Hamua Public School. The public school is decidedly the most creditable feature of the settlement. It was opened on the 29th of May, 1893, and, though a fairly large building, it is already slightly overtaxed, with the number on the roll steadily increasing. The playgrounds are in excellent condition considering that they were so recently covered with dense bush. The number on the roll in September, 1896, was seventy-four, and it happened that on the day of the writer's visit every scholar was present. The average attendance was sixty-eight. There are some eight or ten Maori children at the school, and Mr. Hopkirk, the headmaster, speaks highly of their abilities as scholars, especially in arithmetic and other subjects not detrimentally affected by their habit of thinking in their native language. All the standards up to the seventh are taught, and Mr. Hopkirk is assisted by a pupil page 1007 teacher, Miss Catherine Stewart. The inspector's reports of the Hamua School have been very encouraging throughout, and there is abundant evidence that the children are being well taught. The concerts in aid of the prize fund are invariably successful.