3 to Proceedings of Public Societies. 



Orders in the Melropn!is,nnd to 7-eport mode of conduclin 



their observations thereupon ; tnirethrr 



with the Minutes of the Evid/nce tahen 



he/ore them, from time to time, to the 



House; and who were instructed to con- 

 sider what mat/ he Jit to he done with 



respect to the Children of Paupers who 



sliall be found beg.i-i).'"^ in the Streets in 



and near the l\lttropotis, or who shall 



le carried about hi/ Persons asking- 

 Char it)/, and whose Parents, or other 



Persons irho they accumpani/, have not 



sent such Children to umj of the Schools 



provided for the Education of poor Chil- 

 dren ; — have, pursuant to the order of 



the House, inr/uired into the Matters to 



them referred, and have agreed to the 

 following Report. 



Your ConsmiUce have examined a 

 great body of evidence, Mliicii luis been 

 reported and ordered to be printed, re- 

 specting the state of education amon^ 

 the lower orders in llic metropolis; and 

 they have found reason 1o conclude, that 

 a very Iarp;e number of poor children are 

 wiiolly without the means of instruction, 

 although their parents appear to be ge- 

 nerally very desirous of obtaining tiiat 

 advantage for tliem. 



Your Committee have also ol)served 

 with much satisfaction, the highly be- 

 neficial cfTccts produced upon all those 

 parts of the population uhich, assisted 

 in whole or hi part by various charitable 

 institutions, have enjoyed the benefits of 

 education. 



Your Committee Iiavc not Iiad time 

 this session fully to report their opinion 

 Upon the difierent branches of their in- 

 quiry, but they feel persuaded (hat the 

 greatest advantages would result to this 

 country from parliament taking proper 

 measures, in concurrence with the pre- 

 vailing disposition in the community, 

 for snpplj ing tiie deficiency of the means 

 of instruction which exists at present, 

 and for extending this blessing to the 

 poor of all descriptions. 



Although your Committee have not 

 been instructed to examine the state of 

 education beyond the metropolis, they 

 have, in addition to what has appeared 

 in evidence, received comnnmications, 

 •which show the necessity ot' Parliament 

 as speedily as possible instituting an in- 

 quiry into the management of charitable 

 donations and other funds for the in- 

 struction of the poor of this country, and 

 into the state of their education gene- 

 rally, especially in the larger towns: and 

 jour Committee are of opinion, that the 

 Biost eflfectual as well as least expensive 



[Nov. 1, 



sueli an inqnin', 

 would be by means of a Parliamentary 

 commission. 



Mr. Thomas Atigustinc Finnrgan. 



\A hat are you? — JMaster of the St. 

 Giles's Irish free schools in George- 

 street. 



From your intercoiusc witli (he inha- 

 bitants of St. Giles's, can you speak to 

 (he state of the education and the situa- 

 tion of (lie lower orders generally? — I 

 liave taken a survey of the neiglibour- 

 hood, and I have ascertained (hat (here 

 are upwards of 6,000 poor Irish in (hat 

 neighi)ourhood, in the district of St. 

 Giles's,iiicliiding(he parts of Bloonisbmy 

 that are connected witii it. 



Have you any means of informing (ho 

 Committee how many children there are? 

 —Nearly ,3,000. 



In what state are those children ge- 

 nerally as to education? — Entirely ig- 

 norant and des(itu(e of any informa(ion 

 w hatever, unless those tliat arc in schools 

 at present. 



In what state arc Ihcy with respect to 

 their morals? — Most depraved; they are 

 exposed to every species of vice with 

 which the streets abound ; they generally 

 associate with gangs of pickpockets: 

 tliey are (o be found in every quar(er of 

 the (own, and particularly (hat quarter. 



Do those children belong to labourers 

 in very poor circumstances? — Gene- 

 rally. 



Are the morals of the parents (hem- 



selves very dissolute? — Very dissolu(p, 

 generally; on Sundays pardcularly (hey 

 take their children wi(h them to public- 

 houses, and the children witness (he 

 scenes of riot and sanguinary coiiHtet 

 that happen among the parents in the 

 stree(s. 



Is the whole Sunday spent in those 

 public houses? — Entirely so; «liile they 

 liave a farthing left of (i)eir week's 

 wages, (hey spend it in tliose public- 

 houses, and the children are left to (he 

 parish, for food, during the rest of tUe 

 week. 



Yon have stated, that you had room 

 for 300 children, in your school, and that 

 only 200 attended ; how do you account 

 for jour establishment not being full? — ■ 

 From the most unprecedented opposi- 

 tion, by the Roman Catliolic clergj', to 

 the teaching the Holy Scrijitures. • 



Is this opposition of late?— Ithas been 

 ever since the commencement; as soon 

 as the plan and design of the schools 

 were made known, (heir opposition im- 

 mediately cojuniciiced ; one of the priests 

 entered 



