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It is not because there is not wealth, and talent, and moral power, in the church; for at this moment, the church embosoms wealth enough to place a bible in all the habitations of men; and it has talent enough, to bear the living message of truth to the ears of all nations. It is not because energy and enterprise, under the divine blessing, may not accomplish this great result; since no enterprise flags in this land and age, for want of energy and talent. Our forests fall, our earth is opened, our hills are leveled, and our valleys filled; cities rise in the wilderness, and newformed empires teem with a busy population. The sound of the woodman's axe gives way to the din of commerce; and a plan of gain formed in a humble village, shall be executed on the other side of the globe. All nations are becoming familiar with the voice and plans of the Americans. Since the first days of our history, no enterprise has failed, for the want of energy or talent; no obstacle has been so great, that it did not soon disappear; no perils so vast, that they have not been encountered: and what is needed in the church, for the conversion of the world, under the attending agency of the Holy Ghost, is just the energy and talent consecrated to the cause, which has made our land what it is. Let our young men go forth into this field, with the ardor which has converted this vast land into a fruitful field, and let our departing fathers lift up their hands to bless them, and their eyes to heaven to implore divine mercy on them; let every age, and sex, and sect, cease contention, and join in one mighty movement for the salvation of man; and the world may, must, and will, soon become subject to Jesus Christ. Holiness must unclench the grasp of avarice,must enlarge the heart to pray; holiness must dissolve the bonds of selfishness; holiness must make mild and kind the eyes of the christian brotherhood,must relax the frown of suspicion and bigotry, must bind the energies to the love of truth and purity; and evince its power, in leading men to meet dangers and to cross oceans, leaving father, and mother, and home, to make known the pure gospel of our Lord Jesus to all nations. In conclusion, we may remark, that the prime object of a discipline for the ministry, is the training them in the spirit of the Savior. Holiness is not a native plant of earth. It is a tender exotic, to be nourished amidst the withering storms, and frosts, and icy cold, of a selfish world. It may wither and droop, within the seclusion of a cloister, beneath the hood and cowl, or even within the walls of a seminary. And it may wither as much there, as in contact with the busy, anxious, oppressive, but often thrilling and exciting scenes, where the pastor or the missionary spends his days. First of all duties, it is be trained for the development of the intellect, and for calling forth the active powers, and for personal comfort, and for the welfare of the church. It is to

be the guiding principle in every lesson of instruction, and in every plan, contemplating activity in our Master's cause. Better, far better, that a young man breathe out his life within the walls of a seminary, and be borne from thence to the house of the dead, than to be urged on by the ambition of literary distinction, and of popular applause, or of a decent and reputable situation in the ministry. The church asks from such institutions, none but those who are prepared, if such be the will of God, to labor amidst the most distant and obscure tribes of men, or on the smallest island of the ocean, to secure the salvation of the world. Far from our seminaries, from the churches, and from our families, be men in whom this is not the prime object; and far from us be the day, when other feelings shall find a lodgment within the walls reared by piety, for preparation in the sacred office.

ART. IV. ON MORAL SCIENCE, AS A BRANCH OF ACADEMICAL EDUCATION.

An examination of the claims of any science, upon the attention of the man who would become a finished scholar, is rarely confined to the science in question. In its very nature, and from the necessity of the case, it involves an estimate of the claims of that science, not as it is in itself merely, but as compared with all the other pursuits, which make up "a complete and generous education." For to such an education it is essential, not merely that every worthy object should receive a share of attention, but, that this share should be proportionate to its comparative worth.

That science which has the mind of man for the object of its inquiries, includes mental and moral philosophy. Those pursuits with which it comes most directly in competition, in a complete course of study, are the natural sciences; and with these it must be compared, whenever we are called upon to give to each its due place in our own education or that of others. It comes into a more immediate competition with these, from the fact, that our academic course is so arranged, that those branches of study which are more strictly preparatory, and designed for the purposes of discipline only, are placed by themselves, and are felt by all who are qualified to judge, not to receive too large a share of the student's attention. It is not till he is supposed to have passed through the severer part of the course, which is allotted solely to the work of preparation and discipline, that he is introduced to that, which is to be attended to for its own sake, and to the contemplation of those truths, which should go with him through life. At this point he is met by natural and moral science, and between these he must decide for himself, or his teachers must do it for him. It seems to

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be necessary, therefore, that in estimating the claims of mental and moral science, we should place by their side the sciences of nature. But it is not necessary, that the comparison should be invidious; nor will it be so, when conducted by a man of an enlightened intellect, and of a large and generous soul. Such a man, when called upon to decide a question which relates to universal science, will rise above his individual preferences, and his professional feelings. The inspiration of the scene, which leads him to look upon and weigh subjects of such dignity, and the elevation of the part which he is to act, will raise him above himself, and give him the feelings which one should have, who acts for the public.

The design of the present article is, to offer a few thoughts upon the study of intellectual and moral science, considered as branches of academical education. Our remarks, however, will refer more directly to moral science, and will concern that which is strictly intellectual, so far, only, as its results affect the just knowledge of our moral nature. By moral science, we understand, not so much the statement, or discussion, in detail, of moral duties, as the development of moral principles, and the investigation and analysis of the moral constitution of man. This, of necessity, includes an accurate knowledge of the constitution of the intellect, and furnishes principles, which are far better adapted to solve difficult questions in practice, than any specific directions, drawn out to meet every case of difficulty which may be supposed to arise.

