following statement :- "We must have some definite principle of interpretation. If that principle be not what has been just mentioned (referring to a passage I have already quoted), but must be that of official distinction; then let it, in this sense, be consistently carried out. And if it be so carried out, a Presbyterian can have no more right to assume (as, from the power of habitual association, he may be apt to do), that he that teacheth' is a ruler as well as a teacher, than another has to assume that he that ruleth' is a teacher as well as a ruler. So far as the fair exegesis of this passage goes, the teacher is as distinct from the ruler as the ruler is from the teacher. The teacher must not rule, any more than the ruler teach."-P. 196. On this passage I would remark, that presbyterians do not assume that "he that teacheth" is a ruler as well as a teacher? On the principle of interpretation I am contending for, and according to which Dr W. reasons in the passage now quoted, "he that teacheth" is admitted to be an official title; a title descriptive of one who is a public and official expounder of the word of God; in other words, it is descriptive of the office held by him, who is elsewhere called " pastor and teacher." But Dr W. knows well that there is abundant proof to satisfy any reasonable mind, that "he that teacheth" (in the sense in which this phrase is here understood by presbyterians) is a ruler. This proof Dr W. himself has placed in a very convincing light. It is not an assumption then, it is reasoning from a matter which has been already proved, when we reason from this passage on the understanding, that "he who teacheth" unites in his official character the two departments of teaching and ruling. I remark further on this passage, that neither Dr W., nor any one else, has a right to assume that "he that ruleth" is a teacher as well as a ruler; it must be proved, and not assumed. Dr W., in the passage quoted, reasons on the ground that "he that ruleth" is an official designation, the designation of one who is appointed to bear rule in the church. According to the assumption which my respected friend says he has a right to make, "he that teacheth," and "he that ruleth,” would be deseriptive of persons who performed exactly the same duties—that is, persons who both taught and ruled. Would not this be ascribing to the apostle a vain and useless repetition? Wherein would be the difference of meaning in these two phrases, if both of them described persons who did exactly the same things? Yet, this is what Dr W. says he has a right to assume. On the other hand, according to the view which presbyterians take, "he that teacheth," describes the person who in the church acted as pastor and teacher;" and who, our Independent brethren agree with us in maintaining, both taught and ruled; while "he that ruleth," describes the person who in the church acted as a ruler, but did not act as a public official teacher; and who, therefore, is distinguished by the apostle in this passage from him that taught. I safely leave it with my readers to determine which of these interpretations of the passage under consideration is the one most consistent with the rules of fair and legitimate criticism. 66 My remarks on the other passages. (noted above) commented on by Dr Wardlaw, must be deferred till a subsequent number. NATIONAL EDUCATION. (Concluding Article.) ALL parties seem to be of opinion, that the Educational Institutions of Scotland cannot long remain in their present condition, and the great majority are agreed in thinking, that the plan which the Government has proposed for remedying the defects of these Institutions, is liable to insuperable objections. It has been It has been reprobated by all classes of Dissenters-condemned at public meetings, repudiated even by the Parochial Teachers, and tolerated only by our Free Church brethren, who have, however, expressed their decided preference for a different system. It would be uncandid to deny, that the modifications which the scheme has recently undergone, have rendered it less objectionable than it originally but we must add, with deep regret, that it is still undeserving of the support of an enlightened community. No change has been made on those parts of the measure by which a great increase of patronage will be conferred on the government, and especially immense power over a very important class of the community-the teachers, who ought to be set free from all undue influence, whether ministerial or ecclesiastical. It is still liable to the objection, that was; *Under the minutes of the Committee of Council, grants of public money are made to schools on condition that they are open to the examination of the government inspectors, and that the friends or supporters of the schools provide for the teacher a free house and school-room, and a salary double the amount of the government grant, but one half of the sum may be raised by school fees. The Scottish parochial teachers were at first excluded from the benefits of the scheme; but by a minute, of date July 10th 1847, the committee have agreed to admit them to a share in its advantages on the following conditions: -1. That they shall submit to an examination by two of her Majesty's inspectors, respecting their general attainments in it gives improper power to the inspectors over the livelihood of the schoolmasters, and that it is calculated to exert a servile and debasing influence on the minds of the people, pauperising their spirit, destroying their habits of self-reliance, and leading them to expect and depend upon subsistence from the state. The scheme still remains without any proper security, that the money voted from the public funds will be honestly devoted to the purposes for which it is given. The government and the legislature are to know nothing of the manner in which the money is spent, except from the reports of the inspectors, who must possess the confidence of the church or religious denomination, or managers, under whose superintendence the respective schools are placed, and will be dismissed from office whenever that confidence is withdrawn. It is not likely that persons who hold their offices by such a frail tenure, will venture to scrutinize too narrowly the conduct of those on whose approbation their livelihood depends. But, above all, the scheme is still liable to the insuperable objection, that it sanctions the appropriation of national funds for the purpose of literature and science, and their practical skill in teaching, and shall, as the result of this examination, obtain from the Committee of Council, a certificate of their possessing the requisite qualifications. 