IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) // 1.0 I.I 1.25 us 14.0 1.4 12.5 22 1.8 '1.6 V] «^ Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 ,4v ^1^ cF <^ o*^ ^ v (meaning "CON- TINUED"), or the symbol V (meaning "END"), whichever appliea. Un das symboles suivants apparaTtra sur la derniAre image de cheque microfiche, salon le caa: le symbols —^ signifie 'A SUIVRE ", le symbols V signifie "FIN". Maps, plates, charts, etc., may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too large to be entirely included in one expoaure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, aa many framea aa required. The following diagrama illustrate the method: Lea cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent dtre filmte d des taux de rMuction diffirents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre reprodult en un seul cliche, il est filmA d partir do I'angle sup^rieur gauche, de gauche i droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images n^cessaire. lias diagrammes suivants illustrent la m^thode. 1 2 3 32X 1 2 3 4 5 6 SEPARATE SCHOOLS. Archbishop Tache Answers Some Statements Agfainst Catholic Schools. To the Editor of the Free Press. Sir,— What has appeared in the press lately is an undoubted proof that thero is a desire to strike a fatal blow at the Catholic schools of Manitoba. The ques- tion is so important that, in spite of many other engrossinfz occupations, I would say something in reply. The very importance of the matter demands its discussion to be conducted in a calm and impartial man- ner. Unfortunately the adversaries of the Catholic schools do not always exhibit that fairness which is undoubtedly re- quired in a question of such moment. The law is spoken of without being cited, and its sense is distorted in order to make it obnoxious. Many statistics are invoked, and though, in many instances, quite opposed to the facts, they are pre- sented as conclusive. Appeals to the pas- sions are freely made, promises of a reduc- tion in taxation are held out as a bait, and all that in order to create the impression that if the Catholics are made to pay more for the education of their children, that the burden of the Protestant will be re- duced. Fair minded people may be glad to hear something on theCatholic side of theqnes- tion, so as to enable them to judge if the actual laws are injurious to some part of our population, and if there is a reason- able cause to alter them in such a way that they will become a standing injury to conscientious convictions of Catholi -i. I have no wish to accuse anyone, my »ole aim is to engage in a sacred duty imposed upon me by my position itself. I have no idea of exhausting the subject in the following remarks. I may have, and as others have, to come for- ward again to defend our rights. To-day I merely intend to contradict cer- tain assertions which have come to my knowledge, through the newspapers. I propose dividing my observations into tour different parts. 1— SOURCES OP INCOME FOR THE ELEMEN- TARY SCHOOLS OF MANITOBA, The actual law shows great impartiality and great respect for the equal right' of the population of the Province, in tiie way that its two sections can obtain the benefits granted by the law. Our statutes point out three sources of income for the common schools of the Province. Legislative grant.— The first resource of the scliool's income is the legislative grant, and this is the way the law provides for its distribution between Protestants and Catholics. Section 83.— "The school trustees in each school district, shall in each year, cause to be made a census of the children in such school district from the age of five years to the age of fifteen, both inclusive. . . . And such census after being certi- fied by the secretary-treasurer of the school district under oath . . . shall be presented to the proper superintend- ent, whose duty it shall be to forward same to the Provincial Secrt-tary." Section 84.— "The sum appropriated by the Legislature for common school pur- poses shall be divided between the Pro- testant and Roman Catholic sections of the Board of Education, in proportion to the number of children ... as shown in the census returns." The division is made by two members of the Govern- ment. Such \r the law, it recognizes that the grant foi 'education is for the benefit of the school population of the province; it acknowledges that each child has an equal right, and provides for each child receiving an equal share of the public money granted for educational purposes. There cannot be surely a mode of apportionment more just, more equitable and more in con- formity with equal rights than the basis recognized by our legislation. This year every child on the census received a Uttle more than $5 each, and as long as one does not receive more than anoiiier there can be no injustice— the Protestant can- not complain, and the Catholics ought to be satisfied, all the children are on a per- fectly equal footing; the law does not favor one more than another, and could not without manifest injustice take from the children of one section to give to the children of the other. It may occur, and does occur, that in isolated settlements there are greater difficulties to support the schools, but this is equally the case for CathoUcs as for Protestants. It is for the interested parties and their respective sections of the board to remedy the difficulties as far possible, while the law fixing the appoint- ment of public money for the whole pro- vince cannot rest on a better basis than the one on which it now stands. (b) Assessments.