The part which moral science should form in an education which is academical and preparatory, it will be readily acknow ledged, may be very different from that attention which it claims of the universal scholar, and which it is entitled to receive, when viewed merely in its relation to the entire circle of the sciences. We cannot, however, decide the more partial question upon just grounds, without first looking at moral science as it is, and placing it before our eyes in its true dignity and worth.

In judging of any science, we recur at once to its objects, and instinctively decide, that the one which introduces to the mind, objects exalted in their character, and fitted to ennoble him who contemplates them, is itself a noble and exalted science. Of all the works of God, with which we are permitted to acquaint ourselves, the mind of man is the crown and the glory. Though the outward world is adorned with beauty, and fitted up with the most exquisite contrivances; though the body is "fearfully and wonderfully made ;" the mind, to him who will look upon it, surpasses both in interest. There, is the perceiving intellect,-the heart, which thrills with joy and with sorrow; and there, also, is the controlling will. All these have their laws; and, though strangely disordered by sin and passion, these laws are ever striving to resume their natural action. In despite of his opinion, who knows

not what a wonder his inmost being is, these laws can be discovered, can be watched in their action, and can be laid hold of, to secure results as definite, and as fully within the power of man, as those to which art ever attains, when science guides her efforts in the world of nature. The effort, which it costs to fix the attention upon these laws, and accurately to trace them out, is indeed severe and unwelcome; and so, too, is that which "arms" the eye of the natural philosopher with a keenness so piercing, that he can reach the laws of the world without, and pluck from unwilling nature the heart of her mystery. When the attention is fixed, it is true, also, that instead of a contrivance, whose purposes stand out distinctly at the first glance, nothing is at first seen but a confused maze; and it is slowly, at best, that the laws which lie beneath, one after another can be made to appear. Yet the same has been the aspect of the natural world, in the infancy of science, even to the man of mature mind, and so it is now in the infancy of each individual. So must it ever be to each new generation, that looks out upon its wonders. But as these strike the senses vividly, and were designed by God to be more obvious to the perceptive powers than the mind itself, it is not strange, that the efforts which have aimed to reduce our notices of them to a science, should have preceded those which have for their object the philosophy of man's inward being. The scientific knowledge of this, was reserved for man's latest and final effort; and the wonders which it discloses, do not, to say the least, yield in any respect to those which lie in such profusion in the world without.

But, to appreciate the true nature and worth of moral science, it should be recollected, that it cannot be acquired by means of books alone. That which is esteemed a thorough and scientific knowledge of the mind and heart, may be the first step only in the process of its attainment. It may even be consistent with the most entire ignorance of the whole subject. This science, like every other, has things for its objects,-realities, to which every one

can have access.

Books are of use, only as they teach us how to gain access to these objects, record the observations which others have made, and thus enable us the more readily to repeat them for ourselves. There is no discharge here. Every one must repeat these observations. Until he has done so, he can lay no claim to a knowledge of this science. He may know about it, much that is interesting and valuable, but if this has not been done, he has not entered upon its threshold. The same is true in natural science. In the study of astronomy, if we fail to transfer ourselves, as it were, to the heavens, and to present to our own minds, each fact and law as it there exists, we have neither an accurate nor an adequate acquaintance with any object which that science unfolds to our view.

A treatise on astronomy, to a man who has been blind from his birth, and who has no knowledge of the heavenly bodies, nor any means of forming a notion of their properties, would be not merely without interest; it would be without meaning. To him, it would unfold no realities. But the man who, in studying this, or any of the natural sciences, employs a treatise as an aid merely, to guide him to a knowledge of things which have a real existence, and who is ever recurring to these, till they become in his mind objects of familiar acquaintance; he it is, who acquires a real knowledge of the science. In moral science, too, it is not the perusal, nor even the diligent and patient study, of the profoundest treatises, which advances a man in an acquaintance with their object; for this is often done by those who would be astonished to hear it spoken of as a science, which, of all others, most excites the zeal and fervor of the student, and reveals to his mind the highest wonders. The realities to which it directs, are those which are to be found in the minds of living men, and most of all, in that mind, to which every one can have the most direct and immediate access, the mind which he carries in his own bosom. Into the thoughts and feelings which are ever springing up there, must each treatise which he peruses be translated, or it speaks of no realities. This is done by reflection; by the turning in of the mind upon itself; and to do this, for the sake of studying ourselves scientifically, this is to study mental and moral philosophy. The more frequently we thus reflect, and the more distinctly we accustom ourselves thus to compare every position stated by our instructor, whether the volume or the living teacher, the more distinct and well-defined becomes our knowledge. But if what has been said is true, moral science, really such, has distinct objects; and these objects are by far the noblest which engage the attention of man. It therefore properly holds the highest place among the sciences.

That it may justly aspire to this place, will be seen from its relation to the mind of man. No sooner does any object of intellectual apprehension,-any thing which is introduced to our notice by either of the other sciences, fall upon the mind within, than it awakens there a feeling of present pleasure or pain, and leaves such an active desire, as thenceforth becomes a spring of action, the food for hope, and the material which fancy may employ in her creations. Over these desires, if man is to become in any sense a perfect being, or one who is to answer any worthy end by his existence, there must preside a controlling will. Without its just and lawful rule, man is an enigma to himself, and to all other beings,a bright existence, called forth to be tossed to and fro by the violence of its own restless desires, till it is at last broken in sunder by the violence of these rocking forces within. If, then, the right direction of these active powers, which move the man, and consti

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