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REPORT OF WESLEYAN SCHOOLS. SOUTHERN DISTRICT, 1856. Wellington, June 11th, 1857. Sic, — I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 21st ultimo, in which you request me to furnish the Government with my annual report of the state of the Native schools in this District in connexion with the Wesleyan Church which have been in receipt of any part of the Government Grant for Native education ; and also, the annual account of the mode in which the sum allotted for that purpose to the Wesleyan Church in the Southern Provinces has been expended. In reply I beg to inform his Excellency's Government that the Wesleyan Industrial Institution at Kai Iwi is in a state of forwardness. The farm will soon be capable of yielding food for the support of the Native scholars; additional buildings for their accommodation are in progress, and a thoroughly efficient trained master is expected from the Wesleyan Training College at Westminster in the course of this year. In the meantime a number of Native youths are employed in industrial occupations on the farm, and instruction is afforded them in elementary knowledge as far as circumstances admit, but not in that systematic form which will be established when the buildings are completed and the master has arrived. At the Hutt we have a primary school under the charge of an efficient Native schoolmaster who, for several years, enjoyed the advantage of the Institution at the Three Kings near Auckland. He has under his instruction 30 youths and children. The £680 granted for the year ending June 30th, 1857, has been appropriated as follows: £ s. d. For expenses of passage, outfit, etc., of Master from England, including Stationery and other material for School 150 0 o Allowed for erection of a School-room at the Hutt 150 0 0 Salary of Native Schoolmaster for half-year 15 0 0 Expended on the Institution at Kai-Iwi 365 0 0 £680 0 0 I have, &c, James Bullek. To the Honorable the Colonial Treasurer, &c., &c, &c.

July 13, 1857. SlK— I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your communication of the 11th ultimo, respecting the Native Schools in connexion with the Wesleyan Church in the Southern Provinces. Regarding the Native Schools as powerful and indispensable means for the true civilisation and advancement of the Maori population, I regret to state that I cannot consider your Report on the two Schools in your district as by any means so full or satisfactory as might be wished. As respects the state and efficiency of these Institutions it is the Governor's intention to cause them, in common with other Schools receiving aid from the Civil List, to be visited by inspectors nominated by his Excellency. The gentlemen named in the margin—[Moses Campbell, Esq , Dr. Rees, J. T. Wicksteed, Esq.,] —will accordingly be appointed to visit the schools in the Wanganui district, and his Excellency will shortly nominate Inspectors for the Wellington district, to whom I rest assured you will afford every proper facility for the execution of their mission. I need not therefore trouble you further upon this branch of the subject. But as regards the expenditure of the schools in question I trust you will be able to furnish accounts in greater detail for the past year. In the statement of expenditure contained in your letter now under reply, I note as specially unsatisfactory the item of £365 appearing as expended on the Kai Iwi school. For it must be recollected that upwards of £900 of public money had been previously spent on this establishment, (making with the two items comprised in the present statement a gross total of expenditure of £1434 5d,), which is now in the third year of its existence, and has not yet, as it would appear, so much as entered upon its regular educational functions With every disposition to make large allowance for the difficulties which beset all such undertakings, particularly in their commencement, and for special local and temporary impediments which may have existed in the case of Kai Iwi, the Government cannot but see that here is a state of things, capable indeed of satisfactory explanation, but upon which the fullest explanation ought to be sought and given. C. W. P.ICIIMOXD. To Rev. J. Buller, Wellington.

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