3

E.—2

own inherent strength of character, which imposes an obstacle very real, if not very visible, to the inroad of foreign ideas. lam glad to see that the Government has approved the recommendations I have made for the immediate extension of hand-work in Native schools, for the establishment of technical schools for those who have left the Maori village-schools, and for the substantial encouragement of manual and technical instruction at Te Aute and St. Stephen's. lam sure this course of action will result in great benefit to the Native-school system and the whole Maori race." In connection with the remarks of the Inspector-General, it may be mentioned that three technical schools for Maori bojfe who have left the villageschools are already being set up at Eakaumanga, Bangitukia, and Whirinaki respectively, and that, at the request of the Maoris themselves, carpentry is the subject with which a start is to be made; other subjects will follow in due course, and if the experiment succeeds, there is no reason why technical schools should not be opened in other districts also. In like manner the Government is giving substantial encouragement to the manual and technical instruction at Te Aute and St. Stephen's. Hand-work is being taken up with enthusiasm in some of the village-schools. A vote will be placed on the estimates for providing a visiting teacher (or "organizing superintendent"), who will be able to spend a much longer time at schools where his presence is found to be helpful than the Native-school Inspectors can afford to give, and will devote, moreover, special attention to organizing the manual and technical work in the schools. Out of the eighty-five schools in operation during the whole or part of the year 1899, sixty-five were under the charge of masters, and twenty under the charge of mistresses; the number of assistants was 63; of sewing-mis-tresses, 11. The head-masters received salaries ranging from ,£lOO to £275; head-mistresses, from £61 to ,£lB7 ; the salaries of assistants, who in nearly all cases belong to the family of the head-teacher, ranged from merely nominal amounts to £50. The expenditure on Native schools was as follows: Teachers' salaries and allowances, £13,586 18s. 5d.; books and school requisites, £499 7s. 7d.; repairs and small works, £535 ss. 9d. ; inspection, £962 2s. 7d.; boarding-schools and scholarships, £1,809 6s. 4d.; buildings, fencing, furniture, &c, £5,477 13s. 6d.; sundries, £160 6s. 4d.: total, £23,031 os. 6d. ' The report of the Inspector of Native Schools contains full information as to details in regard to the Maori village schools and the boarding-schools, and many interesting remarks upon the nature of the work being done in the Maori schools, together with a review of the progress made during the last twenty years.

No. 2. The Inspectok of Native Schools to the Inspector-General of Schools. Sir,— Wellington, Ist Feburary, 1900. In accordance with the terms of my standing instructions, I have the honour to lay before you my report on the general condition of the Native schools of New Zealand, and on the work done in them during the year 1899. Numbeb op Schools. At the end of 1898 there were eighty-four schools in full working order; at the end of 1897 the number had been seventy-eight. In the course of 1899 two new village schools were opened, three were reopened, and one was closed. Daring the year, or some portion of it, eighty-nine schools were in operation, and at the end of 1899 there were eighty-eight schools open—viz., eighty-four village schools and four boarding-schools. These numbers do not include the denominational schools which the Department has been asked to inspect and examine—viz., those at Matata Convent, Putiki, Otaki, and Waerenga-a-Hika. Changes: New Schools opened, and Schools reopened or closed. Waimana Native School was opened in the June quarter of 1899. It is in the Tuhoe, or Drewera Country, and may be considered a companion school to that at Ruatoki. Difficulties attended the opening, but it has now made a highly successful beginning. Wai-o-tapu School, in the Eotorua district, is a few miles from the Wai-o-tapu Hot Springs; it also has made a good beginning. The reopening of the schools at Peria, Whangape, and Otamatea was referred to in the report for 1898. The reopening of Peria was very successful, and the attendance has been unexpectedly large. The Whangape reopening also has been justified by the large attendance.-