schools was so well-known as to need no description from him. He then called upon the secretary, Mr. Charles Cross, to read the report.

The report contained the financial statement, by which it appeared that the funds of the institution were in a very satisfactory condition, owing principally to the large amount contributed by the boys and girls as school fees. The various departments of the school were described in detail, among others a most useful clothing club, mainly supported by the Baroness Rothschild. The efficiency of the instruction and the devoted attention of the master and mistress (Mr. Crampton and Miss Smith) were eulogised, and also the high position that several of the pupil-teachers had attained as Queen's scholars.

Mr. ROBERT HANBURY, M.P., in the course of his speech, congratulated the promoters of the school, those who had been engaged in the work from the first to last, on being able to raise a suitable and commodious building in so short a time. He happened to be present when the first stone was laid, and the building appeared almost to have risen by magic. It was, indeed, most suitable for the purposes for which it was designed. That was not only the case, but the finances were in a very satisfactory state; therefore the subscribers not only saw a very commodious building, but everything related to it was paid for, and he only trusted that every institution in the proceedings of which he had taken any part would find their funds in a similar satisfactory condition. Such a state of things spoke well for the people of Brentford, who, by their liberality, not only raised an excellent building, but had the good sense to pay for it. With respect to an unsectarian education, he believed that it ought to prevail; and, although there might be considerable points of difference between Christians, they were rapidly disappearing, and he hoped they would soon melt away. For his part, he was for giving the utmost freedom to every section of the Christian church; but with regard to schools for the education of the people, that was too important a subject to be dealt with in a sectarian spirit. It behoved them as Christians to join heart and hand, and not to rest satisfied until they had driven ignorance from the land. He rejoiced that on that day they had so many opportunities of meeting together, not for the purpose of debating the different systems of education, but to ascertain the progress which they had made towards that great object. He agreed and sympathised with all who desired to spread education among the people, but he contended that they should not stop to see upon what they differed, but as to how much they could agree upon; and, therefore, most gladly join in any movement which would tend to improve the education and elevate the people in the scale of society. No doubt some of them had seen with surprise a statement that it was the intention of the Government to alter the Privy Council grants for education; and, although he did not know whether the alteration would take place, still, as Members of Parliament, they ought to be prepared to meet such a difficulty. For his part he approved of the present system of education, and, although some might think they did not go fast enough, yet, on the whole, he thought they ought to be satisfied with the system of education as carried on by the Government at the present time. If the Government grants were withdrawn, he believed that the result would be altogether to check the efforts which were now made by the voluntary system; and he would put it to them, supposing the Government had undertaken the education of the people, the means being produced by rates in aid, did they believe that they would have had a school erected in the short time that had been in which they were then assembled ? 1n these schools the pure and unadulterated word of God, as contained in the Bible, was fully carried out; and if education was not based on the Word of God, he believed it would confer no advantage on the people. Education without religion was like a sharp instrument in the hands of children--it would be dangerous to themselves, but it would be more dangerous to those with whom they might come in contact. He was happy to say that God's Word was heard within those walls, and each day they felt strongly the benefits enjoyed by the people in giving them the advantage of a religious education. He should have to address them again in the evening; and therefore he would not now enlarge on the subject of education, but would merely say that he had attended the congress lately held at Glasgow, and he there found the working classes deeply interested in the subject of education, as no less than 40,000 applications were made for tickets of admission to the discussion, which showed the interest the working classes felt in the subject. As to the danger of educating the people, he believed that in their education was to be found the only safeguard of this country. As it was with the human body, no part of it could be

injured without affecting the rest, so it was with the body politic; for what was for the benefit of one part by the diffusion of education, must prove for the benefit of the body at large. He could only say that he believed these schools would be attended with the most beneficial consquences, and that they would have reason to bless the day when they remembered the opening of these schools.

