The Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1860-08-20 00:00:00

ust 17.

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•

THE EARL OF .DERBY IN

GRAND CELEBRATION AT KIREDALE,

-On Saturday the 'ceremony' of laying the first stone ;of
the Kirkdale Industrial Ragged School and Churcli;was
performed by the Right Hog. the Earl of Derby, under•
circumstances of extraordinary eclat.

The character of the, proposed. institution, and its
peculiar features, are so ably set forth in the speeches
delivered, as to 'render,- unnecessary . any explanatory
-introduction. The buildings, will stand upon an Along
piece of land fronted by Kirkdale-road, and bounded on
the remaining three sides by l3oundary-streoc, Major-
street, and Gore-street Nosth.

We have been furnished ,by the architect with the
-following brief description of the proposed edifice :
The exterior fronts of "this building .are plain brick
and stone, and have nothing to recommend them but
their simplicity and good internal arrangements. The
basement floor is planned for a cooking kitchen, which
.can be used for a soup kitchen during the winter months,
aiithhas a separate entranceironi Major-street. • Adjoin-
ing this kitchen is a flagged cellar, 'intended as a play-
room during wet weather, or for workshop when,
required. The main entrance to ;the ground floor is
from Major-ltreet, to a schboltoom.Bo-feet.long, 25 feet
,6 inches wide, and 18 feet high.; intended also to lie
used as a free church for the 'poor of the district. From'
this room there is a class-room, large workshop, and a
'storeroom, covered lavatories, urinals, Bre., and a large
Play-yard. The upper floor, which corresponds with
the ground floor; and which has also a separate entrance
from 'Major-street, is intended for girls' schoolroom,
class-room, printing shop, and large workshop. The
Vuildirigs and yard walls oceupy an area- of about 1,300
Nuare yards, and as it is intended to erect them in as
plain a manner as possible, the estimate for: the same,
exclusive of land and general fittings, will not exceed
-

Great preparations had been thade for the ceremony
in Kirkdale, and flags fluttei-ed from almost every win-
dow. Lines of festoons were. also thrown. in several
places across the road-; • decorations peeped out, frOm
'every corner ; and the entire neighbourhood bore quite
a gala appearance. The various decorationS in the im-
mediate vicinity of the site were the gift and handicraft
_of the labourers of the 'district, who gave this pleasing
'testimony of their appreciation of the objects of the in-
stitution and of itscbenevolent promoters:' The leading
employers of the district gave all hands ,a holiday ; and
,there was but one circumstance to mar the general re
joicing and spoil the beauty of the tout ensemble—the
day was unfortunately' wet, and the rain, which had
roared down the whole of the morning, continued with-
out intermission during the entire ceremonial, and indeed
,for Jong afterwards. , The ro-ads, consequently, were in
the worst possible condition, and the' spot selected for
ittying 'the first -stone,' eould be. reached Only through
mud ankle deep. At this place, with provident foresight, a
covered-platform had been erected for the speakers, and
within the accompanying enclosure the public were ad-
mitted by ticket. Those not able thus to secure admission
sought out every available. site within earshot,- from
which•to witness the spectacle, and take part in the pro-
teedings : indeed, we observed a housetop opposite laden
with working men. The enclosure,. with the exception
,of the speaker's platform, was 'unsheltered from the
weather, and nothing could be more admirable than the
patience •exhibited by each.: indeed, A was a striking
.pronfnf the power of eloquence when_exerted on aleart-
lelttheme ; and not one, we are assured, regretted the
*Tit jacket he got in 'listening to 'Lord Derby: A. con-
sia:_irable space had been• excavated for. depositing the
stone,,;to the cavity of which a bottle had previouily
been inser:edt containing all the Liverpool papers of the
day, the earre'_rit coin of the realm, and a-copy of the last
annual report of the Liverpool Ragged-school Union.
This was covered in the usual way, by "brass plate.
bearing a suitable inscr:4,76-°1- •
The-- ground was kept bir a large body of police,
under Superintendent Ride, ceded by a draft from the
countyconstabulary ; and the ceremonial boaours of the
occasion were largely enhanced by Of presence nf Capt.
