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372. Say you had one school with an average of 25 pupils, and this Board were to appoint the teacher and also give its Committee an allowance of Bs., would that not come to more than the cost of five aided schools ? —Yes, I think it would. 373. Alluding once more to the Bobin Hood Bay, assuming it had 25 pupils, and was conducted as now, the Board's allowance to that school would be, according to Begulation 40, £82 10s.; the Marlborough Education Board would receive for that school from the Government £93 15s. The Bobin Hood Bay School would, of course, receive an extra £10, so that it would show a profit and not a loss to the Board of over £20 : is that not so ?—Yes, I think so. 374. Do you think that parents should always be expected to send their children to local schools and to no other when questions of ill-health or other causes should render it advisable to select seaside schools ?—I believe that it is a good school for the children to go to. My contention is that it is not a public school as contemplated by the Act, but that it is, practically, turned into a private Board school. 375. But would it not be an advantage to the Board, instead of having five separate schools, each with an attendance of about 5, as you said, to have all the children boarded in one school if parents are willing to pay the cost of boarding the children in one school ? —lt would still not meet my objection that it is not a public school as contemplated by the Act. 376. But would it not be an advantage if, instead of having five separate schools, you had them all boarded in one school ? —lt would be an advantage if it could be done, but I do not think it could be done. 377. The Chairman.] If you were a teacher in charge of one of these small schools would you consider that your work was more laborious if you had 25 children instead of 15 ?—lt would be practically the same. 378. Then, if you had 25 and the number dwindled down to 20, 15, or 10 you would not consider your work very much diminished?— No. 379. Do you think it fair that a teacher in charge of a school of from 15 to 20 should have fluctuations in his salary because a family of four or five happened to move in or out of the district?—No, I do not think any teacher's salary should suffer from such a cause. 380. Under this scale we have a teacher in charge of 15 children receiving £75 a year, and if a family moves in or out of the neighbourhood he is subject to a rise or else penalised, as the case may be. Do you disapprove of a scheme under which a teacher's salary may be increased or lowered according to the increase or reduction by units?— Yes. 381. Do you think that there should be an age-limit in regard to pupil-teachers?— Yes, I think so ; I think 15 is a very good limit. If they go on then with the four years' training for a pupilteachership they are more easily trained than if they left school for a few years and came back at eighteen or nineteen years of age. 382. I notice under your regulations that you have a system of admitting candidates for pupilteachers for six months on probation, during which they receive no pay ? —That is so ; and there is no difficulty in actual practice. I could get any number of girls to continue on those terms for two or three years, and by the time they became pupil-teachers they are well advanced with their work. 383. What is the general length of the preparatory term before they are appointed pupilteachers ? —lt depends on the number of pupil-teachers, and the number of vacancies. 384. There is not much chance of the newly appointed pupil-teacher breaking down under the strain of having to perform the daily school-work and afterwards prepare for a tolerably severe examination ?—No. Under our system their work is prepared for ; they have been going on with it for some time before they become pupil-teachers, and usually get their certificates, either E or D, before the expiry of their term of service. 385. You have not known of boys or girls breaking down under the strain ?—No, I have not. 386. Under the proposed scale the headmaster of a school of 420 pupils receives a salary of £301, does he not?— Yes. 387. If in charge of a school of 1,000 pupils he receives £388, a difference of £87, does he not ? —Yes, that is so. 388. Do you think that the work of the headmaster in charge of a school with 1,000 pupils is very much more severe, or that he requires to be a much more highly qualified man than the headmaster in charge of a school of 420 pupils ?—I do not think so. I do not think his work is materially increased by doubling the numbers. He has a large staff of assistants and pupilteachers. In this colony I had a school of 900, and had to go into twenty-two rooms to see what was going on, but my work was no harder than it is in Picton. 389. You think a maximum salary might be fixed for teachers of, say, over 500?— Yes. 390. In that ease, how would it affect Marlborough? Do you not think that the teachers would be attracted to the larger centres ? —They would not come into this district. 391. You mean that a teacher of superior qualifications in this district would endeavour to get to Wellington, Christchurch, or Dunedin ? —Yes. 392. Then, if a fixed salary were made applicable to schools of 500 and upwards, you think it would tend to impoverish the smaller districts like Marlborough ?—Yes, I think that would be the natural tendency. 393. With regard to the question of a minimum salary, do you think £80 is sufficient for a competent man ? Take the case of a teacher in one of our back-block schools, where a man has to lodge with some of the settlers at a cost of from 15s. to £1 per week, and has to clothe himself, buy books, and so on: is it possible for him to do that on £80 a year ?—No, he cannot do it. 394. Then, what do you think would be an adequate salary? —I do not see how he could get on under £90 a year at least. If he is studious he will want books, &c, and to pass college examinations he has to pay fees, and he will not have much left after these expenses are met, 5—E. 14.