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REV. H. COSTLEY WHITE, M.A., ON 



them. The only thing he seemed sure of was that the Psalms 

 usually ascribed to David were not by Da\4d. We boys sat there 

 wondering what he was driving at. Xow we know. 



Last week a young relative of my own was interviewed by a 

 headmaster as to his fitness for a post of under-master. "* I want 

 you to teach the Bible," he said, ''but I don't want any of the new- 

 fangled notions.'' I think that headmaster had gauged the feeling 

 of the average parent. 



Mr. Sidney Collett said he had noticed that towards the end 

 of the lecture the lecturer had spoken of spiritual instruction " 

 given, and of sermons preached at the public schools. But the 

 question he wished to ask was. Did what might be called the religious 

 teaching merely consist in instruction '' by the master- and ser- 

 mons, or was the definite study of the Bible as the Word of God 

 one of the regular and definite subjects in the curriculum of the 

 schools ? He asked this question because he believed this was the 

 great need, not only in our public schools, but in all schools. 



Lieut. -Col. M. A. Alves said : Referring to a remark made by a 

 previous speaker, I am fairly well convinced that in regard to the 

 faults in the great public school system of education, the Univer- 

 sities are chiefly to blame. The great majority of teachers in these 

 schools come from one of the Universities, and carry on the traditions 

 learned there. 



As an illustration of the mind of one University : I have a young 

 relative at Oxford. He went there shortly after the war broke 

 out, joined the Officers Training Corps, and some months later the 

 Territorials, with whom he served until the armistice, when he 

 returned to his college. 



Those who had left temporarily for service were permitted to 

 have their stay on return shortened. My relative told me that he 

 had two subjects to get up to qualify for his degree ; one compulsory, 

 one permissive ; the former Philosophy, the latter History. 



I looked into one or two of the philosophical works to be studied. 

 Much of the stuff was most blatant rubbish ; and what was not 

 was expressed in such a verbose and confused manner that it was 

 a task of some difficulty to understand what the writer meant. 

 Yet this was the compulsory subject. 



