The compulsory school laws of Prussia are frequently pointed to as
models for similar laws, perhaps with the hope that by imitating her
lower schools we can bring up our high schools to an equal rank with
hers, and place our universities on a level with those which are
producing the most finished scholars, the deepest thinkers, and the
greatest investigators. We are likely to forget that the conditions
are different, and especially that _nascitur, non fit_, is as true of
a chemist as of a poet. The state of popular education in Germany
is, however, a matter of interest, and is best illustrated by the
following table, showing the percentage of unschooled men among the
recruits from different German provinces:
Per cent.
Prussia 3.19
Bavaria 1.79
Saxony 0.23
Wuertemberg 0.02
Baden 0.22
Hesse 0.35
Mecklenburg 1.09
Thuringia 1.42
Alsace 3.45
These figures seem to indicate a higher grade of intelligence and
wider diffusion of knowledge among all classes, for recruits are from
every class, than in Austria, although in the latter the figures are
arranged so differently as to make any accurate comparison of Austria
and Germany rather difficult and unsatisfactory.
-----------------+----------+----------------+-----------------+----------
NAME OF DISTRICT.| Number of| Number of | Percentage of | Number of
| Common | inhabitants to | school children | Normal
| Schools. | each school. | who attend. | Schools.
-----------------+----------+----------------+-----------------+----------
Bohemia | 4,190 | 1,254 | 77 | 12
Bukowina | 167 | 3,121 | 9 | 1
Dalmatia | 241 | 1,864 | 12 | 2
Galicia | 2,374 | 2,341 | 15 | 1
Carinthia | 318 | 1,060 | ? | 2
Carniola | 234 | 1,187 | 48 | 2
Custrin | 396 | 1,496 | 38 | 5
Moravia | 1,866 | 1,082 | 78 | 5
Lower Austria | 1,267 | 1,578 | 76 | 5
Upper Austria | 506 | 1,455 | 82 | 2
Salzburg | 155 | 982 | 85 | 1
Steiermark | 690 | 1,657 | 59 | 3
Schlesia | 433 | 1,208 | 77 | 4
Tyrol | 1,926 | 457 | ? | 6
|----------|----------------|-----------------|----------
Total | 14,763 | | | 51
-----------------+----------+----------------+-----------------+----------
Over 3,000 teachers' positions are said to be vacant at the present
time.
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