View report page

55
slum landlord. It is strange that, as recently as 20 years ago, the
housing problem in London appeared to demand for its solution the
provision of more houses, whereas to-day there is a superabundance
of houses, and yet the problem remains as serious as ever.
The problem of promoting the physical and moral hygiene of
the community does not grow easier day by day, with the increasing
concentration of population in large urban communities, and all are
agreed that there exists a sad need for the general raising of ideals
among the people. It is upon school influences that we must mainly
base our hopes and expectations of future improvement in this respect.
A successful physical and moral training is, however, a difficult prob
lem when the: home circumstances, moral and material, are
antagonistic; so in the meanwhile, at least, the administrative
measures designed to secure wholesome homes and surroundings must
be fully availed of. It is not, however, on these grounds alone that
the State has done so much to promote School Hygiene. The fact
has long been recognised that the fullest regard for the bodily health
of the child is necessary to obtain the best mental reaction; and as.
School methods carefully designed to meet the physiological demands
of a mentally and physically developing child determine educational
efficiency, it is realised that school hygiene is necessary for the development
of the best type of citizen—the best mentally, the best morally,
and the best physically. Systematic courses of Instruction for
Teachers have accordingly been arranged by many educational authorities,
and the increasing efforts of the London County Council to meet
this need in London during the past few years is a noteworthy sign of
the times. Moreover, the recently issued Set of Regulations of the
Board of Education in reference to school teachers introduces for the
first time a compulsory hygiene course and a compulsory Examination
in Hygiene for all students in Training Colleges who intend to be
teachers in elementary schools. The Medical Inspection of School
Children, which is now in operation throughout the country, may also
claim both physical and educational merits. It aims at detecting
and removing physical disabilities, which in no small measure deter-