vant would have been secured in the department that most required him; and the discretion vested by the act in the board would have been kept sacred from ministerial encroachment.' I have now finished the most painful part of these observations; painful, because I have been compelled to criticise the selection of persons against whose general characters and respectability I have never heard a suspicion whispered, and to express a disapprobation of the choice, founded upon an invidious comparison of their deserts with those of other men. Let it not, however, be sup posed that I expect no good to result from their labors; still less do I impute to them any backwardness to discharge the duty which they have sworn to fulfil. It is the inferior energy of some that I lament. It is the unfortunate prejudices of others which I dread, against which I feel anxious that they themselves should be warned, and of which a jealous public ought thus early to be apprised. Even constituted as it is, and with powers so defective, this board may render service to the state: but he is guilty of no failure in courtesy towards its members, who betrays a constitutional desire that their proceedings should attract the watchful eye of the community at large. Of the ministers who first mutilated the act, and then intrusted the execution of it to its enemies, rather than its authors or supporters, no man can long hesitate what opinion he should form. Their conduct can only be accounted for upon the supposition that they do not wish to see a zealous and unsparing investigation of charitable abuses. That they should favor neglect or peculation for its own sake, is inconceivable; but they may be deterred from fearlessly joining in the exposure of it by the clamors of, those who are interested in its concealment, or the alarms of men easily disquieted, willing to believe that there is safety in supporting whatever exists, ready to fancy that there is danger wherever It is remarkable that the police committee have complained, in their third report, of the same disposition in the home department to grasp at patronage not vested in it by law. "This breach of an act of parliament, (says the report) on the part of the secretary of state, has produced the result which might have been anticipated. One of the persons so appointed by Lord Sidmouth, was a worthless, abandoned character, a Jew bail, who was imprisoned in the King's Bench, and not being able to perform his duty, was turned out of his situation; he is described by the chief clerk as a man who hired himself out as a fraudulent bail, and was never known at the office till he came to be sworn in. Your Committee beg leave to observe, that this interference of the secretary of state is not warranted by the law which regulates the police, and will no doubt, if persevered in, be attended with the worst effects. Of the four persons nominated by Lord Sidmouth, one declined his appointment, another was turned out of the office, and the remaining two were confirmed in their situations, in defiance of the proper remonstrance of the magistrates upon the subject." there is movement, and to forget that in the neighborhood of mischief repose is perilous. Certain it is, that the present ministers have at all times betrayed a reluctance to reformation of every sort; and that, whether from interest, or weak compliance, or fear of disquieting the alarmists, they have so acted as to afford abuses of all descriptions effectual shelter. Upon the present occasion they have not deviated from their accustomed course; and the interposition of parliament will be required to force them out of it, as it has frequently done before. The season has happily passed away when the country could be frightened out of a necessary attention to the mismanagement of its affairs; and an opinion is daily gaining ground, that its safety might be secured, instead of endangered, by the steady yet temperate progress of well-considered, timely reformation. It is devoutly to be hoped, that the clamors, and the still more. dangerous intrigues of men directly interested in the continuance of abuse, may not be permitted to influence the house of commons during the approaching session. If any thing has been clearly proved in the foregoing pages, it is the absolute necessity of reviving the education committee, and extending its powers to all charities whatever. This measure alone can strengthen the hands of the commissioners, whom all good men must wish to support, whether they approve or blame the selection that has been made. It is no less necessary for pursuing the investigation of the important matters withdrawn from the jurisdiction of the board. An opposition to the renewal of that committee can only originate in a determined resolution to screen delinquents, to perpetuate neglect and malversation. I trust I may be permitted to affirm, without incurring the charge of presumption, that never did any committee better deserve the confidence of parliament and of the country, whether we regard the diligence or the impartiality with which it performed its duty. Gratitude to my colleagues, as well as justice to the public, require from me this acknowledgment. It is true we had enemies, who from the first regarded our proceedings with a jealous eye; and whose numbers as well as animosity were increased by the progress of our inquiries. With those who openly met us we had no reason to dread the result of a conflict; but our most implacable adversaries chose a more formidable manner of attack. They hated us for one thing, and arraigned us for another; or concealing themselves and their grounds of aversion, they worked upon the fears of others, and opposed us by deputy. Men who had no possessions of their own, affected a tender regard for the secrecy of title deeds, while they feared only the disclosure of conveyances, that would oblige them so surrender the property of the poor. Many who cared but little for the church, and had too much sense to suppose it could be endangered by the restitution of charitable funds to their proper objects, worked upon the apprehensions of their weaker brethren, and made them cry out, that nothing was sacred from our inquisition, while certain secular abuses, cherished for convenience, rather than consecrated by time, were the only objects of their own veneration. Above all, advantage was taken of the romantic attachment which English gentlemen feel towards the academic scenes of their early life; and the generous natures of persons who had honored those retreats of learning by their acquirements, or at the most, only made them the abodes of harmless indolence, were enlisted in the defence of practices from which they would have revolted, had they not suffered themselves to be persuaded that our object was an illiberal, unlettered, gothic invasion of all classic ground. Accordingly, we were severely reproved for pushing our inquiries into establishments, destined, it was said, for the education of the upper classes, while our instructions confined us to schools for the lower orders. Unfortunately, we no sooner looked into any of those institutions, than we found that this objection to our jurisdiction rested upon the very abuses which we were investigating, and not upon the real nature of the foundation. For as often as we examined any establishment, the production of the charter or statutes proved that it was originally destined for the education of the poor" One free schoole for the instructing, teaching, maintenance and education of POOR CHILDREN and scholars," says the charter of the "Hospital and Free Grammar School in the CharterHouse." "PAUPERES et INDIGENTES scholares," say the statutes of Winchester College. "Unum collegium perpetuum PAUPERUM ET INDIGENTIUM scholarium Cantabrigiæ, et quoddam alium collegium perpetuum ALIORUM PAUPERUM ET INDIGENTIUM scholarium Etoniæ," say the statutes which founded King's College Cambridge, and Eton College; and they further require the scholars to take a solemn oath, that they have not five marcs (31. 