The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1841-05-28 00:00:00

Miff* PM, TUN DLI? ND MN MI

AWWt).q utilSY,t itICAMINATION OP Tll* et[l•ll.6.
ft will be recollected that at the annual meeting of the
subscribers to the School for the Deaf and Dumb, in Janu.
ary last, an announcement was made that for the future the
public examinations of the pupils should take place annually
in the month of May. The examination accordingly took
place yesterday, in the school-room of the establishment, in
the presence of a crowded auditory. Among others we ob-
served, the Rev. Jonathan Brooks, senior rector of Liver-
pool, Sir J. S. P. Sainsbury, the Rev. Thomas Bold, the
Rev. James North, the Rev. R. L. Townsend, Mr. Richard
Rathbone, Mr. James Aspinall, Mr. R. C. Dawson, Mr.
William Coiner, Mr: Thomas Bold, jun., Mr. William
Hutchinson, Mr. Houghton, &c., &c., &c.
Mr. RICHARD RATIIIIONE, in proposing that the Rev.
Jonathan Brooks he requested to take the chair, said he
would take the liberty of reading one or two portions of the
annual report presented to the subscribers in January last,
for the purpose of directing attention to the cause of this
meeting being held, and to the circumstances of the institu-
tion. Mr. Rathbone then read the following extract :
" The committee feel no ordinary gratification in being
enabled to present this Fourteenth Report of the School for
the Deaf and Dumb to the subscribers in this handsome
building of their own erection, and in this commodious and
comfortable school-room, where your committee have now,
for the first time, the pleasure to meet and to welcome them.
The inconvenience caused by the postponement of the an-
nual meetings till the middle of February has become, in
many cases so great that your committee have decided that,
in future, a meeting of subscribers only shall be held for the
purpose of receiving the report and accounts, and of electing
the committee and officers on the third Tuesday in January ;
and that a public examination of the children shall take place
on some day to be fixed by the committee, and of which due
notice will be given, in the month of May."
The present meeting had therefore been called, and he was
very happy to see so large and so respectable an assembly.
For a very long time those who had watched the progress of
the institution, had observed that it had been below par ; but
he was happy to say, that it was now rising to a premium,
and he hoped it would continue to rise in public estimation.
Connected with this subject, he had great pleasure in observ-
ing, that the senior rector had consented to take the chair on
this occasion. He would delay the proceedings only one
moment, whilst he read, on the part of the treasurer, a brief
abstract of the accounts. Mr. Rathbone then read the fol-
lowing from the report :
" It has also been found necessary to new furnish entirely,
as, from the very bad state of such furniture as was in the
old establishment, it was deemed advisable not to bring any
of it into use. This expense, together with that of the appa-
ratus for hot air, laying out two playgrounds, forming two
gymnasiums, and various extra charges, will, probably,
amount to £1,200. Towards the total sum of about £6,500
there has been
Received in donations, church collections, interest
from the bank, and for old materials, about
Leaving

£3,600
£2,900

To meet which, the committee have to receive for
the sale of lease of land and buildings of the old
school
Making a probable deficit of
for which they are yet dependent upon the liberality of a
benevolent public."

The Rev. JONATHAN Bttooss then took the chair amidst
much applause. He said it was with very great pleasure
that he acceded to the wish of the committee in taking the
chair at the present meeting. There were circumstances
which had prevented him from paying much attention to this
institution, as a member of the general committee. He had
so many institutions to attend to, that his respected colleague
and himself had been obliged, in many instances, to make a
division of labour, and Mr. Campbell had always undertaken
to pay attention to the school for the deaf and dumb. By
means of that division of labour they had been able to ac-
complish their joint work more satisfactorily to themselves,
and they hoped with more advantage to those institutions to
which they had devoted their time. He had, however, upon
some occasions called in at this school to watch the progress
of the pupils ; the last time he called the Bishop of Chester
was with him ; they went to the old school, and spent be-
tween two and three hours there. The bishop was exceed-
ingly delighted with what he saw, for he had no conception
that the system of instruction for the deaf and dumb could
have been brought to the perfection in which he found it.
He (the chairman) believed that before schools for the edu-
cation of the deaf and dumb were established, he did not

