The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-03-11 00:00:00

MOTION FOR A REPORT.

Mr. BOLTON moved that the report of the matron of the
North School, which was in the possession of the chairman
of the Education Committee in December last, be now read.
Mr. MOLYNILVX said he had no objection to produce the
report in question, and after some discussion it was read as
follows :

" SIR,—We have no apprentices at present in our school,
but we have monitresses who assist in teaching, and who are
themselves taught the same as apprentices.
" The religious instruction is conducted as follows :
" The protestant girls are divided into three bible classes
—one class reading the New Testament, one class of younger
ones who can only read the easy part of the Psalms, and one
class who cannot read and they are read tn, by one of the
monitresses, from some of our scripture pieces whith we
have hanging against the wall of our school-room. Some-
times, as a reward for good behaviour, they are taught

hymns.
" On Tuesdays and Thursdays the church children and
the dissenters are in separate rooms, because the former are
taught the Church Catechism, and the latter, Dr. Watt's
Catechism. The Roman catholics are engaged at this time
as the report will show.
" At a quarter past four o'clock the bell is rung, and the
children in all the rooms prepare for prayer. I read the ac-
companying prayer to all the protestants (teachers, moni-
tresses, and children,) assembled in one of our class-rooms,
reading a sentence at a time, and the children repeating after
me ; concluding with the Lord's Prayer and the Grace.

" PRAYER.
" 0 most merciful God and Father, we humbly beseech
Thee to receive these our prayers and thanksgivings, which
we offer unto Thee, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
" ' Be pleased to direct our actions by Thy Holy Spirit,
and by Thy gracious assistance prosper them, that in all our
works, begun, continued, and ended in Thee, we may glorify
Thy holy name. May Thy blessing rest upon us, and upon
these schools, and grant that we, and all who receive the be-
nefits of education here, may be brought up in Thy ways ;
never failing to ascribe, as it is most justly due, all praise,
honour, and glory to Thy most holy name, through Jesus
Christ our Lord and Saviour, in whose words we sutra up
our imperfect petitions, saying—Our Father,' &c., &c.
" The Roman Catholics are at the same time engaged in
prayer in the other room. Their prayers, I believe, consist
only of the Lord's Prayer, the Creed, or Belief, and some
little prayer in the form of a blessing, in conclusion. The
children then assemble in the large room to sing a hymn all
together. They are then dismissed, singing, as they move
on, " God save the Queen," &c. They also sing a hymn as
soon as they assemble in the morning, previous to the " Ex-
tracts" being read to them, and they sing another hymn at
noon, before they leave to go to their dinners.
"If the Education Committee thought proper, we might
have the protestants separated from the eatholics at nine
o'clock for prayers in the morning, the same as they are in
the evening.
" Our school-books are the first, second, third, fourth,
and fifth reading-books ; one copy of each will accompany
this report. A list also of our library books I will place on
the table for your inspection.
" I believe this is all that you have requested me to report.
Should I have omitted anything I hope to be pardoned, and
upon being applied to for any more information respecting
the school I shall be most happy to supply my present defi-
ciencies. Our ladies' committee not having met lately, lam
deprived of their kind 'commands and assistance to guide me
in making this report. lam therefore compelled to make it
upon my own responsibility without their cognizance.
" I trust I shall be forgiven for making herea few remarks
upon the state of the school. From the observations I have
been enabled to make, I am surprised at the fund of scriptu-
ral knowledge our poor girls have, considering they are left
almost entirely to the care of female teachers.
" Not one protestant clergyman has examined the girls
since I have been matron here, and the Roman catholic priest
only comes once a week, and not that sometimes, and he only
stays from five to ten minutes. Little instruction can be
given or received in that short time.
" Another remark I wish to make with respect to my girls
alone is, that the most amicable and kindly feelings seem to
subsist amongst them—not one dispute relative to religion
ever having arisen since I have been here. I believe it my
duty to report the school such as I find it, trusting I shall be
exonerated from blame by the committee as well as by your-
self, for thus thrusting my opinions before you unasked for.
I am myself (as my testimonials can fully prove) a Church
of England Protestant, and as such would wish every child
in the school, and their parents, too, were so also ; but as
such a state of affairs is not probable, I am anxious to do the
best I can for every one of these dear children, over whose
welfare and education it has pleased the Almighty to place
me to watch and guard.
" Hoping to be pardoned for my present intrusion, I re-
main, Sir, most respectfully, yours very obediently,
"JANE WELCH,
" Matron to the North Corporation School.
" E. Molyneux, Esq., Chairman to the Education
Committtee, North Corporation School.
" Tuesday Evening, Dec. 14, 1841."
A lengthened discussion ensued, in which the Chairman of
the Education Committee was pressed by Mr. Bolton, Mr.
Evans, Mr. Earle, and Mr. Aikin, to state why he had not
produced the report before. Mr. Molyneux said he believed
it to be a private document addressed to himself.
PURCHASE OF LAND•
Mr. BOLTON, in the absence of the chairman and deputy
chairman of the Finance Committee, who were in London
opposing the Birkenhead improvement bill, moved that the
negociation for the purchase from the Earl of Derby, of
1,000 lineal yards of strand, extending northwardly from
Beacon's gutter, at a sum not exceeding £17,500, be con-

