The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-09-19


onizatioh company OF certain rights over an OK.
tehsivo area OF uncultivatcd territory eau es
spasms OF Indignation, as II one were speaking
Of alternating such provinces rs Normandy or
L1nRucdoc.
But 1t Is not only tho administration which
is responsible for private listlcssness, and, II II
docs much 10 hamper the colonist and little to
encourage him, NJ. do Coubertin admits that the
colonist himself docs not usually exhibit the
fund of energy which he requires. Tho truth is
thnt non-French Europeans arc increasing more
rapidly In French colonies than tho French
themselves. 1t has boon computed by NJ. Tir.
man that, within twenty years. Algeria will
have but 1896. 900 Frcnchmen, against 10000
foreigners principally Italians and Spaniards)
and 100000 natives; In si~ty years, l, 100000
French, against 1000, 900 foreigners and TO-
100000 natives. These figures, taken by them.
selves. indicate that France is destined to lose her
third colonial empire, ms she lost her second and
her first. To the assertion. frequently made.
that France canno possibly succeed as n col
onizing nation. because sho lacks the necessary
overflow OF population. DIR. Shaw replies in his
Introduction that under properly inviting con-
ditions external France might furnish pre-
ciscly the opportunities that would lead to a
change In existing habits and customs and re-
suit In the appearance OF a surplus population"
1t Is certain that in Lower Canada. where there is
rOom iOE expansion, the french STOCK Is remark
ably prolific and vigorous. 1t is n reasonable
inference from that fact that under certain cir.
cumstances colonial possessions might prove
tempting to Fr~cnchmen, and result in n race
stimulus that would affect in a favorable way
the future growth OF the nation.
II Is we'll known that the Third Republic has
undertaken the reform Of primary. secondary,
and the higher education. So far as the changes
made in primary education are concerned,
they have aroused violent controversy and i'm.
posed great pecuninry sacrifices, nor can 1t be
said that their results have fully answered the
expectation Of those by whom the changes were
made. Secondary education has been i'm
proved. after n series OF groupings and OF expert
ments in details. Lastly, the higher education
has undergone a radical transformation. reso-
lutely but discreetly pursued. In 1s9O-91 there
existed in France 81 800 primary schools, OF
which 1913 were public schools and 1862
were private schools. Out of this number SO, 4l9
were secular and 1851 were schools under the
charge OF religious bodies. The principal teach.
ing orders are the Brothers Of Christian Schools;
the Brothers Of Lamennais; the Marist Breth-
rem; the Brothers of st. Gabriel; the Brothers OF
st. Viateur, and the Marianists. The moral
and civic" instruction which is given in the
secular schools has nothing intrinsically anti.
religious about II. On this point Is cited the
testimony Of Matthew Arnold. who, while visit
ing the communal schools OF Paris, was present
at the examination to which very young children
are subjected by the master: ITO what do we
owe this beautiful school, these benches, these
pretty picturesf' In place of the traditional
answer. ito God" the pupil replies ITO the
Fatherlnnd." Arnold admired the antique sim
plicity OF this teaching. When it is a question.
however. Of explaining to the child his
duties tow I'd his family. toward ser
wants. toward our equals or 1.-THE ele-
ments OF social morals. as OF justice. of charity,
OF fraternity" the master finds himself embar-
rassed. Therefore. in the catechisms relating
to these topics. the words, Duties iowa DC d.
have been replaced. Nevertheless, the school
master is afraid to compromise himself with
the republican authorities by taking God as the
centre OF his reasoning. and. consequently, he
confines himself TO reading out of some text
book or other two or three phrases which fall
cold and dead into the child's mind and remain
sterile there. NJ. de Coubertin asserts that. at
this moment. moral instruction hardly exists In
French public schools, an indirect. but valid
proof of which he finds in the criminal statistics,
which show an alarming increase in the num-
Der Of crimes and misdemeanors, especially of
those committed by very young persons.
As regards secondary education, we observe
eh's s"' H'" VI - phpiis III Nv dGNuCullts anu
coll ges ontrolle by the State was, in May,
1891. upw.rl OF SO. 900: at the same date the
&c, lesi stical estab ishinent had 81. 2s7 pupils.
to which should be al ed 20 1000 pupils in at
ten! N Q upon l39 small seminaries. Notwith.
stan ing the zeal exhibited by the teaching
religious bodies, the University which has charge
OF the State secondary schools has not requested
that the DEGREES Of 1880, which disorganizcd,
temporarily, the colleges OF the Jesuits, should
~ -At ~ rl ~
done more for the secondary education OF
girls than for that of boys. The history
Of the educat on of girls in France is one OF in
cessant obstruction in practice TO reforms which.
in principle, have been acknowledged to be in.
dispensable. The Constituent Assembly pro-
claimed the equality OF the sexes in the matter
Of education. The Convention decreed that
every school should DO divided into two sections.
one for the boys under n schoolmaster, the other
for girls under a schoolmistress. The decree,
however. remained n dead letter. The statute
OF March II. 1908. which settled the ba isis
OF the Imperial University. made no men.
ton Of schools for girls. A report drawn
up In 1910 by Nine. de Genlis for the Emperor
proved the existence in such establishments OF
negligences and abuses without number. The
same proofs were again put forward twenty.one
years later in a memorial addressed to King
Louis Philippe. An ordinance of 1885 finally
settled the conditions under which schools for
girls might DO established. but only under the
Second Republic was the obligation OF the COM
munes to establish them made a part OF the law.
Even then the obligation was confined to
primary schools. and II was not until Decem-
Der. 1880. that a thoroughly organized system
OF secondary instruction for girls was created.
1t Is in the higher educat on that France Las
made most progress under the Third Republic.
In 1870 she had but 5000 students receiving
what we should call university training; she
now has $4,000. The difference is even greater
In quality than in quantity. The 9.OOO fol-
lowed several courses. or. rather. they were In
scribed on lists with a view TO certain examina-
tons; In complete isolation they prepared them.
selves for these exa i~nations; they may have
studied, but they were not students in the Ger.
man sense OF tho word. That which, above all
else. characterized students is solidarity; soil.
darity In work, In amusements, in effort, in emo.
ton: s lidarity not only with the older or