The Sun.
London, England, 1864-05-28 00:00:00

PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

Lord BROUGHAM inquired if her Majesty's Govern-
ment intended to appoint inspectors of middle-class schools.
Earl GRANVILLE said that the subject had been under
the consideration of the Committee of Council on Education,
but they did not see their way clear to appoint inspectors of
schools that did not receive support from the Government,
but were simply private specuiations.
Earl STANIIOPE then rose to call the attention of
their lordships to the report of the public schools commis-
sion, and especially to the course of instruction which is
therein pursued, and inquired the intention of her Ma-
jesty's Government. He also moved for copies of any
minute of the Treasury Board, or resolution of the Com-
mittee of the Privy Council respecting the recent report of
the public schools commission. He was of opinion that too
much time and labour was wasted upon composition and
Greek prose and verse ; and he objected to the propc sal of the
commissioners to appoint a council to advise the head mas-
ters of the great public schools—a measure which he was
certain would destroy the influence and responsibility of
these gentlemen, be powerless for good, and productive of
the greatest evil.
The Earl of CLARENDON was highly gratified at the
concurrence of Lord Stanhope in the necessity of a classical
education as the substructure of all learning, and without
which an intimate knowledge of English literature was im-
possible ; but the commissioners objected to classics or
mathematics monopolising the whole education, especially
in the case of boys who had no chance of excelling in those
studies, and had developed an aptitude for other branches
of learning. The great excellence of the system was that
it turned out young men at 18 not only high•spirited and
honourable, but well grounded, well disciplined, and not in-
ferior in any one branch capable of directing their attention
with advantage to any profession or pursuit. Still, whilst
this was the result in the case of boys who devoted their
time to study, the great complaint was that very few of the
boys did devote their time to study, and many of them left
school grossly ignorant. He regretted to say that the head
masters had shown a disposition to resist all improvements,
especially as regarded instruction in modern languages ; and
he believed that the commissioners would have done great
good had they demonstrated the necessity of more attention
being paid to modern languages, without which in the pre-
sent day a man was really only half educated. The noble
earl then defended the commissioners from the charge of
insisting upon more branches of study than was possible in
the case of boys at school, and argued in favour of imparting
a knowledge of the natural sciences, not to the exclusion
of other studies, but as a means of developing certain kinds
of intellect. He denied that the proposed council would
interfere with the authority of the head master, and said
that the Government were of opinion that there would not
be time this session to deal with the question of the consti-
tutien of the governing bodies ; but on Monday he would
bring in a short bill to provide that all persons who ware
admitted to the governing body should be subject to the
provisions of the more general measure which would here-
after be introduced.
The subject then dropped, and the orders of the day
having been disposed of their lordships adjourned.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.---Last Evening.

The SPEAKER took the chair at four o'clock,
PRIVATE BUSINESS.

The following bills were read a third time and passed:—
Caledonian Railway (Glasgow Harbour Branehes)—Edin-
burgh and Glasgow Railway—Glasgow and Paisley Joint
Line of Railway—London and South Western (Additional
Works)—London, Brighton, and South Coast Railway
(New Lines in Battersea)—London, Brighton, and South
Coast Railway (Steamboats)—and London, Chatham, and
Dover Railway (No. 1).

TRANSATLANTIC STEAMERS.
Mr. SCULLY asked the President of the Board of Trade
when be expected that the returns as to transatlantic
steamers, ordered on the 14th of March last, would be laid
before the house.

Mr. M. GIBSON said that he had Mach inquiries, and
he believed that, although great delay had necessarily taken
place, the returns would be ready in about a week.
Mr TORRENS asked the President of the Board of
Trade when it was probable that the works at Portpatrick
harbour, now being carried out under direction of the Go-
vernment, would be completed And, in the event of much
further delay occurring in the completion of the works
whether the Government would take into consideration the
propriety of having the mails conveyed to anti from the
North of Ireland via Stranraer and Larne.
Mr M. GIBSON said that the works in question were in
progress, but it was not probable that they would be com-
pleted during the present year. With regard to the second
question, it had not been considered advisable to adopt any
such temporary service as that alluded to.