Evening Post.

Evening Post, Volume LXXXIV, Issue 72, 21 September 1912, Page 4

Evening Post.

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 1912. A DENOMINATIONAL GAIN The brief discussion of the education question which took place in the House of Representatives on Wednesday was of a thoroughly unsatisfactory character. An issue of the gravest importance was touched by the Minister of Education and an ex-Minister without any indication that they or any other member of the Housei had the faintest appreciation of its magnitude. We have previously called attention to the unfortunate ambiguity in the Education Amendment Act of 1910, which opened the door for the recognition of the denominational principles by the State. Our objection was that as Parliament had quite unintentionally opened this door it should close the- door at once, now that it realised what had been done. This point of view appears to b6 entirely unrepresented in a House which assuredly was not elected to tamper with one of the fundamental principles of our education system. The objection, taken by Mr. Q. W. Russell was from the opposite standpoint. He regrets that the door has not been opened wide enough, and the only concern of the Minister of Education Was to satisfy him that there was Really plenty of room. While Minister and exMinister conversed in this "Way, not a voice was raised to indicate the presence of the denominational danger or the need to shut and bar the door as the only guarantee of safety. The question put by Mr. Russell to the Minister of Education, was whether, seeing that the law is indefinite on the question of holders of State scholarships being allowed to hold them at secondary schools not recognised by the Education Act, the Government will bring down this session an amendment of the existing law to enable sucb. Bcholarships to be held at the discretion of parents or guardians at schools approved and inspected by State officers? The Minister's reply, was that no amendment was required to make the law definite. He pointed out that Education Board scholarships may be held at a secondary school or ita equivalent approved by the board, and. that junior national scholarships may be held at a secondary school or its equivalent approved by the board and the Minister. Evidently in the Minister's opinion the present position is ajl that it should be. The satisfaction of the Minister amazes us, though not quite in the same way as it perturbed Mr. Russell. In his time Mr. Russell has played many parts, and his present ro}e appears to be that of a thorough-going champion of denominational education. In reply to the Minister of Education he put in a strong plea on behalf of the secondary schools of the various denominations in the matter of scholarships. At the present time 4 he pointed out, a bpy who wins a State scholarship cannot hold that scholarship at a denominational secondary school without the approval of the Education Board of the district. We agree with Mr. Rassell in regarding the present position as unsatisfactory, but from the exactly opposite point of view to that adopted by him. He regards it as intolerable that a State scholarship cannot be held at a denominational school without the approval of the Education Board. What We regard as intolerable is that even with the approval of the Education Board such a scholarship can be so held. That it can be is the result of a sheer oversight on the part of the late Parliament, which wp should have thought that, the present Parliament would have been glad to rectify. The Act which has done tho mischief was the work of Mr. Jj'owlds, whose name is a guarantee that it contained nothing that to his knowledge provided any encouragement for the denominational principle. That these scholarships should be open to competition for children in the denominational schools was intended and was properly intended, since it is to the public interest to make the area of com petition as wido as possible. But that Jtkm idjel*fihjp(i should, fei e*P9tyi gf

being held at the denominational schools was not intended ; and even now we cannot believe that the House would have sanctioned such a course with its eyes open. Mr. Fowlds has at any rate expressed his surprise and regret that a measure for which, as Minister of Education, he was responsible, should have been interpreted as having this effect. Ho has declared his entire concurrence with the emphatic declaration of the Education Commission that no State aid should be given to any secondary school not publicly controlled. Any departure from this principle would, in the opinion of Mr. Fowlds, lead to disastrous results, by opening the way for denominationalism in all its branches. Is there no one in the present House who can see that indirectly the State is endowing denominational teaching if it allows these scholarships to be held at a denominational school? If on© such can bo found to put the case strongly, we still believe that the Government and the House can be convinced of the danger, and roused to action in the very opposite direction to that urged by the member for Avon.