community; indeed, I know of no situation in which a poor girl can be placed, wherein Bible education may not be of immense advantage; as a domestic servant, she must come in contact with children, and when she becomes married, and is a mother, she will have to infuse correct religious notions to the opening minds of her own offspring. But, alas! how can she do this, when her own religious education has been neglected; or, if a system of education is introduced into the country, not based upon the Bible, but upon the whims and fancies of a set of political, moral philosophers, who would square the human mind by certain rules, and who would scarcely allow that poor females have any mind at all. If ever, however, this country is to become greater than she is, and that greatness is to be accompanied by a greater portion of goodness, it cannot be accomplished without Normal schools for the education of females; especially for school mistresses, who must, from the nature of things, have more to do with the young mind than either school-masters or tutors, and who have generally more patience, and more affection, if rightly instructed, than men possibly can have. It is so; the Creator has wisely ordered it so; and if a system of education is to extend itself for the benefit of the whole species, whose object is to make good citizens, religious characters, and, finally, inhabitants of heaven, it can only be carried out by the united exertions of both sexes; and it is in vain to expect a blessing on any system in which females do not have their just and proper share.

In the Liverpool Corporation Schools this has not been lost sight of by the educational committee; they have been anxious to carry on a real system of development for the girls, as well as the boys; and the religious education given is of a very high order. When their schools were first opened upon the new principle, the pupils were the refuse of all the schools in Liverpool, and some of the girls in particular, were ignorant in every thing except vice and

EFFECTS OF CHRISTIAN TREATMENT ON GIRLS

250
crime The mistresses had the greatest difficulty to keep
them in any thing like order, and in the play-ground this
was considerably incrcased, so much so that several policemen
were thought necessary to prevent thein from overcoming
the mistresses entirely. A few short wccks, however, of
rational and Christian treatment, softened these creatures
down to very different subjects, and they ultimately be
came, to my certain knowledge, as orderly and as well be
haved as any girls possibly could be. The education com-
mittce persevered, as did also the mistresses, and the re-
sults were such as to be highly encouraging.

I have already given my opinion of the mixed system, and its non-adaptation, without considerable improvements, for either England or Scotland; but should any committee. wish to try it, under circumstances which will render it ad visable, I here subjoin a scheme of religious instruction, as adopted in the Liverpool Corporation Schools, at the time I was connected with them. The hour devoted to the religious instruction is spent by four Protestant and four Catholic classes, in the following manner:

Monday. 1st and 2nd Protestant classes. Catechism, and
afterwards say lessons learned the previous Sunday;
collects, scripture, and hymns.

1st and 2nd Catholic classes. Taught their catechism
by the monitors, by a teacher, or by a visitor.
3rd and 4th Protestant, 3rd and 4th Catholic classes,
Are taught hymns, which are explained in the gal-
lery, and sometimes Scripture prints.

Tuesday. 1st Protestant class. Bible, and afterwards are
instructed in their duty by questions and answers
2nd Protestant, 1st and 2nd Catholic classes. Cate-
chism, Book on the Soul, and join the 1st Protestant
class.

3rd and 4th Protestant, 3rd and 4th Catholic classes.
Scripture Geography, and stories with reference to
Scripture, hymns and catechism.

1

RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION IN LIVERPOOL SCHOOLS. 251

Wednesday. 1st and 2nd Protestant classes. Bible, and Scripture Zoology, Manners of the Israelites, or some other book elucidating Scripture.

3rd and 4th Protestant classes. Hymns and catechism in classes.

1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Catholic classes. Taught catechism or hymns by the monitor or priest.

Thursday. 1st Protestant class. Bible.

2nd Protestant, 1st and 2nd Catholic classes. Book on the Soul, and Scripture Geography.

3rd and 4th Protestant, 3rd and 4th Catholic classes. Scripture Geography, other books, and Stranger's Offering.

Friday. 1st and 2nd Prostestant classes. Bible, collects explained.

3rd and 4th Protestant classes. Stories from the Old Testament, questions on the prints.

1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Catholic classes. Bible in the gallery with the minister, or lessons from Scripture Extracts, or Scripture plates.

When any mistress wishes to be instructed in the above system, she must bring a letter, addressed to some of the committee of the corporation schools, who will lay the same before his colleagues in office, when they will decide whether she is to be received as a pupil, or not. If she is received, she must attend regularly at school hours, and be subject to the orders of the head mistress, so that she may be able to manage each division of the school in turn, both on the floor of the school, in the play-ground, and at the gallery lessons; and not to be pronounced fit to take a school until she can manage all the departments. Her certificate to be then signed first by the chief mistress, and then the others, and, if necessary, by the chairman of the committee. No person to be permitted to come to the schools for instruction without an order from the committee officially signed, and not even then unless they will agree

252 GIRLS' AND INFANTS' SCHOOLS KEPT SEPARATE,

to attend regularly. No person to be allowed to go from one school to another; but to complete their education at the school they first commenced with. No teacher who comes to learn, to be allowed to correct the children, without the express permission of the regular teachers.

That the regular teachers at all times endeavour to impress on the minds of those who come to be instructed, the new and distinguishing features that will be found in the institution; viz, physical and moral education, and of the necessity there is for especial attention to those departments

That the learners attend the play-ground at least once a day, and not to talk, but to attend to all the duties connected therewith; especially to see that no injury be done to the flowers or shrubs, and anxiously to watch for the manifestations of character in all the pupils, so that the duty may become habitual to them when they get to their own schools.

To instruct teachers properly, they must in all cases be brought into active operation; the looking-on system will never do. If a teacher cannot manage a school wherein the children are properly trained, how can they manage a school wherein the children are not trained at all? It might be well for a mistress to learn a little of the infant system, as in small towns, the ages of the children who attend school vary a considerable degrcc, otherwise I should set my face against it; for if a mistress is to conduct a school according to the principles hinted at above, she will find enough to do to attend to the workings of the system in the girls' department, and to that alone; the infant system being only intended for very young children, and requires a teacher to be exclusively trained for their management, as very often the inixture of the two systems spoils both.

253

PLAY-GROUND

CHAPTER V.

MANAGEMENT FOR GIRLS.

Importance of this department not sufficiently appreciated-Visit of Her Majesty's Ministers to the Irish model schools in Dublin—An account of what they were shewn-Ignorance on the subject of moral training-The play-ground the only place for developing the character-Responsibility of teachers-Importance of giving them proper instruction-Systems in theory easily formed-Difficulty of getting men to work them-Play-ground exercises-The playground not the fit place for singing hymns-Hints to mistresses Exercise essential for the bodily frame-The old system will not do-Girls should not be chosen for school-mistresses-Garden monitors-External appearances no criterion for respect-The school-mistress responsible at all times for the conduct of her pupils True charity defined-Better to pay school-mistresses well than female turnkeys-No school should be built without provision for moral training-The old and new system contrasted-Importance of object-lessons-Moral training cannot be begun too early--Children as anxious to feed the mental as the bodily appetite-Concluding observations.

FROM the observations made in a former part of this work, it will be seen that great stress is laid upon play-ground teaching. Its being a novel feature in education is no argument against its use, and if we are ever to have a suitable system of national education, play-ground management must have due consideration. There seems an idea in the public mind, that no education can be useful unless it is given in a school-room; and men in authority, who profess to be advocates for education, and for the development of the human faculties, seem to imagine that every thing must be done within doors. A more fatal error can hardly be committed, and I fear it will require some greater powers of eloquence than I possess, to convince those who have the power, to alter their course. In illustration