vided by them in some way.

There is no local education rate

in Ireland; a few of the District Councils contribute small sums for the support of the local teachers; and there are some private endowments for small (for the most part Protestant) schools, which, owing to the paucity of pupils in attendance, could not subsist on the capitation allowance made by the Commissioners. As school-books in Ireland are provided at the sole expense of the pupils, it is fair to set down the cost of these as a local contribution, at least in comparison with Great Britain, where books for use in the National schools are supplied at the public

expense.

Of the Treasury grant £1,253,890 was paid in 1905-6 to the teachers and £39,164 spent on the building and repairs of schools. Of the local contributions the teachers received £22,038, £90,525 being devoted to structure, repairs, furniture, and other purposes. Broadly speaking, therefore, we may say that the teachers in the Irish National schools, which are practically denominational, are paid almost entirely out of the national funds; whilst about two-thirds of the money put into buildings and equipment comes from local contributions.18

Given a fair school attendance, the salary of a teacher begins at £56 and may rise with age and good service to £175 a year, for men; and at £44 rising to £141 a year, for women. This is exclusive of special fees for extra subjects-Irish, French, Latin, and mathematics; and also of a capitation grant which, for a school with average attendance of 50 pupils or more, comes to £15 for the principal teacher. For assistants it would average probably about half that sum.

The special fees for extra subjects, Irish especially, show an increase during the quinquennial period 1901-5. There is likely to be a still more marked increase in fees for Irish in the immediate future, as new and much more satisfactory arrangements have been recently made with regard to that subject. All things considered, the remuneration may be taken as about £75

18 For the septennial period 1899-00-1905-6, the average expenditure from State grants on school buildings, teachers' residences, &c., was £39,334. about one-third of the total expenditure in that direction.

a year at the commencement, with a maximum of about £205 for men who have a diploma in Irish; and for women who are equally qualified, about £65 at the commencement, with a maximum of about £160. There is, moreover, a system of pensions and retiring allowances, and residences are provided for teachers in connection with 2,303 of the ordinary schools, 988 of these residences being free of rent. This was on December 31st, 1906; the tendency is to increase, but there were (in 1906-7) 14,339 teachers in the service of the Board, of whom 8,152the principal teachers—at least might reasonably expect to be provided with residences.

The expenditure on school-houses, I fear, would have to be very largely increased to bring them into decent condition: in this respect the Report of the Commissioners for 1905-6 is lamentable reading: "While in England and Scotland," they say, "during the last decennial period, the principles of school architecture have been constantly improved, and buildings have been erected to suit the needs of an extended curriculum, Irish schools, which were in a much more unsatisfactory state, have been restricted to plans which suited the ideas of half a century ago. Insufficient floor space, insufficient seating accommodation, insufficient class-rooms; no provision for encouraging cleanliness and sanitation by means of the simplest form of lavatories such are the features of the Irish schools. . . .

"While overcrowding is the chief defect in the centres of population, many of the school-houses in rural districts are mere hovels. Uneven earthen floors, broken roofs through which the rain freely enters, windows incapable of admitting sufficient light or air, are common defects. Even in schools that afford sufficient accommodation, and that are not defective on sanitary grounds, improvements are required to provide proper class teaching. It is no uncommon thing to find three or four teachers instructing the children in one large room. Really satisfactory work cannot be accomplished under such conditions."

It is not easy to apportion the blame for this state of things. Dr. Starkie, the present Resident Commissioner, in a document which has become famous, attempted to put it on the managers;

in the Report from which I have quoted the Commissioners, of whom he is one, have thrown it almost entirely on the British Treasury.

xi. SCHOOL ATTENDANCE; ILLITERACY; EVENING SCHOOLS.

In Ireland there is legal power to compel children who are over 6 and under 14 years of age to make 150 complete attendances in school each year. Where this law is enforced, parents and guardians whose children do not comply with its provisions, and who cannot show reasonable cause, may be brought before the magistrate and punished.

