EDUCATION: INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS. [In continuation of E.-3, 1903.]

Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives, 1904 Session I, E-03

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1904. NEW ZEALAND.

EDUCATION: INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS. [In continuation of E.-3, 1903.]

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly by Command of His Excellency.

No. 1. EXTRACT PROM THE TWENTY-SEVENTH ANNUAL REPORT OP THE MINISTER OP EDUCATION In December, 1903, the total number on the books of all the industrial schools was 1,909, or 62 more than at the close of the year 1902. On the books of the Government Industrial Schools there were 1,366, an increase of 80 over the corresponding number for 1902; on the books of the private industrial schools there were 543, or 18 less than at the end of the previous year. The number in residence at Government schools was 299, and at private industrial schools 302, so that 601 was the total number of " inmates " actually in residence. The number boarded out was 513, 5 being from private schools and the rest from Government schools. There were 11 girls maintained in various corrective institutions, 8 boys and girls in orphan homes, and 2 boys at the School for Deaf-mutes, Sumner. The total number of inmates dependent on the schools for maintenance was therefore 1,135, or 46 more than the number at the end of 1902. The remaining 774, although still subject to control and supervision, were not dependent on the schools for maintenance. They may be classified as follows: Licensed to reside with friends, 195 ; at service, 489; in hospital, 7 ; in lunatic asylum, 3; in the Costley Training Institution, Auckland, on probation, 7; in other institutions without payment, 12; in gaol, 5; absent without leave, 56—namely, 33 from service and 23 from the schools. There were six Government industrial schools in existence in 1903, and the numbers of inmates on their books at the end of the year were as follows : Auckland, 131; Eeceiving Home, Wellington, 166; Keceiving Home, Christchurch, 239; Burnham, 252; Te Oranga Home, 56; Caversharn, 522: total, 1,366. Those belonging to private industrial schools were distributed as follows :' St. Mary's, Auckland, 131; St. Joseph's, Wellington, 80; St. Mary's, Nelson 291; St. Vincent de Paul's, Dunedin, 41: total, 543.

TABLE J1.—Inmates, 1902 and 1903.

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loarded out. In Residence. At Service, <fec. Totals. I Q . [ cd <D ffl | aj CO OS CD O r, 3 « u X CD CD 5 fi fi j ■ a. 6 <o P. ® S S3* ja © « « * a ' 2 2 aa , * » ? £ « ! £ Is s s 1 g s J «_ P I Q * Q Q_ I a CD ® CD ® a 2 « Q CO d CD 0 Government Schools— Auckland .. .. ; 57 Receiving Home, Wellington .. .. .. ! 74 Receiving Home, Christchurch .. .. i 138 Burnham .. ., ! 2 Te Oranga Home, Christchurch Caversham .. .. | 174 Private Schools— St. Mary's, Auckland St. Joseph's, Wellington.. St. Mary's, Nelson ... 1 St. Vincent de Paul's, Dunedin 6 i .. 61 .. .. j 3 .. .. *8 '.'. 63 135 130 2 177 18 1 2 103 19 140 10 8 12 .. 28 31 1 j .. -15 .. j 10 I 93 11 92 166 31 31 3 I 137 ! 217 9 6 6 8 6 9 40 31 99 158 25 208 106 100 228 271 50 531 25 66 u 6 19 131 166 239 252 56 522 9 i 90 37 177 7 83 I 44 3 34 42 17 160 136 25 11 42 600 796 4 4 6 48 46 130 134 79 314 1 3 23 131 80 291 i | .. 74 3 4 23 2 1 12 34 7 41 Totals .. ..441 512 610 32 30 29 1,847 116 54 1,909 797

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The number of inmates who during 1903 ceased to be under the control of industrial schools was 169. Of these 112 were discharged by warrant, 42 reached twenty-one years of age, 2 were married, and 13 died. Of this total 117 were of good character, 7 fair, and 12 bad; 8 were weak-minded, 9 were missing, 6 were adopted or discharged under fifteen years of age, 9 under that age died, and 1 was sent to a school under a misapprehension. As in the previous year the number of deaths (13) was above the average. The medical certificates show that of the six inmates who were in residence at the time of death, 1 died of rheumatic fever, 1 of tubercular meningitis, 1 of pneumonia, 1 of marasmus, and two boys met with violent deaths, one beingburned to death at the destruction by fire of the Stoke branch of St. Mary's Industrial School, Nelson, and one was found drowned in a well at the Burnham Industrial School. Four boarded-out children died—l of pneumonia, 1 of apnoea from disease of the brain, 1 infant from natural causes, and 1 of peritonitis. One girl died in the hospital from the effects of phosphorus poisoning, self-administered while at service, and 1 boy died in a lunatic asylum of epilepsy and marasmus. The number of admissions during the year (231) shows a decrease of 13 from the number for 1902. Of these 41 were sent from Dunedin, 74 from Wellington, 29 from Auckland, and 27 from Christchurch, Of the remaining 60 children, no one town or country district sent more than 8 to the schools. From information taken from the Magistrates' orders it is found that the religious denominations in which the children who were admitted are to be brought up are : Church of England, 124; Eoman Catholic, 62; Presbyterian, 25; Methodist, 11; Baptist, 4 ; and 5 are described as Protestant.

