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ARTICLE II.

WHETHER A PRIVATE OR PUBLIC EDUCATION OUGHT TO BE PREFERRED.

DURING the whole time I have been engaged in the education of youth, being thoroughly sensible of the dangers which occur both in private houses and great schools, I have never presumed to give advice upon this subject, and have always contented myself with applying as carefully as I could to the instruction of the youth, which Divine Providence committed to my care. I think I ought still to observe the same neutrality, and leave it to the prudence of parents to decide a question, which certainly admits of great difficulties on both sides.

[r] Quintilian has discoursed upon this point with great prolixity and eloquence. The passage is one of the most beautiful in his work, and deserves to be read in the original. I shall here give an extract of it.

He begins with answering two objections, which are usually made against public schools.

The first relates to purity of morals, which they pretend is here exposed to the greatest dangers. Was this the case, he thinks we should not hesitate a moment; [y] the care of living well being infinitely preferable to that of speaking well. But, he says, the danger is equal on both sides; that the whole depends upon the natural disposition of the children, and the care that is taken of their education; that usually the evil springs from the parents themselves, by the bad examples they set their children. They every day, says he, hear and see such things as they ought to be ignorant of during their whole lives. [x] All this passes

[x] Quintil. lib. i. cap. 1. [y] Potior mihi ratio vivendi honestè, quam vel optimè dicendi videretur.

[*] Fit ex his consuetudo, deinde

natura.

Discunt hæc miseri, antequam sciant vitia esse. Inde soluti ac fluentes, non accipiunt è scholis mala ista, sed in scholas afferunt.

into habit, and soon after into nature. The poor children find themselves vicious before they know what vice is. Thus breathing nothing but luxury and pleasure, they do not derive their irregularity from the schools, but bring it thither.

The second objection concerns their advancement in their studies, which must be greater in a private house, where the master has but one scholar to instruct. Quintilian does not allow it for several reasons, which he lays down; but he adds, that this inconvenience, though it were real, is abundantly made good by the great advantages which follow upon a public education.

[a] First, a public education emboldens a young man, gives him courage, early accustoms him not to be afraid of appearing in public, and cures him of a certain pusillanimity, which naturally attends a private and retired life; whereas in secret he usually grows languid and dejected, he rusts in a manner, or else falls into an opposite extreme, becomes conceited, setting a greater value upon himself than upon others, from having no person to compare himself with.

Second and third, In a public school there are acquaintances formed, which often last as long as life; and there is a certain knowledge of the world to be acquired, which can be learned only in society. Quintilian does not insist much upon these two advantages, and seems to set no great value on them.

Fourth, The great advantage of schools is emulalation. A child there improves both by what is said to himself and what is said to others. He will every day see his master approve one thing, and correct another; blame the idleness of this boy and commend the diligence of that; and will be the better for it all. The love of glory will serve him as an incentive to take

[a] Ante omnia futurus orator, cui in maximâ celebritate & in mediâ reip. luce vivendum est, assuescat jam à tenero non reformidare homines, neque illa solitaria & veJut umbratili vita pallescere. Excitanda mens & attollenda semper

est, quæ in hujusmodi secretis aut languescit, & quendam velut in opaco situm ducit; aut contra tumescit inani persuasione. Necesse est enim sibi nimium tribuat, qui se nemini comparat.

pains. He will be ashamed to give place to his equals and will take pains to excel the most forward. A good scholar will use the utmost endeavours to be the first in his form, and carry the prize. [b] This gives ardour to young minds; and a noble emulation well managed, without any mixture of malice, envy and pride, is one of the best means to lead them to the exercise of the greatest virtues and the most arduous undertakings.

Fifth, Another advantage to be found in schools is, that a young man meets with such models among his companions as are within his reach, such as he flatters himself he may be able to come up to, and does not despair of surpassing one day. Whereas, if he was alone, it would be presumption in him to compare bimself with his master.

