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SOME THOUGHTS ON EDUCATION: WITH Reasons for Erecting a College in this Province, and fixing the same at the City of New-York: To which is added, A SCHEME for employing Masters or Teachers in the mean Time: And also for raising and endowing an Edifice in an easy Manner.

The Whole concluding, with A POEM: Being a serious Address to the House of Representatives.

Non solus is Reipublicae prodest,qui de Pac [...] Belloque censet; sed qui Juventutem exhortatur, qui, in tanta bonorum Praeceptorum Inopia, virtute in struit Animos,& ad Luxuriam cursu ruentes, prensat ac retrahit:
Nam omnium Regnorum & Populorum felicitas, tum maxime Reipub. Christianae Salus, a recta Juventutis Institutione pendet; quae quidem rudes adhue Animos ad Humanitatem flectet; steriles alioquin & infructuosos Reip. Muniis idoneos & utiles reddit: Dei Cultum, in Parentes & Patriam Pietatem, erga Magistratus Reverentiam & Obedientiam promovet.

NEW-YORK: Printed and Sold by J. PARKER, at the New Printing-Office, in Beaver-Street, 1752. (Price One Shilling.)

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To the HONORABLE James De Lancey, Esq Of the COUNCIL, and CHIEF-JUSTICE of the Province of New-York.

HON. SIR,

BEING advis'd that, perhaps, it might be of public Use, to print the following Papers, which were intended originally to be laid before the House of Represen­tatives only in Manuscript; I must beg Leave to put them under your Protection, to which the Subject naturally recommends them. Had I the Vanity to hope they could ever be more extensively known, than your Name and Character is, I could not forbear, on this Occasion, to bear Witness to that Integrity, Know­ledge, and Dignity, with which you fill the Seat of Justice among Us:But as these Papers must soon be forgot, and will never, in all Probability, extend be­yond the Province for which they were writ, it were very idle to tell a People what they feel. However, I [Page] cannot dismiss this Subject, without applying to You the following noble Character of an upright Judge; which, it is no Compliment to say, I may do with much greater Truth and Propriety than HORACE did to LOLLIUS, for whom he drew it:

—Est Animus tibi
Rerumque prudens, & secundis
Temporibus dubiisque rectus;
Vindex avarae Fraudis, & abstinens
Ducentis ad se Cuncta Pecuniae:
—Bonus atque fidus
Judex Honestum praetulis Utili, &
Rejecis alto Dona Nocentium
Vultu, & per obstantes Catervas
Explicius tua Victor Arma:
Lib. iv. Od. 9:

But I own frankly, SIR, that Compliments, however just, are the least Part of my Design in this Address: I would fondly hope thereby to engage One, who is the most distinguish'd Scholar, and Patriot of his Country, to improve and forward, with his whole Credit, the Scheme here offered; which, if any Thing can, must endear Your Name, more and more, to succeeding Times, for whose Benefit it is chiefly calculated.

PHILOMATHES.
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PREFACE.

THE following Pieces were written some Months ago, but the Publishing of them defer'd on Account of the frequent Prorogations of the Assembly, under whose Consideration they were chiefly meant to fall. The Prose Part sufficiently explains its Design; but, to some, the Verses may seem a needless Addition.

The Author replies, that considering how long it has been sadly neglected in this Province to give due Attention to the Concerns of Literature and Education, he thought it would be stopping far short, if he laid down Proposals for this Purpose, without endea­vouring at the same Time to excite his Countrymen to a speedy Execution of them. The most pathetic Manner of doing this, he judg'd, was by a Representation of the happy State we might arrive to, upon the Supposition of our attending to our true Interests at present. Now, as a Prospect without some Variety and Colour­ing can't take the Eye; and as the anticipating distant glorious Scenes naturally warms the Fancy, distends the Soul, and raps it into the Enthusiasm of Poetry; he hopes, 'twere needless to trouble Gentlemen of Taste with any other Apology, for his Choice of this Species of Writing.

The Thought upon which the Poem chiefly turns, tho' a plain Maxim in Politics, will perhaps startle some narrow Minds; but the found Politician will no more be surpriz'd at it, than the learn'd Physician, if told that his Patient of 50 cannot live 50 Years more. Our Writers at Home speak without Reserve of the Death of the British Monarchy. Thus the amiable Prior:

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Long shall Britannia's MONARCHY engage
The Teeth of Envy and the Force of Age:
Rever'd and happy, long shall she remain,
Of human Things, least changeable and vain.
Yet all must with the general Doom comply,
And this great glorious Power, tho' last, must die.

The Poet means last of all the Empires of the Eastern World; for a little above he makes Solomon, in whose Mouth he puts these Words, declare that America was then folded from human Eye: and this agrees exactly with our Hypothesis. One Author has even pretended to shew how long the British Constitution can subsist; but this being one of the ARCANA of Heaven, such Speculations are idly curious. Another* has enquired whether a Republic or absolute Monarchy would be its easiest Death, its true EUTHANASIA; and, by a Piece of beautiful Reasoning, shewn that the latter, which in all Probability will be its Fate, is much rather to be wish'd for. ‘—In plain Truth Virtue and Vice are Empire's Life and Death. And, as Machiavel observes, 'tis almost impossible to maintain a free Government among a corrupt People; for those good Laws, those fast Patriots, who are the Pillars of Liberty among a virtuous People, become destructive of it when their Genius is grown cor­rupt: Thus the rigid Stiffness of Cato, instead of preserving the Freedom, hastened the Slavery of the Romans; for he knew not to make the least Allowance for a crazy Constitution.

That great Politician and Master of all polite Learning, Lord Bolingbroke, thinks that Nothing can give a saving Turn to the rushing British Genius, but some extraordinary Conjuncture of ill Fortune or of good; which may purge, yet so as by Fire.—True, to such Purgings and Convulsions it is, that Britain owes her present Freedom and Grandeur; but then they happened in other Times,

When more than Roman Senates met and blew
A Flame that clear'd, consum'd, renew'd the Land:

They happened in the Reign of weak Princes, when there were brave Patriots who knew how to improve those lucky Occasions, by obliging the Kings to give back whatever had been illegally usurp'd from the People, and by drawing back the Government to its fundamental good Principles; in short they happened when the Constitution was able to bear them:—but should it happen that ever an ambitious enterprizing Prince fills the Throne,—one that is wicked and crafty enough to take the Advantage of the visible [Page vii] Decay of the ancient English Spirit, it is easy to foresee that the Scales must be turn'd, and I tremble even to think of the Conse­quences.

But here it will be ask'd, why alarm us with Dangers so seemingly distant?—For this very Reason, because it is distant; was the Danger near, Alarms would be in vain. Have Patience I will explain myself.

