As the Annual Conference of Educational Associations, which opened on
Monday at the University of London, Sir Henry. Miers, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Manchester, who presided, spoke of the general interest in educational matters as the Most striking change since their last meeting. He welcomed the appoint- ment of Mr., Fisher, the Minister of Education, and hoped it would be followed by effective action. No man could be better qualified by knowledge and experience. The Master of Balliol, who delivered the inaugural address, dealt with the revolution of thought upon educational matters which had taken place during recent months, not perhaps in the minds of those who had the right to express an opinion, but among intelligent persons who bad-hitherto avoided edu- cational discussion. He saw hopeful signs in the experiments which went to show that better workmen were made by education than by setting them to work at an early age, and in the contributions made by Trade Unions to education through the tutorial classes movement for the mass of the people. The movement to take in natural science was not hostile to the older subjects. As for the future, his experience was that boldness was prudence and that it was best to launch the whole programme on the broadest grounds. Unless we educated our democracy there would be the greatest social and political trouble as the outcome of the war.
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