The Statesman.
London, England, 1812-02-12 00:00:00

COMMON COUNCIL.
• -....-

The principal reason IPhiei induced him to oppnse this motion
was, that a Society, calling itself " National R' excluded from
the benefits of ks Svitem the greater part of the nation; whereat
the System of Mr. Lancaster embraced the whole nation, and all
its foreign possessions. In other (hills, ate knew whkt the word
• " National" meant. When we heard of a national army, a tua-
tiosal navy, a national taxation, we knew that itiucteded every •
body of all religious opinions - and he thneght, that when we
sl the of national education, the idea should be equally extensiver
lie recollected how many Churchmen had opposed eunday-
schools, and every scheme for educating the poor; and when he
saw sti great an alarm now ntised for the safety of the Church,
'bethought that he saw a spirit go forward very like the principle
',Lord Sidmouth's Bill. He therefore Thought it incumbent of
, all Dissenters to oppose this spirit, if they,die not wish to be
erushed by it. For these reasons he should opposelbe vote.
Mr. Throe thought the motion a very proper one, god That
the last Speaker bad much misrepresented Lortl Sislmoutles Bill,
Land the vile' of the Church of England. The Established
Church was a most tender mother to alrdestitiptimui of people 1 •
and he would defy any one to she hi what it had et !Weed a
persecuting spieit. lie thought that it was very tieeessary for
the last peaker to inform the Clerk,- that •he irom of the Esta--
Wished Church, as no one-coeld hive Inpposed t4.treer4he-.30•11 . •
be made to the Disseuteme. As fur his comparlaitt of 'tne !heap-
' ness oh•the two systems, W warnot what he expected from his ••
liberality. lie though:that education was nearty,cheap cootie*, .-, :
and that the dillereitese of wittetice between paper and a slatm6
was not worth considering it a great national object. If Gene • ' ;
tlmhen frond fault with Dr. Bell's system for its partiality, they
should take care not to be partialthentsaves, as they Would ap- .i.'
, pear to be, it they gave all their support whir. Lancaste.r and
stone to Dr. Bell. ~
IMr. lit,esurax bad always been astonished at the indifferenee : •
!•and inseasibility of the Clergymeq of the Church of England's --, i _
ito objects of suck importince as the education of the poor. lie
I aid not know any thing that this National Society had done, be-s
; sides raising subscriglions; whereas Mr. Lancaster had educated'? .. •
3V 003 ftlbdlrrsen,dibdenfoorteklibue aswkie:Lesst iitadoretfgriodiooltiebew•Cisintitt;
sub..
I scriptioas already obtained ; and saw no reason for departing
. from the usual practice of the Court, in not giving money, ex- .
eept upon a petition. .
Mr.. PaiRSALL read a letter which belted received from Newe
yort, in the Isle of Wight, which stated, that at a school est-1-e
•lellatird there on Ur, Bell's plan,-theehildren of Disseaten were
pot permitted-toaccompany their parents to the.phiees of retie
glom worship of their pivsnasiou. • •,f J , .
Mr. Jeces sapjlthetd the motion, 'Which, he sad; be 'mold .
'tot have done, if he could conceive it at all hostile to teligioul
!toleration, or the interests of the Difisemers. Ile was a greet
Tfriend to the general extension of knowledge ; and thuegh born
ill the pale of the Church of Scotland, he highly respected the •
, church of England, and would my, that it se had • been a '.
I persecuting Church. He would be .glad that every -religious
peseuasion would educate their children.; but when an applicas
lion was made toledncate the children of the Church Of Uslaiitl,
-he thought-that it ought not tube refused. ..
Mr. Dafteiend Mr:F.ayet spoke aghlnst the.ign time •
Alderinari Moist said thiretaiost of the speakers had SFSII'
. t-
med falfe premises in tnppbeing-that there tele, any proscrip-
Hen or spirit of.intokrance is the--design of the new itistitu-
pp. , As ap individual,:oo men would go ferther,ehan him.
Pelf iii extending knowledge to all. IVlten be andressed the.
elostrt, however, fa a corporelte body, he, was peptised to -
`hear It asked, what was the stational religion. • The rimed-
tetioe of this° Country bad. interwoven th- CeurCh of Edgland ..
-with lite State;; mid the reason, ale-drclared.hie. high autho-
rity, wax, " not that the church should be political, but that
that the State should be reheions." ;Should theu the. Court ,
assist in the education of evt-tLother Opus of poor, except
those of the Church of England' It was most evident that
if the whole gdneatiort.of the pu,ir ‘rf this country was given •
to: one' Individual„ a great instrumi ot woda be pat into hit
hands, «bleb might hi prejecheialte the.Chareb, as by law •
establitheit . He begged that all the Itimatrere of /limit, Court
wont& recollect that tbeyeat in that Corporal:4re as ineethiry
of the Church ,pf England, This consideratirm would, aches. •..
thought, he sufficiet to induce them to intik the sum propo- . ..
