Page:A short history of social life in England.djvu/393

Rh bodies had been, so far, chiefly in connection with the Churches. But with the rapid growth of the population the Church organisation had become totally inadequate. So the famous Act of 1870 passed, providing for School Boards to be created, with power to establish new State schools in addition to the voluntary ones already existing. For the first time in her social history, England realised that her children were her "dearest possession," and undertook a system of National Education. The storms that were brewing at this time over religious instruction in the first Board schools are vexing our souls to-day. Finally, a system of so-called undenominational Christian teaching was adopted. New schools were now erected all over the country. In the year 1870 England had provided for 1,152,389 children. By 1885 there was an average attendance of 3,371,325. There is a further point connected with the spread of education in 1870 that calls for attention. In the new bodies elected by the ratepayers, women were members. They voted, proposed amendments, sat on committees, and took their share in the new national scheme of education. For their part as citizens of a great country they had been fitting themselves of late years, and their progress