40 THE PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM

difficulties will progressively diminish in the years succeeding
 the conclusion of peace. If, however, education
is the vital factor in national supremacy, it is of the utmost
 importance to secure a supply not only sufficient
in quantity but also of the required high standard. The
teaching profession must be sufficiently attractive to secure
 from the universities their very best product, and
this leads us to the fourth obstacle, namely, that of finance.
The salaries and prospects of the assistant masters at
our public and, more especially, at our preparatory
schools must be considerably improved, and this involves
the expenditure of large sums of money. The terrific
financial waste under the present system, however, is much
greater than the necessary increase of expenditure on
school staffs. The extent of this financial waste is indicated
 in a later chapter on the advantages and defects of
the public school system, and later still a scheme for
economizing this waste is suggested, and one which will
double the staff available for any particular public school
without increasing the expenditure at all. The last two
obstacles to reform under this scheme will thus to a considerable
 extent disappear.