New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-06-29

Ienrn UVIng
than daily muse with the immortal dead ~ '0r l9e
purpose OF my argument do not Tor me nj Ispute
the superiority am ready to say the Aopep - cue
attainable superOryOf the classic nhe i cs IAey
sealed books TO meas they are to a. lea7 SIe
out OF twenty OF the graduates OF our c9esos ny Tier"
neither affirm nor deny that IN leul, an. ~ ~
alone be found the choicest thoughts OF INC h
man mind and the ot pertect Gr ms Ne are
living ia any ideal world We are nylhS - ts NJ
of to-day and IL il the business OF the college 10 III
men for it, Does she do It As have said my own
experience of thirty years ago tells me that she d hO
do il then The facts being much the same 90 hot seq
how she can do 1t now It seems TO NE she sIar.s o
radically wrong basis IL Is, TO use pam leHsase'
basis of fetch worship In which the rem aha
A CHAPTER OF PERSONAL EXPERIENCE.
But to-day, whether 1 want TO or not must speak
from individual experience. was fitted Tor college IN
the usual way. went to the Boston Latin School
learned the two grammars by heart This and the oher
rudj,>nts of what pleased to call liberal eduea
ton took five years Of my time. was 0"9nately iona
of reading, and learned English lnys"f. ana WIN
some thOrOughness fortunately for at our prepa
atOry curriculum no place was found Tor Ehgsh co
ing modern language IL was thought not wort study
ine-as our examination papers cOnclusIVeiy sn""eu.
We turned In2lsh into bad enough Greek, but our
thoughts expressed in even more abonlnabe Ems
lsh. so went to college,-to HARVARD. Iresenty
graduated and passed some years IN the stu ~ OF the
law. The OF the Rebellion broke out and swept me
cut of lawyers Office into cavalry saddle Returning
presently to civil life endeayored to strike put new
path made for mys II what might perhaps o. Gdled
specially connection with the development OF the RAN
road system do not hesitate to say that nave Deeu
incapaeitaed from properly developing my speealy
OF omission and commission lncltnl
lege training The mischief is done and so iar as anu
concerned. is irreparabe. am only one more sacrnGe
fcs am here TO-DAY 10 nut the responsibility my
failure, far have failed, where think IL oeohss-
at the door Of any preparatory and college education
Nor has that ncapacity and the consequent failure TO
which have refer red, been mere thng OF Imagination
or sentiment. On the contrary IL has been not only
matter of fact aud real the last degree spmiat
ing have not In following out my sieclaA,E hau ~
was To aeauire the ordinary tools which educated
man must have TO enable him to work TO advantage on
the exception OF law think might saieg cl'Ienge
any OF you 10 name single modern calling elmer
learned scientific In which worker who IL unable TO
read and write and speak German and French vt least
does not stand at great and always recurring a1ad
vantage He is without the essential tools OF hls hue
THE UsELEssNEss OF GREEK
The modern languages the avenues 10 modern life
and living thought. Under these crcumstan>es. what
was position OF the college towards them thirr years
agoi What It's position tOdayi II INTERVIEWED, and
practically said then that It's graduates should not &C
qure those languages at that period when only they
could be acquired perfectly aud Il occupies
the same position STILL The college likes the require
mems for admission 10 It's courae IeS schools ana the
academies adapt Intensely 10 t.cse requirements.
They therefore all organized on one paf 10 that
an" exception The requirements for admission
suca that the labor OF preparation oocupes Iu .ne
perhaps. but when his tasks done he has moro
lesure than is good Tor play and you cannot axe
down before tutors In German aud French. II you GO
ne will cease 10 be healthy boy and ne VIII not
learn German French But Harvard College says;
We require such aud such things for admission TO our
course" First aud most emphasized Amohg them are
Latin aud Greek. The academies accordingly iehch
Latin Greek; and they teach II In the way To secure
ADMISSION to tue college. :,
matter Not only Is II comparatively simple language
bat apart from it, literature II has It's modern Uses
western Europe, but las by common consent been
ado ted IN scientific nomenclature. Hence t1eIe ere
reasons why the oIUca OF man should have at least al
elementary knowledge OF Laun- Unlke LAIN, creek
IN. fsraal
perhaps the noDicst Of teTalres, Is language WhoA
has 40 modern uses Not ouy IL y dead tongue. OCT
n bears no iuInrtiae reauOI 10 any nyng so.ech or
literature OF value. Like all rich dialects. 10 iu OF
anomalies and accordingly It's grammar - he detglt OF
Crammarians the despair o. cVoIy one eI'e Wnen
was hted fOI college LIE study Of G ~ Took up ~
least ont hail OF last three years devoted 10 active
preparalion in memory It looms up uow throug1 the
long Of years tue one gigantic nightmare oil
voiih-and no more profitable tnan Nightmares
,rouf 10 be- A. soon possible after enterinS COLLEGE
the study was abandoned forever aud the he mat Lad
been ae1uir.i faded rapidly away frpA syera 20
stnIenFs m.nd Tor nJself am obliged 10 Gag raye
now iorgOttaa the Greek alphabet ana cannot reaJ all
toe CreeS characters u Iopen my Homer suen bas
been bca and te end-ai OF the tremendous aDor
OF my ecnoo.-dayN
MENTAL DISCIPLINE.