Langton's company of the 12th Arti.llery Voliiteers.
These served as .a guard of honour for tRe reception, of
his lordship. They were accompanied- by their . band;
and lad also two field pieces upon the ground, for the
purpose of firing a salvo on the conclusion of the
cere-
monial.

Lord Derby arrived from Knowsley, with admirable
punctuality, at two o'clock, and received a mast hearty
rind -enthusiastic reception from" the people assembled•
A procession was then fzirmed opposite to the comraittee
room, and proceeded to the around in the folliwing
order

Volunteers,
Capt. Langton's Company.
The Architect and Committee.
Clergy.
The Right Honourable the Earl of Derby.
The Mayor.
William Brown, Esq. ,
Venerable Archdeacon Jones.
Rev. Canon Stowell.
Friends and Others.
The Police.

. .
Amongst those present and within the area we then
observed the Revs. T. G. Leigh, S. Howson, H. Lomas,
T- W, Newenham, Dr. Hume, Dr. Bartle, J. Freil, Dr.
Burton, J. H. Hindley, Cecil Wray, A. Tomlin, R. Tetley,
B. Maddock, S. Sampson, R. Dandy, H. Baugh, R. Apple-
ton, I. Holmes, Ireland, F. Green, and J. Bardsley ;
W. Preston, Esq., J. B. Lloyd, Esq., Capt. Gladstone,
Lieut.-Col. Bousfield, Alderman T. Dover, S. kearsley,
H. Banner, R. Blezard, S. Cope, E. Parker, Capt.
Gibbs, A. Hicks, Esq., J. Birkett, Esq., J. Mai wood,
Esq., Hugh Pierce, C. Howson, Dr. Whittle, &c.
_&c.
We should state that notes, expressing regret for
absence, had beeh received from the Marquis of Salis-
bury, Lord Stanley, Recorder Henderson, T. B. Horsfall
M-P., J. C. 'Evart, M.P.; F. Shand, Esq., Hon.
Egerton M.P., J. W. Legh, Esq:, "M.P., &c.
The pupils of the present school were drawn up in a
corner of the enclosed area, and the proceedings began
by their' singing the National Anthem.
The Venerable Archdeacon Jones then offered up the
following beautiful consecration prayer :
In the name of the Father; and of the Son, and of *the;Holy
Ghost. .
Prevent us, 0 Lord, in all our doings, with thy most gra- '
elons favour, and further us with thy continual help.; that in
all our works, begnri, continued, and ended in thee, we may
glorify thy holy name, and finally by thy mercy obtain ever-
lasting life, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
• 0 merciful God, who hast made all men, and hatest !Whin
that thou hast made, nor woulchst the death of' a sinner, ;but
zather that he should be converted and live, have mercy upon
all Who are now wandering, like sheep without a shepherd, in
the devious paths of ignorance, degradationond sip ;' and so
fetch them home; Messed Lord. to- thy-liock;lhat they may be
'saved among the true Israelites, and be made one fold, under
one shepherd, Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigned,
with thee, and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end-
.Amett.
itl_ngabty and ever-merciful God, the source of all power and
m at, without whom nothing is strong, nothing is holy, pros-
per, we beseech thee, this our present undertaking ; yea,
prosper thou our hancliwOrk. Behold us assembled together
this day in thy name, and in humble reliance on thy approba-
tion and 4.venr, to commence the erection of a house of mercy,
of indu,try, and of instruction for the destitute youthful popu-
lation of this rapidly increasing neighbourhood. '
In the accomplishment of thy purposes of mercy towards the
' children of men, thou coudescendest to employ human •instru-
- Mentality and means which they themselves provide. Deign,
we beseech thee, to bless with thy heavenly favouf the means
• 41?Olit to be provided by the clergy and laity of this place.