TABLE J2. —Admissions, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO Parents' Circumstances AND Character, 1903.

At the end of 1903 there was in the Post-Office Savings-Bank on account of the earnings of inmates of Government industrial schools a sum of £ J 2,070 7s. 5d., and on account of inmates of private industrial schools £2,721 12s. 3d. For inmates of Government schools a sum of £1,115 14s. lid. was withdrawn during the year, and for inmates of private schools £73 15s. 9d.

•eeeden Coudii :ion of in 190. Children adm: itted Fathers, described as Mothers, described as 6 2 +3 CO CD Q .2 » o§ ■as ■5? si CO H 3 o a o CD a O © £§ is © *CJ rl Ocd Cfi—H s a On. 4-= © a CD CD a oi u < Total. a ci u ac cs > Dead Dead Sick, lunatic, &c. .. Good Bad Deserter Dead Sick, lunatic, &c. .. Good Unknown Bad Deserter Dead Sick, lunatic, &c. .. Good Unknown Bad Deserter Dead Good Bad Deserter Good Bad Deserter 1 1 17 1 1 2 1 26 7 1 16 6 31 6 22 1 7 2 21 4 24 1 9 18 18 2 2 2 2 Good 6 3 7 *2 3 h i 1 1 2 3 2 6 2 1 4 2 20 3 4 1 2 i 1 1 7 1 *7 l Unknown 3 2 21 4 14 j 1 10 i Bad" 6 12 7 2 2 1 2 3 6 3 h 3 Deserter i Totals 119 18 25 9 56 4 231 I

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In Table J3 is shown the cost of the Government schools, in which is included the expenditure for the maintenance of inmates boarded out and the salaries of the resident staffs and medical officers; it also shows the cost of supervision of all inmates who are licensed to reside away from the schools; and, further, the amounts of the recoveries from Charitable Aid Boards, from persons against whom orders for maintenance have been made, and from the sale of farm-produce, &c.

TABLE J3. —Expenditure ON Government Schools, 1903.

The Government or the Charitable Aid Boards paid for the maintenance of the twenty-one children previously stated to be in corrective or other institutions or homes. The payments made by the Government were as follows: Costley Training Institution, Auckland, £2 9s. ; Women's Home, Parnell, £4 os. 6d.; Salvation Army Maternity Home, Auckland, £2 Bs.; St. Mary's Home, Karori, ,£2B ss. 2d. ; Levin Memorial Home, Wellington, £15 12s. ; St. Mary's Home, Bichmond, Christchurch, £120 2s. 7d.; Mount Magdala, Christchurch, £165 3s. 9d. ; Samaritan Home, Christchurch, £11 18s.; Avon Pine Sanatorium, Christchurch, £26 155.; Benevolent Institution, Dunedin, £5 6s. 9d.; 2 girls boarded in private homes for special treatment, £29 19s. 6d. Three children belonging to St. Joseph's, Wellington, and St. Mary's, Nelson (private industrial schools), were boarded at the Mission Home, Jerusalem, Wanganui (Mother Aubert's), 2 for the whole year and 1 for ten months. The amount paid during the year by the Government on account of the maintenance of these children was £35 2s. Work in connection with the new industrial school that is being established near Levin is progressing steadily; the main building is completed, and most of the heavy preparatory work on the land necessary to the establishment of the farm has been done. Already there has been some return for the expenditure, the amount received on account of sales of cattle, produce, &c, during last year being £252 18s. Bd.; and it is anticipated that there will be a substantial increase in the receipts for this year. The property is over 400 acres in extent, and there should be little difficulty in making the land very reproductive, as it„is of excellent quality.

