The New Zealand Tablet. Fiat Justitia. FRIDAY, APRIL 8, 1881. NOT EXTRAORDINARY, BT7T SHAMELESS.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume VIII, Issue 417, 8 April 1881, Page 13

Th e New Zealand Tablet. Fiat Justitia. FRIDAY, APRIL 8, 1881. NOT EXTRAORDINARY, BT7T SHAMELESS.

§T appears from returns lately collected by the Bible in Schools Association that the overwhelming majority of parents in Otago are in favour of Bible reading in Government schools ; but there does not appear to be any inclination, on their part to pay for this Bible reading. Such payment, it is expected, will be made by the public at large. Considering the state of public affairs as they are, and have been in this Province for many years, we fail to discover in this cool demand on the public purse anything extraordinary. The public has, indeed, been wonderfully generous to parents here and throughout New Zealand; so much so, indeed, that these have now come to that pitch of demoralization which impels them to ask, without feeling the least shame, that the public should not only pay for the secular education of their children, but also for their religious instruction. This is shameless, is it not? Such, at all events, is our view of the situation. In this shameless demand no regard is paid to the rights of others. A moment's consideration will make this clear. Bible reading in schools as it is now demanded, means the exclusion of all Catholic teachers and all Catholic pupils from these schools, tor the erection and support of which Catholics are nevertheless compelled to pay. It is no answer to say that practically this is a matter of no importance, inasmuch as neither Catholic teachers nor pupils are to be found in these schools, except in very exceptional cases. If Catholics must pay for the erection of schools and support of public education, such a system should be adopted as would permit them to share in their benefits. As matters are at present Catholics are placed at an enormous disadvantage in being compelled to pay for the godless education of other people's children, whilst giving at their own sole expense a Christian education to their own children. But should the Bible-reading-in-school people be permitted to carry their views into operation, the grievances of Catholics will be aggravated enormously. It so happens, unfortunately, that in country districts, where Catholic schools are not within reach of Catholic children, these are driven by sheer necessity to frequent Government schools in order to learn to read, write and cast-up figures. This is a necessity which all Catholics deplore, and to which some subject themselves through sheer stress of circumstances. But what will they say or do when, should the Bible-reading-in-school people carry their point, their children shall be compelled to listen to the Bible read and explained in different senses,all anti-Catholic, by successive, school teachers ? We shall be told, of course, that a conscience clause is demanded. Our answer is — an answer founded on our experience of Government schools with a conscience clause for live and twenty years — that practically such a clause is in most cases a myth. As it has been in the past, so we are convinced it will be in the futare. Under one pretext or another Catholic children will be driven to attend the Bible class. Of this we entertain no doubt whatever. Let these non-Catholic parents who are so anxious for the religious education of their children imitate the example

of Catholics and provide at their own expense Christian schools for them. But no ; this is not what they aim at ; this is the very thing- they will not do ; this is just the thing they have never done. These parents have always been encouraged and permitted to draw on the public purse for the education of their children, and these are the very people who, whilst profiting by the education vote to which Catholics largely contribute, strenuously refuse to allow Catholics any share in the expenditure of their own money, except on terms which are detrimental to their best interests and opposed to their principles. This is a tyranny and an injustice of great magnitude. And the majority in New Zealand is not ashamed of this state of things ! No, indeed ; nor do we think said majority — so long as it remains a majority — "will ever be ashamed of any state of things that will save their bawbees.