1.i.14 haying put into their hearts such good desires, enable
heirr _to bring the
.same to good effect ; for " except thou
build the house, their labour is but lost that build it." And
let, We beseech viee, the zeal and the earnestness which
have )1-cAlg4t together tso Many to acsist in.the initiatory rite
stone of the projected edifice be
of laying the first fOundatien
S token for good that the work ah2al io on and prosper, and
that in due time the tonstone shall crown ,the s,t,tperstructure
with rejoicing, amid the hallelujahs and prayers of rnuitit-4cp,
crying „Grace, grace unto it." And grant, we beseech thee,
that the blessed and happy results of this undertaking may
hereafter be seen in the extensive eiininution of poverty, igno-
Space, and vice, in the rescuing of thousands from miser?, and
in the sticcessful training of multitudes of the children
•:Of the poor.in;the way that they should go.
To this end We entreat thee to pour out thy heavenly bene-
[diction abundantly 'UP,* 41 who from time to time may bear
"lee in this institution-77hether. as ministers cr laymen-7
whether as trustees, committeemen, or rnanagers-=-that they
lay all, in their scieral vocation and rain;ta4-Yr truly and
. humbly serve thee, to the. honour of thy name and to'1)-P
Felfare of their fellow-creatures. May they ever hold fa,st.,a
vie faith, and dyer be
.influented by a loving apirlt. Give
thet:l a right judgment n al,l things, a spirit of power, and of
love, cpsj of sound mind.
And gualTd this institution, we beseech dace, not only from
The inroads of 1 Ise doctrine and heresy, but from all bigotry
'.:
and intolerance, and.
.from a party spirit. May peaco ancl
i roigion and piety, prevail in it,
!aPPiness, truth and justices;_
and h 9 promoted by it, for all genci:tions.
These an 4 all other pppessaries, for them, for us. and thy
in the name and mediation of
' Whole church, we hnrOblY keg
Jesus Christ, our most blessed Lord and Saviour.
The Rev. T. MAJOR LEsTnn, 8.A., then presented the
trowel to the noble earl. He said-7.-114 I cannot
but feel the deep importance of this occasion--an op pa-
'don heightened beyond measure, and made :„%p event to
be recorded in the annals of the good old town or'' Liver-
Pool/ by the presence of one whom the country delights
to honour, as a distinguished statesman and gifted orator
4taong its peers. I cannot but feel that while this corn-
laaading circumstance places me in an exceedingly
honourable and enviable position, of which I am justly
Proud; yet, for this very reason, I occupy it in all humi-
lity/ and would fulfil its duties in all becoming modesty.
You come, my lord, I fear at a very great inconvenience,
and most cheerfully tbrow the immense attraction of
Your presence, and the constraining might of your elo-
quence upon an object, great, doubtless, in its' inten-
tion and eternal results, yet comparatively small amid
the more gigantic and costlier efforts of Christian bene-
volence and philanthropy. But, my lord, I can assure
You, on the part of the committee whom I have the
honour to represent, that in this truly gracious act—noble,
Indeed/ as an unmistakeable proof of teal greatness-7
Your lordship has afforded abundant cause for the hearty
and lasting rejoicings and congratulations of friends;
and . for the admiration and applause and imitation of
It would ill become me to indulge in any
• 'engthened remarks. My wisdornis to be as brief as the
b'l'eat attractions of the day demand. Bear with me,
14Y lard/ while I just map out the past—the
fondlypresent—
thehottee)
What
hopew (with His smile who alone
buildeth
• he the future of this good cause,

around which henceforth will gather an, undying
halo from the 'great event of to-day: The past of the
Kirkdale Industrial Ragged School and Church only
goes to strengthen and deepen the,testimony 0f,,p1l tinier
to the incalculable wisdom of the counsel, "Arise riot
the day of small things," and only goes to prove the
literal truth of the proverb °make diligentia subpanutifre.
