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colleagues, and the appointment of a good Churchman as Master.

In such cases, and they are very few, the evils of School Boards are in some measure mitigated by the personal influence of the Clergyman; but in towns such cases are exceedingly rare, and even in country places the accidents of the neutralizing power for good are very precarious, and may at any time be counteracted for evil by the inherent vicious principles of the system.

Let me here quote the words of the Committee of the National Society in its Report for the present year. "Your Committee feel it their duty once again to protest against the surrender of a Church School to a School Board unless in a case of absolute necessity. A transfer, even under the most favourable circumstances, is at variance with the intentions of those who have founded the school, and with the trust on which the site is held. It deals a blow at the system of Church Schools as a whole, and by placing a School Board in possession of property it practically ensures the permanence of the Board. It is certain, too, that even where religious instruction is given under a School Board as fully as the law permits, its maintenance must be precarious, liable as it is to interruption at every triennial election. As to relative cost of Board Schools and others, it appears at the present time, taking the whole of England, the expense of maintaining a child in a Board School is £2 Is. 10d. per annum. In the British and other schools not

connected with the Church of England the cost is £1 14s. 10d., in the Church England of schools £1 13s. 10d., in the Wesleyan Schools £1 13s. od.,and in the Roman Catholic schools £1 10s. od. These figures establish the fact that the School Board scheme is far more costly than the voluntary system. But it may possibly be imagined that the former produces better results, and that the larger expenditure is therefore justified. For on applying the test-the only test possible—of the Government grants to the rival institutions, it comes to light that even in secular instruction the voluntary schools earned higher rewards last year for the proficiency of their pupils than were paid to the board schools."

It is earnestly to be hoped therefore that none among us will co-operate in the transfer of a Parochial School to a School Board; but that we shall do what we can to prevent such transfers; and we may be thankful that under the operation of the Act of 1876 the maintenance of the parochial schools has now

become more easy. In the answers to my "Visitation Queries" it is stated that the influence of the "Attendance Committees" has been very beneficial in filling our parochial schools in many cases. I regret to say that in some cases they are reported as inefficient and useless. It is greatly to be wished that in all cases the * Attendance Committee would do their duty vigilantly,

4

4 The Parochial Clergy and others interested in elementary Education in agricultural districts will bear in mind the following conditions on which Labour Certificates will be granted. In the case of every child below thirteen on 31st December, 1878, and not legally at work on 15th

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and energetically, but kindly; then there would be little reason to fear for the permanence of our Parochial Schools.

A School Board where there is no Board School has had the effect of filling Church Schools.

It appears that in England and Wales in the year ending August 31, 1878, the accommodation in Church Schools has risen from 2,171,639 to 2,252,794, being an increase of 81,155 for the year ending August 31, 1878. The average attendance has risen from 1,273,041 to 1,368,029, showing an increase of 94,988 for the year. Out of 2,405,197 children in average attendance in public Elementary Schools, 1,368,029 were in Church Schools, while 559,078 were in Board Schools; so that, according to the most recent statistics, the Church was educating two and a half times as many children as were being educated in Board Schools.

August, 1876, the conditions on which it may be certificated for going to work are :

(1) that the child is over ten years old,

(2) that since the child reached the age of five years it has made 250 attendances a year for three several civil years,

(3) that those attendances have been kept in not more than two different schools in any one year, or

(4) in lieu of (2) and (3), that the child has passed in all three of the subjects of the Third Standard.

The necessary requirements of the Third Standard are thus set forth in the Code :

"To read with intelligence a short paragraph from a more advanced reading book."

[To write] "a sentence slowly dictated once from the same book; Copy-books to be shown (small hand, capital letters, and figures)";

[To work sums in] "Long Division and Compound Addition and Subtraction (money)."

These facts are commended by the National Society to the careful attention of all who are inclined to despond on account of the difficulties which Voluntary Schools have to encounter.

It is with pleasure that I refer to your answers given to the question in my "Visitation Queries," "Have you anything to suggest as to the best means of maintaining the religious character of Parochial Schools ?" Those answers may be summarized thus—

(1) "The regular attendance of the Clergyman of the Parish at the School, to open it with prayer, and to give religious instruction." "He ought to consider it as much a duty to visit and teach in his School as to visit the Sick of his Parish, or to preach in his Church."

Also (2) the "regular discharge of his duty in giving religious instruction to his pupil teachers."

(3) His "making much of the visit of the Diocesan Inspector."

(4) "His paying attention to the secular instruction also."

(5) "His doing all in his power to give efficiency to his Sunday School."

We have much reason to be thankful for the results of our system of Diocesan Inspection under our excellent Inspectors-in-Chief, one for Lincolnshire, the other for Nottinghamshire, and nearly fifty local Inspectors.

In Lincolnshire the number of Church Day Schools inspected in 1878 by Diocesan Inspectors was 394; in Notts it was 227.

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As to quality, the religious knowledge in the Lincolnshire Schools was reported as

In both Counties the total number of children withdrawn from religious instruction was only 12; a conclusive proof that the religious teaching of the Church of England is not unacceptable to the people.

It has recently been decided by the Education Department that a dissenting local preacher may act as a teacher in an Elementary school, and will be recognized by the Department as such a deacon of the Church of England will not be so recognized : but a lay reader will. This seems to be a reason for increasing the number of our lay readers; and for encouraging our schoolmasters to undertake that office.

It ought to be recorded that the National Society has voted us an annual grant toward the expenses of Diocesan Inspection: and that we have received two

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