Lord ENFIELD, M.P., said he had great pleasure in being present that day. As a matter of local interest, he had felt it to be his duty to attend, and he was most happy to find that the efforts of the promoters of these schools had been crowned with success, as well as the efforts which had been made for the extension of unsectarian education. He was reminded of the remarks of a late divine, who said that there could not be a more touching, and at the same time a more melancholy spectacle, than on a fine sunshiny day to see a blind man groping his way, and unable to participate in the glorious blessings of the light of the sun; but it was still more melancholy to see men groping their way in a state of moral darkness, and this it was their duty to remove and dispel by every means in their power.

The Rev. E. MUSCUTT, who had taken the initiative in establishing the old schools in 1834, then addressed the meeting, and gave interesting details of the difficulties that had attended the early steps, to which the present state of the institution formed so gratifying a contrast. He believed that sectarian education was not only generally impracticable, but that it never could succeed, as it involved so flagrant a violation of the rights of conscience. He cheerfully admitted the good that had been effected by Government aid, which he should like to see extended, and in nowise diminished. The work was going on well, and he hoped it would be more and more supported. Mr. CROSS then proposed the thanks and the confidence of the meeting to Mr. Crampton, the master, and Miss Smith, the mistress, whose lengthened and important services were most enthusiastically acknowledged.

Mr. CRAMPTON, in returning thanks, remarked that he had been treated with continued courtesy and kindness from the period when he undertook the charge of the schools. He expressed his satisfaction with the working of the Government aids, stating that there had been not the slightest attempt at interference on the part of her Majesty's Inspectors, but that their suggestions had always been proffered in the kindest and most respectful manner. He believed that it was the peculiar and solemn duty of the parent to give a particular doctrinal bias to the child's mind, and therefore he disdained to violate the rights of conscience of any of the pupils committed to his charge. Much as he valued religious and scriptural instruction, he would never be a party for perverting education to a system of proselytism. acknowledged that his aim was to make the scholars gentlemen, in the true sense of the term, gentle, kind, loving, and truthful. He further acknowledged the cordial support he had received from the committee, the parents, and the public generally. The meeting then adjourned to the Town-hall, where an excellent dinner was provided.

He

GRAMMATICAL NOTES.

(From a Correspondent.)

1. THE rule given in some grammar-books, that "the passives of the verbs denoting teaching, telling, &c., are followed by an objective," though true (as far as it goes), is faulty on two grounds; first, as failing to show how this governing power of the passive is derived from the active; and secondly, as being only a particular and very limited case of a general and very widely applicable rule, which may be enunciated thus:-"Verbs which, in the active, govern two objectives, retain one in the passive."

N.B. 1.-Any such verb may govern both nouns, either directly, by its own force, so to say; as, "The master teaches me (2) grammar (1);" or it may govern one directly, and the other indirectly, by the aid of a preposition; as, "The pieman sells three pies (1) for sixpence (2).

2. When a verb of the first kind just mentioned is turned into the passive, it is generally a matter of indifference which of the objectives is made nominative.

We can say either, "I am taught grammar by the master;" or, taught me by the master."

“Grammar is

3. But with a verb of the second kind, only the direct object of the active can become the nominative of the passive. We can only say, for example, "Three pies are sold for sixpence." If we wish to make the remoter object into a nominative, we must substitute a correlative verb; as, "Sixpence is given for three pies."

II. I have not yet met with a young person who could properly analyse the well-known passage of Milton's Paradise Lost, Book V., commencing, "These are thy glorious works," &c. The main reason I believe to be, that, as commonly printed, the punctuation of the passage is extremely defective and misleading. I have examined Hayley's folio edition, the Aldine, Newton's quarto of 1749, and the great critic (and mutilator) Bentley's, of 1732, which all slavishly follow the edition of 1699,* where the passage is pointed thus:

"These are thy glorious works, Parent of Good,
Almighty, thine this universal frame,

Thus wondrous fair; thyself how wondrous then!
Unspeakable, who," &c.

which, in some books of extracts, is still further improved by notes of admiration, after "good," Almighty," and "Unspeakable." Here then we observe, (1.) "Parent of Good" is separated from " Almighty," and each is liable to be treated as a vocative, or nominative of address. (2.)" Thyself how wondrous then!" is also a separate exclamation, and consequently "Unspeakable" must be treated as another vocative.

