world he is destined, to establish, as far as practicable, seminaries for the development and instruction of infant minds; and every facility for this purpose should be afforded him by the Society under whose auspices he goes forth to evangelize the nations.

7. Infant schools ought to be universally established, for all classes, and in every country of the civilized world. It is an opinion which still too much prevails, that such establishments are chiefly calculated for the instruction of the lower classes of society. But this is a gross misconception of the nature and tendency of infant institutions, and a very dangerous mistake. These schools are adapted no less for the improvement of the higher, than the lower ranks of the community; and, unless they be soon adopted by the superior classes, the lower ranks may soon advance before them, both in point of intelligence and of moral decorum. For, in many of the families of the higher ranks, immoral maxims are inculcated and acted upon, and many foolish and wayward passions indulged, as well as in the families of their inferiors; and, although the manners of their children receive a superficial polish superior to others, their moral disposi tions are but little more improved, and they possess nearly as little of what may be termed useful knowledge, as the great body of the lower ranks around them. Till the families of all classes feel the influence of the instructions and habits acquired at such institutions, the world will never be thoroughly regenerated. In the meantime, if the higher classes feel averse that their children should associate with those of an inferior grade, they have it in their power to establish infant seminaries exclusively for themselves. But I am sorry to find, that, in this country, scarcely any schools of this description have yet been established. There ought, however, to be no objections to children of different ranks associating together for the purpose of instruction; unless in those cases where children are accustomed to dirty habits, or where they may be exposed to infectious diseases. In the Northen States of America, perhaps the most enlightened in the world, children of all ranks are taught in the same seminaries, without any artificial distinctions;—all are nearly equally enlightened and improved, and society, in its several departments, moves on with the greatest harmony.

In concluding these remarks, it may not be improper to observe, that teaching the children to read ought not to be considered as one of the main objects of infant schools. Many parents are still so ignorant and foolish, as to estimate the advantages of such schools, merely by the progress they conceive their children have attained in the art of reading. They are unqualified for appre

ciating intellectual instruction and moral habits, and have no higher ideas of the progress of education, than what arise from the circumstance of their children being transferred from one book to another; and hence, they frequently complain, that their children are learning nothing, because no tasks are assigned them, and no books put into their hands. But, it ought to be generally understood, that the art of reading is not the main object of attention in such seminaries, and that they would be of incalculable importance, even although the children were unable to recognise a single letter of the alphabet. At the same time, the knowledge of the letters and elementary sounds, and the art of spelling and reading, are acquired in these schools-almost in the way of an amusement—with more facility and pleasure than on any plans formerly adopted.

In throwing out the above remarks, I have all along taken for granted that infant schools are conducted by men of prudence and intelligence. It is not sufficient for insuring the beneficial effects of these institutions, that the individuals who superintend them have been instructed in the mode of conducting their mechanical arrangements. They ought to be persons of good sense, of benevolent dispositions, having their minds thoroughly imbued with the principles of Christianity, of an easy, communicative turn, and possessed of all that knowledge of history, art, and science, which they can possibly acquire. For no one can communicate more knowledge to others than what he himself has acquired; and no teacher can render a subject interesting to the young, unless he has acquired a comprehensive and familiar acquaintance with it. In order to secure efficient teachers for these establishments, normal schools, or other seminaries, would require to be established, in which candidates for the office of infant teachers might be instructed, not only in the mode of conducting such institutions, but in all the popular branches of useful knowledge. For, upon the intelligence, as well as the prudence and moral disposition, of the teachers, the efficiency of infant seminaries will in a great measure depend.

The first idea of infant schools appears to have been suggested by the asylums provided by Mr. Owen, of New Lanark, for the infant children of the people who were employed at his spinningmills. Mr. Buchanan, under whose superintendence they were placed, was soon after invited to London, and a school was opened under his direction and management, on Brewer's Green, Westminster, which was established and patronized by H. Brougham, Esq. M. P., the Marquis of Lansdowne, Zachary Macauley, Esq.,

Benjamin Smith, Esq., Joseph Wilson, Esq., and about eight or nine other philanthropic gentlemen. Mr. Wilson soon afterwards established one at his own expense in Quaker Street, Spitalfields. He built the school-room, and supplied every thing that was necessary; and, on the 24th July, 1820, the school was opened. On the first day, 26 children were admitted, on the next day 21, and, in a very short time, the number of children amounted to 220, all of whom came forward unsolicited. Mr, Wilderspin, who has since distinguished himself by his unwearied zeal in promoting the establishment of such institutions, was appointed teacher. The Rev. Mr. Wilson, brother to J. Wilson, Esq., above mentioned, next established a similar school at Walthamstow, of which parish he was vicar; and an excellent lady, Miss Neave, opened one in Palmer's village, Westminster, for 160 children. In Duncan Street, Liverpool, the Society of Friends established, soon after, a very large one, and, in one day, collected among themselves, for this purpose, no less than one thousand pounds. All these schools were attended with complete success. A few years afterwards, namely, on the 1st of June, 1824, the Infant School Society was organized, at a meeting held at Freemason's Hall, London. The meeting was addressed, and powerful speeches delivered on the occasion, by the Marquis of Lansdowne, Mr. Brougham, late Lord Chancellor, Mr. Smith, M. P., Mr. Wilberforce, Sir J. Mackintosh, W. Allen, Esq., Dr. Thorp, Dr. Lushington, the Rev. E. Irving, and others; and, before the meeting had separated, a subscription, amounting to upwards of £700, was collected.

