Mr. Mundella, in moving the grant for Education on Mon-

day, gave a most admirable exposition of the growth of the Education system since 1870, of which we have said something elsewhere. Here are the figures which show the growth of the teaching apparatus, and of its actual use :—

Scholars on the

Accommodation. Register. Average Attendance.

1870 1,878,000 ..... 1,693,000 1,152,000 1874 2,872,000 2,497,000 1,679,000 1879 4,142,000 3,710,000 2,595,000

The satisfactory thing here is that the average attendance has, under the compulsory law, increased more than either the accommodation supplied or the number of scholars on the register. Mr. Mundella estimated that some 400,000 or 500,000 scholars still remain to be brought in. Mr. Mundella also thus analysed the elements of the total annual cost in 1879 of our present educational appliances for elementary schools in England and Wales (Scotland and Ireland were not included) :—

Endowments

• I • •

£136,000 Voluntary Contributions ...

• • I

... 759,000 Rates

... 636,000 School Fees... ...

... 1,372,000 Miscellaneous Sources ...

... 49,000 Parliamentary Grants ...

114.0

• I,

1,828,000 Total annual cost, in 1879...

24,775,000

About £20,000,000 had been spent in building alone by Volun- tary bodies and School Boards since 1870, of which £13,000,000 had been spent by the School Boards. Mr. Mundella also illus- trated the excellent character of the instruction given in our elementary schools by the fact that in Manchester, of 72 open scholarships to the grammar-school, 62 had been gained by boys in elementary schools, whose parents belonged to the artisan class. The whole speech was full of life and instruction.