6s.) a-year to spend. The Westminster statutes expressly prohibit any boy being elected on the foundation, "who has, or at his father's death will inherit a patrimony of above ten pounds." "The same poverty is the qualification required by the statutes of Trinity College, Cambridge: the scholars are there called "PAUPERES, and in choosing them, where other merits are equal, the preference t Report, 1816, p. 128. 2 Rep. 1818. 2 3 Vid. Stat. 1. intitled "mens et institutum fundatoris." Rep. 1816. Report, 1816, p. 199. is ordered to be given " INOPIE." In choosing the fellows of St. John's College, a preference is prescribed in favor of the most deserving, " et inter hos, illis qui INDIGENTIORES fuerint; for scholars, the "INOPES" are directed to be preferred, and an oath of poverty, similar to that of Eton and Winchester is solemnly taken.? There is no doubt that some other institutions, as St. Paul's School, and St. Saviour's in Southwark, were intended for the rich; the former by manifest implication was founded for them only; the latter by the express terms of the foundation was meant for rich and poor indifferently; but in the original statutes of the great schools and colleges, as far as we examined them, there was to be found no provision except for the poor. Nor are the committee the first persons who have regarded those magnificent endowments in this light. Lord Coke, and the other judges of England. so considered the two universities in general; for in his report of a decision touching a charity school, he says, that they all held it applied to Oxford and Cambridge; he mentions those foundations as works of charity, speaks of their members, as " poor scholars,” and in reference to the misapplication of their funds, quotes the text, "panis egentium vita pauperum; et qui defraudat eos homo sanguinis est." The application of such expressions to those rich endowments, has, indeed, given offence to many. They think it hard that they should be obliged to take the name with the estate; probably because the property came not by inheritance, and because the appellation is very inconsistent with the possession. I presume, however, that I have said enough to justify the committee for venturing to consider those great establishments as within its jurisdiction. But situated as they are in the eyes of all the world, administered by highly gifted personages, superintended by visitors of exalted station, it might be deemed superfluous to exercise, with respect to them, the inquisitorial power which our instructions gave us. Now, whether beneficially or not, I have no right to determine, but certainly the fact is that great deviations have been made from the original foundation in all those venerable establishments. For the particulars I must refer to the evidence." 2 Cap. 12, 15, 16. Report 1818. 'Cap. 1 and 13. Report 1818. 3 Report 1816, 224, 170. 5 The Report 1818 contains copies of the statutes of Eton and King's College, Trinity and St. John's, Cambridge, and a part of the foundation of Christ Church, Oxford. The singular accuracy with which they are printed does great credit to the industry and skill of Mr. Ellis of the British Museum, who has been employed for some months in superintending the press. This part of the report will in a few weeks be in circulation; the part about to appear immediately contains important extracts from the Winton statutes. . The report of 1816, contains the foundation of Westminster, Charter-House, St. Paul's, and others. I shall here only mention a few things relating to Winchester College, which may serve to show that such endowments are not less liable to perversion, than more obscure charities. The statutes, as has already been observed, require in the most express terms, that only "the poor and indigent," shall be admitted upon the foundation. They are in fact all children of persons in easy circumstances; many of opulent parents. The boys when they attain the age of fifteen, solemnly swear that they have not 3l. 6s. a year to spend; yet as a practical commentary on this oath, they pay ten guineas a year to the masters; and the average of their other expenses exceeds fifty. It is ordered that if any boy comes into the possession of property to the amount of 51. a year, he shall be expelled; and this is construed 667. 13s. 4d., regard being. had to the diminished value of money, although the warden, fellows and scholars all swear to observe the statutes, " according to their plain, literal, and grammatical sense and understanding." It is strictly enjoined that no boy shall be admitted above twelve years of age. This is wholly disregarded. The fellowships are augmented in revenue by a liberal interpretation of the terms de.. scribing their money payments; while the strictest construction is adopted as to the payments to scholars, including even the founder's kin, the peculiar objects of his bounty. Thus, too, while the latter are refused the convenience of knives, forks, spoons, plates, &c. on the ground that such articles of furniture were unknown in the time of William of Wykham, the fellows are allowed those accommodations, although the fellowships were founded at the same early period. The revenues are between 13 and 14,000l. a year; the yearly expense of the foundation scholars, as now borne by their parents, is between 60 and 70l.: so that there cannot be any fair reason for not defraying the whole of this out of the revenues, as the founder obviously intended; and thus restoring the school to its original state. Nor would it be a deviation from his plan by any means so wide as many which have been adopted, were the number of seventy scholars enlarged, which the opulence of the establishment would render very easy. The fellowships would still be lucrative, if reduced to the ordinary value of those at Oxford and Cambridge, and they are tenable with church preferment. The infractions of the original statutes are sought to be justified by the connivance of successive visitors, and it is alleged that they have even authorised them by positive orders (injunctions). But the statutes appointing the visitor, expressly prohibit him from altering them in any manner of way directly or indirectly, and declare all acts in contravention of them |