Now it is quite impossible that Milton could have intended four feeble exclamations to follow so close on one another, and to break up so awkwardly the fine flow of his verse; to say nothing of the questionable meaning of "Unspeakable," when thus treated, since no person or existence can be "speakable." But point the passage thus:

"These are thy glorious works, Parent of Good,
Almighty! Thine this universal frame

Thus wondrous fair; thyself how wondrous then
Unspeakable!"

Here, (1.) "Almighty" becomes a simple adjective to "Parent of Good;” i.e., "Almighty Parent of Good,” and gives the verse a truly Miltonic turn. (2.) " Unspeakable," becomes the predicative to a noun subject sentence, the copula is being understood:

"How-wondrous-thou-thyself-art then" is "Unspeakable."

By this, too, is the verse improved; the voice rises with expectant force to the word then, and descends forcibly upon unspeakable. And so also is the sense; for it is now a certain notion that is said to be inexpressible.

III. Teachers located in the provinces must often still observe the limited action of formative processes which they may have imagined to belong to an earlier stage of language, and to be now extinct. A curious case of the formation of a patronymic has come under my own observation. There lived recently, in a large villlage, an old man whose real name was M- ; but being by trade a well-known vendor of crockery, in that place commonly called "pots," he came to be gradually and at last almost uniformly spoken of by the name of Potter. In old times this name would have adhered to him and his descendants for ever. But he happened to have

a little boy, whom he sent to a British School, and who, being asked his name, furnished two names as of equal value,—the priority of the one being in his opinion counterbalanced by the more general use of the other. The teacher, however, was

* Though this edition was published before Milton's death, the mere fact of his blindness would render it of no special authority in the pointing.

not of this opinion, and the use of his real name in school will restore him that precious birth-right. Again, I have my eye on certain words which under other conditions would have had to be put down among what Latham calls, "Words of foreign origin which simulate a vernacular one." "Telegraph," for instance, I commonly hear pronounced " tally-graft;" and an aqueduct for a canal having been carried over a gully in my neighbourhood, I have heard the untaught natives call it "the agger-dock," or "agger-duck." The confusion of notions giving rise to tally, and dock or duck (as in ducking under), is easily conceivable; and if these words had yet to work their way into general use from a limited and provincial one, they would appear (especially if society were in a ruder state) in some such forms as the above, and would no doubt breed fictitious etymologies. Dukinfield.

T. D.

SCHOOL DISCIPLINE.

We take an extract or two from an interesting paper read by Mr. Edmed, Head Master of the Asylum for Fatherless Children, at the last quarterly meeting of the British Teachers' Association at the Borough Road.

I. A school, like any well-regulated business, should have its code of regulations, bye-laws and maxims, which should be either written in a book, accessible to all, or, like the bye-laws of a railway, be suspended in sight. Every school has its regulations, but they are often capricious and uncertain, and from not being written, frequently fall into desuetude from sheer forgetfulness on the part, perhaps, of both master and children. These regulations should be definite and unmistakeable, and as few as possible, but such as they are should be invariably and rigidly enforced. I should regard it as very odious to be thought a severe master, but without severity in the treatment of our pupils we may be rigid in demanding implicit and perfect obedience to the general, I might say constitutional laws which are deemed necessary for the order and success of the school-not knowing such a thing as a little sin against them, not conniving at little deviations which, if allowed, would speedily sap the foundations of the whole and render them worse than useless. I think it is one of the secrets of success in well-governed schools to be thus particular in demanding complete fulfilment in every little way of one's regulations. Having sometimes advanced this opinion, I have been met with the objection that if one were thus observant of little offences and defections, they would have time for nothing else but attend to them; but I am sure this is a great mistake.

