The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1851-07-22

any other in the city. The exercises last evening,
were diversified with speeches made in Latin, Greek,
few in our own much neglected, homemade Ian
guage, improperly called the English. [Apropos-
Is it not time we had an American language! We
have so much improved the English, from what it
was when 6rst imported, that we might fairly lay
claim to it as our own.l The speech in Latin gave
great JOY and satisfaction to the audience. Every
enc present appreciated and understood it-hat is,
they perfectly understood that it was Latin. BY q
little stretch of the imagination, carried myself
back to the days Of ancient Rome, aud fancied
was listening to the speech of Mark Antony over
the dead body of Caesar. This veneration for dead
alteration of ancient relics, which peculiarly dis
tinguish the Catholic Church The virtue
of thing, with them, seems to consist alone in its
antiquity. This sentiment is far from being cha
racteristic Of the American feeling There is no
wisdom in depreciating the present by blind and
superstitous veneraton for the past. 1t is senti-
ment antagonistic to progress. We value thing
alone for its intrinsic WORTH use, and present adap
tation. This train Of thought suggests the ques-
tion, what is education in its American sense and
in its common sense! Is language education! Not
at all for man may be universal lnguist, one
who would have been suitable interpreter at the
tower of Babel, and yet be a very ignorant man as
far actual knowledge is concerned for knowledge
is nothing else than things known in nature-de-
monstrated truths in the different sciences. If
man knows fact and can express it in thousand
languages, he really knows no more than another
who knows the same fact and can express it in but
one language. Therefore, language is not know
ledge, but only vehicle, medium through which
it may be conveyed to the mind and there is not
a fact which may not be learned in English, the
study of the dead languages is dead loss of time
to the scholar in pursuit of real knowledge.
Education is subject which is more thoroughly
discussed in this country than any other and there
appears to be as much error and confusion in the
public mind with regard to the best mode of i'm
parting it to the young as there ever was. There
is kind of hot-bed process of forcing education to
grow where there is adaptation of SOIL intellec
tualy speaking, which is quite detrimentl al to the
healthy advancement and improvement of the
mind. prevailing idea with some is, that all
ceildren can be educated alike as easily as dressed
alike, which is erroneous. Assuming that all capa-
cities similar, they conclude that if the same
degree of force is applied in all cases, all will
ceive the same amount and degree of knowledge.
Apropos.-An anecdote is told Of gentleman Of
wealth who, having daughter rather mentally
deficient, sent her to lady to be educated in the
accomplishments, for which expense should be
spared on his part The lady gave the daughter
all the attention she could for year or two, but
she did not appear to advance in the same ratio
with her fellow students, and the father complained
The teacher replied that she had done all she could
to educate his daughter, but she wanted capaci-
ty it was impossible that she could advance with
the rest. "Well" says the father, 81 want my
daughter educated by all means, and you will please
teach her capacity then-give her all the capacity
she wants, and will pay any price" 1t is need
less to say, that the lady assured him that that
formed no part in the system of education she
taught. SCRIPrOR.