The New Zealand Herald. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2, 1870.

New Zealand Herald, Volume VII, Issue 1911, 2 March 1870, Page 4

The New Zealand Herald.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2, 1870.

Sl'Ki-'Tfr.Ml 1 Af.T.N IH>. Miive cv«*rv man thine rar, l»tit lev.* thy vo:- e; Take caeh niauN rensure. bat reserve t'lyjuymeat I'ias above all,—To ihme own h« ii b« true At'A it inuji folio** p a.i tJje Mic Uay, Thou cans't net Uieu lie /ai.se any man."

Vauiol's persons woiiM v:trious ways in vliii-ii the l-'ort Ijritoiu:irt ttiid tiic Albert Js;irntuks \v iiii tlio entire ;uvn of ground onelcseil witliin th(> barrack walls should be utilised, revere utilitarian;: aiul Jinancial economists and reformers would perhaps be foil nil, who would say, make the must money that ean be out of the respective pp. pertic*, and use it as Provincial or eitv revenue. Public p;u ks, orntimcntal and so forth, are luxuries and extravagancies which we can do w ell without might be the opinion of tliat class, but we are sure the general public does not sj-inpathise with such views. We apprehend that the general feeling is that the land contained within the barrack walls should be reserved as public property for use and recreation 'of the people in the shape of a suiali park or pleasure ground. It might be made pretty and ornamental at a very small expense, and form a healthy place of resort for the people. To alienate it in any way so that it could not be thus used would be a fatal mistake. We shall not dwell upon the need of such a free space of ground in which every one might strolL for a quiet saunter and enjoy pure air without going a great distance to obtain it; but we may point out that left as a public park or pleasure ground it might also be the practising ground of our Volunteers, and thus be very serviceable, it is a universal complaint that the Volunteer movement is not in a very healthy state in Auckland, and one among many reasons for tliis is, that hitherto the Volunteers have not had fair play in the matter of drill and exereise. There has been nothing about their drill to evoke emulation, marching and countermarching in a room, sealed from the eyes of observers. Is'o one ever knows much about, or sees much of our Volunteers. But bring them out on the Albert 73arrack ground every Saturday afternoon, and put them through a variety of evolutions, and the public will go and see the sight. This drilling and marching in public is, at least, one means of keeping alive the Volunteer spirit, and of attracting the attention and sympathy of the public to the Volant cor force. Tho number of Volunteers we have would no doubt considerably increase from this cause alone, so that in a short period we should have a respectable number to march through our st reets and show tlieir efficiency and their strength.

But what is to become of the various buildings known as the Albert Barracks ? The subject was incidenlally referred to during the late session of the Council. Hie Provincial Secretary stated that the Superintendent had an idea that the Provincial Government offices might be removed there. At present they are in a private building, rented for one year; and while £3(.)U per annum is paid for rent, the accommodation is insufficient. It' we could get suitable accommodation in the barrack buildings the rent would be saved, and the new offices would be centrally situated. We do not see any difficulty in finding very excellent accommodation for all the offices connected with the Provincial Government in the Albert Barracks. It is true that some one suggested that if the Begistrars department and

the Stamp Office were removed from the Police Court buildings -bo "the Supreme Court House, aud if the present District Court building was used as a Council Chamber, that the present Council Chamber "buildings would be sufficient to shelter all the Provincial Government offices, [t is very doubtful whether this would be the case or not, without some addition, for which there is undoubtedly room. In a certain sense there would be some little convenience in having the Council Chamber and the Provincial ollices near together, and the suggestion is certainly worth consideration. Of one tiling thero can be 110 doubt, that aH the Provincial (.Government offices should be accommodated under one roof in a central situation, and in buildings belonging to the Government.

But there are other departments that might also be considered while such a subject is under discussion. The buildings used as the Crramnia!' School are not pari ieuiarly well adapted to their purpose!; they are by no means centrally situated, and we have no doubt but. that this fact militates somewhat against the school; nor is there at present a good playground at the command of the boys. Might lint suitable accommodation be found for the Grammar School in some of the buildings of the ba .'acks, and if so, would it not bo wise to utilise some of them for that purpose? To do this, would in no measure interfere with devoting the opt-n ground to purposes of recreation. The school would be close at hand for boys in the city, and within an easy distance of Parncll and JN r ewton. Looking at the barrack ground, and the means of access to it

and the present Grammar-school buildings, it will be at once seen how very much superior in point of being most accessible to the greatest uuinber, is tiie former site to the latter. The primary qualification then, of proximity to the residences of the greatest number of pupils, is to be found in connection with the Barrack site, and its position is superior in every other respect. It would seem, then, lhat the Grammar School would gain in every way if it were held in the Barrack buildings, instead of ill the Emigration Depot, far away from the centres of population, and with on]/ a small school-going popvlation at anything like ail easy distance from it.

Hut other reasons can be also adduced. The High School in .Symondsstrcet is full to overflowing—many boys have been refused admission for \v:;nt ot room. As we all know, a high education has long been given in that school. Those connected with ii naturally ilo not like to turn boys away from their doors ; but how are they to get better accommodation ? Would it be impossible to lind a buildin*; in the J3arracks with rooms that would be suitable for class-rooms for the various classes, each devoted to a special use, and large enough to accommodate a larger number than now attend both the High School and the Grammar ."School, and obtain an amalgamation between the two schools. All other things being c(|ual, there are advantages in having a large number of pupils, which 110 small school can possess. A better classification, for instance, can be made, by which boys in the same class will bo more on a p:ir with one another, and so there will not l> e »o much of the hindrance caused by boys of different degrees of proficiency being placed in the same class. There would also be greater division of labor among the masters, a greater opportunity of giving particular masters certain subjects to teaeli, and thus greater and much more effective teaching power could be employed. There would also be greater emulation among the boyß, and special subjects to suit special powers, capabilities, tastes aud requirements of the pupils could be better taught in a large Hchool than in a small one. Whereas in smaller schools all the boys, 110 matter how different their tastes, and capabilities must grind in the Bimo mill—must all leavn, or attempt to learn, exactly the same things—in larger schools special tastes and aptitudes can bo considered.

On other grounds, also, wo might argue that the Grammar School should be nearer the heart of the city. It should be so, in order that the citizens might, on certain occasions, casilj" visit it. It should be so, iu order that it may work in a more aggressive spirit through the means of night teaching, and of lectures in connection with it. A school for teaching scienceshould be a necessary part of the Grammar School, and furnished with a laboratory for experiments and models for illustration. Mechanical, architectural, and naval architectural drawing should be brought to the doors of the greatest number of our youth, so as to win some of them to the Grammar School evening classes, and popular scientific lectures should be given in connection with that school. We would make it the centre of the educational life of the citj r and suburbs. It should be an attraction to youth, and hold up a high standard of attainment. As a public institution it should be a leavening influence,and ereateataste in our youthsfor reading something better than sensation novels, which make tliyir minds weak and vapid, giving them a distaste for healthy, nourishing, bracing, mental food, and leaving their moral, as well as their mental nature, deteriorated. We believe the removal of the Grammar School to the site we have named, and the amalgamation to which we have referred, and which is spoken of in private circles, would be a great step in the right directiou.