Government School. Cost of School. Boarding out. (Included in firs column.) Salaries. (Included in first column.) Recoveries. Net Cost. Auckland .. .. .. 3,359 10 3 1,102 17 7 Levin .. .. .. 4,764 11 11 Burnham .. .. .. 7,594 14 5 9 18 10 Caversham .. .. .. 9,323 16 9 3,103 8 7 TeOrangaHome .. .. 4,026 3 10 Receiving Home, Wellington.. 2,720 9 8 1,696 6 11 Receiving Home, Christchurch 4,892 6 5 2,250 14 4 £ a. d. 3,359 10 3 4,764 11 11 7,594 14 5 9,323 16 9 4,026 3 10 2,720 9 8 4,892 6 5 £ a. d. 1,102 17 7 9 18 10 3,103 8 7 335 207 1 1,820 1 1,517 369 1 266 1 301 1 £ s. d. 335 6 2 207 16 0 1,820 15 4 1,517 3 4 369 17 1 266 16 2 301 15 0 6 2 16 0 15 4 3 4 17 1 16 2 15 0 826 252 ] 907 1 3,823 1 77 1 1,113 1,560 1 £ s. d. 826 4 0 252 18 8 907 13 6 3,823 10 8 77 15 8 1,113 8 7 1,560 15 1 4 0 18 8 13 6 10 8 15 8 8 7 15 1 £ s. d. 2,533 6 3 4,511 13 3 6,687 0 11 5,500 6 1 3,948 8 2 1,607 1 1 3,331.11 4 1,696' 6 11 2,250 14 4 Totals .. .. 36,681 13 3 8,163 6 3 36,681 13 3 8,163 6 3 4,819 I 4,819 9 1 9 1 8,562 8,562 6 2 6 2 28,119 7 1 Salaries and expenses of Assistant Inspectors and visiting officers Travelling-expenses of managers and others Refund of inmates' earnings Contingencies 1,715 5 1 114 17 1 53 3 11 23 14 5 Less miscellaneous recoveries 30,026 7 7 28 2 3 Total net cost 29,998 5 4 Table J4 shows the payments made by th inmates in private industrial schools, the recoverie Government. The contributions from Charitable to the managers of these schools, and are not inch 3 Government on ss, and the net exp : Aid Boards are mi ided in the recover: account of snditure by ide directly es shown. TABLE J4.—Govbbnment Expenditure on Pbivai •e Schools (R.O.), 1903. Name of School. Payments. »—eries. j 6 * £ s. d. £ s. d. 159 11 8 951 16 4 49 11 10 265 12 10 329 0 9 909 14 9 41 15 0 44 19 6 579 19 3 2,172 3 5 St. Mary's, Auckland St. Joseph's, Wellington St. Mary's, Nelson St. Vincent de Paul's, Dunedin £ a. d. 1,111 8 0 315 4 8 1,238 15 6 86 14 6 Totals 2,752 2 8

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No. 2. ADDITIONAL STATISTICS. Inmates, 31st December, 1903.

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Go•ernme] it Schoi ils. 'rival ;e Scho >ls. .11 sc: tools. Inmates. i0 I a a ■a o a <1 DC a it n a r Q a? is 4 If S .So 3 .aa-g DOd gK.2 o a a 3 ffi & • ; I -i's d © s a ga | s| o H £ -3 G. j B. j G. B. G. ."a © rf CO » 02^ CO >>a Jo rH DC a cq _; a ca © - ®^ -w a I CO CD 42 o •r, £ b.'g. CO >> O ffl ■3 c H *o 4 l O rr> B. G. B. G. B. G. B. G. G. !n the schools 3oarded out Vith friends It service In hospital .. in lunatic asylums .. in School for Deafmutes, Sumner U Costley Training Institution (on probation) Jnder control of refuges or cognate institutions [n orphanage, cottage home, &o. [n gaol absent without leave.. 37 3 3 28 26 2 22 86 8 3 1 49 9 3; 3 77 11 27 8 54 7 48 2 92 2 37 86 31 i 8 110 91 22 86 1 1 1 27 86 10 73 35 "i 13 48 8 20 34 16 28 1 99 38 49 1 1 61 1 12 17 ■25 4 7 3 1 3391 293: 123 267 3 2 2 262 220 72 222 4 1 601 513 195 489 7 3 2 263 468 103 337 3 1 1 337 45 92 152 4 2 1 1 i i 7 6 16 21 21 14 10 1 5 30 ii 2 7 1 i 5 53 3 5 56 3 40 2 16 Totals .. j 51 80 98 11 es ;119 120 252 56 326 196 k 54 77 80 196 95 41 1,096 813 1,909 1,247 661 1 is I 909 DMI' 'TTCD D" rRi: G 1 103 Govern] cent Sc! tools. Private Schools. All Sch. ■ols. Admitted as 10 a ■ 5 CD a . o a W ° Si CD M ©" a, o M a. V. '© Si « a a u s ffl a o W 03 DC a eg u o CD a ca i CD > a ,10 10 >,a h ce a" 03 i , -™ a II "■3 CD ■1,3 Hir. OO O a.«.S 2 3 CD a cd a £*| 00. B. G. B. G. B. G. B. G. B. G. G. B. G. [ G. ca >, o n I -m O EH B. G. Destitute Vagrant Associating with disreputable persons Uncontrollable .. Accused or guilty of punishable offences By arrangement .. Transferred from gaol 6 2 2 5 32 5 5 19 9 6 1 1 15 1 9 1 3 I 11 3 4 2 2 1 7 73 9 12 46 6 16 119 15 28 3 4 2 1 2 5 1 5 1 2 21 5 5 2 '4 1 6 40 3 13 9 53 5 1 2 1 3 2 1 1 i 2 ! I 3 j 1 4 3 Totals .. \ 15 16 48 12 23 4 26 10 9 20 3 8 !l43 88 231 26 11 16 - !3 SCHARi rES, 1903. Governme: Ichools. Pri ivate Schools. All Ichools. Cause of Discharge. (Auckland. Receiving ; Home, 1 Wellington. Receivin Home, Christchurch. Burnham. as DC 2 ® ©M Caversham. St. | Mary's, I Auckland. »"a to O Io St. Mary's, Nelson. ■*=> „ a to ri 5)- H O S rS » c6 © B. G. b. [ a. B. | G. S, B, G. B. | G. B. G. CO O 3 1 B. a. G. Warrant of discharge Death Reached age of 21 years Marriage Totals .. 1 i 3 2 '.'. 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 30 1 12 8 26 | 6 4 I 2 3 i 8 .. \ 1 1 2 1 .. 2 2 | 4 ~~6~ 5 2 33 2 ' .. 4 . .'. .. 2 2 | .. 39 4 .. 43 91 10 19 21 3 23 2 112 18 42 2 5 43 8 33 ! 17 50 7 120 49 16! 3 3 6 • • I

