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INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS IN GERMANY.

There are 287 industrial schools in Saxony. The population of the Kingdom is 4,202,216, or one industrial school to every 14,641 people. The schools are divided into the following classes:

1. Advanced industrial schools (Höhere gewerbliche Schulen).

2. Special industrial schools (Gewerbliche Fachschulen).

3. Industrial schools for drawing and painting (Zeichen- und Malschulen).

4. Industrial schools for women, girls, and children (Gewerbliche Lehranstalten für Frauen, Mädchen, und Kinder).

5. Industrial primary or continuation schools (Gewerbliche Fortbildungsschulen).

ADVANCED INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS,

There are 12 schools of this class in Saxony, located in the following cities:

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The following curriculum of the advanced industrial school in Chemnitz not only speaks for itself, but is a fair example by which to judge the others. It is divided into five distinct minor schools, known as the industrial academy, architecture, machine construction, dyeing, and industrial drawing departments. The industrial academy furnishes four courses, namely, for mechanics, chemists, architects, and electricians. The conditions of admission demand of the student sufficient educa. tion to be in possession of the certificate which entitles him to one year's service in the army. In addition to this he must show evidence that he has passed two years in some factory acquiring practical knowledge of the branch in which he desires to theoretically perfect himself in the industrial school. The course of study for mechanics is as follows:

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The courses in the other departments are similar to this one.

Arithmetic.
Spinning.

SPECIAL INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS.

There are about 150 of these schools in Saxony which are training young men to become expert workmen in the following trades and industries:

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The following curriculum of the tin and metal industrial school in Aue, this consular district, is characteristic of what all these schools are:

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The students devote twenty-eight hours each week to practical work in the tin and metal workshops of the school and factories of the city.

INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS FOR DRAWING AND PAINTING.

There are 32 of these schools in Saxony, namely, 3 for painters in Dresden and 29 for industrial drawers, etc., in different cities in Saxony. Eighteen are connected with as many public schools throughout the country. The industrial drawing school in Eibenstock enjoys a good reputation. The sample exhibits of the school are exceptionally fine. The most exquisite designs in handmade lace curtains and bead and silk trimmings in ancient and modern fashions are so tastefully arranged that they can not fail in making a deep impression upon the apprentices, who see them almost daily.

INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS FOR WOMEN, GIRLS, AND CHILDREN.

There are 21 of these schools in Saxony, namely, 19 for industrial education in general and 2 for lace making. One of the best schools of this class is in Schneeberg, this consular district.

INDUSTRIAL PRIMARY OR CONTINUATION SCHOOLS.

There are 44 of these schools in Saxony. They are intended to give boys and girls who have completed the public school course a chance to prepare themselves in a general way for some trade or particular branch of industry without the express intention of following the same.

In 1882 there were only 22 industrial schools in Saxony; to-day there are 287. This increase tells its own story.

REMARKS.

It is interesting to note that, in connection with the present school conflict in England, that country is closely watching the development of technical education in Germany. Only yesterday Lord Rosebery, in a letter to the board of directors

appointed to carry out the plan of building a technical school in London similar to that in Berlin-Charlottenburg, gave prominence to the fact that ambitious young Englishmen desirous of obtaining a good technical education were obliged to attend the technical universities in America and Germany. English industries suffered greatly in the past and were still suffering from the neglect to provide means for such training. The London Daily Mail, under date of June 22, contains an article about German industrial schools which I consider well worth inserting here:

The marvelous expansion of German trade-one of the notable achievements of the nineteenth century-is often referred to as attributable wholly to the fostering effect of bounties. In real truth many factors have combined to produce the remarkable result.

It is, of course, impossible to locate with certainty the actual effects of any given cause, but there can be but little doubt that the growth of many immense industries is traceable to the system of education that has directed all the available powers of scientific knowledge and research upon industrial problems.

In Germany the university has in a measure been displaced from its position as crown of the educational edifice; or, rather, the classical foundations now share their supremacy with institutions of a more modern growth. The universities still maintain their old high rank as training schools in the humanities; but it is in the polytechnical schools that the keen business men with sound scientific knowledge are to-day receiving their training. Chemists and civil, mechanical, and mining engineers are receiving an educational training that brings them to the problems of business life with practical and technical knowledge. The love of research is joined to the power of initiation—to the qualities, in short, that go to the building up of new industries and the constant expansion of old ones.

