it became difficult, if not impossible, to unite the working
classes in one general system of education. Under
these systems, however, schools spread all over the
country. In 1831 or 1832, for the first time, Lord Grey
proposed that £10,000 a year should be given to each
society, and distributed in proportion to the local
contributions, taking no note or regard of the kind of
education given. In 1839 Lord Melbourne's government
proposed a change, which was based on a letter
written by Lord John Russell, then Home Secretary,
to Lord Lansdowne. It was then that a Committee of
Council was proposed, and also the establishment of one
large normal or training school, in which persons of
different religious persuasions should be educated, with
a chaplain to instruct those who belonged to the Church
of England. This proposal excited great alarm, and
was withdrawn by the government, after much threatened
opposition: the proposal for the Committee of
Council, however, was carried in the House of Commons
by a narrow majority. In 1846, and partly before, the
system of training schools was introduced, under which
numbers were educated specially and properly for filling
the office of schoolmaster. Since 1844 the outlay on
these schools has been £353,402; and the grants £137,623.
In 1852 the total expended was £130,103; and the
number of schools 40. Quoting a return he had just
received from the Registrar-General, he showed the
amount and character of education, generally. "It
comprises (he said) the public and private day schools,
and contains the number of both sexes belonging to the
schools, and the number attending on the 31st of March
1851. The total number of day schools is stated at
44,898; public day schools 15,473, private day schools
29,425. The total number of both sexes attending the
day schools is 2,108,473. Those who attend the public
day schools amount to 1,407,569, and those who attend
the private day schools to 700,904. The number
attending the schools on the 31st of March, 1851, when
the last census was taken, including both sexes, was
1,754,976; of which there were at the public day
schools 1,115,237, and at the private day schools 639,739.
It is stated in this table that the proportion of scholars
on the books is 11·76 or one scholar to 81/2 persons. The
proportion of scholars in attendance to those on the
books is upwards of 83 per cent., or about five-sixths of
those on the books were in attendance. Now, it appears
from this account that the number of scholars in the
private schools does not average more than 27; but in
the public schools, with which we have more
immediately to deal, it amounts to 93; therefore we may
take 93 as the average of persons attending at those
public day schools. I will now state from different
sources that which I believe is a fair and accurate
estimate of the number of schools conducted under the
auspices of the different societies, and of the number of
persons, including boys and girls, who belong to the
schools of each of those societies. The number of schools
of the Church of England, as ascertained by the National
Society in 1847, was 17,015; of British and Foreign
Schools, 1500; of Wesleyan schools, 397; of
Congregational schools, 89; of Roman Catholic schools, 585; and
of Ragged schools, 270; making altogether, 19,856.
The number of scholars taught in the Church of
England schools was 955,865; in the British and
Foreign, 225,000; in the Wesleyan schools, 38,000 odd;
in the Congregational schools, 7000 odd; in the Roman
Catholic schools, 34,000 odd; and in the Ragged
schools, 20,000 odd—making a total of 1,281,077. I
will now state, so far as it has been ascertained, the
income belonging to those different religious bodies,
and applied to the purpose of conducting their respective
schools. It appears that in 1847, the sum expended in
the maintenance of the Church of England schools was
£817,081: of the British and Foreign schools, £161,250;
of the Wesleyan schools, £27,347; of the Congregational
schools, £4,901; of the Roman Catholic schools,
£16,000; and of Ragged schools, £20,000; making a
total income of £1,046,579. In reckoning the sources of
income, it has been calculated that the local endowments
are about £69,537; the local subscriptions,
£66,823; the local collections, £114,109; the school
pence, £413,000; and the income from other sources
£88,076. It would appear that in none of the accounts
of income, except those relating to Roman Catholic
schools, is there any sum placed to the account of
private schools which are entirely supported by the
contributions of persons maintaining those schools.
Now, there is one of those sources of income to which I
would wish to call the attention of the house—it is the
£413,000 from the school pence. I have no doubt that
that is an under-estimate; and I think, if we were to
say that £500,000, or half a million, had been
contributed from school pence, we should not have an
excess in estimating that sum. Now, I think, the
house will feel that, considering that half a century
ago there were none other than Sunday schools which
could be called public schools for the poor, the result of
these efforts is striking, and likewise satisfactory, that
the people of this country—above all, that the working
and poorer classes of this country—should contribute
half a million a year towards the expense of instructing
their children, I think the house must consider a most
gratifying circumstance." From these considerations
Lord John Russell was induced to think that their
efforts should be directed to strengthen and improve the
system which has grown up chiefly from voluntary
exertions, and which, however, is in great part still
defective and inadequate. This led him to the
government proposals; but before stating them he
disposed of the voluntary and secular systems. He
could never subscribe to the proposition that the
education of the country should be left entirely to
voluntary effort; and he argued that as the state has
power to punish for crimes, so it should first instruct
the people in the rules of morality and law. As to
secular schools, there are difficulties sufficiently great to
prevent the adoption of that system. The school is the
place where the poor are to learn the rules of religion
and morality, to regulate their conduct in life; and
under the secular system sufficient time would not be
allowed to ministers of religion to impart religious
instruction; and thus the most important end of
education would not be attended to. This difficulty
had been felt by the advocates of the secular system;
and they had altered their plan from insisting on
exclusive secular teaching, and now admit that there is
a natural theology which should be taught in the
schools, but insist that Christianity should not be
taught there. That is more extensive, but far more
dangerous. The people of this country act on a right
instinct when they openly declare that there shall be
religious training, which shall comprise all the great
doctrines of Christianity. Therefore (said Lord John)
"neither I nor the present government can be a party
to any plan proposing a secular mode of teaching."—
Having disposed of these preliminary questions, he now
came to state what should be done. At the outset he
said—" I do not think it possible to unite the children
of different religious communions, throughout the
country, in one plan of education." And he proceeded
to show that even if the rule of the National Society
were abolished, which requires the learning of the
Church catechism, and attendance at church on
Sundays, although it was obvious the rule could only
be intended to apply to children whose parents were
members of the Church, the great difficulty would not
be at all remedied. For the Dissenters would still be
subjected to the ecclesiastical supremacy of the Church;
while in any combined plan they would naturally and
justly say the rule should be equality, not ascendancy.
But although there was a general objection to the
imposition of a national rate, he thought corporate
towns might obtain the means of supporting schools by
rates. "In towns of this kind, (he said) there is
not any necessity for establishing schools of one kind.
There are in those towns, generally, schools belonging
to various communions, all of which either receive, or
might receive, some support by the minutes of the
Committee of Council. It appears to us, therefore,
that it is possible at all events to give power to the
corporations and municipal councils of such towns to
vote a rate for the purpose of improving education
therein. But in so doing we should think it necessary
to impose certain conditions, in order to prevent evils
which otherwise might arise. In the first place, we
think it right that two-thirds of a town-council should