The absolute necessity of adopting this course will be, at once apparent when we mention the proportion be tween town and country pupils attend ing our secondary schools. It is as one to eight, as nearly as our informa tion serves us. The country pupils are ne.irly all boarders; and as this mt-ans at least an expendi ture of .£6O per annum, we need not wonder at tbe disproportion between the numbers of town ancl country pupils that take advantage of such schools. And hence tii c absurdity of placing a school three miles from Oamaru—in a place inconvenient to the great bulk of those likely to take advantage of it. As might have been expected, the building was no sooner up than it was seen that a blunder had been com mitted, for the great proportion of the pupils attending ihe Waitaki High School comes from the town of Oamaru. As things are we can only regret that tha step now resolved upon by the Board of Education was not taken two years ago. Much angry controversy would have been avoided, the expense of the District High School would have been saved, and the ultimate sdution would not have been delayed. It is pleasing to see that members of the Boa< d of ■ Education are now of this opinion. On the whole, members dealt with Dr Macgregor's manifesto with prudence and dignity, and the public will be disposed to congratulate them on at last washing their hands of an affair that concerns not them but the people of Oamaru and the Board at present interested with the secondary education of North

Otago.
