labour of love. By such persons, the formation of a Sunday school institute will be hailed with delight. It is just what they want. It brings within their reach the means of intellectual progress, and founded for their benefit, it has a direct and special adaptation to the work in which they are engaged.

II. A second advantage has been secured for the members of the institute, by the formation of a bible class. This class will be conducted by ministers of the gospel, of various denominations. Each minister, who may preside over the class, will be invited to take charge of it during its winter session, either for three or six months, as may be found most convenient. At present the class is ably conducted by the Rev. John Kelly, and is numerously attended. Such a class has some advantages over a Bible class connected with any one congregation. It will be a larger class, and the presiding minister will prepare more carefully for a class of thirty or fifty than for a class of ten or fifteen, Hence the instruction given will be of a higher character than is perhaps usual in most congregational Bible classes. It also provides for those teachers who would not otherwise enjoy the advantage of any ministerial Bible class. To the junior teachers, especially, such a class is of the highest value, as affording an enlarged acquaintance with the word of God, accurate knowledge of the principles of interpretation, and the habit of applying these principles to the exposition of the oracles of truth. The institute is in fact a normal school for Sunday school teachers. The teachers thus trained will often avail themselves of the advantages of the reference library, and these advantages will prepare them for a profitable attendance on the Bible class. The united influence of the class and the library, will, ere long, be felt in our Sunday schools.

I. The first advantage, then, offered by the Liverpool Sunday school institute to its members, is daily access to a good reference library. This reference library has already cost about £100, and to estimate its value, to a Sunday school teacher, its special character should be distinctly stated. It is not a miscellaneous assemblage of books. It is not a general collection of theological works. It is a choice selection of standard works on the study of the sacred scriptures. For instance, it contains the best Commentaries on the Bible, the best Biblical Encyclopædias, Dictionaries, Maps, and Concordances; and the best works on the evidences of religion, on the canon and interpretation of scripture; and on Jewish and Christian Antiquities. In short, it is mainly and almost exclusively a library of biblical literature. Perhaps no science has of late received more attention than the science of biblical criticism. The diligence of scholars, and the researches of travellers are continually pouring new light on the inspired volume. Obscure passages are thus explained, seeming contradictions are reconciled, and many difficulties are removed. Their labours are invaluable to the Sunday school teacher. Yet so costly are many critical works as to be quite inaccessible to the majority of Sunday school teach-bers and friends of the institute, ers. Here then is the first advantage of a Sunday school institute. It throws open to Sabbath school teachers, the rich storehouse of biblical criticism.

III. Besides these advantages, lectures are delivered to the mem

on those subjects which are most interesting and useful to Sunday school teachers. The ministers of the gospel who have been asked to lecture, have most promptly

and kindly complied with the hoped, induce many of the female request of the committee. The teachers in Liverpool, to enrol first course of lectures is now themselves among its members. almost closed. It may, I think It remains only to state the be fairly stated, that no Sunday reception which the institute has school lectures previously deli- experienced. This has been most vered in Liverpool, have been gratifying, and has far exceeded more interesting or instructive, the most sanguine hopes of its certainly none more popular, than founders. Notwithstanding many the lectures delivered to the mem- disadvantages necessarily attendbers of the Sunday school institute. ing the commencement of such All these advantages are speci- an institution, its progress has ally adapted for the use of Sunday been most encouraging. Nearly school teachers. They are benefits £300 have already been received not to be obtained in mechanics' from life members and donors, to institutes or literary clubs. Such be applied to the establishment societies are formed for general of the institute, and the purchase purposes, and do not admit of of books and furniture; £200 special adaptation. To the Sunday more would enable the committee school teacher, therefore, the in- thoroughly to carry out their stitute presents peculiar advan- plans. The rooms of the institute tages, which no other institution have only been opened about four has to offer. months, yet there are already nearly 500 members. About 400 of these are connected with sabbath schools. I rejoice to add, that we have members from every evangelical denomination in the town. The average daily attendance at the institute rooms, is upwards of 100. The reference library is much used, especially on Saturday evenings. This progress has been made without any large public meetings or extraordinary effort. Our institute is but in its infancy. Additions to its plans, and alterations in its details, will, no doubt, be made as experience may suggest. The result I trust will be a blessing to the town for many, many years. 'Oh, Lord, establish thou the work of our hands; yea, the work of our hands, establish thou it.'

IV. These special advantages however are not the only privileges of the members of the institute. It comprises a reading room, well supplied with Reviews, Magazines, and Newspapers. Most of the Magazines selected are of a religious character, and the list of Newspapers taken, includes not merely the leading political journals, but almost all the religious newspapers published in the country. The opportunity is thus afforded to the members to become acquainted with the many important questions connected with civil and religious liberty, which so frequently agitate the public mind.

V. The last advantage I shall mention is, the establishment of a circulating library. This is not yet opened, but the committee have commenced the purchase of books, and hope shortly to announce the opening. The circulating library is intended to be of a general character, and will embrace theology, natural philosophy, history, biography, travels, and belles letters. This additional attraction will, it is

The Library.

THE illness of the Librarian renders him unable to give us any assistance before next month. He fully hopes by that time to be strong to labour. Authors and publishers will then have ample attention.

