19 SEPTEMBER 1846, Page 8

SCOTLAND.

The ceremony of laying the foundation-stone of the Episcopal College, near Perth, took place on Thursday the 10th instant, amidst a very full assemblage, consisting of the principal dignitaries of the Episcopal Church in Scotland, a large number of the clergy, and various noblemen, gentle- men, and ladies. Sir John Gladstone officiated with the trowel; his son, Mr. W. E. Gladstone, was distinguished among the lay orators. The core- tnony was followed by a sumptuous dejefiner to the visitors, and an enter- tainment to the workmen.

' The plan of organizing Juvenile Industrial Schools seems to be gaining on public attention in Scotland. On the evening of the 9th instant a pub- lic meeting of those favourable to this object was held in the Thistle Hall, at Dundee. Provost Brown was in the chair; supported by Lord Kinnaird, Iktr. George Duncan, M.P., Sheriffs Watson and Henderson, and Sir John Ogilvy, besides many other gentlemen. The speeches were much to the purpose. Sheriff Watson gave an account of a school which had been es- tablished at Aterdeen with full success- . From a return it was found that there were two hundred and eighty children in the city of Abenleen who had no other way of living but by begging or stealing, thus being brought up as it were the inmates of agaol, and ending their career by being transported. kraal the inquiries made, it was found that they almost with- out exception had become the inmates of the gaol because they had no other mane of supplying their wants but by crime. Five or six years ago he proposed to open a school for feeding and educating the vagrant children. The scheme was generally considered a benevolent but an extremely absurd one. The question generally put was, "Do you mean to feed and educate all the young beggars in Aberdeen?" After talking over the matter about a year, a few of the friends of the scheme met and subscribed about 1001. Of that sum, 601. was raised at the time of sub- scription. It was proposed that they should commence operations immediately by opening a school for sixty boys. This was agreed to; so they told the Police to send them a dozen or two of the worst boys they cculd catch.

In five hours they had seventy-five scholars; most of whom they were told by the superintendent were the worst they could have got. Of these, only four could write, and fourteen read. This was a miserable state of things. The children were kept at school all day, and told to go home in the evening, and to remember that, if they did not come back again and were found begging in the streets, they would be subject to the same treatment. They all came back joyfully; and from that day, 19th May 1845, not a child had been seen begging in the streets of Aberdeen.

The ladies of Aberdeen opened a school for sixty girls, whose only title was the destitution of their parents; and he would venture to say that there was not a better conducted school in Britain. The children at these schools received food three times a day, and were sent home to their parents at night, to whom they thus acted as the best of home missionaries; and he trusted to hear of the same principle being acted upon in Dundee. "Some legal-minded persons," said Mr. Watson, "asked, what right have you to take up the children; was it nets kind of wrongous imprisonment to do so? We told them that we asked the hungry children to dinner, and after giving them it they were dismissed" (Laughter.) Resolutions recommending a Juvenile Industrial School in Dundee, and condemning the practice of imprisoning young offenders, were carried by acclamation.