7

E.—ld.

ment existing collections in schools and museums. In 1894 loans were made to fifty museums and nineteen exhibitions, and the objects lent numbered 28,884. The number of visitors was 4,635,621. 3. The department lends apparatus, pictures, drawings, &c, to the schools. In 1894 this favour was granted to thirty-seven schools and 226 separate classes. 8. Finances. The expenditure of the department in the year 1894-95 was about £577,782,* as follows: Boyal College of Science, London, £17,896; Normal School of Art, London, £7,487 ; Boyal College of Science, Dublin, £6,908; science and art education in Normal schools, £7,100; administration and inspection, £41,490; museums and collections, £86,926; grants to local museums, £500; science schools (and manual instruction thereat), £136,500; art schools and classes, £57,500; scholarships and prizes, £11,225; grants for apparatus and furniture, £2,350; grants for school-buildings, £9,400; technical education in Ireland, £2,500; drawing and manual instruction in primary schools, £180,000. 9. Publications. The department has published more than seven hundred volumes relating to its own operations and the state of science and art education in the country. In this enumeration periodical publications are counted once only. The annual publications are: (1) the Directory; (2) the Beport; (3) a Beturn of the aid granted by County Councils to science and art teaching, and technical and manual instruction ; (4) Prospectus of Whitworth scholarship and exhibitions ; (5) examination papers ; (6) calendar. Chapter ll.—The Education Department. This department encourages to a very small extent manual and technical instruction in the primary day-schools, and to a somewhat larger extent in evening-schools. 1. Day-schools. —Capitation subsidy (per annum) is granted as follows : For needle-work, Is. to 25.; navigation, mechanics, chemistry, physiology, book-keeping, shorthand, domestic economy, and some other subjects, 2s. to 3s. ; cooking, 4s. ; laundry-work, 25.; woman's work, 4s. In 1894-95 the grant for cooking (45.) was paid for 122,325 girls at 2,577 schools ; the grant for laundrywork (25.) for 7,238 girls at 260 schools. 2. Evening-schools. —These schools are designed to keep up and to supplement the instruction received in the day-schools. Any subject may be taught, but the subsidy is paid on those subjects alone which the department has recognised, such as history, languages, physic, chemistry, mechanics, electricity, ambulance, hygiene, navigation, book-keeping, shorthand, domestic economy, needlework. The subsidy is reckoned at so much per pupil for each series of twelve hours of lessons in each subject. Each pupil must take at least two subjects, and not more than five courses at one time. There is a fixed subsidy of Is. per pupil, and in addition a variable subsidy of Is. or Is. 4fd., according as the work done is good or excellent. On a subject for which the Science and Art Department gives a subsidy the Education Department gives only the fixed subsidy. In some cases subsidy is received not only from both departments, but also from the County Council. This involves useless expenditure of time and paper in the making of triple returns. In 1894-95 there were 3,518 of these continuation schools, with 3,738 teachers, and 266,683 pupils, of whom 103,323 received gratuitous instruction. Under 14 years were 12-13 per cent, of the pupils, and 13-89 per cent, were over 21. Technical or manual instruction was given in 281 of these schools; 1,213 schools taught drawing, 408 cookery, and 26 laundry-work. The subsidies amounted to £91,540. Chapter lll.—Other Authorities. 1. For the purposes of the higher technical education, the Treasury gives £27,000 a year to the Universities of England and Wales, the Secretary of State for Ireland gives £4,800 to the three Boyal Colleges ; the Council of Agriculture devotes £7,450 to higher education; the Marine Department, £79,400 ; the Government of India, £4,492. 2. Secondary and Primary. —The Scotch Education Department spends £27,110 on evening schools, and the Irish Commissioners of Primary Education £9,566 on instruction in agriculture. The Charity Commission spends a considerable sum on the polytechnics of London.

PART III.—PRIVATE INITIATIVE. Two great private institutions have, perhaps, done more than any public authority to promote technical education : the City and Guilds of London Institute, by a large expenditure of money and invaluable advice, and the National Association, by an energetic and intelligent propaganda, which has influenced public opinion, and prompted the local authorities to action. Chapter I.—The City and Guilds op London Institute. This is a federation of most of the ancient corporations of London. The charters of these guilds are of great antiquity, and by their members the members of the Corporation of the City of London are elected. The aim of the federation is to promote technical education for the trades that are more or less related to the several guilds. These companies have great wealth, derived partly from the large contributions demanded of those who wish to become members, and partly from properties acquired in times beyond memory. In olden times their revenues were expended in works of benevolence, very various, and of unequal value. These guilds had nearly lost their trade character, and their former influence had disappeared. About 1877 they began to recognise that,

[• The sum of the items falls short of the total by £10,000.—Tβ.]