Every parish -has a minister, who can give help in regard to writing and reading, -if there is no one else. - - -Choice of Scholars both from Rich and Poor. - -Some doubt may rise between the rich and poor, whether all rich and -none poor, or some in both, may and should be sent to learning. If -some rich are sent, provided for out of private resources, some -poor will be commended by promising parts to public provision for -the general advantage, and if neither private nor public provision -is mismanaged, the matter will decide itself by the capacity of -the learners and their disposition to prove virtuous. The safe -condition is that the rich should not have too much, nor the poor -too little. In the former case, the overplus breeds a loose and -dissolute brain; in the latter, the insufficiency causes a base and -servile temper. For he who is never in need, owing to the supplies -of his friends, never exercises his wits to be a friend to himself, -but commonly proves reckless till the black ox treads upon his -toes, and necessity makes him try what mettle he is made of. And -he who is always in need, for want of friends, is apt to find his -heaven in whatever rids him of his difficulties, and to worship -that saint who serves his turn best. Now if wealthy parents out of -their private fortune, and public patrons out of their surplus -wealth would try to avoid these two extremes, then neither would -over-abundance make the one too wanton, nor want make the other -too servile. Neither would be tempted to hasten on too fast, the -one lest he should lose some time, and the other lest he should -miss some chance of a livelihood. The middle sort of parents, who -neither welter in too much wealth, nor wrestle with too much want, -seem most promising of all, if their children’s capacity is in -keeping with their parents’ circumstances and position, which must -be the level for the fattest to fall down to, and the leanest to -leap up to, to bring forth the student who will serve his country -best. - - -The Number of Scholars limited by Circumstances. - -All cannot pass on to learning that throng thitherward, because -of the inconveniences that may ensue, by want of preferment for -such a multitude, and by depriving other trades of their necessary -workers. Everyone desires to have his child learned, yet for all -that every parent must bear in mind that he is more bound to his -country than to his child. If the parent will not yield to reason -some kind of restraint must be used. Fortunately the question is -often determined by necessity. You would have your child learned, -but your purse will not stretch; you must be patient, and devise -some other course within your means. You are not able to spare him -from your elbow for your own needs, whereas learning must have -leisure, and the scholar’s book be his only business free from -outside interference. You have no school near you, and you cannot -pay for teaching further off; then let your own trade content you, -and keep your child at home. Or your child is of weak constitution; -then let schooling alone, make play his physician, and health his -object. Whichever way necessity drives you, perforce that way must -ye trot. If the restrained child cannot get the skill to write -and read, I lament that lack, for these two points concern every -man nearly, and are useful in every kind of business. I dare not -venture to allow so many the Latin tongue, nor any other language, -unless it be in cases where those tongues are found necessary in -their trades. For otherwise the fear is lest, having such benefits -of school, they will not be content with their own station in -life, but because they have some little smack of book learning -they will think even the highest positions low enough for them, -not considering that in well-governed States Latin is allowed both -to country clowns and town artificers; yet these remain in their -own calling, without pride or ambition, on account of that small -knowledge by which they are better able to furnish out their own -trades. - - -The Number of Scholars kept down by Law. - -It is no objection to allege against such a lawful restraint, that -if such a measure had been in force we might have lost men of high -intelligence and great learning who have been of much service to -the State. Some degree of foresight and orderly restraint are more -likely to secure that necessary functions will be well served than -if all is left to chance and individual will. Nor is it reasonable -to object that it were a pity, by the severity of an unkind law, to -hinder that excellence which God commonly gives to the poorer sort. - - -Talent not peculiar either to Rich or Poor. - -As for pitying the poor, ye need not wish a beggar to become a -prince, though ye allow him a penny and pity his necessities. If -he is poor provide for him, that he may live by trade, but let him -not idle. Has he talent? Well, are artificers fools? And do not -all trades require ability? But is he very likely to distinguish -himself in learning? I do not reject him; he has his chance of -being provided a public help in common patronage. But he does not -well to oppose his own particular will against the public good; let -his country think enough of him, but let him beware of thinking too -much of himself. Because God has often shown himself bountiful in -conferring talent on the poorer sort, that does not prove that he -has not bestowed as great gifts on some of the upper class, though -they may have failed to use them. The commonwealth, it is urged, -must be prepared to give scope for ability, in whatever class it -may be found. - - -Choice of those fit for Learning. - -The choice of learners is a matter requiring careful thought at all -times and in all places, but especially in our own day and country. -For it is more important to whom you commit learning when you have -found what to learn than to find what to learn before you commit -it, because the best instrument should always be handled by the -fittest person, and not by every one that has a fancy to handle -it. When the choice follows private liking rather than public -advantage, more mischief is caused than is easily discovered, -though the smart is generally felt. There is indeed little use in -discussing the question of fitness, if no choice is to be made -when the question is decided. And as the bestowal of learning must -have its beginning in the young child, ought not good choice to go -before if the due effect is to follow? - - -How the Choice of Scholars should be Determined. - -I will now consider what kinds of talent and disposition are, -even from infancy, to be thought most fitting to serve the State -in the matter of learning. Often those who give least promise at -first turn out most suitable in the end; wherefore the absolute -rejection of any, before maturity is reached, not only does an -injury to those who are rejected, but would be an evidence of -rashness in those who reject. For the variety is very great, though -where certainty is impossible preference must be given to the -most likely. In the qualities that give promise of good service -when learning has been gained, there are commonly reckoned an -honourable disposition, zeal for moral virtue, and the desire to -benefit society without thought of personal profit. There must -also be taken into account the shrewdness of intelligence which -will not be easily deceived nor diverted from a right opinion, -either by the influence of feeling in themselves or the strength -of persuasion in others. And generally whatever virtue gives -proof of a good man and a good citizen must be held of value, so -that the learner should show capability and discretion in matters -of learning, and towardness and constancy in matters of living. -All this refers to free men who can secure independently the -opportunities of learning, yet provision is to be made for those -of good natural intelligence who need some help. There are three -kinds of government--Monarchy, Oligarchy, and Democracy, each -of which demands a different type of citizen and scholar. That -child is likely in later years to prove the fittest subject for -learning in a _Monarchy_ who at a tender age shows himself obedient -to the rules of the School, and, if he should offend, takes his -punishment gently, without complaining or taking affront. In -behaviour towards his companions he is gentle and courteous, -without wrangling or complaining. He will lend a helping hand, and -use every persuasion rather than have either his teacher disquieted -or his school-fellows punished. And, therefore, either he receives -similar courtesy from his school-fellows, or whoever shows him any -discourtesy must be prepared for challenge and combat with all -the rest. If he has any natural capacity in which he excels his -companions, it will be so well regulated and show itself with such -modesty that it shall appear in no way upsetting or over-ambitious. -At home he will be so deferential to his parents, so courteous -among servants, so dutiful toward all with whom he has to deal, -that there will be contention who can praise him most behind -his back, and who can cherish him most before his face. These -qualities will not be easily discerned till the child is either -in the Grammar School by regular but not premature advancement, -or at least upon his passage from the completed course of the -Elementary School, because his age by that time, and his progress -under regulation, will make it possible in some degree to perceive -his inclination. Before that time we pardon many things, and use -encouragement and motives of ambition to inflame the little one -onward, which are discontinued afterwards. When of their own -accord, without any motive of fear or other incitement, they begin -to make some show of their learning in some special direction, then -conjecture is on foot as to what their career ought to be. - - -Grounds for Promotion. - -When the possession of means bids the school door open, the -admission and right of continuance is granted to all, till after -some proof the master, who is the first chooser of the finest, -begins to discern where there is ability to go forward, and where -natural weakness suggests prompt removal. When the master has -discovered strength or infirmity of nature, as may appear in the -ease or difficulty of acquiring and retaining that are seen in -boys of different aptitude, his desire will naturally be to have -the promising scholars continued, to procure the removal of the -duller ones by diverting their energy into some other course more -in keeping with their natural bent than learning, in which they -are likely to make little progress, however long they remain at -school. Care must be taken, however, not to decide prematurely, for -it may prove that those wits that at first were found to be very -hard and blunt may soften and prove sharp in time, and show a finer -edge, though this is not to be applied to dullards generally. For -natural dulness will show itself in everything that concerns memory -and understanding, while that kind of dulness that may some day -change into sharpness will show itself only at intervals, like a -cloudy day that will turn out fine in the end. Wherefore, injustice -may be done by a hasty judgment, and, on the other hand, the boy -who is not yet strong enough for manual work may remain a little -longer at school, where, even if he do little good, he is sure to -take little harm. Moreover, if the parents can afford it, and wish -to keep their children on at school, even though their progress -is small, the master must have patience, and measure his pains by -the parent’s purse, where he knows there is plenty, and not by the -child’s profit, which he sees will be small. Only he must keep the -parent constantly informed how matters stand, both as a matter of -duty and to prevent disappointment. But the case is different with -a poor child, who should be sent to a trade at once, if he is not -promising in learning. - - -Co-operation of Parents. - -Seeing that the schoolmaster, to whose judgment I commend the -choice, is no absolute potentate in our commonwealth, to dispose -of people’s children as he pleases, but only a counsellor to act -along with the parent, if the latter is willing to take advice, -I should wish, that in order to have this duly accomplished, -parents and teachers should be not only acquainted, but on friendly -terms with each other. And though some parents need no counsel, -and some teachers can give but little, yet the wise parent is -always willing to listen before he decides, and the opinion of a -skilful teacher deserves to be heard. If this co-operation cannot -be established, the poor child will suffer in the present, and -the parents will lose much satisfaction in the end. This kind -of control will continue as long as the child is either under a -master in school, or under a tutor in college, and in this period -a great number may be very wisely arranged for, unlearned trades -being sufficiently supplied, and a life of learning reserved for -those only who by their intelligence and judgment are fitted for -it. By such means the proportion will be properly adjusted in -every branch of the public service, and the risk avoided of having -too large a total number. This period under the master’s charge -is the only period when the youth can be controlled by outside -direction; for afterwards at a more dangerous age they come to -choose for themselves, and their defects of nature and manners, if -not corrected, may bring sorrow to them and to their friends. And -though the schoolmaster may not always have his counsel followed in -such a case, yet if he let the parent know his opinion his duty -will be discharged. For if the parent shows himself unwilling to -follow the teacher’s opinion, supported by good reasons, but under -the influence of blind affection overestimates his child’s aptitude -for learning, then though the master should for his own gain keep -on an unpromising pupil, the fault lies with the parent who would -not see even after fair warning. So that it always proves true that -parents and teachers should be familiarly linked together in amity -and continual conference for their common charge, and that each -should trust in the judgment and personal goodwill of the other. -This will come to pass only when the teacher is carefully chosen -and kept on terms of friendly conference--not merely because “my -neighbour’s children go to school with you, so you shall have mine -too,”--a common reason in the case of children who are continually -being sent posting about to try all sorts of schools, and never -stay long in any, thus reaping as much learning as the rolling -stone gathers moss. - - -Admission into Colleges. - -The other means whereby some selection may be made is by admission -into colleges, preferments to degrees, advancement to livings. In -regard to these the commonwealth may receive all the greater harm -that they come nearer the public service, so that plain dealing is -the more praiseworthy, in order to prevent mischief. As concerns -colleges I do not consider that the scholarships in them are -intended only for poor students, for whose needs that small help -could never suffice, (though some advantage may be given to them -in consideration of special promise which has no other chance of -being recognised) but rather that they are simply preferments for -learning and advancements for virtue, alike to the wealthy as a -reward of well-doing, and to the poorer students as a necessary -support. Therefore, as in admission I would give freedom to choose -from both sorts, so I would restrict the choice to those who give -genuine promise of usefulness. For if elections are swayed by -favour, shown on grounds not of merit but of private friendship, -though perhaps with some colour of regard for learning, those who -are responsible for the injustice will repent when it is too late, -finding themselves served in their own coin; for those who get in -by such means, owing their own advancement to private influence, -will act in the same way towards others, without regard to the -common welfare. When favour is shown on any other ground than that -of merit, founders are discouraged, public provision is misused, -and learning gives place to idling. But if elections were made on -grounds of fitness alone, the unfit would be diverted in time into -some other channel, the best would be chosen, the intentions of -founders would be fulfilled, some perjury for the non-performance -of statutes would be avoided, new patrons would be procured, -religion advanced, and good students encouraged. - - -Preferment to Degrees. - -Preferment to degrees may be, and indeed ought to be, a more -powerful check on insufficiency, because by this means the whole -country is made either a lamentable spoil to bold ignorance, or -a favourable soil for sober knowledge. When a scholar is allowed -by authority of the University to profess capacity in a certain -specialty for which he bears the title, and is sent into the world -by the help of people who have acted under unworthy influences in -disregard of merit, what must our country think when she hears the -boast of the University title sound in her ears, and fails to find -the benefit of University learning to serve her in her need? She -will not blame the ignorant graduate, who is only naturally trying -to do the best for himself, but she will very greatly blame the -Universities for having deceived her and betrayed her trust. For -in granting a degree the University is virtually saying, “Before -God and my country, I know this man, not by perfunctory knowledge, -but by thorough examination, to be well able to perform in the -Commonwealth the duties of the profession to which his degree -belongs, and the country may rest upon my credit in security for -his sufficiency.” What if the University knew beforehand that -he neither was such an one, nor was ever likely to prove such? -Let the earnest professors of true religion in the universities -at this day consult their consciences and remedy the defect for -their own credit and the good of their country. A teacher may be -pardoned, for seeking thus earnestly to have true worth recognised, -considering that thereby would come not only satisfaction to -himself, but advantage to his pupils and to the country at large. -Can he be anything but grieved to see the results for which he -has laboured with infinite care and pains set at naught by bad -management at a later stage? It seems to be reasonable for anyone -who is given the charge of numbers to concern himself not only with -what comes under his own immediate regulation, but with the means -of securing public protection and encouragement for his pupils -after they pass out of his care. - - -Natural Capacity in Children. - -I will now consider what children ought to learn when they are -first sent to school. There are in the human soul certain natural -capacities which by the wisdom of parents and the discernment of -teachers, who may perceive them in the child’s infancy and do their -best to cultivate them, may eventually be made very profitable -both to their possessor, and to the commonwealth. If these natural -capacities are not perceived, those who are responsible must be -charged either with ignorance or with negligence, and if they are -perceived but are either not improved or wrongly directed, the -teachers and trainers, whether they are parents or schoolmasters, -must be much lacking in sound skill, or else they are guided by -stupid fancies. Without making any complete analysis of the mental -powers, I would point out some natural inclinations in the soul, -which seem to crave the help of education and nurture, and by -means of these may be cultivated to advantage. In the little young -souls we find first a capacity to perceive what is taught to them, -and to imitate those around them. That faculty of learning and -following should be well employed by choosing the proper matter -to be set before them, by carefully proceeding step by step in a -reasonable order, by handling them warily so as to draw them on -with encouragement. We find also in them a power of retention; -therefore their memories should at once be furnished with the very -best, seeing that it is a treasury, and never suffered to be idle, -as it loses its power so soon. For in default of the better, the -worse will take possession, and bid itself welcome. We find in -them further an ability to discern what is good and what is evil, -so that they should forthwith be acquainted with what is best, by -learning to obey authority, and dissuaded from the worse by the -fear of disapproval. These three things, perception, memory, and -judgment, ye will find peering out of the little young souls at a -time when ye can see what is in them, but they cannot yet see it -themselves. Now these natural capacities being once discerned, must -as they arise be followed with diligence, increased by good method, -and encouraged by sympathy, till they come to their fruition. - - -Encouragement better than Severity. - -The best way to secure good progress, so that the intelligence may -conceive clearly, memory may hold fast, and judgment may choose -and discern the best, is so to ply them that all may proceed -voluntarily, and not with violence, so that the will may be ready -to do well, and loth to do ill, and all fear of correction may be -entirely absent. Surely to beat for not learning a child that is -willing enough to learn, but whose intelligence is defective, is -worse than madness. - - -Moral Training falls chiefly on Parents. - -The duty of leading children to cleave to the good and forsake the -bad, in matters of ordinary conduct, is shared by all who come -in contact with them; it belongs to the parents by nature, to -schoolmasters by the charge committed to them, to neighbours as a -matter of courtesy, and to people in general on the ground of a -common humanity. Teachers, it is true, have special opportunities -of influencing the morals and manners of children, by means of -the authority they naturally exercise, in teaching them what is -best, and inducing them to practise it, even by force at first, -till they come to appreciate it for themselves. But this control -of good manners is not for teachers alone, for as I have said, -they must co-operate with the parents, to whom that duty naturally -appertains most nearly, as they have the fullest authority over -the children. Wherefore, reserving for the teacher only so much -as strictly belongs to him, in instructing the child what is best -in good manners, and in framing good regulations and seeing that -they are properly carried out, I refer the rest to those who are -the appointed guardians of morals, to secure either by private -discipline at home, or by public control outside, that young -people are well brought up to distinguish the good from the bad, -the seemly from the unseemly, that they may know God, serve their -country, be a comfort to their friends, and help one another, as -good fellow-citizens are bound to do. But the task of training -their intelligence and memory belongs wholly to the teacher, and I -will now proceed to deal with it. - - -Elementary Instruction--Reading. - -I might very well be thought wanting in discretion if I were to -press any far-fetched proposals into this discussion of general -principles, and I shall therefore deal only with methods that -are in harmony with the customs of this country, and with the -circumstances of the time. Among the subjects of instruction -that have universally been recognised and practised, _Reading_ -certainly holds the first place, alike for the training of the -mind in the process of acquiring it, and for its usefulness after -it is acquired. For the printed page is the first and simplest -material for impressions in the art of teaching, and nothing comes -before it. When by gradual practice in combining letters and in -spelling out words under direction, the child has acquired the -faculty of reading easily, what a cluster of benefits thus come -within reach! Whatever anyone has published to the world by pen or -print, for any end of profit or pleasure, whether of free will -or under constraint, by reading it is all made to serve us--in -religion, to promote the love and fear of God, in law, to aid us -in rendering obedience and service to our fellow-men, and in life -generally to enable us to expel ignorance and acquire skill to do -everything well. Wherefore I make Reading the first foundation on -which everything else must rest, and being a thing of such moment, -it should be thoroughly learned when it is once begun, as facility -will save much trouble both to master and scholar at a later stage. -The child should have his reading perfect both in the English and -in the Latin tongue long before he dreams of studying grammar. - - -The Vernacular First. - -As for the question whether English or Latin should be first -learned, hitherto there may seem to have been some reasonable -doubt, although the nature of the two tongues ought to decide the -matter clearly enough; for while our religion was expressed only -in Latin, the single rule of learning was to learn to read that -language, as tending to the knowledge valued by the Church. But now -that we have returned to our English tongue as being proper to the -soil and to our faith, this restraint is removed, and liberty is -restored, so that we can follow the direction of reason and nature, -in learning to read first that which we speak first, to take most -care over that which we use most, and in beginning our studies -where we have the best chance of good progress, owing to our -natural familiarity with our ordinary language, as spoken by those -around us in the affairs of every-day life. This is the better -order also in respect that English presents certain difficulties -that are absent in Latin, and that children can master more easily -when their memories are still unstored, and considerations -of reason do not affect them. While Latin has been purified -to a definite form in which it has been fixed and preserved, -English, though it is progressing very fairly, is still wanting -in refinement, the spelling being harder, and the pronunciation -harsher, than in Latin. - - -Material of Reading. - -In this a special and continual regard should be had to these four -points in the child--his _memory_, his _delight_, his _capacity_, -and his _advancement_. - -As to his _memory_, I would provide that as he must practise it -even from the first, so he may also practise it upon the best, both -for pleasure in the course of learning, and for profit afterwards. - -As to his _delight_, which is no mean allurement to his learning -well, I would be equally careful that the matter which he -shall read, may be so fit for his years, and so plain to his -intelligence, that when he is at school, he may desire to go -forward in so interesting a study, and when he comes home, he may -take great pleasure in telling his parents what pretty little -things he finds in his book, and that the parents also may have no -less pleasure in hearing their little one speak, so that each of -them shall rather seek to anticipate the other, the child to be -telling something, and the parent to be asking. - -As to his _capacity_, I would so provide, that the matter which he -shall learn may be so easy to understand, and the terms which I -will use, so simple to follow, that both one and the other shall -bring nothing but encouragement. - -As to his _advancement_, I would be very particular that there -may be such consideration and choice in syllables, words, and -sentences, and in all the incidental notes, that there shall be -nothing wanting which may seem worth the wishing, to help fully -either in spelling correctly, or reading easily; so that the child -who can read these well, may read anything else well, if the -reading master will keep that order in his teaching which I intend -to give him in my precept, and not do the infant harm by hurrying -him on too fast, and measuring his forwardness not by his own -knowledge but by the notions of his friends. - - -Writing. - -Next to reading followeth _Writing_, at some reasonable distance -after, because it requireth some strength in the hand, which is -not so steady and firm for writing as the tongue is stirring and -ready for reading. But though in education writing should succeed -reading, in its origin it must have been earlier. For the pen or -some such instrument did carve, first roughly and then completely, -the letter or letter-like device, and thereby did the eye behold in -outward form what the voice delivered to the ear in sound, so that -writing was used as the interpreter of the mind, and reading became -the expounder of the pen. From its rude beginnings writing has -advanced so much that it now proves the prop of remembrance, the -executor of most affairs, the deliverer of secrets, the messenger -of meanings, the inheritance of posterity, whereby they receive -whatever is bequeathed to them, in law to live by, in letters to -learn and enjoy. For the proper study of this valuable art the -master must himself acquire, and must teach his scholar, a neat -handwriting, fast and easy to read, and the matter of the headline, -from which example is taken, should be pithy, and suitable for -enriching the memory with a profitable provision. Practice should -not be left off till it hath brought great skill and readiness, -for writing once perfectly acquired is a wonderful help in the rest -of our learning. - - -Elementary Period a Time of Probation. - -During the time of learning to read and to write the child’s -intelligence will manifest itself so as to decide whether it may -venture further upon greater learning, or were best, owing to some -natural defect, to take to something requiring less skill. But if -the child is set to any higher work while he is still of tender -years, his master pushing him on beyond what he is ready for, there -may be loss of temper, which often breaks out into beating, to -the dulling of the child, the discouraging of the master, and the -reproach of school-life, which should not only yield satisfaction -in the end, when learning has become a sure possession, but should -pass on very pleasantly by the way. Whatever children learn, they -should learn perfectly, for if opportunity to go on further should -fail them, through loss of friends or other misfortune, it were -good that they know thoroughly what they had practised, whereas -if it is known only imperfectly it will stand them in very small -stead, or none at all. To write and read well is a pretty good -stock for a poor boy to begin the world with. - - -Drawing. - -After careful consideration of the matter no one will hold it open -to controversy that _Drawing_ with pen or pencil should be taught -along with writing, to which it is very closely related. For a -pen and penknife, ink and paper, a pair of compasses and a ruler, -a desk, and a sandbox, will set them both up, and in these early -years, while the fingers are flexible, and the hand easily brought -under control, good progress can be made. And generally those that -have a natural aptitude for writing will have a knack of drawing -too, and show some evident talent in that direction. And the place -that judgment holds in the mind as the measure of what is just and -seemly, is filled in the world of sense by drawing, which judges of -the proportion and aspect of all that appeals to the eyes. - -Because Drawing uses both number and figure to work with, I -would cull out as much numbering from Arithmetic, the mistress -of numbers, and so much figuring out of Geometry, the lady of -figures, as shall serve for a foundation to the child’s drawing, -without either difficulty to frighten him, or tediousness to tire -him. Whatever shall belong to colouring, shading, and such other -technical points, since they are more the concern of the painter -than of the beginner in drawing, I would reserve them for a later -stage, and leave them to the student’s choice, when he is to -specialise and betake himself to some particular trade in life. At -which time, if he chance to choose the pen and pencil to live by, -this introduction will then prove his great friend, as he himself -shall find, when he puts it to the proof. Last of all, inasmuch -as drawing is a thing that is thoroughly useful to many good -workmen who live honestly by its means, and attain a good degree of -estimation and wealth, such as architects, embroiderers, engravers, -statuaries, modellers, designers, and many others like them, -besides the learned use of it for Astronomy, Geometry, Geography, -Topography, and such other studies, I would therefore pick out -some special figures, appropriate to many of the foresaid purposes -which it seems fittest to teach a child to draw, and I would also -show how these are to be dealt with from their very beginning to -their last perfection, seeing it is beyond all controversy that -if drawing be thought needful it should be dealt with while the -fingers are supple, and the writing is still in progress, so that -both the pen and the pencil, both the rule and the compass, may go -forward together. - - -Music. - -Music completes the list of elementary subjects, and is divided -into two parts--the cultivation of the voice, and the practice of -an instrument, the former resembling reading, as it produces to -the ear what is seen by the eye, the latter resembling writing, as -it imitates the voice. Both should be begun early, while the voice -and the muscles are still pliable to training. Singing has the -advantage of being less costly than the study of an instrument in -regard to the necessary provision. As to the value of Music, there -can be no room for doubt; indeed, it seems to have been sent as a -solace from heaven for the sorrows of earth. Some men think it is -over sweet, and should be either dispensed with altogether, or at -least not much practised. For my own part I cannot forbear to place -it among the most valuable means in the upbringing of the young, -and in this opinion I have the support of all the best authorities -of antiquity. There are so many arguments in favour of the art; it -is so ancient, so honourable, so universal, so highly valued in all -times and places, alike in Church services and otherwise; it is -such a calmer of passion, such a powerful influence on the mind, -that I must stay my hand in writing about it, lest being fairly -embarked I should be unable to stop. It will be enough for me to -say of Music that it is in accordance with national custom, that -it is very comforting to the wearied mind, that it is a means of -persuasion which all must appreciate who delight in the proportions -of number, that it is best and most easily learned in childhood, -when it can do least harm, that its harmonies could not have such -power to stir emotion if they had not some close natural affinity -to the constitution of the body and soul of man, and that we see -and read the wonderful effects it has had in the cure of desperate -diseases. And yet with all its claims it arouses distrust in some -quarters, even in honest and well-disposed natures that are too -much inclined to sternness. They, however, will probably alter -their opinion, if they will consider more deeply what Music is in -its true nature, or if they come to discuss the matter with those -who take a sounder view, or more certainly still if the art in its -best form has a favourable chance of appealing to their listening -ears. The science itself hath naturally great power to probe and -sway the inclination of the mind to this or that emotion, through -the properties of number in which it consists. It also gives great -delight through its harmonies, to which the moods of the hearers -respond. It is for this that some disapprove of it, holding that -it provokes too much to vain pleasures, and lays the mind open to -the entry of light thoughts. And to some also it seems harmful -on religious grounds, because it carrieth away the ear with the -sweetness of the melody, and bewitcheth the mind with a siren’s -sound, seducing it from those pleasures wherein it ought to dwell, -into fantasies of harmony, and withdrawing it from virtuous -thoughts to strange and wandering devices. A sufficient answer to -all this is that in respect of a thing that may be, and was meant -to be, properly used, it is no just ground against it that it may -also be abused. Music will not harm thee if thy behaviour be good, -and thy intention honest; it will not betray thee if thy ears can -take it in and interpret it aright. Receive it in a proper spirit, -and it will serve thee to good purpose. If thy manners be bad, -or thy judgment corrupt, it is not music alone which thou dost -abuse, nor canst thou clear thyself of the blame that belongs to -thy character by casting it on Music. It is thou that hast abused -her, and not she thee. And why should those who can use it rightly -forego their own good because of a few peevish people who can never -be pleased? - -The training in Music, as in all other faculties, has a special eye -to these three points:--the child himself, who is to learn; the -matter itself, which he is to learn; and the instrument itself, -on which he is to learn. I will so deal with the first and the -last heads, that is, in regard to the child and the instrument, -that neither of them shall lack whatever is needful, either for -framing the child’s voice, or exercising his fingers, or choosing -his lessons, or tuning his instrument. For in the voice there is -a proper pitch, where it is neither over nor under-strained, but -delicately brought to its best condition, to last out well, and -rise or fall within due compass, and so that it may become tunable -and pleasant to hear. And in the training of the fingers also, -there is regard to be had, both that the child strike the notes -clearly, so as not to spoil the sound, and that his fingers run -with certainty and lightness, so as to avoid indistinct execution. -Of these the first commonly falls out through too much haste in the -young learner, who is ever longing to press forward; the second -fault comes of the master himself, who does not consider the -natural dexterity and order of development in the joints, for if -this is rightly attended to, the fingers easily become flexible and -master difficulties of execution without pain. As for the matter of -music, which the child is to learn, I would set down by what means -and degrees, and by what lessons, a boy who is to be brought up -to sing may and ought to proceed regularly from the first term of -art, and the first note in sound, until he shall be able without -any frequent or serious failure to sing his part in prick-song, -either by himself at first while he is inexperienced, or with -others for good practice afterwards. For I take so much to be -enough for an Elementary institution, which can only introduce the -subject, though it must follow the right principle, and I postpone -the study of composition and harmony till further knowledge and -maturity are attained, when the whole body of music will demand -attention. And yet since the child must always be advancing in -that direction, I would set him down to rules of composition and -harmony, which will make him better able to judge of singing, -just as in language he who is accustomed to write can best judge -of a writer. Concerning the virginals and the lute, which two -instruments I have chosen because of the full music uttered by them -and the variety of execution they require, I would also set down as -many chosen lessons for both as shall bring the young learner to -play reasonably well on them, though not at first sight, whether by -the ear or by the book, always provided that prick-song go before -playing. - - -Four Elementary Subjects. - -Children, therefore, are to be trained up in the Elementary School, -for helping forward the abilities of the mind, in these four -things, as recommended to us both by reason and custom: _Reading_, -to enable us to receive what has been bequeathed to us by others, -and to store our memories with what is best for us; _Writing_, to -enable us to do for others what was done for us, by handing on -the fruits of our own experience, and besides to serve our own -purposes; _Drawing_, to be a guide to the senses, and to afford us -pleasure in the objects of sight; and _Music_, both with the voice -and with an instrument, for the reasons above stated. - -By reading we receive what antiquity has left us; by writing we -hand on what posterity craves of us; by both we get great advantage -in all the circumstances of our daily life. By delineating with the -pencil, what object is there open to the eye, either brought forth -by nature, or set forth by art, the knowledge and use of which we -cannot attain to? By the study of music, besides the acquirement -of a noble science, so definitely formed by arithmetical precept, -so necessary a step to further knowledge, such a glass in which -to behold both the beauty of concord and the blots of dissension, -even in a body politic, how much help and pleasure our natural -weakness receives for consolation, for hope, for courage! I do -not touch here on the skilful handling of the untrained voice, -nor the fine exercising of the unskilled fingers, though these -things are not to be neglected where they can be obtained, and are -naturally required when imperfection is to be removed by them. -Again, does not all our learning, apprehended by the eye and -uttered by the tongue, confess the great benefit it receives by -reading? Does not all our expression, brought forth by the mind -and set down by the pen, acknowledge obligation to the study of -writing? Do not all our descriptions, which picture to the sense -what is fashioned in thought, both preach and praise the pencil -which makes them visible? Does not all our delight in times of -leisure,--and we labour only for the sake of gaining rest and -freedom from care,--protest in plain terms that it is wonderfully -indebted to the music of both voice and instrument? This is the -natural sweetener of our bitter life, in the judgment of every man -who is not too much soured. Now, what quality of learning is there, -deserving of any praise, that does not fall within this elementary -course, or is not furthered by it, whether it be connected with the -higher professions, or occupations of lower rank, or the necessary -trades of common life? - - -Study of Languages. - -Inasmuch as Grammar is used partly as a help to foreign languages, -it furthers us very much in that way, because all our learning -being got from foreign countries, as registered in their tongues, -if we lack the knowledge of the one, we lack the hope of the other. - -When learning and knowledge came first to light, those men who were -the authors of them uttered their minds in the same speech that -they used when they bred the things. And as they needed no foreign -tongue for matter that was bred at home, so they had no use of any -Grammar but that by which they endeavoured to refine their natural -speech at home. But when their devices, first set out in their own -tongues, were afterwards sought for by foreign students to increase -their learning and to enrich their country with foreign wares, the -foreign students were then driven to seek the assistance of Grammar -of the second kind, because they could not understand the things -which were written in a foreign tongue, without the knowledge of -the tongue itself. - -In the primitive Grammar children being trained as I now require, -went straightway from the elementary to the substance of learning, -and to the mathematical sciences, which are so termed, because -indeed the whole scholars’ learning consisted in them, as in the -first degree of right study. For whatever goes before them in -right order is nothing but mere elementary study, and whatever -goes before them in wrong order, as it is distorted in nature, it -works no great wonder. But in the second use of Grammar, we are -forced of necessity, after the elementary subjects, however hurried -and simple they may be, to deal with the tongues ere we pass to -the substance of learning; and this help from the tongues, though -it is most necessary, as our study is now arranged, yet hinders -us in time, which is a thing of great price,--nay, it hinders us -in knowledge, a thing of greater price. For in lingering over -language we are removed and kept back one degree further from sound -knowledge, and this hindrance comes in our best learning time, -while we are under masters and readers, of whom we may learn far -better than of ourselves, if as much regard be had to their choice, -as I have elsewhere recommended. - - -Follow Nature. - -The proof of a good Elementary Course is, that it should follow -nature in the multitude of its gifts, and that it should proceed -in teaching as she does in developing. For as she is unfriendly -wherever she is forced, so she is the best guide that anyone can -have, wherever she shows herself favourable. Wherefore, if nature -makes a child most fit to excel in many aptitudes, provided these -are furthered by early training, is not that education much to -be blamed that fails to do its part, allowing the child to be -deprived by negligence of the excellence that nature intended for -it? Again, seeing that there are no natural gifts that cannot be -helped forward by training, is not that manner of study to be most -highly approved which takes most pains where nature is most lavish? -The hand, the ear, the eye, are the chief means of receiving and -handing on our learning. And does not this course of study instruct -the hand how to write, to draw, to play; the eye to read by -letters, to distinguish form by lines, to judge by means of both; -the ear to call for the sound of voice and instrument for its own -pleasure and cultivation? And, in general, whatever gift nature has -bestowed upon the body, to be brought out or improved by training, -for any profitable use in life, does not this elementary course -find it out and make the most of it? As for the capacities of the -mind, whether they concern virtuous living or skill in learning, -whatever be the art, science, or profession to which they belong, -do they not all evidently depend upon reading and writing as their -natural foundations? The study of language must be the basis of -grammar, rhetoric, logic, and their derivatives, among which may -be counted all the parts of philosophy, both moral and natural, -as well as the three professions of divinity, law, and medicine, -using as they do in all their branches the instrument of speech. -If mathematics be in question, or any kindred subjects that have -a bearing on mechanical science, though their secondary use is -to whet the mental powers, yet they must rest on a study of the -properties of number, figure, motion, and sound. And as for our -pleasure in the beauties of art, that is obtained by the provision -of drawing for the eye and music for the ear. So that, in my -opinion, the fathers and founders of this elementary course (which -I am only attempting to reintroduce, though with as much goodwill -as so good a thing deserves) have shown great foresight in laying -such sure foundations as to secure that all natural capacities -shall not only be carefully fostered at their first sprouting, -but brought to the fullest perfection when they are ripe for the -harvest. When I use the term _nature_ I mean that power which God -has implanted in his creatures, both to preserve the race and to -fulfil the end of their being. The continuance of their kind is -the proof of their being, but the fulfilment of their end is the -fruit of their being. This latter is the point to which education -has a special eye (though it does not despise the other), so that -the young fry may be brought up to prove good in the end, and serve -their country well in whatever position they may be placed. For -the performance of this end I take it that this elementary course -is most sufficient, being the best means of perfecting all those -powers with which nature endows our race, by using those studies -which art and reflection appoint, and those methods which nature -herself suggests. For the end of education and training is to help -nature to her perfection in the complete development of all the -various powers. - -This is what I mean by following nature, not counterfeiting her -in her own proper work by foolish imitation, or perverse attempt -to produce her effects, like an Apelles in portraiture or an -Archimedes in the laws of motion, but after considering and -marking with good judgment what are the natural tendencies and -inclinations, to frame a scheme of education in consonance with -these, and bring to perfection by art all those powers which -nature bestows in frank abundance. - -For the physical life of man, in order to maintain and develop both -the individual and the species, nature has provided organs that -receive, prepare and distribute nourishment for the body, and has, -besides, given us for self-preservation the power of perceiving all -sensible things by means of feeling, hearing, seeing, smelling, and -tasting. These qualities of the outward world, being apprehended -by the understanding and examined by the judgment, are handed -over to the memory, and afterwards prove our chief--nay, our -only--means of obtaining further knowledge. Moreover, we have also -a power of movement, either under the influence of emotion or by -the enticement of desire, either for the direct purposes of life, -as in the action of the pulse and in breathing, or for outward -action, such as walking, running, or leaping. To serve the end -both of sense-perception and of motion, nature has planted in the -body a brain, the prince of all our organs, which by spreading its -channels through every part of our frame produces all the effects -through which sense passes into motion. - -Further, our soul has in it a desire to obtain what it holds to -be good, and to avoid what it thinks evil. This desire is stirred -either by quiet allurement or by violent incitement, and when once -it is inflamed it strives to compass its end. To satisfy this -desire nature has given us a heart to kindle heat, and as the sense -is moved by the qualities of the object, and motion is effected by -means of sinews, so appetite, being stirred by the object of desire -or repulsion, is supplied with the means of satisfying itself. - -Last of all, our soul has in it an imperial prerogative of -understanding beyond sense, of judging by reason, of directing -action for duty towards God and our fellowmen, for conquest in -affection and attainment in knowledge, and for such other things as -minister to the varied uses of our mortal life, and prove its title -to continue beyond the sphere of this roaming pilgrimage. To serve -this honourable purpose of understanding and reasoning, nature, -though she has no place in this earthly body of ours worthy to -receive such great and stately guests with their whole retinue, yet -does what she can, and, herself acting as harbinger, assigns them -for lodging her principal chamber, the very closet of the brain, -where she bestows every one of reason’s understanding friends, -according to their various ranks and special dignities. All those -capacities in their first natural condition concern only the -existence of an uncultivated man; but when they are fashioned to -their best by good education, they form the life of a perfect and -excellent man. For to exist merely, to feed, to multiply, to use -the senses, to desire, to have natural and unimproved reason--what -great thing is it, though it is something more than brute beasts -have, if the other divine qualities that build upon these are not -diligently followed? These higher powers not only rise out of -the lower at the first, but honour them in the end, just as the -best fruit honours its first blossom, or as the most skilful work -graces the first ground on which it is wrought. Besides that they -prove themselves to be the most excellent ends which nature meant -from the first, though she herself made but a weak show, however -pliable for man’s industry to work on for his own advantage. He who -does not live at all cannot live well; he who does not feed at all -cannot feed moderately; he who does not reproduce cannot exercise -continence; he who has no sense cannot use it soberly; he who does -not desire cannot desire considerately; he who uses no reason -cannot use it advisedly. But he who exercises all these functions -has in them all the capacities that nature can afford him to use -them all well, and he will so use them if judgment rule as much in -having them well as necessity in having them at all. For reason, as -it is our difference in comparison with beasts, is our excellence -in comparison with men, if we use it aright. - -Those powers of reasoning and understanding in man, therefore, -being handled in a workmanlike fashion and applied to their best -uses by such devices and means as are thought fittest, direct the -natural appetites so as to secure the health of the parts appointed -for them, and of the whole body, which is compounded of those -parts. They develop the senses and their organs to their best -perfection and longest endurance. They restrain desire to the rule -of reason and the advice of foresight. They enrich the mind and -the soul itself by laying up in the treasury of remembrance all -arts and imaginations, all knowledge, wisdom, and understanding, by -which either God is to be honoured or the world is to be honestly -and faithfully served; and this heavenly benefit is begun by -education, and confirmed and perfected by continuous exercise, -which crowns the whole work. - - -Education of Girls. - -In naming the persons who were to receive the benefit of education -I did not exclude young maidens, and, therefore, seeing I made them -one branch of my division, I must now say something more about -them. Some may think that the matter might well enough have been -passed over in silence, as not belonging to my purpose, seeing -that my professional concern is with the education of boys. But -seeing that I begin as low as the first elementary training, in -which young maidens ordinarily share, how could I seem to take no -notice of them? And to prove that they ought to receive education I -find four special reasons, any one of which--therefore surely all -together--may persuade their greatest adversary, much more then -myself, who am for them tooth and nail. The first is the custom of -the country, which allows them to learn. The second is the duty we -owe to them, charging us in conscience not to leave them deficient. -The third is their own aptness to learn, which God would never have -bestowed on them to remain idle or to be used to small purpose. The -fourth is the excellent results shown in them when they have had -the advantage of good upbringing. - -I do not advocate sending young maidens to public Grammar Schools, -or to the Universities, as this has never been the custom in this -country. I would allow them learning within certain limits, having -regard to the difference in their vocation, and in the ends which -they should seek in study. We see young maidens are taught to read -and write, and can learn to do well in both; we hear them both -sing and play passing well; we know that they learn the best and -finest of our learned languages to the admiration of all men. As -to the living modern languages of highest reputation in our time, -if any one is inclined to deny that in these they can compare -with the best of our sex, they will claim no other tests than to -talk with such a one in whichever of these tongues he may choose. -These things our country doth stand to; these accomplishments -their parents procure for them according to their means and -opportunities, in so far as their daughters’ aptitude doth -offer hope of their gaining an advantage through them, by being -preferred in marriage or some other career. Nay, do we not see in -our country some of that sex so excellently well trained, and so -rarely qualified in regard both to the tongues themselves and to -the subject-matter contained in them, that they may be placed along -with, or even above, the most vaunted paragons of Greece or Rome, -or the German and French gentlewomen so much praised by recent -writers, or the Italian ladies who dare even to write themselves, -and deserve fame for so doing? - -And what be young maidens in relation to our sex? Do we not, -according to nature, choose from among them those who are to be our -nearest and most necessary friends, the mothers of our children? -Are they not the very creatures that were made for our comfort, -the only remedy for our solitude, our closest companions in weal -or woe, sharers in all our fortunes until death? And can we in -conscience do otherwise than give careful thought to the welfare of -those that are linked to us in so many ways? Is it a small thing -to have our children’s mothers well strengthened in mind as in -body? And is there any better means of strengthening their minds -than to teach them that knowledge of God and religion, of civil and -domestic duties, which we ourselves gain by education, and ought -not to deny to them--that education which is to be found in books, -and can be so well acquired in youth? - -If Nature has given to young maidens abilities to prove excellent -in their kind, and yet thereby in no way to fail in their most -laudable duties in marriage, but rather to beautify themselves -with admirable ornaments, are we not to be charged with extreme -unnaturalness if we do not guide by discipline what is given to -them by Nature? - -The excellent effects in those women who have been well trained -show clearly that they deserve the best training. What better -example can be found to assure the world than our most dear -sovereign lady and princess, who is so familiarly acquainted with -the nine Muses that they strive which may love her best for being -the most learned, and for whose excellent knowledge we who taste of -the fruit have most cause to rejoice? - - -Aim of Education for Girls. - -But now having granted them the benefit and society of our -education, we must determine the end which this training is to -serve, so that it may be better applied. Our training is without -restriction either as regards subject-matter or method, because our -employment is so general; their functions are limited, and so must -their education be also. If a young maiden is to be brought up with -a view to marriage, obedience to authority and similar qualities -must form the best kind of training; if from necessity she has to -learn how to earn her own living, some technical training must -prepare her for a definite calling; if she is to adorn some high -position she must acquire suitable accomplishments; if she is -destined for government, which may be offered to her by men, and -is not denied her by God, the greatness of the position calls for -general excellence, and a variety of gifts. Wherefore, having these -different ends always in view, we may appoint them different kinds -of training in accordance with circumstances. - -But some churlish carper will say: “What should women do with -learning?” Such a one will never pick out the best, but be always -ready to blame the worst. If all men always made a good use of -their learning we might have something to allege against women, -but seeing that misuse is common to both sexes why should we blame -them, when we are not free from the same infirmity ourselves? Some -women may make a bad use of their writing, others of their reading; -some may turn all that they learn to bad account. And I pray you -what do we? I do not excuse ill, but I bar those from accusing who -are as bad themselves. As we share both virtues and vices with -women, let us exchange forbearance, and, hoping for the best, give -them free opportunity. - - -When their Education should begin. - -This is my opinion as to which ought to be educated and when they -should begin. The same liberty, in respect of circumstances, being -allowed to parents in regard to their daughters as has been granted -to them with their sons, the same consideration being had for -their fitness of mind and body, and the same care being taken for -suitable physical exercise to further their health and strength, I -consider the same time of beginning proper for both--a time not to -be wholly determined by years, but rather by their development as -shown by their ability to use their intelligence without tiring, -and to work without wearying their bodies. For though girls seem -generally to have a quicker ripening of intelligence than boys, in -spite of appearances this is not the case. Through natural weakness -they cannot contain long what they possess, and so give it out -very soon; yet there are prating boys just as there are prattling -wenches. Besides, their brains are not so much laden as those of -boys, either as regards amount or variety, and therefore like empty -casks they make the greater noise. In the same way those men who -seem to be very quickwitted by some sudden pretty answer or some -sharp repartee, are not always most burdened with learning, but -merely offer the best out of a small store, taking after their -mothers. Though they must of course possess this sharpness of wit -since it manifests itself, yet it might dwell within them a great -while without manifesting itself, if study kept them quiet, or they -were preoccupied with great deeds. It is small affairs, urging to -speedy expression, that beget that kind of readiness. Boys have it -always but often hide it because they can afford to wait; girls -have it always and always show it, because they are in a greater -hurry. And seeing it is to be found in both, it deserves care -in both, so that they should neither be pushed on too much nor -allowed to be idle too long. Maidens are naturally weaker in body, -therefore more attention must be paid to them in this regard than -is necessary for boys. They are to be the principal pillars in the -upholding of households, and so they are likely to prove if their -training be wise. They will be the dearest comfort a man can have -if they incline to good, the greatest curse, if they tread awry. -Therefore they are to be warily tended, as they bear a jewel of -such worth in a vessel of such weakness. - - -All should have Elementary Education. - -The rare excellences in some women cannot be taken as a precedent -for all to follow, as they only show us the special success that -a few parents have attained in their daughters’ upbringing. These -shining examples, however, though they cannot be used to form -general precepts, are at least proofs that women can learn if they -will, and may learn what they please, if they lend their minds to -it. To learn to read is very common where it is convenient, and -writing is not refused, where opportunity serves. Reading, even if -it were of no other use, is very needful for religion, to enable -them to know what they ought to perform, if they have none whom -they can listen to, or if their memories are not steadfast, to -refresh them. Here I may not omit many great pleasures which those -women that have time and skill to read, without hindering their -housewifery, do continually receive by reading comforting and wise -discourses, penned either in the form of history or directions to -live by. As for writing, though it may be abused, it is often very -convenient, especially in matters of business. - -Music is very desirable for maidens where it is to be had, though -chiefly for the satisfaction of the parents when the daughters are -young, as is generally shown when the young wenches become young -wives, and in learning to be mothers, lightly forget their music, -thus proving that they studied it more to please their parents than -themselves. But if having been once learned, it can be kept up, as -is quite possible with proper management, it is a pity to let it -go, as it was acquired only with great pains and at considerable -cost. Learning to sing and play from the notes is easy enough, if -it be attended to from the first, and this can be kept up too, -though it suffers from discontinuance. Seeing it is but little that -girls can learn, the time being so short, because they are always -in haste to get husbands, it is expedient that what they do should -be done perfectly, so that with the loss of their penny they do not -lose their pennyworth also. - -As for skill in needlework and housewifery, it is a great -recommendation in a woman to be able to govern and direct her -household, to look to her home and family, to provide and take care -of necessaries, although the good-man pay, to know the resources of -her kitchen in regard to all over whom she has charge, in sickness -and in health. But I meddle not with this as I am only dealing with -things that are incident to learning. I have now spoken of all the -subjects that should universally be taught to girls. - - -Higher Studies for Some. - -The question as to how far any maiden may proceed in learning -beyond the subjects already spoken of requires more consideration -and more careful handling as it is a matter of some moment -concerning those in high position. And yet there are some of low -degree that seek to resemble those above them, and are satisfied -even with an appearance of imitation, but in so doing they are -passing the bounds of what is beseeming to their birth. It is mere -folly when a parent of humble station traineth up his daughter in -these high accomplishments, of which I shall presently speak, if -she marries in her own lowly rank. For in such a case these gifts -will seem so out of place that she will not gain the respect that -is paid to one who has been wisely brought up, but will rather be -accused of vain presumption. Each rank has a certain preparation -becoming to it, which is best secured when there is no attempt to -overstretch one’s powers. If some unusual capacity attain success -beyond expectation, it is generally a marked exception, and whoever -shoots at the same mark, in the hope of hitting, may sooner miss, -for there are many chances of missing to one of hitting, and -wonders that are seen only once are no examples to imitate. Every -maid may not hope to speed as she would wish, because one hath sped -better than she could have wished. - -When the question is _how much_ a woman ought to learn, the answer -may be, “as much as shall be needful,” and if this is doubtful -also, the reply may be, either as much as befits what her parents -hope to obtain for her, if their position be humble, or as much -as is in keeping with the prospects naturally belonging to their -rank, if that rank be high. If the parents be of good standing, and -the daughters have special aptitudes, these may be successfully -cultivated, so that the young maidens are very soon commended to -right honourable matches in which their accomplishments will be -seemly and serviceable, benefitting perhaps the commonwealth as -well as their own families. If the parents be of humble rank, -and the maidens in their education show from the very first some -special gifts that offer good promise, even with natural progress, -there is ground for hope that their unusual qualities may bring -them to some great match. Doubtless this hope may fail, for great -personages have not always the good judgment, nor young maidens the -good fortune, that would lead to such a result, yet in any case -the maidens would remain the gainers, for they at least have their -gifts to comfort their mediocre station, and those great personages -lose from the lack of judgment to set forth their nobility. - - -What Higher Studies are Suitable. - -Carrying the education further may consist either in perfecting -the four studies already mentioned, reading well, writing neatly, -singing sweetly, and playing finely, to such an unusual degree, -that though the things are but ordinary, special excellence in them -may bring more than ordinary admiration, or else in acquiring skill -in languages in addition to the above, so that the abundance of -gifts may cause yet more wonder. - -I fear women would have little turn for geometry or the sister -sciences, nor would I make them mathematicians, except in so far as -they study music, nor lawyers to plead at the bar, nor physicians, -though skill in herbs has been much commended in women, nor -would I have them profess divinity, to preach in pulpits, though -they must practice it as virtuous livers. Philosophy would help -them in general discourse, if they had leisure to study it, but -the knowledge of some tongues, either as the vehicle of deeper -learning, or for their immediate uses, may well be wished for them, -and all those powers also that belong to the furniture of speech. -If I should allow them the pencil to draw, as well as the pen to -write, and thereby entitle them to all my elementary studies, I -might have good reasons to give. For young maidens are ready enough -to take to it, and it would help to beautify their needlework. - -And is not a young gentlewoman, think you, thoroughly well equipped -who can read distinctly, write neatly and swiftly, sing sweetly, -and play and draw well, understand and speak the learned languages, -as well as the modern tongues approved by her time and country, -and who has some knowledge of logic and rhetoric, besides the -information acquired in her study of foreign languages? If in -addition to all this she be an honest woman and a good housewife, -would she not be worth wishing for and worth enshrining? And is it -likely that her children will be one whit the worse brought up? - - -Who should be their Teachers. - -The only other question in regard to young maidens is where, and -under whom, they should learn, and this depends on how long their -studies can extend, which is generally till they are about thirteen -or fourteen years old. - -Those who are able to continue longer have their time and place -suitably appointed, according to the circumstances of their -parents. As for their teachers, their own sex were fittest in some -respects, but ours frame them best, and with good regard to some -circumstances, will bring them up excellently well, especially if -the parents co-operate by exercising a wise control over them. The -greater-born ladies and gentlemen, as they are to enjoy the benefit -of this education most, so they have the best means of prosecuting -it, being able to secure the best teachers, and not being limited -in time. And so I take my leave of young maidens and gentlewomen, -to whom I wish as well as I have said well of them. - - -The Education of Young Gentlemen. - -Under my last heading I set forth at large how young maidens were -to be advanced in learning according to their rank, which methought -was very incident to my purpose, because they are counterbranches -to us as mortal and reasonable creatures, and also because they -are always our mates, and may sometimes, according to law and -birth, be our mistresses. Now, considering that they are always -closely connected with us, and sometimes exceed us in dignity of -position, as they share with us all qualities, and all honours -even up to the sceptre, why should they not also share in our -training and education, so that they may perform well the part -which they have to play, whether it be in a position of equality -with us, or sovereignity above us? Here now ensueth another -question of great importance in regard to the kind of people who -are to be dealt with, the question of a class whose position is -always in the superlative, and of whom great things are expected, -though sometimes by their own fault they forfeit their chances, -and hand them over to others whom nature ennobles through their -inborn virtues--I mean young gentlemen of all ranks up to the crown -itself. It is the custom among those of good birth to prefer to -have their sons educated privately at home rather than at school. -This is reasonable enough for maidens because of their sex, but -young gentlemen should be educated publicly, that they may have the -benefit of mixing with others, as has been the custom in all the -best ordered commonwealths, and has been recommended by all the -most learned writers, even in the case of princes. - - -Private and Public Education. - -What is the import of these two words ‘private education’? -_Private_ is that which hath respect in all circumstances to some -particular case; _public_ in all circumstances regardeth every -one alike. _Education_ is the bringing up of one, not to live -alone, but amongst others, because company is our natural medium; -whereby he shall be best able to perform all those functions in -life which his position shall require, whether public or private, -in the interest of his country in which he was born, and to which -he owes his whole service. All these functions are in reality -public, and concern everyone, even when they seem most private, -because individual ends must be adjusted to wider social ends; -and yet people give the preference to private education where -all the circumstances are peculiar to one learner; as if he who -was brought up alone were always to live alone, or as if one -should say, ‘I will have you to deal with all, but never to see -all; your end shall be public, but your means shall be private.’ -How can education be private? It is an abuse of the name as well -as of the thing. This isolation, for a pretended advantage in -education, of those who must afterwards pass on together, is -very mischievous, as it allows every parent to follow out his -own whims, relying on the privacy of his own house to be free -from criticism, on the subserviency of the teacher whom he may -choose to suit his own purposes, and on the submission of his -child who is bound to obey him on pain of meeting his displeasure. -In public schools such swerving from what is generally approved -is impossible. The master is always in the public eye, what he -teaches is known to all; the child is not alone, and he learns -only what has been submitted to the judgment of the community. -Whatever inconveniences may be inseparable from schools, still -greater arise in private education. It puffs up the recluse with -pride; it is an enemy to sympathy between those who have unequal -opportunities; it fosters self-conceit in the absence of comparison -with others; it encourages contempt in the superior, and envy -in the inferior. This kind of education which soweth the seed -of dissension by discovering differences, where the fruits of a -common upbringing should be seen in the firm knitting of social -bonds, should be discouraged owing to its effect in instilling -the poison of spite. Certainly the thing doth naturally tend this -way, though its influence may be often interrupted in time by the -pressure of public opinion. But if the child turn out better then I -have forecast, and show himself courteous, it will be due to his -natural goodness, or to his experience outside, not to the kind of -education which brings no such courtesy, though the child may see -it in his parents, and read of it in his books. Sometimes it maketh -him too sheepishly bashful when he comes to the light, owing to -his being unaccustomed to company. More commonly, however, he is -too childishly bold through noting nothing except what he breeds -in his own mind in his solitary training, where he thinks only of -himself, and has none to control him, not even his master, whatever -show there may be of obedience to authority in this private -cloistering. Surely it is reasonable for one in his childhood to -become acquainted with other children, seeing he has to live with -them as men in his manhood. Is it good for the ordinary man to be -brought up on a well-regulated public system, and not good for the -man of higher position? By ‘private’ I do not mean what is done -at home for public uses--in that case almost everything might be -called private--but what is kept at home by preference, in order -to serve the better the interest of a particular individual. It -would seem to be generally a question not of the matter or the -method of education, but of the select privacy of the place where -it is given. I must beg leave to say that the results are in favour -of public training, which from the midst of mediocrity brings up -scholars of such excellence that they take a worthy place in all -ranks, even next to the highest, whereas private education with all -its advantages of wealth, doth rarely show anything in learning -and judgment above bare mediocrity. There is no comparison between -the two kinds, if prejudice be set aside. If the privately-taught -pupil chance to come to speak, it mostly falleth out dreamingly, -because seclusion in education is a punishment to the tongue; -and in teaching a language to exclude companions to speak to, is -like seeking to quench thirst, yet closing the mouth so that no -moisture can get in. If such a pupil come to write, it is lean, -and nothing but skin, betraying the great pains the master hath -had to take, in default of any helping circumstances through the -pupil’s intercourse with companions. The boy can but repeat what he -hears, and he hears only one person who, though he knew everything, -cannot say much, for he hath no sufficient audience to provoke -him to utterance. If the master made an effort to deliver himself -of anything weighty, methinks an unobserved listener would hear a -strange discourse, and would find the boy asleep; or, if he had a -companion, playing with his hands or feet under the table, with one -eye on his talking master and the other on his playmate. - -But why is private education so much in vogue? There may be some -excuse for those of very high position, especially for the prince -himself, who standing alone, cannot well mix with his subjects, -and must do what he can to surpass them without this advantage. -Yet if even the greatest could have his education so arranged that -he might have the company of a good choice number, wherein to see -all the differences of capacity and learn to judge of all, as he -hath afterwards to deal with all, would it be any sacrilege? But -why do the gentry in this respect rather ape their superiors in -rank, than follow the class below, who are really liker to them, -and who form the chief supporters of the State? To have the child -learn better manners and have more virtuous surroundings! As bad -at home as outside; evil manners are brought into school, not bred -there. To avoid the distraction of large numbers? The child shall -notice the more, and so prove the wiser, the multitude of examples -offering the means of sound judgment. Nay, in a number, though he -find some undesirable, whom he should avoid, he shall find many -apt and industrious, whom to follow. In school, moreover, he shall -perceive that vice is punished, and virtue praised, as needs must -where all is done in the public view. Is it to keep the child in -health by making him bide at home, for fear of infection outside? -Death is within doors also, and dainties at home have destroyed -more children than dangers outside. Is it from affection, because -ye cannot bear to let the child out of your presence? That is too -foolish. Emulation is a great inspirer of virtue. If your child do -well at home alone, how much better would he do with company? It -quickens the spirits, and enlivens the whole nature, to have to -compete with others--to have perhaps one companion ahead of him to -follow and learn from, another below him to teach and vaunt over, -and a third of his own standing with whom to strive for praise of -forwardness. - -To sum up this question, I do take public education to be better -than private, as being more upon the stage, where faults are more -readily seen and so are sooner amended, and as being the best means -of acquiring both virtue and learning, which flourish according -to their first planting. What virtue is private? Wisdom, to -foresee what is good for a desert? Courage, to defend where there -is no assailant? Temperance, to be modest where there is none to -challenge? Justice, to do right when there is none to demand it? - - -What should a Gentleman learn? - -As for the education of gentlemen, at what age shall I suggest -that they should begin to learn? Their minds are the same as -those of the common people, and their bodies are often worse. The -same considerations in regard to time must apply to all ranks. -What should they learn? I know of nothing else, nor can I suggest -anything better, than what I have already suggested for all. Only -young gentlemen must have some special studies that will help them -to govern under their prince in positions of trust. They should -have always before them the virtues that belong to the government -of others, and to the wise direction of their own conduct. However, -the general matter of duty being taught to all, each one may apply -it to his own particular case, without the need for any special -reference outside the ordinary school course, especially seeing -that the duties of government just as often fall into the hands of -those of lower rank whose virtue and capacity win them promotion. -What exercises shall young gentlemen have? The very same as other -children. What masters? The same. What difference of arrangements? -All one and the same, except where private education is preferred, -though, as I have said, they are none the better for the want -of good fellowship. And if they are as well taught and as well -exercised as should follow from the general plan laid down for all -young children, they shall have no cause to complain of public -education. For it is no mean stuff which is provided even for the -meanest to be stored with. - -The children of gentlemen have great advantages, which they may -thank God for; they can carry on their education to the end, -whereas those of the humbler class have to give it up sooner, and -they have many opportunities which are denied to ordinary learners. -If they fail to use these advantages aright they are all the more -to blame, just as the greater credit is due to those who in spite -of hindrances make such advancement that they win the preferments -forfeited by the negligence of those to whom they naturally belong. - -As for rich men, who not being of gentle birth, but growing to -wealth by some means or other, imitate gentlemen in the education -of their children, as if money made equality, and the purse were -the ground of preferment, without any other consideration, who -contemn the lower ranks from which they sprang, and cloister up -their children as a support to their position, they are in the -same case as regards freedom of choice, but far behind in true -gentility. As they were of lower condition themselves, they might -with more acceptance continue their children in the same kind of -training which brought up the parents and made them so wealthy, -and not try to push themselves into a rank too far beyond their -humble origin. For of all the means to make a gentleman, money is -the most vile. All other means have some sign of virtue, but this -is too bad to mate either with high birth, or with great worth. For -to become a gentleman is to bear the cognisance of virtue, to which -honour is companion; the vilest devices are the readiest means to -become most wealthy and ought not to look honour in the face. It -may be pretended that intelligence and capacity have enabled them -to make their way, but it is not denied that these qualities may be -turned to the worst uses, may only once in a thousand times make -a gentleman. It is not intelligence that deserves praise, but the -matter to which it has been directed, and the manner in which it -has been employed. When it is bestowed wisely on the good of the -community, it deserveth all praise; if devoted wholly to filling -a private purse, without regard to the means, so long as nothing -evil is disclosed, then it deserveth no praise for the result, -but rather suspicion as to the method of bringing it about. These -people in their business will not scruple to bring poverty to -thousands, and for giving a penny to one of these thousands they -will be accounted charitable. They will give a scholar some pretty -exhibition, in order to seem religious, and under a slender veil of -counterfeit liberality will hide the spoil of ransacked poverty. -And though they do not profess to be impoverishing people of set -purpose, yet their kind of dealing doth pierce as it passeth. - -But of these kind of folks I intend not to speak. My purpose is to -employ my pains upon such as are gentlemen indeed. Yet it is worth -that gives name and note to nobility; it is virtue that must endow -it, or vice will undo it. As I wish well to this class, so I wish -their education to be good, and if it were possible, even better -than that of ordinary people. But that cannot be, for the common -training, if it be well appointed, is the best and fittest for -them, especially as they may have it in full, while those of meaner -rank have to be content with it incomplete. - - -What makes a Gentleman. - -Before I enter upon the training of gentlemen and show what is -specially suitable for them, I will examine those points which -are best got by good education, and being once got do adorn them -most, which two considerations are not foreign to my purpose. I -must first ask what it is to be a gentleman or a nobleman, and what -qualities these terms assume to be present in the persons of those -to whom they are applied, and afterwards, what are the causes and -uses of gentility, and the reasons why it is so highly thought of. - -But ere I begin to deal with any of these points, once for all I -must recommend to those of gentle birth exercise of the body, and -chiefly such kinds as besides benefiting their health shall best -serve their calling and place in their country. Just as those -qualities which I have set forth for the general training, being -most easily compassed in their perfection by them, may very well -beseem a gentlemanly mind, so may the physical exercises without -exception be found useful, either to make a healthy body, seeing -that our constitution is all the same, or to prepare them for such -occupations as belong to their position. Is it not for a gentleman -to follow the chase and to hunt? Doth their place reprove them if -they have skill to dance? Is skill in sitting a horse no honour -at home, no help abroad? Is the use of a weapon suitable to their -calling any blemish to them? Indeed those great exercises are most -proper to such persons and are not for those of meaner rank. - -What is it then to be a nobleman or a gentleman? The people of this -country are either gentlemen or of the commonalty. The latter is -divided into those who are engaged in trade, and those who work -with their hands. Their distinction is by wealth, for some of them, -who have enough and more, are called rich men, some who have no -more than enough, poor men, and some who have less than enough, -beggars. There are also three ranks in gentility, the gentlemen, -who are the cream of the common people, the noblemen, who are the -flower of gentility, and the prince, who is the primate and pearl -of nobility. Their difference is in authority, the prince having -most, the nobleman coming next, and the gentlemen under both. To -be virtuous or vicious, to be rich or poor, are no peculiar badge -of either kind; a gentleman or a common man may alike be virtuous -or vicious, rich or poor, with land or without it. But as the -gentleman in any position must have the power of exercising his -lawful authority there are some virtues that seem to belong to him -specially, such as wisdom in policy, valour in execution, justice -in forming decisions, modesty in demeanour. Whether gentility come -by descent or desert makes no difference; he that giveth fame to -his family first, or he that deserveth such honour, or he that adds -to his heritage by noble means, is the man whom I mean. He that -continueth what he received through descent from his ancestry, by -desert in his own person, hath much to thank God for, and doth -well deserve double honour among men, as bearing the true coat of -arms of the best nobility, when desert for virtue is quartered -with descent in blood, seeing that ancient lineage and inheritance -of nobility are in such credit among us, and always have been. -As gentility argueth a courteous, civil, well-disposed, sociable -constitution of mind in a superior degree, so doth nobility imply -all these and much more, in a higher rank with greater authority. -And do not these distinctive qualities deserve help by good and -virtuous education? - - -Learning useful to Noblemen. - -Excellent wisdom, which is the means of advancing grave and politic -counsellors, is but a single cause of preferment; likewise valour, -which is the means of making a noble and gallant captain, is but a -single cause of advancement; but where these two qualities, wisdom -and courage, are combined in the same man, the merit is doubled. -The means of preferment which depend upon learning are either -martial, for war and defence in relation to foreign countries, or -political, for peace and tranquillity at home. The warrior seems to -depend most on his personal courage and experience, which without -any learning or reading at all, have often brought forth excellent -leaders, but with those helps in addition produce most rare and -famous generals. Those who use the pen most in taking part in the -direction of public government, or in filling the necessary offices -in the administrative or judicial service of the State, for the -common peace and quietness, without profession of further learning, -though they have their chief instrument of credit from books, are -not debtors to book-knowledge only, because industry, experience, -and discretion have much to do with their success. It is those who -depend wholly upon learning that I am most concerned with, when I -ask how gentlemen should be trained to have them learned. - -The highest position to which learned valour doth give advancement, -is that of a wise counsellor, the fruit of whose learning -is policy, not in the limited sense where it is opposed to -straightforwardness, but in the philosophical sense, as meaning -the general skill to judge things rightly, to see them in their -due proportions, to adapt them to any given circumstances, with as -little disturbance as possible to existing arrangements, whether it -be in matters religious or secular, public or private, professional -or industrial. Such a man is, in the sphere of religion, a _divine_ -who is able to judge soundly of the general principles and -applications of divinity; in the sphere of government, a _lawyer_ -who makes the laws in the first instance, and knows best how to -have them kept; in short he is the man, whether he be concerned -with ecclesiastical or temporal affairs, and whatever his rank or -his profession may be, who is most sound and able, and sufficient -in all points. And though the specialist may know more than he in -any particular matter which he has not leisure to get up thoroughly -himself, yet he will be able to make such skilful and methodical -enquiries of the special student that he will probe his knowledge -to the bottom, and then handle the material he gains to better -purpose than the other could with all his scholarship. Of all those -that depend upon learning I hold this kind of man worthiest to be -preferred, in divinity a chief among divines, though he do not -preach, in law, the first of lawyers, though he do not plead, and -similarly in all the other departments of public direction. But -wherefore is all this? To show how necessary a thing it is to have -young gentlemen well brought up. For if these causes do make the -man of mean birth noble, what will they do in him whose honour is -augmented with perpetual increase, if he add personal worth to his -nobility in blood? Wherefore the necessity of the training being -evidently so great, I will handle that as well as I can, by way -of general precept, with reference to those whose wisdom is their -weight, learning their line, justice their balance, honour their -armour, and all the different virtues their greatest ornaments in -the eyes of all men. - - -Course of Study for a Gentleman. - -As I have already said, I know no better training for the gentleman -than that which is provided under proper conditions for the -ordinary man; but while the latter learns first for necessity, -and afterwards for advancement, the greater personage ought to -study for his credit and honour as well. For which be gentlemanly -accomplishments, if these be not--to read, to write, to draw, to -sing, to play, to have language and learning, health and activity, -nay, even to profess Divinity, Law, Medicine, or any other worthy -occupation? These things a gentleman hath most leisure to acquire, -and not being too much under the spur of necessity he can practise -them with uprightness. These so-called “liberal” professions are -too commonly now in the hands of meaner men, who make a trade -of their high calling, and only seek to enrich themselves. Doth -Divinity teach to scrape, or Law to scratch, or any other kind of -learning to which the epithet “liberal” is applied? The practice -of these callings crieth for help to ransom it from the pressure -of selfish needs to which it hath fallen a prey, owing to the -indifference of the nobility, who think anything far more seemly to -bestow their time and wealth upon than the learned professions. But -if young gentlemen of parts would be pleased to be so well affected -toward their country as to shoulder out mercenary professional -men by themselves taking their places, how fortunate it would -be for the country, and for the young gentlemen as well! Enough -might be spared for such employment without unduly lessening the -numbers that fill the court and carry on military and judicial -functions only too abundantly. If the warlike gentlemen betook -themselves to arms and paid more attention to exercise, and if the -more peacefully-inclined took their books and fell to learning, -recalling by diligence those faculties which they have for so long -allowed to run waste, should not the change be welcomed? This were -better than vain foppery and travelling about. - - -Foreign Travel. - -What is this travelling? I do not ask in regard to merchants, -whom necessity obliges to travel and to tarry long from home -for the sake of their own trade and often of our benefit, nor -in regard to soldiers, who when there is peace at home must go -abroad to learn in foreign wars how to defend their country when -it is necessary. Nor do I refer to such travellers as Solon, or -Pythagoras, or Plato, who sought knowledge where it was, in order -to bring it where it was not. We have no need to travel in search -of learning as they did. We have at this day, thanks to printing, -as much of that as any country needs to have,--nay, as much as -the ancient world ever possessed, if we would use it aright. And -young gentlemen, if they made the best use of their wealth, might -procure and maintain such excellent masters and companions and -libraries, that they might acquire all the best learning far better -by studying quietly at home than by stirring about, if the desire -for knowledge were the cause of their travelling. And this excuse -is made even by people of meaner rank, who love to look abroad for -instruction that they could get quite well at home from competent -persons who never crossed the seas. If there be defects in our own -country, they can be remedied out of our own resources by giving -good heed to the matter, without the need of borrowing from other -lands. What, then, is travel, interrupting education as it does, -and raising the question whether young gentlemen in choosing it -are benefiting their country and themselves? To travel is to see -countries abroad, to mark their singularities, to learn their -languages, and to return thence with an equipment of wisdom that -will serve the needs of one’s own country. - -There may be some who gain all these advantages from travel; but -for one whose natural excellence and virtue will turn such a -hazardous experience to profit, there are many to whom it will -prove pernicious, owing to their impetuous temper and their command -of money beyond the discretion of their years. And while these are -engaged in travel, what might they have been acquiring at home? -Sounder learning, the same study of language, and, above all, the -love of their native land, which groweth by familiarity, but is -mightily impaired by absence and an acquired fancy for foreign -customs. - -What is the natural end of being born in a particular country? To -serve one’s fatherland. With foreign fashions? They will not fit. -For every country has its own appropriate laws and arrangements, -and its special circumstances can be understood only by those -who study its constitution carefully on the spot. What is quite -suitable and excellent for other nations may not bear transplanting -here; it may not fit in with the habits of our people, or at least -the change might require so much effort that it would not be worth -the cost. I do not deny that travel is good, if it hits on the -right person; though I think the same labour, with equally good -intentions, could be spent with better results at home. He that -roameth abroad hath no such line to lead him as he that tarrieth at -home, unless his understanding, years and experience offer better -security than is the case with those of whom I am now speaking. -Foreign things fit us not; or, if they fit our backs, at least -they do not fit our brains, unless there be something amiss there. -If we wish to learn from other countries, it is better to summon -a foreign master to us than to go abroad as foreign scholars -ourselves. - -Our ladies at home can acquire all the accomplishments of these -travelled gentlemen without stirring abroad, for it is not what -one has seen that is of value, but the languages and learning that -are brought back, and these are to be found at home. Our lady -mistress, whom I must needs remember when excellence is being -spoken of, a woman, a gentlewoman, a lady, a princess, in the midst -of many other affairs of business, in spite of her sex and sundry -impediments to a free mind such as learning requireth, can do -all these things to the wonder of all hearers, which I say young -gentlemen can learn better at home, as Her Majesty did. It may be -said that Her Majesty is not to be used as a precedent, seeing -she is of a princely courage that would not be overthrown by any -difficulty in learning what might advance her person beyond all -praise, and help her position beyond expectation. But yet it may -be said, why may not young gentlemen, who can allege no obstacle, -obtain with more liberty what Her Highness got with so little? It -is having as much money as they like that eggs them on to wander. -If they went abroad as ambassadors to acquire experience through -dealing with great affairs, or if they were well known as learned -men to whom important information would everywhere naturally be -offered, or if they even went in the train of the former, or under -the tuition of the latter, so that authority might secure benefits -for them and preserve them from harm, I would not disapprove of -it, as they might then learn to follow in the footsteps of their -leaders. But this is a very different matter from the pursuit of -those special ends that could be better attained at home. For good, -simple, well-meaning young gentlemen, strong in purse and weak in -years, to travel at a venture in places where there is danger to -health, to life, to conduct, far from the chances of succour and -rescue--the thought is so repugnant to me that I know not what to -say. - - -Gentlemen should take up the Professions. - -I do wish then that well-disposed young gentlemen would be pleased -to betake themselves betimes to some kind of learning that is -indeed liberal, seeing that their circumstances protect them -from interested motives, and enable them to serve their country -honourably. Instead of all becoming lawyers or court officials, -why do not some of them choose to be divines, or physicians, or -to take up some other learned profession? Any gentleman in our -country who is now so qualified is esteemed and honoured above all -others of his calling, and indeed gets some honour even if he is -not particularly well qualified. Are not these professions to be -reverenced for their subject-matter and for their influence? And -are they not therefore proper for the nobility? I do not hold the -conduct of barbarous invasions to be the true field of activity -for the nobility; they should be for the most part peaceful, -and warlike only for defence if the country be assailed, or for -attack if previous wrongs are to be avenged. Nor do I take wealth -to be any worthy cause of honour to the owner, unless it be both -got by laudable means and employed in commendable ways, nor any -quality or gift that adorns the body, unless it serves a good -purpose, nor any endowment of the mind which is not exercised in -conformity with reason and wisdom. Such gifts are demanded in the -callings I have named as worthy of the nobility. Who dare think -lightly of divinity in itself? There is more hesitation now about -adopting it as a profession than formerly, when the emoluments -were greater, and the dignity more generally recognised, but the -position grows better again, and a good gentleman may find in it -the honour which he seeks. As for medicine, if gentlemen will not -study and practise it, they must pay the penalty of ignorance, as -they will suffer in their own bodies as well as in their pockets by -leaving the profession to those of meaner rank, whose attendance -is often rather flattering and fawning than intelligent services. -This caution, however, young gentlemen must bear in mind, that -it were a great deal better they had no learning at all and knew -their own ignorance, than a mere smattering, incomplete of its -kind, and insecurely held in their minds. For their acknowledged -ignorance harms only themselves, as others more skilful may -supply their places, but unripe learning puffeth them up, and -their rank encourages them to be superficial, either in not -digesting what they have read, or in not reading sufficiently, or -in doing desultory work, or presuming on their station to defend -ill-considered notions. To conclude, I wish young gentlemen to be -better than ordinary men in the best kind of learning, as they have -ampler opportunities of acquiring it and turning it to good account -for the benefit of their country and their own honour. - - -The Training of a Prince. - -As a child, the greatest prince may be, like other children, in -soul either fine or gross, in body either strong or weak, in form -either well-developed or ill, so that in regard to the time for -beginning to learn and the proper course of study, he is no less -subject to the general laws already laid down than his subjects -are. We must take him as God sends him, for we cannot choose as we -would wish, just as he must make the best of his people, though -his people be not the best. When the young prince’s elementary -education is past, and there is more scope for reading, care must -be taken to choose such matter as may recommend humility as well -as afford adequate knowledge, so that competence in affairs may be -supported by the gift of courteous persuasion. Intercourse with -foreign ambassadors, and conference with his own counsellors, -require both a knowledge of tongues and a knowledge of the matters -that come under discussion. And as he governeth his State by -means of his two arms, the ecclesiastical, which preserves and -purifies religion, the main support of voluntary obedience, and -the political, which by maintaining the civil government doth keep -order and diffuse well-being, if he lack knowledge to use his arms -aright, is he not more than lame? And is not his best help to be -found in learning? Martial skill is needful, but only for defence, -because a stirring prince, always ready to make aggression, is a -plague to his people and a punishment to himself, and even when -he seems to gain most, is only getting what he or his descendants -must some day lose again with perhaps something in addition. -But religious knowledge is far more important, being specially -necessary for a prince, inasmuch as he hath none but God to fear. -Almighty God be thanked who hath at this day lent us a Princess -who indeed feareth Him, and who therefore, deserving to be loved, -desires not to be feared by us. I pray God long to preserve her -whose good education doth teach us what education can do, and -I have good cause to rejoice that this work of mine concerning -education is given forth in her time. - - -Boarding Schools. - -I turn to the question whether it is better for a child to board -with his master or elsewhere, or to come from home daily to school. -If the place where the parents dwell be near the school, or only -so far off that the very walk may be for the boy’s health, and if -the parent himself be careful and wise to be as good a furtherer -in the training of his own child as he is a father to its being, -then certainly the parent’s home is much better, if for nothing -else, yet because the parent can more easily at all times look -after the interests of his own, having only one or a few, than the -schoolmaster can after his ordinary duties are over, especially as -he will have to divide his attention among many. Further, all the -considerations which persuade people rather to have their children -taught at home than along with others outside, especially with -regard to their manners and behaviour, form arguments for their at -least _boarding_ at home, if the parents will take their position -seriously, because the parent can both see to the upbringing of the -child outside school and interest himself in the work done by the -child _in_ school. For undoubtedly the masters are wearied with -working all day, so that the individual help they can give in their -homes in the evening can be but little, without at once tiring the -master unduly and dulling the child, if he is always poring over -his books. There must be times for recreation if anything is to be -well done continuously. Can anyone help thinking that it is a great -deal more than enough for the master to teach, and the scholar -to learn, daily from 6 in the morning till 11, and from 1 in the -afternoon till wellnigh 6 at night, if the time is to be really -well applied--nay, even if the hours were a great deal fewer? And -may not the rest of the day be reasonably spent in some recreation -that offers a pleasant variety to both parties? In the master’s -home I grant children may keep school hours better, and be less -liable to idleness and truancy; the master also may keep them -better under his eye in his general teaching when they are wholly -under his care in place of his own children, may arrange their -hours better according to the subjects they are studying, and may -sooner be able to discover their special talents and inclinations. -There are also certain private considerations that have weight with -parents in sending their children to board away from home, which I -leave to their private thoughts, as I reserve some to my own. If -the master have charge only of the scholars who board with him, -and can himself do all that is necessary for the best education, -and the numbers be moderate enough to allow of considerable -progress, then I know of no more favourable circumstances, if the -size, situation, and convenience of his house, and other necessary -conditions are all suitable. But while he is thinking only of his -boarders’ advancement, some slow-paying parents will be sure to -keep him lean, if he look not well to it, and his fortunes will not -flourish, or at least the risks will cause him continual anxiety. -Parents have a different eye to their children’s comfort when they -are at a boarding-school, and are ready to complain of many things -that are made of no account at home. And if sickness or death -should come, the worst construction is put upon it, as if death -did not know where the parent dwells. And though the master should -have done not only what he was formally bound to do, but even more -than he could have done for his own child, yet all that is nothing. -Wherefore, as parents must think of the objection on their side -to sending out their children to board, so masters on their part -must beware of admitting them to their own injury. Indeed, my own -opinion is that it is quite enough for a master to undertake -the education alone. If parents do not live near enough to the -school, they should board their children elsewhere than with the -master. They are distinct offices, to be a parent and a teacher, -and the difficulties of upbringing are too serious for all the -responsibilities to be thrown into the hands of one alone. - - -School Buildings. - -Of the places of elementary education there is not much to say, -as the masters supply rooms as large as they can, considering the -fees that the parents are willing to pay, and the little people -who attend these