Perseverance, has been the principle and strong hope,
the incentive to action. Our National Schools receitre
and educate the children of our reapectable,, striving
working classes; but there were, and there are, my
lord; in this district swarms of children who, in the
words of Dr. Guthrie,—withoutashoes and stockings-j--
with naked feet, red.and swollen, arid eracked—ulcerated
with the cold ; clad in a thin, thread-worn jacket, with
its gaping rents—here a leg' out, and there an arm--
beneath a shaggy, bush lof hair ; they show want in their
cheek ; need and oppression stare' in their looks=
contempt and beggary hang upon many of their backs ;
and yet children, they are sharp with intelligence,
merry and hearty in their laugh. Brought up they are
riot--:rather say dfagisel-upwhose only diSeipline
was and is,
,one alas ! too Often, of privation, blo Ws,
corrupting example, idleness, and vice. To remedy
somewhat this' deplorable state of things—a state of
things likely only to feed our gaols and penitentiaries,
and crowd our workhouses—four years ago we opened
an industrial ragged school, the wisdoin of such a
movement your lordship will remember is very strongly
recommended and highly approved by My loid
Stanley, your noble son, whose unavoidable absence
we exceedingly regret, my Lord Brougham; and
confirmed by „ the steady practical experience of
Major' Greig, Our school" consisted of. but one
room, unpretending and homely, as your lordship can
testify. There, in that room, with the help of the serip-
, ture-reader from the Liverpool Society, and under the
wise auperintendence9( a devoted and earnest 'mistress,
were soon gathered . some 150 of these wild "Arabs."
Then came the thought—a church is needed for the
parents of these children. The room was duly licensed
by the bishop, and there the curate of the. Additional
Curates Aid Society commenced to minister, and seek
from house to house the, very poorest of the flock. This
free school-room church has continued, carried on by
his excellent successor, to 'be `well attended by the
class for whom :it was provided. The one room, my
lord, at length became wholly insufficient to accom-
modate-the numbers thronging our doors. Another
room was added; which-hes, had 'this day the honour
of your lordship's presence. From 150 children we
have increased our numbers to 350. So much for the
past—the present, my lord, demands -a word or -two.
Our school-rooms are let too small; the entire absence
of a yard is severely felt ; the want of work rooms is an
immense inconvenience; -our population is increasing
amazingly ou all sides of ; hundreds of small houses
are built, and no sooner built than occupied, so that our
free ehureh, and indeed all our church accommodation,
is daily, beeoMing purely ridiculous—a populatiou of
some 16,000, and- chUrch room for, only 2,000 ! As
patriots' 'and as churchmen, ss e feel thii a tide in our
affairs, as a parish, which we must seize. J. S. Leigh,
Esq., (who regrets his inability to be present) gave the
handsome site of 500 square yards upon which your lord-
shipsetalids; another 700 we have bought at a moderate
price. A gentleman in the neighbourhood, has come fors
ward most nobly and subscribed his hundreds, and others
have followed his good example. A large sum has been
raised and promised, and our kind architects has _given
all, and will give all his skill, time, and trouble as a
free=will offering. Now, my lord, how" looks oils future,
what kind of prospect have we ? Thank God, bright
and hopeful One ; upon which year lordship' his shed no
ordinary lustre. Our plan, while it is econ6inicals is
comprehensive and substantial. Seeing elearly the
urgent and extensive needs of the township, _sve desire
to* compass two objects. A large, convenient, well.
ordered' Industrial Ragged School the neighbourhed
deniands. Indtistrial I say, my lord, for we ;purpose
reesivitt,g within the- walls of this school six hundred
ragged children—the boys to be taught some homely
handicraft; the girls to be instructed (the great want
of female education) in the useful branches of plain
household duties. 'We hold, my kid, that a child
issuing from hence should be fitted in head, heart,
and 'hand for that station of life to which God 'Nay
call him. In these schools we trust to be able to satisfy
the child's coriditions---no A B C without the porridge.