know whether this was not the first of them---L-
Mr. RICHARD RATHBONE.—"It was the first day school.
The CHAIRMAN continued. He believed that before such
schools were established, an idea prevailed that, from the in-
firmities to which the objects of them were subjected, deafness
as well as dumbness, it was impossible to teach them any ab-
stract ideas. The experiment of this school, however, had
proved that this impression was a decided mistake. He was
now going to state a circumstance, which, as far as he was
aware, had not taken place before, and which, he believed, a
great number of persons might be disposed to think could not
take place. He had had seven of the senior pupils of this in-
stitution, some of whom had left school now, and all of whom
were above fifteen years of age, under examination for the
rite of confirmation, a thing which lie believed had not taken
place hitherto anywhere. And he had great pleasure and
satisfaction in stating, that among the whole number of chil-
dren now undergoing a course of examination—he spoke of
those belonging to his own church, who amounted to 200—he
had found none better prepared than the children educated
at this school, either with regard to their conception of the
solemnity of the rite, or with regard to the knowledge which
was required from those who offered themselves. He never
felt more gratified than he did upon that occasion.i He mightbe
asked, " how did you ascertain this ?" The way he proceeded
was this : he first desired the master, Mr. Rhind, to put to
them questions ont of the catechism. and each of them being
prepared with a slate, they wrote upon their slate the answers
to the questions. That went, indeed, so far as the commit-
tal to memory of the questions in the catechisms. They
wrote, as he had said before, the answers to all the questions
very perfectly, and in a manner which proved that they un-
derstood what they were about. He (the chairman) then
went on to ask them abstract questions, unconnected ques-
tions, and when he said unconnected, he meant to say they
were not questions to which they could have got answers by
rote. The way he proceeded was to put the questions
through the master, and there was a tablet upon which the
children in their turns wrote down the answers. To prove
certain doctrines, they frequently brought passages both from

