The Sun.
London, England, 1836-01-08 00:00:00

...II

SEFUL ED

IN

NCE.

A present-413-y, when so many opinions are'exnressedl
on thet the
es* I,A
a- ..,I?:titifie e:dneation,- .ztifew facts; 'derived
fr,mn a generg:-114011.: the Ministrc de la Marine
pi :France, bf N C Dn,p,iiii;;lTill'inteivst, those who have
directed 'their sYstem of useful in-
tili• the
French. rWitbotit raising..a question as to, the best course-
of theological' strtdies; the object, in .11rance is. to .qu'alifY''
men for the _various duties they, may, have to discharge in
the arts, trades; and - manufactures. -M:is is .ell clod by
teaching geometry and rneelaune.s amilicable to •industry.
The learned Gentlemanbegins his report lir'iaiidikrfig. that
iu gemetry .a,:d mechanics there .are. 'certain elementary
truths which .con.,ey-,clear and positive information with In-
s,dect to
_dimensions-, mo:ion, and force. Guiding the inchistry
of man, those brunches of s(2.;ence.will lead to the accomplish-
meat of useful works.'ro display a correct picture of the efforts
made to propagate the now plan of education and the results,
M. Dupin refers to towns on the ,sea coast, in which it
was first introduced. The first is 1-_,`,unkirk, one_ of the
richest, most active, and populous seaperts in France.
This city, contiguous to several canals, is obt:,ged to export
a treat portion of the products of ancient French Flanders.
At 6 Dunkirk they also import, for the use of the northern
departments, many exotics and commodities of the colo-
nies. By diffusing a knoWledge faisonnee of •geomotry and
mechanics they have enabled builders and, artisans to con-
struct Ships for commerce -and vessels of every description
for the canals, ,thus introducing,,a decided improvement in
the different:branches of industry' practi;ed in the North.:
'Fhe teaching has been / confided to M. Petit Genet, whose
i,lcrary attainments give _bird- the' means of presenting his
ideas reMarkable clerifriess. Although the inhabi-
tants of 13forikirk are for. the part better acquainted
with the Flertish tongue than the french, the new lectures
were never attended by less than e.;glity auditors, who
folloWed their teneher- with .unc..%ampleci assiduity. The
port of Calais is, after Dunkirk, the first- where geometry
and mechanics in aid of industry is reamlar:v teught._ The
lecture's of M. Legrand are always Nvefi atteilded. In Bou-
logne the population is double that of Calais, and the results
.ofthe new teaching are corequently more important. In
the little town of Sant Valery.Shr-Somme thei new system
of teaching will produce happy fruits 'when they shall have
finished the extensive works for improving the entrance of
the channel which, forms the bed of the Somme. IR.
Valery will then develope its nautical industry, with the.:
advantages possessed by a population uniting instruction
to practical experience. The example given by Dunkirk,
Calais, Boulogne, -and St. Valery,; produced a good effect in
the departments of the north. The municipal authorities;
sanctioned the. new teaching ; the society to promote emu-
lation at Douay, influenced by a noble sentiment, voted a
gold medal to. recompense the best artist lbrnicd by the new
school. The municipal council of Arras, unwilling that
the chief place of the Pas-de-Calais should remain. deprived
of the means of instruction which had produced such
happy effects in the secondary cities of Boulogne and Calais,
established a' chaire for geometry and mechanics, applicable
to the arts.; in short, all the departments followed the new,
system. The city of Havre offered all the encouragement
the plan &served.. The Chamber of Commerce gave up
a vast space of ground to form a school. Cherbourg,
Granville, St. Mal°, Morlaix, Brest, Rochelle, Roche- •
fort, 13aydnne, also the ports of the Mediterranean,
have established schools and teachers. At Mar-
seilles, which is considered one •of the first
manu-
facturing and commercial, cities in France, all_ the
authorities were willing to afford the prefessor the 'means of
making the new system prosper., Independent of the.sea-
ports, the-plan has been:followed in the interior, and at the
present day-at least 10,000 artisans or foremen of shops,
..
yards, and factories are acting upon the instruction offered--
gratuitously in the maritime and other cities of France.-1 It „ .
will be found that industry has derived incalculable benefits
front the easy study of geometry, and that branch of ma-
thematiles which considers motion and moving powers, their,
nature ann' laws, with their effects in machines. It isthe
opinion of many that this new plan of eduCation, which
works well in Fiq..neb, might be adopted with advantage in
the United Kingdon:: Under the Municipal CorporationA,
Act the Councils via;' apply their funds to the establish-
ment of schools, and the ;)a.!,,lnent of lecturers or teachers.
We should then have a sysi.em of gratuitous useful educa=
tion, proper for those who have previously acquired a know-
ledge of the ChriStian (Protestant) religion, which is the
foundation of all liberal education. The proposed instruc-
tion will not benefit those who can pay for the learning of
our Universities ; the classes which pro.t by industry- ht
the arts, and those mechanical operations Which supply, the
wants of commerce, will gain by the plan. . To such men,
and their success, England owes its trading ebvsacter and
prosperity.
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