ment to the perusal of our readers. With a view to the unhappy controversy, of which we shall be compelled to take notice in the sequel, we would request their particular attention to the 10th and 11th of these resolutions. For On the Motion of the Marquis of Lansdowne, seconded by • Resolved, 5th, That the respectful thanks of this Meeting be presented to his Royal Highness the Duke of Kent, whose friendship to soldiers' children has been shown in that princely liberality with which his Royal Highness has established a school in the Royals, as Colonel of that regiment, and set an example which, it is hoped, will be universally followed by Military Commanders, and thereby promote the welfare, and do honour to the character of the British army. That the thanks of this Meeting be presented to LieutenantColonel M'Leod, and the Officers of the 4th battalion of the Royals, for the zeal and benevolence with which they have superintended a Royal Lancasterian School in that Regiment. • That his Royal Highness the Duke of Kent be respectfully requested to communicate the same. • On the Motion of the Duke of Kent, and seconded by the Duke of Sussex, Resolved, 6th, That the respectful thanks of this Meeting be presented to his Royal Highness the Duke of Gloucester, for the zeal he has manifested in promoting the Lancasterian System of E. ducation, and particularly for placing a number of the youth of his regiment under this excellent mode of instruction. • On the Motion of the Duke of Kent, seconded by the Duke of Sussex, Resolved, 7th, That the disinterestedness of Mr Lancaster, in inventing and carrying into effect the Royal Lancasterian System of Education, merits the approbation and support of the Empire; and that the thanks of this Meeting be presented to him for the same. 'On the Motion of his Royal Highness the Duke of Kent, seconded by his Royal Highness the Duke of Sussex, Resolved, 8th, That by a Report presented to this Meeting, it appears that, during the last four years, Mr Lancaster has taken numerous journeys to diffuse a knowledge of his plan in the country; that he has, at considerable personal expense, travelled near 7000 miles, lectured 140 times to different audiences, consisting of near 50,000 persons, in which he has given such an impetus to public benevolence, that more than 25,000 children have been provided with instruction, and many thousand pounds have been raised for building and fitting up schoolrooms, and supporting schools; for all which beneficial exertions, he ought to be considered a public be. For the purpose of giving still greater publicity to the institution, a public dinner of its friends was soon after held, at which the Duke of Kent presided, and was supported by the Dukes of Sussex and Gloucester. At this meeting the Prince Regent's nefactor, and is entitled to the thanks and support of the nation in general. On the motion of Wm. Smith esq. M. P. Resolved, 9th, That the thanks of this Meeting are hereby giv en to the Mayors, Magistrates, Clergy, and Gentry, of those Cities and Towns in England and Scotland, who have contributed to the extension of the Royal British System of Education, by granting to Mr Lancaster the use of their Town Guild, or County Halls, for the purpose of detailing the particulars of his plan; and that the Magistrates of Stirling be particularly distinguished, who permitted their Guild Hall to be used as a temporary school-room for the military quartered there. On the motion of Francis Horner esq. M. P. • Resolved, 10th, That the moral effects of the Royal British System of Education are apparent, from the important fact, that of full 7000 children who have been instructed at the Royal Free School, Borough Road, no instance has been known of any one of these having been charged with any criminal offence in any court of justice. On the motion of E. W. Bootle esq. M. P. Resolved, 11th, That the fact publicly stated by Mr Lancaster, that of the 7000 children educated at the Borough Road by him, no one of them has been made a proselyte to his peculiar religious opinions, affords a gratifying proof, that every religious denomination may cordially unite in the education of the poor, upon the broad and liberal basis of this Institution. On the motion of the Hon. James Abercromby, M. P. Resolved, 12th, That the energies of the Royal British or Lancasterian System, in developing the talents, and eliciting the faculties of youth, for their own and their country's good, have been remarkably displayed in several boys of not more than 13 or 14 years of age, having superintended the Borough Road and other schools, with as much facility as the master himself. On the motion of Henry Brougham esq. M. P. Resolved, 13th, That in order to extend the benefits of the Royal British System of Education to all parts of the empire, and to render it, in the largest sense, a national good, it is requisite that a considerable number of youth, of both sexes, be trained in the practice of the Institution, for the purpose of undertaking the charge of schools. On the motion of Henry Brougham esq. M. P. Resolved, 14th, That as the Annual Subscriptions to the Insti1 tution Regent's Chancellor also attended, to represent his Royal Highness, who was pleased to transmit, by means of this highly respected officer, another message, and to add largely to his former contributions to its funds. If any thing could compensate the melancholy tution are at present by no means adequate to defray the charges of Board, Lodging, and Clothing, of a sufficient number of Youths, (expenses which, in the training of them to the period of their fit. ness to take the charge of schools, are unavoidable), the friends to this cause are solicited to become Annual Subscribers, of sums from One to Ten Guineas. On the motion of his Royal Highness the Duke of Kent, and seconded by his Royal Highness the Duke of Sussex, Resolved, 15th, That from a Report presented to this Meeting, it appears, that the Donations and Subscriptions received by Mr Lancaster, prior to the year 1808, had fallen short of the actual charges for the erection of suitable buildings, and the maintenance of intended Schoolmasters, and that a considerable debt had been incurred, for which the Gentlemen, since appointed Mr Lancaster's Trustees, actuated by an earnest desire to prevent the failure of so important a work, and relying on the future support of a liberal and beneficent Public, not only rendered themselves responsible, but took measures for enlarging the operation of the System. 