tion of the lower orders of youth?" The chapters therefore, on writing and arithmetic, were avowedly written for their use.

It is likewise a fact, which I have ascertained by actual inspection, that, though Dr. Bell, in the two parts, which contain the description of his system, has frequently introduced the subject of writing and arithmetic, beside the chapters where he formally treats of them, not a passage can be found, throughout the whole of that description, where he has introduced those subjects in any other way, than as forming regular branches in his plan of tuition. It would be tedious to quote all the examples, and I must therefore content myself with referring to the pages, where the chief of them may be seen.' But there is a passage in his chapter on writing, which deserves particular attention; for so far from urging any limit to its use, he represents it as an excellence in his system, that it furnishes the poor with the means of learning to write at a moderate expense: When rigid economy,' says Dr. Bell, is requisite, as at the common run of schools, where the poor are taught, the Madras System enables the ingenious school-master, by means of sand and slates, and other devices, which his numerous ministers are ever ready to contrive, as well as to conduct, to practice various savings in books, paper, pens, and ink.'

But we may venture to go a step further, and contend, that writing is not only a constituent, but an essential part of Dr. Bell's system. Take away writing, and you remove the very foundation, on which Dr. Bell has raised his superstructure. It is by writing, and by writing only, that the children are taught to read. The chapter which relates to the elements of reading, is entitled, Of teaching the alphabet by writing its characters on sand. Nor is this writing confined to the writing on sund; it is extended to the writing on slates. In that chapter, Dr. Bell observes, The simplicity of this process (namely, the writing on sand), and its fitness for children of four years, at which age they were admitted into the asylum, entitles it to the notice of all schools in a similar predicament. But, with children further advanced, slates and pencils may be used after the sand, as is done in various schools of the metropolis, &c.' One of these schools is the free school of Orchard-street, Westminster, where Writing and reading go hand in hand, and assist each other in the progress of the pupils, who first begin to mark the letters of the alphabet on slates, and next to join them, and afterwards to make numerical figures, preparatory to their learning a little of arithmetic.' Thus reading and writing are rendered subservient to each other in the whole

1 See particularly pp. 2, 28, 42, 44, 46, 85.

progress

progress of this humble, though useful system of moderate and cheap education.' See Mr. Colquhoun's description of this school, where Dr. Bell's system is adopted, at p. 25 and 33 of his New and Appropriate System of Education for the Labouring People.'

Having shown that Dr. Bell's system is in its very principle not only favorable to writing and arithmetic, but even essential to the former, I shall, in the next Letter, inquire into the application

of it.

Cambridge, Sept. 14, 1811.

HERBERT MARSII.

LETTER V.

HAVING inquired in the preceding letter into the nature and character of Dr. Bell's Plan of Tuition, and having shown that this plan is constructed in such a manner, that arithmetic is a constituent, and writing an essential part of it, I will now endeavour to give some account of its application; and I will state, as far as my information goes, what is the practice of those schools where the system of Dr. Bell has been adopted.

That Dr. Bell himself, when he practised it at Madras, included both writing and arithmetic, is known to every one who has read his Elements of Tuition. It appears, indeed, from a 'Diagram of the Classification of the Male Asylum,' dated the 24th of June, 1796, and printed p. 169 of the Elements of Tuition, that writing and arithmetic were among the daily tasks.' When, in consequence of Dr. Bell's first publication in 1797, his method of tuition was introduced in that year into the charity school of Aldgate, in London, no exception was made for writing and arithmetic, which continue to be taught there to this day. In 1799, Dr. Briggs introduced Dr. Bell's system into the schools of industry at Kendal; and, though manual labour was the chief employment of those schools, it was so arranged, that the scholars should be divided into a convenient number of classes, and that each class should be taken from work an hour every day, to be taught to read and to write. See the Report of the Society for Bettering the Condition of the Poor, vol. iii, p. 187.

6

When, in 1806, Dr. Bell himself was solicited to introduce his system into the Parochial Charity School of Whitechapel, he was so far from excluding writing and arithmetic from the education of the poor, that, in his letter to Dr. Wright, dated the 11th of October, 1806, and printed in his Elements of Tuition, p. 303, he proposed, that a select class of boys should extend their learning

beyond

In this school there are

beyond common writing and arithmetic. one hundred boys. They are all learning to write in sand, on slates, or in copy-books; and sixty of this number are learning arithmetic. By keeping registers of the daily business of the school, they acquire a knowledge of book-keeping; to writing and arithmetic more than three hours of each day are exclusively devoted:' such is the information which I have received from a worthy friend, who is himself a trustee of the school. Another school was soon after founded at Gower's Walk, in the same parish, 'conducted under the system of the Rev. Dr. Bell,' as stated on the title-page of the Report printed at the school in 1811: and that in this school both writing and arithmetic are not only taught, but very successfully taught, appears from pp. 13, 14, of the Report, where a reference is made to Dr. Bell's book of Instructions. The very great success which has attended Dr. Bell's system in these two schools, both of which he modelled in person, appears from the circumstance worthy of notice, that they have furnished scholars to assist in the management of not less than twenty other schools, conducted on Dr. Bell's system; I will name them in the order in which they were sent to me :-The Royal Military Asylum, Stepney school, the schools of Barking, Brentwood, and Loughton, in Essex, Tewksbury, Salisbury, Buryton, near Petersfield, Kensington, Aldgate, Kellarton, near Exeter, a school in Wales (name omitted), Limehouse, Coggeshall, Brampton, near Huntingdon, Devizes, Layton, in Essex, Dorking, the Clergy Orphan School, and some more, whose names my friend does not recollect.' Writing and arithmetic (he adds) began to be taught in all these schools, upon the same plan with the Whitechapel school, and so I believe still continue.

