The Express.
London, England, 1861-07-05 00:00:00

THE EDUCATIONAL ESTIMATES.

On the motion for going into committee of supply,
Mr. DILLWYN rose to call the attention of the house
to the auunally-increasing amount of the educational esti-
mates, and to the principle upon which such votes should
be given, nod to wove, " That in the opinion of this holies
votes in aid of educational establishments should, so far
as may be consistent with existing arrangements, be limited
to those is which elementary instruction alone is given, and
'to those for the training of schoolmasters." Probably no
section of the house, or of the community, wished to
see the education of ell classes of the country taken in hand
by the state, but that must ultimately be the result unless
some alteration iu the system was adopted. They had raised
the standard already beyond what was adapted to the poor-
est classes, and they were now educating those who could
very well afford to pay for their education. (Hear, hear.)
The result of this wax that no private schoolmaster could
compete with the state schools, and itbecame more difficult
to obtain private and independent education. The system
premed very hard tipm clerks and professional men,
who had a position to maintain in society, and
who were really not no well off as the mechanics of
the grade below them, for they were too proud to send
their children to be educated at the state schools, and they
were obliged to go to great expense in their education to
enable them to compete with the children of the working
men who were educated at the cost of the state. He con-
sidered elementary education a necessary. He (lid not
thick that any child should be debarred on ac-
count of poverty from receiving that education
necessary to keep it from poverty or crime.
It was not the duty of the state to force education upon any
persons. The criminals and the pauper class were entitled
to education, because the state stood in loco pontiffs towards
them. Education was now the stepping-stone to advance
in life, and therefore it was not likely that the middle classes
would neglect the duty of educating their children. It was
not his object to discourage education in nny way, but to
confine the duty of the state within its proper limits. He
believed the result of adopting the principle of his resell'.
tion would be to give a better education to the children of
the poor, and to reduce the amount of the vote to half its
present amount in a few years. (Hear, hear.)
Sir G. LEWIS said he understood it was generally the
wish of the house that motions on going into committee of
supply should be confined to questions of urgency. But
the motion of the hon. gentleman was so far from being a
motion of urgency, that it was only by straining the rule of
the house he was able to bring it forward at all. He be-
,'laved the present vote for education was limited to giving
elementary instruction and to the training of schoolmasters ;
and it was not the intention of those who framed the educa-
tion vote that the expense should go beyond these objects.
When the education vote came before the house then the
hon. gentleman could move to have it reduced ; but at pre-
sent he thought it would be useless to go into • discussion
on the subject.
The motion was then negatived without • division.