HON. GEORGE FOWLDS.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXIX, Issue 107, 28 June 1911, Page 5

HON. GEORGE FOWLDS.

VISIT TO STRATFORD. POLITICAL ADDRESS. The Hon. George Fowlds, Minister for Education, arrived in Stratford by last night’s mail train on a short visit. At eight o’clock he delivered a political address in the Town Hall before a ftlir audience, tiro Mayor being in the chair; The Mayor said the Hon. George Fowlds was present at the invitation of the Liberal League. Of whatever political colour they were, he felt sure they wore, all glad to welcome him. Mr Fowlds said he had pleasure in addressing the citizens of Stratford. Previously he had passed through the town very often on his way to Auckland, but the opening of the Main Trunk railway had made a nearer way home for him. In accepting invitations to visit, districts, Ministers

had to bo very careful, as a section of the public took the view that Ministers when they paid visits were, using the funds of the country for party purposes. He desired to express his admiration of the work done in the .secondary department of the Stratford school. In other places ho had held up the Stratford school as a model. It had been said of him that ho had no knowledge of agriculture, but ho had done more than any other Minister for Education in the direction of encouraging agricultural classes. *tn speaking of the work of the Liberal Party he felt assured in saying that they had a lino record of progressive and humanitarian legislation. He was sure the present Administration could produce a record better than any previous Administration. • The present Administration had put many good measures on -the Statute Book, and the Opposition bc- . came so fond of these measures that they came to claim the credit for them. When the Old Ago Pensions Act was before the House, Messrs Allen, Bollard, Buchahan, Homes, Lang and Massey voted against it. Mr Fowlds then quoted some of tlie speeches of members of the Opposition against Old Age pensions. As to advances to settlers, Mr Massey objected to the measure in Parliament, but had since accepted the idea. Mr Massey had at first said he opCd the idea of advances to settlors use he objected to borrowing, Yet in 1894, the same year, he had voted for an Act which made provision for an expenditure of half a million pounds. People who wriggled in that fashion needed a good memory. In a recent speech of Mr F. M. B. Fisher it was stated that the cheap money scheme was a blot on the Liberal Government. In several places it had been stated that tiio opinions of the Government were divided. This was true, because in every progressive party there wore always those who desired to go forward faster than the others, Mr Yv r . C. Buchanan had said the presenting of tho Dreadnought was the right thing, but Mr Massey said tho thing had been done in the wrong way. Tc other ways, also, tho Opposition had displayed a division of opinion. Mr. Massey had always made a j oint of the freehold, but he (the speaker) had never seen Mr Massey with a party which did not include several leaseholders. . It would not sU'prise' • him if at some future time Mr Massey should claim to have always b. cn 'the friend of the single tux. In

Taranaki the people had always Minted money to. be spent to make reads and bridges. Mr Massey had made a very plain statement; to the effect that the money-lender should put the screw on. He had never heaid of a more unpatriotic speech Mr Massey had held up the speaker us n bogey as being the single tax member of' tho Ministry. Mr Fowl!.then quoted a passage from a speech by Mr Asquith, in which lie said that all single-Lt.xers desired to do was to put a tax yon tli<- unearned inclement of land. honking at the piesent conditions of things it could not be denied that it was the man without land, whether in town or country, who should have the say in the disposition of the land of the country. As a' matter of fact, those holding land wore paying tivo or three times as much as they would under single tax'. Mr Massey had spoken of figures being used by the speaker five or six years old, but that was not so, the figures used at Pukekohe being, the•'latest available. What had produced the crisis in Great Britain: 1 It was not taxes proposed so much as the proposal to tax .all the land. As to the dairy regulations, a speaker at a recent conference of tho Farmers’ Union had supported some system of supervision Despite all that had been said against the regulations, the farmers of the Dominion . were now waking Up to the necessity of supervision. If the, regulations had been carried out tire dairy industry would he in a much better position to-day. Because of the small tax proposed being discarded, the country had lost thousands of pounds; and the regulations had -been discarded merely because of the misrepresentation of the Opposition. At present tho Opposition seemed bent on tho idea that tho present Administration was a continuous government, and that the feeling of the country was for a more conservative government. As a matter of fact tho country was in favour of an even more Radical form of government. As to the charges of tho member for Stratford the evidence did not show' any fault on tho part of the Government. As to the Black Pamphlet: it was not suggested that tho Opposition party had anything to do with it. It was, however, alleged that the Opposition knew the pamphlet was to bo printed and took no action to stop its publication. Mr Alien recently had said that if Mr Massey had .desired to bo a member of the Government ho could have done so if ho would have consented to coalesce with tho Liberal Party to fight the Labour Party. He (Mr. Foivlds) asked if such a suggestion was believable. He thought iiot. Tho present Government had never felt the need to fight tho Labour Party. They would be more inclined to favour the Labour Party. The legislation of the Government had been progressive. without being revolutionary. Tho aim of the Government was to assure to the labourer the worth of his work. The death-rate among infants had been reduced greatly, and in future they would do more. In his opinion the Government of the Dominion had been carried on more honestly than at any other time. The policy of the Opposition was merely one of blank negation. When the time came for the people of Taranaki to record their votes he .hoped they M ould return members M'lio would stand up for tho good of the country as a whole. Mr. N. J. King, in moving a vote of thanks and confidence, said ho had no doubt that the words of the Minister would have a good deal of effect in the coming election. Mr. C. D. Solo seconded. Mr. Fqwlds, in reply, said lie Mas always glad to'meet his fellow-electors in any part of the Dominion, and

