OUR TECHNICAL SCHOOL. A Plea for the Mouut Cook Site.

Free Lance, Volume VIII, Issue 398, 15 February 1908, Page 6

OUR TECHNICAL SCHOOL. A Plea for the Mouut Cook Site.

YOUNG "Wellington, is growing out of ail his clothes. One aftei anothei of his garments has had to be lengthened, or let out, 01 re-fitted in some way or other to cover the stuidy limbs of the youngster. Now the Technical School authorities aie calling for more room, and they want a piece of the Mount Cook aiea. They will probably get it. At any rate, they ought to get it. They have moie than a reasonable argument in the matter. Their argument is imperative. Look at the growth of technical education in Wellington m the last few years. Consider how hampered the authoi ities are even now from want of room. Where are they to go to meet the rapidly-increasing population, and the greatlly mci eased roll of scholais? Something must be done, and that speedily. • « • Originally technical education was part and parcel of the administration of the Education Board of the district. Latei on the usefulness of technical education became so apparent that the Government constituted Technical Education Boards. The Wellington Board is composed of representatives from the City Council, the Education Board, and one from the Wellington Industrial Boaid. The Wellington City Council has always shown a great interest m the local Technical School. And the Technical authoi ities needed their practical sympathy When the pressing need came for increased accommodation, the City Council came down handsomely with a fine piece of giound on the Te Aro reclamation, fronting Mercer-stieet. On this site a building giew up two years ago, and engineering and the other manual ciafts move along in this building. • • • A little piece"of land in front of the building has been leserved as a necessary recreation gTound for the scholars. It is very small — just big enough for a tennis court. But now even that lias to go Another building must grow up on it at once. The authorities are considering the erection of a fiveroomed building, but they know that even such a building will not be sufficient for the demands on them. And the trouble is that when this building is erected the only available recreation ground will be the public street. How long will the scholars be allowed to

play on the stieet? The community won't toleiat-e it a second day, will they? The need of bieathing space has become more acute in> view of the fact that in the last two years the duty of technical education foi "day scholars" has been cast on the Board. Several hunch eds of these day scholars have to be taught m what are known as "the continuation classes" every morning and afternoon It is necessary that they shall have a recreation patcli They cannot get it in Mercerstieet But Mount Cook offers the necessary area and site Our population is moving southwards. When we contemplate the population which in a few years must settle on the Miramar Peninsula, at Island Bay and KMbirme, the argument m favour of the Mount Cook site is unassailable. It is leadily approached from all sides of the city, and the cheapness of transit thither is a big consideration to scholars. As to the appiopriateness of setting the Technical School next to the Dominion Museum no argument is necessary. The Museum is not to contain, fossil remains alone, but aHI the elements expressing the scientific and physical development of the Dominion, which works are as much within the realm of technology as the manual classes themselves. The proposition is a worthy one, and we trust that the Technical Board will meet with all the success they deserve in securing this site.