E.—3

1887. NEW ZEALAND.

EDUCATION: INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS (PAPERS RELATING TO). [In Continuation of E.-3, 1886.]

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly by Command of His. Excellency.

No. 1. Exteact from Tenth Annual Eepoet of the Minister of Education. Industeial Schools. Eor several years past the Education Eeport has included a statement respecting the children both in industrial schools and orphanages. By the operation of " The Hospitals and Charitable Institutions Act, 1885," which has transferred the cost of maintenance of children in orphanages from the Government to local Boards, all responsibility on the part of the Education Department for the care of children in orphanages has been brought to an end. There were, however, in the industrial schools, at the end of 1885, 7 children of the same class as those in the orphanages—children, that is to say, not committed by the Magistrates but received into industrial schools under benevolent regulations —and, as 7 other children of this class were received into industrial schools in 1886, and 7 such children discharged, there still remain 7 to be considered apart from the general statistics of industrial schools. In this report no further reference will be made to orphanages, but the statistics, put in such a form as to show the changes that have occurred during the year, will relate to the industrialschool work only, and the 7 non-committed children will be added at the end, so that they may be included in the statistics required for comparison with future years. At the end of 1885 there were 1,566 children on. the books of industrial schools, of whom 1,116 were dependent on the schools for maintenance—l,ll2 being supported by the Government, and 1 (over 15 years of age) by the private schools. During the year 1886 the number of committals was 238, and 202 were removed from the roll—lBs by warrant under the hand of the Governor, 9 by deaths, 5 by transfer from Kohimarama to the Costley Institution at Auckland, Iby marriage, Iby adoption, and Iby attaining the age of 21 years. The total increase of children on the books was therefore 36; the number belonging to Government schools having been increased by 4, and the number belonging to Roman Catholic schools by 32. At the same time the number maintained has been increased by 7 only, the difference between an increase of 30 at the Roman Catholic schools, and a diminution to the extent of 23 in the other schools. This brings up the number of dependent children from 1,116 to 1,123, of whom, however, 8, being above 15 years of age, are supported not by the Government or by the Boards, but by the schools to which they belong ; so that the number maintained by the Government (wholly or in part) has risen only from 1,112 to 1,115. 1 E.—3.