72 
ART MUSEUMS, CONSIDERED AS A MEANS 
OF EDUCATION. 
By Rev. W. S. CAIGER. October 21st, 1884. 
Mr. Caiger remarked that mankind had other needs than 
could be satisfied by bread alone. Though utility rather than 
beauty must remain as the first object to be attained among 
practical men, yet there was a wide-spread conviction that there 
were other wants in human nature if it had to be healthy. There 
were times when deep longings after enlightenment and beauty 
filled the mind; and such employment as the study of what was 
excellent in art provided largely for the satisfying of these 
emotions. Without art and the remains of art, history could not 
be adequately realized. Her glorious secrets could be appreciated 
in such undying works as could be seen in the British Museum 
and the National Gallery. The inspection and study of good 
examples of ancient art directly affected technical work of all 
kinds, and instances were afforded in recent years of improve- 
ments resulting from displays of valuable ancient collections of 
art products. They did not wish meaningless design to be added 
to technical skill, but they desired that the work of the artisan 
should be sound in character and have tasteful decorations. For 
some time past there had been a gradual growth in art culture 
which had permeated all classes of the community. Not only 
had the improvement been noticeable in the homes of the cultured 
classes, but it had been reflected in the cottages of the labouring 
classes. It did not require the eloquence of John Ruskin to point 
out how mean was the life of the artisan in his usual surround- 
ings, presenting a monotony unbroken by new thoughts or 
emotions. There had been, and were being, attempts made, and 
not always futile, to invest the life of the operative and artisan 
with a certain beauty. In most men, even among the most 
ignorant, there was a sense and appreciation of beauty. Mr. 
Caiger said that to him that appreciation was specially manifested 
on the occasion of the holding of the Exhibition in St. Jude’s 
School, Whitechapel, London, a few years ago. The Rey. 8. A. 
Barnett, with the assistance of some friends, instituted this 
Exhibition, and by lectures and description of the objects, 
imparted an educational and refining element to the influence of 
the Exhibition. Without asserting that art education was a 
universal panacea, yet. much could be done by art museums for 
the elevation of the people. They taught the Divine lesson of 
discontent with what was ugly in their homes, and turned their 
minds into the world of beauty and thought. Much was wanting 
in their large manufacturing towns. The ideal of municipal life 
