THE HUNTLY PRESS. PUBLISHED WEEKLY AT 1 P.M. THURSDAY, APRIL 9, 1914.

Huntly Press and District Gazette, Volume 3, Issue 6, 9 April 1914, Page 2

THE HUNTLY PRESS. PUBLISHED WEEKLY AT 1 P.M. THURSDAY, APRIL 9, 1914.

v. perusal of the balance-sheet IDUCATIOW f S , pasKe , d GRANTS > a r?, I 8 School Committee, .nd. a glance at the estimated evenue and expenditure for the rear, 1914-15, will bring liouseLolders face to face with a prohem that is exercising the great najority of school committees n the Dominion at tlie present ;ime. The inadequacy of the grants doled out by the Education Board is apparent, and, uness an increase is made, it will jecome more and more difficult ;o find men willing to sit on school committees when, no natter what economies are practised, their efforts are practically stultified by the want of that money which is required for lie hundred and one other little hings that are essential to the sffi cient equipment of the schools if to-day. School committees ire obliged to practice such •igid economy —economy not far ■emoved from parsimony—that :he time has come when, in view if legislation promised, the Minter of Education should be asked :o specify the grants allowed to school committees instead of eaving to Education Boards the [lower to pay the minimum dole that they will continue to pay as long as committees are foolish inough to undertake the unsatisfactory work of making two and two into six instead of the four that is right and just. It is to be hoped that the promised amendments to the Education Act will provide a better system for the conduct of elections, whereby nominations will close several days before the election takes place, and thus afford time to prepare a ballot paper, the absence of which wastes time and ma kes a school committee election a long drawn out agony. Another amendment is one by which a portion, and not the whole, of the committee will retire annually; for there is a 1 ways the cliance that by the election of a committee new to the work, the members remain unfamiliar with their duties until it is time to submit themselves again to re-election —that is, if one year of office does not disgust them with the work. While the importance of education is universally acknowledged, the means by which the system is carried cut, is by no means perfect, or even satisfactory. There is, perhaps, no place of wanted-- its . size in thelDoA PUBLIC raimoD so badly off RECREATION 1 ; 5 for a P" b ' (TROUND. bc Park ° r , recrea : tion ground, and the necessity for an area much larger than that valuable piece of ground which, through the generosity of the directors of the Taupiri Coal Mines, Limited, is used for recreation purposes, was imply proved on the occasion of the recent athletic meeting. The experience of the sports comnittee was such, that the members have taken up the question, md it they are backed by the public, and by the members of the carious football, cricket, tennis, md other clubs, there is no reason why a park, ten or twelve icres in extent, should not be secured in order to provide die sound body that forms the preliminary requirement for a sound mind. The sports com mi tee are prepared to do their part, md it only requires a united jffort to secure a government subsidy which, with the local support, will go far to provide luntly with a public park, andlie residents with the ground for >owling greens, tennis lawns, Ticket pitches, &c., without vhich no town is nowa-days ioiuplete. To acquire such land he Town Board only awaits the ead of the residents, and, once he demand is made by the »eople concerned, no time will be ost, and no trouble spared to neet the wishes of the coHumility, and help onward the movenent towards further progess.