§ 174. If thefe may be any rea Verfes. fons against children's making Latin themes at fchool, I have much more to fay, and of more weight, againft their making verses; verfes of any fort: for if he has no genius to poetry, 'tis the most unreafonable thing in the world to torment a child, and wafte his time about that which can never fucceed; and if he have a poetic vein, 'tis to me the ftrangest thing in the world. that the father fhould defire or fuffer it to be cherished or improved. Methinks the parent should labour to have it flifled and fup. preffed as much as may be; and I know not what reafon a father can have to with his fon a poet, who does not defire to have him bid defiance to all other callings and bufinefs which is not yet the worst of the cafe; for if he proves a fuccefsful rhymer, and gets once the reputation of a wit, I defire it may be confidered what company and places he is like to spend his time in, nay, and eftate too: for it is very feldom feen, that any one difco. vers mines of gold or filver in Parnaffus ; it is a pleafant air, but a barren foil; and there are very few inftances of thofe who have added to their patrimony by any thing they have reaped from thence. Poetry and gaming, which ufually go together, are alike in this too, that they feldom bring any advantage, but to thofe who have nothing elfe

to

to live on. Men of eftates almoft conftantly go away lofers; and 'tis well if they escape at a cheaper rate than their whole eftates, or the greatest part of them. If therefore you would not have your fon the fiddle to every jovial company, without whom the fparks could not relifh their wine, nor know how to país an afternoon idly; if you would not have him to wafte his time and eftate to divert others, and contemn the dirty acres left him by his ancestors, I do not think you will much care he should be a poet, or that his school-mafter fhould enter him in verfifying. But yet, if a ny one will think poetry a defireable quality in his fon, and that the study of it would raife his fancy and parts, he must needs yet confefs, that to that end reading the excellent Greek and Roman poets, is of more ufe than making bad verfes of his own, in a language that is not his own. And he, whofe delign it is to excel in English poetry, would not, I guefs, think the way to it, were to make his firft cffays in Latin verfes.

$ 175. Another thing very ordinary in the vulgar method of grammar-fchools there is, of

Memoriter.

which I fee no use at all, unless it be to baulk young lads in the way to learning languages, which, in my opinion, fhould be made as eafy and pleasant as may be; and that which was painful in it, as much as poffible, quite remov

ed.

That which I mean, and here complain of, is, their being forced to learn by heart, great parcels of the authors which are taught them; wherein I can difcover no advantage at all, efpecially to the bufinefs they are upon. Languages are to be learned only by reading and talking, and not by scrapes of authors got by heart; which, when a man's head is stuffed with, he has got the juft furniture of a pedant, and 'tis the ready way to make him one; than which there is nothing lefs becoming a gentleman. For what can be more ridiculous, than to mix the rich and handfome thoughts and fayings of others with a deal of poor ftuff of his own; which is there by the more expofed, and has no other grace in it, nor will otherwife recommend the fpeaker, than a thread-bare ruffet coat would, that was fet off with large patches of fcarlet, and glittering brocade. Indeed, where a paffage comes in the way, whofe matter is worth remembrance, and the expreffion of it very clofe and excellent, (as there are many fuch in the antient authors) it may not be amifs to lodge it in the mind of young scholars, and with fuch admirable ftrokes of thofe great mafters fometimes exercife the memory of fchool-boys. But their learning of their lef fons by heart, as they happen to fall out in their books, without choice or diftinction, I know not what it ferves for, but to mifpen

their time and pains, and give them a dif guft and averfion to their books, wherein they find nothing but ufelefs trouble.

$176. I hear it is faid, that children fhould be employed in getting things by heart, to exercise and improve their memories. I could

wifh this were faid with as much authority of reason, as it is with forwardness of affurance, and that this practice were established upon good obfervation more than old cuftom: For it is evident, that ftrength of memory is owing to an happy conftitution, and not to a ny habitual improvement got by exercife. 'Tis true, what the mind is intent upon, and, for fear of letting it flip, often imprints afresh on itself by frequent reflection, that it is apt to retain, but still according to its own natural ftrength of retention. An impreffion made on bees-wax or lead, will not laft fo long as on brafs or steel. Indeed, if it be renewed often, it may last the longer; but every new reflecting on it is a new impreflion; and 'tis from thence one is to reckon, if one would know how long the mindretains it. But the learning pages of Latin by heart, no more fits the memory for retention of any thing elfe, than the graving of one fentence in lead makes it the more capable of retaining firmly any other characters. If fuch a fort of exer. cife of the memory were able to give it ftrength, and improve our parts, players of

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all other people muft needs have the best memories, and be the best company. But whether the fcrapes they have got into their heads this way makes them remember other things the better; and whether their parts be impro. ved proportionable to the pains they have ta ken in getting by heart other's fayings, experience will fhew. Memory is so necessary to all parts and conditions of life, and fo little is to be done without it, that we are not to fear it fhould grow dull and useless for want cf exercise, if exercife would make it grow fronger. But I fear this faculty of the mind is not capable of much help aud amendment in general by any exercife or endeavour of cuis, at leaft, not by that ufed upon this pretence in grammar-schools. And if Cyrus was able to call every common foldier by name in his army, that confifted of no less than two hundred thousand men, I think it may be guef fed, he got not this wonderful ability by learning his leffons by heart when he was a boy. This method of exercising and improving the memory by toil fome repetitions without book of what they read, is, I think, little ufed in the education of princes, which if it had that advantage is talked of, fhould be as little neglected in them as in the mean eft fchool-boys: princes having as much need of good memo. ries as any men living, and have generally an equal flare in this faculty with other men;

though