STATE EDUCATION: A HELP OR HINDRANCE? 593 



much less the duty of providing for an old parent than is the case 

 either in France or Germany. With us, each man unconsciously rea- 

 sons, " Why should I do that which the state will do for me ? " All 

 such institutions possess a philanthropical outside, but inwardly they 

 are full of moral helplessness and selfishness. 



These, then, are the first charges that I bring against state educa- 

 tion : that the forced payments taken from other classes place the 

 workman under an obligation ; that, in consequence, the upper and 

 middle classes interfere in the education of his children ; that under a 

 political system there is no place for his personal views, but that prac- 

 tically the only course of action left open to him is to join one of the 

 two parties who are already organized in opposition to each other, and 

 record a vote in favor of one of them once in three years. I do not 

 mean to make the extreme statement that it is impossible to persuade 

 either one party or both parties to adopt some educational reform, but 

 I mean to say that one body acting for a whole country or a whole 

 town can only pursue one method, and therefore must act to the ex- 

 clusion of all views which are not in accordance with that one method ; 

 and that bodies which are organized for fighting purposes, and whose 

 first great object is to defeat other great bodies nearly as powerful as 

 themselves, are bound by the law of their own condition not to be 

 easily moved by considerations which do not increase their fighting 

 efficiency. 



I have just touched upon the evils of uniformity in education ; but 

 there is more to say on the .matter. At present we have one system 

 of education applied to the whole of England. The local character of 

 school boards deceives us, and makes us believe that some variety and 

 freedom of action exist. In reality they have only the power to apply 

 an established system. They must use the same class of teachers ; 

 they must submit to the same inspectors ; the children must be pre- 

 pared for the same examinations, and pass in the same standards. 

 There are some slight differences, but they are few and of little value. 

 Now, if any one wishes to realize the full mischief which this uniform- 

 ity works, let him think of what would be the result of a uniform 

 method being established everywhere in religion, art, science, or any 

 trade or profession. Let him remember that canon of Mr. Herbert 

 Spencer, so pregnant with meaning, that progress is difference. There- 

 fore, if you desire progress, you must not make it difficult for men to 

 think and act differently ; you must not dull their senses with routine, 

 or stamp their imagination with the official pattern of some great de- 

 partment. If you desire progress, you must remove all obstacles that 

 impede for each man the exercise of his reasoning and imaginative 

 faculties in his own way ; and you must do nothing to lessen the re- 

 wards which he expects in return for his exertions. And in what does 

 this reward consist ? Often in the simple triumph of the truth of some 

 opinion. It is marvelous how much toil men will undergo for the sake 

 vol. ivn. 38 