'On the motion of the Duke of Kent, and seconded by the Duke of Sussex, Resolved, 16th, That from a consideration of the great utility of the object, and the facility with which the benefits of the Institution may be extended, not only to all parts of the British Empire, but to the whole civilized world, the donations of the Public are solicited to relieve it from the burthen of a debt which amounts to about 5000l.,-a sum which it is hoped will not be considered as large, when set against the gratuitous education of near 7000 children in the Metropolis; the board, clothing, and training near 100 qualified Teachers, and the many thousands now educating through Mr Lancaster's exertions in the country; to which also must be added, the full establishment of a system which may be made effective to the instruction of hundreds of thousands, and thereby contribute to the national prosperity. On the motion of the Duke of Sussex, and seconded by the Resolved, 17th, That the thanks of this Meeting be given to those Noblemen and Gentlemen who have undertaken to act as a Committee in aid of the Finances of this Institution. 6 • Resolved, That these Resolutions be published. (Signed) BEDFORD. • His Grace the Duke of Bedford having left the Chair, it was Saken by his Royal Highness the Duke of Kent. VOL. XIX. No. 37. B melancholy loss which it had sustained of the Sovereign's steady, warm, and unceasing patronage, this exemplary conduct of his Successor was well calculated to serve the purpose. Thus supported, the success of the establishment was no longer a matter of doubt every day added largely to its numbers; nor have we any fear that, before the next Report is presented to the public, the funds required for supplying teachers to all parts of the country will be provided; and the numbers of provincial schools increased by the removal of the only material obstacle which has hitherto stood in their way. The documents now before us do not contain all the particulars which the reader who interests himself in this important subject will naturally be anxious to learn. Perhaps a copy of the Rules of the Institution, which are few and simple, as its objects are plain and well defined, might with advantage have been inserted in the Report, or subjoined to the Resolutions. We should also have liked to see a more full list of the donations and annual subscriptions, as nothing more directly tends to facilitate contributions, than the seeing what others in the like circumstances with ourselves have given. The annual subscriptions are, by one of the resolutions, limited to ten guineas, and not less than one; but it is convenient for each individual to know who pays one, who five, and who ten, yearly. For the same reason, we should like to see by whom the different donations have been given. The Report only mentions some of the donors of large We cannot resist the temptation of adorning our pages with some of these names:-Mr Maitland, member for Chippenham; Mr Henry Sterry; and Messrs Richard, Joseph, and Hudson Gurney (we believe of Norwich), have each subscribed one hundred pounds, Mr Rogers, the celebrated poet, (but still more esteemed, by those who know him, for his general benevolence, and his steady attachment to liberty and all the best interests of mankind), offered either a gift of one hundred, or a loan sums. On the motion of his Royal Higness the Duke of Sussex, Resolved, That the thanks of this Meeting be most respectfully presented to his Grace the Duke of Bedford, and to the Right Hon. Lord Somerville, for the generous manner in which they have patronized the Lancasterian System of Education, from its first invention to the present time. Resolved, That the thanks of this Meeting be given to his Grace the Duke of Bedford, for his kindness in taking the Chair on the present occasion, and for the able manner in which he has performed the duties of the office. (Signed) EDWARD, D. of K. Chairman. 3 loan of two; and the latter was accepted. Mr John Walker, of Southgate, did the same; and about thirty other individuals lent one hundred pounds each. In this number we meet with the names of Mr Henry Thornton, Sir George Mackenzie, Mr Astley Cooper, and many others well known to their country. It would gratify us extremely, if we could add the names of two generous benefactors, who transmitted, anonymously, the stuns of two hundred pounds and five hundred guineas. This last munificent donation, like one to the same amount which we had occasion to record in our History of the African Institution, ution, * was stated to come from a Member of the Society of Friends. In all likelihood, it proceeded from the same quarter. It is, however, of more moderate sums that the bulk of the contributions must be composed; and respecting, as we do, the mite which falls from the hand of generous poverty, and even the pittance which is wrung from avarice by the force of high principle, or the temporary ascendancy of kinder feelings, we would have a column of units, as well as of hundreds, in this honourable and interesting account. It is also material that places should be indicated, in the country, as well as in London, where subscriptions may be received; for, although the proper way to promote this system, is to form committees, and carry on schools in each neighbourhood (receiving from the Institution the proper plans and teachers), and consequently persons residing at a distance will for the most part bestow their contributions in this way to the several local funds, yet a few may every where be found, disposed to remain unconnected with any such funds, while some may be desirous of contributing in both ways.t We cannot dismiss this very pleasing part of our task, without noticing some other facts, illustrative of the progress of the system, which the papers now before us narrate. The following circumstances are highly honourable to the illustrious person, of e whom they are related; and we anxiously hope that his example may find imitators among the other commanders of our forces. The Commander-in-chief has certainly done his utmost to encourage it, in the orders to which we had the satisfaction of referring in our last Number. ‡ B 2 His See our Review of the three first Reports, in the 30th Number.. As far as relates to this part of the country, we beg leave to offer the medium of the very respectable Publishers of the Edinburgh Review, who will receive subscriptions for the Institution. In London, the bankers are, Messrs Kensington, Lombard-street; Coutts, Strand; and Hoares, Fleet-street. See Review of Fifth African Report, No. XXXVI. |