The Sun.
London, England, 1850-05-08 00:00:00

THE SUN,

order to complete the recital of the Republique, that
in addition to pipes ornamented with fleur-de-lis, there
are other pipes to be found there, and in greater number,
ornamented with red flags crossed, with the famous Phry-
gian bonnet, and a poniard in the middle. We know
not which of the above emblems is the most sedit ous;
but when found together in the same establishment, it
affords another proof that extremes touch."

LONDON,

ing their utmost exertion to interest the workpeople,
and the result at present reported is that the establish-
ment of Messrs. Gott have subscribed 78/. I Is. 10d., and
of Messrs. John Walker, 11/. 3s.
NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE.—The workmen of Messrs.
Newell have subscribed 1/. 17s. to the general fund.
NORTHAMPTON.—A " provident society" formed to
enable the working classes to visit the Exhibition by the
payment of weekly contributions.
NORIFICH.—The workmen of Messrs. Clabburn hare
subscribed 3/. 13s. 6d. to the general fund.
OXFORD.—The workmen employed at the University
Press, and in Messrs. Spier's establishment, have sub-
scribed upwards of 1$?. to the general fund.
PRESTON (LANCASHIRE.)—A committee of working
man has been formed, and the local commissioners
have opened a bank for deposits, to enable the operatives
to visit the Exhibition.

ST. AUSTELL.—At a public meeting, on the 16th of
April, it was resolved to form a workmen's association
in the district, for the purpose of enlisting their co-
operation in aid of the Exhibition.
SOIITHAMPTON.—NearIy 401. was subscribed by work-
men in two days towards the general fund. The mayor,
in his letter which accompanied the list of subscribers,
states that, independent of the general fund, an " Ex-
hibition Travelling Fund" is established, by which, in
contributions of one penny a week, means will be raised to
enable the workmen to visit London during the Exhibi-
tion. They have also another fund, called the Admis-
sion and Provision Fund, by which the members will be
enabled " to go to the door of the Exhibition with a sil-
ver key in the shape of a shilling."
WHITEHATEN.—A working class committee formed
to collect weekly subscriptions of one shilling to provide
for visits to the Exhibition.

WooLviacn.—The foremen from the Royal Dockyard
hate been added to the local committee.

BRITISH AND FOREIGN SCHOOL
SOCIETY.

