SCHOOLMASTER'S APPEAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 198, 19 February 1912, Page 5

SCHOOLMASTER'S APPEAL.

SOME REMARKABLE ALLEGATIONS. By Telegraph—Press Association. Palmerston N ~ Last Night. The hearing of the appeal of Thomas Stagpoole, headmaster of the Linton school, against his dismissal by the Wanganui Education Board, was continued on Saturday before Mr. Kerr, S.M., and Messrs. R. McNab and E. L. Broad. Mr. R. D. Stuart appeared for appellant, and Mr. F. Pirani for the board.

The case was opened at Wanganui on the previous week, and the whole of Saturday was taken up with hearing the evidence of appellant, who claimed that when he took ovejr the school the discipline was very bad, and that many of the children were in bad health owing to the school building being insanitary and in bad repair. He was given notice of dismissal after having been at. the school Bix months. Witness made some remarkable allegations against Inspector Stewart, inspector for the board, stating that he had visited the school and assaulted, during the three days he was there, eighteen out of the twenty-two children under his (Stagpoole's) charge. He had, it was alleged, placed chalk in their mouths, picked them up from the seats by their hair, and dragged them about and made faces at them. Further, he had advised Stagpole to flog them every day.' It was also alleged that he had grossly insulted Mrs. Stagpoole at lunch in her house by throwing a fork at her.

In cross-examination by Mr. Pirani, it was repealed that the charges against Mr. Stewart haji been forwarded to the Minister of Education, and Mt. Pirani endeavored to show that they were not formulated until after Stagpoole had received information that complaints had been lodged against him as teacher. Mr. Pirani maintained that Stagpoole had been under the delusion that Stewart had visited the school with the object of injuring him, and that when he found complaints had been lodged against him he had trumped up the charges to shield himself.

The cross-examination was not completed when the court rose for the day. It is expected that the hearing of the case will take nearly the whole of next week.