15 APRIL 1905, Page 14

CANON LYTTELTON'S OPPORTUNITY.

[To THE EDITOR Or TIM "Snore:role:1 SIR,—I may be able to relieve your mind on the subject of the Master of Haileybury's attitude towards Latin verses. Whilst he may hold that they " make the brain sweat' more than any other kind of mental gymnastics," he nevertheless also agrees with you in thinking that " after a certain stage in a boy's education," they are probably not the best of all possible gymnastics for all possible kinds of boys." This, at least, must be gathered from the fact that at Haileybmy he laid it down that if one was not a proficient verse-maker by a certain age, one had better have something more interesting to do. Accordingly, whilst those who bad shown enough capacity in writing verses to warrant their still writing them were thus engaged, those of us who were judged incapable of writing very good verses were given lessons in English literature instead. As a result of this practice, I was myself introduced, amongst other things, to the works of an English author which have been my great delight ever since. For the deliverance from Latin verse-making I was grateful to the Master then, and for the result of those English 1489°118 thank him still.—I am, Sir, &c., OLD HAILEYBURIAN.