The Express.
London, England, 1851-08-30 00:00:00

EoucAnoraL

A highiT influential company, about 500 in num-
ber, at thu Town-hail, Manchester. on Thursday
',ening, the Right Rev. Dr. Let, Lord Bishop of the
dior..e. in the chair. to hear a paper on the proposed edu-
catiolial scheme for ?Manchester and Salford (in opposition
tot!„ National l'olilic School plan), announced as to be
read hy Mr. W. Entwisle, of the firm of Loyd, Entwisle,
and , (milkers. The company included the Very Rev.
Dr. II ,wets, Dean of Manchester ; the Rev. Canon Clifton,
the ft. v. C. ltiehmu, the Rev. Hugh Stowell, and a great
man) other clergymen ; the lkir. Dr. Bunting (Wesleyan);
Rev. Dr. Ilannah and Rev. Geo. Osborn (Wesleyan.);
ilamo.l Flit:her. E.q., and Rem. Richard Fletcher and
Jam.,Owyth r (independents) ; Jas. Heywood, E.q.,M.P.;
Jos. Ilrothetion, E.g., M.P.; James Heald, . M•l'. ;
the 111.1%..1.4 of the to u boroughs, and several leading mem-
hers of the corporations.

The Right Reverend CIIAIIIMAN, in opening the pro-
iceedors, said—The fiat duty, gentlemen, which I have to
perform this evenir.a,i. to call on the chairman of the commit-
tee a in have prep I:ea the draft of the bill which is to he
'obvious d to we and eaplainod on this occasion, to read a'
prier, whichise ha been kind enough to prepare, explana-
tory of the ohjects of the measure which is proposed to be
intniatieed into the legislature in the course of nest
eessiou. Refine shona so, however, I will beg leave to
state that, upon inquiry, I find, what I had myself believed
to be true, that it is the object of this meeting to explain, in
the fullest possible manner, every circumstance connected
with the bill ; and, while we do not invite uppo.ition to the
meiWure, in the form of regular discussion, at the came tiro
we steal he happy to receive any question., addressed to
the rhairman, from those who do not understand, or do not
wholly approve, of en ry portion of the meioure, that those
questions may bare au opportunity of being fully answered,
and that every portion or the measure may be subjected to
the noat searching investigation. (Cheers.) 1 will not,
bowie ler, 110.• enter on the subject—it will be peculator, to
do ; but I will, with your permission—nut requesting
your alteration, for I am cure that the fullest sad fairest
hearing will be accorded to every gentleman this evening
—eall as Mr. Entwiale to read the paper which be has pre-
pared. (Cheers.)
Mr. ENTWISLE then read his paper, from which
we give the following extracts: We has,, a question to
answer, the difficulty of which is at least equalled by
its importance--To what extent and in what manner is
society hound to interfere in providing for the education of
all its members It would appear," says Mr.l'ortcr (Pro-
r"., p. WI) "to be the duty of every government to see
that it• subjects are taught their duties as men and citizen,
and taus to provide fir the security of all. Leavens to this
end have indeed been taught by the government of England,
but to whom have they been imparted, and by what agency,
bare they been enforced ? To be adopted as a scholar, a man!
Must, at least up to a comparatively recent period, have quall.
fink Ininself to appear an a criminal at the bar of justice, anti
his chief schoolmaster would have been the hangman. If
one tithe of the expense that has been incurred,
to so lath. purptee, during the present century,
in punishing criminals, had been employed in
previa toot crime by means of education, what a
adr, ri at Country would Enolaud have been to that which
our ciinainal records show it to have been !" And
brie, an might perhaps have been expect d, the men
of atom:hewer have shown themselves aware of the danger
of fort lief negleo, :AA disposed to grapple manfully with
the al lmowledpted difficulties which beset the qoestion of
eduraion. For that which is true of this kingdom as
tomato il with other nations is also eminently true of
this partitular district, six., "that of all civilised
countries. this is the one in which ignorance on the part of
6, maple tirings with it the greatest amount of danger.'
And esp. rienet has uniimpily shown that it is useless. to
wait 1.. i the intervention of the legislature; and that in this
cur, as ,n so many others• any measure of practical relief
wkkh can hope to eommauil gent red approbation, must ori-
innate with the people themselves. As usual in all difficult
cases, there are " three courses open to 115,.. there arc three
distini t %yeti 111% p pounded fur our acceptance. First.
Then :ire the suppiirters of the voluntary system, who de-
claim loudly against centralisation, government interference,
tiolatiou it is.' rights of conscience, and so forth, fortifying
thttuols •• with quotations from Lord Brouttlians, and
many r anthonties, to show the superiority of a 'colon-
hiry renigaition of our duties towards our fellow citizen*
*or a eampulsory contribution wrung from us by the tax
rah nor, and lose., lug upon the necessity of preserving
the full muss of parental responsibility. There is
as doubt much beauty and truth in this theory ;
but we ran Lolly avoid seeing that if fairly carried out
it amouuts to nothing more nor leas than having things as
they are ; for we hove found by experience that it cannot
breams general in practice unless by an entire abandon-
ment of its voluntary character. To come at once to
to plain matter at issue with the advocates of the
voluntary .) dew There is no complaint against their
tht ors ; and if we could assume that under their plan the
people of these kirgduma either were now or would shortly
be plattil in such a position as to render their igno-
rance, wherever it should be found to exist, attribu-
table only to their own resolute rejection of the means of
education offered for their acceptance, we could not reason-
ably claim to interfere with their action, or to lay any
turthen upon the community for the promotion of a new
Scion,, which t0u...1 in that case only succeed by the ex-
