Feilding State School

Feilding Star, Volume V, Issue 20, 19 February 1884, Page 2

Feilding State School

. -• An ordinary monthly meeting of th« Committee was held in the school house last evening. Present — Messrs Sherwill (chairman), Watts (secretary), Nicholas, Bray, Rutherford, Towler and Foster. The minutes of the last ordinary meet* in? were read and confirmed. Mr Bowling, head master of the school, then waited upon the Committee in accordance with a resolution passed at the last meeting, to answer a complaint from Mr Watts that his son had been refused admittance to the school. Mr Watts left the room. The chairman regretted that Mr Watts' letter, in which be made the complaint, was not upon the table, but he related the substance of it to Mr Bowling, wh» denied thnt he had refused the admittance of Mr Watts' boy. The chairman said that under the Act and the rules and regulations, the maiiter had power to refuse any child admittance to the school if he had sufficient reasons for doing so. Mr Bowling said that Willie Watts appeared in the lobby and said he was pome to school. He, Mr Bowling, said " Very well, if I can get a note or request from your parents yon can come." Mrs Watts came shortly afterwards and asked if the boy was going to be admitted. Mr Bowling said he could come if she wished it, and afier that nothing more wa« heard of the matter, and the boy never came. He had previously been absent 12 months or more, and it was usual when children had been absent so long, or for any considerable length of time, for the parents to attend on their re-ad mission, or lo send a note with the.n. He had not the slight* est intention to refuse the boy admittance aud he was expecting him to come after the interriew with his mother In aaswer to a question, Mr Bowling said that he wa» not influenced in any way with reference to the boy's character, about which he did natwishto complain. Had there been any neeessitty on the ground* of character to exclude the boy, h* wou d hare done it in candid a straight-forward manner. After giving the Committee all the explanation he could on the matter, Mr Bowling was thanked for his attendance, and withdrew. The chairman said that while he thought Mr Bowling was drawing a rather too hard and fast line by not admitting the boy in the first instance, the parents, on the other hand, had not acted well in keeping him away after hi* mother had been seen on the matter, and Mr Bowling had offered no objection t# hi.s admittance. Some further conversation followed, ia which the general opinion expressed was that each party had acted rather hastily, and that there had been some littie fault on both sides. It was then moved by Mr Bray, and seconded by Mr Rutherford, That the Schoolmaster be requested that in future when a child is sent for admission to the school, in place of refusing such adrais. sion, except under clause 87 ot the Education Act, 1877, he send a note to the parents or guardians, asking to be sup. plied with the name and age of the" child, to enable the mister to make the neeesnary entries in the books of the school. — Car* ried. Mr Watts re-entered the room, and the resolution was read out lo him. He said he would have liked to ask Mr Bowling a few questions, and amongst othor*, why he had taken his little girl into the school without a note, while he had refused admittance to the boy. He did not, however, intend to send his boy to the school any more. Resolved, That a copy of the foregoing resolution be forwarded to Mr Dowling. Mr Bray proposed, and Mr 'fowler seconded. That this Committee is of opinion that the master, Mr Bowling, has excei ded his duty in refusing Mr Watts* son admittance to the echool. Mr Watts said he did not wish any* thing further to be said or done in th« matter. He hid simply brought tb4P matter forward in order to get an expression of opinion, and he was quite satisfied that the matter should now drop. The resolution was put and carried. The following correspondence was road: — MessrK Watts and Greenwood, of WaDtianui, an I Mr Fry, of Feilding each offering for nomination as members of the Boa id. Mr Bray proposed, and Mr Towl-r seconded, i'nat Air Fry be nominated f >r one of the existing vacancies in the Wanganui Eduwion Board.— Carried. Messrs Bray and JSich>> as were appointed the visiting committee for ih« enduing month. it was res«iv< d that a circular be sent • o the parents requesting them to kuih. >eribe 6d per quarlor for each child toward* lighting, denning, <&c' The Committee then adjourned.