THE EDUCATION BILL.
[TO THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."]
Sra,--Mr. Snell is not the only one of your readers who is puzzled as to your standpoint with regard to the Education Bill. If Sections 9 and 10 of the Bill are universally regarded as certain to be a dead letter in the rural districts for reasons both of efficiency and of economy, it is obvious that we want a lead as to some substitute; and we naturally look to the Spectator to declare itself. The principle on which broad- minded Churchmen are prepared to take their stand is to be found in Mr. Balfour's words : "I do stand here to say that we ought to see, as much as we can, that every parent gets the kind of religious training for his child that he desires." If this Bill becomes an Act it will leave the one village school free for all time to offer the alternative of Church teaching or secularism to Nonconformist parents. I ask you in all solemnity whether you think this a " compromise " which Nonconformist parents should accept? And if you do not I invite you to support an amendment to the Bill which shall make it legal for all school managers, in defiance of trust. deeds, in national or parochial schools to provide teaching in accordance with the Cowper-Temple clause for such parents as desire it. I had hoped that Convocation would have suggested such an amendment, but though Archdeacon Sandford repudiated the Dean of St. Paul's most un- happy speech, and the Archbishop and Bishop of Win- chester led the discussion in a broad-minded spirit, no such resolution was adopted or even proposed. There is yet time. No one can have worked for education in Norfolk for so many years as I have without seeing that the great want is the lack of interest of the parents. They are estranged, because they feel that they are not consulted. Some few clergy, recognising this, ignore their deeds and invite the parents on entering their children to make a decision as to which kind of religious teaching they prefer, and then provide accordingly, choosing a member of their staff to take the alternative class. Others by a kind of tacit agreement forbear to lay emphasis on Church teaching on week days. But the vast majority go their way believing that a Nonconformist's religion is merely political. The mischief that this does to the Church, and incidentally to education, is greater, Sir, than you seem to think. And it could be so easily remedied. For even if it were not accepted, the offer of such a compromise would show that the leaders of our Church believe in their own
principle, the right of the parents to get the religious teaching
[We have dealt with Mr. Lee-Warner's letter in an article on "Schools and Rates."—ED. Spectator.]
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