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Numbers of 1902 AND 1903 COMPARED.

_ en 'ear Inmates Increase oi Decrease. 1902. 1903. [n the schools Boarded out vVith friends it service in hospital [n lunatic asylum Ln Blind Asylum, Auckland School for Deaf-mutes, Sumner H Costley Training Institution (on probation) Jnder control of refuges or cognate institutions in orphanage, oottage home, &c. .. [n gaol .. Absent without leave 610 441 176 518 3 4 1 2 1 36 11 5 39 601 513 195 489 7 3 2 7 21 10 5 56 - 9 + 72 + 19 - 29 + 4 - 1 - 1 + '6 - 15 - 1 + 17 Totals .. 1,847 1,909 i + 62

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No. 3. reports of medtcal officers. Auckland. Sir— Auckland, 10th March, 1904. I have received a request, through the Manager of the Auckland Industrial School, to report to you in reference to the health of the inmates of the school. I have vaccinated those in residence and a large number of the boarded-out children, and in much the greater proportion with success. A few cases of children vaccinated as infants have failed, though done twice. We have had a few cases of transitory fever in the house, all of which have recovered in a short time. One case of a girFwho had her ankle wounded by a piece of sharp stick has given some trouble, but is doing well. Everything about the house is highly satisfactory. IT have, &c, A. G. Purchas, M.R.C.S. (Eng.), Medical Officer. [CThe Secretary for Education, Wellington. ' . I %-r >■

Sir,— Auckland, April, 1904. During the past year St. Joseph's Orphanage, Lake Takapuna, has maintained its reputation for cleanliness and good order, being very clean, and in this respect a model to others. The air-space per bed is hardly as much as one could wish for, but the perfect ventilation neutralises this defect in an otherwise perfectly conducted home. The latrines and outside parts of the home are well kept. During the past year there have been no cases of infectious or contagious disease, and the health of the inmates has been good, and their improvement in physical condition eloquent testimony to the care they receive from Sister Alphonsus and the Sisters associated with her. I have arranged to vaccinate inmates on receipt of a supply of lymph. I have, &c, ,T. A. Laing, M.D., The Secretary for Education, Wellington. Medical Officer. Sir,— Auckland, April, 1904. I beg to make a report on St. Mary's Industrial School, Ponsonby, from my position as " Hon Medical Officer." The water-supply is good, so also is the drainage. The lavatories have been much improved since my last report —in fact, the sanitary arrangements are very good. Although we had had a severe outbreak of scarlatina some few months ago at the institution I am happy to say every case recovered, and we were able to trace the origin of the disease. There is at present no sickness of importance, with the exception of one case of phthisis, which we are getting removed from the establishment. The children are kept clean and well clothed, and their heads specially attended to, which is a hard matter in these public institutions to which so many different kinds of children are committed. The dormitories are kept in perfect order as regards cleanliness and ventilation. The mattresses are well aired at regular intervals, and the bedclothes are clean and sufficient for the various times of the'seasons. The food is well cooked, with plenty of variety, and is served out in quantity to suffice every appetite. I may mention that I have paid special attention to the food, and have gone into the kitchen during the times meals were being got ready. The dining-hall is also nicely laid out when meals are going on. I am thankful to say the children all round are very healthy, and that it is a long time since we have had a death in the institution, although some children have been brought in in a most miserable condition. I have had opportunities, time upon time, both night and day, to watch and judge how the good Sisters in charge are never away from their posts, especially if any acute illness of import happens. Their work is a pleasure to them, no matter how difficult or opprobrious. I have, &c, W. J. Darby, The Secretary for Education, Wellington. Hon. Medical Officer.

Wellington. Sir,- Wellington, 21st March, 1904. For the information of the Minister in charge of your Department, I have to report that during the year there has been no epidemic sickness at the Wellington Receiving Home, and no cases of infectious disease originating in the Home. Many of the children were suffering on admission from skin-eruptions and other evidences of neglect, but rapidly improved under the hygienic conditions of their new environment and the care and attention bestowed upon them by their attendants.

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rrr>^ ne sanitary con dition of the rooms and outhouses is satisfactory ; and the moral and physical improvement in the children, noticeable after a short stay in the Home, is evidence of the care and sympathetic discipline bestowed upon them. I have, &c, W. A. Chapple, M.D. The Secretary ior Education, Wellington.