firmed.
Mr. ASPINALL seconded the motion, and it was unani-
mously carried.
lIOURS OF LICENSED VICTUALLERS.

Mr. ASPINALL said he had been requested to present a
memorial on the part of the licensed victuallers of this
borough, praying the council to rescind the resolution which
was agreed to at the last meeting for the introduction of a
clause in the Improvement Bill for closing their houses on
certain hours between Saturday night and Sunday. He was
not desirous of re-opening a discussion on this subject, but
he was apprehensive that if the clause were continued, it
would lead to a very powerful opposition to the bill now be-
fore parliament. Several members of parliament were de.
cidedly of opinion that it was a hardship upon the publicans
to insert a clause of this kind in any bill purely local, and that
if there were to be any legislation at all upon the subject it
should be of general operation. The licensed victuallers of
Liverpool bad no objection to the Improvement Bill itself,
but they had a most decided repugnance to being placed in a
situation different to that of any other licensed victuallers in
the kingdom. He begged to move that the memorial be
read and adopted.
Mr. TOULMIN seconded the motion.
The TOWN-CLERK then read the memorial, which was
signed on behalf of the association of licensed victuallers by
Thomas Jackson.
Mr. Alderman EVANS said it had certainly surprised him
to hear a proposition of this sort come from the quarter it
had, from the brother of the rector of Liverpool, from one
of the church, from one of the Sabbath-day observers, from
a late mayor of the town and a magistrate—from one who
must be well acquainted with the destructive evils of allow-
ing the Sabbath-day to be desecrated in public-houses. It
was said that the publicans were not unwilling to have a ge-
neral measure. By that it seemed there was an admission of
the evils arising out of the want of it, but was it the duty of
this council to compromise with vice, or for one moment to
refuse to contemplate an enactment that would suppress
that vice? When he found a measure like this originating
in a quarter where it was least expected, be was led to reflect
upon what could be the motive. He did not mean to say
what those motives were, but he could not help saying, that
the only motive which suggested itself to his mind, upon
this question, was this—that morality was to give way to
private interest among the publicans, and all, as it seemed
to him, to get political influence. He could discover no
other good motive whatever.
Mr. BinicETT supported the motion, and contended that
Mr. Alderman Evans had no right whatever to inquire into
Mr. Aspinall's motives. lie (Mr. Birkett) would support
the motion on the like grounds that Mr. Aspinall had urged,
but at the same time he should have no objection to a mea-
sure extending for seven miles round the borough. He
should move a resolution to that effect.
Mr. AIKIN and Mr. EARLE, and Mr. A. SMITH, jun.
opposed the motion, and it was supported by Mr. PROCTER
and Mr. PARKER.
. Mr. ASFINALL rose to reply, and spoke with much anima-
ti. on. He was very sorry, he said, that be was compelled to
rise in order to answer some observations that bad fallen
from Mr. Alderman Evans and Mr. Aikin, because, when
he presented the memorial he had no intention of entering
into the subject. He stood there not as a spirit merchant,
not as a brewer ; be was not connected, directly or indirectly,
with any public-house in the town; and he begged leave to
tell those gentlemen (Messrs. Evans and Aikin) that he
stood in his place in that council in order to give as indepen-
dent an opinion upon this subject as either of them. (Hear,
hear.) Ile was very sorry that Mr, Evans should have
thought proper to allude to him as the brother of the Rector
of Liverpool, and that, because he happened to stand in that
relation to the reverend gentleman, he should have affected
surprise at his bringing forward this motion. (Hear, hear.)
He (Mr. Aspinall) had brought forward what he conceived
to be a just cause, a cause which he should have expected
