BIBLE-TEACHING IN WELLINGTON.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1827, 13 August 1913, Page 8

BIBLE-TEACHING IN WELLINGTON.

9 ME. ATKINSON IN REPLY. « (To the Editor.) Sir,—The National Schools Defence League Iras reason to Vie grateful to tho Wellington newspapers for tiie excellent repurts which tliey supplied of the deputation which interviewed the Prime jLmister 011 Saturday, and to. 'llui Dominion, which is tho least in sympathy with our arguments, by no means the least credit is due in this respect. But u verbatim- report was of course out ot the question, and one. result of the condensation which was inevitable has been to encourage my friend, Mr. Aitken, Jx> bring a charge against me which is not justified bv what I actually said. What lie says is that "Mr. Atkinson stated that the children of Wellington do not receive religious instruction as in Nelson because the parsons prefer a political agitation to get the tc-achers to do the work thsv are permitted now to do themselves." "The charpe. Mi;. Aijk.cn says, is unjust be«iuse;'t!i4 Wclli'ngfoh Education Board has refused to give the necessary permission to the ciorgy of Wellington. Mr. Aitken "can only imagine as Mr. Atkinson is an honourable man that lie is una\rare of this tact." 1 was really neither so ignorant as to be unaware of the fact nor so dishonest as to suppress it. After pointing out that 97 per cent of tho-children in tho Nelson city schools are receiving religious instruction in tho voluntary manner permitted by the present law, I asked why 1)7 per cent of the children attending the Wellington State schools are not receiving the same benefits, and my first answer to the question was substantially as quoted by Mr. Aitken. But 1 proceeded as follows, solar as I can reconstruct the passage from my notes;-' "It will, however, be said that Education Boards or school committees have stood in tile way. The answer is 'that the decrees of these boards and committees are not like tho laws of the Modes and Persians. They can bo altered. These bodies are just as much as Parliament itself the creatures of tire people. Tho school committees, which aro elected annually by the householders, are oven inoro amenable'to public opinion in a matter of this kind. Olio per cent, of tho effort that lias been put into tile present ntfila'tion for the conversion of Parliament would have compelled the boards and -committees in Wellington and most other places to grant tlio necessary facilities, since it would have met with sympathy, and not opposition, from large number's of these who strong-ly object to tho political programme of Ihc Bible-in-Sehouls League. Whether this argument is accepted or not, tho fact that I used it at least acquits 1110 of the oversight and tho injustice which Mr. Aitken lays to my charge. And if tho argument is unsound I should be glad if 110 would explain how. I do not say that the schools are at. present "godless," because tho Biblei n-Schcols advocates lovo to have tlieni so. But I do say that wherever denominational teaching would be possible under their programme, undenominational teaching is already possible under the Nelson svstem if they would leave politics alone and give it a fair trial. According'to tho 11-ev. W.-.T. Williams, who has seen the system in operation in Oamaru, its general application would render any demand for a chanjjo in the lav unnecessary. Is it for this reason that flie general attitude of C'anon Garland and his friends to the system is neglect, and even disparagement ? No ellort of mine will be lacking to convince tho public both of the merits of the Nelson system and of the resolute determination of -the Bible-in-Schcols party as a whole to H^,n.-I K am.eTc., President National Schools Defence League. -