of Edinburgh, Session 1870 - 71 . 
335 
in its university system, and deign to adopt something like the 
Little-go or Moderations examination of the English universities, 
though such an examination in Prussia would be, of course, on a 
distinctly higher level. Prussia might, perhaps, with advantage 
curtail a little the liberty of her universities, and increase a little 
the liberty of her primary schools, in respect both of studies and 
management. She might allow a more easy and natural connec¬ 
tion than appears to exist between the primary school and higher 
education. She would like also to see a gradual relaxing of the 
leading strings of Government, and a greater development of cul¬ 
tivated local energies. It would be a great misfortune for the new¬ 
born German empire if military successes should be found to have 
intensified the centralising forces in all the affairs of national life. 
The Liberals appear sanguine that this will not be the case. But 
a struggle on questions of internal policy may very likely succeed 
the conflicts of the war. In the meanwhile, on the educational 
question Germany and England hold positions the very opposite 
of each other. In Germany there is the idea of what is wanted, 
and a universal carrying out of that idea. But too much comes 
from the central power. There is a deficiency of communal life 
and independent individual action. The question with Germany 
is how to shift, without losing, the motive power. In England 
there is abundant local action and vitality, but a deficiency in cul¬ 
tivated guidance for that action. There is with us an immense lee¬ 
way to make up, both in overtaking, with primary instruction the 
masses of the people, and also quite as much in regulating and 
defining the aims and the method of secondary and university 
education. The great question for England in this matter seems 
to be, first, how to get over religious difficulties in the way of 
primary instruction ; and, secondly, how to obtain a sufficiently 
enlightened guidance for our higher education, without adopting, 
which all ought to deprecate, anything like a bureaucratic system. 
