,,transcriber',s ,,note ,italic text is denoted by underscores4 ,obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within the text and consultation of external sources4 ,no other changes have been made to the text4 ,,the ,,educational ,,writings ,,of ,,richard ,,mulcaster ,,published ,,by ,,james ,,maclehose ,,and ,,sons1 ,,glasgow1 ,publishers to the ,university4 ,,macmillan ,,and ,,co41 ,,ltd41 ,,london4 ,new ,york1 ,the ,macmillan ,co4 ,london1 ,simpkin1 ,hamilton and ,co4 ,cambridge1 ,macmillan and ,bowes4 ,edinburgh1 ,douglas and ,foulis4 ,,mcmiii4 ,,the ,,educational ,,writings ,,of ,,richard ,,mulcaster 7#aecb-afaa7 ,,abridged ,,and ,,arranged1 ,,with ,a ,,critical ,,estimate ,,by ,,james ,,oliphant1 ,m4,a41 ,f4,r4,s4,e4 ,,author ,,of 8,,victorian ,,novelists10 ,,etc4 ,,glasgow ,,james ,,maclehose ,,and ,,sons ,publishers to the ,university #aijc ,,glasgow3 ,,printed ,,at ,,the ,,university ,,press ,,by ,,robert ,,maclehose ,,and ,,co4 ,,to ,,my ,,sister ,,amy ,m4 ,,smith ,,preface4 ,some apology is needed for the presentation of an ,elizabethan writer to ,english readers in any form but that of the original text4 ,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 world1 they have entirely failed to gain acceptance as literature4 ,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 problems1 but when we consider the reputation of ,mulcaster's contemporary1 ,roger ,ascham1 who had far less to say1 but knew how to say it with lucidity and grace1 we are constrained to admit that ,mulcaster has lost his opportunity of catching the world's ear1 and that if his writings are to be known and appreciated as they deserve by this generation1 it must be rather for their substance than for their literary style4 ,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 expression1 but the general reader will expect more help than1 in the case of ,mulcaster at least1 is at present available4 ,the earlier of his two chief works1 the ,positions1 published in #aeha1 was out of print for #cjj years1 until the issue in #ahhh of an almost facsimile edition by the late ,mr4 ,quick1 to whom the credit of discovering this author is mainly due1 while the second work1 the ,elementarie1 has never been reprinted at all4 ,it is safe to assume that not many readers will care to possess themselves of the somewhat expensive reprint of the former work1 or to institute a search for one of the rare copies of the original and only edition of the latter4 ,and if these books were to be made more accessible1 it seemed worth while at the same time to present them in such a form that they should be readily intelligible to the ordinary reader4 ,in the case of an acknowledged literary classic it may be inadmissible to tamper even with the type and spelling1 far more with the phraseology and arrangement of sentences1 but such scruples would be out of place with the author now in question4 ,an attempt has been made to remove all gratuitous hindrances to a full understanding of the author's meaning1 while omitting nothing that is at once characteristic and significant4 ,it is hoped that in the process of adaptation as little as possible has been lost of the quaint flavour of the original1 and of the gifts of expression that ,mulcaster undoubtedly possessed1 however much these were obscured by the euphuistic tendency and the somewhat laboured construction that marked the prose of his time4 ,j4 ,o4 ,,contents4 ,,page ,,the ,,method ,,of ,,treatment1 #a ,,the ,,purpose ,,of ,,writing1 #b ,,reasons ,,for ,,writing ,,in ,,english1 #d ,,first ,,principles1 #d ,,the ,,use ,,of ,,authority1 #g ,,the ,,ideal ,,and ,,the ,,possible1 #aa ,,when ,,school ,,education ,,should ,,begin1 #ab ,,risk ,,of ,,overpressure1 #ac ,,mens ,,sana ,,in ,,corpore ,,sano1 #ad ,,physical ,,exercise ,,needs ,,regulation1 #ae ,,physical ,,and ,,mental ,,training ,,should ,,go ,,together1 #ae ,,exercise ,,specially ,,necessary ,,for ,,students1 #af ,,the ,,best ,,kinds ,,of ,,exercise1 #ag ,,football ,,as ,a ,,form ,,of ,,exercise1 #ag ,,is ,,education ,,to ,,be ,,offered ,,to ,,both ,,sexes8 #ah ,,all ,,cannot ,,receive ,a ,,learned ,,education1 #ai ,,choice ,,of ,,scholars ,,both ,,from ,,rich ,,and ,,poor1 #bj ,,the ,,number ,,of ,,scholars ,,limited ,,by ,,circumstances1 #ba ,,the ,,number ,,of ,,scholars ,,kept ,,down ,,by ,,law1 #bb ,,talent ,,not ,,peculiar ,,either ,,to ,,rich ,,or ,,poor1 #bb ,,choice ,,of ,,those ,,fit ,,for ,,learning1 #bc ,,how ,,the ,,choice ,,of ,,scholars1 ,,should ,,be ,,determined1 #bd ,,grounds ,,for ,,promotion1 #be ,,co-,,operation ,,of ,,parents1 #bg ,,admission ,,into ,,colleges1 #bh ,,preferment ,,to ,,degrees1 #bi ,,natural ,,capacity ,,in ,,children1 #cj ,,encouragement ,,better ,,than ,,severity1 #cb ,,moral ,,training ,,falls ,,chiefly ,,on ,,parents1 #cb ,,elementary ,,instruction--,,reading1 #cc ,,the ,,vernacular ,,first1 #cd ,,material ,,of ,,reading1 #ce ,,writing1 #cf ,,elementary ,,period ,a ,,time ,,of ,,probation1 #cg ,,drawing1 #cg ,,music1 #ci ,,four ,,elementary ,,subjects1 #db ,,study ,,of ,,languages1 #dd ,,follow ,,nature1 #de ,,education ,,of ,,girls1 #ej ,,aim ,,of ,,education ,,for ,,girls1 #ec ,,when ,,their ,,education ,,should ,,begin1 #ed ,,all ,,should ,,have ,,elementary ,,education1 #ee ,,higher ,,studies ,,for ,,some1 #eg ,,what ,,higher ,,studies ,,are ,,suitable1 #eh ,,who ,,should ,,be ,,their ,,teachers1 #fj ,,the ,,education ,,of ,,young ,,gentlemen1 #fj ,,private ,,and ,,public ,,education1 #fa ,,what ,,should ,a ,,gentleman ,,learn8 #fe ,,what ,,makes ,a ,,gentleman8 #fh ,,learning ,,useful ,,to ,,noblemen1 #gj ,,course ,,of ,,study ,,for ,a ,,gentleman1 #gb ,,foreign ,,travel1 #gc ,,gentlemen ,,should ,,take ,,up ,,the ,,professions1 #gg ,,the ,,training ,,of ,a ,,prince1 #gh ,,boarding-,,schools1 #gi ,,school ,,buildings1 #hb ,,best ,,hours ,,for ,,study1 #hd ,,elementary ,,teacher ,,most ,,important1 #he ,,the ,,grammar ,,school ,,teacher1 #hg ,,the ,,training ,,of ,,teachers1 #ij ,,university ,,reform1 #ia ,a ,,college ,,for ,,languages1 #ib ,a ,,college ,,for ,,mathematics1 #ic ,a ,,college ,,for ,,philosophy1 #ie ,,professional ,,colleges1 #if ,,general ,,study ,,for ,,professional ,,men1 #if ,a ,,training ,,college ,,for ,,teachers1 #ig ,,use ,,of ,,the ,,seven ,,colleges1 #ih ,,uniting ,,of ,,colleges1 #ii ,,university ,,readers1 #ajj ,,evils ,,of ,,overpressure1 #aja ,,limit ,,of ,,elementary ,,course1 #ajc ,,difficulties ,,in ,,teaching1 #ajd ,,uniformity ,,of ,,method1 #aje ,,choice ,,of ,,school ,,books1 #aaj ,,school ,,regulations1 #aac ,,punishments1 #aac ,,condition ,,of ,,teachers1 #aag ,,consultation ,,about ,,children1 #aah ,,systematic ,,direction1 #aba ,,the ,,standard ,,of ,,english ,,spelling1 #abd ,,the ,,peroration1 #aga ,,critical ,,estimate1 #bji ,,biographical ,,sketch4 ,richard ,mulcaster came of a border family that could trace its descent back to the eleventh century4 ,on his wife's tomb he describes himself as 8by ancient parentage and lineal descent1 an esquire born10 and there is evidence that some of his ancestors held positions of importance1 both administrative and academic4 ,in the fourteenth century we hear of a ,richard de ,molcastre1 who1 as the second son1 inherited from his father1 ,sir ,william1 the estates of ,brakenhill and ,solport1 and the family retained its consideration up to our own time4 ,but in the reign of ,elizabeth the ancestral lands were no longer in the possession of the branch to which our author belonged4 ,he was probably born in the border district1 and the date of his birth must have been about #aecb4 ,he was sent to ,eton1 then under ,nicholas ,udall1 who as a headmaster was known alike for his learning and his severity1 and who as the writer of the first regular ,english comedy1 may have given ,mulcaster his taste for the drama4 ,in #aedh he went to ,cambridge as a ,king's ,scholar1 but in #aeee we hear of his election as a ,student of ,christchurch1 ,oxford4 ,in the following year he was 8licensed to proceed in ,arts40 ,he had a reputation for a knowledge of ,hebrew as well as of ,latin and ,greek1 and seems shortly afterwards to have chosen the profession of a schoolmaster1 making his way to ,london about #aeeh or #aeei4 ,in #aefj the ,guild of ,merchant ,taylors decided to establish the well-known day ,grammar ,school for boys which still bears their name1 and in the following year ,mulcaster was appointed the first headmaster1 having charge of two hundred and fifty scholars1 with the assistance of three undermasters4 ,the school hours were from #g to #aa a4m4 and from #a to #e p4m41 with one half holiday in the week1 besides the ordinary church festival days1 and for this the headmaster received the salary of #aj 7equivalent to #hj or #ajj now71 besides a dwelling in the school and a small sum from entrance fees4 ,he was granted twenty days' leave of absence in the year1 but was not allowed to hold any other office1 though his appointment was only held from year to year4 ,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 application1 and that he accepted it only after some hesitation1 when he was promised an additional #aj of salary1 on the private and personal guarantee of one of the ,governors4 ,he held the position for twenty-five years1 and his successful conduct of the school is fully attested by the verdict of eminent scholars who acted as examiners1 by the expressions of satisfaction in the minutes of the ,council1 and by the testimony of the pupils themselves1 many of whom attained distinction in after-life4 ,of ,mulcaster's scholars at ,merchant ,taylors' ,school the most famous was ,edmund ,spenser1 but in the absence of any reference to his teacher by the poet1 we have to be content with the direct evidence of ,lancelot ,andrews1 ,bishop of ,winchester1 and ,sir ,james ,whitelock1 ,justice of the ,king's ,bench4 ,of the former it is recorded that he 8ever loved and honoured0 his former headmaster1 befriending him and his son after him1 and keeping his portrait over the door of his study4 ,the latter tells us that ,mulcaster besides instructing him well in ,latin1 ,greek1 and ,hebrew1 was careful to increase his skill in music1 and chose him to act with other scholars in the plays he presented at ,court1 by which means the boys were taught good manners and self-confidence4 ,the account of him in ,fuller's ,worthies may perhaps represent the impressions of less gifted scholars--8,atropos might be persuaded to pity1 as soon as he to pardon1 where he found just fault4 ,the prayers of cockering mothers prevailed with him as much as the requests of indulgent fathers1 rather increasing than mitigating his severity on their offending child4444 ,others have taught as much learning with fewer lashes1 yet his sharpness was the better endured1 because impartial1 and many excellent scholars were bred under him40 ,but while ,mulcaster was building up securely the reputation of the school1 his own position was not always comfortable1 and in the end the friction between himself and the governing body became so great that he felt constrained to resign the headmastership4 ,this was no doubt partly due to his own somewhat hasty and masterful temper1 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 anger1 but there were more lasting causes of dispute4 ,after the first eight years the promised supplement to his official income was no longer forthcoming1 apparently owing to the declining circumstances of the member of the ,council who had contributed it1 and ,mulcaster having on the strength of this extra sum increased the salary of his first assistant1 conceived that he was entitled to its continuance from the ,company4 ,there were besides disputes between the ,council and the authorities of ,st4 ,john's ,college1 ,oxford1 where its founder1 a member of the ,guild1 had reserved certain free places for orphans coming from the school1 and in these ,mulcaster was involved4 ,while the ,council seems to have acted throughout within its rights1 and in the end showed a desire to deal even generously with its headmaster1 it is easy to understand the difficulties of the situation1 especially to a man like ,mulcaster1 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 superiors4 ,so necessary did he feel it to regain his freedom that in #aehf he tendered his resignation1 without apparently having any definite prospect of other work4 ,during the next ten years scarcely anything is known of ,mulcaster's life1 except that he was in straitened circumstances4 ,by #aehh his claim on the ,merchant ,taylors' ,guild had been adjusted by a compromise1 and friendly relations must have been restored1 for we find him acting as examiner to the ,school in that year4 ,for part of this time at least he was out of ,london1 for he seems to have been for a year vicar of ,cranbrook in ,kent1 and he was afterwards granted by the ,queen the prebend of ,yatesbury1 in the diocese of ,salisbury4 ,in #aeif came a return of prosperity in a settled position4 ,the headmaster of ,st4 ,paul's ,school1 which had been founded at the beginning of the century by ,john ,colet1 and bequeathed by him to the management of the ,silk ,mercers' ,guild1 had resigned his post1 as a result of similar differences with the governing body to those which occurred in the ,merchant ,taylors' ,school1 and ,mulcaster1 whatever misgivings he may have had1 had learned enough from his recent experience not to decline the vacant office when it was offered to him4 ,he was already in his sixty-fourth year when he received the appointment1 and he continued to hold it till he was seventy-six4 ,the conditions were much the same as those under which he had formerly worked1 the statutes of ,st4 ,paul's ,school having indeed served as a model to the later foundation1 but the number of scholars was limited to #aec1 and the salary of the headmaster was #cf 7equal to about #cjj now71 in addition to a residence in the school4 ,in #afjb the salaries of all the teachers were doubled1 in recompense for certain restrictions imposed by a new set of regulations1 and when ,mulcaster resigned his position in #afjh1 presumably on account of failing strength1 he received a yearly pension of #ff #cs4 #d;d4 until his death three years later4 ,there is little to record of his labours during his twelve years' service at ,st4 ,paul's ,school1 the only outstanding event being in connection with the accession of ,james ,i4 in #afjc4 ,it was the privilege of his scholars to welcome the ,sovereign to the capital1 and we read that on this occasion a ,latin speech1 prepared by the headmaster1 was delivered by one of the scholars at the door of the ,school4 ,it is painful to learn that the closing years of ,mulcaster's life were clouded by distressing poverty4 ,nor is this easy to understand1 for besides his pension1 he was not without resources4 ,he had some time before been granted by ,queen ,elizabeth the living of ,stanford ,rivers in ,essex1 but had been precluded from entering on it while he remained at ,st4 ,paul's ,school4 ,on his retirement from the headmastership he took up the duties of his country charge1 notwithstanding his advanced age1 though without striking success1 according to ,fuller's account3 8,i have heard from those who have heard him preach that his sermons were not excellent1 which to me seems no wonder1 partly because there is a different discipline in teaching children and men1 partly because such who make divinity not the choice of their youth but the refuge of their age seldom attain to eminency therein40 ,in spite of these two sources of income we find ,mulcaster in #afji making a pitiful but unsuccessful appeal to his old patrons1 the ,merchant ,taylors1 and when he died two years later he left his son burdened with debts1 from which he was only relieved by the aid of some of his father's former scholars1 and of the two ,guilds under which he had served4 ,his wife had died two years before him1 after fifty years of wedded life1 and her virtues are recorded in a commemorative tablet4 ,mulcaster's educational writings were produced towards the close of the period spent at ,merchant ,taylors' ,school1 the ,positions appearing in #aeha1 and the ,first ,part of the ,elementarie in #aehb4 ,the completion of the latter1 and the further works promised on higher education1 were never accomplished4 ,he also wrote numerous ,latin verses1 including an address to ,queen ,elizabeth at the ,kenilworth pageant of #aege1 and a catechism1 also in ,latin1 for the use of his pupils at ,st4 ,paul's ,school1 while he is mentioned as the author of a work entitled ,cato ,christianus1 which has not come down to us4 ,all the sources of information regarding ,mulcaster's life and writings have been collected and compared with exhaustive industry by ,dr4 ,theodor ,klhr in a pamphlet entitled ,leben und ,werke ,richard ,mulcaster's 7,dresden1 #ahic74 ,,the ,,educational ,,writings ,,of ,,richard ,,mulcaster ,the ,method of ,treatment4 ,whosoever shall consider carefully the manner of bringing up children which is in general favour within this realm1 cannot but agree with me in wishing that it were improved4 ,i do not think it well1 however1 in this place to lay bare its special defects1 because ,i am in hope of seeing them healed without so strong a measure4 ,if ,i should seek to expose all the inconveniences which are experienced between parents and schoolmasters1 and between teachers and learners2 if ,i should refer to all the difficulties through which the education and upbringing of children is seriously impaired1 ,i might revive causes of annoyance1 and thereby make the evils worse4 ,and even though ,i were to remedy them1 the patient might bear in mind how churlishly he was cured1 and though he should pay well for the healing1 he might be ill-satisfied with the treatment4 ,wherefore in mending things that are amiss1 ,i take that to be the most advisable way which saveth the man without making the means unpleasant4 ,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 best1 but most within compass1 the wrong course will forthwith show itself by comparison1 and will thus receive a check without any need for fault-finding4 ,the ,purpose of ,writing4 ,i have taught in public now without interruption for two-and-twenty years1 and have always had a very great charge committed to my hands1 my fulfilment of which ,i leave to an impartial judgment4 ,during this time1 both through what ,i have seen in teaching so long1 and what ,i have tried in training up so many1 ,i well perceive that1 with the disadvantages which myself and other teachers have been subject to1 none of us have been able to do as much as we might4 ,i believe ,i have not only learned what these disadvantages are1 but have discerned how they may be removed1 so that ,i and all others may be able to do much more good than heretofore4 ,and as ,i write for the common good ,i appeal to the reader's courtesy to give me credit for good intentions1 though my hopes should not be realised4 ,for ,i am only doing what is open to all1 namely1 to give public utterance to my personal convictions1 and to claim indulgence for what is intended for the general good4 ,as ,i am myself ready to give favourable consideration to others who do the same1 ,i expect any who make use of my work to their own profit to give me credit for it1 and those who get no benefit from it at least to sympathise with me in meeting so little success for my good intentions4 ,i may be told--,you are alone in raising this matter2 you do but trouble yourself2 you cannot turn aside the course1 which is old and well-established1 and therefore very strong for you to strive against4 ,this thing which you recommend is not every man's wares2 it will not be compassed4 ,do you let it alone2 if you must needs write1 turn your pen to other matters which the ,state will like better1 which this age will readily approve of1 which you may urge with credit if they be new and suitable1 or confirm with praise if they be old and need repeating4 ,if such objections were not invariably raised to all attempts to turn either from bad to good1 or from good to better1 ,i would answer them carefully1 but now ,i need not1 for in order to gain any advantage he who wishes to have it must be prepared to wrestle for it1 both in speech and in writing1 against the corruption of his age1 against the loneliness of attempt1 against party prejudice1 against the difficulties of performance4 ,nor must he be discouraged by any ordinary thwarting1 which is a thing well known to experienced students1 and of least account where it is best known1 however fearful a thing it may seem to timid fancies to stem corruption and strive against the stream4 ,for the stream will turn when a stronger tide returns1 and even if there be no tide1 yet an untiring effort will make way against it till it prevails4 ,and surely it were more honourable for some one1 or some few1 to hazard their own credit and estimation for the time in favour of a thing which they know to be deserving of support1 though it may not be held of much account1 than through too timorous a concession to public opinion1 which1 in spite of its influence1 is not always the soundest1 to leave excellent causes without defence if they be opposed4 ,for may it not fall out that such a thing as this will be called for hereafter1 though at present it may be out of favour1 because something else is in fashion8 ,i had rather1 therefore1 that it were ready then to be of use when it is wished1 than that posterity should be defrauded of a thing so passing good1 for fear of its being disliked at the first setting forth4 ,reasons for ,writing in ,english4 ,i write in my natural ,english tongue1 because though ,i appeal to the learned1 who understand ,latin1 ,i wish to reach also the unlearned1 who understand only ,english1 and whose interests are to be the more considered that they have fewer chances of information4 ,the parents and friends with whom ,i have to deal are for the most part no ,latinists1 and even if they were1 yet we understand that tongue best to which we are first born1 and our first impression is always in ,english before we render it into ,latin4 ,and in recommending a new method of attaining an admitted benefit1 should we not make use of all the helps we can to make ourselves understood8 ,he that understands no ,latin can understand ,english1 and he that understands ,latin very well can understand ,english far better1 if he will confess the truth1 however proud he may be of his ,latinity4 ,when my subject requires ,latin ,i will not then spare it1 as far as my knowledge allows1 but till it do1 ,i will serve my country in the way that ,i think will be most intelligible to her4 ,first ,principles4 ,my purpose is to help the whole business of teaching1 even from the very first foundation1 that is to say1 not only what is given in the ,grammar ,school1 and what follows afterwards1 but also the elementary training which is given to infants from their first entrance1 until they are thought fit to pass on to the ,grammar ,school4 ,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 subjects1 in first laying down certain principles to which all readers will agree4 ,by this means it is possible to pass on to the end without challenge1 or if any difficulty should arise1 it can always be resolved by a reference to these principles4 ,in mathematics1 which offers the best model of method to all the other sciences1 before any problem or theorem is presented1 there are set down certain definitions1 postulates1 axioms1 to which general assent is asked at the outset1 and on which the whole structure is built up4 ,i am the more inclined to adopt this method1 because ,i am to deal with a subject that must at the first be very carefully handled1 till proof gives my treatment credit1 whatever countenance hope may seem to lend it in the meanwhile4 ,i mean specially to deal with two stages in learning1 first the ,elementary1 which extends from the time that the child is set to do anything1 till he is removed to the higher school1 and then the ,grammar ,school course1 where the child doth continue in the study of the learned tongues till at the time of due ripeness he is removed to some university4 ,the importance of the ,elementary part lieth in this1 that a thorough grounding here helps the whole course of after study1 whereas insufficient preparation in the early stages makes a very weak sequel4 ,for just as a proper amount of time spent here1 without too much haste to push onwards1 brings on the rest of the school stages at their due season1 and in the end sendeth abroad sufficient men for the service of their country1 so too headlong a desire to hurry on swiftly1 in perpetual infirmity of matter1 causeth too much childishness in later years1 when judgment and skill and ripeness are more in keeping with grey hairs4 ,the ,grammar ,school course1 while it is a suitable subject for me to deal with1 as ,i am myself a teacher1 is also very profitable for the country to hear of1 as in the present great variety of teaching1 some uniform method seems to be called for4 ,to have the youth of the country well directed in the tongues1 which are the paths to wisdom1 the treasuries of learning1 the storehouses of humanity1 the vehicles of divinity1 the sources of knowledge and wisdom--can this be a small matter1 if it be well performed8 ,if fitting occasion by the way should cause me to attempt anything further than these two divisions of the subject1 though ,i should seem to be going beyond my school experience1 ,i trust ,i shall not be thought to travel beyond my capacity4 ,in seeking for the approval of men ,i may indeed find some who are satisfied with things as they are1 who think their penny good silver1 and decline my offer1 being unwilling to receive teaching from such humble hands as mine4 ,there may be others who grant that there is something amiss1 but think my remedy not well fitted to amend it1 and look disdainfully on my credentials4 ,i admit my lack of authority1 but till some one better takes the matter up1 why should ,i not do what ,i can8 ,if the wares ,i bring prove marketable1 why should ,i not offer them for sale8 ,as ,i am likely to encounter such objections1 ,i propose at the outset to meet all ,i can on grounds of reason1 with full courtesy to those who make them4 ,inasmuch as ,i must apply my principles to some one ground1 ,i have chosen the ,elementary1 rather than the ,grammar ,school course1 because it is the very lowest1 and the first to be dealt with1 and because the considerations that apply to it may easily be transferred afterwards to the ,grammar ,school or any other studies4 ,the points ,i propose to deal with are such as the following3 ,at what age a child should be sent to school1 and what he should learn there2 whether all children should be sent to school2 whether physical exercise is a necessary part of upbringing2 whether young maidens ought to be set to learning2 how young gentlemen should be brought up2 how uniformity can be introduced into teaching4 ,i shall also speak of courtesy and correction1 of public and private education1 of the choice of promising scholars1 of places and times for learning1 of teachers and school regulations1 and of the need for restricting the numbers of the learned class4 ,in my views on these and kindred matters ,i shall seek to win the approval of my countrymen1 before ,i proceed to deal with particular precepts and the details of the upbringing of children4 ,in my discussion of all these matters1 while in method ,i shall follow the example of the best writers1 ,i will1 in the substance of my argument1 make appeal only to nature and reason1 to custom and experience1 where there is a clear prospect of advantage to my country1 avoiding any appearance or suspicion of fanciful and impracticable notions4 ,i may hope that the desire to see things improved will not be accounted fanciful1 unless by those who think themselves in health when they are sick unto death1 and while feeling no pain because of extreme weakness1 hold their friends foolish in wishing them to alter their mode of life4 ,the ,use of ,authority4 ,some well-meaning people1 when they wish to persuade their fellow-countrymen either by pen or by speech1 to adopt a certain course1 if they can claim the authority of any good writers favouring their opinions1 straightway assume that their own arguments are sufficiently supported to ensure their proposal being carried out4 ,this assurance1 however1 is checked sometimes by reflection1 sometimes by experience4 ,wise reflection may foresee that the special circumstances of the country will not admit of the proposed change1 or after some trial the unsuitability may be shown by experience4 ,so that in cases where authorities persuade1 and circumstances control1 those who would use earlier writers to maintain their credit must always keep in view the application to particular conditions4 ,i see many people of good intelligence1 considerable reading1 and facility of expression1 both abroad and at home1 fall into great error by neglecting special circumstances1 and overstraining the force of authority4 ,in dealing with education1 must ,i entreat my country to be content with this because such a one commends it1 or force her to that because such a ,state approves of it8 ,the show of right deceives us1 and the likeness of unlike things doth lead us where it listeth4 ,for the better understanding with what wariness authority is to be used1 let it be considered that there are two sorts of authors that we deal with in our studies4 ,of the one kind are writers on the mathematical sciences1 who proceed by the necessity of a demonstrable subject1 and enforce the conclusions by inevitable argument4 ,of the other kind are writers on the moral and political sciences1 who1 dealing with human affairs1 must have regard to the circumstances of every particular case4 ,with the former the truth of the subject-matter maintains itself1 without the need for any personal authority1 and is beyond debate2 it is with the latter that controversy arises1 the writer's credit often authorising the thing1 and in this case great injustice may be done by quoting without discrimination as to difference of circumstance4 ,it is no proof that because ,plato praiseth something1 because ,aristotle approveth it1 because ,cicero commends it1 because ,quintilian or anyone else is acquainted with it1 therefore it is for us to use4 ,what if our country honour it in them1 and yet for all that may not use it herself1 because the circumstances forbid8 ,nay1 what if the writers' authority be cited without considering in what circumstances the opinion was originally expressed8 ,is not a great wrong done by him who wresteth the meaning of the author he quotes8 ,he that will deal with writers so as to turn their conclusions to the use of his country must be very well advised1 and diligently mark that their meaning and his application are consistent1 and must consider how much of their opinion his country will admit4 ,whether ,i shall myself be able to carry out what ,i demand from others1 ,i dare not warrant1 but ,i will do my best to use my author well1 and to take circumstances into account1 never1 if ,i can help it1 to offer anything that has not all the foundations that ,i promised before1 namely1 nature to lead it1 reason to back it1 custom to commend it1 experience to approve it1 and profit to prefer it4 ,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 disproof1 as it is well understood that all our studies are indebted to the original devisers and the most eloquent writers4 ,therefore1 to avoid undue length1 ,i will neither give authorities nor examples1 as it is not a question of a man's name1 but of the real value of the argument4 ,i shall not busy myself with citing authors1 either to show what ,i have read or how far ,i am in agreement with others4 ,it is not needful to heap up witnesses where nothing is doubtful2 the natural use of testimony is to prove where there is doubt1 not to cloy where all is clear4 ,in such cases1 for want of sound judgment1 a catalogue of names and a multitude of sentences1 which only say what no one denies1 are forced on to the stage to seem to arm the quoter1 who is fighting without a foe1 and flying when there is no cause for fear4 ,in points of learning which are beyond controversy1 ,i appeal to the judgment of those who have gone over the same ground1 and can test the truth of what ,i say without being told the name of the author1 whom they will admit to have been well cited when they find me saying as he saith1 whether it be through recollection of what ,i have read or from coincidence of judgment where ,i have not read4 ,i do honour good writers1 but without superstition1 being in no way addicted to titles4 ,but seeing that ,reason doth honour them1 they must be content to remain outside themselves1 and use every means to bring her forward1 as their lady and mistress1 whose authority and credit procure them admission when they come from her4 ,it is not so because a writer said so1 but because the truth is so1 and he said the truth4 ,indeed1 the truth is often weakened in the hearer's opinion1 though not in itself1 by naming the writer4 ,if truth did depend upon the person1 she would often be brought into a miserable plight1 being constrained to serve fancy and alter at will1 whereas she should bend to no one1 however opinionative people may persuade themselves4 ,this is known to the learned and wise1 whose courtesy ,i crave4 ,as for the unlearned1 ,i must entreat them1 for their sakes if not for mine1 not to debate with me on points where they cannot judge4 ,in matters that are intelligible to both1 ,i must pray them to weigh my words well1 and ever to give me credit for good intentions4 ,the ,ideal and the ,possible4 ,those ancient writers1 who have depicted ideal commonwealths1 and have imagined the upbringing of such paragons as should be fitted for a place in them1 before asking when their youth should begin to learn1 have commonly laid down the conditions of their training from a very early stage4 ,they begin by considering how to deal with the infant while he is still under his nurse1 discussing whether he should be nursed by a stranger or by his mother1 what playfellows should be chosen for him while he is still in the nursery1 and what exquisite public or private training can be devised for him afterwards4 ,these and other considerations they fall into1 which do well beseem the bringing up of such an one as may indeed be wished1 though scarcely hoped for1 but can by no means be applied to our youth and our education1 wherein we wish for no more than we can hope to have4 ,nay1 these writers go further1 as mere wishers may1 and appoint the parents of this so perfect a child1 to be so wise and learned that they may indeed fit into an ideal scheme1 but too far surpass the model that ,i can have in view4 ,wherefore leaving on one side these ideal measures and people1 ,i mean to proceed from such principles as our parents do actually build on1 and as our children do rise by to that mediocrity which furnisheth out this world1 and not to that excellence which is fashioned for another4 ,and yet there is a value in these fine pictures1 which by pointing out the ideal let us behold wherein the best consisteth1 what colours it is known by1 what state it keepeth1 and by what means we may best approach it4 ,it may perhaps be said that despair of obtaining the very best is apt to discourage all hope1 for by missing any one of these rare conditions--and our frailty will fail either in all or in most--we mar the whole mould4 ,howbeit we are much bound to the excellent wits of those divine writers who1 by their singular knowledge approaching near to the truest and best1 could most truly and best discern what constitution they were of1 and being anxious to serve their race thought it their part to communicate what they had seen1 if only for this1 that while we might despair of hitting the highest1 yet by seeing where it lodged we might with great praise draw near unto it4 ,but to return from this question of ideals to our ordinary education1 ,i persuaded myself that all my countrymen wish themselves as wise and learned as these imaginary parents are surmised to be1 though they may be content with so much1 or rather with so little1 of wisdom and learning as ,god doth allot them1 and that they will have their children nursed as well as they can1 wherever or by whomsoever it may be1 so that the beings whom they love so well as bequeathed to them by nature1 may be well brought up by nurture2 and that till the infant can govern himself1 they will seek to save it from all such perils as may seem to harm it in any kind of way1 either from the people or the circumstances that surround it1 and that this will be done with such forethought as ordinary circumspection can suggest to considerate and careful parents2 and finally1 that for his proper schooling1 all who can will provide it1 even if it be at some cost4 ,when ,school ,education should begin4 ,one of the first questions is at what age children should be sent to school1 for they should neither be delayed too long1 so that time is lost1 nor hastened on too soon1 at the risk of their health4 ,the rule therefore must be given according to the strength of their bodies and the quickness of their wits jointly4 ,if the parents be not wanting in means1 and there is a convenient place near1 wherein to have the child taught1 and a teacher with sufficient knowledge1 and with discretion to train him up well by correction and teaching him good manners1 and fit companions1 such as so good a master may be able to choose2 and if the child also himself have a good understanding and a body able to bear the strain of learning1 methinks it were then best that he began to be doing something as soon as he can use his intelligence1 without overtaxing his powers either of mind or body1 as the wise handling of his teacher will direct4 ,what the age should be ,i cannot say1 for ripeness in children does not always come at the same time1 any more than all corn is ripe for one reaping1 though it is pretty nearly at the same time4 ,some are quick1 some are slow2 some are willing when their parents are1 and others only when they are inclined themselves1 according as a wise upbringing has disposed them to do well1 or foolish coddling has made them prefer their play4 ,risk of ,overpressure4 ,anyone who deserves to be a parent should be prepared to judge for himself as to his young son's ripeness for school life1 and surely no one is so destitute of friends that he has not some one to consult if necessary4 ,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 years1 and which it would be a pity to lose4 ,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 child4 ,but it would be a greater pity for so small a gain to risk a more important one1 to win an hour in the morning1 and lose the whole day after4 ,if the child has a weak body1 however bright his understanding may be1 let him grow on the longer till his strength equals his intelligence4 ,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 grave1 through weakness of body1 to the grief of the child's friends and the reproach of their judgment2 and even if such a child lives1 he will never go deep1 but will always float on the surface without much ballast1 though perhaps continuing for a time to excite wonder4 ,sooner or later1 however1 his intelligence will fail1 the wonder will cease1 while his body will prove feeble and perish4 ,wherefore ,i could wish the brighter child to be less upon the spur1 and either the longer kept from learning altogether1 lest he suffer as the edge of an oversharp knife is turned1 or at least be given very little1 for fear of his eagerness leading to a surfeit4 ,mens ,sana in ,corpore ,sano4 ,as in setting a child to school we consider the strength of his body no less than the quickness of his mind1 it would seem that our training ought to be two-fold1 both body and mind being kept at their best1 so that each may be able to support the other in what they have to do together4 ,a great deal has been written about the training of the mind1 but for the bettering of the body is there no means to maintain it in health1 and chiefly in the student1 whose occupation treads it down8 ,yea1 surely1 a very natural and healthful means in exercise1 whereby the body is made fit for all its best functions4 ,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 dulled1 and that its garments neither burden the body with their weight nor weaken it with too much warmth4 ,the exercise of the body should always accompany and assist the exercise of the mind1 to make a dry1 strong1 hard1 and therefore a long-lasting1 body1 and by this means to have an active1 sharp1 wise1 and well-learned soul4 ,physical ,exercise needs ,regulation4 ,it is not enough to say that children are always stirring of their own accord1 and therefore need no special attention in regard to bodily exercise4 ,if it were not that we make them keep absolutely still when they are learning in school1 and thus restrain their natural stirring1 then we might leave it to their own inclinations to serve their turn without more ado4 ,but a more than ordinary stillness requires more than ordinary exercise1 and the one must be regulated as much as the other4 ,and as sitting quiet helps ill-humours to breed and burden the body1 relief must be sought in exercise under the direction of parents and teachers4 ,physical and ,mental ,training should go together4 ,the soul and the body1 being co-partners in good and ill1 in sweet and sour1 in mirth and mourning1 and having generally a common sympathy and mutual feeling1 how can they be1 or rather why should they be1 severed in education8 ,i assign both the framing of the mind and the training of the body to one man's charge4 ,for how can that man judge well of the soul1 whose work has to do with the body alone8 ,and how shall he perceive what is best for the body1 who having the soul only committed to his care1 hands over the body to some other man's treatment8 ,where there is too much distraction and separation of functions1 each specialist tends to make the most of his own subject1 to the sacrifice of others that may be more important4 ,wherefore in order to have the care which is due to each part equally distributed1 ,i would appoint1 ,i say1 only one teacher to deal with both4 ,for ,i see no great difficulty either in regard to the necessary knowledge1 or to the amount of work4 ,moreover1 as the disposition of the soul will resemble that of the body1 if the soul be influenced for good1 it will affect the body also4 ,exercise ,specially ,necessary for ,students4 ,for though the soul as the fountain of life1 and the stimulus of the body1 may and will bear it out for a while1 by force of courage1 yet weakness cannot always be dissembled1 but will in the end betray itself1 perhaps just when it is the greatest pity4 ,many people of high spirit1 notable for their learning and skill in the highest professions1 have failed1 owing to want of attention to bodily health1 just when their country had most hope of benefiting by their services4 ,it is needful1 therefore1 to help the body by some methodical training1 especially for those who use their brains1 such as students1 who are apt to consider too little how they may continue to do that for long which they do well4 ,they should eat very moderately1 and their exercise should also be moderate1 and not vary too much1 and their clothing should be thin1 even from the first swaddling1 that the flesh may become hard and firm4 ,the ,best ,kinds of ,exercise4 ,mulcaster gives a list of the forms of exercise which he thinks most suitable1 both for indoors1 and for out of doors4 ,in the former class are--speaking and reading aloud1 singing1 laughing1 weeping1 holding the breath1 dancing1 wrestling1 fencing1 and whipping the top2 in the latter are--walking1 running1 leaping1 swimming1 riding1 hunting1 shooting1 and playing at ball4 ,these of course are not all considered suitable for children1 but a selection could be made from them to be practised in school under the regulation of the master4 ,he then enters upon a detailed and curious examination of the value of each of these forms of exercise1 considered mainly in regard to their physiological effects4 ,in all this it has been pointed out by ,schmidt 7,geschichte der ,erziehung1 ,vol4 ,,iii41 ,pt4 ,i1 pp4 #cgd-f7 that ,mulcaster followed closely1 though without special acknowledgment1 the ,de ,arte ,gymnastica of ,girolamo ,mercuriale1 a contemporary ,italian physician4 ,as the science is mostly of the traditional and somewhat fantastic character then prevalent1 the discussion is not particularly profitable from a modern standpoint4 ,it will be interesting1 however1 as an illustration of his treatment1 to see how he deals with a game that seems to have had much the same features in his day as in ours4 ,football as a ,form of ,exercise4 ,football could not possibly have held its present prominence1 nor have been so much in vogue as it is everywhere1 if it had not been very beneficial to health and strength4 ,to me the abuse of it is a sufficient argument that it has a right use1 though as it is now commonly practised1 with thronging of a rude multitude1 with bursting of shins and breaking of legs1 it is neither civilised1 nor worthy the name of any healthy training4 ,and here one can easily see the use of the training master1 for if there is some one standing by1 who can judge of the play1 and is put in control over the players1 all these objections can be easily removed4 ,by such regulation1 the players being put into smaller numbers1 sorted into sides and given their special positions1 so that they do not meet with their bodies so boisterously to try their strength1 nor shoulder and shove one another so barbarously1 football may strengthen the muscles of the whole body4 ,by provoking superfluities downwards it relieves the head and the upper parts1 it is good for the bowels1 and it drives down the stone and gravel from the bladder and the kidneys4 ,the motion also helps weak hams and slender shanks by making the flesh firmer1 yet rash running and too much violence often break some internal conduit and cause ruptures4 ,is ,education to be offered to both ,sexes8 ,we are next to consider who are those to whom education should be given1 which ,i take to be children of both sorts1 male and female4 ,but young maidens must give me leave to speak of boys first1 because naturally the male is more worthy and more important in the body politic2 therefore that side may claim learning as first framed for their use and most properly belonging to them1 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 themselves1 and the fruit of their whole training4 ,all cannot receive a ,learned ,education4 ,as for boys1 it has been set beyond doubt long ago1 that they should be sent to school1 to learn how to be religious and loving1 how to govern and obey1 how to forecast and prevent1 how to defend and assail1 and in short1 how to perform excellently by labour the duties for which nature has fitted them only imperfectly4 ,but in the matter of this so desirable a training1 two important questions arise2 first1 whether all children should be put to school without any restraint upon the number1 and secondly1 if any restriction is needful1 how it is to be imposed4 ,in the body politic a certain proportion of parts must be preserved just as in the natural body1 or disturbances will arise1 and ,i consider that it is a burden to a commonwealth on the one hand to have too many learned1 just as it is a loss on the other hand to have too few1 and that it is important to have knowledge and intelligence well adapted to the station in life1 as1 if these are misplaced it may lead to disquiet and sedition4 ,there is always danger to a ,state in excess of numbers beyond the opportunities of useful employment1 and this is specially true in the case of scholars4 ,for they profess learning1 that is to say1 the soul of the ,state1 and it is too perilous to have the soul of the ,state troubled with their souls1 that is1 necessary learning with unnecessary learners4 ,scholars1 by reason of their conceit which learning inflames1 cannot rest satisfied with little1 and by their kind of life they prove too disdainful of labour1 unless necessity makes them trot4 ,if that wit fall to preach which were fitter for the plough1 and he to climb a pulpit who was made to scale a wall1 is not a good carter ill lost1 and a good soldier ill placed8 ,all children cannot get a full training at school1 even though their private circumstances admit of it1 yet as regards writing and reading1 if that were all1 what if everyone had them1 for the sake of religion and their necessary affairs8 ,in the long period of their whole youth1 if they minded no more1 these two would be easily learned in their leisure times by special opportunities1 if no ordinary means were available and no school nigh4 ,every parish has a minister1 who can give help in regard to writing and reading1 if there is no one else4 ,choice of ,scholars both from ,rich and ,poor4 ,some doubt may rise between the rich and poor1 whether all rich and none poor1 or some in both1 may and should be sent to learning4 ,if some rich are sent1 provided for out of private resources1 some poor will be commended by promising parts to public provision for the general advantage1 and if neither private nor public provision is mismanaged1 the matter will decide itself by the capacity of the learners and their disposition to prove virtuous4 ,the safe condition is that the rich should not have too much1 nor the poor too little4 ,in the former case1 the overplus breeds a loose and dissolute brain2 in the latter1 the insufficiency causes a base and servile temper4 ,for he who is never in need1 owing to the supplies of his friends1 never exercises his wits to be a friend to himself1 but commonly proves reckless till the black ox treads upon his toes1 and necessity makes him try what mettle he is made of4 ,and he who is always in need1 for want of friends1 is apt to find his heaven in whatever rids him of his difficulties1 and to worship that saint who serves his turn best4 ,now if wealthy parents out of their private fortune1 and public patrons out of their surplus wealth would try to avoid these two extremes1 then neither would over-abundance make the one too wanton1 nor want make the other too servile4 ,neither would be tempted to hasten on too fast1 the one lest he should lose some time1 and the other lest he should miss some chance of a livelihood4 ,the middle sort of parents1 who neither welter in too much wealth1 nor wrestle with too much want1 seem most promising of all1 if their children's capacity is in keeping with their parents' circumstances and position1 which must be the level for the fattest to fall down to1 and the leanest to leap up to1 to bring forth the student who will serve his country best4 ,the ,number of ,scholars limited by ,circumstances4 ,all cannot pass on to learning that throng thitherward1 because of the inconveniences that may ensue1 by want of preferment for such a multitude1 and by depriving other trades of their necessary workers4 ,everyone desires to have his child learned1 yet for all that every parent must bear in mind that he is more bound to his country than to his child4 ,if the parent will not yield to reason some kind of restraint must be used4 ,fortunately the question is often determined by necessity4 ,you would have your child learned1 but your purse will not stretch2 you must be patient1 and devise some other course within your means4 ,you are not able to spare him from your elbow for your own needs1 whereas learning must have leisure1 and the scholar's book be his only business free from outside interference4 ,you have no school near you1 and you cannot pay for teaching further off2 then let your own trade content you1 and keep your child at home4 ,or your child is of weak constitution2 then let schooling alone1 make play his physician1 and health his object4 ,whichever way necessity drives you1 perforce that way must ye trot4 ,if the restrained child cannot get the skill to write and read1 ,i lament that lack1 for these two points concern every man nearly1 and are useful in every kind of business4 ,i dare not venture to allow so many the ,latin tongue1 nor any other language1 unless it be in cases where those tongues are found necessary in their trades4 ,for otherwise the fear is lest1 having such benefits of school1 they will not be content with their own station in life1 but because they have some little smack of book learning they will think even the highest positions low enough for them1 not considering that in well-governed ,states ,latin is allowed both to country clowns and town artificers2 yet these remain in their own calling1 without pride or ambition1 on account of that small knowledge by which they are better able to furnish out their own trades4 ,the ,number of ,scholars kept down by ,law4 ,it is no objection to allege against such a lawful restraint1 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 ,state4 ,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 will4 ,nor is it reasonable to object that it were a pity1 by the severity of an unkind law1 to hinder that excellence which ,god commonly gives to the poorer sort4 ,talent not peculiar either to ,rich or ,poor4 ,as for pitying the poor1 ye need not wish a beggar to become a prince1 though ye allow him a penny and pity his necessities4 ,if he is poor provide for him1 that he may live by trade1 but let him not idle4 ,has he talent8 ,well1 are artificers fools8 ,and do not all trades require ability8 ,but is he very likely to distinguish himself in learning8 ,i do not reject him2 he has his chance of being provided a public help in common patronage4 ,but he does not well to oppose his own particular will against the public good2 let his country think enough of him1 but let him beware of thinking too much of himself4 ,because ,god has often shown himself bountiful in conferring talent on the poorer sort1 that does not prove that he has not bestowed as great gifts on some of the upper class1 though they may have failed to use them4 ,the commonwealth1 it is urged1 must be prepared to give scope for ability1 in whatever class it may be found4 ,choice of those fit for ,learning4 ,the choice of learners is a matter requiring careful thought at all times and in all places1 but especially in our own day and country4 ,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 it1 because the best instrument should always be handled by the fittest person1 and not by every one that has a fancy to handle it4 ,when the choice follows private liking rather than public advantage1 more mischief is caused than is easily discovered1 though the smart is generally felt4 ,there is indeed little use in discussing the question of fitness1 if no choice is to be made when the question is decided4 ,and as the bestowal of learning must have its beginning in the young child1 ought not good choice to go before if the due effect is to follow8 ,how the ,choice of ,scholars should be ,determined4 ,i will now consider what kinds of talent and disposition are1 even from infancy1 to be thought most fitting to serve the ,state in the matter of learning4 ,often those who give least promise at first turn out most suitable in the end2 wherefore the absolute rejection of any1 before maturity is reached1 not only does an injury to those who are rejected1 but would be an evidence of rashness in those who reject4 ,for the variety is very great1 though where certainty is impossible preference must be given to the most likely4 ,in the qualities that give promise of good service when learning has been gained1 there are commonly reckoned an honourable disposition1 zeal for moral virtue1 and the desire to benefit society without thought of personal profit4 ,there must also be taken into account the shrewdness of intelligence which will not be easily deceived nor diverted from a right opinion1 either by the influence of feeling in themselves or the strength of persuasion in others4 ,and generally whatever virtue gives proof of a good man and a good citizen must be held of value1 so that the learner should show capability and discretion in matters of learning1 and towardness and constancy in matters of living4 ,all this refers to free men who can secure independently the opportunities of learning1 yet provision is to be made for those of good natural intelligence who need some help4 ,there are three kinds of government--,monarchy1 ,oligarchy1 and ,democracy1 each of which demands a different type of citizen and scholar4 ,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 ,school1 and1 if he should offend1 takes his punishment gently1 without complaining or taking affront4 ,in behaviour towards his companions he is gentle and courteous1 without wrangling or complaining4 ,he will lend a helping hand1 and use every persuasion rather than have either his teacher disquieted or his school-fellows punished4 ,and1 therefore1 either he receives similar courtesy from his school-fellows1 or whoever shows him any discourtesy must be prepared for challenge and combat with all the rest4 ,if he has any natural capacity in which he excels his companions1 it will be so well regulated and show itself with such modesty that it shall appear in no way upsetting or over-ambitious4 ,at home he will be so deferential to his parents1 so courteous among servants1 so dutiful toward all with whom he has to deal1 that there will be contention who can praise him most behind his back1 and who can cherish him most before his face4 ,these qualities will not be easily discerned till the child is either in the ,grammar ,school by regular but not premature advancement1 or at least upon his passage from the completed course of the ,elementary ,school1 because his age by that time1 and his progress under regulation1 will make it possible in some degree to perceive his inclination4 ,before that time we pardon many things1 and use encouragement and motives of ambition to inflame the little one onward1 which are discontinued afterwards4 ,when of their own accord1 without any motive of fear or other incitement1 they begin to make some show of their learning in some special direction1 then conjecture is on foot as to what their career ought to be4 ,grounds for ,promotion4 ,when the possession of means bids the school door open1 the admission and right of continuance is granted to all1 till after some proof the master1 who is the first chooser of the finest1 begins to discern where there is ability to go forward1 and where natural weakness suggests prompt removal4 ,when the master has discovered strength or infirmity of nature1 as may appear in the ease or difficulty of acquiring and retaining that are seen in boys of different aptitude1 his desire will naturally be to have the promising scholars continued1 to procure the removal of the duller ones by diverting their energy into some other course more in keeping with their natural bent than learning1 in which they are likely to make little progress1 however long they remain at school4 ,care must be taken1 however1 not to decide prematurely1 for it may prove that those wits that at first were found to be very hard and blunt may soften and prove sharp in time1 and show a finer edge1 though this is not to be applied to dullards generally4 ,for natural dulness will show itself in everything that concerns memory and understanding1 while that kind of dulness that may some day change into sharpness will show itself only at intervals1 like a cloudy day that will turn out fine in the end4 ,wherefore1 injustice may be done by a hasty judgment1 and1 on the other hand1 the boy who is not yet strong enough for manual work may remain a little longer at school1 where1 even if he do little good1 he is sure to take little harm4 ,moreover1 if the parents can afford it1 and wish to keep their children on at school1 even though their progress is small1 the master must have patience1 and measure his pains by the parent's purse1 where he knows there is plenty1 and not by the child's profit1 which he sees will be small4 ,only he must keep the parent constantly informed how matters stand1 both as a matter of duty and to prevent disappointment4 ,but the case is different with a poor child1 who should be sent to a trade at once1 if he is not promising in learning4 ,co-operation of ,parents4 ,seeing that the schoolmaster1 to whose judgment ,i commend the choice1 is no absolute potentate in our commonwealth1 to dispose of people's children as he pleases1 but only a counsellor to act along with the parent1 if the latter is willing to take advice1 ,i should wish1 that in order to have this duly accomplished1 parents and teachers should be not only acquainted1 but on friendly terms with each other4 ,and though some parents need no counsel1 and some teachers can give but little1 yet the wise parent is always willing to listen before he decides1 and the opinion of a skilful teacher deserves to be heard4 ,if this co-operation cannot be established1 the poor child will suffer in the present1 and the parents will lose much satisfaction in the end4 ,this kind of control will continue as long as the child is either under a master in school1 or under a tutor in college1 and in this period a great number may be very wisely arranged for1 unlearned trades being sufficiently supplied1 and a life of learning reserved for those only who by their intelligence and judgment are fitted for it4 ,by such means the proportion will be properly adjusted in every branch of the public service1 and the risk avoided of having too large a total number4 ,this period under the master's charge is the only period when the youth can be controlled by outside direction2 for afterwards at a more dangerous age they come to choose for themselves1 and their defects of nature and manners1 if not corrected1 may bring sorrow to them and to their friends4 ,and though the schoolmaster may not always have his counsel followed in such a case1 yet if he let the parent know his opinion his duty will be discharged4 ,for if the parent shows himself unwilling to follow the teacher's opinion1 supported by good reasons1 but under the influence of blind affection overestimates his child's aptitude for learning1 then though the master should for his own gain keep on an unpromising pupil1 the fault lies with the parent who would not see even after fair warning4 ,so that it always proves true that parents and teachers should be familiarly linked together in amity and continual conference for their common charge1 and that each should trust in the judgment and personal goodwill of the other4 ,this will come to pass only when the teacher is carefully chosen and kept on terms of friendly conference--not merely because 8my neighbour's children go to school with you1 so you shall have mine too10--a common reason in the case of children who are continually being sent posting about to try all sorts of schools1 and never stay long in any1 thus reaping as much learning as the rolling stone gathers moss4 ,admission into ,colleges4 ,the other means whereby some selection may be made is by admission into colleges1 preferments to degrees1 advancement to livings4 ,in regard to these the commonwealth may receive all the greater harm that they come nearer the public service1 so that plain dealing is the more praiseworthy1 in order to prevent mischief4 ,as concerns colleges ,i do not consider that the scholarships in them are intended only for poor students1 for whose needs that small help could never suffice1 7though some advantage may be given to them in consideration of special promise which has no other chance of being recognised7 but rather that they are simply preferments for learning and advancements for virtue1 alike to the wealthy as a reward of well-doing1 and to the poorer students as a necessary support4 ,therefore1 as in admission ,i would give freedom to choose from both sorts1 so ,i would restrict the choice to those who give genuine promise of usefulness4 ,for if elections are swayed by favour1 shown on grounds not of merit but of private friendship1 though perhaps with some colour of regard for learning1 those who are responsible for the injustice will repent when it is too late1 finding themselves served in their own coin2 for those who get in by such means1 owing their own advancement to private influence1 will act in the same way towards others1 without regard to the common welfare4 ,when favour is shown on any other ground than that of merit1 founders are discouraged1 public provision is misused1 and learning gives place to idling4 ,but if elections were made on grounds of fitness alone1 the unfit would be diverted in time into some other channel1 the best would be chosen1 the intentions of founders would be fulfilled1 some perjury for the non-performance of statutes would be avoided1 new patrons would be procured1 religion advanced1 and good students encouraged4 ,preferment to ,degrees4 ,preferment to degrees may be1 and indeed ought to be1 a more powerful check on insufficiency1 because by this means the whole country is made either a lamentable spoil to bold ignorance1 or a favourable soil for sober knowledge4 ,when a scholar is allowed by authority of the ,university to profess capacity in a certain specialty for which he bears the title1 and is sent into the world by the help of people who have acted under unworthy influences in disregard of merit1 what must our country think when she hears the boast of the ,university title sound in her ears1 and fails to find the benefit of ,university learning to serve her in her need8 ,she will not blame the ignorant graduate1 who is only naturally trying to do the best for himself1 but she will very greatly blame the ,universities for having deceived her and betrayed her trust4 ,for in granting a degree the ,university is virtually saying1 8,before ,god and my country1 ,i know this man1 not by perfunctory knowledge1 but by thorough examination1 to be well able to perform in the ,commonwealth the duties of the profession to which his degree belongs1 and the country may rest upon my credit in security for his sufficiency40 ,what if the ,university knew beforehand that he neither was such an one1 nor was ever likely to prove such8 ,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 country4 ,a teacher may be pardoned1 for seeking thus earnestly to have true worth recognised1 considering that thereby would come not only satisfaction to himself1 but advantage to his pupils and to the country at large4 ,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 stage8 ,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 regulation1 but with the means of securing public protection and encouragement for his pupils after they pass out of his care4 ,natural ,capacity in ,children4 ,i will now consider what children ought to learn when they are first sent to school4 ,there are in the human soul certain natural capacities which by the wisdom of parents and the discernment of teachers1 who may perceive them in the child's infancy and do their best to cultivate them1 may eventually be made very profitable both to their possessor1 and to the commonwealth4 ,if these natural capacities are not perceived1 those who are responsible must be charged either with ignorance or with negligence1 and if they are perceived but are either not improved or wrongly directed1 the teachers and trainers1 whether they are parents or schoolmasters1 must be much lacking in sound skill1 or else they are guided by stupid fancies4 ,without making any complete analysis of the mental powers1 ,i would point out some natural inclinations in the soul1 which seem to crave the help of education and nurture1 and by means of these may be cultivated to advantage4 ,in the little young souls we find first a capacity to perceive what is taught to them1 and to imitate those around them4 ,that faculty of learning and following should be well employed by choosing the proper matter to be set before them1 by carefully proceeding step by step in a reasonable order1 by handling them warily so as to draw them on with encouragement4 ,we find also in them a power of retention2 therefore their memories should at once be furnished with the very best1 seeing that it is a treasury1 and never suffered to be idle1 as it loses its power so soon4 ,for in default of the better1 the worse will take possession1 and bid itself welcome4 ,we find in them further an ability to discern what is good and what is evil1 so that they should forthwith be acquainted with what is best1 by learning to obey authority1 and dissuaded from the worse by the fear of disapproval4 ,these three things1 perception1 memory1 and judgment1 ye will find peering out of the little young souls at a time when ye can see what is in them1 but they cannot yet see it themselves4 ,now these natural capacities being once discerned1 must as they arise be followed with diligence1 increased by good method1 and encouraged by sympathy1 till they come to their fruition4 ,encouragement better than ,severity4 ,the best way to secure good progress1 so that the intelligence may conceive clearly1 memory may hold fast1 and judgment may choose and discern the best1 is so to ply them that all may proceed voluntarily1 and not with violence1 so that the will may be ready to do well1 and loth to do ill1 and all fear of correction may be entirely absent4 ,surely to beat for not learning a child that is willing enough to learn1 but whose intelligence is defective1 is worse than madness4 ,moral ,training falls chiefly on ,parents4 ,the duty of leading children to cleave to the good and forsake the bad1 in matters of ordinary conduct1 is shared by all who come in contact with them2 it belongs to the parents by nature1 to schoolmasters by the charge committed to them1 to neighbours as a matter of courtesy1 and to people in general on the ground of a common humanity4 ,teachers1 it is true1 have special opportunities of influencing the morals and manners of children1 by means of the authority they naturally exercise1 in teaching them what is best1 and inducing them to practise it1 even by force at first1 till they come to appreciate it for themselves4 ,but this control of good manners is not for teachers alone1 for as ,i have said1 they must co-operate with the parents1 to whom that duty naturally appertains most nearly1 as they have the fullest authority over the children4 ,wherefore1 reserving for the teacher only so much as strictly belongs to him1 in instructing the child what is best in good manners1 and in framing good regulations and seeing that they are properly carried out1 ,i refer the rest to those who are the appointed guardians of morals1 to secure either by private discipline at home1 or by public control outside1 that young people are well brought up to distinguish the good from the bad1 the seemly from the unseemly1 that they may know ,god1 serve their country1 be a comfort to their friends1 and help one another1 as good fellow-citizens are bound to do4 ,but the task of training their intelligence and memory belongs wholly to the teacher1 and ,i will now proceed to deal with it4 ,elementary ,instruction--,reading4 ,i might very well be thought wanting in discretion if ,i were to press any far-fetched proposals into this discussion of general principles1 and ,i shall therefore deal only with methods that are in harmony with the customs of this country1 and with the circumstances of the time4 ,among the subjects of instruction that have universally been recognised and practised1 ,reading certainly holds the first place1 alike for the training of the mind in the process of acquiring it1 and for its usefulness after it is acquired4 ,for the printed page is the first and simplest material for impressions in the art of teaching1 and nothing comes before it4 ,when by gradual practice in combining letters and in spelling out words under direction1 the child has acquired the faculty of reading easily1 what a cluster of benefits thus come within reach6 ,whatever anyone has published to the world by pen or print1 for any end of profit or pleasure1 whether of free will or under constraint1 by reading it is all made to serve us--in religion1 to promote the love and fear of ,god1 in law1 to aid us in rendering obedience and service to our fellow-men1 and in life generally to enable us to expel ignorance and acquire skill to do everything well4 ,wherefore ,i make ,reading the first foundation on which everything else must rest1 and being a thing of such moment1 it should be thoroughly learned when it is once begun1 as facility will save much trouble both to master and scholar at a later stage4 ,the child should have his reading perfect both in the ,english and in the ,latin tongue long before he dreams of studying grammar4 ,the ,vernacular ,first4 ,as for the question whether ,english or ,latin should be first learned1 hitherto there may seem to have been some reasonable doubt1 although the nature of the two tongues ought to decide the matter clearly enough2 for while our religion was expressed only in ,latin1 the single rule of learning was to learn to read that language1 as tending to the knowledge valued by the ,church4 ,but now that we have returned to our ,english tongue as being proper to the soil and to our faith1 this restraint is removed1 and liberty is restored1 so that we can follow the direction of reason and nature1 in learning to read first that which we speak first1 to take most care over that which we use most1 and in beginning our studies where we have the best chance of good progress1 owing to our natural familiarity with our ordinary language1 as spoken by those around us in the affairs of every-day life4 ,this is the better order also in respect that ,english presents certain difficulties that are absent in ,latin1 and that children can master more easily when their memories are still unstored1 and considerations of reason do not affect them4 ,while ,latin has been purified to a definite form in which it has been fixed and preserved1 ,english1 though it is progressing very fairly1 is still wanting in refinement1 the spelling being harder1 and the pronunciation harsher1 than in ,latin4 ,material of ,reading4 ,in this a special and continual regard should be had to these four points in the child--his memory1 his delight1 his capacity1 and his advancement4 ,as to his memory1 ,i would provide that as he must practise it even from the first1 so he may also practise it upon the best1 both for pleasure in the course of learning1 and for profit afterwards4 ,as to his delight1 which is no mean allurement to his learning well1 ,i would be equally careful that the matter which he shall read1 may be so fit for his years1 and so plain to his intelligence1 that when he is at school1 he may desire to go forward in so interesting a study1 and when he comes home1 he may take great pleasure in telling his parents what pretty little things he finds in his book1 and that the parents also may have no less pleasure in hearing their little one speak1 so that each of them shall rather seek to anticipate the other1 the child to be telling something1 and the parent to be asking4 ,as to his capacity1 ,i would so provide1 that the matter which he shall learn may be so easy to understand1 and the terms which ,i will use1 so simple to follow1 that both one and the other shall bring nothing but encouragement4 ,as to his advancement1 ,i would be very particular that there may be such consideration and choice in syllables1 words1 and sentences1 and in all the incidental notes1 that there shall be nothing wanting which may seem worth the wishing1 to help fully either in spelling correctly1 or reading easily2 so that the child who can read these well1 may read anything else well1 if the reading master will keep that order in his teaching which ,i intend to give him in my precept1 and not do the infant harm by hurrying him on too fast1 and measuring his forwardness not by his own knowledge but by the notions of his friends4 ,writing4 ,next to reading followeth ,writing1 at some reasonable distance after1 because it requireth some strength in the hand1 which is not so steady and firm for writing as the tongue is stirring and ready for reading4 ,but though in education writing should succeed reading1 in its origin it must have been earlier4 ,for the pen or some such instrument did carve1 first roughly and then completely1 the letter or letter-like device1 and thereby did the eye behold in outward form what the voice delivered to the ear in sound1 so that writing was used as the interpreter of the mind1 and reading became the expounder of the pen4 ,from its rude beginnings writing has advanced so much that it now proves the prop of remembrance1 the executor of most affairs1 the deliverer of secrets1 the messenger of meanings1 the inheritance of posterity1 whereby they receive whatever is bequeathed to them1 in law to live by1 in letters to learn and enjoy4 ,for the proper study of this valuable art the master must himself acquire1 and must teach his scholar1 a neat handwriting1 fast and easy to read1 and the matter of the headline1 from which example is taken1 should be pithy1 and suitable for enriching the memory with a profitable provision4 ,practice should not be left off till it hath brought great skill and readiness1 for writing once perfectly acquired is a wonderful help in the rest of our learning4 ,elementary ,period a ,time of ,probation4 ,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 learning1 or were best1 owing to some natural defect1 to take to something requiring less skill4 ,but if the child is set to any higher work while he is still of tender years1 his master pushing him on beyond what he is ready for1 there may be loss of temper1 which often breaks out into beating1 to the dulling of the child1 the discouraging of the master1 and the reproach of school-life1 which should not only yield satisfaction in the end1 when learning has become a sure possession1 but should pass on very pleasantly by the way4 ,whatever children learn1 they should learn perfectly1 for if opportunity to go on further should fail them1 through loss of friends or other misfortune1 it were good that they know thoroughly what they had practised1 whereas if it is known only imperfectly it will stand them in very small stead1 or none at all4 ,to write and read well is a pretty good stock for a poor boy to begin the world with4 ,drawing4 ,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 writing1 to which it is very closely related4 ,for a pen and penknife1 ink and paper1 a pair of compasses and a ruler1 a desk1 and a sandbox1 will set them both up1 and in these early years1 while the fingers are flexible1 and the hand easily brought under control1 good progress can be made4 ,and generally those that have a natural aptitude for writing will have a knack of drawing too1 and show some evident talent in that direction4 ,and the place that judgment holds in the mind as the measure of what is just and seemly1 is filled in the world of sense by drawing1 which judges of the proportion and aspect of all that appeals to the eyes4 ,because ,drawing uses both number and figure to work with1 ,i would cull out as much numbering from ,arithmetic1 the mistress of numbers1 and so much figuring out of ,geometry1 the lady of figures1 as shall serve for a foundation to the child's drawing1 without either difficulty to frighten him1 or tediousness to tire him4 ,whatever shall belong to colouring1 shading1 and such other technical points1 since they are more the concern of the painter than of the beginner in drawing1 ,i would reserve them for a later stage1 and leave them to the student's choice1 when he is to specialise and betake himself to some particular trade in life4 ,at which time1 if he chance to choose the pen and pencil to live by1 this introduction will then prove his great friend1 as he himself shall find1 when he puts it to the proof4 ,last of all1 inasmuch as drawing is a thing that is thoroughly useful to many good workmen who live honestly by its means1 and attain a good degree of estimation and wealth1 such as architects1 embroiderers1 engravers1 statuaries1 modellers1 designers1 and many others like them1 besides the learned use of it for ,astronomy1 ,geometry1 ,geography1 ,topography1 and such other studies1 ,i would therefore pick out some special figures1 appropriate to many of the foresaid purposes which it seems fittest to teach a child to draw1 and ,i would also show how these are to be dealt with from their very beginning to their last perfection1 seeing it is beyond all controversy that if drawing be thought needful it should be dealt with while the fingers are supple1 and the writing is still in progress1 so that both the pen and the pencil1 both the rule and the compass1 may go forward together4 ,music4 ,music completes the list of elementary subjects1 and is divided into two parts--the cultivation of the voice1 and the practice of an instrument1 the former resembling reading1 as it produces to the ear what is seen by the eye1 the latter resembling writing1 as it imitates the voice4 ,both should be begun early1 while the voice and the muscles are still pliable to training4 ,singing has the advantage of being less costly than the study of an instrument in regard to the necessary provision4 ,as to the value of ,music1 there can be no room for doubt2 indeed1 it seems to have been sent as a solace from heaven for the sorrows of earth4 ,some men think it is over sweet1 and should be either dispensed with altogether1 or at least not much practised4 ,for my own part ,i cannot forbear to place it among the most valuable means in the upbringing of the young1 and in this opinion ,i have the support of all the best authorities of antiquity4 ,there are so many arguments in favour of the art2 it is so ancient1 so honourable1 so universal1 so highly valued in all times and places1 alike in ,church services and otherwise2 it is such a calmer of passion1 such a powerful influence on the mind1 that ,i must stay my hand in writing about it1 lest being fairly embarked ,i should be unable to stop4 ,it will be enough for me to say of ,music that it is in accordance with national custom1 that it is very comforting to the wearied mind1 that it is a means of persuasion which all must appreciate who delight in the proportions of number1 that it is best and most easily learned in childhood1 when it can do least harm1 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 man1 and that we see and read the wonderful effects it has had in the cure of desperate diseases4 ,and yet with all its claims it arouses distrust in some quarters1 even in honest and well-disposed natures that are too much inclined to sternness4 ,they1 however1 will probably alter their opinion1 if they will consider more deeply what ,music is in its true nature1 or if they come to discuss the matter with those who take a sounder view1 or more certainly still if the art in its best form has a favourable chance of appealing to their listening ears4 ,the science itself hath naturally great power to probe and sway the inclination of the mind to this or that emotion1 through the properties of number in which it consists4 ,it also gives great delight through its harmonies1 to which the moods of the hearers respond4 ,it is for this that some disapprove of it1 holding that it provokes too much to vain pleasures1 and lays the mind open to the entry of light thoughts4 ,and to some also it seems harmful on religious grounds1 because it carrieth away the ear with the sweetness of the melody1 and bewitcheth the mind with a siren's sound1 seducing it from those pleasures wherein it ought to dwell1 into fantasies of harmony1 and withdrawing it from virtuous thoughts to strange and wandering devices4 ,a sufficient answer to all this is that in respect of a thing that may be1 and was meant to be1 properly used1 it is no just ground against it that it may also be abused4 ,music will not harm thee if thy behaviour be good1 and thy intention honest2 it will not betray thee if thy ears can take it in and interpret it aright4 ,receive it in a proper spirit1 and it will serve thee to good purpose4 ,if thy manners be bad1 or thy judgment corrupt1 it is not music alone which thou dost abuse1 nor canst thou clear thyself of the blame that belongs to thy character by casting it on ,music4 ,it is thou that hast abused her1 and not she thee4 ,and why should those who can use it rightly forego their own good because of a few peevish people who can never be pleased8 ,the training in ,music1 as in all other faculties1 has a special eye to these three points3--the child himself1 who is to learn2 the matter itself1 which he is to learn2 and the instrument itself1 on which he is to learn4 ,i will so deal with the first and the last heads1 that is1 in regard to the child and the instrument1 that neither of them shall lack whatever is needful1 either for framing the child's voice1 or exercising his fingers1 or choosing his lessons1 or tuning his instrument4 ,for in the voice there is a proper pitch1 where it is neither over nor under-strained1 but delicately brought to its best condition1 to last out well1 and rise or fall within due compass1 and so that it may become tunable and pleasant to hear4 ,and in the training of the fingers also1 there is regard to be had1 both that the child strike the notes clearly1 so as not to spoil the sound1 and that his fingers run with certainty and lightness1 so as to avoid indistinct execution4 ,of these the first commonly falls out through too much haste in the young learner1 who is ever longing to press forward2 the second fault comes of the master himself1 who does not consider the natural dexterity and order of development in the joints1 for if this is rightly attended to1 the fingers easily become flexible and master difficulties of execution without pain4 ,as for the matter of music1 which the child is to learn1 ,i would set down by what means and degrees1 and by what lessons1 a boy who is to be brought up to sing may and ought to proceed regularly from the first term of art1 and the first note in sound1 until he shall be able without any frequent or serious failure to sing his part in prick-song1 either by himself at first while he is inexperienced1 or with others for good practice afterwards4 ,for ,i take so much to be enough for an ,elementary institution1 which can only introduce the subject1 though it must follow the right principle1 and ,i postpone the study of composition and harmony till further knowledge and maturity are attained1 when the whole body of music will demand attention4 ,and yet since the child must always be advancing in that direction1 ,i would set him down to rules of composition and harmony1 which will make him better able to judge of singing1 just as in language he who is accustomed to write can best judge of a writer4 ,concerning the virginals and the lute1 which two instruments ,i have chosen because of the full music uttered by them and the variety of execution they require1 ,i would also set down as many chosen lessons for both as shall bring the young learner to play reasonably well on them1 though not at first sight1 whether by the ear or by the book1 always provided that prick-song go before playing4 ,four ,elementary ,subjects4 ,children1 therefore1 are to be trained up in the ,elementary ,school1 for helping forward the abilities of the mind1 in these four things1 as recommended to us both by reason and custom3 ,reading1 to enable us to receive what has been bequeathed to us by others1 and to store our memories with what is best for us2 ,writing1 to enable us to do for others what was done for us1 by handing on the fruits of our own experience1 and besides to serve our own purposes2 ,drawing1 to be a guide to the senses1 and to afford us pleasure in the objects of sight2 and ,music1 both with the voice and with an instrument1 for the reasons above stated4 ,by reading we receive what antiquity has left us2 by writing we hand on what posterity craves of us2 by both we get great advantage in all the circumstances of our daily life4 ,by delineating with the pencil1 what object is there open to the eye1 either brought forth by nature1 or set forth by art1 the knowledge and use of which we cannot attain to8 ,by the study of music1 besides the acquirement of a noble science1 so definitely formed by arithmetical precept1 so necessary a step to further knowledge1 such a glass in which to behold both the beauty of concord and the blots of dissension1 even in a body politic1 how much help and pleasure our natural weakness receives for consolation1 for hope1 for courage6 ,i do not touch here on the skilful handling of the untrained voice1 nor the fine exercising of the unskilled fingers1 though these things are not to be neglected where they can be obtained1 and are naturally required when imperfection is to be removed by them4 ,again1 does not all our learning1 apprehended by the eye and uttered by the tongue1 confess the great benefit it receives by reading8 ,does not all our expression1 brought forth by the mind and set down by the pen1 acknowledge obligation to the study of writing8 ,do not all our descriptions1 which picture to the sense what is fashioned in thought1 both preach and praise the pencil which makes them visible8 ,does not all our delight in times of leisure1--and we labour only for the sake of gaining rest and freedom from care1--protest in plain terms that it is wonderfully indebted to the music of both voice and instrument8 ,this is the natural sweetener of our bitter life1 in the judgment of every man who is not too much soured4 ,now1 what quality of learning is there1 deserving of any praise1 that does not fall within this elementary course1 or is not furthered by it1 whether it be connected with the higher professions1 or occupations of lower rank1 or the necessary trades of common life8 ,study of ,languages4 ,inasmuch as ,grammar is used partly as a help to foreign languages1 it furthers us very much in that way1 because all our learning being got from foreign countries1 as registered in their tongues1 if we lack the knowledge of the one1 we lack the hope of the other4 ,when learning and knowledge came first to light1 those men who were the authors of them uttered their minds in the same speech that they used when they bred the things4 ,and as they needed no foreign tongue for matter that was bred at home1 so they had no use of any ,grammar but that by which they endeavoured to refine their natural speech at home4 ,but when their devices1 first set out in their own tongues1 were afterwards sought for by foreign students to increase their learning and to enrich their country with foreign wares1 the foreign students were then driven to seek the assistance of ,grammar of the second kind1 because they could not understand the things which were written in a foreign tongue1 without the knowledge of the tongue itself4 ,in the primitive ,grammar children being trained as ,i now require1 went straightway from the elementary to the substance of learning1 and to the mathematical sciences1 which are so termed1 because indeed the whole scholars' learning consisted in them1 as in the first degree of right study4 ,for whatever goes before them in right order is nothing but mere elementary study1 and whatever goes before them in wrong order1 as it is distorted in nature1 it works no great wonder4 ,but in the second use of ,grammar1 we are forced of necessity1 after the elementary subjects1 however hurried and simple they may be1 to deal with the tongues ere we pass to the substance of learning2 and this help from the tongues1 though it is most necessary1 as our study is now arranged1 yet hinders us in time1 which is a thing of great price1--nay1 it hinders us in knowledge1 a thing of greater price4 ,for in lingering over language we are removed and kept back one degree further from sound knowledge1 and this hindrance comes in our best learning time1 while we are under masters and readers1 of whom we may learn far better than of ourselves1 if as much regard be had to their choice1 as ,i have elsewhere recommended4 ,follow ,nature4 ,the proof of a good ,elementary ,course is1 that it should follow nature in the multitude of its gifts1 and that it should proceed in teaching as she does in developing4 ,for as she is unfriendly wherever she is forced1 so she is the best guide that anyone can have1 wherever she shows herself favourable4 ,wherefore1 if nature makes a child most fit to excel in many aptitudes1 provided these are furthered by early training1 is not that education much to be blamed that fails to do its part1 allowing the child to be deprived by negligence of the excellence that nature intended for it8 ,again1 seeing that there are no natural gifts that cannot be helped forward by training1 is not that manner of study to be most highly approved which takes most pains where nature is most lavish8 ,the hand1 the ear1 the eye1 are the chief means of receiving and handing on our learning4 ,and does not this course of study instruct the hand how to write1 to draw1 to play2 the eye to read by letters1 to distinguish form by lines1 to judge by means of both2 the ear to call for the sound of voice and instrument for its own pleasure and cultivation8 ,and1 in general1 whatever gift nature has bestowed upon the body1 to be brought out or improved by training1 for any profitable use in life1 does not this elementary course find it out and make the most of it8 ,as for the capacities of the mind1 whether they concern virtuous living or skill in learning1 whatever be the art1 science1 or profession to which they belong1 do they not all evidently depend upon reading and writing as their natural foundations8 ,the study of language must be the basis of grammar1 rhetoric1 logic1 and their derivatives1 among which may be counted all the parts of philosophy1 both moral and natural1 as well as the three professions of divinity1 law1 and medicine1 using as they do in all their branches the instrument of speech4 ,if mathematics be in question1 or any kindred subjects that have a bearing on mechanical science1 though their secondary use is to whet the mental powers1 yet they must rest on a study of the properties of number1 figure1 motion1 and sound4 ,and as for our pleasure in the beauties of art1 that is obtained by the provision of drawing for the eye and music for the ear4 ,so that1 in my opinion1 the fathers and founders of this elementary course 7which ,i am only attempting to reintroduce1 though with as much goodwill as so good a thing deserves7 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 sprouting1 but brought to the fullest perfection when they are ripe for the harvest4 ,when ,i use the term nature ,i mean that power which ,god has implanted in his creatures1 both to preserve the race and to fulfil the end of their being4 ,the continuance of their kind is the proof of their being1 but the fulfilment of their end is the fruit of their being4 ,this latter is the point to which education has a special eye 7though it does not despise the other71 so that the young fry may be brought up to prove good in the end1 and serve their country well in whatever position they may be placed4 ,for the performance of this end ,i take it that this elementary course is most sufficient1 being the best means of perfecting all those powers with which nature endows our race1 by using those studies which art and reflection appoint1 and those methods which nature herself suggests4 ,for the end of education and training is to help nature to her perfection in the complete development of all the various powers4 ,this is what ,i mean by following nature1 not counterfeiting her in her own proper work by foolish imitation1 or perverse attempt to produce her effects1 like an ,apelles in portraiture or an ,archimedes in the laws of motion1 but after considering and marking with good judgment what are the natural tendencies and inclinations1 to frame a scheme of education in consonance with these1 and bring to perfection by art all those powers which nature bestows in frank abundance4 ,for the physical life of man1 in order to maintain and develop both the individual and the species1 nature has provided organs that receive1 prepare and distribute nourishment for the body1 and has1 besides1 given us for self-preservation the power of perceiving all sensible things by means of feeling1 hearing1 seeing1 smelling1 and tasting4 ,these qualities of the outward world1 being apprehended by the understanding and examined by the judgment1 are handed over to the memory1 and afterwards prove our chief--nay1 our only--means of obtaining further knowledge4 ,moreover1 we have also a power of movement1 either under the influence of emotion or by the enticement of desire1 either for the direct purposes of life1 as in the action of the pulse and in breathing1 or for outward action1 such as walking1 running1 or leaping4 ,to serve the end both of sense-perception and of motion1 nature has planted in the body a brain1 the prince of all our organs1 which by spreading its channels through every part of our frame produces all the effects through which sense passes into motion4 ,further1 our soul has in it a desire to obtain what it holds to be good1 and to avoid what it thinks evil4 ,this desire is stirred either by quiet allurement or by violent incitement1 and when once it is inflamed it strives to compass its end4 ,to satisfy this desire nature has given us a heart to kindle heat1 and as the sense is moved by the qualities of the object1 and motion is effected by means of sinews1 so appetite1 being stirred by the object of desire or repulsion1 is supplied with the means of satisfying itself4 ,last of all1 our soul has in it an imperial prerogative of understanding beyond sense1 of judging by reason1 of directing action for duty towards ,god and our fellowmen1 for conquest in affection and attainment in knowledge1 and for such other things as minister to the varied uses of our mortal life1 and prove its title to continue beyond the sphere of this roaming pilgrimage4 ,to serve this honourable purpose of understanding and reasoning1 nature1 though she has no place in this earthly body of ours worthy to receive such great and stately guests with their whole retinue1 yet does what she can1 and1 herself acting as harbinger1 assigns them for lodging her principal chamber1 the very closet of the brain1 where she bestows every one of reason's understanding friends1 according to their various ranks and special dignities4 ,all those capacities in their first natural condition concern only the existence of an uncultivated man2 but when they are fashioned to their best by good education1 they form the life of a perfect and excellent man4 ,for to exist merely1 to feed1 to multiply1 to use the senses1 to desire1 to have natural and unimproved reason--what great thing is it1 though it is something more than brute beasts have1 if the other divine qualities that build upon these are not diligently followed8 ,these higher powers not only rise out of the lower at the first1 but honour them in the end1 just as the best fruit honours its first blossom1 or as the most skilful work graces the first ground on which it is wrought4 ,besides that they prove themselves to be the most excellent ends which nature meant from the first1 though she herself made but a weak show1 however pliable for man's industry to work on for his own advantage4 ,he who does not live at all cannot live well2 he who does not feed at all cannot feed moderately2 he who does not reproduce cannot exercise continence2 he who has no sense cannot use it soberly2 he who does not desire cannot desire considerately2 he who uses no reason cannot use it advisedly4 ,but he who exercises all these functions has in them all the capacities that nature can afford him to use them all well1 and he will so use them if judgment rule as much in having them well as necessity in having them at all4 ,for reason1 as it is our difference in comparison with beasts1 is our excellence in comparison with men1 if we use it aright4 ,those powers of reasoning and understanding in man1 therefore1 being handled in a workmanlike fashion and applied to their best uses by such devices and means as are thought fittest1 direct the natural appetites so as to secure the health of the parts appointed for them1 and of the whole body1 which is compounded of those parts4 ,they develop the senses and their organs to their best perfection and longest endurance4 ,they restrain desire to the rule of reason and the advice of foresight4 ,they enrich the mind and the soul itself by laying up in the treasury of remembrance all arts and imaginations1 all knowledge1 wisdom1 and understanding1 by which either ,god is to be honoured or the world is to be honestly and faithfully served2 and this heavenly benefit is begun by education1 and confirmed and perfected by continuous exercise1 which crowns the whole work4 ,education of ,girls4 ,in naming the persons who were to receive the benefit of education ,i did not exclude young maidens1 and1 therefore1 seeing ,i made them one branch of my division1 ,i must now say something more about them4 ,some may think that the matter might well enough have been passed over in silence1 as not belonging to my purpose1 seeing that my professional concern is with the education of boys4 ,but seeing that ,i begin as low as the first elementary training1 in which young maidens ordinarily share1 how could ,i seem to take no notice of them8 ,and to prove that they ought to receive education ,i find four special reasons1 any one of which--therefore surely all together--may persuade their greatest adversary1 much more then myself1 who am for them tooth and nail4 ,the first is the custom of the country1 which allows them to learn4 ,the second is the duty we owe to them1 charging us in conscience not to leave them deficient4 ,the third is their own aptness to learn1 which ,god would never have bestowed on them to remain idle or to be used to small purpose4 ,the fourth is the excellent results shown in them when they have had the advantage of good upbringing4 ,i do not advocate sending young maidens to public ,grammar ,schools1 or to the ,universities1 as this has never been the custom in this country4 ,i would allow them learning within certain limits1 having regard to the difference in their vocation1 and in the ends which they should seek in study4 ,we see young maidens are taught to read and write1 and can learn to do well in both2 we hear them both sing and play passing well2 we know that they learn the best and finest of our learned languages to the admiration of all men4 ,as to the living modern languages of highest reputation in our time1 if any one is inclined to deny that in these they can compare with the best of our sex1 they will claim no other tests than to talk with such a one in whichever of these tongues he may choose4 ,these things our country doth stand to2 these accomplishments their parents procure for them according to their means and opportunities1 in so far as their daughters' aptitude doth offer hope of their gaining an advantage through them1 by being preferred in marriage or some other career4 ,nay1 do we not see in our country some of that sex so excellently well trained1 and so rarely qualified in regard both to the tongues themselves and to the subject-matter contained in them1 that they may be placed along with1 or even above1 the most vaunted paragons of ,greece or ,rome1 or the ,german and ,french gentlewomen so much praised by recent writers1 or the ,italian ladies who dare even to write themselves1 and deserve fame for so doing8 ,and what be young maidens in relation to our sex8 ,do we not1 according to nature1 choose from among them those who are to be our nearest and most necessary friends1 the mothers of our children8 ,are they not the very creatures that were made for our comfort1 the only remedy for our solitude1 our closest companions in weal or woe1 sharers in all our fortunes until death8 ,and can we in conscience do otherwise than give careful thought to the welfare of those that are linked to us in so many ways8 ,is it a small thing to have our children's mothers well strengthened in mind as in body8 ,and is there any better means of strengthening their minds than to teach them that knowledge of ,god and religion1 of civil and domestic duties1 which we ourselves gain by education1 and ought not to deny to them--that education which is to be found in books1 and can be so well acquired in youth8 ,if ,nature has given to young maidens abilities to prove excellent in their kind1 and yet thereby in no way to fail in their most laudable duties in marriage1 but rather to beautify themselves with admirable ornaments1 are we not to be charged with extreme unnaturalness if we do not guide by discipline what is given to them by ,nature8 ,the excellent effects in those women who have been well trained show clearly that they deserve the best training4 ,what better example can be found to assure the world than our most dear sovereign lady and princess1 who is so familiarly acquainted with the nine ,muses that they strive which may love her best for being the most learned1 and for whose excellent knowledge we who taste of the fruit have most cause to rejoice8 ,aim of ,education for ,girls4 ,but now having granted them the benefit and society of our education1 we must determine the end which this training is to serve1 so that it may be better applied4 ,our training is without restriction either as regards subject-matter or method1 because our employment is so general2 their functions are limited1 and so must their education be also4 ,if a young maiden is to be brought up with a view to marriage1 obedience to authority and similar qualities must form the best kind of training2 if from necessity she has to learn how to earn her own living1 some technical training must prepare her for a definite calling2 if she is to adorn some high position she must acquire suitable accomplishments2 if she is destined for government1 which may be offered to her by men1 and is not denied her by ,god1 the greatness