the Old Testament and the New Testament ; and in answering
these questioni, they clearly showed that their intellects
were as able to comprehend the principles and doctrines of
religion as our own. The difficulty lay in the mode to be
adopted for the cultivation of that intellect ; it was not that
there was a want of intellect on the part of the children, but
the difficulty lay in conveying ideas to make them understood
by their minds. That had been done by Mr. Rhind, he must
say, very successfully. He was, he repeated, quite delighted
with the way in which the children had gone through their
examination in the catechism. He had giyen to Mr. Rhind
the tickets for their attendance to have the right of confir-
mation administered on Wednesday next ; and the bishop,
he was sure, would be exceedingly glad to find seven deaf
and dumb children who perfectly comprehended and under-
stood the ceremony, and who were able to give such answers
as he (the chairman) had had the pleasure of reporting, with
regard to their religious knowledge. At the annual meeting
of the society in January, the report of the committee was
read, and it was not intended, he believed, that it should be
read again this day. This day was to be devoted to an ex-
amination of the children. It must be remembered that in
speaking in theway he had of the children he had examined,
he did not mean to say that in a school combining so many
young children, all the others were equal to those seven. Of
course he confined the observation to them. The meeting,
however, would have the gratification and pleasure of seeing
how the children went through their examination this day,
and then they would be able to form their own judgment
upon the skill and ability displayed in bringing them to the
itate in which the meeting would find them. He could state,
with regard to the seven he had seen, and from what he had
seen of the Others, that their progress had given him very
great pleasure.—The rev. chairman concluded by informing
the meeting that, owing to a previous engagement to attend
a committee at twelve o'clock, he should not be able to have
the pleasure of occupying the chair longer than half an hour.
Mr. Haf IND, the zealous and talented master of the insti-
tution, then addressed the meeting. He said, that after the
able remarks made by the worthy rector, whom he had
great pleasure to see occupying the chair, it certainly
would be affectation in him to say that be did not
feel very great gratification. He felt the greatest en-
couragement indeed, to proceed, in consequence of the suc-
cess which had attended his exertions during the past year.
Mr. Rhind then commenced the first part of the examination,
with the two youngest pupils in the school in point of time,
one of them having been admitted only three weeks ago, and
the other a month. The difficulties in the first instance, he
observed, were considerable, the vernacular language being
of course as foreign to them, at the commencement, as
Greek and Latin would be to others. It was impossible to
instruct the deaf and dumb through any other medium
except their senses, and there was a difference between na-
tural and conventional signs. Natural signs were those
which all deaf and dumb invariably made; when they first
came into the school they were acquainted with natural
signs, but they wanted order, method, and arrangement to
expand their ideas. The first step, then, in the process of
instruction was to make those signs systematic, and in order
to render them so they began with nouns and the most
familiar objects. If he were to attempt to talk with the
two children before him he would fail, but they would be
brought forward in this way. Natural signs were the most
obvious. The first time deaf and dumb persons met an in-
dividual they noticed some peculiarity of that individual by
which they were enabled to distinguish him. Mr. Rhind
then intimated to the two children some personal marks
which he described, by which they called up the second class
for examination, consisting of seven boys and two girls. All
this, he observed, was done withont the slightest invidious
feeling on the part of the children one towards another. He
made this remark because many people wondered how it was
that the deaf and dumb could point out individuals; and be-
cause some thought they knew what was said by the motion
of the lips, but that was a mistake.
The method of beginning to teach the first principles of
grammar was by teaching the pupils nouns, and the numbers
and genders of those nouns. Having illustrated this, or ra-
ther the class having illustrated it under his direction, Mr.
Rhind added that when a child was admitted into the insti-
tution, if he spelled the noun " watch" it would not under-
stand what he meant, and his efforts would be of no use;
but if he took out his watch and showed it, the child would
then comprehend his meaning. This, then, exemplified the
difference between natural and conventional signs. He next
entered into a description of the manner of conveying
ideas of the distinction of sexes, of numbers, the comparison
of adjectives, and the conjugation of verbs. These were il-
lustrated by the class exhibiting with uncommon precision
the signs denoting useful objects, such as food, bread, meat,
vegetables, &c., the quality of those articles, and the use
made of them.
The next step, Mr. Rhind continued, was to teach the pu-
pils composition. This was done, in the first instance, by
proposing simple questions, the answers being returned in
their own language. He then put a variety of questions to
show the meeting the exact mode adopted. Some of the
pupils, he remarked, were not able at present to describe
accurately what they intended, but they certainly understood
the questions ; and any mistake in their replies arose either
from the shortness of the time they had been in the school,
or from their paucity of language.
After this they were instructed to write short exercises
upon subjects of their own choice, which were called " spon-
taneous exercises." Several of these productions Mr. Rhind
now read. The simplicity and the unsophisticated nature,
combined with the religious knowledge which characterized
each of them—and they were selected at random from the
every-day works of the pupils—excited a strong feeling of
interest in the meeting. The first was written by a day
scholar, who had been four years in the school. It related
to the Laurel-street depredators, who were tried and con-
victed at the last assizes ; and after briefly describing some
of the circumstances of their capture, and their brutal assault
on the police, it concluded with a few reflections, full of hu-
mility and of moral character. The next was a spontaneous
exercise of Joseph Taylor, a boarder, who, it appeared, had
been informed by Mr. Crossfield, a member of the com-
mittee, that his little sister, also deaf and dumb, would soon
be a scholar in the institution. The poor lad, in this exer-
cise, seemed to give way to all the feelings of nature, ex-
pressing the utmost impatience to see his sister, and affection
towards his mother, and hoped the time would not be long
when lie could meet them. Another spontaneous exercise, by
the same pupil, related to the introduction of Mr. Corner's
portrait into the school ; and we are sure that benevolent
man must have felt it a high compliment when he read of
this poor mute writing to say that he loved him because he
had invented the Liverpool School for the Deaf and Dumb.
The last of these exercises was written by William