— The second source of income for tbe schools is the result of the taxes levied on the ratepapers, Protest- ants or Catholics, and that in conformity with the decision of the board of school trustees respectively. Every other re- quest of the law having been complied with, the trustees apply to the municipal authorities to secure the amount they think necessary for the working of the schools under their care. The law is very explicit in guarding the school and muni- cipal authorities against the danger of levy- ing taxes from ratepayers for the benetit of a a school which is not under the control of their section. The following quotation is clear enough to show the spirit of the law and to remove all misapprehension. In clause 30th, I read: "In no case shall a Protestant ratepayer be obliged to pay for a Catholic school, or a Catholic rate- payer for a Protestant school." The pro- vision of the law is perfectly clear and in- telligible, and how is it possible that men who ouaht to be serious, can say or write, "The Protestants of this country have been directly taxed to educate the child- ren of Catholics. "No, such is not the rase, the Protestants are taxed for the education of their own children and the Catholics the same for theirs. The ad- versaries of Catholic schools must rely to a great extent on prejudice, or ignorance, when arguing on aflarma- tions so contrary to law and prac- tice. I then say that the second source of revenue for the support of element- ary schools as directed by the law secures equal rigiits to Protestants and Catholics, without any privilege in favor of one over the other. (c) Taxes from incorporate bodies.— The third source of income is from the taxa- tion imposed on associated or incorporated companies. This point merits particular attention. The companies, whose title is that of individuals, are treated by the law as if they were individuals, so that if John & Co. are Protestants their taxation goes to the Protestant schools, but if they are Catholic the Catholic schools get the benefit. That is perfectly clear in the law. "Religious, benevolent, or educational incorporations, shall pay their respective assessments to the schools of their respective denomina- tions," as provided in clause 30, and that, even when no individual name is known or given. With regard to ordinary and mercantile corporations, clause 28 says: "The cor- porations situated in a locality where dif- ferent school districts are established shall be assessed only for the school district of the majority; yet out of such assessment the council of the local municipality, city or town shall give the school district of the minority a part of such assessment, in proportion to t^e number of children of school age. This disposition of the law has its inconven- iences as well as its advantages when we consider such a place or company apart, but it is Impossibie to find it unjuat wneu it is examined in relation to the whole Province and to all its inhabitants. Companies are formed undeniably to benefit pecuniarily their shareholders; such shareholders do not rely exclusively on a portion of the community to secure business. They look up to the whole popu- lation and never refuse customers because they are Catholics, why then should not Catholics share with the Protestants out of the taxes of such corporation who de- sire their profits from both sections? A division seems most just. But how should the taxes be divided, except according to population ? But the taxes are in favor of the school popul ation. Therefore it has seemed natural to the legislators who framed the school act of Manitoba to take the two sections of the school population as the basis of the division of the money levied on companies who have no other character than that of mercantile institution. To attribute secret motives to the legislators who framed the school law is certainly, to say the least, not an act of good taste. To justify a change in the law, an appeal is now made to the cupidity of the taxpay- ers. The desire to save money may in- duce many to swallow the bait, but men who consider cautiously and fairly the actual disposition of the law cannot say that an unjust preference is secured by anyone. Human laws, as humanity it- self, are never perfect; it is easy to criti- cize or even to destroy; but it is always a difficult task to build up and endeavor to make perfect. The study of the provi- sions of the law for elementary schools convince me more and more that the mo- ment that our schools are divided between Catholics and Protestants, it is difficult, if not impossible, to find an arrangement that will safeguard in a more complete manner than the actual law, the equal rights of the two sections of our popula- tion. 2— MANAGEMENT OF THE SCHOOLS. I have examined in the preceding article the sources of income ro be used for ele- mentary education in Manitoba, and I have pointed out the fairness of the law in safe-guarding the equal rights of the children of the country. I willi^ow ex- amine the management of the schools and see how our actual school laws stand in that same respect. Our schools are man- aged by the board of education, by the superintendents, by the trustees and by the teachers; let us view howj^all this to secure equal rights to the Protestants and Catholics. _. (a) The Board of Education— There is in the general board of education a Protest- ant section entirely composed of Protest- ants; that section has " under its control and management ihe Pro- testant schools of the province; the power of making such regulations as may be deemed fit for their general government and discipline; to arrange for ths proper esarajnation, grading and li- he whole :8. liably to eholders; :clu8ively ;o secure ole popu- s because ould not ants out 1 who de- tions? A iw should irdinfj; to in favor 'ore it has tors who 3a to take opulation ision of lies who ban that attribute ee;islators •tainly, to baste. To I appeal is le taxpay- y may in- , but men fairly the :ann6t say ecured by nanity it- ly to criti- 3 always a ideavor to the provi- ry schools at the mO" d between lifflcult, if an^ement ! complete the equal ar popula- IDOLS. inff article d for ele- ba, and I )f the law lis of the li»ow ex- ;hools and a stand in i are man- n, by the es and by 'all this to jtants and rhere is in a Protest- f Protest- inder its I he Pro- ince; the egulations jir general .rranse for ng and li- S • censing of its teachers; to select all th9 books, maps and globes to be used; to ap- point inspectors, etc., etc." The general management of the Protestant schools is then entirely in the hands of Protestants. The part of the Government grants, ap- portioned to Protestant children, is also in the hands of the Protestant section of the board for the partition imposed by the re- quiremente of their