schools are not as yet capable of any great -exercise. The Grammar Schools require more attention, because the -years that are, or at least ought to be, spent there are the most -important both for developing the body and for framing the mind -and character. Here the pupils are most subject to the master’s -direction, and provision is made for them not only out of the -parents’ resources, but also from public endowment, so far as the -buildings are concerned. As the elementary schools must be near the -parents’ homes on account of the youth of the scholars, they must -often be in the middle of cities and towns, but I could wish that -the Grammar Schools were planted in the outskirts and suburbs, near -to the fields, where partly by enclosing some private ground for -regular exercises both in the open and under cover, and partly by -utilising the open fields for rambles of wider range, there might -be little or no feeling of restriction in the matter of space. -There should be a good airy schoolroom above for the languages, and -another below for others studies and for continuing and completing -the elementary training, which will not be well enough kept up if -it is left to private practice at home. There must also be suitable -accommodation for the master and his family, even if they be pretty -numerous, and there should be a convenient play-ground adjoining -the school, walled round and having at least a quarter of the space -covered over like a cloister, for the children’s exercise in rainy -weather. All this will require no mean purse, but surely there is -wealth enough in private possession, if there were will enough to -endow public education. Yet we have no great cause to complain in -regard to the number of schools and founders, for already during -the time of Her Majesty’s most fortunate reign there have been -more schools erected than existed before her time in the whole -kingdom. I would rather have fewer and have them better appointed -for the master’s accommodation and for general convenience. A -small amount of help will make most of our rooms serve, and enable -our teachers to give instruction and carry on the exercises under -satisfactory conditions. The places for study and for exercise -ought to adjoin each other, and be capable of holding considerable -numbers, to be determined by the needs of the surrounding district. -The schools that I know are mostly well placed already, or if they -are in the heart of towns, they could be easily exchanged for some -country situation, far from disturbances yet near enough to all -necessary conveniences. It would be a very useful part of a great -and good foundation if it provided for the removal of rooms to -more suitable places, either by exchange or by new purchase, and -I think licence would more readily be granted for this purpose -than to build new schools. I am all the more impelled to recommend -a country situation on account of the inconveniences that I have -myself experienced, both in regard to my own health and that of -my scholars, and the lack of facilities for the exercises on which -I lay so much store. Yet I am by no means the worst off in this -respect, owing to the zeal and generosity shown in the provision -made by the Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors in London, in -whose school I have now served for twenty years, the first and -only headmaster since its foundation. If ye consider what is to -be done in these rooms which I desire, ye shall better judge what -rooms will serve. Two rooms will be sufficient for the language -study and the continuation of the elementary course, an upper -room with proper arrangements for ventilation and the prevention -of too much noise, and another similarly fitted up underneath to -serve for what else is to be done. I could wish that we had fewer -schools and that they were more efficient; it would be well if on -careful consideration of the most convenient centres throughout -the country, many of the existing schools could be put together to -make a few good ones. To conclude this matter, I wish the rooms to -be commodious, for though such studies as reading require small -elbow-room, writing and drawing must not be straitened, nor music -either, and physical exercises especially must have ample scope. -And such rooms, if the numbers are not too large, if the distance -is not too great for the young children, will with some distinction -and separation of places serve conveniently both for the elementary -school and the grammar school, which is so much the better. - - -Best Hours for Study. - -I think it is not good to begin study immediately after rising, or -just after meals, or to continue right up to the time of going to -bed. From 7 to 10 in the forenoon, and from 2 till almost 5 in the -afternoon are the most fitting hours, and quite enough for children -to be learning. The morning hours will serve best for memory work -and what requires mental effort; the afternoon for going over again -the material that has been already acquired. The other times before -meals are for exercise. The hours after meals and before study is -resumed, are to be given to resting the body and refreshing the -mind, without too much movement. To conclude, we must make the best -of those places and hours that are at present appointed, and yet be -prepared to adopt better arrangements, as soon as it shall please -God to send them. And by persuasion some teachers may be able to -bring wise parents to try changes in the direction I have pointed -out. In the meantime some excellent man, having the advantage of a -well-situated house, and being independent of outside help and able -to control his own arrangements, may be prepared to make useful -experiments. - - -Elementary Teacher most Important. - -The Elementary school is left to the lowest and the worst class of -teacher, because good scholars will not abase themselves to it. The -first grounding should be undertaken by the best teacher, and his -reward should be the greatest, because his work demands most energy -and most judgment, and competent men could easily be induced to -enter these lower ranks if they found that sufficient reward were -offered. It is natural enough for ignorant people to make little -of the early training, when they see how little consideration is -paid to it, but men of judgment know how important the foundation -is, not only as regards the matter that is taught, but the manner -of handling the child’s intelligence, which is of great moment. -But to say something concerning the teacher’s reward, which is the -encouragement to good teaching, what is the sense in increasing the -salary as the child grows in learning? Is it to cause the master to -take greater pains, and bring his pupil better forward in view of -the promise of what is to come? Nay, surely that cannot be. Present -payment would be a greater inducement to bring pupils forward than -the hope in promise, for in view of the variety and inconstancy -of parents’ minds, what assurance is there that the child will -continue with the same master? That he who took great pains for -little gain should receive more for less trouble? Besides, if the -reward were good he would hasten to gain more through the supply -of new scholars, who would be attracted by the report of his -diligent and successful work. As things are, the master who gets -the pupils later reaps the benefit of the elementary teacher’s -labour, because the child makes more show with him. Why should this -be so? It is the foundation well and soundly laid that makes all -the upper building secure and lasting. I can only give counsel, -but if the decision lay with me the first pains well taken should -in truth be most liberally recompensed, and the emolument should -diminish, as less pains are needed in going up through the school -course. By this method no master would have reason to complain that -the pupils who come to him have not been sufficiently grounded in -the elementary subjects, which is a constant source of trouble -at present both to teachers and scholars. Indeed too often we -Grammar School masters can hardly make any progress, can scarcely -even tell how to place the raw boys in any particular form with -any hope of steady advance, so rotten is the groundwork of their -preparation. If the higher master has to repair this weakness, -after the boy comes under his charge, he certainly deserves -triple salary, both for his own making and for mending what the -elementary teacher either marred through ignorance, or failed to -make through undue haste, which, in my opinion, is the commonest -and worst kind of marring. As for the salaries of the masters that -succeed the elementary, I hold that the increasing numbers that -they can undertake will make up for the larger amount to be given -to the elementary teacher, however much that may be. For the first -master can deal only with a few, the next with more, and so on, -ascending as the scholars grow in reason and discretion. To deal -with the unequal advancement of children, it were good that they -were promoted in numbers together, and that they were admitted into -the schools only at four periods in the year, so that they might be -properly classified, and not hurled hand over head into one form -without discrimination, as is now too often the case. There should -be a definite plan of promotion agreed upon among the teachers, -so that one can say, “This child I have taught, and such and such -can he do,” and the other knoweth what the child should have -been taught, and what he may be supposed to know. The elementary -teacher, then, should be competent for his task, and when he is, he -should be sufficiently well provided for by the parents. Adequate -reward would make very able men incline to take it up, and though -the supply may as yet be insufficient, enough could soon be trained -if inducement were offered. - - -The Grammar School Teacher. - -My chief concern must be with the master of the Grammar School, who -cannot be too carefully selected, for he has to deal with those -years which determine the success of all the future course, as -during this period both body and mind are most restless and most in -need of regulation. He has to complete the learning gained in the -elementary studies, and he offers hope or despair of perfection to -the University tutor in the case of their proceeding further. - -For this class of teacher also I must ask for sufficient -maintenance in consideration of their competence and faithful -work. For it is a great discouragement to an able man to take -diligent pains when he finds his whole day’s work insufficient to -furnish him with the necessary provision. Experience hath taught -me that where the master’s salary is made to rise and fall with -the numbers of his pupils, he will exert himself most, and the -children will profit most, provided he have no more than he can -manage himself without hazarding his own credit and the pupils’ -welfare by trusting to independent assistants. The proper use of -assistants is not as we now see it in schools, where ushers are -their own masters, but to help the headmaster in the easier part -of his duties. If the master’s salary is fixed by agreement at a -definite sum, then he should not be given too large numbers to -deal with, nor should he be obliged to eke out his income in other -ways outside his profession. It is unreasonable to demand a man’s -whole time, and yet make such scant payment that he has to look -elsewhere, outside the school, to add to it. Among many causes -that make our schools inefficient, I know none so serious as the -weakness of the profession owing to the bareness of the reward. The -good that cometh by schools is infinite; the qualities required -in the teacher are many and great; the charges which his friends -have been at in his bringing up are heavy; yet he has but little -to hope for in the way of preferment. Our calling creeps low, and -has pain for a companion, always thrust to the wall, though always -formally admitted to be worthy. Our comfort must be in the general -conclusion that those are good things which want no praising, -though they go a-cold for lack of cherishing. - -But ye will perhaps say--what shall this man be able to perform -whom you are so anxious to have suitably maintained, and to whose -charge the youth of our country is to be committed? Surely that -charge is great, and if he is to discharge it well, he must be well -qualified for it, and ought to be very well requited for doing it -so well. Besides his manner and behaviour, which must be beyond -cavil, and his skill in exercising the body, he must be able to -teach the three learned tongues, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, if -these are required. And in these a mediocrity of knowledge is not -enough, for he who means to plant even a little well, must himself -far exceed mediocrity. He must be able to understand his author, -to correct misprints, the mistakes of unskilful dictionaries, -and the foolish comments of superficial writers on the matter he -is teaching, and he must be so well furnished before he begins -to teach that he can express himself readily, and not have to -be learning as he goes along, distracting his scholars by his -hesitations. Time and experience will do much to polish the manner -of teaching, but there must be knowledge of the matter from the -first. He must be acquainted with all the best grammars, so that -he can always add notes by the way, though not of course to the -burdening of the children’s memory. Besides these and other points -of learning, he must have determination to take pains, perseverance -to continue in his work without shrinking, discretion to judge -of circumstances, cheerfulness to delight in the success of his -labour, sympathy to encourage a promising youth, hopefulness to -think every child an Alexander, and courteous lowliness in his -opinion of himself. For even the smallest thing in learning will be -well done only by him who knows most, and by reason of his store of -knowledge is able to perform his task with pleasure and ease. These -qualities deserve much, and are not often found in our schools, -because the rewards of labour are so insufficient, but they would -soon be had if the maintenance were adequate. - - -The Training of Teachers. - -If the rewards of the teaching profession were sufficient to -attract good students, the way to make them well fitted to deserve -these rewards would be to arrange for their being trained at the -Universities. I touch upon this matter with some hesitation, for -it would involve some changes that might not be easily compassed, -but if the very name of change is to be avoided, no improvements -could ever take place, and though my proposals may raise -objections at first, I believe that the more they are considered -the more they will commend themselves, as well to the University -authorities as to all others concerned. By the means I am about -to suggest, not only schoolmasters, but all other members of -the learned professions, would be better fitted on leaving the -University to perform what is expected of them in the service of -the commonwealth. I would have it understood that I have no great -fault to find with the present constitution of the Universities, -but granting that things are well done there already, there is -no discourtesy in wishing that they might be managed a good deal -better. - - -University Reform. - -My idea rests on four points; - - 1st. What if the Colleges were divided into faculties according - to the professions for which they prepare? - - 2nd. What if students of similar age, who were studying for the - same profession, were all bestowed in one house? - - 3d. What if the College livings were made more valuable by - combination, and the Colleges strengthened by being lessened in - number? - - 4th. What if in every house there were valuable fellowships - for learned scholars who would remain their whole lives in the - position? - -Would not the country benefit by these measures? And hath not the -State authority to carry them out, seeing that it hath already -given its sanction to the making of foundations, with a reservation -of the right to alter them if sufficient cause should be shown? Is -it not as admissible to discuss the improvement of the Universities -by planting sound learning, as to decide upon taking away lands -from colleges, and boarding out the students, because they cannot -agree among themselves about the use of the endowments? Would there -be any better means of giving a new and fairer aspect to the work -of the Universities, and of bringing them into greater favour with -the public? In the first erection of schools and colleges, private -zeal inflamed good founders; in altering these for the better, the -State, for considerations of public interest, may increase the -advantage, without departing from the intention of the founders, -who would have gladly welcomed any improvement. It is for each age -under the spur of necessity to point out what is best for its own -circumstances, and the State must exercise its wisdom and policy -in bringing this about. I will now take up more fully the four -points I have named, in the hope of offering reasons that may prove -convincing. - - -A College for Languages. - -Would it not be convenient and profitable if there were one college -where nothing was professed but languages, to be thoroughly -acquired as a means to further study within the university, and -to public service outside? That being the professed end, and -nothing else being dealt with there, would not a high standard -of sufficiency be the better reached through general agreement? -And would not daily conference and continuous application in the -same subject be likely to secure efficiency? As it is now, when -everyone deals confessedly with everything, no one can say with -certainty, “Thus much can such a one do in this particular thing,” -but he either speaks by conjecture that may often deceive even the -speaker, or else out of courtesy which as often beguiles those -who hear and believe. For where all exercises, conferences, and -conversations, both public and private, are on the same subject, -because the soil bringeth forth no other stuff, there must needs -follow great perfection. When the tongues are thus separated from -other learning, it will soon appear what a difference there is -between him who can only speak and him who can do more. No subject -can be more necessary than languages in university training. For -the tongues being the receptacles of matter, without a perfect -understanding of them what hope is there of understanding -matter? And seeing words are the names of things, applied and -given according to their properties, how can things be properly -understood by us, who make use of words to know them by, unless the -force of speech is thoroughly understood? I do see in writers and -hear in speakers great defects in the mistaking of meanings, and -evident errors through insufficiency in the study of language. Such -study should be well advanced by the Grammar School, but it needs -to be brought to greater perfection than it can be there. And it -may be that some, wishing only a general culture, will be content -to rest in this literary faculty, taking delight in the writings of -the poets and historians, and not passing on to any professional -study. - - -A College for Mathematics. - -I would have another college devoted to the Mathematical Sciences, -though I shall be opposed by some of good intelligence, who not -knowing the force of these faculties because they considered them -unworthy of study, as not leading to preferment, are accustomed to -mock at mathematical heads. Such studies require concentration, and -demand a type of mind that does not seek to make public display -until after mature contemplation in solitude. It is this silent -meditation on the part of the true students, or the appearance -of it in those that are but counterfeits, that layeth them open -to the mockery of some, who should rather forbear if they will -remember in what high esteem those sciences were held by Socrates, -and by Plato, who forbad anyone to enter his Academy that was -ignorant of Geometry. For the men who profess these sciences and -bring them into disrepute are either quite ignorant and maintain -their credit by the use of certain terms and technical expressions -without ever getting at the kernel, or they are such as having some -knowledge occupy themselves with the trivial and sophistical and -illusive parts of the subject, rather than with its true uses in -the advancement of the arts. But in spite of the contempt which is -thus often brought on the Mathematical Sciences, I will venture to -give my opinion in defence of their value. In time all learning may -be brought into one tongue, and that naturally understood by all, -so that schooling for tongues may prove needless, just as once they -were not needed; but it can never fall out that arts and sciences -in their essential nature shall be anything but most necessary for -every commonwealth that is not utterly barbarous. We attribute too -much to tongues, in paying more heed to them than we do to matter, -and esteem it more honourable to speak finely than to reason -wisely. After all, words are praised only for the time, but wisdom -wins in the end. - -The Mathematical Sciences show themselves in many professions and -trades which do not bear the titles of learning, whereby it is -well seen that they are really profitable; they do not make much -outward show, but our daily life benefits greatly by them. It is no -just objection to ask, “What should merchants, carpenters, masons, -shipmasters, mariners, surveyors, architects, and other such do -with learning? Do they not serve the country’s needs well enough -without it?” Though they may do well without it, might they not -do better with it? The speaking of Latin is no necessary proof of -deeper learning, but Mathematics are the first rudiments for young -children, and the sure means of direction for all skilled workmen, -who without such knowledge can only go by rote, but with it might -reach genuine skill. The sciences that we term ‘mathematical’ from -their very nature always achieve something good, intelligible -even to the unlearned, by number, figure, sound, or motion. In -the manner of their teaching also they plant in the mind of the -learner a habit of resisting the influence of bare probabilities, -of refusing to believe in light conjectures, of being moved only -by infallible demonstrations. Mathematics had its place before the -tongues were taught, which though they are now necessary helps, -because we use foreign languages for the conveyance of knowledge, -yet push us one degree further off from knowledge. - - -A College for Philosophy. - -The third college should be devoted to Philosophy in all its -three kinds, each of which forms a preparation for a particular -profession--Natural Philosophy for Medicine, Political Philosophy -for Law, and Moral Philosophy for Divinity. But in this -distribution some will ask, “Where do Logic and Rhetoric come -in?” I would ask in reply, “What is the place of Grammar?” It is -the preparative to language. In the same way, Logic on the side -of demonstration takes the part of Grammar for the Mathematical -Sciences and Natural Philosophy, and in its consideration of -probabilities fills the same place for Moral and Political -Philosophy. Rhetoric helps the writer to attain purity of style -without emotion, and the speaker to use persuasion with an appeal -to the feelings, though sometimes, indeed, the latter deals only -in argument, while the former may wax hot over his writing. As to -the proper order of these studies, we are accustomed to set young -students to Moral and Political Philosophy first, but we should -rather follow Aristotle in placing Natural Philosophy next to the -Mathematical Sciences, because it is more intelligible for young -heads on account of its deductive reasoning, whereas Moral and -Political Philosophy, being subject to particular circumstances in -life, should be reserved for riper years. - - -Professional Colleges. - -The three professions above mentioned--Medicine, Law, and -Divinity--should each be endowed with its particular College and -livings, instead of having its students scattered. To have the -physician thus learned is not too much to ask, considering that his -proficiency depends on his knowledge, and with him ignorance is -simply butchery. As for Law, if the whole study were reduced into -one body, would our country have any cause to complain? Would she -not rather have great reason to be very glad? We have now three -several professions in Law, as if we were a three-headed State, -one English and French, another Roman Imperial, and the third -Roman Ecclesiastical, whereas English alone were simply best. The -distraction of temporal, civil, and canon law is in many ways very -injurious to our country. There can be no question that it is good -for the divine to have time to study the sciences that are the -handmaids to his profession. - - -General Study for Professional Men. - -But is it advisable that those wishing to enter the professions -should have to go through all the colleges that offer a general -preparatory training,--the colleges for Languages, Mathematics, -and Philosophy? No one could doubt this, except such as are ready -to think themselves ripe, while they are still raw in the opinion -of other men. He that will be perfect in his profession ought at -least to have a contemplative knowledge of all that goes before. -It will be for the gain of the community that while the student’s -youth is wedded to honest and learned meditation, the heat of that -stirring age is cooled, which might set all on fire to the public -harm; ripe judgment is gained, and all ambitious passions are made -subject to self-control. Till young men who are coming forward to -the professions are made to tarry longer and study more soundly, -learning shall have no credit, and our country cannot but suffer. -It may be asked: “What hath a divine to do with Mathematics?” Well, -was not Moses trained in all the learning of the Egyptians? How can -the divine presume to judge and condemn sciences of which he knows -nothing but the name? And has not the lawyer to deal with many -questions that require a knowledge of the sciences? The physician -more than all should see that his professional skill is supported -by a wide general study. - - -A Training College for Teachers. - -There will be some difficulty in winning a college for those who -will afterwards pass to teach in schools. There is no specialising -for any profession till the student leaves the College of -Philosophy, from which he will go to Medicine, Law, or Divinity. -This is the time also when the intending schoolmaster should begin -his special training. In him there is as much learning necessary -as, with all deference to their subjects, is required by any of -the other three professions, especially if it be considered how -much the teacher hath to do in preparing scholars for all other -careers. Why should not these men have this competence in learning, -to be chosen for the common service? Are children and schools so -small an element in our commonwealth? Is the framing of young minds -and the training of their bodies a matter of so little skill? Are -schoolmasters in this realm so few that they need not be taken -account of? Whoever will not allow of this careful provision for -such a seminary of teachers is most unworthy either to have had -a good master himself, or to have a good one hereafter for his -children. Why should not teachers be well provided for, so that -they can continue their whole life in the school, as divines, -lawyers, and physicians do in their several professions? If this -were the case, judgment, knowledge, and discretion would grow in -them as they get older, whereas now the school, being used but -for a shift, from which they will afterwards pass to some other -profession, though it may send out competent men to other careers, -remains itself far too bare of talent, considering the importance -of the work. I consider therefore that in our universities there -should be a special college for the training of teachers, inasmuch -as they are the instruments to make or mar the growing generation -of the country, and because the material of their studies is -comparable to that of the greatest professions, in respect of -language, judgment, skill in teaching, variety of learning, wherein -the forming of the mind and the exercising of the body require -the most careful consideration, to say nothing of the dignity of -character which should be expected from them. - - -Use of the Seven Colleges. - -Surely there is nothing unreasonable in proposing that these seven -colleges should be set up, and should have the names of the things -they profess--Languages, Mathematics, Philosophy, Education, -Medicine, Law, and Divinity. If it had been so arranged from the -beginning, public opinion would now have commended the policy and -wisdom of those that originated it. And can we not bring about -still what, if it had been done at first, would have met with -such honour, and will deserve everlasting memory, at whatever -time it may be done? Greater changes have been both desired and -accomplished in our time. All that is needful for doing it well is -ready to our hand: the material is there; the lands have neither to -be begged nor purchased; they have already been acquired and given, -and can easily be brought into order, especially as this is a time -of reform. As for putting students of similar age and studies into -the same house, it is desirable on many grounds, but particularly -because it encourages emulation among those who are best fitted to -compete with each other. - - -Uniting of Colleges. - -In saying that colleges should be combined, so as to permit the -bettering of students’ livings, I shall have the support at least -of those who are now willing to change their college for a fatter -living, or even to abandon the university altogether for their own -advantage. At present college livings are certainly too lean, and -force good wits to fly before they are well feathered. A better -maintenance would give more time and opportunity for study, and -thus secure a higher standard of learning, greater ripeness of -judgment, and more solidity of character. Students would be made -more independent, and would not have to come under obligations -by accepting support from other quarters. The restriction in the -number of livings would be no objection, as it would shut out -those less qualified to profit by them, and thus raise the level -of attainment. It were better for the country to have a few well -trained and sufficiently provided for, than an unlearned multitude. -Moreover, it is not consonant with the liberal nature of learning -either that it should be unnecessarily dependent on charity, or -that it should in this way come under the control of those who -may act rather from personal considerations than regard to the -common welfare. Where learning grows up by props it loses its -true character; it is best when the stem can itself bear up the -branches. The outward conditions for the furtherance of learning -are the selection of scholars on grounds of ability and promise, -and sufficient time and maintenance for their due preparation; -the qualities required for the student himself are diligence and -discretion to profit fully by his opportunities. - - -University Readers. - -The last reform which I am ready to contend for is that there -should be University readers appointed, of mature years, accredited -learning and secure position, who should direct and control the -studies of the students. Private study alone can never be compared -with the opportunity of working under one who has read and digested -all the best books in the subject, whose judgment has been formed -by his wide reading, and whose experience and intercourse with many -intellects has given him skill and address. The student who has not -this advantage will gain less with greater pains, since he could -in one lecture have the benefit of his reader’s universal study, -put in such a form that he can use it at once. Such readers would -save their cost in books alone, which would not then be so needful -to the student. They could be appointed with little or no cost to -the universities, and if they carried on their work in convenient -houses of their own, they would undoubtedly draw as many students -to their private establishments as there are now in the public -colleges. - - -Evils of Overpressure. - -Hasty pressing onward is the greatest enemy that anything can -have, whose best is to ripen at leisure. I have appointed in my -elementary teaching--Reading, Writing, Drawing, Singing, Playing. -Now if these are imperfectly acquired when the child is sent to the -Grammar School, what an error is committed! How many small infants -have we sent to Grammar who can scarcely read, and how many to -learn Latin who never wrote a letter! Even though some youngster -could do much better than all his companions, it were no harm for -him to be captain a good while in his elementary school, rather -than to be a common soldier in a school where all are captains. -Many and serious are the evils that are caused by such hasting, -and if deploring them could amend them, I would lament that they -are so numerous and so hard to remedy. How common is the lack of -proper grounding in children, and how great is the foolishness of -their friends in regard to it! This is the chief cause that at -once makes children loth to learn, and schoolmasters seem harsh in -their teaching. For as the master hastens on to the natural aim of -his profession, and the scholar draws back, being unable to bear -the burden, there rises in the master an irritation which can only -be controlled by the wisdom and patience that are the fruits of -experience. And as in the teacher irritation breeds heat, so in the -scholar weakness breeds fear, and so much the more if he finds his -master somewhat too impatient, wherefore neither the one nor the -other can do much good at all. Whereas if the boy had nothing to -fear, how eager he would be, and what a pleasure the teacher would -take in his aptness to learn! But even if the child’s weakness is -felt both by himself and by his teacher, it is difficult to get the -parent to believe in it, owing to the blindness of his affection, -and he will prefer to seek out some other teacher who will adopt -his views, and undertake the task. Thus change feeds his humour -for the time, though he will afterwards repent his folly, when the -defect proves incurable, and the first master is at last admitted -to have been a true prophet. So necessary a thing is it to prevent -ills in time, and when warning is given not to laugh it to scorn -nor blame the watchman. - -If the imperfections which come more from haste than from ignorance -did not go beyond the elementary school, the harm done might -be redressed, but as one billow driveth on another, so haste, -beginning there, makes the other successions in learning move on at -too headlong a pace. Is it only to the Grammar School that children -are sent too early? Are there none sent to the University who, when -they come out of it years afterwards, might with advantage return -to the Grammar School again? Do not some of good intelligence find -in the course of their study the evil effects of too great haste at -the beginning, and wish too late that they had been better advised? -And even if they make up what they have missed, do they not find it -true that a process which may be pleasant enough to young boys is -full of pain for older people? The Universities can best judge of -the weaknesses of our Grammar Schools when they find the defects of -those youths whom they receive from us, though they were not sent -by us. We see these defects ourselves, but we cannot remedy them, -for the partiality of parents over-rules all reason, and when the -pupil is removed all conference with the teacher is cut off. In -some places the multitude of schools mars the whole market, giving -too great opportunity for change, generally for the worse, so that -by degrees the elementary scholar enfeebles the Grammar School boy, -and he in turn transporteth his weakness from his schoolmaster to -his university tutor. So important is it to avoid haste at the -first, lest it cause injury to the last. - -Are not youths often sent into the world, who may receive -consideration on account of their degrees, but deserve none for -their learning? If men did not judge sensibly that young shoots -must be green, however good an appearance they may make, youth -might deceive them with its titles, as it deceives itself with -conceit. The causes of haste are--impatience, which can abide -no tarrying when a restless conceit is overladen; the desire of -liberty, to live as he pleases, because he pleases not to live -as he should; arrogance, making him wish to appear a person of -importance; hope of preferment, urging him to desire dignities -before the ability to support them. In the meanwhile the common -welfare is sacrificed to personal advantage, and even that -advantage is in appearance and not in reality. The canker that -consumeth all, and causeth all this evil, is haste, an ill-advised, -rash, and headstrong counsellor, that is most pernicious when there -is either some appearance of ripeness in the child, or some unwise -encouragement from a teacher who is without true discernment. It is -time that perfecteth all; it is the mother of truth, the touchstone -of ripeness, the enemy of error, the true support and help of man. - - -Limit of Elementary Course. - -When the child can read so readily and confidently that the length -of his lesson gives him no trouble; when he can write so neatly -and so fast that he finds no kind of exercise tedious; when his pen -or pencil gives him only pleasure; when his music, both vocal and -instrumental, is so far forward that a little voluntary practice -may keep it up and even improve it; then the elementary course has -lasted long enough. The child’s ordinary exercises in the Grammar -School will continue his reading and writing and he will always -be drawing of his own accord, because it delighteth his eye, and -busieth not his brain. His music, however, must be encouraged by -the pleasure taken in it by the teacher and his parents, for in -those early years children are musical rather for others’ benefit -than for their own. It is certain that in tarrying long enough -to bring all these things to perfection there is no real loss of -time, especially seeing that these attainments, even if they go -no further, make a pretty adornment to a household if they be -thoroughly acquired. - - -Difficulties in Teaching. - -A great and learned man of our day, Philip Melancthon, thought so -much of the troublesome and toilsome life which we teachers lead -that he wrote an interesting book on the miseries of schoolmasters. -We have to thank him for his good-will; but as there is no kind of -life, be it high or low, that has not its own share of troubles, we -need not be overwhelmed by a sense of our special difficulties. Our -profession is certainly more arduous than most; but, on the other -hand, not many have such opportunities of doing good service. There -is little profit, however, in such comparisons. To what purpose -should I show why the teacher blames one thing, the parent another, -the child nothing but the rod which he is so prone to deserve? So -apt are we to repine at the pain we suffer, without weighing the -offence which deserved it. I will rather proceed to deal with the -remedies for what he calls “miseries,” but I would prefer to term -_inconveniences_, with which the teaching profession has to contend -in our own time. The counsel I offer, though referring specially -to the youngest scholars, may well be carried further and applied -to the oldest and most advanced in any course of learning. The -remedies I take to be two--uniformity of method, which would secure -economy both of time and expense, and the establishment of public -school regulations, made clearly known to all concerned, which -would prevent misunderstandings between teachers and parents or -scholars. - - -Uniformity of Method. - -No one who has either taught, or has been taught himself, can -fail to recognise that there is too much variety in teaching, and -therefore too much bad teaching, for in the midst of many by-paths -there is but one right way. This is proved by the differences of -opinion that men show, due to better or worse training in youth, -to greater or less application to study, to longer or shorter -continuance at their books, to their liking or disliking some -particular kind of learning, and many other similar causes, which -may lead ignorance to vaunt itself with all the authority that -belongs to sound knowledge. The diversity of groundwork which -lies at the root of so much confusion of judgment is a great -hindrance to youth and a discredit to schools, and causes serious -inequalities in the universities. It may happen that a weak teacher -by some accident brings up a strong scholar, and that an abler man -owing to some ordinary hindrance makes little show for his labour. -But if variety had given place to uniformity, even the weakest -teacher might have done very well, if he had the intelligence to -follow the directions put before him. - -This defect has often been deplored by our best teachers, who have -nevertheless shrunk from the task of supplying the remedy. If a -uniform system could be agreed upon, all the youth of this whole -realm will seem to have been brought up in one school, and under -one master, both in regard to the matter and to the manner of -their teaching, while differing in their own invention, which is -individual by nature, though it may be trained by general rules -of art. Such a measure must needs bring profit to the learner by -saving him from the chances of going astray, ease to the teacher by -lightening his labour, honour to the country by providing a store -of good material, and immortal renown to the enlightened sovereign -who should confer so great a benefit. Though agreement in a uniform -method must be enforced by authority, it must be based on some -likeness of ability in teachers in regard to their own specialty, -though they may differ much in the manner of applying it and in -other qualities. Now the only way to procure this equal standard of -efficiency, where natural differences are so great, is to lay down -in some definite scheme what seems best, both as to what and as to -how to teach, with all the particular circumstances that may apply -to the best-ordered schools not beyond the reach of the indifferent -teacher, yet such as to satisfy the more skilful. Thus diligence -on the part of the less able may even effect more than the greater -learning of the other, who may become negligent or insolent from -over-confidence. If I am not mistaken, there are good reasons -for holding that it is better for the commonwealth to provide -some direction for the ordinary teacher who will continue in his -profession the greater part of his life and have many chances of -doing good, than to leave it at random to the liberty of the more -learned, who commonly make use of teaching only to shift with for -a time, and are but pilgrims in the profession, always thinking of -removing to some easier or more profitable kind of life. Scholars -cannot profit much when their teachers act like strangers, who, -intending some day to return to their own country, cannot have that -zealous care which the native showeth, and though conscience may -sometimes cause an honest man to work well and do his duty in this -temporary position, such cases can be only exceptional, and general -provision must be for the leading of the weaker, who will always -need it. - -If when this scheme for settling the matter and the manner of -teaching is set down, those who have to carry it out prove -negligent, and delay or even defeat the good effects, by their -ill-advised handling of what was well meant, the overseers and -patrons of schools must bring pressure to bear on such teachers, -of their own motion if they can, and if they cannot, then by the -assistance of learned men who are competent to act, and who out -of courtesy will help to further the end in view. Our precepts -are general; the application must be made according to the -circumstances of particular cases. I have only roughly indicated -the purpose of uniformity in teaching, and the disjointing of -skill by misordered variety, yet who is so blind as not to discern -that the one removes the evils caused by the other, and thereby -relieves the schools of many hindrances? Rapid progress in learning -would at once follow, through the choice of the best and fittest -authors from the first, the use of exercises adapted to the -advancement of the child, and the teacher’s orderly procedure in -general. By this means the scholar would not learn anything he -ought to forget, or leave anything needful unlearned, through the -ill-advised counsel of his teacher, and the teacher on his part -would be saved from hurrying on too fast, or dwelling too long on -one thing. The best course being hit upon at the first, as may be -generally appointed, one thing helpeth another forward naturally, -without forcing; what is first taught maketh way for what must -follow next, and continual use will let nothing be forgotten which -is once well got, and the gradual advance in learning will succeed -in proportion, without loss of time or unnecessary labour either -through lingering too long or hurrying on too fast. This result -cannot possibly be brought about at present, while things are left -to the discretion of teachers, of whom the most are not specially -enlightened, and even the very best cannot always hit upon the -most fruitful methods, and while the customary education is held -as a sanction, alteration even for the better considered a heresy, -and approval determined by personal prejudice. I do not touch upon -any hindrances that cannot easily be removed, if the matter be -taken in hand by authority; difficulties that belong to special -circumstances must be dealt with at another time. - -The lack of uniformity is clearly shown when children change -both schools and teachers; either the new master thinks it some -discredit to himself to begin where the old one left off, or -disapproves of the choice that the previous teacher had made, or -seeks to exalt himself by finding fault with the other, or else the -arrangement of his school does not admit of a regular progression, -every school having a plan of its own. Sometimes the boy not being -properly grounded, either through the ignorance of his teachers -or his own negligence, cannot easily be influenced for the better, -or led to give up his own conceit of himself, and this generally -happens when the parents are unreasonable and think their child -disgraced if he is “put back,” as the phrase is, whereas in reality -he is bid only to _look_ back, to see that which he never saw -and ought to have seen very thoroughly. This cause of disorder, -proceeding from the parents, affecteth us all, causing great -weakness and much failure of classification in the forms of our -schools, whereas if there were a uniform order fixed by authority, -however often the child may change, his advancement is easily -tested, and the parents will have no pretext for discontent, when -they see that the matter is fixed by public provision, and that -there is no room for private partiality. At present the only thing -that is uniform in our schools is the common grammar set forth by -authority, the use of which confirms the opinion I have expressed, -as regards both the policy of adopting it from the beginning, and -the advantage of having something definitely decided to which we -are all bound to agree. Whether the book now in use may be retained -with some amendment, or should give place to one with a better -method, is a matter for consideration, for all such books, serving -for direction, must be fashioned to the matter which they seem to -direct by rule and precept, existing as they do, not for their own -sake, but as a means to an end. The experience of having a common -grammar proves the value of uniformity, but it remains a matter of -controversy whether it is itself the best possible grammar. - -The second advantage of uniformity is the saving of expense. While -it is left to the teacher’s liberty to make his own choice, both -as to what book he shall use and what method he shall adopt, -what with the variety of judgment and inequality of learning in -teachers, which may be unified by authority, but will never be by -consent, the parents’ purses are heavily taxed and poor men are -sorely pinched. This is brought about both by the change of books, -the master often reversing his former choice, and also by their -number, every book being commended to the buyer which either maketh -a fair show to be profitable, or is otherwise solicited to the sale -owing to the need for disposing of an over-supply. Whatever is -needful to be used in schools may be very well comprised in a small -compass; one small volume may be compounded of the marrow of many, -and the change need not be great. Nor yet hereby is any injury done -to good writers, whose books may very well tarry for the ripeness -of the reader, and the place that is due to them in the ordinary -ascent of learning and study, according to their value and degree, -so that they may win praise for their authors from those who are -able to judge, and may bring profit to the student when he is able -to understand and remember them. - - -Choice of School Books. - -In our Grammar Schools we profess to teach the tongues, or rather -to make a beginning with teaching them. Every subject that is -treated in any tongue supplies the student with the terms that -belong to it, which are most easily got up in connection with the -matter. If, then, the scholar of the Grammar School be taught to -write, speak, and understand readily in some well-chosen subject, -the school has performed its duty in doing even so much, though the -boy may not know all, or even most, of the words in the language, -which is a matter for further study. Those that assign their tasks -to Grammar School teachers recommend historians and poets, though -they make some distinction of writers according to the tendency of -their matter and the purity of their style. But what time is there -in our schools to run over all these, or even to deal with a few of -them thoroughly? Would it not be more creditable to our profession, -and more convenient for the parents, to have a selection carefully -made and printed by itself? And should not the most important books -be left over to be taken in connection with the particular callings -to which they refer? Let those who are gifted with imagination make -a special study of the poets, and those who take most interest in -the records of memorable deeds devote themselves to history. If men -of greater learning have leisure and desire to read, they may use -histories for pleasure as an after-dinner study, neither trying the -brain nor proving tedious, since they cannot generally be accepted -as a basis of judgment, because ignorance of the circumstances -causes a difficulty in applying conclusions. They may also run -through the poets when they are disposed to laugh, and to behold -what bravery enthusiasm inspireth. For when poets write soberly -and plainly, without attempting any illusion, they can scarcely -be called poets, though they write in verse, but only when they -cover a truth with a veil of fancy, and transfigure the reality. -We should therefore cull out some of the best and most suitable -for our introductory course, and leave all the rest for special -students, and that not in the poets and histories alone, but also -in all other books that are now admitted into our schools. Some -very excellent passages, most eloquently and forcibly penned for -the polishing of good manners and inducement to virtue, may be -picked out of some of the poets, and from none more than Horace. -But heed must be taken that we do not plant any poetic _fury_ in -the child’s disposition. For that impetuous imagination, where -it already exists, is in itself too wayward, though it be not -helped forward, and where it is not present it should in no case -be forced. As for other writers, regard must be paid to the number -and choice of their words, the smoothness and propriety of their -composition, and the solid worth of their matter. Quintilian’s -rule is the best, and should always be observed in choosing -writers for children to learn, to pick out such as will feed the -intelligence with the best material, and refine the tongue with the -most polished style, so that we avoid alike trivial and unsuitable -matter, however eloquently set forth, and what is rudely expressed, -however weighty and wise it may be, reserving only those passages -where the good tendency and intelligibility of the subject are -clothed and honoured with refined and fitting language. - -I intend myself, by the grace of God, to bestow some pains on this -task, if I see any hope of my labour being encouraged. If any one -else will take the matter up I am ready to stand aside and rejoice -in his success; if none other will, then I trust my country will -bear with me when I offer my dutiful service in so necessary a -case. If any one of higher position should be inclined to resent -my action, I must appeal to the public judgment, yet if such a one -does not step forth and prove his own skill, he cannot complain if -another speaks while he is silent. I crave the gentle and friendly -construction of such as be learned, or love learning, and if I -should have the misfortune to dissatisfy any in my work, I will do -my best to improve it. - - -School Regulations. - -The second remedy for the difficulties of teachers is to set -forth the school regulations in a public place, where they may be -easily seen and read, and to leave as little as possible uncertain -which the parent ought to know, and out of which dissatisfaction -may arise. For if at the first entry the parent agree to those -arrangements which he sees set forth, so that he cannot afterwards -plead either ignorance or disapproval, he cannot take offence if -his child be forced to keep them in the form to which he consented. -Yet when all is done there may be doubt about the interpretation -of the rules. Wherefore the manner of teaching, the method of -promotion, the times of admission, the division of numbers, the -text-books, and all those matters into which uniformity can be -introduced, being already known to be fixed by authority, as I -trust they will be, or at least the arrangements being set down -which the schoolmaster on his own judgment intends to keep, it -will further remove the chance of contention between the teacher -and the parents if it be also stated what are the regular hours of -work, exceptions being made in special cases, and what will be the -intervals for play, which indeed is very necessary, and not as yet -sufficiently taken into account. - - -Punishments. - -But the teacher must above all make clear what punishments he -will use, and how much, for every kind of fault that shall seem -punishable by the rod. For the rod can no more be spared in -schools than the sword in the hand of the Prince. By the rod I -mean some form of correction, to inspire fear. If that instrument -be thought too severe for boys, which was not devised by our -time, but received from antiquity, I will not strive with any man -in its defence, if he will leave us some means for compelling -obedience where numbers have to be taught together. Even in -private upbringing, if the birch is wholly banished from the -home, parents cannot have their will, whatever they may say. And -if in men serious faults deserve and receive severe punishment, -surely children cannot escape punishments which bring proportional -unhappiness. And if parents were as careful to enquire into the -reasons why their child has been beaten as they are ready to be -unreasonably aggrieved, they might gain a great deal more for the -child’s advantage, and the child himself would lose nothing by the -parent’s assurance. But commonly in such cases rashness has its -recompense, the error being seen when the mischief is incurable, -and repentance is useless. Beating, however, must only be for -ill-behaviour, not for failure in learning, and it were more than -foolish to hide all faults and offences under the name of “not -learning.” What would that child be without beating, who even with -it can hardly be reclaimed, whose capacity is sufficient, the only -hindrance lying in his evil disposition? The aim of our schools is -learning; if it fails through negligence, punish the negligence, -if by any other wilful fault, punish that fault. Let the teacher -make it clear what the punishment is for, and leave as little as -possible to the report of the child, who will always make the best -of his own case, and will be sooner believed than even the best -master, especially if his mother be his counsellor, or if his -father be inconstant and without judgment. - -The schoolmaster must therefore have a list made out of school -faults, beginning with moral offences, such as swearing, -disobedience, lying, stealing, and bearing false witness, and -including also minor breaches of discipline, such as truancy and -unpunctuality. To each of these should be apportioned a certain -number of stripes, not many but unchangeable. The master should -also try to secure that the fault should be confessed, if possible, -without compulsion, and the boy clearly convicted by the verdict of -his schoolfellows. For otherwise children will dispute the matter -vigorously, relying on credulity and partiality at home. If any of -their companions be appointed monitors--and such help must be had -where the master cannot always be present himself--and take them -napping, they will allege spite or some private grudge. And if the -master use correction, to support the authority of his lieutenants, -the culprit will complain at home that he hath been beaten without -cause. If the master postpone punishment, the delay will serve them -to devise some way of escape, in which they can count upon home -support. - -To tell tales out of school, which in olden times was held to -be high treason, is now commonly practised in an unworthy way. -There are so many petty stratagems and devices that boys will -use to save themselves that the master must be very circumspect, -and leave no appearance of impunity where a penalty is really -deserved. It were indeed some loss of time for learning to spend -any in beating if it did not seem to make for the improvement of -manners and conduct. It is passing hard to reclaim a boy in whom -long impunity hath grafted a careless security, or rather a sturdy -insolence; and yet friends will urge that the boy should not be -beaten for fear of discouraging him, though they will have cause to -regret this afterwards. It is also not good after any correction -to let children dwell too long on the pain they have suffered, -lest it cause too much resentment, unless the parents are wise and -steadfast; and indeed that child is happy who has such parents, -and who lights as well on a skilful and discreet master who acts -in harmony with them. “But certainly it is most true, whatever -plausible arguments may be used in a contrary sense, that the -determined master who can use the rod discreetly, though he may -displease some who think all punishment indiscreet when it falls -on their own children, doth perform his duty best, and will always -bring up the best scholars. No master of any force of character can -do other than well, where the parents follow the same treatment -at home which the teacher does at school, and if they disapprove -of anything, will rather make a complaint to the master privately -than condole with their child openly, and in so doing bring about -more mischief in one direction than they can do good in any other. -The same faults must be faults at home which are faults at school, -and must be followed by the same consequences in both places, so -that the child’s good may be considered continuously as well in -correction as in commendation.” - -Those who write most strongly in favour of gentleness in education -reserve a place for the rod, and we who frankly face the need for -severity on occasion, recommend teachers to use courtesy towards -their pupils whenever it is possible. The difference is that they -seem to make much of courtesy, but are forced by the position -to confess the need for the rod, while we, though accepting the -necessity openly, are yet more inclined to gentleness than those -who make greater professions in their desire to curry favour. I -would rather hazard the reproach of being a severe master in making -a boy learn what may afterwards be of service to him, even though -he be negligent and unwilling at the time, than that he should -lack any advantage when he is older, because I failed to make -him learn, owing to my vain desire to be considered a courteous -teacher. A schoolmaster, if he be really wise, will either prevent -his pupils from committing faults, or when they are committed, -will turn the matter to the best account, but in any case he must -have full discretion given to him to use severity or gentleness as -he thinks best, without any appeal. But I do think gentleness and -courtesy towards children more needful than beating. I have myself -had thousands of pupils passing through my hands whom I never beat, -because they needed it not; but if the rod had not been in sight -to assure them of punishment if they acted amiss, they might have -deserved it. Yet in regard to those who came next to the best, I -found that I would have done better if I had used more correction -and less gentleness, after carelessness had got head in them. -Wherefore, I must needs say that where numbers have to be dealt -with, the rod ought to rule, and even where there are few, it ought -to be seen, however hard this may sound. But the master must always -have a fatherly affection even for the most unsatisfactory boy, and -must look upon the school as a place of amendment, where failures -are bound to occur. - - -Condition of Teachers. - -Where the salary is sufficient, it is well for a schoolmaster to -be married, for affection towards his own children will give him a -more fatherly feeling towards others, and smallness of salary will -make a single man remove sooner, as he has less to carry with him. -An older teacher should be more fit to govern, being more constant -and free from the levity of youth, and owing to the discretion and -learning which years should bring with them. - -When all is done, the poor teacher must be subject to as much as -the sun is, in having to shine upon all, and see much more than he -can amend. His life is arduous, and therefore he should be pitied; -it is clearly useful, and therefore he should be cherished; it -wrestles with unthankfulness above all measure, and therefore he -should be comforted with all encouragement. One displeased parent -will do more harm in taking offence at some trifle, than a thousand -of the most grateful will ever do good, though it be never so well -deserved. Such small recompense is given for the greater pains, -the very acquaintance dying out when the child leaves the school, -though with confessed credit and manifest profit. But what calling -is there which has not to combat with discourtesies? Patience must -comfort when difficulty discourageth, and a resolute mind is a -bulwark to itself. - - -Consultation about Children. - -Of all the means devised by policy and reflection to further the -upbringing of children, as regards either learning or good habits, -I see none comparable to these two--conference among all those who -are interested in seeing children well brought up, and systematic -constancy in carrying out what is so planned by general agreement, -so that there shall be no changes except where circumstances demand -it. - -The conference of those interested in the upbringing of children -may be of four kinds--between parents and neighbours, between -teachers and neighbours, between parents and teachers, and between -teachers and teachers. Under the term “neighbours” I include all -strangers who are moved either by duty or courtesy to help in the -training of children. Now if parents are willing to take counsel -with such, they may learn by the experience of others how to deal -with their own families. If neighbours are willing to give advice -to parents when they notice anything amiss in their children, is -it not honourable in them to act so honestly? And does it not show -wisdom in parents to take it in a friendly spirit? And are not -these children fortunate who have such solicitous helpers among -their friends, and such considerate listeners at home. - -This consultation may be between the neighbour and the teacher. -In this the teacher must act very warily, for he has to consider -what credit he may give to the informer, how far the scholar is -capable of amendment, and how the parents will look at the matter. -When the parent is dealing with his own child, either from his own -knowledge or from accepted report, his judgment is life or death, -without appeal, but when the teacher takes this office on him many -objections may be made. ‘Why did you believe? Why did he meddle? -Why did you act in this way?’ But if such consultation be wisely -handled by all concerned, it will be a great advantage to the child -to be made to feel that, wherever he is and whatever he does, if -anyone sees him, his parent or his master, or both together, will -also see him through the eyes of others. - -As for consultation between parents and teachers, I have already -said much on this head, but it is such an important matter that -I can never say too much about it, because their friendly and -faithful co-operation brings about perpetual obedience in the -child, scorn of evil, and desire to do well. Nothing hinders this -so much as credulity and partiality in the parents, when they are -unable to withstand their children’s tears and pleading against -some deserved punishment. Though the parents may at the time gain -their point, they will find in the end that they cannot have their -own will as they would like. Such consultation is of special value -when the child is leaving school to proceed onward to further -learning, and when there is a question of changing masters owing to -some fancied grievance. In the former case, the parent by seeking -the teacher’s advice can be surer of his ground. In the latter -case, it may prevent loss to the child through misunderstanding. -You are offended with the master, but have you conferred with him, -and explained to him openly the cause of your dissatisfaction? -Have you made quite sure that the fault is not in your son, or in -yourself? If the master be wise, and if he hath been advisedly -chosen, though he should chance to have erred, he will know how to -make amends; if he be not wise, then the consultation will help to -show him up, and make it certain how much trust can be put in him. -I must needs say once for all that there is no public or private -means that makes so much for the good upbringing of children as -this conference between parents and teachers. - -The last kind of consultation that I recommend is that among the -members of the teaching profession, which has a good influence on -education generally. Can any single person, or even a few, however -skilful they may be, see the truth as clearly as a number can, in -common consultation? Even in matters not concerned with learning -such conference is found profitable, and where it is practised -among teachers for the common good, it may have the advantage of -giving forth a unanimous opinion to the public. In places where -there are a number of schools within a small compass, this kind of -conference can be easily secured and is very desirable. - - -Systematic Direction. - -The next condition of good upbringing is the best offspring of wise -conferences, namely, certainty of direction, indicating what to -do and what to learn, how to do and how to learn, when and where -to do that which refines the behaviour, and to learn that which -advanceth knowledge. For children, being themselves ignorant, must -have system to direct them, and trainers must not devise something -new every day, but should at once make definitely known what they -will require from the children, and what the children may look for -at their hands. This systematic regularity must be laid down and -maintained in schools for learning, in the home for behaviour, and -in churches for religion, because these three places are the chief -resorts that children have. - -In schooling it assureth the parents as to what is promised there, -and how far it is likely to be performed, by informing them of the -method and orders that are set down; it directeth the children as -by a well-trodden path, how to come to where their journey lieth; -it relieveth the master’s mind by putting his meaning and wishes -into writing, and giving the results of experience in a form that -can be followed as by habit without constant renewal. - -As for regularity at home, I have already urged it, in wishing -that parents would act so in the home that there may be conformity -between their management and that of the school. By this means -neither would schools have cause to complain of infection from -private corruption, nor would they easily send any misdemeanour -home, since the child would be sure to be sharply checked by its -parents for any ill-doing. There should be the utmost regularity -for children in the home, deciding for them when to rise and -when to go to bed, when and how to say their morning and evening -prayers, when and how to greet their parents night and morning, on -leaving and on entering the house, at meat and on other occasions. -Obedience to the prince and to the laws is securely grounded when -private houses are so well ordered; there is little need for -preaching when private training is so carefully carried out. - -Regularity and order are equally needful for children when they -attend the churches on holidays and festivals. All the young ones -of the parish should be placed in a particular part of the church, -where they can be properly supervised, none being suffered to range -through the streets on any pretence, and all being in the eye of -the parents and parishioners. They must further be attentive to the -divine service and learn betimes to reverence the rule they will -afterwards have to live by. Regularity brings present pleasure and -much advantage later on, and he that is acquainted with discipline -in his youth will think himself in exile if he find it not in -old age. Whoever perceives and deplores the present variety in -schooling, the disorder in families, and the dissoluteness in the -church, will think I have not said amiss. - -Yet this systematic regularity is not to be so rigid that it -will not yield to discretion where a change in the circumstances -demands it. As now our teaching consisteth in tongues, if some -other thing at a future time seems fitter for the State, it must -be adopted and given its proper place. But in making changes it -is well to alter by degrees, and not overturn everything all at -once. Unfortunately human nature is readier to receive a number of -corrupting influences than to take pains to lessen a single evil by -degrees. - -Thus bold have I been with you, my good and courteous -fellow-countrymen, in taking up your time with a multitude of -words, whose force I know not, but whose purpose hath been to show -how, in my opinion, the present great variety in teaching may be -reduced to some uniformity. I have given free expression to my -opinions, not because I am greatly dissatisfied with what we have, -but because I often wish for what we have not, as something much -better, and the rather to be wished because it might be so easily -attained. I might have set forth my principles in aphoristic form, -leaving commentary and recommendation to experience and time, but -in the first place I do not deserve so much credit that my bare -word should stand for a warrant, and in the second place I was -unwilling to alienate by precise brevity those whom I might win -over by argument. Wherefore I have written on all the various -points enough, I think, for any reader who will be content with -reason,--too much, I fear, for so evident a matter, as I believe -these principles cannot be substantially contradicted. For I have -grounded them upon reading, and some reasonable experience, and -have applied them to the circumstances of this country, without -attempting to enforce any foreign or strange device. Moreover -I have tried to leaven them with common-sense, in which long -teaching hath left me not entirely deficient. I do not take upon -me, dictator-like, to pronounce peremptorily, but in the way of -counsel to say what I have learned by long teaching, by reading -somewhat, and observing more; and I must pray my fellow-countrymen -so to understand me, for having been urged these many years -by some of my friends to publish something, and never hitherto -having ventured into print, I might seem to have let the reins -of modesty run loose, if at my first attempt I should seem like -a Caesar to offer to make laws. Howbeit, my years beginning to -decline, and certain of my observations seeming to some folks to -crave utterance, I thought it worth the hazard of gaining some -men’s favour. My wishes perhaps may seem sometimes to be novelties. -Novelties perhaps they are, as all amendments to the thing that -needeth redress must be, but at least they are not fantastic, -having their seat in the clouds. I am not the only one who has ever -wished for change. If my wish were impossible of fulfilment, though -it seemed desirable, it would deserve to be denied, but where the -thing is both profitable and possible, why should it not be brought -about, if wishing may procure it? I wish convenient accommodation -for learning and exercise. This does not now exist in every part -of the country,--indeed it scarcely exists anywhere as yet. I -would not have wished it if there had been any real difficulty in -accomplishing it, and it will not come about before the wish is -expressed. There is no heresy nor harm in my wishes, which are all -for the good and happiness of my country. - - -The Standard of English Spelling. - -Because I take upon me to direct those who teach children to read -and write English, and because the reading must needs be such as -writing leads to, therefore I will thoroughly examine the whole -certainty of our English writing, as far as I am able, because it -is a thing both proper to my subject and profitable to my country. -For our natural tongue being as beneficial to us for our needful -expression as any other is to the people who use it, and having -as pretty and fair phrases in it, and being as ready to yield to -any rule of art as any other, why should I not take some pains -to find out the correct writing of ours, as men have done in -other countries with theirs? And so much the rather because it is -asserted that the writing of it is exceedingly uncertain, and can -scarcely be rescued from extreme confusion without some extreme -measure. I mean, therefore, to deal with it in such a way that I -may wipe away the opinion that it is either uncertain and confused -or incapable of direction, so that both native English people -may have some secure place to rest in, and strangers who desire -it may have some certain means of learning the language. For the -performance of this task, and for my own better guidance, I will -first examine the means by which other tongues of most sacred -antiquity have been brought to artistic form and discipline for -their correct writing, to the end that by following their way I may -hit upon their method, and at the least by their example may devise -some means corresponding to theirs, where the custom of our tongue -and the nature of our speech will not admit of the same course -being exactly followed. That being done, I will try all the variety -of our present writing, and reduce the uncertain force of all our -letters to as much certainty as any writing can attain. - -I begin at the subject of correct writing, because reading, which -is the first elementary study, must be directed both in precept and -practice according to the way that the thing which is to be read -is written or printed. And considering that the correct writing of -our tongue is still in question, some, who are too far in advance, -esteeming it quite unfit, some, who are too far behind, thinking -it perfect enough, some, who have the soundest opinion, judging it -to be on the whole well appointed, though in certain particulars -requiring to be improved, is it not a very necessary labour to fix -the writing, so that the reading may be sure? Now, in examining the -correct method of our writing, I begin at that which the learned -tongues used, to find out what was right for themselves, when they -were in the same position in which ours now is. For all tongues -keep one and the same rule for their main development, though each -has its special features. In this way I shall be able to answer all -those objections which charge our writing with either insufficiency -or confusion, and also to examine, as by a sure touchstone, all -the other supplements which have been devised heretofore to help -our writing, by either altering the old characters, or devising -some new, or increasing their number. For if the other tongues -that have been so highly esteemed, when they were subject to, and -charged with, these same supposed wants with which our writing -is now burdened, delivered themselves by other means than either -altering, or superseding, or increasing their characters, and -made use of their own material, why should we seek means that are -strange and not in keeping with our language when we have such a -pattern to perfect our writing by so well-warranted a precedent? -That the finest tongue was once quite rude is proved by the very -course of nature, which proceeds from weakness to strength, from -imperfection to perfection, from a low degree to a high dignity. -What means, then, did those languages use, which have won the -opinion of being correctly written, to come by the method that -produced that opinion? There are two considerations in regard to -speech concerning the way that has been followed in its refining. -For if we look into the first degree of refining, before which no -tongue at all had any beauty in the pen, we have to consider how -the very first language proceeded from her first rudeness to her -fullest perfection. Again, we have to consider how other secondary -languages have improved and purified themselves by following the -same method as that used by the primitive tongue. - -But I desire to be warranted by them both, that is, to follow -the first refiners and also the second improvers in this course, -which, as far as I know, no man has yet kept in this subject, -though several have written orthographies. And my opinion is, that -it best beseems a scholar to proceed by art to any recovery from -the claws of ignorance. Therefore, I will examine, even from the -very root, how and by what degrees the very first tongue seems to -have come by her perfection in writing, and what means were taken -to continue that perfection, ever since the time that any tongue -was perfected. Consideration, however, must always be had to the -special peculiarities of any particular tongue, as these cannot -be comprised under a general precept along with any other tongue, -but must be treated as exceptions to the common rule. And yet even -these particular features are not omitted in the general method -of the first refining, and thus it is commended to us by means of -translations, which come in the third degree, and refine after -the first, by following the intervening process. Now, in this -long passage from the first condition of extreme rudeness to the -last neatness of finished skill, I will name three stages, each -naturally succeeding the other, where the reader’s understanding -may alight and go on foot, if it be wearied with riding. The -first stage is while the sound alone bore sway in writing. The -second is while consent in use removed authority from sound alone -to the joint rule of reason, custom, and sound. The third, which -is now in progress, is while reason and custom secure their own -joint government with sound by means of art. For as sound, like a -restrained but not banished Tarquinius, desiring to be restored -to his first sole monarchy, and finding supporters only in the -province of sound, sought to make a tumult among the writers, ever -after that reason and custom were joined with him in commission. I -will, therefore, first deal with the government in writing which -was under sound, when everything was written according to the -sound, though that stage came to an end long ago. - -I should begin too far back in seeking out the ground of correct -writing, if I should enquire either who devised letters first, or -who wrote first,--a thing as uncertain to be known as it would be -fruitless if it were known. For what certainty can there be of so -old a thing, or what profit can arise from knowing one man’s name, -even if one were the founder, which can scarcely be? For though -he be honoured for the fruit of his invention, yet his authority -would do small good, seeing that the matter in question is to be -confirmed not by the credit of the inventor, who dwells we know -not where, but by the user’s profit, which everyone feels. And -therefore as they who devised the thing first (for it was the -invention of no one man, nor of any one age), did a marvellously -good turn to all their posterity, so we, as their posterity, must -think well of the inventors, and must judge that pure necessity -was the foundress of letters, and of all writing, as it has been -the only general breeder of all things that better our life, need -and want forcing men’s wits to seek for such helps. For as the -tongue conveyed speech no further than to those that were within -hearing, and the necessity of communication often arose between -persons who were further off, a device was made to serve the eye -afar off by the means of letters, as nature satisfied the ear close -at hand by the use of speech. For the handing down of learning -by the pen to posterity was not the first cause of finding out -letters, but an excellent use perceived to be in them to serve for -perpetuity a great while after they had been found by necessity. -The letters being thus found out in order to serve a needful turn, -took the force of expressing every distinct sound in the voice, not -by themselves or any virtue in their form (for what likeness or -affinity has the form of any letter in its own nature to the force -or sound in a man’s voice?) but only by consent of the men who -first invented them, and the happy use of them perceived by those -who first received them. - -Hereupon in the first writing the sound alone led the pen, and -every word was written with the letters that the sound commanded, -because the letters were invented to express sounds. Then for the -correct manner of writing, who was sovereign and judge but sound -alone? Who gave sentence of pen, ink, and paper, but sound alone? -Then everyone, however unskilful, was partaker in the authority -of that government by sound. And there was good reason why sound -should rule alone, and all those have a share in the government of -sound, who were able even to make a sound. In those days, all the -arguments that cleave so firmly to the prerogative of sound, and -plead so greatly for his interest, in the setting down of letters, -were esteemed most highly, as being most agreeable to the time, -and most serviceable to the State. But afterwards when sound upon -sufficient cause was deposed from his monarchy, as being no fit -person to rule the pen alone, and had others joined with him in -the same commission, who were of as good countenance as he, though -not meant to act without him, then their credit was not at all -so absolute, though reasonably good still. This any well-advised -supporters of sound may well perceive, and be well content with, -if they will but mark the restriction in the authority of sound, -and its causes. For as great inconveniences followed, and the -writing itself proved more false than true, when the pen set down -the form that the ear suggested to answer a particular sound, -and as the sound itself was too imperious, without mercy or -forgiveness whatever justification the contrary side had, men of -good understanding, who perceived and disliked this imperiousness -of sound, which was maintained with great uncertainty,--nay rather -with confusion than assurance of right,--assembled themselves -together to confer upon a matter of such general interest, and in -the end, after resolute and ripe deliberation, presented themselves -before sound, using the following arguments to modify his humour, -but seeking rather to persuade than compel: - -That it would please him to take their speech in good part, -considering that it concerned not their private good, but the -general interest of the whole province of writing: That he would -call to his remembrance the reasons which moved them at the first -to give him alone the authority over the pen, as one whom they then -thought most fit for such a government, and indeed most fit to -govern alone: That they now perceived, not any fault in him, for -using like a prince what was his peculiar right, granted by their -own commission, but an oversight in themselves in unadvisedly -overcharging him with an estate which he could not rule alone -without a sacrifice of his honour, whereof they were as tender as -of their own souls: That their request therefore unto him was not -to think more of his own private honour than of the good of the -whole province: That they might with his good leave amend their own -error, which however it concerned his person yet should not affect -his credit, the fault being theirs in their first choice. - -They paused a little while, before they uttered the main cause -of their motion, for they noticed that sound began to change -colour, and was half ready to swoon. For the fellow is passionate, -tyrannous in authority but timorous. - -Howbeit, seeing that the common good urged them to speech, they -went on, and told him in plain terms that he must be content to -refer himself to order, and so much the rather because their -meaning was not to seek either his deprivation or his resignation, -but to urge him to qualify his government, and make use of a -further council which they meant to join with him, as a thing -likely to bear great fruit, and of good example in many such cases, -since even great potentates and princes, for the general weal of -their states, were very well content, upon humble suit made to -them, to admit such a council, and use it in affairs: That the -reasons which moved them to make this suit, and might also move him -to admit the same, were of great importance: That because letters -were first found only to express him, therefore they had given him -alone the whole government therein, and were well contented with -it, until they had espied, not his misgovernment, but their own -mischoice: That the bare and primitive inventions, being but rude, -and being ruled accordingly, and experience at the time affording -no more growth in refinement, why should they not now yield to -refinement, upon better cause, what they yielded to rudeness from -mere necessity? That no man having any sense of the correctness in -writing that is commended by experience would yield the direction -to sound alone, which is always altering, and differs according as -either the pronouncer is ignorant or learned, or the parts that -pronounce are of clear or stop delivery, or as the ear itself has -judgment to discern: That considering these defects, which crave -reform, and the letter itself, which desires some assurance of her -own use, it might stand with his good pleasure to admit to his -council two grave and great personages, whom they had long thought -of, and through whose assistance he might the better govern the -province of the pen. - -Since they praised the parties so much, he desired their names. -They answered--Reason, to consider what will be most agreeable upon -sufficient cause, and Custom, to confirm by experience and proof -what Reason would like best, and yet not to do anything without -conference with sound. - -The personages pleased him for their own worthiness, but the very -thing that recommended them to him for their own value made him -dislike them for the danger to himself. For is not either reason or -custom, if it please them to aspire, more likely to rule the pen -than sound? said he to himself. Howbeit, after they had charged -his conscience with all those reasons in one throng, which they -had used individually before, urging that it were no dishonour to -yield a little to those who had given him his whole rule: That -they might have leave to amend their own error in overcharging -him: That though they seemed to lower his rank, yet they did not -seek to defraud him of his own: That the wrongs done to writing, -which they indicated to him were matters worthy of redress: That -the councillors whom they appointed were honourable and honest: -That the common benefit of the whole province of writing earnestly -sued for it, and they were very well assured that so good a father -as he was to that poor estate would never be unwilling, but rather -voluntarily condescend without any request, that he might not be -half dishonoured in delaying the request from not knowing the -grievances. After they had pressed him so closely, though he was -very loth, after being once a sole monarch, to become almost a -private person by admitting controllers, as it seemed to him, -rather than councillors, as they meant, yet perceiving that their -power was such that they might force him to grant what they begged -of him if he should try to make terms with them, he was content to -yield, though with some show of discontent in his very countenance, -and to admit Reason and Custom as his fellow-governors in the -correct method of writing. - -For in very deed wise and learned people, whatever they may lend -ignorance to play with for a time, reserve to themselves judgment -and authority to exercise control, when they see unskilfulness -play the fool too much, as in this same quarrel for the alteration -of sounds according to a presumptuous rule they had very great -reason to do. For as in faces, though every man by nature has two -eyes, two ears, one nose, one mouth, and so forth, yet there is -always such diversity in countenances that any two men may easily -be distinguished, even if they are as like as the two brothers, -the Lacedaemonian princes, of whom Cicero speaks; so likewise in -the voice, though in everyone it passes through by one mouth, -one throat, one tongue, one barrier of teeth, and so forth, yet -it is as different in everyone, as regards the sound, by reason -of some diversity in the vocal organs, as the faces are different -in form, through some evident distinction in the natural cast of -features. And this diversity, though it hinders not the expression -of everyone’s mind, is yet too uncertain to rule every man’s pen in -setting down letters. - -And again, what reason had it to follow every man’s ear, as a -master scrivener, and to leave every man’s pen to its own sound, -where there were such differences, that they could not agree where -the right was, everyone laying claim to it? Again, why should -ignorance in any matter be taken for a guide in a case demanding -knowledge? Because of the clamour of numbers? That were to make -it an affair of popular opinion, whereas the subject is one of -special difficulty, requiring wisdom. And therefore if any number, -though never so few, deserve to be followed, it were only they who -could both speak best, and give the best reason why. But that kind -of people were too few at the first to find any place against a -popular government, where the ear led the ear, and it was asked why -sound should give over his interest, seeing letters were devised -to express sound in every one of us, and not merely the fancy of -a few wise fellows. And yet when corn was once introduced, acorns -grew out of use though a fit enough meat in a hoggish world. For -naturally the first serves the turn till the finer and better comes -forward. And as something worthily took the place of nothing, so -must that something again give place to its better; as sound did -something to expel rudeness, though it may not set itself to keep -out progress in refinement. - -Wise men would stand no longer to that diversity in writing, which -necessarily followed, when everyone spelt as his vocal organs -fashioned the sound, or as his skill served him, or as his ear -could discern. All these means are full of variety, and never in -agreement, as appears by the example of whole nations, which cannot -sound some letters that others can. - -Owing to these discontentments, and by consent of those who could -judge and pronounce best, they arrived at a certain and reasonable -custom--or rather, truth to say, to a customary reason--which they -held for a law, not inadvertently hit on through error and time, -but advisedly resolved on by judgment and skill. Nor yet did they, -contrary to their promise, deprive sound of all his royalty, which -was like that of a dictator before, but they joined reason with -him, and custom too, so as to begin then in acknowledged right, -and not in corruption after, as a Caesar and a Pompey, to be his -colleagues in a triumvirate. From that time forward sound could -do much, but not at all so much as before, being many times very -justly overruled by his well-advised companions in office. Thus -ended the monarchy of sound alone. - -We are now come to that government in writing which was under -sound, reason and custom jointly, and which proceeded in this -way. Reason, as he is naturally the principal director of all -the best doings, and not of writing alone, began to play the -master, but yet wisely and with great modesty. For considering -the disposition of his two companions, first of sound, which the -letters were to express in duty, being devised for that purpose, -and then of custom, which was to confirm and pave the way to -general approval, he established this for a general law in the -province of writing--that as the first founders and devisers of -the letters used their own liberty, in assigning by voluntary -choice a particular character for the eye, to a particular sound in -the voice, so it should be lawful for the said founders and their -posterity, according as the necessity of their use and the dispatch -in their pen did seem to require it, either to increase the number -of letters, if the supply seemed not to satisfy the variety in -sound, or to apply one and the same letter to diverse uses, if -it could be done with some nice distinction, in order to avoid a -multitude of characters, as we apply words, which are limited in -number, to things which are without limit; and generally, like -absolute lords in a tenancy at mere will, to make their own need -the test of all letters, of all writing, of all speaking, to chop, -to change, to alter, to transfer, to enlarge, to lessen, to make, -to mar, to begin, to end, to give authority to this, to take it -from that, as they themselves should think good. This decree being -penned by reason, both sound and custom at once approved--sound, -because there was no remedy, though his heart longed still for -his former monarchy, which was now eclipsed; custom, because that -served his turn best. For if necessary use and dispatch in the pen -could have authority, which was given them in law, by consent of -the men who were successors to those that first founded the letter -(which were men of the most learned and wisest sort), then were -custom indeed, having reason for a friend, and sound no foe, a very -great prince in the whole province in both writing and speaking. -And good reason why. For custom is not that which men do or speak -commonly or most, upon whatsoever occasion, but only that which -is grounded at the first upon the best and fittest reason, and is -therefore to be used because it is the fittest. If this take place -according to the first appointment, then is custom in his right; if -not, then abuse in fact seems to usurp upon custom in name. So that -I take custom to build upon the cause, and not to make the cause. - -After reason had brought both sound to this order, and custom to -this authority, then was there nothing admitted in writing but that -only, which was signed by all their three hands. If the sound alone -served, yet reason and custom must needs confirm sound; if reason -must have place, both sound and custom must needs approve reason; -if custom would be credited, he could not pass unless both sound -supported him and reason ratified him. - -During the combined government of these three, the matter of all -our precepts that concern writing first grew to strength; then -rules were established and exceptions laid down, when reason and -custom perceived sufficient cause. But none of all these were as -yet commended to art and set down in writing; they were only held -in the memory and observation of writers, having sufficient matter -to furnish the body of an art, but lacking in method, which came -next in place, and joined itself with the other three for this -purpose. - -All this time, while reason and custom governed the pen as well as -sound, the discontented friends of sound never rested, but always -sought means to supplant the other two, ever buzzing into ignorant -ears the authority of sound and his right to his own expression; -and the same errors that troubled the pen while sound alone was the -judge, began to creep in again, and cause a new trouble, inasmuch -as all of the more ignorant sort were clearly of opinion that the -very sternness of sound was simply to be accepted without all -exception, though those of learning and wisdom, who had first set -up reason and custom as companions to sound, and still continued -of the same mind, could very well distinguish usurpation from -inheritance, and right from wrong. - -Reason therefore, finding by the creeping in of this error both -that he himself was being injured by senseless time, and his good -custom sorely assailed by counterfeit corruption, perceived the -fault to lie in the want of a good notary, and a strong obligation, -by which to set in everlasting authority, by right rule and true -writing, what he and custom both, by the consent of sound, had -continued in use, though not put down in writing. This would ever -be in danger of continual revolt from the best to the worst, by the -uncertainty of time and the elvishness of error, unless it were -set down in writing, and the conditions subscribed by all their -consents, for a perpetual evidence against the repiner. For this -is the difference between a reasonable custom and an artificial -method, that the first does the thing for the second to confirm, -and the second confirms by observing the first. - -While nothing was set down in writing, sound and his accomplices -were in hopes of some recovery, but this hope was cut off when the -writings were made, and the conditions settled. The notary who was -to cut off all these controversies and breed a perpetual quiet in -the matter of writing, was Art, which gathering into one body all -those random rules that Custom had beaten out, disposed them so in -writing, that everyone knew his own limits, Reason his, Custom his, -Sound his. Now when Reason, Custom, and Sound were brought into -order, and driven to certainty by the means of art and method, then -began the third, the last, and the best assurance in writing. - -Art, being herself in place, perceived the direction of the whole -tongue to be an infinitely hard task--nay to be scarcely possible -in general, considering the diverse properties of the three rulers, -reason, custom, and sound, which alter always with time. For what -people can be sure of their own tongue any long while? Does not -speech alter sometimes for the better, if the State where it is -used itself continue and grow to better countenance, either for -great learning, or for any other matter, which may help to refine -a language? And does it not sometimes change to the more corrupt, -if the State where it is used chance to be overthrown, and a -master-tongue coming in as conqueror, command both the people, and -the people’s speech also? In consideration of this uncertainty, Art -betook herself to some one period in the tongue, when it was of -most account, and therefore fittest to be made a pattern for others -to follow, and pleasantest for herself to work and toil in. Upon -this period she bestowed all those notes, which she perceived by -observation (the secretary to reason) to be in the common use of -speech and pen, either clear in sound, or suitable to reason, or -liked by custom, but always supported by them all. - -Such a period in the Greek tongue was the time when Demosthenes -lived, and that learned race of the father-philosophers: such a -period in the Latin tongue was the time when Cicero lived, and -those of that age: such a period in the English tongue I take this -to be in our own day, both for the pen and for speech. - -Art choosing such a period in the primitive tongue, and having all -the material gathered into notes, wherewith to set up her whole -frame and building of method, distributed them in such a way that -there was not any one thing necessary for correct writing, but she -had it in writing, saving some particulars which will be always -impatient of rule, and make fresh matter for another period in -speech; though that which is now made so sure by means of art can -never be in danger of any alteration, but will always be held for -a precedent to others, being most perfect in itself. For a tongue -once enrolled by the benefit of art, and grown to good credit, is -established in such assurance that its right cannot be denied, and -opposition would be soon espied, however it should wrangle; then it -is made a common example for the refining of other languages, which -have material for such a method, and desire to be so refined. - -This course was kept by the first tongue that ever was refined, -from the first invention of any letters, until corruption which -had slily crept in, but had been wisely perceived, made a reform -necessary. This reform grew again to corruption, in the nature of a -relapse, because, though it was soundly made, yet it was not armed -with sufficient security against the festering evil of error and -corruption. Therefore, when it felt the want of such an assurance, -it begged aid from art, which, like a beaten lawyer, handled the -matter with such forethought in the penning of his books, that each -of those who were in any way interested was taught to know what was -his own. Other tongues besides the first to be refined, on marking -this current of events, applied the same to their own writing, -and were very glad to use the benefit of those men’s labour, who -wrestled with the difficulties of sound, error, corruption, and the -residue of that ill-humoured tribe. - -This original precedent in the first, and transferred pattern -in the rest, I mean to follow in finding out our correct English -writing, and whether it will prove to be fashioned accordingly and -framed like the pattern, shall appear when the thing itself shall -come forth in her own natural hue, though in artificial habit. - -Before I deal further with this matter, I must examine two -principal points in our tongue, of which one is, whether it has -material in it for art to build on, because I said that art dealt -where she found sufficient matter for her labour. The other is, -whether our writing is justly challenged for those infirmities with -which it is charged in our time, because I said that this period -of our own time seems to be the most perfect period in our English -tongue, and that our custom has already beaten out its own rules, -ready for the method and framework of art. These two points are -necessarily to be considered. For if there be either no material -for art owing to the extreme confusion, or if our custom be not yet -ripe enough to be reduced to rule, then that perfect period in our -tongue is not yet come, and I have entered upon this subject while -it is yet too green. However, I hope it will not prove premature, -and therefore I will first show that there is in our tongue great -and sufficient stuff for art to work upon; then that there is no -such infirmity in our writing as is pretended, but that our custom -has become fit to receive this framing by art by the method which I -have laid down, without any outside help, and by those rules only -which may be gathered out of our own ordinary writing. - -It must needs be that our English tongue has matter enough in -her own writing to direct her own practice, if it be reduced to -definite precepts and rules of art. The causes why this has not as -yet been thoroughly perceived are the hope and despair of those -who have either thought upon it and not dealt with it, or have -dealt with it but not rightly thought upon it. - -For some, considering the great difficulty which they found to be -in the writing of our language, almost every letter being deputed -to many and various--even well-nigh contrary--sounds and uses, and -almost every word either wanting letters for its necessary sound, -or having more than necessity demands, began to despair in the -midst of such a confusion of ever finding out any sure direction -on which art might be firmly grounded. Perhaps either they did not -seek, or did not know how to seek, the right form of method for -art to adopt. But whether difficulty in the search, or infirmity -in the searchers, gave cause for this, the parties themselves gave -over the thing, as in a desperate case, and by not meddling through -despair they fail to help the right. - -Again some others, bearing a good affection to their natural -tongue, and being resolved to burst through the midst of all these -difficulties, which offered such resistance, devised a new means, -in which they placed their hope of bringing the thing about. -Whereupon some of them who were of great place and good learning, -set forth in print particular treatises with these newly conceived -means, showing how we ought to write, and so to write correctly. -But their good hope, by reason of their strange means, had the -same result that the despair of the others had, either from their -misconceiving the things at first, or from their diffidence at the -last. - -The causes why their plans did not take effect, and thus in part -hindered the thing, by making many think the case more desperate -than it really was, were these. The despair of those who thought -that the tongue was incapable of any direction, came of a wrong -cause, the fault arising indeed not from the thing which they -condemned as altogether rude and incapable of rule, but from the -parties themselves, who mistook their way. For the thing itself -will soon be put into order, though it requires some diligence and -careful consideration in him that must find it out. But when a -writer takes a wrong principle quite contrary to common practice, -where trial must be the touchstone, and practice must confirm the -means which he conceives, is it any marvel if the use of a tongue -resist such a means, which is not in conformity with it? From -this proceeded the despair of hitting aright, because they missed -their intention, whereas in reality they should have changed their -intention, in order to hit upon the right, which is in the thing -and will soon be found out, if it be rightly sought for. - -Again, the hope of the others deceived them too quite as much. -For they did not consider that whereas common reason and common -custom have been long engaged in seeking out their own course, -they themselves will be councillors, and will never yield to any -private conception, which shall seem evidently either to force them -or cross them, in acting as they themselves do, never giving any -precept how to write correctly, till they have railed at custom -as a most pernicious enemy to truth and right, even in the things -where custom has most right, if it has right in any. Therefore when -they proceeded in an argument of custom, with the enmity of him -who is Lord of the soil, was it any wonder if they failed of their -purpose, and hindered the finding out of our correct writing, which -must needs be compassed by the consent of custom and the friendship -of reason? So in the meantime, while despair deceives the one, -and hope beguiles the other, the one missing his way, the other -making a foe, and both going astray, they both lose their labour, -and