UNITED WE STAND.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXI, Issue 26, 27 October 1893, Page 16

UNITED WE STAND.

; ~»r _ __ fiScjfeaSfc HE secularists are terribly pat out by the present \mmsSS? attitude of the Catholic body, and the decided union, everywhere visible, of clergy and laity. ?>p||jS^k In each diocese there have been episcopal proJgS/itf''' nouncements, and these authoritative utterances show clearly that the bishops are wonderfully in «J|Sa»*' accord ; that there is in New Zealand, on the "^ question of Cathol c education, unmistakeable ; unity of hierarchy, priests, and people. Dr Grimes has more i than once of late given expression to his strong views on the

necessity of complete registration of qualified persons, and of thorough unity of action in view of the coming struggle. We feel sure that the loyal Catholics of the City of the Plains, and of the diocese of Christchurch generally, knowing that division always means disaster, will follow his Lordship's wise advice to the very letter. In Wellington the Vicar-General, in the absence of the Archbishop, has addressed a timely appeal to the Catholic electors, who, organised and registered to a man and a w 'man, will give a telling response on the election day. Dr Luck, in Auckland, some months ago, palpably demonstrated the extreme injustice of secularists, and the fear of Education Boards that Government inspection of Catholic schools would interfere with the prestige of godless schools. We rejoiced at the time at the stand made by his Lordship, and now with much pleasure indeed publish the following pronouncement, which was circulated at the various churches on last Sunday, and has since been wired throughout the Colony. It will be read with profit by all New Zealand Catholics :—: — " In view," says Bishop Luck, " of the importance of the coming general elections, not only on account of the great issues at stake, but also by reason of the extended franchise, I deem it my duty to offer you » few words of earnest advice. Ido not pose as a political leader. I have no aptitude for such a task, and I regret this all the more, because owing to the actual low level of political morality amongst many of the representatives of the people, and debased ambition that is rampant amongst so many unprincipled aspirants for place and power, a political leader worthy of the respect and confidence of the Catholic body is greatly needed. It seems to me that the Catholics of Kew Zealand, especially in the provincial district of Auckland, have not hitherto exercised the power and influence they undoubtedly command. We form a seventh part of the entire population, and we certainly could make our influence felt ; but because we do not as a body figure in the mercantile community there are many who underrate our capability, and as a matter of fact we are most unjustly dealt with, especially in the matter of education. It is high time we should prove that our strength is an element to be reckoned with by those who aspire to represent the people in the Legislature. Hitherto, no member of the House of Representatives returned by any northern constituency has taken the Catholic vote into serious account, and it goes without saying that our rights and interests, so far at least as the vital question of education is concerned, have always been opposed, or at least ignored. Let not thi3 be so in future. Get every Catholic man and woman to register, and give their vote to those only who distinctly pledge themselves to recognise and uphold our just claim — that the Education Act be amended so as to relieve us from the injustice of the Act as it is now in force. We have the sympathy and goodwill of many of our fellow colonists. Let us be true to ourselves, and remember that united we stand, divided we fall. Let me caution you against the evil influence of a bigoted and unfair Press. Editors are but men, aud sometimes men of very fallacious views or crooked ends. The daily papers are, of course, political organs that grind the tune to which they are set. 'lake no heed of their occasional commendations of Catholic men and claims, and treat with manly scorn their too frequent abuse or sneers, especially at this period of election campaign. Let us bear in mind that these utterances are valueless because their articles are not the result of conscientious principle, or even of intellectual conviction, but emanate from other sources too vile or ignoble to be followed up. In this matter I cannot do better than refer you to recent utterances of the veteran champion of the Catholic cause in this Colony — the Right Rev Dr Morax, Bishop of Dunedin — in whose outspoken and manly advice I entirely concur." It must be, and we have reason to know is, a great congolation to the veteran Bishop of Dunedin that, while secular journals rabidly assail him, he has fighting by his side all whose opinions on the education of Catholic youth are worthy of consideration. By means of the interview published in the New Zealand Tablet, a means has been found to enable Dr Mohan, unable through serious illness to address his people, to give expression to his views at a critical time. Catholics have rejoiced and resolved to profit by the wise counsel. Rabid secular journals have raged and altered the tune of sympathy with Dr Moran into vilification of the daring Catholic bishop. Wishing to have a few more words at the present juncture, we again approached his Lordship with the following result :—: —

