EMPIRE KNOWLEDGE.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 742, 15 February 1910, Page 5

EMPIRE KNOWLEDGE.

» COLONIAL OFFICE SCHEME. 1 A VISITING ARTISTS MISSION. . Mr. A. Hugh Fisher, tho artist who is. touring the Empire on [behalf,.- of the .. . Visual Instruction Committeeof .the Co- . ; lonial Office,; had a, busy day in 'Wellington yesterday. Ho called uponttio . Prime Minister and' conferred with the 7; Director;of,the Tourist Office (Mr. Eobie- v /. son); and officers 'of. the Departmentpf.: Agriculture' and; the ; Education Depart- ' r'r. : ment. It is anticipated that the pictures and/ photographs , .which - Mr. Fisher ;i8 ; ;'i' taking, and the lectures, which .will ac-; . company;; them -.will bo widolyused'in---the 'schools throughout;the Empire, and the wort |will .doubtless .be, furthered, by ' f reciprocal. arrangemohts.. ,7 7-V:..'; Although sorely pressed for time. ye 3-.'. terday,' Mr.: Fisher courteously gave a : Dominion representative- a good deal of ;;-v information/ about;-.Jthisv: .interesting.ject' for the spread of Empire knowledge ' The Beginning.' ' l ' v ; r The ; idea : was - first: broached during - Mr. ' Chamberlain's, tenure 'of-.the: Secretary.'?.';; Bhip of. State : for .the Colonies,- and a. bo-.., ginning was made" some years ago. . A' 7 committee was formed- in which both- tha';Inaian Government and the Colonial Of--fice.'-were -represented.: : The- Earl ■-,of ii:, Meath, who naniois widely -fcoown •. through hisi'advocaby.'of . many '- Imperial interest,', was chairman, and Mr. • It. J: Mackinder,, 'who'.wns : at ! that" time' . Director-'of .the London 'School of ;Eco-'-7; nomics (the position' now'-- held by tho '■ Hon. W. P. Keeves). jVas one of the mem- . b'ers; ' It; was-strongly felt;--by, tho committee '..that.' the ;, instruction 7 'should-: hot;' proceed'.'/iii; a ' haphazard ca- ' pricious manner,.',/: but 7-7 should:- ■ he. : in accordancewith .a ; systematic; : 7 plan. '• ;'A-'} small ,- start ..was, made'' with, ■ ■; three of the Crown Colonies--Ceylon, - the; ; Straits Settlements,: and Hong-Kong. ...A ■; i; : selection' .of'; slides ...illustrative' of Great , Britain was made by Mr. Mackinder, v iwhbse>';work': ;as - reader i. iri r: geography' in.. ;v Oxford; University,': and. author of "Britain . and the-; British ' Seas,"7 peculiarly ■ fitted;, him i for/'a'-;-task/of; the'- kind. - With : .> the. several sets: into -whioh the slides• 'tterev/divided,'.: lectures :i jrcre'.'' prepared/ ; These lectures i.were. translated; into. : the several •'. tongues .'of tho pupils in the 1 schools, imdv adapted to: suit the require-": .. ments (if each race.. Several years have ;gon'e\by,7 and the' scheme is stated to bo ;, working admirably.'7 Next the Indian Go-V vernment took it up, and determined to'.' : ; 'institute,; itin; every..province.;. A great: ■;.- number, of .lantern slides. jwpre :sent. out, sets of lectures were,prepared,' translated,;.;:, and adapted, and'tho aspect of Great Bri- . tain is thus being exhibite'd to Indian--;:-; children of many 7 races, and creeds. The. •. West'lndiesi West and Mauritius; then,; brought; into tho scheme.', & Princess of Wales Interested. • , ..' Thus- far: the work had - consisted solely. : bf \sendipg',;repi'esehtitives,;:6f:; .Gr6>it Bn.tain'to' some of the outlying' parts of tha; Kmpife;;' ~,Two';.;.things.-, remained to. be. done: to achieve an;;adequate; tion of Greater /Britain to the people of ' ." the United; Kingdom,' and to' bring; the self-governing domihions:.into'the'scheme.'-'s- : The preparatim of lantern, slides, and leotures; descriptive 7 of; the Mother Country f; for'uso in the oversea dominions; ,waa ; ■ undertaken,: and:the^ommittee-decided to: engage' a -competent artist and, send' him-:*V through; the whole - Empire. The difficulty■ • of obtaining ifunds was happily overcome; • by the. inteivehtioh 'of- ithe':Princess of. Wales, , .'vho3e, interest - had been aroused'-'' as ;.thb, result of a lecturo by: Mr'; : Mac-. - ' kinder. The "Princess of Wales -Fund" >■ soon.' reached a .total;of. XtOOO, rnd Ihe' .committee was then'',frec to : select and ; ■ commission/ an; artist 'for -.'ihe . Empire- !l '-' tour. ' y/ The Artist. -.Mr. A. Hugh Fisher, A.H.E., upon whom their; choice, fell, is' a member' of the Royal Society of Painter Etchers. He' first -exhibited : : at"> the . Royal Academy when 20 vears of age, studied in Paris under M. Jean Paul Lamens and the late - Benjamin Constant, and,has exhibited at" the ; Paris, Salon, as; well;. as; .the " chief London galleries.- He-has had'special cx- - hibitions of; his work in Lftndon and> in South-Africa);-: On".being . engaged ..by the "committee,; Mr. Fisher went to India, where he spent a year, and afterwards 1 visited Ceylon,.:; Aden, Somaliland, and Cyprus. He then devotediseveral monthsv ', to Canada. He ' has now completed .his':-i -' work., in the South. Island of New' Zca- • land, and-'after carrying out in the North;lsland ho will traverse the, Australian States, and then go on to Fiji. His subjecfe in this island .will - include : 7 flaxmilling .at Shannon, the'-thermal-" tofVi gions, l gnmdigging .in - North .; Auckliwd,' ■ and a number of others. ' -.. i,; Uniform and Coherent Scheme. ..-His work is to produce a set of photographs with artistic: merit, and a set of - ' colour sketches, -so that-when coloured lantern slides ara' made the colour will be' '- authoritative. .',The : coinmittt-e considers it essential that; the entire • work; should ~:f; bo. done by one man; who knows exactly :, tion, .and. who will preserve the 6&me principles of treatment to cach country, ;■ 7 who will neither, present onepart unduly. nor 'treat another with ; insufficient attcn- :* ~ tion;,and who. will' pretfen-e the -;snme point'of view: from beginning, to end. The : slides ivill be both',in colour and in black and white, and they-will-be availablc for • puroliaso: by the educational authorities - throughout the Empire. Sir. Fisher plans : ; 7 his campaigns with' a view to eecuring accurate, - as well, as artistic,-reprosentaT 7 ."; tions-' of. the seasons, th 6';' colouring,. tho '• .' vegetation, and fauna, and', the : . occ-upa-7i7-tions of the people of every country ho ■ visits/ When tho scheme is fully carriedout there will be in existenco a uniform,; ', coherent .set"of .-views of, the .whole: 13m-;:7~, pire,. aiTauged with regard to proportionate value, and all by a competent artist