the new machiavelli-第5章

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transitory　zeal　and　success。



I　do　not　remember　anything　of　my　father's　earlier　and　more　energetic　

time。　　I　was　the　child　of　my　parents'　middle　years；　they　married　

when　my　father　was　thirty…five　and　my　mother　past　forty；　and　I　saw　

only　the　last　decadent　phase　of　his　educational　career。



The　Science　and　Art　Department　has　vanished　altogether　from　the　

world；　and　people　are　forgetting　it　now　with　the　utmost　readiness　

and　generosity。　　Part　of　its　substance　and　staff　and　spirit　survive；　

more　or　less　completely　digested　into　the　Board　of　Education。



The　world　does　move　on；　even　in　its　government。　　It　is　wonderful　how　

many　of　the　clumsy　and　limited　governing　bodies　of　my　youth　and　

early　manhood　have　given　place　now　to　more　scientific　and　efficient　

machinery。　　When　I　was　a　boy；　Bromstead；　which　is　now　a　borough；　was　

ruled　by　a　strange　body　called　a　Local　Boardit　was　the　Age　of　

Boardsand　I　still　remember　indistinctly　my　father　rejoicing　at　the　

breakfast…table　over　the　liberation　of　London　from　the　corrupt　and　

devastating　control　of　a　Metropolitan　Board　of　Works。　　Then　there　

were　also　School　Boards；　I　was　already　practically　in　politics　

before　the　London　School　Board　was　absorbed　by　the　spreading　

tentacles　of　the　London　County　Council。



It　gives　a　measure　of　the　newness　of　our　modern　ideas　of　the　State　

to　remember　that　the　very　beginnings　of　public　education　lie　within　

my　father's　lifetime；　and　that　many　most　intelligent　and　patriotic　

people　were　shocked　beyond　measure　at　the　State　doing　anything　of　

the　sort。　　When　he　was　born；　totally　illiterate　people　who　could　

neither　read　a　book　nor　write　more　than　perhaps　a　clumsy　signature；　

were　to　be　found　everywhere　in　England；　and　great　masses　of　the　

population　were　getting　no　instruction　at　all。　　Only　a　few　schools　

flourished　upon　the　patronage　of　exceptional　parents；　all　over　the　

country　the　old　endowed　grammar　schools　were　to　be　found　sinking　and　

dwindling；　many　of　them　had　closed　altogether。　　In　the　new　great　

centres　of　population　multitudes　of　children　were　sweated　in　the　

factories；　darkly　ignorant　and　wretched　and　the　under…equipped　and　

under…staffed　National　and　British　schools；　supported　by　voluntary　

contributions　and　sectarian　rivalries；　made　an　ineffectual　fight　

against　this　festering　darkness。　　It　was　a　condition　of　affairs　

clamouring　for　remedies；　but　there　was　an　immense　amount　of　

indifference　and　prejudice　to　be　overcome　before　any　remedies　were　

possible。　　Perhaps　some　day　some　industrious　and　lucid　historian　

will　disentangle　all　the　muddle　of　impulses　and　antagonisms；　the　

commercialism；　utilitarianism；　obstinate　conservatism；　humanitarian　

enthusiasm；　out　of　which　our　present　educational　organisation　arose。　　

I　have　long　since　come　to　believe　it　necessary　that　all　new　social　

institutions　should　be　born　in　confusion；　and　that　at　first　they　

should　present　chiefly　crude　and　ridiculous　aspects。　　The　distrust　

of　government　in　the　Victorian　days　was　far　too　great；　and　the　

general　intelligence　far　too　low；　to　permit　the　State　to　go　about　

the　new　business　it　was　taking　up　in　a　businesslike　way；　to　train　

teachers；　build　and　equip　schools；　endow　pedagogic　research；　and　

provide　properly　written　school…books。　　These　things　it　was　felt　

MUST　be　provided　by　individual　and　local　effort；　and　since　it　was　

manifest　that　it　was　individual　and　local　effort　that　were　in　

default；　it　was　reluctantly　agreed　to　stimulate　them　by　money　

payments。　　The　State　set　up　a　machinery　of　examination　both　in　

Science　and　Art　and　for　the　elementary　schools；　and　payments；　known　

technically　as　grants；　were　made　in　accordance　with　the　examination　

results　attained；　to　such　schools　as　Providence　might　see　fit　to　

send　into　the　world。　　In　this　way　it　was　felt　the　Demand　would　be　

established　that　would；　according　to　the　beliefs　of　that　time；　

inevitably　ensure　the　Supply。　　An　industry　of　〃Grant　earning〃　was　

