BOYS AND POLITICS.
THE soldier, according to Lord Brougham, was not of much account in his time. " There is another per-
sonage, a personage less imposing, in the eyes of some perhaps insignificant. The schoolmaster is abroad, and I trust to him, armed with his primer, against the soldier in full military array." The lapse of more than half-a-century has not changed the position of affairs ; on the contrary, it has added further proof to Lord Brougham's words. To-day, the schoolmaster or professor rules omnipotent, and has so far conquered the soldier, that the latter has perforce armed him- self with the primer and enlisted on the schoolmaster's side. We do not complain. We have an immense respect for the school- master; in our eyes, he has always been a most imposing personage, the very reverse of insignificant, whatever he may have been in the eyes of Lord Brougham, whose bump of reverence, we believe, was not largely developed. Years have not robbed him of the awe with which he once inspired us.
Nevertheless, though we do not complain of the introduction of the schoolmaster into politics, we should not be pleased to see the introduction of politics into a school, nor hear with equanimity of a schoolmaster who attempted to combine the two functions of schoolmaster and politician at one and the same time; for which reason we should, at the first sight, have been tempted to sympathise with the indignant " Pater-
familias" who wrote to the Times at the beginning of this week, complaining of the political pressure that had been put upon his son by the Head-Master of a Public School. The Public School was Rugby, and the boy's letter to his father
disclosed a terrible state of things existing there. Most of the fellows, he said, had taken to wearing badges and coloured handkerchiefs, in honour of the elections, and in support of their lavonrite candidate. Last Friday—that is to say, the Friday in last week—an order went forth from the Head-Master that they should do so no longer. " I expect," wrote this young man significantly, " that there would have been no order if they had been his colours. Mr. Cobb was seconded by the Head-Master." Now, Mr. Cobb, as we know, was the Glad- stoniau candidate for Rugby, and apparently his candidature was seconded by the Head-Master of Rugby School. Rugby School had decorated itself with Conservative colours, and the Head-Master forbade the decoration ; therefore, the Rugby schoolboys " expect" that the colours were forbidden because they were distasteful to the Head-Master. This " expectation " on the part of his boys may be an unworthy one, and altogether • undeserved by the Head-Master ; but we must confess that it
is his own indiscretion that has cast this terrible suspicion upon his actions and his motives. He has shown himself an ardent Gladstonian ; he has refused to let the boys declare themselves Conservatives. It is no wonder that a son should impart his dark suspicions to his father, and that the father, above the time-honoured signature of " Paterfamilias," should write an indignant complaint to the Times. Why should not his boy wear his colours ? " The head-master of a school," says this angry parent, "has no more business to interfere in an election than has a Bishop." " Interfering " is rather a strong word. It was only with the boys that he interfered ; in the election he simply took a part.
When we consider it carefully, the position of the actual schoolmaster with regard to politics is rather a delicate one. We imagine that it is pretty well understood that the politics of the day form no part of a schoolboy's education, and that no attempt should be made to tamper with the political creed which may be held by a boy's family. It may be a " delightful task, to rear the tender thought, to teach the young idea how to shoot" in politics ; but it is a task from which a school- master, however keen a politician he may be himself, will do well to refrain. For the most part, the labour would be an ungrateful one, for the schoolboy is not easily interested in politics ; and where it was likely to be successful, and the boy was interested, we think the schoolmaster would be guilty of something like a breach of confidence. A father does not pay to have his son instructed in political principles which are abhorrent to himself ; and we think that a really conscientious schoolmaster will not seek to disturb the political faith which the boy has brought with him from home, or to supply the boy who has no political ideas, with ideas that may be at variance with those that are held by his parents. Most boys are not politicians. When they have any ideas at all upon the sub- iect, they are Tories of the most staunch and obstinate description. The schoolboy is a born aristocrat and opponent of all popular movements. Later on, at the age of nineteen or so, he usually becomes an advanced Radical, and the more bigotei his early views, the more progressive and democratic are the ideas of his first manhood. The second phase generally lasts about as long as the first,—neither is of long duration. That, however, is the natural sequence of ideas in the school- boy's mind when he is not swayed by outside influences ; and even when he is influenced by the opinions that he hears ex- pressed around him, we believe that his own personal opinion, if truly expressed, would be more or less as we have stated. The prudent schoolmaster will not seek to interfere with these simple faiths, or change them fora better-reasoned faith of his own. It is too obvious that such a proceeding on his part would be inexpedient in the highest degree ; a possible offence to the parents, and consequently a drawback to the prosperity of the school. We do not suppose for an instant that the Head- Master of Rugby could be guilty of such an indiscretion as to wish to instil his political faith into the boys under his charge, or could have been so ill-advised as to interfere with their small political demonstration because it did not favour his own opinion. The order not to wear political badges or colours, was most probably made to prevent the boys from joining in any of the election rows and ructions that might be going on in the town ; or perhaps it was a precautionary measure, intended to rob them of an excuse for separating into two camps and punching each other's heads. Either explanation would be more natural than the one that the boys themselves chose to affix to it; but, unfortunately, the boys' explanation will seem far more credible to them than any other that could be offered, and to that explanation they will obsti- nately adhere,—the fact probably being that they themselves intended a demonstration against theirHead-Master in wearing colours at all. They did not approve of Mr. Cobb, and their Head-Master did : not only approved of Mr. Cobb, but empha- sised his approval by seconding his candidature. Now, school- boys are very sensitive as to the dignity of the school ; and when that dignity, in the shape of their Head-Master, goes astray to support a gentleman who is displeasing to them, they are not slow to find a way of showing their disapproval. For this reason, with singular unanimity, they sported the colours of the other side, and must have warmly congratu- lated themselves when they were forbidden to wear them, and could persuade each other that their remonstrance had gone home. It certainly was unfortunate for the Head-Master that his simple action should be capable of such misconception ; but then, he had omitted to reckon with the natural perversity of schoolboys, and the watchful suspicions of a "Pater- familias."
All things considered, it would perhaps be better for a school- master if he harboured no political convictions at all, or, at least, if he professed none. Better for him, that is to say, in his capacity of schoolmaster. It would be very unreasonable to expect him to forego his right to vote; but we think, if he were a prudent man, he would draw a line which would exclude personal canvassing for one candidate or the other. After all, there are many offices which preclude a man from having a Parliamentary vote even, and in view of the post that he holds, such a disfranchisement is not considered a very great hardship for the man who is so excluded. It would be absurd to criticise the decree that forbade the wearing of party colours and badges by Rugby boys. No doubt it was an extremely sensible one, and prevented the school from being turned into a bear-garden during election times, notwith- standing the small boy's plea that all the colours were of the same political complexion. Still, one is somewhat disposed to criticise the Head-Master's own action with regard to Mr. Cobb. If any man be required to practise what he preaches, and to be careful of his example, it is a schoolmaster. We would say nothing of the judgment which prompted him to assist the return of Mr. Cobb to Parliament, because there are obviously two sides to that question, and views as to Mr. Cobb and his political convictions may easily differ; but we do think that there was a want of judgment in making use of his prominence as Head-Master of Rugby School to bring support to a Parliamentary candidate, whether it were to Mr. Cobb or to his opponent,—almost as great a want of jadgment as was displayed by the " Paterfamilias " who rebuked him.
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