Page:Century Magazine-Vol 82-194.png

180 do more work than they are compelled to; but with their sisters that consideration hardly ever applies, and the standard of knowledge and the excellence of the work done by girls in England are remarkably high. Though the instruction of girls in their early years is given by a governess, there are many excellent classes largely attended held by some of our best professors, not only in London but also in the large provincial towns. In London, some of the classes are taught in French and German, and during every term at the large colleges for women, such as Queen’s College and Bedford College, as well as at the London University and University College, lectures on special subjects are given by the best authorities. These are popular and are largely attended by girls belonging to the professional and upper classes. The subjects of the lectures are announced and papers are prepared at home by the students under the supervision of the governess, and an examination at the end of each term is held to see what progress has been made. The advantage of such classes is no doubt a great one, for it creates a happy spirit of rivalry, and applies just the stimulus which is wanting in home instruction.

Some girls take the Oxford and Cambridge local examinations and go in for a pass. The first examination is not very severe, but the higher certificate is a stiffer undertaking, yet thousands of girls pass, with great distinction, every year. It is no unusual thing to see all the girls in a family working for it. A story is told of two daughters (twins) of one of our most eminent judges, who went up together for the Oxford and Cambridge local examination, as they did for everything else, and who generally came out equally successful. A great air of mystery however hung over this examination, which caused much interest among their friends. It became known only after some time that one twin had passed and that the other had failed. The subject was so painful and the broken record of mutual success so overwhelming, that the subject was never alluded to by the family.

One characteristic of the education of English girls is the thoroughness with which every branch of it is carried out; there is no shirking, no compromise. What they learn is learned thoroughly, and any one conversing with a well-educated English girl of the class of which I write, will find it very difficult to get her out of her depth. Many girls carry on their studies long after they have done with the school-room and their reading is wide and diversified; they also embark on subjects which, for want of time, they have been unable to take up earlier. But the “pose” of the earnest but ill-informed young and pretty woman is always amusing, as well as the tender charity of their male adversaries. At present, the practice of public speaking is fashionable and weekly debating classes are held for girls at some of the houses of the leading political people in London, where they are taught not only how to speak and use the voice, but to discuss and argue the question clearly and carefully from the point of view which they have adopted. Women take so prominent a part in public life in England that a certain amount of training in elocution and public speaking is most valuable.

It is now also becoming the fashion for English girls whose parents can afford the time and expense to spend a year or more in some French or German educational center before they come out. Some go to Paris, but the majority prefer Germany, where they can combine a further acquaintance with German literature and the study of music. In most cases they are sent under the charge of their governess or live in a pension where no one speaks English and where they are obliged to converse in German. The influences of German life and education are very powerful and leave a distinct impress on a girl’s mind. They possibly develop the romantic side of her character, but they also give her a breadth of view and a wider aperçu of life, and remove the purely insular point of view from which we are only too liable to regard other countries and people.

Athletics also play an important part in the life and education of English girls, especially among those of the upper classes, where the question of cost is not a consideration. Open-air life has done more for their welfare and strength than almost any other influence. It is undoubtedly true that English girls are stronger and taller than formerly and possess a greater fund of endurance than they have