section and according to law, for the greater benefit of the Pro- testant schools. Catholics have nothing to do, and do not wish to have anything to do, with Protestant schools, they see them with pleasure in full enjoyment of their legitimate rights, but at the same time the same Catholics claim the benefit of enjoying similar rights, and the law guarantees what they de- sire, by placing the Catholic schools under the control of the Catholic section of the board of education with exactly the same power and responsibilities. The members of the Protestant section, we are glad to say, desfcfve the confidence of their co- religionists and outside of their personal worth, they are earnest in the cause of education, they are faithful to their trust and everybody must be satisfied that they neglect nothing that can be done to pro- mote the success of the schools under their control. Several of them are well versed in the theory and practice of edu- cation and none will ever consent to a sacrifice of Protestant interests in their schools. It is true that the Catholics en- joy a parallel advantage, but as they have an equel right to it we fail to see why they should be deprived of that enjoy- ment. (b) The Superintendents— There is a Protestant superintendent of education and a Catholic, both appointed by the LieutenantGovernor-in-Council and se- lected respectively out of the msmbers of the Protestant and Catholic sections of the board of education. The superintend- ents "have, as tne esecutive ofiicers of the board of education, the general supervision and direction of the schools of their sec- tions. It is for each of them to fill a re- quisition to the government for all pay- ments authorized by his section of the board uf education, and many other duties fully expressed in the law. Who could imagine that the Protestant super- intendent would tolerate any encroach- ment on the part of the Catholics against the rights of the Protestant schools? Each superintendent has charge of the accounts of his section, and they all must pass through his hands. He reports them to his section and the re- quisitions for payments are made ar.- cordingly, and one may be pretty cer- tain that not one cent of the government grant for Protestant schools will be paid to the Catholic schools. The Catholic superintendent will undoubtedly do the same and the equal rights of the two sections of the population are thus well protected and safe-guarded against any attempt aiming at their violation. Is not this all fair and right ? (c.) School trustees.— Each school is under the direct management of school > trustees. Consequently ail the Protestant schools are immediately managed by a school board elected by Protestants and whose members are all Protestant as the law states, "No person shall be elegible to be elected or to serve as a school trustee who is not a resident ratepayer of the dis- trict or ward which he proposes to repre- sent." We have seen that Protestants alone can be assessed for the sup- port of Protestant schools, consequently Protestantf. alone are ratepayers of their school district and alone are eligible. The position of. Catholics with their schools is the same and the rights are equal. To the trustees who form a corporation, be- longs a\l the school property of the dis- trict, the apportionment to their school of the government grant, and the moneys derived from the taxes are under the con- trol of the trustees; as far as each school is concerned, it is pretty evident that the Protestant trustees will not allow Catholics to share in those moneys and vice versa. (d) Teachers.— The teachers in the Pro- testant schools are selected by trustees. They must have been previously recog- nized by the Protestant section of the board of education, they must have given proof of their fitness for the position, and it is evident that their action, in the care of the children, must be in ac- cordance with Protestants ideas, with Protestant interests, and give full securities to the parents. The Catholics have the same advantages, but nothing beyond; and parents, as a general rule, are exceedingly anxious as to the religious kind of training that is given to their children, it is certain that nothing in that direction can satisfy them except by giv- ing the children teachers of their own choice. Let, then, Protestant and Catho- lic schools be taught respectively as they are, and it is the only practical way to give equal rights to the whole population and to meet the views of the parents, whose legitimate claims cannot be disre- garded. 3. SOME REASONS WHY THE ASSESSMENT IS DIFFERENT BETWEEN CATHOLIC AND PROTESTANT vSCHOOL DISTRICTS. There are many reasons to explain the difference which exists in the expenses of the schools under the control of the two sections of the board of education, and these reasons must be considered in the gathering of statistics, to give a full and adequate idea of the standing of the two sections. Statistics are very good, but to be a sure guide they must be complete; a man may be lame on account of an un- sound leg, but he would still be more lame with a beautifully shaped leg, if he has hut the one; just the same with statistics, they are lame if they rest on unsound and • I false flRures. They would equally be ua- exact if based only on one part of the in- formation they are supposed to give. Therefore, I think proper to brinp; before the public some information which is ignored, or at least not alluded to in the controversy which is going on with regard to our school system. (a) Debts. The different school boards have equal rights to incur debts, and they are perfectly justifiable to do so if such is the wish of the ratepayers who elect them, and if they act in accordance with the pro- visions of the law. But they must be ready to bear the consequences of such, and after they have run deeply into debt it is surely perfectly unfair to complain that they have heavier asBessment, as they have to provide for interest and sink- ing funds. Now, the Protestant school boards have decided to borrow large sums of money, and, if I am not wrongly in- formed, tho aggregate obligations in that respect amount to about half a million of