No More Learning

I am afraid that I should not be able
to do any thing for my father and
mother, if they were reduced to
want. "
" But it was not those who laboured
by their hands, only, that could do
the most for themselves or their friends.
Some of them could do what 1 call
head work, some spoke and wrote their
own language, and had learned their
French grammar; and they earned
bread for themselves and their families,
by teaching French grammatically.
Others, who knew music and dancing,
if they knew even those things well,
could earn their bread. But I did not
think so much of them, being not such
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? FRANK.
189
manly trades. But gentlemen, when
in distress, must make the most of the
little they know. I had great respect
for a poor French nobleman's son, who
turned drawing-master, and was obliged
to work hard, to my knowledge, to
learn perspective, before he could get
himself employed in a school in our
neighbourhood. He did succeed at
last, and right glad he was, and we
were for him; for he had two sisters
and an old mother, who had no other
means of living, but what he earned.
They had sold all, and were come to
the last distress. They were lodged
in a garret in Litchfield, at the house
of an uncle of mine: that is the reason
I know so much about them. I often
caught a glimpse of one or other of.
them on the stairs, when they came
out to peep if their brother was
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? 190
FRANK.
coming up. And what joy I've seen
in their faces when it was he! And
what disappointment when it was
only me! Oh, he was a good and
hard-working young man and gentle-
man! "
" How happy he must have been
to be able to do this for his sisters and
mother ! " repeated Frank.
" And for himself, or he must have
starved," said the gardener. " And
starving is no joke, when it comes to
the pinch. However, as you have
never felt that pinch, this notion can-
not touch you much, master Frank,"
added the gardener, laughing.
" Do you know any more stories
of these poor French people? " said
Frank : " I should like to hear more. "
The gardener said, that he had heard
hundreds of stories of them; but that
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? FRANK.
he did not recollect any more, that he
could say he knew of his own know-
ledge. He had seen the French pri-
soners at work at Bristol, and had seen
the ingenious toys and curious things,
models, of ships, and windmills, and
cannons, they made of old bones, with
scarce any tools but their knives; but
he believed, he said, that all these
nicknacks were sold very cheap, and
that so many could make them, and
there was such great competition,
" you know," said the gardener, turn-
ing to Frank's father, " that work ever
so hard they could gain but little, not
more than what kept them in clothes,
and that but barely : for people's fancy
changed often, and the toys were not
bought. " The gardener repeated it
was best to stick to useful trades, and
the making of such things as must be
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? 192
FRANK.
wanted, as long as the world stands,
by all people, of all descriptions, said
he, glancing his eye at the basket,
which his youngest boy held in his
hand. "Not but what," added he,
looking at his eldest son, " what I said
before is true too, that the work of the
head is better still than the work of
the hands ; better paid, you know, sir,
and more respected, and more respect-
able. My eldest boy is breeding up
to be a surveyor, and is beginning to
learn the mathematics. Fetch your
book, Andrew, and show the gen-
tleman. " .
Frank's father looked at Andrew's
book, and was pleased; and, to confirm
what the gardener had been saying, he
told another anecdote of a French emi-
grant : no less a person than the pre-
sent duke of Orleans. When he was
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? FRANK.
193
in exile and in distress, during the
French revolution, he supported him-
self by teaching mathematics, which
he had learned well when a boy.
"He must have learned well to be
able to teach them," said Andrew.
" Aye, and when he was to be paid
for teaching too," said the gardener,
"if he had not been able to teach
them well, nobody would have em-
ployed him; for it was nothing to
them that he was a French duke, then.
I suppose, indeed, nobody knew who
he was or had been. "
" No, he was obliged to conceal his
name and title," said Frank's father.
" Then, Andrew, he was no more than
you yourself, standing there; think of
that. "
" And the duke is not ashamed to
own it now? " said Andrew.
vol. i. s
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? 194
FRANK.
" Ashamed! no, he is proud of it,"
answered Frank's father.
"As well he may be," said the gar-
dener.
" There is now in the palace of the
duke of Orleans, in France, a picture,
in which he is represented in the midst
of his pupils, in the school where
he taught. Frank, you shall see a
print taken from this picture, which is
now in the possession of a friend of
your mother's, to whom it was given
by the duke and duchess of Orleans*"
Frank, Andrew, and the gardener,
exclaimed at once, that they should
like very much to see this print.
