New-York tribune., 1904-10-03
PASSIVE RESISTANCE.
Persistent agitation against Cate
chism IN English Schools.


sumed interests Of voluntary schools. had par
alyzed Mr., FoFster's system. excited bitterness
of feeling and raised questions with regard to-
Establishment which had been dormant since
1869 when Mr.. Gladstone's Irish Dissstablish-
ment bill was enacted. The government" he
said have waRtOnly raised against themselves
the whole body Of NOnconfOrmist opinion in this
country and practically the whole Welsh ma
tion" This startling summary Of the cOnse-
quenees Of organized agitation against the gov
ernment's relief measure for denOminational
schools was accompanied with forecast OF
Liberal policy under new administration He
explained that there could be only one basis for
A system Of national education. namely, that all
schools supported by public money should be
placed under public control; and suDJeet 70 tnaS
requirement ministers should have free entrance
TO teach children of their own congregations
their own creed Absolute public control Of
schools supported by ratepayers will be geneT-
alIy accepted by Liberals as Indispensable; out
the concurrent introduction Of various forms OF
religious teaching will be a compromise Ike VI
FOrster's conscience clause, and II Will eXclpe
! controversy and resistance. Even II the exist
ing Education act be amended IN aceordahce
with Lord Rosebery's IDEAS the Disestaolish-
| uent movement must remain political issue
| i'm Wales and Scotland. II not in England
| The opponents of the Education act in Eng
land are continuing with ardor and enthusiasm
their campaign Of passive resistance Every
week from seventeen hundred to two thousand
/ summOnses are issued by magistrates In Lon
/ don and in the provinces TO delinquent rate-
\ payers. who make it matter of conscience 20
/ refuse payment of the school taxes Their OBJ
\ iectiOns are briefly stated by Representatives men,
| and distress warrants covering the defaults are
/ sent out. The protest is made with dignity ana
! is supported by the most influential NopeOn-
| formists or Free Churchmen in the beToushs
and shiras Invariably there minister's
/ county councillors and prosperous merchants
| among the delinduents; and sometimes there 10
/ a magistrate or a member of Parliament m
/ dignation meetings have been suspended; there
/ are neither violent haTangues nor exciting
/ scenes: and the proceedings are never disorder
ly. The taxes are withheld because the rate
payers have conscientious scrupEes against sup
/ porting what they consider erroneous and dan
/ gerous religious teaching; and the magistrates
/ are forced TO adopt legal measures for the col
! lection Of the arrears. DistFaint warrants IN
volve the seizure of private property and auc-
| ton sales; and IN extreme instances the delin-
/ quents are imprisoned for short terms. Since
| the movement began there have been over
/ eleven hundred sales. and nearly thtrty-thFee
/ thousand summonses have been issued: and
/ there have been thrty-three sentences Of I'M
| prisOnment. The delinduents were laughed at
as fanatics and bigots at the outset. and Dr.
| clifford was coarsely described as denasogUe
| and mounteSank: and public interest in the
cause OF passive resistance has been stiEuated
| by abue| and ridcuIe- There is the moral force
| of NoncOnformist opinion behind II, and IL viii
/ inevitably command the political support OF the
next Liberal government
| In Wales there Is an ingeniously organized re-
volt against the Education act. Mr.. Lloyd
/ George is the leader. and he has secured the
ou66 NJ
| Church Council IN England well as the aid
/ and sympathy OF the Welsh people. He started
out with deliberate Intention OF paralyzing the
educational authorities by throwing upon them
the entire responsibility of administering the
new act and Of maintaining all the schools in
/ Wales. He proposed the withdrawal OF all
county and town councils from authorized edU-
| cational work. the dismissal OF all teachers EN-
plOyed by local authorities. the closing Of all
council schools, the withdrawal of all NOncon-
i fOFmist children from church voluntary
| schools. and the opening OF class Of vol
| untary schools In every NOncOnfOrmist chapel
/ The plan OF campaign involved the cooperation
OF the councils and large sacrifices on the part
| of the main body of Welsh NOnconfOrmists, and
! Mr. LlOyd-CieOrge has advocated these revolu-
| tiOnary measures on the ground that the people
in Wales can better afford TO give up the govern
| ment grants altogether than 70 consent 10 have
any portion OF the local rates diverted TO schools
| IN which religious tests are imposed in the edU-
| cation of children His proposals have been re-
| ceived with enthusiasm throughout the pT1nct-
I pality. and conference Of delegates from c0uR-
ellis is to be held early in October for the discus
/ sion OF ways and means for carrying out this
\ policy Of starving out the schools where reiig-
| iOus tests are employed and for rendering the
I Education act imperative 1t is assumed by the
| campaigners that as soon the local authors
| ties tender their designations. and there are
neither boards OF managers nOi teachers for con-
/ Quoting the regular schools dependent upon
| rates the whole system OF elementary education
| in Wales will break down The educational de-
\ partment In London viii certainly be serlousiS
| embarrassed If it attempts to carry on the NN'N
/ OF the schools without the aid OF the county
/ rates and without the power OF appointing ioea'
/ managers. The voluntary schools may contihue
I operations under the direction OF clerical man
/ ayers. but the attendance of pupils VIII OS
| heavily reduced by the withdrawal or NoncO"-
/ formist children The DefaUltlng Authorities
| act Will arm the department with cOnsideraois
power for meeting the emergency; but. while a
| semblance of administration may be maln'aiNeu'
IT will be clearly impraetieable 10 keep the TesH-
/ lar or secular schools open when the ioeSi
! authorities cut of all supplies. dismiss the
| teachers and refuse 10 sanction expenditures
| With splendid audacity Mr. LlOyd-GeoTse Is
/ striving TO render inOperatlve two acts Of FAR
\ lament the Education and the Defaultihs Au-
/ thorities acts without violating the letter OF
| the law or exposing himself and his followers
| TO prosecution He IS heading conspiracy 1or
/ making il impossible to carry ON the national
! system Of education III Wales. He has rallied
/ the local authorities about him and shown theN
/ how, thav can eyade the law without rlSk 70