It'd for educating the posit in-thi principles of the Church °A
Engtand. • • • . . . . .
. • , .
:Me:, Wutteh moved •as as amendment, "that yqol, lig. • • •
awed," which was seconded by Airteiman C. Smith;." a" • l'- %If
Mr. iit 4 tritatoen 't f!pught, that the atibjeet hail.h/en Co Plier• :
i) ably' argued on oni sirk+tlAt it repaid be unetlomertry•for:, 4.. „
Mee to go to any great length-in the *Obierviditbos he 5h0u1d.....
aneke.• The_ weetlay' SlierstfU Alderman Birch.), jeod smiled.: '''..... * '
. &Ma I.liejliet plan was.uut le, apparition to Oat, "drlde 1 Sews; .: . t i
'llster.ialt COlitildkiro that. it most' elesely'
oijkintleid. i0,011it.....:‘ ...
`fi
k
pSition Wei. Lancaster, terdin no.otheensotivre Nertoeasg .-
....e-
Assinetillie‘sillilliatrYledellChiValellitillie Jelltanell • '
ear.: .
llttie,.. saw omm-comity of ,exerting diminishes fur the ethics.. -..
lenti•Of He peratOlintitlidt...Leiteapeer hid beer Most eminent. - -
ly suiCessfio ; and thee the clean soap spread that the clutch : .
.war' it, dallgete ,aorthii National Society sprung-op .tis edmi• .
. late the' Oar' air tilt, peinciplei of the CharcAt of IT•nsland. •‘
"Pur :education of lite pox of t the Church of &lined, therj.:2_
weeealready'lliKM eektiois, 'stud word- Althea,' arid &At: lir,-
schoole,:aptl a great ;ferrety. of endowtoeats • bpt for.the ethart- ; •
calif:4ot the..pcsor at large, there seal holt:tug .blit the eirep • ".•
tiolm of 'Me, lanceater, MiePthe Niateket that he epiild. mean &ak ,
fepierolantary ooetribitions. The great body i,7 the dimwit: 1 • .
ters,or.Epgradd wore split info different sects, Aida tlifferett". •
;.kpna one another wore TrArly• than they did (row 'the Chareb•.• ... • - •
of Epees& Titsle:diltetent pets could'aeamtbe*witbei. . - -
Cotiiirni 'Whist the Church, unless the. Chott'cOntuld first '
cinnettieWard ave body against them. all, as was reveal, thy,,
-cam iisjArd•fsidasouttes Bilk-He thotight he saw .the pried. '. .
ple of persecution now raising its head, sod that it ought tee' .•
be resisted. The alarMef the Church being ilia; fluter -nuke • • ,'
timefrethlne like a former alarmmhout invitirion., I/ tjley,;ereld,,e :Le,
oqce Purteed ill beat ingdow ri J. Lanceiter, be did not know ;libel
seemed-becomes:if the funds subscribed that be helitted that the. '
cauntry would hear very little ahortf about ,the " National
.`,.
SoCiety."" The Cjsurehmen never sew any danger la skrieer:o
sal ignorance, bet they were (rite alai mod at the idea of amp', •.•
sort of education; except in their own religious doctrine's. -%,
He theu quoted from the printed u pistons of .Dr. Wiirdswerkim. , . . .
nee of the Cr:MI(1310(e, Who vitae an enemy to Sunday sehoolee • '
r and to-Bible Societies, and to every seheme which leaddiesti ';.:
been devised fur the extension of knowledge. When hg Oast;
over the number of Aicl)biebnops, Bishops, and temporal Peers; s
which were to be always (Atka! society, he could not see heir
it could i.e mad that it pis. hot a political institutioe. Rini '''
W. then slated the numbers of 'children educated at the schools
of Uxbridge, Canterbury, Lynn Regis, and Bury, on the plan
of Mr. Laisenter, where by far the majority regularly attend-
ed the service of the Church of Boghtad. He then called
the attention of the Court to the marry or-a, who, born in the-
greatest poverty, bad yet, from the advantages of some small L
education, been able to develop the natant' powers of their
mind to their own honour and advancement, or to the great
ll advantage of the country. Every man is the community was
I entitled to • his fair chance sof rising by his merit, but this
chance was withheld from him, if the first rudiments of ed-
ucution were 'deified to him. He believed, there were many
who only wanted this'aort of educatien to bring to light pow-
ers and qualities which weuid be isigtil; advantage-Ps to so-
ciety, as well as to the possessors of them ; ad on that petal
be could not help repeating the well-koown lines,—
" Rill many a gent of purest ray serene,
- - " The dark unfathom'd caves of ocean bear;
" Full many a fioter is born to blush nos en,
• . " And waste its sweetuesa is the desert air."
To prevent the evil so justly AO feelingly described by the
poet, was a principal object aerie system of education which
deserved the name Of " National." •The advantages tit‘ ex-
tending ciiesstlies to the poor, be was convieced uf; although
he had been told, when he was exerting himself to .reform
abnies in Christ Church, that the education which bad been
istevided for them was tocegood fur them. As to the number
of Mesentery in ibis country, he believed that it principally
'feces-der' irate the •cirelessness of the established Clergy.
Who would run the chance of an ague its a cold church (lass
"would outwit an epithet that bad once been applied to it)
iiiiiiely fo'6elot asleep by the drotray discourse of a preacher
*alma "essesifier takes ? -He thought that preachers ofeaergp

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