ELECTING A SCHOOL COMMITTEE.

Timaru Herald, Volume XC, Issue 13291, 21 May 1907, Page 7

ELECTING A SCHOOL COMMITTEE.

HOW NOT TO DO IT. The Auckland Education Board had to deal with reports regarding some queei proceedings at the election of a schoo.. eomniitt&u for Awanui.

A " collect" telegram was sent to Hit Board by " Buss-ell, chairman of meeting,' stating that the householders' meeting hac. been held in regular manner, but was stormy owing to some people objecting tc natives voting. The telegram went on It n-ive the full list of those elected, 'ihei the board received five pages of foolscap, tt' the effect that when the. meeting was helo it was unanimously resolved that no Maoris from Waimanone be allowed to vote at tin meeting for the tlection of the -cliainnai of the meeting. This was done for tlit reason that tho Maoris had no childrei attending Awanui or Mangatete- schools and they had already voted for their owr. School Committee and were resident mile away on the gvmfields. In the face o*these facts Mr Russell had token charge of the meeting and ruled that the should vote, and upon this "the whole oi the Mangatete and Awanui householders, about 60, refused to take part in the. election, with the exception of nine Europear householders from outlying districts. Mi Russell then held : a Maori election for tin two European schools. One of those declared elected by Mr Russell was a Maori living 70 miles away, a member of the native School .Committee at Te Kao, whe does not understand Englidi. Another member was in a similar position as re garded knowledge of English. Mr Russell then called a meeting of the new committee to elect officers, but only himseli and the two' Maoris sat down, the rest of the committea refusing to act, as a protest against the manner in which th< election had been conducted. Then, the European householders helcl a meeting and elected seven committeemen. Six Maori,* from Te Kao (70 miles away) voted, an? seven Maoris from Kolcoura. (40 milt'J away) voted. A petition asking the Board to declare the first committee election void, was also sent in.

On the otherside Mr Russell reported that the meeting of householders at Awanui was very rough, as\a. certain section of those present objected to Maoris voting Ha believed "these people held a meeting after us, -'and formed a coaimittea of iheii own and allowed the Maoris from their own side of the township to vote with tli-eni."

Both sides madu statements which represented "the other fellows" as quite undesirable personages oh a school committer.

Mr C. J. Parr moved,."That tlx?! election bn set aside as void, and that a new election ba held." The whole proceedings seemed such a travesty upon ths Act t.ha + theßoarcl could not possibly uphold either election. The motion was carried.