such means, he brought Speusippus back to a better mind, who in his youth had trodden the hazardous path of dissipation. The sharp reproofs and admonitions of his parents had been in vain. But Plato, by gentle conduct and an entirely different treatment, awakened the feeling of shame and the resoluion of amendment.*

ART. III.-DILLAWAY'S TERENCE.

PUB. TERENTII AFRI ANDRIA ADELPHIQUE. Ex editione Westerhoviana. Accedunt Notæ Anglica. Cura C. K. Dillaway, A. M. Bostoniæ: Perkins et Marvin. 1839.

AMONG Latin writers, next to Horace, Terence has pleased most universally and most deeply. The refined elegance of Virgil, the vigorous majesty of Lucretius, and the elaborate polish of Ovid have each found warm admirers; but the courtier, the philosopher, and the epicurist must yield the palm of universal favor to the slave; the early and thoroughly trained Romans to the foreigner. The charm of the comedies of Terence every classical student feels, and they are no less appreciated by the mere man of taste and wit. There is in them perfect simplicity and purity of language, which yet never descends to grossness and vulgarity, and surpassing truth and completeness in the delineation of character; no coarse buffoonery to excite disgust, and no affectation of singularity in the sketches of life. The expressions of feeling arise naturally from natural incidents, and with clearly marked humor of both character and plot are mingled descriptions of great beauty and truth, and touches of exquisite pathos. The comic element, does not predominate in the plays of Terence. They seldom excite a laugh. They are comedies, not so much because witty and diverting, as because the incidents and characters are taken from common life, and are true representations of it.

*

Of the peculiarities of the character and life of Terence we have little knowledge, but what is mere inference and

• Plut. de Discrimine Amici et Adul. 71. nɛgi qiladelplas p. 491.

uncertain. He is supposed to have perished by shipwreck on his return from Greece, when not far from thirtyfive years old. Six of his comedies remain, Andria, Eunuchus, Heautontimoroumenos, Adelphi, Hecyra, Phormio. For the plot. of his plays he was mostly indebted to Menander. How far he was a mere translator, and how far his own taste and genius changed the style of his original, are topics we cannot now discuss. Yet there is an apparent freedom in all his writings which leads us to doubt that his obligations in this respect have been overrated.

*

*

*

Were

The edition of Mr Dillaway is put forth with the same accuracy and neatness which have distinguished the series of classics from the same press. The form and size are convenient. The notes are prepared with good taste. we disposed to find fault with the work, we should repeat what has been said of another volume of the series in this journal, that the notes have not a specific adaptation to any class of readers. There are many which the scholar familiar with the author does not need, and others which the mere beginner will hardly profit by. The illustrations of sentiment and diction from other poets, both English and Latin, are not always appropriate, at least not obviously so. For example, the quotations from Virgil in the note to page 30 line 19, and on p. 9 line 4. Sometimes the notes are so brief, a mere paraphrase, that a learner will hardly understand their pertinence; e. g. the notes to p. 35, lines 1, 2 and 3. The account of the metres might well have been made more full and definite.

The text is that of the splendid and copious edition of Westerhof. The editions of Westerhof and of Bentley appeared in the same year, 1726. Bishop Monk, in his life of Bentley, relates a curious anecdote of them which is worth repeating. Bentley's dissertation upon the Terentian metres, he says, at once made plain and easy a subject which was before intricate, and, as many imagined, entirely hopeless; and an edition of this author containing the scansion of every verse, proved to all, even to those who might take occasional exceptions, that the problem was fairly solved, and the laws of Terence's measures discovered. This publication was attended with another peculiar circumstance of triumph. A large and handsome edition of Terence, accompanied with a commentary, had been for some

time in the press at the Hague; the Dutch editor, Westerhof, mentions in his preface Bentley's idea of restoring the metrical arrangement of the lines of this comedian, with the following sneer: Habebit igitur in quo se exerceat Vir Cl. RICHARDUS BENTLEIUS, si quod ad Horat. Serm. ii. 5. 79. p. 513. profitetur, aliquando novem TERENTII editionem ad priscos numeros adornaturus sit. He then proceeds to show the difficulty of recovering the metres of the comedian, and argues that the attempt must be at the present day hopeless, chimerical, and absurd. Unluckily for Westerhof, Bentley's Terence appeared at the same moment as his own; and scholars saw the very achievement which one editor pronounced to be impossible, actually accomplished by the other. Nor was this all; the popularity of Bentley's performance causing another edition to be immediately in request, it was printed at Amsterdam; and the person employed by the bookseller to construct the index was no other than Westerhof himself, who thus condescended to assist the triumph of his rival.

