Some Axioms of Corporate Education. 59 



education might be suited to the conditions of the colony in the course 

 of time. 



There is at present a quite good " Teachers' Seminary " existing in 

 the colony unsuspected by official educationists. I refer to the Experi- 

 mental fields and the Agricultural Apprenticeships under the ^ Director of 

 Science snd Agriculture" Offer Second Class Teachers' Certificates to the 

 apprentices recommended by the Director on completion of their course, 

 if they can pass a simple examination in Reading, Writing and Arithmetic 

 up to Simple Proportion. If the apprentice has gone creditably through 

 his Agricultural course, and has an ordinary equipment of literary 

 efficiency, he has exactly the training that is wanted for an elementary 

 teacher " in the colony. The finger training, of vvhich we have 

 spoken, will function' in cultivating readiness of resource in mani- 

 pulating and adapting natural products to useful purposes, and in 

 preparing the pupil for whatever handicraft or profession he may 

 afterwards adopt as a means to a maintenance. Perhaps little can 

 be done under the heads of the third and fourth activities, in 

 the way of absolute training, but the healthy moral atmosphere 

 created around him by a clean man, supplemented by carefully 

 selected reading lessons most of which should be memorised as a 

 regular part of the school course would function in preparing for 

 the assimilation of a right attitude in social life. The first re- 

 quirement in a schoolmaster, who is daily in contact with young and 

 developing natures, should of course be a very high standard of moral 

 health and Christian character. Probably, on the average, a denominational 

 system of schools tends to secure this factor in humane influences better 

 than a purely civil oversight has ever done. At least it is evident that 

 the vagueness of outlook in respect to spiritual things, unfortunately 

 common in this age amongst men of secular pursuits, limits the choice of 

 civil officials equipped for the organisation of the training of young 

 humanity. A statesman with a broad outlook on the relative values of 

 different human factors, even without the bias of religious sentiment, will 

 not ignore the way in which religion functions in the formation of that 

 type of character which goes to make good citizenship. The confusion 

 resulting from the existence of numerous religious sects conspires with 

 the official passion for uniformity of system, to tempt the puzzled 

 legislator to cut the Gordion knot by excluding religion from his school 

 code. This, however, is no solution of a difficulty which in reality for the 

 statesman as such, does not exist, at least until he has decided for the 

 ends of statesmanship, that point on which theologians have never yet 

 been able to agree, that there is one only absolutely desirable system of 

 dogma and ritual. It would then be his business as statesman to see that 

 this system and no other is the basis of training. Meanwhile his business 

 is to recognise religion as a factor in the fair round growth of a comely 

 type of citizen and to see that the best dispositions possible under the 

 circumstances are made, to allow that influence its cultural effect. 

 Just as in respect to technical training so in respect to becoming conduct, 



