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614 MODERN TIMES.
education. The condition of general culture, the historical
traditions and the geographical position of the country,
together with the state of its finances and the character of
its population are here matters of great importance.
, It may be permitted, however, to take this opportunity of'
discussing certain general questions, which, even if the
solution of them is unattainable, are fit to engage our atten­
tive and serious consideration.
A principle which is of the utmost consequence in the
preliminary education in general knowledge given to those
intended for the medical profession, and one which must
under all circumstances be firmly maintained, is that such
education shall be in no way inferior to that required for the
other learned professions, for theology, for law, for philo­
logy, etc. The doctor must possess that measure of general
knowledge which satisfies the highest demands in the country
he lives in. The nature and extent of these demands
depend upon the conception formed of general education,
and this differs and has differed according to place and
time.
Inasmuch as in most civilized countries of the present
day this conception has been developed under the influence
of the humane letters, it follows that the study of antiquity
with the help of the Greek and Latin languages has come
to form the real foundation of general education. It is true
that this system, which was in high favour during the 16th
century, in the 17th and 18th centuries wjs_subjected_to N
considerable limitations. TJie--^dd-en_stimulus jyv^n^J^
the study^^he_n^atm^^sc^ences and the development of
national literatures forced men to give consideration to
otiieT'subJects as elements of education. Wherever these
Tiew subjects were not merged into the educational system
till then in vogue there appeared, separating the schools
devoted to ancient and modern learning respectively, a
cleft, which the course of time has enlarged into a chasm. '
The advocates of the former declared that the educational
value of ancient literature depends chiefly upon the forms