Education and Science. 411 



expansion of the work entrusted to the guardians of the old "' schools 

 of design," the result being the full blossoming of another depart- 

 ment, the Department of Science and Art, — a department always con- 

 scious of its good deeds and therefore proud of its separate existence. 

 As for secondary education, reforms, though coming late, came in 

 fair quantity after the passing of the Endowed Schools Act of 1869; 

 but a third separate executive body was called into existence by that 

 Act, viz., the Endowed Schools Commission, later the Charity Com- 

 missioners. It has to be remembered, further, that secondary schools 

 existed beyond the control of those Commissioners, and that the full 

 extent of the confusion in the management of secondary education 

 was not even approximatelv known until a much later date. Stranger 

 still, when an entirel) new branch (jf education had to be attended 

 to in 1887. viz.. technical education, none of the lofal eduixitional 

 bodies already in existence were entrusted with it. but. as we have 

 seen, it was handed over to the Councils established by the Local 

 Government Act of 1888. Sooner or later the various authorities 

 thus created were sure to come into conflict; and the greater the 

 activitv .shown bv them individuallv. and the greater the outside 

 demand hrv educational development, the sooner would the clashing 

 . of the interests become intoleral)le and action towards luiitication 

 liecome neressarv. During the last dei'ade of the century this stage 

 wa^s reached, and people and Government both felt that an epoch- 

 making step had to be taken. After the usual vexatious delays an 

 Act was passed in 1899 creating a Board of Education to take the 

 place of the Education Department, the Science and Art Dejjartment, 

 the Charity Commission, .so far as its educational work was con- 

 cerned, and even the Hoard of Agriculture to the same extent. Great 

 as this measure must be viewed, it was onlv the prelude to a greater, 

 viz.. the Education Ad of 1902. While the former unified the 

 Government departments dealing with education, the latter mav be 

 said to aim at ultimately bringing about a like unification of the local 

 authorities. In view of the many diverse interests involved, a per- 

 fect unification was hardly at first possible: l)ut much has l)een don 

 by it towards placing all education, save L'niversity Education, undei 

 the local control of the County and Borough Councils. The Act 

 is only a few months old, and we cannot therefore look for results; 

 but it is not too much to say that almost all educationists who can 

 hold themselves aloof from ecclesiastical and political partisanshi}) 

 have high hopes of good from it. an<l look forward to ini|iro\ ements 

 upon it in the future. 



The third tendency which claims attention is the tendency 

 towards Natioiialisaiion. Fortunatelv. it is so bound up with the 

 second that a few additional words will suffice for it. So' late as the 

 early part of the nineteenth centurv the English State .seemed uncon- 

 scious of having any direct dutv in regard to the education of its 

 people. The providing of schools was apparentiv held to be the 

 work of religious and philanthropic bodies, or a matter to be left to 

 private enterprise. Wiser views must have been in circulation bv the 

 time ('i8^^9') a separate Department of Education came to be created; 



Di) 2 