of the position calls for general excellence1 and a variety of gifts4 ,wherefore1 having these different ends always in view1 we may appoint them different kinds of training in accordance with circumstances4 ,but some churlish carper will say3 8,what should women do with learning80 ,such a one will never pick out the best1 but be always ready to blame the worst4 ,if all men always made a good use of their learning we might have something to allege against women1 but seeing that misuse is common to both sexes why should we blame them1 when we are not free from the same infirmity ourselves8 ,some women may make a bad use of their writing1 others of their reading2 some may turn all that they learn to bad account4 ,and ,i pray you what do we8 ,i do not excuse ill1 but ,i bar those from accusing who are as bad themselves4 ,as we share both virtues and vices with women1 let us exchange forbearance1 and1 hoping for the best1 give them free opportunity4 ,when their ,education should begin4 ,this is my opinion as to which ought to be educated and when they should begin4 ,the same liberty1 in respect of circumstances1 being allowed to parents in regard to their daughters as has been granted to them with their sons1 the same consideration being had for their fitness of mind and body1 and the same care being taken for suitable physical exercise to further their health and strength1 ,i consider the same time of beginning proper for both--a time not to be wholly determined by years1 but rather by their development as shown by their ability to use their intelligence without tiring1 and to work without wearying their bodies4 ,for though girls seem generally to have a quicker ripening of intelligence than boys1 in spite of appearances this is not the case4 ,through natural weakness they cannot contain long what they possess1 and so give it out very soon2 yet there are prating boys just as there are prattling wenches4 ,besides1 their brains are not so much laden as those of boys1 either as regards amount or variety1 and therefore like empty casks they make the greater noise4 ,in the same way those men who seem to be very quickwitted by some sudden pretty answer or some sharp repartee1 are not always most burdened with learning1 but merely offer the best out of a small store1 taking after their mothers4 ,though they must of course possess this sharpness of wit since it manifests itself1 yet it might dwell within them a great while without manifesting itself1 if study kept them quiet1 or they were preoccupied with great deeds4 ,it is small affairs1 urging to speedy expression1 that beget that kind of readiness4 ,boys have it always but often hide it because they can afford to wait2 girls have it always and always show it1 because they are in a greater hurry4 ,and seeing it is to be found in both1 it deserves care in both1 so that they should neither be pushed on too much nor allowed to be idle too long4 ,maidens are naturally weaker in body1 therefore more attention must be paid to them in this regard than is necessary for boys4 ,they are to be the principal pillars in the upholding of households1 and so they are likely to prove if their training be wise4 ,they will be the dearest comfort a man can have if they incline to good1 the greatest curse1 if they tread awry4 ,therefore they are to be warily tended1 as they bear a jewel of such worth in a vessel of such weakness4 ,all should have ,elementary ,education4 ,the rare excellences in some women cannot be taken as a precedent for all to follow1 as they only show us the special success that a few parents have attained in their daughters' upbringing4 ,these shining examples1 however1 though they cannot be used to form general precepts1 are at least proofs that women can learn if they will1 and may learn what they please1 if they lend their minds to it4 ,to learn to read is very common where it is convenient1 and writing is not refused1 where opportunity serves4 ,reading1 even if it were of no other use1 is very needful for religion1 to enable them to know what they ought to perform1 if they have none whom they can listen to1 or if their memories are not steadfast1 to refresh them4 ,here ,i may not omit many great pleasures which those women that have time and skill to read1 without hindering their housewifery1 do continually receive by reading comforting and wise discourses1 penned either in the form of history or directions to live by4 ,as for writing1 though it may be abused1 it is often very convenient1 especially in matters of business4 ,music is very desirable for maidens where it is to be had1 though chiefly for the satisfaction of the parents when the daughters are young1 as is generally shown when the young wenches become young wives1 and in learning to be mothers1 lightly forget their music1 thus proving that they studied it more to please their parents than themselves4 ,but if having been once learned1 it can be kept up1 as is quite possible with proper management1 it is a pity to let it go1 as it was acquired only with great pains and at considerable cost4 ,learning to sing and play from the notes is easy enough1 if it be attended to from the first1 and this can be kept up too1 though it suffers from discontinuance4 ,seeing it is but little that girls can learn1 the time being so short1 because they are always in haste to get husbands1 it is expedient that what they do should be done perfectly1 so that with the loss of their penny they do not lose their pennyworth also4 ,as for skill in needlework and housewifery1 it is a great recommendation in a woman to be able to govern and direct her household1 to look to her home and family1 to provide and take care of necessaries1 although the good-man pay1 to know the resources of her kitchen in regard to all over whom she has charge1 in sickness and in health4 ,but ,i meddle not with this as ,i am only dealing with things that are incident to learning4 ,i have now spoken of all the subjects that should universally be taught to girls4 ,higher ,studies for ,some4 ,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 position4 ,and yet there are some of low degree that seek to resemble those above them1 and are satisfied even with an appearance of imitation1 but in so doing they are passing the bounds of what is beseeming to their birth4 ,it is mere folly when a parent of humble station traineth up his daughter in these high accomplishments1 of which ,i shall presently speak1 if she marries in her own lowly rank4 ,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 up1 but will rather be accused of vain presumption4 ,each rank has a certain preparation becoming to it1 which is best secured when there is no attempt to overstretch one's powers4 ,if some unusual capacity attain success beyond expectation1 it is generally a marked exception1 and whoever shoots at the same mark1 in the hope of hitting1 may sooner miss1 for there are many chances of missing to one of hitting1 and wonders that are seen only once are no examples to imitate4 ,every maid may not hope to speed as she would wish1 because one hath sped better than she could have wished4 ,when the question is how much a woman ought to learn1 the answer may be1 8as much as shall be needful10 and if this is doubtful also1 the reply may be1 either as much as befits what her parents hope to obtain for her1 if their position be humble1 or as much as is in keeping with the prospects naturally belonging to their rank1 if that rank be high4 ,if the parents be of good standing1 and the daughters have special aptitudes1 these may be successfully cultivated1 so that the young maidens are very soon commended to right honourable matches in which their accomplishments will be seemly and serviceable1 benefitting perhaps the commonwealth as well as their own families4 ,if the parents be of humble rank1 and the maidens in their education show from the very first some special gifts that offer good promise1 even with natural progress1 there is ground for hope that their unusual qualities may bring them to some great match4 ,doubtless this hope may fail1 for great personages have not always the good judgment1 nor young maidens the good fortune1 that would lead to such a result1 yet in any case the maidens would remain the gainers1 for they at least have their gifts to comfort their mediocre station1 and those great personages lose from the lack of judgment to set forth their nobility4 ,what ,higher ,studies are ,suitable4 ,carrying the education further may consist either in perfecting the four studies already mentioned1 reading well1 writing neatly1 singing sweetly1 and playing finely1 to such an unusual degree1 that though the things are but ordinary1 special excellence in them may bring more than ordinary admiration1 or else in acquiring skill in languages in addition to the above1 so that the abundance of gifts may cause yet more wonder4 ,i fear women would have little turn for geometry or the sister sciences1 nor would ,i make them mathematicians1 except in so far as they study music1 nor lawyers to plead at the bar1 nor physicians1 though skill in herbs has been much commended in women1 nor would ,i have them profess divinity1 to preach in pulpits1 though they must practice it as virtuous livers4 ,philosophy would help them in general discourse1 if they had leisure to study it1 but the knowledge of some tongues1 either as the vehicle of deeper learning1 or for their immediate uses1 may well be wished for them1 and all those powers also that belong to the furniture of speech4 ,if ,i should allow them the pencil to draw1 as well as the pen to write1 and thereby entitle them to all my elementary studies1 ,i might have good reasons to give4 ,for young maidens are ready enough to take to it1 and it would help to beautify their needlework4 ,and is not a young gentlewoman1 think you1 thoroughly well equipped who can read distinctly1 write neatly and swiftly1 sing sweetly1 and play and draw well1 understand and speak the learned languages1 as well as the modern tongues approved by her time and country1 and who has some knowledge of logic and rhetoric1 besides the information acquired in her study of foreign languages8 ,if in addition to all this she be an honest woman and a good housewife1 would she not be worth wishing for and worth enshrining8 ,and is it likely that her children will be one whit the worse brought up8 ,who should be their ,teachers4 ,the only other question in regard to young maidens is where1 and under whom1 they should learn1 and this depends on how long their studies can extend1 which is generally till they are about thirteen or fourteen years old4 ,those who are able to continue longer have their time and place suitably appointed1 according to the circumstances of their parents4 ,as for their teachers1 their own sex were fittest in some respects1 but ours frame them best1 and with good regard to some circumstances1 will bring them up excellently well1 especially if the parents co-operate by exercising a wise control over them4 ,the greater-born ladies and gentlemen1 as they are to enjoy the benefit of this education most1 so they have the best means of prosecuting it1 being able to secure the best teachers1 and not being limited in time4 ,and so ,i take my leave of young maidens and gentlewomen1 to whom ,i wish as well as ,i have said well of them4 ,the ,education of ,young ,gentlemen4 ,under my last heading ,i set forth at large how young maidens were to be advanced in learning according to their rank1 which methought was very incident to my purpose1 because they are counterbranches to us as mortal and reasonable creatures1 and also because they are always our mates1 and may sometimes1 according to law and birth1 be our mistresses4 ,now1 considering that they are always closely connected with us1 and sometimes exceed us in dignity of position1 as they share with us all qualities1 and all honours even up to the sceptre1 why should they not also share in our training and education1 so that they may perform well the part which they have to play1 whether it be in a position of equality with us1 or sovereignity above us8 ,here now ensueth another question of great importance in regard to the kind of people who are to be dealt with1 the question of a class whose position is always in the superlative1 and of whom great things are expected1 though sometimes by their own fault they forfeit their chances1 and hand them over to others whom nature ennobles through their inborn virtues--,i mean young gentlemen of all ranks up to the crown itself4 ,it is the custom among those of good birth to prefer to have their sons educated privately at home rather than at school4 ,this is reasonable enough for maidens because of their sex1 but young gentlemen should be educated publicly1 that they may have the benefit of mixing with others1 as has been the custom in all the best ordered commonwealths1 and has been recommended by all the most learned writers1 even in the case of princes4 ,private and ,public ,education4 ,what is the import of these two words #8private education'8 ,private is that which hath respect in all circumstances to some particular case2 public in all circumstances regardeth every one alike4 ,education is the bringing up of one1 not to live alone1 but amongst others1 because company is our natural medium2 whereby he shall be best able to perform all those functions in life which his position shall require1 whether public or private1 in the interest of his country in which he was born1 and to which he owes his whole service4 ,all these functions are in reality public1 and concern everyone1 even when they seem most private1 because individual ends must be adjusted to wider social ends2 and yet people give the preference to private education where all the circumstances are peculiar to one learner2 as if he who was brought up alone were always to live alone1 or as if one should say1 #8,i will have you to deal with all1 but never to see all2 your end shall be public1 but your means shall be private4' ,how can education be private8 ,it is an abuse of the name as well as of the thing4 ,this isolation1 for a pretended advantage in education1 of those who must afterwards pass on together1 is very mischievous1 as it allows every parent to follow out his own whims1 relying on the privacy of his own house to be free from criticism1 on the subserviency of the teacher whom he may choose to suit his own purposes1 and on the submission of his child who is bound to obey him on pain of meeting his displeasure4 ,in public schools such swerving from what is generally approved is impossible4 ,the master is always in the public eye1 what he teaches is known to all2 the child is not alone1 and he learns only what has been submitted to the judgment of the community4 ,whatever inconveniences may be inseparable from schools1 still greater arise in private education4 ,it puffs up the recluse with pride2 it is an enemy to sympathy between those who have unequal opportunities2 it fosters self-conceit in the absence of comparison with others2 it encourages contempt in the superior1 and envy in the inferior4 ,this kind of education which soweth the seed of dissension by discovering differences1 where the fruits of a common upbringing should be seen in the firm knitting of social bonds1 should be discouraged owing to its effect in instilling the poison of spite4 ,certainly the thing doth naturally tend this way1 though its influence may be often interrupted in time by the pressure of public opinion4 ,but if the child turn out better then ,i have forecast1 and show himself courteous1 it will be due to his natural goodness1 or to his experience outside1 not to the kind of education which brings no such courtesy1 though the child may see it in his parents1 and read of it in his books4 ,sometimes it maketh him too sheepishly bashful when he comes to the light1 owing to his being unaccustomed to company4 ,more commonly1 however1 he is too childishly bold through noting nothing except what he breeds in his own mind in his solitary training1 where he thinks only of himself1 and has none to control him1 not even his master1 whatever show there may be of obedience to authority in this private cloistering4 ,surely it is reasonable for one in his childhood to become acquainted with other children1 seeing he has to live with them as men in his manhood4 ,is it good for the ordinary man to be brought up on a well-regulated public system1 and not good for the man of higher position8 ,by #8private' ,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 preference1 in order to serve the better the interest of a particular individual4 ,it would seem to be generally a question not of the matter or the method of education1 but of the select privacy of the place where it is given4 ,i must beg leave to say that the results are in favour of public training1 which from the midst of mediocrity brings up scholars of such excellence that they take a worthy place in all ranks1 even next to the highest1 whereas private education with all its advantages of wealth1 doth rarely show anything in learning and judgment above bare mediocrity4 ,there is no comparison between the two kinds1 if prejudice be set aside4 ,if the privately-taught pupil chance to come to speak1 it mostly falleth out dreamingly1 because seclusion in education is a punishment to the tongue2 and in teaching a language to exclude companions to speak to1 is like seeking to quench thirst1 yet closing the mouth so that no moisture can get in4 ,if such a pupil come to write1 it is lean1 and nothing but skin1 betraying the great pains the master hath had to take1 in default of any helping circumstances through the pupil's intercourse with companions4 ,the boy can but repeat what he hears1 and he hears only one person who1 though he knew everything1 cannot say much1 for he hath no sufficient audience to provoke him to utterance4 ,if the master made an effort to deliver himself of anything weighty1 methinks an unobserved listener would hear a strange discourse1 and would find the boy asleep2 or1 if he had a companion1 playing with his hands or feet under the table1 with one eye on his talking master and the other on his playmate4 ,but why is private education so much in vogue8 ,there may be some excuse for those of very high position1 especially for the prince himself1 who standing alone1 cannot well mix with his subjects1 and must do what he can to surpass them without this advantage4 ,yet if even the greatest could have his education so arranged that he might have the company of a good choice number1 wherein to see all the differences of capacity and learn to judge of all1 as he hath afterwards to deal with all1 would it be any sacrilege8 ,but why do the gentry in this respect rather ape their superiors in rank1 than follow the class below1 who are really liker to them1 and who form the chief supporters of the ,state8 ,to have the child learn better manners and have more virtuous surroundings6 ,as bad at home as outside2 evil manners are brought into school1 not bred there4 ,to avoid the distraction of large numbers8 ,the child shall notice the more1 and so prove the wiser1 the multitude of examples offering the means of sound judgment4 ,nay1 in a number1 though he find some undesirable1 whom he should avoid1 he shall find many apt and industrious1 whom to follow4 ,in school1 moreover1 he shall perceive that vice is punished1 and virtue praised1 as needs must where all is done in the public view4 ,is it to keep the child in health by making him bide at home1 for fear of infection outside8 ,death is within doors also1 and dainties at home have destroyed more children than dangers outside4 ,is it from affection1 because ye cannot bear to let the child out of your presence8 ,that is too foolish4 ,emulation is a great inspirer of virtue4 ,if your child do well at home alone1 how much better would he do with company8 ,it quickens the spirits1 and enlivens the whole nature1 to have to compete with others--to have perhaps one companion ahead of him to follow and learn from1 another below him to teach and vaunt over1 and a third of his own standing with whom to strive for praise of forwardness4 ,to sum up this question1 ,i do take public education to be better than private1 as being more upon the stage1 where faults are more readily seen and so are sooner amended1 and as being the best means of acquiring both virtue and learning1 which flourish according to their first planting4 ,what virtue is private8 ,wisdom1 to foresee what is good for a desert8 ,courage1 to defend where there is no assailant8 ,temperance1 to be modest where there is none to challenge8 ,justice1 to do right when there is none to demand it8 ,what should a ,gentleman learn8 ,as for the education of gentlemen1 at what age shall ,i suggest that they should begin to learn8 ,their minds are the same as those of the common people1 and their bodies are often worse4 ,the same considerations in regard to time must apply to all ranks4 ,what should they learn8 ,i know of nothing else1 nor can ,i suggest anything better1 than what ,i have already suggested for all4 ,only young gentlemen must have some special studies that will help them to govern under their prince in positions of trust4 ,they should have always before them the virtues that belong to the government of others1 and to the wise direction of their own conduct4 ,however1 the general matter of duty being taught to all1 each one may apply it to his own particular case1 without the need for any special reference outside the ordinary school course1 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 promotion4 ,what exercises shall young gentlemen have8 ,the very same as other children4 ,what masters8 ,the same4 ,what difference of arrangements8 ,all one and the same1 except where private education is preferred1 though1 as ,i have said1 they are none the better for the want of good fellowship4 ,and if they are as well taught and as well exercised as should follow from the general plan laid down for all young children1 they shall have no cause to complain of public education4 ,for it is no mean stuff which is provided even for the meanest to be stored with4 ,the children of gentlemen have great advantages1 which they may thank ,god for2 they can carry on their education to the end1 whereas those of the humbler class have to give it up sooner1 and they have many opportunities which are denied to ordinary learners4 ,if they fail to use these advantages aright they are all the more to blame1 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 belong4 ,as for rich men1 who not being of gentle birth1 but growing to wealth by some means or other1 imitate gentlemen in the education of their children1 as if money made equality1 and the purse were the ground of preferment1 without any other consideration1 who contemn the lower ranks from which they sprang1 and cloister up their children as a support to their position1 they are in the same case as regards freedom of choice1 but far behind in true gentility4 ,as they were of lower condition themselves1 they might with more acceptance continue their children in the same kind of training which brought up the parents and made them so wealthy1 and not try to push themselves into a rank too far beyond their humble origin4 ,for of all the means to make a gentleman1 money is the most vile4 ,all other means have some sign of virtue1 but this is too bad to mate either with high birth1 or with great worth4 ,for to become a gentleman is to bear the cognisance of virtue1 to which honour is companion2 the vilest devices are the readiest means to become most wealthy and ought not to look honour in the face4 ,it may be pretended that intelligence and capacity have enabled them to make their way1 but it is not denied that these qualities may be turned to the worst uses1 may only once in a thousand times make a gentleman4 ,it is not intelligence that deserves praise1 but the matter to which it has been directed1 and the manner in which it has been employed4 ,when it is bestowed wisely on the good of the community1 it deserveth all praise2 if devoted wholly to filling a private purse1 without regard to the means1 so long as nothing evil is disclosed1 then it deserveth no praise for the result1 but rather suspicion as to the method of bringing it about4 ,these people in their business will not scruple to bring poverty to thousands1 and for giving a penny to one of these thousands they will be accounted charitable4 ,they will give a scholar some pretty exhibition1 in order to seem religious1 and under a slender veil of counterfeit liberality will hide the spoil of ransacked poverty4 ,and though they do not profess to be impoverishing people of set purpose1 yet their kind of dealing doth pierce as it passeth4 ,but of these kind of folks ,i intend not to speak4 ,my purpose is to employ my pains upon such as are gentlemen indeed4 ,yet it is worth that gives name and note to nobility2 it is virtue that must endow it1 or vice will undo it4 ,as ,i wish well to this class1 so ,i wish their education to be good1 and if it were possible1 even better than that of ordinary people4 ,but that cannot be1 for the common training1 if it be well appointed1 is the best and fittest for them1 especially as they may have it in full1 while those of meaner rank have to be content with it incomplete4 ,what makes a ,gentleman4 ,before ,i enter upon the training of gentlemen and show what is specially suitable for them1 ,i will examine those points which are best got by good education1 and being once got do adorn them most1 which two considerations are not foreign to my purpose4 ,i must first ask what it is to be a gentleman or a nobleman1 and what qualities these terms assume to be present in the persons of those to whom they are applied1 and afterwards1 what are the causes and uses of gentility1 and the reasons why it is so highly thought of4 ,but ere ,i begin to deal with any of these points1 once for all ,i must recommend to those of gentle birth exercise of the body1 and chiefly such kinds as besides benefiting their health shall best serve their calling and place in their country4 ,just as those qualities which ,i have set forth for the general training1 being most easily compassed in their perfection by them1 may very well beseem a gentlemanly mind1 so may the physical exercises without exception be found useful1 either to make a healthy body1 seeing that our constitution is all the same1 or to prepare them for such occupations as belong to their position4 ,is it not for a gentleman to follow the chase and to hunt8 ,doth their place reprove them if they have skill to dance8 ,is skill in sitting a horse no honour at home1 no help abroad8 ,is the use of a weapon suitable to their calling any blemish to them8 ,indeed those great exercises are most proper to such persons and are not for those of meaner rank4 ,what is it then to be a nobleman or a gentleman8 ,the people of this country are either gentlemen or of the commonalty4 ,the latter is divided into those who are engaged in trade1 and those who work with their hands4 ,their distinction is by wealth1 for some of them1 who have enough and more1 are called rich men1 some who have no more than enough1 poor men1 and some who have less than enough1 beggars4 ,there are also three ranks in gentility1 the gentlemen1 who are the cream of the common people1 the noblemen1 who are the flower of gentility1 and the prince1 who is the primate and pearl of nobility4 ,their difference is in authority1 the prince having most1 the nobleman coming next1 and the gentlemen under both4 ,to be virtuous or vicious1 to be rich or poor1 are no peculiar badge of either kind2 a gentleman or a common man may alike be virtuous or vicious1 rich or poor1 with land or without it4 ,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 specially1 such as wisdom in policy1 valour in execution1 justice in forming decisions1 modesty in demeanour4 ,whether gentility come by descent or desert makes no difference2 he that giveth fame to his family first1 or he that deserveth such honour1 or he that adds to his heritage by noble means1 is the man whom ,i mean4 ,he that continueth what he received through descent from his ancestry1 by desert in his own person1 hath much to thank ,god for1 and doth well deserve double honour among men1 as bearing the true coat of arms of the best nobility1 when desert for virtue is quartered with descent in blood1 seeing that ancient lineage and inheritance of nobility are in such credit among us1 and always have been4 ,as gentility argueth a courteous1 civil1 well-disposed1 sociable constitution of mind in a superior degree1 so doth nobility imply all these and much more1 in a higher rank with greater authority4 ,and do not these distinctive qualities deserve help by good and virtuous education8 ,learning useful to ,noblemen4 ,excellent wisdom1 which is the means of advancing grave and politic counsellors1 is but a single cause of preferment2 likewise valour1 which is the means of making a noble and gallant captain1 is but a single cause of advancement2 but where these two qualities1 wisdom and courage1 are combined in the same man1 the merit is doubled4 ,the means of preferment which depend upon learning are either martial1 for war and defence in relation to foreign countries1 or political1 for peace and tranquillity at home4 ,the warrior seems to depend most on his personal courage and experience1 which without any learning or reading at all1 have often brought forth excellent leaders1 but with those helps in addition produce most rare and famous generals4 ,those who use the pen most in taking part in the direction of public government1 or in filling the necessary offices in the administrative or judicial service of the ,state1 for the common peace and quietness1 without profession of further learning1 though they have their chief instrument of credit from books1 are not debtors to book-knowledge only1 because industry1 experience1 and discretion have much to do with their success4 ,it is those who depend wholly upon learning that ,i am most concerned with1 when ,i ask how gentlemen should be trained to have them learned4 ,the highest position to which learned valour doth give advancement1 is that of a wise counsellor1 the fruit of whose learning is policy1 not in the limited sense where it is opposed to straightforwardness1 but in the philosophical sense1 as meaning the general skill to judge things rightly1 to see them in their due proportions1 to adapt them to any given circumstances1 with as little disturbance as possible to existing arrangements1 whether it be in matters religious or secular1 public or private1 professional or industrial4 ,such a man is1 in the sphere of religion1 a divine who is able to judge soundly of the general principles and applications of divinity2 in the sphere of government1 a lawyer who makes the laws in the first instance1 and knows best how to have them kept2 in short he is the man1 whether he be concerned with ecclesiastical or temporal affairs1 and whatever his rank or his profession may be1 who is most sound and able1 and sufficient in all points4 ,and though the specialist may know more than he in any particular matter which he has not leisure to get up thoroughly himself1 yet he will be able to make such skilful and methodical enquiries of the special student that he will probe his knowledge to the bottom1 and then handle the material he gains to better purpose than the other could with all his scholarship4 ,of all those that depend upon learning ,i hold this kind of man worthiest to be preferred1 in divinity a chief among divines1 though he do not preach1 in law1 the first of lawyers1 though he do not plead1 and similarly in all the other departments of public direction4 ,but wherefore is all this8 ,to show how necessary a thing it is to have young gentlemen well brought up4 ,for if these causes do make the man of mean birth noble1 what will they do in him whose honour is augmented with perpetual increase1 if he add personal worth to his nobility in blood8 ,wherefore the necessity of the training being evidently so great1 ,i will handle that as well as ,i can1 by way of general precept1 with reference to those whose wisdom is their weight1 learning their line1 justice their balance1 honour their armour1 and all the different virtues their greatest ornaments in the eyes of all men4 ,course of ,study for a ,gentleman4 ,as ,i have already said1 ,i know no better training for the gentleman than that which is provided under proper conditions for the ordinary man2 but while the latter learns first for necessity1 and afterwards for advancement1 the greater personage ought to study for his credit and honour as well4 ,for which be gentlemanly accomplishments1 if these be not--to read1 to write1 to draw1 to sing1 to play1 to have language and learning1 health and activity1 nay1 even to profess ,divinity1 ,law1 ,medicine1 or any other worthy occupation8 ,these things a gentleman hath most leisure to acquire1 and not being too much under the spur of necessity he can practise them with uprightness4 ,these so-called 8liberal0 professions are too commonly now in the hands of meaner men1 who make a trade of their high calling1 and only seek to enrich themselves4 ,doth ,divinity teach to scrape1 or ,law to scratch1 or any other kind of learning to which the epithet 8liberal0 is applied8 ,the practice of these callings crieth for help to ransom it from the pressure of selfish needs to which it hath fallen a prey1 owing to the indifference of the nobility1 who think anything far more seemly to bestow their time and wealth upon than the learned professions4 ,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 places1 how fortunate it would be for the country1 and for the young gentlemen as well6 ,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 abundantly4 ,if the warlike gentlemen betook themselves to arms and paid more attention to exercise1 and if the more peacefully-inclined took their books and fell to learning1 recalling by diligence those faculties which they have for so long allowed to run waste1 should not the change be welcomed8 ,this were better than vain foppery and travelling about4 ,foreign ,travel4 ,what is this travelling8 ,i do not ask in regard to merchants1 whom necessity obliges to travel and to tarry long from home for the sake of their own trade and often of our benefit1 nor in regard to soldiers1 who when there is peace at home must go abroad to learn in foreign wars how to defend their country when it is necessary4 ,nor do ,i refer to such travellers as ,solon1 or ,pythagoras1 or ,plato1 who sought knowledge where it was1 in order to bring it where it was not4 ,we have no need to travel in search of learning as they did4 ,we have at this day1 thanks to printing1 as much of that as any country needs to have1--nay1 as much as the ancient world ever possessed1 if we would use it aright4 ,and young gentlemen1 if they made the best use of their wealth1 might procure and maintain such excellent masters and companions and libraries1 that they might acquire all the best learning far better by studying quietly at home than by stirring about1 if the desire for knowledge were the cause of their travelling4 ,and this excuse is made even by people of meaner rank1 who love to look abroad for instruction that they could get quite well at home from competent persons who never crossed the seas4 ,if there be defects in our own country1 they can be remedied out of our own resources by giving good heed to the matter1 without the need of borrowing from other lands4 ,what1 then1 is travel1 interrupting education as it does1 and raising the question whether young gentlemen in choosing it are benefiting their country and themselves8 ,to travel is to see countries abroad1 to mark their singularities1 to learn their languages1 and to return thence with an equipment of wisdom that will serve the needs of one's own country4 ,there may be some who gain all these advantages from travel2 but for one whose natural excellence and virtue will turn such a hazardous experience to profit1 there are many to whom it will prove pernicious1 owing to their impetuous temper and their command of money beyond the discretion of their years4 ,and while these are engaged in travel1 what might they have been acquiring at home8 ,sounder learning1 the same study of language1 and1 above all1 the love of their native land1 which groweth by familiarity1 but is mightily impaired by absence and an acquired fancy for foreign customs4 ,what is the natural end of being born in a particular country8 ,to serve one's fatherland4 ,with foreign fashions8 ,they will not fit4 ,for every country has its own appropriate laws and arrangements1 and its special circumstances can be understood only by those who study its constitution carefully on the spot4 ,what is quite suitable and excellent for other nations may not bear transplanting here2 it may not fit in with the habits of our people1 or at least the change might require so much effort that it would not be worth the cost4 ,i do not deny that travel is good1 if it hits on the right person2 though ,i think the same labour1 with equally good intentions1 could be spent with better results at home4 ,he that roameth abroad hath no such line to lead him as he that tarrieth at home1 unless his understanding1 years and experience offer better security than is the case with those of whom ,i am now speaking4 ,foreign things fit us not2 or1 if they fit our backs1 at least they do not fit our brains1 unless there be something amiss there4 ,if we wish to learn from other countries1 it is better to summon a foreign master to us than to go abroad as foreign scholars ourselves4 ,our ladies at home can acquire all the accomplishments of these travelled gentlemen without stirring abroad1 for it is not what one has seen that is of value1 but the languages and learning that are brought back1 and these are to be found at home4 ,our lady mistress1 whom ,i must needs remember when excellence is being spoken of1 a woman1 a gentlewoman1 a lady1 a princess1 in the midst of many other affairs of business1 in spite of her sex and sundry impediments to a free mind such as learning requireth1 can do all these things to the wonder of all hearers1 which ,i say young gentlemen can learn better at home1 as ,her ,majesty did4 ,it may be said that ,her ,majesty is not to be used as a precedent1 seeing she is of a princely courage that would not be overthrown by any difficulty in learning what might advance her person beyond all praise1 and help her position beyond expectation4 ,but yet it may be said1 why may not young gentlemen1 who can allege no obstacle1 obtain with more liberty what ,her ,highness got with so little8 ,it is having as much money as they like that eggs them on to wander4 ,if they went abroad as ambassadors to acquire experience through dealing with great affairs1 or if they were well known as learned men to whom important information would everywhere naturally be offered1 or if they even went in the train of the former1 or under the tuition of the latter1 so that authority might secure benefits for them and preserve them from harm1 ,i would not disapprove of it1 as they might then learn to follow in the footsteps of their leaders4 ,but this is a very different matter from the pursuit of those special ends that could be better attained at home4 ,for good1 simple1 well-meaning young gentlemen1 strong in purse and weak in years1 to travel at a venture in places where there is danger to health1 to life1 to conduct1 far from the chances of succour and rescue--the thought is so repugnant to me that ,i know not what to say4 ,gentlemen should take up the ,professions4 ,i do wish then that well-disposed young gentlemen would be pleased to betake themselves betimes to some kind of learning that is indeed liberal1 seeing that their circumstances protect them from interested motives1 and enable them to serve their country honourably4 ,instead of all becoming lawyers or court officials1 why do not some of them choose to be divines1 or physicians1 or to take up some other learned profession8 ,any gentleman in our country who is now so qualified is esteemed and honoured above all others of his calling1 and indeed gets some honour even if he is not particularly well qualified4 ,are not these professions to be reverenced for their subject-matter and for their influence8 ,and are they not therefore proper for the nobility8 ,i do not hold the conduct of barbarous invasions to be the true field of activity for the nobility2 they should be for the most part peaceful1 and warlike only for defence if the country be assailed1 or for attack if previous wrongs are to be avenged4 ,nor do ,i take wealth to be any worthy cause of honour to the owner1 unless it be both got by laudable means and employed in commendable ways1 nor any quality or gift that adorns the body1 unless it serves a good purpose1 nor any endowment of the mind which is not exercised in conformity with reason and wisdom4 ,such gifts are demanded in the callings ,i have named as worthy of the nobility4 ,who dare think lightly of divinity in itself8 ,there is more hesitation now about adopting it as a profession than formerly1 when the emoluments were greater1 and the dignity more generally recognised1 but the position grows better again1 and a good gentleman may find in it the honour which he seeks4 ,as for medicine1 if gentlemen will not study and practise it1 they must pay the penalty of ignorance1 as they will suffer in their own bodies as well as in their pockets by leaving the profession to those of meaner rank1 whose attendance is often rather flattering and fawning than intelligent services4 ,this caution1 however1 young gentlemen must bear in mind1 that it were a great deal better they had no learning at all and knew their own ignorance1 than a mere smattering1 incomplete of its kind1 and insecurely held in their minds4 ,for their acknowledged ignorance harms only themselves1 as others more skilful may supply their places1 but unripe learning puffeth them up1 and their rank encourages them to be superficial1 either in not digesting what they have read1 or in not reading sufficiently1 or in doing desultory work1 or presuming on their station to defend ill-considered notions4 ,to conclude1 ,i wish young gentlemen to be better than ordinary men in the best kind of learning1 as they have ampler opportunities of acquiring it and turning it to good account for the benefit of their country and their own honour4 ,the ,training of a ,prince4 ,as a child1 the greatest prince may be1 like other children1 in soul either fine or gross1 in body either strong or weak1 in form either well-developed or ill1 so that in regard to the time for beginning to learn and the proper course of study1 he is no less subject to the general laws already laid down than his subjects are4 ,we must take him as ,god sends him1 for we cannot choose as we would wish1 just as he must make the best of his people1 though his people be not the best4 ,when the young prince's elementary education is past1 and there is more scope for reading1 care must be taken to choose such matter as may recommend humility as well as afford adequate knowledge1 so that competence in affairs may be supported by the gift of courteous persuasion4 ,intercourse with foreign ambassadors1 and conference with his own counsellors1 require both a knowledge of tongues and a knowledge of the matters that come under discussion4 ,and as he governeth his ,state by means of his two arms1 the ecclesiastical1 which preserves and purifies religion1 the main support of voluntary obedience1 and the political1 which by maintaining the civil government doth keep order and diffuse well-being1 if he lack knowledge to use his arms aright1 is he not more than lame8 ,and is not his best help to be found in learning8 ,martial skill is needful1 but only for defence1 because a stirring prince1 always ready to make aggression1 is a plague to his people and a punishment to himself1 and even when he seems to gain most1 is only getting what he or his descendants must some day lose again with perhaps something in addition4 ,but religious knowledge is far more important1 being specially necessary for a prince1 inasmuch as he hath none but ,god to fear4 ,almighty ,god be thanked who hath at this day lent us a ,princess who indeed feareth ,him1 and who therefore1 deserving to be loved1 desires not to be feared by us4 ,i pray ,god long to preserve her whose good education doth teach us what education can do1 and ,i have good cause to rejoice that this work of mine concerning education is given forth in her time4 ,boarding ,schools4 ,i turn to the question whether it is better for a child to board with his master or elsewhere1 or to come from home daily to school4 ,if the place where the parents dwell be near the school1 or only so far off that the very walk may be for the boy's health1 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 being1 then certainly the parent's home is much better1 if for nothing else1 yet because the parent can more easily at all times look after the interests of his own1 having only one or a few1 than the schoolmaster can after his ordinary duties are over1 especially as he will have to divide his attention among many4 ,further1 all the considerations which persuade people rather to have their children taught at home than along with others outside1 especially with regard to their manners and behaviour1 form arguments for their at least boarding at home1 if the parents will take their position seriously1 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 school4 ,for undoubtedly the masters are wearied with working all day1 so that the individual help they can give in their homes in the evening can be but little1 without at once tiring the master unduly and dulling the child1 if he is always poring over his books4 ,there must be times for recreation if anything is to be well done continuously4 ,can anyone help thinking that it is a great deal more than enough for the master to teach1 and the scholar to learn1 daily from #f in the morning till #aa1 and from #a in the afternoon till wellnigh #f at night1 if the time is to be really well applied--nay1 even if the hours were a great deal fewer8 ,and may not the rest of the day be reasonably spent in some recreation that offers a pleasant variety to both parties8 ,in the master's home ,i grant children may keep school hours better1 and be less liable to idleness and truancy2 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 children1 may arrange their hours better according to the subjects they are studying1 and may sooner be able to discover their special talents and inclinations4 ,there are also certain private considerations that have weight with parents in sending their children to board away from home1 which ,i leave to their private thoughts1 as ,i reserve some to my own4 ,if the master have charge only of the scholars who board with him1 and can himself do all that is necessary for the best education1 and the numbers be moderate enough to allow of considerable progress1 then ,i know of no more favourable circumstances1 if the size1 situation1 and convenience of his house1 and other necessary conditions are all suitable4 ,but while he is thinking only of his boarders' advancement1 some slow-paying parents will be sure to keep him lean1 if he look not well to it1 and his fortunes will not flourish1 or at least the risks will cause him continual anxiety4 ,parents have a different eye to their children's comfort when they are at a boarding-school1 and are ready to complain of many things that are made of no account at home4 ,and if sickness or death should come1 the worst construction is put upon it1 as if death did not know where the parent dwells4 ,and though the master should have done not only what he was formally bound to do1 but even more than he could have done for his own child1 yet all that is nothing4 ,wherefore1 as parents must think of the objection on their side to sending out their children to board1 so masters on their part must beware of admitting them to their own injury4 ,indeed1 my own opinion is that it is quite enough for a master to undertake the education alone4 ,if parents do not live near enough to the school1 they should board their children elsewhere than with the master4 ,they are distinct offices1 to be a parent and a teacher1 and the difficulties of upbringing are too serious for all the responsibilities to be thrown into the hands of one alone4 ,school ,buildings4 ,of the places of elementary education there is not much to say1 as the masters supply rooms as large as they can1 considering the fees that the parents are willing to pay1 and the little people who attend these schools are not as yet capable of any great exercise4 ,the ,grammar ,schools require more attention1 because the years that are1 or at least ought to be1 spent there are the most important both for developing the body and for framing the mind and character4 ,here the pupils are most subject to the master's direction1 and provision is made for them not only out of the parents' resources1 but also from public endowment1 so far as the buildings are concerned4 ,as the elementary schools must be near the parents' homes on account of the youth of the scholars1 they must often be in the middle of cities and towns1 but ,i could wish that the ,grammar ,schools were planted in the outskirts and suburbs1 near to the fields1 where partly by enclosing some private ground for regular exercises both in the open and under cover1 and partly by utilising the open fields for rambles of wider range1 there might be little or no feeling of restriction in the matter of space4 ,there should be a good airy schoolroom above for the languages1 and another below for others studies and for continuing and completing the elementary training1 which will not be well enough kept up if it is left to private practice at home4 ,there must also be suitable accommodation for the master and his family1 even if they be pretty numerous1 and there should be a convenient play-ground adjoining the school1 walled round and having at least a quarter of the space covered over like a cloister1 for the children's exercise in rainy weather4 ,all this will require no mean purse1 but surely there is wealth enough in private possession1 if there were will enough to endow public education4 ,yet we have no great cause to complain in regard to the number of schools and founders1 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 kingdom4 ,i would rather have fewer and have them better appointed for the master's accommodation and for general convenience4 ,a small amount of help will make most of our rooms serve1 and enable our teachers to give instruction and carry on the exercises under satisfactory conditions4 ,the places for study and for exercise ought to adjoin each other1 and be capable of holding considerable numbers1 to be determined by the needs of the surrounding district4 ,the schools that ,i know are mostly well placed already1 or if they are in the heart of towns1 they could be easily exchanged for some country situation1 far from disturbances yet near enough to all necessary conveniences4 ,it would be a very useful part of a great and good foundation if it provided for the removal of rooms to more suitable places1 either by exchange or by new purchase1 and ,i think licence would more readily be granted for this purpose than to build new schools4 ,i am all the more impelled to recommend a country situation on account of the inconveniences that ,i have myself experienced1 both in regard to my own health and that of my scholars1 and the lack of facilities for the exercises on which ,i lay so much store4 ,yet ,i am by no means the worst off in this respect1 owing to the zeal and generosity shown in the provision made by the ,worshipful ,company of ,merchant ,taylors in ,london1 in whose school ,i have now served for twenty years1 the first and only headmaster since its foundation4 ,if ye consider what is to be done in these rooms which ,i desire1 ye shall better judge what rooms will serve4 ,two rooms will be sufficient for the language study and the continuation of the elementary course1 an upper room with proper arrangements for ventilation and the prevention of too much noise1 and another similarly fitted up underneath to serve for what else is to be done4 ,i could wish that we had fewer schools and that they were more efficient2 it would be well if on careful consideration of the most convenient centres throughout the country1 many of the existing schools could be put together to make a few good ones4 ,to conclude this matter1 ,i wish the rooms to be commodious1 for though such studies as reading require small elbow-room1 writing and drawing must not be straitened1 nor music either1 and physical exercises especially must have ample scope4 ,and such rooms1 if the numbers are not too large1 if the distance is not too great for the young children1 will with some distinction and separation of places serve conveniently both for the elementary school and the grammar school1 