The same Analogy of Reasoning, which shews us that all Governments are subject to Death, shews also that these Provinces may survive their Mother Country:—Here again, methinks, I hear the same Cry as against every other Effort to improve the Spirit of Liberty and Virtue;—what shake off our Allegiance and become independent? No: I'm far from thinking it will ever be our Interest, or in our Power, to be independent of Britain, while she is able to maintain her own Independency; but should she ever fall into the Way of other Nations, it is not to be supposed that we, like the chief Favourites of Easter.. Tyrants, would contentedly suffer ourselves to be laid in the same Grave with her; this is a Test of Affection which she will never require, and which, I hope, but a few here wou'd be dispos'd to give. Indeed, so far from being in a Condition to shake off our Dependency, in my sincere Judgment, we cou'd not at present even subsist in an independant State.—We are as deeply immersed in Luxury as our Mother Country, little reflecting that the Food of Men is not Meat for Babes; so that were she to fall at present, we must inevitably fall with her. But, Thanks be to Heaven, we seem secure in a long Succession of Princes, whose Family have ever reckon'd it their greatest Glory to be the Patrons of Freedom, and to save a degenerate World from universal Slavery even against their Will.—We should then be greatly cautious to make a proper Use of those golden Moments, which will not always last. If we do so, then whenever a gallic, or home-born Tyrant shall arise (and sooner or later such will arise) threatning to lay Britain, the Belov'd of Heaven, the Pride of Earth, the Isle of Heroes and Freedom, in the Dust, if our Assistance can't avert the Blow from her, we shall at least be able, at this Distance, to avert it from ourselves, and open an Asylum to the noble Gleanings of her brave Sons who spurn the Yoke▪—But if we neglect this fa­vourable Opportunity of purging the Fountain, by making a lasting Provision for educating a Succession of true Patriots and Citizens, it may soon be too late; and tho' there was no Danger of being surprized in this State of Indolence, we ourselves will soon be in no Capacity even to think of a Reformation of Manners; for let us remember, that if once Corruption▪ which treads close on the Heels of Luxury, gets Footing amongst us, all the Art of Man cannot, and Heaven will not, save us.

[Page viii] To illustrate, and make the proper Use of these Thoughts, is the Design of the following Poem; which I thought necessary to explain thus at large, that so there may be no Room left for a sinister Construction. I hope the Reasoning will be found con­nected; and the Principles upon which it is built I have partly justified by the best Authorities. As there is a large Field open, I might have given ample Range to Fancy: I might also have rais'd the Diction in several Places; but all my Design was to communicate briefly a few important Truths, so as readily to strike an ordinary Reader.—As I have a greater Ambition to be thought a good Englishman, than a good Writer; I hope, far from harboring the least unfavourable Thought of my native Country▪ I have shewn a laudable Partiality to it; and indeed the stronger this Partiality is, the stronger too will be the Apprehension of every Danger wherewith she may be affected: I wou'd fondly believe the Period of her Fall is yet very remote; but while it remains uncertain, all my Arguments will be conclusive.

As I address to the Assembly, a particular Address to Mr. JONES is but a just Compliment to their late prudent Choice of a Speaker, tho' other Circumstances did not challenge it; and, having once mentioned Him▪ I could not forbear adding a few Lines to encourage him to continue stedfast in the good Cause he has engag'd in: For I have seen Him, and Him alone by Name, treated in a very ungenteel and ungenerous Manner in several Pamphlets, and that for nothing else but his superior Zeal to preserve a just Balance between the Branches of the Legislature, and to preserve the just Privilege of Assemblies. A Man, less a PATRIOT than he, would scorn to throw away his Labors in Return for so much Ingratitude; but, contra audentior ibat, he has esteem'd it mean and inglorious to exchange a Scene of great and generous Efforts in public Life for private Ease or Interest; and therefore it should be the Part of every honest Man, to encourage and support him in this laudable Resolution; and not only him, but several other worthy Gentlemen of the Assembly, &c.—who, having signaliz'd themselves, in the Worst of Times, by their steady Attachment to their Country's Interest, have been as unworthily us'd as he: To all such I wou'd be understood to apply what I have said on Patriotism, tho' I have not thought my self at Liberty to name them, since I have never seen them attack'd under their proper Names▪

A Difference between the Branches of the Legislature is a natural Consequence of Liberty: All Men are fond of Power; and, where the Dispute is handled with Good-Manners, Temper and Benevo­lence, it gives me Pleasure to hear the ministerial Party accuse the People of Licentiousness; and the People, in their Turn, accus [Page ix] their Governors of stretching the Prerogative beyond due Bounds; this is a certain Indication that neither Side speaks wholly true that the Balance has just Play, and Liberty is in no Danger. But when I hear the Writers of either Side, running into Scurrility and personal Satyr, and creating Ill-Blood among Fellow-Citizens, for what must necessarily happen in this State of Imperfection, where Men by their very Differences and Weaknesses, are accommodated to one another and link'd together, it raises my Indignation to the highest Pitch, and I look upon such Scriblers as the Bane of Society, and only fit for a Halter.

But I will conclude, having proceeded far enough on this Sub­ject, perhaps, to draw Ill-Will on my self: For as Doctor Swift justly observes, One will get more Ill-Will by being the Author of a particular Encomium, than of a general Invective; but, if the Doctor's Reason for this, is not itself, a Satyr on human Nature, I apprehend none from any Gentleman that has the Honor of a Seat in the Assembly: And, far from regarding the Censure, I should think myself reproach'd by the Applause of those who praise or blame as Interest directs. I feel a very different Satisfaction, in bearing Testimony to Truth, from what they must feel, who never had the Goodness of Heart and honest Impartiality to com­mend Worth, nor Wit enough to vent their mercenary Spleen against it without personal Abuse.

As to these Papers, they are entirely submitted to the Candor and Judgment of the Public; to which I should pay but a sorry Com­pliment, if I did not declare, that I have done all in my Power, to make them in some Sort worthy of the Subject. Faults▪ however, they must have; but, Partiality being none of them, I hope they will be look'd upon as the real Sentiments of a Heart that scorns to entertain a Thought repugnant to what appears our general Good: There is not perhaps, any one Person in this Province more detach'd than I am, from the different Parties that have so long divided it; Interest, Health and Inclination, concur to call me from it quickly, but if these Papers can any Way answer the good Intent of Writing them, I shall think, I have not seen it altogether in Vain: And tho' Providence may soon place me at too great a Di [...]ance to be of any further Use, either by advising, exhorting, or warning, yet can I never be plac'd, where it shall not be my constant Prayer, that it may be happy, and florish more and more.—

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THOUGHTS ON EDUCATION, &c.

IF we look into the Story of the most renown'd States and Kingdoms, that have subsisted in the different Ages of the World, we will find that they were indebted for their Rise, Grandeur, and Happiness, to the early Provision made by their first Founders, for the public Institution of Youth.

The great Sages and Legislators of Antiquity, were so sensible of this, that they always made it their prime Care to plant Seminaries, and regulate the Method of Education; and many of them even deign'd, in Per­son, to be the immediate Superintendants of the Man­ners of Youth, whom they justly reckoned the rising Hopes of their Country.

Numa, is the only great Lawgiver, we read of, w [...] was faulty in this Respect; and to this capital Erro of his, in the Foundation of the Roman State, has been ascribed, that turbulent and seditious Spirit of the People, which all their future Worthies cou'd never thoro'ly tame; and which, in the End, occasioned the Downfal of that mighty Empire.—Of this Opinion was Plutarch, who, comparing him with Lycurgus, [Page 2] says, that no sooner was the Breath out of Numa's Body, than the whole Aim of his Life and Govern­ment was revers'd; the Temple of Janus was thrown open, and Italy became one Scene of Havoc and De­solation; so that the finest and justest Constitution in the World could not subsist, even the smallest Moment, because it wanted that Cement in it, which should have kept all firm together; namely, good Rules for the Education of Youth. However this be, certain it is, that those Societies, whose first Lawgivers included Education in the Idea of Government, and thought it the Basis and very Soul of their Work, to contrive good Laws or Plans for this Purpose, always grew up quickest, and flourished longest in a State of Liberty and glorious Independency.

