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us; for we can not do without them. If they have the right to command their subjects, the able-bodied among them, in time of war, to handle musket and pike, to mount the walls, or to do whatever else the exigency may require; with how much the more reason ought they to compell the people to keep their children at school, inasmuch as here upon earth the most terrible of contests, wherein there is never a truce, is ever going on, and that with the devil himself, who is lying in wait, by stealth and unawares, if so be that he may drain city and kingdom, and empty quite out of them all the brave and good, even until he has removed the kernel utterly, and naught shall be left but a mere shell, full of idle mischiefmakers, to be mere puppets in his hands to do his pleasure. Then will your city or your country suffer a true famine, and, without the smoke of conflict, will be silently destroyed from within, and that without warning. Even the Turk manages in another way; for he takes every third child throughout his empire, and trains him to some calling perforce. How much more, then, ought our rulers to put at least some children to school; not that I would have a boy taken away from his parents, only that he should be educated, for his own good and the general welfare, to some calling that shall yield him abundant fruits of his industry. Wherefore, let magistrates lay these things to heart, and let them keep a vigilant look-out; and, wherever they see a promising lad, have him pledged at school.

Those fathers, who feared that learning would be pernicious to their children, Luther pacified by using their own arguments.

But, you say, "how if it turns out ill, and my son become a heretic or a villain? For the proverb says, the scholar's skill turns oft to ill?" Well, and what of it? Venture, nevertheless. Your diligence and toil will not be thrown away. God will reward you according to your faithfulness, whether your work prosper or fail. Besides, you must act on uncertainties in respect to any pursuit whatever, that you may train him for. How was it with good Abraham, when his son Ishmael disappointed his hopes? How with Isaac and Esau? Or with Adam and Cain? Was Abraham on that account to neglect training Isaac up for the service of God? Or Isaac, Jacob? Or Adam, Abel?

IX. THE DIGNITY AND DIFFICULTY OF THE WORK OF TEACHING.

In the same sermon, Luther takes especial pains to magnify the office of the school-teacher.

Where were your supply of preachers, jurists, and physicians, if the arts of grammar and rhetoric had no existence? These are the fountain, out of which they all flow. I tell you, in a word, that a diligent, devoted school-teacher, preceptor, or any person, no matter what is his title, who faithfully trains and teaches boys, can never receive an adequate reward, and no money is sufficient to pay the debt you owe him; so, too, said the pagan, Aristotle. Yet we treat them with contempt, as if they were of no account whatever; and, all the time, we profess to be Christians. For my part, if I were, or were compelled to leave off preaching and to enter some other vocation, I know not an office that would please me better than that of schoolmaster, or teacher of boys. For I am convinced that, next to preaching, this is the most useful, and greatly the best labor in all the world, and, in fact, I am sometimes in doubt which of the positions is the more honorable. For you can not teach an old dog new tricks, and it is hard to reform old sinners, but this is what by preaching we undertake to do, and our labor is often spent in vain ; but it is easy to bend and to train young trees, though haply in the process some may be broken. My friend, nowhere on earth can you find a higher virtue than is displayed by the stranger, who takes your children and gives them a faithful training,- -a labor which parents very seldom perform, even for their own offspring.

To the like effect, does Luther speak of school-teachers in the Table Talk.

I would have no one enter the ministry, who has not first been a schoolmaster. Our young men, now-a-days, do not think so; they shrink from the toil of teaching,

and rush at once for the sacred office. But, after one has taught school for ten years or thereabouts, he may, with a good conscience, break off; for the labor is great, and the reputation small. Still, as much depends in a city on a schoolmaster as on the preacher. And, if I were not a preacher, I know not the position on earth which I had rather fill. You must not be swayed in this matter by the opinions or the rewards of the world, but consider how God regards the work, and how he will exalt it at the last day.

Though Luther thought so very highly of the office of the teacher, yet he remarks, in his commentary on Galatians, that this office is for the most part in ill-repute with children, and that severe teachers, particularly when their severity is habitual, are any thing but loved by their pupils.