which is so much the better4 ,best ,hours for ,study4 ,i think it is not good to begin study immediately after rising1 or just after meals1 or to continue right up to the time of going to bed4 ,from #g to #aj in the forenoon1 and from #b till almost #e in the afternoon are the most fitting hours1 and quite enough for children to be learning4 ,the morning hours will serve best for memory work and what requires mental effort2 the afternoon for going over again the material that has been already acquired4 ,the other times before meals are for exercise4 ,the hours after meals and before study is resumed1 are to be given to resting the body and refreshing the mind1 without too much movement4 ,to conclude1 we must make the best of those places and hours that are at present appointed1 and yet be prepared to adopt better arrangements1 as soon as it shall please ,god to send them4 ,and by persuasion some teachers may be able to bring wise parents to try changes in the direction ,i have pointed out4 ,in the meantime some excellent man1 having the advantage of a well-situated house1 and being independent of outside help and able to control his own arrangements1 may be prepared to make useful experiments4 ,elementary ,teacher most ,important4 ,the ,elementary school is left to the lowest and the worst class of teacher1 because good scholars will not abase themselves to it4 ,the first grounding should be undertaken by the best teacher1 and his reward should be the greatest1 because his work demands most energy and most judgment1 and competent men could easily be induced to enter these lower ranks if they found that sufficient reward were offered4 ,it is natural enough for ignorant people to make little of the early training1 when they see how little consideration is paid to it1 but men of judgment know how important the foundation is1 not only as regards the matter that is taught1 but the manner of handling the child's intelligence1 which is of great moment4 ,but to say something concerning the teacher's reward1 which is the encouragement to good teaching1 what is the sense in increasing the salary as the child grows in learning8 ,is it to cause the master to take greater pains1 and bring his pupil better forward in view of the promise of what is to come8 ,nay1 surely that cannot be4 ,present payment would be a greater inducement to bring pupils forward than the hope in promise1 for in view of the variety and inconstancy of parents' minds1 what assurance is there that the child will continue with the same master8 ,that he who took great pains for little gain should receive more for less trouble8 ,besides1 if the reward were good he would hasten to gain more through the supply of new scholars1 who would be attracted by the report of his diligent and successful work4 ,as things are1 the master who gets the pupils later reaps the benefit of the elementary teacher's labour1 because the child makes more show with him4 ,why should this be so8 ,it is the foundation well and soundly laid that makes all the upper building secure and lasting4 ,i can only give counsel1 but if the decision lay with me the first pains well taken should in truth be most liberally recompensed1 and the emolument should diminish1 as less pains are needed in going up through the school course4 ,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 subjects1 which is a constant source of trouble at present both to teachers and scholars4 ,indeed too often we ,grammar ,school masters can hardly make any progress1 can scarcely even tell how to place the raw boys in any particular form with any hope of steady advance1 so rotten is the groundwork of their preparation4 ,if the higher master has to repair this weakness1 after the boy comes under his charge1 he certainly deserves triple salary1 both for his own making and for mending what the elementary teacher either marred through ignorance1 or failed to make through undue haste1 which1 in my opinion1 is the commonest and worst kind of marring4 ,as for the salaries of the masters that succeed the elementary1 ,i hold that the increasing numbers that they can undertake will make up for the larger amount to be given to the elementary teacher1 however much that may be4 ,for the first master can deal only with a few1 the next with more1 and so on1 ascending as the scholars grow in reason and discretion4 ,to deal with the unequal advancement of children1 it were good that they were promoted in numbers together1 and that they were admitted into the schools only at four periods in the year1 so that they might be properly classified1 and not hurled hand over head into one form without discrimination1 as is now too often the case4 ,there should be a definite plan of promotion agreed upon among the teachers1 so that one can say1 8,this child ,i have taught1 and such and such can he do10 and the other knoweth what the child should have been taught1 and what he may be supposed to know4 ,the elementary teacher1 then1 should be competent for his task1 and when he is1 he should be sufficiently well provided for by the parents4 ,adequate reward would make very able men incline to take it up1 and though the supply may as yet be insufficient1 enough could soon be trained if inducement were offered4 ,the ,grammar ,school ,teacher4 ,my chief concern must be with the master of the ,grammar ,school1 who cannot be too carefully selected1 for he has to deal with those years which determine the success of all the future course1 as during this period both body and mind are most restless and most in need of regulation4 ,he has to complete the learning gained in the elementary studies1 and he offers hope or despair of perfection to the ,university tutor in the case of their proceeding further4 ,for this class of teacher also ,i must ask for sufficient maintenance in consideration of their competence and faithful work4 ,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 provision4 ,experience hath taught me that where the master's salary is made to rise and fall with the numbers of his pupils1 he will exert himself most1 and the children will profit most1 provided he have no more than he can manage himself without hazarding his own credit and the pupils' welfare by trusting to independent assistants4 ,the proper use of assistants is not as we now see it in schools1 where ushers are their own masters1 but to help the headmaster in the easier part of his duties4 ,if the master's salary is fixed by agreement at a definite sum1 then he should not be given too large numbers to deal with1 nor should he be obliged to eke out his income in other ways outside his profession4 ,it is unreasonable to demand a man's whole time1 and yet make such scant payment that he has to look elsewhere1 outside the school1 to add to it4 ,among many causes that make our schools inefficient1 ,i know none so serious as the weakness of the profession owing to the bareness of the reward4 ,the good that cometh by schools is infinite2 the qualities required in the teacher are many and great2 the charges which his friends have been at in his bringing up are heavy2 yet he has but little to hope for in the way of preferment4 ,our calling creeps low1 and has pain for a companion1 always thrust to the wall1 though always formally admitted to be worthy4 ,our comfort must be in the general conclusion that those are good things which want no praising1 though they go a-cold for lack of cherishing4 ,but ye will perhaps say--what shall this man be able to perform whom you are so anxious to have suitably maintained1 and to whose charge the youth of our country is to be committed8 ,surely that charge is great1 and if he is to discharge it well1 he must be well qualified for it1 and ought to be very well requited for doing it so well4 ,besides his manner and behaviour1 which must be beyond cavil1 and his skill in exercising the body1 he must be able to teach the three learned tongues1 ,latin1 ,greek1 and ,hebrew1 if these are required4 ,and in these a mediocrity of knowledge is not enough1 for he who means to plant even a little well1 must himself far exceed mediocrity4 ,he must be able to understand his author1 to correct misprints1 the mistakes of unskilful dictionaries1 and the foolish comments of superficial writers on the matter he is teaching1 and he must be so well furnished before he begins to teach that he can express himself readily1 and not have to be learning as he goes along1 distracting his scholars by his hesitations4 ,time and experience will do much to polish the manner of teaching1 but there must be knowledge of the matter from the first4 ,he must be acquainted with all the best grammars1 so that he can always add notes by the way1 though not of course to the burdening of the children's memory4 ,besides these and other points of learning1 he must have determination to take pains1 perseverance to continue in his work without shrinking1 discretion to judge of circumstances1 cheerfulness to delight in the success of his labour1 sympathy to encourage a promising youth1 hopefulness to think every child an ,alexander1 and courteous lowliness in his opinion of himself4 ,for even the smallest thing in learning will be well done only by him who knows most1 and by reason of his store of knowledge is able to perform his task with pleasure and ease4 ,these qualities deserve much1 and are not often found in our schools1 because the rewards of labour are so insufficient1 but they would soon be had if the maintenance were adequate4 ,the ,training of ,teachers4 ,if the rewards of the teaching profession were sufficient to attract good students1 the way to make them well fitted to deserve these rewards would be to arrange for their being trained at the ,universities4 ,i touch upon this matter with some hesitation1 for it would involve some changes that might not be easily compassed1 but if the very name of change is to be avoided1 no improvements could ever take place1 and though my proposals may raise objections at first1 ,i believe that the more they are considered the more they will commend themselves1 as well to the ,university authorities as to all others concerned4 ,by the means ,i am about to suggest1 not only schoolmasters1 but all other members of the learned professions1 would be better fitted on leaving the ,university to perform what is expected of them in the service of the commonwealth4 ,i would have it understood that ,i have no great fault to find with the present constitution of the ,universities1 but granting that things are well done there already1 there is no discourtesy in wishing that they might be managed a good deal better4 ,university ,reform4 ,my idea rests on four points2 #ast4 ,what if the ,colleges were divided into faculties according to the professions for which they prepare8 #bnd4 ,what if students of similar age1 who were studying for the same profession1 were all bestowed in one house8 #c;d4 ,what if the ,college livings were made more valuable by combination1 and the ,colleges strengthened by being lessened in number8 #dth4 ,what if in every house there were valuable fellowships for learned scholars who would remain their whole lives in the position8 ,would not the country benefit by these measures8 ,and hath not the ,state authority to carry them out1 seeing that it hath already given its sanction to the making of foundations1 with a reservation of the right to alter them if sufficient cause should be shown8 ,is it not as admissible to discuss the improvement of the ,universities by planting sound learning1 as to decide upon taking away lands from colleges1 and boarding out the students1 because they cannot agree among themselves about the use of the endowments8 ,would there be any better means of giving a new and fairer aspect to the work of the ,universities1 and of bringing them into greater favour with the public8 ,in the first erection of schools and colleges1 private zeal inflamed good founders2 in altering these for the better1 the ,state1 for considerations of public interest1 may increase the advantage1 without departing from the intention of the founders1 who would have gladly welcomed any improvement4 ,it is for each age under the spur of necessity to point out what is best for its own circumstances1 and the ,state must exercise its wisdom and policy in bringing this about4 ,i will now take up more fully the four points ,i have named1 in the hope of offering reasons that may prove convincing4 ,a ,college for ,languages4 ,would it not be convenient and profitable if there were one college where nothing was professed but languages1 to be thoroughly acquired as a means to further study within the university1 and to public service outside8 ,that being the professed end1 and nothing else being dealt with there1 would not a high standard of sufficiency be the better reached through general agreement8 ,and would not daily conference and continuous application in the same subject be likely to secure efficiency8 ,as it is now1 when everyone deals confessedly with everything1 no one can say with certainty1 8,thus much can such a one do in this particular thing10 but he either speaks by conjecture that may often deceive even the speaker1 or else out of courtesy which as often beguiles those who hear and believe4 ,for where all exercises1 conferences1 and conversations1 both public and private1 are on the same subject1 because the soil bringeth forth no other stuff1 there must needs follow great perfection4 ,when the tongues are thus separated from other learning1 it will soon appear what a difference there is between him who can only speak and him who can do more4 ,no subject can be more necessary than languages in university training4 ,for the tongues being the receptacles of matter1 without a perfect understanding of them what hope is there of understanding matter8 ,and seeing words are the names of things1 applied and given according to their properties1 how can things be properly understood by us1 who make use of words to know them by1 unless the force of speech is thoroughly understood8 ,i do see in writers and hear in speakers great defects in the mistaking of meanings1 and evident errors through insufficiency in the study of language4 ,such study should be well advanced by the ,grammar ,school1 but it needs to be brought to greater perfection than it can be there4 ,and it may be that some1 wishing only a general culture1 will be content to rest in this literary faculty1 taking delight in the writings of the poets and historians1 and not passing on to any professional study4 ,a ,college for ,mathematics4 ,i would have another college devoted to the ,mathematical ,sciences1 though ,i shall be opposed by some of good intelligence1 who not knowing the force of these faculties because they considered them unworthy of study1 as not leading to preferment1 are accustomed to mock at mathematical heads4 ,such studies require concentration1 and demand a type of mind that does not seek to make public display until after mature contemplation in solitude4 ,it is this silent meditation on the part of the true students1 or the appearance of it in those that are but counterfeits1 that layeth them open to the mockery of some1 who should rather forbear if they will remember in what high esteem those sciences were held by ,socrates1 and by ,plato1 who forbad anyone to enter his ,academy that was ignorant of ,geometry4 ,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 kernel1 or they are such as having some knowledge occupy themselves with the trivial and sophistical and illusive parts of the subject1 rather than with its true uses in the advancement of the arts4 ,but in spite of the contempt which is thus often brought on the ,mathematical ,sciences1 ,i will venture to give my opinion in defence of their value4 ,in time all learning may be brought into one tongue1 and that naturally understood by all1 so that schooling for tongues may prove needless1 just as once they were not needed2 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 barbarous4 ,we attribute too much to tongues1 in paying more heed to them than we do to matter1 and esteem it more honourable to speak finely than to reason wisely4 ,after all1 words are praised only for the time1 but wisdom wins in the end4 ,the ,mathematical ,sciences show themselves in many professions and trades which do not bear the titles of learning1 whereby it is well seen that they are really profitable2 they do not make much outward show1 but our daily life benefits greatly by them4 ,it is no just objection to ask1 8,what should merchants1 carpenters1 masons1 shipmasters1 mariners1 surveyors1 architects1 and other such do with learning8 ,do they not serve the country's needs well enough without it80 ,though they may do well without it1 might they not do better with it8 ,the speaking of ,latin is no necessary proof of deeper learning1 but ,mathematics are the first rudiments for young children1 and the sure means of direction for all skilled workmen1 who without such knowledge can only go by rote1 but with it might reach genuine skill4 ,the sciences that we term #8mathematical' from their very nature always achieve something good1 intelligible even to the unlearned1 by number1 figure1 sound1 or motion4 ,in the manner of their teaching also they plant in the mind of the learner a habit of resisting the influence of bare probabilities1 of refusing to believe in light conjectures1 of being moved only by infallible demonstrations4 ,mathematics had its place before the tongues were taught1 which though they are now necessary helps1 because we use foreign languages for the conveyance of knowledge1 yet push us one degree further off from knowledge4 ,a ,college for ,philosophy4 ,the third college should be devoted to ,philosophy in all its three kinds1 each of which forms a preparation for a particular profession--,natural ,philosophy for ,medicine1 ,political ,philosophy for ,law1 and ,moral ,philosophy for ,divinity4 ,but in this distribution some will ask1 8,where do ,logic and ,rhetoric come in80 ,i would ask in reply1 8,what is the place of ,grammar80 ,it is the preparative to language4 ,in the same way1 ,logic on the side of demonstration takes the part of ,grammar for the ,mathematical ,sciences and ,natural ,philosophy1 and in its consideration of probabilities fills the same place for ,moral and ,political ,philosophy4 ,rhetoric helps the writer to attain purity of style without emotion1 and the speaker to use persuasion with an appeal to the feelings1 though sometimes1 indeed1 the latter deals only in argument1 while the former may wax hot over his writing4 ,as to the proper order of these studies1 we are accustomed to set young students to ,moral and ,political ,philosophy first1 but we should rather follow ,aristotle in placing ,natural ,philosophy next to the ,mathematical ,sciences1 because it is more intelligible for young heads on account of its deductive reasoning1 whereas ,moral and ,political ,philosophy1 being subject to particular circumstances in life1 should be reserved for riper years4 ,professional ,colleges4 ,the three professions above mentioned--,medicine1 ,law1 and ,divinity--should each be endowed with its particular ,college and livings1 instead of having its students scattered4 ,to have the physician thus learned is not too much to ask1 considering that his proficiency depends on his knowledge1 and with him ignorance is simply butchery4 ,as for ,law1 if the whole study were reduced into one body1 would our country have any cause to complain8 ,would she not rather have great reason to be very glad8 ,we have now three several professions in ,law1 as if we were a three-headed ,state1 one ,english and ,french1 another ,roman ,imperial1 and the third ,roman ,ecclesiastical1 whereas ,english alone were simply best4 ,the distraction of temporal1 civil1 and canon law is in many ways very injurious to our country4 ,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 profession4 ,general ,study for ,professional ,men4 ,but is it advisable that those wishing to enter the professions should have to go through all the colleges that offer a general preparatory training1--the colleges for ,languages1 ,mathematics1 and ,philosophy8 ,no one could doubt this1 except such as are ready to think themselves ripe1 while they are still raw in the opinion of other men4 ,he that will be perfect in his profession ought at least to have a contemplative knowledge of all that goes before4 ,it will be for the gain of the community that while the student's youth is wedded to honest and learned meditation1 the heat of that stirring age is cooled1 which might set all on fire to the public harm2 ripe judgment is gained1 and all ambitious passions are made subject to self-control4 ,till young men who are coming forward to the professions are made to tarry longer and study more soundly1 learning shall have no credit1 and our country cannot but suffer4 ,it may be asked3 8,what hath a divine to do with ,mathematics80 ,well1 was not ,moses trained in all the learning of the ,egyptians8 ,how can the divine presume to judge and condemn sciences of which he knows nothing but the name8 ,and has not the lawyer to deal with many questions that require a knowledge of the sciences8 ,the physician more than all should see that his professional skill is supported by a wide general study4 ,a ,training ,college for ,teachers4 ,there will be some difficulty in winning a college for those who will afterwards pass to teach in schools4 ,there is no specialising for any profession till the student leaves the ,college of ,philosophy1 from which he will go to ,medicine1 ,law1 or ,divinity4 ,this is the time also when the intending schoolmaster should begin his special training4 ,in him there is as much learning necessary as1 with all deference to their subjects1 is required by any of the other three professions1 especially if it be considered how much the teacher hath to do in preparing scholars for all other careers4 ,why should not these men have this competence in learning1 to be chosen for the common service8 ,are children and schools so small an element in our commonwealth8 ,is the framing of young minds and the training of their bodies a matter of so little skill8 ,are schoolmasters in this realm so few that they need not be taken account of8 ,whoever will not allow of this careful provision for such a seminary of teachers is most unworthy either to have had a good master himself1 or to have a good one hereafter for his children4 ,why should not teachers be well provided for1 so that they can continue their whole life in the school1 as divines1 lawyers1 and physicians do in their several professions8 ,if this were the case1 judgment1 knowledge1 and discretion would grow in them as they get older1 whereas now the school1 being used but for a shift1 from which they will afterwards pass to some other profession1 though it may send out competent men to other careers1 remains itself far too bare of talent1 considering the importance of the work4 ,i consider therefore that in our universities there should be a special college for the training of teachers1 inasmuch as they are the instruments to make or mar the growing generation of the country1 and because the material of their studies is comparable to that of the greatest professions1 in respect of language1 judgment1 skill in teaching1 variety of learning1 wherein the forming of the mind and the exercising of the body require the most careful consideration1 to say nothing of the dignity of character which should be expected from them4 ,use of the ,seven ,colleges4 ,surely there is nothing unreasonable in proposing that these seven colleges should be set up1 and should have the names of the things they profess--,languages1 ,mathematics1 ,philosophy1 ,education1 ,medicine1 ,law1 and ,divinity4 ,if it had been so arranged from the beginning1 public opinion would now have commended the policy and wisdom of those that originated it4 ,and can we not bring about still what1 if it had been done at first1 would have met with such honour1 and will deserve everlasting memory1 at whatever time it may be done8 ,greater changes have been both desired and accomplished in our time4 ,all that is needful for doing it well is ready to our hand3 the material is there2 the lands have neither to be begged nor purchased2 they have already been acquired and given1 and can easily be brought into order1 especially as this is a time of reform4 ,as for putting students of similar age and studies into the same house1 it is desirable on many grounds1 but particularly because it encourages emulation among those who are best fitted to compete with each other4 ,uniting of ,colleges4 ,in saying that colleges should be combined1 so as to permit the bettering of students' livings1 ,i shall have the support at least of those who are now willing to change their college for a fatter living1 or even to abandon the university altogether for their own advantage4 ,at present college livings are certainly too lean1 and force good wits to fly before they are well feathered4 ,a better maintenance would give more time and opportunity for study1 and thus secure a higher standard of learning1 greater ripeness of judgment1 and more solidity of character4 ,students would be made more independent1 and would not have to come under obligations by accepting support from other quarters4 ,the restriction in the number of livings would be no objection1 as it would shut out those less qualified to profit by them1 and thus raise the level of attainment4 ,it were better for the country to have a few well trained and sufficiently provided for1 than an unlearned multitude4 ,moreover1 it is not consonant with the liberal nature of learning either that it should be unnecessarily dependent on charity1 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 welfare4 ,where learning grows up by props it loses its true character2 it is best when the stem can itself bear up the branches4 ,the outward conditions for the furtherance of learning are the selection of scholars on grounds of ability and promise1 and sufficient time and maintenance for their due preparation2 the qualities required for the student himself are diligence and discretion to profit fully by his opportunities4 ,university ,readers4 ,the last reform which ,i am ready to contend for is that there should be ,university readers appointed1 of mature years1 accredited learning and secure position1 who should direct and control the studies of the students4 ,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 subject1 whose judgment has been formed by his wide reading1 and whose experience and intercourse with many intellects has given him skill and address4 ,the student who has not this advantage will gain less with greater pains1 since he could in one lecture have the benefit of his reader's universal study1 put in such a form that he can use it at once4 ,such readers would save their cost in books alone1 which would not then be so needful to the student4 ,they could be appointed with little or no cost to the universities1 and if they carried on their work in convenient houses of their own1 they would undoubtedly draw as many students to their private establishments as there are now in the public colleges4 ,evils of ,overpressure4 ,hasty pressing onward is the greatest enemy that anything can have1 whose best is to ripen at leisure4 ,i have appointed in my elementary teaching--,reading1 ,writing1 ,drawing1 ,singing1 ,playing4 ,now if these are imperfectly acquired when the child is sent to the ,grammar ,school1 what an error is committed6 ,how many small infants have we sent to ,grammar who can scarcely read1 and how many to learn ,latin who never wrote a letter6 ,even though some youngster could do much better than all his companions1 it were no harm for him to be captain a good while in his elementary school1 rather than to be a common soldier in a school where all are captains4 ,many and serious are the evils that are caused by such hasting1 and if deploring them could amend them1 ,i would lament that they are so numerous and so hard to remedy4 ,how common is the lack of proper grounding in children1 and how great is the foolishness of their friends in regard to it6 ,this is the chief cause that at once makes children loth to learn1 and schoolmasters seem harsh in their teaching4 ,for as the master hastens on to the natural aim of his profession1 and the scholar draws back1 being unable to bear the burden1 there rises in the master an irritation which can only be controlled by the wisdom and patience that are the fruits of experience4 ,and as in the teacher irritation breeds heat1 so in the scholar weakness breeds fear1 and so much the more if he finds his master somewhat too impatient1 wherefore neither the one nor the other can do much good at all4 ,whereas if the boy had nothing to fear1 how eager he would be1 and what a pleasure the teacher would take in his aptness to learn6 ,but even if the child's weakness is felt both by himself and by his teacher1 it is difficult to get the parent to believe in it1 owing to the blindness of his affection1 and he will prefer to seek out some other teacher who will adopt his views1 and undertake the task4 ,thus change feeds his humour for the time1 though he will afterwards repent his folly1 when the defect proves incurable1 and the first master is at last admitted to have been a true prophet4 ,so necessary a thing is it to prevent ills in time1 and when warning is given not to laugh it to scorn nor blame the watchman4 ,if the imperfections which come more from haste than from ignorance did not go beyond the elementary school1 the harm done might be redressed1 but as one billow driveth on another1 so haste1 beginning there1 makes the other successions in learning move on at too headlong a pace4 ,is it only to the ,grammar ,school that children are sent too early8 ,are there none sent to the ,university who1 when they come out of it years afterwards1 might with advantage return to the ,grammar ,school again8 ,do not some of good intelligence find in the course of their study the evil effects of too great haste at the beginning1 and wish too late that they had been better advised8 ,and even if they make up what they have missed1 do they not find it true that a process which may be pleasant enough to young boys is full of pain for older people8 ,the ,universities can best judge of the weaknesses of our ,grammar ,schools when they find the defects of those youths whom they receive from us1 though they were not sent by us4 ,we see these defects ourselves1 but we cannot remedy them1 for the partiality of parents over-rules all reason1 and when the pupil is removed all conference with the teacher is cut off4 ,in some places the multitude of schools mars the whole market1 giving too great opportunity for change1 generally for the worse1 so that by degrees the elementary scholar enfeebles the ,grammar ,school boy1 and he in turn transporteth his weakness from his schoolmaster to his university tutor4 ,so important is it to avoid haste at the first1 lest it cause injury to the last4 ,are not youths often sent into the world1 who may receive consideration on account of their degrees1 but deserve none for their learning8 ,if men did not judge sensibly that young shoots must be green1 however good an appearance they may make1 youth might deceive them with its titles1 as it deceives itself with conceit4 ,the causes of haste are--impatience1 which can abide no tarrying when a restless conceit is overladen2 the desire of liberty1 to live as he pleases1 because he pleases not to live as he should2 arrogance1 making him wish to appear a person of importance2 hope of preferment1 urging him to desire dignities before the ability to support them4 ,in the meanwhile the common welfare is sacrificed to personal advantage1 and even that advantage is in appearance and not in reality4 ,the canker that consumeth all1 and causeth all this evil1 is haste1 an ill-advised1 rash1 and headstrong counsellor1 that is most pernicious when there is either some appearance of ripeness in the child1 or some unwise encouragement from a teacher who is without true discernment4 ,it is time that perfecteth all2 it is the mother of truth1 the touchstone of ripeness1 the enemy of error1 the true support and help of man4 ,limit of ,elementary ,course4 ,when the child can read so readily and confidently that the length of his lesson gives him no trouble2 when he can write so neatly and so fast that he finds no kind of exercise tedious2 when his pen or pencil gives him only pleasure2 when his music1 both vocal and instrumental1 is so far forward that a little voluntary practice may keep it up and even improve it2 then the elementary course has lasted long enough4 ,the child's ordinary exercises in the ,grammar ,school will continue his reading and writing and he will always be drawing of his own accord1 because it delighteth his eye1 and busieth not his brain4 ,his music1 however1 must be encouraged by the pleasure taken in it by the teacher and his parents1 for in those early years children are musical rather for others' benefit than for their own4 ,it is certain that in tarrying long enough to bring all these things to perfection there is no real loss of time1 especially seeing that these attainments1 even if they go no further1 make a pretty adornment to a household if they be thoroughly acquired4 ,difficulties in ,teaching4 ,a great and learned man of our day1 ,philip ,melancthon1 thought so much of the troublesome and toilsome life which we teachers lead that he wrote an interesting book on the miseries of schoolmasters4 ,we have to thank him for his good-will2 but as there is no kind of life1 be it high or low1 that has not its own share of troubles1 we need not be overwhelmed by a sense of our special difficulties4 ,our profession is certainly more arduous than most2 but1 on the other hand1 not many have such opportunities of doing good service4 ,there is little profit1 however1 in such comparisons4 ,to what purpose should ,i show why the teacher blames one thing1 the parent another1 the child nothing but the rod which he is so prone to deserve8 ,so apt are we to repine at the pain we suffer1 without weighing the offence which deserved it4 ,i will rather proceed to deal with the remedies for what he calls 8miseries10 but ,i would prefer to term inconveniences1 with which the teaching profession has to contend in our own time4 ,the counsel ,i offer1 though referring specially to the youngest scholars1 may well be carried further and applied to the oldest and most advanced in any course of learning4 ,the remedies ,i take to be two--uniformity of method1 which would secure economy both of time and expense1 and the establishment of public school regulations1 made clearly known to all concerned1 which would prevent misunderstandings between teachers and parents or scholars4 ,uniformity of ,method4 ,no one who has either taught1 or has been taught himself1 can fail to recognise that there is too much variety in teaching1 and therefore too much bad teaching1 for in the midst of many by-paths there is but one right way4 ,this is proved by the differences of opinion that men show1 due to better or worse training in youth1 to greater or less application to study1 to longer or shorter continuance at their books1 to their liking or disliking some particular kind of learning1 and many other similar causes1 which may lead ignorance to vaunt itself with all the authority that belongs to sound knowledge4 ,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 schools1 and causes serious inequalities in the universities4 ,it may happen that a weak teacher by some accident brings up a strong scholar1 and that an abler man owing to some ordinary hindrance makes little show for his labour4 ,but if variety had given place to uniformity1 even the weakest teacher might have done very well1 if he had the intelligence to follow the directions put before him4 ,this defect has often been deplored by our best teachers1 who have nevertheless shrunk from the task of supplying the remedy4 ,if a uniform system could be agreed upon1 all the youth of this whole realm will seem to have been brought up in one school1 and under one master1 both in regard to the matter and to the manner of their teaching1 while differing in their own invention1 which is individual by nature1 though it may be trained by general rules of art4 ,such a measure must needs bring profit to the learner by saving him from the chances of going astray1 ease to the teacher by lightening his labour1 honour to the country by providing a store of good material1 and immortal renown to the enlightened sovereign who should confer so great a benefit4 ,though agreement in a uniform method must be enforced by authority1 it must be based on some likeness of ability in teachers in regard to their own specialty1 though they may differ much in the manner of applying it and in other qualities4 ,now the only way to procure this equal standard of efficiency1 where natural differences are so great1 is to lay down in some definite scheme what seems best1 both as to what and as to how to teach1 with all the particular circumstances that may apply to the best-ordered schools not beyond the reach of the indifferent teacher1 yet such as to satisfy the more skilful4 ,thus diligence on the part of the less able may even effect more than the greater learning of the other1 who may become negligent or insolent from over-confidence4 ,if ,i am not mistaken1 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 good1 than to leave it at random to the liberty of the more learned1 who commonly make use of teaching only to shift with for a time1 and are but pilgrims in the profession1 always thinking of removing to some easier or more profitable kind of life4 ,scholars cannot profit much when their teachers act like strangers1 who1 intending some day to return to their own country1 cannot have that zealous care which the native showeth1 and though conscience may sometimes cause an honest man to work well and do his duty in this temporary position1 such cases can be only exceptional1 and general provision must be for the leading of the weaker1 who will always need it4 ,if when this scheme for settling the matter and the manner of teaching is set down1 those who have to carry it out prove negligent1 and delay or even defeat the good effects1 by their ill-advised handling of what was well meant1 the overseers and patrons of schools must bring pressure to bear on such teachers1 of their own motion if they can1 and if they cannot1 then by the assistance of learned men who are competent to act1 and who out of courtesy will help to further the end in view4 ,our precepts are general2 the application must be made according to the circumstances of particular cases4 ,i have only roughly indicated the purpose of uniformity in teaching1 and the disjointing of skill by misordered variety1 yet who is so blind as not to discern that the one removes the evils caused by the other1 and thereby relieves the schools of many hindrances8 ,rapid progress in learning would at once follow1 through the choice of the best and fittest authors from the first1 the use of exercises adapted to the advancement of the child1 and the teacher's orderly procedure in general4 ,by this means the scholar would not learn anything he ought to forget1 or leave anything needful unlearned1 through the ill-advised counsel of his teacher1 and the teacher on his part would be saved from hurrying on too fast1 or dwelling too long on one thing4 ,the best course being hit upon at the first1 as may be generally appointed1 one thing helpeth another forward naturally1 without forcing2 what is first taught maketh way for what must follow next1 and continual use will let nothing be forgotten which is once well got1 and the gradual advance in learning will succeed in proportion1 without loss of time or unnecessary labour either through lingering too long or hurrying on too fast4 ,this result cannot possibly be brought about at present1 while things are left to the discretion of teachers1 of whom the most are not specially enlightened1 and even the very best cannot always hit upon the most fruitful methods1 and while the customary education is held as a sanction1 alteration even for the better considered a heresy1 and approval determined by personal prejudice4 ,i do not touch upon any hindrances that cannot easily be removed1 if the matter be taken in hand by authority2 difficulties that belong to special circumstances must be dealt with at another time4 ,the lack of uniformity is clearly shown when children change both schools and teachers2 either the new master thinks it some discredit to himself to begin where the old one left off1 or disapproves of the choice that the previous teacher had made1 or seeks to exalt himself by finding fault with the other1 or else the arrangement of his school does not admit of a regular progression1 every school having a plan of its own4 ,sometimes the boy not being properly grounded1 either through the ignorance of his teachers or his own negligence1 cannot easily be influenced for the better1 or led to give up his own conceit of himself1 and this generally happens when the parents are unreasonable and think their child disgraced if he is 8put back10 as the phrase is1 whereas in reality he is bid only to look back1 to see that which he never saw and ought to have seen very thoroughly4 ,this cause of disorder1 proceeding from the parents1 affecteth us all1 causing great weakness and much failure of classification in the forms of our schools1 whereas if there were a uniform order fixed by authority1 however often the child may change1 his advancement is easily tested1 and the parents will have no pretext for discontent1 when they see that the matter is fixed by public provision1 and that there is no room for private partiality4 ,at present the only thing that is uniform in our schools is the common grammar set forth by authority1 the use of which confirms the opinion ,i have expressed1 as regards both the policy of adopting it from the beginning1 and the advantage of having something definitely decided to which we are all bound to agree4 ,whether the book now in use may be retained with some amendment1 or should give place to one with a better method1 is a matter for consideration1 for all such books1 serving for direction1 must be fashioned to the matter which they seem to direct by rule and precept1 existing as they do1 not for their own sake1 but as a means to an end4 ,the experience of having a common grammar proves the value of uniformity1 but it remains a matter of controversy whether it is itself the best possible grammar4 ,the second advantage of uniformity is the saving of expense4 ,while it is left to the teacher's liberty to make his own choice1 both as to what book he shall use and what method he shall adopt1 what with the variety of judgment and inequality of learning in teachers1 which may be unified by authority1 but will never be by consent1 the parents' purses are heavily taxed and poor men are sorely pinched4 ,this is brought about both by the change of books1 the master often reversing his former choice1 and also by their number1 every book being commended to the buyer which either maketh a fair show to be profitable1 or is otherwise solicited to the sale owing to the need for disposing of an over-supply4 ,whatever is needful to be used in schools may be very well comprised in a small compass2 one small volume may be compounded of the marrow of many1 and the change need not be great4 ,nor yet hereby is any injury done to good writers1 whose books may very well tarry for the ripeness of the reader1 and the place that is due to them in the ordinary ascent of learning and study1 according to their value and degree1 so that they may win praise for their authors from those who are able to judge1 and may bring profit to the student when he is able to understand and remember them4 ,choice of ,school ,books4 ,in our ,grammar ,schools we profess to teach the tongues1 or rather to make a beginning with teaching them4 ,every subject that is treated in any tongue supplies the student with the terms that belong to it1 which are most easily got up in connection with the matter4 ,if1 then1 the scholar of the ,grammar ,school be taught to write1 speak1 and understand readily in some well-chosen subject1 the school has performed its duty in doing even so much1 though the boy may not know all1 or even most1 of the words in the language1 which is a matter for further study4 ,those that assign their tasks to ,grammar ,school teachers recommend historians and poets1 though they make some distinction of writers according to the tendency of their matter and the purity of their style4 ,but what time is there in our schools to run over all these1 or even to deal with a few of them thoroughly8 ,would it not be more creditable to our profession1 and more convenient for the parents1 to have a selection carefully made and printed by itself8 ,and should not the most important books be left over to be taken in connection with the particular callings to which they refer8 ,let those who are gifted with imagination make a special study of the poets1 and those who take most interest in the records of memorable deeds devote themselves to history4 ,if men of greater learning have leisure and desire to read1 they may use histories for pleasure as an after-dinner study1 neither trying the brain nor proving tedious1 since they cannot generally be accepted as a basis of judgment1 because ignorance of the circumstances causes a difficulty in applying conclusions4 ,they may also run through the poets when they are disposed to laugh1 and to behold what bravery enthusiasm inspireth4 ,for when poets write soberly and plainly1 without attempting any illusion1 they can scarcely be called poets1 though they write in verse1 but only when they cover a truth with a veil of fancy1 and transfigure the reality4 ,we should therefore cull out some of the best and most suitable for our introductory course1 and leave all the rest for special students1 and that not in the poets and histories alone1 but also in all other books that are now admitted into our schools4 ,some very excellent passages1 most eloquently and forcibly penned for the polishing of good manners and inducement to virtue1 may be picked out of some of the poets1 and from none more than ,horace4 ,but heed must be taken that we do not plant any poetic fury in the child's disposition4 ,for that impetuous imagination1 where it already exists1 is in itself too wayward1 though it be not helped forward1 and where it is not present it should in no case be forced4 ,as for other writers1 regard must be paid to the number and choice of their words1 the smoothness and propriety of their composition1 and the solid worth of their matter4 ,quintilian's rule is the best1 and should always be observed in choosing writers for children to learn1 to pick out such as will feed the intelligence with the best material1 and refine the tongue with the most polished style1 so that we avoid alike trivial and unsuitable matter1 however eloquently set forth1 and what is rudely expressed1 however weighty and wise it may be1 reserving only those passages where the good tendency and intelligibility of the subject are clothed and honoured with refined and fitting language4 ,i intend myself1 by the grace of ,god1 to bestow some pains on this task1 if ,i see any hope of my labour being encouraged4 ,if any one else will take the matter up ,i am ready to stand aside and rejoice in his success2 if none other will1 then ,i trust my country will bear with me when ,i offer my dutiful service in so necessary a case4 ,if any one of higher position should be inclined to resent my action1 ,i must appeal to the public judgment1 yet if such a one does not step forth and prove his own skill1 he cannot complain if another speaks while he is silent4 ,i crave the gentle and friendly construction of such as be learned1 or love learning1 and if ,i should have the misfortune to dissatisfy any in my work1 ,i will do my best to improve it4 ,school ,regulations4 ,the second remedy for the difficulties of teachers is to set forth the school regulations in a public place1 where they may be easily seen and read1 and to leave as little as possible uncertain which the parent ought to know1 and out of which dissatisfaction may arise4 ,for if at the first entry the parent agree to those arrangements which he sees set forth1 so that he cannot afterwards plead either ignorance or disapproval1 he cannot take offence if his child be forced to keep them in the form to which he consented4 ,yet when all is done there may be doubt about the interpretation of the rules4 ,wherefore the manner of teaching1 the method of promotion1 the times of admission1 the division of numbers1 the text-books1 and all those matters into which uniformity can be introduced1 being already known to be fixed by authority1 as ,i trust they will be1 or at least the arrangements being set down which the schoolmaster on his own judgment intends to keep1 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 work1 exceptions being made in special cases1 and what will be the intervals for play1 which indeed is very necessary1 and not as yet sufficiently taken into account4 ,punishments4 ,but the teacher must above all make clear what punishments he will use1 and how much1 for every kind of fault that shall seem punishable by the rod4 ,for the rod can no more be spared in schools than the sword in the hand of the ,prince4 ,by the rod ,i mean some form of correction1 to inspire fear4 ,if that instrument be thought too severe for boys1 which was not devised by our time1 but received from antiquity1 ,i will not strive with any man in its defence1 if he will leave us some means for compelling obedience where numbers have to be taught together4 ,even in private upbringing1 if the birch is wholly banished from the home1 parents cannot have their will1 whatever they may say4 ,and if in men serious faults deserve and receive severe punishment1 surely children cannot escape punishments which bring proportional unhappiness4 ,and if parents were as careful to enquire into the reasons why their child has been beaten as they are ready to be unreasonably aggrieved1 they might gain a great deal more for the child's advantage1 and the child himself would lose nothing by the parent's assurance4 ,but commonly in such cases rashness has its recompense1 the error being seen when the mischief is incurable1 and repentance is useless4 ,beating1 however1 must only be for ill-behaviour1 not for failure in learning1 and it were more than foolish to hide all faults and offences under the name of 8not learning40 ,what would that child be without beating1 who even with it can hardly be reclaimed1 whose capacity is sufficient1 the only hindrance lying in his evil disposition8 ,the aim of our schools is learning2 if it fails through negligence1 punish the negligence1 if by any other wilful fault1 punish that fault4 ,let the teacher make it clear what the punishment is for1 and leave as little as possible to the report of the child1 who will always make the best of his own case1 and will be sooner believed than even the best master1 especially if his mother be his counsellor1 or if his father be inconstant and without judgment4 ,the schoolmaster must therefore have a list made out of school faults1 beginning with moral offences1 such as swearing1 disobedience1 lying1 stealing1 and bearing false witness1 and including also minor breaches of discipline1 such as truancy and unpunctuality4 ,to each of these should be apportioned a certain number of stripes1 not many but unchangeable4 ,the master should also try to secure that the fault should be confessed1 if possible1 without compulsion1 and the boy clearly convicted by the verdict of his schoolfellows4 ,for otherwise children will dispute the matter vigorously1 relying on credulity and partiality at home4 ,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 napping1 they will allege spite or some private grudge4 ,and if the master use correction1 to support the authority of his lieutenants1 the culprit will complain at home that he hath been beaten without cause4 ,if the master postpone punishment1 the delay will serve them to devise some way of escape1 in which they can count upon home support4 ,to tell tales out of school1 which in olden times was held to be high treason1 is now commonly practised in an unworthy way4 ,there are so many petty stratagems and devices that boys will use to save themselves that the master must be very circumspect1 and leave no appearance of impunity where a penalty is really deserved4 ,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 conduct4 ,it is passing hard to reclaim a boy in whom long impunity hath grafted a careless security1 or rather a sturdy insolence2 and yet friends will urge that the boy should not be beaten for fear of discouraging him1 though they will have cause to regret this afterwards4 ,it is also not good after any correction to let children dwell too long on the pain they have suffered1 