The Evening Star THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1881.

Evening Star, Issue 5587, 3 February 1881, Page 2

The Evening Star THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1881.

The dominant party in the newly-elected Dunedin School Committee must have found themselves very much between the horns of a dilemma when they had to consider the application from the secretary of the Freethought Association for the use of one of the public school-rooms. The Association, it appears, are anxious to start a “ Children’s Lyceum,” in which we may presume the works of Paine and Colonel Ingersoll are to be the text boaks; and as, on the principle of lucus a non lucendo, they term this “moral and religious instruction,” they claim the same privileges as the evangelical denominations. Mr M. W. Green, who, since his successful wrestling with Satan in the shape of Mr Charles Bright, has been led to regard himself as a second Erasmus, was naturally horror-struck at the very idea; and to the proposal that the application be granted, move! an amendment, which claimed on behalf of the Committee the right to decide on the orthodoxy or otherwise of all applicants for the use of the school-rooms. If Mr Green had his way, few applications, we may conceive, would be entertained; but we wonder that he does not recognise how absurdly illogical is the position he takes up. Although acting, no doubt, within the letter of the law, the Committee are ignoring its spirit and principle by affording facilities, at the expense of the public, lor imparting religious instruotion. It would be monstrous, indeed, were they to assume to judge what dogmas or form of religion should alone be mem4*ted; but this, and no Iqss» i* what Mr

Green, by his amendment, would have had them do. The truth of the matter is—and this lies at the bottom of the whole Bible-in-schools agitation—that sectarian teaching is what is aimed at. The Committee now find themselves in a very remarkable fix. In their great anxiety to ensure that the children shall be imbued with strictly evangelical truth, they have placed the school-rooms at the disposal of “ suitable applicants ” free of charge on week-days and at a nominal fee on Sundays. They now find themselves committed to “affording facilities” in the way to the propagation of infidel opinions, and may be called on any day to afford equal facilities to Mormons, Chinese— Pagans, or Mahometans. The proceedings at the meeting of the School Commlt’ee on Wednesday evening are most strongly confirmatory of the views we have consistently advocated : namely, that the maintenance of the purely secular principle' in the public school system is absolutely essential to the system being worked satisfactorily, in a manner consonant with the feelings and convictions of the large majority of the people. The first fruits of the introduction of the thin end of the wedge by the election of a Bible-in-sohools ticket have been what a contemporary very properly terms an “ on- ** seemly discussion” at the very first ba'iness meeting of theCommittee —adiscuseion which in its bitterness and acrimony will, without doubt, be taken up cut of doors, and f« hardly likely to promote peace and goodwill in the community. Agnosticism is now to be taught in the public school-rooms, and is thus indirectly recognised by the State, so that in a few years there will be an opportunity of judging, perhaps on a largo scale, how the favorite theory’of the Freethinkers—that morality can be taught without religion—is found to work out in practice and whether the principles on which law, order, and society have been for hundreds of years based, can be safely abrogated. In moving his resolution, to the effect that the school buildings “be granted free “of charge,” Mr Green affected to reply to “ one or two questions which had “ been publicly asked in reference to “ the matter.” We may presume that he did U3 the honor to refer to our article of Monday last, In which we pointed out that the proper cleansing and ventilation of the school-rooms would be interfered with ; that the janitors would have not or ly extra work, but Sabbath work, thrown on them ; whilst there was no real necessity for the denominations having the use of the rooms, considering that they all have accommodation of their own for Sunday schorl purpose?, which could be made available on week-days if required, Mr Green’s explanation is very much analogous to that of the erring young woman who excused an evident faux pas by stating tearfully that the material result was “only a very little one." Mr Green does not attempt to confute one of our arguments, but be says that “ there was not the slightest likelihood “of the schools being applied for on Satur- “ days, and he did not think there was the “ slightest probability of more than one reli- “ gioua body applying for a school on Sue“days.” Why all this excitement then over the spiritual destitution of the children ? Then, with regard to the j miters, Mr. Green thinks that very little extra work will he thrown on them, since the “ majority of “ Sundays were fine ” ; and he mentioned that he had been “ speaking to a janitor it was afterwards elicited that this was not a janitor but a janitor’s husband—who admitted that “supposing the rooms were “ cleaned on the Saturday, there would be “no more than an hour occupied in “cleaning on the Monday morning after “ the school had been held for Sunday “sohod purposes on Sunday afternoon.” Perhaps the janitor who has to do the scrubbing would hardly agree with her accommodating husband. Mr Green rather shirked the question of there being really no necessity for the denomination to use the State school-rooms, having convenient places at their dispt sal already for purposes of religious instruction. He asserte d, in effect, that whore Sunday school-rooms were available “ the religious bodies would not apply “for the use ef the public schools “on Sundays,” This is a mere assertion, and we are rather inclined to think that the wealthy congregations who found four shillings a-week a prohibitive rate of charge for the rooms will, on duly weighing the merit?, prefer to pay 2i 61 a-week and save the expense of maintaining Sunday school-'ooms for themselves, Mr Bolt certainly had some show of reason in expressing indignation at “the paltry “ natnre of the whole question ” as to the term? on which the use of the rooms should be granted. “If Christian effort and Chris- “ tian energy were to be measured by “ eighteenpence a week, then Christianity “hsd indeed fallen lower than ever its de- “ tractors had accused it of doing.” We can only hope that in any amending Bill which may be brought in for the parj.o3e tf remedying the several technical defects in the Education Act, a provision may be introduced depriving school committees of the power to grant the uae of the buildings for any purpose whatever religious cr secular.