Hence I have often wondered, that this Province should have been near a whole Century, in the Hands of a civilized and enlightned People; and yet, not one public Seminary of Learning planted in it; where the Taste and Manners of our Youth may be formed; where they may be taught (quid Verum atque Decus) the Knowledge and Practice of Virtue; and where, without being beholden to our Neighbours, the first and strongest Advances may be made, towards the rendering them honest, virtuous, and social Creatures. We are the more inexcusable, because, in this Infancy of our Province, we are not condemned to grope our Way in the Dark, as those Heathens were, but have the Experience of all Mankind for our Guide, and the Advantage of seeing by what Steps others have toil'd, slowly to the Summit of GLORY and EMPIRE; and therefore cannot be ignorant, that Foundations of this Kind are of the last Consequence, to the Being and Well being of SOCIETY.

Surely we are not inferior to our Neighbours in good Sense, and the Refinements of civil Life, and superior to many of them in Situation, Trade and Riches; yet [Page 3] so it is, that they have long got the Start of us in several laudable and public spirited Undertakings, par­ticularly, in this the most interesting of all.

What must an unconcern'd Spectator think; (I speak it with Deference, and Nothing but a sincere Zeal for our Honor, cou'd induce me to make the Reflection) I say, what must the impartial World think, to see one City among us arriv'd to such a Pitch of Luxury and Riches, as often to have entertain'd a Set of dull, sorry, strolling COMEDIANS, at the Expence of near a Thousand Pounds yearly, and yet the whole Province have never thought themselves in a Capacity to set apart One-half of that yearly Sum, for the Entertain­ment of three or four Men of Learning and Virtue, to initiate our Youth in the Sciences; and, as Horace happily expresses it, to teach them such Things as come home to Life, and which it is culpable and shameful not to know; namely, what renders them fittest for the Purposes of Society; what is the great End of their Being; wherein consists their chief Good and Happi­ness; and what Actions are most worthy of human Nature:

Quod magis ad nos
Pertinet & nescire malum est,utrum ne
Divitiis homines an sint Virtute beati:
Quidve ad Amicitias, usus, rectumne, trahat nos;
Et quae sit Natura Boni, Summumque quid ejus.

As such Thoughts as these have often occurr'd to me, it gives me Pleasure to understand that the Founding a College in this Province, begins now to be seriously consider'd; and as this great Work seems chiefly re­tarded, by the Difficulty of agreeing on a proper Place for fixing it, I beg leave to submit my impartial Thoughts on this Head, to the Consideration of the Public.—

As to the Situation then, I can't help being surpris'd to hear it disputed; some retir'd Corner, either within, or close by the City of New-York, being certainly the only proper Place in this Province for erecting a College.

[Page 4] There is (and I think can be) but the following Ob­jection against this Situation, viz. That here the Morals of the Scholars, will not be so safe as in the Country; and that there will be too many Amusements to divert them from their Studies.

Now near One-half of the Scholars, which, at first, will be young Gentlemen of the City of New York itself, are no Way affected by this Objection; since, if there is any Force in it, it wou'd be equally an Argument against their learning Grammar, or spending any Part of their Youth in their native City. I shall then turn my Thoughts wholly to the other Half, which will be young Gentlemen from the Country; and if I can shew their Parents, that New-York is no more affected by this Objection than any other Place they can fix on, I can easily superadd such Arguments as will induce them to prefer this Situation to all others.

They admit, that the Conversation of polish'd Citizens, would be of great Advantage to their Sons; but, say they, in such a large Place, there never fails to be worthless rakish Persons, to debauch unwary Youth, and lead them into what (to oblige delicate Ears) is call'd the polite Vices: And therefore, If Knowledge of the World must taint Men's Morals,may our Sons ever live in Ignorance!—’

Before I proceed to answer this Objection, I might observe that it is wholly grounded on false Suppositions: For it is not true, that Youth wou'd never learn Vice without seeing it, especially the Vices here meant, which arise from the irregular Exercise of our best and strongest natural Passions, I mean the Social: No more is it true that they will always learn Vice by seeing it; on the Contrary, as Plato imagined the Vision of Virtue (if pure Virtue could be seen) would render all Men virtu­ous; so, perhaps the Vision of Vice, in all its odious Colors, is the strongest Preservative against Vice. However, I don't say, with some, that it would be [Page 5] prudent to lead Youth into unnecessary Temptation, and shew them Evil in order to make them Good; nor do I deny, that to preserve the Morals found, ought to be the chief Aim of Education; but

As Heaven's high Will has fixt us in a State
That must not yet to pure PERFECTION rise;

And in a State where Evil, being permitted, is con­stantly blended with Good, we cannot shew them the One without the Other, if we would ever have them behold an original Character, or aught that is real in Life; so that were the Force of this Objection once admitted, it will conclude equally against collegiate Education at New-York and all Places; and Nothing will be left for those who adhere to it, but to shut their Sons up in Cloisters to be entertain'd apart from So­ciety, with the Dreams of Visionaries, and the imagi­nary Virtues of Utopian Characters: There they must sleep away their whole Lives, without daring to act, lest they act, wrong, or look into the World, lest they see Evil, which is the same as if one should die of the Fear of Death▪—Nay, by this Rule, they must never know themselves, or look into their own Hearts, be­cause there they would see a Medley of Good and Evil, or the WORLD in Miniature; and I believe no one would give the Name of Virtue to the mechanical, or rather negative Goodness of such passive Creatures, as may well be said never to have existed or awak'd into Life, since they deny themselves all Opportunity of Choice, or of exerting the Freedom of their Nature, which is their Dignity, and the noblest Gift of GOD; and refuse to act in Society, because Plato's Republic and More's Utopia have no real Existence.

But as I know the Gentlemen, who make this Ob­jection, intend their Sons for Society; and only make it from a very laudable Concern for their Morals; I shall not push its Consequences farther, but return to the main Point, and endeavour to convince them that [Page 6] New-York is, perhaps, the safest Place in this Respect.

First then, Nothing is easier than to prevent the Scholars from associating with any idle Persons, that do not belong to their College, by proper Regulations, and laying the Plan of it, so as they may all lodge with­in its Walls: It is seldom they shew any Inclination to this; and every One knows that, in the largest Cities, the Danger complain'd of never arises from this, but from Clubs or Associations among the Scholars them­selves, which are always more extravagant in a pitiful Village, than in a large and well governed City.

As upon the Truth of this seeming Parodox, depends the whole Dispute; I beg Leave to appeal to incon­testable Facts and Experience, which is the best Way of clearing up a Truth of this Nature.

I ask any One that knows England, whether the Scholars are not far more extravagant and debauched at the Academies in the small Towns there, than at the public Universities of Oxford or Cambridge?—And, indeed the Reason is obvious: Nature is the same, in the same Persons, every where;—at Oxford, &c. the Scholars are under the Eye of the public Magistrate, and a great many Gentlemen whose Characters they re­vere; so that if they are not less vicious, they are at least more prudent in managing all their Intrigues, so as to give no public Offence, and in keeping within the Bounds of Decorum and good Manners in all their Clubs and Frolics: But, at the Village-Academies, the Scholars, with equal Propensities to Vice, are not under equal Restraints; they only see a few illiterate Artificers, whom they soon learn to look upon as tasteless unpolish'd Clowns, and whose Censure they wholly disregard: And thus being uncontrol'd, either by Shame or the Authority of the civil Power, they sometimes run into the wildest Riots, in the Face of Day, and in Defiance of the whole Village, of which they are so far Masters that none dare resist, or prefer [Page 7] a Complaint against them. Add to this, that, in such sorry Places, they contract a Desire for mean Company, and a Taste for low Vices, which easily distinguishes them from People of a genteel Education, all their Lives.

