MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER; AN AGRICULTURAL, LITERARY AND FAMILY NEWSPAPER. 
€jtmat0r* 
STUD! OF THE ANCIENT LANGUAGES. 
We have, during several months past, pub¬ 
lished articles, both editorial and communi¬ 
cated, upon the above-named subject. How¬ 
ever excellent music an expert performer can 
elicit from an instrument of one string, it will 
not do to be harping upon it perpetually. 
We set the ball in motion by a couple of edi¬ 
torials in favor-of studying the Ancient Lan¬ 
guages, and have given room for others to be 
heard upon the subject, pro and con. As the 
prosecution has a right to close the case, we 
give place to the following communication, 
and then submit it to the Jury composed of 
the numerous friends of universal Education. 
—Ed. 
Mr. Editor :—The utility of the dead lan¬ 
guages as a means of discipline and refine¬ 
ment, and the foundation of all that is valua¬ 
ble in Education, has been settled by the uni¬ 
ted testimony of the highest scholars of every 
age. It is upon this idea that every substan¬ 
tial system of education is founded. “ The 
Greek and Roman classics,” says Edwards, 
“stand at the beginning and at the source of 
European culture. These great Ancients 
have been, time out of mind, the Teachers of 
the civilized world. They form a common 
bond which unites the cultivated minds of all 
nations and ages together.” And in our own 
best Schools and Colleges, the study of Greek 
and Roman authors has been made, and is 
becoming still more, prominent. This almost 
universal judgment of those best qualified to 
decide this question, in favor of the ancient 
classics, is a matter of no small importance 
in this discussion. 
Your correspondent, “S. T.,” should bear 
in mind that he is not contending against the 
absurdities of the “Dark Ages,” as he has 
insinuated, but the settled opinion of the best 
cultivated and most enlightened minds of 
every age in every civilized nation on earth. 
Common prudence would dictate cautioD, in 
opposing such an array of testimony. 
We would not undervalue the mathematics, 
nor set them aside. They are indispensable, 
and must have their appropriate place in the 
work of education. But they must not dis¬ 
place the Ancient Languages. No such sub¬ 
stitution can be safely made. iN”or can we 
allow the “ French and German ” as substi¬ 
tutes for Latin and Greek. These are impor¬ 
tant in their place, but not so important as a 
means of discipline and the foundation of a 
solid education. 
“ The Greek and Latin are the only lan¬ 
guages which are developed according to the 
rules of perfect art,” They are the storehouse 
of ancient wisdom an 1 eloquence. Hence 
they have held, and still hold, an untold su¬ 
premacy over the thousand tongues of earth. 
The fact is beyond contradiction. And shall 
they be set aside for the more imperfect lan¬ 
guages, in our schools and colleges ? It seems 
to me that “ S. T.” has lost sight of the great 
end of education. This end is not knowledge, 
but discipline. It is not the knowledge of the 
mathematics and languages, or of Siiakspeark 
and Milton, that is chiefly sought in their 
study. There is a higher object to be gained, 
viz., mental culture — the power to think and 
reason, and the power to be moved by the 
beautiful and sublime, in nature and art. To 
secure this cultivation and refinement, no 
means have proved more effectual than the 
faithful and accurate study of the ancient 
languages. 
We would not have the “ English Classics” 
omitted, still the Latin and Greek are equally 
important, even to the English scholar ; far 
more so, if we contemplate some advantages 
to be secured. And if the great object to be 
secured in education is discipline, (which ev¬ 
ery sound head must admit,) and if the ancient 
classics afford the best means of discipline, 
then, surely, “ S. T.” ought not to deprive 
even “ the generality of students” of these 
advantages. Yours, &c., h. 
North Granville, N. Y. 
DEATH of t, romeyn beck. 
A\ e discharge a melancholy duty, says the 
Albany Journal, in announcing the death of 
this eminent, widely known and universally 
honored citizen. J 
Dr. Beck’s health had been gradually de¬ 
clining for several months. In the absence of 
any organic disease, hope of his recovery was 
entertained until some four weeks ago, when 
an unfavorable opinion was obtained from 
high medical authority. Since that period 
his family and friends prepared for the worst, 
have awaited an event which bereaves them 
and the community of a man who in all things 
was the type and exemplar of his race. 
Dr. Beck's mission was one of practical 
usefulness. During the quarter of a century 
that he devoted himself laboriously to the in¬ 
struction of youth, as the Principal of our 
Adademy, people wondered how a man so 
gifted could content himself with a position 
so comparatively humble. The answer is, 
that Dr. Beck was unselfish and unambitious, 
lie loved his school, his friends, his associates, 
and above all his home. These were, to him, 
sources of happiness too precious to be sac¬ 
rificed. lie pursued, therefore, with diligence 
WINTER PALACE OF TITE CZAR, ST. PETERSBURGH. 
