The Star. FRIDAY, MARCH 10, 1922. THE ELMWOOD AFFAIR.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16679, 10 March 1922, Page 6

The Star. FRIDAY, MARCH 10, 1922. THE ELMWOOD AFFAIR.

The most that be said in favour of members of the Elmwood School Committee in their handling of the. re/cent expulsion is that they have acknowledged the right of tho public to know what decision they arrived at in the matter. This decision lias been conveyed to tho newspapers in the briefest terms, and it looks as if the committee hoped that the matter would be hushed up, and quietly ended. Mr W. Jones, chairman of the committee, when interviewed by a “ Star” representative eight days' ago said that he would present a report on the t-xpulsion case at the meeting of the committee on Monday week. In the meantime he would say nothing for publication. Instead of waiting until Monday week, when newspaper representatives as well as householders would have been in attendance at the usual meeting, the committee adroitly, and without notice, helld a special meeting on Wednesday evening, and whitewashed the head master and chairman. Tt is not stated in the report which has been supplied by the honorary secretary, who is a member of the committee, whether all of the members were present. but motions were carried unanimously supporting the head master’s action in the i recent expulsion and endorsing the chairman’s action. This action consisted in publicly expelling a nine-year-old girl before the whole school during the ceremony of Saluting the Flag in the school ground. Tho punishment of a public expulsion might possibly be iustified in the case of a senior pupil with a particularly had record, but we are not at all sure that there is any authority in the Act for a public expulsion, and in any case such punishment of a nine-year-old girl is cruel and unjustifiable. Members of the committee have endorsed evei-y detail of the discreditable affair, and ft would be very interesting to the public to read the reports by the chairman and head master on which the committee’s decision was based. The “ Star ” lias received many letters from householders condemning the action of the head master and chairman. but not one letter in support of ►heir action. We fancy that the an Tiual meeting of householders will not be so complaisant as the members of the committee.