Since the above period, infant schools have been established in most of the populous towns, and even in some of the villages, of the British Empire; and, wherever they have been conducted with prudence and intelligence, have uniformly been accompanied with many interesting and beneficial effects. They have also been established in many towns on the continent of Europe, and even in Southern Africa, and in the Peninsula of Hindostan. The enlightened inhabitants of the Northern States of America, who eagerly seize on every scheme by which moral and intellectual improvement may be promoted, are now rapidly establishing such institutions, along with Maternal Associations, throughout every portion of their increasing and widely-spreading population; and, I trust, they will soon be introduced into every nation under heaven. But, before society at large feel the full influence of such seminaries, they will require to be multiplied nearly a hundredfold beyond the number that presently exists.

CHAPTER V.

On Schools for Young Persons, from the age of five or six, to the age of thirteen or fourteen years.

DURING a period of two or three centuries, we have had schools established among us for the instruction of the young, during the period of life to which I now refer. There are few countries in Europe where such institutions, for the instruction of the great mass of society, are more numerous and respectable than in the island in which we reside;—and had we not unfortunately stopped short at the very porch of the Temple of Science, we might by this time have been as far superior, in point of intelligence, to every other nation, as we now are to the savages of Patagonia and New Zealand. But, what is the amount of all the instruction generally furnished at our common initiatory schools? The elements of spelling and pronunciation—a jargon of abstract grammar rules crammed into the memory without being understood― the art of writing-the capacity of repeating the vocables of a catechism, and a mechanical knowledge of arithmetic, without understanding the foundation of its rules. This is the sum of all that tuition which is generally considered as necessary for enlightening the human mind, and carrying forward the great body of the community in the path of moral and intellectual improvement,—a system of tuition by which the memory has been tortured, the understanding neglected, and the benevolent affections left waste and uncultivated. The effects it has produced, are visible to every intelligent mind that looks around and contemplates the ignorance, servility, and licentiousness, which still abound in every department of society.

If we, therefore, desire to behold knowledge and religious principle more extensively diffused, and society raised to its highest pitch of improvement, we must adopt more rational and efficient plans than those on which we have hitherto acted, and extend the objects of education to all those departments of knowledge in which man is interested, as a rational, social, and immortal being.— The following remarks are intended to embody a few hints in reference to such a system of tuition;—and, in the first place, I shall attend to the

Plan, situation, and arrangement of School-rooms.

The efficiency of any system of intellectual education that may be formed, will in some measure depend upon the situation of school-rooms, and the ample accommodation afforded for the

scholastic exercises and amusements of the young. Every schoolhouse should be erected in an airy and pleasant situation in the outskirts of a town or village, detached from other buildings, with an ample area around it ;—and, if possible, should have a commanding view of the variegated scenery both of the earth and of the heavens,-to the various objects of which the attention of the young should be occasionally directed, in order to lay a foundation for general knowledge, and for a rational contemplation of the works of the Almighty. Both the interior of the school, and the surrounding area, should be arranged and fitted up in such a manner, as to be conducive to the pleasure, the convenience, and amusement of the young, so that the circumstances connected with education may not only be associated with agreeable objects, but rendered subservient to the expansion of their minds, and to their progress in the path of knowledge.

The following is a rude sketch of what might be the plan and accommodations of a village school. The plot of ground allotted for the establishment, might be about 180 feet long, by 100 in breadth, or more or less according to circumstances. Nearly in the centre of this plot, the school-house might be erected, which should contain, at least, the following conveniences:-1. A large room, or hall, for general teaching, about 40 feet long, by 30 in breadth, and 12 or 14 feet high. 2. Two rooms, about 18 feet long and 15 broad, into which certain classes may occasionally be sent, to attend to their scholastic exercises, under the inspection either of an assistant or of monitors. 3. Two closets, or presses, S T, off the large hall, about 12 feet, by 4 in breadth, for holding portions of the apparatus, to be afterwards described, for illustrating the instructions communicated to the pupils. 4. At each end of the plot, or play-ground, should be two covered walks, A B, one for boys, and another for girls, in which the children may amuse themselves in the winter season, or during rainy weather; and, during winter, a fire might be kept in them, and a few forms placed for the convenience of those who come from a distance, who may partake of their luncheon, and enjoy themselves in comfort during the dinner hour. 5. The spaces C D E F might be laid out in plots for flowers, shrubs, and evergreens, and a few forest trees. A portion of these plots, as G H, might be allotted for the classification of certain plants, as illustrations of some of the principles of botany. They might be arranged into 24 compartments, as in the figure, each exhibiting a different class of plants. The remainder of the plot, particularly that portion of it immediately in front of the school-house,