MASTERTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume VII, Issue 2043, 16 July 1885, Page 2

MASTERTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE.

The ordinary monthly meeting of the Masterton School ■ Committee was held last night. Present—Messrs Boddington (chairman),, Payton, Girdwood, Reese, Woodroofe,'and Hogg. ' The minutes of the previous meeting were read and confirmed. The Secretary of the ■ Education Board wrote'that the desks for the infant school would boiorwarded from Wellington, the local tenders being too high. The school would .probably want warming, and in case of a fire-place being erected,, the Board was prepared-to pay extra insurance. , Mr Hogg said he had got an estimate from Messrs Williams and Barker to the effect that the'fire-place would' cost L2l, .and! if double, L 24. The Wesleyan owners were' not' incliwd to, contribute towardj.it> erection. ■ The .Qhairman, suggested that a stove stamld he erected; a* they could 'amove it. i . Mr Payton moved. That the Board, bo; ■asked to supply a suitable stove. . Seconded .by Mr Girdwood, »nd carried, ' Tli* Steretary to Board wrote that

owing to the time taken to settle his op-1 jpointment, Mr fowling had taken another appointment, also, that Miss Marshall had entered the Training College. The' Chairman said that they would be a pupil teacher short on.that account. MrPaytonmoved, and MrHoggseconded that the Board be requested to Bupply a pupil teacher to fill Miss Marshall's place. Carried. A further communication was received from the Secretary of the Board stating that as the Board had selected Miss Jupp as a tjacher, and the Committee had confirmed the appointment, Miss Jupp had •been fully, appointed, and had- entered the service of "the Board; The Board could not now interfere with th'e matter. . In reply to a question, the Chairman stated that Miss Jupp would enter upon her duties after the holidays, The Rev J. N, Buttle wrote stating that it had been decided to collect the rent .of the second school quarterly, and asking that tho first quarter, amounting to £6lO, might be paid. 1 It was resolved to certify to the amount being correct, and to forward it to .the Board. .• j . >. . An amount of £2 10s for cleaning was passed for payment.'

Mr Woodroofe moved, according to notice, "That' while approving of due attention to physical education in the playground, the Committee considers military drill useless, a source of unnecessary expense, mischiovous, opposed to the enlightened spirit of -the-age, - and calculated to promote, dangerous habits among the children of peaceably disposed colonists." Ha trusted the quostion would be debated with good temper and thought. He had before objected to njilitary drill in schools, which was tempting Providence. The children were told ill the playground, drill would make men of them, and that was simply criminal, The misfortunes of the country were due ; ordy to drill, The speaker then went at length into 1 the history of the Taranaki war. ..Ic.wns through that, he said, '.they had been driven to borrow money, onoof their greatest misfortunes, The previous Committoe had voted money for the cadets, and for sports, which he considered was illegal., He claimed credit for having thought these matters ov'or thoroughly, and contended that & per centage of their babies would in time regret school drill. Some of them would be sure to go to New Guinea, or some othor place whero thero was murder to be committed, Not long ago they found an engine driver shot down South by boys, while in Wellington more recently one boy shot another.. If the young Prince Imperial of France had been taught better he would not have fallen a victim in the Zulu war. A time would come when they would regret drill in New Zealand. They had a roview. recently at Masterton, at which the cadets behaved anything-but. properly... .„It was a pity that New Zealand had a miKtitey. man for a governor. He contended that they had ne right to establish a cadet corps', and having established it, to maintain it. ~ "

Mr Girdwoodseconded the motion pro forma, and said he admired Mr Woodroofo for the manner In which he did what lie thought was right. He suggested that the motion bo allowed to stand over till next meeting, by which time they could We it considered by the Literary Society. The drill was started by the Board, and not by the Committee. The Act made it compulsory, Mr Hogg supported the motion, because he considered'the drill simply tomfoolery. The placing of fire-arms in the hands of children was dangerous, and the money thus spent might be better applied. He would object to a single shilling being spent for drill, and thought it had nothing whatever to do with teaching, He was surprised that the Bible should be forbidden in schools and murderous weapons put into the hands of children. Mr Reese agreed with a great deal that had been said.' Ho supported the suggestion of Mr Girdwood that the question should be adjourned. He was of the opfnion that a part of the playground might with advantage he set aside for the elder boys to practice with dumb-bells and boxing-gloves,

Mr Payton considered they were a bo fl y appointed to administer the Educat : on Act, and not to review the law under which they were appointed, Mr Woodroofe argued that the Act did not compel them to establish drill, but that clauso 85J\vas simply permissive. The Chairman correctedMr Woodroofe's reading of tlio clause, Mr Woodroofe maintained his own opinion, and spoke at somo length in explanation of the clause.

• Tho motion was then put and lost, only Messrs Woodroofe and Hogg voting for it, and the Chairman and Messrs Payton and Girdwood against it. Mr Girdwood brought up a report on his visit to Wellington regarding tho second 6chool, and read a letter from the Secretary to the Board on the subject, The Chairman had told him that the desks for the now school would be ready almost immediately, Mr Payton inovod, that the thanks of the committee be accorded to .Messrs Girdwood and Reese for the trouble they had taken, and the satisfactory manner in which they had carried out the duties entrusted to them.—Carried. Mr Hogg moved 1 that the Board bo requested to_fumish : standard as. well aS infant desks!as soon as possible fate,the appliances suggested by Miss Keeling. Mr Woodroofe secorded the resolution _ which was carried after a short discussion. The Chairman brought •up a report of the deputation which had waited upon the-Town Lands Trustees (already published.) Mr Girdwood reported that he had been- stopped from ' taking gravel out of the Borough'gravel-pit by the Borough overseer, although the Council had given them permission/ Th<s work of gravelling the schoolground had,- therefore, not progressed so well. The thanks of the 1 Committee were due to Mr R, McKenzie for allowing gravel to be taken; He "had also attended to various minor matters in connection with improvements, There were now five'swings in place of one, The Chairman said unless they went to the ground they could have no idea what Mr Girdwood had done. He moved a vote of thanks to Mr Girdwood, \ The motion was carried. A vote of thanks to Mr McKenzie was also passed. Mr Woodroofe was appointed visiting member for the ensuing month; The meeting then adjourned.' ; ■