To the school we desire to add the church—a most im-
portant feature-,..-a.free schoolroom church, to seat 700
people, in which, with the kelp of the Additional Curates
Aid Society, a clergyman shall oXciate, and have a con
rentionaldistrict—a mission church forthe poorest--with a
missionary clergyman. Such, my lord, in a few piain words,
is the past, the present, and, ,I trust, the future, of that
cause for which you have so nobly come, amongst us this
day. -.As it can ,sure it will not be uninteresting to your
lordship, allow me to state that your most noble countess
.and the most noble the 4ferquis of Salisbury, the Right
Hon. Lord Stanley, and G. ..kfqiderion, Esq., are the friends
and patrons of this cause, ,to who f publicly tender
_our grateful. thanks, And, _ suffer me to
acknowledge, on the part of the churchmen of Kitisdels,
and myself perionally, the many' liberal favours received
from your lordship towards the extension and support of
our schools and church. And now, in the gables of the
committee, subscribers, and friends, I beg to present this
trowel, as a very trifling but eipressive memorial of an
event which,' by the preaeuee of your lordship, has given
untold gratification to the whole Px!ritship of' Kirkdale,
and whose working men have manifested their strong
feelings in the graceful decorations lining your 1%04
and an event which, I believe, will be the beginning of
yet. brighter things for this end of the town, and which
we shall ever hold in grateful remembrance.
The Earl of Dzisnis said—The close connection which
subsists between 'me and this immediate district, and
the deep interest I take in its a4Fancemeut and its
welfare have appeared to Me to he a sufficient :o,Eti4Ca-
tiot for my departing upon this occasion froin a rule
which I have hitherto found it necessary to lay down
to abstain from taking part in any public meetings or
attending at any public ceremonies. But it is with the
liveliest satisfaction that I have accepted the offer—the
request which has been made to me to give my atten-
dance upon this most gratifying occasion, and, to
,addyeas to those who, in spite of the obstacles offered by
the unseasonable state of the weather, have attended
upon this eecaeion, 4 few observations ,upon the
circumstances which have brought, together
this day. But before entering upon that inspor-
taut subject it would be impossible for me to
abstain from expressing my deep gratitude for the more
plan kind and cordial, reception which I have met
with this day from those to whom I am personally a
stranger, but with firm you know I have many in-
terests in eommon. ,(Neat, tear.) f helieve that in the
history of the world no country already poseeffed of so
large a population has increased with the same rapidity
as this country has increased in the course of the last
half century; and thio is the more remarkable becaure •
the rapid iacrease which is going on ‘from day to day,
and I may say from hour to hoer, is
.the egeet #ot only
of the excess of the births over the deaths within :the
country, bat thc excess of the births against the deaths
and beyond .the deaths of that countless stream of emi-
gration which is constantly being poured.forth from our
redundant population, to lay the foundation of future
empires, and to add to the, population and the wealth of
our widely-extended colonies and of other and friendly
states. (Hear.) Nor is there any wore certain test than-a
rapid increase of population of the physical well-being
of a country; and those who can look back for the same
lengthened period that I can, or even those who can
look back for a much shorter period of years, must be
well aware that, together with
.this great increase in the
number of the population, there has been at least a
corresponding increase in the physical comforts of the
great body of the people. (Ifni., hear.) f do not say—
far from it—that among many of the labearing classes
there is not much and undeserved suffering ; but this I
do say, that taking the middle and the lower classes as a
whole, it is inconceivable, except to those who have
witnessed it, what a change has taken place in their
domestic
comforts, in their clothing, in their food, in
their habits and conveniences of life, within the course of
the last five-and-twenty or thirty years. (Hear, hear.)
We have in this well-being of our country great cause
for cetsgratulatioh, and #ent cause for thankfulness to
Him who, is the giver of all good. But if we tarn
detqhueailr reealkii g is
eo titos
caodnvgarnactecinleinet,oul
rdeoiti;(be.:
the popnlation to their
from the physical well-being of
The truth is, and the truth
miwnho retathhl
aeptrr owpgoeSienshts
aOevofe
view.