dollars. Observe, please, I do not blame the Protestants of the country for having shown, to that extent, their anxiety to secure at once large school accommodation, etc.; that was their con- cern as it is their right,and I have not the remotest idea of even passing a remark on their conduct, but the debt is incurred, it is incurred not for Catholics, who have not the remotest reason to share in the benefits acquired by the borrowed money. Having no right to the benefit, they may be pardoned to decline the obligation of paying for the same, or even the odium derived from the comparison between their small liabilities and that of their fellow-citizens. The aggregate amount of debts incurred by all the Catholic school district of the province does not reach $6,000. Con- sequently the taxes to pay the interest and provide for sinking funds is insigni- ficant compared with that accepted by the Protestant population, through their re- presentatives in their different school boards. „ , The whole debt for Catholic purposes being only one-eightieth part of the amount due by Piutestant schools, no wonder that the taxation is entirely dis- proportionate; but why is not this bit of knowledge recorded along side of the fig- ures given by opponents to Catholic schools? Such figures being incomplete and entirely one-sided, can convey but a very inadequate idea of the real state of things. (b) Help to save expenses to school dis- tricts. Before entering on this topic I unhesitatingly admit that I may be ig- norant of facts which would, naturally, change what I am going to say. If such be the case I will be thankful for being furnished with accounts referring to the subject, and will be the first to acknow- lAd^e anv error and to correct it. I judge from what I see and hear travel- ling through the country, and any error, if there be any, comes from the fact that I avoid scrutinizing in the carrying out of Protestant schools. I am under the im- pression that all the expenses with regard to schools and school accommodations are sustained by ratepayers among Protest- ants. If I am not mistaken, the beautiful building, valuable grounds adapted to school purposes in Winnipeg, Brandon, and elsewhere, not only belong to school boards, but have been secured to the ex- pense of the ratepayers, and conseiquently have contributed largely to increase school taxation among Protestants. Should things be as I think they are, I re- geat that I find no fault in the system, ut nevertheless it is anotherexplanation, taking the province as a whole, of the diff'erence of school taxation, between the Catholic and Protestant populations. The Catholic school districts besides what they possess and have paid for, enjoy the advantage of school accommoda- tions for a value of over one hundred thousand dollars, of which the ratepayers have not furnished one single cent, and this undoubtedly, is another fair explana- tion why their taxation is reduced to a certain degree, and this ought to have been mentioned along with figures given, if intended to convey a complete idea of the condition of our schools. (c) Savings with regard to teachers. I naturally admit that high price is one of the ways to secure the services of well qualified persons for teaching, and it seems to be the only resource at the com- mand of our Protestant friends. Over and aside of thit. ordinary way of securing good teachers, the Catholics have an ad- vantage that they highly appreciate, and which is not entirely despised by Protest- ants of standing and enlightenment. The advantage I allude to is the one secured bv the valuable services of persons, who do not teach for the sake of money or for making a living out of it, but who do teach as a sacred duty towards God and society, and who teach either for nothing or for the small amount barely giving them food and clothing. This consideration goes a good way a gainst taxation, and is another factor of the difference which exists between the two sections of our school system. Any person will admit that this does no harm to Protestants while it does a great deal of good to Catholics. The raising of the salary of these teachers would undoubted- ly increase the taxation among the Cath- olics, but would in no way diminish that of the Protestants, and the cause of edu- cation would gain nothing by it. Ideas on this topic are so erroneous among some people that saving expenses to ratepayers with regard to teachers, means poor teaching. Such men seem to ignore completely that there were, there are and there will be thousands and thousands of the very best qualified teach- ers who never received and will never re- ceive one dollar from any government grant or any assessment levied on rate* payers. I will examine elsewhere some of the ideas suffKested by what has just been above stated, but it is undeniable that as far as money is concerned the teachers who ask less are a saving resource to the ratepayers, and to tabulate complete stat- istics, the saving thus effected ought to be taken into consideration; and while rais- ing a cry among the Protestants because of their assessment with regard to school, fairness would require to state all the rea- sons why it is so. (d.) Collegiate Schools.— It must be born in mind that i;U the monies spent by the trustees of the Catholic schools are exclusively spent for elementary schools. Higher education among Catholics i» pro- vided otherwise than by legislative grant or assessment levied on the ratepayers. Catholic trustees have not to provide for collegiate or intermediate departments. It is hot necessary to tell any person vers- ed in the matter that this by Itself goes a good way to explain why a larger portion of the legislative money, and a smaller as- sessmGnt, are shared in by the Catholic schools, compared with the Protestants, who having to provide for collegiate or in- termediate schools, out of the same fund, receive less and give more for their purely j elementary schools. f But why do not Catholics do as Pro- I testants ? To this I will simply answer: ?' Why do not Protestants do as Catholics? Our friends wish to have collegiate and intermediate departments supported out of the legislative grant and assessment; very well, let