It is impossible that a disciple, or a scholar, can love the teacher who is harsh and severe; for, how can he prevail on himself to love one who immures him, as it were, in a dungeon; that is, who constrains him to do that which he will not, and holds him back from doing that which he will; and who, when he does any thing that has been forbidden him, straightway flogs him, and, not content with this, compels him to kiss the rod too. A most gracious and excellent obedience and affection this in the scholar, that comes from an enforced compliance with the harsh orders of a hateful taskmaster! My friend, do you suppose that he obeys with joy and gladness? But, what does he do when the teacher's back is turned? Does he not snatch up the rod, break it into a thousand pieces, or else throw it into the fire? And, if he had the power, he would not suffer his teacher to whip him again; nay, he would turn the tables on him, and not simply take the rod to him, but cudgel him soundly with a club. Nevertheless, the child needs the discipline of the rod; but it must be tempered with admonition, and directed to his improvement; for, without this, he will never come to any good, but will be ruined, soul and body. A miserable teacher, indeed, would that man be, who should only know how to beat and torment his scholars, without ever being able to teach them any thing. Such schoolmasters there have been, whose schools were nothing but so many dungeons and hells, and themselves tyrants and gaolers; where the poor children were beaten beyond endurance and without cessation, and applied themselves to their task laboriously and with over-pushed diligence, but yet with very small profit. A well-informed and faithful teacher, on the other hand, mingles gentle admonition with punishment, and incites his pupils to diligence in their studies, and to a laudable emulation among themselves; and so they become rooted and grounded in all kinds of desirable knowledge, as well as in the proprieties and the virtues of life, and they now do that spontaneously and with delight which formerly, and under the old discipline, they approached with reluctance and dread.

X. PLAN FOR SCHOOL ORGANIZATION.

Luther writes, in 1524, to Spalatin:

I send you my sketch of the school as it should be, that you may lay it before the elector; and though I do not expect that much heed will be given to it, yet I must venture, and leave the issue with God.

Four years later, (1528,) Melancthon's " Manual of Visitation," made its appearance, in which he communicated a full and complete plan for the organization of schools, which had received the sanction of the elector, and which was, undoubtedly, based upon the sketch that Luther had sent to Spalatin.*

Luther's plan, above referred to, I have never seen, nor is it, so far as I am aware, on record. That Melancthon's, however, essentially agrees with it we have abundant cause to conclude. Especially does this appear from a letter that Melancthon wrote to Camerarius. on the subject of the Manual. He says in this, "you will see that I have written nothing more than what Luther has propounded, passim."

XI. UNIVERSITIES.

In the letter to the Christian nobles of the German nation on the elevation of the Christian order, Luther takes occasion to express himself on German universities as follows.

Our universities need a good thorough purging; I must say it, let whoever will be offended. For, what are they, save a few recently instituted, but "places of exercise for the chief young men,' as the 2nd Book of Maccabees, 4: 12, hath it; where a free life is led, after "the glory of the Grecians;" where the Holy Scriptures and faith in Christ are lightly accounted of; and where that blind pagan, Aristotle, reigns solitary and alone, even to the dethroning of Christ? Now this is my counsel, that Aristotle's books on physics, metaphysics, the soul, and ethics, which have been ever esteemed his best, should be thrown away, with all the host of those which pretend to treat of natural science, while in reality nothing can be learned from them, of things natural or things spiritual either: add, that what he does advance not a soul has hitherto understood, and yet so many noble intellects have been weighed down and paralyzed under the cost, toil, time and study that they have been forced to devote to him.

