Manawatu Herald. THURSDAY,FEBRUARY 27, 1919. THE SCHOOL PIANO.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLI, Issue 1945, 27 February 1919, Page 2

Manawatu Herald. THURSDAY,FEBRUARY 27, 1919. THE SCHOOL PIANO.

IT is (o lie hoped that Tuesday night's public* meeting will settle the local “mix-up” in connection with the piano purchase question for the State school. The meeting vindicated the Chairman and Committee, and showed the way to a settlement which should he satisfactory to all parties concerned. Tin* facts submitted by the Chairman showed; (1) That the offer of an instrument to the Committee to replace the one destroyed by fire

was a generous one —equivalent, on an expert's advice, to a o-ift of between £lO and £-15. (2) That the instrument, although of German manufacture, was intrinsically British. ]3) That the offer of the instrument was made public and known to the Committee prior to the Pair. (4) That no similar offer was made locally of a British piano on the same or other terms, (5) That the Committee informed the Board that it was prepared to “do business'’ on I lie lines set out to the Board by Messrs Kellow and Me Murray, viz., “that local residents were willing' to subscribe all that was required over £4O (Ihe price of the piano ottered to |hc Committee | to purchase a British instrument if the Com mittee would allot only that amount," so soon as .Messrs Kellow and Me Murray communicated (heir bona (ides to (he Committee.

Herein are set forth the fundamentals stripped of all prejudicial trimmings and personal irrevelaneies. The only other way out of the impasse is for the generous offer to he withdrawn. The Board's jurisdiction in the matter, if put to a legal test, would proha lily disclose that its mandatory powers have been exceeded. The Board, in this particular ease, may have been justilied in acting- in an.advisory capacity, but its “shall not” is somewhat over the odds. Here’s (he common-sense of the whole thing: A school extra, recognised as an aid to art or learning, but not considered essential by the Department or Board —otherwise they would provide it —is provided by n local committee with funds locally subscribed, and upon which-do sub-

silly can bo obtained. Hus the'Board, without coniributing, the right to dictate to a committee as to where or how the committee shall legally obtain that article! Such undue interference is unworthy of intelligent thought.