Literature.—Maspero, Egyptian Archaeology; Wilkinson, The Ancient Egyptians; Stoddard's Lectures; Myers, Ancient History; Routledge, The Modern Wonders of the World; Johonnot, Geographical Reader; Edwards, A Thousand Miles up the Nile; Knox, Egypt and the Holy Land; Ballou, Due West; Clarke, Ten Great Religions; Ebers, Uarda; and Egyptian Princess; Curtis, Nile Notes of a Howadji.

Geography and History.—Egypt consists of a narrow strip of land about six hundred miles long, lying in the northeastern part of Africa. Its geographical importance is due to the river Nile, which flows through it, and which, by its annual overflow, enriches the soil, and makes one of the most productive portions of the globe. For many centuries reservoirs for the storage of water in time of the overflow, and irrigation canals for its later distribution, have secured the country against drought, and thus abundant harvests were always assured "independent of the seasons and the skies." This, with the mild climate and exceedingly rich soil, made food attainable with slight labor, furnishing an abundance, not only for its own population, but making Egypt the granary of the Mediterranean countries. We learn from the Scriptures, of the visits of the sons of Jacob to Egypt to buy corn of Joseph when famine existed in their own land. These conditions, which made living so cheap, were doubtless the main causes of the early settlement of the valley of the Nile, and the rapid increase in its population. In confirmation of the foregoing we have the testimony of Diodorus Siculus, a Greek writer, who visited Egypt nearly two thousand years ago. He tells us that the entire cost to bring up a child to manhood was not more than twenty drachmas (less than four dollars of our money).[13]

Of the antiquity of Egyptian history we have abundant evidence. Swinton says, "Egypt is the country in which we first find a government and political institutions established. Egypt itself may not have been the oldest nation, but Egyptian history is certainly the oldest history. Its monuments, records, and literature surpass in antiquity those of Chaldea and India, the two next oldest nations."[14] The records of the history of Egypt are found in abundance carved on her monuments, tombs, buildings, implements, etc. They were written in hieroglyphics, the meaning of which was unknown until the discovery of the "Rosetta stone," which furnished the key to their interpretation.

The ancient Egyptians excelled in mechanics and arts. It is doubtful whether to-day we know as much of certain sciences as they did four thousand years ago. Their applications of mechanics, engineering, dyeing, and embalming still remain to us "lost arts." The wisdom of the Egyptians was proverbial, and the great scholars of other countries made pilgrimages to Egypt to study philosophy, literature, law, and science.

The Caste System.—The caste system existed also in Egypt, but in no such strict sense as in India. The first and highest caste consisted of the priests, who represented the learning and wealth of the country. They owned one third of the land, upon which they paid no tax. They held all the offices, were the surveyors, engineers, teachers,—indeed, their caste alone furnished all the higher professions. They ruled the land with an iron hand. Concerning their influence, Swinton says, "The priests were the richest, most powerful, and most influential order. It must not be supposed, however, that the modern word 'priest' gives the true idea of this caste. Its members were not limited to religious offices; they formed an order comprising many occupations and professions. They were distributed all over the country, possessing exclusively the means of reading and writing, and the whole stock of medical and scientific knowledge. Their ascendency, both direct and indirect, over the minds of the people was immense, for they prescribed that minute religious ritual under which the life of every Egyptian, not excepting the king himself, was passed."[15]

The second caste consisted of the military class, who also belonged to the nobles. There was freer intercourse between the two higher castes than was possible in the Hindu system. It was not uncommon to find brothers belonging to different castes. AmpÈre found an inscription on a monument mentioning one son as a priest, another as governor of a province, and a third as superintendent of buildings. To each member of this caste was assigned a parcel of land (six and one half acres), which also was free from taxation. These two higher castes were especially privileged, and the gulf between them and the lower castes was very wide.

The third, or unprivileged caste was subdivided into three orders: (1) the farmers and boatmen; (2) the mechanics and tradespeople; and (3) the common laborers. Between these, also, there were bonds of common interest, though a decided difference between the orders was recognized.

The caste system may be outlined as follows:—

The slaves were lower than the common laborers, and were not classified among the castes. They were generally captives taken in war. Respect and reverence for the higher castes were by no means so marked as in India, and outbreaks between the various classes were common.

