THE NEW ZEALAND OFFICIAL YEAR-BOOK, 1930

THE 1930 issue of the “New Zealand Official Year-book” represents the thirty-eighth number of the volume, and the ninth of the present royal-octavo series.

The present number is on the same lines as its immediate predecessors. No new sections have been added, but a considerable amount of additional matter has been added to existing sections, and in several instances sections have been partially rewritten or recast.

Among new matter, particular reference should be made to an entirely new article on Flora and Vegetation by Dr. L. Cockayne, C.M.G., Ph.D., F.R.S., which takes the place of his former short article in Section I. The section relating to Wages and Working - hours has been largely rewritten to present the new index numbers of wage-rates for male and female workers separately. Valuable new matter on the subject of land holdings (area and location—i.e., in town or country—having been added to the existing items covered) will be found in the section on Wealth, while that devoted to Mortgages contains corollary information on the subject of mortgages on land according to location, area, value, &c.

The section on Employment and Unemployment contains unemployment statistics of the 1926 census, including figures as to time lost owing to various causes. This section also gives, for the first time, monthly figures of local-body employment. Statistics of private assignments, collected for the first time for the year 1928, have been added to the existing statistics of bankruptcy, and some figures of fire-insurance claims paid per head of population in the various provincial districts and urban areas will be found in the Insurance section. New Zealand's position among butter and cheese producing and exporting countries is shown by some world statistics on the subject in the section on Agricultural and Pastoral Production.

The addition of new matter has, despite the cutting-down of existing letterpress and the non - inclusion of special articles, now brought the Year-book nearly to the limits of convenient size. The 1063 pages of the present book may be compared with the 616 pages of the 1921–22 issue.

MALCOLM FRASER,Government Statistician.

Census and Statistics Office,Wellington, 16th December, 1929.

Chapter 1. SECTION I.—DESCRIPTIVE.

NEW ZEALAND.—LOCATION AND BOUNDARIES.

THE Dominion of New Zealand consists of two large and several small islands in the South Pacific. These may be classified as follows:—

(a) Islands forming the Dominion proper, for statistical and general practical purposes:—

North Island and adjacent islets.
South Island and adjacent islets.
Stewart Island and adjacent islets.
Chatham Islands.

(b) Outlying islands included within the geographical boundaries of New Zealand as proclaimed in 1847:—

Three Kings Islands.	Antipodes Islands.
Auckland Islands.	Bounty Islands.
Campbell Island.	Snares Islands.

Kermadec Islands.	Manahiki Island
Cook Islands.	Rakaanga Island.
Niue (or Savage) Island.	Pukapuka (or Danger) Island.
Palmerston Island. Nassau Island.	Penrhyn (or Tongareva) Island. Suwarrow Island.

The Proclamation of British sovereignty over New Zealand, dated the 30th January, 1840, gave as the boundaries of what was then the colony the following degrees of latitude and longitude: On the north, 34° 30′ S. lat.; on the south, 47° 10′ S. lat.; on the east, 179° 0′ E. long.; on the west, 166° 5′ E. long. These limits excluded small portions of the extreme north of the North Island and of the extreme south of Stewart Island.

In April, 1842, by Letters Patent, and again by the Imperial Act 26 and 27 Vict., c. 23 (1863), the boundaries were altered so as to extend from 33° to 53° of south latitude and from 162° of east longitude to 173° of west longitude. By Proclamation bearing date the 21st July, 1887, the Kermadec Islands, lying between the 29th and 32nd degrees of south latitude and the 177th and 180th degrees of west longitude, were declared to be annexed to and to become part of the then Colony of New Zealand.

By Proclamation of the 10th June, 1901, the Cook Group of islands, and all the other islands and territories situate within the boundary-lines mentioned in the following schedule, were included as from the 11th June, 1901:—

A line commencing at a point at the intersection of the 23rd degree of south latitude and the 156th degree of longitude west of Greenwich, and proceeding due north to the point of intersection of the 8th degree of south latitude and the 156th degree of longitude west of Greenwich; thence due west to the point of intersection of the 8th degree of south latitude and the 167th degree of longitude west of Greenwich; thence due south to the point of intersection of the 17th degree of south latitude and the 167th degree of longitude west of Greenwich; thence due west to the point of intersection of the 17th degree of south latitude and the 170th degree of longitude west of Greenwich; thence due south to the point of intersection of the 23rd degree of south latitude and the 170th degree of longitude west of Greenwich; and thence due east to the point of intersection of the 23rd degree of south latitude and the 156th degree of longitude west of Greenwich.

By mandate of the League of Nations the New Zealand Government also now administers the former German possession of Western Samoa; and, jointly with the Imperial Government and the Government of Australia, holds the League's mandate over the Island of Nauru.

By Imperial Order in Council of the 30th July, 1923, the coasts of the Ross Sea, with the adjacent islands and territories, were declared a British settlement within the meaning of the British Settlements Act, 1887, and named the Ross Dependency. The Governor - General of New Zealand is Governor of the Ross -Dependency, and is vested with the administration of the dependency.

By Imperial Orders in Council of the 4th November, 1925, the Union or Tokelau Islands (consisting of the islands of Fakaofu, Nukunono, and Atafu, and the small islands, islets, rocks, and reefs depending on them) were excluded from the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony, and placed under the administration of the Governor-General of New Zealand. In accordance with a provision of the second of these Orders in Council, the Governor-General's authority and power in connection with the administration of the islands were, by New Zealand Order in Council of the 8th March, 1926, delegated to the Administrator of Western Samoa.

AREA.

The total area of the Dominion of New Zealand, which does not include the territories administered under mandate, the Ross Dependency, and the Tokelau Islands, is 103,862 square miles. The areas of the principal islands are as follows:—

	Square Miles.
North Island and adjacent islets	44,131
South Island and adjacent islets	58,120
Stewart Island and adjacent islets	662
Chatham Islands	372
Total Dominion proper	103,285
“Outlying” islands	284
“Annexed” islands	293
Grand total	103,862

MOUNTAINS.

The mountainous character of New Zealand is one of its most striking physical characteristics. In the North Island mountains occupy approximately one-tenth of the surface; but, with the exception of the four volcanic peaks of Egmont (8,260 ft.), Ruapehu (9,175 ft.), Ngauruhoe (7,515 ft.), and Tongariro (6,458 ft.), they do not exceed an altitude of 6,000 ft. Of these four volcanoes only the first-named can be classed as extinct. Other dormant volcanoes include Mount Tarawera and White Island, both of which have, in recent years, erupted with disastrous consequences. Closely connected with the volcanic system are the multitudinous hot springs and geysers.

The South Island contains much more mountainous country than is to be found in the North. Along almost its entire length runs the mighty chain known as the Southern Alps, rising to its culmination in Mount Cook (12,349 ft.). No fewer than sixteen peaks of the Southern Alps attain a height of over 10,000 ft. Owing to the snow-line being low in New Zealand, many large and beautiful glaciers exist. The Tasman Glacier (Southern Alps), which has a total length of over eighteen miles and an average width of one mile and a quarter, is the largest. On the west coast the terminal faces of the Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers are but a few hundred feet above sea-level.

The following list of named peaks over 7,000 ft. in height has been compiled from various sources. It does not purport to cover all such peaks, nor is exactitude claimed in respect of the elevations shown, many of which are known to be only approximate.

Mountain or Peak.	Height (Feet).
* Not available.
North Island—
Ruapehu	9,175
Egmont	8,260
Ngauruhoe	7,515
Kaikoura Ranges—
Tapuaenuku	9,460
Kaitarau	8,700
Mitre Peak	8,532
Whakari	8,500
St. Bernard	7,416
Dillon	7,132
St. Arnaud Range—
Travers	7,666
Spenser Range—
Franklyn	7,671
Una	7,540
Ella	7,438
Faerie Queen	7,332
Paske	7,260
Humboldt	7,240
Dora	7,100
Southern Alps—
Cook	12,349
Tasman	11,467
Dampier	11,287
Silberhorn	10,757
Lendenfeldt	10,456
David's Dome	10,443
Malte Brun	10,421
Teichelmann	10,370
Sefton	10,354
Haast	10,294
Elie de Beaumont	10,200
Haidinger	10,178
Douglas Peak	10,107
La Perouse	10,101
De la Beche	10,058
The Minarets	10,058
Aspiring	9,975
Hamilton	9,915
Glacier Peak	9,865
Grey Peak	9,800
Aiguilles Rouges	9,731
Nazomi	9,716
Darwin	9,715
Chudleigh	9,686
Annan	9,667
Lowe	9,653
Haeckel	9,649
Goldsmith	9,532
Isabel	9,518
Conway Peak	9,510
Spencer	9,508
Walter	9,507
Green	9,305
Hutton	9,297
D'Archiac	9,279
Hochstetter Dome	9,258
Earnslaw	9,250
Nathan	9,200
Sibbald	9,181
Arrowsmith	9,171
Tuckett	9,167
The Footstool	9,073
Rudolf	9,039
The Dwarf	9,025
Burns	8,984
Nun's Veil	8,975
Bell Peak	8,950
Johnson	8,858
Bristol Top	8,832
Aylmer	8,819
Hopkins	8,790
Brodrick	8,777
Priest's Cap	8,761
Halcombe	8,743
Aurora Peak	8,733
Meeson	8,704
Mannering	8,704
Meteor Peak	8,701
Ward	8,681
Brunner	8,678
Jervois	8,675
Couloir Peak	8,675
Whitcombe	8,656
Sealy	8,651
Moffatt	8,647
Thomson	8,646
Hooker	8,644
Vampire Peak	8,600
Aigrette Peak	8,594
Dilemma Peak	8,592
Evans	8,580
Bismarck	8,575
Glenmary	8,524
Dechen	8,500
Loughnan	8,495
Pibrac	8,472
Wolseley	8,438
Unicorn Peak	8,394
Forbes	8,385
Anderegg	8,360
Strachan	8,359
Beatrice	8,350
Jackson	8,349
Maunga Ma	8,335
Livingstone	8,334
Baker Peak	8,330
Bannie	8,300
Eagle Peak	8,300
Conrad	8,300
Richmond	8,300
Jukes	8,289
Darby	8,287
Acland	8,286
Centaur	8,284
Tyndall	8,282
Macfarlane	8,278
Victoire	8,269
Alba	8,268
Coronet Peak	8,265
Percy Smith	8,254
Lean	8,250
Williams	8,249
Roberts	8,239
Malcolm Peak	8,236
Cumine	8,223
Huxley	8,201
Kim	8,200
Spence	8,200
Eric	8,200
Drummcnd	8,197
McClure	8,192
Blair Peak	8,185
Huss	8,165
Louper Peak	8,165
The Anthill	8,160
Ansted	8,157
Denniston	8,150
Dun Fiunary	8,147
Tyndall	8,116
Fettes	8,092
Trent	8,076
King	8,064
Glacier Dome	8,047
McKerrow	8,047
Humphries	8,028
Lucia	8,015
Graceful Peak	8,000
Raureka Peak	8,000
Fletcher	7,995
Farrar	7,982
Radove	7,914
Cooper	7,897
Ramsay	7,880
Frances	7,876
Cloudy Peak	7,870
Observation Peak	7,862
Cadogan Peak	7,850
Blackburn	7,835
Strauchon	7,815
Du Faur Peak	7,800
Turret Peak	7,800
Dobson	7,799
Westland	7,762
Dark	7,753
Hulka	7,721
Copland	7,695
Park Dome	7,688
Turner's Peak	7,679
Edison	7,669
Petermann	7,664
Montgomery	7,661
St. Mary	7,656
Fraser	7,654
Taylor	7,641
Sibyl Peak	7,625
Edith Peak	7,600
Madonna Peak	7,600
MeKenzie	7,563
Onslow	7,561
Novara Peak	7,542
Proud Peak	7,540
Nicholson	7,500
Pyramus	7,500
Howitt	7,490
Erebus	7,488
Eros	7,452
Rolleston	7,447
Turnbull	7,400
Annette	7,351
Neave	7,350
Roon	7,344
Maitland	7,291
Adams	7,247
Jollie	7,232
Enys	7,202
Potts	7,197
German	7,184
Hutt	7,180
Kinkel	7,121
Marshman	7,116
Murray	7,065
Artist Dome	7,061
McFettrick Peak	7,061
Beaumont	7,035
Ballance	7,008
Burnett	7,003
Two Thumbs Range—
Thumbs	8,338
Alma	8,204
Chevalier	7,910
Ross	7,734
Fox	7,604
Musgrave	7,379
Sinclair	7,022
Darran Range—
Tutoko	9,691
Madeline	9,042
Christina	8,675
Milne	8,000
Barrier Range—
Edward	8,459
Pollux	8,341
Brewster	8,264
Castor	8,256
Liverpool	8,040
Islington	7,700
Goethe	7,680
Cosmos	7,640
Oblong Peak	7,600
Somnus	7,599
Joffre	7,500
French	7,400
Head	7,400
Moira	7,300
Clarke	7,300
Plunket	7,220
Ark	7,190
Balloon	^*
The Remarkables—
Double Cone	7,688
Ben Nevis	7,650

MINERAL WATERS AND SPAS.

The hot springs of the North Island form one of the most remarkable features of New Zealand. They are found over a large area, extending from Tongariro, south of Lake Taupo, to Ohaeawai, in the extreme north—a distance of some three hundred miles; but the principal seat of hydrothermal action appears to be in the neighbourhood of Lake Rotorua, about forty miles north-north-east from Lake Taupo. By the destruction of the famed Pink and White Terraces at Lake Rotomahana during the eruption of Mount Tarawera on the 10th June, 1886, the neighbourhood was deprived of attractions unique in character and of unrivalled beauty; but the natural features of the country — the numerous lakes, geysers, and hot springs, some of which possess remarkable curative properties in certain complaints—are still very attractive to tourists and invalids. The importance of conserving this region as a sanatorium for all time has been recognized by the Government, and it is dedicated by Act of Parliament to that purpose.

There are also several small hot springs in the South Island, the best known being those at Hanmer.

The following article on the mineral waters and spas of New Zealand is by the Government Balneologist, Dr. J. D. C. Duncan, M.B., Ch.B. (Edin.), Member of the International Society of Medical Hydrology, Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine, and Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society:—

INTRODUCTORY.

It has been acknowledged by the leading hydrologists in Europe that New Zealand possesses the most valuable mineral waters in existence. Not only are these mineral waters interesting from a tourist's point of view, but they are, because of their medicinal value, of great therapeutic importance, and, as a Dominion asset, worthy of the deepest scientific consideration.

From the spectacular aspect only a brief mention need be made in this article, as a full description of springs, geysers, and mud-pools has been given in Dr. Herbert's book, “The Hot Springs of New Zealand”—a book that presents a comprehensive and vivid picture of the main manifestations of thermal activity in New Zealand.

Dealing with the medical-scientific aspect of the mineral waters, the space of this article will permit only the shortest account of the treatments; and, as the Rotorua Spa is of premier importance, the article will be confined almost entirely to its operations.

Since and as the result of experience gained during the war, the subject of hydrotherapy has been recreated on modern scientific lines, and the actions of thermal mineral waters have been investigated, both chemically and physiologically, in determining their therapeutic value in the treatment of disease.

MINERAL WATERS.

The mineral waters which have been harnessed for therapeutic use at the Rotorua Spa are of two main varieties — viz., the “Rachel,” which is an alkaline, sulphuretted water, emollient to the skin, and sedative in reaction; and the “Priest,” or free-acid water, which, due to the presence of free sulphuric acid, is mainly stimulating and tonic in reaction. There is, in addition to the foregoing, a valuable silicious mud similar to that found in Pistany, in Czecho-Slovakia, which, in its own sphere in hydrotherapy, exerts its influence as a curative agent.

However, it is in the “Priest” waters that one finds one's most valuable ally in the treatment of arthritis, fibrositis (the so-called rheumatic affections), and cases of nervous debility. The “Rachel” and mud baths are used mostly in those cases of fibrositis where the condition requires a softening effect; and in the types where pain is a manifest symptom these baths are invaluable as soothing and sedative agents.

REACTIONS IN THE BATH.

In these natural acid baths the reactions are mainly stimulating, with increased hyperæmia in the parts submerged, and marked lessening of pain and swelling in the affected joints and tissues. Those waters containing free carbonic-acid gas are used for the cases of fibrositis in which the circulation requires the stimulating action of gaseous baths.

The “New Priest” waters, containing approximately 16.80 grains per gallon of free sulphuric acid, are utilized in the form of open pools, deep step-down baths, and slipper baths. They are prescribed at a suitable temperature for the individual case.

The “Old Priest” waters, containing a much lower degree of free acid (3.77 grains to the gallon), and of varying temperatures (from 84° F. to 102° F.), are used for treatment at their source. The waters, percolating through their pumice-bed, are confined in pools, and contain free carbonic-acid gas bubbling through the water.

The very strong “Postmaster” waters are also confined within pools on the natural pumice-bed, and, by a primitive arrangement of wooden sluice-valves, are maintained at three ranges of temperature — viz., 104°, 106°, and 108° F. They contain 22.29 grains of free sulphuric acid to the gallon, and are strongly counter-irritant in their reactions.

INDICATIONS AND TECHNIQUE.

In such a brief account as this one can only deal in generalizations, and the forms of treatment mentioned must necessarily be subject to wide variations. In any form of hydro-therapeutic treatment the regime must be adapted to the individual manifestations of the disease, and no routine rules or regulations can be laid down in spa operations.

The “New Priest” waters are, for the most part, prescribed for patients suffering from subacute or chronic fibrositis, subacute or chronic gout, and the various forms of arthritis. Except in cases of marked debility, those patients are given graduated baths, at temperatures ranging from 102° to 104° F., from ten to fifteen minutes daily. Most of the baths are fitted with a subaqueous douche having a pressure of 25 lb. to the square inch, which is directed under water on the affected tissues. The bath is usually followed by a light or hot pack, according to the needs of the case.

The subthermal “Old Priest” waters (temperature 84° F.), containing a high degree of free carbonic - acid gas, are particularly valuable in the treatment of functional nervous disease, and the methods of administration are similar to those obtaining at Nauheim. The reactions are markedly stimulating through the sympathetic nervous system, and bring about, by reflex action, a tonic effect on the heart.

The “Postmaster” baths are used in the treatment of the more chronic forms of fibrositis, arthritis deformans, and gout, requiring a more or less heroic type of procedure. They are usually prescribed in combination—i.e., a certain time in each pool, commencing with the lowest temperature. The hyperæmic reaction is most marked, and in many of the cases where pain is a predominant symptom there is a temporary paralysis of the surface nerves, as well as a strong reflex excitation of the heart. For this reason these baths are not given to patients suffering from cardiac weakness.

The mud baths being highly impregnated with silica, which has a bland sedative effect on the tissues, are particularly indicated in cases of acute or subacute neuritis, gout, and certain skin conditions. The action of these baths is to induce an active hyperæmia in the patient with an actual absorption of free sulphur, which is present in considerable quantity. Also the radio-activity of this medium (0.185 per c.c.) is possibly an active factor in the therapeutic action of these baths. In some of the cases undergoing mud-bath treatment the effect has been almost miraculous—instant relief from pain; reduction of swelling caused by inflammatory exudates—and such patients have been able to discard crutches or other adventitious aids and to walk with more or less normal comfort.

Perhaps, of more recent date, the most efficacious effects of mud treatments have been manifested in cases of skin conditions—notably psoriasis: cases which have resisted all forms of drug treatment have cleared up in an almost magical manner; and so frequently have such cures been effected that one believes that the silicious mud of Rotorua has some markedly specific action as a therapeutic agent.

The treatment of gout depends entirely on the individual manifestations. In certain subacute and chronic types fairly high temperatures (104° to 106° F., with hot packs) of “Priest” water, are employed, in order to hasten the absorption of exudates and the elimination of uric acid. In cases of acute gout more sedative' measures are pursued, such as “Rachel” baths at neutral temperatures, local mud packs, and rest. As soon as the conditions permit, these patients are changed over to acid water baths. Cases of chronic gout exhibiting metabolic stagnation sometimes receive considerable benefit from the counter-irritant effects of the strongly acid “Postmaster” waters.

ACCESSORY TREATMENTS.

Separate establishments, containing the most modern apparatus of sprays, douches, hot steam, &c., are available for wet massage and treatments of the Aix-Vichy type.

The massage-rooms are fitted with the latest installations of electrical equipment—Bristowe tables, diathermy, high frequency, Bergonie chair, X-ray, Schnée baths, Greville hot air, and other apparatus for carrying out the most up-to-date methods of electrical-therapeutic treatments.

The baths are administered by a trained staff of attendants, and the massage, electrical-therapy, and douches carried out by a qualified staff of operators.

In every respect the hydrotherapy treatments aim at a restoration of function, and the measures employed are, for the most part, re-educative.

SANATORIUM.

In connection with the Rotorua Spa is a sanatorium of seventy beds, where patients whose finances are restricted can receive treatment at an exceedingly moderate cost. The institution consists of cubicles and open wards. Thermal baths and massage-rooms in the building provide for the more helpless type of invalid.

STATISTICS.

From sixty thousand to eighty thousand baths are given annually, and about thirty thousand special treatments—massage, electrical therapy, &c.—are administered each year at the Rotorua Spa.

The usual course of treatment lasts from four to six weeks, and the high percentage of cures and improvements testifies to the value of the thermal mineral waters and the hydro-therapeutic treatments obtaining in this Dominion.

RIVERS.

The following account of the rivers of New Zealand is by Professor It. Speight, M.Sc., F.G.S., Curator of the Canterbury Museum:—

In a country like New Zealand, with marked variations in topographic relief and with a plentiful and well-distributed rainfall, the rivers must necessarily form characteristic features of the landscape. Mountains, however, exert an important influence on their adaptability to the necessities of commerce, reducing their value on the one hand while increasing it on the other. Owing to the steep grades of their channels few of the rivers are fitted for navigation except near their mouths, but to compensate for this disability they furnish in many places ideal sites for power plants. No country south of the Equator, except Chile and Patagonia, possesses such stores of energy conveniently placed, which cannot become exhausted until the sun fails to raise vapour from the neighbouring seas—a contingency to be realized only when life on the earth is becoming extinct.

The only part of the country which possesses rivers capable of being used for navigation is the North Island. The relief is not so marked as in the South, and many streams flow in deep beds, with somewhat sluggish current. There are flowing into the Tasman Sea rivers like the Waikato, Wairoa, Mokau, and Wanganui, which served the Maoris as important means of communication, and which are decidedly useful for the purposes of modern transport. The first-mentioned of these is by far the most important. Rising in the snows of Ruapehu, and receiving numerous affluents from the western slopes of the Kaimanawa Range, it pursues a northerly course for twenty miles with all the features of a mountain torrent till it enters Lake Taupo. Almost immediately on leaving this it plunges over the Huka Falls, formed by a hard ledge of volcanic rock, and then runs first north-east and then north-west till it reaches the sea, the amount of water discharged exceeding 800,000 cubic feet per minute. In certain parts of its course the valley is gorgelike in character and picturesque rapids obstruct its navigation, but in its lower reaches it widens out and flows for long distances through marshes and shallow lakes, and empties into the sea by a wide estuary, which is unfortunately blocked by a bad bar. It receives on the west a large tributary, the Waipa—itself also navigable for small steamers, and a river which may ultimately play no small part in the development of the south-western portion of the Auckland Province.

The Northern Wairoa shows features which resemble those of the Waikato. It rises in the hilly land of the North Auckland Peninsula, and flows south as a noble stream till it enters Kaipara Harbour, a magnificent sheet of water with many winding and far-reaching arms, but with its utility greatly discounted by the presence of a bar which, though with sufficient depth of water for vessels of moderate size, is frequently impracticable. The total estimated discharge from the streams running into the Kaipara Harbour is about 500,000 cubic feet per minute, of which the Wairoa certainly contributes one-half.

The Mokau River, which enters the sea about sixty miles north-east of Now Plymouth, is navigable for a considerable distance in its lower reaches. Here it is flanked by limestone bluffs, clad with a wealth of ferns and other native vegetation, forming one of the most picturesque rivers of the country. Higher up, as in the Waikato, there are fine falls, which may ultimately be used for power purposes owing to their proximity to one of the important agricultural districts of the North Island.

The last of the four principal navigable rivers on the west coast is the Wanganui. This river gathers its initial supplies from the western flanks of the volcanic ridge of the centre of the Island, from which numerous streams run west over the Waimarino Plain in somewhat open channels till they coalesce and form the main river. Other tributaries, such as the Tangarakau and the Maunganui-te-ao, subsequently add their quota, and the river then flows in a southerly direction in loops and windings depressed far below the level of the coastal plain, between high papa bluffs clad with rich vegetation, till it reaches the sea as a deep tidal stream, the amount of its discharge being estimated at over 500,000 cubic feet per minute. Through the greater part of its course it has a characteristic trench-like channel, with a fairly even gradient, and with only slight interruptions from rapids. At low water these are most troublesome, but at times of high river-level they are passed without serious difficulty. This fine stream affords communication into a country difficult of access by road or railway, and it may be taken as typical of other smaller streams to the west, such as the Waitotara, the Patea, and the Waitara, which are navigable to a less extent, principally owing to the obstructions of timber in their channels; while the rivers lying more to the east and with courses parallel to the Wanganui—e.g., the Rangitikei and the Wangaehu—are more rapid and have little adaptability to the needs of transport. Further east still, in the neighbourhood of the Ruahine Mountains, the rivers become true mountain torrents, with steep grades and rapid currents.

On the other coast of the North Island the only streams capable of being used for navigation except just at their mouths are those running into the Firth of Thames—the Piako and the Waihou. But no account of our navigable rivers would be complete without a reference to the “drowned rivers” which characterize the northern parts of the Island. The Kaipara may be taken as a typical case of such, for the harbour merely represents the depressed and sunken lower reaches of the Wairoa and other streams. A further notable case is the Hokianga River, which runs for twenty miles between wooded hills and receives numerous tributaries from them, tidal for a considerable part of their courses, and allowing water communication to be used for at least fifteen miles from the point where actual discharge into the open sea takes place.

The remaining rivers of the North Island of any importance rise in the mountain axis that stretches from near Wellington towards the eastern margin of the Bay of Plenty. Towards the southern end, where it lies close to the shore of Cook Strait, the rivers from it are short and swift, the only exception being the Manawatu, which has cut a deep gorge in the mountain barrier and drains an extensive basin lying on the eastern flanks of the Ruahine Range to the north, and of the Tararua Range to the south, as well as a considerable area of country on the slopes of the Puketoi Range, its headwaters in this direction reaching nearly to the east coast of the Island. The Manawatu has an estimated discharge of over 600,000 cubic feet per minute, and judging by this it must be considered the second largest river in the North Island. Although the Manawatu is the only stream which has succeeded up to the present in cutting through the range at its head, several of the rivers flowing west have eaten their way far back, and in future ages will no doubt struggle with the Manawatu for the supremacy of that tract of land lying to the east of the range. Remarkable changes are likely to occur in the direction of drainage, especially if the earth-movements now in progress in the neighbourhood of Cook Strait continue for any lengthy period.

The central and southern parts of the Tararua and Rimutaka Ranges are drained by the Ohau, Otaki, Waikanae, and other streams flowing into Cook Strait; by the Hutt River, which flows into Wellington Harbour; and by the Ruamahanga and its tributaries, flowing through the Wairarapa Plain. These last include within their basins some amount of papa-country as well as steep mountain-slopes. While in the former they run in deep narrow channels, but when free from it they spread at times over wide shingly beds in a manner more characteristic of the streams of the South Island.

Several large rivers rise in the Ruahine Mountains and their northerly extensions. The chief of these flowing into Hawke Bay are the Ngaururoro, Tukituki, Mohaka, and Wairoa, the first being noteworthy for the enormous amount of shingle it has brought down; while farther north the Waipaoa runs into Poverty Bay and the Waiapu into the open sea, both draining an extensive area of rich papa land. From the north-western side of the range the Whakatane and the Rangitaiki, two considerable streams, flow into the Bay of Plenty.

The chief factor which determines the characters of the rivers of the South Island is the great mountain mass of the Southern Alps, with its extensions and semi-detached fragments. Its general direction is parallel to the west coast of the Island, and nearer to this coast than to the eastern one; it also lies right athwart the path of the wet westerly winds which prevail in these latitudes. The moisture collected during their passage across the Tasman Sea is precipitated in the form of rain on the coastal plain and the hills behind it, while the mountain-tops intercept it chiefly in the form of snow, the amount of annual rainfall varying from about 100 in. at sea-level up to over 200 in. near the main divide. The eastern slopes of the range receive less rain, and are increasingly drier as the coast is approached, but there the amount is slightly augmented by moist winds coming from the open ocean to the east. In the higher mountain valleys on both sides of the range he numerous glaciers, either of the small cliff type or large ones of the first order, the most notable being the Tasman, Hooker, Mueller, Godley, Rangitata, Lyell, and Ramsay on the east, and the Franz Josef and Fox on the west. The chief large rivers of the central district of the Island rise from the terminals of the glaciers and issue from the ice as streams of considerable volume. They reach their highest level in spring and summer, for not only does the heavier rainfall of that time of the year serve to swell them inordinately, but the snow and ice are melted under the combined influence of the rain itself and of the strong sun-heat. Although they are almost always more or less turbulent and dangerous to the traveller who attempts to ford them—in the warm months of the year they are liable to sudden and serious floods, and formerly they frequently blocked communication for weeks at a stretch—now, however, many of the worst streams have been bridged, and communication is thus easier and less precarious.

The general form of these valleys is of a fairly uniform type. Their heads are usually amphitheatre - like in shape, and for some distance they are occasionally covered by old moraines, and the course of the stream is impeded by huge angular blocks washed out of these or shed from the steep slopes; at times, too, the rivers flow through deep and somewhat narrow gorges. Lower down the valleys open out, with even steep sides, nearly perpendicular at times, and with flat floors covered by a waste of shingle, over which the rivers wander in braided streams. The sides are clad with dense bush for a height of approximately 2,500 ft., that merges into a tangle of subalpine scrub, to be succeeded after another 1,000 ft. by open alpine meadow, gradually passing upward into bare rock and perpetual snow. After leaving the mountains the streams flowing to the West Coast cross the narrow fringe of aggraded coastal plain, and cut down their channels through old glacial drifts which furnished in former times rich leads of alluvial gold. The mouths of these rivers are usually blocked by shallow bars, but after heavy floods a channel may be scoured out, only to be closed, when the river falls, by the vast quantities of drift material moved along the beach by the heavy seas and the strong shore currents which sweep the open coast. It is only where it is possible to confine the river-mouths and direct their scour that open channels can be permanently maintained, and even these entrances are at times extremely dangerous to shipping.

The chief rivers which flow from the central portion of the Southern Alps to the Tasman Sea are the Taramakau, Hokitika, Wanganui, Wataroa, Waihao, Karangarua, Haast, and Arawata. All rise in glaciers, and their valleys are remarkable for their magnificently diversified bush and mountain scenery. Occasionally lakes, ponded back behind old moraines or lying in rock-bound basins and fringed with primeval forest, lend charm to the landscape, and make a journey along the West-land Plain one of the most delightful in New Zealand from the scenic point of view.

Farther north glaciers are absent, but the heavy rain feeds numerous large streams and rivers, the most notable being the Grey and the Buller, the latter being in all probability the largest on the west coast, the amount of its discharge being estimated at nearly 1,000,000 cubic feet per minute.

The general features of the rivers which flow into the West Coast Sounds are-somewhat similar, except that few rise in glaciers, and there is no fringe of plain to the mountains. The valleys have steeper sides, waterfalls and lakes are more common, and are ideally situated for power installations. One of the large rivers of this area is the Hollyford, which flows into Martin's Bay; but the largest of all is the Waiau, which drains the eastern side of the Sounds region, receives the waters of Lakes Te Anau, Manapouri, and Monowai, and enters the sea on the south coast of the Island.

The rivers on the eastern slope of the Alps present features similar to those of the west coast in their upper courses, but the valleys are broader and flatter, floored from wall to wall with shingle and frequently containing large lakes of glacial origin. In those cases where lakes do not now exist there are undoubted signs that they occurred formerly, having been emptied by the erosion of the rock-bars across their lower extremities and filled at the same time by detrital matter poured in at their heads.

The largest of all these rivers is the Clutha; in fact, it discharges the greatest volume of water of any river in New Zealand, the amount being estimated at over 2,000,000 cubic feet per minute. The main streams which give rise to this river flow into Lakes Wanaka and Hawea, and have their sources in the main divide to the north of the ice-clad peak of Mount Aspiring and in the neighbourhood of the Haast Pass. After flowing as a united stream for nearly thirty miles it receives from the west a tributary nearly as large as itself called the Kawarau, whose discharge has been accurately gauged by Professor Park at 800,000 cubic feet per minute. This great volume of water is due to the fact that the Kawarau drains Lake Wakatipu, which serves as a vast reservoir for the drainage of a considerable area of mountain country, including snow-clad peaks at the head of the lake. The united streams continue in a south-easterly direction, and their volume is substantially increased by the Manuherikia on the east bank as well as by the Pomahaka on the west. The course of the Clutha lies through the somewhat arid schist region of Central Otago, gorge alternating with open valley and river-flats; but some ten miles or so before it reaches the sea it divides, only to reunite lower down and thus include the island known as Inch-Clutha. It almost immediately afterwards enters the sea, but its outlet is of little use as a harbour owing to a shifting and dangerous bar. Portions of its course are navigable to a very limited extent, but it is more important commercially, since it has yielded by means of dredging operations great quantities of gold; in fact, it may be regarded as a huge natural sluice-box, in which the gold disseminated through the schists of Central Otago has been concentrated through geological ages into highly payable alluvial leads.

The following large rivers belong to the Southland and Otago District, but do not reach back to the main divide—the Jacobs, Oreti, Mataura, and Taieri; and forming the northern boundary of the Otago Provincial District is the Waitaki, which drains a great area of alpine country, and includes in its basin Lakes Tekapo, Pukaki, and Ohau. Its main affluents are the Tasman and the Godley, rising in glaciers of the same names near the axis of the range where it is at its highest. As the river approaches the sea it crosses shingle-plains, through which it has cut a deep channel flanked by terraces, which rise bench-like for some hundreds of feet above the present level of the river. Its general features are similar to those of the rivers of Canterbury farther north, except that a larger proportion of the course of the latter lies across the plains and uninterfered-with in any way by the underlying harder and more consolidated rocks. The four principal rivers which rise in glaciers are the Rangitata, Ashburton, Rakaia, and Waimakariri; while farther north are the Hurunui and Waiau, snow- and rain-fed rivers rising in the main range beyond the northerly limit of glaciers; and there are other streams—such as the Waihao, Pareora, Opihi, Selwyn, Ashley, and Waipara—which do not reach beyond the outer flanking ranges, and are almost entirely rain-supplied.

According to recent investigations the low-water discharge of the Waimakariri is approximately 80,000 cubic feet per minute, but it frequently rises in normal flood to 500,000 cubic feet per minute.

The rivers flowing to the east all carry down enormous quantities of shingle, but in former times they carried down even more, and built up the wide expanse of the Canterbury Plains by the coalescing and overlapping of their fans of detritus, the depth of shingle certainly exceeding 1,000 ft. Subsequently, when conditions, climatic or otherwise, slightly altered, they cut down deep through this incoherent mass of material, forming high and continuous terraces. Nowhere is the terrace system more completely developed than at the point where the rivers enter on the plains, for there the solid rock that underlies the gravels is exposed, and by the protection that it affords to the bases of old river flood-plains or former terraces it contributes materially to their preservation in a comparatively uninjured condition. The valleys of all these rivers are now almost treeless except in their higher parts, but there the mixed bush of Westland is replaced by the sombre beech forest; it is only in exceptional cases that the totara, which forms an important element of the bush on the hills to the west, crosses the range and covers portions of the sides of the valleys on the east.

Both the Hurunui and the Waiau have cut down gorges through semi-detached mountain masses of older Mesozoic rock, a result probably accelerated by the movements of the earth's crust; and farther north, in Marlborough, the Clarence, Awatere, and Wairau have their directions almost entirely determined by a system of huge parallel earth-fractures, running north-east and south-west, and the rivers are walled in on either side by steep mountains for the greater part of their length. The Clarence Valley is the most gorge-like, since it lies between the great ridges known as the Seaward and Inland Kaikouras, which reach a height of about 0,000 ft. The last river of the three, the Wairau, flows for a considerable distance through a rich alluvial plain, and enters Cloudy Bay by an estuary which is practicable for small steamers as far as the Town of Blenheim. The most important of the streams on the southern shores of Cook Strait are the Pelorus, Motueka, Takaka, and Aorere, great structural faults being chiefly responsible for the position and characteristic features of the valleys of the last two.

An important commercial aspect of our rivers is their use not only as drainage channels, but as a source of water for pastoral purposes. Hardly any area is without water for stock or with a subsoil wanting in moisture necessary for successful cultivation. Only in Central Otago and on the Canterbury Plains were there formerly wide stretches of arid country, but the deficiency in the water-supply has been remedied by well-engineered systems of races, tapping unfailing streams at higher levels, and distributing a portion of their contents far and wide, so that the districts mentioned are rendered highly productive and absolutely protected from the serious effects of drought. It is, however, the rich alluvial flats and well-drained terrace lands bordering on the rivers that contribute specially to the high average yield per acre year after year for which this country has such a world-wide reputation.

From the brief summary given above it will be evident also that in her rivers the country possesses enormous stores of energy awaiting exploitation. A beginning has been made in some places, such as at Waipori in Otago, at Lake Coleridge in Canterbury, at the Horahora Falls and at Arapuni on the Waikato River, at Mangahao in Wellington, at Lake Waikaremoana, and at a few other places where there are minor installations. These owe their development to their comparative nearness to centres of industry; but they represent an infinitesimal portion of the energy available, and the value of our vast store will be more truly appreciated when our somewhat limited reserves of coal show signs of failure or become difficult to work—unless, indeed, some new form of power is disclosed by the researches of science in the near future.

A list of the more important rivers of New Zealand is given, with their approximate lengths, the latter being supplied by the Department of Lands and Survey.

NORTH ISLAND.

Flowing into the Pacific Ocean—	Miles.
Piako	60
Waihou (or Thames)	90
Rangitaiki	95
Whakatane	60
Waiapu	55
Waipaoa	50
Wairoa	50
Mohaka	80
Ngaururoro	85
Tukituki	65
Flowing into Cook Strait—
Ruamahanga	70
Hutt	35
Otaki	30
Manawatu (tributaries: Tirau-mea and Pohangina)	100
Rangitikei	115
Turakina	65
Wangaehu	85
Wanganui (tributaries: Ohura, Tangarakau, and Maunganui-te-ao)	140
Waitotara	50
Patea	65
Flowing into the Tasman Sea—
Waitara (tributary: Maunganui)	65
Mokau	75
Waikato (tributary: Waipa)	220
Wairoa	95
Hokianga	40

SOUTH ISLAND.

Flowing into Cook Strait—	Miles.
Aorere	45
Takaka	45
Motueka	75
Wai-iti	30
Pelorus	40
Wairau (tributary: Waihopai)	105
Awatere	70
Flowing into the Pacific Ocean—
Clarence (tributary: Acheron)	125
Conway	30
Waiau (tributary: Hope)	110
Hurunui	90
Waipara	40
Ashley	55
Waimakariri (tributaries: Bealey, Poulter, Esk, and Broken River)	93
Selwyn	55
Rakaia (tributaries: Mathias, Wilberforce, Acheron, and Cameron)	95
Ashburton	67
Rangitata	75
Opihi	50
Pareora	35
Waihao	45
Waitaki (tributaries: Tasman, Tekapo, Ohau, Ahuriri, and Hakataramea)	135
Kakanui	40
Shag	45
Taieri	125
Clutha (tributaries: Kawarau, Makarora, Hunter, Manuherikia, and Pomahaka)	210
Flowing into Foveaux Strait—
Mataura	120
Oreti	105
Aparima	65
Waiau (tributaries: Mararoa, Clinton, and Monowai)	115
Flowing into the Tasman Sea—
Cleddau and Arthur	20
Hollyford	50
Cascade	40
Arawata	45
Haast (tributary: Landsborough)	60
Karangarua	30
Fox	25
Waiho	20
Wataroa	35
Wanganui	25
Waitaha	25
Hokitika (tributary: Kokatahi)	40
Arahura	35
Taramakau (tributaries: Otira and Taipo)	45
Grey (tributaries: Ahaura, Arnold, and Mawhera-iti)	75
Buller (tributaries: Matakitaki, Maruia, and Inangahua)	105
Mokihinui	30
Karamea	45
Heaphy	25

LAKES.

The following article on the lakes of New Zealand is also by Professor R. Speight:—

Lakes are features of the landscape which are usually attributable to the filling-up of hollows formed by faulting or warping, or by volcanic explosions, or by the irregular accumulation of material round volcanic vents, or to the interference with river-valleys by glaciers. Seeing that all these agencies have operated on an extensive scale in New Zealand in comparatively recent geological times, it is not surprising that its lake systems are well developed. The remarkable group of lakes lying in the middle of the North Island, as well as isolated enclosed sheets of water in other parts of the Auckland Provincial District, are due to volcanic action in its various forms, while those in the South Island are to be credited to the operations of glaciers. We have therefore two distinct types of lake scenery—one for each Island. The relief of the land near the volcanic lakes is not by any means marked, and they therefore rarely have bold and precipitous shores, and their scenic interest depends partly on the patches of subtropical bush which grows luxuriantly in places on the weathered igneous material, and partly on their desolate and forbidding surroundings, everywhere reminiscent of volcanic action, where the softening hand of time has not reduced the outpourings of the eruptive centres to a condition favourable for the establishment of vegetation. The thermal activity which is manifested in numerous places on their shores adds to their interest. In the South Island the lakes lie in the midst of splendid mountain scenery, with amphitheatres of noble peaks at their heads, crowned with perpetual snow, and clad at lower levels with dark primeval beech forest, which affords an appropriate setting for the waters at their base, rendered milky-white at times with the finest of sediment worn from solid rocks by powerful glaciers, and swept down to the quiet waters of the lake by turbulent glacial torrents.

LAKES OF THE NORTH ISLAND.

The largest sheet of fresh water in New Zealand is Lake Taupo, which is situated in the very heart of the North Island, at an elevation of 1,211 ft. above the sea. Its greatest length in a S.W.–N.E. direction is twenty-five miles, and its greatest breadth is about seventeen miles, but its shape is somewhat irregular owing to a large indentation on its western side. Its area is 238 square miles, its greatest-depth is 534 ft., and it has a catchment area of about 1,250 square miles. About 60 per cent. of its water-supply comes from the Upper Waikato River, which drains the northern and eastern flanks of the central volcanoes as well as the western slopes of the Kaimanawa Range and its northern extensions. The lake discharges at its north-eastern corner, and forms the main Waikato River, which falls within a short distance over the Huka Falls, where the volume of water which passes over is estimated to reach an average of 5,000 cubic feet per second. The surroundings of the lake are picturesque, on the western side especially. Here it is bounded by cliffs of volcanic rock, generally between 100 ft. and 800 ft. in height, but at the Karangahape Bluffs they rise to over 1,000 ft. sheer. The northern shore is bold with promontories terminated with bluffs and intervening bays with gentler slope. The south side is generally fringed with alluvial flats, while the east is bordered in places with pumice cliffs, and is somewhat uninteresting, but relieved from absolute monotony by the graceful extinct cone of Tauhara. About twenty miles to the south rise the great volcanic peaks of Tongariro, Ngauruhoe, and Ruapehu, with their bush-clad foothills, forming a splendid panorama when seen from the northern shore of the lake.

To the south-east of the middle of the lake lies the Island of Motutaiko, in all probability the summit of a volcanic cone on the line of igneous activity which stretches north - east from the central volcanoes towards Tarawera, White Island, Tonga, and Samoa. The formation of the lake itself is attributable either to a great subsidence after volcanic activity waned, or to a great explosion which tore a vast cavity in the earth's crust and scattered the fragments far and wide over the middle of the island; and evidence of declining igneous action is furnished by hot springs in the lake itself and near its shore, especially at the north-east corner near Wairakei and on the southern shore near Tokaanu. Earth-movements have in all probability continued down to recent times, for an old shore platform or wave-cut terrace surrounds the lake, indicating that its waters were formerly at a higher level, and changes in level of the ground on the northern shore of the lake, attended by local earthquakes, occurred during the year 1922.

The lake forms an enormous reservoir of power conveniently placed for exploitation; it is estimated that the Huka Falls would develop up to 38,000 horse-power, and its central position renders it peculiarly suitable for supplying a wide district.

To the south of Taupo, nestling in the hills between the great lake and the northern slopes of Tongariro, lies Roto-Aira, a beautiful sheet of water, three miles in length and with an area of five square miles. It discharges by the Poutu River into the Upper Waikato. The other lakes of this region are small in size and usually occupy small explosion craters on the line of igneous activity mentioned above.

A most interesting group of lakes lies in the midst of the thermal region to the north-east of Taupo. These comprise the following: Rotorua, Roto-iti, Roto-ehu, and Rotoma, which belong to a system lying to the north-west of the area, and Tarawera, Rotokakahi, Tikitapu, Okareka, Rotomahana, Okataina, Rotomakariri, and Herewhakaitu, which lie to the south-east. The former group is connected either directly or indirectly with the Kaituna River basin, and the latter with the Tarawera River basin, both of which discharge their waters into the Bay of Plenty. All these lakes occupy either explosion craters or depressions due to subsidences of the crust or hollows formed by irregular volcanic accumulations. They lie at an elevation of about 1,000 ft. above the sea. The largest is Rotorua, which is nearly circular in shape, except for a marked indentation on the southern shore. It is 32 square miles in area, and 84 ft. deep, with flat shores; but in the middle, rather towards the eastern side, the picturesque and historical Island of Mokoia rises to a height of 400 ft. The lake discharges at its north-eastern corner by the Ohau Creek, into Lake Roto-iti, a shallow and irregular depression, which runs in turn into the Okere River. To the north-east lies the small lake of Roto-ehu, separated from it by low ground, and farther on lies the picturesque Rotoma, of still smaller size.

The largest lake of the south-eastern group is Tarawera, lying to the north and west of the mountain of the same name; discharging directly into it are Rotokakahi, Okareka, and Okataina, the last two by subterranean channels, while Tikitapu and Rotomahana are separated from it by comparatively narrow ridges.

All these lakes owe their interest to the thermal manifestations which occur in their vicinity, and to the remnants of beautiful bush which have survived the eruption of Tarawera in 1886. They are also noted for their fishing, being well stocked with trout. Their water is available for power purposes to a limited extent, and a small installation is placed near the low fall where the Okere River discharges from Lake Roto-iti.

Two small lakes of volcanic origin are situated on the peninsula north of Auckland: these are Takapuna and Omapere. The former lies close to the City of Auckland, and occupies a small explosion crater near the sea; while Omapere is between the Bay of Islands and Hokianga, in a shallow depression, which owes its origin to the obstruction of the Waitangi River by a lava-flow. It is three miles long by two wide, and is placed at a height of 790 ft. above, the sea.

About forty miles from the east coast, in the Hawke's Bay District, lies the most important lake of Waikaremoana, twelve miles in length by about six miles and a quarter in breadth at its widest part, but with an extremely irregular outline; it has an area of twenty-one square miles. Its surface is 2,015 ft. above the sea, and it has a maximum depth of 846 ft. It discharges by the Wairoa River to the northern shore of Hawke Bay. This lake is most favourably situated for the development of water-power, and it is estimated that it would generate, owing to its admirable position, as much as 136,000 horse-power. A few miles to the northeast lies the small lake called Waikare-iti, which discharges into the large lake.

The only other inland lakes of any importance in this Island are those situated in the lower course of the Waikato River, the most noteworthy being Waikare and Whangape. The former has an area of nearly eleven square miles and has a depth of 12 ft.; the latter is smaller, with an area of only four square miles and a depth of 9 ft. These owe their origin to flooding of low-lying land alongside the river—in all probability attributable to a slight lowering of the land in this part of the country, with the consequent inability of the river to discharge its surplus water without a proper channel being maintained.

Along the coast-line, especially behind the fringe of dunes, numerous small lakes are found, such as Rotokawa, near Kaipara, and Horowhenua, near Levin; and a large sheet of water occurs near the mouth of the Wairarapa Valley, called Lake Wairarapa. The lake is very shallow, and is liable to remarkable variations in size owing to heavy floods from the neighbouring ranges. Between it and the sea is a considerable area of swampy ground in which are several small lakes, the largest of which, Lake Onoke, is separated from Palliser Bay by a narrow shingle-spit.

LAKES OF THE SOUTH ISLAND.

By far the great majority of the lakes of the South Island are dependent for their formation either directly or indirectly on the action of glaciers. They may be small tarns high on the mountains, large lakes occupying considerable lengths of old stream-valleys which have been overdeepened by the excavating power of ice during the Pleistocene glaciation, or lakes formed by the filling of hollows in the irregular heaps of debris laid down on a plain at the base of the mountains or in a wide open valley. Accumulations of debris may also assist the first two causes in the formation of lakes, and some may owe the initial formation of their basins to tectonic causes, but these have been modified profoundly by other influences.

Included in the first class are numerous sheets of water from the size of small ponds upwards, found in all parts of the mountain region, but especially in the high plateau regions of western Otago, and to a limited extent in north-west Nelson. To the second group belong the large lakes of the eastern watershed of the Alps and a small number which drain west, such as Rotoroa and Rotoiti in the Buller Basin, while to the last must be assigned the majority of the lakes of Westland; but Brunner and Kanieri should perhaps be assigned to the second class.

Seeing that glaciation was not so intense in the northern portion of the Island, it is not surprising that the lakes of that region are small and few in number. Attention has, however, been drawn to Boulder Lake, in the valley of the Aorere River, since it might be used for power purposes in connection with the great deposit of iron-ore at Parapara. It is only 151 acres in extent, but it lies at an elevation of 3,224 ft., and is conveniently placed for the establishment of an electric-power plant. Farther south, near the head of the Buller, are two larger lakes—Rotoroa and Rotoiti—occupying ice-eroded valleys dammed at their lower ends by moraine. The former has an area of eight square miles, and the latter two and three-quarter square miles; their heights above the sea being respectively 1,470 ft. and 1,997 ft., and Rotoiti being 228 ft. deep.

In the valley of the Grey River are two lakes of considerable size—viz., Brunner and Poerua. These are shrunken and separated parts of a former extensive sheet of water which was ponded back behind a great glacier moraine. Lake Brunner is five miles long by four broad, has an area of 15.9 square miles, is 280 ft. above sea-level, and 357 ft. deep. It is surrounded on two sides by high wooded granite peaks, and on the other two by low ground. It discharges by the Arnold River to the Grey, but a very slight change of level would turn it into the Taramakau.

Lake Kanieri, which lies in the basin of the Hokitika River at the base of Mount Tuhua, is a beautiful sheet of water. It is five miles long by one and three-quarters wide, has an area of eight square miles, is 422 ft. above sea - level, and 646 ft. deep. It owes its origin partly to the hollow formed behind an immense morainic dam, and partly to the erosive action of the valley glacier. Farther south on the coastal plain of Westland are numerous small and picturesque lakes, wooded to the water's edge, lying behind heaps of glacial debris or in ice-eroded basins. The most notable of these are Ianthe and Mapourika, both of small size, the former with an area of only two square miles, at a height of 80 ft. above sea-level, and with a depth of 105 ft., and the latter remarkable for the fine panorama of mountain scenery, with Mount Cook in the background, which can be obtained from the shore of the lake. Along this strip of coast-line there are numerous lagoon-like expanses of water, cut off from the sea by areas of dune or of moraine, the chief of these being Mahinapua, which lies close to the Town of Hokitika. This is but 6 ft. above tide water, and has an area of one and a half square miles. The creek discharging from it is noted for the perfect reflections to be seen in the dark, peat-stained water.

On the eastern side of the main divide lie the great valley lakes which belong to the following river-basins: Hurunui—Lake Sumner; Rakaia—Lakes Coleridge and Heron; Waitaki—Lakes Tekapo, Pukaki, and Ohau; Clutha—Lakes Wanaka. Hawea, and Wakatipu; Waiau—Lakes Te Anau, Manapouri, and Monowai: Wairaurahiri—Lake Hauroko; Waitutu—Lake Poteriteri. These are all formed on the same plan; great glaciers have excavated the floor of a river-valley and have piled the debris across its lower portion, leaving a great hollow which was filled with water when the ice retreated. Even in those river-basins where no lakes now exist the traces of their former presence are evident; especially is this the case with the Waimakariri, Rakaia, and Rangitata Valleys. Besides these large lakes each valley has its quota of small ones, usually hidden away among the piles of moraine or ponded back behind shingle-fans. Among these small lakes should be noted the following: Tennyson, in the valley of the Clarence: Taylor, Sheppard, Katrine, and Mason, in the Hurunui; Pearson. Grassmere, and Letitia, in the valley of the Waimakariri; Evelyn, Selfe, Catherine, Ida, and Lyndon, in that of the Rakaia; Clearwater (or Tripp), Howard, and Acland, in the Ashburton; Alexandrina, in the Waitaki; Lochnagar, Hayes, and Moke, in the Clutha. In the valley of the Waiau there are numerous lakes of small size hidden away in bush-clad valleys, the chief of which is Mavora, which discharges into the main Waiau by way of its large tributary, the Mararoa. On the west coast of this region are also many insignificant lakes as far as size is concerned, such as Lake Ada, a well-known beauty spot on the Milford Sound track, while farther north McKerrow, a lake of larger size, discharges into Martin's Bay.

The only other lakes in this Island that are worthy of mention are Waihola, Forsyth, and Ellesmere. The first mentioned occupies the lower portion of the Taieri plain, and drains to the sea by a deep winding gorge cut through a ridge of rock-covered hills, the gorge being tidal for the greater part of its length. Lakes Forsyth and Ellesmere lie on the coast immediately south of Banks Peninsula, both ponded back behind a great shingle-spit formed by the drift of material brought down by the rivers and carried north under the influence of a strong shore current. Both are very shallow and liable at times to be invaded by the sea. Ellesmere is sixteen miles long by about ten broad, and Forsyth is about six miles long by one in breadth.

Among all these lakes three stand pre-eminent for their scenic interest—Wakatipu, Te Anau, and Manapouri. The first-named is walled in on both sides by steep mountains which rise at the head of the lake to over 8,000 ft. in the Humboldt Range, and to over 9,000 ft. in Mount Earnslaw. Te Anau has an uninteresting eastern shore, but its western shore is broken into three great arms, whose impressive scenery is strongly reminiscent of that of Milford Sound and George Sound; while Manapouri, with its many bush-clad islets and its indented shore-line with innumerable sheltered coves and pebbly beaches, belongs to the same type as Dusky Sound, the most beautiful of all in the fiord region.

The lakes of Canterbury he in a treeless area and owe their scenic interest principally to the background of snowy peaks, while Wanaka and Hawea are intermediate in character between them and the more southern lakes of Otago.

The following is a summary of the statistics of the chief lakes of New Zealand:—

Lake.	Length, in Miles.	Greatest Breadth, in Miles.	Area, in Square Miles.	Drainage Area, in Square Miles.	Approximate Volume of Discharge, in Cubic Feet per Second.	Height above Sea-level, in Fact.	Greatest Depth, in Feet.
North Island.
Taupo	25	17	238	1,250	5,000	1,211	534
Rotorua	7 1/2	6	32	158	420	915	84
Rotoiti	10 3/4	2 1/4	14	26	500	913	230
Tarawera	6 1/2	6 1/2	15	75	..	1,032	285
Waikaremoana	12	6 1/4	21	128	772	2,015	846
Wairarapa	10	4	27	1,250	..	..	64
South Island.
Rotoiti	5	2	2 3/4	86	..	1,997	228
Rotoroa	7	2 1/2	8	146	..	1,470	..
Brunner	5	4	16	145	..	280	357
Kanieri	5	1 3/4	8	11	..	422	646
Coleridge	11	3	18	70	..	1,667	680
Tekapo	12	4	32	580	5,000	2,323	620
Pukaki	10	5	31	515	6,000	1,588	..
Ohau	10	3	23	424	5,000	1,720	..
Hawea	20	5	48	518	5,700	1,062	..
Wanaka	30	4	75	960	..	922	..
Wakatipu	52	3	112	1,162	13,000	1,016	1,242
Te Anau	33	6	132	1,320	12,660	694	906
Manapouri	12	6	56	416	..	596	1,458
Monowai	12	1	12	51	700	600	..
Hauroko	20	3	25	195	1,800	611	..
Poteriteri	17	2	17	162	..	96	..
Waihola	4 1/2	1 1/8	3 1/3	2,200	..	(Tidal)	52
Ellesmere	16	10	107 1/2	745	..	(Tidal)	45

A reference to the section of this book dealing with water-power will give an idea of the enormous amount of energy awaiting development in the lakes of the South Island. The only one yet utilized to any great extent for hydro-electric purposes is Coleridge, in Canterbury. Some use is also being made of Monowai. In the North Island, Waikaremoana is one of three great schemes which have been developed for supplying the hydro-electric requirements of the whole of the Island.

GEOLOGY.

The following article on the geology of New Zealand was prepared by Dr. J. Henderson, M.A., F.N.Z. Inst., Director of the Geological Survey.

INTRODUCTION.

New Zealand is a small country, but its geological history is as complex and as ancient as that of a continent. Land, though from age to age it varied greatly in area, outline, and elevation, must have persisted in the New Zealand area from the oldest Palæozoic or earlier. Long periods during which gentle regional oscillations and warpings, aided by the slow-acting forces of denudation, brought about gradual changes were interrupted by great revolutions, when earth-stresses ridged the crust into mountains and quickly altered the whole configuration of the land and sea-floor. For New Zealand the important geological periods are those that followed the two latest mountain-building movements—the Kaikoura deformation of late Tertiary time, and the Hokonui deformation of the early Cretaceous. The deposits laid down in the intervening period of relative crustal stability cover a large proportion of the land, and contain all the coal and most of the limestone of the Dominion. The soils on which grow the forests, pastures, and crops are of post-Tertiary age, and the great bulk of the gold has been won from deposits formed during the same period.

GENERAL ACCOUNT OF THE STRATIGRAPHY.

The oldest known fossiliferous rocks in New Zealand are the Ordovician slates and greywackes of west Nelson and south-west Otago. Lower unfossiliferous beds of the same great system extend southward from the northern area and outcrop in the Westport, Reefton, Greymouth, Ross, and Okarito districts. Above the fossil-bearing beds, but probably still of Ordovician age, are the black phyllites, quartzites, and marbles which outcrop continuously from Takaka to Mount Owen, and are again exposed in the upper basins of the Matakitaki, Maruia, and Grey Rivers. The similar rocks of western Otago probably also belong to this group. The complex of gneisses and schists of the same region, intruded by acid and basic plutonics, and usually considered of Archæan age, resembles the part of the Ordovician strata of western Nelson that has been similarly invaded and metamorphosed and may well be of early Palæozoic age. Different authorities assign the mica, chlorite, and quartz schists of Central Otago to ages that range from the Archæan to the Triassic. They are certainly Palæozoic or older, since they grade upward into greywackesth at, at Clinton, contain Permian fossils.

Silurian rocks are certainly known only in the Baton and Wangapeka districts, and Devonian rocks at Reefton. These beds, fossils from which have lately been examined in England, cover only small areas. But the old Geological Survey mapped wide tracts of country in Nelson and Otago, covered with beds of the Te Anau Series, as Devonian, and the correlation may well be correct, though the rocks ale entirely unfossiliferous.

The Maitai Series, that forms the ranges on the south-cast side of the Nelson lowlands, are probably of Carboniferous or Permo-Carboniferous age. Their position in the time scale and their correlation with rocks in other parts of New Zealand have provoked much discussion. Permian strata, as already stated, occur in Otago, where the area they cover may be considerable.

Richly fossiliferous late Triassic rocks are known in the Kawhia-Mokau district, near the City of Nelson, and at several localities in Canterbury and Otago. Except in Nelson and Canterbury, strata that contain fossils referable to several stages of the Jurassic succeed without observed unconformity. The broad belt of greywacke and argillite that forms the mountains of Canterbury and Marlborough, and continues as a narrower belt through Wellington to northern Hawke's Bay, is usually referred to the Trias-Jura. Similar rocks outcrop in the centre of the North Island and at many points in North Auckland. There are Upper Triassic molluscs in these beds at several localities in the South Island, and the vertebra of a saurian with Triassic rather than Permian affinities was found near Wellington. Lithologically the greywackes and argillites of this vast series differ somewhat from the rocks of similar type belonging to the Jurassic and Maitai series; they are therefore thought to be of older Triassic age, but may well range into the Permian. The schists surrounded by them in the Kaikoura, Moorhouse, and Kirkliston Ranges are probably older.

The thick conglomerates conformably overlying the younger Jurassic shales of the Port Waikato, Kawhia, and Coromandel regions belong to either the youngest Jurassic or the oldest Cretaceous. Strata of early and middle Cretaceous age occur east of the main axis of New Zealand at several points from Marlborough to East Cape. Late Cretaceous beds are much more widely distributed, being known in North Auckland and in many localities along the eastern side of both Islands. They contain thick layers of black shale that give many indications of oil, which, however, has not yet been found in commercial amount. The oldest known workable coal-seams in New Zealand, those at Broken River, Malvern Hills, Shag Point, and Kaitangata, and perhaps some near Greymouth, are in young Cretaceous beds.

Tertiary rocks form the greater part of the North Island and are widely distributed in the South. As a whole they are weaker and more readily weathered than the older strata, and hence have given rise to less rugged country, now mostly cleared and grassed and forming productive pastoral land.

Eocene rocks are present in North Auckland, and probably also in the Gisborne, Hawke's Bay, and east Wellington districts. In the South Island they occur on the West Coast and in Canterbury and Otago, in which regions they contain valuable coal-seams worked at Westport, Reefton, Greymouth, Mount Somers, and Milton. Of the same age are the auriferous “cements” of the Tuapeka district that greatly enriched the gravels of the neighbouring streams and are themselves worked for gold.

In Oligocene time the maximum subsidence during the Tertiary occurred, and but little of the New Zealand area remained above sea-level at its close. The thick limestones of the Oamaru district and the contemporaneous limestone prominent in many parts of New Zealand are the younger deposits of this age. The older beds contain the extensive coal-measures of the North Auckland, Waikato, Charleston, and other coalfields.

Miocene strata cover large areas in both Islands, and also outcrop in the Wanganui, Gisborne, and Hawke's Bay regions, where Oligocene beds are altogether absent. In North Taranaki, the Murchison basin, and parts of the West Coast, thick coal-measures contain workable seams of brown coal.

During the Pliocene the New Zealand area, which had been intermittently rising since the close of the Oligocene, was greatly elevated and deformed. The earth-blocks from which the present mountains have been carved were uplifted from, or from near, sea-level, and New Zealand as it now is was roughly shaped out. In the South Island the deposits of this period are chiefly gravels deposited in structural depressions; but in the North, and especially in its southern half, there are thick and extensive shoal-water marine sediments. These, and the underlying Miocene strata, are the source of the petroleum found at New Plymouth.

The Pleistocene was a period of regional oscillation. While the land was high the mountains of the South Island were intensely glaciated, and great ice-streams, carrying vast bodies of debris, descended into the low country; after the highlands had been reduced in height through both denudation and decided subsidence the glaciers rapidly retreated, and are to-day represented by comparatively small remnants far in the mountains. While the ice was melting, the rivers of the South Island were unusually active in transporting waste to the lowlands and the sea. At this time, too, as well as somewhat earlier, the volcanoes of the North Island ejected an abundant supply of fragmentary material, much of which was borne away by the streams and used in building plains.

The deposits of Pleistocene and Recent age are in New Zealand of greater economic importance than those of all other ages. The plains, river-flats, and lowlands generally were formed or profoundly modified during this period, and the soils that cover them produced. During the same time practically all the gold won from the gravels of the South Island was liberated from a hard matrix and concentrated into workable deposits, and the rich bonanzas of the lodes of Hauraki were formed by secondary enrichment. The land-oscillations of the period are also of economic importance, for New Zealand's abundant water-power is derived from streams that have not yet, owing to the recency of land-uplift, cut their valleys to grade. On the other hand, land-depression has provided harbours and valuable artesian basins in many parts of the Dominion.

IGNEOUS ROCKS.

Plutonic rocks intrude many of the Palæozoic and Mesozoic strata, and some of the formations show evidence of contemporaneous volcanic action. Of the plutonic rocks granite is much the most prominent, and it outcrops at many points in West Nelson, Westland, Otago, and Stewart Island. In Nelson there were at least two periods of intrusion, no doubt corresponding with the great mountain-folding movements of the late Palæozoic and early Cretaceous times. The auriferous lodes of Reefton and other localities on the West Coast probably originated from the cooling magmas that formed the younger granites. Basic and ultra-basic rocks, the latter now largely altered to serpentine, occur in Nelson, Westland, Otago, and to a less extent in North Auckland.

Though volcanoes are known to have existed in Mesozoic and Palæozoic times, they seem to have been more active during the Tertiary than in any earlier age. The vast pile of flow and fragmental rocks that form the Hauraki Peninsula and the range that continues it southward to Tauranga belong to this period. The gold-silver veins extensively worked at Coromandel, Thames, and Waihi are in these rocks, which southward are smothered by the rhyolitic pumice that vents in the Taupo-Rotorua zone ejected during the late Pliocene and Pleistocene. Thick showers of pumice from this region cover a large part of the centre of the North Island and streams have carried the finer material to practically all the low-lying parts of the Island. The volcanoes are still alive, as is evidenced by the steam-vents, hot springs, and geysers found in the depressed zone extending from Ruapehu to White Island. The volcanic rocks of Taranaki probably range from the Miocene to the Pleistocene in age. The basalts and scoria cones that occur so abundantly between Kawhia and the Bay of Islands belong for the most part to the late Pliocene and Pleistocene, though cones at Auckland City are probably Recent.

In the South Island the volcanoes appear to be quite dead, for the hot springs at Hanmer and near the alpine chain are due to other causes. In the middle Tertiary, however, there were outbursts at many points, the chief eruptions being at Banks Peninsula and about Dunedin.

CONCLUSION.

In a short article it is impossible to give an adequate idea of what geological workers have accomplished in New Zealand, or of what they have yet to do in order that the wisest use may be made of the country's mineral and agricultural resources. For good general accounts the treatises of Professors Park and Marshall should be consulted, and for more detailed information the bulletins of the Geological Survey and the many papers that have appeared in the “Transactions of the New Zealand Institute.”

SEISMOLOGY.

An article dealing with earthquakes in New Zealand was prepared by Dr. C. E. Adams, D.Sc., F.R.A.S., Government Astronomer and Seismologist, with the assistance of Dr. J. Henderson, D.Sc., Director of the Geological Survey, and published in the 1929 and previous numbers of the Year-book. The following condensation of this article was in type before the occurrence of the Murchison earthquake of 17th June, 1929, which as regards loss of life and destruction of property is the most severe ever recorded in New Zealand.

The Wellington earthquake of 23rd January, 1855, received a full notice in Sir Charles Lyell's classic work “The Principles of Geology,” and probably largely on that account the attention of the scientific world was attracted to this feature of the natural phenomena of New Zealand. But since that earthquake, during which the level of the land in the neighbourhood of Wellington Harbour was raised about 5 ft., there has been no shock in the New Zealand region proper which has at all approached the destructive phase.^* Indeed, of about 2,500 earthquakes recorded as having origins in or near New Zealand, that of 1848 is the only other earthquake comparable in intensity to that of 1855^*; and the average intensity of all the earthquakes thus recorded is between III and IV on the Rossi-Forel scale—or, in other words, just sufficient to make pictures hung on walls move a little, and to cause doors and windows to creak or rattle slightly. In about twenty instances the force has been sufficient near the origin to overturn some chimneys (for the most part badly constructed ones), and in a very few buildings to crack walls or ceilings of faulty design. In about fifty other earthquakes such phenomena have been noted as the stopping of clocks, without any damage. The great majority of shocks, have passed unperceived by the ordinary observer, and have been recorded only by means of instruments.

* The earthquake of 17th June, 1929, was more destructive than that of 1855.

In New Zealand many great faults and fault-zones have been traced for long distances on geological and topographical evidence, but of these a few only have been active since European occupation. A notable zone extends north-east through the centre of the North Island from Mount Ruapehu to White Island. South of Ruapehu it has not been definitely traced on the surface, although from the positions of the foci of the groups of earthquakes it probably extends past Wanganui, across Cook Strait, and along the south-east shore of Tasman Bay to the South Island. The volcanic phenomena of the Rotorua-Taupo region, together with the recent remarkable earthquakes at Taupo, indicate that earth-stresses are still accumulating along this great fracture-zone.

Another important fault-system extends through North Canterbury, Marlborough, East Wellington, and Hawke's Bay. Its general course is north-east, parallel with the Taupo belt and the principal mountain-ranges of New Zealand. The Marlborough valleys, as well as the lowlands of the Hutt and Wairarapa districts, are directly controlled by fractures of this great system. In addition to many less severe shocks, the Wellington earthquake of 1855 was due to displacement along one of the major fissures. The southern end of the known active portion of the great fracture-belt is crossed by several important east-and-west faults; and the Hanmer earthquake of 1888 was due to the reopening of a fault extending in this direction along the upper valley of the Waiau-ua River.

The edge of the submarine plateau of which' New Zealand is the most elevated portion lies about two hundred miles east of the North Island. Thence it extends north-eastward for hundreds of miles in a nearly straight line. The sea-floor to the east is several thousand feet lower, and the precipitous edge of the plateau probably is the scarp of a great fracture-belt. The most active seismic region of New Zealand is at or near the southern end of this submarine scarp, and here have originated several severe earthquakes.

Another submarine earthquake-zone, presumably also a fracture-zone, extends parallel with and some fifty miles from the east coast of the South Island, from opposite Christchurch to south-east of Dunedin. Numerous unimportant earthquakes have originated from this zone.

Another group of earthquake-foci occurs off the west coast of the North Island, opposite Raglan and Kawhia. This, like the other seismic zones, extends in a northeasterly direction parallel with the main mountain-axis of the Dominion. Pew earthquakes have been recorded from this locality, the principal being in 1882 and 1891.

The origins of the New Zealand seismic region will be seen to arrange themselves in groups as follows:—

Group I. —Earthquakes felt most strongly on south-east coast of North Island; the origins form a strip 180 miles from the coast, parallel to the axis of New Zealand, and to axis of folding of older rocks in Hawke's Bay. Chief shocks: 17th August, 1868: 7th March, 1890; 23rd and 29th July, 1904; 9th August, 1904 (intensity IX on R.-F. scale); 8th September, 1904; prob. 23rd February, 1863 (IX, R.-F.); &c.

According to the late Captain F. W. Hutton, F.R.S., the geological evidence shows that New Zealand rose considerably in the older Pliocene period, and was then probably joined to the Chatham Islands. At a later period subsidence occurred, followed again by elevation in the Pleistocene period, with oscillations of level since. The seismic origins of this group are at the foot of a sloping submarine plateau, about two hundred miles wide, which culminates to the east-south-east in the Chatham Islands. This elevation is separated from the New Zealand coast by a trough from 1,000 to 2,000 fathoms in depth, which is widest and deepest between these origins and the mainland.

Group II. —(a) South-east of Otago Peninsula. Shocks: 20th November, 1872, &c.

(b) A strip south-east of Oamaru. Shocks: February, 1876; April, 1876; &c.

(c) Many short and jerky, but generally harmless, quakes felt in Christchurch, Banks Peninsula, and mid-Canterbury. Chief shocks: 31st August, 1870; 27th December, 1888 (VII, R.-F.); &c. Focus of 1888 shock, sixteen miles long, from west-south-west to east-north-east, twenty-four to twenty-five miles below surface, being the deepest ascertained origin in the New Zealand region.

These origins form a line parallel to the general axis of the land. It is possible that the loading of the sea-floor by the detritus brought down by the rivers of Canterbury and Otago is a contributing cause of the earthquakes of this group.

Group III. —Wellington earthquakes of January, 1855, and Cheviot earthquakes of 16th November, 1901, and of 25th December, 1922 (VIII, R.-F.).

The origin of the earthquake of 1855 was probably the fault that forms the eastern boundary of the Rimutaka Range and the western boundary of the Wairarapa Valley.

The origin of the Cheviot earthquake of 1901 was probably in or near the southern continuation of this fault.

The great earthquakes of October, 1848, probably came from the same region as those of January, 1855. The chief shocks of both series did extensive damage to property, and caused the formation of large rifts in the earth's surface.

Group IV. —(a) Region about twenty-five to thirty miles in length, and ten miles or less in width, running nearly north-north-east from middle of Lake Sumner, about twenty miles below the surface, whence proceed most of the severer shocks felt from Christchurch to the Amuri, and a large number of minor shocks. Chief earthquakes: 1st February, 1868; 27th August to 1st September, 1871; 14th September and 21st October, 1878; 11th April, 1884; 5th December, 1881 (VIII, R.-F.), when Christchurch Cathedral spire was slightly injured; 1st September, 1888 (IX, R.-F.), when upper part of same spire fell, and still more severe damage was done in the Amuri district.

(b) A small shallow origin not more than five to ten miles below the surface, a few miles south of Nelson. Earthquake: 12th February, 1893 (VIII to IX, R.-F.); chimneys thrown down and buildings injured.

(c) Origin in Cook Strait, north-north-east of Stephen Island, about ten miles wide, and apparently traceable with few interruptions nearly to mouth of Wanganui River; depth, fifteen miles or more. More than half the earthquakes recorded in New Zealand belong to this region; earthquake of 8th December, 1897 (VIII to IX, R.-F.), and other severer ones came from south-south-west end. Probably the first recorded New Zealand earthquake, felt by Captain Furneaux on the 11th May, 1773, belonged to this region.

(d) Taupo Earthquakes.—During June and July, 1922, earthquakes were almost continuous in the Taupo district. The shocks reached intensity VIII on the Rossi-Forel scale, and then gradually subsided. Conditions were practically normal by the end of the year. The shocks were restricted to a small area of country, and were felt most strongly at Taupo, Wairakei, and Oruanui. The disturbances were accompanied by loud rumblings. No effect appears to have been produced on the thermal activities of the region. Considerable subsidence was reported along the north side of Lake Taupo in a general north-easterly direction.

Former smart shocks in this region were reported in September-October, 1897.

(e) Morrinsville Earthquakes.—During November and December, 1926, earthquakes similar to the Taupo ones of 1922 were felt in and around Morrinsville. The earthquakes were apparently of shallow origin, and were probably caused by a movement along a fault trending west-north-west on the eastern side of the Pakaroa Range. The average intensity of the shocks was about IV, although one shock reached VIII on the Rossi-Forel scale. As in the case of the Taupo earthquakes, there was no evidence of any variation in the thermal activities of the district.

(f) An origin near Mount Tarawera, with a large number of moderate or slight shocks, most, but not all, volcanic and local in character—e.g., those of September, 1866, and those of June, 1886, which accompanied and followed the well-known eruption of Mount Tarawera.

These origins of Group IV are nearly in a straight line on the map; on or near the same line are the origins of earthquakes felt in the Southern Lakes District (15th December, 1883, &c.), the volcanoes Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe, Tongariro, Tarawera, and White Island. It is evident that this line, which, like the rest, is parallel or nearly so to the general axis, is a line of weakness or of unstable equilibrium. Hence the adjusting movements that have caused earthquakes may have from time to time relieved the pressure of the rocks that restrained overheated steam and other volcanic agents from bursting out, and so may have led to volcanic eruptions; just as the series of earthquakes in Guatemala and in the Caribbean Sea in April and May, 1902, were the signs of movements in the great folds of that part of the earth's crust, in the course of which, the pressure in the Antillean Ridge being relieved, the volcanic forces below Mount Pelée in Martinique, and Mount Souffrière in St. Vincent, caused the disastrous eruptions of that year.

Group V. —Off the west coast of the North Island near Raglan and Kawhia. Chief shock: 24th June, 1891 (VII to VIII, R.-F.). The line joining this origin to that of the earthquake of 1st February, 1882, is parallel to the other lines of origin (Groups I to IV); but we have no data to establish any connection between them.

REPORTS OF NEW ZEALAND EARTHQUAKES.

Since 1888 there has been established in New Zealand a system of observing local earthquakes at selected telegraph-stations—about eighty in number—distributed throughout the extent of the Dominion.

Whenever a shock occurs and is felt by an officer in charge of one of these stations he fills up a form giving the New Zealand mean time of the beginning of the shock, its apparent duration and direction, and the principal effects observed by him. Some of the officers exhibit considerable care and skill in making up these returns, and the data have been used to determine principal origins of earthquakes within the New Zealand region.

Four seismographs, all with photographic registration, are installed in New Zealand: two are Milne horizontal pendulums, and two the new Milne-Shaw horizontal pendulums. One Milne and two Milne-Shaw seismographs are installed at the Dominion Observatory. Wellington, with their booms placed at right angles; and the other Milne seismograph is installed at the Magnetic Observatory, Christchurch.

A set of Wiechert seismographs with mechanical registration is installed at the Observatory at Apia, Samoa. By the courtesy of the Administrator copies of the records are forwarded to the Dominion Observatory.

One twin-boom Milne seismograph is installed at Suva, Fiji, and by the courtesy of the Government of Fiji the seismograms are forwarded to the Dominion Observatory. The Fiji records are useful in supplementing those of New Zealand.

The records of the New Zealand stations are sent to the General Secretary of the Seismological Committee of the British Association, to the Station Centrale Sismologique, Strasbourg, France, and to the principal observatories of the world, and thus form part of the general system of earthquake-observation being conducted throughout the world since 1890.

DEATHS DUE TO EARTHQUAKES IN NEW ZEALAND.

* Sixteen people were killed by the Murchison earthquake of 1929.

Deaths due to earthquakes in New Zealand are fortunately very few. In the eighty years between 1848 and 1928 only seven were recorded^*. The shock of October, 1848, threw down a wall in Wellington, and three people were killed. On the 24th January, 1855, a death occurred at Wellington recorded as “accidental death from the falling of a chimney.” The large earthquake took place during the night of the 23rd January, 1855. On the 16th November, 1901, a child was killed by the Cheviot earthquake. On the 12th April, 1913, a Maori was killed at Masterton by material falling from the post-office, due to an earthquake. On the 7th October, 1914, a shepherd was killed by the Gisborne earthquake.

CLIMATE.

The following article on the climate of New Zealand has been prepared by Dr. E. Kidson, M.A., D.Sc., Director of Meteorological Services:—

The problem of the classification of the climate of a country may be regarded from various aspects. First of all, there is its solar climate, which depends on the amount of heat it receives from the sun and the variations of this amount with the seasons, and which is determined solely by the latitude of the country. New Zealand lies wholly within the Temperate Zone, and on the equatorial, or warmer, side of it. The amount of heat received from the sun is therefore never excessive even in the far north, while even in the middle of winter and in the southernmost portions, on the other hand, the sun rises high enough to give considerable warmth during the day. The difference in length between the longest and the shortest days in the year is about four and two-thirds hours in the northernmost and seven and one-third hours in the southernmost extremity of the Dominion. The day has never so short a length as eight hours.

If the surface of the globe were homogeneous—if, for instance, it were all ocean —all places on the same parallel would have the same climate, and there would be no need for any other classification than according to solar climate. Instead of this, however, we have a varying surface, some of it being land and some water, while the land surface varies in nature and in elevation. Solar radiation has very varying effects on these different types of surface, and they in turn react in different ways on the atmosphere. Based on these physical conditions, then, we have two main types of climate—viz., continental and marine. A marine climate is controlled to a large extent by the waters of the surrounding ocean areas, and, since New Zealand nowhere has any great breadth, its climate is of the marine type. The distinctive feature of such a climate is its sluggishness as regards temperature changes when compared with a continental one. When sunshine falls on a land surface most of it is absorbed in a very shallow layer and converted into heat. The surface, therefore, tends to become very hot. Water, on the other hand, reflects a large portion of the sun's heat back through the atmosphere, whence it is lost. Such radiation as is absorbed penetrates to a considerable depth, so that the rise of temperature at the surface is slight. Even then a good deal of the heat thus accumulated is expended in evaporating water. Over the ocean, therefore, there is very little difference in temperature between the coldest part of the day, just before sunrise, and the hottest, in the early afternoon. Over the land the difference is considerable, and increases, generally speaking, with the distance from the shore. Similarly, in a marine climate the difference between summer and winter is relatively small. Another effect of the sluggishness in temperature changes is that the seasons lag behind the movement of the sun. The spring is cold, although the days are getting longer and the sun higher and stronger. It is common knowledge in New Zealand that we are liable to cold snaps practically up to Christmas. Frosts damaging to vegetation are not rare in November, and snow storms occasionally affect comparatively low-lying country even later in the year. On the other hand, the autumn is warm, and mild temperatures may be experienced well into April. A marine climate is generally characterized by high average rainfall, its atmosphere being abundantly charged with moisture evaporated from the sea.

Generally speaking, then, the climate of New Zealand is equable, with an abundant precipitation, which is spread fairly uniformly over the different months. Not only is this so, but the difference in climate between the northern and southern extremities is comparatively slight in view of the fact that the Dominion covers a range of nearly 13 degrees, or about 900 miles, in latitude. The mean temperature at sea-level falls from about 62° F. in the far north to about 50° F. in the far south.

Another aspect from which there is an increasing tendency for geographers and meteorologists to classify climates is that of the vegetation produced by the soil. There are many plants which are able to live only within certain definite climatic limits, and others require certain restricted conditions to produce satisfactory growth. Since man depends so much for his livelihood on the products of the soil, the classification of climates on this basis is a logical and very useful one. From this point of view New Zealand has a warm-temperate and humid climate. The rainfall is almost everywhere sufficient for plant requirements all the year round. The temperature of 50° F. is an important one from the biological point of view, since many plants of the temperate region do not grow well unless the air rises above this temperature for considerable periods. Nowhere in New Zealand are there more than five months with a temperature lower than 50° F. In the Auckland Peninsula and in coastal places a little farther south, mean temperatures do not fall below 50° F. in any month. As regards the settled portions of the Dominion, it is only in the elevated regions of Otago and Southland that the mean temperature falls slightly below 40° F. in some of the coldest months, or that the mean minimum for any month falls below freezing-point; consequently the ground is nowhere continuously frozen for long periods. Owing to these mild temperatures, there is some growth of herbage practically the whole year round. Vegetation has no long period of rest, and deciduous trees are practically unknown.

Since temperatures are everywhere warm enough to promote growth and nowhere excessively hot (the mean maximum for any month probably nowhere reaches as high as 80° F. or the mean temperature as high as 70° F.), there is comparatively little difference between the North and South as regards the nature of the things grown. Grapes, for instance, can be grown successfully out-of-doors in parts of all provinces of the Dominion. Certainly, in the North such semitropical products as citrus fruits can be grown successfully, whereas in the South this is not possible.

As regards human occupation, New Zealand lies in the zone of the Southern Hemisphere which is subject at all times of year to frequent moving barometric depressions, with all their accompanying weather changes. Some experts consider this an important condition for the development of civilization in its highest form. Cloudiness is nowhere excessive, so that there is plenty of sunshine, and a considerable range between day and night temperatures, which again tends to produce bracing conditions. Indeed, there can be few countries so admirably adapted for the production of a high yield from the soil and the maintenance of a high standard of comfort and civilization as New Zealand.

The Dominion is in the region of prevailing westerly winds. North of about New Plymouth and Napier these westerlies are not, in the main, strong, and, in fact, in summer there is a prevalence of south-easterlies. Though these can scarcely be classed as trade winds, even in the far north, they are to a large extent part of the same system. South from the 39th parallel of latitude the westerlies prevail, and although, in the free air at least, their mean strength increases the farther south we go, they are of considerable average force even in Taranaki and Hawke's Bay.

We next have to consider the feature that exercises the most potent influence in modifying climate in New Zealand—that is, its mountain ranges. Such variations of climate as are encountered in the different parts of the Dominion are produced mainly by these ranges. Their effect is closely associated with the prevalence of westerly winds. A range of mountains presents an obstacle to a wind which meets it. To force the air up and over it requires a great deal of energy. Wherever possible the wind will flow round rather than over. The most notable instances of this effect in New Zealand are found in the Cook and Foveaux Straits regions. Air in a westerly wind is forced round and over the lower portions of the northern part of the South Island into Cook Strait. Some of the air thus entering the strait possibly comes from as far south as Westport when the general wind is from due west. At the same time, the ranges in the North Island deflect into a southerly direction all winds which strike south of Cape Egmont. Some of the air is forced through the comparatively low gap in the neighbourhood of the Manawatu Gorge, while the greater part goes on down to Cook Strait. Similarly, in the south-west corner of the Dominion, a westerly wind is deflected into a north-westerly and flows round Puysegur Point into Foveaux Strait. A south-westerly wind is deflected into a westerly through the strait. The two regions mentioned are ones through which winds from a considerable area are forced to converge, and the consequence is that they are subject to an unusual proportion of strong winds. Through such channels it is practically only possible for winds to have one of two directions—i.e., they must blow through the straits from one direction or the other. Owing to the great preponderance of winds from a westerly quarter, the prevailing direction in Cook Strait is from the north-west. This wind may correspond with any direction between north-west and south-west in the open ocean waters where winds are unimpeded. More rarely there are strong winds from an easterly direction, which produce south-easterlies in the Strait. These may correspond with any wind between north-east and south over the open waters to the east. In the South the predominance of westerlies is greater than at Wellington, but there are at times strong easterlies through Foveaux Strait. Though not on the same scale, effects of a similar kind are noticeable in other parts. Round East Cape, for instance, there is a tendency for winds to be deflected along the coast-line, and easterly winds are likely to be specially strong there. At Nelson there is a different effect, and westerly winds tend to be deflected down Tasman Bay as south-westerlies, but at the head of the bay meet the winds which have come round Cape Farewell and are checked. If the general wind, therefore, is between north-west and west-south-west about, the winds are usually light at Nelson.

When the general wind is almost due south-west, or practically parallel to the main range in both Islands, many parts of the Dominion are protected. Strong south-westerly winds may be blowing and wet weather prevail in the southern parts of Otago and Southland, and also in Taranaki and the northern parts of the Auckland Provincial District, while much of the rest of the country, including the inland portions of Otago, Canterbury, and Marlborough, the east coast of the North Island, and especially Cook Strait, experience unusually fine yet bracing weather and comparatively little wind. A slight deviation of this wind to one side or the other means bringing unsettled weather to the west coast of the South Island or to the eastern districts from East Cape southwards.

The checking of the westerly winds by the Southern Alps results in a large proportion of variable winds on the west coast of the South Island.

Although it is true that wind will flow round an obstacle in preference to climbing over it, yet when a broad belt of winds meets a mountain barrier lying across its path much of the air must be forced over the range. This happens when the prevailing winds, which are from between north-west and west, strike the Southern Alps, and, to a less extent, the ranges of the North Island. The distribution of rainfall over New Zealand is greatly influenced by this fact, as can be seen from the accompanying rainfall map. Most of our rain is produced from moisture carried from warmer latitudes by north-westerly winds. The rain falls either in the north-westerlies or when the latter are forced up by colder south-westerly winds. When the westerly or north-westerly winds are driven over the mountain ranges they rise into regions in which the air pressure is much reduced. They are, in consequence, cooled. The colder the air is, the less uncondensed water vapour can it contain. Moisture is therefore condensed, and falls as rain on the mountain tops and their western slopes. Generally speaking, therefore, districts with a westerly aspect have the heaviest rainfall. This is especially noticeable in the South Island, where the west coast opposite the Southern Alps has an excessive rainfall, while in their lee we have the driest areas in New Zealand, that in Central Otago being the most notable. Round Mount Egmont is another area of heavy precipitation. The East Cape district has a high rainfall because it gets a good deal of the northwesterly rain, and is also subject to very heavy falls in easterly winds which occur in connection with cyclones in the neighbourhood of the North Island.

MEAN ANNUAL RAINFALL.

When the westerly winds blow over the mountains they sometimes shoot down them again on the opposite side. Falling into levels where the pressure is higher, they are heated, just as the air compressed in a bicycle pump is heated and warms the pump. Having lost a good deal of their moisture, they are very dry, and the energy gained by falling down the mountain slopes adds to their speed. We therefore have the gusty, hot, dry wind which is characteristic of mountain regions and is called the “Fohn” wind. The Canterbury Plains, especially the portions near the foothills of the Alps, form one of the regions of the world where the Föhn effect is most notably developed. The characteristics of the north-west wind are well known to the dwellers in those parts. During the Föhn wind a band of clear sky is produced on the leeward side of the mountains, while farther away cloud often forms again at a considerable height. This gives the characteristic appearance of the “Föhn arch.” Though most strongly developed in Canterbury, Föhn winds are experienced also in Otago, parts of Marlborough, and from the Wairarapa to Hawke's Bay.

Föhn winds', owing to their high temperature and to the fact that relatively high pressure tends to be produced in them on the west side of the ranges and relatively low on the east side, are often underrun by east or north-east winds on the east coast. These are especially prevalent in Canterbury, and the north-easter is a persistent and humid wind of an unpleasant type.

The shelter given from the ocean winds, and the clear dry atmosphere produced by the mountains, causes a nearer approach to continental conditions in their lee than in other parts of the country. The greatest extremes of temperatures are found in these regions.

In addition to the climatic effects above described, there are others produced by mountains and due directly to the elevation. Other things being equal, the amount of precipitation increases with elevation until about 5,000 ft. or 6,000 ft. is reached. Higher than that, it falls off again owing to the fact that the cold air above those levels is able to hold little moisture. Again, the greater the height above mean sea-level, the lower the mean temperature, the difference being about 3.5° F. per 1,000 ft. There are no closely settled areas in New Zealand sufficiently high for the elevation to produce any very marked influence on the climate. The effect is to some extent counterbalanced, too, in most places by the facts (1) that the sloping ground prevents the accumulation of cold air on the surface, so that night temperatures are less extreme than they might otherwise have been, and (2) that the atmosphere is more transparent, owing to the reduced amount of vapour it contains and the absence of dust, so that the sun seems to give more heat.

Above about 5,000 ft. snow frequently lies for long periods and the climate is severe. Forest trees become more and more stunted as this height is approached, and finally are unable to survive. Beyond it we have a mountain climate and characteristically alpine flora. The latter is adapted for resistance to drought, although actually the rainfall is usually heavy. The adaptation is necessary because of the rapid drainage, the intense heat produced on still clear days by the sun's rays, and the cutting off of water supplies from the roots for long periods owing to the freezing of the ground. Even in these high regions, however, conditions are not extreme. It is probably very rarely indeed that the temperature falls as low as 0° F., except perhaps for short intervals and in sheltered basins. The mountain region of the Southern Alps is, nevertheless, of great interest on account of its large' and characteristic glaciers. The Franz Josef Glacier is especially famous, owing to the fact that it descends almost to sea-level, although the latitude is comparatively' low. No doubt the very heavy rainfall on the mountains in this district and the rapid fall to sea-level are chiefly responsible for this effect.

The tables which follow, giving average values of various meteorological quantities for a number of typical stations, will serve to indicate the variation of climate in the different parts of New Zealand.

For comparisons with New Zealand conditions, data are given for Kew Observatory, near London, and for Aberdeen. It will be seen that even at Kew the mean temperature is lower than at Queenstown or Invercargill, while at Aberdeen the mean maximum is less than 2° F. higher than the mean temperature at these stations. Again, the number of days with rain is much higher at the British stations than in New Zealand for rainfall totals of corresponding amount. The Dominion also has a much larger average amount of bright sunshine. These advantages of increased warmth and sunshine, combined with an abundant supply of water, account for the wonderful fertility of our soil.

MONTHLY MEANS OF TEMPERATURE, ETC.

Auckland.

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall for 74 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 74 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	73.6	59.0	66.5	2.67	10.4	220
February	74.1	62.6	67.0	3.05	9.7	187
March	71.9	57.7	64.9	3.02	11.2	173
April	67.7	54.6	61.2	3.43	13.9	142
May	62.6	50.7	56.8	4.63	18.5	128
June	59.1	47.8	53.5	4.92	19.4	114
July	57.5	46.0	51.7	4.95	20.8	121
August	58.1	46.1	52.2	4.22	19.4	150
September	60.7	48.5	54.6	3.64	17.5	149
October	63.5	50.9	57.2	3.69	16.5	169
November	66.9	53.5	60.3	3.32	16.9	192
December	70.8	56.9	63.9	2.90	11.6	209
Year	65.5	52.9	59.1	44.44	184.8	1,954

Tauranga.

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall for 24 Years.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 24 Years.
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.
January	73.8	54.9	64.3	4.34	10.4
February	74.4	54.9	64.6	3.58	9.0
March	72.3	52.2	62.2	4.16	11.0
April	67.8	48.1	57.9	5.08	11.1
May	62.8	44.6	53.7	5.16	13.2
June	59.1	41.1	50.1	5.42	13.2
July	58.0	40.1	49.0	4.86	14.8
August	58.9	40.3	49.6	4.08	13.7
September	62.3	43.4	52.8	4.41	13.4
October	65.4	47.3	56.3	5.25	14.3
November	68.1	49.1	58.6	3.29	11.7
December	71.7	51.4	61.5	3.47	11.1
Year	66.2	47.3	56.7	53.10	146.9

Rotorua.

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall for 40 Years.		Bright Sunshine
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 40 Years.		Bright Sunshine
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	75.1	52.4	63.7	4.36	10.0	232
February	74.9	52.6	63.6	3.76	8.7	192
March	71.7	49.6	60.6	3.51	9.7	184
April	66.1	45.4	55.7	4.35	10.8	153
May	60.4	40.9	50.6	5.72	12.7	135
June	55.9	38.5	47.1	5.24	13.2	116
July	54.5	37.0	45.6	4.88	13.5	127
August	56.3	37.6	46.9	4.95	13.4	141
September	60.0	40.9	50.4	5.16	14.4	151
October	64.0	44.3	54.2	5.25	14.3	175
November	68.4	46.9	57.7	4.10	12.6	216
December	72.8	49.9	61.2	3.83	10.0	222
Year	65.0	44.7	54.8	55.11	143.3	2,044

Napier.

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall for 48 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 48 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	75.5	56.8	66.1	3.14	7.8	259
February	74.3	56.7	65.5	2.89	7.3	211
March	71.3	54.7	63.0	3.26	7.4	216
April	67.2	50.2	58.7	2.87	7.5	195
May	61.5	46.1	53.8	3.73	9.9	154
June	57.9	42.3	50.1	3.54	10.8	150
July	56.4	41.5	48.9	3.87	11.5	147
August	57.8	42.0	49.9	3.56	11.7	183
September	62.2	45.1	53.6	2.16	9.4	216
October	66.3	45.7	57.5	2.29	8.6	229
November	69.7	51.8	60.7	2.48	8.3	245
December	73.1	55.3	64.1	2.32	7.3	267
Year	66.1	49.0	57.7	36.11	107.5	2,472

New Plymouth.

Month.	Dean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall for 50 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 50 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	73.1	55.2	61.4	4.42	12.8	260
February	73.8	55.5	64.6	4.00	10.5	224
March	71.9	54.0	62.9	3.62	12.1	219
April	67.9	50.7	59.3	4.51	14.2	170
May	63.1	47.6	55.3	6.23	18.1	153
June	59.4	44.7	52.0	6.14	17.5	134
July	57.8	43.2	50.5	6.29	18.7	147
August	58.8	42.8	50.8	5.33	18.5	172
September	61.3	45.6	53.4	5.22	17.5	161
October	63.4	48.1	55.7	5.61	18.7	168
November	66.3	50.3	58.3	4.65	16.2	209
December	70.1	53.4	61.7	4.33	14.5	243
Year	65.6	49.3	57.2	60.35	189.3	2,260

Wellington.

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall for 69 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 69 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
	°F.	°F.	°F:	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	69.4	55.7	62.5	3.30	10.5	224
February	69.3	55.8	62.5	3.19	9.0	209
March	66.9	54.2	60.5	3.29	11.2	185
April	62.8	51.2	57.0	3.80	12.9	156
May	58.3	47.2	52.7	4.76	16.6	126
June	54.7	44.2	49.4	4.87	17.3	106
July	53.1	42.3	47.7	5.55	18.1	107
August	54.4	42.8	48.6	4.43	17.0	142
September	57.5	45.7	51.6	3.99	14.9	164
October	60.4	48.4	54.4	4.19	14.2	174
November	63.4	50.5	56.9	3.14	12.9	201
December	66.9	53.9	60.4	3.30	12.1	228
Year	61.4	49.3	55.4	48.11	166.7	2,022

Nelson.

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall for 44 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 44 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	74.9	53.9	64.3	2.85	8.4	267
February	74.2	54.0	64.0	2.73	9.4	235
March	71.0	51.4	61.1	3.09	9.0	204
April	66.2	47.5	56.9	2.90	9.5	194
May	60.0	42.5	51.2	3.13	10.5	165
June	56.1	38.8	47.4	3.64	10.1	151
July	54.6	37.6	46.1	3.41	11.0	153
August	56.5	38.5	47.5	3.02	10.6	195
September	60.6	42.3	51.4	3.72	12.2	200
October	64.7	45.4	55.0	3.61	12.1	212
November	68.6	48.4	58.5	2.95	11.3	246
December	71.9	51.6	61.7	2.72	8.8	260
Year	64.9	46.0	55.4	37.77	122.9	2,482

Hokitika.

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall for 48 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 48 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
	°F.	°F.	°F	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	67.4	53.2	60.3	9.92	12.8	215
February	68.0	53.1	60.6	7.37	11.3	191
March	66.0	51.1	58.5	9.75	14.4	178
April	62.4	47.2	54.7	9.39	15.1	139
May	57.9	42.1	49.9	9.82	15.6	136
June	54.4	38.7	46.4	9.55	15.3	114
July	53.0	36.7	44.8	8.99	16.1	128
August	54.5	38.0	46.3	9.28	16.0	158
September	57.6	42.5	50.0	9.32	16.8	144
October	59.6	45.7	52.7	11.81	19.0	160
November	61.7	48.1	54.9	10.78	17.6	173
December	65.3	51.4	58.4	10.62	16.4	208
Year	60.7	45.7	53.1	116.60	186.4	1,944

Hanmer.

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall for 21 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 21 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	71.9	49.5	60.7	3.74	11.0	207
February	71.2	48.9	59.9	3.04	8.5	191
March	67.7	46.8	57.2	2.89	9.7	191
April	62.9	41.7	52.3	2.99	10.4	159
May	55.4	36.2	45.7	4.51	11.6	125
June	50.7	32.0	41.4	3.11	11.5	109
July	49.1	32.0	40.2	4.59	11.7	110
August	51.7	32.6	42.2	2.52	10.2	146
September	57.7	37.7	47.7	4.10	10.6	172
October	62.1	41.9	52.0	3.31	12.0	179
November	64.9	43.8	54.3	2.93	10.5	199
December	69.1	47.0	58.2	3.28	9.3	216
Year	61.2	40.8	51.0	41.01	127.0	2,004

Lincoln.

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall for 46 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 46 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	71.9	51.3	61.6	2.23	9.4	212
February	71.3	51.7	61.5	1.66	7.7	201
March	68.4	49.0	58.7	2.27	10.0	182
April	63.6	44.3	54.0	1.98	9.4	159
May	57.4	39.8	48.5	2.31	11.2	136
June	52.9	36.3	44.6	2.43	11.7	118
July	51.1	35.2	43.1	2.71	13.0	117
August	53.5	36.5	45.0	2.03	11.2	153
September	58.4	40.3	49.4	1.91	9.7	178
October	63.2	43.9	53.6	1.72	9.3	204
November	66.2	46.2	56.2	1.97	10.4	218
December	70.1	49.3	59.7	2.12	10.0	209
Year	62.3	43.7	53.0	25.34	123.0	2,087

Dunedin.

Month.	Mean Temperatures for 59 Years.			Mean Rainfall for 70 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 70 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	66.3	49.6	58.0	3.34	14.2	184
February	65.8	49.5	57.7	2.75	11.2	156
March	63.0	47.9	55.4	2.96	13.0	144
April	58.7	44.8	51.7	2.78	12.8	120
May	53.2	41.1	47.1	3.26	13.6	99
June	49.4	38.4	43.8	3.15	12.8	93
July	47.7	37.1	42.4	2.99	12.9	97
August	50.2	37.9	44.0	3.14	12.8	110
September	55.0	40.9	47.9	2.75	12.8	142
October	59.2	42.9	51.0	3.13	14.3	157
November	61.6	45.0	53.3	3.28	14.2	164
December	64.6	48.0	56.3	3.53	14.5	175
Year	57.9	43.6	50.7	37.06	159.1	1,641

Queenstown.

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall for 36 Years.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 36 Years.
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.
January	70.4	49.9	60.1	2.72	8.8
February	70.2	49.6	59.9	1.98	5.9
March	66.4	47.9	57.1	2.60	7.6
April	59.1	43.8	51.5	3.00	8.0
May	51.8	38.6	45.2	2.63	7.6
June	45.9	33.7	39.7	2.46	6.8
July	43.3	31.8	37.5	2.04	6.1
August	47.3	33.8	40.6	1.93	6.5
September	54.3	38.7	46.5	2.47	7.7
October	59.8	42.1	50.9	3.48	9.3
November	63.2	44.5	53.8	2.74	8.7
December	68.0	49.2	58.6	2.59	8.2
Year	58.3	42.0	50.1	30.64	91.2

Invercargill.

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall for 33 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall for 33 Years.		Bright Sunshine.
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	66.5	48.0	57.2	3.97	15.4	199
February	66.1	47.4	56.8	2.97	12.3	151
March	63.8	45.7	54.7	3.85	14.9	116
April	59.2	42.4	50.8	4.34	16.9	111
May	53.7	37.7	45.8	4.49	17.7	89
June	49.8	35.4	42.7	3.59	16.2	89
July	48.8	33.9	41.4	3.24	15.8	89
August	52.0	35.5	43.8	3.38	15.2	121
September	57.0	39.0	48.1	3.18	14.2	129
October	60.0	42.5	51.3	4.44	17.2	145
November	61.6	43.9	52.8	4.39	18.0	165
December	64.1	46.1	55.2	4.20	16.3	164
Year	58.6	41.5	50.0	46.04	190.1	1,568

Kew Observatory. (Richmond, Surrey, England.)

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall.		Bright Sunshine.
	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall.		Bright Sunshine.
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	43.1	34.6	38.9	1.76	16	43
February	45.0	35.1	40.1	1.54	13	60
March	48.7	36.0	42.4	1.69	14	105
April	55.0	39.5	47.3	1.45	13	157
May	61.7	45.0	53.4	1.72	12	201
June	67.6	50.8	59.2	2.15	12	197
July	71.0	54.3	62.7	2.17	12	201
August	69.7	53.5	61.6	2.24	13	187
September	64.9	49.3	57.1	1.87	12	145
October	56.2	43.5	49.9	2.70	17	92
November	49.1	38.8	44.0	2.22	16	52
December	44.7	35.9	40.3	2.29	17	37
Year	56.4	43.0	49.7	23.80	167	1,477

Aberdeen. (Scotland.)

Month.	Mean Temperatures.			Mean Rainfall.		Bright Sunshine.
Month.	Maximum.	Minimum.	Mean.	Mean Rainfall.		Bright Sunshine.
	°F.	°F.	°F.	Inches.	Days.	Hours.
January	42.3	33.4	37.9	2.18	18	48
February	43.2	33.4	38.3	2.05	17	73
March	45.7	34.4	40.1	2.41	20	117
April	49.8	37.6	43.7	1.87	17	158
May	54.5	41.8	48.2	2.33	17	187
June	59.9	47.0	53.5	1.71	15	184
July	62.8	50.3	56.6	2.81	17	159
August	62.4	49.9	56.2	2.74	18	150
September	59.2	46.7	53.0	2.22	17	124
October	52.8	41.7	47.3	3.00	20	95
November	46.8	37.4	42.1	2.95	19	55
December	42.9	34.2	38.6	3.22	19	36
Year	51.9	40.7	46.3	29.49	214	1,386

SUMMARY OF THE WEATHER FOR 1928.

January.—Abnormally dry conditions were experienced throughout the Dominion. The month was the driest January on record in southern Auckland, Taranaki, and parts of the Manawatu, Nelson, and Marlborough districts. Anticyclonic conditions prevailed, and there were no storms of note.

February.—Dry and warm conditions continued until about the end of the third week. Thereafter the greater part of the country received good rains, but conditions were still very dry in Nelson and Marlborough.

March.—Droughty conditions were again the rule, especially in Taranaki, western Wellington, and Nelson. North Auckland and Hawke's Bay had rainfalls above normal.

April.—Heavy, warm rains at Easter time were of great benefit to the central provinces, the drought being relieved in most parts. Heavy general rains fell also towards the end of the month. Severe southerly gales were experienced on the 30th, and damage, though of a minor nature, was widespread. Frosts produced deleterious effects on small crops in the South Island on the 5th and the 25th.

May.—Though mild conditions continued, the month was a wet one and rather stormy. High floods caused damage in Kaitaia and the surrounding districts. These were associated with a cyclone which crossed the South Island on the 14th.

June.—Temperatures were mainly below normal, and a prevalence of southerly winds emphasized the wintry character of the month. Rainfall was below normal in most districts.

July.—Except in the Auckland Province, remarkably mild and sunny weather was experienced. Heavy floods occurred in the Waikato and Waihou Rivers as a result of rains connected with a cyclone which crossed the Auckland Peninsula between the 22nd and the 25th. In parts of the Waihou watershed record levels were reached. In Canterbury, Westland, the Wairarapa, and parts of Hawke's Bay, the rainfall was much below normal.

August.—In the parts of Auckland which had experienced a very wet July, August proved a dry month. In most other districts there were good rains. Temperatures were uniform, and the condition of the country at the end of the month was good. A heavy southerly gale on the 15th did damage on the east coast. The most serious was to the Wellington-Petone Railway, where a high tide coincided with the heavy seas. Heavy snowfalls occurred on the 30th. reaching down to the low levels in parts of Otago and Canterbury.

September.—For the first time during the year, stormy weather of the westerly type was the rule. From the 7th onwards gales, mainly from the north west or west, were of almost daily occurrence in some part or other of the Dominion. One of these did considerable damage in Hawke's Bay on the 8th. On the 18th a small tornado passed over the northern portion of Hokitika. A very deep and extensive depression passed between the 22nd and the 28th, the barometer at Akaroa falling to 28.62 in. at 9 a.m. on the 24th. Very severe gales accompanied this depression, and damage was done in many places by hail, rain, and wind. A tornado wrecked a number of buildings at St. Helier's Bay, Auckland, on the 25th. Snow fell on the high country on several occasions, and on some of the lower levels of the South Island on the 26th and 27th. Thunder and hail storms were unusually frequent during the month. Except in the eastern districts, rainfall was mainly above the average.

October.—Rainfall was almost everywhere above normal. Stormy westerly weather continued until the 10th. The westerly gales of this and the preceding month attracted especial attention, because it was during this period that the Tasman Sea was crossed by air for the first time. On the 5th and 6th the gales were very violent in South Canterbury, and damage was done to trees and buildings. Thunder and hail storms were again very frequent. Heavy rains in the ranges of the South Island caused the southern lakes to reach very high levels, especially Lake Wakatipu.

November.—Cool and dry weather was the rule, but a remarkably fine and summery spell occurred between the 16th and the 25th. Numerous thunderstorms were again recorded.

December.—Rainfall was very heavy, many places experiencing the wettest December for many years. Temperatures were on the whole mild. A very severe hailstorm played havoc with fruit-crops on a narrow band of country from Eskdale through Greenmeadows to Pakowhai, in the Napier district. Some of the hailstones were as large as 1 1/2 in. in diameter.

Year.—The year was remarkable for two things: first, the absence of westerly winds, and, second, the frequency of cyclonic storms. These two phenomena are, in all probability, closely connected. In no previous year have so many cyclones been recorded in the New Zealand area. Westerly winds were unusually strong and frequent in September and the early part of October, but the opposite was the case during the remainder of the year.

Thunder and hail were recorded with abnormal frequency.

For the Dominion as a whole, rainfall was considerably in excess of the normal. Where such was not the case the deficits were seldom large. An extensive area in the central portion of the North Island recorded more than 10 in. above the average. The principal areas where less than the normal was experienced were in the Bay of Plenty, Taranaki, Manawatu, Westland, and Otago.

For those engaged in agricultural pursuits the year was a very good one.

SUMMARY OF METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS FOR 1928.

The observations were taken at 9 a.m.

Station.	Mean Pressure in Inches reduced to Sea-level and Standard Gravity.	Temperatures in Shade.							Hours of Sunshine.	Rainfall.
		Mean Maximum.	Mean Minimum.	Approx. Mean Temperature.	Extremes for 1928.		Absolute Minimum.	Absolute Minimum.		Total Fall.	Number of Days.
		Mean Maximum.	Mean Minimum.	Approx. Mean Temperature.	Maximum and Month.	Minimum and Month.	Absolute Minimum.	Absolute Minimum.		Total Fall.	Number of Days.
*Incomplete. †For 364 days.
	Inches.	°Fahr	°Fahr	°Fahr	°Fahr	°Fahr	°Fahr	°Fahr		Inches.
Auckland	29.985	66.3	54.7	60.5	85.0 Feb.	38.0 Aug.	91.0	31.9	1979.4	59.27	213
Te Aroha	..	69.9	48.8	59.3	90.0 Feb.	24.0 June	95.0	21.0	..	77.02	143
Waihi	29.908	65.5	49.4	57.4	83.2 Feb.	26.0 July	89.0	21.0	2033.4	127.33	152
Tauranga	..	67.7	46.4	57.0	87.0 Feb.	27.0 June	87.0	24.5	..	61.99	149
Ruakura, Hamilton East	..	68.5	46.7	57.6	92.0 Feb.	25.6 June	92.0	23.6	..	55.67	169
Matamata	..	67.2	46.0	56.6	85.5 Feb.	22.0 June	85.5	22.0	..	63.51	155
Rotorua	..	65.0	47.2	56.1	84.0 Feb.	28.0 June	98.0	21.0	..	69.90	149
Whakarewarewa	..	^*	45.0	^*	^*	23.0 Aug.	..	..	..	67.09	167
New Plymouth	..	64.0	50.5	57.2	83.3 Jan.	31.3 June	93.0	27.0	2370.7	57.25	170
Karioi	..	60.2	38.1	49.1	80.0 Dec.	20.0 June, Aug.	..	..	..	42.95	142
Taihape	..	58.8	41.5	51.6	79.0 Feb.	28.2 June	87.3	25.0	..	37.99	173
Palmerston N.	..	64.4	^*	^*	85.0 Feb.	28.0 June	91.0	23.0	..	34.85	129
Tangimoana	..	65.8	48.3	57.0	85.0 Jan.	29.0 Aug.	85.0	20.5	..	32.20	117
Weraroa	..	64.3	48.3	56.3	84.0 Feb.	30.0 July, Aug., Oct.	87.0	22.5	2054.1	38.23	156
Napier	..	65.0	51.1	58.0	86.5 Feb.	30.0 June	94.0	22.0	2286.9	36.34	158
Hastings	..	65.8	^*	^*	86.0 Feb.	^*	..	..	..	32.22	136
Pahiatua	..	64.1	46.9	55.5	85.0 Feb.	25.0 June	..	..	..	51.32	188
Greytown	..	65.1	46.0	55.5	88.0 Feb.	27.0 June	..	..	..	49.15	153
Masterton	..	64.8	45.5	55.1	88.4 Feb.	26.4 June	95.4	22.4	1942.9	46.23	177
Wellington	29.944	60.7	49.3	55.0	79.2 Feb.	36.1 Aug.	88.0	28.6	2120.1	55.21	146
Nelson	29.949	64.3	48.2	56.2	83.6 Feb.	29.9 June	92.0	20.0	2534.9	41.21	110
Hokitika	30.019	61.9	46.7	54.3	84.5 Mar.	28.5 June	87.0	25.5	1981.6	116.19	206
Hanmer Springs	..	^*	^*	^*	^*	^*	97.0	12.0	1829.9	57.59	153
Balmoral Plantation	..	62.3	42.2	52.2	90.0 Jan.	23.0 July	..	..	..	27.52	116
Christchurch	29.922	61.3	45.3	53.3	92.3 Feb.	28.0 June	95.7	21.3	..	23.77	129
Lincoln	^*	62.7	44.7	53.7	93.0 Feb.	25.5 June	98.4	20.5	1994.4^†	25.77	111
Lake Coleridge	..	65.6	42.0	53.8	88.0 April	20.0 July	93.0	16.0	..	36.18	130
Rudstone, Methven	..	60.2	43.0	51.6	87.0 Feb.	24.0 July	..	..	..	41.02	133
Ashburton	..	^*	42.9	^*	^*	22.0 July	94.0	22.0	1792.9	31.44	137
Timaru	..	61.4	44.4	52.9	94.0 Feb.	25.0 May	99.0	24.0	1882.4	22.59	134
Lake Tekapo	..	58.4	37.0	47.7	81.0 Feb.	12.0 May	86.0	4.0	2370.1	26.84	68
Waimate	..	60.8	43.0	51.9	91.0 Feb.	27.0 May	94.0	23.0	2010.1	24.20	141
Waipiata	..	60.2	39.3	49.7	96.6 Jan.	19.6 July	96.6	12.0	2196.4	19.83	124
Ophir	..	61.3	39.1	50.2	89.3 Jan.	16.6 May	89.3	8.7	..	17.14	101
Dunedin	29.905	60.2	45.0	52.6	83.0 Feb.	29.0 May	94.0	23.0	1700.2	30.15	159
Gore	..	61.5	41.1	51.3	88.0 Feb.	21.0 May	92.0	18.0	1997.1	34.31	173
Invercargill	..	60.1	43.1	51.6	86.0 Feb.	26.0 June	90.0	19.0	^*	43.71	205

THE FLORA AND VEGETATION.

The following article on the flora and vegetation of New Zealand is by Dr. L. Cockayne, C.M.G., Ph.D., F.R.S. (Honorary Botanist, State Forest Service).

For various reasons the plant-life of New Zealand is of peculiar interest, especially its extreme isolation from other land-masses, its flora of diverse origin but with an astonishing number of endemic species and group after group of wild hybrids, the numerous and often peculiar life-forms of its members, its having developed unmolested by grazing and browsing mammals, and its vegetation, so diversified that only a continent extending into the tropics can claim an equality.

The Flora, considering in the first place the Ferns, Fern-allies (lycopods, &c.) and Seed-plants (trees, shrubs, herbaceous plants, grasses, &c.) consists of about 1,848 species—including under this term a good many well-marked varieties—of which 148 are ferns, 19 fern-allies, 20 conifers (only 1 with a cone in the usual sense), 426 monocotyledons (grasses, sedges, liliaceous plants, orchids, &c.), and 1,235 dicotyledons (mostly trees, shrubs, herbaceous and semi-woody plants), and they belong to 109 families (groups of related genera) and 382 genera (groups of related species). Nearly 79 per cent. of this flora is found wild in no other land (endemic), and the remaining 392 species are chiefly Australian (236), and the balance subantarctic South American (58), Cosmopolitan in a narrow sense (most also Australian), Norfolk Island, Lord Howe Island, and Polynesian; while a good many of the families and genera are Malayan, which tropical element found its way to New Zealand during a great extension of its area northwards in the early Tertiary period. The high endemism of the flora is not confined to the species, for there are 39 purely New Zealand genera, some of which are only very distantly related to genera elsewhere—e.g., Tupeia, Dactylanthus, Pachycladon, Ixerba, Carpodetus, Myosotidium, Teucridium, and Alseuosmia. The specially large families and genera, together with the number of species each contains, are as follows: Families—Compositae (daisy family), 258; Filices (ferns), 148; Cyperaceae (sedge family), 133; Gramineae (grass family), 131; Umbelliferae (carrot family), 89; Orchidaceae (orchids), 71; Ranunculaceae (buttercup family), 61; Rubiaceae (coprosma family), 55; Onagraceae (willowherb family), 45; Epacridaceae (Australian - heath family), 44; Leguminosae (pea family), 38; Boraginaceae (forget-me-not family), 33. Genera—Hebe (koromikos), 66 at a low estimate; Carex (sedges), 59; Celmisia (mountain-daisies), 56 at least; Coprosma (karamus), 48; Ranunculus (buttercups), 47 at least; Epilobium (willowherbs), 41; Olearia (daisy-trees), 35; Senecio (groundsols, mostly ligneous), 35; Pou (poa grasses), 33; Myosotis (forget-menots), 32; and there are 10 other genera with 20 to 30 species, and 11 with from 13 to 19 species. It is not of necessity the large genera which dominate the landscape, for some of the smallest are of particular moment in this regard—e.g., Arundo (toetoe grass), 2 species; Desmoschoenus (pingao), 1 species, which clothes unstable sandhills in the three main islands and extends to the Chathams; Rhopalostylis (nikau-palm), 2 species; Cordyline (cabbage-trees), 4 species; Phormium (New Zealand flax), 2 species; Nothofagus (southern-beeches), 5 species; Corynocarpus (karaka), 1 species; and Leptospermum (manuka), 4 species.

Besides the species and their varieties, the flora contains, according to recent research, no less than 353 groups of hybrids (some with hundreds of distinct forms) between the species, together with many within the species themselves between their varieties; nor is this all, for there are a few well-marked hybrids between certain genera—e.g., Helichirysum by Ewartia and by Gnaphalium, Hebe by Veronica, Leucogenes X Raovlia (edelweiss X vegetable-sheep), and Nothopanax by Pseudopanax. How widespread in New Zealand is wild hybridism appears from the fact that hybrids are now known to occur in 44 families and 101 genera; and were it not that many species never come into contact there would be still more hybrids, for certain species which never meet in nature, have spontaneously given rise to hybrid progenies when planted side by side in gardens. This new knowledge concerning natural hybridism is already making radical changes in the classification of New Zealand plants, and it may also have a profound bearing on plant classification in general and on theories of evolution.

The ferns, fern-allies, and seed-plants by no means make up the whole New Zealand flora, but in addition hundreds of species have been described of the less highly organized plants (the mosses, liverworts, algae, fungi, &c.), but they certainly do not nearly represent the total number of such.

Coming next to the primary biological groups of which the flora is composed, the following gives the name of each class and the number of species it contains: Trees (including 12 tree-ferns), 182: shrubs, 316; semi-woody plants (including 10 ferns with short trunks), 241; herbaceous plants (including 93 ferns which grow on the ground), 664; grasslike plants, 255; rushlike plants, 49; climbing-plants (mostly ligneous, and including 7 ferns), 51; perching-plants (both ligneous and herbaceous, and including 26 ferns), 45; parasites (mostly ligneous), 17; water-plants (all herbaceous), 28. These biological classes are made up of many life-forms—i.e., the outward forms of plants, and the shape, structure, &c., of their organs—which enable them to occupy definite habitats. In no few instances a plant can modify its form as its habitat changes or if it moves to a different habitat from that to which it is accustomed. The New Zealand flora is particularly rich in such “plastic species,” as they are called. Further, the flora contains quite a number of life-forms rare or wanting in many other floras. Thus there are climbing-plants with extremely long, woody, ropelike stems; shrubs with stiff, wiry, interlaced twigs forming dense masses number about 51, and belong to 16 families and 20 genera; cushion-plants number at least 65, and belong to 21 families and 34 genera, some of them of immense proportions and quite hard, as in the vegetable-sheep (species of Raoulia and Haastia); leafless shrubs, tall or dwarf, with flattened or “round” stems (mostly species of Carmichaelia); the cypress form, the leaves reduced to scales, as seen in various species of Hebe and Helichrysum, but a form to be expected in the podocarps; trees with leaves bunched together on long trunks, as in the liliaceous cabbage-trees (Cordyline) and certain species of the Australian-heath family (Dracophyllum); the tussock form, with some 40 species, belonging to 5 families and 19 genera.

Not the least interesting feature in this matter of life-forms is the presence in the flora of 200 or more seed-plants which for a longer or shorter period have a juvenile form quite distinct from that of the adult; while in about 165 species the plant remains for many years—it may exceed fifty—a juvenile, and in these cases such may blossom and produce seed, the tree juvenile below and adult above—two species, as it were, on the one plant. In some instances so different are juvenile and adult that accomplished botanists have described them as different species. How widespread is the phenomenon stands out clearly from the fact that these 165 species belong to 30 families and 50 genera, and that 51 are trees, 82 shrubs, 19 woody climbing-plants, 10 herbaceous plants, and 3 water-plants; a few ferns exhibit the same peculiarity. Some of the commonest trees come into the above category—e.g., the kahikatea (Podocarpus dacrydioides), the matai (P. spicatus), the kaikomako (Pennantia, corymbosa), the pokaka (Elaeocarpus Hookerianus), the lance-wood (Pseudopanax crassifolium), and others.

Taking the flora as a whole, a large proportion of the species are evergreen; conspicuous flowers are far from common; annuals and plants which die yearly to the ground are rare; water-plants are few in number; turf-making grasses are not abundant; and bulbous plants are almost negligible.

Altitude, on the one hand, and proximity to the coast, on the other, have a profound bearing on the distribution of the species. Thus about 140 species are confined to the coast-line or its immediate vicinity, and 9 families and 35 genera containing 41 species are virtually coastal. Then there are about 560 species which are confined to the lowlands and lower hills, and there are no less than 24 families and 103 genera which are purely lowland. Finally, there is a plentiful high-mountain flora, with about 510 species belonging to 38 families and 87 genera, which never descend to the lowlands, but as compared with the lowland flora the number of genera (only 16) confined to the high-mountain belt is trifling.

Latitude has also a strong bearing on plant-distribution, and, apart from a gradual change, there are three critical parallels of latitude—36° S., 38° S., and 42° S.—near which (it may be somewhat to the north or south of the line) many species attain their southern limit. On the other hand, Cook Strait and Foveaux Strait are of but little moment as barriers to advance or retreat. Far greater is the influence of wet and dry local climates, which is most striking when two such areas impinge on one another as in the case of the wet area which extends from the Tasman Sea to near the eastern base of the Main Divide, which is forest-clad to the timber-line, and the dry area extending thence to the east coast, which is clothed with tussock-grassland. In the dry area of Marlborough and the contiguous wet western area of north-western Nelson, there are 36 species confined to the dry area (locally endemic) and 39 to the wet area. So, too, dry Central Otago possesses 15 locally endemic species. Speaking of the distribution of the species in a wide sense, there is every transition, from those which extend continuously from the north of the North Island to Stewart Island to those found in only one limited area (e.g., Cassinia amoena, near the North Cape; Xeronema Callistemon, on the Poor Knights; Dracophyllum Townsoni, on the Paparoa Range), or those occurring only in two or three distant localities (e.g., Metrosideros Parkinsonii, in north-western Nelson and Great Barrier Island; Pittosporum patulum, near Lake Hawea and in north-western Nelson; Adiantum formosum, near Dargaville and in the Manawatu Gorge and its immediate neighbourhood).

The physical features of New Zealand; its many types of climate, especially with regard to the annual rainfall and the number of rainy days; its varied altitude, ranging from sea-level to the snowfields of the Southern Alps; its many kinds of soils, particularly their water-holding capacity; the diverse frost-tolerating ability of the species; their aggressive powers—largely a matter of their life-forms and inherent plasticity—all these and other factors have led to a most varied Vegetation made up of a host of plant communities, some of which appear out of place in the Temperate Zone. Thus between tide-marks in the northern rivers and estuaries there is a true mangrove community—an unexpected occurrence outside of the tropics; and even so far south as north-western Nelson groves of tall palm-trees are a striking feature. But, more than all else of an unexpected character—though familiar enough to all New-Zealanders—is the lowland forest, which resembles in no whit the forests of temperate Europe, Asia, or America, but is a true tropical rain-forest. This tropical character is shown in its groups of tall tree-ferns, which may exceed 40 ft. in height; in its wealth of ferns of all kinds; in the abundance of woody, ropelike climbing-plants and huge perching-plants far up in the forest canopy; in the several tiers of undergrowth, consisting of low trees and tall shrubs with smaller shrubs and ferns beneath, and the ground clothed with a deep carpet of filmy ferns, liverworts, and mosses, while the tree-trunks are similarly clad: in short, the forest exhibits prodigal luxuriance of growth, and Nature, as it were, runs riot. Rarely does one tall canopy tree dominate, but the uppermost story of the forest is constructed out of the crowns of various kinds of trees growing side by side, just as the undergrowth is composed of many species. But no forest is homogeneous in its structure, for differences in the topography of the area, in the water content of the soil, and in the relative amount of light in the interior of the forest, lead to various combinations of species. All the same, especially so far as the tall trees are concerned, there is an advance towards stability and uniformity, so that all the forests if not interfered with are progressing towards a “climax association,” as it is named, with (as a rule) the tawa (Beilschmiedia tawa) dominant to the north of latitude 42°, and the kamahi (Weinmannia racemosa) dominant southwards.

Taking the New Zealand forests of all kinds for the whole of the region, their species number 498 (ferns and their allies 121, conifers 19, monocotyledons 70, dicotyledons 288), and they belong to 70 families and 167 genera, the largest of which are: Families—Ferns, 114; Rubiaceae, 34; Compositae, 32 (but most are confined to subalpine scrub-forest); Cyperaceae, 25; Orchidaceae, 23; Pittosporaceae, 21; Myrtaceae, 18; Araliaceae, 14. Genera—Coprosma, 32; Pittosporum, 21; Hymenophyllum, 19; Blechnum, Uncinia, and Olearia, each 12; Metrosideros, 11. As for the biological groups of forest, they are as follows: Trees, 151 (but a good many are frequently shrubs also); shrubs, 84; herbaceous and semi-woody plants, 56; grasslike and rushlike plants, 29; climbing-plants, 33; perching-plants, 17; parasites, 14; and ferns, 114.

The considerable number of species for the whole New Zealand community may easily lead to an exaggerated estimate of the number of species to be found in any ordinary piece of forest, even though of considerable extent. Thus extensive pieces of lowland forest to the north of latitude 42° may possess from 150 to 180 species, and to the south of this parallel from 140 to 160 species, while 125 species is a fairly high estimate for Stewart Island.

Another class of forest, though usually possessing many rain-forest characteristics, is that where one or more species of southern-beech (Nothofagus —there are 5 species and very many hybrids) dominate. Such forests extend—but not continuously—from somewhat south of latitude 37° almost to the shore of Foveaux Strait. Generally they are restricted to the mountains, but in places they descend to sea-level in southern Wellington, northern Marlborough and Nelson, and to the west of the coastal mountains of western Nelson and of the Southern Alps. Throughout the high mountains the southern-beech forests generally form the uppermost forest belt.

Nothofagus forest differs from lowland rain-forest in possessing about one-half the number of species and in lacking the exuberant richness of the forest interior, due largely to its comparative poverty in small trees, diversity of shrubs, climbing-plants, perching-plants, and ferns, as also to the forest-floor and tree-trunks being but scantily covered, or draped, with filmy ferns, mosses, and the like. A fundamental difference, and one of great economic importance, is that southern-beech forest regenerates into forest of the same class, while rain-forest proper slowly changes into forest dominated by trees of small commercial value, such replacing the valuable timber-trees (kauri, podocarps) when these die; also, all the southern-beeches, as compared with other tall New Zealand trees, are of far more rapid growth.

Where water lies here and there in shallow pools and the soil is always saturated with moisture there is semi-swamp forest which is of a true rain-forest character, though not directly dependent on a heavy rainfall, its composition depending upon the ability of many rain-forest species to tolerate a constantly wet substratum. Its most marked characteristic is the overwhelming dominance of one tall tree, the kahikatea (Podocarpus dacrydioides), the tall mast-like trunks of which, standing closely side by side, and their absurdly small crowns, stamp the community as absolutely distinct in appearance from any other type of forest; while in the North Island its physiognomy is made still more remarkable by the astonishing number of asteliads perched on its branches, and resembling gigantic birds' nests. To the north of latitude 42° the pukatea (Laurelia novae-zelandiae) is a common lofty tree. The florula for semi-swamp forest, as a whole, consists of about 138 species, but of these only 4 species are confined almost exclusively to the community. The forest under consideration bids fair in a few years to become almost a thing of the past, since the dominant tree is being rapidly converted into timber for butter-boxes, and the ground occupied by the forest is usually of a high class for dairy-farms.

Proximity to the sea leads to a class of forest distinct from the usual lowland type in its composition, in the much lower stature of its members, and in the extreme density of its roof, the last two characters induced by the frequent more or less salt-laden winds. The maritime climate favours the presence of trees which will not tolerate frost, so that a number of well-known trees and shrubs are confined, or nearly so, to coastal forest—e.g., the kawakawa (Macropiper excelsum), the large-leaved milk-tree (Paratrophis opaca), the karo (Pittosporum crassifolium), the haekaro (P. umbellatum), the karaka (Corynocarpus laevigata), the akeake (Dodonaea viscosa), the pohutukawa (Metrosideros tomentosa —but the name has recently been altered to excelsa, which by the “Rules of Botanical Nomenclature” is correct for the time being, notwithstanding that tomentosa has been the sole name for nearly a hundred years!), and the ngaio (Myoporum laetum). Several of the above do not extend beyond latitude 38°, and the ngaio alone reaches Southland, so that coastal forest in the southern part of the South Island is made up of those ordinary lowland trees, &c., which can tolerate coastal conditions.

In addition to forest, the other great New Zealand plant-community dependent on climate is tussock-grassland. This community is of but little moment in the North Island except on the volcanic plateau and the highest mountains, but in the South Island it was the original plant-covering of most of the country to the east of the Divide of the Southern Alps, excepting northern Marlborough, northern Nelson, and parts of Southland. It extends from sea-level to the upper subalpine belt of the mountains, but is less continuous at high then at low levels. It also occupies some of the lowland and montane river-valleys of north-western Nelson and Westland, and ascends to the subalpine western slopes of the mountains.

There are two distinct types of tussock-grassland—“low” and “tall”—the former distinguished by the dominance of the medium-sized tussocks of Poa caespitosa and Festuca novae-zelandiae (one or both), and the latter by the dominance of one or both of the much taller and more massive tussocks of red-tussock (Danthonia Raoulii var. rubra), or snow-grass (D. Raoulii var. flavescens), and the numerous hybrids between them. Taking lowland and montane low tussock-grassland together, and excluding tall tussock-grassland, since they occupy a far more extensive area, and leaving out of the estimate the 74 or so exotic species now, firmly established, the number of species they contain for the whole area is 216 (ferns and fern allies 10, monocotyledons 66, dicotyledons 140), which belong to 38 families and 104 genera, the largest being: Families — Gramineae, 36; Compositae, 35; and Cyperaceae, Leguminosae, and Onagraceae, each 11. Genera—Poa and Epilobium, each 11; Carmichaelia, 9; and Carex, Acaena, and Raoulia, each 7. As for the biological groups, they and the number of species to each are as follows: Trees, 2; shrubs, 31; tussocks, 13; other plants of the grass form, 43; herbaceous plants, 90; semi-woody plants, 30; and ferns, 7. About 85 of the species are drought-tolerating.

Where water can accumulate and remain fairly permanent, yet not too deep to hinder land-plants rooting in the mud, there is swamp. Except forest, no class of vegetation has been so greatly altered by man, or even destroyed, so that really primitive swamps are almost unknown. The florula consists of about 74 species, which belong to 18 families and 37 genera. The following are specially common species: Raupo (Typha angustifolia), frequently dominant; New Zealand flax (Phormiam tenax), dominant in drained swamp; niggerheads (Carex secta, C. virgata); toetoe grass (Arundo conspicua); cabbage-tree (Cordyline australis); common koromiko (Hebe salicifolia); karamu (Coprosma robusta); common coprosma (C. propinqua); and many hybrids between the last two. When, as frequently happens, the swamp gradually dries up, the number of shrubs increases and an early stage of semi-swamp forest is produced.

At the present time, especially in the North Island and the north of the South Island, wide areas are occupied by bracken-fern (Pteridium esculentum) or by manuka (Leptospermum scoparium), for the most part caused by fire; yet as fire was a natural agency in primitive New Zealand in the vicinity of active volcanoes, there would be natural communities of the above character. Both communities if left alone would in time change into forest. Manuka shrubland is a common feature of the Auckland gumlands, where also, in hollows, bogs are abundant, which, as for lowland New Zealand in general, are distinguished by pale hummocks of bog-moss (Sphagnum), a small umbrella-fern (Gleichenia circinata), and a wiry rushlike plant, the wire-rush (Hypolaena lateriflora). On these bogs grow several kinds of sundew (Drosera) and bladderwort (Utricularia).

The vegetation of the high mountains is both of great scientific interest and full of rare beauty. It is composed of no less than 966 species, and it is certain that a good many more species will be discovered. How strongly of New Zealand origin is the flora is revealed by the fact that of the 514 purely high-mountain species all except 16 are endemic, and probably 5 of these are endemic also. The headquarters of the true high-mountain species is in the South Island, their total being 473, as compared with 105 for the North Island, a matter which should cause no surprise since the area for plants above the forest-line is far and away less than in the South Island, where also the average height of the mountains is much greater.

Though the high mountains contain only 16 genera which do not descend to the lowlands, 8 of them are endemic. But there are 40 genera which, possessing but few truly lowland species, are well represented by purely high-mountain species, e.g. (to cite some of particular importance): Danthonia, Colobanthus, Ranunculus, Nasturtium, Geum, Acaena, Pimelea, Drapetes, Schizeilema, Aciphylla, Anisotome, Dracophyllum, Gentiana, Myosotis, Hebe, Veronica, Ourisia, Euphrasia, Plantago, Lobelia, Forstera, Olearia, Celmisia, Raoulia, Helichrysum, Abrotanella, and Senecio.

With but few exceptions the most beautiful flowers of New Zealand belong to the high-mountain flora, so that in due season many plant-communities are natural flower-gardens of extreme loveliness. There are the giant buttercups, white and yellow—but nearly all the flowers are of these colours—which may be seen by the acre; the lovely ourisias, with the flowers in whorls round the stem, tier above tier, as in some of the Asiatic primulas, or the glistening green leaves, as in O. caespitosa, may form mats on stony ground bearing multitudes of delicate blossoms; the eyebrights—true alpine gems—their flowers white with a yellow eye or purple throat, or yellow altogether; forget-me-nots, yellow, bronze, purplish, or white; the snow-groundsel, its large marguerite-like flowers produced in such profusion that the mountain-meadow glistens like a snowfield; the two kinds of edelweiss, far surpassing their Swiss elder sister in beauty, the flowers of the “everlasting” kind, their outer leaves flannelly and snow-white. But above all other plants of the mountains, not only for their beauty of flower, leaf, and form, but for their abundance in all situations, come the various species of Celmisia. “Go where you will”—to quote from “The Vegetation of New Zealand,” (ed. 2, p. 238)— “on sub-alpine and alpine herb-field and their silvery foliage strikes the eye, it may be in stately rosettes of dagger-like leaves, in circular mats trailing over the ground, or in dense cushions. Their aromatic fragrance fills the air; from early till late summer some of their white heads of blossom may be seen, while in due season, gregarious species clothe both wet herb-field and dry, stony slopes with sheets of white.”

The life-forms of the high-mountain plants are in great variety and frequently of striking appearance. Cushion-plants, rosette-plants, mat-forming plants, and stiff-stemmed shrubs are greatly in evidence. Hairiness, leathery texture, and surprising rigidity, perhaps accompanied by needle-like points, as in the giant Spaniards (Aciphylla Colensoi, A. maxima, &c.), are common characteristics of leaves.

There are many plant-communities composed of combinations of tussock-grasses, herbaceous plants, semi-woody plants, dwarf or creeping shrubs, and cushion-plants which are sometimes dense enough, and sometimes so open that there is more stony ground than vegetation. The most surprising community is that of unstable stony debris—the “shingle-slips” of the shepherds—which covers the slopes of certain dry mountains for some thousands of feet, particularly in Marlborough and Canterbury. No less than 33 species occupy this inhospitable station, 25 of which are confined thereto. So far apart do the species grow—frequently many yards—that they bear no relation to each other. Their life-forms are clearly in harmony with the peculiar environment. All have thick fleshy or leathery leaves, frequently of the grey colour of the stones. In 16 species the part above the ground is annual; the shoots nearly always lie close to the stones, but if buried they have the faculty of growing upwards again. One species, Cotula atrata, has a jet-black flower-head, with stamens like tiny golden pin-heads.

Shrubland is common in the mountains, the moist characteristic being the sub-alpine scrub, which on many mountains forms a dense belt above the timber-line. That typical of a wet climate consists of rigid or wiry-stemmed shrubs which grow into one another, and the main branches of many are parallel to the slope and project downwards. The scrub may be so dense that one must either crawl beneath it or walk on its treacherous roof. For the whole of the region the community consists of about 122 species, belonging to 28 families and 49 genera. The chief groups of plants which compose the scrub are shrubby composites and epacrids, wiry shrubs with densely entangled twigs (mainly species of Coprosma), species of Hebe, Phormium Colensoi, various podocarps, and giant Spaniards. On river-terraces scrubs with species of Hebe dominant are frequent, and fringing stony river-beds there is often an open scrub of wild-irishman (Discaria toumatou) —one of the few spinous plants in the flora.

Rock-vegetation is always of interest, and this is particularly so in the high mountains. The number of species occurring on rocks is about 190 (families, 36; genera, 74). About 44 species are virtually confined to rocks, and such include a dwarf fern (Polypodium pumilum), certain rosette plants at present referred to the genus Nasturtium, one or two dwarf Spaniards and a few forget-me-nots, hebes, celmisias, and raoulias.

The floras of the following groups of islands, far distant from the mainland, are distinctly part of that of New Zealand. The Kermadecs contain 117 species of ferns, fern-allies, and seed-plants, 16 of which are endemic, while 89 belong also to New Zealand proper. The largest island (Sunday Island) is covered with forest in which a variety of Metrosideros collina, a near relative of the pohutukawa, is the principal tree. The Chatham Islands possess at least 257 species, of which 36 are endemic, though several of the latter are trivial varieties merely, while the remainder of the flora is, with one exception, found on the mainland. Forest, moor, and heath are the principal plant communities. The leading tree is the karaka, but by the Moriori called kopi. On the moors are great thickets of a lovely purple-flowered shrub, Olearia semidentata. There are two remarkable endemic genera, Coxella and Myosotidium, the former belonging to the carrot family, and the latter a huge forget-me-not, now nearly extinct. The subantarctic islands (Snares, Auckland, Campbell, Antipodes, Macquarie) have a dense vegetation made up of 193 species, no fewer than 60 of which are endemic, the remainder being found in New Zealand, but chiefly in the mountains. Forest is found only on the Snares and the Aucklands, with a species of Olearia and the southern-rata as the dominant trees respectively. Extremely dense scrubs occur on the Auckland and Campbell Islands, and moor, sometimes with huge tussocks, is a characteristic feature of all the islands, thanks to the enormous peat deposits and the frequent rain. Several herbaceous plants of stately form (species of Pleurophyllum, Anistome, Stilbocarpa, and Celmisia) and with flowers of extreme beauty—some of them purple in colour—occur in great profusion.

The Cook Islands, though a part of the Dominion, possess a Polynesian flora quite distinct from that of New Zealand, and are excluded from this notice, while, on the contrary, the flora of the Macquarie Islands (belonging to Tasmania) is a portion of that of New Zealand.

Besides the indigenous, an important introduced element, consisting of about 520 species, mostly European, has followed in the wake of settlement. These aliens are in more or less active competition with the true natives. There is a widespread but quite erroneous opinion that the latter are being eradicated in the struggle. This is not the case. Where the vegetation has never been disturbed by man there are no foreign plants; but where man, with his farming operations, stock, and burning, has brought about European conditions, then certainly the indigenous plants have frequently given way before artificial meadows and arable land, with their economic plants and accompanying weeds. But in many places associations not present in primitive New Zealand have appeared, owing to man's influence, composed principally, or altogether, of indigenous species. On the tussock-grassland invader and aboriginal have met, and though the original vegetation is changed there is no reason to consider the one class or the other as the conqueror. Finally, in course of time, a state of stability will be reached, and a new flora, composed partly of exotic plants and partly of those indigenous to the soil, will occupy the land, and, save in the national parks and scenic reserves, but only if these are kept strictly in their natural condition as to both plants and animals, this new flora will build up a vegetation different from that of primeval New Zealand.

The above brief sketch of the flora and vegetation is obviously most incomplete. Those wishing to dive deeper into the fascinating subject can consult the following books: “The Cultivation of New Zealand Plants,” by L. Cockayne, 1923; “Manual of the New Zealand Flora,” ed. 2, by T. F. Cheeseman, 1925; “New Zealand Plants and Their Story,” ed. 3, by L. Cockayne, 1927; “Plants of New Zealand,” by R. M. Laing and E. W. Blackwell, ed. 3, 1927; “New Zealand Trees and Shrubs and how to identify them,” by H. H. Allan, 1928; “The Trees of New Zealand,” by L. Cockayne and E. Phillips Turner, 1928; “The Vegetation of New Zealand,” ed. 2, by L. Cockayne, 1928. Also (but now out of print) “The Forest Flora of New Zealand,” by T. Kirk, 1889, must not be overlooked.

THE FAUNA.

The fauna of New Zealand is briefly described in the following article by Mr. James Drummond, F.L.S., F.Z.S.:—

New Zealand's native fauna has attracted the attention of investigators in nearly all parts of the world. Its special interest lies in its manifold peculiarities, in the incongruous characters possessed by some of its members, and in the ancient types found in different classes of its animals.

Beginning with the mammalia, the Dominion is surprisingly inadequately represented. Its only land-mammals, except seals, are two bats. One of these, the long-tailed bat, belongs to a genus (Chalinolobus) which is found in the Australian and Ethiopian zoological regions, and to a species (morio) found in the south-east of Australia as well as in New Zealand; but the other, the short-tailed bat (Mystacops tuberculatus), belongs to a genus peculiar to this Dominion. At one time it was believed that the Maori dog (Canis familiaris, variety maorium, the “kuri” of the Maoris) and the Maori rat (Mus exulans, the Maoris' “kiore”) were indigenous to New Zealand, but it is now generally believed that these two animals were introduced by the Maoris when they made their notable migrations from their legendary Hawaiki. The dog was highly prized as a domestic pet, and the rat as an article of diet. Both could easily be taken across the sea in the large canoes used in those days. The dog, without doubt, is extinct. Statements by Captain Cook, J. R. and G. Forster, Sydney Parkinson (the artist), the Rev. W. Colenso, and early visitors to New Zealand show that the Maori dog was a very ordinary animal. It was small, with a pointed nose, pricked ears, and very small eyes. In colour it was white, black, brown, or parti-coloured, and it had long hair, short legs, a short bushy tail, and no loud bark, but only a whine. The Maoris lavished upon it an abundance of affection. When dead its flesh was used for food, its skin for clothing, and its hair for ornaments. Opinions differ in regard to the approximate date of its extinction, and investigations in this respect are made somewhat difficult by the fact that for some years “wild dogs,” as they were called—probably a cross between the Maori dog and dogs brought by Europeans—infested several districts in both the North Island and the South Island, and were confused with the Maori dog. It is probable that the pure Maori dog became extinct about 1885. The Maori rat, a forest-dweller, is not as plentiful as it was when Europeans first came to New Zealand, but it still lives in the forests.

The long-tailed species of bat was once fairly plentiful, especially in the forests, where it makes its home in hollow trees. Large numbers also at one time were found under old bridges across streams, notably at the River Avon, in Christchurch. It is not very rare now, and specimens sometimes are found in the forests and in caves. The short-tailed species is not extinct, but rare. Most bats are exceptionally, well adapted for life in the air, feeding on flying insects, and even drinking on the wing. But the short-tailed species of New Zealand possesses peculiarities of structure which enable it to creep and crawl with ease on the branches and leaves of trees, and probably it seeks its food there as well as in the air. Few naturalists, however, have had opportunities to observe it, and little is known of its habits.

The sea-lion, the sea-elephant, the sea-leopard, and the fur-seal are found on islands within the Dominion's boundaries. In the early days of colonization sealing was a great industry, and yielded large profits to some of the adventurous men who took part in it.

Amongst the sea-mammals whales are the most important. For some years New Zealand held the record for the largest known mammal in the world, living or extinct. This was the Okarito whale, whose skeleton is in the Canterbury Museum. It was found dead on the sea-beach near Okarito, a small village in South Westland, in February, 1908. A very careful and conscientious measurement showed that its length, in the flesh, was 87 ft., or 99 ft. measured over the curves of its back. It held the record until September, 1918, when a whale was found stranded at Corvisart Bay, near Streaky Bay, at the eastern extremity of the Australian Bight, South Australia, which measured in a straight fine 87 ft. 4 in. Both competitors for the record were females, and both were blue whales, which usually are known as Balaenoptera sibbaldi, but which now bear the name Balaenoptera musculus.^*

* A blue whale (90 ft. in length) larger than either of these was stranded at Orewa, near Auckland, in September, 1925; but all records were broken when a blue whale 110 ft. in length and weighing 115 tons was caught by the “N.T. Neilsen-Alonzo” in the Antarctic early in 1027.

At one time extensive whaling was carried on in New Zealand waters, three hundred vessels, chiefly from America, sometimes visiting the country in one year. The industry began about 1795, reached the height of its prosperity between 1830 and 1840, and then began to dwindle. In recent years there has been an effort to revive the industry, but it will never attain the position it held in former years. Porpoises are plentiful, and the dolphin (Delphinus delphis) also is found in these waters. Mention should be made here of “Pelorus Jack,” a solitary whale which for some years met vessels near Pelorus Sound, and which was protected by an Order in Council under the name of Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus), He was the only member of the species reported from New Zealand waters.

In contrast with the species of land-mammals, the members of the next class, Aves, were remarkably plentiful when settlement began. Bush and grass fires, cats, stoats, and weasels, and the ruthless use of the gun have reduced their numbers, but they still stand as probably the most interesting avifauna in the world. They include a comparatively large number of absolutely flightless birds. No living birds in New Zealand are wingless, but the kiwi (Apteryx), the weka (Gallirallus), the kakapo parrot (Strigops), and the takahe (Notornis hochstetteri)^† cannot use their wings for flight, while a duck belonging to the Auckland Islands (Nesonetta) is practically in the same plight. There are also several species of birds whose wings are so weak that they can make only short flights. Other notable birds are the kea (Nestor notabilis), which is accused of killing sheep on stations in the South Island; the tui (Prosthemadera novae-zealandiae), which affords one of the most beautiful sights in the New Zealand forests, and charms visitors with its silvery notes; the huia (Heteralocha acutirostris), the only species known in which there is a wide divergence in the shape of the bills in the two sexes, the male's being short and straight, while the female's is curved, pliant, and long; and the wry-billed plover (Anarhynchus frontalis), the only bird known to possess a bill turned to one side. Cormorants or shags (Phalacrocorax) and penguins (Impennes) are exceptionally well represented in the avifauna. New Zealand, indeed, may be regarded as the headquarters of the penguins, as all the genera except one are found within the boundaries of this Dominion. The oldest fossil penguin known is from the Eocene and Oligocene rocks of New Zealand. New Zealand probably was the centre from which penguins were dispersed to other countries.

† This bird is better known as Notornis mantelli. That name was first given by Sir Richard Owen to an extinct bird, represented by a fossil found at Waingongoro, in the North Island, by Mr. W. Mantell in 1847. When the first living specimen of the takahe was found in 1849 scientists concluded that it was identical with the fossil, and it was accordingly given the same name of Notornis mantelli; but when Dr. Meyer, of Dresden, examined the skeleton of the third specimen he found that it was different from the fossil, and he changed the specific name from Mantelli to Hochstetteri, thus honouring Dr. Hochstetter, a naturalist who visited New Zealand in the early days. Messrs. G. M. Matthews and T. Iredale, in their “Reference List” of 1913, give Mantellornis hochstetteri as the name of this interesting rail.

