1803. ] 
that have prevented fome able perfon 
from perfecting and publifhing this vo- 
lume fince Baker’s death, is beft known 
to others. Some perfon, it feems, had 
in contemplation to publith it, when Dr. 
Newcombe was Matter of St. John’s, but 
was forbidden, on account of fome pecu- 
liarities contained in the work. What 
thofe are, this is not the place to in- 
quire. 
XVIL—=BAKER’S REFLECTIONS ON 
LEARNING. 
The only book that Baker ever publifh- 
ed of his own, it has been already obferv- 
ed, is, Reflections on Learning, wherein is 
foeumn its Infufficiency in its feveral Parti- 
culars, in Order to evince the Ufefulnefs and 
Neceffity of Revelation; a book certainly 
of great learning, but which favours too 
much of conceit, and is inconclufive in 
point of argument. For here is every fort 
of learning brought forward to fhew the 
vanity of learning, and men’s difagree- 
ment in particulars, to demonftrate its ge- 
neral infufficiency: as if men, too, were not 
as much divided in particulars, on the fub- 
" jeét, the ufefulnefs and neceflity of which 
Baker propofed to eftablifh by this book. 
Take only one word, Grace, and let the 
celebrated Monfieur Pafcal tell us, what 
fubtle, .contradiétory, and unintelligible 
diftinétions only the Jefuits and Janfenifts 
made, till the dilpute ends in fur je ne {cai 
Quote 
XVII.—-A SHOOL-BOY’S SHORT ELEGY. 
» From Paul’s I went, to Eaton fent, 
To learn ftraightways the Latin phrafe, 
Where fifty-three ftripes given to me, 
At once I had: 
For faults but fmall, or none at all, 
It came to pafs, that beat I was: 
See, Udal, fee the mercy of thee 
To me, poor lad. 
Tuffer, Nic. Udal Difcipulus, 
Again& this fort of {chool-difcipline, 
Afcham fternly fet his honeft face, it be- 
ing his opinion, that punifhment belong- 
ed rather to the parent thanto the {chool- 
matter. 
His obfervations on this fubject are ju- 
dicious. ‘This difcipline, fays he, was 
well known, and diligently praétifed 
among the Grecians and old Romans, as 
appears in Ariftophanes, Ifocrates, and 
Plato; and alfo in the comedies of Plau- 
tus, where we fee that children were under 
three perfons, preceptore, pedagogo, pa- 
rente: the fchoolmatter taught learning 
with all gentlenefs; the governor corrected 
his manners with all tharpnefs; the father 
Obfervations on the Dominion of the Sea. 
497 
held the fern of his whole obedience ; and 
fo he that ufed to teach did not commonly 
ufe to beat.”” 
XVIIL.—=-GREEK azd LATIN to be read iz 
UNION. 
Afcham, ufed to fay “* That as a 
hawk flyeth nv. high with one wing, foa 
man reacheth not to excellency with one 
tongue.”” This faying, however, is not 
accurate: a hawk, with one wing, cannot 
fly at all; and the Greeks, with one 
tongue, excelled all the world. Afcham’s 
remark relates to the union of the Greek 
and Roman languages. 
XIX.—Why GREEK and ROMAN WRITERS 
are to be preferred to all others. 
Afcham’s apology forthe partiality of our 
countrymen to the Greek and Latin wri- 
ters is very judicious. ‘* But, yet (lays 
he) becaufe the providence of God 
hath left to us in no other tongue, fave 
only in the Greek and Roman tongues, 
the true precepts and perfect examples of 
eloquence, therefore muft we feek in the 
authors only of thefe two tongues the 
true patterns of eloquence, if in any mo-. 
dern tongue, we look to attain either to 
perfect utterance of it ourfelves, or {kil- 
ful judgment of it in others.” 
Among Baker’s manu(cripts in the Bri- 
tifh Mufeum, is a Latin Life of Bithop 
Fifher, written in Baker’s own hand, 
though he was not the author. On the 
cover of the volume are written the follow- 
ing lines, which, as Baker’s name ftands 
a little above them, were, moft probably, 
compofed by. himfelf : 
Thomas Baker, Coll. Jo. Cant. 
Socius Ejectus. 
Tene viri tanti cervicem abfcindere poffe ? 
Tene cruore' pio commaculare manus ? 
Si vita fpolias Roffenfem, barbare, quando 
Ullum producet terra Britanna parem ? 
Sed tu, fanéte fenex, evo fruiture beato, 
Letus abi in celum—te vocat ipfe Deus, 
EK: 
a 
To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, 
S the late queftions between Great 
Britain and the Northern Maritime 
Powers, in the opinions of moft thinking 
men, have only been hufhed up for a time, 
to break out at fome future pericd with 
greater violence than ever; it may not 
be ufelefs or uninfruStive to offer a few 
obfervations on a part of the fubject re- 
latirige 
