CRANKS.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XX, Issue 24, 1 April 1892, Page 18

CRANKS.

c^'fcr jjSSjj-Sp HERE are not a few cranks in the world— men TMnm^fo,, wno believe in nothing, and claim on this very jwttiKM/ account to be philosophers, and to have a right to trample on the principles and consciences of all men. The position is, of course, absurd, »nd the *<Qf|?^j preposterousness of it is all the greater from the •Vk* fact that these would-be philosophers know, in reality, very little, and hardly anything correctly. This community is afflicted with some such philosophers, amongst whom are to be found principally the enemies of justice to Catholics on the education question. These cranks, or, as they love to style themselves, free thinkers and philosophers, are greatly opposed to giving Catholics their own money for their own schools. In. the estimation of these cranks or philosophers, to give Catholics their own money is to spend public funds for sectarian purposes, as if Catholics were in no sense a part of the public. The intellect and learning of these cranks are great, are they not ? But whilst their philosophy and learning revolt ftom an act of justice ard sound policy, they evince an insatiable thirst and an amazing capacity for falsehood. Their intellect is so keen, and their love of philosophy so ardent, that they swallow without even a grimace, any amount of lies and twaddle, particularly if they happen to be anti-Catholic and antiChristian, and they are so wonderfully constituted that they at once assimilate these lies and twaddle, taking them into their system so absolutely that nothing can save them from, through their instrumentality, becoming the laughing stocks of men of information. But the funniest part of the th'ng is that these cranks wish to pose as the advocates of education, — Advocates of education 1 If, indeed, by the inculcation of lies is meant education, then they are advrcates of education, and very zealous advocates. But there their advocacy begins and ends. Personally they never do anything for education, they never build a school, never teach in one unless for a very large pecuniary consideration, and never busy themselves about schools, except when some mischief is to be done to Catholics or Christians. Catholics who deserve, in justice, equity, and sound policy, aid for their schools from the public funds to which they contribute, must net dare to expect justice, if these gentry can help it. These gentry almost go into fits at the bare idea of their sharing in the least in public funds, so far as their Echools are concerned. This would be the public supporting sectarian education, which amounts to this that a man shall be deprived of his own money simply because he happensto be a Catholic or a Christian. Well, then, we make an offer which is fair. Will the cranks accept ? Let Parliament reduce the custom dues to the extent of four hundred thousand pounds, which is about the amount paid from the consolidated revenue for schools, and then enact a law compelling all denominations to provide schools for their own children. Let them, if you will, be compelled to tax themselves for sufficient schools, sufficient both in numbers and efficiency. Catholics will accept this, and thus save the crank from paying for sectarian schools. Then would appear on which side is the love for education, the spirit of sacrifice for education. We will undertake to say Catholics will not be found last in the race. But when Parliamentary support and the annual grant are withdrawn from schools, where shall the crank be found ? We shall see what we shall see. Let these zealous advocates of schools, tyrants and calumniators of Catholics, show their zeal, generosity, and disinterestedness in emulating Catholics and erecting sucb schools as they have in every part of the Colony, and we shall feel disposed to put somo faith in their pretences and claims. Meantime, we have no doubt but that they will continue to denounce Catholics as the enemies of education, and to teach in the public schools notorious lies about them, and this, in part, at the expense of the men they so shamelessly calumniate. The Hon Mr Reeves, by some unaccountable calamity, Minister of Education, and Mr Allan, the coryphocus of godless education in these parts, both young, inexperienced gentlemen, just out of their teens, cannot endure the idea of an act of justice to Catholic schools, but they possess capacity enough to swallow any amount of plunder from Catholics to enable them to teach public-school children that the Pope sells indulgences — that is, that Bishop Moran and all other Catholic ecclesiastics in New Zealand sell indulgences, for ,

what the Pope teaches and does, they teach, and in a measure do, and what the Pope teaches to-day and does, is just what the Church has always taught and done in accordance with circumstances. These, and such-like men, cannot endure the idea of justice to Catholics, but can, with the greatest pleasure, misappropriate our money to teach the public calumnies concerning us, to teach the public school-children of the Colony to loathe and detest their Catholic fellow-subjects. This is the policy and practice of the cranks of to-day.