them satisfy themselves, but we may ask them not to grumble against others, after having chosen themselves to spend a part of their school income fehat way. Catholics have the same right to act, and they do act otherwise, and as they chose for themselves and thereby do no harm to others, I think they could be let alone. Human afTairs ought not to be considered under one aspect only; men can act in a diflferent manner from others and act as wisely. Business men have different methods, and with a variety of proceedings may arrive at the same gen- eral result. Uniformity and complete similitude do not always develop all the faculties, contrast does not prevent har- mony, emulation promotes success more than monopoly. (e) Number of Schools— It is evident that the number of schools is one of the reasons why the assessment is largely different. The number of schools is not a necessary result of the system of educa- tion in itself, but rather of incidental cir- cumstances. The Protestant section has under its control 103 schools, with a school population of less than 15, while the Cath- olic section have but 4 schools in such cir- cumstances. 104 Protestant schools have a school population from 15 to 20 child- ren each, while the Catholics have only 9 with a similar population. The moment there is such disproportion in the number of even lesser schools, it is natural that a laree assessment bo the result; but sup- posing that the Catholics multiply their schools and that they would bring their number to be to the Protestant schools exactly the proportion to that of the children of the two sections. That will in no way alter the taxa- tion of Protestants. Therefore I cannot see why they should be excited against the Catholic schools, as if really Catholics were helping themsel ves out of their poc- kets. But are not Catholics increasing the number of their schools ? They are, but not with the same rapidity as Protestants do and that for two reasons quite differ- ent one from the other, they are numerous in their settled districts and too few when scattered through the country. In many instances the Catholic settlers could not secure a reasonable attendance, and then they do not care to establish a school district. Many new Catholic settlers would rather go in a settled part of the country and their presence, while increasing the school population of existing districts, does not necessitate the erection of new ones. There is, in this respect, as in many others, great diflFerence between the views of the two sections of the popula- tion, each one believing in the superiority of its own choice. People coming from Ontario believe in square blocks near to or far from any neighbor, they come for farming and large areas is what they chiefly consider, and to obtain that object, they are ready to sacrifice many other consio^rations, while others are guided by ceicain social consider- ations, they like close neighbors, tbsy dread isolation, they would lather be near a church and consequently near a school, they find the prairie too mild, isolation too lonesome, and if they have a little money in their pockets, they would rather pay for a piece of land in an old settle- ment or any established part of the coun- try, rather than to take a homestead iti an unoccupied or thinly settled part. There are exceptions, the exceptions constitute the isolated population unable to form school districts, while the main body of the new comers merely increase the at- tendance in already formed school dis- tricts. All this may be bad to Catholics and good to Protestants, it is a matter of taste and choice, but it is in no way the result of the school law, nor could it be materi- all altered by school regulations. From the tenure of this article it is obvi- ous that debts are one great cause of the disproportion in taxation, although no- body can think of forcing the Catholics to pay the debt of others. Help gratuitously given to elementary Catholic schools in the shape of school ac- coTTiTTtOvtartion, etc., hcis unuouotsdjj* al* leviated of as much, the burden of the 8 Catholic ratepayerH, but our" friends have no idea, I am sure, of taking that advan- tage from us. The self-denial of many Catholic school teachers turned to the benefit of Catholic ratepayers who are fully determined to continue to enjoy the same privilege. Influx of population will soon increase the number of Catholic schools, and as far as I can see, I may say that in a near future they will be in a fair proportion with others, so there is no need of fearing that the Catholics will pay too little, when especially they do not ask others to pay for them. OBJECTIONa ANSWERED, (a) "Facts from the census," says one of the newspapers, '"ought to satisfy any "reasonable mind of the absurdity of fur- "ther tokrating separate or denomina- "tiona'i schools." la that so? Is the Catholic minority of Manitoba so "insig- nificant" as to be treated that way? To the man who wrote this I will ask : Do you think that the Protestant minority of Que- bec is so small that the Catholic majority could rijihtly and fairly frame a system of schools according to their own views in the matter, and force it upon the said Protestant minority? You know what would be the result through the whole Dominion and all Protestant countries, if the majority of Quebec would attempt to deprive the Protestant minority of their acquired rights with regard to the educa- tion of their children. The Catholics of Quebec, except forced to it, as a measure of retaliation, will never think or dream of such an injustice, while we plainly see that too many Protestants of Manitoba do not shrink from the responsibility of doing such an injurious and unconstitu- tional wrong to the Catholic minority of the Prairie Province. You make an appeal to the census, but like some other statistics, your appeal is lame and one sided. You acknowledge that the Catho- lic population is 14,651, you acknowledge also that the balance of the population of the province, exclusive of the Indians, is 88,325. Well, these two fractions of our population gives the Catholic element a larger proportion than that of the Protest- ants of Quebec compared with the Catholiri portion