My Lord, — The interview which you were so good as to lately give the New Zealand Tablet has been reported and commented on by a number of newspapers throughout the Colony, and seems to require further development. There ars sonic points of interest on the education question which were not touched by your Lordship at the time, and on which it is desired that you should express an opinion. When there is question of obtaining justice for Catholic schools it is well known that an apology is not needed for approaching you. If you feel sufficiently well and at liberty to answer a few more questions your words will be welcomed by our readers, and indeed by all Catholic colonists. Bishop JMoran : I shall be very happy to answer any questions you raav put to me, and as I am physically unable to speak publicly or to preach, I rather rejoice that an opportunity is afforded me of letting my people know my opinions on all the phases of the education question. N.Z. Tablet : Does your Lordship think that secularists really desire that Catholic children should frequent public schools ? Secondly, do you think that the Government and Parliament of the country intend, or ever intended, to make any provision for the education of Catholic children in any schools whatsoever ? Bishop Moran : I hold very strong opinions on those two points. In the first place lam convinced that secularists do not desire Catholic children to frequent the public schools ; and in the second place I am also convinced that the Parliament and Government of the country intend, and always intended, so far as they were concerned, that Catholic children shouM be left to grow up in ignorance or apostatise. N.Z. Tablet : These are strong opinions. Would your Lordship have any objection to state your reasons for holding them ? Bishop Moran : I have no objection whatever to state my reasons. In the first place, with regard to secularists. If secularists really desired Catholic children to frequent the public schools they would have supplied sufficient accommodation for them in these schools should they go there, and they would also have seen that a fair number of Catholic teachers, in order to inspire Catholics with confidence, should be employed in these schools. Now, as to accommodation, it is a notorious fact that the present buildings of the public schools have not sufficient accommodation for even the children attending them, and that the several boards of the country have petitioned the Government for no less a sum than £135,000 to provide this necessary accommodation. As many of these schools have only ten square feet for each child, and many others only eight square feet, it is evident that no provision whatever has either been made, or is contemplated, should Catholic children elect to go to the Government schools, and it is also notorious that Catholic candidates for situations as teachers in those schools, have been rejected on the sole ground of their being Catholics. The conduct of secularists reminds me of the conduct of the men who passed the Penal Laws against the Irish Catholics. They persecuted these Catholics on the ostensible ground that they wished to make them Protestants, but they dreaded nothing so much as such a consummation ; for had the Catholics unhappily apostatised, the persecutors would have been deprived of an excuse for plundering them — the only object they ever really had in view. So, here, secularists pretend it is their desire to have Catholics in the public schools, but there is nothing they dread so much, as they are unwilling to have 12,000 or 14,000 bright and clever Catholic children to compete with their darlings, and thus lessen the chances of these darlings monopolising the loaves and fishes. With regard to the Parliament and Government, the case stands thus : When the present Education Act was passed, there were some thousands of Catholic children attending Catholic schools, and the Government and members of Parliament knew well the principles of Catholics here and throughout the world ; yet they made no provision for the education of Catholic children. That they did not contemplate their becoming pupils of the public schools is evident from the fact that they made no provision to have Catholic children in these schools. Their annual vote in the first year, and every year since, was made on the supposition that Catholic children frequenting denominational schools would not be found in the public schools, and consequently so far as Parliament and Government were concerned thousands of Catholic children were abandoned to ignorance unless they apostatised, and became secularists, a thing which they dreaded, as it would lessen the amount of plunder.

Even now the Government takes no thought of the Catholic children. Were the Catholic children to become this year pupils of the public schools, the Government would have to provide an additional education grant of £50,000, a sum which it is neither able nor willing to provide. The conduct of Parliament and Government ever since the inception of the godless system has been not only tyrannical and unjust in the extreme, but has been shockingly shabby. They have saved money oa the adhe ence of Catholics to principle, whilst compelling Catholics to pay for the free and godlejs education of other people's children. Their conduct also is an imitation of the conduct of the framers of the penal laws in Ireland. There is nothing they desire less than that Catholic children should frequent the public schools and thus deprive them of an opportunity of compelling their parents to contribute money for other people's nse. N. Z. Tablet : Our clever contemporary, the Dunedin Evening Star has during the last few weeks filled his col amns with the usual pre-election abuse of the Cathol c Church, her hierarchy, and clergy. On Saturday last a farrago of vilification was inserted from the American correspondent who, on the testimony of Archbishop Kiordan, of San Francisco, stands a convicted and shameless liar. In this precious document, for which the Star is directly responsible, occurs the following remarkable sentence : " Our hope is that another generation of Catholic children taught in the public schools will turn the tide against Home fur ever:' Is not this letting the cat out of the bag with a vengeance ? Bishop Moran : Yes, it is. It shows that the object of gecalarism is not the spread of education but the destruction of the Catholic Church ; nay, more, the destruction of Christianity in every form. The veracious correspondent of the Dunedin Evening Star might have let the cat still further out of the bag and have said, " Our hope is that another generation of Christian children taught in the public schools will turn the tide against Christianity for ever." N.Z. Tablet : An attempt is being made by some political opponents to make capital out of your recent utterance on the conduct of the labour party in New Zealand, and to spread abroad the idea that you are opposed in your views on the labour question to the workingman and the workingman's Pope, Leo XIII. Do you wish to make any observation on this matter ?

Bishop Moray : Yes. I am not the enemy of the workingman or the organisation of workingmen. On the contrary, I am, and always have been, in sympathy with both, provided justice be not interfered with, and I accept with my whole heart the teaching of Leo XIII. on the " Condition of Labour"; but I am opposed to the labour organisation as it is conducted in New Zealand, because here this organisation, whilst demanding justice for its own members, is loud in its determination to perpetuate injustice on the Catholics of the country. My indignation has been aroused by its policy to inflict injustice, not only on the Catholic body, but even on its own Catholic members. 'I hey have taken up the absurd fad of Sir Robert IStout that aid to the Catholic schools will destroy the present education system. And they have made this foolishness their own, and proclaimed it as if it were the very perfection of political wisdom, thinking thereby they were earning for themselves the character of wise men and deep politicians.