The Lyttelton Times. SATURDAY, MAY 10, 1862.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XVII, Issue 991, 10 May 1862, Page 4

The Lyttelton Times. SATURDAY, MAY 10, 1862.

The third number of a very unpretending, though very useful, publication, appeared at Christchurch last month. The ' Church Quarterly Paper' was published for the first time in October, 1861, to supply a want which has long been felt in this diocese. Till then there had been no regular means of obtaining correct information concerning Church affiiirs in the Province, and many people who would willingly have given their assistance in the work which was going on, were deterred by their ignorance of the financial position of the Church in the several districts of the diocese, and of the wants which had to be supplied. Indeed, if we may judge by statements which are now and then hazarded by individuals, information on these matters is still very scant in some quarters. We beg to recommend this quarterly paper to all who really wish to.know how the Church stands in New Zealand generally and in Canterbury in particular. The following statement of the contents of the April number will give our readers some idea of the sort of information given each quarter for the sum of sixpence. " On the fly-sheet there is an almanac for the quarter, noting- meetings for transaction of Church business, followed by a table giving the lessons for the day. The first article gives an account of the meeting of the General Synod at Nelson in February last. Owing to the small attendance of lay members, the business appears to have been chiefly confined to Committees, whose reports may possibly serve as the basis for future legislation. The two most important measures passed were " the union of Bishop Patteson and the Missionary Bishopric of Melanesia on equal terms with the Synodical system of New Zealand, and the appointment of a Board of Trust for the diocose of Chvistchurch. " This measure was intended to meet in part the wishes of the Christchurch Synod with

reference to the Church property belonging to that diocese."

The second article is the first of what promises to he a vpry interesting- series— Traditions of the Middle Island, ohtained from an old Maori chief at Kaiapoi, must interest every settler in Te-wai-ponamu. So little has been recorded of the history of this southern island of New Zealand before its settlement by Europeans, and so few are the chances x remainmg of anything1 like a satisfactory account of the spread and subsequent decimation of the Maori race in this fertile country, that we must be thankful to anyone who collects from the old men what is yet left of Maori lore in the province. Old Kaiapoi was a great- fortified pah in days not long1 gone by; its siege has been sung by native minstrels even in the North, and the last traditions of the chief tribe of this island naturally linger about the place where it made its last stand against its northern enemies. We learn that "the Waitaha were the first dwellers in this island. They are said to have come from Ahuriri five hundred years ago. No great faith can be attached to exact dates in such legends as these; for the Maories, like all savage nations, have very little idea of measuring time. However, it was, as the story-books say, a".long time ago. These happy Waitaha lived peaceably, undisturbed by the warlike Northerners; they hunted, fished, cultivated the soil, and "covered the face of the country like ants." But soon they suffered the usual fate of those unused to war. Another Ahuriri tribe came down and subdued them, killing and making slaves. The Ngatimainoe however did not. long enjoy their triumph, for a more powerful tribe soon made its appearance. Our old chief gives a curious account of the manner in which the Ngaitahu, the ancestors of the Maories now residing in this island, dispossessed the Ngatimainoes. : It is a story highly illustrative of the Maori life and customs that have passed away. Unfortunately, —perhaps artfully,—the story is stopped at a most Interesting crisis, to be resumed in the next num'bfir.

A short article follows on the management of the new Orphan Asylum in Christchurch, and then comes an account of a visit of the Bishop of New Zealand's yacht to Norfolk Island in 1856 and another of Bishop Patteson's visit in 1861. From these glimpses it would appear that the Pitcairn Islanders are well and happy in their new home.

The next and last article is an appeal to parents whose children are taught at district schools, urging on them the importance of punctual and regular attendance. After showing- how hopeless it is to attempt to teach children who come into school late, and after others have begun work,, the widespread evil of irregular attendance is thus forcibly pointed out:—

"We are afraid that the value of close, patient, unbroken study, is by many parents set too low, and that the idea largely prevails, that (say) three weeks schooling- now, and three weeks then, ought to produce much

the same actual progress as six consecutive weeks of instruction. No greater mistake could be made, at. least in relation to the work of a school, where the machinery may not stop, but moves steadily onwards, let , who ■ will lag1 behind. A master's greatest perplexity lies in the irregular ones of his class, whom he vainly tries to drag through past lessons to the point others have attained, all the while feeling in his conscience that the, time ought to be rather devoted to the further instruction of regular attendants. We repeat he vamly tries to do this. For mathematical certainties do not apply to mental progress : in this case three and three do not make six. Time must necessarily be lost in going afresh over old ground, in recalling knowledge that had faded from the memory, in raising the mind once more to its full activity. When a vessel is once fairly stopped in its course, it is not possible all at once to bring her again to her full speed. To 'get way upon her ' is a work of time. The case is similar, where a boys' course of study has been broken in upon by absence from school. The two separate sections of the school quarter do not by any means represent the value of the same period of consecutive instruction, and sustained application to study. " For both unpunctuality and irregularity the parents are oftentimes chiefly responsible, and it rests mainly with them to prevent, or as far as possible to moderate, evils so disheartening and perplexing to the teacher, and so injurious to the scholar. The labours of the field, or domestic claims on their"services, must be permitted to interfere as little as possible with the children's attendance at school, if progress in their studies is really desired." We are glad to give further publicity to this warning, especially at the present moment. Systems of education, denominational or secular will be of little avail, so long as parents show themselves so apathetic on the subject as many do, whose children are within the reach of, at least, good elementary teaching. . The paper closes with Church intelligence of the past quarter. Appointments, benefactions, Christchurch cathedral, Christian knbw- . ledge Society, and the Home Maori Mission, are the heads under which the news is given. Extracts will be found in another part of this paper. L Where all periodicals, except newspapers, must of necessity be few and far between, this very cheap budget of information is deserving1 of all encouragement.