Frank now stood, with his basket in
his hand, looking very thoughtful. The
gardener interrupted his reverie by
offering him a fine provision of osiers,
for making baskets and fences of dif-
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? FRANK. 195
ferent sorts. The bundles of osiers
were so large, that he did not know
how they could be carried home : but
a boy of nearly his own age, who was
standing by, offered to carry them for
him.
The boy set off with his huge load of
osiers, and the gardener took Frank
with his father to see his hot house
and green house. After which, they
remounted their horses, and returned
homewards.
Frank, as they were riding home,
observed to his father, that on the labels
of the shrubs and flowers he had just
seen, the names that were written were
not in English, but in Latin; and
whenever he asked the name of any
flower in the hothouse, the gardener
first told it to him in Latin, and then
in English. Frank asked the reason
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? 196 FRANK.
of this. His father answered, that it
was useful to give names to plants, in
a language which could be understood
in different countries; and Latin is a
sort of universal language, which is
understood in all countries, by all
people of a certain degree of educa-
tion.
"Papa," said Frank, "what you
told me about the duke of Orleans,
and what the gardener said, about the
poor French prisoners and emigrants,
and about basket making, and nick-
nack making, and particularly about
the different value of hand work and
head work, makes me consider, that I
have not thought enough about what
things will or will not be really useful
to me to learn, before I grow up to be
a man and a gentleman; and I am
determined to do it directly. " " . . ii. i
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? FRANK.
197
His father said this was a wise reso-
lution ; but he was a little surprised by
the, extraordinary gravity with which
Frank spoke:
" The first thing that I shall do
when I get home," continued Frank,
"shall be to ask mamma for two of
the largest sheets of paper she has in
her paper treasury ; and at the top of
the one I will write, or I will print, in
large letters, MAN, and, on the other,
WOMAN; and I will rule lines very
close, and on these two sheets of paper
I will make two lists, one for myself,
man; and the other for Mary, woman ;
and under these heads I will put every
thing that we ought to know or learn,
before we grow up to be man and
woman. I will have two columns, papa,
and put those things, that we cannot
possibly do without, in one column,
s3
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? 198 PRANK.
andfAhose that we might like ito! ihatej
but that// we can do without, ii thfe
other. That will be very useful,' wilV
not It, papa? and one column i fcriii
call must want, and the other, \rttay
want-. :. /i-n(ti ih " "/ 'lo b inaw
" Some things will be the same for
both of us, papa; for instance, truth
goes under must want, for both man
and woman; but courage, papa, goes
under must want in my list, and may
want in Mary's; or, perhaps, it may
be left out entirely in her list; We
will consider of it. " - :v t Lil
" Do so: in the mean time, Frank,
consider a little where you are going.
Do not haul your horse about in that
cow path, from side to side, or you will
throw him down. " ;>> ' '. Dtuimsb
'-ffri-rwitt , itkke' icartie',r"'^apW. . * Mind
where you are going, Felix* sir. 'We
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? SRANK.
199
mili I begin onrlists this day, and Mary
and Ii c3tt';sfettle therm all u. v What do
ybw think, papa ? You smile : you look
a& if yon thought we could not do this. "
ithink, that perhaps you will
want a little of your mother's assist-
ance and mine ; for, without more ex-
perience, or knowledge of the world,
than you two possess, it will be im-
possible, that you should know all that
necessary to put in or to leave out of
your lists of must wants and may wants. "
''/That is true," said Frank; "for I
did not know till very lately, that
Latin grammar and Latin should go
under must want for man, that is, for
gentleman. By the bye, papa, that
gardener, who is not a gentleman, un-
derstands Latin. " ' . i<<oh mii. v. 'i. "i.
i. ";Jfes, he knows the Latin names
of Ifees, plants, and flowera. ! ' . <<. . / n. ntv
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? 200 FHANK.
"But," answered Frank, "he knows
a great deal more. I took up a book
that was lying on the seat in his porch,
and what do you think it was, papa?
A Latin book! a Latin poet!