tot Ada:le,r *forma, ImmAdlAtoly After isfr, Mimi had so
pounded; es usual, the eeripturos to the pupils, It related to
the history of Johntha Baptist and Herod ; it correctly
recited all the circumstances described in the New Testa-
ment, and interspersed with them many striking reflections.
In the course of reading these letters, Mr. Rhind stated that
he was in the habit of requesting the pupils to bring
him three or four lines of their own composition, on
any subject whatever, every morning, and he could assure
the meeting, that what they had just heard conveyed
but a very slight idea of the information they pos-
sessed. He also took the opportunity to mention, that one
advantage of day schools for the deaf and dumb, over
asylums, was in the pupils being able to see so many of the
natural occurrences of life, which always had a tendency to
expand their minds. The examination of the class then ter-
minated, the meeting appearing much pleased with the in-
telligence displayed.
Mr. RICHARD RATIIBONE here requested the chairman to
read a letter which had been addressed to the committee by
Richard Williams, who was the son of poor people. They
claimed for this institution the merit of being the only day-
school in the kingdom, he was exceedingly sorry to say it ;
and they could show that by the instruction given in their
day school, that this boy, though of poor extraction and of
less fortunate circumstances than themselves, was capable of
becoming one of the cleverest in the school.
The CHAIRMAN said that Richard Williams was one of the
boys he had examined for confirmation. The letter to which
Mr. Rathbone referred seemed to have been written in con-
templation of this meeting. He was writing it from his own
suggestion, and was observed by the master, who asked him
what he was doing. He gave the master the letter, and it
was now just as it came from his hands. The meeting would
be surprised to hear that it began with three French words—
mes cher messieurs. It seemed that the boy being of
an inquiring mind, Mr. Rhind had at his request given him
a French Dictionary, and lie had made himself master of se-
veral short sentences which he found therein. The chairman
then read the letter, which is as follows :
" Evening at 5 o'clock, Friday, May 21st, 1841.
" Dies cheres Messieurs,
" I take the privilege (freedom) of writing my expression
of gratitude to you for me being here. I often think that I
wish to return you my great sincere thanks for your great
kindness. I often think grateful to you. For how sad was
it for me, when I was ignorant of any thing before I first
came here : if I were not here, and not yet taught, 1 could
never have any instructions from my dearly beloved master
(J. Rhind). How sad was it when I was unable to express
my thoughts and wishes, or to converse with those around
me, and to know the Saviour as I was one of his lost sheep !
Thanks be unto God which bath given him (J. R.) grace, and
put into him mind to come here to convince us of the awful
guilt which by nature we are all sinners, as all have sinned
and come short of the glory of God. But-now thanks be unto
God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and
remota manliest roe savour us ma xisuvlieuge uy us in CVVI V
thing. For unto God we area sweet savour of Christ in
them that are saved and in them that perish. It truly seems
that he is like a missionary sent to preach the glad tidings
of salvation, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save
sinners, to the poor ignorant Deaf and Dumb. For unto
God, who commandeth the light to shine out of darkness,
hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of knowledge of
the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. How misera-
ble and wretched would we be without the establishment of
the useful Institution for Deaf and Dumb in this town (Li-
verpool). He teaches us to love and obey God, that we may
go to Heaven when we die, and be happy there for ever, and
also his Son our Saviour, and what we must do that I may
grow up to be useful and happy in the world, and happy for
ever in the world which is to come, and that Jesus Christ
offered up himself as the great sacrifice for sin, and poured
out his own precious blood on the Cross, that, thus dying
himself, he might save from the eternal death of the soul all
who trust in him. The human soul is the greatest and most
valuable of the human creatures. Ali ! how miserable would
it be, lost in hell, the prison-house of despair, for ever !
But I now trust in Jesus Christ alone to deliver me from
the punishment that my sins deserved, as I was not yet come
in this happy school. 1 was rough and undiscipline, like the
wild ass's colt, but now I am become a good scholar, and a little
wise and intelligent, by attention to my lessons and the ex-
plaining of my master, as he is the guide and guardian of
my youth, and therefore I owe him the highest obligation of
gratitude and respect for undertaking the most important
charge of my education. I render you a thousand thanks,
gentlemen : because I was an hunger, and ye gave me meat;
I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink ; I was a stranger, and
ye took me in ; and I was naked, and ye clothed we ; I was
forlorn, and ye helped me ; and I was almost lost, but ye
saved me. May the God of my father abundantly bless and
reward you all evermore, is my most sincere prayer.
" 1 am, my dear,
" Your most obedient and grateful servant,
" RICHARD WILLIAMS.
" To the Committee of this admirable Institution
for Deaf and Dumb, Oxford-street."
He must be allowed to say, that this production of itself
spoke volumes on the usefulness of the Deaf and Dumb In-
stitution. It was quite impossible for him to add one word
to such a testimonial as that ; indeed, anything which he
could say would only be the means of destroying the effect it
had produced.
Mr. Brooks then retired ; and on the motion of Mr. RATH..
BONE a vote of thanks was presented to him for his conduct
in the chair. Mr. Rathbone then presided.
Mr. RHIND would take this opportunity of stating, that
he could not tell whether or how Richard Williams intended
to present the letter just read by Mr. Brooks. He did not
know whether lie wished him to see it or not ; but going
into the school last Saturday afternoon he detected him
writing in a corner, in such a way that no one should see
him.—He then introduced three pupils of the first class, (the
remainder having completed their education and left,) by
whose examination he hoped to be able to give some idea of
the extent to which education was capable of being carried.
As it was frequently supposed religion could not be taught to
the deaf and dumb, although he thought he had proved the
contrary, he would put a few questions to this class in scrip-
ture biography, which afforded the largest field for contem-
plation. It was known to most present that they had two
gymnasiums, in which the pupils, both boys and girls, were
very fond of playing. He had very often tested them in this
way—" Would you like to go and have a little exercise in the
gymnasium ?" "Oh, yes," they immediately replied ; but
the next moment he turned and said—" Would you not rather
stop and hear scripture history explained ?" He did not re-
member a single instance in which all, both boys and girls,
and old and young, had not preferred to remain, and have a
scripture narrative explained. He did not remember a single
exception.
The examination in Scripture biography then commenced.
It related tc the lives and histories of Adam, Eve, Cain,
Abel, Noah, Methuselah, Joseph, Daniel, Nebuchadnezzar,
and Jesus Christ, on all of which subjects their answers—
being written on the slate—gave convincing proofs of their
knowledge. We ought to mention, that on being asked who
was the father of Jesus Christ? one of the pupils wrote down
" Joseph." Another, however, immediately told him this
was not sufficient, and he instantly corrected it by adding,
" the Holy Ghost."
The next subject of examination was in geography. The
pupils were very correct in their replies. Mr. Rhind stated,
that in answering questions in geography, they were not re-
peating what had previously been committed to memory.
They had had no systematic instruction either in geography
or history ; all their knowledge on these subjects had been
obtained either from short anecdotes, or from brief conversa-
tions, entered into by way of relief, whilst passing from one
class to another.
The class were then examined on a few events in Eng-
lish history, and in arithmetic, with the like result. In
addition and multiplication, one of the boys [Ralph Perry]
showed peculiar quickness.
Mr. RICHARD RAI HBONE said, that although this was not
the time to read the report of the committee, inasmuch as it
had already been presented, he would at this stage of the pro-
ceedings take the liberty of directing attention to one or two
points in it. First, as to what the committee said on the
subject of the day school:—
The school now contains forty-eight pupils, of whom
24 (18 boys 6 girls) are boarders,
21 (15 boys 6 girls) are day scholars.
private pupils.
Of these, 42, the children of poor parents, are educated gratui-
tously, and for all the children a substantial dinner, also gratis, is
provided by the institution. The total number of children admit-
ted from the commencement of the establishment in 1825, is 147,
of whom p 8 having participated in its advantages are now, for the
most part, usefully and profitably employed. Your committee are
of opinion, that if it were more generally known from how many
counties of England, (too numerous to be here specified,) from
Wales, Ireland, and even from places abroad, pupils have been sent
and applications made to this institution, they would receive an-
nual subscriptions and donations to a considerably increased extent.
At the same time your committee consider it their bounden duty to
state that, adhering to the principles on which and to the objects for
which the school was originally founded, with all the confirmed
conviction resulting from the experience of fifteen years, they con-
sider the great victory which has been gained, and the material
fact which has been established to be its successful working as a
DAY Seri ()or,. To use the words of the report for 1829—" They
will content themselves by adverting to two of these (reasons for
adopting this particular method of instruction) which appear to
them to be of the greatest importance ; the one is, that day-schools
by their simplicity of plan and economy of expenditure, when
contrasted with asylums (exclusively such) for the deaf and dumb,
are capable of being introduced with facility into every town in
the kingdom, where a sufficient number of objects can be found
for their operation. Another consideration, and one which the
voice of nature itself serves to enforce, is, that an attendance at a
day-school still leaves the pupils at liberty to participate in the
exercise of those endearing relations subsisting between parent
and child, which it should ever be the object of Christian charity
to foster and promote."
The report then went on :
Annexed to the report will be found a list of the contributions to
the Clothing Fund for the poorest of the children.
Ditto the library for the school.
Ditto the museum, and for other purposes.
The committee desire to make their particular acknowledgements
to the ladies and gentlemen who have given these valuable gifts,
and to state that there is ample room for the reception, to a much
greater extent, of these very useful presents.
Education was given gratuitously in eases where the parents
of the children could not afford to pay anything. The com-
mittee, under such circumstances, would accept the smallest
subscription rather than none, towards the clothing fund.
The day scholars, almost exclusively received their education
for nothing, because their parents were poor; indeed there
were some so poor that they were ashamed to send their chil-
dren into the school their clothing was so wretched. The
clothing fund, then, to which he wished to call attention,
was to provide the poor pupils with clothes. The report then
aid :