lest it cause too much resentment1 unless the parents are wise and steadfast2 and indeed that child is happy who has such parents1 and who lights as well on a skilful and discreet master who acts in harmony with them4 8,but certainly it is most true1 whatever plausible arguments may be used in a contrary sense1 that the determined master who can use the rod discreetly1 though he may displease some who think all punishment indiscreet when it falls on their own children1 doth perform his duty best1 and will always bring up the best scholars4 ,no master of any force of character can do other than well1 where the parents follow the same treatment at home which the teacher does at school1 and if they disapprove of anything1 will rather make a complaint to the master privately than condole with their child openly1 and in so doing bring about more mischief in one direction than they can do good in any other4 ,the same faults must be faults at home which are faults at school1 and must be followed by the same consequences in both places1 so that the child's good may be considered continuously as well in correction as in commendation40 ,those who write most strongly in favour of gentleness in education reserve a place for the rod1 and we who frankly face the need for severity on occasion1 recommend teachers to use courtesy towards their pupils whenever it is possible4 ,the difference is that they seem to make much of courtesy1 but are forced by the position to confess the need for the rod1 while we1 though accepting the necessity openly1 are yet more inclined to gentleness than those who make greater professions in their desire to curry favour4 ,i would rather hazard the reproach of being a severe master in making a boy learn what may afterwards be of service to him1 even though he be negligent and unwilling at the time1 than that he should lack any advantage when he is older1 because ,i failed to make him learn1 owing to my vain desire to be considered a courteous teacher4 ,a schoolmaster1 if he be really wise1 will either prevent his pupils from committing faults1 or when they are committed1 will turn the matter to the best account1 but in any case he must have full discretion given to him to use severity or gentleness as he thinks best1 without any appeal4 ,but ,i do think gentleness and courtesy towards children more needful than beating4 ,i have myself had thousands of pupils passing through my hands whom ,i never beat1 because they needed it not2 but if the rod had not been in sight to assure them of punishment if they acted amiss1 they might have deserved it4 ,yet in regard to those who came next to the best1 ,i found that ,i would have done better if ,i had used more correction and less gentleness1 after carelessness had got head in them4 ,wherefore1 ,i must needs say that where numbers have to be dealt with1 the rod ought to rule1 and even where there are few1 it ought to be seen1 however hard this may sound4 ,but the master must always have a fatherly affection even for the most unsatisfactory boy1 and must look upon the school as a place of amendment1 where failures are bound to occur4 ,condition of ,teachers4 ,where the salary is sufficient1 it is well for a schoolmaster to be married1 for affection towards his own children will give him a more fatherly feeling towards others1 and smallness of salary will make a single man remove sooner1 as he has less to carry with him4 ,an older teacher should be more fit to govern1 being more constant and free from the levity of youth1 and owing to the discretion and learning which years should bring with them4 ,when all is done1 the poor teacher must be subject to as much as the sun is1 in having to shine upon all1 and see much more than he can amend4 ,his life is arduous1 and therefore he should be pitied2 it is clearly useful1 and therefore he should be cherished2 it wrestles with unthankfulness above all measure1 and therefore he should be comforted with all encouragement4 ,one displeased parent will do more harm in taking offence at some trifle1 than a thousand of the most grateful will ever do good1 though it be never so well deserved4 ,such small recompense is given for the greater pains1 the very acquaintance dying out when the child leaves the school1 though with confessed credit and manifest profit4 ,but what calling is there which has not to combat with discourtesies8 ,patience must comfort when difficulty discourageth1 and a resolute mind is a bulwark to itself4 ,consultation about ,children4 ,of all the means devised by policy and reflection to further the upbringing of children1 as regards either learning or good habits1 ,i see none comparable to these two--conference among all those who are interested in seeing children well brought up1 and systematic constancy in carrying out what is so planned by general agreement1 so that there shall be no changes except where circumstances demand it4 ,the conference of those interested in the upbringing of children may be of four kinds--between parents and neighbours1 between teachers and neighbours1 between parents and teachers1 and between teachers and teachers4 ,under the term 8neighbours0 ,i include all strangers who are moved either by duty or courtesy to help in the training of children4 ,now if parents are willing to take counsel with such1 they may learn by the experience of others how to deal with their own families4 ,if neighbours are willing to give advice to parents when they notice anything amiss in their children1 is it not honourable in them to act so honestly8 ,and does it not show wisdom in parents to take it in a friendly spirit8 ,and are not these children fortunate who have such solicitous helpers among their friends1 and such considerate listeners at home4 ,this consultation may be between the neighbour and the teacher4 ,in this the teacher must act very warily1 for he has to consider what credit he may give to the informer1 how far the scholar is capable of amendment1 and how the parents will look at the matter4 ,when the parent is dealing with his own child1 either from his own knowledge or from accepted report1 his judgment is life or death1 without appeal1 but when the teacher takes this office on him many objections may be made4 #8,why did you believe8 ,why did he meddle8 ,why did you act in this way8' ,but if such consultation be wisely handled by all concerned1 it will be a great advantage to the child to be made to feel that1 wherever he is and whatever he does1 if anyone sees him1 his parent or his master1 or both together1 will also see him through the eyes of others4 ,as for consultation between parents and teachers1 ,i have already said much on this head1 but it is such an important matter that ,i can never say too much about it1 because their friendly and faithful co-operation brings about perpetual obedience in the child1 scorn of evil1 and desire to do well4 ,nothing hinders this so much as credulity and partiality in the parents1 when they are unable to withstand their children's tears and pleading against some deserved punishment4 ,though the parents may at the time gain their point1 they will find in the end that they cannot have their own will as they would like4 ,such consultation is of special value when the child is leaving school to proceed onward to further learning1 and when there is a question of changing masters owing to some fancied grievance4 ,in the former case1 the parent by seeking the teacher's advice can be surer of his ground4 ,in the latter case1 it may prevent loss to the child through misunderstanding4 ,you are offended with the master1 but have you conferred with him1 and explained to him openly the cause of your dissatisfaction8 ,have you made quite sure that the fault is not in your son1 or in yourself8 ,if the master be wise1 and if he hath been advisedly chosen1 though he should chance to have erred1 he will know how to make amends2 if he be not wise1 then the consultation will help to show him up1 and make it certain how much trust can be put in him4 ,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 teachers4 ,the last kind of consultation that ,i recommend is that among the members of the teaching profession1 which has a good influence on education generally4 ,can any single person1 or even a few1 however skilful they may be1 see the truth as clearly as a number can1 in common consultation8 ,even in matters not concerned with learning such conference is found profitable1 and where it is practised among teachers for the common good1 it may have the advantage of giving forth a unanimous opinion to the public4 ,in places where there are a number of schools within a small compass1 this kind of conference can be easily secured and is very desirable4 ,systematic ,direction4 ,the next condition of good upbringing is the best offspring of wise conferences1 namely1 certainty of direction1 indicating what to do and what to learn1 how to do and how to learn1 when and where to do that which refines the behaviour1 and to learn that which advanceth knowledge4 ,for children1 being themselves ignorant1 must have system to direct them1 and trainers must not devise something new every day1 but should at once make definitely known what they will require from the children1 and what the children may look for at their hands4 ,this systematic regularity must be laid down and maintained in schools for learning1 in the home for behaviour1 and in churches for religion1 because these three places are the chief resorts that children have4 ,in schooling it assureth the parents as to what is promised there1 and how far it is likely to be performed1 by informing them of the method and orders that are set down2 it directeth the children as by a well-trodden path1 how to come to where their journey lieth2 it relieveth the master's mind by putting his meaning and wishes into writing1 and giving the results of experience in a form that can be followed as by habit without constant renewal4 ,as for regularity at home1 ,i have already urged it1 in wishing that parents would act so in the home that there may be conformity between their management and that of the school4 ,by this means neither would schools have cause to complain of infection from private corruption1 nor would they easily send any misdemeanour home1 since the child would be sure to be sharply checked by its parents for any ill-doing4 ,there should be the utmost regularity for children in the home1 deciding for them when to rise and when to go to bed1 when and how to say their morning and evening prayers1 when and how to greet their parents night and morning1 on leaving and on entering the house1 at meat and on other occasions4 ,obedience to the prince and to the laws is securely grounded when private houses are so well ordered2 there is little need for preaching when private training is so carefully carried out4 ,regularity and order are equally needful for children when they attend the churches on holidays and festivals4 ,all the young ones of the parish should be placed in a particular part of the church1 where they can be properly supervised1 none being suffered to range through the streets on any pretence1 and all being in the eye of the parents and parishioners4 ,they must further be attentive to the divine service and learn betimes to reverence the rule they will afterwards have to live by4 ,regularity brings present pleasure and much advantage later on1 and he that is acquainted with discipline in his youth will think himself in exile if he find it not in old age4 ,whoever perceives and deplores the present variety in schooling1 the disorder in families1 and the dissoluteness in the church1 will think ,i have not said amiss4 ,yet this systematic regularity is not to be so rigid that it will not yield to discretion where a change in the circumstances demands it4 ,as now our teaching consisteth in tongues1 if some other thing at a future time seems fitter for the ,state1 it must be adopted and given its proper place4 ,but in making changes it is well to alter by degrees1 and not overturn everything all at once4 ,unfortunately human nature is readier to receive a number of corrupting influences than to take pains to lessen a single evil by degrees4 ,thus bold have ,i been with you1 my good and courteous fellow-countrymen1 in taking up your time with a multitude of words1 whose force ,i know not1 but whose purpose hath been to show how1 in my opinion1 the present great variety in teaching may be reduced to some uniformity4 ,i have given free expression to my opinions1 not because ,i am greatly dissatisfied with what we have1 but because ,i often wish for what we have not1 as something much better1 and the rather to be wished because it might be so easily attained4 ,i might have set forth my principles in aphoristic form1 leaving commentary and recommendation to experience and time1 but in the first place ,i do not deserve so much credit that my bare word should stand for a warrant1 and in the second place ,i was unwilling to alienate by precise brevity those whom ,i might win over by argument4 ,wherefore ,i have written on all the various points enough1 ,i think1 for any reader who will be content with reason1--too much1 ,i fear1 for so evident a matter1 as ,i believe these principles cannot be substantially contradicted4 ,for ,i have grounded them upon reading1 and some reasonable experience1 and have applied them to the circumstances of this country1 without attempting to enforce any foreign or strange device4 ,moreover ,i have tried to leaven them with common-sense1 in which long teaching hath left me not entirely deficient4 ,i do not take upon me1 dictator-like1 to pronounce peremptorily1 but in the way of counsel to say what ,i have learned by long teaching1 by reading somewhat1 and observing more2 and ,i must pray my fellow-countrymen so to understand me1 for having been urged these many years by some of my friends to publish something1 and never hitherto having ventured into print1 ,i might seem to have let the reins of modesty run loose1 if at my first attempt ,i should seem like a ,caesar to offer to make laws4 ,howbeit1 my years beginning to decline1 and certain of my observations seeming to some folks to crave utterance1 ,i thought it worth the hazard of gaining some men's favour4 ,my wishes perhaps may seem sometimes to be novelties4 ,novelties perhaps they are1 as all amendments to the thing that needeth redress must be1 but at least they are not fantastic1 having their seat in the clouds4 ,i am not the only one who has ever wished for change4 ,if my wish were impossible of fulfilment1 though it seemed desirable1 it would deserve to be denied1 but where the thing is both profitable and possible1 why should it not be brought about1 if wishing may procure it8 ,i wish convenient accommodation for learning and exercise4 ,this does not now exist in every part of the country1--indeed it scarcely exists anywhere as yet4 ,i would not have wished it if there had been any real difficulty in accomplishing it1 and it will not come about before the wish is expressed4 ,there is no heresy nor harm in my wishes1 which are all for the good and happiness of my country4 ,the ,standard of ,english ,spelling4 ,because ,i take upon me to direct those who teach children to read and write ,english1 and because the reading must needs be such as writing leads to1 therefore ,i will thoroughly examine the whole certainty of our ,english writing1 as far as ,i am able1 because it is a thing both proper to my subject and profitable to my country4 ,for our natural tongue being as beneficial to us for our needful expression as any other is to the people who use it1 and having as pretty and fair phrases in it1 and being as ready to yield to any rule of art as any other1 why should ,i not take some pains to find out the correct writing of ours1 as men have done in other countries with theirs8 ,and so much the rather because it is asserted that the writing of it is exceedingly uncertain1 and can scarcely be rescued from extreme confusion without some extreme measure4 ,i mean1 therefore1 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 direction1 so that both native ,english people may have some secure place to rest in1 and strangers who desire it may have some certain means of learning the language4 ,for the performance of this task1 and for my own better guidance1 ,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 writing1 to the end that by following their way ,i may hit upon their method1 and at the least by their example may devise some means corresponding to theirs1 where the custom of our tongue and the nature of our speech will not admit of the same course being exactly followed4 ,that being done1 ,i will try all the variety of our present writing1 and reduce the uncertain force of all our letters to as much certainty as any writing can attain4 ,i begin at the subject of correct writing1 because reading1 which is the first elementary study1 must be directed both in precept and practice according to the way that the thing which is to be read is written or printed4 ,and considering that the correct writing of our tongue is still in question1 some1 who are too far in advance1 esteeming it quite unfit1 some1 who are too far behind1 thinking it perfect enough1 some1 who have the soundest opinion1 judging it to be on the whole well appointed1 though in certain particulars requiring to be improved1 is it not a very necessary labour to fix the writing1 so that the reading may be sure8 ,now1 in examining the correct method of our writing1 ,i begin at that which the learned tongues used1 to find out what was right for themselves1 when they were in the same position in which ours now is4 ,for all tongues keep one and the same rule for their main development1 though each has its special features4 ,in this way ,i shall be able to answer all those objections which charge our writing with either insufficiency or confusion1 and also to examine1 as by a sure touchstone1 all the other supplements which have been devised heretofore to help our writing1 by either altering the old characters1 or devising some new1 or increasing their number4 ,for if the other tongues that have been so highly esteemed1 when they were subject to1 and charged with1 these same supposed wants with which our writing is now burdened1 delivered themselves by other means than either altering1 or superseding1 or increasing their characters1 and made use of their own material1 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 precedent8 ,that the finest tongue was once quite rude is proved by the very course of nature1 which proceeds from weakness to strength1 from imperfection to perfection1 from a low degree to a high dignity4 ,what means1 then1 did those languages use1 which have won the opinion of being correctly written1 to come by the method that produced that opinion8 ,there are two considerations in regard to speech concerning the way that has been followed in its refining4 ,for if we look into the first degree of refining1 before which no tongue at all had any beauty in the pen1 we have to consider how the very first language proceeded from her first rudeness to her fullest perfection4 ,again1 we have to consider how other secondary languages have improved and purified themselves by following the same method as that used by the primitive tongue4 ,but ,i desire to be warranted by them both1 that is1 to follow the first refiners and also the second improvers in this course1 which1 as far as ,i know1 no man has yet kept in this subject1 though several have written orthographies4 ,and my opinion is1 that it best beseems a scholar to proceed by art to any recovery from the claws of ignorance4 ,therefore1 ,i will examine1 even from the very root1 how and by what degrees the very first tongue seems to have come by her perfection in writing1 and what means were taken to continue that perfection1 ever since the time that any tongue was perfected4 ,consideration1 however1 must always be had to the special peculiarities of any particular tongue1 as these cannot be comprised under a general precept along with any other tongue1 but must be treated as exceptions to the common rule4 ,and yet even these particular features are not omitted in the general method of the first refining1 and thus it is commended to us by means of translations1 which come in the third degree1 and refine after the first1 by following the intervening process4 ,now1 in this long passage from the first condition of extreme rudeness to the last neatness of finished skill1 ,i will name three stages1 each naturally succeeding the other1 where the reader's understanding may alight and go on foot1 if it be wearied with riding4 ,the first stage is while the sound alone bore sway in writing4 ,the second is while consent in use removed authority from sound alone to the joint rule of reason1 custom1 and sound4 ,the third1 which is now in progress1 is while reason and custom secure their own joint government with sound by means of art4 ,for as sound1 like a restrained but not banished ,tarquinius1 desiring to be restored to his first sole monarchy1 and finding supporters only in the province of sound1 sought to make a tumult among the writers1 ever after that reason and custom were joined with him in commission4 ,i will1 therefore1 first deal with the government in writing which was under sound1 when everything was written according to the sound1 though that stage came to an end long ago4 ,i should begin too far back in seeking out the ground of correct writing1 if ,i should enquire either who devised letters first1 or who wrote first1--a thing as uncertain to be known as it would be fruitless if it were known4 ,for what certainty can there be of so old a thing1 or what profit can arise from knowing one man's name1 even if one were the founder1 which can scarcely be8 ,for though he be honoured for the fruit of his invention1 yet his authority would do small good1 seeing that the matter in question is to be confirmed not by the credit of the inventor1 who dwells we know not where1 but by the user's profit1 which everyone feels4 ,and therefore as they who devised the thing first 7for it was the invention of no one man1 nor of any one age71 did a marvellously good turn to all their posterity1 so we1 as their posterity1 must think well of the inventors1 and must judge that pure necessity was the foundress of letters1 and of all writing1 as it has been the only general breeder of all things that better our life1 need and want forcing men's wits to seek for such helps4 ,for as the tongue conveyed speech no further than to those that were within hearing1 and the necessity of communication often arose between persons who were further off1 a device was made to serve the eye afar off by the means of letters1 as nature satisfied the ear close at hand by the use of speech4 ,for the handing down of learning by the pen to posterity was not the first cause of finding out letters1 but an excellent use perceived to be in them to serve for perpetuity a great while after they had been found by necessity4 ,the letters being thus found out in order to serve a needful turn1 took the force of expressing every distinct sound in the voice1 not by themselves or any virtue in their form 7for what likeness or affinity has the form of any letter in its own nature to the force or sound in a man's voice87 but only by consent of the men who first invented them1 and the happy use of them perceived by those who first received them4 ,hereupon in the first writing the sound alone led the pen1 and every word was written with the letters that the sound commanded1 because the letters were invented to express sounds4 ,then for the correct manner of writing1 who was sovereign and judge but sound alone8 ,who gave sentence of pen1 ink1 and paper1 but sound alone8 ,then everyone1 however unskilful1 was partaker in the authority of that government by sound4 ,and there was good reason why sound should rule alone1 and all those have a share in the government of sound1 who were able even to make a sound4 ,in those days1 all the arguments that cleave so firmly to the prerogative of sound1 and plead so greatly for his interest1 in the setting down of letters1 were esteemed most highly1 as being most agreeable to the time1 and most serviceable to the ,state4 ,but afterwards when sound upon sufficient cause was deposed from his monarchy1 as being no fit person to rule the pen alone1 and had others joined with him in the same commission1 who were of as good countenance as he1 though not meant to act without him1 then their credit was not at all so absolute1 though reasonably good still4 ,this any well-advised supporters of sound may well perceive1 and be well content with1 if they will but mark the restriction in the authority of sound1 and its causes4 ,for as great inconveniences followed1 and the writing itself proved more false than true1 when the pen set down the form that the ear suggested to answer a particular sound1 and as the sound itself was too imperious1 without mercy or forgiveness whatever justification the contrary side had1 men of good understanding1 who perceived and disliked this imperiousness of sound1 which was maintained with great uncertainty1--nay rather with confusion than assurance of right1--assembled themselves together to confer upon a matter of such general interest1 and in the end1 after resolute and ripe deliberation1 presented themselves before sound1 using the following arguments to modify his humour1 but seeking rather to persuade than compel3 ,that it would please him to take their speech in good part1 considering that it concerned not their private good1 but the general interest of the whole province of writing3 ,that he would call to his remembrance the reasons which moved them at the first to give him alone the authority over the pen1 as one whom they then thought most fit for such a government1 and indeed most fit to govern alone3 ,that they now perceived1 not any fault in him1 for using like a prince what was his peculiar right1 granted by their own commission1 but an oversight in themselves in unadvisedly overcharging him with an estate which he could not rule alone without a sacrifice of his honour1 whereof they were as tender as of their own souls3 ,that their request therefore unto him was not to think more of his own private honour than of the good of the whole province3 ,that they might with his good leave amend their own error1 which however it concerned his person yet should not affect his credit1 the fault being theirs in their first choice4 ,they paused a little while1 before they uttered the main cause of their motion1 for they noticed that sound began to change colour1 and was half ready to swoon4 ,for the fellow is passionate1 tyrannous in authority but timorous4 ,howbeit1 seeing that the common good urged them to speech1 they went on1 and told him in plain terms that he must be content to refer himself to order1 and so much the rather because their meaning was not to seek either his deprivation or his resignation1 but to urge him to qualify his government1 and make use of a further council which they meant to join with him1 as a thing likely to bear great fruit1 and of good example in many such cases1 since even great potentates and princes1 for the general weal of their states1 were very well content1 upon humble suit made to them1 to admit such a council1 and use it in affairs3 ,that the reasons which moved them to make this suit1 and might also move him to admit the same1 were of great importance3 ,that because letters were first found only to express him1 therefore they had given him alone the whole government therein1 and were well contented with it1 until they had espied1 not his misgovernment1 but their own mischoice3 ,that the bare and primitive inventions1 being but rude1 and being ruled accordingly1 and experience at the time affording no more growth in refinement1 why should they not now yield to refinement1 upon better cause1 what they yielded to rudeness from mere necessity8 ,that no man having any sense of the correctness in writing that is commended by experience would yield the direction to sound alone1 which is always altering1 and differs according as either the pronouncer is ignorant or learned1 or the parts that pronounce are of clear or stop delivery1 or as the ear itself has judgment to discern3 ,that considering these defects1 which crave reform1 and the letter itself1 which desires some assurance of her own use1 it might stand with his good pleasure to admit to his council two grave and great personages1 whom they had long thought of1 and through whose assistance he might the better govern the province of the pen4 ,since they praised the parties so much1 he desired their names4 ,they answered--,reason1 to consider what will be most agreeable upon sufficient cause1 and ,custom1 to confirm by experience and proof what ,reason would like best1 and yet not to do anything without conference with sound4 ,the personages pleased him for their own worthiness1 but the very thing that recommended them to him for their own value made him dislike them for the danger to himself4 ,for is not either reason or custom1 if it please them to aspire1 more likely to rule the pen than sound8 said he to himself4 ,howbeit1 after they had charged his conscience with all those reasons in one throng1 which they had used individually before1 urging that it were no dishonour to yield a little to those who had given him his whole rule3 ,that they might have leave to amend their own error in overcharging him3 ,that though they seemed to lower his rank1 yet they did not seek to defraud him of his own3 ,that the wrongs done to writing1 which they indicated to him were matters worthy of redress3 ,that the councillors whom they appointed were honourable and honest3 ,that the common benefit of the whole province of writing earnestly sued for it1 and they were very well assured that so good a father as he was to that poor estate would never be unwilling1 but rather voluntarily condescend without any request1 that he might not be half dishonoured in delaying the request from not knowing the grievances4 ,after they had pressed him so closely1 though he was very loth1 after being once a sole monarch1 to become almost a private person by admitting controllers1 as it seemed to him1 rather than councillors1 as they meant1 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 them1 he was content to yield1 though with some show of discontent in his very countenance1 and to admit ,reason and ,custom as his fellow-governors in the correct method of writing4 ,for in very deed wise and learned people1 whatever they may lend ignorance to play with for a time1 reserve to themselves judgment and authority to exercise control1 when they see unskilfulness play the fool too much1 as in this same quarrel for the alteration of sounds according to a presumptuous rule they had very great reason to do4 ,for as in faces1 though every man by nature has two eyes1 two ears1 one nose1 one mouth1 and so forth1 yet there is always such diversity in countenances that any two men may easily be distinguished1 even if they are as like as the two brothers1 the ,lacedaemonian princes1 of whom ,cicero speaks2 so likewise in the voice1 though in everyone it passes through by one mouth1 one throat1 one tongue1 one barrier of teeth1 and so forth1 yet it is as different in everyone1 as regards the sound1 by reason of some diversity in the vocal organs1 as the faces are different in form1 through some evident distinction in the natural cast of features4 ,and this diversity1 though it hinders not the expression of everyone's mind1 is yet too uncertain to rule every man's pen in setting down letters4 ,and again1 what reason had it to follow every man's ear1 as a master scrivener1 and to leave every man's pen to its own sound1 where there were such differences1 that they could not agree where the right was1 everyone laying claim to it8 ,again1 why should ignorance in any matter be taken for a guide in a case demanding knowledge8 ,because of the clamour of numbers8 ,that were to make it an affair of popular opinion1 whereas the subject is one of special difficulty1 requiring wisdom4 ,and therefore if any number1 though never so few1 deserve to be followed1 it were only they who could both speak best1 and give the best reason why4 ,but that kind of people were too few at the first to find any place against a popular government1 where the ear led the ear1 and it was asked why sound should give over his interest1 seeing letters were devised to express sound in every one of us1 and not merely the fancy of a few wise fellows4 ,and yet when corn was once introduced1 acorns grew out of use though a fit enough meat in a hoggish world4 ,for naturally the first serves the turn till the finer and better comes forward4 ,and as something worthily took the place of nothing1 so must that something again give place to its better2 as sound did something to expel rudeness1 though it may not set itself to keep out progress in refinement4 ,wise men would stand no longer to that diversity in writing1 which necessarily followed1 when everyone spelt as his vocal organs fashioned the sound1 or as his skill served him1 or as his ear could discern4 ,all these means are full of variety1 and never in agreement1 as appears by the example of whole nations1 which cannot sound some letters that others can4 ,owing to these discontentments1 and by consent of those who could judge and pronounce best1 they arrived at a certain and reasonable custom--or rather1 truth to say1 to a customary reason--which they held for a law1 not inadvertently hit on through error and time1 but advisedly resolved on by judgment and skill4 ,nor yet did they1 contrary to their promise1 deprive sound of all his royalty1 which was like that of a dictator before1 but they joined reason with him1 and custom too1 so as to begin then in acknowledged right1 and not in corruption after1 as a ,caesar and a ,pompey1 to be his colleagues in a triumvirate4 ,from that time forward sound could do much1 but not at all so much as before1 being many times very justly overruled by his well-advised companions in office4 ,thus ended the monarchy of sound alone4 ,we are now come to that government in writing which was under sound1 reason and custom jointly1 and which proceeded in this way4 ,reason1 as he is naturally the principal director of all the best doings1 and not of writing alone1 began to play the master1 but yet wisely and with great modesty4 ,for considering the disposition of his two companions1 first of sound1 which the letters were to express in duty1 being devised for that purpose1 and then of custom1 which was to confirm and pave the way to general approval1 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 liberty1 in assigning by voluntary choice a particular character for the eye1 to a particular sound in the voice1 so it should be lawful for the said founders and their posterity1 according as the necessity of their use and the dispatch in their pen did seem to require it1 either to increase the number of letters1 if the supply seemed not to satisfy the variety in sound1 or to apply one and the same letter to diverse uses1 if it could be done with some nice distinction1 in order to avoid a multitude of characters1 as we apply words1 which are limited in number1 to things which are without limit2 and generally1 like absolute lords in a tenancy at mere will1 to make their own need the test of all letters1 of all writing1 of all speaking1 to chop1 to change1 to alter1 to transfer1 to enlarge1 to lessen1 to make1 to mar1 to begin1 to end1 to give authority to this1 to take it from that1 as they themselves should think good4 ,this decree being penned by reason1 both sound and custom at once approved--sound1 because there was no remedy1 though his heart longed still for his former monarchy1 which was now eclipsed2 custom1 because that served his turn best4 ,for if necessary use and dispatch in the pen could have authority1 which was given them in law1 by consent of the men who were successors to those that first founded the letter 7which were men of the most learned and wisest sort71 then were custom indeed1 having reason for a friend1 and sound no foe1 a very great prince in the whole province in both writing and speaking4 ,and good reason why4 ,for custom is not that which men do or speak commonly or most1 upon whatsoever occasion1 but only that which is grounded at the first upon the best and fittest reason1 and is therefore to be used because it is the fittest4 ,if this take place according to the first appointment1 then is custom in his right2 if not1 then abuse in fact seems to usurp upon custom in name4 ,so that ,i take custom to build upon the cause1 and not to make the cause4 ,after reason had brought both sound to this order1 and custom to this authority1 then was there nothing admitted in writing but that only1 which was signed by all their three hands4 ,if the sound alone served1 yet reason and custom must needs confirm sound2 if reason must have place1 both sound and custom must needs approve reason2 if custom would be credited1 he could not pass unless both sound supported him and reason ratified him4 ,during the combined government of these three1 the matter of all our precepts that concern writing first grew to strength2 then rules were established and exceptions laid down1 when reason and custom perceived sufficient cause4 ,but none of all these were as yet commended to art and set down in writing2 they were only held in the memory and observation of writers1 having sufficient matter to furnish the body of an art1 but lacking in method1 which came next in place1 and joined itself with the other three for this purpose4 ,all this time1 while reason and custom governed the pen as well as sound1 the discontented friends of sound never rested1 but always sought means to supplant the other two1 ever buzzing into ignorant ears the authority of sound and his right to his own expression2 and the same errors that troubled the pen while sound alone was the judge1 began to creep in again1 and cause a new trouble1 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 exception1 though those of learning and wisdom1 who had first set up reason and custom as companions to sound1 and still continued of the same mind1 could very well distinguish usurpation from inheritance1 and right from wrong4 ,reason therefore1 finding by the creeping in of this error both that he himself was being injured by senseless time1 and his good custom sorely assailed by counterfeit corruption1 perceived the fault to lie in the want of a good notary1 and a strong obligation1 by which to set in everlasting authority1 by right rule and true writing1 what he and custom both1 by the consent of sound1 had continued in use1 though not put down in writing4 ,this would ever be in danger of continual revolt from the best to the worst1 by the uncertainty of time and the elvishness of error1 unless it were set down in writing1 and the conditions subscribed by all their consents1 for a perpetual evidence against the repiner4 ,for this is the difference between a reasonable custom and an artificial method1 that the first does the thing for the second to confirm1 and the second confirms by observing the first4 ,while nothing was set down in writing1 sound and his accomplices were in hopes of some recovery1 but this hope was cut off when the writings were made1 and the conditions settled4 ,the notary who was to cut off all these controversies and breed a perpetual quiet in the matter of writing1 was ,art1 which gathering into one body all those random rules that ,custom had beaten out1 disposed them so in writing1 that everyone knew his own limits1 ,reason his1 ,custom his1 ,sound his4 ,now when ,reason1 ,custom1 and ,sound were brought into order1 and driven to certainty by the means of art and method1 then began the third1 the last1 and the best assurance in writing4 ,art1 being herself in place1 perceived the direction of the whole tongue to be an infinitely hard task--nay to be scarcely possible in general1 considering the diverse properties of the three rulers1 reason1 custom1 and sound1 which alter always with time4 ,for what people can be sure of their own tongue any long while8 ,does not speech alter sometimes for the better1 if the ,state where it is used itself continue and grow to better countenance1 either for great learning1 or for any other matter1 which may help to refine a language8 ,and does it not sometimes change to the more corrupt1 if the ,state where it is used chance to be overthrown1 and a master-tongue coming in as conqueror1 command both the people1 and the people's speech also8 ,in consideration of this uncertainty1 ,art betook herself to some one period in the tongue1 when it was of most account1 and therefore fittest to be made a pattern for others to follow1 and pleasantest for herself to work and toil in4 ,upon this period she bestowed all those notes1 which she perceived by observation 7the secretary to reason7 to be in the common use of speech and pen1 either clear in sound1 or suitable to reason1 or liked by custom1 but always supported by them all4 ,such a period in the ,greek tongue was the time when ,demosthenes lived1 and that learned race of the father-philosophers3 such a period in the ,latin tongue was the time when ,cicero lived1 and those of that age3 such a period in the ,english tongue ,i take this to be in our own day1 both for the pen and for speech4 ,art choosing such a period in the primitive tongue1 and having all the material gathered into notes1 wherewith to set up her whole frame and building of method1 distributed them in such a way that there was not any one thing necessary for correct writing1 but she had it in writing1 saving some particulars which will be always impatient of rule1 and make fresh matter for another period in speech2 though that which is now made so sure by means of art can never be in danger of any alteration1 but will always be held for a precedent to others1 being most perfect in itself4 ,for a tongue once enrolled by the benefit of art1 and grown to good credit1 is established in such assurance that its right cannot be denied1 and opposition would be soon espied1 however it should wrangle2 then it is made a common example for the refining of other languages1 which have material for such a method1 and desire to be so refined4 ,this course was kept by the first tongue that ever was refined1 from the first invention of any letters1 until corruption which had slily crept in1 but had been wisely perceived1 made a reform necessary4 ,this reform grew again to corruption1 in the nature of a relapse1 because1 though it was soundly made1 yet it was not armed with sufficient security against the festering evil of error and corruption4 ,therefore1 when it felt the want of such an assurance1 it begged aid from art1 which1 like a beaten lawyer1 handled the matter with such forethought in the penning of his books1 that each of those who were in any way interested was taught to know what was his own4 ,other tongues besides the first to be refined1 on marking this current of events1 applied the same to their own writing1 and were very glad to use the benefit of those men's labour1 who wrestled with the difficulties of sound1 error1 corruption1 and the residue of that ill-humoured tribe4 ,this original precedent in the first1 and transferred pattern in the rest1 ,i mean to follow in finding out our correct ,english writing1 and whether it will prove to be fashioned accordingly and framed like the pattern1 shall appear when the thing itself shall come forth in her own natural hue1 though in artificial habit4 ,before ,i deal further with this matter1 ,i must examine two principal points in our tongue1 of which one is1 whether it has material in it for art to build on1 because ,i said that art dealt where she found sufficient matter for her labour4 ,the other is1 whether our writing is justly challenged for those infirmities with which it is charged in our time1 because ,i said that this period of our own time seems to be the most perfect period in our ,english tongue1 and that our custom has already beaten out its own rules1 ready for the method and framework of art4 ,these two points are necessarily to be considered4 ,for if there be either no material for art owing to the extreme confusion1 or if our custom be not yet ripe enough to be reduced to rule1 then that perfect period in our tongue is not yet come1 and ,i have entered upon this subject while it is yet too green4 ,however1 ,i hope it will not prove premature1 and therefore ,i will first show that there is in our tongue great and sufficient stuff for art to work upon2 then that there is no such infirmity in our writing as is pretended1 but that our custom has become fit to receive this framing by art by the method which ,i have laid down1 without any outside help1 and by those rules only which may be gathered out of our own ordinary writing4 ,it must needs be that our ,english tongue has matter enough in her own writing to direct her own practice1 if it be reduced to definite precepts and rules of art4 ,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 it1 or have dealt with it but not rightly thought upon it4 ,for some1 considering the great difficulty which they found to be in the writing of our language1 almost every letter being deputed to many and various--even well-nigh contrary--sounds and uses1 and almost every word either wanting letters for its necessary sound1 or having more than necessity demands1 began to despair in the midst of such a confusion of ever finding out any sure direction on which art might be firmly grounded4 ,perhaps either they did not seek1 or did not know how to seek1 the right form of method for art to adopt4 ,but whether difficulty in the search1 or infirmity in the searchers1 gave cause for this1 the parties themselves gave over the thing1 as in a desperate case1 and by not meddling through despair they fail to help the right4 ,again some others1 bearing a good affection to their natural tongue1 and being resolved to burst through the midst of all these difficulties1 which offered such resistance1 devised a new means1 in which they placed their hope of bringing the thing about4 ,whereupon some of them who were of great place and good learning1 set forth in print particular treatises with these newly conceived means1 showing how we ought to write1 and so to write correctly4 ,but their good hope1 by reason of their strange means1 had the same result that the despair of the others had1 either from their misconceiving the things at first1 or from their diffidence at the last4 ,the causes why their plans did not take effect1 and thus in part hindered the thing1 by making many think the case more desperate than it really was1 were these4 ,the despair of those who thought that the tongue was incapable of any direction1 came of a wrong cause1 the fault arising indeed not from the thing which they condemned as altogether rude and incapable of rule1 but from the parties themselves1 who mistook their way4 ,for the thing itself will soon be put into order1 though it requires some diligence and careful consideration in him that must find it out4 ,but when a writer takes a wrong principle quite contrary to common practice1 where trial must be the touchstone1 and practice must confirm the means which he conceives1 is it any marvel if the use of a tongue resist such a means1 which is not in conformity with it8 ,from this proceeded the despair of hitting aright1 because they missed their intention1 whereas in reality they should have changed their intention1 in order to hit upon the right1 which is in the thing and will soon be found out1 if it be rightly sought for4 ,again1 the hope of the others deceived them too quite as much4 ,for they did not consider that whereas common reason and common custom have been long engaged in seeking out their own course1 they themselves will be councillors1 and will never yield to any private conception1 which shall seem evidently either to force them or cross them1 in acting as they themselves do1 never giving any precept how to write correctly1 till they have railed at custom as a most pernicious enemy to truth and right1 even in the things where custom has most right1 if it has right in any4 ,therefore when they proceeded in an argument of custom1 with the enmity of him who is ,lord of the soil1 was it any wonder if they failed of their purpose1 and hindered the finding out of our correct writing1 which must needs be compassed by the consent of custom and the friendship of reason8 ,so in the meantime1 while despair deceives the one1 and hope beguiles the other1 the one missing his way1 the other making a foe1 and both going astray1 they both lose their labour1 and hinder the finding out of the best mode of writing1 because the true method of finding out such a thing has another course1 as ,i have shown before4 ,yet notwithstanding all this1 it is very manifest1 that the tongue itself has matter in it to furnish out an art1 and that the same means which has been used in reducing other tongues to their best form1 will serve this of ours1 both for generality of precept and for certainty of foundation1 as may be easily proved on those four grounds--the antiquity of our tongue1 the people's intelligence1 their learning1 and their experience4 ,for how can it be but that a tongue which has continued for many hundreds of years not only a tongue1 but one of good account1 both in speech and pen1 should have grown in all that time to some refinement and assurance of itself1 by so long and so general a use1 the people that have used it being none of the dullest1 and labouring continually in all exercises that concern learning1 and in all practices that procure experience1 either in peace or in war1 either in public or private1 either at home or abroad8 ,as for the antiquity of our speech1 whether it be measured by the ancient ,teutonic1 whence it originally comes1 or even but by the latest terms which it borrows daily from foreign tongues1 either out of pure necessity in new matters1 or out of mere bravery to garnish itself with1 it cannot be young--unless the ,german himself be young1 who claims a prerogative for the age of his speech1 of an infinite prescription2 unless the ,latin and ,greek be young1 whose words we enfranchise to our own use1 though not always immediately from themselves1 but mostly through the ,italian1 ,french1 and ,spanish2 unless other tongues1 which are neither ,greek nor ,latin1 nor any of the forenamed1 from which we have something1 as they have from ours1 will for company's sake be content to be young1 that ours may not be old4 ,but ,i am well assured that every one of these will strive for antiquity1 and rather grant it to us than forgo it themselves4 ,so that if the very newest words we use savour of great antiquity1 and the ground of our speech is most ancient1 it must needs then follow that our whole tongue was weaned long ago1 as having all her teeth4 ,as for the importance of our tongue1 both in pen and speech1 no man will have any doubt who is able to judge what those things are that make any tongue to be of account1 which things ,i take to be three--the authority of the people who speak it1 the subject-matter with which the speech deals1 and the manifold uses which it serves4 ,for all these three our tongue need not give place to any of her peers4 ,first1 to say something of the people that use the tongue1 the ,english nation has always been of good credit and great estimation1 ever since credit and estimation in the course of history came over to this side of the ,alps1 which appears to be true--even by foreign chronicles 7not to use our own in a case that affects ourselves71 which would never have said so much of the people if it had been obscure1 and unworthy of a perpetual history4 ,next1 as to the matter with which it deals1 whether private or public1 it may compare with some others that think very well of themselves4 ,for not to touch upon ordinary affairs of common life1 will matters of learning in any kind of argument make a tongue of account8 ,our nation then1 ,i think1 will hardly be proved to have been unlearned at any time1 in any kind of learning1 not to use any stronger terms4 ,therefore1 having learning by confession of all men1 and uttering that learning in their own tongue for their own use1 they could not but enrich the tongue1 and bring it consideration4 ,will matters of war1 whether civil or foreign1 make a tongue of account8 ,neighbouring nations will not deny our people to be very warlike1 and our own country will confess it1 though loth to feel it1 both on account of remembering the suffering1 and of fearing to gall our friends by vaunting ourselves4 ,now1 in offering material for speech1 war is such a breeder that1 though it is opposed to learning because it is an enemy to the ,muses1 yet it dares compare with any department of learning for the multitude of its discourses1 though these are not commonly so certain or useful as learned subjects4 ,for war 7besides the many grave and serious considerations