The New Zealand Tablet. Fiat Justitia. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 1880. A WARNING.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume VII, Issue 396, 12 November 1880, Page 13

The New Zealand Tablet. Fiat Justitia. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 1880. A WARNING.

EOPLE in England, as will be seen from the following extract from the European Mail of the 10th September, are beginning to realise the true import of School Boards and godless education. Under the heading "The Cost oi the School Board," the Mail says — The British public do not seem yet to have grasped the full force of the proposition that the increase of the school board system means everywhere increase of taxation. Some localities suffering from the bitterness of recent experience are becoming restless under the infliction ; but those still free from an education rate scarcely realise the burden they have escaped from. According to the latest return, there was, on August 31, 1879, a grand total of 3,710,000 children ou the school register. Of these children, 953,000 are educated in Board Schools at an average annual cost of £2 2s. 3d. ; and no less than 2,757,000 are educated in voluntary schools at a cost of no less than £1 14s. 6d. per head. Board School education is in itself consequently far more expensive, and without being, as the inspectors' reports have shown again and again, any more efficient than that given in voluntary schools. Moreover, the contributions to, and endowments of, voluntary schools reach a sum of not less than £884,000 per annum, thus saving the British taxpayer to that extent, or in other word*, supplying gratuitously the sole education of as many as 512,000 children. Voluntary schools are thus shown to be a great national benefit, and they who maintain them are great benefactors to the public.

But even this does not put the real facts of the case in all their strength. For it must be borne in mind that whereas the School Boards levy rates in addition to the Government subsidy, the only aid given from public funds to voluntary schools amounts to merely 15s. ll^d. per head. Consequently, whilst Board Schools cost the public more than tyro pounds sterling per head, in addition to the enormous expense of palatial buildings, the schools that educate 2,75/,000 children cost the public only 15s. ll£d. per head. Here in New Zealand the folly and injustice of our godless and free system is more striking and alraming to the tax payer. In England voluntary effort is encouraged, and has consequently saved the public the large sum of two millions and a half last year. Here voluntary effort is discouraged, made penal, and actually loathed by our public authorities. And the inevitable consequence is, great additional and crushing taxation. To please the godless, there are godless schools in England, and strange to say, the public is made to almost entirely support them, whilst the schools of the people are only poorly aided. This is, indeed, an extraordinary state of things ; but what is it compared with our outrageous legislation on the school question ? In England, well-to-do people pay for the education of their own children, and cortribute handsomely besides to the erection and maintenance of voluntary schools ; but in New Zealand all this is reversed. Rich and well-to-do people placidly button their breeches pockets and calmly look on, whilst the poor and those who have no children, and the Catholics, pay the greater portion of the expense of the education of these children. It is quite evident that the portion of the old English stock which has been transplanted to New Zealand has deteriorated a good deal. The manliness and sense of justice and fair play so characteiistic of the race seem to be disappearing under these new skies.

Every qualm of conscience, however, has not yet utterly vanished. That the patrons of exclusively godless education are uneasy under the charge of injustice so frequently hurled against them, is proved from the persistent efforts they make to persuade the public that no injustice is done, for example,

to Catholics whom they compel to pay two school taxes for their own one. Their argumenl is this, and a funny one it is — Catholics they say only pay taxes like all other citizens, and consequently it is no more unjust to them to support godless schools out of the general revenue, than it is to pay the police, &c, from the same source. But, gently, Catholics have not a police force of their own, whilst they have schools of their own ; and it is certainly monstrously unjust to compel them to pay for what is of no use to them, for what they do not want, for what they know is injurious to the whole community, particularly as they have better schools and at their own expense, than the Government offers them with the poison of godlessness superadded.

His Lordship the Bishop of the Diocese will hold a visitation at Lawrence on Sunday, the 19th inst.

