STAGPOOLE V. WANGANUI EDUCATION BOARD.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1396, 23 March 1912, Page 6

STAGPOOLE V. WANGANUI EDUCATION BOARD.

Sir— Mr. Pirani's estimate, of the costs of tlio New Zealand Educational Institute in the recent appeal case is a gross exaggeration. In his proposed schcmo for avoiding the necessity of such cases in the iuturo ho is on much surer ground, and I sincerely hope his scheme will be given a fair trial. Not the least of the benefits to be gained from such a (system is that under it there will be less opportunity for the activities of the surreptitious correspondent, who under tho. present regime, and in defiance of tho boards regulations, appears to have unrestricted liberty to write damaging statements about unsuspecting teacher*. It is easy to imagine the inevitable consequence. Another gain to bo hoped for trom the introduction of tho schcmo proposed would bo that under it the inspector s written report would be the cilectivo report on which- the board's actions would bo based. ■ Mr. Pirani raid during the recent trial that, he would rather believe tho inspectors than their reports, which cannot mean other than that -omo inspectors may write one thing anil say another I his, indeed, was rnado abundantly clear during the late proceedings. J ho evils of any confidential report; svstern are too evident to need enlarging upon. May 1 I> o permitted a word <f explanation in relation to n matter (hat has brought me under criticism!' When tho letters of Miss Molloy, which I think should never have been written by her or received by tho chairman, were read by the executive of tho N.Z.E.I. jt l)c----came so apparent to tho minds of the members of the executive that thev had had a groat deal to do with the d'isinissjl ot_ Mr. btagpnole that it would have been improper to have allowed their effects to pass unquestioned. The' talk about v.olation of confidence is all moonshine, since in one of the letters Miss .HoUoy gives permission for their being used, a ,,d j|r. Viraui Ilimself na( , fe , whatever seal of confidence, there could ™V«T 7 lcll fI lettws h Y. scmliiiß them, unasked,, to tho executive. If tbo board In.d given frankly and fullv the r" grounds f„ r Mr. Stagpoole's dismissal, and (ho details on which the board's docision. was based, it is probable that the appeal would not have been brought Is a consequence of what has happened the institute, has sudoral some financial h.o which it is perfectly able and perfectly filing to meet And the loss will not b > "'•? means be all loss if as an »ulcome of this ease tho educational atmo*e,™l' n f U, /l W W«»" «UsWct can be cl .;ied of tho clouds of suspi-iju „„,; tsi-jjiam that now overshadow tho l u f 01 teachers in that district.-T im, \k H. A. PAKKIXSOX "