takes place with unmitigated fervor. Some say that the voice of the masses should not be heard, that the commons should not have the privilege of the initiative and the referendum. But history proves that in the long run, despite the political deceptions of selfish and unprincipled men, the voice of the people will be heard, and it is much better that it be heard expressing itself intelligently than in the form of a bitter class struggle, colored perhaps with blood.

What we need is to produce such a degree of political intelligence that the average American voter will be able to recognize political wrong in embryo. In other words political intelligence should be so disseminated that the intriguing designs and questionable schemes of the selfish and the corrupt in our public life and in our legislatures would be instantly detected no matter how carefully concealed by well-phrased rhetoric. The average American is much more interested in games and sports than in politics, and yet it is politics that governs the supply of his bread and butter. This condition is deplorable. Worse than that. It is blasting our whole political life, because it allows political dishonesty to fatten. There is great and immediate necessity of arousing as widespread interest as possible in the making of American citizens. But how can that interest be aroused, and politically intelligent citizens produced?

II.

The problem is a large one, but it is not insoluble. The trouble is that we have let it get away with us, and as in the case of other great movements, it will take time, common action, and patience to accomplish what is needed. In addition, a certain long standing educational misconception must be broken down.

The most practical, comprehensive, and efficient way to produce a nation of citizens politically well informed is through public and private school instruction; This plan would have to take into account at least three great factors-teachers, students, and a new course of study.

1. Teachers: It is decidedly unfortunate that teachers have generally speaking, been practically "gagged" in reference to all modern political party matters. Hence they are literally afraid to say anything about the policies and platforms of our political

parties, and the United States is reaping the results of such a "gag" process in the form of young citizens not at all conversant with the most commonplace political facts, and in the form of thousands of teachers, themselves not much more interested in the political faith of our different parties than the ones they teach. Furthermore, teachers will have no great incentive to become well versed in politics, if they are under the impression that educational authorities "higher up" look with suspicion upon the presentation of it to pupils. Still there is some justification for this suspicion, for it is generally believed that politics cannot be taught other than in a partisan manner. This is not true, for it is not a difficult matter for a teacher to get a solid, comprehensive, unprejudiced, non-partisan view of political party history, policies and platforms, and I shall show a little later how pupils can get the same view. In his actual teaching the instructor would take sides with no party and would allow no partisan remarks to be made or partisan questions to be asked.

2. Students: There are those who believe that students cannot understand modern political parties and problems. Excuse me, but I know better. And I know better because I have taught them to pupils, and they show that they do understand them sufficiently well to talk and write about them intelligently. The certain misconception which needs to be broken down is that boys and girls cannot understand modern politics. It is said that such a study is too difficult for them. Yet, strange to say, these same critics will admit that our pupils can and are expected to understand the government of the Achaean League, the contentions of the political factions in the time of the Gracchi, the belief of the Whigs and the Tories in England, the changes of French political belief during the period of the Revolution, and be able to state three or four reasons why Charles I should or should not have been executed. Pray tell, does it take any more brain power to understand the arguments for and against a protective tariff or the reasons why the Progressive party was born, than it takes brain power to understand the topics just mentioned, topics which pupils are expected to understand; than it takes brain power to understand why the government under the Articles of Confederation was a weaker form of government than that under the Federal Constitution; than it takes brain power to understand Paradise

Lost? If it does take more brain power to understand the former things than the latter, let our critics produce the educational and psychological explanation or reason. The real fact of the matter is that we have for centuries assumed a thing that is contrary to fact, and have consequently kept our boys and girls from the opportunity of understanding modern politics. It is wholly false to contend that pupils can understand ancient politics but cannot understand modern politics. Those who have had courage to break away from the old contention not only know that students can understand modern politics, but they know also that students hunger and thirst after political knowledge when once they begin to make a real study of politics. Moreover, the only reason why college students cannot discuss modern political questions intelligently and do not take an interest in them is that they were given no chance to study them while getting ready for college, and, as a result, have no apperceptive basis for such work. For the same reason the editorial pages of the leading dailies and the real substantial magazines are of much less significance to our multitudes of youth than the sporting and fashion sections of a Sunday newspaper. And still we keep wondering why our people, both young and old, do not take more serious interest in serious problems. How can they when they lack the background, the training, the apperceptive ability, which alone makes possible a serious interest in serious problems?

3. The New Course of Study: The moment a new course of study is mentioned, I can imagine a great group of teachers and superintendents rising up in arms. "We have too many courses of study now!" I heartily admit it. That is just the trouble. But we have some courses of study, the real, practical value of which it would take microscopic inspection to discover. And this is the reason why so many of our boys and girls leave our halls of instruction, and the reason that fathers and mothers the country over are maintaining that our schools are not preparing their children for life. It is high time that our whole school curriculum were critically scrutinized and our college entrance requirements liberalized,

The new course of study which I suggest would consist of three parts or divisions-a practical study of civil government, (the foundation work) practical politics, and current problems (par

ticularly such as have to do with the affairs of municipal, state, and federal government.) It should be made a required course of not less than three periods each week, running throughout the school year, and placed in the curriculum of all the secondary schools and colleges, and the elemental features of it should be given also in the upper grades of the common or elementary schools. The reason why it should appear in the elementary schools is that about (65%) sixty-five per cent. of our grammar school pupils do not enter high school, and these should be reached. The first and third divisions of the course need no comment; the second-practical politics-does. This phase of the work would deal mainly with the history, policies, and platforms of the leading parties, and might be organized somewhat as follows:

1. The Nature, Necessity, Function, and Organization of Political Parties.

2. A Bird's Eye View of Political Parties in the U. S. Political Parties Before the Constitution.

a.

b. Political Parties Since the Constitution,

C.

Minor Political Parties and their Function.

3. The Origin, History and Policy of the Democratic Party.

4. What the Democrats Believe-A Study of the latest National

Platform.

5. The Origin, History and Policy of the Republican Party.

6. What the Republicans Believe-A Study of the latest National Platform.

7. The Progressive Party.

a. What it is.

b. Why it is.

8. What the Progressives Believe-A Study of the latest National Platform.

9. A Comparative Study of the Three Leading Parties.

a. Their Similarities.

b. Absolute Differences.

C. An Attempt to answer the three questions-
(1). What does it mean to be a Democrat?
(2). What does it mean to be a Republican?
(3). What does it mean to be a Progressive?

10. Socialism.

a. What the Socialist Party Believes.
b. Arguments for Socialism.

c. Arguments against Socialism.

11. Conclusions.

If such a course were offered in our elementary, secondary, professional, normal and evening schools, and in our colleges and universities, where altogether more than 20,000,000 students attend annually, it is easy to see that an exceedingly large number of citizens could be brought to a respectable degree of political intelligence.

If the school authorities in the United States should act favorably on this simple, yet far-reaching suggestion, it would be possible in the course of a few years to so disseminate civic and political knowledge as to develop the political intelligence of the American electorate to approximate the political intelligence of the average Greek in the days of Pericles, which, on good authority, is said to have averaged that of a member of Parliament or of the United States Congress. This result could all the more easily be achieved if our homes, our press, our pulpits, our literary clubs, our Young Men's and Young Women's Christian Associations and our civic organizations would strongly advocate the need of civic and political instruction, and suggest ways and means of offering to the public the opportunity to get such training.

What is the matter with politics? The answer is brief. The people do not know practical politics, and this lack of knowledge on the part of the people gives the political "machine" and the political "boss" their opportunity. Our country needs a campaign of education: needs to be swept by a great deluge of civic and political information. A free nation demands virtue founded upon intelligence.