The Sun.
London, England, 1849-05-16 00:00:00

RAGGED SCHOOL UNION.

Yesterday evening, at six o'clock, the; annual general
meeting of this society was held in the large room at
Exeter-hall, every part of which was crowded to excess
on the occasion. Of all the May meetings this has been
by far the most numerously attended, all the approaches
being besieged with applicants for admission, and many
being obliged to go away, having failed to procure even
standing room. The proceedings having bean opened
by prayer and praise,
Lord A SIILEY, who occupied the chair, rose and said
that they had met to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the
Ragged School Union, which had greatly enlarged its
desires, and increased its efforts. They were met in that
magnificent hall,not only to ask, but to demand the sym-
pathies of the British empire in the great work which
they bad undertaken. They still retained the epithet of
" ragged schools," whereby they had first become known,
because it marked the line of their duty and the sphere
of their operations ; but he trusted that the Ragged
School Union was about to take its just and proper
footing among the best and greatest of the religious
societies of this vast metropolis.---(Cheers.) He was not
going to anticipate the report, but he called on them in
that moment of congratulation to join with him in
humble thankfulness to Almighty God who had been
pleased to bless their efforts with so vat a measure
of success. In spite of the difficulties and

obstacles that had stood in their path—in spite of the
positive discountenance of those who should have been
the first to welcome and assist them, in what position
did they now stand? Only four years ago they num-
bered their schools by ten and their scholars by hun-
dreds, but now they maintained eighty-two schools, the
greater number of them being in connexion with the
union ; of these thirty were held during the day, and
fifty in the evening. In them there were twenty industrial
classes, and there had passed through them, receiving
more or less instruction according to circumstances, and
being more or less under the influence of the institution,
nearly 15,000 of the most filthy, destitute,-forgotten, and
hitherto despised children. But were they to stop at that
point, and resting satisfied with what they had done to
seek an inglorious repose? Had they done nothing at all,
they might plead that all was hopeless; but the great mea-
sure of success that had hitherto attended them would
be turned to their condemnation if they did no go
further.—(Cheers.) If they had succeeded in bringing
10,000 of these children under civilizing and religious
influences, 20,000 more still remained as ready to re-
ceive the benefits which the institution offered. Ho
asked the meeting only to consider what (less it was
on whose behalf he appealed for sympatby—to look
at their physical condition—to see the hundreds and
thousands that perambulated the streets, the back
courts, and alleys of the metropolis, totally unable
to extricate themselves from the miserable conditioe,
physical and moral, in which they were plunged. It
was well to sand out missions to the heathen, and he re-
joiced that it was so; but there were to be found in-
stances of heathenism just as striking in the courts and
alleys of this Christian city as in the depths of Pekin
or the haunts of Thnbuctoo.—(Cheers.) If, however,
they were really anxious to extract from these children,
to whom their care was directed, all the good results
that were desirable, they must enable them, by their
aid and protection, to fight the great battle of life.
(Cheers.) It was not sufficient that they should
pass through the ragged schools; but they must
and
hands the roafr
tehecases
so-
ciety
for
schools
also be placedut thei in
numbersome kofi nd
instanceso f honeisnt
which employment.
tchildren il
o
in
pointe d ohaoud ne sitny .p
rHo eo
is. tt rhoenrge
01 yr ardeviodc astoemd
ee m i gra -
* tlon as the best means of oept
ur or
nv ie.d o
nf h f proledd ie.d f o
ng or t e uture career
of t h ese
w a ntf
theto
which
they
been srtrh,e a
affect-
ing letters from boys and girls who had already been sent
out to South Australia at the public expense. One of
these ht el- ,vr,tere was, when first brought under the
care of the society, such an object of compassion that
the principal thief. of the district taking compassion on
his destitute condition, after vainly endeavouring to
support him, at last brought him to the refuge
children,
of the society in Pye•street, Westminster. It was
said that ragged schools were one-sided in their phi-
lanthropy, and showed an undue partiality for children
the outcasts of society, over the offspring of the poor
but independent labourer. But the means of the so-
ciety were limited, and it was necessary to confino
their operations accordingly, and by improving the basis
of society
they improved the whole of the superstructure,
and, therefore, he asked the meeting what they would
resolve to do with all the hopes and promises before
them. The Noble Lord concluded by calling on the
meeting to rise to the discharge of the great duties be•
fore them, and in doing so to bless God from the bottom
of their hearts that they were about to thrust their sickles
into that harvest which, by His blessing, was already
ripe for the hands of the reaper.—(Loud cheers.)
The SECRZTARY then read the report, which stated
that the funds of the society had been vastly increased.
The subscriptions having risen from 891. in the pre-
ceding to 3381. in the past year, while the donations
had risen from 520/. to 3,1681. in the same period.
The report then proceeded to notice the society's opera-
tions during the year, and especially the immense bene-
fits con! erred by the means of emigration supplied
by Government to ragged school children willing to
settle in the colonies. An earnest hope was expressed
that this boon, obtained by the exertions of Lord Ashley
during the
past year, might be continued permanently.
Since last June 150 boys and girls had been sent out to
Australia at the public expense, and were now doiro'
very well. The 82 schools of the society were now
taught by more than 1,000 voluntary or paid teachers,
yet even that number, great as it was, was found quite
a ithquate.
The Duke of ARGYLE moved the adoption of the
report, and expressed his deep sense of the vast and
paramount importance of the work which the meeting
had assembled to aid. This was one of those great
works, and there were many such in the history of the
world, which had been conceived, begun, and carried on,
by a few earnest, faithful, and loving men—(flear)—
which had worked its way gradually to public acknow-
ledgment; and to none were the public more indebted for
the result than to hie Noble Friend who occupied the
chair. The surprise only was that such an institution
as ragged schools had not been discovered sooner. Some
persons objected to missions to the heathen world on
the ground that in their own land they were sur-
rounded by heathens, and the assertion was, he regretted
to say, but too true; but let all who withheld their
sympathy and support from foreign missions on such
grounds come forward and support ragged schools.
and they would have a glorious union and overflowing
funds.—(Cheers.) It the duty was once acknowledged,
there could be no objection to the mode in which the
duty was to be fulfilled. It was known that the chunces