We shall not attempt to follow the discussion day by
day, but Thursday's debate was interesting because it drew from Mr. Balfour an indignant protest against the tactics of the less scrupulous portion of the Opposition. The occasion was the discussion of the Government amendment which authorised the local authority to hold examinations for pupil teachers when more than one candidate desired the post. This con- cession the Opposition sought to enlarge so as to include assistant-teachers, and urged their plea with no little acrimony. Upon this Mr. Balfour pointed out with some not un- natural heat that no sooner had the Government met, and met completely, the pupil-teacher grievance, which had always been insisted on as one of great importance, than they were told that they were not really meeting the Opposition's demands. Mr. Balfour went on to point out bow greatly the Bill took away the real Nonconformist grievances. He asked the Committee to consider what the Bill did for the teaching profession and for the Nonconformist portion of it. "For the first time it enabled the local authority to provide secondary education for Nonconformist teachers ; for the first time it enabled the education authority to provide Train- ing Colleges for Nonconformist teachers; for the first time it threw open and thrust aside the trust deeds of voluntary schools so that Nonconformists could be elected to all posts except the head-mastership ; and it demolished the pupil. teacher grievance ; and yet with all that hon. gentlemen objected, knowing all the time that if they came into power they could do nothing to reform the existing system."
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