E.—2.

[Appendix C.

manual training finds the resistance offered by metals too much for him effectively to overcome, with the result that the insidious " near enough " creeps in, may in the light of wider experience prove to be wrong. Both courses are being watched with a good deal of interest. A feature worthy of .mention is the improvement in the lettering and figuring of the manualtraining drawings, and the practice in one district of giving special lessons in this subject has much to commend ii,. The desirability of working occasionally to decimal and metric measurements should not be lost sight of. A survey of the work of classes in subjects related to the home shows that there is little, if any, foundation for the statement that has occasionally appeared in connection with the classes in cookery, to the effect that too much fancy cookery and cake-making is included in the course of instruction. An examination of the syllabus of instruction and of the actual work of most of the classes shows that the larger part of the time given to practical work is devoted to the preparation of plain and economical dishes, and that the preparation and cooking of such important articles of diet as potatoes and porridge are not altogether neglected. Incidentally (he increase in the cost of bread has pointed to the necessity for instruction in breakmaking in the home, and at many centres this matter, together with the use of compressed yeast, has received adequate attention. Speaking generally, the instruction in plain cookery is on thoroughly sound and economical lines. Patriotic purposes have during the period of the war diverted the instruction to the making of special sweets and cakes, but the ordinary average household menu, with useful and at times necessary variants thereon, forms the basis of the instruction. The extension of the practice of giving pupils in their second year (lie opportunity of arranging a simple threecourse meal, purchasing the material and preparing, cooking, and serving it, is worthy of note. Laying and decorating the table, making the most of the simplest material, and serving the viands in an appetising form sire not regarded as unimportant items in this part of the instruction. Elementary principles underlying the culinary art and general housewifery are receiving increased attention. Without in any way depreciating the excellent pioneer work done by instructors in the past, a comparison of the lessons given then with those given at many of the centres now is mostly in favour of the latter. The trained teacher having a substantial store of knowledge gained in the laboratory of chemistry, physics, physiology, hygiene, and allied subjects and their relation to foods, with a good all-round training in the kitchen, should, in the natural order of things, become a more efficient instructor in domestic subjects than one who has received all her training in the kitchen. The deeper and wider knowledge, the broadened outlook, and the better general training of the teachers of domestic subjects is having its effect upon the classes, and the value of their work both to the individual and to the State is unquestionable. Instruction in housewifery is confined te the cookery kitchen, and is in the circumstances as thorough as it can he. In these days when the value of economy in all things is stressed it has been said that time and effort are wasted in the cookery-room in the cleaning and polishing of things that are neither dirty nor dim. The only answer to this appears to be that the direct value to the girls of the lessons in housewifery lies in the treatment of the subject, and that as dirty tables and dull taps cannot very well be supplied to each class for practice purposes, the best possible use is made of the available soiled apparatus in the room for instructional purposes in a subject so closely related to the life and comfort of the home. Laundry-work and dressmaking continue to be taken in some districts as part of the training in domestic subjects, and viewed as a whole the instruction is sound and the information imparted is available for practical use. Steady progress continues to be made both in the number and work of classes receiving instruction in elementary agriculture, and in a combined course of elementary agriculture and dairy-work. It appears unnecessary in these days to emphasize the indirect value to the pupils of the instruction given. By means of the school-garden, experimental plots, and the correlated nature-study, habits of accurate observation and reasoning are being successfully inculcated. The instruction in dairy-work has in many instances proved of immediate value, as tests made by pupils on the home herd have assisted in the discovery and elimination of animals that, have become useless for dairy purposes. The amount of experimental work that can be carried out in this subject in the class-room and garden of a public school is limited, but there is little doubt, speaking generally, that the instruction has a high value in creating and intensifying interest in matters relating to plant-life. Viewing manual training generally, it can be safely asserted that in spite of the limitations of both teachers and pupils the work as a whole is assisting in the development, of what lias been aptly designated sis " the thinking hand." E. C. Isaac, Inspector of Manual Instruction.

IV