292 NATURAL SCIENCE. may, 



half-dozen classes composed of similar classical disparities would form 

 an interesting study, and might perchance convince them of the 

 futility of attempting to teach any subject under such conditions. 



The great importance of practical work in the laboratory has not 

 yet been grasped. It is true that at many Public Schools practical 

 work can be done, and is taken advantage of by many training for a 

 scientific career ; but the proportion of those who do practical work 

 to those who attend science-lectures shows that the real value of the 

 training has not been appreciated at head-quarters. For instance, at 

 Eton no practical work is done " in school " ; at Winchester some 

 go boys out of 270 avail themselves of their opportunities ; at Rugby 

 about 180 out of 400 ; at Charterhouse some 30 have the opportunity 

 out of 400 odd ; at Uppingham but 14 out of 150 ; while at Harrow, 

 Shrewsbury, Marlborough, Cheltenham, Malvern, Dulwich, and 

 University College School all who learn science also do practical 

 work. 



But to turn from details to general principles of education. The 

 idea is prevalent among too many of those who control the Public 

 Schools that the literary education is the sole method of training a 

 growing mind ; accordingly by far the greater part of a boy's time in 

 school is occupied with Greek and Latin. Now a literary taste is 

 possessed by but few, and though we are very far from denying the 

 value of such a training to a boy more disposed to science or the 

 mathematics, yet we deem it monstrous that all boys should, by 

 the average curriculum, be compelled to specialise in the Classics 

 through devoting more than half their time to the subjects included 

 under this term and dividing the remainder among Mathematics, 

 Modern Languages and Science. A classical training is, to the 

 average boy, but a series of appeals to the memory ; the faculties of 

 observation, deduction based upon experiment, and natural inquisi- 

 tiveness are absolutely neglected, and their growth discouraged and 

 stunted. Original thought, independence of action, and self-con- 

 fidence are in no sense educated by the classics. What is the result ? 

 We witness at the present day a perfect mania for athleticism, which, 

 starting in the schools, pervades the great mass of the younger male 

 population. Literature as a recreation is at a severe discount. It is 

 our belief that this athletic craze, so deplorable in its excess, is in no 

 small degree a natural revolt of the mind from the trammels of a 

 one-sided education. In athletics at any rate there is scope for a 

 certain training of hand and eye, it is open to any one by his own 

 efforts and perseverance to attain to the highest things, to act upon 

 his own initiative, to devise some refinement hitherto unthought of, 

 and to gain confidence in self by successful grappling with difficulties. 



It is not difficult to pick holes in any system, nor would our 

 present remarks be justifiable were we not prepared with something 

 other than mere destructive criticism. We would suggest to the 

 Public Schools that their education be more general and adapted to 



