All the great nations of Europe are beginning to throb with the divine impulse which is first seen in the great, questioning eyes of the speechless babe. Some of them have lain for long centuries encrusted in the densest ignorance, and awake but sluggishly to a realization of the tremendous national power, which others have long since discovered, embedded in the education of the masses. Thus Russia, with her population of 78,500,000, although almost exhausting herself with wars for territorial aggrandizement, has awakened to the necessity of granting to her schools $9,000,000 annually—a mere pittance for such a nation, yet containing the germ of higher promise. So also Austria, with her population of 22,144,244, is slowly stirring. Education there is now made obligatory, and in 1881 she supplemented prior national aid to it by a grant of $6,500,000. Italy, in 1882, with a population of 28,000,000, gave like aid to the extent of $6,200,000, beside providing school buildings and other necessary desiderata—previous aid having borne good fruit in a marked decrease of illiteracy. Prussia, with a population of 27,251,067, is fortunate in the possession of endowed schools with regular incomes. Yet she gave national aid to education to the extent of $10,000,000 in 1881, and $11,458,856 in 1882. France, with a population of some 37,000,000—independent of the millions of dollars expended for a like purpose annually by her departments and communes—gave in 1881-2 to the extent of $22,717,880 for the education of her masses. Little Belgium, with a population of but 5,403,006—about one twelfth of ours—in 1882 gave national aid to education to the extent of about $4,000,000; for she perceives, as a direct consequence of periodical aid of this character, that Belgian illiteracy is surely and rapidly decreasing, while in like ratio her prosperity is increasing. Great Britain is similarly alive to the necessity for government aid to elementary schools. Such aid was given by her in 1882 to those in England and Wales, whose united population is 25,968,286—less than half the number we boast—to the extent of £2,749,863, or—roughly calculating at five dollars to the pound—nearly $14,000,000. This, too, in a land that is also rich in well endowed universities, colleges, grammar schools, and other institutions of learning. Such aid was also given in 1882-3 to elementary schools in Scotland, whose population is but 3,734,370, to the extent of £468,512, or, say $2,342,560; and to Ireland, with a population of 5,159,839, to the extent of £729,868, or, say $3,648,340. Thus, in addition to the great educational advantages arising from the numerous well founded and amply endowed educational institutions for the various grades and classes of the British people that have long existed in England and Wales, Scotland and Ireland, we find the government of the United Kingdom aiding elementary instruction to the extent of about $20,000,000 in one year—the combined population being