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15. What is the average number of children attending these schools? —I cannot exactly say. The secretary will be able to give you that information. 16. Do you find, on comparing the salaries paid to the teachers of your district with the salaries paid to the teachers in other districts, that your scale is the lower one? —Yes. 17. Do you think it is on account of having so few large schools in your district ?—Yes, or "paying schools," as we call them. 18. How many schools have you with an average attendance of over 75 ?—Four. 19. Which are the four? —The Greymouth, Cobden, Dobson, and Taylorville Schools. 20. Have you a scale of staff and salaries for the schools?— Yes. 21. Do you adhere strictly to the scale of staff and salary?— Yes, fairly so. 22. What is your opinion as to the advisability of having a colonial scale of staff and salaries ? —It is a very large question. I would not like to give an opinion upon it, as I have not considered it sufficiently. 23. Would it not be in the interest of your teachers and in the interest of education that there should be no chance of your Board becoming financially embarrassed ? —Yes, it would. 24. Then, if a colonial scale of staff and salary was drawn up, and was applicable to this district, would it not remove the financial embarrassment that has previously existed ?—Yes. 25. Then, you would consider it desirable ?—Yes. 26. Mr. Stewart.] Have you many teachers who have been in your employ for a lengthy period ?—Yes, the bulk of them have been employed for a long time. 27. Have you a sufficient number of young teachers coming on to keep the average age of the teachers down?— Yes. 28. What becomes of your older teachers ? —I suppose they die off. 29. Are they in your employ right up to the last ?—Yes ; we have some very old teachers at the present time. 30. Do you think it wise, in the interests of the teachers themselves and in the interests of education, that they should be retired when they reach a certain age ?—Yes, I do. 31. Would it be possible for your Board to retire them? —No. 32. If a colonial scale made that possible in the future, would it not be a great advantage to your Board ? —Yes, it would, and to the teachers also. 33. You stated that you thought that it was rather too large a question to say as to whether a colonial scale of staff and salaries would be advantageous: would it not be an advantage to your Board to have the salaries it had to pay to the teachers fixed and definite, and its other finance quite separate from the payment of teachers? —Yes, I think that would be an advantage. 34. You have only one large school in this district? —Yes ; the Greymouth School. 35. Do you find that you are able to save very much on that school ?—lt relieves us of a great many difficulties. 36. At the expense of the teachers employed in that school? —No; the teachers there have fixed salaries. 37. Is your scale as high as it would be if you had not these small schools ? —Yes ; we cannot give more than our by-laws state. 38. Mr. Luke.] What is the salary of the headmaster of the Greymouth School ?—£2so; but he receives more now than formerly. 39. Have you a copy of the regulations of your Board ?—Yes. [Copy of regulations and scale of salary, Exhibit 17, handed in.] 40. Is there any possibility of centralising these small schools, and using a means of conveyance for the children and teachers ?—No ; as I said before, there is only one school situated close to the railway. 41. Mr. Smith.] Is there any minimum attendance that your Board expects before it will grant an aided school ?—I think in the by-laws 15 is stated as the number ; but that is very high. 42. Supposing you had an application from the parents of five children to open an aided school, would your Board do so ? —We have done it, though I do not approve of it. 43. Mr. Gilfedder.] How long have you been Chairman of the Grey Board ?—Thirteen months, about. 44. How do you account for the preponderance of female pupil-teachers in the Greymouth School ?—We have more applications from them. 45. Do you have many applications from male pupil-teachers? —Very few. 46. Is it not a fact that the headmasters of the schools invariably recommend females to become pupil-teachers?— No. 47. How do you pay your pupil-teachers ?—I cannot say ; you will find it in the by-laws. 48. How do you account for the fact that the teacher of the Ahaura School, with an attendance of 61, receives a salary of £142 10s., while the teacher of the Blackball School receives £157 10s., or £15 more, for 62 pupils—that is, an addition of one pupil over the Ahaura School ?— I cannot say; the secretary will answer that question. 49. Do you employ sewing-mistresses in your schools ?—I think the pupil-teachers do the sewing. 50. Do they get an allowance ?—No. 51. Do the headmasters receive any allowance for instructing pupil-teachers ?—I think so. 52. How much ?—£s a year. 53. On the whole, is the cost of living higher in the Grey District than it is in the average educational districts in the colony ?—I think it is. 54. Consequently, you think the teachers require a slightly higher salary ?—Yes. 55. In reply to Mr. Mackenzie, you stated that the capitation of £4, in your opinion, was insufficient ?—Yes.