The ordinary local government of Ireland is managed by elected district councils, and the school attendance law is not fully compulsory, in the sense that it is left to the option of the district council to adopt and enforce it or not, each in its own district. Where it is adopted, the first step is to form a school attendance committee, of which, as a rule, clerical representatives of the principal religious denominations in the district are members: it is the duty of the committee to see that the law is observed. Where they can afford it, as in fair-sized towns, they usually appoint and pay an inspector, whose duty it is to see that the children of the district make the necessary school attendances.

The Commissioners of National Education report that in the year 1906-7 there were 182 school attendance committees, 86 in urban and 96 in rural districts; there are 44 towns having municipal government, to which the provisions of the Act apply, but for which school attendance committees have not been appointed. There are 144 rural districts without school attendance committees. There is some difficulty in enforcing the law in rural districts, owing to sparsity of population and consequent distance of the school from the average child, the great rainfall in Ireland, and the pressure of poverty whereby parents are compelled to employ children of school age in domestic or outdoor work. It is not easy, moreover, to prove that in any particular case failure to comply with the law may not have been due to some reasonable cause, such as illness. Finally,

it must be confessed, I think, that as laws have been made for and not by the Irish people, they have a tendency, which I cannot very much condemn, to resent external interference in their affairs, and they are unwilling to enforce foreign-made law on their neighbors. This will remain a potent cause cf neglect of the Compulsory Education Act until the people feel that it is a law of their own making.

The Census Report for 1901, I am glad to say, shows a decided advance in the way of school attendance. "It is satisfactory to find that though the total number of scholars in attendance during the year ended March 31st, 1901, was so much less than in 1891, there has been an increase in the attendance in the three highest periods, from 200 to 300 days, and 300 days and upwards... Compared with 1891, the schools under the National Board show a decreased attendance, owing doubtless, to the decline in the population. . . The individual attendance, however, has improved remarkably" (p. 70).

I have not been able to ascertain the percentage of children, of between 5 and 15 years who attend school at all, for no matter how small a number of days. The Commissioners of National Education state in their Report for 1905-6, how many of the pupils of over 6 and under 14 years of age on the rolls of their schools, made the legal number (75) of attendances in the two half-years ending on June 30th and December 31st, 1905. It was 58.4 per cent. for the first half-year and 45.8 for the second. According to the Census returns of 1901, of the children of from 10 to 15 years of age 94.4 per cent. could read and write, 2.7 per cent. could read only, and 2.9 per cent. could neither read nor write (General Report, p. 71).

In addition to the ordinary day-schools, the Commissioners of National Education make provision for elementary evening schools, of which there were 631 in operation during the year 1905-6. Persons over 14 years of age and children unable to attend day-school, are eligible as pupils; others may attend, but are not taken into account in calculating the average attendance with a view to payment. For each unit of the average attendance a sum varying from 10s. to 17s. 6d. is paid to the

managers, according to the character of the school, as reported on by the inspector.

Managers of National schools, local committees, and other suitable persons, may establish evening schools and get them recognised for support by the Commissioners of National Education. The managers employ the teachers and arrange the amount of their remuneration. Any person, lay or clerical, may be so employed, provided he is over 18 years of age and is approved as qualified by the inspectors: teachers of day-schools are eligible under certain conditions. The teachers do not necessarily receive the whole of the grant allowed for the school; but the whole must be spent on the school in some way.

xii. POPULAR CONTROL OF SCHOOLS.

No account of primary education in Ireland would be at all complete if it did not deal with the question of popular control of schools which are supported or aided by State funds. This aspect of the question has of late given rise to acrimonious controversy; and though my opinions have no pretension to be such as would be accepted by the majority of that influential class, the Catholic clergy, to which I belong, I think it better in the first place to state the facts, and then say what I think, however unpalatable my views may be to some. I can only say that, as far as I know, they have been formed honestly, with a sincere desire for the future welfare of the denominational schools-in so far as we may call State-endowed schools denominational.

The facts are: (1) that the people of Ireland have practically no voice in the selection of the 20 Commissioners who are charged with the administration of the State funds with which the National schools are endowed. These gentlemen are appointed by the Lord Lieutenant, who represents the political party in power for the time being in Great Britain. In determining which of the British parties this may be Irish popular opinion has as much influence as is represented in the House of Commons by the representatives of the country. As far as my experience can stretch back, and even as far as history