N.S.W. AND BIBLE-IN-SCHOOLS

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2179, 18 June 1914, Page 6

N.S.W. AND BIBLE-IN-SCHOOLS

(To the Editor.) Sir,—ln Tub JJOiiisioli of Juue 11. appears a report of the apparent na»-. bets of "visits" paid to A'ew South ■' Wales Retook by ministers tinder tho' l-kfefc of entry regulations, . Will the Btl)te-iii-S%liools League, jjleaso explain whether the "very cob 1 -- sidernblo hteMase in tho iruinbdr of visits was dao to ministers pttttWg more, life into this, business, or whether it was dtic to tho following iuaiiipyktieii. of figures h— On 4 Biia 131(183$, the Dfteciot of ■ Education issued dfl instruction i*>: teachers tli-at if a minister .paid oh any day a oiie*hour's visit, it should bo ■ longer 'ha counted as jam visit, but as : two or threfr, if lie divided the hours between two or three classes separately. This iMritiplicaiion of tho number of visits has evidently had tho desired el* feet of helping to twer up tire gimer-j ally admitted neglect of mimstevs to: vent their enthusiasm for the religious instruction of the yeuftg... thus, large* ; ]y as ft- result of this, artificial inflation of numbers for sis months.of the year, Mie. .total v Visits' s for 1-913 appears to be 572-1 more than those of 1911, whore- ■ as the whole increase- for the previous six years was- nily 6124, Tho biased nature -of sotno Of the; ''Australian evidence" of the League may he judged, first from tho fact that '. the Director &i Bdueaviom issued such, an instruction,, and so&mdly polished tho retain without stating how the al- : leged iitevease occurred. .Tho report. actually states: "The number of visits' made by these visiting religious teachers during tlio year shows a very can*: siderahte iiicfeasei" .Of course it would.; The Actual esteiit of the visits may bo KCPja from a gkneo at tiro Conrawn--woaltit Year Book, 1908* "The ad-. vantages ol the .provision permittingreli*iou.s instruction to be given ill State schools has not been used to a very great extent by the various -de-, nominations."' %.eii. referring to the.: number of visits paid, the Year Book mvtimies: "It i$ found that tho- visits : by All the -deitanHHatkas taken together represent only ft little, mffre than 10. per cent, of tlio opportunities offered." : Then, after Making a, .handsoiii& aflawanco of SO per seat, on account of. schools in scattered districts* the Year. Book ooHcUrcfosi "Therefore doubling tho above ratio it does, not appear that the visits approximate in a materia! degree to I'iie opportunities, offered by: this law.-' tho New South Wales Year Book, : 1911, makes a similar statement. Tlio: Rovsil Co-rmnissfefU report on education, N.S.W., 1904-6, also states: "It Jnftfit. he- admitted that the clergy of tho.v&r-, 1 ions denaminaltknjs have availed them*; 'selves of this provision mly to a limited extent, and ■speaking generally, the relipicra's. instruction in the St-ato; eAools of Xew South \Vales is largely confuted ta th.ft general rirfigioun in-: stntrtioii.'', <fhe latter is given un-. ; dfff compulsion by State teaehern.) j Another reeomftiffiidation of this cbift-1 missisa is Mit-rtdwed,by Siie woids relating to Kew Smith Wales: "In view of the iflstiflreie'iw. or almost complete ah- j f.imce of religion? iiisfirtctien.'' , Waft if to'cover ftp. the lack of in- i terest in the vaunted Jvew South Wales system miofi'ii by even the ministers. that tlio new regitlaticm to dnplicaia! smile of the ecanty proportrMis 01. visits was issvKei by tho Diteciov <[; 13dvtcat'njii?—t am, etc i( , JM3? C.\L"6S.j;,EV, Christsh«i'«li, Jttrvo 12,