Palaces for princes and hovels for the 
peasantry, are characteristics of a despotism. 
Exclusive privileges for the few and special 
burdens for the many, can only be maintained 
where the latter are too ignorant to demand 
and assert that equality of right which the 
God of Nature designed for all men. The 
nearer we approach an autocracy, the greater 
will the contrast appear between the condi¬ 
tions of the various ranks. In residences, in 
dress, in personal appearance, in everything, 
the broad, deep lines of exclusiveness are 
drawn, and pomp and splendor stand side by 
side with squalor and degradation. 
The Winter palace of the Czar, at St. 
Petersburg, is the exponent of a government 
where the will of one man is law to more than 
and cheerfulness, the “ even tenor of his way,” 
raising up generation after generation of 
thoroughly educated yourg men, whose first 
duty and highest privilege, through life, has 
been to acknowledge, with grateful hearts, ob¬ 
ligations to their beloved Preceptor. 
Mr. Beck aimed to render all his scientific 
and literary acquirements valuable. His 
knowledge was held in trust for the benefit of 
others. His mind, like a tree upon a com¬ 
mon, bore fruit for the community. He was 
a man of simple manners, genial nature, social 
habits, large humanity, and radiant faith.— 
Almost half a century was passed among us 
in the active discharge of responsible public 
duties. His efforts to promote Education, 
Science, Improvement, Virtue and Christian¬ 
ity, were always well and wisely directed. 
Dr. Beck’s associations, through life, have 
been with the truly good and great. His 
society was sought by all who appreciated 
public' worth and social excellence^ Those 
who, for so many years, enjoyed both in their 
daily intercourse with him, while deploring 
his loss, will cherish his memory. But to 
other hearts—hearts with which his own was 
intertwined—the bereavement comes with a 
crushing weight. In the halls his presence 
brightened and gladdened, there is now dark¬ 
ness and sorrow. 
Dr. Beck was born at Schenectady August 
11, 1791, and graduated at Union College in 
1807. He received the degree of M. I), in 
1811, and commenced practice in Albany 
soon after. In 1817 he was appointed Prin¬ 
cipal of the Albany Academy, which post he 
held for 25 years. Since 1841 he has been 
Secretary to' the Board of Regents of the 
University of the State of New York. 
To Teachers and Parents. —It is esti¬ 
mated that nearly 4,000 gallons of. air pass 
into and out of the lungs of a healthy person 
every twenty-four hours. Pure, wholesome 
air is the proper food for the lungs, and the 
want of it is the frequent cause of consump¬ 
tion and other diseases. To breathe pure air 
is to live ; to breathe impure and vitiated air, 
is to induce sickness, suffering and death.— 
Teachers and parerits, will you see to it that 
the school houses under your charge are well 
supplied with suitable means for ventilation ? 
The good of the school demands it; the health 
and physical growth and mental energy of the 
children demand it. Neglect not a duty of 
such vital importance. — Common School 
Journal. 
Cause of a Country’s Enterprise and 
Prosperity. —When the question was asked 
by a traveler from a foreign country, passing 
in a stage coach, “ What" is the cause of the 
enterprise and prosperity of New England?” 
the answer was given by one whose eye then 
rested upon the steeple of a church and upon 
a school hous8. “ These,” said he, “ account 
for the enterprise and prosperity of New 
England. The house of God first, and the 
school house next; the one the result of the 
other, and both going hand in hand to enrich 
and bless the whole community.” 
The loquacity of fools is a lecture to the 
wisest. 
sixty millions of people. It is a vast quad¬ 
rangular pile, with a frontage on each side of 
more than seven hundred feet. The principal 
rooms on the first floor are over one hundred 
in number, and occupy an area of over four 
hundred thousand square feet. It is said that 
during the Emperor’s residence in the palace, 
more than six thousand persons are domiciled 
within its walls. 
Kohl, a Russian writer, speaking of this 
immense structure, previous to 1837, says: 
“ The suites of apartments are perfect laby¬ 
rinths, and even the chief of the Imperial 
household, who had filled that post for twelve 
years, was not perfectly acquainted with all 
the nooks and corners of it. As in the forests 
of the great landholders, many colonies are 
Crahieu 
TRAVELING IN THE DESERT. 
We left Cairo on the 28th of March, our 
destination Mount Sinai and Palestine. ' The 
din of the crowded streets of the city soon 
died upon the ears. 
