E D U C 
'radicals, will be able, with a little fa'gjacity, to difcover 
the meaning of many words in a book written on a fami¬ 
liar and obvious fubjedt. By reading fitch a book, he 
will probably find his knowledge of original words in 
fome degree increafed. He goes on to one lefs eafy. His 
knowledge of the language is enlarged by infenfible grada¬ 
tions, and he at laft acquires a deep and a maflerly (kill, 
by petfeverance indeed, but without much painful la¬ 
bour. Erafmus, in the earlier part of his life, carefully 
ftudied the Greek and Latin grammar, read ledlures upon 
them, and tranflated Greek books into Latin. This was 
laying a right foundation for criticifm and philofophy ; 
and it were to be wiihed that our young ftudents would 
follow his example. “Be you ever fo ingenious or in- 
-duftrious, (fays Dr. Jortin,) yet if you negledt to culti¬ 
vate and to preferve this humble part of knowledge, you 
will be perpetually (tumbling when you tread on clafiic 
ground ; when you attempt to explain, to trar.flate, or 
to correct ancient authors, or to difcufs any learned fub- 
ject, or to compofe a few pages in profe or in verfe.” 
Many parents are apt to imagine, that, w bile their fons 
are learning Latin and Greek, they are making no im¬ 
provement in Englifh. They are, however, greatly de¬ 
ceived. It is impofiible to learn the Latin grammar, 
without acquiring a valuable knowledge of grammar in 
general, and confequently of the Englifh grammar. But 
it mud be confeffed, that many particulars of the Englilh 
grammar cannot be learned, but by a particular applica¬ 
tion to it ; and, it is certain, that this has been long neg¬ 
lected in the mod approved fchools. Englifh, undoubt* 
edly, ought to form a great part of an Englifh gentle¬ 
man’s education ; and if a boy has made a good profici¬ 
ency in claflical learning, be will be able of himfelf to 
compenfate the want of particular indruclion in this 
point, it he chufes to apply to it. Good fenfe, good 
company, and the reading of good authors, with a know¬ 
ledge of grammar in general, will commonly make a 
icholar completely mader of his ovvn.language.. To com¬ 
prehend it, however, among the other objedfs of fcholadic 
purfuit, contributes to render a plan of education more 
complete. It is alfo the more delirable ; fince it has been 
found that many boys., who, though they could write 
Latin grammatically, were unable, for want of this part 
-of inftrudtion, to compofe an Englifh letter on a familiar 
J'ubject without incorrectnefs, much lefs with elegance ; 
and even fome celebrated writers in Englifh have made 
egregious midakes in Englifh grammar. It has been the 
opinion of fome, that Englidi iliould be learned before 
Latin ; and bifhctp Lowth feemstOTecommend it drongly ^ 
but he recommends it in a Preface to his Englidi Gram¬ 
mar ; and it is natural to go great lengths in recommend¬ 
ing the importance of any book, art, or fcience, which 
■we have been particularly employed in improving or pro¬ 
moting. Qmntilian, wliofe judgment may in general be 
fully depended upon, fays, A GracoJermone puervm incipere 
maloi quia Latinus, qui pluribus in vfu cjl, vel nobis nolentibus 
fe pralet. One’s own language will come fpontaneouily. 
Not fo the Latin,-or any foreign language. And it would 
be imprudent to employ an age when the memory is mod 
tenacious, and when the mind is confeffedly bed difpofed 
to acquire foreign languages, in learning what will come 
of itfelf, to the negledt of that which is highly valuable, 
and which, if negledted entirely in youth, is ufually 
neglected for life. They may indeed be dudied at the 
fame time, and will be mutually aflidant. In the mean 
time let all violations of grammar, and all vulgarifms, 
folecifms, and barbarifms, in the converfation of boys, 
.and alfo in their mod familiar letters, be rigidly noticed 
and corrected. 
To confirm their improvements in Englidi., boys fliould 
compofe in it, as foon as they are capable of invention, 
indeed, this is ufually done in public fchools, and the 
advantages of it are univerlally felt, not only in the walks 
of learning, but in the mercantile and civil departments. 
