The debate on Clause 7 as amended was resumed on
Wednesday afternoon, when an attack in force was made on Mr Balfour's proposal that all "non-provided" schools should have a body of not more than six managers, of whom not more than two should be provided by the local authority or authori- ties. Mt. Dillon proposed that this should not apply where there was only one school within the area of the minor local authority,—that is, the Parish Council, Urban Council, or parish meeting. This amendment would have excluded from the operation of the clause seven thousand four hundred and seventy schools, and for these schools it was proposed by a subsequent amendment to provide a body of managers to be appointed as to one-third by the parents, one-third by the local authority, and one-third by the trustees of the sehooL This solution of the admitted Nonconformist grievance in the matter of single-school districts would have ousted the control of the trustees. in a large proportion of the "non-provided" schools, and was therefore uncom- promisingly opposed by Mr. Balfour, who rightly considered that it would threaten in every case, and in many cases destroy, the denominational character of the schools in single- school districts. This fact was apparently not .grasped by many supporters of the Government. Sir William Harcourt predicted as a result of Mr. Balfour's attitude a civil religions war, followed by the destruction of national education and the denominational system. On the vote for the amendment, fur reasons that seem scarcely explicable, the Government majority fell to 41.
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