THE " EDUCATION " FALLACY.

Lear session, Parliament was frightened from interposing to secure a. real education fur children in the factory districts, in place of That counterfeit " education " which they already do receive under compulsion of the law ; for children cannot be employed in cotton. factories without attending two hours a day at " school." As, however,. Government has no power of supervision over the schools, the law is evaded by a nominal compliance : children do attend at what is called " school," but for the most part they learn nothing. Parliament was moved to reject the Government project, partly because it was not very well planned, but chiefly because the seve- ral religious factions in the country were struck with fear lest, in the education of the children, the Church should obtain some opportunity of special advantage : philanthropists there are who would rather that children should remain untaught and rude, than allow them to be taught with a risk of proportionately augmenting the numbers of those in communion with the Established Church— they would sooner have hundreds of thousands in the outer dark- ness of ignorance, than so many more Church-of-England people in the country ! " Tantum " One of the most intelligent gentlemen of the Dissenting body, indeed, took a great deal of pains to prove that children in the factory districts already are "educated." Sometimes people cavil with you if you use the term "education," and say that it should include religion and moral train- ing, and other high matters. They are very indignant if you say that, sooner than have nothing of the kind, you wish children did but know how to read and write and keep accounts; so that, having the ma- terials for learning more, they might be better prepared for oppor- tunities throughout life. It is indeed very desirable to define terms ; and for the present we will confine the word "education" to the commonest and humblest elements of school learning. We should rejoice to find that the "education" which prevails in the factory districts comprises these elements. Mr. BA rNEs's ela- borate statistics supply no sufficient test. That which he adopted was the power of the scholars to read a column of the Scriptures : but the test fails, because the power of a pupil to do what is called reading a column of the Scriptures, unless the time consumed in acquiring that power, the method of teaching, and the manner of performing the exercise are stated, proves nothing. Five years may be expended in teaching a child to read a particular column, and at the end he may be unable to read any thing else. The bare fact that so many per cent in the gross number of scholars can "read a column of the Scriptures," therefore, proves nothing. A test of the quality of this boasted education is needed.

As applied to particular districts, we are furnished with a par- tial test in the annual Reports of the Factory Inspectors ; and we have no reason to believe that those districts are monstrous excep- tions to general rules. There are four Inspectors. Mr. STUART says, that in the great manufacturing-towns of Scotland—Glasgow, Paisley, Dundee, Aberdeen, and others—" the statutory provision for schools is, or almost is, a dead letter." Mr. HOWELL, in gene- ralizing terms, with many figures, gives rather a favourable account of the advance of " education " in Cheshire; but his statistics fail for the want of a test such as we have already mentioned. It is supplied, however, in the reports of Mr. LEONARD HORNER and M. SaustnEas. In Et report dated 7th July 1843, MT. HORNICL states that he had visited various places in Lancashire, Westmore- land, and Cumberland: in that district, 603 schools sent in certifi- cates of the two-hours daily attendance to 591 manufacturing firms, employing 6,872 children. The proportion of these schools is im- portant— " 117 factory schools, for 3,155 children, or about 454 per cent of the whole. By factory schools' I mean those cases in which the children are schooled within the factory, or sent to an adjoining school established by the occupier of the factory.

"367 private schools, for 2,689 children, or about 394 per cent of the whole. "These are, in general, small assemblages of children in cottages, brought together by indigent old men or old women, who nominally keep a school, they being incapable of earnings livelihood in any other way, bat without any qua- lification for teaching. "62 National Schools, for 596 children, or about 84 per cent.

"30 public schools in connexion with the Established Church, but not schools of the National Society, for 214 children, or about 3 per cent.

" 15 British Schools, for 125 children, or about 2 per cent.