(hear, hear)-ssthat we are at this
ought to be spoken—
moment suffering from the supineness and the apathy of
our ancestors. Years ago the vast increase of the popula-
tion was looked upon, no doubt, with triumph and satis-
faction, as adding to the power and the wealth of the
country, but looked at without a dulel-aepdpurceactiatiaonnaofthegreat social moral and religious consequences which
;:rust flowfrow the increase of an i ed
irre-
ligious population. (Hear, 4eer.) I do not say this
has been the case universally ; do liCt 44Y this has
been the case in many of the country districts where e
great increase of population has not taken place, and
where there is greater room for the exercise of those
kindly sympathies between the upper and the lower
classes, which are the surest bend of union between the
various classes in this country. But at is
in the great
towns—it is in these great hives of industry to whichour redundant population flock for employment, that
the influx of population and the increase of buildings,
with regard to which you have only to turn your eyes
around you, and survey what is going en in this neigh-
bourhood, have extended to limits beyond the present
means of religious and moral saperiutendance 444
instruction. ' In these great towns there is little
room, comparatively speaking, for the social interionrse
between high and low, between rich and poor; and the
immense size of the parishes and the townships, and the
immense numbers of the population, baffle the efforts of
the most zealous minister, whether belonging to the.
Established Church, or whether belonging to those nu-
merous dissenting sects, of whom, widely as I differ from
them, wish to sPe* with all gratitUde and respect for
their exertions in the ,causee of -education and religion.
(Applause.) But here a poritatiOn; I 'say; has grovri

up which has moCked 'at' all oqr efforts, which has de-
feated all our endeavours, which hasoutgrnwn our means
moral and pecuniary, and, although it is quite true that
the present generation' is 'aWakening to a painful and
active consciousness of this great evil, nd endeavouring
to provide a remedy, our :difficulties in doing so are so
Mgh the greater the longer the time, which has elapsed ;
and we are not encountering now the origin, the first
seeds, of a disea4e, but we 'are contending against a
systematic 'and well-established disease, gaining strength
almost beyond that which we can apply, to prevent it.
It is true again that from these causes the vast
population in our great towns,, and in the suburbs of
those great towns, is growing up in a state of practical
heathenism—l am afraid I must say in the indulgence
of the grossest sensuality, and in the indulgence of that
intemperance which statesmen, judges, and magistrates
all concur in stating to be` the predomment cause which
fills our gaols and loads tis'with a criminal population.
(Hear, hear.) It is true, and it is to the credit of the
age, that with regard to the criminal population of this
country, a milder' and wiser system of punishment is
prevailing. We have learned fo substitute a'. better'
discipline for those, sanguinary, scenes which not fifty
years ago loaded our scaffolds with victims, and relieved
the• population. of the expense of many unhappy crimi-
nals' lives. Some persons may believe that the present
system errs 'in the opposite . direction, and that too great
indulgence is a fault of the present system of our crimi-
nal discipline. But, be this as it may, whichever view
prevails, the object .is not indiscriminating vengeance,
but it is, if possible, the improvement and the informa-
tion of the convict. (Hear, hear.) It is painful to see
that so far as adult criminals are concerned, so far as
those who have long been practised in the habits of vice
and crime are 'concerned, the best directed. efforts and
the wisest discipline are comparatively insufficient to
restore. them to a better state of mind ; and that few,
,comparatively speaking, I fear, of those advanced
in life, who have been subjected to this discipline,
are really permanently and in heart brought to a true
sense of their guilt, and a sincere and earnest refornia
tion.

- -
But .with regard to the younger classes—with
regard to those who are not. hardened by crime, seduced
by bad example, and induced by idleness and vicious
habits' to enter upon a course of crime--a better path
has been opened, and a more cheerful prospect may be
entertained from those invaluable institutions, which
under the name of ieformatories are combining for the
young criminal the advantages of penal confinement with
a moral and industrial education. (Hear, hear.)
Again, for the 'poorest, the absOlutely destitute classes
of the community, the workhouse schools furnish no
contemptible amount of eduCatien, discipline, and train-
ing; but there is a elass happily untainted with crime,
aboYe the condition of the absolutely destitute poor, yet
below the scale of what may be called decent poverty,
for whom, neither in criminal reformatories—for which
they are •not fitting subjects, nor in the workhouses-Tto
which they either are not admitted, or are nnwillingS to'
enter—is any provision made; and who, except for
the instrumentality of such institutions as that
of which we. are ' laying the . first stone this day must
grow up. inevitably from idleness' to vice,' and from vice
probably to swell the lists of our criminal 'population..
