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handy and absent. Parsimonious in his personal expenditure on principle; he was liberal and honourable towards others. His intellectual character may be gathered from the specimens of his productions which we have extracted, and our ample detail of his studies and attainments. Strength and early maturity were, we repeat, its striking and uncommon characteristics; and in these we hesitate not to say, that he far exceeded Henry Kirke White, with whom it is impossible not to compare him, and who in his turn exceeded Durant in every thing which had a nearer connection with taste and sensibility. In talents, worth, and piety combined, we indeed may say "when shall we see their like again?" We hope at least, should it consist with His purpose, whose ways are not as our ways, but whose wisdom cannot err, that we never shall in connection with another common feature of their history-their early removal from a world they seemed destined at once to improve and to adorn. Endued with an uncommon share of good sense, the infrequent associate of uncommon genius, tender and ardent in his affection, of a remarkably sweet disposition, great delicacy of sentiment, playfulness of mind, cheerfulness, candour,—religion, decidedly evangelical in its views and conduct, completed a character early matured on earth for the felicities of heaven. Nor can we give expression to a better wish, either for our readers, or ourselves, than that thither they and we may follow in his path.

We entertain too high an opinion of them, reciprocated we trust in their estimate of our motives and conduct, to suppose, that in noticing a work like this, we could enter into the niceties, still less give place to any of the asperities of criticism. But it would be injustice to Mr. Durant were we not unequivocally to declare, that could we have indulged the wish, he has given no room for its gratification. He has discharged his painful task in a manner equally creditable to his head and heart, and produced, we have no hesitation in saying, the most interesting book that, in our attention to the literature of the day, we have perused for many years. It should be in the hands of every studentit contains lessons of wisdom, and a bright example for every child; and that family library is, in our estimation, essentially imperfect which contains not on its shelves these affecting "Remains of an only Son;" of which we hope very soon to see a new edition, not, we trust, without many additions.

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AMERICAN LITERATURE AND

INTELLIGENCE.

GRATEFIED to find that the interesting documents connected with the change that has taken place in the sphere of Dr. Mason's labours, which the kind and prompt attention of our American correspondents enabled us to lay before the British public in our last Number, has excited so much attention on this side the Atlantic, as to occasion the publication of one of them in a separate form, we hasten to put our readers in possession of the eloquent and judicious address delivered by that distinguished orator and divine, on entering upon his important functions in the Pennsylvanian University, over which we trust that he will long continue to preside, with advantage to his country and credit to himself.

"Address, delivered at the Organization of the Faculty of Dickinson College, 15th Jan. 1821. By J. M. MASON, Principal.

“Gentlemen of the Trustees, and respected Auditors,

"I address you this day under circumstances of peculiar delicacy and difficulty. Dickinson College, which had long languished, and at last expired, is about being revived again. It comports with neither my inclination nor design, to institute insidious inquiries into the causes of its former failure. With great and good men you were favoured in more auspicious times. For depth of learning, for accuracy of information, for splendour of wit, the name of Dr. Nesbit will long be remembered: and the memory of his successors, who followed him, although it must be confessed haud passibus aquis, will be reverend and revered while piety is honoured in Carlisle. Many causes conspire to elevate and depress seminaries of learning, without great personal merit on the one hand, or personal demerit on the other. Over the vicissitudes which have happened to this one, it would answer no good purpose to dwell; and it would savour too much of a vanity which would but ill become those who are now entrusted with its management, to make boastful professions, and encourage high expectations of its future progress. Their labours have already been too highly appreciated; their powers have, perhaps, been too much applauded. The country has been taught to expect more from them than their talents and industry shall probably be found to justify, and they will have reason to think themselves happy above the common condition of men in their situation, if they shall not altogether disappoint the public anticipation.

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"The revival of a decayed institution being much more difficult than the establishment of a new one, as the resurrection of a dead body is more arduous, and certainly more uncommon, than the production of a living one; and as all the success, humanly speaking, will depend upon the plan to be pursued, it may be due to the occasion to say a few words on a subject on which every body talks confidently, and a few think correctly, while the million prate without thinking at all-the subject of education.

“Education, if I mistake not, contemplates three objects,—the evolution of faculty,--the formation of habits,—and the cultivation of manners.

"I. The evolution of faculty,-this, of course implies, that there is faculty to be evolved, so that, like all created power, education must have its materials from the hand of the Creator. Itself creates nothing. It only brings out qualities which pre-existed. It is a manufacture, and, like all other manufactures, must have the raw material to work upon, or it can do nothing. Many wellmeaning people imagine, that it is in the power of teachers to do every thing; and hard measure do they give them for not working miracles-for not converting a booby into a lad of genius. My friends, you must not expect we shall do what the Almighty God has not done. That we shall furnish brains where our pupils are naturally without them. Ex nihilo nihil fit; whatever be the zeal and efforts of the instructor. If you look for bricks, your boys must bring the straw. Pray sir,' said a gentleman to another, who complained that his sons, who were, indeed, not of the race and lineage of Solomon, had not the advantage of early education, 'Pray, sir, why cannot you give to those bricks,' pointing to an opposite pile, the hardness and polish of marble? Because they are bricks, and, work at them for ever, and they will be bricks still.' Let a boy make a tour of all the Colleges in the land, or out of it, if nature made him a dunce, a dunce he will remain; with the only difference of exchanging his ignorance for impertinence. I know no more thankless and desperate experiment, than an attempt to educate the naturally stupid. It may well enough consort with the vocation of a pedant, who, provided he has a head to hammer upon, is well enough satisfied; but it is grief, and misery, and purgatory, to a man of any sense or feeling. Persons with uncouth and ruggid minds, would be employed far better in following the plow, drawn by their more intelligent horses, than in making themselves ridiculous by endeavouring to obtain a liberal education. At the same time, it must be acknowledged, that the seeds of natural ability are pretty equally distributed; and that fine minds are often lost for want of culture.

