The Sun.
London, England, 1846-07-18 00:00:00

MILITARY FLOGGING.

Dr. BOWRlNV;venotice that he would, en Monday next,
ask a question of the Secretary for the Home Department
respecting the alleged death of a private soldier in
the 7th Hussars, stationed at Hounslow. It was reported that
the poor roan had died in consequence of a military flogging for
some breach of discipline.
COMMONS INCLOSURE BILL.
Lord CLI VE wished to know from the Right Hon. anntlp_
man the Secretary for the Home Department if he intended
to bring forward any measure of this nature during the present
session.

Sir G. GREY said that the Commissioners had adopted the
same course this year as they had done in former years, and an
Act had been passed in the month of May, which applied to
seven cases of enclosure. No subsequent report had been
made since by the Commissioners to the Secretary of State, but
from a conversation which he had with them, he understood
that there were fifteen additional cases. On receiving a special
report from the Commissioners in reference to these cases,
stating the grounds en which they rested each, it would be his
duty to consider the propriety of bringing in a Bill embracing
them. He had some doubts, however, whether they could con-
sistently with the provisions of the Enclosure Act, introduce a
Bill ; but if on inquiry he should find this to be the case, and if
the Commissioners made a special report before the close of the
session, he should consider the propriety of preparing a measure
to carry their recommendation into effect.
The Earl of LINCOLN said that, as the Right Hon.
Gentleman had expressed some doubts whether he could bring
in another Inclosure Bill during the present session, he begged
to inform him that the same difficulty occurred to him when
he held office ; and he assured the Right Hon. Baronet that
no difficulty whatever existed, for there was nothing what-
ever in the Enclosure Act to prevent him from carrying the
recommendation of the Commissioners into effect by the intro-
duction of another Bill during the present session.
ADJOURNMENT OF THE HOUSE.
It was then agreed that the House, at its rising, do adjourn
till Monday next.
On the motion for reading the order of the day for going
into Committee of Supply,
After some conversation between Sir De Lacy Evans, Sir
Howard Douglas, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the
purport of which did not reach the gallery,
EDUCATIONAL ESTIMATES.

