B.—l

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Tablk J.—Summary of the Accounts of Incomic and Expenditure for 1909 furnished ry the Governing Bodiks of Secondary Schools. Receipt*. penditure. £ a. d. £ a. d. Credit balances on Ist January, 1909 .. 25,937 IV !> Liabilitiis on Ist January, 1909 .. 6,627 14 6 Endowment reserves Fold and mortgage Kxpenses of management 3,636 18 3 moneys repaid .. .. .. 1,064 12 S School salaries .. .. .. 56,493 12 8 Rents, &c, of reserves .. .. 30,704 10 2 Boarding-school accounts .. 14,663 7 6 Interest on moneys invested .. .. 2,307 10 7 Scholarships and prizes .. .. 2,234 0 4 Rest-ryes Commissioners'payments .. 4,066 7 J Printing, stationery, fuel, light, &c. .. 4,092 11 10 Government payments— BuildiDgi, furniture, insurance, rent, For manual instruction .. .. 900 15 9 and rates .. .. .. .. 41,911 7 2 For free places .. .. .. 33,489 1-1 8 On endowments .. .. .. 2,249 19 5 Subsidy on voluntary contributions .. 346 811 On manual instruction .. .. 953 10 7 Grants for buildings, sites, furniture, Interest .. 2,044 11 10 &c. .. .. .. .. 4,746 6 10 . Examination expenses .. 233 18 4 Statutory grant (Marlborough High Repayment of loans .. .. 800 0 0 School).. .. .. .. 400 0 0 Payments of High School Boards to Technical instruction— . Education Boards .. 300 0 0 Government payments .. .. 6,521 6 0 Sundries not classified .. 3,239 2 0 Fiom other sources .. .. 1,353 13 4 On technical instruction .. .. 7,793 5 8 School fees (tuition) .. .. .. 18,887 8 fi Credit balances, 31st December, 1900 .. 22,793 8 6 Boarding-school fees .. .. .. 17,715 9 8 Books, &c, sold, and refunds .. .. 209 10 5 Borrowed on loan .. .. .. 5,850 0 0 Special voluntary cont-ibutions, bequests, and local subsidies .. .. 6,684 12 5 Sundries not classified .. .. 1,350 16 7 Debit balances, 31st December, 1909 .. 7,532 7 6 £170,069 8 6 ; £170,069 8 6 It may be as well to compare the chief items of income and expenditure in 1907, 1908, and 1909. 1907. 1908. 1909. £ £ c Income from reserves and endowments ... 33,636 36,771 37,478 Grants from Government (exclusive of building grants)- ... ... ... ... 24,918 29,108 41,258 Building grants ... ... ... ... 9,473 16,164 4,746 Tuition fees ... ... ... ... 20,128 19,160 18,887 Salaries of staff ... ... ... ... 50,038 52,340 56,494 Expenses of management ... ... ... 3,421 3,412 3,637 Buildings, (te. ... ... ... ... 38,153 40,103 41,911 As the free-place system is extended, the amount received in tuition fees will naturally diminish, and the capitation grants from Government will increase. The Education Amendment Act of 1908, by the introduction of a higher scale of capitation on free pupils, benefits not only those secondary schools which have few if any endowments, but also the more numerous class of schools whose income from endowments is small in proportion to the number of pupils; further, it will relieve from anxiety those schools where a necessity arises for a large building expenditure in any year, as the effect of the new sliding scale is that in any year the total of the net annual income from endowments and the capitation —that is, of the moneys available for the payment of staff salaries and working-expenses—cannot, with due safeguards, fall below £12 10s. per pupil— a sum which pa-t experience shows to be just sufficient. Generally speaking, the finances of the secondary schools are in a sound condition, notwithstanding the large expenditure under the head of buildings; indeed, it would be as well if the governing bodies of many of the schools would consider carefully the need for increasing the staffs of their schools, and of giving greater encouragement in the form of increased salaries to assistant teachers. At present there is no doubt that in many cases the salaries paid to assistants are far too low. Efficient work cannot reasonably be looked for in a secondary school unless the staff is sufficient and well paid.

* These include, in addition to grants for secondary education properly so oalled, amounts paid to secondary sohools as controlling authorities of technical classes: These amounts in the \ears 1907, 1908, aud 1909 were respectively £1,307, £2,208, and £ii,521