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That all the profeffors fhall be always affigned to fome particular inquifition (befides the ordinary course of their studies), of which they fhall give an account to the affembly; fo that by this means there may be every day fome operation or other made in all the arts, as chemistry, anatomy, mechanics, and the like; and that the college fhall furnish for the charge of the operation.

That there fhall be kept a register under lock and key, and not be feen but by the profeffors, of all the experiments that fucceed, figned by the persons who made the trial.

That the popular and received errors in experimental philofophy (with which, like weeds in a neglected garden, it is now almost all over-grown) fhall be evinced by trial, and taken notice of in the public lectures, that they may no longer abuse the credulous, and beget new ones by confequence or fimilitude.

That every third year (after the full fettlement of the foundation) the college fhall give an account in print, in proper and ancient Latin, of the fruits of their triennial industry.

That every professor resident shall have his scholar to wait upon him in his chamber and at table; whom he fhall be obliged to breed up in natural philofophy, and render an account of his progrefs to the affembly, from whofe election he received him, and therefore is refponsible to it, both for the care of his education and the juft and civil ufage of him.

That the scholar fhall understand Latin very well, and be moderately initiated in the Greek, before he be capable of being chofen into the fervice; and that he shall not remain in it above seven years.

That his lodging fhall be with the profeffor whom he ferves.

That no profeffor fhall be a married man, or a divine, or lawyer in practice; only phyfic he may be allowed to prescribe, because the study of that art is a great part of the duty of his place, and the duty of that is so great, that it will not fuffer him to lofe much time in mercenary practice.

That the professors fhall, in the college, wear the habit of ordinary masters of art in the universities, or of doctors, if any of them be fo.

That they fhall all keep an inviolable and exemplary friendship with one another; and that the affembly fhall lay a confiderable pecuniary mulet upon any one who fhall be proved to have entered fo far into a quarrel as to give uncivil language to his brotherprofeffor; and that the perfeverance in any enmity fhall be punished by the governors with expulfion.

That the chaplain fhall eat at the mafter's table (paying his twenty pounds a year as the others do); and that he shall read prayers once a day at least, a little before fuppertime; that he fhall preach in the chapel every Sunday morning, and catechize in the afternoon the scholars and the school-boys; that he fhall every month adminifter the holy facrament; that he fhall not trouble himself and his auditors with the controverfies of divinity, but only teach God in his just commandments, and in his wonderful works.

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THAT the school may be built fo as to contain about two hundred boys. That it be divided into four claffes, not as others are ordinarily into fix or feven; because we fuppofe that the children fent hither, to be initiated in things as well as words, ought to have past the two or three first, and to have attained the age of about thirteen years, being already well advanced in the Latin grammar and some authors.

That none, though never fo rich, fhall pay any thing for their teaching; and that, if any profeffor fhall be convicted to have taken any money in confideration of his pains in the fchool, he fhall be expelled with ignominy by the governors; but if any perfons of great eftate and quality, finding their fons much better proficients in learning here, than boys of the fame age commonly are at other schools, fhall not think fit to receive an obligation of so near concernment without returning fome marks of acknowledgment,

they may, if they pleafe, (for nothing is to be demanded) beftow fome little rarity or curiofity upon the fociety, in recompenfe of their trouble.

And, because it is deplorable to confider the lofs which children make of their time at moft fchools, employing, or rather cafting away, fix or seven years in the learning of words only, and that too very imperfectly:

