It however became soon evident that the gentry and clergy of North Wales desired to provide a Training School within that division of the Principality; and the work of training having been entered upon at Carnarvon, grants have for several years been made from the Welsh Education Fund in aid of the institution at that place. Those grants have for some time amounted to 350l. yearly, and a sum of 2000l. has been set apart by the Welsh Education Committee as a fund to aid in providing suitable buildings, to acquire which, the Committee are informed, a treaty is now in progress.

With a view to encourage the resort of students to Carmarthen, the terms of admission were fixed at twenty guineas, to include washing, as well as board, lodging, and education; and by means of exhibitions, liberally awarded to deserving students, a large portion of the fees, which would otherwise be payable by their friends, has been contributed for them. Nevertheless, the number of students who have availed themselves of the advantages thus offered has not equalled the expectations of the Welsh Education Committee; the greatest number in any year having been 39, the smallest number 31, and the average of six years 34. The entire expense of the institution averaged, during the five years ending Lady-day 1854, 507.; and amounted for the year ending Lady-day 1855, to 607. for each student; and the estimate of the Principal for the current year amounts to 70l. for each student. The payments from the Welsh Education Fund (exclusive of the sums contributed from the exhibitions, and applied in reduction of the charges to students) have amounted on an average of each year to 7001. up to Lady-day 1854, and to more than 9507. for the year ending Lady-day 1855; while the estimated demand on that fund for the current year is 10757. for thirty students.

The fund, which originally amounted to 25007. in yearly subscriptions, having been reduced, in some instances by the death of members, and in others by the discontinuance of subscriptions, may now be estimated at 16507., of which one-half should be regarded as applicable to South Wales; and after providing for the organisation of schools and other miscellaneous objects, not more than 6007. of the current subscriptions to the fund can be fitly appropriated in training teachers at Carmarthen. Were the necessity of economy less urgent than it is, an expenditure of 70%., or even 607. a year, in training the future teachers of the schools for the poor in the Principality, cannot be justified. It appears that the entire sum paid by 32 students for board, lodging, washing, and education, in the year ending Lady-day last, was 1917. 13s., or less than 67. each; and the entire cost of the establishment, after allowing for that payment, has been provided by the Welsh Education Committee (partly from the Education Fund, and partly from the Exhibition Fund), and by the Committee of Council on Education.

In order to assimilate the salaries of the Masters of the Institution at Carmarthen to the scale of income which is enjoyed by the more intelligent and best remunerated of the clergy of South Wales, it was intended that the stipend of the Principal should not exceed 250l. a-year, with a residence; and that the aggregate salaries of the teachers should be limited to a sum below 400%., until the number of the students might render an increase of Masters necessary.

The intention of the Committee to confine the salaries of the officers

within those limits was departed from in order to obtain the services of a gentleman as Principal who had already enjoyed several years' experience in the conduct of a Training Institution, and with whom arrangements were made for the domestic management of the establishment calculated to insure steady and economical results. And the salaries of the officers, under the arrangements actually made, have averaged 650l. a-year, viz. the Principal 400l., and a residence free of rent and taxes; the VicePrincipal, 1007.; other officers, 150.

The Principal has hitherto provided food and washing for the students, board for the officers, and has maintained the servants, under agreements limiting a fixed price for each student, varying with the numbers. These arrangements have been found embarrassing; and financial questions have arisen which did not admit of satisfactory solution. The principle of contracting with the Principal is doubtless objectionable; but the difficulty of conducting the details of a Training School without any local Council, responsible for the expenditure and willing to accept a fixed allowance for carrying on the establishment, must be regarded as the motive for the arrangement.

The difficulty of adjusting the financial relations of the Principal with the Committee led during the past year to endeavours, which were unsuccessful, to provide a local Council; and the necessity for enforcing considerable reductions in the cost of the establishment has induced the Committee to determine the engagement of the Principal. But in taking that step, they readily acknowledged the zeal and ability with which he had discharged his duties as a teacher.

It has been made a matter of complaint by the Rev. Henry Longue ville Jones, one of her Majesty's Inspectors of Schools, in a communication addressed by him, on the 30th March last, to the Committee of Council on Education, that although the Training School at Carmarthen contains 60 beds, which is more than sufficient for all Welsh students, yet that students and Queen's Scholars from Welsh Schools have been allowed to go to English Training Schools; while students to fill up the vacancies have been sent down from English Schools; and that the Welsh Education Committee have not supported their own Training School in the manner the country expected.

