The Times gave details last week of a scheme of
great interest to all those who are concerned in the task of finding suitable openings for our Public School boys when the moment comes for them to make up their minds as regards their careers. Mr. F. E. Vigars, of Sydney, N.S.W., has arranged with over eighty leading station owners to take one, two, and in some cases four, " cadets "—that is, British Public School boys of 17, who must have certificates of physical fitness and of educational attainments. Every " cadet " must possess £1,000. During their apprenticeship their capital will be deposited in the Commonwealth Bank and will serve as a guarantee that when they are ready to take up land for themselves they will be possessed of the necessary funds. Mr. Vigars is quite right to emphasize the attrac- tions of " station " life in Australia for the Public School boy. Certainly during ten months in Australia I met many " Jackeroo's "—the name by which the young apprentices on the station are known—and none of them would have exchanged his lot with his less adven- turous schoolmates chained to office stools in Thread- needle Street. The whole problem of Public School boy emigration is only beginning to receive the attention it deserves. There is no reason why every school in the country should not do its share in Empire- building in this direction.
Previous page
