E,—6a.

Characters of Parents of Children Committed for Larceny. The following table contains a classification of the parents of the children committed to Caversham and Burnham Schools for larceny:—

It is reported of many of the children committed for larceny that they had become uncontrollable. The following entries in the registers are of this nature : —" Father dead ; the boy beyond control of mother." " Father a seaman; leaves his wife and family to do the best they can. The mother a respectable woman, but could not control her son, who is a thief and sleeps from home." "The father is a tailor, poor, with large family; the boy a thief, and thoroughly beyond parents' control." An attempt is made by means of the following table to classify all the inmates of the Caversham and Burnham'Schools according to the character and circumstances of the parents at the date of committal :—■

The preceding classification brings out the fact that 313 committals may fairly ba attributed, in_ a greater or less degree, to the misconduct of the parents; and 96 committals, to misfortune or mismanagement; there being 24 cases respecting which no information is received. However uninviting the subject, it may prove of service to reveal the depths from which very many of these children have been rescued by means of the industrial schools. The following are some of the entries in the registers of admission: Two girls, aged nine and six years, " mother a brothel-keeper sent to gaol for one month, hence the children committed to the school," for six and seven years respectively; a girl, eleven years old," father dead, mother described by the police to be ' one of the lowest abandoned women in Dunedin;' " a girl, five years old, " mother landed in Dunedin, pregnant, five years ago; she became a prostitute and died a short time ago; the child has no friends;" two boys, aged nine and six years,

3

Caversham. Burnhal Total. Character of Parents of Children charged with Larceny. Boys. Girls. Total. Boys. Girls. Total. Boys. Girls. Total. Both respectable, or nothing known against them Father dead or deserted ; mother respectable Father drunkard ; mother of good character Father respectable ; mother deserted Father deaerted ; mother dead Maori Father deserted ; mother of very bad character Father and mother drunkards Father noted for villainy N"o information 9 7 1 9 7 1 1 1 1 4 1 8 1 4 1 12 2 ! 17 ! 8 1 4 1 21 9 1 1 1 1 5 1 1 5 i l i l "i 2 2 1 "i 1 i 3 "2 1 i 5 1 5 1 "i I 5 Total... 20 5 25 16 5 21 ; se 10 46

Cavers sham. Burn] 1 am. Tol .al. Information respecting the Parents at time of Children's Committal. II •s a Childri Numb 1 Childi er :en. CTumbei Childrf Kemarks. of >n. of m. Father. Mother. Boys. Girls. Total. Boys Girls Total. II Boys. Girls. Total. 7"ery bad character Deserted STo information ... Deserted Hckly and poor ... Dead ... Pery bad character Drunkard 3ad character, or deserted i?ery bad character Sickly and poor ... Dead ... Deserted Deserted Deserted Very bad character Very bad character Very bad character Deserted Very bad character Very bad character Dead ... In lunatic asylum In hospital 8 24 19 16 1 8 7 1 2 10 25 10 13 1 5 12 1 5 6 16 10 9 14 1 1 1 16 41 20 22 1 19 13 2 6 21 8 8 10 "7 10 19 4 6 9 io 14 16 8 8 5 2 6 35 12 14 14 12 20 29 32 27 26 1 15 17 1 2 29 29 16 22 1 15 26 1 5 22 24 18 14 16 7 1 1 51 53 84 86 1 31 33 2 6 •AS S 3 £ £■§ 8 9 O 03 S-3 P< "a 9 i»! d> ° O Jl-8 I* a-s Believed respectable Deserted Deserted Dead ... In lunatic asylum Believed respectable 6 1 4 1 4 3 8 4 1 1 1 7 1 1 16 5 13 5 1 1 15 2 12 4 3 9 4 1 28 9 15 13 5 11 12 2 10 12 7 3 24 9 13 1 3 1 3 1 i 4 18 7 3 2 2 2 [n lunatic asylum In lunatic asylum In lunatic asylum In lunatic asylum Dead ... Respectable Dead ... Dead ... Poor, but respectable Believed respectable 3 4 2 2 4 6 2 4 4 2 8 8 2 6 2 1 1 2 5 4 2 2 1 15 5 9 19 5 6 2 4 2 8 10 8 21 5 2 10 8 2 6 9 it; J6 11 24 i« |1 S o 2"§ 3 d £* lie |aa Poor ... Dead ... !n lunatic asylum [n lunatic asylum Dead ... Poor ... Dead ... 3elieved respectable Vtaori ... 12 3 4 8 5 7 4 10 2 8 4 1 13 11 5 10 1 3 2 5 11 2 3 3 4 11 2 2 3 2 3 5 6 14 2 8 6 3 3 Maori ... 1 1 1 1 1 1 !f o information ... No information ... 19 22 2 24 19 22 2 24 Total on December 31, 1880 161 154 108 262 114 115 56 171 275 269 164 433