On Tuesday lsst, His Lordship the Bishop of the Diocese laid the foundation of the Church of St. Thomas Aquinas at Wintou. ; the Bishop was assisted by the Rev. T. Higgins and the Eev. T. Kehoe, pastor of the district. Notwithstanding the wet and boisterous weather that prevailed during the morning, the ceremony was largely attended by the Catholics of the surrounding country. The collection amounted to £40. At the conclusion of the ceremony the Bishop delivered an address, of which we take the following report from the correspondent of the Southland Times : — " My good people, it affords me very great pleasure to meet you on such an occasion. Looking at the past, and bearing in mind the present, you have much cause for gratitude to the great God. You have now an opportunity to build a church. This opportunity, owing to the circumstances of the district and the people, has not occurred before. As I know it is the desire of your paster that immediately on its completion no one shall have any claim on this building but Almighty God, I ask you to come forward now liberally with your contributions, and I have no doubt you will not be wanting in your duty to yourselves, your families, and to God. This church is dedicated to God through St. Thomas Aquinas, whom our Holy Father has recently appointed patron of all colleges and institutions of learning, and whose writingsjand virtues have been of such benefit to the Church. This being the first building we have had the opportunity of consecrating since it pleased our Holy Father and Vicar of Christ to appoint him, we also wish to show by this that we are grateful to our Holy Father for all he has done and is doing for holy religion ; and we invoke his assistance and blessing on all who contribute now, and who worship here in future. As I trust soon to have another opportunity of addressing you on the purposes of the church at greater length, and in a more comfortable way, I will not detain you now, but, in reply to the many complimentary things you have said in regard to me in your address, while I thank you much, I am not sure I am deserving of the same, and, further, as it is the first opportunity I have had of meeting you, I cannot allow it to pass without thanking you for the liberal contributions made in the interests of religion whenever I have asked them from you ; and I must testify to the favourable impression left on the minds of all whom I have sent to you."

His Lordship the Bishop of the Diocese held a visitation at Invercargill on Sunday last. The Bishop celebrated Mass at 8 a.m., at which there was a large number of communicants. At 11 a.m. the Rev. T. Higgins, pastor of the district, acted as celebrant, and the Bishop preached ; the music of Mozart's 12th Mass was beautifully rendered by the choir, which does infinite credit to the gentlemen and ladies who take part in it. At 3 p.m. his lordship administered the Sacrament of Confirmation to 78 recipients, delivering suitable addresses preparatory to the ceremony, and on its conclusion. In the evening Vespers and Benediction of the Most Holy Sacrament were celebrated, at which the Bishop again preached. We clip the following from the report given by our contemporary the Morning Herald of the proceedings at the Anglican Diocesan Synod of Dunedin, on Wednesday last :—": — " The Vtn. Archdeacon Edwards said that the only body who taught religion daily was the Roman Catholics, greatly to their honour ; ana it was greatly to the disgrace of the Church of England people in Danedin that they had not religion taught in the day schools. The object of Mr. M'Carthy's paper was to ascertain whether it was advisable to try and induce the Legislature to admit the reading of the Bible in day schools. He (Archdeacon Edwards) thought they might obtain what was commonly called payment by results if they joined the Roman Catholics, and urged that. He firmly believed that they could have gained that object, but they had held aloof from the Roman Catholics as if they believed that their Roman Catholic brethren had had some sinister object in view. He said that they should gain nothing until they did join with the Roman Catholics, and then they should get the payment by results. The Univers reports the conversion from Protestantism, at Zurich, of Dr. Lutterkorth, the wealthy proprietor of paper mills near Tilsit, and the author of several instructive works for children.

