EDUCATION.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 11594, 12 January 1916, Page 5

EDUCATION.

«. »- ... POSITION OF ROMAN CATHOLICS ADDRESS BY FATHER GRAHAM. At to-day's meeting of the Catholic Federation," the Key Father Graham gave an address on the position of Catholics m regard to the secondary education in the Dominion. He Baid that the position was not understood by the citizens of the Dominion, or even* by Roman Catholics. The Ca-

tholic boy sent to a school entirely supported b'v Catholics had to pay for his education, buy books, and find manyother necessaries found in other schools

by tiie State. If at the end of his primary education he had to go on to hinlier schools, his parents liad_.to fiud the fees to provide him with an education in accordance with, his religious beliefs, and at the same time tho parents were paying an equal share of the taxation towards the cost of nonCatholic education. On the other hand,

the non-Catholic boy was favoured by the erection of magnificent schools at the exoense of the State, and had before him free education right to th© university.

The Catholic attitude, Father Grar ham said, was that education and re-

ligion could nob be separated, and; ' when parents delegated to others the duty of teaching their children, they should c-xpow the children to no dangers and sec that those undertaking the instruction should be able to give religious instruction. It was by no means the duty of the State to "say that Catholic children should be tvsnb to schools that were utterly unsuitable to the religious convictions even of # a minority. 4s it was, the Gait-liolics ,; were saving the State an expenditure of £62,000, and yet they were- sh~i out • from participation in the benefits for which they "contributed. There hacE been no amelioration of these hard: conditions, and on the other hand the difficulties had been increased by reo6nti regulations, and while scholarships had ... been made available _ for students at' private schools (especially to meet the case of Roman Catholic jschools), tho education authorities declined to allow , the-scholarships to be taken at ap- x proved Catholic secondary schools, oa the ground that they were not endowed and constitutionally equivar •■ lent' to State secondary schoolsThere had been exceptions in tho caseof Christchurch, Greymouth and in ■■ isolated cases at St Patrick's College, but the position was unstable, depending on. the interpretation of an. ambiguously worded law which might bo determined against Roman Catholics, and the new Board of Education had recently decided that no scholarships' would be tenable at private schools..

It was right that the concession, small as it was, should not be allowed to slip away without a strong effort to retainit. In another direction it had been. ascertained that the leaving certificates, previously obtained bj Catholic students, were now to be withdrawn, ' Roman Catholics were not allowed-to obtain the advantage of free places if they were to be taken out in Catholic institutions. Father Graham said 3 even with the same degree of secular education. Dr Kennedy, in his evidence before the Education Commission, had stated that 90' per cent of the boys at St) Patrick's College were holders' of proficiency certificates, and would he entitled to free education there if the law was amended- As it was, the boy whose parents desired him to go on to higher schools was obliged to find fees, Roman Catholics could not accept the ' secular system offered, and they asked for simple justice. As they shared the burdens they should share the adyanages. They did not question the right of the Government inspection, or that the Government should see that a certain standard of secular, education should be attained, but if Catholics did the work of the Government they should receive their share of the money contributed, equally with others, for tlw work so done. The whole difficulty was that thirty-eight years ago the Government, to settle differences between certain religious sects, had decided to bring in a free secular and compulsory system, but so far from its , being ,a neutral system it was founded on religious bigotry. That,the system was a failure was evidenced by the fact that the Catholic body had refused the advantages offered, and had elected to spend thousands' of pounds annually in providing a system that was acceptable to them. Other bodies were taking the same- attitude, as was'evidenced iu the recent demand for the introduction of religious teaching to the present schools.

He would be the last to believe that the New Zealander was a bigot, said Father Graham, or that finding an injustice ho would not do his best to remedy it. The difficulty was only one' of niajung the injustice widely known, and in. tin's respect the* Catholic Federation had -a- great opportunity publicly and privately for educating the public to the justico of the claim.' He believed that it would be a long and bitter fight, but ho believed that they would triumph in the end. (Applause.)