Correspondence.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXIV, Issue 17, 21 August 1896, Page 28

Correspondence.

[We are not responsible for the opinions expressed by our Oorreipodentt.] .*. BLACK'S SCHOOL COMMITTEE ELECTION. TO THE BDITOB K.Z. TABLET. Sib,— Will you kindly allow mo spacs to place a few " facts " before your readers] regarding the above election, and point ont the arbitrary manner in which the Otago Education Board have acted towards us. The management of the Blacks school has for the past throe years been in tbe hands of Protestants notwithstanding that half of the children attending the school are Catholics. Last year there wai one Catholic representative on the committee, and the very first meeting he attended several members of the committee spoke strongly against our Rev Father going to the [school to teach his children catechism. Now, Sir, with tbe exception of onr representative, Mr Harrington, all tb« members had been members of the previous committee, and although onr Rev Fathar had been teaching catechism in school for eight months prior to Mr Harrington's election, nothing had been said about the matter and no objection raised to his going, in fact members with one expection denied that they knew be went to tha school. Djes it not appear passing strange that oar Rev F*taer could have been going for eight months unknown to them, and how incongruous it seem* that such a revelation should be discovered immediately Mr Harring on took his seat on the committee. A certain prominent civil servant took a leading part in objecting to Father S.ieehan having the vs 3 of th« school and declared he would not rest until the liev Father was forbidden the use of it. This same civil servant is a leading light in the Presbyterian Church, but atrange|to cay he h»s never protested jagainst the Presbyterians having the free use of the school for Sundays for their services, in fact he maintains that it is even downright oppression to ask them to letve it clean for school next day. This tame civil servant, however ', was the first to let tho matter drop. Previous to our children receiving cathecbism in the school Father Sheehan taught them in the chapel on Wednesdays, bat then they hsd to leive school half an bonr before the other scholar?, and tbe head teacher, having explained to Father Sheehan that this interfered with the school work, asked him as a favour to oome to the school during tbe lunch hour and give cathechism. This Father Sheehan readily agreed to do and when asked by members of tha committee if be (the head teacher) knew who bad given Father Sheehan permission for the use of tbe school, be at once admitted that he bad asked Father Sbeeban and was very grateful to him for consenting to oome as there was then no interruption to school work. But " a straw will show the way the wind blows," One other instance :— When electing members for the Education Board three members of the committee wished to give a vote to Mr J. J. Ramsay and were quite agreeable to allow tbe other four members (who were opposed to Mr Rtmsay) to select tbe two other candidates for the Board. But no. The clique of four wonld not Bgree to such an arrangement, but would have the matter decided by a vote, the same civil servant stating " there yet might be another Moa Creak cise." Nee iless to say the result of the voting did not inclnde Mr Ramsay. Was it any wonder, then, that when a new committee was to be elected much more interest was manifested and an endeavour made to equalise tbe power of the committee? At tbe election on 29 Lh April, 15 candidates were nominated and the voting resulted in the following candidates being deolared duly elected by tbe chairman of the meeting :— Dr Ward (30), Messrs J. Wilson (30), P. Harrington (29"), 0. J. Gallagher (29), N. Peacock (29), J. Pitches (26), Joseph Hay (23), the two latter being respectively chairman and secretary of the previous committee. The new committee held several meetings, when to their surprise and indigna* tion the Education Board declared the election invalid. And on what

grounds? "That the chairmmof the householders' meeting had refused to certify to the legality of the proceedings as many had TOtad on no qualification whatever." The chairman of the meeting was Mr Thomas Spain, a man resident in the distriot for the past twenty years and to whom every voter was well known, and who had alio declared the candidate " duly elected " no objection having been raised at the meeting. Why had Mr Spain stultified himself? The explanation is simple. Mr Spain bad been voted to the chair by Mr J. Pitches whi wat thoroughly dissatisfied with the result of the election, and as Mr Spain was hims9l( was one of the rejected candidates, the only way to secure revenge was to certify to the illegality of the election. But what can be'said of the action of the Otago Education Board? The committee were allowed to hold meetings, transact .business for a month and were never even informed that an objection had been lodged against them. Then limply on the word of the obairman who was a rejected candidate it declared the election " void." Why .did not the Board forward a copy of the " objections " to the elected committee before coming to such a decision? Why has the correspondence never been published ? Did no other parson besides Mr Spain write re the election ?

However, rather than create trouble the new committee agreed to the decision of the Board and a new election took place on the 15th Jane. Before the second election took place, however, certain of the dissatisfied clique caused the report to be circulated that the Catholics wanted the sole control of the school. Considering that there were only two Catholics on the committee, the rumour— yon can well understand— was only (laughed at by the majority of householders, and instead of strengthening the clique, turned many of their supporters from them. The school-house was crowded on the 15th Jane and Mr Pitches proposed that Mr Spain should again take the chair. Mr Harrington moved an amendment, that Dr Ward (a gentleman thoroughly respected by the whole committee) take the chair, and on a show of hands being taken, five were held up for Mr Spain and over a hundred for Dr Ward. Dr Ward took the chair bat this did not suit Mr Pitches and hia clique, and a disgraceful scene then ensued, Mr Pitches and Mr Spain being prominent in the disturbance, the former going so far as to call the doctor " a hypocrite " and use other " choice " words well suited for a member of a school committee. A qaestion haying been asked, tha chairman read a section of the Education Act, but was again repsatedly interrupted by Mr Bpain and others crying : " Begin again, doctor.

Seven names of candidates bad been sent to Mr Harrington, chairman of the committee which had been declared " invalid," but last there 'might be some informality in connection therewith, these candidates were nominated at the meeting 1 Daring the time of receiving nominations there was no disturbance and although the doctor several times asked for nooiinatior s and waited fully a quarter of an honr no o'her nominations were forthcoming and he therefore declared the seven, duly elec el. The candidates were Messrs Harrington, Gallagher, Peacock, Wilson, Watson, Stafford and the obairman.

Again objections were sent to tha Education Board, and again did the Board treat the committee in the manner previously described, even when the chairman of the melting bad certified to the legality of the proceedings. At its last meeting the Board appointed Dr Ward and Mr John Pitches as commissioners in place of a committee, thereby imagining tnat such an appointment will allay ill-feeling. Such a decision on the part of the Board is^manifestly unfair, for now we (the Catholics) have " no voica in the management of the school although half the scholars are our children." Does the Otago Education Board think that we are to allow it to usurp our just privileges without entering a strong protest against its arbitary decision ? As we have to pay our just share of taxes to support this education surely we can expect to have some small control with the management.

In Dr Ward we have thorough confidence, " but we distinctly state that unless the Board remove Mr Pitches as a commissioner we will withdraw our children from the school, as we have no confidence whatever in him." If the Otago Education Board mean to prevent any Roman Catholic from being a member of a school committee (especially when they have been twice elected by the householders of the district) let it hand us over the capitation grant and we will support schoo's of our own. — I am, etc, C. J. Gallaghkb. Ophir.