Welsh Journals

who did not wish to go treasure hunting, and, judging from my own case, the thoughts of the seeker would not dwell so much on what was to be done with the pieces-of-eight when found, as the joy of finding them. The great men I have named were men who retained this joy of treasure hunting to the end of their days and in their case also they were attracted by the pursuit rather than the use of the treasure. They felt-to quote R. L. Stevenson- that to travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive, and the true success is to labour." Is our present system of education one which will foster this desire for the chase ? Are we certain that we are doing our best to promote originality, to quicken the spirit of inquiry, to strengthen indivi- duality and to foster the desire for dis- covery ? Is not our system a kind of personally conducted Cook's Tour over beaten tracks ? Apart from the benefits conferred on the community by research, we should remem- ber that it is, in itself, the greatest of educa- tional agents. TheJad who, without the use of a text-book or the guidance of a teacher, discovers for himself some fact, however well-known, however insignificant, is one who, although not necessarily of the type that passes examinations and wins prizes, is nevertheless likely to develop those qualities which will not only be of service to himself, but will enable him to confer benefits on his fellow-men. Are we guiltless, if many Miltons who might have sung are rendered mute and inglorious by their early training? We must place less value on examination results, and attach more importance to character development, if we are to reap the highest return from the intelligence of the rising generation. To carry our babies is an easier task than to teach them to walk; to impart knowledge to our children may be an easier task than to teach them to desire it, but in both cases the harder is the better way. Education should be not a punishment for being young," but rather an oppor- tunity for growth. Our children are full of the spirit of research they question everything-sometimes to our dis- comfiture. It is our duty to see that that spirit of inquiry is maintained from the time they leave the nursery until they arrive at the workshop or the university, and if this be done, we may trust that the coming generations will find no lack of men worthy to build on the foundations laid by their illustrious predecessors. Our industrial slums, our huge arma- ments, our extremes of wealth and poverty, are but examples of the truth that know- ledge wrongly applied may be a curse, rather than a blessing. Nevertheless, the seeker after knowledge for its own sake is in no way responsible for the errors of statesmen or the faults of mankind. The true disciple will ever bear in mind the words of Bacon: Knowledge is not a couch for the curious spirit, nor a terrace for the wandering, nor a tower of state for the proud mind, nor a vantage ground for the haughty, nor a shop for profit and sale, but a storehouse for the glory of God and the endowment of mankind.'