The Sun.
London, England, 1866-12-08 00:00:00

LONDON, SATURDAY, DEC. 8, 1866.

The distribution of prizes is now the order of the
day, and in all directions distinguished individuals
are engaged in the interesting trade of dispensing
these badges of merit. This is as it should be, for
too much encouragement can hardly be given to the
work of national improvement which is going on
surely if gradually, and the benefits which must
accrue to all classes of society from these constant
efforts cannot be too largely appreciated. Mr.
GOSCIIEN, M.P., presided the other evening at the
distribution of the Society of Arts' prizes to the
successful students at the Halifax Mechanics'
Institution. The chairman seemed to take rather
too low an estimate of the progress of these institu-
tions. He said he thought the promoters could
scarcely point to them as a feather in their cap. If
education were progressing, it did not do so at the
rate in which Englishmen did everything else.
" While our commercial wealth advanced from mil-
lion to million, education laboured forward so slowly
as almost to appear that we were either standing
still or going back." We differ. from this opinion
in a great measure, and, indeed, if we study the case
attentively we see that progress has been made in
many points. It is not in the nature of Englishmen
to go to extremes, and the comparison here made of
the rate of which our commerce and our education
progresses does not furnish us with parallel cases.
Totally different powers are required to expedite
the advance of commercial transactions, and to urge
forward the march of mind ; and perhaps it is one
fruitful cause of the dissatisfaction that prevails in
some quarters that those who take a deep interest
in the question are too eager and excited at the
idea of the conclusion, and forget the difficulties
and impediments that lie in the way. Children
cannot be educated in this country as they are
abroad, to suit the views of despotic rulers, and
still less can the efforts we hope to produce and the
influence we seek to obtain by these Mechanics' In-
stitutes and other similar efforts be speedily at-
tained or immediately accomplished.

Mr. GoscHEN seems to think there is some truth
in the assertions made by critics that "all classes
of this country arebehind-hand in intellectual plea-
sures." However, he qualifies this by declaring
that this is greatly owing to a part of our national
character of which we are proud, and which like-
wise had two great results. " England cannot be
England if she ceases to possess in the fullest mea-
sure high animal spirits." The applause and ad-
miration which this qualification commands in all
public schools, and in Parliament itself, speaks
volumes as to the appreciation this characteristic
element of our national character enjoys. The
" jolly fellows" rule the day ; but, while they serve
some useful ends, they are, if not exactly the ene-
mies, the rivals to science and education, wherever
their dominion extends.

No doubt there is a great deal of justice in these
remarks, for it would be idle to expect that as a
nation we can be led to take that interest in calm
pursuits, and to pay that attention to quiet studies
which occupy almost exclusively those nations
to whom the history and strong enjoyments of
English life are unknown, and if met with would
never be appreciated by them. Mr. GosenEN ad-
verting to the army and navy, as the spheres in
which this characteristic was naturally in full force
as an clement of great national strength, very truly
remarked that it was desirable that the " jolly
fellows" in the services should not slight science
and induce others to follow their example in this
respect. "It would be a matter of great regret if
military opinion E.liould become cold or hostile to
those who believed that brains as well as courage
made armies victorious and nations strong."
The Chairman naturally had something to say
concerning the difficulties that beset the work-
ing classes in their strivings after education;
and as he said, in connection with this
theme, after all inquiries on the sub-
ject, the obstacle lay in the fact that we cannot
get to any agreement ;" nay, the principles
were all so hopelessly conflicting that unless one
side or the other would give way there was no hope
of anything but a dead lock. The impediments
that beset the path are great, and so indeed are the
objections interposed in ail directions to the various
plans that are promulgated. On one hand it is said
that education is a work of such magnitude that the
State ought to take it in hand; and, on the other, it
is stated that such a course would be the destruction
of voluntary effort. While one party affirm that
the fault does not lie in the paucity of schools, but
in the unwillingness of parents to send their chil-
dren to them, and hence there should be some
compulsory measures enforced. Others are of opi-
nion that the State in adopting such a course would
interfere with the
with the chairma'n' p
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aa a
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lessen the progress of national education ; but then
we must bear in mind that there are things of more
moment even than eaucation itself, and more pre-
cious than the advance of intellectual attain-
ments, and that it will never do to sacri-
fice our independence even if the
in immola-
tion.
took place a good cause, or to aid
the furtherance of a glorious work. The
prize held before us
may be of shining lustre, and
contain many precious attractions; but of what
will be its splendour or its worth if it lack the one
that independence of in-
thing needful in all eyes,
dividuals which it is our boast to maintain, to tho
exclusion of those national efforts that are carried
on abroad at the cost of more worthy things. The
•
poet has well exclaimed in the lines on "Men of
England"—
" Tyrants, let the world revere us
For'our people's rights and laws."
And it is precisely this, they hold, that would be
assailed if these enthusiasts for education nolens
volens werepermitted to give us a practical illustra-
tration of their theories.

Mr. GOSCHEN set.the chief obstacles that lie in
the way of the education of the children very fairly
befure his hearers when he attributed them to three
causes—the apathy of parents, the competition of
the labour market, and the poverty of the parents.
lle rightly ranked this last objection as the least of
the three. The labour market offers a much more
serious temptation to the parents. We also fully
concur with him when he says that the difficulty
which is more serious than anything to surmount is
the positive apathy of some parents to send their
children to school, even if their education be paid
for. Towards the conclusion of his excellent and
elaborate speech, Mr. GOSCIIEN seemed to advocate
the notion of compulsory education in some in-
stances; but although he made out his case very
pointedly, we do not
agree with him. It
is not a correct thing
for us to do, and
it will never do to sacrifice the princi-
ples upon which all national institutions rest.
It is not a question of money, and those who think
so had better attend to the total demolition of their
saying theory in this very logical d,duction. "