We form a caravan of more than twenty 
camels. We carry our food and water with 
us, A vast expanse of uncultivated wilder¬ 
ness is before us. Gardens, and trees, and 
fountains, and flowers, and singing birds are 
gone. Day after day passes on ; monotonous, 
but still not without interest. He who has 
not been in the desert, has not known all that 
the heart can feel. It i3 the great preroga¬ 
tive of our nature to unfold itself anew in ev¬ 
ery novelty of circumstance and situation. 
The desert speaks. It has a voice for the 
heart; and the heart answers. 
The desert from Cairo to Suez is not in all 
respects so destitute and lonely as the vast 
desert on the eastern side of the Rsd Sea.— 
There is something left. Absolute death can¬ 
not be predicated of anything except annihi¬ 
lation. From time to time are seen shrubs 
and tufts of coarse grass; but they furnish 
but a slight relief to the general character of 
the scene. I was surprised and pleased to 
find in some places a green plant, which bore 
pods of an inch in length, and which on press¬ 
ing and breaking them were found to be full 
of water. At the distance of forty miles from 
Cairo, we sit down under a large acacia-tree, 
—the first tree which we had noticed for that 
distance. It is difficult to understand the se¬ 
cret of its growth in such a place. Such ex¬ 
ceptions cannot make these vast solitudes 
otherwise than a desert. 
Animal life dies, as well as vegetable. It 
is true that it is possible in the course of some 
days to get sight of a snail, which is found in 
some localities, and which has discovered the 
secret of attaching itself to the few shrubs of 
the region, and extracting their moisture ; or 
to cross the path of a beetle groping its way 
in the heated sand ; or to startle the solitude 
of a lizard, which has contrived to live among 
the rocks. But in general the desolation is 
perfect. Locality exists. Life is in exile. ’ 
Marching over wide and arid plain?, and 
with hills and mountains of rock and sand in 
sight, we- go on from day to day. The eye 
rests upon/oms, not upon life; but forms are 
the background of beauty ; and imagination 
sometimes fills up the picture. Successive 
hours tell our progress. The march becomes 
wearisome ; but the setting sun brings rest. 
Turning from the narrow beaten paths which 
constitute the roads of the de3 rt,and seeking 
a retired and sheltered place, we pitched our 
tents for the night. This also is a new scene; 
but it has the associations of antiquity and 
religion. The patriarchs dwelt in tents.— 
Paul was a tent maker. As we hear the 
sound of the hammer, we know what it is, 
when it is required of Zion, “ to lengthen her 
cords and strengthen her stakes.” The Arabs 
shelter themselves under the piles of luggage. 
And if the evening is cool, they build a fire. 
They form themselves in little assemblies; 
settled of which the owner takes no notice, so 
there are nestled many a one in this palace 
not included among^he regular inhabitants. 
For example: the watchmen on the roof, 
placed there for different purposes — amoDg 
others to keep the water in the tanks from 
freezing during winter, by casting red hot 
balis into them — built themselves huts be¬ 
tween the chimneys, took their wives and 
children there, and even kept poultry and 
goats, which fed upon the gra?3 of the roof.” 
The interior of the Winter Palace was de¬ 
stroyed by fire on the 28th day of December, 
1837; and, although the crown jewels and 
much valuable property were rescued from 
the flames, the destruction was immense.— 
Pictures, statuary, furniture, costly trappings, 
and if they travel in comparative silence by 
day, they are noisy as laugh and song can 
make them in their social groups in the early 
part of the night. The camels, weary with 
the heat and toils of the day, lie down at their 
side and are fed. They then prepare their 
own humble meal. 
It was thus day after day, and night after 
night. At a certain time, being little inclin¬ 
ed to sleep in the novelty of such a situation, 
I walked out at midnight. The moon was 
in all its brightness ; the sky without a c'oud 
to suggest the idea of form or limitation, 
seemed vast as eternity; and being studded 
all over with stars, it was bright with the 
brightness of God. The camels, stretched out 
at length upon the ground, were large dark 
shadows in the moonlight. The men slept at 
their side. There was no sound. But the 
soul heard the silence. I have stood at the 
foot of Niagara ; I have listened to the deep 
moaning sound of the vast forests of my car 
tive land ; I have been on the ocean when 
each wave had its voice, and that voice was 
thunder ; but these great voices entered les 3 
deeply into the ear of the si irit than the 
mighty silence of the desert at midnight. At 
such a time the soul opens its capacities. It 
magnifies and expands itself in the greatness 
! of its dilated conceptions, and takes hold of 
eternity ; and in the voice which is then sent 
forth—a voice uttered in brightness without 
a shadow, in vastness without limit, in har¬ 
mony without variation—it bears the procla¬ 
mation, so dear to every holy soul, of the un¬ 
utterable tranquiiity of God. —Prof. Upham, 
in the Congregationalist. 
fV'/totf/r/? rs.se. 
and other works of art, collected during threa 
or four preceediDg reigns, were in a few hour 3 
an undistinguishable heap of ashes. Several 
thousand workmen were immediately set about 
re-building the palace, and within two years 
the structure re-appeared in even more than 
its pristine magnificence. 