Several species of birds make notable migrations to New Zealand. The godwit (Vetola lapponica baueri) breeds in the tundras of Eastern Siberia and in Kamchatka and Western Alaska, and spends the summer months in New Zealand, arriving about October, and leaving in March or April. The knot (Canutus canutus) breeds in circumpolar regions and migrates to New Zealand; and two cuckoos—the shining cuckoo (Lamprococcyx lucidus) and the long-tailed cuckoo (Urodynamis taitensis) —come from Pacific islands in the spring, and leave for their northern homes about April. Both, like most members of the Cuculidæ family, are parasitical, and impose upon small native birds the duty of hatching and rearing young cuckoos. The kiwi, already mentioned, belongs to the same subclass as the ostrich, the emu, and the cassowary, all struthious birds, and has several peculiarities besides its flightlessness. One of these is the position of its nostrils at the tip of its bill, instead of at the base as in all other birds. Its plumage is peculiarly hair-like in appearance. It possesses a very generalized structure; as Sir Richard Owen once suggested, it seems to have borrowed its head from one group of birds, its legs from another, and its wings from a third. It was once believed to be almost extinct, but in recent years has been shown to be fairly plentiful in some districts where there is little settlement.

The takahe (Notornis) is one of the world's very rare birds. Only four specimens have been found. Two of the skins are in the British Museum, one is in the Dresden Museum, and one in the Otago Museum, in Dunedin. The fourth specimen was caught by two guides (Messrs. D. and J. Ross) at Notornis Bay, Lake Te Anau, in 1898. There is reason to believe that the takahe still exists in the wild districts of the southern sounds.

The interest of the living avifauna is surpassed by the interest of the extinct birds. These include the great flightless moa (Dinornis), a goose (Cnemiornis minor), a gigantic rail (Aptornis otidiformis), and an eagle (Harpagornis moorei).

Reptilian life is restricted to about fifteen species of lizards, and to the tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus). This is a lizard-like creature, the only surviving representative of the order Rhynchocephalia, otherwise extinct. The tuatara is found in no other country. Its nearest ally is Homœosaurus, whoso remains have been found in Jurassic rocks in Germany. It has been destroyed to a large extent by wild pigs, cats, and dogs, and is now seldom found except on a few islands off the coast of the mainland.

The amphibians are represented by two species of frogs. One, Liopelma hochstetteri, has been recorded from only a few districts in the Auckland Province. The other, Liopelma hamiltoni, has been recorded from only Stephen Island, a small island in Cook Strait, notable as one of the refuges of the tuatara.

About 250 species of fish have been found in New Zealand waters. Many of these are used for food. Several species, notably the mudfish (Neochanna apoda), which is sometimes discovered buried 4 ft. deep in clay in places where rivers have overflowed in flood, and in swampy places, are interesting. Some of the genera are peculiar to New Zealand, but some also occur in Australian and South American waters.

Amongst the invertebrates one of the peculiarities is the fact that the Dominion has few butterflies, although it is well supplied with moths. It has a red admiral butterfly (Vanessa), named after the European species, which it resembles, and a copper butterfly (Chrysophanus), which is very plentiful. In the forests there is that strange growth the “vegetable caterpillar.” The Dominion has native bees and ants, dragon-flies, sober-coloured beetles, and representatives of other orders of insects. The katipo spider (Latrodectes katipo), which lives mostly on or near the sea-beach, is well known locally. Amongst the mollusca there is a large and handsome land-snail (Paryphanta), and Amphibola, an air-breathing snail, peculiar to the Dominion, which lives in brackish water, mainly in estuaries. There are about twenty species of univalves and twelve of bivalves in the fresh-water shells, and about four hundred species in the marine shells, including the paper nautilus (Argonauta). Perhaps the most interesting of all the invertebrates is the Peripatus, an ancient type of creature which survives in New Zealand and in parts of Australia, Africa, South America, the West Indies, New Britain, the Malay Peninsula, and Sumatra. Zoologically, it belongs to the air-breathing division of the phylum Arthropoda, and has been placed in a special class, Prototracheata or Onychophora. It is about 3 in. long, has many feet, loves moisture, shuns light, and moves slowly. Two genera have been found in New Zealand. One genus, Peripatoides, contains two species, novae-zealandiae and suteri, and the other, Oöperipatus, contains only one species, viridimaculatus. The Peripatus is viviparous. It is claimed that one New Zealand genus, Oöperipatus, is oviparous, but that has not been fully proved.^* Professor A. Dendy, F.R.S., has made special investigations in regard to the New Zealand species.

* Professor Adam Sedgwick, F.R.S., late Professor of Zoology at the Imperial College of Science and Technology, London, in the now Encyclopaedia Britannica

With the arrival of Europeans the whole face of the fauna was changed. The first European animal introduced was the pig, liberated by Captain Cook in Queen Charlotte Sound in 1773. With settlement, sheep, cattle, horses, and other domestic animals were brought, some for utility, some for pleasure, such as song-birds, and some for sport, such as deer, trout, pheasants, and quail. In the work of acclimatization several great and irretrievable blunders were made. The worst of those was the introduction of rabbits, stoats, and weasels.

Chapter 2. SECTION II. —HISTORY, CONSTITUTION, AND ADMINISTRATION.

Table of Contents

EARLY HISTORY.

DISCOVERY BY EUROPEANS.

SETTLEMENT AND COLONIZATION.

BRITISH SOVEREIGNTY.

CONSTITUTION.

THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL.

THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

THE FRANCHISE.

LOCAL ADMINISTRATION.

THE PROVINCES.

EARLY BOROUGHS AND TOWN DISTRICTS.

THE ROAD AND HIGHWAY DISTRICTS.

THE COUNTIES.

EXTENSION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT.

EARLY HISTORY.

THE history of New Zealand prior to the seventeenth century is shrouded in mythology and tradition. When the country was discovered by Europeans in 1642 it was found to be inhabited by a race of Polynesians called Maoris, who had discovered these islands many centuries previously. At what time the discovery of New Zealand was made by the Maoris, and from what place they came, are matters of tradition only, much having been lost in the obscurity enveloping the history of a people without letters. Nor is there anything on record respecting the origin of the Maori people themselves, beyond the general tradition of the Polynesian race, which seems to show a series of successive migrations from west to east, probably by way of Malaysia to the Pacific. Little more can now be gathered from their traditions than that they were immigrants, and that they found inhabitants on the east coast of the North Island belonging to the same race as themselves—the descendants of a prior migration whose history is lost. The tradition runs that, generations ago, the Maoris dwelt in a country named Hawaiki, and that one of their chiefs, after a long voyage, reached the northern island of New Zealand. Returning to his home with a flattering description of the country he had discovered, this chief, it is said, persuaded a number of his kinsfolk and friends to set out with a fleet of double canoes for the new land. The names of most of the canoes are still remembered, and each tribe agrees in its account of the doings of the people of the principal canoes after their arrival in New Zealand; and from those traditional accounts the descent of the numerous tribes has been traced. The position of the legendary Hawaiki is unknown, but many places in the South Seas have been thus named in memory of the motherland. The Maoris speak a very pure dialect of the Polynesian language, the common tongue, with more or loss variation, in all the eastern Pacific islands.

DISCOVERY BY EUROPEANS.

It was on the 13th December, 1642, that Abel Jansen Tasman, a Dutch navigator, discovered New Zealand. Tasman left Batavia on the 14th August, 1642, in the yacht “Heemskercq,” accompanied by the “Zeehaen” (or “Sea-hen”) fly-boat. After having visited Mauritius and discovered Tasmania, named by him “Van Diemen's Land,” in honour of Anthony van Diemen, Governor of the Dutch possessions in the East Indies, he steered eastward and sighted the west coast of the South Island of New Zealand, described by him as “a high mountainous country.”

Tasman, under the belief that the land he saw belonged to a great polar continent, and was part of the country discovered some years before by Schouten and Le Maire, to which the name “Staten Land” had been given, gave the same name, “Staten Land,” to New Zealand; but within about three months afterwards Schouten's “Staten Land” was found to be merely an inconsiderable island. Upon this discovery being announced, the country that Tasman had called “Staten Land” received the name of “New Zealand,” by which it has ever since been known. Tasman sailed along the coast and anchored in Golden Bay, called by him “Murderers' Bay” on account of an unprovoked attack on a boat's crow by the Natives and the massacre of four white men. Thence he steered along the west coast of the North Island, and gave the name “Cape Maria van Diemen” to the north-western extremity thereof. After sighting the islands of the Three Kings he finally departed without having set foot in the country.

There is no record of any visit to New Zealand after Tasman's departure until the time of Captain Cook, who, after leaving the Society Islands, sailed in search of a southern continent then believed to exist. He sighted land on the 6th October, 1769, at Young Nick's Head, and on the 8th of that month cast anchor in Poverty Bay. After having coasted round the North Island and the South and Stewart Islands—which last he mistook for part of the South Island—he took his departure from Cape Farewell on the 31st March, 1770, for Australia. He visited New Zealand again in 1773, in 1774, and in 1777.

Several other explorers also visited New Zealand during the latter portion of the eighteenth century, amongst whom may be mentioned—

M. de Surville, in command of the “Saint Jean Baptiste,” who sighted the north-east coast on the 12th December, 1769, only two months after Cook's arrival at Poverty Bay.
M. Marion du Fresne—1772.
Captains Vancouver and Broughton—1791.
Captain Raven—1792 and 1793.
Alejandro Malaspina and José de Bustamente y Guerra—1793.
Lieutenant Hanson—1793.

SETTLEMENT AND COLONIZATION.

So far as is known, the first instance of Europeans being loft in New Zealand to their own resources occurred in 1792, when Captain Raven, of the “Britannia,” landed a sealing-party at Facile Harbour, on the west coast of the South Island, where they remained a little over twelve months before being called for.

The next few years saw the establishment of whaling-stations at several points on the coast, and in 1814 the first missionaries—Messrs. Hall and Kendall—arrived in New Zealand. After a short stay they returned to New South Wales, and on the 19th November of that year again embarked in company with Mr. Samuel Marsden, chaplain to the New South Wales Government, who preached his first sermon in New Zealand on Christmas Day, 1814. He returned to Sydney on the 23rd March, 1815, leaving Messrs. Hall, Kendall, and King, who formed the first mission station at Rangihoua, Bay of Islands.

In 1825 three separate attempts were made to found colonies in various parts of New Zealand, but none of these was successful, and for some years the only settlements were those round the principal whaling-stations. A number of Europeans gradually settled in different parts of the country, and many of these married Native women.

The first body of immigrants under a definite scheme of colonization arrived in Port Nicholson on the 22nd January, 1840, and founded the town of Wellington. During the few succeeding years the settlements of Nelson, Taranaki, Otago, and Canterbury were formed by immigrants sent out by associations in the United Kingdom.

BRITISH SOVEREIGNTY.

As early as 1833 a British Resident (Mr. Busby) was appointed, with headquarters at Kororareka (now called Russell), on the Bay of Islands. Seven years later—namely, on the 29th January, 1840—Captain William Hobson, R.N., arrived at the Bay of Islands, empowered, with the consent of the Natives, to proclaim the sovereignty of Queen Victoria over the Islands of New Zealand, and to assume the government thereof. A compact called the Treaty of Waitangi, to which in less than six months 512 names were affixed, was entered into, whereby all rights and powers of sovereignty were ceded to the Queen, all territorial rights being secured to the chiefs and their tribes. The seat of Government was established at Waitemata (Auckland), and a settlement formed there.

British sovereignty over the South Island was formally proclaimed at Cloudy Bay on the 17th June, 1840, by Major Bunbury, H.M. 80th Regiment, and Captain Nias, R.N.

New Zealand remained a dependency of New South Wales until the 3rd May, 1841, when it was created a separate colony by Royal Charter dated the 16th November, 1840.

CONSTITUTION.

The government of the colony was first vested in a Governor, who was responsible only to the Crown: there was an Executive Council, with advisory powers only, as well as a Legislative Council.

An Act granting representative institutions to the colony was passed by the Imperial Parliament on the 30th June, 1852, and was published in New Zealand by Proclamation on the 17th January, 1853. Under it the constitution of a General Assembly was provided for, to consist of a Legislative Council and a House of Representatives.

The first session of the General Assembly was opened on the 27th May, 1854, but the members of the Executive were not responsible to Parliament. During the session of that year there were associated, with the permanent members of the Executive Council certain members of the House of Representatives, who, however, held no portfolios. The first Ministers under a system of responsible government were appointed in the year 1856.

By Order in Council dated 9th September, 1907, and by Proclamation issued 10th September, 1907, the style and designation of the Colony of New Zealand was altered to “The Dominion of New Zealand,” the change taking effect from Thursday, the 26th September, 1907.

By Letters Patent dated 11th May, 1917, the designation of Governor and Commander-in-Chief which had hitherto been held by the Royal representative in New Zealand was altered to “Governor-General and Commander-in-Chief.”

THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL.

Prior to the establishment of responsible government the Executive Council for New Zealand consisted, in addition to the Governor, of the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney-General, and the Colonial Treasurer, seniority being in the order named. The Governor, or in his absence the senior member present, presided, and two members exclusive of the Governor or member presiding constituted a quorum. The Governor was required in all things to consult and advise with the Executive Council, and not to exercise the powers and authorities vested in him except by and with the concurrence and advice of the Executive Council, unless in cases of an urgent and pressing nature which would not admit of delay. In such cases he was, with all convenient speed, to bring the measures so adopted by him before the Executive Council for its revision and sanction. The Governor could, however, exercise any or all of the powers and authorities vested in him, without the advice and concurrence of the Executive Council, in cases not considered of sufficient importance to require their assistance or advice, or in cases which were of such a nature that in his judgment material prejudice might be sustained by consulting the Executive Council thereupon. No questions could be brought before the Council except those proposed by the Governor, who in any case in which he saw sufficient cause to dissent from the opinion of the major part or the whole of the Council was further empowered to exercise the powers vested in him in opposition to such opinion.

The powers, duties, and responsibilities of the Governor - General and the Executive Council under the present system of responsible government are set out in Royal Letters Patent and Instructions thereunder of the 11th May, 1917, published in the New Zealand Gazelle of the 24th April, 1919 (p. 1213). In the execution of the powers and authorities vested in him the Governor-General must be guided by the advice of the Executive Council, but, if in any case he sees sufficient cause to dissent from the opinion of the Council, he may act in the exercise of his powers and authorities in opposition to the opinion of the Council, reporting the matter to His Majesty without delay, with the reasons for his so acting.

In any such case any member of the Executive Council may require that there be recorded upon the minutes of the Council the grounds of any advice or opinion that he may give upon the question.

The Governor-General may not pardon or reprieve any offender without first receiving in capital cases the advice of the Executive Council, and in other cases the advice of one at least of his Ministers; and in any case in which such pardon or reprieve might directly affect the interests of the British Empire, or of any country or place beyond the jurisdiction of the Government of the Dominion, the Governor-General must, before deciding as to either pardon or reprieve, take those interests specially into his own personal consideration.

The present Executive Council consists of thirteen members in addition to the Governor - General. Two members, exclusive of His Excellency or the presiding member, constitute a quorum.

THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.

Prior to the establishment of responsible government the Legislative Council of New Zealand consisted of the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney-General, the Colonial Treasurer, and the three senior Justices of the Peace. The Governor, or in his absence the senior member present, presided at all meetings of the Council; four members in addition to the Governor or the member presiding formed a quorum. No law or Ordinance could be enacted by the Legislative Council which was not first proposed by the Governor, and no question might be debated unless submitted by him for that purpose The laws and Ordinances of the Council were designated “Ordinances enacted by the Governor of New Zealand with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council thereof.” No laws were to be made to continue for less than two years except only in cases of unforeseen emergency requiring provision for temporary service, and the Governor was specially enjoined not to propose or assent to Ordinances or laws dealing with certain specified matters.

The Imperial Act under which the earliest appointments were made to the Legislative Council under a system of responsible government provided that the first appointees should be not less than ten in number. The number actually summoned for the first session (held at Auckland from 24th May, 1854), was sixteen, of whom only fourteen attended. The number increased irregularly for thirty years. In 1885 and 1886 it stood at fifty-three, but has not since reached that limit. The number on the roll at present is forty-one.

Until 1868 the rule was that the appointment of members should be made by an instrument under the Royal Sign-manual, but the rule was not strictly observed after 1861. An Act of the Imperial Parliament in 1868 validated any appointments of Councillors that might have been made irregularly in the past, and provided that future appointments should be made by the Governor (not by the Sovereign).

Until 1891 members were appointed for life, but since that year appointments have been made for seven years only, members, however, being eligible for reappointment. Prior to 1891 the Speaker was appointed by the Governor, but the Council now elects its own Speaker, who holds office for five years. A Chairman of Committees was formerly elected every session, but in 1928 the standing orders were amended to provide for a three-years' term of office. Speaker and Chairman are both eligible for re-election.

Provision for an elective Legislative Council is contained in the Legislative Council Act, 1914, which is to be brought into operation at a date to be specified by Proclamation. Under the system outlined in the Act the Dominion is to be divided into four electoral divisions, two in the North Island and two in the South, and the number of members is to be forty, divided between the two Islands on a population basis. In addition, the Governor-General is empowered to appoint not more than three Maori members to the Council.

The qualifications for membership of the Legislative Council are the same as for the House of Representatives, referred to on the next page, with the proviso that a person may not at the same time be a member of both Houses.

Before the year 1892 the honorarium of Councillors was understood to be for the session, not for the year, and formed the subject of a special vote every session, the amount varying in different sessions. By the Payment of Members Act, 1892, the honorarium was made annual, not sessional, and was fixed at £150 a year. The amount was raised in 1904 to £200, and in 1920 to £350, but was reduced in 1922 to £315. Besides the honorarium, members are allowed travelling-expenses actually incurred in going to and from Parliament.

Subject to certain exemptions, members not attending the Council are liable to be fined.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

The number of members constituting the House of Representatives is eighty—seventy-six Europeans and four Maoris. They are now designated “Members of Parliament.” The number was originally fixed by the Constitution Act as not more than forty-two and not less than twenty-four, and the first Parliament called together in 1854 consisted of forty members. Legislation passed in 1858 fixed the number of European members at forty-one; in 1860, at fifty-three; in 1862, at fifty-seven; in 1865, at seventy; in 1867, at seventy-two; an 1870, at seventy-four; in 1875, at eighty-four; in 1881, at ninety-one; in 1887, at seventy; and in 1900, at seventy-six; By the Maori Representation Act, 1867, which is still in force, as embodied in the Legislature Act, 1908, four Maori members were added, three for the North Island and one for the South.

After each population Census the Dominion is divided anew into seventy-six European electorates, according to population distribution, with an allowance for rural population. The effect of this in recent years has been to increase the number of North Island electorates and to reduce the number in the South Island, the former numbering forty-seven and the latter twenty-nine as a result of the redistribution following the 1926 Census.

The “country quota” is computed on the basis that 28 per cent. is added to the rural population, which for electoral purposes means population other than that contained in a city or borough of over 2,000 inhabitants or in any area within five miles of the chief post offices at Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, or Dunedin. The “country quota” first appeared in 1881, in which year a schedule of electoral districts was prepared on the basis of the quota for country districts being “less than the quota for town districts by as nearly as possible 25 per cent.,” this being equivalent to adding 33 1/3 per cent. to the country population. The proportion to be added was reduced in 1887 to 18 per cent., but was increased in 1889 to the present 28 per cent.

Quinquennial Parliaments, instituted under the Constitution Act, were abolished by the Triennial Parliaments Act, 1879, which fixed the term at three years. General elections have been held at three-yearly intervals since 1881, with the exception that the term of the nineteenth Parliament was during the Great War extended to five years by special legislation.

Every registered elector of either sex who is free from the disqualifications mentioned in the Legislature Act, 1908, is eligible for membership. All contractors to the public service of New Zealand to whom any public money above the sum of £50 is payable, directly or indirectly, in any one financial year, as well as the public servants of the Dominion, are incapable of being elected as, or of sitting or voting as, members.

The payment made to members of the House of Representatives is £450 per annum, subject to certain deductions for absence not due to sickness or other unavoidable cause. Travelling-expenses to and from Wellington are also allowed. The rate of payment for several years prior to 1920 was £300 per annum, but was increased in that year to £500, a 10-per-cent reduction, however, being made in 1922 by the Public Expenditure Adjustment Act, 1921–22.

The election of a Speaker is the first business of a now House after the members have been sworn. A Chairman of Committees is elected as soon after as is convenient. Both Speaker and Chairman of Committees hold office until a dissolution, and receive payment until the first meeting of a new Parliament.

Twenty members, inclusive of the Speaker, constitute a quorum.

THE FRANCHISE.

The three cardinal principles of the franchise in New Zealand are (1) one man one vote, (2) female suffrage, and (3) adult suffrage.

There are, of course, slight exceptions to the last - mentioned, the following classes of persons not being entitled to register as electors or to vote:—

An alien:
A mentally defective person:
A person convicted of an offence punishable by death or by imprisonment for one year or upwards within any part of His Majesty's dominions, or convicted in New Zealand as a public defaulter, or under the Police Offences Act, 1927, as an idle and disorderly person or as a rogue and vagabond, unless such offender has received a free pardon, or has undergone the sentence or punishment to which he was adjudged for such offence.

To be registered as an elector a person must have resided for one year in the Dominion, and for three months in the electoral district for which he claims to vote. A system of compulsory registration of electors was introduced at the end of 1924.

The system of “one man one vote” has been in operation since 1889, and women's suffrage since 1893. The qualifications for registration are the same for both sexes.

LOCAL ADMINISTRATION.

Side by side with the general government of the country, but subordinate to it, there has existed a system of local government since the early years of New Zealand's annexation as a British colony. The history of local government divides naturally into two periods representing two distinct systems—viz., the provincial, which was in operation up to 1876, and the county, which superseded the provincial in that year.

THE PROVINCES.

On the 23rd December, 1847, a Charter was signed dividing the colony into two provinces—New Ulster and New Munster—and this was proclaimed in New Zealand on the 10th March, 1848. The Province of New Ulster consisted of the whole of the North Island with the exception of that portion adjacent to Cook Strait and lying to the south of a line commencing at the centre of the mouth of the Patea River and running thence due east to the cast coast. The Province of New Munster consisted of the South and Stewart Islands and the portion of the North Island excluded from Now Ulster. Each province had a Lieutenant - Governor, an Executive Council, and a Legislative Council, while the Governor-in-Chief for the whole colony was also Governor of each province. Provision had also been made for a House of Representatives in each province, but this portion of the Charter was suspended for five years, and before it came into operation a new constitution was obtained.

Under the new constitution the Provinces of Now Ulster and New Munster were abolished and the colony was divided into six provinces—Auckland, New Plymouth (later altered to Taranaki), Wellington, Nelson, Canterbury, and Otago. Each province was to be presided over by an elective Superintendent, and to have an elective Provincial Council empowered to legislate, except on certain specified subjects. The franchise amounted practically to household suffrage. In each case the election was for four years, but a dissolution of the Provincial Council by the Governor could take place at any time, necessitating a fresh election both of the Council and of the Superintendent. The Superintendent was chosen by the whole body of the electors of the province, and each member of the Provincial Council by the electors of a district. The boundaries of the now provinces were gazetted on the 2nd April, 1853, and the boundaries of the electoral districts on the 14th May following, the first general elections for the House of Representatives and the Provincial Councils being held during 1853 and the beginning of 1854. The Provincial Governments, afterwards increased to nine by the formation of Hawke's Pay, Marlborough, and Southland, later reduced to eight by the merging of Southland with Otago, and again increased to nine by the formation of Westland, remained as integral parts of the constitution of the colony until the 1st November, 1876, when they were abolished by an Act of the General Assembly.

EARLY BOROUGHS AND TOWN DISTRICTS.

Even before the division of New Zealand into the two provinces of New Ulster and New Minister, local government had its inception, Wellington having been created a borough in 1842 under the authority of the Municipal Corporations Ordinance of that year. The Ordinance was disallowed by the Homo Government, but was re-enacted, with necessary alterations, in 1844. Wellington, which lost its status on the original Ordinance being disallowed, did not become a borough again until 1870, Auckland (constituted in 1851) remaining the only borough in New Zealand for several years.

Wellington, which had been the first borough in the country, also became the first town district, with a form of government not differing greatly from that of a municipality. Gradually the more important towns adopted the status of boroughs, while the less important remained town districts. In Otago, however, between 1865 and 1875, several small towns were created boroughs under the authority of an Ordinance of the Otago Provincial Council, nineteen of the thirty-six boroughs in existence at the date of the abolition of the provinces being in Otago, all formed under the provisions of the Ordinance referred to.

THE ROAD AND HIGHWAY DISTRICTS.

Another form of local government which came into existence in the provincial days was that of the road districts, or, as they were called in certain parts of the country, highway districts. As the names imply, the road and highway districts were formed for the purpose of extending and maintaining roads. Each district was controlled by an elected Board, which had power to levy rates. The first Road Boards were formed in 1863, and by 1875 then number had risen to 314.

THE COUNTIES.

Among the instructions given Captain Hobson on his appointment as the first Governor of New Zealand was one directing that the colony was to be divided into counties, hundreds, and parishes. In accordance with this instruction, the boundaries of the County of Eden, in which Auckland—then the capital—is situated, were proclaimed in 1842, and some years later the county was divided into hundreds. Very little further was done towards giving effect to the instructions, and the first administrative county was Westland, separated from Canterbury Province in 1867, and granted a system of local government in the following year.

It was not until the abolition of the provinces in 1876 that a scheme of division of the whole country into counties was introduced. The Counties Act, 1876, which, in conjunction with the Municipal Corporations Act of the same year, provided a comprehensive scheme of local government in lieu of the provincial governments, divided New Zealand into sixty-three counties.. With the exception of six, which were exempted from the operations of the Act, each county was placed under the control of an elected Chairman and Council, possessed of fairly full powers of local government—considerably less, however, than those formerly enjoyed by the Provincial Councils. The Counties Act specially excluded boroughs from the counties within which they geographically lie, and a similar provision has since been made in the case of town districts having a population of over 500.

EXTENSION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT.

Since the abolition of the provinces and the passing of the Counties and Municipal Corporations Acts of 1876 there has been considerable extension of local government. Many of the road districts have merged with the counties within which they lie, while others have become boroughs or town districts. On the other hand, counties, boroughs, and town districts have increased in numbers, while several entirely new classes of local districts, formed for definite purposes—as, for instance, land drainage or electric-power supply—have come into existence. In most cases the Boards of these districts have borrowing and rating powers.

The numbers of local districts of each class in the Dominion at present are as follows:—

Counties	129
Boroughs	119
Town districts—
Not forming parts of counties	42
Forming parts of counties	27
Road districts	20
River districts	50
Land drainage districts	69
Harbour districts	44
Hospital districts	47
Electric-power districts	43
City and suburban drainage districts	3
Tramway district	1
Transport district	1
Local railway district	1
Water-supply districts	7
Main-highway districts	18
Fire districts	50
Rabbit districts	49
Gas-lighting district	1

Much fuller information concerning the origin, development, constitution, functions, &c., of local governing bodies than can be given here will be found in the Local Authorities Handbook of New Zealand. The reader is also referred to the section of this book dealing with Local Government.

Chapter 3. SECTION III.—OFFICIAL.

Table of Contents

SUCCESSIVE VICEREGAL REPRESENTATIVES.

1840-1853.

1854 TO DATE.

GOVERNOR-GENERAL OF NEW ZEALAND.

SUCCESSIVE MINISTRIES AND PREMIERS.

WARD MINISTRY.

COATES MINISTRY, 1925-28.

EXECUTIVE COUNCIL, 1929.

His Excellency the GOVERNOR-GENERAL.

SUCCESSIVE PARLIAMENTS.

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.

ROLL OF MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL OF NEW ZEALAND, JULY, 1929.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

ROLL OF MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, JULY, 1929.

GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS.

LIST OF PRINCIPAL DEPARTMENTS OF THE NEW ZEALAND GOVERNMENT, WITH TITLES AND NAMES OF PERMANENT HEADS.

HIGH COMMISSIONER'S OFFICE, LONDON.

OFFICIAL REPRESENTATIVES IN DOMINIONS AND FOREIGN COUNTRIES.

TRADE REPRESENTATIVES OF OVERSEAS COUNTRIES IN NEW ZEALAND.

FOREIGN CONSULS.

CONSULS OF FOREIGN COUNTRIES RESIDING IN, OR WITH JURISDICTION OVER, NEW ZEALAND, JULY, 1929.

SUCCESSIVE VICEREGAL REPRESENTATIVES.

1840-1853.

Captain William Hobson, R.N., Lieutenant-Governor of New Zealand under Sir George Gipps, Governor of New South Wales, from January, 1840, to 3rd May, 1841, and Governor of New Zealand from 3rd May, 1841, until date of death, 10th September, 1842.

Lieutenant Willoughby Shortland, Administrator from 10th September, 1842, to 26th December, 1843.

Captain Robert Fitzroy, R.N., Governor from 26th December, 1843, to 17th November, 1845.

Captain George Grey, who became Sir George Grey, K.C.B., in 1848, Governor from 18th November, 1845, to 1st January, 1848; Governor-in-Chief over the Islands of New Zealand, Governor of the Province of New Ulster, and Governor of the Province of New Munster from 1st January, 1848, to 7th March, 1853; Governor of New Zealand from 7th March, 1853, to 31st December, 1853.

Lieutenant-Governors of Provinces.

Edward John Eyre, Esquire, Lieutenant-Governor of New Munster from 28th January, 1848, until duties of Lieutenant-Governor ceased on 7th March, 1853.
Major-General George Dean Pitt, Lieutenant-Governor of New Ulster from 14th February, 1848, until date of death, 8th January, 1851.
Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Henry Wynyard, C.B., Lieutenant-Governor of New Ulster from 26th April, 1851; until duties of Lieutenant-Governor ceased on 7th March, 1853.

1854 TO DATE.

Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Henry Wynyard, C.B., Administrator from 3rd January, 1854, to 6th September, 1855.

Colonel Thomas Gore Browne, C.B., Governor from 6th September, 1855, to 2nd October, 1861.

Sir George Grey, K.C.B., Administrator from 3rd October, 1861; Governor from 4th December, 1861, to 5th February, 1868.

Sir George Ferguson Bowen, G.C.M.G., Governor from 5th February, 1868, to 19th March, 1873.

Sir George Alfred Arney, Chief Justice, Administrator from 21st March to 14th June, 1873.

Sir James Fergusson, Baronet, P.C., Governor from 14th June, 1873, to 3rd December, 1874.

The Marquis of Normanby, P.C., G.C.M.G., Administrator from 3rd December, 1874; Governor from 9th January, 1875, to 21st February, 1879.

James Prendergast, Esquire, Chief Justice, Administrator from 21st February to 27th March, 1879.

Sir Hercules George Robert Robinson, G.C.M.G., Administrator from 27th March, 1879; Governor from 17th April, 1879, to 8th September, 1880.

James Prendergast, Esquire, Chief Justice, Administrator from 9th September to 29th November, 1880.

The Honourable Sir Arthur Hamilton Gordon, G.C.M.G., Governor from 29th November, 1880, to 23rd June, 1882.

Sir James Prendergast, Chief Justice, Administrator from 24th June, 1882, to 20th January, 1883.

Lieutenant-General Sir William Francis Drummond Jervois, G.C.M.G., C.B., Governor from 20th January, 1883, to 22nd March, 1889.

Sir James Prendergast, Chief Justice, Administrator from 23rd March to 2nd May, 1889.

The Earl of Onslow, G.C.M.G., Governor from 2nd May, 1889, to 24th February, 1892.

Sir James Prendergast, Chief Justice, Administrator from 25th February to 6th June, 1892.

The Earl of Glasgow, G.C.M.G., Governor from 7th June, 1892, to 6th February, 1897.

Sir James Prendergast, Chief Justice, Administrator from 8th February to 9th August, 1897.

The Earl of Ranfurly, G.C.M.G., Governor from 10th August, 1897, to 19th June, 1904.

The Right Honourable William Lee, Baron Plunket, K.C.M.G., K.C.V.O., Governor from 20th June, 1904, to 8th June, 1910.

Hon. Sir Robert Stout, K.C.M.G., Chief Justice, Administrator from 8th June to 22nd June, 1910.

The Right Honourable John Poynder Dickson-Poynder, Baron Islington, K.C.M.G., D.S.O., Governor from 22nd June, 1910, to 2nd December, 1912.

Hon. Sir Robert Stout, K.C.M.G., Chief Justice, Administrator from 3rd December to 19th December, 1912.

The Earl of Liverpool, P.C., G.C.M.G., G.B.E., M.V.O., Governor from 19th December, 1912; Governor-General from 28th June, 1917, to 7th July, 1920.

Right Hon. Sir Robert Stout, P.C., K.C.M.G., Chief Justice, Administrator from 8th July, 1920, to 26th September, 1920.

Viscount Jellicoe of Scapa, G.C.B., O.M., G.C.V.O., Governor-General from 27th September, 1920, to 25th November, 1924.

Right Hon. Sir Robert Stout, P.C., K.C.M.G., Chief Justice, Administrator from 26th November, 1924, to 12th December, 1924.

General Sir Charles Fergusson, Baronet, LL.D., G.C.M.G., K.C.B., D.S.O., M.V.O., Governor-General from 13th December, 1924.

GOVERNOR-GENERAL OF NEW ZEALAND.

His Excellency, General Sir Charles Fergusson, Baronet, LL.D., G.C.M.G., K.C.B., D.S.O., M.V.O.

Military Secretary—Captain E. P. O. Boyle, M.V.O.

Official Secretary—A. Cecil Day, C.M.G., C.B.E.

Aide-de-Camp—Lieutenant E. L. Orr-Ewing, M.C.

Assistant Private Secretary—The Lord Waleran.

Honorary Aides-de-Camp—Naval: Captain J. S. G. Fraser, D.S.O., R.N.; Captain L. V. Wells, D.S.O., R.N. Military: Colonel J. Findlay, C.B., D.S.O.; Brigadier M. M. Gard'ner, D.S.O.; Lieutenant-Colonel F. Symon, C.M.G., D.S.O.; Lieutenant-Colonel N. S. Falla, C.M.G., D.S.O.; Colonel J. Hargest, D.S.O., M.C.; Colonel A. B. Charters, C.M.G., D.S.O.

Honorary Physician—Colonel R. Tracy-Inglis, C.B.E., M.B.

Honorary Surgeon—Colonel P. C. Fenwick, C.M.G., M.D., F.R.C.S.

SUCCESSIVE MINISTRIES AND PREMIERS.

SINCE THE ESTABLISHMENT OF RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT IN NEW ZEALAND IN 1856.

Name of Ministry.	Name of Premier.	Assumed Office.	Retired.
1. Bell-Sewell	Henry Sewell	7 May, 1856	20 May, 1856.
2. Fox	William Fox	20 May, 1856	2 June, 1856.
3. Stafford	Edward William Stafford	2 June, 1856	12 July, 1861.
4. Fox	William Fox	12 July, 1861	6 Aug., 1862.
5. Domett	Alfred Domett	6 Aug., 1862	30 Oct., 1863.
6. Whitaker-Fox	Frederick Whitaker	30 Oct., 1863	24 Nov., 1864.
7. Weld	Frederick Aloysius Weld	24 Nov., 1864	16 Oct., 1865.
8. Stafford	Edward William Stafford	16 Oct., 1865	28 June, 1869.
9. Fox	William Fox	28 June, 1869	10 Sept., 1872.
10. Stafford	Edward William Stafford	10 Sept., 1872	11 Oct., 1872.
11. Waterhouse	George Marsden Waterhouse	11 Oct., 1872	3 Mar., 1873.
12. Fox	William Fox	3 Mar., 1873	8 April, 1873.
13. Vogel	Julius Vogel, C.M.G.	8 April, 1873	6 July, 1875.
14. Pollen	Daniel Pollen, M.L.C.	6 July, 1875	15 Feb., 1876.
15. Vogel	Sir Julius Vogel, K.C.M.G.	15 Feb., 1876	1 Sept., 1876.
16. Atkinson	Harry Albert Atkinson	1 Sept., 1876	13 Sept., 1876.
17. Atkinson (reconstituted)	Harry Albert Atkinson	13 Sept., 1876	13 Oct., 1877.
18. Grey	Sir George Grey, K.C.B.	15 Oct., 1877	8 Oct., 1879.
19. Hall	John Hall	8 Oct., 1879	21 April, 1882.
20. Whitaker	Frederick Whitaker, M.L.C.	21 April, 1882	25 Sept., 1883.
21. Atkinson	Harry Albert Atkinson	25 Sept., 1883	16 Aug., 1884.
22. Stout-Vogel	Robert Stout	16 Aug., 1884	28 Aug., 1884.
23. Atkinson	Harry Albert Atkinson	28 Aug., 1884	3 Sept., 1884.
24. Stout-Vogel	Sir Robert Stout, K.C.M.G.	3 Sept., 1884	8 Oct., 1887.
25. Atkinson	Sir Harry Albert Atkinson, K.C.M.G.	8 Oct., 1887	24 Jan., 1891.
26. Ballance	John Ballance	24 Jan., 1891	1 May, 1893.
27. Seddon	Rt. Hon. Richard John Seddon, B.C.	1 May, 1893	21 June, 1906.
28. Hall-Jones	William Hall-Jones	21 June, 1906	6 Aug., 1906.
29. Ward	Rt. Hon. Sir Joseph George Ward, Bart., P.C., K.C.M.G.	6 Aug., 1906	28 Mar., 1912.
30. Mackenzie	Thomas Mackenzie	28 Mar., 1912	10 July, 1912.
31. Massey	Rt. Hon. William Ferguson Massey, P.C.	10 July, 1912	12 Aug., 1915.
32. National	Rt. Hon. William Ferguson Massey, P.C.	12 Aug., 1915	25 Aug., 1919.
33. Massey	Rt. Hon. William Ferguson Massey,	25 Aug., 1919	14 May, 1925.
34. Bell	P.C. Hon. Sir Francis Henry Dillon Bell, G.C.M.G., K.C.	14 May, 1925	30 May, 1925.
35. Coates	Rt. Hon. Joseph Gordon Coates, P.C., M.C.	30 May, 1925	10 Dec, 1928.
36. Ward	Rt. Hon. Sir Joseph George Ward, Bart., P.C., K.C.M.G.	10 Dec, 1928	..

WARD MINISTRY.

(ASSUMED OFFICE, 10TH DECEMBER, 1928.)

Name.	Office.	From
	Prime Minister	10 Dec, 1928.
Right Hon. Sir Joseph George Ward,	Minister of Finance	10 Dec, 1928.
Bart., P.C., K.C.M.G.	Minister of Stamp Duties	10 Dec, 1928.
	Minister of External Affairs	10 Dec, 1928.
George William Forbes	Minister of Lands	10 Dec, 1928.
	Minister of Agriculture	10 Dec, 1928.
Thomas Mason Wilford	Minister of Justice	10 Dec, 1928.
	Minister of Defence	10 Dec, 1928.
Sir Apirana Turupa Ngata, Kt.	Minister of Native Affairs	10 Dec, 1928.
	Minister of Cook Islands	10 Dec, 1928.
Harry Atmore	Minister of Education	10 Dec, 1928.
William Andrew Veitch	Minister of Labour	10 Dec, 1928.
	Minister of Mines	10 Dec, 1928.
Ethelbert Alfred Ransom	Minister of Public Works	10 Dec, 1928.
	Minister of Railways	10 Dec, 1928.
William Burgoyne Taverner	Minister of Customs	10 Dec, 1928.
	Commissioner of State Forests	19 Dec, 1928.
James Bell Donald	Postmaster-General	10 Dec, 1928.
	Minister of Telegraphs	10 Dec, 1928.
Philip Aldborough de la Perrelle	Minister of Internal Affairs	10 Dec, 1928.
	Minister of Marine	10 Dec, 1928.
John George Cobbe	Minister of Industries and Commerce	10 Dec, 1928.
	Minister of Immigration	10 Dec, 1928.
Arthur John Stallworthy	Minister of Health	10 Dec, 1928.
Thomas Kay Sidey	Attorney-General	10 Dec, 1928.

COATES MINISTRY, 1925-28.

LIST OF MEMBERS FROM ASSUMPTION OF OFFICE ON 30TH MAY, 1925, TO RESIGNATION OF MINISTRY ON 10TH DECEMBER, 1928, SHOWING OFFICES HELD AND PERIODS DURING WHICH SUCH OFFICES OCCUPIED.

Name.	Office.	From	To	Remarks.
*Confirmed in offices previously held. †Portfolio had been temporarily administered by Sir Maui Pomare.
	Prime Minister	30 May, 1925	10 Dec., 1928
	Minister of Public Works	30 May, 1925	12 June, 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Williams.
	Minister of Railways	30 May, 1925	10 Dec., 1928
Right Hon. Joseph Gordon Coates, P.O., M.C.	Minister of Native Affairs	30 May, 1925	10 Dec., 1928
	Minister of External Affairs	25 Aug., 1928	10 Dec., 1928
	Minister of Mines	28 Nov., 1928	10 Dec. 1928
	Minister of Agriculture	28 Nov., 1928	10 Dec, 1928
	Attorney-General	30 May, 1925	18 Jan., 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Stewart.
	Minister of External Affairs	30 May, 1925	24 May, 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Nosworthy.
Right Hon. Sir Francis Henry Dillon Bell, P.O., G.C.M.G., K.C.	Member of Executive Council without portfolio	24 May, 1926	24 Aug., 1928	Appointed Minister of Marine.
	Minister of Marine	25 Aug., 1928	10 Dec, 1928
David Henry Guthrie	Member of Executive Council without portfolio	30 May, 1925	31 Mar., 1927	Deceased.
	Minister of Customs	30 May, 1925^*	10 Dec, 1928
	Minister of Industries and Commerce	30 May, 1925^*	24 May, 1926	Succeeded by Mr. McLeod.
	Attorney-General	18 Jan., 1926	24 May, 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Rolleston.
William Downie Stewart	Minister of Finance	24 May, 1926	10 Dec, 1928
	Minister of Stamp Duties	24 May. 1926	10 Dec, 1928
	Attorney-General	28 Nov., 1928	10 Dec, 1928
	Minister of Justice	28 Nov., 1928	10 Dec, 1928
	Minister of Defence	28 Nov., 1928	10 Dec, 1928
	Minister of Finance	30 May, 1925	24 May, 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Stewart.
	Minister of Stamp Duties	30 May, 1925	24 May, 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Stewart.
	Minister of Agriculture	30 May, 1925	18 Jan., 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Hawken.
William Nosworthy	Minister of Immigration	30 May, 1925	10 Dec, 1928
	Postmaster-General	24 May, 1926	10 Dec, 1928
	Minister of Telegraphs	24 May, 1926	10 Dec, 1928
	Minister of External Affairs	24 May, 1926	24 Aug., 1928	Succeeded by Mr. Coates.
	Minister of Education	30 May, 1925	24 April, 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Wright.
Sir Christopher James Parr, K.C.M.G.	Minister of Justice	30 May, 1925	18 Jan., 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Rolleston.
	Postmaster-General	30 May, 1925	24 April, 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Nosworthy.
	Minister of Telegraphs	30 May, 1925	24 April, 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Nosworthy.
	Minister of Labour	30 May. 1925	26 Nov., 1928	Succeeded by Mr. Wright.
George James Anderson	Minister of Mines	30 May, 1925	26 Nov., 1928	Succeeded by Mr. Coates.
	Minister of Marine	30 May, 1925	25 Aug., 1928	Succeeded by Sir Francis Bell.
	Minister of Defence	30 May, 1925	18 Jan., 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Rolleston.
Sir Robert Heaton Rhodes, K.C.V.O., K.B.E.	Commissioner of State Forests	30 May, 1925	18 Jan., 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Hawken.
	Member of Executive Council without portfolio	24 May, 1926	10 Dec, 1928
	Minister of Lands	30 May, 1925	26 Nov., 1928	Succeeded by Mr. Williams.
Alexander Donald McLeod	Minister of Industries and Commerce	24 May, 1926	26 Nov., 1928	Succeeded by Mr. Young.
	Minister of Health	1 June, 1925	18 Jan., 1926	Succeeded by Mr. Young.
Sir Maui Pomare, K.B.E., C.M.G.	Minister of Cook Islands	1 June, 1925	10 Dec, 1928
	Minister of Internal Affairs	25 Aug., 1928	10 Dec, 1928
Richard Francis Bollard	Minister of Internal Affairs	30 May, 1925	25 Aug., 1927	Deceased. Succeeded by Sir Maui Pomare (25th August, 1928).^†
Oswald James Hawken	Minister of Agriculture	18 Jan., 1926	26 Nov., 1928	Succeeded by Mr. Coates.
	Commissioner of State Forests	18 Jan., 1926	26 Nov., 1928	Succeeded by Mr. Williams.
	Minister of Justice	18 Jan., 1926	26 Nov., 1928	Succeeded by Mr. Stewart.
Francis Joseph Rolleston	Minister of Defence	18 Jan., 1926	26 Nov., 1928	Succeeded by Mr. Stewart.
	Attorney-General	24 May, 1926	26 Nov., 1928	Succeeded by Mr. Stewart.
	Minister of Health	18 Jan., 1926	10 Dec, 1928
James Alexander Young	Minister of Industries and Commerce	28 Nov., 1928	10 Dec, 1928
Robert Alexander Wright	Minister of Education	24 May, 1926	10 Dec., 1928
	Minister of Labour	28 Nov., 1928	10 Dec. 1928
	Minister of Public Works	12 June, 1926	10 Dec, 1928
Kenneth Stuart Williams	Minister of Lands	28 Nov., 1928	10 Dec, 1928
	Commissioner of State Forests	28 Nov., 1928	10 Dec, 1928

EXECUTIVE COUNCIL, 1929.

His Excellency the GOVERNOR-GENERAL.

Right Hon. Sir J. G. WARD, Bart., P.C., K.C.M.G., Prime Minister, Minister of Finance, Minister of External Affairs, Minister of Stamp Duties, Minister in Charge of Public Trust, Tourist and Health Resorts, Legislative, State Advances, Land and Income Tax, and High Commissioner's Departments.

Hon. G. W. FORBES, Minister of Lands, Minister of Agriculture, Minister in Charge of Land for Settlements, Scenery Preservation, Discharged Soldiers Settlement, and Valuation Departments.

Hon. T. M. WILFORD, Minister of Justice, Minister of Defence, Minister in Charge of Police, Prisons, and War Pensions Departments.

Hon. Sir A. T. NGATA, Kt., Minister of Native Affairs, Minister of Cook Islands, Minister in Charge of Native Trust, Government Life Insurance, and State Fire and Accident Insurance Departments, and Member of the Executive Council representing the Native Race.

Hon. H. ATMORE, Minister of Education, Minister in Charge of Scientific and Industrial Research Department.

Hon. W. A. VEITCH, Minister of Labour, Minister of Mines, Minister in Charge of Pensions and Electoral Departments.

Hon. E. A. RANSOM, Minister of Public Works, Minister in Charge of Roads and Public Buildings.

Hon. W. B. TAVERNER, Minister of Railways, Minister of Customs, Commissioner of State Forests, Minister in Charge of Publicity and Advertising Departments.

Hon. J. B. DONALD, Postmaster-General, Minister of Telegraphs, Minister in Charge of Public Service Superannuation, Friendly Societies, and National Provident Fund Departments.

Hon. P. A. DE LA PERRELLE, Minister of Internal Affairs, Minister in Charge of Registrar-General's, Census and Statistics, Laboratory, Printing and Stationery, Audit, and Museum Departments.

Hon. J. G. COBBE, Minister of Marine, Minister of Industries and Commerce, Minister of Immigration, Minister in Charge of Inspection of Machinery Department.

Hon. A. J. STALLWORTHY, Minister of Health, Minister in Charge of Mental Hospitals Department.

Hon. T. K. SIDEY, Attorney-General and Leader of the Legislative Council.

Clerk of the Executive Council—F. D. Thomson, B.A., C.M.G.

SUCCESSIVE PARLIAMENTS.

SUCCESSIVE PARLIAMENTS SINCE THE PASSING OF THE CONSTITUTION ACT CONFERRING REPRESENTATIVE INSTITUTIONS UPON NEW ZEALAND, WITH THE DATES OF OPENING OF SESSIONS AND DATES OF PROROGATION AND OF DISSOLUTION.

Parliament.	Dates of Opening of Sessions.	Date of Prorogation.	Date of Dissolution.
	27 May, 1854	9 Aug., 1854
First	31 Aug., 1854	16 Sept., 1854	15 Sept., 1855.
	8 Aug., 1855	15 Sept., 1855
	15 April, 1856	16 Aug., 1856
	(No sess., 1857)	..
Second	10 April, 1858	21 Aug., 1858	5 Nov., 1860.
	(No sess., 1859)	..
	30 July, 1860	5 Nov., 1860
	3 June, 1861	7 Sept., 1861
	7 July, 1862	15 Sept., 1862
Third	19 Oct., 1863	14 Dec., 1863	27 Jan., 1866.
	24 Nov., 1864	13 Dec, 1864
	26 July, 1865	30 Oct., 1865
	30 June, 1866	8 Oct., 1866
	9 July, 1867	10 Oct., 1867
Fourth	9 July, 1868	20 Oct., 1868	30 Dec., 1870.
	1 June, 1869	3 Sept., 1869
	14 June, 1870	13 Sept., 1870
	14 Aug., 1871	16 Nov., 1871
	16 July, 1872	25 Oct., 1872
Fifth	15 July, 1873	3 Oct., 1873	6 Dec, 1875.
	3 July, 1874	31 Aug., 1874
	20 July, 1875	21 Oct., 1875
	15 June, 1876	31 Oct., 1876
Sixth	19 July, 1877	10 Dec., 1877	15 Aug., 1879
	26 July, 1878	2 Nov., 1878
	11 July, 1879	11 Aug., 1879
	24 Sept., 1879	19 Dec, 1879
Seventh	°28 May, 1880	1 Sept., 1880	8 Nov., 1881.
	9 June, 1881	24 Sept., 1881
	18 May, 1882	15 Sept., 1882
Eighth	14 June, 1883	Sept., 1883 27	June, 1884.
	5 June, 1884	24 June, 1884
	7 Aug., 1884	10 Nov., 1884
Ninth	11 June. 1885	22 Sept., 1885	15, July, 1887.
	13 May, 1886	18 Aug., 1886
	26 April, 1887	10 June, 1887
	6 Oct., 1887	23 Dec, 1887
Tenth	10 May, 1888	31 Aug., 1888	3 Oct., 1890
	20 June, 1889	19 Sept., 1889
	19 June, 1890	18 Sept., 1890
	23 Jan., 1891	31 Jan., 1891
Eleventh	11 June, 1891	25 Sept., 1891	8 Nov., 1893
	23 June, 1892	12 Oct., 1892
	22 June, 1893	7 Oct., 1893
	21 June, 1894	24 Oct., 1894
Twelfth	20 June, 1895	2 Nov., 1895	14 Nov., 1896.
	11 June, 1896	19 Oct., 1896
	7 April, 1897	12 April, 1897
Thirteenth	23 Sept., 1897	15 Nov., 1899
	24 June, 1898	5 Nov., 1898
	23 June, 1899	24 Oct., 1899
	22 June, 1900	22 Oct., 1900
Fourteenth	1 July, 1901	8 Nov., 1901	5 Nov., 1902.
	1 July, 1902	4 Oct., 1902
	29 June, 1903	25 Nov., 1903
Fifteenth	28 June, 1904	8 Nov., 1904	15 Nov., 1905.
	27 June, 1905	31 Oct., 1905
	27 June, 1906	3 July, 1906
Sixteenth	21 Aug., 1906	29 Oct., 1906	29 Oct., 1908
	27 June, 1907	25 Nov., 1907
	29 June, 1908	12 Oct., 1908
	10 June, 1909	17 June, 1909
Seventeenth	7 Oct., 1909	29 Dec, 1909	20 Nov., 1911.
	28, June, 1910	5 Dec, 1910
	27 July, 1911	30 Oct., 1911
	15 Feb., 1912	1 Mar., 1912
Eighteenth	27 June, 1912	8 Nov., 1912	20 Nov., 1914
	26 June, 1913	16 Dec., 1913
	25 June, 1914	6 Nov., 1914
	24 June, 1915	15 Oct., 1915
	9 May, 1916	9 Aug., 1916
Nineteenth	28 June, 1917	2 Nov., 1917	27 Nov., 1919
	9 April, 1918	17 April, 1918
	24 Oct., 1918	12 Dec., 1918
	28 Aug., 1919	7 Nov., 1919
Twentieth	24 June, 1920	12 Nov., 1920	15 Nov., 1922.
	10 Mar., 1921	24 Mar., 1921
	22 Sept., 1921	13 Feb., 1922
	28 June, 1922	1 Nov., 1922
Twenty-first	8 Feb., 1923	19 Feb., 1923	14 Oct., 1925.
	14 June, 1923	30 Aug., 1923
	26 June, 1924	7 Nov., 1924
	25 June, 1925	3 Oct., 1925
Twenty-second	16 June, 1926	14 Sept., 1926	18 Oct., 1928.
	23 June, 1927	7 Dec., 1927
	28 June, 1928	11 Oct., 1928
Twenty-third	4 Dec., 1928	19 Dec, 1928
	27 June, 1929

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.

ROLL OF MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL OF NEW ZEALAND, JULY, 1929.

Speaker—Hon. Sir W. C. F. CARNCROSS, Kt.

Chairman of Committees—Hon. JOHN BARR.

Clerk of the Legislative Council—A. F. LOWE, C.M.G.

Name.	Provincial District.	Date of Appointment.
Alison, Hon. Ewen William	Auckland	7 May, 1925.
Allen, Colonel the Hon. Sir James, G.C.M.G., K.C.B.	Otago	1 June, 1927.
Barr, Hon. John	Canterbury	22 January, 1928.
Bell, Right Hon. Sir Francis Henry Dillon, P.O., G.C.M.G., K.C.	Wellington	21 May, 1926.
Carncross, Hon. Sir Walter Charles Frederick, Kt.	Taranaki	17 March, 1924.
Carrington, Hon. Carey John	Auckland	17 June, 1926.
Clark, Hon. Edward Henry	Otago	25 June, 1927.
Collins, Colonel the Hon. William Edward, C.M.G.	Wellington	14 July, 1928.
Craigie, Hon. James	Canterbury	1 June, 1923.
Earnshaw, Hon. William	Wellington	25 June, 1927.
Fleming, Hon. David Thomas	Otago	7 May, 1925.
Garland, Hon. George Joseph	Auckland	7 May, 1925.
Gow, Hon. James Burman	Auckland	7 May, 1925.
Hall-Jones, Hon. Sir William, K.C.M.G.	Wellington	6 October, 1927.
Hanan, Hon. Josiah Alfred	Otago	17 June, 1926.
Hawke, Hon. Archibald Fotheringham	Otago	7 May, 1925.
Isitt, Hon. Leonard Monk	Canterbury	28 October, 1925.
Lang, Hon. Sir Frederic William, Kt.	Auckland	22 February, 1924.
MacGregor, Hon. John	Otago	14 July, 1928.
McIntyre, Hon. William Henderson	Nelson	3 September, 1928.
Mackenzie, Hon. Sir Thomas, G.C.M.G.	Wellington	12 March, 1928.
Malcolm, Hon. Alexander Scott	Otago	16 June, 1924.
Mander, Hon. Francis	Auckland	1 June, 1923.
Michel, Hon. Henry Leslie	Westland	7 May, 1925.
Mitchelson, Hon. Sir Edwin, K.C.M.G.	Auckland	25 June, 1927.
Moore, Hon. Richard	Canterbury	14 July, 1928.
Newman, Hon. Edward, C.M.G.	Wellington	1 June, 1923.
Reed, Hon. Vernon Herbert	Auckland	16 June, 1924.
Rhodes, Hon. Sir Robert Heaton, K.C.V.O., K.B.E.	Canterbury	28 October, 1925.
Rikihana, Hon. Wiremu	Auckland	1 June, 1923.
Scott, Hon. Robert	Otago	25 June, 1927.
Sidey, Hon. Thomas Kay	Otago	10 December. 1928.
Sinclair, Hon. Sir John Robert, Kt.	Otago	7 May, 1925.
Smith, Colonel the Hon. George John, C.B.E.	Canterbury	25 June, 1927.
Snodgrass, Hon. William Wallace, M.B.E.	Nelson	3 September, 1928.
Stewart, Hon. William	Auckland	7 May, 1925.
Stout, Right Hon. Sir Robert, P.O., K.C.M.G.	Wellington	3 August, 1926.
Thomson, Hon. George Malcolm	Otago	7 May, 1925.
Triggs, Hon. William Henry	Canterbury	7 May, 1925.
Weston, Hon. Thomas Shailer	Wellington	17 June, 1926.
Witty, Hon. George	Canterbury	28 October, 1925.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

ROLL OF MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, JULY, 1929.

Speaker—Hon. Sir C. E. STATHAM, Kt.

Chairman of Committees—S. G. Smith, M.P.

Clerk of the House—E. W. KANE.

Name.	Electoral District.
For European Electorates.
Ansell, Alfred Edward	Chalmers.
Armstrong, Hubert Thomas	Christchurch East.
Atmore, Hon. Harry	Nelson.
Barnard, William Edward	Napier.
Bitchener, John	Waitaki.
Black, George Charles Cecil	Motueka.
Bodkin, William Alexander	Central Otago.
Broadfoot, Walter James	Waitomo.
Burnett, Thomas David	Temuka.
Campbell, Hugh McLean	Hawke's Bay.
Carr, Rev. Clyde Leonard	Timaru.
Chapman, Charles Henry	Wellington North.
Clinkard, Cecil Henry	Rotorua.
Coates, Right Hon. Joseph Gordon, P.C., M.C.	Kaipara.
Cobbe, Hon. John George	Oroua.
De la Perrelle, Hon. Philip Aldborough	Awarua.
Dickie, Harold Galt	Patea.
Donald, Hon. James Bell	Auckland East.
Field, William Hughes	Otaki.
Fletcher, John Shearer	Grey Lynn.
Forbes, Hon. George William	Hurunui.
Fraser, Peter	Wellington Central.
Hall, Arthur William	Hauraki.
Hamilton, Adam	Wallace.
Harris, Alexander	Waitemata.
Hawke, Richard Wilson	Kaiapoi.
Healy, Edward Francis	Wairau.
Hogan, James Thomas	Rangitikei.
Holland, Henry	Christchurch North.
Holland, Henry Edmund	Buller.
Howard, Edwin John	Christchurch South.
Hunter, Sir George, Kt.	Waipawa.
Jenkins. Harry Reginald	Parnell.
Jones, David	Mid - Canterbury.
Jordan, William Joseph	Manukau.
Kyle, Herbert Seton Stewart	Riccarton.
Langstone, Frank	Waimarino.
Linklater, Joseph	Manawatu.
Lye, Frederick	Waikato.
Lysnar, William Douglas	Gisborne.
McCombs, James	Lyttelton.
McDonald, Thomas William	Wairarapa.
McDougall, David	Mataura.
McKeen, Robert	Wellington South.
Macmillan, Charles Edward de la Barca	Tauranga.
Macpherson, John Andrew	Oamaru.
Martin, William Lee	Raglan.
Mason, Henry Greathead Rex	Auckland Suburbs.
Massey, John Norman	Franklin.
Munns, George Charles	Roskill.
Munro, James Wright	Dunedin North.
Murdoch, Alfred James	Marsden.
Nash, James Alfred	Palmerston.
O'Brien, James	Westland.
Parry, William Edward	Auckland Central.
Poison, William John	Stratford.
Ransom, Hon. Ethelbert Alfred	Pahiatua.
Rushworth, Harold Montague	Bay of Islands.
Samuel, Albert Moeller	Thames.
Savage, Michael Joseph	Auckland West.
Semple, Robert	Wellington East.
Smith, Sydney George	New Plymouth.
Stallworthy, Hon. Arthur John	Eden.
Statham, Hon. Sir Charles Ernest, Kt.	Dunedin Central.
Stewart, Hon. William Downie	Dunedin West.
Sullivan, Daniel Giles	Avon.
Sykes, George Robert	Masterton.
Taverner, Hon. William Burgoyne	Dunedin South.
Veitch, Hon. William Andrew	Wanganui.
Waite, Fred	Clutha.
Ward, Right Hon. Sir Joseph George, Bart., P.C., K.C.M.G.	Invercargill.
Wilford, Hon. Thomas Mason	Hutt.
Wilkinson, Charles Anderson	Egmont.
Williams, Kenneth Stewart	Bay of Plenty.
Wright, Robert Alexander	Wellington Suburbs.
Young, James Alexander	Hamilton.
For Maori Electorates.
Tau Henare	Northern Maori.
Ngata, Hon. Sir Apirana Turupa, Kt.	Eastern Maori.
Pomare, Hon. Sir Maui Ngatata, K.B.E., C.M.G.	Western Maori.
Makitanara, Tuiti	Southern Maori.

GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS.

LIST OF PRINCIPAL DEPARTMENTS OF THE NEW ZEALAND GOVERNMENT, WITH TITLES AND NAMES OF PERMANENT HEADS.

Department.	Permanent Head.
Department.	Title.	Name.
Agriculture	Director-General	C. J. Reakes, C.B.E., M.R.C.V.S., D.V.Sc. Melb.
Audit	Controller and Auditor-General	G. F. C. Campbell, C.M.G.
Cook Islands	Secretary	S. J. Smith.
Crown Law	Solicitor-General	A. Fair, LL.B., K.C.
Customs	Comptroller	G. Craig, C.M.G., LL.D.
Defence	General Officer Commanding N.Z. Military Forces	Major - General R. Young, C.B., C.M.G., D.S.O.
Education	Director	T. B. Strong, M.A., B.Sc.
External Affairs	Secretary	C. A. Berendsen, LL.M.
Government Insurance	Commissioner	A. E. Allison.
Health	Director-General	T. H. A. Valintine, C.B.E., M.R.C.S., L.R.C.P., D.P.H.
Immigration	Under-Secretary	H. D. Thomson.
Industries and Commerce	Secretary	J. W. Collins.
Internal Affairs	Under-Secretary	G. P. Newton.
Registrar-General's	Registrar-General	W. W. Cook.
Census and Statistics	Government Statistician	M. Eraser, O.B.E.
Government Actuary's	Government Actuary	C. Gostelow, F.I.A., Lond.
Electoral	Chief Electoral Officer	G. G. Hodgkins.
Dominion Museum	Director	W. R. B. Oliver, B.Sc.
Justice (including Patents)	Under-Secretary	R. P. Ward.
Labour	Secretary	F. W. T. Rowley, I.S.O.
Land and Deeds and Stamp Duties	Registrar-General of Land, Secretary for Land and Deeds, and Commissioner of Stamp Duties	C. E. Nalder.
Land and Income Tax	Commissioner of Taxes	E. J. R. Cumming.
Lands and Survey	Under-Secretary and Land Purchase Controller	J. B. Thompson, C.B.E., M.N.Z.Soc.C.E.
Law Drafting	Law Draftsman	J. Christie, LL.M.
Marine	Secretary	G. C. Godfrey.
Mental Hospitals	Inspector-General	T. G. Gray, M.B., Bac. Surg.
Mines	Under-Secretary	A. H. Kimbell.
Native	Under-Secretary	R. N. Jones, C.B.E.
Native Trust	Native Trustee	W. E. Rawson.
Naval	First Naval Member	Commodore G. T. C. P. Swabey, D.S.O., R.N.
Pensions	Commissioner	J. H. Boyes.
Police	Commissioner	W. B. McIlveney, M.V.O.
Post and Telegraph	Secretary	G. McNamara.
Prime Minister's	Permanent Head	F. D. Thomson, B.A., C.M.G.
Printing and Stationery	Government Printer	W. A. G. Skinner.
Prisons	Controller-General	B. L. Dallard.
Public Service Superannuation	Secretary	W. M. Wright.
Public Trust	Public Trustee	J. W. Macdonald, C.M.G.
Public Works	Under-Secretary and Engineer-in-Chief	F. W. Furkert, C.M.G., A.M.I.C.E., A.M.I.M.E.
Railways	General Manager	H. H. Sterling, LL.B.
Scientific and Industrial Research	Secretary	E. Marsden, D.Sc.
Dominion Laboratory	Dominion Analyst	J. S. Maclaurin, D.Sc., F.C.S.
Dominion Observatory	Dominion Astronomer and Seismologist	C. E. Adams, D.Sc., F.R.A.S., A.I.A. (Lond.).
Geological Survey	Director	J. Henderson, M.A., D.Sc., B.E., A.O.S.M.
Meteorological	Director	E. Kidson, M.A., D.Sc.
State Advances	Superintendent	W. Waddel.
State Fire and Accident Insurance	General Manager	J. H. Jerram.
State Forest Service	Director	E. P. Turner, F.R.G.S.
Tourist and Health Resorts	General Manager	B. M. Wilson.
Transport	Commissioner	J. S. Hunter.
Treasury	Secretary	R. E. Hayes, C.M.G., I.S.O.
National Provident Fund	Superintendent
Friendly Societies	Registrar	R. Witheford.
Valuation	Valuer-General	T. Brook.

By an Act passed during the year 1912 and intituled the Public Service Act, 1912, the Public Service of New Zealand was placed under the direct and solo control of a Commissioner and two Assistant Commissioners, who are appointed for a term of seven years, are responsible only to Parliament, and can be dismissed from office only for misbehaviour or incompetence.

The Act, which became operative on the 1st April, 1913, applies to all members of the Public Service with the exception of the Controller and Auditor-General, officers of the Railways Department, members of the Police and Defence Forces, Judges and Magistrates, officers of the House, certain officers of the Legislative Departments, and persons paid only by fees or commission, as well as any officer to whom the Governor-General in Council declares the Act shall not apply.

By the Post and Telegraph Department Act of 1918 the Post and Telegraph Department was exempted from the control of the Commissioner, with the exception that the Commissioner makes all appointments other than to positions carrying a salary of over £765 per annum.

Public Service Commissioner: P. D. N. VERSCHAFFELT, LL.B.

Assistant Public Service Commissioner: B. L. DALLARD.

HIGH COMMISSIONER'S OFFICE, LONDON.

High Commissioner for New Zealand—Hon. Sir Christopher James Parr, K.C.M.G.

Secretary, and Loan and Stock Agent—Alexander Crabb.

Publicity and Exhibition Officer—H. T. B. Drew.

Trade and Produce Officer—W. S. Ferguson.

Immigration Officer—F. T. Sandford.

Finance Officer, Accountant, and Loan and Stock Agent—E. Toms.

Audit Officer—Arnold Hore.

Customs Department Representative—F. W. Lawrence.

Dairy Produce Officer—W. Wright.

Offices—New Zealand Government Offices, 415 Strand, London W.C. 2.

OFFICIAL REPRESENTATIVES IN DOMINIONS AND FOREIGN COUNTRIES.

New Zealand Trade Commissioner for Australia and Government Agent, Melbourne—H. J. Manson, C.M.G., Dominion Chambers, 59 William Street, Melbourne.

New Zealand Trade Commissioner for New South Wales and Government Agent, Sydney—W. R. Blow, London Bank Chambers, corner of Pitt and Moore Streets. Sydney.

Honorary New Zealand Tourist Agent, Brisbane—T. G. Dewar, King's Building, 79 Queen Street, Brisbane.

Honorary New Zealand Tourist Agent, Adelaide—V. H. Ryan, Director, South Australian Intelligence and Tourist Bureau (P.O. Box 664G), Adelaide.

Honorary New Zealand Tourist Agent, Perth—A. S. McClintock, 285 Queen's Buildings, Murray Street, Perth.

Honorary New Zealand Tourist Agent in India—T. C. Buddie, New Zealand Insurance Co., Ltd., 26 Dalhousie Square West, Calcutta.

Honorary New Zealand Representative, Johannesburg—B. R. Avery, 8 Natal Bank Chambers, Market Street, Market Square (P.O. Box 1378), Johannesburg.

Honorary New Zealand Tourist Agent, Durban—H. Middlebrook. 20 Union Castle Buildings (P.O. Box 1822), Durban.

New Zealand Government Agent, Vancouver—W. A. James, 1017 Metropolitan Building, 837 Hastings Street West, Vancouver.

Resident Agent for New Zealand, San Francisco—H. Stephenson Smith, 311 California Street, San Francisco.

Official Representative of Customs Department in Canada and United States—W. J. Stevenson, 44 Whitehall Street, New York.

Honorary New Zealand Government Agent, Honolulu—H. C. Tennant, care of Messrs. Henry Davies Audit Company (Limited), Honolulu.

Honorary New Zealand Representative, Marseilles—The Secretary, British Chamber of Commerce, 2 Rue Beauvau, Marseilles.

Honorary Commercial Correspondent for New Zealand, Antwerp—J. P. H. Mertens, 32 Rue Oudaen, Antwerp.

TRADE REPRESENTATIVES OF OVERSEAS COUNTRIES IN NEW ZEALAND.

United Kingdom.—H.M. Trade Commissioner: L. A. Paish, O.B.E., T. and G. Buildings, Grey Street (P.O. Box 369), Wellington.

Canada.—Trade Commissioner: C. M. Croft, Union Buildings, Customs Street, Auckland.

United Slates of America.—Trade Commissioner: J. B. Foster, 100 Customhouse Quay, Wellington.

FOREIGN CONSULS.

CONSULS OF FOREIGN COUNTRIES RESIDING IN, OR WITH JURISDICTION OVER, NEW ZEALAND, JULY, 1929.

Argentine Republic.—Vice-Consuls: F. S. Battley, Auckland; E. S. Baldwin, Wellington; J. A. Johnstone, Dunedin.

Belgium.—Consul (with jurisdiction over New Zealand): Armand Nihotte, Wellington; Consuls: A. M. Ferguson, Auckland: Sir J. J. Kinsey, Christchurch; G. L. Denniston, Dunedin. Vice-Consuls: C. R. J. Ward, Christchurch; R. A. Anderson, Invercargill.

Brazil.—Vice-Consul: George Robertson, Wellington.

Chile.—Consul-General for Australia and New Zealand: Senor Don Manuel Gundelach, Sydney. Consul: E. A. Craig, Auckland.

China.—Consuls: Ou Tsin-Shuin, Wellington; Chu Chih-Ching, Samoa.

Czecho-Slovakia.—Consul-General (with jurisdiction over New Zealand): Dr. R. Kuraz, Sydney. Honorary Consul: E. J. Hyams, Wellington. Honorary Vice-Consul: C. P. Agar, Christchurch.

Denmark.—Consul-General for Australia and New Zealand: Ove Lunn, Melbourne. Consul for North Island: S. A. Longuet, Wellington. Consul for South Island: H. D. Acland, Christchurch. Vice-Consuls: S. P. Anderson, Auckland; W. Perry, Hokitika; O. H. Moller, Dunedin.

Ecuador.—Honorary Consul: William Birss, Auckland.

Finland.—Consul (with jurisdiction over New Zealand): Harald Tanner, Sydney. Vice-Consuls (honorary): Robert Burns, Auckland; Vaino Sarelius, Christchurch.

France.—Consul: Paul A. Serre, Auckland. Consular Agents: George Humphreys, Christchurch; O. R. Bendall, Wellington; S. E. D. Neill, Dunedin.

Germany.—Consul-General (with jurisdiction over New Zealand): Dr. Hans Busing, Sydney. Hon. Consul (with jurisdiction over New Zealand and Dependencies, and Western Samoa): W. Penseler, Wellington.

Greece.—Honorary Consul for New Zealand: J. F. Dyer, Wellington.

Honduras.—Consul-General for Australia and New Zealand: Frederic Walsh. Sydney.

Italy.—Consul-General for Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, and New Guinea: Commendatore Nob. A. Grossardi, Melbourne. Consul: Signor Giovanni Formichella, Wellington. Consular Agents: Joseph Wallace, Christchurch; J. A. Roberts, Dunedin; Geraldo G. Perotti, Greymouth.

Japan.—Consul-General (with jurisdiction over New Zealand): I. Kishi (acting), Sydney. Honorary Consuls: A. B. Roberton, Auckland; A. Young, Wellington.

Jugo-Slavia (Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes).—Hon. Consul: John Totich, Dargaville.

Latvia.—Consul-General (with jurisdiction over New Zealand): C. L. Seya, London. Hon. Consul: N. E. Heath, Auckland.

Liberia.—Consul: Dr. A. W. Izard, Wellington.

Mexico.—Hon. Consul (with jurisdiction over New Zealand and Western Samoa): Don Carlos Zalapa, Sydney.

Netherlands.—Consul - General for Australia and New Zealand: P. E. Teppema, Sydney. Consul (with jurisdiction over New Zealand): W. G. Johnston, Wellington. Vice-Consuls: George Ritchie, Dunedin; M. Copeland, Auckland; N. Francis, Christchurch.

Norway.—Consul-General for Australia and New Zealand: E. K. B. Arentz, Melbourne. Consul: A. W. Newton, Wellington. Vice-Consuls: Robert Millar, Auckland; George Jameson, Christchurch; M. E. Wiig, Invercargill; J. H. Enright, Westport; W. F. Edmond, Dunedin (honorary).

Paraguay.—Consul; A. E. Kernot, Auckland.

Peru.—Consul-General for Australia and New Zealand: J. M. Paxton, Sydney. Consul: G. H. Baker, Auckland.

Poland.—Consul-General (with jurisdiction over New Zealand): Hon. George Earp, Sydney.

Portugal.—Consul: David L. Nathan, Auckland. Hon. Vice-Consul: Alfred Nathan, Auckland. Vice-Consuls: A. D. S. Duncan, Wellington; C. W. Rattray, Dunedin.

Spain.—Consul (with jurisdiction over New Zealand and Dependencies): Sir Stephen Morell (acting), Melbourne.

Sweden.—Consul-General for Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji: E. H. Lindquist, Sydney. Consul: J. T. Martin, Wellington. Vice-Consuls: J. T. F. Mitchell, Auckland; W. Machin, Christchurch; J. S. Ross, C.M.G., Dunedin.

Switzerland.—Consul (with jurisdiction over New Zealand): M. Stahel, Melbourne. Gerant of the Consulate: J. A. C. Allum, Auckland.

United Slates of America.—Consul-General: W. L, Lowrie, Wellington. Consuls: B. Gotlieb, Wellington; W. F. Boyle, Auckland. Vice-Consuls: L. A. Bachelder, Auckland; William P. Cochran, jun., Wellington; Q. F. Roberts, Apia (in charge). Consular Agents: H. P. Bridge, Christchurch; H. Reeves, Dunedin.

Chapter 4. SECTION IV.—STATISTICAL ORGANIZATION.

Table of Contents

EARLY STATISTICAL RECORDS.

STATISTICAL LEGISLATION.

THE STATISTICAL AUTHORITY.

STATISTICAL ORGANIZATION.

STATISTICAL PUBLICATIONS.

SESSION 1926.

SESSION 1927.

SESSION 1928.

EARLY STATISTICAL RECORDS.

NEW Zealand was proclaimed a British Crown colony in 1840. Official statistical records of the country commenced with the following year, 1841, in the shape of reports compiled for the information of the Colonial Office, and known by immemorial custom as “blue-books.” These reports, which continued until 1852, were prepared in manuscript form in triplicate, and consisted of a collection of tables, compiled by various Government authorities and illustrating the work of their Departments.

Two factors retarded the development of the statistics of the blue-books: in the first place, they were not intended for general publication; secondly, there appeared a lack of co-ordination between the Departments furnishing the returns and the office collating and ultimately issuing them.

It was not long, however, before the need of authoritative statistics was felt, both for present use and also as a record of the development of the country and its various provinces and settlements. Accordingly, in 1849, “Statistics of New Munster,” compiled under the superintendence of Alfred Domett, were printed by order of the Legislative Council. Again, “Statistics of Nelson” covering the period 1843–54 were issued in 1855. Various other publications were issued dealing with some individual province or settlement. In the year 1853 a constitution granted by the Imperial Parliament came into force, and from this date the fragmentary and inchoate statistical works find a new complexion. Five years later the Registrar-General, who had been entrusted with the task of compiling annually statistics of the whole colony, produced a volume dealing with the years 1853, 1854, 1855, 1856.

STATISTICAL LEGISLATION.

One of the many ways in which statistics may be classified is as to source from which obtained, and in this respect they naturally divide into two classes—i.e., as to whether they are compiled from the records (obtained primarily for some other purpose) of a Government Department or other similar authority, or whether the data require to be specially collected from individual persons, &c.

As has been indicated above, the statistics included in the early blue - books belong in the main to the first of these two categories. Certain items, however, notably population figures, would be more correctly placed in the second category, though the system of collection was exceedingly crude and the scope of inquiry very limited. As a matter of fact, the population figures prior to 1851 appear to have been compiled in each settlement by the local Resilient Magistrate by the simple method of ascertaining from the head of each house the number of persons in the household. From such small beginnings, however, has grown the Dominion's present comprehensive system of collection of statistical data.

The proper collection of statistics from the public on the voluntary basis which appears to have existed in the “forties” could be maintained only with a very small population, and with the simplest of inquiries. With the increase of population and the desire to obtain fuller information than in the past, it was found advisable as early as 1851 to pass an Ordinance providing for the collection of statistics in the form of recurrent censuses.

Following on the passing of the Census Ordinance of 1851 by the General Government several of the provinces into which New Zealand was divided passed Census Ordinances of their own, the necessity for which is not apparent, as other provinces took censuses under the authority of the 1851 Ordinance.

This Ordinance gave way in 1858 to the Census Act of that year, which was amended in 1860, 1867, 1873, and 1876, and was in its turn repealed in 1877, when a new Act was passed, consolidating and extending the law relating to census-taking. The Act of 1877 was amended in 1880 and again in 1890; also, in effect, in 1895, when the Agricultural and Pastoral Statistics Act was passed, making provision for the annual collection of agricultural and pastoral statistics, which had formerly been collected quinquennially under the Census Act. In 1908 the Census Act and amendments and the Agricultural and Pastoral Statistics Act were consolidated in the Statistics Act, 1908, as part of the general consolidation of statutes. The Statistics Act, 1908, was replaced two years later by the Census and Statistics Act, 1910, which was amended in 1915 by the Census and Statistics Amendment Act of that year. The Act of 1910 was superseded by the Census and Statistics Act, 1926, which contains the present law on the subject of statistical inquiry.

It would be out of place here to recapitulate the various alterations and extensions involved in the successive enactments referred to. Suffice it to say that they reflect the growth of the world-wide realization of the importance and value of statistics.

The Census and Statistics Act, 1926, provides not only for the taking of the quinquennial population census, but also for the collection of statistical information under numerous specific heads, and contains a general authority to the Governor-General to extend the system of collection to cover any other items in respect of which statistical information may be found necessary or advisable.

THE STATISTICAL AUTHORITY.

The early “blue-books” appear to have been compiled by the Colonial Secretary. After the granting of responsible government the Registrar-General was entrusted with the collection of statistics, a function which he retained until 1910. The Census and Statistics Act, 1910, provided for the appointment of a Government Statistician, who has since been the authority charged with the administration of the Act. The 1910 Act laid down that the Government Statistician was to be an officer of the Registrar - General's Department, but this proviso was cancelled in 1915 by the amending Act of that year, whereupon the Census and Statistics Office came into existence as a separate branch of the Department of Internal Affairs,

STATISTICAL ORGANIZATION.

Until quite recent years there was very little statistical collection apart from the quinquennial census, the annual collection (on legislative authority) of the agricultural and pastoral statistics, the collection on a voluntary basis of returns of private schools, savings-banks, &c., and the obtaining of statistical information from other Government Departments. It should be noted, however, that the census was formerly the means used for the collection of certain data (as, for instance, concerning factory production), now obtained independently of the census.

Since the passing of the Census and Statistics Act in 1910, and more especially since the formation of the Census and Statistics Office in 1915, the system of statistical collection has expanded considerably, not only in regard to the regular activities of the Office, but also for the obtaining of data required for some special purpose. During the war and post-war periods, for instance, the provisions of the Census and Statistics Act were utilized for the collection of information as to stocks, consumption, requirements, &c., of numerous commodities, including flour, wheat, oats, coal, oils, wire, iron, stool, copper, twine, turnip-seed, and medical requisites.

Branches of statistical inquiry now regularly pursued by the Census and Statistics Office include the following:—

(a) From private sources: Agricultural and pastoral statistics (main collection); areas sown in wheat, oats, barley, and potatoes; threshings of wheat and oats; potato yields (post-harvest collection); stocks of wheat, flour, and oats; sheep returns; detailed statistics of live-stock; stocks of wool; detailed statistics of commercial orchards; eggs and egg-pulp in cool store; factory production; electric tramways; electric-power; fire insurance; life insurance; accident insurance; finances of local governing bodies; loans of local governing bodies (quarterly); building permits; building and construction operations; forestation and plantation operations; building societies; motor transport; port cargo statistics; banks of issue; private savings-banks; wholesale and retail prices; private assignments; wages; short-time and overtime in factories; employment and unemployment; consumption and stocks of coal; hospital patients; benevolent institutions.

(b) From or through other Government Departments in the form of individual cards, &c.: Births; marriages; deaths; orphanhood; migration; naturalization; inquests; civil and criminal cases in Court; prisons; divorce; bankruptcy; port shipping returns; exports of butter and cheese; deceased persons' estates; State advances to local bodies; incomes and income-tax; land and land-tax; mortgages; unplaced applicants for employment; industrial disturbances; industrial accidents; joint-stock companies.

The above refers only to statistical compilation from the original data. In many other branches of statistics, as, for instance, trade and public finance, detailed figures compiled by the Departments concerned are utilized in the Census and Statistics Office for the further compilation of statistics.

STATISTICAL PUBLICATIONS.

When New Zealand ceased to be a Crown colony in 1853 the annual despatch of the blue-books to the Colonial Office in London was discontinued. During the next few years several volumes of statistical tables appeared, compiled by various Provincial Governments, and in 1858 the Registrar-General published a volume for the colony as a whole, covering the years 1853, 1854, 1855, and 1856. This volume was the first of a regular annual series which, developed and expanded, were issued, formerly by the Registrar-General's Department, and from 1915 to 1920 by the Census and Statistics Office. As indicating the expansion of the country and of its statistical organization it may be mentioned that, while the statistics of the four years 1853–56 were contained in a single small volume, the statistics for 1920, the last year of publication in the old form, occupied four volumes aggregating nearly 1,200 pages.

Closely allied to the annual volumes of Statistics were the volumes of Census Statistics which were regularly compiled and published after each census of New Zealand from 1858 to 1916, for the first four occasions as part of the Statistics, but later (commencing with 1871) as separate publications.

With each volume of Statistics, commencing with that for 1853–56, went a brief report on the statistics presented. Developing slowly at first, the ultimate result was a fairly comprehensive report on the statistics—not only those presented, but the whole statistics (so far as compiled) of the colony. A similar report on census matters was included in each volume of Census Statistics.

Parallel with the statistical reports came, in 1875, an issue of another type—“The Official Handbook of New Zealand, a Collection of Papers by Experienced Colonists on the Colony as a Whole, and on the Several Provinces,” edited by Julius Vogel, C.M.G. (afterwards Sir Julius Vogel, K.C.M.G.), at that time Premier of the colony. The purpose of this book differed from that of the statistical reports. Its aim was to give “a New Zealand view of New Zealand to those who may think of making the colony their homes or the theatre of business operations.” Its well-written articles, generously illustrated with woodcuts and photographs, made this early volume interesting reading. Printed in London, it was circulated largely in England.

In 1884 a new and revised edition of this Handbook was compiled by Mr. William Gisborne, and edited by the Agent-General of the day (Mr. F. D. Bell, afterwards Sir Francis Bell). The purpose of this edition was similar to that of its predecessor, although in form it approximated more closely to the modern type.

Another example of a handbook composed for some special purpose was that of Dr. Hector, issued for the Melbourne International Exhibition of 1880.

By the year 1889 the annual report on the statistics had reached considerable proportions, and it was decided by the Registrar-General to issue it as a separate publication. He remarks in the preface to the 1889 volume of Statistics as follows: “The report has now reached about the size of the original Victorian Year-book, and it has been deemed desirable to publish it in octavo size to make it more convenient for general reference.” A similar decision, it may be added, was come to in regard to the quinquennial Census Report.

For 1889 and 1890 the Report on the Statistics was accordingly issued as a separate publication with several new features. The following year (1891) was a census year, and the place of the usual statistical report for that year was taken by a separate “Report on the Results of a Census of the Colony of New Zealand taken for the Night of the 5th April, 1891,” the first of a series of reports which have been published after each census since.

In 1892 the Report on the Statistics reappeared, remodelled and considerably enlarged, and under the title of the “New Zealand Official Handbook.” The Handbook achieved a very considerable success, and the Government gave instructions for the preparation annually of a similar volume, to be called the “New Zealand Official Year-book.” The compilation remained in the hands of the Registrar-General until 1910, when on the passing of the Census and Statistics Act of that year the Year-book and other statistical publications came under the control of the Government Statistician.

The demy octavo size adopted in 1889, when the Report on the Statistics was first issued as a separate publication, was retained for the Official Handbook, and, up to the 1920 number, for the Year-book. This size, however, was not altogether satisfactory from the point of view of economy of space or for the display of tabular matter, and in the next issue gave way to the royal octavo size.

A change was also made at the same time in the year-number of the book. Formerly the book had been designated by the year of compilation, though in recent years it had not appeared until early in the following year. The book now bears the year of publication.

It has been shown above how the annual volume of Statistics included in each year up to 1888 a prefatory report, which gradually grew in bulk until it was deemed advisable in 1889 to publish it as a separate volume, which shortly afterwards developed into the “New Zealand Official Year-book.” From 1889 to 1920 the Statistics were accordingly issued without any accompanying letterpress.

A new policy adopted in 1921 in regard to the publication of the Annual Statistics involved the reintroduction of the report to accompany the tabular matter. In lieu of presenting the statistics in one comprehensive publication, these now form the tabular matter for nine separate annual reports, each covering a definite branch of statistical inquiry, and including introductory and explanatory letterpress in addition to the tables.

A similar policy is also now followed in the case of the census results. In addition to the complete report published separately after the completion of the census tabulation, each volume of tables contains also an introductory discussion of the results disclosed.

The full list of the regular statistical publications of the Census and Statistics Office is as follows:—

PUBLICATIONS OF THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS OFFICE.

Title.	Periodicity of Issue.
New Zealand Official Year-book	Annual.
Local Authorities Handbook	Annual.
Monthly Abstract of Statistics	Monthly.
Pocket Compendium of Statistics	Annual.
Annual Statistical Reports—
Population and Buildings	Annual.
External Migration
Vital Statistics
Justice
Trade and Shipping (in two parts)
Agricultural and Pastoral Production
Factory Production
Insurance
Miscellaneous (Prices, Wages and Hours of Labour, Employment and Unemployment, Industrial Accidents, Building Societies, Bankruptcy, Incomes and Income-tax, Land and Land-tax, Statistical Summary)
Volumes of Census Results—
Geographical Distribution	Quinquennial.
Dependencies
Ages
Conjugal Condition
Orphan Children and Dependent Children
Race Aliens
Native-born and Foreign-born
Religious Professions
Industrial and Occupational Distribution
Unemployment from Sickness and other Causes
Incomes
Families and Households
Dwellings
Maori and Half-caste Population
Public Libraries and Places of Worship
Poultry
General Report
Published in New Zealand Gazette and also as extracts—
Vital Statistics of Urban Areas	Monthly and annual.
Estimated Population of New Zealand	Quarterly.
Estimated Yields of Wheat, Oats, and Barley	Annual.
Estimated Spring Areas under Wheat, Oats, Barley, and Potatoes	Annual.
Stocks of Flour, Wheat, and Oats	Annual.

The principal publication of the Census and Statistics Office is the “New Zealand Official Year-book,” which, as its title implies, is the official book of general reference on the various branches of the Dominion's activities and the various aspects of her social and economic characteristics and progress. Necessarily, however, much of the information given in the Year-book is of a condensed character, owing to the wide range of subjects covered. The Local Authorities Handbook, the annual Statistical Reports, and the census publications contain much more detailed information on the particular subjects they deal with, while the Monthly Abstract of Statistics contains the latest statistical information available on a variety of subjects, giving monthly or quarterly figures in most cases, together with letterpress presenting new annual matter as it becomes available. The Pocket Compendium contains, in very handy form, summarized annual statistics on the various subjects dealt with in the Year-book.

In addition to the publications of the Census and Statistics Office, many parliamentary reports contain statistical information, often of a detailed nature. The full list cannot be given here, but the principal of these annual reports are mentioned below, arranged in the order of subjects followed in the Year-book:—

Subject.	Report.
Subject.	Number.	Title.
Population	D.–9	Report of Department of Immigration.
Public health, hospitals, &c.	H.–31	Report on Public Health, Hospitals, and Charitable Aid.
	H.–7	Report on Mental Hospitals.
Education	E.–1	Report of Minister of Education.
	E.–2	Report on Primary Education.
	E.–3	Report on Education of Native Children.
	E.–4	Report on Child Welfare, State Care of Children, Special Schools, and Infant-life Protection.
	E.–5	Report on Manual and Technical Education.
	E.–6	Report on Secondary Education.
	E.–7	Report on Higher Education.
Justice	H.–16	Report on Police Force of the Dominion.
	H.–20	Prisons Report.
	H.–20A	Report of Prisons Board.
	H.–20B	Report on Operations of Offenders Probation Act.
Defence	H.–19	Report of General Officer Commanding Defence Forces.
	H.–5	Report on New Zealand Naval Forces.
External trade	H.–44	Report of Department of Industries and Commerce.
Shipping	H.–15	Report of Marine and Inspection of Machinery Department.
Railways	D.–2	Railways Statement.
	D.–1	Public Works Statement.
Roads	D.–1	Public Works Statement.
Postal and telegraphic	F.–1	Report of Post and Telegraph Department.
Lands	H.–3	Report of Land Transfer and Deeds Registration Department.
Crown lands	C.–1	Report on Settlement of Crown Lands.
	C.–5	Report on Land for Settlements Act.
	C.–9	Report on Discharged Soldiers' Settlement.
	C.–14	Report on National Endowments.
Native lands	G.–9	Report on Native Land Courts, Maori Land Boards, and Native Land Purchase Board.
	G.–2	Accounts of Native Trust Office.
	G.–3	Accounts of East Coast Native Trust Lands.
Surveys	C.–1A	Report on Surveys.
Agricultural and pastoral production	H.–29	Report of Department of Agriculture.
	H.–29A	Report of Board of Agriculture.
	H.–23	Sheep Returns.
Forestry	C.–3	Report of State Forest Service.
Fisheries	H.–15	Report of Marine and Inspection of Machinery Department.
	H.–22	Report of Internal Affairs Department.
Mining	C.–2	Mines Statement.
	C.–2A	Report on State Coal-mines.
	C.–12	Report on Kauri-gum Industry.
Factory production	H.–44	Report of Department of Industries and Commerce.
Public finance	B.–1	Public Accounts.
	B.–2	Report and Accounts of Public Debt Commission.
	B.–6	Financial Statement.
	B.–7	Appropriations chargeable on Consolidated Fund and other Accounts.
	B.–7A	Appropriations chargeable on Public Works Fund.
	D.–1	Public Works Statement.
State advances	B.–13	Report of State Advances Office.
	B.–14	Report of Rural Intermediate Credit Board.
Pensions	H.–18	Report of Pensions Department.
Superannuation	H.–26	Report of Public Service Superannuation Board.
	E.–8	Report on Teachers' Superannuation Fund.
	D.–5	Report on Government Railways Superannuation Fund.
National Provident Fund	H.–17	Report of National Provident Fund Board.
Banking	B.–15	Balance-sheet of Bank of New Zealand.
	F.–1	Report of Post and Telegraph Department.
	F.–4	Report on Post Office Savings-bank.
Insurance	H.–8	Report of Government Insurance Commissioner.
	H.–6A	Report on Accident Insurance Branch of the State Fire Insurance Office.
	H.–6	Report of General Manager of State Fire Insurance Office.
	H.–12	Report on Fire Brigades.
Friendly societies	H.–1	Report of Registrar of Friendly Societies.
Trade-unions	H.–11	Report of Labour Department.
Industrial disputes.	H.–11	Report of Labour Department.
Industrial accidents	H.–11	Report of Labour Department.
	D.–2	Railways Statement.
	C.–2	Mines Statement.
Electric-power	D.–1	Public Works Statement.
Public Trust Office	B.–9	Report of the Public Trust Office.
Patents, designs, and trademarks	H.–10	Report of Registrar of Patents.
Inspection of machinery	H.–15	Report of Marine and Inspection of Machinery Department.
Dependencies	A.–3	Report on Cook and other Islands.
	A.–4	Report on Western Samoa.
	A.–4A	Report of Department of Health of Western Samoa.

The foregoing list relates, as stated, to annual reports. Special reports on subjects of particular interest which have been presented to Parliament during the last three years include the following:—

SESSION 1926.

A.–4D. Tokelau (Union) Islands—Report of Administrator of Western Samoa.

B.–2. Allocation of Public Debt—Treasury Memorandum.

B.–5. Rural Credits—Report of Royal Commission.

H.–27. Organization of Scientific and Industrial Research—Report of Sir H. F. Heath, K.C.B.

SESSION 1927.

A.–4R. Mandated Territory of Western Samoa—Report of Visit by Hon. W. Nosworthy, together with Representations of Citizens' Committee and Replies thereto, &c.

C.–15. Dobson Colliery Disaster—Report of Royal Commission.

H.–28. Tariff Commission—Report.

H.–44A. Proprietary Articles Trade Association—Report of Committee of Inquiry.

I.–16. Rural Intermediate Credit Bill Committee—Report.

SESSION 1928.

A.–4B. Western Samoa—Report of Royal Commission concerning the Administration of.

C.–3A. Pulp and Paper Making—Report on Investigations into Suitability of Selected New-Zealand-grown Woods for.

G.–7. Confiscated Native Lands and other Grievances—Report of Royal Commission.

H.–17C. National Provident Fund—Actuarial Examination for the Triennium ended 31st December, 1925.

H.–26A. Public Service Superannuation Fund—Actuarial Examination as at 31st March, 1927.

H.–27. Rating of Farm Lands in Boroughs—Report of Commission of Inquiry.

H.–31A. Prevention and Treatment of Pulmonary Tuberculosis in New Zealand—Report of Committee of Inquiry.

Among important papers on subjects not specially dealt with in the Year-book are those relating to such matters as Imperial Conferences, sessions of the League of Nations, and other international Conferences. Such papers are usually to be found among the “A” series of parliamentary reports.

Chapter 5. SECTION V.—POPULATION.

Table of Contents

METHOD OF COMPILATION.

GENERAL POPULATION.

INCREASE OF POPULATION.

SEX PROPORTIONS.

INTERCENSAL ESTIMATES.

EXTERNAL MIGRATION.

CLASSES OF ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES.

NEW ZEALAND RESIDENTS.

TEMPORARY VISITORS.

PERMANENT GAINS AND LOSSES.

AGES.

ORIGIN AND DESTINATION.

NATIONALITIES.

RACE ALIENS.

ASSISTED IMMIGRATION.

RECEPTION OF ASSISTED IMMIGRANTS.

PASSPORTS.

PERMISSION TO ENTER NEW ZEALAND.

DEPARTURE FROM NEW ZEALAND.

IMMIGRATION RESTRICTION.

PROHIBITED IMMIGRANTS.

RESTRICTED IMMIGRANTS.

DISTRIBUTION OF POPULATION.

NORTH AND SOUTH ISLANDS.

PROVINCIAL DISTRICTS.

URBAN AND RURAL POPULATION.

URBAN DRIFT.

TOWNSHIPS.

ADJACENT ISLANDS.

DENSITY OF POPULATION.

MAORI AND HALF-CASTE POPULATION.

POPULATION OF COOK AND OTHER ANNEXED ISLANDS.

POPULATION OF WESTERN SAMOA.

WORLD POPULATION.

METHOD OF COMPILATION.

IN common with almost all countries, the chief instrument in compiling population data in New Zealand is the census, which in this country is taken quinquennially. The minutiae of the distribution of population, together with analyses of various population characteristics, compiled from census data will be found in the census publications listed on page 71. Owing to the high standard of intelligence of the population, and to the political, geographical, and social conditions prevailing in the Dominion, the data compiled as a result of the census are remarkably complete and reliable.

The basis adopted for the census—and indeed, practically universally throughout population statistics in New Zealand—is that of the population de fait, all persons being counted as at the place of enumeration, irrespective of habitual residence, legal domicile, and so forth.

Intercensal figures of total population are based on the customary equation:—

Population = Population (census) + Births and immigration − Deaths and emigration.

The comparative shortness of the interval between the census enumerations, combined with New Zealand's insular position and the high standard of her registration system, practically precludes the possibility of serious intercensal errors. Compulsory registration of births and deaths of Europeans was instituted throughout the Dominion in 1855, and under the present system of recording such particulars it may be confidently asserted that the proportion escaping registration is very low. This remark applies to Europeans only, as the same standard of accuracy can not be claimed for Maori registrations. A point of minor importance which may be noted is that births and deaths registered during a year are considered as actually occurring during that year.

The fact that all migration to and from the Dominion must be waterborne over lengthy distances, and that it centres in a few ports, facilitates the compilation of accurate statistics of external migration. Records of passenger traffic between the North and South Islands are also maintained. Population statistics of lesser internal divisions and of towns are based upon a variety of data collected annually.

Residents of the Cook Islands, Niue, Western Samoa, and the Tokelau Group are not included in the population statistics quoted throughout this section, except in the first table on the next page and in the paragraphs devoted to these islands at the end of the section. A similar course was formerly followed in regard to Maoris, but figures are now given inclusive of Maoris where possible, in accordance with a decision of Cabinet. In certain tables, however, Maoris have of necessity been omitted, on account of absence or insufficiency of data.

For the 1926 census all half-caste European-Maoris were included with the Native population in lieu of the previous practice of treating as Europeans such half-castes as were living in European fashion. Numbers so treated were as follows: 1921, 4,236; 1916, 3,221; 1911, 2,879; 1906, 2,578; 1901, 2,407.

Separate statistics of the Maori population are given towards the end of the section.

GENERAL POPULATION.

The population of the Dominion of New Zealand and its dependencies and the mandated territory of Western Samoa at the 1st April, 1929, exceeded one and a half millions. The Ross Dependency is uninhabited.

—	Males.	Females.	Total.
Population, (exclusive of Maoris) of New Zealand proper	716,679	688,283	1,404,961
Maori population of New Zealand proper	34,296	31,397	65,693
Population (inclusive of Maoris) of New Zealand proper	750,974	719,680	1,170,654
Population of Cook Islands and Niue	7,351	7,077	14,428
Population of Tokelau Islands (Census, 1926)	523	510	1,033
Population of the mandated territory of Western Samoa	22,993	20,965	43,958
Totals	781,841	748,232	1,530,073

INCREASE OF POPULATION.

The outstanding note of the history of population movement in New Zealand is that of unbroken growth. That it has not been invariably regular is well attested by the accompanying table setting forth the increase at successive census enumerations from 1858 onwards.

Date of Enumeration.	Population (excluding Maoris).	Numerical Increase.	Percentage Increase.	Average Annual Percentage Increase.
* Based on population excluding half-castes living as Europeans, who are included in population totals in 1921, but not in 1926.
December, 1858	59,413	..	..	..
December, 1861	99,021	39,608	66.67	18.70
December, 1864	172,158	73,137	73.86	20.54
December, 1867	218,668	46,510	27.02	8.15
February, 1871	256,393	37,725	17.25	5.11
March, 1874	299,514	43,121	16.82	5.32
March, 1878	414,412	114,898	38.36	8.43
April, 1881	489,933	75,521	18.22	5.58
March, 1886	578,482	88,549	18.07	3.39
April, 1891	626,658	48,176	8.33	1.61
April, 1896	703,360	76,702	12.24	2.33
March, 1901	772,719	69,359	9.86	1.91
April, 1906	888,578	115,859	14.99	2.79
April, 1911	1,008,468	119,890	13.49	2.60
October, 1916	1,099,449	90,981	9.02	1.57
April, 1921	1,218,913	119,464	10.87	2.32
April, 1926	1,344,469	129,792^*	10.69	2.05

As might be expected, the rate of increase in the earlier years was exceedingly high compared with the experience of later years, for a young country, endowed with fertile soil and moderate climate, and in the opening stages of development, presented glowing attractions sufficient to overcome the less alluring considerations of pioneering in a distant country more or less occupied by a race of warlike Natives.

In the “sixties” the gold rushes brought large numbers of people to New Zealand, many of whom stayed to become permanent citizens. This source of increase, however, was eclipsed during the vigorous immigration policy of the “seventies,” when in one year alone (1874) 32,118 assisted immigrants were brought into the country.

An actual decline in population has been experienced only in 1916 and 1917, and this fall was due solely to departures of troops. The natural increase of the population has proved more than sufficient to offset any migration losses, although in point of fact, omitting movements of troops, departures have exceeded arrivals in three calendar years only—viz., 1888, 1890, and 1891. This loss by migration occurred, it will be noted, at a period of great economic depression.

The average annual population increment during the ten post-war years, 1919–28, exceeded 30,000. In 1927 the population gain fell below 20,000, and in 1928 to 16,071 (Maoris excluded). Apart from war years, which were affected by movements, of troops, this is the lowest absolute increase since 1900, and the lowest relative increase, with the exception of 1888, ever recorded. Contributing causes are the continued fall in the birth-rate, which has now reached a level equal to about half that of fifty years ago, and the shrinkage, almost to vanishing-point, of the normal excess of overseas arrivals over departures. Although Governmentally assisted immigrants arriving during 1928 numbered 2,220 (the lowest figure in post-war years), the net surplus of arrivals of all classes was only 682.

Subjoined is a diagram which illustrates the population movement of the past and permits a speculative glimpse at the future. The arithmetic average of the percentage increases of population, 1881–1921, has been approximately 12.11 per cent. per quinquennium. Plotting this constant ratio as a logarithmic “curve,” and producing it both forward and backward in point of time, it is contrasted with the logarithmic “curve” expressing the actual populations. The two “curves” coincide greatly of recent years, thus indicating the steadying of the rate of growth and giving some confidence to the projection of the constant ratio as supplying an approximation, within limits, of the probable population in the future.

The final criterion of the Dominion's growth in respect of population is supplied by a comparison of the rates of increase of other portions of the British Empire and of various foreign countries. Contrasted with the European countries shown in the table following, the Dominion is experiencing a rapid growth, for they are “emigration” countries, while New Zealand is an “immigration” country. Contrasted on the other hand with Canada and Australia, the comparison is not altogether favourable to New Zealand, although the former countries are much older in point of settlement. Canada is, of course, comparatively close to the sources of immigrant, population, while both Canada and Australia still have vast areas undeveloped.

Country.	Population (latest Census).		Intercensal Increase per Cent. in Decennial Periods approximating to
Country.	Numbers.	Year.	1910–1920.	1900–1910.	1890–1900.	1880–1890.	1870–1880.	1860–1870.
* Excluding Maoris. † Europeans from census of 1926, other races from estimate; statement of increase are for Province of Cape of Good Hope only. ‡ Decrease.
New Zealand^*	1,344,469	1,926	20.87	30.51	23.31	25.87	91.09	158.93
Great Britain	42,767,630	1,921	4.74	10.36	12.03	11.17	13.95	12.73
Australia	5,436,794	1,921	22.04	18.08	18.88	41.07	32.30	45.61
Canada	8,788,341	1,921	21.95	34.17	11.13	11.76	17.23	19.37
Union of South Africa^†	7,537,624	1,926	8.49	6.44	57.79	111.82		45.25
Norway	2,649,775	1,920	12.38	6.14	11.02	..	..	6.22
Sweden	5,904,489	1,920	6.92	7.51	7.35	4.78	9.53	8.00
Netherlands	6,865,314	1,920	17.19	14.77	13.14	12.43	12.10	7.87
France	40,743,851	1,926	0.03	1.93	0.83	1.95	3.61	^‡-3.43
Germany	62,539,098	1,925	^‡-7.81	15.01	14.04	9.28	10.17	..
Italy	38,835,941	1,921	12.01	6.45	..	..	6.19	7.20
United States	105,720,620	1,920	14.94	21.02	20.73	25.50	30.08	22.63

Up to the “seventies” New Zealand was dependent on migration for the greater portion of her increase of population, but since then natural increase—i.e., excess of births over deaths—has been the principal factor. For a few years, indeed (1888–91), there was actually an excess of departures over arrivals.

Over the whole period 1861–1928 migration accounted for 37.0 per cent. of the total increase, excess of births over deaths accounting for 63.0 per cent. From 1901 to 1928 the former is responsible for 31.1 per cent. and the latter for 68.9 per cent. of the increase of population.

A table is appended showing for each five-yearly period since 1860 the excess of births over deaths and of immigration over emigration. Maoris are not included.

Period.	Excess of Births over Deaths.			Excess of Arrivals over Departures.			Total Increase.
Period.	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.
* Decrease. † Departure and return of troops of Expeditionary Force not Included in migration figures.
1861–65	7,625	8,985	16,610	63,285	29,884	93,169	70,910	38,869	109,779
1866–70	15,663	17,779	33,442	11,167	9,369	20,536	26,830	27,148	53,978
1871–75	19,409	21,129	40,538	46,501	35,445	81,946	65,910	56,574	122,484
1876–80	30,143	32,808	62,951	31,870	22,917	54,787	62,013	55,725	117,738
1881–85	32,362	35,046	67,408	15,958	13,001	28,959	48,320	48,047	96,367
1836–90	30,781	33,544	64,325	-4,911^*	-3,791^*	-8,702^*	25,870	29,753	55,623
1891–95	27,255	30,630	57,885	9,917	5,403	15,320	37,172	36,033	73,205
1896–1900	28,097	31,437	59,534	7,320	3,318	10,638	35,417	34,755	70,172
1901–05	32,515	36,223	68,738	31,223	14,223	45,446	63,738	50,446	114,184
1906–10	38,681	43,067	81,748	25,454	15,512	40,966	64,135	58,579	122,714
1911–15^†	42,323	46,682	89,005	17,656	17,905	35,561	59,979	64,587	124,566
1916–20^†	35,248	41,359	78,607	6,979	7,875	14,854	42,227	49,231	91,461
1921–25	41,876	44,868	86,744	26,732	23,256	49,988	68,608	68,124	136,732
1926	7,976	8,678	16,654	7,343	5,057	12,400	15,319	13,735	29,054
1927	7,728	8,447	16,175	2,167	1,642	3,809	9,895	10,089	19,984
1928	7,527	7,862	15,389	393	289	682	7,920	8,151	16,071
Totals, 1861–1928	405,209	448,544	853,753	299,054	201,305	500,359	704,263	649,849	1,354,112

The diagram which follows shows much more clearly the irregularity of the migration increase and the steadiness of the natural increase, the latter, however, broken by a sharp fall on account of the influenza epidemic of 1918, and further disturbed by the low birth-rate in recent years. The curves represent five-yearly moving averages.

NATURAL AND MIGRATION INCREASE.—QUINQUENNIAL MOVING AVERAGES.

SEX PROPORTIONS.

In respect of the relative proportions of the sexes in the population, New Zealand has since the first settlement of the Islands differed materially from the older countries of the world. Although in the latter the composition of the populations has been no doubt to some extent affected by migration, yet, in general, natural increase would appear to be the main determining factor, the numbers of males and females being in most of these countries approximately equal, with a more or less marked tendency, however, for the females slightly to exceed the males. The excess of females in such older countries arises from a variety of causes, amongst which the most potent are probably (a) higher rate of mortality amongst males, (b) the fact that males tend to emigrate to a greater extent than females.

Very different is the case with newer countries such as New Zealand, where the rule is (in the early years of colonization especially) for the male population to outnumber the female.

The following table is interesting as showing the early excess of males and the gradual equalization of the sexes in New Zealand, the number of females to 1,000 males having risen from 622 in 1861 to 896 in 1911. The proportion rose to 993 in 1916, mainly on account of the absence of so many men at the war, and fell again in 1921 to 956, only to show a slight rise in 1926 to 959, a figure appreciably higher than in pre-war years. The figures quoted are exclusive of Maoris.

Census Year.	Males.	Females.	Females to 1,000 Males.
1861	61,062	37,959	622
1871	150,356	106,037	705
1881	269,605	220,328	817
1891	332,877	293,781	883
1901	405,992	366,727	903
1906	471,008	417,570	887
1911	531,910	476,558	896
1916	551,775	547,674	993
1921	623,243	595,670	956
1926	686,384	658,085	959

The preponderance of males in the early years of New Zealand was doubtless due to the fact that the difficulties of pioneering and the remoteness of the country from Europe were such as to deter female immigration to a greater extent than male. This was accentuated by the character of the early industries. Gold-mining and coal-mining, for instance, would attract large numbers of men, but few women. The effect of this early preponderance of males no doubt still exists, but in an ever-diminishing degree, its gradual elimination being effected by the dying-off of the earlier settlers. In recent years there has been a, considerable approach towards equality in the increase of males and females by migration, and in some years the female increase from this source has exceeded the male.

Of the two sources from which the Dominion's population has been recruited—viz., migration and natural increase—the effect of the former has hitherto been to give in the aggregate a considerable preponderance of males, and of the latter to give a regular preponderance of females. In the period 1861–1928 the gain of males by migration totalled 97,749 more than that of females. This excess was only partly offset numerically by a female surplus of 43,335 in the figures of natural increase, but the net excess of 54,414 males is not nearly sufficient to maintain the former high ratio of males to females in the population. The surplus of males at present, exclusive of the Native population, is some 28,000. The effect of the natural increase of population is in the direction of eliminating this surplus at the rate of about 900 per annum, and the sexes would therefore be brought to numerical equality in a few decades were it not for the somewhat variable factor of migration.

INTERCENSAL ESTIMATES.

As already noted, the intercensal estimates of Dominion population prepared from the records of vital statistics and of migration are, by virtue of the favourable position of the Dominion in this respect, remarkably accurate. Indeed, as regards the statistics of total population the term “estimate” is scarcely correct, for the system in use should give, and to a great extent does give, the actual figures. With the exception of the years of the Great War, when the movement of troops was not ascertained exactly, the census totals invariably showed the quarterly returns of population to be highly accurate. There is always a difference in date between the census enumeration and the nearest quarterly statement, for no two of the eighteen general census enumerations in the history of the Dominion have been taken on the same day of the year, and this in itself usually accounts for the greater part of what disparity actually is shown.

The population at the end of each of the last ten years is quoted in the appended table, together with the movement in each year and the mean population for the year:—

Calendar Year.	Estimated Population (excluding Maoris) at End of Year.			Increase during Year.		Mean Population for Year.
Calendar Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Numerical.	Per Cent.	Mean Population for Year.
* See letterpress following.
1919	601,888	575,517	1,177,405	69,032	6.23	1,142,889
1920	617,756	590,079	1,207,835	30,430	2.58	1,192,620
1921	633,040	606,926	1,239,966	32,131	2.66	1,223,901
1922	645,524	619,873	1,265,397	25,431	2.05	1,251,895
1923	657,561	631,660	1,289,221	23,824	1.88	1,274,551
1924	671,452	644,722	1,316,174	26,953	2.09	1,298,635
1925	687,287	658,789	1,346,076	29,902	2.27	1,329,759
1926	697,113	668,304	1,365,417	29,054^*	2.17	1,352,927
1927	707,008	678,393	1,385,401	19,984	1.46	1,374,439
1928	714,928	686,544	1,401,472	16,071	1.16	1,390,684

The actual increase of population (excluding Maoris) during the calendar year 1928 was 16,071, as compared with 19,984 in 1927. The increase for 1926 was 29,054, although from the figures shown for population at 31st December, 1925 and 1926, the increase would appear to have been much less. The population at 31st December, 1925, however, was the official estimate for that date, arrived at, incidentally, on the old basis of including with the European population half-castes living as Maoris.

As the year ended 31st March is for most of the administrative functions of the Government the period most in use, similar figures are given for March years:—

Year ended 31st March,	Estimated Population (excluding Maoris) at End of Year.			Increase during Year.		Mean Population for Year.
Year ended 31st March,	Males.	Females.	Total.	Numerical.	Per Cent.	Mean Population for Year.
* Sec letterpress above.
1920	607,555	579,584	1,187,139	58,509	5.18	1,157,884
1921	622,719	595,003	1,217,722	30,583	2.58	1,202,430
1922	636,956	611,242	1,248,198	30,476	2.50	1,232,960
1923	648,545	623,196	1,271,741	23,543	1.89	1,258,017
1924	659,570	634,333	1,293,903	22,162	1.74	1,280,299
1925	676,477	648,560	1,325,037	31,134	2.41	1,305,896
1926	691,910	662,382	1,354,292	29,255	2.21	1,337,155
1927	701,774	671,972	1,373,746	29,382^*	2.18	1,357,777
1928	708,568	680,132	1,388,700	14,954	1.09	1,378,806
1929	716,678	688,283	1,404,961	16,261	1.17	1,394,726

Of the total estimated population of 1,404,961, excluding Maoris, at 31st March, 1929, adults numbered 846,159 (males, 430,959; females, 415,200).

The figures given in the two preceding tables show the population exclusive of Maoris. The following table shows the population inclusive of Maoris at 31st December and at 31st March of the last ten years, with the means for the various twelve-monthly periods:—

—	Estimated Population (including Maoris) at End of Year.			Mean Population for Year.
—	Males.	Females.	Total.	Mean Population for Year.
Years ended 31st December.
1919	627,828	599,353	1,227,181	1,192,665
1920	643,696	613,915	1,257,611	1,242,396
1921	660,948	631,769	1,292,717	1,276,652
1922	673,772	645,112	1,318,884	1,305,126
1923	685,951	657,070	1,343,021	1,328,193
1924	700,033	670,370	1,370,403	1,352,618
1925	716,371	684,859	1,401,230	1,384,428
1926	730,603	698,952	1,429,555	1,413,700
1927	740,782	709,308	1,450,090	1,438,814
1928	749,125	717,827	1,466,952	1,455,734
Years ended 31st March.
1920	633,495	603,420	1,236,915	1,207,660
1921	648,659	618,839	1,267,498	1,252,206
1922	664,979	636,272	1,301,251	1,285,711
1923	676,825	648,476	1,325,301	1,311,381
1924	688,020	659,833	1,347,853	1,334,029
1925	705,161	674,326	1,379,487	1,359,995
1926	721,173	688,639	1,409,812	1,392,073
1927	735,338	702,642	1,437,980	1,420,762
1928	742,396	711,121	1,453,517	1,443,323
1929	750,974	719,680	1,470,654	1,459,983

EXTERNAL MIGRATION.

Records of external migration have been kept in New Zealand since 1860. Prior to the 1st April, 1921, the statistics were compiled from returns furnished monthly by Collectors of Customs, but since that date they have been compiled from individual statements obtained from each person entering or leaving the Dominion, and much detailed and important information is consequently now available.

Including crews of vessels, 83,684 persons from overseas arrived in New Zealand during the year 1928, which, compared with 1927, shows a decrease of 4,844. During the same period 82,889 persons departed. This figure, compared with the corresponding one for 1927, shows a decrease of 1,787. The gain by migration to the Dominion's population during 1928 was thus only 795, as compared with 3,852 in 1927, 12,413 in 1926, and 12,802 in 1925.

The numbers of arrivals and departures during the last ten years are given in the table following. Crews of vessels have not been taken into account, and the figures for the year 1919 do not include members of the Expeditionary Force.

ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES, 1919–28.

Year.	Arrivals.			Departures.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1919	10,772	10,159	20,931	11,377	8,500	19,877
1920	23,687	20,375	44,062	17,951	14,973	32,924
1921	22,446	19,436	41,882	16,019	12,540	28,559
1922	18,811	16,422	35,233	15,643	12,746	28,389
1923	19,445	17,043	36,488	16,037	13,631	29,668
1924	21,719	18,096	39,815	16,489	14,104	30,593
1925	23,328	18,518	41,846	15,907	13,265	29,172
1926	25,508	20,177	45,685	18,649	15,176	33,825
1927	21,165	17,511	38,676	20,349	15,899	36,248
1928	19,180	16,298	35,478	18,987	16,048	35,035

The monthly figures for 1927 and 1928 are as follows, the excess of arrivals or of departures for each month being also shown:—

Month.	Arrivals.		Departures.		Excess of Arrivals.		Excess of Departures.
Month.	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.
January	5,264	4,573	2,967	3,161	2,297	1,412	..	..
February	3,731	3,122	3,247	3,177	484	..	..	55
March	3,964	2,427	4,030	4,746	..	..	66	2,319
April	2,292	1,869	4,832	4,069	..	..	2,540	2,200
May	3,123	2,287	3,295	2,670	..	..	172	383
June	1,982	1,563	2,834	2,511	..	..	852	948
July	2,035	2,399	2,948	2,642	..	..	913	243
August	2,238	2,472	2,337	3,655	..	..	99	1,183
September	2,362	2,675	2,828	2,042	..	633	466	..
October	3,331	3,799	2,134	1,911	1,197	1,888	..	..
November	3,830	3,265	2,086	1,960	1,744	1,305	..	..
December	4,524	5,027	2,710	2,491	1,814	2,536	..	..
Totals	38,676	35,478	36,248	35,035	2,428	443	..	..

It will be noted that in each month of the first half-year the number of arrivals for 1928 was less than that of the corresponding month for 1927, while during the second half-year an increase was recorded in each case with the exception of November. Excluding crews of vessels, 20,356 persons arrived during the six months ended June, 1927, as against 15,841 in 1928, while during the second half-year the figures were 18,320 and 19,637 for 1927 and 1928 respectively.

CLASSES OF ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES.

The statistics for the twelve months ended 31st December, 1928, show that during that period 35,478 persons, excluding members of crews of vessels, arrived in the Dominion. Of these, 6,339 were immigrants intending permanent residence in the country, as compared with 11,327 of a similar class in 1927. The remainder of the arrivals, 29,139 in number, were classified as shown below. Corresponding figures for the four preceding years are also given.

—	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Immigrants intending permanent residence	14,314	15,704	17,868	11,327	6,339
New Zealand residents returning from abroad	14,076	14,024	14,375	14,271	15,497
Tourists	7,425	7,898	9,509	9,105	9,597
Persons on commercial business	2,080	2,241	1,993	1,973	1,871
Persons visiting the Dominion in connection with entertainments, sports, &c.	1,009	1,193	994	782	931
Others (officials, &c., of other countries)	483	194	343	430	243
Persons in transit	328	520	533	557	946
Not stated	100	72	70	231	54
Totals	39,815	41,846	45,685	38,676	35,478

The action of the New Zealand Government in temporarily suspending, from early in 1927, the major portion of its scheme of granting assisted passages to migrants from the British Isles is chiefly responsible for the decreases shown for 1927 and 1928 in the number of immigrants intending permanent residence when compared with 1926. The figures for assisted immigrants for the years 1927 and 1928 are 5,899 and 2,220 respectively, as against 10,766 in 1926: while the decrease in the number of those who migrated to New Zealand without State assistance amounted to 1,674 in 1927 and 2,983 in 1928 when compared with 1926. The effect of the discontinuance of the “assisted” scheme would in all probability be greater than the figures would suggest. In order to obtain assistance intending migrants must fulfil certain conditions, and it frequently happens that some member or members of a family, being unable to comply with these conditions, have to come unaided. On this account, therefore, the “unassisted” are less than they would have been had the scheme not been curtailed.

The departures recorded during 1928 numbered 35,035, as compared with 36,248 in 1927. Of these, 3,954 were shown to be New Zealand residents departing permanently, 16,075 New Zealand residents departing temporarily, and 14,989 visitors to the Dominion departing. The figures which follow show the different classes of emigrants for each of the last five years:—

—	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
New Zealand residents departing permanently	2,256	1,946	2,581	4,145	3,954
New Zealand residents departing temporarily	15,006	13,758	15,157	16,659	16,075
Visitors to the Dominion departing	13,320	13,462	16,065	15,414	14,989
Persons regarding whom no information is available	11	6	22	30	17
Totals	30,593	29,172	33,825	36,248	35,035

NEW ZEALAND RESIDENTS.

New Zealand residents going abroad temporarily on business or pleasure accounted for 46 per cent. of the total departures, a similar percentage being recorded for 1927, while of the arrivals 44 per cent. were New-Zealanders returning to their homes after temporary absence, compared with 37 per cent. in 1927. The elimination of this class of migrant reduces the arrivals during 1928 to 19,981 and during 1927 to 24,405, and the departures respectively to 18,960 and 19,589.

The following table gives an indication of the destinations of New Zealand residents who went abroad during 1927 and 1928. The total for 1928 (16,075) was less than that of 1927 by 584, and males outnumbered females by 523.

Country of Destination.	1927.			1928.
Country of Destination.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
British Isles	1,439	1,675	3,114	1,498	1,819	3,317
India	105	17	122	91	21	112
South Africa	23	31	54	77	37	114
Canada	126	106	232	104	72	176
Australia	6,374	4,799	11,173	5,286	5,042	10,328
France	13	18	31	15	11	26
Italy	31	8	39	20	3	23
China	393	38	431	354	50	404
United States	150	161	311	1,12	115	227
Pacific Islands	474	490	964	592	513	1,105
Other countries	111	77	188	150	93	243
Totals	9,239	7,420	16,659	8,299	7,776	16,075

TEMPORARY VISITORS.

Tourists and other temporary visitors in 1928 comprised 38 per cent. of the arrivals and 43 per cent. of the departures, as compared with 34 and 43 per cent. respectively in 1927. The bulk of the temporary visitors come from Australia, the British Isles, and the United States of America. The following table shows for the years 1927 and 1928 the principal countries of residence of temporary visitors, classified according to their purpose in coming to the Dominion:—

Country of Last Permanent Residence.	Purpose in coming to Dominion.
	Tourists.		On Business.		Theatrical, &c.		Other, Official, &c.^*		In Transit.		Total.
	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.
* Including undefined.
Australia	5,737	6,165	1,240	1,182	609	703	249	68	227	603	8,062	8,721
British Isles	1,379	1,419	355	339	54	115	263	110	153	87	2,204	2,070
United States of America	656	695	139	133	88	28	21	2	11	68	915	926
Fiji	252	285	29	25	..	..	33	42	23	26	337	378
Canada	180	218	40	28	13	15	14	9	8	4	255	274
South Africa	75	97	6	7	..	3	2	1	..	6	83	114
China	247	103	4	21	..	8	8	..	7	5	266	137
India	96	138	6	6	1	1	7	7	1	6	111	158
Samoa	64	76	7	8	..	..	14	18	8	4	93	106
Tonga	20	19	4	2	..	1	8	14	9	29	41	65
Other countries	399	382	143	120	17	57	42	26	110	108	711	693
Totals	9,105	9,597	1,973	1,871	782	931	661	297	557	946	13,078	13,642

Persons visiting the Dominion as tourists showed in 1928 an increase of 492 over the 1927 total. Apart from a decrease of 144 in the number from China, each of the main countries from which the tourist traffic is drawn showed an increase.

PERMANENT GAINS AND LOSSES.

Having eliminated the two classes of migrants whose movements only temporarily affect the population of the Dominion, there remains the important residue which represents the permanent additions and losses of population. During the year 1928 6,339 persons landed in the Dominion with the intention of making their future homes here, compared with 11,327 in 1927, while during the same period 3,954 permanent residents of New Zealand were attracted to other countries, as against 4,145 in 1927. These figures are based on statements of intention only, and a certain percentage of immigrants, finding the conditions in the Dominion unsuited to their particular requirements may, after a short stay, depart elsewhere. Such persons on arrival would state their intention of becoming permanent residents, but on departure might not be classified as permanent residents departing permanently. For this reason it is not possible to state what the actual net gain to the permanent population of the Dominion through migration may be in any given year. Over a period of years, of course, the best figure is arrived at by simply deducting total departures from total arrivals, including crews in each instance.

AGES.

Of the total arrivals recorded during the year 1928, 9.2 per cent. were under fifteen years of age. Among the immigrants intending permanent residence, however, the proportion was much higher—viz., 17.1 per cent. The corresponding percentages for all departures and for New Zealand residents departing permanently were 10.0 and 21.2 respectively. The higher percentages under fifteen years of age in the ease of permanent settlers and emigrants is, of course, due to the fact that this class of person brings or takes his family, if any, with him, whereas the remainder of persons coming to and going from the Dominion, consisting for the most part of tourists and persons on business, travel almost exclusively without at least the younger members of their families. The higher percentage of persons of forty-five years and over amongst the departures would appear to confirm to a certain extent the general impression that many immigrants return to their native land later in life. The following table shows the percentage of new permanent immigrants who arrived during 1927 and 1928, and the New Zealand residents who departed during the same period, by age-groups, and also for the same period the permanent gain through migration in the population of the Dominion:—

—	Under 15 Years.		15 and under 45 Years.		45 Years and Over, and Age not stated.
—	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Immigrants intending permanent residence	21.24	17.13	67.87	69.62	10.89	13.25
Permanent departures	20.89	21.22	62.17	60.14	16.94	18.64
Permanent gain by migration	21.44	10.36	71.15	85.32	7.41	4.32

Under the system in force, children under fifteen years of age accompanying parents or guardians are included in the statement furnished by such parent or guardian. Of the 1,086 children under fifteen years of age in 1928, 988 were so returned. The number of parents or guardians concerned was 539, and it is interesting to note that 267 were accompanied by one child, 175 by two children, 50 by three, 26 by four, 12 by five, 7 by six, 1 by seven, and 1 by eight. Dealing with the 839 permanent departures under fifteen years of age, it is found that 833 were returned as accompanying parent or guardian, while the number of parents or guardians involved was 447. Of these, 223 were accompanied by one child, 129 by two children, 50 by three, 28 by four, 13 by five, 3 by six, and 1 by seven. These figures convey a fairly accurate indication of the sizes of the families which comprise the recent addition to and losses from our population, for although, as mentioned above, children accompanying guardians are also included, such cases are not very numerous.

ORIGIN AND DESTINATION.

Of the 6,339 new immigrants during 1928 intending to settle in the Dominion, the vast majority, 5,987, or 94.4 per cent., came from British countries, mainly from the British Isles, Australia, Canada, South Africa, and India. The majority of immigrants from foreign countries came from Jugo-Slavia, the United States of America, and Italy. The following table shows for each of the last five years the principal countries whence arrived new immigrants who intended permanent residence in the Dominion:—

Country of Last Permanent Residence.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
British Isles	11,082	11,843	14,436	8,703	4,063
India	111	136	91	86	105
South Africa	110	136	112	67	52
Canada	361	479	443	378	245
Australia	1,576	1,881	1,785	1,370	1,412
Other British countries	146	254	197	168	110
Denmark	14	13	14	34	26
Italy	50	227	58	63	33
Switzerland	34	6	25	21	13
Jugo-Slavia	467	338	361	181	67
China	112	63	56	30	29
United States	86	165	137	116	82
Other foreign countries	165	163	153	110	102
Totals	14,314	15,704	17,868	11,327	6,339

With the exception of 206 persons (of whom 119 departed for the United States, 23 for China, 32 for European countries, 13 for South American countries, 8 for foreign islands of the Pacific, and 11 for other foreign countries), the whole of the New Zealand residents who permanently left the Dominion during 1928 went to British countries. The figures for the principal countries for the last five years are as follows:—

—	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
British Isles	470	495	528	732	941
South Africa	25	29	51	37	53
Canada	120	44	84	169	168
Australia	1,470	1,171	1,637	2,855	2,445
Fiji	38	23	48	67	55
Other British countries	16	36	55	79	86
China	19	25	24	30	23
United States	53	97	132	124	119
Other foreign countries	45	26	22	52	64
Totals	2,256	1,946	2,581	4,145	3,954

NATIONALITIES.

During the year 1928 some 316 persons (males 196, females 120) of foreign nationality, out of the total of 6,339, arrived as new immigrants intending permanent residence in the Dominion, as compared with 442 (322 males, 120 females) out of a total of 11,327 in 1927, the remaining persona being British subjects. The figures for the three years 1924–26 show a considerable increase over those for the year 1923, mainly owing to the large influx of immigrants from Jugo-Slavia and Italy, but greatly decreased numbers from these countries have resulted in the 1928 total being less than half of that for each of the three years referred to. The chief nationalities represented among the alien immigrants for the last five years were as follows:—

Nationals of	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Italy	52	262	88	65	48
Switzerland	33	9	26	22	12
Denmark	18	20	20	42	32
Russia	18	27	21	8	18
Jugo-Slavia	447	350	373	177	68
Greece	19	22	16	12	28
China	88	53	40	8	4
United States	24	44	72	40	30
Other countries	134	107	100	68	76
Totals	833	894	756	442	316

There are comparatively few females among foreign nationals intending permanent residence. Whereas in 1928 a little over 46 per cent. of the British immigrants were females, the corresponding percentage for foreign nationals was only slightly over 38, this proportion being much higher than usual.

Foreign nationals constitute only a very small proportion of the total number of New Zealand residents who departed permanently during 1928. The following table shows the principal nationalities of the permanent residents departing permanently during the last five years.

Nationals of	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
British countries	2,170	1,907	2,529	4,036	3,874
France	8	2	1	5	2
Italy	4	4	1	9	3
Sweden	2	1	1	4	3
Denmark	19	4	6	6	2
Germany	4	2	..	3	1
Russia	6	..	4	1	3
China	17	23	26	35	23
United States	20	..	8	5	12
Other foreign countries	6	3	5	41	31
Total foreign	86	39	52	109	80
Grand totals	2,256	1,946	2,581	4,145	3,954

RACE ALIENS.

Although race aliens comprise comparatively small proportions of the total arrivals and departures, they are by no means unimportant. The principal race aliens with whom New Zealand is concerned are the Chinese and Indians, and these are shown separately from other race aliens. The definition of the term “race alien,” as used in connection with these statistics, is “a person of other than European race.”

The following table shows the permanent increase in the Dominion's race-alien population through migration for the years 1927 and 1928:—

—	1927.				1928.
—	Chinese.	Indians.	Others.	Total.	Chinese.	Indians.	Others.	Total.
* Decrease.
Immigrants intending permanent residence	11	41	26	78	6	44	17	67
New Zealand residents departing permanently	35	3	16	54	23	5	19	47
Permanent increase of race aliens in New Zealand through migration	24^*	38	10	24	17^*	39	2^*	20

It should be noted that the figures quoted above include half-castes. There has been a substantial decrease in the number of Chinese immigrants during the last few years, and this, coupled with increases in the number departing permanently, makes an actual reduction in the Chinese population through migration during 1927 and 1928 of 24 and 17 respectively, as against an increase of 23 in 1926. The permanent increase in the number of Indian immigrants remains at a fairly stationary figure. The “other” race-alien immigrants intending permanent residence in 1928 were made up mainly of 10 Syrians.

The total arrivals and departures of race aliens during each of the last ten years are as follows:—

Year.	Arrivals.				Departures.
Year.	Chinese.	Indians.	Others.	Total.	Chinese.	Indiana.	Others.	Total.
1919	418	193	97	708	238	18	66	322
1920	1,477	225	32	1,734	380	54	9	443
1921	255	137	249	641	368	100	239	707
1922	345	32	172	549	362	125	213	700
1923	365	115	249	729	378	66	188	632
1924	548	128	341	1,017	451	128	332	911
1925	517	216	323	1,056	524	165	216	905
1926	613	239	347	1,199	541	164	308	1,013
1927	542	151	270	963	587	135	184	906
1928	419	173	307	899	680	140	284	1,104

The pending alteration of the law was the cause of a huge influx of Chinese in 1920, with a view to anticipating the tightening of the restrictions, which actually came into operation on the passing of the Immigration Restriction Amendment Act of that year. Since 1926 no permits for Chinese immigrants have been issued by the Government. Therefore those shown as new immigrant's during the three years 1926–28 were either admitted on permits issued prior to 1926 or were former residents of New Zealand who had been absent therefrom for more than five years or were children of New Zealand residents born while parents were abroad.

At the census of 1881, the year in which taxation was first imposed on Chinese landing in New Zealand, the Chinese population numbered 5,004 persons, which fell to 4,542 in 1886, and further to 3,711 in 1896. During the period 1881–96 the poll-tax was £10 per head, and this seemed sufficient for the purpose of preventing a large influx of Chinese. During the years 1894 and 1895, however, the arrivals shown by the Customs returns were found to be somewhat greater than the departures, and in 1896 an Act was passed raising the poll-tax on Chinese immigrants to £100 per head, and limiting the number of Chinese passengers that may be carried by vessels to New Zealand to one for every 200 tons burthen. According to the census of 1901, the Chinese population was 2,857; in 1906 it was 2,570; in 1911, 2,630; in 1916, 2,147; in 1921, 3,266; and in 1926, 3,374. At the 31st March, 1929, the approximate numbers of the principal alien races present in New Zealand were: Chinese, 3,083; Indians, 1,137; and Syrians, 975.

ASSISTED IMMIGRATION.

In connection with the following paragraphs, it should be explained that since about May, 1927, the system of assisted immigration has been temporarily suspended except in regard to (1) domestics and single women, (2) boys under Flock House (also girls), Salvation Army, and Church of England schemes, and (3) wives, &c., of immigrants who have arrived previously.

Permanent residents of the Dominion and bona fide New-Zealanders visiting the United Kingdom may nominate any person, not a prohibited immigrant within the meaning of the Immigration Restriction Act, 1908 (N.Z.), and its amendments, or of the Undesirable Immigrants Exclusion Act, 1919 (N.Z.), residing in the United Kingdom, for an assisted passage to New Zealand under the following conditions:—

The person nominated must be under the age of fifty years. Although assisted passages cannot be granted to persons who have attained the age of fifty years, the Immigration Department can arrange full-fare passages for any such persons proceeding as members of a family or of a party the remainder of which is travelling at assisted rates. Full fares (subject to alteration by the shipping companies) are as follows: Third-class six-berth, £37; four-berth, £39; two-berth, £43 per adult.

The person nominated must not have resided in the Dominion or in Australia for a period of at least five years immediately preceding nomination.

He must supply to the High Commissioner for New Zealand in London satisfactory medical certificate and certificate of character.

In the case of a married person, nomination must include husband, wife, and family (if any), except where a judicial separation exists or desertion is proved.

The nominator must undertake to make provision for maintenance and employment for the nominee after arrival in the Dominion, and must also guarantee that the nominee will reside in the Dominion for at least five years.

All questions as to suitability of any person nominated for an assisted passage are decided by the High Commissioner for New Zealand in London.

Provided that the above conditions are complied with, an assisted passage will be granted at the following rates, which are subject to revision:—

	Third Class.
	Six-berth.	Four-berth.	Two-berth.
Married adults, under 50 years (including widows with children)	£11	£13	£17
Single men, 19 and under 50	£11	£13	£17
Single women (including widows without children)—
19 and under 40	Free	£2	£6
40 and under 50	£11	£13	£17
Boys and girls, 12 and under 19	Free	£2	£6
Children, 3 and under 12	Free	£1	£3
Children, under 3, if not more than one	Free	Free	Free

The full amount of passage-money must be paid before a passage is booked. The money can be paid in New Zealand by the nominator, or in London by the nominee, or partly by both.

In any case where nominees are unable to pay the cost of six-berth passages the Imperial and New Zealand Governments, acting in concert, will, on the approval of the High Commissioner, advance the necessary amount by way of loan, repayable within a reasonable time after their arrival in the Dominion.

Nomination forms are obtainable at post-offices throughout the Dominion, or at the Department of Immigration, Wellington. Nominations can be cabled at an extra cost of £1. Remittances can be forwarded to nominees at time of nomination without fee.

Passages are granted on vessels belonging to the Shaw-Savill and Albion Company and the New Zealand Shipping Company from London or Southampton, and the Federal Steam Navigation Company from Liverpool. Passages can be booked to the following ports in New Zealand: Auckland, Gisborne, Napier, Wellington, Lyttelton, Timaru, Oamaru, and Port Chalmers. Nominated passages are granted by direct route only.

Passages at reduced rates are not granted to unhealthy persons. When cases of lung, chest, or other like complaints are discovered in any member of a family by the Medical Officer at London, Liverpool, or Southampton, the whole family is prevented from sailing.

In the case of immigrants under twenty-one years of age special arrangements have to be entered into for their protection on the voyage where deemed necessary or advisable.

In addition to the system of nomination, qualified domestic servants under 40 years of age may, on application to the High Commissioner, be granted free passages to New Zealand. To be eligible a person must be a bona fide domestic (general servant, cook, housemaid, parlourmaid, waitress, laundress, or nursemaid) and be in employment as such at time of application, and a written undertaking must be given to follow such calling for at least twelve months after arrival in the Dominion, and that marriage will not be contracted during that period.

Qualified farm labourers under 45 may apply for and be granted assisted passages as for single men. The conditions are the same as in the case of domestics, except, of course, that the question of marriage does not enter into the matter.

As their respective Governments do not subscribe to the provisions of the Empire Settlement Act, 1922, residents of the Irish Free State or the Channel Islands (except Guernsey) are not eligible for nomination. As far as Ireland is concerned only residents of the following counties are eligible for nomination, viz.: Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry, and Tyrone.

Various systems of assisted immigration have been in force since 1871, with the exception of the period 1892 to 1903 (inclusive). As explained previously, the present scheme has been in the main suspended since the middle of 1927. The numbers of assisted immigrants during each year are as follows:—

Year.	Number.
1871	303
1872	4,736
1873	8,754
1874	32,118
1875	20,370
1876	9,677
1877	5,344
1878	6,618
1879	10,311
1880	2,689
1881	103
1882	726
1883	5,902
1884	3,888
1885	1,072
1886	917
1887	1,286
1888	485
1889	91
1890	144
1891	44
1904	1,058
1905	2,191
1906	3,682
1907	2,959
1908	4,667
1909	3,299
1910	2,341
1911	3,070
1912	3,535
1913	5,151
1914	3,716
1915	1,300
1916	695
1917	231
1918	421
1919	3,569
1920	7,615
1921	8,085
1922	7,773
1923	6,181
1924	8,091
1925	8,277
1926	10,766
1927	5,899
1928	2,220

The total to 31st December, 1928, is 222,370, of which number all have come from the United Kingdom, with the exception of 3,909 from the Continent of Europe spread over the five years 1874 to 1878 (inclusive).

RECEPTION OF ASSISTED IMMIGRANTS.

On arrival in New Zealand the immigrants are met on board by officers of the Immigration Department, who accompany the Port Health Officer to the ship. While the vessel is in the stream it is the special duty of such officers to afford to the assisted immigrants all necessary information as regards transhipment, &c.

Each immigrant is seen as he passes towards the doctor for examination, and is handed an official letter containing information as to where his ticket will be arranged for, and the place and time of departure of his connecting train or boat (if any). It is the practice of the Department to send out advices, by wire if necessary, to friends and relatives of immigrants about to arrive, and to get back information as to where the newcomers will be met. These messages, often together with private letters, &c., are given out on board to those to whom they are addressed.

In the case of domestics, the matron in charge on board is instructed to classify the girls under two heads: (a) Those with work already arranged or with friends to go to; (b) those without either friends or work. On arrival they are met by the Girls' Superintendent of the Immigration Department. Arrangements are made for sending to their destinations those girls who are going to friends or to definite positions. Those requiring accommodation are directed to homes or hostels approved by the Minister of Immigration for this purpose. The Superintendent then separately considers the case of each girl, and arranges to place her with an applicant for a Government-assisted girl. After a girl has been placed the Department endeavours to keep in touch with her by correspondence.

PASSPORTS.

PERMISSION TO ENTER NEW ZEALAND.

With certain specified exceptions, no person over the age of fifteen years may land in New Zealand unless in possession of a passport or some other document satisfactorily establishing his or her nationality and identity. Exemption from this requirement (which is additional to the requirements of the Immigration Restriction and Undesirable Immigrants Exclusion Acts) may be granted by the Minister of Internal Affairs.

In the case of a person coming from a foreign country the passport must, with certain exceptions, have been issued or vised by the British Ambassador or a British Consul in that country, and in the case of a person coming from any part of the British dominions the issue or visé must have been by some public official duly authorized in that behalf.

Certain exceptions are made with respect to persons coming to New Zealand from the Cook Islands and Western Samoa. In their case the only requirement is the possession of a permit to visit New Zealand granted by the Resident Commissioner of the Cook Islands or the Administrator of Samoa, as the case may be. The regulations, further, do not apply to a British subject arriving in New Zealand as the master or a member of the crew of the vessel in which he arrives, or to a British subject arriving from the Commonwealth of Australia.

DEPARTURE FROM NEW ZEALAND.

With the exception of British subjects travelling to the Commonwealth of Australia, the Cook Islands, or Western Samoa, all persons travelling to places beyond the seas are required to be in possession of a passport or similar document to facilitate landing thereat. British passports are issued, under the direction of His Excellency the Governor-General, by the Department of Internal Affairs. They are valid for five years and may be renewed for any number of years not exceeding five. Subject to the Immigration Regulations in force in the various countries of the Empire, they are valid for travelling anywhere within the British Empire, including territories under British protection or mandate, but not Palestine or Mesopotamia unless specially endorsed for those countries.

IMMIGRATION RESTRICTION.

The legislation respecting the restriction of immigration into New Zealand is contained in the Immigration Restriction Act, 1908, and its amendments, and the Undesirable Immigrants Exclusion Act, 1919. It is administered by the Customs Department. In general the provisions outlined hereunder do not apply to (a) His Majesty's land and sea forces, (b) the officers and crew of any ship-of-war of any Government, (c) persons duly accredited to the Government of New Zealand by any other Government, (d) the officers and crew of any mercantile vessel who leave New Zealand with the vessel, (e) persons domiciled in New Zealand, (f) any persons who may be exempted in special cases (at the discretion of the proper authority).

PROHIBITED IMMIGRANTS.

The following classes of persons are prohibited from landing in New Zealand:—

(1) Persons not of British birth and parentage, unless in possession of permits issued by the Customs Department.

NOTE.—A person is not deemed to be of British birth and parentage by reason that he or his parents or either of them is a naturalized British subject, or by reason that he is an aboriginal Native or the descendant of an aboriginal Native of any dominion (other than New Zealand), colony, possession, or protectorate of His Majesty.

(2) Idiots or insane persons.

(3) Persons suffering from contagious diseases which are loathsome or dangerous.

(4) Persons arriving in New Zealand within two years after the termination of a period of imprisonment for a serious offence.

(5) Persons who are considered by the Attorney-General to be disaffected or disloyal, or of such a character that their presence in New Zealand would be injurious to the peace, order, and good government of the Dominion.

(6) Aliens of the ago of fifteen years or over who refuse or neglect to take an oath (or make an affirmation) of obedience to the laws of New Zealand.

Provision is made in the law to permit persons covered by clause (1) above to pay temporary visits to New Zealand. Temporary permits are normally restricted to a period of six months, but may be extended if the proper authorities consider that the circumstances warrant such action. A deposit of £10 is required in respect of such temporary permits, and is returned on the departure of the visitor if the conditions of the temporary permit are complied with. The Collector of Customs may also require, if he so decides, a deed to be entered into by some person or persons resident in New Zealand approved by him guaranteeing to pay all expenses that may be incurred by the Crown or any public body for the visitor's maintenance, relief, arrest, or detention in New Zealand or his deportation therefrom.

Chinese entering New Zealand to become permanent residents are required, in addition to being in possession of the permit indicated in clause (1) above, to pay £100 poll-tax.

RESTRICTED IMMIGRANTS.

When persons arrive in New Zealand who are lunatic, idiotic, deaf, dumb, blind, or infirm, and are likely to become a charge upon the public or upon any public or charitable institution, the master, owner, or charterer of the ship by which such persons come to New Zealand may be called on to enter into a bond for £100 for each such person, guaranteeing payment of any expenses which may be incurred for his support and maintenance by or in any such institution within a period of five years.

GENERAL.

Every person of and over the age of fifteen years who lands in New Zealand must, unless exempted by the Minister of Customs, make and deliver to an officer of Customs a declaration giving the following particulars: Name, age, nationality, race or people to which he belongs, residence, particulars of children under fifteen years of age arriving with him, and (if not domiciled in New Zealand) occupation, and places of birth of himself and father.

NATURALIZATION.

The British Nationality and Status of Aliens (in New Zealand) Act, 1928, which was reserved for Royal assent, came into force on the 1st July, 1929. This Act made important alterations in the naturalization law of New Zealand, and made provision for the adoption of Part II of the British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act, 1914 (Imperial). The effects of the adoption of the provisions referred to are twofold, namely:—

(1) Certificates of naturalization heretofore granted or that may hereafter be granted in the United Kingdom or in any of the self-governing dominions in accordance with the said Part II will be operative in New Zealand, and the holders will accordingly continue, when in New Zealand, to be entitled to the privileges and to be subject to the obligations of British subjects.

(2) Certificates of naturalization granted in New Zealand after the commencement of the Act will confer on the holders thereof the complete status of British subjects, a status which will not be forfeited by departure from New Zealand. In this respect it differs from the status created by naturalization under the previous law.

Holders of existing certificates of naturalization granted in New Zealand may apply for and receive certificates under the present law; unless and until new certificates are issued to them, their rights and obligations as British subjects remain restricted to New Zealand. The Act does not impose any obligation upon the holders of such certificates to apply for the more complete form of naturalization afforded by the Act, and no limitations are placed upon the duration of existing certificates.

The Imperial Act provides as a condition precedent to the grant of a certificate of naturalization that the applicant must have an adequate knowledge of the English language. This condition is, in the case of Samoans, dispensed with in the Act. As it is not legally possible for the New Zealand Legislature to dispense with any conditions in the adoption of the Imperial Act, it is proposed to retain for Samoan applicants for naturalization who cannot satisfy the above condition the limited type of certificate that has been heretofore granted. Every certificate which is so limited in its operation will bear on its face a statement to that effect. Samoans who satisfy the language requirements will be entitled to receive certificates conferring on them the full status of British subjects.

STATUS OF ALIENS.

Section 13 of the Act re-enacts the existing law as to the capacity of aliens to acquire and hold land in New Zealand. The electoral rights of aliens in relation to local government are defined in section 17 of the Local Elections and Polls Amendment Act, 1926.

GENERAL.

An alien friend residing in New Zealand may apply to the Minister of Internal Affairs, setting forth—

(a) His name, age, birthplace, residence, occupation, nationality, name of wife or husband, and names and nationality of parents:

(b) The length of his residence in New Zealand, and his desire to settle therein, either permanently or for a limited period, stating such limited period (if any):

If the Minister is satisfied—

(a) That the applicant has either resided within New Zealand for a period of not less than five years, or has been in the service of the Crown in any part of His Majesty's dominions for not less than five years within the last eight years before the application; and

(b) That the applicant is of good character and has an adequate knowledge of the English language; and

(c) That the applicant intends, if his application is granted, to continue to reside in His Majesty's dominions, or to enter or continue in the service of the Crown; and

(d) That in all other respects the applicant is a person fit to hold and exercise the rights of a British subject in New Zealand—

he may, in his absolute discretion, give or withhold the certificate as he thinks most conducive to the public good, and no appeal lies from his decision.

