The Story of My Life Part 53

Ryerson was discussed prior to the appointment of Mr. Murray [in May, 1842]; but I cannot believe that the minds of many who knew him to be the fittest man, could have been otherwise than on Dr. Ryerson. On the contrary, I believe that nothing prevented him being gladly offered the originating of an educational system for Upper Canada--a Province which he knew so well and loved so much--but the most unworthy church prejudices of parties who had influence with the Government of the day, for it was known to be a herculean task which no one could do the same justice to as Dr. Ryerson, and which few men (however great as scholars themselves) could have carried through at all.

Thus from the foregoing statements of Dr. Ryerson, Rev. John Ryerson, and Hon. Isaac Buchanan, the following facts clearly appear:--

1. That Dr. Ryerson was offered the appointment of Superintendent of Education by Lord Sydenham in 1841, and "had he survived a few weeks [Dr. Ryerson] would likely have been appointed, with a view of organizing a system of Elementary Education" for Upper Canada.

2. That Dr. Ryerson's appointment as Superintendent was "the subject of conversation with Sir Charles Bagot and some members of his Cabinet in 1842."

3. That the failure to appoint Dr. Ryerson was due to the fact that the Cabinet of Sir Charles Bagot--the Governor himself being unable to act--"rejected," as Dr. Ryerson himself stated, "the application of every Methodist candidate for office;" or, as Hon. Isaac Buchanan states: "Nothing prevented [Dr. Ryerson] being gladly offered the originating of an educational system for Upper Canada, but the most unworthy church prejudices of parties who had influence with the Government of the day."

4. That the appointment of Dr. Ryerson by Sir Charles Metcalfe was due to the discussion on the comprehensive scheme of education which took place between Dr. Ryerson and Sir Charles Metcalfe, on the University question, late in 1843.

It may be proper to state that the appointment of Rev. Robert Murray in May, 1842, was a surprise to the public, as the Editor of this volume well remembers, and was, as Rev. John Ryerson states, "a most unwise one." Mr. Murray was a minister of the Church of Scotland at Oakville.

He was chiefly known at the time as an anti-temperance writer[125]; but had never been known to have taken any special interest in education. He was intimate with Hon. S. B. Harrison, who owned mills at Bronte, a few miles west of Oakville, where Mr. Harrison resided for some years. To Mr. Harrison, the then leader of the Government, Mr. Murray was indebted, as was then understood, for the appointment.

Rev. John Ryerson having written to his brother Egerton, asking if the rumour of his appointment as Superintendent of Education was true, Dr.

Ryerson replied, on the 3rd April:--

As to the appointment to which you allude, it is but a rumour. No appointment has yet been made. Should it take place, it will not require my removal from Cobourg. Whatever has been proposed to me on that subject, has been proposed with a view of giving body, form, practical character and efficiency, to a system of general education, upon these non-sectarian principles of equal justice which have characterized my life. Nothing political is involved in the appointment--although it was at first proposed to give me a seat in the Council! The education of the people has nothing to do with the dispute with Lord Metcalfe, of which you speak. I do not think it would become me to refuse to occupy the most splendid field of usefulness that could engage the energies of man, because of the dispute which has arisen.

On the 12th April, Dr. Ryerson replied to a letter from Mr. Secretary Higginson, in which he said:--

Dr. Bethune, the Editor of _The Church_, has indeed protested against my proposed appointment;[126] but I understand that a majority of the members of his own congregation at Cobourg approve of the appointment. Mr. Boswell, M.P.P., and Mr. Sheriff Rultan (the most influential churchmen in the District), have expressed themselves in favour of it in the strongest and warmest terms; as have Mr. Keefer, of Thorold (who is a magistrate of wealth, leisure and benevolence,--was foreman of the Grand Jury at the late a.s.sizes in the Niagara District, and has, at the request of the District Council, consented to superintend the schools in that district); also Dr. Beadle, who is an old resident, and I believe, an American Presbyterian.

Up to this time (April), Dr. Ryerson had decided to take no part in the controversy between Sir Charles Metcalfe and his Councillors, but to devote his energies to the great work of founding a system of education for his native country. Much to the surprise of his friends, and (as he says in his prefatory paper) "without consulting a human being," he felt that it was his duty--after the issue of the manifesto of the Toronto League--to relinquish the work a.s.signed to him, and once more to take up his pen in defence of one whom he believed to be in the right, and yet who was left single-handed to meet the storm of popular clamour which had been excited against him by combined and powerful enemies. Dr.

