The Chutha Leader. BALCLUTHA: FRIDAY, DEC. 6, 1878.

Clutha Leader, Volume V, Issue 230, 6 December 1878, Page 5

The Chutha Leader. BALCLUTHA: FRIDAY, DEC. 6, 1878.

Dr. Moran and his alter ego, the New Zealand -Tablet, are for ever harping on the wrongs inflicted on the Roman Catholic community in New Zealand, through the present Education Act. Scarcely does the Doctor niakej* public utterance without denouncing tliat^Act, and disclaiming against it, because it does' not allow public money to be handed over to him and his clergy to enable them to train up the young of their communion as good Roman Catholics, well grounded in the faith of the Church of Rome. And never does a number of the Tablet appear without one or more articles in a like strain, in which appear constantly the most violent charges against the Act, and our present education system as being tyrannical, intolerant, and subversive of every principle of religious liberty and religious equality. We thoroughly believe that those frequent diatribes of Dr Moran and his henchman, the editor of the Tablet, affect intelligent Roman Catholics among tis as much as water does a duck's back, None of this class can fail to see that the Education Act places all religious bodies on exactly the same footing, giving preference to none. What it provides for is secular education during four hours of the day. It leaves the other twenty hours of the day to be disposed of as parents, and others interested in the education of our youth, may thiuk beat for the interests of our protege's. With the consent of the parents, Dr Moran and his inferior clergy may, themselves, or with the help of others, have the Roman Catholic youth of the country instructed in their religious tenets during as many of those vacant hours as they may arrange for. No one puts any hindrance in the way of their doing this ; and having such ample opportunity for giving religions instruction, sensible Roman Catholics cannot fail to see that the cry of tyranny and intolerance, because the State will not supply moneyfor the support of denominational Roman Catholic schools, is a very absurdity. There are not, however, a few. Roman Catholics of the baser sort — i.e., those who do not, or who dare not, think for themselves, submitting themselves entirely to what the Bishop or the priest says, and who are led to look upon present educational arrangements as doing great injustice to them. They cannot tell where the .. injustice lies. They cannot show where they are dealt with otherwise than are other denominations. They speak but parrot fashion. They can only say, The Bishop thinks so ; the Tablet says so ; Father So-and-So tells us that, as Roman Catholics, we should have our own schools, our own teachers, and the Government should help us to pay for both, and if it does not do so it robs us of our rights, interferes with the rights of conscience, and is guilty of grievous intolerance, and you know we must believe the priests. So long as there are unthinking, priest-ridden Roman Catholics among us, there will be those through whom Roman Catholic Bishops and Priests will keep up an agitation with the view in the long run, if not speedily, of getting public money to disseminate and support their faith, through the inducement of — in name — maintaining a school system, but in reality ef maintaining and extending their church. Till this be secured, there will be no end of charges of tyranny, intolerance, and intei-ference with .the rights of conscience and religious freedom — words, all of them, sadly misapplied, as they come from the lips of Roman Catholics, lay or clerical, in Protestant countries, where they have the fullest liberty, not only to exercise their faith, but to propagate it to their heart's content, building churches and schools, and multiplying their agencies to any extent they have a mind. Amid such freedom it is the very height of absurdity to hear Bishop Moran and the Tablet week after week bemoaning and lamenting the despotism beneath which they lie, and the intolerance of which they are the victims, because they are not allowed to draw from the public purse the wherewith they may pay their teachers to train up the youth of their flock as good Roman Catholics. Were other denominations treated differently,* and the Government gave to them grants from the public purse in. aid o£ their schools to enable them to bring up the young as good Anglican, or good Presbyterian, or good Wesleyans, then would Dr Moran and the Tablet have some reason for their persistent jeremiads, and .unceasing demonstration of the tyranny under which they represent themselves as suffering. We look upon their jeremiads and denunciations as pure impertinences, as the ni ost thorough misapplication and abuse "of language -especially