The Minister of Internal Affairs is empowered to revoke a certificate of naturalization that has been obtained by false representation or fraud, or by concealment of material circumstances, or where the person to whom the certificate is granted has shown himself by act or speech to be disaffected or disloyal to His Majesty. Without prejudice to the foregoing provisions it is laid down that the Minister shall by order revoke a certificate of naturalization granted by him in any case in which he is satisfied that the person to whom the certificate was granted either—

(a) Has during any war in which His Majesty is engaged unlawfully traded or communicated with the enemy or with the subject of an enemy State, or been engaged in or associated with any business which is to his knowledge carried on in such manner as to assist the enemy in such war; or

(b) Has within five years of the date of the grant of the certificate been sentenced by any Court in His Majesty's dominions to imprisonment for a term of not less than twelve months, or to a term of penal servitude, or to a fine of not less than one hundred pounds; or

(d) Has since the date of the grant of the certificate been for a period of not less than seven years ordinarily resident out of His Majesty's dominions otherwise than as a representative of a British subject, firm, or company carrying on business, or an institution established, in His Majesty's dominions, or in the service of the Crown, and has not maintained substantial connection with His Majesty's dominions; or

(e) Remains according to the law of a State at war with His Majesty a subject of that State;

and that (in any case) the continuance of the certificate is not conducive to the public good.

The fees are as follows, that for the grant of a certificate of naturalization covering also the registration of the certificate and of the oath of allegiance in respect thereof:—

	£	s.	d.
Certificate of naturalization (local) in case of a Samoan	0	2	6
Certificate of naturalization in case of a women who was a British subject previously to her marriage to an alien	0	5	0
Certificate of naturalization in other cases—
(i) Except in cases of indigence	10	0	0
(ii) In case of indigence, to be determined by the Minister of Internal Affairs	1	0	0
Registration of a declaration of alienage or of retention or resumption of British nationality	0	10	0
Certified copy of any declaration or certificate	0	10	0

During the year 1928 letters of naturalization in New Zealand were granted to 302 persons of the undermentioned birthplaces, as compared with 137 in the previous year. In addition, 155 children were included in the certificates of their parents, and certificates under the new legislation were issued to three male Dalmatians (covering also four children) previously naturalized in New Zealand.

Country of Birth.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Children.^*
* Children included in certificate of parent; additional to preceding figures.
Norway	7	1	8	10
Sweden	18	..	18	6
Denmark	24	..	24	5
Faroe Islands	2	..	2	..
Iceland	1	..	1	1
Finland	10	..	10	4
Russia	2	1	3	1
Latvia	5	..	5	1
Lithuania	1	..	1	..
Poland	5	1	6	2
Danzig Free City	1	..	1	..
Germany	15	..	15	11
England	..	1	1	1
Netherlands	3	..	3	4
Belgium	6	..	6	8
France	2	2	4	..
Austria	1	..	1	..
Switzerland	11	2	13	11
Czecho-Slovakia	1	..	1	2
Spain	1	..	1	..
Jugo-Slavia—
Dalmatia	131	..	131	42
Montenegro	1	..	1	..
Italy	27	..	27	29
Bulgaria	1	..	1	3
Greece	2	..	2	1
Cyprus	1	..	1	..
Syria	2	..	2	..
Egypt	1	..	1	..
Java	1	..	1	..
China	..	1	1	..
United States	5	..	5	8
America (not further defined)	1	..	1	..
Tonga	1	..	1	3
Western Samoa	3	..	3	2
Totals	293	9	302	155

In the last seven years 1,697 subjects or citizens of other nations obtained letters of naturalization in New Zealand. The following table exhibits the principal countries involved. For the last four years concerned the basis is the country of birth, for the remaining three the previous nationality.

Country.	No.
Jugo-Slavia	488
Germany	199
Denmark	173
Italy	118
Sweden	117
Norway	79
Switzerland	74
Russia	67
United States	59
Finland	47
Poland	46
Western Samoa	28
Syria	27
Greece	26
Austria	25
Netherlands	23
France	22
Belgium	13
Portugal	7
Czech-Slovakia	7
Other countries	52
Total	1,697

DISTRIBUTION OF POPULATION.

NORTH AND SOUTH ISLANDS.

In 1858 the North Island had a larger population than the South, this position being reversed at the succeeding enumerations until 1901, in which year the North Island was found to have slightly the larger total, a position which it has since considerably improved upon. The Maori War which broke out in 1860 retarded settlement in the North, while a large area of land reserved for the Maoris was for many years a serious hindrance to the development of this portion of the Dominion. The South Island was practically free from Maori troubles, and settlement was more rapid, though much of the land was disposed of in large areas. The discovery of gold in Otago in 1861 and on the West Coast m 1864 attracted to these localities considerable numbers of miners.

Population of the North and South Islands, 1858–1926.

Census Year.	Population (excluding Maoris).			Proportions per Cent.
Census Year.	North Island.	South Island.^*	Total.	North Island.	South Island.^*
* Including Stewart Island and Chatham Islands.
1858	34,094	25,319	59,413	57.38	42.62
1861	41,641	57,380	99,021	42.05	57.95
1864	65,263	106,895	172,158	37.91	62.09
1867	79,913	138,755	218,668	36.55	63.45
1871	96,875	159,518	256,393	37.78	62.22
1874	111,934	187,580	299,514	37.37	62.63
1878	158,208	256,204	414,412	38.18	61.82
1881	193,047	296,886	489,933	39.40	60.60
1886	250,482	328,000	578,482	43.30	56.70
1891	281,474	345,184	626,658	44.92	55.08
1896	340,638	362,722	703,360	48.43	51.57
1901	390,579	382,140	772,719	50.54	49.45
1906	476,737	411,841	888,578	53.65	46.35
1911	563,733	444,735	1,008,468	55.90	44.10
1916	651,072	448,377	1,099,449	59.22	40.78
1921	741,255	477,658	1,218,913	60.81	39.19
1926	831,813	512,656	1,344,469	61.87	38.13

A feature of recent years has been the steady trend of population to the North Island.

The natural increase of population (i.e., excess of births over deaths) for the South Island in 1928 was 5,250, yet the total increase was only 3,636. A net “drift” of 1,614 is therefore disclosed. For the North Island the natural increase was 10,139, and the total 12,435. These figures are exclusive of Maoris.

PROVINCIAL DISTRICTS.

The populations of the various provincial districts, as disclosed by the censuses of 1901, 1911, 1921, and 1926, with the estimate for the current year, areas follows:—

Provincial District.	Census Population.^*				Estimated Population^* as at 1st April, 1929.
Provincial District.	1901.	1911.	1921.	1926.	Estimated Population^* as at 1st April, 1929.
* Excluding Maoris.
Auckland	175,946	264,524	369,618	424,531	449,307
Hawke's Bay	35,424	48,546	60,925	65,620	68,530
Taranaki	37,855	51,569	61,911	68,162	69,920
Wellington	141,354	199,094	248,801	273,500	290,180
Marlborough	13,326	15,985	17,788	18,317	18,630
Nelson	37,915	48,463	47,628	50,677	51,880
Westland	14,506	15,714	14,181	15,129	15,930
Canterbury	143,248	173,443	199,034	213,890	222,964
Otago—
Otago portion	125,341	132,402	136,880	149,522	150,360
Southland portion	47,804	58,728	62,147	65,121	67,260
Totals	772,719	1,008,468	1,218,913	344,469	1,404,961

During the twenty-five years from 1901 to 1926 the population of the Dominion increased by 74 per cent., and each of the four North Island provincial districts showed a higher rate of increase—viz., Auckland, 141 per cent.; Wellington, 93 per cent.; Hawke's Bay, 65 per cent.; and Taranaki, 80 per cent. Among the South Island provincial districts Canterbury led with a percentage increase of 49, followed by Marlborough (37), Southland (36), Nelson (34), Otago (19), and Westland (4).

URBAN AND RURAL POPULATION.

On 20th April, 1926, somewhat over one-third (38.5 per cent.) of the population of the Dominion (excluding Maoris) was included in the four principal urban areas—Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin—and over one-half (51.6 per cent.) in these and in the ten secondary urban areas. The urban areas are not homogeneous local governing bodies, but were formed for statistical purposes, with a view to obviating difficulties formerly experienced through alterations of boundaries of cities and boroughs. Each urban area contains, in addition to the central city or borough and any suburban borough, town, or road districts, a considerable non - municipalized area adjacent to and contingent on the centre. The boundaries, which were designed to remain unaltered for a long period, thus allowing of definite comparisons being made over a series of years, were fixed with a view to providing for probable expansion.

Including those cities and boroughs which form parts of urban areas, the borough population at the census of 1926 aggregated 785,040, or 58.39 per cent. of the total population of the Dominion. Prior to 1900 there was no statutory limitation to the number of inhabitants necessary to constitute a borough, and consequently many small centres became municipalities. The Municipal Corporations Act now imposes a limit as to area, and provides that no new borough may be constituted unless the proposed area contains at least 1,000 inhabitants.

The counties contain what is generally regarded as the rural population, though this is only approximately correct, some of the boroughs, as stated above, having small populations mainly engaged in rural occupations. On the other hand, some of the non-municipalized towns, which include town districts suburban to the cities and principal boroughs and lying within the urban areas referred to above, have populations more urban than rural.

The town districts are of two classes, which may be referred to as “dependent” and “independent,” the former being in some matters under the jurisdiction of the Council of the county within which it lies, while the latter is entirely independent of county control. A town district may attain its independence of the county when its population exceeds 500, and may become a borough on reaching a population of 1,000.

For population purposes dependent town districts have their figures included in the totals of the counties within which they lie, while independent town districts are excluded, as is also the case with boroughs. Under the old method of computing urban and rural population, however, both classes of town districts are included in the county totals, as in the following table showing the urban and rural population at each census since 1881:—

Census Year.	Counties.	Boroughs.	Percentage.
Census Year.	Counties.	Boroughs.	Counties.	Boroughs.	Shipboard, &c.
1881	291,238	194,981	59.44	39.80	0.76
1886	327,328	245,612	56.58	42.46	0.96
1891	352,097	270,343	56.18	43.14	0.68
1896	391,735	307,294	55.69	43.69	0.62
1901	417,596	350,202	54.04	45.32	0.64
1906	458,797	424,614	51.63	47.79	0.58
1911	496,779	505,598	49.26	50.14	0.60
1916	501,259	585,306	45.59	53.24	1.17
1921	530,852	681,988	43.55	55.95	0.50
1926	551,457	785,040	41.02	58.39	0.59

URBAN DRIFT.

In view of the public attention which has in recent years been bestowed upon the question of urban drift, the subject merits some further discussion. A measure of very fair accuracy is provided by the proportion of “county” and “borough” population in the table immediately preceding. Its drawback is perhaps that it slightly overstates the proportion of urban inhabitants and recent movements of the urban drift. A better criterion is contained in the next table, although perhaps the effects are here slightly understated.

For reasons indicated above, it is not altogether correct to regard the county population as rural and the borough population as urban. It is perhaps preferable to consider the question in the light of the following figures, in the computation of which the urban population is considered as that living in cities, boroughs, or town districts of over 1,000 inhabitants in 1881, 1,200 in 1886, 1,300 in 1891, 1,450 in 1896, 1,600 in 1901, 1,800 in 1906, 2,050 in 1911, 2,250 in 1916, and 2,500 in 1921 and 1926. Here the basic town has been given a rate of increase approximately equivalent to that of the country as a whole, it being assumed that a town of 2,500 bears much the same relationship at the present day as one of 1,000 inhabitants did in 1881. The results are as under:—

Census.	Rural Population: Per Cent.	Urban Population: Per Cent.
1881	62.34	37.66
1886	60.47	39.53
1891	61.16	38.84
1896	61.95	38.05
1901	60.87	39.13
1906	57.96	42.04
1911	57.07	42.93
1916	54.18	45.82
1921	51.23	48.77
1926	48.38	51.62

The increasing proportion of urban population in recent years is plainly manifest. It is noteworthy that the “urban drift,” either non-existent or quiescent up to 1906, in that year commenced a swift rise, which is rapidly gaining in momentum.

Consideration of urban population would be incomplete without a reference to the size of the towns dealt with. To that end a table has been compiled which shows the grouping of the residents of cities, boroughs, and town districts according to the size of their municipality. The total may be taken as corresponding sufficiently well to the urban population. The table shows some very interesting

movements in urban distribution, but it is necessary to utter a caution against comparisons made without due consideration. Adjoining boroughs frequently amalgamate, and thus a large borough or city is at once in existence, although there may well be little or no change otherwise. Again, boroughs or town districts are often created out of what prior to such creation has been considered rural territory, and the change in status automatically places them within the number of the urban population without any corresponding change in the industries, &c., characteristic of the respective towns. Furthermore, the number of alterations in the boundaries of local districts is most marked.

Boroughs and Town Districts with Populations of	1901.				1926.
	Number of Boroughs, &c.	Population.	Per Cent. of		Number of &c. Boroughs, &c.	Population.	Per Cent. of
	Number of Boroughs, &c.	Population.	Urban Population.	Total Population.	Number of &c. Boroughs, &c.	Population.	Urban Population.	Total Population.
Over 50,000	..	..	..	..	4	337,221	40.57	25.08
25,000-50,000	2	77,851	21.19	10.08	..	..	..	..
10,000-25,000	3	53,821	14.65	6.96	12	185,580	22.32	13.80
5,000-10,000	10	66,259	18.03	8.58	11	82,144	9.88	6.11
2,500-5,000	20	74,489	20.27	9.64	23	85,430	10.28	6.36
1,000-2,500	38	59,117	16.09	7.65	63	102,201	12.29	7.60
Under 1,000	63	35,882	9.77	4.64	75	38,722	4.66	2.88
Totals	136	367,419	100.00	47.55	188	831,298	100.00	61.83

An important characteristic of the distribution of urban population in New Zealand is what may be termed its decentralization. Increase of one great metropolis containing a huge proportion of the population, as if the case of the Australian States—e.g., Victoria, whose capital city, Melbourne, contains over 50 per cent. of the total population of the State—the more highly urbanized portion of the community is localized in four widely separated centres. These four centres have always existed more or less on the same plane, a fact which has played no small part in the development of the country.

Urban and rural communities are not evenly distributed. The South Island, for example, contains proportionately more rural population that does the North Island. Of the Northern provincial districts Taranaki is the only one in which rural population predominates. The distribution as at the census of 1926 is set forth in the accompanying table:—

Provincial District.	Boroughs, &c., of over 10,000.		Boroughs, &c., of 2,500–10,000.		Boroughs, &c., of under 2,500.		Total Population of Boroughs, &c.	Remainder of Population.
Provincial District.	Number.	Population.	Number.	Population.	Number.	Population.	Total Population of Boroughs, &c.	Remainder of Population.
Auckland	5	150,173	13	63,677	47	48,334	262,184	162,347
Hawke's Bay	2	25,050	1	4,243	9	9,110	38,403	27,217
Taranaki	1	13,923	2	7,840	9	8,677	30,440	37,722
Wellington	3	140,471	6	35,002	21	24,414	199,887	73,613
Marlborough	..	..	1	4,970	2	1,479	6,449	11,868
Nelson	1	10,153	1	3,866	6	6,094	20,113	30,564
Westland	..	..	1	5,619	4	4,029	9,648	5,481
Canterbury	2	98,339	5	20,930	11	12,045	131,314	82,576
Otago—
Otago portion	1	67,536	3	17,513	19	16,987	102,036	47,486
Southland portion	1	17,156	1	3,914	10	9,754	30,824	34,297

New Zealand is not alone in experiencing the modern tendency towards urban aggregation: it is, in fact, occurring in almost all countries. Accurate data on this point are not readily available, but the next table, which gives a comparison with England and the United States, removes this deficiency to some extent. Neither of these two countries, however, represents the same stage of development as the Dominion, so that the comparison suffers to that extent. The urban population quoted for England is that of the total of “urban districts”: that for the United States is the total population in towns of over 2,500 inhabitants.

Census nearest to	New Zealand.		England and Wales.		United States of America.
Census nearest to	Urban.	Rural.	Urban.	Rural.	Urban.	Rural.
1880	37.7	62.3	67.9	32.1	28.6	71.4
1890	38.8	61.2	72.0	28.0	35.4	64.6
1900	39.1	60.9	77.0	23.0	40.0	60.0
1910	42.9	57.1	78.1	21.9	45.8	54.2
1920	48.8	51.2	79.4	20.6	51.4	48.6

The population of each urban area, county, borough, and town district as at 1st April, 1929, is given in the schedules which follow.

URBAN AREAS.—ESTIMATED POPULATION (INCLUDING MAORIS), 1ST APRIL, 1929.

Urban Area.	Population (including Maoris).
Auckland.
Auckland City	102,070
Birkenhead Borough	3,285
Northcote Borough	485
Takapuna Borough	835
Devonport Borough	10,235
New Lynn Borough	3,230
Newmarket Borough	3,240
Mount Eden Borough	19,530
Mount Albert Borough	19,690
Onehunga Borough	11,000
Otahuhu Borough	4,805
Ellerslie Town District	2,715
Mount Roskill Road District	5,875
One Tree Hill Road District	7,670
Mount Wellington Road District	1,280
Panmure Township Road District	305
Remainder of urban area	5,550
Total	209,800
Wellington.
Wellington City	105,400
Lower Hutt Borough	11,625
Petone Borough	10,520
Eastbourne Borough	1,990
Johnsonville Town District	1,330
Remainder of urban area	2,905
Total	133,770
Christchurch.
Christchurch City	88,100
Riccarton Borough	5,050
New Brighton Borough	4,780
Sumner Borough	3,200
Lyttelton Borough	3,710
Remainder of urban area	20,570
Total	125,410
Dunedin.
Dunedin City	67,100
St. Kilda Borough	8,130
Green Island Borough	2,260
West Harbour Borough	2,045
Port Chalmers Borough	2,575
Remainder of urban area	2,970
Total	85,080
Hamilton.
Hamilton Borough	14,800
Remainder of urban area	2,660
Total	17,460
Gisborne.
Gisborne Borough	13,635
Remainder of urban area	2,035
Total	15,670
Napier.
Napier Borough	16,025
Taradale Town District	1,170
Remainder of urban area	1,865
Total	19,060
Hastings.
Hastings Borough	10,850
Havelock North Town District	1,060
Remainder of urban area	3,690
Total	15,500
New Plymouth.
New Plymouth Borough	14,970
Remainder of urban area	2,240
Total	17,210
Wanganui.
Wanganui City	24,850
Remainder of urban area	2,780
Total	27,630
Palmerston North.
Palmerston North Borough	19,535
Remainder of urban area	1,745
Total	21,280
Nelson.
Nelson City	10,580
Tahunanui Town District	690
Remainder of urban area	980
Total	12,250
Timaru.
Timaru Borough	16,300
Remainder of urban area	1,590
Total	17,890
Invercargill.
Invercargill Borough	19,760
South Invercargill Borough	1,060
Remainder of urban area	2,490
Total	23,310

COUNTIES.—ESTIMATED POPULATION (INCLUDING MAORIS), 1ST APRIL, 1929.

(NOTE.—The column headed “Administrative” does not include boroughs or town districts independent of county control, but includes dependent town districts. The heading “Geographic” includes all cities, boroughs, or town districts geographically situated in a county.)

County.	Population (including Maoris).
County.	Administrative.	Geographic.
North Island—
Mongonui	6,845	7,380
Whangaroa	1,900	1,900
Hokianga	6,995	6,995
Bay of Islands	7,680	8,205
Whangarei	10,895	19,625
Hobson	6,080	8,060
Otamatea	4,240	4,240
Rodney	3,985	4,445
Waitemata	10,095	39,565
Eden	15,655	173,900
Great Barrier	380	380
Manukau	8,360	18,935
Franklin	11,510	15,470
Raglan	7,740	7,740
Waikato	9,700	28,300
Waipa	10,255	13,770
Otorohanga	3,980	4,595
Kawhia	1,895	1,895
Waitomo	6,845	9,310
Taumarunui	2,950	5,415
Matamata	8,055	9,900
Piako	7,960	11,960
Ohinemuri	2,965	7,985
Hauraki Plains	4,295	4,295
Thames	2,550	7,300
Coromandel	2,125	2,125
Tauranga	8,540	12,220
Rotorua	3,955	8,915
Taupo	2,415	2,415
Whakatane	6,170	7,605
Opotiki	4,055	5,295
Matakaoa	1,545	1,545
Waiapu	5,210	5,210
Uawa	1,730	1,730
Waikohu	3,570	3,570
Cook	6,825	20,460
Wairoa	5,580	8,015
Hawke's Bay	15,020	44,125
Waipawa	3,460	4,640
Waipukurau	990	2,885
Patangata	2,730	2,730
Dannevirke	4,995	9,420
Woodville	1,885	3,010
Weber	425	425
Ohura	2,650	2,650
Whangamomona	1,350	1,350
Clifton	2,550	2,550
Taranaki	6,540	23,320
Inglewood	3,125	4,390
Egmont	3,945	4,915
Stratford	5,290	8,710
Eltham	3,515	5,555
Waimate West	2,910	3,595
Hawera	5,445	10,045
Patea	3,500	5,260
Kaitieke	2,965	3,855
Waimarino	3,800	6,910
Waitotara	3,470	28,320
Wanganui	3,775	3,775
Rangitikei	9,675	16,445
Kiwitea	2,380	2,380
Pohangina	1,310	1,310
Oroua	3,735	7,995
Manawatu	5,040	6,810
Kairanga	5,185	24,720
Horowhenua	6,820	12,155
Pahiatua	3,000	4,500
Akitio	1,200	1,200
Eketahuna	2,045	2,830
Mauriceville	765	765
Masterton	3,565	12,015
Castlepoint	605	605
Wairarapa South	3,270	5,120
Featherston	3,900	7,070
Hutt	7,370	34,675
Makara	4,215	110,945
Total	363,915	934,645
South Island—
Sounds	945	945
Marlborough	7,755	14,290
Awatere	1,720	1,720
Kaikoura	2,335	2,335
Amuri	2,220	2,220
Cheviot	1,310	1,310
Waimea	9,160	23,075
Takaka	1,945	1,945
Collingwood	1,100	1,100
Buller	6,580	10,480
Murchison	1,420	1,420
Inangahua	3,550	3,550
Grey	5,380	14,720
Westland	4,270	7,720
Waipara	2,480	2,480
Kowai	1,960	1,960
Ashley	720	720
Rangiora	3,015	5,165
Eyre	1,860	3,570
Oxford	1,660	1,660
Tawera	780	780
Malvern	2,865	2,865
Paparua	5,250	5,250
Waimairi	12,780	17,830
Heathcote	5,355	105,145
Halswell	1,880	1,880
Mount Herbert	520	520
Akaroa	1,800	2,410
Chatham Islands	610	610
Wairewa	1,045	1,045
Springs	1,910	1,910
Ellesmere	3,330	3,955
Selwyn	1,800	1,800
Ashburton	12,510	18,475
Geraldine	5,795	8,690
Levels	5,110	21,985
Mackenzie	3,190	3,190
Waimate	7,275	9,515
Waitaki	9,500	17,235
Waihemo	1,440	2,240
Waikouaiti	4,380	9,615
Peninsula	2,630	2,680
Taieri	6,150	85,620
Bruce	4,500	7,490
Clutha	7,090	8,640
Tuapeka	4,875	6,245
Maniototo	2,715	2,915
Vincent	3,680	4,915
Lake	1,700	2,850
Southland	25,250	55,145
Wallace	9,205	11,435
Fiord	20	20
Stewart Island	665	665
Total	219,040	527,950
Grand total	582,955	1,462,595

BOROUGHS.—ESTIMATED POPULATION (INCLUDING MAORIS), 1ST APRIL, 1929.

Borough.	Population (including Maoris).
North Island—
Whangarei	7,060
Dargaville	1,980
Birkenhead	3,285
Northcote	2,485
Takapuna	6,835
Devonport	10,235
New Lynn	3,230
Auckland (City)	102,070
Newmarket	3,240
Mount Eden	19,530
Mount Albert	19,690
Onehunga	11,000
Otahuhu	4,805
Pukekohe	2,450
Ngaruawahia	1,240
Hamilton	14,800
Cambridge	2,050
Te Awamutu	1,715
Te Kuiti	2,465
Taumarunui	2,465
Morrinsville	1,600
Te Aroha	2,400
Paeroa	1,870
Waihi	3,150
Thames	4,750
Tauranga	2,690
Rotorua	4,960
Whakatane	1,435
Opotiki	1,240
Gisborne	13,635
Wairoa	2,435
Napier	16,025
Hastings	10,850
Waipawa	1,180
Waipukurau	1,895
Dannevirke	4,425
Woodville	1,125
Waitara	1,810
New Plymouth	14,970
Inglewood	1,265
Stratford	3,420
Eltham	2,040
Hawera	4,600
Patea	1,120
Ohakune	1,520
Raetihi	1,120
Taihape	2,470
Wanganui (City)	24,850
Marton	2,790
Feilding	4,260
Palmerston North	19,535
Foxton	1,770
Shannon	1,150
Levin	2,600
Otaki	1,585
Pahiatua	1,500
Eketahuna	785
Masterton	8,450
Carterton	1,850
Greytown	1,100
Featherston	1,060
Martinborough	1,010
Upper Hutt	3,170
Lower Hutt	11,625
Petone	10,520
Eastbourne	1,990
Wellington (City)	105,400
Total	539,630
South Island—
Picton	1,280
Blenheim	5,255
Nelson (City)	10,580
Richmond	1,120
Motueka	1,525
Westport	3,900
Brunner	675
Runanga	1,425
Greymouth	6,050
Kumara	490
Hokitika	2,470
Ross	490
Rangiora	2,150
Kaiapoi	1,710
Riccarton	5,050
Christchurch (City)	88,100
New Brighton	4,780
Sumner	3,200
Lyttelton	3,710
Akaroa	610
Ashburton	5,290
Geraldine	1,005
Temuka	1,890
Timaru	16,300
Waimate	2,240
Oamaru	7,475
Hampden	260
Palmerston	800
Waikouaiti	615
Port Chalmers	2,575
West Harbour	2,045
Dunedin (City)	67,100
St. Kilda	8,130
Green Island	2,260
Mosgiel	1,980
Milton	1,540
Kaitangata	1,450
Balclutha	1,550
Tapanui	300
Lawrence	660
Roxburgh	410
Naseby	200
Alexandra	625
Cromwell	610
Arrowtown	300
Queenstown	850
Gore	4,050
Mataura	1,285
Winton	905
Invercargill	19,760
South Invercargill	1,060
Bluff	1,620
Riverton	885
Total	302,595
Grand total	842,225

TOWN DISTRICTS.—ESTIMATED POPULATION (INCLUDING MAORIS), 1ST APRIL, 1929.

Town District.	Population (including Maoris).
(a) Town Districts not forming Parts of Counties.
North Island—
Kaitaia	535
Kaikohe	525
Hikurangi	1,180
Kamo	490
Warkworth	460
Helensville	990
Henderson	1,070
Glen Eden	1,340
Ellerslie	2,715
Howick	570
Papatoetoe	1,985
Manurewa	1,465
Papakura	1,750
Waiuku	850
Tuakau	660
Huntly	1,750
Leamington	560
Otorohanga	615
Manunui	890
Putaruru	810
Matamata	1,065
Te Puke	990
Taradale	1,170
Havelock North	1,060
Opunake	970
Manaia	685
Rangataua	470
Mangaweka	340
Hunterville	635
Waverley	640
Bulls	535
Johnsonville	1,330
Total	31,100
South Island—
Tahunanui	690
Cobden	1,190
Leeston	625
Tinwald	675
Pleasant Point	575
Lumsden	535
Wyndham	680
Otautau	665
Nightcaps	680
Total	6,315
Grand total	37,415
(b) Town Districts forming Parts of Counties.
North Island—
Kohukohu	540
Rawene	425
Russell	370
Kawakawa	380
Onerahi	490
Mercer	360
Raglan	325
Te Kauwhata	450
Ohaupo	240
Kihikihi	315
Kawhia	220
Turua	280
Patutahi	285
Te Karaka	370
Otane	345
Norsewood	185
Ormondville	285
Ohura	300
Kaponga	425
Normanby	375
Rongotea	285
Total	7,250
South Island—
Havelock	250
Takaka	390
Southbridge	430
Outram	350
Clinton	380
Edendale	450
Total	2,250
Grand total	9,500

TOWNSHIPS.

New Zealand has many townships with considerable population, but without local self-government as boroughs or town districts. A list of such townships (other than those included in urban areas) with more than five hundred inhabitants, as at the census of 20th April, 1926, is here given. The population quoted includes, as a rule, the immediate neighbourhood as well as the actual township itself.

* Including construction camp. † Including mental hospital.
Arapuni^*	845
Ashhurst	629
Belfast	1,107
Blackball	1,056
Brightwater	532
Bunnythorpe	747
Clive	651
Coromandel	619
Denniston	910
Fairlie	800
Granity	584
Hornby	673
Kaikoura	669
Kakahi	591
Katikati	621
Lincoln	502
Longburn	649
Makarewa	629
Mamaku	633
Mangatainoka	518
Matangi	554
Methven	771
Midhirst	523
Miller's Flat	511
Millerton	907
Morven	601
Netherton	550
Ngatea	522
Ohai	513
Okaiawa	644
Ongarue	577
Orepuki	702
Owaka	557
Owhango	512
Oxford	919
Paekakariki	524
Porirua^†	1,842
Portland	541
Prebbleton	507
Pukemiro	695
Rakaia	759
Reefton	1,525
Riwaka	612
Sefton	537
Stirling	526
Stoke	804
Takapau	777
Tirau	550
Tokomaru	663
Tuatapero	635
Waharoa	584
Waihou	787
Waikino	681
Waikiwi	664
Waipu	555
Waitati	659
Waitoa	592
Waiuta	503
Wakefield	759
Winchester	549

ADJACENT ISLANDS.

Adjacent to the main Islands are many smaller islands, some of which are of considerable area, and are under cultivation; others are but islets used as sites for lighthouses, while others again are barren and unfitted for human habitation. Some of these islands are included within the boundaries of counties, and their populations are included in the county figures. The following adjacent islands not attached to any county were inhabited at the census of 1926:—

Island.	Population (including Maoris).
Island.	M.	F.	Total.
Kokutango	5	1	6
Pakatoa	1	25	26
Rotoroa	63	6	69
Little Barrier	1	2	3
Tiritiri	5	7	12
Rakino	3	2	5
Brown's	2	1	3
Pahiki	4	..	4
Mokohinau	3	2	5
Ponui	11	17	28
Waiheke	204	217	421
Rangitoto	24	3	27
Motutapu	6	3	9
Motuihi	4	3	7
Kawau	16	16	32
Motuhora	6	1	7
Motuketekete	2	..	2
Slipper	2	..	2
Wanganui	1	1	2
Cuvier	4	4	8
Great Mercury	3	..	3
Motiti	51	38	89
White	22	2	24
East	4	6	10
Kapiti	9	5	14
Somes	2	2	4
Arapawa	40	41	81
Forsyth	4	7	11
Blumine	1	2	3
Brothers	3	..	3
D'Urville	59	34	93
Stephen	5	10	15
Rangitoto	4	4	8
Quarantine	2	2	4
Dog	3	3	6
Centre	4	2	6
Totals	583	469	1,052

DENSITY OF POPULATION.

The total area of the Dominion of New Zealand, including Cook and other annexed islands, is 103,861 square miles. Omitting the annexed islands and certain uninhabited outlying islands, the area of the land-mass remaining is 103,285 square miles. This calculation, it should be explained, includes all inland waters.

Using the latter figure as a base, the density of population in 1929 may be quoted as 13.60 persons to the square mile, or, if Maoris be included, 14.24 persons to the square mile.

A truer statement of average density can be ascertained by applying not the total area as used above, but subtracting the area occupied by rivers, lakes, roads, State forests, higher portions of mountain-ranges, &c. The remaining area, amounting to about 84,500 square miles, which may be considered as the total inhabitable or usable land, carries a population of 1663 (or, including Maoris, 1740) persons to the square mile.

Reverting to the area first used above, as being the one in common use for this purpose, the progress of development is illustrated in the appended statement:—

—	Persons per Square Mile.
—	Excluding Maoris.	Including Maoris.
1881	4.74	5.17
1886	5.60	6.01
1891	6.07	6.47
1896	6.81	7.20
1901	7.48	7.90
1906	8.60	9.07
1911	9.76	10.25
1916	10.64	11.13
1921	11.80	12.31
1926	13.02	13.63
1927	13.30	13.92
1928	13.45	14.07
1929	13.60	14.24

Of interest also is the relative distribution of the population, and to this end the density is quoted for provincial districts as at the 1st April, 1929:—

Persons per Square Mile.	Area in Square Miles.	Provincial District.
Persons per Square Mile.	Area in Square Miles.	Excluding Maoris.	Including Maoris.
Auckland	25,351	17.72	19.58
Hawke's Bay	4,241	16.16	17.33
Taranaki	3,732	18.74	19.77
Wellington	10,807	26.80	27.48
Marlborough	4,225	4.41	4.53
Nelson	10,875	4.77	4.79
Westland	4,881	3.26	3.29
Canterbury	13,858	16.09	16.18
Otago—Otago portion	13,957	10.77	10.80
Southland portion	11,358	5.92	5.96
Dominion	103,285	13.60	14.24

The South Island provincial districts, it should be noted, contain on an average much more mountainous country than those of the North Island.

The various cities, boroughs, and town districts in New Zealand occupy a total of approximately 508 square miles. Considering their population as “urban,” the urban population (1929) had a density of 1,750 per square mile, and the rural population a density of 5.6 per square mile.

Attention may be drawn to the necessity for the exercise of discretion in the use of data concerning density of population, particularly in comparing one country with another. Areas may be calculated in many ways, while area itself may have little relationship to potentiality of use. In the case of urban population, it is impossible to obtain the aggregate area of sites actually in occupation by business premises, residences, &c. Many boroughs contain within their boundaries large reserves which, with farming and other unbuilt-on land, tend to disguise the actual relation of population to area.

MAORI AND HALF-CASTE POPULATION.

A record of early statistics of Maoris is given in the General Report on the Census of 1921. The first official general census was taken in 1857-58, and others occurred in regular sequence from 1874 onwards. Owing to inherent difficulties the earlier census records make no pretence towards complete accuracy, and even later enumerations hardly claim to be more than approximations which approach the truth as nearly as possible.

Available statistical evidence points to a decline in the numbers of the Native race since the advent of Europeans, but this decline was commonly exaggerated by early writers. Of later years an unmistakable increase has been noted. This gain, however, has been accompanied by a very considerable dilution of blood. The census record is as follows:—

* Includes half-castes, vide introduction to section.
1857-58	56,049
1874	45,470
1878	43,595
1881	44,097
1886	41,969
1891	41,993
1896	39,854
1901	43,143
1906	47,731
1911	49,844
1916	49,776
1921	52,751
1926	63,670^*
1929 (estimate)	65,693^*

Of 65,693 Maoris in April, 1929, 62,786 were in the North Island. Auckland Provincial District contains the bulk (47,116), particularly in the Auckland Peninsula and Poverty Bay regions. Hawke's Bay contains some 4,970; Taranaki, 3,850; and Wellington, 6,850. In the South Island Maoris do not attain any numerical significance. During 1928-29 the Maori population increased by 876.

The following table, which shows the increasing proportion of children under fifteen years of age, affords further evidence of increasing numbers:—

Census Year.	Males.		Females.
Census Year.	Under 15.	Over 15.	Under 15.	Over 15.
1891	33.22	66.78	35.22	64.78
1896	35.28	64.72	36.82	63.18
1901	35.75	64.25	37.89	62.11
1906	38.26	61.74	39.20	60.80
1911	39.10	60.90	40.97	59.03
1916	41.35	58.65	41.43	58.57
1921	39.48	60.52	40.56	59.44
1926	42.09	57.91	43.99	56.01

The (arithmetic) mean age of Maoris in 1926 was—males, 23.88; females, 22.95 years. The Maori population is a younger one than the European, and possesses higher ratios at all ages up to twenty-five years.

The number of half-castes is given in the next table for seven census periods. Those under the first heading have, prior to the census of 1926, been included in the Maori totals, the others being classed among the European population. It is a matter of some difficulty to ascertain the number of half-castes living as Maoris. There has been no definite rule to guide collectors in deciding when a half-caste should be classified as living as a Maori—indeed, it might be said that all the half-castes and a large proportion of the Maoris in the South Island live in European fashion. They mostly have separate holdings of land and separate homes, and have adopted the habits of the Europeans. At the censuses of 1916 and 1921 the old method of enumerating the South Island Maoris was discarded, the same methods and forms being utilized as for the European population, and in 1926 for the first time schedules were employed in the North Island, a special Maori schedule being used in most cases. It is interesting to note that of the total Maori entries on all schedules over 45 per cent. were in the Maori language.

Census Year.	Half-castes.		Total.
Census Year.	Living as Members of Maori Tribes.	Living as and among Europeans.	Total.
1891	2,681	2,184	4,865
1896	3,503	2,259	5,762
1901	3,133	2,406	5,539
1906	3,938	2,578	6,516
1911	4,181	2,879	7,060
1916	3,529	3,221	6,750
1921	3,116	4,236	7,352

The 1926 Census Results, of which Volume XIV is devoted to a more comprehensive statistical survey of the characteristics of the Maori population than has hitherto been possible, show that a total of 69,780 persons possessed some degree of Maori blood. Of these, 45,429 were classed as of full Maori blood, this term including all persons whose ancestry ranges from over seven-eighths Maori blood to unmixed native descent. As noted in the Census Results, the degree of miscegenation is probably understated, and the numbers of Maoris of pure Maori descent is unlikely to greatly exceed 50 per cent. of the total. The 1926 census analysis is as follows:—

Counted in the Maori population—
Full Maori	45,429
Three-quarter-caste	6,632
Half-caste	11,306
Maori-European, n.o.d.	303
Total	63,670
Quarter-caste	6,053
Maori-Polynesian	39
Maori-Japanese	9
Maori-Chinese	9
Total	6,110

The religious affiliations of the Maori, available for the first time through the 1926 census, show interesting variations from those of the Europeans. Religious professions with the greatest number of adherents were:—

Church of England	21,738
Ratana Church	11,567
Roman Catholic	8,558
Ringatu	4,540
Methodist	4,066
Mission (“Mihinare”)	3,804
Latter-day Saints (Mormon)	3,461
Presbyterian	638
Followers of Te Whiti and Tohu	375
Maori Church	90
Seventh-day Adventist	84
Seven Rules of Jehovah	71
Object to state	3,193
All others	1,485
Total	63,670

The close connection of the Maori race with the soil is well evidenced by the following figures. Apart from some 4,729 labourers whom paucity or data prevent from more specific classification, some two-thirds of all Maori male breadwinners are engaged in farming or forest pursuits:—

Numbers engaged in	Males.	Females.
* Includes 4,729 labourers.
Primary production	8,499	1,798
Industrial	1,804	39
Transport and communication	525	16
Commerce and finance	93	25
Public administration and professional	623	333
Domestic and personal service	58	627
Other groups (including ill-defined)	7,006^*	607
Dependants	14,650	26,967
Total	33,258	30,412

An analysis of Maori dwellings and households compiled from the 1926 census records shows that there were 10,771 dwellings, averaging 5.7 occupants each. Of these, 69 per cent. were classed as private dwellings, 17 per cent. as huts or whares, 12 per cent. as tents, camps, &c., and 2 per cent. as “other dwellings.”

Out of 8,989 cases in which the facts were ascertained, dwellings were owned by the occupiers in 6,675 instances, and 1,387 were rented.

POPULATION OF COOK AND OTHER ANNEXED ISLANDS.

During the year 1901 the boundaries of the Dominion were extended to include the Cook Group and certain other of the South Pacific islands. No record of the population of these islands was then obtainable, but at each subsequent census a record of various particulars was obtained. In April, 1929, the population was estimated at 14,428, of which Europeans composed over 300. The movement of population is in the direction of a gradual increase. The figures for each census from 1906 onwards are as follows:—

Census Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1906	6,224	6,116	12,340
1911	6,449	6,149	12,598
1916	6,553	6,244	12,797
1921	6,692	6,517	13,209
1926	7,047	6,830	13,877

The population (1926) of the various islands is as follows, non-Native population being mentioned first: Aitutaki (14, 1,417); Atiu (9, 924); Mangaia (8, 1,241); Manihiki (3, 413); Manuae and Te-au-o-tu (2, 21); Mauke (15, 496); Mitiaro (2, 236); Palmerston (0, 97); Penrhyn (5, 390); Pukapuka (16, 510); Rakahanga (2, 325); Rarotonga (202, 3,682); shipping at Rarotonga (3, 49); Niue (32, 3,763).

POPULATION OF WESTERN SAMOA.

At 1st April, 1929, the population of the mandated territory of Western Samoa was estimated at 43,958, made up as follows:—

—	Males.	Females.	Total.
European and half-caste population	1,385	1,019	2,404
Native Samoan population	20,471	19,937	40,408
Chinese indentured-contract labour	921	..	921
Chinese (non-indentured)	70	8	78
Melanesian and Polynesian indentured-contract labour	146	1	147
Totals	22,993	20,965	43,958

The population at the census of 1926 (40,229) was 3,886 in excess of that disclosed by the census of 1921 (36,343). A full comparison with enumerations prior to 1921 is not possible, owing to indentured-contract labour not having been included in these. A census taken in July, 1917, showed the European population to then number 1,927, and the native Samoans 35,404. The latter are now steadily increasing in number.

WORLD POPULATION.

The sources of the data quoted herein comprise official publications, bulletins issued by the League of Nations, and the Statesman's Year-book. So far as can be ascertained with some pretension to comparative accuracy—the various estimates of the population of the Chinese Empire, for instance, vary to the extent of considerably over 100 millions—the world population is now over 1,900 millions.

The 1,470,000 inhabitants of the Dominion therefore comprise about one thirteen-hundredth part of the population of the world. Details for continents are:—

	1913.	1927.
Europe	498,000,000	520,000,000
Asia	978,000,000	1,034,000,000
Africa	134,000,000	146,000,000
North America	134,000,000	161,000,000
South America	56,000,000	79,000,000
Oceania	8,000,000	9,000,000
Totals	1,808,000,000	1,949,000,000

The Chinese population included above is 441 millions in 1913 and 458 millions in 1927.

As a useful indication of the comparative size of various countries, the following index of population has been prepared:—

Country.	Population (000 omitted).	Year.	Index of Population (New Zealand = 1).
England and Wales	39,482	1,928	27
Scotland	4,893	1,928	3
Northern Ireland	1,248	1,928	1
Irish Free State	2,950	1,928	2
India (including Native States)	331,500	1,928	225
Ceylon	5,289	1,928	4
Union of South Africa	7,700	1,928	5
Canada	9,658	1,928	7
Newfoundland	265	1,928	0.2
Australia	6,337	1,929	4
New South Wales	2,445	1,929	2
Victoria	1,761	1,929	1
Queensland	917	1,929	1
South Australia	579	1,929	0.41
Western Australia	406	1,929	0.3
Tasmania	217	1,929	0.11
New Zealand	1,471	1,929	1
Austria	6,680	1,928	5
Belgium	7,932	1,928	5
Bulgaria	5,597	1,928	4
Czecho-Slovakia	14,439	1,928	10
Denmark	3,485	1,928	2
Estonia	1,116	1,928	1
Finland	3,582	1,928	9
France	41,000	1,928	28
Germany	63,440	1,928	43
Greece	6,205	1,928	4
Hungary	8,526	1,928	6
Italy	40,796	1,928	28
Latvia	1,883	1,928	1
Lithuania	2,286	1,928	2
Netherlands	7,626	1,928	5
Norway	2,788	1,928	2
Poland	30,213	1,928	21
Portugal	5,840	1,928	4
Rumania	17,694	1,928	12
Russia (Soviet Union)	150,500	1,928	102
Sweden	6,088	1,928	4
Switzerland	4,000	1,928	3
Spain	22,444	1,928	15
Turkey	13,750	1,928	9
Jugo-Slavia	13,200	1,928	9
China	468,090	1,928	311
Japan	63,863	1,928	43
Mexico	14,953	1,928	10
United States	120,013	1,928	82
Argentina	10,647	1,928	7
Brazil	42,637	1,928	29
Chile	4,219	1,928	3

Chapter 6. SECTION VI.—VITAL STATISTICS.

Table of Contents

SUBSECTION A.—BIRTHS.

REGISTRATION.

REGISTRATION OF MAORI BIRTHS.

NUMBERS AND RATES.

RATES OF BIRTHS, DEATHS, NATURAL INCREASE, AND MARRIAGES, 1855–1928.

INDEX NUMBERS OF BIRTH-RATES, 1878–1926.

NATURAL INCREASE.

BIRTH AND NATURAL-INCREASE RATES.

BIRTH-RATES OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

BIRTH-RATES PER 1,000 OF POPULATION.

QUARTERLY BIRTH STATISTICS.

BIRTH STATISTICS OF URBAN AREAS.

BIRTH STATISTICS OF URBAN AREAS, 1924–28.

SEXES OF CHILDREN BORN.

SEXES OF FIRST-BORN, 1920–28.

MULTIPLE BIRTHS.

AGES OF PARENTS.

RELATIVE AGES OF PARENTS.

PREVIOUS ISSUE OF PARENTS.

LEGITIMATE BIRTHS, 1928.—NUMBER OF PREVIOUS ISSUE.

LIVING LEGITIMATE BIRTHS, 1928.—ISSUE ACCORDING TO AGE OF MOTHER.

LIVING LEGITIMATE BIRTHS, 1928.—ISSUE ACCORDING TO DURATION OF MARRIAGE.

FIRST BIRTHS.

ILLEGITIMACY.

ILLEGITIMATE BIRTHS, 1928.—AGES OF MOTHERS.

PROPORTION OF ILLEGITIMATE BIRTHS IN EVERY 100 BIRTHS.

THE LEGITIMATION ACT.

ADOPTIONS.

STILL-BIRTHS.

STILL-BIRTHS, 1928.—AGES OF PARENTS.

LEGITIMATE STILL-BIRTHS, 1928.—AGE OF MOTHER AND NUMBER OF PREVIOUS ISSUE.

LEGITIMATE BIRTHS, 1924–28.—PERCENTAGE OF STILL TO LIVING.

MAORI BIRTHS.

MAORI BIRTHS, 1924–1928.

BIRTHS IN COOK ISLANDS AND NIUE.

BIRTHS IN COOK ISLANDS, 1928–29.

BIRTHS IN WESTERN SAMOA.

SAMOAN BIRTHS REGISTERED, 1924–28.

SUBSECTION B.—MARRIAGES.

INTRODUCTORY.

NUMBERS AND RATES.

STANDARDIZED MARRIAGE-RATE.

RATES OF VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

MARRIAGES PER 1,000 OF MEAN POPULATION IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

MARRIAGE-RATES OF VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

DISTRIBUTION OF MARRIAGES OVER THE YEAR.

MARRIAGES IN EACH QUARTER, 1919–28.

CONJUGAL CONDITION.

AGES OF PERSONS MARRIED.

AGES OF PERSONS MARRIED, 1928.

PERCENTAGES OF BRIDEGROOMS UNDER THIRTY YEARS OF AGE, 1919–28.

MEAN AGE AT MARRIAGE.

MARRIAGES OF MINORS.

AGES OF MINORS, 1919–28.

MARRIAGES BY MINISTERS OF VARIOUS DENOMINATIONS.

NUMBER OF OFFICIATING MINISTERS.

MAORI MARRIAGES.

MAORI MARRIAGES, 1919–28.

MARRIAGES IN COOK ISLANDS.

MARRIAGES IN COOK ISLANDS, 1928–29.

MARRIAGES IN WESTERN SAMOA.

MARRIAGES REGISTERED IN WESTERN SAMOA, 1924–28.

SUBSECTION C—DEATHS.

NUMBERS AND RATES.

MALE AND FEMALE DEATH-RATES.

DISTRIBUTION OF DEATHS OVER THE YEAR.

AGES AT DEATH.

DEATHS BY AGE-GROUPS, 1878–1928.

DEATH-RATES PER 1,000 BY AGE-GROUPS.

EXPECTATION OF LIFE.

EXPECTATION OF LIFE OF AVERAGE AFTER-LIFETIME IN NEW ZEALAND.

DEATH-RATES OF VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

DEATH-RATES PER 1,000 OF MEAN POPULATION, 1919–28.

STANDARDIZED DEATH-RATES.

CRUDE AND STANDARDIZED DEATH-RATES, 1875–1928.

CRUDE AND INTERNATIONAL STANDARDIZED DEATH-RATES.

DEATH STATISTICS OF URBAN AREAS.

URBAN AREAS.—DEATHS AND DEATH-RATES, 1924–28.

ORPHANHOOD.

NUMBER AND AGES OF ISSUE LEFT BY MARRIED MEN, 1919–28.

ISSUE UNDER AGE 16 LEFT BY MARRIED MEN OR WIDOWERS, 1928.

WIDOWS LEFT BY MARRIED MEN.

DEATHS, 1919–28.—AGES OF MARRIED MEN WHO DIED, AND OF THEIR WIDOWS.

INFANT MORTALITY.

DEATHS OF CHILDREN UNDER ONE YEAR OF AGE, 1919–28.

DEATHS AT AGE-PERIODS UNDER ONE YEAR PER 1,000 BIRTHS.

INFANT DEATH-RATES, 1880–1928.

DEATHS UNDER 1 MONTH PER 1,000 LIVE BIRTHS.

INFANT MORTALITY, 1924–28.—DETAILED AGES.

INFANT-MORTALITY RATES FOR PRINCIPAL CAUSES, 1872–1928.

DEATHS OF INFANTS UNDER ONE YEAR PER 1,000 BIRTHS.

CAUSES OF DEATH.

TUBERCULOSIS:

AGES OF PERSONS WHO DIED FROM TUBERCULAR DISEASES, 1928.

DEATH-RATES FROM TUBERCULOSIS.

CANCER.

DEATH-RATES FROM TUBERCULOSIS AND CANCER, 1875–1928.

DEATHS FROM CANCER, WITH CRUDE AND STANDARDIZED DEATH-RATES, 1919–28.

CANCER DEATH-RATES IN CERTAIN COUNTRIES.

CANCER: SEAT OF DISEASE, 1928.

AGES OF PERSONS WHO DIED FROM CANCER, 1928.

PUERPERAL CAUSES.

DEATHS FROM PUERPERAL CAUSES, BY GROUPS, 1919–28.

DEATHS FROM PUERPERAL CAUSES IN VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

DEATHS FROM VIOLENCE.

SUICIDES.

CONTRIBUTORY CAUSES.

CONTRIBUTORY CAUSES.—PRINCIPAL ASSOCIATIONS, 1928.

MAORI DEATHS.

MAORI DEATHS, 1924–28.

DEATHS IN COOK ISLANDS.

DEATHS REGISTERED IN COOK ISLANDS, 1928–29.

DEATHS IN WESTERN SAMOA.

SAMOAN DEATHS REGISTERED, 1923–28.

SUBSECTION D.—MORBIDITY.

INTRODUCTORY.

NOTIFICATIONS OF DISEASES.

PRINCIPAL INFECTIOUS DISEASES NOTIFIED, 1924–28.

PUBLIC HOSPITALS: PATIENTS TREATED.

CONDITION ON DISCHARGE.

PUBLIC HOSPITALS.—ADMISSIONS, DISCHARGES, AND DEATHS, 1924–28.

SEXES OF PATIENTS.

AGES OF PATIENTS.

PUBLIC HOSPITALS.—AGES OF PATIENTS DISCHARGED OF DYING.

SUMMARY OF DISEASES, ETC.

PUBLIC HOSPITALS.—CLASSIFICATION OF DISEASES, 1928.

PERCENTAGE OF DEATHS TO TOTAL DISCHARGES AND DEATHS, 1924–28.

EPIDEMIC AND ENDEMIC DISEASES.

TUBERCULOSIS.

VENEREAL DISEASES.

OTHER INFECTIOUS DISEASES.

CANCER.

CANCER CASES IN PUBLIC HOSPITALS, 1924–28.

BENIGN TUMOURS.

OTHER GENERAL DISEASES.

DISEASES OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM.

DISEASES OF THE EYES.

DISEASES OF EARS AND OF MASTOID PROCESS.

DISEASES OF THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM.

DISEASES OF THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM.

DISEASES OF THE MOUTH.

DISEASES OF PHARYNX AND TONSILS.

DISEASES OF THE STOMACH.

DIARRHœA AND ENTERITIS.

APPENDICITIS.

HERNIA, INTESTINAL OBSTRUCTION.

DISEASES OF THE LIVER.

PERITONITIS.

OTHER DISEASES OF DIGESTIVE SYSTEM.

HYDATIDS.

DISEASES OF THE URINARY SYSTEM.

DISEASES OF MALE GENITAL ORGANS.

DISEASES OF FEMALE GENITAL ORGANS.

DISEASES OF BREAST.

PUERPERAL STATE.

PUERPERAL DISEASES AND ACCIDENTS.

SKIN-DISEASES.

DISEASES OF BONES, ETC.

SUBSECTION A.—BIRTHS.

REGISTRATION.

REGISTRATION of births in New Zealand dates as far back as 1847, in which year was passed a Registration Ordinance which made provision for a record of births and deaths being kept by the State. Under this Ordinance many registrations were effected, some of births as far back as 1840. Compulsory registration did not, however, come into force until 1855.

The earlier Registration Acts and their amendments provided for very little information being given in the case of births, the register containing merely date and place of birth, name and sex of child, names of father and mother, and occupation of father. In 1875, however, a more comprehensive Registration Act was passed, under which information was recorded as to ages and birthplaces of parents, and in 1912 the sexes and ages of previous issue of the marriage were added to the items required to be shown in the birth entry.

The law as to registration of births is now embodied in the Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1924, a consolidation of the then existing legislation. The provisions generally as to registration are that a birth may be registered within sixty-two days without fee. After sixty-two days and within six months a birth is registrable only after solemn declaration made before the Registrar by the parent or some person present at birth, and on payment of a late fee of 5s., which may, however, be remitted at the discretion of the Registrar-General. When six months have elapsed a birth may be registered with a Registrar of Births within one month after conviction of one of the responsible parties for neglect, but an information for such neglect must be laid within two years of date of birth. Power is given by the Act of 1924 for the Registrar-General to register an unregistered birth which occurred in New Zealand, irrespective of the time that may have elapsed, a fee of 5s. being payable and satisfactory evidence on oath and such other proof as the Registrar-General may deem necessary being required.

There is also provision in the Births and Deaths Registration Act for the re-registration of the births of adopted children, with particulars of the adopting parents in place of those of the natural parents.

Registration of still-births, previously not provided for, was made compulsory from the 1st March, 1913.

Although sixty-two days are allowed for the registration of a birth, it is compulsory to notify the birth to the Registrar within a much shorter interval—viz., forty-eight hours if in a city or borough, and twenty-one days in every other case.

REGISTRATION OF MAORI BIRTHS.

In the successive Registration Acts special provision was made for exemption from the necessity of registration in the case of births and deaths of Maoris, though registration could be effected if desired. Section 20 of the Births and Deaths Registration Amendment Act, 1912 (now section 60 of the Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1924), empowered the making of regulations to provide for the registration of births and deaths of Maoris. Regulations were made accordingly, and Maori births and deaths became registrable as from the 1st March, 1913. The number of Registrars of Maori Births and Deaths in the Dominion is over 200, most of these being in the North Island, where the great majority of the Maori population is located. Every Native settlement of any size is within easy reach of one of these Registrars. Maori registrations are entered in a separate register, and the figures of births given in the following pages do not include those of Maoris, which are dealt with towards the end of this subsection.

NUMBERS AND RATES.

The number of births registered in 1928 (27,200) is 681 less than the total for 1927 and 735 less than the figure for 1913, in spite of an increase of over 320,000 in population during the fifteen years. The rate per 1,000 of mean population (19.56) is the lowest ever recorded in the Dominion, being 0.73 per 1,000 lower than in 1927, which represented the previous lowest level.

The numbers and rates of births in each of the last twenty years are as follows:—

Year.	Number.	Rate per 1,000.
1909	26,524	27.29
1910	25,984	26.17
1911	26,354	25.97
1912	27,508	26.48
1913	27,935	26.14
1914	28,338	25.99
1915	27,850	25.33
1916	28,509	25.94
1917	28,239	25.69
1918	25,860	23.41
1919	24,483	21.42
1920	29,921	25.09
1921	28,567	23.34
1922	29,006	23.17
1923	27,967	21.94
1924	28,014	21.57
1925	28,153	21.17
1926	28,473	21.05
1927	27,881	20.29
1928	27,200	19.56

There is a noticeable fall in the rate in the later years of the period covered by the table, as compared with the earlier. This fall, however, is small when compared with the tremendous decline between the “seventies” and “nineties” disclosed by the following diagram, which shows also the course of the rates of deaths, natural increase, and marriages from 1855 to 1928:—

RATES OF BIRTHS, DEATHS, NATURAL INCREASE, AND MARRIAGES, 1855–1928.

Comparisons of birth-rates over a series of years or between different countries are usually made on the basis of the crude rates—i.e., the number of births per 1,000 of the mean population, irrespective of sex or age.

The crude rates do not permit of allowance being made for variations in the proportion of women of the child-bearing ages, and it is advisable and of interest to supplement the table of crude rates with a computation of the legitimate birth-rate per 1,000 married women between 15 and 45 years of age, or the total birth-rate per 1,000 of all women of these ages. The following table gives both rates for New Zealand in each census year from 1878 to 1926.

Year.	Number of Women 15 and under 45.		Number of Births.		Birth-rate per 1,000 Women 15 and under 45.
Year.	Married.	Total.	Legitimate.	Total.	Legitimate.	Total.
1878	50,999	80,313	17,341	17,770	340.0	221.3
1881	67,461	96,144	18,198	18,732	315.0	194.8
1886	62,709	117,895	18,697	19,299	298.2	163.7
1891	63,172	131,271	17,635	18,273	279.2	139.2
1896	69,816	158,214	17,778	18,612	254.6	117.6
1901	79,420	183,387	19,554	20,491	246.2	111.7
1906	98,249	212,598	23,120	24,252	235.3	114.1
1911	119,390	240,714	25,276	26,354	211.7	109.5
1916	141,322	267,300	27,363	28,509	193.6	106.7
1921	150,400	288,477	27,309	28,567	181.6	99.0
1926	161,739	313,363	26,494	27,881	163.8	89.0

The legitimate rate per 1,000 married women between the ages of 15 and 45 is seen to have fallen by over 50 per cent. between 1878 and 1926, while an even greater fall is shown for the total rate on the basis of all women of the ages mentioned. The greater fall in the latter rate than in the former is due to the fact that among women of the child-bearing ages the proportion of married women is considerably lower nowadays than in the earlier years covered.

Women formerly married at younger ages in general than they do at present, and a study of the figures for successive censuses reveals considerable changes in the age-constitution of married women within the child-bearing ages. As the birth-rate varies with age, the change in age-constitution over the period is a factor which should be taken into account. For recent years statistics are available from which to calculate the birth-rate for women of different ages, and by applying the 1926 rate for each quinquennial age-group to the numbers of women in the corresponding groups in earlier years it is possible to ascertain the total births that would have been recorded in these years on the basis of the rates ruling in 1926. From a comparison of the resultant figures with the numbers of births actually recorded in the respective years weighted index numbers can be compiled, taking the year 1926 as base. Index numbers are given below, together with the corresponding unweighted index numbers and those representing the crude rates.

INDEX NUMBERS OF BIRTH-RATES, 1878–1926.

(Base: 1926 = 1000.)

Year.	Crude Rate.	Legitimate Rate on Basis of Married Women 15 and under 45.		Total Rate on Basis of all Women 15 and under 45.
Year.	Crude Rate.	Unweighted.	Weighted.	Unweighted.	Weighted.
1878	2,068	2,076	1,747	2,487	2,416
1881	1,870	1,923	1,664	2,189	2,179
1886	1,634	1,821	1,600	1,839	1,880
1891	1,430	1,705	1,535	1,564	1,574
1896	1,298	1,554	1,429	1,321	1,321
1901	1,298	1,503	1,383	1,255	1,223
1906	1,335	1,437	1,312	1,282	1,210
1911	1,280	1,292	1,210	1,230	1,153
1916	1,278	1,182	1,159	1,199	1,146
1921	1,150	1,109	1,117	1,112	1,100
1926	1,000	1,000	1,000	1,000	1,000

A comparison of the five sets of index numbers shows that the fall in the rate is somewhat overstated by the crude-rate figures when compared with the rates for married women corrected for age-distribution. Even on this latter basis, however, the figures for which show the least fall, the birth-rate was 75 per cent. higher fifty years ago than it is now. The fall disclosed by the rates for all women between 15 and 45 is much greater than that shown for married women.

The effect of correcting the figures for age-distribution is seen to be very substantial in the case of the legitimate rate for married women, but insignificant in the case of the general rate for all women of the child-bearing ages. It is apparent that, while there have been considerable changes in the sex-constitution of the population and in the age-distribution of married women, there has been little movement in the age-distribution of women in general at the child-bearing ages.

Reference is made farther on in this subsection to the effect on the birth-rate in recent years of changes in the age-distribution of the male population since the war.

The effect of the declining birth-rate is shown in the following table giving the numbers of children under one year of age and the proportions which those numbers represent in the total population as recorded in successive census years:—

Census Year.	Total Population (all Ages).	Children under One Year.	Children under One Year per 1,000 of Population.
1886	578,482	18,355	31.73
1891	626,658	16,443	26.24
1896	703,360	17,070	24.27
1901	772,719	18,381	23.79
1906	888,578	22,289	25.08
1911	1,008,468	24,340	24.14
1916	1,099,449	27,021	24.57
1921	1,218,913	27,021	22.37
1926	1,344,469	26,021	19.35

NATURAL INCREASE.

The decline of the birth-rate in New Zealand has been partially compensated for by a decrease in the death-rate. Nevertheless, the rate of natural increase of population has fallen from 31.19 per 1,000 of mean population in 1870 to 11.07 in 1928. The following table shows the fall in all three rates:—

Period.	Annual Rates per 1,000 living.
Period.	Births.	Deaths.	Natural Increase.
1871–1875	39.88	12.67	27.21
1876–1880	41.21	11.80	29.41
1881–1885	36.36	10.95	25.41
1886–1890	31.15	9.85	21.30
1891–1895	27.68	10.15	17.53
1896–1900	25.75	9.55	16.20
1901–1905	26.60	9.91	16.69
1906–1910	27.06	975	17.31
1911–1915	25.98	9.22	16.76
1916–1920	24.32	10.73	13.59
1921–1925	22.22	8.62	13.60
1926–1928	20.30	8.56	11.74

In spite of the fact that the birth-rate in New Zealand is low compared with other countries, yet so low is the Dominion's death-rate that New Zealand ranks comparatively high among the nations as regards the rate of natural increase Only. 9 of the 40 countries shown in the following list have lower birth-rates than New Zealand, but only 15 have higher rates of natural increase.

BIRTH AND NATURAL-INCREASE RATES.

Country.	Quinquennium.	Annual Rates per 1,000.
Country.	Quinquennium.	Births.	Natural Increase.
* Registration area.
Argentina	1921–25	32.5	18.1
Egypt	1923–27	43.0	17.6
Bulgaria	1923–27	36.9	17.2
Poland	1923–27	34.0	16.6
South Africa	1924–28	26.2	16.5
Jamaica	1923–27	36.6	15.1
Canada	1923–27	25.8	14.7
Uruguay	1922–26	25.6	14.4
Netherlands	1924–28	23.9	14.1
Ceylon	1923–27	39.2	13.9
Japan	1923–27	34.4	13.8
Iceland	1922–26	26.6	13.8
Rumania	1923–27	35.7	13.4
Australia	1924–28	22.2	12.8
Lithuania	1924–28	28.9	12.6
New Zealand	1924–28	20.7	12.3
Trinidad	1923–27	32.8	12.3
United States^*	1922–26	21.9	12.0
Italy	1923–27	27.8	11.3
Chile	1922–26	39.6	10.4
Spain	1923–27	29.6	10.1
Denmark	1923–27	21.0	9.8
Czechoslovakia	1923–27	25.2	9.8
Hungary	1923–27	27.3	9.1
Norway	1923–27	20.1	9.0
Finland	1923–27	22.3	8.2
Scotland	1923–27	21.3	7.9
Germany	1923–27	19.7	7.5
Latvia	1923–27	22.4	7.4
Northern Ireland	1923–27	22.5	7.2
British Guiana	1923–27	32.8	6.8
Belgium	1922–26	20.0	6.6
Switzerland	1923–27	18.4	6.3
Irish Free State	1923–27	20.7	6.2
England & Wales	1924–28	17	75.7
Sweden	1923–27	17.5	5.6
British India	1920–24	33.0	5.5
Austria	1923–27	20.3	4.7
Estonia	1922–26	19.1	3.5
France	1923–27	18.7	1.7

BIRTH-RATES OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

For twenty years prior to 1885 the New Zealand birth-rate was higher than that of Australia, but in that year the positions were reversed, and except for the seven years 1903–9 the Australian rate has been somewhat higher than that of New Zealand. It is interesting to note that the rates of the two countries have shown practically the same movement, New Zealand, however, reaching in 1899, and Australia not till four years later, the temporary limit of the rapid fall which had been steadily in progress since the “seventies.” In each country the check in the decline of the birth-rate was succeeded by a moderate but steady rise for ten years, followed by a fall commencing in New Zealand in 1909 and in Australia in 1913, an interval of four years again separating the movements of the two countries. The rates for the last ten years are as follows:—

BIRTH-RATES PER 1,000 OF POPULATION.

State.	1919.	1920.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Queensland	25.85	27.15	26.64	25.59	24.89	23.87	23.82	22.58	22.24	21.76
New South Wales	24.27	26.09	25.93	25.67	24.68	24.11	24.01	22.89	22.69	22.60
Victoria	21.47	23.95	23.16	23.10	22.31	22.01	21.49	20.84	20.30	19.70
South Australia	23.62	24.72	24.08	23.71	22.60	21.88	21.06	20.55	20.12	19.76
Western Australia	21.68	24.69	23.39	23.94	22.55	23.09	22.23	22.14	22.03	21.79
Tasmania	25.91	27.29	26.98	27.08	26.27	25.07	24.24	23.62	23.01	22.13
Commonwealth	23.53	25.46	24.95	24.69	23.77	23.24	22.89	22.02	21.67	21.33
New Zealand	21.42	25.09	23.34	23.17	21.94	21.57	21.17	21.05	20.29	19.56

QUARTERLY BIRTH STATISTICS.

It is of interest to note the quarterly fluctuations in the numbers of births registered. Some fairly sharp movements are disclosed by the figures for the last ten years, the most noticeable being the sudden increase (consequent on the termination of the war) from 5,832 in the third quarter of 1919 to 6,454 in the fourth quarter of that year and 7,522 in the first quarter of the next year. The quarterly figures for each of the last ten years are—

Year.	Quarter ended
Year.	31st March.	30th June.	30th September.	31st December.
1919	6,061	6,136	5,832	6,454
1920	7,522	7,405	7,684	7,310
1921	6,829	7,051	7,304	7,383
1922	7,444	7,220	7,318	7,024
1923	6,823	6,951	7,105	7,088
1924	7,081	6,583	7,159	7,191
1925	7,155	6,999	7,021	6,978
1926	7,266	6,837	7,056	7,314
1927	7,172	6,614	7,131	6,964
1928	6,949	6,758	6,777	6,716

The extreme range of quarterly totals over the ten years is from 5,832 in the third quarter of 1919 to 7,684 in the third quarter of 1920. The first-mentioned figure represented an annual rate of 20.15 per 1,000, and the second an annual rate of 25.56.

BIRTH STATISTICS OF URBAN AREAS.

Urban areas were created some years ago at each of the four chief centres and at ten of the more important secondary centres, each area including in addition to the central borough and any suburban boroughs a considerable non-municipalized area-adjacent to and contingent on the centre. The creation of these areas allows of vital and other statistics being compiled over a series of years for a definite area with fixed boundaries, and obviates the disabilities formerly arising from frequent alterations of boundaries of boroughs. The birth statistics of urban areas for each of the last five years are as follows:—

BIRTH STATISTICS OF URBAN AREAS, 1924–28.

Urban Area.	Number of Births.					Rate per 1,000 of Mean Population.
Urban Area.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Auckland	3,387	3,451	3,665	3,557	3,396	19.58	19.09	19.07	17.67	16.52
Wellington	2,155	2,106	2,309	2,343	2,461	18.82	17.77	19.03	18.55	18.98
Christchurch	2,186	2,147	2,229	2,146	2,155	18.95	18.15	18.82	17.62	17.50
Dunedin	1,307	1,370	1,405	1,341	1,258	17.25	17.68	16.50	16.13	14.98
Totals of principal areas	9,035	9,074	9,608	9,387	9,270	18.88	18.33	13.58	17.63	17.09
Hamilton	443	399	372	347	392	27.48	23.37	23.14	20.32	22.67
Gisborne	338	294	349	342	310	22.00	18.73	23.53	22.80	20.45
Napier	388	354	365	313	325	21.31	18.72	20.35	17.00	17.47
Hastings	298	311	297	311	270	21.23	21.32	20.28	20.89	17.86
New Plymouth	362	345	381	360	379	25.12	22.46	23.90	21.66	22.45
Wanganui	522	555	546	542	533	20.89	21.40	20.89	20.17	19.60
Palmerston North	358	386	411	390	392	19.55	20.06	20.80	19.04	18.77
Nelson	206	212	226	223	217	18.07	18.20	19.21	18.61	17.99
Timaru	280	306	324	328	333	16.76	17.88	19.26	18.94	19.00
Invercargill	469	492	455	510	454	22.85	23.44	20.81	22.62	19.86
Totals of secondary areas	3,664	3,654	3,726	3,666	3,605	21.55	20.70	21.20	20.23	19.64
Grand totals	12,699	12,728	13,334	13,053	12,875	19.58	18.95	19.24	18.29	17.73

In most countries it is found that the cities and larger towns have a somewhat higher birth-rate than the general average of the country, owing largely if not entirely to the natural tendency for people in the country districts to avail themselves of the better medical and nursing facilities provided in the population centres In New Zealand, however, the effect of this on the birth-rates of the urban areas is obviated by information as to the domicile of the parents being obtained is the case of all births registered in the areas, and the births allocated accordingly. The result is to give for each of the four principal areas a birth-rate somewhat lower than the Dominion average. The average rate for the ten secondary areas, however, varies little from that of the Dominion as a whole.

SEXES OF CHILDREN BORN.

An examination of the figures shows that, with the exception of one year, there has always been a preponderance of males in the number of children born in New Zealand. The proportions are usually shown by stating the number of births of male children to every 1,000 female births. This number has been as high as 1,113 (in 1859), and as low as 991 (in 1860).

But little significance can be attached to any figures prior to 1870, on account of the comparatively small number of births. The period preceding 1870 exhibits violent fluctuations in the proportion of males, which tend to disappear as the total of births grows larger. The extreme range since 1870 has been from 1,016 male per 1,000 female births in 1878 to 1,081 in 1923.

The number of births and their sex-proportion for twenty years are given below:—

Year.	Number of Births of		Male Births per 1,000 Female Births.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Male Births per 1,000 Female Births.
1909	13,502	13,022	1,037
1910	13,412	12,542	1,072
1911	13,532	12,822	1,055
1912	13,996	13,512	1,036
1913	14,433	13,502	1,069
1914	14,535	13,803	1,053
1915	14,415	13,435	1,073
1916	14,669	13,840	1,060
1917	14,329	13,910	1,030
1918	13,124	12,736	1,030
1919	12,587	11,896	1,058
1920	15,434	14,487	1,065
1921	14,576	13,991	1,042
1922	14,897	14,109	1,056
1923	14,531	13,436	1,081
1924	14,295	13,719	1,042
1925	14,518	13,635	1,064
1926	14,649	13,824	1,060
1927	14,291	13,590	1,052
1928	14,082	13,118	1,073

The gradual increase in the proportion of males born is illustrated by taking the average ratios of successive decennial periods. The apparent cessation in the increase, as shown by the figures for the period 1916–25, as compared with the preceding decennium, is due to the low masculinity recorded in the last two war years, when (it may be remarked in passing) the proportion of first births to total births was abnormal low.

Period.	Male Births to 1,000 Female Births.
1856–1865	1,062
1866–1875	1,043
1876–1885	1,045
1886–1895	1,045
1896–1905	1,054
1906–1915	1,055
1916–1925	1,053

It would appear that the proportion of males is somewhat higher for first births than for the general average of all children. Of 75,415 legitimate first births registered during the nine years 1920–28 (excluding plural births), 38,999 were of males and 36,416 of females, the proportion of males per 1,000 females being 1,071. The high proportion does not appear to be due to the youth of the mothers, there being a lower rate in eases where the mother was under twenty-five than where the mother was between twenty-five and thirty-five.

The figures for various age-groups for the nine years in conjunction are as follows:—

SEXES OF FIRST-BORN, 1920–28.

Age of Mother, in Years.	Males.	Females.	Males per 1,000 Females.
Under 20	2,876	2,685	1,071
20 and under 25	14,987	14,140	1,060
25 and under 30	12,834	11,884	1,072
30 and under 35	5,666	5,238	1,082
35 and under 40	2,064	1,951	1,058
40 and over	572	518	1,104
Totals	38,999	36,416	1,071

In the nine years covered there were 695 plural first births, and in 248 cases the children were both males, in 224 both females, and in the remaining 223 of opposite sex. Two cases of triplets (one case all females and the other two males and one female) were recorded as first births during the period.

Further light on the question of sexes of children may be thrown by some figures extracted from the records of births registered in the nine years 1920–28 in cases where the child was shown to be the fourth-born of a family in which the three previously born children were still living. In New Zealand the birth entries give particulars of numbers and sexes of previous issue of the parents, with the ages of the living issue, and the following interesting statement showing the sex-nativity order up to the fourth child has been compiled. Families in which plural births occurred among the first four children have been excluded.

First-born.	Second-born.	Third-born.	Fourth-born.	Number of Cases.
Male	Male	Male	Male	1,450
Male	Male	Male	Female	1,347
Male	Male	Female	Male	1,277
Male	Male	Male	Female	1,283
Male	Female	Male	Male	1,267
Male	Male	Male	Female	1,095
Male	Male	Female	Male	1,262
Male	Male	Male	Female	1,201
Female	Female	Female	Female	1,136
Female	Female	Female	Male	1,167
Female	Female	Male	Female	1,198
Female	Female	Female	Male	1,193
Female	Male	Female	Female	1,091
Female	Female	Female	Male	1,198
Female	Female	Male	Female	1,220
Female	Female	Female	Male	1,267

Of the 19,652 families covered, in 10,182 the first child was a male and in 9,470 a female, the number of males per 1,000 females being thus 1,075. The proportion is reduced for subsequent births, being apparently lowest in the case of third-born infants. The figures are as follows:—

Child.	Males.	Females.	Males per 1,000 Females.
First	10,182	9,470	1,075
Second	10,133	9,519	1,065
Third	10,037	9,615	1,044
Fourth	10,081	9,571	1,053

It is interesting to note that not only are males in preponderance among first-born children, but also that in cases where the first-born is a male there appears to be a greater probability of the second child being a male also. Where the first-born is a female, however, the second child appears to have a more even prospect as to sex.

The figures of first-borns registered in the nine years 1920–28, and those of firstborns in cases where the fourth child of the family was registered during the period, give similar results, and the two sets of figures taken in conjunction show that there is a higher masculinity rate among first-born children than among later issue. This conclusion serves to explain the increasing masculinity of births in successive decennia referred to previously, when it is remembered that the average number of children to a family has fallen heavily during the period, and the proportion of first, born children correspondingly increased.

The sex-proportions of illegitimate births are generally supposed to be more nearly equal than those of legitimate births. However, although little reliance can be placed on the figures for New Zealand by reason of the small numbers represented, it may be stated that the average for the period 1919–28 was 1,066 males per 1,000 females—a rate slightly in excess of that for all births (1,059) for the same period. An indication of the fluctuations in the sex proportions of illegitimate births from year to year may be gathered from the fact that in 1927 females exceeded males, the rate being 984 males per 1,000 females, while in 1928 males exceeded females with a rate of 1,111 males per 1,000 females.

MULTIPLE BIRTHS.

Counting only cases where both children were born alive, there were 273 cases of twin births (546 children) registered in 1928. There were also four cases of triplets.

The number of accouchements resulting in living births was 26,919, and on the average one mother in every 97 gave birth to twins (or triplets). This proportion is considerably lower than that attained in recent previous years, and shows a substantial decrease over the figure for 1927, which was one in 83.

When still-births are taken into account, however, the total number of accouchements for the year 1928 is increased to 27,731, and the number of cases of multiple births to 304. On this basis the proportion of mothers giving birth to twins or triplets is increased to one in 91. The inclusion of still-births generally has the effect of raising the proportion, as the corresponding figures for 1927, 1926, 1925, and 1924, were 1 in 78, 1 in 70, 1 in 84, and 1 in 87 respectively.

The number of cases of multiple births and the proportion per 1,000 of the total cases of births, in cases of living births only, during the last ten years were—

Year.	Total Births.	Total Cases.	Cases of Twins.	Cases of Triplets.	Multiple Cases per 1,000 of Total Cases.
* Including one case of quadruplets.
1919	24,483	24,200	270	3^*	11.15
1920	29,921	29,552	365	2	12.42
1921	28,567	28,210	347	5	12.48
1922	29,006	28,678	328	..	11.44
1923	27,967	27,672	289	3	10.55
1924	28,014	27,712	296	3	10.79
1925	28,153	27,848	301	9	10.88
1926	28,473	28,111	358	2	12.81
1927	27,881	27,548	331	1	12.05
1928	27,200	26,919	273	4	10.29

The following table shows the sexes in individual cases of twin births for the last ten years:—

Year.	Total Cases.	Both Males.	Both Females.	Opposite Sexes.
1919	270	81	79	110
1920	365	128	105	132
1921	347	125	90	132
1922	328	114	90	124
1923	289	110	90	89
1924	296	77	108	111
1925	301	83	86	132
1926	358	114	111	133
1927	331	112	104	115
1928	273	95	71	107

During the ten years 1919–28 there were twenty-four cases of triplets. In four cases all three children were males, in seven cases all were females, in five cases there were two males and one female, and in eight cases two of the three children were females. There occurred in 1919 one case of quadruplets, all male children.

AGES OF PARENTS.

Information as to the relative ages of parents of legitimate living children whoso births were registered in 1928 is shown in the following table: —

RELATIVE AGES OF PARENTS.

Age of Mother, in Years.	Age of Father, in Years.
Age of Mother, in Years.	Under 21.	21 and under 25.	25 and Under 30.	30 and under 35.	35 and under 40.	40 and under 45.	45 and under 50.	50 and under 55.	55 and under 65.	65 and over.	Total.
* Including twenty-one cases where plural births would have been registered had not one child been still-born.
Single Births.
Under 21	137	737	460	104	25	14	7	1	5	..	1,490
21 and under 25	69	1,455	2,358	845	269	87	35	10	5	..	5,133
25 and under 30	9	342	3,089	2,502	1,052	347	142	31	20	..	7,534
30 and under 35	1	29	601	2,176	1,789	889	351	92	37	2	5,967
35 and under 40	..	5	64	379	1,342	1,134	500	151	57	5	3,637
40 and under 45	..	1	5	24	151	584	403	191	61	3	1,423
45 and over	..	..	1	1	7	14	51	27	8	..	109
Totals	216	2,569	6,578	6,031	4,635	3,0691	1,489	503	193	10	25,293^*
Multiple Births.
Under 21	1	6	3	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	11
21 and under 25	1	12	16	9	..	1	..	..	..	..	39
25 and under 30	..	4	29	16	6	2	4	..	..	..	61
30 and under 35	..	..	10	18	19	17	5	1	..	..	70
35 and under 40	..	..	..	1	25	21	16	..	1	..	64
40 and under 45	..	..	..	..	2	7	1	3	1	..	14
45 and over	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	1	..	..	1
Totals	2	22	58	45	52	48	26	5	2	..	260
Grand totals	218	2,591	6,636	6,076	4,687	3,117	1,515	508	195	10	25,553

An indication of the direct effect on the birth-rate caused by the loss of men in the war is obtained by a comparison of the above figures with similarly compiled figures for 1912, the first year for which such statistics are available. A summary is here given, showing for the two years the age-groups of the fathers and mothers of legitimate children whose births were registered in the respective years. Multiple births are counted once only.

Age-group.	Fathers.		Mothers.
Age-group.	1912.	1928.	1912.	1928.
Under 21	81	218	1,107	1,501
21 and under 25	1,606	2,591	4,547	5,172
25 and under 30	6,452	6,636	8,166	7,595
30 and under 35	7,510	6,076	6,820	6,037
35 and under 40	5,457	4,687	3,888	3,701
40 and over	4,900	5,345	1,478	1,547
Totals	26,006	25,553	26,006	25,553

A study of the individual age-groups shows in the case of the fathers a huge decrease at ages 30 to 40, which at present are more particularly affected by the loss of men in the war. For ages under 30 and over 40, however, fairly substantial increases are recorded.

It would appear that the considerable decrease in the birth-rate in the later year as compared with the earlier is largely accounted for by the loss of young men in the war, and to a less extent in the influenza epidemic. It should be added that even in the age-groups which show increases war and epidemic losses have tended to restrict these increases, while, on the other hand, the post-war tendency (referred to in the next subsection) for men to marry younger would normally act in the opposite direction.

PREVIOUS ISSUE OF PARENTS.

Information as to the previous issue of the parents, which is required in connection with the registration of births in New Zealand, is useful not only for record purposes, but also as providing valuable data for statistical purposes. Tables are given in the Annual Report on Vital Statistics containing detailed information as to number of previous issue in connection with (1) age of mother, and (2) duration of marriage. The former table is here summarized.

LEGITIMATE BIRTHS, 1928.—NUMBER OF PREVIOUS ISSUE.

Age of Mother.	Number of Previous Issue.									Total.
Age of Mother.	0.	1.	2.	3.	4.	5.	6 and under 10.	10 and under 15.	15 and over.	Total.
* This number represents 25,293 single cases and 260 multiple cases.
Under 21	1,174	279	44	3	1	..	..	..	..	1,501
21 and under 25	2,851	1,513	594	167	39	7	1	..	..	5,172
25 and under 30	2,531	2,322	1,412	752	340	156	82	..	..	7,595
30 and under 35	1,048	1,426	1,276	941	603	356	376	11	..	6,037
35 and under 40	366	563	635	577	452	352	671	85	..	3,701
40 and under 45	110	125	165	174	172	149	424	112	6	1,437
45 and over	7	5	2	11	9	9	41	23	3	110
Totals	8,087	6,233	4,128	2,625	1,616	1,029	1,595	231	9	25,553^*

In computing previous issue, multiple births have been given their full significance, the numbers at the head of the columns relating to children born alive. In the following table this procedure has been followed not only for the previous issue but also for children covered by the 1928 registrations, who are also taken into account in the computation of the averages.

LIVING LEGITIMATE BIRTHS, 1928.—ISSUE ACCORDING TO AGE OF MOTHER.

Age of Mother, in Years.	Total Mothers.	Total Issue.	Average Issue.
15	5	5	1.00
16	21	23	1.10
17	97	103	1.06
18	251	284	1.13
19	504	617	1.22
20	623	860	1.38
21	985	1,435	1.46
22	1,257	1,933	1.54
23	1,451	2,490	1.72
24	1,479	2,752	1.86
25	1,569	3,133	2.00
26	1,536	3,266	2.13
27	1,494	3,395	2.27
28	1,581	4,038	2.55
29	1,415	3,897	2.75
30	1,440	4,159	2.89
31	1,242	3,885	3.13
32	1,262	4,129	3.27
33	1,053	3,718	3.53
34	1,040	3,832	3.68
35	876	3,463	3.95
36	828	3,443	4.16
37	753	3,420	4.54
38	682	3,421	5.02
39	562	2,787	4.96
40	479	2,551	5.33
41	342	1,919	5.61
42	293	1,741	5.94
43	205	1,255	6.12
44	118	788	6.68
45	65	470	7.23
46	26	226	8.69
47	14	117	8.36
48	5	41	8.20
Totals	25,553	73,596	2.88

It should be stressed that the averages are no more than they purport to be—viz., the average number of children (including those registered in 1928) born to the present time to those mothers of legitimate children whose births were registered during the year. They do not purport to represent, nor do they represent, the average issue of all women of the ages shown.

A table is next given containing similar information according to duration of marriage.

LIVING LEGITIMATE BIRTHS, 1928.—ISSUE ACCORDING TO DURATION OF MARRIAGE.

Duration of Marriage, in Years.	Total Mothers.	Total Issue.	Average Issue.
0	3,969	4,018	1.01
1	2,948	3,780	1.28
2	2,764	4,886	1.77
3	2,272	4,897	2.16
4	1,984	4,874	2.46
5	1,670	4,673	2.80
6	1,581	5,004	3.17
7	1,454	4,961	3.41
8	1,342	5,214	3.89
9	827	3,388	4.10
10	644	2,836	4.40
11	554	2,563	4.63
12	623	3,131	5.03
13	544	2,855	5.25
14	467	2,749	5.89
15	415	2,560	6.17
16	374	2,424	6.48
17	277	1,896	6.84
18	214	1,519	7.10
19	177	1,411	7.97
20	134	1,055	7.87
21	106	868	8.19
22	86	769	8.94
23	53	506	9.55
24	34	328	9.65
25	18	188	10.44
26	11	131	11.91
27	6	52	8.67
28	2	29	14.50
29	2	19	9.50
30	1	12	12.00
Totals	25,553	73,596	2.88

The next table gives information as to the number of previous issue of parents of living legitimate children whose births were registered during each of the last ten years:—

Number of Previous Issue.	1919.	1920.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
0	5,439	9,244	9,387	8,549	7,969	7,984	8,194	8,355	8,343	8,087
1	4,536	5,641	5,541	6,545	6,513	6,262	6,218	6,119	6,095	6,233
2	4,247	4,258	3,827	4,052	4,245	4,443	4,427	4,329	4,262	4,128
3	3,084	3,077	2,830	2,739	2,633	2,711	2,776	2,848	2,652	2,625
4	2,146	2,074	1,952	1,943	1,745	1,703	1,739	1,826	1,758	1,616
5	1,286	1,418	1,269	1,333	1,166	1,163	1,083	1,092	1,067	1,029
6	886	915	812	840	791	775	764	697	716	680
7	588	605	521	571	531	511	513	519	443	451
8	383	377	337	367	354	366	319	318	283	285
9	216	214	230	234	219	192	220	190	188	179
10	116	150	120	128	131	128	121	111	129	101
11	61	86	67	74	59	62	63	70	65	69
12	40	45	40	53	34	46	34	41	41	36
13	19	23	15	17	16	30	35	17	20	15
14	14	5	9	8	9	7	16	12	8	10
15	4	5	2	9	3	3	7	5	3	5
16	3	..	3	2	1	1	1	2	3	1
17	1	1	3	1	1	2	..	..	2	3
18	..	..	..	1	..	..	..	..	..	..
19	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Totals	23,070	28,138	26,965	27,466	26,420	26,389	26,530	26,551	26,078	25,553

FIRST BIRTHS.

Of a total of 131,101 legitimate births registered during the five years 1924-28, no fewer than 40,963, or 31 per cent., were of first-born children, and of these 20,298, or 49 1/2 per cent., were born within twelve months, and 31,474, or 77 per cent., within two years after the marriage of the parents. In the remaining 23 per cent. of cases where there was any issue to the marriage, two years elapsed before the birth of the first child.

The number of first births and the proportion of these to total births vary considerably from year to year in sympathy with variations in the annual number of marriages, the percentage having been as high as 34.81 (in 1921) and as low as 23.58 (in 1919). The proportions of first births occurring within the first and second years after marriage, however, show remarkably little variation in recent years. The figures for each of the last five years are—

Year.	Total Legitimate Cases.	Total Legitimate First Cases.	Proportion of First Cases to Total Cases.	First Cases within one Year after Marriage.		First Cases within Two Years after Marriage.
Year.	Total Legitimate Cases.	Total Legitimate First Cases.	Proportion of First Cases to Total Cases.	Number.	Proportion to Total First Cases.	Number.	Proportion to Total First Cases.
			Per Cent.		Per Cent.		Per Cent.
1924	26,389	7,984	30.26	3,997	50.06	6,124	76.70
1925	26,530	8,194	30.89	4,038	49.28	6,336	77.32
1926	26,551	8,355	31.47	4,121	49.32	6,422	76.86
1927	26,078	8,343	31.99	4,178	50.08	6,484	77.72
1928	25,553	8,087	31.65	3,964	49.02	6,108	75.53
Totals for five years	131,101	40,963	31.25	20,298	49.55	31,474	76.84

In the next table the figures of first births within one year after the marriage of the parents are dissected into monthly periods:—

Duration of Marriage.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Under 1 month	77	94	80	100	87
1 month and under 2 months	120	116	124	113	115
2 months and under 3 months	188	160	178	197	166
3 months and under 4 months	220	232	199	239	240
4 months and under 5 months	262	266	292	328	286
5 months and under 6 months	383	335	441	405	414
6 months and under 7 months	414	454	477	493	494
7 months and under 8 months	328	377	372	368	329
8 months and under 9 months	296	349	316	324	278
9 months and under 10 months	682	670	648	585	596
10 months and under 11 months	537	538	530	572	505
11 months and under 12 months	490	447	464	454	454
Totals under 12 months	3,997	4,038	4,121	4,178	3,964
Totals 12 months and over	3,987	4,156	4,234	4,165	4,123
Grand totals	7,984	8,194	8,355	8,343	8,087

The great majority of the children born between the seventh and the ninth month of marriage are obviously prematurely-born infants. Omitting these, and assuming that all infants born alive within seven months after marriage have been extra-maritally conceived, it would appear that during the five years, out of a total of 40,963 first-born children, 8,789, or 21 1/2 per cent., were extra-maritally conceived. This proportion has shown an almost continuous increase for many years.

During the five years, 6,833 cases of illegitimate births were registered, and if these are all regarded as first-births (which is not the case) a total of 15,622 extra-marital conceptions is recorded, which represents 32 1/2 per cent. of the total of legitimate first births, plus illegitimate births. The figures for each of the last five years are—

Year.	Total Legitimate First Cases.	Illegitimate Cases.	Legitimate Cases within Seven Months after Marriage.	Proportion of Legitimate First Cases within Seven Months after Marriage.	Proportion of Extra-marital Conceptions to Total Cases of Legitimate First Births and Illegitimate Births.
				Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1924	7,984	1,323	1,664	20.84	32.09
1925	8,194	1,318	1,657	20.22	31.28
1926	8,355	1,455	1,791	21.44	33.09
1927	8,343	1,371	1,875	22.47	33.42
1928	8,087	1,366	1,802	22.28	33.51
Totals for 5 years	40,963	6,833	8,789	21.46	32.68

ILLEGITIMACY.

The births of 1,383 children (728 males, 655 females) registered in 1928 were illegitimate. The numbers for each of the last ten years, with the percentages they bear to the total births registered, are as follows:—

Year.	Number.	Percentage to Total Births.
1919	1,138	4.65
1920	1,424	4.76
1921	1,258	4.40
1922	1,224	4.22
1923	1,260	4.51
1924	1,338	4.77
1925	1,332	4.73
1926	1,473	5.17
1927	1,387	4.97
1928	1,383	5.08

It, is only natural to expect that, as the birth-rate falls, the proportion of illegitimate to total births will tend to increase. Probably a better criterion is afforded by the following table, which shows the proportion of illegitimate births per 1,000 unmarried women—i.e., spinsters, widows, and divorced women—at the reproductive ages in each census year since 1891.

Year.	Unmarried Women aged 15-45 Years.	Illegitimate Births.	Illegitimate-birth Rate per 1,000 Unmarried Women.
1891	68,990	638	9.25
1896	89,722	834	9.30
1901	105,420	937	8.89
1906	116,506	1,132	9.72
1911	116,726	1,078	9.24
1916	125,461	1,159	9.24
1921	136,539	1,258	9.21
1926	151,624	1,473	9.71

These figures, apart from those for 1926 (when exceptional circumstances led to an increase), indicate a stationary position or even a declining tendency in the rate of illegitimate births.

In the following table are given the numbers of illegitimate births registered during each quarter of the last five years.

Quarter ended	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
31st March	319	319	340	352	336
30th June	312	307	316	325	341
30th September	328	355	389	365	374
31st December	379	351	428	345	332
Totals	1,338	1,332	1,473	1,387	1,383

Included in the total of 1,383 illegitimate births in 1928 were 17 cases of twins, the number of accouchements being thus 1,366, including 6 cases registered with the Registrar-General. From the following table it will be seen that of the 1,366 mothers 452, or 33 per cent., were under twenty-one years of age.

ILLEGITIMATE BIRTHS, 1928.—AGES OF MOTHERS.

Age.	Cases.
Years.
13	2
14	2
15	12
16	23
17	78
18	114
19	108
20	113
21	126
22	81
23	73
24	77
25	66
26	50
27	58
28	59
29	38
30	36
31	30
32	29
33	26
34	23
35	27
36	21
37	12
38	17
39	20
40	14
41	6
42	10
43	8
44	3
45	2
46	1
47	1
Total	1,366

The rates of illegitimacy in Australia and New Zealand are quoted. The average rate for New Zealand for the ten years (4.68 per 100 of all births) is somewhat lower than that of the Commonwealth (4.79 per 100), although the Dominion rate is the higher in each of the last four years covered.

PROPORTION OF ILLEGITIMATE BIRTHS IN EVERY 100 BIRTHS.

Year.	Queensland.	New South Wales.	Victoria.	South Australia.	Western Australia.	Tasmania.	Commonwealth.	New Zealand.
1918	5.46	5.18	5.85	4.02	4.02	5.28	5.23	4.65
1919	5.76	5.14	5.77	3.92	4.21	6.14	5.30	4.65
1920	5.10	4.79	5.25	3.74	3.89	5.28	4.84	4.76
1921	5.22	4.83	4.85	3.15	4.03	5.53	4.75	4.40
1922	4.66	4.83	4.41	2.97	4.14	4.56	4.49	4.22
1923	5.40	4.95	4.45	3.08	3.63	4.44	4.64	4.51
1924	5.34	4.82	4.62	3.06	3.94	4.24	4.62	4.77
1925	5.10	5.06	4.30	3.13	4.09	4.73	4.64	4.73
1926	5.06	5.17	4.53	3.07	3.92	4.63	4.72	5.17
1927	5.36	5.00	4.44	3.15	3.95	5.30	4.70	4.97

THE LEGITIMATION ACT.

An important Act was passed in 1894 and re-enacted in 1908, intituled the Legitimation Act. Under this Act any child born out of wedlock whose parents afterwards intermarry is deemed to be legitimized by such marriage on the birth being registered in the manner prescribed by the Act. For legitimation purposes a Registrar must register a birth when called upon to do so by any person claiming to be the father of an illegitimate child; but such person is required to make a solemn declaration that he is the father, and must also produce evidence of marriage between himself and the mother of the child.

Prior to the passing, on the 6th February, 1922, of the Legitimation Amendment Act, 1921–22, legitimation could be effected only if at the time of the birth of the child there existed no legal impediment to the intermarrriage of the father and mother, but the legal-impediment proviso was repealed by that amendment.

The amendment of 1921–22 also provides for legitimation by the mother in the event of the death of the father after the intermarriage of the parents. In such a case the application for legitimation is heard by a Magistrate, and upon his certifying that it has been proved to his satisfaction that the husband of the applicant was the father of the child, the child is registered as the lawful issue of the applicant and her husband.

The following is the number of legitimations in each of the last ten years, and the total since the Act of 1894 came into force:—

Number of Children legitimized.
Year.	Previously registered.	Not previously registered.	Total.
1919	100	66	166
1920	109	85	194
1921	74	95	169
1922	193	106	299
1923	211	99	310
1924	194	81	275
1925	172	97	269
1926	230	115	345
1927	204	108	312
1928	247	102	349
Totals to 1928	3,538	2,028	5,566

The effect of the Legitimation Amendment Act, 1921–22, is seen in the high figures from 1922 onwards.

ADOPTIONS.

The Births and Deaths Registration Act contains provision for the registration of adopted children. The Clerk of the Court by which any adoption order is made is required to furnish to the Registrar-General particulars of the order, including the full name and place of birth of the child, as well as the full names and addresses of both the natural and the adopting parents. If the child's birth has been registered in New Zealand a note of the adoption order is made on it. In any case a new entry is made in the prescribed form in the register of births, particulars of the adopting parents being substituted for those of the natural parents.

During the year 1928 the registration of 409 adopted children (175 males and 234 females) was effected, as compared with 421 in 1927, 404 in 1926, 558 in 1925, and 185 in 1924.

STILL-BIRTHS.

The registration of still-births was made compulsory in New Zealand as from the 1st March, 1913. A still-born child is denned as one “which has issued from its mother after the expiration of the twenty-eighth week of pregnancy and which was not alive at the time of such issue.” Still-births are not included either as births or as deaths in the various numbers and rates shown in this subsection and in that relating to deaths.

The registrations of still-births during each of the last ten years are as follows:—

Year.	Male.	Female.	Not stated.	Total.	Male Stillbirths per 1,000 Female Still-births.	Percentage of Still-births to
Year.	Male.	Female.	Not stated.	Total.	Male Stillbirths per 1,000 Female Still-births.	Living Births.	All Births.
1919	377	288	15	680	1,101	2.78	2.70
1920	467	363	10	840	1,287	2.81	2.73
1921	493	402	8	903	1,226	3.16	3.06
1922	469	364	9	842	1,283	2.90	2.82
1923	487	400	7	894	1,218	3.19	3.10
1924	495	348	12	855	1,422	3.05	2.96
1925	481	378	2	861	1,272	3.06	2.97
1926	470	416	..	886	1,130	3.11	3.02
1927	506	372	..	878	1,360	3.15	3.05
1928	424	415	..	839	1,022	3.08	2.99

It is a well-known fact that masculinity is in general much higher among still-births than among living births, though an exception to the rule occurred in 1928, when actually a lower rate of masculinity was recorded for still-births than for living births. The figures for the ten years covered by the above table show the rate for still-births to have been 1,246 males per 1,000 females. The rate for individual years has ranged between 1,726 (in 1914) and 1,022 (in 1928).

A table is added showing relative ages of parents in cases of still-births registered in 1928.

STILL-BIRTHS, 1928.—AGES OF PARENTS.

Age of Mother, in Years.	Age of Father, in Years.									Illegitimate Cases.	Total.
Age of Mother, in Years.	Under 21.	21 and under 25.	25 and under 30.	30 and under 35.	35 and under 40.	40 and under 45.	45 and under 50.	50 and under 65.	65 and over.	Illegitimate Cases.	Total.
*This number represents 827 single cases and 6 plural cases. The total number of still-born children was 839.
Under 21	8	19	8	3	2	..	..	..	..	14	54
21 and under 25	1	35	41	15	8	..	1	1	..	12	114
25 and under 30	..	14	81	74	25	12	1	2	..	7	216
30 and under 35	..	1	18	69	54	26	7	2	1	12	190
35 and under 40	..	..	1	17	55	48	22	12	..	1	156
40 and under 45	..	..	..	3	15	35	29	12	..	1	95
45 and over	..	..	..	..	..	2	4	2	..	..	8
Totals	9	69	149	181	159	123	64	31	1	47	833^*

The median age of mothers of still-born children in 1928 was 30, as compared with 28 in the case of living births. The percentage of illegitimates among stillborn infants (5.64) was considerably higher than among infants born alive (5.08).

In the next table the 786 cases of legitimate still-births registered in 1928 are classified according to number of previous issue in conjunction with age of mother:—

LEGITIMATE STILL-BIRTHS, 1928.—AGE OF MOTHER AND NUMBER OF PREVIOUS ISSUE.

Number of Previous Issue.	Age of Mother, in Years.						Total.
Number of Previous Issue.	Under 20.	20 and under 25.	25 and under 30.	30 and under 35.	35 and under 40.	40 and over.	Total.
0	18	95	94	62	42	12	323
1	..	23	48	34	17	8	130
2	..	2	31	33	18	9	93
3	..	4	18	18	20	9	69
4	..	..	13	9	18	14	54
5	..	..	5	9	12	14	40
6	..	..	..	8	9	5	22
7	..	..	..	1	3	7	11
8	..	..	..	1	4	7	12
9	..	..	..	2	7	7	16
10	..	..	..	1	1	3	5
11	..	..	..	..	3	3	6
12	..	..	..	..	1	..	1
13	..	..	..	..	..	2	2
14	..	..	..	..	..	1	1
15	..	..	..	..	..	1	1
Totals	18	124	209	178	155	102	786

Of the living legitimate births registered in 1928, 32 per cent. were first births, while of legitimate still-births no less than 41 per cent. were first births. It would thus appear that there is a considerably greater probability of still-births occurring at the first accouchement than at the average of subsequent accouchements.

The following table, based on the figures for the five years 1924-28, indicates that this is so, and further demonstrates the effect of the increasing age of the mother in the causation of still-births. While for women between 20 and 25 the proportion of still-births to living births was under 2 1/2 per cent. for all births and a little higher for first births, for women over forty it was nearly 6 per cent. for all births and over 11 per cent. for first births.

LEGITIMATE BIRTHS, 1924–28.—PERCENTAGE OF STILL TO LIVING.

Age of Mother, in Years.	All Births.		First Births.		Percentage of Still to Living.
Age of Mother, in Years.	Living.	Still.	Living.	Still.	First Births.	All Births.
Under 20	4,004	97	3,431	91	2.42	2.65
20 and under 25	28,123	639	16,131	466	2.27	2.89
25 and under 30	39,251	1,043	13,085	535	2.66	4.09
30 and under 35	31,403	953	5,676	336	3.03	5.92
35 and under 40	20,057	821	2,061	179	4.09	8.69
40 and over	8,263	484	579	66	5.86	11.40
Totals	131,101	4,037	40,963	1,673	3.08	4.08

The next table shows the percentage of stillbirths to living births, according to nativity order of legitimate births registered in the five years 1924–28. The column for mothers of all ages shows a definite gradation, the second child having the best chance of being born alive, and the probability of a still-birth increasing thereafter.

LEGITIMATE BIRTHS, 1924–28.—PERCENTAGE OF STILL TO LIVING.

Nativity Order.	Living Births.		Still-births.		Percentage of Still to Living:
Nativity Order.	Mothers of All Apes.	Mothers aged 35–40.	Mothers of All Ages.	Mothers aged 35–40.	Mothers of All Ages.	Mothers aged 35–40.
First	40,963	2,061	1,673	179	4.08	8.69
Second	30,927	2,927	624	89	2.02	3.04
Third	21,589	3,474	466	91	2.16	2.62
Fourth	13,612	2,986	376	108	2.76	3.62
Fifth	8,642	2,570	287	103	3.32	4.01
Sixth	5,434	1,933	196	80	3.61	4.14
Seventh	3,632	1,477	133	57	3.66	3.86
Eighth	2,437	1,063	86	38	3.53	3.57
Ninth	1,571	694	67	34	4.26	4.90
Tenth	969	412	48	20	4.95	4.85

The column for mothers aged 35 to 40 indicates that continued child-bearing after the first two or three accouchements has some small effect on the still-birth probability. There can be no doubt, however, that age of the mother is the principal factor in the case of accouchements subsequent to the first. This being so, it is of some significance that even when no allowance is made for the younger age-constitution in general of mothers of first-born, the first-born child has a greater probability of being still-born than any subsequent child up to and including the eighth.

MAORI BIRTHS.

The number of births of Maoris registered with Registrars of Maori Births and Deaths during 1928 was 1,763 (928 males, 835 females). The births of thirty-nine males and forty-three females were registered under the main Act, and the total of 1,845 represents a rate of 28 per 1,000 of Maori population, a rate 45 per cent. higher than the general birth-rate for the year. Registrations in each of the five years 1924-28 were as follows:—

MAORI BIRTHS, 1924–1928.

Year.	Number of Births.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1924	629	617	1,246
1925	916	800	1,716
1926	763	773	1,536
1927	766	729	1,495
1928	967	878	1,845

BIRTHS IN COOK ISLANDS AND NIUE.

Regulations under the Cook Islands Act, 1915, providing for compulsory registration of births and deaths in the Cook Islands and Niue from the 1st July, 1916, were gazetted on the 29th June, 1916.

In the case of a birth a month is allowed in which to furnish the following particulars to a Registrar: The place and date of birth; the Christian name and sex of the child; the names and residence of both father and mother, and also (if Natives) whether of full blood, or quarter-, half-, or three-quarter-caste.

Duplicates of all entries are kept by the Registrars of the High Court at Rarotonga and Niue respectively. A fine not exceeding £5 is imposed on persons supplying false information. No fees are payable for registration.

The following are the figures of birth-registrations in each Island during the twelve months ended 31st December, 1928, or 31st March, 1929:—

BIRTHS IN COOK ISLANDS, 1928–29.

Island.	Number of Births.
Rarotonga	138
Aitutaki	52
Mangaia	48
Atiu	35
Mitiaro	59
Pukapuka	12
Manihiki	20
Rakaanga	21
Mauke	24
Penrhyn	22
Niue	117
Total	548

BIRTHS IN WESTERN SAMOA.

Regulations providing for the registration of births and deaths of Samoans in Western Samoa were brought into force on the 1st January, 1923.

Within seven days after the birth of any Samoan child the following particulars must be furnished to the Registrar of the village and also to the Registrar of the district in which the child was born: The place and date of birth; the Christian or first name and the sex of the child: and the names and residence of both father and mother. The father and the mother are jointly responsible for the registration of birth.

Duplicate entries of all births are taken and are kept on record by the Secretary of Native Affairs at Apia. A fine, not to exceed £5, is imposed on persons not complying with the regulations, and a fine not exceeding £20 for persons who knowingly furnish false particulars. No fees are payable for registration.

The births of 863 living children were registered during the twelve months ended 31st December, 1928, as compared with 1,636 in 1927, 1,965 in 1926, and 2,033 in 1925. The fall in 1927 and 1928 is believed to be due to non-registration through the requirements being ignored in a considerable proportion of cases.

Registrations during each of the last five years, with rates per 1,000 of Samoan population, have been as follows:—

SAMOAN BIRTHS REGISTERED, 1924–28.

Year.	Number of Native Samoan Births registered.			Rate per 1,000 of Native Samoan Population.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Rate per 1,000 of Native Samoan Population.
1924	964	936	1,900	55.38
1925	1,045	988	2,033	56.30
1926	1,056	909	1,965	52.62
1927	816	820	1,636	42.37
1928	453	410	863	21.82

During the year 1928, 77 children were born to Europeans and half-castes.

SUBSECTION B.—MARRIAGES.

INTRODUCTORY.

MARRIAGE may be solemnized in New Zealand only on the authority of a Registrar's certificate, either by a person whose name is on the list of officiating ministers under the Marriage Act, or before a duly appointed Registrar or Deputy Registrar of Marriages. Marriage by an officiating minister can be solemnized only between 8 o'clock in the forenoon and 8 o'clock in the evening. Marriage before a Registrar can be celebrated at am' time during the hours the office of the Registrar is open for the transaction of public business. Prior to the passing of the Marriage Amendment Act, 1920, the limits in all cases were 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Notice of intended marriage must be given to a Registrar of Marriages by one of the parties to the proposed marriage, and one of the parties must have resided for three full days in the district within which the marriage is to be solemnized. In the case of a person under twenty-one, not being a widow or widower, the consent of parent or guardian is necessary before the Registrar's certificate can be issued. A schedule to the Guardianship of Infants Act, 1926, sets out the person or persons whose consent is required in various circumstances. In cases where double consent is required, section 8 provides for dispensing with the consent of one party if this cannot be obtained by reason of absence, inaccessibility, or disability. In similar cases where the consent of only one person is necessary, consent may be given by a Judge of the Supreme Court. Consent of the Court may also be given in cases of refusal by any person whose consent is required.

If a declaration is made in any case that there is no parent or lawful guardian resident in the Dominion, then a certificate may be issued by the Registrar (without the necessity of Court proceedings) after the expiration of fourteen days following the date on which the notice of intended marriage was given.

The system of notice and certificate has obtained in New Zealand since 1855. By this system it is ensured not only that marriages are in order, but that no legally solemnized marriage escapes registration. Officiating ministers and Registrars are required to send to the Registrar-General returns of all marriages solemnized, and as the returns come in they are checked off with the entries in the Registrar's lists of notices received and certificates issued. In case of the non-arrival of a marriage return corresponding to any entry in the list of notices, inquiries are made as to whether solemnization has been effected.

The marriage of a man with his deceased wife's sister was legalized in New Zealand in the year 1881, and the marriage of a woman with her deceased husband's brother in 1901.

An important provision is contained in section 7 of the Marriage Amendment Act, 1920, which reads as follows:—

(1) Every person commits an offence against this Act, and is liable on summary conviction to a fine of one hundred pounds, who—

(a) Alleges, expressly or by implication, that any persons lawfully married art not truly and sufficiently married; or

(b) Alleges, expressly or by implication, that the issue of any lawful marriage is illegitimate or born out of true wedlock.

(2) “Alleges” in this section means making any verbal statement, or publishing or issuing any printed or written statement, or in any manner authorizing the making of any verbal statement, or in any manner authorizing or being party to the publication or issue of any printed or written statement.

(3) A person shall not be deemed to make an allegation contrary to the provisions of this section by reason only of using in the solemnization of a marriage a form of marriage service which at the commencement of this Act was in use by the religious denomination to which such person belongs, or by reason only of the printing or issue of any book containing a copy of a form of marriage service in use at the commencement of this Act by any religious denomination.

NUMBERS AND RATES.

The movement of the marriage-rate since 1855 is shown by the diagram on p. 110. The numbers and rates of marriages during each of the last twenty years are here given:—

Year.	Number.	Rate per 1,000 of Population.
1909	8,094	8.33
1910	8,236	8.30
1911	8,825	8.70
1912	9,149	8.81
1913	8,813	8.25
1914	9,280	8.51
1915	10,028	9.12
1916	8,213	7.47
1917	6,417	5.84
1918	6,227	5.65
1919	9,519	8.33
1920	12,175	10.21
1921	10,635	8.69
1922	9,556	7.63
1923	10,070	7.90
1924	10,259	7.90
1925	10,419	7.84
1926	10,680	7.90
1927	10,478	7.62
1928	10,537	7.58

The rapid fall in the marriage-rate after 1915 was compensated for to a large extent by the high figures for 1919, 1920, and 1921. The number of marriages celebrated in 1920 still easily holds the record, while the rate for that year is the highest experienced since 1864. The rate for each of the last seven years, which is low by comparison with the decennium immediately preceding 1914, follows an extraordinary level course, although the tendency is still downwards.

STANDARDIZED MARRIAGE-RATE.

In a country like New Zealand, where the age-constitution of the population has altered considerably, the crude marriage-rate based on the total population does not disclose the true position over a period of years. Even if only the unmarried (including widowed and divorced) population over twenty in the case of men and over fifteen in the case of women be taken into account, the rates so ascertained would still not be entirely satisfactory for comparative purposes, owing to differences in sex and age constitution, divergences between rates for different age-groups, and variations in the proportions of marriageable persons in the community. A better plan is to ascertain the rate among unmarried females in each age-group and to standardize the results on the basis of the distribution of the unmarried female population in a basic year.

This has been done for each census year from 1881 to 1926, the year 1911 being taken as the standard. The course of the standardized rates as shown in the following table varies materially from that of the crude rates:—

Year.	Marriage-rate per 1,000.			Index Numbers of Marriage-rates taking 1911 as base = 100.
	Total Population.	Unmarried Female Population 15 and over.		Total Population.	Unmarried Female Population 15 and over.
	Total Population.	Crude.	Standardized.	Total Population.	Crude.	Standardized.
1881	6.6	73.9	80.7	76	125	137
1886	6.0	55.1	60.4	69	93	102
1891	6.0	48.3	50.3	69	82	85
1896	6.8	47.3	48.0	78	80	81
1901	7.8	50.2	49.0	90	85	83
1906	8.5	55.6	53.7	98	94	91
1911	8.7	59.1	59.1	100	100	100
1916	7.5	50.7	54.3	86	86	92
1921	8.7	59.7	63.9	100	101	108
1926	7.9	53.1	62.6	91	90	106

The index numbers of the three classes of rates over the series of years enable the effect of standardization to be shown at a glance. Comparing, for instance, the years 1881 and 1911, it is seen that whereas the crude rate per 1,000 of total population was nearly one-fourth less in 1881 than in 1911, the crude rate when only the unmarried female population of fifteen or over is considered was one-fourth greater, and the standardized rate more than one-third greater. Similar though less noticeable results are recorded for years subsequent to 1881.

The standardized rate for 1926 is slightly less than that recorded for 1921, although the figure is considerably higher than for any other census year subsequent to 1881.

RATES OF VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

A comparison of the marriage-rate for each State of the Australian Commonwealth with New Zealand for the ten years 1919–28 is given. The rates for the two countries have corresponded very closely in the last few years, during which there has been very little movement.

MARRIAGES PER 1,000 OF MEAN POPULATION IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

Year.	Queensland.	New South Wales.	Victoria.	South Australia.	Western Australia.	Tasmania.	Commonwealth.	New Zealand.
1919	7.51	7.91	7.95	8.23	6.86	7.38	7.80	8.33
1920	8.94	9.75	9.85	10.03	8.88	9.50	9.62	10.21
1921	7.82	8.78	8.90	8.82	7.96	7.82	8.59	8.69
1922	7.52	8.18	8.27	8.19	7.20	7.79	8.03	7.63
1923	7.24	8.00	8.16	7.92	6.82	7.39	7.83	7.90
1924	7.55	8.11	8.10	7.78	7.22	7.12	7.90	7.90
1925	7.60	8.14	8.00	7.82	7.46	7.05	7.91	7.84
1926	7.34	8.28	7.90	8.06	7.58	6.79	7.92	7.90
1927	7.04	8.45	7.88	7.88	8.07	6.82	7.95	7.62
1928	6.95	8.28	7.52	7.18	8.29	7.09	7.73	7.58

A comparison of the latest available rates in various countries is given in the next table. Of the forty-one countries shown, New Zealand occupies a position a little above midway. With the exception of Ireland, all the principal countries of the British Empire are in close proximity to each other, with rates, however, somewhat lower than those of the main European countries.

MARRIAGE-RATES OF VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

Country.	Quinquennium.	Average Yearly Rate.
Bulgaria	1921–25	11.0
United States	1922–26	10.5
Belgium	1922–26	10.2
Rumania	1921–25	10.1
Hungary	1922–26	9.5
Czecho-Slovakia	1923–27	9.1
Poland	1923–27	9.0
France	1922–26	9.0
Japan	1923–27	8.5
South Africa	1923–27	8.4
Latvia	1922–26	8.4
Dantzig	1922–26	8.4
Lithuania	1924–28	8.3
Germany	1923–27	8.0
Estonia	1922–26	8.0
Australia	1924–28	7.9
New Zealand	1924–28	7.8
Austria	1923–27	7.8
Denmark	1922–26	7.8
Italy	1923–27	7.7
England and Wales	1924–28	7.6
Netherlands	1924–28	7.6
Switzerland	1923–27	7.3
Spain	1923–27	7.2
Canada	1923–27	7.2
Chile	1922–26	7.1
Argentina	1921–25	7.1
Scotland	1923–27	6.7
Finland	1923–27	6.5
Sweden	1923–27	6.3
Northern Ireland	1923–27	6.0
Norway	1923–27	5.9
Iceland	1922–26	5.8
Ceylon	1923–27	5.7
Uruguay	1922–26	5.4
Costa Rica	1919–23	5.0
Irish Free State	1923–27	4.8
Trinidad	1923–27	4.2
Jamaica	1923–27	4.1
British Guiana	1923–27	3.8
Salvador	1922–26	3.3

DISTRIBUTION OF MARRIAGES OVER THE YEAR.

It is interesting to dissect the year into shorter periods and to notice the fluctuations of the marriage totals. The following table shows the number of marriages solemnized during each quarter of the last ten years:—

MARRIAGES IN EACH QUARTER, 1919–28.

Year.	March Quarter.	June Quarter.	September Quarter.	December Quarter.
1919	1,631	2,432	2,450	3,006
1920	2,981	3,329	2,843	3,022
1921	2,872	2,849	2,330	2,584
1922	2,249	2,555	2,214	2,538
1923	2,406	2,760	2,224	2,680
1924	2,348	2,976	2,283	2,652
1925	2,526	2,822	2,363	2,708
1926	2,575	3,035	2,268	2,802
1927	2,384	2,997	2,356	2,741
1928	2,353	3,110	2,208	2,866
Decennial average	2,433	2,887	2,354	2,760

It will be seen that the June quarter is apparently considered the most propitious for the solemnization of marriage. The two years exceptional in this respect are 1919 and 1921. The high figure for the December quarter, 1919, is explained by the celebration of many marriages postponed until the return of soldiers from abroad; while in 1921 the results for the March quarter showed promise of a continuation of the standard set in 1920, but the adverse financial and economic conditions evidently caused a falling-off in marriages after Easter.

The Easter and Christmas seasons are apparently regarded as the most suitable times of the year for entering the matrimonial state, and, judging by the quarterly figures for an average year, Easter would appear to slightly predominate.

The marriages contracted in each month of the last five years were as follows:—

Month.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
January	800	784	801	774	780
February	757	787	794	790	804
March	791	790	980	820	769
April	1,333	1,294	1,293	1,321	1,355
May	640	565	652	635	697
June	1,003	998	1,090	1,041	1,058
July	788	798	756	768	738
August	731	804	734	824	777
September	764	797	778	764	693
October	742	804	740	708	801
November	720	767	767	847	792
December	1,190	1,231	1,295	1,186	1,273
Totals	10,259	10,419	10,680	10,478	10,537

Wednesday claims three-sevenths of the total marriages, as will be seen from the following figures:—

—	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Sunday	57	46	41	42	53
Monday	1,226	1,143	1,204	1,155	1,348
Tuesday	1,690	1,643	1,625	1,563	1,507
Wednesday	4,446	4,500	4,638	4,354	4,242
Thursday	1,310	1,459	1,442	1,526	1,510
Friday	454	436	494	494	461
Saturday	1,076	1,192	1,236	1,344	1,416
Totals	10,259	10,419	10,680	10,478	10,537

Sunday marriages are rare, and Friday is evidently regarded as unlucky, as only 4 1/2 per cent. of the total marriages were celebrated on that day.

The 13th of the month also appears to be treated with respect, the average number of marriages on that day during 1928 being only 12, as against a general average of 29. The days of the year 1928 on which 100 marriages or over were performed were—

9th April	173
26th December	162
4th April	161
6th June	159
19th December	147
11th April	145
18th April	123
27th June	121
20th June	120
28th November	111
25th January	103
22nd December	102
5th April	100
7th November	100

With the exception of eight days, all of which fell in the immediate vicinity of the two great holiday periods, all the days on which more than 80 marriages were celebrated were Wednesdays.

CONJUGAL CONDITION.

The total number of persons married during the year 1928 was 21,074, of whom 19,312 were single, 1,129 widowed, and 633 divorced. The figures for each of the last ten years, but showing the sexes separately, are given in the table following:—

Year.	Single.		Widowed.		Divorced.		Total Persons Married.
Year.	Bridegroom.	Bride.	Bridegroom.	Bride.	Bridegroom.	Bride.	Total Persons Married.
1919	8,605	8,699	779	610	135	210	19,038
1920	11,065	11,100	862	790	248	285	24,350
1921	9,617	9,716	778	639	240	280	21,270
1922	8,581	8,662	714	598	261	296	19,112
1923	9,068	9,148	742	621	260	301	20,140
1924	9,262	9,380	732	575	265	304	20,518
1925	9,383	9,489	733	601	303	329	20,838
1926	9,686	9,804	689	521	305	355	21,360
1927	9,488	9,647	696	494	294	337	20,956
1928	9,570	9,742	658	471	309	324	21,074

The figures reveal a considerable increase in the number of divorced persons remarrying, while, on the other hand, those for widowed persons show a substantial fall. The position is more easily seen by studying the percentages given in the next table:—

Year.	Bridegrooms.			Brides.
Year.	Single.	Widowed.	Divorced.	Single.	Widowed.	Divorced.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1919	90.40	8.18	1.42	91.38	6.41	2.21
1920	90.88	7.08	2.04	91.17	6.49	2.34
1921	90.43	7.32	2.25	91.36	6.01	2.63
1922	89.80	7.47	2.73	90.64	6.26	3.10
1923	90.05	7.37	2.58	90.84	6.17	2.99
1924	90.28	7.14	2.58	91.43	5.61	2.96
1925	90.06	7.03	2.91	91.07	5.77	3.16
1926	90.69	6.45	2.86	91.80	4.88	3.32
1927	90.55	6.64	2.81	92.07	4.71	3.22
1928	90.82	6.25	2.93	92.46	4.47	3.07

During the period 1919–28 the number of divorced persons remarrying increased from 18 per 1,000 persons married to 30, a considerable advance, and corresponding approximately to the largely increased number of divorces granted since 1918. The fall in the number of widowed persons remarrying—from 73 per 1,000 persons married in 1919 to 54 per 1,000 in 1928—is to be expected, the high figure in the earlier year being the direct outcome of the war and, to a certain extent, of the influenza epidemic.

The relative conjugal condition of bridegrooms and brides for each of the last ten years is next given:—

Year.	Marriages between Bachelors and			Marriages between Divorced Men and			Marriages between Widowers and
Year.	Spinsters.	Divorced Women.	Widows	Spinsters	Divorced Women.	Widows.	Spinsters	Divorced Women.	Widows.
1919	8,079	154	372	88	16	31	532	40	207
1920	10,328	208	529	181	19	48	591	58	213
1921	9,000	196	421	178	26	36	538	58	182
1922	8,018	199	364	170	54	37	474	43	197
1923	8,479	208	381	180	40	40	489	53	200
1924	8,708	217	337	199	27	39	473	60	199
1925	8,813	234	336	205	38	60	471	57	205
1926	9,164	242	280	212	45	48	428	68	193
1927	9,025	219	244	203	40	51	419	78	199
1928	9,112	209	249	221	49	39	409	66	183

Taking the whole period covered by the foregoing table, it is found that, while 2,620 divorced men remarried, the corresponding number for women was 3,021. In the case of widowed persons, however, in spite of the fact that the number of widows caused by the war and the epidemic must greatly have exceeded the widowers caused by the latter, only 5,920 - widows remarried, as compared with 7,383 widowers. It would appear that in the case of divorced persons women are more likely to remarry than men, while in the case of widowers and widows the converse holds.

Included amongst widows in 1928 were twenty-five women, and amongst the widowers nine men, who elected to go through the form of marriage with other persons under the protection of the provisions of section 224, subsection (5), of the Crimes Act, which reads: “No one commits bigamy by going through a form of marriage if he or she has been continually absent from his or her wife or husband for seven years then last past, and is not proved to have known that his wife or her husband was alive at any time during those seven years.”

The numbers of persons married under the protection of the above subsection during the last ten years are as shown in the following table:—

Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1919	11	18	29
1920	5	15	20
1921	7	16	23
1922	5	9	14
1923	4	9	13
1924	8	18	26
1925	9	11	20
1926	2	9	11
1927	4	14	18
1928	9	25	34

AGES OF PERSONS MARRIED.

Of the 21,074 persons married in 1928, 2,407, or 12 per cent., were under twenty-one years of age; 6,975, or 33 per cent., were returned as twenty-one and under twenty-five; 6,197, or 29 per cent., as twenty-five and under thirty; 3,622 or 17 per cent., as thirty and under forty; and 1,873, or 9 per cent.; as forty years of age or over.

A table is given showing relative ages of bridegrooms and brides in groups of years:—

AGES OF PERSONS MARRIED, 1928.

Age of Bridegroom, in Years.	Age of Bride, in Years.							Total Bridegrooms.
Age of Bridegroom, in Years.	Under 21.	21 and under 25.	25 and under 30.	30 and under 35.	35 and under 40.	40 and under 45.	45 and over.	Total Bridegrooms.
Under 21	240	115	13	1	..	..	..	369
21 and under 25	1,002	1,565	371	38	8	1	1	2,986
25 and under 30	600	1,634	1,223	205	42	6	2	3,712
30 and under 35	124	453	490	244	89	25	6	1,431
35 and under 40	41	151	246	188	132	41	19	818
40 and under 45	20	42	78	107	107	70	28	452
45 and over	11	29	64	92	120	152	301	769
Total brides	2,038	3,989	2,485	875	498	295	357	10,537

There have been some considerable changes in the proportions of men and women marrying at the various age-periods. To give an idea of the extent to which these figures have varied during the last three decades, a table is given showing the proportions of men and women married at each age-period to every 100 marriages in the years 1900 to 1928:—

Period.	Under 21.	21 and under 25.	25 and under 30.	30 and under 35.	35 and under 40.	40 and under 45.	45 and over.	Total.
Males.
1900–04	1.67	24.75	38.42	18.63	8.05	3.58	4.90	100.00
1905–09	1.79	23.42	39.25	18.78	8.47	3.38	4.91	100.00
1910–14	1.94	22.04	38.04	20.75	8.54	3.90	4.79	100.00
1915–19	3.26	21.40	33.04	19.67	10.47	5.02	7.14	100.00
1920–24	3.13	24.66	32.21	17.73	10.24	5.43	6.60	100.00
1925–28	3.58	27.91	34.04	14.38	7.99	4.67	7.43	100.00
Females.
1900–04	16.92	39.75	27.33	9.26	3.40	1.53	1.81	100.00
1905–09	16.15	37.10	28.53	10.18	4.21	1.80	2.03	100.00
1910–14	15.60	34.90	28.52	11.57	5.04	2.05	2.32	100.00
1915–19	15.21	35.01	26.17	11.39	6.06	2.98	3.18	100.00
1920–24	15.99	35.47	26.21	10.66	5.53	2.98	3.16	100.00
1925–28	18.49	37.72	23.70	9.06	4.72	2.87	3.44	100.00

A perusal of the above table reveals the fact that greater proportions of marriages are now being celebrated at both the younger and the older age-groups. The proportion of persons marrying under twenty-one years of age' has increased from 9.30 per cent. for the period 1900–04 to 11.42 for 1925–28, the increase being much greater for males than for females. The increase in the number of males marrying under twenty-one years of age has been phenomenal, and goes back to the year 1914, there being a very sharp rise between the quinquennia 1910–14 and 1915–19. Although the following quinquennium showed a slight decrease, the average for the years 1925–28 was at a record figure. The figure for females was high for the period 1900–04, but decreased steadily until 1915–19, after which a considerable rise was recorded, the proportion for 1925–28 reaching the unprecedented figure of 18.49 per 100 marriages.

Taking now those persons who married at ages forty-five and over, it is found that the percentage increased from 3.35 in 1900–04 to 5.34 in 1925–28, the increase being common to the two sexes, although the increase in the female percentage is greater than that for males. The latter percentage showed a somewhat fluctuating tendency, but the female figure rose steadily. A similar movement, although to a far less extent, is apparent in the age-group 40 and under 45.

The effect of the war on the number of males marrying in the various age-groups is clearly revealed in the low figure now recorded for age-group 30 to 35. Another interesting feature of the male proportions is the fall recorded at the age-group 25 to 30, as a result of the increase at ages under 25. This is also noticeable, especially for the years 1925–28, in the female proportions.

In the years immediately preceding the war 62 per cent. of the bridegrooms were under thirty years of age, a proportion which declined rapidly during the period 1916–19. This proportion was again registered in 1924 and 1925, while the figure for 1928 rose as high as 67 per cent.

PERCENTAGES OF BRIDEGROOMS UNDER THIRTY YEARS OF AGE, 1919–28.

Year.	Under 21.	21 and under 25.	25 and under 30.	Total under 30.
1919	3.62	19.49	31.45	54.56
1920	2.64	21.61	32.67	56.92
1921	3.00	24.40	32.43	59.83
1922	3.06	25.02	31.86	59.94
1923	3.23	25.48	32.13	60.84
1924	3.74	26.78	31.94	62.46
1925	3.51	26.66	32.66	62.83
1926	3.84	28.25	33.84	65.93
1927	3.45	28.37	34.44	66.26
1928	3.50	28.34	35.23	67.07

For many years the average age at marriage for both males and females, more particularly the latter, showed a tendency to increase. After, however, reaching its maximum in the three years 1917, 1918, and 1919, the average age has since decreased considerably, in spite of the effect of the increase in the proportion of widowed and divorced persons among the brides and grooms. The decrease is especially noticeable in the last three years, when an abnormal number of persons married under the age of twenty-five. The figures for each of the last ten years are given.

MEAN AGE AT MARRIAGE.

Year.	Bridegrooms.	Brides.
1919	31.21	27.11
1920	30.73	26.89
1921	30.69	26.72
1922	30.49	26.83
1923	30.49	26.74
1924	30.24	26.56
1925	30.39	26.56
1926	29.89	26.18
1927	29.92	26.25
1928	29.87	26.17

The average ages of bachelors and spinsters at marriage are considerably lower than those shown in the preceding table, which cover all parties and are adversely affected by the inclusion of remarriages of widowed and divorced persons. The average ages of grooms and brides of the various conditions in each of the last five years were:—

Year.	Bridegrooms.			Brides.
Year.	Bachelors.	Divorced.	Widowers.	Spinsters.	Divorced.	Widows.
	Years.	Years.	Years.	Years.	Years.	Years.
1924	28.64	40.92	46.49	25.37	35.37	41.35
1925	28.70	41.67	47.39	25.26	36.42	41.68
1926	28.31	40.15	47.44	24.98	35.15	42.58
1927	28.26	41.11	47.96	25.03	36.63	42.94
1928	28.23	40.92	48.45	24.99	36.43	43.51

The foregoing figures give the average age at marriage, but these do not correspond with the popular age, if the age at which the most marriages are celebrated may be so termed. For several years prior to 1918 age 26 held pride of place for bridegrooms and ago 21 for brides. The latter has continued right through to 1928 without alteration, but in the case of bridegrooms the most popular age has varied from 28 to 24. The median age for all bridegrooms in 1928 was 27—bachelors 26—while for all brides the figure was 24—spinsters 23.

MARRIAGES OF MINORS.

Of every 1,000 men married in 1928, 35 were under twenty-one years of age, while 193 in every 1,000 brides were under twenty-one. The proportion of bridegrooms under twenty-one was in normal pre-war years 2 per cent. of the total number. In 1917 the rate advanced sharply to over 3 per cent., where it has since remained. The rate for brides for 1928 (19.34 per cent.) is the highest percentage attained since 1896.

In 240 marriages in 1928 both parties were given as under twenty-one years of age, in 1,798 marriages the bride was returned as a minor and the bridegroom as an adult, and in 129 marriages the bridegroom was a minor and the bride an adult.

A table showing the ages of persons under twenty-one years of age married during the ten years 1919–28, together with the rate per 100 marriages, is given below:—

AGES OF MINORS, 1919–28.

Year.	Age in Years.							Total.
Year.	14.	15.	16.	17.	18.	19.	20.	Number.	Rate per 100 Marriages.
Bridegrooms.
1919	..	..	..	10	37	117	180	344	3.62
1920	..	..	..	2	32	93	194	321	2.64
1921	..	..	2	7	28	102	180	319	3.00
1922	..	1	..	7	37	88	159	292	3.06
1923	..	..	1	3	44	108	169	325	3.23
1924	..	..	..	4	47	128	205	384	3.74
1925	..	..	..	10	46	125	185	366	3.51
1926	..	..	..	10	32	138	230	410	3.84
1927	..	..	..	11	41	95	214	361	3.45
1928	..	..	1	3	36	118	211	369	3.50
Brides.
1919	..	4	28	107	255	400	478	1,272	13.36
1920	..	10	40	113	333	524	658	1,678	13.78
1921	..	9	49	161	331	488	646	1,684	15.84
1922	1	14	42	142	280	493	556	1,528	15.99
1923	2	8	42	151	342	523	585	1,653	16.42
1924	1	7	48	185	368	550	678	1,837	17.91
1925	3	10	64	185	395	517	657	1,831	17.57
1926	2	11	70	224	397	555	706	1,965	18.40
1927	1	12	64	231	407	535	705	1,955	18.66
1928	1	10	70	192	419	637	709	2,038	19.34

MARRIAGES BY MINISTERS OF VARIOUS DENOMINATIONS.

Of the 10,537 marriages registered in 1928, Church of England clergymen officiated at 2,848, Presbyterians at 2,835, Methodists at 1,030, and Roman Catholics at 1,207, while 2,063 marriages were celebrated before Registrars.

The following table shows the proportions of marriages by ministers of the principal denominations in the last eight years:—

Denomination.	Percentage of Marriages.
Denomination.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Church of England	28.58	27.36	28.33	27.68	27.26	27.53	27.68	27.03
Presbyterian	26.00	25.81	25.77	25.81	26.19	26.31	26.77	26.91
Methodist	10.97	10.82	10.79	11.03	9.90	9.68	9.73	9.77
Roman Catholic	11.30	12.04	10.93	10.79	11.33	11.68	11.19	11.45
Other denominations	5.41	4.98	4.91	4.96	4.63	5.07	5.57	5.26
Before Registrars	17.74	18.99	19.27	19.73	20.69	19.73	19.06	19.58
	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00

The foregoing figures must not be taken as a true indication of the religions of the parties married, as it does not necessarily follow that both parties are members of the Church whose officiating minister performed the ceremony, and persons married before Registrars may belong, in greater or lesser proportion, to any of the denominations. The proportion of marriages by Registrars is higher during the last five years than for the years immediately prior to 1923.

NUMBER OF OFFICIATING MINISTERS.

The number of names on the list of officiating ministers under the Marriage Act is (June, 1929) 1,908, and the denominations to which they belong are shown here under:—

Denomination.	Number.
Church of England	480
Presbyterian Church of New Zealand	408
Roman Catholic Church	313
Methodist Church of New Zealand	270
Salvation Army	106
Baptists	67
Congregational Independents	28
Lutheran Church	3
Evangelical Lutheran Concordia Conference	5
Hebrew Congregations	5
Church of Christ	33
Catholic Apostolic Church	4
Liberal Catholic Church	7
Unitarians	4
Assemblies of God	5
United Evangelical Church	3
Seventh-day Adventists	11
Brethren	14
Latter-day Saints	10
Spiritualist Church of New Zealand	7
Ringatu Church	32
Church of the Seven Rules of Jehovah	4
Ratana Church of New Zealand	72
Others	17
Total	1,908

The Ringatu Church, the Church of the Seven Rules of Jehovah, and the Ratana Church of New Zealand are Maori denominations.

MAORI MARRIAGES.

In cases where both parties to a marriage are of the Native race there is no necessity under the Marriage Act to comply with the provisions of that Act, though the parties are at liberty to take advantage thereof. Considerable inconvenience, however, was found to exist on account of the non-registration of Maori marriages, and a section was inserted in the Native Land Act, 1909, whereby it was laid down that Maori marriages must be celebrated either under the provisions of the Marriage Act or in the presence of a registered officiating minister, but without complying with the other requirements of the Marriage Act. Ministers solemnizing the latter class of marriages must send returns to the Registrar-General.

Returns of 382 marriages in which both parties were of the Native race were received during the year 1928. Of these 97 were in accordance with the provisions of the Marriage Act. The figures for each of the last ten years are as follows:—

MAORI MARRIAGES, 1919–28.

Year.	Under Native Land Act.	Under Marriage Act.	Total.
1919	181	40	221
1920	198	55	253
1921	212	36	248
1922	248	30	278
1923	262	20	282
1924	195	48	243
1925	356	42	398
1926	261	53	314
1927	231	87	318
1928	285	97	382

Maori marriages are not included in the numbers shown elsewhere in this subsection, nor are they taken into account in the computation of marriage-rates.

MARRIAGES IN COOK ISLANDS.

According to the annual report of the Cook Islands Department, the following are the figures of marriages solemnized in the Cook Islands during the twelve months ended 31st December, 1928, or 31st March, 1929:—

MARRIAGES IN COOK ISLANDS, 1928–29.

Island.	Number of Marriages.
Rarotonga	32
Aitutaki	11
Mangaia	19
Mauke	6
Atiu	4
Mitiaro	4
Manihiki	2
Penrhyn	2
Rakaanga	4
Pukapuka	6
Niue	35
Total	125

The remaining islands of the group either had no marriages or did not furnish returns.

MARRIAGES IN WESTERN SAMOA.

During the twelve months ended 31st December, 1928, 117 marriages were registered in the mandated territory of Western Samoa. Of these, 16 were between members of the European population, the balance of the marriages being between native Samoans.

The following figures, taken from successive annual reports on the mandated territory, indicate wide variations either in actual marriages or in registrations, the 1925 total for Samoans representing a rate of 22 per 1,000 of Sampan population and that for 1928 a rate of only 2.6 per 1,000.

MARRIAGES REGISTERED IN WESTERN SAMOA, 1924–28.

Year.	Samoans.	Others.	Total.
1924	200	32	232
1925	854	34	888
1926	270	15	285
1927	135	12	147
1928	101	16	117

SUBSECTION C—DEATHS.

COMPULSORY registration of deaths was instituted in New Zealand in 1856. As in the case of births, a system of non-compulsory registration had obtained since 1848.

Until the year 1876 the only information provided for in the death-registration entry was as to date, place, and cause of death, and name, sex, age, and occupation of deceased. The Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1875, required information to be recorded as regards parentage, conjugal condition, and issue of deceased. Particulars as to burial had also to be entered, as well as more detailed information regarding cause of death. Subsequent amendments to the Act have made it requisite to give additional information concerning issue, and, in the case of married males, age of widow.

Every death occurring in New Zealand is required to be registered within three days after the day of the death if in a city or borough, or seven days in any other case. There is a penalty up to £10 for neglect, the undertaker in charge of the funeral being solely responsible for registration. Prior to 1913 the undertaker was primarily looked to for registration, but, in addition, the occupier of the house and every other person present at death were also responsible parties.

The law does not impose any limit of time after which a death may not be registered as it does in the case of a birth. It is not necessary to effect a death-registration entry in the case of a still-born child, though an entry must be made in the register of births.

Any person burying, or permitting or taking part in the burial of, the body of any deceased person without a certificate of cause of death signed by a duly registered medical practitioner, a Coroner's order to bury the body, or a Registrar's certificate of registration of the death, renders himself liable to a fine of £10.

NUMBERS AND RATES.

The following table shows the number of deaths and the death-rate per 1,000 of the mean population during each of the last twenty years:—

Year.	Number.	Rate per 1,000.
1909	8,959	9.22
1910	9,639	9.71
1911	9,534	9.39
1912	9,214	8.87
1913	10,119	9.47
1914	10,148	9.31
1915	9,965	9.06
1916	10,596	9.64
1917	10,528	9.58
1918	16,364	14.84
1919	10,808	9.46
1920	12,109	10.15
1921	10,682	8.73
1922	10,977	8.77
1923	11,511	9.03
1924	10,767	8.29
1925	11,026	8.29
1926	11,819	8.74
1927	11,613	8.45
1928	11,811	8.49

The figure for 1928, while not so low as some recorded in recent years, is nevertheless sufficient to maintain the death-rate on the same satisfactory low level as has been established since 1920. This succession of extremely low rates year by year would appear to indicate that a new level has been reached, lower than what would a few years ago have been considered possible, with the age constitution of the population ever increasing.

The fall in the birth-rate (resulting in there being less infants at risk relatively to total population) combined with the fall in the rate of infant mortality, is largely responsible for the position disclosed by the crude death-rate figures. As will be seen farther on, however, there has been an actual fall in the already low standardized rate, which is not affected by the fall in the birth-rate, though it is very materially affected by the decline in the rate of infant mortality.

MALE AND FEMALE DEATH-RATES.

The death-rates of males and females for the last ten years are shown separately in the next table, also the number of male deaths to every 100 female deaths, and the death-rate of males expressed as an index number of the female rate, taking the latter as equal to 100.

Year.	Deaths per 1,000 of Population.			Male Deaths to every 100 Female Deaths.	Male Rate expressed as Index Number of Female Rate (= 100).
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Male Deaths to every 100 Female Deaths.	Male Rate expressed as Index Number of Female Rate (= 100).
1919	10.85	8.06	9.46	148	149
1920	11.11	9.15	10.15	127	121
1921	9.75	7.66	8.73	133	127
1922	9.60	7.90	8.77	127	122
1923	9.91	8.12	9.03	127	122
1924	9.22	7.32	8.29	131	126
1925	9.09	7.46	8.29	127	122
1926	9.66	7.77	8.74	130	124
1927	9.28	7.58	8.45	128	123
1928	9.24	7.72	8.49	125	120

In normal times the excess of male over female population has the effect of showing a smaller variation between the death-rates for the two sexes than is indicated by a comparison of numbers of deaths. The withdrawal of a large number of males between the ages of 20 and 45 for military service overseas, however, temporarily reduced the male population without proportionately reducing the total of male deaths, the death-rate among persons of those ages being considerably less than for the whole population. Consequently there was during the war period an increase in the percentage of the male rate to the female, a position accentuated in 1918, and to a less extent in 1919, by the influenza epidemic, which exacted a heavier toll among males than among females.

DISTRIBUTION OF DEATHS OVER THE YEAR.

An examination of the total number of deaths registered in each quarter of the years 1919–28 gives the following results:—

Year.	March Quarter.	June Quarter.	September Quarter.	December Quarter.
1919	2,388	2,645	3,116	2,659
1920	2,466	2,923	3,600	3,120
1921	2,480	2,528	3,094	2,580
1922	2,398	2,686	3,278	2,615
1923	2,371	2,635	3,846	2,659
1924	2,385	2,572	3,032	2,778
1925	2,454	2,625	3,181	2,766
1926	2,499	2,672	3,763	2,885
1927	2,462	2,845	3,374	2,932
1928	2,653	2,720	3,451	2,987

The large increase in September quarter of each of the years 1920, 1923, and 1926 was due to the slight epidemics of influenza which occurred during those periods. The third quarter almost invariably ranks highest in point of number by a considerable margin, on account of the toll that the winter months take of people at advanced ages. March quarter claims the lowest number of deaths.

A classification according to month of death shows that in 1928 the most deaths occurred during the months of August and July, with totals of 1,237 and 1,154 respectively. Excluding December (the figures for which are incomplete on account of a proportion of deaths occurring in that month not being registered till January), April had the least number of deaths (810), followed by March and February, with 841 and 853 respectively.

The least number of deaths on any one day, again excluding December, was 11, this number occurring on the 6th June. The greatest number (55) occurred on the 23rd August.

AGES AT DEATH.

The deaths occurring during 1928 are tabulated below in single ages up to five years, and thereafter in groups, showing males and females separately:—

Ages.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Under 1 month	429	263	692
1–3 months	65	35	100
3–6 months	56	33	89
6–12 months	59	44	103
1–2 years	82	78	160
2–3 years	53	52	105
3–4 years	38	30	68
4–5 years	25	29	54
5–10 years	130	108	238
10–15 years	95	63	158
15–20 years	113	108	221
20–25 years	166	168	334
25–30 years	162	177	339
30–35 years	131	158	289
35–40 years	204	207	411
40–45 years	266	212	478
45–50 years	339	295	634
50–55 years	434	309	743
55–60 years	497	340	837
60–65 years	517	354	871
65–70 years	556	428	984
70–75 years	640	452	1,092
75–80 years	616	505	1,121
80–85 years	468	403	871
85–90 years	282	278	560
90–95 years	102	93	195
95–100 years	28	33	61
102 years	..	1	1
103 years	2	..	2
Totals	6,555	5,256	11,811

Some remarkable changes in the age-distribution of persons dying have occurred during the last fifty years. The total deaths in 1928 were two and a half times as numerous as in 1878, but the number of deaths under one year in 1928 was less than two thirds of the corresponding number recorded in 1878. This is an eloquent tribute to the efficacy of the steps taken to preserve infant life (a subject which is dealt with later on in this subsection), as during the fifty years the annual number of births increased by 53 per cent.

Turning now to deaths at ages 80 and over, a remarkable difference between the earlier and later years covered by the figures is apparent. In 1878, deaths in this group numbered only 59 or just over 1 per cent. of the total of 4,645, while in 1928 1,690 deaths of persons over 80 years of age were recorded, this number representing over 14 per cent. of the total deaths in that year. In 1908 the corresponding percentage was only 7. The figures are a reflex of the changes in the age-constitution of the population, combined with the great improvement in the death-rate at the earlier ages.

Furthermore, in 1928 the number of deaths in individual age-groups shows a gradual increase for practically every consecutive group from “10 and under 15” to “80 and over,” where the maximum is recorded. The experience of 1878, on the other hand, is very different, the number decreasing steadily after the “45–50” age-group till the minimum is attained at the final age-group.

The following table indicates the changes that have occurred over a period of fifty years in the numbers and proportions of deaths contributed by the various age-groups: —

DEATHS BY AGE-GROUPS, 1878–1928.

Ages, in Years.	Number of Deaths.					Percentage to Total.
Ages, in Years.	1878.	1888.	1898.	1908.	1928.	1878.	1888.	1898.	1908.	1928.
Under 1	1,500	1,336	1,510	1,761	984	32.79	23.41	20.84	19.47	8.33
1 and under 5	525	520	410	467	387	11.48	9.11	5.66	5.17	3.28
5 and under 10	176	270	166	169	238	385	4.73	2.29	1.87	2.01
10 and under 15	101	148	142	151	158	2.21	2.59	1.96	1.67	1.34
15 and under 20	95	221	263	188	221	2.07	3.87	3.63	2.08	1.87
20 and under 25	177	272	320	345	334	3.87	4.77	4.42	3.82	2.83
25 and under 30	203	248	290	426	339	4.44	4.35	4.00	4.71	2.87
30 and under 35	197	235	269	331	289	4.31	4.12	3.71	3.66	2.45
35 and under 40	298	256	271	375	411	6.51	4.49	3.74	4.15	3.48
40 and under 45	254	267	282	326	478	5.55	4.68	3.89	3.60	4.05
45 and under 50	261	290	304	389	634	5.71	5.08	4.20	4.30	5.37
50 and under 55	175	290	328	395	743	3.83	5.08	4.53	4.37	6.29
55 and under 60	142	276	441	410	837	3.10	4.84	6.09	453	7.09
60 and under 65	130	263	493	491	871	2.84	4.61	6.81	5.43	7.37
65 and under 70	101	237	574	718	984	2.21	4.16	7.92	7.94	8.33
70 and under 75	96	213	415	775	1,092	2.10	3.73	5.73	8.57	9.24
75 and under 80	84	158	386	679	1,121	1.84	2.77	533	7.51	9.49
80 and over	59	206	380	647	1,690	1.29	3.61	5.25	7.15	14.31
Totals for specified ages	4,574	5,706	7,244	9,043	11,811,	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00
Unspecified	71 2		..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Grand totals	4,645	5,708	7,244	9,043	11,811	..	..	..	..	..

The next table shows that the fall in the death-rate during recent years has been common to all ages, and to both sexes.

DEATH-RATES PER 1,000 BY AGE-GROUPS.