Under the heading of "A Calumny Eefuted," the Dunediu Evening Star of Tuesday last had the following : — A little more than a week ago we published an article entitled " Purgatory in a Convent," which not unnaturally excited the ire of our contemporary the Tablet. It is scarcely necessary for us to say that in republishing it we had no desire whatever to pander to " depraved appetites," no more than had such papers as the London Telegraph, European Mail Age, and plenty of others we could name, which found a place for it in their columns. It turns out that the narrative was a fabrication ; and we give the same prominence to the refutation as to the original statement : — " The Monde contains a lengthy refutation of a charge of cruelty said to have been perpetrated by the Sisters of Charity upoA an inmate of their convent at Pontremoli. The calumny, which ha? been repeated by several European and colonial newspapers, waa traced to the Pontremoli correspondent of the Epoca, who circulated it on the authority of a woman of bad chaiacter, who, being a patient in the hospital, was displeased with the Sisters because they lad not allowed her certain liberties forbidden by the regulations. Upon the publication of the false report the Government authorities took the affair in hand and appointed a Court of Inquiry, consisting of the local Delegate of Public Safety, the Procurator of the King, and the Judge of Instruction. The young girl was examined by two medical men, who report as follows :— ' The undersigned, after having minutely examined the young girl said to have been tortured by burning, makes to the Judge of Instruction the following declaration—' I do not find tte least mark of burning nor any trace whatever of violence. —Dr. J. Bondenaire.' ' The undersigned, Chief Surgeon of the State Hospital of Pontremoli, declares that on the 4th of July last, at the request of the Delegate of Public Safety, and the President of the Commission of Charity, he has examined Angiolina, of the Asile des Innocents, aged seventeen years (the supposed victim), and the result of my examination is that no part of her body bears the least mark of burns either of recent or ancient date.— Dr. P. Pelhni.' The veracity of this report in the Monde is certified to by P. Saraflno Midani, Archbishop of Pontremoli, who adds that 'the young girl in question is at present a servant in the employ of a farmer on the estate of Captain Ruggero Rinaldi, in the village of Cerretoli, a short distance from Pontremoli, where any person msy see and interrogate her. 1 "

The Univers says that Madam Talazar and her daughter, who had gone over to Protestantism during the Spanish revolution, have just made their solemn abjuration at Granada, before the ecclesiastical authority of the Diocese.

The Dominican Sisters acknowledge the receipt towards their art-union of remittances as follows :— Per Miss Harrop, Lawrence : Mr. J, Goggin, Taranaki ; Mrs. Gallagher, Naseby.

A company is now proposed to be established for the purpose of opening up what, if once successfully opened, cannot fail to be a source of additional prosperity to the colony. We allude to tl c magnificent marble quarries which exist at Caswell Sound. The marble contained in these quarries is of a quality that cannot be sur. passed in any part of the world, and whether for ordinary building purposes, or even the requirements of the most delicate statuary, it will furnish all that can possibly be needed. There are, in addition, several other valuable mineral deposits that will at the same time be worked. The development of these fine resources is a most important matter for the country generally, and commends itself, not only to all those who desire a sure and profitable investment for their capital, but to all men of a genuine patriotic spirit, and who sincerely desire to see New Zealand advance on the road to wealth that undoubtedly lies before her, however for the present short-sighted politicians may have encumbered her path, or alarmist, and other interested or nervous people agreed to speak to her prejudice. We shall be glad to find that the shares in this most important and promising company are eagerly inquired for, and we have no doubt that such roust be the case if the public are fully made aware of the interests now at stake, and the great advantage offered to them.

We have received a pamphlet entitled " Quotations," issued by Mr. E. Tucker, Nelson, and which contains the sentiments and opinions of many writers of eminence on many topics.

The report of the Directors of the Commercial Property and Finance Company, to be found in another column, will strongly aid in reassuring our readers as to the sound financial condition of the colony. Tbe company betrays a most flourishing condition, its profits for the past year showing a large increase on any that had hitherto been realised, while a promise is given that its prosperity will continue to advance. The directors have laid before their shareholders a most satisfactory report, and one that speaks volumes to the investing public in favour of the company in question.

Messrs. Burton Bros., the well-known photographers, Princeg street, Dunedin, are now executing their admirable carte-de-visite portraits at an unprecedentedly low scale of charges.