E.—s

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up at Hastings for the study of agricultural science. At the beginning of the year the management of the Napier Technical Day and Evening School was handed over to the Napier Technical Classes Association. The school has had a successful year, although it suffered a severe blow in the death of its director, Mr. R. P. Clarkson. The day-school is undoubtedly rilling a long-felt want in the district. and with the erection and equipment of an engineering shop the school should become a most useful institution. Extract prom the Report of the Inspectors of Schools. Manual and Technical. —The appointment of a specialist to give instruction in elementary agriculture and dairying is an important event in the history of manual instruction in the Board schools. Until the middle of the school year only woodwork for the boys, and cooking and dressmaking alternately every half-year for the girls, had been attempted for the benefit of the senior pupils. Provision had been made at Gisborne, Napier, Hastings, Waipawa, and in part at Woodville for giving instruction in the, subjects named. A few other schools have participated in places where the railway-trains were suitable, but much time has been lost, and none of the smaller schools have received any benefit. The Department's refusal to subsidize itinerant instructors in woodwork and dressmaking has led to the employment of an instructor in agriculture, wdio will be able to visit even the smallest country schools and give instruction of the utmost importance to the children. Already schemes of instruction dealing with plants, soils, &c, have been issued, and the Board's decision requiring elementary agriculture lo be taught iii all schools will do much to foster the teaching of this really useful and interesting subject. Woodwork and cookery alternately with dressmaking will still be continued in the places named, but il is considered that the additional subject can be taken in the larger schools in place of nature-study. and perhaps of a subject like the oral lesson in English history. In places where woodwork and cookery have been taken there has been a tendency to diminish the time for instruction in reading and writing : but were the school life extended, as we think it should be, more definiteness of purpose and greater thoroughness could be gained than is possible under present conditions. The Agricultural and Pastoral Societies and the County Councils have displayed much interest in the fostering of the systematic study of agriculture in the schools. The former bodies have mostly now established a " school garden " competition at their shows : and the latter are considering the granting of seeds, &c. for experimental work in the school gardens of the respective counties. It is likely, also, that a gold and a silver medal will be presented by each county to the school showing the highest progress in experimental agricultural work. Statement of Receipts and Expenditure for the Year ending 31st December, 1909, in respect of Special Classes conducted at Gisborne, Napier, Hastings, Waipawa, and Dannevirke by the Hatvke's Bay Education Board. Receipts. £ s. d. I Expenditure. £ s. d. Capitation on special classes .. .. 971 19 11 Balance at beginning of year .. .. 755 1 6 Capitation on account of free places .. 183 15 6 j Salaries of instructors .. .. .. 199 12 0 Furniture, fittings, apparatus .. .. 1,009 7 8 Office expenses (including salaries, stationMaterial .. .. .. ' 55 010 cry, &c.) .. .. .. .. 43 2 1 Subsidies on voluntary contributions .. 264 1 0 Advertising and printing .. .. 33 18 6 Fees .. .. .. .. .. 56 11 0 Lighting and heating .. .. .. 714 8 Voluntary contributions .. .. .. 20 0 0 Material for olass use .. .. .. 33 16 0 Teachers' travelling-expenses .. .. 31 19 7 tiisborne High School Board, for teachers' classes .. .. .. .. 7 15 0 Payments on account of Napier associated classes .. .. .. 272 2 7 Payments to Managers of Napier and Waipawa Associated Classes .. .. 693 15 4 Transfer to School Classes Account .. 57 4 2 Cartage .. .. .. .. 0 19 10 Furniture, fittings, and apparatus .. 381 8 2 Balanoe at end of year .. .. .. 42 6 6 £2,560 15 11 £2,560 15 11 G. Crawshaw, Secretary. Extract from the Report of the Director of the Napier Technical School. The course of the work for the year was somewhat marred by the untimely death of the late director, Mr. Clarkson. A loss such as this could scarcely fail to leave its effect for some' considerable time, upsetting and disorganizing the time-table, especially as it was three months before a successor arrived to endeavour to fill his place, the work being carried on in the meantime by Messrs. Niven and Smart and Miss Wallden. Day-school. —On my arrival there were sixty pupils attending the day technical classes, doing work in trade and commercial courses. However, partly on account of pressure from the Education Department, and partly because it seemed to me to be absolutely necessary, the day-school course was reorganized so as to include more technical work and a domestic course for the girls, so arranged that every necessity for the successful management of a home was included in the curriculum in addition to a good training in commercial work. As far as the trade course was affected, I strongly advocated the establishment of an Engineering School, to be equipped with the latest machinery, so that the lads could be trained in the use of metal-working as well as woodworking machinery ; and in my opinion this is absolutely necessary if our College is to lie a really efficient technical college. The scheme put before the Managers and public alike was that the training should be equally useful to a lad who intended