That a method be here established, for the infufing knowledge and language at the fame time into them; and that this may be their apprenticeship in natural philofophy. This, we conceive, may be done, by breeding them up in authors, or pieces of authors, who treat of fome parts of nature, and who may be understood with as much ease and pleafure, as thofe which are commonly taught; fuch are, in Latin, Varro, Cato, Columella, Pliny, part of Celfus and of Seneca, Cicero de Divinatione, de Naturâ Deorum, and feveral fcattered pieces, Virgil's Georgics, Grotius, Nemefianus, Manilius: And, because the truth is, we want good poets (I mean we have but few), who have purpofely treated of folid and learned, that is, natural matters (the molt part indulging to the weaknefs of the world, and feeding it either with the follies of love, or with the fables of gods and heroes), we conceive that one book ought to be compiled of all the fcattered little parcels among the ancient poets that might ferve for the advancement of natural fcience, and which would make no fmall or unufeful or unpleasant volume. To this we would have added the morals and rhetorics of Cicero, and the inftitutions of Quinctilian; and for the comedians, from whom almost all that neceffary part of common difcourfe, and all the moft intimate proprieties of the language, are drawn, we conceive, the boys may be made mafters of them, as a part of their recreation, and not of their task, if once a month, or at least once in two, they act one of Terence's Comedies, and afterwards (the most advanced) fome of Plautus's; and this is for many reafons one of the best exercises they can be enjoined, and moft innocent pleasures they can be allowed. As for the Greek authors, they may ftudy Nicander, Oppianus (whom Scaliger does not doubt to prefer above Homer himfelf, and place next to his adored Virgil), Ariftotle's hiftory of animals, and other parts, Theophraftus and Diofcorides of plants, and a collection made out of feveral both poets and other Grecian writers. For the morals and rhetoric, Aristotle may fuffice, or Hermogenes and Longinus be added for the latter. With the hiftory of animals they fhould be fhewed anatomy as a divertisement, and made to know the figures and natures of those creatures which are not common among us, difabufing them at the fame time of thofe errors which are univerfally admitted concerning many. The fame method fhould be used to make them acquainted with all plants; and to this must be added a little of the ancient and modern geography, the understanding of the globes, and the principles of geometry and aftronomy. They fhould likewife ufe to declaim in Latin and English, as the Romans did in Greek and Latin; and in all this travail be rather led on by familiarity, encouragement, and emulation, than driven by feverity, punishment, and terror. Upon feftivals and play-times, they fhould exercife themfelves in the fields, by riding, leaping, fencing, muftering, and training, after the manner of foldiers, &c. And, to prevent all dangers and all diforders, there fhould always be two of the fcholars with them, to be as witneffes and directors of their actions; in foul weather, it would not be amifs for them to learn to dance, that is, to learn juft fo much (for all beyond is fuperfluous, if not worse) as may give them a graceful comportment of their bodies. Upon Sundays, and all days of devotion, they are to be a part of the chaplain's province.

That, for all thefe ends, the college fo order it, as that there may be fome convenient and pleafant houfes thereabouts, kept by religious, difcreet, and careful perfons, for the lodging and boarding of young fcholars; that they have a conflant eye over them, to fee that they be bred up there piously, cleanly, and plentifully, according to the proportion of the parents' expences.

And that the college, when it fhall pleafe God, either by their own industry and fuccefs, or by the benevolence of patrons, to enrich them fo far, as that it may come to their turn and duty to be charitable to others, fhall, at their own charges, erect and

maintain fome houfe or houses for the entertainment of fuch poor men's fons, whofe good natural parts may promife either ufe or ornament to the commonwealth, during the time of their abode at fchool; and fhall take care that it fhall be done with the fame conveniences as are enjoyed even by rich men's children (though they maintain the fewer for that caufe), there being nothing of eminent and illuflrious to be expected from a low, fordid, and hofpital-like education.

CONCLUSION.

IF I be not much abused by a natural fondness to my own conceptions (that rogy of the Greeks which no other language has a proper word for) there was never any project thought upon, which deferves to meet with fo few adverfaries as this; for who can without impudent folly oppose the establishment of twenty well-felected perfons in fuch a condition of life, that their whole business and fole profeffion may be to study the improvement and advantage of all other profeflions, from that of the highest general even to the loweft artizan? who fhall be obliged to employ their whole time, wit, learning, and industry, to these four, the most useful that can be imagined, and to no other ends; firft, to weigh, examine, and prove, all things of nature delivered to us by former ages; to detect, explode, and ftrike a cenfure through all falfe monies with which the world has been paid and cheated fo long; and (as I may fay) to fet the mark of the college upon all true coins, that they may pafs hereafter without any farther trial: fecondly, to recover the loft inventions, and, as it were, drowned lands of the ancients: thirdly, to improve all arts which we now have: and lastly, to discover others which we yet have not: and who fhall, befides all this (as a benefit by the bye), give the best education in the world (purely gratis) to as many men's children as fhall think fit to make use of the obligation? Neither does it at all check or interfere with any parties in a ftate or religion; but is indifferently to be embraced by all differences in opinion, and can hardly be conceived capable (as many good inftitutions have done) even of degeneration into any thing harmful. So that, all things confiders, I will fuppofe this propofition fhall encounter with no enemies: the only question is, whether it will find friends enough to carry it on from discourse and design to reality and effect; the neceffary expences of the beginning (for it will maintain itself well enough afterwards) being fo great (though I have fet them as low as is poffible, in order to fo vaft a work), that it may seem hopeless to raise such a sum out of those few dead relics of human charity and public generofity which are yet remaining in the world.

