The Daily Telegraph. THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 1893. SCHOOL COMMITTEE ELECTIONS.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 6743, 27 April 1893, Page 2

The Daily Telegraph. THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 1893. SCHOOL COMMITTEE ELECTIONS.

A Wb-Liitotok telegram, that we published yesterday, contained the official announcement that " the Education Department has no reason to bo _eve that the [School Committees Election] Act is in any way causing goneral friction or dissatisfaction." The Department, of course, takes its cue from the Minister for Eduoation, who was good enough to explain why the Aot was amended in the form in whioh it now appears. The Minister asserts that the amendment allowing nominations to be put in at tbe meeting of h-useholders was expressly inserted by the House of Representatives on account of a Btrong feeling that it is not until the assembled householders hear tho annual raport of tho committee read, and listen to a discussion upon it, that they

are in a position to say whom they will nominate or elect. The House of Representatives muet be a vory gullible body if that was tho reason why it made tbo amendment. The public, at all events, will not be misled by such silly reasoning, booaußo tho public know how School Committee elections aro conducted, and it is a pity the Minister for Education is not as well informad. Everybody who has taken part in these elections is perfectly well aware that the committee's annual report has no influence whatever on either the nominations or tho election. As a rule, -some activo party in a school district takes the matter in baud, and makes out a list of nominations long beforo the mooting of the householders. This list is kept as secret as it can bo from all except tho members of the party to which they aro pledged. The party being thus organised, it oan bo suro of electing its nominees, and invariably doos bo. Tho strongest organisation can always win ; but Bomotimes it is generous, and is satisfied with putting ou the committee two-thirds of its number, leaving tho other third to be scrambled for. It in tho height of absurdity to suppose that at tho meeting of householders tho annual roport i» seriously disoussed, or that tho merits of candidates aro weighed. In some districts, notably Gisborne, tho committees publish their annual reports a week or moro before the day of election, and, if, as the Minister thinks, these documents have any influence over tho householders in determining the selection of candidates, then why was nottheActamendedtomaketheirpublioation compulsory ? If the annual report wero published a fortnight before the day of election, ttere would be ample time to consider it in all its bearingi, and to make tho nominations with a due regard to the qualifications of candidates a week beforo the voting. The Gisborne oommitteo's annual report was published in the local paper on the lath instant, the no Tarnations : were made on the night of the 17th, and th« election was h«ld on the, 2_th. Thero ' was no attempt at trickery, or of any sly dodgery, to put men on the committee for whom the householders would not havo | voted if they knew who thoy wero. Tho j consequence has been that tho Gisborno t School Committee has always been com- 1 posed of the best men in the town, with tho E . natural result that the school has held tho premier position in the Hawko's Bay edu- I oation distriot. Tho natural good ooneo of I the householders has brought this about _ without the assistance of au Act; or rather, I we should say, in spito of the Act. And a the example has been so excellent that we ti think the Aot might next session be r ' amended in the direclion the aclion of tho Gial9orne Committee suggests. a

Th .re is another amendment which wp venture to think would bo a vast improvement on the prosent higgledy-piggledy mode of election. The only qualification of a voter should be that he be the father or

guardian of a child o** children actualI**1 ** attending tho school. The word "houFe-

holdpr" should bo nHna-other eliminated from tho A<_ A householder, as a householder only, bai nothinir to do with, norlm' any dirpei, intrrpot i*. the school ; but mthe father of a fiimih no one can h .vo o deeper interest in its w.-.lfnre and {rood nonduct. Wo h">ld that no baohplor, nor childless hmipholder, m» honseholdor whosr rb'ldrpn nro not- -''pnd .i;r tho State- SPh">ol. should to.'••<• :itiv p"»l; in school affairs; hr mitrht not to ho '.llon-pd lo votn, nor sit on th« no m miff no. Tf the qualification of a voh r •* na fJ .is limited tho bpsidmist.r o f t.hp pp.hool "ou'd .ro a roll of th<*plepfor' in los thn.n h.ilF . n lour. Th _-p should be a school holiday on f lin d>.v of tho election, nnd the. headmaster should ho I the returnincr officer, or. if o'.prwif. desired, the poll e'er., for Hentini* .tion o f the clectirs. Tbe no'l shn"H ho own from 9am. to 6 p.m ,or later if necessary The nominations should be published seven davp before the olection, and if the voters did not choose to nominate the full number permitted by law, then tho number nominated chould be tho committee for the ensuing twelve months. The annual report of thp committee should bo published not less than threo days before tho day of nomination

Another suprco .ion that we would ofier i" that the committee he either elected for three yours, as is the case with Licensing Committees, or tbnt only a certain propor-

tion of its members retire annually, as if the case with the Fduoation Board, and

other local governing: bodies. Tbe difficulty

and expense of compiling a special roll of householders for school committee elections has always been urged as the reason why these elections cannot be conducted under The Local Eleotions Act. But if, as we suggest, tho electors were limited to the

parents and guardians of children actually

attending the State school, the objection would fall to the ground. It would cost nothing, and, indeed, give no trouble to the headmaster to compile the roll, and Ihe voting would be restricted to those who had no object to serve other than the welfare of the schcol. The elections could then be conducted strictly under the provisions ef The Local Elections Act.