New-York tribune., 1901-05-11
COLONIAL EDUCATION.

Lord Cromer in his annual report on the CON
dition of Egypt. gives warning TO his country
men against certain mistaken ideals of assmi-
lation which is not without application 10 some
of our own people and their aspirations to ad-
/ vance civilization in our new possessions. Ihe
/ first imuulse of many an EngIishman and Amer
! lean confronted with dependent Of another
/ race is 10 try 10 make him n pseudo Anglo
/ Saxon with n thin veneer OF English education
/ Lord Cromer thinks this is wrong lie is not IN
/ favor Of creating a large class like the Indian
! "baboos" in Egypt. Like the natives OF some
/ of our own island territories, the Egyptians are
anxious 10 have their children taught English
hut he does not see in that anything 10 rejoice
! over. for it simply means that they are ambi
1ious TO put their offspring In government Office
not that they are really taking on Western civ
nization. The opportunities for the people are
/ not in the government service but in skilled In
dustry Farmers. artisans, engineers. electri-
/ clans and even lawyers and physicians are
needed and natives may better tit themselves
! for these occupations than I'm the pursuit OF
| literary education. He Is not even anxious that
| English should be the prevailing language, and
has no ambition to Anglicize the country. but is
content to let the people work out their own
! salvation along the lines OF their own settled
habits.
! This is the essence of wisdom in colonial ad
/ ministration. and II was wisely applied in the
! establishment of the Gordon College at khar-
toum. where the greatest pains has been taken
10 avoid educating the native students on OK
ford and Cambridge lines, as If they were 10
! live an English life In establishing schools in
the Philippines and Porto Rico the same spirit
should be manifested. The last thing 10 he
done is 10 put the younger generation out of
N lfV4f,-
to make them anything hut their own better.
abler and more prosperous selves II should be
no part Of the ambition OF Americans 10 make
them talk. act, think and dress like imitation
Americans. They never can be real Americans,
and sham American is what might have been
a good Porto Rican or Filipino spoiled. We
need to give them help toward stable institu-
tons. industrial prosperity and enlightened
thought but that help should stimulate and di-
rect them TO progress along their own lines.
Their advance must he an evolution, and their
accomplishment must be rooted deep in their
own natures TO endure. The American people
are pretty well satisfied that they do not want
to extend the Union Of States beyond cOnti-
mental boundaries. There is no object in Amer
icanizing these people that they may he fit to
help govern us at some time. Our purpose
should be 10 help them 10 govern themselves,
by putting ourselves as much as posslnle III
touch with their inherent traits and preserving
and developing so far as possible their instltu-
| tions. rather than imposing our own upon them.
If Lord Cromer can see no objection to the
study of French by the Egyptians, we need feel
no anxiety at the persistence of Spanish among
our dependents. nor should colonial social Gus
toms he subjected to the censorship of the New
England conscience. Our first duty is not TO
make over the island popula tiOns. but 10 govern
them as they are wisely. and promote happiness
and prosperity measured by their own high
est standard Advance in civilization must be
secured by their gradual raising of their own
standard with our help. not by cheap imitation
/ of ours