The Express.
London, England, 1849-11-16 00:00:00

LANCASHIRE PUBLIC
_SCHOOLS ASSO-

CIATION.

The Lancashire Public Schools Association is about
comment-ire a spirited minter campaign. Meetirr h r.'
been already help M►nchester and the neighbou od
surrounding it, which have been atteLded by aumerous
suloneee. at which mi.st eloquent speeches hire been
&beetled in favour of the saltine.

On Weds sday reining a pablie meeting was held at the
Manchester Atheneum, attended chiefly by the operative
clue, at which an exposition of the oh) ear of the scheme was
given by several gentlemen connected with it. ABRAHAM
WATEIX, E q oecupi, d the chair, and the meeting was
a dressed by Mr. F. 11.pinevee, secretary to the asseciation ;
Mr. 8 Lung, its chairman ; Mr. W. P. Roberts, solicitor ;
and other gentlemen.
Mr. ESPINASSI referred to the opposieiott which had been
cast against the association by the clergy of the church of
B..gised, and the difficulties which tiecesearCy opposed
themselves to men of constructive principle. in an age of de.
moll ion Ikt the present. He referred to a meeting last
spring In the Manchester Town-hall, at which a melt vehe-
ment opposition was display. d by the clergy. It was said
they could not *toned Messes the Church of England was
evilest them; but he believed that their *theme was a good
one, and would ousted in mite of the r.pp sition of the
church ; and, further, h. believed that the Church of Ent.
l.nd and the clergymen of Lancashire were two very different
things.
Mr. SAMUEL Lucas next addremeil the meeting on the
relation of ignorance and crime, observing that. an a peen
aiary matter alone, it would be advantageous for the people to
be educated. He referred to some statistics ht the Law Maga
sine, is which the writer acempted toshow thatscenlar eou-
cuion was of no benefit in checking crime, because in relative
years the nuenberof criminate who could read and write ironer-
featly had increased. He (Mr Lucas) believed this to be a
lallscious assumption, since reading end writing imperfectly
was nothing whatever; and, besides, the inerease in the
oumlorr:of persons who could read and write imperfectly, was
partly to be accounted for by the tact, that many
of these prisoners bad received a radios utal edu-
cation is the prison, and had afterwards been re-
convicted, thus swelling the numbers of those
who wore only partially instructed. Glancing at the com-
parative bandits of Sunday schools, he contended that the
secular *dustiest given in the Sunday schools was of a very
inferior character, and that the education generally there re.
es level was not sufficient to produce that amount of good
which *mild be effected by a good secular education. He
rlw quoted from various published authorities in support of
his argument. With regard to the operation of the secular
system in Anterica,he read extracts from letters which he had
received from Mr. Horace Mann, secretary to the Beard of
Education in Maseachuseta, and from Mr. H. Barnard, to cce-
tary t the Board of Education in Connecticut, proving satis-
factorily that the most beneficial effects had been produced,
and that the people themselves appreciated in the highest
degree this system of education.
Mr. W. P. Ronsars afterwards addressed the meeting in
a speech of considerable humour and power, detailing the
plan of the meociation, sad commenting in a striking man-
ner on its leatares as he proceeded to delineate them.
The usual votes of thanks were given, and the meeting
then terminated.