But I would, nevertheless, be willing to retain his logic, rhetoric and poetics— abridged, I would prefer them,-for they are useful to direct the young to a good style of speaking, either for the bar or the pulpit; but the commentaries and glosses are useless. Cicero's rhetoric, likewise, may be read, but only the pure and simple text, unencumbered with your unwieldy and interminable commentaries. But now, they teach neither how to plead nor how to preach, but all the result they shew is mere wrangling and stupidity. And we ought, moreover, to adopt the languages, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, the mathematics and history, all which I commend to the more intelligent. But, the claims of these studies will need no urging, as soon as there is a right earnest desire for a reformation. And truly, this is a matter of the utmost consequence. For, here our Christian youth, and our nobles, in whom rest the hopes of Christianity, are to be taught, and to be fitted for action. And, accordingly, it is my firm belief that a reformation and a renovation of our universities would be a work of greater magnitude than pope or emperor ever undertook, since there is not a more crafty, or a more devilish device on the face of the earth than a university overgrown with the thorns and the briars of godless ignorance.

XII. THE STUDY OF THE BIBLE.

We have given, in the preceding pages, Luther's opinion of many of the university studies. It is not desirable, he says, to read a multitude of books; among such as are read, however, the Holy Scriptures demand our chief care.

Books should be fewer, and we must choose out the best. For many books do not impart knowledge, nor much reading either; but, that which is good, if it be read often, no matter how small its compass, that it is which throws light upon the Word, and inspires piety besides. Yea, even the works of the holy Fathers, are to be read only as a means by which we may the better come at the sense of the Word; but now we read them for themselves and abide in them, without ever coming to the Scriptures; in this, we are like men who look at the guideposts, but who never follow the road. The dear Fathers would have their writings lead us into the Scriptures; let us, then, carry out their intention. For the Scriptures, and they alone, are our vineyard, in which we are to exercise ourselves, and to labor.

Above all things, let the Scriptures be the chief and the most frequently used reading-book, both in primary and in high schools; and the very young should be kept in the gospels. Is it not proper and right that every human being, by the time he has reached his tenth year, should be familiar with the holy gospels, in which the very core and marrow of his life is bound? Even the spinner and the seamstress impart the mysteries of their craft to their daughters, while these are yet in girlhood. And, again, when the high schools shall have become grounded

in the Scriptures, we then are not all of us to send our sons there, as is the practice now, when numbers alone are regarded, and each will have his boy a doctor; but we ought to admit only those who are best fitted, and who have previously been well trained in the preparatory schools; to which matter, princes or magistrates ought to pay special attention, not allowing any to be sent to the high schools but the most capable. But, where the Holy Scriptures do not bear sway, there I would counsel none to send his child. For every institution will degenerate, where God's word is not in daily exercise; in proof of this, we need but look at those who have been moulded by, or who are now in the high schools. The high schools ought to send forth men thoroughly versed in the Scriptures, to become bishops and pastors, and to stand in the van, against heretics, the devil, and, if need be, the whole world. But, what do we find them? I greatly fear they are no better than broad gates to hell, wherever they do not busily exercise and practice our youth in the Holy Scriptures.

XIII. STUDY OF THE LANGUAGES.

In what high esteem Luther held the languages, we have already had occasion to remark. To Hebrew, in particular, he frequently recurs in terms of praise.

The Hebrew tongue surpasses all others; it is the richest in words of any, and it is pure; it borrows nothing, but has its own independent hue. The Greek, the Latin, and the Germans all borrow; they have, moreover, many compound words, whereas the Hebrew has none. From a simple word the Germans make twenty compounds, which all proceed from it, and are pieced together out of it; as, from laufen, to run, come entlaufen, to run away from; verlaufen, to run wrong; umlaufen, to run about; belaufen, to run to see; zulaufen, to run toward; ablaufen, to run from a place; weglaufen, to run from one's duty; einlaufen, to run in; etc. On the contrary, the Hebrew has no compound, no patchwork word, but each idea is expressed by a word wholly its own. So, again, the word heart, for instance, has with us quite a generic use. For it means a part of the body, as if we should say, he has no heart; that is, he is spiritless and cowardly; or again, my heart tells me that his heart burns within him; that is, that he is angry. In each of these cases, the Hebrew employs a special and peculiar word.

In reference to the manner of learning the languages, Luther lays great stress upon continual practice, though he does not undervalue. grammar, by any means.

