Untitled

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 5147, 21 September 1877, Page 2

The education question certainly is beset with difficulties, r; Mr.i Macfablane, iin speaking on the Bill now before the House, observed that the holiJ member who introduced it said, he calculated receiving £25,000 under the 79th clause, jin reference to which a remarkable circumstance had .been brpqghti under his (Mr. MacfablAhe’s) notice, j It, appealed that in of edUc'atiorf tirtei} jin Auckland, the enormous sum of £1477 had, to be paid ,to the solicitors,- and he' tlioifght ‘itwould be necessary' in getting' in the capitation tax to make some provision for the appointment of a chairman. He then read the following extract from au Auckland journal of the 25th inst.: —

“The" account preaented\by ■of the firm ofjLusK- and-BEALE, I 'solicitor )to the|E(|u ; (;ation Board, ika fitting climax to thiit ipiborable expedierit of a bankrupt Treasuryv.-'known asVijie (ednoat'ipn rate. the''partner’of' Mr. H. H. 'Lusk; the Chairman of the Board, undertook the work of collecting arrears, fourteett-'hundrGd'hfiuseholdersffik'vo been Worrjedby summpnses.anilflaw processes, with.-theGiet result bf;£lo36,;the.whole of which vwas, appropriated, by,, the lawyer (Mr. Lusk) for costs of recovery, leaving the Board still £441 in. debt. Comment, on such a fact only spoils the effect; it is much better to leave it in its simple nakedness. Previous experience in the collection of the rate bylaw process, jwe are aware, has' ,not been of a L very profitable character ; but there has never before been such an exhibition of high pxt as that disclosed in the foregoing figures.” Mr. Beale’s account for law charges and expenses as presented to the Auok 1 land Board of Education ; was as follows Recovery of the education rates for part of 1874, 1875, 1876 : £793, being solicitor’s charges," and £714105. 2tl. costa, and fees paid by him ; total, £1477 16s; 2d. By advance from Board, £350; rates and costs received by solicitor, £1036 12s. 10d-; "total, 7 £1386 12k lOd.- Balance due to;solicitor by Board, £9l 3s. 4d. -It thus appeared that £1477 had been spent to recover £1036. ’Whether similar charges have been made -in other parts of ;, the colony we are not aware, but the picture painted by Mr. Macfarlane of the cost of getting 'in the education rates : in- Auckland under the present system is certainly not] a pleasing one. The solicitors may be able 'to'shbw that the costs are fair' andreasonable, but that-dpes not.qflter the fact that the Stale bf things' in Auckland, at all events in reference to. education matters, has not been at'all satisfactory, and that any change that may be made in the law affecting the question could hardly for the worse -in ;a financial.'point of view. Mr. Macfarlane certainly deserves credit for.'having brought these factsTto flight in the House, where, we have no doubt, marly ni embers Were m utter ignorance bf the state of the accounts, as well as- a large number of persons outside the walls of Parliament who , are all more or less interested in the question. -