which has been made since. In the first year only six out of 134 could be presented in the higher Standards. In 1876 the school had an admirable Report; in 1879, when the Inspector came, he said

"This is one of the best schools I know.

There is no failure in reading and writing, and only two out of 116 failed in arithmetic, and when I visited the place some years ago the education of the children was in a lamentable state. Thanks to the wise policy of the Board and the ability of the teacher, it is now the best school in Årgyll.”

schools. Now, it is only fair, whatever may be said in favour of voluntary schools or Board schools, that it should be fairly and honestly stated. I find that the London Board schools are increasing at the rate of 23,000 a-year for the last 10 years; that for every year they have to furnish schools and charge that upon the current year's account. Then, again, unlike any other board schools in the country, they have to bear the expense without the grant for this 23,000; so that really, to take the proper average, we believe that it would be imOut of 134, only seven failed, and the possible to get the cost of the London Inspector said it was, in all respects, a Board schools until the London Board model school. I think that a school and schools have supplied all this deficiency school board making such marvellous of education and the children are in progress as that shows ought to be average attendance. Then the grant for brought under the notice of the House. salaries is very considerable. Then, Now, Sir, I have given the statistics for taking the average of the country England and Wales as to the number schools, no allowance is made in the who have passed the upper Standards. salaries, but a residence is provided for The grants earned in 1879-80 had risen the masters; whereas, in London, the from 158. 3 d. to 158. 7 d., an increase residence of the masters is to be paid of 41d., and the voluntary schools to out of their salaries. That is only fair 158. 5d., an increase of 1d. I said that to be borne in mind; but to show the this is the first time that the board vast work which the London School schools show an advantage over the Board has yet to do-for it is a vast voluntary schools; but the grant is not work, for the deficiency is not nearly always the measure of success, and I supplied, and the new Census has shown say this irrespective of this circumstance us that Lambeth alone has increased in reference to board schools and volun- nearly 250,000 during the last 10 tary schools. It depends upon the num-years-there is the population of one ber of infants in the respective schools on the list, for the infants bring down the average, and the real test is the children in the upper Standards and the upper ages. Now, the average cost in the London School Board schools was £2 178. 7 d. per head, and in the voluntary schools £2 08. 103d. The board schools in the Provinces are only £1 178. 53d. I am bound to say that the heavy cost of the London Board schools raises the average of the board schools throughout the country. The London Board school average was £2 178. 7 d., and the London voluntary school £2 08. 101d., against £1 148. 2d. in the country. I am not going to be the apologist for the London School Board; there is no need for me to take up the defence of the London School Board, as it possesses able Representatives in this House. I am bound to say that I was very much struck with that, and I made it my business to institute inquiries as to the cost of the London Board schools as compared with other

VOL. CCLXIV. [THIRD SERIES.]

of our great towns, and the London School Board have to keep up with the growth of the population, and this growth represents something like 1,100 persons a-week; and, in order to make provision for the population, they must open one school a month. That is the only way in which the population of London can be provided for. The only wonder is that, looking at the vast work already done, and yet remains to be done, how we could have remained content with such a state of things as must have existed. The total expenditure on education for last year amounts to £5,078,259; to this sum the endowment has contributed £143,000, the voluntary contributions about £731,000; the rates £726,000. Though it is fair to notice that the contributions are still in excess of the rates, it is a most creditable feature. The children's pence contributed £1,431,000, and the Government grant £1,982,000, and the receipts from other sources were £55,000. I am bound to quote these figures to consider what