It is for that population, for that portion of the com-
munity who,-'as I repeat, are untainted .with vice
hitherto, who at home know nothing but the deepest
poverty and degradatien,
.and who, in too Many cases,
see before them nothing but examples of squalid
poverty, of, intemperance, and of profaneness4it is
for them who with such a home, if home it can be.
called,—appear exposed at night and at day-time
to all the' idleness and all the temptations of a great
dissolute population,. formed •as •it - were - to-be the
prey of those who go about seeking whom they may
devoar--whoin they may bring into their own paths—s
paths of -wretchedness which they have long trodden. -
It is of these poor children, many of theta, doubtless,
the children of honest, and even for those who are the
children of dishonest, parents, yet more the objects of
compassion still-it is for them that these well-called
Ragged
,Schools—the name is a significant one, and I
should he sorry to see it changed—it is for _them, for the
young, this well-directed and well-devised charityhas pro-
vided theip invaluable inatitutions, by which they may be
rescued from the fate which would otherwise impend over
them, pd in which they may receive in the.
strictest sense 'of the word a true, moral, and religious
education. (Applause). And when T. use the word
education, I should wish you all to hear and mind what
is the true meaning ,of that important word. It is not
. .
mere learning to read and to write. ,r 6-; have
nothing more to. do with ethication than speaking and
hearing haYe. They are thee-inere means by which
.sslacation and instruction may be afforded, and accord-
ing to what yon speak and what you hears according to
what you read and what you write,will be the
effect which that elementary part of 'education will
have upon the future conduct of the child, and conse-
'quently of the man. (Hear, hear.) Nor is it desirable
in these institutions that children should be brought up
for asstate of society to whin' they are never likely in
their future lives to attain, (Hear, hear.) The object
of all education is to fit the child, when he becomeS a •
mass, fitly to discharge the duties of that station of life
in which be is placed--to fit him to be. a good and
faithful subject and a useful member of society here,
and :worthy, through the mercy of God,' td enter
upon a - higher and holier state of existence here-
after. (Applause.) Wisely, then, in these schools,
you do not attempt any very high flights of knowledge,
or ;any great expansions of - science. Wisely, most
Wisely; do you devote a veryconsiderable portion of each
day, not: to the acquisition of mental knowledge only,
but to the acquisition of those habits of industry which
are to kw the future .means of subsistence of those
whom yolu are bringieg up. But you not only provide
them ' with a ftithre' iiieUs of subsistence : Admitted
into these schools, in which theY nee 4 nOt Pnsh
for the rags in whiela they are clothed, bedaiise
they are all alike_--admitted into these schools, and
taught some industrial calling, and at the same time
imbued with .moral' and religious teaching, these
unhappy children become fresh beings with fresh con-
sqeaseess—fresh feelings, with the knowledge that
they are,far different, end destined for much higher ends
than 'had'ever' enferese into their pmprebension, awl
with an amount of Self-reipect `and with'habirs 'ernseful
industry which . will secore them,' with the blessing of
God, against all the temptations of these callings epon
which . they must inter when they quit the shelter of,
these institutions. (Applause.) These are tho main
objects of the institution of ragged—and more properly
and appropriately called ragged and industrial—schools
from the yolithful population of our great towns. The
institution of these schools, if it went no further, I need
hardly say, is an object that recommends itself to the
deepest interests; of the inieisters of religion and of all
those Whe have'dkhsart the well-being of thor fellow-
creatures: (Hear, heat.) Biit• this institution prep.dses
to go much further, I haye.said, and lan afraid it is
a lamentable fact, that of those who are deeply involYe'cl
in crime, a small portion only are brought back to
habits of virtue and of • religion. But God forbid
that I should say that there ii not a vast propor-•
tion, of ..the lower classes , of the population who
hitherto have been wholly indifferent or alienated
6ons religio#s gings, ppm whom tithe, opportunity,
and' example may not, peirferm wonders, srud bring them
home to that flock from which iii 'kenbial They have
wandered, and form them 'into a part of that one flock
in one fold, under one shepherd, who is the shepherd of
rich and, poor alike. It is proposed—more than pro-
posed; it has been attempted, and not failed—it is
proposed to combine .with the education of' the chil-
dren a room Which shall serve OF the reli/ioqa
instruction Of the parents' of 'the children, 'an . of
any others who 'may be induced to attend.' I .mean
any others in the same class of life, for I trust no advan-
tage will be taken of this institution by those who
hayeliMple nsearis to proyiale fer theipselyes. INt it is
intended, and is to a certain extent carried into effect, to
combine with the education of the children the religious
and moral training of their parents, and to bring to-
gether a large portion of that population into a
church, for • the worship of the Almighty God, which
shall be absolutely free and open to...every._ one'
"without money and without price." (Applauie.)
