BLACKS SCHOOL.

Dunstan Times, Issue 916, 7 November 1879, Page 3

BLACKS SCHOOL.

(to tub editor of the dunstan times. ) Sir : —ln your last issue appears a letter signed mother-in-law, the writer appears to take offence at my family being taken from the Blacks School, and sent to the Matakanui one, it may soothe his excited feelings, when he knows that the fault lies entirely with my own children, as they are foolish enough to laugh with those who laugh, and play with those who play, and are more interested in watching a scholar pouring water down the masters back during school hours, than attending to their lessons, or in listening to another, telling him when corrected not to be a fool, than in attending to their writing. Of course all work and no play has a baneful effect, but I think in common with a great many others, that the work should be done inside the school, and the play outside. That the tod for a childs back is a good substitute for an incompetent teacher many an eminent Scotchman knows

by painful experience, but the days when | sufferings of the boy is made to do duty for I the short comings of the man are hapily over, ami like the burning of witches is only a record of ignorance and barbarism - ho Bays children educated at Blacks School will bear comparison with children taught else-where, and especially with the younger branches of my family—ray youngest child at school is 7 years of age, J is in the 3rd Royal Reader and in the same class and is twice a good a scholar as girls brought up within a stones throw of Blacks school and aged 13 years—my second youngest is 9 years, and is in the .Sequel to the 3rd Royal Reader and is nearly equal to the best scholar in the Blacks school. As there are 5 children at least who ages range from 14 to >6 in the same class wrhher who could not pass a Second Standard, yet ni\ 2 children have been only 2yoars under th tuition of a schoolmistress (Mbs fJouldinsof Alexandra but although par excellence in Blacks school they were far from being up in their late school, as at the last exam ination there were 3 prizes given in each class, and neither of them got one. That th" Blacks school is a disgrace to whitcimn is no fault of the present teacher as he baonly been there a short time, hut is owin - in agreat measure to the eccentric interference of a mother-in-law as he used his influence lately in removing a certificated teacher of about twenty years’ experience from Blacks school anl now rushes into print to defend an uncertificated one of no experience. That lam not ahme in thinking so is evident from the well merited reprimand given to a mother-in-law by Mr Petrie (school Inspector) on his last vi-it. Also out of the 9 members elected to form a school committee at the last election, one of whom was a mother in-law 8 refused to act with him and resigned, the others subsequently elected are only nominal as a mother-in-law considers he is a host in him self —Your’s,, &c., —Mother. November 4th, 1879.