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The Evangelical Churchman of May the 9th, anticipating the unveiling of Dr. Ryerson's statue, said:—

"On the 24th of this month, the Queen's Birthday, Ontario will do honor to one of her most distinguished sons. On that day will be unveiled the statue to the memory of Egerton Ryerson, the founder of the school system of his native province. The ceremony will be unique in many ways, not the least interesting fact in connection therewith being that the statue of Dr. Ryerson will be the first one erected by the Province of Ontario to one of its own sons. Dr Ryerson was a thorough Canadian and was born in Ontario. Thus this signal honor to his memory acquires additional lustre, and does much to redeem Ontario from the reproach an often uttered that a prophet is not without honor save in his own country. It reveals, indeed, another fact which, in a new country, is not without a peculiar significance. It is this, that national life is commencing in earnest, and that national characteristics are developing themselves. A country which can step aside, as it were, in the rush and hurry of existence to do honor to one of its sons, is not without aspirations after a national existence, is not wholly given up to considerations of material interest, and possesses within it something that is full of promise of permanence and true greatness."

The Hamilton Times of the 25th of May, under the beading of "The Memory of a Great Canadian," said:—

"The unveiling of the Ryerson statue in the Normal School grounds, at Toronto, yesterday, was the occasion of recalling the achievements of the late Dr. Ryerson in connection with Ontario's educational system. From 1844 until 1876 Rev. Egerton Ryerson was Chief Superintendent of Education in this Province.... But Dr. Ryerson's services to Canada did not begin in 1844. He was a great man before he touched the educational System. He was born in the County of Norfolk in 1803, and when he was about 20 years of age he was studying in Hamilton in a little house on Jackson Street, not far from the place where the new Y.M.C.A. building is in the course of construction.... In 1826 Archdeacon Strachan preached a sermon on the death of Bishop Mountain. The Methodists at that time were the most numerous religious body in upper Canada but Dr. Strachan set forth the claim of the Church of England to the Clergy Reserves.... Mr. Ryerson was junior preacher under the late Rev. James Richardson, who had his arm shot off while in naval service near Sackett's Harbour during the war.... When Dr. Strachan's sermon was published, it was agreed that Mr. Richardson and Mr. Ryerson should each write a reply to it. They separated, each going to a different part of their large circuit, and when they met a few weeks later young Ryerson had prepared his paper, but Mr. Richardson had nothing ready. It was read before the other preachers and published. The battle had now begun, and it did not end until the Clergy Reserves were secularised in 1854. During nearly all that time Mr. Ryerson was a leading character in Canadian public life. He wrote, he spoke, he worked, appearing before Parliamentary committees, interviewing the statesmen of Great Britain and occasionally taking his stand upon the hustings.... Dr. Ryerson was born in 1803 and became Superintendent of Education in 1844. He was only 42 years of age at the time of his appointment, yet he had performed a greater share of work, and had attained a greater degree of prominence in those forty-two years than most public men can boast of as the achievements of a lifetime. How many men in this latter end of the century get into the thick of the fight and make their influence felt while under 40 years of age? The point we wish to impress is this: Had Egerton Ryerson died in 1844, instead of becoming Superintendent of Education and living until 1882, his history would still have been worth writing, and he would have deserved a monument For the services he performed for his native Province. His long connection with educational affairs to a great extent blotted out the memory of his earlier work and struggles in another connection. He had much to do with founding Victoria College and getting that institution fairly established.... The impression remains with us to this day that if Dr. Ryerson had been a lawyer he would have made all other Canadian lawyers look small; if he had gone into politics he would have been perpetual Premier: in short, he was the ablest native Canadian who has so far helped to make history.

The Christian Guardian of the 29th May, said:—

The unveiling of the statue of the late D. Egerton Ryerson, last Friday, in the Normal School grounds in this city, recalls the memory of a worthy and honored Canadian, widely known as a successful journalist, a gifted and learned divine, and an eminent educationist. It will hardly be questioned that the principle of perpetuating the memory of benefactors of a country is a laudable one, or that the individual in this case was worthy of this honor. No one who has travelled in Britain or other European countries, has failed to have his attention arrested by statues, or other memorials, of eminent men whom the county delighted to honor. It is well adapted to inspire the young with high purpose to note that however partisan strife may obscure the patriotic services of public men during active life, when the work of life is over, as a general rule, men of all parties cheerfully recognize the value of the service rendered by those who have faithfully labored for the public good. Owing to the intensity of political feeling in Canada, there is a strong tendency to underestimate the work of our statesmen and politicians, until they have gone where human praise or blame cannot affect them.

