X.
Hokitika, New Zealand,
Nov. 10th, 1872.
My dear St. John,
Since my last letter events have happened here of much importance to us in Westland from a Church point of view, and I am thankful to say with successful issue. The general trend of politics in matters educational has been in the direction of a purely secular system. Church schools have for some time held their own with difficulty in Canterbury and elsewhere; Government grants are being withdrawn, and soon it will only be possible to maintain such schools in a few centres, and then in an unequal competition with State schools. But as yet this system has not reached Westland, where our communion, together with that of the Roman Catholics, occupy the field. We have come through a crisis; the situation is saved, and you may be interested in hearing how it came about. Not long ago the office of Commissioner of Goldfields, with his Executive, was abolished, Westland becoming a county with a County Council, empowered to draft Bills for its own government, and to send them to the Houses of Legislature for approval. It so happened that a majority in the Council were in favour of secular education, and proceeded to draft a Bill which would have withdrawn all Government aid to Church Schools.
