The Sun.
London, England, 1836-02-12 00:00:00

After a few ivet-& from Mr. HAWES the question was put
and carrieti, and a select committee was appointed.
BUSINESS OF THE IlOl.5l''JE.
Mr. WAKLEY moved tie ballot for entering the
names of membleki the " Public Business List," should be
taken; ht tblure, at every sitting of the House a quarter of an
!lair before the time which Mr. Speaker may appoltlt or taking
the chair.

Lord .TOTIN 1tt,8814,1.4 gait niltibb tha't an Thursday,
March d, he would move fora COMMlttet on the Acts con-
z:erning Gaols.
ENIAN(tifiTION OF THE JEWS.
Mr. P. nAIZING presented a petition from the Mayor and
Corporation of Portsmouth in favour of the removal of the civil
disabilities imposed upon the Jews.
Several Dills which different .Hon. Members had obtained
leave to bring in, were severally presented and read a first time.
The Itouso adjourned at a quarter past nine.

HOUS'E OF LORDS, FEBnuißi- 11.

The LORD CH ANCELLOR took his scat on the Wool.
sack at 5 o'clock.
The Capital Punishment for Letter Stealing Amendment
Hill was read a third time, and passed.
Lord WYNFO RD 'presented a petition ftom Lincoln.
shire, complaining of agricultural distress, and praying for
enquiry into its causes. The Noble Lord gave notice, that on
Tuesday next he would move for a Select Committee to
enquire into the subject.
The LORD CHANCELLOR moved for returns from the
Court of Exchequer and the Court of Bankruptcy, similar to
those he had moved for relative to the Court of Chancery.—
Ordered.
Lord WHARNCLIFFE moved for a return of the names
of gentlemen returned to the Home Office, as being fitted for
the office of magistrates by the Town Councils under the Mu-
nicipal Reform
IRISH EDUCATION.
The Earl of RODEN had taken the very first opportunity
of bringing forward a question of the ♦ery greatest import-
ance connected with the welfare of Ireland, and he had thought
it proper to do so in the form of a question to the Noble Marquis
opposite. Last session lie had moved for returns connected with
education in Ireland ; all of which were promised but one, point-
ing out the religion of the children attending the schools
under the new Board. He thought there must be some
reason for the refusal of that which was the most important of
all he had asked for, and none could be more easy. One of
the questions he would put would be relative to that paper.
He had the Report of the Commissioners in his hand, and on
it he had a few words to say before putting his questions.
tie felt himself bound to deny many of the facts stated to the
House by the Commissioners. It was his duty and privilege
to live in Ireland, and he trusted he lived with reasonable
men, and he had not found one who thought that this systsm
was one at all consistent with the feelings of the Protestants
of Ireland. With all due respect to the Commissioners,
he must differ with the statements of the Report.---( Hear. )
The Report then went on to recommend the system
of education, and recommended an expenditure for it; but he
was afraid that many of their Lordships were unacquainted
with the system, and he was afraid that the country generally
knew nothing of it. They recommended an expenditure of
200,0001. in nine years, in favour of a cause which he thought
would lead to much mischief and misery. He thought the
cause one of vast importance, and had taken the first oppor-
tunity of getting the opinion of the Government upon the
subject, and to enter his protest against the Report and the
system generally. He disclaimed bringing forward the ques-
tion from political or party views—he had opposed it from the
first, for he thought then as he did now, it would prove a curse
to the country by producing a famine of the word of God in the
land, which was the greatest curse that could be possibly in-
flicted on any country. He had always read in history that
when Protestantism was strong in this country, it was strong at
home and respected abroad; but that when Protestantism was
sacrificed to political expediency she was despised.—( Hear,
hear.) He would warn the Noble Lords opposite of the course
they were pursuing towards Ireland. He hoped the people of
England and of Scotland would show, by petitions to that
House, that they were not of those reasonable men who
had changed their opinions as mentioned in the Report.
—( Hear.) He wished to ask the Noble Marquis, whether
he would be kind enough to lay on the table the relative num-
ber of Protestant and Catholic children attending the new
schools, and whether the Government intended to act upon the
Report, and disburse the sums of money recommended in the
Report of the Committee.

