COSTLEY TRAINING INSTITUTE FOR BOYS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11711, 22 July 1901, Page 6

COSTLEY TRAINING INSTITUTE FOR BOYS.

VISIT OF THE GOVERNOR. | On Saturday afternoon His Excellency the I Governor (Lord Ranfurly),; accompanied bv ! the Hon. Chas. Hill Trevor and Captain Jloscawen, A.D.C.'s, paid a visit to the [ I Cost-ley Training Institute for Boys. M- i I though the weather i was most inclement , I His Excellency was punctual to the aoi/oir- i ' ted hour. One loyal householder in Rich--1 j mond Road had run up the Union Jack on his ' flagpole, in honour of the visit of the King's ' representative, while over the institution ■ floated a handsome Union Jack, and ' at the entrance gate were smal- • lex flags, one being the Union ; Jack. and .the other the Stars 1 and Stripes. The boys were lined up on either side of the portico, in order to salute ■ the vice-regal party, as they, entered the i 1 building, where His Excellency was received by Major Morrow and Mr. Tunks (trustees), j ; and the master and matron (Mr. and Mrs. ; Hendre), under whose chaperonage His Excellency was shown over the buildings. He inspected the dormitories, the kitchen, pantry, and the provisions made up for the day, the sitting and schoolrooms, and finally, the workshop and gymnasium. His Excellency also made minute inquiries from the boys themselves as to the number of boys apprenticed, the rate of wages earned, the amount banked, the trades to which they were apprenticed, and the number at school. Lord Ranfurly expressed regret that the bright boy who had attracted his attention last year for his aptitude for mechanics and engineering, and to whom he had presented a book -on engineerinng, had passed away, and asked if there were any other cle°er boy in the, home, who" had shown some inventive capacity. The manager called from i the group in the gymnasium a little fellow of. 13, who, he said, bad shown an aptitide for making-pulleys. His Excellency asjjed the boy what trade he would like to learn, and he replied that he would like to be an engineer. 'It is difficult at present, as His Excellency pointed out, to get lads into engineering without a premium. If the, boy continues to, show his j present proclivity for mechanics, ; the trustees will endeavour to get him into the railway service, which the Government might reasonably accede to, as being in its own interest. The book of engineering is in the home-as a memorial of the bright lad who died, and by a strange coincidence in one of jthe gymnastic groups on the walls of the; board-room the two boys who have died during the past year are seen, the younger! sitting on the shoulders of the other. ! •' '*-' His Excellency ascertained that there were 13 apprenticed, some to saddlery, others to bootmaking, . tailoring, carpentry, and no less than four -: in various capacities.; m the service of the Auckland Gas Company. The' cost of maintenance is from £27 to £30 a year, part of the boys' earnings is applied to maintenance, and part is banked to their credit, (6d a.week being allowed for pocketmoney), and at 21 the credit money is handed over to the lad, if his behaviour has been good. This is found to be a very beneficial thing for the Boys, who if .their conduct is creditable are at once put in possession of a nice sum of money, just when they are entering on life. One of the lads, who is near his majority, a bootmaker, is desirous of ;'having the opportunity of purchasing a little business, which will develop into • a good living for him. The trustees ascertaining that he had honourably served his employer, and that the transaction is a bona fide one, have advanced him from the money to his credit a sum to enable him to get some stock, and thai lad is believed to have been successfully launched in life. Another, now in his 20th year, has such confidence in the home that though he now lives out of it, he banks his money with the manager, and as he has an excellent record, will have a respectable sum on attaining his majority to start him in business, according to his desire. He has been in the "A" Battery for three years, and is thus repaying the State the service rendered to him. He volunteered for South Africa at the outset, but was rejected on account of his youth. Two of the " old boys" are now in South-Africa, one of them having obtained a commission as lieutenant, and are fighting for the honour of their country. *'. ...V ■":'■.' - All the boys have to scrub and clean the various apartments, corridors, and dormitories, and all of these are beautifully clean, and justly entitles the lads to being termed real " scrubbers." They also wash the dishes and clean up, make their beds, cut the wood, and .carry it in and the coal, and do whatever labour is necessary for their own comfort and > convenience. They are thus made self-reliant and expert. There are no officials other than the master and matron, save a, cook and laundress. A skilled instructor in carpentry, Mr. Makune, visits the workshops twice a week, and imparts instruction to the lads at night in the workshop. Every boy, whatever his trade, has to take his turn at this manual training. The boys are in this way made handy men, - ' whether they join His Majesty's navy or otherwise. One of the boys, in this way has made a box to keep his tools in. Others have made clothes-racks, and presses for the home, and about 40 picture frames for a set of pictures Major Morrow and other friends have obtained for them, and which are to be put up throughout the building. These picture frames have been made out of-the rough kauri. His Excellency inspected the boys' work with much interest, and also the Workshop, running his experienced eye in these matters over the forge, the lathes, and a combination plane, which makes 52 different kinds of mouldings. .All the tools are up to date. Professor Carrolio, in the gymnasium adjacent, 'iputs" the lads through a course of gymnastic exercises. It is at this gathering every Wednesday evening that the flag As " saluted"—and was saluted long before die public schools commenced the practice, Major-Morrow introducing it, and presenting the boys with the flag. Every evening when the, boys are not engaged in attending manual instruction, or gymnastic work, a class is held in the board-room, under the supervision of the master, to give further instruction in writing and arithmetic, the employers looking particularly to these two points, and so fitting the lads more completely for their situations. The copy books were shown to His - Excellency, and they were remarkable for their neatness. Some of the lads are going in for fancy lettering and engrossing work, etc. On Saturday afternoons the more studious boys, who do not care for football, occupy the sittingroom, which is kept quiet, and on Saturday some of them were sitting there reading the magazines. His Excellency spent some time in the in- I stitution, and expressed his gratification at what he had seen, and especially at the pleasant, healthy appearance of the lads. On His Excellency leaving, the boys again lined the pathway, and saluted, and to His Excellency's homely and cheery " Good-bye, boys!" gave him and the vice-regal party three hearty rousing cheers. ' The viceregal party then drove off to the Association football matches in the' Domain. The only thing that strikes the visitor to the home is that thousands of working men's sons in Auckland have no such advantages as these " committed" children taken into the institute. Few working men's sons have the spotless dormitories, the bedding, bathroom., or are clothed and fed as they are. But as there are some people who would not be satisfied if an archangel managed the home, it is not to be wondered ' at that Mr. John Savage,' of Parnell, J.P., was over at the institute on Saturday to investigate the complaint of a man about his children. Mr. Savage went away perfectly satisfied that the complaint was wholly destitute of foundation. The trustees and the master and matron invite the public to come at any time within reasonable hours, and go over the institute, and see for themselves. It would be better for the home and for the lads, as they would see, that the public took an interest in them and in their institution. As it- is it must. have a beneficial effect upon them to know and remember that the King's representative made time from his varied engagements to come over to Richmond Road, on. one of the bitterest days of the year, in order to manifest- his kindly: interest and : goodwill towards " the Wards' of the State."