Blß __ Wellington, 11th April, 1904. I hereby certify that I have this day made a careful and thorough inspection of St. Joseph's Industrial School, Wellington. The inmates are in the best of health. I found all the apartments thoroughly clean and the sanitation quite up to date. I vaccinated all the inmates in February, 1904, most of them being primary vaccinations, and they were all successful. P. Mackin, M.D., F.R.C.S., Ed., The Secretary for Education, Wellington. Medical Officer.

Nelson. g IR _ Nelson, April, 1904. During the past year the management of the Boys' Industrial School at Stoke has been severely strained owing to the main building having been destroyed by fire. However, the staff in charge proved themselves equal to the occasion, and have successfully carried on the working of the institution. Temporary dormitories have been arranged by putting bunks round the building that was used for a museum. The boys dine in another building, and the staff are provided for in various cottages. The average number of inmates is from eighty to ninety, and, as a general rule, their health is very good. The boys are well fed, have meat or fish every day, and are warmly clad ; they have cotton shirtsMuring the summer, and an under-flannel in addition during the winter. There has been no epidemic disease during the year. There have been three deaths during the year—Bernard Thurston, 17th August, from pneumonia ; Daniel O'Halloran, 16th October, from tubercular meningitis ; Horatio Weston, sth March, from rheumatic fever and pneumonia. The water-supply is abundant and good. The drainage is good. The latrines are always kept clean, with plenty of running water. I consider the institution to be very satisfactorily conducted. I have, &c, Jas. Hudson, M.B. (Lond.), The Secretary for Education, Wellington. Medical Officer.

g IR _ Nelson, April, 1904. During the past year there has been an average attendance of fifty to sixty girls, and about thirty little boys and babies at St. Mary's Industrial School, Nelson. The dormitories are clean and well ventilated. I inspect the water-closets every month, and almost invariably find them in good working-order and always clean. The wash-houses are somewhat primitive, but I believe they are to be rebuilt. The children have had full average health. During the year there have been a few cases of scarlet fever, which happily did not spread—none fatal; nine measles cases—none fatal; and numerous cases of mumps, for the most part very slight—none required special medical attendance. Two deaths have occurred during the year—William Dix, aged three months, from marasmus ; Jane James, aged fourteen years, from acute meningitis. The staff of Sisters, &c, are devoted in their attention to the children, and, as far as I can ascertain, are beloved by them. I consider the institution very satisfactorily conducted. I have, &c, Jas. Hudson, M.B. (Lond.), The Secretary for Education, Wellington. Medical Officer.

Canterbury. g IR Christchurch, Bth June, 1904. I have the honour to report that the health of the inmates of Te Oranga Home has been very good during the last year. . The large building recently erected was occupied in October, 1903, and is proving very suitable. There are at present thirty-seven girls in the Home, of whom twenty were admitted during the year ending the 31st March, 1904, and nine ceased to be under the control of the school—eight having reached twenty-one years of age, and one being transferred to another school. These have been much improved, both mentally and physically, and are now in good situations. There has been only one absconder, and she returned to the Home of her own accord. The girls are taken to church once every Sunday. There is only room in the church for fourteen, so that they have to take turns to go there. The Roman Catholic girls go to their own church once or twice a month. The Diocesan Chaplain, Mr. Smaill, visits the Home twice a week—once to hold a Bible class, and every Sunday evening to conduct a service. A Roman Catholic priest visits periodic-

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ally. The Sisteis of the Convent also visit occasionally. Miss Simpson teaches a Sunday-school class every Sunday. The Rev. Mr. Inwood has a singing class every Thursday. He also holds a Sunday-school once in three weeks, and confirmation classes at intervals. Mrs. Kay holds a social conversational class once a fortnight, and Mrs. Cunnington has given two teaching lectures on botany. A few entertainments have been given at the Home by Christchurch musical societies. The work done by the girls is now entirely restricted to their own requirements. Until recently the stockings of the Burnham boys have been mended at Te Oranga, but this is now discontinued, and in future the boys will have to mend their own stockings. The girls' work now consists of three hours, school-teaching daily, all their own dressmaking and washing, gardening, poultry-keeping, milking and butter-making, cutting firewood, and all the domestic work of the Home. All the vegetables used, except part of the potatoes, are grown by the girls. All the butter and jam used is made by them. The floors are waxed with beeswax made by them from their own bee-hives. The Matron has four attendants and a gardener. There is also a resident State-school teacher, who holds classes twice a day and two evenings a week. The girls are divided into two classes, which are kept entirely separate, and not allowed even to speak to each other. Each girl on arrival is placed in the second class, from which she is promoted to the first class after a reasonable term of good conduct. It is proposed to form a third class shortly for the very worst girls. All the good-conduct girls went into camp on Quail Island for two weeks' holiday in January, 1904. It effected a marked improvement in their health and spirits. It is to be sincerely hoped that this very successful experiment may be often repeated. No change could be more suitable from the confinement and routine of the Home, though most of the girls express themselves as happy and contented at Te Oranga. The thing most wanted now to improve the institution is a proper recreation-ground, provided with a tennis-court and gymnasium. Both classes of girls have small recreation-grounds of their own, but they are small and taken up with clothes-lines, &c. If a third recreation-ground were formed and adapted for tennis and gymnasium, it might be called a " neutral ground," and used alternately by either class. Such recreation as it would afford must not be viewed as a luxury, but rather as a means to health of body and mind. The girls are busily occupied from morning to night, and the routine would be less irksome if varied a little by healthy recreation in the open air. The girls can only remain at Te Oranga a few years ; they must leave at or before twenty-one years of age. It is the more reason to improve them as much as possible while there, so that the State may reap the benefit afterwards. I omitted to mention that the small church at Burwood has had to be enlarged at a cost of £200, on account of the Te Oranga girls. This is a heavy charge on such a poor and sparsely populated district, and some means should be devised to assist the parish to meet it. I have, &c, W. H. Symes, M.D., The Secretary for Education, Wellington. Medical Officer.