"
"Virgil's Eclogues, I suppose? "
" Yes; Virgil's Eclogues : how conld
you guess it? " ':
Without waiting for an answer, Frank
went on--
" His son told me, that he not only
reads that but other Latin books,
which he called the classics, at his lei-
sure hours, for his amusement! Think
of that, papa! "
His father did not appear much sur-
prised, but told Frank, that he hoped
and believed, that he wouldHsome time
or other read Virgil and all the clas-
sics for his amusement. Frank asked
his father what he meant by the classics.
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? FRANK.
201
His father began to name to him some
of those authors, who are called ancient
classical writers; but before this list,
with various explanations, was finished,
they saw the boy following them, who
was carrying the willows home for
Frank. He had taken a short way
across the fields. He had such a load
on his back, that it reached above
his head and below his knees, and
the trees seemed to be moving forward
of themselves. Frank's mother was
walking down the avenue, and said
to his father, when she met them, some-
thing which Frank did not quite under-
stand : pointing to the boy and the
willows behind them, she said,
moving wood doth come to Dunsinane. "
V. I know that is a quotation," said
Frank; " but I do not know from
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? 202 FRANK.
what book, nor exactly what it means:
I wish that I did. "
"It is from a play of Shakespear,"
said his father. " Shakespear is one of
the first English classic authors which
you will read for your amusement one
of these days, but not yet. Now tell
this moving wood where it should go. "
The boy was directed to Frank's
island: there his load of sallows was
laid down.
In the eagerness to begin his basket
making, Frank forgot, till late in the
evening, the two lists of the must
wants and may wants of man and
woman; but the next morning, it be-
ing a rainy day, the work was begun
as soon as the Latin lesson was
finished. His mother having furnished,
from her inexhaustible bounty, two
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? FRANK.
203
sheets of paper, large as Frank's imagi-
nation could desire, he, and Mary
under his directions, accomplished rul-
ing them tolerably straightly, dividing
each page into two columns, ruled,
contrary to good advice, with red ink
so liquid, that it blotted much of the
space intended to contain the virtues
of man. Fatigued with ruling, for it
is a very tiresome business, as all who
have tried it will bear witness, Frank
went no farther in his great work, at this
sitting, than printing MAN, in large
letters, on his own page, and WOMAN,
in equal size, on Mary's. The ensuing
day was fine, but no riding for Frank;
his father could not take him out with
him every day. Basket making at
their island was now a fine resource;
but, in their first attempt, the willows
were not stuck at equal distances, or
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? 204
FRANK.
so as to form a perfect circle. The
basket proved but a misshapen thing,
crooked in every direction; it could not
stand because the bottom was so round;
and the handle was so weak and so ill
fastened, that it came out the first time
Mary attempted to use it.
After this failure in basket making
Frank returned to his lists. Truth, honour,
courage, were fairly written in his best
round hand under the head man; and
Mary, for woman, wrote also truth and
honesty; and, after consulting Frank's
mother, added, modesty and good-
temper. The next word in Frank's
list was written and scratched out
several times. First it was Latin
grammar; then grammar was scratched
out, and Latin left; then Latin classics
was put instead of grammar: then
learning was written; and at last learn-
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? FRANK.
205
ing was to be effaced all but the 1, and
literature to have been put in its stead;
but the paper would not bear it; there
was now a hole, aud Frank's hands
were hot, and he grew impatient, and
he pushed aside the paper, and said
that he would give it up for this
morning.
Mary wrote patience in her list before
she left the table: Frank urged her to
scratch it out, assuring her that it was
included in good temper, a point which
she seemed to doubt; for, as she said,
Frank was very good tempered, but
she did not think that he was always
patient. Frank, feeling the justice of.
this observation, returned to his work,
and never quitted it till he had written
the whole over again. This time he
put in patience and perseverance in
his list before Latin or classical lite-
VOL. i. t
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? FRANK.
rature. " Even in our plays," as
Mary said, " and in alt those things
which we do merely for our amuse-
ment, we eannot succeed without pati-
ence. "
" To morrow we will go to our
basket making again," said Frank,
" and we will not give it up. "
In this resolution he and Mary per-
severed ; and after the Latin lesson
was finished, on those days when his
father could not take him out, or when
he returned early in the day from his
rides, at every moment's spare time,
he and Mary were at work, either at
their baskets or at their lists.