Now, it is a remark often made, and of painful signifi-
cance, that even among the respsctable portion.of the
working classes—the mechanics of this great conntry-s-
-there is a Very -large portion who, from various (tenses,
never enter • the house of 'Gel ' There is' a large pro-
. tion'who know nothing of the truths or comforta Of
oluisn'tecnattelso theverige_enacree,.
out? doubt, for
service of GOd, Whether
of the(a' e establishedar,
Year.}
religion,dPthtiris , which_t andhis absence
blioQsuitYility to religion, and,
eltilt lilb eloierveaga t, 114111 tWi n63TI
apart ;Om what is more common—absolute indifference,
sbt "seance from
and ignoiance;there are two prevailing causes which.
according to the principles
tend to drive from our churches even the best disposed
and most respectable—l will not say of the pauper, but,
of the poorest of our population. The one is the appro-
priatien of the greater portion of the seats in our churChea,
and above all, of the best seats by the'richer and 'easier,
tO-do classeS,.te the eXclusien of the pnOrer. Man, of to
his relegatipq to the Most inconvenient, the most distant,
and the most inadequate seats. (Hear, hear.) This is,
I ern afraid, an evil inherent in human native, and it is
an evil Own antiquity that it filmed greed for rebuke
'on the part of the apostles. themselves. I need not
remind many of those who hear me that St., James dis-
tinctly points to this ungracious and invidious distinction
in the earliest Christian Church between the rich and the
poor. He notices it not only as a fact, but as a ground
for rebuke. -The other cause I believe to be the honest
shame of parading the ragged garments in which the
poorest classes are clad, in immediate contiguity to the
better clothed and richer garments of the wealthier and
more easy-to-do population of the parish. Ido not say
this is a ,feeling which is to be altogether fidienled,
but it is a feeling which is not altogether unnatural,
and a feeling 'for Which it .is important we ' ought to
make every' indulgence and every allowance. '(Hear,
hear.)_ , Nor do I, can I, condenin absolutely and
entirely, as some persons are disosed to do, the appro-
priation of particular seats, provided a sufficient amount
be se* s apart for those who arc .not able to get separate
sittings. On the other hand, I believe it tends to the
solemnity, the regularity, and to the ()icier of congrega-
tional worship. - I am sure it tends very much to
' influence the best feelings when father, and Mother,
and'children can enter the house of God with the know-
ledge that there is a seatato which they can go together
40 unitedly with a certainty of being able to
get into it to offer li together their prayers and
praises to the •Lord of all. ale4i,`
.11e4r;) 'I ain
far front condemning the ' appropriation of certain
seats to those who are well able to -increase the
means of the pastor Of a church by paying far that
acconstinociati°' provided it is net granted to she exelu-
' Bien of those who have an absolutely equal right with,
the richest of the rich. to enter and worship God 'in the'
parish
church,
parishioner. (Applause.)
deal, not with a mixed
a population a which is not for the rich 'but for every
But in this have to
population,case we
we have to deal with
• 11 of whom are of the poorest classes, few
'could afford or
none
of
whom rd any considerable sum