CORRESPONDENCE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXIV, Issue 8035, 24 August 1887, Page 3

CORRESPONDENCE.

RE BOARD OF EDUCATION. TO IHB KDITOB. Sir,—A paragraph appears in your ieeae of Saturday re expulsion of scholars, and as it is calculated to mislead, and does Dot convey to the public any idea of the importance of the queetion involved, I send yon briefly the facts of the case. The question asked the Board wan: Had the head teacher of a public school the power under the Education Act to expel scholars for want of punctuality ? My reason for asking this question was, that; the head teacher of the Hamilton West School had expelled my children, and when asked why, hud sent" th? following letter : — "Hamilton Weet School, Bth June, 1887. — Mr. S. Paecoe: Dear Sir, —Your children have been so irregular in their attendance that it is impossible for them to make any satisfactory progreae, eo I eent them home in order to bring the question of their frequent absences to a point.—l .am, etc, J. M. MuaRAY." This was the first intimation I had re* ceived that my children were irregular in. their attendance, and I thought that the teacher, before taking so arbitrary a step aa expelling the children, should first have written to me on the matter. I therefore wrote to the school committee for an answer to two questions—l. Has the head-teachec of any school power to expel children for irregular attendance, or want of punctuality ? 2. 1 asked the committee to examine the attendance roll, and compare the attendance of my children with the average attendance of the school, as I bad reaeon to believe a good many children in the school attended less regularly than mine. The committee evaded both these questions, but returned an answer endorsing tne action of the teacher. I then wrote to the Board of Education, asking the same questions, but they also appear to have evaded them, and have merely returned an answer that my children may return to school. I may state that my son, aged twelve years, i« in the fifth standard, and the other younger child io the third. Aβ the queetion is one that is causing much comment in Hamilton, and many parents think the power of the teacher and committee should be more clearly defined, I may state, unless some authoritative deciaioa is given by the Board, the whole correspondence will be forwarded to the Minister o£ Education.—l am, etc., S. PASOOE. Hamilton, August 22, 1887.

PAPER CURRENCY V. INCREASE OF TAXATION. TO THE EDITOR. Sir, —In the present position of the finances of the colony anything calculated to add to the economy of Government becomes of the first importance, and I therefore, with your permission, take advantage of the occasion to place the advantages of paper currency as an economical factor before the public. The banks account for £3,000,000 of circulation, and as there will probably ba another million of coin in circulation unac* counted, for by them, the total circulation will therefore be about £4.000,000. It ia admitted that the present currency may ba replaced by a Government issue with a gain of the amount of issue to the community, and such being the case I fail to eee why absentee bank shareholders should have the privileges of supplying us with circulating medium, or why a coetly metal should be used when a cheaper material would as well supply its place. To increase the present heavy taxation at a time when the expenditure of borrowed money is about! to cease may have, to say the least ofi it, very serious oousoquences, and an issue oC paper would do away with the necessity o8 extra taxation for many years to come. Some years ago I published a pamphlet on the subject, advocating a special kind of car* rency, copies of which I have sent to the Publio Library, where they may be seen by anyone who takes aa interest in the matter* — I am, etc, J. R. Mcßkth. Tuakau, Waikato, August 22, 1837.