MILTON.-PARAPHRASE.-Book I., 272-281.

"Leader of those armies bright,

Which but th' Omnipotent none could have foiled,
If once they hear that voice, their liveliest pledge
Of hope in fears and dangers, heard so oft
In worst extremes, and on the perilous edge
Of battle when it raged, in all assaults
Their surest signal, they will soon resume
New courage, and revive, though now they lie
Grovelling and prostrate on yon lake of fire,
As we erewhile, astounded and amazed;

No wonder, fallen such a pernicious height."

O Prince, that wert wont to lead to battle the angelic host, which to all but the Almighty were invincible, if they may but hear thy voice again, that voice so familiar to them in every hour of extremity, which on the eve of battle, was the best earnest of their hope and served as their standard in the thickest onset of the foe; if they may but hear that voice again, though they now lie dejected and hopeless on yonder burning lake, and, as we were ourselves not long ago, stunned and crest-fallen (ah! who can wonder who calls to mind the deadly height from which alike we fell!) they will recover their lost courage and again take heart.

Eduratianul Intelligence.

GLOUCESTER SCHOOLMASTERS' ASSOCIATION.

One of the most important and influential meetings of the members of a Schoolmasters' Association that has yet assembled was held at Gloucester, on Friday, November 20th.

It has been usual with this Association to divide the proceedings into two parts The first meeting was presided over by the Venerable Archdeacon Thorp, and after it was opened by a brief address, a very ale paper was read upon the History of Elementary School Education by Mr. Gill, the Normal Master of Method, at Cheltenham, who has kindly placed his manuscript at our disposal. A second paper, and equally valuable, was then read by Mr. Pullen the Master of the important and very successful Painswick School. This paper, we understand, will also not be confined to the diocese, but be published in the Journal of Education. At the close of this paper, the Lord Bishop arrived, and the second portion of the day's work was opened more solemnly with prayer, after which, according to announcement, the Rev. Con Moseley proceeded to deliver an address upon 16 The Half-time Scheme." The main object, however, of his observations, which were given extempore with great fervour and eloquence, was to advocate the rights of childhood and to expose its wrongs, rather than to point out the practical method of protection, whether from the cupidity of parents or the selfishness of employers. He nevertheless glanced at the three principal means which have had their advocates among practical men. registration--the prize- and the Half-time scheme. Of this address, which contai el such very admirable thought, we will but say that we have only one complaint, that as it was delivered without notes it is less available for the printer.

The

Some remarks were afterwards made by H.M. Inspector, the Rev. H. W. Bellairs and the Rev. C. H. Bromby, the latter of whom maintained that in respect of the Half-time scheme, there were two questions that presented themselves- first" whether a scheme should be voluntary or compulsory?" and secondly "whether in the first instance the effort should be addressed to the employer or to the parent?" In regard to the former he maintained that unless the Legislature wished to pronounce the Factory Act a failure, it was bound at least to extend it to kindred fields of labour, and in regard to the second we must enlist in the first instance the co-operation of the employer.

The meeting then retired to dinner, when the Lord Bishop presided over above a hundred clergvinen, schoolmasters, and schoolmistresses, after which a masterly address was delivered by II. M. Inspector, J. Symons, Esq., upon the causes of School failure, followed by R. Hyett, Esq., the philanthropic manager of the Painswick School, upon the best method of teaching Art, and the best instruments within the reach of elementary Schools,

NORTHERN DISTRICT ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOLMASTERS. A meeting of the members of this Association was held in the National School, Chester-le-street, on Friday, October 23rd.

The morning was spent in witnessing the general working of the School, and listening to an interesting and well drawn-out lesson on Holland, given by Mr. W. Lawson, of the Durham Training School; and the afternoon was devoted to the transaction of business.

Owing to the small number of members present, the discussion of papers on Reading and Geography was postponed till next meeting. Some remarks were then made on the generally limited attendance at meetings, and the apathy of many nominal members in the cause of the Association; and it was resolved, that those who did not attend at least one meeting in the year should no longer be considered as members.

