64 THE BEE, OR Jan. I2i* 



the firft fubfiftence earned by the exertions of lilcrar j 

 talent. This is the firll form under which authors by 

 profeffion appear in the hiftory of fociety. The fecial 

 progrefs afterwards exhibits them under other forms, 

 correfponding to the varying circumftances of nations. 

 In refined nations, defliture of the art ot" printing, they 

 become lefturers, as 'the circulation of manufcripts i**^ 

 too limited either for the remuneraticm of money or 

 fame. Such were the ancient philofophcrs, though 

 the refemblance, almoft exa£l between their charafters- 

 and that of the profelfed authors of modern times, has 

 not hitherto been remarked. To attend the leftures ol 

 a philofopher, was in facf to read the fyftem of his 

 doctrines. Hence Antonius felt it no degradation to 

 the imperial purple, to attend the courfe of a profeffor, 

 becaufe he did the fame thing as a modern prince, who 

 Ihould retire into his library to read Montcfquieu or 

 Smith. The prefs had not then furnilhed that organ 

 by which a philofopher may from his clofet Icdure to 

 the immenfe audience of foreign nations and future 

 ages. Hence the vaft coUeftion of pupils in the aca- 

 demy and the lyceum, who had no accefs to the vo- 

 lumes of philofophy, but from the mouth of their au-^ 

 thors. It is obvious tliat their ledlures were not like 

 thofe of modern academical inftitutions, — they were not 



elementary inftruftions they were bold and liberal 



fpeculations. The fchoolmajlers, the eleme?itary in- 

 flruftors, were, in the execrable ariftocracy of the an- 

 cient commonwealths, almoft uniformly flaves. Tl)c 

 variety of dogma, the contempt of recsived opinion, . 

 the hoftility to received inftitution, which character- 

 ifed fo many of the Grecian fe£ts, clearly diftinguilh i 

 their fchools from modern fcminaries. The youth of 

 Ionia, of Cyrene, of Sicily, of Magna Gr'^cia, who ' 

 repaired to Athens, came not to an univerfity, but to 

 a library, not to receive the dogmatic inflruction of-tu- 

 tors, but to judge of the various fpeculations of philo- 

 foplicrs. Indeed, the conception of the univerfily was , 