though ho had spoken strongly lit thougut lie had put,the position in its right light. ENTERTAINED AT SUFFER. AG RICULTURAL EDIT CATION. THE SCHOOL BUILDING. After the address at the Town Hall Mr. Fowlds was l entertained at supper at Mrs. Brown’s Rooms, members of public bodies being present. After tho dainty refreshments provided had been done full justice to, tho Chairman (Mr. C. D. Solej proposed the toast of the King, which was duly honoured. Mr. Solo then proposed tno toast of the guest of the evening. He said that he nad no doubt that on the following morning the from tho School Committee and the Education Board would bo able to convince the Minister of tho necessity of at once re-building the school, winch was not merely a local institution or moiety a District High School. Pupils came to it from all over Taranaki, and the teaching went as fur as umvemty U< The toast having been honoured, Mr. Fowlds replied, expressing thanks for the hearty reception of his toast. He said that since he had been Minister for Education nobody con Id say that he had ever allowed i.imsclt to be influenced by politics in the administration of his department. Ho had been unfairly criticised regarding agricultural education. 'The Government could easily waste many thousands ot pounds Jn making provision tor agricultural education, but before any more money was spent he would like to sec country people taking full advantage of the agricultural courses already provided in country schools. Unless farmers’ sons could bo got interested in the scientific study ot agriculture while they were at the primary or secondary schools there was little hope for the higher schools. A thing to bo kept in view was the cultivation in the minds of the children of a love of Nature, and the children should always bo reminded of tho necessity of going into agriculture scientifically. In the South Island they had Lincoln College, .and a finely equipped institution it was. But how many people could lio put through there ? Not many. Lincoln College should be used to teacli the teachers. It would be a great waste of money to try to duplicate this college in other parts of the country. An endeavour should bo made to get tho present teachers in primary schools to take a course at Lincoln College. To set np a large number of highly equipped agricultural colleges would bo a waste of money. It was a remarkable thing that tho districts from which there was the moot criticism of the present system of agricultural education were those in which least advantage was taken of the ■ teaching facilities at present provided. Much was being done in Wanganui in the matter of teaching agriculture, but the same could be done in every education district in the country. As to re-building the local school, he had often been abused for saying that some part of tho cost of school buildings should bo paid by local bodies. To his mind if this were done it would make tho local body more energetic in the protection of the property, and if a school were burnt down they would bo more anxious to find out who set it alight, and tho punishment of one culprit would act as a deterrent to others. However, the school had been burnt down, and he hoped tho conference on the following day would result in a scheme, for speedy re-building being fixed on. His duty as Minister for Education was to see that money was spent in the best manner for the whole of the coun--11 The Minister resumed his scat amidst applause, and the gathering dispersed shortly afterwards.

EDUCATIONAL MATTERS. A BUSY MORNING. This morning the Minister received a number of deputations dealing with educational matters. Bayfy Memorial. Mr. J. B. Hine, M.P.. introduced a deputation Consisting of Messrs. Skoghmd, Malone, and Cargill, in reference to tile Jiayly Memorial scholarship. Mr. Cargill said ho desired to express his thanks to the Department lor tiie help tney had given in regard to tlic scholarsnip. Ine Department had made a xiumner of suggestions which had been adopted, I and nad also carried out the examination. The scholarship was unique in New Zealand, and was commeud,al)le in that it made provision for the average boy—the boy who might not be extra brilliant as regards scholastic attainments. It was open to boys throughout the province, and had created groat interest among parents, and boys alike. There were always people who hung back to see how a thing was going to turn out, but the first time tne scnolarship was competed for there were fifty entrants, ft was contended that tiie scholarship did a great deal for education, and it provided an inducement to boys to improve themselves, because all had a chance of winning due to the athletic provision. Iho first idea of the Rugby Union was to hand the scholarship over to an .Education Board, but owing to the province being under two hoards this was found inadvisable. The money had been vested in trustees, and the Rugby Union had practically nothing to do with the scholarship beyond con trolling the athletic fconipotitors. It was desired that the Department might grant a subsidy on. any money raised. Money was still being collected and the collection would bo helped if those controlling it could assure contributors, and the amount would be subsidised. At the first athletic competition the best of spirit prevailed among the boys, who worked hard for the honour of their schools. I lie scholarship made it necessary for boys to keep in condition, and it was much appreciated in tiie country schools. In conclusion, Mr Cargill said that if the money raised Jnuj boon handed to a school committee, the Department would have had to give a subsidy on it, and if it bad been given to an Education Board the Board could have made a grant out of its funds.

