The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1821-03-02 00:00:00

clothed, and .eduret. ed. et as exposers of 70.000fs
lodepeudent of charitable institutions. it appeared
by returns made fret" Seventeen out of tomsty-two
dimes.", that there 1011• R is these eseststereal dio-
ceses 3.7dt 'wheel! unpaid oyee the countrys in which
were educatid 163,167 perms, of which ijitt mas-
ters «ere Protesteiria. educating 45,190; mod 8,46
were Cathiilics, educating 116,977 of theirsesepecti ve
;
rersua•ions. Allowing their laminate roper-,
Sou to the live remaining dioceses which had useds.t
no retorts, the total number of schools of iLe lasi-
mentioned description would be about 4.600, and of
tile scholari about tOO,OOO. He stated this t..
shoo that there was no want of dispositiou on tle.
port tar the poorer chimes in Ireland to adrift at.
Apeatiois fur their children. The Cols. of the
Wideeeported-reetlay the Comenisitinagee, ittp.Scahls•
to did ifisrpmes or education in Irelasi4 mm 1741055/ ;
rod in ease that Was not deemed by Parliament suffi-
cient for the purpose, thrysoggested • *Tab{ of pro-
viding an additional supply, to which be caked the
attention of the /louse, as it was indeed stoat iw.
portant recommendation, aid one which. wheal it was
esseidered to have emulated from • Commission,
menprising the Primate and several Bishops of Ire,
land. he should hope there would he neither diffi-
tally nor objection in adopting. The proposal to
which he bad alluded was, that the clergy of the
Established Church should he rated at two per
sent. on the amount of their income, to be aster-
Mined by the Bishops, end the lay improprintors in
• similar 'proportion on the amount of their tithes,
mad that the fund Ise derived should be appro-
priated to the maintenance of schoolmasters.
By this plan it was calculated that meets* might be
procured adequate to the education of Su scholars
each in the 4,400 parishes contained no Ireland,
making 120,00 u additional schohint. In proposiiig
to refer the papers for which he moved to a Com-
mittee, which it was his intention to do at an early
period of the next Session, he begged it might nut
be supposed that he intended to recommend any
course frounded on his own opinion, hut that he ea.
merely acting upon en important suggestion of the
Commissioner,. He concluded by moving for au
account of the funds wild resources of all schools of
public or charitable foundatiuss in Ireland, as far
as they have been reported to the Commissiosiere
appointed to inquire ink, the same, distinguishing
the sources from which they are derived, and the
number of *cholera educated in each.
Mr. C. GRANT expressed Iris doubts as to the
possibility of adopting any general plan of educe
11011 for the poor of Ireland ; but be assured the
House that the Government were anxious to intro-
duce the iuiprovements recommended by the Com-
missioners, and had actually done so in ill instances
whew the opportunity had occurred. TO what
extent they had succeeded, he was not then pre-
pared to state. The Commissioners had made a
return to the Government last year, from which it
appeared that their Idioms were impeded by cer-
tain' obstacles, and he had a Bill in prepnration for
the removal of those obstacles. The Board of
Education was unfortunately constructed, consist-
ing chiefly of persons employed in the professions
of the church and the law. whose business pre-
vented their efficiency. He defended the manage-
ment of the institutions which were immediately
under the control of Government. He preferred
the present plan of the Government in fostering
charitable establishments for education, to the
danger of innovation by carrying into immediate
effect any general plan of education.
Sir H. PARNELL admitted that there had been
difficulties in the way of *denting a general plea
of education in Ireland, on account of the reli-
gious disunion of the people. But those difficulties
were done away. The Catholics, having now sio
longer any dread of the practice of proselytism,
concurred in the desire of seeing the poor generally
educated. •

Mr. S. Rice commented on the usefulness of
education among the lower classes, and the abuse
of the charitable funds appointed for education in
Ireland. He quoted the Act of 2$ Henry VIII..
which requires every clergyman inducted into a
living to set up • school for the instruction of the
poor. There were in Ireland 1,125 benefices ; of
these only 736 had made any return to the Com-
missioners when called on to do so, sad of the
736, it appeared that only 549 had parochial
schools. The Act of Henry VIII. was confirmed
by a similar one in the reign of Elisabeth. He ad-
mitted that there were obstacles in the way of
establishing any general plan of education ; but
never was there I period more auspicious for over-
coming those difficulties, and settling all differ-
slices, than under the mild and sensibk administra-
tion of the Right Hon. Gentleman. He denied that
the Catholics had arty objection or hostility to a
plan of general education.
Mr. C. GRANT explained.
Mr. W. COURTINAT expatiated on the bene-
ficial consequences of educating the poor—anal
asserted the great willingness of Government, and
especially of His Right Hon. Friend, to forwar.l
any meazurel which could be safely adopted Int-
that purpuse„
Mr. Ai. FITZGERALD replied. his only wish w 43
to have the Report of the Commissioners referred
to u Committee of the House. 'Pie result might
prove a r..reat raving of trouble to the Government,
especially it time Committee should be enabled to
light on any plan for carrying into effect the Re-
port of the Couuniseioners. At present he thought
it was tustaest that the funds for the aducatso
of the taw to Ireland were enormous, while the
practical good, the instruction of the people, was
exceedingly small.
The motion was agreed to.
Sir H. PARNELL /nosed for a statement, shear-
tug to what degree the improvements recommended
by the Commissioners bad been carried into effect.
—Ordered.
Mr. H. Twin postponed • notice of Isis from
Monday to the lath of May. He begged leave, an
object of his motion had been misrepresent,
, that it related merely to some cowmen'