gatI am told that iguore intellectual train
ing got IN learning Greek grammar. and IN subss
aueni!y applying i;s rules; that my memory tuen To-
ceiyed an eduea lon which, turned since 10 otner mat
ters has proved uable 20 me- that accumulated cG
perence shows that bis training can a. EOi equally wei
other way tha De' ond this' even my sEnt con
aci with Gre master pieces Eas let VITA me sub
"a III lul, luc pcEudp7 buI
eth there and very prec'Olsi that IN "oI an Nuat
Is called educated man, WHO'D, ut Tor m! carry con
tact with Greek wuuli not be- All this, with not uB-
due Diuutucss De rnld i- nols.se,
Tae faculty OF sustaiucI logical tuOufnt nave since
bren Orcl 10 cultivate best might outto oOniound
LDSt wIIb COMMITTING inAss OF st"H 10 ~ - :"
apJy the Lnet-o1 10 the boy ANA Ile it1iw aOg
5g;akinR M al moderation 1 Will merely say tIat 90
lar - am aOc u jidse. tle laet -lnoust vi 1 Jam
IN time devoted the study OF Creek Doih IN M scnOO
aSay. eupp0se did got s'ne uitclPhhr ou Ol ma
boyish mart TdOm. sn9uld have got some discipline
oui of an equal number oil hours spent on trad-ml
Greek 10 far IL carried aud ia the way III wAch
WAS carried IN my case wac very mGcI sch discipline hs
wou.d be acquired on lac Ieal nnl Iof lnr DOIy'
90 not tunkit was any hgucf Oi any more llLeuLcnl
So much Ton what my Alma Mater gave me. In tness
Of repeating riirs sh" 'nt roe ana my ae5
the srifo equipped Nith shlsds hd s"Ofis ana
i.velins. We 20 grappIe win living qIcsuons
through the medium oi dead iapglages Bli on thls
point do not IKE pubhcy 10 ttii Tue "hOe VI lhy ON"
haye been the equal OF my peers IL was Tue World
Congress % To-Day aud Latin AID Greek were NOT legal
tenUer there.
IMPROVEMENT DEMANDED.
with that experience behind me, nave scls Of my own
coming forward want them go 20 o., ege-to Har
ward College, but DO not want them TO 90 there by tue
Datb their fathers trod. Neither my single ono
ain one of large class IN the community. very many
of more lmbued tAan VITA The seentihc aud
thorough spirit Of tne As respects our children tue
ir.biem b. fore Is a simple Obr ana yet one very
deult o. practical solution Ne want 10 more classical
veneer Elmer impaii 10 our cIur1 tne ue,I
thoroughly, or iuO HYlng LANGUAGES thoroughly or,
yet. et them taEC thOf ChOtC OF clthtf IlS -
f,,t what tie Colleges dOnO do on tue cont rary Har
ward STANDS directly Ia the way OF what century anda
nalf's 81 ~ Renee tells me Is allInpOrtant.
As understand H. tho mVderni-t neither asks nor
desires colleges 10 put the classic ionsae-, or even
Greek zone, footing certain Of the mod
ern languages. Recognizing, Is every intelligent
nodernist mt that the command OF several languages
besides tnat which native hun s essential 10
LOsray educated man-recOgnlzing tabs fuudamcbtal
fact, tUse feel feel would by no means ask or
dcs re tuat students should be admitted TO the college
wyo could pass thelr examinations III German aud
FRENCH nstead OF Greek and Latin The moiernst asks
OF toe college modify its requirements Or admission
Only 10 tins wise Lei II ray to the student who
preseuts himself, In what languages, besides lAun
and Engllsh-,hOse required - al-in what other
gas-lIsDrcw Greek Gera.-l, French, Spanish,
or iialau-N YOU be examiner" II the student RS
Uios Greek" be Jt-let him be examined In that
alone H. aever, inst~ad OF Offering himself III the
caSslc himself in the modern tongues, then let
him 40 longer turned contemporary away from the
Jlege DOORS Du, instead or the poor, quarerkuOWF
edge ancient modern, now required let him De per
nitted pass suc examination as NJ" show that he
ms so mast-red angnates besleA bis own lhat nc