The Marquis of LANSDO WNE, after acknowledging the
personal compliments paid him by the Noble Earl, said he was
sorry that it was not'in his power, or in the power of the Go-
vernment, to gra,nt him his first request. The Commissioners
appointed under the Bill thought that they could not make
such a return as was then asked for. They consider that by
so doing they would exceed their functions; and if they
were to inquire who were Protestants and who Catho-
lics, they would have kept up the old enmity between the
two religions, which it was intended to do away with
by the new plan. The teachers had not the religious
instruction of the children under their charge. There were
certain days in the week when the Protestant clergyman had
the right—and he wished that they oftener exercised it—of
giving religious instruction to those of the children attending
the schools belonging to the congregation, and on other days the
Catholic Priest had the same liberty with those belonging
to their faith ; but the Master, acting under the Commissioners,
had no power to make any inquiry upon the subject. If the
Noble Earl wanted such a Return for the purpose of found-
ing an argument upon It, there was no necessity for
them.—( Hear, hear, hear.) The Noble Earl had a right
to use that argument; for it was perfectly well known that there
were many more Catholic children attending these schools than
Protestant, and it must be so, for the proportions of the one to
the other was enormous, and the plan was intended for the be-
nefit of all.—( Hear, hear.) But if the Noble Earl would look
at the Report to which he has alluded, he would find that from
the Protestant province of Ulster there were applications for
schekols under the new plan, signed by 260 Protestant clergymen
of t!iat province—surely they would not have made such ap...
plications if they had not found that it had been of very grekt
benefit to the country .by their manner of instruction. The
second question was one of much greater extent and import-
ance. It was to be remembered that the Report on the table
of the House was made by the Commissioners, in consequence
of the instructions given them under the Bill. He (the Mar-
quis of Lansdowne) agreed with the Noble Earl that the
amount proposed to be expended in the Report was too large to
be granted, except after the most minute examination and at-
tention to the matter in all its branches. It was to be remem-
bered, however, that it was not yet taken into conside-
ration—( Hear, hear)—that the matter had not yet been
brought before Parliament—but that it was laid before
them, because such information was always convenient to be
in possession of the Parliament. He was not prepared to say
that any intention had been formed by the Government
of proposing to Parliament any scale of expenditure
equal to that recommended in the Report : but he bad no
hesitation in saying for himself, that he trusted that in some
shape or another funds will be raised at no distant period
for carrying into effect the extended benefits of education
under the same system. Ile was convinced that it was doing
no more than educating and civilizing, and thereby reconciling,
that portion of the King's dominions. The Noble Earl had said
that he did not know any benefits which had flowed from the
new system. Was the Noble Earl aware that under even the
presented limited scheme, there were 200,000 children receiving
education under the plan which was recommended by the Com-
missioners of 1812, signed by most of the Prelates of that day.
At page 65 of the Report it would be found that the Commis-
sioners had stated selections might be made in which most im-
portant parts of sacred history would be included; together
with all the precepts of morality and instructive examples, by
which those precepts were illustrated and enforced, and which
should not be subject to the objections which had been made to
the use of the Scriptures. They stated further, that such
a volume of extracts of the sacred writings, would, in their
opinions, form the best preparation for that more particular
religious instruction which it would be the duty, and they
doubted not, the inclination of also the several minis-
ters of religion, to give at proper times and in proper
places to the children of their respective districts. To this
Report was subscribed the names of William Armagh, Charles
Cashel, and other eminent Prelates. He could not believe

that the attempt to carry into effect the principle recom-
mended by such high authorities would be attended with other
than beneficial results. No person could now travel in Ireland
without seeing the great reform it had worked in the mGral
and religious liberty of the people. The system was placed
in an intelligible shape, and provided for in a manner which
ensured to that remote and miserable population the blessings
of that species of education which all those learned Prelates,
12 or 16 years ago, pointed out as that which might be ap-
plicable to the whole population of Ireland. Although he was
not prepared to go the length. of adopting the system of the
Commissioners to the extent to which it might be carried,
yet he would state to the House, and the country, that
he was prepared to give still further effect to that
which he considered was the greatest of all possible
blessings.—( Cheers.) He was sorry he was not able to give
the Noble Earl opposite more full or authentic information.
A NOBLE LORD said that he could only speak locally as to
this system being approved of; and in the place with which
he was acquainted, he knew that the Protestant clergymen
were greatly satisfied with it.

The Bishop of EXETER, although there was no question
before the House, would trespass for, a short time upon
their Lordships' attention. Ile had listened to the Noble
Marquis, as he always did listen to him, with the greatest
attention and respect. He felt satisfied that what the Noble
Marquis had said he said wi,it the utmost candour, and he
believed it was the sincere desire of the Noble Marquis to
endeavour to promote the best interests of the country. He
believed that it was with the utmost sincerity that the Noble
Marquis expressed the wish that he had it in his power to
give the Noble Earl the fullest possible information on the
subject of his enquiry ; but, as a friend to the system of
national education, he would put it to the Noble Mar-
quis whether great doubts were Rot likely to be raised
by so long and so stubborn a silence on a question of such
cardinal importance as that asked by the Noble Earl ? He
called it cardinal, because if there was not a due proportion
of Protestants educated under the system, it would not be
considered impartial. Upon this hinge the whole merits
of the question turned, and, therefore, it was that the
friends of the system of education now at work in Ireland
should be most anxious to answer it. The responsibility
of returning the recluired answer rested with ten-fold
weight upon the Commissioners themselves. But the
Commissioners had remained silent upon- this point, for
they knew that there was no fit and due proportion between
the number of Protestant and Roman Catholic children which
partook of the benefits of the national system. If the Com-
missioners were not actually required to make this en-
quiry, there- was nothing in the ins, -Actions given 'to them
which prevented their doing so. (;,....Ihe contrary for filo