Sir, — Christchurch, 6th June, 1904. I have the honour to report that the health of the children on the books of the Christchurch Receiving Home has been fairly good during the past year, with the exception of one death, that of a girl in service, who died at the Hospital on the 20th October, 1903, from eating match-heads. The average number of children was 235 - 25 per month. The Home was removed from Barbadoes Street to Hereford Street on the 24th September, 1903. The principal difficulty we have to contend with is the want of proper accommodation for sick girls, who have frequently to leave their situations and return to the Home for rest and treatment. The majority of these cases are not sufficiently serious to require them to be sent to the public hospital, even if it were possible to obtain admission for them. Unfortunately, the present Receiving Home building is very ill adapted for cases of illness, on account of the small size of the rooms, and the lowness of the ceilings, which are only 9 ft. high. Thus, the best of the upstairs rooms has three beds, with 1,400 cubic feet air-space, allowing 470 ft. per bed, which is barely sufficient for a healthy person, whereas sick patients require from 1,200 to 2,000 cubic feet. Also, the minimum floor-space required in hospital wards is 100 square feet for ordinary cases, and 150 ft. for infectious cases, while the floorspace per bed in the Receiving Home is only 55 square feet. The window-space is equally deficient. None of the rooms are properly ventilated, and only two of them are provided with even partial appliances for ventilation. It is necessary that the girls who return to the Home to recruit their health should spend as much time as possible in the open air, but the small garden-space in front of the Home is too close to the street to allow the girls to remain there, and the very small paved yard at the back is absolutely sunless, and generally damp. The consequence is that the girls are mostly confined to the house, except when an attendant is free to take them for a walk in the town. A better plan would be to have a suitable building away from the centre of the town, with enough ground for the girls to spend most of their time in the garden. There is plenty of land to be bought for £300 to £400 an acre in the south-west part of Christchurch, which is much higher and more healthy than the present site. A single-story building would save much of the labour wasted in the present two-story building. One large dormitory, with an attendant's room at each end, would be healthier than the present little bedrooms, which have no such supervision. Also, the attendant's time would be saved in taking the girls and children out for air and exercise. Many out-of-door games and amusements, which are now impossible, would be most beneficial to both the girls and the children.