Ryerson, therefore, determined to decline the appointment offered to him, and to abide the issue of the impending contest in which he proposed to take a prominent part. In the opening remarks of this memorable "Defence," he said:--

I was about entering upon the peaceful work--a work extensive and varied beyond the powers of the most untiring and vigorous intellect--a work down to this time almost entirely neglected--of devising and constructing (by the concurrence of the people, through their District Councils) a fabric of Provincial common school education--of endeavouring to stud the land with appropriate school-houses--of supplying them with appropriate books and teachers--of raising a wretched employment to an honourable profession--of giving uniformity, simplicity, and efficiency to a general system of elementary educational instruction--of bringing appropriate books for the improvement of his profession within the reach of every school-master, and increased facilities for the attainment of his stipulated remuneration--of establishing a library in every district, and extending branches of it into every township--of striving to develop by writing and discourses, in towns, villages and neighbourhoods, the latent intellect, the most precious wealth of the country--and of leaving no effort unemployed within the limited range of my humble abilities, to make Western Canada what she is capable of being made, the brightest gem in the crown of Her Britannic Majesty. Such was the work about to be a.s.signed to me; and such was the work I was resolving, in humble dependence upon the divine aid, to undertake; and no heart bounds more than mine with desire, and hope, and joy, at the prospect of seeing, at no distant day, every child of my native land in the school-going way; and every intellect provided with the appropriate elements of sustenance and enjoyment; and of witnessing one comprehensive and unique system of education, from the a, b, c, of the child, up to the matriculation of the youth into the Provincial University, which, like the vaulted arch of heaven, would exhibit an ident.i.ty of character throughout, and present an aspect of equal benignity to every sect, and every party upon the broad basis of our common Christianity.

But I arrest myself from such a work--leave it perhaps for other hands, and the glory of its accomplishment to deck another's brow; and, if need be, to resign every other official situation; and, unsolicited, unadvised by any human being--inwardly impelled by a conviction of what is due to my Sovereign, to my country, to a fellow-man--I take up the pen of vindication, of reasoning, of warning and appeal, against criminations and proceedings of impending evil, which, if they be not checked and arrested, will accomplish more than the infamous ostracism of an Aristides, render every other effort to improve and elevate Canada abortive, and strew in wide-spread desolation over the land the ruins of the throne and its government.

From the date of Mr. Higginson's letter (12th April) until the 7th of September nothing was done in regard to the appointment of a Superintendent of Education. On the latter day, however, Mr. Higginson wrote to Dr. Ryerson as follows:--

We find a great difficulty in making a provisional arrangement for the Educational duties. The University authorities require the immediate services of a mathematical professor, and His Excellency proposes Mr. Murray for the office, which will, it is hoped, be a satisfactory arrangement to all parties; but Mr. Murray cannot hold both positions, even for a time. Under these circ.u.mstances it appears to be worthy of consideration, whether your appointment ought not to take place at once, which would not, of course, interfere with your projected visit to Europe in November, when it might be easier to make some proper temporary provision for the performance of your duties during your absence. His Excellency is aware that you were in favour of deferring your nomination until after your return from Europe; and if you should adhere to this opinion, you may, perhaps, be able to suggest some means of meeting the apparent difficulty.

On the 18th September, Mr. Higginson addressed another note to Dr.

Ryerson, in reply to one from him, in which he said:

You will have learned from my last note that Sir Charles approved of all your suggestions, except the non-announcement of your appointment. As you see reason to alter your opinion on this point, the difficulty is removed, and you shall be gazetted in the last week of the month, as you propose. I wish, with you, that the College question could be settled in England, if we could only prevail on the contending parties to agree to a case of facts. This might be accomplished, and I am not without hope that some scheme may be devised to which no party will have just ground of objection. I shall write to you upon this subject as soon as anything is determined on.

At this point I resume the narrative which Dr. Ryerson had prepared for this volume in regard to his appointment:--In September, 1844, a vacancy occurred in the Professorship of Mathematics in the University of Toronto, by the resignation and return to England of Mr. Potter; and, as the gentleman who had been appointed to the Education branch of the Secretary's Office, was reputed to be an excellent mathematician, and had high testimonials of his qualification, he applied for the professorship; evidently feeling the anomalousness of his position, and his inability and powerlessness to establish a system of Public School Education.[127]

The Governor-General appointed him to the Mathematical Professorship, and formally offered the Education Office to me. I laid the official letter containing the offer before the executive authority (a large committee) of my Church, and was advised to accept it. But as I had determined to abide by the decision of the country as to the principles of its future government, on which I was then appealing to it, I determined not to accept of office until I should know the result of that appeal.

After the endors.e.m.e.nt of my views by all the const.i.tuencies of Upper Canada, with eight exceptions, I felt no hesitation, in accepting an office which had been some months before offered to me. The draft of my official instructions, stating the scope and design of my appointment and of the task a.s.signed to me, was written by myself, at the request of Mr. Secretary Daly, afterwards Governor in Australia.

During my connection with the Education Department--from 1844 to 1876--I made five educational tours of inspection and enquiry to educating countries in Europe and the United States. I made an official tour through each county in Upper Canada, once in every five years, to hold a County Convention of munic.i.p.al councillors, clergy, school-trustees, teachers and local superintendents, and thus developed the School system as the result of repeated inquiries in foreign countries, and the freest consultation with my fellow-citizens of all cla.s.ses, in the several County Conventions, as well as on many other occasions.

