346 Report on a Course of Liberal Education. 



tion, and intellectual illumination of the living, active and 

 intelligent being, in the sculptured imitation of the statuary. 



While classic literature is pursued in other civilized, and 

 Christian countries, with constantly increasing avidity, every 

 measure having a tendency to depreciate the value and im- 

 portance, or to discourage the pursuit of high classic at- 

 tainments, in our own country, should be resisted, and no 

 reasonable eflbrt should be omitted to enhance the estima- 

 tion in which education shall be held by the great body of 

 the community. 



Let the value of a collegiate education be reduced and 

 the diffusion of intelligence among the people would be 

 checked ; the general standard of intellectual and moral 

 worth lowered; and our civil and religious liberty jeoparded, 

 by ultimately disqualifying our citizens for the exercise of the 

 right and privilege of self-government. 



Interwoven therefore, as the measure under consideration 

 is, with the structure of our invaluable institutions ; endan- 

 gering their durability; and tending as it does to discourage, 

 by undervaluing what has hitherto been deemed an impor- 

 tant branch of learning, and involving a departure from the 

 well and long established opinions and practice of the learn- 

 ed and wise, the committee would for these reasons alone, 

 pronounce its adoption a most hazardous experiment. 



The committee, however, do not rest their opposition to 

 the proposed plan solely on the considerations already sug- 

 gested. The thorough study of the ancient languages, par- 

 ticularly the Latin and Greek, not only before but subse- 

 quently to an admission into college, they are fully satisfied, 

 is, in many respects decidedly and positively useful to the 

 pupil. In the intellectual discipline of youth, the importance 

 of the study of those languages, in their opinion, cannot be 

 reasonably denied, and will hardly be questioned by many 

 whose judgments are guided by the light of experience. 

 Such study carries the young pupil back to the earliest era 

 in the history of mental efforts, lays open to him the most 

 simple and original operations of the mind and acquaints 

 him with its brilliant and unrivalled productions. It stimu- 

 lates to industry and severe and faithful application, by prov- 

 ing to the student that the mines of learning can be penetra- 

 ted only by unceasing exertion, while it admonishes him of 

 the inutility and fate of genius when unaided by deep and 

 laborious research. The student's memory is thus rendered 



