The Sun.
London, England, 1851-06-04 00:00:00

\IPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

(THIS DAV.)

HOUSE OF COMMONS.
The SPEAKER took the Chair at Twelve o'clock.
TIIIRD READINGS.
The Clerkenwell Improvement and the Itchen Bridge
stn 1 Roads Bills were read a third time and passed.
The Lords' amendments to the following Bills were
( !see sidered and agreed to:—
Iletetuiercial Docks Improvement.
'Grey t Northern Railway Amendment (No. 1).
gar wich Improvement, Quays, and Pier.
She ffield, Rotherham, Barnsley, Wakefield, Iludders-
S eld, and Goole Railway.
13aelth Wales Railway (No. 1) was postponed till the
10th of June.
The following Bills were read a third time and
Lei .tised:—
ever Miners in England Company.
üblin, Dundruni, and Rathfarnham Railway.
aterford and Limerick Railway.
'aterford, Wexford, Wicklow, and Dublin Railway.
Petitions were presented for and against Lord Mel-
g and's School Establishment Bill.
Mr. ADDERLEY presented petitions from ten muni-
cipalities in the colony of the Cape of Good Hope, pray-
ling the House to grant to that colony the constitution
"which had been so long promised it.
Mr. BROTHERTON presented a petition from Liver-
Pool, complaining of several clauses in the Gunpowder
Mores Exemption Repeal Bill.
WATER SUPPLY.
Mr. MOWATT obtained leave to bring in a Bill
z tr the better supply of water to the metropolis, which
'as read a first time.
THE "NO-HOUSE" OF YESTERDAY.
Mr. J. WALMSLEY complained of the defective
,system now existing of summoning Members to the
• House when the Speaker took the chair, which was
done so late that Members had not time to reach the
• House before it was counted out.
Sir R. 11. INGLIS suggested that the electric tele-
graph should be put into use for the purpose.
Sir JAMES GRAHAM thought, perhaps, it would
be better if, as of old, the Sergeant-at-Arms were to go
round to the several Committee rooms to auromon the
Members.
Mr. W. WILLIAMS said that he certainly bad
arrived in time to bo one of the twenty-eight Members
present, but he had experienced great difficulty in getting
in in consequence of the crowd of Members assembled
round the doors outside, who intreated him not to go in,
.and he was near having his coat torn off.
A desultory conversation took place, in the course of
which several Members said they had just arrived in
time to be too late, and bore testimony to there being a
'sufficient number outside the doors to make a House.
SCHOOL ESTABLISHMENT (SCOTLAND) BILL.
Lord MELGUND moved the second reading of this
Bill. His reason for doing so was a conviction which
be entertained that the means at present existing in
Scotland for the education of the people were not so ex-
tensive as they were supposed to be, or as was necessary.
The system of education to be established under this Bill
Would be supported by local taxation, and placed under a
certain amount of local management. The system which
be wished to;see created was that which the people them-
selves could superintend the working of, and he was most
'anxious that nothing should creep into this Bill which
'should seem to indicate that the Legislature wanted to
specify what should, and what should not, bo taught.
Ilia own opinion, however, was, that religious and secu-
lar education ought to be separated, and Dr. Chalmers
had often propounded the doctrine that any legislative
Measure for regulating the education of the people should
be entirely divested of the religious element.—(Hear.) At
Present there were some 5,000 schools in Scotland, and of
that number 1,800 were unconnected with any religious
sect. The Noble Lord then briefly reviewed the legis-
lation of past ages on this subject, and proceeded to ob-
serve, the population of Scotland was about 3,000,000.
Now, allowing five children for every thousand would
Rive 600,000 as the number of children in Scotland.
Two hundred thousand of those were educated in
Schools belonging to the Free Church, and allowing
100,000 as the number educated by the schools uncon-
nected with any sect, they would have a clear result of
300,000 children at present in Scotland whose education
Was totally unprovided for. The object of this Bill was
to remove that vast extent of moral destitution, and the
mode ley which he proposed to attain it was easy of
acquisition, simple in its operation, and comparatively
aneakiog inexpensive. He would not detain the House
'longer, but appealing to the House to give the Bill their
best consideration, he would sit down moving its second
reading.—(Hear, hear.)
Mr. F. MACKENZIE deplored with the Noble Lord
the amount of moral destitution that prevailed in Scot-
land, but.he thought the means of education could be
greatly extended without disturbing the present
aYetem.—(Cries of " Hear, hear.") No one could
dispute successfully that legislation was necessary
on the subject, because it was high time that something
Was donelor the education of children in, Scotland, but
%the question was far too important to be left in the
aanda of a private Member. It would be much
batter, therefore, that this Bill should be aban-
doned, and the whole question referred to the

consideration of a Selcct Committee. The session vies

too far advanced to admit of that being done now, but
there was no hurry required in framing their legislation
on;the subject, and the question might well be taken up
again at the beginning of next session. lie objected to
this Bill on the ground that it would effect an entire dis-
ruption between the parish schools and the Church of
Scotland, and alter the mode of electing the school-
masters.

(LEFT SPEAKING.)