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SIR,

FTER the delivery of your royal father's perfon into the hands of the army, I undertaking to the queen-mother that I would find fome means to get accefs to him, he was pleafed to fend me; and by the help of Hugh Peters I got my admittance, and coming well inftructed from the queen (his majesty having been kept long in the dark) he was pleafed to difcourfe very freely with me of the whole ftate of his affairs: But, fir, I will not launch into an history, instead of an epiftle. One morning waiting on him at Caufham, fmiling upon me, he faid he could tell me fome news of myfelf, which was, that he had feen fome verfes of mine the evening before (being thofe to Sir R. Fanfhaw); and asking me when I made them, I told him two or three years fince; he was pleafed to fay, that having never feen them before, he was afraid Í had written them fince my return into England, and though he liked them well, he would advise me to write no more; alledging, that when men are young, and have little elfe to do, they might vent the overflowings of their fancy that way; but when they were thought fit for more ferious employments, if they still perfifted in that course, it would look as if they minded not the way to any better.

Whereupon I flood corrected as long as 1 had the honour to wait upon him, and at his departure from Hampton Court, he was pleafed to command me to stay privately at London, to fend to him and receive from him all his letters from and to all his correfpondents at home and abroad, and I was furnished with nine feveral cyphers in order to it: which truft I performed with great fafety to the perfons with whom we corref ponded; but about nine months after being difcovered by their knowledge of Mr. Cowley's hand, I happily efcaped both for myself, and thofe that held correfpondence with me. That time was too hot and bufy for fuch idle fpeculations: but after I had the good fortune to wait upon your majefty in Holland and France, you were pleafed fometimes to give me arguments to divert and put off the evil hours of our banishment, which now and then fell not short of your majesty's expectation.

After, when your majefty, departing from St. Germains to Jerfey, was pleafed freely (without my afking) to confer upon me that place wherein I have now the honour to ferve you, I then gave over poetical lines, and made it my bufinefs to draw fuch others as might be more ferviceable to your majefty, and I hope more lafting. Since that time I never difobeyed my old mafter's commands till this fummer at the Wells, my retirement there tempting me to divert thofe melancholy thoughts, which the new apparitions of foreign invasion and domestic discontent gave us but these clouds being

now happily blown over, and our fun clearly fhining out again, I have recovered the relapfe, it being fufpected that it would have proved the epidemical difeafe of age, which is apt to fall back into the follies of youth; yet Socrates, Ariftotle, and Cato did the fame; and Scaliger faith, that fragment of Ariftotle was beyond any thing that Pindar or Homer ever wrote. I will not call thi dedication, for thofe epiftles are commonly greater abfurdities than any that come after; for what author can reasonably believe, that fixing the great name of fome eminent patron in the forehead of his book can charm away cenfure, and that the first leaf should be a curtain to draw over and hide all the deformities that ftand behind it? neither have I any need of fuch fhifts, for most of the parts of this body have already had your majesty's view, and having past the test of fo clear and sharp-fighted a judgment, which has as good a title to give law in matters of this nature as in any other, they who shall presume to diffent from your majefty, will do more wrong to their own judgment than their judgment can do to me: and for those latter parts which have not yet received your majefty's favourable afpect, if they who have feen them do not flatter me (for I dare not truft my own judgment) they will make it appear, that it is not with me as with most of mankind, who never forfake their darling vices, till their vices forfake them; and that this divorce was not Frigiditatis caufa, but an act of choice, and not of neceffity. Therefore, Sir, I fhall only call it an humble petition, that your majefty will please to pardon this new amour to my old miftrefs, and my difobedience to his commands, to whofe meniory I look up with great reverence and devotion: and making a ferious reflection upon that wife advice, it carries much greater weight with it now, than when it was given; for when age and experience has fo ripened man's difcretion as to make it fit for ufe, either in private or public affairs, nothing blafts and corrupts the fruit of it fo much as the empty, airy reputation of being Nimis Poeta; and therefore I fhall take my leave of the Mufes, as two of my predeceffors did, faying,

Splendidis longum valedico nugis. "Hic verfus & cætera ludicra pono."

Your majefty's most faithful

and loyal fubject, and moft

dutiful and devoted fervant,

JOHN DENHAM.

VOL. II.

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