The Statesman.
London, England, 1812-02-20 00:00:00

PUBLIC EDUCATION.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE STATESMAN.

Ste,—l little thought; when reading tho observe-
Lions which have so lately engaged the attention of
the Public in your excellent Paper. upon the compa=
rative merits of the systems of Dr. lizt.o and Mr:
LANCASTER, that I should so soon take up my pen
for the purpose of addressing the Public upon the
same subject. It is hot, however, my intention to
discuss the merits of the plans f either of thoee
GetiCemen, but io offer a fe•t ,iertra ions upon a
new stem, which I have foupd p..rsued by a fo-
rt-11,3er, in a part of the kingdom where I have late-
ly been, for the education of the children of the
tiling classes of society, and which. in my opinion,
is not only without merit, but differs from every
sober and sensible system hitherto pursued in the
education of our countrymen ; and I was so much
impressed with the importance of the subject, that
thought it a duty to the rising generation, to endea-
vour to apply an antidote through the same channel
by which the poison was attempted to be dissemina-
ted ; and accordingly transmitted a letter from Salis-
bury, to the Editor of a provincial Paper, who had
before published a long justification of the systemt
but which letter, the Editor, after acknowledging
merit in the composition, thought proper to reject,
alleging, as his excuse, that it was personal. As
some of your Readers may not be able to have re-
course to the Papers which contained the observations
to white that letter applies, I shall, trier requesting
their attention to it, attempt in as short a manner as
possible to elucidate the subject. The following is a
copy of the Letter :

TO THE EDITOR OF THE HAMPSHIRE COURIER.
.66 Sia,-1 was lately npOn a tour through
part of Hampshire, and being struck, during my
stay at Gosport, with the novel appearance of a
number of boys, of different ages, attending the pa-
rade, and walking about the streets, dressed in mili-
targ uniform, some of whom displayed a degree of
smartness, and others great slovenliness in their
dress, I was induced to enquire to what corps they
belonged, and was informed they were the ,pupils of
a French Clergyman residing in the Isle of Wight.
The circumstance of a Priest, and he too a French-
man, being the superintendent of a Military School
for knglishtnen (which I then thought it), excited in
my mind no inconsiderable degree of curiosity, both
with respect to the nature of the establishment, and
the character of the individual who presided over i( ;
but I afterwards found, that the school was very far
from being exclusively confined to a military educa-
tion. I learnt, too, that objections had been made
to the system pursued in the school, which had •en
publicly answered by Monsieur Da GRENTHE, the
conductor, in a letter published by 'him in one of
your Journals for the last month. After some trou-
ble and difficulty, I had the good fortune to meet
with your Papers of Nov. 23th, and Dec. 4d and
Jth, containing the observations alluded to, and
Monsieur Ds GRENTHE'S letter. The subject is of
great importance to the rising generation, and other
persons, perhaps (in consequence of the success at.
tending Mr. Ds GRENTHF., in point of pecuniary ad-
vantage ea himself), may be Induced to adopt a simi-
lar course, I feel therefore-confident you will give
insertion to a few observations upon the subject, es.
-cclally as you hare already inserted so much, and
i onager Ds GRENTHeII letter remains unanswered
by your former Correspondent. If Mr. DE
Gftx:entes.school were confined to a military educa-
tion, I should have no objection to the pupils being
all clothed in a military uniform, because I think that
an " esprit de corps," of which he talks, is, in mili-
tary men, an object of importance; but how such a
principle can be applied to a number of boys in a
school, or can be cultivated, by their being merely
for a time, during childhood, clothed in the same
dress, when they may be afterviards destined for to-
tally different situations and pursuits in life, is to me
perfectly incomprehensible : the country dress is no
disgrace to the son of a farmer, nor will the son of
the gentleman, the merchant, or tradesman, be at alt
benefited by being taught to blacken his shoes, and
whiten his accoutrements for a military parade. I
think that personal clealatinesS, which, I believe, is
universally attended to in boarding-schools of any
repute in England, is as much as ought to be re..
nuked of children is general, and that it is
not only unnecessary, but extremely injurious,
to give them an early taste for that sort of -dress
which they may not be afterwards able to support, •
or which may be inconsistent with their future situa-
tion and circumstances in life. With respect to the
other objects mentioned in Mr. Ds GRENTHeg letter,
" of preventing children from frequenting bad corn-
!pany and attending improper places," I can only
say, that that Boarding School is unworthy of sup-
port which cannot secure the scholars from such in-
jurious society, without obliging them to wear a
badge of distinction, which, when adopted with such .
a motive, can only be considered a badge of infamy,
not of honour ; and it is a libel upon the children of
respectable Englishmen, as well as upon their parent.)
to insinuate that such base distinctions are necessary.
With respect to the public performance of plays, [
agree with your Correspondent, " A Itzentan
SuBsCRIZER," that it is a great waste of the time of
children, though I am of opinion, that the commit..
ting to memory of select pieces from the best drama-
tic writers and other authors, may be very service-
able, and tend to Strengthenithe memory and improve
the taste; but this is very diticrent from the public
performance of plays, where so much time must ne-
cessarily be lost in rehearsals, and it practising the
,attitudes. and gestures suited to the different parts :,
besides, I am confident, that duri,,g the period these
performances are in preparation, the minds of the
children must be diverted from more serious objects,
aqd their whole thoughts and attention engaged upon
:tbs approaching exhibition. With regard to the as-
Isertion In Monsieur Ds GRENTHE'S Letter, that DO
I
one (he must mean of his, scholars, for he mentions
no others) has ever thought, for these twenty years,
of becoming a public plapir, it seems a very bold
one, mad esicalated to mislead ; for I am grossly mil-
,informed if Mousiest' Di GILENTHE has Weir me e
than about twenty yrua is Englan ', during p„, 0,
which period he wid with the rest of his bcethr .1.
awnbrl9sireeikuLotaaskleyntordhiusgeestatibenbliZoshitliagYliii,Butaoangt rWduiainigeigeSchinertiole:t.
at-Newport, he taught
town ; and it is within the 11111111111 W five or di years,
i stilt ' . . . t. -, 4411441

•
ir