Primary Industrial and Technical Education. By Dr. John Mill. (Kelly
and Co.)—We shall give an extract from one of the dialogues of which Dr. Mill's book consists :—
." What do you propose to do then, Arthur?'—'I propose to revolutionise our grammar and endowed schools, and to bring their teaching into accord with the spirit and wants of the times. To make them, indeed, Technical, or, in other words, Science and Art Schools.'"
May we suggest to this very thorough reformer that there are other objec- tions besides "the idleness and incompetence of the present masters" to this change ; that such an education (an education from which the 4' humanities " shall have been banished) is not a want of the times, if by this phrase is meant not what Dr. Mill wants, but what the nation wants, that an overwhelming weight of authority is in favour of retain- ing the study of language as the basis of education, that the experiment of substituting science or art for language has never been tried on any scale that will permit na to judge of its results, and that there are strong a priori reasons (for which we would refer to Mr. Matthew Arnold) for doubting its success? That science and art should have their place in education we do not deny ; and we may say of Dr. Mill's book, though we differ toto cce/o from its conclusions, that it says well enough what is to be said for them. It is to be regretted that his advocacy is not more reasonable and moderate.
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