To say the Temptations are fewer in a Village than in a City, however spacious, is saying no more to the Purpose, than that a Man (if the Comparison may be allow'd) should rather quench his Thirst in a Brook than a River, when there is more than enough in either; for wherever there are Purchasers, there will be found Venders or Disposers.—

To say that in the distant Village, there will be no Fellow-Rakes to lead them into Vice, is also saying Nothing: For if we could suppose the Country Youth, when first admitted to the College, so entirely unpol­luted, and of a Make so frigid and passionless, as never to think of Vice without being driven into it; (which, as I observ'd above, is a very groundless Supposition;) yet there will be the other Half of the Scholars from New-York, to be their Masters in this, whom the Country Gentlemen cannot suppose so untainted as their own Sons, without destroying the Force of their own Ob­jection; and whom surely they would not exclude from the public Benefit.

But above all, if we should allow that a Village is the best Situation of a College, (which few will allow) yet I deny that any Place, where a College is fixt, can continue long in the Nature of a Village, but must soon grow into a considerable Town; and thus with­out any of the Advantages of New-York, the fixing our College elsewhere, would, in a few Years, be attended with all the Inconveniences we meant to shun; besides struggling with innumerable Difficulties at first, and risquing the Success of the whole Scheme.

There is still less Force in the other Part of the Ob­jection, that the Scholars will not apply so closely to [Page 8] their Studies at New-York, as in a more retir'd Place. Is it not Emulation, or a Sense of Shame and Honor, that can alone render Youth industrious, especially such as are become capable of Reflection? And will not this Emulation always exert itself in Proportion to the Notions they entertain of those in whose Sight they act? Will it not be stronger in the City of New-York, where the polished and learned Part of the Province are their Judges, and frequently visit them, than in any other Place, where the People know nothing of the Matter? For this Reason it was, that some Nations not only fixed their Colleges or public Schools in their chief Cities, but even made choice of Porticos or open Halls for this Purpose, in the most frequented Places of those Cities; that thus, in an Affair of such general Concern, every Person might be an Eye-Witness, both of the Fidelity of the Master and Industry of the Scholar: And that this Method begot the most ardent Emu­lation, Reason as well as Experience may inform us. However, it is not absolutely necessary, that we should imitate them too closely in this: Perhaps, for several obvious Reasons, some well air'd Place quite without the City, might be our most prudent Choice;—but if there was no other Reason, I should think this one strong enough, for fixing the College at least contiguous to New-York: For, if ever we expect to see it flourishing, there must be a few Gentlemen of the best Character, both for Learning and Probity, chosen as Visitors and even Directors at first, Now, tho' there may be Gen­tlemen very well qualified for this in the Country, yet there would be no Possibility of finding a Quorum of them near one another; and if they were chosen from different Counties, they could never meet so often, or so conveniently, as to answer the Design: And there­fore the Majority at least of these Visitors, must be chosen from New-York, who likewise can be of little Service unless the College is near them.

[Page 9] In short, in whatever Light I consider this Matter, I am still the more of Opinion, that unless we chuse this Situation, the Scheme will never succeed.—Where can we find sufficient Accommodations for Diet, &c. but in New-York? Are there not many Gentlemen who would send their Sons to a College in New-York, who wou'd not send them to a Village, where they must be provided with Diet, &c. perhaps, in the House of some poor Artificer? And are not such Circumstances likely to ruin the Undertaking, since the Success of all Schemes depends much on the Notions first entertain'd of them.

But further, the Knowledge of Languages, Philoso­phy and Mathematicks, is but a small Part of the Edu­cation of such as are design'd to be useful in Society: Those ought to know Men and the World. For this Reason, our European Countrymen, tho' educated in the most refin'd Cities, travel into foreign Countries; but as our Youth can have no Opportunity of travel­ling, we should make up that Loss to them as well as we can, by sending them a few Years to the politest Part of our Province. Now such is the State of our Affairs, that the Generality of them must be Farmers of their own Estates, and therefore, can allot but a small Part of their Time to the Purposes of Education, which ought to be well husbanded, by fixing the Col­lege in a Place where, at one and the same Time, they can learn the Belles Lettres, Breeding, and some Know­ledge of Men and Things: And thus, that Frugality and Industry, so necessary in the Infancy of States, pleads strongly for fixing the College at New-York, since the Circumstances of our Country Youth, will not admit of their spending any Part of their Time (after their Collegiate Education is finish'd) in visiting polite Cities, in order to shake off that aukward Bluntness, which they must contract, if immur'd at Schools and Colleges apart from the Sight of Men, for the first Twenty Years of their Life: And if they could afford the Ex­pence [Page 10] and Time necessary to this, then indeed would they run a hundred Times more Danger of Corruption, when living at large, as their own Masters, than when under the Tuition of others:—Besides, such as have not acquir'd the Air of the Gentleman when young, find it too late when grown up.

I know there are some who talk very lightly of this, and think it no necessary Part of Education:—But of a very different Opinion was the noble Author of the Characteristicks; than whom, none ever scan'd human Nature with a more piercing or more candid Eye. In his Advice to an Author he speaks thus; ‘It seems improbable, that according to modern Erudition, and as Science is now distributed, our ingenious Youths should obtain the full Advantage of a just and liberal Education, by uniting the Scholar Part, with that of the real Gentleman and a Man of Breeding:—Letters are banish'd, I know not where, into distant Cloisters and unpractis'd Cells, confin'd to the mean Fellow­ship of bearded Boys.—The sprightly Arts and Scien­ces are sever'd from Philosophy, which consequently must grow dronish, insipid, pedantic, useless, and directly opposite to the real Knowledge and Practice of the World and Mankind. Our Youth accordingly seem to have their Chance between two widely different Roads; either that of Pedantry and School-Learning, which lies amidst the Dregs of ancient Literature; or that of the fashionable illiterate World, which aims merely at the Character of the fine Gentleman:’ But why not find the middle Road, and unite the Scholar with the Gentleman? ‘Why might not a Homer, a Xenophon, a Tully, &c. be study'd as well in a CA­PITAL City and amid the World, as in a Country Town?’—Thus far this great Writer: And if he thought it a Defect in our famous English Universities, that there were no Schools in them for the polite and manly Exercises, as in ancient Greece;—if he thought [Page 11] the Fellowship of bearded Boys, as he calls them, even in the polish'd Cities of Oxford and Cambridge, unlikely to form a Man for Society, without a farther Com­merce with the World: What would he have thought had one told him; that in half a Century after his Death, a Society of his Countrymen, in a remote Pro­vince of the World, would be so little concerned to give their Youth the few Advantages of this Kind, which are in their Power (by fixing their first Seminary in their most polish'd City) as to propose banishing them and Learning together, into, I know not what, lonely Corner of a half settled Country?—Who that knows the Method of Education practis'd among the Romans, and how careful they were to accustom their Youth betimes to stand the Sight of Men, unabash'd, by making them as early as the Age of Sixteen, (often sooner) declaim publicly; "not on fanciful Theses, but Cases that might really be brought into their Courts of Judicature;" I say, who that knows this, could help being surpris'd it should ever enter into our Thoughts, to send our Youth into the Depths of Woods, to perform their Collegiate Exercises, in the unambitious Presence of inanimate Trees?—What a sorry Figure is a young Man like to make thus educated, in a four Retreat from the World, when he obtains the Honor of a Seat in our Assembly, or is nominated a Judge in any of our Counties? How thoroughly ignorant must he be of the Heart of Man, and how incapable to trace Villainy thro' its various Mazes, in order to reach Truth? Of what avail will his Learning be, but to render him so much the more a narrow-soul'd and con­ceited Pedant? And what his boasted Innocence, but to make him so much the more an ignorant Dupe.—

