Manawatu Herald. TUESDAY, MARCH 8, 1891. An Inspectors Appeal.

Manawatu Herald, Volume III, 3 March 1891, Page 2

Manawatu Herald. TUESDAY, MARCH 8, 1891. An Inspectors Appeal.

♦ The Education Board of Wanganui have issued their annual report for the last year. It contains, at the commencement, a most pathetic appeal on the part of their Inspector for help. It appears from his statement, that the work has been growing heavier and heavier, and that though the Board gladly granted him clerical assistance two years ago, the benefit that he has derived from it, has not been equal to, both his, and the Board's, expectations. Personal application seems to have been unsatisfactory, so he has been driven to incorporate in a public doou«

effect of his work upon his health and feelings. He writes " Owing to my absence on leave (rendered absolutely necessary through my being thoroughly worn out after the great pressure of work in 1889) I did not resume the duties of my office until the 18th of February, from which until the 28rd December I was continuously engaged. The actual number of days between these dates is 307, or, omitting Sundays, 263 working days. Upon reference to my. diary I find that during those days I devoted 3,166 hours to the Board's service, or over twelve hours per day. If from this calculation some enforced holidays (such as Good Friday, Easter Monday, Queen's Birthday, &c,) were omitted — I say nothing of the ordinary workman's half-holiday on Saturday, for during at least two-thirds of the year such a luxury was unknown to me — the average would be higher ; while if it were calculated on five school days in each week, it would reach nearly fourteen hours and a halt per day. During examination time, owing to a school being taken daily, all the paper work had to be examined and valued, percentages had to be calculated, reports had to be written, &c. after a late dinner following a hard day's work from 9 a.in to 6 p.m., not to mention long rides in all kinds of weather before and after these hours. To give some idea of the amount of paper work to be examined and valued at night, I may say that at one large school over five reams of foolscap were used. Now it must be perfectly plain that an Inspector working for so many hours and so late in the night can have little refreshing sleep ; that he has no time for absolutely necessary relaxation, for ordinary social duties and for self improvement and keeping himself conversant with the educational topics of the day ; and that a breakdown in health must inevitably follow sooner or later. Also, when such hours are necessary to get the work done even without full inspection, it is clear that the District is too large for one Inspector to manage to the best advantage of those under him, and with ordinary justice to himself. The District, I may say extends from Foxton and Linton in the south, to the Taungatara River (near Opunake), Mount Egmont, and the Patea River and Stratford in the north. The number of miles I travelled, chiefly on horseback was nearly 2,500. On Saturdays I never returned to Wanganui during examination time, 'and very seldom during inspection time, or the number would be much higher." If Mr Bindon's statements are true, and we have no reason to doubt them, it appears that owing to the absurdity in localising the Inspectors' for the past two years the Education district has been supervised by one, who, in 1889 was thoioughly fagged out, and who, in 1890 did not commence his duties till six weeks after the beginning of the year, and then unconsciously, as till he referred to his diary he was not sure of it, devoted twelve hours a day to his work. Such a state of things, he represents cannot longer be endured, as " it must be perfectly plain that an Inspector working for so many hours and so late in the night can have little refreshing sleep." Without refreshing sleep we may assume that his nerves foe not so composed as they should be for the worry and trouble of examination. We accept this case as a type of what has occurred here, and may have occurred elsewhere, and trust that though the Board has now agreed to the engagement of another Inspector, the question of placing the Inspectors under the control of the Central Department will still be considered. Taking the total cost of inspection throughout the Colony and dividing it with the number of schools, we find it amounts to £9 a I school. Upon this average, the Wanganui Board has been working at £120 under the cost, but if they obtain another Inspector they will exceed the average by a similar amount. The present system of the Boards appointing inspectors, continually forces these great differences, as they must lor a period be either under, or over, officered, but by the Department assuming control over the inspection these variations could easily be adjusted. We know confidently, that the Inspectors as a body desire such a change, and we know that a large saving, and a more thorough inspection would be the result,