1887.] on the Work of the Impel ial Institute. 117 



The necessity wliicli has gradually made itself felt in the manu- 

 facturing towns of the United Kingdom for encouraging the study of 

 science in its apjjlication to industries, by those who intend to devote 

 themselves to some branch of manufacture or trade, has led to the 

 establishment in about twenty-five towns in England and Scotland, 

 and in two or three in Ireland, of colleges of science corresponding 

 more or less to the Continental polytechnic schools, and accomplishing 

 important work in training students in the different branches of 

 science in their applications to manufactures and the arts. A number 

 of these, such as the Owen's College, Manchester, the Yorkshire 

 College, at Leeds, the Glasgow and Bradford Technical Colleges, the 

 Firth College at Sheffield, and the Mason's College at Birmingham, 

 have established a high reputation as schools where science in its 

 applications to productive industries is most efficiently taught and 

 iiuportanlly advaucL-d. 



The Wealthier of the City Companies, some of which had long 

 been identified with important educational establishments, associated 

 themselves with the Corporation of the City of London nearly ten 

 years ago to establish an organisation for the advancement of technical 

 education, which has already carried out most important work. The 

 Society of Arts, which initiated the system of examinations, afterwards 

 so successfully developed by the Science and Art Department, set on 

 foot and conducted for several years examinations of artizans in a few 

 branches of technology. This useful work was relinquished in 1879 

 to the City and Guilds' Institute, and its extension since that period 

 has been most satisfactory. The number of candidates then pre- 

 senting themselves was 202, distributed over twenty-three centres 

 where examinations were held, four years afterwards (1883) the 

 number presenting themselves for examinations was 2397, and last 

 year they amounted to 4764. The centres where examinations are 

 held have been increased to 186, and the number of subjects dealt 

 with, from thirteen to forty-eight. The beneficial influence exercised 

 by these examinations upon the development and extension of 

 technical instruction in the manufacturing districts throughout the 

 country is already very marked. The adoption of the system, 

 originated by the Science and Art Department, of contributing to the 

 payment of teachers in proportion to the successes attained by their 

 pupils, is operating most succesfully in promoting the establishment 

 and extension of classes for instruction in technical subjects, in 

 connexion with Mechanics' Institutes and other educational establish- 

 ments in various centres of industry. In 1884, the number of classes 

 in different parts of the country and metropolis which are connected 

 with the examinations of the Institute was 262, having 6395 

 students, and this year the number of classes has risen to 357, and 

 that of students to 8500. 



The Technical College at Finsbury was the first great practical 

 outcome of the efforts made by the City and Guilds' Institute to 

 supplement existing educational machinery, by the creation of techno- 