about it7 as sometimes it sends us true reports1 either privately in the form of projects and devices that are intended1 or publicly in events which are blazed abroad because they have occurred1 so mostly it gives out--,i dare not say lies1 but--very incredible news1 because it can hatch these at will1 being in no danger of control1 and commonly free from witnesses4 ,every man1 moreover1 seeks both to praise himself and to harm his enemy1 besides procuring some courteous entertainment by telling what is not true to those that love to hear it4 ,all these tales about stratagems and engines of war and many other such things1 give matter for speech and occasion for new words1 and by making the language so ready1 make it of renown4 ,will all kinds of trade1 and all sorts of traffic1 make a tongue of account8 ,if the spreading sea and the spacious land could use any speech1 they would both show you where and in how many strange places they have seen our people1 and also let you know that they deal in as much1 and in as great a variety of matters1 as any other people1 whether at home or abroad4 ,this is the reason why our tongue serves so many uses1 because it is conversant with so many people1 and so well acquainted with so many matters1 in such various kinds of dealing4 ,now all this variety of matter and diversity of trade1 both make material for our speech1 and afford the means of enlarging it4 ,for he who is so practised will utter what he practises in his natural tongue1 and if the strangeness of the matter requires it1 he who is to utter1 will rather than stick in his utterance1 use the foreign term1 explaining that the people of the country call it so1 and by that means make a foreign word an ,english denizen4 ,all these reasons concerning the tongue and its importance being put together1 not only prove the nation's exercise in learning1 and their practice in other dealings1 but seem to infer--to say the least--no base-witted people1 because it is not the part of fools to be so learned1 so warlike1 and so well-practised in affairs4 ,i shall not need to prove any of these positions1 either from foreign or home history1 as my readers who are strangers will not urge me for them1 and those of my own nation will not1 ,i think1 gainsay me in them1 since they know them to be true1 and may use them for their honour4 ,therefore ,i may well conclude my first position1 that if use and custom1 having the advantage of such length of time to refine our tongue1 of so great learning and experience to furnish material for the refining1 and of so good intelligence and judgment to direct it1 have attained nothing which they refuse to let go in the correct manner of our writing1 then our tongue has no certainty to trust to1 but writes all at random4 ,but the antecedent is1 in my opinion1 altogether impossible2 therefore the consequent is a great deal more than probable1 which is that our tongue has in her own possession very good evidence to prove her own correct writing2 and though no man as yet1 to judge by any public writing of his1 seems to have seen this1 yet the tongue itself is ready to show it to anyone who is able to read it1 and to judge what evidence is trustworthy in regard to the standard of writing4 ,therefore1 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 writing1 and consider myself to have had the sight of that evidence by which such a standard appears most capable of justification1 and am not altogether ignorant of how to give a decision upon it1 ,i will do my best1 according to the course which ,i said was kept in the first general refining of any speech1 and has also been transferred to every secondary and particular tongue1 to set forth some standard for ,english writing4 ,this ,i will base upon those notes which ,i have observed in the tongue itself1 the best and finest therein1 which by comparison with themselves offer the means of correcting the worse1 without either introducing any innovation1 as those do who set forth new devices1 or mistaking my way1 as those do who despair that our tongue can be brought to any certainty without some marvellous foreign help4 ,thus much for the material fit for art in our tongue2 now for the objections which charge it with infirmities4 ,those who see imperfections in our tongue either blame certain errors which they allege to be in our writing1 or else they will seem to seek its reformation4 ,in pointing out errors they rail at custom as a vile corrupter1 and complain of our letters as miserably deficient4 ,in their desire for redress they appeal to sound as the only sovereign and surest leader in the government of writing1 and fly to innovation1 as the only means of reforming all errors in our writing4 ,in their quarrel with custom they seek to bring it into general hatred1 as a common corrupter of all good things1 declaring it to be no marvel if it abuse speech1 which in passing through every man's mouth1 and being imitated by every man's pen1 must needs gather much corruption by the way1 because the ill are many just as the good are few1 and common corruption1 which they term custom1 is an ill director to find out a right4 ,hereupon they conclude that1 as it seems most probable1 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 custom1 which ought not so much as once to be named1 for direction to what is right1 in either pen or speech1 being so manifestly false1 notwithstanding whatever any writers1 old or new1 can pretend to the contrary4 ,then they descend to particularities1 proving that we sometimes burden our words with too many letters1 sometimes pinch them with too few1 sometimes misshape them with wrong sounding1 sometimes misorder them with wrong placing4 ,and are not these marvellously great causes of discontent with custom1 which is the breeder of them8 ,and yet if good writers seem to favour custom1 then the case is not so clear as you take it to be1 that it is nothing but a hell of most vile corruptions2 that it alone infects all good things2 that it alone corrupts correct writing4 ,for if it were indeed only this1 they would not warrant it1 and give it such great credit1 as ,i remember they do4 ,is there not1 then1 some error in the name1 and may not custom be misconstrued8 ,for certainly these writers1 when they speak of custom1 mean that rule in conduct and virtuous life in which good men agree1 and their consent is what these men term custom1 as they call that rule in speaking and writing the custom wherein the most skilful and learned agree4 ,and is it likely that either the honest in act will mislead virtue in living1 or the learned will disapprove of correctness in writing8 ,and1 again1 those honest men who approve of custom in matters of life complain very much of corruption in manners and evil behaviour2 and the learned men1 who approve of custom in matters of speech and pen1 complain very much of error in writing and corruption in speech2 and both accuse the majority of people as the leaders to error1 and set down the common abuse at the door of the multitude4 ,and therefore it cannot be otherwise but that the double name is what deceives4 ,for those who accuse custom mean false error which counterfeits custom1 and is a great captain among the impudent for evil and the ignorant for rashness1 and yet has the chief part in directing all4 ,and those who praise custom mean plain truth1 which cannot dissemble1 which is the companion of the honest in virtue1 and of the learned in knowledge1 and directs all best4 ,now will ye see8 ,this mistermed 8custom0 in the pen is that counterfeit abuse which was the only cause why the monarchy of sound1 of which ,i spoke before1 was dissolved1 and itself condemned by those wise people who joined reason with sound2 and the right custom which writers commend so is that companion of reason which succeeded in its place when the counterfeit was cast out4 ,now you see the error4 ,so neither do writers approve of such a corruption1 nor is custom your opponent1 but both writers and custom1 as well as you and ,i will scratch out the eyes of common error1 for misusing good things and belying custom4 ,if good things are abused it is by bad people1 whose misnamed custom is rightly named error4 ,if words are overcharged with letters1 that comes either by the covetousness of those who sell them by lines1 or the ignorance of those who1 besides pestering them with too many1 both weaken them with too few1 and wrong them with the change of force and position4 ,when they have dealt thus with custom1 and with their opponents 7as they consider those who are really their friends7 without marking what their reasons are1 or by whose authority custom is established1 which they so impugn by suggestion of a counterfeit1 then they begin to complain sorely of the insufficiency and poverty of our letters4 ,while these are as many as in other tongues1 yet they do not suffice1 it is alleged1 for the full and right expression of our sounds1 though they express them after a sort1 but force us to use a number of them1 like the ,delphic sword of which ,aristotle speaks1 for many sounds and services contrary to the nature of such an instrument1 each letter being intended at first for one sound4 ,thus it comes to pass that we both write improperly1 not answering the sound of what we say1 and are never like ourselves in any of our writing1 but always vary according to the writer's humour1 without any certain direction4 ,therefore1 foreigners and strangers wonder at us1 both for the uncertainty in our writing and the inconstancy in our letters4 ,and is it not a great shame that so able a nation as the ,english1 who have been of very good note for so many years1 either should not notice1 or would not amend1 in all this time the poverty of their pen1 and the confusion in their letters1 but both let their writing thus always run riot1 and themselves be mocked by foreign people8 ,if foreigners do marvel at us1 we may requite them with as much1 and return their wonder home1 considering that they themselves are subject to the very same difficulties which they wonder at in us1 and have no more letters than we have1 and yet both write and are understood in spite of all these insufficiencies1 just as we also write and are understood in this our insufficiency even by their own confession4 ,but the common use of writing among those strangers1 which agrees so with ours in our uncertainty1 makes me think that this complaint of insufficiency is not general either with them or with us1 but in both cases belongs to a few1 who objecting to what they know nothing of1 and not observing what they cannot1 therefore blame what they should not4 ,for if their blaming upon good cause1 and marking upon wise judgment concurred with their number1 though not so great1 ,i should be afraid lest they should have the better1 because they were the fewer2 but being both the fewer and the weaker1 they carry no great weight in condemnation4 ,other folks also1 who see something as well as they1 do not quite disapprove of all their disapproval1 but desire some redress1 where there is good cause1 though they may not agree as to the means of bringing about the redress1 nor yet admit that the error is as great as these objectors pretend4 ,for we confess that this multiplicity and manifold use in the force and service of our letters requires some distinctions to be known by1 if general acquaintance with our own writing do not help us to perceive in use what we put down by use2 but still we defend and maintain the multiplicity itself1 as a thing much used even in the best tongues1 and therefore not unlawful1 even though there were no distinctions4 ,and again1 we do not think that every custom is an evident corruption1 where the general usage of those who cannot be suspected of writing with other than good judgment1 lays the groundwork for precept1 as leading to the exercise of art1 and assurance to the pen4 ,and we rest content with the number of our letters4 ,some people in studying to increase this number1 only cumber our tongue1 both with strange characters and with needless diphthongs1 forcing us away from what the general rule has won and is content with4 ,and why not these letters only8 ,or why may they not be put to many uses8 ,this paucity and poverty of letters has contented the best and bravest tongues that either are1 have been1 shall be1 or can be1 and has expressed by them1 both in speech and pen1 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 intelligence4 ,the people that now use them1 and those that have used them1 have naturally the same organs of voice1 and the same delivery in sound1 for all their speaking1 that we ,english have1 because they are men1 just as we ,english folk are2 and they handed down the use of the pen to us1 and not we to them4 ,and finding in their own use this necessity which you note1 they fled to that help which you think naught1 and were bold with their letters1 to make them serve diverse turns1 sometimes with change1 sometimes with some ingenious mark of distinction4 ,that this kind of distinction is enough1 is known to all who are acquainted with the foreign letters1 and with those writers who treat of them4 ,nor is there any difficulty which they are not subject to1 either in the same or in very similar things1 just as we are4 ,and will strangers wonder at us8 ,or do not those of our own people who are learned perceive these things8 ,for in the ignorant ,i require no such discretion4 ,i certainly think that all people1 as they have the same natural organs to speak by1 though from habit some may harp more on one sound than on others1 and some--even whole nations--may lean more upon one organ1 such as the throat or the teeth1 than others do1 yet naturally all are made able to sound all kinds of speech and all letters1 if they are accustomed to them at the most fitting age and by the best means4 ,i hold also that it is only education and custom that make the difference1 and therefore rule all1 or at least most1 in speech1 wherein if there be any reason1 it is not natural and simple1 as in things1 but artificial and compound1 based upon such and such a cause in custom and consent4 ,and though the ,hebrew grammarians alone divide their letters according to the vocal organs on which they lean most1 such as the throat1 the roof of the mouth1 the tongue1 the lips1 or the teeth1 yet not the ,hebrews alone have that distinction in nature1 but every people which has throat1 teeth1 palate1 tongue1 lips1 and with those organs use the utterance of sounds4 ,this is an argument to me1 both that use is the mistress1 and that he who sounds on any one method by the usage of his country1 may be smoothed to some other by the contrary use1 and that therefore the same letters will serve all people1 if they choose to frame themselves accordingly4 ,for1 otherwise1 why do we persuade our people to sound ,latin in one way1 ,greek in another1 ,hebrew in another1 ,italian in another1 if it is not a thing that we can become acquainted with through customary usage8 ,and this being so in all nations1 what need have we for more letters to utter our minds1 seeing that the organs of utterance are all one1 and that nothing can be uttered either more diverse or difficult than those have uttered from whom we have the letters we possess8 ,nor is it any discredit to our people to rest content with those letters1 and with that number1 which antiquity has approved and held for sufficient4 ,is nature1 therefore1 which was fruitful in them1 now so barren that we may not invent1 and add something to theirs8 ,no1 forsooth4 ,all mankind is one1 without any respect of this or that age1 both to nature herself1 and to the ,god and ,lord of nature1 and therefore what is given to one man1 or delivered in one age of common service1 is meant for all men and all ages1 and always for their benefit2 nor is either ,god himself1 or nature his minister1 tied to any time for the delivery of their gifts1 but whenever man's necessity compels him to seek1 then they help him to find4 ,we understand1 therefore1 that as no one age brings forth everything1 so no one age can but confess that it has some one or other particular invention1 though not the self-same1 because it is enough to have received it once to use ever after4 ,so is it in this use of letters1 which being once perfected is never to be shaken1 unless a better means be found of uttering our speech1 which ,i shall not see1 nor can foresee by any secret prophecy4 ,in these inventions1 though the first receiver have the prerogative in taking1 yet the whole posterity has the benefit in using1 and generally with greater perfection1 because time and continuance increase and prune1 and when it is at the full1 it is a mistake to seek further1 which ,i take to be the case in the matter of penning4 ,nor is the restraint from innovating1 altering1 or adding to things already perfected any discourtesy in reason1 or any discountenance in nature1 but the simple delivery of a perfect thing to our elder brethren to be conveyed unto us2 as we in like case must be the transporters to our posterity of such things as it pleases ,god to continue by our means1 whether received from our elders or devised by ourselves4 ,but why may we not use all our four-and-twenty letters1 even for four-and-twenty uses each1 if occasion serve1 seeing that the characters being known are more familiar and easier to be discerned than any new device--yea1 even though the old resembled each other more1 and there were but one new8 ,it has been sufficiently declared already1 that those men who first devised letters1 reserved the authorities over them and their use to themselves for life1 and to their successors for ever1 to modify and use them as it should please them best by consent among themselves1 as necessity arose4 ,and why not so1 where the invention is their own1 and the right use of it8 ,this general reservation is enrolled already in all reason and antiquity1 and the particular consent for the writing of our language is given already by our general use1 and will be registered also in a very good record1 ,i hope1 and that shortly4 ,and will you make that sovereign which is but subaltern8 ,or will you take that to be immovable like a steady rock1 which roams by nature1 to serve the finder8 ,there is no such assurance in sound for the establishing of a right as you conceive1 nor any such necessity in letters to be constant in one use as you seek to enforce4 ,the philosopher says that nature makes one thing for one use1 and that every use has its particular instrument naturally1 but that our own inventions--nay1 that even the most natural means--may through our application1 serve for sundry ends and uses4 ,and will letters stand so upon their reputation as not to seem to admit of our applying them to their own purposes1 seeing that they are both our creatures1 and by creation our bondmen1 both to sound as we shall think good1 and in as many ways as we may wish them to serve8 ,no1 surely1 they do not think so1 but they are most ready to serve as we appoint1 both by creation and by covenant4 ,the letters yield readily1 but some letters seek to delay their dutiful obedience1 holding that their substance is adamant1 and that they were not born to yield so4 ,with the same pen we make letters and mar them2 with the same we direct and destroy them2 which are contrary uses1 though meant to compass the same right end4 ,and will letters seem to serve but for one use1 being nothing but elves of the pen's breeding8 ,they will not1 but prove their own dutifulness to the pen1 their parent1 by following his direction in very many points1 as they yield to reason and reasonable custom in many of their powers1 whereby they seem to argue against contention1 they themselves being satisfied4 ,the number of things which we write and speak about is infinite1 yet the words with which we write and speak are definite and of limited number4 ,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 languages1 as well as in ,english1 where a number of our words are of very various powers1 as in the sentence3 8,a bird flies light1 wherever she may light10 and many others that need not now be mentioned4 ,and will letters stand aloof1 so as to sound always in but one way1 and to serve always but one use1 where their great-grandfathers1 even the words themselves1 are forced to be manifold--nay1 are very well content so to be1 because of their founder's command to be pliable1 and at the voluntary disposal of wisdom and learning8 ,letters must not stand aloof1 but approve of the service allotted to them1 be it never so manifold1 seeing that without confusion1 customary acquaintance will make the distinctions clear2 as a disputer will sift out the difference of manifold words1 so that the variety in their senses may cause no quarrel in the argument4 ,if through want of skill and mere ignorance1 we do not write always in the same way1 then knowledge is the helper1 and he that will follow the right usage must have the desire to learn aright4 ,if distinctions are wanted then accent must be the means of avoiding confusion1 or some such device which may serve the purpose without pestering the writing by anything too strange4 ,for it is most certain that we may use our letters like all other things whose end is the convenience of man4 ,nor is it any abuse when those who use can give a reason that is sufficient to the wise1 and not contrary to good custom4 ,and though some may not be persuaded1 yet when an act is passed by division of the house1 it is law by parliament4 ,then the objectors must relent and follow1 though they may not favour it4 ,they must make the best of what they thought worst1 when lawful authority restrains their will4 ,a thing originally free1 being once controlled by order1 has lost its freedom1 and must then keep the current appointed for it1 being itself subject to man for his uses4 ,our letters are limited in number1 but their usage is certain even in their greatest uncertainty1 and therefore ,i take it that we may rest content both with their number and with their use4 ,so much concerning the complaint of our poverty in letters1 and the confusion in their powers1 which ,i do not wonder at1 because ,i see it so in all things2 and ,i see no cause why we cannot overcome the difficulty by our own inventions and devices1 where we are to take account of nothing but our own consent1 guided by the judgment of the wisest men1 and imitation of uncorrupted nature4 ,if there be need1 the increase in the number of our letters is not refused to us any more than to other people1 but the need is denied1 because we entered upon other people's most perfect inventions1 and though this came later in time1 yet it was so much the surer1 because all things necessary were devised to our hands1 and because our need can be no new need4 ,whatever we need to write we are able to write1 and when we have written it we are able to read it4 ,if there be any fault1 the remedy must be1 not to seek what we have not1 but to mark what we have1 seeing that we have sufficient4 ,the credit of sound being well established in their opinion1 as the natural lord and leader of all our letters1 and custom being condemned as a traitor1 intruding against all right upon the territory of sound1 then they turn to the cure of this diseased corruption1 and pray ,hippocrates to be judge4 ,to amend that which is amiss in the writing of our tongue1 their ground-work being laid in the shaken monarchy of deposed sound1 they proceed in a full course of general innovation1 though some more and some less4 ,first1 they increase the number of our letters and diphthongs1 as if it were not possible either heretofore to have written1 or at this day to write1 any word correctly1 for want of some increase in the number of our letters4 ,for as the overcharging of our words with too many letters comes by using too much those which we have already1 so the difficulty through using them so diversely proceeds from the mere want of material to answer each particular purpose4 ,then they change the form of our letters and bring us in new faces with very strange lineaments1 how well-favoured to behold1 ,i am sure ,i know1 and how unready for a penman to run on with1 methinks ,i foresee1--yet such readiness in the character to follow the hand roundly is a special service belonging to the pen4 ,nor do ,i myself in these observations so much regard what the print will stamp well1--for it will express anything well whose form can be imitated1--as what the pen will write well and that with good dispatch1 because printing is but a peculiar benefit for the few1 while writing is general and in every man's fingers4 ,a form that is fair to the eye in print and cumbersome to the hand in penning1 will not pass in writing4 ,to conclude1 this1 they say1 is the only help to amend all misses3 for defect1 to enlarge2 for what is old and corrupt1 to bring in what is new and correct2 need enforces redress1 and duty requires these changes4 ,must we then alter all our writings anew8 ,or from what day is this reform to take full place8 ,it is a strange point of physic when the remedy itself is more dangerous than the disease4 ,besides1 ,i take the alteration in this sort to be neither necessary1 as there is no such insufficiency1 nor yet expedient1 seeing that such inconveniences follow4 ,for speech being an instrument and means of uttering what the mind conceives1 if by the delivery of the mouth the mind be understood1 the speech is sufficient in fully answering so needful a purpose4 ,if writing1 in which ,i include both the print and the pen1 so fully express the pith of the voice that the reader may understand the writer's meaning in full1 ,i cannot persuade him that the letters which he reads are not sufficient to express the writer's meaning1 as he is ready to confute this by the proof that he understands it most completely4 ,but these objectors will say that this understanding comes1 not through the writing1 but by the intelligent reader1 who understands correctly by means of the so usual1 though so corrupt1 writing1 which is imperfectly and improperly written1 and that propriety in using the pen is wrongly refused1 when it may be had easily with very small effort4 ,i like the reason well1 as ,i admit some imperfection4 ,but neither is the imperfection so great as they conceive1 nor is their reason so near to redress as they think4 ,as for the imperfection1 how it comes and how to help it1 my whole labour will prove that in the sequel4 ,as for their reason1 ,i cannot see that it would be a small effort1 because they alter entirely1 or at least they quite change the superficial appearance1 which in this case1 where propriety in writing is the possession of custom1 would be too great a strain4 ,for custom1 being so secure1 will not be content to be overruled in his own province1 or to admit the claim of any reform where he is proprietor1 however private men's notions1 upon never so probable appearances1 may offer support to the contrary side4 ,the use and custom of our country has already chosen a kind of penning1 in which she has set down her religion1 her laws1 her private and public dealings2 every private man has1 with the approval of his country1 so drawn his private writings1 his evidence1 his letters1 that the thing seems impossible to be removed by so strong an alteration1 though it be most willing to receive some reasonable pruning1 so that the substance may remain1 and the change take place in such points only as may please without novelty1 and profit without forcing4 ,for were it not in good sooth too violent a step to offer to overthrow a custom so generally received1 so definitely settled--nay1 grounded so securely as shall shortly appear--by altering either all or most of our letters8 ,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 match8 ,nay1 were it not wonderful even but to wish that all our ,english scripture and divinity1 all our laws and policy1 all our evidence and writings were penned anew1 because we have not that set down in writing which our forefathers meant1 but either more or less1 owing to the insufficiency of our writing1 which is not able to set faithfully and fully down what the mind conceives8 ,they will say that they do not mean so radical a change4 ,but they must needs mean it1 because it must either follow at once upon the admitting of this new alteration1 which is too great in sense1 or1 after a term of years1 which is too great in thought4 ,for with a new writing coming in1 and the old character growing out of knowledge1 all records of whatever kind must needs either come over to the new fashion1 or remain worm-eaten like an old relic1 to be read as the ,roman religion written down under ,numa ,pompilius was read by those of ,cicero's time1 when every word was as uncouth and strange as if it had come from some other world4 ,but am ,i not undertaking a needless task in disapproving what ,i need not fear1 because there is no danger in it1 the very usage of our country refusing it already8 ,i grant ,i am4 ,but yet ,i must say something that ,i may not seem to contemn1 since if ,i say nothing my opponents may then seem to have said something4 ,but certainly ,i hold the thing to be much too cumbersome and inconvenient1 even though it were likely to be profitable1 but where no likelihood of any profit at all is in sight1 and the change itself seems neither necessary nor easy1 ,i cannot approve the means1 though ,i bear no grudge to its proposers1 who deserve great thanks for their good intentions4 ,for their labour is very profitable to help forward some redress1 though they themselves have not hit on it4 ,for while different men attempt to solve the problem1 some one or other will hit it at last1 whereas the case would be desperate if it were never dealt with4 ,but this amendment of theirs is too far-fetched1 and without its help we understand our print and pen1 our evidence1 and other writing4 ,and though we grant some imperfection1 as in a tongue not yet fully developed1 yet we do not admit that it is to be perfected either by altering the form or by increasing the number of our familiar letters1 but only by observing where the tongue by her ordinary custom yields to the refining process1 as the old1 and therefore the best1 method leads us4 ,for it is no argument1 when faults are found1 to say this is the help1 and only this1 because no other is in sight4 ,but whenever the right is found by orderly seeking1 then the argument is true1 that it was not thoroughly sought1 when it was denied to exist4 ,and to speak impartially between the letter and sound on the one side1 and custom and the letter on the other side1 letters can express sounds with all their joints and properties no more fully than the pencil can the form and lineaments of the face1 whose merit is not life but likeness2 for the letters1 though they yield not always what sound exactly requires1 give always the nearest1 and custom is content with this4 ,and therefore if a letter do not sound just as you wish1 yet hold it as the next best1 lest if you change you come not so near4 ,and though one letter be used in diverse1 or even contrary sounds1 you cannot avoid it by any change1 seeing that no other has been liked hitherto but this which we use4 ,certainly1 so far as ,i have observed1 we are as well appointed for our necessity in that way1 and as much bound to our general custom for the artificial tones of our natural tongue as any other nation is to any other language1 whether ancient in books or modern in speech4 ,and whatever insufficiency seems to be in its writing1 it will excuse itself1 and lay the whole blame upon the insufficient observer for not seeking the solution in the right way4 ,this will be found true1 when it shall be seen that by sufficient care it may be made clear and pure without any foreign help1 and without either altering the form or increasing the number of our ordinary letters1 but only by notes of its own breeding1 which1 being already in use1 desire nothing else but some direction from art4 ,this ,i am in good hopes of performing1 according to the plan of the best refiners in the most refined tongues1 with such consideration as either breeds general rules1 or else must bear with particular exceptions4 ,i will mark what our customary writing will yield us in the way of notes1 without dreaming of change1 which cannot stem so fatal a current as custom runs with4 ,i will therefore do my best to confirm our custom in his own right1 which will be easily obtained1 where men are acquainted with the matter already1 and would be very glad to see wherein the correct manner of their writing stands1 and a great deal more glad to find it so near when they thought it to be further off4 ,thus have ,i run through these alleged infirmities in our tongue1 whose physicking ,i like not this way1 and therefore ,i will join close with my own observation to see if that will help4 ,those men who will give any certain direction for the writing of any tongue1 or for anything else that concerns a tongue1 must take some period in its history1 or else their rules will prove inapplicable4 ,for every tongue has a certain ascent from the lowest to the highest point1 and a descent again from the highest to the lowest2 and as in the ascent it has not reached a secure position1 because it is not thoroughly reduced to art1 so in the descent it comes to be not worth noting1 because it gets rude again1 and in a manner withered4 ,hence it comes that the age of ,demosthenes is the prince of ,greece1 as that of ,cicero is the flower of ,rome1 and if the languages of these countries had not been committed to the security of books1 they would have been of little worth2 nay1 they would have been forgotten altogether1 long before our day1 as the spoken tongues of those nations1 changing continually since the periods named1 are now quite altered1 or at least are nothing like what they were in their prime1 though still blooming in another form4 ,so that books give life where bodies bring only death4 ,consider the ,greek and ,latin writers before the ages of those men1 and by comparing them with these1 you will see the difference that ,i spoke of1 the earlier being too rude to be brought under rule1 and the later departing from established rules and yielding to change4 ,this period of full development1 with the ascent to it and the decline leading to decay1 shows us that everything belonging to man is subject to change1 the language changing also1 but never dying out4 ,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 means4 ,for if any tongue be fixed1 and free from movement1 it is enshrined in books1 not subject to ordinary use1 but made immortal by the register of memory4 ,this secret mystery1 or rather quickening spirit1 that dwells in every spoken tongue1 and therefore in our own1 ,i call 8prerogative10 because when sound has done his best1 when reason has said his best1 and when custom has carried into effect what is best in both1 this prerogative will resist any of them1 and take exception to all their rules1 however general and certain4 ,it thus makes way for a new change1 which will follow at some stage of the language1 if the writer's period be chosen at the best4 ,i cannot compare this customary prerogative in speech to anything better than to those who devise new garments1 and are left by law to liberty of device4 ,hence it comes in the matter of apparel1 that we do not remain like ourselves for any length of time1 though what is most seemly1 like a rule of art1 pleases the wisest people best4 ,from this same liberty of speech to carve out a way for itself1 come the exceptions to our general rules4 ,hence it comes that enough1 bough1 tough1 and such other primitives are so strangely written1 and more strangely sounded4 ,in this way prerogative seems to be like quicksilver1 ever stirring and never settled1 though the general custom always offers itself to be ordered by rule1 as a close friend to reason4 ,this stirring quintessence1 leading to change in a thing that is naturally changeable and not blameworthy for changing1 some not very well-advised people consider as an error1 and a private misuse1 contrary to custom1 because it seems to be a very imperious controller1 but in this they are deceived4 ,for indeed1 though this prerogative1 by opposition in particular cases1 checks general conclusions1 yet that opposition came not from individual men2 it is a private thing itself1 and the very life-blood which preserves tongues in their best natural form1 from the first time that they grew to be of any account till they come to decay1 and begin a new period1 different from the old1 though excellent in its kind1 which in its turn must give way to another when the time is ripe4 ,i take this present period of our ,english tongue to be its very height1 because ,i find it as excellently refined1 both in its general substance and in its customary writing1 as either foreign workmanship can give it gloss1 or home-wrought handling can give it grace4 ,when the period of our nation which now uses the tongue so well is dead and departed1 another will succeed1 and with the people the tongue will alter4 ,a later period may in its full harvest prove comparable to the present1 but surely this which we now have seems to be at its best and bravest1 and whatever may become of the ,english ,state1 the ,english tongue cannot prove fairer than it is at this date1 if it may please our learned class to think so of it1 and to bestow their labour on a subject so capable of adornment1 and so fitting to themselves4 ,the force of prerogative is such that it cannot be disobeyed1 though it seems to derange some well-ordered rule1 and make people wonder who do not weigh the cause4 ,for this reason1 when any case arises quite contrary to the common precept1 though not to the common custom1 then we must needs think of the power of prerogative1 a great princess in influence1 and a parent to corruption1 but intending to raise another ,phnix from the former ashes4 ,he who refuses to grant such a prerogative to any tongue1 denies it life1 unless he means1 by registering some period in it of most excellent note1 to restrain prerogative1 and preserve the tongue1 which he secures by writing from being profaned by the people2 it becomes then a learned tongue and exempt from corruption1 as our book-languages are1 whose rules are so secure that they dream of no change4 ,this prerogative and liberty which the nation has1 to use both speech and pen at will1 is the cause why ,english writers are finer now than they were some hundred years ago1 though some antiquary may consider the old writing finer4 ,but the question is wherein fineness consists4 ,so was ,sallust deceived among the ,romans1 living with ,cicero1 and writing like ancient ,cato4 ,in this prerogative of writing1 the very pen itself is a great influence and has marvellous authority1 for being the secretary who carries out what is expressed by the intelligence1 it presumes upon this to venture1 as far as any counsellor may1 though never against reason1 whose instrument it is to satisfy the eye as the tongue satisfies the ear4 ,custom1 whose charge prerogative is1 as the pen is his conveyer1 favours the pen very greatly and will not hesitate to maintain that a dash with a pen may hold for a warrant1 when both speed and grace bid the pen be bold4 ,hence it comes that in our language so many z's are heard1 and so few seen1 owing to the regard for dexterity and speed in the fluency of writing2 and as the pen can do this1 ,i take it as a matter of prerogative1 for the sake of smoothness1 that our tongue uses z so much for s4 ,but it may be said that all our exceptions1 due to most reasonable prerogative1 may well be reduced to a general form1 which ,i do not at all deny1 though ,i see some difficulty in altering what our custom has thus grasped1 and it were almost too much to require any wise and learned man so to arrest exceptions1 particularly where no standard can be fixed4 ,he who wishes this seems to conceive of such a thing1 but even if it were attempted1 the stream of custom would break out again immediately in some other way1 and cause an even greater gap1 for no banks can keep it in so narrowly but those that are content to be sometimes overflowed1 and no strength can withstand such a current but those stays which in the fury of water will bend like a bulrush4 ,if any pen1 either through ignorance or pretension1 offend against reason1 and intrude upon prerogative1 that is no good quill1 and it will not be upheld by me2 nor is that current to be called custom which holds by usurpation2 nor is that cause to be accounted reason which has any other beginning than genuine knowledge1 or any other ending than the nature of the thing will seem to admit4 ,certainly1 when ,i consider the matter deeply--and my thoughts on it have not been slight or superficial--,i cannot see why1 when the imperfections are removed that always accompany perfection1 and can easily be removed1 to the satisfaction of the wise who are not blinded with their own habits1 the tongue as well as the pen may not quite well have its prerogative1 since our custom has become so well-ordered that it may be ruled without chopping or changing a single letter1 or otherwise begging more aid from foreign invention than ,i have already sufficiently set down4 ,these are my suggestions for the regulation of our tongue and the fixing of a standard in its writing4 ,if ,i have in any way hit the mark1 ,i shall be warranted by the right1 though it may not seem so to some1 and in this ,i must be comforted1 even if ,i cannot content all4 ,,the ,,peroration4 ,to my gentle readers and fellow-countrymen1 wherein many things are handled concerning learning in general1 and the nature of the ,english and foreign tongues1 besides some particular remarks about the writing of books in ,english4 ,my fellow-countrymen and gentle readers1 my first purpose in taking up this subject1 and venturing into print1 of which till lately ,i have stood in awe1 was to do some good in the profession in which ,i have for many years been engaged1 and by giving my experience in the teaching of the learned tongues1 to lighten the labour of other men1 because ,i had discovered some defects that required a remedy4 ,but the consideration of these led me a great deal further than ,i dreamed of at first4 ,intending to deal only with the teaching of languages in the ,grammar ,school1 ,i was enforced by the sway of meditation to think of the whole course of learning1 and to consider how every particular thing arose in a definite order4 ,for without that consideration how could ,i have discerned where to begin and where to end1 in any one thing that depends on a sequel and proceeds from a principle8 ,for the subject ,i am dealing with is a matter of ascent1 where every particular that goes before has continual reference to what comes after1 if the whole scheme is scientifically arranged4 ,in this course of mine1 the elementary principles may be compared to the first groundwork1 the teaching of tongues to the second storey and the after-learning to the upper buildings4 ,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 others1 so in the stages of learning it were no masterly part not to show a similar care1 and that cannot be done till the whole is thought of and thoroughly shaped in the mind of him who undertakes the work4 ,after ,i had formed an opinion both as to where lay the blemishes which disfigured learning and as to how they might be redressed1 as well for my own practice as by way of advice to others1 ,i came down to particulars and began to examine even from the very first what went before the tongues in the orderly upbringing of children4 ,this was the first task that claimed me before ,i fell to further thoughts and the last too1 even when ,i had considered all that followed1 but it was then undertaken more advisedly4 ,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 groundwork4 ,what a toil it is to a grammar master when the young child who is brought to him to teach1 has no foundation laid on which anything can be built6 ,i undertook1 therefore1 to enquire into all those things that concern the elementary training1 as a stage in teaching preceding the study of grammar1 hoping by my own labour to be of use to a multitude of masters4 ,moreover1 as this matter concerns learners who have not yet entered upon ,latin1 and teachers who may have only mediocre learning1 ,i thought it best to publish in the tongue that is common to us all1 both before and after we learn ,latin4 ,but here there are three questions that may perhaps be asked3 ,first1 what those blemishes are which ,i observed in the main body of learning1 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 point2 secondly1 why in regard to methods of teaching ,i do not content myself with following the precedent of other writers1 who in great numbers have written learned treatises with the same end in view1 but rather toil myself with a private labour1 the issue of which is uncertain1 whereas the previous writers on the subject1 being themselves learned1 and having achieved success1 may be followed with assurance2 thirdly1 if it is my endeavour to handle a learned subject in the ,english tongue1 why ,i take so much pains and such a special care in handling it1 that the weaker sort1 whose benefit ,i profess to consider--nay1 often others also of reasonable study--can with difficulty understand the couching of my sentence and the depth of my meaning4 ,while ,i answer these questions1 ,i must pray your patience1 my good masters1 because the things may not be lightly passed over1 and in satisfying your demands ,i shall pave the way for the suit ,i have to make to you4 ,first1 as for my general care for the whole course of learning1 ,i have thus much to say4 ,the end of every individual man's doings for his own advantage1 and the end of the whole commonweal for the good of us all1 are so much alike in aspect1 and so entirely the same in nature1 that when the one is seen the other needs little seeking4 ,each individual man labours in this world in order to win rest after toil1 to have ease after work2 he does not wish to be always engaged in labour1 which would be exceedingly irksome if it were endless4 ,the soldier fights in his own intention perhaps to gain ease through wealth1 which he may win by spoil2 in outward appearance he labours for the advantage of his country by way of defence and security4 ,the merchant traffics in his own intention to procure personal ease through private wealth2 to the public he seems to labour for the common benefit1 by supplying wants in necessary wares for general use4 ,indeed1 all men1 whatever be their occupation1 while seeking private ends in their actions1 at the same time concur in serving general ends4 ,thus it appears that ease after labour is the common aim of both private and public efforts1 because everyone in the natural course of his whole conduct has regard to the general prosperity and quiet1 which maintain his own personal well-being4 ,then the means both of coming by this end1 and when it is come by1 of maintaining it in state1 must needs lie in such directions as make for the peace and quietness of a ,state1 for the keeping of concord and agreement without any main public breach1 both in private houses and generally throughout the whole government4 ,these peaceable directions ,i call1 and not ,i alone1 by the simple name of general learning1 comprising under it all the arts of peace and the ministry of tranquillity--a matter of great moment1 being the only right means to so blessed a thing as fortunate peace1 imparting the benefit of public quietness to every household1 as a central fountain serves every man's cistern by private pipes1 and if it be not sound1 conveying the blemish like the infected water of a fountain1 or the corrupt blood that escaping from the liver poisons the whole body4 ,even war itself1 a professed enemy to learning1 because it is in feud with peace1 may by just handling be shown to work for peace at home by uniting the minds of all against a common foe4 ,by the employment of learning in every department all princes govern their ,states2 the general control is exercised through grave and learned counsellors and wise and faithful justiciaries1 and the particular control1 in religion by divines1 in the health of the body by physicians1 in the maintenance of right by lawyers1 and so on in every particular profession1 from the greatest to the meanest1 throughout the whole government--a most blessed means to a most blessed end1 a learned maintenance of a heavenly happiness in an earthly ,state of a heavenly constitution4 ,therefore1 any error in this means is an injury indeed1 and deserves to be thought of as a hindrance to peace1 and a pernicious destroyer of the best public end1 beginning perhaps as a small spark1 but always gathering strength by the confluence of similar infection in some other parts1 till at last it sets all on fire1 and bursts out in a confusion1 the more to be feared that it festers before it breaks into flame1 and shrouding itself under a show of peace1 consumes without suspicion1 and escapes being brought to terms as a professed enemy4 ,i may say that in my reflection on this subject of the ascent of learning from the elementary stage1 ,i thought ,i found these four imperfections in the whole body of learning--in some places an excess1 in others a defect1 in others too great a variety1 in others too much disagreement4 ,these are four great enormities in a peaceable means1 breeding great diseases1 and bidding defiance to quiet1 both within the ,state in the governing direction1 and outside it by evident inflammation1 and they are therefore to be thought of not only for complaint in particular cases1 but by magistrates in regard to their amendment4 ,as for excess ,i conceive that as in every natural body the number of sinews1 veins1 and arteries to give it life and motion1 is definite and certain1 so in a body politic the distributive use of learning1 which ,i compare to those parts1 is everywhere certain4 ,and whatever is more than nature requires in either of them1 as in the one it breeds disease1 so in the other it causes destruction by breach of proportion1 and so consequently of peace4 ,in natural bodies excess appears when one or more parts encroach on the others and enfeeble them4 ,in communities this excess in learning is to be discerned when the private professions swell too much and so weaken the whole body1 either by the multitude of professional men1 who bite deeply where many must be fed and there is little to feed on1 or by unnecessary professions1 which choke off the more useful1 and fill the world with trifles1 or by an infinitude of books1 which cloy up students1 and weaken them by an intolerable diffuseness of treatment1 fattening the carcass but lowering the strength of pithy matter4 ,do not all these surfeits exist at this day in our own ,state8 ,are they not enemies to the common good1 being grown out of proportion8 ,are they not worth consideration and redress8 ,i pass now to the question of defect4 ,in a natural body there is too little1 when either something necessary is wanting1 or what is there is too weak to serve its purpose4 ,and does not learning show the same defects1 disquieting to a ,state1 when the necessary professional men are wanting either in number or in worthiness2 where show takes the place of sound stuff2 where in place of real learning only superficial knowledge is sought1 enough to make a shift with2 when necessary professions are despised and trampled under foot1 because the cursory student has to post away in haste2 when there is a lack of needful books to further learning1 and those we have are of little use owing to insufficiency of treatment8 ,this corruption in learning any man may see who desires to seek out either the malady or its cure2 it is a breach of proportion1 and therefore of peace1 in a commonwealth1 a pining evil which consumes by starving4 ,as for diversity in matters of learning1 ,i think that as it proceeds from differences in ability1 in upbringing1 in intelligence1 in judgment1 because these are much finer in some than in others1 it does a great deal of harm to the peace of any ,state1 especially where its leaders1 though they may not fall out1 but merely express their opinions1 yet divide studies according to their favourites1 considering the importance of the subjects less than the attraction of the authors4 ,if this diversity breaks out in earnest1 as it has frequently done in our time1 while printing itself1 which in its natural and best uses is the instrument of necessity and the exponent of learning1 becomes very often too easy an outlet for vaunting ambition1 for malicious envy and revenge1 for all passions to all purposes1 what a sore blow is given to the public quiet1 when the means to welfare is made an instrument of distemper6 ,for will not he fight in his fury who brawls in his books8 ,do not those minds seem armed for open conflict--nay1 do they not arm others too by pressing enmity forward--which in private studies enter into combats on paper2 which by too much eagerness make a great