I In; Minister said lie would consider tiie question, hut he did'not hold out much hope of success. Already there was a cry that there were too manv scholarships, but it might lie possible to re-cast the scheme and make provision for athletic competitions, as in this case. The Government had certainly no desire to increase the number of scholarships. „ However, he did not think the .scholarship would he much of a burden on the promokeeping on collecting until the desired capital has been gathered. . The Stratford Sohoel. Mr Hine then introduced a deputation consisting of members of the School 'Committee and Education Board, the Board’s chief inspector and architect, and Mr Tyrer (headmaster) being also present. Mr Mine said the Minister recognised Ihe good work done by the Stratford school, and ho (Mr Hino) was sure that in future

even hotter work would be done. Mr Wade, chairman of the Education Board, said the Board desired to have tho building ra-eroctcd as speedily as possible, and had prepared a pian which, in their opinion, was an economical one. They desired increased accommodation, but had proposed nothing extravagant. The Board desired that the new building he of brick. In this respect it had to be borne in mind that wood was getting scarce, that a warm building was necessary, and that it would bo out of danger of five. In the Board’s plan an assembly hall was provided for. This hall could now bo built at .a cost of £220, but if added later it would cost twice as much. it was necessary to have an assembly hall when it was desired to collect all the children together at one time, and it would also be of use in the wet weedier.

Mr Fowlds said he was exceedingly sorry that the question of re-building nad to bo considered, as the school was practically a now one. He had to express bis regret at the perfunctory manner in which the. lire had been inquired into. Ho thought Boards should communicate with the Department, witli a view to them being represented at file inquiries. It was a serious matter—there had boon too many fires in schools. If the Department. were represented at fire inquiries they might bo a bio to sheet homo the responsibility for the fire. Mr Wade said that previously lie had boon informed that all the Department wanted was to have an inquiry heid by the Board. Mr Fowlds said that where a school was burnt through a defective chimney the icsponsioility was on tho Board, as it showed fault in building tho chimney. The Department had no control over buildings—it merely made grants to Boards and expected them to see that good work was done for the money. Mr Solo said tho committee, had applied to the Coroner to hold an iuqury into the lire, because there had been previous fires at the school, but to date no reply had been received from the Coroner, on whom tho whole responsibility rested.

Mr. Fowlds said, regarding rebuilding, that tho Department looked on assembly halls as luxuries—desirable luxuries, but still luxuries. The Department had not got the length of making gr; r ';ts for assembly halls. In the Board’s plan the Department thought there was too much porch space. Mr. Fowlds then pioduced a plan prepared by the Department which no said would give .about- as much Jioor space as tlic Board’s plan. If rooms were divided by Jiang.-rs a fairly largo assembly hall could ho provided when desired. The Department had come to tho decision tnat heating by open fireplaces was out of date, and they recommended slow combustion stoves, which were more efficient and safer. As to the Jfaterial for tho building, his sympathies and those of tiro Department mont were in favour of brick, especially in the case of a school like Stratford’s, which would bo considered a finished school. When tho population increased no doubt tho High School pupils would bo separated from tho primary pupils, and a High School proper would ho provided. When there were over GSO primary pupils at tho school the Department would have to consider the matter of providing more schools. If it was at all possible the school would be re-built in brick. He did not like building brick schools in places where one could not be sure now the population would tend, but in Stratford it would be economical to build it in brick. He would lay the matter before Cabinet and let them know if the school could bo built in brick.

Cthsr Matters. Mr. Wade then approached the Minister on a number of other matters. Mr. Fowlds said the Department would provide half the cost (£3O) of flooring a room in the Technical School, the flooring to come out of tho burnt building. A similar promise was made in respect of the purchase of a school sit? at Douglas. Mr. Wade then brought up the matter of the Waihi School. Ho said the scliqol site was at present leased from natives. The Minister said the Department did not like leases. It would be better to take the land under the Public Works Act. Mr. Wade said ho would nut the matter before the Board. He further said that previously the teacher had to live at Waitara' and to walk backwards and forwards to Waihi, as accommodation could not be got in Waihi. Mr. Fowlds said it seemed a case in which a residence should lie erected. As to re-building, the Department considered the size asked" for by the Board too large. "• Mr Wado said the Board was of opinion that the population of Waihi would increase. It iiad previously been chiefly a native settlement, but now there were a large number of Europeans there. Mr Fowlds said that in various parts of tho country, including Taranaki, schools had been over-built—-they had boon large enough for an increase which had failed to’materialise. The Board had asked 9GO feet of space, but tho Department thought 720 feet 'was sufficient. This would provide space for seventy children—about twice as many as attended tho school at present. Mr Cargill drew the Minister’s attention to the fact that the Board had received no reply from the Department regarding an anomaly in staffing painted out by tho Board. The Minister said he was not sure tho .Department admitted there was any anomaly, but ho would look into tiie question.