5. " Consideration on the Great and Various Injuries arising from
the Course of Education pursued in the Universities of Ox- ford and Cambridge, and in nearly all the Public Schools in this Kingdom." We are not the less pleased with this pamphlet be- cause it happens to be written precisely in the spirit of some ob- servations of our own, made on occasion of Mr. SOTHEBY'S transla- tion of HOMER, and which we were pleased to see transferred at length into the pages of so enlightened a writer. We strongly recommend the opinions of the author to the consideration of every reflecting man; and in order to induce the further agitation. of the subject, we trust that we shall speedily find an opportunity of taking it up ourselves. In the mean time, we will quote a short passage on the inefficiency of a classical education in forming a legislator— The thought of men, who have spent all their previous years in reading cock and bull tales in Livy and Herodotus, Horace's Odes, some Sophoeles and Euri- pides, &c. &c., and who are very sage in matters of metrical trifling, but abso- lute first-class boobies in matters of politics, which they have never entered into, going to give a random vote in either House of Parliament, or at any election, On a question which, according to one decision, sheds universal peace and plenty, but according to the other sends a deluge of blood—not merely perhaps on our own country, but on Europe—is absolutely horrid. If it is unchristian to cause heedlessly pain in ever so trifling a degree to a single individual, if it is unchris- tian wantonly to do this, how unchristian is it wantonly to hazard the life and peace of millions of fiimilies ! how unchristian wantonly to give a vote, which, had a proper religious sense of the importance of the trust been felt, and conse- quently a most diligent investigation of the best mode of exercising it been made, might have insured of itself success to such a measure as I am going to describe, or at an election success to the opponent of the candidate, to whom it was given, the advocate in Parliament of a measure, which would have been not merely a cup of cold water to the thirsty, or clothing to the naked, but joy, and peace,. and plenty, and happiness to millions of inhabitants of every class irs one country ; perhaps to millions of inhabitants of every class in several other coun- tries! From the narrow reading gone through previously, and the narrow views. imbibed, the natural result of such limited reading, a vote of such men as I have been describing is, in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, almost sure to be given the wrong way. God grant that the blot of such enormous folly, or of such enormous wickedness, may speedily be wiped off this land ! The odium, which, through the bad conduct of these men, so intimately connected with the teaching of Christianity in this land, has been brought not only justly to a great degree on Church temporalities, but unjustly also on every thing sacred, entailfr a responsibility on these men, according to my judgment, in no little degree- fearful.
The Reform will cure this, among many other evils.