The polytechnical schools are essentially modern institutions. They date back no further than the nineteenth century, and their effectiveness is a matter of the last generation. Established as trade schools for the study of special subjects, they have widened their operations until they stand to-day for the application of scientific knowledge in all directions to the special requirements of commercial industry.

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Of these polytechnical schools there are now 9 in existence-at Aix la Chapelle, Berlin, Brunswick, Darmstadt, Dresden, Hanover, Karlsruhe, Munich, and Stuttgart-while 2 more are being added at Breslau and Danzig. * In these schools there are being trained at the present time nearly 15,000 students, receiving an education directly fitting them for participation in great industrial concerns in the capacity most calculated to promote expansion and progress. Many facts combine to prove the general opinion of the completeness and value of this training. In a period of thirty years the number of technical school students has been quadrupled. Out of a total of 15,000 students no less than one-sixth represent the youth of foreign nations a—a striking testimony to the excellence of the institutions.

The course of training in these schools is not only severe, but it follows upon a severe preliminary education. No student is admitted as fully qualified who has not passed through the complete nine-year course of the classical gymnasium or "real" school, in itself no mean accomplishment. In each of these cases a preliminary three-year course at a preparatory school has been taken, so that it would be impossible to enter the technical schools much before the age of 18 or 19, and, indeed, the age of admission is fixed at 18. In addition to the preliminary educational training, chemists are required to have worked for three years in an apothecary's establishment; architects must have completed a year of practical work at their profession, and engineering students must have passed the same period in mechanical work at some engineering factory. The usual course of training extends over a period of four years. Every conceivable branch of technical and practical science bearing upon the subject chosen comes within the range of study.

The requirements of the various schools as to attendance upon lectures are elastic and there is very little compulsion upon students. This is the more unnecessary, because, in the main, those who elect to undergo the course of training are aware of its severity, and are willing to devote themselves to work and study. Discipline, therefore, is easily maintained, though there are provisions for punishment ranging from reprimand to imprisonment and expulsion. For the rest, the life and habits of the students are much the same as at the universities. The year of enforced military service is either taken before or during the high-school training. This serves to defer

a In the spring of 1902 I wrote to the authorities of the different universities in Germany and ascertained that out of a total of 411 matriculated American students residing in Germany, only 58 were attending the technical universities.

the age at which the education of the German youth is completed, and he has usually attained the age of 24 or 25 before quitting the schools.

The fees imposed at the technical high schools are extremely small. Although they vary, it is probable that the average annual expenditure for laboratory work, books, and examinations does not exceed $75. This, coupled with the fact that there are practically no endowments, entails a considerable charge upon the State both as a regular supplement to the yearly fees and for items for extraordinary expenditure such as the erection and equipment of buildings and laboratories and the provision for appliances.

This cost, however, is cheerfully borne, as indeed it may well be, seeing that there is no department of national expenditure which can be so directly traced in remunerative results. In one direction alone-in the vast chemical industries of Germanymay be witnessed an actual creation, not merely a diversion, of trade amounting to many millions annually. Perhaps in no other industry in the world can the intimate connection between applied scientific knowledge and the growth of industries be so completely demonstrated.

INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS IN OTHER GERMAN STATES.

In connection with the industrial schools of Saxony, it is also interesting to note the progress made in this direction by other German States of the Empire.

In 1862 the city of Barmen sent a commission to Switzerland to study the industrial schools of that country. The result of this trip was the establishment of an industrial school in that city, with elementary and advanced departments. A pupil who desires to be admitted to the elementary class must be 12 years of age, able to read German fluently, and perform ordinary examples in arithmetic. During the winter months practical work is carried on in laboratories and workshops.

The Crefeld industrial school for textiles is one of the best in Germany. The object of the school is to prepare young men by practical and theoretical instruction to become managers and manufacturers as well as thorough experts in the textiles produced in Crefeld. The subjects taught are bookkeeping, spinning, weaving, and drawing. The course lasts two years. The city donated the lot and $35,000 toward erecting the school building. In Spremburg, Guben, and Kottbus similar schools for the weaving industry were established many years ago.

In 1879 an industrial school was established in Iserlohn for the metal and bronze industry of that city and vicinity. The pupil receives theoretical instruction at school and actual practice in factory and workshops. When these workshops were organized in connection with the school, some fifteen manufacturers of Iserlohn consented to furnish the necessary raw materials free of charge for a period of five years. This donation in reality amounted to $2,500. It is also arranged that young men permanently employed in the factories may take evening courses in drawing and in the theory of manufacture.