After dinner, the Rev. Dr. Pledge, expressed the pleasure he felt at being present; and stated that although it was his first attendance at meetings of the Association, he hoped it might prove the precursor of many. He then made some observations on the zeal and fidelity of certificated teachers generally, and the union that should exist between the clergyman and his schoolmaster, who labour in a kindred cause; concluding his remarks by warmly commending Mr. Scott, his present master, to whose energy and untiring perseverance the inhabitants of Chester-le-street are indebted for raising their School to its present efficient condition.

A GRAND CHORAL FESTIVAL Will be held in the ensuing summer, at the Crystal Palace, in aid of the Church Schoolmasters' and Mistresses' Benevolent Fund, for the relief of decayed and necessitous teachers, and their widows and orphans.

The National School Choral Society has been formed, and a committee of upwards of thirty schoolmasters appointed, who are actively engaged in making the necessary arrangements They have secured the services of Mr. G. W. Martin, as conductor; and Mr. Brownsmith, of The Sacred Harmonic Society, as organist. The orchestra is to consist of at least 3,500 of the National School children of London and its vicinity. The Hon. Secs. are G. J. Entwistle, 12, Church-street, Paddington; W. and C. Edwards, jun., 44, Manchester-street, W.C. Teachers who have not yet received any circulars are requested to make early application for them.

NOTICES OF BOOKS.

The World in which I Live, and my Place in it. Second edition. Edited by the Rev. J. H. Broome, M.A. Wertheim and Macintosh. The book designated by the above title is a history of the world, written on Protestant principles, for young people. There are some points about the method of this work which deserve commendation. Both the contents and the index are very full and set out in chrono ogical detail, a plan which is full of usefuln ss to a student in history. In no moderately sized book, do we know a set of chronological tables at all comparable to these in fulness and method. Another valuable point is the prominence given to these little details in the history of persons and countries, which tend so much to enliven the narrative and fix it in the memory. Too frequently, our smalier abstracts of history are of the driest possible character, and about as interesting to young people as the multiplication table; this great defect is avoided in the work before us. The style is simple, as is also the vocabulary, and a little explanation of a few technical terms, is all that is likely to be required, for its comprehension by the class of children into whose hands this book will fall. The writer entertains Protestant views of a decided character, but we have not noticed that they are offensively stated; indeed some points are treated of more liberally than we expected. This work as a manual of universal history may be recommended for young people. For its size there is a good collection of facts, well arranged, and worked up into a narrative that may be read with pleasure.

Prefixes and Fostfixes. By J. Graham. Wilson, Kilmarnock. This is the first part of a manual of derivations, designed to exhibit the structure and etymology of English words. The feature which distinguishes this manual from others, is that of giving first the root meaning, and then in a parallel column the secondary meaning, or its present force in the English language. This idea is a good one, and gives a great additional value to the book. The Postfixes are also very well arranged for teaching purposes.

The Manchester and Liverpool Spelling Book. By R. Ashman. Whittaker, London. Heywood, Manchester. Simply a reproduction of the old style of spelling book-columns of words of one, two, or three syllables. Some columns are added of geographical names and difficult words.

Journal of Education, August. Journal de l'Instruction Publique, September. Senecal and Daniel, Montreal, Lower Canada. These educational serials from the other side of the Atlantic will be read with much interest by the elementary teachers of this country.

The Purgatory of Prisoners. By the Rev. O. Shipley, M.A. Masters, London. The writer disabled for a time from his ordinary parochial duties, took an opportunity that offered for examining closely the system of treating criminals, now in operation in Ireland. The result is put before the public in thePurgatory of Prisoners." The term "Purgatory" is employed as expressive of the intermediate stage between the prison and the public, through which the prisoners are made to pass, with the view "of purgatorial cleansing, of purification, of oblivion to the past, of hope for the future, of social filtering, of moral cleansing, of educational instruction, of industrial teaching, of religious culture, and of reformational training." The writer is full of earnestness and faith, and concludes from his personal observations and enquiries, that a work of real reformation is going on in the criminal establishments in Ireland. The