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SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XX. No. 499. 



student learns to transform a theorenl into 

 a dynamo or a formula into a compound 

 engine. 



And thus I am led to the conclusion that 

 a technical course does educate to a limited 

 estent. It teaches the student to search 

 and it teaches him to think ; it teaches him 

 some of the things that an educated man 

 should know, but it does not teach him all 

 that an educated man should know. It 

 would be much better if our technical grad- 

 uates were broadly educated men as well as 

 trained engineers, if they had received a 

 college training before entering upon a 

 technical course. In a university it would 

 be easy to require this. Two courses would 

 be open to the student. He could complete 

 his college work with no reference to tech- 

 nical subjects and then enter the engineer- 

 ing department; or after completing those 

 subjects which are considered necessary for 

 a liberal training, he could choose a part 

 or the whole of his electives in the technical 

 school. In the former case his combined 

 college and professional course would re- 

 quire six or seven years; in the latter case 

 five or six years. Some of our universities 

 have such a requirement and I am glad they 

 do. I believe the student should be trained 

 to know, to search, to think before he 

 enters the technical school. During his 

 whole life he would have a broader outlook, 

 a deeper sympathy with men and events, 

 a greater influence upon the community. 

 I am not sure that he would be a better 

 engineer. 



But however desirable such a combined 

 course may be, it is not possible at present 

 to make the whole or a part of a college 

 education a requisite for admission to the 

 technical schools. In 1902 there were 

 graduated about 1,600 engineers ; there was 

 a demand for about 4,000. If a college 

 diploma were required for admission, the 

 number of graduates would not be more 

 than a quarter as large as now. Even if 



it were possible to make such a requirement, 

 I do not think it would be wise to do so. 

 Whatever may be our opinion in regard 

 to the best course of study, we must take 

 into account the wishes of the student and 

 the average technical student does not wish 

 to go to college. He thinks the course of 

 study too long and too expensive. He 

 would be forced to give up all hope of an 

 education if six or seven years were neces- 

 sary to obtain it. A man's first duty is to 

 make a living for himself and for those 

 dependent upon him. The average boy— 

 your boy and mine— has his own way to 

 make in the world. He will be given an 

 education but after that he must take care 

 of himself. The technical course, if under- 

 stood, is wonderfully attractive to the boy. 

 The Talmud says, 'the end of learning is 

 doing'; the end of a technical course is 

 doing and the average boy wants to do 

 something. He knows he can make a living 

 as soon as he graduates. It is not strange 

 that he wishes to begin this work as early 

 as possible and to finish it as soon as con- 

 sistent with thorough preparation for pro- 

 fessional duties. 



In conclusion I would say that the tech- 

 nical school has three great duties to per- 

 form in education. 



First: To maintain a high standard in 

 its professional teaching. It was created 

 to do this work. Technical training is 

 education of a high order, although not 

 liberal. The mistakes of the engineer are 

 destructive to property and sometimes to 

 human life ; hence the standard of teaching 

 should be high. 



Second: To see that it does not degen- 

 erate into a trade school. The student will 

 go into practical work when he graduates 

 and so there is a tendency to give him more 

 and more practical work in the school. 

 There is no objection to this, provided it 

 does not interfere with the broader studies 

 already described. If the liberal studies 



