SCIENCE AND HISTORY.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17393, 2 March 1922, Page 9

SCIENCE AND HISTORY.

CRITICISMS BY THE MASTER OF BALLIOL. (FEOM Ot/E OWK COBRfSTOKDENT.) LONDON, January 10. At the Science. Masters' Association the Muster of Balliol (Mr A. L. Smith) . delivered an address on science and history, which,- whilo'full of points cal-! culated to give rise to hard thinking, created much laughter. He said that Science could, and jought to bo, one of the humanities; but mat, since science was able to predict ilnd history could not, he was unable to allow that history was science, There was considerable disproportion between the encouragement j i en to both science and history and" to classical subjects. Twenty-seven scholarships at Oxford fqr all branches of natural science, as against 103 for Greek and Latin, was fairly disproportionate. The cause ot scienfee had been hampered by the position which was assigned by/the teaching profession .and an 'the schools to the science master. He faulted very little above the. .French master—(laughter) —and lower than thai in their recollection they could not go. (Renewed laughter.) Vlhe cause had been hindered by the, impenitent imbecility of some highly placed personages who told the Commission ou Science that the teaching of science was not needed in the Army either for officers or other ranks. (Laughter.) One objection urged against the teaching of science was the amount of time required. He did not think that objection was very valid. At Oxford they were quite prepared to cut off some of the tinle wasted m the mbßfc unnecessary part of classical Avork. Some of tne time , passed in somnolent inattention in large public schools might also be utilised in scienco teaching which was interesting to the boys. Such teaching in science would tend to cure the greatest defect of the English mind. The Germans had a respect for knowledge, and they often respected it in a rather blundering way. (Laughter.) Englishmen did not rer spect knowledge as such. They must get rid of the idea that there was conflict between practice aud theory, This idea was ludicrous because no one could do anything wnnout some knowledge of what Jie was doing. There wqs, perhaps, some justification tor the English contempt of experts—(laug!ifce:r)--btit they had to get rid of being proud of muddling through, for in the war we nearly did not muddle through. In England there was too much emphasis placed on bookish education; the real doing of the thing was iriiportant. A Frenchman had asked why children were so interested ana interesting, and why grown-up were so dull. The answer Kiv'en was ."Education." (Laughter.) Children wanted to see things and to know wbv the "blessed thing went off and got me in the eye." (Laughter.) Natural curiosity would be a great help if it were used and encouraged. Science cauld be made part of a humane education. We said that truth always prevailed in the end, but sometimes it \v;is "iji the end." A great lawyer once said t! at the advantage of'his profession in drawing up wills wag that the mistakes were only found out thirty years after he fiad been, as he elegantly phrased, "tyrfed." (Laughter.) If they- applied the test to the clerical profession—but he must be allowed to break off. (Loud Laughter.) The most adroit Parliamentary debator could not get over the facts of science, which was rather a comforting reflection. (Laughter.) There were many Ihings we only submitted to and accepted because we did not see them with seeing eyes. The var made the people of this country realise the value of life owing to the waste of it. 'lhe loss of 100,000 infaiit lives 64ch ye&r had come home to them in a new way. (Cheers.) i Another great value of science only lately realised was the manner in which it might be treated on the biographical side. He instanced 'the "Life" of Pasteur, which was instinct with per r sonality. Snch a side could always be made attractive to the young, who l6ved character, the sense of drama, the .human straggle, the continuity of human effort slowly building up the continuity of things As one living among young people—undergraduates—he knew that they were apt to think that the whole world was born when they were born. (Laughter.) History was the training of the imagination, which most people seemed to 1 think was something not quite re*

spectable and a little flighty. (IAUfjM ter.) The first lesson was to «» against falsa aasuraption, such as receding a start on landing at Calais, to hear the childreu speaking. French. (Laughter.) When a boy found tnat Cromwell was constantly reading the Bible he guile properly exclaimed, "Confounded humbug"—(laughter)—not realising that the Bible was th# only piece of English literature available in Cromwell's day._ History trained the judgment, the children had judgment, though thoy needed to hare jfc trained. Young people were apt to be too hasty in their generalisations. Thy liked to co about with a bludgeon as if they were young Macau lays or sucking Froudcs. The study of history checked that. History showed how good came out of evil, but how disastrous it '-was to do evil in the hops that good would follow. History also gar® tho power of estimating evidence. Hi«i tory* was now critical, which had lad I people to complain of losing ?H th# good stories. .