hinder the finding out of the best mode of writing, because the -true method of finding out such a thing has another course, as I -have shown before. - -Yet notwithstanding all this, it is very manifest, that the tongue -itself has matter in it to furnish out an art, and that the same -means which has been used in reducing other tongues to their best -form, will serve this of ours, both for generality of precept and -for certainty of foundation, as may be easily proved on those four -grounds--the antiquity of our tongue, the people’s intelligence, -their learning, and their experience. For how can it be but that -a tongue which has continued for many hundreds of years not only -a tongue, but one of good account, both in speech and pen, should -have grown in all that time to some refinement and assurance of -itself, by so long and so general a use, the people that have used -it being none of the dullest, and labouring continually in all -exercises that concern learning, and in all practices that procure -experience, either in peace or in war, either in public or private, -either at home or abroad? - -As for the antiquity of our speech, whether it be measured by the -ancient Teutonic, whence it originally comes, or even but by the -latest terms which it borrows daily from foreign tongues, either -out of pure necessity in new matters, or out of mere bravery to -garnish itself with, it cannot be young--unless the German himself -be young, who claims a prerogative for the age of his speech, of an -infinite prescription; unless the Latin and Greek be young, whose -words we enfranchise to our own use, though not always immediately -from themselves, but mostly through the Italian, French, and -Spanish; unless other tongues, which are neither Greek nor Latin, -nor any of the forenamed, from which we have something, as they -have from ours, will for company’s sake be content to be young, -that ours may not be old. But I am well assured that every one of -these will strive for antiquity, and rather grant it to us than -forgo it themselves. So that if the very newest words we use savour -of great antiquity, and the ground of our speech is most ancient, -it must needs then follow that our whole tongue was weaned long -ago, as having all her teeth. - -As for the importance of our tongue, both in pen and speech, no -man will have any doubt who is able to judge what those things are -that make any tongue to be of account, which things I take to be -three--the authority of the people who speak it, the subject-matter -with which the speech deals, and the manifold uses which it serves. -For all these three our tongue need not give place to any of her -peers. - -First, to say something of the people that use the tongue, the -English nation has always been of good credit and great estimation, -ever since credit and estimation in the course of history came over -to this side of the Alps, which appears to be true--even by foreign -chronicles (not to use our own in a case that affects ourselves), -which would never have said so much of the people if it had been -obscure, and unworthy of a perpetual history. - -Next, as to the matter with which it deals, whether private or -public, it may compare with some others that think very well of -themselves. For not to touch upon ordinary affairs of common life, -will matters of learning in any kind of argument make a tongue -of account? Our nation then, I think, will hardly be proved to -have been unlearned at any time, in any kind of learning, not to -use any stronger terms. Therefore, having learning by confession -of all men, and uttering that learning in their own tongue for -their own use, they could not but enrich the tongue, and bring it -consideration. - -Will matters of war, whether civil or foreign, make a tongue of -account? Neighbouring nations will not deny our people to be very -warlike, and our own country will confess it, though loth to feel -it, both on account of remembering the suffering, and of fearing to -gall our friends by vaunting ourselves. Now, in offering material -for speech, war is such a breeder that, though it is opposed -to learning because it is an enemy to the Muses, yet it dares -compare with any department of learning for the multitude of its -discourses, though these are not commonly so certain or useful -as learned subjects. For war (besides the many grave and serious -considerations about it) as sometimes it sends us true reports, -either privately in the form of projects and devices that are -intended, or publicly in events which are blazed abroad because -they have occurred, so mostly it gives out--I dare not say lies, -but--very incredible news, because it can hatch these at will, -being in no danger of control, and commonly free from witnesses. -Every man, moreover, seeks both to praise himself and to harm his -enemy, besides procuring some courteous entertainment by telling -what is not true to those that love to hear it. All these tales -about stratagems and engines of war and many other such things, -give matter for speech and occasion for new words, and by making -the language so ready, make it of renown. - -Will all kinds of trade, and all sorts of traffic, make a tongue -of account? If the spreading sea and the spacious land could use -any speech, they would both show you where and in how many strange -places they have seen our people, and also let you know that they -deal in as much, and in as great a variety of matters, as any -other people, whether at home or abroad. This is the reason why -our tongue serves so many uses, because it is conversant with -so many people, and so well acquainted with so many matters, in -such various kinds of dealing. Now all this variety of matter and -diversity of trade, both make material for our speech, and afford -the means of enlarging it. For he who is so practised will utter -what he practises in his natural tongue, and if the strangeness of -the matter requires it, he who is to utter, will rather than stick -in his utterance, use the foreign term, explaining that the people -of the country call it so, and by that means make a foreign word an -English denizen. - -All these reasons concerning the tongue and its importance being -put together, not only prove the nation’s exercise in learning, and -their practice in other dealings, but seem to infer--to say the -least--no base-witted people, because it is not the part of fools -to be so learned, so warlike, and so well-practised in affairs. I -shall not need to prove any of these positions, either from foreign -or home history, as my readers who are strangers will not urge me -for them, and those of my own nation will not, I think, gainsay -me in them, since they know them to be true, and may use them for -their honour. - -Therefore I may well conclude my first position, that if use and -custom, having the advantage of such length of time to refine our -tongue, of so great learning and experience to furnish material -for the refining, and of so good intelligence and judgment to -direct it, have attained nothing which they refuse to let go in the -correct manner of our writing, then our tongue has no certainty to -trust to, but writes all at random. But the antecedent is, in my -opinion, altogether impossible; therefore the consequent is a great -deal more than probable, which is that our tongue has in her own -possession very good evidence to prove her own correct writing; -and though no man as yet, to judge by any public writing of his, -seems to have seen this, yet the tongue itself is ready to show -it to anyone who is able to read it, and to judge what evidence -is trustworthy in regard to the standard of writing. Therefore, -seeing I have proved sufficiently in my own opinion that there -is great cause why our tongue should have some good standard in -her own writing, and consider myself to have had the sight of -that evidence by which such a standard appears most capable of -justification, and am not altogether ignorant of how to give a -decision upon it, I will do my best, according to the course which -I said was kept in the first general refining of any speech, and -has also been transferred to every secondary and particular tongue, -to set forth some standard for English writing. This I will base -upon those notes which I have observed in the tongue itself, the -best and finest therein, which by comparison with themselves offer -the means of correcting the worse, without either introducing any -innovation, as those do who set forth new devices, or mistaking my -way, as those do who despair that our tongue can be brought to any -certainty without some marvellous foreign help. Thus much for the -material fit for art in our tongue; now for the objections which -charge it with infirmities. - -Those who see imperfections in our tongue either blame certain -errors which they allege to be in our writing, or else they will -seem to seek its reformation. In pointing out errors they rail -at custom as a vile corrupter, and complain of our letters as -miserably deficient. In their desire for redress they appeal to -sound as the only sovereign and surest leader in the government of -writing, and fly to innovation, as the only means of reforming all -errors in our writing. - -In their quarrel with custom they seek to bring it into general -hatred, as a common corrupter of all good things, declaring it to -be no marvel if it abuse speech, which in passing through every -man’s mouth, and being imitated by every man’s pen, must needs -gather much corruption by the way, because the ill are many just as -the good are few, and common corruption, which they term custom, -is an ill director to find out a right. Hereupon they conclude -that, as it seems most probable, so it is most true that the chief -errors which have crept into our pen take their beginning from -the sole infection of an evil custom, which ought not so much as -once to be named, for direction to what is right, in either pen -or speech, being so manifestly false, notwithstanding whatever -any writers, old or new, can pretend to the contrary. Then they -descend to particularities, proving that we sometimes burden our -words with too many letters, sometimes pinch them with too few, -sometimes misshape them with wrong sounding, sometimes misorder -them with wrong placing. And are not these marvellously great -causes of discontent with custom, which is the breeder of them? -And yet if good writers seem to favour custom, then the case is -not so clear as you take it to be, that it is nothing but a hell -of most vile corruptions; that it alone infects all good things; -that it alone corrupts correct writing. For if it were indeed only -this, they would not warrant it, and give it such great credit, as -I remember they do. Is there not, then, some error in the name, -and may not custom be misconstrued? For certainly these writers, -when they speak of custom, mean that rule in conduct and virtuous -life in which good men agree, and their consent is what these -men term custom, as they call that rule in speaking and writing -the custom wherein the most skilful and learned agree. And is it -likely that either the honest in act will mislead virtue in living, -or the learned will disapprove of correctness in writing? And, -again, those honest men who approve of custom in matters of life -complain very much of corruption in manners and evil behaviour; -and the learned men, who approve of custom in matters of speech -and pen, complain very much of error in writing and corruption in -speech; and both accuse the majority of people as the leaders to -error, and set down the common abuse at the door of the multitude. -And therefore it cannot be otherwise but that the double name is -what deceives. For those who accuse custom mean false error which -counterfeits custom, and is a great captain among the impudent for -evil and the ignorant for rashness, and yet has the chief part in -directing all. And those who praise custom mean plain truth, which -cannot dissemble, which is the companion of the honest in virtue, -and of the learned in knowledge, and directs all best. Now will ye -see? This mistermed “custom” in the pen is that counterfeit abuse -which was the only cause why the monarchy of sound, of which I -spoke before, was dissolved, and itself condemned by those wise -people who joined reason with sound; and the right custom which -writers commend so is that companion of reason which succeeded -in its place when the counterfeit was cast out. Now you see the -error. So neither do writers approve of such a corruption, nor is -custom your opponent, but both writers and custom, as well as you -and I will scratch out the eyes of common error, for misusing good -things and belying custom. If good things are abused it is by bad -people, whose misnamed custom is rightly named error. If words are -overcharged with letters, that comes either by the covetousness -of those who sell them by lines, or the ignorance of those who, -besides pestering them with too many, both weaken them with too -few, and wrong them with the change of force and position. - -When they have dealt thus with custom, and with their opponents -(as they consider those who are really their friends) without -marking what their reasons are, or by whose authority custom is -established, which they so impugn by suggestion of a counterfeit, -then they begin to complain sorely of the insufficiency and poverty -of our letters. While these are as many as in other tongues, -yet they do not suffice, it is alleged, for the full and right -expression of our sounds, though they express them after a sort, -but force us to use a number of them, like the Delphic sword of -which Aristotle speaks, for many sounds and services contrary to -the nature of such an instrument, each letter being intended at -first for one sound. Thus it comes to pass that we both write -improperly, not answering the sound of what we say, and are never -like ourselves in any of our writing, but always vary according -to the writer’s humour, without any certain direction. Therefore, -foreigners and strangers wonder at us, both for the uncertainty in -our writing and the inconstancy in our letters. And is it not a -great shame that so able a nation as the English, who have been -of very good note for so many years, either should not notice, or -would not amend, in all this time the poverty of their pen, and the -confusion in their letters, but both let their writing thus always -run riot, and themselves be mocked by foreign people? - -If foreigners do marvel at us, we may requite them with as much, -and return their wonder home, considering that they themselves -are subject to the very same difficulties which they wonder at in -us, and have no more letters than we have, and yet both write and -are understood in spite of all these insufficiencies, just as we -also write and are understood in this our insufficiency even by -their own confession. But the common use of writing among those -strangers, which agrees so with ours in our uncertainty, makes me -think that this complaint of insufficiency is not general either -with them or with us, but in both cases belongs to a few, who -objecting to what they know nothing of, and not observing what -they cannot, therefore blame what they should not. For if their -blaming upon good cause, and marking upon wise judgment concurred -with their number, though not so great, I should be afraid lest -they should have the better, because they were the fewer; but -being both the fewer and the weaker, they carry no great weight in -condemnation. Other folks also, who see something as well as they, -do not quite disapprove of all their disapproval, but desire some -redress, where there is good cause, though they may not agree as -to the means of bringing about the redress, nor yet admit that the -error is as great as these objectors pretend. For we confess that -this multiplicity and manifold use in the force and service of our -letters requires some distinctions to be known by, if general -acquaintance with our own writing do not help us to perceive in -use what we put down by use; but still we defend and maintain the -multiplicity itself, as a thing much used even in the best tongues, -and therefore not unlawful, even though there were no distinctions. - -And again, we do not think that every custom is an evident -corruption, where the general usage of those who cannot be -suspected of writing with other than good judgment, lays the -groundwork for precept, as leading to the exercise of art, and -assurance to the pen. And we rest content with the number of our -letters. Some people in studying to increase this number, only -cumber our tongue, both with strange characters and with needless -diphthongs, forcing us away from what the general rule has won and -is content with. And why not these letters only? Or why may they -not be put to many uses? This paucity and poverty of letters has -contented the best and bravest tongues that either are, have been, -shall be, or can be, and has expressed by them, both in speech and -pen, as great variety and as much difficulty in all subjects as -possibly can be expressed or understood by the English tongue or -be devised by any English intelligence. The people that now use -them, and those that have used them, have naturally the same organs -of voice, and the same delivery in sound, for all their speaking, -that we English have, because they are men, just as we English -folk are; and they handed down the use of the pen to us, and not -we to them. And finding in their own use this necessity which you -note, they fled to that help which you think naught, and were bold -with their letters, to make them serve diverse turns, sometimes -with change, sometimes with some ingenious mark of distinction. -That this kind of distinction is enough, is known to all who are -acquainted with the foreign letters, and with those writers who -treat of them. Nor is there any difficulty which they are not -subject to, either in the same or in very similar things, just as -we are. And will strangers wonder at us? Or do not those of our own -people who are learned perceive these things? For in the ignorant I -require no such discretion. I certainly think that all people, as -they have the same natural organs to speak by, though from habit -some may harp more on one sound than on others, and some--even -whole nations--may lean more upon one organ, such as the throat -or the teeth, than others do, yet naturally all are made able to -sound all kinds of speech and all letters, if they are accustomed -to them at the most fitting age and by the best means. I hold also -that it is only education and custom that make the difference, and -therefore rule all, or at least most, in speech, wherein if there -be any reason, it is not natural and simple, as in things, but -artificial and compound, based upon such and such a cause in custom -and consent. And though the Hebrew grammarians alone divide their -letters according to the vocal organs on which they lean most, such -as the throat, the roof of the mouth, the tongue, the lips, or the -teeth, yet not the Hebrews alone have that distinction in nature, -but every people which has throat, teeth, palate, tongue, lips, and -with those organs use the utterance of sounds. This is an argument -to me, both that use is the mistress, and that he who sounds on any -one method by the usage of his country, may be smoothed to some -other by the contrary use, and that therefore the same letters will -serve all people, if they choose to frame themselves accordingly. -For, otherwise, why do we persuade our people to sound Latin in -one way, Greek in another, Hebrew in another, Italian in another, -if it is not a thing that we can become acquainted with through -customary usage? And this being so in all nations, what need have -we for more letters to utter our minds, seeing that the organs of -utterance are all one, and that nothing can be uttered either more -diverse or difficult than those have uttered from whom we have the -letters we possess? Nor is it any discredit to our people to rest -content with those letters, and with that number, which antiquity -has approved and held for sufficient. Is nature, therefore, which -was fruitful in them, now so barren that we may not invent, and add -something to theirs? No, forsooth. All mankind is one, without any -respect of this or that age, both to nature herself, and to the -God and Lord of nature, and therefore what is given to one man, or -delivered in one age of common service, is meant for all men and -all ages, and always for their benefit; nor is either God himself, -or nature his minister, tied to any time for the delivery of their -gifts, but whenever man’s necessity compels him to seek, then they -help him to find. We understand, therefore, that as no one age -brings forth everything, so no one age can but confess that it has -some one or other particular invention, though not the self-same, -because it is enough to have received it once to use ever after. -So is it in this use of letters, which being once perfected is -never to be shaken, unless a better means be found of uttering -our speech, which I shall not see, nor can foresee by any secret -prophecy. In these inventions, though the first receiver have the -prerogative in taking, yet the whole posterity has the benefit in -using, and generally with greater perfection, because time and -continuance increase and prune, and when it is at the full, it -is a mistake to seek further, which I take to be the case in the -matter of penning. Nor is the restraint from innovating, altering, -or adding to things already perfected any discourtesy in reason, or -any discountenance in nature, but the simple delivery of a perfect -thing to our elder brethren to be conveyed unto us; as we in like -case must be the transporters to our posterity of such things as -it pleases God to continue by our means, whether received from our -elders or devised by ourselves. - -But why may we not use all our four-and-twenty letters, even for -four-and-twenty uses each, if occasion serve, seeing that the -characters being known are more familiar and easier to be discerned -than any new device--yea, even though the old resembled each other -more, and there were but one new? It has been sufficiently declared -already, that those men who first devised letters, reserved the -authorities over them and their use to themselves for life, and -to their successors for ever, to modify and use them as it should -please them best by consent among themselves, as necessity arose. -And why not so, where the invention is their own, and the right -use of it? This general reservation is enrolled already in all -reason and antiquity, and the particular consent for the writing -of our language is given already by our general use, and will be -registered also in a very good record, I hope, and that shortly. -And will you make that sovereign which is but subaltern? Or will -you take that to be immovable like a steady rock, which roams by -nature, to serve the finder? There is no such assurance in sound -for the establishing of a right as you conceive, nor any such -necessity in letters to be constant in one use as you seek to -enforce. - -The philosopher says that nature makes one thing for one use, and -that every use has its particular instrument naturally, but that -our own inventions--nay, that even the most natural means--may -through our application, serve for sundry ends and uses. And will -letters stand so upon their reputation as not to seem to admit of -our applying them to their own purposes, seeing that they are both -our creatures, and by creation our bondmen, both to sound as we -shall think good, and in as many ways as we may wish them to serve? -No, surely, they do not think so, but they are most ready to serve -as we appoint, both by creation and by covenant. The letters yield -readily, but some letters seek to delay their dutiful obedience, -holding that their substance is adamant, and that they were not -born to yield so. - -With the same pen we make letters and mar them; with the same we -direct and destroy them; which are contrary uses, though meant to -compass the same right end. And will letters seem to serve but for -one use, being nothing but elves of the pen’s breeding? They will -not, but prove their own dutifulness to the pen, their parent, -by following his direction in very many points, as they yield to -reason and reasonable custom in many of their powers, whereby they -seem to argue against contention, they themselves being satisfied. - -The number of things which we write and speak about is infinite, -yet the words with which we write and speak are definite and of -limited number. Therefore we are driven to use one and the same -word in very many--nay sometimes in very contrary senses--and that -is the case in all the best languages, as well as in English, -where a number of our words are of very various powers, as in -the sentence: “A bird flies light, wherever she may light,” and -many others that need not now be mentioned. And will letters -stand aloof, so as to sound always in but one way, and to serve -always but one use, where their great-grandfathers, even the words -themselves, are forced to be manifold--nay, are very well content -so to be, because of their founder’s command to be pliable, and -at the voluntary disposal of wisdom and learning? Letters must -not stand aloof, but approve of the service allotted to them, be -it never so manifold, seeing that without confusion, customary -acquaintance will make the distinctions clear; as a disputer will -sift out the difference of manifold words, so that the variety in -their senses may cause no quarrel in the argument. - -If through want of skill and mere ignorance, we do not write always -in the same way, then knowledge is the helper, and he that will -follow the right usage must have the desire to learn aright. - -If distinctions are wanted then accent must be the means of -avoiding confusion, or some such device which may serve the -purpose without pestering the writing by anything too strange. -For it is most certain that we may use our letters like all other -things whose end is the convenience of man. Nor is it any abuse -when those who use can give a reason that is sufficient to the -wise, and not contrary to good custom. And though some may not be -persuaded, yet when an act is passed by division of the house, it -is law by parliament. Then the objectors must relent and follow, -though they may not favour it. They must make the best of what -they thought worst, when lawful authority restrains their will. A -thing originally free, being once controlled by order, has lost its -freedom, and must then keep the current appointed for it, being -itself subject to man for his uses. - -Our letters are limited in number, but their usage is certain -even in their greatest uncertainty, and therefore I take it that -we may rest content both with their number and with their use. So -much concerning the complaint of our poverty in letters, and the -confusion in their powers, which I do not wonder at, because I see -it so in all things; and I see no cause why we cannot overcome the -difficulty by our own inventions and devices, where we are to take -account of nothing but our own consent, guided by the judgment of -the wisest men, and imitation of uncorrupted nature. - -If there be need, the increase in the number of our letters is -not refused to us any more than to other people, but the need -is denied, because we entered upon other people’s most perfect -inventions, and though this came later in time, yet it was so much -the surer, because all things necessary were devised to our hands, -and because our need can be no new need. Whatever we need to write -we are able to write, and when we have written it we are able to -read it. If there be any fault, the remedy must be, not to seek -what we have not, but to mark what we have, seeing that we have -sufficient. - -The credit of sound being well established in their opinion, as -the natural lord and leader of all our letters, and custom being -condemned as a traitor, intruding against all right upon the -territory of sound, then they turn to the cure of this diseased -corruption, and pray Hippocrates to be judge. To amend that which -is amiss in the writing of our tongue, their ground-work being -laid in the shaken monarchy of deposed sound, they proceed in a -full course of general innovation, though some more and some less. -First, they increase the number of our letters and diphthongs, as -if it were not possible either heretofore to have written, or at -this day to write, any word correctly, for want of some increase -in the number of our letters. For as the overcharging of our words -with too many letters comes by using too much those which we have -already, so the difficulty through using them so diversely proceeds -from the mere want of material to answer each particular purpose. - -Then they change the form of our letters and bring us in new faces -with very strange lineaments, how well-favoured to behold, I am -sure I know, and how unready for a penman to run on with, methinks -I foresee,--yet such readiness in the character to follow the -hand roundly is a special service belonging to the pen. Nor do I -myself in these observations so much regard what the print will -stamp well,--for it will express anything well whose form can be -imitated,--as what the pen will write well and that with good -dispatch, because printing is but a peculiar benefit for the few, -while writing is general and in every man’s fingers. A form that -is fair to the eye in print and cumbersome to the hand in penning, -will not pass in writing. To conclude, this, they say, is the only -help to amend all misses: for defect, to enlarge; for what is old -and corrupt, to bring in what is new and correct; need enforces -redress, and duty requires these changes. - -Must we then alter all our writings anew? Or from what day is this -reform to take full place? It is a strange point of physic when -the remedy itself is more dangerous than the disease. Besides, I -take the alteration in this sort to be neither necessary, as there -is no such insufficiency, nor yet expedient, seeing that such -inconveniences follow. For speech being an instrument and means of -uttering what the mind conceives, if by the delivery of the mouth -the mind be understood, the speech is sufficient in fully answering -so needful a purpose. If writing, in which I include both the print -and the pen, so fully express the pith of the voice that the reader -may understand the writer’s meaning in full, I cannot persuade him -that the letters which he reads are not sufficient to express the -writer’s meaning, as he is ready to confute this by the proof that -he understands it most completely. - -But these objectors will say that this understanding comes, not -through the writing, but by the intelligent reader, who understands -correctly by means of the so usual, though so corrupt, writing, -which is imperfectly and improperly written, and that propriety in -using the pen is wrongly refused, when it may be had easily with -very small effort. - -I like the reason well, as I admit some imperfection. But neither -is the imperfection so great as they conceive, nor is their reason -so near to redress as they think. As for the imperfection, how it -comes and how to help it, my whole labour will prove that in the -sequel. As for their reason, I cannot see that it would be a small -effort, because they alter entirely, or at least they quite change -the superficial appearance, which in this case, where propriety in -writing is the possession of custom, would be too great a strain. -For custom, being so secure, will not be content to be overruled in -his own province, or to admit the claim of any reform where he is -proprietor, however private men’s notions, upon never so probable -appearances, may offer support to the contrary side. - -The use and custom of our country has already chosen a kind of -penning, in which she has set down her religion, her laws, her -private and public dealings; every private man has, with the -approval of his country, so drawn his private writings, his -evidence, his letters, that the thing seems impossible to be -removed by so strong an alteration, though it be most willing to -receive some reasonable pruning, so that the substance may remain, -and the change take place in such points only as may please without -novelty, and profit without forcing. For were it not in good sooth -too violent a step to offer to overthrow a custom so generally -received, so definitely settled--nay, grounded so securely as shall -shortly appear--by altering either all or most of our letters? Were -it not a sign of a very simple orator to think that by so strange -an innovation he could persuade custom to divorce himself from so -long and so lawful a match? Nay, were it not wonderful even but to -wish that all our English scripture and divinity, all our laws and -policy, all our evidence and writings were penned anew, because we -have not that set down in writing which our forefathers meant, but -either more or less, owing to the insufficiency of our writing, -which is not able to set faithfully and fully down what the mind -conceives? They will say that they do not mean so radical a change. -But they must needs mean it, because it must either follow at once -upon the admitting of this new alteration, which is too great in -sense, or, after a term of years, which is too great in thought. -For with a new writing coming in, and the old character growing -out of knowledge, all records of whatever kind must needs either -come over to the new fashion, or remain worm-eaten like an old -relic, to be read as the Roman religion written down under Numa -Pompilius was read by those of Cicero’s time, when every word was -as uncouth and strange as if it had come from some other world. -But am I not undertaking a needless task in disapproving what I -need not fear, because there is no danger in it, the very usage of -our country refusing it already? I grant I am. But yet I must say -something that I may not seem to contemn, since if I say nothing -my opponents may then seem to have said something. But certainly -I hold the thing to be much too cumbersome and inconvenient, even -though it were likely to be profitable, but where no likelihood of -any profit at all is in sight, and the change itself seems neither -necessary nor easy, I cannot approve the means, though I bear no -grudge to its proposers, who deserve great thanks for their good -intentions. For their labour is very profitable to help forward -some redress, though they themselves have not hit on it. For while -different men attempt to solve the problem, some one or other will -hit it at last, whereas the case would be desperate if it were -never dealt with. But this amendment of theirs is too far-fetched, -and without its help we understand our print and pen, our evidence, -and other writing. And though we grant some imperfection, as in -a tongue not yet fully developed, yet we do not admit that it is -to be perfected either by altering the form or by increasing the -number of our familiar letters, but only by observing where the -tongue by her ordinary custom yields to the refining process, as -the old, and therefore the best, method leads us. For it is no -argument, when faults are found, to say this is the help, and -only this, because no other is in sight. But whenever the right -is found by orderly seeking, then the argument is true, that it -was not thoroughly sought, when it was denied to exist. And to -speak impartially between the letter and sound on the one side, -and custom and the letter on the other side, letters can express -sounds with all their joints and properties no more fully than the -pencil can the form and lineaments of the face, whose merit is not -life but likeness; for the letters, though they yield not always -what sound exactly requires, give always the nearest, and custom -is content with this. And therefore if a letter do not sound just -as you wish, yet hold it as the next best, lest if you change you -come not so near. And though one letter be used in diverse, or -even contrary sounds, you cannot avoid it by any change, seeing -that no other has been liked hitherto but this which we use. -Certainly, so far as I have observed, we are as well appointed for -our necessity in that way, and as much bound to our general custom -for the artificial tones of our natural tongue as any other nation -is to any other language, whether ancient in books or modern in -speech. And whatever insufficiency seems to be in its writing, it -will excuse itself, and lay the whole blame upon the insufficient -observer for not seeking the solution in the right way. This will -be found true, when it shall be seen that by sufficient care it may -be made clear and pure without any foreign help, and without either -altering the form or increasing the number of our ordinary letters, -but only by notes of its own breeding, which, being already in use, -desire nothing else but some direction from art. This I am in good -hopes of performing, according to the plan of the best refiners in -the most refined tongues, with such consideration as either breeds -general rules, or else must bear with particular exceptions. I will -mark what our customary writing will yield us in the way of notes, -without dreaming of change, which cannot stem so fatal a current -as custom runs with. I will therefore do my best to confirm our -custom in his own right, which will be easily obtained, where men -are acquainted with the matter already, and would be very glad -to see wherein the correct manner of their writing stands, and a -great deal more glad to find it so near when they thought it to be -further off. Thus have I run through these alleged infirmities in -our tongue, whose physicking I like not this way, and therefore I -will join close with my own observation to see if that will help. - -Those men who will give any certain direction for the writing of -any tongue, or for anything else that concerns a tongue, must -take some period in its history, or else their rules will prove -inapplicable. For every tongue has a certain ascent from the lowest -to the highest point, and a descent again from the highest to the -lowest; and as in the ascent it has not reached a secure position, -because it is not thoroughly reduced to art, so in the descent it -comes to be not worth noting, because it gets rude again, and in -a manner withered. Hence it comes that the age of Demosthenes is -the prince of Greece, as that of Cicero is the flower of Rome, and -if the languages of these countries had not been committed to the -security of books, they would have been of little worth; nay, they -would have been forgotten altogether, long before our day, as the -spoken tongues of those nations, changing continually since the -periods named, are now quite altered, or at least are nothing like -what they were in their prime, though still blooming in another -form. So that books give life where bodies bring only death. -Consider the Greek and Latin writers before the ages of those men, -and by comparing them with these, you will see the difference that -I spoke of, the earlier being too rude to be brought under rule, -and the later departing from established rules and yielding to -change. This period of full development, with the ascent to it and -the decline leading to decay, shows us that everything belonging -to man is subject to change, the language changing also, but never -dying out. It must needs be therefore that there is something of -the nature of a soul in every spoken tongue that feeds this change -even with perceptible means. For if any tongue be fixed, and free -from movement, it is enshrined in books, not subject to ordinary -use, but made immortal by the register of memory. - -This secret mystery, or rather quickening spirit, that dwells -in every spoken tongue, and therefore in our own, I call -“prerogative,” because when sound has done his best, when reason -has said his best, and when custom has carried into effect what -is best in both, this prerogative will resist any of them, and -take exception to all their rules, however general and certain. -It thus makes way for a new change, which will follow at some -stage of the language, if the writer’s period be chosen at the -best. I cannot compare this customary prerogative in speech to -anything better than to those who devise new garments, and are -left by law to liberty of device. Hence it comes in the matter -of apparel, that we do not remain like ourselves for any length -of time, though what is most seemly, like a rule of art, pleases -the wisest people best. From this same liberty of speech to -carve out a way for itself, come the exceptions to our general -rules. Hence it comes that _enough_, _bough_, _tough_, and such -other primitives are so strangely written, and more strangely -sounded. In this way prerogative seems to be like quicksilver, -ever stirring and never settled, though the general custom always -offers itself to be ordered by rule, as a close friend to reason. -This stirring quintessence, leading to change in a thing that -is naturally changeable and not blameworthy for changing, some -not very well-advised people consider as an error, and a private -misuse, contrary to custom, because it seems to be a very imperious -controller, but in this they are deceived. For indeed, though this -prerogative, by opposition in particular cases, checks general -conclusions, yet that opposition came not from individual men; it -is a private thing itself, and the very life-blood which preserves -tongues in their best natural form, from the first time that they -grew to be of any account till they come to decay, and begin a new -period, different from the old, though excellent in its kind, which -in its turn must give way to another when the time is ripe. - -I take this present period of our English tongue to be its very -height, because I find it as excellently refined, both in its -general substance and in its customary writing, as either foreign -workmanship can give it gloss, or home-wrought handling can give -it grace. When the period of our nation which now uses the tongue -so well is dead and departed, another will succeed, and with the -people the tongue will alter. A later period may in its full -harvest prove comparable to the present, but surely this which -we now have seems to be at its best and bravest, and whatever -may become of the English State, the English tongue cannot prove -fairer than it is at this date, if it may please our learned class -to think so of it, and to bestow their labour on a subject so -capable of adornment, and so fitting to themselves. The force of -prerogative is such that it cannot be disobeyed, though it seems to -derange some well-ordered rule, and make people wonder who do not -weigh the cause. - -For this reason, when any case arises quite contrary to the common -precept, though not to the common custom, then we must needs think -of the power of prerogative, a great princess in influence, and a -parent to corruption, but intending to raise another Phœnix from -the former ashes. He who refuses to grant such a prerogative to any -tongue, denies it life, unless he means, by registering some period -in it of most excellent note, to restrain prerogative, and preserve -the tongue, which he secures by writing from being profaned by -the people; it becomes then a learned tongue and exempt from -corruption, as our book-languages are, whose rules are so secure -that they dream of no change. This prerogative and liberty which -the nation has, to use both speech and pen at will, is the cause -why English writers are finer now than they were some hundred years -ago, though some antiquary may consider the old writing finer. But -the question is wherein fineness consists. So was Sallust deceived -among the Romans, living with Cicero, and writing like ancient Cato. - -In this prerogative of writing, the very pen itself is a great -influence and has marvellous authority, for being the secretary -who carries out what is expressed by the intelligence, it presumes -upon this to venture, as far as any counsellor may, though never -against reason, whose instrument it is to satisfy the eye as the -tongue satisfies the ear. Custom, whose charge prerogative is, as -the pen is his conveyer, favours the pen very greatly and will not -hesitate to maintain that a dash with a pen may hold for a warrant, -when both speed and grace bid the pen be bold. Hence it comes that -in our language so many z’s are heard, and so few seen, owing to -the regard for dexterity and speed in the fluency of writing; and -as the pen can do this, I take it as a matter of prerogative, for -the sake of smoothness, that our tongue uses _z_ so much for _s_. - -But it may be said that all our exceptions, due to most reasonable -prerogative, may well be reduced to a general form, which I do not -at all deny, though I see some difficulty in altering what our -custom has thus grasped, and it were almost too much to require any -wise and learned man so to arrest exceptions, particularly where -no standard can be fixed. He who wishes this seems to conceive of -such a thing, but even if it were attempted, the stream of custom -would break out again immediately in some other way, and cause an -even greater gap, for no banks can keep it in so narrowly but those -that are content to be sometimes overflowed, and no strength can -withstand such a current but those stays which in the fury of water -will bend like a bulrush. - -If any pen, either through ignorance or pretension, offend against -reason, and intrude upon prerogative, that is no good quill, and it -will not be upheld by me; nor is that current to be called _custom_ -which holds by usurpation; nor is that cause to be accounted -_reason_ which has any other beginning than genuine knowledge, or -any other ending than the nature of the thing will seem to admit. -Certainly, when I consider the matter deeply--and my thoughts on -it have not been slight or superficial--I cannot see why, when the -imperfections are removed that always accompany perfection, and -can easily be removed, to the satisfaction of the wise who are not -blinded with their own habits, the tongue as well as the pen may -not quite well have its prerogative, since our custom has become -so well-ordered that it may be ruled without chopping or changing -a single letter, or otherwise begging more aid from foreign -invention than I have already sufficiently set down. - -These are my suggestions for the regulation of our tongue and the -fixing of a standard in its writing. If I have in any way hit the -mark, I shall be warranted by the right, though it may not seem so -to some, and in this I must be comforted, even if I cannot content -all. - - - - -THE PERORATION. - - _To my gentle readers and fellow-countrymen, wherein many things - are handled concerning learning in general, and the nature of - the English and foreign tongues, besides some particular remarks - about the writing of books in English._ - - -My fellow-countrymen and gentle readers, my first purpose in taking -up this subject, and venturing into print, of which till lately I -have stood in awe, was to do some good in the profession in which -I have for many years been engaged, and by giving my experience in -the teaching of the learned tongues, to lighten the labour of other -men, because I had discovered some defects that required a remedy. -But the consideration of these led me a great deal further than -I dreamed of at first. Intending to deal only with the teaching -of languages in the Grammar School, I was enforced by the sway -of meditation to think of the whole course of learning, and to -consider how every particular thing arose in a definite order. For -without that consideration how could I have discerned where to -begin and where to end, in any one thing that depends on a sequel -and proceeds from a principle? For the subject I am dealing with -is a matter of ascent, where every particular that goes before has -continual reference to what comes after, if the whole scheme is -scientifically arranged. In this course of mine, the elementary -principles may be compared to the first groundwork, the teaching of -tongues to the second storey and the after-learning to the upper -buildings. Now as in architecture and building he were no good -workman who did not plan his framework so that each of the ascents -should harmonise with the others, so in the stages of learning it -were no masterly part not to show a similar care, and that cannot -be done till the whole is thought of and thoroughly shaped in the -mind of him who undertakes the work. - -After I had formed an opinion both as to where lay the blemishes -which disfigured learning and as to how they might be redressed, -as well for my own practice as by way of advice to others, I came -down to particulars and began to examine even from the very first -what went before the tongues in the orderly upbringing of children. -This was the first task that claimed me before I fell to further -thoughts and the last too, even when I had considered all that -followed, but it was then undertaken more advisedly. I entered upon -an investigation into the whole early training all the more readily -because I perceived great backwardness in the learning of tongues -through infirmities in the elementary groundwork. What a toil it -is to a grammar master when the young child who is brought to him -to teach, has no foundation laid on which anything can be built! I -undertook, therefore, to enquire into all those things that concern -the elementary training, as a stage in teaching preceding the study -of grammar, hoping by my own labour to be of use to a multitude of -masters. Moreover, as this matter concerns learners who have not -yet entered upon Latin, and teachers who may have only mediocre -learning, I thought it best to publish in the tongue that is common -to us all, both before and after we learn Latin. - -But here there are three questions that may perhaps be asked: -First, what those blemishes are which I observed in the main body -of learning, a subject so closely investigated in our day by such a -variety and excellence of learned wits that every branch of it is -thought to have recovered the consideration it had at its highest -point; secondly, why in regard to methods of teaching I do not -content myself with following the precedent of other writers, who -in great numbers have written learned treatises with the same end -in view, but rather toil myself with a private labour, the issue of -which is uncertain, whereas the previous writers on the subject, -being themselves learned, and having achieved success, may be -followed with assurance; thirdly, if it is my endeavour to handle -a learned subject in the English tongue, why I take so much pains -and such a special care in handling it, that the weaker sort, whose -benefit I profess to consider--nay, often others also of reasonable -study--can with difficulty understand the couching of my sentence -and the depth of my meaning. - -While I answer these questions, I must pray your patience, my good -masters, because the things may not be lightly passed over, and in -satisfying your demands I shall pave the way for the suit I have to -make to you. - -First, as for my general care for the whole course of learning, I -have thus much to say. The end of every individual man’s doings -for his own advantage, and the end of the whole commonweal for the -good of us all, are so much alike in aspect, and so entirely the -same in nature, that when the one is seen the other needs little -seeking. Each individual man labours in this world in order to win -rest after toil, to have ease after work; he does not wish to be -always engaged in labour, which would be exceedingly irksome if it -were endless. The soldier fights in his own intention perhaps to -gain ease through wealth, which he may win by spoil; in outward -appearance he labours for the advantage of his country by way of -defence and security. The merchant traffics in his own intention -to procure personal ease through private wealth; to the public -he seems to labour for the common benefit, by supplying wants in -necessary wares for general use. Indeed, all men, whatever be their -occupation, while seeking private ends in their actions, at the -same time concur in serving general ends. Thus it appears that ease -after labour is the common aim of both private and public efforts, -because everyone in the natural course of his whole conduct has -regard to the general prosperity and quiet, which maintain his own -personal well-being. Then the means both of coming by this end, -and when it is come by, of maintaining it in state, must needs lie -in such directions as make for the peace and quietness of a State, -for the keeping of concord and agreement without any main public -breach, both in private houses and generally throughout the whole -government. These peaceable directions I call, and not I alone, -by the simple name of _general learning_, comprising under it all -the arts of peace and the ministry of tranquillity--a matter of -great moment, being the only right means to so blessed a thing -as fortunate peace, imparting the benefit of public quietness to -every household, as a central fountain serves every man’s cistern -by private pipes, and if it be not sound, conveying the blemish -like the infected water of a fountain, or the corrupt blood that -escaping from the liver poisons the whole body. Even war itself, a -professed enemy to learning, because it is in feud with peace, may -by just handling be shown to work for peace at home by uniting the -minds of all against a common foe. By the employment of learning -in every department all princes govern their States; the general -control is exercised through grave and learned counsellors and -wise and faithful justiciaries, and the particular control, in -religion by divines, in the health of the body by physicians, in -the maintenance of right by lawyers, and so on in every particular -profession, from the greatest to the meanest, throughout the -whole government--a most blessed means to a most blessed end, a -learned maintenance of a heavenly happiness in an earthly State -of a heavenly constitution. Therefore, any error in this means is -an injury indeed, and deserves to be thought of as a hindrance to -peace, and a pernicious destroyer of the best public end, beginning -perhaps as a small spark, but always gathering strength by the -confluence of similar infection in some other parts, till at last -it sets all on fire, and bursts out in a confusion, the more to be -feared that it festers before it breaks into flame, and shrouding -itself under a show of peace, consumes without suspicion, and -escapes being brought to terms as a professed enemy. I may say that -in my reflection on this subject of the ascent of learning from -the elementary stage, I thought I found these four imperfections -in the whole body of learning--in some places an excess, in others -a defect, in others too great a variety, in others too much -disagreement. These are four great enormities in a peaceable means, -breeding great diseases, and bidding defiance to quiet, both within -the State in the governing direction, and outside it by evident -inflammation, and they are therefore to be thought of not only for -complaint in particular cases, but by magistrates in regard to -their amendment. - -As for _excess_ I conceive that as in every natural body the number -of sinews, veins, and arteries to give it life and motion, is -definite and certain, so in a body politic the distributive use of -learning, which I compare to those parts, is everywhere certain. -And whatever is more than nature requires in either of them, as in -the one it breeds disease, so in the other it causes destruction -by breach of proportion, and so consequently of peace. In natural -bodies excess appears when one or more parts encroach on the others -and enfeeble them. In communities this excess in learning is to be -discerned when the private professions swell too much and so weaken -the whole body, either by the multitude of professional men, who -bite deeply where many must be fed and there is little to feed on, -or by unnecessary professions, which choke off the more useful, and -fill the world with trifles, or by an infinitude of books, which -cloy up students, and weaken them by an intolerable diffuseness of -treatment, fattening the carcass but lowering the strength of pithy -matter. Do not all these surfeits exist at this day in our own -State? Are they not enemies to the common good, being grown out of -proportion? Are they not worth consideration and redress? - -I pass now to the question of defect. In a natural body there is -too little, when either something necessary is wanting, or what -is there is too weak to serve its purpose. And does not learning -show the same defects, disquieting to a State, when the necessary -professional men are wanting either in number or in worthiness; -where show takes the place of sound stuff; where in place of real -learning only superficial knowledge is sought, enough to make a -shift with; when necessary professions are despised and trampled -under foot, because the cursory student has to post away in -haste; when there is a lack of needful books to further learning, -and those we have are of little use owing to insufficiency of -treatment? This corruption in learning any man may see who desires -to seek out either the malady or its cure; it is a breach of -proportion, and therefore of peace, in a commonwealth, a pining -evil which consumes by starving. - -As for diversity in matters of learning, I think that as -it proceeds from differences in ability, in upbringing, in -intelligence, in judgment, because these are much finer in some -than in others, it does a great deal of harm to the peace of any -State, especially where its leaders, though they may not fall out, -but merely express their opinions, yet divide studies according to -their favourites, considering the importance of the subjects less -than the attraction of the authors. If this diversity breaks out -in earnest, as it has frequently done in our time, while printing -itself, which in its natural and best uses is the instrument of -necessity and the exponent of learning, becomes very often too easy -an outlet for vaunting ambition, for malicious envy and revenge, -for all passions to all purposes, what a sore blow is given to -the public quiet, when the means to welfare is made an instrument -of distemper! For will not he fight in his fury who brawls in -his books? Do not those minds seem armed for open conflict--nay, -do they not arm others too by pressing enmity forward--which in -private studies enter into combats on paper; which by too much -eagerness make a great ado in matters better quenched than stirred -to life; which whet their wits beforehand to be wranglers ever -after, and as far as lies in them disturb the general welfare? -What I disapprove of is needless combats in learning; those that -are fruitful may go on, yet with no more passion than common -civility and Christian charity will allow. Excess overburdens, -defect weakens, diversity distracts, but dissension destroys. You -know yourselves, my learned readers, what a wonderful stir there -is daily in your schools, through diverging opinions in logic, -in philosophy, in mathematics, in physics. The lawyer generally -abstains from controversal writing, because he does not gain by -it what he seeks; pleading in the Common Courts offers a better -pasture for a lean purse than a busy pen. The dissension in -divinity is specially fierce, the more so because it often falls -out that the adversaries intermingle their own passions with the -matters they treat of. For while our religious doctrines sometimes -require defence, disputes might often be compounded, if men’s -feelings were as readily cooled as they are inflamed. But in the -meanwhile how greatly is the general peace disturbed by dissensions -that turn aside a worthy means, to maintain a wrong and become -a slave to some inordinate passion! I cannot enter fully upon -this subject, but touch upon it merely that my good readers may -understand how much my desire for the furtherance of learning was -increased after I had noticed these inconveniences, though at first -I meant only to help the teaching of the learned tongues. Agreement -among the learned is the mother of general contentment; by carping -and contradicting they trouble the world and taint themselves, -bearing all the while the name of Christians--a title which -enjoins us to avoid contention, even by the submission of those -who are wronged, and charges us to defend our religion, not with -passionate minds, but with the armour of patience and truth. These -were the blemishes which I saw by the way, and lamented in the body -of learning. The amendment which I desire rests upon two great -pillars--the professors of learning, who must give intelligence of -the error, and the principal magistrates--nay, even the sovereign -prince--who being God’s great instruments to procure quietness -for our souls and bodies, our goods and actions, must bring about -redress in so important a matter as the course of learning. - -The prince may cut off what is in excess, make up what is -deficient, reconcile diversities, expel dissensions, by his lawful -authority for the general good; and everyone will submit, because -everyone is benefited. This, indeed, confirms Plato’s saying -that kings should be philosophers; that is, that all magistrates -should be learned. It is a great corrosive to the whole body of -learning, which is the procurer of peace, when those who have to -direct gain their wisdom only through experience. That is much, -but experience and learning together make the better equipment. It -is an honourable conception, besides that it tends to the general -good, for a learned and virtuous prince, assisted by wise counsel, -to reduce the number of those that follow learning, by some -principle of selection in every department, to decide what kinds of -learning are most useful to the State, and to appoint a reasonable -number of such books as have the best methods of treatment. The -final authority in regard to every profession has always lain with -the prince. Action has been taken before in all the directions -I have spoken of, both by consent of the learned and by command -of good princes. As our country is small, the thing could be -the more easily done; as our livings are limited, it is the more -needful; as the evil is great, we are the less able to bear it; as -our sovereign is learned, we shall be the readier to give ear; as -our people are of good understanding, they are the better able to -inform her. But as the physician does not thrive by the prevention -of disease, nor the lawyer grow rich by arresting contentions, nor -a divine prosper so much in a heaven where all is good as on earth -where all is evil, and as private profit will be followed, though -it bring confusion to the State, redress will not stir, because it -judges the world to be in some fault which it is loth to confess. -However, to secure some redress and help in this matter at the hand -of the ruler, is the duty of all who make a profession of learning, -if they will but consider the reputation of learning in our day, -whether from the contempt in which some professions are held, or -from a deficiency in those who enter them. - -In the professors of learning, to whose solicitation this point -is recommended, two things are chiefly required. First, that with -minds given to peace they should study soundly themselves, and that -the matter be worthy and taken in due order. For sound learning -will not so soon be shaken at every eager point of controversy -as that which is shallow. Orderly progress gives security, and a -pacific temper furthers the end that is desired both privately and -publicly. The consent of the learned and their quiet inclination -are a great blessing to any Commonwealth, but especially to ours -in this contentious time, when overwhetted minds do very little -good to some worthy professions. The distracting division of -minds into sects and sorts of philosophy did much injury in the -countries where it befel, and those nations among which religious -dissensions arose have never been quiet since. The second point -required in a student is not to seek his own advancement so much as -that of the things he professes, and indeed the possession of these -things is the best means to advance himself, for, where ignorance -is blamed, knowledge is approved, even though the approver may not -be learned. He who studies soundly recommends letters by his own -example; he who solicits the help of those in authority advances -learning still further; he who uses his pen to strengthen the best -current of opinion proves the genuineness of his desire by his -own practice. In this last form my own labour seeks to recommend -uniformity, to strip off what is needless, to supply some defects, -to help everyone to as quiet a course as I can temper my style to. - -The second question which I said might be demanded of me, why I do -not follow the precedent of those learned writers who have handled -the subject with great admiration may be very soon answered. I -admit that the number of those who have written upon the upbringing -of children might be considered sufficient, and I grant the -excellence of many of them, such as Bembus, Sturmius, and Erasmus. -But the situation is different. A free city and a country under a -monarchy are not in the same position, though they agree in some -general respects, in which indeed these writers do not dissent from -me. Nor do I fail to follow good writers, taking example from those -authors who taught all the later ones to write so well. I am the -servant of my country; for her sake I labour, her circumstances I -must consider, and whatsoever I shall pen I shall myself see it -carried out, by the grace of God, in order the better to persuade -others by offering the proof of trial. - -The third question, as to my writing in English, and my being so -careful--I will not say fastidious--in expression, concerns me more -nearly, for it has some importance. It is the opinion of some that -we should not treat any philosophical subject, or any ordinary -subject in a philosophical manner, in the English tongue, because -the unlearned find it too difficult to understand in any case, and -the learned, holding it in little esteem, get no pleasure from it. -In regard both to writing in English generally, and my own writing -in particular, I have this to say: No one language is finer than -any other naturally, but each becomes cultivated by the efforts of -the speaker who, using such opportunities as are afforded by the -kind of government under which he lives, endeavours to garnish it -with eloquence, and enrich it with learning. Such a tongue, elegant -in form and learned in matter, while it keeps within its natural -soil, not only serves its immediate purpose with just admiration, -but in foreigners who become acquainted with it, it kindles a great -desire to have their own language resemble it. Thus it came to pass -that the people of Athens beautified their speech in the practice -of pleading, and enriched it with all kinds of knowledge, bred both -within Greece and outside of it. Thus it came to pass that the -people of Rome, having formed their practice in imitation of the -Athenian, became enamoured with the eloquence of those from whom -they were borrowing, and translated their learning also. However, -there was not nearly the same amount of learning in the Latin -tongue during the time of the Romans as there is at this day by the -industry of students throughout the whole of Europe, who use Latin -as a common means of expression, both in original works and in -translations. Roman authority first planted Latin among us here, -by force of their conquest, and its use in matters of learning -causes it to continue. Therefore the so-called Latin tongues have -their own peoples to thank, both for their own cultivation at -home and for the favour they enjoy abroad. So it falls out that, -as we are profited by means of these tongues, we should pay them -honour, and yet not without cherishing our own, in regard both to -cases where the usage is best and to those where it is open to -improvement. For did not these tongues use even the same means -to cultivate themselves before they proved so beautiful? Did the -people shrink from putting into their own language the ideas they -borrowed from foreign sources? If they had done so, we should never -have had the works we so greatly admire. - -There are two chief reasons which keep Latin, and to some extent -other learned tongues, in high consideration among us,--the -knowledge which is registered in them, and their use as a means -of communication, in both speaking and writing, by the learned -class throughout Europe. While these two benefits are retained, -if there is anything else that can be done with our own tongue, -either in beautifying it, or in turning it to practical account, -we cannot but take advantage of it, even though Latin should thus -be displaced, as it displaced others, bequeathing its learning to -us. For is it not indeed a marvellous bondage, to become servants -to one tongue for the sake of learning, during the greater part -of our time, when we can have the very same treasure in our own -language, which forms the joyful title to our liberty, as the Latin -reminds us of our thraldom? I love Rome, but I love London better; -I favour Italy, but I favour England more; I honour the Latin -tongue, but I worship the English. I wish everything were in our -tongue which the learned tongues gained from others, nor do I wrong -them in treating them as they did their predecessors, teaching us -by their example how boldly we may venture, notwithstanding the -opinion of some among us, who desire rather to please themselves -with a foreign language that they know, than to profit their -country in their own language, which they ought to know. It is -no argument to say: Will you dishonour those tongues which have -honoured you, and without which you could never have enjoyed the -learning of which you propose to rob them? For I honour them still, -as much as any one, even in wishing my own tongue to be a partaker -of their honour. For if I did not hold them in great admiration, -because I know their value, I would not think it any honour for -my own language to imitate their grace. I wish we had the stores -with which they furnished themselves from foreign sources. For -the tongues that we study were not the first getters, though by -learned labour they prove to be good keepers, and they are ready to -discharge their trust, in handing on to others what was committed -to them for a term, and not in perpetuity. There can be no -disgrace in their delivering to others what they received on that -understanding. The dishonour will lie rather with the tongue that -refuses to receive the inheritance intended for it and duly offered -to it, and from this dishonour I would our language were free. I -admit the good fortune of those tongues that had so great a start -over others that they are most welcome wherever they set foot, and -are always admired for their rare excellence, disposing all men to -think little of any form of speech that does not resemble them, and -to rank even the best of these as marvellously behind them. The -diligent labour of the learned men of ancient times so enriched -their tongues that they proved very pliable, as I am assured our -own will prove, if our learned fellow-countrymen will bestow their -labour on it. And why, I pray you, should such labour not be -bestowed on English, as well as on Latin or any other language? -Will you say it is needless? Certainly that will not hold. If loss -of time over tongues, while you are pilgrims to learning, is no -injury, or lack of sound skill, while language distracts the mind -from the sense, especially with the foolish and inexperienced, then -there might be some ground for holding it needless. But since there -was no need for the present loss of time in study through labouring -with tongues, and since our understanding is more perfect in our -natural speech, however well we may know the foreign language, -methinks necessity itself calls for English, by which all that -bravery may be had at home that makes us gaze so much at the fine -stranger. But you will say it is uncouth; so it is, through being -unused. So was it with Latin, and so it is with every language. -Cicero himself, the paragon of Rome while he was alive, and our -best pattern now though he is dead, had great wrestling with such -wranglers, and their disdain of their natural speech, before he won -from the public of his time the opinion in which he was held by the -best of his friends then, and is held by us now. Are not all his -prefaces to his philosophical writings full of such conflicts with -these cavillers? English wits are very well able, thank God, if the -good will were present, to make that uncouth and unknown learning -very familiar to our people in our own tongue, even by the example -of those very writers we esteem so highly, who having done for -other languages what I wish for ours in the like case, must needs -approve of us, unless they assert that the merit of conveying -knowledge from a foreign tongue died with them, not to revive -among us. But whatever they may say to continue their own credit, -our fellow-countrymen cannot but think that it is our praise to -obtain by purchase and transplanting into our own tongue what they -were so desirous to place in theirs, and are now so loth to forgo -again; it is indeed the fairest flower of their whole garland, for -these tongues would wither soon, or decay altogether, but for the -great knowledge contained therein. If our people were not readier -to wonder at their workmanship than to take trouble with their own -tongue, they might have the same advantage. Our English is our own, -and must be used by those to whom it belongs, as were those others -that were ranked with the best. - -But it may be replied that our English tongue is not worthy of such -cultivation, because it has so little extent, stretching no further -than this island of ours, and not even over the whole of that. What -though this be true? Still it reigns here and serves our purpose; -it should be brushed clean in order to be worn. Are not English -folk, I pray you, as particular as foreigners? And is not as much -taste needed for our tongue in speaking, and our pen in writing, as -for apparel and diet? But, it will be said, our State is no empire, -hoping to enlarge itself by ruling other countries. What then? -Though it be neither large in possession, nor in present hope of -great increase, yet where it rules it can make good laws to suit -its position, as well as the largest country can, and often better, -since in the greatest governments there is often confusion. - -But again, it will be urged, we have no rare knowledge belonging -to our soil to make foreigners study our tongue as a treasure of -such store. What of that? We are able by its means to apply to our -use all the great treasure both of foreign soil and of foreign -language. And why may not English wits, if they will bend their -wills to seek matter and method, be as much sought after by foreign -students for the increase of their knowledge as our soil is already -sought after by foreign merchants for the increase of their wealth? -As the soil is fertile because it is cultivated, so the wits are -not barren, if they choose to bring forth. - -Yet though all this be true, we are in despair of ever seeing our -own language so refined as were those where public orations were -held in ordinary course, and the very tongue itself made a chariot -to honour. Our State is a monarchy, which controls language, and -teaches it to please; our religion is Christian, and prefers the -naked truth to refinement of terms. What then? If for want of -that exercise which the Athenian and the Roman enjoyed in their -spacious courts, no Englishman should prove to be a Cicero or a -Demosthenes, yet in truth he may prove comparable to them in his -own commonwealth and in the eloquence that befits it. And why not -indeed comparable to them in all points that concern his natural -tongue? Our brain can bring forth; our ideas will bear life; our -tongues are not tied, and our labour is our own. And eloquence -itself is limited neither to one language nor to one soil; the -whole world is its measure, and the wise ear is its judge, having -regard not to greatness of state, but to the capacity of the -people. And even though we should despair of altogether rivalling -the excellence of foreign tongues, must our own therefore be -unbeautified? It should certainly strive to reach its best if I -could help. We may aspire to come to a certain height, even though -we can pass no further. The nature of our government will admit -true speaking and writing, and eloquence will be approved if it -gives pleasure and is worthy of praise, so long as it preaches -peace, and tends to preserve the State. Our religion does not -condemn any ornament of language which serves the truth and does -not presume overmuch. Nay, may not eloquence be a great blessing -from God, and the trumpet of his honour, as Chrysostom calls that -of St. Paul, if it be religiously bent? Those who have read the -story of the early church find that eloquence in the primitive -Christians overthrew great forces bent against our faith, and -persuaded numbers to embrace the cause, when the power of truth was -joined to force in the word. We should seek eloquence to serve God, -but shun it to serve ourselves, unless we have God’s warrant. - -But will you thus break off communication with learned foreigners -by banishing Latin, and putting her learning into your own tongue? -Communication will not cease while people have cause to interchange -dealings, and it may easily be continued without Latin. Already -in some countries, whose languages are akin to the Latin, the -learned class are weaning their tongues and pens from the use of -Latin, both in written discourse and spoken disputation, to their -own natural speech. It is a question not of disgracing Latin, but -of gracing our own language. Why should we honour a stranger more -than our own, if the purpose be served? And although, on account of -the limitations of our language, no foreigner would seek to borrow -from us as we do from other tongues, because we devise nothing new, -though we receive the old, yet we ourselves gain very much in study -by being set from the first in the privy chambers of knowledge, -through the familiarity of our native speech. Justinian the -emperor said to the students of law, when he gave imperial force -to his Institutes, that they were most happy in the advantage of -hearing the Emperor’s voice at first hand, while those of earlier -times were delayed for four whole years. And does not our study -of foreign languages take us fully four years? If this were the -only hindrance indeed, and if we gained otherwise, we could bear -the loss. But it is not only time that is lost in studying foreign -tongues, though we must use them till we learn to do without them. -Who can deny that we understand best in our natural speech, seeing -that all our foreign learning is applied through the medium of our -own language, and learning is of value only in so far as it is -applied to particular uses? - -But why not everything in English, a tongue in itself both deep in -meaning and frank in utterance? I do not think that any language -whatsoever is better able to express all subjects with pith and -plainness, if he who uses it is as skilful and well-instructed as -the foreigner. Methinks I myself could prove this in regard to the -most varied subjects, though I am no great scholar, but only an -earnest well-wisher to my own country. And though in dealing with -certain subjects we must use many foreign terms, we are only doing -what is done in the most renowned languages, that boast of their -skill and knowledge. It is a necessity between one country and -another to interchange words to express strange matter, and rules -are appointed for adapting them to the use of the borrowers. It is -an accident which keeps our tongue from natural growth out of its -own resources, and not the real nature of the language, which could -strain with the strongest and stretch to the furthest, either for -the purposes of government, if we were conquerors, or for learning -if we were its treasurers, no whit behind the subtle Greek for -couching close, or the stately Latin for spreading fair. Our tongue -is capable of all, if our people would bestow pains upon it. The -very soil of Greece, it is noted by some, had a refining influence -on Philelphus, who was born in Italy. Italy, says Erasmus, would -have had the same effect on our Sir Thomas More, if he had been -trained there. And cannot labour and practice work as great wonders -in English wits at home as the air can do abroad? Is a change of -soil the best or the only means of furthering growth? Nay, surely -wits are equally sharp everywhere, though where there is less -intercourse and a heavier climate, the labour must be greater to -make up for what is wanting in nature. If such pains be taken we -may boldly arm ourselves with that two-worded and thrice worthy -question--Why not? But grant that it were an heresy, seeing that -we are trained in foreign tongues, even to wish everything to be -in English. Certainly there is no fault in handling in English -what is proper to England, though the same subject well handled in -Latin would be likely to please Latinists. But an English benefit -must not be measured by the pleasure of a Latinist. It is a matter -not for scholars to play with, but for students to practise, where -everyone can judge. Besides, how many shallow things are often -uttered in Latin and other foreign tongues, which under the bare -veil of a strange form seem to be something, but if they were -expressed in English, and the mask pulled off so that everyone -could see them, would make but a sorry show, and soon be disclaimed -even by those who uttered them, with some thought of the old -saying--“Had I known, I would not!” And were it not better to gain -judgment throughout in our own English than either to lose it or -hinder it in Latin or any other foreign tongue? Such considerations -make me thankful for what we have gained from foreign sources, but -at the same time desirous of furthering the interest of my own -natural tongue, and therefore in treating of the first rudiments -of learning I am very well content to make use of English, without -renouncing my right to use Latin or any other learned tongue, when -I come to speak of matters where it may be suitable. - -But while my writing in English may seem not amiss for the service -of my country, my manner of writing may offend some in seeming -fastidious and obscure, and I may be brought to task as failing in -what I professed, by dealing with matters too hard for the ignorant -to understand, or using too close a style and too rare terms for -plain folks to follow. All these difficulties are very great foes -to the perception of the ordinary man, who can understand only so -far as he has been trained, and they are no good friends to my -purpose, as I write for the benefit of the many, who are untrained -and unskilful. But although these objections make a very plausible -show, yet I must beg leave to plead my own cause in regard to -matter, style, and the use of terms. Indeed half my answer is -given when I say that I mean well to my country, for in attempting -difficulties one may claim pardon for defects, and what I do is in -the interest of our tongue, which I desire to see enriched in every -way and honoured with every ornament of eloquence, so that it can -vie with any foreign language. - -But first to examine the charge of hardness in the subject-matter, -which the reader is said to have difficulty in understanding. In -what, I pray you, consists this hardness that is said to lie in -the matter? Or rather does not all hardness belong to the person, -and not to the thing, in this case as everywhere else? If the -person who undertakes to teach does not know his subject well -enough to make it properly understood, is the thing therefore -hard that is not thoroughly grasped? Or if the learner either -fails to understand owing to deficient knowledge, or will not -make the needful effort owing to some evil disposition, is the -thing therefore hard which is so crossed by personal infirmity? -Surely not. There is no hardness in anything which is expressed -by a learned pen, however far removed from common use, (though to -shield negligence the charge is often made), if the teacher knows -it sufficiently, and the learner be willing and not wayward. For -what are the things which we handle in learning? Are they not of -our own choice? Are they not our own inventions? Are they not -meant to supply our own needs? And was not the first inventor very -well able to open up the thing he invented before he commended it -to others? Or did those who received it do so before they were -instructed as to its use? Or could blunt ignorance have won such -credit in a doubtful case, though professing to bring advantage, -that it was believed before it had persuaded those who had any -foresight, by plain evidence that the thing was profitable, as well -for the present as for the time to come? If the first inventor -could both find and persuade, his follower must do likewise, or be -at fault himself; he must deliver the matter from the suspicion of -hardness, which arises from his own defect in exposition. If he who -reads fails to grasp the meaning through ignorance, he is to be -pardoned for his infirmity; if having some capacity he fails from -lack of will, he is punished enough by being left in ignorance; -and if while able to follow with the best he keeps with the worst, -blinded understanding is the greatest darkness, and punishes the -evil humour with the depraving of reason. If an expounder, such as -I am now, be himself weak, he is ill-advised if he either writes -before he knows, or does not mend when he has written amiss, -provided he knows where and how. Yet the reader’s courtesy is some -protection against error to him who writes, as the writer’s pardon -is a protection to him who reads, if simple ignorance is the only -fault, without defect in goodwill. - -It will be admitted that hardness must arise either from the thing -itself or from the handling. If the thing itself is hard it must -be because it is strange to the reader, because it is outside of -his ordinary interests and occupations, or because he does not -give full study and attention to it. To illustrate the former -difficulty, what affinity is there, in respect of occupation, -between a simple ploughman, a wary merchant, and a subtle lawyer, -or between manual trades and metaphysical discourses, whether in -mathematics, physics, or divinity? Again, even to students who -profess some alliance with what they study, can anything be easy if -they have not laboured sufficiently in it? I need say no more than -this, that where there is no acquaintance in profession there is no -help to understanding, where there is no familiarity there is no -facility, where there is no conference there is no knowledge. If -the man delves the earth, and the matter dwells in heaven, there -is no means of uniting them over so great a distance. But when -the understanding, though in affinity, is clearly insufficient, -there is far more hardness than where there is a difference of -occupation, because a vain conceit brings much more error than -weak knowledge. Some good may come out of an ignorant fellow if -he begin to take hold, but the lukewarm learned mars his way by -prejudiced opinion. But in all this, if there be any difficulty -about the matter, its cause lies in the man, and not in the nature -of the thing. I am quick in teaching, and hard of understanding, -but towards whom and why? Towards him, forsooth, who is not -sufficiently acquainted with the matter in hand. Well, then, if -want of familiarity is the cause of the difficulty, acquaintance -once made and continued will remedy that complaint, if the matter -seem worth the man’s acquaintance in his natural tongue, for that -is a question in a vision blinded by foreign glamours, or if the -learner is really desirous to be rid of his ignorance, for that -is another question where a vain opinion over-values itself. For -in the case of a book written in the English tongue there are so -many Englishmen well able to satisfy fully the ignorant reader, -that it were too great a discourtesy not to lighten a man’s labour -with a short question, and an equally short answer. But where the -matter, being no pleasant tale nor amorous device, but a serious -and worthy argument concerning sober learning, not familiar to all -readers, or even to all writers, professes no ease without some -effort, then if such effort be not made an unnatural idleness is -betrayed, which desires less to find ease than to find fault. For -why should one labour to help all, and none be willing to help that -one? Nay, why should none be willing to help themselves out of the -danger and bondage of blind ignorance? If the book were all in -Latin, and the reader were not acquainted with a single word, then -the case would be desperate, but as it is, any man may compass it -with very little inquiry from his skilful neighbour. Therefore if -anything seems hard to an ignorant man who desires to know, and -fails owing to the unfamiliarity of the subject, he must handle the -thing often, so that it may become easy, and when a doubt arises -he must confer with those who have more knowledge. For all strange -things seem great novelties, and are hard to grasp at their first -arrival, but after some acquaintance they become quite familiar, -and are easily dealt with. And words likewise which express strange -matters, or are strangers themselves, are not wild beasts, nor -is a term a tiger to prove wholly untractable. Familiarity and -acquaintance will bring facility both in matter and in words. - -If the handling seems to cause the difficulty, and if that proceeds -from him who presents the argument, not only in the opinion of the -unpractised reader, but truly in the view of those who are able to -judge, then such a writer is worthy of blame, in seeking to expound -without sufficient study; but if the defective handling is due not -to the writer, but to plain misunderstanding, then there is small -praise to the reader who misconstrues without regard to courtesy or -reverence for truth. - -As for my style in treatment, if it be charged with difficulty, -that also proceeds from choice, being intended to show that I -come from the forge, being always familiar with strong steel -and pithy stuff in the reading of good writers, and therefore -bound to resemble that metal in my style. To argue closely and -with sequence, to trace causes and effects, to seek sinews and -sound strength rather than waste flesh, is seemly for a student, -especially when he writes for perpetuity, where the reader may -keep the book by him to study at his leisure, not being forced -either to take it all at once or forgo it altogether, as is the -case in speech. Discourses that are entirely popular, or are -written in haste for the moment, may well be slight in manner, for -their life is short; and where what is said is at once to be put -to present use, the plainer the style the more plausible it will -be, and therefore most excellent in its kind, since the expression -must be adapted to the immediate end in view, leaving nothing to -muse on, as there is no time for musing. But where the matter is -no courier to post away in haste, and there must be musing on -it, another course must be taken, and yet the manner of delivery -must not be thought hard, nor compared with others of a different -kind, considering that it is meant to teach, and can use such -plainness only as the subject admits of. Does any man of judgment -in learning and in the Latin tongue think that Cicero’s orations -and his discourses in philosophy were equally well known and of -equal plainness to the people of Rome, though both in their own -way are plain enough to us, who know the Latin tongue better than -our own, because we pore over it, and pay no attention to our own? -Certainly not, as appears from many passages in Cicero himself, -where he notes the difference, and confesses that the newness of -the subjects which he transported from Greece was the cause of -some darkness to the ordinary reader, and of some contempt to the -learned because they fancied the Greek more. Yet neither ignorance -nor contempt could discourage his pen from seeking the advantage -of his own language, by translating into it the learning which -others wished to remain in the Greek; he kept on his course, and -in the end the tide turned in his favour, bringing him the credit -which he enjoys to this day. And he himself bears witness that -the resistance he met with was due not only to the matter of which -he treated, but also to his manner of expression, and even to the -very words he used, which being strange and newly-coined were -not understood by the ordinary reader. “I could write of these -things,” he says, meaning philosophical subjects, “like Amasanius” -(an obscure writer of apophthegms) “but in that case not like -myself; as plainly as he, but not then so as to satisfy myself, or -do justice to the subject as I should handle it. I must define, -divide, distinguish, exercise judgment, and use the terms of art. -I must have regard as well to those from whom my learning is -borrowed, that they may say they meant it so, as to those for whom -it is borrowed, that they may say they understand it.” - -The writer who does otherwise may be thought plain by those who -seek nothing far, but if those who call for plainness are always -to be pleased, and dealt with so daintily that they are put to -no pains to learn and enquire, when they find themselves in a -difficulty through their own ignorance; if they must be made a -lure for learning to descend to, rather degenerating herself than -teaching them to look up, what is the use of skill? He who made -the earth made hills and dales, heights and plains, smooth places -and rough, and yet all good of their own kind. Plainness is good -for a pleasant course, and a popular style is in place in ordinary -argument, where no art is needed because the reader knows none, -and the matter can be simply expressed, being indeed in her best -colours when she is dressed for common purposes. Likewise this -alleged hardness, though it belong to the matter, has its special -use in whetting people’s wits, and making a deep impression, where -what seems dark contains something that must be considered thrice -before it is mastered. - -Labour is the coin which is current in heaven, for which and by -which Almighty God sells His best wares, though in His great -goodness He sometimes does more for some in giving them quickness -and intelligence, even without great labour, than any labour can do -for others, in order to let us know that His mercy is the mistress -when our labour learns best. But in our ordinary life, if carpeting -be knighting, where is necessary defence? If easy understanding -be the readiest learning, then wake not my lady; she learns as -she lies. If all things are hard which everyone thinks to be so, -where is the privilege and benefit of study? What is the use of -study, if what we get by labour is condemned as too hard for those -that do not study. I will not allege that the learned men of old -made use of obscure expressions in matters of religion in order -to win reverence towards a subject that belonged to another world -and could not be fully dealt with in ordinary speech, nor that the -old wisdom was expressed in riddles, proverbs, fables, oracles, -and mystic verses, in order to draw men on to study, and fix in -the memory what was carefully considered before it was uttered. -Are any of our oldest and best writers whom we now study, and who -have been thought the greatest, each in his kind, ever since they -first wrote, understood at once after a single reading, even though -those who are studying them know their tongue as well as we know -English--nay, even better, because it is more intricate? Or is -their manner of writing to be disapproved of as dark, because the -ignorant reader or fastidious student cannot straightway rush into -it? That they fell into that compressed kind of writing owing to -their very pith in saying much where they speak least, is clearly -shown by the comments of those who expand at great length what was -set down in one short sentence--nay, even in a single phrase of a -sentence. Are not all the chief paragons and principal leaders in -every profession of this same character, inaccessible to ordinary -people, even though using the same language, and giving of their -store only to those who will study? - -But may not this obscurity lie in him who finds it rather than in -the matter, which is simple in itself, and simply expressed, though -it may not seem so to him? Our daintiness deceives us, our want -of goodwill blinds us--nay, our lack of skill is the very witch -which bereaves us of sense, though we profess to have knowledge and -favour towards learning. For everyone who bids a book good-morrow -is not necessarily a scholar, or a judge of the subject dealt -with in the book. He may have studied up to a certain point, but -perhaps neither hard nor long, or he may be very little acquainted -with the subject he is seeking to judge of. Perhaps the desire of -preferment has cut short his study when it was most promising, -or there is some other of the many causes of weakness, although -pretension may impose upon the world with a show of learning. Any -man may judge well of a matter which he has sufficiently studied, -and thoroughly practised (if it be a study that requires practice), -and has regarded in its various relations. A pretty skill in some -particular direction will sometimes glance beyond, and show a -smattering of further knowledge, but no further than a glance, -no more than a smattering. Therefore, in my judgment of another -man’s writings, so much only is just as I should be able to prove -soundly, if I were seriously challenged by those who can judge, -not so much as I may venture uncontrolled, in seeking merely to -please myself or those as ignorant as myself. Apelles could admit -the opinion of the cobbler, so far as his knowledge of cobbling -justified him, but not an inch further. - -As for my manner of writing, if I do not meet expectation, I have -always some warrant, for I write rather with regard to the essence -of the matter in hand than to superficial effect. For however it -may be in speech, and in that kind of writing which resembles -speech, being adapted to ordinary subjects with an immediate -practical end, certainly where the matter has to stand a more -lasting test, and be tried by the hammer of learned criticism, -there should be precision, orderly method, and carefully chosen -expression, every word having its due force, and every sentence -being well and deliberately weighed. Such writing, though it may be -without esteem in our age through the triviality of the time, may -yet win it in another, when its value is appreciated. Some hundreds -of years may pass before saints are enshrined, or books gain their -full authority. - -As for the general writing in the English tongue, I must needs -say that for some points of handling there is no language more -excellent than ours. For teaching memory work pleasantly, as in the -old leonine verses, which run in rhyme, it admits more dalliance -with words than any other tongue I know. In firmness of speech and -strong ending it is very forcible, because of the monosyllabic -words of which it so largely consists. For fine translation in -pithy terms I find it as quick as any foreign tongue, or quicker, -as it is wonderfully pliable and ready to express a pointed thought -in very few words. For apt expression of a good deal of matter in -not many words it will do as much in original utterance as in any -translation. This compact expression may sometimes seem hard, but -only where ignorance is harboured, or where indolence is an idol, -which will not be persuaded to crack the nut, though it covet the -kernel. I need give no example of these, as my own writing will -serve as a general pattern. No one can judge so well of these -points in our tongue as those who find matter flowing from their -pen which refuses to be expressed in any other form. For our tongue -has a special character as well as every other, and cannot be -surpassed for grace and pith. - -In regard to the force of words, which was the third note of -alleged obscurity, there are to be considered _familiarity_ for -the general reader, _beauty_ for the learned, _effectiveness_ to -give pleasure, and _borrowing_ to extend our resources and admit -of ready expression. Therefore, if any reader find fault with a -word which does not suit his ear, let him mark the one he knows, -and learn to value the other, which is worth his knowing. Do we not -learn from words? No marvel if it is so, for a word is a metaphor, -a learned translation, something carried over from its original -sense to serve in some place where it is even more properly used, -and where it may be most significant, if it is properly understood. -Take pains to learn from it; you have there a means of gaining -knowledge. It is not commonly used as I am using it, but I trust -I am not abusing it, and it may be filling a more stately place -than any you have ever seen it in. Then mark that the place honours -the parson, and think well of good words, for though they may -be handled by ordinary, or even by foul lips, yet in a fairer -mouth, or under a finer pen, they may come to honour. It may be a -stranger, and yet no Turk, and though it were the word of an enemy, -yet a good thing is worth getting, even from a foe, as well by -the language of writers as by the spoil of soldiers. And when the -foreign word has yielded itself and been received into favour, it -is no longer foreign, though of foreign race, the property in it -having been altered. But he who will speak of words need not lack -them. However, in this place there is no further need of words, -to say either which are familiar, or beautiful, or effective, or -which are borrowed; nor is there need to say that in regard to any -ornament in words we give place to no other tongue. - -As for my own words and the terms that I use, they are generally -English, and if any be an incorporated stranger, or translated, or -freshly-coined, I have shaped it to fit the place where I use it, -as far as my skill will permit. The example and precept of the best -judges warrant us in enfranchising foreign words, or translating -our own without too manifest insolence or wanton affectation, or -else inventing new ones where they are clearly serviceable, the -context explaining them sufficiently till frequent usage has made -them well known. Therefore, to say what I mean in plain terms, -he who is soundly learned will straightway recognise a scholar; -he who is well acquainted with a strong pen, whether in reading -authors or in actual use, will soon master a compact style; he who -has skill in language, whether old and scholarly or newly received -into favour, will not wonder at words whose origin he knows, nor -be surprised at a thought tersely expressed, in a way familiar to -him in other languages. Therefore, as I fear not the judgment of -the skilful, because courtesy goes with knowledge, so I value their -friendship, because their support gives me credit. - -As for those who lack the skill to judge rightly, though they may -be sharp censors and ready to talk loudly, I must crave their -pardon if I do not bow to their censure, which I cannot accept -as a true judgment. Yet I am content to bear with such fellows, -and pardon them their errors in regard to myself, as I trust that -those who can judge will in their courtesy pardon me my own errors. -Those who cannot judge rightly for want of knowledge, but will not -betray their weakness by judging wrongly, if they desire to learn -in any case of doubt, have the learned to give them counsel. The -profit is theirs, if they are willing to take it, but if not, they -shall not deter me from writing, and I shall hope at length by -deserving well to win their favour, or at least their silence. In -conclusion as to the manner of writing and use of words in English, -this is my opinion, that he who will justify himself may find many -arguments, some closely related to the particular subject that may -be in question, others more general but likely to be serviceable, -and if in his practice he hath due regard to clear and appropriate -expression, then even though one or two things should seem strange -to those who judge, the writer is free from blame. As for invention -in matter and eloquence in style, the learned know well in what -writers they are to be found, and those who are not scholars must -learn to think of such things before they presume to judge, lest -by failing to measure the writer’s level, they should have no -just standard to apply. As for the matter itself which is to be -treated by any learned method, as I have already said, familiarity -will make it easy, though it seem hard, just as it will make the -manner of expression easy, though it seem strange, if the thing -really deserves to be studied, which will not appear until some -progress is made. And a little hardness, even in the most obscure -philosophical discussions, will never seem tedious to an enquiring -mind, such as he must have who either seeks to learn himself, or -desires to see his native tongue enriched and made the instrument -of all his knowledge, as well as of his ordinary needs. - -But I have been too tedious, my good readers, yet perhaps not so, -since no haste is enjoined, and you may read at leisure. I have now -to request you, as I mentioned at first, to grant me your friendly -construction, and the favour due to a fellow-countryman. The -reverence towards learning which leads the good student to embrace -her in his youth, and advances him to honour by her preference in -later years, will plead for me with the learned in general, in my -endeavour to assert the rights of her by whose authority alone they -are themselves of any account. Among my fellow-teachers I may hope -that community of interest will help me more with the courteous -and learned than a foolish feeling of rivalry will harm me with -ignorant and spiteful detractors. Regard for my own profession, and -this hope of support from learned teachers, move me to lay stress -upon one special point, which in duty must affect them no less than -me, namely, the need for careful thought in improving our schools. -I say nothing here of the conscientious and religious motives that -influence us, nor of the need for personal maintenance that demands -our labour. But I would acknowledge the special munificence of our -princes and parliaments towards our whole order in our country’s -behalf, partly in suffering us to enjoy old immunities, partly in -granting us divers other exemptions from personal services and -ordinary payments to which our fellow-subjects are liable. These -favours deserve at our hands an honourable remembrance, and bind -us further to discharge the trust committed to us. I doubt not -that this feeling which moves me strongly, moves also many of my -profession, whose friendship I crave for favourable construction, -and whose conference I desire for help in experience, as I shall -be glad in the common cause either to persuade or be persuaded. -Of those that are not learned I beg friendship also, and chiefly -as a matter of right, because I labour for them, and my goodwill -deserves no unthankfulness. God bless us all to the advancement -of His glory, the honour of our country, the furtherance of good -learning, and the well-being of all ranks, prince and people -alike! - - - - -CRITICAL ESTIMATE. - - - - -CRITICAL ESTIMATE. - - -If the saying of Plato may be applied to another sphere, not very -far removed from civil government, we may believe that education -will never be rightly practised until either teachers become -philosophers, or philosophers become teachers. It is certainly -remarkable how seldom in the history of educational progress there -has arisen any writer whose authority was based alike on the -power of the abstract thinker to rise above the conditions of the -immediate present into the atmosphere of pure reason, and on the -instinct of the professional worker, whose conceptions of what is -possible have been chastened by direct experience of the actual. -Of the five classical English writers who have made any noteworthy -contribution to educational thought, all but one have failed to -gain a lasting influence, through the limitation in their outlook -caused