EDUCATION TAX: PUBLIC MEETING IN AUCKLAND.

Thames Advertiser, Volume VII, Issue 1890, 9 November 1874, Page 3

EDUCATION TAX: PUBLIC MEETING IN AUCKLAND.

A public meeting, convened by George Staines, was held in Auckland on Friday night, on the subject of the Education Tax, Mr Reader Wood, M.H.R., in the chair. The Chairman said: When I arrived here, after the session at Wellington, I took the very earliest public opportunity I had of suggesting that the Council should be called together at an early period, and that that windfall of £25,000 should be appropriated by the Council for the purposes of Education. (Cheers.) A question was immediately raised that that money was not applicable for that purpose, but that it was set apart by the General Assembly specially for public works. I* ad that been the case, of course it would have been utterly impossible that the Provincial Council, even if it assembled, could have appropriated that money. There are two ways in which that money might have been appropriated, the one by means of the Act which granted it, and if it had been appropriated by the Act which granted it, the appropriation would have been in that Act, and there is no appropriation there. The other way might have been by means of arrangements, or understandings, or agreements between the General Government and the Provincial Government that the money would not be paid unless it was appropriated to public works. Now, in regard to such an arrangement as that I had no means°of ascertaining the fact. However, I set myself to work to do so. I wrote first of all to Mr Vogel, and my letter crossed, so that I did not get an answer to it until he arrived at Melbourne. He wrote to me, and said that there had been no appropriation of that money-that the whole matter was left in the hands of Dr, Pollen, the Colonial Secretary at Wellington, in Mr Vogel's absence, and that if I had any communication to make with him on the subject I had belter do so at ouco, before any arrangement should bo made. I then immediately wrote to Dr. Pollon, and upon the receipt of my letter ho was good enough to send me a telegram, which I will now read to you. It is dated the Ist of November—last Sunday—and this is its purport:—"l do not understand that the £25,000 has been in any way legally appropriated, or that there is any reason why the Provincial Counoil should not vote the whole of the money for educational purposes if his Honor the Superintendent could be induced to propose such a vote. Certainly there would be no objection hero." (Cheers) Upon the receipt of this telegram some gentlemen who take an interest in this question, as I do myself, thought it was of so important a nature that it would be well for us in the form of a resolution to embody our views with reference to this £25,000, and submit it to a public meeting Mr Dargaville, M.P.0,, then came forward and moved the following resolution: —" That in the opinion of this meeting his Honor the Superintendent should be requested to summon without delay the Provincial Council of Auckland, and recommend to that body the appropriation of so much of the sum of £25,000, voted last session by the General Assembly as special allowance to the province of Auckland, as maybe required to defray all charges on account of Education purposes to June 30,1875, and so render all further attempts to collect the education tax unnecessary." Mr' George Staines seconded. The Rev. Dr. Wallis said the resolution now brought forward was not only unwise but useless, as it was absurd to imagine that the Superintendent would do anything.of the kind required of him in the resolution. The Provincial Counoil would in a very few months have found out that they had done a grievous injustice to the peoplo and try to remedy it. The state of mutters which had. been brought about; by this unjust tas deserved,

very strong treatment. If they contented themselves with the expression of opinion contained in the resolution they would notbegoing far enough,for they ought to, in a case like the present, where an urgent remedy was necessary, adopt what was called in medical parlance the "heroictreatment." The Act was now doing a serious mischief to the cau3e of education in the province, and the lax was one which offended and hurt his conscience. If the Education Act had been really designed to extend the benefits of a superior educational system to the membera of the poorer classes it would have merited support, but by the working of the Ad it was apparent that an utter failure in this respect had taken place with regard to Auckland, and in a smaller degree the Thames. Ho proposed tho following amendment:-"lnas-much as the purpose of the householder and bachelor tax is to support a system of education which is doing much harm, and which dishonors the Biblo and religion, we hereby declare that our conscience will not permit us to pay the said tax."

Mr Sheehan, in a long speech, put the previous speakers right on the subject <& the proposed expenditure of the loan of £25,000. He said those who assured them that the money could he expended for any other purpose than for public works were misleading them. The Assembly voted the money for public works, to supplement the immigration and public works policy. He said respecfc'ully that if it had been proposed to expend a shilling of that money upon education, the province would not have obtained any of it. It might be unpalatable to say this, but it was better to tell the truth. In answer to questions from several individuals present, Mr Sheehan acknowledged that he did not consider the tax a just one, but the Provincial Council did not have the power to impose a just tax, and by levying the present rate they had arrived at the best way of arranging a most difficult matter. (Hear, hear.) He expressed his opinion that the General Government would very shortly make arrangements by which the present provincial rate would be superseded. Mr Dargaville said that he was very glad to see Mr Sheehan present at the meeting, for he was desirous of asking him a question to the following effect:—" Could not the loan of £25,000 be used for educational purposes?" and if he finds that such can be done, will he ask the Superintendent of the province to convene a special meeting of the Provincial Council to consider the matter P

Mr Sheehan: lam only one out of four members of the Provincial Government. When a question like this is put to me I can only answer in this way: that when the matter is brought before the Provincial Executive, it will then meet with due consideration, and be determined on its merits. The Chairman put the amendment and the resolution. The amendment was lost by a large majority, and the original resolution carried with but one dissentient voice.