The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1912-06-29

CAVlAlZdllOn the intellect OF man was
not only as powerful, comprehensive
and vigorous as it now is, but then
seemed to attain more perfect results
than at any succeeding period. This
Is one of the most marvellous facts of
history. The greatest of epic poems
are the Had and the Odyssey COM
posed by wandering minstrel of the
Greek race living at least nine CEN
turtles before the commencement of
the Christian Era.
The legend of the Greeks reciting
that Minerva, the tabled goddess of
Wisdom and Learning, had a majestic
birth. springing fully grown and fully
armed from the head of Zeus, the
monarch Of the gods, is strangely an
alogous to the perfection of literary
art which characterizes the Homeric
period and the centuries Immediately
succeeding.
The reader of the classics finds in
Greek and Latin literature all that hui
man reason. unaided by Divine Reve-
lation, can attain in the lofty plains
where philosophy rules, and in the
pleasant fields of essay writing, mis-
torical composition and poetry. He
can view in the recorded speeches of
Demosthenes, the Greek, and in those
of Cicero, the Roman, the most i'm
pi essive examples of oratorcal excel
lence. Horatius and Virgilius will
show him how the magic wand of
genius can place upon papyrus or
parchment the enhancing lines and
vivid imagery of the true poet clothed
in literary style which represents
the highest art.
And yet, the classics are decried
sordid and their influence in our cdu-
spent upon the study of Greek, the
most flexible and ample vehicle of ex-
preston which has ever dwelt upon
human tongue, is loudly declared to
be wasted. That language as well as
Latin are declared to be dead Ian
guages' and u resort to their COM
partnership is likened to n promenade
among sepulchres. In this CONNER
clalized age, the most potent thrust
at the classics Is thought to be the
assertion that they are of no p-ac-
tical USE" that ga man can make a
living just ais well il he never reads
Il line OF Greek or Latin as though
he could converse in the language of
Sophocles and in that of Cato. True
enough is that claim if life is to be
n mere effort to obtain material re-
suits and culture-that glorious en-
belishment of mans existence-is to
be discarded. But if all of mans ma
ture, his intellectual as we'll as his
physical, is to be fully nurtured and
developed to it's best estate, it's mani
fold capacities to be exerted and its
needs supplied, then must the treasury
of the classics be drawn upon with
liberal hand; for there is found in am
foundations of letters, arts and sci
ence, all that can minister to the de-
nlands of the intellect and arm the
soul with a shield and breast plate
impenetrable in rational combat and
with q sword invincible in the mighty
forum of contestng ideas and the
cries.
A great poet has said in allusion
to the advantages of travel home
keeping youth have ever homely Wits"
One branch of learning which is in
the highest degree desirable is a
knowledge OF various modern lam
guages. TO know the language of a
and to think the thoughts of the men
and women of that country. An in
telligent man who knows foreign Ian
guages possesses many of the advan-
tages to be derived from travel He
becomes truly cosmopolitan. His men,
tai horizon is not limited to his own
country nor are his ideas limited to
those which may be gained by assoc
citation with one race OF people. He
learns tolerance us he learns how ma
lions other than his own live and the
character of their thoughts and pur-
poses. Our prejudice against those
whom We term foreigners" is based
upon the princi%e expressed in tho
line of Goethe Die Menschen verho-
men INNER was sic NIGHT verstehen,"
and would soon be dissipatcd il we
rightly comprehcnded the beauty of
their languages, their national traits
of intrinsic excellence and the glory
which they have attained in all that
dtGnities and adorns human existence.
Let knowledge of foreign languages
be, then, q part of the souls chosen
armor!
One foolish objection urged in this
country against the Church of The
One True Fold is that she is a "fo:-
eign institution" 1t is not sufficient
answer to the unlearned to say that
Christianity itself did not first come
to light nor was the trumpet of Revela-
ton first sounded upon this continent.
They carp on and carping say: "Your
church is a foreign affair 1t Is gov
erned In Italy and it's chief ruler has
been, generally, an Italian; and no
Italian can be as good as an Ameri-
cam This last phrase is, sometimes,
suppressed but the sentiment is by no
means existent. National pride
is all very well in its way but 1t has
Just bounds and is absurd so far as
1t fails to be well-founded.
The Church is not national but in
ternational. 1t includes all races, civ
1llzed peoples and uncivi]ized peoples,
well-ordered states and scattered
tribes. Hence, the Church is called
Catholic. The seat of it's central gov
eminent Is in Italy because. after the
Roman government had Welded to the