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such day shall be holden on the day following.

Given under my hand, at the
Government House, at
Auckland and issued under
the Seal of the Colony of
New Zealand, this second
day of September, in the
year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and
sixty-four.

G. Grey.

By His Excellency’s command,
William Fox.

GOD SAVE THE QUEEN!

H. McCulloch Appointed Principal Returning Officer for Southland.

Colonial Secretary’s Office,
Auckland, 6th September, 1864.

His Excellency the Governor has been pleased to appoint

HENRY McCULLOCH, Esquire,
to be Principal Returning Officer for the Province of Southland.

William Fox.

SOUTHLAND SCHOOL REPORT.
September 30, 1864.

The following is a Report of the present condition of the various Schools in the Province of Southland.

Invercargill Boys’ School.

This School is situated in Tay-street. There is a good, though small school-room, with Master’s house attached; the latter at present occupied by the Girls’ School.

The Master, Mr. Hamilton, has only had charge of the school for the last six months; though but recently appointed, the numbers have much increased, and the discipline greatly improved. The School Committee may, with much satisfaction, regard the result of the change.

There are seventy children in the school, and the mode of their education is, upon the whole judicious.

The Bible was read by the children in a thoughtful and distinct manner, the only drawback being that it was in the usual falsetto tone. Time, with steady perseverance, it is hoped, will correct this defect. The lessons have been confined to the first four books of the Old Testament, and to the Life of Christ in the Evangelists. The elder children had retained the principal facts which had been taught.

The Home Lessons had been well learned; the Spelling is good; the Writing shews considerable improvement in style and cleanliness; the Geographical knowledge, though not extensive, was good; the Arithmetic had evidently been taught with much care; the Numbers dictated to the younger children were written with great correctness.

In reading, the attention of the children should frequently be directed to the fact that its pitch is too high, and that the style is widely different from that of ordinary conversation. The production of a graceful modulation, and of a clear and simple manner of utterance, while they give great charm to what is read, greatly aid in its proper comprehension.

The school accommodation is insufficient, and very defective. It is desirable that the Committee endeavour to remedy this, as soon as they possibly can.

Girls’ School, Invercargill.

This school was established with the view of giving to the daughters of the upper classes of the Province an education which might be characterized by its completeness, and its suitability to the rank in life of those to have been educated. Then there were no private schools supplying such a want, though, to some extent, this has since been remedied.

Hitherto the instruction has been confined to the ordinary branches of elementary knowledge. The average attendance is the limit of the accommodation, viz: twenty-one; the accommodation is so restricted that it is inconvenient both to teacher and scholars; it is confined to one room in the house in Tay-street, erected for the use of the master of the Boys’ School.

The changes which of late have taken place in the Town have led to the removal of so many of the elder scholars, that its status is not what otherwise it would have been. There is urgently needed at present an elementary Girls’ School for the children of the working classes. Any omission in this respect will be sure to entail results unfavourable.