412 TECHNICAL EDUCATION xvi 



Exactly so; that remark takes us straight to 

 the heart of what I have to say; which is, that, 

 in my judgment, the preparatory education of 

 the handicraftsman ought to have nothing of 

 what is ordinarily understood by " technical '* 

 about it. 



The workshop is the only real school for a 

 handicraft. The education which precedes tliat 

 of the workshop should be entirely devoted to the 

 strengthening of the body, the elevation of the 

 moral faculties, and the cultivation of the intelli- 

 gence; and, especially, to the imbuing the mind 

 witli a broad and clear view of the laws of that 

 natural world with the components of which the 

 handicraftsman will have to deal. And, the earlier 

 the period of life at which the handicraftsman has 

 to enter into actual practice of his craft, the more 

 important is it that he should devote the precious 

 hours of preliminary education to things of the 

 mind, which have no direct and immediate bearing 

 on his branch of industry, though they lie at the 

 foundation of all realities. 



Now let me apply the lessons I have learned 

 from my handicraft to yours. If any of you were 

 obliged to take an apprentice, I suppose you would 

 like to get a good healthy lad, ready and willing 

 to learn, handy, and with his fingers not all 

 thumbs, as the saying goes. You would like that 

 he should read, write, and cipher well; and, if 



