4

E.—3

that many of them are exceedingly delicate infants, are taken into consideration. The sustained prosperity of the colony is having the effect of making it somewhat difficult to find the right class of homes, especially for infants. During the past five years much greater attention has been paid to the subject of obtaining contributions from parents towards the support of children under industrial-school control. In that time the annual receipts from this source have risen from £1,300 to £3,500, and there is every reason to expect that there will be a proportionate increase in the current year. Last year an average sum of £2 10s. 9d. was recovered from parents for every one of the 1,370 children maintained out of public funds. To bring about such a satisfactory result the closest watchfulness has been necessary. The matter of payments in support of illegitimate children, both by the putative fathers and by the mothers, has received special care. Compositions totalling £180 in two cases have been made during the year by putative fathers, one of these being secured by means of registering the maintenance order against the title of a section of rural land. As showing the importance of co-operation between the Courts, the Police, and the Education Department in this matter, it may be mentioned that in one instance where the Magistrate held the view that undue pressure was brought to bear on parents by the Department, the receipts for a year dwindled to £125 in that centre ; but, upon his being succeeded by a Magistrate who strongly holds the view that every person liable to pay for maintenance of a child should be compelled to do so if of sufficient ability, the receipts have steadily risen until they now stand at £520 for the year, and are still increasing.

No. 2. STATISTICS. Memorandum for the Hon. the Minister of Education. In December, 1906, the number on the books of all the industrial schools was 2,075, or 122 more than at the close of the year 1905. On the books of the Government industrial schools there were 1,559, an increase of 139 over the corresponding number for 1905 ; on the books of the private (Eoman Catholic) industrial schools there were 516, or 17 less than at the end of the previous year. Of the total number (2,075) belonging to all schools, 1,370 children were dependent on public funds for maintenance. The remainder (705) may be classified as follows : Licensed to reside with friends, 171; at service, 419; boarded out without payment, 6 ; adopted, 1; in hospital, 5; in mental hospitals, 6 ; at the Costley Training Institution, Auckland, under license, 7 ; in other institutions, 7; in gaol, 1; absent without leave, or whereabouts unknown, 82 —namely, 39 from service, 35 from the schools, and 8 from friends.

The following table shows the status of all the inmates at the close of the year: —

Inmates, 31st December, 1906.

Gove; iment School) Privai Schoi .Is. All Sch. lols. InmateB. DC i ° S a -§ £ 2 a § > a sp 3 ehSS5!§|5 < & *!« I n 1 B.Ig. B. \ B. G. a < 60 £ ac . a -_! gS .Sail q o co o-g G. B. G. 1 i i fl & B 1 B , g 1 B. B. G. £fl ll a? IS B. G. G. is S «^ 00 fl dq _: fl o3 © ■ ®5 «• I I B O fl s © o h Ph B. 'g. I "5 O EH 6 A (A Q J3 © In the schools .. Boarded out With friends At service Adopted In hospitals, convalescent homes, etc. In mental hospitals In School for Deaf-mutes At Coatley Training Institution Under control of refuges or cognate institutions Under control of orphanage, cottage home, &c. In gaol Absent without leave, or whereabouts unknown Totals 43 2 2 28 22 2 18 126 18 39 49 1 145 9 13 1 1 86 8 7 49 2 8 .. 9 99 86 6 5 34 40 '2 !! 106 i 35 62 .. 23 95 83 3 12 5 55 41 '2 12 55 i 26 25 6 21 108 27 46 47 1 8 16 41 6 4 5 382 406 123 223 1 4 278 284 48 196 660 690 171 419 1 6 308 615 108 288 1 6 351 75 63 131 2 i .. 1 "3 1 .. 1 2 a 6 5 1 .. 1 .. 2 2 1 19 19 19 17 8 1 .. 1 12 12 5 15 5 a '.'. 1 41 i 'i 106178 284 'fl i3 i 1 75 "7 1 82 1 57 25 ! 69 n 249 170| 2' 108 73 1461141 286 249 581 |S3 52 194 173 56 1,240 8S5J J2,075 1,418 656 i 1 26'