JULY 16.] THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. 2453

(11.) A voting-paper shall be informal in any of the following cases, that is to say,—
(a.) If it is not duly signed by the parent; or
(b.) If the candidates against whose names a mark is placed exceed in number the total number of candidates for whom the person is entitled to vote, or if in any other way the paper fails to indicate clearly for whom the vote is intended to be given; or
(c.) If, being delivered to the Returning Officer, the sealed envelope containing the voting-paper is not delivered at his office before the close of the poll; or
(d.) If, having been forwarded by post, the sealed envelope containing the voting-paper is not received at the office of the Returning Officer before the close of the sixth day after the day of election, or if, from the postmark on the envelope or otherwise, the Returning Officer is satisfied that it was not posted until after the day of the election.

(12.) On the seventh day after the day of election the Returning Officer shall open and examine all voting-papers duly delivered to him or received by him through the post as aforesaid, and, after rejecting all informal voting-papers, shall ascertain the candidates (not exceeding the total number to be elected) who have received the greatest number of votes, and shall declare such candidates to be elected.

(13.) If, by reason of an equality of votes given for two or more candidates, the election is not complete, the Returning Officer shall decide by lot, in the presence of two members of the Board, which candidate or candidates shall be elected, and thereby complete the election.

(14.) Forthwith after the completion of the election the Returning Officer shall notify to the Board and to the Minister the names of the persons elected.

(15.) If any dispute or question arises touching the regularity of any election, such dispute or question shall be determined by a Stipendiary Magistrate in manner provided by sections 45 to 54 of the Local Elections and Polls Act, 1908, all the provisions of which shall, mutatis mutandis, apply.

5. The members appointed or elected in the year 1915 shall take office on the 1st day of August, 1915, or as soon thereafter as circumstances permit.

6. (1.) One member out of each of the groups (a), (b), and (c) of subclause (1) of clause 2 hereof shall retire on the 31st July in each year, beginning with the year 1916.
   (2.) The Board shall at its first meeting determine by lot the order in which the members first appointed or elected under paragraphs (a), b, and (c) shall retire, and thereafter the member so to retire shall be the one who has been longest in office since his last appointment or election.
   (3.) On the 31st July in the year 1917, and in every second year thereafter, the member appointed under paragraph (d) of the same clause shall retire.

7. Retiring members shall be eligible for reappointment or re-election.

8. (1.) A casual vacancy shall be created in the same way and for the same causes as are set out in section 20 of the Education Act in the case of members of an Education Board.
   (2.) Every casual vacancy shall be filled in the same manner and by the same appointing or electing authority as in the case of the vacating member; provided that the member appointed or elected shall hold office only for the residue of the term of the vacating member.
   (3.) Whenever a vacancy occurs it shall be the duty of the Board forthwith to report the fact to the Minister if the vacancy is to be filled by the Governor, or to the Secretary of the Education Board if the vacancy is to be filled by that Board, or to the appointing body in the case of a member to be appointed under paragraph (d) of subclause (1) of clause 2 hereof.

9. (1.) The appointment or election of a member to fill a vacancy caused by the expiry of the ordinary term of office shall be made in the first week of the month of July at the end whereof such expiry takes place, or as soon thereafter as may be convenient, but shall not take effect until such expiry.
   (2.) The appointment or election of a member to fill a casual vacancy shall be made not later than fifty days after the vacancy occurs.

10. The Board shall hold an annual meeting in the month of February or March in each year, at such time and place as the Board shall direct.

11. From time to time as may be necessary the Board shall appoint a Secretary, and shall appoint him or some other person with authority to receive and to pay moneys on its account. The Board shall in each case forthwith inform the Minister of such appointment.

12. (1.) The school shall provide a course of general secondary education and one or more vocational courses.
    (2.) The program of each pupil shall be determined by the Principal of the school after consultation with the parents or guardian of the pupil; but no pupils shall be compelled to take Latin or to take more than one language besides English.
    (3.) The net fees to be charged to those who are not holders of scholarships or free places shall be £11 per annum for those under twelve years of age, and £13 10s. for those over that age.
    (4.) The school year shall consist of three terms of about thirteen weeks each.
    (5.) The Principal shall cause the school to be examined during each term; provided that it shall not be necessary for the school to be so examined in any term in which it is examined by some other person appointed by the Minister or the Board; and provided further that it shall not be necessary to include in such examination pupils sitting for public examinations during the term.

13. Subject to the general direction of the Board, the Principal shall have the following powers:—
    (1.) She shall have control of the school buildings and premises, and of the apparatus and furniture thereof.
    (2.) She shall have the power to recommend the appointment or dismissal of assistant teachers or of other officers of the school, and to allot their several duties; and no assistant teacher or other officer of the school shall be appointed until the Principal has been consulted.
    (3.) She shall have the power in case of grave neglect of duty or of gross misbehaviour to suspend any assistant teacher or other officer, but shall forthwith report her action to the Chairman, who shall thereupon confirm or overrule her action until the next meeting of the Board, when the matter may be determined; but the action of the Principal shall hold good until the Chairman or the Board has determined the matter.
    (4.) She shall be supreme over the discipline, and may suspend or expel any pupil, reporting her action to the Board at their next meeting. The parent or guardian of any child so suspended or expelled shall have the right of appeal to the Board.
    (5.) She shall regulate all text-books, methods, and organization in accordance with clause 12 hereof, and, subject to the same clause and to the regulations under the Education Act, shall determine the course of study for each pupil.

14. The Board may license hostels or boardinghouses for the accommodation of pupils that have to live away from home, and may place such hostels or boardinghouses under the charge of teachers of the school or other suitable persons, and shall provide for the inspection of such hostels or boardinghouses.

15. The school shall be open to inspection as provided by section 96 of the Education Act.

Dated at Wellington this 7th day of July, 1915.

F. H. D. BELL,
For Minister of Education.

Scheme for the Control of the Whangarei High School.

Education Department,
Wellington, 10th July, 1914.

IN accordance with the provisions of the Education Act, 1914 (hereinafter called “the Education Act”), and with the powers thereunder, I, Francis Henry Dillon Bell, acting for the Minister of Education, do hereby, on the advice of the General Council of Education, approve of the following scheme for the Whangarei High School (hereinafter called “the school”), which is established under the provisions of the Whangarei High School Act, 1878.

1. The school shall be controlled by the Board of Governors (hereinafter referred to as “the Board”) constituted by the Whangarei High School Act, 1878, as amended by the Education Act, 1914.

2. With regard to the election of members of the Board by the parents of the pupils, the following provisions shall apply:—
   (1.) The first election shall be held on a date to be appointed by the Minister before the 31st day of August, in the year 1915, and every subsequent election shall be held on a date to be fixed by the Board in the month of July in every second year thereafter.
   (2.) The Secretary of the Board shall be the Returning Officer.
   (3.) For the purposes of each election the Returning Officer shall prepare a roll, and shall enter therein the name, occupation, and address of every person qualified to be enrolled as a parent of a pupil of the school. The roll shall be closed at 5 o’clock on the fourteenth day next before the day on which any election is to be held, and shall continue to be closed until the election is completed.