HARAPIPI SCHOOL

Waikato Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 2607, 28 March 1889, Page 2

HARAPIPI SCHOOL

-#- TO THE EDITOR. Sir, In your issue of the 21st, there is a letter from Mr W. H. James, on the above subject, who seems very much put out at my renort of the Inst meeting of the District School Committee, and the result of a petition that himself and others had sent to the Board of Education, and wishes me to specify the untruthful parts of it. That is very soon done as I can say the whole of it is untrue and the committee came to the same conclusion, as they considered the charges made in it against Mr Cornforth a« malicious and unfounded. Now what isthe meaning of unfounded, Mr .lames? I simply reported the verdict of the committee as well as my own. The petition begin* by saying that Mr Cornforth never gave satisfaction. Now that is falsehood No. 1 to bogin with, as how is it that for the whole of the six years that he has been here, this is the first time that any complaint has been brought before the committee ''. the Board of Education has never had any cause of complaint against him, and all tho inspectors have been quite satisfied with tho management of the school. Mr Goodwin's last report received a short time back, states that he is quite satisfied with the work of the school, the discipline and behaviour being sood. Now, I think, that quite settles that part of the question to my reasonable minded person. The next falsehood is that ha has a majority in his favour of tho chairman, and three of the committee who have no children attending; one of the »iid three has two children attending the school. That the said three members think it a pity to disturb Mr 3->rnfnrth on account of his genial disposition and affable hospitality. How do they l:o"\v wb-,t tho friend* o f Mr Cornforth LhrnUV Hinting in an underhand sort of Vwiy'that the coinniitt«e me bribed in ids fawmr by his hospitality, that is falsehood No. 3. If any of the committee will come forward and say that they have been bribed in that way, I will admit that [am wrona in No. 3. Also that he has devoted noarly all his time to teaching one bov, the son of the chairman. Now, anyone who knows anvthina at all about the system of teaching in a Board school, will know that this is quite impossible, and therefore is as false as the previous statement. Tho only extra time that he ever spent on the said pupil was in the evenings after school hours, when, I presume, he is at liberty to do what ho likes with his time. One of the causes of complaint is that the majority in the committee is composed of members, two of whom have no children. Now, the (wo principal promoters of this precious petition might have gone into the committee at tho last election, but would not, and the chairman had to bog of the two bachelors to go in to make up the required number, and now they complain that the master is retained by the bachelors. The latter are far the best men to have on a committee, as they are not influenced by a lot of tales taken home by children and old women's yarns. Mr James should be one of the last men to complain, as the school has been established hero for over twelve years, and during the whole of that time he has never done a hand's turn to assist it in my way, never having been on the committee, saying some years ago that he should want to be paid for his time, when the question of getting a sctiool was first mooted, he refused to subscribe towards it, saying he nover intended to send his children, hut wheu it was finished and in working order, quietly sneaked in and reaped the benefit of other men's work and money. Now this is tho sort of party who presumes to dictate how the school should be managed. Mr James says in his letter that 5 years ago he was well aware of the short-comings of the teacher. He must have a very bad memory, as it is not a year sinoe that in the chairman's house ho said he was quite satisfied with Mr Cornforth, but he thought he was a little too easy with the children, and ,1 years ago his children had barely attended the school three months under Mr Cornforth. He also talks about his forbearance and generosity ; it is Mr Cornforth who should say that, as the irregular attendance of Mr James' children, which he admits, has been spoiling the school and robbing the teacher of his salary. If Mr James had been in a district where the compulsory clause was in force he would have

been heavily fined, ho has reaped more benefit from the llarapipi school than over he deserved, and should have been tha last man to find fault with Mr Uomforth who lias been a good friend to him. In his letter there is another falsehood, the number of children represented by the four who sigued the petition, attending school should be 10 not 14. It Mr Jaines has still eaooethes scribendi on him, and wishes for any more information re tho llarapipi school, I shall enlighten him on tho subject, as news in very scarce hero, and I want something to write about. He snys something in his letter about my rusliini? into print. 1 have been a"-, it now over 'J ■ years, a Rood long rush, I think. Hoping you can find room for tho above.—l am, yours, etc., OWN' OouHKSi'oNOKKr. P.S.—The petition \yas a piceo of dirty v/orlv from hapinnine: to «ud, and Mr James should remember tho old proverb, 1 That tho mare you stir dirty water the worse you Tnil ' io —__r————