The Sun.
London, England, 1847-04-20 00:00:00

Committse and Council named some one to whom the
Archbishop bad no objection. Such was the state of the
question when the Right Hon. Gentlsmail opposite (the
Member for Tamworth) came into power, and no change
was made by him with respect to the appointment of the
Committee of Council. Those who had been Members
of the Crown immediately ceased to be Members of the
Council. The Right Hon. Baronet opposite (Sir Robert
Peel), Lord Stanley, Sir James Graham, became Mem-
bers of the Council, and Lord Wharncliffe being Presi-
dent of the Council, became head of the Committee. I
had more than one conversation with the late Lord
Wharncliffe on the subject, as I was connected
and ever have been with the British and
Foreign School Society. And he consulted me from time
to time as to what should be the relations between that
society and the board. He proposed that a sum of
5,0001. should be granted—the proposition emanated
with a former Government—for the purpose of a normal
school. I advised them to accept that grant of the
Committee. At a subsequent period Lord Wharncliffe
informed the secretary of that society that he should
adopt the same rule with regard to it as had been
adopted to the national schools, but that he should not
appoint the inspector without their concurrence. The
inspector did not, according to their orders, make
any examination as to religious instruction. Sir, the
grant continued to be made in this form, and various
sums were granted which from time to time were in-
creased, until it reached the sum of 100,000/., and that
sum was granted, without any discussion of importance
taking place. When, however, we come to consider the
state of education, it appeared to us, as a very great
number of schools had been built, that there was no
longer such a demand for money for the purpose of
building schools. The system of monitors has been
established by Lancaster and Bell, but it did not answer
satisfactorily on account of the early age at which the
children left school, so that a boy who had only a years'
education himself was a very unfit person to teach well,
and give the proper comprehension of the subject of
education to a school. It was therefore proposed that
a certain sum should be allowed in ca ;h school for the
purpose of inducing a boy to remain some years in
school, till he thereby became an efficient teacner. It
was proposed, likewise, that when the masters gave
their time to training of the pupil teachers, and render-
ing them efficient in their duties, that there should be a
certain sum of money as an allowance made
to them. It was proposed with regard to some other
schools in which there were not monitors and pupil
teachers, that there should at once be established
monitors, who likewise received a sum of money to in-
duce them to .emain at school. These because stipen-
diary monitors, and there should be an allowance made
to masters training and teaching these stipendiary
monitors. It was proposed likewise with a view to the
improvement of the normal schools, and for the better
sustentation of those resorting to those schools, that a
sum of money should be granted for the purpose of pay-
ing those pupils who should be most promising, and who
should be recommended by the inspectors of the school,
together with those who were at school, for the purpose
of being trained in normal schools, and that there should
be an augmentation of the salaries of the masters of
schools who bad been trained, and who should obtain a
certificate of proficiency. There should be a certain
sum of money likewise for the encouragement of proper
gardens and workshops, which has to those persons,
who have taken an interest in education, been at various
times a very desirable object. It has been always my
view the .; the only way efficiently to raise the education
of this c .untry will be to raise the condition and pros-
pects of the schoolmasters. It hes been my view, often
and often expressed in this House, whether in or out of
office, that the drudgery of schoolmasters was not suffi-
ciently rewarded, and leading to no prospect of advan-
tege; it was such that men of talent and abilities who
were trained to that purpose, cannot but leave it in a
great number of instances for other and more
profitable occupations. Such has been the view
which I have not only taken myself but which
I find confirmed by that of others.—(Hear, hear.)
It is of immense importance that these schools should
have efficient teachers, and that there should be some
emolument or reward given ; the latter more commen-
surate with the great duties which they had to perform.
There is another proposition which I shall have to make,
—not that any grant will L wasted for it this 3 ear, but
it will be required, in all probability, next year—it is
for the purpose of pensioning; off those schoolmasters who
have been worn out in the service. No one can deny
that it is highly important for us todo all in our power to
elevate the character and position of the schoolmasters.
lie was only surprised that so far from the country
expressing itself alarmed at the minute of Council, it
would have exclaimed—" What, is this all ? it is
well so far, but it is not equal to meet the evil
which is complained of. It ought to be a larger and a
greater plan. Sir, I have said before, that I have not
proposed anything but what has been settled on for
many years, and repeatedly referred to. It has been
stated, I know, that this is an unconstitutional body
which makes the grant; but to that I will answer, that
I do not think any course can be more constitutional
than for Ministers to come forward with an explanation
of what they intend to do, and to depend on a vote of
Parliament for the grant. The question now is the
same as in 1839, when first brought forward. I did
not anticipate such objections, least of all from thoee who
hare brought forward this opposition, viz., the various
Dissenting ministers of London, and the various bodies
throughout the country, who applauded the Government
in the course they adopted in the year 1839.—(Loud
cheers.) I trust, therefore, that the Committee
of Council will not be considered as so
formidable an evil as it was once supposed to be.