Year.	Under 1.	1 and under 5.	5 and under 15.	15 and under 25.	25 and under 35.	35 and under 45.	45 and under 55.	55 and under 65.	65 and under 75.	75 and under 85.	85 and over.
Males.
1901	78.60	6.81	1.89	3.52	3.97	6.16	11.94	23.12	50.59	126.26	280.00
1911	63.48	5.36	1.91	2.42	3.87	6.27	11.02	20.83	53.22	116.21	281.21
1921	53.10	4.78	1.85	2.44	3.56	5.55	9.61	19.96	46.17	102.84	257.70
1926	43.55	3.60	1.30	2.32	3.33	4.98	9.30	19.15	49.43	128.13	330.54
1928	44.06	3.69	1.65	2.16	2.84	4.91	8.88	19.59	45.21	109.20	240.00
Females.
1901	63.87	5.50	1.64	3.58	4.72	6.70	10.62	19.44	43.32	107.02	285.30
1911	48.74	5.37	1.48	2.76	4.34	4.92	8.38	17.89	40.44	104.84	221.90
1921	42.31	4.49	1.31	2.34	3.38	4.46	8.00	14.88	36.81	94.42	230.05
1926	35.73	4.00	1.30	1.95	3.14	3.98	7.34	15.02	39.26	109.48	284.72
1928	28.64	3.67	1.29	2.25	3.22	4.29	7.58	14.85	35.99	100.98	242.95
Both Sexes.
1901	71.40	6.17	1.77	3.55	4.33	6.40	11.37	21.63	47.87	117.97	282.52
1911	56.31	5.36	1.70	2.58	4.09	5.64	9.82	19.55	47.74	111.73	251.81
1921	47.82	4.64	1.58	2.39	3.47	5.10	8.85	17.59	41.90	99.00	245.21
1926	39.76	3.80	1.30	2.14	3.23	4.48	8.37	17.22	44.64	119.19	308.76
1928	36.56	3.68	1.47	2.20	3.02	4.60	8.25	17.34	40.78	105.29	241.45

The table is further of interest as showing that the female rate for the various age-groups is almost invariably lower than the male rate. The rapid increase in the death-rate at successive age-groups is well exemplified.

The average age at death of persons of either sex in cash of the ten years 1919–28 was as follows:—

Year.	Males.	Females.
1919	50.73	48.47
1920	48.74	45.92
1921	48.45	46.97
1922	60.16	49.69
1923	50.06	50.33
1924	51.05	49.87
1925	51.44	50.15
1926	52.94	51.14
1927	52.59	52.35
1928	52.33	52.68

The years 1923 and 1928 are remarkable in that they are the only occasions on which the average age at death has been higher for females than for males.

EXPECTATION OF LIFE.

The following figures showing the expectation of life at various ages are based on the experience of the two years 1921–22, and are as computed by Mr. L. S. 1 olden, A.l.A.

EXPECTATION OF LIFE OF AVERAGE AFTER-LIFETIME IN NEW ZEALAND.

Age.	Males.	Females.
	Years.	Years.
0	62.764	65.433
1	65.052	67.033
2	64.512	66.443
3	63.810	65.721
4	63.009	64.904
5	62.171	64.050
10	57.726	59.497
15	53.135	54.857
20	48.662	50.364
25	44.311	46.026
30	39.981	41.761
35	35.730	37.491
40	31.560	33.225
45	27.478	29.011
50	23.508	24.913
55	19.657	21.008
60	16.030	17.286
65	12.773	13.757
70	9.906	10.570
75	7.441	7.909
80	5.327	5.780
85	3.582	39.31
90	2.311	2.524
95	1.445	1.557
100	0.750	0.917

The expectation of life at age 0 has been as follows at successive periods:—

Period.	Males. Years.	Females. Years.
1891–1895	55.294	58.087
1896–1900	57.373	59.952
1901–1905	58.092	60.549
1906–1910	59.165	61.764
1911–1915	60.960	63.482
1921–1922	62.764	65.433

DEATH-RATES OF VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

A table is given showing the death-rates of the Australian States and Commonwealth and of New Zealand in each of the ten years 1919–28.

DEATH-RATES PER 1,000 OF MEAN POPULATION, 1919–28.

State.	1919.	1920.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Queensland	12.22	10.65	9.36	9.16	9.83	8.87	8.86	9.39	9.06	8.77
New South Wales	13.18	10.12	9.50	8.92	9.61	9.35	9.16	9.55	9.59	9.34
Victoria	13.15	11.13	10.52	9.65	10.71	10.05	9.47	9.63	9.71	10.11
South Australia	11.69	10.45	10.02	9.11	9.59	9.19	9.15	8.73	8.98	8.92
Western Australia	11.24	10.27	10.43	9.32	8.41	9.98	9.00	8.93	8.81	9.11
Tasmania	10.69	9.68	10.30	9.30	9.92	9.89	9.35	9.05	9.68	10.06
Commonwealth	12.69	10.50	9.91	9.22	9.89	9.47	9.20	9.42	9.45	9.45
New Zealand	9.46	10.15	8.73	8.77	9.03	8.29	8.29	8.74	8.45	8.49

From the following table it will be seen that New Zealand has the lowest death-rate in the world, Australia ranking second in this respect.

Country.	Quinquennium.	Average Rate per 1,000.
*Registration area.
New Zealand	1924–28	8.5
Australia	1924–28	9.4
Union of South Africa	1924–28	9.7
Netherlands	1924–28	9.9
Canada	1923–27	11.1
Norway	1923–27	11.1
Denmark	1923–27	11.2
Uruguay	1922–25	11.2
Sweden	1923–27	11.9
United States^*	1922–26	12.0
England and Wales	1924–28	12.0
Switzerland	1923–27	12.1
Germany	1923–27	12.2
Iceland	1922–26	12.8
Belgium	1922–26	13.2
Scotland	1923–27	13.4
Finland	1923–27	14.1
Argentina	1921–25	14.4
Irish Free State	1923–27	14.5
Latvia	1923–27	15.0
Northern Ireland	1923–27	16.3
Czecho-Slovakia	1923–27	15.4
Estonia	1922–26	15.7
Austria	1923–27	15.7
Lithuania	1924–28	16.3
Italy	1923–27	16.5
France	1923–27	17.0
Poland	1923–27	17.5
Hungary	1923–27	18.2
Spain	1923–27	19.6
Bulgaria	1923–27	19.7
Trinidad	1923–27	20.4
Japan	1923–27	20.7
Hong Kong	1922–26	21.4
Jamaica	1923–27	21.5
Rumania	1923–27	22.3
British India	1921–25	24.9
Ceylon	1923–27	25.3
Egypt	1923–27	25.4
Russia	1921–25	25.8
British Guiana	1923–27	26.0
Chile	1922–26	29.2

STANDARDIZED DEATH-RATES.

For the purpose of ascertaining the true movement of the death-rate in New Zealand, a system of standardization was introduced some years ago, the age- and sex-constitution of the population as disclosed at the census of 1911 being taken as the basis. The population and deaths of each year are divided, each sex separately, into five-yearly groups of ages (with one group only for ages 80 and over), and the rates for the various age-groups ascertained and weighted according to the proportion which the respective groups bore to the total population at the census of 1911. The following table gives the standardized rates for each fifth year from 1875 onwards, the crude rates being also given for purposes of comparison.

CRUDE AND STANDARDIZED DEATH-RATES, 1875–1928.

Year.	Crude Rates.			Standardized Rates.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1875	16.56	15.07	15.92	19.03	15.36	17.30
1880	12.05	10.73	11.46	13.81	11.47	12.70
1885	11.51	9.67	10.67	13.38	10.06	12.36
1890	10.51	8.68	9.66	12.26	10.11	11.25
1895	10.81	8.89	9.91	12.26	10.07	11.22
1900	10.33	8.43	9.43	11.04	9.29	10.21
1905	10.18	8.24	9.27	10.49	8.61	9.60
1910	10.67	8.63	9.71	10.67	8.46	9.62
1915	10.19	7.87	9.06	10.19	7.87	9.09
1920	11.11	9.15	10.15	10.83	8.84	9.89
1925	9.09	7.46	8.29	8.68	6.77	7.78
1928	9.24	7.72	8.49	8.62	6.46	7.60

Remarkable though the fall in the crude death-rate during the fifty years has been, the actual fall has been even more substantial, the standardized rate for 1928 being only 44 per cent. as high as for 1875, and 74 per cent. as high as for 1900. A comparison of the two sots of figures emphasizes the fact that the very low rates of the last few years have been achieved in spite of an upward movement in the age-constitution. The fall in the birth-rate, with the consequent decrease in the relative number of infants dying, does not effect the standardized rates, though the fall in the rate of infant mortality is an important factor in the decrease in both crude and standardized rates.

For purposes of international comparisons it is desirable to compile standardized rates on the basis of an international standard population. A standard population, based on the age-distribution of the population of 19 European countries at their censuses nearest to the year 1900, has been compiled by the International Institute of Statistics, and is now used in the compilation of international standardized rates.

Under this standard, population and deaths are divided into 11 age-groups; but, while separate standardized rates are compiled for each sex as well as for the two sexes in conjunction, no account of differences in sex-constitution is taken by the International Institute in computing the general rate. In adopting the International Institute's standard, however, Australia and New Zealand (in both of which the sex constitution differs materially from that in Europe) make allowance for sex-constitution as well as age-constitution.

The following table gives the standardized rates for New Zealand for the years 1901, 1911, 1921, and the last five years, the corresponding crude rates being also included.

CRUDE AND INTERNATIONAL STANDARDIZED DEATH-RATES.

Year.	Crude Rates.			International Standardized Rates.
	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.
	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.	Males.	Females.	Without Distinction between Sexes.	With Distinction between Sexes.
1901	10.80	8.71	9.81	11.81	11.21	11.64	11.51
1911	10.46	8.21	93.9	10.79	9.74	10.40	10.26
1921	9.75	7.66	8.73	9.65	8.63	9.23	9.14
1924	9.22	7.32	8.29	9.18	8.26	8.79	8.72
1925	9.09	7.46	8.29	8.99	8.35	8.75	8.67
1926	9.66	7.77	8.74	9.51	8.66	9.17	9.09
1927	9.28	7.58	8.45	8.98	8.17	8.65	8.57
1928	9.24	7.72	8.49	8.93	8.20	8.63	8.57

An interesting point brought out by the use of the new standard in New Zealand is that the male standardized rate is actually lower than the corresponding crude rate, thus indicating that the age-constitution of the male population of the Dominion has now reached a level corresponding to that obtaining in Europe at the beginning of the present century.

DEATH STATISTICS OF URBAN AREAS.

The number and rate of deaths for each of the fourteen urban areas during the last five years are as shown in the following statement:—

URBAN AREAS.—DEATHS AND DEATH-RATES, 1924–28.

Urban Areas.	Number of Deaths.					Rate per 1,000 of Mean Population.
Urban Areas.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Auckland	1,616	1,644	1,811	1,769	1,784	9.34	9.09	9.42	8.79	8.67
Wellington	917	961	1,086	1,066	1,224	8.01	8.11	8.95	8.44	9.44
Christchurch	1,023	1,062	1,175	1,156	1,147	8.87	8.98	9.92	9.49	9.31
Dunedin	742	788	816	874	801	9.79	10.17	9.59	10.51	9.54
Totals of principal areas	4,298	4,455	4,888	4,865	4,956	8.98	9.00	9.45	9.13	9.14
Hamilton	111	126	133	115	129	6.89	7.38	8.28	6.73	7.46
Gisborne	119	123	154	144	117	7.74	7.38	10.38	9.60	7.72
Napier	173	163	202	208	159	9.50	8.26	11.26	11.30	8.55
Hastings	96	117	110	114	101	6.84	8.51	7.51	7.66	6.68
New Plymouth	141	150	151	126	169	9.78	9.47	9.47	7.58	10.01
Wanganui	203	182	207	221	238	8.12	7.92	7.92	8.22	8.75
Palmerston North	147	172	155	137	189	8.03	8.85	7.85	6.69	9.05
Nelson	126	136	122	116	147	11.05	11.37	10.37	9.68	12.19
Timaru	146	147	161	155	135	8.74	8.57	9.57	8.95	7.70
Invercargill	178	173	186	192	221	8.67	8.50	8.50	8.51	9.67
Totals of secondary areas	1,440	1,489	1,581	1,528	1,605	8.47	8.43	9.00	8.43	8.74
Grand totals	5,738	5,944	6,469	6,393	6,561	8.85	8.85	9.33	8.96	9.03

In compiling the statistics of deaths for the urban areas the rule is followed of carefully excluding deaths of persons who do not belong to the areas but have come from elsewhere for the purpose of obtaining better medical and nursing attention. Nevertheless, the rates for the principal urban areas, in spite of the omission of this class, are somewhat above the average for the Dominion as a whole. The average for the secondary areas, however, is not only considerably lower than that for the principal areas, but is also in some years smaller than the Dominion figure.

ORPHANHOOD.

The table following shows the number of living issue left by married men whose deaths were registered during the ten years 1919 28, the information being given according to age of father and of issue. It will be seen that during the period under review 31,177 fathers left issue to the number of 139,440, an average of 4.47. In addition, 5,541 married men or widowers died without leaving issue.

NUMBER AND AGES OF ISSUE LEFT BY MARRIED MEN, 1919–28.

Age of Issue, in Years.	Number of Issue left by Fathers dying within the Age-groups shown at Head of Column.
Age of Issue, in Years.	Under 30.	30 and under 40	40 and 50	50 and under 60.	60 and under 70.	70 and under 80.	80 and over.	Totals.
0	119	267	217	59	3	1	..	666
1	126	394	264	70	13	4	..	871
2	129	434	311	108	28	3	1	1,014
3	88	436	395	156	35	6	..	1,116
4	54	441	469	174	34	4	2	1,178
5	45	427	473	211	39	5	1	1,201
6	25	415	515	230	69	7	..	1,261
7	15	387	588	316	65	20	3	1,394
8	13	353	550	357	106	13	3	1,395
9	5	277	602	400	101	29	3	1,417
10	4	285	639	422	151	31	2	1,534
11	..	206	654	481	184	43	4	1,572
12	1	163	681	530	205	50	11	1,641
13	..	132	636	576	231	62	7	1,644
14	..	78	663	636	319	72	9	1,777
15	1	60	625	673	349	83	15	1,806
16	..	38	560	743	394	128	22	1,885
17	2	22	525	772	471	145	13	1,950
18	..	10	517	863	604	206	34	2,234
19	1	4	434	888	665	261	39	2,292
20	..	1	345	868	646	297	48	2,205
21 and over	1	1	986	8,526	24,271	40,224	33,094	107,103
Unspecified	2	8	64	98	77	26	9	284
Totals	631	4,839	11,713	18,157	29,060	41,720	33,320	139,440
Married men who died—
(a) Leaving issue	390	1,914	3,538	4,648	6,500	7,889	6,298	31,177
(b) Without leaving issue	199	494	715	968	1,116	1,158	891	5,541
Totals	589	2,408	4,253	5,616	7,616	9,047	7,189	36,718

Taking all deaths of married men or widowers, whether leaving issue or not, it is found that the average living issue is 3.80, care compared with 4.04 for the period 1909–18. The following table shows the average issue for various age-groups in the two decennial periods:—

Age-group, in Years.	Deaths of Married Men or Widowers.		Total Number of Issue left.		Average Number of Issue left.
Age-group, in Years.	1909–18.	1919–28.	1909–18.	1919–28.	1909–18.	1919–28.
Under 30	803	589	922	631	115	1.07
30 and under 40	3,194	2,408	6,669	4,839	2.09	2.01
40 and under 50	3,555	4,253	10,718	11,713	3.01	2.75
50 and under 60	4,251	5,616	16,800	18,157	3.95	3.23
60 and under 70	5,874	7,616	27,628	29,060	4.70	3.82
70 and under 80	8,063	9,047	38,910	41,720	4.83	4.61
80 and over	4,667	7,189	21,266	33,320	4.56	4.63
Totals	30,407	36,718	122,913	139,440	4.04	3.80

Several tables dealing with orphanhood are given in full in the “Annual Report on Vital Statistics.” One of these, showing the number of issue under 16 left by deceased married men, is summarized and given in the next table.

ISSUE UNDER AGE 16 LEFT BY MARRIED MEN OR WIDOWERS, 1928.

Age at Death, in Years.	Total Number of Cases where Issue left under Age 16.	Cases leaving Number of Issue under 16 Years of Age shown at Head of Column.									Total Number of Children left under Age 16.
Age at Death, in Years.	Total Number of Cases where Issue left under Age 16.	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9 and over.	Total Number of Children left under Age 16.
20 and under 25	8	7	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	9
25 and under 30	35	15	14	4	2	..	..	..	..	..	63
30 and under 35	58	19	20	11	6	2	..	..	..	..	126
35 and under 40	109	37	34	21	7	8	1	1	..	..	249
40 and under 45	159	33	49	39	23	9	4	1	..	1	425
45 and under 50	153	43	45	23	18	14	7	2	1	..	408
50 and under 55	171	69	47	21	14	9	5	4	1	1	403
55 and under 60	130	76	28	8	10	7	1	..	..	..	237
60 and under 65	80	45	19	7	6	3	..	..	..	..	143
65 and under 70	39	28	7	4	..	..	..	..	..	..	54
70 and under 75	20	8	8	2	2	..	..	..	..	..	38
75 and under 80	11	7	3	..	..	1	..	..	..	..	18
80 and over	1	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	1
Totals	974	388	275	140	88	53	18	8	2	2	2,174

Among men who left any issue under age 16, the average number of such issue was 2.23. The average for all married men or widowers who died during the year was, however, only 0.54.

Of 974 cases where issue under 16 years of age was left by married men or widowers during 1928, a widow was also left in 911 cases, the aggregate children under 16 in these 911 cases being 2,057, and the average per widow 2.26. By the deaths of their fathers, children under 16 to the number of 102 were left without either parent, and for 15 children there was no information as to whether the mother was alive or dead.

WIDOWS LEFT BY MARRIED MEN.

A table is given showing the relative ages of married men who died during the period 1919–28 and of their widows.

DEATHS, 1919–28.—AGES OF MARRIED MEN WHO DIED, AND OF THEIR WIDOWS.

Age of Widow, in Years.	Age of Deceased, in Years.
Age of Widow, in Years.	Under 30.	30 and under 40.	40 and under 50.	50 and under 60.	60 and under 70.	70 and under 80.	80 and under 90.	90 and over.	Totals.
Under 20	18	3	2	..	..	..	..	..	23
20 and under 25	203	125	27	7	1	1	..	..	364
25 and under 30	261	512	103	16	5	..	..	1	898
30 and under 35	46	815	419	78	20	5	1	..	1,384
35 and under 40	6	586	896	269	66	21	5	..	1,849
40 and under 45	9	140	1,349	637	205	45	12	..	2,397
45 and under 50	2	19	887	1,287	424	124	29	2	2,774
50 and under 55	2	6	155	1,600	896	301	68	4	3,032
55 and under 60	..	1	30	858	1,558	516	108	6	3,077
60 and under 65	..	..	9	160	1,748	1,034	269	15	3,235
65 and under 70	..	..	4	18	889	1,536	419	22	2,888
70 and under 75	..	..	..	2	171	1,315	555	36	2,079
75 and under 80	..	1	..	1	30	605	656	37	1,330
80 and under 85	..	..	..	..	3	100	408	39	550
85 and under 90	..	..	..	..	..	8	98	26	132
90 and over	..	..	..	..	..	..	14	9	23
Ages not specified	14	52	41	81	106	212	196	32	734
Totals	561	2,260	3,922	5,014	6,122	5,823	2,838	229	26,769

Of the 36,718 married men or widowers whose deaths were registered during the ten years 1919–28, 9,205 were shown to have been widowers, and 26,769 to have left widows; while in the remaining 744 cases there was no information on the point. Of the married men leaving widows, 23,010 had living issue also at time of death, and 3,759 had no living issue. In 7,818 cases widowers left issue, and in 1,387 cases no issue. In 349 of the 744 cases where no information was given as to whether a widow was left there was living issue, in 252 cases no living issue, and in 143 cases no information as to issue was given.

INFANT MORTALITY.

New Zealand has the lowest rate of infant mortality in the world, a fact attributable partly to such matters as climate, virility of the race, comparative absence of large industrial undertakings, &c., and partly to legislative and educative measures, the latter both by the State and by various organizations.

The following table, giving infant-mortality rates in various countries for the latest available quinquennial period, clearly shows the favourable position occupied by New Zealand:—

Country.	Quinquennium.	Deaths under One Year per 1,000 Births.
* Registration area.
New Zealand	1924–28	39
Norway	1922–26	51
Australia	1924–28	54
Sweden	1923–27	58
Netherlands	1924–28	58
Switzerland	1922–26	62
Irish Free State	1923–27	70
South Africa	1924–28	70
England and Wales	1924–28	71
United States^*	1922–26	74
Northern Ireland	1923–27	82
Denmark	1922–26	83
Scotland	1923–27	88
France	1922–26	90
Finland	1923–27	93
Latvia	1922–26	95
Belgium	1922–26	96
Canada	1923–27	97
Uruguay	1922–26	103
Germany	1923–27	109
Italy	1922–26	125
Austria	1923–27	127
Trinidad	1923–27	130
Spain	1922–26	138
Japan	1923–27	148
Egypt	1923–27	149
Lithuania	1922–26	162
British Guiana	1923–27	163
Jamaica	1923–27	170
Ceylon	1923–27	181
Hungary	1922–26	182
Rumania	1920–24	209
Chile	1922–26	260

Not only has New Zealand had for many years the lowest rate of infant mortality in the world, but the rate for the Dominion has shown steady and rapid improvement, more particularly during the last twenty years. Much of the success achieved has been due to the activities of the Royal New Zealand Society for the Health of Women and Children. Founded at Dunedin in 1907 this society has since extended its Plunket system throughout New Zealand, and its methods are being adopted to an ever-increasing extent in other countries.

The number of deaths of infants under one year of age for each of the ten years 1919–28 and the rate per 1,000 births registered are shown in the following table:—

DEATHS OF CHILDREN UNDER ONE YEAR OF AGE, 1919–28.

Year.	Number.			Rate per 1,000 Births.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1919	636	472	1,108	50.53	39.68	45.26
1920	848	665	1,513	54.94	45.90	50.57
1921	774	592	1,366	53.10	42.31	47.82
1922	718	497	1,215	48.20	35.23	41.89
1923	720	505	1,225	49.55	37.59	43.80
1924	644	483	1,127	45.05	35.21	40.23
1925	639	486	1,125	44.01	35.64	39.96
1926	638	494	1,132	43.55	35.73	39.76
1927	610	470	1,080	42.68	34.58	38.74
1928	609	375	984	43.25	28.59	36.18

The rate for 1928 fell to a phenomenally low level, one which has never hitherto been reached either in this country, or in any other country in the world. The rate is invariably somewhat higher among males than among females, but the disparity was in 1928 somewhat greater than usual.

The pronounced fall in New Zealand's infant-mortality rate during the last two decades has hot been accompanied by an increase in the death-rate of children between the ages of one and ten years. There has, on the contrary, been a substantial fall, as is shown by the following figures covering the last thirty-five years, the numbers and rates given refer to annual averages for the quinquennia mentioned.

Quinquennium.	1 and under 5.		5 and under 10.
Quinquennium.	Number of Deaths.	Rate.^*	Number of Deaths.	Rate.^*
* Per 10,000 children at ages shown.
1894–1898	440	68	186	22
1899–1903	504	76	194	23
1904–1908	444	37	172	19
1909–1913	447	49	193	18
1914–1918	547	53	266	22
1919–1923	465	44	245	19
1924–1928	403	38	203	15

The increase in 1914–18 as compared with 1909–13 is due to the fact that during the latter period New Zealand experienced several minor epidemics, principally diphtheria. The influenza epidemic in 1918 also somewhat affected the rate, though not to any great extent.

Since 1921 a distinction has been made between legitimate and illegitimate children in the New Zealand statistics of infant mortality. The proportion of illegitimate infants among those dying within the first year of life has been found to be greater (in some years substantially so) than the proportion of illegitimate births to total births, in spite of the fact that legitimations and adoptions would tend to reduce the number who would be termed illegitimate in the death entries. The figures for the last eight years are—

Year.	Total Deaths under One Year.	Deaths of Illegitimate Infants under One Year.	Proportion of Illegitimates in Total Deaths under One Year.	Proportion
			Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1921	1,366	118	8.64	4.40
1922	1,215	86	7.08	4.22
1923	1,225	82	6.69	4.51
1924	1,127	96	8.52	4.78
1925	1,125	58	5.16	4.73
1926	1,132	61	5.39	5.17
1927	1,080	77	7.13	4.97
1928	984	56	5.69	5.08

The excess of the male over the female rate of infant mortality holds for each of the four divisions of the first year of life shown in the next table. The discrepancy is, however, somewhat greater in the first half of the year than in the second.

DEATHS AT AGE-PERIODS UNDER ONE YEAR PER 1,000 BIRTHS.

Year.	Male Deaths per 1,000 Male Births.				Female Deaths per 1,000 Female Births.
Year.	Under 1 Month.	1 and under 3 Months.	3 and under 6 Months.	6 and under 12 Months.	Under 1 Month.	1 and under 3 Months.	3 and under 6 Months.	6 and under 12 Months.
1919	33.13	6.91	4.37	6.12	23.37	5.97	4.54	5.80
1920	34.40	8.10	5.96	6.48	26.99	6.76	4.76	7.39
1921	33.21	816	5.69	6.04	28.02	5.43	3.86	5.00
1922	31.55	7.52	3.63	5.50	22.68	4.68	2.98	4.89
1923	33.03	7.23	3.10	6.19	24.78	5.96	2.76	4.09
1924	26.37	6.72	5.11	6.85	21.43	3.86	4.23	5.69
1925	29.89	5.99	3.72	4.41	22.73	5.06	2.57	5.28
1926	28.74	4.78	3.68	6.35	21.99	4.41	3.54	5.79
1927	27.92	5.39	4.13	5.24	23.62	4.27	2.43	4.26
1928	30.46	4.62	3.98	4.19	20.05	2.67	2.52	3.35

Even when the effect of the male excess among infants born is eliminated, the number of male deaths per 100 female deaths in the first month of life during the ten years 1919–28 is found to be 131; between one and three months, 133; between three and six months, 127; between six and twelve months, 111; and for the whole of the first year, 128.

Of every 100 males who died under one year of age during the last ten years 65 lived less than one month, 79 less than three months, and 88 less than six months. The corresponding figures for females are 64, 77, and 86 respectively.

The rates for the two sexes in conjunction are now given for each of the last five years.

Year.	Under 1 Month.	1 and under 3 Months.	3 and under 6 Months.	6 and under 12 Months.	Total under 1 Year.
1924	23.95	5.32	4.68	6.28	40.23
1925	26.43	5.54	3.16	4.83	39.96
1926	25.46	4.60	3.62	6.08	39.76
1927	25.83	4.84	3.30	4.77	38.74
1928	25.44	3.68	3.27	3.79	36.18

If the deaths under one year of age are divided into two groups—viz., those occurring during the first month of life and those during the' remainder of the twelve months—it will be found that the decrease disclosed for recent years when compared with earlier is almost entirely confined to the latter class; the explanation being that with premature birth, congenital debility, and other causes of death due to pre-natal influences (which are responsible for the great majority of deaths during the first month), it has not hitherto been found possible to effect the great improvements which have been brought about in regard to complaints arising from post-natal causes. It is gratifying, however, to note that a definite improvement has been recorded in the last few years, during which ante-natal clinics have been established and other steps taken to ensure healthy children being born.

The next table shows that whereas in the last two years the death-rate under one month of age was 14 per cent. lower than in the quinquennium 1881–85, the rate for children who have survived the first month of life was little more than one-fifth as high as in the “eighties.” In other words, where the Dominion formerly lost, between the ages of one month and one year, sixty children out of every thousand, it now loses only thirteen.

Period.	Deaths per 1,000 Births.			Deaths between 1 and 12 Months per 1,000 Children, who survive 1 Month.
Period.	Under 1 Year.	Under 1 Month.	Between 1 and 12 Months.
1881–1885	90.60	29.77	60.83	62.70
1886–1890	84.09	27.57	56.52	58.13
1891–1895	87.60	30.34	57.26	58.93
1896–1900	80.06	30.38	49.68	51.24
1901–1905	74.77	30.64	44.13	45.54
1906–1910	69.62	30.28	39.34	40.57
1911–1915	53.63	29.28	24.35	25.05
1916–1920	48.62	28.16	20.46	21.05
1921–1925	42.75	27.48	15.27	15.70
1926–1928	38.25	25.58	12.67	13.01

The decrease by more than half in the general rate, and nearly four-fifths in the rate between one and twelve months, and the comparatively stationary position of the rate under one month, are well indicated in the accompanying diagram.

INFANT DEATH-RATES, 1880–1928.

As stated above, the death-rate for infants under the age of one month has shown little improvement in recent years, while a heavy reduction has taken place in the mortality-rate after the first month of life. It would appear, therefore, that on the one hand the diseases that can be combated openly, such as epidemic diseases, respiratory diseases, and diseases due to faulty nourishment, &c. (i.e., diseases of the digestive system), have shown a definite response to the strenuous campaigns launched against them; while, on the other hand, many infants evidently nonviable at birth stand little chance of survival. This is further accentuated by the following table, which shows the rates for further divisions of the first month of life.

DEATHS UNDER 1 MONTH PER 1,000 LIVE BIRTHS.

Year.	Under 1 Day.	1 Day and under 2 Days.	2 Days and under 1 Week.	Total under 1 Week.	1 Week and under 2 Weeks.	2 Weeks and under 3 Weeks.	3 Weeks and under 1 Month.	Total under 1 Month.
1920	8.36	13.33		21.69	3.94	2.81	2.37	30.81
1921	9.07	4.41	9.66	23.14	3.39	2.17	1.96	30.66
1922	8.76	3.89	7.76	20.41	3.48	2.14	1.21	27.24
1923	8.44	3.93	8.26	20.63	4.18	2.54	1.65	29.00
1924	7.89	3.35	7.50	18.74	2.25	1.68	1.28	23.95
1925	8.35	3.51	8.42	20.28	3.02	1.74	1.39	26.43
1926	8.57	3.54	8.36	20.47	2.11	1.65	1.23	25.46
1927	8.03	3.62	7.71	19.36	3.27	1.72	1.48	25.83
1928	8.46	3.71	8.24	20.41	2.94	1.10	0.99	25.44

The rate for under one month shows a slight decrease for 1928 over the previous year, but the nearer to the moment of birth the less the improvement. For all divisions under one week an appreciable increase is disclosed in the mortality-rate. Examining the table as a whole, however, it is gratifying to note that the difficult task of reducing the mortality during the first four weeks is apparently meeting with increasing success as time goes on. In fact, the only group that refuses to respond to all endeavours is that for under one day, the rate in this instance showing a slight increase for 1928 as compared with 1920, the first year for which such detailed information is available.

One-third (230) of the 692 deaths under one month in 1928 occurred within twenty-four hours of birth, and four-fifths (555) within one week. The following table gives, for each of the last five years, detailed information as to the number of deaths at various periods of the first year of life:—

INFANT MORTALITY, 1924–28.—DETAILED AGES.

Year.	Under 1 Day.	1 Day and under 2 Days.	2 Days and under 1 week.	1 Week and under 2 week.	2 weeks and under 3 weeks.	3 weeks and under 1 month.	1 months and under 2 Months.	2 Months and under 3 Months.	3 Months and under 6 Months.	6 Months and under 9 Months.	9 Months and under 12 Months.	Total.
Males.
1924	125	48	118	42	23	21	55	41	73	51	47	644
1925	135	67	140	44	27	21	64	23	54	37	27	639
1926	137	67	131	35	29	22	50	20	54	50	43	638
1927	115	54	127	44	33	26	48	29	59	44	31	610
1928	148	62	142	42	18	17	36	29	56	33	26	609
Females.
1924	96	46	92	21	24	15	28	25	58	37	41	483
1925	100	32	97	41	22	18	42	27	35	37	35	486
1926	107	34	107	25	18	13	41	20	49	40	40	494
1927	109	47	88	47	15	15	34	24	33	29	29	470
1928	82	39	82	38	12	10	21	14	33	22	22	375
Both Sexes.
1924	221	94	210	63	47	36	83	66	131	88	88	1,127
1925	235	99	237	85	49	39	106	50	89	74	62	1,125
1926	244	101	238	60	47	35	91	40	103	90	83	1,132
1927	224	101	215	91	48	41	32	53	92	73	60	1,080
1928	230	101	224	80	30	27	57	43	89	55	48	984

Some remarkable changes are disclosed by the next table, which gives the infant-mortality rates for various groups of causes in quinquennial groups over a period of fifty-five years. If a comparison be made between the averages of the first and last quinquennia covered—1872–76 and 1922–26—it is found that the general infant-mortality rate shows a decline of 62 per cent., while even greater decreases are recorded for tuberculosis (93 per cent.), gastric and intestinal diseases (88 per cent.), convulsions (87 per cent.), epidemic diseases (87 per cent.), and respiratory diseases (67 per cent.). The rate for diseases of early infancy shows a decrease of only 10 per cent. in 1922–26 as compared with 1872–76, but of 14 per cent. as compared with 1917–21, and the figures indicate that some measure of success has already attended the steps taken in recent years to cope with ante-natal conditions.

The increase shown for malformations and the decrease for tuberculosis are probably somewhat less than is indicated by the figures. In the earlier years covered by the table the latter heading included all deaths from hydrocephalus, many of which were no doubt due to congenital hydrocephalus, which is now included among the malformations. A proportion of the deaths from hydrocephalus in the earlier years would also probably be due to meningitis. The most striking features of the figures for the years 1927–28 in the table are the continuation of the upward trend in the death-rate for malformations, and a further drop in the rate from diseases peculiar to early infancy.

INFANT-MORTALITY RATES FOR PRINCIPAL CAUSES, 1872–1928.

Period.	Epidemic Diseases.	Tuberculosis.	Infantile Convulsions.	Respiratory Diseases.	Gastric and Intestinal Diseases.	Malformations.	Early Infancy.	Other Causes.	Totals.
1872–1876	13.5	5.5	9.7	12.9	24.2	1.2	25.0	17.3	109.3
1877–1881	10.2	5.2	7.5	12.3	19.8	1.4	21.9	15.3	93.6
1882–1886	9.3	4.7	7.9	11.8	19.1	1.2	25.5	12.3	91.8
1887–1891	8.9	3.7	6.3	10.5	18.5	1.3	24.7	8.8	82.7
1892–1896	9.8	3.3	6.6	11.0	16.6	1.4	24.9	11.2	84.8
1897–1901	6.1	2.6	5.6	10.0	17.2	1.5	26.2	9.7	78.9
1902–1906	5.5	1.5	4.1	9.7	15.3	1.3	27.6	7.9	72.9
1907–1911	5.9	1.3	3.3	7.6	15.5	1.9	26.7	6.3	68.5
1912–1916	3.6	0.6	2.2	5.1	7.4	3.9	26.2	3.5	52.5
1917–1921	3.2	0.5	1.9	4.7	4.5	4.3	26.4	2.9	48.1
1922–1926	1.8	0.4	1.3	4.3	2.8	4.8	22.4	3.3	41.1
1927–1928	1.8	0.4	0.6	3.8	2.0	5.2	20.5	3.2	37.5

Two out of every three deaths of infants under one year of age are due to causes coming within the groups “Early Infancy” and “Malformations,” and premature birth alone is responsible for approximately one-third of the total infant mortality.

In accordance with international practice, New Zealand's infant-mortality rate represents the number of deaths of infants actually born alive expressed as a proportion per 1,000 live births. This method, however, takes no account of still-births. Reference has been made in an earlier paragraph to the effect on the infant-mortality rate of efforts made towards the reduction of those ante-natal influences which generally cause death to ensue during the early weeks of the first year of life. The fact that still-births are also the result of such ante-natal influences should not be lost sight of, and for this and other reasons it is of interest to compute rates for infant-mortality and still-births in. conjunction, as in the following table. In the computation of the rates for numbers inclusive of still-births, the latter are taken into account in both births and deaths.

DEATHS OF INFANTS UNDER ONE YEAR PER 1,000 BIRTHS.

Year.	Exclusive of Still-births.			Inclusive of Still-births.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1919	50.53	39.68	45.26	78.64	62.99	71.06
1920	54.94	45.90	50.57	82.99	69.54	76.49
1921	53.10	42.31	47.82	84.32	69.32	76.99
1922	48.20	35.23	41.89	77.55	59.75	68.92
1923	49.55	37.59	43.80	80.62	65.61	73.42
1924	45.05	35.21	40.23	77.39	59.48	68.65
1925	44.01	35.64	39.96	74.73	61.72	68.45
1926	43.55	35.73	39.76	73.29	63.90	68.74
1927	42.68	34.58	38.74	75.42	60.31	68.08
1928	43.25	28.59	36.18	71.21	58.38	65.01

Some remarkable differences are revealed between the two sets of rates. Whereas the rate computed on the usual method indicates a decrease of 29 1/2 per cent. since 1914 (the first complete year for which still-births are available) the inclusion of stillbirths reduces the improvement to only 11 1/2 per cent. The explanation, of course, lies in the fact that although the number of children born alive and dying before one year has elapsed has been greatly diminished, yet, on the other hand, the number of still-births has shown a considerable increase between 1914 and 1928.

CAUSES OF DEATH.

Since 1908, the classification of causes of death in New Zealand has been on the basis of the international classification initiated by Dr. Jaques Bertillon and used by the Commonwealth of Australia and the principal European and American countries.

A comparison of the causes of deaths in 1928, arranged according to an abridged classification, and the proportion per 10,000 of population of each sex, are given in the following table:—

Class.	Number of Deaths.			Proportion per 10,000 of Mean Population.
Class.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
I. Epidemic, endemic, and infectious diseases	628	613	1,241	8.85	9.00	8.92
II. General diseases, not included above	928	945	1,873	13.08	13.87	13.47
III. Diseases of the nervous system and of the organs of special sense	504	527	1,031	7.10	7.74	7.41
IV. Diseases of the circulatory system	1,521	1,245	2,766	21.44	18.28	19.89
V. Diseases of the respiratory system	658	426	1,084	9.27	6.25	7.80
VI. Diseases of the digestive system	363	297	660	5.12	4.36	4.75
VII. Non-venereal diseases of the genito-urinary system and annexs.	386	298	684	5.44	4.37	4.92
VIII. Puerperal state	..	134	134	..	1.97	0.96
IX. Diseases of the skin and of the cellular tissue	24	21	45	0.34	0.31	0.32
X. Diseases of the bones and of the organs of locomotion	23	10	33	0.32	0.15	0.24
XI. Malformations	107	63	170	1.51	0.92	1.22
XII. Early infancy	345	197	542	4.86	2.89	3.90
XIII. Old age	280	264	544	3.95	3.87	3.91
XIV. External causes	752	204	956	10.60	2.99	6.87
XV. Ill-defined causes	36	12	48	0.51	0.18	0.35
Totals	6,555	5,256	11,811	92.39	77.15	84.93

Class IV, diseases of the circulatory system, the principal of which—diseases of the heart—rank easily first among individual causes of death in New Zealand, is the most important as regards numerical strength. Next in order comes Class II (which includes cancer), followed in 1928 by Classes I, V, and III. Classes IX and X are responsible for very few deaths.

The next table shows the number of deaths from certain principal causes for the live years 1924–28, and the proportion per 10,000 of the population:—

Cause.	Number of Deaths.					Proportion per 10,000 of Mean Population.
Cause.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Typhoid fever	19	16	19	11	16	0.15	0.12	0.14	0.08	0.12
Measles	52	11	13	29	12	0.40	0.08	0.10	0.21	0.09
Scarlet fever	13	7	8	16	55	0.10	0.05	0.06	0.12	0.40
Whooping-cough	47	16	108	41	26	0.36	0.12	0.80	0.30	0.19
Diphtheria	80	52	66	58	72	0.62	0.39	0.49	0.42	0.52
Influenza	90	86	288	131	242	0.69	0.65	2.13	0.95	1.74
Infantile paralysis	22	173	11	7	17	0.17	1.30	0.08	0.05	0.12
Tuberculosis of respiratory system	573	560	592	533	569	4.41	4.21	4.38	3.88	4.09
Other forms of tuberculosis	163	124	135	135	130	1.26	0.93	1.00	0.98	0.93
Cancer	1,245	1,207	1,341	1,324	1,374	9.59	9.08	9.91	9.63	9.88
Diabetes	173	162	162	188	167	1.33	1.22	1.20	1.37	1.20
Anæmia, chlorosis	106	86	97	78	67	0.82	0.65	0.71	0.57	0.48
Exophthalmic goitre	45	63	57	57	51	0.35	0.47	0.42	0.41	0.37
Meningitis (all forms)	68	68	54	63	40	0.52	0.51	0.40	0.46	0.29
Apoplexy, cerebral hæmorrhage	722	683	764	771	643	5.56	5.14	5.65	5.61	4.62
Epilepsy	48	77	54	40	60	0.37	0.58	0.40	0.29	0.43
Convulsions of children under 5 years of age	31	51	42	26	15	0.24	0.38	0.31	0.19	0.11
Diseases of heart	1,858	1,931	2,059	2,150	2,315	14.31	14.52	15.22	15.64	16.65
Diseases of arteries	128	151	159	179	394	0.98	1.14	1.17	1.30	2.83
Bronchitis	224	316	360	303	228	1.72	2.38	2.66	2.20	1.64
Broncho-pneumonia	200	215	210	207	230	1.54	1.61	1.55	1.51	1.65
Pneumonia	306	292	297	313	422	2.36	2.19	2.19	2.28	3.03
Diarrhoea and enteritis	180	107	104	91	110	1.39	0.80	0.77	0.67	0.79
Appendicitis	94	122	93	92	107	0.72	0.92	0.69	0.67	0.77
Hernia, intestinal obstruction	82	110	114	109	100	0.63	0.83	0.84	0.79	0.72
Cirrhosis of liver	43	45	47	47	51	0.33	0.34	0.35	0.34	0.37
Simple peritonitis	36	41	46	46	26	0.28	0.31	0.34	0.34	0.19
Nephritis, Bright's disease	342	396	434	409	455	2.63	2.98	3.21	2.98	3.27
Diseases and accidents of puerperal state	140	131	121	137	134	1.08	0.98	0.89	1.00	0.96
Malformations	147	170	144	161	170	1.13	1.28	1.06	1.17	1.22
Congenital debility	136	110	110	112	57	1.05	0.83	0.81	0.81	0.41
Premature birth	325	354	346	330	324	2.50	2.66	2.56	2.40	2.33
Injury at birth	50	66	43	56	83	0.39	0.50	0.32	0.41	0.60
Other diseases of early infancy	70	73	91	88	78	0.54	0.55	0.67	0.64	0.56
Senility	767	779	887	806	544	5.91	5.86	6.56	5.86	3.91
Violence (1) suicide	159	173	153	199	202	1.22	1.30	1.13	1.45	1.45
Violence (2) accident	621	621	708	656	744	4.78	4.67	5.23	4.77	5.35
Violence (3) homicide	11	15	14	22	10	0.08	0.11	0.10	0.16	0.07
Other causes	1,351	1,366	1,468	1,592	1,471	10.40	10.28	10.85	11.58	10.53
Totals	10,767	11,026	11,819	11,613	11,811	82.91	82.92	87.35	84.49	84.93

Detailed information concerning the various causes of death is given in the “Annual Report on Vital Statistics.” The statistics for tuberculosis, cancer, puerperal causes, and violence—causes which are of special interest and significance—are discussed in the following pages.

TUBERCULOSIS:

Tuberculosis of the respiratory system takes fifth place in point of the number of deaths resulting therefrom during 1928, ranking after heart-disease, cancer, accidents, and cerebral hæmorrhage and apoplexy, in that order. The remarkably low level of 3.88 per 10,000 was reached in 1927, a slight increase to 409 being recorded in 1928, which, however, ranks second to 1927, and shows a continuation of the improvement which has been achieved for many years past.

Of the 569 persons who died from tuberculosis of the respiratory system in 1928, 401 or 70 per cent., were known to have been born in the Dominion. In 5 cases the country of birth was not known or not stated, and in the remaining 163 cases the deceased person had been born outside New Zealand. Two of the last-mentioned had been in New Zealand less than two years, and 17 less than five years.

In addition to the 569 deaths from tuberculosis of the respiratory system during 1928, there were 130 deaths from other forms of tuberculosis, made up as follows:—

Tuberculosis of meninges and central nervous system	58
Tuberculosis of intestines and peritoneum	28
Tuberculosis of vertebral column	17
Tuberculosis of other organs	13
Disseminated tuberculosis	14

The following table gives the number and rate of deaths from tuberculosis of the respiratory system and from all forms of tuberculosis during the last ten years:—

Year.	Deaths from Tuberculosis of the Respiratory System.		Deaths from all Tubercular Diseases.
Year.	Number.	Rate per 10,000.	Number.	Rate per 10,000.
1919	585	5.12	762	6.67
1920	671	5.63	851	7.14
1921	609	4.98	793	6.48
1922	594	4.74	803	6.41
1923	619	4.86	792	6.21
1924	573	4.41	736	5.67
1925	560	4.21	684	5.14
1926	592	4.38	727	5.37
1927	533	3.88	668	4.86
1928	569	4.09	699	5.03

Tuberculosis claims its victims at comparatively early age. Of those dying from this cause in 1928, persons under the age of twenty years formed 14 1/2 per cent., and those under forty-five years nearly 69 per cent. The figures for the various age-groups are as follows:—

AGES OF PERSONS WHO DIED FROM TUBERCULAR DISEASES, 1928.

Ages, in Years.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Under 5	18	19	37
5 and under 10	8	10	18
10 and under 15	6	1	7
15 and under 20	10	29	39
20 and under 25	30	54	84
25 and under 30	35	64	99
30 and under 35	31	34	65
35 and under 40	39	28	67
40 and under 45	41	23	64
45 and under 50	32	36	68
50 and under 55	29	15	44
55 and under 60	27	17	44
60 and under 65	11	14	25
65 and under 70	9	9	18
70 and under 75	7	4	11
75 and under 80	4	3	7
80 and over	2	..	2
Total	339	360	699

The death-rate from tubercular diseases in most of the principal countries of the world during the latest available period of five years is next shown.

DEATH-RATES FROM TUBERCULOSIS.

Country.	Period.	Death-rates (per 10,000).
* Registration area. † Four years.
Union of South Africa	1923–27	5.1
New Zealand	1924–28	5.2
Australia	1923–27	5.9
Ceylon	1923–27	7.3
Canada	1923–27	8.4
Denmark	1922–26	9.1
United States^*	1921–25	9.3
Netherlands	1924–28	9.6
England and Wales	1923–27	10.2
Belgium	1921–25	10.6
Scotland	1923–27	10.9
British Guiana	1923–27	11.6
Trinidad	1923–27	13.0
Germany	1921–25	13.3
Sweden	1923–27	14.0
Italy	1922–26	14.4
Uruguay	1922–26	14.4
Jamaica	1923–27	14.7
Irish Free State	1923–27	15.0
Switzerland	1922–26	15.1
Spain	1922–26	15.4
Northern Ireland	1923–27	15.6
France	1921–25	17.5
Austria	1923–27	18.0
Czecho-Slovakia	1923–26^†	19.3
Japan	1923–27	19.4
Norway	1921–25	20.2
Finland	1921–25	23.9
Chile	1922–26	24.1
Hungary	1922–26	28.4

CANCER.

Cancer is annually responsible for more deaths in New Zealand than can be assigned to any cause other than diseases of the heart. The increasing prevalence of cancer is causing no little concern in the Dominion, as indeed it is throughout the civilized world.

The following diagram illustrates, on the one hand, the increase in the cancer death-rate, and, on the other, the decrease in the rate of deaths from tuberculosis:—

DEATH-RATES FROM TUBERCULOSIS AND CANCER, 1875–1928.

In 1928 there were 1,374 deaths from cancer in the Dominion, a proportion of 9.88 per 10,000 persons. Both number and rate are slightly higher than in the preceding year. Deaths of males during 1928 numbered 704, and of females 670.

DEATHS FROM CANCER, WITH CRUDE AND STANDARDIZED DEATH-RATES, 1919–28.

Year.	Number.	Crude Death-rate.	Standardized Death-rate.^*
* On basis of age distribution in 1911.
1919	1,031	9.02	8.39
1920	1,029	8.63	8.17
1921	1,044	8.53	8.09
1922	1,066	8.52	7.58
1923	1,115	8.75	7.76
1924	1,245	9.59	8.49
1925	1,207	9.08	7.88
1926	1,341	9.91	8.62
1927	1,324	9.63	8.16
1928	1,374	9.88	8.53

The following table shows the proportion of deaths from cancer to the 10,000 of menu population in some of the principal countries of the world. The rates are an average of the latest available period of from three to five years. Of the countries covered by the table, twelve had higher rates than New Zealand.

CANCER DEATH-RATES IN CERTAIN COUNTRIES.

Country.	Period.	Death-rate per 10,000 of Population.
* Registration area.
Ceylon	1923–27	1.0
Jamaica	1923–27	2.2
British Guiana	1923–27	2.2
Trinidad	1923–27	3.9
Chile	1922–26	4.2
Italy	1922–26	6.3
Spain	1922–26	6.4
Lithuania	1923–25	6.5
Japan	1923–27	70
Uruguay	1922–26	7.5
Union of S. Africa	1923–27	7.5
Canada	1923–27	7.9
Belgium	1921–25	8.0
Hungary	1922–26	8.2
United States^*	1921–25	8.9
Australia	1923–27	9.3
Germany	1921–25	9.3
New Zealand	1924–28	9.6
Irish Free State	1923–27	9.8
Czecho-Slovakia	1923–26	9.9
Norway	1921–25	11.0
Iceland	1921–25	11.0
Sweden	1921–25	11.3
Northern Ireland	1923–27	11.3
Netherlands	1924–28	116
England and Wales	1923–27	13.3
Switzerland	1922–26	13.4
Scotland	1923–27	13.5
Austria	1923–27	13.9
Denmark	1922–26	13.9

The international table shows very clearly the comparative immunity of the coloured races to cancer, and the much smaller liability of Southern than Northern Europeans to the disease.

The following summary shows the types of cancer returned in the death entries for the year 1928:—

Type.	Deaths.
Type.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Carcinoma	573	570	1,143
Adeno-carcinoma	4	3	7
Sarcoma	34	31	65
Melanoticsarcoma	..	1	1
Fibro-sarcoma	..	3	3
Lympho-sarcoma	7	1	8
Myxo-sarcoma	..	1	1
Osteo-sarcoma	2	3	5
Adeno-sarcoma	1	..	1
Epithelioma	43	15	58
Endothelioma	1	1	2
Lymphadenoma	1	..	1
Chloroma	1	..	1
Scirrhus cancer	..	13	13
Rodent ulcer	10	2	12
Hypernephroma	4	2	6
Malignant tumour	7	6	13
Malignant growth	5	5	10
Malignant disease	..	1	1
Cancer	11	12	23
Totals	704	670	1,374

The parts of the body most commonly affected in New Zealand are the stomach and liver. Among females the generative and mammary organs rank high as the seat of the disease. Full details of location are published in the “Annual Report on Vital Statistics.”

CANCER: SEAT OF DISEASE, 1928.

Seat of Disease.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Buccal cavity	59	13	72
Stomach and liver	301	164	465
Peritoneum, intestines, rectum	122	128	250
Female genital organs	..	134	134
Breast	..	144	144
Skin	26	8	34
Other organs or organs not specified	196	79	275
Totals	704	670	1,374

Of the sites included in the last group in the above table the principal were: Prostate, 56; pancreas, 43; lung, 20; kidney. 18; and bladder, 18.

Ninety per cent. of the deaths from cancer during 1928 were at ages 45 years and upwards, and 60 per cent. at ages 60 years and upwards. Females predominate generally up to age 55, and males thereafter, as is evidenced by the following table, which shows by age-groups the number of persons of each sex who died of cancer during 1928.

AGES OF PERSONS WHO DIED FROM CANCER, 1928.

Ages, in Years.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Under 5	2	2	4
5 and under 10	1	2	3
10 and under 15	1	1	2
15 and under 20	2	..	2
20 and under 25	5	5	10
25 and under 30	4	6	10
30 and under 35	..	15	15
35 and under 40	11	23	34
40 and under 45	20	42	62
45 and under 50	31	69	100
50 and under 55	63	78	141
55 and under 60	95	76	171
60 and under 65	89	80	169
65 and under 70	103	80	183
70 and under 75	109	76	185
75 and under 80	95	57	152
80 and over	73	58	131
Totals	704	670	1,374

Exhaustive statistical inquiry covering the period from 1872 to date has shown that, in New Zealand death from cancer is, on the average, now occurring later in life than formerly. It would seem that this is the case even if allowance he made for the fact that the age-constitution of the Dominion is increasing—i.e., that the average citizen of New Zealand is now older than the average citizen of ten, twenty, or fifty years ago.

PUERPERAL CAUSES.

In point of numbers of deaths puerperal accidents and diseases do not rank high among causes of death. Nevertheless, owing to the association between the puerperal death-rate and the all-important matter of the birth-rate, deaths from puerperal causes are of special importance and significance.

During the 44-year period from 1872 to 1915 the death-rate from puerperal causes exceeded 5 per 1,000 live births on only 14 occasions, but after 1915 did not fall below this figure until 1925. The rate for 1920 (when the proportion of first births was high) was the third highest on record, having been exceeded only in 1884 and 1885, but the highest rate since 1920 has been 5.14 per 1,000 recorded in 1922. In each of the last four years the rate has been under 5 per 1,000. The rate for each of the last 20 years is as follows:—

Year.	Proportion per 1,000 Live Births.
1909	5.09
1910	4.50
1911	4.33
1912	3.64
1913	3.58
1914	4.16
1915	4.70
1916	5.86
1917	5.98
1918	5.18
1919	5.06
1920	6.48
1921	5.08
1922	5.14
1923	5.11
1924	5.00
1925	4.65
1926	4.25
1927	4.91
1928	4.93

Commencing with 1916, special inquiry has been made in all cases where a woman of child-bearing age has been returned as having died of such causes as septicæmia, peritonitis, nephritis, &c. (without qualification), with the result that in each year several of such cases are found to be puerperal, and are now so classed Possibly this factor also affects to a certain extent comparison with other countries.

An unsatisfactory feature of the last two years has been the high proportion of septicæmia cases, and in this connection it may be mentioned that out of the 56 deaths from puerperal septicæmia in 1928 in no fewer than 14 instances septicæmia had supervened on abortion or miscarriage.

The next table shows the number of deaths from puerperal causes during each of the last ton years, classified in the eight groups into which such causes are divided in the international classification. Over the whole period puerperal septicæmia was responsible for 37 per cent. of the total deaths from these causes.

DEATHS FROM PUERPERAL CAUSES, BY GROUPS, 1919–28.

Group.	1919.	1920.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
* Mainly deaths from puerperal mania.
Accidents of pregnancy	9	26	9	13	17	15	10	20	7	11
Puerperal hæmorrhage	10	40	18	22	26	19	24	9	17	15
Other accidents of labour	11	12	10	13	4	6	7	9	10	4
Puerperal septicæmia	52	67	48	52	52	52	42	39	70	56
Puerperal phlegmasia alba dolens, embolus, sudden death	4	9	18	12	8	11	14	11	6	9
Puerperal albuminuria and convulsions	36	37	41	35	34	36	32	32	26	38
Following childbirth (not included elsewhere)^*	1	3	1	2	2	1	2	1	1	1
Puerperal diseases of the breast	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Totals	124	194	145	149	143	140	131	121	137	134

A table showing the number and the rate per 1,000 births of deaths from puerperal septicæmia and other puerperal causes separately in some of the principal countries of the world is given in the following table. As a consequence of the comparatively low rates that have been experienced in the Dominion during the last few years, New Zealand now occupies a much more favourable position in the international comparison than was the case a few years since.

DEATHS FROM PUERPERAL CAUSES IN VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

Country.	Period.	Death-rate per 1,000 Births from
Country.	Period.	Puerperal Septicæmia.	Other Puerperal Causes.	All Puerperal Causes.
* Exclusive of Quebec. † Registration area.
Denmark	1923–27	0.95	1.41	2.36
Sweden	1920–24	1.15	1.36	2.51
Italy	1922–26	1.02	1.52	2.54
Norway	1921–25	0.74	1.91	2.65
Uruguay	1922–26	1.67	1.01	2.68
Netherlands	1924–28	0.86	1.97	2.83
Japan	1923–27	1.10	1.83	2.93
Hungary	1922–26	1.43	1.57	3.00
Czecho-Slovakia	1923–26	1.39	1.89	3.28
England and Wales	1923–27	1.48	2.52	4.00
Spain	1922–26	2.65	1.68	4.33
Switzerland	1922–26	2.07	2.57	4.64
Irish Free State	1923–27	1.67	305	4.72
New Zealand	1924–28	1.86	2.89	4.75
Northern Ireland	1922–26	1.46	3.38	4.84
Jamaica	1923–27	1.06	3.80	4.86
South Africa	1923–27	2.03	2.96	4.99
Germany	1921–25	2.81	2.27	5.08
Australia	1923–27	1.84	3.65	5.49
Belgium	1921–25	2.69	2.85	5.54
Canada^*	1923–27	1.80	3.98	5.78
Scotland	1923–27	1.78	4.47	6.25
Chile	1922–26	1.69	4.99	6.68
United States^†	1920–24	2.54	4.36	6.90
Trinidad	1923–27	2.63	5.64	8.27
British Guiana	1923–27	2.55	1,106	13.61
Ceylon	1923–27	7.40	11.75	19.15

DEATHS FROM VIOLENCE.

Deaths from violence, apart from suicide, claim approximately 6 per cent. of the total deaths. The number and rate of the various forms of violent deaths in 1913, 1918, 1923, and 1928 are given in the next table.

Causes of Death.	Number of Deaths.				Rate per 1,000,000 of Mean Population.
Causes of Death.	1913.	1918.	1923.	1928.	1913.	1918.	1923.	1928.
Homicide	8	4	11	10	8	4	9	7
Accidental causes—
Poisoning	19	9	11	19	18	8	9	14
Conflagration	1	11	16	19	1	10	13	14
Burns and scalds	51	42	25	33	48	38	19	24
Died under anaesthetic, asphyxia, &c.	24	10	25	24	22	9	19	17
Drowning	174	130	167	144	163	118	131	103
Firearms	31	18	15	23	29	16	12	16
Falls	39	48	36	96	36	44	28	69
In mines and quarries	28	8	14	16	24	7	11	12
Crushing	116	158	176	283	109	143	138	203
Injuries by animals	18	9	15	8	17	8	12	6
Fractures (causes not specified)	49	39	32	15	46	35	25	11
Other	83	62	56	64	77	57	44	46
Totals	639	548	599	754	598	497	470	542

Deaths from violence show a slight decrease in the rate between 1913 and 1928. This is remarkable when it is seen that the death-rate from crushing, which includes accidents arising from the use of railways, motor-cars, and other vehicles, rose during the same period from 109 to 203 per 1,000,000 living. There is no doubt that the rise in the rate of deaths from this class is due to the increasing congestion of the public streets and the increased use of motor-cars and other motor-vehicles. On the other hand, noticeable decreases are shown for drowning, burns and scalds, injuries by animals, and fractures (causes not specified). Part of the huge increase between 1923 and 1928 in the death-rate from accidental falls, is due to fuller information being obtained in a proportion of cases formerly classified under the heading of “fractures (causes not specified).”

In view of the steady rise in the number of deaths attributable to transport accidents, it is advisable to further reduce the figures and rates to their respective headings. This subdivision has only recently been introduced into the statistics, and the information is available for a period of only eight years. In classifying deaths under these various subheadings the rule of assignment is that in fatalities due to collisions of railway-trains and electric tram-cars with motor-vehicles the death is assigned to the railway-train or electric tram-car as being the heavier and more powerful vehicle. In the case of collisions between motor-vehicles and horse-drawn vehicles the death is assigned to the motor-vehicle.

In the following table the number and rate of deaths from traumatism by railways, tramways, and motor-vehicles during each of the last eight years are given.

Year.	Deaths from Traumatism by			Rate per Million of Population.
Year.	Railways.	Tramways.	Motor-vehicles.	Railways.	Tramways.	Motor-vehicles.
1921	36	14	69	29	11	56
1922	45	9	61	36	7	49
1923	69	14	59	54	11	46
1924	40	10	94	31	8	72
1925	43	8	108	32	6	81
1926	53	17	149	39	13	110
1927	42	8	138	31	6	100
1928	44	10	176	32	7	127

It is evident from the above figures that deaths from traumatism by motor-vehicles are rapidly increasing, and it is unsatisfactory to record a further increase for the year 1928, the toll being 176 as compared with 138 in 1927, while the rate rose from 100 per million to 127. The rate has increased 127 per cent. since 1921.

SUICIDES.

The suicidal deaths in 1928 were 202—males 154, females 48—the death-rate per 10,000 of mean population being 1.45. The figures for each of the last five years are as follows:—

Year.	Number of Deaths.			Rate per 10,000 of Population.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.
1924	127	32	159	1.92	0.50	1.22
1925	138	35	173	2.03	0.54	1.30
1926	125	28	153	1.81	0.42	1.13
1927	171	28	199	2.44	0.42	1.45
1928	154	48	202	2.17	0.70	1.45

The rate for 1928 is the same as that for 1927, and is somewhat higher than the average of the five preceding years—1.23 per 10,000.

The next table shows the means of self-destruction employed in New Zealand in each of the years 1924–28:—

Mode of Death.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Suicide by solid or liquid poisons	14	17	14	14	23
Suicide by corrosive substances	13	5	5	12	14
Suicide by poisonous gas	24	17	14	25	31
Suicide by hanging or strangulation	30	41	32	44	35
Suicide by drowning	20	30	20	21	14
Suicide by firearms	32	31	34	49	46
Suicide by cutting or piercing instruments	24	25	26	23	31
Suicide by jumping from high places	..	1	3	5	3
Suicide by crushing	..	1	2	..	1
Suicide by other means	2	5	3	6	4
Totals	159	173	153	199	202

The greatest number of deaths from suicide over the period covered was from firearms (192), closely followed by hanging or strangulation (182), while poison (131), cutting or piercing instruments (129), and drowning (105), were next, in the order given.

A comparison of the average rates for the latest quinquennial periods available for the undermentioned countries is as follows:—

Country.	Quinquennium.	Rate per 10,000 of Population.
* Exclusive of Quebec. † Registration area.
Jamaica	1923–27	0.14
Trinidad	1923–27	0.23
Irish Free State	1923–27	0.30
British Guiana	1923–27	0.31
Chile	1922–26	0.34
Spain	1922–26	0.42
Ceylon	1923–27	0.49
Northern Ireland	1923–27	0.54
Norway	1921–25	0.57
Netherlands	1924–28	0.66
Scotland	1923–27	0.81
Canada^*	1923–27	0.87
Italy	1922–26	0.89
England and Wales	1923–27	1.09
South Africa	1923–27	1.12
Australia	1923–27	1.15
United States^†	1921–25	1.21
Uruguay	1922–26	1.21
New Zealand	1924–28	1.31
Finland	1922–26	1.31
Belgium	1921–25	133
Sweden	1923–27	1.39
Denmark	1922–26	1.43
Japan	1923–27	2.01
Germany	1921–25	220
Switzerland	1922–26	2.37
Hungary	1922–26	2.88
Austria	1923–27	3.15

New Zealand compares favourably with most of the foreign countries shown in the above table, but somewhat unfavourably with other British countries.

CONTRIBUTORY CAUSES.

In quite 50 per cent. of death entries, more than one definite disease is recorded, without taking into account indefinite conditions such as debility, coma, heart-failure, syncope, &c. In such cases it is necessary to decide which of the two or more diseases is to be assigned as the cause of death.

Certain general rules of procedure, applicable in the great majority of cases, are laid down by the international classification of causes of death. The United States Bureau of Vital Statistics has compiled a Manual of Joint Causes of Death, which follows the lines of the international classification, but gives very full details and thus permits of a much greater degree of uniformity in the use of the classification. The United States Manual has been adopted in New Zealand.

Beginning with the year 1924, a detailed tabulation of assigned and associated causes of death has been instituted, and the details are published in the “Annual Report on Vital Statistics.” The following table gives for 1928 a summary of the principal contributory causes, shown in juxtaposition to the totals for the same diseases when treated as assigned causes:—

Disease.	Assigned Causes of Death of			Contributory Causes of Death of
Disease.	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.
Influenza	130	112	242	29	37	66
Septicæmia (non-puerperal)	9	11	20	66	71	137
Rheumatism	22	40	62	36	37	73
Anaemia	32	35	67	16	20	36
Alcoholism	13	3	16	37	11	48
Meningitis	25	13	38	47	44	91
Cerebral hæmorrhage, apoplexy	295	348	643	122	153	275
Paralysis	5	9	14	66	79	145
Infantile convulsions	8	7	15	39	31	70
Diseases of the heart	1,275	1,040	2,315	277	271	548
Diseases of arteries	219	175	394	182	111	293
Embolism and thrombosis	18	15	33	38	51	89
Bronchitis	124	104	228	175	136	311
Broncho-pneumonia	133	97	230	74	76	150
Pneumonia	270	152	422	97	82	179
Pleurisy	36	23	59	63	25	88
Pulmonary congestion	31	31	62	179	152	331
Asthma	21	7	28	61	31	92
Other diseases of respiratory system	43	12	55	94	43	137
Diseases of the stomach	96	29	125	46	32	78
Diarrhoea and enteritis	51	59	110	17	22	39
Hernia, intestinal obstruction	61	39	100	49	47	96
Other diseases of intestines	8	4	12	21	15	36
Biliary calculi	12	26	38	7	26	33
Other diseases of the liver	53	45	98	42	66	108
Peritonitis	9	17	26	108	84	192
Nephritis	238	217	455	45	43	88
Other diseases of the kidneys	25	31	56	51	32	83
Diseases of the bladder	7	4	11	76	24	100
Diseases of the prostate	102	..	102	46	..	46
Gangrene	6	7	13	27	29	56
Acute abscess	10	7	17	15	10	25
Senility	280	264	544	302	296	598

It will be noticed that diseases of the respiratory system rank very high among the contributory causes, mainly on account of their frequent occurrence as complications of heart-disease and of influenza and other epidemic diseases.

The following indicates for 1928 the principal assigned causes with which certain contributory causes were associated.

CONTRIBUTORY CAUSES.—PRINCIPAL ASSOCIATIONS, 1928.

Contributory Cause.	Assigned Cause with which associated.	Number of Cases in which associated.
Influenza	Diseases of the heart	41
Septicæmia (non-puerperal)	Diseases of bones	16
	Abscess	10
Rheumatism	Diseases of the heart	45
Alcoholism	Cirrhosis of the liver	27
Meningitis	Influenza	28
	Diseases of the ear	17
Cerebral hæmorrhage, apoplexy	Diseases of the heart	128
	Nephritis	61
	Diseases of the nervous system	10
Paralysis	Cerebral hæmorrhage, apoplexy	67
	Diseases of the arteries	13
Infantile convulsions	Injury at birth	19
	Diarrhœa and enteritis	12
Diseases of the heart	Chronic nephritis	108
	Cancer	44
	Rheumatism	36
	Pneumonia	34
	Diabetes mellitus	28
	Tuberculosis	21
	Diseases of thyroid	17
	Influenza	17
	Bronchitis	12
	Cirrhosis of the liver	11
	Diseases of the arteries	10
Diseases of arteries	Diseases of the heart	159
	Nephritis	47
	Bronchitis	11
Embolism and thrombosis	Diseases of the heart	22
Other diseases of the circulatory system	Cerebral hæmorrhage	39
Bronchitis	Diseases of the heart	148
	Broncho-pneumonia	28
	Influenza	26
	Pneumonia	20
Broncho-pneumonia	Diseases of the heart	28
	Influenza	16
	Whooping-cough	13
Pneumonia	Influenza	86
	Diseases of the heart	12
	Cancer	11
Pleurisy	Pneumonia	35
Pulmonary congestion	Diseases of the heart	131
	Nephritis	19
	Bronchitis	18
	Cerebral hæmorrhage, apoplexy	16
Asthma	Diseases of the heart	42
	Bronchitis	24
Other diseases of the respiratory system	Tuberculosis of respiratory system	51
	Diseases of the heart	13
Diseases of the stomach	Cancer	19
Intestinal obstruction	Cancer	38
	Biliary calculi	21
	Appendicitis	13
Diseases of the liver	Cancer	12
Peritonitis	Appendicitis	66
	Cancer	36
	Intestinal obstruction	18
	Ulcer of stomach and duodenum	16
	Salpingitis	10
Nephritis	Diabetes	14
	Diseases of the heart	11
	Cancer	11
Other diseases of the kidneys	Diseases of the prostate	18
Diseases of the bladder	Diseases of the prostate	41
	Diseases of the kidneys	16
Enlarged prostate	Diseases of the heart	13
Gangrene	Diabetes	13
	Diseases of the arteries	10
Senility	Diseases of the heart	216
	Cerebral hæmorrhage, apoplexy	58
	Bronchitis	44
	Pulmonary congestion	38
	Diseases of the arteries	37
	Influenza	21
	Broncho-pneumonia	21
	Nephritis	18
	Enlarged prostate	12

MAORI DEATHS.

Deaths of Maoris are not included in the statistics quoted throughout this subsection, their omission being due to the fact that a considerably lower standard of accuracy and completeness of data exists in the case of Maori registrations than in the general death records. Registrations of Maori deaths during each of the last five years have been as follows:—

MAORI DEATHS, 1924–28.

Year.	Numbers.			Rates per 1,000 of Maori Population.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1924	406	367	772	14.26	14.38	14.32
1925	437	381	818	15.13	14.70	14.96
1926	368	330	698	11.07	10.85	10.96
1927	523	464	987	15.55	15.09	15.33
1928	550	499	1,049	16.20	16.05	1,613

The average rate over the period was over 14 per 1,000, as compared with less than 9 per 1,000 in the case of the general population. The rate recorded for 1928 was the highest since 1922.

The rates for the two sexes are much more nearly equal for Maoris than for the rest of the population, the female rate being indeed higher than the male in 1924. Over the average of the five years the male rate among Maoris was only 1 1/2 per cent. higher than the female, as compared with a corresponding percentage excess of 23 among the general population.

Until recent years, the only statistics available concerning Maori deaths were mere numbers of deaths according to sex. A tabulation was, however, made in 1925 for the five years 1920–24 on the basis of ago and cause of death, and similar tabulations will be made quinquennially in future. The summarized results of the tabulation for 1920–24 appeared in the 1926 and 1927 numbers of the Year-book.

With the exception of diphtheria, epidemic and infectious diseases generally exact a much heavier toll proportionately among Maoris than among the general population, the most noteworthy example being tuberculosis, particularly of the respiratory system. Other diseases of the respiratory system also show much higher rates for Maoris than for Europeans, and the same state of affairs is disclosed for diarrhœal diseases and stomach complaints.

On the other hand, there is a much lower mortality among Maoris from certain diseases which rank high as causes of death among the European population. Principal among these are cancer, heart-disease and other diseases of the circulatory system, nephritis, the group of general diseases which include diabetes and exophthalmic goitre, and the group of diseases of the nervous system which includes apoplexy and cerebral hæmorrhage. Malformations and premature births show lower rates for Maoris than for Europeans, but the indefinite nature of the data in the registration entries covering the deaths of many infants may be partly responsible.

The Maori infant-mortality rate is much higher than the European, principally owing to the ravages of epidemic diseases, tuberculosis, respiratory diseases, and diarrhœal diseases. The infant-mortality rate for the first year of life was, for the five years 1920–24, 131 per 1,000 births in the case of Maoris, as compared with 45 per 1,000 among European infants, and this in spite of the fact that for the first month of life the Maori rate was actually lower than the European (27 as against 28). Among Maori infants who survived the first month, the death-rate during the succeeding eleven months was 90 per 1,000, as compared with only 16 per 1,000 in the case of Europeans.

DEATHS IN COOK ISLANDS.

As explained in the Births subsection of this section, a system of compulsory registration of deaths is now in force in the Cook Islands.

Particulars required are much the same as in New Zealand proper, but the onus of registering is thrown on the occupier of the house where the death took place, or on any person present at the time of death. If the deceased in his or her last illness was attended by a medical practitioner, a medical certificate must be supplied to the Registrar. Any person conducting a burial or a religious service thereat must notify the nearest Registrar in writing within one week.

The following are the figures of death-registrations in each island during the twelve months ended the 31st December, 1928, or the 31st March, 1929:—

DEATHS REGISTERED IN COOK ISLANDS, 1928–29.

Island.	Number of Deaths.
Rarotonga	63
Aitutaki	24
Mangaia	26
Atiu	21
Manihiki	13
Mauke	12
Mitiaro	10
Rakaanga	24
Penrhyn	4
Pukapuka	15
Nine	111
Total	323

DEATHS IN WESTERN SAMOA.

From the 1st January, 1923, the registration of deaths in Western Samoa was made compulsory, and the regulations issued provided for very complete particulars being furnished to the Registrars. Accurate information of the total deaths, and also of the deaths under one year of age, is available for each of the four years 1923–26, but the figures for 1927 and 1928 (particularly the latter) given in the following table are obviously deficient, the registration requirements having been ignored in so many cases that the statistics are valueless. The very high death-rate shown for the year 1923 was due to a severe epidemic of dysentery.

SAMOAN DEATHS REGISTERED, 1923–28.

Year.	Number of Deaths.	Deaths under One Year of Age.	Deaths per 1,000 of Population.	Infant Mortality Rate (per 1,000 Births).
*Incomplete.
1923	1,398	349	41.5	200
1924	766	295	22.5	155
1925	857	379	23.7	186
1926	723	208	19.4	106
1927^*	495	165	12.8	101
1928^*	219	50	5.5	58

In addition to the 219 deaths of Samoans registered in 1928, the deaths of 10 Europeans and 11 Chinese labourers were also registered.

SUBSECTION D.—MORBIDITY.

INTRODUCTORY.

DEATH-RATES are of great value as indicating the relative healthiness of different countries or for different years. The statistics of causes of registered deaths are of further use as showing the incidence of fatal diseases or accidents, and as indicating in a general way the relative rise or fall of diseases over a series of years. For instance, the fall in the incidence of tuberculosis and the increase in cancer (discussed in Subsection C of this section) can be readily traced from the records of deaths attributed to these causes in different years.

In comparisons of healthiness based on death-rates, however, the effect of the advance of medical science in recent years is not taken into account. It is common knowledge that many diseases regarded a few decades ago as incurable now give a fair percentage of recoveries. Similarly, the death-rates in epidemics are in general much lower now than formerly, owing partly to the steps taken to prevent the spread of the disease, partly to the necessity of early notification in most countries, and partly to increased medical knowledge. Again, many diseases seldom or never result fatally.

Of recent years much attention has been devoted in different countries to the possibility or otherwise of obtaining reliable statistics of sickness. In New Zealand certain diseases are notifiable, but beyond this the only record other than that of fatality is the information ascertainable from the returns of discharges from public hospitals. In the absence of full statistics of sickness, however, information from the two sources mentioned is of considerable value, and gives a fair indication of the prevalence of the more important diseases.

NOTIFICATIONS OF DISEASES.

Notifications of notifiable diseases during 1928 are shown for each month of the year in the following table:—

Disease.	January.	February.	March.	April.	May.	June.	July.	August.	September.	October.	November.	December.	Total.
Scarlet fever	201	204	428	529	567	652	798	754	527	513	499	455	6,127
Diphtheria	80	40	81	132	167	236	209	189	136	103	132	95	1,600
Enteric fever	29	19	32	38	48	15	18	23	11	20	20	17	290
Pulmonary tuberculosis	85	163	133	92	150	131	114	171	135	138	108	92	1,512
Cerebro-spinal meningitis	2	1	..	3	3	1	..	1	5	2	3	2	23
Acute poliomyelitis	5	5	11	11	4	1	..	1	3	2	2	2	47
Pneumonic influenza	23	8	11	10	24	33	43	66	38	36	37	25	354
Acute primary pneumonia	67	49	48	76	79	104	135	199	138	156	131	103	1,285
Erysipelas	17	22	23	26	26	35	46	42	43	49	33	23	385
Puerperal fever	7	18	12	12	17	11	22	19	19	14	14	19	184
Septic abortion	6	9	9	9	9	4	10	12	10	8	8	19	113
Eclampsia	4	3	4	4	7	9	9	9	11	14	4	10	88
Tetanus	..	1	1	1	..	..	1	4	1	3	2	4	18
Hydatids	4	4	6	8	3	5	1	4	9	11	4	3	62
Trachoma	2	..	1	4	1	2	..	1	..	..	1	1	13
Leprosy	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	1	..	..	1
Ophthalmia neonatorum	1	..	2	..	3	3	3	1	1	6	1	3	24
Lethargic encephalitis	2	..	1	4	1	4	4	3	2	2	4	..	27
Food poisoning	2	..	1	2	6	1	..	1	..	..	6	..	19
Dysentery	1	6	11	3	2	1	3	..	..	..	..	..	27
Actinomycosis	..	..	1	..	1	1	..	..	1	..	..	..	4
Lead poisoning	1	..	..	..	..	..	1	..	..	3	1	..	6
Totals	539	552	816	964	1,118	1,249	1,417	1,500	1,090	1,081,	1,010	873	12,209

A quinquennial summary of notifications of certain principal diseases is now given. A noteworthy feature is the exceedingly high figure for scarlet fever in 1928.

PRINCIPAL INFECTIOUS DISEASES NOTIFIED, 1924–28.

Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Scarlet fever	1,176	1,025	1,583	2,185	6,127
Diphtheria	2,717	1,518	1,975	1,446	1,600
Enteric fever	354	278	302	270	290
Pulmonary tuberculosis	1,072	1,247	1,318	1,343	1,512
Cerebro-spinal meningitis	31	27	35	22	23
Acute poliomyelitis	73	1,159	22	29	47
Puerperal fever and septic abortion	319	336	297	328	297
Erysipelas	210	181	233	244	385

Information as to case-fatality in regard to the three first-mentioned diseases above is given in the next table for each of the last ten years:—

Year.	Diphtheria.			Scarlet Fever.			Enteric Fever.
Year.	Cases notified.	Deaths.	Case-fatality.	Cases notified.	Deaths.	Case-fatality.	Cases notified.	Deaths.	Case fatality.
			Per Cent.			Per Cent.			Per Cent.
1919	3,499	149	4.26	1,521	23	1.51	477	34	713
1920	2,442	91	3.73	1,248	15	1.20	389	40	10.28
1921	2,611	103	3.95	1,845	24	1.30	451	24	5.32
1922	1,989	78	3.92	1,449	10	0.69	539	67	12.43
1923	1,951	66	3.38	1,201	13	1.08	276	23	8.24
1924	2,717	80	2.94	1,176	13	1.11	354	19	5.37
1925	1,518	52	3.43	1,025	7	0.68	278	16	5.76
1926	1,975	66	3.34	1,583	8	0.50	302	19	6.29
1927	1,446	58	4.10	2,185	16	0.73	270	11	4.07
1928	1,600	72	4.50	6,127	55	0.90	290	16	5.52

PUBLIC HOSPITALS: PATIENTS TREATED.

During the year 1928 the total admissions to public hospitals (other than maternity hospitals) in New Zealand numbered 75,520. There were 4,787 patients in hospital at the beginning of the year, the total cases dealt with during the year being thus 80,407, equal to 552 per 10,000 of mean population, including Maoris; or, in other words, one person out of every eighteen persons in the Dominion received some degree of medical treatment in public hospitals in 1928.

These figures reveal a considerable increase over those for the previous year: and, to give some idea of the rate at which treatments in public hospitals are increasing, a table is appended showing for each of the last five years the total number of patients treated, and the proportion of population:—

Year.	Total Patients treated.	Rate per 10,000 of Mean Population.
1924	58,690	434
1925	61,594	445
1926	68,391	484
1927	72,755	506
1928	80,407	552

As will be seen from the foregoing figures, the number of patients treated increased from 58,690 in 1924 to 80,407 in 1928. During the same period the rate rose from 434 per 10,000 of population to 552. Judging by the rate alone these figures represent an increase of 27 per cent., or an average annual increase of nearly 7 per cent. Over such a short period as four years these increases are remarkable, and disclose the extent to which the public generally are taking advantage of the facilities for medical treatment which are placed at their disposal by the various public hospitals.

The above figures relate only to indoor patients treated in public hospitals, and if there be added the number of out-patients treated by the public hospitals (67,548 during the twelve months ended 31st March, 1928), the number of patients treated in private hospitals, and those persons receiving medical treatment in their own homes, it will probably be found that at least one out of every ten persons in the population was under medical treatment during the year. These figures do not cover the whole field of sickness, as there is also to be considered the large number of minor complaints the condition of which did not warrant the calling in of a medical practitioner.

From figures given in the Appendix to the Annual Report of the Department of Health, it would appear that the average duration in hospital in respect of each admission was approximately 22 1/2 days. On this basis, sickness as represented by treatment in the public hospitals alone aggregated nearly 260,000 weeks for the year 1928. This aggregate, however represents only a little more than one day for each person in the Dominion.

CONDITION ON DISCHARGE.

Of the 80,407 persons treated in public: hospitals in 1928, 51,698 were discharged as recovered, 16,707 as relieved, and 2,925 as unrelieved. Deaths in hospital numbered 3,932, and 5,145 patients were still in hospital at the end of the year.

The numbers of admissions, discharges, and deaths for each of the last five years are—

PUBLIC HOSPITALS.—ADMISSIONS, DISCHARGES, AND DEATHS, 1924–28.

Year.	Admissions.	Discharges.			Deaths.	Total Discharges and Deaths.
Year.	Admissions.	Recovered.	Relieved.	Unrelieved.	Deaths.	Total Discharges and Deaths.
1924	55,034	34,088	14,854	2,585	3,260	54,787
1925	57,684	36,285	15,181	2,438	3,483	57,387
1926	64,177	43,714	13,832	2,656	3,835	64,037
1927	68,303	47,753	13,847	2,585	3,782	67,967
1928	75,620	51,698	16,707	2,925	3,932	75,262

The following table gives the percentages of recovered, relieved, unrelieved, and deaths to total cases dealt with during each of the five years:—

Year.	Discharged as			Died.	Remaining at End of Year.
Year.	Recovered.	Relieved.	Unrelieved.	Died.	Remaining at End of Year.
1924	58.08	25.31	4.40	5.55	6.66
1925	58.91	24.65	3.96	5.65	6.83
1926	63.94	20.20	3.88	5.61	6.37
1927	65.64	19.03	3.55	5.20	6.58
1928	64.30	20.78	3.64	4.89	6.39

The percentage of patients recovered has shown a practically continuous increase over the five years at the expense of both the relieved and unrelieved, mainly the former, this being no doubt mainly due to the increasing tendency of the public to use the public hospitals for the treatment of the less severe afflictions. The proportion of deaths among patients also shows a definite tendency to fall.

SEXES OF PATIENTS.

From the following table it will be seen that males considerably outnumber females among hospital patients. During the last ten years the number of males to every 100 females has ranged from 107 in 1928 to 160 in 1919. The death-rate is also invariably higher among male than among female patients.

Year.	Discharges and Deaths.			Deaths.			Death-rate per 1,000 Cases.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Males per 100 Females.	Males	Females.	Males per 100 Females.	Males.	Females.
1919	26,164	16,312	160	1,884	980	192	72	60
1920	26,627	19,661	135	2,177	1,222	178	82	62
1921	25,365	19,548	130	1,909	1,065	179	75	54
1922	26,519	20,842	127	1,861	1,123	166	70	54
1923	28,038	22,156	127	2,046	1,254	163	73	57
1924	30,015	24,772	121	2,039	1,221	167	68	49
1925	31,365	26,022	121	2,168	1,315	165	68	51
1926	34,443	29,594	116	2,383	1,452	164	69	49
1927	36,290	31,677	115	2,352	1,430	164	65	45
1928	38,824	36,438	107	2,333	1,599	146	60	44

AGES OF PATIENTS.

The ages of patients who were discharged from or who died in public hospitals during 1927 and 1928 are as shown in the following summary:—

PUBLIC HOSPITALS.—AGES OF PATIENTS DISCHARGED OF DYING.

Ages of Patients, in Years	1927.			1928.
Ages of Patients, in Years	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Under 5	3,581	2,567	6,148	3,792	2,899	6,691
5 and under 10	3,883	3,059	6,942	4,843	4,168	9,011
10 and under 15	2,764	2,228	4,992	3,141	2,784	5,925
15 and under 25	6,685	7,194	13,879	7,121	8,232	15,353
25 and under 35	5,249	6,796	12,045	5,363	7,515	12,878
35 and under 45	4,419	4,524	8,943	4,568	4,847	9,415
45 and under 55	3,913	2,605	6,518	4,063	2,994	7,057
55 and under 65	2,622	1,440	4,062	2,849	1,567	4,416
65 and over	3,108	1,196	4,304	3,032	1,359	4,391
Unspecified	66	68	134	52	73	125
Totals	36,290	31,677	67,967	38,824	36,438	75,262

SUMMARY OF DISEASES, ETC.

As explained in the preceding subsection, the international classification of diseases and causes of death is used in New Zealand.

The following table shows that Class VI, “Diseases of the digestive system,” comes first on the list as regards the total cases treated, followed by “Epidemic, endemic, and infectious diseases,” “External causes,” and “Diseases of the genitourinary system,” in that order. Classes I and II come first and second respectively as regards deaths, the next on the list being Class V, “Diseases of the respiratory system.”

PUBLIC HOSPITALS.—CLASSIFICATION OF DISEASES, 1928.

Class.	Discharges.			Deaths		Total Discharges and Deaths.
Class.	Recovered.	Relieved.	Unrelieved.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.
I. Epidemic, endemic, and infectious diseases	8,698	2,336	425	365	329	6,073	6,080
II. Other general diseases	1,896	1,991	572	379	273	2,596	2,515
III. Diseases of nervous system and of organs of special sense	1,914	1,758	591	210	194	2,558	2,109
IV. Diseases of circulatory system	1,118	1,022	86	292	151	1,640	1,029
V. Diseases of respiratory system	3,451	999	68	320	169	3,128	1,879
VI. Diseases of digestive system	15,239	2,499	397	218	157	9,383	9,127
VII. Diseases of the genito-urinary system and annexa	3,960	1,660	236	160	89	2,142	3,963
VIII. Puerperal state	4,889	266	105	..	83	..	5,343
IX. Diseases of the skin and of the cellular tissue	2,279	579	21	19	19	1,855	1,062
X. Diseases of the organs of locomotion	1,201	788	67	25	8	1,444	645
XI. Malformations	94	96	30	29	21	142	128
XII. Diseases of early infancy	81	20	6	28	13	75	73
XIII. Old age (senile debility, &c.)	..	98	84	66	29	200	77
XIV. External causes	6,149	2,294	105	215	58	7,034	1,787
XV. Ill-defined causes	729	301	132	7	6	554	621
Totals	51,698	16,707	2,925	2,333	1,599	38,824	36,438

Figures of total cases and of deaths for each of the fifteen classes are given in the next table for the last five years. The figures for total cases relate to the total discharges and deaths, and not to admissions, and do not cover persons still in hospital at the end of the year.

Class.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Class.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
I	7,869	7,831	9,141	9,524	12,153	574	672	723	604	694
II	3,877	4,269	4,759	4,819	5,111	550	586	705	646	652
III	3,532	3,583	4,107	4,432	4,667	331	302	320	379	404
IV	2,040	2,265	2,412	2,713	2,669	351	419	420	478	443
V	3,581	3,507	3,701	4,322	5,007	334	335	353	382	489
VI	13,296	13,656	15,673	16,593	18,510	334	354	368	379	375
VII	4,643	5,027	5,479	5,499	6,105	231	250	288	262	249
VIII	3,227	3,722	4,317	4,853	5,343	61	72	75	104	83
IX	2,616	2,489	2,644	2,918	2,917	30	45	43	47	38
X	1,620	1,680	1,718	1,855	2,089	31	30	37	36	33
XI	255	253	266	292	270	32	30	30	35	50
XII	126	120	148	140	148	40	45	45	30	41
XIII	347	344	335	305	277	128	114	118	107	95
XIV	6,933	7,659	8,218	8,558	8,821	222	221	298	284	273
XV	825	982	1,119	1,144	1,175	11	8	12	9	13
Totals	54,787	57,387	64,037	67,967	75,262	3,260	3,483	3,835	3,782	3,932

The greatest increase in the number of cases dealt with during the period is shown by Class VI, “Diseases of the digestive system,” largely through a continued increase in the number of cases of tonsils and adenoids. An epidemic of scarlet fever in 1927 and 1928 was principally responsible for Class I showing the second-highest increase over the period. The figures for “External causes” (Class XIV) also show a comparatively large increase, and reflect to a large extent the increasing use of motor-vehicles on the roads and of machinery in industry. Class VIII, “Puerperal state,” shows a substantial rise, this being mainly due to the increasing use of public hospitals for accouchements.

The following table gives the case-fatality or percentage of deaths to total cases treated in each class for each of the last five years.

PERCENTAGE OF DEATHS TO TOTAL DISCHARGES AND DEATHS, 1924–28.

Class.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
I. Epidemic, endemic, and infectious diseases	7.29	8.58	7.91	6.34	5.71
II. Other general diseases	14.19	13.73	14.81	13.41	12.76
III. Diseases of the nervous system and of organs of special sense	9.37	8.43	7.79	8.55	8.66
IV. Diseases of the circulatory system	17.21	18.50	17.41	17.62	16.60
V. Diseases of the respiratory system	9.33	9.55	9.54	8.84	9.77
VI. Diseases of the digestive system	2.51	2.59	2.35	2.28	2.03
VII. Diseases of the genito-urinary system and annexa	4.98	4.97	5.26	4.76	4.08
VIII. Puerperal state	1.89	1.93	1.74	2.14	1.55
IX. Diseases of the skin and of the cellular tissue	1.15	1.81	1.63	1.61	1.30
X. Diseases of the organs of locomotion	1.91	1.79	2.15	1.94	1.58
XI. Malformations	12.55	11.86	11.28	11.99	18.52
XII. Diseases of early infancy	31.75	37.50	30.41	21.43	27.70
XIII. Old age (senile debility, &c.)	36.89	33.13	35.22	35.08	34.30
XIV. External causes	3.20	2.89	3.63	3.32	3.09
XV. Ill-defined causes	1.33	0.81	1.07	0.79	0.11
Totals	5.95	6.07	5.99	5.56	5.22

The above table provides a more satisfactory basis for determining the relative fatality of the various classes of diseases than does a simple comparison of numbers of deaths.

An even better comparison is afforded of the progress or retrogression in the various classes, when, in addition to the information conveyed by a perusal of differences in numbers, consideration is taken of the actual percentage movement. This is made possible by the following table, which shows the fluctuations, both numerically and as a percentage, between 1924 and 1928, for each of the fifteen classes into which diseases are divided.

Class.	Numerical Increase: 1928 over 1924.			Percentage Increase 1928 over 1924.
Class.	Total Cases.	Deaths.	Case-fatality Rate.	Total Cases	Deaths.	Case-fatality Rate.
NOTE.—Minus sign (−) denotes a decrease.
I	4,284	120	-1.58	54.44	20.91	-21.67
II	1,234	102	-1.43	31.83	18.55	-10.08
III	1,135	73	-0.71	32.13	22.05	-7.58
IV	629	92	-0.61	30.83	26.21	-3.54
V	1,426	155	0.44	39.82	46.41	4.72
VI	5,214	41	-0.48	39.21	12.28	-19.12
VII	1,462	18	-0.90	31.49	7.79	-18.07
VIII	2,116	22	-0.34	65.57	36.07	-17.99
IX	301	8	0.15	11.51	26.67	1.30
X	469	2	-0.33	28.95	6.45	-1.73
XI	15	18	5.97	5.88	56.25	47.57
XII	22	1	-4.05	17.46	2.50	-12.76
XIII	-70	-33	-2.59	-20.17	-25.78	-7.02
XIV	1,888	51	-0.11	27.23	22.97	-3.44
XV	350	2	-1.22	42.42	18.18	-91.73
Totals	20,475	672	-0.73	37.37	20.61	-12.27

Examining first of all the columns relating to total cases, it is seen that, although Class VI—diseases of the digestive system—ranks first in point of numerical increase, it is only in fifth position as regards percentage increase. The enormous number of persons treated annually for “tonsils and adenoids” coming in this class accounts for the high numerical fluctuations, without affecting so much the proportionate variations. The increasing use of public hospitals by women for accouchements is evidenced by the figures for Class VIII—the puerperal state—which in 1928 occupied third place as regards numerical increase. A greater measure of the growth in the utilization of public hospitals for this class of patient is afforded by the percentage figures, which disclose an advance of 65.57 per cent. over the five years covered, this being the highest recorded for any class. The heavy influx into hospital of patients suffering from scarlet fever in 1928 brought both the numerical and the percentage increase of cases treated for epidemic diseases—Class I—into second position. The next outstanding class is Class XV—ill-defined diseases—the large number of patients admitted in recent years for X-ray treatment or observation, and of persons in with some other patient, accounting for the advance in this class. Class V also exhibits an appreciable upward trend, due primarily to an abnormal number of patients suffering from pneumonia, a factor no doubt operating as a reflex of the prevalence of influenza in the Dominion during 1928. Diseases of the ears and of the mastoid process, which are included in Class III, are largely responsible for the increase of 32.13 per cent. recorded therein, while the ever-increasing number of cancer and diabetes cases admitted for treatment accounts principally for Class II showing an advance of 31.83 per cent. Classes VII and IV also show percentage increases of over thirty. The influence of the machine age and of the growth of motor transport is reflected in the 27.23 per cent. increase in Class XIV—external causes.

Turning now to the columns relating to deaths, a different order of precedence may be observed. Deaths from malformations (Class XI) and diseases of the skin (Class IX) record high percentage increases, but the figures for these diseases are too small to possess much significance. As in the figures relating to total cases, the number of deaths from diseases of the respiratory system (Class V) has assumed a considerably higher magnitude in 1928 than in 1924, due principally to broncho-pneumonia and pneumonia. The heavy proportional rise in the number of deaths coming in Class VIII—diseases and accidents of the puerperal state—is due entirely to the great increase in the number of cases dealt with in public hospitals. Comparatively high increases in the number of deaths for Classes IV, XIV, and I are recorded, due to reasons already enumerated in the preceding paragraph. Only one class, that covering the diseases of old age, shows an actual decrease in the number of deaths recorded.

It is not prudent to base conclusions upon the results indicated in the deaths columns, and so attention is diverted to the case-fatality columns, which reveal more truly the position as regards the effective amelioration of the various diseases. In only three cases—malformations, diseases of the respiratory system, and diseases of the skin—is there an increase shown in the case-fatality rate. Of these three, the first, although recording a high percentage, is not very significant owing to the small number of cases involved. The explanation of the 4.72 per cent. increase in the rate for respiratory diseases is again attributable to the pneumonias already commented upon, these diseases being of a comparatively fatal nature. Of the decreases recorded, probably the most striking is that noticed in the epidemic class, which gives the impression that the severity of these diseases cannot always be gauged by their numerical frequency.

EPIDEMIC AND ENDEMIC DISEASES.

The first class of diseases in the international classification is devoted to “epidemic, endemic, and infectious,” the first twenty-five orders of which cover epidemic diseases. The principal epidemic diseases dealt with in public hospitals are scarlet fever and diphtheria. There are four special hospitals for the treatment of these and similar infectious diseases, all situated in the South Island. Several hospitals have fever wings attached.

It is interesting to note that, while males preponderate in influenza cases, girls appear to be more susceptible than boys to diphtheria and scarlet fever. Little difference is observed in the sex incidence of measles. The figures for the two sexes for these four diseases are—.

Year.	Influenza.		Diphtheria.		Scarlet Fever.		Measles.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.
1924	286	208	990	1,185	338	597	190	205
1925	212	149	578	604	252	479	80	52
1926	746	623	752	832	479	708	87	70
1927	707	544	521	649	605	1,015	200	215
1928	698	641	522	660	1,678	2,658	82	82
Totals for 5 years	2,649	2,165	3,363	3,930	3,352	5,457	639	624

Information concerning total cases and deaths in hospital during each of the last five years is given in the following table for the foregoing and other epidemic diseases:—

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Typhoid fever	224	183	210	215	240	29	23	34	28	39
Paratyphoid fever	6	4	2	8	1	1	..	..	..	..
Malaria	17	8	8	7	5	..	..	..	..	..
Smallpox	..	1	..	1	..	..	..	..	..	..
Measles	395	132	157	415	164	13	3	2	13	2
Scarlet fever	935	731	1,187	1,620	4,336	8	6	8	11	41
Whooping-cough	68	74	232	82	56	6	6	34	9	5
Diphtheria	2,175	1,182	1,584	1,170	1,182	57	41	56	49	64
Influenza	494	361	1,369	1,251	1,339	16	25	119	41	63
Mumps	4	13	119	230	1	..	1	..	1	..
Dysentery	23	25	24	7	24	2	2	6	1	..
Epidemic jaundice	6	3	3	..	1	..	..	1	..	..
Erysipelas	96	90	105	128	210	5	1	2	5	10
Infantile paralysis	99	1,252	190	140	100	16	149	6	5	9
Lethargic encephalitis	25	23	30	29	30	7	6	5	5	9
Meningocoeeus meningitis	1	5	5	3	1	1	4	2	1	..
Chicken-pox	24	84	101	50	48	..	1	1	..	..
German measles	8	4	37	105	44	..	..	..	..	..
Others	..	6	4	..	3	..	..	..	..	..
Totals	4,600	4,181	5,367	5,461	7,785	161	268	276	169	242

The occurrence of epidemics can readily be traced from these figures, the spread of scarlet fever during the last three years, particularly in 1928, being perhaps most noticeable. Epidemics of influenza occurred in 1926, 1927, and 1928, measles in 1924 and 1927, diphtheria in 1924, chicken-pox in 1925–26, infantile paralysis in 1925, and whooping-cough in 1926. In normal years diphtheria is responsible for more admissions and more deaths than any other epidemic disease.

TUBERCULOSIS.

Tuberculosis occupies seven orders in the classification of diseases, but is usually divided into two groups—viz., tuberculosis of the respiratory system, and other forms of tuberculosis. The former covers more than three-fifths of the cases of tubercular disease dealt with in hospitals, and a somewhat higher proportion of the deaths. A large percentage of the tubercular cases is dealt with at eight sanatoria for consumptives.

Tuberculosis cases in public hospitals and sanatoria during the last five years are as follows:—

Location.	Cases.					Deaths.
Location.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Respiratory system	1,315	1,458	1,495	1,682	1,832	250	253	284	296	292
Meninges and central nervous system	64	57	58	61	62	57	51	48	51	51
Intestines and peritoneum	54	81	105	73	101	12	11	14	14	20
Vertebral column	151	172	120	141	119	16	5	6	12	11
Joints	186	217	189	185	172	5	2	1	4	1
Other organs	284	294	278	251	278	8	4	7	4	8
Disseminated	36	25	30	16	16	24	17	23	..	13
Totals	2,090	2,304	2,275	2,409	2,580	372	343	383	381	396

Fuller details as to location are given in the “Annual Report on Vital Statistics.” In view of the great improvement effected for many years in the general death-rate from tuberculosis of the respiratory system, it is of interest to note that the case-fatality rate per cent. among patients treated in hospital for this disease has declined during the five years covered by the above table from 19.01 in 1924 to 15.94 in 1928, a decrease of 3.07, equivalent to 16.15 per cent.

The death-rate is exceedingly high in the case of tuberculous meningitis, averaging 85 per cent. over the five years. Males greatly preponderate among patients treated for tuberculosis, the figures for 1928 being—males 1,447, females 1,133.

VENEREAL DISEASES.

In connection with the following table of venereal-disease cases it should be noted that the figures relate to in-patients only, and do not include out-patients, who represent the great majority of cases treated for these diseases at the public hospitals.

Year.	Syphilis.				Gonococcus or Chancroid Infection.
	Cases.		Deaths.		Cases.		Deaths.
	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.
1924	111	39	7	2	244	120	1	2
1925	142	67	16	5	281	109	4	..
1926	147	72	24	7	379	121	4	1
1927	158	53	18	5	396	169	1	1
1928	129	78	12	3	391	183	2	2

The number of cases of venereal diseases dealt with over the period shows a fairly large increase, but the increase is probably more the outcome of the establishment of venereal clinics during recent years than to any increase in the incidence of the diseases.

In order to obtain some definite information regarding the extent of venereal disease in the population, a questionnaire is attached to the hospital discharge-cards used in the preparation of statistical tables, requiring completion in all cases where the patient is found to be suffering from or showing evidence of recent or distant syphilitic or gonorrhœal infection, irrespective of whether the disease for which the patient is under treatment is of venereal origin or not. It should be explained that the Wassermann test is not applied except in the small proportion of cases where knowledge as to the presence of venereal disease is required for treatment purposes.

Of 75,262 patients discharged from or dying in public hospitals during 1928 only 404 showed evidence of syphilitic infection and 649 of gonorrhœal infection. The following table gives a summary of these cases by age-groups:—

—	Under 15.		15 and under 25.		25 and under 45.		45 and over.		Totals.
—	M.	F.	M.	F.	M.	F.	M.	F.	M.	F.	Both Sexes.
Syphilitic infection.
Recent	3	5	9	16	25	4	13	5	50	30	80
Distant	11	14	13	9	73	37	110	57	207	117	324
Acquired	..	..	13	12	74	28	90	54	177	94	271
Congenital	11	16	5	5	3	3	1	1	20	25	45
Not stated	3	3	4	8	21	10	32	7	60	28	88
Totals	14	19	22	25	98	41	123	62	257	147	404
Gonorrhœal Infection.
Recent	20	54	147	80	154	39	23	3	344	176	520
Distant	..	7	5	13	39	24	38	3	82	47	129
Totals	20	61	152	93	193	63	61	6	426	223	649
Grand totals	34	80	174	118	291	104	184	68	683	370	1,053

Included in the total for syphilitic infection (404) are 14 cases (11 males, 3 females) who were also suffering from gonorrhœal infection. These cases are not included in the total for gonorrhœal infection.

OTHER INFECTIOUS DISEASES.

Non-puerperal septicæmia is the principal of the remaining infectious diseases, the figures for which for the last five years are—

Disease.	Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Septicæmia	638	713	760	844	973	21	25	17	18	26
Tetanus	16	26	17	21	20	7	10	11	9	11
Mycoses	5	5	1	8	7	1	1	..	1	..
Anthrax	..	..	..	1	..	..	..	..	1	..
Cow-pox	1	3	..	..	2	..	..	..	..	..
Frambœsia	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Rat-bite fever	2	..	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Trench fever	1	1	1	3	4	..	..	..	..	..
Trench mouth	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Yaws	..	..	..	1	1	..	..	..	..	..

Three-quarters of the total patients treated for non-puerperal septicæmia are males, and it would appear that most of the cases coming under this head are due to septic infection of wounds. Tetanus has a very high death-rate, though the numbers treated for this disease are small.

CANCER.

Cancer occupies a position of great prominence amongst causes of death, now ranking in New Zealand second only to heart-disease in point of number of deaths. Information as to deaths and death-rates from cancer is given in Subsection C of this section.

The total number of deaths in public hospitals in 1928 where cancer was assigned as the cause was 453 (males 287, females 166). In addition, 227 patients treated for cancer were discharged as recovered, 601 as relieved, and 354 as unrelieved. Very few of the recoveries are in cases of internal cancer, and but a small proportion of the deaths in cases of surface cancer. It is noticeable that with but few exceptions cancer of the mouth and its annexa is confined to males.

Of the 453 patients who died in hospital from cancer during 1928, 230, or 51 per cent., had been in hospital less than one month, and of these 70 died within one week of admission.

Tables published in the “Annual Report on Vital Statistics” give detailed information as to condition on discharge and part of body affected, in conjunction with age of patient and also with period in hospital. The following table gives a summary of cancer cases during the last five years, following the international classification as to region affected:—

CANCER CASES IN PUBLIC HOSPITALS, 1924–28.

Region.	Cases.					Deaths.
Region.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Buccal cavity	161	191	226	177	224	25	31	40	37	35
Stomach and liver	313	308	282	272	334	127	141	136	124	143
Peritoneum, intestines, and rectum	152	154	201	192	192	70	64	86	85	84
Female genital organs	160	170	198	221	240	35	34	31	48	37
Breast	137	123	142	188	161	20	18	25	21	23
Skin	101	126	138	128	133	15	11	21	9	16
Other and undefined organs	261	325	404	327	351	93	104	145	114	115
Totals	1,285	1,397	1,591	1,505	1,635	385	403	484	438	453

The percentages of deaths to total cases during the last five years are given in the following table. It may be pointed out that the two classes with the highest death-rates are composed entirely of cases of internal cancer, and the “other and undefined” class, which comes third in order of percentage of deaths, also consists mainly of internal cancer cases. The case-fatality rate for all cancer patients was 27.71 per cent. in 1928, as compared with 29.96 per cent. in 1924.

Region.	Total Cases, 1924–28.	Total Deaths, 1924–28.	Percentage of Deaths to Cases.
Buccal cavity	979	168	17
Stomach and liver	1,509	671	44
Peritoneum, intestines, and rectum	891	389	44
Female genital organs	989	185	19
Breast	751	107	14
Skin	626	72	12
Other and undefined organs	1,668	571	34
Totals	7,413	2,163	29

BENIGN TUMOURS.

Under the classification at present in force all benign tumours and tumours not actually returned as malignant or hydatid are placed under the one heading, with the exception of tumours of the brain, eye, thyroid and pituitary glands, heart, spleen, stomach, prostate, ovary, and uterus.

Tumour cases included in the general class numbered 625 during 1928, and of these 587 were discharged either “recovered” or “relieved,” there being only 7 deaths. Following is a summary showing the various locations of the tumours:—

Benign Tumours of	Number of Cases.
Benign Tumours of	Males.	Females.
Head, face	17	20
Mouth, jaw	24	22
Nose	62	37
Ears	5	6
Neck	22	7
Parotid gland	..	3
Larynx	13	1
Spinal cord	..	2
Back (excepting spine)	6	7
Breast	2	51
Chest, mediastinum	5	2
Liver	..	1
Intestines, rectum	11	10
Kidneys	6	..
Bladder, urethra	20	10
Abdomen, peritoneum	6	13
Male genital organs	8	..
Bones (except jaw)	26	24
Arm, hand, &c.	15	11
Leg, foot, &c.	39	25
Nerve tissues	10	1
Other sites	18	14
Site not stated	24	19
Totals	339	286

OTHER GENERAL DISEASES.

The principal of the remaining general diseases, with their figures for each of the last five years, are given in the next table.

Males considerably outnumber females in rheumatism cases, and represent 90 per cent. of the alcoholism cases. Females represent 85 per cent. of the cases of exophthalmic goitre and other diseases of the thyroid gland. Large increases throughout the period are recorded for goitre in general, mainly, no doubt, due to the prominence given to this disease in recent years. Consequent on the introduction of the insulin treatment for diabetes, the number of patients treated for this disease shows an increase during the period. Next to leucæmia, the numbers for which are small, anæmia has the highest death-rate of any of the diseases included in this group. Most of the deaths from anaemia are due to the pernicious type of the disease.

Only 2 cases of chronic lead poisoning are included in the total of 33 cases of chronic poisonings for 1928, the remaining 31 (25 males and 6 females) being due to the use of drugs.

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Acute rheumatism	411	471	483	489	535	10	13	13	17	16
Chronic rheumatism and gout	326	361	427	434	424	13	10	10	9	7
Rickets	10	5	16	17	18	2	..	1	1	..
Diabetes	366	329	398	450	435	51	54	69	72	62
Anaemia and chlorosis	123	157	163	165	138	29	32	39	28	27
Exophthalmic goitre	209	315	334	361	448	18	30	23	23	23
Other diseases of the thyroid gland	163	188	193	277	314	4	2	2	4	8
Leucæmia, Hodgkin's disease	34	47	48	66	63	12	17	19	25	23
Alcoholism	307	319	396	321	338	13	9	12	8	7
Chronic poisonings	28	26	21	34	33	1	2	1	2	2
Other	46	79	98	106	105	3	11	18	12	17
Totals	2,023	2,297	2,577	2,720	2,851	156	180	207	201	192

DISEASES OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM.

The diseases of the nervous system, following the international classification, are as follows:—

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Encephalitis	16	13	15	22	19	8	9	2	6	10
Meningitis	58	74	62	77	75	34	48	37	58	49
Locomotor ataxia	39	39	67	58	60	2	4	2	5	5
Other diseases of the spinal cord	57	61	90	86	69	8	10	12	15	8
Apoplexy, cerebral hæmorrhage	228	195	212	220	246	163	122	137	136	166
Cerebral thrombosis and embolism	39	43	67	90	83	22	23	30	46	43
Paralysis without specified cause	176	191	177	173	169	39	37	31	34	34
General paralysis of the insane	15	7	17	14	17	..	..	5	..	1
Other forms of mental alienation	273	242	334	336	347	6	1	4	6	8
Epilepsy	188	195	224	211	236	4	6	4	7	11
Convulsions	25	34	25	17	21	1	1	1	..	1
Convulsions of infants	55	61	63	51	49	5	4	5	2	6
Chorea	57	66	52	53	49	..	1	..	..	1
Neuralgia, neuritis	514	502	590	578	561	4	2	1	2	..
Softening of the brain	3	2	6	5	1	2	..	5	4	1
Other nervous diseases	688	714	798	953	961	27	30	37	43	42
Totals	2,431	2,439	2,799	2,944	2,963	325	298	313	364	386

Very high death-rates are shown for meningitis, apoplexy, cerebral embolism and thrombosis, and softening of the brain (the figures for which, however, are very small), but the general rate for the class is low, owing to the large number of cases of neuralgia, neuritis, neurasthenia, and mental alienation, for all of which the death-rate in hospitals is negligible. Mental cases are not retained in hospital for any length of time, being generally transferred to the mental hospitals as soon as possible.

DISEASES OF THE EYES.

Eye troubles are responsible for a considerable number of hospital cases, but very few deaths. Out of 3,874 cases during the five years 1924–28 only 1 death was recorded. The figures for the principal affections of the eyes during the five years are—

Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Cataract	136	145	177	142	161
Conjunctivitis	61	80	90	102	105
Iritis	46	65	82	63	56
Strabismus	29	18	43	39	48
Glaucoma	30	44	35	38	43
Dacryocystitis	22	31	40	30	27
Keratitis	23	17	16	25	11
Trachoma	9	18	12	13	8
Ulcer of eye	97	107	114	122	150
Foreign body in eye	27	36	34	51	28
Other diseases of eyes	171	199	177	189	192
Totals	651	760	820	814	829

Injuries to the eyes, other than those due to the presence of some foreign body, are included in the “accident” class.

DISEASES OF EARS AND OF MASTOID PROCESS.

Diseases of the ears and diseases of the mastoid process are placed under the same heading in the classification. The figures for each of the last five years are—

Year.	Diseases of Ears.				Diseases of Mastoid Process.
	Total Cases.		Deaths.		Total Cases.		Deaths.
	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.
1924	151	154	4	..	83	62	2	..
1925	141	125	2	2	70	48	..	..
1926	176	171	3	2	77	64	..	1
1927	280	222	5	4	91	81	3	2
1928	334	300	8	7	125	116		2

Otitis media is the principal disease of the ears, representing 572 of the 634 cases, and 14 of the deaths, in 1928.

Mastoiditis was the trouble in 226 out of the 241 cases of disease of the mastoid process in 1928, and accounted for both of the deaths.

DISEASES OF THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM.

Diseases of the heart, which occupy the first four orders under Class IV, are responsible for nearly half of the total admissions for diseases of the circulatory system and for nearly nine-tenths of the deaths. The figures for the principal diseases of the circulatory system for the last five years are—

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
* Excluding cerebral embolism and thrombosis.
Pericarditis	21	22	9	32	15	6	13	3	6	6
Acute endocarditis and myocarditis	81	78	91	115	115	34	34	33	35	39
Angina pectoris	34	34	45	49	51	6	5	7	12	10
Other diseases of heart	830	994	1,047	1,152	1,056	254	330	337	379	326
Diseases of arteries	97	95	106	101	93	37	30	26	31	38
Embolism and thrombosis^*	44	46	54	53	71	10	3	9	8	19
Varicose veins and ulcers	258	265	261	298	282	..	2	1	2	..
Hæmorrhoids	182	239	217	282	243	..	2	..	1	1
Phlebitis	41	35	49	53	70	4	..	1	2	1
Adenitis	152	174	200	209	245	..	..	1	1	..
Abscess of groin	87	51	68	94	98	..	..	..	..	..
Abscess of axilla	54	67	63	76	81	..	..	..	..	..
Other diseases of lymphatic system	116	93	116	106	136	..	..	..	1	..
Epistaxis and other hæmorrhages	35	45	64	58	70	..	..	2	..	1
Other diseases of circulatory system	8	27	22	35	43	..	..	..	..	2
Totals	2,040	2,265	2,412	2,713	2,669	351	419	420	478	443

The principal diseases under the heading “Other diseases of heart” in 1928 were—

Disease.	Cases.	Deaths.
Aortic valve disease	33	11
Mitral valve disease	34	7
Aortic and mitral valve disease	3	..
Other or unspecified valve disease	73	29
Fatty heart	2	1
Dilatation of heart	2	..
Other or unspecified myocardial disease	538	211
Disordered action of the heart	136	20
Heart-disease (undefined)	235	47
Totals	1,056	326

DISEASES OF THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM.

The total cases of respiratory disease dealt with in public hospitals during 1928 were 5,007, resulting in 489 deaths. The figures for the various headings of the classification are as follows for the last five years:—

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Diseases of nasal fossæ and annexa	644	647	601	698	798	6	1	2	2	3
Diseases of larynx	75	71	112	122	96	5	5	6	6	1
Bronchitis	740	886	935	917	979	57	65	70	66	52
Broncho-pneumonia	397	401	413	508	648	80	83	85	85	124
Pneumonia	919	733	835	1,002	1,472	138	131	134	159!	232
Pleurisy	418	387	455	642	571	25	15	17	22	32
Pulmonary congestion	16	28	45	39	38	5	11	17	12	20
Gangrene of lung	3	3	..	3	1	2	2	..	3	1
Asthma	268	262	218	291	304	10	8	11	9	8
Pulmonary emphysema	1	..	..	4	..	..	..	..	1	..
Other diseases of respiratory system	100	89	87	96	100	6	14	11	17	16
Totals	3,581	3,507	3,701	4,322	5,007	334	335	353	382	489

Bronchitis, broncho-pneumonia, and pneumonia were responsible in 1928 for over three-fifths of the total cases in this class, and over four-fifths of the deaths. Males represent the majority of the cases of respiratory disease.

DISEASES OF THE MOUTH.

Dental caries (including teeth-extractions, undefined) is the principal disease of the mouth dealt with in public hospitals, representing 582 out of a total of 1,085 cases in 1928. Other complaints contributing to the total were: Stomatitis, 74; alveolar abscess, 77; pyorrhœa, 196; and hæmorrhage from tooth-socket, 57. The death-rate in this group is negligible, as will be seen from the figures for the last five years.

Year.	Total Cases.	Deaths.
1924	497	2
1925	555	1
1926	774	2
1927	781	..
1928	1,085	4

DISEASES OF PHARYNX AND TONSILS.

Admissions to public hospitals for adenoids and diseases of the tonsils are very numerous, and occupy first place in the ranking of individual causes. The great majority of the admissions are of children under ten years of age, and the period in the hospital is comparatively short. The death-rate for the group is exceedingly small.

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Adenoids and tonsils	2,875	2,709	3,440	4,066	4,900	..	1	5	1	..
Adenoids	208	156	175	175	118	..	..	..	..	..
Enlarged or diseased tonsils	436	453	693	605	802	..	..	1	2	1
Tonsilitis, tonsillar abscess	1,093	983	1,307	1,413	1,586	1	1	4	9	3
Septic throat	76	65	69	64	96	..	1	..	1	..
Pharyngitis	49	35	35	43	67	..	..	..	1	1
Vincent's angina	17	22	32	69	62	..	..	..	3	..
Other	14	4	13	10	13	1	1	..	..	..
Totals	4,768	4,427	5,764	6,445	7,644	2	4	10	17	5

DISEASES OF THE STOMACH.

There were 1,355 cases of and 69 deaths from diseases of the stomach during the year 1928, the principal of which were ulcer of stomach and duodenum (746 cases), gastritis (334), and dyspepsia and indigestion (145). Of the 69 deaths, gastric ulcer or duodenal ulcer was the complaint in 65 cases.

A comparison of the discharges and deaths for the principal diseases in each of the five years 1924–28 is given.

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Ulcer of stomach	241	271	283	340	413	23	21	31	31	38
Ulcer of duodenum	168	228	299	261	333	15	16	27	16	27
Gastritis	382	372	305	330	334	..	1	2	3	1
Dyspepsia, indigestion	98	150	157	163	145	..	..	..	..	..
Vomiting	25	29	30	31	11	..	1	..	3	..
Hæmatemesis	32	32	28	26	34	2	1	3	3	1
Other diseases	103	110	90	116	85	2	4	1	1	2
Totals	1,049	1,192	1,192	1,267	1,355	42	44	64	57	69

DIARRHœA AND ENTERITIS.

The total cases of diarrhœa and enteritis included in the returns for 1928 were 740, including 43 deaths. Twenty-one of the deaths were of children under two years of age.

The total numbers of cases and of deaths in each of the last five years are—

Year.	Total Cases.			Total Deaths.
Year.	Under 2 Years of Age.	2 Years and over.	Total.	Under 2 Years of Age.	2 Years and over.	Total.
1924	230	585	815	37	18	55
1925	155	508	663	22	13	35
1926	169	619	788	19	26	45
1927	178	605	783	25	14	39
1928	165	575	740	21	22	43

Infants under two years of age represent 24 per cent. of the total cases for the last five years, and 57 per cent. of the deaths.

APPENDICITIS.

Appendicitis ranks high among hospital cases, but the death-rate is exceedingly low. During the five years 1924–28 only 385 deaths occurred out of a total of 19,253 cases dealt with, representing a percentage of 2.00. The figures for the last five years are as stated in the next table.

Year.	Total Cases.			Deaths.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1924	1,676	1,822	3,498	46	31	77
1925	1,895	2,037	3,932	63	28	91
1926	1,922	1,995	3,917	46	26	72
1927	1,921	1,989	3,910	42	31	73
1928	1,892	2,104	3,996	35	37	72

Males represent somewhat less than one-half of the total cases dealt with, but over the quinquennium three-fifths of the deaths are of males.

HERNIA, INTESTINAL OBSTRUCTION.

Hernia and intestinal-obstruction cases included in the returns for 1928 numbered 1,426, including 79 deaths. A table showing, for the different varieties of hernia and for intestinal obstruction, the number of cases and of deaths during the last five years is given below:—

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Inguinal hernia	715	710	807	924	890	6	5	11	11	12
Ventral hernia	90	95	121	120	118	3	4	1	7	1
Umbilical hernia	47	40	43	44	61	3	2	5	2	4
Femoral hernia	46	50	54	63	56	1	2	1	4	3
Hernia (class undefined)	98	116	97	105	83	5	4	5	12	3
Intestinal obstruction	187	198	233	221	218	38	45	53	52	56
Totals	1,183	1,209	1,355	1,477	1,426	56	62	76	88	79

There is a decided tendency for the figures in this group to increase, the most noticeable increases being shown for inguinal hernia and intestinal obstruction. Although the cases of hernia outnumber the intestinal-obstruction cases by nearly six to one,' the number of deaths from the former is small. Deaths from intestinal obstruction, however, are comparatively numerous, and normally one-fourth of the total cases treated prove to be fatal. Females largely outnumber males in the figures for ventral, umbilical, and femoral hernia.

DISEASES OF THE LIVER.

Non-cancerous diseases of the liver were responsible for 51 deaths during the year 1928. Of the total of 1,060 discharges and deaths of patients treated for liver-diseases, those suffering from cholecystitis contributed 382, and those treated for biliary calculi 410 (including 344 females).

The following table gives a brief summary of the principal diseases:—

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Acute yellow atrophy	3	..	1	1	..	2	..	1	..	..
Hydatids	55	44	71	53	59	6	7	5	7	5
Cirrhosis	40	39	51	47	52	13	12	15	14	11
Biliary calculi	315	253	329	371	410	14	11	10	14	14
Cholecystitis	135	256	245	277	382	8	20	16	6	9
Jaundice	70	85	54	59	96	1	8	1	3	1
Other diseases	24	36	46	64	61	3	8	7	7	11
Totals	642	713	797	872	1,060	47	66	55	51	51

PERITONITIS.

In 274 cases in 1928 the disease treated was entered as peritonitis, without the actual cause of the condition being indicated. Peritonitis is a frequent complication of appendicitis and other diseases of the digestive system, and also of the puerperal state. Females predominate among peritonitis cases, as will be seen from the following table covering the last live years, and the death-rate is also higher among females.

Year.	Total Cases.			Deaths.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1924	73	119	192	10	22	32
1925	76	141	217	7	19	26
1926	86	160	246	5	19	24
1927	85	151	236	9	24	33
1928	102	172	274	16	15	31

OTHER DISEASES OF DIGESTIVE SYSTEM.

The great majority of the remaining diseases of the digestive system come under the somewhat indefinite heading “Other diseases of the intestines,” which covers a considerable number of important items in the study of morbidity. The death-rate for the group is exceedingly low, as is also the rate for the group “Diseases of the oesophagus.” The figures for the principal diseases of the digestive system not already dealt with are—

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Diseases of the oesophagus	40	15	29	27	19	1	..	..	1	1
Worms and other intestinal parasites	51	73	58	61	76	2	7	1	3	8
Constipation	164	211	236	213	220	..	..	..	..	..
Ischio-rectal abscess	55	93	113	98	114	..	2	1	..	2
Anal fistula	43	29	50	45	41	..	..	1	..	..
Anal fissure	17	29	36	22	26	..	..	..	..	..
Anal abscess	15	25	26	26	37	..	..	1	..	..
Visceroptosis and enterop-tosis	57	44	53	48	46	..	1	..	2	..
Other diseases of intestines	125	122	142	173	212	9	7	8	5	6
Diseases of the pancreas	15	17	21	29	30	9	8	8	10	4
Abdominal pains	70	90	76	80	109	..	..	..	..	..
Totals	652	748	840	822	930	21	25	20	21	21

HYDATIDS.

Of the 76 cases of intestinal parasites shown for 1928 under the preceding heading, 44 were hydatid cases, to which should be added the 59 cases of hydatids of the liver (which includes hydatids of undefined location) shown under the heading “Diseases of the Liver.” The following table shows the 1928 figures for hydatids, with parts of the body affected:—

Hydatids of	Cases.	Deaths.
Liver	59	5
Lung	24	6
Kidney	3	..
Abdomen	11	1
Hip	1	..
Parotid gland	1	..
Sacrum	1	..
Ureter	3	..
Totals	103	12

DISEASES OF THE URINARY SYSTEM.

The figures for the various diseases of the urinary system dealt with in public hospitals during the last five years are—

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Acute nephritis	78	84	135	149	192	11	27	26	14	20
Chronic nephritis	261	262	328	305	358	106	108	116	108	112
Pyelitis	392	384	490	557	593	3	4	6	5	4
Hæmaturia	31	50	65	43	63	1	1	..	1	..
Movable kidney	12	20	13	16	15	..	..	..	..	..
Pyelonephritis	22	56	63	26	49	8	16	10	9	11
Pyonephrosis	13	15	13	26	16	4	6	4	5	4
Hydronephrosis	15	10	15	30	34	1	..	..	1	1
Abscess of kidney	8	17	8	18	24	..	2	..	1	..
Other kidney diseases	38	48	64	84	77	3	2	4	2	4
Renal colic	53	42	80	88	88	..	..	..	..	..
Renal stone	59	71	75	91	95	1	4	6	3	6
Stone in bladder or urethra	45	49	64	61	57	..	..	3	7	2
Retention of urine	53	52	49	38	74	4	3	3	2	1
Enuresis	19	26	31	33	16	..	1	1	..	..
Cystitis	190	174	216	190	237	11	6	6	3	3
Cystocele	28	28	34	56	60	..	..	..	..	2
Other diseases of bladder	28	24	29	24	21	..	..	1	..	1
Stricture, &c., of urethra	165	191	201	113	153	3	6	10	3	4
Enlargement, &c., of prostate	239	261	302	266	335	59	41	69	65	56
Totals	1,749	1,864	2,275	2,214	2,557	215	227	265	229	231

Chronic nephritis is responsible for nearly half of the total deaths in this group, though it represents only about one-seventh of the cases. Diseases of the prostate, principally cases of enlargement, have also a comparatively high death-rate. Females comprise the majority of the cases of pyelitis, movable kidney, and cystitis, though in the case of the last mentioned males invariably exceed females among the fatal cases.

DISEASES OF MALE GENITAL ORGANS.

Phimosis is responsible for more admissions to public hospitals than all other-non-venereal diseases of the male genital organs taken together. A table showing the figures for the years 1924–28 follows:—

Disease, &c.	Total Cases.
Disease, &c.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Phimosis	421	400	392	408	470
Paraphimosis	10	22	24	18	30
Epididymitis	15	16	20	17	35
Orchitis	24	18	21	43	31
Hydrocele	61	65	94	87	100
Undescended testicle	34	21	28	29	31
Other	33	31	54	61	65
Totals	598	573	633	663	762

Only two deaths were recorded daring the period covered by the table, viz., one from abscess of scrotum in 1926, and one from orchitis in 1928.

DISEASES OF FEMALE GENITAL ORGANS.

Diseases of the female genital organs, other than cancer or those diseases shown to be venereal or puerperal, are an important group in hospital cases, though the death-rate is exceedingly low. The total eases passing through public hospitals in 1928 were 2,557, involving only 17 deaths. The list follows:—

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Ovarian cysts	170	169	176	155	214	2	8	4	5	2
Salpingitis and pelvic abscess	221	288	355	391	422	3	6	7	11	6
Uterine tumour	234	250	246	263	265	7	4	5	9	5
Uterine hæmorrhage	157	241	201	212	222	..	2	1	1	..
Metritis	29	25	25	17	12	..	..	..	..	..
Endometritis	185	245	260	289	239	1	..	..	1	1
Cervicitis	22	20	29	48	32	..	..	..	..	..
Endocervicitis	12	16	41	34	31	..	..	..	..	..
Erosion of cervix uteri	29	24	28	39	31	..	..	..	..	..
Retroversion of uterus	382	381	342	359	373	1	2	1	1	..
Prolapse of uterus	213	282	235	209	243	2	1	2	1	..
Other displacements of uterus	19	22	38	31	20	..	..	..	..	..
Dysmenorrhœa	96	97	100	86	99	..	..	..	..	..
Leucorrhœa	33	38	36	39	37	..	..	..	..	..
Other diseases of uterus	122	93	107	82	127	..	..	..	3	2
Oophoritis	25	29	25	23	15	..	..	..	..	1
Vaginitis	29	23	24	24	27	..	..	..	..	..
Other diseases	140	117	109	120	148	..	..	1	1	..
Totals	2,118	2,360	2,377	2,421	2,557	16	23	21	33	17

DISEASES OF BREAST.

The following table gives figures for the principal non-puerperal diseases of the breast (other than cancer or tumours) dealt with in public hospitals during the last five years. No deaths were recorded.

Disease.	Total Cases.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Abscess of breast	110	115	96	125	132
Mastitis	67	63	94	75	91
Other	5	..	4	1	6
Totals	182	178	194	201	229

PUERPERAL STATE.

A total of 5,343 cases comes under the heading of puerperal in 1928. This number includes 2,555 cases of normal childbirth dealt with at public general hospitals, but does not cover maternity cases in St. Helens Hospitals or other special maternity institutions.

There have been substantial increases in the number of puerperal cases treated during the last five years. This increase can justly be put down to the huge advance that has taken place in the matter of providing maternity wards at the various public hospitals. Whereas in 1924 there were only 1,323 cases of normal labour, this figure has rapidly risen until in 1928 it reached the comparatively high total of 2,555. Accidents of pregnancy accounted for the greater part of the remainder of the increase.

The totals given in the following table for miscarriage do not include threatened miscarriage (89 in 1928); nor do those for abortion include threatened abortion (66 in 1928). These, together with hyperemesis gravidarum (68 in 1928), are the principal diseases included in “Other accidents of pregnancy.”

PUERPERAL DISEASES AND ACCIDENTS.

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Normal labour	1,323	1,467	2,009	2,241	2,555	..	..	..	..	..
Miscarriage	287	331	325	340	380	1	1	2	4	1
Incomplete miscarriage	115	87	124	137	162	1	..	2	..	1
Abortion	260	264	316	350	343	3	1	..	..	..
Incomplete abortion	345	438	440	478	473	..	..	1	1	2
Ectopic gestation	105	89	107	129	107	3	1	4	5	3
Other accidents of pregnancy	355	391	306	408	541	2	3	8	1	2
Puerperal hæmorrhage	48	68	78	67	68	3	5	6	6	8
Lacerations, &c., of perinæum and cervix	28	112	128	102	143	..	2	..	..	2
Other accidents of labour	49	73	81	90	71	..	5	1	5	1
Puerperal septicæmia	204	249	218	299	271	33	34	34	63	44
Puerperal phlebitis and phlegmasia alba dolens	10	9	22	12	18	1	2	1	..	1
Puerperal albuminuria, convulsions	89	153	141	169	181	14	17	15	17	17
Puerperal mania, &c.	6	11	15	19	25	..	1	1	2	1
Puerperal diseases of breast	3	..	7	12	5	..	..	..	..	..
Totals	3,227	3,742	4,317	4,853	5,343	61	72	75	104	83

SKIN-DISEASES.

Diseases of the skin and of the cellular tissue, which comprise four orders in the international classification, are an important group in morbidity statistics, though the death-rate is very low. Abscesses, cellulitis, and ulcers are responsible for approximately half of the total cases dealt with under this heading, furuncle, dermatitis, and eczema ranking highest among other skin-diseases.

The figures for the principal diseases of the skin and annexa during the last five years are—

Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Gangrene	33	27	38	43	30
Carbuncle	89	109	110	128	137
Furuncle	152	157	148	180	187
Abscess	712	727	688	737	709
Cellulitis	410	376	387	420	472
Whitlow	89	97	105	121	117
Ulcers	231	184	195	216	221
Eczema	149	151	154	161	153
Scabies	101	74	84	93	118
Dermatitis	133	120	123	153	173
Erythema	56	43	64	51	65
Impetigo	81	90	95	118	136
Ingrown nails	64	52	55	50	46
Herpes	37	35	39	33	44
Psoriasis	22	23	28	14	29
Seborrhœa	12	21	15	18	12
Urticaria	23	25	32	22	25
Ringworm	25	21	25	29	11
Pruritus	10	5	9	20	16
Onychia	14	10	16	10	7
Pemphigus	3	7	..	8	..
Other diseases	138	92	..	209	209
Totals	2,584	2,446	2,595	2,834	2,917

Deaths from these diseases during the year 1928 numbered 38, as compared with 47 in 1927, 43 in 1926, 45 in 1925, and 30 in 1924. The deaths include, in 1928, 16 ascribed to cellulitis and 9 to gangrene.

DISEASES OF BONES, ETC.

Cases of non-tuberculous diseases of the bones and of the organs of locomotion dealt with in 1928 numbered 2,089, including 33 deaths. Twenty-four deaths were due to osteomyelitis. The principal diseases in this class, following the order of the classification, for the years 1924–28 were—

Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Osteomyelitis	295	345	386	393	382
Periostitis	72	66	69	57	73
Necrosis	67	49	43	35	37
Osteitis	19	14	18	12	17
Other diseases of bones	208	183	166	191	231
Synovitis	160	153	159	145	156
Acute arthritis	45	42	44	53	91
Ankylosis	17	22	9	26	31
Other diseases of joints	117	114	116	154	199
Bursitis	115	123	139	160	130
Lumbago	61	80	92	83	75
Myalgia and fibrositis	116	106	106	164	149
Talipes	90	109	129	110	84
Tenosynovitis	14	22	21	30	26
Ganglion	24	26	25	30	32
Bunion	17	15	12	13	8
Other diseases of organs of locomotion	215	254	233	283	368
Totals	1,652	1,723	1,767	1,939	2,089

MALFORMATIONS.

Congenital malformations do not bulk very largely among hospital cases. The figures for the last five years are given.

Disease.	Total Cases.					Deaths.
Disease.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Cleft palate	38	34	48	41	31	3	3	..	3	..
Nævus	17	20	25	34	17	1	..	..	..	..
Hare-lip	22	14	12	10	14	..	..	1	..	..
Hydrocephalus	7	6	8	9	11	5	1	1	4	9
Spina bifida	6	10	11	10	12	2	5	4	2	8
Congenital dislocation of hip	42	36	23	33	56	..	..	1	..	..
Congenital talipes	52	49	46	46	15	..	..	..	1	..
Congenital heart-disease	11	11	11	17	21	3	9	7	12	13
Other malformations	60	73	82	92	93	18	12	16	13	20
Totals	255	253	266	292	270	32	30	30	35	50

EARLY INFANCY.

Forty-one deaths in public hospitals during 1928 are recorded as having been due to diseases of early infancy. The chief item in this class is congenital debility, inanition, &c. (19 deaths). The total discharges and deaths in 1928 amounted to only 148; thus the deaths represented 27.70 per cent. of the total cases treated. The rate in this group is always high, having been 21.43. in 1927, 30.41 in 1926, 37.50 in 1925, and 31.75 in 1924.

OLD AGE.

Hospital returns show a total of 66 male deaths and 29 female deaths from old age during 1928. These totals include the returns of three hospitals which are also old people's homes. The numbers for the five years 1924–28 are as follows:—

Year.	Total Cases.		Deaths.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.
1924	242	105	80	48
1925	246	98	87	27
1926	227	108	81	37
1927	228	77	80	27
1928	200	77	66	29

EXTERNAL CAUSES.

The principal headings included in this class in hospital cases are fractures, dislocations, and injuries to the various parts of the body. In the classification of deaths the cause of death is of primary importance, and in cases of deaths resulting from fractures and other injuries the actual cause is usually obtained, and the death classified accordingly. The Medical Superintendents are, however, concerned not with causes, but with the nature of injuries, and the returns in the great majority of cases are classed under the headings “fractures” and “injuries,” which in death statistics would be regarded as somewhat indefinite, but which in morbidity statistics are invaluable on account of the fact that the part of the body affected is given in most of the cases. Similarly, no distinction is usually made between cases of self-inflicted, homicidal, and accidental injuries.

The following table shows as far as possible the classification of the various external causes dealt with during the five years 1924–28:—

—	Total Cases.					Deaths.
—	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Poisoning	77	84	114	116	139	5	7	10	10	24
Immersion in water	5	5	12	11	4	..	..	..	..	..
Burns and scalds	338	316	381	436	424	27	24	25	38	33
Suffocation and gas poisoning	10	4	16	13	11	..	2	4	1	1
Traumatism by firearms	95	108	148	145	125	9	10	10	9	10
Injuries by animals	17	11	9	11	12	1	1	..	..	..
Starvation	1	4	..	..	4	..	..	..	..	..
Frostbite, excessive cold	3	5	7	6	2	..	..	..	..	..
Effects of heat	5	13	5	8	12	..	1	..	..	..
Electric shock	3	8	13	2	6	..	..	..	..	..
Fractures, dislocations, &c.	2,700	3,019	3,322	3,477	3,661	119	100	182	161	122
Miscellaneous injuries	3,679	4,052	4,191	4,333	4,421	61	76	67	65	83
Totals	6,933	7,659	8,218	8,558	8,821	222	221	298	284	273

In a few instances cases included in the fractures and miscellaneous injuries in the above table could have been definitely allocated to their appropriate headings of the classification, but on account of such cases obviously representing only a small proportion of the total for the respective headings it has been considered advisable to omit these headings altogether and to include the cases in the two general headings.

The location of the 4,421 miscellaneous injuries, as well as of the 3,661 fractures, dislocations, &c., for 1928 is shown in the following table:—

Region.	Fractures, Dislocations, &c.	Miscellaneous Injuries.
Head	256	1,078
Face	150	467
Neck	2	66
Back	76	210
Thorax and contents	172	159
Abdomen and contents	..	164
External genital organs	..	48
Upper limbs	1,300	964
Lower limbs	1,685	1,063
Undefined	20	202
Totals	3,661	4,421

OPERATIONS.

Detailed statistics of operations in connection with disease and condition on discharge have been compiled since 1925. A distinction is now made between principal operations for the diseases specified and accessory or multiple operations or operations for associated diseases or complications.

Operations in 1928 were returned in no fewer than 30,479 of the 75,262 cases dealt with during the year, as compared with 28,476 cases operated on out of a total of 67,967 in 1927. Of the 3,932 patients who died in hospital during 1928, 812 were shown to have been operated upon. A table showing the figures for the last four years follows:—

Year.	Total Patients discharged or dying.	Total Patients operated upon.		Deaths of Patients after Operation.
Year.	Total Patients discharged or dying.	Number.	Percentage of Total Patients discharged or dying.	Number.	Percentage of Total Patients operated upon.
1925	57,387	24,896	43.38	811	3.25
1926	64,037	26,692	41.68	852	3.19
1927	67,967	28,476	41.90	839	2.91
1928	75,262	30,479	40.50	812	2.66

Of the 812 persons who died after having been operated upon in 1928, 149 had been operated on for cancer, 69 for appendicitis, 48 for intestinal obstruction, 33 for enlargement of the prostate, and 31 for external injuries. Computing these figures as a percentage of the number of patients operated upon for the disease specified, it is found that very high ratios exist for intestinal obstruction (38 per cent.), external injuries (16 per cent.), and cancer (16 per cent.). Other diseases having a high percentage of deaths after operation were embolism and thrombosis (67 per cent.), diabetes (20 per cent.), peritonitis (19 per cent.), enlarged prostate (19 per cent.), diphtheria (17 per cent.), ulcer of the stomach and duodenum (17 per cent.), pneumonia (14 per cent.), puerperal septicaemia (12 per cent.), and erysipelas (11 per cent.).

The great bulk of the operations returned are of a simple or more or less indefinite nature, the total for 1928 including, for instance, 3,049 cases of incisions of abscesses, &c., 1,254 of excisions of growths or affected parts, and 1,770 of dilatation and curettement. Suturing, repair, &c., of cuts, lacerations, &c., accounted for 1,488 oases, excluding 336 cases of perineorrhaphy, trachelorrhaphy, and other sutures of the female genital organs. There were 1,163 cases of reduction of fractures, 957 of extractions of teeth, 293 of removal of foreign body, 347 of application of radium or diathermy, 159 of freeing of adhesions, 230 of paracentesis (including 198 of ear-drum), 127 of avulsion of nail, 124 of manipulation of joints, 32 of cauterization, and 97 of resection of rib. In 26 cases catheterization or other passing sounds were returned; in 33 cases the operation was given as removal of placenta, in 39 cases as lumbar puncture, and in 26 as arthrodesis. Cases of examination by X-ray or through natural vents are not included, nor are injections of fluids or other suchlike treatments.

Among the more definite operations, the following were the most important numerically:—

Operation.	Number of Times performed.
Operation.	As Principal Operation.	As Multiple or Accessory Operation.	Total.
Tonsillectomy	6,003	224	6,227
Adenoidectomy	117	4,958	5,075
Appendicectomy	3,676	349	4,025
Herniotomy	1,121	49	1,170
Amputation of limb, breast, cervix, &c.	551	20	571
Circumcision	501	56	557
Ventrosuspension	383	132	515
Thyroidectomy	476	7	483
Cholecystectomy	407	47	454
Laparotomy (exploratory)	345	39	384
Sub-mucous resection	296	36	332
Hysterectomy	266	28	294
Salpingectomy	266	22	288
Antrotomy	213	13	226
Hæmorrhoidectomy	199	24	223
Mastoidotomy	183	36	219
Adenectomy	169	23	192
Prostatectomy	135	12	147
Gastro-enterostomy	142	5	147
Trachelorrhaphy	96	35	131
Thoracotomy	115	7	122
Turbinectomy	59	54	113
Perineorrhaphy	51	52	103
Colporrhaphy	70	32	102
Sequestrectomy	88	2	90
Enucleation of eye	88	2	90
Radical cure for hydrocele	83	5	88
Oophorectomy	66	21	87
Phlebectomy	81	6	87

Chapter 7. SECTION VII.—PUBLIC HEALTH, HOSPITALS, ETC.

Table of Contents

SUBSECTION A.—PUBLIC HEALTH.

PUBLIC HEALTH ADMINISTRATION.

NOTIFIABLE DISEASES.

SOCIAL HYGIENE REGULATIONS.

PULMONARY TUBERCULOSIS INVESTIGATION.

DIPLOMAS IN PUBLIC HEALTH.

REGISTRATION OF MEDICAL PRACTITIONERS.

MEDICAL REGISTER.—ADDITIONS AND REMOVALS.

REGISTRATION OF DENTISTS.

DENTISTS REGISTER.—ADDITIONS AND REMOVALS.

REGISTRATION OF NURSES, MIDWIVES, AND MATERNITY NURSES.

REGISTRATION OF OPTICIANS.

REGISTRATION OF MASSEURS.

REGISTRATION OF PLUMBERS.

SALE OF FOOD AND DRUGS.

MEDICAL INSPECTION OF SCHOOLS.

NUTRITION CLASSES AND HEALTH CAMPS.

GOITRE-PREVENTION.

THE CONTROL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASE.

DENTAL TREATMENT OF SCHOOL-CHILDREN.

SUBSECTION B.—HOSPITALS AND CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS.

INTRODUCTORY.

HOSPITAL BOARDS.

PROVISION OF FINANCE.

RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS.

REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE.

REVENUE.

EXPENDITURE.

HOSPITAL MAINTENANCE EXPENDITURE.

CHARITABLE-AID EXPENDITURE.

COST TO GOVERNMENT AND LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

TRIENNIAL AVERAGE MAINTENANCE REQUIREMENTS OF HOSPITAL BOARDS.

PATIENTS' PAYMENTS.

FEES COLLECTED FROM PATIENTS IN HOSPITAL BOARDS' HOSPITALS.

STATE MATERNITY HOSPITALS.

ST. HELENS HOSPITALS, 1928.

ST. HELENS HOSPITALS, 1919–20 TO 1928.

PUBLIC MATERNITY HOSPITALS.

DISTRICT MIDWIVES AND MATERNITY NURSES.

ANTE-NATAL SERVICES.

BENEVOLENT AND ORPHAN ASYLUMS.

ADMISSIONS, DISCHARGES, ETC., 1928.

ORPHAN ASYLUMS—AGE, LEGITIMACY, AND ORPHANHOOD OF INMATES AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

SUBSECTION C.—MENTAL HOSPITALS.

PATIENTS REMAINING, 1924–28.

ADMISSIONS.

FIRST ADMISSIONS.

FIRST ADMISSIONS, 1924–28.

VOLUNTARY INMATES.

AGES OF INMATES.

AGES OF INMATES, 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

DISCHARGES AND DEATHS.

DEATHS IN MENTAL HOSPITALS, 1928.

PRIVATE MENTAL HOSPITAL.

MAORIS IN MENTAL HOSPITALS.

MENTAL HOSPITALS.—MAORIS ADMITTED AND REMAINING, 1924–28.

ACCOMMODATION.

EXPENDITURE, ETC.

SUBSECTION A.—PUBLIC HEALTH.

PUBLIC HEALTH ADMINISTRATION.

THE law relating to public health in New Zealand is contained in the Health Act, 1920, which repealed the consolidated Public Health Act, 1908, and its amendments. A full account of the Act was given in the 1927 issue of the Year-book.

For the administration of the Act there is established a Department of Health, with a Director-General of Health as chief administrative officer. The Department comprises Divisions of Public Hygiene. Hospitals, Nursing, School Hygiene, Child Welfare, and Maori Hygiene, each of which is under the supervision of a Director.

For purposes of local administration the country is divided into health districts, each of which is under the charge of a Medical Officer of Health, who must be a medical practitioner with special qualifications in public health. Those officers are entrusted with wide powers, and act as advisers of the local governing bodies in matters affecting the public health.

In addition to being charged with the administration of the Health Act, the Department controls the registration of medical practitioners, nurses, midwives and maternity nurses, opticians, masseurs, and plumbers. It supervises the sale of food and drugs, and protects the public against exploitation by fraud in connection with alleged remedies. The Department also administers the law covering the control of cemeteries and crematoria.

The medical and dental inspection and treatment of school-children are carried out by special divisions of the Department.

NOTIFIABLE DISEASES.

The system of notification of certain diseases has been in force in New Zealand for many years, and the list of notifiable diseases has undergone several alterations. The list at present is as follows:—

Notifiable infectious diseases mentioned in Part I of First Schedule of Health Act, 1920:—
- Anthrax.
- Cerebro-spinal fever (cerebro-spinal meningitis).
- Cholera.
- Dengue.
- Diphtheria.
- Erysipelas.
- Enteric fever (typhoid fever, paratyphoid fever).
- Leprosy.
- Plague (bubonic or pneumonic).
- Puerperal fever (puerperal septicæemia and puerperal sapræmia).
- Scarlet fever (scarlatina).
- Smallpox (variola, including varioloid, alastrim, amaas, Cuban itch, and Philippine itch).
- Typhus. Yellow fever.
Notifiable infectious diseases declared by Gazette notice:—
- Dysentery (amoebic and bacillary).
- Encephalitis lethargica.
- Fulminant influenza.
- Pneumonic influenza.
- Septicæmic influenza.
- Ophthalmia neonatorum.
- Acute primary pneumonia.
- Acute poliomyelitis (infantile paralysis).
- Trachoma (granular conjunctivitis, granular ophthalmia, granular eyelids).
- Tuberculosis (pulmonary).
- Septicæmia consequent on abortion or miscarriage.
- Syphilis.^*
- Gonorrhœa.^*
- Soft chancre.^*
* In certain circumstances. (See letterpress post.)
Notifiable diseases, other than infectious, mentioned in Second Schedule:—
- Actinomycosis.
- Ankylostomiasis (hookworm disease).
- Bilharziosis (endemic hæmaturia, Egyptian hæmaturia).
- Beriberi.
- Hydatids.
- Food poisoning (botulismus, ptomaine poisoning).
- Chronic lead poisoning.
- Phosphorus poisoning.
- Tetanus.
Notifiable disease, other than infectious, declared by Gazette notice:—
- Eclampsia.

SOCIAL HYGIENE REGULATIONS.

By Gazette notice dated the 29th November, 1924, syphilis, gonorrhœa, and soft chancre were declared to be infectious diseases within the meaning of the Health Act, 1920. On the 9th July, 1925, regulations were made under the Health Act, 1920, and the Social Hygiene Act, 1917, providing for the compulsory notification of these diseases in certain circumstances, and for the treatment of those affected by venereal disease in a communicable form.

Under these regulations it is incumbent upon a medical practitioner, or a medical officer of a hospital, who has been treating any person suffering from venereal disease in a communicable form to notify the Director-General of Health if such person fails for more than two weeks (after the date fixed in that behalf by the medical practitioner or medical officer) to attend for treatment, unless he is known in the meantime to have placed himself under treatment by some other qualified person.

If the Director-General of Health has reason to believe (either from a notification as provided for above, or otherwise) that any person is suffering from venereal disease in a communicable form, he may require such person to submit himself for examination to some medical practitioner, and to supply a medical certificate as to the state of his health in relation to venereal disease. If a medical certificate is not supplied within the time specified, or if the certificate does not definitely disclose whether or not the person to whom it relates is suffering from venereal disease in a communicable form, the Director-General of Health may authorize two medical practitioners to examine such person.

In cases where a medical certificate is not obtainable, or where the certificate shows the person to be suffering from venereal disease in a communicable form, the Director-General of Health may, if he thinks such a course necessary or expedient in the public interest, authorize a Medical Officer of Health to make an order, under section 84 of the Health Act, 1920, for the removal of such person to a hospital or other place where he may be effectively isolated. A detention order holds good for six weeks only, though it may be renewed from time to time until the person detained is no longer suffering from the disease in a communicable form. On the other hand, on application being made to a Magistrate, an order for examination by two medical practitioners (to be named in the order) is made, and if their report shows that the person is free from venereal disease in a communicable form, the Magistrate then makes an order for his release.

Where treatment is not conveniently obtainable at a public hospital or public clinic, the Director-General of Health may authorize a registered medical practitioner to administer free treatment if the patient is unable to pay. In such cases fees for service are paid by the State according to a scale laid down.

