Educational Farce

NZ Truth, Issue 1052, 21 January 1926, Page 6

Educational Farce

With what appears to be a good deal of encouragement from the Education Department— to say nothing 1 of the Minister himself — a . . particularly bitter feud is being fanned into something of a conflagration Between - certain • resi - , dents of the townships of Bay View (Petane) and Eskdale, m the Hawkes Bay district. THE trouble arose originally over the location of the school, which is attended by the children of both towns. It is situated on the Eskdale side of the hill between the two places," but much nearer to Eskdale than to Bay View, thus imposing — the residents of the latter place claim — a walk of about two miles f or tiny children over a steep hill. ■ i > . Bay View residents have petitioned a number of times for the erection of a school m their town,. 'asserting that they can muster 50 pupils to attend it. On the other hand, some of the Eskdale people^ endorse the policy of the Hawkes Bay Education Board, which is to enlarge the present school. It is a paltry and wholly unnecessary situation and invokes surprise that the Minister-, Sir James Parr, should lend himself to it. . • The recent elections m the district returned a committee entirely. in favor of the removal of the present school .further up the Esk Valley and the establishment of another at Bay View This would seem £o indicate pretty clearly the feeling not only of Bay View upon the matter,. but. that of Eskdale and other residents sending thenchildren some miles . to the present school. Is it just pig-headedness, or is there something more behind the business?