Daily public ledger. [volume] (Maysville, Ky.) 1892-191?, 1896-07-25
AN ANCIENT soAooLeooK.
The "Janua" of Comenius One of the
Best Ever Written.

The "Janua" OF COmeniuH One OF the
Best Ever Written.
One of the most successful school
books ever written is referred to ir
Evelyn's diary, where he says his dear
son Richard, who died in January, 1858,
had, before his fifth year. "made a con-
siderable progress in COmenius' Januo."
This book, "Janua Linguarum Res
erata," was published by John Amos
Comenius in 1851.
II was an introduction to the the stUdv
of Latin, and Bayle said of il that had
Comenius written no other book he
would have rendered himself immortal.
1t was translated into IL European
languages, and was really the gate
through which our ancestors of the 18th
and 18th centuries entered into Latin
literature. SIN every European country
generations Of children thumbed the
Janua, and no other hook, until they
were sufficiently advanced to begin
Terence and Plautus;" and for years
after its publication the name of Comen-
ius--thc Latinized form of Komensky-
was familiar i'm every schoolroom.
Editions of the Janua were printed
in Greek and Latin at Oxford so late as
$500; anG new additions were issued at
Prague, in Latin, German and Czech, in
1874. The chief work of this great
school reformer of the nth century has
just been published in English for 'he
first time, under the title of "The Great
Didactic of John Ahcs Comenius," with
biographical and historical introduce
tons by NJ. w. Keatinge. Of Oxford.
Comenius' own tile page describes
the work as setting forth the whole
art of teaching all things 10 all men; or,
n certain inducemcnt to found such
schools in all the parishes, towns, and
villages of every Christian kingdom
that the entire youth of both sexes, none
being excepted, shall quickly, pleasant
ly, and thoroughly become learned in
the sciences, pure in morals, trained to
piety. and in this manner instructed in
all things necessary for the present ard
for the future life"
In the preface Comenius says: Let
the CHIEF object of this our didactic he
as follows: To seek and to find a
method of instruction by which teach
ers may teach less, but learners may
learn more; by which schools may be
the scene of less noise, aversion, and use
less labor, but of more leisure, enjoy
ment, and solid progress. and through
which the Christian community may
have less darkness, perpleXity, and dis
sension, but, on the other hand, more
light, orderliness, peace, and rest"
These were high ideals, and the
didactic worthily set them forth. But
Comenius, as a writer on teaching, was
a couple of centuries before his time.
In his introduction Mr. Heating says,
with perfect truth, that Comenius is
"the broadest-minded, the most farsec-
ing, the most practical of all the writer's
who have put pen on paper on the sub
ject of education; that his theories
have been put in practice in every
school that IS conducted on rational
principles; and that "he cmbodies The
materialistic tendencies of our modern
side instructors, while avoiding the nar.
rownesS of their reforming zeal" Yet
1.-THE Great Didatic" remained in his own
day unknown and ineffective.
Comenius was a prolific writer, as is
shown by list of more than 100 sepa-
rate works, all of which are now forget
ten. He became involved in the mil
lenariar movement Of the false prophet
Drabik. and was not wholly misreprc-
scented by one who described him as "A
fanatic, a visionary. and an enthusiast
in folio" He died in 1870, broken and
disappointed man, and it is only within
the last 90 years that his true merit has
been recognized. lie was, as his
biographer says, "the father of modern
education. "--LondOn News.