H.—l6

9

GEOGRAPHY. 1. Name six straits, with the countries they separate ; six islands, with the seas in which situated; six rivers, with the countries through which they flow ; six mountain-peaks, with the countries in which situated. 2. Where are Foveaux Strait, Tamaki Strait, Coromandel Channel, French Pass, Tory Channel; Capes Colville, Campbell, Terawhiti, and Foulvvind; the Maungaraki and Tasman Mountains; the Wairarapa and Karamea Plains ; the Rivers Waipa, Turakina, Buller, and Mataura? 3. What countries form the Continent of Asia? Name the capital town of each. 4. Whence does England chiefly import tea, sugar, coffee, silk, wine and spirits, tobacco, wool, gold, timber, and hides? 5. Where are the following, and for what noted: Port Said, Odessa, Haarlem, Valetta, Papua, Cader Idris, the Downs, Bomarsund? 6. What do you know of the Island of Cyprus ?

SENIOE. ENGLISH. Having read the accompanying correspondence,— 1. Make a short abstract, schedule, or docket of the several letters. 2. Draw up a memorandum or precis — i.e., a brief and clear statement of what passed, not letter by letter, but in the form of a narrative. Directions. 1. The object of the abstract, schedule, or docket is to serve as an index. It should contain the date of each letter, the names of the persons by whom and to whom it is written, and, in as few words as possible, the subject of it. The merits of such an abstract are —(1) to give the really important point or points of each letter, omitting everything else ; (2) to do this briefly; (3) distinctly ; and (4) in such a form as to readily catch the eye. 2. The object of the memorandum or precis, which should be in the form of a narrative, is that any one who had not time to read the original letters might, by reading the precis, be put in possession of all the leading features of what passed. The merits of such & precis are —(1) to contain all that is important in the correspondence, and nothing that is unimportant; (2) to present this in a consecutive and readable shape, expressed as distinctly as possible; (3) to be as brief as is compatible with completeness and distinctness. You are recommended to read the whole correspondence through before beginning to write, as the goodness both of the abstract and of the precis will depend very much on a correct appreciation of the relative importance of the different parts. Brevity should be particularly studied.

Repateiation of Pauper Lunatics. The Secbetaey of State for the Colonies to His Excellency the Goveenob. Sib,— Downing Street, 30th May, 1877. I have the honor to transmit to you the accompanying copy of a correspondence with the Foreign Office, relative to the repatriation of British and French pauper lunatics. It appears that the repatriation of such persons has been discontinued as between the parent countries, and I am disposed to think that it may be convenient to extend this arrangement to their colonies, thereby avoiding the mistakes, trouble, and expense which have been found to attend the opposite practice. I shall be glad to receive the views of your Government on the subject. I have, &c, The Officer Administering the Government, New Zealand. Caenaeton".

(Enclosures.) The Foeeign Office to the Colonial Office. Sib,— Foreign Office, 17th November, 1876. I am directed by the Earl of Derby to transmit to you, herewith, to be laid before Her Majesty's Secretary of State for the Colonies, copy of a despatch from Her Majesty's Consul General at Algiers, in which he applies for instructions as to the disposal of a lunatic Irishwoman named Bridget Sheen, who is now in the Civil Hospital of Constantine, where there is no accommodation for lunatics, and whose repatriation is requested by the Prefet of the city. This application has given rise to a question of some difficulty, which appears to Lord Derby to deserve careful consideration. The question of repatriation of foreign lunatics and paupers at the request of the Government of the country by whom they may have been maintained is one which has, at different periods, formed the subject of correspondence between Her Majesty's Government and the Government of France. In former times, Her Majesty's Government have been in the habit of assenting to such applications on the part of the French Government for the repatriation of English lunatics, although by doing so they entailed serious burdens on some English parishes. But in 1871 they were induced to look more closely into the question, and having ascertained that, by the law and practice of this country, destitute foreigners affected with mental imbecility are habitually received and taken care of in.the parochial establishments —as it appeared, on inquiry, to a very great extent —without any demand being made on the Government of the country of which they might be natives for their repatriation, they decided not to adopt a different system in regard to similar cases of British subjects found destitute in foreign countries. 2—H. 16.