The Oriel Readers. Standards I. and II. Marcus Ward & Co. THESE books have evidently been drawn up with great care. They are well printed, carefully graduated, and profusely illustrated. The binding, too, is strong and durable. At the end of the lessons in Standard I. a word is given in script type for the children to copy down. In Standard II. a summary of the lesson is given in a form suitable for dictation. The lessons are simple, and, if we may so phrase it, of a very affectionate character. Rough town children will have gone through a lesson in civilization in studying such lessons, which cannot fail to have a refining influence on their manners and their future life. The Standard Authors' Readers. Standards II., III., IV., V., and VI. THESE books are excellently compiled and most attractively illustrated. We are not quite sure that the binding will prove durable. Our readers need not think because of the title of the series that the Readers are dull books. We can safely affirm of the earlier numbers, as far as Standard IV., that they are fully as interesting as the majority of reading books, while the selections in point of taste are unexceptionable. Standards V. and VI. are more serious and sober, but these, for the most part, are made up of chapters on subjects which can easily be made interesting to a schoolboy. The reading lessons in this series are not interrupted by spelling columns, but at the end of the more advanced books of the series we have a number of explanatory notes, a glossary, and a series of biographical notes, giving short accounts of the writers of the chapters. The pictures are numerous, well-drawn, and add considerably to the attractions of the series. Hour Lessons on the Gospel of St. Mark. By Lewis Hughes, B.A. Manchester and London: John Heywood. MR. HUGHES divides the substance of St. Mark's Gospel into thirteen lessons of an hour each; and he gives in the book under review full notes for every one of these lessons. The lessons, which are of very considerable length, and which would take quite an hour to thoroughly master, consist of leading matter in large type, and notes in small type. The notes display very wide and extensive reading from the best sources obtainable. The book is chiefly intended for candidates preparing for the Oxford and Cambridge Local and the College of Preceptors' Examination. The following paragraphs, explaining the sin against the Holy Ghost, will show the very able manner in which this book is drawn up: Christ does not refer to a blasphemous word or thought, but to the state of mind of which such a word or thought is the fruit--a state of mind in which the grace of the Holy Ghost is knowingly and determinedly rejected, which manifests itself in slanderous blasphemies against that grace and which is necessarily hopeless, because without that grace repentance is impossible. It is not stated that the Pharisees were in this state, but their words showed they were in danger of falling into it. Anxiety lest this sin has been committed is clearly a proof that it has not been committed for such anxiety is incompatible with the state of mind described above. Part XVII. Cassell & Co. The Encyclopaedic Dictionary. THERE are numerous points of interest in this number of the Encyclopædic Dictionary. There is a good definition of clere-story (which the Editor prefers to spell as clear-story), with an illustration of it in Westminster Abbey. The obsolete word clepe (meaning to call) is clearly explained, and an instance of its use is given from an ancient version of the Bible, "She ward with child. and cleped it Ysaac." Nearly two columns of explanatory matter are given about the word clergy. Under the heading clerk, the parish clerk comes in for treatment, as also the numerous other clerks, as clerk of the House of Commons, clerk of the peace, &c. We are interested to see under the heading clock that it is legitimately applied to the "balloon-like fruit of the dandelion, named from the practice of childen who playfully blow away the feathery globe to ascertain what o'clock it is."" A reference of this kind will show the thoroughness with which this work is compiled; for though every one of our readers knows this quite well, we should none of us have expected to find it in a dictionary. Under the heading closure is given a short account of the new rules introduced for Parliamentary debate in 1882. The Editor remarks: “The proposed system was at first called the clôture, but was afterwards exchanged for its more homely equivalent, closure." Fifty Examination Papers in Dictation and Grammar. Compiled by a Head Master. Manchester and London: John Heywood. THIS is a very valuable little work, and should be obtained by all teachers who are anxious to know how their scholars are likely to succeed in the Inspector's examination. Fifty examination papers in dictation from various reading books are given in the earlier Standards (I. to IV.), each piece being of about five or six lines in length. Examinations in grammar are also given in Standards II. to VII. A book of this kind will save the teacher a good deal of thought and time in making arrangements for the examination of his scholars, and will help to get them out of the one rut of the particular book or books they may happen to be reading. School Maps of Italia Antiqua and Græca Antiqua. By T. Ruddiman Johnston, F.R.G.S. THESE maps are drawn with great clearness, and beautifully coloured. They show with wonderful distinctness the physical features of