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Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 6165, 4 June 1891, Page 2

If the householders of the several school districts had the power to dor«, under some such provision as is contained in the Counties Act for the merging of road districts into counties, we are pretty certain they would hasten to mertre a good many within each other. As the law stands it is provided that for every school district constituted under the Education Act there shall be a School Committee. There is nothing by which two adjoining districts can become one, which is an obvious oversight. In 1877, when the Act was passed, Parliament hardly realised the effect that the public works would have in knitting tho country together. The fourteen years which have elapsed have made a wonderful difference in the conditions of social life, besides jiving *v experie**e in the working of tite educational system which shows how it can be simplified. For instance, in Napier there are two distinot school districts and School Committees where one would be ample. It is ridiculous to say that one Committee could not look after the Port school in addition to the main and side schools in town. And so it is in many of the country districts which are closely united by good roads and railways. We are only expressing the opinions of many of the strongest supporters of our system of State education when we say that it would be greatly to its advantage if, wherever practicable, adjoining school districts could be amalgamated. One of tho chief blemishes of the system is the intense localism it has set up. Each little district has its one little school, and the school generally suffers through the narrowminded prejudices, and the individual likes and dislikes, of the i members of the local Committee. If the districts were enlarged to include two or even more schools thcr« would be a * icier field from which to pick candidates for the Committee, with a broader range of electors, ar-d which would bo destructive of local jealousies. In all matters of iocai government the larger the sphere of udministraget, for they are chosen for their known abilities and not because they belong to wrao paiticular clique. With larger school districts than we Tiavo there would bo leas chance of incompetent teachers being retimed for the reason thut they are the neighbors of, and hail-fellows-vt-ell-met with, the members of tho Committee; and there would bo no chance of a good .and efficient teacher bi'ing harried by his Committee for some inconsequent ciiuso having no real connection witli education. These are always features of looalism, and winch have evil effects in more ways than one, and they are not by any means confined to Hawko's Bay. They are indeed recognised and deplored" in every educational district, and so much so that an attempt will be made next session of Parliament to give power to householders to amalgamate adjoining school districts