To The Editor Of The Time...
The Times, 1824-01-05T00:00:00

Sir,-In -the notice With _, ueamicua ~Gu ronobee he w h ichyu oo Tdy1eurtP,d Y~u proo~~ thetwo 1 potins. contained in iniy &t"that the sy,tem ofe e~uCatioii i the pri!ma-y 'Out the clvilized world is essentialy -j!U "ad to~y"~ Ttom the momen boentera a school, till the Inom'ent renhs education is hti called -rpleted, We is taught nothki~" Incrret nd ontar tothefat. sould bebappy to,~~ to iscss hes Opsitonsin ourPaper, believingftpsi1 to emo~stat th trthof.thet:they Mivl Saxvgr aa ex to m preator k~~ny ectue onFri next. DIaitlg w miracle, and wb -~~~~~Uu au. prez-ens3mo to lsracse, and while I admnt tlh absolute possibility of tiktig 10 lessons, and not knowing MO.W ' VO s et that, from an expe ience of above 32000 pupils, .-have ly n fund 10 lessonsiu. utent orthat purpose: snore are offered gatitously if necesr -u trrely bappens thatt they are found necessary. Inliti; net it-has beean ound that 48 1&.soa rc-abu a ndatly ,ffiiet t( teach' a PcrsOn to write and speakc any modern languagge with Mrm.. matiealP prity, and to ead it with as much plea reand faicilikt as- his native tong,ue- but if more are-found necessary, they are giveia without expense. Now I am unable to conceive how a more satis. factory guarantee could be given to thepupil. I assert thapriv.te grnktoitous lessons are unnecessasy wiLth a. very moderate, aisrre o attention on'the part of the pupii but ifths cannot be obtainsed, It is -5uPPlied as far as possible by the tea,cher. This vou admit to be faix, to be honest, and Ithank y6u flr the candTouir ef te admsicsion ; but I deny the consequence you draw from it, that such siu ofbr as this takes away from the system every thiDg which it appearato haveof extraordinary. .Ihv,veneverswad orinsicuated. that rmy puipils leasn without any eto.r tor atplicaticn on thuir patr; ir, though theyget nothing b tote, thoTgh they makellittle uce-;of grammar or dictionary, thoughr-they do not s atee proersense of that word, yet they are re ied to rcad, but to read Whiat Is Pei-. fectly easy andinteigjh1e~ hatfe, indeed, asseid,s1 aa ow assert, that the i1brt or application necessary to obtain an given sumn of knowledge on the systemn of the schoolst woala reqsniez tenfoldl th[e ffart and application which it woul tqwuire our the tygeno lwich I advocate. and I offbrea in ray lecture such a prbofof thUs w I ight perhaps have hoped you waud 'have thought suiEtcently. extraordi. naytnoie A r h:of 1a years. of age vwas broaUgt to -e on Mends ,the 22d a December. He'stated himself iht hle had been fiveyears2leaming Ereneh. Examined in vresence of his father, It WaS aacertsjne that be could not transalje the most easy phrase of the French Teiatient. On hat day (llonday) he recotM- rnenmed the study.of French, and in theafternoon the studv of GeF- man, of hicb he did not then know one letter He tooki alesso in nguage every day texcept Sunday. and Chiristnms.-Aay) till Friday, wYhen examdined him, and fotund he had read-the whole of e ospel of St. John in both languages, translating every vord inr the anayical manner of my lecture; and that, in shtort, he knew as m)Ach German as French. I -The bov's name and addresa is-at foot. A invite you to verify the truth of my statement. The lesson never occupied two full hours, and the boy acknowledges he has never looked at a book in either lamguage except in dBass. Itis not conD tended that this is a miracla; but it is contended that sucih a progress is utterl unknown, if not utterly impossible, in the system of -the scbools Yet tis is the progress which I guarauteeto efi'ectia every ln. gusge which I profess to tescht vithregardo every pupil I recave. I th.erefore a,rgue that when aprogess equal to this can without riskof falure be granteed to every pupil indiacriruinaty, thwe principle on which shevare taught must be supereminently correct, and that a systemD enrt'iey oPposite iD practice and result mnust be essentialy icsous. T hav- ihvh> JAMES HAMILTON. TO THRg1 BITOR OP TJJ T)laRp.