ART. IV. VIEWS OF EDUCATION IN THE EARLY DAYS OF NEW ENGLAND.

COTTON MATHER'S EDUCATION OF HIS Children.

"IN the business of educating his children, Cotton Mather was far more judicious than could have been expected from a man of his peculiar temperament, and certainly deserves great credit for acting on a system, which was entirely opposed to the prevailing theory and practice. His son, who had the best opportunities of knowing, says that he was zealous against the slavish way of education carried on with raving, kicking, and scourging; he looked upon it as a dreadful judgment of God upon the world.'

He believed that children were alive to principles of reason and honor at a much earlier period of life than is generally supposed. He endeavored, first of all, to convince them of his own affection, and in that way to lead them to the belief that to follow his judgment was the best way to secure their own good. He impressed upon them that it was shameful to do wrong; and, when one of his children

had offended, his first punishment was, to express his astonishment that the child could do anything so unworthy. Removal from his presence was his ordinary punishment, and it was only in extreme and peculiar cases that he ever inflicted a blow. He rewarded obedience by teaching them some curious piece of knowledge, which he had always at command; and thus, beside giving the immediate recompense of good conduct, he conveyed the impression, that to gain instruction was not a hardship, but a privilege and reward. His carliest attempt at intellectual education consisted in entertaining his children with stories, generally selected from the Scriptures. He hardly ever rose from the table without some effort to excite reflection in young minds. He also sought opportunities to teach moral lessons, showing them the duty of being kind to each other, and warmly applauding them when they had obeyed the law of love. He taught them to write at an earlier age, and in a less formal way, than is usual, and thus enabled them to record for themselves many things, which it was important for them to remember. If they deserved censure, he would forbid their reading and writing; a prohibition which was strongly associated in their minds with degradation. All this was welljudged; and it is very doubtful if such cases were often to be found in those days, when parental discipline was generally conducted more in the spirit of fear than love.

Though he was deeply interested in having his children governed by principles of reason and honor, he did not rely on those impulses alone. He led their minds as early as possible to religious thoughts and contemplations; giving them views of religion, which were as solemn as possible, but taking care to make them sensible of the goodness of God. He often told them of the good angels, whose office it was to protect them, and who ought never to be offended by misconduct or neglect. He would not say much to them about the evil angels, because he would not have them entertain any frightful fancies about the apparitions of devils; but yet he would briefly let them know that there are devils, who tempt them to wickedness, who are glad when they do wickedly, and who may get leave of God to kill them for it.' But his chief aim was to give them a spirit of prayer, and to lead them to make known their wants and cares to his father, and their father, to his God and their God.”

[The following letter of Cotton Mather to his son Samuel is copied from the American Quarterly Register, for May.]

MY SON;

I. The first thing to be urged and charg'd upon you is, That you chuse and fix the Chief End of your life in The service of the glorious God; that you live under the continual influence of these thoughts; May the glorious God be gratified in beholding the acknowledgements we by a patient continuance in well doing 1 am to render and procure unto Him; that, in order to this, you immediately and effectually seek a reconcialiation to GOD, by pleading the Sacrifice and Righteousness of your Saviour, for your justification before Him and make your daily flights thereto, that being justified by faith you may have peace with God.

II. Be sure that you maintain the Religion of the Closet, and every day retire for secret prayer, and therein pour out your heart unto the Lord.

III. Let not a day pass you ordinarily without Reading a portion of the Holy Scriptures; and this not carelessly but attentively, and in the porismatic way, that is to say, Fetch lessons and then wishes out of every verse before you. I should be glad if you would raise Questions upon y passages of the Bible, and seek Answers to them.

IV. My Dear Child, look on Idleness as no better than wickedness. Begin betimes to set a value upon Time, and [be] very lothe to throw it away on impertinencies. You have but a little time to live; but by the truest wisdom you may live much in a little Time. Every night think, How have I spent my time to-day? And be grieved, if you can't say, you have got or done some good in the day.

V. Be exact and faithful in your daily recitations to your Tutor. But be also well advised what Books you shall peruse, to fill the chambers of your soul with all precious and pleasant riches. Therewithal have your Blank Books, wherein you shall for the most part every day enter something worthy to be preserved and remembered of what you have met withall. In these Quotidiana will anon be hived a marvellous collection of such things as will be of perpetual use to you in all your performances.

VI. When the Lord's day arrives be sure to keep it holy to the Lord. Use to write after the preacher; but after