of the same province. Yes, the Catholic minority of Manitoba is in pro- portion, larger than the Protestant min- ority of the Province of Quebec, and that even in counting among the non-Catho- lics of the two provinces, the Jews, those without religion, or without any given re- ligion. ^ . . , Look in the census of the Dommion for 1881 and you will easily establish the ratio. The Catholics of Quebec numbered 1,170,718, while the non-Catholics of the fiaid province merely attained 188 309. Now, complete ths proportion with 88,325 non-Catholics of Manitoba compared with li,631 Catholics in the same province and the result will show that we are less "insi^niflcant" in Manitoba than are the" "Protestants in Quebec, and consequently that the Catholics have just as much rights here as Protestants have there; and the effort to do away with the Catholic schools in Manitoba would be as unconstitutional, as unjust and shameful as any attempt which would tend to de- prive the Protestants of Quebec of similar acquired rights. (b) The adversaries of denominational schools atiirm and repeat that what they call public, common or national schools are far superior to separ.%te, free or inde- pendent schools. Those who make such affirmation, as a rule, have never put a foot in a Catholic school, they have never examined and studied their curiculum, they have never been in a position or have never desired to know anything about them: they know nothing but their own schools, and, with the self-commendation which characterizes men who know noth- ing but themselves and their immediate surroundings, pronounce the schools of others to be of no value. Catholics have some reasons to console themselves of what their adversaries affirm gratuitously. Catholic parents or their true friends cannot be so stupid or so blind as to be ignorant of what is going on in their midst, and if, in reality, the education in their schools was so inferior, they would provide for the deficiency. I, sometimes, meet with people who boast much of the superiority of their educational system, and I must confess that I fail to perceive the application of their wonderful theor- ies. Two modes of education may differ in their details and be equally good or equally bad, or superior in one point and inferior in another. The Catholic system is better known among its promoters and supporters than bv people who have no chance or desire to become ac- quainted with it. It is a big, big affair to have a full knowledge of a system of education, its result on individuals, families, or even on socie- ty in general. Long experience, deep knowledge, broad views are required, be- sides a sound intellect, to comprehend the multiple aspects of an educational system. I have no hesitation to say that the scribes who arraigned the Catholic school with such levity prove that they themselves are not prepared for such an important task. At all events. Catholics cherish their institutions, and they are the most interested, they think that it rests with them to decide, happy as they are to find now and then out of their body ample proof to corrobDrate their own con- victions. We will select one which is re- corded in public documents by the Gov- ernment of Manitoba, and which we are sure, is very litt;le known among the would-be destroyers of Catholic schools in our midst. In the fall of 1885 Sir Charles Tupper visited the province with the view of having it taking part in the inter-colonial exhibition which was to take place in England during the follow- ing year. The "Catholic section of the M ( Board of Education was invited to help In the exhibit. The proposition at flrnt was met with little favor, it was after vaca- tion; the HchoolH had hardly organized for the new year; there was no time to pre- Eare anything new; nevertheless, the anadian commigsioner was so pressing, that objections were overruled, and a col- lection was made in some of the nearest schools out of the worfe of the pupils of the previous year. The most advanced had left their classes, some of the best work had lieen lost or carried away, and none had been prepared in view of the ex- hibition. Ei^ht schools furnished sampk-sof their worli in different branches, the whole was forwarded to England, it was exhibited there. It attracted so much at- tention that every article exhibited was examined, re-examined in such away that when they were returned their condition proved that they had passed through a great many hands. A diploma of merit and a medal of honor were sent to each of the schools, as well as to their superin- tendent, who had contributed to the ex- hibit, and we had a proof that such com- plimentary recognition was not merely a matter of form. Capt. W. Clarke, as every one knows, was the Manitoba re- presentative at the Colonial and Indian Exhibition, and here is the way the gal- lent and intelligent representative wrote to the Superintendent of Catholic Schools in Manitoba:— "London, 27th July, 1880. "Dear Sir,— I can speak from experience with reference to the eiccellence of your sec- tion, two of my daughters having been for a long time with the good Slaters of St, boniface, wliere their progresa was as satisfactory to me as it was pleasant to them. I am, sir Your Obedient Servant, (Signed) William Clarke." T. A. Bernier, Esq.. Supt. of Education. Mr. Clarke, is not a Catholic, nor has he shown any tendencies towards Rome, but through his daughters he has acquired some knowledge of a Catholic school in Manitoba, and so was prepared to ac- knowledge without surprise the merit of their exhibit. Sir Charles Tupper is not a Catholic neither, and is known all over for his superiority and patriotism; here is the way that the Canadian High Commis- sioner speaks of the Catholic schools of Manitoba : "Colonial and Indian Exhibition, 1886. "Canadian Section, "London, 29th July, 1886. To T. H, Bernier, Esq. "jWy Dear Sir,- I duly received your letter of the 3rd inst., and thank you for the memor- andum which you have prepared on behalf of your section of the Manitoba educational ex- hibit. I shall be pleased to receive a thousand copies of the memorandum and to see that they are carefully distributed. The exhibit which you have taken such