The Home.—Woman occupied a much higher plane in Egypt than in China or India, though polygamy was practiced by all classes except the priests. She was the recognized mistress of the home, possessed some education, and largely directed the education of the children. Children of wives of different castes had equal rights before the law to inheritance. Great attention was paid to religious ceremonies, and the children were taught piety and obedience in their early youth. They were highly regarded in the Egyptian home, and were brought up in an atmosphere of love and filial respect. The day of a child's birth was regarded as determining its destiny. The child was brought up on the simplest food, and furnished with scanty clothing, in order that its body might be strong and supple.

The Education.—The education, like that of India, was suited to the different castes. Priests were the only teachers. While chief attention was given to the education of boys, girls also received some instruction. The principal subjects taught in the lowest caste were writing and mathematics. The papyrus plant, found along the Nile, furnished a material on which writing was practiced. In arithmetic we find an anticipation of modern principles in the concrete methods employed. Religious instruction was also given. Bodily exercise was severe, running being a favorite pastime. The expense of schooling was very small. The boy usually followed the trade of his father, though this was not an inflexible rule. The occupation he was to follow had some influence in shaping his education.

The higher castes received an extensive education, including a knowledge of higher mathematics, astronomy, language, natural science, medicine, music, engineering, and religion. The annual overflow of the Nile necessitated the construction of reservoirs and irrigation canals, and caused frequent changes of boundary lines. For all this a knowledge of mathematics was necessary, and this study was therefore greatly encouraged. Institutions of higher learning for the training of priests and soldiers were found at Thebes, Memphis, and Heliopolis. The Museum of Alexandria, which reached its highest prosperity about the middle of the third century B.C., and which made Alexandria the center of the learning of the world at that period, attracted philosophers and investigators from Athens and Rome. In connection with the Museum was the celebrated Alexandrian library, which was fostered by the Ptolemies, and which contained a vast collection of books, variously estimated at from four hundred thousand to seven hundred thousand volumes.[16]Criticism of Egyptian Education.—1. It was dominated by the priests under the caste system, and did not recognize equality of man.

2. It encouraged greater respect for woman than other oriental systems, but took little account of her intellectual training.

3. It made use of concrete methods, at least in writing and arithmetic, for the first time in history.

4. It was non-progressive in its elementary education, the father generally expecting his son to follow his calling.

5. In higher education it was justly noted, as it attracted wise men from Greece and Rome to study its science and philosophy.

GENERAL SUMMARY OF ORIENTAL EDUCATION

With the discussion of Egyptian education, the consideration of oriental systems ceases. Concerning the education of the Phoenicians, Babylonians, and other oriental nations we know but little. To the Phoenicians the invention of the alphabet, glass making, and purple dyeing is generally credited, and the knowledge of these things was communicated to the Mediterranean nations with whom they engaged in trade. The classical countries were materially influenced by Egyptian culture, and the way was prepared for a broader and more enlightened interpretation of the purpose of education, and for a more successful evolution of civilization on soil better suited to that end. We may briefly summarize the lessons of oriental education, as follows:—

1. The Oriental systems fostered class distinctions by furnishing but little enlightenment to the lower classes, and affording superior advantages to the privileged few.2. They were non-progressive, for centuries witnessed no improvement in methods of instruction, reached no higher ideals, and marked no advance in civilization.

3. They did not feel the need of trained teachers.

4. The importance of the individual was not appreciated, and man was regarded as belonging to the State.

5. The end sought was good conduct, which was to be attained through memorizing moral precepts. This gave undue importance to the memory.

6. Little encouragement was given to free investigation; authority of teachers and ancestral traditions were the principal factors employed. The progress of civilization was therefore very slow.

7. In general, excepting with the Jews, woman had no part in education, being regarded as incapable of any considerable intellectual development.

8. In China the motive of education was to prepare for success in this life; in India, for the future life; in Persia, to support the State; in Israel, to rehabilitate the nation; and in Egypt, to maintain the supremacy of the priests.

9. In no case was the conception reached that the aim of education should be to emancipate all the powers of man,—physical, intellectual, moral, spiritual.

10. Finally, we may sum up the conditions that prepared the way for classical education in the words of Karl Schmidt: "In Greece at last the idea of human individuality as the principal end, and not as a means to that end, was grasped. Conformable to this truth, all human, social, and political conditions were shaped and education given its form. This idea of the emancipation of the individual became established in Greece with a brilliancy which attracts attention to that land until the present time."

FOOTNOTES:

[13] The student should bear in mind the fact that the purchasing power of a sum equivalent to four dollars was much greater in those days than now.