Many boys go to public fchools, who are defigned for 
A T I O N. 2 59 
commercial life. The little Lathi they learn by the age 
of thirteen or fourteen, when they fometimes leave the 
fehool for the accompting-houfe, may not be of great 
fervice to them; but the habit of ccmpofing in Englilh, 
will enable them to write letters with eafe and with accu¬ 
racy ; an acquilition for which they will be obliged to 
their fehool as long as they live ; an acquilition, which will 
ferve, didinguifii, and adorn, them more than any of the 
accomplidiments which arc merely ornamental. It is cer¬ 
tainly proper to comprehend, in the plan of indrufclion 
in Englidi, the dodrine of Englifh verification, as well 
as of prolific composition. The vaiious metres fliould be 
explained; and f'uch a manner of reading them pointed 
out, as tends to difplay their beauty and their melody. 
It may indeed be extremely advantageous to advance a 
flep higher, and endeavour to infufe into the higher 
claifes not only a grammatical, but a critical knowledge 
of the language, and its authors. To the fenior boys 
the beauties and defedts of flyle fliould be flrewn. The 
opinions of judicious critics on our poets, hiftorians, ora¬ 
tors, and moralifts, fliould be laid before them and dif- 
cufled. They fliould be taught, not to read every tiling 
that falls into their hands, but to feledt their books with 
judgment, and to afiign the realons for their preference. 
They will thus acquire not only grammatical accuracy, 
but tafie ; a quality, which will furnifli them, during 
life, with pleafure pure and refined ; to be able to relifh 
which, befides the exalted fatisfadfion of it, will charac- 
terife the true gentleman independently of fortune. 
Young men who are defigned for a commercial life, 
fliould, with their Englifh, be well iirfirudted in the 
higher departments of arithmetic. This, we fear, is too 
much negledted in England, as being unconnedted with 
the common views of a clalTical education, which is to 
inculcate the refined tafie and elevated ideas of the mod 
renowned perfonages of the ancient fchools. Arms and 
arts were the chief objedts of attention in the fchools of 
Rome; but Great-Britain, from her fituation and con¬ 
nections, is naturally commercial. Commerce, with us, 
lias acquired a dignity unknown in ancient times, and in 
other countries of Europe. They who have been en¬ 
gaged in it have added a grace to it by the liberality of 
their education and the generofity of their minds. This 
has introduced them to the company of thofe to whom 
their fortunes made them equal; and they have appeared 
in the fenate, and in fociety, with peculiar grace and 
importance. 
The value of a legible and expeditious hand, and the 
utility of arithmetic as a fcience, have never been fairly 
appreciated by claflical teachers. Arithmetic, when flu- 
died as a fcience, and expanded by the rules of algebra, 
aflumes new grace, and furnifiies a fine exercile for the 
mind in its favourite employment, the purfuit of truth. 
Herein we fee the rife of all the mathematical fciences, 
fo effential to a liberal education. Nor can we believe 
there is any one now, but mufi, acknowledge that a mind, 
properly furniflied with fuch enlightened fpeculations, 
is qualified to excel in every fuperior feene of life. Far 
more honourable they furely are, than the arts of leap¬ 
ing a horfe, or of wielding a fvvord ; accomplifliments 
ufually afugned our youth of diftindtion, and for the fake 
of which alone they are often lent into diflant countries, 
as if there were nothing to be taught them at home, nor 
any thing in a gentleman worth cultivating, but his 
body. We-would not undervalue tliefe bodily acquire¬ 
ments ; for perfedtion of every fort is certainly worth 
aiming at,; but we would wifh them to be rated as much 
below the mental, as the body itfelf is inferior to the 
foul. Facility in writing, and expertnefs in calculation, 
are abfolutely neceffary to the merchant; and are highly 
ufeful to all. But thefe are not to form the whole edu¬ 
cation of a merchant, nor even the chief part of it. The 
piopofed end of a mercantile life is the accumulation of 
money. And what is the ufe ot money but to contribute 
to the enjoyment of life ? Yet a rich man, without libe¬ 
ral 
