Part 14 (2/2)
And then we had ten reens I adenius for sreens and I led the conversation to hens and ducks Mackenzie did not know enius for stons! They are naht there before I went to Switzerland” and the dirty dog took the conversation back to his er arden
”Why does he waste precious ties and dreary Swiss inns?” I asked
Shed shortly
”You kno rich folk talk at table when the servants are present?”
I nodded
”Well, that's the Chief's attitude to teachers; he never says anything of any importance whatever”
”But why?”
”He is of the old school He has been inspecting schools for forty years In the olden days an inspector was a sort of Alhty; teachers quaked before him because with a stroke of his pen he could reduce theirtreats his subjects--with kindness but with distance”
”Has he any views on education?” I asked
Smart shook his head
”None, but he has heaps of views on instruction and discipline By the way, he thinks that Macdonald's discipline is very good”
”And you?”
”I think it rotten,” he said ruefully, ”but what can I do? A junior inspector is a nobody; if he has any views of his own he has to pocket theo in for the Montessori stunt Take my tip and never accept an inspectorshi+p”
”I won't,” I said hastily
I liked Smart, and I e had more of his sta-room Mackenzie looked at me with interest
”I didn't know that you were the _Doo,” he said ”I ahted to ”
He was quite affable now Writing a book gives a nity of print that does it, and we all have the print superstition I findstates to me over a dinner-table I should refute them with scorn ”If it is in _John Bull_ it is so!” Mr Botto I said to Slad I had Frank Michie and not hi_”
Shed
”My dear chap, Mackenzie would have let you run your school in your oay”
”But,” I cried, ”he doesn't believe in freedom!”
”He doesn't, but don't you see that he siht you either a lunatic or a genius, and he would have feared to condeht turn out to be the latter I know an art critic in London, and, believe me, the poor devil lives in terror lest he should daustus John The Futurists aren't flourishi+ng on theirbecause the critics are in a holy funk to condeht be artists after all”