"8 Public Wesleyan Schools, for 54 children, or about 4 per cent. "4 Public Roman Catholic Schools, for 39 children, or about 4 per cent." The quality of the instruction in these schools is, on the whole, of the lowest kind- " Of the 117 factory schools, 16 are good, attended by 860 children, or about 27 per cent of those educated in such schools. There are other factory schools, and some of the private achools, in which some little instruction is im arted; but in the majority of both there is a mere nominal compliance with the law, and it is an entire misapplication of the term to call such pia( es schools. The Inspectors have no power to interfere to put a stop to this discreditable mockery of education. I believe that I am understating the case to a consi- derable extent when I say, that of these 6,872 childrer, for whom certificates of school-attendance are obtained, 4,500 are getting no education whatever at these schools. Nor is the privation of instruction the only evil; these chil- dren pay a school-fee, for which they get no value in net irn : if we reckon the fee to be, on the average, 2d. a week for 48 weeks in the year, we have 8s. a year for each child ; so that 1,800/. a year is paid ly the parents without value received ; whereas this sum might, in well-cm ducted public schools, procure for these 4,500 children a very good educatior."

Mr. HORNER considers the main cause of this bad state of things to be the law which allows children to be worked for eight hours a day at any time between half-past five in the morning and half-past eight at night. But Mr. SAUNDERS'S still more specific details show other causes at work. Let us take the statistics of the scholars in the district on which he reports-

" The numbers employed under thirteen years of age who are required by the law to attend school were 8,754; and the occupiers of several silk-mills had made such arrangement of their hours of work (though not required by law to do so) as to enable 562 children employed by them to attend school during five working-days in each week ; thus making a total of 9,316 children who now attend school regularly. These are divided among the different schools, as above described, thus-

4,159 attend Private or Dame schools [including all schools conducted by teachers for their own profit.] 3,367 attend Faclory schools. 1.647 attend Church schools. 243 attend Protestant Dissenting schools.

6' The relative proportion attending each class will perhaps be better under- stood by stating, that out of every 100 scholars the numbers stand nearly as follows : 45 to Private or Dame schools; 36 to Factory schools; 10 to Church schools ; 2if to Protestant Dissenting schools.

"There are 1,576 children in silk-mills, whose employers do not make any arrangement for their attending school during the working-days."

The vast majority here attend private schools and factory schools. Now, what is the "education" in these schools ? Some private schools are better than others ; but Mr. SAUNDERS says that such specimens as the following do no injustice to four-fifths of them— "One person, who visited several, writes thus I visited the schools, and found them of a most inferior character ; the rooms frequently much too small, ill ventilated, and dirty '; and after general remarks of the same kind, and saying that many children could not spell their names, he adds, school I consider the best : it is conducted in a small clean cottage. She is a widow, and obtains her livelihood by instructing these children. This is the only school in which I found writing taught : there is a great deficiency of books.'

"And again, — band-loom weaver, has the education of 27 factory children, for which he receives 14d. each per week; and is able, Is ad- dition, to weave one piece in a fortnight, for which he is paid 3s. 6d. The chil- dren are taught in his cottage ; thc girls most emidayed in knitting, and the boys sitting with very few books among them.'" His experience teaches him that "the great majority of the factory schools (not less than two-thirds of them) are not superior to the private or dame schools as above described." We pick out the most specific description of the learning— "Another report says—' This man's wife is teacher in ordinary. The school is part of a small cottage, and contains two forms. The wife has been away three weeks ; the husband is the engine-tenter. For these three weeks the husband has pretended to teach for the wife. Has no one to help him to mind the engine, which is forty yards from the school-room. Five boys were present. They said they had read one lesson of about half a page. The mall himself was sweeping the room when I went in. First boy, 10i, could not read a word of two syllables ; second boy, 12i, could hardly read words of one syllable; third boy, 13, reads imperfectly ; fourth boy reads well ; fifth boy not at all.'

"I visited recently a factory school held in the lodge of a considerable mill, where fifty-six children are employed. When I went into the school-room, an overlooker from the mill was standing with his back to the fire, quietly enjoying himself, but taking no part in instructing the children. There were fifteen children in the room, ten boys and five girls. Two boys had books, the other eight none. Three girls were working, one had a book, and the other bad nothing. On asking for the schoolmaster, I was told he had gone into the mill to wind three cotton-warps; and the overlooker was sent to see the children did not run away. The schoolmaster, when he came, could not tell what any of the children had learned. They had been one hour and a half in school out of the required time of two hours.

