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No. 27.

COLONIAL OFFICE to MR. W. H. MERCER.

[Answered by No. 28.]

369

(Minutes. No, 9/1901.)

Enclosure in No. 26:

Committee of Superior Instruction.

EXTRACT from the Minutes of the proceedings of a Meeting held at the Education Office on Thursday, the 25th of July, 1901.

Present:

1

The Hon. W. T. A. Emtage, M.A., Director of Public Instruction, Chairman. Mr. W. W. Hamley, M.A., Acting Rector, Royal College.

Mr. G. Guibert, K.C.

Hon. A. Duclos.

Mr. E. Nairac.

♦

2. The Committee dealt with the question of the position of students from Mauritius holding scholarships in the United Kingdom. under reference from Govern- ment (M.P.D. No. 111 of 22nd May, 1901).

In connexion with this matter the following documents were laid on the table:- (i.) The Secretary of State's despatch, No. 111, of 12th April, 1901, and its two en closures; (ii.) Despatch, No. 12, of 9th of January, 1901, of His Honour the Officer

·Administering the Government to the Right Honourable the Secretary of State.

The Committee having carefully examined these documents, and discussed the several points raised in them, adopted the following resolution :---

The Committee beg to explain that when they recommended, on the 11th of October last, that the Director should have no control, disciplinary or financial, they did so because by what they know of Mauritius students they consider that the latter are quite competent, as a rule, to manage their own affairs, and that the following sentence, "Some of the students are by race and education as competent to manage their own affairs as the English undergraduate." in the report of the Committee of which Sir Cecil C. Smith was chairman, and annexed to the Secretary of State's despatch, No. 29, of 30th January, 1900, is applicable to Mauritius students.

The Committee do not think that without control (disciplinary or financial) the position of a Director would be reduced to a nullity. Mauritian'students have, as a rule, no relatives or elderly friends in England; and it would be a great advantage to them that there should be a Director to whom they might apply for advice and guidance in cases of difficulty.

As to persistent idleness and serious and repeated breaches of discipline at the Institution at which the scholar studies, the Committee beg to refer to paragraph 3 of their recommendations of the 11th of October last, in which the Director is given, in such cases, a certain indirect disciplinary control. To give the Director any further disciplinary control or any financial control would.' the Committee think, "interfere unduly with the students."

The Committee therefore recommend the appointment of a Director on the proposed honorarium of £3 per annum per student, in terms of their recommendation of the 11th of October last.

As to the suggestion of the Right Honourable the Secretary of State contained in paragraph 4 of his despatch of the 12th of April, that "no money grant should be made in respect of return passage," the Committee think that it would not be just to the students to deprive them of the small money grant which they now get over and above the free passage because some students may have abused that privilege. The great majority of students require before leaving England a certain sum of money to buy books, instruments, clothes, &c., and a good number of them would be very much embarrassed if they were deprived of it. The Committee therefore recommend that the present allowance of £75 be maintained.

SIR,

Downing Street, March 27, 1902. I AM directed by Mr. Secretary Chamberlain to inform you that he proposes to appoint a Director of Students holding scholarships granted by Colonial Governments and tenable in the United Kingdom, and I am to ask whether you would be good enough to undertake the duties.

2. The Colonies which have expressed a desire for the appointment of such an officer are Trinidad, Jamaica, Ceylon, the Straits Settlements, and, with reservations, Mauritius. The total number of students from these Colonies who will eventually.be subjected to the superintendence of the Director is from thirty to forty; but, as it is intended to exclude scholars already elected from the scheme, only those who arrive in this country to pursue their studies for the first time in the ensuing summer, who number about eight, will at first be included in the scope of his office.

3. The duties of the Director are indicated generally in the report* of the committee appointed to consider the question, of which a copy is enclosed; but it may be convenient to distinguish them more precisely.

(A) Immediately on the election of students to scholarships a notification will be sent to the Director, together with a statement of the course of study which each scholar proposes to pursue, and the Institution at which he desires to study. The Director will then arrange for the reception of the student at such Institution.

(B) On the arrival of the student in England he will report himself to the Director, and will receive from him instructions as to proceeding to the Institution at which he is to study, and general advice as to his conduct and mode of life while in England. (c) The existing arrangements as to the payment to the students of the amount, of their scholarships will not be interfered with, and the Institutions at which the scholars study will not be able to look to the Director for payment of the students' fees in the event of the latter's default.

(D) But the quarterly reports on which the students' allowances are now paid will be sent to the Director, and should they indicate a serious breach of discipline or persistent idleness, it is proposed that he should be given power to fine the offender a sum not exceeding £10, and, in the event of a repetition of such offence to determine the student's tenure of his scholarship, subject in the latter case to an appeal to the Secretary of State.

(E) Should a scholar be under the necessity of requesting an advance on account of his scholarship, he will submit his application to the Director, who will, if he thinks necessary, report on it to the Secretary of State.

(F) In case of the illness of a scholar the Director will have the power, if he sees reason, having regard to the resources of the scholar and the exigencies of the case, to authorise payments for medical attendance and nursing. This provision does not apply to Jamaica scholars, and is limited in the case of the Mauritius scholars.

(G) Generally it is hoped that the scholars will profit by the advice of the Director, especially in regard to the manner in which they spend their vacations, as to which the Committee suggest that some general arrangement may be feasible.

4. The Colonies concerned have agreed to pay an honorarium of £3 per annum in respect of each scholar, and Mr. Chamberlain would be much obliged if you would inform him as soon as possible if you are prepared to accept the appointment, in order that the necessary communications may be made to the Colonies.

5. I am to transmit to you, for your information, copies of correspondencet which has taken place on the subject of these Scholarships.

I am. &c.;

C. P. LUCAS.

W. T. A. EMTAGE.

Chairman.

• Miscellaneous No. 126.

+ Miscellaneous No. 120; and Nos. 1 to 26 inclusive of this book.

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

C.O.885

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

PUBLIC RECORD

ON

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SIR,

No. 28.

MR. W. H. MERCER to COLONIAL OFFICE.

(Received April 7, 1902.)

?

Downing Street, London, April 5, 1902. I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter (37340/1901) of the 27th ultimo,* and_to_state_that I should have much pleasure in accepting the appointment of Director of Students holding scholarships granted by Colonial Govern- ments and tenable in the United Kingdom.

I have, &c.,

W. H. MERCER

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No. 29.

MR. CHAMBERLAIN to the GOVERNORS OF JAMAICA, STRAITS SETTLE- MENTS, CEYLON, MAURITIUS, and TRINIDAD.

1. (Jamaica. No. 127.)

2. (Straits Settlements. No. 120.)

3. (Ceylon. No. 140.)