§ MR. CALDWELLI beg to ask the Lord Advocate whether the Government consents to the Address for the Return, Fee-Paying (Scotland) Schools; and, if so, whether the Government would endeavour to have the Return in the hands of Members prior to the expiry of the period allowed for the Education (Scotland) Code lying upon the Table of the House, before becoming final?
§ MR. J. P. B. ROBERTSONWe are prepared to consent to the Address for the Return, so far as it relates to the name of each School Board, in whose district a school or schools have been 753 sanctioned in which fees may be charged in any or all of the standards; the name of each school so sanctioned; and the scale of foes charged in each. We are also prepared to give the average attendance at each of such schools at the date of the last Return in the possession of the Department. But we are unable to give the average attendance of the infants and each standard separately, or the average attendance for the special four weeks referred to. The Department does not possess this information; and it would not only involve much labour, which my Lords do not feel themselves justified in imposing upon the staff of the schools, but might be misleading, as it would be based upon the Returns for an insufficient period. I must also point out that it would be impossible that the Return could be in the hands of Members within the period daring which the Code must lie upon the Table, if it wore delayed for these statistics.