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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume VII, Issue 214, 7 September 1872, Page 2

To the Editor op the Nelson Evening Mail. Sir — Now that resolutions have been passed in the Central Board of Education, at the occcasion of the teacher of ColJiDgwood removiDg a leaf from what he considered an unfit book for school use, and that these resolutions have been placed before the public, I think it is right thnt the true version of the stpry of Palissy the Potter, which gave origin to the offence, should also appear before the public. The story contained in the unfortunate page which has been removed from the Iktle School Book, Nelson's No. 4, runs thus: ''Palissy was a good man, and had many enemies who threatened to punish him because he loved the truth, and would not worship images. When he was an old man, ninety years old, he was dragged to prison by cruel men, who hated the truth, and hated the Bible, which Palissy Joyed. But the o'd man loved the truth even better than his life. He was brought before King Henry 11, of France, who told bjm that if he would not give up his religion, h& would be compelled to leave him in the hands of his enemies. The noble old man replied that it appeared the King of all France could be compelled to do what he thought wrong, but that no power on earth could compel him, a humble potter, to do what he thought wrong, and to kneel before images which his own hands had made." Now, if we refer to the Standard Historical Books we find that Bernard Pali-sy died in 1589, and as the little book in question states that when he was an old man., ®inepy years old, he was brought before King Henry 'JL of France, the story is somewhat wonderful since Henry 11. had died 30 years before, in 1559 ! Again, " Bernard Palissy was dragged to prison by cruel men" as this little book states, but I beg to observe that it was not because the men hated the truth and the Bible; it was not to compel him "to kneel before an image," but it was in order to stop hjs yandalism, and that of his party, whose object was nap pnb/ $o insult the Catholic religion, to pull down crosses, to. break images, and to burn churches (for the history of those times informs us that they burned 14,000 churches), but also to depose kings, to ruin kingdoms, and to subvert the fundamental constitutions of civil States (see Dr Haylin Cosmog. 1. i. p. 137), and what corroborates these statements is the fact that Palissy had been imprisoned in the La Bostilfa which was, a prison destined merely for political offenders'. , I would have left these facts in oblivion, had it not been necessary to bring them forth to show the misrepresentations and several other one-sided views of the little book in question; and, although I would not approve of teachers tearing ofi? leaves of objectionable books^ in an arbitrary manner, yet J can imagine what must have been the feeling's p| p. teacher wjjq, taking charge of a Provincial school, and expecting, ds a matter of course, that the class books provided for the use of the scholars, would be in compliance with the Act, free from controversial «r s/ectarjan character. , tjirough an error of judgment, in a ■■ moment of haste, "took upon himself to removeeuch a false version. ■ :'•.•...'-' i ; :" :.: • ;■-,■ lanv&c., ■• .- ;,-:•■ ; '"., HjSTOBT. Nelson, September 6th, 18Y3;