ies; which down even to these days, for six
centuries now, have gone on to found themselves. Such, I conceive, was
the origin of Universities.

It is clear, however, that with this simple circumstance, facility of
getting Books, the whole conditions of the business from top to bottom
were changed. Once invent Printing, you metamorphosed all
Universities, or superseded them! The Teacher needed not now to gather
men personally round him, that he might _speak_ to them what he knew:
print it in a Book, and all learners far and wide, for a trifle, had
it each at his own fireside, much more effectually to learn
it!--Doubtless there is still peculiar virtue in Speech; even writers
of Books may still, in some circumstances, find it convenient to speak
also,--witness our present meeting here! There _is_, one would say,
and must ever remain while man has a tongue, a distinct province for
Speech as well as for Writing and Printing. In regard to all things
this must remain; to Universities among others. But the limits of the
two have nowhere yet been pointed out, ascertained; much less put in
practice: the University which would completely take-in that great new
fact, of the existence of Printed Books, and stand on a clear footing
for the Nineteenth Century as the Paris one did for the Thirteenth,
has not yet come into existence. If we think of it, all that a
University, or final highest School can do for us, is still but what
the first School began doing,--teach us to _read_. We learn to _read_,
in various languages, in various sciences; we learn the alphabet and
letters of all manner of Books. But the place where we go to get
knowledge, even theoretic knowledge, is the Books themselves! It
depends on what we read, after all manner of Professors have done
their best for us. The true University of these days is a Collection
of Books.

But to the Church itself, as I hinted already, all is changed, in its
preaching, in its working, by the introduction of Books. The Church is
the working recognised Union of our Priests or Prophets, of those who
by wise teaching guide the souls of men. While there was no Writing,
even while there was no Easy-writing or _Printing_, the preaching of
the voice was the natural sole method of performing this. But now with
Books!--He that can write a true Book, to persuade England, is not he
the Bishop and Archbishop, the Primate of England and of All England?
I many a time say, the writers of Newspapers,