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312. Do you not think that the majority of teachers would prefer to teach up to 40 or 45 as long as they got the increased salary? —Personally, I should prefer help. It would depend on the number of standards. A teacher could teach 50 or 100 or more if in one standard, but he could not train them as they should be trained. 313. Do you think we should differentiate between the work expected from a country school and that required in a town school ?—Yes ; the same demands should not be made upon a country school as upon a town school. 314. Do you not consider that Education Boards as a rule are rather parochial in the matter of appointing teachers—that they do not like to appoint teachers from outside districts to the better class of schools in their own districts ?—The Marlborough Board could not be accused of any want of liberality in that direction. 315. Does your Board encourage the transfer of teachers from one district to another?—l believe it claims the right, but has never exercised it. 316. Do you consider that Inspectors should be centralised?—l do. 317. You know some of the circumstances in connection with these aided schools in the Sounds : is it not a fact that in some cases teachers have advertised in newspapers that they would take in boarders as pupils ?—I only know of one school that did so—that at Bobin Hood Bay. An advertisement appeared in a Wellington paper. 318. How long ago was that ? —Last year, I think. I believe there are boarders from Otago, Wellington, and Nelson. 319. Mr. Hill.] Is it a private school ?—lt is on the Board's list of schools. 320. In this district ?—Yes. 321. They guarantee free instruction ?—Yes. 322. Mr. Davidson.] Are any of the members of the household pupils in that school?—I could not tell you. Mr. Smith (Inspector) : At the present time there are not. 323. Mr. Gilfedder.] What was the tenor of the advertisement?— That I am unable to say exactly. I remember seeing the advertisement in a Wellington paper calling attention to the site of the school, its healthy situation, and the medals and scholarships that the children had gained. 324. Had the headmaster a library as an inducement ? —I do not know. lam sure he is an educated man, and two young friends who spent a holiday there mentioned how extremely pleasant everything was. 325. Do you not think that if other Education Boards were as liberal in the establishment of these aided schools it would be a great drain on their finances ? —lt might be so. When the Board first established that particular school it had not assumed its present phase. lam sure, however, that aided and household schools are a necessity here; people go out and carve homes for themselves, pay rates and taxes, and surely their children are entitled to the benefits of education ? 326. Mr. Davidson.] I understand you to say that you object to the intermediate capitation between the grades in this suggested scale ?—Yes. I think that the schools should be divided into so many classes, and that the salaries should be fixed. 327. You perhaps remember, in looking over the suggested scale, that one of the grades of schools is from 19 to 35 ? —Yes. 328. The suggested salary is £118?— Yes. 329. That is to say, the salary ranges from £118 to £150. Would you prefer having the schools graded in this way—say, three grades with a fixed salary for each, instead of starting at a fixed salary of £118 ?—I should be afraid of making too many classes of schools. 330. You might have the schools classified into five or six classes so as to make the differences as small as possible : would you prefer that to the capitation grant ?—Yes. 331. If you look at the suggested scale from 35 to 75, the salary is £150, with a capitation grant of 12s. for each additional pupil up to £174 : is that not so ?—Yes. 332. Instead of having that grade 35 to 75, would you prefer having it, say, 36 to 40 or 46 to 50 ? —I should prefer having it broken up ; I think 35 to 75 too big a jump. 333. You would prefer to see a scale graded in that way with fixed salaries for each grade?— Yes ; to avoid risks of deductions through lowering attendance. 334. You object to the minimum certificate required for each class of schools?— Yes, I think CI should be good enough for anything in elementary work. 335. Would you approve in the classification of schools of the highest minimum being CI ?— Ido not know that I should fix a certificate at all, for I feel that, after all, the certificate is not really a test. If a man could give evidence in other ways that he had really done good work I should be prepared to take him. I think a CI man who can manage a school of 500 or 600 could manage a school of 1,600. 336. Mr. Hogben.] You have laid a great deal of emphasis on the fact of basing the scale on average attendance : you do not believe in that ?—No. 337. Is not the scale based on average attendance if you divide it up into grades?— That is not exactly what I suggest. 338. You say that you want the schools classified ?—Yes. 339. Then, it is a question of the basis of that classification ?—Yes, exactly. I have advocated a roll-number basis. 340. Taking the question of classification, if we take salaries such as are proposed here, a male teacher's salary in a school of 25 is £130, is it not ?—Yes. 341. If he has a school of 26 he receives a salary of £132, so that it makes a difference of £2 to him if his school rises or falls by one ?—Yes. I was merely discussing it generally, and contending that it would be better to divide the schools into certain classes and fix the salaries. I