any of the preceding editions. And it is, upon the whole, confidently believed, that a greater quantum and variety of matter, useful, important, scientific, and interesting, than this little volume now contains, is nowhere to be found, within the same compass. The work now appears in a stereotype form, as a pledge to our schools, teachers, and other individuals wishing to avail themselves of it, that a constant and regular supply shall, in future, be always at their command. The Arts and Sciences, by being wrapped up in the learned languages, and obscured by a multitude of technical terms, have long been held beyond the reach and capacity, not only of youth in general, but of maturer years also; especially, where the advantages of education have been limited. This epitome, however, will, it is hoped, bring them to the level of the most moderate capacity; and, without much expense either of time or money, furnish a tolerably correct outline and general idea of all the principal branches of useful and Polite Learning Philadelphia, March 25, 1826. SHORT SYSTEM OF POLITE LEARNING. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. Question. What is meant by a Science? Answer. A Science is a system of any branch of knowledge, comprehending its doctrine, reason, and theory; without any immediate application of it to the uses of life. Q. What is an Art? 40 A. An Art is a collection of rules and precepts, for doing a thing with certainty, ease, and accuracy. Science is knowledge in theory; Art is knowledge in practice. Botany is a science; Gardening, an art. Q. How are the Arts divided? A. The Arts are divided into liberal and mechanical. Q. What are the Liberal Arts? A. The Liberal Arts are those that are ingenious, and cultivated without any immediate regard to the profit arising from them; as poetry, music, and painting; rhetoric, grammar, and sculpture. The liberal or polite arts are nearly allied to the sciences, and are, indeed, in many instances, the same with them. Music, for ex example, may be ranked either with the arts or sciences, or both. As a science, it teaches the just disposition, quantity, and relation of sounds. As an art, it enables us to express those sounds with facility and correctness. Q. Why are they called Liberal Arts? A. They are termed Liberal Arts because the ancients allowed them to be studied only by the liberi, or free persons. In the eighth century, the whole circle of sciences, was made up of what was then termed, The Seven Liberal Arts; viz. Grammar, Logic, Rhetoric, Music, Arithmetic, Geometry, and Astronomy. The fine arts are such of the mechanic arts as require the union of peculiar ingenuity, taste, and skill, in the artist; as, Painting, Sculpture, &c. Q. What are the Mechanic Arts? A. The Mechanic Arts are those wherein the hand and body are more concerned than the mind, and which are cultivated for the sake of the profit arising from them: as cabinet-making, ship-building, turnery, weaving, masonry, and the like; popularly known by the name of trades. Q. Why are they termed Mechanic Arts? A. They are denominated Mechanic Arts from the latin word [machina,] signifying a machine; as they are all practised by the use of certain machines or instruments. Q. What are the Principal Sciences? |
