The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1892-10-27
The Language of the Time.
DIR. E. f. HALE.

| The difference between a special and a
liberal education is shown in this, that
what is called a broad or liberal education
tearhes a man OF woman the language of
/ the time.
may be an expert in spinni ng and
weaving, that is, | may have had spec
ial education in one or both of these
branches, and l may be able to use the
words which belong to spinning or to
weaving with perfect correctness. At the
same time may not understand the words
in use by persons who are engaged in 9TH
er studies OF occupations. If do not |
do not understand the language of my
time. But the object of liberal education.
as it has long been called and probably
will still be called for a long time. is to
give him who receives it so much informa-
ton in different lines that he may be able
to understand what is told him by per-
SONS who are experts in those lines A
liberal education does not imply such a
training in different specialties that he
who received it can, for instance. work a
Geographic machine OF that he can build
a steam engine, or that he can sail ship
or that he can state the laws of the motion
Of comet. But it does imply that he
can understand the conversation of the
men who run the telegraph, of the man
who builds the engine, of the man who
sails the ship. or the man who studies the
laws of the heavens.
1t is such a liberal education which Chau-
tauqua undertakes to give for most of the
lines of study which are important at the
present time. And when people ask you
what is the use Of this book which you
i
reply ''The use is that, when l am with
intelligent people, if l hold my tongue
and listen. | shall have a chance to under
stand what they say, and learn more than
| know" You may add, "The use is
that if | want to enlarge my information
in any one of the special departments
which have thus been opened before me,
| know how to begin | know where |
shall find information, and how to 90 to
work to obtain it Let us hope that
you may add, 81 have learned how to
study as | did not know how when be-
gan SO that l shall not waste so much
time as should if came in as a novice
in the affair."
Now, each of these advantages is i'm
portant. and they may be very valuable.
All together, they will make in the end
the difference between what we call an
''all-round man. and a person in whom
only one side of human activity is devel-
oped. This latter person is often very
i'll at ease in general company: it also hap
pens that often he has great deal of
time that he cannot use. Indeed, he may
be thrown wholly out of the course of his
life 10y some sudden change in affairs for
which he is not responsible. 1t is said
that George IN, before he was king, when
l,A Il. /
buckle broken in the shoe which he chose
to wear The prince regent probably had
a hundred other pairs of shoes. but on
away the broken buckle and the buckle
which was not broken, and to tie the
shoes with ribbons. The consequence
was that whole villages in England
We're thrown out of occupation, AID the
people, only being able to make buckles,
found themselves in a very bad way.
Now, it is for the young man or woman
who does not Join the Chautauqua Circle,
OF take some similar plan for all-round
study. to ask ii he is not now in condition
OF those buckle makers. Now. may it
not be in the constant changes around us
that your particular speciality. the partic
ular thing which you have engaged ill.,
may become useless and set on one side:
and do you not want to be ready to take
up some other line OF life when such Il
catastrophe occurs? Is it not worth your
while to understand the language of your
time if it should be desirable for you to
live another life from that which YOU are
living to-day?
And | do not want to urge this on the
mere economic question of your bread
and butter Do you not see that is in
every way better for you to live that larg
Ell life OF people who can understand what
is said and understand what is done by
the intelligent people of the world? DO
you not see that it is better for you when
a great astronomical discovery is made,
to know how far it contributes to the well
fare of mankind and to understand by
what processes it has been wrought out.
or how, in short, anybody came to make
the discovery? If they are introducing
electric lines into the town in which you
live, are you not glad that You can talk
with the intelligent directors of those
lines and have them explain to you the
| processes involved, without being obliged
to accept ignorantly the advantages which
You receive. and without that ignorance
which makes foolish criticisms because
what is impossible is not done? Or.
when the question turns on matters of
government, are you not glad that you
know something of the experiments which
have been tried in your own country and
in other countries before now, SO that
you are relieved from the folly which
urges men to try for the thousandth time
an experiment which has failed nine hun
dred and ninety nine times before? One
could multiply such questions, with the IL
Illustrations which they afford, indefinitely
Simply, you do want to associate with in
telligent people. You want to understand
what they say when they talk. You want
to have a key to general literature, and to a
certain extent, you want to have key to
scientific literature when you read. 1t is
for this reason that we ask everybody who
understands the English language to join
the Chautauqua Literary and Scientific