E.—2

4

purposes that it was found impossible to carry on the work in wet or windy weather. It is hardly to be wondered at if the attendance generally became irregular, and the interest of the Natives in the school declined. In the new school the teacher will have a fair chance of succeeding. I examined five pupils paid for by the Government at St. Mary's, Ponsonby. The girls had been properly attended to ; the passes obtained were two in Standard I. The Native boarding-school at St. Stephen's, Parnell, was found to be, as it always is, in satisfactory order. Nearly every pupil examined passed, and passed well. Many of the elder boys showed that they possessed knowledge far beyond the requirements of the standards. All the work done is very thorough, and it is almost impossible to find weak places in it. It strikes me, however, that it would be advantageous if the ratio of the oral to the written work were somewhat larger. It is, I think, generally acknowledged that there is at the present day a tendency to give preparation for written examinations too prominent a position in school education. There can be no doubt that it is quite as important that a child should be trained to be prompt in reasoning and in inferring, and to be capable of producing in conversation off hand what he knows, as that he should be able after reflection to give his matured thoughts in writing. This applies at least as forcibly to Maoris as Europeans ;it is evidently desirable, at any rate, that Maori pupils should be made to talk English as much as possible. This being so, it is plain that, in teaching Maoris, or in examining them, one ought to endeavour to prevent the -oral work from occupying too subordinate a place. Much might be said in praise of the domestic management and arrangements ; the only thing that now seems to require improvement here is the sleeping accommodation. The expense would, I suppose, be considerable ; but it seems to me desirable that sheets should be supplied for the use of the boys. This would at once give the dormitories a much neater appearance than they have at present, and would add greatly to the boys' comfort. Of the boys examined here, ten passed in Standard 1., ten in Standard 11., five in Standard 111., and four in Standard IV. Tauranga. —H. W. Brabant, Esq., E.M., is the Superintendent for this district. The attendance at nearly all the schools was suffering, or had recently suffered, through epidemics, Land Courts, or scarcity of food. They thus made a less satisfactory appearance than they might otherwise have done. Maungatapu, which had been in a very promising condition the previous year, was found to have fallen off greatly; it is now, I believe, suffering a recovery. Te Awahou, too, was at a very low ebb, but a recent visit shows that there has been marked improvement in every respect. Ohinemutu has always been more or less unsatisfactory, generally more; the Natives' attention is so taken up with other matters, and they have been so unsettled by causes that it is unnecessary to enumerate here, that such a trifle as the education and future welfare of their children appears to give them but little concern; there are, however, a few hopeful indications, even here. The attendance appears to have improved a Mttle, and the children seem to take somewhat more interest in the school than they did formerly. On the whole, however, though the master appears to do his best, the results are very disappointing. Te Wairoa, Lake Tarawera : This is- certainly one of our best schools; it suffered only slightly from the causes mentioned at the head of this section. The examination results were very creditable to the teachers. Eotoiti had declined considerably ;no girls were in attendance. There appears to have been some misunderstanding among the Natives with regard to the prizes for regular attendance. These prizes have been of great use in nearly every school in the colony, and it is hard to understand how the difficulty can have arisen here. It is said, too, that the appointment of a Native to act as sewing-mistress has caused jealousy amongst the other women, and that this is the reason why the girls have left. Whatever be the cause of the difficulty, measures should be taken to set matters right, seeing that a thoroughly successful school is much needed in the district. Maketu : There seems to be smouldering discontent With the master of this school among a section of the Natives of the district. There is no reason why this should exist; the master is a careful and painstaking teacher, and qualified to do his work. The examination showed that satisfactory improvement had been made. The attendance was much larger than it had been the year before. Bay of Plenty East. —E. S. Bush, Esq., E.M., is Superintendent of this district. Matata school is very good. The results obtained at the examination were quite satisfactory. The discipline, formerly a weak point, is now good. The only thing noticeable as requiring amendment is the condition of the school-room; greater neatness is desirable. The buildings are to be removed to a more suitable position, and are to be thoroughly repaired and refitted. It is hoped that when these works have been executed the Committee will effect some improvement in the matter of keeping the school tidy. At Te Teko much and good work has been done. The results were creditable to the teachers, who had had no previous experience of this kind of work. The very useful but isolated school at Fort Galatea is still successful. The master deserves very honourable mention for what he has effected in this very out-of-the-way place. He is one of our most skilful and thorough class-teachers, and, with a little less of the for'titer in re in dealing with Maori children— which I am inclined to think to a certain extent prevents him from gaining their affection—would always be a very successful native-school teacher. The attendance at Whakatane had fallen off considerably since my previous visit, but the school is still deserving of high commendation. (The attendance has greatly improved since my visit, and is now large.) Waiotahi failed to maintain its previous character; it may, hoy/ever, be fairly expected to do much better next year. Torere did well, though, perhaps, all things considered, hardly as well as at the previous examination. This school owes no small part of its success to the influence of Wiremu Kingi, the chief of Torere, who has always been a strong and intelligent supporter of the school. The master is skilful, painstaking, and very original. At Omaio the progress has been satisfactory, but the attendance was not very large., A little more practice, and a more enlarged acquaintance with good methods, will make the master a capital teacher. Maraetai, Te Kaha: This school, with regard to such maUers as neatness, organization, and system, is excellent. Good progress has been made, and the school did well on the whole at the examination.