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and home duties by 37 per cent, of the girls. Other avocations entered upon were : Government offices, 7 per cent, of the boys ; clerical work in insurance offices, agencies, &c, 13 per cent, (boys and girls) ; engineering and allied trades, 4 per cent, (boys); other trades, 4 per cent, of the boys ; and such professions as surveying, law, architecture, &c, by 6 per cent of the boys ; warehouses and shops each 2 per cent, of the boys. From similar returns supplied by technical high schools rather contrasting figures are obtained. In this case only 1 per cent, went on to the University, 3 per cent, took up teaching, and 5 per cent, went on to other schools or classes. On the other hand, 15 per cent, of the boys took up engineering and allied trades, 10 per cent, took up other trades, 11 per cent, went into shops, and 3 per cent, into factories. Farming was taken up by 13 per cent, of the boys and home duties by 43 per cent, of the girls. Commercial work was followed by 13 per cent, of the boys and 25 per cent, of the girls, and professions such as surveying, law, &c, were entered upon by 2 per cent, of the boys. Hostels for Pupils of Secondary Schools. (Table K6.) The advantages of having hostels attached to the secondary schools for the accommodation of country pupils are fully realized, and financial assistance is being given as far as possible by the Government for the erection of hostel buildings. Owing to the financial position all that is desired has not yet been accomplished, and a few large schools are still without hostels, while at other schools the hostels are too small. In nearly every instance the hostels are now controlled by the Boards of Governors, and from the balance-sheets to band of eighteen such hostels it appears that twelve made a profit and six a loss on the year's working. The profits ranged in individual cases from 2 per cent to 23 per cent, of the income, and the losses from 1 per cent, to 41 per cent., the average profit on all hostels being 5 per cent, of the income. In the few cases where heavy losses were made there was some fault in the administration, which is being pointed out to the controlling Board with a view to having it remedied. The hostels vary greatly in size, the smallest accommodating only ten pupils and the largest 145 (excluding Christ's College, Christchurch, and Wanganui Collegiate School, which between them accommodate 335 boys). At the hostels attached to the public secondary schools a total of 838 boys and 354 girls of the secondary departments were accommodated and 180. lower-department pupils. In addition to these numbers, 57 pupils were boarding at establishments approved by the Principals, and 633 were boarding privately. For these last-named, and also for the large number of country children prevented from attending school owing to the boarding difficulty, or forced to make long railway journeys daily, accommodation where there is dependable supervision and desirable environment should be provided as circumstances permit. Free Secondary Education. (Table K4.) Free secondary education is provided on an extensive scale, junior and senior free places being tenable at secondary schools, district high schools, technical high schools, and other technical schools. Generally speaking, junior free places are tenable for two years, with a possible extension in certain cases to three years. In the case of their being held at district high schools they are tenable for three years. The means of qualification are — (1.) For entrance to secondary schools—(a) Special examination for Junior National Scholarships, (6) the certificate of proficiency. (2.) For entrance to technical high schools and district high schools the means of qualification named in (1), or the certificate of competency in S6, with a special endorsement of merit in handwork or in elementary science, which for the purposes of these schools is deemed to be equivalent to a certificate of proficiency.