NATAL TRAINING VESSELS.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3488, 11 September 1882, Page 4

NATAL TRAINING VESSELS.

The Committee appointed by the House of Representatives to report upon the best means to give effect to the best wishes of the House in favor of naval training vessels, have reported a3 follows :—-" Your Committee have given careful consideration to the matters submitted to them, and, having examined a number of witnesses, have now the honor to report as follows : — "1. The number of children who, by reason of the neglect or default of their parents, or of some criminal act of their own, are virtually handed over to the custody of the State, is steadily increasing with the increase of population. 2. While some of the witnesses examined by your Committee favor the establishment of training schools on board a moored vessel or vessels, all agree that it will be necessary to have suitable small vessels for cruising about, so that the lads may be taught practical seamanship. 3. It appears that considerable use could, be made, by vessels of suitable size, manned, by the lads, in the supplying of lighthouses, surveys, transport of stores, &c, "within proper limits from the schools. This is specially the case in the Auckland district, "where, on account of the laz'go area of the Hauraki Gulf, it -would be quite safe to entrust to the naval training vessel the work of supplying the -whole of the lighthouses in the gulf. 4. Looking at the large and constantly increasing tonnage owned and registered "in the colony, it appears beyond question that many of tho lads attending the schools could be provided for as soon as they had acquired a fair, practical knowledge of ordinary seamanship. Many owners now voluntarily accept lads as apprentices on board their vessels ; and the Committee can see no great difficulty in making the whole of the vessels owned or registered in the colony, above a certain tonnage, carry a certain number of apprentices in proportion to that tonnage. 5. It would appear better, taking everything into consideration, to endeavor to work the cruising vessels in connection with a shore school. The better health and greater sense of freedom which the boys would enjoy in such cases will be clearly evident. 6. A great deal of valuable information as to the class and cost of the Vessels fit for the purpose required will be found in the printed evidence and papers. The Committee recommend that (a) Naval training schools are essentially necessary, and should be established and maintained as now provided by law ; (b) A naval training school should again be established at Auckland, and a suitable cruising vessel be employed in connection with the institution ; (c) A similar institution should be established at Port Chalmers or Lyttelton ; (d) To meet the difficulty of classification a moored vessel might be used for the purposes of a naval training school. Such vessel might be stationed at Wellington. The criminal or refractory children could be committed to that vessel, and thus be placed under strict dicipline and cut off from communication with the sliore.

" John Sheehan, Chairman."