2. That, in addition to the salary required by law, a further salary be provided, equal to twice the amount of the grant made from the public funds-one half of this sum may be derived from school fees-the other half must be raised by the contributions of the heritors, or other friends of the school. 3. That the teachers, who receive the augmentation of salary, shall give up all the adjunct offices which they now hold, except that of Session Clerk alone, in order that they may devote their whole time and energies to the duties of their profession. latitudinarian in its principles, and partial and unjust in its practical operation. We cannot, without renouncing our principles, accept of one farthing from the public funds for the religious instruction either of young or old. Our objections to such payments rest not on the person to whom, but the purpose for which, the money is paid; and it matters not whether the religious instruction be given by the pastor or the schoolmaster-from the pulpit or the desk baths or on week days; we object with equal firmness to the intrusion of the state within this sacred province at all. We refuse, on principle, to receive such endowments ourselves, and we object, on principle, to pay them to others. communicating religious instruction to every sect that will comply with its conditions. As the minutes of the Committee of Council originally stood, the Catechism and Liturgy were required to be taught to all the pupils in the Church of England schools; and, in all other schools, the managers were required to certify, that religious instruction was communicated to their satisfaction. The latter part of this regulation has now been withdrawn, but the former still remains in force. In all the to the young or to the old-on SabChurch Schools the Catechism and Liturgy must still be taught; and in the Schools belonging to other denominations, religion may still be communicated to the pupils at the public expense, though this is no longer imperative. The measure is, therefore, virtually a new religious establishment; according to which, truth and error are alike to receive national support, and the public money will be devoted to training the youth of this country, not merely in those religious systems which agree on the essential doctrines of Christianity, but also in systems which retain almost nothing of Christianity but the name. If the various sects to whom these endowments are offered, will only stoop to reap the golden harvest placed within their reach, we shall soon witness the spectacle of a national establishment in support of religious systems as opposite as light and darkness. Can there be a doubt in the mind of any reasonable person, that such a scheme will exercise a most pernicious influence on the minds both of old and young, and must tend directly to bring about the state of things described by Gibbon, as existing in the later days of the Roman empire, when all systems of religion were regarded by the people as equally true, by the philosopher as equally false, and by the state as equally indifferent. It is scarcely necessary to say, that we regard such a scheme as alike unscriptural and With respect to the proposal now made, for the first time, to extend the benefits of the Government scheme to the parochial teachers, without at the same time taking any steps to open the schools to Dissenters, or to free them from the domination of the Presbyteries of the Established Church, we regard it as deserving of special reprobation. It is equally at variance with the dictates of equity, and of sound policy. These schools are already endowed from national funds, which should be expended for the benefit of the whole, not of a section, of the community. The office of parochial teacher is a purely secular of fice; and therefore, to exclude Dissenters from it on the ground of their religious opinions, is an act of injustice, as well as a stigma inflicted on them for their adherence to their conscientious convictions. But the injustice and impolicy of such a system will be greatly aggravated, if the emoluments of the teachers are to be increased by grants of money from the public funds, while the schools are continued under the exclusive superintendence and control of the Established Church. The proposal has not yet been carried into active operation, and we must give it our immediate and strenuous opposition, if we expect our resistance to be successful. Since the Government scheme is so objectionable on the ground of principle, it follows almost as a necessary consequence, that it is also sectarian in its character. It does not limit its aid to schools in which all sects may meet on terms of equality; neither does it offer assistance, without regard to sect or party, to those districts where schools are most needed. It gives grants to sects as sects, and holds out to them a powerful inducement to increase the number of denominational schools, where their own peculiar tenets will alone be taught. Those who receive grants of public money, will of course be enabled by this aid greatly to extend their own sectarian institutions; and those who cannot conscientiously avail themselves of these grants, will yet feel constrained, in self-defence, to erect schools of their own. In every city, in every town, in almost every village, we shall have rival schools set down, into which the children will be collected solely according to the religious opinions of their parents, thus adding fuel to the fierceness of sectarian animosity, and producing jealousy, strife, and confusion, and every evil work. On this ground, we regard the application of this scheme to