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312 CHINA MISSION YEAR BOOK.government as an upper grade school.The reports forthe last three years are as follows :1907."The school is again thoroughly efficient.The supervision is all that could be desired and all theteachers are thoroughly competent."1908. "The headmistress and staff are to becongratulated on the high state of efficiency of theschool, which is, in all respects, a model establishment."1909."An excellent school. It continues to bethoroughly efficient."One interesting point to note is that the demand forEnglish, which was so eager and insistent a few yearsago, has weakened, and the demand for a really firstclass education in Chinese has taken its place. Sixyears ago 50 per cent, of the girls desired to leariiEnglish now; only 15 per cent.The scholars are chiefly drawn from the middleclass and upper middle class Chinese, and a few, owing topoverty or death of parents, are admitted into schoolwithout payment of any kind. The work of the houseis chiefly done by these non-paying boarders, though allthe girls do a little. All that would unfit the girls toreturn to Chinese middle-class homes is avoided as faras possible. The food is plain and the life simple andfree from any kind of luxury. There has been a steadygrowth in efficiency of the school during the last threeyears, but no especially striking developments.