THE STATE SCHOOL.

Kumara Times, Issue 1468, 11 June 1881, Page 2

THE STATE SCHOOL.

[to the editor.] Sir—The first time I saw Richard John, and the first time I heard him speak, and the first words I heard him utter were “Mr Chairman, that honorable gentleman haS„ trod on the tail of my coat.” Richard has wonderfully improved since then, both in writing and speaking, more especially during the last twelve months ; and no wonder, I would have done so myself had I been under a kind school-master. I have just read his last production, jpid before I had read twenty lines I involuntarily exclaimed Dick never wrote that! But when I come to the second addition, I recognized the Old Identity. Now what does his explanation amount to?—simply that the committee have made an egregious blupder, they hav.e enacted an illegal law’ to.over-ride the legal act of the General Government; and now they find themselves in a muddle about who is going to. .pay. Why did they nob do six months'ago what they did yesterday—write to the Central Board, explain things, and also tender their resignation, and not dabble in legislative measures, taxing their poor neighbours? We are taxed enough already; we have to pay 3s 6d pet-lb duty on our tobacco, to say nothing about other articles, to keep up our popular schools; they seem to have forgotten that, in their anxiety to enter the little wedge that will eventually capsize our present system of Government education, if not frustrated. I look on our Education Act, as ossentially a poor man’s Act, and one of the best on the statute books pL New Zealand ; and do not thank any committee for trying to over-ride it with compulsion and insult by driving my child out of school. Mr Seddon says in his epistle that the committed are responsible for the action of the teachers; and he has the audacity also to say that that they will remain .firm, knowing that they have the confidence of the greater part of the community. I can assure him such is not the fact. If such were the case, they would, have been deluged with complaints long before now ; and also that outraging the public feeling is not the way to command public confidence. I suppose he considers his last act in turning the children out of school (to nse his own words) a good strong bluff. Let me tell him that King high is no good with a full hand against it. Sir, I intended to have written more on this subject; you have forstalled. me in to-night’s issue and taken the wind out of my sails. Many thanks for saving me the. trouble.—l remain, sir, yours truly, Cantankerous. June 10, 1881. P.S.—Can you inform me whether a good-attendance certificate was issued to the young lady Miss Jones, or not, who received a prize for best attendance at the late distribution of prizes.—[No;, we believe not.— Ed. K.T.]