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of the range of food available to prisoners and the fact that substitutory foods of equivalent calorific and vitamin content would be more costly than the cow beef and cull ewes used and produced on the prison farms, the standard meat ration has not been reduced. In addition to the care of the general health of prisoners by the Prison Medical Officers, the Department has a close working arrangement with the Mental Hospitals Department whereby its psychiatrists are always at call to examine and advise on the treatment of any inmate of impaired mentality. Industrial and Financial The gearing of the Department's labour force to an industrial organization designed solely for financial gain, regardless of social and humanitarian considerations, might perhaps be better than the old forms of task labour or the crank and treadmill, but such a policy would by no means accord with current penological ideas. The provision of useful and interesting employment plays an important part in the smooth and effective administration of prisons and the reclamation of prisoners. Although most authorities are agreed that work itself is reformative, it should be work of a kind that will stimulate interest and as far as practicable help to equip a prisoner to take his place as a useful unit of society when released. Work that is economically worth while aids the prisoner in building up his self-respect, but, in addition to the beneficial results from a reformative point of view, the purposeful marshalling of prison labour has made a notinsignificant contribution to the national production. During the year ending 31st March no less than £46,147 was credited to Public Account for the sale of farm-produce, apart from supplying the Department's own requirements in meat, milk, vegetables, &c. The Department's response to the Government's request to produce pork and bacon for the Armed Forces is evidenced by the fact that during the past year 1,733 pigs, to the value of £6,451, were bred on the Department's farms and fattened to baconer stage at the Wi Tako and Wellington Prisons. The Department carries at its various farms an aggregate of 16,000 sheep, from which the credits for wool, skins, and mutton last year totalled just under £15,000. As an indication of the scope of the Department's dairy activities it may be mentioned that just under 600 cows are being milked at the Waikeria Borstal alone, where the inmates are afforded an opportunity of gaining experience in all branches of farm-work with modern mechanized aids. In co-operation with the Department of Agriculture, effective measures were concluded last year for the complete eradication of T.B. from the Waikeria herds, and the Department, under contract with the Health Department, has been supplying pasteurized milk for the schools iti the surrounding district. The opportunity for bringing home to the inmates the full significance of this activity is not overlooked, and the enthusiasm of those engaged on the work is clear evidence that psychologically there is a mental satisfaction in their being able to make a useful contribution to society's well-being through this means of assisting in building up the country's future citizens. The boot-factory at Mount Eden and the training-shop at the Invercargill Borstal made a valuable contribution through a total credit to Public Account of £8,010, a considerable proportion of this representing boots for Army purposes. The quarries continue to provide a profitable avenue of work for men requiring closer supervision than at the farms, the aggregate revenue for the year from the sales of quarry metal amounting to £15,961, whilst the credits for road construction and maintenance work in the National Park area amounted to a further £9,850. The employment of prisoners on activities of this nature has made available for the Armed Forces or essential services men who would otherwise be required to undertake this work. In this regard it is interesting to record that when a certain road was required to be completed for military purposes a party of prisoners volunteered to work seven days a week in order to expedite its completion. It is the awakening of this spirit of service that is a vital feature of work in relation to a reformative policy. The difficulties of the work on the pumice development farms at Hautu and Bangipo have been intensified by reason of the shortage of manurial top-dressing and the resultant reversion of certain pastures to native grasses and weeds. The dearth of fencing-materials has hindered closer subdivision. Rabbit infestation is another problem requiring constant attention. These farms have grown their own requirements in meat and vegetables, milk, &c., in addition to marketing certain produce. The farms also provide a means of healthful and reformative occupation for prisoners. The latter consideration is even more important than the economic one, as at these farm camps the honour system is largely in vogue and the open-air conditions generally conduce to health and the development of a self-respect that is difficult to attain to under the closely-ordered regimen of a city prison. At the Wellington Prison the printery and the soapmaking shops have continued to function with economy and provide diversity of employment. The native plant nursery, operated in collaboration with the Wellington Beautifying Society, has continued to be an interesting sideline, and a wide distribution of native shrubs and trees has been made. A comparative statement of revenue and expenditure covering the past ten years is set out below :—

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Gross Expenditure. Credits. Net Expenditure. Year. Total. Per Head. Total. Per Head. Total. Per Head. ££££££ 1934-35 .. 137,484 105-25 60,242 46-12 77,242 59-13 1935-36 .. 144,460 123-47 69,933 59-77 74,527 63-70 1936-37 .. 146,314 148-54 68,661 69-70 77,653 78-83 1937-38 .. 164,132 192-64 69,075 81-07 95,057 111-56 1938-39 .. 152,093 177-89 64,910 75-92 87,183 101-97 1939-40 .. 155,333 170-16 74,348 81-97 80,985 88-19 1940-41 .. 162,426 179-47 77,908 86-08 84,518 93-39 1941-42 .. 158,704- 163-44 80,514 82-92 78,190 80-52 1942-43 .. 166,982 161-34 99,336 95-98 67,646 65-36 1943-44 .. 173,089 159-97 99,956 92-38 73,133 67-59 I