II. The master of a school must always himself submit to his own regulations. The harness of discipline is always ready to be thrown off by the boys, and should they discover, as they would be quick to do, that the master is by neglect or caprice violating his own laws, they will immediately decide that he has but little, if any, regard for them, and will, therefore, soon indulge in the same license. If there are rules, as there must be, in the school, they must invariably be respected alike by the master and by those under him; and many a teacher has to toil miserably, and distractedly, or in an ill-governed school, simply because he himself is the most disobedient and disorderly person in it. To illustrate my meaning, here let me suppose that a teacher makes a rule against needless talking, and, detecting a boy in transgressing, orders him to write the rule upon his slate a hundred times after school, and then neglects his own part of the business, namely, to take care that it is done. In such a case, where is the use of the rule, and why is it useless, but from the master's own lack of sufficient respect for it? Let a rule be made, it becomes as implicitly the duty of a master to see to its being carried out, as it is that of the pupil to do it; and in proportion as the master is thus vigilant and attentive to his

own regulations, will be the respect shown them by others. This is how it is that the character of a master may be judged by his schood. A disorderly school has a disorderly master, who is either so from dilatoriness or lack of energy, or for want of sufficient firmness to enforce what he deems requisite and orders to be observed. III. PUNISHMENT.-But after all has been done by moral suasion that can be done, there will, I believe, still remain in some such bad habits and propensities— such tendencies to breach of law and discipline-as will prove subversive of the order of the school, and as, if allowed to manifest themselves with impunity, will be entirely destructive to the moral health of the school. And with such cases I hold. that it would be not more practicable to deal without coercion or punishment, than it would be with offenders against the law in society in general.

We admit that we should be as sparing of it as possible, that the offender should be pitied, that there should be nothing of mere vengeance in dealing with him, and that the young offender especially, whose moral character and habit is not settled, and who, when it is, is not half so responsible for. it as those who have trained him, should be as patiently, tenderly and mercifully dealt with as is prudent; that, as Christians, we had better always err on the side of charity and forgiveness, and that, in following the "course of justice," we should "remember mercy." Yet, after all, we must punish; we must sometimes, for the preservation of order; for the reformation of the offender, or for the prevention of his example influencing and our forgiveness encouraging others to commit offences, appeal to the natural and strong feeling of fear which is planted in our moral nature to warn us from evil, like the nerves of sensation in our bodies to warn and restrain us from physical harm.

I have said the object of punishment is either for the reformation of the offenders, or to restrain, by fear, others from following their example. Had we simply to do with the offender, the necessity for punishment would, doubtless, be vastly diminished. How often could the judge conclude from circumstances that a prisoner was not likely, if forgiven, ever to repeat his offence? How often would he, if it were not an inexorable necessity to punish, pass by the transgression of some penitent offender who had been led into temptation? So with the schoolmaster and his little trespassers; many a time he feels they could be let off safely, but he has a school of boys watching the case, amongst whom are some who would only be too happy to do wrong, in some cases, if nothing worse were to come than being found out, perhaps, and if forgiveness was certain.

SYLLABUS OF SUBJECTS

FOR THE EXAMINATION FOR CERTIFICATES IN DECEMBER 1861. ONLY one or two items of any importance distinguish the curriculum prescribed for the next examination from that of last Christmas. In regard to the subjects which vary from year to year the English Language and Geography-the following are the arrangements for December, 1861:

--

FIRST YEAR.-English Grammar.--The passages for analysis, paraphrase, &c. will be taken from Warren's Blackstone, the Chapter on Wills; or Herschel's Discourse on Natural Philosophy, Part II., chap. ii., (§ 76-§ 86.)

Geography. To be able to describe and draw the map of the four quarters of the globe, and the map of each country in Europe.

To answer general questions on the physical, political, and commercial gecgraphy of one quarter of the globe-Europe.

SECOND YEAR.-English Grammar.-The exercises on language will be founded on either Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice, or Milton's Paradise Lost, Book II.