by deficient practical knowledge. Ascham’s experience was -too exclusively academic and courtly to suggest much to him beyond -questions of method in the advanced teaching of Latin and Greek. -Milton’s vision, restricted by his short and partial attempt at -instructing a few selected boys, narrowed itself to one school -period of one rank of society of one sex, and his genius could not -save him from wild extravagance in his ideas of the acquirements -possible for the average scholar. The suggestions of Locke, while -in one aspect they were more comprehensive, are yet essentially -those of a theorist, who had never faced the difficulty that the -upbringing of a child by a private tutor is possible only to the -merest fraction of any population. Herbert Spencer, as the heir -of previous centuries, has naturally been able to command a wider -view, but even those who have gained most from his book, must -have felt that owing to his highly generalised mode of treatment -he has at many points failed to grapple with the problems that -chiefly beset the professional teacher. A little experience, like -a little knowledge, is a dangerous thing, and it may be that -those writers, all of whom claim to have made trial of the actual -work of education, would have been more convincing if they had -written from an avowedly detached standpoint. Richard Mulcaster -alone holds the vantage-ground of being at once a thinker and a -practical expert in matters of education. Nor does this mean only -that his right to speak with authority will for that reason be more -readily admitted; the evidence of his fuller equipment for the -task may be seen through the whole texture of his writings. He had -not Ascham’s ease in expression and charm of manner, nor Milton’s -commanding intellect and power of utterance, nor the fearlessness -and philosophic grasp of Locke, nor the encyclopædic knowledge and -acumen of Herbert Spencer, but he had beyond them all two essential -gifts that will in the end give him a unique place in the history -of our educational development--a clear insight into the realities -of human nature, and an enlightened perception of the conditions -that determine the culture of mind and soul. - -To those who know little or nothing of Mulcaster such a claim -will seem extravagant, and it will naturally be doubted whether -any writer who deserves to be put upon so high a pedestal, could -possibly have remained so long in neglect. It may be rejoined that -in a subject like education many factors have a part in the making -of reputations. It is no mere coincidence that the authors named -above, whose views on education are so much more widely-known than -those of Mulcaster, all gained their chief fame in some other -sphere of thought; we read what they have to say on this subject -because it comes from writers who have caught the world’s ear in -some field of more general interest. This advantage is naturally -to be associated with gifts of expression such as Mulcaster -unfortunately possessed only in a very limited degree, though -his deficiency is due much more to the rudimentary condition of -English prose in general in the sixteenth century, than to any -lack of clear thinking on his own part. It is true, indeed, that -no fine sense of harmony in sound can be credited to a writer -who perpetrates such a sentence as--“I say no more, where it is -too much to say even so much in a sore of too much.” But even if -Mulcaster had spoken with the tongue of an angel, he would probably -have remained a voice crying in the wilderness, for the time was -not yet come. The ultimate value of Rousseau’s message to the world -in the realm of education was far less, but his unique powers of -persuasive eloquence, the fame he had achieved in other ways, and -the ripeness of the time, combined to give the later writer an -extraordinary influence. When Mulcaster’s judgments and suggestions -are studied from the vantage-ground of the present, and in a form -that divests them of adventitious difficulties of understanding, -they will be recognised as giving him a place of high importance, -not only in the chain of historical succession, but in the final -hierarchy of educational reformers. - -It is necessary to take into account the state of opinion on -matters of learning and on the general conduct of life, in the -England of Queen Elizabeth’s day, before we can appreciate the -significance of our author’s thought. We must place ourselves in -the atmosphere of the Renascence and the Reformation, for although -these great movements, which represented the intellectual and moral -aspects in the awakening of modern Europe, had been some time in -progress, and had even given place to reaction in the countries -of their birth, their full influence did not reach our shores -till towards the close of the sixteenth century. The phase of -English national life represented by Mulcaster is that immediately -preceding the great expansion of conscious mental activity to -which voice was so memorably given by Spenser, Shakespeare, Bacon, -and their contemporaries. The prestige of Elizabeth, depending as -it did so largely on the secure establishment of the Protestant -faith, had not yet reached the height it attained through the -final repulse of Spanish aggression, but yet the power of the -crown retained much of the absolute sway over individual freedom -that had been built up and impressed on the popular imagination -by the earlier Tudors. It was not a time either of revolt or of -reaction. The more galling forms of political and intellectual -despotism had already disappeared in the general overthrow of the -medieval _régime_, and it was a more pressing question how to -maintain existing charters of liberty than how to extend them. This -conservative temper is to be discerned in all the purely English -writers of the period, though in the northern part of Britain Knox -and his companions were troubling the waters of controversy in a -more strenuous fashion. - -Apart from the influence of an atmosphere of general conformity -to established authority and prevailing sentiment, Mulcaster was -constitutionally cautious. He was no zealot, defiant of opposition, -and careless of the esteem in which he might be held. His respect -for tradition, and, it must be added, his sympathetic instincts, -disposed him always to seek grounds of agreement rather than of -difference, to support his suggestions by the weight of authority -and precedent, to carry his readers with him by winning their -consent unawares rather than by startling them into reluctant -acquiescence through the use of paradox and exaggeration. Yet -there was no timidity or half-heartedness in his temperament. He -was profoundly convinced of the justice of his criticisms and the -value of his proposals, and he was not backward in urging his -views, in season at least if not out of season, on all who shared -the responsibility of rejecting them or giving them effect. He has -been accused, indeed, of overweening self-conceit, and it is to be -feared that this is the only persistent impression of the man that -remains with a number of those who know little of him beyond his -name. He has been cited as a classical example of the folly into -which a misplaced vanity can lead one who enters with a light heart -into the region of prophecy, that “most gratuitous form of error,” -on the ground that he believed the highest possible perfection of -English prose to be represented by the style of his own writings. -This conception, however, is due to a misunderstanding which it -will be worth while to remove. The remark that is quoted against -him occurs in the Peroration of the _Elementary_, “I need no -example in any of these, whereof mine own penning is a general -pattern.” Taken apart from the context, as it usually is, such -a sentence sounds fatuous enough, being naturally understood to -mean that Mulcaster thought he had nothing to learn from any -other writers, and had himself devised a perfect model of English -composition. But anyone who will take the trouble to read the -whole passage (p. 201) will see at once that the statement really -means, “I need give no example of any of these [idiosyncrasies -of our language, especially compactness of expression], as they -are sufficiently illustrated in my own writing.” This is a very -different matter, and though Mulcaster had little sense of style, -and was curiously mistaken in his idea that English prose had -no greater heights to reach than the standard of his own time, -the error was due to defects of literary taste and judgment, not -of character or temper. When his writings are taken as a whole, -they offer ample evidence that he was singularly modest in his -pretensions, losing all self-consciousness in his enthusiasm for -the causes he had at heart. - -This attitude may account for the disposition in some quarters to -deny Mulcaster any special originality in regard to his leading -principles. But in a subject like education, which concerns so many -departments of life and character, what is the precise meaning of -originality? As the essential traits of human nature have remained -unaltered in the last two or three thousand years, except for a -slow development along lines in continuity with the past, it is -vain to expect that the broader truths which underlie the arts of -social improvement will be subject to any radical change. In such -matters we must build on the wisdom of the ancients, and the only -possible originality consists in discerning the new applications -that are suited to the present time and place. It is safe to say -that there is hardly a single educational doctrine that has ever -won acceptance, the germs of which are not to be found in the -writings of Plato and Aristotle. Yet every age and every country -must work out its own salvation by choosing, combining, and -applying to its needs the general principles that have been laid -down by those that came before. Such eclecticism, if it cannot -strictly be called originality, is at least the highest wisdom, -and he who first proclaims the doctrine as true for his own time -and place deserves the credit of the pioneer. The discoveries of -the Greek philosophers in social politics, if discoveries they -could be called, had to be made over again for the modern world, -and it may even be said that they had to be made independently for -each separate country. In the sixteenth century there was less -uniformity in political and social conditions, and less mutual -influence among the different States of Europe than there is now. -Although the English nation under Elizabeth could not remain wholly -unaffected by the more drastic changes of opinion and sentiment -that marked the course of the reforming spirit in Germany and in -Scotland, it certainly demanded a rare sagacity and independence -of mind, if not absolute originality, to discern how far the new -outlook could be shared by those whose experience had been less -revolutionary. To understand the value of Mulcaster’s work it is of -less moment to ask what may have been his indebtedness to Plato or -Quintilian, or even to Luther and Knox, than to consider whether -he had been directly anticipated by any of his own countrymen, and -whether he himself anticipated, if he did not influence, later -English writers on education. - -A right estimate of Mulcaster’s temperament, and of his relation -to the surrounding conditions of thought and feeling, is due not -only as a matter of personal justice, but as affording a key to -a proper estimate of his writings. For these have a significance -beyond that of most works of the kind, in forming a somewhat -unique record of historical facts for a bygone period. The attempt -to trace the lines of progress by comparing one phase of culture -with another, has hitherto had imperfect success in the sphere of -education, for, like the arts of music and acting, it works in a -perishable medium, and makes a direct impression only on a single -generation. Even indirect testimony has until recently been almost -entirely wanting. To hardly any writer of earlier times has it -occurred to make any report of the actual conduct of teaching as -it existed around him, for the benefit of future ages. Those who -were interested in the subject have been more concerned to offer -speculative suggestions of reform that have apparently little -organic relation to the conditions of their own community. It is -not so much to the formal treatises of Plato and Aristotle that -we must look for such knowledge as we can obtain of Athenian -education in the fourth century before Christ, as to the incidental -references of writers who had no thought of conveying any definite -or detailed information on the matter. We find the same dearth -of evidence when we try to ascertain the actual working of -educational methods and organisation in the most advanced countries -of Europe during the two or three centuries that succeeded the -Renascence. The contemporary writers on the subject are for -the most part idealists; and while we gladly acknowledge their -services in that capacity, we must regret that to the visionary -outlook of the reformer they did not add the careful observation -of the historian. If Mulcaster is a noteworthy exception to this -rule, it is not because of set purpose he undertook the task of -record and criticism. It was no part of his plan to offer any -narrative or statistical report; indeed he expressly refrains from -commenting on the current practice of teaching, and alludes to -it only incidentally. His intention, as with the great majority -of educational writers, was to suggest improvements, to propose -an ideal; but his responsible position as a headmaster gave him -an ever-present sense of what was practicable, and enabled him -to base his efforts on the firm ground of accomplished fact. -His proposals are so evidently related to the existing state of -affairs that they may almost be taken as affording an historical -record of contemporary practice. The common-sense criticisms of -a shrewd observer like Montaigne, and the dreams of an idealist -such as Rabelais, have their own value; but we shall listen even -more readily to the words of one who speaks out of the fulness of -immediate knowledge, yet with equal power to rouse our aspiration -and energy. - -Before considering Mulcaster’s contributions to the theory and art -of education strictly so-called, it will be well to glance at his -influence in the more general aspects of learning and literature. -He must be credited with an important share in the movement towards -the dethronement of Latin in favour of the vernacular tongues, as -the medium of communication in subjects hitherto held to belong -exclusively to the domain of the learned class. The initiative -in this matter goes back, of course, to the time of Dante, but -even with the examples of Italy, France, and Spain to suggest the -change, it was a distinct and difficult task to work it out for -our own language. Mulcaster was not the first Englishman to write -a book in his native tongue which everyone would have expected to -be written in Latin. Sir Thomas More, in some of his historical -and controversial works, Roger Ascham, and a few other writers of -lesser note, had anticipated him in practice, and had been more -successful in attaining a lucid and graceful style, but it may -fairly be claimed that Mulcaster was the first to give a reasoned -justification of the course he followed and recommended, and to -further the end in view by taking definite steps to elaborate the -means. Nor is it only for his service in helping to establish a -canon of literary English, and show the way to others by using it -himself to the best of his ability, that acknowledgment is due. It -was a still more conspicuous merit to see clearly, and to enforce -by these means, the truth that the increase of learning, and the -methods by which it may be furthered, are subjects of interest not -to any limited class alone, but to every member of the community. -There may be comparatively little present value in his judgments -as to the proper content of the English vocabulary, and the forms -of spelling which he thought should be made authoritative, but at -least it is noteworthy that, at a time when linguistic science was -at a rudimentary stage, he had reached a singularly just conception -of the essential nature of a language, and the conditions of its -growth and decay. The interesting allegory where he traces the -process by which speech came to be represented by written symbols, -proves him to have grasped the idea, only in later times fully -understood, that language, as a product of human activity, shares -in all the features characteristic of organic development. - -It is not only the more formal aspects of language, moreover, that -he treats with discrimination. On the still subtler question of its -relation to thought and knowledge he speaks with a discernment far -beyond his time. The usurping tyranny of _words_ over the minds -of men, in place of the lawful domination of the realities they -symbolised, had in the movement of the Renascence changed its form -without relaxing its severity. If they were no longer so frequently -used as mere counters in vain disputations, they were yet apt to -be regarded with unreasoning idolatry, as the sacred embodiment of -the thoughts and feelings of settled forms of civilisation in the -past, exempt from any enquiry as to the conceptions they expressed. -Mulcaster does not share this illusion. In his view language is -primarily a means of communication, and though the acquirement of -foreign tongues may be a necessity for the time, yet they “push -us one degree further off from knowledge.” He may not have fully -realised the degree in which language is to be reckoned with as a -form of artistic expression and as an instrument of thought, though -his appreciation of the possibilities of the English tongue shows -that he did not forget these invaluable uses; but in any case he -saw clearly, and he was one of the first to see, that the crying -need of his time was to be set free from the despotism of words, -which made them rather a hindrance than a help to real knowledge. -“We attribute too much to tongues, in paying more heed to them than -we do to matter.” The bearing of this opinion on educational theory -will be considered presently, but it deserves to be noted at the -outset in evidence of the advanced philosophical standpoint of a -writer who belonged to the generation preceding Francis Bacon. - -Mulcaster’s independence of conventional practice is further -set beyond doubt by his conception of the place of authority in -argument. Anticipating Locke in deprecating the constant use of -great names in support of a writer’s thesis, he is of course -laying down a principle now so universally accepted that it seems -unnecessary to refer to it, but those who are acquainted with -the Renascence writers of any country know how widely a slavish -regard for the opinions of the classical authors took the place -of a direct appeal to the rational judgment of the reader. It was -no needless service to assign limits to this controversial habit, -to discriminate between superstitious servility and justifiable -deference to previous thinkers, to call for a fearless statement of -the truth as it appeared to each new enquiring spirit, and claim -that it should be tested wholly by its conformity to reason and -nature and experience. Especially valuable for his time was his -insistence on the difference of circumstance between the ancient -and the modern worlds, and between the characters of the various -nations. He may seem to us to carry these distinctions to an -excess when in considering ideal types of human nature he takes -account of the form of government under which each individual has -to live, holding certain qualities appropriate to a monarchy and -others to a republic, but at least he laid a useful emphasis on -the relativity of progress, and on the need for harmony in the -component institutions of a particular form of society. - -Another proof of Mulcaster’s general enlightenment may be found -in the fact that he was the first of his countrymen to affirm -seriously that education was the birthright of every child born -into the community. It is not intended to suggest by this that -he anticipated the full assumption by the State of the duty of -providing and enforcing universal education, but rather that he -desired to foster a public sentiment and social conditions which -would be favourable to the idea that the rudiments of learning -should by one means or another be distributed throughout the whole -body of the nation. Efforts in this direction had been made in -other countries under the levelling influence of the reforming -spirit in religion, but in England, where the change of faith -had been less associated with a democratic impulse, nothing had -as yet been done to popularise education in the proper sense -of the term, and public opinion had still to be prepared for -the movement. It is true that the sharp distinctions of rank -which the sixteenth century inherited from the Middle Ages were -never so absolutely marked in the sphere of learning as in other -departments of life. Though the child of lowly birth could never -become a gentleman, he could become a scholar. The helping hand -extended by the Church to the promising boy of low degree did -not, however, imply any relaxation of caste feeling so far as the -general supply of educational facilities was concerned. The humble -scholar was raised out of his own class, and was always regarded -as an exception. Taken in the mass, the gentry and the commonalty -were clearly separated, and no kind of training was thought in -any way due to the latter except such as might make them directly -serviceable to their betters. For the first notable attack on this -fundamental article of medieval faith, apart from the indirect -and interested claims of the Reformation leaders to the means of -influencing the young, credit is generally given to Comenius. But -it must be remembered that half a century before his time, and in -a country where the _régime_ of social status has always held a -firm position, a strong protest against educational exclusiveness -was raised by Richard Mulcaster, who maintained that the elements -of knowledge and training should be recognised as the privilege -of all, irrespective of rank or sex, and without regard to their -future economic functions. “As for the education of gentlemen,” -he writes, “at what age shall I suggest that they should begin to -learn? Their minds are the same as those of the common people, and -their bodies are often worse. The same considerations in regard to -time must apply to all ranks. What should they learn? I know of -nothing else, nor can I suggest anything better, than what I have -already suggested for all.” And his unwillingness to recognise any -kind of disability in matters of education, except what was proved -by the test of experience to be natural, is further shown in his -insistence that, as far as may be possible, girls should have the -same advantages as boys. Though, as he says, in deference to the -general feeling of his time and country he will not go so far as -to propose that girls should be admitted to the grammar schools -and universities, he not only wishes them to share in all the -opportunities of elementary education, but he wholly approves of -the ideal of higher culture for women, which was represented in the -attainments of Queen Elizabeth herself. - -We may now turn to matters that are less the concern of the -philosophic thinker and social observer than of the expert in -educational practice. Let us first examine Mulcaster’s conception -of the content of a liberal education, from the two points of view, -as to how far it should embrace a culture of the whole nature, -and as to the proper range of distinctively mental studies. It is -a matter of history that in both these respects the Renascence -ideal had fallen away from the example of the Greeks. Intellectual -culture had to a large extent been dissociated from physical and -moral training. The life of the scholar was a thing apart from the -conception of chivalry, which encouraged the physical prowess and -regard to a code of honour that were developed by the military -class. The formal profession of a religious end in learning took -the place of a genuine cultivation of character, and while this -restricted path was open to the more gifted of the poorer classes, -the alternative ideal was reserved for the upper social ranks. -It is true that in our own country in the Elizabethan era there -was some reconciliation of these diverse aims in the persons of -such men as Walter Raleigh and Philip Sidney, but the type they -represented was quite exceptional, and had no apparent influence on -general educational methods. There was great need for Mulcaster’s -plea that in the upbringing of children we should return to the -ideal expressed in Juvenal’s familiar phrase, “mens sana in -corpore sano.” No stress need be laid on the particular forms of -physical exercise which he recommended. His suggestions here were -not original, and the present time has little to learn from the -physiological conceptions of the sixteenth century. But what was -really instructive in his own day, and is scarcely less so in -ours, is the intimate relation he conceived to exist between the -body and the mind--a relation that demanded a harmonious training -of the whole nature. “The soul and the body being co-partners in -good will, in sweet and sour, in mirth and mourning, and having -generally a common sympathy and mutual feeling, how can they be, -or rather why should they be, severed in education?... As the -disposition of the soul will resemble that of the body, if the -soul be influenced for good, it will affect the body also.” His -use of the term _soul_, moreover, is significant of the conviction -which underlies all his writing, that the end of all physical -intellectual training is the development of the feelings that -prompt to right conduct. He was not carried away by the current -craze for book-learning into accepting as a legitimate end of -education the pursuit of knowledge for its own sake; in his view -the teacher must always have regard to the unfolding of the whole -character that would bear fruit in the discharge of the duties of -citizenship and other activities of a complete life. Not that he -wished the school to assume any preponderating control over the -child, either in the direction of opinion or in moral ascendency. -He had too clear an insight into the springs of conduct to ignore -the potency of the earliest influences of the home, and so far -from seeking to usurp the authority of parents in determining -their children’s lives, he urges the closest co-operation and -good feeling among all who have the pupil’s welfare at heart. -Some further insight will be gained into his comprehensive ideal -of upbringing when we come to consider his appreciation of home -influence more closely, but it may first be asked what his -conception was of the mental cultivation that should be aimed at in -a liberal curriculum. In regard to the secondary or grammar school -period of education, with which he was most intimately acquainted, -though he has many acute criticisms and luminous suggestions to -offer, his expressed intention of supplying a systematic treatment -was unfortunately left unfulfilled; and of his ideas as to -university teaching we have little more than a sketch of proposed -reforms. On these points something may presently be said, but we -may turn first to his contributions towards the establishment of -a sound elementary system, which he held to be the most important -stage of all, because it was the only form of education that could -be brought within the reach of every child, and was the foundation -of all further progress in learning. Even this part of the task -that he imposed on himself remains incomplete, but there is -material enough for a judgment of his point of view. It would seem -that in England, up to the Elizabethan era at least, no provision -had ever been made for rudimentary instruction for any except those -who were destined to proceed to the higher stages of learning, -and that the elementary training given to these select few was -limited to the barest preparation for the traditional study of the -classics. The reading and writing of the vernacular must have been -acquired up to a certain point before the Latin grammar could be -attacked, but it is clear that no adequate justice was done even to -these preliminary subjects, and that no attempt was made to include -a deliberate training of the senses and activities of the child. -Mulcaster’s proposals as to an elementary course certainly do not -sound revolutionary. His subjects coincide pretty nearly with our -familiar “three R’s,” and he is himself careful to show that he is -merely “reviving” what is commended by the precepts of the wise -men of old, and by the practice of the greatest States. But it was -no small merit to be the first to perceive that such a revival was -possible and desirable in his own time and country, and when his -proposals are examined it will be found that in the spirit in which -he conceived them they were far in advance alike of contemporary, -and of much later, thought and practice. It is a well-known -criticism of his contemporary, Montaigne, that teachers were apt to -think too much of the matter that was to be taught, and too little -of the nature of the learner. That this remark was just in relation -to these times we can well believe when we consider how recently -the traditional bearing of the schoolmaster has been associated -rather with the harsh enforcement of uncongenial tasks under the -threat of penalties than with the sympathetic encouragement of -willing and interested labours. Ascham had protested against the -short-sighted severity of teachers, but failed to see that its -root lay in the fact that the studies presented were generally -ill-adapted to the capacities and inclinations of the scholars. -Mulcaster, on the other hand, recognised that the remedy must be -sought in the discovery of a more reasonable method, towards which -he had definite constructive proposals to offer. He may even be -said to have anticipated by a couple of centuries the doctrine -of Rousseau, afterwards utilised by Pestalozzi and Froebel, that -the paramount aim of the teacher is not to communicate knowledge, -but to stimulate and guide the natural activity of the child. It -is to be noted that every one of the five subjects he proposed to -teach in the elementary school is of the nature of an art, calling -for independent action on the part of the learner, and giving -pleasurable exercise to the senses and bodily organs as well as -to the intelligence. It was more than a happy intuition that led -him to give so honourable a place to drawing and music; it was a -consistent application of his doctrine that the minds of young -children must be fed through the channels of sense perception, and -that faculty is to be developed by placing the outlets of energy -in immediate contact with the powers of acquisition. Drawing -was intended to give a direct and practical knowledge of space -relations and of the forms of natural objects, by combining the -activities of eye and hand, while at the same time it favoured -the cultivation of artistic expression. Music, being based on -varied arrangements of number in pitch and time, was counted on -to supply the ground-work of arithmetic, while in accordance with -the persuasion of the Greeks it was held to exercise a definite -æsthetic and moral influence on character. That Mulcaster had not -only thought out his theories on the matter, but had verified -them by individual child-study, is clear from the terms of his -recommendations. “We must seek for natural inclinations in the -soul, which seem to crave the help of education and nurture, and -by means of these may be cultivated to advantage.... The best way -to secure good progress, so that the intelligence may conceive -clearly, memory may hold fast, and judgment may choose and discern -the best, is so to ply them all that they may proceed voluntarily -and not with violence.” - -The same insight into the heart of the educational process appears -in his treatment of the grammar-school curriculum. When we remember -the absorbing pre-occupation with classical learning that was the -distinctive mark of the Renascence scholars, and the prominence -given in consequence to linguistic study in education, we should -not wonder if Mulcaster were found acquiescing in some degree in -the narrow ideal that exalted knowledge at the expense of faculty, -and laid more stress on the interpretation of words than of things. -What will rather excite our surprise and admiration is the extent -to which he was able to rise above the contemporary estimate of the -value of Latin and Greek as instruments of culture. It is from the -pen of one whose reputation in his own day was based on his mastery -of ancient languages and his success as a teacher of the classics, -that we have the clearest statement of the contrast between the -indirect, incidental value of linguistic training, and the direct, -formative influences of scientific study. “In time all learning may -be brought into one tongue, and that naturally understood by all, -so that schooling for tongues may prove needless, just as once they -were not needed; but it can never fall out that arts and sciences -in their essential nature shall be anything but most necessary for -every commonwealth that is not utterly barbarous.... The sciences -that we term ‘mathematical’ from their very nature always achieve -something good, intelligible even to the unlearned, by number, -figure, sound, or motion. In the manner of their teaching also -they plant in the mind of the learners a habit of resisting the -influence of bare probabilities, of refusing to believe in light -conjectures, of being moved only by infallible demonstrations.” - -It has been stated above that Mulcaster had reached a conception -distinctly in advance of his time in regard to the true -significance of words, as the signs of realities in the outer -world and of the impressions these realities make upon the mind. -We may here notice the influence of this conception on his -treatment of linguistic study as a means of education. While fully -admitting the necessity for acquiring the classical languages -as long as these continued to be the only vehicles of learning, -he never fails to regret the loss of time absorbed in studying -them, and he anticipates with satisfaction the time when modern -tongues, and especially his own, will be sufficiently developed -and refined to replace Latin and Greek, believing as he does that -“all that bravery may be had at home that makes us gaze so much -at the fine stranger.” Not that he ever forgets that words are -something more than mere symbols, that indeed they come to have a -certain objective reality of their own, which must be apprehended -as directly as that of any other natural phenomenon. “Do we not -learn from words?” he asks. “No marvel if it is so, for a word is -a metaphor, a learned translation, something carried over from -its original sense to serve in some place where it is even more -properly used, and where it may be most significant, if it is -properly understood. Take pains to learn from it; you have there -a means of gaining knowledge.” But this appreciation of the inner -significance of language does not blind him to the fact, apparently -unperceived by all his contemporaries, that the unfortunate need -for devoting so much time and energy to linguistic study was a very -serious hindrance to the natural unfolding of the mental faculties -through a reasonable education. In his own words, “we were forced -... to deal with the tongues, ere we pass to the substance of -learning; and this help from the tongues, though it is most -necessary, as our study is now arranged, yet hinders us in time, -which is a thing of great price--nay, it hinders us in knowledge, -a thing of greater price. For in lingering over language, we are -removed and kept back one degree further from sound knowledge, and -this hindrance comes in our best learning time.” And in another -passage he bewails the “loss of time over tongues, while you are -pilgrims to learning,” and the “lack of sound skill, while language -distracts the mind from the sense.” Where could we find a stronger -indictment of the Public School tradition that banishes every form -of nature study during the “best learning time,” the years when the -powers of observation are in their first freshness, for the sake of -a premature initiation into the subtleties of Latin Grammar? - -We may pass to another important question with which Mulcaster -deals in a spirit in harmony with his enlightened conception of -general instruction. His assumption that the day-school is the -normal arrangement, and that either an entirely private or a -boarding-school education requires to be justified by special -circumstances, gives him a far wider outlook and a safer standpoint -than can be claimed for theorists, whose ideal, like that of Locke, -regards only the upbringing of a gentleman’s son at home under a -tutor, or, like that of Milton, involves the collection of large -numbers in boarding establishments of a conventual nature. This is -a matter that is naturally related to the extension of educational -opportunities throughout all classes of the community. As long -as only a select few were thought fit for learning, residence -in the monastery was almost an affair of necessary convenience, -but when teaching came to be more widely offered, the day-school -became a recognised institution, and such other arrangements as -implied greater expenditure were retained only by the rich, as -instruments of social exclusiveness. It is in countries where -distinctions of rank are comparatively little marked that the -day-school system has flourished most, and the partiality shown -in Mulcaster’s day for the services of a private tutor, and in -subsequent times for the boarding-school, is certainly to be taken -in great measure as an assertion of class superiority. Mulcaster -was no democrat, but he saw that the rich had more to lose than -to gain by arrangements that unduly restricted their experience. -Moreover he clearly discerned the importance of the family as -the true social unit, the nursery of the virtues that should be -developed in the school, and find exercise in the public, as well -as the private, conduct of life. It is not his fault that his -countrymen have become bound hand and foot to a system under which -the vast majority of well-to-do parents hand over their children, -body and soul, from the tenderest years to the care of professional -upbringers, divesting themselves with a light heart of the most -precious responsibilities that nature has conferred on them. “How -can education be private?” he asks, “It is an abuse of the name as -well as of the thing.” But on the other hand he urges--“All the -considerations which persuade people rather to have their children -taught at home than along with others outside, especially with -regard to their manners and behaviour, form arguments for their -boarding at least at home, if the parents will take their position -seriously.... They are distinct offices, to be a parent, and a -teacher, and the difficulties of upbringing are too serious for all -the responsibilities to be thrown into the hands of one alone.” - -On the question of the position and standing of the teacher -Mulcaster’s contentions were scarcely more timely and just for his -own generation than they are for the present time. Though certain -ranks of the teaching profession have never been without social -consideration, it remains true that teachers as a whole were long -regarded as an inferior order of the clergy, who did not reach the -goal of their ambition until they had succeeded in leaving their -first calling, to take the more tranquil and dignified position -of a cure of souls. As he puts it--“The school being used but -for a shift, from which they will afterwards pass to some other -profession, though it may send out competent men to other careers, -remains itself far too bare of talent, considering the importance -of the work.” It was only natural that the profession should -suffer from this want of independence, in the general esteem, and -therefore in its substantial rewards, but the claim which our -author puts forward for greater public consideration, is obviously -based, not on any petty resentment on behalf of himself or his -fellows, but on broad general grounds of social advantage. He -had a high sense of the importance of the teacher’s task for the -national welfare, and he was anxious on all grounds that those -most fitted to fulfil it with success, should in the first place -be induced to enter the profession by the prospect of adequate -recognition, and in the second place have sufficient opportunity -of training to enable them to do justice to it. “I consider that -in our universities there should be a special college for the -training of teachers, inasmuch as they are the instruments to make -or mar the growing generation of the country ... and because the -material of their studies is comparable to that of the greatest -profession, in respect of language, judgment, skill in teaching, -variety in learning, wherein the forming of the mind and exercising -of the body require the most careful consideration, to say nothing -of the dignity of character which should be expected from them.” -Mulcaster, it will here be seen, has good grounds to offer for -magnifying his office, and striving to win a place of honour for -it in the social economy. Subsequent experience has tended to -suggest that his effort to gain greater consideration for his -profession was more utopian than could perhaps have appeared to -his contemporaries. There are certain general reasons why in a -country like ours the teaching profession cannot be expected to -reach the solidarity that belongs, for example, to the profession -of medicine or of law. The wide economic differences in our -civilisation inevitably perpetuate distinctions of rank, which are -nowhere more clearly shown than in the choice of schools. It is -natural and right that parents should be no less concerned about -the companionship they provide for their children than about the -quality of the teaching, and since a free and compulsory education -has brought into the national schools not only the poorest but the -lowest class, those who can afford it must be excused, and even -commended, if they take advantage of other opportunities, where -some principle of selection is applied. And as there are different -classes of children, representing on the whole different kinds of -home-upbringing, so there will be different ranks of teachers, -varying widely in their status and emoluments. The question of -numbers will always among day-schools give the town teacher an -advantage over his country brother; the question of fees, in so far -as these are not counter-balanced by endowments or State support, -will draw the most highly-qualified teachers to the schools that -serve the rich; and the secondary teacher will, on the whole, rank -above the elementary teacher, partly because greater attainments -are required from him, and partly because the higher teaching, -requiring a prolonged school course, is demanded chiefly by the -well-to-do classes. That this economic differentiation would -become so marked could scarcely have been foreseen three centuries -ago, and even though it already existed, Mulcaster was doing good -service in protesting against its extremer forms. His claim that -the elementary teacher is the most important of all, that he -should have the smallest classes to deal with, and that he should -be the most highly paid, must of course be taken as a counsel of -perfection, but if there is no present prospect of its being fully -admitted in practice, there is certainly a growing acceptance of -the principle underlying it, that the most critical period of -education is in the early years, when the first impressions are -being received, and that no influence deserves to be so well -considered as that which is to call forth an individual response -from the awakening intelligence. - -Difficult as the attainment of Mulcaster’s ideal of the position -of teachers may have been, he was undoubtedly on the right path to -seek it, when he advocated that their training should be entrusted -to the universities. The demand for adequate preparation is the -only reasonable means of securing at once a fitting status, and a -reward sufficient to attract the best talent, and the recognition -of the work of education as deserving to rank with the other -learned professions for which a special academic training is -required, is the natural expression of a healthy public sentiment -on the matter. The higher the requirements are pitched, the safer -will be the guarantee that aspirants will be drawn to the work by -a genuine belief in it as their true vocation, for the sake of -which it is worth while to make some sacrifice. The atmosphere of a -university, moreover, offers the fullest opportunity to the teacher -of acquiring the breadth of general culture, and the _savoir -vivre_, in which he is so apt to be deficient. - -Mulcaster’s proposals for university reform in general will be -found in several important respects to have anticipated the course -of subsequent legislation. He wished the State to have a free -hand in controlling the uses of private endowments according to -the special needs of each generation, as long as the confidence -of the original founders was not betrayed, and he was not slow -to point out directions where he considered that changes were -urgently needed. We know that in his time the condition of the -Universities of Oxford and Cambridge was far from satisfactory, -partly because definite abuses had crept in, and partly because -their constitution naturally offered a passive resistance to -regulative organisation. Mulcaster’s suggestions all tend to -greater concentration of aim and facility of classification. He may -have carried his desire for uniformity too far when he advocated -the specialisation of every college to a particular study, and -even to a particular stage in that study. So far as residence -is concerned there is surely no need to forgo the benefits of a -varied social intercourse among students of different standing -and pursuits, but it cannot be doubted that every effort should -be made to counteract the loss this may entail by providing full -opportunities throughout the whole university for the emulation of -those who are in the same academic position. In Elizabethan days -there was not the same freedom of interchange in lectures among the -various colleges that now obtains, and Mulcaster was doing good -service in deprecating the isolation and dispersion of interest -that interfered with progress. We must also commend the discernment -he showed in presenting the claims of a definite and comprehensive -curriculum in general learning to the attention of those who wished -to engage in professional studies, as well as his zeal for the more -careful selection of candidates for scholarships, fellowships, and -degrees. Nor is it to be forgotten that he was probably the first -to suggest the appointment of “readers” in the universities,--an -arrangement that was not adopted till almost our own time. - -The significance of Mulcaster’s theories may best be appreciated -by comparing them with those of the great educational reformer who -came next in order of time. The services rendered to the world by -Comenius are too well accredited, and too widely acknowledged, to -suffer any serious loss of prestige by such a comparison. It has -been already urged that true originality in social affairs means an -enlightened judgment as to what is possible and desirable for one’s -own time and country, and the reform of education had to be worked -out and proclaimed for continental Europe on independent lines. It -is not likely that Mulcaster’s writings had any direct influence on -Comenius, though they could hardly fail to make some contribution -to the general stock of ideas that is successively inherited by -each generation, and spreads almost imperceptibly over an ever -widening area. Even apart from any claim to priority in doctrine, -the forcible personality of the Moravian writer, expressing -itself in a singularly exhaustive treatment of educational -problems and their practical application, will always assure to -him an unquestioned authority, while his assertion of the weighty -principle that words and things must be taught together, spoken -and written signs being constantly associated with the objects, -qualities, or actions they represent, is in itself enough to secure -him a lasting reputation. But from the national point of view, -which in tracing such historical successions it is not unreasonable -to assume, we may justly note that there are a considerable -number of educational doctrines, now generally accepted among us -in theory if not in practice, the earliest formulation of which, -though generally ascribed to Comenius, is really to be found in the -writings of Richard Mulcaster. More than this, it may be maintained -that on several important points a more penetrating insight was -shown by our own countryman, in spite of his disadvantage in time. -In regard both to the end and the scope of education, for example, -a more humanistic conception seems to have been held by Mulcaster. -Unlike Comenius, who lays chief stress on the preparation for -eternity, he sets forth as the main purpose of youthful training -the more proximate aims of self-realisation and useful service to -one’s fellowmen. “The end of education and training is to help -nature to her perfection in the complete development of all the -various powers ... whereby each shall be best able to perform all -those functions in life which his position shall require, whether -public or private, in the interest of his country in which he was -born, and to which he owes his whole service.” And while both -writers insist that the rudiments of learning should be taught to -children of every social class and of both sexes, the Englishman -alone expresses sympathy with the ideal of a higher education for -girls where circumstances permit. It would seem also that Mulcaster -took the more reasonable view of the relation of a teacher to his -class, for his claim that the elementary master should have the -smallest number to deal with, at least shows a fuller sense of the -importance of individual treatment than is conveyed in the later -writer’s dictum that it does not matter how large a class is if the -teacher has monitors to help him. - -Among the doctrines of Comenius to which his expositors have -attached special importance may be numbered the following: that -the earliest teaching should be given in the vernacular; that the -first subjects taught should be such as give scope to the child’s -activity; that knowledge should be communicated through the -senses and put to immediate use; that examples should be taught -before rules; that the arts should be taught practically; that -in language-study grammar should accompany reading and speaking; -that learning should be spontaneous and pleasant without undue -pressure; that children should not be beaten for failure in -study, but only for moral offences; and that education should -follow in general the guidance of nature. These principles now -rank among the commonplaces of educational method, and in so far -as their acceptance has been furthered by the persuasive advocacy -of Comenius the gratitude of the world is due to him; but why -should Englishmen forget that they had all been proclaimed with -unmistakable clearness in this country half a century earlier? -Readers of the foregoing pages must be already convinced that -the doctrines in question form an essential part of Mulcaster’s -theory of education; but it may be worth while to recall in a -connected form a few of the more striking passages in which they -are expressed. On the use of the vernacular in the early years: -“As for the question whether English or Latin should be first -learned, hitherto there may seem to have been some reasonable -doubt, although the nature of the two tongues ought to decide the -matter clearly enough, ... but now ... we can follow the direction -of reason and nature in learning to read first that which we -speak first, to take most care over that which we use most, and -in beginning our studies where we have the best chance of good -progress, owing to our natural familiarity with our ordinary -language, as spoken by those around us in the affairs of everyday -life.” No particular quotation is needed to illustrate Mulcaster’s -dependence for his elementary training on studies that called -forth individual effort from the child, for the course he planned -includes no other kind of occupation, but the following sentences -may stand for a proof that he recognised the natural channels -through which knowledge is acquired and utilised in the guidance of -action: “Nature has ... given us for self-preservation the power -of perceiving all sensible things by means of feeling, hearing, -seeing, smelling, and tasting. These qualities of the outward -world, being apprehended by the understanding and examined by the -judgment, are handed over to the memory, and afterwards prove our -chief--nay, our only--means of obtaining further knowledge.... -To serve the end both of sense-perception and of motion, nature -has planted in the body a brain, the prince of all our organs, -which by spreading its channels through every part of our frame, -produces all the effects through which sense passes into motion.” -On the point of subordinating rules to the imitation of examples, -and learning the arts by practically engaging in them, Mulcaster -writes: “Children know not what they do, much less why they do -it, till reason grow into some ripeness in them, and therefore -in their training they profit more by practice than by knowing -why, till they feel the use of reason, which teaches them to -consider causes.... When the end of any art is wholly in doing, the -initiation should be short, so as not to hinder that end by keeping -the learners too long musing upon rules.... We must keep carefully -that rule of Aristotle which teaches that the best way to learn -anything well which has to be done after it is learned, is always -to be a-doing while we are a-learning.” To the question of the -best method in linguistic study, Mulcaster was ready to apply this -principle of learning directly through practice, and his sense of -the proper place of grammatical knowledge is shown in the following -passage: “Grammar in itself is but the bare rule, and a very naked -thing.... In grammar, which is the introduction to speech, there -should be no such length as is customary, because its end is to -write and to speak, and in doing this as much as possible we learn -our grammar best, when it is applied to matter and not clogged with -rules. As for understanding writers, that comes with years and -ripeness of intelligence, not by means of the rules of grammar.” It -has already been seen that Mulcaster shared fully in the humaner -views upon the treatment of children that were beginning to assert -themselves in his day; but it is interesting to notice that he -based his conviction not only on the general claims of sympathy, -but also on grounds of purely educational expediency. “These three -things--perception, memory, and judgment--ye will find peering -out of the little young souls. Now these natural capacities being -once discovered must as they arise be followed with diligence, -increased by good method and encouraged by sympathy, till they come -to their fruition. The best way to secure good progress, so that -the intelligence may conceive clearly, memory may hold fast, and -judgment may choose and discern the best, is so to ply them that -all may proceed voluntarily, and not with violence, so that the -will may be ready to do well and loth to do ill, and all fear of -correction may be entirely absent. Surely to beat for not learning -a child that is willing enough to learn, but whose intelligence -is defective, is worse than madness.... Beating must only be for -ill-behaviour, not for failure in learning.” Finally we must admit -that the principle urged by Comenius, and afterwards pushed to -an extreme by Rousseau and Froebel, of following the guidance of -nature in planning the procedure of instruction was explicitly -stated by Mulcaster. “The third proof of a good elementary course -was that it should follow nature in the multitude of its gifts, and -that it should proceed in teaching as she does in developing. For -as she is unfriendly wherever she is forced, so she is the best -guide that anyone can have, wherever she shows herself favourable.” - -It not infrequently happens that the doctrines of a notable -reformer, while they are full of light and leading for his -contemporaries, have no more than a historical interest for -succeeding generations. The rapidity of their absorption in the -general current of established theory must be largely determined -by the strength of the influence with which they were first -asserted, so that in one aspect it may be said that the more -potent the impress of the original mind, the sooner will its -individual effects become imperceptible. But it would be as rash to -make this rule the measure of an estimate of relative greatness, -without taking account of other contributing conditions, as it -would be unreasonable to be misled into the opposite error of -undervaluing proposals which had only a temporary fitness and are -of no present significance. In truth it is a good deal a matter -of accident whether the words of wisdom which fall from men of -genius and insight bear fruit early or late, and while distance -in time offers a vantage-ground for the just assignment of the -tributes of admiration and gratitude, the question of immediate -applicability must not bulk too largely among the elements on -which our judgment of a reputation is based. As has been already -suggested, Mulcaster lost his opportunity of speedy acceptance for -his ideals through his inability to commend them with persuasive -eloquence, though such an impediment to appreciation is happily not -irremovable. The more searching investigation of our time into the -history of educational thought might or might not have discovered -a high present value in the aspirations to which he gave somewhat -inadequate expression, without his title to fame being materially -affected. But it will undoubtedly give to his writings a great -additional interest if it should appear that they set forth lessons -which the three intervening centuries have failed to learn, and -which are still clamouring for acceptance in our own day. - -It would not be difficult to show that many of the reforms which he -urged and anticipated, while they have been formally admitted as -necessary or expedient, have as yet made little way in leavening -the whole mass of educational practice. There is good reason -to maintain, for example, that the impartial diffusion of the -opportunities of learning throughout all classes of the community, -which was a fundamental part of Mulcaster’s gospel, has been much -less completely realised among us than is generally supposed. We -are apt to rest satisfied with the idea of universal education -without over-careful a scrutiny into the nature of what is offered -in its name. In so far as elementary instruction was concerned -Mulcaster drew no distinction between rich and poor, between those -of gentle and of lowly birth; all were to have the same treatment, -irrespective of the uses to which their knowledge might afterwards -be turned. Our State system of education may profess to carry out -this aim, but the justice of the claim must be denied so long as -the nature and quality of what is forcibly imposed upon the mass of -the people is seriously at fault. Our system of public elementary -education in this country, however efficiently it may be organised, -fails entirely to provide a sound general training owing to its -adoption of a curriculum that is unduly utilitarian in aim. It is -undeniable that this is largely due to an implicit caste feeling -which prescribes that the education of the masses shall fit them -directly for the performance of certain industrial tasks in a -state of economic subjection. The well-to-do citizen wishes his -own child, even from the first, to be taught differently from the -child of poorer parents, whose schooling he helps to pay for and -has some share in regulating. The course of study he chooses may be -no better,--in some respects it is undoubtedly worse; but at least -it is different, and conforms to the conventional standard of a -liberal training for life as a whole. The codes drawn up for our -national system are not framed for any such purpose. Partly from -ingrained class prejudice, partly to get tangible results to show -for the public money expended, and partly from a benevolent but -short-sighted regard for supposed utilities, we have overburdened -the curriculum with the more mechanical parts of learning. We put -too much of the drudgery into the years when we can make sure of -the children, so that a minimum of interest is taken in the work -for its own sake, with the result that when the compulsory term -is reached, the great majority of them use their liberty to throw -aside their books for ever. While this reproach remains just, can -we say that the ideal of a true universal elementary education has -yet been reached? - -It is perhaps idle to expect any equalisation of opportunities -by postponing every kind of specialism to a period beyond the -elementary stage, until there is a more general agreement as to -what constitutes a liberal education. If we apply the touchstone of -Mulcaster’s conception, how much of the traditional lumber which -is now obstructing our progress would have to be cleared away! -We are the bond-slaves of two tyrants--the spirit of an outworn -classicism and the spirit of a utilitarianism falsely so-called. -Under the domination of the former we distort the curriculum of -our higher-class schools, preparatory as well as secondary, by -projecting into the elementary period and practically imposing on -every scholar linguistic studies that should form a specialism only -for a very few during the later years of school life. Misguided by -the latter we debase our public primary education by filling up -the time with subjects of mere information that neither arouse the -interests of the learner nor afford a genuine mental discipline. -It would indeed astound the Elizabethan schoolmaster who tolerated -pre-occupation with the learned tongues only until his native -English should reach a high enough point of cultivation to become a -worthy receptacle of learning, and who lamented the temporary need -for a medium which kept the student “one degree further off from -knowledge” to find that after more than 300 years the shackles had -not yet been cast aside. Nor would he be less dismayed to discover -that the sole alternative offered to those who were excluded -from what professed to be a liberal culture, consisted only to a -very small extent of that direct knowledge of the facts and laws -of Nature which he conceived to be the proper food during “our -best learning time,” but mainly of the dry bones of second-hand -experience. Mulcaster’s ideal will not be attained until we have -devised a course of study up to the age of at least 14 or 15 years, -which shall form a preparation for life that is applicable to all -pupils alike--to boys and girls, to rich and poor, to those who can -pursue their systematic education further, and to those who must -discontinue it then to enter into the world of affairs. - -Enough perhaps has been already said, though it would be an easy -task to continue the catalogue of reforms suggested by Mulcaster, -which have been approved by the consensus of judgment among -thinkers on education, but have not yet been fully carried out -in this country. When we remember the over-pressure and cramming -that have resulted from the abuse of examinations in the treatment -of learning as a marketable commodity subject to the severest -struggles of competition; or the widespread neglect of the arts -and sciences as instruments of general training; or the unholy -separation of parents and children during the most critical years -of mutual influence, through the acceptance of the boarding-school -system as a normal institution; or the anomalous position of -teachers, left as they are without recognition as members of an -acknowledged profession, and having to depend for their training on -the voluntary provision made by religious sects,--when we reflect -that on these and on many kindred matters of high urgency the -wisest guidance was offered to us more than three centuries ago, -we shall have little hesitation in admitting the claim of Richard -Mulcaster to be considered the Father of English Pedagogy. - - - - -[Illustration: (Publisher’s colophon.)] - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Educational Writings of Richard -Mulcaster, by Richard Mulcaster - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK EDUCATIONAL WRITINGS *** - -***** This file should be named 61900-0.txt or 61900-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/1/9/0/61900/ - -Produced by Turgut Dincer, John Campbell and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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-} - -.transnote p {text-indent: 0em;} - -/* custom cover.jpg */ -.customcover {visibility: hidden; display: none;} -@media handheld { - .customcover {visibility: visible; display: block;} -} - - </style> - </head> - -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Educational Writings of Richard -Mulcaster, by Richard Mulcaster - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll -have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using -this ebook. - - - -Title: The Educational Writings of Richard Mulcaster - -Author: Richard Mulcaster - -Editor: James Orin Oliphant - -Release Date: April 23, 2020 [EBook #61900] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK EDUCATIONAL WRITINGS *** - - - - -Produced by Turgut Dincer, John Campbell and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - -</pre> - - - - -<div class="transnote"> -<p><strong>TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE</strong></p> - -<p class="customcover">The cover image was created by the transcriber -and is placed in the public domain.</p> - -<p>Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been -corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within -the text and consultation of external sources.</p> - -<p>No other changes have been made to the text.</p> -</div> - - -<hr class="chap pg-brk" /> -<p class="p6" /> - -<h1>THE EDUCATIONAL WRITINGS OF<br /> -RICHARD MULCASTER</h1> - - -<p class="p6" /> -<hr class="chap pg-brk" /> -<p class="p6" /> - - -<p class="pfs60">PUBLISHED BY</p> - -<p class="pfs80">JAMES MACLEHOSE AND SONS, GLASGOW,</p> - -<p class="pfs80 antiqua lsp1">Publishers to the University.</p> - -<hr class="r5" /> - -<p class="pfs70">MACMILLAN AND CO., LTD., LONDON.</p> - - -<div class="fs70 pad20pc"> -<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="70%" summary=""> -<tr><td class="tdl"><em>New York</em>,</td><td class="tdl"><em>The Macmillan Co.</em></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><em>London</em>,</td><td class="tdl"><em>Simpkin, Hamilton and Co.</em></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><em>Cambridge</em>,</td><td class="tdl"><em>Macmillan and Bowes</em>.</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><em>Edinburgh</em>,</td><td class="tdl"><em>Douglas and Foulis</em>.</td></tr> -</table></div> - -<hr class="r5" /> - -<p class="pfs70">MCMIII.</p> - - -<p class="p6" /> -<hr class="chap pg-brk" /> -<p class="p4" /> - - -<p class="pfs135">THE</p> -<p class="p1 pfs150">EDUCATIONAL WRITINGS</p> -<p class="p1 pfs90">OF</p> -<p class="p1 pfs150">RICHARD MULCASTER</p> -<p class="p1 pfs120">(1532–1611)</p> - -<p class="p4 pfs70"><em>ABRIDGED AND ARRANGED, WITH A CRITICAL ESTIMATE</em></p> -<p class="p2 pfs70">BY</p> -<p class="pfs120">JAMES OLIPHANT, M.A., F.R.S.E.</p> -<p class="pfs60">AUTHOR OF “VICTORIAN NOVELISTS,” ETC.</p> - -<p class="p6 pfs80 lsp1">GLASGOW</p> -<p class="pfs80 lsp1">JAMES MACLEHOSE AND SONS</p> -<p class="pfs80 antiqua">Publishers to the University</p> -<p class="pfs90">1903</p> - - -<hr class="chap pg-brk" /> -<p class="p10" /> - -<p class="pfs60">GLASGOW: PRINTED AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS BY<br /> -ROBERT MACLEHOSE AND CO.</p> - - -<hr class="chap pg-brk" /> -<p class="p6" /> - -<p class="pfs80">TO MY SISTER</p> - -<p class="pfs90">AMY M. SMITH</p> - - - <div class="chapter"></div> -<p class="p6" /> -<hr class="chap" /> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_vii">[Pg vii]</a></span></p> -<p class="p6" /> - -<h2 class="no-brk">PREFACE.</h2> - - -<p class="noindent">Some apology is needed for the presentation of an -Elizabethan writer to English readers in any form but -that of the original text. The justification of the -present volume must lie in the fact that in the three -centuries and more that have elapsed since the educational -writings of Richard Mulcaster were given to the -world, they have entirely failed to gain acceptance as -literature. This neglect of one of our most interesting -and important educationists is no doubt chiefly to be -regarded as part of the general indifference which until -recently the British public has consistently shown to all -discussion of educational problems, but when we consider -the reputation of Mulcaster’s contemporary, Roger -Ascham, who had far less to say, but knew how to say -it with lucidity and grace, we are constrained to admit -that Mulcaster has lost his opportunity of catching the -world’s ear, and that if his writings are to be known and -appreciated as they deserve by this generation, it must -be rather for their substance than for their literary style. -It is true that the serious student may now be trusted to -investigate for himself the thoughts of earlier authors -in spite of difficulties of form and expression, but the -general reader will expect more help than, in the case -of Mulcaster at least, is at present available. The<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_viii">[viii]</a></span> -earlier of his two chief works, the <cite>Positions</cite>, published -in 1581, was out of print for 300 years, until the issue -in 1888 of an almost facsimile edition by the late Mr. -Quick, to whom the credit of discovering this author is -mainly due, while the second work, the <cite>Elementarie</cite>, -has never been reprinted at all. It is safe to assume -that not many readers will care to possess themselves -of the somewhat expensive reprint of the former work, -or to institute a search for one of the rare copies of the -original and only edition of the latter. And if these -books were to be made more accessible, it seemed -worth while at the same time to present them in such -a form that they should be readily intelligible to the -ordinary reader. In the case of an acknowledged -literary classic it may be inadmissible to tamper even -with the type and spelling, far more with the phraseology -and arrangement of sentences, but such scruples -would be out of place with the author now in question. -An attempt has been made to remove all gratuitous -hindrances to a full understanding of the author’s -meaning, while omitting nothing that is at once characteristic -and significant. It is hoped that in the process -of adaptation as little as possible has been lost of the -quaint flavour of the original, and of the gifts of expression -that Mulcaster undoubtedly possessed, however -much these were obscured by the euphuistic tendency -and the somewhat laboured construction that marked -the prose of his time.</p> - -<p class="right">J. O.</p> - - -<hr class="chap pg-brk" /> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_ix">[ix]</a></span></p> -<p class="p6" /> - -<h2 class="no-brk"><a id="CONTENTS"></a>CONTENTS.</h2> - -<div class="fs90 smcap lsp"> -<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="90%" summary=""> -<tr><td class="tdl"></td><td class="tdr fs70">PAGE</td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">The method of treatment,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_1">1</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">The purpose of writing,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_2">2</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Reasons for writing in English,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_4">4</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">First principles,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_4">4</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">The use of authority,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_7">7</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">The ideal and the possible,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_11">11</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">When school education should begin,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_12">12</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Risk of overpressure,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_13">13</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Mens Sana in corpore sano,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_14">14</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Physical exercise needs regulation,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_15">15</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Physical and mental training should go together,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_15">15</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Exercise specially necessary for students,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_16">16</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">The best kinds of exercise,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_17">17</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Football as a form of exercise,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_17">17</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Is education to be offered to both sexes?</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_18">18</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">All cannot receive a learned education,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_19">19</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Choice of scholars both from rich and poor,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_20">20</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">The number of scholars limited by circumstances,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_21">21</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="pagenum fvnormal"><a id="Page_x">[x]</a></span> - The number of scholars kept down by law,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_22">22</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Talent not peculiar either to rich or poor,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_22">22</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Choice of those fit for learning,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_23">23</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">How the choice of scholars, should be determined,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_24">24</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Grounds for promotion,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_25">25</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Co-operation of parents,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_27">27</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Admission into colleges,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_28">28</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Preferment to degrees,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_29">29</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Natural capacity in children,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_30">30</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Encouragement better than severity,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_32">32</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Moral training falls chiefly on parents,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_32">32</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Elementary instruction—reading,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_33">33</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">The vernacular first,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_34">34</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Material of reading,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_35">35</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Writing,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_36">36</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Elementary period a time of probation,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_37">37</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Drawing,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_37">37</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Music,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_39">39</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Four elementary subjects,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_42">42</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Study of languages,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_44">44</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Follow nature,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_45">45</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Education of girls,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_50">50</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Aim of education for girls,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_53">53</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">When their education should begin,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_54">54</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">All should have elementary education,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_55">55</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Higher studies for some,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_57">57</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="pagenum fvnormal"><a id="Page_xi">[xi]</a></span> - What higher studies are suitable,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_58">58</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Who should be their teachers,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_60">60</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">The education of young gentlemen,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_60">60</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Private and public education,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_61">61</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">What should a gentleman learn?</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_65">65</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">What makes a gentleman?</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_68">68</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Learning useful to noblemen,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_70">70</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Course of study for a gentleman,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_72">72</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Foreign travel,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_73">73</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Gentlemen should take up the professions,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_77">77</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">The training of a prince,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_78">78</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Boarding-schools,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_79">79</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">School buildings,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_82">82</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Best hours for study,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_84">84</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Elementary teacher most important,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_85">85</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">The grammar school teacher,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_87">87</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">The training of teachers,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_90">90</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">University reform,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_91">91</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">A college for languages,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_92">92</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">A college for mathematics,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_93">93</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">A college for philosophy,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_95">95</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Professional colleges,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_96">96</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">General study for professional men,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_96">96</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">A training college for teachers,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_97">97</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Use of the seven colleges,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_98">98</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Uniting of colleges,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_99">99</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl"><span class="pagenum fvnormal"><a id="Page_xii">[xii]</a></span> - University readers,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_100">100</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Evils of overpressure,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_101">101</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Limit of elementary course,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_103">103</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Difficulties in teaching,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_104">104</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Uniformity of method,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_105">105</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Choice of school books,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_110">110</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">School regulations,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_113">113</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Punishments,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_113">113</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Condition of teachers,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_117">117</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Consultation about children,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_118">118</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">Systematic direction,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_121">121</a></td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl">The standard of English spelling,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_124">124</a></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl pad3">The Peroration,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_171">171</a></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td></tr> -<tr><td class="tdl pad3">Critical Estimate,</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_209">209</a></td></tr> -</table></div> - - - <div class="chapter"></div> -<hr class="chap" /> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_xiii">[xiii]</a></span></p> -<p class="p6" /> - -<h2 class="no-brk"><a id="BIOGRAPHICAL_SKETCH"></a><a href="#CONTENTS">BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.</a></h2> - - -<p class="noindent">Richard Mulcaster came of a border family that -could trace its descent back to the eleventh century. -On his wife’s tomb he describes himself as “by ancient -parentage and lineal descent, an esquire born,” and -there is evidence that some of his ancestors held positions -of importance, both administrative and academic. -In the fourteenth century we hear of a Richard de -Molcastre, who, as the second son, inherited from his -father, Sir William, the estates of Brakenhill and Solport, -and the family retained its consideration up to our -own time. But in the reign of Elizabeth the ancestral -lands were no longer in the possession of the branch to -which our author belonged. He was probably born in -the border district, and the date of his birth must have -been about 1532. He was sent to Eton, then under -Nicholas Udall, who as a headmaster was known alike -for his learning and his severity, and who as the writer -of the first regular English comedy, may have given -Mulcaster his taste for the drama. In 1548 he went -to Cambridge as a King’s Scholar, but in 1555 we hear -of his election as a Student of Christchurch, Oxford. -In the following year he was “licensed to proceed in -Arts.” He had a reputation for a knowledge of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_xiv">[xiv]</a></span> -Hebrew as well as of Latin and Greek, and seems -shortly afterwards to have chosen the profession of a -schoolmaster, making his way to London about 1558 -or 1559.</p> - -<p>In 1560 the Guild of Merchant Taylors decided to -establish the well-known day Grammar School for boys -which still bears their name, and in the following year -Mulcaster was appointed the first headmaster, having -charge of two hundred and fifty scholars, with the -assistance of three undermasters. The school hours -were from 7 to 11 a.m. and from 1 to 5 p.m., with one -half holiday in the week, besides the ordinary church -festival days, and for this the headmaster received the -salary of £10 (equivalent to £80 or £100 now), besides -a dwelling in the school and a small sum from entrance -fees. He was granted twenty days’ leave of absence in -the year, but was not allowed to hold any other office, -though his appointment was only held from year to -year.</p> - -<p>The reputation Mulcaster had already gained as a -teacher before his appointment is shown in the fact -that the post was offered to him without his application, -and that he accepted it only after some hesitation, -when he was promised an additional £10 of salary, -on the private and personal guarantee of one of the -Governors. He held the position for twenty-five -years, and his successful conduct of the school is fully -attested by the verdict of eminent scholars who acted -as examiners, by the expressions of satisfaction in -the minutes of the Council, and by the testimony of -the pupils themselves, many of whom attained distinction -in after-life.</p> - -<p>Of Mulcaster’s scholars at Merchant Taylors’ School -the most famous was Edmund Spenser, but in the absence<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_xv">[xv]</a></span> -of any reference to his teacher by the poet, we have to be -content with the direct evidence of Lancelot Andrews, -Bishop of Winchester, and Sir James Whitelock, -Justice of the King’s Bench. Of the former it is -recorded that he “ever loved and honoured” his former -headmaster, befriending him and his son after him, and -keeping his portrait over the door of his study. The -latter tells us that Mulcaster besides instructing him -well in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, was careful to -increase his skill in music, and chose him to act with -other scholars in the plays he presented at Court, by -which means the boys were taught good manners and -self-confidence. The account of him in Fuller’s <cite>Worthies</cite> -may perhaps represent the impressions of less gifted -scholars—“Atropos might be persuaded to pity, as soon -as he to pardon, where he found just fault. The prayers -of cockering mothers prevailed with him as much as -the requests of indulgent fathers, rather increasing than -mitigating his severity on their offending child.... -Others have taught as much learning with fewer lashes, -yet his sharpness was the better endured, because -impartial, and many excellent scholars were bred under -him.”</p> - -<p>But while Mulcaster was building up securely the -reputation of the school, his own position was not -always comfortable, and in the end the friction -between himself and the governing body became so -great that he felt constrained to resign the headmastership. -This was no doubt partly due to his own -somewhat hasty and masterful temper, for on one -occasion at least it is recorded in the minutes of the -Council that he had made open apology for things -said and done in anger, but there were more lasting -causes of dispute. After the first eight years the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_xvi">[xvi]</a></span> -promised supplement to his official income was no -longer forthcoming, apparently owing to the declining -circumstances of the member of the Council who had -contributed it, and Mulcaster having on the strength of -this extra sum increased the salary of his first -assistant, conceived that he was entitled to its continuance -from the Company. There were besides -disputes between the Council and the authorities of -St. John’s College, Oxford, where its founder, a -member of the Guild, had reserved certain free places -for orphans coming from the school, and in these -Mulcaster was involved. While the Council seems to -have acted throughout within its rights, and in the -end showed a desire to deal even generously with -its headmaster, it is easy to understand the difficulties -of the situation, especially to a man like -Mulcaster, whose natural impatience of control would -not be diminished by his evident sense that in -birth as well as in learning he was above his official -superiors. So necessary did he feel it to regain his -freedom that in 1586 he tendered his resignation, -without apparently having any definite prospect of -other work.</p> - -<p>During the next ten years scarcely anything is -known of Mulcaster’s life, except that he was in -straitened circumstances. By 1588 his claim on the -Merchant Taylors’ Guild had been adjusted by a compromise, -and friendly relations must have been -restored, for we find him acting as examiner to the -School in that year. For part of this time at least he -was out of London, for he seems to have been for a -year vicar of Cranbrook in Kent, and he was afterwards -granted by the Queen the prebend of Yatesbury, -in the diocese of Salisbury.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_xvii">[xvii]</a></span></p> - -<p>In 1596 came a return of prosperity in a settled -position. The headmaster of St. Paul’s School, which -had been founded at the beginning of the century by -John Colet, and bequeathed by him to the management -of the Silk Mercers’ Guild, had resigned his post, as a -result of similar differences with the governing body to -those which occurred in the Merchant Taylors’ School, -and Mulcaster, whatever misgivings he may have had, -had learned enough from his recent experience not to -decline the vacant office when it was offered to him. -He was already in his sixty-fourth year when he -received the appointment, and he continued to hold it -till he was seventy-six. The conditions were much the -same as those under which he had formerly worked, the -statutes of St. Paul’s School having indeed served as a -model to the later foundation, but the number of -scholars was limited to 153, and the salary of the -headmaster was £36 (equal to about £300 now), in -addition to a residence in the school. In 1602 the -salaries of all the teachers were doubled, in recompense -for certain restrictions imposed by a new set of regulations, -and when Mulcaster resigned his position in 1608, -presumably on account of failing strength, he received -a yearly pension of £66 3s. 4d. until his death three -years later. There is little to record of his labours -during his twelve years’ service at St. Paul’s School, the -only outstanding event being in connection with the -accession of James I. in 1603. It was the privilege of -his scholars to welcome the Sovereign to the capital, -and we read that on this occasion a Latin speech, -prepared by the headmaster, was delivered by one of -the scholars at the door of the School.</p> - -<p>It is painful to learn that the closing years of -Mulcaster’s life were clouded by distressing poverty.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_xviii">[xviii]</a></span> -Nor is this easy to understand, for besides his -pension, he was not without resources. He had -some time before been granted by Queen Elizabeth -the living of Stanford Rivers in Essex, but -had been precluded from entering on it while he -remained at St. Paul’s School. On his retirement from -the headmastership he took up the duties of his -country charge, notwithstanding his advanced age, -though without striking success, according to Fuller’s -account: “I have heard from those who have heard -him preach that his sermons were not excellent, which -to me seems no wonder, partly because there is a -different discipline in teaching children and men, partly -because such who make divinity not the choice of their -youth but the refuge of their age seldom attain to -eminency therein.” In spite of these two sources of -income we find Mulcaster in 1609 making a pitiful but -unsuccessful appeal to his old patrons, the Merchant -Taylors, and when he died two years later he left his -son burdened with debts, from which he was only -relieved by the aid of some of his father’s former -scholars, and of the two Guilds under which he had -served. His wife had died two years before him, after -fifty years of wedded life, and her virtues are recorded -in a commemorative tablet.</p> - -<p>Mulcaster’s educational writings were produced -towards the close of the period spent at Merchant -Taylors’ School, the <cite>Positions</cite> appearing in 1581, and -the <cite>First Part of the Elementarie</cite> in 1582. The completion -of the latter, and the further works promised on -higher education, were never accomplished. He also -wrote numerous Latin verses, including an address to -Queen Elizabeth at the Kenilworth pageant of 1575, -and a catechism, also in Latin, for the use of his pupils<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_xix">[xix]</a></span> -at St. Paul’s School, while he is mentioned as the author -of a work entitled <cite lang="la" xml:lang="la">Cato Christianus</cite>, which has not come -down to us.</p> - -<p>All the sources of information regarding Mulcaster’s -life and writings have been collected and compared with -exhaustive industry by Dr. Theodor Klähr in a -pamphlet entitled <cite lang="de" xml:lang="de">Leben und Werke Richard Mulcaster’s</cite> -(Dresden, 1893).</p> - - - <div class="chapter"></div> -<hr class="chap" /> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_1">[Pg 1]</a></span></p> -<p class="p6" /> - -<h2 class="no-brk"><a id="THE_EDUCATIONAL_WRITINGS_OF"></a><a href="#CONTENTS">THE EDUCATIONAL WRITINGS OF<br /> -RICHARD MULCASTER</a></h2> - - -<h3>The Method of Treatment.</h3> - -<p>Whosoever shall consider carefully the manner of -bringing up children which is in general favour within -this realm, cannot but agree with me in wishing that -it were improved. I do not think it well, however, -in this place to lay bare its special defects, because -I am in hope of seeing them healed without so strong -a measure. If I should seek to expose all the inconveniences -which are experienced between parents and -schoolmasters, and between teachers and learners; if -I should refer to all the difficulties through which the -education and upbringing of children is seriously -impaired, I might revive causes of annoyance, and -thereby make the evils worse. And even though I -were to remedy them, the patient might bear in mind -how churlishly he was cured, and though he should pay -well for the healing, he might be ill-satisfied with the -treatment. Wherefore in mending things that are -amiss, I take that to be the most advisable way which -saveth the man without making the means unpleasant. -If without entering into controversies I set down what<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_2">[2]</a></span> -seems to me on reasonable grounds to be the right -course as being not only the best, but most within -compass, the wrong course will forthwith show itself -by comparison, and will thus receive a check without -any need for fault-finding.</p> - - -<h3>The Purpose of Writing.</h3> - -<p>I have taught in public now without interruption for -two-and-twenty years, and have always had a very -great charge committed to my hands, my fulfilment -of which I leave to an impartial judgment. During -this time, both through what I have seen in teaching -so long, and what I have tried in training up so many, -I well perceive that, with the disadvantages which -myself and other teachers have been subject to, none -of us have been able to do as much as we might. I -believe I have not only learned what these disadvantages -are, but have discerned how they may be removed, -so that I and all others may be able to do much more -good than heretofore. And as I write for the common -good I appeal to the reader’s courtesy to give me -credit for good intentions, though my hopes should not -be realised. For I am only doing what is open to all, -namely, to give public utterance to my personal convictions, -and to claim indulgence for what is intended -for the general good. As I am myself ready to give -favourable consideration to others who do the same, -I expect any who make use of my work to their own -profit to give me credit for it, and those who get no -benefit from it at least to sympathise with me in -meeting so little success for my good intentions. I -may be told—You are alone in raising this matter; -you do but trouble yourself; you cannot turn aside -the course, which is old and well-established, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_3">[3]</a></span> -therefore very strong for you to strive against. This -thing which you recommend is not every man’s -wares; it will not be compassed. Do you let it alone; -if you must needs write, turn your pen to other matters -which the State will like better, which this age will -readily approve of, which you may urge with credit if -they be new and suitable, or confirm with praise if they -be old and need repeating.</p> - -<p>If such objections were not invariably raised to all -attempts to turn either from bad to good, or from good -to better, I would answer them carefully, but now I need -not, for in order to gain any advantage he who wishes -to have it must be prepared to wrestle for it, both in -speech and in writing, against the corruption of his age, -against the loneliness of attempt, against party prejudice, -against the difficulties of performance. Nor must he -be discouraged by any ordinary thwarting, which is a -thing well known to experienced students, and of least -account where it is best known, however fearful a thing -it may seem to timid fancies to stem corruption and -strive against the stream. For the stream will turn -when a stronger tide returns, and even if there be no -tide, yet an untiring effort will make way against it -till it prevails. And surely it were more honourable -for some one, or some few, to hazard their own credit -and estimation for the time in favour of a thing which -they know to be deserving of support, though it may -not be held of much account, than through too timorous -a concession to public opinion, which, in spite of its -influence, is not always the soundest, to leave excellent -causes without defence if they be opposed. For may -it not fall out that such a thing as this will be called -for hereafter, though at present it may be out of favour, -because something else is in fashion? I had rather,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_4">[4]</a></span> -therefore, that it were ready then to be of use when -it is wished, than that posterity should be defrauded of -a thing so passing good, for fear of its being disliked at -the first setting forth.</p> - - -<h3>Reasons for Writing in English.</h3> - -<p>I write in my natural English tongue, because though -I appeal to the learned, who understand Latin, I wish -to reach also the unlearned, who understand only -English, and whose interests are to be the more considered -that they have fewer chances of information. -The parents and friends with whom I have to deal are -for the most part no Latinists, and even if they were, -yet we understand that tongue best to which we are -first born, and our first impression is always in English -before we render it into Latin. And in recommending -a new method of attaining an admitted benefit, should -we not make use of all the helps we can to make -ourselves understood? He that understands no Latin -can understand English, and he that understands -Latin very well can understand English far better, if he -will confess the truth, however proud he may be of his -Latinity. When my subject requires Latin I will not -then spare it, as far as my knowledge allows, but till it -do, I will serve my country in the way that I think -will be most intelligible to her.</p> - - -<h3>First Principles.</h3> - -<p>My purpose is to help the whole business of teaching, -even from the very first foundation, that is to say, not -only what is given in the Grammar School, and what -follows afterwards, but also the elementary training -which is given to infants from their first entrance, until -they are thought fit to pass on to the Grammar School.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_5">[5]</a></span> -In my manner of proceeding I propose to follow the -precedent of those learned authors who have treated -with most credit of this and similar subjects, in first -laying down certain principles to which all readers will -agree. By this means it is possible to pass on to the -end without challenge, or if any difficulty should arise, -it can always be resolved by a reference to these -principles. In mathematics, which offers the best model -of method to all the other sciences, before any problem -or theorem is presented, there are set down certain -definitions, postulates, axioms, to which general assent -is asked at the outset, and on which the whole structure -is built up. I am the more inclined to adopt this -method, because I am to deal with a subject that must -at the first be very carefully handled, till proof gives -my treatment credit, whatever countenance hope may -seem to lend it in the meanwhile.</p> - -<p>I mean specially to deal with two stages in learning, -first the Elementary, which extends from the time that -the child is set to do anything, till he is removed to -the higher school, and then the Grammar School -course, where the child doth continue in the study of -the learned tongues till at the time of due ripeness he -is removed to some university. The importance of the -Elementary part lieth in this, that a thorough grounding -here helps the whole course of after study, whereas -insufficient preparation in the early stages makes a very -weak sequel. For just as a proper amount of time -spent here, without too much haste to push onwards, -brings on the rest of the school stages at their due -season, and in the end sendeth abroad sufficient men -for the service of their country, so too headlong a -desire to hurry on swiftly, in perpetual infirmity of -matter, causeth too much childishness in later years,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_6">[6]</a></span> -when judgment and skill and ripeness are more in -keeping with grey hairs. The Grammar School course, -while it is a suitable subject for me to deal with, as I -am myself a teacher, is also very profitable for the -country to hear of, as in the present great variety of -teaching, some uniform method seems to be called for. -To have the youth of the country well directed in the -tongues, which are the paths to wisdom, the treasuries of -learning, the storehouses of humanity, the vehicles of -divinity, the sources of knowledge and wisdom—can -this be a small matter, if it be well performed? If -fitting occasion by the way should cause me to attempt -anything further than these two divisions of the subject, -though I should seem to be going beyond my school -experience, I trust I shall not be thought to travel -beyond my capacity. In seeking for the approval of -men I may indeed find some who are satisfied with -things as they are, who think their penny good silver, -and decline my offer, being unwilling to receive teaching -from such humble hands as mine. There may be -others who grant that there is something amiss, but -think my remedy not well fitted to amend it, and look -disdainfully on my credentials. I admit my lack of -authority, but till some one better takes the matter up, -why should I not do what I can? If the wares I bring -prove marketable, why should I not offer them for -sale? As I am likely to encounter such objections, I -propose at the outset to meet all I can on grounds of -reason, with full courtesy to those who make them.</p> - -<p>Inasmuch as I must apply my principles to some -one ground, I have chosen the Elementary, rather than -the Grammar School course, because it is the very -lowest, and the first to be dealt with, and because the -considerations that apply to it may easily be transferred<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_7">[7]</a></span> -afterwards to the Grammar School or any other studies. -The points I propose to deal with are such as the -following: At what age a child should be sent to -school, and what he should learn there; whether all -children should be sent to school; whether physical -exercise is a necessary part of upbringing; whether -young maidens ought to be set to learning; how young -gentlemen should be brought up; how uniformity can -be introduced into teaching. I shall also speak of -courtesy and correction, of public and private education, -of the choice of promising scholars, of places and times -for learning, of teachers and school regulations, and of -the need for restricting the numbers of the learned -class. In my views on these and kindred matters I -shall seek to win the approval of my countrymen, -before I proceed to deal with particular precepts and -the details of the upbringing of children. In my discussion -of all these matters, while in method I shall -follow the example of the best writers, I will, in the -substance of my argument, make appeal only to nature -and reason, to custom and experience, where there is a -clear prospect of advantage to my country, avoiding -any appearance or suspicion of fanciful and impracticable -notions. I may hope that the desire to see things -improved will not be accounted fanciful, unless by those -who think themselves in health when they are sick -unto death, and while feeling no pain because of -extreme weakness, hold their friends foolish in wishing -them to alter their mode of life.</p> - - -<h3>The Use of Authority.