Things Worth While 23 



means that the highest attainments of human thought in 

 art, in letters, in philosophy, are to be open to all men. 

 Just in so far as light and inspiration can find utterance 

 and have found utterance in English speech, just so far 

 will these reach in new pentecostal blessing the waiting 

 nations of this world. Just as through the instrumen- 

 tality of English letters, the wisdom of past and present, 

 the best experience and hopes of men have come to you, 

 just so in ever widening measure shall these things by 

 the same agency come to increasing millions. Who shall 

 not prize a possession, a gift like this? Fortunately for 

 you, young people, it is the speech to which you are 

 born ; but let no man think himself educated who knows 

 not how to use it with precision, correctness, and skill. 

 Nearly all the really artistic contributions made by 

 America thus far to the literature of the world, originate 

 in New England. But in New England for two hundred 

 years learning had her home in the manse, and men 

 were students and scholars in English. Go to the great 

 libraries of the eastern states, to Providence, for instance, 

 and see the manuscripts in keeping there. Sermons, you 

 say? Yes, sermons; but beautifully written; hundreds 

 and hundreds of them, all in elegant English, in pen- 

 manship as if engraved; discussing theological topics, 

 no doubt, but scholarly to the last iota. These pains- 

 taking clergymen-scholars were the forerunners of 

 Emerson and Lowell and Holmes, and made possible the 

 whole New England school of literature. In our present 

 sowing, I confess I see small promise of any similar fu- 

 ture harvest. 



Study English; study its masterpieces, the Bible, 