I am far from thinking it necessary, that our Youth should be Masters of all the insipid Punctilios of French Politesse, nor is there any Danger of this in our Country; but there is an artificial Manner of softning our natural [Page 12] Roughness, which distinguishes the Man from the Savage; and a certain Easiness of Behaviour, which is the Characteristic of the Gentleman;—this I could wish to see every one Master of, who acts in any higher Sphere, it being the peculiar Ornament of a public Station. Now I hope no one will think it any Re­flection to say, this so necessary Air of the Gentleman, is not to be acquir'd in any Part of this Country but our capital City. Whoever knows the general Cha­racter of an English Squire, that has been buried all his Days in the Country without the Benefit of a public Education, will own the Truth of this. It is well indeed, if we have one City that is arrived at this ne­cessary Pitch of Politeness; and, if She is, I hope never to see her go farther.—

It may be objected by some, that Education will be more expensive at New-York, than in the Country: But this Objection, like all the Others, arise wholly from our not considering how Things must be some Years hence.—Even at present, I don't see that Provisions are much cheaper in the Country than in New-York; and I'm sure, were there a College fix'd at any of our Villages, where there is no regular Market, there would be such a Difficulty of Ending Provisions at first, and the Country People would know so well how to take the Advantage of this, that every Thing would for some Time be dearer than at New-York; and it is seldom that the Prices of Things, when once raised in a Place, are suffered to fall again, especially where the Number of People would probably be increas'd yearly.

But the main Expence is apprehended from the Ar­ticle of Fuel for Fire: To this I answer, that Firewood in a few Years, must be cheaper at New-York than in any Inland Place; for, fix our College where we will, the Woods near it must soon fail, and then, it must be much more expensive to be supplied by Land than Water Carriages. Besides, 'tis the Opinion of [Page 13] many, that in less perhaps than a half a Century, Coal will be the cheapest Fuel that can be used in most Pla­ces of this Province; and in that Case▪ I need not add that a College at New-York, can more easily be supplied with that Commodity, than in any other Place of this Country.

As to incident Expences, it ought to be reckon'd a happy Circumstance, when a young Man has the Taste and Spirit to be ambitious of spending what Pocket-Money is allow'd him, in the best Company he can find; and it entirely depends on the Parents themselves how great this Expence shall be: For Youth, at Colleges any where, always find the Way to the Bottom of their Purses, and they can go no farther at New-York:—Besides, I hope I have said enough above, to convince any impartial Parent, that it is absolutely necessary, their Sons should pass some Part of their younger Years at New-York; and therefore, that the fixing our College there, will be so far from being more expensive, that some Years of Time and a very considerable Sum of Money must thereby be saved to Them.

Upon the Whole then, I flatter myself, the impar­tial Part of the Country Gentlemen, are fully persuaded, by this Time, that to place the College at New-York, must be much to their Advantage, tho' it be pretty indif­ferent to the People of that City.—I have made it as probable as the NATURE of the Thing will admit, that the Morals of their Sons will, at least, be as safe there, as at a public College any where else:—That they will be far more alert, industrious and emulous of Improvement:—That in any other Situation, the Meaness of Company, &c. must make them contract a Lowness of Taste; and instead of this noble Emulation, beget a lifeless Stupi­dity and Languor, which must hurt the Character of our College at first, and, probably, soon prove its Ruin:—That as there is as yet but one Place in this Province, where the Breeding of the Gentleman can [Page 14] be acquir'd, and our Youth can spare no Part of their Time for this Purpose but when at College; we ought, for the Sake of saving Time and Money, to fix our College in this ONE Place, otherwise we deny them all Chance of uniting the Gentleman with the Scholar, or ever arriving at that Politeness which is the Bond of [...]ocial Life,—the Ornament of human Nature.

I can see no Way of eluding the Force of these Argu­ments, but by saying, that the Politeness, which I have all along been contending for, is to be acquir'd by conversing with inanimate Nature, or is altogether unnecessary; and this would discover such a Barbarity of Taste and Sentiment, that I am far from expecting to hear that any One, who assumes the Name of a Gentleman, will henceforth shew himself a Stickler for the rural Situation; and I am bound in Charity to be­lieve, those who formerly have been such, have suffered themselves to be hurried away by the popular Objection concerning the Corruption of Morals, without examin­ing the Dispute in all its Consequences.

Indeed, were the Objection admitted in its full Force, the Evil would be overbalanc'd by numberless Advan­tages. At New-York, our Youth will, at least, obtain as much Knowledge of the World, as will, in ordinary Occurrences, enable them to understand their own and Country's Interest, without any Danger of being mis­led or duped by designing Men: And if they should run into some more of the Extravagancies of Youth here than elsewhere, (which I flatly deny,) yet wou'd it have no bad Effect upon them, when they return to the Scenes of still Life, and a laborious Industry in the Country:—

Pater ipse colendi
Haud facilem esse Viam voluit, primusque per Artem
Movit Agros, acuens Curis mortalia Corda.
Virg.

All I shall add, is to beg my Countrymen, to consider well the Whole of what I here submit to them, before [Page 15] they pronounce upon any Part of it. I have no Aim, but to see my Country polish'd, florishing and happy, which depends not a little upon this very Matter in Question. It is very possible I may be wrong in some of my Opinions; but, if I did not firmly believe them right, I should not have dared to publish them in an Affair of so general Importance: And therefore, where I am wrong, I hope to be forgiven with the same Candor, with which unask'd, I have endeavour'd to set this Matter in its true Light.—

The Question is indeed quite new to me, which per­haps, has made me handle it in a different Manner from what otherwise I should have done.—It is true, it has been disputed, whether mere Boys should learn Gram­mar at private Schools, or public Ones in large Cities: Quintilian, the best of Judges, prefers a public School from the very first; so doth a fine Writer in the Spec­tator, (No. 313, 337. &c.)—The great Mr. Locke is indeed of the other Opinion, but then he speaks warmly of the Advantages of public Education, and tells us the Method he proposes, is only calculated for GENTLEMEN's Sons of large Fortunes, when they are very young, and may be considered as white Paper, besides he makes Travelling an express Condition:—I say this has been disputed; but whether a College for finishing the Education of such as are grown up to be Men, should be in a polish'd City, was never perhaps disputed before; especially when design'd, for such as can have no other Opportunity to know any Thing of polite Life. I am sure, we have no Instance of any European Nations, that did not plant their first Semi­naries in their best Cities; and if any of them had been so romantic, as to chuse a desert Corner for this Purpose, it wou'd soon, as I said before, have fall'n into all the In­conveniences of a populous Place, tho' perhaps in many Centuries it would not have had the Advantages of a polite ONE.—

[Page 16] After all, if I might presume to advise, I can't help saying we begin at the wrong End, if we apply the Money already rais'd, to the immediate Rearing of a Building. I submit it to the better Judgment of those concerned, whether it were not the better Method, to apply the Interest of the £ 3443: 18 s. forthwith, as Salaries for two sufficient Men, each to teach two Classes at first; viz. the One GREEK and LATIN, with the most useful Branches of the MATHEMATICS; and the Other moral PHILOSOPHY, and what is comprehended under the general Name of PHYSICS. Two such Men, no Doubt, may be found in this or some of the neigh­bouring Provinces; and the Interest of said Principal, together with what may be paid by the Scholars, will make tolerable Encouragment for them, even after deducting as much as Rent Apartments to teach in, if the Town cannot furnish them gratis.—Thus wou'd our Youth immediately have most of the Advantages of Collegiate Education, till the Wisdom of the Legi­slature, shall find Ways and Means of raising a com­petent Sum, for erecting and endowing a College, providing for a greater Number of Teachers, and 'till some future Circumstances, shall fix their Choice of a fit Situation, if these Arguments shall not have that Effect. And would not this be better, to see our Youth in the mean Time reaping the Benefit, while our Edifice rises by Degrees, and with the Conveniency of the Country, than to expend the Money already rais'd in rearing a Building, which, when finish'd, must stand several Years perhaps, as a Monument of our Poverty, or something worse, before we are able to raise a Fund for endowing it and providing for Tea­chers, which is the main Point:—In this Case it would at least be a dozen Years e're our Youth can be ad­vantag'd by it, tho' the Country were much more in the Humor of contributing to this laudable Work than they seem to be;—and therefore