It is an offence for any person, while suffering from venereal disease in a communicable form, to engage in any employment, or to act in any capacity, in or about any factory, shop, hotel, restaurant, house, or other place, if by reason thereof any food intended for consumption by any other person is exposed to infection from venereal disease or is likely to be so affected. If any person suffering from the disease knowingly infects, or does or suffers any act likely to infect, any other person, he is liable to imprisonment for twelve months, together with a fine of £100.

It is the duty of every medical practitioner who is consulted by any person, sixteen years of age or over, suffering from venereal disease in a communicable form, to give such person a notice setting forth the requirements for treatment and for not infecting others, and expressly warning him or her against marrying until medically certified as cured.

Every precaution is taken for the maintenance of secrecy and the avoidance of publicity in the carrying-out of the regulations. Every person concerned in the administration of the regulations is liable to a penalty of £50 if he divulges any information which comes to his knowledge in respect of any person suffering, or suspected to be suffering, from venereal disease.

PULMONARY TUBERCULOSIS INVESTIGATION.

Early in 1928 a committee of three medical practitioners was appointed by the Minister of Health to inquire into the question of the prevention and treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis in New Zealand. The findings of the committee are well indicated by the concluding paragraph of its report, which reads as follows:—

Investigation has satisfied the committee that pulmonary tuberculosis in this country does not constitute a grave national menace. Fewer people die from all forms of tuberculosis than are killed by violence. As far as can be ascertained the prevalence of pulmonary tuberculosis in this country is less than in any other country. Substantial progress has been made in adopting measures for its control and treatment; but pulmonary tuberculosis is an insidious and protracted infective disease which will gain ground and become a menace unless constantly repressed. The most important contribution that can be made to the successful issue of the campaign is co-ordination of the measures and of the efforts now employed in fighting the disease.

The fallowing recommendations were made by the committee in furnishing its report:—

That a division for tuberculosis be established in the Health Department, and that a Director of this division be appointed.
That Hospital Boards should be encouraged to establish tuberculosis dispensaries.
That the routine use of tuberculin in sanatoria be discouraged.
That the Medical Superintendents of sanatoria be urged to admit all cases that would be likely to benefit.
That the stay of minimal cases should not, as now, be unduly prolonged.
That the accommodation at Otaki Sanatorium be increased.
That extra accommodation be provided for chronic cases in the special hospitals at Dunedin, Wellington, Christchurch, and Auckland.
That sufficient accommodation for tuberculous cases be reserved at the general hospitals in Dunedin, Wellington, Christchurch, and Auckland, for the benefit of patients and to afford medical practitioners and medical students opportunities for studying the disease.
That the medical profession be encouraged to co-operate with local authorities, the Department of Health, and voluntary-aid associations in their efforts to control the disease.
That the Otago Hospital Board be encouraged to join with the associated Boards to form one association.
That the Hospital Boards in the South Island north of Ashburton be encouraged to form an association, with a committee representative of each district.
That specially trained nurses be employed for inspection.
That the establishment of voluntary-aid committees be encouraged.

DIPLOMAS IN PUBLIC HEALTH.

In addition to the powers of conferring degrees of Bachelor and Master of Surgery and Bachelor and Doctor of Medicine, the Senate of the New Zealand University has power to grant diplomas in public health, and to make regulations for the examination of candidates for such diplomas. The examination for the diploma in public health is held in two parts, which may be taken separately or at, the same time.

REGISTRATION OF MEDICAL PRACTITIONERS.

Under the Medical Practitioners Act, 1914, as amended by the Medical Practitioners Amendment Act, 1924, is constituted the Medical Council of New Zealand, consisting of the Director-General of Health and six other registered medical practitioners, who are appointed to the Council by the Governor-General, the term of appointment being a three-yearly one. One of the six members is appointed on the recommendation of the New Zealand Branch of the British Medical Association.

The Council deals with all applications for registration under the Act, which enacts that every person shall be entitled to registration who satisfies the Council that he is a graduate in medicine and surgery of the University of New Zealand; or registered on the register kept in accordance with the provisions of the Acts regulating the registration of medical practitioners in the United Kingdom, or eligible for registration on such last-mentioned register; or the holder of a foreign diploma approved by the Council, and granted by any university or institution other than the University of New Zealand or a university or institution situated in the United Kingdom, after a course of not less than five years' study of the subjects pertaining to a medical and surgical degree or license. The Council may, however, refuse to approve any diploma (even in the case of persons registered or eligible for registration in the United Kingdom) unless it appears that New Zealand graduates are, without further examination,, entitled to registration in the country granting the diploma. It may also require the holder of a foreign diploma to pass an examination in medicine and surgery to be prescribed and conducted by the Senate of the New Zealand University.

No person is entitled to be registered if he has been at any time convicted of an offence punishable by imprisonment with hard labour for a term of two years or upwards, or is otherwise not of good fame or character. Applicants who are refused registration have the right of appeal to the Supreme Court.

Applications for registration are received in the first place by the Medical Officers of Health at Auckland, Christchurch, and Dunedin, and the Secretary of the Medical Council at Wellington. One month's notice of intended application is required, such notice to be advertised once in the New Zealand Gazette and also in a newspaper circulating in the district in which the applicant intends to practise. The fee for registration is £6, payable on deposit of evidence of qualification.

The Medical Council is vested with disciplinary powers, including the suspension of a medical practitioner from practice. Right of appeal to the Supreme Court is provided. The Supreme Court, on the motion of the Medical Council, may order the removal of a name from the register in cases where a medical practitioner is guilty of grave misconduct or is convicted of an indictable offence punishable by imprisonment with hard labour for a term of two years or upwards.

A table is appended showing the additions to and removals from the Medical Register during the last five years, with the numbers on the register on the 1st January and 31st December of each year.

MEDICAL REGISTER.—ADDITIONS AND REMOVALS.

—	1924.	1925	1926.	1927.	1928.
Number on register on 1st January	1,138	1,204	1,211	1,283	1,320
Number added during year by registration—
With New Zealand qualifications	67	59	69	38	30
With other qualifications	17	19	25	16	15
Number added during year by restoration	1	..	..	..	..
Number removed during year on account of death, &c.	19	71	22	17	8
Number on register on 31st December	1,204	1,211	1,283	1,320	1,357

REGISTRATION OF DENTISTS.

Every adult person is entitled to be registered as a dentist in New Zealand who is the holder of a degree in dental surgery of the University of New Zealand, or a certificate of proficiency in dentistry obtained from the Senate of the University, or is the holder of a degree or diploma in dental surgery approved by the Senate and conferred by a University or dental college in the United Kingdom, or is the holder of a degree in dentistry granted in a British possession or a foreign country and recognized by the Senate. Evidence of good character is required in every case.

Application for registration is made to the Registrar-General, Wellington, the fee for registration being £1.

A table is appended showing the additions to and removals from the Dentists Register during the last five years, with the numbers on the register on the 1st January and 31st December of each year.

DENTISTS REGISTER.—ADDITIONS AND REMOVALS.

—	1924.	1926.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Number on register on 1st January	765	802	820	836	854
Number added during year by registration	47	25	22	28	36
Number removed during year on evidence of death	10	7	6	10	9
Number on register on 31st December	802	820	836	854	881

REGISTRATION OF NURSES, MIDWIVES, AND MATERNITY NURSES.

The Nurses and Midwives Registration Act, 1925, provides for a Nurses and Midwives Registration Board, consisting of the Director-General of Health or his deputy, the Director of the Division of Nursing (who is a Registrar of the Board), a registered medical practitioner, a registered nurse, and a registered midwife, the last two to be appointed by the New Zealand Trained Nurses' Association or a similar body.

Every person who has attained the age of twenty-two years and is certified as having undergone not less than three years' training in a general hospital “approved” by the Board as a training-school under the Act, and who has passed the prescribed hospital and State examination, is entitled to registration. There are now 5,167 nurses on the register.

The Act also provides for the registration of midwives and maternity nurses.

In the case of general-trained nurses who desire to become midwives there are two courses open, as follows:—

To enter a midwifery training-school for a straight-out course of eight months, during which practical work as set out by the Nurses and Midwives Registration Board must be undertaken. At the end of this term the candidate is eligible to sit for the State Midwifery Examination.
To enter a training-school for maternity nurses and undergo a six months' course of training as a maternity nurse, carrying out the practical work as set out by the Board, and attending the stipulated course of lectures, and then sitting for the maternity nurses' examination; after which the candidate must enter a training-school for midwives and undergo a further four months' course of training, and then sit for the State Midwifery Examination.

A general-trained nurse desiring to qualify as a maternity nurse undertakes, of course, the first part only of the second course outlined above.

Women other than general nurses entering for training as maternity nurses have to undergo twelve months' training, during which time they must carry out the practical work set out by the Board. At the conclusion of this period, if they successfully negotiate the State Maternity Nurses' Examination and desire to qualify as midwives, they must do a further period of twelve months in practice (either privately or in an institution) as a maternity nurse, and then enter a training-school for midwives on the same footing as outlined above for a general nurse who has qualified as a maternity nurse.

The number of registered midwives on the 31st March, 1929, was 2,655, and the number of registered maternity nurses 963.

REGISTRATION OF OPTICIANS.

The Opticians Act, 1928, provides for the constitution of an Opticians Hoard, consisting of the Director-General of Health (the Registrar), two persons engaged in practice as opticians in New Zealand, and a registered medical practitioner with special knowledge of diseases of the eye. The members of the Board other than the Registrar are appointed to the Board by the Governor-General for a period of three years.

The Board deals with all applications for registration under the Act. On payment of the prescribed fee (£5), every person is entitled to registration as an optician who satisfies the Board that—

(a) He has been engaged, whether exclusively or not, and whether on his own account or otherwise, in practice as an optician in New Zealand for not less than four years immediately preceding the commencement of the Act; or
(b) He has received satisfactory training qualifying him to practise as an optician, and is the holder of a certificate of qualification recognized by the Board pursuant to regulations to that behalf as sufficient for the purpose of the Act; or
(c) He has passed an examination under the Act, both theoretical and practical, in methods of estimating errors of refraction of the human eye and in prescribing and adapting lenses to correct such errors, after a course of not less than three years' training in New Zealand as prescribed by regulations.

The object of the Act is to ensure that the optician is so trained that he can be permitted to test defects in vision, and to prescribe remedial lenses for such defects. This training includes a sufficient knowledge of diseases of the eye to -enable him to know when the case is one which must be referred to an oculist.

The Board is vested with disciplinary powers. Right of appeal against the decision of the Board is provided.

Fifty-nine names have been entered upon the Register of Opticians to date. Registered opticians are required to have their names published annually in the New Zealand Gazette, a fee of one guinea being payable.

REGISTRATION OF MASSEURS.

Under the Masseurs Registration Act, 1920, and the Masseurs Registration Amendment Act, 1924, there is constituted the Masseurs Registration Board of New Zealand, consisting of the Director-General of Health, a registered medical practitioner, and two persons engaged in the practice of massage in New Zealand, who are appointed to the Board by the Governor-General, the term of appointment being a three-yearly one.

The Board deals with all applications for registration under the Act, under which every person is entitled to registration who holds the qualifications required by the Act and regulations thereunder, and satisfies the Board that he or she is a person of good reputation and character. It is necessary for applicants to be in possession of certificates for the three branches of massage:—

Massage.
Medical electricity.
Remedial exercises and other branches of physiotherapy.

The certificates accepted are set forth by regulation, and are as follows:—

Complete certificate of the Chartered Society of Massage and Medical Gymnastics (England).
Complete certificate of the Incorporated Society of Trained Masseurs (England).
Australian Massage Association certificate.
Swedish Government certificate.
New Zealand Defence Department certificate in massage and medical electricity (with further course at the Massage Training-school and subsequent passing of examination in remedial exercises).
New Zealand State certificate granted after training at massage training-school and passing of subsequent State examination.

The fee for registration is £1. The Board is vested with disciplinary powers, including the removal of a name from the register on the ground of the person concerned having been convicted for an offence punishable by imprisonment or having been guilty of such improper conduct as renders him, in the opinion of the Board, unfit to be registered under the Act. Right of appeal is provided.

REGISTRATION OF PLUMBERS.

The Plumbers Board of New Zealand, constituted under the Plumbers Registration Act, 1912, consists of five members—viz., the Director-General of Health or his deputy (Chairman); the Director of Education; a city or borough engineer nominated by the cities and boroughs which have a population of over 5,000 inhabitants, and appointed by the Governor-General; a master plumber and a journeyman plumber elected by their respective associations.

The functions of the Board are to decide what persons may be registered under the Act, and in what districts sanitary plumbing may be performed only by registered plumbers. It also decides the scope of the examinations to be held as a part of the process of securing registration.

The main principle underlying the Act is that of securing trained and certificated sanitary plumbers, and that such registered plumbers shall not be required to pay any license fee or pass any examination under any local authorities controlling sanitary-plumbing works.

At the examination held under the Act in June and October, 1928, 456 candidates presented themselves, the results being as follows: Eighty-one qualified in the theoretical part, 110 in the practical part, and 85 qualified or completed in both parts of the examination and were duly granted registration. The total of names entered in the register to date is 1,951.

SALE OF FOOD AND DRUGS.

In order to make better provision for the sale of food and drugs in a pure state, the Sale of Food and Drugs Act was passed by the Legislature, and came into force on the 1st January, 1908. The Act is administered by the Health Department, and provides for the analysis, by public analysts, of any article of food or drink, or of any drug, which may be sold, offered for sale, or exposed for sale, and for the inspection of any place where there is any food or drug intended for sale. If any such article be proved to be unfit for human consumption, or likely to cause injury to health if consumed, heavy penalties may be inflicted on the person or persons responsible. Stringent measures are provided for the prevention of adulteration of food, drink, or drugs, and for the inspection of places where such things are manufactured or packed. The selling of light-weight bread is an offence under the Act, as is also the taking back of bread after it has been in the possession of the purchaser for more than an hour.

Considerable progress has been made in following out the purposes of the Act, all the commonly used foodstuffs being standardized, and the labelling of packages being controlled by regulations, which are revised and added to as the necessity arises. However, it was found that the efforts made to ensure-pure quality and truthful labelling as a guide to purchasers were being negatived to a considerable extent by the reputation given to or assumed for an article as a result of advertising. Suggestive references to fruit and orchards and the like would have considerable effect, for instance, in creating a desire for a certain beverage, but would make no reference to the fact that, judged by regulation standards, the beverage may require to be labelled “artificial.” Coffee and chicory mixtures have been described as “Coffee,” with free use of superlatives to indicate a pure and high-class article.

This was met by an amendment of the Act in 1924, which marks a noteworthy advance in legislation of this kind, and has already been used to good effect in controlling all kinds of publicity concerning any food or drug whereby a purchaser is likely to be deceived in regard to the properties of such food or drug, whether it is dealt with by a regulation or not.

The definition of “drug” includes medicines used externally or internally by man, anaesthetics, soaps, ointments, disinfectants, and tobacco.

Any person may, on payment of the prescribed fee, together with the cost of the sample, require any authorized officer to purchase a sample of any food or drug and to submit it for analysis.

Statistics compiled by the Department of Health show that during the year 1928 6,749 samples of milk were examined, resulting in 246 warnings and 111 prosecutions. The figures for the previous year were 6,399, 227, and 117 respectively. Other foodstuffs sampled—1927 figures in brackets—numbered 1,226 (1,004); warnings being 153 (115), and prosecutions 68 (82). Convictions during the year were as follows: Adulterated milk 79, fines totalling £415; butter 11, fines £52; whisky 13, fines £492; other offences 50, fines £959.

The weighing of bread, butter, and other foodstuffs is now attended to by the Department of Labour in conjunction with its duties under the Weights and Measures Act.

QUACKERY PREVENTION.

Section 2 of the Quackery Prevention Act, 1908, enacts that every person commits an offence who publishes or causes to be published any statement which is intended by the defendant or any other person to promote the sale of my article as a medicine, preparation, or appliance for the prevention, alleviation, or cure of any human ailment or physical defect, and which is false in any material particular relating to the ingredients, composition, structure, nature, or operation of that article, or to the effects which have followed or may follow the use thereof.

The penalty inflicted is a fine not exceeding £100 in the case of a first conviction, and not exceeding £200 for every subsequent conviction. The object of the Act is to prevent the exploitation of the public by means of medicines or treatment alleged to cure all and sundry complaints and ailments.

DANGEROUS DRUGS.

In order to carry out New Zealand's obligations under the Geneva Convention, League of Nations, the Dangerous Drugs Act, 1927, was enacted. The dealing in and use of prepared opium is prohibited, and the production, manufacture, sale, and distribution of other dangerous drugs are subject to a license granted by the Director-General of Health or some other lawful authority. Provisions are made to prevent illicit traffic in drugs of a habit-forming nature. Suitable regulations are now in force to give effect to the provisions of the Act, and follow lines similar to the regulations in England and Australia.

PHARMACY.

The Pharmaceutical Society of New Zealand, constituted by the Pharmacy Act, 1908, consists of 709 members, whose names were published in the Gazette of 24th January, 1929. These are known as “registered chemists,” and no chemist-shop may be opened in the Dominion except under the charge of one of these.

The society is governed by the Pharmacy Board, set up by Act, consisting of ten members elected by members of the society; four representing Wellington, Hawke's Bay, Nelson, and Marlborough, two representing Auckland and Taranaki, two Canterbury and Westland, two Otago and Southland. The Board meets monthly at Wellington. Once annually a conference of all members meets for discussion of business, in different towns, as may be decided upon. The main function of the Pharmacy Board is to administer the Pharmacy Act and its amendments in the interests of the public and of the members of the society; also to watch such other legal provisions generally as may have a bearing upon pharmacy.

The society has reciprocity agreements with the societies of Great Britain and all the Australian States: that is to say, a member registered after passing the full examination of a reciprocating country can be registered in any other on payment of the fees.

The New Zealand society is a member of the International Federation of Pharmacy, a world-wide organization for dealing with matters of general interest, having its headquarters at The Hague. There are “divisions” of the society in all centres, consisting of groups of members having their own officers, and holding regular meetings for the transaction of local affairs.

The Pharmacy Board holds examinations twice annually for those who wish to obtain the necessary qualifications entitling them to registration, who also have to serve four years' apprenticeship. Approximately forty new members, on the average, are admitted to the register annually, about six of whom are admitted on the strength of British or Australian certificates. The examinations consist of—(a) The Preliminary, being Matriculation of the New Zealand University or of any other university recognized by the Board, or such other examination as may be regarded as of equal standard; (b) examinations set by University professors in botany and chemistry—three papers and practical work; (c) examinations set by examiners appointed by the Board in material medical and pharmacy—two papers and practical work. On the average, some 370 candidates sit for these examinations annually.

The Board is in constant communication with the British and Australian societies, and as far as possible keeps its standard of examination on a level with theirs: but the laws of each State or country vary to some extent, and this has its influence on the examinations.

The Board has a Benevolent Fund, which is used for the relief of members who may be in needy circumstances, or of their relatives who may be unprovided for.

In addition to the statutory organization set up by the Pharmacy Act, members of the Pharmaceutical Society have another organization known as the Chemists' Defence Association (Limited), which provides insurance for its members, deals with matters of general interest of a business nature not covered by the Act, and governs ethical questions as between pharmacists and medical men and the public generally. It may be said that the profession of pharmacy in New Zealand is at least on as high a level and as well administered as in any other part of the British Empire.

CEMETERIES.

By the Cemeteries Amendment Act of 1926 the administration of cemeteries is placed under the control of the Minister of Health. The Department of Health, with its Inspectors always in the field, is able to give the various matters closer attention than had been possible previously. Steps are being taken to ensure proper methods of plotting and keeping records, the importance of which has not been sufficiently recognized in the more sparsely populated areas, but the necessity for which will-become more apparent as time goes on.

Regulations are in force to facilitate the procedure in cremations, providing also for special methods as carried out according to the rites of any religious denomination elsewhere than in a crematorium. Due precautions are provided for in all cases to ensure against any untoward development in connection with the cremation of any body.

MEDICAL INSPECTION OF SCHOOLS.

School medical work in New Zealand is carried out by the Division of School Hygiene, which is responsible for the supervision of all measures for safeguarding the health of school-children, and for ensuring a satisfactory environment at school.

The School Medical Service in New Zealand was placed on a definite basis in 1912, when three full-time School Medical Officers were appointed. The School Medical Officers were, at first, officers of the Education Department, but in 1921 the service was transferred to the Health Department. There is now a permanent staff consisting of a Director, twelve School Medical Officers, and thirty-one school nurses.

The Health Act, 1920, section 139, gives the necessary authority for the medical examination of children attending the primary schools, but the duties and powers of the School Medical Officers are defined in the Education Act, 1914, section 134.

The School Medical Service aims at securing for each child three complete physical examinations during his school-life, but special examinations are carried out when parents, teachers, or the School Medical Officers consider them necessary. Approximately 110,000 children were given complete or partial examination during 1928. Children found to be suffering from defect are kept under observation until the necessary treatment is obtained. It is recognized that medical treatment must be available for every child in need of it, and that adequate provision must be made for the ill-nourished and neglected. Mentally backward and feeble-minded children are given special consideration, arrangements being made for their entrance to special classes, special schools, or other institutions as circumstances indicate.

The School Medical Service works in close co-operation with the Child Welfare Branch of the Education Department, under the supervision of which are all measures for the protection of destitute and neglected children, also the regulations governing juvenile employment. It also co-operates with the officers of the Education Department in the supervision of school-buildings and sanitation. Though all newer schools make excellent provision for ventilation, there has been in recent years a strong movement in favour of open-air schools, and many of the recently erected buildings are of that type.

School Medical Officers are responsible for the medical examination of all candidates for entrance into the teaching profession.

The work of the service is also being extended to include the examination of the pre-school child.

The results of examinations have amply demonstrated the necessity for the work of inspection. Though it has been clearly shown that the average of defect found in New Zealand children is less than in countries of older civilization, still there is a great deal to be achieved, and the work of the service is essentially preventive and educational. This latter aspect is particularly important, as the object is to instruct the pupil while at his most impressionable age as to the essential principles of correct living. Many thousands of pamphlets giving advice in simple language on health topics are distributed annually, and many popular lectures on health matters are given by the School Medical Officers in various districts to teachers, parents, and children.

If defects are found, the practice of the School Medical Officer is to notify the parents of their existence, the choice of medical attendant being left entirely to the parents. If the parents are unable for financial reasons, or are too apathetic, to obtain the necessary advice and treatment, it is the duty of the School Medical Service to see that it is carried out. This is done through the medium of the school nurse, who acts as a link between the school and the home, the treatment being given at the nearest hospital. A great number of operations for minor defects are carried out at the public hospitals throughout New Zealand. Where the parent, either from home ties or physical disability, is unable to take the child to the hospital for necessary treatment, the school nurse is available for undertaking this duty. In cities the percentage of treatment obtained is from 80 to 90 per cent. of the number recommended for it; but in the country, where facilities are fewer, it is much less. It is the aim of the service to secure the interest and co-operation of the parents, as it is realized that only in this way can the work be made effective. In pursuit of this aim, parents are invited to be present at the examination of their children.

NUTRITION CLASSES AND HEALTH CAMPS.

For the benefit of children suffering from subnormal nutrition, special classes have been established in several schools. The daily regime for children in these classes is supervised, special attention being given to the character of the food, the amount of rest taken, the time spent out of doors, &c. Good results have been obtained.

A successful feature of the work for the benefit of delicate and undernourished children has been the holding of annual health camps. The great improvement in physical and mental vitality of the children attending such camps affords evidence of their value.

GOITRE-PREVENTION.

It was realized some years ago that goitre was unduly prevalent in some parts of New Zealand, and to the School Medical Officers was entrusted the duty of carrying out a survey throughout the Dominion in order to ascertain the distribution of the disease, the Professor of Preventive Medicine at the Otago Medical School acting in co-operation. In the schools of those areas where goitre was found to be endemic, preventive and curative treatment was inaugurated. This consisted in the administration of one grain of potassium iodide once weekly for three periods of ten weeks in the year. The general results of treatment have been beneficial. As iodized salt is now available for use in endemic areas, it has been decided to limit school treatment of goitre to the main centres where adequate medical supervision is available. Children in other areas who suffer from goitre are referred to their own medical advisers.

THE CONTROL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASE.

The control of infectious disease in the schools is also a matter for which the School Medical Officer has to assume responsibility. This entails much routine work in close co-operation with the Medical Officer of Health.

For the purpose of lessening the incidence of, if not eradicating, diphtheria, a considerable amount of work has been done, firstly, by popular education as to the value of preventive treatment for the disease, and secondly, by the inoculation of several thousands of children with toxin anti-toxin mixture.

DENTAL TREATMENT OF SCHOOL-CHILDREN.

The Dental Division of the Health Department has at present, besides the Director, the Deputy Director, and other administrative and training staff, eight dental surgeons and ninety-seven dental nurses stationed at various centres throughout the Dominion. Eighty-nine main-treatment centres and 54 sub-bases have been established to date. There are at present seventy-four probationers undergoing training, thirty-four of whom have already completed one year of their course and will be ready to take up duty about April, 1930.

The following is a summary of operations performed by the Dental Officers and dental nurses during the year 1928: Fillings, 146,354; extractions, 76,555; other operations, 99,701: total operations, 322,610.

The total number of children at present under systematic treatment at the various clinics, including the Training School, is approximately 60,000.

Besides these, many children have been examined and their teeth charted. Duplicate charts have been sent to parents, resulting in the treatment of many cases by private practitioners or at hospitals.

Leaflets have been printed for circulation to parents, embodying short terse rules to be followed for the prevention of dental disease. Every opportunity is taken to bring this phase of the question before the parents and the public.

SUBSECTION B.—HOSPITALS AND CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS.

INTRODUCTORY.

PRIOR to the abolition of the provinces in 1876 hospital maintenance was left to the care of the several Provincial Councils, each of which had a system of its own. On the change-over to the county form of government in the following year all of these diverse systems came under the charge of the Central Government, and many difficulties and incongruities occurred. Gradually there grew up a system of excessive demands upon the Government, and in 1885 an attempt to reduce a somewhat chaotic state of affairs to some semblance of order and uniformity took shape in the Hospitals Act of that year, which provided for the constitution of special hospital districts and Boards. Several amendments, based on the result of experience, were passed in later years, and the present law relating to the subject is embodied in the Hospitals and Charitable Institutions Act, 1926, as amended in 1928.

HOSPITAL BOARDS.

The management of affairs in each hospital district is entrusted to a Hospital Board, consisting of one or more representatives of each of the districts comprising the hospital area, the total membership of the Board being not less than eight nor more than twenty. Members are elected at the ordinary general election of the contributory authorities.

A Hospital Board has power to establish, control, and manage any of the following institutions: Hospitals, charitable institutions, maternity homes, convalescent homes, sanatoria, habitual inebriates' homes, reformatory institutions for the reception of women and girls, and any other institutions for any purpose which the Governor General, by Order in Council, may declare to be a public charitable purpose. It may grant charitable aid to indigent, sick, or infirm persons; may provide medical, surgical, and nursing attention for persons not inmates of an institution; and may grant financial assistance to medical and nursing associations and private philanthropic institutions approved by the Minister. It may also make by-laws, subject to the approval of the Minister of Health, regarding all matters affecting the management, care, control, and superintendence of any institution under its jurisdiction, and generally to enable the Board to carry out its functions.

It is the duty of every Hospital Board to provide and maintain such hospitals as the Director-General of Health considers necessary in any part of the district for (a) the reception, relief, &c., of any persons suffering from infectious diseases; (b) the reception, &c., of persons suffering from other than infectious diseases.

PROVISION OF FINANCE.

No rating-powers are given to Hospital Boards, but under the Hospitals and Charitable Institutions Act the estimated net expenditure of a Board is apportioned by the Board among the contributory local authorities within its district in proportion to the capital value of the rateable property in each contributory district.

At the beginning of each financial year the Hospital Board prepares an estimate of its payments for the year, deducting therefrom all estimated receipts by way of patients' fees, voluntary contributions, bequests, subsidy on voluntary contributions and bequests (at £1 for £1), income from endowments, and, generally, deducting all other estimated receipts except the amount to be raised by levy on the contributory local authorities and Government subsidy on such levies. The levies on contributory local authorities are apportioned in relation to the rateable capital value of each local district. On levies for maintenance purposes a scale is in operation ranging from 14s. to 26.8. per £1, and averaging throughout the Dominion £1 for £1. The principle of the scale is to give relatively greater assistance where the requirements are high in proportion to the rateable capital value of the hospital district. To this end the levy of each Board for maintenance purposes is determined as sixteen-fortieths of its estimated maintenance requirements plus the amount bearing to four-fortieths of the net estimated requirements of all Boards the same proportion as the rateable capital value of the hospital district bears to the aggregate rateable capital value of all hospital districts. After the levy of each Board is thus determined, the remainder of the Board's requirements is met by Government subsidy, with the limitation of fourteen thirty-fourths as the minimum subsidy and twenty-six forty-sixths as the maximum subsidy.

Levies on contributory local authorities and Government subsidy each form about one-third of the total receipts of Hospital Boards, the remainder being chiefly patients' fees and other recoveries on account of relief.

The above remarks apply to levies for maintenance purposes. As regards capital works, the net requirements are met by levy and by subsidy in equal amounts; the subsidy, in other words, being at the rate of £1 for £1. Where the expenditure is very heavy, Boards may have recourse to loans; but, generally speaking, loans for long periods are discouraged, even the largest works being often arranged by the spreading of the expenditure over two or three years with the assistance of bank overdraft if necessary.

RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS.

The following is a summary of the receipts and payments of Hospital Boards for the years ended 31st March, 1927 and 1928.

—	1926–27.	1927–28.
Receipts.	£	£
Cash in hand (being difference between cash in hand and overdrafts of the various Boards)	205,096	65,636
Voluntary contributions and bequests	26,609	34,111
Levies	563,842	629,180
Subsidies	609,032	711,780
Patients' payments and charitable-aid recoveries	355,430	385,684
Rent, interest, and dividends	20,221	27,640
Loans	277,012	276,057
Sale of capital assets	6,397	6,019
Miscellaneous receipts	39,649	32,522
Totals	2,103,348	2,168,629
Expenditure.
Hospital maintenance	975,456	1,024,285
Charitable aid	197,592	223,686
Medical associations or medical men in outlying districts	9,836	8,936
District nursing	10,571	11,012
Administration	68,185	70,919
Amounts paid to other Boards or separate institutions	48,399	51,510
Rents, rates, and taxes	2,991	1,890
Interest	66,949	80,919
Contributions to National Provident Fund for superannuation of employees	21,691	22,211
Capital works	395,811	337,899
Loan-repayments or payments to sinking fund	63,260	92,385
Miscellaneous payments	53,129	28,211
Amounts invested on account of funds for special purposes	7,018	6,820
Cash and bank balances	182,460	207,946
Totals	2,103,348	2,168,629

REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE.

Although the figures in the last preceding statement relate to receipts and payments, the official returns of Hospital Boards have since 1916–17 been supplied on the basis of an Income and Expenditure Account and balance-sheet. Alterations in the system of presentation of the accounts were made in 1926–27 with a view to showing the position more suitably for statistical purposes. Under the new system the revenue shown covers the amounts receivable and expendable for the year under review as represented by amounts which for the year require to be met by actual cash, including, in the case of revenue, both capital and maintenance, but excluding excess of income or expenditure from previous year. In the case of expenditure, in addition to similar departures from the form of the Income and Expenditure Account, are excluded such expenditure as the writing-off of or reductions in patients' fees. “Fees receivable,” which in a great many cases there is no probability of being received, is a more or less fictitious item of revenue. For statistical purposes, therefore “fees received” has been substituted therefor on the receipts side.

It must be noted, however, that the result has nothing in common with a Receipts and Payments Account, but is derived entirely from the Income and Expenditure Accounts and balance-sheets forwarded by the Boards.

REVENUE.

The following, showing the sources of revenue for the year 1927–28, relate not only to Hospital Boards, but also to Government institutions and the Mercury Bay Hospital.

	Amount, £	Percentage of Total.
Contributable by Government	777,139	41.6
Levies on local authorities	626,127	33.5
Voluntary contributions	32,610	1.7
Recoveries from those assisted	382,218	20.5
Rents, interest, and dividends	28,206	1.5
Miscellaneous revenue	21,501	1.2
	1,867,801	100.0
Cash in bank (other than loan-money)	184,707
Total	£2,052,508	100.0

To ascertain the total receipts for the year, the sum of £231,898 (receipts from loans for capital purposes) should be added, making the aggregate £2,284,406. The amount contributable by the Government consists of subsidies on maintenance levies, £569,944; subsidies on capital levies, £86,936; subsidies on voluntary contributions and bequests, £25,002; cost of maintaining Government institutions, £46,546; patients' fees paid to Boards or remitted in respect of Government institutions, £42,890; and special payments to Boards, £5,821, making a total of £777,139.

EXPENDITURE.

The maintenance expenditure for the year 1927–28 was £1,600,234, made up as follows: —

	Amount, £	Percentage.
Hospital maintenance	1,148,418	71.8
Charitable relief—
Indoor	112,755	7.1
Outdoor	112,519	7.0
Medical associations	9,740	0.6
District nursing	9,588	0.6
Ambulances	7,031	0.4
Miscellaneous maintenance expenditure	12,092	0.8
Administration	80,474	5.0
Interest on loans	84,579	5.3
National Provident Fund	23,038	1.4
Total	£1,600,234	100.0

Capital expenditure for the year totalled £452,161, this amount including £91,814 in respect of repayments of loan-money. The total expenditure for the year, excluding amounts paid from one Board to another, was thus £2,052,395.

The average annual cost of maintenance of general hospitals per occupied bed was as follows in the years shown:—

HOSPITAL MAINTENANCE EXPENDITURE.

Year.	Provisions.	Surgery and Dispensary.	Domestic and Establishment.	Salaries and Wages.	Miscellaneous and Special Departments.	Total Maintenance.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1910–11	22.7	8.7	26.7	38.8	2.7	99.6
1914–15	25.0	10.7	27.0	43.5	1.9	108.1
1919–20	40.4	15.4	43.2	52.4	0.3	151.7
1923–24	39.4	14.8	50.3	75.4	7.5	187.4
1924–25	40.9	14.9	50.4	77.0	8.4	191.6
1925–26	42.2	15.5	50.7	79.0	8.3	195.7
1926–27	417	16.9	51.6	80.1	9.6	199.9
1927–28	41.3	15.3	50.2	81.6	10.5	198.9

Charitable-aid expenditure has been as follows during the last five years:—

CHARITABLE-AID EXPENDITURE.

Year.	Indoor Relief.	Outdoor Relief.	Total.
	£	£	£
1923–24	107,400	76,658	184,058
1924–25	105,619	76,508	182,127
1925–26	113,584	77,899	191,483
1926–27	112,726	92,922	205,648
1927–28	112,755	112,519	225,274

COST TO GOVERNMENT AND LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

The following shows the triennial average net maintenance requirements of Hospital Boards—i.e., the average estimated deficit which is provided for by levies on the local authorities and Government subsidy thereon:—

TRIENNIAL AVERAGE MAINTENANCE REQUIREMENTS OF HOSPITAL BOARDS.

Triennium.	Amount.
	£
1911–14	255,321
1912–15	275,823
1913–16	302,214
1914–17	353,508
1915–18	365,763
1916–19	413,579
1917–20	466,002
1918–21	586,418
1919–22	680,570
1920–23	751,713
1921–24	745,543
1922–25	758,518
1923–26	803,245
1924–27	875,485
1925–28	979,333
1926–29	1,074,138

The following shows the total cost to the public funds of hospitals and charitable aid for the past decade, as represented by levies and subsidies for both capital and maintenance purposes; including also subsidies on voluntary contributions and expenditure out of the Health Department's own vote:—

Year.	Levies made.	Subsidies payable.	Expenditure out of Department's Vote.	Total.	Cost per Head of Population.
	£	£	£	£	s.	d.
1918–19	313,121	290,821	95,579	699,521	11	11
1919–20	350,411	323,679	275,780	949,870	15	4
1920–21	517,203	448,556	104,926	1,070,685	16	11
1921–22	500,241	436,153	132,631	1,069,025	16	5
1922–23	480,672	403,561	141,184	1,025,417	15	6
1923–24	503,113	423,066	100,321	1,026,500	15	3
1924–25	497,272	559,493	138,546	1,195,311	17	4
1925–26	547,570	597,132	174,525	1,319,227	18	9
1926–27	562,718	602,267	132,568	1,297,553	18	1
1927–28	626,127	654,902	158,165	1,439,194	19	11

The increase of hospital and charitable-aid expenditure as represented by levies, subsidies, and expenditure by the Health Department for the decade ended 1927–28 averaged 14.8 per cent. per annum. The increase in levies and subsidies Alone for the same period was 12.5 per cent. per annum.

Hospital Boards' requirements rose sharply in 1919–20 and 1920–21, after which there was a lull, followed in 1923–24 by another upward trend. An underlying cause of the rise in 1923–24 was heavy capital works and the consequent burden in interest and sinking fund charges.

The large increase which has taken place during the ten years is due, inter alia, to the following causes: Decrease in the purchasing-power of the pound; increased number of hospital beds; increase in staff required owing to the more complicated methods of hospital treatment, including the employment of a greater proportion of trained nurses; interest on loans; the institution of Hospital Board employees' superannuation; and a small general all-round increase in charitable aid and other items.

Interest on loans has added to the burden of Hospital Boards' expenditure, but as the policy of short-dated loans has been followed the present high rate of interest will not have to be paid for many years.

There has been a great improvement in the methods of fees-collection, and the percentage increase in patients' fees has been considerably more than the percentage increase in the cost of the hospitals. It cannot be expected, however, that anything like the cost of the hospitals will ever be recouped by patients' payments; but the Department and the Hospital Boards' Association are giving attention to the question as to whether a satisfactory solution is to be found by any contributory schemes which not only would relieve the patient of financial anxiety but would provide assured and tangible revenue to the Boards.

PATIENTS' PAYMENTS.

The amount of patients' fees received per occupied bed in 1913–14 was £23.4; in 1927–28, exclusive of fees received from other Boards, it was £64.3.

FEES COLLECTED FROM PATIENTS IN HOSPITAL BOARDS' HOSPITALS.

	Amount.	Amount per Occupied Bed.
	£	£
1923–24	222,950	54.8
1924–25	251,778	57.3
1925–26	288,314	62.8
1926–27	300,563	62.7
1927–28	272,629	54.3

Included in those fees are amounts paid by the Government, which in 1925–26 amounted to £18,890, in 1926–27 to £28,891, and in 1927–28 to £25,013.

LOANS.

The following shows in respect of Hospital Boards the amount and periods of loans approved during the year 1927–28:—

Years.	Amount.
	£
Five	500
Six	3,000
Eight	1,000
Ten	17,500
	£22,000

The amount of loans outstanding at the 31st March, 1928, was £1,408,959. This amount, however, is reduced by a sum of £137,112 standing to the credit of sinking funds, making the net amount of loan-money £1,271,847. The amount set aside last year either by way of actual payments of principal or by way of payment to sinking fund, with interest accrued thereon, was £91,585.

PUBLIC HOSPITALS.

Subsection D of the preceding section contains full statistics of patients treated at public hospitals other than maternity hospitals. In the following table the figures are inclusive of maternity hospitals, and relate to the financial year instead of to the calendar year: —

Year.	Persons under Treatment.		Average Number of Occupied Beds.		Beds available.
Year.	Total Number.	Proportion per 1,000 of Population.	Number.	Proportion per 1,000 of Population.	Number.	Proportion per 1,000 of Population.
1910–11	25,191	24.09	2,025	1.94	3,222	3.08
1914–15	33,375	2,915	2,652	2.32	3,956	3.46
1919–20	50,785	42.05	4,025	3.33	5,743	4.76
1923–24	59,256	44.42	4,564	3.42	6,853	5.14
1924–25	63,068	46.37	4,886	3.59	7,220	5.31
1925–26	68,461	48.18	5,111	3.67	7,501	5.39
1926–27	75,708	53.29	5,318	3.74	7,847	552
1927–28	79,500	55.20	5,608	3.88	8,007	5.54

The number of institutions coming under the head of public hospitals at 31st March, 1928, was 132. Included in this total were 83 general hospitals (2 of which were also old people's homes), 3 convalescent hospitals, 33 maternity hospitals, 7 tuberculosis sanatoria, 2 chronic-tubercular hospitals, and 4 infectious-diseases hospitals. A comparison of beds and patients between the last four years is given: —

	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
Number of institutions	120	124	129	132
Number of beds—
General—
For males	2,326	2,364	2,306	2,437
For females	1,628	1,716	1,898	1,797
Children's cots	770	818	901	904
Maternity	397	434	472	512
Tuberculosis	959	1,000	1,065	1,137
Infectious disease	1,140	1,169	1,205	1,162
Total	7,220	7,501	7,847	7,949
Average number of occupied beds per diem	4,886	5,111	5,318	5,565
Patients under treatment during year	63,068	68,461	75,708	79,500
Deaths during year	3,312	3,495	3,814	3,790
Out-patients—
Number	39,796	66,118	50,377	71,987
Attendances	219,231	228,541	261,964	364,044

PRIVATE HOSPITALS.

The Private Hospitals Act, which came into force on the 1st January, 1907, is now embodied in the Hospitals and Charitable Institutions Act, 1926, Part III of which provides for the licensing, management, and inspection of private hospitals. All such institutions must be licensed, and every application for a license must be accompanied by a full description and plan of the house proposed to be used, together with a statement showing the number and class of cases proposed to be received. The license shall state whether it is in respect of a lying-in private hospital or a surgical and medical private hospital, or if for both classes of cases; and no private hospital may be used for any purpose other than that in respect of which the license is granted and purposes reasonably incidental thereto.

For every private hospital there must be a resident manager, either the licensee or some person appointed by the licensee, and in every case the manager must be a legally qualified medical practitioner or a registered nurse in the case of a surgical and medical hospital, or a registered midwife in the case of a lying-in hospital, or a registered nurse and midwife, or a registered nurse having as resident assistant & registered midwife, in the case of a hospital licensed for both purposes. No license may be granted in respect of a house not previously licensed until such house and annexed buildings have been approved by the Director-General of Health, and no addition may be made to any private hospital until it has been so approved. No license may be granted until the character and fitness of the applicant have been proved satisfactory. The license must be renewed on the 1st January of each year.

In every private hospital there must be kept a register of patients showing particulars as to name, age, abode, and date of reception of each patient, date when such patient left, or, in the event of death, the date thereof, name of medical practitioner attending, and such other details as may be prescribed. Inquiry may be made at any time as to the management, conduct, and equipment of any private hospital, and if such inquiry prove unsatisfactory the license may be revoked.

Provision is made for the inspection of private hospitals in the same manner as for public institutions of the like nature, a specially qualified medical practitioner and trained nurses with midwifery certificates being appointed for the purpose.

The total number of private hospitals licensed in the Dominion is 305, of which 93 are medical and surgical hospitals, 45 medical, surgical, and maternity institutions, and 167 maternity hospitals. These hospitals provide 1,314 beds for medical and surgical cases, and 873 beds for maternity cases.

MATERNITY SERVICES.

STATE MATERNITY HOSPITALS.

There are seven State maternity hospitals now open for the use of women in cases where the husband's income does not exceed £350 per annum. The charge for this service is £3, which includes a midwife's and maternity nurse's attendance at the confinement and a fortnight's hospital treatment. This service is given under the supervision of the Medical Superintendent, who is also responsible for the conduct of all abnormal cases and for the supervision of the ante-natal and post-natal care of all patients attending. There is also an out-patient department attached to each hospital, which provides (at a charge of £1) nursing services for patients not entering the institution.

The St. Helens Hospital at Wellington was opened in June, 1905, and a new and up-to-date building in July, 1912; that at Dunedin was opened in October, 1905; that at Auckland in June, 1906, and a new building in February, 1923; that at Christchurch in April, 1907. St. Helens Hospitals have also been opened at Gisborne, Wanganui, and Invercargill.

The following tables show the result of the work of the different institutions during 1928 and of the whole of the institutions for each of the last ten years.

ST. HELENS HOSPITALS, 1928.

Hospital.	Number of Beds.	Confinements in Institution.			Confinements attended Outside.
Hospital.	Number of Beds.	Total Births.	Deaths of Mothers.	Deaths of Infants.	Confinements attended Outside.
Auckland	30	670	..	22	244
Gisborne	14	176	..	10	2
Wanganui	11	155	..	6	11
Wellington	30	599	1	24	55
Christchurch	15	356	1	17	209
Dunedin	16	157	1	6	60
Invercargill	12	265	2	11	5
Totals	128	2,378	5	96	586

ST. HELENS HOSPITALS, 1919–20 TO 1928.

Year.	Confinements in Institution.			Confinements attended Outside.
Year.	Total Births.	Deaths of Mothers.	Deaths of Infants.	Confinements attended Outside.
1919–20	1,139	5	25	552
1920–21	1,246	6	25	579
1921–22	1,392	5	25	572
1922–23	1,531	3	18	570
1923–24	1,724	7	37	600
1924–25	2,015	5	25	702
1925–26	2,060	7	36	644
1926	2,155	4	31	635
1927	2,275	5	50	598
1928	2,378	5	96	586

PUBLIC MATERNITY HOSPITALS.

Fifty-nine public maternity hospitals or maternity wards attached to public hospitals under control of Hospital Boards have been established at the following places:—

Akaroa
Amuri
Ashburton
Blenheim
Cheviot
Coromandel
Cromwell
Darfield
Denniston
Dunedin
Fairlie
Geraldine
Greymouth
Havelock
Huntly
Kaikoura
Kaitaia
Kawakawa
Kawhia
Kurow
Lawrence
Leeston
Lincoln
Little River
Lumsden
Lyttelton
Mangonui
Masterton
Matamata
Methven
Middlemarch
Motueka
Napier
Naseby
Nelson
Opunake
Oxford
Palmerston
Picton
Rakaia
Rangiora
Rawene
Roxburgh
Stratford
Taumarunui
Te Kopuru
Te Kuiti
Te Puke
Tolaga Bay
Thames
Timaru
Warkworth
Waikari
Waipawa
Waiuku
Waiuta
Whakatane
Whangarei
Whangaroa

These maternity hospitals and wards provide 381 beds. They are open to any district residents irrespective of income, the charges varying from 3 guineas to 4 guineas per week for those who are able to pay. At most of these institutions patients may be attended by the midwives in charge of the institution, under the supervision of the medical superintendent of the hospital, or may engage their own medical attendants.

For the reception of single girls there are special charitable institutions at Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and Invercargill, in addition to those established by the Salvation Army at the four chief centres and at Napier and Gisborne.

DISTRICT MIDWIVES AND MATERNITY NURSES.

The following Hospital Boards have midwives doing district work, in most cases in conjunction with other health work: ^*Auckland, Wellington, Waikato, Hawke's Bay, Southland, Wanganui, South Canterbury, Palmerston North, Whangarei, Wairau, Thames, Buller, Waipawa, Westland, Wallace and Fiord, Tauranga, Stratford, Bay of Plenty, Wairoa, Waiapu, Matakaoa.

In addition, there are twenty Native nurses appointed for the purpose of attending the Maori population in the following districts, part of whose work is the attendance of Maori women in confinements: Rotorua, Tikitiki, Kawakawa, Kaitaia, Frasertown, Wairoa, Dargaville, Hamilton, Whakatane, Auckland, Te Karaka, Otaki, Rawene, Opotiki, Te Kaha, Thames, Taumarunui, Tauranga, Hastings.

ANTE-NATAL SERVICES.

Twenty-one free public ante-natal clinics have been established in various parts of New Zealand in connection with State or public maternity hospitals or maternal welfare societies, such as the Plunket Society. These clinics are conducted by registered midwives and registered nurses who have been specially trained for this purpose, and they work in conjunction with the medical attendant or midwives engaged to attend the patients during labour. The training of midwives in New Zealand includes training in ante-natal work. The total attendances at the various free clinics in New Zealand during 1928 were 20,740. Four thousand copies of the pamphlet “Suggestions to Expectant Mothers” have been distributed free, mainly through these clinics. This pamphlet gives simple instructions for the maintenance of health during pregnancy and information regarding the necessary preparation for confinements to be conducted in private houses.

Every effort is being made to impress the public with the importance of parental hygiene and the systematic ante-natal care throughout pregnancy. Addresses and lectures are delivered by Medical Officers of the Department of Health to nurses and societies interested in this subject. So that there will be definite co-operation between the midwife and the ante-natal clinic, and in order that the midwife may be informed of the clinical methods adopted by the Health Department, refresher courses of lectures, given particularly on ante-natal work, are available to all registered midwives and maternity nurses.

BENEVOLENT AND ORPHAN ASYLUMS.

One hundred and four institutions classed under the heading of benevolent and orphan asylums furnished returns to the Census and Statistics Office for the year 1928. These institutions, which are conducted by Hospital Boards, religious bodies, and other public or semi-public organizations, are alike in that they provide free accommodation on a benevolent or charitable basis, but differ largely in the classes of persons to whom they afford assistance. The generic name covers old people's homes, maternity and refuge homes for unfortunate women and girls, orphanages, homes for the infirm or afflicted, “prison gate” homes, and an institute for the blind. Some of the orphanages deal with cases similar to those dealt with by the special schools under the control of the Education Department, and a few of the women's institutions receive offenders committed to them by the Court.

The 104 institutions which furnished returns for 1928 had a total of 11,852 inmates during the year, of whom 6,788 were males and 5,064 females. They commenced the year with a total of 5,606, and had 5,653 at the end of the year. Admissions during the year totalled 5,272, and in addition 974 infants were born in the institutions. Discharges numbered 5,770, and deaths of inmates 429. The figures for institutions under the various classes of controlling authorities are as follows:—

ADMISSIONS, DISCHARGES, ETC., 1928.

Controlling Authorities.	Number of Institutions.	Inmates at 1st January.	Admissions during Year.	Births in Institutions during Year.	Discharges during Year.	Deaths in Institutions during Year.	Inmates at 31st December.	Total Inmates during Year.
Hospital Boards	28	1,485	1,635	213	1,453	327	1,553	3,333
Church of England	14	724	260	41	322	2	701	1,025
Roman Catholic Church	11	1,359	641	..	555	43	1,402	2,000
Presbyterian Church	11	445	128	..	147	1	425	573
Methodist Church	4	195	53	..	52	..	196	248
Baptist Church	1	70	14	..	22	..	62	84
Salvation Army	21	793	1,893	326	2,229	22	761	3,012
Undenominational associations, &c.	14	535	648	394	990	34	553	1,577
Totals	104	5,606	5,272	974	5,770	429	5,653	11,852

During the year 1928 28.12 per cent. of the total number of inmates in benevolent and orphan asylums came under the supervision of the various Hospital Boards, and 25.41 per cent. under that of the Salvation Army. The Roman Catholic Church cared for a further 16.88 per cent., undenominational associations for 13.31 per cent., and the Church of England for 8.65 per cent. Of those classes of controlling authorities that do not carry out an extensive work in this direction, the Presbyterian Church catered for 4.83 per cent. of the total inmates, the Methodist Church for 2.09 per cent., and the Baptist Church for 0.71 per cent. When examining the above, cognizance must be taken of the fact that in many cases there is a variation in the class or type of inmate provided for by the different controlling bodies. For instance, none of the homes under the supervision of the Roman Catholic Church, the Presbyterian Church, the Methodist Church, or the Baptist Church are maternity homes of any description. The three last-mentioned churches control children's homes and orphanages only, while the Church of England does not cater for old people, although some maternity cases are dealt with. Again, the Hospital Boards concentrate chiefly upon old people's homes, while the Salvation Army deals with all types and is the only body that conducts extensively the “prison-gate” or industrial type of institution. Factors such as these affect the demands made upon the different institutions for accommodation or relief.

The ages and sexes of all inmates in the institutions at any time during the year were as follows:—

Age-group.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Under 5	977	839	1,816
5 and under 10	803	727	1,530
10 and under 15	874	988	1,862
15 and under 25	216	871	1,087
25 and under 35	208	666	874
35 and under 45	360	184	544
45 and under 55	669	172	841
55 and under 65	820	128	948
65 and over	1,756	462	2,218
Unspecified	105	27	132
Totals	6,788	5,064	11,852

It would appear that proportionately males are a greater burden than females upon the charitable institutions, the rates for the two sexes being 9.13 and 7.11 respectively per 1,000 of the mean population.

Some remarkable differences in the sex proportions at the various age-groups are revealed in the foregoing table. The first three groups, which relate to infants and young children, are naturally in close proximity as regards sex. The next group, ages “15 and under 25 years,” shows a large excess of females. The female figures for this group, of course, are greatly swollen by the inclusion of girls and young women seeking refuge in maternity homes. The figures are also affected by the fact that the majority of boys who have spent most of their lives in orphanages obtain outside employment at these ages. The former influence continues to be felt in the following age-group also. Thereafter, a gradually increasing male excess is observed.

The overwhelming majority of males dependent upon charitable aid at these later ages is indeed remarkable, although the prison-gate and industrial type of home no doubt swells the numbers at this stage.

The next table contains interesting information concerning inmates of orphanages and of a few other institutions which provide for both children and older people. The figures relate to inmates under the age of twenty-one who were remaining in the institutions at 31st December, 1928.

ORPHAN ASYLUMS—AGE, LEGITIMACY, AND ORPHANHOOD OF INMATES AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

Age, in Years.	Legitimate.					No Information as to Legitimacy.	Illegitimate.	Total.
Age, in Years.	Father and Mother both Alive.	Father Dead, Mother Alive.	Father Alive, Mother Dead.	Father and Mother both Dead.	No Information as to Orphanhood	No Information as to Legitimacy.	Illegitimate.	Total.
0	10	1	3	..	1	..	25	40
1	12	2	3	..	..	..	25	42
2	22	2	10	..	1	1	31	67
3	43	7	22	1	1	..	21	95
4	50	13	24	4	2	..	39	132
5	70	19	31	1	1	1	28	151
6	83	21	48	3	2	..	23	180
7	95	35	70	8	2	2	25	237
8	94	26	69	9	4	..	35	237
9	98	32	73	14	..	2	21	240
10	87	31	74	18	5	2	31	248
11	82	48	100	19	3	1	31	284
12	71	38	68	28	6	2	27	240
13	63	26	85	27	3	2	29	235
14	40	35	63	32	2	5	26	203
15	23	11	46	19	4	1	17	121
16	15	5	18	8	2	1	12	61
17	3	6	7	6	..	1	10	33
18	6	4	6	9	..	..	4	29
19	2	2	2	..	..	..	4	10
20	9	3	3	4	1	..	..	20
Not known	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	1
Totals	979	367	825	210	40	21	464	2,906

Contrary to what might generally be expected, the above figures reveal that the largest group is that covering children both of whose parents were shown to have been alive. Cases where both parents were dead were in the minority as regards the four legitimate classes where full information as to orphanhood is available.

Of the total of 2,906, 1,473 were males and 1,433 females, the sex distribution in the various groups being as follows:—

Legitimate—	Males.	Females.
Father and mother both alive	497	482
Father dead, mother alive	203	164
Father alive, mother dead	386	439
Father and mother both dead	93	117
No information as to orphanhood	30	10
No information as to legitimacy	13	8
Illegitimate	251	213
Totals	1,473	1,433

As might naturally be expected, females exceed males at ages 15 and over.

SUBSECTION C.—MENTAL HOSPITALS.

THERE are seven public mental hospitals in the Dominion maintained wholly or in part out of the public revenue. There is also one private hospital licensed for the reception of the mentally afflicted.

The number of patients at the end of 1928 was 5,902, consisting of 3,274 males and 2,628 females. These numbers, and those given elsewhere throughout this subsection, are inclusive of Maoris. Figures for Maoris are given separately towards the end of the subsection.

The patients on the register at the end of 1928 were distributed as shown below:—

Mental Hospital.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Auckland	660	554	1,214
Tokanui	256	142	398
Porirua	820	688	1,508
Nelson	289	137	426
Hokitika	144	61	205
Christchurch	442	476	918
Dunedin (Seacliff and Waitati)	649	539	1,188
Ashburn Hall (private mental hospital)	14	31	45
Totals	3,274	2,628	5,902

The number of patients remaining at the end of each of the last five years, and the proportion per 10,000 of the population at the end of the year, are shown in the following table:—

PATIENTS REMAINING, 1924–28.

Year.	Number remaining at 31st December.			Proportion per 10,000 of Population.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1924	2,873	2,258	5,131	41.04	33.68	37.44
1925	2,921	2,336	5,257	40.77	34.11	37.52
1926	3,044	2,423	5,467	41.66	34.67	38.24
1927	3,147	2,526	5,673	42.04	35.61	39.12
1928	3,274	2,628	5,902	43.70	36.61	40.23
Means of five years	3,052	2,434	5,486	41.84	34.93	38.51

The total number of patients under oversight, care, or control during 1928 was 6,696 (males 3,710, females 2,986), as against 6,463 in 1927. The average number resident in mental hospitals was 5,395 in 1927, and 5,579 in 1928.

ADMISSIONS.

The total admissions to mental hospitals during the year 1928 were 956 (506 males and 450 females), this number not including 67 transfers from one institution [to another. The causes of insanity as assigned on admission are given below:—

Heredity	188
Congenital	96
Previous attack	99
Puberty and adolescence	42
Climacteric	53
Puerperal state	16
Pregnancy	6
Senility	133
Involution	3
Mental stress, prolonged	124
Influenza	1
Syphilis	47
Diabetes	1
Thyroid insufficiency	4
Alcohol	44
Toxic	5
Encephalitis	4
Chorea	3
Hemiplegia	1
Epilepsy	39
Organic brain-disease	1
Heart-disease	4
Arterio-sclerosis	11
Traumatic	7
Post-operative	1
III health	9
Privation	1
Unknown	13
Totals, excluding transfers (67)	956

FIRST ADMISSIONS.

Of the 956 persons admitted to mental hospitals during 1928, those admitted for the first time to any mental hospital in New Zealand numbered 807 (males 435, females, 372), and those readmitted 149 (males 71, females, 78).

The figures for 1928 represent one first admission for every 1,817 persons in the Dominion. The number of first admissions and the rate per 10,000 of population for each of the last five years were as follows:—

FIRST ADMISSIONS, 1924–28.

Year.	Number of First Admissions.			Proportion per 10,000 of Population.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1924	385	305	690	5.58	4.61	5.10
1925	382	370	752	5.40	5.47	5.43
1926	425	357	782	5.88	5.17	5.53
1927	441	341	782	5.99	4.84	5.43
1928	435	372	807	5.85	5.22	5.54
Means of five years	413	349	762	5.74	5.06	6.40

VOLUNTARY INMATES.

Persons labouring under mental defect, but capable of understanding the meaning of the procedure, may seek admission to a mental hospital as voluntary boarders. At the beginning of 1928 there were 203 boarders in residence (80 males, 123 females), and during the year 290 (157 males, 133 females) were admitted. If a voluntary boarder should after admission show mental defect sufficiently pronounced and sustained to render it improper to classify him any longer as such, application for a reception order is made to a Magistrate. During the year 1928 18 (8 males, 10 females) were transferred from the voluntary to the ordinary register, and 10 males and 8 females died, while 199 (102 males, 97 females) were discharged, leaving 258 resident at the end of the year (117 males, 141 females).

AGES OF INMATES.

A summary is attached showing the ages of patients in mental hospitals at the end of 1928.

AGES OF INMATES, 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

Age, in Years.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1 to 5	9	2	11
5 to 10	33	21	54
10 to 15	68	42	110
15 to 20	114	79	193
20 to 30	377	255	632
30 to 40	525	416	941
40 to 50	780	630	1,410
50 to 60	660	556	1,216
60 to 70	417	389	806
70 to 80	206	165	371
80 to 90	42	49	91
90 and over	4	4	8
Unknown	39	20	59
Totals	3,274	2,628	5,902

DISCHARGES AND DEATHS.

The next table gives the average number resident, those who were discharged as recovered, and those who died, during the period 1924–28:—

Year.	Average Number Resident.	Discharged as recovered.		Died.
Year.	Average Number Resident.	Number.	Per Cent. of Number admitted.	Number.	Per Cent. of Average Number Resident.
1924	4,953	280	34.02	316	6.37
1925	5,033	319	36.45	324	6.44
1926	5,213	281	29.67	354	6.77
1927	5,395	285	30.16	349	6.47
1928	5,579	249	26.04	368	6.59
Means of five years	5,234	282	31.26	342	6.52

Of those who died in mental hospitals during 1928, 137, or 37 per cent., had been inmates for less than one year, while 103, or 28 per cent., had been in residence for more than ten years. Of those discharged recovered, 175, or 70 per cent., had been inmates for less than one year. A table is given showing length of residence of patients who died and of patients who were discharged recovered during 1928.

Length of Residence.	Patients who died.			Patients discharged recovered.
Length of Residence.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Under 1 month	24	12	36	2	3	5
1 month and under 3 months	28	12	40	27	15	42
3 months and under 6 months	12	8	20	23	26	49
6 months and under 9 months	14	11	25	16	30	46
9 months and under 1 year	11	5	16	17	16	33
1 year and under 2 years	23	10	33	21	28	49
2 years and under 3 years	10	8	18	3	6	9
3 years and under 5 years	15	20	35	3	2	5
5 years and under 7 years	5	5	10	1	1	2
7 years and under 10 years	7	11	18	..	4	4
10 years and under 12 years	4	5	9	2	2	4
12 years and under 15 years	9	6	15	..	..	..
15 years and over	41	38	79	..	1	1
Died during absence	4	10	14	..	..	..
Totals	207	161	368	115	134	249

Old age is the principal cause of death among mental-hospital patients, and, among individual causes, general paralysis of the insane ranks second, and epilepsy third. The figures for the principal causes and groups of causes for the year 1928 are as follows:—

DEATHS IN MENTAL HOSPITALS, 1928.

Tuberculosis	22
Cancer	6
Other general diseases	9
General paralysis of the insane	39
Organic brain-disease	2
Epilepsy	26
Other diseases of the nervous system	35
Diseases of the circulatory system	64
Diseases of the respiratory system	30
Diseases of the digestive system	6
Diseases of the genito-urinary system	5
Old age	100
External causes	9
Ill-defined causes	1
Died while on leave	14
Total	368

A table is added showing for all admissions since 1876 the percentages of patients discharged (as recovered, relieved, and not improved, separately), died, and remaining.

—	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.
Discharged—
Recovered	38.29	43.97	41.93
Relieved	7.26	9.12	8.04
Not improved	2.05	2.08	2.06
Died	37.32	27.22	33.06
Remaining at end of 1928	15.08	17.61	14.91
	100.00	100.00	100.00

PRIVATE MENTAL HOSPITAL.

A license may be granted to enable a private mental hospital to receive patients for treatment. Stringent conditions are attached to the issue of such licenses, which may be revoked at any time. The Inspector-General has wide powers in the regulation and control of private institutions, which are placed practically on the same footing as public mental hospitals in regard to inspection and other matters.

There is only one licensed private institution in the Dominion, that at Wakari, near Dunedin, established in 1882. Particulars of admissions, discharges, deaths, and patients remaining, for the last five years, are as follows. These figures are included in preceding tables.

PRIVATE MENTAL HOSPITAL.

Year.	Admissions.	Discharges.	Deaths.	Patients remaining at End of Year.
1924	9	4	3	44
1925	11	8	3	44
1926	11	9	3	43
1927	15	9	4	45
1928	14	11	3	45

MAORIS IN MENTAL HOSPITALS.

The number of Maoris admitted as patients to mental hospitals is small. The figures for the last five years are,—

MENTAL HOSPITALS.—MAORIS ADMITTED AND REMAINING, 1924–28.

Year.	Admitted during Year.			Remaining at End of Year.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Totals.	Males.	Females.	Totals.
1924	8	5	13	37	35	72
1925	10	6	16	40	37	77
1926	7	8	15	40	32	72
1927	10	8	18	42	39	81
1928	10	6	16	46	37	83

ACCOMMODATION.

At the end of the year 1928 the mental hospitals of the Dominion had accommodation for 5,106 patients, the cubic content of the dormitories and sleeping-rooms being well over 3,000,000 cubic feet. Details of accommodation are as follows:—

Institution.	Number of Patients for whom there is Accommodation.
	In Single Rooms.		In Dormitories.		Total.
	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.
Auckland	159	140	444	376	603	516
Tokanui	39	25	190	93	229	118
Porirua	141	111	555	427	696	538
Nelson	17	18	272	93	289	111
Hokitika	37	18	125	47	162	65
Christchurch	98	90	298	272	396	362
Seacliff	172	116	340	324	512	440
Totals, State institutions	663	518	2,224	1,632	2,887	2,150
Ashburn Hall Private Mental Hospital	30	39	..	..	30	39
Totals, all institutions	693	557	2,224	1,632	2,917	2,189

EXPENDITURE, ETC.

The total expenditure on maintenance of mental hospitals (not including the cost of new buildings and additions), and receipts from patients and for sale of produce, &c., during the last five years were as follows:—

Year.	Total Expenditure.	Receipts from Patients, Sale of Produce, &c.	Net Expenditure.
Year.	Total Expenditure.	Receipts from Patients, Sale of Produce, &c.	Total.	Per Head of Mean Population.
	£	£	£	s.	d.
1924–25	368,138	123,807	244,331	3	7 1/2
1925–26	400,463	128,259	272,204	3	10 3/4
1926–27	405,321	130,195	275,126	3	10 1/2
1927–28	409,622	134,805	274,817	3	9 3/4
1928–29	433,304	130,004	303,300	4	1 3/4

Chapter 8. SECTION VIII.—EDUCATION.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

NATIONAL SYSTEM OF PRIMARY EDUCATION.

SCHOLARS AND STUDENTS.

SCHOLARS AND STUDENTS AS AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1926, 1927, AND 1928.

PUBLIC (STATE) PRIMARY SCHOOLS.

NUMBER OF SCHOOLS AND SCHOLARS, 1878–1928.

RELATIVE ACTIVITIES OF EDUCATION DISTRICTS.

AGE AND SEX OF PUPILS.

PUPILS LEAVING PRIMARY SCHOOLS.

MANUAL INSTRUCTION IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS.

CLASS-BOOKS AND SCHOOL AND CLASS LIBRARIES.

CORRESPONDENCE CLASSES.

PUBLICATIONS.

“SCHOOL JOURNAL.”

“EDUCATION GAZETTE.”

CONVEYANCE AND BOARD OF SCHOLARS.

CONVEYANCE AND BOARD.—EXPENDITURE, 1924–28.

PHYSICAL EDUCATION.

PUBLIC-SCHOOL TEACHERS.

ADULT TEACHERS IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS, 1878–1928.

ADULT TEACHERS, BY EDUCATION DISTRICTS, AS AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

PUBLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL-TEACHERS (FEMALES PER 100 MALES), 1924 28.

TRAINING OF TEACHERS.

PRIVATE SCHOOLS.

REGISTERED PRIVATE SCHOOLS, 1924–28.

ROMAN CATHOLIC REGISTERED PRIVATE SCHOOLS, 1924–28.

PRIMARY SCHOOLS FOR NATIVES.

NATIVE VILLAGE SCHOOLS.—NUMBER, ATTENDANCE, AND TEACHERS, 1881–1928.

JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS.

SECONDARY EDUCATION.

NUMBER OF INSTITUTIONS PROVIDING SECONDARY EDUCATION, 1924–28.

PUPILS RECEIVING SECONDARY INSTRUCTION AT END OF EACH YEAR, 1919–28.

DESTINATION OF PUPILS LEAVING SECONDARY SCHOOLS.

FREE SECONDARY EDUCATION.

NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIPS.

WAR BURSARIES FOR SOLDIERS' DEPENDANTS.

STAFFS OF SECONDARY SCHOOLS.

LOWER DEPARTMENTS OF SECONDARY SCHOOLS.

TECHNICAL EDUCATION.

COURSES OF INSTRUCTION AT TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOLS AND TECHNICAL DAY SCHOOLS, 1924–28.

CHILD WELFARE AND SPECIAL SCHOOLS.

CHILD WELFARE.

SUPERVISION BY CHILD WELFARE OFFICERS.

CHILDREN BOARDED OUT.

BOYS' TRAINING FARM.

CARE OF THE MENTALLY BACKWARD.

INFANT-LIFE PROTECTION.

DEAF CHILDREN AND CHILDREN WITH SPEECH-DEFECTS.

BLIND CHILDREN.

HIGHER EDUCATION.

NEW ZEALAND UNIVERSITY.

STUDENTS ON BOOKS OF AFFILIATED COLLEGES, 1919–28.

FREE UNIVERSITY EDUCATION.

WORKERS' EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION.

ANNUAL EXAMINATIONS.

PUBLIC EXPENDITURE ON EDUCATION.

EDUCATION EXPENDITURE, YEARS ENDED 31ST MARCH, 1925–29.

COST OF EDUCATION, 1898–99 TO 1928–29.

INTRODUCTORY.

THE provision of educational facilities in New Zealand dates hack into the first years of British, settlement in the country. As might be expected, it was immediately after the advent of the first missionaries that schools for the instruction of the Native youth were established. Later, as a European population settled in the country, the need for a means of educating the white children arose, and finally the necessity for some co-ordinated scheme for the whole colony asserted itself. This latter was consummated in the Education Act of 1877, which Act is the basis of the system of education obtaining in the Dominion at the present day.

A brief historical account of education legislation and systems in operation from the earliest years of settlement to the abolition of the provinces was given in the 1928 Year-book, while the 1927 volume contained a summary of the various provincial enactments on the subject.

NATIONAL SYSTEM OF PRIMARY EDUCATION.

The passing of the Education Act of 1877 marked the foundation of the present system of free, compulsory, and secular education. The outstanding feature of the Act was the establishment of (1) a central Department of Education controlled by a Minister of the Crown; (2) twelve education districts—viz., Auckland, Taranaki, Wanganui, Wellington, Hawke's Bay, Marlborough, Nelson, North Canterbury, South Canterbury, Westland, Otago, and Southland—governed by Boards; and (3) school districts, which came under the jurisdiction of School Committees. On the Department was the onus of administering the annual appropriations by distributing to the Boards funds for the erection and maintenance of schools and the establishment of training or normal schools, and also the payment of capitation to the Boards at the rate of £3 15s. for each scholar in average daily attendance.

Education Boards were to be elected by School Committees, and to consist of nine members, three of whom were to retire annually. In the Boards were vested all property and endowments, and rents from these became part of the Board funds. The Boards were required to administer funds in carrying out the building arrangements for which grants were provided by the Department; in paying the salaries of teachers; and in granting to School Committees money for general educational purposes. The appointment and removal of teachers were in their hands, and the Act also gave the Boards power to establish scholarships, and to provide for secondary education in district high schools. Fees were, however, payable to Education Boards by pupils receiving secondary instruction. School Committees of seven members were to be elected annually. Generally the Committee had the management of educational matters within its own district, and out of the money received from the Board made payments incidental to the administration of the Committee's functions. In addition to these provisions the Act of 1877 specified the course of instruction to be given in the schools throughout the whole country. Inspectors, who were officers of the Education Boards, were appointed to examine and report on the school-work.

In the main the principles of the Act of 1877 are operative to-day. Several amendments made in succeeding years necessitated a consolidating measure in 1904. Among the principal alterations and additions that had been made up to that date were: The provision in 1900 for a comprehensive scheme of manual and technical instruction; the introduction of physical drill into the curriculum in 1901; and, in 1903, the institution of National Scholarships to be awarded by the Department, and the introduction of a system of free places in secondary schools and district high schools for scholars completing the primary course. Up to the year 1901 also each Board had its own scale of staffs and salaries, but an Act of 1901 fixed the relation of the number and the remuneration of teachers in a school to the number of pupils in attendance. In 1905 each education district was divided into three wards, each returning three members, one of whom in each ward retired annually.

No outstanding changes beyond the consolidation of education legislation in 1908 were made until 1914. By the Education Act of that year the whole of the law relating not only to public but also to secondary, technical, and special schools was recast. The principal changes involved the reorganization of the Department of Education, and the Inspector-General of Schools became Director of Education. Inspectors of Schools, who had hitherto been officers of the several Education Boards, became officers of the central Department, a provision, it may be noted, that had been deleted from the Bill of 1877. Provision was made for the constitution of fewer education districts in lieu of the thirteen then existing (Grey had been constituted in 1884), and by an Act of 1915 nine were created. Every education district is divided into urban areas and a rural area. An urban area consists of a borough or a group of boroughs having more than eight thousand inhabitants; and the rural area, which comprises the rest of the district, is divided into three wards. The members for each ward of the rural area and for all urban areas are, as previously, elected by the members of the several School Committees. The number of members for the rural area of an Education Board is six—two for each ward. The number of members for each urban area is two for each sixty thousand or part of sixty thousand inhabitants. School Committees are elected by the householders, and hold office for one year.

A Council of Education was established in 1914. It reports to the Minister and advises upon any matters in connection with education referred to it by the Minister, or which it may consider advisable to introduce into New Zealand. The Council has, however, no administrative or executive functions. To obviate the necessity for frequent meetings of the Council the Minister is given power to constitute from time to time District Advisory Committees, to afford assistance and to advise with regard to matters concerning one district only.

Under the Act, a graded list of certified teachers is compiled annually. Except in special cases, all teaching appointments are governed by the position of the applicants on the list, and it is also to some extent the basis for the determination of the rate of salary payable.

Amending legislation, mainly of an administrative character, has been enacted at various times since 1914. By the Education Amendment Act, 1921—22, the registration of all private schools is compulsory, and teachers in both public and private schools are required to take the oath of allegiance.

The Education Amendment Act, 1924, provided for the establishment of junior high schools, the amalgamation of the governing bodies of secondary and technical, schools, and the creation of a Teachers' Register.

Important alterations in regard to Junior and Senior National Scholarships were made by the Education Amendment Act, 1926, which also discontinued the system of issuing licenses to teach.

The programme of primary instruction at present provided by the Act includes English, arithmetic, geography, history and civics, drawing and handwork (including needlework), nature-study and elementary science, physical instruction, moral instruction and health, and singing.

SCHOLARS AND STUDENTS.

The number of scholars and students receiving instruction in the educational institutions of the Dominion is shown in the following summary, classified according as to whether they receive primary, secondary, technical; or higher education. The table refers to roll numbers as at the end of the year in each case.

SCHOLARS AND STUDENTS AS AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1926, 1927, AND 1928.

Class of Institution.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Primary Education.
Public (State) schools	216,807	218,594	217,523
Junior high schools (excluding secondary pupils)	1,750	2,152	2,073
Native village schools	6,591	6,620	6,671
Native mission schools	364	470	550
Registered private primary schools	26,778	27,358	26,596
Lower departments of secondary schools	460	411	354
Correspondence classes	505	620	720
Total primary	253,255	256,225	254,487
Secondary Education.
Secondary schools	13,651	14,190	15,038
Secondary departments of district high schools	3,162	3,443	3,673
Secondary scholars at junior high schools	137	138	207
Technical high and technical day schools	5,700	5,703	6,061
Maori secondary (boarding) schools	570	524	533
Registered private secondary schools	2,794	2,932	3,430
Total secondary	26,014	26,930	28,942
Technical Classes (excluding Technical High Schools and Technical Day Schools).
Conducted by Education or High School Boards	1,840	1,692	1,777
Conducted by Technical School Boards	10,361	10,091	8,787
Conducted by University colleges	480	625	399
Total technical	12,681	12,408	10,963
University Education.
University colleges	4,087	4,362	4,255
University students exempt from lectures	566	516	547
Lincoln Agricultural College	52	56	53
Massey Agricultural College	..	..	41
Total University	4,705	4,934	4,896
Total scholars and students	296,655	300,497	299,288

Public primary schools, including district high schools, numbered 2,598 in 1928, three less than in 1927. The number of registered private primary schools from which returns were received by the Education Department was 302. Aided or endowed colleges, grammar schools, and high schools in operation numbered 45, technical high schools and technical day schools 21, junior high schools 8, registered private secondary schools 43, and University colleges 4. The number of primary and secondary schools established for the education of the Native or Maori race was 157.

PUBLIC (STATE) PRIMARY SCHOOLS.

From the table which follows an indication is given of the growth of the education system since the creation of a central administrative Department in 1877. At that time the number of schools in proportion to the population of the colony was relatively small, but during the following twenty years the number increased rapidly. Since 1900, however, the closer settlement of the country districts and, more recently, the drift of population to the larger centres have to some extent counteracted this tendency to multiply the number of schools. At present there is one school to approximately each five hundred members of the European community.

Compared with 1927, there was in 1928 a decrease of 921 in the number of pupils belonging to the public schools as at the end of the year, but the average attendance shows an increase of 2,634 for the whole year. The figures tabulated below include pupils attending the secondary departments of district high schools, and for 1927 and 1928 also include pupils of three junior high schools which are administered by the Auckland Education Board.

NUMBER OF SCHOOLS AND SCHOLARS, 1878–1928.

Year.	Population at 31st December (excluding Maoris).	Number of Schools.	Pupils at End of Year.	Mean of Average Weekly Roll.	Average Attendance, Whole Year.	Average Attendance as Percentage of Weekly Roll.
1878	432,519	748	65,040	..	48,773	..
1888	607,380	1,158	112,685	113,636	90,108	79.3
1898	743,463	1,655	131,621	133,782	111,636	83.4
1908	960,642	1,998	147,428	145,974	127,160	87.1
1913	1,084,662	2,255	172,168	169,530	151,242	89.2
1918	1,108,373	2,365	194,934	191,382	169,836	88.7
1923	1,289,221	2,566	214,778	211,624	190,449	90.0
1924	1,316,174	2,574	216,190	213,140	193,253	90.7
1925	1,346,076	2,580	217,860	215,401	196,759	91.3
1926	1,365,417	2,601	219,969	215,810	194,097	89.9
1927	1,385,401	2,601	223,388	218,020	194,540	89.2
1928	1,401,472	2,598	222,467	218,485	197,174	90.2

Of the 2,598 schools shown above for 1928, 2,105 had average attendances of not more than eighty, and of these 1,040 had averages ranging from one to twenty.

RELATIVE ACTIVITIES OF EDUCATION DISTRICTS.

The relative activities of the nine Education Boards administering primary education may be gauged from the following figures showing the number of schools as at 31st December, 1928, and the number of pupils at the end of each of the last five years. The latter figures are exclusive of the secondary departments of district high schools. The figures indicate in a general way that the rate of increase is more pronounced in the North Island districts than in the South.

District.	Schools at End of 1928.	Pupils at End of—
District.	Schools at End of 1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
* Includes pupils at three junior high schools administered by Board.
Auckland	776	64,689	65,070	65,888	67,621^*	67,600^*
Hawke's Bay	191	15,865	16,277	16,492	16,567	16,443
Taranaki	175	11,310	11,474	11,674	11,719	11,830
Wanganui	212	16,983	17,218	17,220	17,266	17,129
Wellington	260	26,533	26,972	27,452	28,042	28,152
Nelson	146	7,074	7,143	7,118	7,023	6,973
Canterbury	395	36,853	36,887	37,384	37,890	37,373
Otago	253	21,749	21,360	21,177	21,370	20,957
Southland	190	12,234	12,323	12,402	12,447	12,337
Totals	2,598	213,290	214,724	216,807	219,945	218,794

In each of the education districts are located Inspectors of Schools, who form part of the staff of the Department of Education. The total number of primary-school Inspectors on the 31st December, 1928, was 44, allocated as follows: Auckland, 12; Taranaki, 3; Wanganui, 4; Hawke's Bay, 3; Wellington, 5; Nelson, 2; Canterbury, 7; Otago, 5; Southland, 3.

AGE AND SEX OF PUPILS.

The following table shows the age and sex of the pupils on the rolls of the public schools of the Dominion at the 30th June, 1928, and the percentage of the roll for each age:—

Age.	1928.			Percentages for Five Years.
Age.	Boys.	Girls.	Total.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
5 and under 6 years	10,117	9,268	19,385	6.8	8.0	7.5	9.0	9.1
6 and under 7	12,806	11,907	24,713	9.9	9.4	11.1	11.4	11.7
7 and under 8	13,135	12,018	25,153	11.0	10.5	10.1	11.7	11.9
8 and under 9	12,655	11,980	24,635	11.5	11.2	10.7	10.7	11.6
9 and under 10	11,841	10,998	22,839	11.1	11.5	11.1	10.9	10.8
10 and under 11	11,938	11,291	23,229	11.4	11.2	11.4	11.7	11.0
11 and under 12	12,356	11,852	24,208	11.1	11.4	11.1	11.3	11.4
12 and under 13	11,552	10,679	22,231	11.0	10.8	11.0	10.8	10.5
13 and under 14	8,752	7,824	16,576	9.3	9.5	9.2	8.2	7.8
14 and under 15	4,193	2,932	7,125	5.1	5.0	5.2	3.4	3.4
15 and over	1,203	578	1,781	1.8	1.5	1.6	0.9	0.8
Totals	110,548	101,327	211,875	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0

PUPILS LEAVING PRIMARY SCHOOLS.

In 1928 23,742 pupils (12,313 boys and 11,429 girls) left public primary schools as against 22,497 (11,892 boys and 10,605 girls) in 1927. Of those leaving in 1928 18,508, or 78 per cent. had passed Standard VI, and 5,234, or 22 per cent. had not passed that standard. The corresponding percentages in 1927 were also 78 and 22 respectively. The probable destinations to which children leaving in 1928 proceeded are shown in the following table:—

Probable Destination.	Had passed Standard VI.		Had not passed Standard VI.		Totals.
	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.		Girls.
	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.	Number.	Per Cent.	Number.	Per Cent.
Post primary	6,046	5,587	255	212	6,301	51	5,799	51
Commercial occupations—
Clerical (including typing)	72	71	14	12	86	1	83	1
Shop and warehouse assistants	348	208	139	102	487	4	310	3
Trades—
Engineering	141	1	49	..	190	2	1	..
Building	104	..	64	..	168	1	..	..
Other	282	57	177	44	459	4	101	1
Agricultural and pastoral	1,357	98	1,108	87	2,465	20	185	1
Other occupations	447	314	356	330	803	6	644	6
Home	571	2,516	362	1,475	933	8	3,991	34
Not known	185	103	236	212	421	3	315	3
Totals	9,553	8,955	2,760	2,474	12,313	100	11,429	100

Information as to probable destination is obtained at the close of the school year, at which time in many instances plans for the future are somewhat indefinite. Accordingly, the number shown under the heading of “Home” is probably considerably over-stated, and in any case the intention for a child to remain at home applies in many instances only to the immediate future.

MANUAL INSTRUCTION IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS.

Elementary handwork in such subjects as modelling, paper and cardboard work, and brushwork is taught by the ordinary staff in practically every school of any size in the Dominion. The boys of Standards V and VI receive instruction from special teachers in woodwork or ironwork. The girls of similar standards also receive instruction from special instructors in domestic subjects, including a comprehensive course in cookery and domestic hygiene. Subjects relating to agriculture or dairy-work and general elementary science are taught by the regular staff under the supervision of itinerant instructors specially qualified in the work.

The payments made by the Department on account of salaries, incidental expenses, and material for manual instruction for the year ended 31st March, 1929, amounted to £87,086.

CLASS-BOOKS AND SCHOOL AND CLASS LIBRARIES.

A capitation grant at the rate of 3d. per head on the average attendance is paid to Boards for the purpose of supplying schools with supplementary continuous readers for class-reading and, in addition, special grants are also made for the free supply of class-books in necessitous cases.

Provision has been made for the payment of subsidies of £1 for £1 on moneys raised by voluntary contributions for school libraries. In addition, a subsidy is payable by the Education Board not exceeding £5 for any one school.

CORRESPONDENCE CLASSES.

Since 1922, correspondence classes have been conducted for the education of children in particularly isolated areas who would otherwise not be able to obtain any schooling. The number on the roll at the end of 1928 was 720, and good progress has been shown by the pupils in their work. The staff of the school consists of a headmaster and eleven assistant teachers, two of whom are engaged in the infant department.

PUBLICATIONS.

“SCHOOL JOURNAL.”

Since May, 1907, an illustrated paper, called the School Journal, has been published by the Education Department monthly for use as the chief reader in primary schools, and is regarded as a useful and popular publication. It is issued in three parts, suited to the varying capacities of the pupils in Standards I to VI inclusive, and is supplied free to all public schools, Native schools, special schools, and other institutions more or less under the Department's control or supervision. To a very large number of private schools it is supplied at cost price, with the result that over 17,000 copies of the School Journal are purchased monthly. Of the last issue of the School Journal for the year 1928 the number of copies printed was—Part I, 76,500; Part II, 77,000; Part III, 71,000: total, 224,500. The price to purchasers is at present 1d. for each of Parts I and II, and lid. for Part III, the minimum charge for one of each part being 4s. 6d. per annum.

“EDUCATION GAZETTE.”

A monthly Gazette is published by the Department. In addition to containing articles by leading educationists, it is a medium for the prompt dissemination of official information and for the advertisement of vacancies, and copies are distributed to every adult teacher in the public schools of the Dominion. A mid-month supplement containing notices of vacant positions in the teaching service is also published. The cost of subscription to the Gazette by persons not included in the free distribution is 5s. per annum, with an additional 1s. per annum if the mid-month supplement is required.

CONVEYANCE AND BOARD OF SCHOLARS.

Free passes on the railway to the nearest public or private school are granted to children living near a railway-line but out of reach of a primary school, and the same privilege is enjoyed by pupils having to travel to attend secondary schools, district high schools, and technical high schools, and also by free-place holders travelling to attend technical schools or classes other than at technical high schools.

Education Boards are also authorized to make provision when necessary for the conveyance of pupils to primary schools by road or water, and to contribute towards the payment for board of children compelled to live away from home in order to attend school. The expenditure on these services for the last five years is shown in the following table:—

CONVEYANCE AND BOARD.—EXPENDITURE, 1924–28.

Year.	Railway Fares.			Other Conveyance and Boarding Allowances.			Total.
Year.	Primary.	Secondary.	Technical.	Primary.	Secondary.	Technical.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1924	12,972	7,647	5,590	25,049	..	..	51,258
1925	12,918	8,619	6,679	30,045	450	..	58,711
1926	9,962	5,198	4,121	40,811	575	..	60,667
1927	12,113	7,277	5,752	45,330	610	..	71,082
1928	11,757	7,725	6,199	56,954	893	..	83,528

PHYSICAL EDUCATION.

Physical education is recognized as part of the primary-school curriculum, and it is compulsory on the part of head teachers to devote a minimum time of fifteen minutes a day to the subject. Its administration is in the hands of a Chief Physical Instructor and a staff of fourteen itinerant instructors. Schools are visited by the instructors for the purpose of both instructing and inspecting. Corrective classes are held in the larger schools for the purpose of remedying physical defects of the children, and exercises for this purpose are prescribed by the physical instructor after the child has been examined by a School Medical Officer. The Department uses its own syllabus of physical training, which was published in 1920, and is based on that of the London Board of Education, modified to suit New Zealand conditions.

The medical and dental inspection of school-children and the scheme of school dentistry are under the jurisdiction of the Department of Health, and reference to these matters is dealt with in Section VII of this publication.

PUBLIC-SCHOOL TEACHERS.

The number of adult teachers in the public schools, exclusive of those employed in the secondary departments of district high schools, is shown for a number of years. The figures are as in December of the years given.

ADULT TEACHERS IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS, 1878–1928.

Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1878	707	454	1,161
1888	1,039	887	1,926
1898	1,234	1,370	2,604
1908	1,331	2,021	3,352
1913	1,603	2,659	4,262
1918	1,366	3,452	4,818
1923	1,865	3,791	5,656
1924	1,949	3,873	5,822
1925	2,008	3,994	6,002
1926	2,105	4,078	6,183
1927	2,167	4,063	6,230
1928	2,243	4,098	6,341

Of the 6,341 adult teachers at the end of 1928. 93 per cent, held teachers' certificates. The number of probationers was 572 (142 males and 430 females). The average number of pupils for each adult teacher was 32; in schools with two or more teachers the average was 37, and in schools with six or more teachers the average was 43. The next table shows the number of male and female teachers respectively in each education district for the year 1928.

ADULT TEACHERS, BY EDUCATION DISTRICTS, AS AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

Education District.	Sole Teachers.		Heads of Schools.		Assistant Teachers.		Total Number of Adult Teachers.	Percentage of Male to Female Adult Teachers.
Education District.	M.	F.	M.	F.	M.	F.	Total Number of Adult Teachers.	Percentage of Male to Female Adult Teachers.
Auckland	205	214	276	43	256	906	1,900	63.4
Hawke's Bay	41	71	67	10	63	227	479	55.5
Taranaki	38	58	52	26	27	174	375	45.3
Wanganui	47	68	72	20	49	250	506	49.7
Wellington	39	103	84	17	103	433	779	40.9
Nelson	43	57	32	7	16	98	253	56.2
Canterbury	51	164	151	18	143	526	1,053	48.7
Otago	51	97	94	6	91	278	617	61.9
Southland	48	67	64	9	40	151	379	67.0
Totals	563	899	892	156	788	3,043	6,341	54.7

Omitting schools with less than twenty-one pupils, the ratio of adult men teachers to adult women teachers in 1928 was 100 to 182. The proportion of men to women in charge of schools with not more than twenty scholars was 100 to 185. If the adult teachers of all public schools are taken it is found that the ratio of men teachers to women teachers was 100 to 183 in 1928. This information over a period of five successive years shows the reduction in the disparity evident in the earlier years.

PUBLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL-TEACHERS (FEMALES PER 100 MALES), 1924 28.

Ratio of	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Adult teachers—
Schools with one to twenty scholars	249	236	212	202	185
Schools with more than twenty scholars	191	193	191	185	182
All schools	199	199	194	187	183
Probationers	286	286	248	236	303
Students in training colleges	224	186	191	213	227

The average salaries paid to teachers in 1928, including house allowance or value of residence, were—Male head teachers, £444; female head teachers, £374; male assistants, £309; female assistants, £233; sole male teachers, £276; sole female teachers, £241.

Information as to the Teachers' Superannuation Fund will be found in the section of this book dealing with Pensions, Superannuation, &c.

TRAINING OF TEACHERS.

Training colleges are situated in the four principal centres of the Dominion. The management of the training colleges is entrusted to the local Education Boards, subject to general regulations. The amount expended by the Department during the financial year 1928–29 for the training of teachers was £166,221.

The number of students attending the training colleges for the last three years has been as follows:—

Training College.	1926.			1927.			1928.
Training College.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Auckland	119	247	366	138	285	423	118	263	381
Wellington	89	193	282	77	187	264	57	172	229
Christchurch	99	187	286	83	199	282	82	174	256
Dunedin	105	159	264	86	145	231	84	164	248
Totals	412	786	1,198	384	816	1,200	341	773	1,114

The number attending in each of the earlier years of the last decade has been—1919, 582; 1920, 680; 1921, 904; 1922, 1,151; 1923, 1,203; 1924, 1,274; and 1925, 1,271.

The period of training for a young person desiring recognition by the Education Department as a trained teacher is now four years, consisting in general of one year as a probationer in a public school, two years as a training-college student, and one year as a probationary assistant in a public school. In the case of a few students desirous of becoming specialist teachers in certain subjects, such as science, mathematics, art, music, or physical training, the training-college course is extended for a third year and the period of service as probationary assistant is not required. There is also provision for a one-year course, which under certain conditions may be taken by University students or matriculated students who have completed a two-year course at an agricultural college or a school of home science recognized by the University of New Zealand. In addition there are short period studentships, of not less than three months' nor more than one year's duration, for the benefit of teachers who have already been employed in teaching and are deemed worthy of further training in professional work. The number of students leaving training - colleges in 1928 was 512.

PRIVATE SCHOOLS.

By the Education Amendment Act, 1921–22, every private school was required to apply for registration before the 13th July, 1922, and no private school can now be established unless application is first made to the Department of Education for registration. Application, however, does not of necessity carry registration, as certain precedent conditions of efficiency and suitability of staff, premises, equipment, and curriculum are required to be fulfilled. By the Act of 1914 every child between the ages of seven and fourteen is required to be enrolled as a pupil of either a public or a registered school. It follows accordingly that the parents of a child of school age are liable to the penalty of £2 provided for if such child is improperly enrolled at other than a public or registered school.

At the end of the year 1928 the number of registered private primary schools was 302, with a total roll number of 26,596 and an average attendance of 23,711 for the year.

REGISTERED PRIVATE SCHOOLS, 1924–28.

Year.	Number of Schools.	Roll at End of Year.			Average Yearly Attendance.	Teachers.
Year.	Number of Schools.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Average Yearly Attendance.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1924	295	11,895	14,407	26,302	23,397	118	804	922
1925	285	11,808	14,125	25,933	22,816	119	788	907
1926	301	12,228	14,550	26,778	23,639	129	860	989
1927	305	12,867	14,491	27,358	23,960	129	873	1,002
1928	302	12,228	14,368	26,596	23,711	141	950	1,091

The following particulars show that the bulk of the scholars concerned attend Roman Catholic schools, the proportion based on roll numbers being 78 per cent. in 1924, 79 per cent. in 1925, 79 per cent. in 1926, 81 per cent, in 1927, and 80 per cent. in 1928.

ROMAN CATHOLIC REGISTERED PRIVATE SCHOOLS, 1924–28.

(Included in preceding table.)

Year.	Number of Schools.	Roll at End of Year.			Average Yearly Attendance.	Teachers.
Year.	Number of Schools.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Average Yearly Attendance.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1924	187	9,685	11,013	20,598	18,330	48	581	629
1925	186	9,590	10,992	20,582	18,008	44	576	620
1926	195	9,966	11,171	21,137	18,742	52	628	680
1927	205	10,501	11,698	22,199	19,416	55	638	693
1928	200	10,071	11,326	21,397	19,111	51	652	703

In addition to the 302 registered primary private schools there were 43 private secondary schools on the register at the end of 1928, with a total roll number of 3,430.

PRIMARY SCHOOLS FOR NATIVES.

The number of Native village schools in operation at the end of 1928 was 134. In addition there are twenty-three private schools at which education for Maori boys and girls is provided. Instruction is imparted by means of the English language only.

On the rolls of the 134 village schools at the 31st December, 1928, there were 6,671 children (including 837 Europeans). The average attendance for the year was 5,964, the percentage of regularity being 88.1, and the average weekly roll number 6,770. The total number of pupils on the rolls of the Native mission schools was 550, and on those of the secondary schools 533. At the end of the year, therefore, the total roll number of all the Native schools inspected by officers of the Education Department was 7,754.

The following table records the development of the Native village schools since the year 1881, when they were transferred from the Native Department to the control of the Education Department. No account is taken of schools which, as the European element in them has become predominant, have been handed over to the various Education Boards.

NATIVE VILLAGE SCHOOLS.—NUMBER, ATTENDANCE, AND TEACHERS, 1881–1928.

Year.	Number of Schools at End of Year.	Mean of Average Weekly Roll.	Average Attendance, Whole Year.	Average Attendance as Percentage of Weekly Roll.	Number of Teachers.
Year.	Number of Schools at End of Year.	Mean of Average Weekly Roll.	Average Attendance, Whole Year.	Average Attendance as Percentage of Weekly Roll.	Males.	Females.
1881	60	..	1,406	..	54	10
1886	69	2,343	2,020	86.2	60	35
1891	66	2,395	1,837	76.7	60	34
1896	74	2,874	2,220	77.3	64	72
1902	98	3,650	3,005	82.3	77	103
1907	99	4,321	3,561	82.4	84	123
1912	108	4,644	4,042	87.0	90	144
1917	118	5,191	4,507	86.8	80	167
1922	127	6,119	5,436	88.8	86	184
1924	125	6,346	5,610	88.4	91	181
1925	128	6,366	5,628	88.4	92	188
1926	130	6,617	5,947	89.8	94	188
1927	134	6,655	5,817	87.4	104	193
1928	134	6,770	5,964	88.1	102	194

The total net expenditure on Native schools during the year ended the 31st March, 1929, was £84,961. Included in this is the sum of £64,422 expended on teachers' and inspectors' salaries, £6,044 expended on new buildings and additions, £3,912 on maintenance of buildings, repairs, &c., and £5,180 on secondary education.

The staffs of the village schools included 85 male and 48 female head or sole teachers, and 163 assistants.

Besides the children of the Maori race who are receiving instruction in the Native schools there are 7,593 attending public schools, so that the total number of primary pupils of Maori race (including those in the mission schools) is 13,977.

JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS.

Since 1923 the Education Department has established eight junior high schools. One of these is attached to a public school, one to a district high school, five to secondary schools, and one is a separate establishment. For statistical purposes the junior department of the Rongotai Boys' College is also included as a junior high school. This junior department consists of two classes of Standard VI pupils who are admitted to the college from the neighbouring schools. Pupils on the roll of junior high schools at the end of 1928 numbered 2,280, as against 2,290 in 1927. The average attendance during the year was 2,221. The ages of the pupils on the roll at the 30th June, 1928, were—

Age, in Years.	Boys.	Girls.	Total.
Under 11	36	34	70
11 and under 12	230	198	428
12 and under 13	375	342	717
13 and under 14	396	304	700
14 and under 15	215	145	360
15 and over	73	47	120
Totals	1,325	1,070	2,395

A total of 737 boys and 640 girls left junior high schools during or at the end of 1928. The probable destinations of those leaving in 1927 and 1928 were—

Probable Destination.^*	1927.		1928.
Probable Destination.^*	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.
* Sec letterpress on page 227.
Continued full time education at some secondary or technical school	342	315	465	362
Commercial (clerical, typing, shop, and warehouse)	55	41	41	58
Trades	71	15	42	2
Agricultural or pastoral	48	..	35	..
Home	47	138	28	133
Miscellaneous	16	20	27	24
Not known	29	18	99	61
Totals	608	547	737	640

SECONDARY EDUCATION.

Until 1904, secondary schools were established by special (local) Acts of the General Assembly, and the bulk of schools giving secondary education have been so constituted. At the present time the provisions of the Education Act, 1914, allow of the Minister of Education establishing such schools, and in general the minimum number of prospective pupils must be sixty in the case of secondary schools, twenty in the case of the secondary department of a district high school, and forty in the case of a technical high school or a day technical school. Secondary schools are controlled by a Board of Governors, district high schools by the Education Board of the district, and technical high schools and day technical schools either by a Board of Managers or by the Education Board of the district acting in a similar capacity. Free places are granted to suitably qualified pupils. A junior free place at a secondary school or a technical high school is tenable for two years, with a possible extension to three years. When held at a district high school it is tenable for three years, provided that in any case a junior free place may not be held after the 31st December of the year in which the holder reaches seventeen years of age. Senior free places are tenable up to the age of nineteen. The Act provides for the award of Junior and Senior National Scholarships of a monetary value of £5 and £10 respectively, supplemented if necessary by a boarding-allowance of £35 and £50 respectively.

In addition to the four classes of institutions referred to above there are also forty-three registered private secondary schools and twelve Maori secondary schools which provide for post-primary education. Two of the eight junior high schools also provide a three-year course, the last year of which is devoted to secondary instruction. The total number of the seven classes of schools providing secondary education during the last five years is set out in the accompanying table.

NUMBER OF INSTITUTIONS PROVIDING SECONDARY EDUCATION, 1924–28.

Year.	Secondary Schools.	Secondary Departments of District High Schools.	Junior High Schools.	Technical High and Technical Day Schools.	Maori Secondary Schools.	Private Secondary Schools.	Total.
1924	37	73	1	22	11	30	174
1925	38	80	2	23	11	29	183
1926	41	77	2	22	12	35	189
1927	43	79	2	21	12	40	197
1928	45	79	2	21	12	43	202

The number of pupils at the end of each year of the last decade is shown in the following table; no account is taken of lower departments of secondary schools, and in the case of district high schools only the secondary department is included.

PUPILS RECEIVING SECONDARY INSTRUCTION AT END OF EACH YEAR, 1919–28.

Year.	Secondary Schools.	District High Schools.	Junior High Schools.	Technical High and Technical Day Schools.	Native Secondary Schools.	Registered Private Secondary Schools.	Total.
1919	9,068	2,159	..	2,926	434	1,497	16,084
1920	9,196	2,157	..	2,766	474	1,439	16,032
1921	10,030	2,176	..	3,349	488	1,634	17,677
1922	10,736	2,606	..	4,202	413	1,998	19,955
1923	11,619	2,818	..	5,054	493	2,134	22,118
1924	12,010	2,900	..	5,369	524	2,473	23,276
1925	12,514	3,136	..	5,132	536	2,511	23,829
1926	13,651	3,162	137	5,700	570	2,794	26,014
1927	14,190	3,443	138	5,703	524	2,932	26,930
1928	15,038	3,673	207	6,061	533	3,430	28,942

The figures for years prior to 1926 are not available in the case of junior high schools. For the years prior to 1926 the figures for technical day schools are not available and accordingly the figures shown for these years under the heading “Technical High and Technical Day Schools” include only the figures in respect of the technical high schools.

It should be pointed out that the foregoing figures give the total scholars enrolled as at the end of the year. In the classes of institution under review, however, some pupils leave before the close of the school year, and the figures shown are therefore on that account a little below the total number of scholars who have received instruction during the year. On the other hand, the total given is somewhat in excess of the total of pupils in average attendance over the whole year.

At the end of 1928, of the total scholars attending secondary schools 8,384 were boys and 6,654 girls; secondary departments of district high schools, 1,889 and 1,784; junior high schools, 92 and 115; technical high schools and technical day schools, 3,293 and 2,768; registered private schools 1,401 and 2,029; and Maori secondary schools 307 and 226.

DESTINATION OF PUPILS LEAVING SECONDARY SCHOOLS.

In 1928 5,456 boys and 4,601 girls left secondary schools, technical high and technical day schools, and secondary departments of district high schools, as against 4,851 and 4,395 respectively, in 1927. The probable destinations of the pupils who left in 1928 are shown in the following table.

Probable Destination.^*	Secondary Schools.		Technical High and Day Schools.		Secondary Departments of District High Schools.		Totals.
Probable Destination.^*	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.
* See letterpress on page 227.
University college	142	78	11	7	6	2	159	87
Teaching or training college	90	253	23	34	24	60	137	347
Clerical—
Government or local body	204	17	74	19	60	4	338	40
Banking and insurance	141	4	18	5	16	..	175	9
Legal	47	3	5	10	3	2	55	15
Commercial	358	401	157	238	48	61	563	750
Engineering, surveying, and architecture	85	..	169	..	30	1	284	1
Various trades and industries	322	49	429	90	117	10	868	149
Shop and warehouse	262	169	224	153	103	69	589	391
Farming	499	..	341	8	294	1	1,134	9
Home	137	1,142	77	730	52	473	266	2,345
Other occupations	45	88	51	43	37	30	133	161
Not known	387	72	290	210	78	15	755	297
Totals	2,719	2,276	1,869	1,597	868	728	5,456	4,601

The percentage of pupils leaving the three classes of schools in 1926, 1927, and 1928, with the intention of proceeding to the various destinations is shown below.

Probable Destination.^*	1926.		1927.		1928.
Probable Destination.^*	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.	Boys.	Girls.
* See letterpress on page 227.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
University college	4	3	4	2	3	2
Teaching or training college	3	6	3	8	3	8
Clerical—
Government or local body	8	1	6	1	6	1
Banking and insurance	4	..	3	..	3	..
Legal	2	..	2	..	1	..
Commercial	11	15	10	14	10	16
Engineering, surveying, and architecture	6	1	6	..	5	..
Various trades and industries	15	2	16	4	16	3
Shop and warehouse	9	7	10	7	11	9
Farming	20	..	19	..	21	..
Home	4	52	4	49	5	51
Other occupations	4	7	2	6	2	4
Not known	10	6	15	9	14	6
Totals	100	100	100	100	100	100

FREE SECONDARY EDUCATION.

Not all of the pupils receiving secondary education hold free places, but of the scholars attending Government schools no less than 97 per cent. were receiving free tuition in 1928. The following table gives, for the last three years, a summary of the various secondary free places for which payment was made by Government. In the case of the year 1926 the position is shown as at the end of the year; for 1927 and 1928 the figures relate to the 30th June.

Class of Free Place.	1926.			1927.			1928.
Class of Free Place.	Boys.	Girls.	Total.	Boys.	Girls.	Total.	Boys.	Girls.	Total.
Secondary schools—
Junior free pupils	4,447	4,167	8,614	5,030	4,694	9,724	5,586	4,893	10,479
Senior free pupils	2,144	1,800	3,944	2,329	1,848	4,177	2,496	1,956	4,452
District high schools—
Junior free pupils	1,198	1,237	2,435	1,526	1,463	2,989	1,741	1,569	3,310
Senior free pupils	243	345	588	375	382	757	372	351	723
Maori secondary schools	65	80	145	65	80	145	67	83	150
Technical high and technical day schools—
Junior free pupils	2,880	2,586	5,466	2,914	2,506	5,420	3,211	2,594	5,805
Senior free pupils	534	523	1,057	523	512	1,035	634	553	1,187
Junior high schools—
Third-year pupils	63	74	137	63	75	138	92	115	207
Totals	11,574	10,812	22,386	12,825	11,560	24,385	14,199	12,114	26,313

NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIPS.

The figures below indicate the number of national scholarship, current in December, 1926, 1927, and 1928, respectively. The number of scholarship holders is, of course, included in the number of free-place holders already shown under the heading of “Free Secondary Education.”

Number of scholarship-holders—	1926.	1927.	1928.
Boys	474	516	503
Girls	329	309	304
Totals	803	825	807
Number receiving boarding-allowance (included in the above total)	165	151	148
Number receiving travelling-allowance (similarly included)	53	49	42
Number held at secondary schools	676	702	664
Number held at district high schools	77	78	98
Number held at technical high schools	50	45	45

WAR BURSARIES FOR SOLDIERS' DEPENDANTS.

Regulations which came into force in January, 1918, provided for the award of bursaries to dependants of killed or disabled members of the New Zealand Expeditionary Forces. To qualify for a war bursary a child must be eligible for—

Free education at technical classes: or
A free place at a secondary school, district high school, or technical high school; or
A University or educational bursary at a University college.

Forty-seven bursaries were in operation in 1928.

STAFFS OF SECONDARY SCHOOLS.

Complete details of the staffs and salaries of the seven classes of schools providing secondary education variable. The following figures are therefore confined to full-time teachers of secondary schools proper, of secondary departments of district high schools, and of technical high and technical day schools:—

Year.	Secondary Schools.			District High Schools.			Technical High and Technical Day Schools.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1924	272	221	493	58	83	141	177	119	296
1925	279	233	512	70	72	142	180	117	297
1926	316	252	568	77	72	149	182	117	299
1927	320	267	587	77	84	161	198	118	316
1928	340	283	623	90	82	172	205	122	327

The range of salaries payable to secondary-school teachers is as follows: Principals—Men, £570 to £860; women, £430 to £670. Assistants—Men, £200 to £520; women, £168 to £408. In the case of technical-school teachers the range is: Principals (all of whom are males), £380 to £860. Assistants—Men, £140 to £525; women, £120 to £408. In addition, in secondary schools and technical schools a married Principal receives house allowance of £60 if a residence is not provided, a head of a department may receive £30, and a married assistant receives £40 per annum. In secondary schools the salaries of Principals are graded according to the size of the school, and the salaries of assistants according to the classification of the position held. In technical schools the salaries of Principals are graded according to the size of the school, and the salaries of assistants are determined on personal grading.

LOWER DEPARTMENTS OF SECONDARY SCHOOLS.

Somewhat analogous to private schools, but on a different basis, are the lower departments of secondary schools. These departments may be held in connection with secondary schools for pupils who have not passed Standard VI, provided that no part of the cost of instruction or of the maintenance of the department is met out of the income from the endowments of the school or from Government grants. Nine secondary schools have lower departments attached to them. Many of the pupils board at the school hostels, indicating that these departments are used by the children of country residents able to afford to send their children away from home to attend school.

The figures relating to the last five years reveal the following particulars regarding the number of pupils and teachers at the end of each year:—

Year.	Number of Schools.	Scholars.			Teachers.
Year.	Number of Schools.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1924	11	216	262	478	5	15	20
1925	8	172	167	339	3	10	13
1926	9	173	287	460	4	12	16
1927	9	167	244	411	4	12	16
1928	9	156	198	354	3	10	13

TECHNICAL EDUCATION.

The Education Act provides for public instruction in such subjects of art, science, and technology as are set forth in regulations Up to the end of 1919 the greater part of the revenue of technical Schools and classes was derived from capitation payments made by the Government on the attendances of pupils, and each Board of Managers or controlling authority was responsible for the fixing of the salaries of its instructors, and the conditions of employment. In 1920, however, capitation payments were to a great extent abolished, and there was substituted a Dominion system of classification of technical-school teachers and manual-training instructors, and a corresponding system of payment of salaries. The abolition of capitation payments also involved making direct provision for the incidental expenses incurred by Technical School Boards and controlling authorities in connection with the schools, and the allowance for these for any school or class was made proportional to the total salaries paid by the Department for that school or class.

Technical classes, other than those at technical high schools or technical day schools, were held at thirty-eight centres during 1928, as compared with forty-one in the previous year. The number of individual students was as follows:—

	1928.
Classes conducted by Education or High School Boards	1,777
Classes conducted by Technical School Boards or by Managers	8,787
Classes conducted by University colleges	399
Total	10,963

Students receiving free education during 1928 at technical classes other than at technical high schools or technical day schools numbered 5,286 (3,384 males and 1,902 females).

Technical high schools numbered fourteen and technical day schools seven in 1928. These schools are of secondary grade, and provide industrial, domestic, agricultural, commercial, and art courses. The courses of instruction taken up by pupils at technical high schools and technical day schools during the last five years were as follows:—

COURSES OF INSTRUCTION AT TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOLS AND TECHNICAL DAY SCHOOLS, 1924–28.

Course.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
*Technical high schools only.
Industrial	1,349	1,331	1,656	1,969	2,034
Commercial and general	2,865	2,731	3,171	3,242	3,451
Domestic	778	744	749	891	1,019
Agricultural	332	280	323	314	359
Art	45	46	64	304	351
Totals	5,369^*	5,132^*	5,963^*	6,720	7,214

Technological examinations were conducted by the Department in 1928 on behalf of the City and Guilds of London Institute at fourteen centres. The total number of entries was 590, and the number of passes was 261. The Education Department also held its own examinations in technological subjects in 1928. The examinations were conducted in 12 centres on account of 71 entrants, 43 of whom were successful in securing passes either in the preliminary or in the intermediate grades. No final examination was conducted in 1928.

Information in regard to free places in technical schools, and probable destination of pupils leaving during the year, is given under the heading of “Secondary Education.”

CHILD WELFARE AND SPECIAL SCHOOLS.

CHILD WELFARE.

The Child Welfare Act of 1925 provided for the creation of a special branch of the Education Department, known as the Child Welfare Branch. The Act was passed to make better provision with respect to the maintenance, care, and control of children who are specially under the protection of the State, and to provide generally for the protection and training of indigent, neglected, or delinquent children.

An important section of the Act provided for the establishment of Children's Courts, to be presided over by Stipendiary Magistrates or Justices specially authorized to exercise jurisdiction in these Courts. Provision was also made for the appointment of honorary associates of either sex, whose function it is to consider all the facts concerning children brought before the Courts and to advise the presiding Magistrate or Justice as to what action should be taken. The appointment of Child Welfare Officers for the investigation of all cases coming before the Courts was also provided for. The functions of such officers are carried out mainly by the regular officers already employed by the Department, but in outlying districts it is hoped to utilize the services of voluntary social service agents for this important work.

The principle of dealing with children in the privacy of the Magistrate's room had been followed for many years past throughout the Dominion, and the Child Welfare Act was designed to give legality to such a practice. Very wide discretionary powers are given to the Magistrates of these special Courts in dealing with children. The ordinary procedure of requiring the child to plead, of taking evidence on oath, and, in fact, of hearing the particular charge may be dispensed with altogether. Wherever practicable the Children's Court is held in premises apart from the ordinary Police Court, and no newspaper is permitted to publish either the names of children appearing before these Courts or any particulars that are likely to identify a child.

A child was originally defined for purposes of the Act as one under sixteen years of age. This age was raised to seventeen in 1927.

In order to provide for the greater protection of infants of unmarried mothers and for the assistance and guidance of the mothers themselves, there is provision for Child Welfare Officers, on being notified of such births, to investigate each case and to render such assistance as is required, either in placing the child in a suitable foster-home or in advising the mother in the matter of affiliation proceedings, or in assisting her in obtaining employment, &c. By an amending Act in 1927 provision was made for the inspection and registration of all private institutions for children.

In addition to the work in connection with the maintenance and education of destitute, neglected, and delinquent children committed by the Counts, the Child Welfare Branch (1) supervises all infants and young children under the age of six years who are living apart from their parents: (2) makes inquiry through its field officers, for the information of Magistrates, of all applications for the adoption of children and for widows' pensions; (3) supervises all children and young persons placed under the field officers by order of the Court; and (4) provides for the maintenance, education, and training of all afflicted children who are deaf, blind, or feeble-minded, or have speech-defects.

The following figures indicate the numbers under control during each year from 1924 to 1928 inclusive:—

Boarded out, industrial schools, and receiving-homes	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
	3,784	3,859	3,908	4,014	4,287
Under supervision	376	323	412	493	678
Infant-life protection	704	771	878	902	1,007
Deaf children	97	116	121	122	117
Feeble-minded children	233	283	273	285	275
Totals	5,194	5,352	5,592	5,816	6,364

SUPERVISION BY CHILD WELFARE OFFICERS.

The Child Welfare Act authorizes Children's Courts to place children under the supervision of Child Welfare Officers in cases where it appears undesirable or unnecessary to remove them from their own homes, and generally in all cases where friendly contact with the parents as well as the children is sufficient to bring about a readjustment of the home conditions or the correction of incipient anti-social traits in the children. In this important work the Department receives valuable assistance from certain of the private social service organizations, notably the Y.M.C.A. through its Big Brother movement commenced in Auckland a few years ago, and now extended to most of the centres of population throughout the Dominion.

The number of cases dealt with by the Courts last year was 2,023, and of these 533 were placed under supervision and dealt with as indicated in the foregoing paragraph.

The number actually admitted to institutions, such as receiving homes, special schools, training-farms, &c., was 650; but all these, with the exception of 121 who required long periods of training or were regarded as unfit for placing-out, were suitably provided for in the community before the close of the year. The remainder of the children were dealt with in a summary manner not calling for supervision by a Child Welfare Officer.

CHILDREN BOARDED OUT.

At the end of the year 1928 the number of children boarded out in foster-homes was 2,122, as compared with 1,981 at the end of the preceding year. The boarding-out rate is 17s. 6d. per week for infants under twelve months, and 15s. for children over that age still attending school. The department provides free medical and dental treatment and medicines, also school books and stationery.

BOYS' TRAINING FARM.

The Boys' Training Farm at Weraroa provides for boys of all ages—usually from twelve years upwards—who require a period of reformative detention in an institution.

CARE OF THE MENTALLY BACKWARD.

An institution at Otekaike is available for the education of feebly-minded boys. Older lads, under capable supervision, are employed in farm-work, garden and orchard work, and in the bootmaking, basketmaking, matmaking, and carpentering shops. Girls are provided for at the Special School at Richmond, and employed in housework and laundry-work, sewing, knitting, &c., and in outside occupations, such as gardening and flower-growing.

In order to deal with pupils who are of somewhat subnormal mentality, special classes to the number of twenty have been established in connection with some of the primary schools in the larger centres. There were on 30th June, 1928, 386 pupils (241 boys and 145 girls) in attendance at these classes. In the classes a special curriculum is offered, including a large amount of manual training and handwork occupations.

INFANT-LIFE PROTECTION.

This work is carried out under the supervision of trained nurses who are fully qualified in the care and feeding of infants and young children. A great many infants dealt with under this system are illegitimate.

DEAF CHILDREN AND CHILDREN WITH SPEECH-DEFECTS.

A residential school at Sumner exists for the teaching of deaf children, and special classes are established in the main centres for the education of the hard-of-hearing children and for the correction of defective speech among children. Classes are also conducted for adults.

BLIND CHILDREN.

Provision is made for blind children and also for blind adults at the Jubilee Institute for the Blind at Auckland.

HIGHER EDUCATION.

NEW ZEALAND UNIVERSITY.

Control of higher education in New Zealand is vested in the New Zealand University, founded by the New Zealand University Acts of 1870, 1874, and 1875. In 1876 the University was recognized by Royal charter as entitled to grant the degrees of Bachelor and Master of Arts, and Bachelor and Doctor of Laws, of Medicine, and of Music. The Amendment Act of 1883, and the supplementary charter issued in December of the same year, added the degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Science. Further additions have been made from time to time, and the Council of the University now has power to confer the following degrees:—

Bachelor and Master of Agricultural Science.
Bachelor and Master of Architecture.
Bachelor and Master of Forestry Science.
Bachelor and Master of Home Science.
Bachelor and Master of Medical Science.
Bachelor and Master of Veterinary Science.
Bachelor and Master of Arts.
Bachelor and Master of Commerce.
Bachelor and Master of Engineering.
Bachelor and Master of Surgery.
Doctor of Literature.
Doctor of Philosophy.
Bachelor and Doctor of Dental Surgery.
Bachelor and Doctor of Medicine.
Bachelor and Doctor of Music.
Bachelor, Master, and Doctor of Laws.
Bachelor, Master, and Doctor of Science.

The Council also has power to confer the honorary degrees of Doctor of Laws, Doctor of Science, Doctor of Literature, and Doctor of Music; diplomas in public health, education, journalism, and fine arts; also such other diplomas as may be provided for in any statute made by the Council pursuant to law.

The University was formerly an examining, not a teaching body, with four teaching institutions affiliated to it—the Auckland University College, founded in 1882; Victoria University College, founded in 1897 at Wellington; Canterbury University College, founded in 1873 at Christchurch; and Otago University, founded in 1869 at Dunedin. By the New Zealand University Amendment Act, 1926, the constitution of the University has been altered so that it now actually consists of the four University Colleges. Each of the colleges, besides providing the usual University courses, specializes in certain directions: Otago University has medical and dental schools, a school of mining and metallurgical engineering, and a school of home science; Canterbury University College has a school of engineering (mechanical, electrical, and civil); Auckland University College has a school of mines, a school of commerce, and a school of engineering up to and including the second professional examination; and Victoria University College specializes in law and science. Auckland University College and Canterbury University College have each a School of Forestry. There are also two Agricultural Colleges—viz., Massey and Lincoln, attached to the University.

The constituent colleges receive annual statutory Government grants towards meeting the expenses of their general maintenance. These grants are now as follows: Auckland University College, £13,750; Victoria University College, £11,750; Canterbury University College, £6,000; Otago University, £15,350. The colleges are also in receipt of rents from endowments, Canterbury University College and Otago University being the most richly endowed.

The growth of University education is seen from the annexed table. In 1928 there were 4,255 students actually in attendance at the four University colleges. Of these, 294 were graduates, 3,335 undergraduates, and 626 unmatriculated students. In addition there were 547 students attached to the various University colleges, but exempt from lectures. There were also 53 students taking an agricultural course of University grade at the Lincoln Agricultural College, and 9 at Massey Agricultural College.

STUDENTS ON BOOKS OF AFFILIATED COLLEGES, 1919–28.

Year.	Attending Lectures.		Exempt Students.		Total.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1919	1,831	1,130	83	16	3,060
1920	2,327	1,345	122	28	3,822
1921	2,524	1,400	157	42	4,123
1922	2,591	1,092	231	44	3,958
1923	2,745	1,113	281	63	4,202
1924	2,723	1,085	348	80	4,236
1925	2,844	1,105	386	107	4,442
1926	2,875	1,212	443	123	4,653
1927	3,014	1,348	397	119	4,878
1928	2,975	1,280	435	112	4,802

It will be noted that a very considerable increase has taken place in the total number of students over the decennium.

Professors and lecturers attached to the various University Colleges in 1928 were:—

University College.	Professors	Lecturers and Assistants.
Auckland	19	30
Victoria	15	19
Canterbury	15	36
Otago	25	68
Totals	74	153

FREE UNIVERSITY EDUCATION.

University Junior Scholarships are of the value of £25 per annum plus tuition fees, and are tenable for three years. In the case of holders living away from home a further sum of £35 per annum is allowed. The University National Scholarships are of the value of £25 per annum plus tuition fees, and are tenable for three years. Holders living away from home receive a boarding allowance of £35 per annum. The number of junior and national scholarships gained in 1928 was thirty. Taranaki Scholarships are of the annual value of £60, and the Senate may, at its discretion, extend the tenure from three to four years. There are also some thirty or forty local and privately endowed scholarships awarded on the results of the same entrance examination.

Scholarships awarded during the degree course are the Senior University, Sir George Grey, and John Tinline Scholarships. The various colleges have also private scholarships for which their own students may compete. The chief scholarships awarded at the end of the University course are the Rhodes Scholarships, the 1851 Exhibition Scholarship, the Medical Travelling Scholarship, the Engineering Travelling Scholarship, the Post-graduate Travelling Scholarships, the French Travelling Scholarship, the Law Travelling Scholarship, and the National Research Scholarships. All except the last-named are tenable abroad. The Research Scholarships are each of the value of £180 per annum, with an allowance not exceeding £25 for necessary books or apparatus.

So far thirty-three Rhodes Scholarships have been granted, of which eight have been gained by students of Auckland University College, nine by students of Victoria University College, nine by students of Otago University, and seven by students of Canterbury University College.

The Science Research Scholarship offered annually by the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 has been awarded to twenty-eight graduates, nine from Auckland University College, seven from Victoria University College, five from Canterbury College, and seven from the University of Otago.

University bursaries entitle the holders to the payment of tuition and examination fees (not exceeding £20 per annum) during a three (or possibly four) years' course at a University college or at a school of agriculture recognized by the University. The number of University bursaries held in 1928 was 1,061. The number of educational bursaries under the Education Act, 1914, held in 1928 was 66. Domestic-science bursaries, tenable at the Otago University, may be awarded under the regulations for technical instruction. Bursaries of this kind were awarded to 10 students in 1928, making 56 bursars in attendance at classes. Training-college studentships also carry tuition at University classes, and the completion of a training-college course is one of the grounds on which an educational bursary may be awarded for further University study.

Agricultural bursaries may be awarded to qualified candidates in order to enable them to obtain the necessary practical training for positions as teachers or instructors of agriculture. During 1928 five bursars were in attendance at Lincoln Agricultural College, Canterbury, five at Massey Agricultural College, and five at a University college.

From the table given below will be seen the number of students who received free University education during each of the last ten years:—

Year.	Junior University, University National, and Taranaki Scholarships.	Senior University Scholarships.	University and Educational Bursaries.	Training-college Studentships.	Other.	Total.
1919	100	19	507	586	136	1,348
1920	99	18	631	735	116	1,599
1921	99	13	705	774	65	1,656
1922	88	12	616	771	91	1,578
1923	89	14	694	650	64	1,511
1924	91	13	828	564	81	1,577
1925	90	13	885	574	106	1,668
1926	87	14	946	571	132	1,750
1927	83	18	1,076	749	149	2,075
1928	81	20	1,127	567	98	1,893

The outstanding feature of the above table is the number of University and educational bursaries which are now awarded as compared with a period of ten years ago. This is due to a marked widening of the bursary regulations. The courses of an increasing number of secondary-school pupils are now continued to comply with the conditions under which bursaries may be awarded.

WORKERS' EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION.

The Workers' Educational Association, which works in conjunction with the four University colleges, conducts tutorial and preliminary classes for working men and women in such subjects as economics, sociology, psychology, industrial history, English literature, English composition, modern history, electricity, hygiene, &c. Members of the staffs of the University colleges and other educationists act as tutors of the classes. The classes are held for the most part in the large cities, although to an increasing extent classes are being arranged in the smaller towns. The Government contributes directly £3,500 per annum to the movement, in addition to which £1,250 paid by the Government out of the National Endowment Fund to the University of New Zealand is devoted to the same object, making a total of £4,750. Voluntary contributions received by the University colleges on account of the association's classes are also subsidized by the Government.

ANNUAL EXAMINATIONS.

Examinations are conducted by the Education Department for the various purposes of Junior and Senior National Scholarships, of junior and senior free places in secondary schools, district high schools, and technical schools, and of teachers' certificates. Also, by arrangement with the Public Service Commissioner, examinations are held for admission to and promotion in the Public Service. In 1928 the Education Department also held an examination in technological subjects.

The number of candidates who actually presented themselves for the various examinations conducted by the Education Department during the last five years is given below.

Examination.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Junior National Scholarships and junior free places	2,481	2,687	2,775	2,791	1,456
Public Service Entrance, Senior National Scholarships, and Intermediate	5,192	5,097	4,759	4,386	4,570
Teachers' D and C	3,353	3,393	2,689	2,384	2,086
Kindergarten Certificate Examination	3	3	4	10	14
Mid-year Public Service Entrance Examination	162	121	219	..	..
London University Examinations	1	2	2	1	1
Handicraft Teachers' Certificate	..	14	13	13	17
Technological Examinations	..	..	..	..	51
Naval Cadetships	..	..	..	..	2
Totals	11,192	11,317	10,461	9,585	8,197

The University conducted examinations in 1928 in the faculties of arts, science, medicine, public health, dentistry, home science, law, engineering, commerce, agriculture, and music, and for admission to the legal and accountancy professions. There were 6,204 entrants for the degree examinations in 1928, compared with 6,371 in 1927. The number of candidates for matriculation in the last five years has been: 1924, 4,932; 1925, 5,338; 1926, 5,592; 1927, 5,287; 1928, 5,524.

PUBLIC EXPENDITURE ON EDUCATION.

Out of public funds no less a sum than £3,886,358 was spent for the financial year ended 31st March, 1929. The public funds referred to, however, include not only the amount appropriated by parliamentary vote, but also sums paid from primary-education reserves revenue. Nor does this represent the whole amount expended on education in the Dominion. In the case of certain secondary schools and University colleges a considerable revenue from endowments, fees, &c., is received and becomes available for educational purposes. The figures given below relate only to direct expenditure on education from the public purse. Figures for the last five years, analysed according to the various branches of expenditure, are—

EDUCATION EXPENDITURE, YEARS ENDED 31ST MARCH, 1925–29.

Service.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	£	£	£	£	£
General administration	34,522	37,328	37,529	39,103	38,165
Elementary education	2,432,880	2,486,374	2,505,675	2,464,367	2,562,341
Secondary education	363,836	407,915	466,739	434,685	413,181
Technical instruction	194,494	209,183	213,065	219,343	224,274
Training colleges, &c.	204,869	203,860	168,190	159,888	166,221
Higher education	149,429	183,434	219,211	157,235	165,849
Native schools	72,490	79,382	80,709	88,590	84,961
School for the deaf	5,629	5,936	6,402	5,770	6,290
Education of the blind	15,128	10,177	5,058	1,771	1,350
Schools for the feeble-minded	8,886	12,363	13,113	11,175	17,219
Industrial schools and probation system	85,247	87,387	104,399	104,638	122,662
Material and stores	Cr. 5,759	Cr. 1,451	Cr. 1,887	Cr. 226	Cr. 129
Miscellaneous services	81,132	92,546	92,038	83,630	83,974
Totals	3,642,783	3,814,434	3,910,241	3,769,969	3,886,358

There is now given a series of comparative figures which show the increase in the cost of education since the beginning of the present century. The table following show the expenditure in thousands of pounds, and the rate per unit of mean population:—

COST OF EDUCATION, 1898–99 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March.	Expenditure from Public Funds.	Expenditure per Head of Mean Population.
	(£1,000)	s.	d.
1899	519	13	4
1904	679	15	7
1909	980	19	7
1914	1,301	23	1
1919	1,986	34	1
1924	3,247	48	8
1925	3,643	53	7
1926	3,814	54	10
1927	3,910	55	1
1928	3,770	52	4
1929	3,886	53	3

The exceptionally marked increase of recent years in the total cost of education is in a large measure due to the increase in the numbers receiving instruction, this being particularly marked in the case of post-primary schools. In the last decade the school population has increased by 17 per cent. Combined with this factor, rendering increased expenditure inevitable, the purchasing-power of money has, of course, decreased enormously since pre-war years, so that much of the increase in cost is more apparent than real.

Chapter 9. SECTION IX.—JUSTICE.

Table of Contents

CIVIL CASES.

SUPREME COURT: CIVIL JURISDICTION.

CRIMINAL CASES IN MAGISTRATES' COURTS.

TOTAL CASES.

MAGISTRATES' COURTS.—TOTAL CASES, 1919–28.

SUMMARY CONVICTIONS, 1919–28.

PUNISHMENT ON SUMMARY CONVICTION.

MAGISTRATES' COURTS.—PUNISHMENTS ON SUMMARY CONVICTION, 1928.

DISTINCT CASES.

MAGISTRATES' COURTS.—TOTAL AND DISTINCT CASES, 1927 AND 1928.

ARREST AND SUMMONS CASES.

ARREST CASES.

OFFENCES, BIRTHPLACES, AND AGES.

CONVICTIONS IN ARREST CASES, 1928.

CRIMINAL CASES IN SUPREME COURT.

SUPREME COURT.—DISTINCT PERSONS, 1924–28.

SUPREME COURT.—SUMMARY OF OFFENCES, 1924–28.

SUPREME COURT.—TRIAL AND SENTENCE CASES, BY CLASS OF OFFENCE, 1928.

SUPREME COURT.—OFFENCES AND PUNISHMENTS OF DISTINCT PERSONS, 1928.

COURT OF APPEAL.

PRISONS AND PRISONERS.

PERSONS IN GAOL (31ST DECEMBER).

DISTINCT PRISONERS RECEIVED UNDER SENTENCE, 1919–28.

AGES AND SEXES OF DISTINCT PRISONERS RECEIVED INTO PRISON UNDER SENTENCE DURING 1928.

BIRTHPLACES AND OFFENCES OF DISTINCT PRISONERS RECEIVED INTO PRISON UNDER SENTENCE DURING 1928.

AGES AND OFFENCES OF DISTINCT PRISONERS RECEIVED INTO PRISON UNDER SENTENCE DURING 1928.

AGES AND PREVIOUS CONVICTIONS OF DISTINCT PRISONERS RECEIVED INTO PRISON UNDER SENTENCE DURING 1928.

OFFENCES AND GRAVEST PREVIOUS OFFENCES OF DISTINCT PRISONERS RECEIVED INTO PRISON UNDER SENTENCE, 1928.

BORSTAL INSTITUTIONS.

HABITUAL CRIMINALS AND REFORMATIVE DETENTION.

PRISONS BOARD.

PROBATION.

JUVENILE OFFENDERS.

MAGISTRATES' COURTS.—JUVENILE CASES, 1919–28.

MAGISTRATES' COURTS.—PUNISHMENTS OF JUVENILE OFFENDERS, 1928.

OFFENCES BY WOMEN.

OFFENCES BY NEW ZEALAND BORN.

OFFENCES AND AGES.—NEW ZEALAND BORN ONLY (INCLUDING MAORIS).

AGES OF DISTINCT NEW ZEALAND BORN CONVICTED PRISONERS RECEIVED INTO PRISON, 1924–28.

OFFENCES BY MAORIS.

SUMMARY CONVICTIONS OF MAORIS (MAGISTRATES' COURTS), 1919–28.

AGES AND OFFENCES OF DISTINCT MAORIS CONVICTED (ARRESTS ONLY), 1928.

DRUNKENNESS.

CONVICTIONS FOR DRUNKENNESS, 1919–28.

BIRTHPLACES AND AGES OF PERSONS CONVICTED FOR DRUNKENNESS (ARRESTS ONLY), 1928.

CONSUMPTION OF BEER, WINE, AND SPIRITS PER HEAD OF MEAN POPULATION.

TRAFFIC OFFENCES.

MAGISTRATES' COURTS.—TRAFFIC OFFENCES, 1928.

CIVIL CASES.

THE ordinary civil jurisdiction of Magistrates' Courts is limited generally to claims not exceeding £200. Justices of the Peace may hear and decide certain civil cases when the sum in dispute does not exceed £20. The numbers of plaints entered and of cases tried, and the amounts sued for and for which judgment was recorded, in the lower Courts during the ten years 1919–28 are shown in the following table:—

Year.	Plaints entered.		Cases tried.
Year.	Number.	Total Amount sued for.	Number.	Total Amount claimed.	Total Amount for which Judgment entered.
		£		£	£
1919	38,775	619,576	24,680	385,020	319,135
1920	46,601	787,524	28,999	467,665	399,219
1921	59,339	1,169,286	39,013	762,605	654,863
1922	65,629	1,279,890	44,296	936,673	786,373
1923	66,659	1,236,160	45,837	857,903	717,516
1924	74,435	1,255,754	50,778	878,945	737,045
1925	73,192	1,172,167	48,436	821,093	666,721
1926	81,061	1,333,941	54,010	933,269	762,172
1927	83,369	1,400,129	55,676	960,549	786,299
1928	85,243	1,463,769	55,751	951,916	774,912

It would appear that the practice of using the Courts as media for the collection of small debts is growing. For instance, the number of cases tried in Magistrates' Courts in 1900 was 19,816, the aggregate sum sued for being £286,719. Although the population of the Dominion increased between 1900 and 1913 by little more than 40 per cent., the number of cases tried in 1913 (39,965) represents an increase of over 100 per cent. in the thirteen years. From 1914 to 1919 successive declines, probably occasioned by war causes, were recorded; in 1920 increases are shown, both in the number of cases tried and the amounts concerned; while the figures for each of the years 1921–1928 show an abnormally large increase in litigation by comparison with any year prior to 1921. This is especially the case with the 1928 figures, the number of plaints entered and cases tried being the highest on record. The total amount sued for is also the highest yet recorded, while the amount claimed in cases tried has been exceeded once only (1927), and the amount recovered twice (1922 and 1927).

The numbers of actions commenced, cases tried, and judgments entered, together with the total amount for which judgments were recorded, in the Supreme Court of New Zealand during each of the ten years 1919–28 were as follows:—

SUPREME COURT: CIVIL JURISDICTION.

Year.	Number of Actions commenced.	Cases tried.		Judgments recorded.
Year.	Number of Actions commenced.	With Jury.	Without Jury.	Number.	Amount.
					£
1919	783	72	227	238	88,144
1920	915	91	329	262	96,017
1921	1,536	126	334	557	244,942
1922	1,431	115	408	748	316,533
1923	1,172	92	320	654	300,698
1924	1,780	93	429	853	358,880
1925	1,724	60	407	776	303,319
1926	1,826	43	496	882	344,198
1927	1,826	52	506	935	316,936
1928	1,433	41	370	683	270,632

DIVORCE.

The provisions as to dissolution of marriage are contained in the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Act, 1928, which consolidates and amends the then existing legislation on the subject.

Divorce was first made the subject of judicial proceedings by the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Act, 1867—substantially a paraphrase of the English Act of 1857 and its earlier amendments. Prior to that date a divorce was a subject with which it was competent for the Legislature to deal by means of ad hoc legislation; but it does not appear that this was ever done in New Zealand.

By section 17 of the 1867 Act adultery on the part of the wife was the only grounds for a husband's petition for divorce, while the grounds for a petition on the part of the wife were aggravated adultery and adultery coupled with cruelty or with desertion.

The first divergence from the English law was the Divorce Act, 1898, which repealed section 17 of the 1867 Act. The grounds then introduced instituted an equality between the sexes, and comprised—

Adultery.
Wilful desertion for five years (amended in 1919 to three years).
Habitual drunkenness for four years coupled (in case of wife's petition) with cruelty to or failure to support the wife, or coupled (in case of husband's petition) with neglect of and unfitness to discharge domestic duties.
Sentence of seven years' imprisonment for attempting to take the life of the petitioner or a child of petitioner or respondent (altered in 1920 to attempting to murder or wounding or doing actual bodily harm to the petitioner or a child).

A further ground of divorce was also created by section 17 of the 1898 Act enacting that failure to comply with a degree for the restitution of conjugal rights should be deemed desertion without reasonable cause, and should enable the institution of a suit for dissolution of marriage on the ground of desertion. Inasmuch as decrees for restitution of conjugal rights were sometimes obtained by applicants who did not genuinely desire such restitution, but merely with the intent that the decree should be disobeyed and should become the foundation of a suit for dissolution, this ground became in effect a means of obtaining a consensual divorce without the existence of any matrimonial offence in the stricter sense. Such a condition being regarded as contrary to the views relating to divorce then held by the Legislature, this ground of divorce was repealed by the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Act Amendment Act, 1907, accrued rights being protected. It was afterwards thought desirable to restore it, by section 3 of the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Amendment Act, 1920.

In 1907 the following further grounds were introduced:—

Murder of a child of petitioner or respondent.
Insanity and confinement as a lunatic for ten out of twelve years preceding the petition.

Section 6 of the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Amendment Act, 1913, introduced the principle of “constructive desertion” on the part of a husband, which had already to some extent been recognized by judicial decisions.

Section 3 of the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Amendment Act, 1919, made special provision facilitating the divorce of women, being natural-horn British subjects, from husbands of enemy origin absent from New Zealand. This section was repealed by the War Disabilities Removal Act, 1927.

The Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Amendment Act, 1920, introduced the important new principle of a consensual divorce, separation for not less than three years (a) under a decree of judicial separation, (b) under a summary separation order, (c) under a deed or agreement of separation, or (d) by mutual consent being a ground for dissolution of marriage. The period of unsoundness of mind necessary as a ground of divorce was reduced to seven years, subject to certain limitations.

By the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Amendment Act, 1921–22, the power of granting a divorce consequent upon a separation was taken away where the petition is opposed by the respondent and the Court is satisfied that the separation was due to the wrongful act or conduct of the petitioner.

The consolidated statute of 1928 makes no new grounds, but clarifies the position in regard to collusion and connivance, and extends the rule as to retention of domicile by a deserted wife so as to apply to a wife who has been separated from her husband by agreement or otherwise.

During the year 1928, 785 petitions for dissolution of marriage (including 9 for nullity) were filed. This number was 63 more than in 1927, and has only once been exceeded—viz., in 1921, when the number was 796.

In 490 of the cases in 1928 decrees nisi were granted, 211 of these being made absolute during the year. In addition, decrees nisi were granted in respect of 163 petitions filed in previous years, 119 of these being made absolute before the end of the year, and 242 decrees nisi of previous years became absolute. The total number of decrees nisi for the year 1928 was thus 653, and the total number of decrees absolute 572.

In addition, 5 petitions for judical separation and 109 for restitution of conjugal rights were filed. Three decrees were granted in the former class, and 79 in the latter.

Figures showing the operations of the Supreme Court in its divorce jurisdiction during each of the last ten years are as follows:—

Year.	Dissolution or Nullity of Marriage.			Judicial Separation.		Restitution of Conjugal Rights.
Year.	Petitions flied.	Decrease Nisi.	Decrees Absolute.	Petitions filed.	Decrees for Separation.	Petitions filed.	Decrees for Restitution.
1919	675	479	336	5	1	2	..
1920	748	574	469	9	2	4	..
1921	796	660	511	5	2	68	43
1922	643	43	522	4	1	88	57
1923	666	603	522	5	2	77	56
1924	768	651	526	11	4	94	65
1925	723	605	612	12	4	73	59
1926	739	624	614	8	2	86	62
1927	722	629	540	4	1	91	72
1928	785	653	572	5	3	109	79

The number of decrees nisi during 1928 (653) has been exceeded only once, the greatest number recorded in a single year being 660 in 1921. The number of decrees absolute (572) is 42 less than the total for 1926, which holds the record, but 32 in -excess of the 1927 total.

The following table summarizes divorce figures for each of the last five years.

—	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Petitions filed during the year	768	723	739	722	785
Decrees on petitions filed during year—
Absolute	199	200	206	202	211
Nisi, not made absolute during year	283	224	244	261	279
Decrees on petitions filed in previous years—
Absolute, following on nisi in previous years	211	275	264	231	249
Absolute, following on nisi during year	116	137	144	107	119
Nisi, not made absolute during year	53	44	30	59	44
Total decrees during year—
Absolute	526	612	614	540	572
Nisi	651	605	624	629	653
Petitions dismissed or withdrawn—
Filed during year	14	14	15	16	17
Filed in previous years	6	10	16	9	11
Petitions, filed during year, not heard	274	285	274	243	278

In 668 of the cases covered by petitions filed during 1928 the parties had been married in New Zealand. In 519 cases the marriage had been solemnized by a clergyman, and in 266 cases (34 per cent.) by a Registrar of Marriages or other civil official. Civil marriages constituted 19 1/2 per cent. of those solemnized in New Zealand in 1928.

The following table gives information as to class and place of marriage in respect of divorce petitions filed in each of the last ten years:—

Year.	Husbands' Petitions.				Wives' Petitions.				Totals.
	Married by a Clergyman.		Married before a Registrar or other Civil Official.		Married by a Clergyman.		Married before a Registrar or other Civil Official.
	In New Zealand.	Outside New Zealand.	In New Zealand.	Outside New Zealand.	In New Zealand.	Outside New Zealand.	In New Zealand.	Outside New-Zealand.
*Including one petition (by wife) for which no particulars available.
1919	175	29	109	13	222	19	101	7	675
1920	193	30	94	12	268	35	108	8	748
1921	242	50	103	6	249	23	118	5	796
1922	173	43	63	15	215	27	100	7	643
1923	179	36	88	9	200	35	112	6	666^*
1924	208	54	71	10	267	34	113	11	768
1925	178	42	103	13	238	30	111	8	723
1926	187	40	96	12	228	36	130	10	739
1927	197	40	89	16	215	33	121	11	722
1928	205	36	93	34	244	34	126	13	785

The next table gives information as to grounds of petition, not only in respect of petitions filed during 1928, but also for petitions where decrees were granted during the year:—

Grounds.	Petitions, filed in 1928.		Petitions where Decree nisi granted in 1928.		Petitions where Decree Absolute granted in 1928.
Grounds.	Husbands' Petitions.	Wives' Petitions.	Husbands' Petitions.	Wives' Petitions.	Husbands' Petitions.	Wives' Petitions.
Adultery	111	74	76	64	80	52
Bigamy	1	2	..	2	..	2
Desertion	110	125	91	109	75	92
Desertion and drunkenness	..	1	..	1	..	1
Desertion, drunkenness, and cruelty	..	1	..	1	..	..
Drunkenness	4	5	4	2	2	1
Drunkenness and cruelty	..	10	..	7	..	5
Drunkenness, cruelty, and failure to maintain	..	1	..	2	..	3
Drunkenness and failure to maintain	..	..	..	..	..	4
Insanity	1	2	2	2	3	..
Malformation	2	4	1	3	1	3
Non-compliance with order for restitution of conjugal rights
	35	26	30	20	26	16
Separation for not less than three years	86	181	69	162	80	121
Separation and desertion	1	2	1	2	3	2
Totals	351	434	274	377	270	302

The figures shown for decrees nisi include cases where both nisi and absolute decrees were granted during the year, and those for decrees absolute cover all such granted during the year whether the antecedent decree nisi was granted in 1928 or in a previous year.

The following table shows the average age of husband and wife and the average duration of marriage (at time of filing petition) in all cases where the decree absolute was granted in 1928. In 9 cases information as to age was not available for one or both parties.

Grounds.	Average Age at Marriage.		Average Age at filing of Petition.		Average Duration of Marriage.
Grounds.	Husband.	Wife.	Husband.	Wife.	Average Duration of Marriage.
Husbands' Petitions.
	Years.	Years.	Years.	Years.	Years.
Adultery	27.2	23.0	37.0	32.8	9.8
Desertion	27.0	22.8	40.5	36.3	13.5
Non-compliance with restitution order	30.2	25.6	40.3	35.7	10.1
Separation for not less than three years	27.2	24.7	40.9	38.4	13.7
Other grounds	28.9	24.9	43.4	39.4	14.5
Totals, husbands' petitions	27.4	23.7	39.5	35.8	12.1
Wives' Petitions.
Adultery	24.8	22.0	35.4	32.6	10.6
Desertion	29.2	25.0	40.8	36.6	11.6
Non-compliance with restitution order	24.9	22.1	35.0	32.2	9.2
Separation for not less than three years	28.0	23.0	42.2	37.2	14.2
Other grounds	31.8	27.8	44.1	40.1	12.3
Totals, wives' petitions	28.2	23.9	40.3	36.4	12.5
Grand totals	27.8	23.9	40.3	36.4	12.5

As might naturally be expected, the duration of marriage and the age at filing are, on the average, considerably less in adultery cases than in those where desertion or separation is the ground.

The averages give a good general idea of the relative ages of husband and wife, but do not bring out the effect of disparities between the ages of the two parties. The following table remedies this defect, and throws further light on the question of the age factor. As in the case of the preceding table the figures relate to petitions in respect of which a decree absolute was granted in 1928.

Age of Wife (at Marriage).	Husband.									Total
	Younger than Wife.	Same Age as Wife.	Older than Wife by						Age not stated.
	Younger than Wife.	Same Age as Wife.	1 Year.	2 Years.	3 Years.	4 Years.	5–9 Years.	10 Years or over	Age not stated.
15	..	..	..	..	..	3	1	..	..	4
16	..	..	..	2	..	1	4	..	..	7
17	..	..	..	1	1	4	12	3	..	21
18	..	2	1	2	5	8	24	8	1	51
19	2	..	2	9	8	10	20	9	..	60
20	1	2	6	6	7	11	15	2	..	50
21	5	13	3	9	9	12	20	12	..	83
22	10	7	6	8	3	1	15	2	..	52
23	13	3	10	7	2	5	4	3	..	47
24	11	4	3	3	4	1	8	3	..	37
25	3	3	1	2	1	1	4	2	..	17
26	12	2	1	1	..	..	6	6	..	28
27	6	..	2	1	..	2	5	2	..	18
28	3	1	..	1	2	..	3	3	..	13
29	3	1	2	..	..	..	..	1	..	7
30–34	15	2	2	3	1	1	6	6	..	36
35–39	11	2	1	..	..	..	..	4	..	18
40 and over	9	..	1	1	..	..	2	..	..	13
Not stated	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	2	8	10
Totals	104	42	41	56	43	60	149	68	9	572

At first glance the table discloses three prominent points—viz., the high proportion of (1) cases where the wife was very young at marriage; (2) cases where young women had married men considerably their senior: and (3) cases where women somewhat older than this class had married men younger than themselves. On a comparison with the marriage tables for the year 1928, however, the first-mentioned point is found to be easily the most important, followed by the third, the percentage under the second head being only slightly greater in the divorce figures than in those of the marriages. A study of the following percentages suggests that the mere age of the bride is a much more important factor than disparities between the ages of husband and wife, and, further, that even a comparatively wide disparity when the husband is the senior is of less effect than is the case when the wife is the senior by perhaps only two or three years.

—	Marriages.	Divorces.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Cases where wife under 23 at marriage	40	58
Cases where husband younger than wife—
Wife under 23 at marriage	4	5
Wife 23 or over at marriage	27	35
Total	18	18
Cases where husband older than wife by five years or over—
Wife under 23 at marriage	44	45
Wife 23 or over at marriage	31	29
Total	36	38

A table is next given showing for the year 1928 the grounds of petitions, in combination with particulars as to the number of living issue.