</h3> - -<p>Some well-meaning people, when they wish to persuade -their fellow-countrymen either by pen or by -speech, to adopt a certain course, if they can claim the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_8">[8]</a></span> -authority of any good writers favouring their opinions, -straightway assume that their own arguments are -sufficiently supported to ensure their proposal being -carried out. This assurance, however, is checked sometimes -by reflection, sometimes by experience. Wise -reflection may foresee that the special circumstances of -the country will not admit of the proposed change, or -after some trial the unsuitability may be shown by -experience. So that in cases where authorities persuade, -and circumstances control, those who would use -earlier writers to maintain their credit must always keep -in view the application to particular conditions. I see -many people of good intelligence, considerable reading, -and facility of expression, both abroad and at home, -fall into great error by neglecting special circumstances, -and overstraining the force of authority. In dealing -with education, must I entreat my country to be content -with this because such a one commends it, or force -her to that because such a State approves of it? The -show of right deceives us, and the likeness of unlike -things doth lead us where it listeth. For the better -understanding with what wariness authority is to be used, -let it be considered that there are two sorts of authors -that we deal with in our studies. Of the one kind are -writers on the mathematical sciences, who proceed by -the necessity of a demonstrable subject, and enforce the -conclusions by inevitable argument. Of the other kind -are writers on the moral and political sciences, who, -dealing with human affairs, must have regard to the -circumstances of every particular case. With the -former the truth of the subject-matter maintains itself, -without the need for any personal authority, and is -beyond debate; it is with the latter that controversy -arises, the writer’s credit often authorising the thing, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_9">[9]</a></span> -in this case great injustice may be done by quoting -without discrimination as to difference of circumstance. -It is no proof that because Plato praiseth something, -because Aristotle approveth it, because Cicero commends -it, because Quintilian or anyone else is acquainted -with it, therefore it is for us to use. What if our -country honour it in them, and yet for all that may not -use it herself, because the circumstances forbid? Nay, -what if the writers’ authority be cited without considering -in what circumstances the opinion was originally -expressed? Is not a great wrong done by him who -wresteth the meaning of the author he quotes? He -that will deal with writers so as to turn their conclusions -to the use of his country must be very well advised, -and diligently mark that their meaning and his application -are consistent, and must consider how much of -their opinion his country will admit. Whether I shall -myself be able to carry out what I demand from others, -I dare not warrant, but I will do my best to use my -author well, and to take circumstances into account, -never, if I can help it, to offer anything that has not all -the foundations that I promised before, namely, <em>nature</em> -to lead it, <em>reason</em> to back it, <em>custom</em> to commend it, -<em>experience</em> to approve it, and <em>profit</em> to prefer it.</p> - -<p>I think a student ought rather to invest himself in -the habit of his writer than to stand much upon his -title and authority in proof or disproof, as it is well -understood that all our studies are indebted to the -original devisers and the most eloquent writers. Therefore, -to avoid undue length, I will neither give authorities -nor examples, as it is not a question of a man’s -name, but of the real value of the argument. I shall -not busy myself with citing authors, either to show what -I have read or how far I am in agreement with others.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_10">[10]</a></span> -It is not needful to heap up witnesses where nothing is -doubtful; the natural use of testimony is to prove where -there is doubt, not to cloy where all is clear. In such -cases, for want of sound judgment, a catalogue of names -and a multitude of sentences, which only say what no -one denies, are forced on to the stage to seem to arm -the quoter, who is fighting without a foe, and flying -when there is no cause for fear.</p> - -<p>In points of learning which are beyond controversy, -I appeal to the judgment of those who have gone over -the same ground, and can test the truth of what I say -without being told the name of the author, whom they -will admit to have been well cited when they find me -saying as he saith, whether it be through recollection of -what I have read or from coincidence of judgment -where I have not read. I do honour good writers, but -without superstition, being in no way addicted to titles. -But seeing that Reason doth honour them, they must -be content to remain outside themselves, and use every -means to bring her forward, as their lady and mistress, -whose authority and credit procure them admission -when they come from her. It is not so because a writer -said so, but because the truth is so, and he said the -truth. Indeed, the truth is often weakened in the -hearer’s opinion, though not in itself, by naming the -writer. If truth did depend upon the person, she would -often be brought into a miserable plight, being constrained -to serve fancy and alter at will, whereas she -should bend to no one, however opinionative people -may persuade themselves. This is known to the learned -and wise, whose courtesy I crave. As for the unlearned, -I must entreat them, for their sakes if not for mine, not -to debate with me on points where they cannot judge. -In matters that are intelligible to both, I must pray<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_11">[11]</a></span> -them to weigh my words well, and ever to give me -credit for good intentions.</p> - - -<h3>The Ideal and the Possible.</h3> - -<p>Those ancient writers, who have depicted ideal commonwealths, -and have imagined the upbringing of such -paragons as should be fitted for a place in them, before -asking when their youth should begin to learn, have -commonly laid down the conditions of their training -from a very early stage. They begin by considering -how to deal with the infant while he is still under his -nurse, discussing whether he should be nursed by a -stranger or by his mother, what playfellows should be -chosen for him while he is still in the nursery, and -what exquisite public or private training can be devised -for him afterwards. These and other considerations -they fall into, which do well beseem the bringing up of -such an one as may indeed be wished, though scarcely -hoped for, but can by no means be applied to our -youth and our education, wherein we wish for no more -than we can hope to have. Nay, these writers go -further, as mere wishers may, and appoint the parents -of this so perfect a child, to be so wise and learned that -they may indeed fit into an ideal scheme, but too -far surpass the model that I can have in view. Wherefore -leaving on one side these ideal measures and -people, I mean to proceed from such principles as our -parents do actually build on, and as our children do rise -by to that mediocrity which furnisheth out this world, -and not to that excellence which is fashioned for -another. And yet there is a value in these fine pictures, -which by pointing out the ideal let us behold -wherein the best consisteth, what colours it is known -by, what state it keepeth, and by what means we may<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_12">[12]</a></span> -best approach it. It may perhaps be said that despair -of obtaining the very best is apt to discourage all hope, -for by missing any one of these rare conditions—and -our frailty will fail either in all or in most—we mar the -whole mould. Howbeit we are much bound to the -excellent wits of those divine writers who, by their -singular knowledge approaching near to the truest and -best, could most truly and best discern what constitution -they were of, and being anxious to serve their race -thought it their part to communicate what they had -seen, if only for this, that while we might despair of -hitting the highest, yet by seeing where it lodged we -might with great praise draw near unto it.</p> - -<p>But to return from this question of ideals to our -ordinary education, I persuaded myself that all my -countrymen wish themselves as wise and learned as -these imaginary parents are surmised to be, though -they may be content with so much, or rather with so -little, of wisdom and learning as God doth allot them, -and that they will have their children nursed as well as -they can, wherever or by whomsoever it may be, so -that the beings whom they love so well as bequeathed -to them by nature, may be well brought up by nurture; -and that till the infant can govern himself, they will -seek to save it from all such perils as may seem to -harm it in any kind of way, either from the people or -the circumstances that surround it, and that this will be -done with such forethought as ordinary circumspection -can suggest to considerate and careful parents; and -finally, that for his proper schooling, all who can will -provide it, even if it be at some cost.</p> - - -<h3>When School Education should begin.</h3> - -<p>One of the first questions is at what age children<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_13">[13]</a></span> -should be sent to school, for they should neither be -delayed too long, so that time is lost, nor hastened on -too soon, at the risk of their health. The rule therefore -must be given according to the strength of their bodies -and the quickness of their wits jointly. If the parents -be not wanting in means, and there is a convenient -place near, wherein to have the child taught, and a -teacher with sufficient knowledge, and with discretion -to train him up well by correction and teaching him -good manners, and fit companions, such as so good a -master may be able to choose; and if the child also himself -have a good understanding and a body able to bear -the strain of learning, methinks it were then best that -he began to be doing something as soon as he can use -his intelligence, without overtaxing his powers either of -mind or body, as the wise handling of his teacher will -direct. What the age should be I cannot say, for ripeness -in children does not always come at the same -time, any more than all corn is ripe for one reaping, -though it is pretty nearly at the same time. Some are -quick, some are slow; some are willing when their -parents are, and others only when they are inclined -themselves, according as a wise upbringing has disposed -them to do well, or foolish coddling has made -them prefer their play.</p> - - -<h3>Risk of Overpressure.</h3> - -<p>Anyone who deserves to be a parent should be prepared -to judge for himself as to his young son’s ripeness -for school life, and surely no one is so destitute of -friends that he has not some one to consult if necessary. -Those who fix upon a definite age for beginning have -an eye to that knowledge which they think may be -easily gained in these early years, and which it would<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_14">[14]</a></span> -be a pity to lose. I agree with them that it would be -a pity to lose anything needlessly that could be gained -without much effort and without injuring the child. -But it would be a greater pity for so small a gain to -risk a more important one, to win an hour in the morning, -and lose the whole day after. If the child has a -weak body, however bright his understanding may be, -let him grow on the longer till his strength equals his -intelligence. For experience has taught me that a -young child with a quick mind pushed on for people to -wonder at the sharpness of its edge has thus most commonly -been hastened to its grave, through weakness of -body, to the grief of the child’s friends and the reproach -of their judgment; and even if such a child lives, he -will never go deep, but will always float on the surface -without much ballast, though perhaps continuing for a -time to excite wonder. Sooner or later, however, his -intelligence will fail, the wonder will cease, while his -body will prove feeble and perish. Wherefore I could -wish the brighter child to be less upon the spur, and -either the longer kept from learning altogether, lest he -suffer as the edge of an oversharp knife is turned, or at -least be given very little, for fear of his eagerness leading -to a surfeit.</p> - - -<h3>Mens Sana in Corpore Sano.</h3> - -<p>As in setting a child to school we consider the -strength of his body no less than the quickness of his -mind, it would seem that our training ought to be two-fold, -both body and mind being kept at their best, so -that each may be able to support the other in what -they have to do together. A great deal has been -written about the training of the mind, but for the -bettering of the body is there no means to maintain it<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_15">[15]</a></span> -in health, and chiefly in the student, whose occupation -treads it down? Yea, surely, a very natural and -healthful means in exercise, whereby the body is made -fit for all its best functions. And therefore parents and -teachers ought to take care from the very beginning -that in regard to diet the child’s body is not stuffed so -that the intelligence is dulled, and that its garments -neither burden the body with their weight nor weaken -it with too much warmth. The exercise of the body -should always accompany and assist the exercise of the -mind, to make a dry, strong, hard, and therefore a long-lasting, -body, and by this means to have an active, -sharp, wise, and well-learned soul.</p> - - -<h3>Physical Exercise needs Regulation.</h3> - -<p>It is not enough to say that children are always -stirring of their own accord, and therefore need no -special attention in regard to bodily exercise. If it -were not that we make them keep absolutely still when -they are learning in school, and thus restrain their -natural stirring, then we might leave it to their own -inclinations to serve their turn without more ado. -But a more than ordinary stillness requires more than -ordinary exercise, and the one must be regulated as -much as the other. And as sitting quiet helps ill-humours -to breed and burden the body, relief must be -sought in exercise under the direction of parents and -teachers.</p> - - -<h3>Physical and Mental Training should go together.</h3> - -<p>The soul and the body, being co-partners in good -and ill, in sweet and sour, in mirth and mourning, and -having generally a common sympathy and mutual -feeling, how can they be, or rather why should they be,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_16">[16]</a></span> -severed in education? I assign both the framing of -the mind and the training of the body to one man’s -charge. For how can that man judge well of the soul, -whose work has to do with the body alone? And how -shall he perceive what is best for the body, who having -the soul only committed to his care, hands over the -body to some other man’s treatment? Where there is -too much distraction and separation of functions, each -specialist tends to make the most of his own subject, to -the sacrifice of others that may be more important. -Wherefore in order to have the care which is due to -each part equally distributed, I would appoint, I say, -only one teacher to deal with both. For I see no great -difficulty either in regard to the necessary knowledge, or -to the amount of work. Moreover, as the disposition -of the soul will resemble that of the body, if the soul -be influenced for good, it will affect the body also.</p> - - -<h3>Exercise Specially Necessary for Students.</h3> - -<p>For though the soul as the fountain of life, and the -stimulus of the body, may and will bear it out for a -while, by force of courage, yet weakness cannot always -be dissembled, but will in the end betray itself, perhaps -just when it is the greatest pity. Many people of high -spirit, notable for their learning and skill in the highest -professions, have failed, owing to want of attention to -bodily health, just when their country had most hope -of benefiting by their services. It is needful, therefore, -to help the body by some methodical training, especially -for those who use their brains, such as students, who are -apt to consider too little how they may continue to do -that for long which they do well. They should eat very -moderately, and their exercise should also be moderate, -and not vary too much, and their clothing should be<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_17">[17]</a></span> -thin, even from the first swaddling, that the flesh may -become hard and firm.</p> - - -<h3>The Best Kinds of Exercise.</h3> - -<p>[Mulcaster gives a list of the forms of exercise which -he thinks most suitable, both for indoors, and for out of -doors. In the former class are—speaking and reading -aloud, singing, laughing, weeping, holding the breath, -dancing, wrestling, fencing, and whipping the top; in -the latter are—walking, running, leaping, swimming, -riding, hunting, shooting, and playing at ball. These of -course are not all considered suitable for children, but a -selection could be made from them to be practised in -school under the regulation of the master. He then -enters upon a detailed and curious examination of the -value of each of these forms of exercise, considered -mainly in regard to their physiological effects. In all this -it has been pointed out by Schmidt (<cite lang="de" xml:lang="de">Geschichte der Erziehung</cite>, -Vol. III., Pt. I, pp. 374-6) that Mulcaster followed -closely, though without special acknowledgment, the -<cite lang="it" xml:lang="it">De Arte Gymnastica</cite> of Girolamo Mercuriale, a contemporary -Italian physician. As the science is mostly of -the traditional and somewhat fantastic character then -prevalent, the discussion is not particularly profitable -from a modern standpoint. It will be interesting, however, -as an illustration of his treatment, to see how he -deals with a game that seems to have had much the same -features in his day as in ours.]</p> - - -<h3>Football as a Form of Exercise.</h3> - -<p>Football could not possibly have held its present -prominence, nor have been so much in vogue as it is -everywhere, if it had not been very beneficial to health -and strength. To me the abuse of it is a sufficient<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_18">[18]</a></span> -argument that it has a right use, though as it is now -commonly practised, with thronging of a rude multitude, -with bursting of shins and breaking of legs, it is neither -civilised, nor worthy the name of any healthy training. -And here one can easily see the use of the training -master, for if there is some one standing by, who can -judge of the play, and is put in control over the players, -all these objections can be easily removed. By such -regulation, the players being put into smaller numbers, -sorted into sides and given their special positions, so -that they do not meet with their bodies so boisterously -to try their strength, nor shoulder and shove one another -so barbarously, football may strengthen the muscles of -the whole body. By provoking superfluities downwards -it relieves the head and the upper parts, it is good for -the bowels, and it drives down the stone and gravel from -the bladder and the kidneys. The motion also helps -weak hams and slender shanks by making the flesh -firmer, yet rash running and too much violence often -break some internal conduit and cause ruptures.</p> - - -<h3>Is Education to be offered to both Sexes?</h3> - -<p>We are next to consider who are those to whom -education should be given, which I take to be children -of both sorts, male and female. But young maidens -must give me leave to speak of boys first, because -naturally the male is more worthy and more important -in the body politic; therefore that side may claim -learning as first framed for their use and most properly -belonging to them, though out of courtesy and kindness -they may be content to lend some advantages of their -education in the time of youth to the female sex on -whom they afterwards bestow themselves, and the fruit -of their whole training.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_19">[19]</a></span></p> - - -<h3>All cannot receive a Learned Education.</h3> - -<p>As for boys, it has been set beyond doubt long ago, -that they should be sent to school, to learn how to be -religious and loving, how to govern and obey, how to -forecast and prevent, how to defend and assail, and in -short, how to perform excellently by labour the duties -for which nature has fitted them only imperfectly. But -in the matter of this so desirable a training, two important -questions arise; first, whether all children -should be put to school without any restraint upon the -number, and secondly, if any restriction is needful, how -it is to be imposed. In the body politic a certain proportion -of parts must be preserved just as in the -natural body, or disturbances will arise, and I consider -that it is a burden to a commonwealth on the one -hand to have too many learned, just as it is a loss on -the other hand to have too few, and that it is important -to have knowledge and intelligence well adapted to the -station in life, as, if these are misplaced it may lead to -disquiet and sedition.</p> - -<p>There is always danger to a State in excess of -numbers beyond the opportunities of useful employment, -and this is specially true in the case of scholars. -For they profess learning, that is to say, the <em>soul</em> of the -State, and it is too perilous to have the soul of the -State troubled with <em>their</em> souls, that is, necessary -learning with unnecessary learners. Scholars, by -reason of their conceit which learning inflames, cannot -rest satisfied with little, and by their kind of life they -prove too disdainful of labour, unless necessity makes -them trot. If that wit fall to preach which were fitter -for the plough, and he to climb a pulpit who was made -to scale a wall, is not a good carter ill lost, and a good -soldier ill placed?</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_20">[20]</a></span></p> - -<p>All children cannot get a full training at school, even -though their private circumstances admit of it, yet as -regards writing and reading, if that were all, what if -everyone had them, for the sake of religion and their -necessary affairs? In the long period of their whole -youth, if they minded no more, these two would be -easily learned in their leisure times by special opportunities, -if no ordinary means were available and no -school nigh. Every parish has a minister, who can -give help in regard to writing and reading, if there is -no one else.</p> - - -<h3>Choice of Scholars both from Rich and Poor.</h3> - -<p>Some doubt may rise between the rich and poor, -whether all rich and none poor, or some in both, may -and should be sent to learning. If some rich are sent, -provided for out of private resources, some poor will be -commended by promising parts to public provision for the -general advantage, and if neither private nor public provision -is mismanaged, the matter will decide itself by the -capacity of the learners and their disposition to prove -virtuous. The safe condition is that the rich should -not have too much, nor the poor too little. In the -former case, the overplus breeds a loose and dissolute -brain; in the latter, the insufficiency causes a base and -servile temper. For he who is never in need, owing to -the supplies of his friends, never exercises his wits to be -a friend to himself, but commonly proves reckless till -the black ox treads upon his toes, and necessity makes -him try what mettle he is made of. And he who is -always in need, for want of friends, is apt to find his -heaven in whatever rids him of his difficulties, and to -worship that saint who serves his turn best. Now if -wealthy parents out of their private fortune, and public<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_21">[21]</a></span> -patrons out of their surplus wealth would try to avoid -these two extremes, then neither would over-abundance -make the one too wanton, nor want make the other too -servile. Neither would be tempted to hasten on too -fast, the one lest he should lose some time, and the -other lest he should miss some chance of a livelihood. -The middle sort of parents, who neither welter in too -much wealth, nor wrestle with too much want, seem -most promising of all, if their children’s capacity is in -keeping with their parents’ circumstances and position, -which must be the level for the fattest to fall down to, -and the leanest to leap up to, to bring forth the student -who will serve his country best.</p> - - -<h3>The Number of Scholars limited by Circumstances.</h3> - -<p>All cannot pass on to learning that throng thitherward, -because of the inconveniences that may ensue, -by want of preferment for such a multitude, and by -depriving other trades of their necessary workers. -Everyone desires to have his child learned, yet for all -that every parent must bear in mind that he is more -bound to his country than to his child. If the parent -will not yield to reason some kind of restraint must be -used. Fortunately the question is often determined by -necessity. You would have your child learned, but -your purse will not stretch; you must be patient, and -devise some other course within your means. You are -not able to spare him from your elbow for your own -needs, whereas learning must have leisure, and the -scholar’s book be his only business free from outside -interference. You have no school near you, and you -cannot pay for teaching further off; then let your own -trade content you, and keep your child at home. Or -your child is of weak constitution; then let schooling<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_22">[22]</a></span> -alone, make play his physician, and health his object. -Whichever way necessity drives you, perforce that way -must ye trot. If the restrained child cannot get the -skill to write and read, I lament that lack, for these -two points concern every man nearly, and are useful -in every kind of business. I dare not venture to allow -so many the Latin tongue, nor any other language, -unless it be in cases where those tongues are found -necessary in their trades. For otherwise the fear is lest, -having such benefits of school, they will not be content -with their own station in life, but because they have -some little smack of book learning they will think even -the highest positions low enough for them, not considering -that in well-governed States Latin is allowed both to -country clowns and town artificers; yet these remain in -their own calling, without pride or ambition, on account -of that small knowledge by which they are better able -to furnish out their own trades.</p> - - -<h3>The Number of Scholars kept down by Law.</h3> - -<p>It is no objection to allege against such a lawful -restraint, that if such a measure had been in force -we might have lost men of high intelligence and great -learning who have been of much service to the State. -Some degree of foresight and orderly restraint are more -likely to secure that necessary functions will be well -served than if all is left to chance and individual will. -Nor is it reasonable to object that it were a pity, by the -severity of an unkind law, to hinder that excellence -which God commonly gives to the poorer sort.</p> - - -<h3>Talent not peculiar either to Rich or Poor.</h3> - -<p>As for pitying the poor, ye need not wish a beggar -to become a prince, though ye allow him a penny<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_23">[23]</a></span> -and pity his necessities. If he is poor provide for him, -that he may live by trade, but let him not idle. Has -he talent? Well, are artificers fools? And do not all -trades require ability? But is he very likely to -distinguish himself in learning? I do not reject him; -he has his chance of being provided a public help in -common patronage. But he does not well to oppose -his own particular will against the public good; let his -country think enough of him, but let him beware of -thinking too much of himself. Because God has often -shown himself bountiful in conferring talent on the -poorer sort, that does not prove that he has not -bestowed as great gifts on some of the upper class, -though they may have failed to use them. The -commonwealth, it is urged, must be prepared to give -scope for ability, in whatever class it may be found.</p> - - -<h3>Choice of those fit for Learning.</h3> - -<p>The choice of learners is a matter requiring careful -thought at all times and in all places, but especially in -our own day and country. For it is more important -to whom you commit learning when you have found -what to learn than to find what to learn before you -commit it, because the best instrument should always -be handled by the fittest person, and not by every one -that has a fancy to handle it. When the choice follows -private liking rather than public advantage, more mischief -is caused than is easily discovered, though the -smart is generally felt. There is indeed little use in -discussing the question of fitness, if no choice is to be -made when the question is decided. And as the -bestowal of learning must have its beginning in the -young child, ought not good choice to go before if the -due effect is to follow?</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_24">[24]</a></span></p> - - -<h3>How the Choice of Scholars should be Determined.</h3> - -<p>I will now consider what kinds of talent and disposition -are, even from infancy, to be thought most -fitting to serve the State in the matter of learning. -Often those who give least promise at first turn out -most suitable in the end; wherefore the absolute rejection -of any, before maturity is reached, not only does -an injury to those who are rejected, but would be an -evidence of rashness in those who reject. For the -variety is very great, though where certainty is impossible -preference must be given to the most likely. In -the qualities that give promise of good service when -learning has been gained, there are commonly reckoned -an honourable disposition, zeal for moral virtue, and the -desire to benefit society without thought of personal -profit. There must also be taken into account the -shrewdness of intelligence which will not be easily -deceived nor diverted from a right opinion, either by -the influence of feeling in themselves or the strength -of persuasion in others. And generally whatever virtue -gives proof of a good man and a good citizen must be -held of value, so that the learner should show capability -and discretion in matters of learning, and towardness -and constancy in matters of living. All this refers to -free men who can secure independently the opportunities -of learning, yet provision is to be made for -those of good natural intelligence who need some help. -There are three kinds of government—Monarchy, -Oligarchy, and Democracy, each of which demands a -different type of citizen and scholar. That child is -likely in later years to prove the fittest subject for learning -in a <em>Monarchy</em> who at a tender age shows himself -obedient to the rules of the School, and, if he should -offend, takes his punishment gently, without complaining<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_25">[25]</a></span> -or taking affront. In behaviour towards his companions -he is gentle and courteous, without wrangling -or complaining. He will lend a helping hand, and use -every persuasion rather than have either his teacher -disquieted or his school-fellows punished. And, -therefore, either he receives similar courtesy from his -school-fellows, or whoever shows him any discourtesy -must be prepared for challenge and combat with all the -rest. If he has any natural capacity in which he excels -his companions, it will be so well regulated and show -itself with such modesty that it shall appear in no way -upsetting or over-ambitious. At home he will be so -deferential to his parents, so courteous among servants, -so dutiful toward all with whom he has to deal, that -there will be contention who can praise him most -behind his back, and who can cherish him most before -his face. These qualities will not be easily discerned -till the child is either in the Grammar School by regular -but not premature advancement, or at least upon his -passage from the completed course of the Elementary -School, because his age by that time, and his progress -under regulation, will make it possible in some degree -to perceive his inclination. Before that time we pardon -many things, and use encouragement and motives of -ambition to inflame the little one onward, which are -discontinued afterwards. When of their own accord, -without any motive of fear or other incitement, they -begin to make some show of their learning in some -special direction, then conjecture is on foot as to what -their career ought to be.</p> - - -<h3>Grounds for Promotion.</h3> - -<p>When the possession of means bids the school door -open, the admission and right of continuance is granted<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_26">[26]</a></span> -to all, till after some proof the master, who is the first -chooser of the finest, begins to discern where there is -ability to go forward, and where natural weakness -suggests prompt removal. When the master has discovered -strength or infirmity of nature, as may appear -in the ease or difficulty of acquiring and retaining that -are seen in boys of different aptitude, his desire will -naturally be to have the promising scholars continued, -to procure the removal of the duller ones by diverting -their energy into some other course more in keeping -with their natural bent than learning, in which they are -likely to make little progress, however long they remain -at school. Care must be taken, however, not to decide -prematurely, for it may prove that those wits that at -first were found to be very hard and blunt may soften -and prove sharp in time, and show a finer edge, though -this is not to be applied to dullards generally. For -natural dulness will show itself in everything that concerns -memory and understanding, while that kind of -dulness that may some day change into sharpness will -show itself only at intervals, like a cloudy day that will -turn out fine in the end. Wherefore, injustice may be -done by a hasty judgment, and, on the other hand, the -boy who is not yet strong enough for manual work may -remain a little longer at school, where, even if he do -little good, he is sure to take little harm. Moreover, if -the parents can afford it, and wish to keep their children -on at school, even though their progress is small, the -master must have patience, and measure his pains by -the parent’s purse, where he knows there is plenty, and -not by the child’s profit, which he sees will be small. -Only he must keep the parent constantly informed how -matters stand, both as a matter of duty and to prevent -disappointment. But the case is different with a poor<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_27">[27]</a></span> -child, who should be sent to a trade at once, if he is -not promising in learning.</p> - - -<h3>Co-operation of Parents.</h3> - -<p>Seeing that the schoolmaster, to whose judgment I -commend the choice, is no absolute potentate in our -commonwealth, to dispose of people’s children as he -pleases, but only a counsellor to act along with the -parent, if the latter is willing to take advice, I should -wish, that in order to have this duly accomplished, -parents and teachers should be not only acquainted, but -on friendly terms with each other. And though some -parents need no counsel, and some teachers can give -but little, yet the wise parent is always willing to listen -before he decides, and the opinion of a skilful teacher -deserves to be heard. If this co-operation cannot be -established, the poor child will suffer in the present, -and the parents will lose much satisfaction in the end. -This kind of control will continue as long as the child -is either under a master in school, or under a tutor in -college, and in this period a great number may be very -wisely arranged for, unlearned trades being sufficiently -supplied, and a life of learning reserved for those only -who by their intelligence and judgment are fitted for it. -By such means the proportion will be properly adjusted -in every branch of the public service, and the -risk avoided of having too large a total number. This -period under the master’s charge is the only period -when the youth can be controlled by outside direction; -for afterwards at a more dangerous age they come to -choose for themselves, and their defects of nature and -manners, if not corrected, may bring sorrow to them -and to their friends. And though the schoolmaster -may not always have his counsel followed in such a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_28">[28]</a></span> -case, yet if he let the parent know his opinion his duty -will be discharged. For if the parent shows himself -unwilling to follow the teacher’s opinion, supported by -good reasons, but under the influence of blind affection -overestimates his child’s aptitude for learning, then -though the master should for his own gain keep on an -unpromising pupil, the fault lies with the parent who -would not see even after fair warning. So that it -always proves true that parents and teachers should be -familiarly linked together in amity and continual conference -for their common charge, and that each should -trust in the judgment and personal goodwill of the -other. This will come to pass only when the teacher is -carefully chosen and kept on terms of friendly conference—not -merely because “my neighbour’s children -go to school with you, so you shall have mine too,”—a -common reason in the case of children who are -continually being sent posting about to try all sorts of -schools, and never stay long in any, thus reaping as -much learning as the rolling stone gathers moss.</p> - - -<h3>Admission into Colleges.</h3> - -<p>The other means whereby some selection may be -made is by admission into colleges, preferments to -degrees, advancement to livings. In regard to these -the commonwealth may receive all the greater harm -that they come nearer the public service, so that plain -dealing is the more praiseworthy, in order to prevent -mischief. As concerns colleges I do not consider that -the scholarships in them are intended only for poor -students, for whose needs that small help could never -suffice, (though some advantage may be given to them -in consideration of special promise which has no other -chance of being recognised) but rather that they are<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_29">[29]</a></span> -simply preferments for learning and advancements for -virtue, alike to the wealthy as a reward of well-doing, -and to the poorer students as a necessary support. -Therefore, as in admission I would give freedom to -choose from both sorts, so I would restrict the choice to -those who give genuine promise of usefulness. For if -elections are swayed by favour, shown on grounds not -of merit but of private friendship, though perhaps with -some colour of regard for learning, those who are -responsible for the injustice will repent when it is too -late, finding themselves served in their own coin; for -those who get in by such means, owing their own -advancement to private influence, will act in the same -way towards others, without regard to the common -welfare. When favour is shown on any other ground than -that of merit, founders are discouraged, public provision -is misused, and learning gives place to idling. But if -elections were made on grounds of fitness alone, the unfit -would be diverted in time into some other channel, the -best would be chosen, the intentions of founders would -be fulfilled, some perjury for the non-performance of -statutes would be avoided, new patrons would be procured, -religion advanced, and good students encouraged.</p> - - -<h3>Preferment to Degrees.</h3> - -<p>Preferment to degrees may be, and indeed ought to -be, a more powerful check on insufficiency, because by -this means the whole country is made either a lamentable -spoil to bold ignorance, or a favourable soil for -sober knowledge. When a scholar is allowed by -authority of the University to profess capacity in a -certain specialty for which he bears the title, and is sent -into the world by the help of people who have acted -under unworthy influences in disregard of merit, what<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_30">[30]</a></span> -must our country think when she hears the boast of -the University title sound in her ears, and fails to find -the benefit of University learning to serve her in her -need? She will not blame the ignorant graduate, who -is only naturally trying to do the best for himself, but -she will very greatly blame the Universities for having -deceived her and betrayed her trust. For in granting -a degree the University is virtually saying, “Before God -and my country, I know this man, not by perfunctory -knowledge, but by thorough examination, to be well -able to perform in the Commonwealth the duties of the -profession to which his degree belongs, and the country -may rest upon my credit in security for his sufficiency.” -What if the University knew beforehand that he neither -was such an one, nor was ever likely to prove such? Let -the earnest professors of true religion in the universities -at this day consult their consciences and remedy the -defect for their own credit and the good of their -country. A teacher may be pardoned, for seeking thus -earnestly to have true worth recognised, considering -that thereby would come not only satisfaction to himself, -but advantage to his pupils and to the country at -large. Can he be anything but grieved to see the -results for which he has laboured with infinite care and -pains set at naught by bad management at a later stage? -It seems to be reasonable for anyone who is given the -charge of numbers to concern himself not only with what -comes under his own immediate regulation, but with the -means of securing public protection and encouragement -for his pupils after they pass out of his care.</p> - - -<h3>Natural Capacity in Children.</h3> - -<p>I will now consider what children ought to learn -when they are first sent to school. There are in the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_31">[31]</a></span> -human soul certain natural capacities which by the -wisdom of parents and the discernment of teachers, -who may perceive them in the child’s infancy and do -their best to cultivate them, may eventually be made -very profitable both to their possessor, and to the commonwealth. -If these natural capacities are not perceived, -those who are responsible must be charged -either with ignorance or with negligence, and if they -are perceived but are either not improved or wrongly -directed, the teachers and trainers, whether they are -parents or schoolmasters, must be much lacking in -sound skill, or else they are guided by stupid fancies. -Without making any complete analysis of the mental -powers, I would point out some natural inclinations in -the soul, which seem to crave the help of education and -nurture, and by means of these may be cultivated to -advantage. In the little young souls we find first a -capacity to perceive what is taught to them, and to -imitate those around them. That faculty of learning -and following should be well employed by choosing the -proper matter to be set before them, by carefully proceeding -step by step in a reasonable order, by handling -them warily so as to draw them on with encouragement. -We find also in them a power of retention; therefore -their memories should at once be furnished with the -very best, seeing that it is a treasury, and never suffered -to be idle, as it loses its power so soon. For in default -of the better, the worse will take possession, and bid -itself welcome. We find in them further an ability to -discern what is good and what is evil, so that they -should forthwith be acquainted with what is best, by -learning to obey authority, and dissuaded from the -worse by the fear of disapproval. These three things, -perception, memory, and judgment, ye will find peering<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_32">[32]</a></span> -out of the little young souls at a time when ye can see -what is in them, but they cannot yet see it themselves. -Now these natural capacities being once discerned, must -as they arise be followed with diligence, increased by -good method, and encouraged by sympathy, till they -come to their fruition.</p> - - -<h3>Encouragement better than Severity.</h3> - -<p>The best way to secure good progress, so that the -intelligence may conceive clearly, memory may hold -fast, and judgment may choose and discern the best, is -so to ply them that all may proceed voluntarily, and -not with violence, so that the will may be ready to do -well, and loth to do ill, and all fear of correction may -be entirely absent. Surely to beat for not learning a -child that is willing enough to learn, but whose intelligence -is defective, is worse than madness.</p> - - -<h3>Moral Training falls chiefly on Parents.</h3> - -<p>The duty of leading children to cleave to the good -and forsake the bad, in matters of ordinary conduct, is -shared by all who come in contact with them; it -belongs to the parents by nature, to schoolmasters by -the charge committed to them, to neighbours as a -matter of courtesy, and to people in general on the -ground of a common humanity. Teachers, it is true, -have special opportunities of influencing the morals and -manners of children, by means of the authority they -naturally exercise, in teaching them what is best, and -inducing them to practise it, even by force at first, till -they come to appreciate it for themselves. But this -control of good manners is not for teachers alone, for as -I have said, they must co-operate with the parents, to -whom that duty naturally appertains most nearly, as<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_33">[33]</a></span> -they have the fullest authority over the children. -Wherefore, reserving for the teacher only so much as -strictly belongs to him, in instructing the child what is -best in good manners, and in framing good regulations -and seeing that they are properly carried out, I refer -the rest to those who are the appointed guardians of -morals, to secure either by private discipline at home, -or by public control outside, that young people are well -brought up to distinguish the good from the bad, the -seemly from the unseemly, that they may know God, -serve their country, be a comfort to their friends, and -help one another, as good fellow-citizens are bound to -do. But the task of training their intelligence and -memory belongs wholly to the teacher, and I will now -proceed to deal with it.</p> - - -<h3>Elementary Instruction—Reading.</h3> - -<p>I might very well be thought wanting in discretion -if I were to press any far-fetched proposals into this -discussion of general principles, and I shall therefore -deal only with methods that are in harmony with the -customs of this country, and with the circumstances of -the time. Among the subjects of instruction that have -universally been recognised and practised, <em>Reading</em> -certainly holds the first place, alike for the training of -the mind in the process of acquiring it, and for its usefulness -after it is acquired. For the printed page is the -first and simplest material for impressions in the art of -teaching, and nothing comes before it. When by gradual -practice in combining letters and in spelling out words -under direction, the child has acquired the faculty of -reading easily, what a cluster of benefits thus come within -reach! Whatever anyone has published to the world -by pen or print, for any end of profit or pleasure,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_34">[34]</a></span> -whether of free will or under constraint, by reading it -is all made to serve us—in religion, to promote the love -and fear of God, in law, to aid us in rendering obedience -and service to our fellow-men, and in life generally to -enable us to expel ignorance and acquire skill to do -everything well. Wherefore I make Reading the first -foundation on which everything else must rest, and -being a thing of such moment, it should be thoroughly -learned when it is once begun, as facility will save much -trouble both to master and scholar at a later stage. The -child should have his reading perfect both in the English -and in the Latin tongue long before he dreams of -studying grammar.</p> - - -<h3>The Vernacular First.</h3> - -<p>As for the question whether English or Latin should -be first learned, hitherto there may seem to have been -some reasonable doubt, although the nature of the two -tongues ought to decide the matter clearly enough; for -while our religion was expressed only in Latin, the -single rule of learning was to learn to read that language, -as tending to the knowledge valued by the Church. But -now that we have returned to our English tongue as -being proper to the soil and to our faith, this restraint is -removed, and liberty is restored, so that we can follow -the direction of reason and nature, in learning to read -first that which we speak first, to take most care over -that which we use most, and in beginning our studies -where we have the best chance of good progress, owing -to our natural familiarity with our ordinary language, as -spoken by those around us in the affairs of every-day -life. This is the better order also in respect that English -presents certain difficulties that are absent in Latin, and -that children can master more easily when their memories<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_35">[35]</a></span> -are still unstored, and considerations of reason do not -affect them. While Latin has been purified to a definite -form in which it has been fixed and preserved, English, -though it is progressing very fairly, is still wanting in -refinement, the spelling being harder, and the pronunciation -harsher, than in Latin.</p> - - -<h3>Material of Reading.</h3> - -<p>In this a special and continual regard should be had -to these four points in the child—his <em>memory</em>, his <em>delight</em>, -his <em>capacity</em>, and his <em>advancement</em>.</p> - -<p>As to his <em>memory</em>, I would provide that as he must -practise it even from the first, so he may also practise it -upon the best, both for pleasure in the course of learning, -and for profit afterwards.</p> - -<p>As to his <em>delight</em>, which is no mean allurement to his -learning well, I would be equally careful that the matter -which he shall read, may be so fit for his years, and so -plain to his intelligence, that when he is at school, he -may desire to go forward in so interesting a study, and -when he comes home, he may take great pleasure in -telling his parents what pretty little things he finds in -his book, and that the parents also may have no less -pleasure in hearing their little one speak, so that each of -them shall rather seek to anticipate the other, the child -to be telling something, and the parent to be asking.</p> - -<p>As to his <em>capacity</em>, I would so provide, that the matter -which he shall learn may be so easy to understand, and -the terms which I will use, so simple to follow, that -both one and the other shall bring nothing but encouragement.</p> - -<p>As to his <em>advancement</em>, I would be very particular that -there may be such consideration and choice in syllables, -words, and sentences, and in all the incidental notes,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_36">[36]</a></span> -that there shall be nothing wanting which may seem -worth the wishing, to help fully either in spelling correctly, -or reading easily; so that the child who can read -these well, may read anything else well, if the reading -master will keep that order in his teaching which I -intend to give him in my precept, and not do the infant -harm by hurrying him on too fast, and measuring his -forwardness not by his own knowledge but by the -notions of his friends.</p> - - -<h3>Writing.</h3> - -<p>Next to reading followeth <em>Writing</em>, at some reasonable -distance after, because it requireth some strength -in the hand, which is not so steady and firm for writing -as the tongue is stirring and ready for reading. But -though in education writing should succeed reading, in -its origin it must have been earlier. For the pen or -some such instrument did carve, first roughly and then -completely, the letter or letter-like device, and thereby -did the eye behold in outward form what the voice -delivered to the ear in sound, so that writing was used -as the interpreter of the mind, and reading became the -expounder of the pen. From its rude beginnings writing -has advanced so much that it now proves the prop of -remembrance, the executor of most affairs, the deliverer -of secrets, the messenger of meanings, the inheritance of -posterity, whereby they receive whatever is bequeathed -to them, in law to live by, in letters to learn and enjoy. -For the proper study of this valuable art the master -must himself acquire, and must teach his scholar, a neat -handwriting, fast and easy to read, and the matter of -the headline, from which example is taken, should be -pithy, and suitable for enriching the memory with a -profitable provision. Practice should not be left off till<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_37">[37]</a></span> -it hath brought great skill and readiness, for writing -once perfectly acquired is a wonderful help in the rest -of our learning.</p> - - -<h3>Elementary Period a Time of Probation.</h3> - -<p>During the time of learning to read and to write the -child’s intelligence will manifest itself so as to decide -whether it may venture further upon greater learning, or -were best, owing to some natural defect, to take to something -requiring less skill. But if the child is set to any -higher work while he is still of tender years, his master -pushing him on beyond what he is ready for, there may -be loss of temper, which often breaks out into beating, -to the dulling of the child, the discouraging of the -master, and the reproach of school-life, which should not -only yield satisfaction in the end, when learning has -become a sure possession, but should pass on very -pleasantly by the way. Whatever children learn, they -should learn perfectly, for if opportunity to go on -further should fail them, through loss of friends or other -misfortune, it were good that they know thoroughly -what they had practised, whereas if it is known only -imperfectly it will stand them in very small stead, or -none at all. To write and read well is a pretty good -stock for a poor boy to begin the world with.</p> - - -<h3>Drawing.</h3> - -<p>After careful consideration of the matter no one will -hold it open to controversy that <em>Drawing</em> with pen or -pencil should be taught along with writing, to which it -is very closely related. For a pen and penknife, ink -and paper, a pair of compasses and a ruler, a desk, and -a sandbox, will set them both up, and in these early -years, while the fingers are flexible, and the hand easily<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_38">[38]</a></span> -brought under control, good progress can be made. -And generally those that have a natural aptitude for -writing will have a knack of drawing too, and show -some evident talent in that direction. And the place -that judgment holds in the mind as the measure of -what is just and seemly, is filled in the world of sense -by drawing, which judges of the proportion and aspect -of all that appeals to the eyes.</p> - -<p>Because Drawing uses both number and figure to -work with, I would cull out as much numbering from -Arithmetic, the mistress of numbers, and so much -figuring out of Geometry, the lady of figures, as shall -serve for a foundation to the child’s drawing, without -either difficulty to frighten him, or tediousness to tire -him. Whatever shall belong to colouring, shading, and -such other technical points, since they are more the -concern of the painter than of the beginner in drawing, -I would reserve them for a later stage, and leave them -to the student’s choice, when he is to specialise and -betake himself to some particular trade in life. At -which time, if he chance to choose the pen and pencil -to live by, this introduction will then prove his great -friend, as he himself shall find, when he puts it to the -proof. Last of all, inasmuch as drawing is a thing that -is thoroughly useful to many good workmen who live -honestly by its means, and attain a good degree of -estimation and wealth, such as architects, embroiderers, -engravers, statuaries, modellers, designers, and many -others like them, besides the learned use of it for -Astronomy, Geometry, Geography, Topography, and -such other studies, I would therefore pick out some -special figures, appropriate to many of the foresaid purposes -which it seems fittest to teach a child to draw, -and I would also show how these are to be dealt with<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_39">[39]</a></span> -from their very beginning to their last perfection, seeing -it is beyond all controversy that if drawing be thought -needful it should be dealt with while the fingers are -supple, and the writing is still in progress, so that both -the pen and the pencil, both the rule and the compass, -may go forward together.</p> - - -<h3>Music.</h3> - -<p>Music completes the list of elementary subjects, and -is divided into two parts—the cultivation of the voice, -and the practice of an instrument, the former resembling -reading, as it produces to the ear what is seen by -the eye, the latter resembling writing, as it imitates the -voice. Both should be begun early, while the voice -and the muscles are still pliable to training. Singing -has the advantage of being less costly than the study -of an instrument in regard to the necessary provision. -As to the value of Music, there can be no room for -doubt; indeed, it seems to have been sent as a solace -from heaven for the sorrows of earth. Some men -think it is over sweet, and should be either dispensed -with altogether, or at least not much practised. For -my own part I cannot forbear to place it among the -most valuable means in the upbringing of the young, -and in this opinion I have the support of all the best -authorities of antiquity. There are so many arguments -in favour of the art; it is so ancient, so honourable, so -universal, so highly valued in all times and places, -alike in Church services and otherwise; it is such a -calmer of passion, such a powerful influence on the -mind, that I must stay my hand in writing about it, -lest being fairly embarked I should be unable to stop. -It will be enough for me to say of Music that it is in -accordance with national custom, that it is very comforting<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_40">[40]</a></span> -to the wearied mind, that it is a means of -persuasion which all must appreciate who delight in -the proportions of number, that it is best and most -easily learned in childhood, when it can do least harm, -that its harmonies could not have such power to stir -emotion if they had not some close natural affinity to -the constitution of the body and soul of man, and that -we see and read the wonderful effects it has had in the -cure of desperate diseases. And yet with all its claims -it arouses distrust in some quarters, even in honest and -well-disposed natures that are too much inclined to -sternness. They, however, will probably alter their -opinion, if they will consider more deeply what Music -is in its true nature, or if they come to discuss the -matter with those who take a sounder view, or more -certainly still if the art in its best form has a favourable -chance of appealing to their listening ears. The science -itself hath naturally great power to probe and sway -the inclination of the mind to this or that emotion, -through the properties of number in which it consists. -It also gives great delight through its harmonies, to -which the moods of the hearers respond. It is for -this that some disapprove of it, holding that it provokes -too much to vain pleasures, and lays the mind -open to the entry of light thoughts. And to some -also it seems harmful on religious grounds, because it -carrieth away the ear with the sweetness of the melody, -and bewitcheth the mind with a siren’s sound, seducing -it from those pleasures wherein it ought to dwell, into -fantasies of harmony, and withdrawing it from virtuous -thoughts to strange and wandering devices. A sufficient -answer to all this is that in respect of a thing that -may be, and was meant to be, properly used, it is no -just ground against it that it may also be abused.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_41">[41]</a></span> -Music will not harm thee if thy behaviour be good, -and thy intention honest; it will not betray thee if thy -ears can take it in and interpret it aright. Receive it -in a proper spirit, and it will serve thee to good -purpose. If thy manners be bad, or thy judgment -corrupt, it is not music alone which thou dost abuse, -nor canst thou clear thyself of the blame that belongs -to thy character by casting it on Music. It is thou -that hast abused her, and not she thee. And why -should those who can use it rightly forego their own -good because of a few peevish people who can never be -pleased?</p> - -<p>The training in Music, as in all other faculties, -has a special eye to these three points:—the child -himself, who is to learn; the matter itself, which he -is to learn; and the instrument itself, on which he -is to learn. I will so deal with the first and the last -heads, that is, in regard to the child and the instrument, -that neither of them shall lack whatever is -needful, either for framing the child’s voice, or exercising -his fingers, or choosing his lessons, or tuning his -instrument. For in the voice there is a proper pitch, -where it is neither over nor under-strained, but delicately -brought to its best condition, to last out well, -and rise or fall within due compass, and so that it may -become tunable and pleasant to hear. And in the -training of the fingers also, there is regard to be had, -both that the child strike the notes clearly, so as not to -spoil the sound, and that his fingers run with certainty -and lightness, so as to avoid indistinct execution. Of -these the first commonly falls out through too much -haste in the young learner, who is ever longing to press -forward; the second fault comes of the master himself, -who does not consider the natural dexterity and order<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_42">[42]</a></span> -of development in the joints, for if this is rightly -attended to, the fingers easily become flexible and -master difficulties of execution without pain. As for -the matter of music, which the child is to learn, I -would set down by what means and degrees, and by -what lessons, a boy who is to be brought up to sing -may and ought to proceed regularly from the first term -of art, and the first note in sound, until he shall be -able without any frequent or serious failure to sing his -part in prick-song, either by himself at first while he is -inexperienced, or with others for good practice afterwards. -For I take so much to be enough for an -Elementary institution, which can only introduce the -subject, though it must follow the right principle, and I -postpone the study of composition and harmony till -further knowledge and maturity are attained, when the -whole body of music will demand attention. And yet -since the child must always be advancing in that -direction, I would set him down to rules of composition -and harmony, which will make him better able to judge -of singing, just as in language he who is accustomed to -write can best judge of a writer. Concerning the -virginals and the lute, which two instruments I have -chosen because of the full music uttered by them and -the variety of execution they require, I would also -set down as many chosen lessons for both as shall -bring the young learner to play reasonably well on -them, though not at first sight, whether by the ear -or by the book, always provided that prick-song go -before playing.</p> - - -<h3>Four Elementary Subjects.</h3> - -<p>Children, therefore, are to be trained up in the Elementary -School, for helping forward the abilities of the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_43">[43]</a></span> -mind, in these four things, as recommended to us both -by reason and custom: <em>Reading</em>, to enable us to receive -what has been bequeathed to us by others, and to store -our memories with what is best for us; <em>Writing</em>, to -enable us to do for others what was done for us, by -handing on the fruits of our own experience, and -besides to serve our own purposes; <em>Drawing</em>, to be a -guide to the senses, and to afford us pleasure in the -objects of sight; and <em>Music</em>, both with the voice and -with an instrument, for the reasons above stated.</p> - -<p>By reading we receive what antiquity has left us; by -writing we hand on what posterity craves of us; by -both we get great advantage in all the circumstances of -our daily life. By delineating with the pencil, what -object is there open to the eye, either brought forth by -nature, or set forth by art, the knowledge and use of -which we cannot attain to? By the study of music, -besides the acquirement of a noble science, so definitely -formed by arithmetical precept, so necessary a step to -further knowledge, such a glass in which to behold both -the beauty of concord and the blots of dissension, even -in a body politic, how much help and pleasure our -natural weakness receives for consolation, for hope, for -courage! I do not touch here on the skilful handling -of the untrained voice, nor the fine exercising of the -unskilled fingers, though these things are not to be -neglected where they can be obtained, and are naturally -required when imperfection is to be removed by them. -Again, does not all our learning, apprehended by the -eye and uttered by the tongue, confess the great benefit -it receives by reading? Does not all our expression, -brought forth by the mind and set down by the pen, -acknowledge obligation to the study of writing? Do -not all our descriptions, which picture to the sense what<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_44">[44]</a></span> -is fashioned in thought, both preach and praise the -pencil which makes them visible? Does not all our -delight in times of leisure,—and we labour only for the -sake of gaining rest and freedom from care,—protest in -plain terms that it is wonderfully indebted to the music -of both voice and instrument? This is the natural -sweetener of our bitter life, in the judgment of every -man who is not too much soured. Now, what quality -of learning is there, deserving of any praise, that does -not fall within this elementary course, or is not -furthered by it, whether it be connected with the -higher professions, or occupations of lower rank, or the -necessary trades of common life?</p> - - -<h3>Study of Languages.</h3> - -<p>Inasmuch as Grammar is used partly as a help to -foreign languages, it furthers us very much in that way, -because all our learning being got from foreign -countries, as registered in their tongues, if we lack -the knowledge of the one, we lack the hope of the -other.</p> - -<p>When learning and knowledge came first to light, -those men who were the authors of them uttered their -minds in the same speech that they used when they -bred the things. And as they needed no foreign -tongue for matter that was bred at home, so they had -no use of any Grammar but that by which they -endeavoured to refine their natural speech at home. -But when their devices, first set out in their own -tongues, were afterwards sought for by foreign students -to increase their learning and to enrich their country -with foreign wares, the foreign students were then -driven to seek the assistance of Grammar of the second -kind, because they could not understand the things<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_45">[45]</a></span> -which were written in a foreign tongue, without the -knowledge of the tongue itself.</p> - -<p>In the primitive Grammar children being trained as -I now require, went straightway from the elementary to -the substance of learning, and to the mathematical -sciences, which are so termed, because indeed the -whole scholars’ learning consisted in them, as in the -first degree of right study. For whatever goes before -them in right order is nothing but mere elementary -study, and whatever goes before them in wrong order, -as it is distorted in nature, it works no great wonder. -But in the second use of Grammar, we are forced of -necessity, after the elementary subjects, however hurried -and simple they may be, to deal with the tongues ere -we pass to the substance of learning; and this help -from the tongues, though it is most necessary, as our -study is now arranged, yet hinders us in time, which is -a thing of great price,—nay, it hinders us in knowledge, -a thing of greater price. For in lingering over language -we are removed and kept back one degree further -from sound knowledge, and this hindrance comes in our -best learning time, while we are under masters and -readers, of whom we may learn far better than of ourselves, -if as much regard be had to their choice, as I -have elsewhere recommended.</p> - - -<h3>Follow Nature.</h3> - -<p>The proof of a good Elementary Course is, that it -should follow nature in the multitude of its gifts, and -that it should proceed in teaching as she does in developing. -For as she is unfriendly wherever she is forced, -so she is the best guide that anyone can have, wherever -she shows herself favourable. Wherefore, if nature -makes a child most fit to excel in many aptitudes,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_46">[46]</a></span> -provided these are furthered by early training, is not -that education much to be blamed that fails to do its -part, allowing the child to be deprived by negligence of -the excellence that nature intended for it? Again, -seeing that there are no natural gifts that cannot be -helped forward by training, is not that manner of study -to be most highly approved which takes most pains -where nature is most lavish? The hand, the ear, the -eye, are the chief means of receiving and handing on -our learning. And does not this course of study -instruct the hand how to write, to draw, to play; the -eye to read by letters, to distinguish form by lines, to -judge by means of both; the ear to call for the sound -of voice and instrument for its own pleasure and cultivation? -And, in general, whatever gift nature has -bestowed upon the body, to be brought out or improved -by training, for any profitable use in life, does -not this elementary course find it out and make the -most of it? As for the capacities of the mind, whether -they concern virtuous living or skill in learning, whatever -be the art, science, or profession to which they -belong, do they not all evidently depend upon reading -and writing as their natural foundations? The study -of language must be the basis of grammar, rhetoric, -logic, and their derivatives, among which may be -counted all the parts of philosophy, both moral and -natural, as well as the three professions of divinity, law, -and medicine, using as they do in all their branches -the instrument of speech. If mathematics be in question, -or any kindred subjects that have a bearing on mechanical -science, though their secondary use is to whet the -mental powers, yet they must rest on a study of the -properties of number, figure, motion, and sound. And -as for our pleasure in the beauties of art, that is<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_47">[47]</a></span> -obtained by the provision of drawing for the eye and -music for the ear. So that, in my opinion, the fathers -and founders of this elementary course (which I am -only attempting to reintroduce, though with as much -goodwill as so good a thing deserves) have shown great -foresight in laying such sure foundations as to secure -that all natural capacities shall not only be carefully -fostered at their first sprouting, but brought to the fullest -perfection when they are ripe for the harvest. When I -use the term <em>nature</em> I mean that power which God has -implanted in his creatures, both to preserve the race and -to fulfil the end of their being. The continuance of -their kind is the proof of their being, but the fulfilment -of their end is the fruit of their being. This latter is -the point to which education has a special eye (though -it does not despise the other), so that the young fry -may be brought up to prove good in the end, and serve -their country well in whatever position they may be -placed. For the performance of this end I take it that -this elementary course is most sufficient, being the best -means of perfecting all those powers with which nature -endows our race, by using those studies which art and -reflection appoint, and those methods which nature herself -suggests. For the end of education and training -is to help nature to her perfection in the complete -development of all the various powers.</p> - -<p>This is what I mean by following nature, not counterfeiting -her in her own proper work by foolish imitation, -or perverse attempt to produce her effects, like an -Apelles in portraiture or an Archimedes in the laws -of motion, but after considering and marking with -good judgment what are the natural tendencies and -inclinations, to frame a scheme of education in -consonance with these, and bring to perfection by<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_48">[48]</a></span> -art all those powers which nature bestows in frank -abundance.</p> - -<p>For the physical life of man, in order to maintain -and develop both the individual and the species, nature -has provided organs that receive, prepare and distribute -nourishment for the body, and has, besides, given us for -self-preservation the power of perceiving all sensible -things by means of feeling, hearing, seeing, smelling, -and tasting. These qualities of the outward world, -being apprehended by the understanding and examined -by the judgment, are handed over to the memory, and -afterwards prove our chief—nay, our only—means of -obtaining further knowledge. Moreover, we have also -a power of movement, either under the influence of -emotion or by the enticement of desire, either for the -direct purposes of life, as in the action of the pulse and -in breathing, or for outward action, such as walking, -running, or leaping. To serve the end both of sense-perception -and of motion, nature has planted in the -body a brain, the prince of all our organs, which by -spreading its channels through every part of our frame -produces all the effects through which sense passes into -motion.</p> - -<p>Further, our soul has in it a desire to obtain what it -holds to be good, and to avoid what it thinks evil. -This desire is stirred either by quiet allurement or by -violent incitement, and when once it is inflamed it -strives to compass its end. To satisfy this desire -nature has given us a heart to kindle heat, and as the -sense is moved by the qualities of the object, and -motion is effected by means of sinews, so appetite, -being stirred by the object of desire or repulsion, is -supplied with the means of satisfying itself.</p> - -<p>Last of all, our soul has in it an imperial prerogative<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_49">[49]</a></span> -of understanding beyond sense, of judging by reason, of -directing action for duty towards God and our fellowmen, -for conquest in affection and attainment in -knowledge, and for such other things as minister to the -varied uses of our mortal life, and prove its title to -continue beyond the sphere of this roaming pilgrimage. -To serve this honourable purpose of understanding and -reasoning, nature, though she has no place in this -earthly body of ours worthy to receive such great and -stately guests with their whole retinue, yet does what -she can, and, herself acting as harbinger, assigns them -for lodging her principal chamber, the very closet of the -brain, where she bestows every one of reason’s understanding -friends, according to their various ranks and -special dignities. All those capacities in their first -natural condition concern only the existence of an -uncultivated man; but when they are fashioned to their -best by good education, they form the life of a perfect -and excellent man. For to exist merely, to feed, to -multiply, to use the senses, to desire, to have natural -and unimproved reason—what great thing is it, though -it is something more than brute beasts have, if the other -divine qualities that build upon these are not diligently -followed? These higher powers not only rise out of -the lower at the first, but honour them in the end, just -as the best fruit honours its first blossom, or as the most -skilful work graces the first ground on which it is -wrought. Besides that they prove themselves to be the -most excellent ends which nature meant from the first, -though she herself made but a weak show, however -pliable for man’s industry to work on for his own -advantage. He who does not live at all cannot live -well; he who does not feed at all cannot feed -moderately; he who does not reproduce cannot exercise<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_50">[50]</a></span> -continence; he who has no sense cannot use it -soberly; he who does not desire cannot desire considerately; -he who uses no reason cannot use it -advisedly. But he who exercises all these functions -has in them all the capacities that nature can afford -him to use them all well, and he will so use them if -judgment rule as much in having them well as necessity -in having them at all. For reason, as it is our difference -in comparison with beasts, is our excellence in -comparison with men, if we use it aright.</p> - -<p>Those powers of reasoning and understanding in -man, therefore, being handled in a workmanlike fashion -and applied to their best uses by such devices and -means as are thought fittest, direct the natural appetites -so as to secure the health of the parts appointed for -them, and of the whole body, which is compounded of -those parts. They develop the senses and their organs -to their best perfection and longest endurance. They -restrain desire to the rule of reason and the advice of -foresight. They enrich the mind and the soul itself by -laying up in the treasury of remembrance all arts and -imaginations, all knowledge, wisdom, and understanding, -by which either God is to be honoured or the world is -to be honestly and faithfully served; and this heavenly -benefit is begun by education, and confirmed and perfected -by continuous exercise, which crowns the whole -work.</p> - - -<h3>Education of Girls.</h3> - -<p>In naming the persons who were to receive the -benefit of education I did not exclude young maidens, -and, therefore, seeing I made them one branch of -my division, I must now say something more about -them. Some may think that the matter might well<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_51">[51]</a></span> -enough have been passed over in silence, as not -belonging to my purpose, seeing that my professional -concern is with the education of boys. But seeing -that I begin as low as the first elementary training, in -which young maidens ordinarily share, how could I -seem to take no notice of them? And to prove that -they ought to receive education I find four special -reasons, any one of which—therefore surely all together—may -persuade their greatest adversary, much more -then myself, who am for them tooth and nail. The -first is the custom of the country, which allows them to -learn. The second is the duty we owe to them, -charging us in conscience not to leave them deficient. -The third is their own aptness to learn, which God -would never have bestowed on them to remain idle -or to be used to small purpose. The fourth is the -excellent results shown in them when they have had the -advantage of good upbringing.</p> - -<p>I do not advocate sending young maidens to public -Grammar Schools, or to the Universities, as this has -never been the custom in this country. I would allow -them learning within certain limits, having regard to -the difference in their vocation, and in the ends which -they should seek in study. We see young maidens are -taught to read and write, and can learn to do well in -both; we hear them both sing and play passing well; -we know that they learn the best and finest of our -learned languages to the admiration of all men. As to -the living modern languages of highest reputation in -our time, if any one is inclined to deny that in these -they can compare with the best of our sex, they will -claim no other tests than to talk with such a one in -whichever of these tongues he may choose. These -things our country doth stand to; these accomplishments<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_52">[52]</a></span> -their parents procure for them according to their -means and opportunities, in so far as their daughters’ -aptitude doth offer hope of their gaining an advantage -through them, by being preferred in marriage or some -other career. Nay, do we not see in our country some -of that sex so excellently well trained, and so rarely -qualified in regard both to the tongues themselves and -to the subject-matter contained in them, that they may -be placed along with, or even above, the most vaunted -paragons of Greece or Rome, or the German and French -gentlewomen so much praised by recent writers, or the -Italian ladies who dare even to write themselves, and -deserve fame for so doing?</p> - -<p>And what be young maidens in relation to our sex? -Do we not, according to nature, choose from among -them those who are to be our nearest and most -necessary friends, the mothers of our children? Are -they not the very creatures that were made for our -comfort, the only remedy for our solitude, our closest -companions in weal or woe, sharers in all our fortunes -until death? And can we in conscience do otherwise -than give careful thought to the welfare of those that -are linked to us in so many ways? Is it a small thing -to have our children’s mothers well strengthened in -mind as in body? And is there any better means of -strengthening their minds than to teach them that -knowledge of God and religion, of civil and domestic -duties, which we ourselves gain by education, and ought -not to deny to them—that education which is to be -found in books, and can be so well acquired in youth?</p> - -<p>If Nature has given to young maidens abilities to -prove excellent in their kind, and yet thereby in no -way to fail in their most laudable duties in marriage, -but rather to beautify themselves with admirable<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_53">[53]</a></span> -ornaments, are we not to be charged with extreme -unnaturalness if we do not guide by discipline what -is given to them by Nature?</p> - -<p>The excellent effects in those women who have been -well trained show clearly that they deserve the best -training. What better example can be found to assure -the world than our most dear sovereign lady and -princess, who is so familiarly acquainted with the -nine Muses that they strive which may love her best -for being the most learned, and for whose excellent -knowledge we who taste of the fruit have most cause -to rejoice?</p> - - -<h3>Aim of Education for Girls.</h3> - -<p>But now having granted them the benefit and society -of our education, we must determine the end which this -training is to serve, so that it may be better applied. -Our training is without restriction either as regards -subject-matter or method, because our employment is -so general; their functions are limited, and so must -their education be also. If a young maiden is to be -brought up with a view to marriage, obedience to -authority and similar qualities must form the best kind -of training; if from necessity she has to learn how to -earn her own living, some technical training must -prepare her for a definite calling; if she is to adorn -some high position she must acquire suitable accomplishments; -if she is destined for government, which -may be offered to her by men, and is not denied -her by God, the greatness of the position calls for -general excellence, and a variety of gifts. Wherefore, -having these different ends always in view, we may -appoint them different kinds of training in accordance -with circumstances.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_54">[54]</a></span></p> - -<p>But some churlish carper will say: “What should -women do with learning?” Such a one will never -pick out the best, but be always ready to blame the -worst. If all men always made a good use of their -learning we might have something to allege against -women, but seeing that misuse is common to both -sexes why should we blame them, when we are not free -from the same infirmity ourselves? Some women may -make a bad use of their writing, others of their -reading; some may turn all that they learn to bad -account. And I pray you what do we? I do not -excuse ill, but I bar those from accusing who are as bad -themselves. As we share both virtues and vices with -women, let us exchange forbearance, and, hoping for the -best, give them free opportunity.</p> - - -<h3>When their Education should begin.</h3> - -<p>This is my opinion as to which ought to be educated -and when they should begin. The same liberty, in -respect of circumstances, being allowed to parents in -regard to their daughters as has been granted to them -with their sons, the same consideration being had for -their fitness of mind and body, and the same care being -taken for suitable physical exercise to further their -health and strength, I consider the same time of -beginning proper for both—a time not to be wholly -determined by years, but rather by their development -as shown by their ability to use their intelligence without -tiring, and to work without wearying their bodies. -For though girls seem generally to have a quicker -ripening of intelligence than boys, in spite of appearances -this is not the case. Through natural weakness -they cannot contain long what they possess, and so -give it out very soon; yet there are prating boys just<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_55">[55]</a></span> -as there are prattling wenches. Besides, their brains -are not so much laden as those of boys, either as -regards amount or variety, and therefore like empty -casks they make the greater noise. In the same way -those men who seem to be very quickwitted by some -sudden pretty answer or some sharp repartee, are not -always most burdened with learning, but merely offer -the best out of a small store, taking after their mothers. -Though they must of course possess this sharpness of -wit since it manifests itself, yet it might dwell within -them a great while without manifesting itself, if study -kept them quiet, or they were preoccupied with great -deeds. It is small affairs, urging to speedy expression, -that beget that kind of readiness. Boys have it always -but often hide it because they can afford to wait; girls -have it always and always show it, because they are in -a greater hurry. And seeing it is to be found in both, -it deserves care in both, so that they should neither be -pushed on too much nor allowed to be idle too long. -Maidens are naturally weaker in body, therefore more -attention must be paid to them in this regard than is -necessary for boys. They are to be the principal pillars -in the upholding of households, and so they are likely -to prove if their training be wise. They will be the -dearest comfort a man can have if they incline to good, -the greatest curse, if they tread awry. Therefore they -are to be warily tended, as they bear a jewel of such -worth in a vessel of such weakness.</p> - - -<h3>All should have Elementary Education.</h3> - -<p>The rare excellences in some women cannot be taken -as a precedent for all to follow, as they only show us -the special success that a few parents have attained in -their daughters’ upbringing. These shining examples,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_56">[56]</a></span> -however, though they cannot be used to form general -precepts, are at least proofs that women can learn if -they will, and may learn what they please, if they lend -their minds to it. To learn to read is very common -where it is convenient, and writing is not refused, where -opportunity serves. Reading, even if it were of no -other use, is very needful for religion, to enable them to -know what they ought to perform, if they have none -whom they can listen to, or if their memories are not -steadfast, to refresh them. Here I may not omit many -great pleasures which those women that have time and -skill to read, without hindering their housewifery, do -continually receive by reading comforting and wise discourses, -penned either in the form of history or directions -to live by. As for writing, though it may be abused, it is -often very convenient, especially in matters of business.</p> - -<p>Music is very desirable for maidens where it is to be -had, though chiefly for the satisfaction of the parents when -the daughters are young, as is generally shown when -the young wenches become young wives, and in learning -to be mothers, lightly forget their music, thus proving -that they studied it more to please their parents than -themselves. But if having been once learned, it can be -kept up, as is quite possible with proper management, -it is a pity to let it go, as it was acquired only with -great pains and at considerable cost. Learning to sing -and play from the notes is easy enough, if it be -attended to from the first, and this can be kept up too, -though it suffers from discontinuance. Seeing it is but -little that girls can learn, the time being so short, -because they are always in haste to get husbands, it is -expedient that what they do should be done perfectly, -so that with the loss of their penny they do not lose -their pennyworth also.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_57">[57]</a></span></p> - -<p>As for skill in needlework and housewifery, it is a -great recommendation in a woman to be able to govern -and direct her household, to look to her home and -family, to provide and take care of necessaries, although -the good-man pay, to know the resources of her kitchen -in regard to all over whom she has charge, in sickness -and in health. But I meddle not with this as I am -only dealing with things that are incident to learning. -I have now spoken of all the subjects that should -universally be taught to girls.</p> - - -<h3>Higher Studies for Some.</h3> - -<p>The question as to how far any maiden may proceed -in learning beyond the subjects already spoken of -requires more consideration and more careful handling -as it is a matter of some moment concerning those in -high position. And yet there are some of low degree -that seek to resemble those above them, and are satisfied -even with an appearance of imitation, but in so -doing they are passing the bounds of what is beseeming -to their birth. It is mere folly when a parent of humble -station traineth up his daughter in these high accomplishments, -of which I shall presently speak, if she -marries in her own lowly rank. For in such a case -these gifts will seem so out of place that she will not -gain the respect that is paid to one who has been -wisely brought up, but will rather be accused of vain -presumption. Each rank has a certain preparation -becoming to it, which is best secured when there is no -attempt to overstretch one’s powers. If some unusual -capacity attain success beyond expectation, it is generally -a marked exception, and whoever shoots at the -same mark, in the hope of hitting, may sooner miss, for -there are many chances of missing to one of hitting,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_58">[58]</a></span> -and wonders that are seen only once are no examples -to imitate. Every maid may not hope to speed as she -would wish, because one hath sped better than she -could have wished.</p> - -<p>When the question is <em>how much</em> a woman ought to -learn, the answer may be, “as much as shall be needful,” -and if this is doubtful also, the reply may be, -either as much as befits what her parents hope to -obtain for her, if their position be humble, or as much -as is in keeping with the prospects naturally belonging -to their rank, if that rank be high. If the parents be -of good standing, and the daughters have special -aptitudes, these may be successfully cultivated, so that -the young maidens are very soon commended to right -honourable matches in which their accomplishments -will be seemly and serviceable, benefitting perhaps the -commonwealth as well as their own families. If the -parents be of humble rank, and the maidens in their -education show from the very first some special gifts -that offer good promise, even with natural progress, -there is ground for hope that their unusual qualities -may bring them to some great match. Doubtless this -hope may fail, for great personages have not always -the good judgment, nor young maidens the good fortune, -that would lead to such a result, yet in any case -the maidens would remain the gainers, for they at least -have their gifts to comfort their mediocre station, and -those great personages lose from the lack of judgment -to set forth their nobility.</p> - - -<h3>What Higher Studies are Suitable.</h3> - -<p>Carrying the education further may consist either in -perfecting the four studies already mentioned, reading -well, writing neatly, singing sweetly, and playing finely,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_59">[59]</a></span> -to such an unusual degree, that though the things are -but ordinary, special excellence in them may bring -more than ordinary admiration, or else in acquiring -skill in languages in addition to the above, so that the -abundance of gifts may cause yet more wonder.</p> - -<p>I fear women would have little turn for geometry or -the sister sciences, nor would I make them mathematicians, -except in so far as they study music, nor -lawyers to plead at the bar, nor physicians, though skill -in herbs has been much commended in women, nor -would I have them profess divinity, to preach in pulpits, -though they must practice it as virtuous livers. Philosophy -would help them in general discourse, if they -had leisure to study it, but the knowledge of some -tongues, either as the vehicle of deeper learning, or for -their immediate uses, may well be wished for them, and -all those powers also that belong to the furniture of -speech. If I should allow them the pencil to draw, as -well as the pen to write, and thereby entitle them to all -my elementary studies, I might have good reasons to -give. For young maidens are ready enough to take to -it, and it would help to beautify their needlework.</p> - -<p>And is not a young gentlewoman, think you, -thoroughly well equipped who can read distinctly, -write neatly and swiftly, sing sweetly, and play and -draw well, understand and speak the learned languages, -as well as the modern tongues approved by her time -and country, and who has some knowledge of logic and -rhetoric, besides the information acquired in her study -of foreign languages? If in addition to all this she be -an honest woman and a good housewife, would she not -be worth wishing for and worth enshrining? And is -it likely that her children will be one whit the worse -brought up?</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_60">[60]</a></span></p> - - -<h3>Who should be their Teachers.</h3> - -<p>The only other question in regard to young maidens -is where, and under whom, they should learn, and this -depends on how long their studies can extend, which -is generally till they are about thirteen or fourteen -years old.</p> - -<p>Those who are able to continue longer have their -time and place suitably appointed, according to the -circumstances of their parents. As for their teachers, -their own sex were fittest in some respects, but ours -frame them best, and with good regard to some circumstances, -will bring them up excellently well, especially -if the parents co-operate by exercising a wise control -over them. The greater-born ladies and gentlemen, as -they are to enjoy the benefit of this education most, so -they have the best means of prosecuting it, being able -to secure the best teachers, and not being limited in -time. And so I take my leave of young maidens and -gentlewomen, to whom I wish as well as I have said -well of them.</p> - - -<h3>The Education of Young Gentlemen.</h3> - -<p>Under my last heading I set forth at large how -young maidens were to be advanced in learning according -to their rank, which methought was very incident -to my purpose, because they are counterbranches to us -as mortal and reasonable creatures, and also because -they are always our mates, and may sometimes, -according to law and birth, be our mistresses. Now, -considering that they are always closely connected with -us, and sometimes exceed us in dignity of position, as -they share with us all qualities, and all honours even up -to the sceptre, why should they not also share in our -training and education, so that they may perform well<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_61">[61]</a></span> -the part which they have to play, whether it be in a -position of equality with us, or sovereignity above us? -Here now ensueth another question of great importance -in regard to the kind of people who are to be dealt -with, the question of a class whose position is always in -the superlative, and of whom great things are expected, -though sometimes by their own fault they forfeit their -chances, and hand them over to others whom nature -ennobles through their inborn virtues—I mean young -gentlemen of all ranks up to the crown itself. It is the -custom among those of good birth to prefer to have -their sons educated privately at home rather than at -school. This is reasonable enough for maidens because -of their sex, but young gentlemen should be educated -publicly, that they may have the benefit of mixing with -others, as has been the custom in all the best ordered -commonwealths, and has been recommended by all the -most learned writers, even in the case of princes.</p> - - -<h3>Private and Public Education.</h3> - -<p>What is the import of these two words ‘private education’? -<em>Private</em> is that which hath respect in all -circumstances to some particular case; <em>public</em> in all -circumstances regardeth every one alike. <em>Education</em> is -the bringing up of one, not to live alone, but amongst -others, because company is our natural medium; whereby -he shall be best able to perform all those functions -in life which his position shall require, whether public -or private, in the interest of his country in which he was -born, and to which he owes his whole service. All -these functions are in reality public, and concern everyone, -even when they seem most private, because -individual ends must be adjusted to wider social ends; -and yet people give the preference to private education<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_62">[62]</a></span> -where all the circumstances are peculiar to one learner; -as if he who was brought up alone were always to live -alone, or as if one should say, ‘I will have you to deal -with all, but never to see all; your end shall be public, -but your means shall be private.’ How can education -be private? It is an abuse of the name as well as of -the thing. This isolation, for a pretended advantage -in education, of those who must afterwards pass on -together, is very mischievous, as it allows every parent -to follow out his own whims, relying on the privacy of -his own house to be free from criticism, on the subserviency -of the teacher whom he may choose to suit his -own purposes, and on the submission of his child who is -bound to obey him on pain of meeting his displeasure. -In public schools such swerving from what is generally -approved is impossible. The master is always in the -public eye, what he teaches is known to all; the child -is not alone, and he learns only what has been submitted -to the judgment of the community. Whatever -inconveniences may be inseparable from schools, still -greater arise in private education. It puffs up the -recluse with pride; it is an enemy to sympathy between -those who have unequal opportunities; it fosters self-conceit -in the absence of comparison with others; it -encourages contempt in the superior, and envy in the -inferior. This kind of education which soweth the seed -of dissension by discovering differences, where the -fruits of a common upbringing should be seen in the -firm knitting of social bonds, should be discouraged -owing to its effect in instilling the poison of spite. -Certainly the thing doth naturally tend this way, -though its influence may be often interrupted in time -by the pressure of public opinion. But if the child -turn out better then I have forecast, and show himself<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_63">[63]</a></span> -courteous, it will be due to his natural goodness, or to -his experience outside, not to the kind of education -which brings no such courtesy, though the child may -see it in his parents, and read of it in his books. -Sometimes it maketh him too sheepishly bashful when -he comes to the light, owing to his being unaccustomed -to company. More commonly, however, he is too -childishly bold through noting nothing except what he -breeds in his own mind in his solitary training, where -he thinks only of himself, and has none to control him, -not even his master, whatever show there may be of -obedience to authority in this private cloistering. -Surely it is reasonable for one in his childhood to -become acquainted with other children, seeing he has to -live with them as men in his manhood. Is it good for -the ordinary man to be brought up on a well-regulated -public system, and not good for the man of higher position? -By ‘private’ I do not mean what is done at -home for public uses—in that case almost everything -might be called private—but what is kept at home by -preference, in order to serve the better the interest of a -particular individual. It would seem to be generally a -question not of the matter or the method of education, -but of the select privacy of the place where it is given. -I must beg leave to say that the results are in favour of -public training, which from the midst of mediocrity -brings up scholars of such excellence that they take a -worthy place in all ranks, even next to the highest, -whereas private education with all its advantages of -wealth, doth rarely show anything in learning and judgment -above bare mediocrity. There is no comparison -between the two kinds, if prejudice be set aside. If -the privately-taught pupil chance to come to speak, it -mostly falleth out dreamingly, because seclusion in education<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_64">[64]</a></span> -is a punishment to the tongue; and in teaching a -language to exclude companions to speak to, is like -seeking to quench thirst, yet closing the mouth so that -no moisture can get in. If such a pupil come to write, -it is lean, and nothing but skin, betraying the great -pains the master hath had to take, in default of any -helping circumstances through the pupil’s intercourse -with companions. The boy can but repeat what he -hears, and he hears only one person who, though he -knew everything, cannot say much, for he hath no -sufficient audience to provoke him to utterance. If the -master made an effort to deliver himself of anything -weighty, methinks an unobserved listener would hear a -strange discourse, and would find the boy asleep; or, -if he had a companion, playing with his hands or feet -under the table, with one eye on his talking master and -the other on his playmate.</p> - -<p>But why is private education so much in vogue? -There may be some excuse for those of very high -position, especially for the prince himself, who standing -alone, cannot well mix with his subjects, and must do -what he can to surpass them without this advantage. -Yet if even the greatest could have his education so -arranged that he might have the company of a good -choice number, wherein to see all the differences of -capacity and learn to judge of all, as he hath afterwards -to deal with all, would it be any sacrilege? But -why do the gentry in this respect rather ape their -superiors in rank, than follow the class below, who are -really liker to them, and who form the chief supporters -of the State? To have the child learn better manners -and have more virtuous surroundings! As bad at -home as outside; evil manners are brought into school, -not bred there. To avoid the distraction of large<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_65">[65]</a></span> -numbers? The child shall notice the more, and so -prove the wiser, the multitude of examples offering the -means of sound judgment. Nay, in a number, though -he find some undesirable, whom he should avoid, he -shall find many apt and industrious, whom to follow. -In school, moreover, he shall perceive that vice is -punished, and virtue praised, as needs must where all is -done in the public view. Is it to keep the child in -health by making him bide at home, for fear of infection -outside? Death is within doors also, and dainties -at home have destroyed more children than dangers -outside. Is it from affection, because ye cannot bear -to let the child out of your presence? That is too -foolish. Emulation is a great inspirer of virtue. If -your child do well at home alone, how much better -would he do with company? It quickens the spirits, -and enlivens the whole nature, to have to compete with -others—to have perhaps one companion ahead of him -to follow and learn from, another below him to teach -and vaunt over, and a third of his own standing with -whom to strive for praise of forwardness.</p> - -<p>To sum up this question, I do take public education -to be better than private, as being more upon the stage, -where faults are more readily seen and so are sooner -amended, and as being the best means of acquiring both -virtue and learning, which flourish according to their -first planting. What virtue is private? Wisdom, to -foresee what is good for a desert? Courage, to defend -where there is no assailant? Temperance, to be modest -where there is none to challenge? Justice, to do right -when there is none to demand it?</p> - - -<h3>What should a Gentleman learn?</h3> - -<p>As for the education of gentlemen, at what age shall<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_66">[66]</a></span> -I suggest that they should begin to learn? Their -minds are the same as those of the common people, -and their bodies are often worse. The same considerations -in regard to time must apply to all ranks. What -should they learn? I know of nothing else, nor can I -suggest anything better, than what I have already -suggested for all. Only young gentlemen must have -some special studies that will help them to govern -under their prince in positions of trust. They should -have always before them the virtues that belong to the -government of others, and to the wise direction of their -own conduct. However, the general matter of duty -being taught to all, each one may apply it to his own -particular case, without the need for any special reference -outside the ordinary school course, especially -seeing that the duties of government just as often fall -into the hands of those of lower rank whose virtue and -capacity win them promotion. What exercises shall -young gentlemen have? The very same as other -children. What masters? The same. What difference -of arrangements? All one and the same, except -where private education is preferred, though, as I have -said, they are none the better for the want of good -fellowship. And if they are as well taught and as well -exercised as should follow from the general plan laid -down for all young children, they shall have no cause -to complain of public education. For it is no mean stuff -which is provided even for the meanest to be stored with.</p> - -<p>The children of gentlemen have great advantages, -which they may thank God for; they can carry on -their education to the end, whereas those of the -humbler class have to give it up sooner, and they have -many opportunities which are denied to ordinary -learners. If they fail to use these advantages aright<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_67">[67]</a></span> -they are all the more to blame, just as the greater -credit is due to those who in spite of hindrances make -such advancement that they win the preferments forfeited -by the negligence of those to whom they -naturally belong.