Though Dr. Ryerson passed through many fierce controversies, and at times came into conflict with hostile opponents, to-day men of all creeds and parties are ready to give him his due meed of praise as one of the greatest of Canada's sons, who achieved a work in organizing and building up a system of public education that shall tell powerfully for good through all coming time. He founded no cities; he led no armies to victory; he had no special influence on the material prosperity of the land; but in organizing a system of public schools, which placed the elements of a sound education within the reach of every boy and girl in this Province, he has exercised an undying influence over the future intellectual life of the country, that shall largely determine its place in the scale of civilization.

It is not only since his death that the strife of tongues has ceased, and the value of his work has been generally acknowledged. For several years before his death the echoes of old battles had become silent; old strifes were healed; and he lived in a peaceful Beulah land awaiting the Master's call to cross the dark river. In the beginning of 1879 at the request of the editor of the Guardian, he wrote an article for the Jubilee number of this paper, of which he was the first editor. After giving an interesting account of the origin and growth of the paper, he concluded by saying; "May the success of the past be as a dim dawn to the success of the future! Such is the prayer and hope of the first editor of the Guardian—now retired from all office in Church and State, near the fifty-fifth year of his ministry and the seventy-seventh year of his age—looking for a better country and waiting for a heavenly home."

The Presbyterian Review of the 30th May, said:—

The various speakers dwelt upon the immense service which the late Dr. Ryerson rendered to the country in laying broad and deep the foundations of our educational system, and testified their satisfaction that gratitude and veneration had found expression in the noble work of art before them, which would perpetuate his name to many generations of students and scholars.... Dr. Hodgins and the other gentlemen associated with him on the Ryerson Statue Committee are to be heartily congratulated on the result of their well-directed efforts and well-sustained efforts to assist in perpetuating the memory of a native-born Canadian who, notwithstanding some errors of judgment, proved himself worthy to be held in grateful remembrance by his countrymen.

The Week of the 31st May, said:—

That was a grand purpose to which Rev. Egerton Ryerson pledged himself on accepting office as the first Superintendent of Education for Ontario in 1844, "To provide for my native country a system of education, and facilities for intellectual improvement, not second to those of any country in the world." The form and loftiness of the promise marked the courage, individuality and conscious strength of the man who made it. The statue in the Toronto Normal School grounds, which was unveiled with appropriate ceremonies on the 24th inst., will henceforth stand as the testimony of the people of Ontario, especially of its teachers and others interested in educational work, to the faithfulness and ability with which the pledge was redeemed through thirty-two years of indefatigable toil and struggle. The artistically wrought monument in bronze will also serve as a fitting reminder to all who visit the Educational Department that the people of Ontario do not mean to let those who faithfully served their country in its earlier days be forgotten. A monument "more enduring than bronze" stands out to view wherever a free public school is efficiently doing its work in training the young of both sexes and of all classes to become intelligent and patriotic citizens of this growing commonwealth. Whether it be literally true or not that Dr. Ryerson "placed his native Province in the van of all the States of America and all the colonies of the British Empire," as the Minister of Education avouches, his plan was certainly comprehensive and statesmanlike, and was followed out with a courage, perseverance and success, for which the Province must ever remain his debtor.

The Toronto correspondent of the Montreal Witness, under date of 31st of May, says:—

One of the noblest public tributes ever paid to the memory of any man in Canada was paid the other day to the memory of the late Rev. Egerton Ryerson. From the time of his death, early in 1882, till now, the work of collecting subscriptions for the erection of a statue has gone steadily on. The amounts contributed were individually small, but the contributors were numerous, and now in front of the Departmental Buildings, in St. James' Square, stands a memorial of him which will fairly convey to future generations some idea of what the man himself was in personal appearance. The massiveness and rugged strength are there, and there were, after all, the most marked traits of Dr. Ryerson's personality, though he was by no means lacking in sympathy and intellectual ability.... The addresses were admirable alike for brevity and good taste, and nothing occurred to mar the success of the ceremony.

The Educational Journal of June 1st, said:—

The statue of the late Dr. Ryerson, which has been so long in course of preparation, has been set up on the Normal School grounds, and was unveiled, with appropriate ceremonies, on the 24th ult.