Its late occupant, the Emperor Nicholas, 
has passed away, and his successor’s Empire is 
sorely pressed by foreign foes; but the power 
of Russia is as yet unbroken, and 3 he hurls 
the gauntlet of a proud defiance at the league 
between her own former ally and the descend¬ 
ant of the once bitter and potent enemy of 
both. England’s Queen has made a pilgri¬ 
mage to Napoleon’s tomb; but the hatred 
of Russia remains au inextinquishable fire. 
For Moore’s Raral Now-Yorker. 
BIBLICAL ENIGMA. 
I am composed of 38 letters. 
My 1, 21, 7, 6, 11 was the father of one of the 
patriarchs. 
My 7, 6, 38, 31, 19, 2, 24, 17, 13, 21, 6, 16 was 
a city of refuge. 
My 23, 26, 30, 12, 16, 25 was a wilderness in 
Palestine 
My 27, 5, 11, 23, 38, 17, 6, 2 was one of the 
prophets. 
My 38, 8, 15, 17, 6, 11 was a mountain of Je¬ 
rusalem. 
My 30, 6, 13, 34, 13, 3, 21 was a province of 
Palestine. 
My 10, 28, 38, 29, 6, 10, 20 was a city of the 
Philistines. 
My 36, 37, 12, 24 was an Edomite. 
My 35, 6, 38, IS, 14, 26 was a judge of Israel. 
My 4, 17, 15, 3 came down from heaven. 
My 33, 17, 9, 21 was given to Isaac. 
My 32, 12, 6, 15 came upon the people. 
My -whole is a proverb of Solomon. 
Carlisle, Pa. j. b. Akers. 
Answer next week. 
Answer to Miscellaneous Enigma in No. 307: 
Cruelty, Arrogance, Ingratitude. 
Answer to Mathematical Problem in No 307: 
1st note. $1093,25 ; 2d, $1026,12; 3d, $966,75; 
4th, $913,89. Total, $4000,00. Amount of 
each note at payment, $1169,77. 
Answer to Arithmetical Problem in No. 307: 
200 feet.— Mich. Jour, of Ed. 
Written for Moore’s Rural New-Yorker. 
A LIFE ON EARTH. 
A life here, after all, is a high honor._ 
No other life anywhere else is susceptible of so 
' much blessing as this, both in its immediate 
and eternal issues. Do we believe this ?_ 
Ought we not to believe it ? What work has 
been done, anywhere, like the work and death 
of Christ ? When and where else has Deity 
endured and suffered as on this speck we live 
An? What blessings can be like those 
bought by a soul-interest in the pangs of the 
Mightiest, in the marvel of Redemption ?— 
JEsus has died. By His death we may be 
saved, —and the doom was dark wherefrom 
He saved us. The means were incredible 
whereby He saved us. The height is peerless 
whereto He will bring u 3 . 
A life here may have issues beyond all 
computation. It is among myriads to be 
saved or lost, and to whom the gospel goes 
out, and the pleas and warnings of Heaven 
go out. It is on a theatre oi action, having 
terminations amaziug, by pre-arrangements 
marvellous, and amid conflicts terrible. On 
what other world is God’s eye with such in- 
tentness of heart-interest, and from what oth¬ 
er work of His hand will come returning 
confluences of glory to His name, so superla¬ 
tive and innumerable. O, my soul! my soul! 
And what may we do ? What shall we do 
—what shall we not desire to do under the 
kind direction of our Keeper ? How shall 
we live in this world, and what train of agen¬ 
cies excite for good, forever ? c 
Forbearance.— When the Christian has to 
bear neglects and affronts, let him remember 
that they are nothing compared with those 
which Gcd sustains every moment. 
To be obsequious to man, yet insulting to 
God, is one of. the commonest things in the 
universe. 
Blessings which we have slighted when in 
our possession, are more highly prized when 
there is danger of our being deprived of them • 
and our hearts are more "keenly touched by 
the anticipations of loss than by the fullness 
of enjoyment. 
The Bible.— In the adaptation of the Word 
of God to intellects of all dimensions, it re¬ 
sembles the natural light, which is equally 
suited to the eye of the minutest insect, and 
to the extended vision of man. 
“ In the heraldry of Heaven,” writes Bishop 
Horn, “goodness precedes greatness, so on 
earth it is often more powerful. The lowly 
and the loving may often do more in their 
own limited sphere than the gifted.” 
