102 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
afterwards follow or criticize his proof; moreover the average French 
boy could certainly soon become an expert in such mental gymnastics. 
We remark that most of the mathematical subjects mentioned above 
are more or less foreign to our secondary education. Instruction in 
geometrical conics (courbes usuelles), is infrequently given by us, even 
in universities. Again, the ordinary mathematical student who goes 
up for his doctor’s degree in America may have the vaguest idea of 
what is even meant by Descriptive Geometery. True, it is a regular 
course for our training of the engineer; but not, unfortunately, of the 
mathematician. On the other hand the French mathematical student 
has had at least four years of Descriptive Geometry, two of them before 
receiving his baccalauréat. The subject is required for admission into 
many government schools. 
We note that the idea of a derivative is familiar to the lycéen 
during the last two years of his course. Why we so generally shut out 
the introduction of such an idea into our first courses in analytical 
geometry and theory of equations is, to me, a mystery. Finally, I 
would remark that the classes in Mathématiques A last two hours, 
with the exception of five minutes for recreation at the end of the first 
hour. The professor thus has sufficient time to amplify and impress 
his instruction. 
At the close of the last year of the Second Cycle, the éléve takes the 
examination for the second part of the baccalauréat. The same general 
conditions prevail as for the first part. Under no conditions whatever 
can an éléve try the second part till he has passed the first. The jury 
of four contains two university professors. The written examinations 
in mathematics, physics and philosophy are each three hours long; 
the oral covers what has been studied the year previously. If successful, 
a dipolma now called the baccalauréat de Venseignement secondaire, is 
granted to the éléve by the Minister of Public Instruction. The éléve 
thus becomes a bachelier. The diplomas in all four sections are of the 
same scholastic value. The charge made for diploma and examination 
is 90 francs. By reference to the foregoing statistical table, it will be 
noticed that more than forty per cent. of the candidates failed to pass 
at each of the examinations in 1909. 
Because of the similarity of title used in the different countries, 
the Frenchman does not generally understand what the title Bachelor 
of Arts implies nor is it easy to make any concise statement in explana- 
tion. Little exaggeration can be made, however, in placing the bachelier 
on a plane of scholastic equality with the Sophomore who has finished 
his year at one of the best American universities. Certain it is that the 
bachelier in Latin-Grec has done as much of the dead languages, philos- 
ophy and history as is required in the whole pass course of the ordinary 