created；　and　this　would　give　education　as　a　necessary　by…product。



In　the　end　this　belief　was　found　to　need　qualification；　but　Grant…

earning　was　still　in　full　activity　when　I　was　a　small　boy。　　So　far　

as　the　Science　and　Art　Department　and　my　father　are　concerned；　the　

task　of　examination　was　entrusted　to　eminent　scientific　men；　for　the　

most　part　quite　unaccustomed　to　teaching。　　You　see；　if　they　also　

were　teaching　similar　classes　to　those　they　examined；　it　was　feared　

that　injustice　might　be　done。　　Year　after　year　these　eminent　persons　

set　questions　and　employed　subordinates　to　read　and　mark　the　

increasing　thousands　of　answers　that　ensued；　and　having　no　doubt　the　

national　ideal　of　fairness　well　developed　in　their　minds；　they　were　

careful　each　year　to　re…read　the　preceding　papers　before　composing　

the　current　one；　in　order　to　see　what　it　was　usual　to　ask。　　As　a　

result　of　this；　in　the　course　of　a　few　years　the　recurrence　and　

permutation　of　questions　became　almost　calculable；　and　since　the　

practical　object　of　the　teaching　was　to　teach　people　not　science；　

but　how　to　write　answers　to　these　questions；　the　industry　of　Grant…

earning　assumed　a　form　easily　distinguished　from　any　kind　of　genuine　

education　whatever。



Other　remarkable　compromises　had　also　to　be　made　with　the　spirit　of　

the　age。　　The　unfortunate　conflict　between　Religion　and　Science　

prevalent　at　this　time　was　mitigated；　if　I　remember　rightly；　by　

making　graduates　in　arts　and　priests　in　the　established　church　

Science　Teachers　EX　OFFICIO；　and　leaving　local　and　private　

enterprise　to　provide　schools；　diagrams；　books；　material；　according　

to　the　conceptions　of　efficiency　prevalent　in　the　district。　　Private　

enterprise　made　a　particularly　good　thing　of　the　books。　　A　number　of　

competing　firms　of　publishers　sprang　into　existence　specialising　in　

Science　and　Art　Department　work；　they　set　themselves　to　produce　

text…books　that　should　supply　exactly　the　quantity　and　quality　of　

knowledge　necessary　for　every　stage　of　each　of　five　and　twenty　

subjects　into　which　desirable　science　was　divided；　and　copies　and　

models　and　instructions　that　should　give　precisely　the　method　and　

gestures　esteemed　as　proficiency　in　art。　　Every　section　of　each　book　

was　written　in　the　idiom　found　to　be　most　satisfactory　to　the　

examiners；　and　test　questions　extracted　from　papers　set　in　former　

years　were　appended　to　every　chapter。　　By　means　of　these　last　the　

teacher　was　able　to　train　his　class　to　the　very　highest　level　of　

grant…earning　efficiency；　and　very　naturally　he　cast　all　other　

methods　of　exposition　aside。　　First　he　posed　his　pupils　with　

questions　and　then　dictated　model　replies。



That　was　my　father's　method　of　instruction。　　I　attended　his　classes　

as　an　elementary　grant…earner　from　the　age　of　ten　until　his　death；　

and　it　is　so　I　remember　him；　sitting　on　the　edge　of　a　table；　

smothering　a　yawn　occasionally　and　giving　out　the　infallible　

formulae　to　the　industriously　scribbling　class　sitting　in　rows　of　

desks　before　him。　　Occasionally　be　would　slide　to　his　feet　and　go　to　

a　blackboard　on　an　easel　and　draw　on　that　very　slowly　and　

deliberately　in　coloured　chalks　a　diagram　for　the　class　to　copy　in　

coloured　pencils；　and　sometimes　he　would　display　a　specimen　or　

arrange　an　experiment　for　them　to　see。　　The　room　in　the　Institute　in　

which　he　taught　was　equipped　with　a　certain　amount　of　apparatus　

prescribed　as　necessary　for　subject　this　and　subject　that　by　the　

Science　and　Art　Department；　and　this　my　father　would　supplement　with　

maps　and　diagrams　and　drawings　of　his　own。



But　he　never　really　did　experiments；　except　that　in　the　class　in　

systematic　botany　he　sometimes　made　us　tease　common　flowers　to　

pieces。　　He　did　not　do　experiments　if　he　could　possibly　help　it；　

because　in　the　first　place　they　used　up　time　and　gas　for　the　Bunsen　

burner　and　good　material　in　a　ruinous　fashion；　and　in　the　second　

they　were；　in　his　rather　careless　and　sketchy　hands；　apt　to　endanger