Part 5 (1/2)
The Legislature of 1837 set at rest for a few years the vexed question of an amendment to King's College charter. The majority of the Legislative Council were stoutly opposed to any modifications that would lessen the control of the Anglican Church, but they saw that public opinion was strong enough to prevent the opening of the college until amendments were made. They also saw that they were running a risk of having the charter cancelled and a new one granted by the Crown. They accordingly accepted certain amendments proposed by the Legislative a.s.sembly. These amendments[51] gave _ex-officio_ seats on the College Council to the Speaker of the two branches of the Legislature and to the Attorney-General and the Solicitor-General of Upper Canada; they removed from members of the Council and from professors every semblance of a religious test except the following declaration: ”I do solemnly and sincerely declare that I believe in the authenticity and Divine Inspiration of the Old and New Testaments and in the Doctrine of the Holy Trinity”; they removed absolutely from religious tests all students and candidates for degrees; they made the Judges of His Majesty's Court of King's Bench visitors instead of the Lord Bishop of Quebec, and vested the appointment of future presidents in His Majesty instead of conferring that office _ex-officio_ upon the Archdeacon of York.
[51] See Journals of a.s.sembly of Upper Canada for 1837, Legislative Library, Toronto.
Steps were taken at once to place the college in a position to begin work. A very able and comprehensive scheme[52] of studies and courses was drawn up by the President, Dr. Strachan, and everything promised favourably, when the Rebellion broke out and all operations were suspended.
[52] See D. H. E., Vol. III., pp. 93-98.
The following sketch of the Common Schools of this period, written by Mr. Malcolm Campbell, an old teacher of Middles.e.x, is inserted because it is believed to be typical of Upper Canada conditions. Mr. Campbell began to teach in 1835:--
”The School Houses, during the time I taught, were built of round logs about 14 16 ft., with clapboard roofs and open fireplaces. A window sash on three sides for light, a board being placed beneath them, on which to keep copies and slates. There were long hewn benches without backs for seats. There were no blackboards or maps on the c.h.i.n.ked walls.
There was a miscellaneous a.s.sortment of books, which made it very difficult to form cla.s.ses. Cobb's and Webster's Spelling-books afterwards gave place to Mavor's. The Testament was used as a Textbook, a supply of which was furnished by Rev. Benjamin Cronyn, afterwards Bishop of Huron. The English Reader, and Hume and Smollett's History of England were used by the more advanced cla.s.ses. Lennie's Grammar, and Dilworth's and Hutton's Arithmetics, and the History of Cortez' Conquest of Mexico were used, also a Geography and Atlas, and a variety of books.
Goose-quills were used for pens, which the teacher made and mended at least twice a day. The hours of teaching were somewhat longer than at present, and there was no recess. The number of scholars varied from 15 to 30, and school was kept open eight to ten months in the year with a Sat.u.r.day vacation every two weeks. Teachers, after having taught school for some months, underwent a pretty thorough oral examination by the District Board of Education, and were granted First, Second, or Third Cla.s.s certificates according to their merits, real or supposed. They had the Government grant apportioned to them according to their standing.
Mr. Donald Currie, in the section west of me, drew annually $120 on the ground of his high qualifications as well as his teaching Latin. My share of the grant was $80. Mr. Benson east of me drew $50.... The Government grant was what the teacher mainly depended on for cash. The rest of his pay, which varied from $10 to $16 a month, Government grant included, was mostly paid in ”kind,” and very hard to collect at that.
”The Trustees in these early days a.s.sumed duties beyond what they now possess. In engaging a teacher, they examined him as to his qualifications in the three R's and as much farther as any of themselves knew. They fixed the rate bill which each scholar should pay, usually at a dollar and fifty cents a quarter; and any family sending more than three scholars should go free, as well as the children of widows.... The teacher was expected to 'board round' at that rate of pay. He usually boarded in one or two houses near the school, doing ch.o.r.es morning and evening. The Trustees a.s.sessed each scholar with half a cord of wood during winter, which was scantily supplied; sometimes the teacher and bigger boys went with an axe to the woods to make up the deficiency. The trustees were to examine the school quarterly, and sign the Quarterly Reports so that the teacher might draw the Government grant.”[53]
[53] See D. H. E., Vol. III., pp. 131, 132.
The following ”Rules for the Government of Common Schools” prescribed by the Board of Education for the Niagara District is taken from Gourley's ”Statistical Account of Upper Canada, 1817-1822,” Vol. II.; Appendix, pp. 116-119:--
”1. The Master to commence the labours of the day by a short prayer.
”2. School to commence each day at 9 o'clock and five hours at least to be given to teaching during the day, except on Sat.u.r.days.
”3. Diligence and Emulation to be cherished and encouraged among the pupils by rewards judiciously distributed, to consist of little pictures and books, according to the age of the scholar.
”4. Cleanliness and Good Order to be indispensable; and corporal punishment seldom necessary, except for bad habits learned at home--lying, disobedience, obstinacy and perverseness--these sometimes require chastis.e.m.e.nt; but gentleness even in these cases would do better with most children.
”5. All other offences, arising chiefly from liveliness and inattention, are better corrected by shame, such as gaudy caps, placing the culprits by themselves, not permitting anyone to play with them for a day or days, detaining after school hours, or during a play afternoon, or by ridicule.
”6. The Master must keep a regular catalogue of his scholars and mark every day they are absent.
”7. The forenoons of Wednesday and Sat.u.r.day to be set apart for Religious Instruction; to render it agreeable the school should be furnished with at least ten copies of Barrows' 'Questions on the New Testament,' and the Teacher to have one copy of the key to these questions for his own use; the teacher should likewise have a copy of Murray's 'Power of Religion on the Mind,' Watkin's 'Scripture Biography,' and Blair's 'Cla.s.s Book,' the Sat.u.r.day Lessons of which are well-calculated to impress religious feeling.
”Note.--These books are confined to no religious denomination, and do not prevent the Masters from teaching such Catechism as the parents of the children may adopt.
”8. Every day to close with reading publicly a few verses from the New Testament, proceeding regularly through the Gospels.
”9. The afternoons of Wednesday and Sat.u.r.day to be allowed for play.
”10. A copy of these Rules to be affixed up in some conspicuous place in the School-room, and to be read publicly to the Scholars every Monday morning by the Teacher.”
No doubt much good teaching was done in schools nominally governed by similar codes of instruction. The teacher is always the real force in a school and good teachers are never slaves to mechanical rules.
These ”rules,” however, suggest a form of punishment that was largely used in those days even by good teachers and has not yet been wholly banished from the schoolroom--ridicule. Here we see it offered as an improvement upon corporal punishment. It may have had its advantages over the brutal punishments sometimes inflicted in the old days, but I think Dr. Johnson was right in saying that a reasonably severe corporal punishment was better for both teacher and pupil than either ”nagging”