ABSTRACT
The education of the people, which began in the early 19th century, was, for England, a new idea. The extent of literacy had varied at different periods ; but there had never been any suggestion that universal literacy was either possible or desirable, or that there should not be at least part of the nation cut off from the pleasures and dangers of the written word. A traditional culture, a craftsman's skill, a dogmatic religion provided all that was necessary for the greater part of the nation.