the country, the ancient political divisions, and the ancient roads. They are not too crowded with names. Where a modern town is now standing on the site of the ancient one, its name is placed below it in brackets. In the same way, the modern names of the rivers, lakes, and mountains are given. For the Higher Board Schools in our large towns such maps as these will be very welcome, as furnishing a valuable aid to the acquisition of the leading facts of ancient geography, and to the intelligible reading of ancient history. T. Ruddiman Johnston's Standard Atlases. Standards II., III., IV., V., VI., and VII. THESE are certainly remarkably cheap books, the two earliest of them being issued at the low price of twopence. Standard II. has eight maps and illustrations, the illustrations, which are printed in colours, explaining clearly the different parts of land and water, and the three maps dealing with England in different aspects. Standard III. has eight maps of England, physical and political, geological, railway, industrial, and agricultural, and showing the comparative population of the counties. Standard IV., which contains 24 sheets of maps, deals with the British Islands and the Colonies. Standard V. has maps of Europe, and charts showing the course of the seasons. Standard VI. contains maps of the Continents of Asia, Africa, and America, with a map of Palestine and an interesting chart of the zones of vegetation, printed in colours. Standard VII. deals with the ocean and the planets, and contains some striking arrangements in colours. These books, which have been adopted by the London School Board, are very cheap, and cannot fail to be useful in schools. If they had been issued in limp cloth covers, at a small additional cost, they would have been better calculated to stand the wear of school life. THE NATIONAL SOCIETY'S CONFERENCE. HE Annual Conference of diocesan secretaries and inspectors, principals of training colleges and others interested in Church. Schools, was held at the meeting-room of the National Society, on Thursday, June 11. The Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol presided, and remarked that we lived in strange days, "when, as we know, we are building altars to an unknown God; when men are rearing monuments to evolution, and when, alas! even in some of our pulpits we hear dim hints that we are by descent apes after all." The main point of the discussion, which was opened by Canon Cromwell, turned on the question, "Is it not expedient that students in Church Training Colleges should form some acquaintance with Church History and Christian Evidences ?" Canon Cromwell quoted from a well-known science primer the remark: "To speak of the violation or the suspension of a law of nature is an absurdity." The following is the conclusion of the rev. canon's address :— With your permission I should like to give a few specimens of questions that have been set to training college students by the examiners in religious knowledge: "Where was Achmet ha? and how is it mentioned in the Book of Ezra ?" "Who was Geshem?" "Explain briefly, El-hanan, the son of Jaare-oregin, a Bethlemite, slew the brother of Goliath.' "Give the context and explain: 'He called them the land of Cabul unto this day." Equally barren questions might, I believe, be culled from those given upon the New Testament and the Creeds, but I forbear from a feeling of reverence for the subject-matter involved in such questions. I wish it to be distinctly understood that it is not my desire to increase the amount of work to be done in the second year's residence in a training college, but rather to provide or that year some work that would be almost entirely fresh and untrodden, in which the student would take a far livelier interest than is possible in travelling once more over ground which he has trodden in the days of his pupil-teachership; and, while doing this, I wish to equip him with suitable weapons of defence for the duty of facing some of the trials and temptations to which he must inevitably be exposed. Every teacher educated in a Church training college ought to be able to give intelligent and intelligible answers to these two questions: Why am I a believer in Christ?' and "Why am I a member of the Church?" Lord Norton and the Rev. H. De Brisay quite agreed that Christian evidences and Church history should be added to the list of subjects; but Canon Daniel, while assenting to Church history, objected to the teaching of the Christian evidences on the ground that "the atmosphere of controversy was a bad atmosphere to live in, and in training colleges particularly so." He feared that the teaching of the Christian evidences "would introduce doubts into minds in which they did not hitherto exist." The Rev. E. Hobson said, as regards the teaching of the Christian evidences, he would adopt the words of the poet Leave thou thy sister when she prays Her early heaven, her happy views, The Bishop, in summing up the discussion, said he felt strongly biassed in favour of Canon Cromwell's position; but there was a difficulty in there not being any suitable text-book in existence. The Rev. H. Roe then read a lengthy paper on how Church schools in poor parishes may be assisted to pay their way. He insisted that the Church is able to support her schools, if she is really the one body that we always suppose her to be, and not "merely an artificial association of a large number of independent congregations." Canon Philips read a paper on the examination of higher