</p> - -<p>As for rich men, who not being of gentle birth, but -growing to wealth by some means or other, imitate -gentlemen in the education of their children, as if -money made equality, and the purse were the ground -of preferment, without any other consideration, who -contemn the lower ranks from which they sprang, and -cloister up their children as a support to their position, -they are in the same case as regards freedom of choice, -but far behind in true gentility. As they were of lower -condition themselves, they might with more acceptance -continue their children in the same kind of training -which brought up the parents and made them so -wealthy, and not try to push themselves into a rank too -far beyond their humble origin. For of all the means -to make a gentleman, money is the most vile. All -other means have some sign of virtue, but this is too -bad to mate either with high birth, or with great worth. -For to become a gentleman is to bear the cognisance of -virtue, to which honour is companion; the vilest devices -are the readiest means to become most wealthy and -ought not to look honour in the face. It may be -pretended that intelligence and capacity have enabled -them to make their way, but it is not denied that these -qualities may be turned to the worst uses, may only -once in a thousand times make a gentleman. It is not -intelligence that deserves praise, but the matter to -which it has been directed, and the manner in which it -has been employed. When it is bestowed wisely on -the good of the community, it deserveth all praise; if<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_68">[68]</a></span> -devoted wholly to filling a private purse, without regard -to the means, so long as nothing evil is disclosed, then -it deserveth no praise for the result, but rather suspicion -as to the method of bringing it about. These people -in their business will not scruple to bring poverty to -thousands, and for giving a penny to one of these -thousands they will be accounted charitable. They -will give a scholar some pretty exhibition, in order to -seem religious, and under a slender veil of counterfeit -liberality will hide the spoil of ransacked poverty. And -though they do not profess to be impoverishing people -of set purpose, yet their kind of dealing doth pierce as -it passeth.</p> - -<p>But of these kind of folks I intend not to speak. -My purpose is to employ my pains upon such as are -gentlemen indeed. Yet it is worth that gives name -and note to nobility; it is virtue that must endow it, -or vice will undo it. As I wish well to this class, so I -wish their education to be good, and if it were possible, -even better than that of ordinary people. But that -cannot be, for the common training, if it be well -appointed, is the best and fittest for them, especially as -they may have it in full, while those of meaner rank -have to be content with it incomplete.</p> - - -<h3>What makes a Gentleman.</h3> - -<p>Before I enter upon the training of gentlemen and -show what is specially suitable for them, I will examine -those points which are best got by good education, and -being once got do adorn them most, which two considerations -are not foreign to my purpose. I must first -ask what it is to be a gentleman or a nobleman, and -what qualities these terms assume to be present in the -persons of those to whom they are applied, and afterwards,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_69">[69]</a></span> -what are the causes and uses of gentility, and the -reasons why it is so highly thought of.</p> - -<p>But ere I begin to deal with any of these points, -once for all I must recommend to those of gentle birth -exercise of the body, and chiefly such kinds as besides -benefiting their health shall best serve their calling and -place in their country. Just as those qualities which I -have set forth for the general training, being most easily -compassed in their perfection by them, may very well -beseem a gentlemanly mind, so may the physical exercises -without exception be found useful, either to make -a healthy body, seeing that our constitution is all the -same, or to prepare them for such occupations as belong -to their position. Is it not for a gentleman to follow -the chase and to hunt? Doth their place reprove them -if they have skill to dance? Is skill in sitting a horse -no honour at home, no help abroad? Is the use of a -weapon suitable to their calling any blemish to them? -Indeed those great exercises are most proper to such -persons and are not for those of meaner rank.</p> - -<p>What is it then to be a nobleman or a gentleman? -The people of this country are either gentlemen or of -the commonalty. The latter is divided into those who -are engaged in trade, and those who work with their -hands. Their distinction is by wealth, for some of them, -who have enough and more, are called rich men, some -who have no more than enough, poor men, and some -who have less than enough, beggars. There are also -three ranks in gentility, the gentlemen, who are the -cream of the common people, the noblemen, who are -the flower of gentility, and the prince, who is the primate -and pearl of nobility. Their difference is in authority, -the prince having most, the nobleman coming next, and -the gentlemen under both. To be virtuous or vicious, to<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_70">[70]</a></span> -be rich or poor, are no peculiar badge of either kind; a -gentleman or a common man may alike be virtuous or -vicious, rich or poor, with land or without it. But as -the gentleman in any position must have the power of -exercising his lawful authority there are some virtues -that seem to belong to him specially, such as wisdom in -policy, valour in execution, justice in forming decisions, -modesty in demeanour. Whether gentility come by -descent or desert makes no difference; he that giveth -fame to his family first, or he that deserveth such honour, -or he that adds to his heritage by noble means, is the -man whom I mean. He that continueth what he received -through descent from his ancestry, by desert in his own -person, hath much to thank God for, and doth well -deserve double honour among men, as bearing the true -coat of arms of the best nobility, when desert for virtue -is quartered with descent in blood, seeing that ancient -lineage and inheritance of nobility are in such credit -among us, and always have been. As gentility argueth -a courteous, civil, well-disposed, sociable constitution of -mind in a superior degree, so doth nobility imply all -these and much more, in a higher rank with greater -authority. And do not these distinctive qualities deserve -help by good and virtuous education?</p> - - -<h3>Learning useful to Noblemen.</h3> - -<p>Excellent wisdom, which is the means of advancing -grave and politic counsellors, is but a single cause of -preferment; likewise valour, which is the means of -making a noble and gallant captain, is but a single cause -of advancement; but where these two qualities, wisdom -and courage, are combined in the same man, the merit -is doubled. The means of preferment which depend -upon learning are either martial, for war and defence in<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_71">[71]</a></span> -relation to foreign countries, or political, for peace and -tranquillity at home. The warrior seems to depend -most on his personal courage and experience, which -without any learning or reading at all, have often brought -forth excellent leaders, but with those helps in addition -produce most rare and famous generals. Those who use -the pen most in taking part in the direction of public -government, or in filling the necessary offices in the administrative -or judicial service of the State, for the -common peace and quietness, without profession of further -learning, though they have their chief instrument -of credit from books, are not debtors to book-knowledge -only, because industry, experience, and discretion have -much to do with their success. It is those who depend -wholly upon learning that I am most concerned with, -when I ask how gentlemen should be trained to have -them learned.</p> - -<p>The highest position to which learned valour doth -give advancement, is that of a wise counsellor, the fruit -of whose learning is policy, not in the limited sense -where it is opposed to straightforwardness, but in the -philosophical sense, as meaning the general skill to judge -things rightly, to see them in their due proportions, to -adapt them to any given circumstances, with as little -disturbance as possible to existing arrangements, whether -it be in matters religious or secular, public or private, -professional or industrial. Such a man is, in the sphere -of religion, a <em>divine</em> who is able to judge soundly of the -general principles and applications of divinity; in the -sphere of government, a <em>lawyer</em> who makes the laws in -the first instance, and knows best how to have them -kept; in short he is the man, whether he be concerned -with ecclesiastical or temporal affairs, and whatever his -rank or his profession may be, who is most sound and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_72">[72]</a></span> -able, and sufficient in all points. And though the -specialist may know more than he in any particular -matter which he has not leisure to get up thoroughly -himself, yet he will be able to make such skilful and -methodical enquiries of the special student that he will -probe his knowledge to the bottom, and then handle the -material he gains to better purpose than the other could -with all his scholarship. Of all those that depend upon -learning I hold this kind of man worthiest to be -preferred, in divinity a chief among divines, though he -do not preach, in law, the first of lawyers, though he do -not plead, and similarly in all the other departments of -public direction. But wherefore is all this? To show -how necessary a thing it is to have young gentlemen -well brought up. For if these causes do make the man -of mean birth noble, what will they do in him whose -honour is augmented with perpetual increase, if he add -personal worth to his nobility in blood? Wherefore -the necessity of the training being evidently so great, -I will handle that as well as I can, by way of general -precept, with reference to those whose wisdom is their -weight, learning their line, justice their balance, honour -their armour, and all the different virtues their greatest -ornaments in the eyes of all men.</p> - - -<h3>Course of Study for a Gentleman.</h3> - -<p>As I have already said, I know no better training for -the gentleman than that which is provided under -proper conditions for the ordinary man; but while the -latter learns first for necessity, and afterwards for -advancement, the greater personage ought to study for -his credit and honour as well. For which be gentlemanly -accomplishments, if these be not—to read, to -write, to draw, to sing, to play, to have language and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_73">[73]</a></span> -learning, health and activity, nay, even to profess -Divinity, Law, Medicine, or any other worthy occupation? -These things a gentleman hath most leisure to -acquire, and not being too much under the spur of -necessity he can practise them with uprightness. These -so-called “liberal” professions are too commonly now -in the hands of meaner men, who make a trade of their -high calling, and only seek to enrich themselves. Doth -Divinity teach to scrape, or Law to scratch, or any -other kind of learning to which the epithet “liberal” is -applied? The practice of these callings crieth for help -to ransom it from the pressure of selfish needs to which -it hath fallen a prey, owing to the indifference of the -nobility, who think anything far more seemly to bestow -their time and wealth upon than the learned professions. -But if young gentlemen of parts would be pleased to -be so well affected toward their country as to shoulder -out mercenary professional men by themselves taking -their places, how fortunate it would be for the country, -and for the young gentlemen as well! Enough might -be spared for such employment without unduly lessening -the numbers that fill the court and carry on -military and judicial functions only too abundantly. If -the warlike gentlemen betook themselves to arms and -paid more attention to exercise, and if the more peacefully-inclined -took their books and fell to learning, -recalling by diligence those faculties which they have -for so long allowed to run waste, should not the change -be welcomed? This were better than vain foppery -and travelling about.</p> - - -<h3>Foreign Travel.</h3> - -<p>What is this travelling? I do not ask in regard to -merchants, whom necessity obliges to travel and to<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_74">[74]</a></span> -tarry long from home for the sake of their own trade -and often of our benefit, nor in regard to soldiers, who -when there is peace at home must go abroad to learn -in foreign wars how to defend their country when it is -necessary. Nor do I refer to such travellers as Solon, -or Pythagoras, or Plato, who sought knowledge where -it was, in order to bring it where it was not. We have -no need to travel in search of learning as they did. We -have at this day, thanks to printing, as much of that as -any country needs to have,—nay, as much as the -ancient world ever possessed, if we would use it aright. -And young gentlemen, if they made the best use of -their wealth, might procure and maintain such excellent -masters and companions and libraries, that they might -acquire all the best learning far better by studying -quietly at home than by stirring about, if the desire for -knowledge were the cause of their travelling. And -this excuse is made even by people of meaner rank, -who love to look abroad for instruction that they -could get quite well at home from competent persons -who never crossed the seas. If there be defects in our -own country, they can be remedied out of our own -resources by giving good heed to the matter, without -the need of borrowing from other lands. What, then, -is travel, interrupting education as it does, and raising -the question whether young gentlemen in choosing it -are benefiting their country and themselves? To -travel is to see countries abroad, to mark their singularities, -to learn their languages, and to return thence -with an equipment of wisdom that will serve the needs -of one’s own country.</p> - -<p>There may be some who gain all these advantages -from travel; but for one whose natural excellence and -virtue will turn such a hazardous experience to profit,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_75">[75]</a></span> -there are many to whom it will prove pernicious, owing -to their impetuous temper and their command of -money beyond the discretion of their years. And -while these are engaged in travel, what might they -have been acquiring at home? Sounder learning, the -same study of language, and, above all, the love of -their native land, which groweth by familiarity, but is -mightily impaired by absence and an acquired fancy for -foreign customs.</p> - -<p>What is the natural end of being born in a particular -country? To serve one’s fatherland. With foreign -fashions? They will not fit. For every country has -its own appropriate laws and arrangements, and its -special circumstances can be understood only by those -who study its constitution carefully on the spot. What -is quite suitable and excellent for other nations may -not bear transplanting here; it may not fit in with the -habits of our people, or at least the change might -require so much effort that it would not be worth the -cost. I do not deny that travel is good, if it hits on -the right person; though I think the same labour, with -equally good intentions, could be spent with better -results at home. He that roameth abroad hath no -such line to lead him as he that tarrieth at home, -unless his understanding, years and experience offer -better security than is the case with those of whom I -am now speaking. Foreign things fit us not; or, if -they fit our backs, at least they do not fit our brains, -unless there be something amiss there. If we wish to -learn from other countries, it is better to summon a -foreign master to us than to go abroad as foreign -scholars ourselves.</p> - -<p>Our ladies at home can acquire all the accomplishments -of these travelled gentlemen without stirring<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_76">[76]</a></span> -abroad, for it is not what one has seen that is of value, -but the languages and learning that are brought back, -and these are to be found at home. Our lady mistress, -whom I must needs remember when excellence is being -spoken of, a woman, a gentlewoman, a lady, a princess, -in the midst of many other affairs of business, in spite of -her sex and sundry impediments to a free mind such as -learning requireth, can do all these things to the wonder -of all hearers, which I say young gentlemen can learn -better at home, as Her Majesty did. It may be said -that Her Majesty is not to be used as a precedent, -seeing she is of a princely courage that would not be -overthrown by any difficulty in learning what might -advance her person beyond all praise, and help her -position beyond expectation. But yet it may be said, -why may not young gentlemen, who can allege no -obstacle, obtain with more liberty what Her Highness -got with so little? It is having as much money as -they like that eggs them on to wander. If they went -abroad as ambassadors to acquire experience through -dealing with great affairs, or if they were well known as -learned men to whom important information would -everywhere naturally be offered, or if they even went in -the train of the former, or under the tuition of the -latter, so that authority might secure benefits for -them and preserve them from harm, I would not -disapprove of it, as they might then learn to follow -in the footsteps of their leaders. But this is a very -different matter from the pursuit of those special -ends that could be better attained at home. For -good, simple, well-meaning young gentlemen, strong -in purse and weak in years, to travel at a venture in -places where there is danger to health, to life, to -conduct, far from the chances of succour and rescue—the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_77">[77]</a></span> -thought is so repugnant to me that I know not -what to say.</p> - - -<h3>Gentlemen should take up the Professions.</h3> - -<p>I do wish then that well-disposed young gentlemen -would be pleased to betake themselves betimes to some -kind of learning that is indeed liberal, seeing that their -circumstances protect them from interested motives, -and enable them to serve their country honourably. -Instead of all becoming lawyers or court officials, why -do not some of them choose to be divines, or physicians, -or to take up some other learned profession? Any -gentleman in our country who is now so qualified is -esteemed and honoured above all others of his calling, -and indeed gets some honour even if he is not -particularly well qualified. Are not these professions -to be reverenced for their subject-matter and for their -influence? And are they not therefore proper for the -nobility? I do not hold the conduct of barbarous -invasions to be the true field of activity for the nobility; -they should be for the most part peaceful, and warlike -only for defence if the country be assailed, or for attack -if previous wrongs are to be avenged. Nor do I take -wealth to be any worthy cause of honour to the owner, -unless it be both got by laudable means and employed -in commendable ways, nor any quality or gift that -adorns the body, unless it serves a good purpose, nor -any endowment of the mind which is not exercised in -conformity with reason and wisdom. Such gifts are -demanded in the callings I have named as worthy of -the nobility. Who dare think lightly of divinity in -itself? There is more hesitation now about adopting -it as a profession than formerly, when the emoluments -were greater, and the dignity more generally recognised,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_78">[78]</a></span> -but the position grows better again, and a good gentleman -may find in it the honour which he seeks. As for -medicine, if gentlemen will not study and practise it, -they must pay the penalty of ignorance, as they will -suffer in their own bodies as well as in their pockets by -leaving the profession to those of meaner rank, whose -attendance is often rather flattering and fawning than -intelligent services. This caution, however, young -gentlemen must bear in mind, that it were a great deal -better they had no learning at all and knew their own -ignorance, than a mere smattering, incomplete of its -kind, and insecurely held in their minds. For their -acknowledged ignorance harms only themselves, as -others more skilful may supply their places, but unripe -learning puffeth them up, and their rank encourages -them to be superficial, either in not digesting what they -have read, or in not reading sufficiently, or in doing -desultory work, or presuming on their station to defend -ill-considered notions. To conclude, I wish young -gentlemen to be better than ordinary men in the best -kind of learning, as they have ampler opportunities of -acquiring it and turning it to good account for the -benefit of their country and their own honour.</p> - - -<h3>The Training of a Prince.</h3> - -<p>As a child, the greatest prince may be, like other -children, in soul either fine or gross, in body either -strong or weak, in form either well-developed or ill, so -that in regard to the time for beginning to learn and -the proper course of study, he is no less subject to the -general laws already laid down than his subjects are. -We must take him as God sends him, for we cannot -choose as we would wish, just as he must make the best -of his people, though his people be not the best. When<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_79">[79]</a></span> -the young prince’s elementary education is past, and -there is more scope for reading, care must be taken to -choose such matter as may recommend humility as well -as afford adequate knowledge, so that competence in -affairs may be supported by the gift of courteous -persuasion. Intercourse with foreign ambassadors, and -conference with his own counsellors, require both a -knowledge of tongues and a knowledge of the matters -that come under discussion. And as he governeth his -State by means of his two arms, the ecclesiastical, which -preserves and purifies religion, the main support of -voluntary obedience, and the political, which by maintaining -the civil government doth keep order and -diffuse well-being, if he lack knowledge to use his arms -aright, is he not more than lame? And is not his best -help to be found in learning? Martial skill is needful, -but only for defence, because a stirring prince, always -ready to make aggression, is a plague to his people and -a punishment to himself, and even when he seems to -gain most, is only getting what he or his descendants -must some day lose again with perhaps something in -addition. But religious knowledge is far more important, -being specially necessary for a prince, inasmuch -as he hath none but God to fear. Almighty God be -thanked who hath at this day lent us a Princess who -indeed feareth Him, and who therefore, deserving to be -loved, desires not to be feared by us. I pray God long -to preserve her whose good education doth teach us -what education can do, and I have good cause to -rejoice that this work of mine concerning education is -given forth in her time.</p> - - -<h3>Boarding Schools.</h3> - -<p>I turn to the question whether it is better for a child<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_80">[80]</a></span> -to board with his master or elsewhere, or to come from -home daily to school. If the place where the parents -dwell be near the school, or only so far off that the very -walk may be for the boy’s health, and if the parent himself -be careful and wise to be as good a furtherer in the -training of his own child as he is a father to its being, -then certainly the parent’s home is much better, if for -nothing else, yet because the parent can more easily at -all times look after the interests of his own, having only -one or a few, than the schoolmaster can after his -ordinary duties are over, especially as he will have to -divide his attention among many. Further, all the -considerations which persuade people rather to have -their children taught at home than along with others -outside, especially with regard to their manners and -behaviour, form arguments for their at least <em>boarding</em> -at home, if the parents will take their position seriously, -because the parent can both see to the upbringing of -the child outside school and interest himself in the work -done by the child <em>in</em> school. For undoubtedly the -masters are wearied with working all day, so that -the individual help they can give in their homes in the -evening can be but little, without at once tiring the -master unduly and dulling the child, if he is always -poring over his books. There must be times for -recreation if anything is to be well done continuously. -Can anyone help thinking that it is a great deal more -than enough for the master to teach, and the scholar to -learn, daily from 6 in the morning till 11, and from 1 -in the afternoon till wellnigh 6 at night, if the time is -to be really well applied—nay, even if the hours were a -great deal fewer? And may not the rest of the day be -reasonably spent in some recreation that offers a pleasant -variety to both parties? In the master’s home I grant<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_81">[81]</a></span> -children may keep school hours better, and be less -liable to idleness and truancy; the master also may -keep them better under his eye in his general teaching -when they are wholly under his care in place of his own -children, may arrange their hours better according to -the subjects they are studying, and may sooner be able -to discover their special talents and inclinations. There -are also certain private considerations that have weight -with parents in sending their children to board away -from home, which I leave to their private thoughts, as -I reserve some to my own. If the master have charge -only of the scholars who board with him, and can himself -do all that is necessary for the best education, and -the numbers be moderate enough to allow of considerable -progress, then I know of no more favourable -circumstances, if the size, situation, and convenience of -his house, and other necessary conditions are all suitable. -But while he is thinking only of his boarders’ advancement, -some slow-paying parents will be sure to keep -him lean, if he look not well to it, and his fortunes will -not flourish, or at least the risks will cause him continual -anxiety. Parents have a different eye to their children’s -comfort when they are at a boarding-school, and are -ready to complain of many things that are made of no -account at home. And if sickness or death should -come, the worst construction is put upon it, as if death -did not know where the parent dwells. And though -the master should have done not only what he was -formally bound to do, but even more than he could -have done for his own child, yet all that is nothing. -Wherefore, as parents must think of the objection on -their side to sending out their children to board, so -masters on their part must beware of admitting them to -their own injury. Indeed, my own opinion is that it<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_82">[82]</a></span> -is quite enough for a master to undertake the education -alone. If parents do not live near enough to the school, -they should board their children elsewhere than with -the master. They are distinct offices, to be a parent -and a teacher, and the difficulties of upbringing are too -serious for all the responsibilities to be thrown into the -hands of one alone.</p> - - -<h3>School Buildings.</h3> - -<p>Of the places of elementary education there is not -much to say, as the masters supply rooms as large as -they can, considering the fees that the parents are willing -to pay, and the little people who attend these schools -are not as yet capable of any great exercise. The -Grammar Schools require more attention, because the -years that are, or at least ought to be, spent there are the -most important both for developing the body and for -framing the mind and character. Here the pupils are -most subject to the master’s direction, and provision is -made for them not only out of the parents’ resources, but -also from public endowment, so far as the buildings are -concerned. As the elementary schools must be near the -parents’ homes on account of the youth of the scholars, -they must often be in the middle of cities and towns, -but I could wish that the Grammar Schools were -planted in the outskirts and suburbs, near to the fields, -where partly by enclosing some private ground for -regular exercises both in the open and under cover, and -partly by utilising the open fields for rambles of wider -range, there might be little or no feeling of restriction -in the matter of space. There should be a good airy -schoolroom above for the languages, and another below -for others studies and for continuing and completing -the elementary training, which will not be well enough<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_83">[83]</a></span> -kept up if it is left to private practice at home. There -must also be suitable accommodation for the master and -his family, even if they be pretty numerous, and there -should be a convenient play-ground adjoining the school, -walled round and having at least a quarter of the space -covered over like a cloister, for the children’s exercise -in rainy weather. All this will require no mean purse, -but surely there is wealth enough in private possession, -if there were will enough to endow public education. -Yet we have no great cause to complain in regard to -the number of schools and founders, for already during -the time of Her Majesty’s most fortunate reign there -have been more schools erected than existed before her -time in the whole kingdom. I would rather have fewer -and have them better appointed for the master’s accommodation -and for general convenience. A small amount -of help will make most of our rooms serve, and enable -our teachers to give instruction and carry on the exercises -under satisfactory conditions. The places for -study and for exercise ought to adjoin each other, and -be capable of holding considerable numbers, to be -determined by the needs of the surrounding district. -The schools that I know are mostly well placed already, -or if they are in the heart of towns, they could be easily -exchanged for some country situation, far from disturbances -yet near enough to all necessary conveniences. -It would be a very useful part of a great and good -foundation if it provided for the removal of rooms to -more suitable places, either by exchange or by new -purchase, and I think licence would more readily be -granted for this purpose than to build new schools. I -am all the more impelled to recommend a country -situation on account of the inconveniences that I have -myself experienced, both in regard to my own health<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_84">[84]</a></span> -and that of my scholars, and the lack of facilities for -the exercises on which I lay so much store. Yet I am -by no means the worst off in this respect, owing to the -zeal and generosity shown in the provision made by the -Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors in London, -in whose school I have now served for twenty years, the -first and only headmaster since its foundation. If ye -consider what is to be done in these rooms which I -desire, ye shall better judge what rooms will serve. -Two rooms will be sufficient for the language study -and the continuation of the elementary course, an upper -room with proper arrangements for ventilation and the -prevention of too much noise, and another similarly -fitted up underneath to serve for what else is to be -done. I could wish that we had fewer schools and -that they were more efficient; it would be well if on -careful consideration of the most convenient centres -throughout the country, many of the existing schools -could be put together to make a few good ones. To -conclude this matter, I wish the rooms to be commodious, -for though such studies as reading require small -elbow-room, writing and drawing must not be straitened, -nor music either, and physical exercises especially must -have ample scope. And such rooms, if the numbers -are not too large, if the distance is not too great for the -young children, will with some distinction and separation -of places serve conveniently both for the elementary -school and the grammar school, which is so much -the better.</p> - - -<h3>Best Hours for Study.</h3> - -<p>I think it is not good to begin study immediately -after rising, or just after meals, or to continue right up -to the time of going to bed. From 7 to 10 in the forenoon,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_85">[85]</a></span> -and from 2 till almost 5 in the afternoon are the -most fitting hours, and quite enough for children to -be learning. The morning hours will serve best for -memory work and what requires mental effort; the -afternoon for going over again the material that has -been already acquired. The other times before meals -are for exercise. The hours after meals and before -study is resumed, are to be given to resting the body -and refreshing the mind, without too much movement. -To conclude, we must make the best of those places -and hours that are at present appointed, and yet be -prepared to adopt better arrangements, as soon as it -shall please God to send them. And by persuasion -some teachers may be able to bring wise parents to try -changes in the direction I have pointed out. In the -meantime some excellent man, having the advantage of -a well-situated house, and being independent of outside -help and able to control his own arrangements, may be -prepared to make useful experiments.</p> - - -<h3>Elementary Teacher most Important.</h3> - -<p>The Elementary school is left to the lowest and the -worst class of teacher, because good scholars will not -abase themselves to it. The first grounding should be -undertaken by the best teacher, and his reward should -be the greatest, because his work demands most energy -and most judgment, and competent men could easily be -induced to enter these lower ranks if they found that -sufficient reward were offered. It is natural enough for -ignorant people to make little of the early training, -when they see how little consideration is paid to it, but -men of judgment know how important the foundation -is, not only as regards the matter that is taught, but the -manner of handling the child’s intelligence, which is of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_86">[86]</a></span> -great moment. But to say something concerning the -teacher’s reward, which is the encouragement to good -teaching, what is the sense in increasing the salary as -the child grows in learning? Is it to cause the master -to take greater pains, and bring his pupil better forward -in view of the promise of what is to come? Nay, -surely that cannot be. Present payment would be a -greater inducement to bring pupils forward than the -hope in promise, for in view of the variety and inconstancy -of parents’ minds, what assurance is there that -the child will continue with the same master? That -he who took great pains for little gain should receive -more for less trouble? Besides, if the reward were -good he would hasten to gain more through the supply -of new scholars, who would be attracted by the report -of his diligent and successful work. As things are, the -master who gets the pupils later reaps the benefit of the -elementary teacher’s labour, because the child makes -more show with him. Why should this be so? It -is the foundation well and soundly laid that makes all -the upper building secure and lasting. I can only give -counsel, but if the decision lay with me the first pains -well taken should in truth be most liberally recompensed, -and the emolument should diminish, as less -pains are needed in going up through the school course. -By this method no master would have reason to -complain that the pupils who come to him have not -been sufficiently grounded in the elementary subjects, -which is a constant source of trouble at present both to -teachers and scholars. Indeed too often we Grammar -School masters can hardly make any progress, can -scarcely even tell how to place the raw boys in any -particular form with any hope of steady advance, so -rotten is the groundwork of their preparation. If the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_87">[87]</a></span> -higher master has to repair this weakness, after the boy -comes under his charge, he certainly deserves triple -salary, both for his own making and for mending what -the elementary teacher either marred through ignorance, -or failed to make through undue haste, which, in my -opinion, is the commonest and worst kind of marring. -As for the salaries of the masters that succeed the -elementary, I hold that the increasing numbers that -they can undertake will make up for the larger amount -to be given to the elementary teacher, however much -that may be. For the first master can deal only with -a few, the next with more, and so on, ascending as the -scholars grow in reason and discretion. To deal with -the unequal advancement of children, it were good that -they were promoted in numbers together, and that they -were admitted into the schools only at four periods in -the year, so that they might be properly classified, and -not hurled hand over head into one form without -discrimination, as is now too often the case. There -should be a definite plan of promotion agreed upon -among the teachers, so that one can say, “This child -I have taught, and such and such can he do,” and the -other knoweth what the child should have been taught, -and what he may be supposed to know. The elementary -teacher, then, should be competent for his task, and -when he is, he should be sufficiently well provided for -by the parents. Adequate reward would make very -able men incline to take it up, and though the supply -may as yet be insufficient, enough could soon be trained -if inducement were offered.</p> - - -<h3>The Grammar School Teacher.</h3> - -<p>My chief concern must be with the master of the -Grammar School, who cannot be too carefully selected,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_88">[88]</a></span> -for he has to deal with those years which determine the -success of all the future course, as during this period -both body and mind are most restless and most in need -of regulation. He has to complete the learning gained -in the elementary studies, and he offers hope or despair -of perfection to the University tutor in the case of their -proceeding further.</p> - -<p>For this class of teacher also I must ask for sufficient -maintenance in consideration of their competence and -faithful work. For it is a great discouragement to -an able man to take diligent pains when he finds his -whole day’s work insufficient to furnish him with the -necessary provision. Experience hath taught me that -where the master’s salary is made to rise and fall with -the numbers of his pupils, he will exert himself most, -and the children will profit most, provided he have -no more than he can manage himself without hazarding -his own credit and the pupils’ welfare by trusting to -independent assistants. The proper use of assistants -is not as we now see it in schools, where ushers are -their own masters, but to help the headmaster in the -easier part of his duties. If the master’s salary is fixed -by agreement at a definite sum, then he should not be -given too large numbers to deal with, nor should he be -obliged to eke out his income in other ways outside his -profession. It is unreasonable to demand a man’s -whole time, and yet make such scant payment that he -has to look elsewhere, outside the school, to add to it. -Among many causes that make our schools inefficient, -I know none so serious as the weakness of the profession -owing to the bareness of the reward. The good that -cometh by schools is infinite; the qualities required in -the teacher are many and great; the charges which his -friends have been at in his bringing up are heavy; yet<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_89">[89]</a></span> -he has but little to hope for in the way of preferment. -Our calling creeps low, and has pain for a companion, -always thrust to the wall, though always formally -admitted to be worthy. Our comfort must be in the -general conclusion that those are good things which want -no praising, though they go a-cold for lack of cherishing.</p> - -<p>But ye will perhaps say—what shall this man be -able to perform whom you are so anxious to have -suitably maintained, and to whose charge the youth of -our country is to be committed? Surely that charge -is great, and if he is to discharge it well, he must be -well qualified for it, and ought to be very well requited -for doing it so well. Besides his manner and behaviour, -which must be beyond cavil, and his skill in exercising -the body, he must be able to teach the three learned -tongues, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, if these are required. -And in these a mediocrity of knowledge is -not enough, for he who means to plant even a little -well, must himself far exceed mediocrity. He must be -able to understand his author, to correct misprints, the -mistakes of unskilful dictionaries, and the foolish comments -of superficial writers on the matter he is teaching, -and he must be so well furnished before he begins to -teach that he can express himself readily, and not have -to be learning as he goes along, distracting his scholars -by his hesitations. Time and experience will do much -to polish the manner of teaching, but there must be -knowledge of the matter from the first. He must be -acquainted with all the best grammars, so that he can -always add notes by the way, though not of course to -the burdening of the children’s memory. Besides these -and other points of learning, he must have determination -to take pains, perseverance to continue in his work -without shrinking, discretion to judge of circumstances,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_90">[90]</a></span> -cheerfulness to delight in the success of his labour, -sympathy to encourage a promising youth, hopefulness -to think every child an Alexander, and courteous lowliness -in his opinion of himself. For even the smallest -thing in learning will be well done only by him who -knows most, and by reason of his store of knowledge -is able to perform his task with pleasure and ease. -These qualities deserve much, and are not often found -in our schools, because the rewards of labour are so insufficient, -but they would soon be had if the maintenance -were adequate.</p> - - -<h3>The Training of Teachers.</h3> - -<p>If the rewards of the teaching profession were sufficient -to attract good students, the way to make them -well fitted to deserve these rewards would be to arrange -for their being trained at the Universities. I touch -upon this matter with some hesitation, for it would -involve some changes that might not be easily compassed, -but if the very name of change is to be avoided, -no improvements could ever take place, and though my -proposals may raise objections at first, I believe that -the more they are considered the more they will commend -themselves, as well to the University authorities -as to all others concerned. By the means I am about -to suggest, not only schoolmasters, but all other members -of the learned professions, would be better fitted -on leaving the University to perform what is expected -of them in the service of the commonwealth. I would -have it understood that I have no great fault to find -with the present constitution of the Universities, but -granting that things are well done there already, there -is no discourtesy in wishing that they might be managed -a good deal better.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_91">[91]</a></span></p> - - -<h3>University Reform.</h3> - -<p>My idea rests on four points;</p> - -<div class="blockquot pad2"> - -<p>1st. What if the Colleges were divided into faculties -according to the professions for which -they prepare?</p> - -<p>2nd. What if students of similar age, who were -studying for the same profession, were all -bestowed in one house?</p> - -<p>3d. What if the College livings were made more -valuable by combination, and the Colleges -strengthened by being lessened in number?</p> - -<p>4th. What if in every house there were valuable -fellowships for learned scholars who would -remain their whole lives in the position?</p></div> - -<p>Would not the country benefit by these measures? -And hath not the State authority to carry them out, -seeing that it hath already given its sanction to the -making of foundations, with a reservation of the right -to alter them if sufficient cause should be shown? Is -it not as admissible to discuss the improvement of the -Universities by planting sound learning, as to decide -upon taking away lands from colleges, and boarding -out the students, because they cannot agree among -themselves about the use of the endowments? Would -there be any better means of giving a new and fairer -aspect to the work of the Universities, and of bringing -them into greater favour with the public? In the first -erection of schools and colleges, private zeal inflamed -good founders; in altering these for the better, the -State, for considerations of public interest, may increase -the advantage, without departing from the intention of -the founders, who would have gladly welcomed any -improvement. It is for each age under the spur of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_92">[92]</a></span> -necessity to point out what is best for its own circumstances, -and the State must exercise its wisdom and -policy in bringing this about. I will now take up more -fully the four points I have named, in the hope of -offering reasons that may prove convincing.</p> - - -<h3>A College for Languages.</h3> - -<p>Would it not be convenient and profitable if there -were one college where nothing was professed but -languages, to be thoroughly acquired as a means to -further study within the university, and to public -service outside? That being the professed end, and -nothing else being dealt with there, would not a high -standard of sufficiency be the better reached through -general agreement? And would not daily conference -and continuous application in the same subject be likely -to secure efficiency? As it is now, when everyone deals -confessedly with everything, no one can say with certainty, -“Thus much can such a one do in this particular -thing,” but he either speaks by conjecture that may -often deceive even the speaker, or else out of courtesy -which as often beguiles those who hear and believe. -For where all exercises, conferences, and conversations, -both public and private, are on the same subject, because -the soil bringeth forth no other stuff, there must -needs follow great perfection. When the tongues are -thus separated from other learning, it will soon appear -what a difference there is between him who can only -speak and him who can do more. No subject can be -more necessary than languages in university training. -For the tongues being the receptacles of matter, without -a perfect understanding of them what hope is there -of understanding matter? And seeing words are the -names of things, applied and given according to their<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_93">[93]</a></span> -properties, how can things be properly understood by -us, who make use of words to know them by, unless -the force of speech is thoroughly understood? I do -see in writers and hear in speakers great defects in the -mistaking of meanings, and evident errors through insufficiency -in the study of language. Such study should -be well advanced by the Grammar School, but it needs -to be brought to greater perfection than it can be there. -And it may be that some, wishing only a general -culture, will be content to rest in this literary faculty, -taking delight in the writings of the poets and historians, -and not passing on to any professional study.</p> - - -<h3>A College for Mathematics.</h3> - -<p>I would have another college devoted to the Mathematical -Sciences, though I shall be opposed by some of -good intelligence, who not knowing the force of these -faculties because they considered them unworthy of -study, as not leading to preferment, are accustomed to -mock at mathematical heads. Such studies require -concentration, and demand a type of mind that does -not seek to make public display until after mature -contemplation in solitude. It is this silent meditation -on the part of the true students, or the appearance of -it in those that are but counterfeits, that layeth them -open to the mockery of some, who should rather forbear -if they will remember in what high esteem those -sciences were held by Socrates, and by Plato, who -forbad anyone to enter his Academy that was ignorant -of Geometry. For the men who profess these sciences -and bring them into disrepute are either quite ignorant -and maintain their credit by the use of certain terms -and technical expressions without ever getting at the -kernel, or they are such as having some knowledge<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_94">[94]</a></span> -occupy themselves with the trivial and sophistical and -illusive parts of the subject, rather than with its true -uses in the advancement of the arts. But in spite of -the contempt which is thus often brought on the Mathematical -Sciences, I will venture to give my opinion in -defence of their value. In time all learning may be -brought into one tongue, and that naturally understood -by all, so that schooling for tongues may prove needless, -just as once they were not needed; but it can never fall -out that arts and sciences in their essential nature shall -be anything but most necessary for every commonwealth -that is not utterly barbarous. We attribute too -much to tongues, in paying more heed to them than -we do to matter, and esteem it more honourable to -speak finely than to reason wisely. After all, words are -praised only for the time, but wisdom wins in the end.</p> - -<p>The Mathematical Sciences show themselves in many -professions and trades which do not bear the titles of -learning, whereby it is well seen that they are really -profitable; they do not make much outward show, but -our daily life benefits greatly by them. It is no just -objection to ask, “What should merchants, carpenters, -masons, shipmasters, mariners, surveyors, architects, and -other such do with learning? Do they not serve the -country’s needs well enough without it?” Though -they may do well without it, might they not do better -with it? The speaking of Latin is no necessary proof -of deeper learning, but Mathematics are the first rudiments -for young children, and the sure means of -direction for all skilled workmen, who without such -knowledge can only go by rote, but with it might reach -genuine skill. The sciences that we term ‘mathematical’ -from their very nature always achieve something -good, intelligible even to the unlearned, by number,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_95">[95]</a></span> -figure, sound, or motion. In the manner of their teaching -also they plant in the mind of the learner a habit -of resisting the influence of bare probabilities, of refusing -to believe in light conjectures, of being moved only by -infallible demonstrations. Mathematics had its place -before the tongues were taught, which though they are -now necessary helps, because we use foreign languages -for the conveyance of knowledge, yet push us one -degree further off from knowledge.</p> - - -<h3>A College for Philosophy.</h3> - -<p>The third college should be devoted to Philosophy -in all its three kinds, each of which forms a preparation -for a particular profession—Natural Philosophy for -Medicine, Political Philosophy for Law, and Moral -Philosophy for Divinity. But in this distribution some -will ask, “Where do Logic and Rhetoric come in?” -I would ask in reply, “What is the place of Grammar?” -It is the preparative to language. In the same way, -Logic on the side of demonstration takes the part of -Grammar for the Mathematical Sciences and Natural -Philosophy, and in its consideration of probabilities -fills the same place for Moral and Political Philosophy. -Rhetoric helps the writer to attain purity of style without -emotion, and the speaker to use persuasion with an -appeal to the feelings, though sometimes, indeed, the -latter deals only in argument, while the former may wax -hot over his writing. As to the proper order of these -studies, we are accustomed to set young students to -Moral and Political Philosophy first, but we should -rather follow Aristotle in placing Natural Philosophy -next to the Mathematical Sciences, because it is more -intelligible for young heads on account of its deductive -reasoning, whereas Moral and Political Philosophy,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_96">[96]</a></span> -being subject to particular circumstances in life, should -be reserved for riper years.</p> - - -<h3>Professional Colleges.</h3> - -<p>The three professions above mentioned—Medicine, -Law, and Divinity—should each be endowed with its -particular College and livings, instead of having its -students scattered. To have the physician thus learned -is not too much to ask, considering that his proficiency -depends on his knowledge, and with him ignorance is -simply butchery. As for Law, if the whole study were -reduced into one body, would our country have any -cause to complain? Would she not rather have great -reason to be very glad? We have now three several -professions in Law, as if we were a three-headed State, -one English and French, another Roman Imperial, and -the third Roman Ecclesiastical, whereas English alone -were simply best. The distraction of temporal, civil, -and canon law is in many ways very injurious to our -country. There can be no question that it is good for -the divine to have time to study the sciences that are -the handmaids to his profession.</p> - - -<h3>General Study for Professional Men.</h3> - -<p>But is it advisable that those wishing to enter the -professions should have to go through all the colleges -that offer a general preparatory training,—the colleges -for Languages, Mathematics, and Philosophy? No one -could doubt this, except such as are ready to think -themselves ripe, while they are still raw in the opinion -of other men. He that will be perfect in his profession -ought at least to have a contemplative knowledge of all -that goes before. It will be for the gain of the community -that while the student’s youth is wedded to<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_97">[97]</a></span> -honest and learned meditation, the heat of that stirring -age is cooled, which might set all on fire to the public -harm; ripe judgment is gained, and all ambitious -passions are made subject to self-control. Till young -men who are coming forward to the professions are -made to tarry longer and study more soundly, learning -shall have no credit, and our country cannot but suffer. -It may be asked: “What hath a divine to do with -Mathematics?” Well, was not Moses trained in all -the learning of the Egyptians? How can the divine -presume to judge and condemn sciences of which he -knows nothing but the name? And has not the lawyer -to deal with many questions that require a knowledge -of the sciences? The physician more than all should -see that his professional skill is supported by a wide -general study.</p> - - -<h3>A Training College for Teachers.</h3> - -<p>There will be some difficulty in winning a college for -those who will afterwards pass to teach in schools. -There is no specialising for any profession till the -student leaves the College of Philosophy, from which he -will go to Medicine, Law, or Divinity. This is the -time also when the intending schoolmaster should begin -his special training. In him there is as much learning -necessary as, with all deference to their subjects, is -required by any of the other three professions, especially -if it be considered how much the teacher hath to -do in preparing scholars for all other careers. Why -should not these men have this competence in learning, -to be chosen for the common service? Are children -and schools so small an element in our commonwealth? -Is the framing of young minds and the training of their -bodies a matter of so little skill? Are schoolmasters in<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_98">[98]</a></span> -this realm so few that they need not be taken account -of? Whoever will not allow of this careful provision -for such a seminary of teachers is most unworthy either -to have had a good master himself, or to have a good -one hereafter for his children. Why should not teachers -be well provided for, so that they can continue their -whole life in the school, as divines, lawyers, and -physicians do in their several professions? If this -were the case, judgment, knowledge, and discretion -would grow in them as they get older, whereas now the -school, being used but for a shift, from which they will -afterwards pass to some other profession, though it may -send out competent men to other careers, remains itself -far too bare of talent, considering the importance of the -work. I consider therefore that in our universities -there should be a special college for the training of -teachers, inasmuch as they are the instruments to make -or mar the growing generation of the country, and -because the material of their studies is comparable to -that of the greatest professions, in respect of language, -judgment, skill in teaching, variety of learning, wherein -the forming of the mind and the exercising of the body -require the most careful consideration, to say nothing of -the dignity of character which should be expected from -them.</p> - - -<h3>Use of the Seven Colleges.</h3> - -<p>Surely there is nothing unreasonable in proposing -that these seven colleges should be set up, and should -have the names of the things they profess—Languages, -Mathematics, Philosophy, Education, Medicine, Law, -and Divinity. If it had been so arranged from the -beginning, public opinion would now have commended -the policy and wisdom of those that originated it. And<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_99">[99]</a></span> -can we not bring about still what, if it had been done -at first, would have met with such honour, and will -deserve everlasting memory, at whatever time it may be -done? Greater changes have been both desired and -accomplished in our time. All that is needful for doing -it well is ready to our hand: the material is there; the -lands have neither to be begged nor purchased; they -have already been acquired and given, and can easily be -brought into order, especially as this is a time of reform. -As for putting students of similar age and studies into -the same house, it is desirable on many grounds, but -particularly because it encourages emulation among -those who are best fitted to compete with each other.</p> - - -<h3>Uniting of Colleges.</h3> - -<p>In saying that colleges should be combined, so as to -permit the bettering of students’ livings, I shall have -the support at least of those who are now willing to -change their college for a fatter living, or even to abandon -the university altogether for their own advantage. -At present college livings are certainly too lean, and -force good wits to fly before they are well feathered. -A better maintenance would give more time and opportunity -for study, and thus secure a higher standard of -learning, greater ripeness of judgment, and more solidity -of character. Students would be made more independent, -and would not have to come under obligations by -accepting support from other quarters. The restriction -in the number of livings would be no objection, as it -would shut out those less qualified to profit by them, -and thus raise the level of attainment. It were better -for the country to have a few well trained and sufficiently -provided for, than an unlearned multitude. -Moreover, it is not consonant with the liberal nature<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_100">[100]</a></span> -of learning either that it should be unnecessarily -dependent on charity, or that it should in this way -come under the control of those who may act -rather from personal considerations than regard to -the common welfare. Where learning grows up by -props it loses its true character; it is best when -the stem can itself bear up the branches. The outward -conditions for the furtherance of learning are -the selection of scholars on grounds of ability and -promise, and sufficient time and maintenance for their -due preparation; the qualities required for the student -himself are diligence and discretion to profit fully by -his opportunities.</p> - - -<h3>University Readers.</h3> - -<p>The last reform which I am ready to contend for is -that there should be University readers appointed, of -mature years, accredited learning and secure position, -who should direct and control the studies of the -students. Private study alone can never be compared -with the opportunity of working under one who has -read and digested all the best books in the subject, -whose judgment has been formed by his wide reading, -and whose experience and intercourse with many intellects -has given him skill and address. The student -who has not this advantage will gain less with greater -pains, since he could in one lecture have the benefit of -his reader’s universal study, put in such a form that he -can use it at once. Such readers would save their cost -in books alone, which would not then be so needful to -the student. They could be appointed with little or -no cost to the universities, and if they carried on -their work in convenient houses of their own, they -would undoubtedly draw as many students to their<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_101">[101]</a></span> -private establishments as there are now in the public -colleges.</p> - - -<h3>Evils of Overpressure.</h3> - -<p>Hasty pressing onward is the greatest enemy that -anything can have, whose best is to ripen at leisure. I -have appointed in my elementary teaching—Reading, -Writing, Drawing, Singing, Playing. Now if these are -imperfectly acquired when the child is sent to the -Grammar School, what an error is committed! How -many small infants have we sent to Grammar who can -scarcely read, and how many to learn Latin who never -wrote a letter! Even though some youngster could do -much better than all his companions, it were no harm -for him to be captain a good while in his elementary -school, rather than to be a common soldier in a school -where all are captains. Many and serious are the evils -that are caused by such hasting, and if deploring them -could amend them, I would lament that they are so -numerous and so hard to remedy. How common is the -lack of proper grounding in children, and how great is -the foolishness of their friends in regard to it! This is -the chief cause that at once makes children loth to learn, -and schoolmasters seem harsh in their teaching. For as -the master hastens on to the natural aim of his profession, -and the scholar draws back, being unable to bear -the burden, there rises in the master an irritation which -can only be controlled by the wisdom and patience that -are the fruits of experience. And as in the teacher irritation -breeds heat, so in the scholar weakness breeds -fear, and so much the more if he finds his master somewhat -too impatient, wherefore neither the one nor the -other can do much good at all. Whereas if the boy had -nothing to fear, how eager he would be, and what a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_102">[102]</a></span> -pleasure the teacher would take in his aptness to learn! -But even if the child’s weakness is felt both by himself -and by his teacher, it is difficult to get the parent to -believe in it, owing to the blindness of his affection, and -he will prefer to seek out some other teacher who will -adopt his views, and undertake the task. Thus change -feeds his humour for the time, though he will afterwards -repent his folly, when the defect proves incurable, and -the first master is at last admitted to have been a true -prophet. So necessary a thing is it to prevent ills in -time, and when warning is given not to laugh it to scorn -nor blame the watchman.</p> - -<p>If the imperfections which come more from haste -than from ignorance did not go beyond the elementary -school, the harm done might be redressed, but as one -billow driveth on another, so haste, beginning there, -makes the other successions in learning move on at too -headlong a pace. Is it only to the Grammar School -that children are sent too early? Are there none sent -to the University who, when they come out of it years -afterwards, might with advantage return to the Grammar -School again? Do not some of good intelligence find -in the course of their study the evil effects of too great -haste at the beginning, and wish too late that they had -been better advised? And even if they make up what -they have missed, do they not find it true that a process -which may be pleasant enough to young boys is full of -pain for older people? The Universities can best judge -of the weaknesses of our Grammar Schools when they -find the defects of those youths whom they receive from -us, though they were not sent by us. We see these -defects ourselves, but we cannot remedy them, for the -partiality of parents over-rules all reason, and when the -pupil is removed all conference with the teacher is cut<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_103">[103]</a></span> -off. In some places the multitude of schools mars the -whole market, giving too great opportunity for change, -generally for the worse, so that by degrees the elementary -scholar enfeebles the Grammar School boy, and he -in turn transporteth his weakness from his schoolmaster -to his university tutor. So important is it to avoid haste -at the first, lest it cause injury to the last.</p> - -<p>Are not youths often sent into the world, who may -receive consideration on account of their degrees, but -deserve none for their learning? If men did not judge -sensibly that young shoots must be green, however good -an appearance they may make, youth might deceive -them with its titles, as it deceives itself with conceit. -The causes of haste are—impatience, which can abide -no tarrying when a restless conceit is overladen; the -desire of liberty, to live as he pleases, because he pleases -not to live as he should; arrogance, making him wish -to appear a person of importance; hope of preferment, -urging him to desire dignities before the ability -to support them. In the meanwhile the common welfare -is sacrificed to personal advantage, and even that -advantage is in appearance and not in reality. The -canker that consumeth all, and causeth all this evil, is -haste, an ill-advised, rash, and headstrong counsellor, -that is most pernicious when there is either some -appearance of ripeness in the child, or some unwise -encouragement from a teacher who is without true discernment. -It is time that perfecteth all; it is the mother -of truth, the touchstone of ripeness, the enemy of error, -the true support and help of man.</p> - - -<h3>Limit of Elementary Course.</h3> - -<p>When the child can read so readily and confidently -that the length of his lesson gives him no trouble; when<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_104">[104]</a></span> -he can write so neatly and so fast that he finds no kind -of exercise tedious; when his pen or pencil gives him -only pleasure; when his music, both vocal and instrumental, -is so far forward that a little voluntary practice -may keep it up and even improve it; then the elementary -course has lasted long enough. The child’s ordinary -exercises in the Grammar School will continue his -reading and writing and he will always be drawing of -his own accord, because it delighteth his eye, and -busieth not his brain. His music, however, must be -encouraged by the pleasure taken in it by the teacher -and his parents, for in those early years children are -musical rather for others’ benefit than for their own. It -is certain that in tarrying long enough to bring all -these things to perfection there is no real loss of time, -especially seeing that these attainments, even if they go -no further, make a pretty adornment to a household if -they be thoroughly acquired.</p> - - -<h3>Difficulties in Teaching.</h3> - -<p>A great and learned man of our day, Philip Melancthon, -thought so much of the troublesome and toilsome -life which we teachers lead that he wrote an interesting -book on the miseries of schoolmasters. We have to -thank him for his good-will; but as there is no kind of -life, be it high or low, that has not its own share of -troubles, we need not be overwhelmed by a sense of -our special difficulties. Our profession is certainly more -arduous than most; but, on the other hand, not many -have such opportunities of doing good service. There -is little profit, however, in such comparisons. To what -purpose should I show why the teacher blames one -thing, the parent another, the child nothing but the rod -which he is so prone to deserve? So apt are we to repine<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_105">[105]</a></span> -at the pain we suffer, without weighing the offence -which deserved it. I will rather proceed to deal with -the remedies for what he calls “miseries,” but I would -prefer to term <em>inconveniences</em>, with which the teaching -profession has to contend in our own time. The -counsel I offer, though referring specially to the -youngest scholars, may well be carried further and -applied to the oldest and most advanced in any course -of learning. The remedies I take to be two—uniformity -of method, which would secure economy both -of time and expense, and the establishment of public -school regulations, made clearly known to all concerned, -which would prevent misunderstandings between teachers -and parents or scholars.</p> - - -<h3>Uniformity of Method.</h3> - -<p>No one who has either taught, or has been taught -himself, can fail to recognise that there is too much -variety in teaching, and therefore too much bad -teaching, for in the midst of many by-paths there is but -one right way. This is proved by the differences of -opinion that men show, due to better or worse training -in youth, to greater or less application to study, to -longer or shorter continuance at their books, to their -liking or disliking some particular kind of learning, and -many other similar causes, which may lead ignorance to -vaunt itself with all the authority that belongs to sound -knowledge. The diversity of groundwork which lies at -the root of so much confusion of judgment is a great -hindrance to youth and a discredit to schools, and -causes serious inequalities in the universities. It may -happen that a weak teacher by some accident brings up -a strong scholar, and that an abler man owing to some -ordinary hindrance makes little show for his labour.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_106">[106]</a></span> -But if variety had given place to uniformity, even the -weakest teacher might have done very well, if he had -the intelligence to follow the directions put before him.</p> - -<p>This defect has often been deplored by our best -teachers, who have nevertheless shrunk from the task of -supplying the remedy. If a uniform system could be -agreed upon, all the youth of this whole realm will -seem to have been brought up in one school, and under -one master, both in regard to the matter and to the -manner of their teaching, while differing in their own -invention, which is individual by nature, though it may -be trained by general rules of art. Such a measure -must needs bring profit to the learner by saving him -from the chances of going astray, ease to the teacher -by lightening his labour, honour to the country by -providing a store of good material, and immortal -renown to the enlightened sovereign who should confer -so great a benefit. Though agreement in a uniform -method must be enforced by authority, it must be based -on some likeness of ability in teachers in regard to -their own specialty, though they may differ much in -the manner of applying it and in other qualities. Now -the only way to procure this equal standard of efficiency, -where natural differences are so great, is to lay -down in some definite scheme what seems best, both as -to what and as to how to teach, with all the particular -circumstances that may apply to the best-ordered -schools not beyond the reach of the indifferent teacher, -yet such as to satisfy the more skilful. Thus diligence -on the part of the less able may even effect more than -the greater learning of the other, who may become -negligent or insolent from over-confidence. If I am -not mistaken, there are good reasons for holding that it -is better for the commonwealth to provide some direction<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_107">[107]</a></span> -for the ordinary teacher who will continue in his -profession the greater part of his life and have many -chances of doing good, than to leave it at random to -the liberty of the more learned, who commonly make -use of teaching only to shift with for a time, and are -but pilgrims in the profession, always thinking of -removing to some easier or more profitable kind of life. -Scholars cannot profit much when their teachers act -like strangers, who, intending some day to return to -their own country, cannot have that zealous care which -the native showeth, and though conscience may sometimes -cause an honest man to work well and do his -duty in this temporary position, such cases can be only -exceptional, and general provision must be for the -leading of the weaker, who will always need it.</p> - -<p>If when this scheme for settling the matter and the -manner of teaching is set down, those who have to -carry it out prove negligent, and delay or even defeat -the good effects, by their ill-advised handling of what -was well meant, the overseers and patrons of schools -must bring pressure to bear on such teachers, of their -own motion if they can, and if they cannot, then by the -assistance of learned men who are competent to act, -and who out of courtesy will help to further the end in -view. Our precepts are general; the application must -be made according to the circumstances of particular -cases. I have only roughly indicated the purpose of -uniformity in teaching, and the disjointing of skill by -misordered variety, yet who is so blind as not to discern -that the one removes the evils caused by the other, -and thereby relieves the schools of many hindrances? -Rapid progress in learning would at once follow, -through the choice of the best and fittest authors from -the first, the use of exercises adapted to the advancement<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_108">[108]</a></span> -of the child, and the teacher’s orderly procedure -in general. By this means the scholar would not learn -anything he ought to forget, or leave anything needful -unlearned, through the ill-advised counsel of his teacher, -and the teacher on his part would be saved from hurrying -on too fast, or dwelling too long on one thing. -The best course being hit upon at the first, as may be -generally appointed, one thing helpeth another forward -naturally, without forcing; what is first taught maketh -way for what must follow next, and continual use will -let nothing be forgotten which is once well got, and the -gradual advance in learning will succeed in proportion, -without loss of time or unnecessary labour either -through lingering too long or hurrying on too fast. -This result cannot possibly be brought about at present, -while things are left to the discretion of teachers, of -whom the most are not specially enlightened, and even -the very best cannot always hit upon the most fruitful -methods, and while the customary education is held as -a sanction, alteration even for the better considered a -heresy, and approval determined by personal prejudice. -I do not touch upon any hindrances that cannot easily -be removed, if the matter be taken in hand by authority; -difficulties that belong to special circumstances -must be dealt with at another time.</p> - -<p>The lack of uniformity is clearly shown when children -change both schools and teachers; either the new -master thinks it some discredit to himself to begin -where the old one left off, or disapproves of the choice -that the previous teacher had made, or seeks to exalt -himself by finding fault with the other, or else the -arrangement of his school does not admit of a regular -progression, every school having a plan of its own. -Sometimes the boy not being properly grounded, either<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_109">[109]</a></span> -through the ignorance of his teachers or his own negligence, -cannot easily be influenced for the better, or led -to give up his own conceit of himself, and this generally -happens when the parents are unreasonable and think -their child disgraced if he is “put back,” as the phrase -is, whereas in reality he is bid only to <em>look</em> back, to see -that which he never saw and ought to have seen very -thoroughly. This cause of disorder, proceeding from -the parents, affecteth us all, causing great weakness and -much failure of classification in the forms of our schools, -whereas if there were a uniform order fixed by authority, -however often the child may change, his advancement -is easily tested, and the parents will have no -pretext for discontent, when they see that the matter is -fixed by public provision, and that there is no room -for private partiality. At present the only thing that -is uniform in our schools is the common grammar set -forth by authority, the use of which confirms the opinion -I have expressed, as regards both the policy of adopting -it from the beginning, and the advantage of having -something definitely decided to which we are all bound -to agree. Whether the book now in use may be -retained with some amendment, or should give place to -one with a better method, is a matter for consideration, -for all such books, serving for direction, must be -fashioned to the matter which they seem to direct by -rule and precept, existing as they do, not for their own -sake, but as a means to an end. The experience of -having a common grammar proves the value of uniformity, -but it remains a matter of controversy whether it -is itself the best possible grammar.</p> - -<p>The second advantage of uniformity is the saving of -expense. While it is left to the teacher’s liberty to -make his own choice, both as to what book he shall use<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_110">[110]</a></span> -and what method he shall adopt, what with the variety -of judgment and inequality of learning in teachers, -which may be unified by authority, but will never be -by consent, the parents’ purses are heavily taxed and -poor men are sorely pinched. This is brought about -both by the change of books, the master often reversing -his former choice, and also by their number, every book -being commended to the buyer which either maketh a -fair show to be profitable, or is otherwise solicited to -the sale owing to the need for disposing of an over-supply. -Whatever is needful to be used in schools -may be very well comprised in a small compass; one -small volume may be compounded of the marrow -of many, and the change need not be great. Nor yet -hereby is any injury done to good writers, whose books -may very well tarry for the ripeness of the reader, and -the place that is due to them in the ordinary ascent -of learning and study, according to their value and -degree, so that they may win praise for their authors -from those who are able to judge, and may bring -profit to the student when he is able to understand and -remember them.</p> - - -<h3>Choice of School Books.</h3> - -<p>In our Grammar Schools we profess to teach the -tongues, or rather to make a beginning with teaching -them. Every subject that is treated in any tongue -supplies the student with the terms that belong to it, -which are most easily got up in connection with the -matter. If, then, the scholar of the Grammar School be -taught to write, speak, and understand readily in some -well-chosen subject, the school has performed its duty in -doing even so much, though the boy may not know all, -or even most, of the words in the language, which is a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_111">[111]</a></span> -matter for further study. Those that assign their tasks -to Grammar School teachers recommend historians and -poets, though they make some distinction of writers -according to the tendency of their matter and the purity -of their style. But what time is there in our schools to -run over all these, or even to deal with a few of -them thoroughly? Would it not be more creditable to -our profession, and more convenient for the parents, -to have a selection carefully made and printed by -itself? And should not the most important books be -left over to be taken in connection with the particular -callings to which they refer? Let those who are gifted -with imagination make a special study of the poets, and -those who take most interest in the records of memorable -deeds devote themselves to history. If men of greater -learning have leisure and desire to read, they may use -histories for pleasure as an after-dinner study, neither -trying the brain nor proving tedious, since they cannot -generally be accepted as a basis of judgment, because -ignorance of the circumstances causes a difficulty in -applying conclusions. They may also run through the -poets when they are disposed to laugh, and to behold -what bravery enthusiasm inspireth. For when poets -write soberly and plainly, without attempting any -illusion, they can scarcely be called poets, though they -write in verse, but only when they cover a truth with a -veil of fancy, and transfigure the reality. We should -therefore cull out some of the best and most suitable -for our introductory course, and leave all the rest for -special students, and that not in the poets and histories -alone, but also in all other books that are now admitted -into our schools. Some very excellent passages, most -eloquently and forcibly penned for the polishing of -good manners and inducement to virtue, may be picked<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_112">[112]</a></span> -out of some of the poets, and from none more than -Horace. But heed must be taken that we do not -plant any poetic <em>fury</em> in the child’s disposition. For -that impetuous imagination, where it already exists, is -in itself too wayward, though it be not helped forward, -and where it is not present it should in no case be -forced. As for other writers, regard must be paid to -the number and choice of their words, the smoothness -and propriety of their composition, and the solid worth -of their matter. Quintilian’s rule is the best, and should -always be observed in choosing writers for children -to learn, to pick out such as will feed the intelligence -with the best material, and refine the tongue with the -most polished style, so that we avoid alike trivial and -unsuitable matter, however eloquently set forth, and -what is rudely expressed, however weighty and wise it -may be, reserving only those passages where the good -tendency and intelligibility of the subject are clothed -and honoured with refined and fitting language.</p> - -<p>I intend myself, by the grace of God, to bestow some -pains on this task, if I see any hope of my labour being -encouraged. If any one else will take the matter up -I am ready to stand aside and rejoice in his success; if -none other will, then I trust my country will bear with -me when I offer my dutiful service in so necessary a -case. If any one of higher position should be inclined -to resent my action, I must appeal to the public -judgment, yet if such a one does not step forth and -prove his own skill, he cannot complain if another -speaks while he is silent. I crave the gentle and friendly -construction of such as be learned, or love learning, and -if I should have the misfortune to dissatisfy any in my -work, I will do my best to improve it.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_113">[113]</a></span></p> - - -<h3>School Regulations.</h3> - -<p>The second remedy for the difficulties of teachers is -to set forth the school regulations in a public place, -where they may be easily seen and read, and to leave as -little as possible uncertain which the parent ought to -know, and out of which dissatisfaction may arise. For -if at the first entry the parent agree to those arrangements -which he sees set forth, so that he cannot -afterwards plead either ignorance or disapproval, he -cannot take offence if his child be forced to keep them -in the form to which he consented. Yet when all is -done there may be doubt about the interpretation of the -rules. Wherefore the manner of teaching, the method -of promotion, the times of admission, the division of -numbers, the text-books, and all those matters into -which uniformity can be introduced, being already -known to be fixed by authority, as I trust they will be, -or at least the arrangements being set down which the -schoolmaster on his own judgment intends to keep, -it will further remove the chance of contention between -the teacher and the parents if it be also stated what are -the regular hours of work, exceptions being made in -special cases, and what will be the intervals for play, -which indeed is very necessary, and not as yet -sufficiently taken into account.</p> - - -<h3>Punishments.</h3> - -<p>But the teacher must above all make clear what -punishments he will use, and how much, for every kind -of fault that shall seem punishable by the rod. For the -rod can no more be spared in schools than the sword -in the hand of the Prince. By the rod I mean some -form of correction, to inspire fear. If that instrument -be thought too severe for boys, which was not devised<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_114">[114]</a></span> -by our time, but received from antiquity, I will not -strive with any man in its defence, if he will leave us -some means for compelling obedience where numbers -have to be taught together. Even in private upbringing, -if the birch is wholly banished from the home, -parents cannot have their will, whatever they may say. -And if in men serious faults deserve and receive severe -punishment, surely children cannot escape punishments -which bring proportional unhappiness. And if parents -were as careful to enquire into the reasons why their -child has been beaten as they are ready to be unreasonably -aggrieved, they might gain a great deal more for -the child’s advantage, and the child himself would lose -nothing by the parent’s assurance. But commonly in -such cases rashness has its recompense, the error being -seen when the mischief is incurable, and repentance is -useless. Beating, however, must only be for ill-behaviour, -not for failure in learning, and it were more -than foolish to hide all faults and offences under the -name of “not learning.” What would that child be -without beating, who even with it can hardly be -reclaimed, whose capacity is sufficient, the only hindrance -lying in his evil disposition? The aim of our schools -is learning; if it fails through negligence, punish the -negligence, if by any other wilful fault, punish that -fault. Let the teacher make it clear what the punishment -is for, and leave as little as possible to the report -of the child, who will always make the best of his own -case, and will be sooner believed than even the best -master, especially if his mother be his counsellor, or if -his father be inconstant and without judgment.</p> - -<p>The schoolmaster must therefore have a list made -out of school faults, beginning with moral offences, such -as swearing, disobedience, lying, stealing, and bearing<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_115">[115]</a></span> -false witness, and including also minor breaches of -discipline, such as truancy and unpunctuality. To -each of these should be apportioned a certain number -of stripes, not many but unchangeable. The master -should also try to secure that the fault should be confessed, -if possible, without compulsion, and the boy -clearly convicted by the verdict of his schoolfellows. -For otherwise children will dispute the matter -vigorously, relying on credulity and partiality at home. -If any of their companions be appointed monitors—and -such help must be had where the master cannot -always be present himself—and take them napping, -they will allege spite or some private grudge. And if -the master use correction, to support the authority of -his lieutenants, the culprit will complain at home that -he hath been beaten without cause. If the master -postpone punishment, the delay will serve them to -devise some way of escape, in which they can count -upon home support.</p> - -<p>To tell tales out of school, which in olden times was -held to be high treason, is now commonly practised in -an unworthy way. There are so many petty stratagems -and devices that boys will use to save themselves that -the master must be very circumspect, and leave no -appearance of impunity where a penalty is really -deserved. It were indeed some loss of time for learning -to spend any in beating if it did not seem to make -for the improvement of manners and conduct. It is -passing hard to reclaim a boy in whom long impunity -hath grafted a careless security, or rather a sturdy -insolence; and yet friends will urge that the boy should -not be beaten for fear of discouraging him, though they -will have cause to regret this afterwards. It is also not -good after any correction to let children dwell too long<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_116">[116]</a></span> -on the pain they have suffered, lest it cause too much -resentment, unless the parents are wise and steadfast; -and indeed that child is happy who has such parents, -and who lights as well on a skilful and discreet master -who acts in harmony with them. “But certainly it is -most true, whatever plausible arguments may be used in -a contrary sense, that the determined master who can use -the rod discreetly, though he may displease some who -think all punishment indiscreet when it falls on their -own children, doth perform his duty best, and will -always bring up the best scholars. No master of any -force of character can do other than well, where the -parents follow the same treatment at home which the -teacher does at school, and if they disapprove of anything, -will rather make a complaint to the master -privately than condole with their child openly, and in so -doing bring about more mischief in one direction than -they can do good in any other. The same faults must -be faults at home which are faults at school, and must -be followed by the same consequences in both places, -so that the child’s good may be considered continuously -as well in correction as in commendation.”</p> - -<p>Those who write most strongly in favour of gentleness -in education reserve a place for the rod, and we -who frankly face the need for severity on occasion, -recommend teachers to use courtesy towards their -pupils whenever it is possible. The difference is that -they seem to make much of courtesy, but are forced by -the position to confess the need for the rod, while we, -though accepting the necessity openly, are yet more -inclined to gentleness than those who make greater professions -in their desire to curry favour. I would rather -hazard the reproach of being a severe master in making -a boy learn what may afterwards be of service to him,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_117">[117]</a></span> -even though he be negligent and unwilling at the time, -than that he should lack any advantage when he is -older, because I failed to make him learn, owing to my -vain desire to be considered a courteous teacher. A -schoolmaster, if he be really wise, will either prevent his -pupils from committing faults, or when they are -committed, will turn the matter to the best account, but -in any case he must have full discretion given to him -to use severity or gentleness as he thinks best, without -any appeal. But I do think gentleness and courtesy -towards children more needful than beating. I have -myself had thousands of pupils passing through my -hands whom I never beat, because they needed it not; -but if the rod had not been in sight to assure them of -punishment if they acted amiss, they might have -deserved it. Yet in regard to those who came next to -the best, I found that I would have done better if I had -used more correction and less gentleness, after carelessness -had got head in them. Wherefore, I must needs -say that where numbers have to be dealt with, the rod -ought to rule, and even where there are few, it ought to -be seen, however hard this may sound. But the master -must always have a fatherly affection even for the most -unsatisfactory boy, and must look upon the school as a -place of amendment, where failures are bound to occur.</p> - - -<h3>Condition of Teachers.</h3> - -<p>Where the salary is sufficient, it is well for a schoolmaster -to be married, for affection towards his own -children will give him a more fatherly feeling towards -others, and smallness of salary will make a single man -remove sooner, as he has less to carry with him. An -older teacher should be more fit to govern, being more -constant and free from the levity of youth, and owing<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_118">[118]</a></span> -to the discretion and learning which years should bring -with them.</p> - -<p>When all is done, the poor teacher must be subject -to as much as the sun is, in having to shine upon all, -and see much more than he can amend. His life is -arduous, and therefore he should be pitied; it is clearly -useful, and therefore he should be cherished; it wrestles -with unthankfulness above all measure, and therefore he -should be comforted with all encouragement. One displeased -parent will do more harm in taking offence at -some trifle, than a thousand of the most grateful will -ever do good, though it be never so well deserved. -Such small recompense is given for the greater pains, -the very acquaintance dying out when the child leaves -the school, though with confessed credit and manifest -profit. But what calling is there which has not to -combat with discourtesies? Patience must comfort -when difficulty discourageth, and a resolute mind is a -bulwark to itself.</p> - - -<h3>Consultation about Children.</h3> - -<p>Of all the means devised by policy and reflection to -further the upbringing of children, as regards either -learning or good habits, I see none comparable to these -two—conference among all those who are interested in -seeing children well brought up, and systematic constancy -in carrying out what is so planned by general -agreement, so that there shall be no changes except -where circumstances demand it.</p> - -<p>The conference of those interested in the upbringing -of children may be of four kinds—between parents and -neighbours, between teachers and neighbours, between -parents and teachers, and between teachers and teachers. -Under the term “neighbours” I include all strangers<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_119">[119]</a></span> -who are moved either by duty or courtesy to help in -the training of children. Now if parents are willing to -take counsel with such, they may learn by the experience -of others how to deal with their own families. If -neighbours are willing to give advice to parents when -they notice anything amiss in their children, is it not -honourable in them to act so honestly? And does it -not show wisdom in parents to take it in a friendly -spirit? And are not these children fortunate who have -such solicitous helpers among their friends, and such -considerate listeners at home.</p> - -<p>This consultation may be between the neighbour and -the teacher. In this the teacher must act very warily, -for he has to consider what credit he may give to the -informer, how far the scholar is capable of amendment, -and how the parents will look at the matter. When -the parent is dealing with his own child, either from his -own knowledge or from accepted report, his judgment -is life or death, without appeal, but when the teacher -takes this office on him many objections may be made. -‘Why did you believe? Why did he meddle? Why -did you act in this way?’ But if such consultation be -wisely handled by all concerned, it will be a great -advantage to the child to be made to feel that, wherever -he is and whatever he does, if anyone sees him, his -parent or his master, or both together, will also see him -through the eyes of others.</p> - -<p>As for consultation between parents and teachers, I -have already said much on this head, but it is such an -important matter that I can never say too much about -it, because their friendly and faithful co-operation brings -about perpetual obedience in the child, scorn of evil, -and desire to do well. Nothing hinders this so much -as credulity and partiality in the parents, when they<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_120">[120]</a></span> -are unable to withstand their children’s tears and pleading -against some deserved punishment. Though the -parents may at the time gain their point, they will find -in the end that they cannot have their own will as they -would like. Such consultation is of special value when -the child is leaving school to proceed onward to further -learning, and when there is a question of changing -masters owing to some fancied grievance. In the -former case, the parent by seeking the teacher’s advice -can be surer of his ground. In the latter case, it may -prevent loss to the child through misunderstanding. -You are offended with the master, but have you conferred -with him, and explained to him openly the cause -of your dissatisfaction? Have you made quite sure that -the fault is not in your son, or in yourself? If the -master be wise, and if he hath been advisedly chosen, -though he should chance to have erred, he will know -how to make amends; if he be not wise, then the consultation -will help to show him up, and make it certain -how much trust can be put in him. I must needs say -once for all that there is no public or private means -that makes so much for the good upbringing of children -as this conference between parents and teachers.</p> - -<p>The last kind of consultation that I recommend -is that among the members of the teaching profession, -which has a good influence on education generally. -Can any single person, or even a few, however skilful -they may be, see the truth as clearly as a number can, -in common consultation? Even in matters not concerned -with learning such conference is found profitable, -and where it is practised among teachers for the common -good, it may have the advantage of giving forth a -unanimous opinion to the public. In places where -there are a number of schools within a small compass,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_121">[121]</a></span> -this kind of conference can be easily secured and is very -desirable.</p> - - -<h3>Systematic Direction.</h3> - -<p>The next condition of good upbringing is the best -offspring of wise conferences, namely, certainty of -direction, indicating what to do and what to learn, how -to do and how to learn, when and where to do that -which refines the behaviour, and to learn that which -advanceth knowledge. For children, being themselves -ignorant, must have system to direct them, and trainers -must not devise something new every day, but should -at once make definitely known what they will require -from the children, and what the children may look for -at their hands. This systematic regularity must be laid -down and maintained in schools for learning, in the -home for behaviour, and in churches for religion, -because these three places are the chief resorts that -children have.</p> - -<p>In schooling it assureth the parents as to what is -promised there, and how far it is likely to be performed, -by informing them of the method and orders -that are set down; it directeth the children as by a -well-trodden path, how to come to where their journey -lieth; it relieveth the master’s mind by putting his -meaning and wishes into writing, and giving the results -of experience in a form that can be followed as by -habit without constant renewal.</p> - -<p>As for regularity at home, I have already urged it, in -wishing that parents would act so in the home that -there may be conformity between their management and -that of the school. By this means neither would -schools have cause to complain of infection from private -corruption, nor would they easily send any misdemeanour<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_122">[122]</a></span> -home, since the child would be sure to be sharply -checked by its parents for any ill-doing. There should -be the utmost regularity for children in the home, -deciding for them when to rise and when to go to bed, -when and how to say their morning and evening -prayers, when and how to greet their parents night and -morning, on leaving and on entering the house, at meat -and on other occasions. Obedience to the prince and -to the laws is securely grounded when private houses -are so well ordered; there is little need for preaching -when private training is so carefully carried out.</p> - -<p>Regularity and order are equally needful for children -when they attend the churches on holidays and festivals. -All the young ones of the parish should be placed in a -particular part of the church, where they can be -properly supervised, none being suffered to range -through the streets on any pretence, and all being in -the eye of the parents and parishioners. They must -further be attentive to the divine service and learn -betimes to reverence the rule they will afterwards have -to live by. Regularity brings present pleasure and -much advantage later on, and he that is acquainted -with discipline in his youth will think himself in exile -if he find it not in old age. Whoever perceives and -deplores the present variety in schooling, the disorder in -families, and the dissoluteness in the church, will think -I have not said amiss.</p> - -<p>Yet this systematic regularity is not to be so rigid -that it will not yield to discretion where a change in the -circumstances demands it. As now our teaching -consisteth in tongues, if some other thing at a future -time seems fitter for the State, it must be adopted and -given its proper place. But in making changes it is -well to alter by degrees, and not overturn everything all<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_123">[123]</a></span> -at once. Unfortunately human nature is readier to -receive a number of corrupting influences than to take -pains to lessen a single evil by degrees.</p> - -<p>Thus bold have I been with you, my good and -courteous fellow-countrymen, in taking up your time -with a multitude of words, whose force I know not, but -whose purpose hath been to show how, in my opinion, -the present great variety in teaching may be reduced to -some uniformity. I have given free expression to my -opinions, not because I am greatly dissatisfied with -what we have, but because I often wish for what we -have not, as something much better, and the rather to -be wished because it might be so easily attained. I -might have set forth my principles in aphoristic form, -leaving commentary and recommendation to experience -and time, but in the first place I do not deserve so -much credit that my bare word should stand for a -warrant, and in the second place I was unwilling to -alienate by precise brevity those whom I might win -over by argument. Wherefore I have written on all -the various points enough, I think, for any reader who -will be content with reason,—too much, I fear, for so -evident a matter, as I believe these principles cannot be -substantially contradicted. For I have grounded them -upon reading, and some reasonable experience, and -have applied them to the circumstances of this country, -without attempting to enforce any foreign or strange -device. Moreover I have tried to leaven them with -common-sense, in which long teaching hath left me not -entirely deficient. I do not take upon me, dictator-like, -to pronounce peremptorily, but in the way of -counsel to say what I have learned by long teaching, by -reading somewhat, and observing more; and I must -pray my fellow-countrymen so to understand me, for<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_124">[124]</a></span> -having been urged these many years by some of my -friends to publish something, and never hitherto having -ventured into print, I might seem to have let the reins -of modesty run loose, if at my first attempt I should -seem like a Caesar to offer to make laws. Howbeit, -my years beginning to decline, and certain of my -observations seeming to some folks to crave utterance, I -thought it worth the hazard of gaining some men’s -favour. My wishes perhaps may seem sometimes to be -novelties. Novelties perhaps they are, as all amendments -to the thing that needeth redress must be, but at -least they are not fantastic, having their seat in the -clouds. I am not the only one who has ever wished -for change. If my wish were impossible of fulfilment, -though it seemed desirable, it would deserve to be -denied, but where the thing is both profitable and possible, -why should it not be brought about, if wishing -may procure it? I wish convenient accommodation for -learning and exercise. This does not now exist in -every part of the country,—indeed it scarcely exists -anywhere as yet. I would not have wished it if there -had been any real difficulty in accomplishing it, and it -will not come about before the wish is expressed. -There is no heresy nor harm in my wishes, which are -all for the good and happiness of my country.</p> - - -<h3>The Standard of English Spelling.</h3> - -<p>Because I take upon me to direct those who teach -children to read and write English, and because the -reading must needs be such as writing leads to, therefore -I will thoroughly examine the whole certainty of -our English writing, as far as I am able, because it is a -thing both proper to my subject and profitable to my -country. For our natural tongue being as beneficial to<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_125">[125]</a></span> -us for our needful expression as any other is to the -people who use it, and having as pretty and fair phrases -in it, and being as ready to yield to any rule of art as -any other, why should I not take some pains to find -out the correct writing of ours, as men have done in -other countries with theirs? And so much the rather -because it is asserted that the writing of it is exceedingly -uncertain, and can scarcely be rescued from extreme -confusion without some extreme measure. I mean, -therefore, to deal with it in such a way that I may wipe -away the opinion that it is either uncertain and confused -or incapable of direction, so that both native -English people may have some secure place to rest in, -and strangers who desire it may have some certain -means of learning the language. For the performance -of this task, and for my own better guidance, I will first -examine the means by which other tongues of most -sacred antiquity have been brought to artistic form and -discipline for their correct writing, to the end that by -following their way I may hit upon their method, and -at the least by their example may devise some means -corresponding to theirs, where the custom of our tongue -and the nature of our speech will not admit of the same -course being exactly followed. That being done, I will -try all the variety of our present writing, and reduce -the uncertain force of all our letters to as much certainty -as any writing can attain.