414 



THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



witli older studies is argued with great 

 force and entire conclusiveness. As an 

 example of the vigor with which the 

 claims of these several subjects are pre- 

 sented, we quote what President Eliot 

 Bays about the study of English : 



The first subject which, as I conceive, is 

 entitled to recognition as of equal academic 

 value or rank with any subject now most 

 honored, ia the English language and litera- 

 ture. When Greek began to revive in Eu- 

 rope, English was just acquiring a literary 

 form ; but, when Greek had won its present 

 rank among the liberal arts, Shakespeare had 

 risen, the English language was formed, and 

 English literature was soon to become the 

 greatest of modern literatures. How does it 

 stand now, with its immense array of poets, 

 philosophers, historians, commentators, crit- 

 ics, satirists, di'amatists, novelists, and ora- 

 tors? It can not be doubted that English 

 literature is beyond all comparison the am- 

 plest, most yarious, and most si^lendid litera- 

 ture which the world has seen ; and it is 

 enough to say of the English language that it 

 is the language of that literature. Greek 

 literature compares with English as Homer 

 compares with Shakespeare — that is, as in- 

 fantile with adult civilization. It may fur- 

 ther be said of the English language, that it 

 is the native tongue of nations which are pre- 

 eminent in the world by force of character, 

 enterprise, and wealth, and whose political 

 and social institutions have a higher moral 

 interest and greater promise than any M'hicli 

 mankind has hitherto invented. To the 

 original creations of English genius are to be 

 added translations into English of all the 

 masterpieces of other literatures, sacred and 

 profane. It is a very rare scholar who has 

 not learned much more about the Jews, the 

 Greeks, or the Romans through English than 

 through Hebrew, Greek, or Latin. 



And now, with all this wonderful treasure 

 within reach of our youth, what is the posi- 

 tion of American schools and colleges in re- 

 gard to teaching English 1 Has English lit- 

 erature the foremost place in the programmes 

 of schools ? By no means ; at best only a 

 subordinate place, and in many schools no 

 place at all. Does English take equal rank 

 witli Greek or Latin in our colleges ? By no 

 means ; not in the number and rank of the 

 teachers, nor in the consideration in which 

 the subject is held by faculty and students, 

 nor in the time which may be devoted to it 

 by a candidate for a degree. Until within a 

 few years the American colleges made no 



demand upon candidates for admission in re- 

 gard to knowledge of English ; and, now that 

 some colleges make a small requirement in 

 English, the chief result of the examinations 

 is to demonstrate the woful ignorance of their 

 own language and literature which prevails 

 among the picked youth of the country. 

 Shall we be told, as usual, that the best way 

 to learn English is to study Latin and Greek ? 

 The answer is, that the facts do not corrobo- 

 rate tliis improbable hypothesis. American 

 youth in large numbers study Latin and 

 Greek, but do not thereby learn English. 

 Moreover, this hypothesis is obviously inap- 

 plicable to the literatures. Shall we also be 

 told, as usual, that no linguistic discipline 

 can be got out of the study of the native lan- 

 guage? How, then, was the Greek mind 

 trained in language ? Shall we be told that 

 knowledge of English literature should be 

 picked up without systematic effort? The 

 answer is, first, that, as a matter of fact, this 

 knowledge is not picked up by American 

 youth ; and, secondly, that there never was 

 any good reason to suppose that it would be, 

 the acquisition of a competent knowledge of 

 English literature being not an easy but a 

 laborious undertaking for an average youth — 

 not a matter of entertaining reading, but of 

 serious study. Indeed, there is no subject in 

 which competent guidance and systematic 

 instruction are of greater value. 



LITERARY NOTICES. 



The Past and Present of Political Econ- 

 omy. By Richard T. Ely, Ph. D. Balti- 

 more : N. Murray. Pp. 64. Price, 35 

 cents. 



Tms is a contribution to the "Johns 

 Hopkins University Studies in Historical 

 and Political Science," edited by Herbert B. 

 Adams, and constitutes No. Ill of the sec- 

 ond series. The scheme of publication is 

 an important one, but it contains no con- 

 tribution more valuable than this mono- 

 graph on the present condition of political 

 economy by Dr. Ely. 



There is unquestionably a good deal of 

 confusion of mind among general readers 

 in regard to the present condition of the 

 so-called science of economics. While the 

 subject continues to rank, as it has long 

 ranked, as a branch of science with its ac- 

 credited text-books, and its status in the 

 curriculum of higher collegiate study, on the 

 other hand many articles have latterly ap- 



