Welsh Journals

ELEMENTARY DAY SCHOOLS FOR THE CHILDREN OF THE WORKING CLASSES IN CARDIGANSHIRE IN 1847. A BRIEF ANALYSIS OF THE COMMISSIONERS' REPORTS THE Blue Books of 1847 need no introduction to readers of the history of Wales during the nineteenth century. The controversies they caused, the national issues they involved, their merits and their weaknesses are too well known for any comment in this article. On this occasion they are once again brought before the reader merely as source books for information on the nature of the general provision, staffing, and curricula of day elementary schools in the county at the end of 1846 and early 1847. Used in this restricted way they can be useful and valuable. The Inquiry into the state of education in Cardiganshire was the responsibility of Commissioner Jelinger C. Symons, whose area also included Brecknockshire and Radnorshire. His Welsh-speaking assistants were Mr. Henry Penry, head of the British and Foreign School, London, Mr. D. B. Price, Mr. D. Lewis, and Mr. Jones the last three were students of Lampeter College. They ascertained the number and locality of day schools in the parishes and by personal investigation collected much information about each one. The survey was conducted mainly throughout November and December 1846 Symons made his report on 3 March 1847 and the following is a brief analysis of what it contained relevant to this selected topic. SCHOOL PROVISION Since the Commissioner and his assistants were concerned only with schools for the children of the labouring classes, they excluded from the inquiry all day schools in which the scholars belonged to the higher or middle classes therefore, schools such as that of Mr. Edwards, Aberystwyth, were not mentioned in the Reports. Part of the survey was made on a parochial basis, and Symons reported that 20 parishes were without schools. But a closer study of the Parochial Summary reveals no evidence of schools in 22 out of 64 parishes in the county in the remaining 42 there were 1011 schools. The parish of Llanbadarn Fawr contained the greatest number with a total of 10, while those of Cardigan and Aberystwyth came next, containing 9 schools each. These figures indicate that the distribution of schools favoured the more populous areas centred around the leading towns of the county.2 In rural parts, schools were not only fewer and more widely scattered,