Scotland, as even more deserving of reprobation than its introduction into England. The latter has never known any thing else than sectarian education. But, in Scotland, party strife has scarcely ever been introduced into our schools. Hence, with rare and recent exceptions, our seminaries, both endowed and unendowed, have exhibited the beautiful spectacle of children of all religious denominations sitting side by side, without the slightest regard to sectarian distinctions. What Scotchman does not know by experience, the inestimable benefits which such a system has produced in softening the asperities of political and religious controversy? In this age of discord and strife, who among us has not looked back with feelings of delight, not unmingled with regret, to that happy period, "In life's morning march, when our bosoms were young;" when, strangers both to the cares and contentions of life, we mingled in the pastimes and studies of childhood and youth, alike ignorant and regardless of the distinctions of party or sect? And who, even amid the bitterness of political and theological strife, has not felt his temper softened, and his angry passions assuaged, and his heart warmed towards his opponents, by the tender recollection of those days "o' langsyne," when we sat together on the same bench, and aided each other in the preparation of the same task? Now, it is one of the greatest evils of the government measure, that it not only makes no provision for the preservation of these hallowed influences, but renders their destruction inevitable. By seeking to maintain the parochial system in its present constitution, and attempting to buy off the opposition of Dissenters, by offering them grants of public money to establish schools of their own, it holds out a premium to induce rival sects to struggle for the possession of the rising generation. If the scheme should be carried into operation, one party will erect schools from choice, another from necessity; and the youth of the various religious bodies will, from this time forward, be trained in seminaries exclusively patronised and supported by sectarian influence; carefully drilled into a knowledge of all the minute distinctive peculiarities of their respective creeds; mingling only with companions of their own sect, and knowing nothing of the youth of other denominations except as rivals to be hated or contemned. Who does not see that this system must exercise a most pernicious influence over the minds of the rising generation; and that, from this measure, as from the fountain of Marah, the bitter waters of sectarian jealousy and strife will overflow every corner of the land? Now, if this obnoxious scheme is to be successfully resisted, we have no time to lose. At the present moment the establishment of a general system is quite practicable, and indeed easy. But every step which the government and legislature take in the road on which they have entered, will render this more difficult, and, in a very short time, it may be altogether impossible. Our only hope of success, therefore, is in the adoption of prompt and vigorous measures, before the scheme has had time to take root among the established institutions of the country. But it is worse than idle to imagine that our representations will have any weight either with the legislature or the country, if, while we "resolve to oppose the government scheme of education," we decline to "give any deliverance on the various questions that are now moved respecting the education of the people." The time has gone bye for the adoption of a mere obstructive policy. The ministry say, and there is no evading the force of their argument, "While you are wrangling, ignorance, poverty, and crime, are increasing with appalling rapidity, and are undermining the very foundations of our national prosperity. The people must be educated; and if this cannot be done in the way most desirable, it must be done in the way most practicable; and we will not take upon ourselves the responsibility of allowing the poor to remain uneducated, till you settle your differences of opinion respecting the best mode of education." Our only hope, therefore, of being able to defeat the scheme which they are seeking to establish, is, by holding up, in opposition to it, a system based on equitable and comprehensive principles, in which all may unite without compromising their conscientious convictions. We are satisfied that the system embodied in the resolutions of our Synod in May last, would secure the approbation and support of a very large proportion of the inhabitants of Scotland. Let the parochial system be freed from the existing tests, and from the domination of the presbyteries of the Established Church, and be made the basis of a general system commensurate with the present state of the country; let the salary of the teacher, and other necessary funds, be raised, partly by local and voluntary contributions, and partly by grants of public money; let the schoolmaster be elected, and the school superintended by a committee chosen by the people, without regard to sectarian distinctions ;-"let it be left to this committee to determine the amount and kind of religious instruction that shall be imparted ;—in addition to the wages which may be fixed by the committee for the general branches of learning, let each scholar be required to pay a specified sum for the religious instruction imparted in the school when he avails himself of it ;-let the aid, in whatever form imparted by government, be imparted avowedly and exclusively for the teaching of writing, arithmetic, geography, the elements of science, or whatever other branches of general learning it may be thought proper to introduce into the school; and to meet, as far as practicable, the case of those parents or guardians who may not approve of the kind or amount of religious instruction fixed upon by the committee-let it be. provided, that such parents shall have full power to secure for their children, instruction in all the other branches taught in the school, without being required to receive religious instruction; and shall be left to make such arrangements on this subject as |