class schools in religious knowledge. He suggested that their boards of education should offer inspection to any of these schools in religious knowledge, and also a simultaneous examination in the same subjects to all schools other than elementary. The Rev. Canon Willes introduced a discussion on the subject, "The Action taken by Railways and other Public Companies with regard to Voluntary Schools." He remarked— There were directors of companies who said that they would rather pay a thousand pounds for a Board school than five pounds for a voluntary school; and that also was unfair and unjust on the part of the directors of any public body. There were certain companies which always paid towards the schools in districts through which their railways passed, and he believed in this respect the Great Northern nobly led the way. The London and Chatham was another line which gave, and gave consistently; and he could also name another line-the London and NorthWestern-which took an honourable part. The Great Western refused to do anything, and the North-Eastern was in the same position. Mr. Heygate, M.P. (a director of the Midland Railway), said he thought the companies refused to subscribe owing to the mistaken view that the Voluntary system was doomed. The second reason was that if they subscribed to one school they would have to subscribe to all of them, whether they wanted it or not. The last subject was how to provide religious instruction in School Board districts. Different speakers recommended different methods, and at the conclusion of the Conference the Bishop pronounced the benediction. THE CONGRESS OF CHURCH MANAGERS AND TEACHERS. HE report of this Congress, which was held this year at Worcester, on May 28th and 29th, occupies 36 columns of small type in our contemporary The School Guardian. Earl Beauchamp presided, and was supported by Lord Alwyne Compton (Dean of Worcester), Sir Richard Temple, Bart., Canon Gregory, and others. In his opening address, Earl Beauchamp referred at some length to local topics, and afterwards to the sentiment which should inspire religious teaching in our schools. He insisted on the necessity of dogma in teaching religion. He next went on to show that great advances had been made in the work of education before the passing of the Education Act in 1870. Referring to the introduction of the principle of payment by results, he quoted Lord Aberdare as having stated "that the system of payment by results must necessarily lead to a certain amount of over-pressure, against which they could guard only by the greatest possible precautions on the part of managers and inspectors." The noble Earl then proceeded to show the great work which the Church of England had done in providing the means of education, and quoted Sir James Shuttleworth as saying in 1860 that all that had been previously done for education had been derived from religious zeal. The following is the conclusion of his address: I fear I have made heavy demands upon your time and patience. I have endeavoured to show-(1) The advantage to teachers of a clear perception of religious truth as external to ourselves; (2) the great system of education provided by voluntary effort prior to 1870; (3) that defenders of the present system are constrained to admit that a certain amount of over-pressure is the inevitable consequence of payment by results; (4) I have touched upon the statistics of to-day as showing that the Church has not relaxed her efforts to fulfil the command of her Master, "Feed My lambs." It remains only for me to say that I trust every member of this Congress will return to his work with a pleasant recollection of this meeting; that he will pursue his appointed task cheered and invigorated by remembering that in more than 11,700 schools work similar to his own is being courageously and successfully carried on; and, above all, by knowing that, however conditions may differ, however great may be the variety of detail, we, as children of Holy Church, are firmly resolved to proclaim, in season and out of season, under all difficulty and all discouragement, the great truth which we have to teach-"The fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding." Sir Richard Temple read a paper on "Irregularity of Attendance: its Causes and Remedies." He touched upon the causes of irregularity, which he described as the weather, distance from school, demand for child-labour, epidemic sickness, &c. He remarked that these causes "lie deep in the social life of the people." Among the remedies he suggested were the gradual growth of public opinion in favour of education, better teaching and more effective management of schools, more vigorous action on the part of School Attendance Committees, and the offering of prizes for good attendance. Mr. Edgington, in a paper on the same subject, urged that regular attendance was essential to the financial soundness of a school. He strongly complained of the manner in which the School Attendance Committees discharged their duties, and also against the misplaced levity of the magistrates in dealing with offences against the Educational law. The private schools, he remarked, were not particular about regular attendance. Canon Gregory sensibly remarked that "there were many difficulties in securing regular attendance which could hardly ever be surmounted. In many cases absence was quite unavoidable, and the parents really required their children at home. He did not think 25 per cent. of absentees at all excessive, and |