o the clause introduced by Mr. Perceval into the Act of 52
George III., cap. 161. I went up to town, and had the honour of an
interview with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Right Honourable N.
Vansittart, who was pleased to advise with the Earl of Liverpool on the
subject, which resulted in a grant of five acres of land, a donation of
100 pounds to the building fund, and an endowment of 20 pounds per annum
to the school." He proceeds to remark that "the crowded state of the
chapel became a matter of astonishment to the Foresters themselves, and
painfully inconvenient to the congregation, as well as dangerous to the
health of the officiating minister, from the intense heat, besides
excluding the children, all showing the necessity of an enlargement; so
that, after a probationary period of three years, another appeal for aid
came before the public, whereby the building was increased to twice the
size, provided with a children's gallery, and, excepting two pews, kept
perfectly free and open to all. It now became my duty," observes Mr.
Procter, "to secure to the Foresters in perpetuity these extraordinary
blessings which Divine Providence was progressively granting to them.
This could only be done by consecration, and to authorize such an act, an
endowment being considered necessary, another public appeal was made in
June, 1813, for assistance to place amongst these poor people a clergyman
who would not only publicly preach, but reside, privately visit their
cottages, disseminate the Scriptures, and assist the master of the
National School in impressing upon the minds of the children the
principles of the Christian religion," as, "without a resident clergyman,
an experience of fourteen years convinced him that all efforts would
prove abortive. It had likewise become necessary to discontinue using
the chapel as a school-room, since the doing so had been found to lessen
the reverence due to the sanctuary in the minds both of the parents and
children. A new schoolroom was therefore immediately built of the best
stone, with two fireplaces, and a partition in the middle; over the door
is the following inscription,--'The Forest Day School, for Boys and
Girls, on the National plan, established 1812, supported by voluntary
subscriptions.'" The cost of erection was almost 300 pounds, and the
expenses of conducting the school averaged about 70 pounds per annum, for
two-thirds of which Mr. Procter was himself answerable, and o