E.—3.

As the number of children maintained by these schools has varied from 842 to 820, and the expenditure has been above £19,000, the average cost for each child has been a little over £23. The ordinary payment for a boarded-out child is 7s. a week, or £18 ss. a year ; but, as many of these children require an outfit before they can be sent out to board, and as their affairs occupy much of the time of the managers of the schools and other officers, it is not possible to distinguish between the cost of maintaining the children in the schools and the cost of maintaining boarded-out children. It is also to be remembered that the officers of the institutions have responsibilities with respect to children sent to service, and to all that are on the books, and that the expenditure on the schools includes the cost of education of the children residing in them ; and that the staff of officers cannot be reduced in exact proportion to the declining numbers of resident inmates. Further, in the case of Burnham it has been thought wise to invest some money (about £200) in the improvement of the estate, in the hope that it will yield a return in future years. The department is deeply indebted to the ladies who visit all the boardedout children, and make a report on every case every month. The police authorities, too, render many important services to the department in connection with the industrial schools. Taking into account the 7 non-committed children (1 boy boarded out from Kohimarama, 2 girls boarded out from Kent Street, 1 girl sent out to service from Kent Street, and 3 boys at Caversham), the whole number belonging to the schools is 1,609, of whom 583 are in the schools, 546 boarded out, 283 at service, 165 with friends, 4 in asylums and hospitals, 1 at the Costley Institute, and 27 absent without leave. These are the numbers to be recorded for comparison with those of next year. The accounts of the Costley Institute, which received five boys from the Auckland Industrial School during the year, have been duly furnished by the Trustees, and are printed as a separate paper (E.-3a.).

No. 2. Memobandum by the Inspectok-Genebal of Schools. The following table shows the distribiition of the 1,602 committed children and the 7 noncommitted among the different schools and into classes according to their present condition, and also according to religion, as Protestant and Catholic :—

"Inmates" of Industrial Schools, 31st December, 1886.

Of the 572 Eoman Catholic children 246 are connected with Government and local schools; and of these 65 reside in the schools, 87 are boarded out, 39 are with friends, 50 at service, and 5 missing.

4

Government Schools. Local School. ■ivate Schools. All Schooli Inmates. Auckland. Burnham, Cai Burnham, Caversliam. Thames. o a o 6J) .9 a Jf Nelson. >> "71 o -C5 "3 6 B. G. B. G. B. G. G. G. B. G. B. G. tn the schools ..) -. -, 9Q j Boai-aodout ..; 1|"a I With their friends it service [n hospital [n lunatic asylum it Costley Institution, on probation Absent without leave 49 70 30 27 1 5 40 10 30 79 123 20 70 1 28 97 21 21 74 114 45 66 47 94 24 45 1 3 'i 6 8 51 '.'. *8 8 1 8 68 8 68 21 2 2 128 "2 5 'l 90 '2 5 333 313 98 174 2 1 250 233 67 109 1 683 546 165 283 2 2 228 457 112 215 2 1 355 89 53 68 "l 1 7 '4 12 '3 1 23 4 1 27 1 21 "e Totals .. | 191 85 297 167 311 214 10 25 136 97 945 I I 664 1,609 1,037 , 572 7G 5: 25 % 1,6 >09 2 1 1, !09