The Sun.
London, England, 1866-07-05 00:00:00

Middle-Class Education in London.

A general meeting of persons interested in the
establishment of middle-class schools was held in the
Long Parlour of the Mansion House yesterday. In
the unavoidable absence of the Lord Mayor, the chair
was taken by Mr. Alderman Hale. Among those
present were Mr. Tite, M.P., Mr. Alderman Salo-
mons, M.P., Mr. Freshfield, M.P., Mr. Samuel Mor-
ley, the Rev. W. Rogers, Rector of Bishopsgate,
Air. J. P. Gassiott, Mr. Alderman Stone, Mr. Philip
Cazenove, Mr. Alderman J. Lawrence, Mr. Alder-
man Finnis, Mr. J. Bennett, &c. Letters apologis-
ing for non-attendance were read from the Bishop
of London, Lord Lyttelton, and other gentlemen.
The CHAIRMAN having reminded the meeting that
on Jan. 12 the sub-committee appointed to give
effect to the views of those who were desirous of
promoting middle-class education in the metropolis
had received certain instructions, said that commit-
tee were now prepared to submit a report, which he
would call on the Rev. W. Rogers to read.

The Rev. W. ROGERS then read the following re-
port:—"The sub-committee beg to report the pro-
ceedings adopted by them since the meeting held at
the Mansion-home on Jan. 12, 1866. It will be re-
membered that at that meeting the sub-committee
were directed to take measures to make known to
companies and firms the objects of the association,
in order to obtain from them contributions towards
the sum required for the establishment of the first
and central school in London, and also towards ob-
taining a charter and selecting a site for the first
school. Much time and attention have been given
by the committee to these objects. Circulars have
been addressed to all the leading firms and indivi-
duals in the city assumed to be willing to co-operate
in the undertaking. The result of these operations
has been that a sum in the whole of £54,103 has
been promised, of which £46,221 has been actually
paid, and the sub-committee do not doubt that fur-
ther sums will be forthcoming as the advanced posi-
tion of the undertaking is known. The committee
are happy also to be able to report that a Royal
Charter of Incorporation has been obtained. By the
terms of this charter a corporation is created under
the title of 'The Corporation for Middle-Class Edu-
cation in the metropolis and the suburbs thereof,'
and power is conferred by it to erect one or more
school or schools in the metropolis and the suburbs
thereof, and to carry on therein a system of education
of a practical character, based on sound religious
principles, and such as shall be calculated to fit the
scholars for the industrial and commercial work of
life, under the superintendence of a head-master,
who shall be appointed by the Council, and who shall
be a member of one of the universities of the United
Kingdom.' Theßishop of London for the time being
is appointed the visitor of the corporation. All sub-
! scribers of £lOO to the objects of the association
are constituted life governors, with power of elect-
ing a council to consist of 21 members, in addition
to the Bishop of London for the time being, and
the Lord Mayor for the time being of the city of
London, who are constituted ex officio members
of the council. A meeting of the life governors
is directed to be convened within three calendar
months for the purpose of appointing the count' ,
and the council is to have full power from time to
time to make by-laws and regulations touching
the government of the corporation. The committee
have also given much time and consideration to the
question of the selection of a site for the establish-
ment of the first school. Reports being current that
the ground on which the Charterhouse school stands
was to be disposed of, your committee entered into
communication with the governors, stating their
readiness to treat for the purchase of the whole or a
portion of the ground. To these overtures the com-
mittee received no official reply, and they are still
in ignorance how the matter stands, but they have
been informed that the offer of the ground has been
made by the governors of the Charter-house to the
Merchant Taylors' Company. Your committee have
inspected other sites in various places, and, after
mature consideration, being much impressed with
the expediency of commencing operations at as early
a period as possible, they have selected the French
Protestant Hospital in Bath-street, City-road,
which appeared to offer many advantages, princi-
pally because there are buildings erected upon it
which can be converted at very small cost into good
schoolrooms. The site has also the advantage of
being in a lecality inhabited by a people of the class
whose children it is proposed to educate, and it pos-
sesses also the benefit of a good playground. The
committee having had the offer of taking this site
for a period of three years, with the option of ac-
quiring a long lease, have decided on taking it for
three years, and laying out upon the building a sum
not exceeding £2,000 iu the first instance, which
will suffice to enable the corporation to carry on the
school, which they hope to be able to open at
Michaelmas next. By these arrangements a very
large amount of the subscriptions will be retained
until, after the provisions of the charter, they be
applied to the erection of schools in other localities
as-may be deemed desirable. The committee would
now only urge upon the friends of the undertaking
the policy of making known its objects in every di-
rection, with a view to the increase of the subscribed
funds. When the enormous demand for education
is considered it will be seen that, while the fund
contributed is on the whole large, considering the
shortness of the time since the object was first
made known, and the incompleteness of the ar-
rangements up to the present time, the work before
them is great, and the funds necessary for carrying
it on on an adequate scale ought to be of commen-
surate amount. Appeals are being made, and will
be continued, to corporations, trustees, and other
administering charitable funds ; and in those re-
spects also the assistance of individuals well dis-
posed to the object will be of great advantage."
Mr. TITE, in moving the adoption of the report,
expressed his opinion that it contained abundant
matter for congratulation on the part of the friends
of the movement for prosecuting middle-class edu-
cation. (Hear, hear.) If they bore in mind how
troublesome times had been and still continued to
be, they must come to the conclusion that the pro-
curing of so large a sum in subscriptions as
£54,103, of which £46,221 had been paid, was a
highly satisfactory beginning. The corporation of
London had shown the best possible feeling in con-
nection with the movement by subscribing, unani-
mously, and in the most handsome manner, the sum
of £l,OOO. (Hear, hear.) The public were much
indebted to Mr. Freshfield, who had obtained the
charter without any expense to the fund except the
mere payment of the official fees. Such liberality
on the part of a professional gentleman of Mr.
Freshfield's standing entitled him to the best thanks
of his fellow citizens. (Hear, hear.) The intention
of those who were taking an active part in the
establishment of these schools was that the educa-
tion given in them should be a sound commercial
and religious education ; but there was nothing sec-
tarian in the object they had in view. The commit-
tee had not made any appointment of a head mas-
ter ; but they had one in their eye—a clergyman of
the Church of England, and a very liberal as well
as religious man. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. Alderman SALOMONS seconded the motion,
and in doing so spoke in laudatory terms of the
exertions of Mr. Tite and Mr. Gassiott.
The motion was cordially agreed to.
Mr. S. MORLEY believed that no education was
worth having which was not essentially religious,
but there was much difference of opinion as to what
constituted a religious education. If the present
Bishop of London could live for ever, he would have
no fear of any interference with the rights of con-
science in the schools which it was intended to found;
but in order to put distinctly on record the inten-
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