[Page 17] I submit it to the Wisdom of the ASSEMBLY, whether they ought not immediately to order a Bill to be brought in, for applying the Interest of the £. 3443. 18s. as above propos'd:—And moreover, in order to do the Whole at once, whether it where not absolutely necessary, if possible, to agree at the same Time, upon the Site and Plan of the Building, that so by a Clause in the same Bill, the Gentlemen already empower'd to put out the present Principal at Interest, and receive private Donations, (with any others that shall be judg'd proper) may be farther empower'd, and by an annual Lottery, not exceeding a certain moderate Sum, to carry on a Building 'till it is finish'd, according to said PLAN; and to receive, and let out at Interest, all pri­vate Donations, which ought to be kept untouch'd, for endowing the College when the Work is compleated: Thus, as I observ'd above, we should see our Youth, in the Interim, improving in polite Literature: our Edifice rising gradually by an easy Lottery: and by the Time it can be finished, the Generosity of many pious Donors, will, no Doubt, supply us with a very consi­derable Sum for Endowment.—If this Method is fol­low'd, I dare assert, we shall in a few Years see a Work accomplished, which will be a lasting Honor to our Memory, and Benefit to our Country; and that too with much greater Ease, than by any Method our Neighbours have hit upon, or perhaps we ourselves would otherwise ever think of.—

Having, in the first Part, been too prolix, I could only hint at these Things; but a Hint can be easily im­prov'd by the Judgment of those to whom I chiefly ad­dress. I must also supersede what I intended to say of the OEconomy and Regulations that might be observed: I shall only add that Oxford, Leyden, &c. are too com­plex and large to be any Model for us; the neighbour­ing Colleges of New-England, Pennsylvania, &c. may be kept chiefly in our Eye; but tho' the People of these [Page 18] Provinces have the Honor to set us an Example in this truly noble WORK, we have the Advantage of seeing where they have been deficient, and of being sensible that Something might be contriv'd more com­modious than any of their Schemes: But it will be soon enough to speak of this, if the Assembly shall think the Proposals here laid down worthy their Attention; and then, tho' I'm far from pretending to direct, I shall always be ready to offer any further Hint that occurs to me, as every honest Man ought frankly to do on such an Occasion.—

Mean Time, permit me, with a sincere and well-meant Zeal, to intreat my Countrymen, particularly those at the Helm of Affairs, to think seriously of the vast Importance of the great Undertaking, and to proceed, without losing one Moment more, to bring it, some-how, to a speedy Issue.—Let us think how much the so doing is incumbent on us, and how much it will redound to our GLORY:—Let the distant Pros­pect distend every Heart with Patriot-Views, and fire every Bosom with active Zeal, 'till no Contention re­main, but who shall bear the first and greatest Part in such a glorious WORK!—Happy he! whose Pen can be any Way instrumental in raising such a noble Spirit among us!—Those who have the same Idea of its Consequences, with me, will never cease to contri­bute their Mite for this good Purpose, however fruit­less their Labours may be: And those who reflect on the surprising Turns and Instability of human Affairs, cannot but ardently wish to see an early Foundation laid for propagating among us a Spirit of INDUSTRY, LIBERTY, LEARNING and TRUTH; with a thoro' Contempt of Sloth, Slavery, Ignorance and religious IMPOSTURE; since 'tis this, next to the auspicious Protection of HEAVEN, and our Mother Country; which can alone make our Government live out its full Period of political Life.—And as we can never be [Page 19] too much, or too oft, arrous'd to think of this; I beg still to be indulg'd in summing up all I have said, with a few Reflections more on this Head; which, for various Reasons, I have thrown into the following,

COPY of VERSES, ADDRESS'D TO The GENTLEMEN of the House of Representatives.

