The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1866-05-26
Correspondence Of The P. c. Advertiser.
The Board of Education and
PrOtestants.

2 recent number OF the E1CzItGH Gazette, contain
;rg an allusi0n by Mr.. Fernandez to the Uiq;apvka
school, in this district.
The impression clearly conveyed by the reference
Is THAI, under previous Protestant ADMINISTRATION Of
the school fund, Roman Catholics were denied their
rights therein.
How 4 public officer, occupying so important q
situation as does the above named gentleman, aud
l9udly protesting withal 10 administer his trus, on a
HoH-ssctariaH basis. can sit down and write with
such perfect abandon Of the recent past, Is, 10
those VITO know the facts, not a little surprising.
Possibly, however, it may be in sheer ignorance Of
important data connected with his own department.
Whichever horn Of the dilemma is chosen, the case
is against him; for, holding an Ofdce which escLews
al partisan Discrimination between religious sects,
he has 10 right to abuse his trust by officially SLAM
deriDg Pro;estants and Professionalism. Nor. if he
Is unacquainted with transactions which he parades,
with 80 evident q relish before the public, is al all 20
his honor, that he pretends to be so.
In the matter Of the Nun school, referred TO in
connection with that Of Uaiapuka and others, IS.
+ B" has already exposed the gross misrepresenta-
ton. And it is TO be taken FOR granted that the
same old habiIual hostility 10 PrOtestants has colored
or createi the assertions and insiruations relative to
the other schools referred to.
The truth il, the School Inspector General is suf-
ferirg from a chronic Missionary pbo5ia. Il has
been upon him for many years, and the case is go
far gone as to be beyond hope. The disease appears
in all the genileman's official doings, and nothing
apparently affords him go hearty a pleasure as the
opportunity Of frequent QuixOtlc filings at Mission
aries, past, present and to come.
Whatever Of evil, real or fancied, has existed in
these Islands during the past ~forty-fve years has, in
some way, been c~hargable to Missionary account.
No matter whether 1t l. the diSuse Of nude. pr0mis-
cu0us surf bathing, or the abandonment Of that riIest
Of heatheH 0Tgies, The hula, or the SteTlIlty Of Udi-
klEi PLAINS, ii all comes 10 the same thing, and is
charged-believe it who cau!-by the gentleman's
party, upon "the Missionaries 1t is, therefore,
perfectly 10 his liue-a thing which fully accoris
with his antecedents-to put to the account of !. the
narrowness and bigotry Of the Missionaries what
ever exceptions or inequalities may have existed in
the former administration Of the school fund, without
ever 20 much a. designing to inquire into the facts.
No matter if the gentIeman's teeth do suffer some
what III this ie gnawing, it Is doubtless a vast COM
fort 10 himself and 10 those who have selected him
for the business be is prosecuting, that the Mis-.
sionaries - are ~maligned; and not less comforting
that it IS done - By AUTHORITY 1t is necessary
for Us thus TO understand men, that our wits may
not be puzzled in making out how it is that a cham
piCDship for Roman or Reformed Catholics, as against
Professionalism, is perfectly consistent with p1oiessed
- non sect.rianism.'
As to d" the Missionaries - it is no part Of my
purpose to set myself forth as their champion, having
had 10 call to so honorable an Office. 1t time does
not do them the justice they seek, let them 90 under.
l presume they are satisfied to abide the issue.
Meantime, regarding UGiapuka school, l have a
word TO say-for | wish to place the facts in the case
before the public, as well as to say a few things be-
sides. which they ought TO know.
Twice, If not three times, the Roman Catholic
schools Of this district were, by the priests, brought
TO the notice Of the French Diplomatic Agents in
1t was alleged by them that their two
schools had been unfairly broken up, by the action
and influence of the Missionary, although at that
time the Missionary had no legal connection with the
public schools, and when the President OF the Board
Of Education sent me a copy of the formal complaint
requested a statement Of the facts so far as l
knew them, | declined making any such, knowing
that no testimony whatever from a Protestant Mis-
sionary would be received as satisfactory by the COM
plainauts, for, under similar circumstances, it had
been previously rejected a. unreliable. | therefore
suggested to Mr.. Armstrong TO visit the district, aud
In person examine and settle, II he wished, the mat
ter in dispute. He did so.
lu a conference between Mr.. Armstrong and the
Roman Catholic priest, which occupied nearly a
hole day, the difficulty was finally adjusted, 6y
yielding everything that the priests demQnded. And
from that day TO this, SO far a. | am aware, not a
single complaint has ever been made officially, by the
Of this district, that in the matter OF schools
hey were not fairly dealt with. As a simple cues
ion Of fact, they were dealt with far ia ore honorabIy
han the present Board Of Education are now willing
10 deal with the Protestant parents Of the district.
But to look at the terms Of the aforesaid settle
Dent. The schools were national schools at the
lime, and ample legal provision was made for the
protection Of the different classes Of pupils In their
-eligIous leanings, and whatever the present School
Inspector General may say to the contrary, | know
hat those provisions were h~onorably carried cut in
his district.
The priests. however, insisted that their children
hould not attend the Government schools; and il
vas proposed, as the readiest way to relieve the
,olnt al issue, that the Roman Catholics should have
separate school of their own, and moreover that
he Government should return the school tax OF as
many parents as wished to unite in said school, to.
Yards its support. This the priests accepted as sat-
sfactory.
The candidate brought forward as q candidate for
be leadership could not pass the minimum test,
rescribed by law. Nevertheless, the point was
ielied and the school went into operation. II was
lot long, however, owing to various causes which
oncerned nobody but Papists themselves, ere the
chool died out, aud for some time the money was
lot drawn for it, as provided. The teacher left, and
he school ceased TO exist, even nominally, for a con-
time. Yet none of the children were ever
oerced at any time, as they legally might have been,
attend any Government school. These are the
and am particularly thankful that they do
OF depend upon Missionary - authority for cor
And now, perhaps, the Inspector General can re-
ly TO his own inquiries, If ne will, and tell Us Gas
9 might easily have done before. had he been as careful to
arch the archives of his Office. as he vas ea-er to propagate
sanders Of Protestants) how it came to pass that the
FliapuAa school was Left out IN the cold or, II he feels in
sposed to reply, let me volunteer the service, and assure him
lat 1t was because, although a small minority, the Paptsts
ere not willing to unite with Pro.estaats in any common
And now I should Ike to take my turn for moment in asking
lesious. Is the present Returned aud Roman Catholic Board
Education prepared TO deal as honoraby With protestant pa
nts. : the former Protestant Board dealt with Roman Catho-
parents; TIL they are, for very shame's sake, let their
.rp'ngs at Protestant shortcomings whatever they deem
Il was to get a reply to this inquiry that the parents Of one
our school d i-tricts, composed wholly Of Protestant sent an
recently TO the School Inspector General. They. hOJg-
charged against a Protestant administration Of the public