Arizona republican., 1921-12-09

dates from Greece and Rome. The orld was not new in their day. They were the interiors of a civilization which had gone on before, but what they had inherited they recast, en- larged and intensified and made their own so that their culture took on distinctive forEl, embracing all that the past held sbest in the Roman wofld of the Caesars That great em- pire fell prey, first to itself and then to the barbarians. After, this seeming catastrophe scholarships and culture almost disappeared for nearly a thousand years. finally to emerge again in the revival of learn ing.
 It is impossible for society to break with it's past. It is the product of all that has gone before We could not cut ourselves off from all influ- ences which existed prior to the Declaration of Independe and ex- pect any success by undertaking to ignore all that happened before that date. The development of society Is a gradual accomplishment. Gull ture is the product of a continuing effort. All theories of education teach us that the mind develops in the same way, through the various stages that have marked the ascent of mankind from the lowest savaGry to the highest civilization. This principle is a compelling reason for the continuance of the classics as the foundation of our educational system. It was by use of this method that we reached our present state of de- velopment
 This does not mean that every per- son must be a classical scholar. It is not necessary for everyone who crosses the ocean to be an exper- fenced mariner, nor for anyone who works on building to be a learned architect, but if the foreign shore is to be reached in safety, if the build ing is to take on a form of utility and beauty, it will be because of di- rection and instruction given accord ing to established principles and ideals.
 The world has recently awakened to the value and righteousness of de- mocracy. The ideal is not new.- The beginning of modern democracy were in Athens and Sparta.-But when we turn to Rome we are over- whelmed by its greatness,-They gave to the world the first great example of order and a tolerable state of lib- erty under law. AS we study their history, there is revealed to us one E guidance of great leaders. exhaust ing themselves in their efforts that the civilized world might be unified and the stage set for the entrance of Christianity.
 What those who advocate the con- tinued study of the classics desire to bring about is the endurance of that modern culture which has been the result of familiarity with the classics of these great peoples. We do not wish to be Greek, we do not wish to be Roman. We have a great desire to be supremely EnIeri- can. That purpose we know we can accomplish by continuing the process which has made us Americans. We must search out and think the thoughts of those who established our institutions. The education which made them must be divorced from the education which is to make us. . |. It is not enough to teach men science the great thing is to teach them how to use science.
 Unless Americans shall continue to live in something more than the present, to be moved by something more than material gains, they will
 go down as other peoples have gone down before some nation pos sessed of a greater moral force. The will to endure is not the creation of a moment, it is the result of long training. That will has been our possession up to the present hour. By its exercise we have prospered and brought forth many wonderful works. The object of our educa- tion is to continue us in this great power. That power depends on our l ideals. The great and unfailing source of that power and these ideals has
 been the influence of the classics ot | Greece and Rome. Those who be- | lieve in America, in her language. hel | arts, her literature and in her science | will seek to perpetuate them by per- l petuating the education which has 1 produced them.
 Modern Language
 1 Mir. Colby. late secretary of state 1 upon his return from South America | expressed himself as follows on the l subject of modern language: "The | great barrier to American progress abroad is language. The people ot i the United States are not linguists The youth in America should 1 be schooled in languages. Language ! Is the key which not only opens the riches and stores of great literatures l but opens the doors of influentia ! human contacts with great peoples :
 An inquiry of hundreds of Amerf- l can soldiers who have returned from l Europe brought out the fact tha- l those who understood no French a l all were displeased with France, bu | those somewhat familiar with tho i-------------------------