Ad Reipublicae formandas & stabiliendas Vires, & ad sanandos Populos, omnis pertinet Oratio.— CIC.
"AND does the Glory and the Bliss of States
"Down thro' their whole Existence so much hang
" On planning early Laws for tutoring Youth?
"Is this the Legislator's noblest Task,
"The very Soul and Basis of his Work?"
Oh! then, ye Patriots! whom this Infant-State
Selects to guard its Liberties, and plan
Its rising Grandeur, think how much the Fate
Of late Posterity depends on You;—
That on this long-neglected Work depends
No less, perhaps, than whether our New-World
(When by the sad Vicissitude of Things
The Old has sunk back to its pristin Sloth
And Barbarism) shall be the last Retreat
Of Arts, imperial Liberty and Truth;
The peaceful Refuge and the better Home
Of Worth distrest, and such as fly the Rage
Of Bigot-Zeal, or nobly scorn to bend
The Knee to fate a Tyrant's frantic Pride.
[Page 20] And let not little superficial Minds
Deem these wild Notions or Conjectures rash.
For turn impartial Reason's Eye abroad
To scan the State of Things;—what can we see,
But Fluctuation and abhorr'd Decay?
From Death and from Corruption (so first will'd
Th' all-forming SIRE) fresh Generation springs!
And the Production of One natural Mode,
Is but Destruction of Another.—Thus,
Eternal Change is Nature's State on Earth:
Some Hand behind for ever shifts the Scene,
From seeming Jars educing Harmony,
And ALL conducting to ONE gracious End.
Thus Life destroys itself; and from the Womb
Man's Body bears the Seeds of its own Death▪
Thus Empires carry in them their own Bane,
And in a fatal Circle ever run
From virtuous Industry and Valor, first
To Wealth and Conquest; next to Luxury;
And then to soul Corruption, bloted Morals,
Faction and Anarchy, a horrid Train!
Till at the last they rush, by their own Weight,
A Prey to some brave, crafty, wicked MAN
Who feeds their Wants, their Avarice, and their Vice,
And sinks them in the Gulf of rotten Sloth:
Until again, weak-shooting here and there,
From their corrupted Ruins spring a Few
That, branch'd in separate petty States, afford
A sickly Image of their former Fame.
The Voice of Story speaks this Truth aloud,
With this sole Difference, that some have expir'd
[Page 21] In Infancy; while some of stabler Make,
By tumbling down the Superstructure oft,
Strengthning the Basis, and, on every Shock,
Still running back to their first Principles,
Have stood a Length of Years:—But all, at last,
(Fam'd Lacedaemon, Albens, Carthage, Rome,)
Have fall'n, and prove how frail are human Things.
And thus, since Death's th' inevitable Doom
Of every Body, th' Animal alike
And Politic; who does not, pensive, see
That even Britannia's self, the firmest State
That e'er was built, tho' founded on the Rock
Of Freedom and of Right, must moulder down;
And at the last (but O indulgent HEAVEN
Roll far that Day!) must sink into the Tomb
Where th' airy GHOSTS of mighty Empires stalk,
In melancholy Guise, with not one Mark
Of Glory left, their wither'd Laurels all
Dropt from their Brow to hiss the PRIDE OF MAN!
Then whether we survive, (if Time survives,)
Or whether this our State shall meanly fall,
Before it reach its full Maturity,
Depends entirely on our Conduct now.
Our kindly MOTHER envies not our Bliss,
But in our Glory and Prosperity,
Her truest Honor, Strength and Safety finds.
Sure, then, it much imports US to exalt
Our drooping GENIUS, and rear up a Race
Of Manners polish'd, mild and just in Peace;
But nobly daring and untam'd in War;
That, when her Fabric once begins to slide,
[Page 22] We gratefully may prop her Fall, espouse
Her just Concerns; and rising dreadful, pour
Our Indignation on her every Foe:
And bid, in Ages hence, our generous Youth
Stream forth in ardent Bands (as at this Hour,
By thousand Insults rous'd, we greatly ought,
And, keen for Vengeance, only wait her Word)
To scourge the faithless Spaniards, when amid
The deep Tranquility of Peace they dare
Infest her watery Reign; and, beggar'd, send
The MERCHANT home a Passenger despoil'd
Of all that well-earn'd Wealth, for which he tore
Himself from the soft Bosom of his Wife,
And Children's dear Embrace, to beat the Surge
For many an anxious and unjoyous Moon.
Or when a Free-born BRITON (of more Worth
Than all Iberia, with her Realms of Gold,
Her King Himself and his whole Host of Slaves)
Is chain'd inglorious down to tug the Oar,
Or earth'd alive in the deep rayless Gloom
Of Mines inhuman;—O then big with Rage,
To pour our hostil Thousands glowing forth;
To roll our waken'd Thunders on their Head;
To drive them howling o'er the Atlantic Foam,
And make the Dastards shrink into their Ports,
(Alone in Insult bold, in Murder brave;)
Or whelm them in the Womb of watry Death
T'attone for guiltless Millions, in cold Blood,
Butcher'd unmanly, when, beneath the Mask
Of meek Religion's injur'd Name, they first,
With fell exterminating Rage disturb'd
PAN's peaceful Reign in this blest Hemisphere,
[Page 23] Peruvia's golden Glories laid in Dust,
With all the shining Pride of Mexico,
And robb'd them of their ancient Race of Kings,
Their YNCA's, and their MONTEZUMA's fam'd:
—Oh! thus, with Zeal indignant, to assert
Britannia's Honor, wreak our keenest Wrath
On polish'd Ravagers, and, duteously,
Thus stay a hoary Parent's failing Head,
Long hence, must be no vulgar Luxury!
And when at last, in Spite of human Skill,
In Spite of all her ancient Fame and Strength,
And our fond filial Struggles to protract
Her precious Period, by stern Fate's Decree,
She shall expire; and, on her joyless Shore,
Empire and Liberty their radiant Wings
Expand to quit the sluggish eastern World;
And cross the vast Atlantic meditate
Their Airy Passage to these western Climes,
In Quest of some Retreat to sojourn safe
Till Time shall end;—then may we fondly wait
To hail the glorious Guests on their Approach
To this New World; and woo them first to fix
Their Reign with us; until again (when we
Diseas'd and sunk, are ripe for Death) they're call'd
By Fate to bless a Race of more Desert.
For as the SUN, refulgent GOD of Day,
Rejoycing Earth, diurnal, rides along,
Pompous, from East to farthest West; even so
Who knows but Empire, Liberty and Arts,
With their resplendant Train, are doom'd to move
From East still Westward; and, ere the long Day
[Page 24]
Of Time shall end, in Soul-rejoycing Tour,
Surround the Globe and every People bless?
And thus, methinks, the Universal KING,
When first he spoke this Earth from Chaos' Gloom,
Gave them in Charge:—
'Descend, ye heavenly Powers!
'And first illumin eastern Swains who tend
'Their feeding Flocks, and in the rural Cot
'With Innocence and simple Nature live:
'Then, gathering Glory still as you advance,
'Bend westward o'er (*) Hefestia, Persia, Greece;
'Thence o'er Hesperian Realms; and as you move
'Sublime along, let your Heart-gladning Rays
'Far to the North, on Scythia's lonely Race
'And vast Sarmatia, shine: Then, th' Alpine Heights
'Ascend, there bidding Rocks and Mountains bare
'And Snow eternal, charm the SOUL even more
'Than Arno's teeming VALE, forsook by you:
'Then onward-coursing, o'er Germania bend;
'Reaching, the While, the farthest Polar Verge
'Of wintry Scandinavia's frozen Climes:
'Then westward still o'er fair Britannia's Isles,
'And utmost Thule's self, pursue your Course;
'There, on Europa's last, but noblest, Sons,
'Beam your full Blaze: and, fondly-lingring long,
'Forsake them not, till every virtuous Spark
'Forsakes their pulseless Breast; and the old World,
'Spurning all Cure, in broad Corruption lies.
'Then, steering o'er the western murmuring Main,
'Stretch o'er America's unknown Extent;
'Her every latent Nook explore and pierce
[Page 25] 'The awful central Depths of her wild Woods,
'Planted of old, where (blush ye Scenes of Art)
'Untutor'd Nature holds her bloodless Reign;
'Till all her sluggish and unthinking Sons,
'Of every Language and of every Hue,
'Rous'd and exalted by your genial Beam
'Boldly t'assert their native Rights as Men,
'Enjoy by turns, their Day of polish'd Bliss,
'And sink, by Turns, in Slavery's gloomy Night.
'Thus, when you have perform'd your destin'd Round,
'And shone, with setting Ray, on th' utmost Bourne
'Of California, which, far jetting out,
'Nearly embraces Asia's eastern Coast,
'Where in the Dawn of Time you first appear'd;
'Then will I, rising in my Might, stretch forth
'My strong right Arm, and Renovation give
'To Nature; will my Sceptre reassume;
'And bid you reascend to the bright Realms
'Of Day, for ever there, beneath my Sway,
'With stedfast Peace and Order join'd, to reign;
'Where Sloth, Corruption, Flux and sad Decay
'Can never come; where Death Himself must DIE.'
Thus has the MUSE assay'd to pierce the Gloom.
Of DESTINY, to read our distant Lot,
