Intercolonial

New Zealand Tablet, 25 January 1917, Page 47

Intercolonial

a His _ Grace the Most Rev. Dr. Duhig, Coadjutor-' Archbishop of: Brisbane, at the (annual distribution of prizes at St. Joseph s College, Nudgee, referred to the generosity of the. Queensland Government, in the matter of scholarships. His Grace admitted that the present system of scholarship-giving was not without its defects. At. present any child who obtained 50 per cent, in the specified examination was granted a scholarship. Personally, he thought that this standard was too' low, and . was , a P to deceive children. A child of average ability could pass this examination, and might afterwards suffer bitter disappointment because he was not brilliant enough to win an extension scholarship at the secondary school. - It was a grand thing, however, to have a. generous scholarship system, for by it the clever child of poor parents was driven a chance in life. t. His Grace the Archbishop of Melbourne, the Most Kcv. Dr. Carr presided at the annual Synod held in St. Patrick s Cathedral recently. The annual report of the schools of the archdiocese, prepared by the Inspector (Captain C. F. O Driscoll) was distributed to the • l y ' The -. report states, inter alia, that there were in the archdiocese of Melbourne 118 Catholic primary schools Of these 104 were examined. The number f CherS - 111 th f e P rimai T schools was 565, comprised 0048 religious, 16 secular, and 53 visiting. The pupils taught were 29 238. Colleges and high Schools totalled 3 c having 4751 students and pupils, making a grand total of pupils attending 155 Catholic schools in the archdiocese at September 30, 1916, of 33,989 The total number of pupils attending Catholic ’schools in all Victoria at the same date was 43,913. Four new schools were erected during the year, costing .£10,005, while £4 160 was spent in additions and repairs, making a total expenditure of £14,170. There are other schools in contemplation for the New Year. During the year the Government of Victoria offered 43 scholarships tor competition to the registered schools, and 38 of these—nearly 90 per cent.—scholarships were awarded to pupils from registered Catholic schools. Cast year 337 candidates from the archdiocesan schools obtained their merit certificate. r< Ihe new President of the Queensland Arbitration Court, his Honor Judge McCawley, is one of the brilliant young men of the Queensland Public Service. He is a native of Toowoomba, and it was in that town that he received his education at St. Patrick’s Catholic School. His schooldays were before the advent of the Christian Brothers in his native town, and the school, which was under the direct control of the parish priest, turned out some young men who have made good. The most brilliant of them (says the Sydney t n■eman) is the newly appointed Judge. He left school when he was 14 years of age, and entered the Government service at the age of 17. In 1910 he was appointed Crown Solicitor, and since August, 1915, he has held the dual positions of Crown Solicitor and Under Secretary for Justice. Mr. McCawley accompanied the premier and Attorney-General (Hon. T. J. Ryan) to England last year, and instructed him in connection villi the Eastern cases, in which the Crown was successful after a long litigation. Mr. McCawley has taken an active interest in literary and debating societies ’ work. He was for many years a member of the Brisbane Catholic Young Men’s Society, many of the members of which'are now holding high and distinguished positions. He is a prominent member of the Toowong parish. He now has the unique distinction ot being the youngest Judge in the State, being 35 years of age. He is president of the new Court, and holds the same rank as a Supreme Court Judge, and the salary has been unofficially stated as £2OOO per annum. His Honor Judge McCawley has received numerous congratulations on his well-merited promotion. As evidence of his merit, Governments of different political views have recognised his services during Ins career.; - . 6