Her Majesty's Inspector of Schools ought to have known that the Welsh Education Committee have no control over students from Welsh or English Schools, whether Queen's Scholars or not; and that all such students are at full liberty to select the Training Institution to which they will proceed, whether in Wales or in England. Nor can that gentleman have been ignorant of the special encouragement held out to students to proceed to Carmarthen, first by reason of the moderate charges made there for maintenance; next through the liberal exhibitions distributed to students, which have amounted yearly on an average of the last five years to 2701.; and lastly by the large contribution made from the funds at their disposal for the support of the establishment.

Adverting to the various considerations already enumerated, and especially to the necessity of enforcing all practicable economy in the conduct of the Institution, whereby alone the expenditure of the Committee can be reduced to the amount of income applicable to training in South Wales, the Sub-Committee recommend:

First.

RESOLUTIONS.

That the salaries of the masters be reduced to such sums as will not exceed in the aggregate 4007.

Secondly. That the practice which has hitherto prevailed of contracting with the Principal for the board and washing of the students be discontinued.

Thirdly. That the domestic management be intrusted to a matron with a suitable salary.

Fourthly. That the Committee of the National Society be requested to allow the Rev. Alexander Wilson, Superintendent of the Westminster Training Institution, to proceed to Carmarthen at the termination of their engagement with the present Principal, and 1st, to undertake, in conjunction with the present Vice-Principal and assistant-master, the temporary charge of the Training School; and 2dly, to organise suitable arrangements for the future conduct and maintenance of the establishment.

Fifthly. That in consideration of the unavoidable shortness of the notice given by the Committee to the Principal to determine his engagement with them, the sum of 1007., being one quarter's salary, be presented to him by the Committee.

Diocese of Durham.

DURHAM DIOCESAN SOCIETY.

The Report of this Society enumerates the several schools which it has assisted during the past year, amounting to 1057. in building schools in four places; 861. towards 'the support of eighteen schools; and 257. in aid of the expenses of the Training School. The subscriptions to the Society amount to 2317. 10s. 8d., including 667. 16s. 8d., the County School Fund. The Report further adds:

"For what has been done by this Society for Church of England education in this diocese from the time of its institution, the Committee would call the attention of its friends to the accounts published at the end of this Report; in these appear the several schools which have at various times benefited by this Society, amounting to more than 200, and some of which have received 10, 12, 14, and upwards of 20 grants in aid; and, moreover, that the Society has contributed between nine and ten thousand pounds towards the promotion of sound Scriptural instruction amongst the poor in this diocese. The increasing population of these counties require increasing exertions on the part of the friends of the Church; there yet remains in many populous districts a deplorable deficiency as to Church schools; the parish of Kelloe may be mentioned, in which there has been for years a large population, and no Church school, with the exception of a girls' school recently established; also the district of St. John's, Darlington, exceedingly poor, with a population of 3500, and no Church-of-England school; these two are very urgent cases, and many others might be mentioned in different parts of the diocese. This Society would be glad to contribute largely to aid such cases had they more money and means; the Committee, therefore, would earnestly ask for more extensive support."

DURHAM DIOCESAN TRAINING SCHOOL.

The Annual Report of this Training School states that nineteen pupils were admitted into training, and ten sent out to schools during the past year, and that at the end of the year there were thirty pupils in residence.

"The examination held in December 1853, resulted in the award of certificates to sixteen pupils. This was the second occasion when every candidate presented for examination succeeded in gaining a certificate of merit. At the examination recently held (Christmas 1854) twenty-three students were presented as candidates; but the result has not yet been made known. The new dormitory, kitchens, &c., have this year been completed, at a cost of 11071. 18s. 74d.; towards which the Privy Council has contributed 450l., and the National Society 1107.

The Report also states, that the applications for masters have amounted to fifty-six in the year, while the institution has been able to supply only ten. Under these circumstances, a further extension of the accommodation may be called for, when it is found practicable to secure a good supply of eligible candidates for admission into training, and an increased measure of support for carrying on the institution on an enlarged scale.

Chester Diocesan Board.

The Report of this Board states, that while many subjects of great social importance must necessarily give way to the exigences of the war, the Education question is one of such vital interest that it cannot be safely overlooked; and a hope is fervently expressed that the deliberations of Parliament may be brought to a successful result.

