The Sun.
London, England, 1868-06-17 00:00:00

another.
Mr. AYRTON said the present arrangement of the
public schools was altogether a fashionable one, and the
sooner it was more 1133ful to the public in general the
better.
Mr. GOSCIIEN was very anxious to go into committee
on the
Mr. LOWE said it was useless and impossible to endea-
vour to educate the general public by this method. Ho
thought it was absolutely necessary that the head mister
should b 3 made to feel the necessity of doing all that
was in his power for the commercial success of his school,
irrespective of endowments ; if not, the effect of
an appointment, without reference to that important
prospect, one made merely to look after the en lowments
would result in very bad effects. Ile thought it abso-
lutely necessary that there should be a strict examination
in these establishments every year, but he contended that
it was worse than useless to endeavour to carry out. the
public schools solely with a view to endowments. (Hear,
hear.) They must adopt a free trade system in their
public schools, and without they did so they would never
succeed in in eking them.what they were intended.
Sir S. NORTHOOTE sail he was exceedingly anxious
to get into commit'ea. The great object of the bill was
to improve and not revolutionize the education given
in our public schools, and therefore he hoped no unneces-
sary difficulty would be raised in the way of progress.
Mr. FORSTER thought a great want now was a first-
class establishment where a person cold 1 give his son a
liberal education for less than £2,009. Re hoped to see
the day when it would be no rarefy to see the clever sons
,f poor parents so risa up through examination, so that,
with certain improvements to bo introduced, they might
be enabled to secure for themselves a high class e location.
Mr. WALPOLE thought the present discussion might
well terminate, as ho had consulted the best authorities,
and ho could positively say that the bill at present gave
:he fullest power to the governing body, in conjunction
with the commissioners, of sc arranging all the property
.tf the diderent public schools as to secure their being de-
voted to the best pu:•poses.
After some further discussion, in which Mr. D. Griffiths,
Ar. Ilcland, and Mr. Marsh took part, Mr. Neato with-
drew his motion, and the house wont into committee; Mr.
Dodson in the chair.
Oa clause 1 a sharp discussion arose as to the title of
the bill, Mr. ACLAND con tending that there were other
schools quite as much entitled to be considered " public"
schools as those dealt with in the bill. He moved the
omission of the word "public" from the clause under con-

sideration.
The am mament was negatived.
Mr. AYRTON wisho 1 to know why St. Paul's school
in the City of London was excepted from the operations
of the bill. It was at present man the direction of the
"Mercers' Company," but what that Was he defied any
person in Parliament to find out. Ha had done his utmost
to obtain so:no information on the subject, but he hid
been invariably told, when he applie:t at the " Mercers'
Hell," that they male it a fundatm.ntal principle never to
give any information about the governing body. This
comfortable and no doubt cosy city cempany had
sum of nearly £lO,OOO per annum to administer as
the income of St. Paul's School, and the
number of scholars they unlertook to educate
was 153, who swallowed the whole of the .0,600. (Hear,
hear.) The property from which this revenue arose was
situated in the Tewer Hamlets, and it so happened that
there was a very poor charity school on it, which was
actually starring for want of funds. He went to endeavour
to got a little assistance from the rich ground landlords
of the poor charity schOol—viz., the Mercers' Company
when ho was told by a remarkably well-fed looking
personage at 3lercers' Hall that he could give him (Mr.
Ayrton) no information as to whom he was to
apply. (Hoar, hear, and laughter.) He used all the
diligence he was able, but he failo 1 altogether to
discover who and what was the goverain; body of the
Mercers' Company. They ha I already been permitted to
treat Royal Commissioners with contempt, so it was not
surprising they did not give him information they denied
other more important personages. He wanted to know
what the Mercers' Company did ? (dear, hear.) They
did'nt assist reduced mercers—(loud laughter)—or did
anything else than receive a large amount of
money which they expended as they thought fit, without
the slightest statement or balance-sheet ever being
shown to any person. He knew they had en-
tirely diverted the original intention of the original
founder of St. Paul's School, because the admission into
that educational establishment in the City was
only to be had by the securing of the patronage
of one of the mysterious Mercers Company.
(Laughter, and hear, hear.) It was whispered that two or
throe families formed the company, and that they divided
the patronage amongst them. Whether that was so or
not he did not know, but as the school was omitted from
the bill, he supposed there was some reason for it. How-
ever, as ho wished that all educational legacies should be
put to their legitimate purposes, he should move that St.
Paul's School be added to the establishments dealt with
by the present bill. (Cheers.)
Mr. LOWE said he had an amendment that required
consideration before that of the hon. member for the
Tower Hamlets was disposed of. [He then moved an
amendment to the effect that the appointment of the
government be left with the commissioners.
A discussion followed, after which the house divided.
For the amendment 69
Against it
Majority against the amendment —B3
After the consideration of clauses 4 and 5, the sitting of
the house was adjourned until 9 o'clock.

At the evening sitting,
Mr. BRIGHT called attention to a petition which he
presented some weeks ago from Nova Scotia, complaining
of i s absorption into Canada by the Confederation Act of
'fist year. Tracing with much minuteness of detail the
history of this question of Confederation for corns years
past, Mr. Bright maintained that the Nova Seothtns had
never agreed to anything beyond an union of the mari-
time provinces; that the legislature in. stnctioning the
plan had acted contrary to the wishes of the p .ople
that the assent of the British Parliament had been
obtained, if not by fr:tu I, at least by extravagant over-
eolouring of the facts ; and that the Government.
when they were pressing the bill on with inlocent
haste, know that Nova Scotia wag averse to it. 'As
a proof of the public opinion in the colony, ho mentioned
that at the last general election nut of 57 members elected
to the local and the colonial Parliament only three were
in favour of Confederation, although the influence of the
Colonial-office, of the military services, of the•Canado offi-
cials, and the name of the Queen had been used on that
side. Mr. Bright proposed an address to the Crown pray-
ing that a Commission may be sent out this autumn to
inquire into the causes of the discontent felt by the Nova