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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

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9 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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teachers would prove to be a very sound method to adopt. The course at present pursued is for the teachers to impress the simple laws of health upon the children as occasion offers. As the staff of teachers in this Colony is a small one and changes in it are not frequent, it is not proposed to hold regular courses of lectures at stated periods. The Colonial Surgeon, however, will take such steps as are considered best to maintain the interest of the teachers in the subject of hygiene by means of occasional lectures and examination papers, alternating such with lectures on simple physiology.

BRITISH CENTRAL AFRICA.

There are no Government schools in the Protectorate, por are the Mission schools in any way under Government supervision. On receipt of the Circular despatch of the 25th August, 1905, copies of the various documents which accom- panied it were duly distributed to the mission centres in the Protectorate, and the following is a summary of the replies which have been received:-

The Livingstone Mission of the Free Church of Scotland.

The subject of hygiene is taken up in the schools of the Overtoun Institution, not only in the case of native medical assistants (under the heading " Public Health Duties"), but also in the science classes for the more advanced pupils in the normal

course.

In the ordinary district schools of this mission, while no such instruction has been systematically given hitherto, some of the teachers and senior pupils have been taken in hand by the medical missionaries, and instructed in simple rules of health. It is the intention of the members of this mission to institute shortly regular classes in their senior schools for the teaching of hygiene.

The Universities Mission.

There is no teaching of hygiene in any of the schools, and the opinion of the Mission is that the attempt to make this a school subject is inadvisable.

The Blantyre Mission of the Free Church of Scotland.

While very special attention is given in the institutions of this Mission to teach- ing the scholars habits of personal cleanliness, no special course of instruction in hygiene has as yet been adopted. The attention of the "Senate" of the Mission has, however, been called to the matter, and it appears probable that steps may be taken to do something in the future.

The Dutch Reformed Church Mission.

Hygiene is not included amongst the subjects taught.

The Zambesi Industrial Mission.

While the Mission fully realises the importance of the subject, they have not yet been in a position to commence imparting definite instruction on hygiene to natives attending their schools.

The Nyasa Industrial Mission.

Up to the persent nothing has been done in the matter, but the Mission is fully alive to its importance, and hopes to take it up before long.

East Africa.

Somaliland.

It has not been found possible to introduce any teaching of the kind in the Protectorate, and education is in so backward a condition, there being only three small schools on the coast in which the reading and writing of Arabic is taught, with the Koran as a text-book, that the Commissioner does not see any prospect of making a beginning in this direction for a good many years to come.

East Africa Protectorate.

The Commissioner states that, although fully recognizing the importance of the subject, education in the East Africa Protectorate is not yet sufficiently advanced

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to render instruction in tropical hygiene practicable or profitable. He will, however, not fail to bring the matter to the notice of the Board which he proposes to appoint shortly to formulate an educational scheme to meet the wants of the various sections of the community. Should it be considered advisable to include this branch of science among the subjects taught, he will request the Principal Medical Officer to write out a few elementary rules under such headings as Personal Hygiene, Air and Ventilation, Light, Food, &c., with brief descriptions of the commoner diseases of the country, with directions how to avoid them.

Uganda.

As there are no institutions belonging to Government in which hygiene could be taught, the late Commissioner approached Bishop Tucker with a view to seeing whether it would be possible to do anything in this direction in the schools of the Church Missionary Society. After consulting the Head Master of the High School the Bishop is of opinion that there is a prospect of the subject being taken up seriously and successfully with the assistance of the Government. It seemed, how- ever, to the Commissioner to be questionable whether the grant by Government in aid of such instruction would be justified under present circumstances. He pointed out that the High School had only lately been started, that the time of the pupils was fully taken up with English and other subjects, and that the Senior Medical Officer was of opinion that in the present state of education and civilization in the country no practical results would be obtained by introducing a course of hygiene in the schools. On the whole he was inclined to take the matter up towards the end of 1907, by which time the advance made in general knowledge by schools might, he thought, warrant the hope that instruction in this subject, not over congenial to the native mind, might be of some utility.

West Africa. Gambia.

On receipt of the Circular of the 26th August, 1905, the matter was referred to a Committee consisting of the Inspector of Schools and the Managers of the Anglican, Roman Catholic, and Wesleyan Schools. The Committee was asked to draw up such a course of instruction in hygiene as it might consider best suited to the conditions of the Colony, and the services of two members of the Government Medical Department were also placed at the disposal of the Committee. The Com- mittee reported that they were of opinion that no useful result would be attained by giving hygienic lectures at the schools. On a further reference to the Committee, that body prepared a few simple rules which it considered would best meet the desired object. The Managers of the schools readily promised to have these rules, a copy of which forms Appendix I. to this Memorandum, hung up in the schools and regularly explained to the children. A supply of the leaflets was also distributed to the more intelligent natives in the town. holidays, so that the Inspector, since his return from leave, had been unable to The schools had recently had their examine them and see how far the children had had the rules explained to them, but the Governor had requested him to do so at an early date, and furnish him with a report on the matter. The Governor fears that it may be thought that little has been done towards carrying out the suggestions made in the Circular, but looking to the very low standard of education which prevails in the Colony, and to the want of efficient teachers he is inclined to think that if these simple rules had been mastered by the children, a great deal would have been accomplished. He sees no reason, however, why it should not be possible to prepare a simple primer for the use of the teachers. With this object in view he has caused application to be made to several of the Governments mentioned in the Circular of the 26th of August, 1905, for copies of the pamphlets which they have issued from time to time on the subject.

Sierra Leone.

The

The systematic teaching of hygiene in the Colony is being carried out on the lines of Dr. Prout's lessons in elementary hygiene and sanitation. Board of Education have resolved that the Government give a grant of £20 to each of the higher elementary institutions for distribution as honorarium to the teacher or teachers who give instruction in such insti- tutions in sanitation, provided that the grant shall only be awarded if

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