</p> - -<p>I begin at the subject of correct writing, because -reading, which is the first elementary study, must be -directed both in precept and practice according to the -way that the thing which is to be read is written or -printed. And considering that the correct writing of -our tongue is still in question, some, who are too far in -advance, esteeming it quite unfit, some, who are too far<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_126">[126]</a></span> -behind, thinking it perfect enough, some, who have the -soundest opinion, judging it to be on the whole well -appointed, though in certain particulars requiring to be -improved, is it not a very necessary labour to fix the -writing, so that the reading may be sure? Now, in -examining the correct method of our writing, I begin -at that which the learned tongues used, to find out -what was right for themselves, when they were in the -same position in which ours now is. For all tongues -keep one and the same rule for their main development, -though each has its special features. In this way I -shall be able to answer all those objections which charge -our writing with either insufficiency or confusion, and -also to examine, as by a sure touchstone, all the other -supplements which have been devised heretofore to help -our writing, by either altering the old characters, or -devising some new, or increasing their number. For if -the other tongues that have been so highly esteemed, -when they were subject to, and charged with, these -same supposed wants with which our writing is now -burdened, delivered themselves by other means than -either altering, or superseding, or increasing their characters, -and made use of their own material, why should -we seek means that are strange and not in keeping -with our language when we have such a pattern to -perfect our writing by so well-warranted a precedent? -That the finest tongue was once quite rude is proved -by the very course of nature, which proceeds from weakness -to strength, from imperfection to perfection, from -a low degree to a high dignity. What means, then, -did those languages use, which have won the opinion of -being correctly written, to come by the method that -produced that opinion? There are two considerations -in regard to speech concerning the way that has been<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_127">[127]</a></span> -followed in its refining. For if we look into the first -degree of refining, before which no tongue at all had -any beauty in the pen, we have to consider how the -very first language proceeded from her first rudeness to -her fullest perfection. Again, we have to consider how -other secondary languages have improved and purified -themselves by following the same method as that used -by the primitive tongue.</p> - -<p>But I desire to be warranted by them both, that is, -to follow the first refiners and also the second improvers -in this course, which, as far as I know, no man has yet -kept in this subject, though several have written orthographies. -And my opinion is, that it best beseems a -scholar to proceed by art to any recovery from the claws -of ignorance. Therefore, I will examine, even from the -very root, how and by what degrees the very first tongue -seems to have come by her perfection in writing, and -what means were taken to continue that perfection, -ever since the time that any tongue was perfected. -Consideration, however, must always be had to the -special peculiarities of any particular tongue, as these -cannot be comprised under a general precept along -with any other tongue, but must be treated as exceptions -to the common rule. And yet even these particular -features are not omitted in the general method of -the first refining, and thus it is commended to us by -means of translations, which come in the third degree, -and refine after the first, by following the intervening -process. Now, in this long passage from the first condition -of extreme rudeness to the last neatness of -finished skill, I will name three stages, each naturally -succeeding the other, where the reader’s understanding -may alight and go on foot, if it be wearied with riding. -The first stage is while the sound alone bore sway in<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_128">[128]</a></span> -writing. The second is while consent in use removed -authority from sound alone to the joint rule of reason, -custom, and sound. The third, which is now in progress, -is while reason and custom secure their own joint -government with sound by means of art. For as sound, -like a restrained but not banished Tarquinius, desiring -to be restored to his first sole monarchy, and finding -supporters only in the province of sound, sought to -make a tumult among the writers, ever after that reason -and custom were joined with him in commission. I -will, therefore, first deal with the government in writing -which was under sound, when everything was written -according to the sound, though that stage came to an -end long ago.</p> - -<p>I should begin too far back in seeking out the -ground of correct writing, if I should enquire either -who devised letters first, or who wrote first,—a thing as -uncertain to be known as it would be fruitless if it were -known. For what certainty can there be of so old -a thing, or what profit can arise from knowing one -man’s name, even if one were the founder, which can -scarcely be? For though he be honoured for the fruit -of his invention, yet his authority would do small good, -seeing that the matter in question is to be confirmed -not by the credit of the inventor, who dwells we know -not where, but by the user’s profit, which everyone -feels. And therefore as they who devised the thing -first (for it was the invention of no one man, nor of -any one age), did a marvellously good turn to all their -posterity, so we, as their posterity, must think well of -the inventors, and must judge that pure necessity was -the foundress of letters, and of all writing, as it has -been the only general breeder of all things that better -our life, need and want forcing men’s wits to seek for<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_129">[129]</a></span> -such helps. For as the tongue conveyed speech no -further than to those that were within hearing, and the -necessity of communication often arose between persons -who were further off, a device was made to serve the -eye afar off by the means of letters, as nature satisfied -the ear close at hand by the use of speech. For the -handing down of learning by the pen to posterity was -not the first cause of finding out letters, but an -excellent use perceived to be in them to serve for perpetuity -a great while after they had been found by -necessity. The letters being thus found out in order to -serve a needful turn, took the force of expressing every -distinct sound in the voice, not by themselves or any -virtue in their form (for what likeness or affinity has -the form of any letter in its own nature to the force or -sound in a man’s voice?) but only by consent of the -men who first invented them, and the happy use of -them perceived by those who first received them.</p> - -<p>Hereupon in the first writing the sound alone led the -pen, and every word was written with the letters that -the sound commanded, because the letters were invented -to express sounds. Then for the correct -manner of writing, who was sovereign and judge but -sound alone? Who gave sentence of pen, ink, and -paper, but sound alone? Then everyone, however -unskilful, was partaker in the authority of that government -by sound. And there was good reason why -sound should rule alone, and all those have a share in -the government of sound, who were able even to make -a sound. In those days, all the arguments that cleave -so firmly to the prerogative of sound, and plead so -greatly for his interest, in the setting down of letters, -were esteemed most highly, as being most agreeable to -the time, and most serviceable to the State. But afterwards<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_130">[130]</a></span> -when sound upon sufficient cause was deposed -from his monarchy, as being no fit person to rule the -pen alone, and had others joined with him in the same -commission, who were of as good countenance as he, -though not meant to act without him, then their credit -was not at all so absolute, though reasonably good still. -This any well-advised supporters of sound may well -perceive, and be well content with, if they will but mark -the restriction in the authority of sound, and its causes. -For as great inconveniences followed, and the writing -itself proved more false than true, when the pen set -down the form that the ear suggested to answer a -particular sound, and as the sound itself was too -imperious, without mercy or forgiveness whatever justification -the contrary side had, men of good understanding, -who perceived and disliked this imperiousness of -sound, which was maintained with great uncertainty,—nay -rather with confusion than assurance of right,—assembled -themselves together to confer upon a matter -of such general interest, and in the end, after resolute -and ripe deliberation, presented themselves before -sound, using the following arguments to modify his -humour, but seeking rather to persuade than compel:</p> - -<p>That it would please him to take their speech in -good part, considering that it concerned not their -private good, but the general interest of the whole -province of writing: That he would call to his remembrance -the reasons which moved them at the first to -give him alone the authority over the pen, as one whom -they then thought most fit for such a government, and -indeed most fit to govern alone: That they now perceived, -not any fault in him, for using like a prince -what was his peculiar right, granted by their own -commission, but an oversight in themselves in unadvisedly<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_131">[131]</a></span> -overcharging him with an estate which he -could not rule alone without a sacrifice of his honour, -whereof they were as tender as of their own souls: -That their request therefore unto him was not to think -more of his own private honour than of the good of the -whole province: That they might with his good leave -amend their own error, which however it concerned his -person yet should not affect his credit, the fault being -theirs in their first choice.</p> - -<p>They paused a little while, before they uttered the -main cause of their motion, for they noticed that sound -began to change colour, and was half ready to swoon. -For the fellow is passionate, tyrannous in authority but -timorous.</p> - -<p>Howbeit, seeing that the common good urged them -to speech, they went on, and told him in plain terms -that he must be content to refer himself to order, and -so much the rather because their meaning was not to -seek either his deprivation or his resignation, but to -urge him to qualify his government, and make use of a -further council which they meant to join with him, as a -thing likely to bear great fruit, and of good example in -many such cases, since even great potentates and -princes, for the general weal of their states, were very -well content, upon humble suit made to them, to admit -such a council, and use it in affairs: That the reasons -which moved them to make this suit, and might also -move him to admit the same, were of great importance: -That because letters were first found only to express -him, therefore they had given him alone the whole -government therein, and were well contented with it, -until they had espied, not his misgovernment, but their -own mischoice: That the bare and primitive inventions, -being but rude, and being ruled accordingly, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_132">[132]</a></span> -experience at the time affording no more growth in -refinement, why should they not now yield to refinement, -upon better cause, what they yielded to rudeness -from mere necessity? That no man having any sense -of the correctness in writing that is commended by -experience would yield the direction to sound alone, -which is always altering, and differs according as either -the pronouncer is ignorant or learned, or the parts that -pronounce are of clear or stop delivery, or as the ear -itself has judgment to discern: That considering these -defects, which crave reform, and the letter itself, which -desires some assurance of her own use, it might stand -with his good pleasure to admit to his council two -grave and great personages, whom they had long -thought of, and through whose assistance he might the -better govern the province of the pen.</p> - -<p>Since they praised the parties so much, he desired -their names. They answered—Reason, to consider -what will be most agreeable upon sufficient cause, and -Custom, to confirm by experience and proof what -Reason would like best, and yet not to do anything -without conference with sound.</p> - -<p>The personages pleased him for their own worthiness, -but the very thing that recommended them to him for -their own value made him dislike them for the danger -to himself. For is not either reason or custom, if it -please them to aspire, more likely to rule the pen than -sound? said he to himself. Howbeit, after they had -charged his conscience with all those reasons in one -throng, which they had used individually before, urging -that it were no dishonour to yield a little to those who -had given him his whole rule: That they might have -leave to amend their own error in overcharging him: -That though they seemed to lower his rank, yet they<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_133">[133]</a></span> -did not seek to defraud him of his own: That the -wrongs done to writing, which they indicated to him -were matters worthy of redress: That the councillors -whom they appointed were honourable and honest: -That the common benefit of the whole province of -writing earnestly sued for it, and they were very well -assured that so good a father as he was to that poor -estate would never be unwilling, but rather voluntarily -condescend without any request, that he might not be -half dishonoured in delaying the request from not -knowing the grievances. After they had pressed him -so closely, though he was very loth, after being once a -sole monarch, to become almost a private person by -admitting controllers, as it seemed to him, rather than -councillors, as they meant, yet perceiving that their -power was such that they might force him to grant -what they begged of him if he should try to make -terms with them, he was content to yield, though with -some show of discontent in his very countenance, and -to admit Reason and Custom as his fellow-governors in -the correct method of writing.</p> - -<p>For in very deed wise and learned people, whatever -they may lend ignorance to play with for a time, -reserve to themselves judgment and authority to exercise -control, when they see unskilfulness play the fool -too much, as in this same quarrel for the alteration of -sounds according to a presumptuous rule they had very -great reason to do. For as in faces, though every man -by nature has two eyes, two ears, one nose, one mouth, -and so forth, yet there is always such diversity in -countenances that any two men may easily be distinguished, -even if they are as like as the two brothers, -the Lacedaemonian princes, of whom Cicero speaks; so -likewise in the voice, though in everyone it passes<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_134">[134]</a></span> -through by one mouth, one throat, one tongue, one -barrier of teeth, and so forth, yet it is as different in -everyone, as regards the sound, by reason of some -diversity in the vocal organs, as the faces are different -in form, through some evident distinction in the -natural cast of features. And this diversity, though it -hinders not the expression of everyone’s mind, is yet -too uncertain to rule every man’s pen in setting down -letters.</p> - -<p>And again, what reason had it to follow every man’s -ear, as a master scrivener, and to leave every man’s pen -to its own sound, where there were such differences, -that they could not agree where the right was, everyone -laying claim to it? Again, why should ignorance in -any matter be taken for a guide in a case demanding -knowledge? Because of the clamour of numbers? -That were to make it an affair of popular opinion, -whereas the subject is one of special difficulty, requiring -wisdom. And therefore if any number, though never so -few, deserve to be followed, it were only they who could -both speak best, and give the best reason why. But -that kind of people were too few at the first to find any -place against a popular government, where the ear led -the ear, and it was asked why sound should give over -his interest, seeing letters were devised to express -sound in every one of us, and not merely the fancy of a -few wise fellows. And yet when corn was once introduced, -acorns grew out of use though a fit enough meat -in a hoggish world. For naturally the first serves the -turn till the finer and better comes forward. And as -something worthily took the place of nothing, so must -that something again give place to its better; as sound -did something to expel rudeness, though it may not set -itself to keep out progress in refinement.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_135">[135]</a></span></p> - -<p>Wise men would stand no longer to that diversity in -writing, which necessarily followed, when everyone spelt -as his vocal organs fashioned the sound, or as his skill -served him, or as his ear could discern. All these -means are full of variety, and never in agreement, as -appears by the example of whole nations, which cannot -sound some letters that others can.</p> - -<p>Owing to these discontentments, and by consent of -those who could judge and pronounce best, they arrived -at a certain and reasonable custom—or rather, truth to -say, to a customary reason—which they held for a law, -not inadvertently hit on through error and time, but -advisedly resolved on by judgment and skill. Nor yet -did they, contrary to their promise, deprive sound of all -his royalty, which was like that of a dictator before, but -they joined reason with him, and custom too, so as to -begin then in acknowledged right, and not in corruption -after, as a Caesar and a Pompey, to be his colleagues -in a triumvirate. From that time forward sound could -do much, but not at all so much as before, being many -times very justly overruled by his well-advised companions -in office. Thus ended the monarchy of sound -alone.</p> - -<p>We are now come to that government in writing -which was under sound, reason and custom jointly, and -which proceeded in this way. Reason, as he is naturally -the principal director of all the best doings, and -not of writing alone, began to play the master, but yet -wisely and with great modesty. For considering the -disposition of his two companions, first of sound, which -the letters were to express in duty, being devised for -that purpose, and then of custom, which was to confirm -and pave the way to general approval, he established -this for a general law in the province of writing—that<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_136">[136]</a></span> -as the first founders and devisers of the letters used -their own liberty, in assigning by voluntary choice a -particular character for the eye, to a particular sound in -the voice, so it should be lawful for the said founders -and their posterity, according as the necessity of their -use and the dispatch in their pen did seem to require -it, either to increase the number of letters, if the supply -seemed not to satisfy the variety in sound, or to apply -one and the same letter to diverse uses, if it could be -done with some nice distinction, in order to avoid a -multitude of characters, as we apply words, which are -limited in number, to things which are without limit; -and generally, like absolute lords in a tenancy at mere -will, to make their own need the test of all letters, of -all writing, of all speaking, to chop, to change, to alter, -to transfer, to enlarge, to lessen, to make, to mar, to -begin, to end, to give authority to this, to take it from -that, as they themselves should think good. This -decree being penned by reason, both sound and custom -at once approved—sound, because there was no remedy, -though his heart longed still for his former monarchy, -which was now eclipsed; custom, because that served -his turn best. For if necessary use and dispatch in the -pen could have authority, which was given them in -law, by consent of the men who were successors to -those that first founded the letter (which were men of -the most learned and wisest sort), then were custom -indeed, having reason for a friend, and sound no foe, a -very great prince in the whole province in both writing -and speaking. And good reason why. For custom is -not that which men do or speak commonly or most, -upon whatsoever occasion, but only that which is -grounded at the first upon the best and fittest reason, -and is therefore to be used because it is the fittest.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_137">[137]</a></span> -If this take place according to the first appointment, -then is custom in his right; if not, then abuse in fact -seems to usurp upon custom in name. So that I take -custom to build upon the cause, and not to make the -cause.</p> - -<p>After reason had brought both sound to this order, -and custom to this authority, then was there nothing -admitted in writing but that only, which was signed by -all their three hands. If the sound alone served, yet -reason and custom must needs confirm sound; if -reason must have place, both sound and custom must -needs approve reason; if custom would be credited, he -could not pass unless both sound supported him and -reason ratified him.</p> - -<p>During the combined government of these three, the -matter of all our precepts that concern writing first grew -to strength; then rules were established and exceptions -laid down, when reason and custom perceived sufficient -cause. But none of all these were as yet commended -to art and set down in writing; they were only held -in the memory and observation of writers, having -sufficient matter to furnish the body of an art, but -lacking in method, which came next in place, and joined -itself with the other three for this purpose.</p> - -<p>All this time, while reason and custom governed the -pen as well as sound, the discontented friends of sound -never rested, but always sought means to supplant the -other two, ever buzzing into ignorant ears the authority -of sound and his right to his own expression; and the -same errors that troubled the pen while sound alone was -the judge, began to creep in again, and cause a new -trouble, inasmuch as all of the more ignorant sort were -clearly of opinion that the very sternness of sound was -simply to be accepted without all exception, though<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_138">[138]</a></span> -those of learning and wisdom, who had first set up -reason and custom as companions to sound, and still -continued of the same mind, could very well distinguish -usurpation from inheritance, and right from wrong.</p> - -<p>Reason therefore, finding by the creeping in of this -error both that he himself was being injured by senseless -time, and his good custom sorely assailed by -counterfeit corruption, perceived the fault to lie in the -want of a good notary, and a strong obligation, by which -to set in everlasting authority, by right rule and true -writing, what he and custom both, by the consent of -sound, had continued in use, though not put down in -writing. This would ever be in danger of continual -revolt from the best to the worst, by the uncertainty of -time and the elvishness of error, unless it were set down -in writing, and the conditions subscribed by all their -consents, for a perpetual evidence against the repiner. -For this is the difference between a reasonable custom -and an artificial method, that the first does the thing for -the second to confirm, and the second confirms by -observing the first.</p> - -<p>While nothing was set down in writing, sound and -his accomplices were in hopes of some recovery, but -this hope was cut off when the writings were made, and -the conditions settled. The notary who was to cut off -all these controversies and breed a perpetual quiet in -the matter of writing, was Art, which gathering into -one body all those random rules that Custom had beaten -out, disposed them so in writing, that everyone knew his -own limits, Reason his, Custom his, Sound his. Now -when Reason, Custom, and Sound were brought into -order, and driven to certainty by the means of art and -method, then began the third, the last, and the best -assurance in writing.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_139">[139]</a></span></p> - -<p>Art, being herself in place, perceived the direction -of the whole tongue to be an infinitely hard task—nay -to be scarcely possible in general, considering the diverse -properties of the three rulers, reason, custom, and sound, -which alter always with time. For what people can be -sure of their own tongue any long while? Does not -speech alter sometimes for the better, if the State where -it is used itself continue and grow to better countenance, -either for great learning, or for any other matter, which -may help to refine a language? And does it not sometimes -change to the more corrupt, if the State where it -is used chance to be overthrown, and a master-tongue -coming in as conqueror, command both the people, and -the people’s speech also? In consideration of this uncertainty, -Art betook herself to some one period in the -tongue, when it was of most account, and therefore fittest -to be made a pattern for others to follow, and -pleasantest for herself to work and toil in. Upon this -period she bestowed all those notes, which she perceived -by observation (the secretary to reason) to be in the -common use of speech and pen, either clear in sound, -or suitable to reason, or liked by custom, but always -supported by them all.</p> - -<p>Such a period in the Greek tongue was the time -when Demosthenes lived, and that learned race of the -father-philosophers: such a period in the Latin -tongue was the time when Cicero lived, and those of -that age: such a period in the English tongue I take -this to be in our own day, both for the pen and for -speech.</p> - -<p>Art choosing such a period in the primitive tongue, -and having all the material gathered into notes, wherewith -to set up her whole frame and building of method, -distributed them in such a way that there was not any<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_140">[140]</a></span> -one thing necessary for correct writing, but she had it -in writing, saving some particulars which will be always -impatient of rule, and make fresh matter for another -period in speech; though that which is now made so -sure by means of art can never be in danger of any -alteration, but will always be held for a precedent to -others, being most perfect in itself. For a tongue once -enrolled by the benefit of art, and grown to good -credit, is established in such assurance that its right -cannot be denied, and opposition would be soon -espied, however it should wrangle; then it is made -a common example for the refining of other languages, -which have material for such a method, and desire to -be so refined.</p> - -<p>This course was kept by the first tongue that ever -was refined, from the first invention of any letters, -until corruption which had slily crept in, but had been -wisely perceived, made a reform necessary. This -reform grew again to corruption, in the nature of a -relapse, because, though it was soundly made, yet it -was not armed with sufficient security against the -festering evil of error and corruption. Therefore, -when it felt the want of such an assurance, it begged -aid from art, which, like a beaten lawyer, handled the -matter with such forethought in the penning of his -books, that each of those who were in any way -interested was taught to know what was his own. -Other tongues besides the first to be refined, on marking -this current of events, applied the same to their -own writing, and were very glad to use the benefit of -those men’s labour, who wrestled with the difficulties of -sound, error, corruption, and the residue of that ill-humoured -tribe.</p> - -<p>This original precedent in the first, and transferred<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_141">[141]</a></span> -pattern in the rest, I mean to follow in finding out our -correct English writing, and whether it will prove to be -fashioned accordingly and framed like the pattern, shall -appear when the thing itself shall come forth in her -own natural hue, though in artificial habit.</p> - -<p>Before I deal further with this matter, I must -examine two principal points in our tongue, of which -one is, whether it has material in it for art to build on, -because I said that art dealt where she found sufficient -matter for her labour. The other is, whether our -writing is justly challenged for those infirmities with -which it is charged in our time, because I said that this -period of our own time seems to be the most perfect -period in our English tongue, and that our custom has -already beaten out its own rules, ready for the method -and framework of art. These two points are necessarily -to be considered. For if there be either no material -for art owing to the extreme confusion, or if our -custom be not yet ripe enough to be reduced to rule, then -that perfect period in our tongue is not yet come, and -I have entered upon this subject while it is yet too -green. However, I hope it will not prove premature, -and therefore I will first show that there is in our -tongue great and sufficient stuff for art to work upon; -then that there is no such infirmity in our writing as is -pretended, but that our custom has become fit to -receive this framing by art by the method which I -have laid down, without any outside help, and by those -rules only which may be gathered out of our own -ordinary writing.</p> - -<p>It must needs be that our English tongue has matter -enough in her own writing to direct her own practice, -if it be reduced to definite precepts and rules of art. -The causes why this has not as yet been thoroughly<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_142">[142]</a></span> -perceived are the hope and despair of those who have -either thought upon it and not dealt with it, or have -dealt with it but not rightly thought upon it.</p> - -<p>For some, considering the great difficulty which they -found to be in the writing of our language, almost every -letter being deputed to many and various—even well-nigh -contrary—sounds and uses, and almost every word -either wanting letters for its necessary sound, or having -more than necessity demands, began to despair in -the midst of such a confusion of ever finding out any -sure direction on which art might be firmly grounded. -Perhaps either they did not seek, or did not know how -to seek, the right form of method for art to adopt. -But whether difficulty in the search, or infirmity in the -searchers, gave cause for this, the parties themselves -gave over the thing, as in a desperate case, and by not -meddling through despair they fail to help the right.</p> - -<p>Again some others, bearing a good affection to their -natural tongue, and being resolved to burst through the -midst of all these difficulties, which offered such resistance, -devised a new means, in which they placed their -hope of bringing the thing about. Whereupon some of -them who were of great place and good learning, set forth -in print particular treatises with these newly conceived -means, showing how we ought to write, and so to write -correctly. But their good hope, by reason of their -strange means, had the same result that the despair -of the others had, either from their misconceiving the -things at first, or from their diffidence at the last.</p> - -<p>The causes why their plans did not take effect, and -thus in part hindered the thing, by making many think -the case more desperate than it really was, were these. -The despair of those who thought that the tongue was -incapable of any direction, came of a wrong cause, the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_143">[143]</a></span> -fault arising indeed not from the thing which they condemned -as altogether rude and incapable of rule, but -from the parties themselves, who mistook their way. -For the thing itself will soon be put into order, though -it requires some diligence and careful consideration in -him that must find it out. But when a writer takes a -wrong principle quite contrary to common practice, -where trial must be the touchstone, and practice must -confirm the means which he conceives, is it any marvel -if the use of a tongue resist such a means, which is not -in conformity with it? From this proceeded the -despair of hitting aright, because they missed their -intention, whereas in reality they should have changed -their intention, in order to hit upon the right, which -is in the thing and will soon be found out, if it be -rightly sought for.</p> - -<p>Again, the hope of the others deceived them too quite -as much. For they did not consider that whereas common -reason and common custom have been long -engaged in seeking out their own course, they themselves -will be councillors, and will never yield to any -private conception, which shall seem evidently either to -force them or cross them, in acting as they themselves -do, never giving any precept how to write correctly, till -they have railed at custom as a most pernicious enemy -to truth and right, even in the things where custom has -most right, if it has right in any. Therefore when they -proceeded in an argument of custom, with the enmity -of him who is Lord of the soil, was it any wonder if -they failed of their purpose, and hindered the finding -out of our correct writing, which must needs be compassed -by the consent of custom and the friendship of -reason? So in the meantime, while despair deceives -the one, and hope beguiles the other, the one missing<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_144">[144]</a></span> -his way, the other making a foe, and both going astray, -they both lose their labour, and hinder the finding out -of the best mode of writing, because the true method of -finding out such a thing has another course, as I have -shown before.</p> - -<p>Yet notwithstanding all this, it is very manifest, that -the tongue itself has matter in it to furnish out an art, -and that the same means which has been used in reducing -other tongues to their best form, will serve this -of ours, both for generality of precept and for certainty -of foundation, as may be easily proved on those four -grounds—the antiquity of our tongue, the people’s intelligence, -their learning, and their experience. For -how can it be but that a tongue which has continued -for many hundreds of years not only a tongue, but one -of good account, both in speech and pen, should have -grown in all that time to some refinement and assurance -of itself, by so long and so general a use, the -people that have used it being none of the dullest, and -labouring continually in all exercises that concern learning, -and in all practices that procure experience, either -in peace or in war, either in public or private, either at -home or abroad?</p> - -<p>As for the antiquity of our speech, whether it be -measured by the ancient Teutonic, whence it originally -comes, or even but by the latest terms which it borrows -daily from foreign tongues, either out of pure necessity -in new matters, or out of mere bravery to garnish itself -with, it cannot be young—unless the German himself -be young, who claims a prerogative for the age of his -speech, of an infinite prescription; unless the Latin -and Greek be young, whose words we enfranchise to -our own use, though not always immediately from -themselves, but mostly through the Italian, French, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_145">[145]</a></span> -Spanish; unless other tongues, which are neither Greek -nor Latin, nor any of the forenamed, from which we -have something, as they have from ours, will for company’s -sake be content to be young, that ours may not -be old. But I am well assured that every one of these -will strive for antiquity, and rather grant it to us than -forgo it themselves. So that if the very newest words -we use savour of great antiquity, and the ground of our -speech is most ancient, it must needs then follow that -our whole tongue was weaned long ago, as having all -her teeth.</p> - -<p>As for the importance of our tongue, both in pen -and speech, no man will have any doubt who is able to -judge what those things are that make any tongue to -be of account, which things I take to be three—the -authority of the people who speak it, the subject-matter -with which the speech deals, and the manifold uses -which it serves. For all these three our tongue need -not give place to any of her peers.</p> - -<p>First, to say something of the people that use the -tongue, the English nation has always been of good -credit and great estimation, ever since credit and estimation -in the course of history came over to this side -of the Alps, which appears to be true—even by foreign -chronicles (not to use our own in a case that affects -ourselves), which would never have said so much of the -people if it had been obscure, and unworthy of a perpetual -history.</p> - -<p>Next, as to the matter with which it deals, whether -private or public, it may compare with some others -that think very well of themselves. For not to touch -upon ordinary affairs of common life, will matters of -learning in any kind of argument make a tongue of -account? Our nation then, I think, will hardly be<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_146">[146]</a></span> -proved to have been unlearned at any time, in any kind -of learning, not to use any stronger terms. Therefore, -having learning by confession of all men, and uttering -that learning in their own tongue for their own use, -they could not but enrich the tongue, and bring it -consideration.</p> - -<p>Will matters of war, whether civil or foreign, make a -tongue of account? Neighbouring nations will not -deny our people to be very warlike, and our own country -will confess it, though loth to feel it, both on account -of remembering the suffering, and of fearing to gall our -friends by vaunting ourselves. Now, in offering material -for speech, war is such a breeder that, though it is -opposed to learning because it is an enemy to the -Muses, yet it dares compare with any department of -learning for the multitude of its discourses, though -these are not commonly so certain or useful as learned -subjects. For war (besides the many grave and serious -considerations about it) as sometimes it sends us true -reports, either privately in the form of projects and -devices that are intended, or publicly in events which -are blazed abroad because they have occurred, so -mostly it gives out—I dare not say lies, but—very incredible -news, because it can hatch these at will, being -in no danger of control, and commonly free from -witnesses. Every man, moreover, seeks both to praise -himself and to harm his enemy, besides procuring some -courteous entertainment by telling what is not true -to those that love to hear it. All these tales about -stratagems and engines of war and many other such -things, give matter for speech and occasion for new -words, and by making the language so ready, make it -of renown.</p> - -<p>Will all kinds of trade, and all sorts of traffic, make<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_147">[147]</a></span> -a tongue of account? If the spreading sea and the -spacious land could use any speech, they would both -show you where and in how many strange places they -have seen our people, and also let you know that they -deal in as much, and in as great a variety of matters, as -any other people, whether at home or abroad. This -is the reason why our tongue serves so many uses, -because it is conversant with so many people, and so -well acquainted with so many matters, in such various -kinds of dealing. Now all this variety of matter and -diversity of trade, both make material for our speech, -and afford the means of enlarging it. For he who is -so practised will utter what he practises in his natural -tongue, and if the strangeness of the matter requires it, -he who is to utter, will rather than stick in his utterance, -use the foreign term, explaining that the people -of the country call it so, and by that means make a -foreign word an English denizen.</p> - -<p>All these reasons concerning the tongue and its importance -being put together, not only prove the nation’s -exercise in learning, and their practice in other dealings, -but seem to infer—to say the least—no base-witted -people, because it is not the part of fools to be so -learned, so warlike, and so well-practised in affairs. I -shall not need to prove any of these positions, either -from foreign or home history, as my readers who are -strangers will not urge me for them, and those of my -own nation will not, I think, gainsay me in them, since -they know them to be true, and may use them for their -honour.</p> - -<p>Therefore I may well conclude my first position, that -if use and custom, having the advantage of such length -of time to refine our tongue, of so great learning and -experience to furnish material for the refining, and of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_148">[148]</a></span> -so good intelligence and judgment to direct it, have -attained nothing which they refuse to let go in the -correct manner of our writing, then our tongue has no -certainty to trust to, but writes all at random. But the -antecedent is, in my opinion, altogether impossible; -therefore the consequent is a great deal more than -probable, which is that our tongue has in her own -possession very good evidence to prove her own correct -writing; and though no man as yet, to judge by any -public writing of his, seems to have seen this, yet the -tongue itself is ready to show it to anyone who is able -to read it, and to judge what evidence is trustworthy in -regard to the standard of writing. Therefore, seeing I -have proved sufficiently in my own opinion that there -is great cause why our tongue should have some good -standard in her own writing, and consider myself to -have had the sight of that evidence by which such a -standard appears most capable of justification, and am -not altogether ignorant of how to give a decision upon -it, I will do my best, according to the course which I -said was kept in the first general refining of any speech, -and has also been transferred to every secondary and -particular tongue, to set forth some standard for -English writing. This I will base upon those notes -which I have observed in the tongue itself, the best -and finest therein, which by comparison with themselves -offer the means of correcting the worse, without either -introducing any innovation, as those do who set forth -new devices, or mistaking my way, as those do who -despair that our tongue can be brought to any certainty -without some marvellous foreign help. Thus much for -the material fit for art in our tongue; now for the -objections which charge it with infirmities.</p> - -<p>Those who see imperfections in our tongue either<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_149">[149]</a></span> -blame certain errors which they allege to be in our -writing, or else they will seem to seek its reformation. -In pointing out errors they rail at custom as a vile -corrupter, and complain of our letters as miserably -deficient. In their desire for redress they appeal to -sound as the only sovereign and surest leader in the -government of writing, and fly to innovation, as the -only means of reforming all errors in our writing.</p> - -<p>In their quarrel with custom they seek to bring it -into general hatred, as a common corrupter of all good -things, declaring it to be no marvel if it abuse speech, -which in passing through every man’s mouth, and being -imitated by every man’s pen, must needs gather much -corruption by the way, because the ill are many just as -the good are few, and common corruption, which they -term custom, is an ill director to find out a right. -Hereupon they conclude that, as it seems most probable, -so it is most true that the chief errors which have crept -into our pen take their beginning from the sole infection -of an evil custom, which ought not so much as once to -be named, for direction to what is right, in either pen -or speech, being so manifestly false, notwithstanding -whatever any writers, old or new, can pretend to the -contrary. Then they descend to particularities, -proving that we sometimes burden our words with too -many letters, sometimes pinch them with too few, -sometimes misshape them with wrong sounding, sometimes -misorder them with wrong placing. And are not -these marvellously great causes of discontent with -custom, which is the breeder of them? And yet if -good writers seem to favour custom, then the case is -not so clear as you take it to be, that it is nothing but -a hell of most vile corruptions; that it alone infects all -good things; that it alone corrupts correct writing.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_150">[150]</a></span> -For if it were indeed only this, they would not warrant -it, and give it such great credit, as I remember they do. -Is there not, then, some error in the name, and may not -custom be misconstrued? For certainly these writers, -when they speak of custom, mean that rule in conduct -and virtuous life in which good men agree, and their -consent is what these men term custom, as they call -that rule in speaking and writing the custom wherein -the most skilful and learned agree. And is it likely -that either the honest in act will mislead virtue in -living, or the learned will disapprove of correctness in -writing? And, again, those honest men who approve -of custom in matters of life complain very much of -corruption in manners and evil behaviour; and the -learned men, who approve of custom in matters of -speech and pen, complain very much of error in writing -and corruption in speech; and both accuse the -majority of people as the leaders to error, and set down -the common abuse at the door of the multitude. And -therefore it cannot be otherwise but that the double -name is what deceives. For those who accuse custom -mean false error which counterfeits custom, and is a -great captain among the impudent for evil and the -ignorant for rashness, and yet has the chief part in -directing all. And those who praise custom mean -plain truth, which cannot dissemble, which is the -companion of the honest in virtue, and of the learned -in knowledge, and directs all best. Now will ye see? -This mistermed “custom” in the pen is that counterfeit -abuse which was the only cause why the monarchy -of sound, of which I spoke before, was dissolved, and -itself condemned by those wise people who joined -reason with sound; and the right custom which writers -commend so is that companion of reason which succeeded<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_151">[151]</a></span> -in its place when the counterfeit was cast out. -Now you see the error. So neither do writers approve -of such a corruption, nor is custom your opponent, but -both writers and custom, as well as you and I will -scratch out the eyes of common error, for misusing -good things and belying custom. If good things are -abused it is by bad people, whose misnamed custom is -rightly named error. If words are overcharged with -letters, that comes either by the covetousness of those -who sell them by lines, or the ignorance of those who, -besides pestering them with too many, both weaken -them with too few, and wrong them with the change of -force and position.</p> - -<p>When they have dealt thus with custom, and with -their opponents (as they consider those who are really -their friends) without marking what their reasons are, -or by whose authority custom is established, which they -so impugn by suggestion of a counterfeit, then they -begin to complain sorely of the insufficiency and poverty -of our letters. While these are as many as in other -tongues, yet they do not suffice, it is alleged, for the -full and right expression of our sounds, though they -express them after a sort, but force us to use a number -of them, like the Delphic sword of which Aristotle -speaks, for many sounds and services contrary to the -nature of such an instrument, each letter being intended -at first for one sound. Thus it comes to pass that we -both write improperly, not answering the sound of what -we say, and are never like ourselves in any of our -writing, but always vary according to the writer’s -humour, without any certain direction. Therefore, -foreigners and strangers wonder at us, both for the -uncertainty in our writing and the inconstancy in our -letters. And is it not a great shame that so able a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_152">[152]</a></span> -nation as the English, who have been of very good note -for so many years, either should not notice, or would -not amend, in all this time the poverty of their pen, -and the confusion in their letters, but both let their -writing thus always run riot, and themselves be mocked -by foreign people?</p> - -<p>If foreigners do marvel at us, we may requite them -with as much, and return their wonder home, considering -that they themselves are subject to the very same -difficulties which they wonder at in us, and have no -more letters than we have, and yet both write and are -understood in spite of all these insufficiencies, just as -we also write and are understood in this our insufficiency -even by their own confession. But the common use of -writing among those strangers, which agrees so with -ours in our uncertainty, makes me think that this complaint -of insufficiency is not general either with them -or with us, but in both cases belongs to a few, who -objecting to what they know nothing of, and not -observing what they cannot, therefore blame what they -should not. For if their blaming upon good cause, -and marking upon wise judgment concurred with their -number, though not so great, I should be afraid lest -they should have the better, because they were the -fewer; but being both the fewer and the weaker, they -carry no great weight in condemnation. Other folks -also, who see something as well as they, do not quite -disapprove of all their disapproval, but desire some -redress, where there is good cause, though they may -not agree as to the means of bringing about the redress, -nor yet admit that the error is as great as these -objectors pretend. For we confess that this multiplicity -and manifold use in the force and service of our -letters requires some distinctions to be known by, if<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_153">[153]</a></span> -general acquaintance with our own writing do not help -us to perceive in use what we put down by use; but -still we defend and maintain the multiplicity itself, -as a thing much used even in the best tongues, and -therefore not unlawful, even though there were no -distinctions.</p> - -<p>And again, we do not think that every custom is an -evident corruption, where the general usage of those -who cannot be suspected of writing with other than -good judgment, lays the groundwork for precept, as -leading to the exercise of art, and assurance to the pen. -And we rest content with the number of our letters. -Some people in studying to increase this number, only -cumber our tongue, both with strange characters and -with needless diphthongs, forcing us away from what the -general rule has won and is content with. And why -not these letters only? Or why may they not be put -to many uses? This paucity and poverty of letters -has contented the best and bravest tongues that either -are, have been, shall be, or can be, and has expressed -by them, both in speech and pen, as great variety and -as much difficulty in all subjects as possibly can be -expressed or understood by the English tongue or be -devised by any English intelligence. The people that -now use them, and those that have used them, have -naturally the same organs of voice, and the same -delivery in sound, for all their speaking, that we -English have, because they are men, just as we English -folk are; and they handed down the use of the pen to -us, and not we to them. And finding in their own use -this necessity which you note, they fled to that help -which you think naught, and were bold with their -letters, to make them serve diverse turns, sometimes -with change, sometimes with some ingenious mark of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_154">[154]</a></span> -distinction. That this kind of distinction is enough, is -known to all who are acquainted with the foreign -letters, and with those writers who treat of them. Nor -is there any difficulty which they are not subject to, -either in the same or in very similar things, just as we -are. And will strangers wonder at us? Or do not -those of our own people who are learned perceive these -things? For in the ignorant I require no such discretion. -I certainly think that all people, as they have -the same natural organs to speak by, though from habit -some may harp more on one sound than on others, and -some—even whole nations—may lean more upon one -organ, such as the throat or the teeth, than others do, -yet naturally all are made able to sound all kinds of -speech and all letters, if they are accustomed to them -at the most fitting age and by the best means. I hold -also that it is only education and custom that make the -difference, and therefore rule all, or at least most, in -speech, wherein if there be any reason, it is not natural -and simple, as in things, but artificial and compound, -based upon such and such a cause in custom and -consent. And though the Hebrew grammarians alone -divide their letters according to the vocal organs on -which they lean most, such as the throat, the roof of -the mouth, the tongue, the lips, or the teeth, yet not -the Hebrews alone have that distinction in nature, but -every people which has throat, teeth, palate, tongue, -lips, and with those organs use the utterance of sounds. -This is an argument to me, both that use is the -mistress, and that he who sounds on any one method -by the usage of his country, may be smoothed to some -other by the contrary use, and that therefore the same -letters will serve all people, if they choose to frame -themselves accordingly. For, otherwise, why do we<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_155">[155]</a></span> -persuade our people to sound Latin in one way, Greek -in another, Hebrew in another, Italian in another, if it -is not a thing that we can become acquainted with -through customary usage? And this being so in all -nations, what need have we for more letters to utter -our minds, seeing that the organs of utterance are all -one, and that nothing can be uttered either more -diverse or difficult than those have uttered from whom -we have the letters we possess? Nor is it any discredit -to our people to rest content with those letters, and -with that number, which antiquity has approved and -held for sufficient. Is nature, therefore, which was -fruitful in them, now so barren that we may not invent, -and add something to theirs? No, forsooth. All -mankind is one, without any respect of this or that age, -both to nature herself, and to the God and Lord of -nature, and therefore what is given to one man, or -delivered in one age of common service, is meant for -all men and all ages, and always for their benefit; nor -is either God himself, or nature his minister, tied to any -time for the delivery of their gifts, but whenever man’s -necessity compels him to seek, then they help him to -find. We understand, therefore, that as no one age -brings forth everything, so no one age can but confess -that it has some one or other particular invention, -though not the self-same, because it is enough to have -received it once to use ever after. So is it in this use -of letters, which being once perfected is never to be -shaken, unless a better means be found of uttering our -speech, which I shall not see, nor can foresee by any -secret prophecy. In these inventions, though the first -receiver have the prerogative in taking, yet the whole -posterity has the benefit in using, and generally with -greater perfection, because time and continuance increase<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_156">[156]</a></span> -and prune, and when it is at the full, it is a -mistake to seek further, which I take to be the case in -the matter of penning. Nor is the restraint from -innovating, altering, or adding to things already perfected -any discourtesy in reason, or any discountenance -in nature, but the simple delivery of a perfect thing to -our elder brethren to be conveyed unto us; as we in -like case must be the transporters to our posterity of -such things as it pleases God to continue by our -means, whether received from our elders or devised by -ourselves.</p> - -<p>But why may we not use all our four-and-twenty -letters, even for four-and-twenty uses each, if occasion -serve, seeing that the characters being known are more -familiar and easier to be discerned than any new device—yea, -even though the old resembled each other more, -and there were but one new? It has been sufficiently -declared already, that those men who first devised -letters, reserved the authorities over them and their use -to themselves for life, and to their successors for ever, -to modify and use them as it should please them best -by consent among themselves, as necessity arose. And -why not so, where the invention is their own, and the -right use of it? This general reservation is enrolled -already in all reason and antiquity, and the particular -consent for the writing of our language is given already -by our general use, and will be registered also in a very -good record, I hope, and that shortly. And will you -make that sovereign which is but subaltern? Or will -you take that to be immovable like a steady rock, -which roams by nature, to serve the finder? There is -no such assurance in sound for the establishing of a -right as you conceive, nor any such necessity in letters -to be constant in one use as you seek to enforce.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_157">[157]</a></span></p> - -<p>The philosopher says that nature makes one thing -for one use, and that every use has its particular instrument -naturally, but that our own inventions—nay, that -even the most natural means—may through our -application, serve for sundry ends and uses. And will -letters stand so upon their reputation as not to seem to -admit of our applying them to their own purposes, -seeing that they are both our creatures, and by creation -our bondmen, both to sound as we shall think good, -and in as many ways as we may wish them to serve? -No, surely, they do not think so, but they are most -ready to serve as we appoint, both by creation and by -covenant. The letters yield readily, but some letters -seek to delay their dutiful obedience, holding that their -substance is adamant, and that they were not born to -yield so.</p> - -<p>With the same pen we make letters and mar them; -with the same we direct and destroy them; which are -contrary uses, though meant to compass the same right -end. And will letters seem to serve but for one use, -being nothing but elves of the pen’s breeding? They -will not, but prove their own dutifulness to the pen, -their parent, by following his direction in very many -points, as they yield to reason and reasonable custom -in many of their powers, whereby they seem to argue -against contention, they themselves being satisfied.</p> - -<p>The number of things which we write and speak -about is infinite, yet the words with which we write and -speak are definite and of limited number. Therefore -we are driven to use one and the same word in very -many—nay sometimes in very contrary senses—and -that is the case in all the best languages, as well as in -English, where a number of our words are of very -various powers, as in the sentence: “A bird flies light,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_158">[158]</a></span> -wherever she may light,” and many others that need -not now be mentioned. And will letters stand aloof, -so as to sound always in but one way, and to serve -always but one use, where their great-grandfathers, even -the words themselves, are forced to be manifold—nay, -are very well content so to be, because of their founder’s -command to be pliable, and at the voluntary disposal -of wisdom and learning? Letters must not stand -aloof, but approve of the service allotted to them, be it -never so manifold, seeing that without confusion, customary -acquaintance will make the distinctions clear; -as a disputer will sift out the difference of manifold -words, so that the variety in their senses may cause no -quarrel in the argument.</p> - -<p>If through want of skill and mere ignorance, we do -not write always in the same way, then knowledge is -the helper, and he that will follow the right usage must -have the desire to learn aright.</p> - -<p>If distinctions are wanted then accent must be the -means of avoiding confusion, or some such device which -may serve the purpose without pestering the writing by -anything too strange. For it is most certain that we -may use our letters like all other things whose end is -the convenience of man. Nor is it any abuse when -those who use can give a reason that is sufficient to the -wise, and not contrary to good custom. And though -some may not be persuaded, yet when an act is passed -by division of the house, it is law by parliament. Then -the objectors must relent and follow, though they may -not favour it. They must make the best of what they -thought worst, when lawful authority restrains their will. -A thing originally free, being once controlled by order, -has lost its freedom, and must then keep the current -appointed for it, being itself subject to man for his uses.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_159">[159]</a></span></p> - -<p>Our letters are limited in number, but their usage is -certain even in their greatest uncertainty, and therefore -I take it that we may rest content both with their number -and with their use. So much concerning the -complaint of our poverty in letters, and the confusion -in their powers, which I do not wonder at, because I -see it so in all things; and I see no cause why we -cannot overcome the difficulty by our own inventions -and devices, where we are to take account of nothing -but our own consent, guided by the judgment of the -wisest men, and imitation of uncorrupted nature.</p> - -<p>If there be need, the increase in the number of our -letters is not refused to us any more than to other -people, but the need is denied, because we entered upon -other people’s most perfect inventions, and though this -came later in time, yet it was so much the surer, -because all things necessary were devised to our hands, -and because our need can be no new need. Whatever -we need to write we are able to write, and when we -have written it we are able to read it. If there be any -fault, the remedy must be, not to seek what we have -not, but to mark what we have, seeing that we have -sufficient.</p> - -<p>The credit of sound being well established in their -opinion, as the natural lord and leader of all our letters, -and custom being condemned as a traitor, intruding -against all right upon the territory of sound, then they -turn to the cure of this diseased corruption, and pray -Hippocrates to be judge. To amend that which is -amiss in the writing of our tongue, their ground-work -being laid in the shaken monarchy of deposed sound, -they proceed in a full course of general innovation, -though some more and some less. First, they increase -the number of our letters and diphthongs, as if it were<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_160">[160]</a></span> -not possible either heretofore to have written, or at this -day to write, any word correctly, for want of some -increase in the number of our letters. For as the overcharging -of our words with too many letters comes by -using too much those which we have already, so the -difficulty through using them so diversely proceeds from -the mere want of material to answer each particular -purpose.</p> - -<p>Then they change the form of our letters and bring -us in new faces with very strange lineaments, how well-favoured -to behold, I am sure I know, and how unready -for a penman to run on with, methinks I foresee,—yet -such readiness in the character to follow the hand -roundly is a special service belonging to the pen. Nor -do I myself in these observations so much regard what -the print will stamp well,—for it will express anything -well whose form can be imitated,—as what the pen will -write well and that with good dispatch, because printing -is but a peculiar benefit for the few, while writing is -general and in every man’s fingers. A form that is fair -to the eye in print and cumbersome to the hand in -penning, will not pass in writing. To conclude, this, -they say, is the only help to amend all misses: for -defect, to enlarge; for what is old and corrupt, to bring -in what is new and correct; need enforces redress, and -duty requires these changes.</p> - -<p>Must we then alter all our writings anew? Or from -what day is this reform to take full place? It is a -strange point of physic when the remedy itself is more -dangerous than the disease. Besides, I take the alteration -in this sort to be neither necessary, as there is no -such insufficiency, nor yet expedient, seeing that such -inconveniences follow. For speech being an instrument -and means of uttering what the mind conceives, if by<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_161">[161]</a></span> -the delivery of the mouth the mind be understood, the -speech is sufficient in fully answering so needful a -purpose. If writing, in which I include both the print -and the pen, so fully express the pith of the voice that -the reader may understand the writer’s meaning in full, -I cannot persuade him that the letters which he reads -are not sufficient to express the writer’s meaning, as he -is ready to confute this by the proof that he understands -it most completely.</p> - -<p>But these objectors will say that this understanding -comes, not through the writing, but by the intelligent -reader, who understands correctly by means of the so -usual, though so corrupt, writing, which is imperfectly -and improperly written, and that propriety in using the -pen is wrongly refused, when it may be had easily with -very small effort.</p> - -<p>I like the reason well, as I admit some imperfection. -But neither is the imperfection so great as they conceive, -nor is their reason so near to redress as they think. As -for the imperfection, how it comes and how to help it, -my whole labour will prove that in the sequel. As for -their reason, I cannot see that it would be a small -effort, because they alter entirely, or at least they quite -change the superficial appearance, which in this case, -where propriety in writing is the possession of custom, -would be too great a strain. For custom, being so -secure, will not be content to be overruled in his own -province, or to admit the claim of any reform where he -is proprietor, however private men’s notions, upon never -so probable appearances, may offer support to the -contrary side.</p> - -<p>The use and custom of our country has already -chosen a kind of penning, in which she has set down -her religion, her laws, her private and public dealings;<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_162">[162]</a></span> -every private man has, with the approval of his country, -so drawn his private writings, his evidence, his letters, -that the thing seems impossible to be removed by so -strong an alteration, though it be most willing to -receive some reasonable pruning, so that the substance -may remain, and the change take place in such points -only as may please without novelty, and profit without -forcing. For were it not in good sooth too violent a -step to offer to overthrow a custom so generally -received, so definitely settled—nay, grounded so -securely as shall shortly appear—by altering either -all or most of our letters? Were it not a sign of a -very simple orator to think that by so strange an -innovation he could persuade custom to divorce himself -from so long and so lawful a match? Nay, were it not -wonderful even but to wish that all our English -scripture and divinity, all our laws and policy, all our -evidence and writings were penned anew, because we -have not that set down in writing which our forefathers -meant, but either more or less, owing to the insufficiency -of our writing, which is not able to set faithfully and -fully down what the mind conceives? They will say -that they do not mean so radical a change. But they -must needs mean it, because it must either follow at -once upon the admitting of this new alteration, which is -too great in sense, or, after a term of years, which is too -great in thought. For with a new writing coming in, -and the old character growing out of knowledge, all -records of whatever kind must needs either come over -to the new fashion, or remain worm-eaten like an old -relic, to be read as the Roman religion written down -under Numa Pompilius was read by those of Cicero’s -time, when every word was as uncouth and strange as if -it had come from some other world. But am I not<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_163">[163]</a></span> -undertaking a needless task in disapproving what I need -not fear, because there is no danger in it, the very usage -of our country refusing it already? I grant I am. -But yet I must say something that I may not seem to -contemn, since if I say nothing my opponents may then -seem to have said something. But certainly I hold the -thing to be much too cumbersome and inconvenient, -even though it were likely to be profitable, but where -no likelihood of any profit at all is in sight, and the -change itself seems neither necessary nor easy, I cannot -approve the means, though I bear no grudge to its -proposers, who deserve great thanks for their good -intentions. For their labour is very profitable to help -forward some redress, though they themselves have not -hit on it. For while different men attempt to solve the -problem, some one or other will hit it at last, whereas -the case would be desperate if it were never dealt with. -But this amendment of theirs is too far-fetched, and -without its help we understand our print and pen, our -evidence, and other writing. And though we grant -some imperfection, as in a tongue not yet fully -developed, yet we do not admit that it is to be perfected -either by altering the form or by increasing the number -of our familiar letters, but only by observing where the -tongue by her ordinary custom yields to the refining -process, as the old, and therefore the best, method leads -us. For it is no argument, when faults are found, to -say this is the help, and only this, because no other -is in sight. But whenever the right is found by orderly -seeking, then the argument is true, that it was not -thoroughly sought, when it was denied to exist. And -to speak impartially between the letter and sound on -the one side, and custom and the letter on the other -side, letters can express sounds with all their joints and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_164">[164]</a></span> -properties no more fully than the pencil can the form -and lineaments of the face, whose merit is not life but -likeness; for the letters, though they yield not always -what sound exactly requires, give always the nearest, -and custom is content with this. And therefore if -a letter do not sound just as you wish, yet hold it -as the next best, lest if you change you come not so -near. And though one letter be used in diverse, or -even contrary sounds, you cannot avoid it by any -change, seeing that no other has been liked hitherto but -this which we use. Certainly, so far as I have -observed, we are as well appointed for our necessity in -that way, and as much bound to our general custom for -the artificial tones of our natural tongue as any other -nation is to any other language, whether ancient in -books or modern in speech. And whatever insufficiency -seems to be in its writing, it will excuse itself, and lay -the whole blame upon the insufficient observer for not -seeking the solution in the right way. This will be -found true, when it shall be seen that by sufficient care -it may be made clear and pure without any foreign -help, and without either altering the form or increasing -the number of our ordinary letters, but only by notes of -its own breeding, which, being already in use, desire -nothing else but some direction from art. This I am -in good hopes of performing, according to the plan -of the best refiners in the most refined tongues, with -such consideration as either breeds general rules, or -else must bear with particular exceptions. I will mark -what our customary writing will yield us in the way of -notes, without dreaming of change, which cannot stem -so fatal a current as custom runs with. I will therefore -do my best to confirm our custom in his own right, -which will be easily obtained, where men are acquainted<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_165">[165]</a></span> -with the matter already, and would be very glad to -see wherein the correct manner of their writing stands, -and a great deal more glad to find it so near when -they thought it to be further off. Thus have I run -through these alleged infirmities in our tongue, whose -physicking I like not this way, and therefore I will -join close with my own observation to see if that will -help.</p> - -<p>Those men who will give any certain direction for -the writing of any tongue, or for anything else that -concerns a tongue, must take some period in its history, -or else their rules will prove inapplicable. For every -tongue has a certain ascent from the lowest to the -highest point, and a descent again from the highest to -the lowest; and as in the ascent it has not reached a -secure position, because it is not thoroughly reduced to -art, so in the descent it comes to be not worth noting, -because it gets rude again, and in a manner withered. -Hence it comes that the age of Demosthenes is the -prince of Greece, as that of Cicero is the flower of -Rome, and if the languages of these countries had not -been committed to the security of books, they would -have been of little worth; nay, they would have been -forgotten altogether, long before our day, as the spoken -tongues of those nations, changing continually since the -periods named, are now quite altered, or at least are -nothing like what they were in their prime, though still -blooming in another form. So that books give life where -bodies bring only death. Consider the Greek and -Latin writers before the ages of those men, and by -comparing them with these, you will see the difference -that I spoke of, the earlier being too rude to be -brought under rule, and the later departing from established -rules and yielding to change. This period of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_166">[166]</a></span> -full development, with the ascent to it and the decline -leading to decay, shows us that everything belonging -to man is subject to change, the language changing -also, but never dying out. It must needs be therefore -that there is something of the nature of a soul in every -spoken tongue that feeds this change even with perceptible -means. For if any tongue be fixed, and free -from movement, it is enshrined in books, not subject to -ordinary use, but made immortal by the register of -memory.</p> - -<p>This secret mystery, or rather quickening spirit, that -dwells in every spoken tongue, and therefore in our -own, I call “prerogative,” because when sound has done -his best, when reason has said his best, and when -custom has carried into effect what is best in both, -this prerogative will resist any of them, and take -exception to all their rules, however general and -certain. It thus makes way for a new change, which -will follow at some stage of the language, if the writer’s -period be chosen at the best. I cannot compare this -customary prerogative in speech to anything better -than to those who devise new garments, and are left -by law to liberty of device. Hence it comes in the -matter of apparel, that we do not remain like ourselves -for any length of time, though what is most -seemly, like a rule of art, pleases the wisest people -best. From this same liberty of speech to carve out a -way for itself, come the exceptions to our general -rules. Hence it comes that <em>enough</em>, <em>bough</em>, <em>tough</em>, and -such other primitives are so strangely written, and -more strangely sounded. In this way prerogative -seems to be like quicksilver, ever stirring and never -settled, though the general custom always offers itself -to be ordered by rule, as a close friend to reason. This<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_167">[167]</a></span> -stirring quintessence, leading to change in a thing that -is naturally changeable and not blameworthy for -changing, some not very well-advised people consider -as an error, and a private misuse, contrary to custom, -because it seems to be a very imperious controller, but -in this they are deceived. For indeed, though this -prerogative, by opposition in particular cases, checks -general conclusions, yet that opposition came not from -individual men; it is a private thing itself, and the -very life-blood which preserves tongues in their best -natural form, from the first time that they grew to be -of any account till they come to decay, and begin a -new period, different from the old, though excellent in -its kind, which in its turn must give way to another -when the time is ripe.</p> - -<p>I take this present period of our English tongue to -be its very height, because I find it as excellently refined, -both in its general substance and in its customary -writing, as either foreign workmanship can give it -gloss, or home-wrought handling can give it grace. -When the period of our nation which now uses the -tongue so well is dead and departed, another will -succeed, and with the people the tongue will alter. A -later period may in its full harvest prove comparable -to the present, but surely this which we now have seems -to be at its best and bravest, and whatever may become -of the English State, the English tongue cannot prove -fairer than it is at this date, if it may please our -learned class to think so of it, and to bestow their -labour on a subject so capable of adornment, and so -fitting to themselves. The force of prerogative is such -that it cannot be disobeyed, though it seems to derange -some well-ordered rule, and make people wonder who -do not weigh the cause.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_168">[168]</a></span></p> - -<p>For this reason, when any case arises quite contrary -to the common precept, though not to the common -custom, then we must needs think of the power of -prerogative, a great princess in influence, and a parent -to corruption, but intending to raise another Phœnix -from the former ashes. He who refuses to grant such -a prerogative to any tongue, denies it life, unless he -means, by registering some period in it of most excellent -note, to restrain prerogative, and preserve the -tongue, which he secures by writing from being profaned -by the people; it becomes then a learned -tongue and exempt from corruption, as our book-languages -are, whose rules are so secure that they -dream of no change. This prerogative and liberty -which the nation has, to use both speech and pen at -will, is the cause why English writers are finer now -than they were some hundred years ago, though some -antiquary may consider the old writing finer. But the -question is wherein fineness consists. So was Sallust -deceived among the Romans, living with Cicero, and -writing like ancient Cato.</p> - -<p>In this prerogative of writing, the very pen itself is -a great influence and has marvellous authority, for being -the secretary who carries out what is expressed by the -intelligence, it presumes upon this to venture, as far as -any counsellor may, though never against reason, whose -instrument it is to satisfy the eye as the tongue satisfies -the ear. Custom, whose charge prerogative is, as the -pen is his conveyer, favours the pen very greatly and -will not hesitate to maintain that a dash with a pen may -hold for a warrant, when both speed and grace bid the -pen be bold. Hence it comes that in our language so -many z’s are heard, and so few seen, owing to the regard -for dexterity and speed in the fluency of writing; and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_169">[169]</a></span> -as the pen can do this, I take it as a matter of prerogative, -for the sake of smoothness, that our tongue uses -<em>z</em> so much for <em>s</em>.</p> - -<p>But it may be said that all our exceptions, due to -most reasonable prerogative, may well be reduced to a -general form, which I do not at all deny, though I see -some difficulty in altering what our custom has thus -grasped, and it were almost too much to require any -wise and learned man so to arrest exceptions, particularly -where no standard can be fixed. He who wishes this -seems to conceive of such a thing, but even if it were -attempted, the stream of custom would break out again -immediately in some other way, and cause an even -greater gap, for no banks can keep it in so narrowly but -those that are content to be sometimes overflowed, and -no strength can withstand such a current but those stays -which in the fury of water will bend like a bulrush.</p> - -<p>If any pen, either through ignorance or pretension, -offend against reason, and intrude upon prerogative, -that is no good quill, and it will not be upheld by me; -nor is that current to be called <em>custom</em> which holds -by usurpation; nor is that cause to be accounted -<em>reason</em> which has any other beginning than genuine -knowledge, or any other ending than the nature of -the thing will seem to admit. Certainly, when I consider -the matter deeply—and my thoughts on it have -not been slight or superficial—I cannot see why, when -the imperfections are removed that always accompany -perfection, and can easily be removed, to the satisfaction -of the wise who are not blinded with their own -habits, the tongue as well as the pen may not quite -well have its prerogative, since our custom has become -so well-ordered that it may be ruled without chopping -or changing a single letter, or otherwise begging more<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_170">[170]</a></span> -aid from foreign invention than I have already sufficiently -set down.</p> - -<p>These are my suggestions for the regulation of our -tongue and the fixing of a standard in its writing. If -I have in any way hit the mark, I shall be warranted -by the right, though it may not seem so to some, and -in this I must be comforted, even if I cannot content -all.</p> - - - <div class="chapter"></div> -<hr class="chap" /> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_171">[171]</a></span></p> -<p class="p6" /> - -<h2 class="no-brk"><a id="THE_PERORATION"></a><a href="#CONTENTS">THE PERORATION.</a></h2> - -<div class="blockquot"> - -<p><em>To my gentle readers and fellow-countrymen, wherein -many things are handled concerning learning in -general, and the nature of the English and foreign -tongues, besides some particular remarks about the -writing of books in English.</em></p></div> - - -<p class="noindent">My fellow-countrymen and gentle readers, my first -purpose in taking up this subject, and venturing into -print, of which till lately I have stood in awe, was to -do some good in the profession in which I have for -many years been engaged, and by giving my experience -in the teaching of the learned tongues, to lighten the -labour of other men, because I had discovered some -defects that required a remedy. But the consideration -of these led me a great deal further than I dreamed of -at first. Intending to deal only with the teaching of -languages in the Grammar School, I was enforced by -the sway of meditation to think of the whole course of -learning, and to consider how every particular thing -arose in a definite order. For without that consideration -how could I have discerned where to begin and where -to end, in any one thing that depends on a sequel and -proceeds from a principle? For the subject I am -dealing with is a matter of ascent, where every particular -that goes before has continual reference to what<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_172">[172]</a></span> -comes after, if the whole scheme is scientifically -arranged. In this course of mine, the elementary -principles may be compared to the first groundwork, the -teaching of tongues to the second storey and the after-learning -to the upper buildings. Now as in architecture -and building he were no good workman who did not -plan his framework so that each of the ascents should -harmonise with the others, so in the stages of learning -it were no masterly part not to show a similar care, and -that cannot be done till the whole is thought of and -thoroughly shaped in the mind of him who undertakes -the work.</p> - -<p>After I had formed an opinion both as to where lay -the blemishes which disfigured learning and as to how -they might be redressed, as well for my own practice as -by way of advice to others, I came down to particulars -and began to examine even from the very first what -went before the tongues in the orderly upbringing of -children. This was the first task that claimed me -before I fell to further thoughts and the last too, even -when I had considered all that followed, but it was -then undertaken more advisedly. I entered upon an -investigation into the whole early training all the more -readily because I perceived great backwardness in the -learning of tongues through infirmities in the elementary -groundwork. What a toil it is to a grammar master -when the young child who is brought to him to teach, -has no foundation laid on which anything can be built! -I undertook, therefore, to enquire into all those things -that concern the elementary training, as a stage in -teaching preceding the study of grammar, hoping by my -own labour to be of use to a multitude of masters. -Moreover, as this matter concerns learners who have not -yet entered upon Latin, and teachers who may have<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_173">[173]</a></span> -only mediocre learning, I thought it best to publish in -the tongue that is common to us all, both before and -after we learn Latin.</p> - -<p>But here there are three questions that may perhaps -be asked: First, what those blemishes are which I -observed in the main body of learning, a subject so -closely investigated in our day by such a variety and -excellence of learned wits that every branch of it is -thought to have recovered the consideration it had at -its highest point; secondly, why in regard to methods -of teaching I do not content myself with following the -precedent of other writers, who in great numbers have -written learned treatises with the same end in view, but -rather toil myself with a private labour, the issue of -which is uncertain, whereas the previous writers on the -subject, being themselves learned, and having achieved -success, may be followed with assurance; thirdly, if it -is my endeavour to handle a learned subject in the -English tongue, why I take so much pains and such a -special care in handling it, that the weaker sort, whose -benefit I profess to consider—nay, often others also of -reasonable study—can with difficulty understand the -couching of my sentence and the depth of my meaning.</p> - -<p>While I answer these questions, I must pray your -patience, my good masters, because the things may not -be lightly passed over, and in satisfying your demands -I shall pave the way for the suit I have to make to -you.</p> - -<p>First, as for my general care for the whole course of -learning, I have thus much to say. The end of every -individual man’s doings for his own advantage, and the -end of the whole commonweal for the good of us all, -are so much alike in aspect, and so entirely the same -in nature, that when the one is seen the other needs<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_174">[174]</a></span> -little seeking. Each individual man labours in this -world in order to win rest after toil, to have ease after -work; he does not wish to be always engaged in labour, -which would be exceedingly irksome if it were endless. -The soldier fights in his own intention perhaps to gain -ease through wealth, which he may win by spoil; in -outward appearance he labours for the advantage of -his country by way of defence and security. The merchant -traffics in his own intention to procure personal -ease through private wealth; to the public he seems to -labour for the common benefit, by supplying wants in -necessary wares for general use. Indeed, all men, -whatever be their occupation, while seeking private -ends in their actions, at the same time concur in -serving general ends. Thus it appears that ease after -labour is the common aim of both private and public -efforts, because everyone in the natural course of his -whole conduct has regard to the general prosperity and -quiet, which maintain his own personal well-being. -Then the means both of coming by this end, and when -it is come by, of maintaining it in state, must needs lie -in such directions as make for the peace and quietness -of a State, for the keeping of concord and agreement -without any main public breach, both in private houses -and generally throughout the whole government. These -peaceable directions I call, and not I alone, by the -simple name of <em>general learning</em>, comprising under it -all the arts of peace and the ministry of tranquillity—a -matter of great moment, being the only right means -to so blessed a thing as fortunate peace, imparting the -benefit of public quietness to every household, as a -central fountain serves every man’s cistern by private -pipes, and if it be not sound, conveying the blemish -like the infected water of a fountain, or the corrupt<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_175">[175]</a></span> -blood that escaping from the liver poisons the whole -body. Even war itself, a professed enemy to learning, -because it is in feud with peace, may by just handling -be shown to work for peace at home by uniting the -minds of all against a common foe. By the employment -of learning in every department all princes govern -their States; the general control is exercised through -grave and learned counsellors and wise and faithful -justiciaries, and the particular control, in religion by -divines, in the health of the body by physicians, in the -maintenance of right by lawyers, and so on in every -particular profession, from the greatest to the meanest, -throughout the whole government—a most blessed -means to a most blessed end, a learned maintenance of -a heavenly happiness in an earthly State of a heavenly -constitution. Therefore, any error in this means is an -injury indeed, and deserves to be thought of as a -hindrance to peace, and a pernicious destroyer of the -best public end, beginning perhaps as a small spark, -but always gathering strength by the confluence of -similar infection in some other parts, till at last it sets -all on fire, and bursts out in a confusion, the more to -be feared that it festers before it breaks into flame, and -shrouding itself under a show of peace, consumes without -suspicion, and escapes being brought to terms as a -professed enemy. I may say that in my reflection on -this subject of the ascent of learning from the elementary -stage, I thought I found these four imperfections -in the whole body of learning—in some places an -excess, in others a defect, in others too great a variety, -in others too much disagreement. These are four great -enormities in a peaceable means, breeding great diseases, -and bidding defiance to quiet, both within the State -in the governing direction, and outside it by evident<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_176">[176]</a></span> -inflammation, and they are therefore to be thought of -not only for complaint in particular cases, but by -magistrates in regard to their amendment.</p> - -<p>As for <em>excess</em> I conceive that as in every natural body -the number of sinews, veins, and arteries to give it life -and motion, is definite and certain, so in a body politic -the distributive use of learning, which I compare to -those parts, is everywhere certain. And whatever is -more than nature requires in either of them, as in the -one it breeds disease, so in the other it causes destruction -by breach of proportion, and so consequently of -peace. In natural bodies excess appears when one or -more parts encroach on the others and enfeeble them. -In communities this excess in learning is to be discerned -when the private professions swell too much and -so weaken the whole body, either by the multitude of -professional men, who bite deeply where many must be -fed and there is little to feed on, or by unnecessary -professions, which choke off the more useful, and fill the -world with trifles, or by an infinitude of books, which -cloy up students, and weaken them by an intolerable -diffuseness of treatment, fattening the carcass but lowering -the strength of pithy matter. Do not all these surfeits -exist at this day in our own State? Are they -not enemies to the common good, being grown out -of proportion? Are they not worth consideration and -redress?</p> - -<p>I pass now to the question of defect. In a natural -body there is too little, when either something necessary -is wanting, or what is there is too weak to serve its -purpose. And does not learning show the same -defects, disquieting to a State, when the necessary professional -men are wanting either in number or in -worthiness; where show takes the place of sound stuff;<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_177">[177]</a></span> -where in place of real learning only superficial knowledge -is sought, enough to make a shift with; when -necessary professions are despised and trampled under -foot, because the cursory student has to post away in -haste; when there is a lack of needful books to further -learning, and those we have are of little use owing to -insufficiency of treatment? This corruption in learning -any man may see who desires to seek out either the -malady or its cure; it is a breach of proportion, and -therefore of peace, in a commonwealth, a pining evil -which consumes by starving.</p> - -<p>As for diversity in matters of learning, I think that -as it proceeds from differences in ability, in upbringing, -in intelligence, in judgment, because these are much -finer in some than in others, it does a great deal of -harm to the peace of any State, especially where its -leaders, though they may not fall out, but merely -express their opinions, yet divide studies according to -their favourites, considering the importance of the subjects -less than the attraction of the authors. If this -diversity breaks out in earnest, as it has frequently done -in our time, while printing itself, which in its natural -and best uses is the instrument of necessity and the -exponent of learning, becomes very often too easy an -outlet for vaunting ambition, for malicious envy and -revenge, for all passions to all purposes, what a sore -blow is given to the public quiet, when the means to -welfare is made an instrument of distemper! For will -not he fight in his fury who brawls in his books? Do -not those minds seem armed for open conflict—nay, -do they not arm others too by pressing enmity forward—which -in private studies enter into combats on paper; -which by too much eagerness make a great ado in -matters better quenched than stirred to life; which<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_178">[178]</a></span> -whet their wits beforehand to be wranglers ever after, -and as far as lies in them disturb the general welfare? -What I disapprove of is needless combats in learning; -those that are fruitful may go on, yet with no more -passion than common civility and Christian charity will -allow. Excess overburdens, defect weakens, diversity -distracts, but dissension destroys. You know yourselves, -my learned readers, what a wonderful stir there -is daily in your schools, through diverging opinions in -logic, in philosophy, in mathematics, in physics. The -lawyer generally abstains from controversal writing, -because he does not gain by it what he seeks; pleading -in the Common Courts offers a better pasture for a lean -purse than a busy pen. The dissension in divinity is -specially fierce, the more so because it often falls out -that the adversaries intermingle their own passions with -the matters they treat of. For while our religious -doctrines sometimes require defence, disputes might -often be compounded, if men’s feelings were as readily -cooled as they are inflamed. But in the meanwhile -how greatly is the general peace disturbed by dissensions -that turn aside a worthy means, to maintain a -wrong and become a slave to some inordinate passion! -I cannot enter fully upon this subject, but touch upon -it merely that my good readers may understand how -much my desire for the furtherance of learning was -increased after I had noticed these inconveniences, -though at first I meant only to help the teaching of the -learned tongues. Agreement among the learned is the -mother of general contentment; by carping and contradicting -they trouble the world and taint themselves, -bearing all the while the name of Christians—a title -which enjoins us to avoid contention, even by the submission -of those who are wronged, and charges us to<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_179">[179]</a></span> -defend our religion, not with passionate minds, but with -the armour of patience and truth. These were the -blemishes which I saw by the way, and lamented in the -body of learning. The amendment which I desire -rests upon two great pillars—the professors of learning, -who must give intelligence of the error, and the principal -magistrates—nay, even the sovereign prince—who -being God’s great instruments to procure quietness for -our souls and bodies, our goods and actions, must bring -about redress in so important a matter as the course of -learning.</p> - -<p>The prince may cut off what is in excess, make up -what is deficient, reconcile diversities, expel dissensions, -by his lawful authority for the general good; and -everyone will submit, because everyone is benefited. -This, indeed, confirms Plato’s saying that kings should -be philosophers; that is, that all magistrates should -be learned. It is a great corrosive to the whole body -of learning, which is the procurer of peace, when those -who have to direct gain their wisdom only through -experience. That is much, but experience and learning -together make the better equipment. It is an honourable -conception, besides that it tends to the general -good, for a learned and virtuous prince, assisted by -wise counsel, to reduce the number of those that follow -learning, by some principle of selection in every department, -to decide what kinds of learning are most useful -to the State, and to appoint a reasonable number of -such books as have the best methods of treatment. -The final authority in regard to every profession has -always lain with the prince. Action has been taken -before in all the directions I have spoken of, both by -consent of the learned and by command of good -princes. As our country is small, the thing could be<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_180">[180]</a></span> -the more easily done; as our livings are limited, it is -the more needful; as the evil is great, we are the less -able to bear it; as our sovereign is learned, we shall be -the readier to give ear; as our people are of good -understanding, they are the better able to inform her. -But as the physician does not thrive by the prevention -of disease, nor the lawyer grow rich by arresting contentions, -nor a divine prosper so much in a heaven -where all is good as on earth where all is evil, and as -private profit will be followed, though it bring confusion -to the State, redress will not stir, because it judges the -world to be in some fault which it is loth to confess. -However, to secure some redress and help in this -matter at the hand of the ruler, is the duty of all -who make a profession of learning, if they will but -consider the reputation of learning in our day, whether -from the contempt in which some professions are held, -or from a deficiency in those who enter them.</p> - -<p>In the professors of learning, to whose solicitation -this point is recommended, two things are chiefly -required. First, that with minds given to peace they -should study soundly themselves, and that the matter -be worthy and taken in due order. For sound learning -will not so soon be shaken at every eager point of -controversy as that which is shallow. Orderly progress -gives security, and a pacific temper furthers the end -that is desired both privately and publicly. The consent -of the learned and their quiet inclination are a -great blessing to any Commonwealth, but especially to -ours in this contentious time, when overwhetted minds -do very little good to some worthy professions. The -distracting division of minds into sects and sorts of -philosophy did much injury in the countries where it -befel, and those nations among which religious dissensions<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_181">[181]</a></span> -arose have never been quiet since. The -second point required in a student is not to seek his -own advancement so much as that of the things he -professes, and indeed the possession of these things is -the best means to advance himself, for, where ignorance -is blamed, knowledge is approved, even though the -approver may not be learned. He who studies soundly -recommends letters by his own example; he who -solicits the help of those in authority advances learning -still further; he who uses his pen to strengthen the -best current of opinion proves the genuineness of his -desire by his own practice. In this last form my own -labour seeks to recommend uniformity, to strip off -what is needless, to supply some defects, to help everyone -to as quiet a course as I can temper my style to.</p> - -<p>The second question which I said might be demanded -of me, why I do not follow the precedent of those -learned writers who have handled the subject with -great admiration may be very soon answered. I admit -that the number of those who have written upon the -upbringing of children might be considered sufficient, -and I grant the excellence of many of them, such as -Bembus, Sturmius, and Erasmus. But the situation is -different. A free city and a country under a monarchy -are not in the same position, though they agree in -some general respects, in which indeed these writers do -not dissent from me. Nor do I fail to follow good -writers, taking example from those authors who taught -all the later ones to write so well. I am the servant of -my country; for her sake I labour, her circumstances I -must consider, and whatsoever I shall pen I shall -myself see it carried out, by the grace of God, in order -the better to persuade others by offering the proof of -trial.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_182">[182]</a></span></p> - -<p>The third question, as to my writing in English, and -my being so careful—I will not say fastidious—in -expression, concerns me more nearly, for it has some -importance. It is the opinion of some that we should -not treat any philosophical subject, or any ordinary -subject in a philosophical manner, in the English -tongue, because the unlearned find it too difficult to -understand in any case, and the learned, holding it in -little esteem, get no pleasure from it. In regard both -to writing in English generally, and my own writing in -particular, I have this to say: No one language is finer -than any other naturally, but each becomes cultivated -by the efforts of the speaker who, using such opportunities -as are afforded by the kind of government -under which he lives, endeavours to garnish it with -eloquence, and enrich it with learning. Such a tongue, -elegant in form and learned in matter, while it keeps -within its natural soil, not only serves its immediate -purpose with just admiration, but in foreigners who -become acquainted with it, it kindles a great desire to -have their own language resemble it. Thus it came to -pass that the people of Athens beautified their speech -in the practice of pleading, and enriched it with all -kinds of knowledge, bred both within Greece and -outside of it. Thus it came to pass that the people of -Rome, having formed their practice in imitation of the -Athenian, became enamoured with the eloquence of -those from whom they were borrowing, and translated -their learning also. However, there was not nearly the -same amount of learning in the Latin tongue during -the time of the Romans as there is at this day by the -industry of students throughout the whole of Europe, -who use Latin as a common means of expression, both -in original works and in translations. Roman authority<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_183">[183]</a></span> -first planted Latin among us here, by force of their -conquest, and its use in matters of learning causes it to -continue. Therefore the so-called Latin tongues have -their own peoples to thank, both for their own cultivation -at home and for the favour they enjoy abroad. -So it falls out that, as we are profited by means of -these tongues, we should pay them honour, and yet not -without cherishing our own, in regard both to cases -where the usage is best and to those where it is open to -improvement. For did not these tongues use even the -same means to cultivate themselves before they proved -so beautiful? Did the people shrink from putting into -their own language the ideas they borrowed from -foreign sources? If they had done so, we should never -have had the works we so greatly admire.</p> - -<p>There are two chief reasons which keep Latin, and to -some extent other learned tongues, in high consideration -among us,—the knowledge which is registered in them, -and their use as a means of communication, in both -speaking and writing, by the learned class throughout -Europe. While these two benefits are retained, if there -is anything else that can be done with our own tongue, -either in beautifying it, or in turning it to practical -account, we cannot but take advantage of it, even -though Latin should thus be displaced, as it displaced -others, bequeathing its learning to us. For is it not -indeed a marvellous bondage, to become servants to one -tongue for the sake of learning, during the greater part -of our time, when we can have the very same treasure -in our own language, which forms the joyful title to our -liberty, as the Latin reminds us of our thraldom? I -love Rome, but I love London better; I favour Italy, -but I favour England more; I honour the Latin tongue, -but I worship the English. I wish everything were in<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_184">[184]</a></span> -our tongue which the learned tongues gained from -others, nor do I wrong them in treating them as they -did their predecessors, teaching us by their example -how boldly we may venture, notwithstanding the opinion -of some among us, who desire rather to please themselves -with a foreign language that they know, than to -profit their country in their own language, which they -ought to know. It is no argument to say: Will you -dishonour those tongues which have honoured you, and -without which you could never have enjoyed the learning -of which you propose to rob them? For I honour them -still, as much as any one, even in wishing my own -tongue to be a partaker of their honour. For if I did -not hold them in great admiration, because I know -their value, I would not think it any honour for my own -language to imitate their grace. I wish we had the -stores with which they furnished themselves from foreign -sources. For the tongues that we study were not the -first getters, though by learned labour they prove to be -good keepers, and they are ready to discharge their -trust, in handing on to others what was committed to -them for a term, and not in perpetuity. There can be no -disgrace in their delivering to others what they received -on that understanding. The dishonour will lie rather -with the tongue that refuses to receive the inheritance -intended for it and duly offered to it, and from this dishonour -I would our language were free. I admit the -good fortune of those tongues that had so great a start -over others that they are most welcome wherever they -set foot, and are always admired for their rare excellence, -disposing all men to think little of any form of -speech that does not resemble them, and to rank even -the best of these as marvellously behind them. The -diligent labour of the learned men of ancient times so<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_185">[185]</a></span> -enriched their tongues that they proved very pliable, as -I am assured our own will prove, if our learned fellow-countrymen -will bestow their labour on it. And why, -I pray you, should such labour not be bestowed on -English, as well as on Latin or any other language? -Will you say it is needless? Certainly that will not -hold. If loss of time over tongues, while you are -pilgrims to learning, is no injury, or lack of sound skill, -while language distracts the mind from the sense, especially -with the foolish and inexperienced, then there might -be some ground for holding it needless. But since there -was no need for the present loss of time in study -through labouring with tongues, and since our understanding -is more perfect in our natural speech, however -well we may know the foreign language, methinks -necessity itself calls for English, by which all that -bravery may be had at home that makes us gaze so -much at the fine stranger. But you will say it is -uncouth; so it is, through being unused. So was it -with Latin, and so it is with every language. Cicero -himself, the paragon of Rome while he was alive, and -our best pattern now though he is dead, had great -wrestling with such wranglers, and their disdain of their -natural speech, before he won from the public of his -time the opinion in which he was held by the best of -his friends then, and is held by us now. Are not all -his prefaces to his philosophical writings full of such -conflicts with these cavillers? English wits are very -well able, thank God, if the good will were present, to -make that uncouth and unknown learning very familiar -to our people in our own tongue, even by the example -of those very writers we esteem so highly, who having -done for other languages what I wish for ours in the -like case, must needs approve of us, unless they assert<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_186">[186]</a></span> -that the merit of conveying knowledge from a foreign -tongue died with them, not to revive among us. But -whatever they may say to continue their own credit, our -fellow-countrymen cannot but think that it is our praise -to obtain by purchase and transplanting into our own -tongue what they were so desirous to place in theirs, -and are now so loth to forgo again; it is indeed the -fairest flower of their whole garland, for these tongues -would wither soon, or decay altogether, but for the great -knowledge contained therein. If our people were not -readier to wonder at their workmanship than to take -trouble with their own tongue, they might have the -same advantage. Our English is our own, and must -be used by those to whom it belongs, as were those -others that were ranked with the best.