ADVANCEMENT OF LEARNING 207 



mate office of the critic, and has indeed been honored by some 

 greater men in our age than critics are usually thought. 



For the doctrine of school-learning, it were the shortest way 

 to refer it to the Jesuits, who, in point of usefulness, have here- 

 in excelled ; yet we will lay down a few admonitions about it. 

 We highly approve the education of youth in colleges, and not 

 wholly in private houses or schools. For in colleges, there is 

 not only a greater emulation of the youth among their equals, 

 but the teachers have a venerable aspect and gravity, which 

 greatly conduces towards insinuating a modest behavior, and 

 the forming of tender minds from the first, according to such 

 examples ; and besides these, there are many other advantages 

 of a collegiate education. But for the order and manner of dis- 

 cipline, it is of capital use to avoid too concise methods and too 

 hasty an opinion of learning, which give a pertness to the 

 mind, and rather make a show of improvement than procure it. 

 But excursions of genius are to be somewhat favored ; so that 

 if a scholar perform his usual exercises, he may be suffered to 

 steal time for other things whereto he is more inclined. It 

 must also be carefully noted, though it has, perhaps, hitherto 

 escaped observation, that there are two correspondent ways of 

 inuring, exercising, and preparing the genius ; the one begin- 

 ning with the easier, leads gradually on to more difficult 

 things ; and the other, commanding and imposing such as are 

 the harder at first ; so that when these are obtained, the easier 

 may be more agreeably despatched. For it is one method to be- 

 gin swimming with bladders, and another to begin dancing 

 with loaded shoes. Nor is it easy to see how much a prudent 

 intermixture of these two ways contributes to improve the fac- 

 ulties both of body and mind. Again, the suiting of studies to 

 the genius is of singular use ; which masters should duly attend 

 to, that the parent may thence consider what kind of life the 

 child is fittest for. And further, it must be carefully observed, 

 not only that everyone makes much greater progress in those 

 things whereto he is naturally inclined, but also, that there are 

 certain remedies in a proper choice of studies for particular in- 

 dispositions of mind. For example, inattention and a volatil- 

 ity of genius may be remedied by mathematics, wherein, if the 

 mind wander ever so little, the whole demonstration must be 

 begun anew. Exercises, also, are of great efficacy in teaching, 

 but few have observed that these should not only be prudently 



