Mr. Butler's Discourse. 191 



ing the truth of this axiom, but so fully imbued with its influ- 

 ence, that I doubt whether they would more'readily submit to 

 legislative direction in this matter, than in regard to the tex- 

 ture or fashion of their children's clothes. 



The principle of the measure is net only objectionable ; but 

 difficulties would be found in its execution and results. I say 

 nothing of the loss of the books now in use, and the expense 

 of procuring new ones, because it would be wise to submit to 

 very considerable expense for the sake of a very decided bene- 

 fit. In some of the schools, good books have already been in- 

 troduced, and it is not certain that any changes in respect to 

 them would be for the better. But admitting the selected 

 books to be superior to all others, how long would they re- 

 main so ? The human mind, in this age, is neither stationary 

 nor inactive ; much of the first talent in Europe and in this 

 country, is devoted to the preparation of school books ; and 

 there is every reason to believe that great improvements 

 would soon be made upon any set of books that might be 

 adopted by the legislature. The consequence would be, that 

 the schools would lose the benefit of these improvements, un- 

 less the books established by law were either revised or aban- 

 doned ; in either of which events, a great expense would be 

 incurred. Expenses from the changes of books are undoubt- 

 edly incident to the present system, and will ever continue 

 under any ; but when they occur, they are usually confined 

 to the substitution of one or two superior books for inferior 

 works of the like nature ;— they rarely extend to the whole 

 set used in the school. But whenever a complete set of 

 books shall have been prescribed by law, the substitution ofa 

 new edition, or of entirely new works, would produce an im- 

 mense expense, and the very fact that it would do so, would 

 probably, for many years, delay its accomplishment, leaving 

 the schools exposed, in the interim, to the injury resulting from 

 the use of imperfect books. Tins objection applies, though 

 not to so great an extent, to the prescribing by law of even a 

 single book. 



Again : have not the supporters of this measure overlook- 

 ed one of the most important principles in our nature — that 

 !ove of change and novelty, so powerful in every age, and es- 

 pecially in childhood ? Or rather, is not the system proposed, 