</p> - -<p>But it may be replied that our English tongue is not -worthy of such cultivation, because it has so little -extent, stretching no further than this island of ours, -and not even over the whole of that. What though -this be true? Still it reigns here and serves our purpose; -it should be brushed clean in order to be worn. -Are not English folk, I pray you, as particular as -foreigners? And is not as much taste needed for our -tongue in speaking, and our pen in writing, as for -apparel and diet? But, it will be said, our State is no -empire, hoping to enlarge itself by ruling other -countries. What then? Though it be neither large in -possession, nor in present hope of great increase, yet -where it rules it can make good laws to suit its position, -as well as the largest country can, and often -better, since in the greatest governments there is often -confusion.</p> - -<p>But again, it will be urged, we have no rare knowledge -belonging to our soil to make foreigners study<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_187">[187]</a></span> -our tongue as a treasure of such store. What of that? -We are able by its means to apply to our use all the -great treasure both of foreign soil and of foreign language. -And why may not English wits, if they will -bend their wills to seek matter and method, be as much -sought after by foreign students for the increase of their -knowledge as our soil is already sought after by foreign -merchants for the increase of their wealth? As the -soil is fertile because it is cultivated, so the wits are not -barren, if they choose to bring forth.</p> - -<p>Yet though all this be true, we are in despair of ever -seeing our own language so refined as were those where -public orations were held in ordinary course, and the -very tongue itself made a chariot to honour. Our -State is a monarchy, which controls language, and -teaches it to please; our religion is Christian, and -prefers the naked truth to refinement of terms. What -then? If for want of that exercise which the Athenian -and the Roman enjoyed in their spacious courts, no -Englishman should prove to be a Cicero or a Demosthenes, -yet in truth he may prove comparable to them -in his own commonwealth and in the eloquence that -befits it. And why not indeed comparable to them in -all points that concern his natural tongue? Our brain -can bring forth; our ideas will bear life; our tongues -are not tied, and our labour is our own. And eloquence -itself is limited neither to one language nor to one soil; -the whole world is its measure, and the wise ear is its -judge, having regard not to greatness of state, but to -the capacity of the people. And even though we should -despair of altogether rivalling the excellence of foreign -tongues, must our own therefore be unbeautified? It -should certainly strive to reach its best if I could help. -We may aspire to come to a certain height, even though<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_188">[188]</a></span> -we can pass no further. The nature of our government -will admit true speaking and writing, and eloquence -will be approved if it gives pleasure and is worthy of -praise, so long as it preaches peace, and tends to -preserve the State. Our religion does not condemn -any ornament of language which serves the truth and -does not presume overmuch. Nay, may not eloquence -be a great blessing from God, and the trumpet of his -honour, as Chrysostom calls that of St. Paul, if it be -religiously bent? Those who have read the story of -the early church find that eloquence in the primitive -Christians overthrew great forces bent against our -faith, and persuaded numbers to embrace the cause, -when the power of truth was joined to force in the -word. We should seek eloquence to serve God, but -shun it to serve ourselves, unless we have God’s -warrant.</p> - -<p>But will you thus break off communication with -learned foreigners by banishing Latin, and putting her -learning into your own tongue? Communication will not -cease while people have cause to interchange dealings, -and it may easily be continued without Latin. -Already in some countries, whose languages are akin to -the Latin, the learned class are weaning their tongues -and pens from the use of Latin, both in written discourse -and spoken disputation, to their own natural -speech. It is a question not of disgracing Latin, but -of gracing our own language. Why should we honour -a stranger more than our own, if the purpose be served? -And although, on account of the limitations of our language, -no foreigner would seek to borrow from us as -we do from other tongues, because we devise nothing -new, though we receive the old, yet we ourselves gain -very much in study by being set from the first in the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_189">[189]</a></span> -privy chambers of knowledge, through the familiarity of -our native speech. Justinian the emperor said to the -students of law, when he gave imperial force to his -Institutes, that they were most happy in the advantage -of hearing the Emperor’s voice at first hand, while those -of earlier times were delayed for four whole years. -And does not our study of foreign languages take us -fully four years? If this were the only hindrance -indeed, and if we gained otherwise, we could bear the -loss. But it is not only time that is lost in studying -foreign tongues, though we must use them till we learn -to do without them. Who can deny that we understand -best in our natural speech, seeing that all our -foreign learning is applied through the medium of our -own language, and learning is of value only in so far as -it is applied to particular uses?</p> - -<p>But why not everything in English, a tongue in -itself both deep in meaning and frank in utterance? I -do not think that any language whatsoever is better -able to express all subjects with pith and plainness, if -he who uses it is as skilful and well-instructed as the -foreigner. Methinks I myself could prove this in -regard to the most varied subjects, though I am no -great scholar, but only an earnest well-wisher to my -own country. And though in dealing with certain -subjects we must use many foreign terms, we are only -doing what is done in the most renowned languages, -that boast of their skill and knowledge. It is a necessity -between one country and another to interchange -words to express strange matter, and rules are appointed -for adapting them to the use of the borrowers. It is -an accident which keeps our tongue from natural -growth out of its own resources, and not the real -nature of the language, which could strain with the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_190">[190]</a></span> -strongest and stretch to the furthest, either for the -purposes of government, if we were conquerors, or for -learning if we were its treasurers, no whit behind the -subtle Greek for couching close, or the stately Latin for -spreading fair. Our tongue is capable of all, if our -people would bestow pains upon it. The very soil of -Greece, it is noted by some, had a refining influence on -Philelphus, who was born in Italy. Italy, says Erasmus, -would have had the same effect on our Sir Thomas -More, if he had been trained there. And cannot labour -and practice work as great wonders in English wits at -home as the air can do abroad? Is a change of soil -the best or the only means of furthering growth? Nay, -surely wits are equally sharp everywhere, though where -there is less intercourse and a heavier climate, the -labour must be greater to make up for what is wanting -in nature. If such pains be taken we may boldly arm -ourselves with that two-worded and thrice worthy question—Why -not? But grant that it were an heresy, -seeing that we are trained in foreign tongues, even to -wish everything to be in English. Certainly there is -no fault in handling in English what is proper to -England, though the same subject well handled in -Latin would be likely to please Latinists. But an -English benefit must not be measured by the pleasure of -a Latinist. It is a matter not for scholars to play with, -but for students to practise, where everyone can judge. -Besides, how many shallow things are often uttered in -Latin and other foreign tongues, which under the bare -veil of a strange form seem to be something, but if they -were expressed in English, and the mask pulled off so -that everyone could see them, would make but a sorry -show, and soon be disclaimed even by those who -uttered them, with some thought of the old saying—“Had<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_191">[191]</a></span> -I known, I would not!” And were it not better -to gain judgment throughout in our own English than -either to lose it or hinder it in Latin or any other -foreign tongue? Such considerations make me thankful -for what we have gained from foreign sources, but -at the same time desirous of furthering the interest of -my own natural tongue, and therefore in treating of -the first rudiments of learning I am very well content -to make use of English, without renouncing my right -to use Latin or any other learned tongue, when I come -to speak of matters where it may be suitable.</p> - -<p>But while my writing in English may seem not -amiss for the service of my country, my manner of -writing may offend some in seeming fastidious and -obscure, and I may be brought to task as failing in -what I professed, by dealing with matters too hard for -the ignorant to understand, or using too close a style -and too rare terms for plain folks to follow. All these -difficulties are very great foes to the perception of the -ordinary man, who can understand only so far as he -has been trained, and they are no good friends to my -purpose, as I write for the benefit of the many, who are -untrained and unskilful. But although these objections -make a very plausible show, yet I must beg leave to -plead my own cause in regard to matter, style, and the -use of terms. Indeed half my answer is given when I -say that I mean well to my country, for in attempting -difficulties one may claim pardon for defects, and what -I do is in the interest of our tongue, which I desire to -see enriched in every way and honoured with every -ornament of eloquence, so that it can vie with any -foreign language.</p> - -<p>But first to examine the charge of hardness in the -subject-matter, which the reader is said to have difficulty<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_192">[192]</a></span> -in understanding. In what, I pray you, consists this -hardness that is said to lie in the matter? Or rather -does not all hardness belong to the person, and not to -the thing, in this case as everywhere else? If the -person who undertakes to teach does not know his -subject well enough to make it properly understood, is -the thing therefore hard that is not thoroughly grasped? -Or if the learner either fails to understand owing to -deficient knowledge, or will not make the needful effort -owing to some evil disposition, is the thing therefore -hard which is so crossed by personal infirmity? Surely -not. There is no hardness in anything which is -expressed by a learned pen, however far removed from -common use, (though to shield negligence the charge is -often made), if the teacher knows it sufficiently, and the -learner be willing and not wayward. For what are the -things which we handle in learning? Are they not of -our own choice? Are they not our own inventions? -Are they not meant to supply our own needs? And -was not the first inventor very well able to open up the -thing he invented before he commended it to others? -Or did those who received it do so before they were -instructed as to its use? Or could blunt ignorance -have won such credit in a doubtful case, though professing -to bring advantage, that it was believed before -it had persuaded those who had any foresight, by plain -evidence that the thing was profitable, as well for the -present as for the time to come? If the first inventor -could both find and persuade, his follower must do likewise, -or be at fault himself; he must deliver the matter -from the suspicion of hardness, which arises from his -own defect in exposition. If he who reads fails to -grasp the meaning through ignorance, he is to be pardoned -for his infirmity; if having some capacity he fails<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_193">[193]</a></span> -from lack of will, he is punished enough by being left -in ignorance; and if while able to follow with the best -he keeps with the worst, blinded understanding is the -greatest darkness, and punishes the evil humour with -the depraving of reason. If an expounder, such as I -am now, be himself weak, he is ill-advised if he either -writes before he knows, or does not mend when he has -written amiss, provided he knows where and how. Yet -the reader’s courtesy is some protection against error to -him who writes, as the writer’s pardon is a protection -to him who reads, if simple ignorance is the only fault, -without defect in goodwill.</p> - -<p>It will be admitted that hardness must arise either -from the thing itself or from the handling. If the thing -itself is hard it must be because it is strange to the -reader, because it is outside of his ordinary interests and -occupations, or because he does not give full study -and attention to it. To illustrate the former difficulty, -what affinity is there, in respect of occupation, between -a simple ploughman, a wary merchant, and a subtle -lawyer, or between manual trades and metaphysical -discourses, whether in mathematics, physics, or -divinity? Again, even to students who profess some -alliance with what they study, can anything be easy -if they have not laboured sufficiently in it? I need -say no more than this, that where there is no -acquaintance in profession there is no help to understanding, -where there is no familiarity there is no -facility, where there is no conference there is no -knowledge. If the man delves the earth, and the -matter dwells in heaven, there is no means of uniting -them over so great a distance. But when the understanding, -though in affinity, is clearly insufficient, there -is far more hardness than where there is a difference<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_194">[194]</a></span> -of occupation, because a vain conceit brings much -more error than weak knowledge. Some good may -come out of an ignorant fellow if he begin to take -hold, but the lukewarm learned mars his way by -prejudiced opinion. But in all this, if there be any -difficulty about the matter, its cause lies in the man, -and not in the nature of the thing. I am quick in -teaching, and hard of understanding, but towards whom -and why? Towards him, forsooth, who is not sufficiently -acquainted with the matter in hand. Well, -then, if want of familiarity is the cause of the difficulty, -acquaintance once made and continued will remedy -that complaint, if the matter seem worth the man’s -acquaintance in his natural tongue, for that is a question -in a vision blinded by foreign glamours, or if the -learner is really desirous to be rid of his ignorance, -for that is another question where a vain opinion over-values -itself. For in the case of a book written in the -English tongue there are so many Englishmen well able -to satisfy fully the ignorant reader, that it were too -great a discourtesy not to lighten a man’s labour with -a short question, and an equally short answer. But -where the matter, being no pleasant tale nor amorous -device, but a serious and worthy argument concerning -sober learning, not familiar to all readers, or even to all -writers, professes no ease without some effort, then if -such effort be not made an unnatural idleness is -betrayed, which desires less to find ease than to find -fault. For why should one labour to help all, and none -be willing to help that one? Nay, why should none be -willing to help themselves out of the danger and -bondage of blind ignorance? If the book were all -in Latin, and the reader were not acquainted with a -single word, then the case would be desperate, but as it<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_195">[195]</a></span> -is, any man may compass it with very little inquiry -from his skilful neighbour. Therefore if anything seems -hard to an ignorant man who desires to know, and fails -owing to the unfamiliarity of the subject, he must -handle the thing often, so that it may become easy, and -when a doubt arises he must confer with those who -have more knowledge. For all strange things seem -great novelties, and are hard to grasp at their first -arrival, but after some acquaintance they become quite -familiar, and are easily dealt with. And words likewise -which express strange matters, or are strangers themselves, -are not wild beasts, nor is a term a tiger to -prove wholly untractable. Familiarity and acquaintance -will bring facility both in matter and in words.</p> - -<p>If the handling seems to cause the difficulty, and if -that proceeds from him who presents the argument, not -only in the opinion of the unpractised reader, but truly -in the view of those who are able to judge, then such a -writer is worthy of blame, in seeking to expound without -sufficient study; but if the defective handling is -due not to the writer, but to plain misunderstanding, -then there is small praise to the reader who misconstrues -without regard to courtesy or reverence for -truth.</p> - -<p>As for my style in treatment, if it be charged with -difficulty, that also proceeds from choice, being intended -to show that I come from the forge, being always -familiar with strong steel and pithy stuff in the reading -of good writers, and therefore bound to resemble that -metal in my style. To argue closely and with sequence, -to trace causes and effects, to seek sinews and sound -strength rather than waste flesh, is seemly for a student, -especially when he writes for perpetuity, where the -reader may keep the book by him to study at his<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_196">[196]</a></span> -leisure, not being forced either to take it all at once or -forgo it altogether, as is the case in speech. Discourses -that are entirely popular, or are written in haste for the -moment, may well be slight in manner, for their life is -short; and where what is said is at once to be put to -present use, the plainer the style the more plausible it -will be, and therefore most excellent in its kind, since -the expression must be adapted to the immediate end -in view, leaving nothing to muse on, as there is no time -for musing. But where the matter is no courier to post -away in haste, and there must be musing on it, another -course must be taken, and yet the manner of delivery -must not be thought hard, nor compared with others of -a different kind, considering that it is meant to teach, -and can use such plainness only as the subject admits -of. Does any man of judgment in learning and in -the Latin tongue think that Cicero’s orations and his -discourses in philosophy were equally well known and -of equal plainness to the people of Rome, though both -in their own way are plain enough to us, who know the -Latin tongue better than our own, because we pore -over it, and pay no attention to our own? Certainly -not, as appears from many passages in Cicero himself, -where he notes the difference, and confesses that the -newness of the subjects which he transported from -Greece was the cause of some darkness to the ordinary -reader, and of some contempt to the learned because -they fancied the Greek more. Yet neither ignorance -nor contempt could discourage his pen from seeking -the advantage of his own language, by translating into -it the learning which others wished to remain in the -Greek; he kept on his course, and in the end the tide -turned in his favour, bringing him the credit which he -enjoys to this day. And he himself bears witness that<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_197">[197]</a></span> -the resistance he met with was due not only to the -matter of which he treated, but also to his manner of -expression, and even to the very words he used, which -being strange and newly-coined were not understood -by the ordinary reader. “I could write of these -things,” he says, meaning philosophical subjects, “like -Amasanius” (an obscure writer of apophthegms) “but -in that case not like myself; as plainly as he, but not -then so as to satisfy myself, or do justice to the subject -as I should handle it. I must define, divide, distinguish, -exercise judgment, and use the terms of art. I must -have regard as well to those from whom my learning -is borrowed, that they may say they meant it so, as to -those for whom it is borrowed, that they may say they -understand it.”</p> - -<p>The writer who does otherwise may be thought plain -by those who seek nothing far, but if those who call -for plainness are always to be pleased, and dealt with -so daintily that they are put to no pains to learn and -enquire, when they find themselves in a difficulty -through their own ignorance; if they must be made a -lure for learning to descend to, rather degenerating herself -than teaching them to look up, what is the use of -skill? He who made the earth made hills and dales, -heights and plains, smooth places and rough, and yet -all good of their own kind. Plainness is good for a -pleasant course, and a popular style is in place in -ordinary argument, where no art is needed because the -reader knows none, and the matter can be simply -expressed, being indeed in her best colours when -she is dressed for common purposes. Likewise this -alleged hardness, though it belong to the matter, has -its special use in whetting people’s wits, and making -a deep impression, where what seems dark contains<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_198">[198]</a></span> -something that must be considered thrice before it is -mastered.</p> - -<p>Labour is the coin which is current in heaven, for -which and by which Almighty God sells His best wares, -though in His great goodness He sometimes does more -for some in giving them quickness and intelligence, -even without great labour, than any labour can do for -others, in order to let us know that His mercy is the -mistress when our labour learns best. But in our ordinary -life, if carpeting be knighting, where is necessary -defence? If easy understanding be the readiest learning, -then wake not my lady; she learns as she lies. If -all things are hard which everyone thinks to be so, -where is the privilege and benefit of study? What is -the use of study, if what we get by labour is condemned -as too hard for those that do not study. I will not -allege that the learned men of old made use of obscure -expressions in matters of religion in order to win reverence -towards a subject that belonged to another world -and could not be fully dealt with in ordinary speech, -nor that the old wisdom was expressed in riddles, proverbs, -fables, oracles, and mystic verses, in order to -draw men on to study, and fix in the memory what was -carefully considered before it was uttered. Are any of -our oldest and best writers whom we now study, and -who have been thought the greatest, each in his -kind, ever since they first wrote, understood at once -after a single reading, even though those who are -studying them know their tongue as well as we know -English—nay, even better, because it is more intricate? -Or is their manner of writing to be disapproved of as -dark, because the ignorant reader or fastidious student -cannot straightway rush into it? That they fell into -that compressed kind of writing owing to their very<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_199">[199]</a></span> -pith in saying much where they speak least, is clearly -shown by the comments of those who expand at great -length what was set down in one short sentence—nay, -even in a single phrase of a sentence. Are not all the -chief paragons and principal leaders in every profession -of this same character, inaccessible to ordinary people, -even though using the same language, and giving of -their store only to those who will study?</p> - -<p>But may not this obscurity lie in him who finds it -rather than in the matter, which is simple in itself, and -simply expressed, though it may not seem so to him? -Our daintiness deceives us, our want of goodwill blinds -us—nay, our lack of skill is the very witch which -bereaves us of sense, though we profess to have knowledge -and favour towards learning. For everyone who -bids a book good-morrow is not necessarily a scholar, -or a judge of the subject dealt with in the book. He -may have studied up to a certain point, but perhaps -neither hard nor long, or he may be very little acquainted -with the subject he is seeking to judge of. Perhaps the -desire of preferment has cut short his study when it -was most promising, or there is some other of the many -causes of weakness, although pretension may impose -upon the world with a show of learning. Any man -may judge well of a matter which he has sufficiently -studied, and thoroughly practised (if it be a study that -requires practice), and has regarded in its various -relations. A pretty skill in some particular direction -will sometimes glance beyond, and show a smattering -of further knowledge, but no further than a glance, no -more than a smattering. Therefore, in my judgment -of another man’s writings, so much only is just as I -should be able to prove soundly, if I were seriously -challenged by those who can judge, not so much as I<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_200">[200]</a></span> -may venture uncontrolled, in seeking merely to please -myself or those as ignorant as myself. Apelles could -admit the opinion of the cobbler, so far as his knowledge -of cobbling justified him, but not an inch further.</p> - -<p>As for my manner of writing, if I do not meet expectation, -I have always some warrant, for I write rather -with regard to the essence of the matter in hand than to -superficial effect. For however it may be in speech, -and in that kind of writing which resembles speech, -being adapted to ordinary subjects with an immediate -practical end, certainly where the matter has to stand a -more lasting test, and be tried by the hammer of -learned criticism, there should be precision, orderly -method, and carefully chosen expression, every word -having its due force, and every sentence being well and -deliberately weighed. Such writing, though it may be -without esteem in our age through the triviality of the -time, may yet win it in another, when its value is -appreciated. Some hundreds of years may pass before -saints are enshrined, or books gain their full authority.</p> - -<p>As for the general writing in the English tongue, I -must needs say that for some points of handling there -is no language more excellent than ours. For teaching -memory work pleasantly, as in the old leonine verses, -which run in rhyme, it admits more dalliance with -words than any other tongue I know. In firmness of -speech and strong ending it is very forcible, because of -the monosyllabic words of which it so largely consists. -For fine translation in pithy terms I find it as quick as -any foreign tongue, or quicker, as it is wonderfully -pliable and ready to express a pointed thought in very -few words. For apt expression of a good deal of -matter in not many words it will do as much in original -utterance as in any translation. This compact expression<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_201">[201]</a></span> -may sometimes seem hard, but only where ignorance -is harboured, or where indolence is an idol, which will -not be persuaded to crack the nut, though it covet the -kernel. I need give no example of these, as my own -writing will serve as a general pattern. No one can -judge so well of these points in our tongue as those -who find matter flowing from their pen which refuses -to be expressed in any other form. For our tongue -has a special character as well as every other, and cannot -be surpassed for grace and pith.</p> - -<p>In regard to the force of words, which was the third -note of alleged obscurity, there are to be considered -<em>familiarity</em> for the general reader, <em>beauty</em> for the learned, -<em>effectiveness</em> to give pleasure, and <em>borrowing</em> to extend -our resources and admit of ready expression. Therefore, -if any reader find fault with a word which does -not suit his ear, let him mark the one he knows, and -learn to value the other, which is worth his knowing. -Do we not learn from words? No marvel if it is so, for -a word is a metaphor, a learned translation, something -carried over from its original sense to serve in some -place where it is even more properly used, and where it -may be most significant, if it is properly understood. -Take pains to learn from it; you have there a means -of gaining knowledge. It is not commonly used as I -am using it, but I trust I am not abusing it, and it may -be filling a more stately place than any you have ever -seen it in. Then mark that the place honours the -parson, and think well of good words, for though they -may be handled by ordinary, or even by foul lips, yet -in a fairer mouth, or under a finer pen, they may come -to honour. It may be a stranger, and yet no Turk, -and though it were the word of an enemy, yet a good -thing is worth getting, even from a foe, as well by the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_202">[202]</a></span> -language of writers as by the spoil of soldiers. And -when the foreign word has yielded itself and been -received into favour, it is no longer foreign, though of -foreign race, the property in it having been altered. -But he who will speak of words need not lack them. -However, in this place there is no further need of words, -to say either which are familiar, or beautiful, or effective, -or which are borrowed; nor is there need to say that -in regard to any ornament in words we give place to no -other tongue.</p> - -<p>As for my own words and the terms that I use, they -are generally English, and if any be an incorporated -stranger, or translated, or freshly-coined, I have shaped -it to fit the place where I use it, as far as my skill will -permit. The example and precept of the best judges -warrant us in enfranchising foreign words, or translating -our own without too manifest insolence or wanton -affectation, or else inventing new ones where they are -clearly serviceable, the context explaining them -sufficiently till frequent usage has made them well -known. Therefore, to say what I mean in plain -terms, he who is soundly learned will straightway -recognise a scholar; he who is well acquainted with a -strong pen, whether in reading authors or in actual use, -will soon master a compact style; he who has skill in -language, whether old and scholarly or newly received -into favour, will not wonder at words whose origin -he knows, nor be surprised at a thought tersely -expressed, in a way familiar to him in other languages. -Therefore, as I fear not the judgment of the skilful, -because courtesy goes with knowledge, so I value their -friendship, because their support gives me credit.</p> - -<p>As for those who lack the skill to judge rightly, -though they may be sharp censors and ready to talk<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_203">[203]</a></span> -loudly, I must crave their pardon if I do not bow to -their censure, which I cannot accept as a true judgment. -Yet I am content to bear with such fellows, and pardon -them their errors in regard to myself, as I trust that -those who can judge will in their courtesy pardon me -my own errors. Those who cannot judge rightly for -want of knowledge, but will not betray their weakness -by judging wrongly, if they desire to learn in any case -of doubt, have the learned to give them counsel. The -profit is theirs, if they are willing to take it, but if not, -they shall not deter me from writing, and I shall hope -at length by deserving well to win their favour, or at -least their silence. In conclusion as to the manner of -writing and use of words in English, this is my opinion, -that he who will justify himself may find many arguments, -some closely related to the particular subject -that may be in question, others more general but likely -to be serviceable, and if in his practice he hath due -regard to clear and appropriate expression, then even -though one or two things should seem strange to those -who judge, the writer is free from blame. As for -invention in matter and eloquence in style, the learned -know well in what writers they are to be found, and -those who are not scholars must learn to think of such -things before they presume to judge, lest by failing to -measure the writer’s level, they should have no just -standard to apply. As for the matter itself which is to -be treated by any learned method, as I have already -said, familiarity will make it easy, though it seem hard, -just as it will make the manner of expression easy, -though it seem strange, if the thing really deserves to -be studied, which will not appear until some progress is -made. And a little hardness, even in the most obscure -philosophical discussions, will never seem tedious to an<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_204">[204]</a></span> -enquiring mind, such as he must have who either seeks -to learn himself, or desires to see his native tongue -enriched and made the instrument of all his knowledge, -as well as of his ordinary needs.</p> - -<p>But I have been too tedious, my good readers, yet -perhaps not so, since no haste is enjoined, and you may -read at leisure. I have now to request you, as I -mentioned at first, to grant me your friendly construction, -and the favour due to a fellow-countryman. The -reverence towards learning which leads the good -student to embrace her in his youth, and advances him -to honour by her preference in later years, will plead for -me with the learned in general, in my endeavour to -assert the rights of her by whose authority alone they -are themselves of any account. Among my fellow-teachers -I may hope that community of interest will -help me more with the courteous and learned than a -foolish feeling of rivalry will harm me with ignorant -and spiteful detractors. Regard for my own profession, -and this hope of support from learned teachers, move -me to lay stress upon one special point, which in duty -must affect them no less than me, namely, the need for -careful thought in improving our schools. I say -nothing here of the conscientious and religious motives -that influence us, nor of the need for personal maintenance -that demands our labour. But I would acknowledge -the special munificence of our princes and -parliaments towards our whole order in our country’s -behalf, partly in suffering us to enjoy old immunities, -partly in granting us divers other exemptions from personal -services and ordinary payments to which our -fellow-subjects are liable. These favours deserve at our -hands an honourable remembrance, and bind us further -to discharge the trust committed to us. I doubt not<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_205">[205]</a></span> -that this feeling which moves me strongly, moves also -many of my profession, whose friendship I crave for -favourable construction, and whose conference I desire -for help in experience, as I shall be glad in the common -cause either to persuade or be persuaded. Of those that -are not learned I beg friendship also, and chiefly as a -matter of right, because I labour for them, and my -goodwill deserves no unthankfulness. God bless us all -to the advancement of His glory, the honour of our -country, the furtherance of good learning, and the well-being -of all ranks, prince and people alike!</p> - - - <div class="chapter"></div> -<hr class="chap" /> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_206">[206]</a></span><br /> - <span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_207">[207]</a></span></p> -<p class="p10" /> - -<p class="pfs120">CRITICAL ESTIMATE.</p> -<p class="p10" /> - - -<hr class="chap pg-brk" /> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_208">[208]</a></span><br /> - <span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_209">[209]</a></span></p> -<p class="p6" /> - -<h2 class="no-brk"><a id="CRITICAL_ESTIMATE"></a><a href="#CONTENTS">CRITICAL ESTIMATE.</a></h2> - - -<p class="noindent">If the saying of Plato may be applied to another -sphere, not very far removed from civil government, -we may believe that education will never be rightly -practised until either teachers become philosophers, or -philosophers become teachers. It is certainly remarkable -how seldom in the history of educational progress there -has arisen any writer whose authority was based alike -on the power of the abstract thinker to rise above the -conditions of the immediate present into the atmosphere -of pure reason, and on the instinct of the professional -worker, whose conceptions of what is possible have been -chastened by direct experience of the actual. Of the -five classical English writers who have made any noteworthy -contribution to educational thought, all but one -have failed to gain a lasting influence, through the -limitation in their outlook caused by deficient practical -knowledge. Ascham’s experience was too exclusively -academic and courtly to suggest much to him beyond -questions of method in the advanced teaching of Latin -and Greek. Milton’s vision, restricted by his short -and partial attempt at instructing a few selected boys, -narrowed itself to one school period of one rank of -society of one sex, and his genius could not save him -from wild extravagance in his ideas of the acquirements<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_210">[210]</a></span> -possible for the average scholar. The suggestions -of Locke, while in one aspect they were more comprehensive, -are yet essentially those of a theorist, who had -never faced the difficulty that the upbringing of a child -by a private tutor is possible only to the merest fraction -of any population. Herbert Spencer, as the heir of -previous centuries, has naturally been able to command -a wider view, but even those who have gained most from -his book, must have felt that owing to his highly generalised -mode of treatment he has at many points failed -to grapple with the problems that chiefly beset the -professional teacher. A little experience, like a little -knowledge, is a dangerous thing, and it may be that -those writers, all of whom claim to have made trial of -the actual work of education, would have been more convincing -if they had written from an avowedly detached -standpoint. Richard Mulcaster alone holds the vantage-ground -of being at once a thinker and a practical expert -in matters of education. Nor does this mean only that -his right to speak with authority will for that reason be -more readily admitted; the evidence of his fuller equipment -for the task may be seen through the whole texture -of his writings. He had not Ascham’s ease in expression -and charm of manner, nor Milton’s commanding intellect -and power of utterance, nor the fearlessness and philosophic -grasp of Locke, nor the encyclopædic knowledge -and acumen of Herbert Spencer, but he had beyond -them all two essential gifts that will in the end give him -a unique place in the history of our educational development—a -clear insight into the realities of human nature, -and an enlightened perception of the conditions that -determine the culture of mind and soul.</p> - -<p>To those who know little or nothing of Mulcaster -such a claim will seem extravagant, and it will naturally<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_211">[211]</a></span> -be doubted whether any writer who deserves to be put -upon so high a pedestal, could possibly have remained -so long in neglect. It may be rejoined that in a subject -like education many factors have a part in the making -of reputations. It is no mere coincidence that the -authors named above, whose views on education are so -much more widely-known than those of Mulcaster, all -gained their chief fame in some other sphere of thought; -we read what they have to say on this subject because -it comes from writers who have caught the world’s ear -in some field of more general interest. This advantage -is naturally to be associated with gifts of expression -such as Mulcaster unfortunately possessed only in a very -limited degree, though his deficiency is due much more -to the rudimentary condition of English prose in general -in the sixteenth century, than to any lack of clear -thinking on his own part. It is true, indeed, that no -fine sense of harmony in sound can be credited to a -writer who perpetrates such a sentence as—“I say no -more, where it is too much to say even so much in a -sore of too much.” But even if Mulcaster had spoken -with the tongue of an angel, he would probably have -remained a voice crying in the wilderness, for the time -was not yet come. The ultimate value of Rousseau’s -message to the world in the realm of education was -far less, but his unique powers of persuasive eloquence, -the fame he had achieved in other ways, and the -ripeness of the time, combined to give the later -writer an extraordinary influence. When Mulcaster’s -judgments and suggestions are studied from the -vantage-ground of the present, and in a form that -divests them of adventitious difficulties of understanding, -they will be recognised as giving him a -place of high importance, not only in the chain of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_212">[212]</a></span> -historical succession, but in the final hierarchy of educational -reformers.</p> - -<p>It is necessary to take into account the state of -opinion on matters of learning and on the general -conduct of life, in the England of Queen Elizabeth’s -day, before we can appreciate the significance of our -author’s thought. We must place ourselves in the -atmosphere of the Renascence and the Reformation, for -although these great movements, which represented the -intellectual and moral aspects in the awakening of -modern Europe, had been some time in progress, and -had even given place to reaction in the countries of -their birth, their full influence did not reach our shores -till towards the close of the sixteenth century. The -phase of English national life represented by Mulcaster -is that immediately preceding the great expansion of -conscious mental activity to which voice was so -memorably given by Spenser, Shakespeare, Bacon, and -their contemporaries. The prestige of Elizabeth, depending -as it did so largely on the secure establishment -of the Protestant faith, had not yet reached the height -it attained through the final repulse of Spanish -aggression, but yet the power of the crown retained -much of the absolute sway over individual freedom -that had been built up and impressed on the popular -imagination by the earlier Tudors. It was not a time -either of revolt or of reaction. The more galling forms -of political and intellectual despotism had already disappeared -in the general overthrow of the medieval -<i lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">régime</i>, and it was a more pressing question how to -maintain existing charters of liberty than how to extend -them. This conservative temper is to be discerned in -all the purely English writers of the period, though in -the northern part of Britain Knox and his companions<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_213">[213]</a></span> -were troubling the waters of controversy in a more -strenuous fashion.</p> - -<p>Apart from the influence of an atmosphere of general -conformity to established authority and prevailing -sentiment, Mulcaster was constitutionally cautious. He -was no zealot, defiant of opposition, and careless of the -esteem in which he might be held. His respect for -tradition, and, it must be added, his sympathetic -instincts, disposed him always to seek grounds of -agreement rather than of difference, to support his -suggestions by the weight of authority and precedent, -to carry his readers with him by winning their consent -unawares rather than by startling them into reluctant -acquiescence through the use of paradox and exaggeration. -Yet there was no timidity or half-heartedness -in his temperament. He was profoundly convinced -of the justice of his criticisms and the value of his -proposals, and he was not backward in urging his -views, in season at least if not out of season, on all who -shared the responsibility of rejecting them or giving -them effect. He has been accused, indeed, of overweening -self-conceit, and it is to be feared that this is -the only persistent impression of the man that remains -with a number of those who know little of him beyond -his name. He has been cited as a classical example of -the folly into which a misplaced vanity can lead one -who enters with a light heart into the region of -prophecy, that “most gratuitous form of error,” on the -ground that he believed the highest possible perfection -of English prose to be represented by the style of his -own writings. This conception, however, is due to a -misunderstanding which it will be worth while to -remove. The remark that is quoted against him -occurs in the Peroration of the <cite>Elementary</cite>, “I need<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_214">[214]</a></span> -no example in any of these, whereof mine own penning -is a general pattern.” Taken apart from the context, -as it usually is, such a sentence sounds fatuous enough, -being naturally understood to mean that Mulcaster -thought he had nothing to learn from any other writers, -and had himself devised a perfect model of English -composition. But anyone who will take the trouble to -read the whole passage (<a href="#Page_201">p. 201</a>) will see at once that the -statement really means, “I need give no example of -any of these [idiosyncrasies of our language, especially -compactness of expression], as they are sufficiently -illustrated in my own writing.” This is a very different -matter, and though Mulcaster had little sense of style, -and was curiously mistaken in his idea that English -prose had no greater heights to reach than the standard -of his own time, the error was due to defects of literary -taste and judgment, not of character or temper. When -his writings are taken as a whole, they offer ample -evidence that he was singularly modest in his pretensions, -losing all self-consciousness in his enthusiasm -for the causes he had at heart.</p> - -<p>This attitude may account for the disposition in -some quarters to deny Mulcaster any special originality -in regard to his leading principles. But in a subject -like education, which concerns so many departments of -life and character, what is the precise meaning of -originality? As the essential traits of human nature -have remained unaltered in the last two or three -thousand years, except for a slow development along -lines in continuity with the past, it is vain to expect -that the broader truths which underlie the arts of social -improvement will be subject to any radical change. In -such matters we must build on the wisdom of the -ancients, and the only possible originality consists in<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_215">[215]</a></span> -discerning the new applications that are suited to the -present time and place. It is safe to say that there is -hardly a single educational doctrine that has ever won -acceptance, the germs of which are not to be found in -the writings of Plato and Aristotle. Yet every age and -every country must work out its own salvation by -choosing, combining, and applying to its needs the -general principles that have been laid down by those -that came before. Such eclecticism, if it cannot strictly -be called originality, is at least the highest wisdom, and -he who first proclaims the doctrine as true for his own -time and place deserves the credit of the pioneer. The -discoveries of the Greek philosophers in social politics, -if discoveries they could be called, had to be made over -again for the modern world, and it may even be said -that they had to be made independently for each -separate country. In the sixteenth century there was -less uniformity in political and social conditions, and -less mutual influence among the different States of -Europe than there is now. Although the English -nation under Elizabeth could not remain wholly unaffected -by the more drastic changes of opinion and -sentiment that marked the course of the reforming -spirit in Germany and in Scotland, it certainly -demanded a rare sagacity and independence of mind, if -not absolute originality, to discern how far the new -outlook could be shared by those whose experience had -been less revolutionary. To understand the value of -Mulcaster’s work it is of less moment to ask what may -have been his indebtedness to Plato or Quintilian, or -even to Luther and Knox, than to consider whether he -had been directly anticipated by any of his own -countrymen, and whether he himself anticipated, if he -did not influence, later English writers on education.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_216">[216]</a></span></p> - -<p>A right estimate of Mulcaster’s temperament, and of -his relation to the surrounding conditions of thought -and feeling, is due not only as a matter of personal -justice, but as affording a key to a proper estimate of -his writings. For these have a significance beyond that -of most works of the kind, in forming a somewhat -unique record of historical facts for a bygone period. -The attempt to trace the lines of progress by comparing -one phase of culture with another, has hitherto had -imperfect success in the sphere of education, for, like -the arts of music and acting, it works in a perishable -medium, and makes a direct impression only on a single -generation. Even indirect testimony has until recently -been almost entirely wanting. To hardly any writer of -earlier times has it occurred to make any report of the -actual conduct of teaching as it existed around him, for -the benefit of future ages. Those who were interested -in the subject have been more concerned to offer -speculative suggestions of reform that have apparently -little organic relation to the conditions of their own -community. It is not so much to the formal treatises -of Plato and Aristotle that we must look for such -knowledge as we can obtain of Athenian education in -the fourth century before Christ, as to the incidental -references of writers who had no thought of conveying -any definite or detailed information on the matter. We -find the same dearth of evidence when we try to -ascertain the actual working of educational methods -and organisation in the most advanced countries of -Europe during the two or three centuries that succeeded -the Renascence. The contemporary writers on -the subject are for the most part idealists; and while -we gladly acknowledge their services in that capacity, -we must regret that to the visionary outlook of the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_217">[217]</a></span> -reformer they did not add the careful observation of -the historian. If Mulcaster is a noteworthy exception -to this rule, it is not because of set purpose he undertook -the task of record and criticism. It was no part -of his plan to offer any narrative or statistical report; -indeed he expressly refrains from commenting on the -current practice of teaching, and alludes to it only -incidentally. His intention, as with the great majority -of educational writers, was to suggest improvements, to -propose an ideal; but his responsible position as a -headmaster gave him an ever-present sense of what was -practicable, and enabled him to base his efforts on the -firm ground of accomplished fact. His proposals are -so evidently related to the existing state of affairs that -they may almost be taken as affording an historical -record of contemporary practice. The common-sense -criticisms of a shrewd observer like Montaigne, and the -dreams of an idealist such as Rabelais, have their own -value; but we shall listen even more readily to the -words of one who speaks out of the fulness of immediate -knowledge, yet with equal power to rouse our aspiration -and energy.</p> - -<p>Before considering Mulcaster’s contributions to the -theory and art of education strictly so-called, it will be -well to glance at his influence in the more general -aspects of learning and literature. He must be credited -with an important share in the movement towards the -dethronement of Latin in favour of the vernacular -tongues, as the medium of communication in subjects -hitherto held to belong exclusively to the domain of -the learned class. The initiative in this matter goes -back, of course, to the time of Dante, but even with -the examples of Italy, France, and Spain to suggest -the change, it was a distinct and difficult task to work<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_218">[218]</a></span> -it out for our own language. Mulcaster was not the -first Englishman to write a book in his native tongue -which everyone would have expected to be written in -Latin. Sir Thomas More, in some of his historical and -controversial works, Roger Ascham, and a few other -writers of lesser note, had anticipated him in practice, -and had been more successful in attaining a lucid and -graceful style, but it may fairly be claimed that -Mulcaster was the first to give a reasoned justification -of the course he followed and recommended, and to -further the end in view by taking definite steps to -elaborate the means. Nor is it only for his service in -helping to establish a canon of literary English, and -show the way to others by using it himself to the best -of his ability, that acknowledgment is due. It was a -still more conspicuous merit to see clearly, and to -enforce by these means, the truth that the increase of -learning, and the methods by which it may be furthered, -are subjects of interest not to any limited class alone, -but to every member of the community. There may -be comparatively little present value in his judgments -as to the proper content of the English vocabulary, and -the forms of spelling which he thought should be made -authoritative, but at least it is noteworthy that, at a -time when linguistic science was at a rudimentary -stage, he had reached a singularly just conception of -the essential nature of a language, and the conditions -of its growth and decay. The interesting allegory -where he traces the process by which speech came to -be represented by written symbols, proves him to have -grasped the idea, only in later times fully understood, -that language, as a product of human activity, -shares in all the features characteristic of organic -development.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_219">[219]</a></span></p> - -<p>It is not only the more formal aspects of language, -moreover, that he treats with discrimination. On the -still subtler question of its relation to thought and -knowledge he speaks with a discernment far beyond -his time. The usurping tyranny of <em>words</em> over the -minds of men, in place of the lawful domination of the -realities they symbolised, had in the movement of the -Renascence changed its form without relaxing its -severity. If they were no longer so frequently used as -mere counters in vain disputations, they were yet apt to -be regarded with unreasoning idolatry, as the sacred -embodiment of the thoughts and feelings of settled -forms of civilisation in the past, exempt from any -enquiry as to the conceptions they expressed. Mulcaster -does not share this illusion. In his view language is -primarily a means of communication, and though the -acquirement of foreign tongues may be a necessity for -the time, yet they “push us one degree further off from -knowledge.” He may not have fully realised the -degree in which language is to be reckoned with as a -form of artistic expression and as an instrument of -thought, though his appreciation of the possibilities of -the English tongue shows that he did not forget these -invaluable uses; but in any case he saw clearly, and he -was one of the first to see, that the crying need of his -time was to be set free from the despotism of words, -which made them rather a hindrance than a help to -real knowledge. “We attribute too much to tongues, -in paying more heed to them than we do to matter.” -The bearing of this opinion on educational theory will -be considered presently, but it deserves to be noted at -the outset in evidence of the advanced philosophical -standpoint of a writer who belonged to the generation -preceding Francis Bacon.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_220">[220]</a></span></p> - -<p>Mulcaster’s independence of conventional practice is -further set beyond doubt by his conception of the place -of authority in argument. Anticipating Locke in -deprecating the constant use of great names in support -of a writer’s thesis, he is of course laying down a principle -now so universally accepted that it seems unnecessary -to refer to it, but those who are acquainted with -the Renascence writers of any country know how widely -a slavish regard for the opinions of the classical authors -took the place of a direct appeal to the rational judgment -of the reader. It was no needless service to -assign limits to this controversial habit, to discriminate -between superstitious servility and justifiable deference -to previous thinkers, to call for a fearless statement of -the truth as it appeared to each new enquiring spirit, -and claim that it should be tested wholly by its -conformity to reason and nature and experience. -Especially valuable for his time was his insistence on -the difference of circumstance between the ancient and -the modern worlds, and between the characters of the -various nations. He may seem to us to carry these -distinctions to an excess when in considering ideal -types of human nature he takes account of the form of -government under which each individual has to live, -holding certain qualities appropriate to a monarchy and -others to a republic, but at least he laid a useful -emphasis on the relativity of progress, and on the need -for harmony in the component institutions of a particular -form of society.</p> - -<p>Another proof of Mulcaster’s general enlightenment -may be found in the fact that he was the first of his -countrymen to affirm seriously that education was the -birthright of every child born into the community. It -is not intended to suggest by this that he anticipated<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_221">[221]</a></span> -the full assumption by the State of the duty of providing -and enforcing universal education, but rather that -he desired to foster a public sentiment and social -conditions which would be favourable to the idea that -the rudiments of learning should by one means or -another be distributed throughout the whole body of the -nation. Efforts in this direction had been made in -other countries under the levelling influence of the -reforming spirit in religion, but in England, where the -change of faith had been less associated with a democratic -impulse, nothing had as yet been done to -popularise education in the proper sense of the term, -and public opinion had still to be prepared for the -movement. It is true that the sharp distinctions of -rank which the sixteenth century inherited from the -Middle Ages were never so absolutely marked in the -sphere of learning as in other departments of life. -Though the child of lowly birth could never become a -gentleman, he could become a scholar. The helping -hand extended by the Church to the promising boy of -low degree did not, however, imply any relaxation of -caste feeling so far as the general supply of educational -facilities was concerned. The humble scholar was -raised out of his own class, and was always regarded as -an exception. Taken in the mass, the gentry and the -commonalty were clearly separated, and no kind of -training was thought in any way due to the latter except -such as might make them directly serviceable to their -betters. For the first notable attack on this fundamental -article of medieval faith, apart from the indirect -and interested claims of the Reformation leaders to the -means of influencing the young, credit is generally given -to Comenius. But it must be remembered that half a -century before his time, and in a country where the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_222">[222]</a></span> -<i lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">régime</i> of social status has always held a firm position, -a strong protest against educational exclusiveness was -raised by Richard Mulcaster, who maintained that the -elements of knowledge and training should be recognised -as the privilege of all, irrespective of rank or sex, and -without regard to their future economic functions. “As -for the education of gentlemen,” he writes, “at what -age shall I suggest that they should begin to learn? -Their minds are the same as those of the common -people, and their bodies are often worse. The same -considerations in regard to time must apply to all -ranks. What should they learn? I know of nothing -else, nor can I suggest anything better, than what I -have already suggested for all.” And his unwillingness -to recognise any kind of disability in matters of education, -except what was proved by the test of experience -to be natural, is further shown in his insistence that, as -far as may be possible, girls should have the same -advantages as boys. Though, as he says, in deference -to the general feeling of his time and country he will -not go so far as to propose that girls should be admitted -to the grammar schools and universities, he not only -wishes them to share in all the opportunities of elementary -education, but he wholly approves of the ideal of -higher culture for women, which was represented in the -attainments of Queen Elizabeth herself.</p> - -<p>We may now turn to matters that are less the concern -of the philosophic thinker and social observer than -of the expert in educational practice. Let us first -examine Mulcaster’s conception of the content of a -liberal education, from the two points of view, as to how -far it should embrace a culture of the whole nature, -and as to the proper range of distinctively mental -studies. It is a matter of history that in both these<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_223">[223]</a></span> -respects the Renascence ideal had fallen away from the -example of the Greeks. Intellectual culture had to a -large extent been dissociated from physical and moral -training. The life of the scholar was a thing apart from -the conception of chivalry, which encouraged the physical -prowess and regard to a code of honour that were -developed by the military class. The formal profession -of a religious end in learning took the place of a genuine -cultivation of character, and while this restricted path -was open to the more gifted of the poorer classes, the -alternative ideal was reserved for the upper social ranks. -It is true that in our own country in the Elizabethan -era there was some reconciliation of these diverse aims -in the persons of such men as Walter Raleigh and -Philip Sidney, but the type they represented was quite -exceptional, and had no apparent influence on general -educational methods. There was great need for -Mulcaster’s plea that in the upbringing of children -we should return to the ideal expressed in Juvenal’s -familiar phrase, “mens sana in corpore sano.” No -stress need be laid on the particular forms of physical -exercise which he recommended. His suggestions here -were not original, and the present time has little to -learn from the physiological conceptions of the sixteenth -century. But what was really instructive in his own -day, and is scarcely less so in ours, is the intimate -relation he conceived to exist between the body and -the mind—a relation that demanded a harmonious training -of the whole nature. “The soul and the body being -co-partners in good will, in sweet and sour, in mirth and -mourning, and having generally a common sympathy -and mutual feeling, how can they be, or rather why -should they be, severed in education?... As the -disposition of the soul will resemble that of the body,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_224">[224]</a></span> -if the soul be influenced for good, it will affect the body -also.” His use of the term <em>soul</em>, moreover, is significant -of the conviction which underlies all his writing, that -the end of all physical intellectual training is the -development of the feelings that prompt to right conduct. -He was not carried away by the current craze -for book-learning into accepting as a legitimate end of -education the pursuit of knowledge for its own sake; -in his view the teacher must always have regard to the -unfolding of the whole character that would bear fruit -in the discharge of the duties of citizenship and other -activities of a complete life. Not that he wished the -school to assume any preponderating control over the -child, either in the direction of opinion or in moral -ascendency. He had too clear an insight into the -springs of conduct to ignore the potency of the earliest -influences of the home, and so far from seeking to usurp -the authority of parents in determining their children’s -lives, he urges the closest co-operation and good feeling -among all who have the pupil’s welfare at heart. Some -further insight will be gained into his comprehensive -ideal of upbringing when we come to consider his -appreciation of home influence more closely, but it -may first be asked what his conception was of the -mental cultivation that should be aimed at in a liberal -curriculum. In regard to the secondary or grammar -school period of education, with which he was most -intimately acquainted, though he has many acute -criticisms and luminous suggestions to offer, his expressed -intention of supplying a systematic treatment -was unfortunately left unfulfilled; and of his ideas as -to university teaching we have little more than a sketch -of proposed reforms. On these points something may -presently be said, but we may turn first to his contributions<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_225">[225]</a></span> -towards the establishment of a sound elementary -system, which he held to be the most important stage -of all, because it was the only form of education that -could be brought within the reach of every child, and -was the foundation of all further progress in learning. -Even this part of the task that he imposed on himself -remains incomplete, but there is material enough for a -judgment of his point of view. It would seem that in -England, up to the Elizabethan era at least, no provision -had ever been made for rudimentary instruction -for any except those who were destined to proceed to -the higher stages of learning, and that the elementary -training given to these select few was limited to the -barest preparation for the traditional study of the -classics. The reading and writing of the vernacular -must have been acquired up to a certain point before -the Latin grammar could be attacked, but it is clear -that no adequate justice was done even to these preliminary -subjects, and that no attempt was made to -include a deliberate training of the senses and activities -of the child. Mulcaster’s proposals as to an elementary -course certainly do not sound revolutionary. His -subjects coincide pretty nearly with our familiar “three -R’s,” and he is himself careful to show that he is merely -“reviving” what is commended by the precepts of the -wise men of old, and by the practice of the greatest -States. But it was no small merit to be the first to -perceive that such a revival was possible and desirable -in his own time and country, and when his proposals -are examined it will be found that in the spirit in which -he conceived them they were far in advance alike of -contemporary, and of much later, thought and practice. -It is a well-known criticism of his contemporary, -Montaigne, that teachers were apt to think too much<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_226">[226]</a></span> -of the matter that was to be taught, and too little of -the nature of the learner. That this remark was just -in relation to these times we can well believe when we -consider how recently the traditional bearing of the -schoolmaster has been associated rather with the harsh -enforcement of uncongenial tasks under the threat of -penalties than with the sympathetic encouragement of -willing and interested labours. Ascham had protested -against the short-sighted severity of teachers, but failed -to see that its root lay in the fact that the studies presented -were generally ill-adapted to the capacities and -inclinations of the scholars. Mulcaster, on the other -hand, recognised that the remedy must be sought in -the discovery of a more reasonable method, towards -which he had definite constructive proposals to offer. -He may even be said to have anticipated by a couple -of centuries the doctrine of Rousseau, afterwards utilised -by Pestalozzi and Froebel, that the paramount aim of -the teacher is not to communicate knowledge, but to -stimulate and guide the natural activity of the child. -It is to be noted that every one of the five subjects he -proposed to teach in the elementary school is of the -nature of an art, calling for independent action on the -part of the learner, and giving pleasurable exercise to -the senses and bodily organs as well as to the intelligence. -It was more than a happy intuition that led -him to give so honourable a place to drawing and -music; it was a consistent application of his doctrine -that the minds of young children must be fed through -the channels of sense perception, and that faculty is to -be developed by placing the outlets of energy in immediate -contact with the powers of acquisition. Drawing -was intended to give a direct and practical knowledge -of space relations and of the forms of natural objects,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_227">[227]</a></span> -by combining the activities of eye and hand, while at -the same time it favoured the cultivation of artistic -expression. Music, being based on varied arrangements -of number in pitch and time, was counted on to supply -the ground-work of arithmetic, while in accordance with -the persuasion of the Greeks it was held to exercise a -definite æsthetic and moral influence on character. -That Mulcaster had not only thought out his theories -on the matter, but had verified them by individual -child-study, is clear from the terms of his recommendations. -“We must seek for natural inclinations in the -soul, which seem to crave the help of education and -nurture, and by means of these may be cultivated to -advantage.... The best way to secure good progress, -so that the intelligence may conceive clearly, -memory may hold fast, and judgment may choose and -discern the best, is so to ply them all that they may -proceed voluntarily and not with violence.”</p> - -<p>The same insight into the heart of the educational -process appears in his treatment of the grammar-school -curriculum. When we remember the absorbing pre-occupation -with classical learning that was the distinctive -mark of the Renascence scholars, and the prominence -given in consequence to linguistic study in education, -we should not wonder if Mulcaster were found acquiescing -in some degree in the narrow ideal that exalted -knowledge at the expense of faculty, and laid more -stress on the interpretation of words than of things. -What will rather excite our surprise and admiration is -the extent to which he was able to rise above the -contemporary estimate of the value of Latin and Greek -as instruments of culture. It is from the pen of one -whose reputation in his own day was based on his -mastery of ancient languages and his success as a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_228">[228]</a></span> -teacher of the classics, that we have the clearest statement -of the contrast between the indirect, incidental -value of linguistic training, and the direct, formative -influences of scientific study. “In time all learning -may be brought into one tongue, and that naturally -understood by all, so that schooling for tongues may -prove needless, just as once they were not needed; but -it can never fall out that arts and sciences in their -essential nature shall be anything but most necessary -for every commonwealth that is not utterly barbarous.... -The sciences that we term ‘mathematical’ from -their very nature always achieve something good, intelligible -even to the unlearned, by number, figure, sound, -or motion. In the manner of their teaching also they -plant in the mind of the learners a habit of resisting -the influence of bare probabilities, of refusing to believe -in light conjectures, of being moved only by infallible -demonstrations.”</p> - -<p>It has been stated above that Mulcaster had reached -a conception distinctly in advance of his time in regard -to the true significance of words, as the signs of realities -in the outer world and of the impressions these realities -make upon the mind. We may here notice the influence -of this conception on his treatment of linguistic -study as a means of education. While fully admitting -the necessity for acquiring the classical languages as -long as these continued to be the only vehicles of -learning, he never fails to regret the loss of time absorbed -in studying them, and he anticipates with satisfaction -the time when modern tongues, and especially his own, -will be sufficiently developed and refined to replace -Latin and Greek, believing as he does that “all that -bravery may be had at home that makes us gaze so -much at the fine stranger.” Not that he ever forgets<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_229">[229]</a></span> -that words are something more than mere symbols, that -indeed they come to have a certain objective reality of -their own, which must be apprehended as directly as -that of any other natural phenomenon. “Do we not -learn from words?” he asks. “No marvel if it is so, -for a word is a metaphor, a learned translation, something -carried over from its original sense to serve in -some place where it is even more properly used, and -where it may be most significant, if it is properly understood. -Take pains to learn from it; you have there a -means of gaining knowledge.” But this appreciation of -the inner significance of language does not blind him to -the fact, apparently unperceived by all his contemporaries, -that the unfortunate need for devoting so much -time and energy to linguistic study was a very serious -hindrance to the natural unfolding of the mental faculties -through a reasonable education. In his own words, -“we were forced ... to deal with the tongues, ere we -pass to the substance of learning; and this help from -the tongues, though it is most necessary, as our study is -now arranged, yet hinders us in time, which is a thing -of great price—nay, it hinders us in knowledge, a thing -of greater price. For in lingering over language, we -are removed and kept back one degree further from -sound knowledge, and this hindrance comes in our best -learning time.” And in another passage he bewails the -“loss of time over tongues, while you are pilgrims to -learning,” and the “lack of sound skill, while language -distracts the mind from the sense.” Where could we -find a stronger indictment of the Public School tradition -that banishes every form of nature study during the “best -learning time,” the years when the powers of observation -are in their first freshness, for the sake of a premature -initiation into the subtleties of Latin Grammar?</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_230">[230]</a></span></p> - -<p>We may pass to another important question with -which Mulcaster deals in a spirit in harmony with his -enlightened conception of general instruction. His -assumption that the day-school is the normal arrangement, -and that either an entirely private or a boarding-school -education requires to be justified by special -circumstances, gives him a far wider outlook and a safer -standpoint than can be claimed for theorists, whose -ideal, like that of Locke, regards only the upbringing of -a gentleman’s son at home under a tutor, or, like that -of Milton, involves the collection of large numbers in -boarding establishments of a conventual nature. This -is a matter that is naturally related to the extension of -educational opportunities throughout all classes of the -community. As long as only a select few were thought -fit for learning, residence in the monastery was almost -an affair of necessary convenience, but when teaching -came to be more widely offered, the day-school became -a recognised institution, and such other arrangements as -implied greater expenditure were retained only by the -rich, as instruments of social exclusiveness. It is in -countries where distinctions of rank are comparatively -little marked that the day-school system has flourished -most, and the partiality shown in Mulcaster’s day for -the services of a private tutor, and in subsequent times -for the boarding-school, is certainly to be taken in great -measure as an assertion of class superiority. Mulcaster -was no democrat, but he saw that the rich had more to -lose than to gain by arrangements that unduly restricted -their experience. Moreover he clearly discerned the -importance of the family as the true social unit, the -nursery of the virtues that should be developed in the -school, and find exercise in the public, as well as the -private, conduct of life. It is not his fault that his<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_231">[231]</a></span> -countrymen have become bound hand and foot to a -system under which the vast majority of well-to-do -parents hand over their children, body and soul, from the -tenderest years to the care of professional upbringers, -divesting themselves with a light heart of the most -precious responsibilities that nature has conferred on -them. “How can education be private?” he asks, “It -is an abuse of the name as well as of the thing.” But -on the other hand he urges—“All the considerations -which persuade people rather to have their children -taught at home than along with others outside, especially -with regard to their manners and behaviour, form arguments -for their boarding at least at home, if the parents -will take their position seriously.... They are distinct -offices, to be a parent, and a teacher, and the difficulties -of upbringing are too serious for all the responsibilities -to be thrown into the hands of one alone.”</p> - -<p>On the question of the position and standing of the -teacher Mulcaster’s contentions were scarcely more -timely and just for his own generation than they are -for the present time. Though certain ranks of the -teaching profession have never been without social consideration, -it remains true that teachers as a whole were -long regarded as an inferior order of the clergy, who did -not reach the goal of their ambition until they had succeeded -in leaving their first calling, to take the more -tranquil and dignified position of a cure of souls. As -he puts it—“The school being used but for a shift, from -which they will afterwards pass to some other profession, -though it may send out competent men to other careers, -remains itself far too bare of talent, considering the -importance of the work.” It was only natural that the -profession should suffer from this want of independence, -in the general esteem, and therefore in its substantial<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_232">[232]</a></span> -rewards, but the claim which our author puts forward -for greater public consideration, is obviously based, not -on any petty resentment on behalf of himself or his -fellows, but on broad general grounds of social advantage. -He had a high sense of the importance of the teacher’s -task for the national welfare, and he was anxious on all -grounds that those most fitted to fulfil it with success, -should in the first place be induced to enter the profession -by the prospect of adequate recognition, and in the -second place have sufficient opportunity of training to -enable them to do justice to it. “I consider that in our -universities there should be a special college for the -training of teachers, inasmuch as they are the instruments -to make or mar the growing generation of the -country ... and because the material of their studies -is comparable to that of the greatest profession, in respect -of language, judgment, skill in teaching, variety in -learning, wherein the forming of the mind and exercising -of the body require the most careful consideration, to -say nothing of the dignity of character which should be -expected from them.” Mulcaster, it will here be seen, -has good grounds to offer for magnifying his office, and -striving to win a place of honour for it in the social -economy. Subsequent experience has tended to suggest -that his effort to gain greater consideration for his -profession was more utopian than could perhaps have -appeared to his contemporaries. There are certain -general reasons why in a country like ours the teaching -profession cannot be expected to reach the solidarity -that belongs, for example, to the profession of medicine -or of law. The wide economic differences in our civilisation -inevitably perpetuate distinctions of rank, which are -nowhere more clearly shown than in the choice of schools. -It is natural and right that parents should be no less<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_233">[233]</a></span> -concerned about the companionship they provide for -their children than about the quality of the teaching, -and since a free and compulsory education has brought -into the national schools not only the poorest but the -lowest class, those who can afford it must be excused, -and even commended, if they take advantage of other -opportunities, where some principle of selection is -applied. And as there are different classes of children, -representing on the whole different kinds of home-upbringing, -so there will be different ranks of teachers, -varying widely in their status and emoluments. The -question of numbers will always among day-schools give -the town teacher an advantage over his country brother; -the question of fees, in so far as these are not counter-balanced -by endowments or State support, will draw the -most highly-qualified teachers to the schools that serve -the rich; and the secondary teacher will, on the whole, -rank above the elementary teacher, partly because greater -attainments are required from him, and partly because -the higher teaching, requiring a prolonged school course, -is demanded chiefly by the well-to-do classes. That this -economic differentiation would become so marked could -scarcely have been foreseen three centuries ago, and even -though it already existed, Mulcaster was doing good -service in protesting against its extremer forms. His -claim that the elementary teacher is the most important -of all, that he should have the smallest classes to deal -with, and that he should be the most highly paid, must -of course be taken as a counsel of perfection, but if -there is no present prospect of its being fully admitted -in practice, there is certainly a growing acceptance -of the principle underlying it, that the most critical -period of education is in the early years, when the first -impressions are being received, and that no influence<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_234">[234]</a></span> -deserves to be so well considered as that which is to -call forth an individual response from the awakening -intelligence.</p> - -<p>Difficult as the attainment of Mulcaster’s ideal of the -position of teachers may have been, he was undoubtedly -on the right path to seek it, when he advocated that -their training should be entrusted to the universities. -The demand for adequate preparation is the only -reasonable means of securing at once a fitting status, -and a reward sufficient to attract the best talent, and -the recognition of the work of education as deserving to -rank with the other learned professions for which a -special academic training is required, is the natural -expression of a healthy public sentiment on the matter. -The higher the requirements are pitched, the safer will -be the guarantee that aspirants will be drawn to the -work by a genuine belief in it as their true vocation, for -the sake of which it is worth while to make some -sacrifice. The atmosphere of a university, moreover, -offers the fullest opportunity to the teacher of acquiring -the breadth of general culture, and the <i lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">savoir vivre</i>, in -which he is so apt to be deficient.</p> - -<p>Mulcaster’s proposals for university reform in general -will be found in several important respects to have -anticipated the course of subsequent legislation. He -wished the State to have a free hand in controlling the -uses of private endowments according to the special -needs of each generation, as long as the confidence of -the original founders was not betrayed, and he was not -slow to point out directions where he considered that -changes were urgently needed. We know that in his -time the condition of the Universities of Oxford and -Cambridge was far from satisfactory, partly because -definite abuses had crept in, and partly because their<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_235">[235]</a></span> -constitution naturally offered a passive resistance to -regulative organisation. Mulcaster’s suggestions all -tend to greater concentration of aim and facility of -classification. He may have carried his desire for -uniformity too far when he advocated the specialisation -of every college to a particular study, and even to a -particular stage in that study. So far as residence is -concerned there is surely no need to forgo the benefits -of a varied social intercourse among students of -different standing and pursuits, but it cannot be -doubted that every effort should be made to counteract -the loss this may entail by providing full opportunities -throughout the whole university for the emulation of -those who are in the same academic position. In -Elizabethan days there was not the same freedom of -interchange in lectures among the various colleges that -now obtains, and Mulcaster was doing good service in -deprecating the isolation and dispersion of interest that -interfered with progress. We must also commend the -discernment he showed in presenting the claims of a -definite and comprehensive curriculum in general -learning to the attention of those who wished to engage -in professional studies, as well as his zeal for the more -careful selection of candidates for scholarships, fellowships, -and degrees. Nor is it to be forgotten that he -was probably the first to suggest the appointment of -“readers” in the universities,—an arrangement that was -not adopted till almost our own time.</p> - -<p>The significance of Mulcaster’s theories may best be -appreciated by comparing them with those of the great -educational reformer who came next in order of time. -The services rendered to the world by Comenius are -too well accredited, and too widely acknowledged, to -suffer any serious loss of prestige by such a comparison.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_236">[236]</a></span> -It has been already urged that true originality in -social affairs means an enlightened judgment as to what -is possible and desirable for one’s own time and -country, and the reform of education had to be worked -out and proclaimed for continental Europe on independent -lines. It is not likely that Mulcaster’s writings -had any direct influence on Comenius, though they -could hardly fail to make some contribution to the -general stock of ideas that is successively inherited by -each generation, and spreads almost imperceptibly over -an ever widening area. Even apart from any claim to -priority in doctrine, the forcible personality of the -Moravian writer, expressing itself in a singularly -exhaustive treatment of educational problems and their -practical application, will always assure to him an -unquestioned authority, while his assertion of the -weighty principle that words and things must be taught -together, spoken and written signs being constantly -associated with the objects, qualities, or actions they -represent, is in itself enough to secure him a lasting -reputation. But from the national point of view, which -in tracing such historical successions it is not unreasonable -to assume, we may justly note that there are a -considerable number of educational doctrines, now -generally accepted among us in theory if not in practice, -the earliest formulation of which, though generally -ascribed to Comenius, is really to be found in the -writings of Richard Mulcaster. More than this, it may -be maintained that on several important points a more -penetrating insight was shown by our own countryman, -in spite of his disadvantage in time. In regard both to -the end and the scope of education, for example, a more -humanistic conception seems to have been held by Mulcaster. -Unlike Comenius, who lays chief stress on the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_237">[237]</a></span> -preparation for eternity, he sets forth as the main -purpose of youthful training the more proximate aims -of self-realisation and useful service to one’s fellowmen. -“The end of education and training is to help nature to -her perfection in the complete development of all the -various powers ... whereby each shall be best able -to perform all those functions in life which his position -shall require, whether public or private, in the interest of -his country in which he was born, and to which he owes -his whole service.” And while both writers insist that -the rudiments of learning should be taught to children -of every social class and of both sexes, the Englishman -alone expresses sympathy with the ideal of a higher -education for girls where circumstances permit. It -would seem also that Mulcaster took the more reasonable -view of the relation of a teacher to his class, for -his claim that the elementary master should have the -smallest number to deal with, at least shows a fuller -sense of the importance of individual treatment than is -conveyed in the later writer’s dictum that it does not -matter how large a class is if the teacher has monitors -to help him.</p> - -<p>Among the doctrines of Comenius to which his -expositors have attached special importance may be -numbered the following: that the earliest teaching -should be given in the vernacular; that the first -subjects taught should be such as give scope to the -child’s activity; that knowledge should be communicated -through the senses and put to immediate use; -that examples should be taught before rules; that the -arts should be taught practically; that in language-study -grammar should accompany reading and speaking; -that learning should be spontaneous and pleasant -without undue pressure; that children should not be<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_238">[238]</a></span> -beaten for failure in study, but only for moral offences; -and that education should follow in general the -guidance of nature. These principles now rank among -the commonplaces of educational method, and in so far -as their acceptance has been furthered by the persuasive -advocacy of Comenius the gratitude of the world is due -to him; but why should Englishmen forget that they -had all been proclaimed with unmistakable clearness in -this country half a century earlier? Readers of the -foregoing pages must be already convinced that the -doctrines in question form an essential part of Mulcaster’s -theory of education; but it may be worth while -to recall in a connected form a few of the more striking -passages in which they are expressed. On the use of -the vernacular in the early years: “As for the question -whether English or Latin should be first learned, -hitherto there may seem to have been some reasonable -doubt, although the nature of the two tongues ought to -decide the matter clearly enough, ... but now ... we -can follow the direction of reason and nature in learning -to read first that which we speak first, to take most care -over that which we use most, and in beginning our -studies where we have the best chance of good -progress, owing to our natural familiarity with our -ordinary language, as spoken by those around us in -the affairs of everyday life.” No particular quotation is -needed to illustrate Mulcaster’s dependence for his -elementary training on studies that called forth -individual effort from the child, for the course he -planned includes no other kind of occupation, but the -following sentences may stand for a proof that he -recognised the natural channels through which knowledge -is acquired and utilised in the guidance of action: -“Nature has ... given us for self-preservation the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_239">[239]</a></span> -power of perceiving all sensible things by means of -feeling, hearing, seeing, smelling, and tasting. These -qualities of the outward world, being apprehended by -the understanding and examined by the judgment, are -handed over to the memory, and afterwards prove our -chief—nay, our only—means of obtaining further -knowledge.... To serve the end both of sense-perception -and of motion, nature has planted in the -body a brain, the prince of all our organs, which by -spreading its channels through every part of our frame, -produces all the effects through which sense passes into -motion.” On the point of subordinating rules to the -imitation of examples, and learning the arts by practically -engaging in them, Mulcaster writes: “Children -know not what they do, much less why they do it, till -reason grow into some ripeness in them, and therefore -in their training they profit more by practice than by -knowing why, till they feel the use of reason, which -teaches them to consider causes.... When the end of -any art is wholly in doing, the initiation should be -short, so as not to hinder that end by keeping the -learners too long musing upon rules.... We must -keep carefully that rule of Aristotle which teaches that -the best way to learn anything well which has to be -done after it is learned, is always to be a-doing while -we are a-learning.” To the question of the best method -in linguistic study, Mulcaster was ready to apply this -principle of learning directly through practice, and his -sense of the proper place of grammatical knowledge is -shown in the following passage: “Grammar in itself is -but the bare rule, and a very naked thing.... In -grammar, which is the introduction to speech, there -should be no such length as is customary, because its -end is to write and to speak, and in doing this as much<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_240">[240]</a></span> -as possible we learn our grammar best, when it is -applied to matter and not clogged with rules. As for -understanding writers, that comes with years and -ripeness of intelligence, not by means of the rules of -grammar.” It has already been seen that Mulcaster -shared fully in the humaner views upon the treatment -of children that were beginning to assert themselves in -his day; but it is interesting to notice that he based his -conviction not only on the general claims of sympathy, -but also on grounds of purely educational expediency. -“These three things—perception, memory, and judgment—ye -will find peering out of the little young souls. -Now these natural capacities being once discovered -must as they arise be followed with diligence, increased -by good method and encouraged by sympathy, till they -come to their fruition. The best way to secure good -progress, so that the intelligence may conceive clearly, -memory may hold fast, and judgment may choose and -discern the best, is so to ply them that all may proceed -voluntarily, and not with violence, so that the will may -be ready to do well and loth to do ill, and all fear of -correction may be entirely absent. Surely to beat for -not learning a child that is willing enough to learn, but -whose intelligence is defective, is worse than madness.... -Beating must only be for ill-behaviour, not for -failure in learning.” Finally we must admit that the -principle urged by Comenius, and afterwards pushed to -an extreme by Rousseau and Froebel, of following the -guidance of nature in planning the procedure of -instruction was explicitly stated by Mulcaster. “The -third proof of a good elementary course was that it -should follow nature in the multitude of its gifts, and -that it should proceed in teaching as she does in -developing. For as she is unfriendly wherever she is<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_241">[241]</a></span> -forced, so she is the best guide that anyone can have, -wherever she shows herself favourable.”</p> - -<p>It not infrequently happens that the doctrines of a -notable reformer, while they are full of light and leading -for his contemporaries, have no more than a historical -interest for succeeding generations. The rapidity of -their absorption in the general current of established -theory must be largely determined by the strength of -the influence with which they were first asserted, so that -in one aspect it may be said that the more potent the -impress of the original mind, the sooner will its individual -effects become imperceptible. But it would be -as rash to make this rule the measure of an estimate of -relative greatness, without taking account of other contributing -conditions, as it would be unreasonable to be -misled into the opposite error of undervaluing proposals -which had only a temporary fitness and are of no -present significance. In truth it is a good deal a -matter of accident whether the words of wisdom which -fall from men of genius and insight bear fruit early or -late, and while distance in time offers a vantage-ground -for the just assignment of the tributes of admiration and -gratitude, the question of immediate applicability must -not bulk too largely among the elements on which our -judgment of a reputation is based. As has been already -suggested, Mulcaster lost his opportunity of speedy -acceptance for his ideals through his inability to commend -them with persuasive eloquence, though such an -impediment to appreciation is happily not irremovable. -The more searching investigation of our time into the -history of educational thought might or might not have -discovered a high present value in the aspirations to -which he gave somewhat inadequate expression, without -his title to fame being materially affected. But it will<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_242">[242]</a></span> -undoubtedly give to his writings a great additional -interest if it should appear that they set forth lessons -which the three intervening centuries have failed to -learn, and which are still clamouring for acceptance in -our own day.</p> - -<p>It would not be difficult to show that many of the -reforms which he urged and anticipated, while they -have been formally admitted as necessary or expedient, -have as yet made little way in leavening the whole mass -of educational practice. There is good reason to maintain, -for example, that the impartial diffusion of the -opportunities of learning throughout all classes of the -community, which was a fundamental part of Mulcaster’s -gospel, has been much less completely realised among -us than is generally supposed. We are apt to rest -satisfied with the idea of universal education without -over-careful a scrutiny into the nature of what is offered -in its name. In so far as elementary instruction was -concerned Mulcaster drew no distinction between rich -and poor, between those of gentle and of lowly birth; -all were to have the same treatment, irrespective of the -uses to which their knowledge might afterwards be -turned. Our State system of education may profess to -carry out this aim, but the justice of the claim must be -denied so long as the nature and quality of what is -forcibly imposed upon the mass of the people is -seriously at fault. Our system of public elementary -education in this country, however efficiently it may be -organised, fails entirely to provide a sound general -training owing to its adoption of a curriculum that is -unduly utilitarian in aim. It is undeniable that this is -largely due to an implicit caste feeling which prescribes -that the education of the masses shall fit them directly -for the performance of certain industrial tasks in a state<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_243">[243]</a></span> -of economic subjection. The well-to-do citizen wishes -his own child, even from the first, to be taught differently -from the child of poorer parents, whose schooling he -helps to pay for and has some share in regulating. The -course of study he chooses may be no better,—in some -respects it is undoubtedly worse; but at least it is -different, and conforms to the conventional standard of -a liberal training for life as a whole. The codes drawn -up for our national system are not framed for any such -purpose. Partly from ingrained class prejudice, partly -to get tangible results to show for the public money -expended, and partly from a benevolent but short-sighted -regard for supposed utilities, we have overburdened -the curriculum with the more mechanical -parts of learning. We put too much of the drudgery -into the years when we can make sure of the children, -so that a minimum of interest is taken in the work for -its own sake, with the result that when the compulsory -term is reached, the great majority of them use their -liberty to throw aside their books for ever. While this -reproach remains just, can we say that the ideal of a -true universal elementary education has yet been -reached?</p> - -<p>It is perhaps idle to expect any equalisation of -opportunities by postponing every kind of specialism -to a period beyond the elementary stage, until there -is a more general agreement as to what constitutes a -liberal education. If we apply the touchstone of -Mulcaster’s conception, how much of the traditional -lumber which is now obstructing our progress would -have to be cleared away! We are the bond-slaves -of two tyrants—the spirit of an outworn classicism and -the spirit of a utilitarianism falsely so-called. Under -the domination of the former we distort the curriculum<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_244">[244]</a></span> -of our higher-class schools, preparatory as well as -secondary, by projecting into the elementary period -and practically imposing on every scholar linguistic -studies that should form a specialism only for a very -few during the later years of school life. Misguided by -the latter we debase our public primary education by -filling up the time with subjects of mere information -that neither arouse the interests of the learner nor -afford a genuine mental discipline. It would indeed -astound the Elizabethan schoolmaster who tolerated -pre-occupation with the learned tongues only until his -native English should reach a high enough point of -cultivation to become a worthy receptacle of learning, -and who lamented the temporary need for a medium -which kept the student “one degree further off from -knowledge” to find that after more than 300 years the -shackles had not yet been cast aside. Nor would he be -less dismayed to discover that the sole alternative -offered to those who were excluded from what professed -to be a liberal culture, consisted only to a very -small extent of that direct knowledge of the facts -and laws of Nature which he conceived to be the -proper food during “our best learning time,” but -mainly of the dry bones of second-hand experience. -Mulcaster’s ideal will not be attained until we have -devised a course of study up to the age of at least -14 or 15 years, which shall form a preparation for life -that is applicable to all pupils alike—to boys and girls, -to rich and poor, to those who can pursue their -systematic education further, and to those who must -discontinue it then to enter into the world of affairs.</p> - -<p>Enough perhaps has been already said, though -it would be an easy task to continue the catalogue -of reforms suggested by Mulcaster, which have been<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_245">[245]</a></span> -approved by the consensus of judgment among thinkers -on education, but have not yet been fully carried out -in this country. When we remember the over-pressure -and cramming that have resulted from the abuse of -examinations in the treatment of learning as a -marketable commodity subject to the severest struggles -of competition; or the widespread neglect of the -arts and sciences as instruments of general training; -or the unholy separation of parents and children during -the most critical years of mutual influence, through the -acceptance of the boarding-school system as a normal -institution; or the anomalous position of teachers, left -as they are without recognition as members of an -acknowledged profession, and having to depend for -their training on the voluntary provision made by -religious sects,—when we reflect that on these and on -many kindred matters of high urgency the wisest -guidance was offered to us more than three centuries -ago, we shall have little hesitation in admitting the -claim of Richard Mulcaster to be considered the Father -of English Pedagogy.</p> - -<p class="p4" /> - - -<hr class="chap pg-brk" /> -<p class="p6" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/end_piece.jpg" width="200" alt="(Publisher’s colophon.)" /></div> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Educational Writings of Richard -Mulcaster, by Richard Mulcaster - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK EDUCATIONAL WRITINGS *** - -***** This file should be named 61900-h.htm or 61900-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/1/9/0/61900/ - -Produced by Turgut Dincer, John Campbell and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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