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One great advantage in having the Home situated on a larger piece of ground would be the facility t)f isolating any doubtful case of illness at the earliest moment, and so preventing the spread of infection. Thus, on two occasions girls have been sent back to the Home slightly indisposed, and have communicated diphtheria and measles to all the other inmates, causing the Home to be closed and great expense to be incurred for disinfection. A couple of rooms detached from the main building would prevent all this. This is the more necessary because, in addition to the actual residents in the Home, a large number of children are being continually brought to the Home for inspection and clothing. I wish to bear emphatic testimony to the excellent training in domestic work which the girls receive from the staff. I know by experience, and I have been assured by many ladies, that the girls trained at the Receiving Home are much better domestic helps in proportion to their age than the average met with in Christchurch households. The discipline they undergo at the Home renders them more amenable to instruction and correction than girls who have not had the privilege of such training. The advantage to the State of having so many girls well trained should more than repay the expense incurred. It is all the more necessary that a suitable Receiving Home should be provided. All the girls seem very fond of the Home, and are always glad to return to it. The treatment of sick inmates of the various Government institutions here is becoming every year a more difficult matter. lam often called upon to provide treatment at the same time for inmates of the Receiving Home, the Deaf-mute School, the Te Oranga Reformatory, the Burnham boys, and the police. Sickness is influenced by the seasons, and breaks out everywhere about the same time. In theory, I am supposed to send all such cases, if serious enough, to the Hospital, but the latter contains only 120 beds, which are occupied by people from all parts of the country, a considerable proportion of whom are in good circumstances and can afford to pay the charges. It is, more often than not, impossible to|obtain admission for the above inmates, and there is often much delay in waiting for beds. Thus, a girl at the Receiving Home, requiring a serious abdominal operation, last September, had to wait more than a month for admission. It would be of great benefit to the various Government institutions if we could have a small hospital ward in connection with the Receiving Home, where all our patients could be sent without delay. All cases of tuberculosis should be sent to Dr. Greenwood's Sanatorium, near Christchurch, where Government patients are admitted at the reduced charge of £1 10s. a week, with very satisfactory results. This charge of £1 10s. a week made by Dr. Greenwood for the children of the Receiving Home is a special concession made to me, as the Department does not see its way to pay any more. The lowest fee charged to other Government patients is two guineas a week, which is, I am informed, much less than the cost per head at the Cambridge Sanatorium. Hitherto we have been greatly assisted in the care of delicate children by Mrs. Knott, who has a very healthy house, with lofty well-ventilated rooms, on high ground at Addington, 31 ft. above sea-level, and very dry. The removal of our girls from Mrs, Knott has compelled Mrs. Knott to give up her house and go to Cheviot. The change to the Receiving Home told directly on E. P., who became so much worse that I had to send her to the Hospital. It is hopeless to attempt to keep tubercular children at the Receiving Home in Hereford Street, which is in the lowest and dampest part of Christchurch, and only 8 ft. above sea-level. It might, per•haps, be arranged to find a family on the Sandhills, near Dr. Greenwood's Sanatorium, which would receive our delicate girls at 15s. a week ; but it will be very difficult to find a nurse equal to Mrs. Knott to take care of them. In any case, nothing could be worse than shutting them up in the close, stuffy little rooms they are in now. We have had two girls in bed there for nearly a month, with nothing more wrong than anaemia, who would have been well in a fortnight if living in the open air. It is only a waste of time and money to keep girls there to recruit their health from the effects of domestic service. I have no prejudice against the house ; it is an excellent doctor's residence, and would sell or let readily to a doctor, as it is built expressly for that purpose. Its situation is extremely good for medical practice ; its excellent stables and coach-house, with many other conveniences, would exactly suit a doctor, but are not of much use to us. In regard to hospital admission, the subject was discussed at the last meeting of the Medical Society. The statements contained in my letter to the Press, of which I enclosed you a copy, were more than confirmed. Dr. R. Anderson, of Sydenham, stated that he had long come to the conclusion that Sydenham was in bad repute at the Hospital, because he had generally been unable to get poor people admitted. Dr. Clayton, medical officer to the Charitable Aid Board, stated that as his poor patients had been so often refused he could only conclude that charitable-aid patients were not wanted at the Hospital; so whenever he was very anxious to get a patient admitted he employed another doctor to apply for the bed. He considered this the only way to get his patient admitted. I have, &c, The Secretary for Education, Wellington. W. H. Symes, M.D.

Sir,— Christchurch, 10th June, 1904. The health of the boys at Burnham has been generally good during the past year. There has been one death, that of James Douley, who was found drowned in a water-tank on the 11th April, 1903. He was a boy of weak intellect, and the inquest resulted in a recommendation by the jury that further means should be adopted for classification. The average daily number of boys in residence at Burnham during the past year has been 100-58, out of 252 on the books, the rest being in situations, chiefly on farms. The Director is assisted by the following staff : one Matron, one Sub-matron, two school-teachers, and thirteen attendants, most of whom are charged with some branch of instruction.