We learn German or other languages much better by word of mouth, at home, in the street, or at the church, than out of books. Letters are dead words; the utterances of the mouth are living words, which in writing can never stand forth so distinct and so excellent, as the soul and spirit of man bodies them forth through the mouth.

Tell me, where was there ever a language, which men could learn to speak with correctness and propriety by the rules of grammar? Is it not true that even those languages, like the Latin and the Greek, which possess the most unerring rules, are much better learned by use and wont, than from these rules? Is it not then extremely absurd, for one who would learn the sacred tongue, in which divine and spiritual things are discoursed of, to neglect a straightforward and pertinent search into the subject-matter, and attempt, instead, to pick the language out of grammar alone?

He gives his view of the relation of the things signified to the words which express them, as follows, holding that an understanding of words is only possible where there is an understanding of things first.

The art of grammar teaches and shows, what words imply and signify; but we must first learn and know what the things are, and what the matters mean.

Hence, must he, who would teach and preach, first know his subject and its bearings, before he can speak of it; for grammar only teaches the names and forms of the words which we use to set forth our subject.

Our knowledge is two-fold; relating to words on the one hand, and on the other to things. And accordingly, he who does not possess a knowledge of the thing or the subject of which he is to speak, will not find a knowledge of words of any service to him. There is an old proverb, which runs thus: If you do not know what you are talking of, you may talk forever, and no man will be the wiser. Many such people there are in our day. For we have many very learned and very eloquent men, who appear exceedingly foolish and ridiculous, because they undertake to speak of that which they have never understood.

But, whoever has the matter inwrought into his being, so that he comprehends it fully, is an able teacher, and reaches the heart, whether he be eloquent, and have a ready flow of words, or not. So Cato, when he spoke in the council, had more influence than Cicero, albeit, his language was rough and devoid of all polish and elegance; and, though his speech was not skillfully framed to produce conviction, yet no one ever gave a thought to his manner.

Accordingly, the understanding of words, or grammar, is easy, when we well understand the subject; as Horace also says: that words come of their own accord, when the subject has been duly admitted to the mind, retained there, and fully considered; but, where the subject is obscurely apprehended, there the utmost knowledge of words will do no good. I have dwelt upon this point so fully for this reason, namely: that you may know, if you shall ever read the Rabbins, what sort of masters you will have; they may well understand the language, but the subjects that are conveyed in it they know nothing about, nor can they ever teach them in a true and proper manner.

But, through the goodness and the grace of God, we have the knowledge and the understanding of the matters, of which the Holy Scriptures treat, while they are left in blindness. Hence, though they know the grammar, yet they have no correct understanding of the Scriptures; but, as Isaiah, (29, 11,) saith: "And the vision is become as the words of a book that is sealed. Who then shall follow them ?"

Now let no one think or conclude from all this that I would reject the grammar, for this is altogether necessary; but this much I do say: he who, with the grammar, does not study the contents of the Scriptures also, will never make a good teacher. For, as a certain one has said, "the words of the teacher or preacher should follow the subject, and grow, not in his mouth, but out of his heart."

XIV. NATURAL SCIENCE.

In commenting on Erasmus' want of appreciation of natural science, Luther remarks:

We are now in the morning-dawn of a better life; for we are beginning again to recover that knowledge of the creation which we lost through Adam's fall. By God's grace, we are beginning to recognize, even in the structure of the humblest floweret, his wondrous glory, his goodness, and his omnipotence. In the creation we can appreciate in some measure the power of Him, who spake and it was done, who commanded and it stood fast. Consider the peach-stone: although it is very hard, yet, in its due season, it is burst asunder by the force of the very tender germ which is inclosed within the shell. But all this Erasmus passes by, not regarding it for a moment; and views this new knowledge of the creature only as cows look upon a new gate.

XV. HISTORY.

The importance that Luther attached to history, we have before adverted to; he has more, to the same purport, in his preface to Galeatti Capella's history of the Duke of Milan.

Says the highly-renowned Roman, Varro, (so this preface runs,) the best instruction is that which combines illustration and example with precept. For through these we apprehend the speech or the doctrine more clearly, and also

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