New Zealand Tablet. Fiat Justitia. FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 1877. EDUCATION.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume IV, Issue 210, 13 April 1877, Page 10

New Zealand Tablet. Fiat Justitia. FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 1877. EDUCATION.

The New Zealand Magazine for this month contains a very suggestive article, from the pen of Mr. DeLatour, on the subject of technical education. It is not our intention, in this place, to criticise this article ; but this much we say, ib is deserving of serious consideration; and ought to be attentively read by colonists. Jj'ew subjects are of equal importance to the community at large. It appears clear to all who duly consider the subject, that technical education is of vastly greater importance than the mongrel sort of education which Government is labouring to give at an enormous expense, and to such little purpose. It interests the community more to possess intelligent, well-informed agriculturalists, mechanics, engineers, surveyors, architects, seamen, and manufacturers than a crowd of people j who can barely read and write, and hardly know anything i more. No one will dispute this proposition ; and yet, what J has Government hitherto reaped from its enormous expenditure :on schools 1 How many scholars of Government schools can j read fluently, and thoroughly understand what they r^ad ; j how many can write even decently 1 Such as are acquainted with the facts of the case will unhesitatingly answer — certainly the results are not commensurate with the expenditure, and j disappoint our expectations. And it must be so. GovernJ ment undertakes what does not belong to it, and what it is I incapable of accomplishing. It invades the domain of parental rights and duties, and, at a large and greatly disproportioned , expenditure, puts a huge machine in motion to produce a very , small effect. Parents are bound to teach their own children J to read and write, either per se aut per alios — that is, they 1 are bound to provide them with the means t>f learning these things. The Government is no more bouud nor justified in ■ interfering in this matter, than it is bound or justified in pro- ; viding food and clothing for the children of the community. j In cases of neglect on the part of parents, it may, and can, in ths interests of the community at large, interfere in both 1 cases ; but surely exceptional cases do not justify an arbitrary | assumption of parental rights and duties in all cases, and with regard to every member of the community without exception. i Because certain parents neglect their most imperative duties as to the education of their children. Government steps ip> enacts a law for all, puts this law into fores nt the expense of all, punishes indirectly, but efficaciously, all parents who educate their own children well, but who disapprove of the Government system, and refuse to subject their children to what they consider its injurious influence. Because some ! neglect their duty, the Government punishes not the neglectful 1 but the conscientious parents, and taxes all indiscriminately , for the support of its tyrannical and unnatural system. To ] be consistent the Government ought, becivue some parents abandon their children altogether, to undertake to feed and ' clothe all children without exception, to take them from the control of their parents, so far as these are concerned, to insist ' on their being fed in a certain way and on an uniform system iof diet, and tax all for their support. For surely the one is las legitimate and natural and reasonable as the other ; and if educated subjects cannot be provided, unless the State becomes the universal parent in order to this end, neither can strong, healthy subjects, who arc: even more necessary to the State j than educated ones, be secured, unless the State steps iv . between parents aud children, and provides fitting clothing

and nourishing diet for the latter. The argument arising from considerations of the good of the community, the only one alleged, or that can possibly be brought forward in favor of free, secular, and compulsory education, is as conclusive, to say the very least, in the one cade as in the other. But if Qovernment had the good sense and justice to •confine itself to helping the needy, and taking care of the neglected, as is its duty and its right, it would, whilst giving general satisfaction, have the means to do what is clearly its duty, and what it is now grievously neglecting ; and that is, as Mr. De Latour suggests, providing efficient technical schools in the chief centres of population, where children could be taught reading, writing, and arithmetic much better, or, at least, as well as they are now, and, at the same time, some trade, profession, or business which would fit them to use their physical powers usefully and earn their bread. The bit of education picked up at present in the Government schools is, as a rule, practically useless for the purposes of life or society. But we fear Government will not confine itself to its legitimate sphere. The men who influence our Legislature are too earnestly bent on a raid on Catholic consciences, too much afraid of the influence of religion, and too determined to raise up State puppets, to do so. What the State could and ought to do in the way of providing technical education is utterly neglected, whilst all its energies are strained to the utmost, in an effort to prevent the legitimate influence of religion and the Church being felt in the schoolroom ; whilst bearded men are busily engaged in waging an unnatural war against the duties and rights of parents and poor little children, refusing all aid to schools where the commandments of God are taught and His love inculcated, simply because these are taught by the grand old universal Church of Christendom, the resources of the minds of the people, in reference to land, trade, commerce, arts, sciences, are left in their undeveloped state by these men, whose first duty, after providing for the security of life and property, is the development of the physical resources of the community. The fact is, that although our various systems of education have been established ostensibly to provide a modicum of education for ' the children of poor and of neglectful parents, these are the very children whom they do not reach, whilst they afford a cheap education to the children of well-to-do parents. This is also the case in Victoria as well as in other countries. Those who were neglected before are neglected still, but such as enjoyed educational advantages then, enjoy more now. j What possible objection can there be to a system of pay- 1 ments by results in secular subjects. Such a system would create emulation, raise the standard of teaching, develop 6 all the generosity and zeal for education existing in the community, lessen, by at least one- half, the Government expenditure uncommon schools, and thus enable our rulers to establish technical schools, without which we shall not be able to hold a respectable place in the community of peoples. But no ; the rabid bigoted, and tyrannical secularist does not value even a high standard of reading, writing, arithmetic, grammar, and geography, if, whilst learning these things, the pupils have been taught to regard themselves as responsible to their Creator, to say their prayers, to love the Christian's faith, and to do their duty to all. Can there be greater folly ?