224 Transactions of the Canadian Institute. [vol. ix 



many provinces, and when there are thousands of boys and men unable 

 to read or sign their names to a pay-roll, we may well be ashamed to see 

 in Belgium or Switzerland greatly higher general school opportunities; 

 indeed we may see enough to give us pause as self-confident Canadians. 



It is surely with pain that we contrast the thorough preparation 

 secured from the Gymnasium in Germany and the High Schools of Edin- 

 burgh, Glasgow or London, with v/hat those of us who have been Educa- 

 tionalists for years have seen of hundreds of our poorly prepared matri- 

 culants, who present themselves for a University course. 



An investigation into our factories, machine shops and business 

 places all through Canada tells the same story, that the working lads com- 

 ing from our schools have been very poorly instructed. We used to 

 think the three Rs a very modest measure of acquirement for a lad leaving 

 the public schools, but now we are quite familiar with his having not even 

 that acquisition. 



We cannot disguise the fact from ourselves, that, though Govern- 

 ments seem to make liberal donations to education, though many munici- 

 palities take pride in their public schools, though the inspectorates are 

 well manned, yet there is in almost every province of the Dominion 

 growing up a very considerable percentage of the young who are prac- 

 tically illiterate. 



Now, this very lamentable state of things, which in the last forty or 

 fifty years of our experience has been forming the standards of hundreds 

 of our communities in all the provinces from the Atlantic to the Pacific, 

 has produced a public opinion none too favorable to higher culture and 

 the acquisition of a good sound education. The Mechanics in many 

 cases do not value the reputation for efficiency. Men, as we have seen 

 them — "handymen" — undertake to do work which they cannot do and 

 "turn their hand" to anything that may present itself. A member of 

 the Royal Commission hada stock question for carpenters: — "Could you 

 build a winding staircase or a complicated house- roof?" Not one quar- 

 ter of the witnesses could answer "Yes. " 



Teachers on permits without knowledge or facility make teaching 

 a farce. Doctors have entered their profession who did not adorn it, 

 and even, I am afraid, ministers innocent even of "Scant Latin and less 

 Greek" were none too strong either in philosophy or general erudition. 



I state these things because I fear that they indicate a serious im- 

 perfection of training, a carelessness about standards, and an unwilling- 

 ness to surrender some of our fallacies, that may interfere with any effort 

 to rouse our educational boards, our civic authorities, our cabinets and 

 parliaments, to look on thoroughness and efficiency in education, labour 

 and professional life, as absolutely essential to our Industrial success. 