when we contrast the peiiect equality of Protestant and Roman Catholics in this land in the matters of religion and education,, and political rights, where, Protestantism, is in the ascendancy, with the state of things existing where the Church of Rome is in the ascendancy. By the last mail we learn that the Spanish clergy have got so alarmed at the progress which Protestantism is making in Spain, chiefly as the result of the circulation of the Bible, that the Cardinal Archbishop of Toledo, and the Archbishop of Saragossa have applied to the Pope, and have obtained from him a brief, prohibiting'under pain of excommunication every Spaniard to give either food or shelter to any Protestant missionary. A still more severe excommunication is threatened sigainsfc any person who shall possess, whether for sale or his own private use, any Protestant book whatsoever. Nor is this all. Leo XIII. , the present Pope, has addressed to King Alphonso an autograph letter, begging him to use every effort of the civil power to banish Protestant missionaries, and , to confiscate their churches, schools, &c. While the head of his church is displaying such intolerance, and denying to Spanish Protestants the very exercise of their religion, and denying to them schools supported by themselves, it does seem to be the height of impertinence in Dr Moran (having the fullest liberty to open churches and schools anywhere in the land) crying but persecution because the Government of this land will not supply to him public money wherewith to support the latter, and thereby maintain the former. Let Roman Catholics in Otago compare the doings of the. Pope towards the Protestants of Spain , ; ' with the full liberty accorded to themselves : here, and their co-religionists throughout tlie British Empire, and wherever Protestantism rules, and say where it is that intolerance and tyranny prevail. Through whom does religious inequality arise 1 How would they like if they were treated by the Go-^ vernment as the Pope would have the Spanish Monarch treat his Protestant subjects ? This conduct of the Pope is more than sufficient to open their ejLesto the hollowness of the outcry which conies so frequently from the lips of Dr Moran and the pages of the Tablet. Let either or both give to this bigotted and intolerant effusion of the Pope its proper name, and its proper description, and then we shall be prepared to listen to any complaints they may have to make of any interference they may receive either in the exercise of their religion, or in the instituting of schools. If they are not prepared openly to condemn this action of their head, the words liberty, conscience, and religious equality are but dishonoured when they come from the lij>s of the one and the pages of the other.

The question of salary to the Chairman of the County Council Avas incidentally referred to bj- several members at the meeting on Friday last. Mr Mosley intimated his intention of opposing the salaiy paid last year being again voted. His reason was, that he had been sent to the Council to economise as much as possible. No doubt at his meetings with the electors, Mr Mosley expressed a strongobjection to a salary being paid to the Chairman, but we scai-cely think lie was elected upon a salaiy ticket, and we much doubt there would be found many within the Riding who would object to a thoroughly competent and active chairman being paid reasonable remuneration for his services. Mr Ayson was also elected a rej)i*esentative of Richardson Riding, and if we mistake not, he holds a different opinion from his colleague upon that question. This shows that the question of salary was not a vital one in the election. If the question had to be decided either by the public or the Council upon the number of subscription lists the Chairman is called upon, hy virtue of liis office, " to head," then we believe the decision woxild be a decided negative. The subscription list plea was long ago found in most cases to be a myth, and exploded, as said lists were seldom heard of excejrt from the mouths of the "headers." He forms a very exaggerated estimate of public gullibility who would now base his claims upon such a plea. When he was nominated, but beforg lie was elected to the office, the present Chairman gave no uncertain sound upon the salary question. We have known a chairman declare previous to his election that he would not accept salary, and then eagerly accept of the largest sum' offered, so soon as any chance occurred. Mr Jowitt adopted another course. He Candidly explained .that lie would not accept office without salary, and this not upon the subscription list ground. He intimated his intention, if elected, of conscienciously performing all the duties of Chairman, and this he believed would entail much time, labour, and expense, for which he considered he ought to be fairly remunerated. There can be no doubt this is a genuine principle, and one which will gradually grow in favour. Where laborious duties are undertaken merely for the honour of office, and a salary accepted on the plea of subscription lists, a satisfactory resuli is seldom either expected or secured. Reasonable pay for honest labor is the principle Mr Jowitt seeks to apply in his own case, and we think with Mr Clark, the Council would be wise to .agree -to these terms. •; He has already done considerable service gratuitously on behalf of the public^ but tliere must be. a limit to this sort of thing. Like many more in the Colony, Mr Jowitt

is yet ascending the ladder of independence and we cannot see how he, or anyone else,, should jeapordise a position at the top, or unduly, retard its accomplishment by giving gratuitously to the public the time and labour his own affairs demand. We are glad to see Mr Jowitt has had the honesty and manliness to take up the position he has done in the matter of salary. We have no doubt his conduct as Chairman of the County Council will be marked by equal promptitude, prudence, and independence to the best interests of all in the Clutha.

We would remind pur readers of the Clutha annual Show, to be held on the 18th instant, for which we trust many of them, are preparing. The prize list, completed will be found in this issue. Considering the backward season, and the untoward events that have of late transpired 'in the Clutha, it is scarcely to be expected that the Show will prove any great improvement upon those of former years, but with- the hearty combined efforts on the part of stock owners in the surrounding districts, we have no doubt it will prove in a large degree successful. It must be borne in mind that some districts j such as Inch Clutha, which in past years materially contributed to the success of our Show, will this yea? be unrepresented. It therefore rests with those in more favoured localities to make an 'additional effort on behalf of the forthcoming exhibition ; and although the quality of the stock may not be everything that could be desired, there can be no excuse for a small number of entries. We would respectfully urge attention to this matter, as notwithstanding the floods and other calamities that have been experienced, there is no reason why the Show should not be a thorough success.