E.—l

III

and the importance of maintaining a high standard of regularity of school attendance will be better appreciated if it is remembered that the leading authorities on juvenile depravity and crime are agreed that these social faults have for the most part their origin in truancy and in the acquirement of the nomadic habit; and accordingly the margin between a low rate and a high rate of school attendance, although affected in some degree by sparse settlement, represents to a large extent those individual children who will, if still neglected, go to swell our industrial schools and reformatories, and, at a later age, our prisons, refuges, and lunatic asylums.

TABLE B.—School Attendance for 1901.

Taking the several education districts of the colony, an examination of Table B will show that there has been an increase in the average attendance at the schools in 1901 as compared with 1900 in all the districts of the North Island, and in Marlborough in the South Island. In all the other districts of the South Island there has been a decrease. The position is shown in tabular form below (Table Bl). The increase in the average for the North Island is 803, and the decrease for the South Island is 753, the net increase for the whole colony being thus 50. The greatest increase (284) is shown in Auckland, the next being Wanganui, with an increase of 210.

TABLE B1. —Comparison of School Attendance, 1900-1901, North Island and South Island.

Roll-m imbers. Averai ;e Attendance for Vhole Year. Average for the Year as Percentage of the Mean of Average Weeklv Eoll of Four Quarters— 132,869 for 1901, and 132,897 for 1900. T _ ff Pupils Y — Ye°ar. i Education Districts. Pupils at Beginning of Year. Admitted during the Year. Boys. Girls. : Total. 1901. 1900. Auckland Taranaki Wanganui .. .: Wellington Hawke's Bay Marlborough Nelson Grey Westland North Canterbury South Canterbury Otago Southland 26,060 3,814 9,953 13,609 7,631 2,010 5,440 1,489 1,151 18,805 4,925 18,929 8,909 11,831 1,931 5,045 6,298 3,334 754 1,980 450 324 6,515 1,833 6,394 2,945 9,504 1,411 4,032 5,014 2,825 675 1,770, 375 291 5,682 1,684 5,390 2,355 28,387 4,334 10,996 14,893 8,140 2,089 5,650 1,564 1,184 19,638 5,074 19,993 9,499 12,804 1,876 4,740 6,665 3,612 915 2,500 665 519 8,623 2,334 9,041 4,142 11,575 1,616 4,357 5,957 3,237 844 2,234 704 526 7,935 2,104 8,503 3,769 24,379 3,492 9,097 12,622 6,849 1,759 4,734 1,369 1,045 16,558 4,438 17,544 7,911 ■ 84-5 82-0 82-1 83-7 83-9 82-6 82-8 85-2 86-2 832 86-5 86-7 83-1 84-4 81-4 82-2 829 84-9 81-5 82-9 891 87-5 82'9 86-3 86-9 82'9 Totals for 1901 Totals for 1900 122,725 123,416 49,634 49,098 41,008 41,790 131,351 130,724 58,436 53,361 * 111,797 111,747 84-1 841 84'1 Difference .. -691 536 -782 627 50 ♦ Numbers for 1900 not available. According to " strict " average, the numbers were 57,681 boys, 52,727 girls; total, 110,261.

Average Attendance. Districts. 1900. 1901. Difference. Auckland Taranaki Wanganui Wellington Hawke's Bay 24,095 3,374 8,887 12,475 6,805 24,379 3,492 9,097 12,622 6,849 284 118 210 147 44 Totals, North Island .. 55,636 56,439 803 Maryborough Nelson Grey Westland North Canterbury South Canterbury Otago Southland 1,746 4,845 1,461 1,140 16,741 4,464 17,790 7,924 1,759 4,734 1,369 1,045 16,558 4,438 17,544 7,911 13 [-111] [- 92] [- 95] [-183] [- 26] [-246] [- 13] Totals, South Island .. 56,111 55,358 [-753] Totals for colony 111,747 111,797 50