The Manawatu Standard (PUBLISHED DAILY.) The Oldest Daily Newspaper on the West Coast. THURSDAY, JUNE 3, 1886. THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE AND THE EDUCATION BOARD.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XII, Issue 1724, 3 June 1886, Page 2

Manawatu Standard (PUBLISHED DAILY.) The Oldest Daily Newspaper on the West Coast. THURSDAY, JUNE 3, 1886. THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE AND THE EDUCATION BOARD.

♦ — Is order to prove to the public that the School Committee were guilty of no discourtesy to the Education Board m having, as alleged, refused the use of the schoolhouse m which to hold the investigation by the so-called deputation, we have been requested to publish the following letters to the Chairman, one from the Secretary of the Education | Board, and one from the Rev A. M. Wright. "The JSducation Board of the District of Meruoraudum for the Chairman of School Committee, Palmerston North. Wanganui, 10th May, 1886. Sir, — I am directed to inform you that a Committee of the Board will proceed to Palmerston on Thursday next, the 13th iust., to investigite s complaint concerning the legality of the proceedings at the late election of the School Committee, and they would invite you to meet them. — I have &c, A. A. Browne, Secretory. It will be seen from the above that no time or place was specified for the meeting, and that no request whatever was made for the use of the schoolhouse. As a matter of fact, the deputation was not a " Committee of the Board," not having been appointed by the Board, but by the Executive, wno, clearly, had no power to do so. Palmeraion, 11th May 1886. • Mr Archd. Stewart. Dear Sir, -In respect of the appeal of 'the Key. A. M. Wright, against the Jate Election of a school committee Ht Palmerston North, I am instructed by the Board's Secretary to request you to meet a Deputation of the Wad* ...;*!>«■■ Vidtkßtiun floard, at the Central Sohooh pn rniu-B'iay;lßthMuy, at % p.m.— Believe j»e» JUear Sir, Yonri yew truly. r A,M,W»k W( i

Mr AVright appears to have taken upon himself to fix the hour tnd place, without ever asking would the time be convenient, and without consulting the Committee as to granting the use of the schoolroom. In fact, Mr Wright's friends admit that his treatment of the School Committee, from first to last, has been discourteous, to use a very , mild term indeed, and m some respects quite unjustifiable. He appears to have systematically ignored them, and made his arrangements without deeming it worth while to consult them m the matter. The jGommittee, very naturally, | have strongly resented his demeanour towards them, feeling that they, both individually,and as a body,have been systematically slighted and humiliated by their elected Secretary. r By the exercise of a very little tact, courtesy and conciliation, Mr Wright might have carried out his idea, with regard to testing the legality of the election, without giving any offence, or at any rate, any reasonable cause for offence, to a single individual m or outside of the Committee, and would have earned credit for. possessing the courage of his convictions, and his determination to uphold a principle, even if based upon erroneous assumptions. But instead of acting with forbearance and discretion m the matter, he has, metaphorically speaking, thrown down the gauntlet of war to the knife, using as his battle-cry, " Who'll tread on the tail of my coat? 1 ' The result has proved how the hasty, precipitate and ill-timed action of a too-im-pulsive man, who unfortunately forgetsor deliberately ignores the ordinary courtesies and amenities of life, can excite a spirit of strife, bitterness and dissension m a community that has neve** on any previous occasion been experienced, and the leaven of which will continue to effervesce possibly for months to come. Our opinion at the outset was that Mr Wright had acted very unwisely m appealing against the validity of the election, under the circumstances and on the grounds asserted. Subsequent events have tended to confirm that opinion, which, we believe, is entertained by nine-tenths of the community at the present time. It will be a good thing when the election is over, for the bitter feelings that have been engendered seem to become intensified and more uncontrollable day by day It is difficult to believe that a whole community could have been so set at loggerheads by apparently such an insignificant cause as an attempt to upset the validity of a school committee election. In this case, however, it has not been the actual steps that have been taken to attain certain ends, which have caused such ill-feeling, so much as the almost universally entertained belief that the ulterior motives are very different from the ostensible reasons assigned for the course pursued.