The Birkenhead News and Wirral General Advertiser. — 1893-05-31 (Birkenhead, Merseyside, England)

SCHOOL DUD MU OH DINOURTHISIL SCHOOLS.  TO THB IINITOI OP Till 11111XXSILL1 NW%II.  Bta,-1 have read a School Manager's letter in your columns today, and, from the personality of It. tone, fear that in his school eourtesy will not be a first dui 'abject. I can ooly say that while my ease against the "voluntary," and upecially the Church schools, for their miesrable support, falls short of the reality, his own figures point the mime way, though not to • large extent. The actual subwriptions to the 26 schools in the Parliamentary borugh are £1,425, or £92 leas than he names. He is also in error as to the average per bead of subscriptions to the whole being 2a. 6d. In the Blue Book there is a spatial list under 27 beads of voluntary contributions. Birkenhead, which was Si. Ind., has fallen to Is. ?}dyer about £BO6 less, though not quite so low as itekool Manager names. There are only about four other centres in the list as low or lower, and plum with School Boards show far more voluntary generosity, Hirmiogham voluntaries giving Si. 4111., and Brighton, with a bill- rate and £15,000 paid, its beard giving 124. dd. ; London, with an 11d, rate, giving 'lO5. 64. The national average is 6s. 104. a head. In addition the Birkenhead average swelled by the more geoerous eentributions of Catholics to their schools, u shown by the late Parliamentary return. The average in the four schools, with about 9000 ;scholars, is 644., or more than double the entire average. As Mr. Kinnersley said thirteen years ago, when he spoke of the seal and devotion of the Catholics, and praised their schools as being "in the first rank with the best pupil teachers," so It Is to-day.  The iiiores showing '. subscriptions " in nertain sohoole willed voluntary are in no way " minim'. lated," as the following list of attendance and sabeariptious shows :  Attendanoe. Subscriptions. 2 d. Beckwith-street Holy Trinity Bt. Anne', 646 .... 76 0 Bt. hiary's St. Panl'e ' 576 .... 47 0 Tranmere Higher Grad 295 • ..• h. • Pr'm'ti re hieth'dier,rmere 197 .... _ ell. _  515 .... 9 0 0 Rock Perry Clanghton Bt. Andrew's Bt. John's 1054 ~.. 7 7 0 Bt. Matthew's 123 .... nil. St. Peter's St. Lake's 656 .... 56 0 0 Bt. Catherine's  Total 8,442 8.393 0 0 Equal to about lid., leaving out of the above °almalotion the four schools whoee !subscriptions are nil, the overage is still below 15,1.  A School Maniger takes credit for maintaining this voluntary system, whose dole is a thirty-sixth part of the cost, so long and staving off a Board by means of high fees and Government grants. While maintaining the " miserable buildings' named by our inspector, it has enen an emancipated Beicombe rearing through its Board, an educational palsoe free to all children. Of the restate of the unseotarian system that gives to board schools mainly the prizes for Bible teaching, and for the beet mays on kindness to the brute creation, to which I celled attention, he prudently says nothing, dismissing that as all "twiddle," but there is a well.known instrument of that name which accurately wages strength and quality, and the faits I named snags the educational value of he sectarian and nonsectarian systems. The Mattis of the pupil teacher whose successful eandidatei arc mostly from board schools is another Bign• In conclusion let me suggest to School Manager and his "voluntary " friend', now that we have a board, to follow Mr. Hynnenley's Adele°, though Is 16 years old, and transfer their schools to the Board. It runs:—" Where money cannot be found, and zeal does not exist, it would be well for the supporters of voluntary schools to consider what good they are doing, either to their own denomination or education by continuing the unequal struggle. suicide then becomes the most graceful end of the voluntary.—Youri, Barruasanaaux, May 27th, 1893.