The St. Charles herald. [volume] (Hahnville, La.) 1873-1993, 1885-10-03
The USELESS GREEK.
Reasons Why the Study of This Language
in schools and Colleges Should be Discon'
finnaA


in schools and Colleges Should be Discon-
tlnued.
The commencement season is over.
Thousands of young men have left the
colleges and Summaries and other insti-
buttons of alleged learning, where they
have spent the last four years, and
gone out into the great world to make
their living and to try to win some of
the prizes which the worlds oppor-
tunities present. Whatever field of
labor they may choose, whatever
prizes they may strive to attain, their
work henceforward must be practical,
and they must bring practical knowl-
edge to bear to reach them or to secure
any degree of success in the race.
However high ones ideals may be
placed however sanguine his hopes
may be, the final test of success will be
the real and practical.
1t becomes q question of consider
able interest, therefore, to what extent
the ordinary collegiate curriculum
provides those following it year after
An examination of that curriculum
will show that in every college of this
country one study at least has been
enforced which has no bearing upon a
practical knowledge of the world or its
business or industrial methods, and to
this extent therefore every graduate is
weighed down at the very beginning of
the race. This study is Greek. 1t
will show that, including the
preparatory course, every stu
dent has devoted about five
years to this deadest of all dead Ian
guages, which can only be made avail
able, and even then to limited extent,
by those who intend to follow the theo-
logical profession. Even in this pro-
fession, the records would prove that
the most successful savers of souls,
which we take to be the prime motive
of the ministry, have been those who
had the least knowledge of Greek and
the most knowledge of the vernacular.
The examination would further show
that Greek has been pursued during
these five years to the exclusion of the
sciences and practical arts by which
the graduate must earn his living, even
if he do not succeed in accommodating
a competence. He has given several
hours day to the study of this dead
language, which has little or no affinity
with his own, to the exclusion of such
studies as geology, chemistry, botany,
electricity, natural philosophy, politi.
cal economy, systems of finance, gen
eral history, literature, natural history
bookkeeping, engineering, and Other
important courses, some of which mus
have an immediate bearing upon his
future work, and without which he is
poorly equipped for his struggle. His
: Greek will do him no good in the doc
tors office, the lawyers office. thu
newspaper Office, the railroad office
the counting room, the manu-
factory, on the farm, or in thu
mine, or the bank. He can moi
utilize it in political Office or on thu
rostrum. He can accomplish nothing
with it for his own good or for thu
worlds advancement He has lost
considerable part of his precious 1iv'
years which should have been devoted
to useful studies; and unless he has
/, very retentive memory he will forget il
! few years all the Greek he so toll
somely acquired.
How much better, therefore, would i
be if the time which is wasted upol
Greek could be devoted to translation
of the classics. to general history, t.
, the arts and sciences, and to such mod
ern languages as French and German
not to mention English. Four years c
work in these would fit any young ma
, for good start in the race. 1t is to
late, of course, to benefit those VIII
have already graduated, and if thei
Judgment could be taken, it would b
almost unanimous in protesting agains
the time which was squandered in tn
. study of an absolutely useless lai
/. guage. For the sake, however, {
graduates who are to come and VIII
must meet constantly increasin
competition in the struggle for living
college curriculi should be cleared {
!, all useless stud es. The world grow
! more and more practical, and the co
lege should keep pace with it. III
!. studies which have come down fro
< the days of the cloister should giN
q place to those which will enable Il
n graduate to take his place in the dense
u crowded and eagerly competing thror
:, with some show of success for Il
IL prizes. Chicago Tribune.
= = West Point Appointments.