CO885-(16-18) — Page 356

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

PELL CO.

ייןווייוןוווד

+885

17 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

$$

need be done until the result of this further action was reported. The question of the cost of the proposed edition was discussed, great stress being laid on the necessity for the very best material for slides being procured and for great discrimi- nation being exercised in the choice of an artist or photographer to tour the Colonies, including all outlying dependencies. The total cost of the edition was estimated at about £5,000.

Mr. Lucas reported an interview with Mr. Stoneham, who had written to the Times newspaper* deploring the ignorance of children of this country concerning the Colonies. Mr. Stoneham, who intended to move in the direction of throwing light on the matter, promised to keep Mr. Lucas informed of the progress made.

9328

MADAM,

No. 132.

COLONIAL OFFICE to THE LEAGUE OF THE EMPIRE.

[Answered by No. 133.]

Downing Street, March 14, 1907. WITH reference to correspondence which has taken place on the subject of the Federal Conference on Education, to be held in London in May next, I am directed by the Earl of Elgin to inform you that the Committee on Visual Instruction, at a meeting held at this Office on the 12th instant, unanimously resolved that it is desirable that they should be represented at the Conference; and that, in the event of such representation being arranged, Mr. H. J. Mackinder, Director of the London School of Economics and Political Science, would be a suitable delegate of the Committee.

2. His Lordship would be glad if the wish of the Committee, with whose work the League of the Empire is familiar, to be represented at the Conference could be complied with.

I am, &c..

9524

SIR,

No. 133.

C. P. LUCAS.

THE LEAGUE OF THE EMPIRE to COLONIAL OFFICE. (Received March 16, 1907.)

Caxton Hall, Westminster, London, S.W., March 15, 1907.

I AM to acknowledge your letter of the 14th instant, † conveying to my Council the resolution of the Committee on Visual Instruction in respect to the Federal Con- ference on Education.

I am directed respectfully to inform the Right Honourable the Secretary of State for the Colonies that my Council will be much honoured by the representation of the Committee at the Conference, and that an invitation to Mr. H. J. Mackinder to attend as its representative has been sent.

9969

MY LORD,

I have, &c.,

E. M. ORD MARSHALL,

No. 134.

Honorary Secretary.

MR. A. II. P. STONEHAM to COLONIAL OFFICE.

(Received March 19, 1907.)

[Answered by No. 135.]

30 and 31, St. Swithin's Lane, London, E.C., March 18, 1907.

I AM writing you regarding a matter I have already personally explained to Mr. Lucas and Mr. Holland.

The matter in question refers to an attempt I am making to raise a fund for Empire education. This is explained in a letter which I wrote to the "Times," on

• See No. 134.

† No. 132.

89

the 7th February last. I enclose a reprint of this letter and several others which were published in the "Times" referring to the same subject; also copies of letters to and from the Board of Education.

Your Lordship will observe that this is entirely a non-party movement, and the method of procedure is to call a public meeting in the City, and subsequently hold meetings in other large towns and appeal for funds for the above purpose.

The Lord Mayor has kindly consented to call the first meeting, provided a sufficient number of influential citizens and prominent public men of both sides of politics sign the requisition.

I have already received signatures and promises of signatures from several prominent non-party leaders connected with the Colonies, but as it is essentially a matter of education in Colonial subjects I should greatly like to have your support as Colonial Secretary, also that of the Minister for Education and that of the ex-Colonial Secretary and ex-Minister for Education, and by this means remove any suspicion of party politics.

If Your Lordship entertains the matter favourably I shall be obliged if you will give me an interview, when I will explain the matter more in detail.

I am, &c.,

ALLEN H. P. STONEHAM.

Enclosure in No. 134.

EDUCATION AND EMPIRE. REPRINTS FROM "THE TIMES." To the Editor of "The Times."

'SIR,-Will you allow me to call the attention of your readers to a matter of national interest ?

"The Colonial Conference is approaching, and the result of that conference will be either that we shall welcome the Colonies with open arms or turn towards them the cold shoulder of apathy. Which is it to be? How many Englishmen know enough about the Colonies to ake up their minds which it should be? How many trouble themselves to learn anything at all about the Colonies? How many have the opportunity of learning, even if they have the will to do so?

**Let me give you my experience. I was Unionist candidate for Bosworth Division of Leicestershire at the last election. I am not an old Parliamentary hand, and I endeavoured to confine my speeches to Colonial and Imperial topics, with which, perhaps, I am more familiar than the majority of people.

At one meeting, which was composed almost entirely of miners, I was listened to very attentively, and at the conclusion of the meeting I was asked:-

How can the statements you have made be verified; if you are correct we are wrong, but we have no means of finding out for ourselves; we have not visited the Colonies; we have no books from which to learn about the Colonies; we have not even a map of the world showing the British possessions. You may be right, but we want to find out for ourselves.'

This was a fair and frank statement, and I promised that after the election was over I would send an Empire map and suitable text-books to all the schools and clubs which I visited, so that the children and their parents might have an opportunity of learning about the Empire.

"When I returned to London my difficulties began, for to my amazement I found great trouble in obtaining an up-to-date map of the world showing all the possessions of Great Britain. The Government does not publish such a map. The best map is that published for the Navy League; this has marginal notes of great interest; but the Navy League map is not brought up to date every year, and the map then on sale was out of date. Accordingly I waited until the new edition was ready, and in the meantime made enquiries for a suitable text-book for the use of teachers in the schools.

"After much search I at length found a book (published at His Majesty's Stationery Office) called the Emigrants' Handbook to the Colonies, and I sent this book, together with the Daily Mail" Year Book,' and the Nuvy League map, to all the schools and clubs I had visited.

"The result has been most extraordinary. The maps and books have not merely been welcomed, but have been received with delight and enthusiasm. I have been almost over- whelmed with letters asking for copies to be sent to schools and clubs in other counties. The requests have come not only from adjoining counties, but from all parts of England and Wales. and even Scotland and Ireland. Methodists and Home Rulers, Baptists and Labour men. Churchmen and Socialists, and I ́nionists and Freetraders, and teachers of all denominations have vied with each other in showing their eagerness to learn about the Empire.

Now, Sir, it is not possible for any private individual to supply Great Britain with maps and text-books, and in many cases I have had to recommend the applicants to ask the local educational authorities to supply the maps and books. Some of the teachers write me

22547

AI