6i6 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



and method must be universally taught. We ask to be at once 

 admitted to equal rights with the three Ks\\ is no question of 

 an alternative subject. This can not be too clearly stated, and 

 the battle must be fought out on this issue within the next few 

 years. 



Well, gentlemen and ladies, you have the honor of forming 

 part of the advanced guard in the army which is fighting this 

 battle for the fight is begun in real earnest, although as yet on 

 a small scale ; nevertheless, in this case, the small beginning must 

 have a great ending. 



I had long sought for an opportunity of carrying the war into 

 the camp of elementary education, and this came about four years 

 ago when my friend Mr. Hugh Gordon was appointed one of the 

 Science Demonstrators of the London School Board. During at 

 least three years prior to his appointment, Mr. Gordon had been 

 doing research work in the laboratory of which I have charge at 

 the City and Guilds of London Institute Central Technical Col- 

 lege, where he had also taken part in our elementary teaching, 

 and he was already an ardent advocate of the educational policy 

 of which I am so strong a supporter. Under the London School 

 Board he achieved a marvelous success, and the work that he has 

 done as a pioneer can not be too highly appreciated. He secured 

 your confidence and sympathy, and interested his pupils; and 

 working in a most unpromising field, under conditions of a most 

 unsatisfactory and often depressing character, he has proved that 

 to be possible, even easy (to the competent and willing teacher !), 

 which my friends in higher grade schools have often scofi^ed at 

 and declared to be impossible. In future, no public school will 

 be able to excuse itself, except on the ground of want of will to 

 give such teaching. I have often been told that our scheme was 

 too costly, that much special provision must be made to carry it 

 into effect, and that it requires so much time and such an increase 

 in the teaching staff : my friend Gordon, with your assistance 

 alone and no other addition to the staff", by successfully teaching, 

 I believe, in seventeen of your schools, has given all these state- 

 ments the lie. But I confess that as yet there are few who could 

 accomplish so much ; few equally well fitted and prepared for the 

 work, so imbued with the right spirit, so convinced that the cause 

 is a great and holy one, gifted with sufficient energy and enthu- 

 siasm to overcome the difficulties. The little book he has written, 

 in which the first part of the course of teaching he adopted is 

 broadly outlined,* although containing a few slight blemishes 

 which mar its otherwise logical character blemishes which will 

 be very easily removed in a second edition appears to me to be 



* Cf. Nature, IH'.Ci, vol. xlix, p. 121. 



