A.—No. 3,

4

PAPERS RELATIVE TO NATIVE SCHOOLS.

the education of the children of Her Majesty's subjects of both races, and of the children of other poor and destitute persons, being inhabitants of the Islands of the Pacific Ocean, so long as religious education, industrial training, and instruction in the English language, shall be given to the youth educated therein and maintained thereat." In the Memorandum referred to, His Excellency proposed a general educational scheme under which the schools to be aided from the Government grant were to be of three kinds —■ (1.) Diocesan Colleges. (2.) Central Schools. (3.) Primary Schools. The Central Schools were to be the means of multiplying the Primary Schools, and the Diocesan Colleges were to be formed of the most promising scholars from the Central Schools. The principle upon which all schools were to be conducted was, that a religious education, industrial training, and instruction in the English language should form a necessary part of the system pursued; and, as I understand it, the Colleges and Central Schools were to spring from the Primary Schools, and in turn react upou them by supplying men duly qualified to conduct the teaching in them. The present condition of theinstitution at St. Stephen's, having regard to the proposed graduated system, is necessarily a failure. The Primary Schools do not exist, and the scholars are not such as could well be rendered fit for the purposes of imparting instruction in the English language. The war and various circumstances have caused the breakdown of the other parts of the system, and there only remains an institution which should be the result of, and cannot be efficiently maintained apart from, the Primary and Central Schools. I do not think that the object the Government have in view, in subsidizing a Training College, is attained where the pupils are at such an age as to be incapable, for the most part, of learning and acquiring the art of teaching the English language. What appears to be required by the Government from a Training College is rather a class of English teachers sufficiently acquainted with Maori toenable them to teach English to the Natives. A special religious training may well be grafted upon a sound instruction in subjects the teaching of which will enable the Maoris to deal on equal terms with the Europeans; but I think the former should be viewed rather as an incident, the latter as the essential requisite, in a system" which receives assistance from public funds. I believe that the managers have striven under adverse circumstances to maintain the institution in a state of efficiency, and to keep in view the objects and plans laid down by the Government, compliance with which was made the condition of the subsidy. Some change now appears necessary, and I would submit that some fresh arrangement should be made to render the present school more adapted to altered circumstances. The trust property has been divided into sections, varying in size from three to sis acres, for the purpose of building sites, and a few houses have been built upon it, but as yet the estate does not produce funds enough to do more than pay for repairs of buildings, &c. In the present state of commercial depression, it is not probable that there will be any demand for building sites for some time to come; funds will therefore have to be otherwise provided to carry out any plan which may be adopted. The managers of the Orphan Home have been allowed to build upon one section of the trust property ; and in consideration of the kindred nature of the institution to that contemplated by the St. Stephen's Trusts, a lease of twenty-one years has been granted to them, at a trifling rent. I attach a copy of the last report of the managers. I think it to be regretted that this establishment has no connection with St. Stephen's. It would be a great advantage if teachers trained in the adjoining institution could receive practical lessons in the art of teaching. I believe, however, that only a very limited number of half-castes would be admitted to the Orphan Home; and that the admission of Maoris would only be made under exceptional circumstances. I would observe, in conclusion, that, from all that I can learn, there is at the present time a growing desire among the Maoris to have their children instructed in the English language, a desire which has been, during the last two years, much increased by the closer contact into which the two races have been generally brought, partly by the operation of the Native Lands Act, and partly by other circumstances which are daily convincing the Maoris of the disadvantage at which they are placed in respect of Europeans by their ignorance of the English language. The establishment of Aillage Schools, with English teachers possessing such a knowledge of Maori as to enable them to help Maori scholars to the acquisition of English, would be hailed as a great boon by the Natives generally. The teachers for such schools should, I think, receive a preliminary training in an institution like that at St. Stephen's, where they might have the opportunity of learning Maori. Auckland, 21st December, ISG(S. "W. Eolleston.

Enclosure 2 in No. 1. Eepoet on Thbee Kinos Institution (Wesleyan). I visited the Three Kings Institution on the 12th December, at 11.30 a.m., during the morning school hours. There are thirty-four pupils, in respect of whom the capitation allowance is claimed from the Government, of these fourteen were present. The remainder were absent on visits or employed away from the school. I append a list of all the pupils in the institution, giving their ages and other particulars, furnished on my request by the master. I first examined the Maori and half-caste children in reading, writing, and arithmetic. The reading of those able to attempt it was throughout very unsatisfactory, even in the' case of lessons upon which they had been recently engaged; and they were entirely unable to read with sufficient intelligence for any practical purpose. The writing was of an equally unsatisfactory character. In arithmetic there was no pupil in the school able to accomplish the addition or subtraction of money, and very few that could add simple columns of figures with accuracy. I requested the master to let