Very soon after the introduction of Dr. Bell's system into the Whitechapel schools, it was adopted in the charity-school at Lambeth, by the agency of Dr. Bell in person, at the particular request of the Archbishop; and not only are writing and arithmetic taught in that school, (as appears indeed from the copy of the register-book, printed at p. S45 of Dr. Bell's Elements), but the master of it has lately published Arithmetical Tables,' which he terms co-operative with, and contributory to, Dr. Bell's Plan of Education. From the same page of Dr. Bell's book, it appears, that in the Royal Military Asylum (already noticed in the list of schools supplied with assistants from Whitechapel), both writing and arithmetic are regular branches of education; and so successful have been the endeavours of Dr. Bell, who modelled this institution, that he speaks of it in his work with a degree of enthusiasm. Nor must I omit to mention the circumstance, that a Treatise on Arithmetic, by T. Mainwaring, is in daily use in

the

the Military Asylum, with the approbation of Dr. Bell, and that the author quotes Dr. Bell, and appeals to his system. That writing and arithmetic are taught in the Free School of Orchardstreet, Westminster, which is founded on Dr. Bell's system, appears from the account which has been published by Mr. Colquhoun. In the schools at Marylebone, as well in the School of industry, as in the Charity School, (both of which are modelled on Dr. Bell's system), writing and arithmetic are taught; and the master of the former school has lately given the following information to a worthy friend, from whom I have immediately received it Dr. Bell, on calling to inspect the progress of the children, very particularly examined them in writing and arithmetic, putting many questions to the learners, to try their proficiency in the latter, and scrutinizing the specimens of the former; commending the adepts, and reproving the defective and negligent. He was particularly attentive to those parts of instruction, and exhorted the children to strive to qualify themselves therein, as of material service to them in future?'

At the Asylum or House of Refuge for Orphan Girls in Lam beth, where Dr. Bell's system was introduced by the recommenda tion of his Royal Highness the president, and with the approbation of his Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury,' (Elements of Tuition, p. 276,) both writing and arithmetic are taught by a master, who was educated in Christ's Hospital. Further, the master of Lambeth-school, a friend and disciple of Dr. Bell, was some time ago requested by the governors of Christ's Hospital, to go to their reading-school at Hertford, and introduce Dr. Bell's plan there, which he has done ably in all the three branches of reading, writing, and arithmetic. Dr. Bell himself has since inspected that school, and approved the whole process. I have this intelligence from undoubted authority.

The examples already produced are sufficient to confute the assertion, that Dr. Bell applies a proscriptive principle to writing and arithmetic.' But they are far from being the only schools, numerous as they may seem, where Dr. Bell has introduced, and zealously promoted, the learning of writing and arithmetic. The schools which he has established in the bishopric of Durham are conducted on the same liberal and extensive principle. In short, every school throughout the kingdom conducted on Dr. Bell's plan, to which my inquiries have extended, teaches writing and arithmetic as well as reading. These inquiries have been very extensive; and, in addition to the particular information which I have received, I have been assured by gentlemen, who have the most extensive knowledge of the subject (to whom I here beg leave to express my obligations), that they know of no school conducted

on

on Dr. Bell's system, which excludes either writing or arithmetic. With respect to Sunday schools, where Dr. Bell's method of religious instruction may have been adopted, it would be foreign to the original design of them to make writing and arithmetic a part of the instruction. The proper exercise for Sunday is improvement in religion; and no exception can be taken, if arts, however useful, are neglected on that day. But as it is possible that even other schools, professing to be conducted on Dr. Bell's plan, exclude the learning of writing and arithmetic (for my intelligence on this subject cannot warrant the assertion that there really are no exceptions to the rule), I can only say, that such institutions, if any such there be, are not what they pretend to be; they are not institutions conducted in the spirit of Dr. Bell's system. If children are taught to read by any other means than by writing the letters, either in sand, or on slate, or some other material (for the material is of no consequence to the principle itself), they are not taught to read according to the method prescribed by Dr. Bell. Where writing is wholly excluded, the art of reading, on Dr. Bell's plan, is likewise excluded. It is true, that the art of writing may be only partially practised; it may be used only as a means and not as an end; and when children have acquired a proficiency in reading, the exercise may be discontinued which led to the acquirement. But when children are already advanced so far in the elements of writing, when only a little more exercise is wanted, to put them in the way of writing in the usual hand, it would be a misapplication of Dr. Bell's system to stop short in the midst of the career, and impose a restriction, at which the system itself revolts.

The extraordinary and inconsistent passage in Dr. Bell's third edition, which Mr. Lancaster has so triumphantly quoted, shall be explained in the next letter.

Cambridge, Sept. 18. 1811.

HERBERT MARSH.

LETTER VI.

As it appears from the two preceding letters, not only that the system of Dr. Bell is in itself favourable to writing and arithmetic, but also, that in point of fact, both writing and arithmetic are taught in the schools conducted on Dr. Bell's plan, one should suppose it almost impossible that Dr. Bell could, on any occasion, be so inconsistent as to propose, that the instruction of the poor should be limited to reading only. Our astonishment is still further excited by the circumstance, that the whole system is designed for the use of the poor. To exclude therefore the poor

from