The members of the City Guards have voted the sum of L 25 towards the expenses of a team of five representatives for the Nelson meeting. Oar Tuapeka contemporary reports that Barney Cillan, employed on Galloway station, was drowned in attempting to cross the Manuhecikia on the 29ih ulfc. Deceased had been drinking heavily for some time. At a meeting of the Committee of the Chamber of Commerce yesterday Mr W. J. M. Larnaoh was nomirated the Chamber’s representative on the Otago Harbor Board, Mr G. C. Matheson, the present member, will probably be nominated by the City Cl nncil.

The third representation of “ The Corsican Brothers ” was given at the Queen Theatre last night. As the performers are well up in their parts the drama runs very smoothly, and it is well worth a visit. The piece will be withdrawn after to-night. To-morrow night Mr Walter Rojn Ids takes a benefit, when " Caste ” will be produced, Herr Bandmann will recite “ Eugene Aram ” and a selection from the “ Merchant of Venice ” in English and German. The Waikouaiti County Council on Friday endorsed the resolution of the Wairoa County Council re the election of Land Boards, decided to apply to all the Road Boards within the Waikouaiti County for returns of revenue and expenditure during the past year, and instructed their chairman to communicate with the various Road Boards with a view to holding at Hawkesbury, In about two months hence, a conference of delegates to consider the contracting and economising of the expenditure of local government, Mr I. N, Watt, R.M., presided at the City Police Court this morning, and disposed of the two oases set down for hearing. Ellen Wilson alias Do fey, for stealing on the Ist inst, a bottle of ale and a bottle of porter, the property of James Shortel, was sentenced to fourteen days’ impristnment, with hard labor.—Catherine Bresinhan was charged with using obscene language within the hearing of persons passirg in Cumberland street on the 30ih nit. The language was used in Bristol’s right-of-way, which was held not t0 be a public right-of-way and out of hearing' of Cumberland street. The case was therefore dismissed.

Mr Herring, a gentleman from the neighborhood of Normanton, near Wakefield, arrived yesterday in Dunedin. His mission is to ascertain the desirability of emigration of a large number of farmers in the neighborhood cl Wakefield, who, burdened heavily by rents, tithes, poor rates, and education rates, find farming in Yorkshire becoming unprofitable. He has been commissioned to ascertain the capabilities and resources of the country, not only with regard to farming, but pastoral pursuits, coal mining, and other industries; and to confirm, if in his opinion trne, the reports of Messrs Grant and Foster. The successful transport of fresh meat by the Protos, and the price at which it can be profitably sold in England, must convince English farmers of the impossibility of competing with New Zealand and Australia; and the bad harvests of the last few years, with the unwillingness of landlords to reduce foots, have caused a widespread desire to settle In a c untry where farmers can obtain a fair return on their capital. Mr Herring has traversed the country from the Bluff to Queenstown, and across the Waimea Plains. To-morrow he will further prosecute his inquiries, and, we believe, proceed north and eastward.