The Board has advanced the cause of education in the most effectual way by supplying a better qualified class of teachers, in accordance with the plan set forth by the National Society in 1838-39, and it has cordially united with the Committee of Council to produce this result. In very many instances the mission of the teacher has been more fully realised; and it is gratifying to observe that higher qualifications have made an improvement in the rate of payment for his services.

"The great difficulty, however, which in the experience of the Board, and of those who are most practically acquainted with the subject of education, has to be grappled with, is to induce the parents to forego the present advantage to be gained by the labour of their children, and to allow them the necessary period for something more than those miserable elements of knowledge, which are all that can be gathered at present in a few broken months of schooling. Neither the improved quality of the education imparted, nor yet the entire relaxation of fees, has hitherto, it must be confessed, been sufficient inducement to persuade these to make the needful sacrifice.

"The institutions of the Board at Chester and Warrington have carried on their work with success during the past year. The number of students sent out from the former has been thirteen; the numbers now in residence are 35, of whom 16 are Queen's Scholars. It is evident that the number of these, compared with the ordinary pupils, must become every year greater; and if the pupil-teachers have diligently improved, as they ought to have done, the term of their apprenticeship, the best results may be augured from their reception. It is, however, most desirable that an opening should still be afforded to those who have turned their thoughts to the calling of a schoolmaster at a somewhat later period of life, and are preparing themselves for their duties with an energy which will often compensate for early disadvantages; and it is, therefore, with great satisfaction that the Board welcomes the encouragement given to this class by the recent Minute of Council, which affords the privilege to students above twenty years of age, after a residence of one year, of competing for a Queen's Scholarship, and of obtaining, if successful, all the benefits attached to it. The increased requirements now made from the students in scientific knowledge, have led the Board to take measures for an addition to the present buildings, by which a more convenient and better-arranged laboratory, with all the needful apparatus, will be obtained; and very liberal assistance has been promised by the Committee of Council towards this object. Twenty-one students were presented at the examination held at Christmas, and the Board has learnt with satisfaction that twenty of these obtained certificates of merit.

"The number of pupils in training as schoolmistresses at Warrington is 72; being a larger number than at any former period, and indeed occupying the whole accommodation provided. But what is still more satisfactory, the proficiency of the pupils on entrance is found now to be greatly in advance of what it was formerly, and gives hope that the advantages of this preparatory season of mental and moral discipline will be more completely realised. The result of the Christmas examination is gratifying 51 were presented, and of these 35 gained certificates of merit; 23 have been appointed to schools during the year.

"The house appropriated by the Clergy, Widows, and Orphans Institution for the residence of the clerical principal has been completed since last year; and the institution has now the advantage of his constant supervision. It may also be mentioned, that by the liberality of a deceased friend to education, two cottages of a superior class have been made over to the Training School; the rents of which, after a sum of money has been paid by the Board to defray the remaining expenses of building, will be devoted to the general purposes of the school."

The dearness of provisions has caused an increased expenditure for the Institutions. A falling-off in the amount of subscriptions is noticed, and a hope expressed that the claims of the Board on the friends of education, and the clergy especially, will not be overlooked.

The services of the late revered Chancellor of Chester are eulogised, and it is stated that scholarships are to be founded at the Chester Training College as a memorial. The elevation to the bishopric of Sodor and Man of the Hon. and Rev. Horace Powys is noticed, with "grateful recollections" of his "active labours and unwearied energy" on behalf of the Board.

The Report closes with

"The hope that they who remain to carry on the work may be animated to increased exertion by the bright example which has been left them; and that the Divine blessing may rest upon its efforts, to diminish that mass of ignorance and crime which tarnishes our national character, and saps the foundation of our national well-being and happiness."

Diocese of Exeter.

LISKEARD LOCAL BOARD.

Broadoak Rectory, Lostwithiel, Cornwall, June 18, 1855. REV. SIR, I am desired by the Liskeard Local Board of Education to forward to you a copy of a resolution adopted at their Quarterly Meeting, this day:

"That this Board do express to the National Society their thanks for the services of Mr. Flint, their Organising Master in this district, and their deep sense of the able and efficient manner in which he has fulfilled his work; they only regret that circumstances should have deprived them of his services at an earlier period than they had hoped."

Mr. Flint having been absent from our district some months in the past year, on account of engagements at Lichfield and Guernsey, and private causes, we have not had the advantage of his aid for twelve months as we had desired, inasmuch as he has now accepted a permanent engagement in the diocese of Lichfield. His great usefulness

amongst us makes us regret this especially; and we should gladly have retained him for some months longer.