tinction it the former system. This argument, however, is
only tenahle on the ground that the existing means are
nt. quote to the wants of the people. The voluntary system
hoc had a fair trial, and we see the result. Surely the time
has arrived when we may propose to introduce some means
of .applying its defkiencea without the necessity of refuting
the argument% in favour of its principle, or of being sup-
pos..l to undervalue the advantages it has conferred. Se-
condly, there has arisen a plan for that which has been
enlist( the " national " or " secular " scheme of education.
The general outline of this plan is well known in
this lueolity, where it originated, and where its prim.
till,, have insole considerable progress, and have recently
n maintained by argument in an address of great
al..lay, but dwelling rather on the imperfections of its
nail than upon it. own claims to public sanction.
W. propose to judge the National plan rather by
it. neeneary result in practice, than by • theoretical
(Lamination of its proposed details. For if it shall
'mar that in attempting to supply an acknowledged
di kennel., and at the same time to avoid a collision
Si hostile religious opinions, the promoters of this plan can
saly escape the difficulties that have proved fatal to so many
previous ptuposal., by severing the ancient connexion be-
ratio the religious constitution of each portion of the com-
noway and the education of their own members, by super%
Wan and gradually extinguishing all existing schools,
who re the youth of these kingdoms have been, as Lord John
IL- it shot.' to be the desire of their Sovereign, "
brouaht up," and by thus compelling all to accept
n.
she instruction only, because some are unable to reconcile
inat ir eonsc iences the union of religion with education; then
en nay fairly ask, with what justice can sogreat an injury be
Isolated on those establishments to which alone for many
Pas past the nation has been iudebted for the education
Oath as it has been) of the masses of its people ? For it
gait hardly he necessary to point out that the inevitable
Win pinny of the growth of a system offering gratuitous
Woe trios in rate-built sod rate-paid schools, must be the
Maurice of those schools which arc supported partly by
Car sabscriptions of the snore wealthy clones, and partly
the weekly pence paid by the children attending them.
Ibis seems to have been self-evident to the promoters
title National Schools Association, who have introduced
has the outline of their proposed mode of action a poni-
es' fur enabling themselves to purchase or hire, and the
Mute., of the existing schools to all or let, such existing
Schools without any liability to legal proceedings on oc-
tant of so manifest a deviation from the original
iletination of the founders. It may he doubtful
it. 'her such a power as this would ever be
r.t.d by the legislature, as it involves a plain assumption
right to set aside any trust-deed, settlement, or endow-
east made for any special purpose whatever, and to ulie
bat Property held under such titles for any other 14.44 that
a▪ sp sSrto hi more in accordance with public opinion
forlh time being—and this not upon the application of
Prams then bolding or interested in the property in guts-
bet. hut in pursuance of a general power granted to a
bas., diet?, nt body, and for purposes directly at variance
V. those of the original founders of the schools. And ifk
should be urged that it is not intended to make
Me. a power eompubory against the trustees or ma-
been of existing schools, but only to provide
ft tittle admission within the terms of the new
ties titian upon their own consent and application,
/.10/ there remains a difficulty which no means have yet
we muiristed to overcome, viz., how any board of trustees,
010:litis having the management of such property, could
Mann* to its alieuation, or could receive any purchase-
Piety or rent for the application of which they would no
have either legal power or an object. Unless this
telly more fully
topsexlained, and provision made to meet
_ et bare a right
isisiag wheels into the "national" plan could take
Se, And it will be easily wen that several important
lirlaqat nen immediately flow from this conclusion. First,
hbssb ma. La been above stated, the success of the National
Association coo only be attained by the ruin of
carting system. Secondly, that the national
/ha meg be carried out, if at all, in the face of
i.aniat and ientious opposition on the
. advocates of the voluntary
sincerely hold the necessity of the
training with general or secular in-
under the proposed new plan ,
• new and distinct provision of
of receiving the whole ju-
. at any one time be gathered
-s education. Possibly this last
.e weight than both the others,when
a in our own district alone, comprising
Manchester and Salford, there is now
'on for probably not less than
that the cost to the ratepayers I
. for the new association could
The object of the local men-
appear, is to follow up the princi-
distribution of the parliamentary
I the opportunity of attend-
with their own religious,
necessity of attempting to
opinions or indifferent mo-
asly of scholars. But, says the
• system really combining Tell-
etion is impassible. • • • •
multiplication table must be taught at
This is really nothing more than a play

•al Win aura eonarienti
Pert
rat not only the ad'
hat Of all who sincerely
Sam,eton of religious training
And 4.4, that ma
weel..mtd require an entirely m
,eennuolition, ealmble
p.pulatiou which could
1,4 the purpose of et
mm.n. may have more weigh
a ',membered that in our
100 bemughe of hianchestel
acce,ramodation I
te .10,000 children, and tl
providing an equal amount 1.
h, It's than 200.000/. TI
M 'ill presently appear,
il in the distribit
..11,1 by affording to all
schools in connection
imitr, avoid the n
1.
.0 diffe rent religious api
. 1 among the tame hotly
Awociation, " a syst
h.l•.'~lh!ular instruction i
and multiplies
Mt tint's." This is mall.