The Sun.
London, England, 1869-04-03 00:00:00

LORD STANLEY AT GLASGOW.

By appointing great men to fill their offices the
Scotch universities help very materially to keep in
perpetual discussion the question of education. Thus
within the last few days two great men have had
their attention drawn to the subject,and have caused
it to be noticed throughout the country. First Mr.
Froude gave forth his opinions at Aberdeen;
now Lord Stanley has put his ideas before the
students at Glasgow. The historian depreciated
classical education, advocating in its stead the study
of a special subject. The politician lauded classical
knowledge. But though thus differing, Lord Stanley
and Mr. Fronde agreed in calling for thoroughness.
Mr. Fronde says that one cannot master the classics
and pursue one's daily avocations. Therefore he
contended that only those branches should be learnt
at college which would be specially useful to a
student in his after life. Lord Stanley, in his ad-
dress at Aberdeen, on Thursday, looked at the matter
from a totally different point of view. To him
college was evidently rather the place where the
general character of the student was formed. The
learner should be trained not so much to a parti-
cular profession as to a general neatness, an accuracy
of thought and expression. All this he would obtain
from a study of the classics. But, like Mr.
Fronde, Lord Stanley expressed his contempt at the
mere acquirement of a smattering of Latin
and Greek. To obtain that was a mere
waste of time. The student should take
up only what he had a reasonable prospect
of accomplishing ; should master what he could, but
do everything completely. Lord Stanley had a
good word to say also for the Scotch university
system as compared with that of England. In
Scotland comparatively poor men are able to obtain
a university training ; in England only those who
are wealthy. The Scotch set the English a decidedly
good example. The critics who telegraph the address
say it was not brilliant, but sound. Twelve hundred
boisterous students and the elite of the city listened
to it.

TIIE REPORT OF Tin; TRADES UNIONS COMMIS-
SIONERS.

The Beehive is by no means satisfied with the
report of the royal commissioners who investigated
trades unions. The organ of the unions denies that
coercion is a general feature of them. Still
more strongly does it repudiate outrages. No doubt
outrages are sometimes committed, but in a perfect
state of the law there would be no resort to them,
because there would be no excuse for them. That
" perfect state
" is not described ; but the crimes of
Broadhead and his compeers are attributed entirely
to the present imperfect law, not directly, it is
true, but to the combinations which have their
origin in a past age, and are the result of that law.
Adds the Beehive, "We want no favour, but fair
play before the law, and then the good sense of the
artisan will soon settle the rest. No man has a
deeper interest in peace and the reign of law than
the working man, and he knows it. But no man is
more sensitive to inequality before the law, and he
will fight against it with whatever arms come first."
That is just what the lawgivers
will not suffer.
They are ready to alter
a law proved bad, but so
long as it is unrepealed they will not suffer it to
be disobeyed,
much less made an excuse for
violence. We hung Barrett, although we had not
disestablished the Irish Church. We shall certainly
hang Broadhead if he give us another chance of
doing so.

With reference to trades unions we may mention
that the Manchester and Salford Trades Councils,
have passed a vote of censure upon the Free Labour
Registration Society " as interfering with the right
of combination to others which they claim for them-
selves, and at the same time prostituting the prin-
ciples of union to the basest purposes ; conspiring to
deprive of employment our fellow-citizens, under the
false plea that all trade society rules are inimical to
the welfare of the community at large, and thus seek-
ing to ariti?;rn,t. imperial legislation,which recognises
the principle, while condemning those practices
which all well-regulated unions deprecate alike."