Page:Jesuit Education.djvu/500

480 "The professor who used the method of the Ratio, and especially the prelection, was Arthur Hadley, well known as the author of Hadley's Greek Grammar. He was professor of Greek for many years at Yale and was known as a fine Greek scholar. Though he was the professor of Greek – there were several tutors in Greek – and far the best Greek scholar in the university, he was appointed to teach the Freshmen during the first, term, from the middle of September to Christmas. It was thought best they should have an experienced teacher, one who would train them thoroughly and thus give them a good start. During the rest of the scholastic year he taught Greek to the Junior class. What concerns us at present is the method he adopted for training these Freshmen. It was as follows, and from its description you can easily judge how much it resembled the method of the Ratio.

The author to be read was Homer's Iliad, and in our year, 1857, the fourteenth book of the Iliad was the book assigned. The students used to say that some book after the first six was chosen, because Anthon's copious notes to these six books amounted to a translation. The real reason which was given to us at the time I have forgotten, but it was doubtless because this book is one of the most characteristic of the Iliad. Whatever was the reason, the Freshmen of our year were told that the fourteenth book was to be read. The class – numbering 120 – was divided into three divisions. The first division went into Greek for the first hour, 7 A. M., the second division at 11, and the third at 5 P. M. Professor Hadley had thus three hours of class daily, but to each division he explained the same matter.