2 R

education on which the country is spend- | dant evidence of them. I have heard ing £5,000,000 a-year. We hear a good from the Chief Inspector of London deal of declamation against our present Police the wonderful change that he besystem as being irreligious. I am quite lieves to be brought about by the vast sure that neither the noble Lord the number of wretched children taken from Member for Liverpool (Viscount Sandon) the streets. In the town of Birmingham nor the noble Lord the Member for Major Bond says that the effect has been Middlesex (Lord George Hamilton), to get rid of the young ruffians who used who have presided in the Department, to stand at the street corners, and whose will say that they are irreligious. I coarse language and coarse manners know in the town of Liverpool, which caused a scandal in all our large towns. the noble Lord (Viscount Sandon) re- There was a great diminution in that presents, that both the school board respect and in juvenile crime, and the and the voluntary schools work heartily same thing was reported from all parts together, and prizes are given in re- of the country. We have been going ligious instruction in that town, and the on during the last 10 years making proresults have astonished some of the op- gress towards civilizing and humanizing ponents of the school boards when they those who have been neglected in the come to see the answers of the children. past. I should like to say a few words The same thing was told me in Mau- as to the devotion of hundreds and thouchester of the papers submitted to the sands of noble men and women who school board, and one who is well known have taken part in the cause of educafor his opposition to school boards admits tion. It is extraordinary, and the noble. he was taken quite aback by the exa- Lord opposite (Viscount Sandon) will mination papers, and had no conception bear me out, that in towns like Liverof the amount of Biblical knowledge pool, Manchester, Birmingham, and elsewhich had been attained by the children where, when they take up this work they in school board schools. If I wanted become absorbed in it, and they devote to disprove the statement about the de- their lives and their energies and a great cline of religious teaching, I could bring deal of their money to it. The voluna few facts to the notice of the House. tary effort brought into the school board The total number of children in volun- system has astonished me. In Mantary schools in 1870 was 1,449,000, the chester, Liverpool, Birmingham, and total in 1880 was 2,759,000, showing elsewhere, we find men and women who that the numbers receiving very distinct are doing honour to themselves and religious instruction in voluntary schools sacrificing their time and means to the had increased by 811,000 children. educational interests of the rising genethese there was an increase in the ration. Having concluded what I have Church schools of 627,000; in the Roman to say in that respect, I proceed now to Catholic schools of 79,000; in the British that part of the Statement which refers and Wesleyan schools of 127,000; and more immediately to the Papers which I in the Board schools of 1,085,000, show- have laid on the Table. The House will ing a total of 1,900,000, or a total in- be aware that a year ago, when I made crease of nearly 2,000,000. This total myAnnual Statement, we were somewhat increase of nearly 2,000,000 of children under the censure of the Upper House. in the schools of the country, and a very The subject had scarcely been a month large proportion in voluntary schools of before the country before Resolutions the country, are, except a small number, were made in the other branch of the receiving religious teaching. Then in Legislature denouncing the Code as amScotland the school boards adhere to bitious and entirely uncalled for. My the old system. After that statement, noble Friend the Lord President of the who can say that there is no religious Council (Earl Spencer) promised the teaching given to the children? On the other House of Parliament, and I procontrary, I think that there never was mised this in my Statement, that during so much religious teaching given to the the coming year we would make full children of the country as at this mo- inquiry into the operations of the Code; ment, and that it was never so well and if we found that it was not for the taught and so well understood as since advantage of education, and not calcuthe Act of 1870 was passed. As to the lated to bring out the best possible results moral results of the Act, we have abun- for the expenditure and the devotion

Of

Mr. Warburton for his experience in smaller schools, and Mr. Sharpe for the larger schools. I presided over this Committee myself, and Mr. Hodgson acted as Secretary, and we had many a long and laborious day's work in arriving at the scheme which we have now submitted to the House. When we had accomplished that, we felt that we must put our work through a finer sieve and must call in additional critics, and we added to the Committee Mr. Matthew Arnold, Mr. Moncrieff, Mr. Oakeley, and Mr. Blakiston, and Lord Spencer himself presided over that Committee, and the result is that which I have laid on the Table. I must say, in laying it upon the Table of the House, that I do so with

given to it, that we would come down to the House and frankly state what was the result of our inquiry, and I have now here fulfilled that pledge. I may say that we have had complaints as to the Code from, I think, everybody who takes an interest in education. The teachers complain that it gives too little freedom to teaching, that it gives unnecessary clerical labour, and that it does not distinguish between good and bad teaching and good and bad schools, that schools that display no skill get as much as those where the work is thoroughly well done. From that time to this we have been receiving suggestions from all quarters, and obtaining evidence to enable us to arrive at a wise solution. I cannot enter upon this sub-great hope and great confidence. But ject without speaking of the great assistance we have received, and the ability and zeal shown by the officials in the permanent branch of my Department. Personally, I cannot but express my obligation for what they have done in this matter, and the way in which they have set themselves to accomplish this reform. I should have been unable to make such a statement, or to have laid it on the Table in the shape I now place it, had it not been for the intelligence and ability of the permanent staff with which I have been associated. It is due to them that I should acknowledge the assistance they have rendered in getting out the scheme which I have laid on the Table. In the first place, we had Memorials from school boards and from persons connected with education who made suggestions for the improvement of the Code. We found ourselves able to agree upon certain principles, and then papers were prepared by 20 or 30 of our principal Inspectors, and we elicited from them the freest possible criticism, and asked them to give suggestions as to the best system which their long experience enabled them to give. Having received those Reports, we were enabled to make a draft Report, and we agreed further that the matter should be thoroughly sifted and the detail worked out by a Committee. The House would like to know the process by which we arrived at that. Sir Francis Sandford, Mr. Sykes, and Mr. Cumin represented the three chiefs of the Education Department; Mr. Warburton, Mr. Sharpe, and Mr. Fitch, the three Inspectors representing the great Training CollegesMr. Mundella

