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General. In order to secure continuity, these General Recommendations should be made the basis of next year's Report.

We have the honour to be,

Sir,

Your obedient Servants,

A. M. THOMSON.

EDWARD A. IRVING, Inspector of Schools.

S. B. C. ROSS.

Appendix.

The Storks as a punishment for highway robbing.

By stocks we mean a frame with two holes in which the feet of offenders are closed. This is a sort of punishment against those who are guilty of crime. The object of such penalty, which can be made really useful, is to cause the criminals to feel ashamed of having done a wrong thing, and to purify them from the guilt of having looked on such a crime. Those who steal something from others or violate the laws, are often put into stocks and carried to the place where they have committed the theft and there the people may laugh and make a ridicle of them. This chastisement is necessary, as those who have been imprisoned will immediately forget what they have suffered after being set free and will commit further offence, but this condemnation will make the people recognize their face as soon as they are in sight and serve as an example and a warning that will be useful in preventing them from assimulating such faults. In this way, those who have suffered such penance must of course fear and hate it. To put it quite shortly, this chastisement should be preventive and everybody ought to leave off committing the crimes which lead to this disaster. This is the way for punishing an offender or thief in Hongkong, China and Siam.

The Stocks as a punishment for highway robbery.

The stock is used to bound the thieves and the robbers from their hand to feet. The Chinese Custom is usualy with this punishment. I saw several men were covered on his neck with the stock in Canton, and when they finished to covered by the stock; they also put into the prison. I saw a man was covered by the stock near Queen's Road last week for he robbed somebody's things in the highway; I suspected that the reason is used to give the people to look at him and cause him very shame and so he did not do this in hereafter. In this punishment is best to be imprisoned for if a man who put into prison that every person could not see him but if he was covered with the stock, and stood in the street etc; he is very shame than imprisoned. If a thief steals something and sentenced him to be stood in the street with the stock in his neck; I think he will willingly to be imprisoned and dislike to put the stock in his neck. If he put into prison for several days is better than the stock covered on the neck for several hours. It is very seldom with this punishment in Hongkong. In this way is really useful to take care the other people. I dare say no body shall be like this punishment.

Note. This essay was attempted by the 63 boys of Class 1. In classifying the results 19 papers were marked as passed with credit, and 11 as very bal. Specimens selected entirely at randeni from these two classes are given here.