independent, defeated the Liberal candidate in the Rosenfeld Constitu­ ency. Even after the Conservative Party gained power in Manitoba, Rhineland continued to return Liberal members.

Table 13 Provincial Elections 1888-1900
			Reg. Total
Year	Constituency	Members Elected	Voters Votes		Lib. Cons.		Ind.
1888	Rosenfeld	Enoch Winkler		164	106		58
1892	Rosenfeld	Enoch Winkler	738	303	172	131
	Rhineland	Valentine Winkler	1006	260	186	74
1896	Rosenfeld	Enoch Winkler	871	276	170	106
	Rhineland	Valentine Winkler	1213	311	229	82
1899	Rosenfeld	William Hespeler	988	499	241		258*
	Rhineland	Valentine Winkler	1231	423	271	152
* Independent Conservative

Source: Statement of Votes: Thirty-first General Election October 11, 1977.

In the Federal sphere before 1900 the R.M. of Rhineland was part of a much larger riding, Lisgar, and did not affect the results signifi­ cantly.

Schools and the Formation of the Mennonite Educational Institute

Education like government and politics was perceived quite dif­ ferently by different groups within the R.M. of Rhineland. The involvement of the municipality in the formation of school districts after 1884 and the introduction of higher education served to exacerbate these differences.

According to the 1881 Public Schools Act of Manitoba, it was the duty of the municipal council to establish and alter the school districts within its boundaries. 64 To further assist in the formation of school districts in Rhineland, William Rempel , a former teacher and secretary treasurer of the newly created R.M. of Rhineland, was appointed Inspector of Mennonite schools in 1885. Within a year of his appoint­ ment there were ten district schools on the West Reserve. 65 Despite this increase, Rempel was basically pessimistic as most Mennonites still opposed district schools thinking these schools would lead their chil­ dren away from Mennonite teachings.

In some of the Old Colony villages, district schools aroused bitter opposition. Following the incorporation of the School District of Schanzenfeld in 1885, only four ratepayers appeared at the first school board meeting and one of the elected trustees refused to perform his duties. In addition to this passive resistance, thirteen ratepayers in the

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