At length efforts of those who have the establishment of a deaf and dumb institution in the colony hare led to sdme result. The services of & competent Instructor have been secured, and the institution ia to be immediately opened at Sumner. The correspondence from the Agent-General describing the system of lip-reading taught by Mr. Van Asch, the instructor appointed, was pub lished in these columns some months ago. A few weeks back this gentleman arrived in the colony, and on February 4th tha Department of Education issued a cir cular describing the objects of the insti tution, and stating the proposed charges. The principal points of this circular were summarised in yesterday's issue. The first object of the establishment is stated to be "to train young mutes (below " twelve years and in some cases over that " age) to utter articulate sounds, and to " read spoken language from the lips "of their teacher." From the Census of March, 1878, it appears that the whole number of deaf and dumb persons in the colony afe that date was ninety- ! four, of whom forty-two were under I fifteen years of age. In the previous census of 1874 the number of deaf and dumb persons was shown to be fifty seven. Thus in the four years named there has been an increase of no less than fifty-eight per cent, of deaf mutes of all ages. The increase amongst children of an age to receive such instruction as M. Ton Asch imparts is probably not in a lower ratio, although there are no means of ascertaining precisely what it has been, There can, however, be little doubt that if all the children in the colony who are of a suitable age could be placed nnder the care of the instructor, his whole time would be amply occupied, and that their number at the present time would fall little short of fifty. There is therefore ample justification for the initiation of a system omder which such children may be instructed and rendered, as far as possible, useful members of society. 