[Page 26] And spread the goodly Prospect out to View;
Not th' idle Dream of Fancy's forgeful Brain,
But what sound Reason tells Us we may be;
What Parent-Heaven has plac'd full in our Sight
And whispers us to grasp; what on Ourselves
Depends entirely—and on this depends,—
That we maintain our Constitution sound,
Hardy and strong while now in Infancy.
This we can only do by prudent Laws
T'inform young Minds, and mold the ductil Heart
To worthiest Thoughts of GOD and social Deeds.
For Education the great Fountain is
From whence Life's Stream, must clear or turbid flow.
O then! no more delay this noble Work,
Nor let its Glory fall to others' Share!
'Tis yours but to begin; then all that claim
The Patriot's godlike Name will ardent join:
So shall its blissful Influence roll down
Your Names thro' Ages in a Tide of Praise;
So shall the Land for ever date its dawn
Of Happiness from noble CLINTON's Day!
O how I love to dwell upon this Thought,
And wish t' infuse this Love into each Breast!
Yet still indulge Me then, and stretch your Eye
Adown the Vale of Centuries remote;
Think you behold your latest Progeny,
In countless Numbers basking highest Bliss,
Illum'd by Freedom, Virtue, Knowledge, Truth,
And all that renders Men or Good or Great;
Then think you see your Names, in the long Roll
Of Worthies, first; and, from glad Swain to Swain,
[Page 27] From thriving Citizen to Citizen,
Thro' all the smiling Land, with deepest A we,
Hear them resounded high; while every Tongue
Thus pours its grateful Joy:—
'These were the MEN,
'To whom (next Heaven) we owe our present Peace,
'Our Happiness, our Grandeur, and our All!
'These were the MEN whose early Patriot Care
'Corruption's Inlets stop'd, and rear'd the State
'On Virtue's solid Base, which best can stand
'The various Shocks of Chance, and Teeth of Time!
'These were the MEN, who, with wise, frugal, Hand,
'Alternate, rul'd a Nation and the Plow!
'The MEN! who, in their Country's Infancy,
'Still as her Good requir'd, sometimes stood forth,
'In public Life, firm Statesmen; and sometimes,
'As holy Sages shrunk to private Shade;
'And there with Nature, in her purest Forms,
'Held Converse high; in each Capacity,
'Above Ambition's Lure and feverish Sloth:
'Public, they clear'd the State of weedy Vice;
'Private, the Soil of rough-encumbring Woods;
'And thus transmitted, by their manly Toils,
'A goodly-prospering Portion to their Sons.
'May we heed well the Model; imitate
'Their Worth; and their blest Memory revere!'—
Struck-deep, O Fathers! at the flattering Thought
Of earning, thus, Posterity's Applause;
Methinks, as newly-wak'd, I see the Pulse
Of Glory heaving each ingenuous Breast;
And kindling, in the Factious every Blush
To burn their bronzed Cheek who, dead to Fame,
[Page 28] Dare plague their Country's Peace while such a Work
Neglected lies.—Ah ME! how long, how long!
Shall Party-Zeal, and little sneaking Views,
Of vile Self-Interest, our chief Thoughts engross,
And dim our Fires? Ah! let us think, abash'd,
That this same Zeal, Intrigue, Expence and Toil,
So ill▪applied each Other to supplant,
Would, if united in this public Work,
Burst into Patriot-Flame, adorn the Land,
And consecrate our Names to latest Time.
Deem not the Muse too urgent or too warm;
Who would be cool? Whose Bosom would not beat
That sees it in our Power to taste the Joy,
The noblest Feast, the Luxury of GOD,
By giving Joy to Millions yet unborn?
Our Country's sacred Voice, the Voice of Fame,
The Voice of our Posterity, all, all,
Call loud to this,—And shall they call in Vain?
—O no!—Assembled Fathers, full on You,
With highest Confidence, I turn mine Eye!
Your long-known Firmness to whatever tends
To bless your Country, swells my fondest Hopes:
And here's a Task well-worthy your first Care,
Worthy the Patriot's best-reforming Hand;
And worthy thine, O JONES! thy Country's Boast!
Thee let me call, Thou active honest Man!
(Nor can I call Thee by a higher Name!)
Hither, O hither! turn the whole generous Tide
Of thy approv'd and unremitting Zeal!
Oft has the Muse (a Stranger to your Face,
But not your Worth) blush'd for th' Ingratitude
And Blindness of those mercenary Tools,
[Page 29] Who thwart your generous Views,—thwart their own Good;
And see not, or pretend they do not see,
How much they owe to You,—You Noughtto them.
But, for the Public's Sake, each private Wrong
Forget; and, pitying frail Mortality,
Go nobly on, unbending to the End.
These Things will never quench the Patriot's Flame.
As, when black-frowning Tempest wraps the Globe,
When groaning Thunder seems to rock its Frame,
And general Horror lours on Nature's Face;
Some Mountain lifts, superb, its Cloud-crown'd Head
And, glorying in its Height, unshaken stands,
Indignant baffling all the mingled Rage
Of Ocean's Billows battering its fast Base,
And Boreas howling dreadful on its Brow:—
—So, when loud Faction's Storms involve a State,
And shed Dejection on the luke-warm Throng,
The glowing Patriot lifts his fearless Front,
Alone unmov'd, exultant in his Aim,
His generous, Godlike Aim, to prop the Fall
Of Virtue, and protect his suffering Kind;
And, while this glorious Purpose swells his Breast,
Defies the Billows of the People's Hate,
His blinded, noisy, thankless Citizens,
Misconstruing all his Measures into Wrong;
Or even a blustering Tyrant's steady Rage,
Or Death itself, in every muster'd Terror;
To damp his Soul, or shake his stern Resolve.
And why? Because 'tis not the transient Puffs
Of popular Breath that stir him on to act,
But nobler Motives far; that conscious Joy
[Page 30] Attending public Worth, which can alone
Be felt, not sung; which Nothing can destroy;
And which, with fresh Reflection, ever spreads:
That secret Eclat which his Heart must feel
Who Nought beholds, where-e'er he turns his Sight,
But Scenes of Bliss,—and knows himself the Cause:
Who sees a People busy, unalarm'd;
Plenty and Joy smiling on every Face,
Content in every Heart, while every Eye,
Glowing with grateful Love, is fixt on Him.
Oh! speak this Joy! YE, whose incessant Toils
Are all devoted to Mankind! say, what
Must be the sacred Triumph of the Soul
That sees himself thus honor'd and rever'd
For Deeds including a whole Country's Weal?
How my Breast labors with the swelling Thought,
Too big for Utterance, and beyond the Power
Of Words t'explain, unless to those that feel!
This! this is JOY indeed. which all the Stores
The Indies roll can't purchase for the Base:
But such, O JONES! as thou may'st freely taste;
And with Thee, all that here unyielding stand
To stem Corruption's all-devouring Tide!
What tho' your ceaseless Toils, O worthy Sires!
To bless your Country, be too much in vain,
And ill-requited by a Thoughtless Few?
Yet Nought can rob you of this Joy that flows
From calm Reflection on your upright Views:
A Joy! with which compar'd, luxurious Ease,
The hollow Smile, or Hatred impotent,
[Page 31] Of Bad-Men, courting Power, are Things of Nought,
Then let Nought slack your Zeal. The more the Bad
Bustle for Power; the more behoves it You,
To check their Aims▪ This do; and, trust the Muse,
Your Virtue, tho' it struggle hard at first,
Shall still gain Ground and triumph soon o'er all.
Have you not known the New-ris'n Sun look sick
And lurid, thro' the turbid Medium seen,
When Morning-Fogs, and Vapors, copious steam'd,
From Earth's hot Womb, obscure his beamy Head
And dim the Day? Then have you not observ'd
How, as his Car ascends the Vault of Heaven,
All these still melt before Him, and the Scene
Brightens apace; till, all at last reveal'd,
He looks down in full Majesty, and sheds
A burnish'd Radiance o'er the Hemisphere,
Enlivening Herb, and Flower, and Beast and Man?
Then general Nature smiles; and all the Soul
Of Mirth is wak'd at once; the mingled Low
Of Kine and Bleat of Sheep, from Hill to Dale,
Responsive ring; but, chief, th' aerial Tribes
Mount on the Wing of Joy, and, grateful, pour
Their little Hearts in choral Hymns to Heaven.
—Thus shall your Virtue, tho' obscur'd a-while,
By Envy and Detraction's baneful Fogs,
Incessant gather Brightness; these shalt melt
Before it, and their Place be known no more;
But it shall soon, without a Cloud between,
Or Tongue malign to intercept its Rays,
Appear in full Effulgence, all around,
Filling the Land with Carols and sweet Glee;
[Page 32] Till Death's calm Sun-set call YOU hence at last,
To shine eternally in better Climes!
Then too the Hind, perhaps thro' many an Age,
With dear Remembrance swell'd, as at the Plow
HE, peaceful, toils; or in the flowery Vale,
Rejoicing, sits amid his smiling Babes
By Plenty blest, shall chaunt his Song of YOU:
His smiling Babes shall catch it from their Sire,
And, wondring what it means, shall lisp your NAMES.
FINIS.

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