The committee hope it may not be considered out of place here,
to inform the subscribers that Mr. Corner, the founder and constant
friend and liberal supporter of the Liverpool school for the deaf and
dumb has been requested, and has reluctantly consented, to sit
for his picture, to be placed in the institution. The cost of the
picture to be defrayed by a pris ate subscription from the subscribers
and friends of the school.
This picture had been painted, and it was now placed upon
the staircase, and if any one wishes to have the pleasure of
looking at the face of the man who had taken such an active
interest in founding this institution, he hoped they would
take the opportunity. One word more more—the conclusion
of the report—he would venture to quote :
Your committee beg to state, in conclusion, that it is estimated
that there are above 8,000 deaf mutes in England alone, for 000
only of whom accommodation for instruction has yet been pro-
vided ; and that there are in the united kingdom, nearly 13,000 deaf
and dumb persons ! Upon this appalling statement your commit-
tee offer no comment, except that this is not a condition of things
which ought to exist in any country, least of all in one professing
itself to be Christian.
Mr. RHIND said he would now call attention to the sub-
ject of articulation. For many years it had been imagined
that speech could only be acquired through hearing. That
was very well as regarded persons who enjoyed the faculty of
hearing, but it could not be applied to those who were deaf.
If it were so, so long as the children near him remained deaf
there was no possibility of their learning to speak. The
truth, however, was, that all of them were in different stages
of progress in speaking, and some of them, he was happy to
say, were able to speak so intelligibly as fully to understand
their parents at home, and to convey verbal messages to
tradespeople. They knew the town Much better than he did,
and if they were able to bring him the things he wanted,
that, he thought, was everything which could be wished for.
Having explained the means by which he taught the pupils
to articulate, Mr. Rhind introduced a youth named Thomas
Banks, aged 104, (from Kendal,) who articulated several
words, of one and two syllables, with great distinctness.
Ralph Perry, (aged 164, of Liverpool, an orphan,) the pupil
whose quickness in arithmetic created attention, then partly
recited and partly read the following address :
" Ladies and Gentlemen,—Permit me, on behalf of myself
and school-fellows, and those who have been educated in
this institution to thank you unfeignedly for the valuable
instruction which you have been the means of imparting
to us.