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"Yes, among these lads, who know no other use for their limbs than felling the forests-and no other for their activity of mind and body, than catching the wild turkey, the pheasant, or the deer; there are some master spirits, who need nothing but cultivation to bring them forth into their peculiar action: who contain the rudiments of the statesman's skill, and the patriot's fire, and may, according to their places, become the Washingtons, the Hamiltons, and the Franklins of future days. There are, among these simple rustics, men who in former ages would have

'Wielded at will the fierce democracy,

'And fulmin'd over Greece to Macedon
'And Artaxerxes' throne.'

"O, could we but light upon these chosen spirits, these minds which can balance themselves and millions of other men! Could Dickinson present, among her sons, an array hostile, terrible, destructive, to all the legions of infidelity and misrule, she might well hold up her head amid the seminaries of the nation, and receive their homage, not less freely granted than richly merited.

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"But to return to their practical point. Faculty is not to be evolved without painful effort. With those young men who go to a place of education, as the other idlers frequent a watering place, where they may saunter away their time, out of their parents' observation, and having nothing to do but to amuse themselves, and dash away as fine fellows, we wish and hope to have no acquaintance. The college ought to be, and by God's assistance shall be, a place of work. Let no idlers, no mimicries, no mockeries, of students, disgrace our classes, or pollute our walls. Should such unhappily creep in, we trust that in a very short time we shall shew them out. Our great business is to keep the youthful mind under a pretty constant, but not an unreasonable, pressure; such a pressure as will insure tolerable accuracy. Let a lad get along,' as the phrase is, 'pretty well,'-let his ideas on a subject, which he is required to master, be only general and confusedlet his preceptor almost put the answer into his mouth, when he hardly knows which way to guess, and he is bribed to intellectual sloth. The season in which he should fix habits of discrimination as well as of prompt acquisition, passes by; and though he bring to the college good native powers, he will leave it with a mind inert and unproductive. The idea then of a medium between scholarship and no scholarship must be for ever banished. The ideas of doing a thing, and doing it well, must be identified in the minds of both teacher and pupil; and the idea of doing a thing by halves, be équivalent with that of not doing it at all.

"It is manifest, that upon such a plan the pupil must, after all, be in a great degree his own instructor; and if he will not act upon this plan, all the power in creation cannot educate him. It is our's to watch, to guide, to direct him, to keep him from wasting the talents which God has given him. Farther than this, we can

not go. The main concern is still in his own hand. A habit of close application, which can be acquired only by his own industry, is the most precious fruit of a solid education. The quantity which a young man learns at College, is next to nothing in the business of life. Let him get the habit of close attention, of painful and persevering application, and I will freely compound for the loss of all his college learning; and be little concerned if I even knew that he should make no use of it during the rest of his life. Yet to this habit of painful and steady attention, a skilful instructor can contribute much. A great deal can be done by enforcing punctuality. By which I mean, that the performance of all exercises should be limited to a certain time, both sufficient and reasonable, and then be rigorously exacted. His pupils will shrink; they will solicit; they will complain. They may feel a momentary despondence; but there is in youth an elasticity which cannot be long depressed and a generosity which the firmness of authority, tempered by a well-adapted soothing, can work up to astonishing efforts.' This is therefore, a point upon no consideration to be given up. 'Labour will not be regular and ardent without the hard pressure of necessity.' Let it be ascertained that there is no escape, that the thing must be done, and it will be done. Such an urgency upon the mind disarms temptations to trifling, and often to vice, keeps it bent on the matter, and the period of duty throws it into a strong action; and perhaps, which is still better, into a sort of agony. Hence spring the finest and most magnificent effusions of human genius. There exists no more fatal enemy to diligence, improvement and excellence, than the notion that there is time enough.'

"II. I have said, that education contemplates the formation of habit. By this I understand not merely intellectual habits, but those which entwine themselves with the moral character, and exert an influence upon all the dignity and happiness of future life. It is no small libel upon some seminaries, and not the less so for being true, that youth there learn so many things which they should not learn; and that all faults are venial, if the understanding be well disciplined. I cannot conceive any greater opprobrium upon a seminary, than that a student should become vicious, as in general intellect he becomes enlightened. To have the places of education mere reservoirs of immorality! What can he more shocking? To have them, on the contrary, sources of pure, refined, and exalted virtue, what can more contribute to the happiness of parents, to the peace of the surrounding neighbourhood, to the glory of the land?

"On this, which is a large theme, I shall briefly advert to two habits, which, though of apparently minor importance, mingle themselves with all the duties and occasions of life.

"1. Subordination to authority. I regret to say, that in all the departments of society, from the parental control to that of the government, this is held by our youth in too little esteem. Their

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