The Patea Mail. PUBLISHED WEDNESDAY AND SATURDAYS SATURDAY, MAY 27, 1876.

Patea Mail, Volume II, Issue 118, 27 May 1876, Page 2

The Patea Mail. PUBLISHED WEDNESDAY AND SATURDAYS SATURDAY, MAY 27, 1876.

Tuoufifi glimpses liav.i boon afforded, through the Prouder, of the main points of the intended Ministerial policy, the 'information thus gained has been somewhat confused and puz/ding—in some case's almost coiPradielcry. One thing, ihowever, is clear, that county government of some kind will form a leading Stem I>n the new Local Government Bill, ■though what its,functions will be, if the ’"Road Boards are. left 'intact, is hard to imagine. With reference to the Education question, and how it will ho dealt with, a great deal of interest is felt, and ;it has been suggested tin t the Ci.nnty Omncils, To mis, or whatever other title they may lie known by, should have control, in lion of th' v irious District Education Boards now existing. We .certainly disagree with any such proposal, and think that until one uniform system, administered by the Gomrd Governm<mt, be established throughout the Colony, it would be in the highest .degree imprudent to alter the present ■arrangcrar&ts. The veil that has hitherto .obscured the definite future action of the Government on this subject ivas to a great degree drawn aside on Tuesday last, on the occasion of a deputation, representing tbc Wellington and Canterbury brandies of.the New Zealand "Touchers’ Association, waiting on the Premier, in reference to certain proposed .changes in the management of State education. On these tl e ■ Canterbury branch of the above association pus >d .several rcsolull ms, which they wished Sir Julius Vogel to endorse, but that wily politician "declined to do ‘ iii .globo’ as they were presented to him. Ho, however, expressed Ids concurrence with many of them, and afforded at the same time an insight as to the course that the Ministry would propose on Parliament meeting. Ho said that no important changes were contemplated at present in educational matters, but that

if action he taken, District Jo rds, somewhat aualagous to the ] r sent Provincial Boards, would bo constituted, and that they would ba on trusted with ■the . management of education within th ‘ir several jurisdictions, lie added tint the Government would ultimately introduce a hill for the purpose of era ting some uniform system of education, r.nd thatduring tlie intemq n no or roc ; s, they would gather-information as to the hast mode of bringing about tins state of tilings. It is hardly to he wen lei cl at, if Min’s ers are inclined to postpone the Huai sc l’enent <f a question surrounded by so much diftindte, and about which such tierce ddmles may he expeelc 1 , when dciominatioiudists and secularists wage hitter w/.r, hut at the same time the postponement, in a question of such vital importance, for anot' or year, is greatly to hi regretted cn every ground. How strongly people fo 1 on this subject was a ■ wa in the tiist session of the last Parliament, when Mr Fox, then Premier, brought in his Education Bill. -Debates without end arose out of it, petitions, pro and con, poured in in cartloads almost, it wi-s emasculated bit by bit, all 1 at last the Government withdrew it in disgust, promising to bring in an amended measure during the following session, hour sessions have been held since then, and the Parliament in which that ill-fated legislative infant fust saw the light, never gazed on ( r he ard of any successor. The question has b;en systematically shirked .as a nut too hard to crack, and the present re-organised Ministry seem inclined to follow in the fool steps of Mr Fox, and “ lot this sleeping dog lie. There is certainly an amount of political cowardice about this let-alone policy, that wo are surprised to find in the usually hold head of the Government, and wo very much fear that when 1877 comes round, should the present Ministry, as is most probable, he then in power, more time will bo asked “to gather information,” and when anything like a legislative solution of the educational problem will be arrived at is hard to say, indeed it seems to he postponed, as a vycrs say, •s no tlie.’ Jhis is weak on the part of the Government, for, some day nr other, they will be compelled to take the bull by the horns, d-al with and dispose of the subject, and why not do so at once, instead of this perpetual procrastination. Sir .Julius Vogel seems just as much dispose! to evade the responsibility as any one, for he was a member of Mr Pox’s Ministry at the time when the latter promised to bring in a bill next session, and ho has occupied the chief Ministerial position over since, with the exception of the time ho was in Europe. He was present at throe subsequent sessions, and is about to enter on a fourth, but a general educational system is still an unholy thing, and its proposal, a hazard to ho avoided. There is not after all such a groat deal to be done during the corning session, though what there is will-probably occupy a length of time, and be pro Motive of prolonged and spiteful debates. Abolition is, however, an accomplished fact, that cannot be got over-, and it is extremely unlikely that an j ’mpo; taut modification or amendment will he made on last year’s legislation on this print. The Local Government Bill «vill oecnny some timp hut these subjects will not engross the whole time of the House an.l the introduction of an Educat ion Bill would vary the monotony of Parliamentary proceedings if the above are in ..occupy ah the time of members. It is to bo hoped that tnc Government will yet reconsider their resolution in this respect, for the question of education is uppermost- in the minds ot every reflecting man in the Colony, and its settlement is anxiously and eagerly looked for. Should it, however, he found impossible to bring forward such a measure, the Government should give a special -pic#pi that a comprehensive bill will bo introduced next year, and that the matter shall not bo allowed tc drop, as Sir Julias and his colleagues have done for years. Also, ifthe Governnvi t do not intend to bring for vard such a measure, lot them at least lot educational affdrs alone altogether til they are so prepare!, and not diso’-ganiso coasting machinery winch works at least tolerably, hy attempting any tinkering that will ordy hav) the effect ot throwing it out of order, and everything connected with it into confusion.