TOWN SCHOOLS COMMITTEE.

Colonist, Volume LII, Issue 12772, 20 April 1910, Page 1

TOWN SCHOOLS COMMITTEE.

A meeting of the Town Schools Con mifctee -was held on Monday eveninj • •■■ Present: The Rev J. H. MacKenz] (chairman), Messrs Vercoe, H. Atmoi J. Nock, W. J. Moffatt, H. S. Tunn • j cliffe, and W. J. Bray, Mr W .Thomi J son was.excuspd. Correspondence was read and cor sidered; The Town Olerk intimated that th l> Committee's request for a portion c Milton's Acre as a site for the Have; Road school could not be entertained. Twelve cases of scarlet fever wer reported. ' The members of the Comimttee wer ■ unanimously of opinion that mor :■ stringent* efforts should be made t • j cope with the epidemic, which wa j seriously affecting the school atten • dance. : The Chairman stated that he fca< granted permission for the use of th< { Brook street and -Hampden stree j schools for meetings in connectioi • with the Mayoral election. — The chair j man's action was endorsed." j The reports of head teachers show - ed that the percentage at the boys school was 89.7, and at the girls • : school 86.8. Scarlet fever and whoop Ing. cough had greatly interfered witi ,- : the' attendance, i The usual list containing names oi arregular attendants at school was • ■ rreceived, and the Committee decided I ' send 1 aiotjces to the parents con- • «cerned. ..-•■. !;■•'. The draft of the report to be pre- • sented at the annual .meeting cf i householders was reaH and adopted.I Accounts amounting to £6 14s wert j! passed for payment. Mr Moffatt said chat as it was the last meeting, of the Committee, he de•sired to express his satisfaction at the manner in which the chairman had •carried out the duties of his. office. In fact, ho thought that with an executive officer like Mr MacEenzie, a committee was hardly necessary,- and lie would be quite satisfied if everyi thing was left to Mr MacKenzie.. He I moved that the Committee place on record its appreciation of the services ', of the Rev. J. H. MacKenzie in the I cause of education in the city. ; Mr Vercoe seconded the motion, and : said the chairman had the Education '. Act at his fingers ends, and had been •• able to give the Committee much ad- .': vice find information. They would go 'i a long way before they found another jj so well fitted as Mr MacKenzie for ■j the position. . ; ." i Mr Atmore said that no one could be ; in touch with the chairman without j recognising that he was an enthusiast ; in regard to education. He had great ! admiration for Mr MacKenzie geueral- ■ ly, and so far as the past twelve ; months were concerned he heartily endorsed the motion. He agreed with Mr Moffatt that the Committee had ' practically nothing to do. A few small matters had to be attended to by the Committee, but the business was monotonous. j The motion was then put and carried l unanimously. i Mr MacKenzie thanked the members •of the Committee for their vote of J appreciation of his small services in i the cause of education. He realised i that the-.scope of the Committee was very limited — there was little they could do, but the Committee could keep things going. The Committee was mo/c in touch with the actual teaching than the Board. The Board had treated -the Committee and its i opinions very fairly, and this year a I Eot of money had been received from the Board. ; The main work of the Committee was to see that children got as much eduoation as -their capacity allowed, and the State providi ed, and the Committee had done good ! work in that direction. The Committee then adjourned. j A. honeymoon couple, upon arriving in Ballarat the other evening, had an ! unpleasant* experience. The husband i' put his hand in his pocket to obtain a roll of notes," when ho discovered that it was not there. An urgent j. telegram.. .was sent to the station in the northern district from which the couple had started upon their journey, and much relief came with the reply that a porter had picked up the notes on the railway platform. I . ■