Grounds.	Number of Cases in which Number of Living Issue was								Total Number of Cases.
Grounds.	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7 or over.	Total Number of Cases.
Adultery—
Husbands' petitions	25	31	23	11	8	9	2	2	111
Wives' petitions	15	23	13	8	6	2	5	2	74
Bigamy	2	..	1	..	..	..	..	..	3
Desertion—
Husbands' petitions	42	30	19	10	3	1	1	4	110
Wives' petitions	45	35	18	9	7	8	2	1	125
Desertion and drunkenness	..	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	1
Desertion, drunkenness, and cruelty	..	..	1	..	..	..	..	..	1
Drunkenness	3	..	3	1	1	..	1	..	9
Drunkenness and cruelty	2	1	3	1	..	2	..	1	10
Drunkenness, cruelty, and failure to maintain	..	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	1
Insanity	..	1	..	2	..	..	..	..	3
Malformation	6	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	6
Non-compliance with order for restitution of conjugal rights—
Husbands' petitions	17	5	5	3	2	2	..	1	35
Wives' petitions	12	6	3	3	2	..	..	..	26
Separation for not less than three years—
Husbands' petitions	27	19	22	8	4	4	2	..	86
Wives' petitions	33	64	37	30	10	3	2	2	181
Separation and desertion	2	..	1	..	..	..	..	..	3
Totals	231	217	149	86	43	31	15	13	785

In six cases the number of living issue was 7, in five cases 8, in one case 9, and in one case 14.

The table which follows shows the duration of marriage in all cases for which petitions for dissolution were filed in the last five years:—

Duration of Marriage, in Years.	Husbands' Petitions.					Wives' Petitions.
Duration of Marriage, in Years.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928
Under 5	42	59	52	58	57	41	45	48	52	51
5 and under 10	97	95	120	103	99	104	107	119	119	132
10 and under 15	62	80	52	71	75	108	97	81	84	106
15 and under 20	49	48	43	42	62	80	61	55	51	65
20 and under 30	72	41	46	53	43	71	65	87	59	64
30 and over	21	13	22	15	15	21	12	14	15	16
Totals	343	336	335	342	351	425	387	404	380	434

INQUESTS.

The number of bodies on which inquests were held in 1928 was 1,513, including 75 Maoris. In 1,117 cases the bodies were of males, and in 396 of females.

The verdicts given at the inquests held in 1928 may be classified as under:—

Nature of Verdict.
Nature of Verdict.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Diseases and natural causes	490	219	709
Accident	460	118	578
Homicide	8	7	15
Suicide	159	52	211
Totals	1,117	396	1,513

Of the accidental deaths the most common forms are crushing by motor-vehicles, railways, &c., and drowning. The verdicts show that in 1928 315 deaths, or 54 per cent. of the total fatal accidents, were due to the former cause, while to the latter 150 deaths, or 26 per cent., were due.

The inquests on suicidal deaths in 1928 show an increase of 20 on the number for the previous year. The figures for each of the last ten years are—

Year.	Inquests on Suicides.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1919	112	30	142
1920	113	20	133
1921	133	33	166
1922	131	33	164
1923	123	20	143
1924	133	33	166
1925	140	33	173
1926	120	30	150
1927	169	22	191
1928	159	52	211

FIRE INQUESTS.

In case of fire causing the destruction of any building, ship, or merchandise, or any stack of grain, pulse, or hay, or any growing crop, a Coroner may hold an inquiry into the cause of such fire, the procedure being similar to that of inquests into cause of death.

During 1928 eleven inquests were held on fires. In ten cases the verdict was arson, and in the remaining case there was no evidence to show how the fire was caused.

The figures for each of the last five years are—

Year.	Number of Fire Inquests.	Verdicts returned.
Year.	Number of Fire Inquests.	Accidental.	Arson.	No evidence.
1924	11	3	3	5
1925	8	1	1	1
1926	14	..	2	12
1927	4	..	3	1
1928	11		10	1

POLICE.

On the 31st March, 1929, the number of permanent members of the Police Force in New Zealand was 1,147 of all ranks, being an increase of 41 during the year. The total is made up as follows: 1 commissioner, 4 superintendents, 15 inspectors, 4 sub-inspectors, 29 senior sergeants, 99 sergeants, 939 constables, 5 senior detectives, 14 detective-sergeants, and 37 detectives. There were also 9 temporary constables, 12 police surgeons, 8 matrons, 6 district constables, and 3 Native constables.

The following table shows the number of stations and of police in each police district. Temporary constables are included, but not district or Native constables.

Police District.	No. of Stations.	No. of Police.
Whangarei	17	30
Auckland	48	249
Hamilton	22	54
Gisborne	15	32
Napier	18	52
New Plymouth	15	37
Wanganui	20	44
Palmerston North	18	47
Wellington	27	190
Nelson	12	27
Greymouth	21	43
Christchurch	38	142
Timaru	13	41
Dunedin	35	107
Invercargill	23	48

There were also 9 officers attached to headquarters, 1 was on loan to the Cook Islands Administration, and 2 were on leave prior to retirement.

The proportion of police to population is 1 to every 1,273 persons, and the expenditure (exclusive of the cost of buildings) on the whole Police Force for the year ended the 31st March, 1929, was 6s. 1 3/4d. per head of population.

The following table shows the growth of the Police Force since 1878, prior to which each province had its own Police Force, and reliable data are not available:—

Year ended 31st March,	Officers.	Non-commissioned Officers.	Detectives.	Constables.	Total.	Police to Population (including Maoris).	Cost per Inhabitant.
							s.	d.
1878	25	90	14	329	458	1 to 1,020	..	..
1885	20	65	17	372	474	1 to 1,295	3	0 3/4
1890	12	66	13	403	494	1 to 1,337	2	10 3/4
1895	7	51	13	416	487	1 to 1,502	2	6 3/4
1900	11	56	20	499	586	1 to 1,363	2	0 1/4
1905	12	65	25	553	655	1 to 1,386	2	10 1/4
1910	16	86	34	639	775	1 to 1,336	3	3 1/2
1915	19	100	37	755	911	1 to 1,263	4	1
1920	21	114	38	743	916	1 to 1,350	4	11 3/4
1925	23	121	51	831	1,026	1 to 1,344	5	9 1/2
1926	24	121	52	888	1,085	1 to 1,299	5	9 1/2
1927	22	123	56	895	1,096	1 to 1,312	5	9 1/4
1928	23	127	54	913	1,117	1 to 1,301	5	9 3/4
1929	23	128	56	948	1,155	1 to 1,273	6	1 3/4

CRIMINAL CASES IN MAGISTRATES' COURTS.

TOTAL CASES.

The gross total of criminal cases in Magistrates' Courts during the year 1928 was 55,714, males being charged in 52,604 cases and females in 3,110. The number of cases during each of the last ten years is as follows:—

MAGISTRATES' COURTS.—TOTAL CASES, 1919–28.

Year.	Number.			Per 1,000 of Mean Population.
Year.	Against Males.	Against Females.	Totals.	Against Males.	Against Females.	Totals.
1919	37,872	2,575	40,447	63.34	4.33	33.91
1920	41,092	2,399	43,491	64.63	3.95	35.01
1921	43,335	2,462	45,797	66.33	3.95	35.87
1922	40,594	2,306	42,900	60.88	3.61	32.87
1923	43,498	2,487	45,985	64.15	3.83	34.62
1924	46,100	2,456	48,556	66.77	3.71	35.90
1925	51,135	2,484	53,619	72.27	3.67	35.07
1926	53,284	2,838	56,122	73.74	4.11	39.70
1927	53,256	2,983	56,239	72.44	4.23	39.09
1928	52,604	3,110	55,714	70.76	4.37	38.00

The foregoing figures include charges against Maoris. Maoris are also included in the statistics relating to Magistrates' Courts in the following pages, as well as in those for the Supreme Court. Separate figures relating to offences by Maoris are given towards the end of this section.

The 55,714 cases dealt with in 1928 resulted in 45,139 summary convictions, and in 971 committals to the Supreme Court for sentence after hearing in Magistrates' Courts. In 548 cases the accused person was committed to the Supreme Court for trial, and in 1,347 the Magistrate admonished and discharged the offender under a provision enabling him to do so in the case of a trivial offence, without a conviction being recorded. In 2,585 cases the charge was dismissed on the merits of the case, and in the remaining 5,124 cases the accused person was discharged for want of prosecution or want of evidence.

The summary convictions for the year 1928 represent a rate of 30.78 per 1,000 of mean population. The figures for the last ten years are—

SUMMARY CONVICTIONS, 1919–28.

Year.	Number.	Per 1,000 of Mean Population.
1919	32,692	27.41
1920	35,517	28.59
1921	37,124	29.08
1922	34,513	26.44
1923	37,104	27.94
1924	39,594	29.27
1925	44,017	31.79
1926	46,205	32.68
1927	45,930	31.92
1928	45,139	30.78

In comparing one year with another it should be remembered that the number of convictions may be considerably affected by alterations in the law or changes in its administration. As an example of the former may be mentioned the introduction in New Zealand of a system of compulsory military training. Convictions for breaches of the Defence Act rose from 13 in 1911 to 1,943 in 1912 and 4,849 in 1913, this being responsible for practically the whole of the increase of 3,500 in 1913 as compared with 1912. More recently, consequent on the passing of the Arms Act, 1920, convictions for offences relating to the sale and use of firearms increased from 35 in 1920 to 1,224 in 1922. On the other hand, convictions during recent years have been somewhat reduced by the introduction of the system referred to previously, where in the case of a trivial offence the offender may be admonished and discharged without a conviction being re corded.

For similar reasons to those referred to in the foregoing paragraph it is inadvisable to base comparisons of quasi criminal offences between different countries on the statistics of summary convictions for the various countries.

A great proportion of the cases dealt with in New Zealand are in respect of comparatively insignificant offences—as, for instance, drunkenness, offences against traffic regulations or against by-laws, &c.

A classification of convictions during the last five years according to principal offences and groups of offences is next given.

—	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
* Not including convictions (57 in 1928) for selling liquor without a license, and for being in possession of an illicit still (6 in 1928)—offences against the revenue laws.
Offences against the person	605	766	768	726	679
Offences against property (including forgery)	3,698	3,870	4,528	4,757	4,664
Drunkenness (including issue of prohibition orders)	8,691	9,652	9,119	7,954	7,901
Offensive conduct or language, and obstruction, &c., of police	1,669	1,835	1,628	1,675	1,613
Breaches of traffic regulations, &c.	7,059	9,993	14,184	15,279	15,651
Breaches of by-laws	2,412	2,716	726	643	577
Other offences against good order	1,511	1,303	1,587	1,974	1,424
Breaches of Licensing Act^*	2,999	3,190	3,002	3,173	3,285
Breaches of Destitute Persons Act	2,796	3,001	3,311	3,326	3,583
Breaches of Impounding Act	1,683	1,234	1,459	954	730
Breaches of Defence Act	1,893	1,694	1,685	1,501	860
Breaches of Arms Act	807	626	533	439	408
Other offences	3,771	4,137	3,675	3,529	3,764
Totals	39,594	44,017	46,205	45,930	45,139

Of the 679 summary convictions for offences against the person in 1928, no fewer than 559 were for common assault. Attempted suicide was responsible for 76 convictions, indecent assaults on females for 18, aggravated assault for 7, cruelty to children for 5, unlawful carnal knowledge and wilfully endangering life for 3 each, indecent Assaults on males, rape and attempts, and unnatural offence and attempts for 2 each, while assault with intent to rob and abduction accounted for 1 each. In the more serious classes of offences against the person the cases are referred to the Supreme Court for trial or sentence.

The 4,664 summary convictions for offences against property during 1928 are in the main made up of various forms of theft. Theft (not otherwise described) was responsible for 2,842 convictions, embezzlement for 41, receiving stolen property for 142, housebreaking and stealing for 140, and burglary for 21. In addition, there were 614 convictions for fraud and false pretences, 41 for forgery and uttering forged documents, 304 for unlawfully converting property to own use, 501 for mischief, 4 for cattle and sheep stealing, 11 for arson and attempts, 2 for blackmail, and 1 for robbery and stealing from the person. The more serious classes of offences against property are also sent on to the Supreme Court to be dealt with. Details of these will be found under “Criminal Cases in Supreme Court.”

The principal of the “Other offences against good order” is vagrancy, which represented 752 of the 1,424 summary convictions under this heading in 1928. Gambling and other offences against the gaming laws (307), and Sunday-trading (264) ranked next.

Under the system of classification formerly in use the great majority of breaches of traffic regulations were classed as breaches of by-laws. Consequent on the passing of the Motor-vehicles Act, 1924, a partial change was made in that year, and under a new system of classification adopted in 1926 all such offences were removed from the by-law class, which has now sunk to insignificant proportions.

The 3,583 convictions under the Destitute Persons Act were divided as follows: Application for affiliation, 348; application for maintenance orders, &c., 1,351; breaches of maintenance orders, &c., 1,884.

Of the 3,285 convictions for breaches of the Licensing Act, the offence of being unlawfully on licensed premises after hours (1,810) was the principal, followed by breaches of prohibition orders (836), publicans and employees selling liquor after hours (356), and unlawfully supplying Maoris with liquor in proclaimed areas (86). Under the heading “Defence Act” (860 convictions) the principal offence during 1928 was failing to attend drill (541). Breaches of the Impounding Act were almost entirely confined to one offence—viz., allowing horses, cattle, or sheep to wander at large—which accounted for 720 of the total convictions (730).

Included in the convictions for “Other offences” in 1928 were 561 for charges under the Child Welfare Act, 530 of these being in respect of children not under proper control or in indigent circumstances; 334 for breaches of the Stock Act (being in possession of infected stock, 304); 396 for breaches of the Shops and Offices Act (keeping open after hours, 176; failing to close on holidays, 123); 273 for breaches of various revenue laws (failing to register dog, 118); 164 for breaches of the Sale of Food and Drugs Act (selling adulterated milk, 99); 254 for breaches of Post and Telegraph Act (erecting wireless without permit, 231); 205 for breaches of the Animals Protection Act (unlawfully killing or being in possession of protected game, 133); failing to send child to school, 188; and breach of probation, 150.

PUNISHMENT ON SUMMARY CONVICTION.

Of a total of 45,139 summary convictions in 1928, peremptory imprisonment was imposed in only 2,901 cases, in addition to which the convicted person went to gaol in 900 cases in lieu of paying a fine. A summary of punishments for the year 1928 is given.

MAGISTRATES' COURTS.—PUNISHMENTS ON SUMMARY CONVICTION, 1928.

Punishments.	Offences against the Person.	Offences against Property.	Offences against Good Order.	Other Offences.	Totals.
Released under Offenders Probation Act	12	573	43	27	655
Convicted and discharged	82	877	2,795	897	4,651
Convicted and ordered to come up for sentence	73	419	357	127	976
Committed to industrial school	..	47	3	40	90
Committed to Borstal Institution, Salvation Army Home, &c.	4	230	40	20	294
Fined	396	751	21,173	7,253	29,573
Imprisonment in lieu of fine	18	67	484	331	900
Peremptory imprisonment	49	900	573	1,379	2,901
Whipping	..	1	..	..	1
Bound over	13	..	20	..	33
Order made	32	799	1,678	2,556	5,065
Totals	679	4,664	27,166	12,630	45,139

DISTINCT CASES.

The statistics given above refer, as stated, to all cases dealt with in Magistrates' Courts, including those in which a person is charged with two or more offences committed simultaneously or in the same connection—as, for instance, drunkenness, damaging property, and resisting the police. If only one (the most serious) offence is counted in each instance the number of cases in 1928 is reduced from 55,714 to 45,319. A summary is given for the years 1927 and 1928 comparing total and distinct cases, classified according to the results of the hearing.

MAGISTRATES' COURTS.—TOTAL AND DISTINCT CASES, 1927 AND 1928.

—	1927.		1928.
—	Total Cases.	Distinct Cases.	Total Cases.	Distinct Cases.
Dismissed or withdrawn for want of prosecution or want of evidence	5,067	3,504	5,124	3,494
Dismissed on the merits	2,355	1,777	2,585	1,873
Admonished or discharged	1,046	646	1,347	888
Committed for trial	606	311	548	260
Committed for sentence	1,235	365	971	325
Summarily convicted	45,930	39,149	45,139	38,479
Totals	56,239	45,752	55,714	45,319

ARREST AND SUMMONS CASES.

Persons charged in Magistrates' Courts may be brought before the Court either on summons or after arrest, according to the nature of the offence and to other circumstances. Of the total of 55,714 cases in 1928, 14,625 were “arrest” and 41,089 “summons” cases. A summary is here given.

Class of Offence.	Arrest Cases.				Summons Cases.
	Cases.		Summary Convictions.		Cases.		Summary Convictions.
	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.
Against the person	635	30	342	22	543	37	297	18
Against property	4,416	236	2,863	176	2,761	234	1,478	147
Against good order	7,935	464	7,642	440	20,495	1,038	18,165	919
Other	835	74	731	69	14,984	997	11,025	805
Totals	13,821	804	11,578	707	38,783	2,306	30,965	1,889

ARREST CASES.

Information in connection with both arrest and summons cases is obtained on cards, which, however, give more particulars concerning the offender in regard to the former class than are available for the latter. From the information given in arrest cases it is possible to ascertain the number of distinct persons arrested and convicted, and to compile statistics as to their ages, birthplaces, &c.

The total number of convictions of arrested persons during 1928 was 12,285, which is reduced to 9,464 if multiple charges—i.e., those in respect of offences committed by the same person at the same time—are excluded. If only the principal offence for which each person was convicted during the year is taken into account the number of distinct persons convicted after arrest is found to be 7,257, a number equal to only 59 per cent. of the gross total of convictions of arrested persons.

OFFENCES, BIRTHPLACES, AND AGES.

The next three tables give the offences and ages, offences and birthplaces, and birthplaces and ages of the distinct persons arrested and convicted during 1928.

CONVICTIONS IN ARREST CASES, 1928.

Offences and Ages.

Class of Offence.	Under 20.	20 and under 25.	25 and under 30.	30 and under 40.	40 and over.^*	Totals.
* Including unspecified.
Against the person	15	48	59	87	107	316
Against property	232	318	238	298	331	1,417
Against good order	82	386	505	1,213	2,866	5,052
Other	22	83	79	111	177	472
Totals	351	835	881	1,709	3,481	7,257

Offences and Birthplaces.

Class of Offence.	New Zealand.	Australia.	England and Wales.	Scotland.	Ireland.	Elsewhere.^*	Totals.
* Including unspecified.
Against the person	199	19	45	13	17	23	316
Against property	987	74	188	58	42	68	1,417
Against good order	2,747	298	862	445	420	280	5,052
Other	251	19	73	30	20	79	472
Totals	4,184	410	1,168	546	499	450	7,257

Birthplaces and Ages.

Birthplace.	Under 20.	20 and under 25.	25 and under 30.	30 and under 40.	40 and over.^*	Totals.
* Including unspecified.
New Zealand	303	609	549	1,048	1,675	4,184
Australia	7	31	51	95	226	410
England and Wales	18	108	124	258	660	1,168
Scotland	9	36	67	134	300	546
Ireland	..	18	25	80	376	499
Elsewhere^*	14	33	65	94	244	450
Totals	351	835	881	1,709	3,481	7,257

Of the 7,257 distinct persons arrested and convicted during 1928 no fewer than 5,052 were convicted for offences against good order, and of these 3,720 were for drunkenness (including 177 drunk in charge of motor-vehicle, 35 drunk in charge of other vehicle or of horse, and 127 drunk and disorderly). In addition, 4 were convicted in respect of prohibition orders; 338 for indecent, riotous, or offensive conduct; 273 for using obscene, threatening, or abusive language; 37 for assaulting, resisting, or obstructing the police; 2 for soliciting prostitution; 7 for soliciting alms; 489 for other vagrancy; 145 for gambling and other offences against the gaming laws; 3 for cruelty to animals; 3 for negligent or dangerous driving, &c., of motor-vehicles; 6 for breaches of regulations for the lighting of vehicles; 6 for offences relating to the registration, &c., of motor-vehicles; and 4 for breaches of by-laws.

Of the 316 distinct persons arrested and convicted during 1928 for offences against the person, 237 were convicted for common assault and 69 for attempted suicide; and of the 1,417 distinct persons arrested and convicted for offences against property, 946 were guilty of theft of various classes, 171 of fraud and false pretences, 9 of forgery, &c., 48 of receiving stolen property, 146 of wilful damage, 3 of arson or attempted arson, 80 of unlawfully converting property to own use, 12 of breaking and entering and attempts, and 2 of burglary.

CRIMINAL CASES IN SUPREME COURT.

Criminal cases in the Supreme Court are divisible into two classes—viz., those in which the accused person has pleaded guilty in the Magistrates' Court and has been committed to the Supreme Court for sentence, and those actually tried in the Supreme Court.

The following table gives a summary of criminal cases dealt with in the Supreme Court during each of the last five years. Maoris are included in this and following tables.

SUPREME COURT.—TOTAL CRIMINAL CASES, 1924–28.

Year.	Cases tried in Supreme Court.				Sentences in Case of Committal for Sentence.		Total Sentences.
	Indictments and Informations.		Convictions.		Sentences in Case of Committal for Sentence.		Total Sentences.
	M.	F.	M.	F.	M.	F.	M.	F.	Total.
1924	808	30	435	14	885	55	1,320	69	1,389
1925	843	34	503	19	920	23	1,423	42	1,465
1926	920	48	559	19	958	26	1,517	45	1,562
1927	838	25	465	10	1,251	13	1,716	23	1,739
1928	853	17	418	4	901	45	1,319	49	1,368

The above table relates to the total criminal charges dealt with, each offence being taken into account. A similar table is next given, showing the number of distinct persons concerned, only the principal offence being taken into account where the same person was tried in respect of two or more offences during the year.

SUPREME COURT.—DISTINCT PERSONS, 1924–28.

Year.	Persons tried in Supreme Court.				Persons sentenced after Committal for Sentence.		Total Persons sentenced.
	Indicted.		Convicted and sentenced.		Persons sentenced after Committal for Sentence.		Total Persons sentenced.
	M.	F.	M.	F.	M.	F.	M.	F.	Total.
1924	336	17	210	6	318	21	528	27	555
1925	292	19	181	11	306	13	487	24	511
1926	323	20	204	9	336	20	540	29	569
1927	307	14	195	5	361	8	556	13	569
1928	274	7	155	2	308	13	463	16	478

Of the 281 distinct persons indicted during 1928, 157 were convicted and 92 acquitted. In the case of 22 persons no bill was returned or the prosecution otherwise not proceeded with, 2 persons were found insane, and 8 were awaiting trial at the end of the year.

The next table summarizes the offences of persons convicted or sentenced in the Supreme Court during the last five years:—

SUPREME COURT.—SUMMARY OF OFFENCES, 1924–28.

Year.	Total Convictions or Sentences.					Distinct Persons.
Year.	Offences against the Person.	Offences against Property.	Forgery and offences against the Currency.	Other Offences Totals.	Offences against the Person.	Offences against Property.	Forgery and Offences against the Currency.	Other Offences	Totals.
1924	248	822	233	86	1,389	140	301	70	44	555
1925	242	952	207	64	1,465	142	265	75	29	511
1926	239	1,045	193	85	1,562	146	294	91	38	569
1927	216	1,238	222	63	1,739	127	337	75	30	569
1928	193	927	194	54	1,368	120	263	64	31	478

As might be expected from the nature of the offences, the number of charges per 100 persons concerned is much lower in the case of offences against the person than for other offences. The figures for the average of the last five years are—

Class of Offence.	Total Convictions or Sentences per 100 Distinct Persons convicted or sentenced.
Against the person	170
Against property	341
Forgery and against the currency	284
Other	221
Total	281

From their more serious nature in general, it might be expected that a much higher proportion of charges dealing with offences against the person would actually be tried in the Supreme Court than would be the case with other offences, and the following table, covering the year 1928, shows that this is so:—

SUPREME COURT.—TRIAL AND SENTENCE CASES, BY CLASS OF OFFENCE, 1928.

Class of Offence.	Total Convictions (or Sentences).				Distinct Persons convicted (or sentenced).
	Numbers.		Percentages.		Numbers.		Percentages.
	After Trial.	After Committal for Sentence.	After Trial.	After Committal for Sentence.	After Trial.	After Committal for Sentence	After Trial.	After Committal for Sentence.
Against the person	119	74	62	38	60	60	50	50
Against property	243	684	26	74	77	186	29	71
Forgery and against the currency	36	158	19	81	7	57	11	89
Other	24	30	44	56	13	18	42	58
Totals	422	946	31	69	157	321	33	67

Dealing now only with distinct persons, and counting only the most serious offence in respect of which sentence was passed, it is found that of the 120 persons sentenced for offences against the person in 1928 no fewer than 76 were guilty of sexual offences, as follows: Indecent assault, 20; indecent assault on male, 15; rape and attempts, 9; unlawful carnal knowledge and attempts, 21; incest, 3; unnatural offence, 8. Murder was the offence in 1 case; manslaughter in 5 (including 3 cases in connection with motor-vehicles, and 1 in which the offender was charged with murder but found guilty of manslaughter only), wounding with intent to do bodily harm in 2, aggravated assault in 8, common assault in 10, assault with intent to rob in 1, procuring or attempting to procure abortion in 3, attempting to administer poison in 1, concealment of birth in 1, and bigamy in 12.

Of the 263 persons sentenced for offences against property, 92 were guilty of breaking and entering (with or without theft), 58 of theft (including horse, cattle, and sheep stealing), 13 of robbery and stealing from the person, 40 of burglary, 8 of receiving stolen property, 18 of fraud and false pretences, 26 of embezzlement, 4 of arson, 1 of blackmail, and 3 of wilful damage, mischief, &c.

For forgery and offences against the currency, 64 persons were convicted and sentenced, including 52 for forgery alone, 1 for uttering alone, and the remaining 11 for forgery and uttering.

Other principal offences in 1928 were: Breaches of the Bankruptcy Act, 6; false declaration in connection with marriage, 5; breach of probation, 4; and breaches of the Post and Telegraph Act, 4.

The next table shows punishments inflicted on offenders by the Supreme Court during 1928, classified according to nature of principal offence. Of the 478 persons dealt with, no fewer than 118 were released under the provisions of the Offenders Probation Act, 20 ordered to come up for sentence when called on, and 5 discharged, while the offence was met by the imposition of a fine in 15 cases. One person was sentenced to be hanged, the sentence being later commuted to imprisonment for life. The remaining 319 were sentenced to imprisonment or to detention in Borstal or other reformative institutions.

SUPREME COURT.—OFFENCES AND PUNISHMENTS OF DISTINCT PERSONS, 1928.

Sentence.	Offences against the Person.	Offences against Property.	Forgery and Offences against the Currency.	Other Offences.	Totals.
Ordered to come up for sentence	8	5	4	3	20
Discharged	..	..	4	1	5
Released under Offenders Probation Act	20	69	19	10	118
Fined	5	5	1	4	15
Hanging	1	..	..	..	1
Imprisonment or detention—
Imprisonment	51	70	13	7	141
Imprisonment and probation	..	1	..	..	1
Imprisonment and declared habitual criminal	1	11	2	..	14
Imprisonment and reformative detention	1	6	..	..	7
Reformative detention only	22	69	19	4	114
Reformative detention and declared habitual criminal	..	2	1	..	3
Detention in Borstal institution	11	25	1	2	39
Total imprisonment or detention	86	184	36	13	319
Total persons sentenced	120	263	64	31	478
Length of sentence of imprisonment or detention—
15 years and upwards or life	1	..	..	..	1
10 and under 15 years	3	..	..	..	3
7 and under 10 years	3	..	..	..	3
5 and under 7 years	8	7	..	..	15
3 and under 5 years	27	53	9	3	92
2 and under 3 years	13	59	14	1	87
1 and under 2 years	17	41	8	2	68
6 months and under 1 year	8	18	3	3	32
Under 6 months	6	6	2	4	18
Totals	86	184	36	13	319

Twenty-four Maoris were included in the 478 distinct offenders sentenced in the Supreme Court in 1928, and 309 others (including 11 women) were born in New Zealand. In 65 cases the birthplace was England, in 18 Scotland, in 6 Ireland, and in 29 Australia.

No fewer than 54 of the offenders were under twenty years of age, 116 between twenty and twenty-five, 88 between twenty-five and thirty, 115 between thirty and forty, 61 between forty and fifty, 34 between fifty and sixty, and 7 sixty or over. In 3 cases the age was not stated.

COURT OF APPEAL.

Under the provisions of the Judicature Amendment Act, 1913, the Court of Appeal consists of two divisions, called the First Division and the Second Division, each division consisting of five Judges of the Supreme Court, who are appointed as members of either division by the Governor-General in Council on the recommendation of three Judges of the Supreme Court, including the Chief Justice. The same division does not exercise the jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal at two successive sittings, but exercises its jurisdiction separately, except that in cases of importance involving special difficulty, the Chief Justice and one other Judge may recommend, for the approval of the Governor-General in Council, that a joint sitting of both divisions may be held. The Chief Justice or, in his absence, the senior Judge presides. The decision of the Court must be in accordance with the majority of the Judges present, but if the Judges present are equally divided in opinion the judgment, &c., appealed from is deemed to be affirmed.

In addition to the ordinary appeals from the Supreme Court, certain other proceedings arising in inferior Courts may, on an order of the Supreme Court, be removed into the Court of Appeal for argument. All decisions of the Court of Appeal are final unless leave is granted to appeal to His Majesty in Council.

In criminal cases questions of law may be reserved by the Supreme Court for the Court of Appeal, and upon a refusal by the Court to reserve any question the person aggrieved may move the Court of Appeal for leave to appeal. Any person aggrieved may also (after conviction) apply to the Court of Appeal for a new trial upon leave being granted by the Supreme Court. Any person has now the right to apply to the Court of Appeal against a sentence passed in the Supreme Court where such person has been convicted upon an indictment or sentenced for any crime on a plea of “Guilty.”

The number of civil and Crown criminal cases brought before the Appeal Court and the judgments thereon for the last ten years are as follows:—

Year.	Crown Criminal Cases.		Civil.
	Number.	Convictions affirmed.	Appeals.		Cases removed.
	Number.	Convictions affirmed.	Number.	Allowed.	Number.	Judgments for Plaintiffs.	Judgments for Defendants
1919	6	2	13	9	6	2	4
1920	4	2	16	10	11	7	4
1921	3	1	18	9	7	3	4
1922	4	4	28	14	10	4	5
1923	5	5	20	13	2	2	..
1924	2	2	15	7	12	6	6
1925	4	..	23	13	13	12	1
1926	2	2	23	12	10	6	4
1927	3	1	16	12	9	7	2
1928	2	1	28	12	5	4	1

Particulars concerning applications for leave to appeal against sentences under the provisions of the Crimes Amendment Act, 1920, are given in the following table for each of the eight years since the passing of the amendment:—

Year.	Applications.			Results of Appeals in Cases where Leave to Appeal granted.
Year.	Filed.	Granted.	Refused.	Sentence varied.	Appeal dismissed.
1921	7	4	3	4	..
1922	32	4	27	1	3
1923	18	..	18	..	..
1924	8	2	6	..	2
1925	10	..	10	..	..
1926	4	..	4	..	..
1927	20	2	18	2	..
1928	16	..	16	..	..

PRISONS AND PRISONERS.

The following table shows for the year 1928 the prison accommodation, the number of prisoners received, the number in prison at end of year, and the daily average number in confinement:—

Name of Prison.	Number for whom there is Accommodation.	Number received during Year.	Number in Confinement at End of Year.	Daily Average Number in Confinement.
* Deemed to be prisons under section 17 of the Statute Law Amendment Act, 1917.
Adding ton (Women's Reformatory)	32	88	28	27.59
Auckland	455	1,573	373	393.67
Hautu (Tokaanu)	53	33	44	46.37
Invercargill	20	79	5	6.69
Invercargill Borstal Institution	212	108	225	235.90
Napier	29	214	25	19.79
New Plymouth	69	134	58	61.48
Paparua (Templeton)	165	559	138	141.37
Point Halswell (Women's Reformatory)	14	56	6	6.34
Point Halswell Borstal Institution	43	21	33	35.07
Rangipo	36	33	32	30.60
Waikeria (Reformatory)	28	40	25	30.70
Waikeria Borstal Institution	124	84	123	107.10
Waikune (Erua)	100	93	92	79.90
Wanganui	43	158	35	34.10
Wellington	134	861	131	139.15
Wi Tako (Trentham)	80	85	76	72.87
Minor prisons	150	800	35	30.89
Police lockups^*	..	114	..	..
Totals	1,787	5,133	1,484	1,499.58

The number of persons in gaol at the end of each of the last ten years, and the proportion per 10,000 of population as at the 31st December, is given in the next table:—

PERSONS IN GAOL (31ST DECEMBER).

Year.	Number.			Proportion per 10,000 of Population.
Year.	Undergoing Sentence.	On Remand and awaiting Trial, &c.	Total.	Undergoing Sentence.	Total in Confinement.
1919	852	68	920	6.94	7.50
1920	996	64	1,060	7.92	8.43
1921	1,044	55	1,099	8.08	8.50
1922	1,052	62	1,114	8.32	8.90
1923	1,141	54	1,195	8.50	8.90
1924	1,197	50	1,247	8.85	9.22
1925	1,284	49	1,333	9.17	9.51
1926	1,388	47	1,435	9.79	10.11
1927	1,483	66	1,549	10.23	10.68
1928	1,435	49	1,484	9.78	10.12

In the following table persons in confinement at the end of each of the last ten years are classified according to nature of sentence:—

Year.	Hard Labour or Simple Imprisonment.				Habitual Criminals.	Detained for Reformative Purposes.	Oil Remand, awaiting Trial, &c.	Totals.
Year.	Under Three Months.	Three Months and under One Year.	One Year and over.	Not stated.^*	Habitual Criminals.	Detained for Reformative Purposes.	Oil Remand, awaiting Trial, &c.	Totals.
* All simple imprisonment cases. † Including those detained in Borstal institutions.
1919	60	106	339	8	38	301	68	920
1920	97	149	281	21	63	385	64	1,060
1921	70	170	392	14	52	346	55	1,099
1922	77	145	363	9	45	413	62	1,114
1923	102	171	361	11	44	452	54	1,195
1924	102	147	424	19	51	454	50	1,247
1925	128	159	403	6	61	527^†	49	1,333
1926	101	208	475	6	13	585^†	47	1,435
1927	97	194	483	9	56	644^†	66	1,549
1928	74	196	427	..	62	676^†	49	1,484

The total number of new receptions—counting each person once every time received—in the various institutions during the year 1928 was 5,133 (males 4,861, females 272), as compared with 5,503 (males 5,193, females 310) in 1927. Taking into account the 66 cases where persons were in prison awaiting trial or sentence at the beginning of the year brings this figure up to 5,199, the gross total of receptions. Included here, however, are debtors and lunatics (228), and deducting these gives 4,971, the gross total of receptions of prisoners sentenced for or persons charged with criminal offences. Of these, 768 were received on transfer from other institutions or in transitu between institutions, so that the net total of receptions of prisoners sentenced for or persons charged with criminal offences is 4,203. In 896 cases persons charged with criminal offences were handed to the police for trial or sentence and not returned to prison, and 38 persons remained in prison at the end of the year awaiting trial or sentence, so that the number of receptions of prisoners actually undergoing sentence for criminal offences—still counting each prisoner once every time received—was 3,269. Deducting from this figure multiple receptions of the same person (721) we get, as the total number of distinct prisoners received under sentence for criminal offences, 2,548 (males 2,431, females 117), a decrease of 163 on the preceding year. Of the total of 2,548, 158 (males 155, females 3) were Maoris.

The number of distinct persons received into prison under sentence of imprisonment during the last ten years, with the proportion per 10,000 of mean population, is given in the next table.

DISTINCT PRISONERS RECEIVED UNDER SENTENCE, 1919–28.

Year.	Number of Distinct Prisoners received under Sentence.	Proportion per 10,000 of Mean Population.
1919	1,833	15.37
1920	1,955	15.74
1921	2,120	16.61
1922	2,249	17.23
1923	2,358	17.75
1924	2,405	17.78
1925	2,890	20.88
1926	2,755	19.49
1927	2,711	18.84
1928	2,548	17.37

In classifying the offences a prisoner convicted of more than one offence during the year is reckoned once only, under the heading of the principal offence—e.g., a prisoner convicted three times of drunkenness, twice of vagrancy, and once of theft is counted once only, under the heading “Offences against Property,” theft being the principal offence. Debtors and lunatics received into gaol are omitted.

The following table shows the sexes and ages of distinct prisoners received into prison under sentence during the year 1928, and distinguishes between Maoris and others:—

AGES AND SEXES OF DISTINCT PRISONERS RECEIVED INTO PRISON UNDER SENTENCE DURING 1928.

Age, in Years.	Excluding Maoris.			Maoris.			Including Maoris.
Age, in Years.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Under 20	121	10	131	37	2	39	158	12	170
20 and under 25	293	10	303	41	..	41	334	10	344
25 and under 30	347	8	355	34	1	35	381	9	390
30 and under 35	309	8	317	9	..	9	318	8	326
35 and under 40	262	17	279	14	..	14	276	17	293
40 and under 45	259	25	284	8	..	8	267	25	292
45 and under 50	252	14	266	4	..	4	256	14	270
50 and under 55	185	9	194	3	..	3	188	9	197
55 and under 60	110	7	117	..	..	..	110	7	117
60 and under 65	76	4	80	2	..	2	78	4	82
65 and under 70	35	2	37	1	..	1	36	2	38
70 and under 75	14	..	14	2	..	2	16	..	16
75 and under 80	10	..	10	..	..	..	10	..	10
80 and over	1	..	1	..	..	..	1	..	1
Not stated	2	..	2	..	..	..	2	..	2
Totals	2,276	114	2,390	155	3	158	2,431	117	2,548

The following tables show the number of distinct persons received into prison under sentence during 1928, classified according to (1) birthplaces and offences,. (2) ages and offences, and (3) ages and previous convictions.

BIRTHPLACES AND OFFENCES OF DISTINCT PRISONERS RECEIVED INTO PRISON UNDER SENTENCE DURING 1928.

Birthplace.	Nature of Offence.				Totals.
Birthplace.	Against the Person.	Against Property.	Drunkenness.	Other Offences.	Totals.
New Zealand	90	605	188	655	1,538
Australia	18	48	21	68	147
England and Wales	33	115	94	182	424
Scotland	6	40	43	56	145
Ireland	11	25	46	58	140
Other British countries	3	8	4	16	31
China	3	2	..	22	27
Other foreign countries	7	29	15	34	85
Not stated	2	5	1	3	11
Totals	165	877	412	1,094	2,548

AGES AND OFFENCES OF DISTINCT PRISONERS RECEIVED INTO PRISON UNDER SENTENCE DURING 1928.

Age, in Years.	Offences against the Person.			Theft and other Offences against Property.	Drunkenness.	Vagrancy.	Other Offences.	Totals.
Age, in Years.	Sexual Offences.	Assaults.	Other.	Theft and other Offences against Property.	Drunkenness.	Vagrancy.	Other Offences.	Totals.
Under 21	15	5	..	147	3	14	49	233
21 and under 25	10	9	1	129	8	19	105	281
25 and under 30	9	12	3	166	31	22	147	390
30 and under 35	9	11	3	122	46	23	112	326
35 and under 40	7	10	3	93	42	29	109	293
40 and under 45	5	11	4	81	68	31	92	292
45 and under 50	3	12	1	61	68	38	87	270
50 and under 55	4	4	2	44	58	36	49	197
55 and under 60	3	2	..	18	38	19	37	117
60 and under 65	1	3	..	10	33	14	21	82
65 and over	3	..	..	6	17	22	17	65
Not stated	..	..	..	..	..	..	2	2
Totals	69	79	17	877	412	267	827	2,548

AGES AND PREVIOUS CONVICTIONS OF DISTINCT PRISONERS RECEIVED INTO PRISON UNDER SENTENCE DURING 1928.

Age, in Years.	Not previously convicted.	Number of Previous Convictions.						Total previously convicted.	Total Distinct Prisoners.
Age, in Years.	Not previously convicted.	One.	Two.	Three.	Four.	Over Four.	Number not stated.	Total previously convicted.	Total Distinct Prisoners.
Under 21	125	53	27	11	5	4	8	108	233
21 and under 25	131	54	31	16	13	26	10	150	281
25 and under 30	161	56	37	25	22	63	26	229	390
30 and under 35	130	40	26	15	17	55	43	196	326
35 and under 40	102	39	27	12	13	69	31	191	293
40 and under 45	92	35	19	14	9	83	40	200	292
45 and under 50	80	34	12	12	14	83	35	190	270
50 and under 55	59	18	12	12	4	60	32	138	197
55 and under 60	31	8	8	4	4	41	21	86	117
60 and under 65	28	3	4	3	4	27	13	54	82
65 and over	17	10	3	..	..	27	8	48	65
Not stated	..	1	1	..	..	..	..	2	2
Totals	956	351	207	124	105	538	267	1,592	2,548

The next table gives the offences and gravest previous offences of the distinct persons received into prison under sentence during 1928:—

OFFENCES AND GRAVEST PREVIOUS OFFENCES OF DISTINCT PRISONERS RECEIVED INTO PRISON UNDER SENTENCE, 1928.

Offences.	Gravest Previous Offence.
	Against the Person.			Theft and other Offences against Property.	Drunkenness.	Vagrancy.	Other Offences.	Totals.
	Sexual Offences.	Assault.	Other.	Theft and other Offences against Property.	Drunkenness.	Vagrancy.	Other Offences.	Totals.
Against the person—
Sexual offences	8	3	..	11	2	1	4	29
Assaults	1	12	2	22	6	2	6	51
Other	..	2	..	7	..	..	1	10
Against property	9	27	1	486	17	27	33	600
Drunkenness	2	13	1	56	79	35	65	251
Vagrancy	1	4	1	91	11	83	24	215
Other	3	35	1	162	32	25	178	436
Totals	24	96	6	835	147	173	311	1,592

BORSTAL INSTITUTIONS.

Included among the 1,484 prisoners undergoing sentence at the 31st December, 1928, were 383 persons (350 males, 33 females) detained in Borstal institutions under the provisions of the Prevention of Crime (Borstal Institutions. Establishment) Act, 1924. This Act, which is an adaptation of Part I of the Prevention of Crime Act, 1908 (Imperial), as amended by the Criminal Justice Administration Act, 1914, is designed to prevent crime, and provides for the detention of young offenders in a special class of reformative institution. An offender between the ages of fifteen and twenty-one (twenty-three in certain cases), who would otherwise be liable to sentence of imprisonment by the Supreme Court or sentence of imprisonment of not less than one month by a Magistrate, may be made the subject of an order of detention of from two to five years by a Judge of the Supreme Court, and from one to three years by a Magistrate, without a conviction being recorded in, the latter case. Inmates may be transferred from prisons, reformatory homes, State reformatory institutions, and industrial schools to Borstal institutions, and from Borstal institutions to prisons. The Minister of Justice has power to release an offender undergoing detention on condition that he is placed under the supervision or authority of a probation officer, or of a society or person (to be specified) who may by willing to take charge of the case.

HABITUAL CRIMINALS AND REFORMATIVE DETENTION.

The following table shows the distinct prisoners received in prison during 1928 after being sentenced to detention for reformative purposes or having been declared habitual criminals, classified according to sentences:—

Original Sentence.	Sentenced to Reformative Detention for a Period of			Declared Habitual Criminals.	Totals.
Original Sentence.	Under Two Years.	Two and under Five Years.	Five Years and over.	Declared Habitual Criminals.	Totals.
Reformative detention only	65	92	6	..	163
Declared habitual criminals only	..	..	..	1	1
Under 1 year	3	9	..	6	18
1 year and under 2	..	3	..	2	5
2 years and under 3	..	3	..	5	8
3 years and under 4	..	2	..	3	5
4 years and under 5	..	..	..	1	1
5 years and under 7	..	..	..	2	2
7 years and under 10	..	..	..	1	1
Totals	68	109	6	21	204

PRISONS BOARD.

For the purposes of the Crimes Amendment Act of 1910 there is constituted a Prisons Board, the members of which are appointed by the Governor-General in Council for a period of three years, and may be reappointed. As at present constituted, the Board consists of a Judge of the Supreme Court, as President, and six other members. The Board meets at such times as the President determines, and, subject to the provisions of the Act and regulations, may determine its own procedure.

It is the duty of the Board to make inquiry from time to time as to whether there is reasonable cause for belief that any habitual criminal, habitual offender, or other person under sentence of imprisonment or reformative detention is sufficiently reformed to be released on probation or discharged, or for granting discharge to any person who has been released on probation; and to make recommendations as to the release or discharge of any habitual criminal, habitual offender, or other person under sentence of imprisonment or reformative detention, and as to the conditions which may be imposed on any such release or probation. The Board is required to take into consideration, at least once a year, the case of every habitual criminal, habitual offender, or person under sentence of reformative detention. Other classes of prisoners may not apply for and are not entitled to consideration until they have served at least half the sentence (or five years in the case of those sentenced to terms exceeding ten years), and no case is to be considered until six months after the date of reception into prison.

The following table shows the number of cases considered by the Board during each of the last ten years:—

Year.	Habitual Criminals and Offenders.	Reformative and Borstal Detention.	Hard Labour.	Habitual Criminals for Remission of Hard Labour.	Probationers for Discharge from Probation or Variation of Terms.		Totals.
Year.	Habitual Criminals and Offenders.	Reformative and Borstal Detention.	Hard Labour.	Habitual Criminals for Remission of Hard Labour.	Crimes Amendment Act.	Offender Probationers.	Totals.
1919	97	471	115	..	18	..	701
1920	74	467	75	..	32	..	648
1921	75	564	167	..	18	17	841
1922	93	594	271	..	19	30	1,007
1923	74	671	304	4	16	24	1,093
1924	80	683	302	3	13	21	1,102
1925	70	747	295	1	12	9	1,134
1926	49	822	237	2	12	16	1,138
1927	115	766	325	11	13	20	1,250
1928	72	940	321	11	6	16	1,366

Of the cases considered in 1928, recommendations were made for release on probation in 318 cases, and for discharge from prison or from probation in 77 cases, while 8 habitual criminals were granted a remission of their hard-labour sentences. Fourteen probationers under the Offenders Probation Act were ordered discharge. In 147 cases petitions were declined, and in the remaining 802 cases deferred.

PROBATION.

An Act styled the First Offenders' Probation Act was passed in 1886 to provide, at the discretion of the Court, for conditional release on probation in the case of first offenders, in lieu of imprisonment. This Act, with its amendment of 1903, was consolidated in 1908, the consolidated Act being repealed in 1920 by the Offenders Probation Act of that year, under which the system of probation is no longer confined to first offenders.

Under the Act of 1886 an “offence” for which probation could be granted was defined as—

“Any indictable offence, not being one for murder, attempted murder, burglary, coining, corrosive fluid throwing, demanding money with menaces, extortion of money under threats of accusation of crime, placing an explosive substance to endanger life or property, rape, robbery with violence, or an offence attended by irreparable or serious consequences, and either endangering life, or indicating, in the opinion of the Court, an established criminal intention on the part of the accused, and includes any indictable offence which may be dealt with and disposed of by a Court of summary jurisdiction.”

The Act of 1920 widens the definition to cover “any offence punishable by imprisonment, whether on indictment or otherwise.”

The maximum period of probation was originally fixed as not exceeding the longest term of imprisonment to which the offender might be sentenced for his offence; in 1903 the maximum was altered to three years, and in 1920 to five years.

Probation Officers are appointed, whose duties are defined by section 5 of the 1920 Act, which reads as follows:—

“(1) It shall be the duty of a Probation Officer, when so required by the Court,—”
- To make inquiries as to the character and personal history of any person accused or convicted of an offence, and as to such other matters in relation to such person as the Court may direct, and to report fully thereon to the Court in writing; and
- “(b) To keep a full record of such inquiries and of the results thereof.
“(2) It shall be the special duty of the Probation Officer, if satisfied in any case that the best interests of the public and of the offender would be served by the release of the offender on probation, to recommend to the Court that he be so released.”

The conditions of release on probation are set out as follows:—

“(1)That the offender shall report himself in person where directed within twenty-four hours after his release on probation:
“(2) That he shall report himself in person between the hours of nine in the morning and nine in the evening of such day or days (being not less than once in every month) as may be specified in that behalf in the order, or as may be required by the Probation Officer, and at such place or places as may be directed: Provided that the Probation Officer may, if he thinks fit, authorize him to report in writing in lieu of in person on any occasion:
“(3) That he shall reside at an address notified to the Probation Officer, and that he shall sleep at such address unless the Probation Officer otherwise approves in writing:
“(4) That if he removes from such address he shall give to the Probation Officer at least forty-eight hours' notice of his intention so to do; and if he removes to any place within the district of another Probation Officer he shall, within twenty-four hours after such removal, notify the fact of his removal, and his address and employment, to the Probation Officer in that district:
“(5) That the nature and place of his employment shall be made known to and be approved by the Probation Officer:
“(6) That he shall not associate with any person or persons or with any class of persons with whom the Probation Officer has in writing warned him not to associate:
“(7) That he shall be of good behaviour, and shall commit no offence against the law:
“(8) Such other special conditions as the Court may, in its discretion, impose.”

A breach of the conditions of the probationary license renders the offender liable to imprisonment or fine, and in addition he may, in respect of the original offence, be either committed to prison or again released on probation.

The effect of the legislation of 1920 has been to increase greatly the number of cases in which probation is extended to an offender. The following figures are taken from successive returns prepared by the Chief Probation Officer:—

Year.	Number admitted to Probation.
1919	226
1920	261
1921	575
1922	508
1923	572
1924	586
1925	658
1926	656
1927	586
1928	615

The following table gives the ages and terms of probation of offenders dealt with under the provisions of the Act during the year 1928:—

Age, in Years.	6 Months or under.	1 Year.	18 Months.	2 Years.	3 Years.	4 Years.	5 Years.	Totals.
Under 20 years of age	12	67	1	78	22	1	..	181
20 and under 25	12	84	1	69	24	1	1	192
25 and under 30	6	37	2	24	10	1	1	81
30 and under 40	7	28	1	37	13	..	..	86
40 and under 50	3	20	1	21	10	1	1	57
50 and under 60	2	4	..	9	2	..	..	17
60 and under 70	..	1	..	..	..	..	..	1
Totals	42	241	6	238	81	4	3	615

JUVENILE OFFENDERS.

Offences committed by juvenile offenders constitute a class worthy of special consideration. The term “juvenile” formerly covered those under or apparently under the age of sixteen, but for statistical purposes the limit was raised to seventeen as from the 30th November, 1927, the date of the passing of the Child Welfare Amendment Act, 1927, section 27 of which altered the definition of “child” to cover persons under seventeen years of age, instead of sixteen as formerly. Figures of juvenile cases in Magistrates' Courts during each of the last ten years are as follows:—

MAGISTRATES' COURTS.—JUVENILE CASES, 1919–28.

Year.	Total Cases.	Dismissed or withdrawn for want of Prosecution or of Evidence.	Dismissed on the Merits.	Admonished and discharged.	Committed for Trial or Sentence.	Summarily convicted.
1919	1,759	115	55	643	20	926
1920	1,579	80	59	646	17	777
1921	1,391	66	44	637	12	632
1922	1,254	50	59	627	..	518
1923	1,149	59	57	618	12	403
1924	1,475	48	56	754	5	612
1925	1,461	71	58	716	6	610
1926	2,261	67	91	779	6	1,318
1927	2,542	88	59	957	48	1,390
1928	3,095	105	75	1,192	3	1,720

The huge increase in! the number of juvenile cases in 1926 and 1927 is no doubt mainly due to the coming into operation of the Child Welfare Act, 1925. There is, however, a strong probability that the figures for earlier years were under-stated through the word “Juvenile” not always being entered on the card in summons cases, where otherwise the age would not be indicated. The further substantial increase in the number of cases in 1928 is mainly, perhaps entirely, due to the raising of the age of a “child” to seventeen, as mentioned above.

In the next table cases dealing with juveniles in 1928 are classified according to nature of offence and result of hearing. It will be seen that nearly two-thirds of the charges against juveniles are in respect of offences against property.

Class of Offence.	Total.	Dismissed or withdrawn for Want of Prosecution or of Evidence.	Dismissed on the Merits.	Admonished and discharged.	Committed for Trial or Sentence.	Summarily, convicted.
* Including, forgery and offences against the currency.
Against the person	60	3	4	16	3	34
Against property^*	1,876	61	34	866	..	915
Against good order	485	13	19	244	..	209
Other	674	28	18	66	..	562
Totals	3,095	105	75	1,192	3	1,720

The principal of the offences against the person in 1928 was indecent assault and attempts, which was responsible for 24 cases, resulting in the offender being convicted in 16 cases, admonished and discharged in 5, and committed for trial in 3. Common assault resulted in 3 cases being dismissed, and 5 admonished and discharged, while in 8 cases convictions were entered.

Theft was the principal offence against property, 1,137 charges being dealt with in 1928. The case was dismissed in 58 instances, convictions were entered in 616 cases, and the offender admonished and discharged in 443. These figures do not include housebreaking and stealing, which was the offence in 212 cases (resulting in 105 convictions), or burglary (21 cases). There were also 11 charges of embezzlement, 44 charges of receiving stolen property (28 convictions), and 15 of fraud and false pretences (14 convictions).

Wilful damage, mischief, &c., is also an important claws of offence in juvenile cases, being responsible for 342 charges in 1928. Sixty-seven of these offenders were convicted, and 248 admonished and discharged. In 75 cases the charge was unlawfully converting property to own use, the number of convictions under this heading being 29.

Of the 485 cases of offences against good order, breaches of regulations for the lighting of vehicles (principally riding bicycle without light) accounted for 191 (convictions, 83); negligent or dangerous driving of motor-vehicles, 30 (convictions, 13); cycling on footpaths, &c., 73 (convictions, 39).

It is in the “Other” offences that the effect of the introduction of the Child Welfare Act is most noticeable, the number of cases for 1928 (674) being more than seven times that recorded for 1925 (88). Over 80 per cent. of the cases in this class were brought under the Child Welfare Act, the number of cases of children not under proper control or in indigent circumstances being 561, and the resulting convictions 527. In connection with these convictions orders were made for committal to the care of the Superintendent, Child Welfare Branch, or for supervision by a Child Welfare Officer in 464 cases. Of the rest, breaches of the Defence Act were responsible for 24 cases; and breaches of the Arms Act for 60.

Offences by juveniles are seldom of a very serious nature, and even when a conviction is recorded Magistrates frequently adopt the course of discharging the offender or of ordering him to come up for sentence when called upon. In the latter case it rests almost entirely with the offender himself as to whether any further steps will be taken, and it is found that in very few cases does the future conduct of the convicted person render it necessary for him to be brought before the Magistrate again for sentence.

The punishments meted out to juvenile offenders in 1928 were as follows:—

MAGISTRATES' COURTS.—PUNISHMENTS OF JUVENILE OFFENDERS, 1928.

Punishment.	Against the Person.	Against Property.	Against Good Order.	Other.	Totals.
Released on probation	1	8	..	..	9
Convicted and discharged	3	55	27	12	97
Convicted and ordered to come up for sentence	..	13	2	1	16
Committed to industrial school	..	21	1	12	34
Committed to Borstal institution, Salvation Army Home, &c.	4	75	4	26	109
Fined	..	6	126	11	143
Committed to care of Child Welfare Superintendent	13	195	14	464	686
Placed under supervision of Child Welfare Officer	12	521	32	15	580
Whipped	..	1	..	..	1
Order made	1	20	3	21	45
Total summary convictions	34	915	209	562	1,720

Very few juvenile cases find their way to the Supreme Court, and, beyond the information disclosed by the Magistrates' Courts returns as to committals for sentence or trial, no statistics of such cases in the higher Court are available. Statistics of ages of person sentenced show, however, that in 1928 4 males under seventeen years of age were sentenced in the Supreme Court.

Similarly, juvenile prisoners are almost non-existent, it being the custom where restraint is necessary to commit offenders to industrial schools rather than to prisons or Borstal institutions. The prison statistics show that only 29 persons (males 28) under the age of seventeen were placed in confinement during 1928. All of these were committed to Borstal institutions for periods of from two to five years.

OFFENCES BY WOMEN.

Of 45,139 summary convictions in Magistrates' Courts in 1928 only 2,596, or 5.75 per cent., were of females. Drunkenness, including the issue of prohibition orders, was responsible for 395 convictions, theft 244, fraud and false pretences 31, wilful damage 19, common assault 21, attempted suicide 19, offensive conduct or language 56, vagrancy 110, and offences against the revenue laws 37. The great majority of the convictions were in respect of minor breaches of the law, including 94 for Sunday-trading; 72 for breaches of by-laws; 265 for negligent, dangerous driving, &c. (motor-vehicles 220, others 45); 165 for breaches of regulations for the lighting of vehicles; 76 for offences relating to the registration, &c., of motor-vehicles; and 114 for other traffic offences. Breaches of prohibition orders accounted for 96 of the 183 convictions for breaches of the Licensing Act; child not under proper control or in indigent circumstances for 257; other breaches of the Child Welfare Act for 20; allowing horses, cattle, or sheep to wander at large for 65; breaches of the Shops and Offices Act for 77; and breaches of the Destitute Persons Act for 78.

The exclusion of multiple charges in respect of offences committed in conjunction reduces the number of summary convictions of females to 2,046, including 570 arrest cases, which represent only 369 distinct persons. The number of distinct persons concerned in the 1,476 distinct summons cases cannot be ascertained.

In addition to the 2,596 summary convictions of women in Magistrates' Courts during 1928 there were 57 committals to the Supreme Court—12 for trial and 45 for sentence. The Supreme Court statistics show that 17 charges against females were dealt with during the year, resulting in 4 convictions, representing 2 distinct persons. In addition, 13 women were sentenced after committal for sentence in respect of 45 offences.

The number of distinct female prisoners received into prison during 1928 was 117, the principal offences of these being—vagrancy, 51; drunkenness, 16; and theft, 23. The actual number of receptions of female prisoners during the year was 272, this number including 10 of Maoris, and the daily average number of women prisoners in gaol was 88.06. Two reformatories (at Addington and Point Halswell) house women prisoners only. There is also a Borstal institution at Point Halswell for women only.

OFFENCES BY NEW ZEALAND BORN.

As explained previously, information as to birthplace and age is available in arrest cases, and the figures for 1928 show that of 7,257 persons convicted in Magistrates' Courts after arrest, 4,184, or 58 per cent., were born in New Zealand (including 355 Maoris). While New Zealand born males formed 61 per cent. of the total male population at ages 20 and over at the Census of 1926, they formed in 1928 only 56 per cent. of males of those ages convicted in Magistrates' Courts after arrest.

A summary of offences and ages of distinct New Zealand born persons convicted during 1928 is given (females are included).

OFFENCES AND AGES.—NEW ZEALAND BORN ONLY (INCLUDING MAORIS).

Class of Offence.	Under 20.	20 and under 25.	25 and under 30.	30 and under 40.	40 and over.	Not stated.	Totals.
Against the person	13	36	43	53	53	1	199
Against property	205	244	164	196	176	2	987
Against good order	67	282	310	738	1,348	2	2,747
Other	18	47	32	61	92	1	251
Totals	303	609	549	1,048	1,669	6	4,184

During the year 1928 1,453 male and 85 female distinct New Zealand born prisoners were received into prison under sentence.

The following table shows the ages of distinct New Zealand born prisoners received into gaol during the last five years. The proportion of New Zealand born to total male prisoners at ages 20 and over was in 1928 51 per cent., as compared with the 61 per cent. shown previously as being the corresponding proportion in the population.

AGES OF DISTINCT NEW ZEALAND BORN CONVICTED PRISONERS RECEIVED INTO PRISON, 1924–28.

Year.	Under 15.	15 and under 20.	20 and under 25.	25 and under 30.	30 and under 40.	40 and over.	Not stated.	Totals.
1924	..	99	215	192	328	415	1	1,250
1925	..	99	217	194	292	471	3	1,276
1926	1	188	300	221	349	504	1	1,564
1927	..	199	268	236	391	473	3	1,570
1928	1	150	268	250	360	509	..	1,538

OFFENCES BY MAORIS.

The number of convictions of Maoris brought before Magistrates' Courts for the last ten years is shown in the following table:—

SUMMARY CONVICTIONS OF MAORIS (MAGISTRATES' COURTS), 1919–28.

Year.	Class of Offence.
	Against the Person.	Against Property.	Against Good Order.		Other. Offences.	Totals.
	Against the Person.	Against Property.	Drunkenness.^*	Other.	Other. Offences.	Totals.
* Excluding prohibition-order cases.
1919	150	272	411	620	482	1,935
1920	100	275	390	472	614	1,851
1921	75	297	314	444	548	1,678
1922	67	238	216	327	520	1,368
1923	83	276	244	404	499	1,506
1924	55	297	264	362	513	1,491
1925	73	344	310	469	458	1,654
1926	64	438	287	452	504	1,745
1927	67	354	227	359	460	1,467
1928	65	372	240	381	490	1,548

Distinct Maoris convicted after arrest in 1928 numbered 355. The ages of these are given in the following table, in combination with information as to the class of offence:—

AGES AND OFFENCES OF DISTINCT MAORIS CONVICTED (ARRESTS ONLY), 1928.

Class of Offence.	Under 20.	20 and under 25.	25 and under 30.	30 and under 40.	40 and over.	Unspecified.	Totals.
Against the person	2	10	6	7	6	..	31
Against property	35	38	22	11	8	..	114
Against good order	3	32	31	67	67	..	200
Other	4	2	..	3	..	1	10
Totals	44	82	59	88	81	1	355

The number of Maoris convicted and sentenced in the Supreme Court, which exhibits the extent of serious crime amongst the Native race, is shown in the following table covering the last five years. Those sentenced in the higher Court after pleading guilty in the lower Court have been included.

Year.	Maoris convicted or sentenced in Supreme Court for				Totals.
Year.	Offences against the Person.	Offences against Property.	Forgery and Offences against the Currency.	Other Offences.	Totals.
1924	7	9	3	1	20
1925	17	16	6	2	41
1926	17	15	6	2	40
1927	11	12	4	1	28
1928	9	14	1	..	24

Eighteen of the number for 1928 had been sent up from Magistrates' Courts for sentence.

The number of distinct Maori prisoners received into gaol under sentence during 1928 was 158 (including 3 women), as compared with 143 in 1927.

DRUNKENNESS.

The extent to which convictions for drunkenness swell the total of convictions is obvious from the information given throughout this section. The number of convictions for drunkenness, including drunkenness with disorderly conduct, drunk in charge of vehicle or of horse, and habitual drunkenness, during 1928 totalled 6,020 against males and 320 against females. In addition, there were 1,561 technical convictions in cases of applications for the issue of prohibition orders. Prohibition-order cases are not included in the following table, which shows the number of convictions for drunkenness recorded, and the proportion per 1,000 of the mean population of each sex, during the last ten years:—

CONVICTIONS FOR DRUNKENNESS, 1919–28.

Year.	Convictions.			Per 1,000 of Mean Population.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Totals.	Males.	Females.	Totals.
1919	7,579	488	8,067	12.68	0.82	6.76
1920	8,374	519	8,893	13.17	0.86	7.16
1921	8,341	463	8,804	12.77	0.74	6.90
1922	5,982	331	6,313	8.97	0.52	4.84
1923	6,543	392	6,935	9.65	0.60	5.22
1924	6,729	394	7,123	9.75	0.59	5.27
1925	7,702	404	8,106	10.89	0.60	5.86
1926	7,114	372	7,486	9.84	0.54	5.30
1927	6,096	321	6,417	8.29	0.46	4.46
1928	6,020	320	6,340	8.10	0.45	4.32

Of the total convictions for drunkenness during 1928, 6084 (5,775 males and 309 females) were arrest cases, while 256 (245 males and 11 females) were cases brought before the Magistrate by summons. The following table shows the birthplaces and ages of all persons arrested and convicted for drunkenness during the year. Birthplaces and ages in summons cases are not obtainable.

BIRTHPLACES AND AGES OF PERSONS CONVICTED FOR DRUNKENNESS (ARRESTS ONLY), 1928.

Birthplace.	Under 10.	20 and under 25.	25 and under 30.	30 and under 40.	40 and under 60.	60 and over, and unspecified.	Totals.
New Zealand—
Maoris	..	36	34	63	53	16	202
Others	36	193	271	798	1,479	148	2,925
Australia	..	7	28	73	216	41	365
England and Wales	3	37	103	266	582	146	1,137
Scotland	2	23	62	145	286	76	594
Ireland	..	10	17	91	318	152	588
Other European countries	1	3	11	24	100	32	171
Asia	..	1	4	4	11	..	20
Africa	..	1	..	2	2	3	8
America	1	3	7	9	29	11	60
British Pacific Islands	..	2	1	..	3	..	6
Unspecified	..	..	..	..	..	8	8
Totals	43	316	538	1,475	3,079	633	6,084

Among the New Zealand born population (including Maoris) there is evidence of less drunkenness than among persons who have come from abroad. It will be seen that in each of the age-groups up to age 70 given in the following table the percentage of convictions of males born in New Zealand is lower than the corresponding percentage of population, while the reverse is, of course, true in respect of males born outside the Dominion:—

Age, in Years.	Percentage of Male Population, Census 1926.		Percentage of Convictions for Drunkenness, 1928 (Arrest Cases).
Age, in Years.	New Zealand born.	Others.	New Zealand born.	Others.
20 and under 25	80.33	19.67	72.29	27.71
25 and under 30	74.27	25.73	56.29	43.71
30 and under 40	68.42	31.58	56.67	43.33
40 and under 50	62.52	37.48	50.50	49.50
50 and under 60	52.55	47.45	45.12	54.88
60 and under 70	33.33	66.67	25.99	74.01
70 and under 80	15.29	84.71	17.24	82.76

Repeated charges against the same person are included in the totals shown in the preceding tables. The number of distinct persons convicted of this offence (after arrest) was 3,720 (3,564 males and 156 females), or 61 per cent. of the total “arrest” convictions for drunkenness.

The total convictions for all offences in arrest cases in 1928 were 12,285, but the distinct convictions amounted to only 9,464, the former total including 2,821 convictions for multiple charges against the same person at the same time. Of the latter 1,028 were in respect of charges dealt with at the same time as the offender was convicted of drunkenness, the principal associated offences being—

Offence.	Number of Convictions.
Common assault	65
Theft	41
Wilful damage	103
Indecent, riotous, or offensive conduct	146
Obscene, threatening, or abusive language	219
Assaulting, resisting, or obstructing police	59
Vagrancy	75
Offences relating to the registration, &c., of motor-vehicles	23
Breaches of prohibition orders	209

In addition, there were 27 cases where a prohibition order was issued against a person convicted at the same time of drunkenness.

Any person who has been three times convicted for drunkenness within the nine months immediately preceding any conviction for drunkenness may be declared an habitual drunkard, the number of convictions for habitual drunkenness during 1928 being 25 (males 19, females 6). A Magistrate may, in addition to or in lieu of a penalty, commit an habitual drunkard to any institution authorized by the Governor-General to receive and detain such persons for any period not being less than twelve months. The law makes provision in respect of the discharge of inmates, their good conduct, discipline, and punishment for offences during detention, and for the proper inspection of such institutions.

The sentences in the 6,340 convictions for drunkenness during the year were: fined, 4,170; imprisonment in lieu of fine, 403; peremptory imprisonment, 97; committed to Salvation Army Home or other such institution, 20 (including 6 for habitual drunkenness); convicted and discharged, 1,570; released under Offenders Probation Act, 3; and order made, 32. The remaining 45 were convicted and ordered to come up for sentence when called upon.

A calculation of the amount of alcoholic liquor consumed per head of mean population during the last five years is given below:—

CONSUMPTION OF BEER, WINE, AND SPIRITS PER HEAD OF MEAN POPULATION.

	Including Maoris.			Excluding Maoris.
	Beer.	Wine.	Spirits.	Beer.	Wine.	Spirits.
	Gal.	Gal.	Gal.	Gal.	Gal.	Gal.
1924	10.028	0.144	0.474	10.445	0.150	0.493
1925	9.560	0.163	0.518	9.953	0.169	0.539
1926	9.160	0.165	0.466	9.570	0.172	0.487
1927	8.885	0.171	0.523	9.301	0.179	0.547
1928	8.817	0.132	0.344	9.229	0.138	0.360

The quantity of each kind of alcoholic liquor entered at the Customs for consumption (including beer on which excise duty was paid) was as follows during the same period:—

	Beer.	Wine.	Spirits.
	Gal.	Gal.	Gal.
1924	13,565,071	194,928	641,236
1925	13,234,918	225,136	717,119
1926	12,949,484	233,679	658,293
1927	12,783,837	246,139	752,472
1928	12,834,868	192,282	500,267

TRAFFIC OFFENCES.

In keeping with the enormous growth of motor traffic during recent years, there has been a huge increase in traffic offences, which constitute a high proportion of the cases dealt with in Magistrates' Courts. The number of cases for this class of offence during 1928 was 17,978, which resulted in 16,261 convictions, representing 40 per cent. of the total convictions during the year and a rate of 11.17 per 1,000 of the mean population.

As separate figures for traffic offences cannot be obtained for years prior to 1928, it is not possible to give comparative figures for all of the different offences in connection with vehicular traffic over a period of years. The following table, however, showing convictions for various traffic offences during the last three years, gives a comparison of those figures which are available:—

Offence.	1926.	1927.	1928.
* Common to all three years, but slightly incomplete.
Negligent or dangerous driving, &c., of motor-vehicles	4,259	5,171	5,063
Negligent or dangerous driving, &c., of other vehicles	1,088	819	784
Breaches of regulations for the lighting of vehicles	3,979	4,315	4,930
Offences relating to the registration, &c., of motor-vehicles	2,919	2,797	2,633
Other offences relating to vehicular traffic^*	1,839	2,037	2,241

Beginning with 1928, separate figures for traffic offences have been compiled showing the offences in greater detail. The following table shows the number of cases and convictions for the various offences or groups of offences included in the 17,978 cases heard in Magistrates' Courts during 1928:—

MAGISTRATES' COURTS.—TRAFFIC OFFENCES, 1928.

Offence.	Cases.	Convictions.
Negligent driving causing death	18	..
Negligent driving endangering human life	4	1
Unlawfully converting motor-vehicle to own use	328	266
Drunk in charge of motor-vehicle	345	304
Drunk in charge of other vehicle	39	39
Excessive speed in motor-vehicle	2,353	2,142
Negligent or dangerous driving of motor-vehicle	3,483	2,921
Riding bicycle on footpath	754	710
Negligent or dangerous driving of other vehicle	83	74
Breaches of regulations for the lighting of vehicles	5,196	4,930
Offences relating to the registration, &c., of motor-vehicles	2,974	2,633
Breaches of parking regulations	1,354	1,300
Other traffic offences	1,047	941
	17,978	16,261

The first outstanding fact revealed by the above table is that by far the greater proportion of the cases are for comparatively trivial offences such as breaches of lighting regulations and breaches of regulations for the registration, &c., of motor-vehicles (including driving unregistered car, and driving without driver's license). Then it will be seen that these cases result in a far greater proportion of convictions in Magistrates' Courts than the more serious class of traffic offences—viz., negligent driving causing death or endangering human life—which are usually committed to the Supreme Court for trial or sentence.

Separate figures for the North and South Islands show that of the 16,216 convictions for traffic offences in the Dominion during 1928, 11,188 were contributed by the North Island and only 5,073 by the South, the rates per 1,000 of the respective mean populations being 12.01 and 9.67.

Dealing now only with motor-vehicles, it is found that the total number of convictions for traffic offences during 1928 was 9,567 (which total excludes motor-vehicles without lights, &c.—separate figures hot available), and of these 7,050 were in the North Island and 2,517 in the South. The numbers of motor-vehicles on the register (excluding dormant registrations) on 31st December, 1928, were—North Island, 107,276; South Island, 62,779. The convictions were, therefore—North Island, 6.57 per cent., South Island 4.01 per cent., of the registrations.

Chapter 10. SECTION X.—DEFENCE.

Table of Contents

NEW ZEALAND MILITARY FORCES.

EXPEDITIONARY FORCES.

NAVAL DEFENCE.

NEW ZEALAND MILITARY FORCES.

THE New Zealand Military Forces consist of the Permanent Forces, the Territorial Force, and the Senior Cadets.

The units of the Permanent Forces are the New Zealand Staff Corps, the New. Zealand Permanent Staff, the Royal New Zealand Artillery, the New Zealand Permanent Air Force, the New Zealand Permanent Army Service Corps, the New Zealand Army Medical Corps, the New Zealand Army Ordnance Corps, the New Zealand Army Pay Corps, and the General Duty Section of the New Zealand Permanent Forces.

The establishment of the New Zealand Permanent Forces provides for 109 professional officers, who are charged with the training of the Forces and the administration of all matters connected therewith.

The New Zealand Permanent Staff, with a strength of 135, provides drill instructors for the Territorials and cadets, and also carries out administrative duties.

The Royal New Zealand Artillery has an establishment of 11 officers (included in the 109 above) and 105 “other ranks.” It supplies the necessary instructors for the Territorial Artillery, provides cadres for the Field Artillery unite, and maintains the harbour-defences and artillery equipment throughout the Dominion.

The New Zealand Permanent Air Force has an establishment of 7 officers (included in the 109 above mentioned) and 24 “other ranks.”

The New Zealand Permanent Army Service Corps has an establishment of 12 “other ranks.”

The establishment for the New Zealand Army Medical Corps is 1 officer and 1 “other rank.”

The New Zealand Army Ordnance Corps comprises 8 officers (included in the 109 for the New Zealand Permanent Forces) and 112 “other ranks,” who are in charge of the mobilization equipment and bulk depots of the Forces.

The New Zealand Army Pay Corps comprises 5 officers (included in the 109 above mentioned) and 11 “other ranks.”

The General Duty Section consists of 29 “other ranks,” who are employed as crew of defence vessel, firemasters, caretakers, range wardens, night-watchmen, &c.

For purposes of defence the Dominion is divided into three commands—the Northern Command comprising roughly the northern half of the North Island, the Central Command comprising the remainder of the North Island, and the Southern Command comprising the South Island, Stewart Island, and the Chatham Islands.

These commands are each divided into four regimental districts, and each command contains the following units of the New Zealand Territorial Force:—

Three regiments of Mounted Rifles, seven batteries of Artillery, one Engineer Depot, one Signals Depot, four battalions of Infantry, one Army Service Corps Depot, and one Medical Depot.

This organization on mobilization produces one complete division and three brigades of Mounted Rifles, and provides the machinery by which this force could be duplicated and kept up to strength.

The strength of the territorial Force on 31st March, 1929, was 836 officers and 16,541 “other ranks.”

The Senior Cadets are organized in battalions, and receive physical and elementary military training. The strength of the Senior Cadets on 31st March. 1929, was 549 officers and 32,070 “other ranks.”

Rifle clubs exist throughout the Dominion for the encouragement of rifle shooting, and, in addition to minor fixtures, a Dominion rifle meeting is held at Trentham annually.

All male inhabitants of New Zealand who have resided therein for six months and are British subjects are liable to be trained as follows:—

In the Senior Cadets—from fourteen years of age, or date of leaving school (if later), to eighteen years of age (or in the case of those who at the age of eighteen are attending a secondary school, then to the date of their leaving school).
In the Territorial Force—from eighteen years (or from any later date on which they cease to attend a secondary school as aforesaid) to twenty-five.

The full period of service in the Territorial Force to which trainees are liable is not, however, carried out at present, all men who have fulfilled their obligations being transferred to the Reserve in June of the year in which they reach the age of twenty-one years.

The Headquarters of the New Zealand Military Forces is at Wellington.

EXPEDITIONARY FORCES.

New Zealand supplied ten contingents for service during the South African War. These comprised a total of 6,500 officers and men.

Immediately the Great European War broke out an Expeditionary Force was despatched to Western Samoa and occupied those islands, while a larger force in the form of a mixed brigade was despatched to Europe. The latter force was, however, landed in Egypt, and took part in the defence of the Suez Canal. It gave a good account of itself in the desperate campaign on Gallipoli, and after being withdrawn to Egypt was expanded into a Division and a Mounted Brigade. The Division then went to the western front, while the Mounted Brigade continued to operate against the Turks in Palestine. Both forces became famous for their military qualities, and took part in practically all the great actions of their respective theatres up to the Armistice.

A total of 100,000 troops left New Zealand for service with the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, and nearly 17,000 lost their lives on active service.

On the Armistice being declared in November, 1918, New Zealand had 52,000 troops in the field, while 10,000 more were ready to embark or were under training.

The tremendous amount of transport work involved in the conveyance of these forces to Egypt, France, Britain, Gallipoli, and Samoa was carried out with extraordinary success, not one New Zealand transport having been lost while conveying troops.

The troops provided for foreign service represented nearly 10 per cent. of the total population of the Dominion in 1914, and over 40 per cent. of the male population between the ages of twenty and forty-five years, while it is known that a very large number of other New-Zealanders served in the British or Australian Naval or Military Forces.

NAVAL DEFENCE.

By the Australasian Defence Act, 1887, provision was made for the payment by New Zealand of a proportional part of the cost of the establishment and maintenance of a British Naval Force to be employed for the protection of trade in Australian and New Zealand waters. Under this Act a sum of approximately £20,000 per annum was paid by the New Zealand Government to the Imperial Government.

In 1903, consequent on the passing of the Australian and New Zealand Naval Defence Act, the annual contribution payable by New Zealand was raised to “a sum not exceeding £40,000.”

By the Naval Subsidy Act, 1908, the contribution of the Dominion was again increased, this time to a sum of £100,000 payable annually for ten years from the 12th May, 1909.

In 1909 New Zealand presented the battle-cruiser “New Zealand” to the Imperial Government. Full information concerning this vessel and her visit to New Zealand in 1913 appears in the 1913 issue of this book (pages 932–941). This ship was scrapped as a result of the Washington Conference, 1921–22.

The Naval Defence Act, 1913, provided for the establishment of a New Zealand Naval Force by voluntary enlistment for a prescribed period; the period of first engagement is twelve years, or until the age of thirty is reached (if under eighteen years of age on entering), with subsequent re-engagement periods of five years. Members on discharge are drafted into the New Zealand Royal Naval Reserve for a further prescribed period—i.e., for ten years or until the age of forty—for service only in time of war. The ships and personnel forming the Force pass under the control and disposal of the Government of Great Britain in time of war.

A New Zealand Division was inaugurated in 1914, immediately prior to the war, when H.M.S. “Philomel” was commissioned with ranks and ratings lent from the Royal Navy to serve as a training-ship. The “Philomel” was employed under the orders of the British Admiralty throughout the war, and thus no opportunity was afforded for the commencement of a scheme of training. After her service during the war the ship was refitted as a training-ship, and was commissioned on the 1st March, 1921, at Wellington. She received her first batch of recruits in May, 1921.

In 1919 Admiral of the Fleet Viscount Jellicoe of Scapa, G.C.B., O.M., G.C.V.O., visited New Zealand in H.M.S. “New Zealand,” and presented his report making recommendations and suggestions for the naval defence of the Dominion.

In 1920 H.M.S. “Chatham” was loaned free of charge to New Zealand by the British Government, and was commissioned on the 1st October of that year with officers and men of the Royal Navy; the officers on loan therefrom for three years, the men partly on loan, but mainly transferred to the New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy for a period of three years. Owing to an oil-burning vessel not being available, H.M.S. “Chatham” remained on the New Zealand Station until the 10th May, 1924, when she was replaced by H.M.S. “Dunedin,” the Commodore Commanding New Zealand Station transferring his broad pendant and the ship assuming the duties of flagship. On 21st October, 1925, H.M.S. “Diomede” was commissioned at Portsmouth for service as a second cruiser in the New Zealand Division. The “Dunedin” and “Diomede” are sister ships and are loaned free of charge in the same manner as H.M.S. “Chatham,” the New Zealand Government being responsible for all payments for the ships and their personnel during the period of loan. Commodore Geoffrey Blake, C.B., D.S.O., assumed command of the New Zealand Station in September, 1929.

During 1925 arrangements were made for the purchase of a trawler for the purpose of training reservists on the station, &c. This vessel, which has been named “Wakakura,” was commissioned on 8th April, 1926, and arrived in New Zealand in January, 1927.

A Naval Board was constituted by Order in Council of the 14th March, 1927, charged with the control of all matters relating to the Naval Forces, upon the policy directed by the Minister, and vested with the executive command of the Naval Forces. The Board is composed of the Minister of Defence (President) and the following members: the Commodore Commanding New Zealand Station (First Naval Member), a Captain, R.N. (Second Naval Member), the Secretary to the Commodore Commanding (Secretary to the Board).

By Order in Council of the 20th June, 1921, it was provided that the ships and personnel comprising the New Zealand Naval Forces should be described respectively as forming and belonging to “The New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy,” which is the official designation of the Force.

Legislation was passed in February, 1922, authorizing the formation of a New Zealand Royal Naval Reserve by voluntary enlistment therein, in addition to the drafting thereto of ratings discharged from the seagoing forces. An Order in Council of the 10th July, 1922, prescribes the conditions of service in the various classes of the Reserve. All reservists, other than those of the inactive Reserve, are required to perform specified periods of training in ships of the New Zealand Division. The Reserve will provide a nucleus for local defence. A small Reserve of Officers was approved by Order in Council dated 17th November, 1924, and commissions have been granted to 72 officers enrolled. Three companies of the R.N.V.R. Division (Class D) have been formed at Auckland, two companies have been enrolled at Wellington, and one each at Christchurch and Dunedin. The number of all ratings enrolled in the New Zealand Royal Naval Reserve to the 31st March, 1929, is 824.

There is a small naval base at Devonport, Auckland, where H.M.S. “Philomel” acts as a depot-ship. Refits of H.M. ships are carried out at Devonport, where provision for oil-fuel storage has been made, two tanks having been erected. Small stocks of naval and armament stores are maintained. A naval oil-tank vessel (R.F.A. “Nucula”) is maintained by the New Zealand Government.

Up to 31st March, 1929, 605 New Zealand boys and youths have been entered for service in the division, principally in seaman and stoker ratings. All New Zealand ratings showing special aptitude in their respective branches are sent to England to undergo specialist courses in gunnery, torpedo, mechanical training, and other schools, and to gain some knowledge of the work in a large squadron. Every encouragement is given to younger ratings to undertake these courses, and it is gratifying to find that the ratings who have returned to New Zealand obtained most satisfactory results.

Officers are in the majority of cases lent from the Imperial Navy, as well as a considerable number of the petty officers and men. The pay of men of the New Zealand Division is approximately 20 per cent. higher than that of similar ratings in the Imperial Navy, and ratings permanently attached thereto are credited with deferred pay in lieu of pension. The deferred pay amounts to approximately £500 at the end of twelve years' service, or £1,200 after completing twenty-two years' service, and such a sum is invaluable in enabling men to start life ashore.

On the 21st September, 1927, the sum of £1,000,000, to be paid in eight annual instalments, was voted as a contribution to the cost of the Singapore base.

The amounts expended in respect of naval defence during the year 1928–29 were—

	£
Upkeep of New Zealand Division of Royal Navy	463,496
Debt charges (interest and repayments) on loan-money raised for building battle-cruiser “New Zealand”	89,387
Contribution to Singapore Naval Base	125,000
	£677,883

H.M.S. “Veronica,” which has been on the New Zealand Station since 1920, was recommissioned in January, 1927, for further service on the station. H.M.S. “Laburnum” arrived in New Zealand waters from England in March, 1922, and was recommissioned in January, 1927. These two sloops are provided and maintained by the British Government, their duties consisting mainly of policing the South Pacific islands within the limits of the New Zealand Station.

Chapter 11. SECTION XI.—EXTERNAL TRADE.

Table of Contents

SUBSECTION A.—GENERAL.

HISTORICAL.

TOTAL TRADE, IMPORTS, AND EXPORTS, 1853–1928.

OVERSEAS TRADE, 1928.

MONTHLY EXPORTS AND IMPORTS.

ACTUAL MONTHLY FIGURES OF EXPORTS AND IMPORTS, 1927–29.

THREE-MONTHLY MOVING AVERAGE OF EXPORTS AND IMPORTS, 1927–29.

EXPORTS AND IMPORTS, JANUARY, 1924, TO JUNE, 1929 (THREE-MONTHLY MOVING AVERAGES).

TRADE PER HEAD.

TOTAL TRADE, IMPORTS, AND EXPORTS PER HEAD, 1909–28.

TOTAL TRADE, IMPORTS, AND EXPORTS PER HEAD OF MEAN POPULATION.

BALANCE OF TRADE.

MOVEMENT OF BULLION AND SPECIE.

EXPORTS OF GOLD BULLION FROM NEW ZEALAND, 1919–28.

VALUE OF SPECIE IMPORTED AND EXPORTED, 1919–28.

COMPARISON WITH OTHER COUNTRIES.

PROPORTION OF RE-EXPORTS TO TOTAL TRADE (EXCLUDING SPECIE), 1919–28.

SPECIAL TRADE OF VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

SUBSECTION B.—EXPORTS.

METHOD OF RECORDING EXPORTS.

CLASSIFICATION OF EXPORTS.

PROPORTIONS OF EXPORTS SUPPLIED BY THE MAIN INDUSTRIES, 1909–28.

PROPORTIONS OF EXPORTS SUPPLIED BY THE MAIN INDUSTRIES, 1908–28.

EXPORTS OF PRINCIPAL ITEMS OF NEW ZEALAND PRODUCE, 1909–28.

VALUES OF MAIN EXPORTS, 1908–28.

INCREASES OR DECREASES IN THE MAIN EXPORTS IN 1928.

EXPORTS BY STATISTICAL CLASSES, 1928.

QUANTITIES OF THE PRINCIPAL COMMODITIES OF NEW ZEALAND PRODUCE EXPORTED, 1924–28.

VALUES OF PRINCIPAL COMMODITIES OF NEW ZEALAND PRODUCE EXPORTED, 1924–28.

DESTINATION OF NEW ZEALAND EXPORTS.

RE-EXPORTS OF NEW ZEALAND PRODUCE FROM UNITED KINGDOM, 1923–27.

EXPORTS TO EACH COUNTRY, 1924–28.

DESTINATION OF EXPORTS FROM NEW ZEALAND, 1924–28.

PRINCIPAL EXPORTS TO VARIOUS COUNTRIES, 1924–28.

DESTINATION OF MAIN EXPORTS, 1924–28.

EXPORTS FOR YEARS ENDED 30th JUNE.

PRINCIPAL EXPORTS OF DOMESTIC PRODUCE (VALUES) FOR YEARS ENDED 30TH JUNE, 1925–29.

PRINCIPAL EXPORTS OF DOMESTIC PRODUCE (QUANTITIES) FOR YEARS ENDED 30TH JUNE, 1925–29.

RE-EXPORTS.

RE-EXPORTS (EXCLUDING SPECIE) FROM NEW ZEALAND, 1909–28.

EFFECT OF PRICES ON NEW ZEALAND EXPORTS.

EXPORTS OF NEW ZEALAND PRODUCE, SHOWING VALUES AS RECORDED AND AS COMPUTED ON THE BASIS OF VALUES RULING IN 1900.

EXPORTS AS RECORDED AND AS ASSESSED AT PRICES OF 1900.

EXPORTS TO COOK ISLANDS.

TOTAL VALUE OF EXPORTS FROM NEW ZEALAND TO COOK AND OTHER ANNEXED ISLANDS, 1909–28.

SUBSECTION C.—IMPORTS.

METHOD OF RECORDING.

DEVELOPMENT OF IMPORTS.

IMPORTS, 1919–28.

CLASSIFICATION OF IMPORTS.

IMPORTS BY CLASSES, 1928.

IMPORTS, 1928.

DIRECTION OF IMPORT TRADE.

IMPORTS FROM PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1909–28.

IMPORTS FROM PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1914–28.

IMPORTS (COUNTRY OF ORIGIN), 1921 TO 1928.

DETAILED IMPORTS FROM VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

PRINCIPAL IMPORTS.

IMPORTS FROM COOK ISLANDS.

SUBSECTION D.—CUSTOMS TARIFF AND REVENUE.

TOTAL TAXATION AND CUSTOMS AND EXCISE REVENUE, 1909–10 TO 1928–29.

PRINCIPAL CLASSES OF IMPORTS FROM WHICH CUSTOMS REVENUE DERIVED.

PERCENTAGE OF EACH CLASS TO THE TOTAL DUTY COLLECTED.

CUSTOMS AND EXCISE REVENUE, 1924–28.

CUSTOMS REVENUE COMPARED WITH IMPORT VALUES, 1895–1928.

CUSTOMS REVENUE BY CLASSES OF IMPORTS, 1928.

FREE AND DUTIABLE IMPORTS.

FREE AND DUTIABLE IMPORTS BY CLASSES, 1928.

FREE AND DUTIABLE IMPORTS (EXCLUDING SPECIE), 1909–28.

RATES OF DUTY.

PREFERENCE AND RECIPROCITY.

IMPORTS AFFECTED BY PREFERENTIAL SURTAX, 1909–28.

IMPORTS OF GOODS OF BRITISH OR FOREIGN ORIGIN, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO THE NATURE OF DUTY PAYABLE, 1926–28.

RECIPROCITY WITH SOUTH AFRICA.

RECIPROCITY WITH AUSTRALIA.

IMPORTS AFFECTED BY AUSTRALIAN RECIPROCAL TARIFF, 1928.

SUBSECTION E.—TRADE OF PORTS.

INTRODUCTORY.

PORTS OF ENTRY.

OVERSEA IMPORTS.

IMPORTS BY PORTS, 1924–28.

OVERSEA EXPORTS.

OVERSEAS EXPORTS BY PORTS, 1924–28.

PORT TONNAGE STATISTICS.

TOTAL OUTWARDS CARGO HANDLED AT EACH PORT IN 1928, SHOWING PRINCIPAL ITEMS OF NEW ZEALAND EXPORTS SEPARATELY.

TRANSHIPMENTS.

TRANSHIPMENTS BY PORTS AND CLASS, 1928.

TRANSHIPMENTS BY ITEMS AND CLASS, 1928.

SUBSECTION A.—GENERAL.

HISTORICAL.

NEW ZEALAND'S overseas trade dates back into the latter portion of the eighteenth century. The seals and whales of the South Seas attracted attention to the Islands as a convenient depot, and by 1800 there were established many little settlements where the blubber was tried out. In 1794 the timber trade was inaugurated by the visit of the “Fancy,” and the export of timber, mainly kahikatea (white-pine), rapidly grow to goodly proportions. The native flax (Phormium tenax) was also early recognized as a source of wealth, and a considerable export arose. The principal imports prior to the annexation of New Zealand to the British Empire were muskets and powder for the warlike Natives.

The arrival of the New Zealand Company's expedition in 1840 stimulated the development of a more stable trade—wool had been exported to Hobart in 1839—and gradually the exports and imports of New Zealand took on their modern form. In 1852 the young colony was granted representative government, and from that date there is an accurate record of the external trade of the country.

By 1853 the export of phormium-fibre had been practically ruined owing to increased competition from other sources, and the amount exported in that year was negligible. Timber, however, retained its place as a principal export, supplying 31 per cent. (£93,000) of the total exports, while wool had increased to 22 per cent. (£66,507). The value of grain exported was small, only £19,000 (6 per cent.); whale-oil amounted to £22,000, and potatoes to £30,000. The total exports in 1853 were £303,282, and the total imports £597,828.

A low and fluctuating level of trade was turned in 1860–63 into a rapidly increasing volume by the effect of the gold-discoveries which occurred in the early “sixties.” Both imports and exports were stimulated, the former to feed and clothe an ever-increasing population, the latter by the export of gold.

After the increase in the early “sixties,” trade remained stationary till the expenditure of borrowed money brought the land-boom of the early “seventies.” A great temporary increase of trade was succeeded by violent fluctuations and but slowly increasing trade as the effects of the bubble were slowly worked off. From 1873 till 1895 the world level of prices was falling continuously, and this factor contributed not a little to the depression of New Zealand. Little headway could be made against a falling price of wool and a decreasing production of gold, which were the main features of those twenty years.

But in 1895 world prices began to rise, and the effect is seen immediately in the upward shoot of the external trade. On only two occasions prior to the outbreak of the war was this upward tendency checked—viz., in 1908, when the commercial crisis which was felt in the Old World a year previously affected New Zealand; and in 1911, on the occasion of another depression in trade. A shortage of shipping and the enforcement of economies in the latter years of the war led to another temporary fall, followed by two years of record trade—1919, when exports rose to the then unprecedented figure of £54,000,000; and 1920, when, mainly as a result of the filling of orders placed in earlier years, the colossal total of £61,500,000 was recorded for imports. After this abnormal state of affairs, a return to more normal conditions followed. Imports fell considerably and then gradually rose to a sub-peak in 1925, since when there has been a progressive decline with a slight improvement in 1928. Exports grew steadily from 1922 to 1925, but a fall in prices reduced the 1926 total to ten millions less than the 1925 figure. A progressive improvement culminated in the 1928 record of over £56,000,000.

The following table shows the trade of New Zealand at ten-yearly intervals from 1853 to 1913 and yearly thereafter:—

TOTAL TRADE, IMPORTS, AND EXPORTS, 1853–1928.

Year.	Total Trade.	Imports.	Exports.	Excess of Exports over Imports.
* Excess of imports over exports.
	£	£	£	£
1853	901,110	597,828	303,282	−294,546^*
1863	10,510,079	7,024,674	3,485,405	−3,539,269^*
1873	12,075,058	6,464,687	5,610,371	−854,316^*
1883	15,070,037	7,974,038	7,095,999	−878,039^*
1893	15,896,879	6,911,515	8,985,364	2,073,849
1903	27,799,053	12,788,675	15,010,378	2,221,703
1913	45,275,024	22,288,302	22,986,722	698,420
1914	48,117,543	21,856,096	26,261,447	4,405,351
1915	53,477,746	21,728,834	31,748,912	10,020,078
1916	59,626,220	26,339,283	33,286,937	6,947,654
1917	52,506,812	20,919,265	31,587,547	10,668,282
1918	52,750,195	24,234,007	28,516,188	4,282,181
1919	84,641,773	30,671,698	53,970,075	23,298,377
1920	108,037,774	61,595,828	46,441,946	−15,153,882^*
1921	87,771,270	42,942,443	44,828,827	1,886,384
1922	77,738,810	35,012,561	42,726,249	7,713,688
1923	89,345,658	43,378,493	45,967,165	2,588,672
1924	101,140,314	48,527,603	52,612,711	4,085,108
1925	107,718,679	52,456,407	55,262,272	2,805,865
1926	95,165,138	49,889,563	45,275,575	−4,613,988^*
1927	93,279,300	44,782,946	48,496,354	3,713,408
1928	101,074,747	44,886,266	56,188,481	11,302,215

The above table shows totals for the calendar year in each case, this being the period for which the annual trade statistics are compiled. For certain purposes, however, the year ending in June is a preferable one, in that this period shows for all practical purposes the exports of the complete production year. In the table following, therefore, figures are given for each of the last ten “June” years:—

Year ended 30th June,	Total Trade.	Imports.	Exports.	Excess of Exports over Imports.
* Excess of imports over exports.
	£	£	£	£
1920	86,029,987	38,993,834	47,036,153	8,042,319
1921	116,409,902	65,588,021	50,821,881	−14,766,140^*
1922	75,475,969	30,940,048	44,535,921	13,595,873
1923	86,931,037	40,014,821	46,916,216	6,901,395
1924	93,277,990	44,832,164	48,445,826	3,613,662
1925	108,348,461	50,898,485	57,449,976	6,551,491
1926	98,494,549	52,157,702	46,336,847	−5,820,855^*
1927	93,768,769	47,373,687	46,395,082	−978,605^*
1928	99,117,227	43,497,942	55,619,285	12,121,343
1929	102,752,759	46,508,009	56,244,750	9,736,741

The next table shows similar totals for each of the last ten financial years:—

Year ended 31st March.	Total Trade.	Imports.	Exports.	Excess of Exports over Imports.
* Excess of imports over exports.
	£	£	£	£
1920	83,447,374	32,161,993	51,285,381	19,123,388
1921	115,662,628	67,463,269	48,199,359	−19,263,910^*
1922	79,925,582	36,123,256	43,802,326	7,679,070
1923	82,524,283	36,975,583	45,548,700	8,573,117
1924	96,054,362	44,401,756	51,652,606	7,250,850
1925	104,592,253	49,821,095	54,771,158	4,950,063
1926	101,723,443	53,025,856	48,697,587	− 4,328,269^*
1927	93,875,008	48,192,670	45,682,338	− 2,510,332^*
1928	99,381,388	44,419,357	54,962,031	10,542,674
1929	102,260,208	45,105,865	57,154,343	12,048,478

OVERSEAS TRADE, 1928.

The outstanding feature of the Dominion's external trade for the year ended 31st December, 1928, was the record total of £56,188,481 registered for exports, this figure being £926,209 in excess of the previous record of £55,262,272 in 1925. Imports for 1928 amounted to £44,886,266, leaving a favourable visible balance of trade of £11,302,215, a figure which has been surpassed on one occasion only, viz., in 1919, when abnormally high exports due to the shipment of produce purchased by the Imperial Government Supplies Department in earlier years were instrumental in causing an excess of exports of £23,298,377.

Exports for 1928 showed an advance of £7,692,127 over the previous year's figure. Wool, although showing only a moderate increase in quantity, advanced from £12,961,744 to £16,679,098 in value, reflecting a marked improvement in price. Other noteworthy increases were recorded in the following items (1928 figures shown first, with those for 1927 in parentheses): Butter, £11,302,667 (£10,915,233); cheese, £6,693,951 (£5,582,546); frozen beef, £1,043,782 (£583,871); frozen lamb, £6,641,222 (£6,011,936); frozen pork, £448,642 (£351,501); veal, £111,144 (£58,394); dried milk, £359,403 (£308,101); apples, £489,934 (£264,446); calf-skins, £302,649 (£245,536); cattle-hides, £925,456 (£677,289); sheepskins, £1,924,097 (£1,550,812); tallow, £804,271 (£714,441). The principal recessions occurred in: Oats, £32,209 (£110,988); rabbit-skins, £582,148 (£682,658); phormium-fibre, £352,152 (£473,221); clover-seeds, £16,904 (£80,568); grass-seeds, £146,680 (£175,381); coal, £191,651 (£229,453); kauri-gum, £240,139 (£278,632); gold, £489,584 (£534,639); sawn timber, £376,756 (£425,316).

No appreciable movement was recorded in imports, the 1928 total of £44,886,266 being but £103,320 greater than the previous year's figure. Motor-vehicles increased from £2,037,109 to £2,766,919, the number having advanced from 13, 07 to 18,787. Other prominent increases were recorded in the following items: Sugar, £1,126,444 (£977,144); hosiery, £519,141 (£466,626); apparel and ready-made clothing, £2,156,520 (£1,994,525); boots and shoes, £1,049,408 (£949,769); cotton piece-goods, £1,922,979 (£1,827,423); silks, &c., £1,001,952 (£839,956); fencing-wire, £242,608 (£181,307); asphalt, £132,144 (£58,291); fertilizers, £618,055 (£495,370). The principal declines occurred in: Confectionery, £260,099 (£339,060); raisins, £180,258 (£229,410); flour, £152,308 (£203,153); whisky, £497,833 (£610,833); cigarettes, £726,300 (£804,654); tobacco, £752,331 (£898,965); drapery, n.e.i., £507,878 (£595,173); motor-spirit, £1,655,451 (£2,005,984); coal, £342,431 (£515,801); galvanized plate and sheet iron, £412,230 (£604,171); iron and steel tubes, pipes, and fittings, £473,271 (£531,987); hardware and cutlery, n.e.i., £910,731 (£1,019,904); electrical goods, £1,762,463 (£2,041,003); engineers', &c., tools, £162,550 (£236,230); tires, tubes, and covers for motor-vehicles, £964,774 (£1,058,774).

MONTHLY EXPORTS AND IMPORTS.

The following table shows the monthly movements of exports and imports during 1927, 1928, and the first seven months of 1929:—

ACTUAL MONTHLY FIGURES OF EXPORTS AND IMPORTS, 1927–29.

Month.	1927.		1928.		1829.
Month.	Exports.	Imports.	Exports.	Imports.	Exports.	Imports.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
January	5,205,140	4,011,060	7,606,385	3,770,020	8,449,931	4,319,091
February	5,015,451	3,292,610	7,843,822	3,578,238	8,056,083	3,678,543
March	6,450,442	4,692,209	7,687,503	4,284,032	7,596,558	3,854,255
April	5,082,753	2,818,887	6,563,548	2,697,541	5,505,999	4,020,295
May	5,235,139	3,747,405	4,738,791	3,424,831	4,025,196	3,239,894
June	3,603,416	3,638,533	3,276,223	3,161,038	4,137,774	3,425,365
July	2,930,972	3,249,796	3,355,921	3,666,276	2,719,835	4,459,652
August	2,259,382	3,654,873	2,005,201	4,311,777	..	..
September	2,133,993	4,578,666	2,592,533	4,147,742	..	..
October	2,343,307	3,588,235	2,776,703	3,673,788	..	..
November	2,837,875	3,561,474	3,359,533	4,748,374	..	..
December	5,398,484	3,949,198	4,383,318	3,422,609	..	..

The figures are now given grouped on the basis of a three-monthly moving average, the values shown for each month representing an average of that month and the months immediately preceding and following. The three-monthly moving averages present the more accurate view in that they smooth out undue fluctuations in the figures due to monthly shipping and other local conditions.

THREE-MONTHLY MOVING AVERAGE OF EXPORTS AND IMPORTS, 1927–29.

Month.	1927.		1928.		1929.
Month.	Exports.	Imports.	Exports.	Imports.	Exports.	Imports.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
January	4,680,253	3,897,255	6,949,230	3,765,819	6,963,111	3,806,748
February	5,557,011	3,998,626	7,712,237	3,877,430	8,034,191	3,950,630
March	5,516,215	3,601,235	7,364,624	3,519,937	7,052,880	3,851,031
April	5,589,445	3,752,767	6,329,947	3,468,801	5,709,251	3,704,815
May	4,640,436	3,401,608	4,859,521	3,094,470	4,556,323	3,561,851
June	3,923,176	3,545,245	3,790,312	3,417,382	3,627,602	3,708,304
July	2,931,257	3,514,401	2,879,115	3,713,030	..	..
August	2,441,449	3,827,778	2,651,218	4,041,965	..	..
September	2,245,561	3,940,591	2,458,146	4,044,436	..	..
October	2,438,392	3,909,458	2,909,590	4,189,968	..	..
November	3,526,555	3,699,636	3,506,518	3,948,257	..	..
December	5,280,915	3,760,231	5,397,594	4,163,358	..	..

Of recent years the modal volume of imports has been between three and a half and four million per month. The latter half of 1928 marked a decided upward movement due partly to seasonal causes and partly to a general upward swing, for, although the volume receded in the opening months of 1929, it nevertheless maintained a level higher than that for the corresponding period of 1928.

In the case of exports the seasonal nature of the trade is well distinguished. From January to April usually occur the heaviest shipments of the year, after which the volume falls away until towards the end of the year, when the exportation of butter commences.

The three-monthly averages of exports and imports during the five years from June, 1924, to June, 1929, are shown graphically in the following diagram.

EXPORTS AND IMPORTS, JANUARY, 1924, TO JUNE, 1929 (THREE-MONTHLY MOVING AVERAGES).

The dotted line, representing imports, plainly shows the uniform nature of the trade, while what has been said in regard to the seasonable nature of exports is well brought out by the heavy line with its annually recurring peak.

By reason of the seasonal nature of the production of the principal commodities exported from the Dominion, approximately two-thirds of the exports are made during the first six months of each year. A further illustration of the fluctuating nature of the export trade is evident from the wide range in the monthly figures, which vary from £2,005,201 in August, 1928, to £8,449,931 in January, 1929.

The influx of imports is fairly constant throughout the whole year, the range being from £2,697,541 in April, 1928, to £4,748,374 in the following December. In the three-monthly average the ranges in both imports and exports are, of course, not so groat.

TRADE PER HEAD.

Total trade per head was 106 per cent. greater in 1928 than in 1908. Imports were highest in the boom year of 1920 with a rate of £49 11s. 7d., the export record of £45 5s. having occurred in the previous year. The export rate of 1928 has been surpassed on only two occasions. High rates were experienced in the “sixties,” when, however, the population was comparatively small, while important gold-mining operations resulted in huge exports of gold and correspondingly high imports—factors which combined to give the earlier years of New Zealand's external trade a somewhat artificially high per capita rate.

The latest available comparative statistics show the Dominion's external trade per head to be greater than that of any other country. This position is due, on the one hand, to the fact that the country is able to raise huge quantities of primary produce greatly in excess of local requirements, and, on the other hand, to the comparatively backward state of New Zealand's secondary industries, which necessitates the importation of considerable quantities of manufactured goods from abroad.

The next table shows the total trade, imports, and exports per head of the population for each of the years 1909–28:—

TOTAL TRADE, IMPORTS, AND EXPORTS PER HEAD, 1909–28.

Year.	Total Trade.			Imports.			Exports.
Year.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
1909	34	13	3	15	7	6	19	5	9
1910	37	14	1	16	7	9	21	6	4
1911	36	5	2	18	7	5	17	17	9
1912	39	5	3	19	5	4	19	19	11
1913	40	9	7	19	18	7	20	11	0
1914	42	4	1	19	3	5	23	0	8
1915	46	10	8	18	18	2	27	12	6
1916	51	17	9	22	18	5	28	19	4
1917	45	14	1	18	4	2	27	9	11
1918	45	15	2	21	0	5	24	14	9
1919	70	19	4	25	14	4	45	5	0
1920	86	19	2	49	11	7	37	7	7
1921	68	15	0	33	12	9	35	2	3
1922	59	11	3	26	16	6	32	14	9
1923	67	5	4	32	13	2	34	12	2
1924	74	15	4	35	17	6	38	17	10
1925	77	16	2	37	17	10	39	18	4
1926	67	6	4	35	5	10	32	0	6
1927	64	16	7	31	2	6	33	14	1
1928	70	4	11	31	3	11	39	1	0

The diagram which follows shows graphically the total trade, imports, and exports per head of population during the last twenty years.

TOTAL TRADE, IMPORTS, AND EXPORTS PER HEAD OF MEAN POPULATION.

The most striking feature of the diagram is the sharp upward trend from 1918. The years 1919 and 1920, which represent the peak of the diagram, were distinctly abnormal, while the effect of higher prices has been to accentuate the upward movement. Reference to the next subsection will show that, in the case of exports at least, the great increase over the period is by no means wholly due to higher prices, there having been a definite advance in the actual volume of exports per head. The same state of affairs no doubt holds in the case of imports, the volume of which, however, cannot be accurately measured.

BALANCE OF TRADE.

The relation between imports and exports is of the greatest importance to a young country like New Zealand. In the very earliest years of occupation by Europeans the exports of phormium, timber, and skins were greatly in excess of the few imports, mainly muskets and gunpowder, a fact which is explained partly by the temporary residence of the traders and more by the weaker bargaining-power of the Maori. With the settlement of the regular colony in 1840 there was evident an inflation of imports, occasioned by the amount of capital the new colonists brought in for the development of the country. From 1853 to 1870 there was an excess of imports, which, however, was tending to decrease.

A temporary excess of exports gave place in the early “seventies” to another great increase of imports, due to the borrowing policy inaugurated in that period. Except for a big decrease in 1880, the value of imports continued to be greater than exports until 1886. From that year onward there has been a continued excess of exports, except for the four years 1908, 1911, 1920, and 1926. The year 1886 is worthy of note as marking fen outstanding period in the history of New Zealand's trade. A more or less fluctuating excess of imports had obtained prior to that time, but from 1886 the exports began to form a preponderating feature of the total trade.

The following table shows for the year 1928 the amount of exports to, and imports from, each of the principal countries trading with the Dominion, the balance of trade in each case also being given:—

Country.	Imports (Country of Shipment).	Exports.	Balance (+ = Excess of Exports; − = Excess of Imports).
Country.	£	£	£
United Kingdom	22,531,880	40,510,075	+ 17,978,195
Canada	3,237,750	2,469,150	− 768,600
India	771,450	379,338	− 392,112
Ceylon	843,685	4,221	− 839,464
South African Union	99,054	64,892	− 34,162
Australia	3,868,281	3,402,655	− 465,626
Fiji	584,182	138,706	− 445,476
Other British countries	404,879	286,626	− 118,253
Totals, British countries	32,341,161	47,255,663	+ 14,914,502
Germany	584,594	1,290,071	+ 705,477
France	499,124	1,800,897	+ 1,301,773
Belgium	425,114	303,974	− 121,140
Japan	558,033	657,915	+ 99,832
Dutch East Indies	996,903	13,939	− 982,964
United States of America	7,958,761	4,260,315	− 3,698,446
Other foreign countries	1,522,576	605,707	− 916,869
Totals, foreign countries	12,545,105	8,932,818	− 3,612,287
Totals, all countries	44,886,266	56,188,481	+ 11,302,215

A considerable excess of exports over imports is evident in the Dominion's trade with the United Kingdom, a position due in a large measure to the fact that at the present time exports to the extent of about £7,500,000 annually represent payment of interest on the national and local-body debt domiciled in London. Making allowance for this item, there is still a surplus of exports of over £10,000,000, which, however, is largely offset by an excess of imports in New Zealand's trade with most other countries, particularly in the case of the United States, the imports from that source being nearly £3,700,000 more than exports sent there from the Dominion. The majority of other countries also take less than the Dominion receives from them, the deficit being made good from the surplus of exports to the United Kingdom.

The balance of trade is intimately bound up, in later years especially, with the large imports of capital which have been brought in to assist in the development of the country. This has already been made evident in discussing the balance of trade in early years. The excess of imports from 1853 to 1870, and again from 1872 to 1886, can definitely be traced to the importation of capital in those periods.

On that portion of the public debt held outside New Zealand at the 31st March, 1929, the annual interest charge aggregated £6,967,819, and there was a further annual charge of £405,676 in respect of repayment of funded debt to the Imperial Government. At the 31st March, 1928, local bodies' debts held outside the Dominion involved an annual interest charge of £1,239,840, the total payments outside the Dominion on the public and semi-public debt being thus over 8 1/2 millions.

Against this outgoing must be set the amount of new importations of capital in the shape of loans. While the expenditure on interest moves fairly consistently from year to year, the amount raised by new loans varies, and those variations are a big factor in the fluctuations of the balance of trade.

Debt charges and loan receipts are not the only invisible trade items. Money brought into the country by immigrants, expenditure by tourists and travellers, port receipts from overseas shipping, interest and dividends on New Zealand capital invested in Australia or the Pacific islands, and miscellaneous Government receipts from abroad are other items on the credit side; while on the debit side the following principal items, other than interest on Government and local-body loans, should be taken into account: Interest and dividends on overseas capital invested privately in the Dominion; shipping freights, charter-money, passage-money, &c., earned by overseas vessels for the carriage of New Zealand passengers and produce; expenditure abroad by New Zealand tourists and travellers; and miscellaneous Government expenditure abroad.

MOVEMENT OF BULLION AND SPECIE.

There is no Mint in New Zealand, while there is a fairly considerable production of gold bullion. Gold, therefore, ranks as an ordinary export of the Dominion, along; with wool, frozen meat, and dairy-produce. In earlier days this export of gold was much more important than now, amounting in 1863 to 70 per cent. of the total exports, from which figure it shrank steadily to 6 per cent. in 1913. The proportion at the present time is only about 1 per cent.

The amount of gold bullion exported during the last ten years, with the principal destinations, is shown in the following table:—

EXPORTS OF GOLD BULLION FROM NEW ZEALAND, 1919–28.

Year.	To United Kingdom.	To Australia.	To India.	To United States.	To other Countries.	Total.	Percentage of Total Exports.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1919	339,533	558,656	169,817	234,998	31,398	1,334,402	2.47
1920	103,353	12,167	23,884	718,899	25,445	883,748	1.90
1921	2,760	6,966	..	602,308	134	612,168	1.36
1922	13,367	5,731	166,104	354,944	36	540,182	1.26
1923	890	37,715	332,238	327,740	..	698,583	1.52
1924	3,189	2,278	323,921	222,400	..	551,788	1.05
1925	1,735	383,338	47,301	39,895	95	472,364	0.85
1926	1,723	456,812	13,113	44,559	..	516,207	1.14
1927	1,294	403,945	73,642	55,758	..	534,639	1.10
1928	2,283	131,775	297,585	57,941	..	489,584	0.87

A table is also given showing imports and exports of specie during the ten years 1919–28. The 1928 export figure is the highest ever recorded, the previous record (£364,119) having stood since 1888.

VALUE OF SPECIE IMPORTED AND EXPORTED, 1919–28.

Year.	Imported.	Exported.	Excess of Specie Imports over Exports.
* Excess of exports.
	£	£	£
1919	362,531	62,150	300,381
1920	41,975	36,580	5,395
1921	198,321	367	197,954
1922	186,487	300	186,187
1923	14,510	27,372	− 12,862^*
1924	..	103,488	−103,488^*
1925	30,650	19,225	11,425
1926	77,800	6,651	71,149
1927	280	..	280
1928	42,164	618,100	−575,936^*

COMPARISON WITH OTHER COUNTRIES.

It is customary to classify the trade of a country as “special” and “entrepôt,” according as to whether it represents the exchange of domestic productions for imports for home consumption, or a mere transit trade. In many countries, such as Belgium, France, and the United Kingdom, the transit trade attains considerable importance, hut New Zealand, owing to her geographical position, is precluded from developing in that direction. Her imports, except for a small forwarding trade to the Pacific islands, are for her own consumption, and the great bulk of her exports are commodities of domestic production.

The following table, which excludes specie, shows for the last ten years the very small proportion which re-exports bear to the total trade of the Dominion:—

PROPORTION OF RE-EXPORTS TO TOTAL TRADE (EXCLUDING SPECIE), 1919–28.

Year.	Trade.			Re-exports (included in two preceding Columns).	Percentage of Re-exports
Year.	Imports.	Exports.	Total.	Re-exports (included in two preceding Columns).	To Imports.	To Exports.
	£	£	£	£
1919	30,309,167	53,907,925	84,217,092	603,541	1.99	1.12
1920	61,553,853	46,405,366	107,959,219	813,072	1.32	1.75
1921	42,744,122	44,828,460	87,572,582	1,213,002	2.84	2.73
1922	34,826,074	42,725,949	77,552,023	1,026,801	2.94	2.40
1923	43,363,983	45,939,793	89,303,776	567,885	1.31	1.23
1924	48,527,603	52,509,223	101,036,826	588,395	1.21	1.12
1925	52,425,757	55,243,047	107,668,804	722,016	1.38	1.30
1926	49,811,763	45,268,924	95,080,687	929,741	1.86	2.05
1927	44,782,666	48,496,354	93,279,020	925,121	2.07	1.91
1928	44,844,102	55,570,381	100,414,483	910,016	2.03	1.64

Before comparisons may properly be made with the trade of other countries care must be taken to ensure that the statistics are comparable in their methods of compilation and definition.

The value of imports into New Zealand is reckoned at the current domestic value in the country of export at the time of exportation, plus 10 per cent.; exports are valued f.o.b. In the United States and Canada, however, the values of imports also are calculated f.o.b., and the difference, representing freight, insurance, and charges, amounts to about 10 per cent. of the total value.

Again, in the United Kingdom the values of both imports and exports are obtained by assessment at current market prices in the United Kingdom.

A comparison of the “special” trade of various countries is shown in the table given below, the bulk of the information being taken from the Commonwealth Official Year-book. Such a comparison (which covers in most cases the latest available year) necessarily ignores many of the elements considered in the foregoing paragraphs, but gives a sufficiently accurate idea of the relative trade of the various countries. The figures for Australia relate to the year ended 30th June, 1927.

SPECIAL TRADE OF VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

Country.	Year.	Trade.^*			Trade per Head.
Country.	Year.	Imports.	Exports.	Total.	Imports.			Exports.			Total.
* In thousands of pounds. † Excluding bullion and specie.
		£	£	£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
New Zealand	1928	43,358	54,660	98,018	30	2	11	38	0	0	68	2	11
Australia	1926–27	164,717	144,895	309,612	26	19	1	23	14	3	50	13	4
Canada	1,926	212,140	261,317	473,457	22	11	4	27	16	0	50	7	4
Denmark	1,926	81,482	75,720	157,202	23	16	6	22	2	10	45	19	4
Switzerland	1,926	93,827	72,634	166,461	23	15	4	18	7	11	42	3	3
United Kingdom^†	1,926	1,117,298	651,893	1,769,191	24	14	2	14	8	4	39	2	6
Belgium	1,926	153,909	130,247	284,156	19	0	9	16	2	6	35	3	3
Norway	1,926	49,588	36,626	86,214	17	19	0	13	5	1	31	4	1
Argentina	1,926	156,173	150,617	306,790	15	9	8	14	18	8	30	8	4
Sweden	1,926	82,099	78,189	160,288	13	11	3	12	18	3	26	9	6
France	1,926	397,737	397,842	795,679	9	11	6	9	11	7	19	3	1
South African Union	1,926	69,753	82,305	152,058	8	7	1	9	17	2	18	4	3
United States	1,926	908,025	969,547	1,877,572	7	13	10	8	4	3	15	18	1
Germany	1,926	487,243	480,658	967,901	7	15	9	7	13	8	15	9	5
Italy	1,926	207,201	149,589	356,790	5	2	2	3	13	9	8	15	11
Japan	1,926	223,457	191,152	414,609	3	14	7	3	3	10	6	18	5
Spain	1,926	85,391	63,786	149,177	3	17	3	2	17	8	6	14	11

In another respect, also, the figures are not strictly comparable, bullion and specie being included in some cases but not in others. In the case of New Zealand specie exported is a re-export, but bullion is a product of the country and ranks as an ordinary export.

New Zealand heads the list easily as regards both imports and exports per head, Australia coming next in order for total trade, followed very closely by Canada. New Zealand also shows the greatest excess of exports over imports per capita.

By themselves statistics of foreign trade are not a sure test of a country's prosperity, and they must always be interpreted with a knowledge of local conditions. An increase of imports may not be the result of increased purchasing-power, but may merely represent loans from another country, or even a failure of the home supply of certain commodities. Similarly, increased exports may mean greater productivity and increased purchasing-power, but they may also denote the payments on greatly increased liabilities.

In all countries the home trade is greatly in excess of the external trade, and in larger countries, which are more self-contained, a decrease in foreign trade may be due to development within the country itself. But New Zealand is far from self-contained, and from her position must attach a great importance to external trade. Under present conditions, only by export can a sufficient market be obtained for her rich resources, and only from abroad can be obtained the manufactures which are needed for common use. The development of the external trade since 1895 has been accompanied by increasing prosperity, and every advance in exports, followed by larger imports, represents an increase in the wealth of the Dominion.

SUBSECTION B.—EXPORTS.

METHOD OF RECORDING EXPORTS.

IN New Zealand the Department of H.M. Customs requires for every package exported a declared statement of the contents, value, and destination.

In all cases exports are valued “free on board at the port of shipment.” In many cases, however, the goods are not sold till arrival at their destination, and in such cases values must be assessed in New Zealand with reference to current prices.

The ultimate destination of the goods is distinguished as far as is practicable, but it is impossible to discover what proportion of the exports is intended for home consumption in the country of destination. The exports of New Zealand produce are shown separately from re-exports of imported goods.

CLASSIFICATION OF EXPORTS.

The total exports (including re-exports) during the last ten years are given in the following table, classified according to five broad divisions.

Year.	Food, Drink, and Tobacco.	Raw Materials and Articles mainly unmanufactured.	Articles wholly or mainly manufactured.	Miscellaneous.	Bullion and Specie.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1919	23,608,312	24,928,901	3,492,234	445,996	1,494,632	53,970,075
1920	23,366,451	19,115,376	2,594,934	369,650	995,535	46,441,946
1921	33,016,811	8,609,315	2,157,069	375,014	670,618	44,828,827
1922	24,255,632	15,639,249	1,815,337	443,385	572,646	42,726,249
1923	28,451,208	14,922,297	1,407,424	401,104	785,132	45,967,165
1924	30,071,960	20,007,375	1,455,214	359,179	718,983	52,612,711
1925	29,207,170	23,525,300	1,625,806	355,771	548,225	55,262,272
1926	25,691,320	16,801,854	1,716,162	494,405	571,834	45,275,575
1927	27,921,062	17,762,194	1,749,231	492,194	571,673	48,496,354
1928	31,022,183	21,785,683	1,851,874	381,224	1,147,517	56,188,481

The most important class is that of food, drink, and tobacco, which, in the case of exports from New Zealand, is composed almost wholly of foodstuffs, the principal items being butter, cheese, and frozen meat. Considerable variation is evident in the proportion which this class bears to the total exports, the range during the decennium being from 43.7 per cent. in 1919 to 73.6 per cent. in 1921, a fluctuation due in a large measure to varying prices. Of the total exports during the five years 1924–28 this class accounted for 558 per cent. Next in order of magnitude is the raw-materials class (mainly wool, hides, skins, and tallow), which during the last five years constituted 38.7 per cent. of the total exports for that period. The variation in the relationship of this class to the total (due in the main to price-variations) is also striking. In 1918 raw materials made up 46.4 per cent. of the exports, and in 1921 the percentage was as low as 19.2. The remaining classes do not figure prominently in the table, and during the five years 1924–28 accounted for but 55 per cent. of the total.

In the following table the exports are classified under the main industries, according to a broad division, to illustrate the relative importance of the pastoral, agricultural, mining, forestry, and other industries as far as the export trade is concerned. It must be remembered that in a particular industry the homo trade may be relatively more important than the external trade.

PROPORTIONS OF EXPORTS SUPPLIED BY THE MAIN INDUSTRIES, 1909–28.

Year.	Exports.					Percentage of Total Exports.
Year.	Pastoral.	Mining.	Agricultural.	Forest.	Other.	Pastoral.	Mining.	Agricultural.	Forest.	Other.
	£	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1909	14,635,265	2,378,775	976,170	905,930	765,856	74.4	12.1	5.0	4.6	3.9
1910	17,520,715	2,344,348	481,522	889,603	944,021	79.0	10.6	2.2	4.0	4.2
1911	14,750,558	2,165,137	412,815	843,310	856,670	77.5	11.4	2.2	4.4	4.5
1912	16,931,480	1,660,280	1,060,605	900,671	1,217,545	77.8	7.6	4.9	4.1	5.6
1913	18,519,145	1,791,777	279,976	874,110	1,521,714	80.6	7.8	1.2	3.8	6.6
1914	22,529,149	1,263,553	448,404	927,482	1,092,859	85.8	4.8	1.7	3.5	4.2
1915	26,534,608	2,149,217	674,273	674,533	1,716,281	83.6	6.8	2.1	2.1	5.4
1916	28,894,422	1,661,650	183,797	734,034	1,502,004	87.6	5.0	0.6	2.2	4.6
1917	27,329,599	1,274,222	179,902	711,188	1,593,046	87.9	4.1	0.6	2.3	5.1
1918	24,638,531	479,017	196,291	719,538	1,903,633	88.2	1.7	0.7	2.6	6.8
1919	48,611,240	1,668,314	788,187	698,849	1,537,794	91.2	3.1	1.5	1.3	2.9
1920	41,560,176	1,103,344	530,056	1,262,894	1,135,824	91.1	2.4	1.2	2.8	2.5
1921	40,698,867	787,591	490,094	884,279	754,627	93.3	1.9	1.1	2.0	1.7
1922	38,182,793	850,469	968,944	1,066,054	630,888	91.6	2.0	2.3	2.6	1.5
1923	42,128,295	937,238	568,356	1,080,326	657,698	92.9	2.1	1.3	2.4	1.3
1924	48,944,828	787,664	431,325	937,178	819,833	94.2	1.5	0.9	1.8	1.6
1925	51,370,479	770,439	467,897	1,000,453	911,763	94.2	1.4	0.9	1.8	1.7
1926	40,763,348	854,995	902,164	820,947	997,729	91.9	1.9	2.0	1.9	2.3
1927	44,207,037	804,834	887,893	725,047	946,422	92.9	1.7	1.9	1.5	2.0
1928	51,509,520	710,450	964,956	626,696	848,743	94.2	1.3	1.8	1.1	1.6

The table indicates a tendency for the Dominion to rely more and more upon the pastoral industry for her main exports. The four main products of that industry—wool, frozen meat, butter, and cheese—provide an ever-increasing proportion of the total quantity of goods shipped overseas. On the other hand, the proportion of minerals has tended to fall, mainly through decreasing exports of gold, and agricultural exports fluctuate with a downward tendency. It would seem that New Zealand is restricting her agriculture to a level barely sufficient to provide for her own needs in the matter of cereals, and only in exceptional years is there a surplus available for export.

The diagram given on the next page shows clearly the relative importance of the main classes of exports in the external trade. The most noticeable feature is the extremely high proportion of the exports supplied by the pastoral industries. The percentage supplied by this group was high in the late “nineties,” but in the early years of the present century fell relatively, owing mainly to increased exports of agricultural and mining produce. Since 1901, however, the percentage has increased almost continuously, till in 1924 and 1925 it amounted to 94.2 per cent. of the total, the highest percentage then recorded, this figure being reached in 1928 also.

Mining products, which have fallen by two-thirds in total value over the twenty years, show a much greater decrease as a percentage of total exports.

Agricultural exports showed an abnormal increase from 1899 to 1903, the period which covers the South African War, but since then their importance has steadily declined. Their lowest level (0.6 per cent. of total exports) was reached in 1916 and 1917. The higher level of recent years is attributable mainly to a considerable development in the export of apples; peas and grass- and clover-seeds also contributing. Forest products, though steady, show a relative downward tendency, and therefore the strip representing them tapers towards the later years.

PROPORTIONS OF EXPORTS SUPPLIED BY THE MAIN INDUSTRIES, 1908–28.

The table on the next page gives a summary of the main exports from New Zealand during the last twenty years. The main commodities are shown separately, and the progress of the Dominion during the last two decades is strikingly illustrated.

All the items of pastoral products considered show great increases over the twenty years, and the total exports have more than doubled during the period. There was a slight fall in 1904, and two more serious decreases were recorded in 1908 and 1911. From that year progress was rapid, and a sharp rise brought the 1919 total to nearly £54,000,000, a figure which remained a record until it was superseded in 1924, and again in 1925, when over £55,000,000 was recorded. The comparatively lean years of 1926 and 1927 were followed in 1928 by the record total of just on £56,200,000.

In the last twenty years the proportions of the principal exports have changed a good deal. Wool, which reached its maximum percentage (47.9) in 1897, showed a tendency to decline till 1902, then partially regained its position, once more showing a marked fall in 1918, owing to a considerable portion of the clip being retained in the Dominion until the next year, when wool to the value of £19,559,537 was exported. The wool exported during the year 1928 was valued at £16,679,098, an increase of over £3,700,000 compared with the 1927 figure. The total exports of wool during the five years 1924–28 aggregated nearly 75 millions sterling.

Frozen meat in recent years has supplied approximately 20 per cent. of the total exports, a proportion considerably exceeded in 1921, when wool-prices declined to a very low figure.

EXPORTS OF PRINCIPAL ITEMS OF NEW ZEALAND PRODUCE, 1909–28.

Year.	Wool.	Frozen Heat.	Butter.	Cheese.	Tallow.	Skins, Hides, and Pelts.	Other Pastoral Produce.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1909	6,305,888	3,601,093	1,639,380	1,105,390	648,452	1,018,103	316,959
1910	8,308,410	3,850,777	1,811,975	1,195,373	756,841	1,129,041	468,298
1911	6,491,707	3,503,406	1,576,917	1,192,057	607,257	911,519	467,695
1912	7,105,483	3,909,569	2,088,809	1,680,393	684,739	1,091,871	370,616
1913	8,057,620	4,449,933	2,061,651	1,770,297	663,088	1,199,375	317,181
1914	9,318,114	5,863,062	2,338,576	2,564,125	694,348	1,317,593	433,331
1915	10,387,875	7,794,395	2,700,625	2,730,211	780,828	1,450,276	690,398
1916	12,386,074	7,271,318	2,632,293	3,514,310	785,339	1,667,679	637,409
1917	12,175,366	5,982,404	2,031,551	3,949,251	553,016	1,861,817	776,194
1918	7,527,266	4,957,576	3,402,223	4,087,278	847,618	2,645,864	1,170,011
1919	19,559,537	9,628,292	3,080,128	7,790,990	680,006	3,439,468	2,432,819
1920	11,863,827	11,673,696	3,022,335	6,160,840	2,748,773	5,032,242	2,058,463
1921	5,221,479	11,164,345	11,169,530	8,199,183	1867,298	1,995,518	2,081,514
1922	11,882,463	8,387,461	9,041,554	4,686,850	750,574	2,053,761	1,380,130
1923	10,904,658	9,012,627	10,689,200	6,870,397	785,668	2,379,536	1,486,209
1924	15,267,544	9,499,877	11,641,668	7,023,297	799,230	3,144,106	1,569,106
1925	17,739,736	11,174,567	10,240,132	5,800,808	895,061	3,861,215	1,658,960
1926	11,830,190	8,656,213	8,695,188	5,939,359	741,045	3,203,831	1,682,260
1927	12,961,744	9,104,621	10,915,233	5,582,546	714,441	3,242,370	1,686,082
1928	16,679,098	10,309,662	11,302,667	6,693,951	804,271	3,843,098	1,876,773

Year.	Wheat.	Oats.	Other Agricultural Produce.	Gold.	Coal.	Kauri-gum.	Phormium Fibre and Tow.	Timber.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1909	305,902	453,314	216,954	2,006,900	183,961	552,698	324,458	337,740
1910	216,657	44,299	220,566	1,896,318	259,562	465,044	480,519	407,658
1911	219,196	9,211	184,408	1,815,251	204,379	395,707	325,130	439,353
1912	95,702	483,756	481,147	1,345,131	216,170	401,305	407,903	490,508
1913	11,816	29,252	238,908	1,459,499	205,010	549,106	797,062	319,055
1914	3,580	165,930	278,894	895,367	282,163	497,444	492,230	422,864
1915	128	132,827	541,318	1,694,553	329,731	279,133	610,059	383,883
1916	17,835	30,200	135,680	1,199,212	326,553	339,882	1,078,632	381,488
1917	509	1,306	178,087	903,888	236,063	291,917	1,232,608	408,121
1918	460	872	194,422	42,391	227,228	157,313	1,408,147	556,309
1919	679	33,671	753,837	1,334,405	201,383	255,812	907,584	439,935
1920	388	52,502	477,166	883,748	128,509	556,756	688,972	697,608
1921	243	84,434	405,417	612,168	109,510	367,197	319,604	503,785
1922	316,528	91,991	560,425	540,182	253,762	563,270	295,530	479,447
1923	968	78,775	488,613	698,583	173,833	596,222	314,324	473,752
1924	406	1,104	429,815	551,788	161,432	443,576	424,726	472,120
1925	299	1,877	465,721	472,364	235,047	414,901	575,311	573,882
1926	343	5,558	896,263	516,207	285,909	332,765	589,603	475,627
1927	301	110,978	776,614	534,639	221,253	278,632	535,526	425,453
1928	277	32,209	932,470	489,584	173,693	240,139	394,450	376,967

The main feature of the period has been the great advance, relatively and absolutely, of butter and cheese, the export of which has increased beyond all expectations—viz., from £1,954,601 in 1908 to £17,996,618 in 1928. The increase is due partly to higher prices ruling, but mainly to much greater quantities being sent abroad. Whereas in 1908 the total exports of butter and cheese from New Zealand reached only 510,769 cwt., the total quantity shipped in 1928 aggregated 3,016,842 cwt. Other classes of pastoral produce have also increased to several times their total for 1908.. Gold, kauri-gum, and coal have fallen; and wheat and oats also are not exported to their former extent, although other agricultural produce shows a growing tendency of recent years, due to increased exports of apples, peas, seeds, and potatoes. Timber has declined progressively since 1924, and the 1928 figure is very little above that of 1908. Phormium fibre and tow fell considerably in 1928, the value in that year being below that for 1908.

The relative importance of the main commodities is shown in the diagram given below.

VALUES OF MAIN EXPORTS, 1908–28.

The next table compares the exports of twelve principal items during 1927 and 1928. Considerable increases are evident in wool, frozen meat, cheese, butter, hides and skins, tallow, and dried and preserved milk. Five of the items show declines, the most notable being in phormium.

INCREASES OR DECREASES IN THE MAIN EXPORTS IN 1928.

Commodity.	Value.		Amount of		Percentage.
Commodity.	1927.	1928.	Increase.	Decrease.	Increase.	Decrease.
	£	£	£	£
Wool	12,961,744	16,679,098	3,717,354	..	28.69	..
Frozen meat	9,104,621	10,309,662	1,205,041	..	13.24	..
Butter	10,915,233	11,302,667	387,434	..	3.55	..
Cheese	5,582,546	6,693,951	1,111,405	..	19.91	..
Dried and preserved milk	346,271	392,452	46,181	..	13.34	..
Tallow	714,441	804,271	89,830	..	12.57	..
Skins, hides, and pelts	3,242,370	3,843,098	600,728	..	18.53	..
Gold	534,639	489,584	..	45,055	..	8.43
Coal	221,253	173,693	..	47,560	..	21.50
Kauri-gum	278,632	240,139	..	38,493	..	13.82
Phormium	535,526	394,450	..	141,076	..	26.34
Timber	425,453	376,967	..	48,486	..	11.40

In the following table exports during 1928 are grouped in classes in accordance with the statistical classification adopted for both exports and imports in 1914:—

EXPORTS BY STATISTICAL CLASSES, 1928.

No.	Class.	Domestic Produce.	Re-exports.
		£	£
I	Foodstuffs of animal origin (excluding live animals)	30,135,531	6,694
II	Foodstuffs of vegetable origin, and common salt	818,863	11,451
III	Beverages (non-alcoholic), and substances used in making up the same	635	10,036
IV	Spirits and alcoholic liquors	5,169	9,285
V	Tobacco and preparations thereof	81	7,985
VI	Live animals	110,425	1,414
VII	Animal substances (mainly unmanufactured), not being foodstuffs	20,534,556	319
VIII	Vegetable substances and non-manufactured fibres	577,468	5,261
IXA	Apparel	2,828	29,444
IXB	Textiles	16,462	48,563
IXC	Manufactured fibres	8,132	27,349
X	Oils, fats, and waxes	843,290	233,794
XI	Paints and varnishes	392	6,592
XII	Stones and minerals used industrially	423,191	17,999
XIII	Specie	..	618,100
XIVA	Metal (unmanufactured and partly manufactured) and ores	554,348	13,088
XIVB	Metal manufactures other than machinery and machines	7,031	35,130
XV	Machinery and machines	20,912	73,164
XVIA	Indiarubber and manufactures thereof (not including tires)	101	515
XVIB	Leather and manufactures thereof, including substitutes	21,850	6,271
XVIIA	Timber	376,967	510
XVIIB	Wood, cane, and wicker manufactures	3,777	295
XVIII	Earthenware, china, glass, stoneware, cement, and cement materials	1,847	3,889
XIXA	Paper	171	1,113
XIXB	Stationery	13,480	17,364
XX	Jewellery, timepieces, and fancy goods	903	64,332
XXI	Optical, surgical, and scientific instruments	7,627	49,728
XXIIA	Drugs, chemicals, and druggists' wares	18,189	5,549
XXIIB	Manures	42,808	135
XXIIIA	Vehicles	321	67,738
XXIIIB	Miscellaneous	21,359	155,009
..	Parcels-post	91,651	..
Totals		54,660,365	1,528,116

It will be seen that the great bulk of the exports fall into two classes—I, which includes butter, cheese, and frozen meat; and VII, which includes wool, hides, skins, and pelts. Mineral products come under XII and XIVA, and timber under XVIIA; tallow is the main item in X; phormium and seeds in VIII; while the main agricultural products are included in II. The re-exports are spread mainly over various manufactured items.

Exports for 1928 (including re-exports) are now grouped according to a classification recently adopted by the British Board of Trade for the compilation of Empire trade statistics. Exports to British and foreign countries are distinguished.

Commodity.	United Kingdom.	Other British Countries.	United States of America.	Other Foreign Countries.	Totals.
*Not including bunker coal, £184,224. † Not including bunker fuel oil, £225,240.
	£	£	£	£	£
Grain and milled products	165,357	63,112	3,082	5,018	236,569
Meat (including poultry and game)	9,788,964	319,352	414,981	72,597	10,595,894
Butter, cheese, and eggs	15,667,842	1,849,200	352,648	145,888	18,015,378
Fruits (fresh and dried)	454,771	8,267	6	53,255	516,299
Sugar	8	18,980	80	1,857	20,925
Tea	..	9,281	19	357	9,657
Alcoholic beverages	719	10,873	2,019	484	14,095
Tobacco	698	6,147	980	241	8,066
Coal^*	5	7,422	..	..	7,427
Ores, concentrates and scrap	22,364	10,552	..	890	33,806
Iron and steel—
Pigs, ingots, &c.	..	1,994	..	..	1,994
Bars, rod, plate, sheet, &c.	167	1,824	..	328	2,319
Other manufactures of iron and steel	5,588	25,607	2,749	1,234	35,178
Agricultural implements and machinery	222	7,172	..	534	7,928
Electrical machinery and equipment	6,076	13,445	4,975	511	25,007
Other machinery	12,471	38,334	4,611	5,986	61,402
Motor-cars and parts thereof	38,831	20,232	5,083	391	64,537
Other metals and metal manufactures	5,802	1,852	566	566	8,786
Flax, hemp, and raw jute (including tow)	165,794	115,722	96,615	16,319	394,450
Wool, raw	11,381,552	828,929	701,730	3,766,887	16,679,098
Yarns and threads	92	817	264	..	1,173
Cotton piece-goods	11,100	10,350	18	165	21,633
Woollen piece-goods	2,951	1,851	..	..	4,802
Other piece-goods	620	4,929	22	..	5,571
Other textiles (including apparel)	20,935	60,435	6,850	3,802	92,022
Earthenware (including bricks, glass, &c.)	322	3,851	482	23	4,678
Wood, timber, and manufactures thereof (including wood-pulp)	4,166	378,249	225	344	382,984
Newsprint	..	261	..	..	261
Seeds and nuts for expressing oil therefrom	4,444	1,846	..	..	6,290
Oil—Petroleum, crude and refined^†	99	4,161	1,090	2,270	7,620
Hides, skins, and furs, undressed	1,125,365	487,420	1,874,226	356,401	3,843,412
Leather and manufactures thereof (including boots and shoes)	20,049	8,300	2,323	1,471	32,143
Other merchandise	1,602,701	1,435,245	626,730	234,884	3,899,560
Total merchandise	40,510,075	5,756,012	4,102,374	4,672,503	55,040,964
Gold and silver (coin and bullion)	..	989,576	157,941	..	1,147,517
Total exports	40,510,075	6,745,588	4,260,315	4,672,503	56,188,481

The principal items of export may conveniently be grouped under six definite heads, as in the table below, which shows in more detail the commodities exported from the Dominion.

Practically all the main commodities are homogeneous articles, and it is therefore possible to give the quantities exported. For some purposes, especially for comparisons between recent and more remote years, quantities are preferable to values, since the latter are affected by price-variations.

QUANTITIES OF THE PRINCIPAL COMMODITIES OF NEW ZEALAND PRODUCE EXPORTED, 1924–28.

Commodity.		1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
The mine—
Coal	(tons)	88,981	138,083	183,008	143,440	125,771
Gold	(oz.)	133,631	114,696	125,777	130,171	118,722
Iron and steel (pig)	(cwt.)	..	..	..	22,200	10,000
Silver	(oz.)	578,217	495,268	425,287	427,358	445,811
Other minerals	(tons)	67	31	42	65	27
The fisheries—
Fish	(cwt.)	19,059	15,932	18,742	22,566	23,362
Oysters	(doz.)	52,283	149,821	145,660	51,826	60,746
Whalebone	(lb.)	2,128	896	560	560	..
Whale-oil	(gal.)	59,479	96,158	65,870	71,437	124,686
Ambergris	(oz.)	688	411	..	..	..
The forest—
Fungus	(cwt.)	1,706	1,860	1,749	2,814	1,515
Kauri-gum	(tons)	5,261	5,370	4,877	4,674	4,394
Timber, sawn and hewn	(sup. ft.)	42,928,726	49,204,676	40,465,221	37,147,798	34,970,773
Pastoral products—
Bacon and hams	(cwt.)	4,464	4,187	4,983	5,423	4,747
Beef and pork, salted	(cwt.)	11,931	7,510	4,653	5,170	4,205
Butter	(cwt.)	1,269,455	1,245,324	1,168,040	1,455,539	1,449,570
Casein	(cwt.)	46,210	43,908	36,460	46,763	42,134
Cheese	(cwt.)	1,594,486	1,376,754	1,461,548	1,492,792	1,567,272
Hides and skins	(number)	1,303,282	1,376,273	1,386,536	1,368,238	1,396,870
Honey	(lb.)	1,186,269	1,822,043	1,211,396	850,011	2,329,131
Live-stock—
Cattle	(number)	322	186	122	96	258
Horses	(number)	152	223	199	230	176
Sheep	(number)	3,197	3,895	5,456	8,385	4,788
Pigs	(number)	664	314	295	433	746
Preserved meats	(cwt.)	66,340	65,779	67,401	58,786	68,113
Frozen meats	(cwt.)	3,213,574	3,414,205	3,034,356	3,364,965	3,793,828
Sausage-casings	(cwt.)	24,963	28,128	31,432	30,762	33,675
Rabbit-skins	(number)	20,444,390	19,708,586	17,135,599	12,928,669	12,104,072
Sheep skins and pelts	(number)	8,825,666	8,695,312	9,231,893	9,918,453	10,182,049
Tallow	(cwt.)	479,766	500,769	422,560	477,500	514,960
Wool	(lb.)	206,189,911	205,726,856	213,154,399	220,500,720	226,804,544
Agricultural products)—
Bran and sharps	(tons)	73	39	87	651	12
Chaff	(tons)	51	26	26	892	26
Flour	(tons)	10	11	22	2	16
Grain and pulse—
Barley	(centals)	96	74	1,146	48,688	16,197
Beans and peas	(centals)	113,405	129,325	110,511	162,929	221,080
Oats	(centals)	2,004	3,296	9,219	266,621	66,739
Wheat	(centals)	661	407	465	472	360
Hops	(cwt.)	5,916	3,031	3,512	4,729	3,643
Oatmeal	(tons)	40	69	108	104	127
Potatoes	(tons)	539	4,943	21,526	934	760
Seeds (grass and clover)	(cwt.)	36,311	45,368	57,726	90,362	50,238
Miscellaneous—
Beer	(gal.)	17,231	16,103	16,048	13,633	12,314
Cordage	(cwt.)	3,172	3,307	2,563	2,214	2,667
Leather	(cwt.)	859	692	1,283	2,028	1,087
Phormium fibre and tow	(tons)	15,178	19,923	20,798	19,600	15,683

The values of these principal exports are tabulated in the following table, and the statement is rendered complete by the addition of miscellaneous groups and the provision of totals for each group and for all combined:—

VALUES OF PRINCIPAL COMMODITIES OF NEW ZEALAND PRODUCE EXPORTED, 1924–28.

Commodity.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
	£	£	£	£	£
The mine—
Coal	161,432	235,047	285,909	221,253	173,693
Gold	551,788	472,364	516,207	534,639	489,584
Iron and steel (pig)	..	..	..	4,592	1,994
Silver	71,981	60,773	51,236	42,593	44,416
Other minerals	2,463	2,255	1,643	1,757	763
Totals	787,664	770,139	854,995	804,834	710,450
The fisheries—
Fish	58,417	55,423	63,009	74,174	84,871
Oysters	571	1,474	1,650	561	772
Whalebone	290	160	9	190	..
Whale-oil	6,515	10,541	6,836	7,009	12,081
Ambergris	2,000	1,200	..	..	..
Other	103	39	64	..	106
Totals	67,896	68,837	71,568	81,934	97,830
The forest—
Fungus	9,165	10,547	11,240	20,310	8,957
Kauri-gum	443,576	414,901	332,765	278,632	240,139
Timber	472,120	573,882	475,627	425,453	376,967
Other	12,317	1,123	1,309	652	633
Totals	937,178	1,000,453	820,947	725,047	626,696
Pastoral products—
Bacon and hams	26,505	25,398	31,706	29,025	29,405
Beef and pork, salted	20,599	14,314	9,452	10,548	9,212
Butter	11,641,668	10,240,132	8,695,188	10,915,233	11,302,667
Casein	129,775	110,171	106,251	141,388	133,859
Cheese	7,023,297	5,800,803	5,939,359	5,582,546	6,693,951
Hides and skins	889,654	1,028,510	830,393	1,008,900	1,336,853
Honey	29,721	53,156	35,432	25,170	77,495
Live-stock—
Cattle	14,381	6,783	8,013	6,029	7,657
Horses	44,695	66,428	68,045	55,055	52,543
Sheep	25,900	33,465	35,078	58,644	46,224
Pigs	2,983	1,455	1,410	1,507	2,741
Other	1,128	715	2,981	1,106	1,260
Preserved milk and cream	303,917	425,738	345,072	346,271	392,452
Preserved meats	191,236	219,151	227,063	212,262	247,315
Frozen meats	9,499,877	11,174,567	8,656,213	9,104,621	10,309,662
Sausage-casings	563,887	675,848	780,811	755,523	799,356
Rabbit-skins	740,975	843,416	829,165	682,658	582,148
Sheep skins and pelts	1,513,477	1,989,289	1,544,273	1,550,812	1,924,097
Tallow	799,230	895,061	741,045	714,441	804,271
Wool	15,267,544	17,739,736	11,830,190	12,961,744	16,679,098
Other	214,379	26,338	46,208	43,554	77,254
Totals	48,944,828	51,370,479	40,763,348	44,207,037	51,509,520
Agricultural products—
Bran and sharps	657	459	1,070	3,790	160
Chaff	521	309	325	4,842	303
Flour	204	267	491	49	330
Fruits	122,824	120,636	369,706	273,110	515,062
Grain and pulse—
Barley	63	59	769	24,772	8,812
Beans and peas	85,329	102,611	99,863	151,711	186,009
Oats	1,104	1,877	6,558	110,978	32,209
Wheat	406	299	343	301	277
Other	268	96	623	92	107
Hops	41,619	20,153	16,861	27,774	23,690
Oatmeal	1,622	3,140	4,320	5,042	5,829
Onions	1,233	8,594	12,592	3,133	8,585
Potatoes	5,147	39,948	164,362	7,410	6,504
Seeds (grass and clover)	149,083	151,164	200,380	255,798	162,452
Seeds (various)	17,830	12,586	14,017	12,599	8,060
Other	3,415	5,699	10,884	6,492	6,567
Totals	431,325	467,897	902,164	887,893	964,956
Miscellaneous (including manufactures)—
Beer	5,855	5,105	4,294	5,869	5,128
Apparel	2,291	1,924	2,231	2,160	1,982
Cement	1,051	264	156	2,978	898
Cordage and rope	10,191	10,088	5,998	5,701	8,132
Foods, infants' and invalids'	605	..	8	9,439	2,406
Leather	6,702	4,883	10,624	11,532	21,632
Phormium fibre and tow	424,726	575,311	589,603	535,526	394,450
Soap	10,939	8,317	9,446	8,947	10,678
Sugar	12,476	9,548	14,286	13,359	17,848
Twine	7,006	6,580	1,806	2,150	3,905
Woollen manufactures	15,537	3,815	10,455	12,936	9,058
Other	257,163	218,291	277,262	263,330	278,701
Totals	754,542	844,126	926,169	873,927	754,818
Total exports (domestic produce)	51,920,828	54,521,031	44,339,183	47,571,233	54,660,365
Specie	103,488	19,225	6,651	..	618,100
Re-exports	588,395	722,016	929,741	925,121	910,016
Total exports	52,612,711	55,262,272	45,275,575	48,496,354	56,188,481

DESTINATION OF NEW ZEALAND EXPORTS.

