NATIVE SCHOOLS.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 12935, 15 October 1907, Page 8

NATIVE SCHOOLS.

A REPLY TO THE HON. G

FOWLDS

(PBESS ASSOCIATION TELEGBAK.) NAPIER, October 14. Mr George Darton, the member of the Hawke's Bay Education Board whose statements regarding native schools have been impugned by the lion. G. Fowlds. M.nister for Education, when seen by a "Daily Telegraph" reporter this morning, said:— '•I am prepared to prove every statement I have made from the Department's own documents or unreservedly withdraw the whoie lot. In regard to tho Minister's allegation that 1 have no personal knowledge of native school*. I desire to say that I livo in a district riddsied with native schools, and I am constantly in touch with parents whose children attend them. Not only that, but in my own district we nave the experience ol native children attending the public schools. At Marackaha we havo an Education Hoard school at which the pupiis aro almost entirely native children. Wo aie thus able to compare nath'e children under the management of tho Hawke's Hay Education Hoard and native schools under Depart'men tai control." Dealing with the statements as to the cost of native children, to which the Minister had taken exception, -Mr Darton said he could only say that his tigures were computed from p.fgo 24 of tlie Education Departments annual report of 1905, the last and only oifk-ial information avoilab.e. On l*7ng asked wiiat he had to say in reference to the payment of native school teachers according to average I attendance, Mr Darton turned over the ieaves of tho Education Department \s report, and read the following: —"A new scale of (salaries ha.s been approved approximating to that set lortli in the M.vhedule to the Education Act Amendment Act, 1905. Tho eftect will be to produce a more oven distribution of the amount paid as salaries to teachers and to raise the salaries of acswiants generally.' "I'hat." said Mr Darton, 'is all 1 can twy. In European schools, if* the attendance rails, the teachers salary is reduced; that is the law. Now, 1 will cnallenge the Minister to produce a single nativo (vohool where the salary is reduced through lulling attendance, and if ho can show this, 1 am prepared to withdraw my statement." "What have you to say in regard to the supply of biscuitsr I '"' asked the reportor. ' That I can prove," replied Mr Darton. ''I would liko tho editor of tho 'Daily Telegraph to send a telegram to Mr Kirk, storekeeper, Port Awanui, asking him what native schools he has supplied with biscuita and tho amount supplied to each. I know for certain tliat three native schools were supplied by Mr Kirk with b.scuits to the order of the Department. There are other schools that I know have lieen supplied in the same way, but these three I can speak of with authority. I will go even farther and say that Mr Kirk was paid by a cheque from the Department. "As for the Minister's assertion regarding the teachers in native schools and those under the control of the Board," continued Mr Darton, "the Department s regulations will not allow the latter to teach unless they aro certificated. There is no comparison between these and native school teachers. In my own district I can say that the majority of native school teachers are uncertificated."

Coming to the question of conveniences in use at native schools, Mr Darton said tEat he could easily prove his case. "I only wish," he said, "I could show you some of the heartrending letters I have received from European parents whose children havo to attend native schools. In connection with this matter I may say that the European parents at Nuhaka complained to tho Hawke's Bay Education Board that the sanitary '-conveniences were not available for the children, being locked up. The hardship is that where a nativo school is in operation the Education Board are not allowed to set up one of their own.

"There is another thing I would like to again point out. To Maori children attending public schools who pass the fifth standard or the fourth standard at a native school before reaching the age of fifteen, scholarships to the value of £20 a year are granted to enable them to attend a secondary school or to become apprenticed' to a suitable trade. If a European parent wants to apprentice his child to » trade, he has to pay for it himi*lf. Why should a Maori child be given £20 to learn a trade which he never sticks to?

"I can only repeat," concluded Mr Darton, "That I have depended for all my statements on the documents of the Department, although I admit that the information published by the Department about native schools is yery meagre. On my return to Gis-b-rne I will toply in detail to tho statements of the Minister,"