The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1887-10-29 00:00:00

TE 21INICAL EDUCATION.

" Tar pno7 ye have always. with you."
Since the oft-qaoted Mee- an ,e first fell from
All-We lips over eielveen hundred years
ago, every a.i.ze has berne witnees to its
truth. and thereehtful men in all time have
studied hard how to lessen the nenther of
tho,e ie distress throaga hick of life's fleece-
Toe problem of poverty has been an
ever-presort nuzzle to the politiohn and the
philenthropim ; bat, when winter's rizour
appeottelles, with its ominous • menaces of
increased misery, to the iti-clad and half-fed.
the theme of want and destitution is forced
Ire than ever upon the, attention of those
- this world's go els -
who heeeTencllll Of
When cold
'n,e blow and frel and snow
wi
Itaid ship anion the
abound there is af.Wrty;
poor, even if empleement be not difficult to
obtain, and when depression errt;:stOCkS The
labour market concarrenly with the ezn•lning
of the inclement weather those who are
"ball off" have yet a more pitiabl
stragele for existence. Here in 13,-itain, and
in other lands where the wide of human,
kindeess flows freely, those of the larger •
heart are always ready to relieve their less ,
favoured fellows at these tinaes of abnormal
suffering from poverty, occasionally, it may,
be, inquiring too chsely and cruelly into the
reasonaof the starving -one's wretchedness,
- and at times, on the other hand, exercising
an undiseriminatine charity which is apt to
defeat its men laudable ends. But apart
from those re:ar, lug periods at which the
plague of poverty rages with mere than
ev Wel fierceness and evokes in cons?qaence
mere general discussion, statesmen seek con-
stantly t , reduce the rinks of the poor by
prenaotine agencies fer finding them profit-
able euiploy tient and by devieieg schemes
to helace them to struggle out of the deeply
rate of daily existe.ce in which
cirunsanees have placed them. Happiiy
the couditlon of the "masses," and eepecialle
of exit subAratatn of the "masses " whice
supp!ies- us with all oar p lupers and the bulk
of one eri e'n de is u valtion that cm be
coneideree by politici-t_ne of eve", shade
without daneer of • party warfare; and
Liberals and Conservalives wdl advocate
with equal warmth any plan which offers a
practiral proba:,ility of tending to ameliorate
Walt, or to improve the mental, moral, or
material status of those not living in such a
state of comfort as families now-a-days in
this civilised land ought to experience, if
they only faldi their duty to themselves and
their compatriots. Perhaps there is ne
remedy for poverty which has of late been
suggested, and the adoption of which has
been urged with greater frequenCy than
that of systematic technical teaceing of the
young by means of State machinery, and the
eminent men wile have pleaded leniest for
the importance eF the idea are among the
most thoughtful of Iheie who lead - oar
public life. Indeed it would be diffienit to
men•ionei,stateemen of any eminenee who
has not, atone time or another within recent
usemoryespolCert out -inaistently f>r greater
atteutionla -this country to technical educe-
tioe. A SA:go once slid, in matnora.ble words
" blessed.te the man that hath found work,
he ;lath a life purpose." If we could only
so direct the channel of knowledge, as im-
parted to the rising generation in our schools.,
primary and secondary, that every boy and
girl should be drilled int) the complete
mastery of technique of some useful craft or
other empleyment, there is little doubt that
a few short years hence we should have a
great deal less poverty in our midst than
exists to day. . •By passing laws, however
wise and benevolent, we cannot etake people
industrious or th•iity ; but by so revising
the instructional institutions of the Sate
that every man and w:l,naa ualy be provittd
with that inestimable boon, a "life purpose,"
we should snatch frce-n a state of p:,verty all
..,but the hopeleady lazy wed the physically
--unfortunate. Thi latter Nv.,u1,1 still have to
be dee.t with phil inthropieally, a.i their
conlitiee waald. hi du :3 to no fault in the
saffer,a. ; the forms,- shoeld be treated with
the st r a. stern hand which represses crime.
What we have ai I opens up a wide vista of
future action for the refurarei• and peitical
econordst. Al the derails of the way on ,
before are lce!ine studied by theSe We, have
recoenieed the nee t.l for advance tri.)vaiont.
Lord lle•tineton is Dow loalin4 tie march
A ahead with his recently.forraA ss ,ciaCon
f,r one ereeneeierk of Eaßeati.n.
„„,1 geed men an I ttee. in every town folow
the apestl sofpr g; eis. We have to guide
us the experience of other countries whose
government we have ali:)%vel to outdistance
us in this impertaet in ; indeed, the
cozupeti9en of l'ureiceere whose kill is
derived from the technical schools of their
leetive lands is now forcing us
.on to see our
00444i0n in the most practieal part of teach-
j. Germany recognised the nlza-import-
-Ante, ef technical training first; now France,
B •ite:ain, Italy, and other countries are
dmaiat;iig the exam, es of the Fatherland.
see'd lee let the foreigner outstrip us in the
i:eluet.ial race ? Hithert the British
weeian li a held his own, bat should he
eyrlect to get knowledge he will speedily be
eft behind If we take up technical teach
liag as wo ought we shall not be long b4ose
wc tin ourselves handl n a lever otent
tm) dismantle the eideous edi 'oe of
na•
tional poverty and to raise on to a safer
and more permanent funuclatin the Mama,
4.;.d..0d aersb.s. . . _