The Sun.
London, England, 1852-03-17 00:00:00

THE SUN,

--(Hear, hear.) He did not agree with those who
declared that this was not a private Bill,
for, according to the definition of the stand-
ing orders, this wsis essentially a private Bill.
—(Hear, hear.) But he did not object to the Bill
upon the ground of its not being a strictly private Bill,
but because it proposed in a private shape to deal with a
great public question, and if it were allowed to pass it
might be made a dangerous precedent.—(Hear, hear.)
There were four great principles involved in ibis Bill: the
first would be found in the 64th clause, which proposed
to levy a rate, the second, in clauses 29 and 31, which.
would make all schools free, and specified the system of
education to be adopted, the third, in clause 69, which
gave the rate-payers power to appropriate the rate to the
schools, but not to dispose of the surplus
if there
should happen to be any, while, in clauses 75,
76, and 85, provision was made that the
aat'aorised version of the Scriptures only should be
used in these schools.—(Hear, hear.) Now, these were
four great principles, and before the House could be
called upon to affirm them, they ought to be well dis-
cussed and considered in Committee.--(Hear, hear.)
For instance, he doubted the expediency of
removing the responsibility from a parent of
providing for the education of his child,
while with regard to the provision making the
schools free, he put it to the House whether that was a
principle which it ought to assent to without a great
public discussion.—(Hear, hear.) The other two prin-
ciples, if they were adopted, would introduce all the
grievances of the church-rate without the necessity for
it. At present church-rates pressed heavily upon
some classes, and the third principle would only tend
to increase the evil.—(Hear, hear.) With regard to
the last principle of this Bill, ho was firmly convinced
that may education to be established by law should be
based upon religion, and so far therefore he was fa-
vourable to the last principle, but seeing that
none of these principles ought to be adopted without
previous discussion, he felt that the best course to be
adopted was to refer not the Bill, but the whole question,
to the consideration of the Select Committee.—(Hear.)
Lord JOHN RUSSELL thought this course was the
best the House could adopt.—(Hoar, hear.) He did
not agree with all that the last speaker had said, but
he did agree with much of it, and he concurred with him
that it would be better to make this a public rather
than a private question.—(Hear, hear.) It was of the
utmost importance that questions of education should b. e
restricted to public and not suffered to be embraced in
private Bills.—(Hear, hear.) Looking at all the cir-
cumstances of the case, however, he thought this Bill
might have been read a second time and referred to a
Select Committee, provided it was afterwards to be
considered in a Committee of the whole House, but
as the matter now stood he felt that the better course
was to pass the amendment.—(Hear, hear.) Had this
been simply a question of whether the Bill should pass
or not, he certainly should have voted for the se-
cond reading, but those who resisted the measure
did not desire to carry their opposition
to the extent of negativing the principle of the Bill, but
they simply wished that the Bill should be framed upon
a more extended basis, and to that suggestion he could
not have the slightest objection.—(Hear, hear.) He
agreed with the Right Honourable Gentleman opposite
that some of the principles of the Bill, if
! adopted, would seriously interfere with many of
our schools that were now maintained upon the voluntary
principle, but some proviso might be introdaced into the
Bill which should meet that case.—(Hear, hear.) With
regard to the last principle of the Bill, he felt the diffi-
culty of deciding upon some religious system of educa-
tion in which all parties could agree, but he thought
it might be provided that the children of Roman
Catholics should be exempted from attending the religious
department of the schools. It would be unjust to the
Catholic and to the Jew to compel them to contribute
towards the support of a school which imposed such
duties upon their children as they could not con-
scientiously perform, and he saw no differ-
ence between forcing a Roman Catholic to read
the Old Testament or forcing a Jew to confine
himself to the New.—(Hear, hear.) But these were
points of detail which must be left for the consideration
of the Select Committee. And again thanking these
who had brought this Bill forward, he concluded by re-
commending the House to agree to the amendment
without any modification 'whatever.—(Hear, hear.)
Mr. CARDWELL rose to answer the appeal which
bad been made to him by the Right Hon. Gentleman
opposite. Though he had not been intrusted with the
conduct of this Bill, he still had taken great interest in it.
If the promoters of the Bill reaped no further reward for
their laborious exertions than the present discussion, their
meritorious exertions would have been fully rewarded.
They were much indebted to the Right Hon. Gentle-
man the Secretary of State for the Home Department,
and the Noble Lord the late Prime Minister, for the
light which they had thrown on this subject. They were
all agreed that the Bill should be referred to a Select
Committee, and that the subject should have a full and
fair inquiry. 'The Bill in the mean time was to rest at
its present stage; and he was quite prepared to say that
the House was in a position at present to agree to the
principle of the Bill ; and the promoters of it were not
at all likely to seek to attain from the course which it was
now proposed to take any surreptitious acknowledgment
of that nature. The fullest justice had been done to the
Bill, and to the merits of the people of Manchester in
seeking to obtain for themselves some settled and effica-
cious scheme of education. There ought, therefore, to
be no heartburnings on the subject, and he hoped that
all would unite in agreeing in the expediency of the
course now paraued.
Mr. W. PATTEN thought it would be a wise course
for the promoters of this Bill to accede to the proposi-
tion which had been made to them; but at the same
time he must say that the efforts of the promoters of
the Bill were certainly nut in such a good train for
obtaining the desired result now as they had before been.
The promoters of the
.Bill had not the slightest objection
to a full and fair enquiry, but he thought that some pro-
vision ought to be taken that the opponents, as well as
the promoters of the Bill, should not be put to any ex-
pense in appearing before a Committee.
Mr. BROTHERTON had great pleasure in acceding
to the proposition which had been made, and he would
ask that the second reading of the Bill be deferred until
this day six months.
Sir R. H. INGLIS said that the doctrine which he
held was that the education of the country was vested in
the Church established by the State, and nothing he
had heard had induced him to depart from that
opinion. The Noble Lord the late Prime Minister had
laid it down as his opinion that all education ought to be
religious, and he (Sir R. Inglis) thought that if the
country were to be taxed for the purpose of affording
religious education to the people, it ought to be an edu-
cation in accordance with the religion established and
recognised by the State.
Mr. FOX agreed that if money was to be raised by
taxation for the purpose of inculcating religious educa-
tion it ought to be in accordance with the religion of
the Church, but that was not the principle of the Bill.
He agreed that en inquiry so general and universal as
it was pr oposed to be would be of no use. With regard
to the Billitself he regretted that it did not appear to
provide any improvement iu the quality of education as
well as the quantity. It was well known that the great
mass of schools in their particular locality were any-
thing but a desirable condition and were not able to
afford an education up to the wants of the community.
Col. THOMPSON thought that the great object was
to get over the religious antipathies of the different
classes of the community to contributing any money to
the religious education of those opposed to them.
Mr. SLANEY hoped that one part of their labours
would be to inquire into the propriety of exempting
those persons from taxation who entertained religious
scruples on the subject, and who could show that they
contributed to the education of their own religious de-
nomination.
The amendment was then withdrawn, and the second
reading of the Bill postponed until that day month.
The motion for the appointment of a Select Com-
mittee to inquire into the condition of education in
Slanchester and Salford, and to report on the best
'teens for improving the same, was then agreed to.
PHARMACY BILL.
Mr. ELLIS presented seven petitions in favour of this
Bill.