CHRISTIAN BROTHERS' SCHOOLS, NORTH RICHMOND STREET, DUBLIN.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXI, Issue 32, 8 December 1893, Page 15

CHRISTIAN BROTHERS' SCHOOLS, NORTH RICHMOND STREET, DUBLIN.

(Weekly Freeman^ October 21.)

On Wednesday bis Grace the Archbishop of Dublin distributed the prizes to the pupils who bad won distinctions at the Intermediate examinations. There was an exceedingly large attendance of the clergy and laity. His Grace, on entering the Examination Hal), was loudly cheered.

The Rev Brother Swan, the president of the schools, who was loudly applauded, welcomed his Grace and those who had favoured them with their presence, and he pointed oat with pride that the Christian Brothers' schools had won the highest distinctions at the recent Intermediate Examinations, which were not at all confined to the junior grades, and those who passed outstripped all competitors and represented almost 90 per cent, of those who entered. It was most satisfactory that the Christian Brothers' boys had won the first prize in the competition with public schools. In fact, daring the past year, they had had a series of successes, and he would be wanting if he did not express his feeling of gratitude to those whose zeal and devotion bad so well overcome the difficulties that so often attended the education of youth,

His Grace, who was received with loud and prolonged cheering by the pupils and visitors, expressed the very deep pleasure which it always gave him to attend that annual distribution, where they had so many proofs of the growing success of those great schools (applause). He bad again to perform what he regarded as bis boundeu duty, namely, to put forward a claim for simple justice for the Christian Brothers (applause). It was a claim that over and over again had been recognised by liberal-minded Protest antß as well as Catholics, and the justice of which had been acknowledged so far back as twenty-three years ago by the Fowis Commission (applause). Over and above all that their claim had been repeatedly pressed in Parliament by their Irish representatives, and had been endorsed by their local representative bodies. Within the last twelve months the State-nominated Board ia Marlborough street passed a resolution which for tbe first time put the official seal to the justice of the claim of the Christian Brothers to a fair share in the educational grants of the country (applause). Referring to the rule by which the presence of a statuo of the Blessed Virgin or tho fymbol of Christianity was treated jujt as being on the s^mj level a* if they were Hindoo idol=, hia Grace said that the responsibility for the perpetuation of this opprobrious state of thiags no lunger lay upjn the National Bo^rd, but upon the present Ministry, who vetoed tb s riouest efEjrt of itae National Bduc-itioa Board to obtain tbe tmall concession which was demanJed. In answer to calumnies that had been circulated as to him be wished to say that be had over and over again gone out of bis way to emphasise two points— first, that he made no claim oa the part of Catholics that he did not willingly agree should be unreservedly given to Protestants (hear, hear), and, secondly, that he made ni claim on tha part of Catholicß,except in so far that that theeoncession of that claim involved noderimantto the religion of their Protestant fellow-suuutrymtin (applause). He could not h i>p be!i97iag that the end of this unhappy controversy was near at band, and, in conclusion, be paid an eloquent tribute to tbe discipline, zeal, and ability of the Christian Brothers, who bad paced tbeir schools in tbe proud posi ion they occupied that day (applause ). ____^