D.—l

XV

Hospital Buildings. Under the heading of " Hospitals and Charitable Institutions " the principal items of expenditure were in connection with the Reefton Hospital, the St. Helens Hospital at Auckland, and the Auckland Veterans' Home. The current year's estimates provide for a renewal of the vote for a site and buildings for a new St. Helens Hospital, Wellington ; for a new St. Helens and site at Christchurch; for additional hospital accommodation at Rotorua; and some other minor works. Agricultural tbaining Works. Last year saw the completion and equipment of the training quarters at the Ruakura Farm of Instruction, and a number of lads are now in residence there. Further drainage operations have been carried out at Ruakura during the year. The land is very responsive to draining, and the marked improvement effected by this means since the farm was taken over has been a valuable object-lesson. Steps were taken last year to provide a permanent water-supply for Waerenga and Ruakura. At Weraroa stumping was carried out, which will enable more land to be brought under profitable cultivation. For the current year provision is made for the purchase of land for an experimental farm which it has been decided to establish in the South Island. New buildings required on experimental farms are also provided for. This is in continuation of the policy of gradually replacing the original buildings on the farms with buildings more in keeping with the character of the places, and better adapted for economically working them. ROADS AND BRIDGES. Liberal provision was made on last year's estimates for roads, and every effort has been made since the votes were passed to pash on energetically with the works. No time was lost in offering to local bodies the expenditure of such votes as it was anticipated they would be prepared to undertake. The expenditure of 1,503 items, totalling £292,116, was offered to local bodies, the offers in respect of the items provided for on the main estimates being made on the 15th and 16th November, and in respect of the supplementary estimates on the 12th and 13th December. When the offers to local bodies were made, they were invited to submit proposals for expenditure at as early a date as possible, and informed that authority would be issued so soon as such proposals had been approved. Between the 30th November and the 31st March no less a sum than £225,768 was authorized to local bodies and departmental Engineers, and between 31st March and 31st July authority for a further sum of £70,945 was issued. Some few local bodies declined to take up the items offered to them, others selected only those which presented little difficulty or expense in carrying out, and in almost every case where the local body was unwilling to undertake any particular work authority was promptly issued to the Department's local Engineer to carry it out. On the whole, however, the response may be regarded as quite satisfactory, so far as the willingness of local bodies to undertake work is concerned. Despite the fact that votes were made available at the earliest possible date, the expenditure at the 31st March had not reached the amount I anticipated. Of course, it will be understood that at that date there were many thousands of pounds' worth of work in hand under grants, much of which has since been completed. The system governing expenditure by local bodies of Government grants has been simplified as far as is consistent with properly safeguarding the expenditure of public money. Last session I announced the intention of the Government to give consideration to applications for grants where the local people were prepared to help themselves. A large number of substantial votes, on a pound-for-pound basis, were accordingly provided. The expenditure of these items has not so, far reached anything like the amount offered. In many cases this is doubtless