5i2 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY 



that the state can wisely permanently entrust the education of the 

 individuals to any group of men or any group of interests. Logically 

 this could only happen when the group interests become identical to the 

 interests of the state. 



The danger of permitting commercial interests to provide all educa- 

 tion would be probably as great as the danger of extending that privi- 

 lege to religious denominations. The commercial interests are not 

 fearing a dearth in their supply of presidents and directors of their 

 companies. These high offices can willingly be handed over to the 

 friends and sons of the controlling millionaires. What they do want 

 is trained labor. They want the stenographers who can give the great- 

 est numbers of words for their money. They want draughtsmen who 

 can give the most and best designs for a particular machine. They 

 want in every case experts who can give the best judgment on a partic- 

 ular line of goods. It is of less than secondary interest to the factory 

 owner, whether any of his employees can vote intelligently and con- 

 scientiously, or it may be stated more broadly that he little cares 

 whether the men of his corporation are morally sound. Although it 

 may seem a little inconsistent, he does want men who will not rob his 

 cash register, or purposely endanger the owner's life. Consequently 

 there are organized commercial interests at work in this country trying 

 to get the universities to give the professional students a more narrow 

 education than they now receive. They call it a more efficient educa- 

 tion. They insist that it is scandalous that an engineering graduate is 

 not worth more than twenty cents an hour to start, forgetting that the 

 ideals and practises of society should be raised »to a higher level by the 

 work of the university. The late Mr. Crane recently, in criticizing the 

 professional education of the University of Illinois, stated that the cost 

 of training was out of all proportion to the product. He figured that 

 the really successful electrical engineer cost the state upwards of 

 $18,000. My reply is that the electrical engineering profession to-day 

 stands as a monument to good investment of money and energy in pure 

 and applied science, and this without calling especial attention to the 

 betterment of society by the better class of engineers. 



On the other hand, if the church controlled education, the training 

 would perhaps be so idealistic that there might be considerable doubt 

 if any of the practical needs of the professions would be met. A really 

 successful electrical engineer would not be produced at any cost. 

 Church education, naturally conservative, would be entirely inadequate 

 for the needs of our changing democracy, even if it should try to elim- 

 inate creed. The conclusion is that even if the preachers, the doctors, 

 the dentists, or the engineers would furnish all the money to educate 

 their kind, the state can not afford to risk giving them this privilege. 



The plea is that the state university, as the only fit organ of the 



