Southern Colleges Deny Sharp Practice

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 637, 13 April 1929, Page 9

Southern Colleges Deny Sharp Practice

UNIVERSITY GRANTS LETTER TO SIR GEO. FOWLDS Press Association WELLINGTON, To-day. A direct contradiction of the allegations contained in the report of a Carnegie grant to the Southern University colieges was given by the Hon. J. G. Srnith, chairman of the Canterbury College Board of Governors, this evening. “My board,” said Mr. Smith, has most strictly and honourably carried out the arrangements entered into, and all our communications have been through the University Office .at Wellington. As Professor Hunter says, I believ© there has been a private letter from Mr. John Studholme to a gentleman in Christchurch, but the Board of Governors has nothing to do with it and' stands by the arrangements made.” . In conclusion the Canterbury chairman stated that he was sending a telegram to Sir George Fowlds, giving him an assurance that the Canterbury Board had acted in that way in order to remove any misapprehension existing in his mind. Mr. H. D. Acland, member and exchairman of the board of governoio of Canterbury College, said that he had no official information. Mr. John Studholme, who left New Zealand some time ago on a trip to America. and England, had written to him on the subject, but he (Mr. Acland) had no information that any grant had been made. He certainly did not desire to quarrel with any of the other colleges over the matter. DUNEDIN INDIGNANT NEWS A COMPLETE SURPRISE Press Association DUNEDIN, Friday. That there had been any underhand action on the part of the Otago University was indignantly denied by Mr. W. J. Morrell, vice-chancellor of the university, to-day. Within the last few weeks, he said, the Otago Council received information from a private source that the Carnegie Corporation was making, or contemplated making a grant of £ 1,500 a year to the Otago University district for rural extension work, and £SOO a year to the Canterbury district for the Workers’ Educational Association work. That information came as a complete surprise to the council. On receiving notice of a further meeting of representatives in Wellington the Otago Council thought it only right to communicate to the committee confidentially the information which had reached it. It was at the same time stated that that information was entirely unofficial, and that the reported decision of the Carnegie Corporation was in no way due to any action of the Otago Council. It was further stated that the council was strongly in favour of the proposal to ask for £2.000 for each university district. Apparently the information confidentially given to the committee had in some way got abroad and the position of the Otago University in the matter had been entirely misunderstood, and no doubt, unintentionally misrepresented.