Mr. EWART moved, " That it is expedient that an annual
statement on the state and prospects of education be made by a
responsible Minister of the Crown, on going into Committee
en the education estimates. 2. That it is expedient that the
formation of additional training schools for schoolmasters be
encouraged. 3. That it is expedient to encourage the forma-
tion of public libraries, freely open to the public, in large
towns. 4. That it is expedient that appointments to the
subordinate offices of Government be made, as far as possible,
on the principle of open examination of the respective qualifi
cations of the candidates." The Hon. Member said
that he rose with some reluctance to trouble the
House with this motion, but he thought that it was
one of considerable importance, and one requiring the most
serious attention of the House. He had spoken last year to
the Right Hon. Baronet the First Lord of the Treasury, and
requested him, as the first officer of the Crown, to allow a state-
ment of this nature to be made upon going into Committee.
The Right Hon. Gentleman had at once assented to his re-
quest. There were statements made on the army estimates,
on the navy estimates, and he did not see why a statement on
this subject should not be made also. In foreign countries
libraries were generally open to the people, but in the event
of a foreigner coming over here he had no means of obtaining
any entrance there, except under certain troublesome rules.
Such a fact was a disgrace to the country, and one to which he
would call the attention of the House at some future period.
On the subject of education it was remarkable that this country
was behind every other. It was now about twe.ity years since
Lord Brougham had first brought this important subject before
Parliament, and some time subsequently a Committee
had been appointed, from which but little had re-
sulted. The maximum of the advantage was that
30,0001. a-year had been appropriated for the purposes of
education, and he now saw that 100,0001. was proposed for this
year. In Switzeraland, with a population of 2,300,000, he
found that there were thirty normal schools, while in the popu-
lous counties of Lancashire and Yorkshire, with a population
of nearly three millions and a half, there were not more than
five normal schools. In France there were thirty normal
schools, all of which had been begun under Napoleon. It had
been carried out in 1833, most efficiently, by M. Guizot. It
was a disgrace to this country, in his estimation, that all the
other countries of Europe had preceded this in their career of
enlightened policy, and he trusted that the deficiencies which
appeared in the reports of the inspectors of education would
not be long before they were supplied. He had observed that
the system followed in Switzerland was one which prevented
that spirit of ambition which was so rife in that country. The
primary schools are extended to all the provinces of France,
and it was so arranged that if the communes could not meet
the expense the difference was paid out of the Treasury.
—( Hear, hear.) He found that they had the state-
ments of the different inspectors from their reports.
He would state that there was a lami.ntable deficiency in the
means of educasion for the poor, and far inferior to the rate
of the United States and Switzerland; in the former of which
it was one in four, and in the latter state it was one in five of the
population who were receiving education. He was one of those
who believed that the compulsory system was net a beneficial
system. He must also call the attention of the House to the
case of the schoolmasters of this country, a body of men who
devoted themselves, with admirable principle to the services
of the country, and whom he should like to see elevated in
their condition before the public. He considered that there
was not a more honourable profession than that of a school-
master.—( Hear, hear.) It was not estimated by many as it
ought to be, but it was a high and honourable profession, and
while he was upon this point he might refer to the celebrated
letter of Monsieur Guizot to the schoolmasters of France, in
which he had stated his feelings upon this subject in such just
and elevated language that he would trespass upon the
patience of the House by reading it.—( Hear, hear.) The
Hon. Member then read a long extract from the letter, which
desired the schoolmasters to remember in their loneliness and
solitude the sacred duty which was committed to them, and
that they then ought to gather hope and strength from their
work. In the various countries of the Continent the eduea-
tion and moral condition of children, but especially of the
poorer children, was carefully attended to, which he re-
gretted to say was not the case in this country. Many teachers
in the schools devoted to the poor, were extremely ignorant
both of grammar and spelling ; and a report by John Watson
set forth, that not only was this the case, but that a kind of
" scholastic slang" was prevalent amongst them; and they were
continually committing a gross violation of the commonest
principles of their native tongue, as they were in the habit of
saying, " them books," " them houses," "them children," &c.
Of course if there was this ignorance on the part of the
teachers, the scholars entrusted to their care could not be
otherwise than ignorant. He then referred to the pamphlet of
Dr. Hook, and complimented the doctrines it contained with
respect to education. Between five and seven millions a year,
was annually derived from charity for the purpose of support-
ing charity schools, and upwards of 400,0001. annually for the
support of grammar-schools, shoeing the great interest taken
by the opulent in the education of the lower classes, and that
the Government ought to aid those schools by grants. He
then called the attention of the House to the state of edu-
cation in Scotland, and highly eulogised the system as the
means of educating all, and of creating men of great eminence.
From the introduction of the present system of education into
Scotland, ignorance had been driven from the country, thus
showing that the parochial system was superior to the one pur-
sued in this country. He must say, however, that the system
there required great reform. He thought that a better system
might be adopted than leaving the appointment of the school-
masters to the heritors entirely. He came now to
the system of education in Ireland. Now he was
happy to say that the system suggested by the
Hon. Member (Mr. Wyse) and adopted by Lord Stanley,
had been productive of the best results. More than half a
million of children were now receiving the benefit of a good
education. He said Mr. Kay properly drew the attention of
the House to the increase of poor-rates. The amount of
our-door relief was perfectly as But, he asked,
what they had been doing to remedy the evil.
They certainly had not been using those means which would
confer dignity of characer, under the influence of which they
would shun crime and contribute to their own support by their
labour, in order to avoid the disgrace of becoming paupers.
Of this he (Mr. Ewart) was certain that Parliament could
introduce a national system of education, without at all in-
terfering with the religious opinions of any sect in the country;
and there was this guar,' besides, that whatever might be
country,
adopted, there would always be, in this free country, an
peal against any abuse to Pariament. He thought the House
was called on to make such a provision for the use of the po-
pular orders in the state. Democracy was prevailing in
the
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to
the andeducation
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of doubt
übt
The Hon. Member
for the peace and safety of the country, they were bound to
a
concluded by making the motion of which he had given
notice. twhoeupldeocpolen. continue ; and, therefore,

Mr. CHRISTIE rose to second the motion, He said he had
at an early part of the session given notice of a motion for an
inquiry into the state of education at Cambridge and Oxford,
with a view to introducing
improvement in the same, and to
the admission of persons of all religious sentiments to the ad-
vantages of those Universities. He did not mean to bring for-
ward that motion during the present session, he would post-
pone it till next session, when he expected it would receive the
attention of the House. He said they would soon be called on
to give a vote for the professors at these two Universities.
He had called for a return, with a view to this, of the state of
the lectures and the attendance on them in the Universities,
and he found by that return that they were in a most
deplorable state. That return showed that a professor of
chemistry had an attendance of nine for 1843, four
for 1844, thirteen for 1845, and sixteen for the
present year. The Professor of Natural Philosophy, who, he
( Mr. Christie) remembered, used to have a large audience,
had only ten or twelve pupils last year. This state of things,
he thought, ought not to pass without notice. They would
then be called on also to pass a vote of money to the London
University. He was sorry that that
institution was not made
available to the utmost extent, for all the advantages which
flowed out of it. Nor was there encouragement given to young
persons in the schools and.universities,
i who might best mulated
in their education by the prospect of obtaining employment in