pains to collect has already attracted considerable attention, and I do not doubt it will add to the success of the Dominion at the exhibition. I remain, yours faithfully, [Signedl Chas. Tupper.' Is it' poflsible? "Can anythinst stood come from (that sort of> Nazareth?" Yes, friends, come and sc-o that Sir Charles Tupper does not hesitate to say that the exbibiilon of the ordinary work of the pupils of Catholic uchools of Manitoba will "add to the success of the Dominion at the exhibition," If you are not satis- fied with such testiiviouies, listen to the following remarks published in the Can- adian Gazette of London on the 4th of No- vember, 18H0: "It is generally believor that of all the sis- ter-provinces, that of Manitoba is the least ad- vanced towards civilization. We already Know that in many respects such is not the case: but if wo consider the excellent echoltistic exhibi- tion of that provincrt. wo see in what degree that impression is erroneous, especially in the matter of education. "The collection contains samples of boohs, exercises, scholastic niaterlal.^etc, etc., com- ing from the Cttholic schools as well as from the Protestant schools of the province. "The excellence of the work, and especially of tho geographical charts, is incontestible. This is tho more pleasing if we consider the fact that many exhibits arc dated from tho your 1881 and the beginning of the year 1885. it IS evident the exhibit is composed of the ordi- nary duties of the schools in all the parts of the province, and not of work specially prepared for the occasion." "No pretention has been made to eclipse tho school exhibits of the other provinces; but the collection that is under our eyes denotes that in one of the most recently "organized" pro- vinces of the Confederation there exists a school system, which, although respecting the faith and religious convictions of the pouula- tion, offers to every one an education capable of lltting for the highest rank of the society, tho child who is placed under its care." (c) That school of Brandon ! ! I— The Brandon Sun of the 8th instant serves its readers with a piece of queer informa- tion. It speaks of the convent of Brandon as if there were in that institution an average attendance of only 20 pupils with five teachers, and he exclaims: 'Imagine live teachers in a school of twenty chil- dren, or one teacher for each four pupils 1" Undoubtedly such a state of affairs would be very funny; I regret to spoil the fun, in positively affirming that the statement is not what it ought to be. Looking at the last report published by the Government for the Catholic section of the board of education I Und, that dur- ing the two terms provided for during the year 1888, there were on the roll of the Brandon school 83 pupils; the family and first names being given on the school re- port, as well as the age of the children and all the information lequired; the register of the school during the year, taking 200 days as the basis of the calcula- tion, given an average attendance of 50 children; two sisters were employed in in- culcating to the 83 children the knowledge required by the curiculum. According to regulations, 83 children of different grades are a sufficent number to consider the school as a double one, requiring two teachers, and entitled on that account to a double share of Government grant: this is all for the school of Brandon if it were 8 merely an elementary school, and, In fpct, it Ih all that falln untter the law of educa* tlon. There is no provision in the law forbid- dlnpc an elementary school from enjoying more prlvllegos If the opportunity is of- fered; and especially when nothiuf? is taken for that object, either from Govern- ment jJtrant or from ratepayers. The The Catholic school of Brandon secures Huch advantapes to those of the pupils whose parents wish that their children might enjoy them. Instrumental music is not one of the branches prescribed by the curiculum of the elementary schools, bat many young ladies of Brandon have a spocial taste for such an acquirement, and m the convent they find a good sister able and willing to satisfy such tastes and that sister is the third teacher, and it is known that she has plenty of work. Ornamental draw- ing, painting, embroidery, fancy needle work and many other such things, very pleasant to young ladies of refined dis- positions are not on « he programme of elementary schools, but they are taught in the Brandon convent, and to avoid in- terfering with the teaching of ordinary branches another sister is in charge of the department; that brings the number of teachers to four. Another lady of the convent is also there for the aeneral supervision ; to answer the calls of visit- ors, so preventing the sifeter to be disturb- ed during class hours. Thatsisterbeinglike her companions.a well accomplished teach- er, is there to help or replace them in case of sickness or other emergencies, so that no time could be lost, nor the progress of children retarded. This last one is the fifth teacher spoken of and as well as the third and the fourth mentioned above, is not the teacher of the ordinary course, and consequently receives no part of the Gov- ernment grant nor from the assessment levied on ratepayers. I confess my inability to find fault with the arrangement of such a school, and I wonder if any man versed in educational matters would dare to, I do not say ridi- culize, but even to speak against an in- stitution because it is thus provided, though receiving through the law merely the support given to the ordinary elementary schools. I know the con- vent of Brandon, it Is a beautiful house with fine class rooms, well lighted and well ventilated; the educa- tion and the training given there are su- perior. The whole establishment is un- doubtedly a credit to the eastern part of the city, and a valued benefit to the school population. But that school is a terrible burden, it costs so much to the country ! Well, as we have said above, that school is considered as two schools, receiving from the government grant what is prescribed by law, that is to say $150 each, also the portion of the balance of the government grant which the law prescribes to divide according