WELLINGTON TECHNICAL SCHOOL.

Evening Post, Volume XLVI, Issue 21, 25 July 1893, Page 4

WELLINGTON TE CHNICAL SCHOOL.

PRESENTATION OF PRIZES. There was a vory largo gathering in the lecture hall in tho Education Board Building last night, when His Excellenoj- the Governor presented the honours won dnrinjr tho year by the students. Mr J. R. Blair, Chairman of the Education Boinl, presided, and there were en the platform, besides His Excellenoy, several members of the Education Board, the Rev. W. J. Habons (InspectorGeneral of SchoolB), Sir Robert Stont, M.H.8., Messrs. G. Fisher, M.H.R., W. M'Lean, M.H.R., J. Joyce, M.H.R., and others. The Chairman opened the proceedings by calling upon Mr. A. D. Riley, Director of the School, who read an exhaustive report on the year's -work, dealing minntely with each particular section. In conclusion, he said chat he was satisfied that the work of the year had been a decided improvement upon past work, and he trusted that the necessity and value of the school had been satisfactorily proved. Tho spread of their system to other parts of the colony alone gave proof of a general desire to adopt the system as a good one. The Director also expressed his thanks to those who by tboir assistance had helped to maintain the efficiency of the school. Mr. J. R. Blair, in the course of a short address, said that the Wellington Teohnical School differed from evory other school in the colony in this respect, that it was a sobool whiob purported to give a sound and complete drawing instruction in connection with their primary system of education. All 'other teohnical sohools in the colony were disassociated from the primary Bystem of education, whioh seemed to point to the fact that there was a very considerable waste •/ funds going on somewhere. They iv Wellington had been able out of their revenue to carry on this sohool, build tho building they were then in, besides paying, he thonght, their teaohers on the same footing as thoße in the other sohools. He wa» inre when those present bad looked at the lohool work, the models and the conveniences provided, they would see that it was a very considerable work to carry out, and one whioh must have coita considerable •mount of money. To Sir Robert Stont was due the bringing into operation of the regulation whioh made drawing a pass subject — that wai, making it compulsory that it should be taught in their sohools to such an extent that every pupil must obtain a pass. To his mind" it was one of the greatest services ever rendered to the community since the Eduoa tion 1 Aot came into operation. Drawing was the basis of all technical education, and therefore was invaluable from this point of view alone. The real essence of the eohool, however, was that it waa the basis on whioh they grounded their teachers so that they mighJJ>o enabled to instruct others What work it had accomplished would, he thonght, tear criticism, and it deserved the grateful consideration of the people of Wellington. As Mr. Riley had pointed out it must not be forgotten that the sohool was not a fine art school, but one merely intended to teach drawing from a teohnioal point of view.

His Excellency the Governor Baid it bad riven him ijreat pleiiMue to bo preseut on •uch au occasion, and to show his interest in my thing «bich iuteieatcd tho people of tho oolony. He regretted tho inability of Lady ilusgow to join him, on account of the dluess of onn of her tanuly ; and ho regretted ilso that he hnd not pi eviously had an opportunity of vibiMng the School and inspecting the works which had gained the prizes he was about to present Wlwn the report i\ hich had been read bj Mr. Riley had been circulated, and they had made themselves thoroughly acquainted wfth its contents, he thought that all would agreo that the progress which had been made, and was being made, in the School would prove most satisfactory to all residents in Wellington and the district His Excellency expressed hiß latonishment at finding amongst tho young men and women who had taken advantage of the benefits offered by the School people who were engaged in more than 30 different occupations. It ninst be a source of great satisfaction to Mr. Riley and his assistants to see the wonderful sucoess of the School within the last few years. (Appuvnse.) His Excellency, having intimated that he intended presenting a prize to the School, proceeded to distribute to the successful scholars tho piizes which they had gained. The following ia a list of the prizetakers, in which the lettera S.K. signify that the students mentioned passed the South Kensington examination : — Scholarships :— Day class scholarship, Sara Jollie ; evening drawing class scholarship, Harry H. Seed; mechanical drawing olaßß Scholarship, Edward G. Browne; architectural and bnilding construction section, W. J. S. Strange-Mure. Prize-takerß :— Maria Evans (S.K.), Sara Jollie (S.K.), Harry v eed (S.K.), Mary Lingard Florenoe Broome, Alice Perry (S.K.), Ida Watty (S.K.), Clara Treadwell (S.K.), Joseph Roe (S.K.), Ethel Baker (S.K.), Hilda Hamerton (S.K.). Winifred Holt (S.K.), Evelyn Dasent (S.K.), Christabel Jollie (S.K.), Kate Lawson (S.K.), Elizabeth Benbow (S X.), Muriel Burnett, Ethel Smith, Marion Wilson, Geo. Kirk, Harry Franklin, Thomas Maofarlane, John Gerraud, Stephen S. White, Herbert Jenkins, Edward G. Odlin, Harry Wakelin, Alexander Riddoll, Gertrude Hughes (S.K.), Jessie Richardson (S.K.), George Hooper (S X.), Laura Baird, Mary White Mary Newton, Mary Moar, Julia Hart, Marion Georg-e, Daisy Willis, Florence Chatfield, John Williamson, Jessie Newton, Milly Igglesden. Myrtle Lee, Alice Paul, Eliza Evans, Robert Sinnet, Samuel Murray, Charles Downie, Percy Didsbury, H. T. Paterson, J. Plimmer, Isabel Kaye, May Christie, James Gifford, Helen Hutehen, Agnes Olaen, Jessie Tait, William Rowntree, Mabel Young, Kate Williams, Eliza. Scott, Minnie Cook, Alice May Manning, Helena Sanderson. Mr. George Beetham, in proposing a vote of thanks to His Excelloncy for presenting the prizes and the encouraging words he had spoken, regretted the enforced absence of Lady Glasgow. He hoped the advantages offered by the school would be fully realised and availed of. At the invitation of Mr. Blair the visitors present then adjourned to the school above, and inspected the work of the pupili.