ado in matters better quenched than stirred to life2 which whet their wits beforehand to be wranglers ever after1 and as far as lies in them disturb the general welfare8 ,what ,i disapprove of is needless combats in learning2 those that are fruitful may go on1 yet with no more passion than common civility and ,christian charity will allow4 ,excess overburdens1 defect weakens1 diversity distracts1 but dissension destroys4 ,you know yourselves1 my learned readers1 what a wonderful stir there is daily in your schools1 through diverging opinions in logic1 in philosophy1 in mathematics1 in physics4 ,the lawyer generally abstains from controversal writing1 because he does not gain by it what he seeks2 pleading in the ,common ,courts offers a better pasture for a lean purse than a busy pen4 ,the dissension in divinity is specially fierce1 the more so because it often falls out that the adversaries intermingle their own passions with the matters they treat of4 ,for while our religious doctrines sometimes require defence1 disputes might often be compounded1 if men's feelings were as readily cooled as they are inflamed4 ,but in the meanwhile how greatly is the general peace disturbed by dissensions that turn aside a worthy means1 to maintain a wrong and become a slave to some inordinate passion6 ,i cannot enter fully upon this subject1 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 inconveniences1 though at first ,i meant only to help the teaching of the learned tongues4 ,agreement among the learned is the mother of general contentment2 by carping and contradicting they trouble the world and taint themselves1 bearing all the while the name of ,christians--a title which enjoins us to avoid contention1 even by the submission of those who are wronged1 and charges us to defend our religion1 not with passionate minds1 but with the armour of patience and truth4 ,these were the blemishes which ,i saw by the way1 and lamented in the body of learning4 ,the amendment which ,i desire rests upon two great pillars--the professors of learning1 who must give intelligence of the error1 and the principal magistrates--nay1 even the sovereign prince--who being ,god's great instruments to procure quietness for our souls and bodies1 our goods and actions1 must bring about redress in so important a matter as the course of learning4 ,the prince may cut off what is in excess1 make up what is deficient1 reconcile diversities1 expel dissensions1 by his lawful authority for the general good2 and everyone will submit1 because everyone is benefited4 ,this1 indeed1 confirms ,plato's saying that kings should be philosophers2 that is1 that all magistrates should be learned4 ,it is a great corrosive to the whole body of learning1 which is the procurer of peace1 when those who have to direct gain their wisdom only through experience4 ,that is much1 but experience and learning together make the better equipment4 ,it is an honourable conception1 besides that it tends to the general good1 for a learned and virtuous prince1 assisted by wise counsel1 to reduce the number of those that follow learning1 by some principle of selection in every department1 to decide what kinds of learning are most useful to the ,state1 and to appoint a reasonable number of such books as have the best methods of treatment4 ,the final authority in regard to every profession has always lain with the prince4 ,action has been taken before in all the directions ,i have spoken of1 both by consent of the learned and by command of good princes4 ,as our country is small1 the thing could be the more easily done2 as our livings are limited1 it is the more needful2 as the evil is great1 we are the less able to bear it2 as our sovereign is learned1 we shall be the readier to give ear2 as our people are of good understanding1 they are the better able to inform her4 ,but as the physician does not thrive by the prevention of disease1 nor the lawyer grow rich by arresting contentions1 nor a divine prosper so much in a heaven where all is good as on earth where all is evil1 and as private profit will be followed1 though it bring confusion to the ,state1 redress will not stir1 because it judges the world to be in some fault which it is loth to confess4 ,however1 to secure some redress and help in this matter at the hand of the ruler1 is the duty of all who make a profession of learning1 if they will but consider the reputation of learning in our day1 whether from the contempt in which some professions are held1 or from a deficiency in those who enter them4 ,in the professors of learning1 to whose solicitation this point is recommended1 two things are chiefly required4 ,first1 that with minds given to peace they should study soundly themselves1 and that the matter be worthy and taken in due order4 ,for sound learning will not so soon be shaken at every eager point of controversy as that which is shallow4 ,orderly progress gives security1 and a pacific temper furthers the end that is desired both privately and publicly4 ,the consent of the learned and their quiet inclination are a great blessing to any ,commonwealth1 but especially to ours in this contentious time1 when overwhetted minds do very little good to some worthy professions4 ,the distracting division of minds into sects and sorts of philosophy did much injury in the countries where it befel1 and those nations among which religious dissensions arose have never been quiet since4 ,the second point required in a student is not to seek his own advancement so much as that of the things he professes1 and indeed the possession of these things is the best means to advance himself1 for1 where ignorance is blamed1 knowledge is approved1 even though the approver may not be learned4 ,he who studies soundly recommends letters by his own example2 he who solicits the help of those in authority advances learning still further2 he who uses his pen to strengthen the best current of opinion proves the genuineness of his desire by his own practice4 ,in this last form my own labour seeks to recommend uniformity1 to strip off what is needless1 to supply some defects1 to help everyone to as quiet a course as ,i can temper my style to4 ,the second question which ,i said might be demanded of me1 why ,i do not follow the precedent of those learned writers who have handled the subject with great admiration may be very soon answered4 ,i admit that the number of those who have written upon the upbringing of children might be considered sufficient1 and ,i grant the excellence of many of them1 such as ,bembus1 ,sturmius1 and ,erasmus4 ,but the situation is different4 ,a free city and a country under a monarchy are not in the same position1 though they agree in some general respects1 in which indeed these writers do not dissent from me4 ,nor do ,i fail to follow good writers1 taking example from those authors who taught all the later ones to write so well4 ,i am the servant of my country2 for her sake ,i labour1 her circumstances ,i must consider1 and whatsoever ,i shall pen ,i shall myself see it carried out1 by the grace of ,god1 in order the better to persuade others by offering the proof of trial4 ,the third question1 as to my writing in ,english1 and my being so careful--,i will not say fastidious--in expression1 concerns me more nearly1 for it has some importance4 ,it is the opinion of some that we should not treat any philosophical subject1 or any ordinary subject in a philosophical manner1 in the ,english tongue1 because the unlearned find it too difficult to understand in any case1 and the learned1 holding it in little esteem1 get no pleasure from it4 ,in regard both to writing in ,english generally1 and my own writing in particular1 ,i have this to say3 ,no one language is finer than any other naturally1 but each becomes cultivated by the efforts of the speaker who1 using such opportunities as are afforded by the kind of government under which he lives1 endeavours to garnish it with eloquence1 and enrich it with learning4 ,such a tongue1 elegant in form and learned in matter1 while it keeps within its natural soil1 not only serves its immediate purpose with just admiration1 but in foreigners who become acquainted with it1 it kindles a great desire to have their own language resemble it4 ,thus it came to pass that the people of ,athens beautified their speech in the practice of pleading1 and enriched it with all kinds of knowledge1 bred both within ,greece and outside of it4 ,thus it came to pass that the people of ,rome1 having formed their practice in imitation of the ,athenian1 became enamoured with the eloquence of those from whom they were borrowing1 and translated their learning also4 ,however1 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 ,europe1 who use ,latin as a common means of expression1 both in original works and in translations4 ,roman authority first planted ,latin among us here1 by force of their conquest1 and its use in matters of learning causes it to continue4 ,therefore the so-called ,latin tongues have their own peoples to thank1 both for their own cultivation at home and for the favour they enjoy abroad4 ,so it falls out that1 as we are profited by means of these tongues1 we should pay them honour1 and yet not without cherishing our own1 in regard both to cases where the usage is best and to those where it is open to improvement4 ,for did not these tongues use even the same means to cultivate themselves before they proved so beautiful8 ,did the people shrink from putting into their own language the ideas they borrowed from foreign sources8 ,if they had done so1 we should never have had the works we so greatly admire4 ,there are two chief reasons which keep ,latin1 and to some extent other learned tongues1 in high consideration among us1--the knowledge which is registered in them1 and their use as a means of communication1 in both speaking and writing1 by the learned class throughout ,europe4 ,while these two benefits are retained1 if there is anything else that can be done with our own tongue1 either in beautifying it1 or in turning it to practical account1 we cannot but take advantage of it1 even though ,latin should thus be displaced1 as it displaced others1 bequeathing its learning to us4 ,for is it not indeed a marvellous bondage1 to become servants to one tongue for the sake of learning1 during the greater part of our time1 when we can have the very same treasure in our own language1 which forms the joyful title to our liberty1 as the ,latin reminds us of our thraldom8 ,i love ,rome1 but ,i love ,london better2 ,i favour ,italy1 but ,i favour ,england more2 ,i honour the ,latin tongue1 but ,i worship the ,english4 ,i wish everything were in our tongue which the learned tongues gained from others1 nor do ,i wrong them in treating them as they did their predecessors1 teaching us by their example how boldly we may venture1 notwithstanding the opinion of some among us1 who desire rather to please themselves with a foreign language that they know1 than to profit their country in their own language1 which they ought to know4 ,it is no argument to say3 ,will you dishonour those tongues which have honoured you1 and without which you could never have enjoyed the learning of which you propose to rob them8 ,for ,i honour them still1 as much as any one1 even in wishing my own tongue to be a partaker of their honour4 ,for if ,i did not hold them in great admiration1 because ,i know their value1 ,i would not think it any honour for my own language to imitate their grace4 ,i wish we had the stores with which they furnished themselves from foreign sources4 ,for the tongues that we study were not the first getters1 though by learned labour they prove to be good keepers1 and they are ready to discharge their trust1 in handing on to others what was committed to them for a term1 and not in perpetuity4 ,there can be no disgrace in their delivering to others what they received on that understanding4 ,the dishonour will lie rather with the tongue that refuses to receive the inheritance intended for it and duly offered to it1 and from this dishonour ,i would our language were free4 ,i admit the good fortune of those tongues that had so great a start over others that they are most welcome wherever they set foot1 and are always admired for their rare excellence1 disposing all men to think little of any form of speech that does not resemble them1 and to rank even the best of these as marvellously behind them4 ,the diligent labour of the learned men of ancient times so enriched their tongues that they proved very pliable1 as ,i am assured our own will prove1 if our learned fellow-countrymen will bestow their labour on it4 ,and why1 ,i pray you1 should such labour not be bestowed on ,english1 as well as on ,latin or any other language8 ,will you say it is needless8 ,certainly that will not hold4 ,if loss of time over tongues1 while you are pilgrims to learning1 is no injury1 or lack of sound skill1 while language distracts the mind from the sense1 especially with the foolish and inexperienced1 then there might be some ground for holding it needless4 ,but since there was no need for the present loss of time in study through labouring with tongues1 and since our understanding is more perfect in our natural speech1 however well we may know the foreign language1 methinks necessity itself calls for ,english1 by which all that bravery may be had at home that makes us gaze so much at the fine stranger4 ,but you will say it is uncouth2 so it is1 through being unused4 ,so was it with ,latin1 and so it is with every language4 ,cicero himself1 the paragon of ,rome while he was alive1 and our best pattern now though he is dead1 had great wrestling with such wranglers1 and their disdain of their natural speech1 before he won from the public of his time the opinion in which he was held by the best of his friends then1 and is held by us now4 ,are not all his prefaces to his philosophical writings full of such conflicts with these cavillers8 ,english wits are very well able1 thank ,god1 if the good will were present1 to make that uncouth and unknown learning very familiar to our people in our own tongue1 even by the example of those very writers we esteem so highly1 who having done for other languages what ,i wish for ours in the like case1 must needs approve of us1 unless they assert that the merit of conveying knowledge from a foreign tongue died with them1 not to revive among us4 ,but whatever they may say to continue their own credit1 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 theirs1 and are now so loth to forgo again2 it is indeed the fairest flower of their whole garland1 for these tongues would wither soon1 or decay altogether1 but for the great knowledge contained therein4 ,if our people were not readier to wonder at their workmanship than to take trouble with their own tongue1 they might have the same advantage4 ,our ,english is our own1 and must be used by those to whom it belongs1 as were those others that were ranked with the best4 ,but it may be replied that our ,english tongue is not worthy of such cultivation1 because it has so little extent1 stretching no further than this island of ours1 and not even over the whole of that4 ,what though this be true8 ,still it reigns here and serves our purpose2 it should be brushed clean in order to be worn4 ,are not ,english folk1 ,i pray you1 as particular as foreigners8 ,and is not as much taste needed for our tongue in speaking1 and our pen in writing1 as for apparel and diet8 ,but1 it will be said1 our ,state is no empire1 hoping to enlarge itself by ruling other countries4 ,what then8 ,though it be neither large in possession1 nor in present hope of great increase1 yet where it rules it can make good laws to suit its position1 as well as the largest country can1 and often better1 since in the greatest governments there is often confusion4 ,but again1 it will be urged1 we have no rare knowledge belonging to our soil to make foreigners study our tongue as a treasure of such store4 ,what of that8 ,we are able by its means to apply to our use all the great treasure both of foreign soil and of foreign language4 ,and why may not ,english wits1 if they will bend their wills to seek matter and method1 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 wealth8 ,as the soil is fertile because it is cultivated1 so the wits are not barren1 if they choose to bring forth4 ,yet though all this be true1 we are in despair of ever seeing our own language so refined as were those where public orations were held in ordinary course1 and the very tongue itself made a chariot to honour4 ,our ,state is a monarchy1 which controls language1 and teaches it to please2 our religion is ,christian1 and prefers the naked truth to refinement of terms4 ,what then8 ,if for want of that exercise which the ,athenian and the ,roman enjoyed in their spacious courts1 no ,englishman should prove to be a ,cicero or a ,demosthenes1 yet in truth he may prove comparable to them in his own commonwealth and in the eloquence that befits it4 ,and why not indeed comparable to them in all points that concern his natural tongue8 ,our brain can bring forth2 our ideas will bear life2 our tongues are not tied1 and our labour is our own4 ,and eloquence itself is limited neither to one language nor to one soil2 the whole world is its measure1 and the wise ear is its judge1 having regard not to greatness of state1 but to the capacity of the people4 ,and even though we should despair of altogether rivalling the excellence of foreign tongues1 must our own therefore be unbeautified8 ,it should certainly strive to reach its best if ,i could help4 ,we may aspire to come to a certain height1 even though we can pass no further4 ,the nature of our government will admit true speaking and writing1 and eloquence will be approved if it gives pleasure and is worthy of praise1 so long as it preaches peace1 and tends to preserve the ,state4 ,our religion does not condemn any ornament of language which serves the truth and does not presume overmuch4 ,nay1 may not eloquence be a great blessing from ,god1 and the trumpet of his honour1 as ,chrysostom calls that of ,st4 ,paul1 if it be religiously bent8 ,those who have read the story of the early church find that eloquence in the primitive ,christians overthrew great forces bent against our faith1 and persuaded numbers to embrace the cause1 when the power of truth was joined to force in the word4 ,we should seek eloquence to serve ,god1 but shun it to serve ourselves1 unless we have ,god's warrant4 ,but will you thus break off communication with learned foreigners by banishing ,latin1 and putting her learning into your own tongue8 ,communication will not cease while people have cause to interchange dealings1 and it may easily be continued without ,latin4 ,already in some countries1 whose languages are akin to the ,latin1 the learned class are weaning their tongues and pens from the use of ,latin1 both in written discourse and spoken disputation1 to their own natural speech4 ,it is a question not of disgracing ,latin1 but of gracing our own language4 ,why should we honour a stranger more than our own1 if the purpose be served8 ,and although1 on account of the limitations of our language1 no foreigner would seek to borrow from us as we do from other tongues1 because we devise nothing new1 though we receive the old1 yet we ourselves gain very much in study by being set from the first in the privy chambers of knowledge1 through the familiarity of our native speech4 ,justinian the emperor said to the students of law1 when he gave imperial force to his ,institutes1 that they were most happy in the advantage of hearing the ,emperor's voice at first hand1 while those of earlier times were delayed for four whole years4 ,and does not our study of foreign languages take us fully four years8 ,if this were the only hindrance indeed1 and if we gained otherwise1 we could bear the loss4 ,but it is not only time that is lost in studying foreign tongues1 though we must use them till we learn to do without them4 ,who can deny that we understand best in our natural speech1 seeing that all our foreign learning is applied through the medium of our own language1 and learning is of value only in so far as it is applied to particular uses8 ,but why not everything in ,english1 a tongue in itself both deep in meaning and frank in utterance8 ,i do not think that any language whatsoever is better able to express all subjects with pith and plainness1 if he who uses it is as skilful and well-instructed as the foreigner4 ,methinks ,i myself could prove this in regard to the most varied subjects1 though ,i am no great scholar1 but only an earnest well-wisher to my own country4 ,and though in dealing with certain subjects we must use many foreign terms1 we are only doing what is done in the most renowned languages1 that boast of their skill and knowledge4 ,it is a necessity between one country and another to interchange words to express strange matter1 and rules are appointed for adapting them to the use of the borrowers4 ,it is an accident which keeps our tongue from natural growth out of its own resources1 and not the real nature of the language1 which could strain with the strongest and stretch to the furthest1 either for the purposes of government1 if we were conquerors1 or for learning if we were its treasurers1 no whit behind the subtle ,greek for couching close1 or the stately ,latin for spreading fair4 ,our tongue is capable of all1 if our people would bestow pains upon it4 ,the very soil of ,greece1 it is noted by some1 had a refining influence on ,philelphus1 who was born in ,italy4 ,italy1 says ,erasmus1 would have had the same effect on our ,sir ,thomas ,more1 if he had been trained there4 ,and cannot labour and practice work as great wonders in ,english wits at home as the air can do abroad8 ,is a change of soil the best or the only means of furthering growth8 ,nay1 surely wits are equally sharp everywhere1 though where there is less intercourse and a heavier climate1 the labour must be greater to make up for what is wanting in nature4 ,if such pains be taken we may boldly arm ourselves with that two-worded and thrice worthy question--,why not8 ,but grant that it were an heresy1 seeing that we are trained in foreign tongues1 even to wish everything to be in ,english4 ,certainly there is no fault in handling in ,english what is proper to ,england1 though the same subject well handled in ,latin would be likely to please ,latinists4 ,but an ,english benefit must not be measured by the pleasure of a ,latinist4 ,it is a matter not for scholars to play with1 but for students to practise1 where everyone can judge4 ,besides1 how many shallow things are often uttered in ,latin and other foreign tongues1 which under the bare veil of a strange form seem to be something1 but if they were expressed in ,english1 and the mask pulled off so that everyone could see them1 would make but a sorry show1 and soon be disclaimed even by those who uttered them1 with some thought of the old saying--8,had ,i known1 ,i would not60 ,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 tongue8 ,such considerations make me thankful for what we have gained from foreign sources1 but at the same time desirous of furthering the interest of my own natural tongue1 and therefore in treating of the first rudiments of learning ,i am very well content to make use of ,english1 without renouncing my right to use ,latin or any other learned tongue1 when ,i come to speak of matters where it may be suitable4 ,but while my writing in ,english may seem not amiss for the service of my country1 my manner of writing may offend some in seeming fastidious and obscure1 and ,i may be brought to task as failing in what ,i professed1 by dealing with matters too hard for the ignorant to understand1 or using too close a style and too rare terms for plain folks to follow4 ,all these difficulties are very great foes to the perception of the ordinary man1 who can understand only so far as he has been trained1 and they are no good friends to my purpose1 as ,i write for the benefit of the many1 who are untrained and unskilful4 ,but although these objections make a very plausible show1 yet ,i must beg leave to plead my own cause in regard to matter1 style1 and the use of terms4 ,indeed half my answer is given when ,i say that ,i mean well to my country1 for in attempting difficulties one may claim pardon for defects1 and what ,i do is in the interest of our tongue1 which ,i desire to see enriched in every way and honoured with every ornament of eloquence1 so that it can vie with any foreign language4 ,but first to examine the charge of hardness in the subject-matter1 which the reader is said to have difficulty in understanding4 ,in what1 ,i pray you1 consists this hardness that is said to lie in the matter8 ,or rather does not all hardness belong to the person1 and not to the thing1 in this case as everywhere else8 ,if the person who undertakes to teach does not know his subject well enough to make it properly understood1 is the thing therefore hard that is not thoroughly grasped8 ,or if the learner either fails to understand owing to deficient knowledge1 or will not make the needful effort owing to some evil disposition1 is the thing therefore hard which is so crossed by personal infirmity8 ,surely not4 ,there is no hardness in anything which is expressed by a learned pen1 however far removed from common use1 7though to shield negligence the charge is often made71 if the teacher knows it sufficiently1 and the learner be willing and not wayward4 ,for what are the things which we handle in learning8 ,are they not of our own choice8 ,are they not our own inventions8 ,are they not meant to supply our own needs8 ,and was not the first inventor very well able to open up the thing he invented before he commended it to others8 ,or did those who received it do so before they were instructed as to its use8 ,or could blunt ignorance have won such credit in a doubtful case1 though professing to bring advantage1 that it was believed before it had persuaded those who had any foresight1 by plain evidence that the thing was profitable1 as well for the present as for the time to come8 ,if the first inventor could both find and persuade1 his follower must do likewise1 or be at fault himself2 he must deliver the matter from the suspicion of hardness1 which arises from his own defect in exposition4 ,if he who reads fails to grasp the meaning through ignorance1 he is to be pardoned for his infirmity2 if having some capacity he fails from lack of will1 he is punished enough by being left in ignorance2 and if while able to follow with the best he keeps with the worst1 blinded understanding is the greatest darkness1 and punishes the evil humour with the depraving of reason4 ,if an expounder1 such as ,i am now1 be himself weak1 he is ill-advised if he either writes before he knows1 or does not mend when he has written amiss1 provided he knows where and how4 ,yet the reader's courtesy is some protection against error to him who writes1 as the writer's pardon is a protection to him who reads1 if simple ignorance is the only fault1 without defect in goodwill4 ,it will be admitted that hardness must arise either from the thing itself or from the handling4 ,if the thing itself is hard it must be because it is strange to the reader1 because it is outside of his ordinary interests and occupations1 or because he does not give full study and attention to it4 ,to illustrate the former difficulty1 what affinity is there1 in respect of occupation1 between a simple ploughman1 a wary merchant1 and a subtle lawyer1 or between manual trades and metaphysical discourses1 whether in mathematics1 physics1 or divinity8 ,again1 even to students who profess some alliance with what they study1 can anything be easy if they have not laboured sufficiently in it8 ,i need say no more than this1 that where there is no acquaintance in profession there is no help to understanding1 where there is no familiarity there is no facility1 where there is no conference there is no knowledge4 ,if the man delves the earth1 and the matter dwells in heaven1 there is no means of uniting them over so great a distance4 ,but when the understanding1 though in affinity1 is clearly insufficient1 there is far more hardness than where there is a difference of occupation1 because a vain conceit brings much more error than weak knowledge4 ,some good may come out of an ignorant fellow if he begin to take hold1 but the lukewarm learned mars his way by prejudiced opinion4 ,but in all this1 if there be any difficulty about the matter1 its cause lies in the man1 and not in the nature of the thing4 ,i am quick in teaching1 and hard of understanding1 but towards whom and why8 ,towards him1 forsooth1 who is not sufficiently acquainted with the matter in hand4 ,well1 then1 if want of familiarity is the cause of the difficulty1 acquaintance once made and continued will remedy that complaint1 if the matter seem worth the man's acquaintance in his natural tongue1 for that is a question in a vision blinded by foreign glamours1 or if the learner is really desirous to be rid of his ignorance1 for that is another question where a vain opinion over-values itself4 ,for in the case of a book written in the ,english tongue there are so many ,englishmen well able to satisfy fully the ignorant reader1 that it were too great a discourtesy not to lighten a man's labour with a short question1 and an equally short answer4 ,but where the matter1 being no pleasant tale nor amorous device1 but a serious and worthy argument concerning sober learning1 not familiar to all readers1 or even to all writers1 professes no ease without some effort1 then if such effort be not made an unnatural idleness is betrayed1 which desires less to find ease than to find fault4 ,for why should one labour to help all1 and none be willing to help that one8 ,nay1 why should none be willing to help themselves out of the danger and bondage of blind ignorance8 ,if the book were all in ,latin1 and the reader were not acquainted with a single word1 then the case would be desperate1 but as it is1 any man may compass it with very little inquiry from his skilful neighbour4 ,therefore if anything seems hard to an ignorant man who desires to know1 and fails owing to the unfamiliarity of the subject1 he must handle the thing often1 so that it may become easy1 and when a doubt arises he must confer with those who have more knowledge4 ,for all strange things seem great novelties1 and are hard to grasp at their first arrival1 but after some acquaintance they become quite familiar1 and are easily dealt with4 ,and words likewise which express strange matters1 or are strangers themselves1 are not wild beasts1 nor is a term a tiger to prove wholly untractable4 ,familiarity and acquaintance will bring facility both in matter and in words4 ,if the handling seems to cause the difficulty1 and if that proceeds from him who presents the argument1 not only in the opinion of the unpractised reader1 but truly in the view of those who are able to judge1 then such a writer is worthy of blame1 in seeking to expound without sufficient study2 but if the defective handling is due not to the writer1 but to plain misunderstanding1 then there is small praise to the reader who misconstrues without regard to courtesy or reverence for truth4 ,as for my style in treatment1 if it be charged with difficulty1 that also proceeds from choice1 being intended to show that ,i come from the forge1 being always familiar with strong steel and pithy stuff in the reading of good writers1 and therefore bound to resemble that metal in my style4 ,to argue closely and with sequence1 to trace causes and effects1 to seek sinews and sound strength rather than waste flesh1 is seemly for a student1 especially when he writes for perpetuity1 where the reader may keep the book by him to study at his leisure1 not being forced either to take it all at once or forgo it altogether1 as is the case in speech4 ,discourses that are entirely popular1 or are written in haste for the moment1 may well be slight in manner1 for their life is short2 and where what is said is at once to be put to present use1 the plainer the style the more plausible it will be1 and therefore most excellent in its kind1 since the expression must be adapted to the immediate end in view1 leaving nothing to muse on1 as there is no time for musing4 ,but where the matter is no courier to post away in haste1 and there must be musing on it1 another course must be taken1 and yet the manner of delivery must not be thought hard1 nor compared with others of a different kind1 considering that it is meant to teach1 and can use such plainness only as the subject admits of4 ,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 ,rome1 though both in their own way are plain enough to us1 who know the ,latin tongue better than our own1 because we pore over it1 and pay no attention to our own8 ,certainly not1 as appears from many passages in ,cicero himself1 where he notes the difference1 and confesses that the newness of the subjects which he transported from ,greece was the cause of some darkness to the ordinary reader1 and of some contempt to the learned because they fancied the ,greek more4 ,yet neither ignorance nor contempt could discourage his pen from seeking the advantage of his own language1 by translating into it the learning which others wished to remain in the ,greek2 he kept on his course1 and in the end the tide turned in his favour1 bringing him the credit which he enjoys to this day4 ,and he himself bears witness that the resistance he met with was due not only to the matter of which he treated1 but also to his manner of expression1 and even to the very words he used1 which being strange and newly-coined were not understood by the ordinary reader4 8,i could write of these things10 he says1 meaning philosophical subjects1 8like ,amasanius0 7an obscure writer of apophthegms7 8but in that case not like myself2 as plainly as he1 but not then so as to satisfy myself1 or do justice to the subject as ,i should handle it4 ,i must define1 divide1 distinguish1 exercise judgment1 and use the terms of art4 ,i must have regard as well to those from whom my learning is borrowed1 that they may say they meant it so1 as to those for whom it is borrowed1 that they may say they understand it40 ,the writer who does otherwise may be thought plain by those who seek nothing far1 but if those who call for plainness are always to be pleased1 and dealt with so daintily that they are put to no pains to learn and enquire1 when they find themselves in a difficulty through their own ignorance2 if they must be made a lure for learning to descend to1 rather degenerating herself than teaching them to look up1 what is the use of skill8 ,he who made the earth made hills and dales1 heights and plains1 smooth places and rough1 and yet all good of their own kind4 ,plainness is good for a pleasant course1 and a popular style is in place in ordinary argument1 where no art is needed because the reader knows none1 and the matter can be simply expressed1 being indeed in her best colours when she is dressed for common purposes4 ,likewise this alleged hardness1 though it belong to the matter1 has its special use in whetting people's wits1 and making a deep impression1 where what seems dark contains something that must be considered thrice before it is mastered4 ,labour is the coin which is current in heaven1 for which and by which ,almighty ,god sells ,his best wares1 though in ,his great goodness ,he sometimes does more for some in giving them quickness and intelligence1 even without great labour1 than any labour can do for others1 in order to let us know that ,his mercy is the mistress when our labour learns best4 ,but in our ordinary life1 if carpeting be knighting1 where is necessary defence8 ,if easy understanding be the readiest learning1 then wake not my lady2 she learns as she lies4 ,if all things are hard which everyone thinks to be so1 where is the privilege and benefit of study8 ,what is the use of study1 if what we get by labour is condemned as too hard for those that do not study4 ,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 speech1 nor that the old wisdom was expressed in riddles1 proverbs1 fables1 oracles1 and mystic verses1 in order to draw men on to study1 and fix in the memory what was carefully considered before it was uttered4 ,are any of our oldest and best writers whom we now study1 and who have been thought the greatest1 each in his kind1 ever since they first wrote1 understood at once after a single reading1 even though those who are studying them know their tongue as well as we know ,english--nay1 even better1 because it is more intricate8 ,or is their manner of writing to be disapproved of as dark1 because the ignorant reader or fastidious student cannot straightway rush into it8 ,that they fell into that compressed kind of writing owing to their very pith in saying much where they speak least1 is clearly shown by the comments of those who expand at great length what was set down in one short sentence--nay1 even in a single phrase of a sentence4 ,are not all the chief paragons and principal leaders in every profession of this same character1 inaccessible to ordinary people1 even though using the same language1 and giving of their store only to those who will study8 ,but may not this obscurity lie in him who finds it rather than in the matter1 which is simple in itself1 and simply expressed1 though it may not seem so to him8 ,our daintiness deceives us1 our want of goodwill blinds us--nay1 our lack of skill is the very witch which bereaves us of sense1 though we profess to have knowledge and favour towards learning4 ,for everyone who bids a book good-morrow is not necessarily a scholar1 or a judge of the subject dealt with in the book4 ,he may have studied up to a certain point1 but perhaps neither hard nor long1 or he may be very little acquainted with the subject he is seeking to judge of4 ,perhaps the desire of preferment has cut short his study when it was most promising1 or there is some other of the many causes of weakness1 although pretension may impose upon the world with a show of learning4 ,any man may judge well of a matter which he has sufficiently studied1 and thoroughly practised 7if it be a study that requires practice71 and has regarded in its various relations4 ,a pretty skill in some particular direction will sometimes glance beyond1 and show a smattering of further knowledge1 but no further than a glance1 no more than a smattering4 ,therefore1 in my judgment of another man's writings1 so much only is just as ,i should be able to prove soundly1 if ,i were seriously challenged by those who can judge1 not so much as ,i may venture uncontrolled1 in seeking merely to please myself or those as ignorant as myself4 ,apelles could admit the opinion of the cobbler1 so far as his knowledge of cobbling justified him1 but not an inch further4 ,as for my manner of writing1 if ,i do not meet expectation1 ,i have always some warrant1 for ,i write rather with regard to the essence of the matter in hand than to superficial effect4 ,for however it may be in speech1 and in that kind of writing which resembles speech1 being adapted to ordinary subjects with an immediate practical end1 certainly where the matter has to stand a more lasting test1 and be tried by the hammer of learned criticism1 there should be precision1 orderly method1 and carefully chosen expression1 every word having its due force1 and every sentence being well and deliberately weighed4 ,such writing1 though it may be without esteem in our age through the triviality of the time1 may yet win it in another1 when its value is appreciated4 ,some hundreds of years may pass before saints are enshrined1 or books gain their full authority4 ,as for the general writing in the ,english tongue1 ,i must needs say that for some points of handling there is no language more excellent than ours4 ,for teaching memory work pleasantly1 as in the old leonine verses1 which run in rhyme1 it admits more dalliance with words than any other tongue ,i know4 ,in firmness of speech and strong ending it is very forcible1 because of the monosyllabic words of which it so largely consists4 ,for fine translation in pithy terms ,i find it as quick as any foreign tongue1 or quicker1 as it is wonderfully pliable and ready to express a pointed thought in very few words4 ,for apt expression of a good deal of matter in not many words it will do as much in original utterance as in any translation4 ,this compact expression may sometimes seem hard1 but only where ignorance is harboured1 or where indolence is an idol1 which will not be persuaded to crack the nut1 though it covet the kernel4 ,i need give no example of these1 as my own writing will serve as a general pattern4 ,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 form4 ,for our tongue has a special character as well as every other1 and cannot be surpassed for grace and pith4 ,in regard to the force of words1 which was the third note of alleged obscurity1 there are to be considered familiarity for the general reader1 beauty for the learned1 effectiveness to give pleasure1 and borrowing to extend our resources and admit of ready expression4 ,therefore1 if any reader find fault with a word which does not suit his ear1 let him mark the one he knows1 and learn to value the other1 which is worth his knowing4 ,do we not learn from words8 ,no marvel if it is so1 for a word is a metaphor1 a learned translation1 something carried over from its original sense to serve in some place where it is even more properly used1 and where it may be most significant1 if it is properly understood4 ,take pains to learn from it2 you have there a means of gaining knowledge4 ,it is not commonly used as ,i am using it1 but ,i trust ,i am not abusing it1 and it may be filling a more stately place than any you have ever seen it in4 ,then mark that the place honours the parson1 and think well of good words1 for though they may be handled by ordinary1 or even by foul lips1 yet in a fairer mouth1 or under a finer pen1 they may come to honour4 ,it may be a stranger1 and yet no ,turk1 and though it were the word of an enemy1 yet a good thing is worth getting1 even from a foe1 as well by the language of writers as by the spoil of soldiers4 ,and when the foreign word has yielded itself and been received into favour1 it is no longer foreign1 though of foreign race1 the property in it having been altered4 ,but he who will speak of words need not lack them4 ,however1 in this place there is no further need of words1 to say either which are familiar1 or beautiful1 or effective1 or which are borrowed2 nor is there need to say that in regard to any ornament in words we give place to no other tongue4 ,as for my own words and the terms that ,i use1 they are generally ,english1 and if any be an incorporated stranger1 or translated1 or freshly-coined1 ,i have shaped it to fit the place where ,i use it1 as far as my skill will permit4 ,the example and precept of the best judges warrant us in enfranchising foreign words1 or translating our own without too manifest insolence or wanton affectation1 or else inventing new ones where they are clearly serviceable1 the context explaining them sufficiently till frequent usage has made them well known4 ,therefore1 to say what ,i mean in plain terms1 he who is soundly learned will straightway recognise a scholar2 he who is well acquainted with a strong pen1 whether in reading authors or in actual use1 will soon master a compact style2 he who has skill in language1 whether old and scholarly or newly received into favour1 will not wonder at words whose origin he knows1 nor be surprised at a thought tersely expressed1 in a way familiar to him in other languages4 ,therefore1 as ,i fear not the judgment of the skilful1 because courtesy goes with knowledge1 so ,i value their friendship1 because their support gives me credit4 ,as for those who lack the skill to judge rightly1 though they may be sharp censors and ready to talk loudly1 ,i must crave their pardon if ,i do not bow to their censure1 which ,i cannot accept as a true judgment4 ,yet ,i am content to bear with such fellows1 and pardon them their errors in regard to myself1 as ,i trust that those who can judge will in their courtesy pardon me my own errors4 ,those who cannot judge rightly for want of knowledge1 but will not betray their weakness by judging wrongly1 if they desire to learn in any case of doubt1 have the learned to give them counsel4 ,the profit is theirs1 if they are willing to take it1 but if not1 they shall not deter me from writing1 and ,i shall hope at length by deserving well to win their favour1 or at least their silence4 ,in conclusion as to the manner of writing and use of words in ,english1 this is my opinion1 that he who will justify himself may find many arguments1 some closely related to the particular subject that may be in question1 others more general but likely to be serviceable1 and if in his practice he hath due regard to clear and appropriate expression1 then even though one or two things should seem strange to those who judge1 the writer is free from blame4 ,as for invention in matter and eloquence in style1 the learned know well in what writers they are to be found1 and those who are not scholars must learn to think of such things before they presume to judge1 lest by failing to measure the writer's level1 they should have no just standard to apply4 ,as for the matter itself which is to be treated by any learned method1 as ,i have already said1 familiarity will make it easy1 though it seem hard1 just as it will make the manner of expression easy1 though it seem strange1 if the thing really deserves to be studied1 which will not appear until some progress is made4 ,and a little hardness1 even in the most obscure philosophical discussions1 will never seem tedious to an enquiring mind1 such as he must have who either seeks to learn himself1 or desires to see his native tongue enriched and made the instrument of all his knowledge1 as well as of his ordinary needs4 ,but ,i have been too tedious1 my good readers1 yet perhaps not so1 since no haste is enjoined1 and you may read at leisure4 ,i have now to request you1 as ,i mentioned at first1 to grant me your friendly construction1 and the favour due to a fellow-countryman4 ,the reverence towards learning which leads the good student to embrace her in his youth1 and advances him to honour by her preference in later years1 will plead for me with the learned in general1 in my endeavour to assert the rights of her by whose authority alone they are themselves of any account4 ,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 detractors4 ,regard for my own profession1 and this hope of support from learned teachers1 move me to lay stress upon one special point1 which in duty must affect them no less than me1 namely1 the need for careful thought in improving our schools4 ,i say nothing here of the conscientious and religious motives that influence us1 nor of the need for personal maintenance that demands our labour4 ,but ,i would acknowledge the special munificence of our princes and parliaments towards our whole order in our country's behalf1 partly in suffering us to enjoy old immunities1 partly in granting us divers other exemptions from personal services and ordinary payments to which our fellow-subjects are liable4 ,these favours deserve at our hands an honourable remembrance1 and bind us further to discharge the trust committed to us4 ,i doubt not that this feeling which moves me strongly1 moves also many of my profession1 whose friendship ,i crave for favourable construction1 and whose conference ,i desire for help in experience1 as ,i shall be glad in the common cause either to persuade or be persuaded4 ,of those that are not learned ,i beg friendship also1 and chiefly as a matter of right1 because ,i labour for them1 and my goodwill deserves no unthankfulness4 ,god bless us all to the advancement of ,his glory1 the honour of our country1 the furtherance of good learning1 and the well-being of all ranks1 prince and people alike6 ,,critical ,,estimate4 ,,critical ,,estimate4 ,if the saying of ,plato may be applied to another sphere1 not very far removed from civil government1 we may believe that education will never be rightly practised until either teachers become philosophers1 or philosophers become teachers4 ,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 reason1 and on the instinct of the professional worker1 whose conceptions of what is possible have been chastened by direct experience of the actual4 ,of the five classical ,english writers who have made any noteworthy contribution to educational thought1 all but one have failed to gain a lasting influence1 through the limitation in their outlook caused by deficient practical knowledge4 ,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 ,greek4 ,milton's vision1 restricted by his short and partial attempt at instructing a few selected boys1 narrowed itself to one school period of one rank of society of one sex1 and his genius could not save him from wild extravagance in his ideas of the acquirements possible for the average scholar4 ,the suggestions of ,locke1 while in one aspect they were more comprehensive1 are yet essentially those of a theorist1 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 population4 ,herbert ,spencer1 as the heir of previous centuries1 has naturally been able to command a wider view1 but even those who have gained most from his book1 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 teacher4 ,a little experience1 like a little knowledge1 is a dangerous thing1 and it may be that those writers1 all of whom claim to have made trial of the actual work of education1 would have been more convincing if they had written from an avowedly detached standpoint4 ,richard ,mulcaster alone holds the vantage-ground of being at once a thinker and a practical expert in matters of education4 ,nor does this mean only that his right to speak with authority will for that reason be more readily admitted2 the evidence of his fuller equipment for the task may be seen through the whole texture of his writings4 ,he had not ,ascham's ease in expression and charm of manner1 nor ,milton's commanding intellect and power of utterance1 nor the fearlessness and philosophic grasp of ,locke1 nor the encyclopdic knowledge and acumen of ,herbert ,spencer1 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 nature1 and an enlightened perception of the conditions that determine the culture of mind and soul4 ,to those who know little or nothing of ,mulcaster such a claim will seem extravagant1 and it will naturally be doubted whether any writer who deserves to be put upon so high a pedestal1 could possibly have remained so long in neglect4 ,it may be rejoined that in a subject like education many factors have a part in the making of reputations4 ,it is no mere coincidence that the authors named above1 whose views on education are so much more widely-known than those of ,mulcaster1 all gained their chief fame in some other sphere of thought2 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 interest4 ,this advantage is naturally to be associated with gifts of expression such as ,mulcaster unfortunately possessed only in a very limited degree1 though his deficiency is due much more to the rudimentary condition of ,english prose in general in the sixteenth century1 than to any lack of clear thinking on his own part4 ,it is true1 indeed1 that no fine sense of harmony in sound can be credited to a writer who perpetrates such a sentence as--8,i say no more1 where it is too much to say even so much in a sore of too much40 ,but even if ,mulcaster had spoken with the tongue of an angel1 he would probably have remained a voice crying in the wilderness1 for the time was not yet come4 ,the ultimate value of ,rousseau's message to the world in the realm of education was far less1 but his unique powers of persuasive eloquence1 the fame he had achieved in other ways1 and the ripeness of the time1 combined to give the later writer an extraordinary influence4 ,when ,mulcaster's judgments and suggestions are studied from the vantage-ground of the present1 and in a form that divests them of adventitious difficulties of understanding1 they will be recognised as giving him a place of high importance1 not only in the chain of historical succession1 but in the final hierarchy of educational reformers4 ,it is necessary to take into account the state of opinion on matters of learning and on the general conduct of life1 in the ,england of ,queen ,elizabeth's day1 before we can appreciate the significance of our author's thought4 ,we must place ourselves in the atmosphere of the ,renascence and the ,reformation1 for although these great movements1 which represented the intellectual and moral aspects in the awakening of modern ,europe1 had been some time in progress1 and had even given place to reaction in the countries of their birth1 their full influence did not reach our shores till towards the close of the sixteenth century4 ,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 ,spenser1 ,shakespeare1 ,bacon1 and their contemporaries4 ,the prestige of ,elizabeth1 depending as it did so largely on the secure establishment of the ,protestant faith1 had not yet reached the height it attained through the final repulse of ,spanish aggression1 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 ,tudors4 ,it was not a time either of revolt or of reaction4 ,the more galling forms of political and intellectual despotism had already disappeared in the general overthrow of the medieval rgime1 and it was a more pressing question how to maintain existing charters of liberty than how to extend them4 ,this conservative temper is to be discerned in all the purely ,english writers of the period1 though in the northern part of ,britain ,knox and his companions were troubling the waters of controversy in a more strenuous fashion4 ,apart from the influence of an atmosphere of general conformity to established authority and prevailing sentiment1 ,mulcaster was constitutionally cautious4 ,he was no zealot1 defiant of opposition1 and careless of the esteem in which he might be held4 ,his respect for tradition1 and1 it must be added1 his sympathetic instincts1 disposed him always to seek grounds of agreement rather than of difference1 to support his suggestions by the weight of authority and precedent1 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 exaggeration4 ,yet there was no timidity or half-heartedness in his temperament4 ,he was profoundly convinced of the justice of his criticisms and the value of his proposals1 and he was not backward in urging his views1 in season at least if not out of season1 on all who shared the responsibility of rejecting them or giving them effect4 ,he has been accused1 indeed1 of overweening self-conceit1 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 name4 ,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 prophecy1 that 8most gratuitous form of error10 on the ground that he believed the highest possible perfection of ,english prose to be represented by the style of his own writings4 ,this conception1 however1 is due to a misunderstanding which it will be worth while to remove4 ,the remark that is quoted against him occurs in the ,peroration of the ,elementary1 8,i need no example in any of these1 whereof mine own penning is a general pattern40 ,taken apart from the context1 as it usually is1 such a sentence sounds fatuous enough1 being naturally understood to mean that ,mulcaster thought he had nothing to learn from any other writers1 and had himself devised a perfect model of ,english composition4 ,but anyone who will take the trouble to read the whole passage 7p4 #bja7 will see at once that the statement really means1 8,i need give no example of any of these idiosyncrasies of our language1 especially compactness of expression1 as they are sufficiently illustrated in my own writing40 ,this is a very different matter1 and though ,mulcaster had little sense of style1 and was curiously mistaken in his idea that ,english prose had no greater heights to reach than the standard of his own time1 the error was due to defects of literary taste and judgment1 not of character or temper4 ,when his writings are taken as a whole1 they offer ample evidence that he was singularly modest in his pretensions1 losing all self-consciousness in his enthusiasm for the causes he had at heart4 ,this attitude may account for the disposition in some quarters to deny ,mulcaster any special originality in regard to his leading principles4 ,but in a subject like education1 which concerns so many departments of life and character1 what is the precise meaning of originality8 ,as the essential traits of human nature have remained unaltered in the last two or three thousand years1 except for a slow development along lines in continuity with the past1 it is vain to expect that the broader truths which underlie the arts of social improvement will be subject to any radical change4 ,in such matters we must build on the wisdom of the ancients1 and the only possible originality consists in discerning the new applications that are suited to the present time and place4 ,it is safe to say that there is hardly a single educational doctrine that has ever won acceptance1 the germs of which are not to be found in the writings of ,plato and ,aristotle4 ,yet every age and every country must work out its own salvation by choosing1 combining1 and applying to its needs the general principles that have been laid down by those that came before4 ,such eclecticism1 if it cannot strictly be called originality1 is at least the highest wisdom1 and he who first proclaims the doctrine as true for his own time and place deserves the credit of the pioneer4 ,the discoveries of the ,greek philosophers in social politics1 if discoveries they could be called1 had to be made over again for the modern world1 and it may even be said that they had to be made independently for each separate country4 ,in the sixteenth century there was less uniformity in political and social conditions1 and less mutual influence among the different ,states of ,europe than there is now4 ,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 ,scotland1 it certainly demanded a rare sagacity and independence of mind1 if not absolute originality1 to discern how far the new outlook could be shared by those whose experience had been less revolutionary4 ,to understand the value of ,mulcaster's work it is of less moment to ask what may have been his indebtedness to ,plato or ,quintilian1 or even to ,luther and ,knox1 than to consider whether he had been directly anticipated by any of his own countrymen1 and whether he himself anticipated1 if he did not influence1 later ,english writers on education4 ,a right estimate of ,mulcaster's temperament1 and of his relation to the surrounding conditions of thought and feeling1 is due not only as a matter of personal justice1 but as affording a key to a proper estimate of his writings4 ,for these have a significance beyond that of most works of the kind1 in forming a somewhat unique record of historical facts for a bygone period4 ,the attempt to trace the lines of progress by comparing one phase of culture with another1 has hitherto had imperfect success in the sphere of education1 for1 like the arts of music and acting1 it works in a perishable medium1 and makes a direct impression only on a single generation4 ,even indirect testimony has until recently been almost entirely wanting4 ,to hardly any writer of earlier times has it occurred to make any report of the actual conduct of teaching as it existed around him1 for the benefit of future ages4 ,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 community4 ,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 ,christ1 as to the incidental references of writers who had no thought of conveying any definite or detailed information on the matter4 ,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 ,renascence4 ,the contemporary writers on the subject are for the most part idealists2 and while we gladly acknowledge their services in that capacity1 we must regret that to the visionary outlook of the reformer they did not add the careful observation of the historian4 ,if ,mulcaster is a noteworthy exception to this rule1 it is not because of set purpose he undertook the task of record and criticism4 ,it was no part of his plan to offer any narrative or statistical report2 indeed he expressly refrains from commenting on the current practice of teaching1 and alludes to it only incidentally4 ,his intention1 as with the great majority of educational writers1 was to suggest improvements1 to propose an ideal2 but his responsible position as a headmaster gave him an ever-present sense of what was practicable1 and enabled him to base his efforts on the firm ground of accomplished fact4 ,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 practice4 ,the common-sense criticisms of a shrewd observer like ,montaigne1 and the dreams of an idealist such as ,rabelais1 have their own value2 but we shall listen even more readily to the words of one who speaks out of the fulness of immediate knowledge1 yet with equal power to rouse our aspiration and energy4 ,before considering ,mulcaster's contributions to the theory and art of education strictly so-called1 it will be well to glance at his influence in the more general aspects of learning and literature4 ,he must be credited with an important share in the movement towards the dethronement of ,latin in favour of the vernacular tongues1 as the medium of communication in subjects hitherto held to belong exclusively to the domain of the learned class4 ,the initiative in this matter goes back1 of course1 to the time of ,dante1 but even with the examples of ,italy1 ,france1 and ,spain to suggest the change1 it was a distinct and difficult task to work it out for our own language4 ,mulcaster was not the first ,englishman to write a book in his native tongue which everyone would have expected to be written in ,latin4 ,sir ,thomas ,more1 in some of his historical and controversial works1 ,roger ,ascham1 and a few other writers of lesser note1 had anticipated him in practice1 and had been more successful in attaining a lucid and graceful style1 but it may fairly be claimed that ,mulcaster was the first to give a reasoned justification of the course he followed and recommended1 and to further the end in view by taking definite steps to elaborate the means4 ,nor is it only for his service in helping to establish a canon of literary ,english1 and show the way to others by using it himself to the best of his ability1 that acknowledgment is due4 ,it was a still more conspicuous merit to see clearly1 and to enforce by these means1 the truth that the increase of learning1 and the methods by which it may be furthered1 are subjects of interest not to any limited class alone1 but to every member of the community4 ,there may be comparatively little present value in his judgments as to the proper content of the ,english vocabulary1 and the forms of spelling which he thought should be made authoritative1 but at least it is noteworthy that1 at a time when linguistic science was at a rudimentary stage1 he had reached a singularly just conception of the essential nature of a language1 and the conditions of its growth and decay4 ,the interesting allegory where he traces the process by which speech came to be represented by written symbols1 proves him to have grasped the idea1 only in later times fully understood1 that language1 as a product of human activity1 shares in all the features characteristic of organic development4 ,it is not only the more formal aspects of language1 moreover1 that he treats with discrimination4 ,on the still subtler question of its relation to thought and knowledge he speaks with a discernment far beyond his time4 ,the usurping tyranny of words over the minds of men1 in place of the lawful domination of the realities they symbolised1 had in the movement of the ,renascence changed its form without relaxing its severity4 ,if they were no longer so frequently used as mere counters in vain disputations1 they were yet apt to be regarded with unreasoning idolatry1 as the sacred embodiment of the thoughts and feelings of settled forms of civilisation in the past1 exempt from any enquiry as to the conceptions they expressed4 ,mulcaster does not share this illusion4 ,in his view language is primarily a means of communication1 and though the acquirement of foreign tongues may be a necessity for the time1 yet they 8push us one degree further off from knowledge40 ,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 thought1 though his appreciation of the possibilities of the ,english tongue shows that he did not forget these invaluable uses2 but in any case he saw clearly1 and he was one of the first to see1 that the crying need of his time was to be set free from the despotism of words1 which made them rather a hindrance than a help to real knowledge4 8,we attribute too much to tongues1 in paying more heed to them than we do to matter40 ,the bearing of this opinion on educational theory will be considered presently1 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 ,bacon4 ,mulcaster's independence of conventional practice is further set beyond doubt by his conception of the place of authority in argument4 ,anticipating ,locke in deprecating the constant use of great names in support of a writer's thesis1 he is of course laying down a principle now so universally accepted that it seems unnecessary to refer to it1 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 reader4 ,it was no needless service to assign limits to this controversial habit1 to discriminate between superstitious servility and justifiable deference to previous thinkers1 to call for a fearless statement of the truth as it appeared to each new enquiring spirit1 and claim that it should be tested wholly by its conformity to reason and nature and experience4 ,especially valuable for his time was his insistence on the difference of circumstance between the ancient and the modern worlds1 and between the characters of the various nations4 ,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 live1 holding certain qualities appropriate to a monarchy and others to a republic1 but at least he laid a useful emphasis on the relativity of progress1 and on the need for harmony in the component institutions of a particular form of society4 ,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 community4 ,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 education1 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 nation4 ,efforts in this direction had been made in other countries under the levelling influence of the reforming spirit in religion1 but in ,england1 where the change of faith had been less associated with a democratic impulse1 nothing had as yet been done to popularise education in the proper sense of the term1 and public opinion had still to be prepared for the movement4 ,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 life4 ,though the child of lowly birth could never become a gentleman1 he could become a scholar4 ,the helping hand extended by the ,church to the promising boy of low degree did not1 however1 imply any relaxation of caste feeling so far as the general supply of educational facilities was concerned4 ,the humble scholar was raised out of his own class1 and was always regarded as an exception4 ,taken in the mass1 the gentry and the commonalty were clearly separated1 and no kind of training was thought in any way due to the latter except such as might make them directly serviceable to their betters4 ,for the first notable attack on this fundamental article of medieval faith1 apart from the indirect and interested claims of the ,reformation leaders to the means of influencing the young1 credit is generally given to ,comenius4 ,but it must be remembered that half a century before his time1 and in a country where the rgime of social status has always held a firm position1 a strong protest against educational exclusiveness was raised by ,richard ,mulcaster1 who maintained that the elements of knowledge and training should be recognised as the privilege of all1 irrespective of rank or sex1 and without regard to their future economic functions4 8,as for the education of gentlemen10 he writes1 8at what age shall ,i suggest that they should begin to learn8 ,their minds are the same as those of the common people1 and their bodies are often worse4 ,the same considerations in regard to time must apply to all ranks4 ,what should they learn8 ,i know of nothing else1 nor can ,i suggest anything better1 than what ,i have already suggested for all40 ,and his unwillingness to recognise any kind of disability in matters of education1 except what was proved by the test of experience to be natural1 is further shown in his insistence that1 as far as may be possible1 girls should have the same advantages as boys4 ,though1 as he says1 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 universities1 he not only wishes them to share in all the opportunities of elementary education1 but he wholly approves of the ideal of higher culture for women1 which was represented in the attainments of ,queen ,elizabeth herself4 ,we may now turn to matters that are less the concern of the philosophic thinker and social observer than of the expert in educational practice4 ,let us first examine ,mulcaster's conception of the content of a liberal education1 from the two points of view1 as to how far it should embrace a culture of the whole nature1 and as to the proper range of distinctively mental studies4 ,it is a matter of history that in both these respects the ,renascence ideal had fallen away from the example of the ,greeks4 ,intellectual culture had to a large extent been dissociated from physical and moral training4 ,the life of the scholar was a thing apart from the conception of chivalry1 which encouraged the physical prowess and regard to a code of honour that were developed by the military class4 ,the formal profession of a religious end in learning took the place of a genuine cultivation of character1 and while this restricted path was open to the more gifted of the poorer classes1 the alternative ideal was reserved for the upper social ranks4 ,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 ,sidney1 but the type they represented was quite exceptional1 and had no apparent influence on general educational methods4 ,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 phrase1 8mens sana in corpore sano40 ,no stress need be laid on the particular forms of physical exercise which he recommended4 ,his suggestions here were not original1 and the present time has little to learn from the physiological conceptions of the sixteenth century4 ,but what was really instructive in his own day1 and is scarcely less so in ours1 is the intimate relation he conceived to exist between the body and the mind--a relation that demanded a harmonious training of the whole nature4 8,the soul and the body being co-partners in good will1 in sweet and sour1 in mirth and mourning1 and having generally a common sympathy and mutual feeling1 how can they be1 or rather why should they be1 severed in education8444 ,as the disposition of the soul will resemble that of the body1 if the soul be influenced for good1 it will affect the body also40 ,his use of the term soul1 moreover1 is significant of the conviction which underlies all his writing1 that the end of all physical intellectual training is the development of the feelings that prompt to right conduct4 ,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 sake2 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 life4 ,not that he wished the school to assume any preponderating control over the child1 either in the direction of opinion or in moral ascendency4 ,he had too clear an insight into the springs of conduct to ignore the potency of the earliest influences of the home1 and so far from seeking to usurp the authority of parents in determining their children's lives1 he urges the closest co-operation and good feeling among all who have the pupil's welfare at heart4 ,some further insight will be gained into his comprehensive ideal of upbringing when we come to consider his appreciation of home influence more closely1 but it may first be asked what his conception was of the mental cultivation that should be aimed at in a liberal curriculum4 ,in regard to the secondary or grammar school period of education1 with which he was most intimately acquainted1 though he has many acute criticisms and luminous suggestions to offer1 his expressed intention of supplying a systematic treatment was unfortunately left unfulfilled2 and of his ideas as to university teaching we have little more than a sketch of proposed reforms4 ,on these points something may presently be said1 but we may turn first to his contributions towards the establishment of a sound elementary system1 which he held to be the most important stage of all1 because it was the only form of education that could be brought within the reach of every child1 and was the foundation of all further progress in learning4 ,even this part of the task that he imposed on himself remains incomplete1 but there is material enough for a judgment of his point of view4 ,it would seem that in ,england1 up to the ,elizabethan era at least1 no provision had ever been made for rudimentary instruction for any except those who were destined to proceed to the higher stages of learning1 and that the elementary training given to these select few was limited to the barest preparation for the traditional study of the classics4 ,the reading and writing of the vernacular must have been acquired up to a certain point before the ,latin grammar could be attacked1 but it is clear that no adequate justice was done even to these preliminary subjects1 and that no attempt was made to include a deliberate training of the senses and activities of the child4 ,mulcaster's proposals as to an elementary course certainly do not sound revolutionary4 ,his subjects coincide pretty nearly with our familiar 8three ,r's10 and he is himself careful to show that he is merely 8reviving0 what is commended by the precepts of the wise men of old1 and by the practice of the greatest ,states4 ,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 country1 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 contemporary1 and of much later1 thought and practice4 ,it is a well-known criticism of his contemporary1 ,montaigne1 that teachers were apt to think too much of the matter that was to be taught1 and too little of the nature of the learner4 ,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 labours4 ,ascham had protested against the short-sighted severity of teachers1 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 scholars4 ,mulcaster1 on the other hand1 recognised that the remedy must be sought in the discovery of a more reasonable method1 towards which he had definite constructive proposals to offer4 ,he may even be said to have anticipated by a couple of centuries the doctrine of ,rousseau1 afterwards utilised by ,pestalozzi and ,froebel1 that the paramount aim of the teacher is not to communicate knowledge1 but to stimulate and guide the natural activity of the child4 ,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 art1 calling for independent action on the part of the learner1 and giving pleasurable exercise to the senses and bodily organs as well as to the intelligence4 ,it was more than a happy intuition that led him to give so honourable a place to drawing and music2 it was a consistent application of his doctrine that the minds of young children must be fed through the channels of sense perception1 and that faculty is to be developed by placing the outlets of energy in immediate contact with the powers of acquisition4 ,drawing was intended to give a direct and practical knowledge of space relations and of the forms of natural objects1 by combining the activities of eye and hand1 while at the same time it favoured the cultivation of artistic expression4 ,music1 being based on varied arrangements of number in pitch and time1 was counted on to supply the ground-work of arithmetic1 while in accordance with the persuasion of the ,greeks it was held to exercise a definite sthetic and moral influence on character4 ,that ,mulcaster had not only thought out his theories on the matter1 but had verified them by individual child-study1 is clear from the terms of his recommendations4 8,we must seek for natural inclinations in the soul1 which seem to crave the help of education and nurture1 and by means of these may be cultivated to advantage4444 ,the best way to secure good progress1 so that the intelligence may conceive clearly1 memory may hold fast1 and judgment may choose and discern the best1 is so to ply them all that they may proceed voluntarily and not with violence40 ,the same insight into the heart of the educational process appears in his treatment of the grammar-school curriculum4 ,when we remember the absorbing pre-occupation with classical learning that was the distinctive mark of the ,renascence scholars1 and the prominence given in consequence to linguistic study in education1 we should not wonder if ,mulcaster were found acquiescing in some degree in the narrow ideal that exalted knowledge at the expense of faculty1 and laid more stress on the interpretation of words than of things4 ,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 culture4 ,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 classics1 that we have the clearest statement of the contrast between the indirect1 incidental value of linguistic training1 and the direct1 formative influences of scientific study4 8,in time all learning may be brought into one tongue1 and that naturally understood by all1 so that schooling for tongues may prove needless1 just as once they were not needed2 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 barbarous4444 ,the sciences that we term #8mathematical' from their very nature always achieve something good1 intelligible even to the unlearned1 by number1 figure1 sound1 or motion4 ,in the manner of their teaching also they plant in the mind of the learners a habit of resisting the influence of bare probabilities1 of refusing to believe in light conjectures1 of being moved only by infallible demonstrations40 ,it has been stated above that ,mulcaster had reached a conception distinctly in advance of his time in regard to the true significance of words1 as the signs of realities in the outer world and of the impressions these realities make upon the mind4 ,we may here notice the influence of this conception on his treatment of linguistic study as a means of education4 ,while fully admitting the necessity for acquiring the classical languages as long as these continued to be the only vehicles of learning1 he never fails to regret the loss of time absorbed in studying them1 and he anticipates with satisfaction the time when modern tongues1 and especially his own1 will be sufficiently developed and refined to replace ,latin and ,greek1 believing as he does that 8all that bravery may be had at home that makes us gaze so much at the fine stranger40 ,not that he ever forgets that words are something more than mere symbols1 that indeed they come to have a certain objective reality of their own1 which must be apprehended as directly as that of any other natural phenomenon4 8,do we not learn from words80 he asks4 8,no marvel if it is so1 for a word is a metaphor1 a learned translation1 something carried over from its original sense to serve in some place where it is even more properly used1 and where it may be most significant1 if it is properly understood4 ,take pains to learn from it2 you have there a means of gaining knowledge40 ,but this appreciation of the inner significance of language does not blind him to the fact1 apparently unperceived by all his contemporaries1 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 education4 ,in his own words1 8we were forced 444 to deal with the tongues1 ere we pass to the substance of learning2 and this help from the tongues1 though it is most necessary1 as our study is now arranged1 yet hinders us in time1 which is a thing of great price--nay1 it hinders us in knowledge1 a thing of greater price4 ,for in lingering over language1 we are removed and kept back one degree further from sound knowledge1 and this hindrance comes in our best learning time40 ,and in another passage he bewails the 8loss of time over tongues1 while you are pilgrims to learning10 and the 8lack of sound skill1 while language distracts the mind from the sense40 ,where could we find a stronger indictment of the ,public ,school tradition that banishes every form of nature study during the 8best learning time10 the years when the powers of observation are in their first freshness1 for the sake of a premature initiation into the subtleties of ,latin ,grammar8 ,we may pass to another important question with which ,mulcaster deals in a spirit in harmony with his enlightened conception of general instruction4 ,his assumption that the day-school is the normal arrangement1 and that either an entirely private or a boarding-school education requires to be justified by special circumstances1 gives him a far wider outlook and a safer standpoint than can be claimed for theorists1 whose ideal1 like that of ,locke1 regards only the upbringing of a gentleman's son at home under a tutor1 or1 like that of ,milton1 involves the collection of large numbers in boarding establishments of a conventual nature4 ,this is a matter that is naturally related to the extension of educational opportunities throughout all classes of the community4 ,as long as only a select few were thought fit for learning1 residence in the monastery was almost an affair of necessary convenience1 but when teaching came to be more widely offered1 the day-school became a recognised institution1 and such other arrangements as implied greater expenditure were retained only by the rich1 as instruments of social exclusiveness4 ,it is in countries where distinctions of rank are comparatively little marked that the day-school system has flourished most1 and the partiality shown in ,mulcaster's day for the services of a private tutor1 and in subsequent times for the boarding-school1 is certainly to be taken in great measure as an assertion of class superiority4 ,mulcaster was no democrat1 but he saw that the rich had more to lose than to gain by arrangements that unduly restricted their experience4 ,moreover he clearly discerned the importance of the family as the true social unit1 the nursery of the virtues that should be developed in the school1 and find exercise in the public1 as well as the private1 conduct of life4 ,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 children1 body and soul1 from the tenderest years to the care of professional upbringers1 divesting themselves with a light heart of the most precious responsibilities that nature has conferred on them4 8,how can education be private80 he asks1 8,it is an abuse of the name as well as of the thing40 ,but on the other hand he urges--8,all the considerations which persuade people rather to have their children taught at home than along with others outside1 especially with regard to their manners and behaviour1 form arguments for their boarding at least at home1 if the parents will take their position seriously4444 ,they are distinct offices1 to be a parent1 and a teacher1 and the difficulties of upbringing are too serious for all the responsibilities to be thrown into the hands of one alone40 ,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 time4 ,though certain ranks of the teaching profession have never been without social consideration1 it remains true that teachers as a whole were long regarded as an inferior order of the clergy1 who did not reach the goal of their ambition until they had succeeded in leaving their first calling1 to take the more tranquil and dignified position of a cure of souls4 ,as he puts it--8,the school being used but for a shift1 from which they will afterwards pass to some other profession1 though it may send out competent men to other careers1 remains itself far too bare of talent1 considering the importance of the work40 ,it was only natural that the profession should suffer from this want of independence1 in the general esteem1 and therefore in its substantial rewards1 but the claim which our author puts forward for greater public consideration1 is obviously based1 not on any petty resentment on behalf of himself or his fellows1 but on broad general grounds of social advantage4 ,he had a high sense of the importance of the teacher's task for the national welfare1 and he was anxious on all grounds that those most fitted to fulfil it with success1 should in the first place be induced to enter the profession by the prospect of adequate recognition1 and in the second place have sufficient opportunity of training to enable them to do justice to it4 8,i consider that in our universities there should be a special college for the training of teachers1 inasmuch as they are the instruments to make or mar the growing generation of the country 444 and because the material of their studies is comparable to that of the greatest profession1 in respect of language1 judgment1 skill in teaching1 variety in learning1 wherein the forming of the mind and exercising of the body require the most careful consideration1 to say nothing of the dignity of character which should be expected from them40 ,mulcaster1 it will here be seen1 has good grounds to offer for magnifying his office1 and striving to win a place of honour for it in the social economy4 ,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 contemporaries4 ,there are certain general reasons why in a country like ours the teaching profession cannot be expected to reach the solidarity that belongs1 for example1 to the profession of medicine or of law4 ,the wide economic differences in our civilisation inevitably perpetuate distinctions of rank1 which are nowhere more clearly shown than in the choice of schools4 ,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 teaching1 and since a free and compulsory education has brought into the national schools not only the poorest but the lowest class1 those who can afford it must be excused1 and even commended1 if they take advantage of other opportunities1 where some principle of selection is applied4 ,and as there are different classes of children1 representing on the whole different kinds of home-upbringing1 so there will be different ranks of teachers1 varying widely in their status and emoluments4 ,the question of numbers will always among day-schools give the town teacher an advantage over his country brother2 the question of fees1 in so far as these are not counter-balanced by endowments or ,state support1 will draw the most highly-qualified teachers to the schools that serve the rich2 and the secondary teacher will1 on the whole1 rank above the elementary teacher1 partly because greater attainments are required from him1 and partly because the higher teaching1 requiring a prolonged school course1 is demanded chiefly by the well-to-do classes4 ,that this economic differentiation would become so marked could scarcely have been foreseen three centuries ago1 and even though it already existed1 ,mulcaster was doing good service in protesting against its extremer forms4 ,his claim that the elementary teacher is the most important of all1 that he should have the smallest classes to deal with1 and that he should be the most highly paid1 must of course be taken as a counsel of perfection1 but if there is no present prospect of its being fully admitted in practice1 there is certainly a growing acceptance of the principle underlying it1 that the most critical period of education is in the early years1 when the first impressions are being received1 and that no influence deserves to be so well considered as that which is to call forth an individual response from the awakening intelligence4 ,difficult as the attainment of ,mulcaster's ideal of the position of teachers may have been1 he was undoubtedly on the right path to seek it1 when he advocated that their training should be entrusted to the universities4 ,the demand for adequate preparation is the only reasonable means of securing at once a fitting status1 and a reward sufficient to attract the best talent1 and the recognition of the work of education as deserving to rank with the other learned professions for which a special academic training is required1 is the natural expression of a healthy public sentiment on the matter4 ,the higher the requirements are pitched1 the safer will be the guarantee that aspirants will be drawn to the work by a genuine belief in it as their true vocation1 for the sake of which it is worth while to make some sacrifice4 ,the atmosphere of a university1 moreover1 offers the fullest opportunity to the teacher of acquiring the breadth of general culture1 and the savoir vivre1 in which he is so apt to be deficient4 ,mulcaster's proposals for university reform in general will be found in several important respects to have anticipated the course of subsequent legislation4 ,he wished the ,state to have a free hand in controlling the uses of private endowments according to the special needs of each generation1 as long as the confidence of the original founders was not betrayed1 and he was not slow to point out directions where he considered that changes were urgently needed4 ,we know that in his time the condition of the ,universities of ,oxford and ,cambridge was far from satisfactory1 partly because definite abuses had crept in1 and partly because their constitution naturally offered a passive resistance to regulative organisation4 ,mulcaster's suggestions all tend to greater concentration of aim and facility of classification4 ,he may have carried his desire for uniformity too far when he advocated the specialisation of every college to a particular study1 and even to a particular stage in that study4 ,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 pursuits1 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 position4 ,in ,elizabethan days there was not the same freedom of interchange in lectures among the various colleges that now obtains1 and ,mulcaster was doing good service in deprecating the isolation and dispersion of interest that interfered with progress4 ,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 studies1 as well as his zeal for the more careful selection of candidates for scholarships1 fellowships1 and degrees4 ,nor is it to be forgotten that he was probably the first to suggest the appointment of 8readers0 in the universities1--an arrangement that was not adopted till almost our own time4 ,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 time4 ,the services rendered to the world by ,comenius are too well accredited1 and too widely acknowledged1 to suffer any serious loss of prestige by such a comparison4 ,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 country1 and the reform of education had to be worked out and proclaimed for continental ,europe on independent lines4 ,it is not likely that ,mulcaster's writings had any direct influence on ,comenius1 though they could hardly fail to make some contribution to the general stock of ideas that is successively inherited by each generation1 and spreads almost imperceptibly over an ever widening area4 ,even apart from any claim to priority in doctrine1 the forcible personality of the ,moravian writer1 expressing itself in a singularly exhaustive treatment of educational problems and their practical application1 will always assure to him an unquestioned authority1 while his assertion of the weighty principle that words and things must be taught together1 spoken and written signs being constantly associated with the objects1 qualities1 or actions they represent1 is in itself enough to secure him a lasting reputation4 ,but from the national point of view1 which in tracing such historical successions it is not unreasonable to assume1 we may justly note that there are a considerable number of educational doctrines1 now generally accepted among us in theory if not in practice1 the earliest formulation of which1 though generally ascribed to ,comenius1 is really to be found in the writings of ,richard ,mulcaster4 ,more than this1 it may be maintained that on several important points a more penetrating insight was shown by our own countryman1 in spite of his disadvantage in time4 ,in regard both to the end and the scope of education1 for example1 a more humanistic conception seems to have been held by ,mulcaster4 ,unlike ,comenius1 who lays chief stress on the preparation for eternity1 he sets forth as the main purpose of youthful training the more proximate aims of self-realisation and useful service to one's fellowmen4 8,the end of education and training is to help nature to her perfection in the complete development of all the various powers 444 whereby each shall be best able to perform all those functions in life which his position shall require1 whether public or private1 in the interest of his country in which he was born1 and to which he owes his whole service40 ,and while both writers insist that the rudiments of learning should be taught to children of every social class and of both sexes1 the ,englishman alone expresses sympathy with the ideal of a higher education for girls where circumstances permit4 ,it would seem also that ,mulcaster took the more reasonable view of the relation of a teacher to his class1 for his claim that the elementary master should have the smallest number to deal with1 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 him4 ,among the doctrines of ,comenius to which his expositors have attached special importance may be numbered the following3 that the earliest teaching should be given in the vernacular2 that the first subjects taught should be such as give scope to the child's activity2 that knowledge should be communicated through the senses and put to immediate use2 that examples should be taught before rules2 that the arts should be taught practically2 that in language-study grammar should accompany reading and speaking2 that learning should be spontaneous and pleasant without undue pressure2 that children should not be beaten for failure in study1 but only for moral offences2 and that education should follow in general the guidance of nature4 ,these principles now rank among the commonplaces of educational method1 and in so far as their acceptance has been furthered by the persuasive advocacy of ,comenius the gratitude of the world is due to him2 but why should ,englishmen forget that they had all been proclaimed with unmistakable clearness in this country half a century earlier8 ,readers of the foregoing pages must be already convinced that the doctrines in question form an essential part of ,mulcaster's theory of education2 but it may be worth while to recall in a connected form a few of the more striking passages in which they are expressed4 ,on the use of the vernacular in the early years3 8,as for the question whether ,english or ,latin should be first learned1 hitherto there may seem to have been some reasonable doubt1 although the nature of the two tongues ought to decide the matter clearly enough1 444 but now 444 we can follow the direction of reason and nature in learning to read first that which we speak first1 to take most care over that which we use most1 and in beginning our studies where we have the best chance of good progress1 owing to our natural familiarity with our ordinary language1 as spoken by those around us in the affairs of everyday life40 ,no particular quotation is needed to illustrate ,mulcaster's dependence for his elementary training on studies that called forth individual effort from the child1 for the course he planned includes no other kind of occupation1 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 action3 8,nature has 444 given us for self-preservation the power of perceiving all sensible things by means of feeling1 hearing1 seeing1 smelling1 and tasting4 ,these qualities of the outward world1 being apprehended by the understanding and examined by the judgment1 are handed over to the memory1 and afterwards prove our chief--nay1 our only--means of obtaining further knowledge4444 ,to serve the end both of sense-perception and of motion1 nature has planted in the body a brain1 the prince of all our organs1 which by spreading its channels through every part of our frame1 produces all the effects through which sense passes into motion40 ,on the point of subordinating rules to the imitation of examples1 and learning the arts by practically engaging in them1 ,mulcaster writes3 8,children know not what they do1 much less why they do it1 till reason grow into some ripeness in them1 and therefore in their training they profit more by practice than by knowing why1 till they feel the use of reason1 which teaches them to consider causes4444 ,when the end of any art is wholly in doing1 the initiation should be short1 so as not to hinder that end by keeping the learners too long musing upon rules4444 ,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 learned1 is always to be a-doing while we are a-learning40 ,to the question of the best method in linguistic study1 ,mulcaster was ready to apply this principle of learning directly through practice1 and his sense of the proper place of grammatical knowledge is shown in the following passage3 8,grammar in itself is but the bare rule1 and a very naked thing4444 ,in grammar1 which is the introduction to speech1 there should be no such length as is customary1 because its end is to write and to speak1 and in doing this as much as possible we learn our grammar best1 when it is applied to matter and not clogged with rules4 ,as for understanding writers1 that comes with years and ripeness of intelligence1 not by means of the rules of grammar40 ,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 day2 but it is interesting to notice that he based his conviction not only on the general claims of sympathy1 but also on grounds of purely educational expediency4 8,these three things--perception1 memory1 and judgment--ye will find peering out of the little young souls4 ,now these natural capacities being once discovered must as they arise be followed with diligence1 increased by good method and encouraged by sympathy1 till they come to their fruition4 ,the best way to secure good progress1 so that the intelligence may conceive clearly1 memory may hold fast1 and judgment may choose and discern the best1 is so to ply them that all may proceed voluntarily1 and not with violence1 so that the will may be ready to do well and loth to do ill1 and all fear of correction may be entirely absent4 ,surely to beat for not learning a child that is willing enough to learn1 but whose intelligence is defective1 is worse than madness4444 ,beating must only be for ill-behaviour1 not for failure in learning40 ,finally we must admit that the principle urged by ,comenius1 and afterwards pushed to an extreme by ,rousseau and ,froebel1 of following the guidance of nature in planning the procedure of instruction was explicitly stated by ,mulcaster4 8,the third proof of a good elementary course was that it should follow nature in the multitude of its gifts1 and that it should proceed in teaching as she does in developing4 ,for as she is unfriendly wherever she is forced1 so she is the best guide that anyone can have1 wherever she shows herself favourable40 ,it not infrequently happens that the doctrines of a notable reformer1 while they are full of light and leading for his contemporaries1 have no more than a historical interest for succeeding generations4 ,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 asserted1 so that in one aspect it may be said that the more potent the impress of the original mind1 the sooner will its individual effects become imperceptible4 ,but it would be as rash to make this rule the measure of an estimate of relative greatness1 without taking account of other contributing conditions1 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 significance4 ,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 late1 and while distance in time offers a vantage-ground for the just assignment of the tributes of admiration and gratitude1 the question of immediate applicability must not bulk too largely among the elements on which our judgment of a reputation is based4 ,as has been already suggested1 ,mulcaster lost his opportunity of speedy acceptance for his ideals through his inability to commend them with persuasive eloquence1 though such an impediment to appreciation is happily not irremovable4 ,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 expression1 without his title to fame being materially affected4 ,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 learn1 and which are still clamouring for acceptance in our own day4 ,it would not be difficult to show that many of the reforms which he urged and anticipated1 while they have been formally admitted as necessary or expedient1 have as yet made little way in leavening the whole mass of educational practice4 ,there is good reason to maintain1 for example1 that the impartial diffusion of the opportunities of learning throughout all classes of the community1 which was a fundamental part of ,mulcaster's gospel1 has been much less completely realised among us than is generally supposed4 ,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 name4 ,in so far as elementary instruction was concerned ,mulcaster drew no distinction between rich and poor1 between those of gentle and of lowly birth2 all were to have the same treatment1 irrespective of the uses to which their knowledge might afterwards be turned4 ,our ,state system of education may profess to carry out this aim1 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 fault4 ,our system of public elementary education in this country1 however efficiently it may be organised1 fails entirely to provide a sound general training owing to its adoption of a curriculum that is unduly utilitarian in aim4 ,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 subjection4 ,the well-to-do citizen wishes his own child1 even from the first1 to be taught differently from the child of poorer parents1 whose schooling he helps to pay for and has some share in regulating4 ,the course of study he chooses may be no better1--in some respects it is undoubtedly worse2 but at least it is different1 and conforms to the conventional standard of a liberal training for life as a whole4 ,the codes drawn up for our national system are not framed for any such purpose4 ,partly from ingrained class prejudice1 partly to get tangible results to show for the public money expended1 and partly from a benevolent but short-sighted regard for supposed utilities1 we have overburdened the curriculum with the more mechanical parts of learning4 ,we put too much of the drudgery into the years when we can make sure of the children1 so that a minimum of interest is taken in the work for its own sake1 with the result that when the compulsory term is reached1 the great majority of them use their liberty to throw aside their books for ever4 ,while this reproach remains just1 can we say that the ideal of a true universal elementary education has yet been reached8 ,it is perhaps idle to expect any equalisation of opportunities by postponing every kind of specialism to a period beyond the elementary stage1 until there is a more general agreement as to what constitutes a liberal education4 ,if we apply the touchstone of ,mulcaster's conception1 how much of the traditional lumber which is now obstructing our progress would have to be cleared away6 ,we are the bond-slaves of two tyrants--the spirit of an outworn classicism and the spirit of a utilitarianism falsely so-called4 ,under the domination of the former we distort the curriculum of our higher-class schools1 preparatory as well as secondary1 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 life4 ,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 discipline4 ,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 learning1 and who lamented the temporary need for a medium which kept the student 8one degree further off from knowledge0 to find that after more than #cjj years the shackles had not yet been cast aside4 ,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 culture1 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 8our best learning time10 but mainly of the dry bones of second-hand experience4 ,mulcaster's ideal will not be attained until we have devised a course of study up to the age of at least #ad or #ae years1 which shall form a preparation for life that is applicable to all pupils alike--to boys and girls1 to rich and poor1 to those who can pursue their systematic education further1 and to those who must discontinue it then to enter into the world of affairs4 ,enough perhaps has been already said1 though it would be an easy task to continue the catalogue of reforms suggested by ,mulcaster1 which have been approved by the consensus of judgment among thinkers on education1 but have not yet been fully carried out in this country4 ,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 competition2 or the widespread neglect of the arts and sciences as instruments of general training2 or the unholy separation of parents and children during the most critical years of mutual influence1 through the acceptance of the boarding-school system as a normal institution2 or the anomalous position of teachers1 left as they are without recognition as members of an acknowledged profession1 and having to depend for their training on the voluntary provision made by religious sects1--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 ago1 we shall have little hesitation in admitting the claim of ,richard ,mulcaster to be considered the ,father of ,english ,pedagogy4 ,illustration3 7,publisher's colophon47