MR. HEYGATEasked the Vice President of the Committee of Council on Education, Whether he is aware that it is the avowed intention of the Endowed Schools Commissioners to prevent the annual income of endowments from being as a rule any longer devoted to elementary education; whether the carrying out of such intention will not deprive the inhabitants of numerous parishes of the provision for this purpose which they have hitherto enjoyed, and consequently necessitate fresh voluntary contributions, or the exaction of school rates, in order to enable them to meet the requirements of the Elementary Education Act of last Session; and, whether he considers such a result would be consistent with the spirit and intention of the 5th Clause of that Act, which requires that school accommodation shall be provided for all children "for whose elementary education efficient and suitable provision is not otherwise made;" and with his own statement in Committee on the 11th Clause of the Endowed Schools Bill, on the 14th June 1869, to the effect that "it was not intended (by the Government) to divert from a locality any endowment which was not plainly more than sufficient for the purposes of that locality;" and whether an Amendment to such Clause was not withdrawn in consequence of such assurance?
§ MR. W. E. FORSTERsaid, he thought this series of questions was too argumentative in form to admit of its coming under the designation of a Question put to Her Majesty's Government. He believed he had already stated that all schemes of the Endowed Schools Commissioners, before they could have legal force, must have the approval of the Educational Department of the Government as well as the sanction of that House, and must lie for a certain time on the Table. He could not possibly say what was happening until the scheme came actually before the Government. He supposed the hon. Member referred chiefly to what were called rural endowed schools throughout the country. So far as they were concerned, he was not aware that any scheme had been submitted to the Government for dealing with the annual income of any such 1257 endowment. It was impossible to answer definitely the first Question put by the hon. Member, because the Endowed Schools Commissioners dealt with every case according to its merits; and until the case came before the Government he could not tell what their intention was with respect to it. Generally speaking, he might say he was informed by the Commissioners that when they were dealing either with the annual income or with the principal of what was called an elementary endowed school, their great aim was that the money should be spent as far as possible for the benefit of the children of the poor who had attended the school; but, as regarded higher education, they aimed at provision being made for giving instruction in subjects which might prepare scholars to obtain exhibitions, and to enter a school of a higher grade. Perhaps his hon. Friend thought the money ought solely to be applied to elementary education pure and simple; but that would certainly be using these endowments for the purpose of relieving either the rates or the taxes. It was the opinion of the Endowed Schools Commissioners and of the Government that to do so would be in accordance neither with what was supposed to be the intent of the founders, nor with the interests of education. There might be special cases in which poverty, or some other circumstance, would render it desirable not to adhere to that principle. With regard to the third Question "whether he considers such a result would be consistent with the spirit and intention of the 5th Clause of that Act," his reply was that he certainly did think so. As to the statement he had made in Committee on the 11th Clause of the Endowed Schools Bill, he did not consider that by applying endowments for the better education of poor boys he was diverting the money for a purpose contrary to that of the founder. Lastly, he did not think the Amendment was withdrawn in consequence of his assurance.