The Grenada gazette. (Grenada, Miss.) 1885-18??, 1886-10-09

IGS CANCpb SaktA W.
all priests, and were very strong
IN Latin, "They may possibly" he
.dds, "have known a little theology
but not very much. l can GER
.ainly swear that they knew nothing
He gives an amusing anec.
Tote about the establishment of a
of physics. 1t appears that
when this regent was appointed the
good priests were quite startled. There
nad not been any such class at the Col
Iege OF Vannes since 1889. The poor
rector upon whom the duty fell had
never even heard about physics. So
he bought an old copy of the works
Of the Able Nollet, and candidly
confessed to his class that he did
not understand it himself, but 1--WE will
read it together, and perhaps by NUT
ual aid we shall pick something out
of it," M. Simon is obliged to confess
that they did not succeed. They pill
Jagged two huge cupboards which cor.
tanned some of the instruments and
substances used fifty years ago, and
the scholars sometimes spent hours in
mixing the contents of the phials in 0
h~aphazard way under the direction OF
the rector. They finally made SO much
noise one day with the discs belonging
to a Volta battery that the professor OF
rhetoric, who had his class in the next
hall, sent in to complain Of the noise.
The rector of physics dismissed the
messenger with this magnificent re-
Spouse: Return to your master
tell him that we are here to study the
laws of nature, and that we leave him
full liberty to do whatever he pleases
with the laws of rhetoric
M. Simon says that this is not an un'
fair description of the n in which
physics and chemistry were taught in
the College of Vannes. In the other
classes the scholars learned neither lit
erature, nor the art Of writing, nor the
pure art applied to science, nor history,
nor geography, nor philosophy; but
they were instructed in Latin in a su-
perior manner. They were not only
made to read and write it, but to talk
it. The principal of the college never
used any other language than Latin in
his official communications with the
scholars. He did not say: There will
be a half holiday this afternoon but,
"~Tacubunt Sch0lG ser0tinis horiS totts.'
This principal was a little mar with a
face like a russell apple, wearing the
wig and knee-breeches of revolutionary
DAYS, a long, snutt-coloreh cloth coat,
which dragged about his heels. and a
huge satin waistcoat. 1t was not often,
remarks NJ. Simon, that he issued his
vucGbunt schohe.
Every anecdoto and detail given by
M. Simon leaves upon ones mind the
impression that the school must have
been a ~dreadfully barren place. The
scholars were divided into Romans
and Carthaginians the Romans sitting
on the right, the C~arthaginians on the
left. The grand censor presided when
the regent was not there. He made
the Romans recite their lessons to the
tL %arthaginians Of the corresponding
fgrade,i in the school, and vice versa.
The condemnations, or the non salts.
ttcits, were very numerous. Some
times there were contests, Roman and
Carthaginian reading against each
othe:; and when the trial was over the
grand censor solemnly stuck up two
placartls, which were either "R0mant
r~trtyrcs ct Cartaagini ~ricti," or "Car-
Magini r~ict0reS ct R0mani rict,.' as the
case might be-" you can Judge says
NJ. SIMON, "of all the rest by this SIM
pie case. | do not wish to bore
you with too many details of
the method which came down
straight from the Jesuits. | should
have small desire to see this
method Of teaching resuscitated. After
one year of logic, which you modern
people call the year OF philosophy, we
found it great difficulty in being re-
ceived as bachelors. | have known
'emperors' las the scholars Of distinc-
ton were called in the jargon of the
school) come back plucked at the
Academy of Rennes, where we were
looked upon as people who had been
asleep for n century, and have ever
thought with a smile that my first in
strnction was exactly as If | had taken
it one hundred and fifty years ago.
The first discovery that l made when
entered the Normal School was that !
knew nothing but Latin
Perhaps M. Simon has MAIDEN these,
his ripper and later years, another dis.
cOvery, which Is that II he and the men
of his generation could have had an
education such as they could have to-
day, France would have gone forward
one hundred times as rapidly on that
path of progress into which it was so
anxious to get, and where it was SO
anxious to continue its pilgrimage
EdUard King, in N Y. Post