that those gentlemen who were such great advocates for the
liberty of the subject, and for the equal rights of Englishmen,
would have supported, for he would venture to ask them on
what ground could it be contended that one Englishman was
entitled to a greater privilege than another? (Hear, hear.)
He was really surprised at those gentlemen having talked in
the way they had, for they, too, were magistrates and belonged
to the bench which had generated the curse of this town by
granting licences to so many beer-shops without discretion.
(Applause.) He could put his hand on his heart and say, that
the fifteen months he had the honour of being the mayor of
this borough he had not granted one single licence ;
on the contrary, he had felt it his duty to take three
or four away. (Cries of " bear, hear.") He took that step
conscientiously, because he thought it would tend to suppress
vice and immorality ; but what had been done since that by
the adverse party? (Hear, hear.) Why hundreds of beer
houses, of the lowest description, bad been licensed by them
as public houses ; they therefore had themselves created what
was the curse of the town, and now they were actually seek-
ing for a bill to put it down. (Hear, hear.) He was sorry
to be compelled by what had been said to make these obser-
vations. He stood in his place in that council to give a con-
scientious and independent opinion, and be would yield to
no man in doing so ; therefore, as an honest man, he would
say he conscientiously believed that the clause was an unjust
one if it formed part cf a local bill, and was to extend to this
town only. (Hear, hear.) But if there was a public bill for
that purpose, no man would be more anxious than himself to
do all in his power to carry its provisions into effect, for no
man was more desirous for the suppression of viceand drunk-
enness. (Hear, hear.) In making these observations he did
not think it was a just thing to put one man upon a different
footing than another ; and upon that account he felt it was
his duty to object to such a principle. But what would be
the consequence if it were acted upon ? The eating houses
would be full of drunkards ; they would go across the river
into Cheshire; and one man upon one side of the street might
be selling beer and brandy with impunity, whilst another man
upon the other side had not the power. (Hear.) Now that
was not just; it was not honest; for one Englishman ought
not to have a greater right to do so than another. That,
then, was his principal reason for having brought this matter
forward ; in the first instance he thought the principle unjust,
and in the second he did not think the clause would answer
the purpose which was intended.
The council divided, when there appeared—
For the motion l3
Against it ..
The motion was consequently lost. The following mem-
bers voted in the division :
For it—Messrs. Preston, Copeland, Barton, Aspinall,
Toulmin, Wood, Birkett, Procter, Kilshaw, Parker, Jones,
jun., J. Smith, and Crook.
Against it—Messrs. Shand, Thornhill, Mellor, Bolton,
Aikin, Bright, Yates, Robinson, Gladstone, Lloyd, Jordan,
A. Smith, jun., Mather, Harbord, Bulley, Freme, Evans,
Barclay, Earle, Molyneux, Moon, Nicol, Turner, and the
Mayor.
Mr. BIRKETT wished to move an amendment, to the effect
that any enactment of the kind should include eight miles
round the borough; but
The TOWN-CLERK intimated that such a motion could
only be received at the next adjourned meeting. It was there-
fore dropped for the present.
VACANCY IN ST. ANNE'S WARD.
The TOWN-CLERK said that a special meeting of the coun-
cil should be held on an early day, for the purpose of declar-
ing a vacancy in St. Anne's ward, and that Mr. Dixon and
Mr. Hardman, the newly-elected assessors, were not duly
qualified.
Twelve o'clock on Monday next was fixed for the purpose,
and the council adjourned at a quarter past four o'clock.

The Rev. B. W. Noel has written a letter to a Lonion
paper, disclaiming any intention "of applying those passages
of the word of God planed in the title-page of his pamphlet,
to those who advocate the maintenance of the corn-laws."