THE TEACHERS' CONFERENCE

A Silver Jubilee Gathering
Upwards of 350 delegates attended the twenty-fifth annual conference of the Catholic Teachers' Federation, which opened on December 30 at Cardiff, Mr. T.
Connelly (Middlesbrough) presiding. A civic welcome was accorded them by the Lord Mayor, Alderman Purnell. The Director of Education for the Cardiff City Council, Mr. W. J. Williams, was also present, and spoke at the opening meeting.
As outgoing President, Mr. Connelly inducted his successor in office, Miss F. McCabe (Birmingham). In her presidential address, Miss McCabe said that the religious training of the child was by far the most important part of its training. As it was impossible to predict the future, the best they could do was to prepare children to live in a world which they imagined would develop from the present one. Subjects had varied in importance from being fundamental necessities to being useless lumber, but boys and girls were still boys and girls, some precocious, some dull, and a large majority cheerfully indifferent, and ready to be guided in any direction.
New Times, New Methods As the necessities of time directed, Miss McCabe said, teachers must be prepared to drop old subjects or methods and adopt new ones, but she did not suggest that the wisest course was to greet everything new as true or to admit that the old-fashioned was necessarily the ill-fashioned.
Among those who addressed this year's conference were the Bishop of Menevia; the Bishop of Pella; Mr. 0. Temple Morris, K.C., M.P.; and Alderman F. Harold Turnbull, K.C.S.G., Q.B. The speech of the Bishop of Menevia dealt with the present state of civilisation, in which, his Lordship said, one saw the passing of the old 3rder. It was undecided, at the moment, whether they had passed the first stage of decay or were facing a new social order. With the passing of the old order there gassed the recognition of Christian tradilions, principles, doctrines.
A Grave Outlook
Pitfalls. the Bishop warned his hearers, would lie in the path of the children of the future, pitfalls to faith, and compeerable with what was experienced in the first three Christian centuries.
The responsibilities of the teachers were :onsequently very great, but were balanced by the influence and power which the teacher had over the children.
A series of resolutions were passed by the conference. The tenor of these was summarised in the Catholic Herald a fortnight ago. Before concluding, the deleJates despatched a telegram of loyalty to .he King, and messages also to Cardinal Hinsley and to the Archbishop of Cardiff. L)r. Mostyn had hoped to take part in the eonference, but ill-health prevented his presence. .A reception in the City Hall, given by the Lord Mayor and the Lady Mayoress, eas the closing function of the day.
Next year's conference is to be held on Tyneside.