The Lingarda were passengers to San Francisco by the outward mail steamer. Mr Lingard’a bankruptcy matters were previously arranged, Mr I. N. Watt, R.M., presided at the Port Chalmers Police C >urt yesterday, when Henry West and John G llespse for drunkenness were fined 10* and 5 < respectively, with the usual alternatives, To-day Mr J. Mill presided, and fined Daniel Gnghy, Jol n Gillespie, and Thomas Stevenson 5i erch, with the usual alternative, for drunkenness. The G -vernor appears inclined to follow his predecessor’s example in one matter. To the request of the Waikato Turf Club to become their patron he very readily assented, and at the same time expressed the pleasure so dnmg would give him to encourage such an old, manly English sport as racing. Tne Committee of the Dunedin J.C. ought Jto take the hint at once and endeavor to Secure Sir Arthur’s presence at the forthcoming meeting. The firm stand taken by the Supreme Court to prevent scenes in the conduct of its business contrasts moat strongly with the way in which the business of the City Court is allowed to be interfered with. From our report of to-day’s banco business it will be seen that one of the counsel engaged was most s« verely rated by their Honors for reflecting on a case after judgment had been delivered. Mr Justice Johnston at one stage of the prooei dings said: “Mr Stewart, I do not think you ought to say these things. You may complain as much as yon like to your friends out of the Court of the way you are treated ; but when a judgment has solemnly decided a matter like this it is improper for you to make such remarks, and I never tolerate them.”

The first annual meeting of the Roslyn Fire Brigade was held on the Ist inst., when John Auld and Thomas White were elected as working members. The concrrt committee reported that everything was progressing towards a thoroughly successful he held on the 18th inst., with which the Brigade intend c labrating their anniversary, as well as increase the fund?, which are at present very low. The secretary read a report of the past year, which was received with thanks. The election of officers for the ensuing year resulted as follows .-—Captain, M. Whale; lieutenant, J, Johnston; senior foreman, F, Washer ; junior foreman, J, Jackson ; treasurer, D. Ferguson (re-elec-.ed); hon. secretary, A. C. Ssewar; (re-electert). Pioneers for each ward were J. Stewart, Waverley; D. M'Kerzie, Linden ;J. Auld, Sunnyside; W, Aitken, Maori Hill; and J. Tait, Kdgour.

armn«l eoir.c of Knox Church will bo held in tho old chutch on Thursday, the 10 hj Inst.

At the quarterly meeting of the R’ght Step Lodge, No. 53 ; I 0.G.T., on Tuesday l officers for the ensuing term were 1m tailed as follows;- W.0.T.. Bre. Penntt; W.V.T., Sis. Rank In; W. 8., Bro. 1 avie; W.A S., Sis. Clarke; W.F.B. Bro Rostrvera; W.T, Bro, Gibson; WO., Br;>, Monison; W.M., Bro. Pine ; W.1.G., Bo Wakefield ; W.0.G., Bro. Rankin, Bros, Hood and Defers supp rfcers; Sh, Barclay as W.D.M, At a meeting <f I he Pride of Dunedin Lodge, 1.0. G.T., held last night, the following officers were installed for the ensuing quarter W/'.T, Bro. Stevenson; W.V.T., Sister M‘Laugblan ; W.S., Br-. Wunro; W.T. Secretary, Bro. & filer, rent. ; W. Treasurer, Sister Itwis; W.M., Bro Dawson; W.1.G., Pro Low; W 0.G., Bro Watkins. Supporters and Deputy—W.F. J ',, Mrs Dawson; W.L.S., Miss Gardner; W.D.M., Mrs Belaon; A.S., Prr. "Wi illlamion ; P.W.0.T., Bro, Cook.