" We thank you, kind friends, for having brought us, by
God's blessing, out of mental darkness into light—for having
converted us from a state of ignorance into that of intelli-

geriaivFlud for having rendered us, Instead of being et bur.
den and source Of anxiety to our relatives and friends, cape.
ble of being social, useful, and happy.
" But, especially we thank you for teaching us the Word of
God, where we learn contentment with the allotments of
Divine Providence, and arc inspired with hopes of future
endless bliss.

" And that our Almighty Benefactor may reward you ten-
fold into your bosom for thus imitating the example of His
dear Son, " who went about doing good," is our earnest and
sincere prayer." . _ _

This was exceedingly well done, considering the unhappy
situation of the poor youth. The grand object of articula-
tion, Mr. Rhind added, was to enable the pupils to under-
stand persons by the ►notions of their lips. Of course, those
who spoke must speak so slow that the mute could see the
motion of the lips ; for if he did not see distinctly he would
not be able to understand what was said. It was not neces-
sary to sound the voice. This part of the examination con-
cluded by Ralph Perry articulating answers to three or four
extempore questions put to him by Mr. Rhind.
Mr. RHINO then said he would read two or three extracts
from the spontaneous exercises of the most advanced pupils,
in order to show the extent of the capabilities of their minds.
He then read three most interesting papers from Alexander
Gibson, Ralph Perry, and Richard Williams, which were
listened to with profound attention. These, he stated, were
promiscuously selected from out of a great number. With
these he should conclude the examinations; but before re-
tiring he wished to make one or two remarks. He then
glanced at an article published in one of the Encyclopaedias,
tracing the history of instruction to the deaf and dumb ;
and showing that until a comparatively recent date those
unfortunate beings were deemed incapacitated from the ac-
quirement of knowledge. He trusted the examinations that
day had completely disproved any such opinion. Mr. Rhind
then suggested as one means of procuring an addition to the
funds of the institution, that the ladies in every family who
took an interest in it, should establish a "birth-day tribute;"
and he assured the meeting that any contribution, however
small, would be thankfully received by any of the members
of the ladies' or the gentlemen's committees, or by himself.
Mr. Rhind, in conclusion, referred to the day-school, and
pronounced it the grandest feature of the institution.
The CHAIRM AN theta thanked the meeting for their attend-
ance, and said it.would encourage the committee in their
exertions to increase the usefulness of the institution.

Before concluding our report of this interesting examina-
tion, we must not forget to state that in the course of the
proceedings some beautiful drawings were exhibited, which
really did great credit to the mute artists. Specimens were
also shown of their handwriting. In fact everything reflected
the highest credit on the assiduity and skill of the excellent
head of the establishment.

The proceedings terminated shortly after one o'clock