ST. LEONARDS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2207, 18 June 1896, Page 26

ST. LEONARDS.

Juke 15.— The Roman Catholics withdrew their children in a body on the afternoon of Wednesday, the 3rd, and again on the 10th inst., from their secular studies in the State school here, and the priest, it is understood, cave them religioua instruction in the local chapel. It is said that this course will be pursued ia the future, and the ide* is perhaps worthy of consideration by other denominations. Our schoolmaster, however, is not likely to regard the movement with much favour, since nearly 50 per cent, of the children are Bomia Catholics. Piscatorial. -On Saturday, the 13th inst., a sharp-eyed lad on bin way to Dunedin by the train noticed a large fish on the beach not far from the Burkes railway station. He therefore left the train at Ravensbourne, and hastening back, was . rewarded by the capture of a larga kih^fish, which is not unlike its cousin the frostfiah, but shorter and far >touter in build. 1 The Roads.— Every fresh shower renders the ■ roads almosc impassable in places, and people are e-rnejitly asking when pome of the £150. promised by the Government will be available tor metal. Our Larrikins.— An r angry letter appears in the Times from a perton who, uudet the title of "Discipline," compares the St. . Leonards children with the Chinese, an account of whose vtron^-doings have lately appeared in the columns of the newspapers. He accuses our boys of hooting, hallooing, and throwing >tonei on wh»t appeared to b« a small store, etc. Mr " Discipline"

1 prooeeds with a diatribe against teachers, and f embellishes his letter by speaking of "such exhibitions of larrikinism and depravity of which . Chinamen would be ashamed." Although not j defending the children for throwing stones, I may ■ say that the opinion is pretty general t&At the i "old man" refema to has brought a large , measure of unpopularity on himself by the exzv- '< 1 cisc of a particularly vituperative to~ qUa aQ j the fiestowal^f hftljt-feiook? OS unoffending little oi)S?r — A>«uTplino" evidently does not know the meaning of depravity.