and power—the power of the teacher to punish. The new idea is largely based upon the power of the teacher to interest, and upon trust in youth's natural instinct to acquire knowledge. It is a tremendous change; the old system was impure in its psychology, and corrupted alike the mind of the teacher and the taught. Nobody in the old days was so unteachable as a school-master; and yet his whole profession is really—to learn of youth. And the ethical impurity of the old system came at the point where there was a lack of goodwill—a lack of mutual confidence.
In trade again, how much co-operation has been over-ridden by competition—manœuvres of one against the other, designed to the other's detriment. We have been told that competition is absolutely necessary to keep us efficient in business; it is precisely the same school of thought which says that war is necessary to keep us efficient as a nation.
But in a family you don't need competition; where there is goodwill, co-operation and the give-and-take of new ideas for the common stock are enough.
To-day we are beginning to wake up to the possibility of co-operation taking the place of competition. It is the purer idea; and being the purer we shall probably in the end find it the more economical.
And what shall we say about politics? Does anyone pretend that our politics are pure; or that the system on which we run
