PBOFESSOB LABY.

1.—13 a.

some account should be taken of the existing resources of the colleges in the form of endowments, the population which they serve, the standard of their existing work, and the number of their students, but above everything the financial arrangements can only be determined after a policy has been laid down in university education for New Zealand, and it is only then that the financial arrangements can be attacked. It is the wrong order to attempt to determine the financial arrangements first and obtain the policy next. I think this report, by its financial arrangements, undoubtedly determines what subjects are to be taught. The third point is that it is absolutely essential to have economy in university education, and so it will be possible for all colleges to teach the large number of subjects proposed. As regards the finances of Victoria College, I have a table here which shows the income of the College as estimated from the Victoria College accounts. It also states the income as proposed by the Inspector-General of Schools' report, and the expenditure as we estimate it. Victoria College Incomk and Expenditure fob Yeah 1014. Inci) we. Estimated from As proposed by College Accounts Report (see and Report. pp. 15 and 17). £ £ Government statutory grant .. .. .. 7,000 7,000* Fees .. .. .. .. .. .. 3,000 4,455 Examination fees .. .. .. .. 180 Rent of reserve .. .. .. .. .. 74 Society of Accountants .. .. .. .. 300 Sundries .. .. .. .. .. 47 Totals .. .. .. .. .. £10,601 £11,455 Expenditure. Estimate by Estimate of Report Witness. ' (see Table 4, p. 14). Salaries — £ £ £ Ten professors .. .. .. .. 7,100 Eleven lecturers .. .. .. .. 3,300 Six demonstrators, &c. . . .. .. 900 Caretaker £126, mechanic £200, laboratory assistant £122 .. .. .. 448 Registrar . . .. .. .. 300 Librarian .. .. .. .. .. 150 12,198 11,0001 Library .. .. .. .. . ..300 250 Administration .. . . .. . • • • • 981 2,000 Apparatus and chemicals, &c. .. .. .. . . 630 550$ Total expenditure £14,109 £13,800 Page 15 of the report says, " If the fees at Victoria College and Auckland University College were brought up to the same scale as obtain, say, in the University of Otago, the amount of fees, assuming the number of students to remain the same, would be increased by about £3,360 and £385 respectively. Allowing for the falling-off of casual students if the tees were increased, it might pi-obably be estimated* that the revenues of the two colleges in question would be increased by £2,500 and £200 respectively. . . ." Adding the present fees, £2,200 (see Table M), to this £2,500, then according to the report the fees will yield £4,455, and that is the amount I put as Mr. Hogben's estimate. It became evident to some of us who appeared before this Committee previously that we would be under a very great disadvantage if we came here again without having raised our fees, and that has been done. The desire of the Council was to raise the fees for all students, but on applying to the Minister of Education for permission—Mr. Allen was away at the time —we were informed that the .Minister had decided that the fees could only be increased in the case of new students; so that we are unfortunately not in the position of being before you now on exactly the same basis as other colleges in regard to fees, but so far as new students are concerned we are on the same basis. I am not prepared at the moment to state what is going to be the future yield from fees, but I can put before you certain information we have. The actual fees raised in 1912 were £2,167, and the Council's estimate for 1913 is £2,400. In other words, by increasing the fees for all new students we have an increase of £233 per year. It is clear, therefore, that the increased rate of fees has yielded a very slight increase of revenue, and the reason for that is that increasing the fees has decreased the number of students at Victoria College.

* Be £2,500 from national endowment see bolow. f Does not include salaries of Registrar and librarian, which are included under " Administration." J Includes salaries of mechanics and laboratory assistants.

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