Sixth and lastly, A master who has a numerous auditory, exerts himself quite otherwise than he, who having but one scholar, can speak only coldly to him, and in the way of conversation. Now it is incredible how useful this fire and vivacity of a master, who, in explaining the beautiful passages of an author, grows warm and transported, is, not only to make the boys attentive, but to inspire them with the same taste and sentiments, as he feels in addressing himself to them.

Quintilian does not fail to observe, that the opinion which he maintains is confirmed by universal practice, and the authority of the most esteemed authors, and most famous legislators.

I might add, that this conduct has been observe with no less regularity since the time of Quintilian, and even amongst Christians. Ecclesiastical history supplies us with abundance of examples. That of St. Basil and St. George Nazienzen is known to all the world. I shall relate it particularly at the close of this volume, and shall now only observe, that the families of these two illustrious friends were the most Christian that were then in the Church. They thought,

[b] Accendunt omnia hæc ani- tio, frequenter tamen causa virtumos: & licet ipsa vitium sit ambi- tum est.

however,

however, they might commit the dearest treasure they had in the world to the public schools; and God bless ed their pious intentions with a success which far exceeded their expectations. Shall we venture to charge this conduct with imprudence and presumption?

On the other side, may we venture to condemn the religious apprehension of Christian parents, who, upon seeing the dangers which occur in colleges, (and it must be owned too that they are great) and being less solicitous about their children's improvement in the sciences, than to preserve to them the precious and inestimable treasure of their innocence, determine to bring them up under their own inspection, in a family, where they may hear nothing but discreet conversation, where they may see nothing but good examples, and from whence whatever may be capable of corrupting the purity of their morals is carefully removed as much as possible? There are now certainly some such houses, but the number of them is very few.

Besides the two usual methods of bringing up youth, the boarding them out at public schools, or instructing them in private, there is a third, which holds the mean between both, and seems to unite them together; and this is, to send children to school to improve by the emulation of the classes, and keeping them at home the rest of the time. By this means, perhaps, they avoid a part of the dangers, as they are also deprived of one part of the advantages of the college; amongst which we ought certainly to reckon the order, regularity, and discipline, which by the sound of a clock points out all the exercises of the day in an uniform manner and the simplicity and frugality of their way of living, which are very different from the indulgence of their father's houses, and serve only to render them too nice and tender. [c] This observation was made by an illustrious magistrate in times past, in a passage which I have quoted in the first volume of this work. "My father," says this magistrate, "said he had "two views in the education of the college; the one

[c] Henry de Mesmes, tom. i. p. 75.

166 was

was the gay and innocent conversation of the youths; "the other was the school discipline, to make us forget "the endearments of our home, and as it were, to "cleanse us in fresh water. I think those eighteen "months I spent at college were of great service to "me-I learnt the frugal life of the scholars, and how "to portion out my time."

Another advantage of colleges, (supposing them to be such as they should be) and the greatest of all, is, that the boys are there thoroughly taught their religion. They learn there to take the knowledge of it from its source, to know the true spirit and real greatness of it, and to fortify themselves by solid principles against the dangers which faith and piety too frequently meet with in the world. It is not impossible, but certainly it is very rare to find this advantage in private houses.

Now what must we conclude from all these principles, and all these facts? There is no college which cannot produce a great number of examples of youth who have had an excellent education there, and been improved both in the sciences and in piety; nor is there any one, which has not seen with grief, a very great number miscarry; and the case is the same in private houses.

The conclusion which, in my opinion, we should draw from hence is, that as the dangers are very great to youth on all sides, it is the duty of parents to examine well before God what course they ought to take; equitably to weigh the advantages and inconveniences which occur on both sides; to be determined in so important a deliberation, only by the motives of religion; and above all, to make such a choice of masters and schools, in case they follow that course, as may, if not entirely dissipate, at least, diminish their just ap. prehensions.

THE PLAN AND DIVISION OF THIS TREATISE.

To enter usefully into the particulars of what concerns the interior government of the classes and colleges,

VOL. III.

X