"The report of another factory school for fifty children is accompanied with several pieces of newspaper, which are sent as a specimen of the only apparatus found in a school for teaching children."

The National Schools and other Church and Dissenting public schools are better : "The general character of these schools, so far as the order and discipline are concerned, is greatly superior to the best private dame-schools, and the trustees take care that there shall be school-requisites." But here the report fails in supplying a plain test. Better they had need to be ; and it is not a very sa- tisfactory token of their condition that they are in any way com- pared with the dame-schools.

Before dismissing the Reports, however, let us glance at some certificates of school-attendance ; of which Mr. SAUNDERS gives fac-simile specimens. The handwriting, of course, we cannot copy ; but it may be guessed from the spelling, with which it is on a par. Sometimes the writing is so bad as to make the spelling doubtful. The first is from a factory school; the others are from dame- schools : the pupils were in all seventy-two.

1. I do hereby certfy that my Scholars have attend 2 hours every [or evry] day during the last week" [it looks moat like meal 2. "Hi do her testify that tese Children Have itended this school doo [or too] Hours during Last Whek."

3. "These children have Atended My school 2 bowers Every day Last week."

4. "This is to certifry that these Children attends regular the School six days aweek, two hours aday " [looking like sway.]

The names in these certificates—even the Christian names—are as ill-spelled as the rest. In Number 3 we find the following- Samewel, Mary Aann, Susahana, Easter, Harorit, Hareit, Margret, Susana, Daneal. Such are the teachers!

"Such," exclaims Mr. SAUNDERS, " iS the actual state of things at the end of a period of more than nine years after the law has required factory children to attend school for at least two hours on each of six days in the week ; and it may be reasonably considered as the natural result of leaving education to voluntary exertions, (with very insufficient assistance from the State,) and to the 'natural instinct and self-interest' of parents."

Last year, Parliament was deterred from interfering by the so- called religious clamour ; and Government show a disposition to throw up the task in a pet. That were unworthy of a government ; yet the advance appears to be beset with difficulties. To leave the country in its present state would be criminal ; to attain improve- ment, some decisive and novel course seems needed. Men are at issue as to the facts,—as to the existing want, as to the thing wanted, as to its practicability, and as to the means. Sickening as the very name is, "further inquiry" appears to be indispensable ; and it would at least have the advantage of opening a way for the several parties to retreat from the false positions which have rashly been taken up. The heads of the inquiry appear to be these- 1. The actual state of" education." 2. The nature and extent of the education that would (at least in the beginning) be practicable.

3. The extent and sources of the funds that might be obtained for the purpose.

4. The best method of tuition, with a view to attaining the greatest proportionate results, as compared with the expense of money, labour, and time.

The diversified nature of the subjects of inquiry suggests the conjecture that the investigation in each branch might be separately corsducted. By commissions, would perhaps be a good way of proceeding ; the several "interests" being properly represented in the witnesses, or possibly even in the commissioners chosen. The first branch would deal solely with facts. The third would be of the nature of a disinterested canvassing, a comparing of notes on all sides, to learn what advances would be made towards the establish- ment of a neutral ground, instead of quarrelling after some one had attempted to find the ground haphazard. The second would be a peep into existing funds and into the disposition of different classes to go further. The last would be an analysis of methods existing and recommended, and still more of prin- ciples; and it would be one worthy of a great country. At present, hundreds of thousands sterling are expended on teaching what re- mains unlearned ; instructers bestow many hours a day in teaching what is not learned; pupils are fagged over lessons which are ninety- nine parts in a hundred sterile. Less than half of the two hours a day which factory children are now obliged to attend in school, would suffice with perfect ease, in a year, to teach them to read,

to write, to work common sums, and to know the rudiments of geography : they spend two hours a day for years, and learn—

nothing ! A true principle might put life even into the present abortive systems of organization ; but, for all the inquiry that there has been, the country does not yet know what ought to be done or what can be done. That must be ascertained before any one has a right to insist either on further concession or further movement.