"OMNE SOLUM FORTH PATRIA." THURSDAY, MAY 14, 1874.

Waikato Times, Volume VI, Issue 312, 14 May 1874, Page 2

"OMNE SOLUM FORTH PATRIA." THURSDAY, MAY 14, 1874.

In continuation of our notice of the proposed Edutation Bill, we poinc out that the salaries of teachers are fixed at £130 and £100 for first and secondclass male teachers respectively, and £70 and £-50 lor female teachers of the same grades. In addition teuchers are allowed a certain proportion of the kjluml fees. The ratepayers in any highway district may levy a special rate not exceeding one-half the amount of the highway rates leviable under tho Act, IST-i, for bnilding and maintaining schools and teachers' houses. Any district not levying a rate, it may be levied by tho Superintendent after notice. It appears to us that the voluntary rate has been introduced to us as a blind, in place of candidly admitting that the rates directly leviable by the Act will not be sufficient to carry out an efficient system. Voluntary rating is to be resorted to, and that only to this extent : "If you don't rate j ourselves the Superintendent will do ib for you." Had tho minimum of the voluntary rate been fixed there would have been some sense in the clause ; in its ulsencu the threat held out of the Superintendent rating is a farce. It would only be neceabaiy to levy a nominal rate to escape from tho puwtr of tho Superintendent. Teachers arc to bo «-i\on power to suu for rates, and a3 commission, wo- presume, far their trouble, are to be allowed tj rdiviu a ciiitaiii pioportion of the sum so recovered This primps, is tho wor&t clause in the IJill, it i.-, ciMluinly tin* most abhiud of Iho-u rofening f<»

detail, and is calculated to produce most disa^ii-u-* results. The teachers should, in our opiuion, uul} louk to head-quai ters for their payment A teacher of all men should ho popular with find respected by the people wlios" children he is to educate. Turning him into a small de'>t collector from parent? o >uld not fail lo prove mischievous. Teachers are to receive from the general fund the foes for all exempted children. The compulsory clauses may bo put into force by the Superintendent on a requisition of the majority of the households s. The provisions for exemption from attendance arc the same as in the present Acfc. In the event of a parent omitting (o send his child to school he is to lo sued for the amount of fees he would have had to pay had lie attended. By this it appears that a parent may neglect his child provided he pays his school fees. The commissioner may, with the consent of the Superintendent, establish free schools in districts in which he may consider it desirable on account of the poverty of the inhabitants. When necessary, teachers in out-districts may teach from house to house. The commissioner may, on the application of auy committee, convert any elementary schools into a superior school. Every superior j school shall have a head master, whose duty it shall be to teach the higher classes. Provision is made for the establishment of high schools in populous towns for girls and boys. The commissioner to have the power to nominate School Boards to manage high schools in each district ; also the power to appoint their duties. We trust that this Bill will not pas? its second reading, as undoubtedly it is in many respects a very inferior measure to that at piesent in force. In fact, there is nothing in any of its clauses that in our opinion is an improvement. The present Act, with the exception of the rating clause, appears to us to be as effective a measure as, judging from the present effort, is likely to emanate from the brains of the present Executive. The rating clause is certainly different, but it will not in any way adjust the incidence of taxation. The man of small means, provided he has children to educate, is not relieved one tittle; and the man immediately above Mm only bears more burden to the extent of the school fees. The affluent man is certainly supposed to contribute an additional £, but the rate being on the assessed value of his house, very few even of these will be liable for ifc. The substitution ot a political commissioner for a non-political Board is in itself a mistake, but it is something mere ; we can only see it in the light of a barefaced attempt to find a salary for some friend of the Executive, and probably for one of themsel ves. It would be a great advantage to our Superintendent and his Executive just entered into office to have a subservient commissioner to danco to any tune they might play. The giving of power over education to the Highway Boards is also a previous mistake. To sum up the whole matter in a few words, tho Bill is about the worst production that we ever remember to have emanated from men with any preteiihion to legislative ability. We can scarcely believe that His Honor the Superintendent can have given much attention to the matter, otherwise a Bill would never have been brought forward with absurdities and something- worse for the component parts of its leading clauses. Young politicians are usually ambitious, aud his Honor, being goodnatured, has allowed one of his Executive too great liceuse in order that he might at once bound from insignificance to a chariot of fame ; out of pity, he should have checked his ardour, and given a little timely advice in the words of the old proverb "Experience makes fools wise."

