Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: A PLEA FOR INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS. Those of us who attended the conference of January 20th heard some of the strong arguments presented by the learned Secretary' of the State Board of Education in opposition to the general views and purposes entertained by those who favor the incorporation of more or less of soalled Industrial Education with the public-school system of the Commonwealth. While objections from such a source could hardly be welcome to those who are deeply interested in the projected reforms, there should yet be no resentment at their being offered. If our purposes and plans are in general sound and wholesome, they will bear challenge and criticism, and will be the better for it. Discussion—direct, sincere, and earnest discussion—is in the interest of the very cause itself; and the sharper the challenge, and the more cogent the presentation of any and all objections, the better for us, if indeed we are right on the main issue. Especially is it the duty of the Secretary of the State Board of Education to stand up for the integrity and purity of the schools of Massachusetts, if he deems them threatened from any quarter; and in his main contention, Dr. Dickinson is unquestionably right. The pri- 1 Hon. J. W. Dickinson. LL. D. Resigning in 1894, he was succeeded by the present Secretary, Hon. Frank A. Hill.—Ed. mary purpose of our public-school system was education; and it cannot in any considerable degree be made to serve any other purpose than education, without a perversion of agency and almost an abuse of trust. The good old principle that education, so far as the public schools are concerned, should be general, not special; should be liberal, not technical; should be directed to the complete and harmonious development of the faculties ...