PARLIAMENTARY.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVI, Issue 14191, 13 October 1906, Page 8

PARLIAMENTARY.

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. Friday, October 12. AFTERNOON SITTING. The Council met at 2.30 p.m. BILLS. The Government Advances to Settlers Bill was , read a, third time and passed. On the motion of the Attorney-Gene-ral, the amendments made by the House in the Training Ships Bill were j agreed to. ■ , The Maeterton Trust Lands Trust j Empowering Bill was committed, re-, ported unamended and passed. The Council:rose at 2.48 p.m. HOUSE OF /REPRESENTATIVES. Friday, October 12. AFTERNOON SITTING. Th©. House met at 2.30 p.m. THE ESTIMATES. The House went into Committee of Supply. Class XXIII., Education. A long discussion ensued on the first ! item. - ] In reply to the various statements : made during the discussion, the Minister of Education said- he had listened • with a good deal of interest to the re- ; marks made. He hoped to improve matters in the course of time. The; opposite views expressed showed the im- ;■ possibility of giving unanimous eatisfac- j tioii. The comments about the syllabus : he thought hardly justifiable at present. ! Firstly, the new syllabus bad only been in operation for two and a half years. : It was unreasonable to expect that 1 teachers and inspectors all over the country would at once fall into line in the: operation of th© new syllabus. It was quite clear from the , remarks of teachers in some parts of- the colony, at any rate, that the syllabus had given satisfactory results, both to teachers and scholars. The failure in this respect had been due to the inability of someone to grasp the true meaning and intent of the syllabus. He was satisfied that with the advent of new teachers trained in their- colleges, a good many of the difficulties experienced with teachers trained in other methods : would disappear, also that the appointment of men to the positions of inspectors would enable the spirit of the syllabus to be appreciate*!, and then the colony would get the very best results. The House adjourned for dinner at | 5.30 p.m. EVENING SITTING. The House resumed at 7.30 p.m. Vote, £8069, head office, passed uu- ! altered. j Vote, £538,611, public schools. After further discussion, the Minister explained that in some districts th© bad roads interfered with the conveyance of children to the schools; that there would be a vote on the Public Works Estimates for the Auckland Training College; that the basis of school classification was not the teacher’s salary, but the attendance; and that the difficulty of transferring teachers was caused by variations of the attendance,, especially'in limited areas under divided-control; that they must, in fixing the salaries of certificated teachers, depend on varieties of circumstances. It was th© case in all professions, in which the best qualified men frequently did not get the best salaries. Mr Massey paid a high compliment to the Education Committee of last year and its chairman, Mr Baume, for the excellent work done with the two new’ Acts ‘of the session. He would like to see . better provision made for rural education, after the manner of the' Auckland Board. The Minister said that special, grants were offered to all the Boards of Education for this purpose. - ■ , The vote passed - unaltered. Secondary education £45,075/ and technical education £33,225', passed nn-,

Public school Cadets, £6085. Mr Field asked if the Department would co-operate with the Defence Department regarding . a camp at the Christchurch Exhibition. The question was not answered. Native schools, £21,755. In reply to, Mr Ngata, who had spoken highly of the abilities and devotions .of the men and the difficulties of their position, and Mr Herries, who had sustained Mr Ngata, the Minister said that the salaries had been raised. He further promised to do hie best in the matter of facilities for rural and technical education. Mr Ngata advised the Minister to visit the Native schools during the recess and see if the' Natives would not set apart a portion of their revenues for assisting technical and agricultural education. The Minister said he would dp so gladly. . . Mr Ngata promised to be his guide. The vote passed unaltered. Industrial schools £25,174, school for deaf mutes £4154, school for blind £731, miscellaneous services £12,935, school buildings £86,651), passed unaltered. Class XXIV., public health, £25,372. Passed without alteration. Class XXV.,mental hospitals and charitable aid, £97,505. Mr Wilford appealed for the betterment of the condition of the female warders, poorly paid working long hours, coarsely fed and subject to tremendous and prolonged strain, and sustained his case by quoting from the last report of the inspector, contrasting the cases cf these attendants and workers in factories who are protected by the factory legislation. Mr Gray advocated separation of mild cases, and the Minister said provision was being made on the Public ■'Works Estimates. Mr Massey advocated the addition of a ward at tVaitati for separation of epileptic cases. The Minister said that the whole question of the classification of mental cases was under the consideration of the Cabinet. With regard to the female attendants, he said he had not had an opportunity to go into the matter fully. So far as he had gone, he knew the pay had been increased and the hours had been shortened. (Cries of “ Too long yet.”) He promised to inquire carefully into the matter. He admitted, with regret, the coming severance of Mrs Neil’s connection with the Department. Vote, mental hospitals, £83,170, passed unaltered. Vote, charitable aid, £12,996. Mr Gray criticised the inspectorship adversely, and suggested a change. A long discussion ensued in protest against strictures on the nurses in. the Inspector-General’s report. Mr Gray moved the reduction of the charitable aid estimate (£12,996) by £l, to emphasise dissatisfaction with the Inspector-General’s management generally. • . The motion was lost by 16 to 21. Vote, defectives', £1339, was passed after discussion. The House rose at 1.28 ami.