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Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 6414, 26 March 1892, Page 2

Accohbinq to the School Committees Election Act, the number of persons to bo elected to serve as a Committee depends on the average of pupils at the school. Thus, where the average attendance of any school or Bchools under the Committee of a district baa not for the last preceding school year exceeded twenty-five children, tho Committee is to consist of five members. Where the average attendance has exceeded twenty - five, and has not exceeded two hundred, the Committee is to consist of seven members, and where tho number of children in average attendance has exceeded two hundred there are to be nine members on the Committee. In tho Hawke's Bay educational district there aro six School Committees which will have to elect tho highest number, namely, Clivo, Giwborno, Hastings, Napier, Port Ahuriri, and VVoodville. The school districts which will have to elect seven members to serve on tho Committees are thirty in number, and are, Ashley-Clinton, Danevieke, Frasertown, Hampden, Havelock, Heretaunga, Kaikora, Kumeroa, Makotuku, Matawhero, Maktiretu, Manga-atua, Matamau, Meanee, Mohaka, Makuri, Norsewood, (Onga OngaBlackburn), Ormond, Onnondville, Patutahi, Petaue, Pukahu, Taradale, Tukapnu, Te Avai, Tolago Bay, Waeranga-hikn, Waipawa, Waipukurau, Wairoa. And there are twelve districts whose School Committees will ouly have five members each, namely, Maharahara, Maraetaha, Patangata, Porangahau, Puketapu, Te Karaka, Tiniroto, Waerangakuri, Wainui, Waipiro, Wallingford, Wimbledon. It will thus be seen that there aro forty-eight school districts representing C 303 children, according to the annual report for the year 1891, and recently published, Now, it will be observed that tho one-man-one- voto principle has not been carried out as regurds tho numbers of tho Committee, and tho numbers of children in tho schools. If thero be any virtue in that principle, the Act should have recognised that tho Committee of a school having twenty-five children should havo tho same number of Committeemen as a school of a thousand pupils. But a distinction has been made in this case, to show, apparently, the relative importance of the schools, and curiously enough, the relative importance of the Committees in voting power for representation on tho Education Board iH ignored. This can bo clearly shown by tho fact that out of tho 6303 children attending the schools of forty-eight Committees, 2GM are educated in the schools of tho she Committees which ayo to havo nine members each. On the other hand tho twelve districts the Committees of which are to havo five members each educate in all under two hundred children. Now, on the faco of it there appears an injustice in tho fact that these twelve unimportant Committees should havo twice as much say in the election of members of the Education Board as tho six important Committees of the rix most important Bchools in Hawke's Bay. Wo think the question we havo raised ia worthy of some attention, especially as it has beon aunounoed that there ia to be a Bill noxt session for the further amendment of the School Committees Eleption Act.