" It is very agreeable, mamma," said
Frank, " to have employments both
for out of doors and in doors, to which
we can go constantly, without trou-
bling you or any body. And you see,
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? FRANK.
207
mamma, we do not begin new things,
and grow tired, and leave them in a
few days, as you say foolish children are
apt to do. Look, mamma, at this
basket: compare it with the first that
we made, this crooked tumble-down
thing, with the round bottom and the
broken handle. See how much we are
improved! " .
. . . " Yes," his mother said, "this is
a really good, strong, useful basket. "
Frank asked his mother if she would
be so kind as to walk with them to his
old friend Mrs. Wheeler's, that he
might carry this basket to her; he
wished to give it to her, because she
had given him the first basket he ever
possessed, a little one made of rushes,
which had been long since destroyed;
but the remembrance of the kindness
remained in Frank's mind; and his
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? 208 FRANK.
mother willingly walked with him and
Mary to the cottage.
Mrs. Wheeler was sitting on a stool
before her door, shelling peas; and
Mary, holding their basket by the
handle, offered it to her.
She smiled and thanked them, and
seemed to like the basket, even before
she knew that it was their making;
and she was surprised fully as much as
they expected, when she heard that it
was made by them, and on purpose
for her.
But when Frank reminded her of
the little rush basket, which she had
given to him long since, the tears came
into her eyes, and she said,
" God bless you! God bless' your
grateful little heart! Think of his re-
membering that so long, which I had
quite forgotten! "
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? 209
She gathered up the husks of the
peas which she had been shelling, and
threw them into the basket, to show
Frank that it would be immediately
useful to her.
, " But it is so strong," said Mary,
- " it will bear a much greater load than
this. "
" Yes," said Mrs. Wheeler, " I will
keep my faggots in it. "
She and Frank both smiled, when
she pronounced the word faggots; and
while she went to empty the basket of
peashells and fill it with sticks, Frank
told Mary the mistake he had made,
when he was a very little boy, about
faggots and maggots.
" I can bear to be laughed at now,
cannot I, mamma 1 better, at least, than
I could at that time. Yet," added he,
" I recollect that stupid Tom vexed
t3
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? 210
FRANK.
me a little, the first time we saw him,
by laughing at my triumphal arch, and
calling my bricks--baby bjicks. ,'Eio,iooR
" Now I know the reason,'. ' ' said
Mary, " that you have nefrf played
with the bricks lately. " : /*. o^iodO "
" And a very foolish reason it cKti2
said Frank. " I will conquer ,fthati
foolish feeling. " ". ' v i '. it ob mid
" Look! " said Mary, " here ^
Mrs. Wheeler with the basket filled
with sticks. Good-natured woman!
she likes to show us how useftit/it
will be. " '. ". . . ,. . . '. . . . \rhfr;n
She placed the basket in her chimney
corner; and told Mary and Frank,
that she would never let any body
touch it, but herself and her grandson
George. *. '. . 'i- ' . . o .
When once she had named George,
she could not help going on speaking
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? FRANK.
otihim; she showed the parlour, which
lies haft iiid 'newly white-washed and
floored5giaoA! said,' that every penny he
&ouid earn, Jje laid out in some com-
fort4t>> Ikes 0'nJ i,
" George was talking," continued
sW, *<<" of making for me a little arbour
terfthe^gttrcten; but 1 would not let
him do it, for he does too much for
me, and he can be much better em-
ployed; so I persuaded him to lay
aside all thoughts of the arbour. "
When Frank heard this, a plan of
making: an arbour for Mrs. Wheeler
came into his mind, which he com-
municated to Mary as they were
returning home: and Mary and he
agreed, that they would make use of
some strong and long sallows, which
the gardener had sent them; and for
this purpose, they said, they would give
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? 212
FRANK.
up their plan of making a new arbour
for themselves in their island. This was
an excellent project; but it happened
to this as to many other excellent pro-
jects, that the carrying it into execu-
tion was from day to day postponed:
something was always to be done first;
and delightful rides made Frank quite
forget Mrs.