to the aver- age attendance, that brlngB the amount of public money to ^liiR or about; and as this and other such accounts are publish- ed every year in the Blue Books of Mani- toba, it does not require a very extraor- dinary amount of Intelligence or care, nor a new system of passing the public accounts to arrive to its discovery. If the Catholic ratepayers, as the Sun says, realy add only $160.00 to the Government grant, surely ihey are very fortunate, because then the whole amount paid to the good Bisters would be altogether $575 00; there- fore, here is a body of English ladies, per- fectly qualified to give a high education and training to children; who give accom- modation in a fine house of their own, on a beautiful spot; who furnish it, heat it, keep it in repair and good order; who give primarv education to the children of the distrit'f, who supply the school with the necessary staff; and all that for $575.00. I would like to know how many effec- tive schools with such a number of chil- dren cost less than the school of Brandon. Besides, the money given was taken from the part of the legislative grant already apportioned to the Catholic schools, consequently it was the money belonging to and under the control of the Catholic section, and if the money had not been given to the school at Brandon it would have been given to some ot.her Catholic school. According to the report for 1887, the amount of public money given to the Sis- ters of Brandon was for the first term $114, and for the second $123, the in- crease for 1888 was due to the change in the law. (d.) Reserve Fund. ~ Another cry against the Catholic schools is that the section of the Board of Education which controls them, have secured a reserve fund to facilitate their management. The fund was increased according to circum stances, and over $2,000 of interest have brought the whole to ov^r $13,000. As ordered, at the time, by the law, the money was placed in a chartered bank, with the knowledge and approval of the Government, a yearly account was given to the Government, there was no secrecy about it; the section counts a member of the Government in its ranks; he knew the details of the whole affair, so it required no effort on the part of the public men to know everything about the said fund. The moment the Government asked to have that money placed in their hands it was immediately done,and there the money is. Badly disposed people may find fault with H saving of money, as others will blame for expenditures. Anything these days is resorted to to reach one's end. But how could one section of the board have thought of a reserve fund? The ans- wer is very easy. It is simply because the law directed that it could be done. The 90th clause of the school law says: "Each section of the board may reserve "for unforseen contingencies a sum not 9 "exceeding ten per cent of its share of the "appropriation. Such 1m the law, it may seem very foollHh to some as it seemed tolerably wise to others; at all events the Catholic section being empowered by the law, took that course and reserved for un- forsoen contingencies a sum a little less than ten per cent of its share of the dilF- erent appropriations. But why have they done 80? The answer Is this: From the beginning of the province it was found, and the experience is not altered at this date, '.hat the teachers of our schools, be- sides the insufttdency of their salary, had often to serve a full term of Ave months before receiving even anything on account on their salary, and after the terms were over, sometimes they had to •wait two months and more before their well-earned wages were paid, this seemed a great inconvenience which could only be remedied, and in fact was remedied, in having a reserve fund. The moment an account became due and approved by the section of the Board, the superin- tendent paid it out of the reserve fund; and when the Government thought it convenient to give an installment of the voted money, it was deposited in the bank to fill up again or increase the reserve fund, and so forth from term to term and from installment to Installment. By act- ing that way, the Section of the board avoided what is always unpleasant, to apply repeatedly to the Government offi- cers and many times to be delayed by them. They avoided also, which is of more grave consequence, the painful obligation of delaying the payment cf the money due to the teachers and others who had served the cause of education. If this is a fault, I accept the responsibility, as chairman of the Catholic section of the Board of Edu- oatlon; but I cannot abstain from staMng that a Government, which would And such a condition of atrairs in all the state de- partnients.when it is explicitly authorized by the law, should easily acquiesce In the results it has brought about. This la called "misappropriation" by certain par- ties and the remittance of this reserve fund is also, with bad taste, called "dis- gorging," but I trust that the fair play and good sense of the public will give the action of the Catholic section of the board in this matter, its true appellation and will view it in its proper light. I must confess. In conclusion, that I had some difficulty in abstaining from the expression of the feeling of Indignation rained in ray mind by the way which we, as Catholics, are treated by many of our opponents; it is plain and evident that all the dangerous commotions just now being raised has nothing else in view but to injure Catholics as Catholics. I do not know what is in store for the Catholics o( this country.but I unhesitatingly say that while abstaining from attacks on others, the Catholics are fully determined in taking their stand. With the help of Divine Providence, under the protec- tion of the constitution, and strong with the sacredness of their cause, they will, to protect their rights, go to as great lengths as others to injure them. The gravest consequences may result, but the responsibility will rest on those who pro- voke the contest and who boast that "'they do noi care for the letter of the constitu- tion." With thanks, Mr. Editor, I remain Your obedient servant, t Alex., Arch, of St. Boniface, O.M.I, St. Boniface, 21 August, 1880.