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tinct advantages as belonging to the study of language. In the first place, the materials here supplied to the student are ready to hand in inexhaustible abundance and diversity. Any page of any ancient author forms for the young student a string of problems sufficiently complex and diverse to exercise his memory and judgment in a great variety of ways. Again, from the exclusion of the distractions of the external senses, from the simplicity and definiteness of the classification which the student has to apply, from the distinctness and obviousness of the points that he is called on to observe, it seems probable that this study calls forth (especially in young boys) a more concentrated exercise of the faculties it does develop than any other could easily do. If both. the classical languages were to cease to be taught in early education, valuable machinery would, I think, be lost, for which it would be somewhat difficult to provide a perfect substitute.' (Essays on a Liberal Education, p. 133.)

The materials here spoken of must mean the subject matter of the ancient authors, and not simply the languages; this, however, does not help the case, as the matter can be far better given in translations. The second reason-the exclusion of the senses, and the simplicity and definiteness of the classification to be applied-must refer to the language part; but it contains nothing special to the classical languages. Moreover, as regards putting before the mind of a student distinct issues, and still more in adapting these to the state of his faculties and advancement, the learning of a language seems to me far inferior to most other exercises.

IV. A Knowledge of the Classics is the best preparation for the Mother Tongue.

This must have reference either (1) to the Vocables of the Language, or (2) to the Grammar and Structure of our composition.

(1) As regards the vocables, we have to deal with the presence of Latin and Greek words in English. There being several thousands of our words obtained. directly or indirectly from the Latin, it may be supposed that we should go direct to the fountain head, and learn the meanings in the parent language. But why may not we learn them exactly as they occur in the mother tongue? What economy is there in learning them in another place? The answer must be, with a qualification to be given presently, that the economy is all in favour of the first course. The reasons are plain. For one thing, if we learn the Latin words as they occur in English, we confine ourselves to those that have been actually transferred to English; whereas in learning Latin as a whole, we learn a great many words that have never been imported into our own language. The other reason is probably still stronger, namely, that the meanings of a great number of the words have greatly changed since their introduction into English; hence, if we go back to the sources, we have a double task; we first learn the meaning in the original, and next the change of meaning that followed the appropriation of the word by ourselves. The meaning of 'servant' is easiest arrived at, by observing the use of the word among ourselves, and by neglecting its Latin origin; if we are to be informed

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what 'servus' meant in Latin, we must learn further that such is not the present meaning; so that the directing of our attention to the original, although a legitimate and interesting effort, does not pertain to the right use of our own language.

Besides the vast body of Latin words entering into our language, as a co-equal factor with the Teutonic element, there is a sprinkling of special terms both Latin and Greek, adopted for technical and scientific uses. The appropriation of many of these is recent, and the process is still going on. Even with these, however, it is unsafe to refer to the original tongues for the meaning; we must still see what they mean as at present applied. A knowledge of Greek would be a fair clue to the meaning of thermometer,' and 'photometer,' and a few others; but for the vast mass of these appropriations, it gives no clue whatever, or else it puts us on the wrong scent. Barometer,' as 'weight-measure,' would be most suitably applied to the common beam and scales; the real meaning would never be guessed. So, 'eudiometer' cannot suggest its meaning to a Greek scholar; 'hippopotamus' is equally enigmatic. Of the 'ologies' very few correspond to their derivation. We have such conflicting names as 'astrology, astronomy;' 'phrenology, psychology'; 'geology, geography,' 'logic, logographer, logomachy'; 'theology, theogony'; 'aerostatics, pneumatics.' 'Theology' being the science of 'God,' 'phi lology' should be the science of 'friendship' or the affections. It was remarked by Mr. Lowe that the word aneurism,' to a Greek scholar, would be misleading; he would not at once suppose that it is a derivative of the Greek verb åvɛvpúvw, 'to widen.' So

with the word 'methodist,' the knowledge of Greek is not a help but a snare.

It is well understood to be a reason for borrowing foreign words, that they do not suggest any meaning but the one intended to be coupled with them. In obtaining. words for new general ideas, our native terms contain misleading associations; the great virtue of the names'Chemistry,' 'Algebra,' 'rheumatism,' 'hydrated,' ‘artery,' 'colloid-is that we do not know what they originally meant; any designation that we could invent in our own language for such vast sciences as Chemistry and Algebra would contain some narrow and inadequate conception which would be a perpetual stumbling-block to the learner.

The only qualification to the principle of learning the meanings of words from present use solely, is, that the classical words in our language are mostly derivatives from a small number of roots; so that a knowledge of the meanings of say a hundred roots assists in discovering the meanings of thousands of derivatives. Not but that we must still check every derivative by present use; yet the memory is considerably assisted by a knowledge of the primitive meaning as partly retained in the numerous compounds. We must observe the present employment of the words- agent,'' actor,' ' enact,' 'action,' 'transaction;' nevertheless, when we are informed of the original sense of the root'ago,' we are enabled thereby to obtain a speedier hold of the meanings of the derivations. So with the Greek roots, logos,' 'nomos,' 'metron,' 'zoon,' 'theos,' &c. This advantage, however, is attainable without entering upon a course of classical study. The roots actually employed in the language

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are separated and presented apart, and their derivatives set forth; and we are thus taught exactly that portion of the Latin and Greek vocabulary that serves the end in view.

The

(2) The argument as applied to the Grammar or Syntax of our own language is equally at fault. The natural course in learning the grammatical order of English sentences is to study and practise English composition. To be habituated to different sentence arrangements must be rather obstructive than otherwise. reference to any other language can only be a matter of curiosity. If it ever happened that our language could borrow an effective arrangement of syntax from any other language, the borrowing should have taken place once for all, so that all succeeding ages might adopt it as a naturalized usage.

In connection with this argument may be taken the frequent allegation that the classics are an introduction to general Literature, as affording the best models of taste and style; in studying which we improve our compositions in our own language. There is here a host of loose assumptions. The excellence of the ancient writers is not uniform, and some assistance must be given to the pupil in discriminating the merits from the defects, a lesson that would be best begun in our own language. Moreover, the remark just made applies again. Whatever effects can be transferred by us to our own compositions cannot remain to be transferred now. The vast series of classical scholars that have written in the modern languages ought long before this time to have embodied whatever beauties can be passed on from the ancient literatures. In modern European literature,