E.—3.

It has been stated from the Bench that in the absence of means of detaining boys committed to this reformatory, there is no option but to send them to gaol. This can no longer be said, as the large labour-yard that has just been erected at Burnham will enable close supervision to be exercised over boys of the worst class whilst they are engaged on useful work, and will almost certainly lessen the chances of absconding, without the necessity for having recourse to a larger amount of corporal punishment or of detention in cells. The cases of moral and mental degeneracy that form a certain proportion of the inmates of the school present soma most difficult problems that have been the subject of careful and anxious thought to the manager, the medical officer, and the Department. Further allusion is made to them in the report of the Inspector-General of Schools. Te Oranga Home is a reformatory for girls, and to some extent, as regards classification and training, the general principles guiding its management resemble those underlying the conduct of Burnham. Differences of an important nature are found, however, in the problems that present themselves for solution at the two institutions, inasmuch as the errors that form the grounds of admission, the occupations that are open to girls, and the dangers that await them when they leave the school are widely different from the same elements in the case of boys. The addition of a new wing at Te Oranga will aid greatly in the ease with which classification can be carried out. The principal occupations that are being taught are, first, those that will train the inmates in all kinds of domestic duties—cooking, sewing, laundry-work, the care of the house, &c-—and, secondly, such occupations as could be taken up afterwards by women —light gardening, dairy-work, and poultry-keeping. It is hoped in time to add others to these. The second class of institutions named " industrial schools " are industrial schools properly so called. At present two of these are Government schools, one being situated in the Mount Albert district, near Auckland, and the other at Caversham ; but a third is in process of erection at Horowhenua, near Levin. The last is intended to be the industrial school for boys for the colony ; and the boys, who are now in very crowded and unsuitable quarters at Caversham, will be. brought to Horowhenua as soon as the new buildings are completed. These will consist in part of a main building with dining-room, assembly-room, and dormitories in which those boys will .be accommodated who need a somewhat greater degree of control than the rest, and in part of cottage homes under the charge of married attendants ; each home having fourteen or sixteen boys in it. The inmates, who, it is estimated, will number about one hundred and twenty in all, will dine together in the main building, and will attend the day-school, which, with the workshop, dairy, and farm buildings, will be situated not far from the main building. The land, which, fortunately, unlike the land at Burnham, is of excellent quality, will give full opportunity for a complete training in all country pursuits, and it is anticipated that the produce will contribute no small share towards the cost of maintenance of the institution. The Caversham School will then become, as the Auckland School is now, an industrial school of moderate size for girls only; but these schools will in addition serve the same function as the receiving-homes, which form the third kind of institutions classed as "industrial schools." There are two " receiving-homes " proper —one at Wellington and one at Christchurch. They receive girls or young boys who, having been ordered to an industrial school, are waiting to be sent to a foster-home, or to the school best fitted to 'train them. On the books of the receiving-homes are found also the names of the industrial-school inmates boarded out or placed at service in their respective districts. It is still necessary to transfer many inmates immediately or soon after committal, as the Magistrates in some cases still continue to send special classes of children to industrial schools which are not intended for them. For instance, now and then there are sent to Burnham, which is a reformatory for boys, orphan children (who should go to a receiving home till they can then be boarded out in suitable foster-homes) or boys of tender years needing merely

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