BACK-BLOCKS EDUCATION AND “FRILLS”

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 19865, 13 June 1927, Page 6

BACK-BLOCKS EDUCATION AND “FRILLS”

Sir, —I have to thank you for the generous treatment accorded my plea for more consideration for the rudimentary education of our backblocks children, as against the financing and fostering of the sidelines of instruction. The infrequency of backblocks mails (just another detail of many disadvantages of life in the back country, though very awkward and distressing at times, no 'doubt) is my excuse for being so long in replying to the criticism of my comments by Mr C. S. Brown. As president of the Primary Schools’ Musical Association, Mr Brown has made a most excellent case (from his point of view) —the desirability of putting on a working basis the scheme of the Education Department to further musical instruction in the primary schools. So much is admissable. But your correspondent has entirely failed to convince me or any of your numerous country readers or sympathetic townspeople —that if the scheme is to grow under Departmental patronage, it will not be at the expense of the uneducated country chib ■dren. JSlr Brown is worried that the Education Department, when under the administration of its former chief, conceived and gave birth to a weakling babe, to wit—a proposal to further musical matters in the schools by setting up a new branch, with a Director for Musical Education —in other words, an educational “music frill.” Apart from securing a musical nurse for the babe, at a salary of a ‘mere” £l5OO per annum, the Department failed to provide for its maintenance. Nothing was voted from an already insufficiently filled purse to feed, clothe and generally develop the infant. Meanwhile the paternal parent of this starveling child skipped across “the herring pond” to London, leaving his charges (tho musical babe among them) to the present Minister of Education, who, so far, has done nothing more than frown upon his young foster nurseling, and eye it with anything but favour. Ho has been man enough to inform its relations, friends and sympathisers that he has much more interesting children in his mind’s eye; his legitimate charges the thriving, vigorous, (though unfortunately uneducated) thousands of country children of tho back country. Far is it from my thoughts to strangle this musical babe and other babes of its own kin. I would like to hear its musical trills, so be the country could afford to provide the finance to rear it. But, sir, this infant is. with others of its sort, a most expensive and premature child. I trust that, as education finances are at present so inefficient to moot the genuine demands made upon them, this babe will lie in a state of coma till the children of the country districts arc all able to read, write, sum. and generally eqip themselves with sufficient learning to fit them to compete in the strife for decent living, and that it will not be resuscitated until such time as these children, together with their parents, have decent lines of communication between their homes and the outside country. So far as the Schools’ Musical Association is concerned, I merely selected it ns a timely example of the insidious demands that arc perpetually springing up for assistance to foster this, that, and the other unproductive anachronism at the expense of the public exchequer, and to the detriment of the legitimate development of the country districts, which are, after all, the lifeblood of our Dominion. Every £lOOO diverted, or, otherwise annually side-tracked, from the Education, Public Works or other developmental Departmental funds, for expenditure on unessentials, would educate 50 to 60 of our mentally starving country children, annually, or would give some few of them decent roads to their holdings. Look at the immense sums that the Education Department is spending annually throughout tho Dominion in providing, staffing, and equipping teachers’ training colleges and other such institutions; and with what nett result? Thousands of the young women of this country are receiving highly specialised education for a set purpose, and before the country has a chance to reap the benefit of this back-breaking strain on its finances. 90 per cent, of those young ladies are absorbed into the domestic life of the community. The country still goes on educating and training female teachers; the country child still pines for the rudiments of education. Mr Brown is desirous that the local Member of Parliament should he influenced to come to a right decision of what should bo done with the Education Department’s funds (that being, boiled down, tho essence of the latter portion of his letter). Even since Mr Veitch set his mind to the political woolsack, I have found him sedulously taking up tho attitude that the best way to help the towns in all their interests is to make the countrv districts progress. I recently had the pleasure of listening to Mr Veitch addressing tho backblocks counties’ representatives who mot in Wanganui to discuss their problems. His remarks left no doubts of his being seized-of the fact that deep waters are in front of the settlers in the backblocks districts in New Zealand, and that everything

that can reasonably bo done to assist them to remain on their holdings should be done. I would be surprised, indeed pained, to find that he could bo influenced to give a more attentive ear to the urgings of those desirous of furthering the sidelights of the peoples’ welfare, than to the cry! cry! cry! of the little ones of the hinterland* for education and roads—their barest dues. As stated at the commencement of this letter, the infrequency of the mail services makes it difficult to carry on this correspondence. Again thanking you for your consideration, and for the interest your journal takes from time to time in the backblocks’ difficulties. L. T. JONES. Paparangi, June 8.