care has not been taken in these respects (the masters and mistresses being paid for teaching the children either by a monthly or quarterly allowance), it is proposed to such founders and trustees as shall think it requisite, that their payments be hereafter made in the following manner: The first to begin so soon as each child can name and distinguish all the letters in the alphabet; the second, when the child can spell well; and the third, when it can read well and distinctly, and can repeat the Church Catechism.
"III. That they make it their principal care to teach the children to read the Bible, to instruct them in the principles of the Christian religion, according to the doctrine of the Church of England; and that they explain the Church Catechism to them by some exposition, which, together with the Catechism, the children should publicly repeat in church, or elsewhere, so often as the minister and the trustees shall require; and be frequently examined in school, as to their improvements of every sort.
"IV. That they teach the children those doctrines and principles of religion which are in their nature most useful in the course of a private life, and especially such as concern faith and good manners.
"V. That they bring the children to church, so often as divine service is there performed, before it begins, and instruct them to behave
themselves orderly, kneeling, or standing as the rubrick directs, and to join in the public service with, and regularly to repeat after, the minister, with an humble low voice, and in the most devout manner, in all places where the people are so directed, in such manner as not to disturb the rest of the congregation, and particularly in singing of Psalms: and that they likewise take care, that the children bring their Bibles and Common-prayer books always to church; and in order to prevent their spending the Lord's-day idly or profanely, it will be proper that every master and mistress give each child some task out of the most useful parts of Scripture, to be learnt on each Lord's-day, according to their capacities; and that they require a strict performance of it every Monday morning, and also oblige them to say the texts of the sermons preached the day before.
"VI. That they never fail to pray morning and evening in the school, and teach the children to do the same at home, devoutly upon their knees, when they rise and go to bed, as also to say grace before and after meat.
"VII. That they take particular care of the manners and behaviour of the children, and by all proper methods discourage idleness, and suppress the beginnings of vice; such as lying, cursing, swearing, profaning the Lord's-day, obscene discourse, stealing, &c. putting them often in
mind, and obliging them to get by heart such parts of the Holy Scriptures, where those things are forbid, and where Christians are commanded to be faithful and obedient to their masters, to be diligent in their business, and quiet and peaceable to all men.
"VIII. That they call over in school the children's names every morning and afternoon; and, if any be missing, that they put them down in rolls kept for that purpose, as tardy or absent; as also for their being guilty of breaking any of the aforesaid rules and orders; and that they lay those rolls before the founders or trustees of every school, where required so to do, or before any other person empowered by the founder, trustees, or subscribers, who have a right to enquire into their behaviour, in order to their encouragement, correction, or expulsion.
"IX. That they take care that where the children are cloathed, they wear their caps, bands, and cloaths every day; whereby the trustees, benefactors, and others, may know and see what their behaviour is abroad.