Star.
London, England, 1808-06-09 00:00:00

'AV 7 IfE D.1704i THE ST4R.

r.7—As a? eeleuswell ledger to our happy Con-
tenor. n C r.trsh and State, I was greatly shocked
earn fret/ Mr. BOWLES'S Letter to Mr. WHIT-
Re FAD, and also I iren a Sermon preached by a learned
r:gnitary of t 1 e Church of Ireland, at the Magdalen
Asylum, that there is a very powerful party enlisted
under the banners of Mr. insert: LANCASTER, whose
o bject it is to overturn our Laws and Religion, and to
substitute in their place Anarchy and Atheism—hav-
ing, however, investigated the matter very minutely,
and cautiously perused Mr. LANCASTER'S book, I am
in hopes that matters are not quite so *bad, or the
plan, at least, is not co ripe for execution as those two
great luminaries of Politics and Religion, Mr. JOHN
Bowles, and the Bishop of M. are disposed to appre-
hend. Though I agree with them that Mr. Lee-
CASTER'S and his party's motives are much to be sus-
pected, yet many causes, I am of opinion, must com-
bine, before either Church or State can be completely
overthrown by such assailants.—His Mait.sre, Gtm
bless him, is still securely enthroned in the hearts of
his loyal and affectionate subjects ; neither are any of
the successors of the Apostles yet in danger of having
their mitres plucked from their brows, or their crosiers
wrested from their hands; nor have I yet heard that
any of them have for the present been under the ne-
cessity of pawning their gilt plate. I am therefore not
so much alarmed at the danger, as disgusted at the
folly and absurdity of Mr. LANCASTER'S project.
Mr. LANCASTER, besides initiating his pupils in
reading; writing, and arithMetic, -professes (I suspect
his professions) to inculcate religion and morality ; to
invite his pupils to the practice of virtue; and to warn
them against the seductions of vice. llut where is the
necessity of putting ideas on any of these eubjects into
the heads of young children ? 11. is ellnay time enough
to warn them against vice, when their vicious propen-
sities are in danger of being injurious either to them-
selves or to society. It is a mere waste of time, and
money into the bargain, to be establishing schools for
the purpose of infusing into the infant mind any know.-
ledge of this kind. It will come quite time enough,
and without trouble and expence, if Mr.-LANCASTER
and his officions adherents will only leave the infant
Poor to themselves. They need not be above eight
or ten years old, when they may be instructed, and at
free cost, in the common principles of morality, espe-
cially in all matters relative to meum and teem, by the
Magistrates of the police, who will probably refer
them for further information on these interesting sub-
jects to the Chairman of the Quarter Sessions, or
should they aspire to auy extraordinary proficiency,
they may even be indulged by a lecture from the
Lord Chief Justice of the Court of King's Bench ;
who, it may so happen, will give them the opportu.
pity of exhibiting a proof of their talents on the new
drop at the Old Bailey.
The Learned Prelate is pleased to suppose, that
Mr. Lexceeten's tenets are philosophical: in this 1,
opinion I cannot concur, and of course do not concur,
cn that account, with his Lordship, in his severe re-
probation of them. For my part, I reprobate them
for the very contrary reason, because I perceive in
them no ray of philosophy whatever. And, indeed,
I must do Mr. LANCASTER the justice, to acknow-
ledge, that, in my humble opinion, he ought no more
to be accused of being a philosopher than his Lord-
ship, who, it is presumed, has hitherto cautiously stee-
ted clear of any such heterodox imputation.
There is ere branele however, of Mr. LANCASTER'S
Pcedagegic art, the teachinte his pupils to eeria in the.
said, which has my most entire approbation, as I pre.
Eume it has that of his Lordship and Mr. Jo Bowers,
who, in their various publications, whether on religion
er politics, have oft( n made useof thisdurablernode of
cornre:r it ating their di sinteeestedthouglestothepublk.
' But even this mode of writing has been objected to, the
sand or dust, it seem:, being apt to get into the rea-
der's eyes ; yet in this surely readers have not much
to complain of, as the dust serves only" to purge the •
visual nerve, for they have much to see," which corn.'
mon optics, in their natural state, flight be unequal to.
Let not Mr. LANCASTER, however, flatter himself,
freun what I have now said, that my approbation
of his method in this particular extends indiscrimi-
nately to his practice. If he has the least tenderness
fee eat e.ligious establishment of his country, let n:c
most earnestly intreat and recommend to him, on no
account whatever, to permit any of his infant ptipls
to trace a single pot-hook with their fingers in the
sand, till they have publicly subscribed their names at
full length to the Thirty-nine Articles. By this ex-
pedient, the mischievous little urchins will be preven-;
ted, in the very outset of their literary career, from
writing any thing against the doctrines and discipline
of the Church of England.
Mr. Leeceseen's great error, through the whole of
his system, is in the beginning all his instructions at
the wrong end. He is .0 unreasonable as to expect
that chiliren should be taught, even at the early age
cf four and five years, the Lord's Prayer, the Apostles'
Creed, and the Ten Commandments, with other ab-
rt.re:,.e precepts of morality and religion ! It is cruel to
be the -; fretting their tender gums by making them
mumble thre.Jirelieestilile husks and shells of religious
learning, s.sOele the very kernel is at their mouths !
Why net I,egin with the book of Revelations ? Chn-
dron,it well known, are passionately fond of the mar- •
vell eepecially if it be any thing which they can
be made to comprehend wi...liont much study and fa:
tigue. h rat, then, indulge this laudable appetite by
putting into their hands a work so congenial with
their snarly propensitiee to knowledge, a familiar ac-
qeeintence I:ith which will greatly facilitate their
future rtudi,.:, when they come to the more difficult
part of theological learning contained in the Old or
New Te;tarneet, particularly the writings of the
Evangcli..t.e
Mr. L A NCASTER'L Tereerse mode of initiating his
perpile in arithmetic ie equally reprehensible and ab-
surd: he begins by in:erecting his pupils, that one and
two are three, two and two arc four, &c. which must
be a; onintelligible to their feeble capacities as if he
had told them that one and two make ene, two and
two male :eve, &c. &c. How much more rational
would i be to take them out of this abyss of numeri-
cal calculation, and at once recreate them with
flexions or amuse and divert them with the proper-
tie:. of the cone, or let them play at cross questions in
algkra. ?—These light and sednetive occupations
M...1d gradually prepare their minds for the laborious

,
and tigting sti.ly of common arithmetic and mei
mot li:Scntion table.
If, Sir, I have not now sufficiently exposed Mr.
L.,.:-....tsrvrt's retrograde mode of educafon,•l have
stut.led to little purpose the clear and candid argu-
, mult.. of Mr. Jolts Bowves and the Lord 13. of M.
I am, Sir, &c.

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