The ceremony of unveiling was performed by Sir Alexander Campbell, the Lieutenant-Governor, who said that he thought no pleasanter duty could fall to the lot of any Lieutenant-Governor than that of assisting in honoring one of the Province's noblest men.

The status is of bronze, nine feet six inches in height, and stands upon a pedestal of New Brunswick granite, ten feet six inches high. It represents Dr. Ryerson in the attitude of addressing an audience in the cause of education. The head is turned a little to the right, with the lips slightly parted, and with the massive brow and flowing locks, gives a correct and forcible expression, in harmony with the action of the advanced arm and firm position of the right leg. The proportions of the figure are very well kept through the ample folds of the doctor's gown, which in their various lines, lend richness and interest to the work, and take away the stiffness of the modern costume. The left hand is raised nearly to the breast, and in it is grasped a book. A little to the left and rear of the figure stands a short pedestal bearing three books, carelessly laid one upon another; and on one of the panels of the pedestal is the arms of the Department of Education. Dignity of bearing, repose and action, and distinct force of character, eminent qualities in the personality of the late doctor, mark the expression of the figure; and it is evident that no pains have been spared by the artist, Mr. Hamilton McCarthy, in the modelling of the details of both statue and pedestal. The statue stands in a commanding position in the Normal School grounds. It will add a new object of interest to the many attractions which these grounds present to teachers and others visiting the Department.

The Irish Canadian of the 6th of June, under the heading of "A Graceful Tribute," said:—

On the 24th of May (the Queen's Birthday), was unveiled the statue erected in the Normal School grounds to the memory of the Rev. Egerton Ryerson, the founder of the common school system of education in Ontario, and its Superintendent from its inception in 1844 till 1876, when he retired in the fullness of years, and after his labors had been crowned with signal success. The Catholics of this Province, in the matter of education, have nothing for which they should be thankful to the distinguished divine.... For all that, Dr. Ryerson was a man of great and good parts; and, from a Common School point of view, he has left a noble heritage in a system of education that will bear favorable comparison with the best of any land.

It was the occasion of the unveiling of his statue that his co-laborer in the Education Department—Dr. J. George Hodgins—paid the memory of Dr. Ryerson a graceful tribute. Who so capable for so delicate a task as he who had been Dr. Ryerson's right-hand man, his able support, during his long and varied career in the Education office? And happily has the story of the ups and downs of the Common School system been told by the learned Deputy Minister, to whose ripe judgment, in no small degree, was due the system's unmeasured success. The part that Dr. Hodgins played, however, is kept in the background; and we see only what Dr. Ryerson done during his lengthened incumbency, and the difficulties with which he had to contend in maturing his plans and bringing them as nearly as possible to his own ideal of perfection.

Dr. Hodgins' retrospect goes back to the period of the U. E. Loyalists, and thence downward to 1876. It leads us by degrees from the primitive system in vogue prior to the grammar schools (in one of which the late venerable Bishop Strachan taught as master), through a series of changes aiming at higher education, till we arrive at the year in which the foundations of the present system were laid. The corner-stone having been placed, the superstructure rose in fair proportions; and the edifice having been completed, to furnish it with all the adjuncts necessary to the best educational training was the Superintendent's constant care. How Dr. Ryerson finally overcame every obstacle to his darling object is told with tender affection by Dr. Hodgins, who, in laying a chaplet on the grave of his dead chief, does honor not only to the memory of a good man, but also to his own generous instincts.

The Canada Educational Monthly for June-July, said:—

The Rev. Dr. Ryerson has long been widely known as a gifted and learned divine, as well as a successful journalist, who took a prominent part in the religious and moral development of our country in its early days, ... but the fitting memorial which was unveiled on Her Majesty's seventieth birthday, is erected to him chiefly as a worthy Canadian and an eminent educationist....

The life work of this able man has now passed into other hands; in itself it forms a whole superstructure, and if the enlightened principles which he laid down and acted upon are carried out in their integrity, they must exercise an undying influence for good upon the intellectual life of the country, upon its gradual advance in the scale of civilization and refinement, and upon its moral and religious life.

The ceremony of unveiling the statue brought together many true, patriotic and representative men. Some of his personal friends and fellow-workers were there, and others who remembered him with affection and gratitude. The Government, the city, the public and secondary schools, the colleges and universities were all represented, and all united in honoring the memory of the founder of the Ontario school system.