Ouv correspondent's letter from Riglnn, which will be found in another column, again calls attention to the desirability of having a steamer trading rogularly along the West Coast of this province. Some of the districts that could be embraced in the service would derive great postal advantages, in addition to the fostering of their trade and inducement to settlement in the neighborhood of the port of call. The uncertainty of communication by sailing vessels is so great that in some instances it is found more advantageous to resort to land carriage, at much greater cost. Notably so in the case of the Waikato. If a steamer tradrd regularly along the coast it would be to the advantage of shippers to hold their goods for the opportunity thus afforded of getting them to their destination at a much lower rate than at present. The Waikato settlers should bring to bear all the pressure in their power to induce the Godernment to subsidise a steamer to trade between the Manukau and the ports named in the letter above referred to. I The " ruling passion " was delightfully exhibited in the Provincial Council yesterday afternoon, when Mr G. M. Reed, the Provincial Treasurer, was moving the second reading of the Education Bill. The ancient pulpit afflatus- j overshadowed him like a dream of (pity 'tis so) half-forgot- ' ten times, and, instead of saying the thirty-first " clause " of the bill, he referred members to the " thirty-first verse.'' Then ran round tbo Legislative hall ono loud guffaw ; and Mr Reed, with native modesty, doffed tho ancient cassock? assumed tho legislative robe, said " clause" by way of correction and proceeded with his argument. The laughter ceased, but a solemnity, induced by the reverential quoting of chapter and rerae, cast a very temporary halo of seeming devoutness over the congregation of councillors, and tho sneering philosophers scored ono against the reverend Treasurer. — Cross. The Otaijo Provincial Government advortises in the Otago papers that " being desirous of promoting the plantation of forests in those parts of the Pnn ince where timber is scarce, and there being in tho Botanical Gardens, at Dunedin, ready for transplanting some 61,000 healthy forest tree plants of various kinds, it is proposed to dispose of the same at tho rate of from 15s to 30s per hundred, to such persons as can give satisfactory assurance that they have land pro" perly fenced and ready for their receipt." The Alexandra, and all settlers on tho Waipa are to bo congratulated on the fact that the late lain lias increased the depth of water in their rhcr about five feet. It is purposed to attempt to make a trip to Alexandra with one of tho steamers this morning. The river is fulling rapidly, yet, wo hope that she will be able to reach her destination. Tho settlers in that portion of the Delta, watered by the Waipa, are sadly in want of a railway. Major Clare, ",of Cambridge, has lccuivecl a supply of 2,0°.) T-ni >s from Mr J. C Firth for distribution amongst f' -'• «s who desire to plaut them. The present is a f. » ' 'ime to put them in the ground ; they should be u.i > iv inches apart in drills twelve inches asunder, and liiiliintcil at greater inter fjils in May or June of the following year. XoLico is given by advertisement that tho partnership hitherto existing between Mr .Tamca Gihbous, and Mr Morton Jones, us saw-mill proprietors at Waiuku, has been dissohed. We huvp to uclmowlcdgo the receipt of a copy of Muoria, a sketch of tin- iiiiiiiut'ijuiiil custom-* of the original iii'-mbi-t mis of New Zonlaiifl, by Ciiptnin J C. John-tone. We ucciu'd l.wt cviMimjr n copy of ihu lliiiliuavs Uill ! I In- S|m'i!ui ill llu I'luvinci.il Council. We bliall giu i (I it;' \> <<i I hi 1 ISilliu our nt'\t issue. *