454 



NATURE 



[April 6, 1876 



not yet been able to obtain the sanction of their Legisla- 

 tures for the ratification of the Convention, and they 

 requested further time for this purpose. The Argentine 

 Republic and Venezuela also requested further time, and 

 the requests were granted. Brazil alone declined to ratify 

 the Convention and take part in its objects. 



Before the adjournment of the late French National 

 Assembly, they passed a law which was introduced by the 

 French Government to grant the Pavilion Breteuil at St. 

 Cloud, with some adjoining land, to the directors of the 

 International Bureau for the purposes of this scientific 

 institution, so long as it shall continue in existence. 



The following appear to be the approximate proportions 

 which the several contracting States will have to contribute 

 towards the expenses of the new International Metric 

 Bureau, based on Article 20 of the Regulations, by which 

 the unit of contribution is to be determined from the 

 population of each State, expressed in millions, and mul- 

 tiplied by the coefficient 3 for those countries where the 

 metric system is adopted compulsorily ; by 2 where it is 

 adopted permissively ; and by i for other countries. 



If Great Britain had taken part in the Convention, the 

 contribution from this country towards the expenses of 

 establishing the International Bureau would have been 

 about 600/., and towards the annual expenditure for the 

 first period about 150/. a year. 



The International Committee are now therefore in a 

 position at once to commence operations. They are to 

 meet at least once a year, and between their session can 

 deliberate and pass resolutions by correspondence. They 

 considered that at least a year must elapse from Jan. i, 

 1876, before their new building and instruments will be 

 ready for use. They therefore passed a resolution 

 charging their executive to notify to the French Section 

 that the Committee would not be prepared to commence 

 their comparisons and verifications of the new Metric 

 Standards before the spring of 1877. This will give 

 plenty of time to the French Section to complete the 

 construction of these new Standards and to make all 

 such comparisons with the Standards of the Archives 

 and with each other as may be necessary to ascertain 



their values with the requisite precision, before delivering 

 the Standards to the International Committee for defini- 

 tive verification. H. W. Chisholm 



PHYSICAL SCIENCE IN SCHOOLS 



T T may contribute profitably to the discussion of the 

 ■^ subject of Physical Science in Schools, if I state 

 briefly the experience of an effort, extending over twenty- 

 eight years, to give this subject a prominent, if not its 

 merited place in our work. I may say that my boys 

 rarely go to a university, and are almost wholly absorbed 

 in professions, manufactures, and commerce. 



Mr. Tuckwell's propositions (Nature, vol. xiii., p. 412) 

 are good, but perhaps the following modifications are 

 better : — 



1. The business of a school is general education j the 

 business of a university is special education. 



2. The branches of study for the general education of 

 a school should be Language, Mathematics, Natural 

 Science, and Art. 



3. Some knowledge of each of these should be imposed 

 on every pupil ; but each pupil should be allowed to 

 apply himself chiefly to that branch of study for which he 

 shows the most natural aptitude, and which therefore will 

 to Itivt be the best means of education. 



4. The matriculation examinations for entrance to the 

 universities should require a fixed standard of knowledge 

 of all these branches of education ; and give equal 

 honours for excellence in either. 



I think this would place science on an equal footing 

 with language and mathematics, in both school and uni- 

 versity, and would in due time relieve us of the conven- 

 tional pedantry which regards language as the only 

 sufficient standard of an educated man, and ignorance of 

 the simplest elements of science as no disgrace. 



Now for our own practice and experience. At nine or 

 ten years of age our boys get simple lessons on wild flowers, 

 which they collect, are taught to examine and describe, 

 and write a simple account of ; necessary help of course 

 being given. 



On graduating to the upper school, which they do from 

 ten to twelve years of age, they get three hours a week for 

 descriptive lessons on botanical and zoological subjects, 

 with reproductions and as much of classification as is 

 practicable ; and on meteorological phenomena and heat, 

 illustrated by the daily and seasonal variations that affect 

 themselves. The object here is to cultivate the ob- 

 serving powers, to induce discrimination of distinctive 

 features, and to promote a thoughtful apprehension of the 

 most easily discerned natural phenomena. 



In the next grade four hours are given to science, and 

 the study becomes more special. Mechanics is the sub- 

 ject taken, and if this subject be treated simply, and care 

 be taken not to overrun the mathematical knowledge, it 

 may be made sufficiently attractive, and a valuable means 

 of thoughtful training in science. 



In the next grade two hours a week are taken from 

 mechanics, and chemistry is begun. 



In the next grade the other two hours are taken from 

 mechanics, and given to physiology — i. Vegetable ; 2. 

 Animal ; so that the subjects here are physiology and 

 chemistry with manipulation. In this grade, also, one 

 hour a week is taken from the two commonly given to 

 geography, and given to political economy. The boys in 

 this grade will also often give special time to chemical 

 manipulation, and to practical work in physiology. We 

 have also workshops where a considerable amount of very 

 good work in both wood and metal is regularly turned 

 out, play time only being used. 



It may be that I am rather exacting on my own efforts, 

 but 1 have never been satisfied with our science teaching, 

 and the current discussion of the subject in Nature has 

 added very materially to my dissatisfaction. To be dis- 



