, 1874-03-04
MR.. DIXON ON. EDUCATION.

WV OuCU ~ SNhASu ~ SQpDOIA lu6
Bill of Mr.. George Dixon, NJ. P, for the estab-
lishment of School Boards and the enforce
ment of compulsion everywhere" In address
ing the meeting Mr.. Dixon, NJ. P, said the
Bin which he should introduce next Session
was one for universal School Boards and COM
p%ulsion. It was a Bill so simple that he some
times asked himself whether it was possible
there could be any opposition TO it. When be
asked Parliament TO make c0mpulsiOn univer-
sal he was asking for the enforcement every
where of a principle which had already been
adopted by nearly the half Of the population.
He was asking for that which had been enforc-
ed upon the whole of Scotland, and he was
asking for that which he believed was already
gaining the assent of all the leaders of the agri-
cultural population. He was asking for that
which be believed the majority of the friends
of his opponents in the hall that night APPROX.
ed and desired. He was asking for that with
out which Her Majesty's Inspectors of Schools
said it was useless to expect an efficient syS-
tenn of instruction for the people and let him
ask those who had adopted compulsion' in this
large CITY whether there ought to be any great
err difficulty in enforcing compulsion in the agri-
cultural districts than there was in the large
towns. Three years ago if any one had been
asked where the difficulty of compulsion would
mainly lie, they would have answered. "In the
large towns" because there the influence of
those in a better position was very much small
Ter, and there the working classes were banded
together, and if they felt any inclination to
oppose q law, there they had the best oppor-
tunity of doing so Yet in our large towns
compulSiOn had been invariably and cordially
accepted. There was no child in the agricul-
tural distric's who was not known, or whose
circumstances were not known, by. those in au-
thority, and those would be charged with the
carrying out of the compulsory law ard vet
it was there that they saw, and almost there
alone, that compulsiOn was not enforced. - Tho
increase in the average attendance in the
schools in Birmingham in consequence of the
application of the compulsory bylaw was rs
per cent. Was nOt4this a great boon to
the children of the agricultural districts, q mea-
sure which ought to receive the unanimous ap-
prevail of both sides of the House of Commons
He belle we'd that the objection to this part of
the Bill would not be serious. The difficulty
was supposed to consist in deciding upon the
machinery which was to carry out compulsion.
The only satisfactory machinery which had vet
been suggested for the purpose was the esta5-
lisbment of School Boards. The House of
Commons had decided that in the case of Eng
land il should be offered for the acceptance of
the people, and nearly half the people of Eng
land had accepted School Boards as a suitable
machinery with a compulsory law !; and after
the experience Of two years the House of Com
mons decided that in Scotland there should be
no option, but that, those same School Boards
should be made universal in that part of the
kingdom. What could be- the objection to the
establishment of School Boards in the agricul-
turai districts Wherever there was a de6cien-
cy of school accommodation the Act of 1870 pro-
vided that School Boards should be elected;
the only question was whether there should or
should not be School Boards in those districts
where there was already a suficiency of school
accommodation. Where there was a s~uffcien.
cy of accommodation the establishment of a
School Board for the purpose of enforcing COM
pulsoEy attend ance would be attended by a
very small cost. The question of costs was
often brought forward, and it was said that in
agricultural districts they were not prepared to
see an increase in the rates. What would be
the increase in the rates? When the first
School Board was elected in Birmingham they
had to undergo very expensive contests, and
during the three years of that Boards existence
they had to provide a machinery for compul-
sion, the cost of the clerk and other officers,
and to pay other expenses and yet, during
the whole three years, the total cost of the
School Board and Of enforcing compulsion,
which had resulted in ian increase Of rs per,