Ragged School Union. districts, to which the Church has

been unable to extend its operations. The Church of England is WE are happy to be able to furnish inadequate to the work-and the our readers with a brief account Dissenting body as equally soof the proceedings at the anniver- no one body alone could cope with sary of this excellent institution, the necessities of the case; and, held on Tuesday evening, May therefore, it was necessary that we 21st, at Hanover Square Rooms, should suppress our minor differLondon. The room, long before ences, and join heart and soul for the appointed hour, was thronged the purpose of producing the great with a most respectable assembly. | result, of bringing these poor outThe Rev. T. MORTIMER engaged casts within the sound of the in prayer. gospel. Now, the ordinary methods of discipline and government were wholly inefficient for this purpose. You could not offer to these children the advantages of your National schools, your British and Foreign schools, or any of your other educational establishments. It was a peculiar class with which you had to deal, and it was necessary to resort to peculiar measures. In a school where the system, upon which Ragged Schools are conducted, has prevailed for some time, I find, from the returns, that since July last, 507 children have been admitted; the average attendance has been 138; the different attendances, 223; leaving not accounted for 274 children who have come at various times, but who, following the necessities of their condition have wandered to other districts or migrated to other places. Our schools are of three classes:Sunday schools, evening schools, for five evenings in the week, and one day school, open all day. The Sunday schools are those with which we originally begun; and we cannot express too warmly our thanks to those, who with such labour and self-denial, were the first who instituted them. It is also necessary that on every suitable opportunity you should establish evening schools, where the children may be taught habits of attention and discipline. But if you go beyond these, and institute such schools as that at Westmin

LORD ASHLEY then rose, and said, Ladies and gentlemen,-The Ragged School Union, after labouring for many years in obscurity, has now waxed bold, and ventured to hold their annual meeting at this end of the town, in the hopes of influencing some of those whom God has blessed with station and affluence to lend their support to its objects. I would first invite your attention to the immediate business we have in hand, and to the operations of your committee. We direct our efforts to a great and increasing mischief, and endeavour to meet the case by adequate means. What is the mischief? The discovery is of the last few years, that there does exist a class of whom few or none had before any knowledge; they are a large and distinct class, found in our police-courts, gaols, streets-in every corner, in our courts, and alleys. If we examine into their moral habits-they are birds of prey, without discipline, without moral culture, without domestic training. It was the contemplation of such moral and spiritual misery that first gave rise to Ragged Schools, and these were necessarily founded on a large and liberal principle; and you will see why it was necessary that they should be so founded or not founded at all. The fact is, that thousands of these wretched children reside (or live, for residence many of them have not) in vast

name of human, now, through your efforts, have obtained places in service; and from St. Giles's sixty-two of such have been sent out to various situations, and in no one instance have we heard of any complaint alleged against them. Last January, at one of our schools, it was determined that prizes should be given to the deserving. They were so badly off that it was conceived best that the prizes should consist of fifteen pairs of bools. I was in the chair at the distribution. The schoolmaster told me that these boots would not all be given to the most deserving, because it so happened that some of these were not the most destitute; and some of these boys, of their own free-will, went and requested that the boots might not be given to them, but to others who were in greater want. Now here was an instance of selfdenial that it would be difficult to match in any other class of so

ster, if you take the children for a whole day, and train them in secular and religious knowledge, and give them a trade, you will have done as much as, perhaps, is possible towards rolling away this frightful reproach from a civilized nation. I know the difficulties which will be thrown in your way. The expense is one of these; because if you keep the children all day at school, you must give them food; they are a destitute class; many of them, when they rise in the morning, have no knowledge how they shall get their day's subsistence, and who look forward to the usual avocations of the day-begging, borrowing, or stealing for their support. Our object is to train them in habits of industry, and to induce in them a taste for earning their livelihood by honourable labour, which when you have done, you have given them that which will enable them to pursue their future course as honourable and Chris-ciety; these boys, accustomed tian citizens. I have been often asked, 'Will you show me a good specimen of a Ragged school?' I answer, 'It is a very difficult matter; for what you want is a great and edifying scene of confusion and disorder.' These are things, indeed, that we can record. I could tell you of such things as a master without a hat, or the tail of his coat, or of one having his hat filled with oil; or of teachers being compelled to bar the doors, and escape for their lives out of the window and over the roofs of houses. But these are scenes only to be witnessed for a short period after the foundation of the schools. Then, cleanliness, order, and discipline are fairly established. But though we cannot show instances of wild and primitive life, yet, blessed be God! we can point to the benefits of religion over them. Many of these degraded beings, who were so bad as scarcely to deserve the

only to live for themselves, now entering into the length and breadth of the precept, 'Look not every man to the things of himself

but every man to the things of his neighbour.'

The SECRETARY then read the Report.

It detailed the history of the institution since its formation in 1844, showing a growing increase in its efforts and funds from that period. Schools had lately been established in Bristol, Bath, Manchester, and Liverpool, and societies had also been formed in various large towns for the encouragement of such efforts. At the present time there were forty-four schools in all, with an average attendance of 4776 children, and 450 teachers; sixteen of these schools were open daily, morning and afternoon; thirty-one were open three to five evenings a week; while about thirty-three were open only on Sunday, with voluntary teachers;