our vessel making straight for harbour,
that we relax our jealous watch, and consider anxiety irrational. Such in
a measure has been my feeling in the foregoing inquiry; in which indeed I
have been in want neither of authoritative principles nor distinct
precedents, but of treatises _in extenso_ on the subject on which I have
written,--the finished work of writers, who, by their acknowledged judgment
and erudition, might furnish me for my private guidance with a running
instruction on each point which successively came under review.

I have spoken of the arduousness of my "immediate" undertaking, because
what I have been attempting has been of a preliminary nature, not
contemplating the duties of the Church towards a University, nor the
characteristics of a University which is Catholic, but inquiring what a
University is, what is its aim, what its nature, what its bearings. I have
accordingly laid down first, that all branches of knowledge are, at least
implicitly, the subject-matter of its teaching; that these branches are
not isolated and independent one of another, but form together a whole or
system; that they run into each other, and complete each other, and that,
in proportion to our view of them as a whole, is the exactness and
trustworthiness of the knowledge which they separately convey; that the
process of imparting knowledge to the intellect in this philosophical way
is its true culture; that such culture is a good in itself; that the
knowledge which is both its instrument and result is called Liberal
Knowledge; that such culture, together with the knowledge which effects
it, may fitly be sought for its own sake; that it is, however, in
addition, of great secular utility, as constituting the best and highest
formation of the intellect for social and political life; and lastly,
that, considered in a religious aspect, it concurs with Christianity a
certain way, and then diverges from it; and consequently proves in the
event, sometimes its serviceable ally, sometimes, from its very
resemblance to it, an insidious and dangerous foe.

Though, however, these Discourses have only professed to be preliminary,
being directed to the investigation of the object and nature of the
Education which a University professes to impart, at the same time I do
not like to conclude without making some remarks upon the duties of the
Church towards it, or rather on the ground of those duties. If the
Catholic Faith is true, a Univers