an instructor—not at all roughly, for he had
no rough example in his eye —but with an
amusing mimicry of ways and tones used by
his elders.

While we had been watching the fingers of
this young gentleman, as they pointed out on
a map some of the ways of the world, the
classes had been formed again, and we were
presently invited to attend another lesson. "We
had, this time, another teacher, and joined
pupils more advanced in years; the youngest
were old fellows of eleven.

"If you buy a loaf, what do you give for it?"
"Money."  " What is money?" —From this point
we were carried through a series of questions
on the social relations that exist in civilised
communities. The boys readily defined and
explained such terms as wealth, capital, wages,
labour; showed by a train of reasoning their
perfect comprehension of the principle that
governs our common divisions of labour, and
the relative rewards of toil. They went over
old ground, but it was quite evident that they
had not got their answer stereotyped, for half-
a-dozen answers came to every question; all
of them showing that the right idea was in
the speaker's mind, though the boys differed
in their methods of expression. With the
exception of one boy, evidently oppressed by
the languor of ill-health, there was not an
inattentive pupil in this class. All went
heartily at the business in hand, and there
was no mistaking the real interest they felt
in the discussion through which they were
led. A little fellow with light flaxen hair,
one of the youngest in the class, was quite a
luminary upon all points that were mooted.
He made for himself a cushion of his knuckles,
and he sat so on the backs of his hands, with
his small legs reaching only half way to the
ground, his quick eyes bent on the teacher,
and his face gladdened with a smile of intelligent
pleasure in the train of reasoning that
he had evidently mastered. Where others
hesitated, he answered boldly and correctly;
where others knew their ground, he answered
with them in his own way, but in an under
voice, for the mere pleasure of working out
the subject. He sat, and swung his legs,
and smiled, and spake with the most complete
independence. There was not a question that
he did not answer, and there was not one of
his answers that was not clearly and correctly
given. It was a touch of the very pleasantest
comedy, when this imperturbable young
philosopher got the class over a difficult case, by
suggesting the line of conduct which a
capitalist would probably pursue in given
circumstances. A young man with his business
head—he is eleven years old—and his
knowledge of the laws that regulate prices and
other matters in the country, ought to be in
Parliament. There are men there (and perhaps
in the Cabinet), very much behind him in
point of knowledge and acuteness on such
topics. If he were put upon the table of
the House so that honourable members could
see him—for his legs are very short—we are
quite sure that his speeches would be shorter
than his legs; but we are quite sure also that
there are in the said House, fifty or sixty
gentlemen who might be wiser for accepting
the instruction he would give them.

What must be the practical effect of
teaching the facts that concern social welfare
to such children, let a scrap or two out of their
present lesson testify.  " What are wages?"
Answers vary in form;  " The reward of
labour,"  " Capital employed to purchase
labour,"  and so forth. " When you become
men, and work, and receive wages, will you all
receive the same amount of money for your
labour? "—" No, very different."—" Why
different? "—" The price paid for labour will
depend among other things upon the value of
it, and that differs in different people."—
"How? "—" Some are more skilful than
others."—" Why so? "—" Because they have
spent more time and pains, and perhaps
money, to become able to do something; and
they must be paid more for the more that
they have spent."— " Then the rate of wages
that a man can earn in any business will
depend upon his skill? "— " Yes, and on other
things; men must be industrious. If two
men are equally skilful, and one is more
industrious than another, the one that is more
industrious will give more valuable labour,
and the price obtained by labour depends on
the value of it."—" The rate of wages depends
then on the skill and industry of the labourer.
On anything else? "— " Yes, he must be
sober. He may be very skilful and work hard,
but he may get drunk and be unable to turn
his skill and industry to full account. If he
does that, he lessens his own value."—" The
best wages then go to the man who is skilful,
industrious, and sober; are any other qualities
concerned in the contract between employer
and employed? " A young sanitary
reformer shouted that " He must be clean;"  but
it was then argued that there are trades in
which no workman can be clean, and the
necessity of cleanliness was therefore struck
out of the list. " He must be honest," said
the little statesman. "If he is skilful,
industrious, and sober, without being
trustworthy, his value to the employer is destroyed."
Honesty was, therefore, added to the list. " He
may be skilful, industrious, sober, and honest,
yet, if he be nothing more," said the teacher,
"there is a workman who may beat him yet."
—" Yes," half-a-dozen cried, " he must be
punctual. If he is not punctual he is of less
value than a man who is skilful, industrious,
sober, honest, and punctual as well."  Having
laid down these principles, the boys
proceeded to reason that the man with two good
qualities was better off in prospects than the
man with one; and so on, up to the man with
all five recommendations, whose prospect of
wages would then be great, in proportion to
the intensity of each.

The relation between capital and