I know of no plan which is more conducive to the advancement of Education than this of efficient Organising Masters, and it is with great regret on the part of the clergy and teachers that we have parted with one so able, and on all points so satisfactory, as Mr. Flint.

I enclose his report, which is valuable; and I would suggest the propriety of your desiring its insertion in the Society's Monthly Paper,—I am, &c.

ARTHUR TATHAM,

Hon. Sec. of the Liskeard Local Board.

The Rev. the Secretary of the National Society.
MR. FLINT'S REPORT.

May 29th, 1855.

REV. AND DEAR SIRS,-I beg to submit, in accordance with your wishes, a brief report on my work in the district of the Liskeard Board of Education, diocese of Exeter.

I commenced my duties in May 1854, and since that time have visited twenty-nine schools. Of this number five were for girls, five for boys, seventeen were mixed schools, and two were for infants. My duties have been interrupted twice by necessary absences from the county.

The observations which I have to make may be arranged under the three heads, Discipline, Routine, and Instruction; and refer to what I have done, and to what I would suggest for the future, rather than to the state of each individual school. My duties, as you are aware, have been those of an organising master, not of an inspector.

Discipline. This stands before instruction in importance. A child may and often does get a considerable amount of mental training after he leaves school. Much information falls to his lot incidentally, and in many ways his powers of observation and his inventive faculties are called into play and developed. The same can hardly be asserted of those habits of order, punctuality, prompt obedience, vigilance, and cleanliness, on which so much depends. The foundation of these must be laid in childhood, and the perfecting of them belongs to the duties of maturer age. I found twelve schools commendable in point of discipline. On the whole I should say it was the weak point in the schools of the district. In many of them there was much unnecessary talking; too many classes were engaged at the same time in noisy lessons; in others the pupils were often left sitting without any definite work, and in consequence found talking a relief; the teacher's voice was too frequently heard, and was too loud. In some schools there appeared to be no rules for changing lessons, for moving classes from place to place in the school-room, for distributing, collecting, and putting away books and materials; and in others there were no signals for any thing. I need scarcely say that in such cases the task of giving instruction must be attended with considerable difficulties. To remedy these defects, I generally found it necessary to make a re-arrangement of desks and benches, to draw up new time-tables, to lay down rules for the minutiae of school-work; and in most cases, with the consent of the teacher, to take the entire direction of the school myself for four days, resigning it into the hands of the teacher again on the last day of my stay. I believe my plans will be continued.

Good discipline is certainly a very scarce thing: most persons connected with schools appear to desire it, and few fail to consider the art of gaining it a mystery. If it be a mystery, it may, I think, be reduced to two simple principles―(1) Silence, (2) Rules. By the former I mean that children should be made at various times during the day, especially at the changes of the lessons, to stand or sit for a minute or two in perfect silence, always to speak a little above a whisper, and that the teacher himself should speak as seldom as possible and in a subdued tone. Silence is perhaps the most potent instrument for gaining discipline which one can use in a school. The advice of Jean Paul Richter has as much wisdom in it as antethesis: "As in amusing children you cannot say too much, in teaching or reprimanding them you can hardly say too little." By rules, I mean that they should be laid down for every part of the school-work as the distinct economy of the school. A working school cannot be a silent one, it is true; but the murmur of industry which pervades a room as you suddenly enter it strikes you at once as being something infinitely more indicative of progress than harsh loud voices and noisy movements. The teacher's voice especially should be spared as much as possible. Even in drilling a school, signals to be heard by the pupils are better than verbal commands. In short, a teacher should be a man of few words.

Routine. This, as regulated by the time-tables, appeared to me to be good in eighteen schools out of the twenty-nine, and fair in about three. The points to be observed in drawing up and working a time-table are, (1) to use as few monitors as possible, because by employing many of these the first class is broken into considerably and an inferior description of teaching is introduced; (2) to keep every class constantly employed; and (3) to reserve the most important lessons in the upper and lower classes as the teacher's work. Classes engaged in writing from a copy, committing to memory or working examples in arithmetic from small books, may frequently be left without monitorial superintendence, provided the teacher looks over such work as the time for changing lessons approaches. As regards

*That is to say, schools at the following places: Torpoint, Maker, Antony, Hessen ford, Devyocke, Merrifield, Tideford, Menheniot, Merryineet, Cardinham, Altarnun, Lancast, Lezant, Callington, St. Stephen's, Duloe, Heradsfoot, Morval, Pelynt, St. Veep, Lanreath, and Broadoak.