New-York tribune., 1870-05-30
GRAMMAR AND VIRTUE.

The publication of Mr. DiSracli's LOthair'
gives new text for those who are always
lamenting about the want of eminent scholar
ship among our public men. Look at Lord
Derbys translation of the Had, they say
look at Gladstone's "Juventus Mundi"-and
then oblige us by looking at "Lothair" What
member of Congress has produced work so
heavy with learning or so light with fancy as
thcse9 To be sure, there was Mr.. Baldwin's
"Pre- historic Nations but be left public life
on its publication, and his Congressional career
already seems a prehistoric period. Senator
Brownlow's work on Methodism, "The Iron
"Wheel Examined and its False Spokes Ex-
"tracted,n must be tOlerably pungent, if its
title is a specimen, but can hardly be classed as
High Art But for Mr.. Sumner indeed, the
total literary yield of both Houses of Con-
gress would be unpleasantly near to what is
called in cricketing ga round o." 1t Is not
strange, therefore, if this new literary exploit
of Mr.. Disraeli's proves exasperating to the
patriotic mind.
TO DE sure, the comparisons commonly made
do more than justice to the Parliaments OF our
English cousins. 1t was member of Parlla-
ment who, according to Horace WalpOle, be-
queathed an estate to Sir Matthew Decker,
supposing him to be the author of the Gospel
according to the Saint of that name. And GER
tainly the reception in Parliament OF the once
famous author, James Harris Gather of Lord
Mamesbury), was by no means encouraging to
literary men. "Who is that man9" asked
Charles Townshend of his neighbor, as the
newcomer took his seat. Gone Hawes," said
the other. "He has written a book on gram
"mar and another on virtue" "Then what the
cd does he come here for T. said Townshend
"IIe will find neither grammar nor virtue
"herew
1t must be sadly owned that neither gram
mar nor virtue can be guaranteed in any leg
islative body; nor will even scholarship, as
such, be likely to be in the majority. Perhaps
it is not desirable that it should, since the
prime need is alwayslof men of affairs, whether
they are or are not students. AS it is, many
of our Representatives in Congress, and almost
Il majority Of our Senators, have received u
college diploma, such as it is and the charita-
bic editor of The Congressional DIRECTORY at
tributes to most of the remainder an academic
"cducation,' whatever that may mean. Let
us hope that 1t grounds men in the rudiments
of grammar and of virtue. But it must be
owned that most OF them represent the busl-
ness class rather than the studiOus class. Most
of them, in those Chinese literary examina-
tions of which we hear so much would prob
ably have stopped short at the red silk scarf,
which shows that a candidate for office has
reached only his rstsdegree. The special lit
erary and scientific culture of this nation has
not merely "A slight representation in Congress,
but il can scarcely bp said to have any This
is certainly to be regretted. Yet that this
class should monopoize or even control Con-
gress, would be almost as great an evil on the
other side.
The questions now pressing on the nation are
mainly business questions. Tosetle the difficult
problems of taxation and banking, a second
rate business man is ordinarily worth more
than iirst-rate professor of chemistry or the
classics. At any rate, what we chiefly need is
W have able aud honsst mea. Bv what train