In Heinsberg there is an industrial school which teaches young apprentices how to make baskets and how to braid and twist materials for making baskets. There are 3 masters, each having about 25 boys in charge. In Hildesheim, Siegen, Breslau, Sulza, Höxter, Idstein, and a large number of other small towns industrial schools have been founded for building and architectural purposes. The best schools, however, in this line are in Berlin and Holzmünden. They are for the most part under the supervision of and receive subventions from the State.

The following information about the industrial school at Bochum speaks for itself: 1. The school has for its primary object the education of master workmen for the iron, smelting, and machine industries of the district.

2. The course of instruction includes three semesters. The first semester is intended to be a sort of preparatory course, while the two following are devoted to the higher branches of metallurgy and construction.

3. The conditions of admission require that the candidate shall have spent four full years in practical work in some one of the many iron foundries of the neighborhood. No examination is necessary, but a certificate from the foreman of the fac

a The State also furnished the needed machinery at a cost of $4,000.

tory is necessary to show that this time-the four years-was actually spent in a factory and that the pupil's behavior was satisfactory. He must be able to read and write-in fact, a knowledge of the subjects taught in the ordinary public school is required of the candidate.

4. Instruction is given on four week days during the forenoon and on two week days during the afternoon, so that plenty of time is left for excursions to the factories.

The Prussian State railways have also established industrial schools in Elberfeld, Berlin, Königsberg, Frankfort-on-the-Oder, Potsdam, Halberstadt, Breslau, and many other cities, for the purpose of teaching apprentices every subject which has anything to do with the building or repairing of railways cars, etc. In every workshop connected with these schools there are 8 to 10 apprentices, so that the total number considerably exceeds 1,000. Each apprentice in these schools receives a remuneration of 20 cents a day, which is put out at interest until the end of the three years' apprenticeship, when he comes into possession of both principal and interest.

In Wurttemberg there are schools in Stuttgart, Pforzheim, and vicinity for jewelry, musical instruments, and weaving. Many of them have well-equipped libraries. Heidesheim has a weaver's school. Such villages as Laichingen and Sindelfingen— names very little known outside of Wurttemberg-have schools for the linen industry. In Rottenburg there is a school for wood carvers; in Geislingen a school for engravers; in Rottweil one for ivory carving; while Gmünd, Heilbronn and Bieberach have schools for the cheap gold and silver plated ware industries in those localities.

The government of Wurttemberg has done much to introduce and support new industries in certain parts of the country where old industries have died out.. Some years ago, for example, the Royal Bureau for Commerce and Trade in Stuttgart decided to give financial assistance to the linen district of Alb, which had greatly suffered from Irish competition. The same was done with the handkerchief house industries in the district of Westerheim. It is the duty of this bureau for commerce and trade to keep in close touch with all the industrial schools in Wurttemberg. It is an institution which collects all sorts of information, data, etc., in regard to the needs of these schools and makes proposals concerning the establishment of new ones. Industrial education in Baden is far advanced. There is a school in almost every city and village between Heidelberg and the Lake of Constance. Fully 20,000 apprentices are learning how to make clocks and cotton, woolen, and silk goods. Aside from the technical university in Karlsruhe, there is an industrial-art school which is attended by pupils from every part of Baden and these represent almost every trade in the country. In connection with the schools, there are workshops in which the young potter, painter, engraver, wood carver, lithographer, locksmith, blacksmith, cabinetmaker, etc., is getting all the practical knowledge necessary, so that at the end of three years he is master of some particular trade, not merely in name, but in reality.

Hessen can boast of the fact that there is not a single village, no matter how small, in the whole country which has not an industrial school of some kind. They are all under the direction of the minister of the interior. Workshops for actual practice are connected with most of the schools.

Bavaria is also well supplied with industrial schools. In connection with most of the courses there are classes for instruction in arithmetic, geometry, German, history, geography, physics, and chemistry. There are special industrial schools for the weaving industry in Passau, Münchberg, and Lambrecht. The last-mentioned school has an especially good reputation. It is not only intended for the cloth industry, but for linen, flannel, cotton goods, and carpet weaving. The manufacturers are in a position to obtain the most reliable information and statistics in regard to their branch of industry at any time.

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