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There are two cottages, in each of which six boys are boarded, in charge of a married couple. This cottage system is answering very well, as it is a great inducement to boys to behave well in order to be promoted to live in a cottage. It is much to be desired that this system may be further developed by the erection of more cottages. It is not only the best method of classifying boys, but it also attracts a superior class of men to apply for the position of attendant. It is found difficult to select the most suitable type of men for attendants, and I hope we may soon be able to train our own attendants. They should begin as probationers and be induced to qualify themselves for attendants by the offer of good salaries. The most difficult part of the management of Burnham lies in the care and "disposal of those who are physically and morally the most degenerate. These boys are included in Class M, and are specially watched and treated ; but their presence at Burnham is a prolific source of contamination to the rest of the school. They are incorrigibly addicted to vice and obscene language. Moral suasion seems to have no effect on them, and yet it would be cruel to attempt to reform them by corporal punishment. They ought to be isolated from the other boys, like an infectious disease. I understand that the Timaru Gaol is little used, and this building would, in my opinion, suit admirably for the home of these boys.. Another part of the same building could be used with advantage as a boys' penal reformatory for refractory criminal cases and persistent absconders. The good-conduct boys were camped on Quail Island in February for a month's holiday. This was greatly enjoyed, and contributed visibly to their health and spirits. The water-supply at Burnham has been vastly improved by the construction of a large filter-bed, into which the water-race flows, and from which a good flow of pure water is obtained. Formerly the water was used unfiltered from the water-race, with the result that boils and eruptions were always in evidence. The latter seldom occur now. A want that has long been felt at Burnham is that of a gymnasium. It seems strange that so large a school, where 252 boys are occasion-ally and 100 constantly in residence, should have existed so long without a gymnasium ; and it has only been delayed by the pressure of greater wants. Now that there is a carpentering class at the school there should be no longer any excuse for delay. The bleak, dreary, wind-swept plains of Burnham are pleading eloquently for tree-planting. Thereis a nice plantation at the school itself, but the 1,000 acres of paddocks are bare. If a gardener could be sent from the Government nurseries occasionally to instruct the boys in propagating and planting trees, it would benefit the boys, the land, and the climate. The last petition I wish to trouble you with concerns my own department. I have repeatedly brought under your notice the great need that exists for a proper dispensary at Burnham. At present the large number of stock bottles of medicine are stowed away in a cupboard in the work-room, where there is no room to arrange them, so that they are difficult to find. This leads to loss and waste of money. We want a room, well lighted, set apart for a dispensary, with shelves for the medicines, drawers for surgical dressings and appliances, and a table with scales and measures for dispensing. Various things should be kept in constant readiness for emergencies, such as burns and scalds, cuts, bleeding, fractures, and other accidents. Remedies, with easy directions, should be arranged so as to be found at a moment's notice in case of sudden illness. At present there is no room or proper place for anything, and nothing can be found immediately it is wanted. To complete this department, it is desirable that the Sub-matron should be a trained nurse. My recommendations may be enumerated thus : . (1) Extension of the cottage homes ; (2) use of Timaru Gaol as a penal reformatory ; (3) establishment of a gymnasium ; (4) instruction in treeplanting ; (5) dispensary and trained nurse. A very great change has come over Burnham since it has become the reformatory for the whole colony, all good-conduct boys being now sent to Caversham. Formerly a large proportion of the inmates were little boys ; but as all these are now generally sent to Caversham, those at Burnham show a high average of size and strength, often with sullen determination. The exercise of discipline is difficult and sometimes dangerous, and it is only the exceptional ability and qualifications of Mr. Archey that maintain good order in the school. Even he has very nearly lost his life through a murderous assault. Many of the boys are noted for a high spirit of pluck and reckless daring, qualities more valuable in naval than in civil life. A naval training-ship, for Burnham boys alone, would promote the objects of the school, and prove of great value in time of war. This suggestion has been highly approved by certain Royal naval officers, who have assured me that if the Right Hon. the Premier desired it there would probably be no great difficulty in obtaining the grant of a suitable ship from the Admiralty. I have, &c, The Secretary for Education, Wellington. W. H. Symes, M.D.

Otago. S IR _ Dunedin, 28th March, 1904. I have the honour to report that the past year, so far as sickness is concerned, has been an uneventful one in the experience of the Caversham Industrial School. At this time last year our hands were full, providing for the scarlatina cases, and isolating the individuals as they showed symptoms. Luckily the buildings on Quarantine Island were vacant, and, thanks to the Health Department, we were enabled to make use of them. Every attention was paid to the comfort of the boys as they were conveyed there and back. Altogether forty-seven were sotreated, and, as generally the cases were of a mild type, the convalescents enjoyed the pure air in the dry weather that characterized the season during the twelve weeks of their detention. We have also to acknowledge the good done by the Infectious Diseases Hospital in Caversham, where we conveyed

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nearly all of the cases in the first instance. The last of the successive batches returned to the school on the 25th May, and I should have had the pleasure of reporting that no fatality resulted had it not been that Edward Simpson died in the school of heart-failure on the 23rd June, his case being complicated with acute rheumatism, from which, however, he appeared to have made a complete recovery. The care and attention given by the officials during the epidemic was most conspicuous and devoted. I am happy to mention that we have now provision for isolation in the shape of a good building, standing by itself in the school grounds, where children can be accommodated. The girls enjoyed this advantage in a detached building erected on the grounds soon after the outbreak, which proved an excellent hospital and which was well isloated. Amongst the boarded-out children there were five deaths. W. A. Haslemore was the one case in the Dunedin district : died of obscure brain disease, and wa» seen by me the day before death. The health of the inmates has been very satisfactory —not without our share of minor ailments, but none of any severity. I think the attention given to drill and military exercises has had a marked effect on the improvement of the boys in physique and better carriage. I have, &c., Robert Burns, F.R.C.S.E., The Secretary for Education, Wellington. Medical Officer. Sir,— Dunedin, 15th April, 1904. I have the honour to submit the annual medical report of the Industrial School of St. Vincent de Paul, South Dunedin, for the year ending the 31st March, 1904. I have still every reason to be satisfied with the general care and management of the inmates on the part of the Mother Superior and the Sisters in charge of the institution. During the year the health of the inmates has been remarkably good. With the exception of an outbreak of mumps during the earlier part of the year there has been no instance of infectious disease. There have been very few cases of illness, and these have been all more or less of a trifling nature. There have been no deaths. Seeing that many of the children are of tender years, and are often when first committed of delicate constitution and in poor health, the high average of good health maintained by the inmates speaks well for the hygienic surroundings, and reflects credit on those responsible for their immediate care and welfare. I have, &c, W. S. Roberts, The Secretary for Education, Wellington. Medical Officer.

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