1!Y \V. K. 1). BCTMCR, li.A., M.SC, LL.H. 25 



On the 26th Juue, 1838, Sir John Franklin sent a 

 Despatch (No. 61) to the Secretary of State respecting 

 the establishment of a Public School in Van Diemen's 

 Land, and enclosed an open letter to Dr. Arnold, yjii 

 the 2nd September, 1839, he laid before the Legislative 

 Council the reply of the Secretary of State (Marquis of 

 Nonnanby), dated loth March, 1S39, authorising him to 

 proceed forthwith with the erection of a school and school- 

 master's hou'-.e, and a recommendation that £500 should be 

 secured to the Master with a house capable of containing 

 from 12 to 20 boarders, and stating that Sir John Frank- 

 lins letter to Dr. Arnold had been forwarded to him, with 

 an intimation that it would not appear to be necessary, 

 nor i>erhaps advisable, that the person to be selected 

 .should be a clergyman ; but that any candidate for tli-* 

 appointment must, of course, be highly qualified to impart 

 religious instruction to his scholars. (■"Gazette," 184U, 

 Page 1075) 



Sir John Franklin in his Minute remarks: — "The 

 "hading object, however, now in contemplation is to 

 "found a superior School on such a system that it may 

 "at a future period become a College, and be a means 

 "of affording a liberal education to the sons of Colonists 

 "ajid of preparing them lor entering upon the studv of 

 "the Learned Professions." ("Gazette," 1840, Page 1054.) 



Tlie Secretary of State sent a Despatch dated 14th 

 August, 1839, tnclosing correspondence which took placv^ 

 relative to th? appointment of the Principal or Head- 

 master, and from which it appears that the Secretary 

 of State subsequently subscribed entirely to Dr. Arnolds 

 views as to the importance of the Headmaster being an 

 Ordained Minister of the Church of England, "because — 

 and he quotes Dr. Arnold's words — "manv persons besl 

 "htt«d to carry on the work of education would be act- 

 "ually unwilling to engage in it, unless they were allow- 

 "ed to unite the clerical characti-r with that of the teach- 

 "er, as a means of fixing their position in society. . . . 

 "But a far higher consideration is. that he who is to edu- 

 "cabe boys, if he is fully sensible of the importance of his 

 "business, must be unwilling to lose such great opportu 

 "nities as the clerical character gives him to address them 

 "continually from the pulpit, etc."; and he adds: "I am 

 "quite sure that the spirit of proselytism, which some 

 "persons- appear so greatly to dread, would no more exisr 

 "in a good and sensible clergvMnan than in a good and 

 "sen.sible layman. Your master must be a member of 

 "some Church or other, if he is not a Minister of it : if 

 ''he is a sincere member of it, and fitted to give religious 