we do not ask, and we shall not ask the House to assent to it as it stands. We simply submit it as the proposals to form the basis of the future Education Code of the country. We ask that it shall receive, not only the fullest criticism, but we hope that it will receive fair consideration. It is not to be made a Party question. But we must all assist in the good work. It is not a Party question with us. We will take good care that we deal with all schools on an equality, treating them all alike, whether voluntary or board schools, and they will come under the same regulations and receive the same grant if they have the same capacity. What we wish to arrive at is sound educational principles, and if we arrive at sound educational principles we can deal with the money payment afterwards. We do not want to go into the question of whether we pay 3d. too much for this or 6d. too much for the other; but what we want to know is what will present the best results and the most thoroughly sound education. I can only say that I trust that during the Recess I shall receive suggestions from all parts of the House, and I can promise, on behalf of the Department, that they shall receive our candid and careful attention. Now I shall submit a few heads of the scheme. Under the first head we deal with the attendance. It is proposed to adopt the average attendance in each school as the basis of the grants which have hitherto been made on account of individual scholars, whether infants under seven years of age presented to Her Majesty's Inspectors for collective examination, or children above seven presented for exa

mination in reading, writing, and arith- | £20, and even £30 and £40 difference to metic. The next is that

the school; and when the master has done all he can, and the boys fail him at the last moment, I must say that the temptation is very strong to bring up the attendance of the school, and I think that that temptation ought to be removed. Abolishing those 250 attendances will remove the strain on the teacher's mind; and it will be the fairest way to obtain payment by results, and I am quite satis

teaching and improve the whole system. Now we say, under the 3rd clause, that grants will be so assessed that the present average rate of aid will, as far as possible, be maintained. The fair school will receive nearly the same grant, the bad school will receive a little less, and the good school a little more; and thus we discriminate between the various schools. Then there will be grants common to all schools. As to music, we propose that the full grant will be paid if the singing is satisfactorily taught from notes, or according to the Tonic Sol-fa system. Only one-half will be paid if the singing is taught by ear. Then there is a sewing schedule, which we felt we might make a little lighter for the younger scholars. We felt that it was too much for the younger scholars, and the fancy sewing was not exactly what we wanted. Clause 6 is also common to all schools; and this is called the Special Merit Clause. This is a clause which will do more, perhaps, to lift the tide of education than any other in the scheme.

Now, with reference to that, I have to say that this is the fairest measure of the work of the school. The grant now depends too much upon chance circum-fied that it will give great elasticity of stances and accident over which teachers and managers have no control: For instance, a wet day for inspection, or a snowy day, or the absence of some of the principal children, immediately affects the grant, and the school suffers for one year in consequence of these circumstances. Another reason is that it will keep the work of the school equal. The failure in any part will affect the whole school; and it will tend to make the teachers take an interest in the good and bad scholars alike, and will lead them to take as much interest in the proficient and non-proficient, and in the quick and the dull scholars. The change is in the interest of the children generally. There are constantly cases coming before me of loss to teachers from the causes I have indicated. There was an event which came before me the other day of a loss arising from the removal of a battery of artillery. These are hardships which are constantly arising; but there is something more serious. We shall remove the temptation to tremendous fraud. It was the most painful part of my duty to have to sit in judg ment on teachers who had been tempted to make one or two strokes of the pen which had brought them under the charge of fraud, and the inevitable consequences following, that their certificates are suspended and their characters blasted, and their careers blighted or ruined. I had a case on Saturday last where it only required one single stroke of the pen to complete the number of attendances of one boy. He attended 249 times, and the schoolmaster made that one stroke. What was the difference in that school? That single stroke made £16 difference to that school, because it just brought that boy into the list of boys to be presented. It brought them within the 20 per cent, and it made just £16 difference. We have had cases where two strokes have made £10 and

"The Inspector shall have regard to (a) the organization and discipline; (b) the employment of intelligent methods of instruction; and (c) the general quality of the work in each school, especially in the standard examination; and shall have power to recommend an additional grant on the average attendance, varying in amount according as the school is, in these respects, fair, good, or excellent." There will be a special merit grant on these three heads. Now, I think the House will say "You are placing great powers in the hands of the Inspectors." Well, I will show how that is proposed to be done when we complete the organization for inspection; and by it we hope to insure greater economy, and greater efficiency, and much greater uniformity than hitherto. I now come to infant schools; these also have an average attendance, and where the infants in a school amount to 40 a separate adult