—(Hear, hear.) I am not, Sir, going to discuss
that large question at the present moment. I wish
to point the attention of the House to how far the se ar-
gumente are endeavoured to be applied. Sir, it is im-
p essible not to see the drift of those arguments. Sir, it
is again said that there is sufficient already done for edu-
cation, that there is no need of any further assistance;
that the people of England are as educated, or if not so
completely educated at preseat, they are in the way to
be so completely educated, ;',at it would be superfluous
for the legislature interfe. e. I wish that I could con-
cur in that representation of the case. I wish I could say
that the voluntary efforts had done so much,
and that the education of the people was so complete,
that we need not trouble ourselves here with the matter,
which I confess is one of great difficulty, and one which
cannot be touched without exciting the feelings of
many opposing persuasions. The case is, however, far
otherwise. I will not, Sir, attempt to go into minute
statistics as to what has already been done upon this
subject, but I feel that Hon. Members of th:s House who
have paid any attention to the subject, or who have read
any
education pamphlet udotnhetihrisoswunbjenceti,gobrbbwahrobbhbadv_e a(cttbenetl)_to
the
but must see that the education of the people of this
country is lamentably deficient. Upon this subject I
will take the statements of one of the opponents of this
measure. I regret deeply that he should be one of its
opponents, because his learning, his zeal for the public
gocd, and his piety, render him deserving of the respect
of eve'Y person—I mean Dr. Vaughan. That gentle-
man, in an article published in the British Quarterly
~feview, and which has since been published with his
name, st-„tes that of the whole population of England
and Wales, between the ages of five and fifteen,
found
in day schools, the proportion would be somewhat less
than one-third, about an equal number in the Sunday
schools, and the remaining third not found iniony schools
--day, evening, or Sunday. Statements of a similar nature
have been made by Dr. Hook, and other persons who
have devoted considerable time end attention to the cause
of education, and all concur in agreeing, in opposition
to the statements of Mr. Baines, that the education of
the country is extremely e 2fective.-(Hear, hear.) This
statement does not, hoe- ser, rest upon statements of
this sort. It will be fore'', by a reference to the mar-
riage registers, that there are forty out of every 100
married who cannot write their nemes—thirty in every
100 who cannon read.—(Hear, hear.) This, we
must own, is an immense proportion, when we
consider that the schools of Bell and Lancaster
have been established now for upwards of forty years,
and that voluntary education has been ever since that
time doing its utmost to overtake and subdue this amount
of ignorance. In ri report furnished by some inspectors
who were sent down to inspect and report upon the state
of education in schools belonging to the voluntary esta-
blishment, it is stated that there are great numbers of
persons who are not in the habit of attending any place
of public wor4hip, and to whom the name of God and
Christ was utterly unknown. Not many years since I
referred to the statement of a chaplain of one of the
county gaols, I have lately consulted again the report cf
that gentleman ; he is a person who has taken the
greatest pains to inform himself of the condition of the
persons brought into that place, and in that report ho
states that during his three years' stay at that place the
performance of his duties has brought him into contact
with 1,733 men and boys, and 387 women and girls; and
of these the majority could neither read or write, and
were also ignorant of the name of Gel and of Christ,
and of such things as virtue or vice, holiness or heaven.
There was a case, Sir, in which some of the boys be-
longing to a school were desired to read that chapter of
Si. Mathew's Gospel containing an account of " the
marriage in Cana in Gallilee," who were utterly unac-
quainted with the meaning of the word marriage. With
the
eersons who were
meaning of the
respect to the secular cationed of fedber of prisoners
in one of the gaols, it e by the inspectors
that there were 90 persons unable to name the months
ao cnoudlda notnumdbeefir defineef
of the year, 104 unable to tell the name of the reigning
unable to count es high es 100. Sir, I confess it ap-
pears to me a very shecking thing that education is not
to these persons until they are sent to the gaol.
given
Sovereign,termsvirtue 100:
vice,w h
(Rear, bear.) There are many occasions in which pri-
soners had been induced to bless the day in which they
had been sent to prisons, because they have after their
discharge conducted themselves in a respectable manner
and earned as honest livelihood. But, Sir, is it not
desirable that before the people reached that Once
they should, while young, while impressions
can be easily made upon them, be instructed
in their knowledge, end in their duties. At a public
meeting recently held in the City, one of the speakers
had a written question put into his hands, the effect of
which was, whethe: it would be the best to erect a
guide-post at the commeecement of the journey or at the
end ? To this question the speaker replied, " But what
if the guide-post should be the gibbott ?" Ido not, Sir,
consider that the education given either by the National
Sch, Society or by the British and Foreign School
Society, is of such a nature ay to justify
a any person in
saying that it was likely to lead a man to the gibbet.—
(11ear, hear.)
Another courae has been taken in oppo-
sition to this tneasur:, by a gentleman whom I
regret to see opposed to the plan before
the Houee. The amount of that gentleman's
argument is
this—that there is a certain
class of people in this country which is found in con-
nexion with vice and crime, with ignorance and brutal
sensuality; and in that condition the people must be left.
For them no means of education are to be provided
Imprisonment, transportation, and the gallows aro for