During the nearly thirty-two years of my administration of the Education Department, I met with strong opposition at first from individuals--some on personal, others on religious and political grounds; but that opposition was, for most part, partial and evanescent. During these years I had the support of each successive administration of Government, whether of one party or the other, and, at length, the co-operation of all religious persuasions; so that in 1876 I was allowed to retire, with the good-will of all political parties and religious denominations, and without diminution of my public means of subsistence.

I leave to Dr. J. George Hodgins, my devoted friend of over forty years, and my able colleague for over thirty of these years, the duty of filling up the details of our united labours in founding a system of education for my native Province which is spoken of in terms of strong commendation, not only within, but by people outside of the Dominion.

Note.--It is the purpose of the Editor of this book (in accordance with Dr. Ryerson's oft expressed wish) to prepare another volume, giving, from private letters, memoranda, and various doc.u.ments, a personal history of the founding and vicissitudes of our educational system from 1844 to 1876 inclusive.

FOOTNOTES:

[124] The second resolution adopted by the Victoria College Board, on the 24th October, 1843, says:--the n.o.ble and comprehensive objects of the amended Charter have been entirely defeated; and the abrogated, sectarian Charter has been virtually restored, by the partial and exclusive manner in which appointments to that inst.i.tution have been made, and its affairs managed; apart from the misappropriations of large portions of its funds.

[125] In September, 1839, Rev. Robert Murray, of Oakville, published a series of lectures on "Absolute Abstinence." From a review of these lectures, by Dr. Ryerson in the _Guardian_ of the 18th of that month, I make the following extracts:--

We confess we have seldom read anything so illiberal and sweeping....

The principle of total abstinence is wholly repudiated, and temperance societies are forbidden an existence.... But such a work ... shall not by us be allowed to go forth without the accompaniment of our decided reprobation. This is not the day for encouragement to be given to the drunkard, nor this the time when a Minister of the Gospel is ... to fill the cup of death and present it to his fellows without an attempt being made to dash it to the ground.

The following extract from the second lecture, relating to the fulfilment of a certain prophecy in the book of Jeremiah, is given by Dr. Ryerson:--

"Many of you, I am persuaded, have witnessed this prophecy fulfilled to the very letter. Have you never seen young men making themselves cheerful with malt liquors, while the young maids were producing the same effect with the blood of the grape? Nor is there the slightest doubt on my mind, that the prophet hailed this event as a special manifestation of the great goodness of G.o.d."

It was in reference to the author of such opinions, and the advocate of such views, that Rev. John Ryerson used the language quoted on the preceding page.

[126] On the 19th October, 1844, Dr. Ryerson was appointed Superintendent of Education for Upper Canada. Of his appointment, Rev.

Dr. Bethune, Editor of _The Church_, on the 25th October, said:--It was an impolitic and a heartless step, as regards the Church of England in this colony, to raise to the office of Superintendent an individual who has thriven upon his political obliquities, and who owes his fame, or rather his notoriety, to his unquenchable dislike to the National Church. In a moment of danger we can forget the injury; but it must not be thought that we shall sit quietly beneath the wrong.

Rev. Dr. Bethune subsequently changed his opinion of Dr. Ryerson, and, when Bishop of Toronto, referred to him in some of his public utterances in very kind and complimentary terms.

[127] In regard to this appointment, the Hon. Isaac Buchanan, in a letter to the Editor of this volume, dated March, 1883, said:--I was one of the first to see the necessity of our getting Dr. Ryerson to take hold of our Educational system, and I shared the somewhat delicate duty of getting our esteemed friend, Rev. Robert Murray (whom we had got appointed a.s.sistant-Superintendent of Education), to accept a professorship at the Toronto University, when Rev. Dr. Ryerson succeeded to the vacant post in 1844.

CHAPTER XLIV.

1844-1846.

Dr. Ryerson's First Educational Tour in Europe.

Dr. Ryerson left Canada for Europe in November, 1844, on his first educational tour through Europe. He visited and examined into the educational systems of Belgium, France, Italy, Bavaria, Austria, the German States, and Switzerland. He kept a full diary of his travels.

Much of it is out of date, but I shall give those portions of it which relate to his personal history, and his impressions of men and things.

The epitome of these travels which he had prepared is as follows:--

_England._--Scenery of Ess.e.x and Kent from the Thames; landing in Holland; its scenery, palaces, school system, schools, universities, museums, princ.i.p.al cities and towns, churches, ca.n.a.ls and roads.

_Belgium._--From Utrecht to Antwerp--cathedral, churches, schools, museums; Rubens' paintings; Brussels--schools; Hotel de Ville, etc.; field of Waterloo; Belgian school system; Howard's Model Prison; convent; university buildings.

_France._--Journey to Paris; curiosities and peculiarities of Paris; acquaintance with the Protestant clergy; my residence and employments there for three months, to qualify myself to speak as well as write official letters, etc., in the French language.

_From Paris to Rome._--Modes of travel; places viewed on the way; Orleans, Loire, Lyons, Rhone, Avignon, Nismes, Montpellier, Arles; antiquities; Ma.r.s.eilles, Genoa, Leghorn, Civita Vecchia, to Rome.