THE HAMILTON ASSOCIATION. TI7 



of public opinion that was setting in, favorable to a greatly enlarged 

 measure of popular education. The principal provisions of this Act 

 were the establishment of a permanent fund for the support of Com- 

 mon Schools, the appointment of a Chief Superintendent of Educa- 

 tion, the introduction of the Separate School System, the utilizing of 

 certain portions of the municipal machinery (such as it was at that 

 time), for advancing the interests of these schools, and the formation 

 of school districts. When this Act was under discussion in the 

 Legislature, large numbers of petitions asking that the Bible be made 

 a text book in the Common Schools, were presented to the House of 

 Assembly. These had the effect of raising a strong opposition from 

 the Catholic members, and the government of the day took the 

 somewhat unusual course of submitting one of their own measures 

 to a special committee of the House, to devise some means of har- 

 monizing these conflicting interests. The result of this committee's 

 work, was, that power was given in certain cases to establish separate 

 schools. These provisions have been continued in successive Acts, 

 until finally they were confirmed by the Confederation Act of 1867. 

 The School Act of 1843, in addition to the provisions contained 

 in the Act of 1841, made the Provincial Secretary, ex-ofificio Chief 

 Superintendent of Education, with power to appoint an assistant. It 

 also gave authority to the District Councils to appoint County and 

 Township Superintendents, and to establish County Model Schools 

 for the gratuitous instruction of teachers. 



In 1S44 the Rev. Dr. Ryerson was appointed Chief Superinten- 

 dent of Education, and in 1846 brought before the Legislature his 

 first school bill, which provided for the appointment of a Provincial 

 Board of Education, the establishment of a Normal School, the 

 appointment of District Superintendents, and levying an equivalent 

 to the legislative grant upon the different municipalities. This Act 

 was found defective in regard to the management of schools in cities 

 and towns, and therefore in 1847 a short act was passed remedying 

 these defects. The next school legislation took place in 1849, when 

 an Act was passed which caused Dr. Ryerson to tender his resignation 

 to the government of the day. This, the Attorney General refused 

 to accept, and took the somewhat unusual course of recommending 

 the Governor to suspend the operations of this Act until such time 

 as Dr. Ryerson could draft another, which from his knowledge and 



