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.. MR. BUCKMASTER IN SHROPSHIRE.

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MR. BUCKMASTER IN SHROPSHIRE. Mr. Buckmaster lectured at Church Stretton on Thursday Jan. 23, on Art and Science applied to Every Day Life." A large audience was present of the gentry, farmers, and trades- men, and he entered a little into the scheme for agricultural education. At Bishop's Castle he went fully into this subject, on Friday, Jan. 24, at the Castle Hotel, the attendance being largo and influential. Mr. Jasper Moro presided, and introduced Mr. Buckmaster. He said he should not ask how many hours those present had devoted to the arts and sciences that radiate from South Kensington. He had to ask them whether they would approve of the proposal to add the scientific study of agriculture to those sciences, and if so whether they were dis- posed to carry out the proposals that would be laid before them. He had told Mr. Buckmaster, as a stranger to them, that Bishop's Castle was the centro of an important stock- breeding district, in which tho mutton was for the table pro- bably unrivalled, whilst the beef was considered hard to beat. The men who can ied on a large business in stock were perhaps as unconscious as any people in the country of the severe de- pression agriculture had been passing through in the arable districts, the men who thus farmed might be sceptical as to a department of art and science {teaching them anything. He was not going to argue as to the value of scientific knowledge to practical men. He addressed himself te the education of the tuture, and to the schoolmaster rather than the farmer. That neighbourhood was favourable to the reception of views relating to higher education. It had had good elementary schools. at Bishop's Castle, Churchstoke, Linley, Shelve, and other places for the last 30 years, long before schools were forced on other places only by the Education Act. They had a School Board in Bishop's Castle, managed at a low rate, with the Vicar of the town as chairman. Mr. Scott, one of the landowners in the district, had built probably the finest school in the county, and the master, Mr. Sharp, had already advertised for boarders in anticipation of this scheme. Mr. Garnet-Botfield, another neighbour, had practically carried into effect elsewhere his views of combining elementary and higher education in the same school. Lord Powis had shewn active interest in middle class education. They were therefore no mere theorists about here, and all their schools had recently taken practical means for higher social-improvement. He would only give the sub- stance of a few out of many letters he had received on the subject before them. Mr. Temple, H.M. Inspector of Schools for the district, was in favour of devoting small grammar schools and endowments formerly left for elementary educa- tion for the education of farmers' and tradesmen's sons. Mr. Temple thought that the Science and Art Department should supply trained masters for such schools. With respect to Mr. Temple's first view, an endowment for ele- mentary education (Wright's charity) had been used for secondary education for many years in that town, but latterly in accordance with the wishes of those for whom it was left, the income was devoted to the free education of 25 children at the Board School, by the Bishop of Hereford as trustee. A com- mittee had been formed a year ago to try to convert the endow- ments for the education of the poor at Shrewsbury into a middle-class school, but he had not heard that the gentlemen acting on that committee had achieved any result. Mr. Morgan Owen, another inspector of schools connected with the neighbourhood, had written to advocate schoolmasters teaching agriculture from a text book as a subject of elementary educa- tion. This the Council of the Royal Agricultural Society also advocated; but it would, of course, have to be passed by Parliament. Lastly, he would give them one of the letters he had received on the state of the farmers in Shropshire, because he hoped they would compare the experience of a represent¡¡tive man in anotber district with their own. He read a letter from Mr. Charles Wadlow, of Church Stretton, saying that landlord must meet tenant and tenant landlord, the labourers must come down in wages and the tradesmen in prices that farmers must put down extravagances, and not devote so much time as some did to hunting and shooting that they must don the smock" as their fathers did, and show the Legislature that they both required and deserved assist- ance that he had not much faith instate help, hut it was re- quired when they had to compete with the world; and that any State assistance to farmers' education must be gladly ac- cepted. The association of local schoolmasters attended, and accepted the scheme, which embraces schoolmasters presenting themselves for an agricultural examination, and afterwards pre- paring pupils to pass a rudimentary examination, to be followed by a higher course, which, if successfully passed, will enable the student to earn £4. The examinations are to be held in May, under a committee of the district approved by the Department. > Sealed papers are to he sent down and opened before the candi- dates, who will be allowed three hours to attempt six or eight questions. A syllabus of the subject is to be sent by the De- partment. The scheme was heartily received by the audiences, who agreed to take steps to carry it into effect.

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