Expert Views on Empire Emigration. 



183 



with the recommendation of the Tennyson Committee, 

 and also the recommendation of the Standing 

 Emigration Committee of the Royal Colonial Institute. 



THE CHILD EMIGRATION SOCIETY. 



My Committee also approve of the statements con- 

 tained in Mr. Hawkes' report to the Canadian Govern- 

 ment. 



Thi.s Society was founded by a Rhodes Scholar at 

 O.xford in October, 1909, and the Rhodes Trustees 

 have made a grant of £100 towards it. The object of 

 the Society is to establish a farm-school in W'estern 

 Australia, which will fit British boys to take up good 

 positions on farms in the Colony, and girls for useful 

 occupations in Colonial households, and teach them 

 how to take care of themselves under the conditions of 

 Colonial life. It is obvious that the sending out of 

 children untrained, unfit, and with no knowledge of 

 the life they will have to lead, is worse than useless. 

 The aim, therefore, of the Society is to supply this 

 two-fold need — the need for a training which will 

 enable orphan and destitute British children to earn 

 their own living, and the need of the Overseas 

 Dominions for trained farm labourers, farmers, and 

 domestic girls. In this aim the Society has enlisted 

 the enthusiastic aid of the Government of Western 

 Australia, who have placed at their disposal an area of 

 1,000 acres, and will bear part of the cost of transport ; 

 while the primary educational system of the State will 

 be available for the children. The Local Government 

 Board is ready to allow Boards of Guardians to emigrate 

 children to the farm-school, and several IJoards have 

 notified their intention of doing so. The principles of 

 the farm-school system are, shorth-, that the boys and 

 girls be trained continuously from their first arrival 

 at the farm-school, for farm and domestic work ; that 

 religious instruction be given on the basis of a Creed 

 Register ; that the children be brought up with a 

 knowledge of Empire history ; that any profits made 

 from the farm Ix; divided among the children, rateably 

 according to age, conduct, capacity, etc. ; that the 

 older children be given a share in the government of 

 the farm-school ; and that the boys 

 and girls shall have as free social in- 

 tercourse as experience proves to be 

 desirable. Trained nurses and matron.' 

 will form part of the staff, an<l tin 

 children svill be kept in the open air 

 as much as pos^ble, thus securing; 

 their sound physi<|ue. The primary 

 education of Western Australia is 

 considered to be of a very high order 

 and thoroughly up-to-date, and will 

 be provifle<l free of cost by the State, 

 and the farm children will thus be in 

 daily conta't during term time wiili 

 local Australian children. It will 

 be the duty of tin- Society to M' 

 thr<t the agric-ultural and domcstii 

 mstruclion of the f.irm - school i.-. 

 equally elVn ienl ; and every oppor- 

 tunity will be afforded the children 

 of turning their ib. ■•il. 1 ludics Typicn c.t 



to practical account in their own gardens. The 

 formation of the character of the average child 

 depends very largely on its environment and early 

 training. The aim of the Society is to turn out resource- 

 ful, self-reliant, disciplined children. They will be 

 allowed, and expected, to do everjlhing possible for 

 themselves, and for purposes of discipline one of the 

 methods of the Boy Scout mo\'ement has been adopted 

 — the division of the school into units of five children, 

 one of whom is older than the others, and is held more 

 or less responsible for them. Records of the individual 

 children will be kept at the farm-school, and reports 

 will be sent home periodically to the E.xecutive Com- 

 mittee in England. Parties of children (from eight to 

 ten years old) will be sent out of England from time to 

 time under the charge of responsible persons. The first 

 batch of children leave very shorth'. At fourteen the 

 children will leave the primary school and will be at 

 liberty to seek work as wage-earners, but it is hoped to 

 induce many of them to stay on at the farm-school 

 until they are at least sixteen or older. In this con- 

 nection it is important to note that the Society is 

 taking steps to secure legal control of the children 

 for some years after they leave the primary school, 

 so as to pre^•ent them from going to undesirable 

 employment. 



'Ihe Society is doing very valuable and necessary 

 work in emigrating these children, who. in the over- 

 crowned stiite of the labour market in Great Britain, 

 would have no real chance, but wh(), given the proper 

 training, may well become happy and useful citizens 

 of our Colonies. The Child Emigration Society proposes 

 to found farm-schools in all parts of the Empire a^ 

 opportunities arise and funds permit. 



Ajbi~>L'.ii it\jy ill 



