school-houses should be erected by subscription, in addition to the present fund, and that trustees should be elected by subscribers of £2 each.

The sum of £150, for which the premises were sold, was received by Mr. John Gray. A misunderstanding afterwards arose between him and the two other persons above-mentioned, with respect to the building a new school-house, under the following circumstances: A piece of land containing 396 square yards was given by James Wilde Esq. for the purpose of building a school thereon, and was conveyed for a nominal consideration to Messrs. Gray, Walker and Bibby, in fee-simple, by indentures of lease and release dated 26th and 27th of March 1824; the trusts upon which the land was given are not, however, expressed in the conveyance. Upon these premises Mr. Gray was anxious that a school should be built, the expenses of which were estimated at £340. Early in the year 1825 Mr. John Haughton, a builder in Levenshulme, purchased of his own accord a piece of ground containing about 500 square yards, subject to a rent of one penny a square yard, and built a school and house thereon, at his own expense, with the assistance of such of the materials of the old school as were capable of being used for the purpose; and having incurred this expense he became desirous that the inhabitants of the township should purchase this land and the buildings erected thereon at the price which they respectively cost him. There was some dispute as to the sum for which Mr. Haughton should give credit, in respect of the materials of the old school used by him as above-mentioned, and which were originally valued at £50; but the principal subject of dispute was whether the premises on which Mr. Haughton has built should be purchased, or whether a new school should be built on the land given by Mr. Wilde. Mr. Gray insisted upon the adoption of the latter against the opinion of the two other persons apppointed by the township to act with him, they being anxious to purchase the premises of Mr. Haughton, and to give back to Mr. Wilde the land conveyed to trustees by him as above-mentioned.

In consequence of these disputes, Mr. Briddon was appointed

treasurer at a vestry meeting held August 11, 1824, but Mr. Gray has refused to pay over to him the money deposited in his hands, stating that he was ready to lay it out in building a school according to the original intentions of the vestry held in 1823, and the moncy was placed in Mr. Gray's name in the bank of Messrs. Jones Loyd and Co.

It appeared to the Charity Commissioners during their inquiry that as the inhabitants of the township were the proper judges of the mode in which the money should be laid out for the purpose of building a school in lieu of that which was erected in 1754, and as Mr. Gray had engaged to pay over the money in his hands in such manner as he should be advised by the Commissioners, it was expedient that a town's meeting should be held for the purpose of determining in what manner the money should be laid out, which accordingly was done; and at a meeting held March 1, 1826, it was resolved

I. That the resolution passed at a public town's meeting held August 11, 1824, appointing Mr. Abram Briddon, treasurer of the Levenshulme school-fund, should be confirmed.

II. That a public town's meeting should be held on the 13th of March, to take into consideration the state of the Levenshulme school-fund.

This meeting also was held, six persons being present, of whom Mr. John Haughton was one, and it appearing that Mr. John Gray not having paid over to Mr. Abram Briddon, the treasurer of the Levenshulme school-fund, the money in his hands, a representation to that effect was made to the Commissioners, who, thinking that the question recommended to the consideration of the town's meeting had not been brought under discussion, recommended that it should be considered at another meeting.1

The later proceedings in this disputed case are not known in detail, the book being lost in which were recorded the decision of the inhabitants in vestry assembled. Mr. Haughton's offer was not, however, accepted by the trustees, who erected instead a suitable

1 Charity Commission Reports, vol. 16, pp. 199-200.

building on the site given by Mr. Wilde. Some years afterwards a Mechanics' Institution was commenced in the township, and the promoters availed themselves of this building as the place for their meeting as well as for the general purposes of the institution; but being found, in process of time, inconveniently small, a new structure was determined on, and it was resolved to incorporate with the new institution the existing schools. Accordingly in the year 1854 the building was commenced, which is already completed, and bears the name "Levenshulme Mechanics' Institution and Schools." The school-building thus deserted is now claimed by the Wesleyans, whose only plea is the permission, of late years accorded to them by the township, of using the school as a chapel on Sundays, and out of school hours during the remainder of the week. The intervention of the Charity Commissioners has been again sought, and the matter is now under consideration.