AN INSULT TO AUSTRALIA.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 8096, 28 April 1906, Page 2

AN INSULT TO AUSTRALIA.

A REMABXABLE "INTEBVIIW " NEWBPAPEB ÜBEU FOR ULTEBIOB PURPOSE. THE EDUCATIOF BILL, Beseived 88,1.40 a.m. 1 London, April 87. The "Western Morning News" i publishes an interview purporting to be with an unnatiied Australian AgentGeneral, warning Englishmen not to accept Mr Birrell's Bill, whiok was simply a sop to non-eonformists. All the talk about plain Bible teaching, and about teaching morals, without a dogma, was veriest nonsense. The experiment had been tried in Australia with tbe result that the State schools were not merely un-Christian but antiChristian. Another result was th« empty cradle. The people here had noeonception of the condition jJtfrailinj among Australian young '.people' Modesty and hadvttnished* Australian girls and young ladies were very different to those of the Motherlaud. The streets were filled with ferritins, with no morals, who were * danger to the oommunily. A mighty revolution was setting in in the eolon> ies and, parents were demanding a referendum in favor of definite religion instruction. WhereverJh« referendum had been granted a three-told majority had been obtained. The Agents-Gen-eral published a signed statement repudiating the interview as a gross attack on the Australian education system and the morality of the people of the Commonwealth.

Tho " Western News" withdrew tbe article and expressed regret for insert* ing it, Thepapor stated that the M> port wast received with good credential* and it was intended to make further enqiiry into the matter.