Sentinel of the valley. [volume] (Woodstock, Va) 1841-1848, 1848-01-20

~N"S'"H3 Cot HltC Va ~ sutN>us
the Professors and their students have
always been the mos1 strenuous oppo-
ers of any thing new. They have been
he perpetrators Of false philosophy
nd impure religion. Gallileo was com
PEELED by the converts, The only semi
narles of learning in those days, to re-
ncnnce orc Of the most important dis
coveries, with which the science of as
tronomy has ever been enriched, be-
cause lossoo,h they supposedly to con,
isatlct the divine revelation, when it
was in fac: one of the mos, incontestl-
Bile evidences of the existence of an al
mighty God. Let me not, however,
BE misunderstood. They are not, and
have not been without their advantages.
They certainly have been The means OF
the conservation Of knowledge, and Of
religion, amidst the attacks of scep;i-
cism and in6delity. They tend to cul
tivate the intellect, and direct its ener-
gies in those channels most conducive
to its success. The sentiment meant
TO be inculca,ed is only this: that they
are not the MY or the most efficient
means of acquiring knowledge, and If
not combined with individual exertion,
can be productive Of no lasting or per-
manent good.
Indeed, according TO the definition
ofthe true meaning Of the term Educa-
ton, it cannot alone be acquired by the
instructions of others. Others may in
part knowledge, but it is the operation
o: the mind, within itsel(twhlch makes
that knowledge Of any use. And, in
our opinion, reflection and observation
are as much part Of education, as an
cient or modern lore. Take
graduate of one of your colleges, land
let him 60 through regular course of
scholastic education. What does it
benefit him, # he meditates not on what
he has learned? He may indeed be
enabled to 60 through the declension
of Latin noun, or trace Greek verb
to its root. He may indeed be able to
tell you that in ancient times, and am
ong the olden nations, Minerva was re-
verenced as the Goddess of wisdom,
and Mars as the God Of war. He can
not inform you of the connection ofhis
own language with the Latin or Greek
tongues, nor that an argument may be
deduced from the belief Of all people in
superior power, of the existence Of a
great 6rst cause. Let the same individ.
ual be sef-educaled. Let him by his
own exertion, without extraneous aid,
have made himself master of the same
languages, and the same NEUROLOGICAL
fables, he would not be like the other,
ignorant Of the true use and application
of such knowledge, but would apply it
to the analysis eff his own tongue, to
the improvement of the modern scien-
ces, and to the defence and advance
merit of the true and holy doctrines of
our common religion. Observation is
an essential part Of self education, and
is one of the chief characteristics of a
powerful mind. A man Of observation
will always be a man of intormatiom.-
A man may be versed in many depart
ments of learning, and yet be unable
to tell the most common everyday &C.
currences. One ofthe greatest sources
of pleasure that life affords is converse.
ton, and to make conversation interes-
ting, requires fund of observation.
4
laws of nature by which the universe is ruled
had he not observed. BY his own exertions.
ne framed system of philosophy, based upon
the eternal principles of truth, and therefore
imn,utable, at which the world wondered. and
generation after generation has approved This
fact is remarkably exemplied in the history of
James Ferguson, one of the most extraordinary
men who f1ourished IN the course of the last
century. He was born in Scotland in the year
l7lO. His father was day laborer, who be-
ing too poor to send his children to school, used
10 teach them himself in the order ftheir ages.
But James was too impatient to await his turn,
and with the assistance of none but an old wo-
man in the neighborhood, learned to read and
write, unknown to his father. When about 7
or s years of age, seeing his father raise the
roof of his cottage, which had partly fallen in,
by means Of lever--he Immediately set to
work to investigate the principles on which j,
acted, and while mere child, by his own OBJ
se,vaton alone. discovered two of the most i'm
portant elementary truth in Mathematics
lever, and wheel and axle After this he was
employed during the rest of his boyhood as a
keeper of sheep, and while his flock was feed
ing around him, he used 10 employ himself in
making models of mills, spinning wheels, Sc,
during the day. and studying the stars at night.
To assist him in solving problems, he construc-
ted terrestrial globe, tho he had never seen
one. nor even a plate Of one. He also, after
having been once permitted to see a gentleman's
watch, constructed wooden one for himself.
This was all done tefore he obtained his ma
jority. and without instructionor assistance Of
amy Kind. He at,erward went to Fndinburgh
where he discovered The cause Of Eclipses, and
wrote proofo of new astronomical truth, that
the moon must always move in path concave
TO the sun. for the Royal Society of London,
which Immediately brought him into notice
II was followed by various other publications