The first exports from New Zealand went naturally to the earlier-developed sister colony, and for a considerable time Australia had a monopoly of our trade. In 1865 70 per cent., and even in 1871 44 per cent., of the total exports went to Australia. But since the establishment of direct shipping lines with the United Kingdom the Mother-land has absorbed the bulk of New Zealand exports, having taken during the forty years 1875–1914 £365,880,997 (or almost exactly 80 per cent.) of a grand total of exports amounting to £469,347,969. This percentage, prior to the war, did not vary greatly from year to year, but there have naturally been considerable variations since 1914, and, as explained later, the last few years have witnessed a progressive decline.

The principal destinations of New Zealand's exports during the last twenty years are given in the table below. The principal other countries, in order of magnitude, are France, Japan, India, Belgium, Italy, and Hawaii.

Year.	United Kingdom.	Australia.	Canada.	Pacific Islands (other than Australia).	United States.	Germany.	Other Countries.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1909	16,193,188	1,918,115	180,975	258,164	684,810	77,969	343,775	19,661,996
1910	18,633,118	2,010,751	160,842	296,244	553,603	205,931	219,720	22,180,209
1911	15,134,743	2,515,168	199,587	324,306	434,586	170,493	249,607	19,028,490
1912	16,861,256	2,848,664	542,271	338,621	620,988	254,703	304,078	21,770,581
1913	18,130,160	2,315,747	606,662	295,032	912,051	337,448	389,622	22,986,722
1914	21,383,891	1,928,410	595,611	326,025	1,028,054	456,163	543,293	26,261,447
1915	25,389,030	2,548,605	925,813	499,063	2,006,507	4	379,890	31,748,912
1916	26,869,988	2,191,545	691,986	368,069	2,493,987	5	671,357	33,286,937
1917	26,023,396	1,460,980	961,653	540,380	1,894,317	6	706,815	31,587,547
1918	18,244,250	1,803,739	1,793,576	511,842	4,045,648	..	2,117,133	28,516,188
1919	44,312,048	2,249,827	980,190	548,112	4,200,861	..	1,679,037	53,970,075
1920	34,354,300	2,351,799	1,357,774	718,283	7,456,041	23	203,726	46,441,946
1921	38,716,593	2,070,013	454,597	517,363	2,702,104	46,162	321,995	44,828,827
1922	36,154,174	2,208,280	446,457	399,378	2,672,775	218,338	626,847	42,726,249
1923	37,324,605	2,642,266	665,696	466,164	3,531,272	190,600	1,146,562	45,967,165
1924	42,038,386	2,500,322	716,543	575,880	3,278,135	1,166,302	2,328,143	52,612,711
1925	44,073,323	2,502,113	423,068	548,591	4,349,758	1,614,090	1,751,329	55,262,272
1926	35,102,087	3,054,433	861,717	515,253	3,818,232	364,629	1,559,224	45,275,575
1927	36,877,887	3,665,962	1,666,598	495,402	2,681,091	1,139,654	1,969,760	48,496,354
1928	40,510,075	3,402,655	2,469,150	592,966	4,260,315	1,290,071	3,663,249	56,188,481

Included in the exports to the United Kingdom are considerable quantities of produce which are shipped to London merely as a convenient depot for subsequent reshipment to the Continent or to America. The total re-exports in normal pre-war years amounted to about £4,000,000 annually, and although the amount fell, under war conditions, to as low as £665,629 in 191,8, it has shown a substantial increase during recent years. The following table shows the principal items of New Zealand produce re-exported from the United Kingdom during each of the years 1923 to 1927:—

RE-EXPORTS OF NEW ZEALAND PRODUCE FROM UNITED KINGDOM, 1923–27.

Commodity.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.
	£	£	£	£	£
Butter	281,776	543,989	722,664	405,232	580,663
Cheese	73,080	36,963	426,786	31,255	39,549
Casein	45,684	54,342	85,398	67,881	57,499
Milk-powder, not sweetened	54,239	61,644	95,407	13,100	11,579
Milk, preserved, other kinds, not sweetened	60,454	67,468	62,022	58,240	62,860
Oleo-margarine, oleo-oil, and refined tallow	33,028	13,573	41,975	45,536	15,005
Peas, not fresh	11,784	4,714	614	973	1,824
Beef, frozen	77,924	70,995	56,341	30,030	23,893
Beef, tinned, canned, &c. (including tongues) and extracts and essences	2,843	17,992	4,577	12,455	4,010
Mutton and lamb, frozen	44,953	50,086	42,941	32,527	43,070
Mutton and lamb (tinned or canned), including tongues	190	12,829	496	599	256
Meat, other kinds	1,809	9,018	17,322	4,119	12,506
Hides	13,383	142,694	329,340	269,907	276,757
Sheep and lamb skins	288,066	285,993	218,146	248,658	349,189
Rabbit-skins	104,689	99,403	85,004	81,987	133,453
Kauri-gum	47,144	63,998	68,317	64,898	63,417
Tallow	71,829	121,707	160,176	232,401	294,273
Phormium-fibre	77,557	96,670	150,376	188,654	132,184
Wool, raw; sheep and lambs' wool	4,103,585	5,467,046	4,749,615	4,475,352	5,217,240
All other commodities	49,675	79,695	109,320	140,045	161,032
Totals	5,443,692	7,300,819	7,426,837	6,403,849	7,480,259

The table which follows shows for each of the years 1921 to 1928 the percentage of total exports claimed by each of the principal countries trading with the Dominion.

Country.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
United Kingdom	86.36	84.61	81.19	79.90	79.76	77.53	76.04	72.09
Canada	1.01	1.04	1.44	1.36	0.77	1.90	3.41	4.39
India	0.09	0.40	0.73	0.94	0.35	0.18	0.30	0.67
Ceylon	0.06	0.08	0.10	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.01
South African Union	0.00	0.40	0.02	0.06	0.03	0.07	0.06	0.11
Australia	4.62	5.17	5.74	4.77	4.53	6.75	7.56	6.05
Fiji	0.34	0.22	0.26	0.26	0.24	0.34	0.25	0.25
Other British countries	0.88	0.15	0.54	0.42	0.44	0.53	0.55	0.53
Totals, British countries	93.36	92.07	90.02	87.71	86.12	87.30	88.17	84.10
Germany	0.10	0.51	0.41	2.22	2.92	0.80	2.35	2.30
France	0.03	0.14	0.74	1.07	1.07	1.51	2.08	3.20
Belgium	0.01	0.02	0.02	0.20	0.35	0.38	0.34	0.54
Japan	0.04	0.49	0.45	0.63	0.42	0.36	0.52	1.17
United States of America	6.03	6.26	7.67	6.23	7.87	8.43	5.53	7.58
Other foreign countries	0.43	0.51	0.69	1.94	1.25	1.22	1.01	1.11
Totals, foreign countries	6.64	7.93	9.98	12.29	13.88	12.70	11.83	15.90

About three-quarters of New Zealand's exports find their way to the United Kingdom. A certain amount of this produce, as indicated previously, is subsequently reshipped from Great Britain, principally to European countries. From a percentage of 86.36 in 1921, the United Kingdom's share has declined progressively to 72.09 in 1928, which compares with an average of 80.44 per cent. for the pre-war years 1909–13. The principal commodities, in order of decreasing magnitude, taken from the Dominion in 1928 were: wool, frozen meat, butter, cheese, hides and skins, tallow, apples, dried milk, and phormium-fibre. Notwithstanding the decline in the percentage, increases of over £1,000,000 were recorded in wool and cheese. Substantial increases also occurred in frozen meat, butter, tallow, and apples.

As an export customer of the Dominion, the United States now ranks next to the United Kingdom, this, with the exception of 1927, having been the position for several years. The considerable rise in 1928 was due to substantial increases in frozen meat, cheese, wool, sheep-skins, and hides, assisted materially by a shipment of gold specie amounting to £100,000.

In 1927—the first time for many years—Australia held second position, but was again supplanted by the United States in 1928, and is now third on the list. The Commonwealth's percentage of the Dominion's 1928 exports was one-fifth below that of the previous year, attributable mainly to a drop in butter of nearly £560,000. Gold bullion also fell considerably, but this drop was more than counterbalanced by the shipment of gold specie valued at £500,000. A notable advance was recorded in wool, lesser increases occurring in hides and tallow.

Exports to Canada in 1928 were the highest yet recorded, being more than £800,000 greater than the 1927 figure. The bulk of the increase occurred in butter, minor advances being evident in frozen meat, sausage-casings, hides and skins, and wool.

France occupied fifth position in 1928 and achieved the record percentage of 3.20. Of recent years wool has accounted for more than nine-tenths of the total, and was valued in 1928 at over £1,700,000, this being three-quarters of a million greater than the 1927 amount. Hides and skins, the only other item of importance, also increased considerably.

Germany's percentage in 1928, as compared with that for 1927, shows a slight decline, although the actual trade was greater. Wool, the principal item, increased by £325,000. Hides and skins dropped considerably, and other declines occurred in tallow, phormium-fibre, and grass and clover seeds.

Japan came next with a total of £657,915, more than two and a half times greater than the previous year's total, and representing 1.17 per cent. of the Dominion's exports. Nearly £600,000 worth of wool accounted for the bulk of the total, next in order of magnitude being casein, butter, and hides and skins, the latter item having fallen considerably during the year.

Exports to other countries are on a lesser scale, the chief of these in 1928 being India, followed by Belgium. India took considerably more gold bullion during the year, silver and tallow being the only other items of any size. Belgium took more wool to the extent of just on £140,000; hides and skins, also a major item, showed an appreciable drop, as did the smaller items of frozen meat, tallow, and phormium-fibre.

Italy took more wool but less frozen meat, the net result being a considerable increase; South African Union, more butter and wool; Denmark, less wool; Netherlands, more hides and skins but less wool, tallow, and phormium-fibre; China, more butter; Philippine Islands and Dutch East Indies, less butter; Uruguay, more apples, potatoes, and sheep; and Argentina, less apples and sheep. New trade was established with Brazil in apples, and with Peru in stud sheep.

EXPORTS TO EACH COUNTRY, 1924–28.

The following table shows the exports for the five years ending with 1928, according to the countries of destination. British countries are stated first, according to geographical order, followed by foreign countries in the same order.

DESTINATION OF EXPORTS FROM NEW ZEALAND, 1924–28.

Country.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
	£	£	£	£	£
United Kingdom	42,038,386	44,073,323	35,102,087	36,877,887	40,510,075
British Possessions, Protectorates, &c.
Europe—
Irish Free State	256	264	2,819	371	128
Malta and Gibraltar	3	18	8	2	10
	259	282	2,827	373	138
Asia—
Ceylon	1,111	484	947	1,764	4,221
Hong Kong	13,827	17,953	13,771	27,304	12,909
India	495,850	197,428	82,826	145,653	379,338
Straits Settlements	17,714	21,216	22,074	39,098	31,611
Other	604	200	397	194	1,477
	529,106	237,281	120,015	214,013	429,556
Africa—
South African Union	28,585	19,306	31,540	31,251	64,892
Other	360	433	1,313	378	1,158
	28,945	19,739	32,853	31,629	66,050
America—
Canada	716,543	423,068	861,717	1,666,598	2,469,150
Other	84	26	8,824	1,819	13
	716,627	423,094	870,541	1,668,417	2,469,163
Pacific islands—
Australia	2,509,322	2,502,113	3,054,433	3,665,962	3,402,655
Fiji	135,768	133,450	152,323	120,202	138,706
Gilbert and Ellice Islands	3,029	5,243	9,866	15,591	16,921
Nauru Island	1,468	3,258	12,143	5,192	15,523
Norfolk Island	155	406	2,792	8,162	16,073
Papua	157	93	3,281	..	6,269
Solomon Islands (Protectorate)	4,827	14,604	11,496	9,941	9,138
Tonga	94,095	94,270	67,765	68,155	86,695
Western Samoa	81,841	84,898	83,728	75,681	87,712
Other	2,066	578	467	372	989
	2,832,728	2,838,913	3,398,294	3,969,258	3,780,681
Foreign Countries and Possessions.
Europe—
Belgium	107,199	194,575	171,360	162,895	303,974
Denmark	313	2,939	1,257	13,277	4,828
Finland	3	..	4,472	1,719	14,770
France	561,569	600,814	681,668	1,008,291	1,800,897
Germany	1,166,302	1,614,090	364,629	1,139,654	1,290,071
Italy	401,764	325,279	145,266	78,739	194,978
Netherlands	261,759	55,013	112,714	54,982	38,081
Sweden	4,418	2,229	2,036	1,662	5,211
Switzerland	786	903	3,765	1,449	887
Other	351	12,205	2,926	2,909	2,594
	2,504,464	2,808,047	1,490,093	2,465,577	3,656,291
Asia—
China	22,652	6,603	7,599	24,829	34,979
Dutch East Indies	8,085	8,016	17,208	22,745	13,939
Japan	330,736	232,213	162,832	251,547	657,915
Philippine Islands	21,299	6,319	14,540	9,992	3,415
Other	1,963	81	51	26	559
	384,735	253,232	202,230	309,139	710,807
Africa—
Egypt	961	73	28	19,574	63
Other	3,793	5,943	2,345	68	750
	4,754	6,016	2,373	19,642	813
America—
Argentina	11,686	11,445	50,050	63,697	14,975
Brazil	3	1	5,945	7	18,428
Chile	2,365	5,673	1,515	526	3,190
Peru	2	255	1	217	19,215
United States of America	3,278,135	4,349,758	3,818,232	2,681,091	4,260,315
Uruguay	27,895	23,346	6,159	445	30,985
Other	147	76	968	2,330	627
	3,320,233	4,390,554	3,882,870	2,748,313	4,346,735
Pacific islands—
Hawaii	170,222	144,599	113,151	130,925	134,394
New Caledonia	3,494	1,600	466	5,832	7,786
Society Islands	67,227	48,362	45,799	39,487	55,560
Tuamotu Archipelago	1,694	..	3,068	10,003	9,123
Tutuila	7,882	15,375	7,845	3,820	7,788
Other	1,955	1,855	1,063	2,039	3,521
	252,474	211,791	171,392	192,106	218,172

Eighty-four per cent. of the total exports from New Zealand went to British countries in 1928. The United States took half of the remainder.

Detailed information as to principal exports to the various countries during the last five years is given in the following pages. Re-exports are included, but not bunker coal or oil.

PRINCIPAL EXPORTS TO VARIOUS COUNTRIES, 1924–28.

Commodity.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
United Kingdom.
	£	£	£	£	£
Butter	10,772,518	9,738,193	7,848,581	8,837,459	9,022,883
Casein	85,835	75,956	39,410	57,159	56,767
Cheese	6,983,271	5,780,244	5,892,821	5,528,979	6,626,335
Eggs in shell	16,766	572	7,998	613	18,624
Honey	29,429	52,617	34,993	24,537	76,794
Meat, poultry, and game—
Frozen—
Beef	666,147	832,677	437,098	514,373	631,059
Lamb, whole carcasses	5,926,763	6,756,387	5,589,606	6,004,598	6,612,104
Mutton, whole carcasses	2,537,565	3,068,041	2,121,945	2,025,906	1,924,207
Pork	24,159	143,358	258,825	283,399	393,555
Other	101,294	89,265	83,898	76,233	176,823
Potted and preserved	44,211	71,249	69,720	61,927	50,267
Sausage-casings	36,354	50,226	53,752	56,261	42,788
Other	21,550	6,587	2,733	2,815	2,501
Milk, dried	446,619	346,264	300,969	287,865	335,913
Apples, fresh	100,342	104,930	329,618	226,245	429,374
Pears, fresh	3	4,403	5,643	8,410	24,986
Barley	..	..	485	24,695	8,081
Oats	70	46	52	21,888	20,932
Peas	71,876	78,196	62,099	105,041	134,646
Hops	28,243	2,774	8,745	20,508	9,837
Hides, pelts, and skin?, undressed—
Calf	13,137	11,926	3,323	10,459	26,744
Cattle	173,176	138,570	84,903	45,227	97,876
Opossum	51,551	58,816	35,766	53,272	89,556
Rabbit	345,686	401,131	367,323	428,392	431,302
Sheep, with wool	277,030	142,349	162,111	180,267	268,310
Sheep, without wool	198,690	266,707	193,714	326,456	209,594
Other	2,839	448	830	23,540	..
Wool—
Greasy	7,877,301	10,619,834	6,666,309	7,488,725	8,622,014
Scoured	1,731,838	1,570,967	1,233,600	1,099,645	940,180
Sliped	1,936,233	1,834,551	1,583,598	1,425,377	1,792,024
Washed	18,747	10,252	17,475	20,816	27,334
Copra	10,522	10,365	14,182	1,536	4,444
Phormium-fibre	134,575	226,485	109,897	196,760	147,429
Tow	8,791	18,396	15,618	22,832	18,365
Seeds	64,289	50,368	81,152	121,655	34,001
Apparel	13,269	11,551	12,992	15,811	10,822
Textile piece-goods	14,876	32,550	36,408	33,632	14,671
Tallow	678,706	843,289	638,224	586,794	645,323
Oil, other than mineral	2,806	6,714	1,134	1,886	10,021
Kauri-gum	160,322	180,916	138,689	144,302	75,952
Gold	3,189	1,735	1,723	1,294	2,283
Leather	4,115	6,523	11,106	19,419	18,454
Timber	9,668	5,118	3,370	9,385	4,063
Stationery and books	25,538	11,935	16,478	15,017	8,383
Parcels-post	35,826	39,375	51,941	42,719	48,664
Hong Kong.
Butter	9,033	6,921	1,643	4,583	3,372
Fungus	3,383	10,547	11,064	20,310	8,540
India.
Wool	97,597	85,076	10,094	..	..
Tallow	505	3,839	6,513	28,666	32,532
Gold	323,921	47,301	13,113	73,642	297,585
Silver	70,267	59,592	50,200	41,008	43,355
Parcels-post	1,268	951	1,187	980	1,304
Straits Settlements.
Putter	10,771	18,438	18,071	29,404	20,848
Milk and cream, preserved, condensed, &c. (including dried)	5,387	1,222	1,268	3,849	8,546
Union of South Africa.
Butter	9,218	..	..	6,849	19,321
Wool	422	4,187	13,400	9,237	21,554
Tallow	12,869	10,948	5,970	7,452	7,350
Canada.
Butter	340,582	26,360	230,562	899,727	1,565,646
Cheese	19,322	2,621	..	4,495	10,465
Gelatine	3,325	1,400	2,026	840	2,520
Frozen meat	3,022	621	1,129	8,948	53,440
Meats, potted and preserved	2,865	710	2,960	3,889	3,798
Sausage-casings	175,455	231,884	319,470	422,655	446,364
Hides, pelts, and skins, undressed—
Calf	6,248	22,478	28,869	22,126	22,118
Cattle	23,080	32,262	43,525	31,710	42,899
Sheep, without wool	7,476	..	22,839	1,146	6,244
Other	42,466	12,069	2,083	2,145	10,524
Wool—
Greasy	41,667	35,121	102,212	169,602	186,155
Secured	16,228	8,284	39,769	11,759	15,697
Slipe	6,313	10,546	16,348	31,779	22,958
Seeds	5,676	6,144	5,274	16,461	8,970
Kauri-gum	7,155	3,991	5,448	8,027	6,856
Phormium-fibre	2,164	9,841	11,603	6,209	11,680
Parcels-post	2,220	1,986	2,785	1,482	2,098
Falkland Islands.
	£	£	£	£	£
Sheep	..	..	4,845	..	..
Australia.
Butter	15,336	2,633	289,453	741,957	183,153
Casein	6,383	3,174	1,193	1,227	1,512
Cheese	17,195	5,613	40,478	44,762	28,950
Fish	58,718	55,839	64,354	70,170	84,013
Meats, potted and preserved	28,262	34,371	42,889	40,663	54,764
Bacon and ham	19,080	18,474	24,904	20,575	22,849
Pork, frozen	63,455	23,070	11,910	67,892	54,763
Sausage-casings	7,507	9,552	20,387	20,687	14,709
Milk, preserved (including dried)	34,124	29,467	34,036	46,427	26,059
Chaff	4	36	..	4,441	..
Hay	1,362	1,556	2,692	2,971	2,963
Oats (unprepared)	855	1,410	4,388	88,571	10,214
Peas	10,185	20,470	33,769	42,397	41,181
Bran	23	21	..	3,571	..
Oats, ground or manufactured	1,398	2,981	4,220	5,003	5,805
Potatoes	10	23,332	152,072	963	..
Onions	793	3,165	9,340	7	180
Hops	13,005	17,531	5,326	5,426	8,550
Cattle	8,663	4,228	5,932	5,301	6,303
Horses	48,384	66,990	68,945	68,945	53,227
Sheep	5,447	12,721	19,333	30,403	14,342
Calf-skins	84,901	65,696	44,129	68,836	56,169
Cattle-hides	304,854	226,261	193,703	207,192	284,668
Sheep-skins, without wool	75,184	52,299	79,471	93,585	57,083
Other hides and skins	23,172	31,863	16,518	5,831	7,715
Wool—
Greasy	384,018	153,873	80,724	237,589	478,983
Other	134,312	4,588	61,496	138,611	103,536
Phormium-fibre	103,128	101,329	100,378	79,444	81,519
Tow	26,754	35,241	35,261	37,628	22,523
Seeds—
Grass and clover	46,957	59,493	64,598	42,637	38,294
Linseed	12,547	6,684	4,974	4,625	1,844
Other	5,758	5,673	7,988	7,480	5,154
Apparel	13,055	7,721	5,381	13,285	5,155
Hosiery	4,155	10,083	875	756	559
Textile piece-goods	16,512	11,624	10,189	6,674	5,491
Rugs	8,909	6,497	4,131	6,199	4,375
Twine	6,619	6,250	1,484	1,754	3,849
Glycerine	3,779	3,461	6,104	7,755	6,240
Whale-oil	4,588	6,244	6,287	6,355	4,421
Tallow	97,078	22,121	37,373	28,698	69,848
Coal (cargo)	7,507	3	576	..	..
Pumice-sand	4,542	7,092	7,601	5,878	7,982
Species—
Gold	..	..	..	..	500,000
Silver	34,443	12,883	6,151	..	..
Gold	2,278	383,338	456,812	401,216	131,775
Pig iron	..	..	..	4,592	1,994
Silver	35,458	14,019	1,017	1,312	732
Agricultural implements	12,554	5,424	5,762	5,339	3,985
Dairying machinery	4,609	4,281	5,776	5,996	8,145
Electrical machinery	7,910	4,654	9,434	14,462	10,545
Leather	5,242	3,662	7,143	3,886	5,122
Timber—
White-pine	360,188	446,221	356,462	288,997	262,049
Kauri	27,485	54,285	33,706	41,275	25,689
Rimu	45,369	32,582	35,088	35,945	41,586
Other	27,485	30,677	37,837	41,053	35,256
Books, papers, and music, printed	12,556	10,305	11,899	10,114	12,029
Jewellery	3,243	8,827	26,946	47,034	57,801
Cinematograph, bioscope, and kinetoscope films	16,620	22,616	26,532	23,703	25,983
Motors for road traffic and materials therefor	14,613	20,126	51,774	48,995	16,047
Sugar of milk	10,579	4,701	9,614	6,603	10,292
Parcels-post	19,497	18,256	22,660	26,391	23,764
Papua.
Meats, potted and preserved	112	9	3,231	..	4,176
Fiji.
Butter	4,742	2,269	1,740	469	1,502
Cheese	1,196	910	1,033	878	1,250
Bacon and ham	3,577	3,464	3,954	3,148	3,460
Meats, potted and preserved	22,561	25,196	29,313	26,042	32,647
Milk and cream, preserved, condensed, and dried	2,066	2,446	2,841	2,078	3,772
Confectionery	2,266	2,270	2,472	2,393	3,845
Sugar	3,932	2,674	2,828	3,351	5,125
Potatoes	2,991	4,216	7,204	4,631	2,773
Tea	4,569	5,859	6,740	4,179	7,868
Beer	1,640	1,499	1,459	1,100	1,017
Cattle	3,370	617	65	48	581
Sheep	2,781	1,841	1,349	1,164	1,757
Apparel	2,348	2,599	1,865	1,829	2,003
Textile piece-goods	2,040	1,907	1,524	1,426	1,438
Rugs	1,406	1,688	1,162	2,253	2,614
Bags and sacks	13,787	26,434	11,859	7,952	446
Tallow	3,242	2,955	3,186	1,200	1,967
Coal (cargo)	102	579	4,122	2,094	2,549
Hardware, hollow - ware, and ironmongery	998	1,016	2,066	2,132	1,626
Timber	3,288	2,469	7,752	3,932	3,586
Cinematograph, bioscope, and kinetoscope films	11,236	11,468	11,565	11,804	10,057
Soap	1,176	1,341	2,009	1,206	1,767
Parcels-post	2,385	2,079	2,448	2,680	2,486
Gilbert and Ellice Islands.
Meats, potted and preserved	2,392	4,443	2,968	4,594	4,188
Solomon Islands.
Meats, potted and preserved	248	4,133	3,846	4,555	2,488
Tonga.
Butter	4,002	3,260	2,650	2,474	2,681
Salted beef	2,332	5,208	2,298	2,202	3,280
Meats, potted and preserved	29,619	30,732	23,221	24,123	32,410
Biscuits	1,747	2,400	677	698	175
Sugar	4,635	3,309	3,407	2,651	2,626
Apparel	3,205	3,589	3,042	2,039	3,257
Textile piece-goods	6,652	6,375	5,738	3,240	5,924
Cordage and rope	1,387	1,755	1,133	1,143	1,347
Kerosene	2,719	1,973	640	720	456
Hardware, hollow - ware, and ironmongery	1,684	1,662	1,335	3,008	2,165
Wire	1,242	1,453	666	445	551
Timber	3,288	664	805	1,698	815
Cinematograph, bioscope, and kinetoscope films	1,253	970	1,220	994	1,161
Parcels-post	1,730	2,356	2,483	1,927	1,815
Western Samoa.
Butter	4,332	4,326	4,039	3,874	4,102
Salted beef	5,640	7,850	3,850	2,941	3,347
Meats, potted and preserved	27,330	26,494	24,492	24,626	27,472
Frozen meat	1,474	1,420	1,136	2,021	838
Milk and cream, preserved, condensed, and dried	1,417	1,463	1,302	1,518	1,646
Sugar	1,585	2,680	7,464	8,180	10,394
Apparel	1,764	1,480	1,971	1,466	2,385
Textile piece-goods	4,872	3,815	2,533	2,078	3,795
Hardware, hollow-ware, and ironmongery	1,244	1,936	2,007	2,475	1,817
Medicinal preparations, drugs, &c.	523	862	1,379	769	422
Soap	1,289	1,097	1,052	793	717
Belgium.
Meats, frozen	..	37,951	24,619	14,125	5,962
Hides, pelts, and skins	53,595	124,934	76,318	123,997	104,562
Wool	51,095	17,380	26,313	86,687	174,407
Phormium-fibre	..	4,517	22,722	20,768	6,468
Tallow	1,683	4,283	12,906	10,325	8,597
Denmark.
	£	£	£	£	£
Wool	..	788	445	11,407	2,423
France.
Butter	25,732	17,734	..	..	..
Meats, frozen	..	11,639	18,966	4,516	..
Hides, pelts, and skins	11,228	33,340	49,947	25,753	73,557
Wool	516,568	519,300	578,377	958,938	1,711,926
Grass and clover seeds	..	218	..	2,818	892
Phormium-fibre	..	4,400	19,308	9,809	3,514
Kauri-gum	7,628	7,903	6,801	8,316	5,064
Germany.
Butter	79,011	117,858	..	..	..
Casein	5,888	17,564	35,514	30,697	24,650
Frozen meat	36,344	29,672	..	..	..
Sausage-casings	781	4,805	4,103	5,091	8,209
Dried milk	..	15,867	..	..	..
Hides, pelts, and skins	5,772	95,611	79,796	275,961	138,815
Wool	1,030,038	1,314,630	207,404	760,673	1,085,517
Grass and clover seeds	..	700	2,750	17,915	7,267
Phormium-fibre	..	8,507	12,555	12,869	3,984
Tallow	441	1,082	16,151	19,385	4,835
Kauri-gum	6,968	5,838	3,686	7,485	7,760
Italy.
Frozen meat	64,662	132,444	68,756	25,969	..
Hides, pelts, and skins	12,536	24,598	14,228	367	2,246
Wool	319,170	167,639	57,828	48,441	187,341
Kauri-gum	5,193	..	2,819	..	127
Netherlands.
Hides, pelts, and skins	1,631	29,860	9,714	2,163	13,320
Wool	256,590	17,099	24,833	35,598	16,402
Phormium-fibre	..	3,812	58,540	3,195	867
Tallow	13	..	13,691	11,452	3,749
Kauri-gum	950	2,289	2,061	859	1,068
China.
Butter	18,803	5,058	6,051	22,155	30,366
Dutch East Indies.
Butter	7,458	7,208	10,283	17,418	8,510
Japan.
Butter	20,958	6,154	14,923	22,430	13,275
Casein	26,509	9,218	27,139	44,587	45,237
Hides, skins, and pelts	5	..	..	32,831	7,676
Wool	272,927	214,736	118,738	150,305	588,266
Philippine Islands.
Butter	18,681	5,600	13,836	9,298	3,364
Egypt.
Frozen beef	..	..	..	18,256	..
Portuguese East Africa.
Tallow	3,658	5,921	2,191	..	750
Argentina.
Fresh apples	..	..	29,796	33,524,	11,664
Sheep	8,275	9,247	6,497	25,884	1,670
Cattle	2,375	798	1,733	..	..
Brazil.
Apples	..	..	..	..	18,426
Coal (cargo)	..	..	4,569	..	..
Chile.
	£	£	£	£	£
Sheep	2,363	5,584	..	..	..
Panama Canal Zone.
Butter	140	..	..	2,000	..
Peru.
Sheep	..	..	..	..	19,215
United Stales.
Butter	196,855	174,207	172,593	227,540	328,140
Casein	2,370	3,432	1,795	6,632	3,739
Cheese	8	10,581	4,598	70	24,508
Frozen meat	776	72	916	19,385	408,615
Dried milk	345,611	381,565	384,078	250,643	272,616
Sausage-casings	..	19,050	175	..	..
Hides, pelts, and skins, undressed—
Calf	121,143	102,871	103,174	93,205	153,187
Cattle	27,911	59,330	82,971	204,531	370,866
Rabbit	356,470	420,018	443,955	178,865	117,138
Sheep, without wool	914,153	1,439,872	969,246	735,626	1,075,080
Sheep, with wool	7 460	58,267	73,317	109,481	157,248
Other	888	243	15,597	1,076	707
Wool—
Greasy	571,384	1,104,126	854,058	273,537	548,793
Other	13,187	44,860	136,460	53,018	152,937
Phormium-fibre	149,020	157,575	191,013	143,983	96,291
Seeds	38,164	35,523	49,297	53,357	70,087
Tallow	..	36	..	14,090	19,554
Kauri-gum	252,365	210,790	166,377	111,142	141,845
Specie—Gold	..	..	..	..	100,000
Gold	222,400	39,895	44,559	55,758	57,941
Parcels-post	7,345	5,575	6,388	5,623	4,929
Uruguay.
Fresh apples	19,590	8,337	792	..	19,780
Potatoes	..	10,538	2,215	..	1,121
Sheep	5,937	2,355	1,760	252	7,872
Hawaii.
Butter	98,122	97,901	77,300	82,070	80,884
Frozen meat	67,393	40,984	28,144	33,951	40,315
Meats, potted and preserved	138	48	642	2,159	846
Dried milk	953	1,163	1,061	392	338
Fresh apples	1,305	1,032	2,315	2,878	3,187
Manures	..	..	2,834	5,734	8,035
Society Islands.
Butter	8,419	5,526	2,761	4,101	6,600
Meats, potted and preserved	23,535	18,643	16,658	15,592	17,724
Milk and cream, condensed, preserved, and dried	5,463	4,338	1,669	2,533	4,514
Sugar	1,845	763	2,921	1,590	1,857
Potatoes	1,035	882	1,030	763	1,043
Cattle	1,344	396	..	..	..
Sheep	857	595	365	..	..
Cinematograph, bioscope, and kinetoscope films	1,045	2,517	568	2,349	2,474
Soap	7,679	5,183	5,906	5,770	7,368
Tutuila.
Salted beef	66	..	8	3,813	742
Meats, potted and preserved	3,056	827	2,211	..	5,035
Coal (cargo)	3,574	12,901	4,271	..	..

In order to show at a glance the destinations of the main items of export, tables are appended showing the details for five years for each of the principal commodities. Both New Zealand produce and re-exports are included.

DESTINATION OF MAIN EXPORTS, 1924–28.

Country to which exported.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Wool.
	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.
United Kingdom	154,203,409	162,039,136	169,746,655	169,073,530	154,865,741
Canada	842,811	835,666	3,002,823	4,071,689	3,186,970
Australia	6,846,983	2,030,427	2,716,011	5,856,183	7,698,283
France	7,328,522	7,009,818	12,340,829	17,522,456	24,389,263
Germany	15,805,443	15,954,675	4,379,911	13,244,151	14,177,637
Japan	3,759,829	2,535,932	2,719,318	2,732,688	7,892,924
United States of America	6,995,991	11,692,769	15,151,755	5,190,607	8,654,471
Other countries	10,461,472	3,628,433	3,097,097	2,809,416	5,939,455
Totals	206,244,460	205,726,856	213,154,399	220,500,720	226,804,744
Frozen Meat.
	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.
United Kingdom	3,069,891	3,237,880	2,930,517	3,266,421	3,474,229
Canada	905	242	261	4,231	27,055
Australia	16,908	7,015	4,190	19,375	17,840
Pacific islands	41,571	22,905	16,165	20,067	21,386
Belgium	..	28,949	18,268	8,248	4,259
France	..	7,745	16,796	4,561	..
Germany	30,447	18,915	..	..	..
Italy	53,541	90,491	47,662	17,115	..
Egypt	..	..	..	11,876	..
United States of America	204	49	292	9,716	248,622
Other countries	107	14	205	3,355	437
Totals	3,213,574	3,414,205	3,034,356	3,364,965	3,793,828
Butter.
	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.
United Kingdom	1,174,894	1,186,955	1,062,278	1,188,664	1,158,234
Canada	37,164	3,015	29,403	116,106	199,706
Australia	1,726	294	34,945	94,964	23,638
Pacific islands	13,545	12,960	10,386	11,752	12,144
France	2,706	2,000	..	..	..
Germany	8,290	14,968	..	..	..
United States of America	20,805	19,236	22,958	29,610	42,718
Other countries	10,325	5,886	8,070	14,443	13,130
Totals	1,269,455	1,245,324	1,168,040	1,455,539	1,449,570
Cheese.
	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.
United Kingdom	1,585,635	1,371,986	1,450,637	1,478,870	1,551,523
Canada	4,963	749	..	1,187	2,428
Australia	3,178	745	9,555	11,727	7,087
Pacific islands	411	251	284	337	408
United States of America	..	2,976	1,065	5	5,485
Other countries	299	47	7	666	341
Totals	1,594,486	1,376,754	1,461,548	1,492,792	1,567,272
Preserved Milk.
	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.
United Kingdom	11,686,033	10,080,021	9,707,302	9,926,037	15,180,571
Straits Settlements	185,596	47,388	51,561	137,792	384,970
Australia	1,184,238	1,051,624	1,313,784	2,153,943	1,251,534
Fiji	48,372	56,645	66,815	48,436	110,565
Tonga	16,454	14,138	10,176	6,099	16,173
Western Samoa	30,885	33,372	25,876	28,970	28,949
Society Islands	115,596	91,066	34,934	53,186	102,807
Other countries	215,800	2,368,373	114,332	67,522	143,084
Totals	13,482,974	13,742,627	11,324,780	12,421,985	17,218,653
Tallow.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
United Kingdom	20,699	23,599	18,255	19,661	21,000
India	13	95	165	892	949
South African Union	318	290	166	247	238
Australia	2,692	656	1,027	891	1,990
Fiji	97	87	106	49	68
Belgium	49	109	366	355	283
Germany	11	25	447	685	152
Netherlands	..	..	389	393	116
Portuguese East Africa	84	158	65	..	25
United States of America	..	1	..	500	643
Other countries	25	18	142	202	284
Totals	23,988	25,038	21,128	23,875	25,748
Hides (Cattle and Horse).
	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.
United Kingdom	157,901	107,897	79,857	45,227	48,400
Canada	26,886	27,989	40,332	22,082	21,520
Australia	185,733	118,479	110,230	92,891	110,736
Belgium	47,436	83,131	46,737	9,065	12,489
Finland	..	..	3,725	959	7,062
France	650	9,486	11,380	1,564	1,608
Germany	5,825	64,941	56,748	94,692	36,291
Italy	9,576	18,058	10,630	250	950
Netherlands	1,322	10,581	9,657	1,513	7,218
United States of America	32,780	52,366	79,239	129,203	183,735
Other countries	2,601	3,376	775	1,000	2,590
Totals	470,710	496,304	449,310	398,446	432,599
Calf-skins.
	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.
United Kingdom	40,302	32,049	10,711	31,790	62,133
Canada	17,991	57,639	101,123	63,714	48,382
Australia	258,301	203,629	153,187	225,966	154,341
Belgium	3,019	32,247	49,397	72,046	68,364
Germany	..	6,739	12,004	65,160	23,025
Netherlands	..	36,539	..	1,439	16,439
United States of America	386,133	331,985	425,026	314,026	396,854
Other countries	1,101	1,202	..	..	..
Totals	706,847	702,029	751,448	774,141	769,538
Opossum-skins.
	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.
United Kingdom	103,463	105,866	75,688	97,158	135,465
Australia	4,702	29,018	33,951	4,027	4,729
Austria	..	5,000	2,000	..	..
Germany	..	10,796	16,500	42,294	15,651
United States of America	1,426	..	23,380	..	..
Other countries	2,451	600	..	..	..
Totals	112,042	151,280	151,519	143,479	155,845
Rabbit-skins.
	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.
United Kingdom	9,598,941	9,909,233	9,363,200	8,743,861	8,844,067
Canada	651,866	80,617	8,790	14,958	..
Australia	214,116	112,486	38,531	64,636	30,682
Belgium	22,500	73,742	35,034	80,482	95,155
France	..	77,352	100,008	45,908	30,683
Germany	2,712	85,382	98,092	846,784	248,134
Italy	..	13,791	25,086	..	..
United States of America	9,948,501	9,345,483	7,466,858	3,131,550	2,855,351
Other countries	5,754	10,500	..	490	..
Totals	20,444,390	19,708,586	17,135,599	12,928,669	12,104,072
Sheep-skins (with Wool).
	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.
United Kingdom	583,880	316,855	425,925	518,805	763,357
Canada	19,656	13,747	2,752	3,692	47,148
Australia	40,666	23,039	2,424	1,581	579
Belgium	1,805	..	18,253	21,348	12,292
France	29,387	29,965	109,793	75,925	200,790
Germany	..	2,213	456	19,925	19,963
Japan	..	..	..	90,253	5,653
United States of America	13,997	85,308	145,519	236,234	315,000
Other countries	10	..	1,577	4,767	..
Totals	689,401	471,127	706,699	972,530	1,364,782
Sheep-skins (without Wool).
	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.
United Kingdom	1,473,525	1,525,295	1,123,354	2,040,545	1,199,594
Canada	71,742	..	191,061	11,460	36,080
Australia	622,769	305,109	613,351	831,043	413,053
Belgium	..	..	63,522	163,566	167,850
France	..	..	..	30,271	522
Germany	..	..	12	18,385	98,478
Japan	30	..	..	9,480	2,819
United States of America	5,967,167	6,391,366	6,533,714	5,841,173	6,898,871
Other countries	1,032	2,415	180	..	..
Totals	8,136,265	8,224,185	8,525,194	8,945,923	8,817,267
Sausage-casings.
	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.
United Kingdom	423,627	392,371	391,571	383,455	299,071
Canada	819,221	892,026	1,162,902	1,368,081	1,552,153
Australia	225,791	228,976	409,996	566,086	416,463
Germany	8,464	143,802	100,614	134,821	284,825
United States of America	1,331,395	1,502,515	1,460,993	993,315	1,219,963
Other countries	420	6,160	765	4,944	1,331
Totals	2,808,918	3,165,850	3,526,841	3,450,702	3,773,806
Peas.
	Centals.	Centals.	Centals.	Centals.	Centals.
United Kingdom	101,296	106,116	79,835	123,111	173,683
Australia	8,902	17,835	26,124	34,918	35,825
United States of America	2,138	3,214	3,029	2,741	4,668
Other countries	378	1,772	631	1,879	6,778
Totals	112,714	128,937	109,619	162,649	220,954
Apples (Fresh).
	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.
United Kingdom	8,027,880	7,652,732	26,309,902	18,151,040	34,358,690
Canada	240	69,440	240	31,680	501,620
Fiji	42,667	39,847	87,446	80,964	79,595
Tonga	7,016	9,077	10,337	15,084	10,210
Western Samoa	12,915	15,679	14,343	6,060	11,270
Argentina	..	..	2,373,840	2,690,920	947,680
Brazil	..	..	..	..	1,474,040
Uruguay	1,567,080	667,000	63,320	..	1,518,680
Hawaii	87,040	52,880	104,720	214,360	197,120
Other countries	3,564	10,290	17,429	2,040	6,219
Totals	9,748,402	8,516,945	28,981,577	21,192,148	39,105,124
Seeds (Grass and Clover).
	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.
United Kingdom	11,965	8,529	15,196	34,197	9,126
Canada	950	1,630	1,295	3,311	2,351
Australia	15,299	24,655	29,958	27,533	18,386
France	..	20	..	2,172	246
Germany	..	100	463	5,378	1,726
Netherlands	355	102	80	1,053	571
United States of America	8,997	10,605	11,159	16,729	17,553
Other countries	200	538	276	375	318
Totals	37,766	46,179	58,427	90,748	50,277
Gold.
	Oz.	Oz.	Oz.	Oz.	Oz.
United Kingdom	826	417	432	321	587
India	76,891	11,265	3,123	17,539	70,877
Australia	660	93,186	111,299	98,637	33,049
Germany	..	23	..	..	..
United States of America	55,254	9,805	10,923	13,674	14,209
Totals	133,631	114,696	125,777	130,171	118,722
Silver.
	Oz.	Oz.	Oz.	Oz.	Oz.
United Kingdom	6,218	315	175	2,194	387
India	562,163	484,434	415,303	411,729	435,272
Australia	9,836	10,498	9,809	13,435	10,152
Germany	...	21	..	..	..
Totals	578,217	495,268	425,287	427,358	445,811
Kauri-gum.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
United Kingdom	2,162	2,290	2,109	2,368	1,420
Canada	122	106	129	179	187
Belgium	..	33	97	7	..
France	102	110	99	34	124
Germany	117	135	78	162	204
Italy	81	..	61	..	10
Netherlands	27	57	45	7	29
United States of America	2,601	2,616	2,198	1,853	2,380
Other countries	49	23	61	64	40
Totals	5,261	5,370	4,877	4,674	4,394
Phormium-fibre.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
United Kingdom	4,464	7,189	3,686	6,729	5,596
Canada	77	295	356	210	404
Australia	3,447	3,248	3,321	2,693	2,916
Belgium	..	144	764	702	220
France	..	142	622	343	133
Germany	..	284	393	472	148
Netherlands	..	125	1,920	109	26
United States of America	4,994	4,981	6,166	4,925	3,477
Other countries	..	..	10	6	12
Totals	12,982	16,408	17,238	16,189	12,932
Timber (Sawn awl Hewn).
	Sup. ft.	Sup. ft.	Sup. ft.	Sup. ft.	Sup. ft.
United Kingdom	489,987	2,276,843	4,975,812	283,880	122,231
Australia	42,486,514	48,882,252	40,136,541	36,524,345	34,489,276
Fiji	90,949	100,900	256,699	138,926	102,045
Pacific islands (other than Fiji)	200,591	195,237	143,889	218,132	294,559
Other countries	55,448	94,207	128,856	..	19,227
Totals	43,323,489	51,549,439	45,841,797	37,165,283	35,027,338

EXPORTS FOR YEARS ENDED 30th JUNE.

New Zealand's exports consist almost wholly of seasonal products, and the calendar year splits the season in the case of most of the principal commodities. The largest item of export, wool, is sheared from the sheep in the early summer, and the wool-sales are held in December and January. Exports of any season's wool-clip are therefore divided between one year and the next in varying proportion. A favourable season or a sudden demand may cause a great increase of exports in the December quarter, with the result that the March quarter of the next year shows low figures. The wool trade invariably bases its calculations on each season's clip, not on calendar years.

The same argument holds good in the case of butter and cheese, which are almost wholly exported in December and March quarters. It is desirable, therefore, for some purposes to tabulate New Zealand exports for years ending in June instead of December, since this division doss not split the seasonal production of any main commodity, and more truly shows the results of each season as compared with previous seasons. The following table gives this information for the principal items of export during each of the last five “June” years:—

PRINCIPAL EXPORTS OF DOMESTIC PRODUCE (VALUES) FOR YEARS ENDED 30TH JUNE, 1925–29.

Commodity.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	£	£	£	£	£
Butter	11,705,541	8,958,036	9,761,537	11,315,756	12,744,992
Casein	133,812	104,060	127,207	141,430	140,913
Cheese	6,208,553	6,073,638	5,338,376	6,360,766	6,889,993
Fish	63,070	61,684	65,775	85,562	86,077
Honey	46,111	52,763	26,542	64,529	89,241
Beef, frozen	926,074	717,584	485,982	977,623	808,266
Beef, salted	13,226	11,891	9,897	10,685	5,284
Lamb, frozen	6,833,007	5,783,294	5,460,909	6,669,196	6,925,831
Mutton, frozen	2,945,430	2,422,451	2,126,438	2,085,607	1,949,919
Pork, frozen	180,356	167,202	319,976	374,935	589,609
Meats, preserved	188,418	244,275	213,519	237,306	198,323
Sausage-casings	674,757	745,528	749,964	766,345	688,098
Milk, preserved	45,594	33,362	41,074	27,513	49,069
Milk, dried	511,651	351,405	283,818	318,964	361,625
Apples, fresh	116,062	362,264	258,805	496,870	447,509
Peas	85,041	124,148	141,800	179,935	112,623
Oats	953	3,533	24,248	111,155	13,373
Hops	14,214	21,604	26,628	22,612	15,942
Potatoes	7,536	85,433	117,137	7,755	8,298
Live-stock	121,196	117,047	117,452	114,224	117,710
Calf-skins	244,059	223,366	200,610	245,947	300,197
Hides, horse and cattle	711,448	583,911	586,610	903,834	677,552
Rabbit-skins	781,617	802,512	810,428	633,090	555,811
Opossum-skins	48,396	88,493	76,292	77,587	102,812
Sheep-skins, with wool	306,239	204,920	303,726	488,206	464,303
Sheep-skins, without wool	1,746,716	1,260,948	1,313,437	1,296,428	1,473,253
Wool	18,088,044	12,030,185	12,883,971	16,548,869	15,923,157
Phormium-fibre	506,317	543,245	463,740	391,759	371,520
Seeds, grass and clover	134,926	165,994	212,782	291,161	172,621
Tallow	826,770	844,800	619,130	882,297	719,099
Coal	238,638	218,283	299,704	172,468	247,228
Kauri-gum	453,956	361,875	310,701	245,834	247,094
Gold	477,897	491,055	522,090	518,468	495,456
Silver	71,159	58,078	41,050	43,711	43,288
Leather	8,867	8,331	23,184	20,787	16,206
Timber, sawn	520,092	548,871	434,765	398,474	408,158
Other New Zealand produce	639,602	627,979	658,187	656,857	827,957
Totals	56,625,345	45,504,048	45,457,491	54,184,545	55,288,407

The following table shows by quantities the principal items of export during the same five years as in the previous table:—

PRINCIPAL EXPORTS OF DOMESTIC PRODUCE (QUANTITIES) FOR YEARS ENDED 30TH JUNE, 1925–29.

Commodity.		1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
Butter cwt.		1,362,240	1,090,946	1,360,761	1,467,954	1,567,393
Casein	cwt.	54,294	39,438	42,793	44,372	46,016
Cheese	cwt.	1,481,724	1,399,925	1,487,670	1,529,872	1,661,000
Fish	cwt.	19,865	16,633	19,923	24,702	24,741
Honey	lb.	1,705,773	1,802,508	931,708	1,934,940	2,565,795
Beef, frozen	cwt.	658,922	511,137	363,208	692,231	509,738
Beef, salted cwt		7,074	5,816	5,079	4,990	2,365
Lamb, frozen	cwt.	1,552,831	1,492,030	1,560,114	1,865,784	1,879,680
Mutton, frozen	cwt.	1,075,580	951,331	1,062,646	1,095,937	961,247
Pork, frozen	cwt.	50,569	44,640	86,189	127,297	190,740
Meats, preserved	cwt.	62,996	68,646	61,803	68,316	53,495
Sausage-casings	lb.	3,208,369	3,311,825	3,463,548	3,715,870	3,574,661
Milk, preserved	lb.	1,458,903	1,098,792	1,656,071	1,091,497	2,060,813
Milk, dried	lb.	14,811,797	11,089,128	10,027,057	12,414,035	16,083,585
Apples, fresh	lb.	8,499,323	27,834,824	20,750,986	39,651,282	32,171,840
Peas	centals	98,711	162,544	150,538	207,917	143,817
Oats	centals	1,502	5,881	56,189	260,739	25,466
Hops	lb.	215,444	411,674	543,276	406,350	282,979
Potatoes	tons	985	10,254	15,918	951	1,056
Calf-skins	No.	742,939	693,752	753,780	750,408	741,923
Hides, cattle and horse	No.	527,804	436,919	427,398	451,476	355,490
Rabbit-skins	No.	20,163,368	18,371,251	15,752,173	12,333,438	11,278,431
Opossum-skins	No.	94,588	155,026	160,942	133,344	152,430
Sheep-skins, with wool	No.	578,285	507,934	830,145	1,371,790	1,179,788
Sheep-skins, without wool	No.	8,702,068	7,670,250	9,696,603	8,626,621	8,729,575
Wool	bales	574,189	618,989	660,381	667,225	687,833
Phormium-fibre	tons	15,978	17,559	15,624	13,921	13,620
Seeds, grass and clover	cwt.	48,074	45,259	69,964	75,827	55,935
Tallow	tons	25,147	23,688	19,089	29,510	21,352
Coal	tons	136,120	134,452	189,868	120,688	177,343
Kauri-gum	tons	5,770	4,849	4,650	4,588	4,517
Gold	oz.	115,925	119,253	127,644	125,855	120,506
Silver	oz.	578,979	472,814	379,833	437,609	434,501
Timber, sawn	sup. ft.	45,255,129	47,097,820	37,549,716	35,389,421	37,617,329

RE-EXPORTS.

The forwarding trade of New Zealand has never at any time been of great significance, and, prior to 1914, on only one occasion (in 1907) did the amount exceed a quarter of a million sterling. After 1913, however, the amount rapidly increased until in 1921 it reached the comparatively large figure of £1,213,002. In 1923 and 1924 it dropped to less than half of this amount, since when there has been a steady recovery, the 1928 figure being £910,016.

Re-exports consist partly of goods returned from New Zealand either as unsuitable or as finished with, though the bulk of the total amount is made up by various classes of machinery, hardware, metal manufactures, motor-vehicles, and also items such as apparel, books, tobacco, and spirits.

There is, however, a genuine entrepôt trade with the islands of the Pacific, the amount of which is still comparatively small. Exports to Cook Islands, which are treated as part of the Dominion, are not included in the figures of either exports or re-exports.

The total value of re-exports from New Zealand for the last twenty years are shown in the table below:—

RE-EXPORTS (EXCLUDING SPECIE) FROM NEW ZEALAND, 1909–28.

£
1909	173,215
1910	208,310
1911	198,287
1912	239,221
1913	232,473
1914	269,208
1915	387,960
1916	305,150
1917	,429,115
1918	543,568
1919	603,541
1920	813,072
1921	1,213,002
1922	1,026,801
1923	567,885
1924	588,395
1925	722,016
1926	929,741
1927	925,121
1928	910,016

The destination of this re-export trade is shown in the following table for 1924–28:—

Country.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
	£	£	£	£	£
United Kingdom	169,903	233,328	317,387	259,496	246,814
Canada	11,219	9,532	11,355	14,531	13,813
Australia	241,466	283,539	376,399	416,333	408,966
Fiji	52,850	55,946	47,580	43,684	33,111
Tonga	28,928	33,252	19,246	18,226	20,933
Western Samoa	20,308	22,935	23,064	21,446	19,531
United States of America	45,887	61,356	97,540	120,935	121,534
Society Islands	6,287	5,088	4,457	6,394	4,990
Other countries	11,547	17,040	32,713	24,076	40,324
Totals	588,395	722,016	929,741	925,121	910,016

EFFECT OF PRICES ON NEW ZEALAND EXPORTS.

It is widely recognized that the incidence of fluctuating prices over a number of years operates to render the currency statistics of a country's trade of little value as an indicator of movement in the volume of trade — i.e., from a quantity point of view. Owing to the homogeneous nature of the bulk of the Dominion's exports it is, fortunately, possible in nearly every case to obtain the quantity exported as well as the value. By taking the prices of a selected base year or other period it is then an easy matter of computation to find what the value of the exports of each subsequent year would have been on the basis of prices ruling at the base period. This method is used by the British Board of Trade, and also by the Australian Commonwealth Bureau of Statistics, and is especially suitable for application to New Zealand. In point of fact, 99 per cent. of the Dominion's exports can be treated quantitatively, leaving only 1 per cent. to be calculated pro rata.

In the table following the actually recorded exports are shown from 1900 to 1928. Values are also shown for 1901 onwards on the basis of prices ruling in 1900, and index numbers have been computed to show movement in the true volume of exports, both or the total and on a per capita basis.

EXPORTS OF NEW ZEALAND PRODUCE, SHOWING VALUES AS RECORDED AND AS COMPUTED ON THE BASIS OF VALUES RULING IN 1900.

Year.	Recorded Value.		Value at Rates ruling in 1900.		Index Numbers of “True” Volume of Exports.
Year.	Total.	Per Head.	Total.	Per Head.	Total.	Per Head.
	£	£	£	£
1900	13,055,249	16.27	13,055,249	16.27	1,000	1,000
1901	12,690,460	15.46	13,885,227	13.91	1,064	1,039
1902	13,498,599	16.05	14,877,302	17.69	1,140	1,087
1903	14,838,192	17.19	15,148,500	17.55	1,160	1,079
1904	14,601,787	16.44	13,979,644	15.74	1,071	967
1905	15,503,530	16.98	13,618,838	14.91	1,043	916
1906	17,840,346	18.91	14,796,097	15.69	1,133	964
1907	19,783,138	20.46	15,830,149	16.37	1,213	1,006
1908	15,894,530	16.01	14,554,754	14.66	1,115	901
1909	19,462,936	19.09	17,886,541	17.54	1,370	1,078
1910	21,944,163	21.09	18,524,540	17.80	1,419	1,094
1911	18,781,898	17.65	16,131,869	15.16	1,236	932
1912	21,272,405	19.54	17,754,865	16.31	1,360	1,002
1913	22,577,890	20.19	17,506,323	15.65	1,341	962
1914	25,984,717	22.79	19,807,867	17.37	1,517	1,068
1915	31,042,662	27.01	20,099,592	17.49	1,540	1,075
1916	32,975,907	28.69	18,681,653	16.26	1,431	999
1917	31,087,957	27.06	15,567,995	13.55	1,192	833
1918	27,937,010	24.23	12,401,373	10.76	950	661
1919	53,304,384	44.69	24,826,912	20.82	1,902	1,280
1920	45,592,294	36.70	20,059,459	16.15	1,537	993
1921	43,615,473	34.16	21,298,573	16.68	1,631	1,025
1922	41,699,148	31.95	27,013,513	20.70	2,069	1,272
1923	45,371,908	34.16	23,945,233	18.03	1,834	1,108
1924	51,920,828	38.438	23,960,922	17.71	1,835	1,089
1925	54,521,031	39.39	23,879,288	17.26	1,830	1,061
1926	44,339,183	31.37	23,772,831	16.82	1,822	1,034
1927	47,571,233	33.07	25,319,715	17.60	1,941	1,082
1928	54,660,365	38.00	27,973,238	19.45	2,143	1,196

The recorded value of domestic produce increased from £13,055,249 in 1900 to £54,660,365 in 1928. If, however, the 1928 exports are valued on the basis of prices ruling in 1900, the figure is reduced to £27,973,238. That is to say, the true volume of exports has grown during the last twenty-eight years from £13,055,249 to £27,973,238, an increase of 114 per cent. Taken on a per capita basis, the increase works out at 19.6 per cent. The total volume in 1928 was higher than in any other year. The per capita rate was highest in 1919, when the figure was 28 per cent. above the base year. A further noteworthy feature is the uniform aggregate volume during each of the years 1923 to 1926, followed by successive increases to the present record.

The effect of prices on the total value of exports is probably better seen at a glance from the accompanying diagram. The curve representing values on the basis of prices ruling in 1900 may also be taken as representing the course of the volume of trade on a quantity basis.

EXPORTS AS RECORDED AND AS ASSESSED AT PRICES OF 1900.

In order to show the effect of changes in price from year to year, and particularly in the latter years, it is interesting to construct a series of index numbers basing the figures for each year upon the prices of the previous year. In this way it is possible to compare succeeding years directly, instead of comparing each year with a given base. The method used is the same, except that the base is changed.

EXPORTS OF NEW ZEALAND PRODUCE FOR EACH YEAR 1900–28, SHOWING VALUES AS RECORDED AND AS COMPUTED ON THE BASIS OF VALUES RULING IN THE PREVIOUS YEAR.

Year.	Total Exports (Domestic Produce).		Effect of Price-changes.
Year.	Recorded Value.	Value at Prices of Previous Year.	Gain.	Loss.
	£	£	£	£
1900	13,055,249	..	..	..
1901	12,690,460	13,885,227	..	1,194,767
1902	13,498,599	13,597,171	..	98,572
1903	14,838,192	13,744,665	1,093,527	..
1904	14,601,787	13,693,279	908,508	..
1905	15,503,530	14,224,924	1,278,606	..
1906	17,840,346	16,843,708	996,638	..
1907	19,783,138	19,087,151	695,987	..
1908	15,894,530	18,189,260	..	2,294,730
1909	19,462,936	19,533,010	..	70,074
1910	21,944,163	20,157,164	1,786,999	..
1911	18,781,898	19,109,809	..	327,911
1912	21,272,405	20,671,508	600,897	..
1913	22,577,890	20,974,623	1,603,267	..
1914	25,984,717	25,546,190	438,527	..
1915	31,042,662	26,367,413	4,675,249	..
1916	32,975,907	28,852,737	4,123,170	..
1917	31,087,957	27,479,836	3,608,121	..
1918	27,937,010	24,764,483	3,172,527	..
1919	53,304,384	55,928,460	..	2,624,076
1920	45,592,294	43,068,470	2,523,824	..
1921	43,615,473	48,408,624	..	4,793,151
1922	41,699,148	55,318,596	..	13,619,448
1923	45,371,908	36,962,827	8,409,081	..
1924	51,920,828	45,401,635	6,519,193	..
1925	54,521,031	51,743,935	2,777,096	..
1926	44,339,183	54,277,969	..	..
1927	47,571,233	47,224,307	346,926	..
1928	54,660,365	52,556,729	2,103,636	9,938,786

The comparison of each year with the preceding year brings out the advantage gained by a rise in prices. The gain shown represents the surplus value added by rising prices to the exports of any year, and, similarly, the loss shows how falling prices penalize New Zealand. The gains due to the rise of prices during the years 1916–18 and 1923–25 are remarkable. The figures for 1922 and 1926 are eloquent of what falling prices mean for the Dominion. The recorded total of exports in 1926 would have been nearly ten millions greater had average prices of exports remained as in 1925. The figures for 1923 to 1925 reveal just the opposite, and show that prices of domestic produce were considerably higher in each year than during the preceding year.

A study of the figures given in the Statistical Summary at the end of this book, and showing quantities and values of the principal commodities exported over a period of fifty years, will give a good idea of the relative effects of increased volume and of price - movements in the huge growth of trade during the half - century as measured by the total value of exports.

The effect which war and post-war prices of products have exerted towards raising the Dominion's exports to an unprecedented height is further shown by the following comparison between the year ended 30th June, 1914, and the corresponding twelve-monthly periods ending in 1927, 1928, and 1929. As mentioned earlier, June years are in many respects preferable to calendar years, as affording a comparison between one season and another.

PRINCIPAL EXPORTS OF NEW ZEALAND PRODUCE FOR THE YEARS ENDED 30TH JUNE, 1927, 1928, AND 1929, SHOWING VALUES AS RECORDED AND AS COMPUTED ON THE BASIS OF PRICES RULING DURING THE YEAR ENDED 30TH JUNE, 1914.

Commodity.	Twelve Months ended 30th June 1914.	Twelve Months ended 30th June, 1927.		Twelve Months ended 30th June, 1928.		Twelve Months ended 30th June, 1929.
Commodity.	Twelve Months ended 30th June 1914.	Recorded Value.	Value at Prices of 1913–14.	Recorded Value.	Value at Prices of 1913–14.	Recorded Value.	Value at Prices of 1913–14.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
Butter	2,197,771	9,761,537	7,354,264	11,315,756	7,933,591	12,744,992	8,471,012
Cheese	2,317,970	5,338,376	4,411,244	6,360,766	4,536,381	6,889,993	4,925,202
Beef, frozen	561,817	485,982	519,872	977,623	990,813	808,266	729,605
Lamb, frozen (whole carcasses)	2,545,175	5,460,909	3,407,687	6,669,196	4,075,348	6,925,831	4,105,700
Mutton, frozen (whole carcasses)	1,880,583	2,126,438	1,629,333	2,085,607	1,680,377	1,949,919	1,473,860
Pork, frozen	5,843	319,976	200,083	374,935	295,512	447,509	259,884
Meat, preserved	122,078	213,519	219,517	237,306	242,650	198,323	190,008
Sausage-casings	132,038	749,964	105,074	766,345	112,728	688,098	108,444
Apples	12,160	258,805	167,626	496,870	320,303	589,609	442,791
Hides	319,995	586,619	688,555	903,834	727,346	677,552	572,709
Rabbit-skins	90,350	810,428	207,740	633,090	162,653	555,811	148,740
Sheep-skins (without wool)	545,037	1,313,437	728,205	1,296,428	647,851	1,473,253	655,582
Wool	8,262,153	12,883,971	9,400,552	16,548,869	9,672,741	15,923,157	9,833,506
Phormium-fibre	576,095	463,740	374,917	391,759	334,051	371,520	326,829
Tallow	711,858	619,130	548,191	882,297	847,458	719,099	613,180
Kauri-gum	790,338	310,701	378,600	245,834	373,552	247,094	367,771
Gold	1,485,937	522,090	495,051	518,468	488,113	495,456	467,367
Timber, sawn	372,092	434,765	189,326	398,474	178,433	408,158	189,667
Totals	22,929,290	42,660,378	31,025,837	51,103,457	33,619,901	52,113,640	33,881,857
Other N.Z. produce	1,383,454	2,797,113	..	3,081,088	..	3,174,767	..
Grand totals	24,312,744	45,457,491	..	54,184,545	..	55,288,407	..

The recorded value of domestic exports in 1928–29 was 128 per cent. greater than the figure for 1913–14. Eliminating price variation, however, the increase is reduced to 48 per cent.; that is to nay, the volume of exports has increased by that percentage. The volume for 1928–29 was just under 1 per cent. greater than that for 1927–28. The eighteen items utilized in arriving at the foregoing percentages comprise more than 94 per cent. of the total exports of domestic produce, and therefore may be taken as thoroughly representative of the whole. This growth in volume has been achieved in spite of an increase of some 330,000 in the consuming population of the Dominion, with little increase in the number of those engaged in producing the principal export commodities.

EXPORTS TO COOK ISLANDS.

In 1901 the Cook group and certain neighbouring islands were annexed to New Zealand, and have since been administered by the Dominion. The islands are fertile and rich in tropical products, so that there is a growing trade between them and the Dominion proper. This trade is not regarded as external to New Zealand, but merely as interchange between different parts of the Dominion, and it is therefore not included in the account of the external trade. Separate returns are made of the transactions between the Dominion and the annexed islands, and these are summarized below:—

TOTAL VALUE OF EXPORTS FROM NEW ZEALAND TO COOK AND OTHER ANNEXED ISLANDS, 1909–28.

Year.	Exports.
	£
1909	40,204
1910	60,647
1911	56,131
1912	75,774
1913	72,046
1914	59,056
1915	55,459
1916	52,831
1917	53,449
1918	79,309
1919	88,902
1920	117,820
1921	82,398
1922	81,309
1923	100,670
1924	96,757
1925	80,977
1926	84,573
1927	84,652
1928	92,184

Further particulars regarding the trade of the Cook Islands will be found in the section of this book dealing with dependencies.

SUBSECTION C.—IMPORTS.

METHOD OF RECORDING.

The statistics of imports are compiled from entries passed at the Customs. Prior to 1916 the import value taken was the c.i.f. or landed value in New Zealand, freight into the Dominion being thus included. For free goods and goods liable to specific duties this landed value in New Zealand was shown, but the landed value for ad valorem goods was taken as the fair market value of the goods when sold for home consumption in the principal markets of the country whence imported, and at the time when exported, plus 10 per cent. The value shown for all merchandise imported is now the current domestic value in the country of export at the time of exportation, plus 10 per cent.

DEVELOPMENT OF IMPORTS.

The earliest trade in New Zealand, as in most colonies, consisted more of exploitation and appropriation by visiting traders than of regular exchange. The whalers and sealers brought with them sufficient provisions to last their season, and they were never more than passing visitors to the Islands. The first genuine import trade sprang up when the Maoris became sensible of the great wealth to be won by bartering their flax for iron and other treasures of the white man. A new element was introduced when the Maori adopted the musket in preference to the old hand weapons. With the incoming of the regular colonists, trade assumed its more modern form, and the import of firearms was quickly overshadowed by the more peaceful requirements of the settlors.

Permanent settlement in 1840 rendered necessary the continued and increasing import of clothing, metals, and manufactures to sustain the colonists and to develop the colony. For many years after the first landing imports were greatly in excess of exports, and this excess represents the import of capital which was necessary to put the young colony on a firm footing. Especially in the early years New Zealand, while supplying foodstuffs from her own resources, has been dependent upon the outside world for a great proportion of the manufactures necessary for development, and also of the luxuries and amenities of modern life.

The gold rushes brought a huge increase of population and also of imports, and reference to Subsection A of this section will show the effect of the stimulus given by the gold-discoveries. In the later “sixties” imports were declining; but the borrowing policy pursued in the “seventies” resulted once more in an increase of imports for a time. Violent fluctuations succeeded, with a general tendency to diminish until, in sympathy with the increased exports, the value of imports rapidly increased from 1895. Imports have increased very considerably during the last decade, and have advanced from £24,234,007 in 1918 to £44,886,266 in 1928—a percentage increase of 85. The value per head of mean population was 67 per cent. greater in 1928 than in 1918.

The following table shows the total imports for New Zealand and the rate per head of mean population during the last decade.

IMPORTS, 1919–28.

Year.	Total.		Per Head.
Year.	Including Specie.	Excluding Specie.	Including Specie.			Excluding Specie.
	£	£	£			£
1919	30,671,698	30,309,167	25	14	4	25	8	3
1920	61,595,828	61,553,853	49	11	7	49	10	11
1921	42,942,443	42,744,122	33	12	9	33	9	8
1922	35,012,561	34,826,674	26	16	6	26	13	8
1923	43,378,493	43,393,983	32	13	2	32	13	0
1924	48,527,603	48,527,603	35	17	6	35	17	6
1925	52,456,407	52,425,757	37	17	10	37	17	4
1926	49,889,563	49,811,763	35	5	10	35	4	8
1927	44,782,946	44,782,686	31	2	6	31	2	6
1928	44,886,266	44,844,082	31	3	11	31	3	4

Part of the increase since the war is attributable to the higher prices ruling; nevertheless, it is evident that the effect of higher prices on imports could not account for the whole of the increase, but that the quantity of goods must have considerably increased.

CLASSIFICATION OF IMPORTS.

A classification of imports under five broad divisions is given in the next table. Taken in conjunction with a table based on the same classification which is given in the Exports subsection of this section, the figures show plainly how New Zealand is essentially a primary producing country, importing the bulk of her manufactured goods from overseas in exchange for her primary produce.

Year.	Food, Drink, and Tobacco.	Raw Materials and Articles mainly unmanufactured.	Articles wholly or mainly manufactured.	Miscellaneous and Unclassified.	Bullion and Specie.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1919	5,173,084	1,073,559	23,834,386	226,854	363,815	30,671,698
1920	10,896,053	2,602,618	47,583,033	469,618	44,506	61,595,828
1921	6,157,679	3,194,027	33,054,410	336,316	200,011	42,942,443
1922	5,855,287	3,318,024	25,381,048	213,211	244,991	35,012,561
1923	7,045,185	2,233,835	33,712,645	371,641	15,187	43,378,493
1924	8,845,159	2,981,218	36,271,395	429,374	457	48,527,603
1925	8,555,817	3,069,490	40,413,659	373,319	44,122	52,456,407
1926	8,471,775	2,767,193	38,190,328	379,154	81,113	49,889,563
1927	7,541,338	2,512,613	34,462,816	263,158	3,021	44,782,946
1928	7,152,774	2,385,876	35,001,157	299,847	46,612	44,886,266

The principal groups of commodities imported are clothing and textiles, metals and machinery, sugar, tea, alcoholic liquors, tobacco, paper and stationery, oils, motor-vehicles and accessories, chemicals and drugs, and timber. The proportions of these imports have changed little for many years, except that motor-vehicles and oils (including motor-spirits) have increased very rapidly in recent years.

Since 1914 the statistics of both imports and exports have been compiled according to a statistical classification which assembles the items in well-defined classes as shown in the following table, which gives the imports under the various classes for the year 1928.

IMPORTS BY CLASSES, 1928.

No.	Class.	Value in 1928.
		£
I	Foodstuffs of animal origin (excluding live animals)	356,571
II	Foodstuffs of vegetable origin, and common salt	3,469,502
III	Beverages (non-alcoholic) and substances used in making up the same	1,039,948
IV	Spirits and alcoholic liquors	818,597
V	Tobacco and preparations thereof	1,501,617
VI	Live animals	74,600
VII	Animal substances (mainly unmanufactured), not being foodstuffs	109,387
VIII	Vegetable substances and non-manufactured fibres	630,763
IXA	Apparel	4,661,327
IXB	Textiles	5,449,414
IXC	Manufactured fibres	689,781
X	Oils, fats, and waxes	2,863,592
XI	Paints and varnishes	380,795
XII	Stones and minerals used industrially	384,035
XIII	Specie	42,164
XIVA	Metal, unmanufactured, partially manufactured, and ores	419,320
XIVB	Metal manufactures, other than machinery and machines	4,648,457
XV	Machinery and machines	4,130,899
XVIA	Indiarubber and manufactures thereof (not including tires)	94,736
XVIB	Leather and manufactures thereof, including substitutes	443,566
XVIIA	Timber	750,072
XVIIB	Wood, cane, and wicker manufactures	201,072
XVIII	Earthenware, china, glass, stoneware, cements, and cement materials	866,628
XIXA	Paper	1,095,174
XIXB	Stationery	934,290
XX	Jewellery, timepieces, and fancy goods	776,326
XXI	Optical, surgical, and scientific instruments	494,449
XXIIA	Drugs, chemicals, and druggists' wares	1,217,892
XXIIB	Manures	617,961
XXIIIA	Vehicles	4,384,093
XXIIIB	Miscellaneous	1,339,238
	Total	44,886,266

Eighteen of the thirty-one classes show increases as compared with 1927, the total for 1928 being £103,320 greater than the previous year's figure. Class XXIIIA, vehicles, shows an advance of nearly £670,000, due to increased motor imports.

The table which follows gives a classification recently adopted by the British Board of Trade. The grouping by countries is on the basis of country of origin.

IMPORTS, 1928.

—	United Kingdom.	Other British Countries.	United States.	Other Foreign Countries.	Totals.
	£	£	£	£	£
Grain and milled products	46,177	488,807	7,221	15,810	558,015
Meat (including poultry and game)	664	1,705	5	39	2,413
Butter, cheese, and eggs	..	722	3	337	1,062
Fruits (fresh and dried)	..	423,747	189,103	58,407	671,257
Sugar	26	433,870	37	657,062	1,090,995
Tea	..	870,218	..	13,629	883,847
Alcoholic beverages	567,485	78,467	1,636	107,410	754,998
Tobacco	959,329	325,115	200,615	16,558	1,501,617
Coal	157	341,824	..	..	341,981
Ores, concentrates, and scrap	2,002	20	126	1,098	3,246
Iron and steel—
Pigs, ingots, &c.	8,646	2,841	1,903	..	13,390
Bars, rods, plate, sheet, &c.	1,159,100	80,495	4,919	1,199	1,245,713
Other manufactures of iron and steel	2,022,456	381,923	365,885	133,325	2,903,589
Agricultural implements and machinery	60,967	58,108	58,320	9,759	186,244
Electrical machinery and apparatus	1,264,163	192,261	386,589	309,214	2,152,227
Other machinery	974,122	165,560	583,113	206,893	1,929,688
Motor-cars and parts thereof	843,043	1,240,851	1,737,110	163,109	3,984,113
Other metals and metal manufactures	596,401	152,430	72,496	119,260	940,587
Cotton, raw	11	..	..	..	11
Flax, hemp, and raw jute (including tow)	730	2,843	..	32,051	35,624
Wool, raw	..	12,797	..	..	12,797
Yarns and threads	279,083	48,562	20,039	11,149	358,833
Cotton piece-goods	1,699,139	22,763	82,161	118,928	1,922,991
Woollen piece-goods	718,226	269	..	67,098	785,593
Other piece-goods	476,045	81,209	30,759	716,637	1,304,650
Other textiles (including apparel)	3,501,870	800,261	262,815	768,298	5,333,244
Earthenware (including bricks, glass, &c.)	476,465	51,554	35,679	114,393	678,091
Wood, timber, and manufactures thereof (including wood-pulp)	44,330	502,532	270,716	132,818	950,396
Newsprint	113,270	267,893	70	539	381,772
Seeds and nuts for expressing oil therefrom	..	7,882	..	..	7,882
Oil—Petroleum, crude and refined	22,073	5,695	2,263,948	293,345	2,585,061
Hides, skins, and furs, undressed	3,016	16,448	29,594	33,432	82,490
Leather and manufactures thereof (including boots and shoes)	888,824	74,016	109,760	49,625	1,122,225
Other merchandise	4,521,298	2,385,878	1,487,378	1,720,458	10,115,012
Total merchandise	21,248,208	9,519,566	8,202,000	5,871,880	44,841,654
Gold and silver (coin and bullion)	41,067	1,348	2,197	..	44,612
Total imports	21,289,275	9,520,914	8,204,197	5,871,880	44,886,266

DIRECTION OF IMPORT TRADE.

The import trade of the Dominion, though spread over more countries than the export trade, is yet confined mainly to the United Kingdom, Australia, the United States, and Canada. In the days of the first settlement Australia was the source from which the young colony drew most of its supplies, and for a long period imports from Australia overshadowed imports from the United Kingdom. The proportion of imports from Australia, however, tended to decrease steadily till from 60 per cent. in 1862 it fell to between 10 and 12 per cent., a figure which, except for a few variations, has remained fairly constant in recent years.

In the decade immediately preceding the war the United Kingdom supplied about 60 per cent. of the total imports. The proportion has fallen a good deal in recent years, as explained later. In the “eighties” and “nineties” the figure was, on the average, nearer 70 per cent. than 60 per cent.

The cause of this decline is to be found in the development of trade with other countries in recent years, particularly with the United States and Canada, and in a less degree with Japan, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Sweden, and other European countries. The United States was sending goods to New Zealand practically from the foundation of the colony, and the share of the imports received from that country steadily increased till in the first decade of the present century it was 11 or 12 per cent. The adoption of Imperial preference seems to have caused a temporary drop in the figure to about 7 per cent., though the proportion has now for some years been steadily climbing again, and has, indeed, actually surpassed its old level. In 1928 18 per cent. of the total imports came from the United States.

India captured the New Zealand jute-market in the early “eighties,” and since then there has been a regular import of corn-sacks, woolpacks, &c. In former times the colony imported its sugar from Mauritius, but after 1890 Fiji supplanted Mauritius, which has practically disappeared from the list of countries. Similarly, the import of tea from China gave way about the same time to imports from Ceylon.

The table which follows shows imports from each of the principal countries during the last twenty years.

IMPORTS FROM PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1909–28.

(On basis of Country of Shipment.)

Year.	United Kingdom.	Australia.	Canada.	India.	Ceylon.	Fiji.	United States.	Japan.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1909	9,287,786	2,764,210	198,384	367,999	230,499	690,214	1,166,063	86,865
1910	10,498,771	2,359,393	261,402	399,991	248,476	580,084	1,399,737	103,118
1911	11,787,300	2,944,991	283,410	326,360	275,672	728,806	1,682,129	123,248
1912	12,499,787	2,583,887	394,249	395,298	289,008	764,790	2,049,618	154,587
1913	13,312,193	2,914,848	452,519	421,209	275,350	846,493	2,107,990	151,106
1914	11,985,946	3,376,371	479,140	486,978	394,444	738,751	2,282,966	187,501
1915	11,141,067	3,554,535	797,816	527,942	408,697	1,128,959	2,600,248	304,322
1916	13,869,455	4,002,171	757,286	572,257	366,753	1,053,754	3,969,925	562,974
1917	8,817,513	3,660,931	757,041	612,063	353,613	1,203,372	3,900,658	628,822
1918	8,977,725	5,133,349	930,964	712,633	319,498	939,341	4,980,748	1,214,865
1919	11,839,430	5,081,968	1,622,234	772,838	383,209	980,183	7,576,314	1,258,016
1920	29,806,416	10,555,667	2,386,915	900,577	725,278	1,824,012	11,100,259	1,470,071
1921	21,448,817	6,486,847	1,687,596	593,151	316,813	1,909,102	7,746,457	593,348
1922	19,416,478	4,213,085	1,545,037	437,851	499,705	1,459,345	4,948,778	485,327
1923	24,003,671	4,259,328	2,930,626	732,359	701,665	859,757	6,696,723	548,632
1924	24,904,178	6,303,073	3,909,152	726,483	822,987	984,274	7,551,357	458,964
1925	27,263,509	5,855,989	3,906,152	888,787	836,419	1,251,797	8,626,959	659,146
1926	24,331,410	5,059,779	3,430,988	850,720	857,011	941,320	9,729,251	557,113
1927	22,678,862	4,264,175	2,721,812	755,967	840,865	435,034	7,827,755	579,984
1928	22,531,880	3,868,281	3,237,750	771,450	843,685	584,182	7,958,761	558,033

The figures given in the foregoing table are on the basis of country of shipment. From 1914 onwards, figures are also available showing countries of origin, and a supplementary table on this basis is now given.

IMPORTS FROM PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1914–28.

(On basis of Country of Origin.)

Year.	United Kingdom.	Australia.	Canada.	India.	Ceylon.	Fiji.	United States.	Japan.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1914	11,257,720	2,682,218	455,468	502,495	420,181	738,428	2,537,545	232,364
1915	10,623,426	2,786,174	795,617	546,540	431,818	1,120,379	2,862,537	348,671
1916	13,313,588	3,079,179	761,105	588,196	380,848	1,050,025	4,358,806	616,903
1917	8,594,010	2,636,149	771,952	646,196	397,419	1,198,589	4,294,279	693,808
1918	8,703,480	4,043,383	950,588	729,419	323,123	935,885	5,472,122	1,266,416
1919	11,523,653	3,916,108	1,649,550	787,669	388,428	977,319	8,053,127	1,313,205
1920	28,554,587	8,624,885	2,453,379	940,569	729,893	1,818,529	11,750,690	1,522,675
1921	20,832,520	5,460,381	1,727,503	607,926	320,188	1,906,038	8,166,967	603,275
1922	18,296,173	3,293,632	1,556,213	441,581	501,419	1,448,998	6,379,372	504,955
1923	22,532,205	3,653,420	2,950,984	742,551	705,622	853,163	6,956,602	560,064
1924	23,203,825	5,651,027	3,914,404	741,202	837,506	970,393	7,788,593	496,835
1925	25,572,802	5,249,493	3,916,237	912,741	841,596	1,239,456	8,885,265	693,632
1926	22,827,406	4,625,200	3,431,533	861,578	868,821	892,894	10,000,507	582,352
1927	21,464,114	3,869,246	2,739,826	759,829	855,048	424,785	8,079,467	591,963
1928	21,289,275	3,499,151	3,258,828	782,144	860,886	571,728	8,204,197	576,495

Of the total imports in 1928, the eight countries shown above supplied 87 per cent. on the basis of origin and 90 per cent. on the basis of shipment. Other countries which supplied more than one-half of 1 per cent. of the Dominion's imports in 1928 were:—

Country.	Imports according to
	Country of Origin.		Country of Shipment.
	Value.	Per Cent. of Total.	Value.	Per Cent. of Total.
	£		£
Dutch East Indies	999,524	2.23	996,903	2.23
Germany	898,901	2.00	584,594	1.30
France	820,592	1.83	499,124	1.11
Belgium	498,162	1.11	425,114	0.95
Switzerland	356,359	0.79	176,438	0.39
Netherlands	286,211	0.64	220,049	0.49
Sweden	256,836	0.57	226,905	0.50

About two-thirds of imports produced on the Continent of Europe are received direct, the balance coming mainly through the United Kingdom. Direct shipments from the United Kingdom in 1928 exceeded by £1,242,605 the imports of goods produced in that country. In view, however, of the considerable quantity of British goods that enter New Zealand by way of Australia it would not be correct to take that figure as fully measuring the re-export trade done by Groat Britain in goods from abroad intended for the Dominion.

Australia acts as a re-exporting centre for a certain proportion of goods received from India and Ceylon. The South African Union and the British West Indies both produce more of the imports than they ship direct. The figures for Canada also show a balance in favour of goods of Canadian origin. In the case of the United States, goods to the value of approximately £250,000 annually are imported indirectly.

The table on the next page shows for each of the years 1921 to 1928 the percentage of total imports from each of the principal countries concerned.

Prior to the war, imports from the United Kingdom represented about 60 per cent. of the total, and those of United Kingdom origin would appear on this basis to have been about 55 per cent. of the aggregate. The latter are now a little less than one-half of the total. The principal reason for the decline is found in the foreign competition which became established during the war and immediate post-war years, particularly in the motor trade. The. 1928 figure shows a slight fall compared with the previous year, attributable in the main to a decrease in motor-vehicles sent to the Dominion. Although imports from the United Kingdom are concerned mainly with hardware and soft-goods, the range is a very wide one indeed, covering practically the whole field of the Dominion's imports.

IMPORTS (COUNTRY OF ORIGIN), 1921 TO 1928.

Country.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
United Kingdom	48.53	52.26	51.94	47.82	48.75	45.76	47.93	47.43
Canada	4.02	4.45	6.80	8.07	7.47	6.88	6.12	7.26
India	1.41	1.26	1.71	1.53	1.74	1.73	1.70	1.74
Ceylon	0.74	1.43	1.63	1.72	1.62	1.74	1.91	1.92
South African Union	0.20	0.51	0.25	0.18	0.22	0.28	0.27	0.23
Australia	12.71	9.40	8.42	11.64	1,001	9.27	8.64	7.79
Fiji	4.44	4.14	1.97	2.00	2.37	1.79	0.95	1.27
Other British countries	0.49	0.82	0.74	0.87	0.78	0.85	1.07	1.00
Totals, British countries	72.54	74.27	73.46	73.83	72.96	68.30	68.59	68.64
Germany	0.06	0.07	0.16	0.60	0.95	1.35	1.87	2.00
France	1.58	1.96	1.73	1.56	1.75	1.63	1.99	1.83
Belgium	1.12	0.90	0.64	0.56	0.84	0.79	0.89	1.11
Japan	1.40	1.43	1.29	1.02	1.32	1.17	1.32	1.28
Dutch East Indies	1.00	2.12	2.60	2.17	1.17	1.59	1.97	2.23
United States of America	19.01	15.36	16.04	16.05	16.94	20.05	18.04	18.28
Other foreign countries	3.29	3.89	4.08	4.21	4.07	5.12	5.33	4.63
Totals, foreign countries	27.46	25.73	26.54	26.17	27.04	31.70	31.41	31.36

Ranking next to Great Britain in the list of exporters to New Zealand, the United States built up a considerable trade during the war period, and of recent years imports from that source have accounted for one-fifth to one-sixth of the total. The highest percentage (20.05) was reached in 1926, the lower level of subsequent years being due to decreases in motor-vehicles and motor-spirits. Although the two items mentioned constitute the bulk of the imports, the trade is an extensive one, and includes iron and steel goods (in which electrical goods figure prominently), timber, sulphur, tobacco, soft-goods, fruits, and cinematograph, &c., films.

Imports from Australia have fallen steadily from 11.64 per cent. in 1924 to 7.79 per cent. in 1928. The explanation lies mainly in less wheat, timber, and coal taken by the Dominion. During 1928 declines were recorded in flour, raisins, tobacco, coal, and timber. Musical instruments maintained the substantial increase which has been apparent during recent years. Imports from Australia of some magnitude other than those already mentioned are: Confectionery, fruits (dried, bottled, and preserved), wine, hardware and ironmongery, lead, tin, glassware, stationery, photographic materials, and drugs, &c.

As in the case of Australia, imports from Canada have undergone a progressive decline since 1924, but the downward movement was checked by a considerable increase in 1928, motor-vehicles increasing nearly 50 per cent. Although motor-vehicles form the bulk of imports from Canada, other prominent items are paper, timber, machinery, electrical goods, boots and shoes, clothing, fencing-wire, and fish.

Imports from France during 1928 were 8 per cent. less than during the previous year, due to decreases in clothing, motor-vehicles, and brandy. Silks, &c., and fertilizers show moderate increases. Imports from Germany maintained in 1928 the progressive increase which has been apparent for several years, the chief items being clothing, fertilizers, leather goods, fancy goods, machinery, time-pieces, and stationery.

New Zealand maintains a considerable import trade with Dutch East Indies in sugar, motor-spirit, and kapok. Silks easily constitute the bulk of imports from Japan, cotton piece-goods and timber also being prominent. Ceylon is the main source of the Dominion's tea-supply, the trade of approximately £800,000 having remained practically constant for several years. Bags and sacks, wool-packs, hessian and scrim, carpeting, &c., and tea are the principal imports from India.

From Italy, New Zealand imports chiefly hats and caps, silks, &c., and nuts; from Belgium, fertilizers, telephones and accessories, apparel, glassware, jewellery, and paper; from Switzerland, silks, &c., time-pieces, apparel, and electrical machinery; from the Netherlands, cocoa-butter, electrical machinery, spirits, and cardboard; from Sweden, machinery, timber, wood-pulp, and cardboard: from Norway, fish and paper; and from Czecho-Slovakia, earthenware, glassware, and fancy goods.

The principal imports from Denmark at the present time are seeds and dairying machinery, most of New Zealand's rennet requirements being now met by local production. Imports from Russia are not groat, there being a moderate trade in dressed furs, undressed hides and skins, and brushware. Clover-seeds form the principal import from Poland.

Spain furnishes nuts, wine, and cork; Portugal, wine and cork; Asiatic Turkey, dates and other dried fruits; China, nuts, rice, tea, silks, &c., and brushware; Burma, rice and waxes; British North Borneo, waxes; Straits Settlements and Malay States, fruits, sago and tapioca, and spices.

A considerable quantity of sugar comes from Peru. Imports from the South African Union are comprised mainly of dried fruits, jams, wine, and precious stones. Asphalt and bitumen are the principal imports from Mexico; and cocoa-beans and rum from the British West Indies.

Fertilizers for the Dominion come from the following places: Egypt and Morocco (phosphates); Chile (nitrate of soda); Seychelles (guano); Nauru Island (rock phosphates); Gilbert and Ellice Islands (rock phosphates); Tuamotu Archipelago (rock phosphates); New Caledonia (guano).

DETAILED IMPORTS FROM VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

In the preceding pages imports have been classified in two main ways—viz., according to their nature and to the country of origin or shipment. In the following pages an indication is given as to the nature of our import trade with the various countries.

In the principal countries account has been taken only of those items of a minimum total value of approximately £10,000, and in the smaller countries the main items only, so that the tables are not made too voluminous by the inclusion of great numbers of small items. The full details for the last three years will be found in the latest number of the “Annual Statistical Report on Trade and Shipping.” The figures are on the basis of country of origin.

PRINCIPAL IMPORTS.

(On basis of Country of Origin.)

Item.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
United Kingdom.
	£	£	£	£	£
Fish	18,480	22,154	27,321	28,990	33,933
Cocoa-butter, &c.	17,341	13,848	8,341	8,004	13,334
Confectionery	101,700	115,329	111,219	136,949	85,345
Maizena and cornflour	43,681	42,116	36,714	41,009	34,830
Infants' and invalids' foods	17,361	20,704	23,992	38,869	45,823
Mustard	34,530	33,221	30,487	28,928	31,914
Capers, caraway-seeds, caviare, &c.	29,298	29,517	31,614	31,654	31,692
Pickles and sauces	19,358	15,516	18,716	15,122	13,835
Salt	98,613	109,259	93,440	95,146	77,631
Cocoa and chocolate	38,420	45,376	37,485	43,861	44,882
Coffee essence	11,116	10,841	11,064	13,487	12,585
Beer	15,173	20,129	22,653	17,846	17,919
Gin, geneva, and schnapps	33,163	38,287	47,012	44,506	40,873
Whisky	603,946	730,492	641,408	610,031	497,519
Spirits (other than beverages)	39,905	31,442	30,569	31,004	30,484
Wine	9,571	10,191	11,623	9,855	10,315
Cigarettes	690,264	789,594	767,227	797,304	718,128
Tobacco	342,565	375,739	371,055	379,173	236,215
Horses	13,333	11,846	12,401	16,551	7,070
Engineers' waste	23,407	22,921	22,774	21,993	20,913
Seeds—
Grass and clover	28,597	17,153	13,903	4,155	10,780
Other	62,986	57,220	57,010	69,791	58,910
Starch	11,913	10,755	12,184	11,686	11,621
Tanning-materials, crude	13,823	11,303	3,886	2,980	2,607
Yarns	113,896	104,379	124,078	101,678	103,466
Apparel and ready-made clothing n.e.i.	1,703,008	1,819,483	1,716,213	1,458,989	1,639,470
Boots and shoes and parts thereof	788,527	854,074	763,871	789,032	811,744
Furs, dressed and prepared	11,465	11,827	12,075	27,459	35,353
Haberdashery	68,593	65,728	55,306	47,125	45,929
Hats and caps	98,582	108,471	121,960	105,428	90,521
Hatmakers' materials	49,646	56,831	50,676	31,437	40,855
Hosiery	328,755	409,520	367,285	322,314	342,754
Lace and laces	31,054	27,410	15,903	16,158	16,943
Millinery	111,891	128,169	129,011	124,412	89,641
Umbrellas and materials for making	17,291	22,442	20,764	17,447	12,478
Carpets, druggeting, and floorcloth	606,833	632,489	595,641	518,911	504,886
Drapery n.e.i.	420,638	513,431	475,948	486,352	479,435
Felt sheathing	24,945	27,629	24,906	26,273	22,146
Textile piece-goods—
Canvas, sailcloth	41,211	46,144	21,101	40,992	34,533
Cotton	1,974,053	2,127,190	1,775,008	1,615,190	1,699,139
Hessians and scrim	69,954	103,649	80,983	58,778	77,036
Leather cloth	15,332	17,221	16,465	16,873	17,944
Linen	31,041	37,337	45,406	26,334	35,618
Silk, satin, and velvet	129,657	202,795	120,142	130,039	268,147
Woollen	863,155	830,534	754,460	723,828	718,226
Other	41,170	35,628	23,413	19,496	20,621
Sewing silks and cottons	204,623	230,261	178,674	148,773	175,617
Cordage and rope	144,191	137,677	92,899	84,793	78,086
Twine	62,315	73,011	74,430	83,524	70,564
Mineral oils	19,549	25,691	24,174	32,998	22,073
Vegetable oils	92,566	96,598	106,804	63,315	70,088
Paints and colours—
Paints ground in liquid	32,801	38,319	34,628	25,531	24,371
White-lead ground in oil	134,573	135,129	129,306	120,576	100,128
Mixed ready for use	69,740	75,894	84,407	87,097	82,832
Other	25,698	28,344	35,966	29,545	31,792
Varnishes, lacquers, and goldsize	26,797	31,201	26,132	18,467	22,041
Stone	15,730	23,955	20,145	13,025	15,404
Specie	..	30,150	77,800	280	42,164
Iron and steel (unmanufactured)	325,031	266,750	182,731	203,247	185,111
Bolts and nuts	103,618	99,077	67,145	62,660	58,935
Brass manufactures	23,336	18,234	16,638	18,401	20,032
Chains and chain cables	21,644	19,495	16,516	13,444	17,050
Copper manufactures	51,213	51,083	57,381	48,616	61,981
Iron and steel—
Hoop	35,422	31,491	26,666	29,030	31,585
Plate and sheet	919,003	865,770	773,080	898,924	706,916
Tubes, pipes, and fittings	452,947	419,665	492,073	463,180	389,779
Angle and tee	28,783	32,680	50,409	62,117	30,517
Channel and girder	32,177	53,420	33,676	158,324	99,494
Lamps (not electric), lanterns, and lampwick	23,995	17,332	13,482	10,406	8,646
Meters	122,820	141,405	162,110	119,776	114,026
Nails	39,460	47,273	28,399	33,274	27,832
Plate and plated ware	98,581	102,208	93,230	78,587	96,649
Printing-materials	18,387	18,351	21,093	21,303	17,407
Railway and tramway plant	410,177	497,895	156,749	205,035	196,874
Rivets and washers	20,193	23,378	17,807	18,570	21,445
Stoves and ranges	49,488	62,877	64,055	61,739	62,499
Telephones and accessories and telegraphic materials	47,463	46,018	108,614	94, 018	62,839
Tinware and tin manufactures	48,444	45,267	38,234	17,693	17,551
Tools, implements, &c.	164,573	165,744	193,443	152,280	168,007
Wire—
Copper	218,741	195,204	191,427	175,207	164,933
Fencing	142,623	158,513	131,776	121,269	157,309
Netting	121,233	100,000	53,496	58,116	101,676
Other	79,227	79,529	59,382	48,333	43,869
Hardware, hollow-ware, and ironmongery n.e.i., and metal manufactures n.e.i.	894,863	977,302	987,148	930,192	212,397
Agricultural implements, &c.	46,782	68,271	59,373	46,702	56,382
Dairying machinery	36,004	25,811	22,335	10,080	16,953
Dredging machinery	22,195	22,264	17,161	15,058	8,794
Electrical machinery	1,411,972	1,395,080	1,274,017	1,317,550	1,162,897
Engines, including materials for and parts of—
Gas, oil, and hot air	56,746	60,940	66,001	50,874	59,965
Steam	52,440	63,445	34,272	25,015	18,571
Gas-making machinery	561	27,784	5,812	9,667	6,868
Locomotives	16,318	182,290	1,571	9,224	52,863
Mining machinery	12,879	24,283	11,453	11,053	14,028
Printing machinery	94,430	127,091	75,085	64,364	47,976
Sewing-machines	80,300	82,019	64,298	61,136	70,045
Tools—Engineers' and metal-and woodworkers', &c.	75,106	120,048	97,854	159,488	95,700
Turbines, steam and water, and Pelton wheels	30,138	15,721	28,105	17,819	23,726
Winches, cranes, capstans, and windlasses	31,065	62,129	37,402	21,694	112,148
Woollen-mill machinery	59,332	14,625	20,977	11,514	11,028
Other classes of machinery and machines	309,666	346,811	299,562	253,083	387,426
Indiarubber hose, tubing, and piping	10,732	13,538	19,382	15,773	14,303
Belting, leather and other	52,340	61,099	48,691	27,854	24,162
Leather	146,745	175,944	146,080	159,924	140,936
Saddlery and harness	35,242	30,691	18,985	14,540	19,407
Furniture, cabinetware, and upholstery	28,360	30,314	33,284	25,818	33,634
Woodenware and turnery n.e.i.	12,972	29,353	19,087	11,863	12,167
Earthenware and chinaware	311,401	325,061	245,137	274,410	236,604
Glass and glassware	230,996	216,994	203,077	184,216	182,369
Tiles	78,045	75,391	55,526	68,328	48,923
Cardboard boxes, materials for	24,454	25,987	23,699	22,067	24,679
Paperhangings	81,059	84,311	87,612	76,591	81,548
Printing-paper	275,295	308,180	325,166	246,564	273,699
Writing-paper	95,494	93,292	89,409	80,158	70,848
Books, papers, and music, printed	377,907	423,728	381,784	380,910	370,420
Calendars and showcards	20,398	25,808	25,134	28,865	27,746
Envelopes	25,872	32,803	32,707	31,514	31,649
Ink	16,870	15,922	17,593	16,777	17,448
Manufactured stationery	70,043	94,826	83,856	61,291	75,108
Fancy goods and toys	188,986	210,732	196,068	176,873	154,844
Jewellery	64,372	65,774	56,997	32,917	31,858
Sporting, gaming, and athletic requisites	95,192	106,771	108,688	103,102	118,477
Timepieces	8,826	8,970	9,055	6,199	5,222
Tobacco-pipes and smokers' requisites	32,859	51,546	27,696	23,165	29,307
Cinematograph, bioscope, and kinetoscope Alms	9,290	9,663	16,894	18,870	20,426
Photographic materials and goods	58,058	48,049	41,817	53,882	49,264
Surgical and dental instruments	52,523	59,812	60,211	63,375	64,189
Acids	24,022	16,652	16,219	13,101	13,157
Cream of tartar	41,570	21,666	34,631	35,499	26,235
Cyanide of potassium and of sodium	14,827	21,516	16,550	17,934	21,924
Dyes	31,931	22,221	26,033	18,847	17,014
Disinfectants	28,459	28,211	26,093	31,785	27,606
Insecticides and tree-washes	94,990	105,591	73,577	96,552	88,959
Medicinal preparations, drugs, and druggists' sundries	186,580	177,320	177,620	170,735	182,510
Perfumery	66,950	75,272	75,963	87,472	90,033
Soda	77,543	79,600	82,597	79,766	102,328
Manures	61,177	53,468	51,707	34,189	45,879
Arms, ammunition, and explosives	263,378	139,834	215,120	117,158	137,595
Asbestos	15,998	13,796	8,982	7,760	4,995
Blue, laundry	31,281	23,142	25,599	22,035	20,364
Brushes, brushware, and brooms	79,257	81,849	62,052	50,476	58,112
Brushmakers' materials	5,987	6,909	4,525	4,276	4,142
Candles	17,418	3,356	4,618	2,649	2,643
Educational apparatus and materials	15,896	17,891	14,023	12,676	15,245
Musical instruments—
Pianos	169,064	165,771	108,356	54,461	42,376
Phonographs, gramophones, records, &c.	131,014	217,326	214,082	120,479	108,111
Other	27,882	40,078	37,714	27,978	20,156
Matches and vestas	23,121	16,586	34,344	36,888	41,958
Packing, engine	13,284	15,075	12,995	14,700	13,617
Polishes and dressings	39,644	42,630	41,610	35,937	31,597
Soap	46,464	41,221	34,003	31,594	34,747
Vehicles—
Bicycles and materials for	151,673	183,301	156,747	97,814	158,799
Motor-bicycles and materials for	84,453	155,572	141,474	143,074	160,197
Motors for road traffic and materials for	648,194	1,200,061	1,091,001	885,413	843,014
British North Borneo Protectorate.
Mineral oils	18,375	32,810	24,026	8	196
Waxes	..	2,587	4,666	6,254	15,916
Item.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Burma.
	£	£	£	£	£
Rice	17,274	14,134	15,379	14,655	21,494
Mineral oils	33,599	..	..	..	..
Waxes	22,604	20,372	13,560	15,078	9,797
Candles	10,578	3,028	..	..	..
Ceylon.
Coconut, desiccated	14,874	15,328	15,495	19,125	15,499
Tea	814,088	818,374	843,228	823,266	836,759
Hong Kong.
Jams, Jellies, &c.	10,770	10,053	11,406	1,160	513
India.
Rice	8,658	8,143	10,391	14,928	9,359
Coffee and chicory	10,015	9,141	9,518	7,091	7,430
Tea	81,927	100,811	61,747	48,720	33,459
Shellac	11,957	13,859	14,173	7,620	9,554
Carpets, druggeting, and floorcloth	16,422	20,855	15,627	16,419	16,694
Hessians and scrim	62,843	98,986	72,519	77,528	67,503
Bags and sacks—
Corn-sacks	200,458	229,080	276,593	249,470	211,709
Jute and hessian bags	104,806	169,237	175,660	165,946	211,459
Woolpacks	123,153	171,258	146,626	104,676	147,906
Vegetable oils	15,207	16,571	7,171	2,954	5,157
Bonedust	11,587	18,555	12,117	9,365	4,091
Malay States
Fresh fruits	..	..	2,927	8,942	5,444
Sago and tapioca	7,412	2,576	1,714	4,094	4,174
Spices	2,148	3,225	6,522	7,132	8,123
Sarawak and Brunei.
Mineral oils	..	13,540	1,362	..	..
Straits Settlements.
Fruits, bottled and preserved	27,001	30,723	35,676	32,287	44,488
Sago and tapioca	28,690	24,449	12,962	17,346	16,236
Seychelles.
Spices	8,696	16,630	19,738	27,156	24,838
Guano	..	6,161	11,415	14,667	12,284
South African Union.
Fruits, dried	21,774	33,683	32,940	48,443	40,728
Jams and preserves	..	..	101	3,350	11,359
Maize	6,797	14,479	36,926	11,861	1,997
Wine	15,712	11,671	11,378	12,433	11,283
Tanning-materials, crude	25,114	21,608	25,429	6,183	3,335
Precious stones, unmounted	12,604	16,789	20,660	24,125	22,233
British West Indies.
Cocoa-beans, uncrushed	8,020	5,836	8,080	8,387	16,558
Canada.
Rum	8,087	8,795	10,988	8,762	6,840
Fish	99,529	118,460	111,151	101,976	105,494
Confectionery	20,945	37,184	35,246	29,151	26,042
Fruit	19,857	25,150	23,515	22,151	14,785
Oats	122,018	2,583	20,378	..	..
Wheat	..	3,647	22,768	2,406	4,824
Maizena and cornflour	8,679	7,993	11,764	10,104	11,226
Oatmeal	1,386	5,394	10,813	260	143
Vegetables	12,403	25,337	32,661	8,616	3,795
Seeds	6,547	8,558	8,728	9,490	14,831
Apparel and ready-made clothing n.e.i.	84,399	76,990	63,787	51,000	69,777
Boots and shoes and parts thereof	112,603	131,903	181,670	165,080	209,425
Hosiery	25,512	34,482	24,323	27,284	52,125
Cotton piece-goods	15,475	12,019	9,674	7,129	8,042
Iron and steel (unmanufactured)	40,838	94,912	86,878	113,232	78,339
Fencing-staples	13,580	20,559	15,545	10,920	15,826
Hardware, hollow-ware, and ironmongery n.e.i., and metal manufactures n.e.i.	56,257	27,755	40,052	55,618	29,522
Iron and steel tubes, pipes, and fittings	66,938	58,132	58,605	50,031	62,408
Nails	35,076	35,282	38,049	30,501	21,739
Railway and tramway plant n.e.i.	2,609	7,746	83,246	2,787	409
Tools, implements, &c.	16,829	20,004	23,281	20,558	23,962
Wire—
Fencing	68,046	58,534	40,367	55,798	74,145
Other	48,576	66,075	65,008	36,690	41,414
Agricultural implements, &c.	29,898	39,846	41,575	67,056	49,951
Electrical machinery	71,214	97,591	134,417	132,806	145,047
Tools — Engineers' and metal- and wood-workers', &c.	5,773	9,521	10,478	16,000	2,861
Indiarubber manufactures	6,300	12,036	17,209	14,484	21,304
Belting, leather and other	12,406	24,351	22,525	15,143	19,584
Leather	24,120	24,360	27,489	21,917	19,249
Timber	134,205	137,783	151,047	101,579	80,322
Wood, cane, and wicker manufactures	72,131	59,428	48,756	29,596	29,823
Plaster-of-paris	10,358	10,897	13,648	13,477	17,178
Cardboard boxes, materials for	12,568	13,053	17,904	14,846	13,852
Paperhangings	16,562	17,515	13,918	10,466	9,695
Printing-paper	241,491	247,078	278,037	287,588	285,182
Wrapping-paper	65,316	57,343	61,206	50,996	53,792
Writing-paper	6,167	9,319	12,636	18,034	11,147
Stationery	14,568	12,344	18,866	14,860	18,096
Photographic materials and goods	25,700	22,207	12,477	1,325	103
Calcium carbide	9,168	11,344	11,209	11,934	10,675
Perfumery	13,173	11,884	11,552	6,344	7,375
Musical instruments and materials for	24,662	25,282	39,369	35,439	27,310
Vehicles—
Bicycles and materials for	10,186	12,857	8,729	7,847	10,429
Motors for road traffic and materials for	2,077,663	2,019,401	1,300,245	847,790	1,229,595
Australia.
Biscuits	10,533	10,777	13,875	9,649	2,959
Confectionery	116,209	128,919	120,640	146,137	139,785
Chaff	84,278	17,438	40,784	582	144
Fruits—
Bottled and preserved in syrup	96,434	62,320	71,815	75,082	51,566
Dried—
Currants	34,950	23,229	18,391	33,047	32,905
Raisins	106,964	113,472	132,506	134,380	90,459
Fresh—
Oranges	50,143	77,049	67,919	43,597	54,801
Mandarins and grape-fruit	17,162	20,494	17,621	16,316	20,422
Other	22,969	26,103	28,212	20,402	22,897
Rice, dressed	20,025	13,582	21,418	14,498	12,605
Barley	50,757	25,510	13,003	461	653
Maize	11,713	20,360	783	169	989
Oats	57,220	17,590	8,089	5,592	641
Wheat	1,039,774	794,207	569,465	226,079	225,376
Bran	24,249	16,894	15,330	195	468
Wheaten flour	3	122,126	415,780	173,886	50,031
Pollard and sharps	23,207	24,780	27,014	22,923	14,121
Macaroni and vermicelli	10,042	9,707	11,150	10,757	8,915
Sugar	190,262	133,335	10,446	9,569	10,124
Salt	5,553	15,929	14,009	20,880	20,160
Vegetables	87,024	7,530	4,077	12,726	12,627
Spirits of wine	15,520	16,362	17,191	16,820	19,296
Wine, fermented	60,359	61,772	74,336	55,256	55,471
Tobacco and preparations thereof	368,130	424,059	369,320	355,621	315,742
Horses	8,282	12,090	13,713	14,449	10,102
Wool	7,512	14,144	19,205	4,359	12,769
Seeds	29,008	18,800	23,052	17,606	30,229
Tanning-materials, crude	3,130	2,822	1,374	7,436	21,546
Apparel and ready-made clothing n.e.i.	21,719	14,565	15,213	14,791	16,792
Boots and shoes and parts thereof	14,984	19,680	17,723	14,240	10,636
Hosiery	39,710	7,266	952	309	407
Drapery	3,064	5,680	8,742	16,465	20,884
Mineral oils	6,131	5,644	8,188	2,094	5,499
Vegetable oils	11,234	15,711	14,818	12,386	9,683
Stearine	13,213	8,269	3,475	4,251	358
Paints and colours	18,807	30,464	30,538	20,540	24,150
Coal	773,975	679,681	618,677	514,992	341,824
Lead, pig and bar (unmanufactured)	86,319	73,609	64,676	42,538	26,696
Tin (unmanufactured)	61,129	64,047	76,913	78,694	49,385
Hardware, hollow - ware, and ironmongery n.e.i., and metal manufactures n.e.i.	72,193	85,499	102,624	90,451	85,962
Lead manufactures	17,648	13,828	7,891	27,950	26,126
Railway and tramway plant	12,181	12,934	9,813	14,822	9,907
Wire—
Copper	26,295	51,447	30,824	10,896	4,056
Other	12,373	9,834	14,682	15,378	9,268
Dairying machinery	26,540	35,374	41,125	26,626	33,246
Electrical machinery	36,843	24,644	27,078	37,591	36,868
Tools — Engineers' and metal- and wood-workers', &c.	14,846	31,724	18,749	12,707	28,144
Other classes of machinery and machines	55,155	52,776	41,523	32,985	47,461
Indiarubber hose, tubing, and piping	33,133	25,913	25,512	21,173	13,336
Pelting, leather and other	14,534	12,402	6,489	7,913	5,161
Leather	89,580	58,622	29,081	19,548	15,044
Timber	722,685	744,943	367,985	424,347	366,208
Wood, cane, and wicker manufactures	32,554	23,358	21,302	14,295	16,858
Glass and glassware	34,098	37,108	42,543	44,508	30,955
Paper	23,737	25,510	16,053	9,559	8,321
Stationery	102,784	107,132	112,745	121,964	120,984
Fancy goods and toys	13,295	13,165	15,514	14,401	14,788
Jewellery	24,250	14,911	8,805	5,239	6,406
Photographic materials and goods	56,976	56,186	63,986	60,924	58,505
Dyes	5,268	4,395	4,229	2,260	2,059
Disinfectants	9,841	12,976	5,424	8,417	9,931
Liquefied and compressed gases	21,223	20,680	17,011	14,861	13,549
Medicinal preparations, drugs, and druggists' sundries	72,515	75,062	72,983	77,480	73,562
Perfumery	13,820	10,418	12,093	11,476	14,325
Manures	26,636	22,294	16,409	14,371	17,493
Arms, ammunition, and explosives	25,150	38,349	36,520	39,401	44,446
Brushes, brushware, brooms, and brushmakers' materials	9,081	11,108	4,271	2,570	3,163
Musical instruments	11,145	18,037	54,598	100,888	155,955
Polishes and dressings	15,152	13,398	10,188	11,956	9,410
Soap	33,554	29,071	44,738	39,261	44,244
Vehicles—
Bicycles and materials for	26,233	30,329	15,128	17,428	8,826
Motors for road traffic and parts thereof	27,425	14,618	5,804	6,418	11,213
Fiji.
Fruits, fresh	113,718	143,529	145,753	144,730	135,970
Sugar	849,903	1,084,886	737,320	270,992	425,733
Gilbert and Ellice Islands.
Rock phosphates	8,223	25,374	53,076	68,434	79,586
Nauru Island.
Rock phosphates	95,800	105,063	95,492	130,443	78,195
Western Samoa.
Cocoa-beans, uncrushed	5,740	8,847	3,998	7,689	9,341
Austria.
Apparel and ready-made clothing n.e.i.	5,930	19,512	25,227	23,495	31,349
Belgium.
Apparel and ready-made clothing n.e.i.	11,552	12,865	16,372	29,350	20,164
Cotton piece-goods	30,387	30,358	34,555	26,280	36,544
Zinc—Bar and spelter	10,957	10,825	10,965	3,523	633
Lead—Sheet	633	10,093	10,715	3,857	415
Telephones and accessories, and telegraphic materials	40,160	101,562	15,350	72,003	137,921
Electrical machinery	16,244	8,742	9,030	15,378	9,165
Glass and glassware	26,476	41,190	49,286	45,218	33,725
Vegetable parchment and greaseproof paper	11,347	9,063	14,656	14,629	16,597
Jewellery	2,168	24,753	27,572	17,747	25,904
Manures	60,421	87,296	124,891	87,525	139,758
Matches	17,320	13,892	8,706	5,499	9,188
Motor-vehicles for road traffic and parts thereof	2,640	16,975	12,266	12,264	8,871
Czecho-Slovakia.
Apparel and ready-made clothing n.e.i.	9,983	6,902	4,727	6,354	11,652
Earthenware and chinaware	4,555	11,890	10,905	12,441	12,047
Glass and glassware	10,440	14,657	19,574	14,232	16,626
Fancy goods and toys	17,427	16,205	9,835	7,942	13,440
Denmark.
Rennet	16,320	11,932	10,720	8,016	1,461
Seeds	62,617	39,675	53,540	19,559	30,913
Dairying machinery	9,073	11,005	11,148	4,796	7,323
France.
	£	£	£	£	£
Confectionery	7,398	12,217	13,877	10,012	4,557
Nuts, edible	4,864	9,666	6,517	1,689	7,520
Brandy	45,410	41,672	45,168	46,236	35,116
Wine	26,284	30,014	25,387	24,149	20,281
Seeds	11,754	3,946	19,766	3,062	2,782
Apparel and ready-made clothing n.e.i.	80,047	129,269	154,093	154,259	114,795
Furs, dressed	6,810	10,716	14,411	15,965	16,858
Haberdashery	5,384	7,117	4,768	3,251	2,902
Lace and laces	9,805	6,317	7,346	11,871	9,883
Millinery	21,781	19,383	14,503	12,463	12,533
Ribbons and crape	28,380	23,049	15,871	17,734	13,947
Drapery	19,675	22,796	17,724	16,974	14,155
Textile piece-goods—
Cotton	10,357	13,350	9,848	11,886	11,374
Silk, satin, and velvet	151,626	157,360	116,131	123,936	139,713
Woollen	39,630	31,242	26,184	35,399	39,323
Fancy goods and toys	41,262	36,459	37,495	24,410	26,856
Tobacco-pipes and smokers' requisites	22,400	12,108	19,006	31,996	24,271
Perfumery and toilet preparations	7,289	12,315	13,446	16,513	19,483
Manures	5,810	16,480	25,669	17,171	40,169
Vehicles—Motors for road traffic and parts thereof	82,233	195,602	103,304	168,899	141,838
Germany.
Apparel and ready-made clothing n.e.i.	21,580	49,454	78,706	114,794	128,556
Drapery	4,589	11,444	16,898	21,023	16,887
Silk piece-goods	4,312	8,892	17,656	27,903	31,480
Hardware, hollow - ware, and ironmongery n.e.i., and metal manufactures n.e.i.	14,340	38,771	43,819	36,409	39,356
Dairying machinery	5,973	5,424	6,909	3,956	9,912
Electrical machinery	12,069	18,385	28,895	61,978	38,235
Stationery	5,158	11,691	13,017	14,682	17,795
Glass and glassware	9,081	13,446	22,738	18,460	16,866
Leather and manufactures thereof	9,343	8,792	14,194	26,371	33,301
Fancy goods and toys	61,535	74,908	91,091	81,754	73,498
Timepieces	13,484	28,752	31,467	25,981	26,964
Manures	14,299	20,587	28,429	17,933	84,861
Musical instruments	20,001	25,964	26,271	19,998	14,266
Greece.
Dried fruits	15,134	15,038	5,069	5,040	4,876
Italy.
Oranges and lemons	774	8,359	14,898	686	1,120
Nuts, edible	32,229	49,596	47,572	38,285	18,654
Haberdashery	7,433	9,249	8,432	7,002	8,259
Hats and caps	19,148	19,590	23,559	30,330	33,421
Hatmakers' materials	3,579	13,262	6,896	6,349	7,493
Silk, satin, and velvet piece-goods	18,122	20,719	15,866	25,229	31,029
Marble	9,170	10,256	11,604	11,954	9,541
Sulphur	24,395	333	517	252	392
Vehicles—Motors for road traffic and parts thereof	59,779	123,902	90,759	70,008	5,477
Netherlands.
Cocoa-butter, &c.	47,548	68,506	87,681	92,960	103,194
Cocoa and chocolate	8,031	6,606	5,726	4,685	3,332
Gin, geneva, and schnapps	29,379	30,315	35,565	34,557	20,466
Electrical machinery	29,570	36,968	44,843	44,412	56,847
Asphalt and bitumen	..	38,084	38,854	11,086	1,884
Cardboard boxes and materials for	12,995	12,607	16,517	11,820	15,220
Jewellery	1,387	2,917	14,651	2,492	349
Norway.
Fish	46,499	29,395	24,996	26,733	25,881
Paper	8,476	13,236	15,948	17,703	21,711
Calcium carbide	4,158	2,992	3,075	2,480	2,108
Poland.
Clover-seeds	..	10,287	6,893	493	4,191
Portugal.
Wine	10,203	12,104	14,931	10,152	9,556
Cork	3,369	2,233	3,156	8,360	10,943
Russia.
Hides and skins, undressed	113	625	362	5,421	13,099
Furs, dressed	1,777	2,096	8,343	12,126	15,486
Brushware	5,334	3,049	3,543	5,555	4,523
Spain.
Nuts, edible	8,252	15,753	18,348	16,509	16,939
Wine	6,659	10,346	7,517	6,435	6,701
Cork	7,769	5,736	8,052	8,271	6,280
Sweden.
Wood-pulp	35,032	27,552	35,288	34,689	21,154
Hardware, hollow - ware, and ironmongery n.e.i., and metal manufactures n.e.i.	17,039	29,959	33,064	21,601	13,917
Dairying machinery	85,612	70,575	47,455	53,254	74,032
Electrical machinery	37,283	50,412	122,644	75,993	29,093
Timber	20,309	62,053	25,435	32,571	30,933
Cardboard boxes and materials for	10,750	10,797	12,259	12,545	13,444
Matches and vestas	13,082	9,594	1,538	231	253
Switzerland.
Confectionery	10,955	13,552	14,516	8,946	6,184
Apparel and ready-made clothing n.e.i.	48,881	39,934	27,967	26,121	25,422
Boots and shoes and parts thereof	10,114	9,498	6,778	6,020	7,210
Hatmakers' materials	7,829	7,416	12,370	12,594	7,493
Ribbons and crape	67,109	58,132	29,043	26,288	23,242
Drapery n.e.i.	33,272	30,015	28,453	22,176	28,216
Silk, satin, and velvet piece-goods	106,276	105,782	88,769	114,313	109,275
Electrical machinery	10,071	14,997	16,574	19,078	17,059
Timepieces	70,211	81,118	89,319	67,168	65,957
Phonographs, records, and accessories	8,834	17,840	6,969	1,612	1,142
Asiatic Turkey.
Dried fruits—
Dates	33,848	41,453	32,908	34,869	35,702
Raisins	16,142	3,992	3,694	2,232	1,361
Other	11,803	12,142	13,689	13,099	10,602
China.
Rice	12,478	10,537	10,776	11,139	10,446
Nuts, edible	17,450	24,056	24,580	18,213	28,322
Tea	6,638	10,981	5,717	5,345	6,063
Hatmakers' materials	8,038	7,526	2,641	86	241
Lace and laces	4,883	4,393	2,935	2,698	1,738
Silk, satin, and velvet piece-goods	17,783	10,917	8,400	6,006	7,153
Brushmakers' materials	9,055	7,813	6,875	6,752	6,772
Dutch East Indies.
Mineral oils	571,371	475,431	620,945	487,306	290,865
Paraffin-wax	24,863	9,9151	17,299	4,377	2,499
Sugar	327,999	320	607	262,924	601,092
Tea	18,240	14,3114	34,682	13,903	7,268
Kapok	83,257	75,235	80,821	68,247	64,166
Japan.
Onions	3,536	10,751	12,748	95	8,111
Apparel and ready-made clothing n.e.i.	14,632	22,101	23,371	22,501	24,969
Textile piece-goods—
Cotton	80,850	172,887	64,007	61,347	51,606
Silk, satin, and velvet	269,553	311,921	323,720	377,832	368,160
Timber	54,749	71,729	58,247	47,625	48,951
Fancy goods and toys	14,128	18,999	19,836	35,572	16,795
Philippine Islands.
Hemp	26,463	45,081	35,437	31,597	25,593
Egypt.
Phosphates	17,328	40,168	18,730	19,974	18,975
Morocco.
Phosphates	..	..	..	..	39,050
Brazil.
Nuts, edible	5,014	7,743	8,754	6,597	5,525
Cocoa-beans, uncrushed	5,023	3,694	3,396	2,319	7,285
Precious stones (unmounted)	12	122	..	45,188	9,084
Chile.
Nitrate of soda	9,633	16,671	13,199	25,557	8,626
Cuba.
Cigars	6,663	10,519	4,061	6,122	3,659
Sugar	..	..	378,751	322,684	..
Dutch West Indies.
Crude residual oil	..	..	25,414	..	..
Ecuador.
Cocoa-beans, uncrushed	3,126	4,116	2,275	3,356	6,544
Mexico.
Asphalt and bitumen	4,880	23,449	20,192	10,691	69,344
Peru.
Raw sugar	197,452	..	..	83,008	55,921
United Stales of America.
Sausage-casings	48,794	52,532	89,497	54,135	56,013
Fruits—
Bottled and preserved in syrup	8,489	26,302	5,343	9,462	28,623
Dried—
Prunes	24,580	23,984	30,104	25,800	23,930
Raisins	77,709	78,881	103,146	89,535	85,708
Fresh—
Lemons	10,894	51	5,973	20,003	20,458
Oranges	20,609	..	6,632	66,400	45,459
Wheat	..	220	10,953	5	..
Sugar	27,323	30,503	21,799	25,294	32,143
Vegetables	7,876	6,407	7,680	12,318	21,153
Tobacco	211,760	158,185	146,293	169,994	196,675
Seeds	24,389	21,322	18,830	18,003	18,004
Hides and skins	399	1,108	15,970	32,464	29,594
Rosin	8,144	5,498	13,280	13,750	19,279
Apparel and ready-made clothing n.e.i.	79,254	90,205	94,522	97,814	78,943
Boots and shoes, and parts thereof	42,440	46,683	43,726	35,898	55,067
Hats and caps	30,806	24,952	19,980	14,447	15,713
Hosiery	68,913	82,969	100,887	96,958	103,399
Carpets, druggeting, and floorcloth	12,946	13,044	14,405	14,151	22,769
Textile piece-goods—
Cotton	46,390	93,399	80,492	74,396	82,161
Leather cloth	12,843	20,408	14,883	13,660	13,021
Silk, satin, and velvet	14,826	10,633	9,609	7,810	13,494
Sewing silks and cottons	8,402	10,426	5,010	5,257	8,331
Mineral oils—
Kerosene	194,171	158,358	167,671	143,878	140,887
Lubricating oils	255,623	222,296	252,601	260,356	267,361
Motor-spirit	1,657,596	1,905,013	2,077,628	1,585,865	1,434,785
Other	156,677	288,317	439,636	386,131	420,915
Vegetable oils	41,952	39,723	39,917	37,931	35,387
Paints and colours	33,908	37,975	55,067	45,205	55,568
Varnishes, lacquers, and goldsize	8,968	8,454	8,465	8,249	9,292
Iron and steel tubes, pipes, and fittings	19,346	3,080	7,740	7,519	5,295
Lamps (not electric), lanterns, and lampwick	15,531	9,911	6,145	6,609	4,710
Meters	30,245	26,134	34,996	35,159	29,444
Nails	13,039	12,809	8,346	5,279	4,313
Railway and tramway plant	22,059	11,769	15,148	12,169	10,060
Telephones and accessories and telegraphic materials	35,948	42,905	155,747	178,271	72,874
Tools, implements, &c.	157,847	126,965	134,295	98,679	83,393
Wire	18,205	20,555	16,981	16,118	18,583
Hardware, hollow - ware, and ironmongery n.e.i., and metal manufactures n.e.i.	308,356	291,359	409,816	300,714	187,882
Agricultural implements, &c.	76,824	77,863	66,542	59,549	58,320
Cash registers	15,415	23,606	19,825	14,550	16,814
Dairying machinery	7,617	5,474	3,924	3,816	5,966
Dredging machinery	11,159	19,455	27,297	30,031	6,725
Electrical machinery	383,397	367,900	403,898	355,663	312,124
Gas, hot air, and oil engines, including materials for and parts of	36,501	43,343	45,818	34,467	58,526
Mining machinery	19,303	4,541	8,137	2,599	1,316
Printing machinery	55,783	61,269	69,988	84,485	53,388
Sewing machines	16,609	28,957	31,373	26,561	29,167
Tools — Engineers' and metal- and wood-workers', &c.	25,802	31,104	43,791	45,871	28,371
Typewriters	33,460	35,192	35,867	23,767	17,995
Other classes of machinery and machines	271,772	355,568	353,878	284,079	338,709
Belting, leather and other	19,433	18,402	12,672	8,557	12,185
Leather	76,220	76,619	68,009	72,895	63,797
Timber	110,101	169,541	235,643	186,972	216,379
Wood, cane, and wicker manufactures	51,942	54,958	61,353	57,538	66,112
Asphalt and bitumen	76,395	54,444	37,555	26,972	54,637
Glass and glassware	37,252	35,176	37,910	32,846	28,323
Cardboard boxes, materials for	26,539	20,947	26,933	28,622	26,024
Books, papers, and music, printed	50,257	48,916	38,881	42,563	46,701
Fancy goods and toys	30,289	31,757	28,945	26,311	25,235
Timepieces	30,823	26,038	25,898	25,751	22,569
Cinematograph, bioscope, and kinetoscope films	142,272	181,121	192,844	216,590	162,788
Optical instruments	16,421	10,620	19,661	11,879	7,435
Photographic materials and goods	16,659	15,978	17,260	27,269	17,964
Surgical and dental instruments	46,858	52,894	42,430	42,615	35,721
Cream of tartar	15,388	24,452	19,436	30,632	5,185
Medicinal preparations, drugs, and druggists' sundries	44,580	51,382	48,427	45,129	38,267
Perfumery	32,959	33,313	31,006	30,388	27,625
Sulphur	33,360	58,981	81,335	129,766	141,582
Arms, ammunition, and explosives	28,583	33,882	26,087	21,193	19,600
Musical instruments—
Pianos	22,674	30,772	27,628	19,379	11,208
Other	53,499	58,094	45,250	37,690	25,608
Soap	11,326	13,383	12,411	9,708	11,842
Vehicles—
Bicycles and materials for	73,103	104,178	90,530	42,879	35,788
Motors for road traffic and parts thereof	1,509,194	2,056,358	2,359,553	1,368,279	1,737,059
Manures	57	112	25,614	3,828	4,268
Hawaii.
Fruits, bottled and preserved	1,557	4,807	3,982	4,802	3,984
New Caledonia.
Guano	21,599	16,031	18,539	14,304	15,881
New Hebrides.
Cocoa-beans, uncrushed	9,479	9,490	16,564	2,888	7,888
Society Islands.
Vanilla-beans	5,539	6,773	2,163	2,104	1,124
Tuamotu Archipelago.
Rock phosphates	665	..	19,653	20,196	23,100

IMPORTS FROM COOK ISLANDS.

A small group of Pacific islands was annexed to the Dominion from the 11th June, 1901, and has since been administered as the “Cook and other Pacific Islands.”

Trade with these islands from 1902 onwards has not been included in the export and import totals for the Dominion, but has been shown separately in official publications. The following table shows the growth of the import trade from the group during the last twenty years:—

Year.	Imports.
	£
1909	73,469
1910	90,039
1911	92,382
1912	105,943
1913	109,095
1914	94,620
1915	87,890
1916	63,702
1917	72,470
1918	70,374
1919	88,820
1920	105,146
1921	102,113
1922	131,639
1923	125,446
1924	149,676
1925	126,465
1926	115,391
1927	111,095
1928	119,521

The principal articles imported for the last five years are as follows:—

Article.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Fruits, fresh—	£	£	£	£	£
Bananas	52,584	40,687	18,966	26,464	30,106
Oranges	66,130	44,469	59,896	52,900	58,086
Tomatoes	9,542	21,441	21,743	18,013	19,840
Other	356	547	367	530	406
Coconuts	667	406	618	645	751
Copra	16,469	15,334	11,159	6,800	7,953
Hats and caps	1,395	1,400	595	752	84

SUBSECTION D.—CUSTOMS TARIFF AND REVENUE.

TARIFF DEVELOPMENT.

THE first Customs Ordinance in New Zealand was proclaimed in 1841. This Ordinance, which repealed the New South Wales Ordinance then in force in these Islands, was the first of two long series of enactments dealing with Customs law and the tariff of Customs duties.

The tariff of 1841 covered only a few items, and may be given in full as a type of all the early tariffs. It is noteworthy that, following the old mercantilist policy of colonial administration, preference was given to certain products of the Mother-land. The full schedule of duties was as follows:—

	£	s.	d.
Spirits or strong waters, not being the produce of the United Kingdom, of any British possession in America, or of New South Wales, or of Van Diemen's Land, per proof gallon	0	5	0
Spirits or strong waters, the produce of the United Kingdom, of any British possession in America, or of New South Wales, or of Van Diemen's Land, per proof gallon	0	4	0
Wine, for every hundred pounds' value	15	0	0
Tobacco, unmanufactured, per pound	0	0	9
Tobacco, manufactured, except cigars and snuff, per pound	0	1	0
Cigars and snuff, per pound	0	2	0
Tea, sugar, flour, meal, wheat, rice, and other grain and pulse, for every hundred pounds' value	5	0	0
All other goods (except goods the produce and manufacture of the United Kingdom, or of New South Wales, or of Van Diemen's Land), for every hundred pounds' value	10	0	0

In 1884 alterations were made in the direction of increasing most of the duties, while the preference to British countries was dropped. A very interesting item was the duty of 30 per cent. imposed “on all guns or weapons of any description, or gunpowder, or any munition of war,” evidently imposed to check the growing import of firearms for the Maoris. The rate of duty on all unspecified goods, except personal baggage, living animals, and specie, was 5 per cent.

In 1846 preference was again introduced by the imposition of a duty of 12 1/2 per cent. on all foreign unspecified goods, while similar British goods paid only 10 per cent. At the same time there appears the germ of the later free list, five items—glass bottles, bullion, live animals, books, and seeds and bulbs—being proclaimed free of duty.

The tariff of 1851 was the first elaborate scale of duties, and is noticeable for the liberal use of ad valorem duties, mainly at the rate of 10 per cent., though cottons, woollens, &c., were charged by the yard, calico by the bolt, and trousers by the pair.

The general tariff of 1864 comprised many items, but the duties were levied for revenue primarily; the rates were low, and were mostly specific duties, even drapery being charged at per cubic foot. Amendments of the tariff, mostly small and affecting only a few items, followed rapidly in 1866, 1867, 1871, and 1873; but in 1878 some sweeping changes were made, particularly the reduction on sugar from 1d. per pound to 1/2d., and similar reductions on many foodstuffs, while tools were also made free of duty. Another Act in 1879 added a few dutiable articles—in this case, however, chargeable with ad valorem duty; and the Act of 1881 was similar. All these changes were revised and consolidated in the Customs Duties Consolidation Act, 1882, which also extended the range of the tariff a good deal. The tariff of 1888 was distinguished by a more liberal use of ad valorem duties, the most usual rate being 20 per cent., as against 10 per cent. in the earliest years, while a primage duty was also levied.

With the year 1895 the tariff took on its distinctive modern form, marked by the preponderance of ad valorem duties and a definitely protective intention. The scope of the tariff was greatly widened so as to enumerate in detail a number of new items, and there were many reductions, principally of the duties on foodstuffs such as dried fruits and cocoa.

The process of subdivision and protection then begun was continued in 1900, when further steps were taken in the direction of a free breakfast-table, and another notable remission was made, the duty on kerosene being abolished.

In 1907 the Customs tariff was completely revised and some important alterations-were made. Among articles placed upon the free list were: Sugar, molasses and treacle, currants, raisins, figs, dates, prunes, unground spices, mustard, maizena, cornflour, almonds and nuts (except walnuts), carbonate and bicarbonate of soda, tartaric acid, infants' foods, forfar, dowlas and flax-sheeting, vegetable oils, fencing staples and standards, sheet lead; gas, electricity, and water meters; rubber and pneumatic tires for carriages. Children's boots (Nos. 0–6) and tea in bulk were admitted free if of British manufacture or growth.

Increased rates of ordinary duty were imposed, on certain articles, among which were: Flavouring-essences n.o.e., medicinal preparations, drugs and druggists' sundries, candles, paraffin-wax, hosiery, cash-registers, cartridges (shot, 10–24 bore), cartridge-cases, certain sizes of iron and fibre pipes, mouldings and panels.

Tea, the produce of British dominions, if in packages of 5 lb. in weight or over, was admitted free; when put up in packages under 5 lb. there was a duty of 2d. per pound. The duty on tea of foreign growth was 2d. per pound if in packages of 5 lb. or over, and 2 2/5d. per pound if in packages of a less weight than 5 lb.

The Customs Duties Amendment Act, 1909, imposed a surtax of 1 per cent. on the amount of duty payable on tobacco, cigars, and cigarettes, and of 2 1/2 per cent. on the amount of duty payable on all other dutiable goods. This surtax remained in operation until the 31st March, 1911.

In 1915 again changes were made in the rates of duty levied on certain articles, in order to meet the extraordinary expenses of the war. The duty was raised on spirits from 16s. to 17s. per gallon; gas and oil engines were made subject to 10 per cent., plus an additional preferential 10 per cent. if foreign, instead of being free and 20 per cent. preferential as before; electric motors, transformers, and lamps were charged 10 per cent. plus 10 per cent., instead of 10 per cent. plus 5 per cent.; and motor-cars were charged 10 per cent. plus 10 per cent. preferential surtax, whereas before the chassis was free and the body was liable to 20 per cent. duty. On the other hand, the 20 per cent. on bicycles was reduced to 10 per cent.

At the same time a primage duty of 1 per cent.^* was levied on all goods imported, with the exception of a few small classes of exempted articles. In addition, power was taken to gazette at any time an extra surtax of 50 per cent. on any goods which might be specified, being the produce or manufacture of any country then (October, 1915) at War with His Majesty. Power was also taken to impose an excise duty on aerated waters, cordials, and other beverages, subject to a report by an officer of Customs to be appointed as a Commission to inquire into the advisability of controlling and regulating this manufacture. In neither of these cases, however, was advantage taken of the power given. Increases were made in certain excise duties in 1915, and again in 1917.

* This has been increased to 2 per cent. from 2nd August, 1929.

In 1917, also, as part of the scheme of additional war taxation, further increases were made in the rates of duties to be levied on certain items of import. The rates of duty as thus amended remained in force until the coming into operation of the general tariff revision of 1921.

An outstanding feature of the 1921 tariff was the introduction of an intermediate tariff (intended to apply to countries entering into reciprocal relations with New Zealand) which, however, was abandoned in 1927. The general tariff of 1921, which applied to foreign goods, was in effect the general duty plus the preferential duty under the repealed legislation, while the British preferential tariff corresponded to the general duty under the older scale. A common ad valorem rate of duty under the repealed tariff was—General, 20 per cent.; additional preferential, 10 per cent.; this had the effect of placing a duty of 20 per cent. on British goods and 30 per cent. on foreign. Under the 1921 tariff articles affected were usually dutiable at—General, 35 per cent.; British preferential, 20 per cent.: the effect being to leave the duty of 20 per cent. on British goods as formerly and to increase the rate on foreign importations from 30 per cent. to 35 per cent.

In the 1921 Customs legislation provision was made for the imposition of an extra rate of duty on goods from countries with a depreciated rate of exchange. This ranged from 2 1/2 to 20 per cent. ad valorem, according as to whether the depreciation at the date of exportation from the country of origin or intermediate country, as the case might be, was from 10 to 20 per cent. or from 80 to 90 per cent. No depreciated currency duties have been imposed since the 9th April, 1925. Provision was also made for suspended duties, but none of these was ever imposed, and the system was discontinued in 1927.

A further feature of the Customs Amendment Act, 1921, was a provision for a special dumping duty. This may be imposed by the Minister of Customs on goods imported into New Zealand of a class or kind produced in New Zealand if the selling-price to an importer is less than the current domestic value of the goods and will have a prejudicial effect on an industry established in the Dominion. In such a case the special duty is not to exceed the difference between the actual selling-price and the current domestic value. No such dumping duty, however, is levied where the imposition is not required in the public interest.

In 1923 the 3d.-per-pound duty on bulk tea of British origin was abolished, and a reduction of 3d. per pound made in all other cases. In the same year a few further amendments to the tariff were also made, the principal of which was the imposition (from the 17th July, 1923, to the 30th September, 1924) of a duty of 5/16d. per pound on refined sugar of No. 22 colour or over, and on invert sugar and invert syrup, whether of British or of foreign origin. Under the 1921 tariff these items were admitted free if of British origin, but were charged 1/2d. per pound if of foreign origin. After the 30th September, 1924, they were to be free in all cases, but by the Customs Amendment Act, 1924, a duty of 1/4d. per pound was imposed as from the 1st October, 1924. A reduction of 8d. per pound in the duty on cut and plug tobacco was also made in 1924, becoming effective from the 17th January, 1925.

In 1926 a rate of 2s. per 100 superficial feet was imposed on most of those classes of sawn timber which had formerly been admitted free, and the duty on motorcar bodies (except in the case of the cheapest cars) was increased, as was also the general (but not the British preferential) rate of duty on motor-vehicles, tires, and parts.

The 1927 tariff revision still further increased British preference, the excess duty payable on foreign goods becoming in general 20 per cent., as compared with 15 per cent. under the tariff of 1921 and 10 per cent. prior to the revision of that year. In particular, numerous items which formerly paid 20 per cent. if British and 35 per cent. if foreign had the latter rate raised to 40 per cent., while the former remained unchanged.

A few additions were made to the list of items subject to preferential duties. Lemons and pickles, sauces, &c., which paid the same rates under the old tariff, irrespective of origin, now pay more under the general tariff, while the British preferential rate remains unchanged. Rennet in bulk, formerly free in any case, now bears a 10-per-cent. duty if British and 20 per cent. if foreign.

In addition to those items where the general tariff was raised, increases were imposed for protective purposes in certain cases, under both the preferential and the general tariff. The principal item under this head is timber, the duty on which (from any source) was increased from 2s. to 5s. per 100 ft. in the case of rough-sawn (3s. for baulk timber over 25 ft. in length and 150 square inches in cross-sectional area), and from 4s. to 7s. 6d. for dressed. Other items where both sets of duties were increased include—floor-mats and floor-rugs, n.e.i.; leather manufactures, n.e.i.; leather bags, attache cases, &c.; glass bottles and jars; wrapping-paper; electric insulators; wireless broadcasting sets mounted in cabinets; valves and taps; metal window-sashes; unrefined linseed-oil in bulk; paints and colours; varnishes, lacquers, gold-size, and terebene; crown seals for bottles, &c. Steam, gas, oil, and hot-air engines, and sundry other items of machinery, would nominally have come within this category also, but a regrouping of items permitted of effect being given to a provision allowing machinery, machines, machine tools, engines, &c., which are peculiar to use in manufacturing, industrial, and similar processes, and which cannot be economically made in New Zealand, to be admitted free if of British origin (20 per cent. if foreign).

Three important classes of household goods were placed on the free list if of British origin. The first includes textile piece-goods (other than of wool or hair) hemmed, whipped, or similarly worked; also plain tablecloths, table napkins, towels, quilts, sheets, &c., which have been manufactured wholly from piece-goods merely by cutting, hemming, or other similar operation. The second class covers linoleum and similar floorcloth; and the third cups, saucers, plates, dishes, and other chinaware, earthenware, and porcelain ware for table use. The remissions on these and certain other items of British origin, among which are corrugated sheet iron and macaroni and vermicelli, did not take effect till the 1st July, 1928. The removal of the duty on cattle and horses (now making all live-stock free) came into effect from the 14th September, 1927, from which date the new tariff operated. The duty on rubber heels and soles was reduced under both the general and the preferential tariffs.

Under the tariff now in operation, a sliding scale of duty is provided in the case of wheat and flour, with a view to stabilizing the price of bread. The duty on wheat is 1s. 3d. per bushel when the current domestic value at the port of export is 5s. 6d., the duty falling by 1/2d. for every 1/2d. by which the value rises, and vice versa. The standard flour duty is £3 10s. for a £13 10s. ton, the rate moving up or down by 1s. inversely to price changes of the same extent.

The rates of duty levied by the tariff are divided into two classes, specifics and ad valorem. In addition to these, there is a primage duty (formerly 1 per cent., but from 2nd August, 1929, 2 per cent.) on the value of all except a few specified imports. The specific class includes—Spirits, 36s. per gallon; perfumed spirits, 70s. per gallon for British goods, and 90s. per gallon for foreign; cigars, 12s. per lb.; cigarettes under 2 1/2 lb. per 1,000, 25s. 6d.; tobacco, fine cut, 10s. per lb.; other manufactured tobacco, 4s. 2d. and 4s. per lb.; unmanufactured tobacco, 2s. per lb. Wine, sparkling, pays 15s. per gallon; other kinds, 6s. Ale and beer are charged 2s. per gallon. The duty charged on tea in packages under 5 lb. is 2d. per pound British, and 4d. foreign; roasted coffee pays 3d. and 5d. per pound respectively; cocoa also 3d. and 5d. per lb.; and refined sugar 1/4d. per pound, irrespective of origin. The ad valorem duties range from 5 to 60 per cent., this latter figure being charged only on apparel made in a foreign country to the order of a resident of New Zealand.

Of particular interest are the changes that have been made during recent years in the tariff on motor-vehicles. Motor-vehicles and parts were, by the Customs Amendment Act of 1921, made dutiable under the British preferential tariff at 10 per cent., and under the general tariff at 25 per cent.; in addition, bodies were charged a further £5 to £22 10s. each. By the Customs Amendment Act, 1926, the rates of duty on motor-vehicles were made 10 per cent. under the British preferential tariff, and 35 percent, under the general tariff, plus additional body duties—viz., 10 and 15 per cent. respectively (on the whole vehicle) for the first £200 of value, and 5 and 7 1/2 per cent. on the remainder of the value.

Tires for motor-vehicles were free until 1921, but, in that year a duty of 10 per cent. British and 25 per cent. (raised in 1926 to 35 per cent.) foreign was imposed. Towards the end of 1927 the Motor-spirits Taxation Act of that year imposed a duty of 4d. per gallon on motor-spirits, 92 per cent. of the net proceeds to be devoted to main highway purposes, and the balance going to the cities and larger boroughs for the construction, maintenance, &c., of streets. The duty on tires is also earmarked for the maintenance of main highways.

By resolution of the House of Representatives on 1st August, 1929, an additional 1 per cent. primage duty was imposed on all imports with a few minor exceptions. The primage duty is thus 2 per cent. from 2nd August, 1929.

EXCISE DUTIES.

Excise duties are imposed on three classes of manufactures—viz., beer, tobacco and its preparations, and tinctures. The most important excise duty is that on beer, which up to 1915 was charged at the rate of 3d. per gallon. In that year the beer duty was altered so as to increase according to the specific gravity of the worts used, the rate being 3 3/4d. per gallon when the specific gravity did not exceed 1,047, and increasing by 1/16d. per gallon for every unit of specific gravity up to 1,055, and by 1/8d. thereafter. On the 2nd August, 1917, the minimum rate of duty for beer was increased from 3 3/4d. to 4 3/4d. per gallon, and further (on the loth September, 1917) to 5 3/4d., with a maximum of 6d. per gallon. The Finance Act, 1921 (No. 2), repealed the excise duties then in force, and substituted, as from the 4th November, 1921, a rate of Hid. per gallon where the specific gravity of the worts used does not exceed 1,047, and this is increased by 1/16d. for every unit of specific gravity above 1,047. The specific gravity of distilled water at 60° F. is taken as 1,000, and the specific gravity of the worts is determined in relation thereto.

The excise duties on tobacco and the preparations thereof are second in importance. Cut tobacco is charged 1s. 8d. per lb.; fine-cut tobacco suitable for the manufacture of cigarettes, 6s. 3d. per lb.; other kinds, 1s. 6d. per lb. Cigars and snuff pay 4s. per lb., and the excise duty on cigarettes made in New Zealand is 5s. 6d. per lb. on machine-made and 4s. per lb. on hand-made cigarettes. All packages of manufactured tobacco must be labelled before leaving the manufactory, and it is necessary to obtain warrants to use cutting-machines for cutting duty-paid manufactured tobacco for sale (or to be used in the manufacture of cigarettes by hand) and to manufacture cigarettes by hand, under certain conditions.

Excise duties were formerly levied direct on certain manufactures the preparation of which involved the use of a considerable proportion of spirits. By the Customs Amendment Act, 1921, this practice no longer operates. In lieu of excise duty on the finished manufactured article, a special reduced schedule of duties is provided on alcohol imported for use in warehouses manufacturing these articles. The reduced rates are as follows: On alcohol used in the manufacture of perfumed spirits, 36s. per gallon; toilet preparations, 30s.; culinary and flavouring essences, 16s.; medicinal preparations containing more than 50 per cent. of proof spirit, 4s. 6d. per gallon; and in similar preparations containing less than 50 per cent. the alcohol used is duty-free.

EXPORT DUTIES.

In 1856 the first Gold Duty Act was passed, empowering the collection of an export duty on gold at the rate of 2s. 6d. per ounce. This rate was amended by various Acts; but in 1890 the Gold Duty Abolition Act was passed, and a system of rating in mining districts was substituted for the export duty as far as the South Island was concerned. The Gold Duty Act, 1908, consolidated and repealed all previous enactments. An export duty was also imposed on timber (white-pine and kauri) by Acts of 1901 and 1903, and still operates. The rate is 3s. per 100 superficial feet for flitches, and 5s. per 100 superficial feet for logs.

CUSTOMS REVENUE.

In the earlier years of New Zealand's history the revenue derived from Customs and excise duties produced a greater proportion of the revenue from taxation than it does to-day. Down to the outbreak of the Great War there was a constant tendency for this proportion to decrease, and the taxation legislation of the war period temporarily accelerated the movement. The proportion rose again after 1921–22, but is nevertheless below the pre-war level. The figures for the last twenty years are as follows:—

TOTAL TAXATION AND CUSTOMS AND EXCISE REVENUE, 1909–10 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Total Taxation.	Customs and Excise Duties.
Year ended 31st March,	Total Taxation.	Amount.	Percentage of Total Taxation.
	£	£	Per Cent.
1910	4,180,516	2,786,490	65.63
1911	4,837,322	3,145,929	65.03
1912	5,296,590	3,398,143	64.16
1913	5,606,829	3,531,761	62.99
1914	5,918,034	3,553,785	60.05
1915	5,880,811	3,294,943	56.03
1916	7,266,966	3,524,063	48.49
1917	10,549,654	4,037,628	38.27
1918	12,340,853	3,601,383	29.18
1919	13,801,643	4,104,016	29.74
1920	16,251,769	5,185,728	31.91
1921	22,184,414	8,769,251	39.53
1922	16,370,516	5,554,334	33.93
1923	15,715,380	6,644,420	42.28
1924	16,540,438	7,870,309	47.58
1925	16,549,609	8,187,273	49.47
1926	17,254,688	8,974,235	52.01
1927	17,437,827	8,826,287	50.62
1928	17,145,145	8,501,245	49.58
1929	17,832,033	8,565,736	48.04

The figures for Customs and excise duties from 1922–23 onwards are exclusive of tire-tax, and for 1927–28 and 1928–29 motor-spirits tax—two classes of duties collected through the Customs for road maintenance purposes, and included in total taxation.

In the foregoing table the financial year has been taken for purposes of comparison with total taxation, figures concerning which are not available for calendar years. In subsequent tables the Customs-taxation figures relate to the calendar year, which is the statistical year for trade purposes.

