Page:History of the German people at the close of the Middle Ages vol1.djvu/91

EDUCATION AND THE OLDER HUMANISTS 79 chair, exercised considerable influence on the intellectual life of Germany, he endeavoured to kindle among the nobility, and the princes especially, a desire for mental culture. 1 Among Wimpheling's educational writings (of which nearly twenty thousand copies were sold up to 1520) there are two of the greatest importance. In one of these, which appeared in 1497, under the title of ' Guide for the German Youth,' he points out clearly and convincingly the defects of the earlier systems of education, shows how by right methods the pupil's progress may the more readily and effectually be insured, and gives a number of golden rules and lessons for mastering the ancient languages. This work does not deal only with the curriculum of study, but with the whole school life and with the qualifications of the teacher, &c. It is the first thoroughly adequate book of the kind published in Germany, a truly national work, and one which deserves the praise and gratitude of all ages. Wimpheling's second work on the ethics of education, 'Die Jugend,' published in 1500, belongs to what may be called the great epoch-making writings of the world. The old schoolmen and educationalists proceeded on the principle that it was not sufficient merely to develop the natural faculties and dispositions of children, but that care should be taken to ennoble and perfect them. They aimed at inspiring the pupils entrusted to their care with a love of study and of industry, and at edu- cating them for the work of life. While giving them- selves heart and soul to the study of the Greek and Latin masterpieces, they were careful that admiration 1 Wimpheling's Adolescentia, cap. 7, and his letters to his friend, Friedrich von Dalberg.