ENGLISH EDUCATION 583 



Penzance. By a legacy under the will of the late Prebendary Hedgeland, the Penzance 

 library received in 1911 an addition of 7,000 books. 



Plymouth. In October 1910 a free library, art gallery and museum were opened; they 

 had cost about 25,000, towards which Mr. Andrew Carnegie gave 15,000. 



Reading. The Berkshire County Council has built new offices at Reading, a fine build- 

 ing in the Queen Anne style, near the medieval gateway of the abbey. 



Shrewsbury. A weir has been constructed on the Severn to improve boating; and the 

 Town Council resolved on June 24, 1912, to apply for sanction for a loan of 12,000 to widen 

 the English bridge over that river. 



: Stoke-on-Trent. In 1911 the Duke of Sutherland offered Trentham Hall and a large 

 portion of its grounds to the corporation, but the offer was declined. The hall was therefore 

 demolished and its chimney-pieces and other carvings and fittings were sold. 



Wakefield. The County Hall has been extended at a cost of 32,000. 



Worcester. Important street improvements have been effected principally in the widen- 

 ing of The Foregatey High Street. The Corporation has acquired Pitchroft (including the 

 racecourse) for a public pleasure-ground and has purchased land for a recreation ground. 



Ancient Sites and Buildings. London. In the course of work on the fine Norman 

 western porch of the Temple Church it was found that the carving had been coated over, 

 and it has now been revealed in almost its original state by the removal of the coating. 



Rochester. The restored north aisle of Rochester Cathedral was dedicated on March 

 10, IQII. 



Salisbury. Old Sarum, the former city of Salisbury, lies buried a mile and a half 

 from the present town, and interesting excavations were made in 1912. The area is in 

 the care of archaeologists, under Col. William Hawley, F.S.A., and the history of the 

 site is gradually coming to light. The most recent excavations reveal a good outline of 

 the south wing of the transept of the great church, and many graves have been met with, 

 most of them very near the surface. Their depths vary considerably, but none seems 

 to be more than three feet, while stone coffins must have been actually on the surface. 

 For the present all the coffins have been covered up to receive attention later, but it is 

 doubtful whether anything definite will be ascertained of the occupants, as the covering 

 stones have in all instances been taken away and doubtless the contents have been inter- 

 fered with. Other things unearthed include some very fine gargoyles found in the tran- 

 sept cutting. The intention of the excavators in 1912 was to get a general outline of the 

 close and the cathedral, and to open out the entire basement of the building when work 

 was resumed in 1913. It was hoped that the work would be completed by 1915. 



Lake House near Salisbury, a fine example of Elizabethan stone architecture, in the 

 occupation of Mr. P. W. Illingworth, M.P., was destroyed by fire on March 29, 1912. 



After much public interest had been aroused, Tattershatt Castle, with its famous carved 

 stone fireplaces, was purchased in 1912 by Earl Curzon of Kedleston. The fireplaces were 

 brought back in June, and Lord Curzon intimated that he intended to restore the mansion 

 to its original condition and make it accessible to the public. 



Winchester. In July] 1912 a service was held in Winchester Cathedral, at which the 

 King and Queen were present, to celebrate the completion of the restoration of the cathe- 

 dral. The eastern arm of the cathedral was practically built over a peat bog upon a raft, 

 which, after eight centuries, subsided, and in 1905 the whole building threatened to collapse. 

 Over 113,000 was raised to meet the cost of restoration. New buttresses were erected, and 

 a diver, working in darkness for six hours a day for six years, and much hampered by sub- 

 terranean springs, laid a solid bed of concrete under the piers and walls. 



Education. For the year ending July 31, 1911, the total number of pupils in schools 

 comprised under the national system of public elementary and higher elementary educa- 

 tion, in England and Wales, was 6,067,075; of these 350,621 were aged 3 to under 5, 

 1,301,267 aged 5 to under 7, 3,311,756 aged 7 to under 12, 1,096,474 aged 12 to under 15, 

 and 6,957 aged 15 and over. There were 8,046 " Council " elementary schools with 

 accommodation for 3,980,946 pupils; 12,734 " voluntary " elementary schools (main- 

 tained by local education authorities) with accommodation for 2,808,795; and 66 

 " voluntary " elementary schools (not so maintained) with accommodation for 17,799. 

 Also 46 " Council " higher elementary, and 285 other schools, with accommodation for 

 12,207 an d 19,391 respectively; and i " voluntary " higher elementary, and 116 other 

 schools, with accommodation for 240 and 12,742 respectively. Of the 12,734 " volun- 

 tary " elementary schools, 10,941 (with accommodation for 2,245,143 pupils) were 



