EXTRACTS FROM HANSARD.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1856, 1 June 1888, Page 4

EXTRACTS FROM HANSARD.

EDUCATIONAL PRAKOHISK BHIi. In reply to the arguments against his Bill Major Steward Bald :— I have to vhank the House for the courtesy with whioh honorable members have received the persistent efforts of a private moiuber to remedy certain defects which, m the opinion of a large number of members of this House and of the people of this country, eilat with reference to the machinery of our Education Act. I feel that there has been some orltioUm offered to the 8111 to which I ought to make Bom-j reference. The honorable member for Selwyn stated that he was not present when I commenced to spoak, and that therefore he did not quite understand what reasons I had for proposing tbafc thoie eleotors for the General Assembly resident m the district should have a right to vote m School Cbnimlttee elections, as well as the parents and guardians of children attending the school. My reason was this : That, as the sohool system is maintained out of the taxation of the whole colony, all those persons contributing to that taxation ocght to have a voice m the management of the sohools. and, a fortiori, that those who have children m the toaools should have a right to vote. Then, the honorable gentleman said that it had not been pointed out how the present system of cumulative voting had worked badly. Knowing that the honorable member for the Dunstan had an important Bill to bring forward. I did not explain this as fnlly as I might otherwise have done ; bob If the honorable gentleman will tarn to « Hansard " he will find debates for the last six cessions m thts House and m another place la which 4t is conclusively shown that the cumulative voting has not achieved what it was designed to achieve. It has not Beoured the representation of minorities, beoause the minority In whose supposed interests it wasspeolally designed have declined almost entirely to avail themselves of it. Tnere may be exceptions, but generally, I may say, the Roman Catholics have not availed themselves of the cumulative vote at all. But this has happened, and it Is happening constantly, hence the complaint Bgainat the oumulatlve vote : that individuals who would be utterly unacceptable to the oommon-aense and judgment of the householders manage to get together five or six of their "chums" who oast seven votes eaoh for them t»nd they are eleoted, to the dismay of the householders who are not aware of what 1b going on. The honorable gentleman suggested there might be a possibility of exercising a dual vote. I suppose what he means is thW : that it is possible a householder who votes tinder bis privilege as c eleotor of the General Assembly In one school distriot might, if he had time, cross over the boundary and vote m another district under his privilege as father of a child attending eohool tbere. That might be possibe ; but that could happen jaet as easily under the present Act. Still, if It is desirable to provide a remedy, I should not object, and a few words might be added to clause 6 which would limit the vote of any elector to one sohool district. The honorable member for Dunedin Eeast oriticleed the Bill very favorably ; but, with regard to olausd 5, he said that a difficulty mi&ht arise m working it — that is, where Borne of the old School Committees might remain m office for another year. "He said it would not do to compel the old Committees to remain m office : but It did not, perhaps occur to him— and I would point out that this Is an answer to his objection — that at the election next April, it this Bill pass, any •>ohool Committeeman accpting office will accept it with the contingency of possibly having to remain m office for two yeara. Then, the honorable ruerabor for (Javersham is very properly jealous of any amendmeat of the ed do it ion system, and he goes, on, more suo, to say that he ob jeots to. legislation for the removal of "fanciful 11 drawbacks I submit that the adjective Is wholly misapplied, and that those drawbaoks cannot be oalled " fanciful" which have been ooroplalnbd of by hundredsand thoneandsof householder and parents Then he says, [f this is so It is the duty of the Minister of Education to propose the Bill which shall bring the remedy. My answer to that is that it is impossible for any Ministry sitting on those benches to take up every question that the public may desire to have taken up, and, to long as there is a portion of the time of this Parliament se 1 . apart for private members, I tubmit that tt is th'^ duty of private members to assist cnt Government Jn brn^log forward *uob measures as the public Oill for., Wnen tho honorable genilemin Bay*. '«Thin proceed l by way of « o «on, and not by V I reply by pointing to. the clock, and, calling bis attention to that fata! half-past five, of which we had an example this afternoon whioh ahould-convinoe him how utterly impotable it is to brlno any subject forward except fn the tangible fcrmofa Bill. I earnestly believe that the reform I now ask for is desirable and useful, and I think that after the number of years' service I havo bow done m this Legislature I am not cut of place m sticking to the plough to which I. have put my ! hand m the hope that I shall aiinee* » » cWTlng It to the end of the furrow. %£ honorable mernhar for Rokltika &v \™ School Committees do good \yf /k T enijlseiy agree with, him, but, w my " b-H does not propose to do away w ith Committees, hip. urgument is of uo effeoS I ben he deprecates, throwing OQ the Comralttevß farther expense ; bat if b? ■will read tho r A\\ ho will i»q chat not oro sixpanco of addlllunal expenae »m b\> thrown on tho Committees. I shall be ready to accept any reaaaaabJo end f:senn:y nmendmonts m CoiouiHiteo, and t have now only to thaak honorable gentlemen for the kind attention they have given to me, aad' for the general support the Bils hao obtained.

Celibaoy of the clergy is a familiar dootrine (says a Home paper) both for banning and for blessing. But the celibacy of the " school inarm " is a heresy which as yet only exists m the pious dream of sohool managers and Bchool boards, by whom marriage is regarded as an even more ruthless enemy than death. No sooner do they put girls through their long and costly period of training than eora-a ehrewd suitor swoops down upon the fair g\rl graduate, and matrimony gains what e»Jnoation loaes. It is not surprising that. an. attempt should have been made m Ijovror Austria to legislate m favor of enJoinine celibacy among the female school teaoherß The Bill was rejeoted after a humorous debate That there is a good deal to be said m its favor is shown by the preferonesh shown for nuns as ecbool teaohera m many, countries, ft Pliny says that tb c Gaula nronted the art of making Boap, andjiiat the Komana acquired it from the Gauls, and introduced it into r Italy. Soap factories ara known to have existed m Spain m the eighth century m France about the thirteenth century, and m Great Britain about the fourteenth century. The different Bind of laughs they have— Dudea : Ha ! Ha ! Farmers : Ho ! flo I Teamsters : Haw 1 Haw 1 Balloonists : Hi ! Hi 1 Feed-dealers : Hay 1 Hay 1 Women - Hel He!