The Sun.
London, England, 1870-02-19 00:00:00

LONDON, SATURDAY, FEB. 19, 1870.

TIE main features of Mr. FonsTEß's education
bill are so completely in accordance with the pro-
visions which we have always advocated, that were
we the most hostile critics of the ministerial policy,
we should be compelled to praise this measure. It is
the second great attempt at constructive legislation
made by the reformed Parliament' of 1868. In the
course of forty-eight hours the present Government
has had two opportunities of showing its legislative
ability such as rarely occur in a whole generation.
Foes, no less than friends, have frankly confessed
that the Government has fully risen to the occasion,
and that, while endeavouring to be thorough, it has
not sought change for the sake of change. The
Irish Land Bill and the Education Bill have
two characteristics in common—they are con-
structive and they are conservative. Reso-
lutely determined that the present disgraceful
deficiencies shall exist no longer, Ministers have, at
the same time, carefully maintained all that was worth
maintaining in the present system. To have adopted
all the proposals of the League would have been
a fatal mistake that would have shipwrecked, and
deservedly shipwrecked, the Government, and would
have postponed the settlement of this great
question indefinitely. The League affect to
believe that their recommendations are merely
deferred; but they are altogether in error on
this point. • No lapse of time will ever reconcile
the country to the loss of such a fund as the school
pence, amounting, as it does, to no less a sum than
£420,000. No progress of Liberal ideas will ever
p3rsuade the country that the small shopkeepers
ought to pay for the education of the children of
the labouring and mechanic classes. Still, less, if pos-
sible, will the country ever consent to what
Mr. FORSTER so well called, amid the
vociferous cheering of the House, "compulsory
irreligion." It would, indeed, be monstrous that the
Bible alone should be excluded from the list of school
books. It would be a gross injustice that, because
there is here and there a parent who abjures Christi-
anity, the immense majority of parents, who desire
religious teaching for their children, should be
denied it. Give the parents any protection
they please against what they deem false
religious teaching, for the parent is, and
must ever be, primarily responsible for the edu-
cation of his child. But on the very same principle
we must respect the parent's wish that his child shall
not be brought up in entire ignorance of historical reli-
gion. At the same time Mr. FORSTER has adopted
one of the principal features of the League scheme.
Amid cheers as loud as those which greeted his de-
claration against "compulsory irreligion," he an-
nounced his intention of providing compulsory atten-
dance. The voluntary principle is to be allowed
full scope, and if it is sufficient to meet
the educational needs of a district it will not be in-
terfered with. But if it fails, the State will interpose
and insist that the children shall be educated. Yet
even here there is a careful avoidance of " cen-
tralization." The State says that the work must be
done; but it gives the locality full power to do it, and
only in the event of refusal or failure will the State un-
dertake the duty. This last proviso is a wise one.
We have repeatedly pointed out that local boards are
apt to take contracted views, and that if Poor Law
guardians do not hesitate to starve the bodies of
paupers at the risk of being tried for manslaughter,
they will not hesitate to starve the minds of children
where there is no such risk. Mr. FORSTER hopes
that the School Boards, for whose constitution he
provides, will show themselves alive to the impor-
tance of the duty entrusted to them. We confess
that we are not so sanguine, and we fear that Go-
vernment intervention will have to be more frequent
than the VICE-PRESIDENT of the CouNcrn antici-
pates.

It will be well to summarise the main provisions
of the bill. Government will map out England and.
Wales into educational districts, making boroughs the
areas in towns, and parishes the areas in rural dis-
tricts. It will obtain a full account of the condition
of education in those districts, so that it may know
exactly how to deal with each. Where sufficient
provision exists, the present voluntary system will not
bo interfered with, and the existing arrangements
will be continued, except in two important
particulars—that schools will no longer be in-
spected by denominational inspectors, but by
inspectors chosen without regard to the special re-
ligious teaching of the schools; and the adoption of a
conscience clause will be imposed upon all schools as
a condition of receiving the Government annual
grant, and not as now, merely the building grant.
Moreover, Government will set aside the present
faulty arrangment to which we have so often
called attention, and by which Government aid is
given only to districts which can help themselves,
and is not forthcoming at all where the districts are
too poor to do anything—an excellent provision so
long as education was considered only a form of
charity, but quite untenable now that it has become
a national obligation. In districts where great
poverty exists, special Government aid will be
granted.

We now come to the most striking and original
portion of the measure. Hitherto we have spoken
of its conservative provisions, we now have to men-
tion its constructive provisions. The voluntary sys-
tem, having had fair trial, will, if it is found to fail
in any district, be set aside, as we have already men-
tioned, and the district will be compelled to do its
duty. For this purpose school-boards will be consti-
tuted. The members thereof may be any persons
whom the electors choose. The electors will be
town councils in towns, select vestries or common
vestries in the rural districts. These boards may
elect any number of school-managers they please,
and they may levy a school-rate. This rate is not
expected ever to exceed, and rarely to equal, 3d. in the
pound. Where it does exceed Government will increase
its grant. Under ordinary circumstances, the grant
the rate and the school pence will be equal in
amount. In very poor districts the Boards will have
the
_po7Ter to erect free schools or t 9 kisue free school