H—30.

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machinery is being loaned by various firms free of charge, and the class will be conducted on practical lines, and will be to some extent self-supporting. This trade is recognized to be one especially adapted to disabled soldiers, and a knowledge of the processes can be acquired in a comparatively short time. (1.) ShEET-METAL WORKERS; —At the present time there is an acute shortage of sheet-metal workers in the Dominion, and, acting on the suggestion of the trades-union concerned, the Auckland Repatriation Board has established a class in. that city for the training of discharged soldiers. Suitable premises have been secured, and an expert with twenty years' experience and holding an honours certificate in the craft has been engaged as instructor. The Repatriation Board has authorized the necessary expenditure for the equipment, and the men will receive comprehensive training in the three main classes of the industry—viz., dairyingutensils, motor-bodies, and general tinsmithing. The trade is a comparatively light one (suited to partially disabled men), and the trainees are able, after six months' tuition, to earn the award wage in the trade. Facilities are provided for thirty discharged soldiers, so that two classes, totalling sixty men, can be trained in twelve months. (5.) Motor Driving and Running Repairs.—ln addition to the special motor-engineering class established at Auckland, arrangements have been made for the further training in that city of discharged soldiers in motor driving and running repairs. The instruction is provided in Farrell's Garage, Wyndham Street, and the Ministerial Board has authorized the necessary expenditure for the purchase, of extra equipment. The proprietor of the garage is a, returned soldier, and lie has a staff of three expert motor-mechanics who will act as instructors. The course extends over six weeks, and the men receive thorough instruction under the personal supervision of Mr. Farrell. Facilities are provided for the training of fifteen men at a time, so that, providing they can be placed in employment as quickly as the Department can train them, over a hundred discharged soldiers can be absorbed in this particular line within twelve months. (6.) Farm Training. In view of the importance of our primary products the Department offers every encouragement to discharged soldiers to take up farming pursuits, and in this connection has arranged facilities as follows: — (a.) Ruakura : Beekeeping, Fruitgrowing, and Poultry-raising. —These lines are considered to be especially suitable for partially disabled men for whom an outdoor life is desirable, and arrangements have been made with the Department of Agriculture for the training of such men on the Government Experimental Farm at Ruakura, near Hamilton. An additional hutment to accommodate thirty men has been erected at a cost of over .£3,000. Each man has a separate room; a library comprising books and periodicals of special interest to farmers has been installed, and the men should be very comfortable during their period of training. Up lo the present eighty men have been, trained, at Ruakura, and there are at present about thirty men accommodated on the farm. (b.) Weraroa. —Fit men desiring knowledge in specialized subjects are given training at the Government farm at Weraroa. Sixteen men are at present on the farm, and a hutment is in course of preparation to accommodate an additional number. (c.) Wairarapa Training-farm. —ln addition to the training provided at Ruakura and Weraroa, the Penrose Gift Farm (near Masterton) has, through the generosity of a number of settlers In the Wairarapa, been established as a soldiers' training-farm. The Department is providing accommodation for soldier trainees, Avho will be instructed in grain-growing, stock breeding and management, dairy-farming, &c, by thoroughly experienced practical men. (d.) Tauherenikau: Farm Training for Tubercular Men. —It is generally recognized that the best life for a tubercular man is an open-air one, but, as the Department of Agriculture was unable to accept men suffering from this disability for training along with, other disabled soldiers on their experimental farms, it became necessary for this Department to make special arrangements for the training of such men. We accordingly arranged to have the Tauherenikau Farm set aside for their instruction in pastoral and general agriculture work, and it is said that the healthy climate of the Wairarapa renders the place specially suited to men susceptible to tubercular disease. The instruction given is on strictly practical lines. Sustenance during Training. —The sustenance allowance payable to trainees at Ruakura, Weraroa, Wairarapa, and Tauherenikau is: Soldier, £2 10s. per week; wife, 10s. per week; children (not exceeding four), ,3s. 6d. per week each, plus pension. £1 per week is deducted for the soldier's board and lodging. (c.) Avonhead Settlement, Christ church. —A large block of excellent land in close proximity to Christchurch has been acquired by the Government for the purpose of establishing a discharged soldiers' settlement and instructional training-farm. On a portion of the farm, comprising 150 acres, special attention is being given to poultry-farming, beekeeping, fruitgrowing, and market-gardening; and in addition there will be sections for pig-raising, dairy-farming, and general agriculture work. The instructional farm in connection with the settlement is to be conducted by an expert overseer under the control of the Agriculture Department, the necessary funds for operating the farm being supplied by the Repatriation Department.