A public meeting of this society was held on Mon-
day at Exeter Hall, the Right lion. the Earl of Car-
lisle, vice-president, in the chair. On the platform we
saw John Abel Smith, Esq., M.P.
The Earl of CARLISLE said he always felt it a sa-
tisfaction and distinction to be called upon by the
committee, and permitted by the meeting, to have the
honour of presiding over ;the annual meeting of the
British and Foreign School Society ; though
when he recollected that, in addition to previous
occasions, he believed this was the third consecutive
year in which he had enjoyed that privilege, he almost
felt that he had some reason to complain ; but he was
sure the meeting had reason to complain that there
was not more of variety in the arrangements. He had
also found on those occasions, by experience, that all
possible information and detail concerning the present
condition and immediate operations of this society were
so fully as well as so ably brought before them in the
report, which would be read after he should have con-
cluded these observations, that little indeed, com-
paratively, was left for the speaker who initiated these
proceeding to enlarge upon. But with reference to
the more general views of the whole question, which
on all such occasions must engage their attention, he
confessed though he thought both those whom_he ad-
dressed and himself had reason to regret the want
of novelty in the organ which addressed them from
the chair, yet there were circumstances in the pre-
sent complexion and features of the times, in con-
nexion with those masses of the people upon whom
education and religion and public instruction gene-
rally were intended and required to operate, and
on the questions which affected the subject of
education, of religious and moral instruction, which
rendered him not indisposed or reluctant to avail
himself of any opportunity to raise his voice, and to
impart some portion of his feelings, not with the
presumptuous expectation or hope of correcting or
amending, but of still bringing something of testi-
mony, and protesting against what seemed to him
to be something of the prevailing tendencies and
dispositions of the day. Society at large, notwith-
standing there were many most encouraging symptoms
of improvement and progress, appeared to him to
be still labouring under evils which he could portray
by no epithet short of terrific. They wore a hundred
forms, and presented themselves in a hundred ways;
but perhaps they might roughly be classed as mainly
coming under the general heads of ignorance,
poverty, and crime. These, not sithstanding the
better prospects and cheering promises which may
break the moral and social clouds here and there,
still seemed to him to be the pale, and angry, and
menacing forms which stalked around the camp of the
Gospel. Now, he looked upon it to be the mission—
the true, the obvious, the paramount mission, both of
individual men and corporate bodies, to wage inces-
sant war against those evils which still disturbed and
desolated the globe. To do so was the real voca-
tion of Christian men ; and thus would they spread
the glory of the Christian church. Then the question
came upon them—to what extent were they to achieve
that end ? Whilst partially he hoped and believed
that they were doing so to a large extent ; professedly
he knew they all were ; but still, when they looked
attentively to the matters which seemed most to oc-
cupy their attention, and to engross their interest, and
kindle their passions, and to engage, as it were, their
heart of hearts, did they find them prominently em-
ployed upon those common objects and against those
common foes ? Was it not too frequently that their
attention and energy—that that attention was diverted
and distracted upon differences sometimes trivial, and
more frequently uncharitable, often wholly imma-
terial as to any practical issue ? Were there not
too frequently differences about the mode and form
and ceremony of doing the thing, instead of deter-
mining that the thing should be done ? Was it
not too frequently a jealous exclusion, or a vexatious
worrying of themselves and each other, instead of
the hearty wish to combine, and a sincere effort to
co-operate. Now the pith of these charges did not
appear to him to lie exclusively at the door of any
Church or denomination, but in some degree to in-
fluence or infest them all. At one time the charge was
that some Church or denomination, or some party or
section in it, omitted to teach a truth; at others, that
they interpolated a gloss. At one time they were
told that they unduly straightened the reins of au-
thority; at other times they were told they were open--
ing the door to dangerous licence. One was said to
rely on empty ordinances, another on uncovenanted
mercies—if they joined such a party or such persons,
they were told they confounded truth and error ; if
they received assistance from such quarters, they
were accused of touching the unclean thing. Ile
would not be supposed, for a moment, to under-
value the duty which was incumbent on every
person to conform to the clearest precepts which
he could form in relation to everything con-
nected with the will of the Supreme Being, and of the
true meaning of His word. But there were frequently
matters which must lie between the soul and its
Maker. But with reference to the position of the
Christian in the world in which he was placed, let:'
him but remember that ignorance, total ignorance
was what he had to enlighten ; that poverty was
what he had to raise and to relieve; that crime was
what he had to discountenance and to subdue And
here he did not say that other questions would not
arise, that other duties would not present themselves ;
but after all that was done, they would be apt to as-
sume their proper place and proportion, for he was
inclined to believe that there was hardly a single dis-
pute or difference which seemed so much to distract
the quiet of many of our Christian bodies and commu-
nities, however great might be the truths, however
awful the mysteries with which they seemed to deal,
yet they ought not to stand still and silent, before that
seething and fermenting mass of degrading sirs and bru-
talising vice which was threatening to engulph so many
more of our teeming population. He should be very
sorry, and should be the last person to introduce any
political topics; still less willing should he be to com-
ment in :any unfriendly spirit on the proceedings of
any foreign country, yet, by way of illustration, he
might be tempted to observe that the same charge
which they heard often preferred against the various
sects of those who were called the friends of order in
the neighbouring republic of France, that instead
of offering a combined and organized front against
the advances of Socialism and the onward march of
anarchy, they were distracted by mutual jealousies
and repulsions, one party being for Henry V., and
the other for Louis Philippe, and another for Bona-
parte, forgetful of the preponderating mass of those
who were for nobody and nothing. He was tempted
to observe that the same charges seemed, in a
degree, to attach to those Christian bodies
and communities, or some . portion of them,
who expended upon jealousies without and re-
criminations within that zeal and energy which
ought to fight out the battle of our common
faith against that infidelity which denied, and the
vice which dishonoured it.—(Hear.) Such con-
siderations as these would tend to discourage and to

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those he had lamented—if he might not say he had
condemned—leavened the entire mass of them to any
great extent. But ha derived his chief grounds of
consolation and comfort from the hope that those very
differences and disputes did not extend far beneath the
surface. There was a very large and growing mass
of humble-minded, peace-loving, and unobtrusive per-
sons whose cry was not heard in the streets, but who,
whilst Scribes disputed and Pharisees denounced, were
ready to bend over the stricken by the road-side,
and to pour oil into their wounds. There was now an
opportunity afforded of acting in this spirit—the spirit
of peace—and pouring oil into the wound, which
seemed to him immediately prescribed to the meeting
by the plan and operations of this society. The
Noble Earl, in eloquent terms, made an appeal on
behalf of this society.
The report, which was read by the Secretary, first
alluded to the claims of the ignorant on all classes
of the community. The model schools were full,
1,000 children being in daily attendance. b 0,986
children had been under instruction since the schools
were opened ; thirteen pupil teachers had been ap-
pointed in the boys' schools, and eight in the girls'
school. In the normal schools 142 students had