The two tables which follow show the amounts and percentages collected at intervals of five years, 1891–1921, and in each of the last five years, in respect of (1) foods and non-alcoholic drinks, (2) clothing and textiles, (3) alcoholic drinks and tobacco, and (4) all other articles. The figures do not include tyretax, petrol-tax, excise duties, or export duties, and are also exclusive of surtax, primage, and depreciated-currency duties for the years during which these have been in force.

PRINCIPAL CLASSES OF IMPORTS FROM WHICH CUSTOMS REVENUE DERIVED.

Year	Amount of Duty derived from				Total.
Year	Foods and Nonalcoholic Drinks.	Clothing and Textiles.	Alcoholic Drinks and Tobacco.	All other Articles.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£
1891	312,809	276,072	651,680	320,141	1,560,702
1896	329,622	322,947	715,019	400,264	1,767,852
1901	321,625	434,112	928,176	512,853	2,196,766
1906	369,964	610,873	1,130,837	787,429	2,899,103
1911	147,456	682,710	1,286,601	1,048,890	3,165,657
1916	170,009	985,335	1,390,322	1,036,227	3,581,893
1921	237,878	1,297,121	1,930,898	1,826,357	5,292,254
1924	291,781	1,655,180	2,485,227	2,608,310	7,040,498
1925	287,226	1,804,812	2,683,909	3,025,472	7,801,419
1926	389,686	1,760,408	2,679,080	3,102,623	7,931,797
1927	363,663	1,681,590	2,842,438	2,808,481	7,696,172
1928	347,885	1,744,139	2,279,974	2,864,757	7,236,755

PERCENTAGE OF EACH CLASS TO THE TOTAL DUTY COLLECTED.

Year.	Percentage of Total Duty collected on
Year.	Foods and Non-alcoholic Drinks.	Clothing and Textiles.	Alcoholic Drinks and Tobacco.	All other Articles.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1891	20.05	17.69	41.75	20.51
1896	18.64	18.27	40.45	22.64
1901	14.64	19.76	42.25	23.35
1906	12.76	21.07	39.01	27.16
1911	4.66	21.57	40.64	33.13
1916	4.75	27.51	38.81	28.93
1921	4.49	24.51	36.49	34.51
1924	4.14	23.51	35.30	37.05
1925	3.68	23.14	34.40	38.78
1926	4.91	22.19	33.79	39.11
1927	4.73	21.85	36.93	36.49
1928	4.81	24.10	31.50	39.59

The Customs and excise duties received during the last five years are shown in more detail in the next table, which also shows the rate of revenue per head of mean population for each year considered. Primage and depreciated currency duties are included, but not tire-tax or petrol-tax, which do not really represent Customs taxation though for the sake of convenience collected through the Customs on imported commodities.

CUSTOMS AND EXCISE REVENUE, 1924–28.

—	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
* Included partly under “Other goods by weight,” and partly under “Other goods ad valorem.”
	£	£	£	£	£
Customs Duties.
Spirits	1,102,255	1,226,708	1,204,063	1,374,044	918,676
Wine	48,935	56,882	58,803	62,277	46,889
Beer	5,054	5,820	5,921	6,537	6,803
Cigars, cigarettes, and snuff	586,686	670,484	740,863	767,165	718,848
Tobacco	709,928	708,913	656,038	620,600	578,309
Tea	4,543	3,867	5,600	3,101	2,095
Coffee, cocoa, &c.	8,315	9,693	8,582	9,064	^*
Other goods by weight	231,136	223,399	320,924	277,693	252,043
Other goods ad valorem	3,962,186	4,486,227	4,553,715	4,313,458	4,406,669
Other duties	348,619	409,426	377,288	262,233	306,423
Primage	440,449	482,973	466,740	414,325	411,992
Depreciated-currency duty	13,447	2,896	..	..	..
Totals, Customs duties	7,461,553	8,287,288	8,398,537	8,110,497	7,648,747
Excise Duties.	£	£	£	£	£
Tinctures—New Zealand	19,394	21,552	19,441	21,658	21,113
Cigars, cigarettes, and snuff—New-Zealand-manufactured	76,640	77,293	65,664	79,491	103,001
Tobacco—New-Zealand-manufactured	11,534	18,161	18,331	39,665	72,813
Beer—New Zealand	651,201	634,513	624,768	611,501	613,252
Totals, excise duties	758,769	751,519	728,204	752,315	810,179
Revenue per head:—	£ s. d.	£ s. d.	£ s. d.	£ s. d.	£ s. d.
From Customs duties	5 10 4	5 19 9	5 18 10	5 12 9	5 5 0
From excise duties	0 11 2	0 10 10	0 10 4	0 10 5	0 11 2
Totals	6 1 6	6 10 7	6 9 2	6 3 2	5 16 2

The following table furnishes a general view of the ratio of Customs revenue to imports since 1895, which is taken as the base year:—

CUSTOMS REVENUE COMPARED WITH IMPORT VALUES, 1895–1928.

Year.	Imports.				Revenue.							Percentage of Revenue to Total Imports.	Index Numbers of Customs Revenue compared with Imports.
Year.	Value.	Value per Head.			Amount.	Actual Value per Head.			Value per Bead at 1895 Ratio.			Percentage of Revenue to Total Imports.	Index Numbers of Customs Revenue compared with Imports.
	£	£	s.	d.	£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	Per Cent.
1895	6,400,129	8	14	3	1,619,970	2	4	1	2	4	1	25.31	1,000
1900	10,646,096	13	5	4	2,170,354	2	14	1	3	7	1	20.39	805
1905	12,828,857	14	0	11	2,652,666	2	18	1	3	10	8	20.68	817
1910	17,051,583	16	7	9	2 954,989	2	16	9	4	2	10	17.33	685
1915	21,728,834	18	18	1	3,190,883	2	15	6	4	15	7	14.68	580
1920	61,595,828	49	11	6	7,953,477	6	9	7	12	14	0	12.91	510
1924	48,527,603	35	17	6	7,461,553	5	10	4	9	1	11	15.38	608
1925	52,456,407	37	17	10	8,287,288	5	19	9	9	11	9	15.80	624
1926	49,889,563	35	5	10	8,398,537	5	18	10	8	18	9	16.83	665
1927	44,782,946	31	2	6	8,110,497	5	12	9	7	17	6	18.11	716
1928	44,886,266	31	3	11	7,648,747	5	5	1	7	16	2	17.04	673

The figures given in the column “Value per head at 1895 ratio” indicate the amount of revenue per head of population which would have been obtained had the same high ratio of Customs taxation been levied as prevailed in 1895. The last two columns in the table show clearly the substantial decline in the proportion which the Customs revenue bears to the value of the imports, and demonstrate that the increase over the period, both total and per capita, in the Customs revenue is not due to heavier imposts, but has actually been achieved in spite of very considerable reductions in the scale of duties. In 1895 the proportion of revenue to the total imports was one-fourth; in 1928 it was little more than one-sixth.

The increase in this proportion since 1925 is probably due mainly to a rise in the proportion of imports from foreign countries, but partly also to a change from the 1st April, 1926, in the system of computation for British preference purposes in the case of articles only partly manufactured in British countries. The 1927 and 1928 figures are also affected by the fact that while the increased rates of duties imposed by the tariff on certain items came into force during the year, the principal counter-balancing remissions (those on textiles, linoleums, chinaware, &c.) took effect only from the 1st July, 1928.

In the following table the Customs revenue collected in 1928 over each class of the statistical classification is given, together with the percentage of revenue to imports in each case:—

CUSTOMS REVENUE BY CLASSES OF IMPORTS, 1928.

Class.	Articles.	Total Imports.	Customs Duty collected.	Percentage of Customs Duty to Imports.
			£
I	Foodstuffs of animal origin (excluding live animals)	356,571	67,361	18.89
II	Foodstuffs of vegetable origin, and common salt	3,469,502	262,726	7.57
III	Beverages (non-alcoholic) and substances used in making up the same	1,039,948	17,798	1.71
IV	Spirits and alcoholic liquors	818,597	982,817	120.06
V	Tobacco and preparations thereof	1,501,617	1,297,157	86.38
VI	Live animals	74,600	..	..
VII	Animal substances (mainly unmanufactured), not being foodstuffs	109,387	1,510	1.38
VIII	Vegetable substances and non-manufactured fibres	630,763	21,521	3.41
IXA	Apparel	4,661,327	1,206,569	25.88
IXB	Textiles	5,449,414	537,570	9.86
IXC	Manufactured fibres	689,781	14,756	2.14
X	Oils, fats, and waxes	2,863,592	107,691	3.76
XI	Paints and varnishes	380,795	59,581	15.65
XII	Stones and minerals used industrially	384,035	3,683	0.96
XIII	Specie	42,164	..	..
XIVA	Metal, unmanufactured, partially manufactured, and ores	419,320	584	0.14
XIVB	Metal manufactures, other than machinery and machines	4,648,457	374,458	8.06
XV	Machinery and machines	4,130,899	303,683	7.35
XVIA	Indiarubber and manufactures thereof (not including tires)	94,736	3,100	3.27
XVIB	Leather and manufactures thereof (including substitutes)	443,566	57,784	13.03
XVIIA	Timber	750,072	92,517	12.33
XVIIB	Wood, cane, and wicker manufactures	201,072	42,667	21.22
XVIII	Earthenware, china, glass, stoneware, cements, and cement materials	866,628	83,561	9.64
XIXA	Paper	1,095,174	17,785	1.62
XIXB	Stationery	934,290	97,478	10.43
XX	Jewellery, timepieces, and fancy goods	776,326	182,848	23.55
XXI	Optical, surgical, and scientific instruments	494,449	45,606	9.22
XXIIA	Drugs, chemicals, and druggists' wares	1,217,892	134,007	11.00
XXIIB	Manures	617,961	..	..
XXIIIA	Vehicles	4,384,093	1,029,779	23.49
XXIIIB	Miscellaneous	1,339,238	190,158	14.20
	Primage	..	411,992	..
	Totals	44,886,266	7,648,747	17.04

Of the Customs revenue (exclusive of primage) collected during 1928, 31 1/2 per cent. was derived from alcoholic liquors and tobacco. Tobacco was the chief source of revenue during the period 1918 to 1928, with the exception of the years 1920, 1921, 1925, and 1927. Up to 1917, however, and also in 1921 and 1927, spirits and alcoholic liquors proved the most productive class. Apparel, which is also an important source of revenue, was responsible for the greatest amount in 1920, while first place in 1925 was held by the “Miscellaneous” class, which at that time included vehicles—since 1926 placed in a separate class.

FREE AND DUTIABLE IMPORTS.

The next table gives for 1928 the imports of free and dutiable goods arranged according to the statistical classification. The main features of the table are the overwhelming proportion of dutiable goods in the classes covering alcoholic beverages, tobacco, foodstuffs of animal origin, paints and varnishes, vehicles, and apparel, and the high proportion of free goods in non-alcoholic beverages, live animals, animal substances other than foodstuffs, manufactured fibres, stones and minerals (mainly coal), specie, raw metals, paper, and manures.

FREE AND DUTIABLE IMPORTS BY CLASSES, 1928.

No.	Class.	Value of Imports.			Percentage of Total.
No.	Class.	Free.	Dutiable.	Total.	Free.	Dutiable.
		£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
I	Foodstuffs of animal origin (excluding live animals)	525	356,046	356,571	0.15	99.85
II	Foodstuffs of vegetable origin, and common salt	2,231,212	1,238,290	3,469,502	64.31	35.69
III	Beverages (non-alcoholic) and substances used in making the same	944,842	95,106	1,039,948	90.85	9.15
IV	Spirits and alcoholic liquors	73	818,524	818,597	0.01	99.99
V	Tobacco and preparations thereof	2,087	1,499,530	1,501,617	0.14	99.86
VI	Live animals	74,600	..	74,600	100.00	..
VII	Animal substances (mainly unmanufactured), not being foodstuffs	103,800	5,587	109,387	94.89	5.11
VIII	Vegetable substances and non-manufactured fibres.	532,199	98,564	630,763	84.38	15.62
IXA	Apparel	455,085	4,206,242	4,661,327	9.76	90.24
IXB	Textiles	2,751,699	2,697,715	5,449,414	50.50	49.50
IXC	Manufactured fibres	662,889	26,892	689,781	96.10	3.90
X	Oils, fats, and waxes	810,060	2,053,532	2,863,592	28.29	71.71
XI	Paints and varnishes	72,509	308,286	380,795	19.04	81.96
XII	Stones and minerals used industrially	369,219	14,816	384,035	96.14	3.86
XIII	Specie	42,164	..	42,164	100.00	..
XIVA	Metal, unmanufactured, partially manufactured, and ores	417,240	2,080	419,320	99.51	6.49
XIVB	Metal manufactures other than machinery and machines	3,060,769	1,587,688	4,648,457	65.84	34.16
XV	Machinery and machines	2,644,853	1,486,046	4,130,899	64.03	35.97
XVIA	Indiarubber and manufactures thereof (not including tires)	80,897	13,839	94,736	85.39	1,461
XVIB	Leather and manufactures thereof (including substitutes)	168,621	274,945	443,566	38.02	61.98
XVIIA	Timber	369,280	380,792	750,072	49.23	50.77
XVIIB	Wood, cane, and wicker manufactures	57,031	144,041	201,072	28.37	71.63
XVIII	Earthenware, china, glass, stoneware, cements, and cement materials	464,520	402,108	866,628	53.60	46.40
XIXA	Paper	1,016,948	78,226	1,095,174	92.87	7.13
XIXB	Stationery	545,315	388,975	934,290	58.37	41.63
XX	Jewellery, timepieces, and fancy goods	87,472	688,854	776,326	11.27	88.73
XXI	Optical, surgical, and scientific instruments	224,339	270,110	494,449	45.37	54.63
XXIIA	Drugs, chemicals, and druggists' wares	688,024	529,868	1,217,892	56.49	43.51
XXIIB	Manures	617,961	..	617,961	100.00	..
XXIIIA	Vehicles	87,968	4,296,115	4,384,093	2.01	97.99
XXIIIB	Miscellaneous	612,580	726,658	1,339,238	45.75	54.25
	Totals	20,196,781	24,689,485	44,886,266	45.00	55.00

Imports free of duty include items otherwise dutiable but admitted free for Government use, &c. Otherwise the distinction made in 1927 and 1928 between free and dutiable is on the basis of the position ruling at the end of the year, all petrol imports in 1927, for instance, being grouped in the dutiable class, although the duty in this case was not imposed until a few weeks before the end of the year.

The comparison of 1927 with earlier years is vitiated to some extent on this account, the figures for previous years representing the amounts actually imported free and dutiable respectively. The figures for the last twenty years given in the following table are exclusive of specie, which is admitted free.

FREE AND DUTIABLE IMPORTS (EXCLUDING SPECIE), 1909–28.

Year.	Imports.		Proportion of Total.
Year.	Free.	Dutiable.	Free.	Dutiable.
	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1909	7,489,359	7,328,103	50.54	49.46
1910	8,439,495	8,308,728	50.39	49.61
1911	9,416,496	9,366,112	50.13	49.87
1912	10,649,801	9,926,778	51.76	48.24
1913	11,274,502	10,379,130	52.07	47.93
1914	11,356,092	9,788,135	53.71	46.29
1915	11,819,569	8,839,151	57.21	42.79
1916	12,789,639	12,255,764	51.07	48.93
1917	11,301,527	9,440,603	54.49	45.51
1918	13,264,559	10,867,233	54.97	45.03
1919	16,302,655	14,006,512	53.79	46.21
1920	29,915,638	31,638,215	48.60	51.40
1921	23,901,688	18,842,434	55.92	44.08
1922	17,181,674	17,644,400	49.33	50.67
1923	19,585,541	23,778,442	45.17	54.83
1924	22,964,917	25,562,686	47.32	52.68
1925	24,834,725	27,591,032	47.37	52.63
1926	22,255,765	27,555,998	44.76	55.24
1927	18,788,517	25,994,149	41.95	58.05
1928	20,154,617	24,689,485	44.95	55.05

The placing of linoleums, textiles, chinaware, &c., on the free list as from the 1st July, 1928, has had the effect of restoring the proportion of free imports in 1928 to the level ruling in 1926.

RATES OF DUTY.

The most common ad valorem duty under the present tariff is 20 per cent., followed by 25 per cent. The following shows imports in 1928 according to the nature or rate of duty ruling at the end of the year.

Nature of Duty.	£
Free (excluding specie)	20,154,617
Specific duties	6,521,023
Ad valorem duties—
5 per cent.	43
10 per cent.	1,850,450
15 per cent.	1,194,427
20 per cent.	6,477,074
25 per cent.	4,174,644
30 per cent.	194,745
35 per cent.	732,858
40 per cent.	1,248,752
45 per cent.	987,367
50 per cent.	1,306,125
55 per cent.	1,816
60 per cent.	161
Totals ad valorem	18,168,462
Specie	42,164
Grand totals of imports	£44,886,266

Motor-vehicles pay a general duty of 35 per cent. and a British preferential duty of 10 per cent., with, in the main, additional body duties of 15 per cent. and 10 per cent. respectively on the first £200 value of the vehicle, and 7 1/2 per cent. and 5 per cent. respectively on the remainder of the value. Where additional body duty is payable, the whole of the imports of British origin are treated, for the purposes of this table, as being subject to 20 per cent. duty, and those of foreign origin as subject to 50 per cent. duty.

PREFERENCE AND RECIPROCITY.

Preference to British countries in respect of certain commodities was provided for in the earliest tariff in force in New Zealand—that introduced in 1841. The amended tariff of 1844 involved the dropping of this preference to British goods, but two years later preference was again introduced.

The first definite attempt at reciprocity was made in 1870, when the Colonial Reciprocity Act gave power to the Government to make reciprocal agreements with the Australian States, including Tasmania; but this Act failed to receive the Royal assent and consequently lapsed.

In 1895, however, the Customs Duties Reciprocity Act received the Royal assent, and ratified an agreement which had been tentatively proposed with South Australia, besides giving power to the Government to make further agreements with the other Australian States. In 1907 the New Zealand and South African Customs Treaty was negotiated. A tariff agreement with the Australian Commonwealth has been in operation since the 1st September, 1922.

Imperial preference proper was introduced in New Zealand by the Preferential and Reciprocal Trade Act, 1903, which followed the lead given by Canada. At first only a few items were covered by the extra duties levied upon goods of foreign origin, but the Tariff Act of 1907 extended this additional preferential duty to a great number of items. The effect of the 1921 and 1927 tariffs has been to widen the disparity in the duty as between goods of British and of foreign origin.

The following are the classes of goods which are deemed to be the produce or manufactures of countries the produce or manufactures of which are entitled to be entered for duty at British preferential rates: —

Goods wholly the produce of such countries:
Goods wholly manufactured within such countries from materials produced in such countries:
Goods manufactured within such countries in which all manufacturing processes are performed in such countries from unmanufactured raw materials and (or) from one or more of the partly manufactured raw materials, not produced in such countries, which are enumerated in these regulations.
Goods partially produced or partially manufactured in such countries, provided that the final process of manufacture has been performed in such countries, and also that the expenditure in material produced in such countries and (or) labour performed within such countries in each and every article is not less than one-half of the factory or works cost of such article in its, finished state.

Prior to the 1st April, 1926, the minimum mentioned in paragraph (d), which is now one-half, was one-fourth.

In the calculation of the proportion of produce or labour none of the following items are to be included or considered:—

Manufacturer's profit, or the profit or remuneration of any trader, agent, broker, or other person dealing in the article in its finished condition;
Royalties;
The cost of outside packages or any cost of packing the goods thereinto;
Any cost of conveying, insuring, or shipping the goods subsequent to their manufacture.

Tea to be entitled to be entered at British preferential rates must be grown in some part of the British Empire, and the final process of manufacture must also be performed in some British country.

The following table shows the extent of the imports which are affected by preference, by giving the percentage of the total imports and of foreign imports so affected. The proportions increased generally after the tariff changes of 1907, 1917, and 1921. In the case of 1927, however, the effect of any change in this direction is hidden, owing to the falling-off of imports, particularly in motor-vehicles—an important item subject to the preferential surtax.

IMPORTS AFFECTED BY PREFERENTIAL SURTAX, 1909–28.

Year.	Value of Imports.			Imports on which Surtax payable.	Percentage of
Year.	Total.	British Empire.	Foreign Countries.	Imports on which Surtax payable.	Total Imports.	Foreign Imports.
	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1909	15,674,719	13,554,962	2,119,757	842,407	5.37	39.74
1910	17,051,583	14,465,824	2,585,759	1,000,267	5.87	38.88
1911	19,545,879	16,497,340	3,048,539	1,159,342	5.93	38.03
1912	20,976,574	17,073,272	3,903,302	1,337,182	6.37	34.26
1913	22,288,302	18,348,249	3,940,053	1,325,057	5.95	33.63
1914	21,856,096	17,649,784	4,206,312	1,228,207	5.62	29.20
1915	21,728,834	17,727,137	4,001,697	1,321,853	6.08	33.03
1916	26,339,283	20,833,461	5,505,822	2,071,175	7.86	37.62
1917	20,919,265	15,591,308	5,327,957	2,251,428	10.77	42.26
1918	24,234,007	16,017,554	8,216,453	3,457,004	14.27	42.07
1919	30,671,698	19,519,619	11,152,079	4,794,249	15.63	42.99
1920	61,595,828	43,861,299	17,734,529	7,610,756	12.35	42.91
1921	42,942,443	31,160,299	11,782,144	4,122,296	9.59	34.99
1922	35,012,561	26,005,352	9,007,209	4,902,508	14.00	54.42
1923	43,378,493	31,866,993	11,511,500	6,465,171	14.90	56.16
1924	48,527,603	35,830,909	12,696,694	6,766,358	13.94	53.29
1926	52,456,407	38,262,276	14,194,131	8,118,838	15.47	57.21
1926	49,889,563	34,073,741	15,815,822	8,750,178	17.53	55.33
1927	44,782,946	30,717,561	14,065,385	7,504,474	16.76	53.35
1928	44,886,266	30,810,189	14,076,077	7,461,963	16.63	53.01

In the figures from which the above summary has been compiled the imports credited to any country prior to 1914 were those shipped to New Zealand from that country, but for 1914 and later years the figures relate to country of origin.

For the purpose of studying better the scope and effect of the preferential surtax, imports for the last three years are classified in the next table into four groups, viz.:—

Goods duty-free, whether of British or of foreign origin;
Goods duty-free if of British origin, but dutiable if of foreign origin;
Goods dutiable and with same rates of duty whether of British or of foreign origin;
Goods dutiable but with additional preferential duty when of foreign origin.

IMPORTS OF GOODS OF BRITISH OR FOREIGN ORIGIN, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO THE NATURE OF DUTY PAYABLE, 1926–28.

—	1926.		1927.		1928.
—	British.	Foreign.	British.	Foreign.	British.	Foreign.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
Free in any case	6,112,491	6,043,824	5,842,872	3,668,734	6,463,899	4,034,692
Free when of British origin, but dutiable when of foreign origin	10,177,250	2,294,419	9,277,191	2,168,825	9,698,190	2,590,066
Dutiable with same rates whether of British or foreign origin	3,585,012	1,021,820	2,980,203	2,892,177	2,533,921	2,579,422
Dutiable with a lower rate of duty when of British origin	14,198,988	6,455,759	12,63,7,295	5,335,649	12,114,179	4,871,897
Totals	34,073,741	15,815,822	30,717,561	14,065,385	30,810,189	14,076,077

Of foreign goods imported in 1928 only 29 per cent. were free of duty, as compared with 58 per cent. in 1921. A further 18 per cent. (7 per cent. in 1921), although dutiable, paid no higher rate than if they had been of British origin. This leaves 53 per cent. (35 per cent. in 1921) with the disadvantage of the higher rate of duty applicable to foreign goods. Of the total imports of British origin in 1928, 53 per cent. were classified as free.

RECIPROCITY WITH SOUTH AFRICA.

As stated above, there was inaugurated in 1907 a reciprocal arrangement with British South Africa whereby products of that country, when imported direct, were admitted into New Zealand at reduced rates of duty, in return for similar concessions granted by South Africa in respect of New Zealand products. This agreement was terminated on the 1st August, 1922, but by a subsequent Order in Council gazetted on the 18th November, 1922, was reinstated as from the 1st August, 1922, in a revised form, the duties on wines being increased, and tobacco being deleted from the list. A further alteration, whereby maize and dried apples were deleted from the list, came into force from 30th November, 1925.

The main items of import benefited by the reciprocal arrangement are dried fruits (other than apples) and wine. The former pay no duty under the reciprocal tariff, as compared with 4d. under the general tariff and 2d. under the British preferential tariff in the case of dried apricots and certain other dried fruits. Sparkling wine is admitted at 9s. 6d. per gallon, as against 15s. under the general and British preferential rates. On still wine the rate is 3s. 6d. per gallon, as compared with 6s. Other items specially provided for are feathers, fish, fresh fruit, and tea; while in the case of all other dutiable goods, with the exception of spirits and tobacco, a reduction of 3 per cent. of the duty payable is made.

The following table shows the imports from South Africa during the last ten years. Figures of exports from New Zealand to South Africa are also given.

Year.	Imports.		Exports.
Year.	According to Country of Shipment.	According to Country of Origin.	Exports.
	£	£	£
1919	62,628	169,222	2,241
1920	189,767	263,653	6,571
1921	34,364	84,704	2,906
1922	152,386	180,672	17,993
1923	79,742	110,313	7,392
1924	62,864	89,295	28,585
1925	104,520	113,950	19,306
1926	121,240	140,021	31,540
1927	119,305	122,597	31,251
1928	99,054	104,043	64,892

The imports of South African origin during the last three years are given in more detail in the following table. All goods shown in the first two groups do not necessarily receive the benefit of the reciprocal tariff, as a small proportion may not have been imported direct from South Africa.

Commodity.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Special Reduction or Remission of Duty.
	£	£	£
Preserved fish	41	285	93
Dried apricots	26,434	44,198	36,316
Other dried fruits	6,036	4,237	4,412
Wine	11,378	12,439	11,283
Ostrich feathers	154	186	22
Totals	44,043	61,345	52,126

Commodity.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Reduction of 3 per Cent. in Duty.
	£	£	£
Fruits preserved in syrup, &c.	1,613	4,140	3,710
Maize	36,926	11,861	3,560
Jams and preserves	101	3,350	11,359
Candied peel	69	1,241	416
Paper bags	1,019	297	273
Other items	2,199	1,638	1,050
Totals	41,827	22,527	20,368
No Reduction in Duty.
Spirits	122	201	1,414
Tobacco, cigarettes, &c.	2,842	2,324	2,305
Totals	2,964	2,525	3,719
Free under General or British Preferential Tariff.
Live animals and birds	..	87	..
Hides, pelts, and skins, undressed	611	1,303	701
Seeds	3,339	3,838	556
Bark	20,334	5,678	2,766
Tanning-materials, n.e.i.	5,095	505	569
Precious stones	20,660	24,125	22,233
Other items	1,148	664	1,005
Totals	51,187	36,200	27,830
Grand totals	140,021	122,597	104,043

RECIPROCITY WITH AUSTRALIA.

Prior to the amendment of the Customs tariff in 1921 Australian goods entering the Dominion were accorded British preferential treatment, although articles of New Zealand origin or manufacture entered Australia under the general tariff. From the 22nd December, 1921, however, goods produced in the Commonwealth were placed on the general tariff, and were required in consequence to pay the same duties as were levied on foreign goods. Since the 1st September, 1922, a tariff agreement, confirmed by the Tariff Agreement (New Zealand and Australia) Ratification Act, 1922, has been in operation, under which New Zealand and Australia grant mutual concessions in the matter of Customs duties.

In addition to these reciprocal arrangements, which have operated from the 1st September, 1922, the tariff agreement provides further that goods which are imported into Australia and are subsequently transhipped to New Zealand, and which, if they had been imported direct from the country of origin into New Zealand, would have been entitled to be entered under the British preferential tariff, shall be admitted to the Dominion under the British preferential tariff. A similar provision relates to goods imported into the Dominion and transhipped to the Commonwealth. These concessions have operated from the 1st May, 1922.

The main reciprocal agreement covers 129 items, in some cases the reduction of the rate of duty amounting to less, and in some more, than that accorded British goods under the ordinary scale of preferential duties. In any instance where the rate of duty has not been lowered at least to the extent provided for British goods, the reason may generally be found in the fact that protection is sought for the development of a secondary industry in the country retaining the higher rate of duty. Then, apart from the 129 items which are thus specifically mentioned, all other goods which are produced or manufactured in either Australia or New Zealand are admitted to the other country concerned at British preferential rates of duty.

Since the reciprocal arrangements were entered into between the two countries, New Zealand exports to Australia have increased substantially, although the advance is due mainly to increases in items outside of the agreement, such as butter, wool, and gold. Imports have fluctuated, and since 1923 there has been a definite downward trend, due mainly to declines in wheat, flour, timber, coal, and tobacco.

Certain items of New Zealand produce (notably fish, cheese, bacon, ham, and tallow), which enter Australia at rates of duty lower than British preferential rates, show an appreciable advance since the agreement came into force, although the aggregate value of these exports to Australia does not as yet represent a large percentage of the Dominion's shipments to the Commonwealth. Similarly such items as biscuits and confectionery are steadily increasing on the imports side.

Trade between New Zealand and Australia during the last ten years has been as follows:—

Year.	Imports from Australia.	Imports of Australian Origin.	Exports to Australia.
	£	£	£
1919	5,081,968	3,916,108	2,249,827
1920	10,555,667	8,624,885	2,351,799
1921	6,486,847	5,460,381	2,070,013
1922	4,213,085	3,293,632	2,208,280
1923	4,259,323	3,653,420	2,642,266
1924	6,303,073	5,651,027	2,509,322
1925	5,855,989	5,249,493	2,502,113
1926	5,059,779	4,625,200	3,054,433
1927	4,264,175	3,869,246	3,665,962
1928	3,868,281	3,499,151	3,402,655

The next table shows for 1928 the imports of items specially affected by the reciprocal tariff. The group “lower than other British countries” includes items which are free under the Australian reciprocal tariff, but pay duty under the British preferential tariff.

It should be explained that the items shown do not necessarily represent the whole of the imports of Australian origin generally classed under the respective headings, some items of a group (e.g., boots, shoes, &c.) coming within the scope of the reciprocal tariff, and others being treated as under the British preferential tariff.

IMPORTS AFFECTED BY AUSTRALIAN RECIPROCAL TARIFF, 1928.

Lower than other British Countries.

	£
Meats, potted, and preserved	164
Confectionery n.e.i.	40,300
Chaff	144
Beans	876
Oats	641
Peas	76
Grain and pulse n.e.i.	113
Fresh vegetables	1,422
Wine	55,471
Floor-rugs	10
Preparations for removing paint	515
Putty	89
Metal window-frames	10
Rough-sawn timber	205,678
Eucalyptus-oil	4,747
Total	£310,256

Higher than other British Countries.
	£
Preserved fruits	51,566
Jams	220
Macaroni and vermicelli	8,915
Coffee-essence	448
Hats and caps	2,711
Millinery n.e.i.	5,612
Boots, &c.	2,499
Pumps, uppers, &c.	130
Woollen blankets	1
Woollen piece-goods	123
Gas-ranges, &c.	502
Galvanized manufactures	349
Cast fittings for pipes and tubes	91
Lead piping	1,409
Lead-headed nails	979
Platedware	2,706
Pumps n.e.i.	6,735
Valves, &c.	587
Hardware n.e.i.	2,964
Winches	441
Machinery n.e.i.	1,695
Tinware	4,388
Weighing-machines	307
Leather bags	668
Moulding and panels	160
Tiles of glass, &c.	464
Paper bags	190
Jewellery	4,045
Carbonic-acid gas	898
Carriages	170
Perambulators	14
Asbestos sheets	28,172
Brushware	629
Soap	44,244
Total	£175,032

The amount of £205,678 shown for timber includes £200,856 for ironbark, jarrah, and similar hardwoods, which come into the Dominion free of duty, and for which Australia is the only feasible source of supply.

SUBSECTION E.—TRADE OF PORTS.

INTRODUCTORY.

IN the earliest statistical publication for New Zealand as a whole—covering the period 1853–56—and in its successors up to and including 1867, much more prominence was given to the overseas trade of individual New Zealand ports than to the countries with which the young colony was trading. Even the total trade with individual countries was not published, the only distinction made in this connection being as to trade with (1) the United Kingdom, (2) British possessions, and (3) foreign countries.

In 1868, however, a complete change was made, and detailed statistics of imports from and exports to individual countries were instituted. From this year the port details were reduced step by step until, in place of the elaborate detailed statements for each port, two tables showing for each port only the exports to and imports from each country were presented in the annual statistical volume. Later—in 1914—the system of details for each port was partially reverted to, particulars of items imported and exported being given for Auckland, Wellington, Lyttelton, and Dunedin separately, and all other ports in conjunction.

A further change made in 1928 reduced the export figures for ports to cover only the more important commodities, but details for these commodities are now given for each port instead of only the four principal ports.

PORTS OF ENTRY.

New Zealand has twenty-one ports of entry for Customs purposes, eleven in the North Island and ten in the South. It is interesting to compare the present list with that of ports for which statistics were compiled in the “fifties.” Of the latter no fewer than seven do not appear among the present-day ports of entry, though oversea vessels occasionally arrive direct at some of them. The list of ports of entry in 1853 and 1928 is as follows:—

1853.
Mangonui.
Russell.
Whangarei.
Hokianga.
Kaipara.
Auckland.
Kawhia.
Napier.
New Plymouth.
Wanganui.
Wellington.
Nelson.
Lyttelton.
Akaroa.
Chatham Islands.
Otago (Dunedin).
Bluff.
1928.
Kaipara.
Auckland.
Tauranga.
Tokomaru Bay.
Gisborne.
Napier.
Waitara.
New Plymouth.
Patea.
Wanganui.
Wellington.
Wairau (including Picton).
Nelson.
Westport.
Greymouth.
Hokitika.
Lyttelton.
Timaru.
Oamaru.
Dunedin.
Invercargill (Bluff).

OVERSEA IMPORTS.

Dealing with the overseas trade of the Dominion, the following table gives the actual amount of imports for the several ports of entry for the five years 1924–28:—

IMPORTS BY PORTS, 1924–28.

Port.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	16,389,712	17,312,990	17,189,076	14,870,824	14,835,883
Kaipara	14,540	7,814	7,060	4,659	3,616
Tauranga	36,066	86,878	22,070	13,648	8,977
Gisborne	238,534	242,715	282,395	224,483	208,711
New Plymouth	813,562	857,111	901,757	691,034	641,844
Patea	37,803	42,628	41,709	35,345	35,906
Port.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
	£	£	£	£	£
Wanganui	617,025	662,677	583,833	519,485	439,956
Wellington	14,034,782	15,874,813	15,653,189	14,478,925	15,231,675
Napier	1,096,629	1,116,176	1,059,080	882,389	888,037
Wairau (incl. Picton)	75,545	82,448	100,305	78,922	57,380
Nelson	214,798	224,278	211,755	212,905	235,070
Westport	57,229	68,586	51,208	61,857	55,959
Greymouth	113,173	138,191	144,409	134,427	160,206
Hokitika	14,557	13,197	11,755	9,833	10,557
Lyttelton	6,965,094	7,641,331	6,779,207	6,323,726	6,073,580
Timaru	969,809	815,621	797,253	622,734	531,313
Oamaru	179,580	162,199	124,034	105,811	94,837
Dunedin	5,290,550	5,921,749	4,937,716	4,578,034	4,552,980
Invercargill	1,338,615	1,185,005	991,752	933,905	819,779
Totals	48,527,603	52,456,407	49,889,563	44,782,946	44,886,266

During each of the five years covered by the above table well over half of the imports came in by way of Wellington or Auckland, the actual proportion in 1928 being 67 per cent. For the first time since 1920 imports into Wellington were in 1928 greater than the Auckland total.

OVERSEA EXPORTS.

The following table gives for the last five years the overseas exports according to the port at which they are actually placed on board the overseas vessel. During the five years 1922–26 and also in 1928 Wellington was the principal exporting port, Auckland occupying second position during these years and talking first position in 1927. These two ports together account for more than half the total exports of the Dominion.

OVERSEAS EXPORTS BY PORTS, 1924–28.

Port.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	12,295,834	12,434,223	10,702,829	12,960,087	14,006,020
Kaipara	6,392	31,026	11,964	17,591	9,902
Tokomaru Bay	374,829	427,240	338,706	292,962	196,175
Gisborne	1,608,690	1,776,359	1,080,975	1,067,259	1,316,541
New Plymouth	1,232,317	1,094,840	1,959,639	2,058,013	3,020,884
Patea	..	..	17	64	..
Wanganui	2,254,863	2,438,034	1,541,280	2,036,785	1,915,742
Wellington	16,017,834	15,607,425	12,829,095	12,490,112	15,315,941
Napier	3,834,134	5,321,266	3,467,611	3,705,361	4,502,472
Wairau (incl. Picton)	223,550	287,734	237,827	256,888	238,075
Nelson	68,016	74,680	87,611	75,019	78,157
Westport	28,755	51,954	84,863	67,760	97,418
Greymouth	259,967	331,483	386,396	342,537	354,040
Hokitika	..	381	6,647	3,238	3,430
Lyttelton	6,249,852	6,385,286	5,085,302	5,094,355	5,907,232
Timaru	1,992,317	2,380,367	1,900,366	1,878,800	2,273,229
Oamaru	237,013	324,997	349,982	384,041	446,643
Dunedin	3,482,791	3,621,646	3,065,448	3,253,876	3,946,427
Invercargill	2,369,985	2,596,351	2,041,693	2,422,956	2,463,502
Parcels-post	75,572	76,980	97,324	88,650	91,651
Totals	52,612,711	55,262,272	45,275,575	48,496,354	56,188,481

From 1914 to 1921 the Customs Department allocated exports as far as possible to the appropriate district of production, whether exported through the port for such district or not, and no complementary figures are available to show the export trade from each individual port for this period.

The system of showing exports according to the district of production was introduced on account of complaints from the smaller ports as to the injustice done them when goods produced in their surrounding districts were shown as an export of one of the larger ports to which they had been sent by rail or by coastal vessel. The system, however, did not prove satisfactory in practice, and the former method of showing exports according to the port at which the goods are placed on board the vessel by which they leave the Dominion was reverted to from the 1st January, 1922.

The west-coast ports of both Islands, as well as Nelson and Wairau in the northern portion of the South Island, send much of their produce to Wellington for loading on to the overseas vessels, and all of these ports show considerable decreases as a result of the reintroduction of the system in force prior to 1914.

PORT TONNAGE STATISTICS.

Neither under the system in force from 1914 to 1921, when exports were shown according to district of production, nor under the present system of allocating the goods to the port at which they are placed on board the exporting-vessel, is it possible to show properly the total work and progress of each port, since overseas trade only is dealt with, and goods passing over two wharves can be shown only under one without duplication in the trade statistics of the Dominion. Moreover, by dealing only with values the progress of a port cannot be accurately estimated from year to year, owing to the extent to which these total values are affected by variations in prices of the goods included. The work of a port is properly gauged by the tonnage handled; the revenue is levied on a tonnage basis, and a proper estimate of the progress and development of a port from year to year is better obtained by a study of the statistics of tonnage handled than of values. In comparing one port with another, however, care must be taken to observe whether there is any great difference in the character and value of the cargo handled, and allowance made accordingly: a port which handles principally coal, timber, or cement is not properly comparable with a port handling principally butter and cheese.

In order to obtain statistics of the total trade of each port a system of monthly returns from the various port authorities was instituted, showing under some forty headings the quantity of goods handled, distinguishing inwards and outwards cargo, coastal and overseas, and transhipments. The resultant statistics show on a tonnage basis the total exports of each port, whether placed on the overseas vessel there, sent to a central port for shipment overseas, or despatched coastwise to another port for consumption in New Zealand. For obvious reasons, total values of goods shipped coastwise cannot be obtained.

The following table gives for all ports in conjunction a summary of the cargo handled during each year from 1922 onwards:—

Year.	Inwards.^*		Transhipments.	Outwards.^*		Total Manifest Tonnage.
Year.	Coastal.	Overseas.	Transhipments.	Coastal.	Overseas.	Total Manifest Tonnage.
* Excluding transhipments.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
1922	1,754,464	1,357,178	438,792	1,864,360	701,560	6,555,146
1923	1,860,731	1,754,994	463,343	1,932,524	617,413	7,092,348
1924	1,913,650	2,261,888	477,783	1,962,771	599,466	7,693,341
1925	1,941,277	2,318,634	482,223	1,996,505	650,848	7,871,710
1926	1,979,885	2,309,069	472,641	2,075,250	752,326	8,061,812
1927	2,048,027	2,107,026	428,132	2,103,274	804,619	7,919,210
1928	2,112,319	2,147,113	433,829	2,211,294	818,402	8,156,786

Detailed tables are published for each of forty-nine ports in the “Annual Statistical Report on Trade and Shipping.” In addition, successive issues of the Monthly Abstract of Statistics contain cumulative figures of the total tonnage handled at each port, and details of items for the eighteen more important ports.

The following table shows for each port the total cargo inwards and outwards in 1928. The huge proportion of transhipments in the case of Wellington is very noticeable.

Port.	Inwards.^*		Transhipments.	Outwards.^*		Total Manifest Tonnage.
Port.	Coastal.	Overseas.	Transhipments.	Coastal.	Overseas.	Total Manifest Tonnage.
* Excluding transhipments.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
Awanui	5,471	..	..	2,710	..	8,181
Mangonui	2,014	..	..	820	..	2,834
Russell	4,227	..	1	3,867	2,714	10,810
Hokianga	6,326	..	..	1,485	5,247	13,058
Whangarei	26,546	..	..	147,903	..	174,449
Kaipara	5,200	773	..	725	1,857	8,555
Mangawai	895	..	..	348	..	1,243
Auckland	700,732	821,003	72,655	242,192	161,742	2,070,979
Onehunga	11,268	..	133	44,495	..	56,029
Great Barrier	597	..	..	469	..	1,066
Port Waikato	7,448	..	..	332	..	7,780
Raglan	2,017	..	..	876	..	2,893
Kawhia	2,602	..	..	1,099	..	3,701
Thames	8,745	..	..	3,215	..	11,960
Corornandel	2,001	..	..	1,150	..	3,151
Whitianga	999	..	..	374	..	1,373
Tauranga	19,004	496	..	8,078	..	27,578
Whakatane	11,507	..	..	4,991	..	16,498
Opotiki	10,122	..	..	4,442	..	14,564
Tokomaru Bay	7,563	..	390	3,270	4,156	15,769
Tolaga Bay	1,781	..	..	627	..	2,408
Gisborne	57,737	8,843	954	21,338	19,135	108,961
Waikokopu	11,111	184	334	1,366	2,736	16,065
Wairoa	5,623	..	..	1,091	..	6,714
Napier	87,161	34,747	10,491	28,554	51,421	222,865
Mokau	182	..	..	271	..	453
Waitara	3,181	..	..	223	..	3,404
New Plymouth	80,095	64,918	..	8,634	38,874	192,521
Patea	4,155	..	..	16,233	..	20,388
Wanganui	79,619	45,660	..	32,595	32,714	190,588
Foxton	7,767	..	..	2,255	..	10,022
Wellington	455,141	670,574	311,462	247,117	195,501	2,191,257
Picton	31,456	538	10	39,477	3,562	75,053
Wairau	8,065	..	..	8,917	..	16,982
Kaikoura	2,752	..	..	1,367	..	4,119
Nelson	60,339	7,618	27,663	30,659	1,976	155,918
Waitapu	2,309	..	..	1,635	..	3,944
Motueka	9,682	..	..	18,387	..	28,069
Westport	18,096	..	..	600,727	59,838	678,661
Greymouth	14,751	958	..	276,027	52,927	344,663
Hokitika	502	..	..	2,500	..	3,002
Lyttelton	147,501	247,915	563	225,042	73,610	695,194
Akaroa	1,068	..	..	219	..	1,287
Timaru	26,182	25,686	65	61,941	25,556	139,495
Oamaru	7,924	1,304	344	18,807	6,292	35,015
Otago	109,492	163,382	8,764	76,722	40,464	407,588
Invercargill	5,480	..	..	1,296	..	6,776
Bluff	36,885	52,514	..	14,153	38,080	141,632
Half-moon Bay	998	..	..	273	..	1,271
Totals	2,112,319	2,147,113	433,829	2,211,294	818,402	8,156,786

The above table shows the quantity of cargo placed on board the overseas vessels at the respective ports, and a table will be found in the shipping section of the Year-book showing the number and tonnage of overseas vessels calling at each port. These tables give a good indication of the extent to which each port enters directly into the overseas trade of the Dominion. The following table shows for the year 1928 the total shipments (overseas and coastwise) from each port of the nine principal commodities exported overseas by the Dominion and clearly indicates from which ports they originate, thus showing the extent to which the various ports handle our overseas exports, although the goods may be sent outwards coastwise for transhipment at another port. The tonnage of transhipments included in the totals given in the table is shown in italics above the figures for each port.

TOTAL OUTWARDS CARGO HANDLED AT EACH PORT IN 1928, SHOWING PRINCIPAL ITEMS OF NEW ZEALAND EXPORTS SEPARATELY.

(Transhipments are included and are also shown separately in italics.)

Port.	Wool.	Frozen Meat.	Butter	Cheese.	Tallow	Hides. Skins, and Pelts.	Coal.	Hemp (Fibre and Tow).	Timber.	All other Goods.	Total.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
Awanui	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	2,710	2,710
Mangonui	117	..	383	..	..	18	..	..	..	302	820
Russell	157	2,189	502	..	149	187	1,910	..	302	1,186	6,582
Hokianga	..	..	729	..	..	..	..	..	6,003	..	6,732
Whangarei	231	..	964	..	93	238	23,571	..	394	117,412	147,903
Kaipara	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	2,370	212	2,582
Mangawai	15	..	4	..	..	8	..	..	40	281	343
Auckland	2,043	164	5,854	2,450	349	1,507	3,650	2,126	4,940	49,572	72,655
	12,521	16,375	52,769	14,390	4,823	9,457	11,842	6,303	24,985	323,124	476,589
Onehunga	21	..	..	..	..	..	..	7	6	99	133
	42	..	6	7	..	..	1,958	7	841	41,767	44,628
Great Harrier	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	469	469
Port Waikato	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	332	332
Raglan	323	..	212	..	..	..	..	29	37	275	876
Kawhia	303	..	173	..	..	..	..	..	..	623	1,099
Thames	44	..	66	730	42	..	..	..	877	1,456	3,215
Coromandel	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	1,150	1,150
Whitianga	34	..	161	..	3	11	..	..	..	165	374
Tauranga	41	..	1,438	..	56	275	..	1,133	2,197	2,938	8,078
Whakatane	58	..	95	1,054	43	184	..	..	114	3,443	4,991
Opotiki	310	..	1,361	35	17	61	..	..	..	2,658	4,442
Tokomaru Bay	294	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	9	67	390
	2,299	2,744	..	..	219	266	..	..	9	2,279	7,816
Tolaga Bay	585	..	..	..	..	4	..	..	..	38	627
	271	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	683	954
Gisborne	7,565	12,016	1,636	..	1,307	1,421	..	..	745	16,737	41,427
Waikokopu	3	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	331	334
	560	2,150	..	..	191	143	..	100	3	1,289	4,436
Wairoa	590	20	131	..	..	10	..	..	..	340	1,091
Napier	4,433	7	274	..	66	44	437	..	250	4,980	10,491
	22,239	28,331	2,630	291	2,972	3,022	5,134	11	1,058	24,778	90,466
Mokau	70	..	..	..	..	4	71	..	109	17	271
Waitara	..	..	..	..	38	66	..	..	..	119	223
Now Ply-mouth	300	14,186	7,322	17,194	864	1,218	..	..	4	6,420	47,508
Patea	166	10	1,440	13,488	299	559	..	..	..	271	16,233
Wanganui	11,594	18,264	3,919	14,589	2,347	1,826	131	..	1,431	11,208	65,309
Foxton	..	..	..	..	..	5	..	..	..	2,250	2,255
Wellington	10,143	233	6,850	26,340	1,001	2,070	125,605	2,547	1,434	135,239	311,462
	37,898	37,229	16,052	41,068	6,209	9,336	125,869	8,678	4,355	467,386	754,080
Picton	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	10	..	10
	1,711	1,898	189	268	292	245	..	361	10	38,075	43,049
Wairau	1,666	..	2	..	..	33	..	68	..	7,148	8,917
Kaikoura	351	..	235	2	5	22	..	..	188	564	1,367
Nelson	89	..	388	373	..	3	9,670	38	107	16,995	27,663
	1,030	406	779	453	136	551	11,262	38	265	45,378	60,298
Waitapu	74	..	398	..	..	8	..	..	61	1,094	1,635
Motueka	123	..	167	..	..	3	..	7	7	18,080	18,387
Westport	22	..	116	..	16	267	653,451	131	719	5,843	660,565
Greymouth	23	..	..	1	89	178	253,957	..	73,030	1,676	328,954
Hokitika	2	..	..	4	5	4	..	..	2,278	207	2,500
	1	..	..	..	..	8	..	..	17	537	563
Lyttelton	20,339	25,497	1,837	1,541	4,185	4,935	210	33	782	239,856	299,215
Akaroa	76	..	39	39	..	..	..	..	..	65	219
Timaru	..	..	..	25	..	28	..	..	..	12	63
	7,879	13,126	328	626	1,659	1,098	..	..	1,297	61,549	87,562
Oamaru	..	..	..	..	..	..	336	..	..	8	344
	900	4,399	..	..	562	87	336	..	..	19,159	25,443
Otago	127	..	..	..	16	139	..	1,239	300	6,943	8,764
	16,312	8,127	1,240	2,858	1,497	3,279	305	1,939	620	89,773	125,950
Invercargill	..	27	2	..	13	1	84	..	269	900	1,296
Bluff	7,676	7,136	555	9,705	1,264	713	66	2,973	4,871	17,274	52,233
Half - moon Bay	4	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	269	273
Totals	17,425	404	13,366	29,188	1,432	3,799	139,698	5,957	7,073	215,487	433,829
	156,250	194,130	97,880	118,343	29,395	39,743	1,095,157	21,811	130,271	1,580,545	3,463,525

TRANSHIPMENTS.

Transhipments of cargo during 1928 are shown in the two preceding tables to have totalled 433,829 tons, of which 311,462 tons were transhipped at Wellington.

Transhipments are of four classes, as follows:—

Coastal to Coastal.—Cargo which has been loaded on a vessel at one New Zealand port and is transhipped to another vessel for discharge at another New Zealand port.

Coastal to Overseas.—Cargo which has been loaded on a vessel at a New Zealand port and is transhipped to another vessel for discharge at a port outside of the Dominion.

Overseas to Coastal.—Cargo which has come from overseas and is transhipped to another vessel for discharge at a New Zealand port.

Overseas to Overseas.—Cargo which has come from overseas and is transhipped to another vessel for discharge outside New Zealand.

The first class represents purely coastal trade, but each of the others may be added to the appropriate figures of overseas trade shown previously to ascertain the total tonnage of goods arriving from or departing overseas. The total inwards tonnage from overseas is found to be 2,289,915, and the total outward tonnage going overseas 1,003,173. It should be noted that in the compilation of statistics tonnage is reckoned by weight for some items and by measurement for others.

Two tables are appended showing the transhipment trade of each port affected for 1928, and the transhipments of the various items of merchandise, &c., a distinction being made in each case between the four classes referred to above.

TRANSHIPMENTS BY PORTS AND CLASS, 1928.

Port.	Coastal to Coastal.	Coastal to Overseas.	Overseas to Coastal.	Overseas to Overseas.	Totals.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
Russell	1	..	..	..	1
Auckland	14,299	17,930	38,071	2,355	72,655
Onehunga	133	..	..	..	133
Tokomaru Bay	96	294	..	..	390
Gisborne	220	734	..	..	954
Waikokopu	334	..	..	..	334
Napier	4,668	4,856	967	..	10,491
Wellington	66,875	154,472	87,009	3,106	311,462
Picton	..	..	..	10	10
Nelson	23,349	931	3,383	..	27,663
Lyttelton	279	8	254	22	563
Timaru	12	53	..	..	65
Oamaru	344	..	..	..	344
Otago	1,139	..	7,625	..	8,764
Totals	111,749	179,278	137,309	5,493	433,829

TRANSHIPMENTS BY ITEMS AND CLASS, 1928.

Item.	Coastal to Coastal.	Coastal to Overseas.	Overseas to Coastal.	Overseas to Overseas.	Totals.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
Butter	397	12,968	..	1	13,366
Cheese	376	28,812	..	..	29,188
Coal	61,183	76,685	830	1,000	139,698
Fruit	10,923	24,930	7,824	13	43,690
Hemp (fibre and tow)	171	4,634	1,152	..	5,957
Hides, skins, and pelts	222	3,391	115	71	3,799
Kerosene, petrol, &c.	434	138	40,716	15	41,303
Manures, artificial	1,910	242	7,386	13	9,551
Meat, frozen (beef, mutton, and lamb)	45	359	..	..	404
Sugar	1,383	71	44	98	1,596
Tallow	169	1,263	..	..	1,432
Timber	676	858	5,182	357	7,073
Wines, spirits, ale, and beer	1,166	3	943	11	2,123
Wool	355	16,987	83	..	17,425
All other goods	32,339	7,937	73,034	3,914	117,224
Totals	111,749	179,278	137,309	5,493	433,829

Chapter 12. SECTION XII.—SHIPPING.

Table of Contents

REGISTERED VESSELS.

OVERSEA SHIPPING.

OVERSEA SHIPPING, 1919–28.

NATIONALITY OF VESSELS.

DIRECTION OF OVERSEA SHIPPING.

SHIPPING BETWEEN NEW ZEALAND AND PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1919–28.

SHIPPING TRADE OF PORTS.

OVERSEAS SHIPPING, 1926–28, BY PORTS OF FIRST ARRIVAL AND FINAL DEPARTURE.

NUMBER AND TONNAGE OF VESSELS (OVERSEAS AND COASTAL) ENTERED AT EACH PORT, 1927 AND 1923.

NUMBER AND TONNAGE OF OVERSEAS VESSELS ENTERED AT EACH PORT, 1927 AND 1928.

MARINE OFFICERS' CERTIFICATES.

SURVEY OF SHIPS.

LIGHTHOUSES.

WRECKS.

REGISTERED VESSELS.

THE number and tonnage of the registered vessels belonging to the several ports of registry in the Dominion on the 31st December, 1928 (distinguishing sailing-vessels, steamers, and motor-vessels), were as follows:—

Port.	Sailing-vessels.			Steam-vessels.			Motor-vessels.
Port.	Vessels.	Gross Tonnage.	Net Tonnage.	Vessels.	Gross Tonnage.	Net Tonnage.	Vessels.	Gross Tonnage.	Net Tonnage.
Auckland	60	4,722	4,028	100	27,881	14,618	178	6,822	3,136
Napier	4	266	253	21	4,734	2,446	9	744	463
Wellington	14	5,319	4,909	61	102,484	58,498	13	3,148	1,633
Nelson	2	35	35	14	6,884	3,283	8	403	209
Lyttelton	8	2,162	2,078	15	6,283	2,938	5	206	100
Timaru	..	..	..	1	942	488	1	11	3
Dunedin	..	..	..	27	19,126	10,761	4	63	40
Invercargill	..	..	..	11	1,455	739	4	614	231
Totals	88	12,504	11,303	250	169,789	93,771	222	12,011	5,815

Auckland is the port of registry of the majority of the vessels forming New Zealand's “mosquito” fleet, the average net tonnage of the 338 vessels on the Auckland register being only 64 tons- At Dunedin many of the vessels of the Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand are registered, while several of the larger vessels of this company employed in both the coastal and foreign trade of the Dominion are registered in the United Kingdom. The registration figures at the end of each of the last ten years are as follows:—

Year.	Sailing-vessels.			Steam and Motor Vessels.			Totals.
Year.	Vessels.	Gross Tonnage.	Net Tonnage.	Vessels.	Gross Tonnage.	Net Tonnage.	Vessels.	Gross Tonnage.	Net Tonnage.
1919	174	24,354	22,216	382	116,261	64,943	556	140,615	87,159
1920	163	23,334	21,223	384	116,611	64,837	547	139,945	86,060
1921	161	25,461	23,201	401	122,371	68,705	562	147,832	91,906
1922	138	23,583	21,484	418	127,006	70,860	556	150,589	92,344
1923	127	21,718	19,812	428	143,164	80,850	555	164,882	100,662
1924	123	21,297	19,392	441	168,847	94,978	564	190,144	114,370
1925	117	21,244	19,452	462	186,520	104,241	579	207,764	123,693
1926	92	12,900	11,634	466	189,454	105,703	558	202,354	117,337
1927	90	12,654	11,418	475	192,106	106,386	565	204,760	117,804
1928	88	12,504	11,303	472	181,800	99,586	560	194,304	110,889

The number of sailing-vessels on the register has decreased rapidly during recent years, there having been a continuous decline since 1907, in which year 323 sailing-vessels were on the register.

In the following table registered vessels in the Dominion have been classified according to whether employed in the coastal or foreign trade. The totals given here do not agree with those shown previously, as in this table vessels employed exclusively in the river trade have not been included.

Size of Vessel.	Employed in the Coastal Trade only.		Employed partly in the Coastal and partly in the Foreign Trade.		Employed in the Foreign Trade only.
Size of Vessel.	Number of Vessels.	Tonnage.	Number of Vessels.	Tonnage.	Number of Vessels.	Tonnage.
Under 50 tons	73	1,435	..	..	..	..
50 tons and under 100	57	4,153	..	..	2	160
100 tons and under 200	29	4,118	2	266	4	598
200 tons and under 300	12	2,966	..	..	4	1,044
300 tons and under 400	6	2,015	..	..	..	..
400 tons and under 600	7	3,290	..	..	2	1,098
600 tons and under 800	7	6,064	1	749	3	2,206
800 tons and under 1,000	4	3,418	..	..	3	2,785
1,000 tons and under 1,500	5	6,408	3	3,412	7	8,409
1,500 tons and under 2,000	..	..	..	..	12	21,291
2,000 tons and over	..	..	..	..	8	25,315
Totals	200	32,867	6	4,427	45	62,906

Of the 200 vessels employed in the coastal trade only, 30 were sailing-vessels with an aggregate tonnage of 2,306, and 170 steam- and motor-vessels of 30,561 tons. Twenty-seven of the sailing-vessels were under 100 tons, the only vessel of this class of any size being one of 836 tons. The six vessels employed in the coastal and foreign trade were 1 sailing-vessel and 5 steam- or motor-vessels with aggregate tonnages of 100 and 4,327 respectively. Very few sailing-vessels are employed in the foreign trade, the total number in 1928 being only 6 with an aggregate tonnage of 5,022. One was between 100 and 200 tons, 2 were between 200 and 300, 2 were between 600 and 800, and 1 was over 2,000 tons.

Figures showing the position during each of the five years 1924–28 are next given:—

Year.	Employed in the Coastal Trade only.		Employed partly in the Coastal and partly in the Foreign Trade.		Employed in the Foreign Trade only.
Year.	Sailing.	Steam.	Sailing.	Steam.	Sailing.	Steam.
Number of Vessels.
1924	60	277	2	8	12	29
1925	52	263	2	9	12	28
1926	37	164	2	4	9	43
1927	31	171	2	4	8	42
1928	30	170	1	5	6	39
Tonnage.
1924	4,631	38,805	300	10,332	6,473	39,381
1925	3,478	35,497	300	10,498	6,473	47,846
1926	2,839	26,525	300	3,911	6,033	59,979
1927	2,404	28,327	300	3,578	5,350	60,170
1928	2,306	30,561	100	4,327	5,022	57,884

OVERSEA SHIPPING.

The tonnage of vessels entered and cleared during 1928 amounted to 4,391,091, as compared with 4,396,567 for 1927. The number of vessels decreased from 1,267 to 1,206.

Of late years the tendency has been for vessels of a larger size to be employed in the New Zealand trade, in order to cope with the growing imports and exports of the Dominion and for the purposes of the passenger traffic. The increase over a period of years is thus more noticeable on a comparison of tonnage than by comparing the number of vessels. The number of vessels entered inwards and cleared outwards in 1918 was 1,087 of an aggregate tonnage of 2,590,175—an average of 2,383 tons.

The 1,206 vessels in 1928 aggregated 4,391,091 tons, the average being 3,641 tons. Dealing with steamships only (922 in 1918 and 1,204 in 1928), the average tonnage is found to be 2,700 and 3,645 tons respectively. The number of sailing-vessels arriving and departing decreased from 165 in 1918 to only 2 in 1928, the aggregate tonnage falling in the same time from 100,589 to 2,542 tons.

The number and tonnage of vessels entered and cleared during each of the last ten years, separating steam from sailing, are as shown in the following table:—

OVERSEA SHIPPING, 1919–28.

Year.	Entered.				Cleared.
	Vessels.		Tonnage.		Vessels.		Tonnage.
	Steam.	Sailing.	Steam.	Sailing.	Steam.	Sailing.	Steam.	Sailing.
1919	472	92	1,427,759	53,124	475	99	1,444,206	61,050
1920	665	79	2,025,175	37,195	637	70	1,942,903	33,352
1921	611	67	1,891,309	48,927	610	68	1,895,419	48,922
1922	552	19	1,774,886	8,101	551	18	1,782,436	7,544
1923	646	18	2,106,587	5,292	628	18	2,055,795	4,707
1924	694	19	2,205,424	7,531	686	20	2,220,354	6,853
1925	635	21	2,112,428	10,313	640	23	2,128,137	11,055
1926	665	13	2,251,135	10,199	657	8	2,231,713	5,594
1927	630	4	2,193,300	2,504	632	1	2,198,840	1,923
1928	599	2	2,178,341	2,542	605	..	2,210,208	..

NATIONALITY OF VESSELS.

The next table shows the number and tonnage of British, colonial, and foreign vessels entered and cleared in each of the ten years 1919 to 1928:—

Year.	British.		Colonial.		Foreign.		Total.
Year.	Vessels.	Tons.	Vessels.	Tons.	Vessels.	Tons.	Vessels.	Tons.
Entered.
1919	266	1,114,479	239	285,383	59	81,021	564	1,480,883
1920	363	1,477,965	302	403,025	79	181,380	744	2,062,370
1921	353	1,386,467	280	438,680	45	115,089	678	1,940,236
1922	356	1,369,799	200	360,365	15	52,823	571	1,782,987
1923	398	1,543,817	242	498,483	24	69,579	664	2,111,879
1924	342	1,393,545	329	691,272	42	128,138	713	2,212,965
1925	275	1,297,136	326	674,700	55	150,905	656	2,122,741
1926	291	1,376,545	324	706,065	63	178,724	678	2,261,334
1927	292	1,385,601	282	620,185	60	190,018	634	2,195,804
1928	300	1,444,808	245	563,767	56	172,308	601	2,180,883
Cleared.
1919	273	1,139,812	239	286,062	62	79,382	574	1,505,256
1920	345	1,421,814	291	393,091	71	161,350	707	1,976,255
1921	356	1,388,147	267	417,786	55	138,408	678	1,944,341
1922	350	1,365,722	203	369,491	16	54,767	569	1,789,980
1923	387	1,517,096	237	478,086	22	65,320	646	2,060,502
1924	342	1,418,158	322	674,702	42	134,347	706	2,227,207
1925	286	1,318,680	323	663,215	54	157,297	663	2,139,192
1926	294	1,386,967	310	686,994	61	163,346	665	2,237,307
1927	300	1,402,875	273	601,741	60	196,147	633	2,200,763
1928	301	1,447,102	244	575,425	60	187,681	605	2,210,208

Of the 601 vessels entered into the Dominion in 1928, 300 were registered in the United Kingdom, 167 in New Zealand, 78 in other British countries, and 56 in foreign countries. The number of vessels registered in the United Kingdom represents 50 per cent. of the total, but on a tonnage basis the percentage is found to increase to 66. The average tonnage of the vessels was 4,816. Although vessels registered in New Zealand and other British countries comprise 41 per cent. of the total vessels, the tonnage on the other hand is only 26 per cent. of the aggregate. The average tonnage is comparatively low, being only 2,301. Foreign vessels constitute 9 per cent. of the number, and 8 per cent. of the tonnage, with an average tonnage for each vessel of 3,077.

The foreign vessels entered inwards consisted of 31 Norwegian (95,291 tons), 19 American (58,863 tons), 2 Dutch, 1 German, 1 Danish, 1 Belgian, and 1 Finnish.

DIRECTION OF OVERSEA SHIPPING.

Particulars of the number and net tonnage of vessels entered and cleared between New Zealand and various countries during the years 1927 and 1928 are given below:—

Country.	1927.				1928.
	Entered.		Cleared.		Entered.		Cleared.
	No.	Tonnage.	No.	Tonnage.	No.	Tonnage.	No.	Tonnage.
United Kingdom	70	409,892	93	546,790	72	430,542	95	575,706
India	5	21,455	..	..	4	19,650	1	2,988
Straits Settlements	5	14,452	2	4,540	2	6,949	..	..
Seychelles Islands	1	1,923	..	..	2	4,699	..	..
South African Union	2	10,143	..	..	..	..	..	..
Canada	37	191,887	18	130,316	42	230,204	16	128,079
Australia	315	911,602	380	1,097,946	255	798,516	313	971,239
Fiji	19	47,909	16	39,820	27	57,579	21	47,764
Nauru (Pleasant) Island	13	40,420	4	11,089	11	29,313	8	22,216
Gilbert and Ellice Islands	7	20,931	9	27,764	8	23,308	10	28,876
Norfolk Island	9	2,529	9	2,529	11	5,431	10	5,150
Papua	..	..	1	2,733	..	..	2	5,918
Solomon Islands	2	806	2	806	1	403	2	806
Tonga	..	..	1	29	..	..	..	..
Western Samoa	..	..	..	..	3	2,247	2	4,059
Belgium	1	4,979	..	..	5	22,179	..	..
France	..	..	3	14,172	..	..	3	11,705
Netherlands	1	3,172	..	..	..	..	..	..
Norway	4	14,649	..	..	1	79	..	..
Egypt	..	..	..	..	1	2,585	..	..
Morocco	..	..	..	..	4	12,273	..	..
Juan de Nova	..	..	..	..	1	3,141	..	..
Portuguese East Africa	..	..	1	3,031	..	..	..	..
Madagascar	1	2,957	..	..	..	..	..	..
Dutch East Indies	7	21,186	6	19,002	15	47,821	12	34,272
Panama Canal Zone	..	..	..	..	1	4,422	..	..
Mexico	..	..	..	..	2	5,551	..	..
Chile	2	6,818	1	3,150	2	5,920	2	5,524
Peru	2	5,280	2	4,800	..	..	..	..
Cuba	4	9,598	..	..	..	..	..	..
United States of America	109	427,578	54	231,298	111	438,665	71	292,110
Hawaii	..	..	2	3,855	..	..	2	6,829
New Caledonia	2	2,468	5	5,813	4	4,553	8	13,142
Walpole Island	2	2,098	..	..	..	..	..	..
Society Islands	..	..	1	351	..	..	2	6,191
Tuamotu Archipelago	2	5,798	11	35,694	3	9,373	8	24,148
Tutuila	..	..	..	..	..	..	3	7,736
Antarctica	..	..	..	..	1	246	..	..
Whale-fisheries	12	15,274	12	15,235	12	15,234	14	15,750
Totals	634	2,195,804	633	2,200,763	601	2,180,883	605	2,210,208

Slightly less than half of the vessels, representing 40 per cent. of the total tonnage inwards during the two years covered by the foregoing table, came from Australia, while a somewhat higher proportion of the shipping outwards was cleared for Australia. The United Kingdom ranks second, the United States third, Canada fourth, and the Pacific islands next. The figures for the principal countries for each of the last ten years are as follows:—

SHIPPING BETWEEN NEW ZEALAND AND PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1919–28.

Year.	Australia.	United Kingdom.	United States.	Canada.	Fiji.	Pacific Islands (other than Fiji).
Entered.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
1919	637,368	388,303	220,819	70,066	57,877	27,385
1920	1,076,585	339,173	101,461	131,989	61,260	42,202
1921	888,287	415,020	324,089	167,951	70,461	33,894
1922	872,175	375,361	211,223	193,161	57,705	34,475
1923	1,045,264	387,987	298,470	192,098	53,779	42,620
1924	1,082,982	376,025	351,511	174,654	58,237	48,962
1925	936,569	433,956	346,987	195,850	64,211	65,638
1926	1,001,520	418,312	424,886	185,970	58,492	73,733
1927	911,602	409,892	427,578	191,887	47,909	75,030
1928	798,516	430,542	438,665	230,204	57,579	74,628
Cleared.
1919	683,432	559,476	58,256	75,603	40,909	36,008
1920	1,185,707	473,822	56,065	89,167	33,943	35,935
1921	1,178,138	535,273	84,571	69,416	56,223	15,578
1922	974,872	543,821	111,483	70,148	54,190	18,314
1923	1,211,532	523,663	92,844	105,218	48,737	53,228
1924	1,338,655	525,230	144,217	104,536	45,594	35,655
1925	1,193,344	524,962	154,984	125,412	53,249	52,004
1926	1,175,263	539,910	192,052	121,027	58,751	72,768
1927	1,097,946	546,790	231,298	130,316	39,820	90,663
1928	971,239	575,706	292,110	128,079	47,764	119,133

SHIPPING TRADE OF PORTS.

New Zealand has twenty-one ports of entry for Customs purposes, and there are numerous other ports around the coast. A vessel arriving from overseas may call at several ports in the Dominion to discharge and load cargo, and is recorded as an overseas arrival at the first port of call, and as an overseas departure from the port from which it finally sails. Its movements from one port to another in New Zealand are treated as coastwise shipping. The figures in the following table must simply be taken as showing the extent to which various ports are made the first port of arrival or the last port of departure, and not as indicating the relative overseas trade of the various ports.

OVERSEAS SHIPPING, 1926–28, BY PORTS OF FIRST ARRIVAL AND FINAL DEPARTURE.

Port.	Entered.			Cleared.
Port.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1926.	1927.	1928.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
Kaipara	1,396	653	..	1,396	..	1,513
Auckland	1,262,658	1,203,911	1,252,247	783,107	721,905	760,389
Tauranga	..	..	..	..	351	..
Gisborne	15,502	19,646	20,794	14,171	7,395	290
Napier	35,920	29,514	23,569	17,731	29,719	47,960
New Plymouth	43,507	87,319	68,844	37,866	38,356	32,691
Wanganui	18,349	20,829	10,763	20,925	18,873	24,344
Wellington	625,934	594,111	585,381	835,707	833,691	820,880
Picton	903	6,751	2,100	1,408	3,023	..
Nelson	199	..	..	..	4,856	..
Westport	12,856	12,615	6,583	138,631	161,291	157,350
Greymouth	..	934	3,161	32,551	22,498	29,637
Lyttelton	79,907	59,089	51,192	74,502	67,549	70,510
Timaru	3,763	..	9,373	22,529	22,309	17,641
Oamaru	16,034	933	..	..	1,847	..
Otago	67,565	63,308	41,897	135,443	154,843	166,083
Bluff	76,841	96,191	104,979	121,340	122,254	80,920
Totals	2,261,334	2,195,804	2,180,883	2,237,307	2,200,763	2,210,208

A series of tables showing for each port the total shipping entered and cleared, and distinguishing between overseas and coastal vessels, irrespective of whether the former had been entered or cleared overseas or coastwise, is published annually in Part II of the “Annual Statistical Report on Trade and Shipping.” From these tables may be seen at a glance not only the total shipping of each port, but the number and tonnage of vessels calling there which are engaged in the overseas trade.

The movement of overseas and coastal vessels on the New Zealand coast is well illustrated in the following table, which gives the aggregate number and tonnage of the total calls made during each of the years 1922–28.

Year.	Overseas Vessels.		Coastal Vessels.		Total.
Year.	Number.	Net Tonnage.	Number.	Net Tonnage.	Number.	Net Tonnage.
1922	1,840	5,986,679	19,930	5,017,509	21,770	11,004,188
1923	2,085	7,054,973	22,882	5,474,334	24,967	12,529,307
1924	2,412	7,767,828	24,557	5,439,877	26,969	13,207,705
1925	2,388	7,832,102	23,519	5,535,562	25,907	13,367,664
1926	2,586	8,324,126	22,402	5,450,825	24,988	13,774,951
1927	2,354	8,237,451	22,123	5,633,291	24,477	13,870,742
1928	2,404	8,407,916	21,017	5,424,867	23,421	13,832,783

The figures for overseas vessels in the above table show that these vessels are now making considerably more calls at the minor ports in the Dominion. The number of visits made by vessels engaged exclusively in the coastal trade reached its peak in 1924, since when there has been a continuous decline. The tonnage has not shown a similar movement, the figures indicating a tendency to employ in this class of trade a larger type of vessel.

Figures showing the number and tonnage of all vessels entered into each port during 1927 and 1928 are given in the following table. In this table, however, no distinction is made between overseas and coastal vessels.

NUMBER AND TONNAGE OF VESSELS (OVERSEAS AND COASTAL) ENTERED AT EACH PORT, 1927 AND 1923.

Port.	1927.		1928.
Port.	Number.	Tonnage.	Number.	Tonnage.
Parengarenga	29	3,832	28	3,872
Awanui	101	5,990	92	7,431
Mangonui	74	22,995	62	20,497
Whangaroa	189	53,993	175	46,298
Russell	10	923	158	94,155
Whangape	178	83,826	2	30
Hokianga	108	18,852	91	19,059
Whangarei	1,073	153,295	952	132,047
Kaipara	13	4,206	19	7,694
Mangawai	62	3,124	59	2,996
Auckland	8,039	2,402,880	7,724	2,401,911
Onehunga	296	74,571	311	72,333
Raglan	55	10,736	56	8,514
Kawhia	67	10,264	65	9,018
Coromandel	104	8,576	105	9,096
Whitianga	96	10,700	111	10,398
Thames	539	88,444	523	84,874
Tauranga	297	112,710	249	76,949
Whakatane	136	10,081	101	7,499
Opotiki	86	7,879	86	7,591
Tokomaru Bay	270	123,535	233	108,351
Tolaga Bay	102	45,002	75	39,473
Gisborne	595	348,320	514	301,534
Waikokopu	141	84,125	126	88,776
Wairoa	101	6,723	95	6,179
Napier	687	587,727	600	645,859
Mokau	31	1,333	10	316
Waitara	60	2,930	41	2,311
New Plymouth	398	468,963	402	447,786
Patea	201	19,652	156	15,086
Wanganui	561	339,166	522	345,484
Foxton	57	7,467	65	6,240
Wellington	3,138	3,477,706	3,090	3,477,149
Havelock	27	651	26	677
Picton	395	268,155	401	297,057
Wairau	222	15,763	222	15,345
Nelson	1,130	329,994	1,097	356,814
Waitapu	148	10,341	81	5,789
Motueka	218	19,523	223	20,183
Westport	550	452,099	563	472,119
Greymouth	278	162,127	292	179,206
Hokitika	14	336	32	1,276
Kaikoura	108	11,858	96	11,502
Lyttelton	1,612	1,907,384	1,573	1,900,483
Akaroa	83	4,008	74	3,772
Timaru	379	501,358	389	478,664
Oamaru	181	155,264	169	143,882
Otago	557	985,394	570	993,298
Invercargill	124	5,769	90	4,723
Bluff	448	436,792	493	425,836
Riverton	1	83	..	..
Half-moon Bay	108	3,317	132	15,351
Totals	24,477	13,870,742	23,421	13,832,783

Wellington ranks as the first port of the Dominion as regards aggregate tonnage of shipping entered, followed by Auckland, Lyttelton, Otago, and Napier, in that order. Wellington and Lyttelton are the termini of the daily inter-Island ferry service, and to this fact is due a large part of the coastwise shipping credited to these two ports.

The number and tonnage of overseas vessels included in the totals given above for the various ports concerned are now given. The table covers all vessels engaged in the overseas trade, whether entered overseas or coastwise, and the figures for individual ports differ greatly from those given in a previous table, wherein the tonnage of overseas vessels entered is counted only for the port of first entry in the Dominion.

NUMBER AND TONNAGE OF OVERSEAS VESSELS ENTERED AT EACH PORT, 1927 AND 1928.

Port.	1927.		1928.
Port.	Number.	Tonnage.	Number.	Tonnage.
Whangaroa	2	3,707	..	..
Russell	1	339	8	43,719
Whangape	7	26,042	..	..
Hokianga	6	5,210	8	9,534
Whangarei	26	33,532	31	37,326
Kaipara	4	2,542	6	5,209
Auckland	489	1,741,474	540	1,874,073
Whitianga	..	..	1	290
Thames	2	580	3	870
Tokomaru Bay	12	73,427	10	66,650
Gisborne	71	236,627	49	209,280
Waikokopu	11	61,691	11	66,157
Napier	117	463,956	128	522,476
New Plymouth	104	357,453	104	362,967
Wanganui	64	240,930	63	252,383
Wellington	463	1,966,116	469	1,945,686
Picton	31	86,955	16	54,927
Nelson	11	37,651	18	51,168
Westport	151	262,719	141	262,051
Greymouth	92	85,822	113	108,778
Lyttelton	245	983,236	230	972,425
Timaru	85	331,880	81	306,470
Oamaru	26	65,759	24	60,603
Otago	222	798,503	233	830,243
Bluff	112	371,300	117	364,631
Totals	2,354	8,237,451	2,404	8,407,916

Overseas vessels are shown to have called at twenty-three ports during 1928, including nine which were not first ports of call for a single overseas vessel. The total entries of the 601 overseas vessels during the year were 2,404, which gives an average of four ports called at on each visit to the Dominion. Many vessels—as, for instance, those engaged in the transport of timber and coal, and those merely touching at a New Zealand port while en route between Australia and America—call at only one port in the Dominion, while, on the other hand, vessels engaged in the Home trade generally call at half a dozen or more ports.

MARINE OFFICERS' CERTIFICATES.

The examination for masters, mates, engineers, &c., of vessels are controlled by the Marine Department, and the regulations relating to these examinations are based upon those of the Imperial Board of Trade, with such modifications as are necessitated by local conditions; but the British Board of Trade recognizes the following New Zealand certificates only as of Imperial validity: Master, extra; master, ordinary; master, steamship; first mate, only mate, and second mate, ordinary and steamship; first- and second-class marine engineers. It is a condition of such recognition that candidates must possess service qualifications and pass examinations similar and not inferior to those prescribed by the British Board of Trade.

New regulations for the examination of masters and mates were issued by the Board of Trade in 1925, and corresponding regulations were made in New Zealand and came into force on 1st November, 1927.

During 1928–29 some 278 candidates sat for examinations. Of the 186 who passed, 87 were masters, mates and engineers of seagoing ships; 4 were for voluntary examination in compass deviation; 11 were masters, mates, and engineers of steamers plying within restricted limits; 32 were engineers of seagoing motor-propelled boats; and 52 were engineers of such boats plying within restricted limits.

SURVEY OF SHIPS.

The Shipping and Seamen Act of 1908, and its amendments, provide for an annual survey by Government surveyors of all vessels, with a view to ensuring their seaworthiness. Certificates of survey were issued in 1928–29 to 231 steamers, 484 oil-engine vessels, and 14 sailing-vessels. Vessels to the number of 340 were also surveyed for seaworthiness and efficiency under section 226 of the 1908 Act.

LIGHTHOUSES.

The long coast-line of the Dominion is marred in many places by hidden rocks or reefs and other perils to navigation. This has compelled the erection of some forty-seven coastal lighthouses of various types. No fewer than twelve of these are situated in the stormy area of Cook Strait and the bays opening therefrom, reaching from where the red and white rays of Cape Farewell light give warning of the seven-mile-long sandspit at the northern extremity of the South Island to the bluff shore marked by the Cape Palliser light at the southern point of the North Island.

The buildings are of varying kinds, as necessitated by their respective situations. In twenty-six cases the fight apparatus is classed as of the dioptric order—i.e., a central lamp sending its rays through a combination of surrounding lenses. Automatic lights are used in the remainder of the coastal lighthouses.

The most powerful light is that of Stephen Island, which, placed some 600 ft. above high water, is visible at a distance of 32 1/2 nautical miles. Next in order come Cape Brett light (altitude 510 ft.) and East Cape (505 ft.), both visible at 30 1/2 miles; Godley Head (altitude 450 ft.), visibility 29 miles; Cuvier Island light (altitude 390 ft.) and Mokohinou (altitude 385 ft.), both of which have a visibility of 27 miles. Sixteen other lights have a range of 20 miles or over.

All manually-attended coastal lighthouses are equipped with signalling flags and lamps, the keepers being competent to transmit or receive messages. Coastal fights—i.e., those outside the bounds of the various harbour authorities—are maintained by the Marine Department.

The average cost of erection and equipment of the coastal lighthouses was about £6,000 per fight. The two most costly were Cape Brett Lighthouse (£11,237) on the Auckland Peninsula, and Dog Island Lighthouse (£10,481) in Feveaux Strait. The cost of maintenance of all lighthouses under the control of the Marine Department was for 1928–29—Salaries, £16,775; stores and general maintenance, £7,144; working-expenses of tender, £21,560; administration expenses, £5,636; interest and sinking-fund charges, £17,286; depreciation, £9,662: total, £78,063. Light dues for 1928–29 totalled £80,980.

WRECKS.

In the case of any wreck or shipping casualty in New Zealand waters a Collector of Customs, Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, or other person empowered by the Minister of Marine, institutes an inquiry into the cause and circumstances of such casualty. If necessary, a formal investigation is held by a Magistrate, who has power to cancel or suspend the certificate of any officer where the damage has resulted from his wrongful act or default.

Should any wreck occur on the coast the Receiver of Wrecks for that district, usually an officer of the Customs, has the necessary authority to be used in the preservation of life and property.

During the year 1928–29, 103 inquiries, of which 10 were Magisterial, were held into shipping casualties, the number of vessels involved being 112. The principal casualty was the total loss of the auxiliary ketch “Isabella de Fraine,” with all hands (8) on the Hokianga Bar when entering the harbour. A summary of the casualties is given.

Strandings—	No.	Tonnage.
Total loss	8	414
Slight damage	17	2,171
No damage	7	2,353
Collisions—
Total loss	1	3
Slight damage	16	7,525
No damage	5	1,890
Fires—
Total loss	3	16
Slight damage	6	14,482
No damage	1	6,734
Miscellaneous	48	72,673
Totals	112	108,261

Chapter 13. SECTION XIII.—RAILWAYS.

INTRODUCTORY.

RAILWAY history in New Zealand dates from the year 1860 only. In that year a contract was let for the construction of a line from Christchurch to Lyttelton. The first portion of this line was opened on the 1st December, 1863, so that to Canterbury Province belongs the honour of first having railway communication within its borders. Four years later the Lyttelton Tunnel (1 1/2 miles long) had been pierced and the line completed. Meanwhile other lines were being proceeded with inland towards the Canterbury Plains. Following the lead of Canterbury, the Provincial Council of Southland commenced in 1863 a line from Invercargill to Bluff Harbour, which was opened on the 5th February, 1867. Driven by the necessity for efficient military transport, the Provincial Council of Auckland in 1863 began the construction of a line from Auckland to Drury.

The effect of the various short railways being constructed by different authorities is apparent in the different gauges adopted. The General Government recommended the adoption of a 5 ft. 6 in. gauge; nevertheless the Canterbury lines were using a 5 ft. 3 in. gauge, while the Auckland and Otago lines had the standard English gauge of 4 ft. 8 in.

Happily, these troubles were solved by the historic Railways Act of 1870. At that date only forty-six miles of railway were in operation. This Act, which was part of the public-works policy of the late Sir Julius Vogel, provided a general railway policy for the colony. Six years later, when the abolition of the provinces placed the earlier-constructed lines in the hands of the General Government, railway mileage had risen to 718 miles.

Although practically all the railways are State-owned, some were built by private enterprise. Of these the more important were constructed by the Midland and the Wellington—Manawatu Railway Companies. The former line, of which some eighty-seven miles were in use, was taken over by the Government on the 27th May, 1895. The latter, from Wellington to Longburn, a distance of eighty-four miles, was acquired by the State by purchase in December, 1908.

On the 4th August, 1923, the Otira Tunnel—the connecting-link of the two railway systems on the east and west coasts of the South Island—was opened for through traffic, and this event marked the completion of one of New Zealand's greatest engineering achievements.

The Arthur's Pass Tunnel, as it is sometimes called, is seventh on the list of the world's longest tunnels, and is the longest tunnel in the British Empire. The tunnel enters the mountain-side on the east (Arthur's Pass) at an altitude of 2,435 ft. above sea-level, burrows under the summit of Arthur's Pass on a downward course, and emerges after 5 miles 25 chains at an altitude of 1,586 ft. above sea-level.

The working of the electrified section, Otira – Arthur's Pass, 8 miles 18 chains, including the tunnel of 5 1/4 miles, has been provided for by the erection of a power-station at Otira containing three modern steam boilers and two turbine-driven generators. Each of the five 50-ton electric locomotives attached to the section is capable of hauling a train of 140 tons up the ruling grade of 1 in 33 to Arthur's Pass.

The development of automatic and electric-power signalling has been greatly extended since its introduction on the New Zealand railways some years ago. At the present time automatic signalling controlling the safe running of trains is in use on 37 miles 57 chains of double line and 159 miles 62 chains of single line. The installations have been carried out with the most up-to-date signalling appliances in the world: the old type of semaphore signal has been discarded, and the signalling indications are given by means of coloured lenses.

In addition to automatic signalling, power signalling for the operation of yards has largely superseded the older form of mechanical signalling. The use of electric power for these purposes offers many advantages over the older mechanical system, inasmuch that points can be worked at great distances from a central point, and the operation can be automatically controlled by the movements of the trains themselves.

The use of electric power on the New Zealand railways is increasing to a great extent for many purposes, including pumping plants for the supply of water for engines outside stations, for driving electrical machinery in the shops, and for the lighting of stations, locomotives, and carriages.

In the year 1876 the railways of New Zealand passed from the control of the Provincial Governments to the Public Works Department. A few years later the opened lines were handed over to the Working Railways Department, and in 1889 a Board of three Railway Commissioners was appointed. This form of management, however, lasted only for five years, at the end of which period a General Manager, responsible to the Minister of Railways, took over the administration, and this system continued for close on thirty years. In 1925 the system of railway management was reorganized under the control of a Railway Board of three members, but in 1928 the system of control by a General Manager was again reverted to.

MILEAGE OF STATE RAILWAYS.

At the 31st March, 1929, there were some 3,287 miles of State railways open for traffic, divided into seven distinct sections, as follows:—

Section.	Length.
Section.	Miles.
North Island main line and branches	1,413
Kaihu	24
Gisborne	60
Total, North Island	1,497
South Island main line and branches	1,627
Westport	43
Nelson	64
Picton	56
Total, South Island	1,790

Government railways are constructed by the Public Works Department, and are transferred to the Railways Department when completed. During the year 1928–29 107 miles (98 in the North Island) were taken over by the Railways Department.

The gauge is 3 ft. 6 in., and a steel rail of 70 lb. weight per lineal yard is the standard for the permanent-way, and is in use on 1,626 miles of line. The great bulk of the remaining mileage is in 53 lb., 55 lb., and 56 lb. steel rails. Sleepers, which are laid down to the number of 2,100 to the mile, are principally of Australian hardwood or New Zealand silver-pine.

ROLLING-STOCK.

All carriages and wagons required for use on the State railways have, since 1901, been manufactured in the railway workshops of the Dominion, with the exception of 2,500 four-wheeled wagons imported from England in 1921–22. Most of the locomotives also are now built in the Dominion, partly in the railway workshops and partly by an engineering firm at Thames. The Railways Department commenced building engines in 1889 at the Addington Workshops (Christchurch). From that year building operations were gradually extended, the work being restricted to two of the four principal workshops of the Department.

The weights of the locally-built tender engines in working trim vary from 63 to 94 tons, while those of the tank engines run from 29 1/2 to 71 tons.

A reorganization of workshops has been effected, under which the Hutt (North Island) and Hillside (South Island) workshops are locomotive repair and building shops. Otahuhu and Addington workshops deal with all cars and wagons in the respective Islands.

The standard type of passenger locomotive is a simple superheated tender-engine of the “Pacific” type—weight in working trim, 79 tons; tractive power, 20,000 lb. This locomotive—Class AB—is of sufficient power to be also easily adapted for use as a goods engine. The standard goods locomotive used is of the four-cylinder balanced compound type, weighs 94 tons, and has a tractive power of 29,840 lb, Standard carriages are 50 ft. in length, fitted with chair seats to accommodate forty-four passengers, and lighted by the Pintsch-gas system. Electric lighting in passenger-cars is now being substituted for gas lighting, 389 carriages being so equipped at 31st March, 1929. Locomotives to the number of 209 are fitted with electric head-lights. The Westinghouse brake is fitted to all rolling-stock with the exception of that on the Kaihu, Picton, Nelson, and Westport Sections.

Information as to the rolling-stock in use on the State railways at the 31st March in each of the last ten years is given in the following table:—

At 31st March,	Locomotives.	Passenger-vehicles.	Wagons and Brake-vans.
1920	616	1,492	22,937
1921	608	1,492	23,119
1922	637	1,496	23,974
1923	639	1,498	26,106
1924	655	1,527	26,198
1925	662	1,570	26,488
1926	704	1,602	26,757
1927	698	1,610	26,990
1928	678	1,612	27,228
1929	667	1,603	27,303

Additional information, covering the five years 1924–25 to 1928–29, and giving more detailed figures as to the various types of locomotives, passenger-vehicles, and wagons, is set out in the next table.

—	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
Locomotives—
Tender	363	407	395	379	368
Tank	278	276	289	287	281
Articulated (Garratt)	..	..	..	..	1
Single Fairlie	15	15	8	6	5
Electric	5	5	5	5	11
Battery	1	1	1	1	1
Totals	662	704	698	678	667
Passenger-vehicles—
Sleepers	18	16	18	15	21
Saloon	33	33	34	35	35
First-class	220	235	236	241	238
Second-class	694	709	712	722	716
Composite	551	555	554	542	538
Ladies'	20	20	20	20	19
Postal	21	21	21	22	21
Other	13	13	15	15	15
Totals	1,570	1,602	1,610	1,612	1,603
Wagons—
Horse-boxes	323	323	323	313	296
Cattle	681	709	734	730	729
Sheep	2,071	2,147	2,147	2,271	2,311
Frozen-meat	658	696	724	723	724
Cool-storage	683	681	683	751	792
Covered-goods	968	977	973	972	893
High-side	15,339	15,389	15,418	15,451	15,545
High-side bogie	495	495	495	495	488
Low-side	1,602	1,628	1,727	1,729	1,709
Brake-vans	460	476	477	492	480
Other	3,208	3,236	3,289	3,301	3,336
Totals	26,488	26,757	26,990	27,228	27,303

PASSENGERS AND GOODS.

The following statement shows the number of miles of Government railways open in the Dominion, the number of train-miles travelled and of passengers carried, and the tonnage of goods traffic for the last twenty years. Figures of passengers and goods include the Lake Wakatipu steamer service, but exclude road-motor services.

Year ended 31st March,	Length open (Miles).	Train-mileage.	Passengers.		Season Tickets issued.	Goods and Live-stock.^*
Year ended 31st March,	Length open (Miles).	Train-mileage.	Including Season-ticket Holders.	Excluding Season ticket Holders.	Season Tickets issued.	Goods and Live-stock.^*
* The equivalent tonnage for live-stock has been given. † Not available.
						Tons.
1910	2,717	7,889,166	^†	11,141,142	199,371	5,490,018
1911	2,753	8,141,075	^†	11,200,613	222,104	5,863,674
1912	2,798	8,371,687	20,336,577	11,891,134	236,957	5,887,908
1913	2,851	9,018,224	22,310,867	13,123,879	265,259	6,246,128
1914	2,854	9,319,268	23,173,472	13,355,893	287,037	6,019,633
1915	2,945	9,383,420	23,542,903	13,565,772	302,912	6,453,472
1916	2,960	9,356,522	24,600,693	14,201,506	330,622	6,370,945
1917	2,960	9,146,331	24,732,602	14,173,115	355,832	6,239,172
1918	2,983	7,468,646	21,438,325	11,408,156	322,487	5,742,968
1919	2,983	7,477,583	22,030,327	11,374,521	351,124	5,613,739
1920	2,996	7,408,608	24,582,386	12,760,814	400,621	6,000,279
1921	3,009	9,303,392	28,821,783	15,315,640	464,691	6,487,279
1922	3,021	8,717,265	28,121,765	14,262,440	472,865	6,321,351
1923	3,028	8,346,731	28,221,362	14,256,610	485,681	6,618,588
1924	3,053	9,024,503	28,436,475	13,836,311	525,744	6,925,517
1925	3,085	9,083,623	26,106,859	12,424,012	537,544	7,033,459
1926	3,138	10,319,407	27,653,414	11,813,407	600,292	7,256,142
1927	3,164	10,723,864	26,002,137	10,305,065	585,094	7,308,449
1928	3,180	10,838,594	25,379,665	9,299,157	632,763	7,366,762
1929	3,287	11,113,482	25,574,843	9,074,993	656,169	7,622,631

Since the 31st March, 1909, the length of railway open for traffic has increased from 2,674 miles to 3,287 miles. Train-mileage shows since 1908–09 an increase of 49 per cent.; ordinary passengers decreased 13 per cent.; season-ticket holders increased 241 per cent.; and the total tonnage of goods and livestock increased 48 per cent.

Live-stock carried in 1928–29 comprised 634,684 cattle and horses, and 10,330,613 sheep and pigs, equivalent to a tonnage of 535,951.

PASSENGERS.

The number of ordinary passengers carried during the year 1928–29 was 9,074,993, a decrease of 224,164 when compared with the year 1927–28. Passengers to the number of 708,084 were carried at holiday and other cheap excursion fares, and 242,142 children and adults at schools, factories, and friendly-societies excursion rates. The total excursion traffic for the year was 950,226 passengers, returning a revenue of £477,427, compared with 802,662 passengers and £353,111 revenue in 1927–28.

Season tickets issued during the year aggregated 656,169, an increase of 23,406 over the 632,763 tickets issued during 1927–28. Workers' weekly tickets on suburban lines numbered 412,005, an increase of 21,853; weekly twelve-trip tickets 116,609, a decrease of 358; trip-bearer tickets 56,872, an increase of 456; school tickets 29,535, an increase of 650; tourist tickets 1,150, a decrease of 32; and travellers' annual tickets 141, a decrease of 9.

The total number of passenger journeys for the year 1928–29 was 25,574,843, as compared with 25,379,665 for 1927–28. The number for 1927–28 is the lowest, and that for 1928–29 the second lowest, recorded since 1919–20, when the total passenger journeys totalled 24,582,186.

In addition to the 25,574,843 passengers shown in the foregoing table 2,919,605 passengers were carried by the Railways Department's road-motor services in 1928–29. Excluding also steamer traffic on Lake Wakatipu, 25,542,863 passengers were carried on the railways during the year, the revenue in respect of these aggregating £2,124,747. Passenger train-miles run during the year totalled 4,833,991, and the revenue received represents 105.49 pence per train-mile and £653 per mile of line. On the average each seat earned £31 0s. 8d. during the year, seating-accommodation being provided for 68,465 passengers.

Detailed figures showing the number of passengers carried under various heads during the last five years are given in the following table:—

—	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
Passengers carried at—
Excursion rates—
First class	123,341	146,417	120,663	105,372	117,323
Second class	362,724	565,326	522,598	485,428	590,761
Schools, &c.	76,057	193,719	267,535	211,862	242,142
Totals	562,122	905,462	910,796	802,662	950,226
Ordinary rates—
First class, single	728,000	662,895	572,277	488,952	429,939
First class, return	1,044,383	949,249	724,829	623,862	600,053
Second class, single	3,333,882	3,177,413	2,854,220	2,601,705	2,425,828
Second class, return	6,755,625	6,118,461	5,242,943	4,781,976	4,668,947
Totals	11,861,890	10,908,018	9,394,269	8,496,495	8,124,767
Grand totals, excluding season-tickets	12,424,012	11,813,480	10,305,065	9,299,157	9,074,993
Season tickets issued—
Workers' weekly	331,861	354,716	352,128	390,152	412,005
Weekly twelve-trip	136,563	126,179	113,187	116,967	116,609
Trip-bearer	..	37,466	49,179	56,416	56,872
School	25,983	39,530	30,401	28,885	29,535
Tourist	1,278	1,100	1,258	1,232	1,150
Travellers' annual	171	157	161	150	141
Other	41,688	41,144	38,780	38,961	39,857
Totals	537,544	600,292	585,094	632,763	656,169

GOODS AND LIVE-STOCK.

The following table gives interesting information as to the constitution of the goods traffic for the years 1924–25 to 1928–29. The figures are exclusive of steamer traffic on Lake Wakatipu.

Commodity.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
Grain	275,215	242,541	251,837	300,047	355,522
Meals	93,789	104,216	98,829	126,580	121,283
Fruit, New Zealand	30,821	39,660	46,377	37,792	41,239
Root crops, fodder	99,195	203,943	193,206	163,897	162,033
Flax, green and dressed	29,960	32,987	29,588	36,662	27,025
Seeds	22,236	25,640	22,703	27,232	24,276
Cattle and horses	106,570	112,249	118,502	139,317	144,257
Sheep and pigs	323,813	327,978	356,094	371,439	391,194
Meat	147,327	153,950	148,102	178,590	171,964
Butter	83,081	75,998	86,630	94,982	101,846
Cheese	67,359	72,783	71,462	75,275	99,691
Wool	113,271	124,787	134,286	135,184	141,235
Dairy by-products	8,963	13,103	12,220	16,007	16,989
Fat, hides, skins	36,826	39,522	34,367	36,467	33,354
Fish	6,230	10,873	8,341	6,794	7,743

Commodity.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
*Included in “Miscellaneous.”
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
Agricultural lime	95,662	105,523	102,992	116,428	142,213
Coal, imported	116,051	101,113	81,592	75,542	59,661
Coal, New Zealand hard	1,001,079	969,155	1,089,464	1,102,183	1,105,509
Coal, New Zealand brown	965,305	1,023,056	951,643	1,012,946	999,017
Road-metal	308,226	332,308	336,537	277,217	354,159
Lime and coke	47,396	58,441	55,244	54,596	60,734
Timber, imported	75,576	62,622	45,561	32,707	29,769
Timber, New Zealand	677,904	708,032	617,882	537,856	538,252
Firewood, posts, &c.	142,044	150,458	140,009	127,997	126,693
Benzine, kerosene, &c.	26,982	50,649	61,753	89,977	123,937
Cement, New Zealand	^*	69,572	78,236	78,481	70,679
Manures	272,070	312,320	441,396	586,007	712,741
Miscellaneous	1,849,037	1,723,227	1,684,899	1,520,195	1,450,430
Totals	7,021,988	7,246,706	7,299,752	7,358,397	7,613,445

Information showing for the various commodities the tonnage carried, ton-miles, average haul, and revenue received during 1928–29 is now given:—

CLASSIFICATION OF GOODS AND LIVE-STOCK TRAFFIC, 1928–29.

Commodity.	Tonnage carried.	Tons One Mile.	Average Haul.	Revenue.
			Miles.	£
Grain	355,522	15,948,026	45	151,354
Meals	121,283	7,401,395	61	62,947
Fruit, New Zealand	41,239	7,316,438	177	49,715
Root crops, fodder	162,033	10,314,750	64	79,425
Flax, green and dressed	27,025	1,361,771	50	16,138
Seeds	24,276	1,380,037	57	17,251
Cattle and horses	144,257	11,662,716	81	196,464
Sheep and pigs	391,194	28,260,602	72	391,486
Meat	171,964	4,459,369	26	110,650
Butter	101,846	6,684,889	66	111,594
Cheese	99,691	4,240,398	43	89,138
Wool	141,235	7,554,649	53	144,388
Dairy by-products	16,989	1,318,072	78	16,641
Fat, hides, skins	33,354	1,463,499	44	34,139
Fish	7,743	1,232,316	159	11,838
Agricultural lime	142,213	8,839,383	62	45,668
Coal, imported	59,661	1,652,598	28	25,432
Coal, New Zealand hard	1,105,509	34,161,724	31	287,411
Coal, New Zealand brown	999,017	120,913,304	121	572,268
Road-metal	354,159	7,610,165	21	59,043
Lime and coke	60,734	3,382,939	56	25,110
Timber, imported	29,769	1,437,803	49	29,259
Timber, New Zealand	538,252	60,980,958	113	495,929
Firewood, posts, &c.	126,693	10,002,510	79	50,936
Benzine, kerosene, &c.	123,937	9,030,982	73	200,239
Cement, New Zealand	70,679	5,484,478	78	55,130
Manures	712,741	47,242,949	66	326,939
Miscellaneous	1,450,430	66,414,678	46	1,241,859
Totals	7,613,445	487,753,398	64	4,898,391

The total number of freight train-miles run during the year 1928–29 in carrying the 7,613,445 tons of goods and live-stock was 6,279,491, and the total revenue received was £4,898,391. This revenue represents averages of 15s. 7d. per train-mile, 12s. 10d. per ton, and 2.41d. per ton-mile.

COST OF CONSTRUCTION.

The total cost of construction of open lines up to the 31st March, 1929, was £56,568,598. The amount spent on lines in course of construction and not handed over to the Working Railways Department for traffic purposes was £5,707,616, making the total capital invested in State railways £62,276,214. The figures for each of the last five years are given.

CAPITAL INVESTED IN STATE RAILWAYS AT 31ST MARCH, 1925–29.

—	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	£	£	£	£	£
Lines open for traffic	44,570,746	47,608,676	49,183,916	51,187,376	56,568,598
Lines under construction	6,272,754	6,107,779	6,844,561	7,610,082	5,707,616
Totals	50,833,500	53,716,455	56,028,477	58,797,458	62,276,214

So varied are the geographical features of the Dominion chat a great disparity exists in the cost of constructing the individual sections of lines. The numerous mountain-chains and the innumerable rivers fed by the heavy rainfall make railway construction in general both difficult and expensive, as the next statement shows.

COMPARISON OF CAPITAL COST AND OF REVENUE OF EACH SECTION, 1928–29.

Section.	Capital Cost of Open Lines to 31st March, 1929.	Capital Cost per Mile (Open Lines).	Net Operating Revenue, 1928–29
Section.	Capital Cost of Open Lines to 31st March, 1929.	Capital Cost per Mile (Open Lines).	Per Mile of Open Line.	Per Cent. of Capital Cost.
* Loss. † Based on total net revenue.
	£	£	£	£
North Island—
Kaihu	189,179	7,882	− 158^*	..
Gisborne	848,066	14,134	− 133^*	..
Main line and branches	29,302,048	20,736	644	3.27
Totals, North Island	30,339,293	20,267	600	2.96
South Island—
Westport	699,273	16,262	874	5.38
Nelson	574,646	8,979	− 264^*	..
Picton	682,177	12,182	− 103^*	..
Main line and branches	21,914,751	13,469	146	1.10
Totals, South Island	23,870,847	13,336	141	1.06
Totals, railways	54,210,140	16,492	350	212
Lake Wakatipu steamer service	44,387	..	..	..
Subsidiary services	2,284,532	..	..	..
Stock of stores, &c.	29,539	..	..	..
Grand totals	56,568,598	17,270	..	3.45^†

The cost of construction has been relatively greater in the North Island than in the South, but the net revenue per mile of open line and per cent. of capital cost has in recent years been considerably greater in the North than in the South. The North Island main line and branches and the Westport Section show a greater capital cost per mile than any other section, but they give the highest percentage of net revenue.

REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE.

The railways in New Zealand have never been regarded, or run, as a profit-making concern. Even if practicable, there is little doubt that such a policy would not meet with the approval of the public, nor would it bring about any material improvement in the condition of affairs as a whole. If, in the construction and working of the railway, considerations of financial return only were regarded, much greater profit would be earned. The railways have contributed in a great measure towards bringing the Dominion to its present high state of productiveness, and have given practical assistance in the development of the country, and have encouraged local industry. For many years a profit of 3 per cent. was regarded as sufficient, and any excess over this rate was followed by reductions in passenger charges or in freights. Consequent on the extension of settlement and the soundness of the Dominion's industries, a higher rate than 3 per cent. has been aimed at in recent years. The rate looked for in 1909–10 was 3 3/4 per cent., and in 1910–11 4 per cent., followed in 1911–12 by a return to 3 3/4 per cent. These rates were obtained, but those for 1913–14 and 1914–16 fell below expectations, a result due in the earlier year to the extended strike which obtained during nearly three months of the year and to the outbreak of smallpox in the North Island, and in the later year to the outbreak of the European War. In 1915–16 and 1916–17, however, there were considerable increases, bringing the net revenue up to 4 3/4 per cent. and 5 1/4 per cent. respectively. The returns for the next three years all fell slightly below the figure for 1916–17; in 1920–21 there was an abrupt fall to somewhat less than 3 1/2 per cent., and in 1921–22 the unprecedentedly low figure of slightly over 1 per cent. was reached, a state of affairs brought about by high running-costs, the competition of motor transport, and especially the state of depression which was in evidence during the year. The year 1922–23 showed a considerable improvement over the preceding period, the return being slightly over 3 per cent.; while for the year 1923–24 the policy rate of 3 3/4 per cent. was slightly exceeded. The restrictions imposed by the Health Department on account of the epidemic of infantile paralysis considerably affected the passenger traffic for the year 1924–25, and to this may be attributed the decrease in the rate of interest earned—viz., slightly over 3 1/2 per cent.

In 1924 the Government decided upon a financial reorganization of the railways, and an entirely new system of accounts, based on commercial practice, was brought into operation on the 1st April, 1925.

The first and most important step in this direction was the establishment of a separate Working Railways Account into which all earnings are paid and from which all working-expenses, superannuation subsidies, and interest on capital are met. The interest on capital is based on the actual rates payable on the various loans.

The new financial policy embodies the setting-up of Renewals, Betterments, and Equalization Funds, and also provides for payment of subsidies from the Consolidated Fund for losses on operation of certain developmental lines.

The total revenue and expenditure of the railways during each of the last twenty years, with the net revenue, and the percentage of the last-mentioned to capital cost, are as follows:—

Year ended 31st March,	Gross Revenue.	Expenditure.	Net Revenue.	Percentage of Net Revenue to Capital invested.
	£	£	£	£	s.	d.
1910	3,249,790	2,169,474	1,080,316	3	16	0
1911	3,494,182	2,303,272	1,190,910	4	1	3
1912	3,676,509	2,465,896	1,210,613	3	19	7
1913	3,971,002	2,705,609	1,265,393	4	0	9
1914	4,043,328	2,880,323	1,163,005	3	12	3
1915	4,105,457	2,920,455	1,185,002	3	10	7
1916	4,548,356	2,910,883	1,637,473	4	14	4
1917	4,800,810	2,926,864	1,873,946	5	5	11
1918	4,687,700	3,042,907	1,644,793	4	11	11
1919	4,988,632	3,308,575	1,680,057	4	12	11
1920	5,752,487	4,105,067	1,647,420	4	10	8
1921	6,908,531	5,636,601	1,271,930	3	8	4
1922	6,643,591	6,237,727	405,864	1	1	4
1923	6,727,802	5,502,497	1,225,305	3	0	10
1924	6,984,211	5,403,766	1,580,445	3	16	6
1925	7,112,524	5,545,416	1,567,108	3	11	0
1926	8,460,762	6,468,428	1,992,334	4	6	11
1927	8,434,654	6,490,880	1,943,774	3	19	10
1928	8,524,538	6,685,123	1,839,415	3	12	10
1929	8,747,975	6,849,383	1,898,592	3	9	0

The above figures are inclusive of subsidiary services, which in recent years have increased considerably. From 1925–26 also the figures of receipts are swelled by the inclusion of moneys transferred from the Consolidated Fund to make good deficiencies in revenue on branch lines and isolated sections. The revenue and expenditure for the four years concerned are now given, distinguishing between railway operating and other items:—

Year ended 31st March,	Revenue.			Expenditure.		Net Operating Revenue.
Year ended 31st March,	Railway operating.	Subsidiary Services.	Subsidy from Consolidated Fund.	Railway operating.	Subsidiary Services.	Net Operating Revenue.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1926	7,589,274	511,947	359,541	6,164,570	303,858	1,424,704
1927	7,423,472	565,961	445,221	6,158,283	332,597	1,265,189
1928	7,343,845	691,125	489,568	6,302,119	383,004	1,041,726
1929	7,524,864	724,174	498,937	6,374,579	474,804	1,150,285

The various subsidiary services now conducted by the Railways Department, with the revenue and expenditure of each during the year ended the 31st March, 1929, are as follows:—

Service.	Revenue.	Expenditure.
	£	£
Lake Wakatipu steamers	10,940	17,425
Refreshment service	123,382	116,391
Advertising service	53,984	50,720
Departmental dwellings	105,897	170,073
Leases of bookstalls, &c.	19,455	8,483
Road motor services	102,385	111,712
Miscellaneous receipts	308,131	..
Totals	724,174	474,804

Interest on railway capital liability paid during 1928–29 (and not included in the foregoing figures of expenditure) amounted to £2,331,335, there thus being a deficit of £432,743 for the year, as compared with £291,452 for the preceding year. A sum of £655,986 was set aside for depreciation and provision for renewals, and is included in the total of expenditure for the year.

REVENUE.

In the following table the revenue during the last ten years is classified according to the class of traffic, &c., from which it was derived. Total revenue is covered down to the end of the year 1924–25, and railway operating revenue thereafter.

Year ended 31st March,	Passenger-fares.	Parcels, Luggage, and Mails.	Goods and Live-stock	Labour, Demurrage, &c.	Rents and Commission.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1920	2,303,987	290,453	2,956,237	105,072	96,738	5,752,487
1921	2,658,079	335,754	3,676,665	136,505	101,528	6,908,531
1922	2,418,227	339,482	3,646,594	124,106	115,182	6,643,591
1923	2,420,620	393,322	3,671,008	119,933	122,919	6,727,802
1924	2,349,600	406,832	3,953,213	141,968	132,598	6,984,211
1925	2,288,571	417,550	4,122,017	137,149	147,237	7,112,524
1926	2,537,047	409,207	4,499,160	143,860	..	7,589,274
1927	2,304,180	377,367	4,596,166	145,759	..	7,423,472
1928	2,145,296	379,933	4,680,135	138,481	..	7,343,845
1929	2,124,746	378,141	4,846,125	175,852	..	7,524,864

Revenue from the carriage of goods and live-stock has steadily and consistently increased throughout the period. Passenger traffic, however, shows a tendency to decrease, owing to motor-bus competition, &c.

The operating revenue from passenger-fares during the year 1928–29 represented an expenditure on railway travel of £1 9s. 1d. per head of mean population, including Maoris. The total railway operating revenue was equal to £5 3s. 1d. per capita.

A table is added showing information as to railway revenue in each of the Australian States for the year ended 30th June, 1928. Figures for New Zealand for the year ended 31st March, 1928, are also given.

REVENUE OF GOVERNMENT RAILWAYS IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND, 1927–28.

State.	Miles of Line open.	Train-miles run (,000 omitted).	Gross Revenue (,000 omitted).	Net Revenue.
State.	Miles of Line open.	Train-miles run (,000 omitted).	Gross Revenue (,000 omitted).	Amount (,000 omitted).	Per Train-mile.		Per Cent. of Capital.
* Loss. † Year ended 31st March, 1928.
			£	£	s.	d.
Queensland	6,345	11,655	7,382	1,275	2	2	2.27
New South Wales	5,867	26,896	19,029	4,273	3	2	3.68
Victoria	4,697	17,695	12,821	3,008	3	5	4.16
South Australia	2,527	6,503	3,941	281	0	10	1.08
Western Australia	3,977	5,730	3,858	947	3	4	4.43
Tasmania	658	1,417	555	− 19^*.	− 0	3^*	− 0.29^*
Commonwealth Railways	1,733	966	600	63	1	4	0.50
Totals for Australia	25,804	70,862	48,186	9,828	2	9	3.16
New Zealand^†	3,180	10,839	8,425	1,839	3	5	3.64

EXPENDITURE.

The total railway expenditure in 1928–29 represented 78.30 per cent. of the gross earnings, and the operating-expenses 84.71 per cent. of operating revenue. It is of interest to trace the movement over a period of years, as in the following statement. Here, also, figures for the last four years relate to operating revenue and expenditure, while those for previous years show the proportion of total expenditure to gross earnings.

PERCENTAGE OF EXPENDITURE TO REVENUE, 1908–09 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Per Cent.
1909	72.19
1910	66.76
1911	65.92
1912	67.07
1913	68.13
1914	71.24
1915	71.14
1916	64.00
1917	60.97
1918	64.91
1919	66.32
1920	71.37
1921	81.59
1922	93.89
1923	81.79
1924	77.37
1925	77.97
1926	81.23
1927	82.96
1928	85.81
1929	84.71

The expenditure under various heads is now given for each of the last ten years. For the last four years the figures are exclusive of subsidiary services, and refer to railway operating expenditure only.

Year ended 31st March,	Maintenance of Ways and Works.	Maintenance of Signals.	Maintenance of Rolling-stock.	Locomotive Transportation.	Traffic Transportation.	Head Office and General Charges.^*	Total.
* Including superannuation subsidy.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1920	783,033	54,877	724,473	1,061,018	1,309,899	171,767	4,105,067
1921	983,940	69,109	984,244	1,672,568	1,722,834	203,906	5,636,601
1922	1,111,883	72,343	1,113,170	2,020,994	1,716,389	202,948	6,237,727
1923	1,040,892	67,425	1,043,590	1,613,564	1,541,132	195,894	5,502,497
1924	1,143,281	70,912	1,048,567	1,395,491	1,541,108	204,407	5,403,766
1925	1,113,048	81,201	1,083,788	1,408,927	1,611,947	246,505	5,545,416
1926	1,144,385	105,064	1,311,317	1,636,620	1,743,641	223,543	6,164,570
1927	1,074,334	100,861	1,303,444	1,669,352	1,752,998	257,294	6,158,283
1928	1,147,067	102,871	1,380,726	1,662,074	1,760,459	248,922	6,302,119
1929	1,111,229	112,206	1,424,165	1,650,793	1,825,965	250,221	6,374,579

The expenditure has increased from £3,308,575 in 1918–19 to £6,374,579 in 1928–29, the increase of £3,066,004 being spread over the six headings shown in the above table in varying proportion. Locomotive transportation (with which is included the examination, lubrication, and lighting of vehicles—£67,023 in 1928–29) was responsible for £835,137, maintenance of rolling-stock £858,025, traffic transportation £786,370, and maintenance of ways and works £395,371. The increase per cent. over the period works out at 93. Maintenance of signals, with 206 per cent. increase, had the highest increase of any one group, and maintenance of ways and works, with a 55 per cent. rise, had the lowest. Maintenance of rolling-stock, which had the highest numerical increase, had 152 per cent., and locomotive and traffic transportation had percentage increases of 102 and 76 respectively.

A table showing the percentage of total expenditure under each of the various headings is next given:—

Yew ended 31st March,	Maintenance of Ways and Works.	Maintenance of Signals.	Maintenance of Boiling-stock.	Locomotive Transportation.	Traffic Transportation.	Head Office and General Charges.	Total.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1920	19.07	1.34	17.65	25.85	31.91	4.18	100
1921	17.47	1.22	17.46	29.67	30.56	3.62	100
1922	17.83	1.16	17.84	32.40	27.52	3.25	100
1923	18.92	1.22	18.97	29.32	28.01	3.56	100
1924	21.16	1.31	19.40	25.83	28.52	3.78	100
1925	20.07	1.46	19.54	25.41	29.07	4.45	100
1926	18.56	1.70	21.27	26–55	28.29	3.63	100
1927	17.44	1.64	21.16	27.11	28.47	4.18	100
1928	18.20	1.63	21.91	26.37	27.94	3.95	100
1929	17.43	1.76	22.34	25.90	28.64	3.93	100

Maintenance of rolling-stock shows an increase from 17.11 to 22.34 per cent. since 1918–19, while maintenance of ways and works and traffic transportation show decreases from 21.64 and 31.42 per cent. to 17.43 and 28.64 per cent. respectively.

The maintenance, running-costs, and other charges in connection with the working of the locomotives form a considerable proportion of the train-operating expenditure. For the year ended 31st March, 1929, the locomotive-operating expenses amounted to no less than 34.26 per cent. of the total operating-expenses, so it will be realized what an important part the working of the locomotives plays in the economic running of the railways.

Over the last ten years the locomotive-operating expenses rose from £1,075,489 in 1918–19 to £2,183,927 in 1928–29. The increase in the total expenditure was £3,066,004, of which £1,108,438 was due to locomotive expenditure.

The following table gives detailed figures of the operations of the locomotives during each of the last ten years:—

Year ended 31st March,	Number of Locomotives in Use.	Number of Days in Steam.	Engine-mileage.		Running-costs, including Repairs.		Total locomotive-operating Expenses.
Year ended 31st March,	Number of Locomotives in Use.	Number of Days in Steam.	Train.	Total.	Total.	Per Engine-mile.	Total.	Per Engine-mile.
					£	d.	£	d.
1920	618	112,460	7,408,608	10,023,309	1,218,550	29.16	1,397,992	33.46
1921	610	128,752	9,303,392	12,434,892	1,887,990	36.43	2,124,198	41.09
1922	630	123,361	8,633,637	11,679,441	2,307,563	47.40	2,546,295	52.12
1923	641	125,895	8,346,731	11,472,352	1,877,675	39.26	2,121,532	44.38
1924	662	133,808	9,024,503	12,450,796	1,696,755	32.69	1,893,186	36.48
1925	671	139,143	9,083,623	13,108,821	1,689,517	30.91	1,917,625	35.09
1926	714	147,465	10,319,407	14,891,544	1,814,255	29.23	2,157,738	34.75
1927	708	150,795	10,723,864	15,470,438	1,852,433	28.73	2,261,624	35.06
1928	690	153,183	10,838,594	15,658,700	1,834,511	28.12	2,255,282	34.57
1929	673	152,618	11,113,482	16,183,798	1,774,751	26.32	2,183,927	32.39

The number of locomotives in use increased from 623 in 1918–19 to 673 in 1928–29, while the number of days in steam increased from 112,775 to 152,618 during the same period. The average number of days in steam per locomotive was 181 in 1918–19 and 227 in 1928–29.

RAILWAY EMPLOYEES.

The number of persons employed in operating the State railways at the 31st March, 1929, was 18,536. The staff is divided into two divisions—namely, the first or clerical division, and the second or out-of-door division—and is further classed in four branches, as shown in the following table, which gives the number of employees in March of each of the last ten years:—

RAILWAY EMPLOYEES, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

As at 31st March,	General.	Traffic.	Maintenance.	Locomotive.	Total.
1920	876	4,740	3,364	4,405	13,385
1921	927	4,930	3,576	4,819	14,252
1922	974	5,138	3,855	5,695	15,662
1923	1,038	5,039	3,796	5,855	15,728
19,241	1,147	5,124	4,087	5,995	16,353
1925	1,495	5,212	4,194	6,345	17,246
1926	1,621	5,466	4,316	6,587	17,990
1927	1,726	5,579	4,491	6,662	18,458
1928	1,781	5,609	4,530	6,621	18,541
1929	1,710	5,715	4,496	6,615	18,536

Railway employees are under a system of classification, first introduced in 1896, and revised at various times since then.

Appeal Boards (one in each Island) are constituted to hear and redress grievances of men dissatisfied with decisions respecting the withholding of annual increments, promotion, loss of status, or breaches of discipline involving fines in excess of £2. Each Board consists of a Magistrate and two members of the Railways service elected by the members thereof. The Minister of Railways has the power of veto in respect of any decision of the Appeal Board.

A superannuation fund in connection with the Railways service was established in 1903. Full information concerning this is given in the section dealing with “Pensions, Superannuation,” &c.

RAILWAY ACCIDENTS

With the exception of the Ongarue accident in 1923 (when seventeen passengers were killed and twenty-nine more or less severely injured, through a falling boulder derailing the engine), the history of railways in New Zealand has been one of comparative freedom from accidents of a serious nature. A table is given dealing with railway accidents during each of the last ten years.

RAILWAY ACCIDENTS, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	To Passengers.	To Employees.	To Others.	Fatal.	Other.	Total.
1920	22	827	39	42	846	888
1921	10	987	41	24	1,014	1,038
1922	8	1,215	16	22	1,217	1,239
1923	18	1,448	60	64	1,462	1,526
1924	74	1,777	51	62	1,840	1,902
1925	23	1,657	94	37	1,737	1,774
1926	63	1,909	65	55	1,982	2,037
1927	37	1,838	67	43	1,899	1,942
1928	32	1,663	78	47	1,726	1,773
1929	40	1,577	97	52	1,662	1,714

Of the persons meeting with fatal accidents in 1928–29, 4 were passengers, 13 employees, and 35 neither passengers nor employees. The last-mentioned included 23 killed at railway crossings.

Of the total accidents (1,714) 15 were train accidents, 80 accidents on line, 148 shunting accidents, 72 railway-crossing accidents, and 514 accidents in railway workshops.

PRIVATE RAILWAYS.

Private railways have a total mileage of 116 miles. A complete list is as follows:—

Railway.	Location.	Length of Railway.
		M.	C.	L.
Waipa Railway and Collieries (Limited)	Ngaruawahia	5	50	0
Taupo Totara Timber Company (Limited)	Putaruru	50	40	0
Waihi Gold-mining Company (Limited)	Waikino	5	72	0
Sanson Tramway	Sanson-Himatangi	17	0	0
Castlecliff Railway	Wanganui—Castlecliff	3	40	0
Napier Harbour Board's line	Port Ahuriri	1	24	50
Waronui Coal Company	Milton	5	33	0
Taratu Coal Company	Lovell's Flat	7	47	0
Kaitangata Coal Company	Stirling	5	45	0
Dunedin City Corporation's Ocean Beach Railway	Dunedin (about)	3	14	0
Ohai Railway	From Wairio	5	60	0
Denniston Incline (Westport Coal Company's line)	Waimangaroa – Conn's Creek	1	2	0
Paparoa Company's Railway	(Worked by N.Z.R.)	1	68	21
Reefton Coal Company	Reefton	2	20	0
Tongariro Timber Company	Kakahi	..
Total mileage	..	116	35	71

Chapter 14. SECTION XIV.—TRAMWAYS.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

HISTORY OF ELECTRIC TRAMWAYS.

ORGANIZATION.

POWER CONSUMPTION.

POLICY OF MANAGEMENT.

MOTOR-BUS COMPETITION.

PROGRESS SINCE 1910–1911.

VOLUME OF TRAFFIC.

FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS.

CAPITAL OUTLAY.

ROLLING-STOCK.

CABLE TRAMWAYS.

INTRODUCTORY.

MODERN urban life demands rapid and reasonably cheap transport for human beings. Although in New Zealand economic and geographical considerations have acted as a brake on the “urban drift,” the aggregation of population in certain areas has long since reached the stage where special transport facilities have been required. In recent years since motor traffic has revolutionized the short-journey passenger traffic, there has been a tendency to utilize the motor-omnibus in centres where increasing population has required special transport. There are at the present time in the Dominion eight boroughs with populations of over 10,000 which have no tramway system. In the more densely populated districts of comparatively long standing, however, the electric tramway has for over twenty years been the popular means of urban transport. Electric tramways at the present time exist in areas having an aggregate population of approximately 600,000 persons; 380,000 persons, or 63 per cent. of this population, are located in the North Island, against 220,000, or 37 per cent., in the South Island.

HISTORY OF ELECTRIC TRAMWAYS.

Electric traction was first employed for passenger-transport purposes in New Zealand in 1899, In October of that year the Roslyn Tramway Co., Ltd., completed the electrification of a horse-drawn system with approximately two miles of track. Of the principal systems now in operation Auckland led the way, the Auckland Electric Tramway Co., Ltd., electrifying its horse-drawn system in 1902. At this time the population of Auckland City was approximately 67,000. Contemporaneously with the opening of the Auckland system negotiations were proceeding for the installation of similar systems at Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin. Indeed, a special tramway body, afterwards known as the Christchurch Tramway Board, had already been created by the Christchurch Tramway District Act, 1902. The example set by the Auckland Electric Tramway Co. apparently convinced the ratepayers of Dunedin as to the desirability of electric tramways, and on Christmas Eve, 1903, electric cars replaced the old horse-drawn vehicles that had served Dunedin for just on a quarter of a century. The following year (1904:) witnessed the opening of the present electric system of the Wellington City Council. In 1905 the Christchurch Tramway Board replaced the private company that up to that time had control of the horse and steam trams that had supplied the principal means of transport in and around Christchurch City since 1878, and installed an electric system. At this time the population of Christchurch City was approximately 55,000, just about equal to that in Dunedin City. Wellington City, according to the figures recorded at the census of 1901, was more fortunate than Dunedin and Christchurch in that its tramways had a population of 64,000 to provide the necessary volume of traffic.

Of the smaller centres adopting the electric-tramway system Wanganui led the way, establishing its system in 1908. The comparatively small population of Wanganui at that time (it was just over 8,000 persons) gave the undertaking a touch of adventure, but prudent laying-out of the track, which was confined to the flat and thickly populated area only, has enabled the system to be carried on with reasonable success. Following Wanganui the Borough of Invercargill opened a system in 1912. The population in Invercargill was then just under 16,000, or double that of Wanganui when trams commenced running there. The next year (1913) marked the entry of the electric car in Gisborne and Napier, which then had populations of 10,000 and 11,000 respectively. The youngest system in the Dominion at the present time was opened by the New Plymouth Borough Council in 1916 to serve a population of just under 10,000.

Although there were at the 31st March, 1929, only nine electric-tramway undertakings in the Dominion, four different gauges, varying from 3 ft. 6 in. to 4 ft. 8 1/2 in., were in operation. The Napier and Maori Hill (branch of Dunedin) trams are operated on a 3 ft. 6 in, gauge, those at Gisborne and Wellington on a 4 ft. gauge, those of the main Dunedin system 4 ft. 8 in., while the widest gauge, 4 ft. 8 1/2 in., is found in Auckland, New Plymouth, Wanganui, Christchurch, and Invercargill.

ORGANIZATION.

Although in a few instances the horse and steam tram services that preceded electric traction were in the hands of private enterprise, electric-tramway services have since their inception been controlled by local authorities. This is, however, subject to two exceptions—viz., (1) Auckland, where a public company carried on until 1st July, 1919, when the system was taken over by the Auckland City Council; and (2) Dunedin, where a section of the system was until 1921 operated by a private company. At the present time, seven of the nine electric tramway systems are controlled by the council of the city or borough concerned. In the other two instances special local authorities have been formed to control the management of the tramways and other transport services. At Christchurch, the Christchurch Tramway Board is the controlling body, while at Auckland the Auckland City Council has handed over the tramways to the Auckland Transport Board.

The local authorities derive their powers for controlling tramways from the Tramways Act, 1908, which provides, inter alia, for the construction of tramways in any borough, town district, or county in cases where an authorizing order as prescribed by that Act has been granted. There are also special Acts empowering the construction, &c., of tramways in certain places.

POWER CONSUMPTION.

With the exception of Gisborne, where, the cars were run by storage batteries, all the electric tramways of the Dominion are operated on the overhead-trolly system The Gisborne tramways were replaced by buses about the middle of 1929.

The great strides that have been made in recent years in the development of hydro-electric power have reacted to the advantage of the present electric-tramway systems. The electrical energy in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin is now obtained from the hydro-electric works at Horahora, Mangahao and Lake Waikaremoana, Lake Coleridge, and Waipori respectively. These are the largest hydro-electric works in the Dominion, and energy is obtainable from them at comparatively cheap rates. Wellington and Auckland have only recently become linked up with their present sources of power, and are as yet at a disadvantage as regards the average cost of power in comparison with Christchurch and Dunedin. According to the figures for the year ended 31st March, 1929, Christchurch's tram-power cost 0.57d. per unit, against 0.77d. for Dunedin, 0.83d. for Wellington, and 1.07d. for Auckland. In using these figures due attention should be paid to the fact that, with the exception of Auckland, power is purchased in bulk by the tramway authorities, and is adapted for the use of the trams over the tramway authorities' own distribution systems. In Auckland the whole of the plant installed for the transformation and conversion of power for the tramways is the property of the authority supplying the power, the price paid by the tramway authorities being virtually for electricity delivered to the trams. The capital charges falling due annually in connection with this transforming machinery are therefore included under the heading of “Cost of Power” in Auckland, and under “General Capital Charges” for the other undertakings.

The smaller systems are at a disadvantage as regards power. The available supply in most cases has until recent years been obtainable from the local plants generating the energy for lighting purposes, and consequently the power-cost has been relatively high. The consumption of electrical energy by electric tramways throughout the Dominion during the year ended 31st March, 1929, together with the average coat per unit used, the number of units of energy per car-mile, and the number of passengers per car-mile, is given hereunder:—

System.	Total Units of Electrical Energy used.	Cost per Unit.	Units per Car-mile.^*	Passengers per Car-mile.^†
* All vehicles. † Passenger vehicles.
		d.
Auckland	18,336,236	1.07	3.14	10.16
Gisborne	102,797	1.60	1.47	5.83
Napier	323,271	1.13	1.71	8.39
New Plymouth	699,920	0.75	2.23	8.26
Wanganui	1,045,291	1.11	1.85	4.90
Wellington	9,980,058	0.83	2.40	10.99
Christchurch	7,768,890	0.57	2.34	7.32
Dunedin	3,624,518	0.77	2.05	11.80
Invercargill	663,370	1.02	1.78	8.51
Totals	42,544,351	0.90	2.56	9.69

The Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin systems obtain cheaper power than most of the smaller undertakings, but, owing to the larger cars in use, these centres have relatively higher figures in respect of units per car-mile. This leads further to a relatively greater volume of traffic per car-mile in these centres.

POLICY OF MANAGEMENT.

Generally speaking, it may be said that the policy of the local authorities controlling electric tramways is not the making of profit, but the arrangement of their finances so as to produce the barest possible surplus. The principle that the trams must pay their way and not become a burden on the rates is a cardinal rule in tramway-management.

The Tramways Act provides that a separate account must be kept in each case of all moneys received from the working of tramways, against which must be charged,—

Interest payable and percentage required to form a sinking fund in respect of every loan raised for the construction of the tramway.
The cost of maintaining the tramway in good repair, of providing and maintaining carriages and motive power, and of carrying on the traffic thereon.
Any surplus remaining, which the local authority may transfer to the District Fund.

MOTOR-BUS COMPETITION.

Competition by motor-buses is a problem that is troubling tramway authorities the world over at the present time. In New Zealand the competition from buses has seriously affected many tramway systems. A series of losses on certain lines, as well as in whole systems, has been the lot of several of the tramway concerns. The competition is not confined to motor-buses, the increasing use of the motor-car and bicycle having told against tramway services. The competition from motor-buses appears to have become really effective against trams about 1921. Prior to that year the number of passengers carried per car-mile for all tramways manifested an upward tendency more or less commensurate with the increase in the population served. From 10.26 in 1910–11 this figure gradually rose to 11.22 in 1919–20, but since then a gradual but significant decline has been recorded. Within the eight years following 1920–21 the figure declined from 10.71 to 9.69, a decrease of approximately 9 per cent.

Of course, the whole of the decrease in the passengers carried per car-mile is not attributable to bus competition. The policy behind the control of the tramways has something to do with this. The fundamental of this policy appears to be the provision of service without the making of profit. A tramway system, therefore, providing a service to a given community must, in normal circumstances, have a bigger proportionate volume of traffic as the population served increases. In New Zealand the population served by tramways has increased by approximately 50 per cent. since 1911. It follows, therefore, that the services should now carry a relatively higher volume of passengers unless the car-miles run have been proportionately increased, or, alternatively, new services in more sparsely populated areas have been opened. There is ample evidence that the services have increased. Therefore it is clear that the decrease in the passengers carried per car-mile is due in some measure to the latter cause. Just how much of the decrease in the volume of the traffic is attributable to this cause it is impossible, from the data available, to say, but it would be unreasonable to assume that the increase in services has been disproportionate. The fact that the growth of bus services synchronizes with the fall in the volume of tram traffic appears to indicate that the principal cause of the decrease lies in this direction.

In 1926 the question of motor-bus competition was taken up in Parliament. Relief came to the trams in the Motor-omnibus Traffic Act, 1926, which contained provisions prohibiting the competition of buses with trams, except where the fare charged per section by buses is 2d. more than the tram fare.

As an indication of the trend of traffic development, it may be mentioned that, with the exception of Napier, the whole of the local authorities conducting tramway services now maintain auxiliary motor-omnibus services.

PROGRESS SINCE 1910–1911.

Substantial progress has been made in electric tramways in the Dominion since 1910–11. A comparative table showing some of the more important particulars in respect of all the undertakings in operation since that year is given in the table following. The statistics for 1927–28 and 1928–29 given in this table and elsewhere throughout this section are exclusive altogether of figures relating to the operation of buses run by the tramway authorities. Bus operations were included to an unknown extent in 1926–27 and previous years.

Year ended 31st March,	Number of Under-takings.	Number of Employees.	Passenger Car-miles run.^*	Passengers carried.	Number of Passengers per Car-mile.^*
* Total car-miles for years prior to 1927.
1911	5	1,633	8,080,155	82,865,450	10.26
1916	9	1,954	10,797,384	109,538,171	10.14
1921	11	2,605	13,041,341	139,702,891	10.71
1922	11	2,832	13,872,188	143,978,472	10.38
1923	10	2,957	14,052,862	145,598,473	10.36
1924	10	3,151	14,774,262	152,295,215	10.31
1925	9	3,144	15,551,322	152,518,060	9.81
1926	9	3,310	17,289,576	167,677,057	9.70
1927	9	3,291	17,066,086	167,599,661	9.82
1928	9	3,136	16,857,342	162,550,482	9.64
1929	9	3,062	16,565,221	160,559,313	9.69

During the year ended 31st March, 1911, 1,633 persons found employment in the various electric-tram services: by 1926 this figure had doubled, and was recorded as 3,310. Each subsequent year, however, has recorded a slight decrease. The frequency of the services as depicted in the car-miles run shows that great strides have been made in this direction. The tendency towards the development of the double in preference to the single track is a feature attendant upon the increasing density of the population served. The length of thoroughfare traversed by track (either double or single) at 31st March, 1929, was 170 miles, the total miles of track including loops, being 262. Figures for years prior to 1926–27 were collected on a basis which does not permit of comparison with subsequent years.

The financial operations of the tramways have increased along with the traffic operations. Particulars regarding the revenue and expenditure, the capital outlay, and accrued funds, since 1910–11, are given hereunder:—

Year ended 31st March,	Number of Undertakings.	Revenue.	Expenditure.	Percentage of Expenditure to Revenue.	Capital Outlay.	Accrued Funds.
Year ended 31st March,	Number of Undertakings.	Revenue.	Expenditure.	Percentage of Expenditure to Revenue.	Capital Outlay.	Sinking Funds.	Depreciation and Renewal Funds.	Accident Funds.
		£	£		£	£	£	£
1911	5	548,842	491,119	89.48	1,423,281	57,110	168,004	6,793
1916	9	750,893	679,799	90.53	1,972,424	147,993	655,423	21,359
1921	11	1,298,306	1,275,610	98.25	3,721,772	340,078	600,529	49,745
1922	11	1,474,010	1,451,512	98.47	4,073,911	334,419	621,090	49,827
1923	10	1,510,391	1,445,940	95.73	4,370,630	403,127	598,073	55,890
1924	10	1,562,791	1,495,181	95.67	4,013,647	478,241	643,717	62,666
1925	9	1,621,935	1,568,532	96.71	4,701,672	553,990	631,103	67,789
1926	9	1,607,969	1,584,016	98.51	4,760,756	632,732	683,614	71,736
1927	9	1,640,330	1,659,802	101.19	5,066,008	770,100	877,116	86,889
1928	9	1,612,964	1,574,598	97.62	5,036,853	915,301	787,891	84,887
1929	9	1,606,742	1,531,551	95.32	5,137,918	1,015,920	780,067	98,131

The revenue and expenditure figures have trebled since 1910–11; they increased from £548,842 and £491,119 respectively in that year to £1,606,742 and £1,531,551 respectively in 1928–29. Considered in conjunction with each other these figures show that since 1910–11 there is a marked tendency for them to come more closely together. Were the tramways conducted for the purpose of making profit such a tendency might be viewed with apprehension, but, as pointed out previously, it is the general policy to run on the “barest possible surplus.” Perhaps the figures regarding the capital outlay, showing, as they do, the actual amount of money that has been sunk in the various undertakings, give as good an indication of the progress of the electric tramways as any other financial figures. They are also of particular interest in studying, inter alia, the fares charged in the different systems, since the capital outlay and the volume of traffic are the factors that primarily determine the fares. In 1910–11 just over £1,400,000 (loan-money) was invested in electric tramways, the accumulated sinking funds amounting to £57,110. The opening-up of new undertakings subsequent to 1910–11, and the extension of those already in existence, saw the capital outlay mount up rapidly until in 1928–29 it had reached the imposing figure of £5,137,918. Up to March, 1929, £1,015,920 had been accumulated as sinking funds to liquidate the loans providing the capital cost, while at the same date depreciation and renewal funds amounted to £780,067. In 1910–11 these latter funds stood at £168,004. Figures are available showing details of the total expenditure during each of the last five years and are given in the subjoined table:—

Year ended 31st March,	Operating Expenditure.	Capital Charges.	Other Expenses.	Total.
(a) Absolute Figures.
	£	£	£	£
1925	1,137,478	380,128	50,926	1,568,532
1926	1,151,747	374,112	58,157	1,584,016
1927	1,224,152	381,591	54,059	1,659,802
1928	1,125,845	399,433	49,320	1,574,598
1929	1,086,343	392,407	52,801	1,531,551
(b) Proportion of Total.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1925	72.52	24.23	3.25	100.00
1926	72.71	23.62	3.67	100.00
1927	73.75	22.99	3.26	100.00
1928	71.50	25.37	3.13	100.00
1929	70.93	25.62	3.45	100.00

The percentage of operating expenditure to total expenditure has decreased from 72.52 in 1924–25 to 70.93 in 1928–29. Capital charges on the other hand have risen from 24.23 per cent. to 25.62 per cent. during the same period. Other expenses show very little movement.

The total capital outlay on the various tramway undertakings is given as £5,137,918 to the 31st March, 1929, and it is of interest to dissect this amount into the principal component parts and compare the figures with those for previous years. This has been done for each of the last five years, and the figures are given in the table following:—

As at 31st March,	Permanent-way.^*	Electric Equipment of Lines.	Cars and other Vehicles.	Land.	Buildings.	Miscellaneous and Undefined.	Total
* Including electric equipment of lines for years prior to 1929.
Absolute Figures.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1925	2,400,264	..	1,135,544	112,736	426,741	626,387	4,701,672
1926	2,376,551	..	1,266,395	155,975	491,449	470,386	4,760,756
1927	2,384,100	..	1,383,412	208,076	571,190	519,230	5,066,008
1928	2,514,795	..	1,309,638	166,800	597,054	448,566	5,036,853
1929	2,092,519	481,975	1,301,930	152,110	596,051	513,333	5,137,918
Proportion of Total.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1925	51.05	..	24.15	2.43	9.07	13.30	100.00
1926	49.92	..	26.60	3.28	10.32	9.88	100.00
1927	47.06	..	27.38	4.11	11.27	10.18	100.00
1928	49.93	..	26.00	3.31	11.85	8.91	100.00
1929	40.73	9.38	25.34	2.96	11.60	9.99	100.00

Extensions and improvements to the permanent-way and the electric equipment of lines have accounted for an increased outlay of £964,224 between 31st March, 1924, and the corresponding date in 1929, the percentage that this amount bears to the total increasing from 40.12 to 50.11 during the five years. The amount expended on rolling-stock rose from £1,047,730 in 1924 to £1,301,930 in 1929, but the percentage slightly decreased. During the same period £166,861 has been invested in land and buildings, the amount at the 31st March, 1929, standing at £748,161.

The discussion and statistical data given hereafter relate to the operations of the various undertakings during the year ended 31st March, 1929.

VOLUME OF TRAFFIC.

In point of number of passengers carried the Auckland electric tramways easily lead the way, accounting for no less than 37 per cent. of the 160,559,313 passengers carried during the year. Next to Auckland comes Wellington, with 45,745,050 passengers, or 28 per cent. of the total, while Christchurch and Dunedin follow with 24,088,063 and 20,837,976 passengers respectively. Invercargill and Wanganui, with 3,169,641 and 2,771,294 respectively, had the greatest volume of traffic among the smaller undertakings. The number of passengers carried per car-mile is an excellent guide to the relative volume of traffic handled by the various undertakings. In the case of Dunedin, where a relatively large volume of traffic is handled on 18 miles of thoroughfare, it is not surprising that the average passenger load per car-mile (11.80) is considerably higher than in any other undertaking. Wellington follows Dunedin with 10.99 passengers per car-mile, with Auckland (10.16) coming next. Christchurch, with its huge distance of thoroughfares traversed, 53 1/2 miles, falls a long way below the other main centres with 7.32. In considering the fares charged on the Christchurch trams this fact should not be lost sight of. It is axiomatic in connection with tramway fares that the volume of traffic is perhaps the principal determining factor. The volume of traffic per car-mile in Invercargill, Napier, and New Plymouth was recorded as 8.51, 8.39, and 8.26 respectively, and it is only natural that those undertakings should be in a more healthy financial condition than Wanganui and Gisborne, whose tram services carried on the average 4.90 and 5.83 passengers respectively for every car-mile run.

The following table shows the total car-miles run and the aggregate number of passengers carried by each undertaking during the year ended 31st March, 1929, also the average number of passengers per car-mile and the average fare per passenger.

System.	Total Passengers carried.	Car-miles run (Passenger Cars and Trailers).	Passengers per Car-mile.	Average Fare per Passenger.
				d.
Auckland	59,358,469	5,837,526	10.16	2.48
Gisborne	409,113	70,130	5.83	2.34
Napier	1,584,713	188,905	8.39	2.05
Now Plymouth	2,594,994	314,261	8.26	2.00
Wanganui	2,771,294	565,642	4.90	2.91
Wellington	45,745,050	4,159,125	10.99	2.29
Christchurch	24,088,063	3,292,471	7.32	2.55
Dunedin	20,837,976	1,764,512	11.80	1.66
Invercargill	3,169,641	372,649	8.51	1.78
Totals	160,559,313	16,565,221	9.69	2.31

Ignoring other considerations the figures in the above table display rather strikingly the relationship between the relative density of traffic and the average fare per passenger. The Dunedin tramways carry the heaviest volume of traffic per car-mile and show the lowest average fare per passenger (1.66d.), while Wanganui, with the lowest density of traffic, shows the highest average fare (2.91d.). These figures, it should be noted, take no account of distance travelled.

FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS.

During the year ended 31st March, 1929, the revenue from electric tramways amounted to £1,606,742; of this amount £1,547,517 was derived from passenger services, while other services, including freights (£425), accounted for £59,225. Of the passenger-traffic revenue £1,039,199 represented receipts from cash fares, while £508,318 represented receipts from the sales of concession tickets. The following table shows particulars regarding the revenue of each undertaking during the year ended 31st March, 1929:—

System.	Traffic (Passengers and Freight).		Traffic Revenue per Car-mile.^*	Other.	Total.
System.	Cash.	Concessions.	Traffic Revenue per Car-mile.^*	Other.	Total.
* All vehicles.
	£	£	d.	£	£
Auckland	425,463	188,005	25.18	7,060	620,528
Gisborne	3,994	..	13.67	157	4,151
Napier	9,333	4,460	17.19	422	14,215
New Plymouth	11,358	10,389	16.49	4,545	26,292
Wanganui	28,552	5,005	14.24	20,273	53,830
Wellington	236,232	200,747	25.21	14,102	451,081
Christchurch	211,280	45,028	18.52	9,255	265,563
Dunedin	105,053	39,554	19.67	2,304	146,911
Invercargill	8,094	15,395	15.13	682	24,171
Totals	1,039,359	508,583	22.37	58,800	1,606,742

The Auckland and Wellington services provided 68 per cent. of the total passenger revenue, the former returning £613,468, or 40 per cent. of the total, against £436,979, or 28 per cent., in the case of Wellington. Christchurch and Dunedin fall a long way below Auckland and Wellington in passenger revenue, with £256,308 and £144,607 respectively, while of the smaller undertakings the next in order is Wanganui with £33,557.

On the expenditure side it is interesting, in view of the bus competition, to note that the total expenditure—covering operating expenses, capital charges, and other expenditure — was £75,191 below the total revenue for the year under review. Operating-expenses accounted for £1,086,343, or 71 per cent. of the total; capital charges comprised £392,407, or 26 per cent.; while the balance (£52,801) consisted of expenditure not classified under the previous headings. The items of expenditure for each of the undertakings during the year ended 31st March, 1929, are given in the subjoined table:—

System.	Operating Expenditure.	Capital Charges.	Other Expenses.	Total.
	£	£	£	£
Auckland	426,433	132,566	13,524	572,523
Gisborne	4,119	2,944	153	7,216
Napier	10,684	4,548	337	15,569
New Plymouth	14,359	8,622	1,365	24,346
Wanganui	31,233	19,996	2,605	53,834
Wellington	313,882	98,858	22,228	434,968
Christchurch	169,736	71,115	11,869	252,720
Dunedin	97,487	46,379	720	144,586
Invercargill	18,410	7,379	..	25,789
Totals	1,086,343	392,407	52,801	1,531,551

The principal item comprised in the total operating expenditure is expenses on account of traffic, which amounted to £610,359, or 56 per cent. Cost of power follows traffic expenses in order of magnitude, accounting for £158,868, or 15 per cent. Track-maintenance cost £140,508, or approximately 13 per cent. of the total, being slightly greater than the item car-maintenance, which stands at £128,190 (12 per cent.). Management and office expenses accounted for the remaining portion of the total (4 per cent.) with £48,418. Information regarding the operating expenditure for each undertaking during the year ended 31st March, 1929, is given in the next table.

System.	Power.	Traffic.	Car maintenance.	Track-maintenance (including Electrical Equipment).	Management and Office Expenses.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	82,141	226,882	50,646	51,291	15,473	426,433
Gisborne	685	2,400	481	44	509	4,119
Napier	1,522	6,786	1,330	583	463	10,684
New Plymouth	2,200	9,633	1,195	949	382	14,359
Wanganui	4,822	14,149	5,438	4,156	2,668	31,233
Wellington	34,575	179,832	39,576	48,350	11,549	313,882
Christchurch	18,420	103,714	16,272	22,992	8,338	169,736
Dunedin	11,695	58,224	10,422	9,087	8,059	97,487
Invercargill	2,808	8,739	2,830	3,056	977	18,410
Totals	158,868	610,359	128,190	140,508	48,418	1,086,343

As pointed out previously, the annual capital charges in the way of provision for interest and sinking fund and depreciation, reserve, and renewal funds, comprised 25 1/2 per cent. of the total expenditure during the year ended 31st March, 1929. The magnitude of these charges is not surprising, having regard to the relatively large capital outlay that is a necessity of tramway undertakings. Of the total provision for capital charges for the year ended 31st March, 1929 (£392,407), £237,561, or almost 61 per cent., consisted of interest charges, and £61,027, or 16 per cent., of sinking-fund charges; £76,473 represented provision for depreciation, renewal, and reserve funds; while the remaining £17,346 comprised insurance and accident fund charges. Particulars regarding the annual capital charges of each undertaking during the year under discussion are given hereunder:—

System.	Interest.	Sinking Fund Charges.	Depreciation Fund Charges.	Renewal Fund Charges.	Reserve Fund Charges.	Accident Fund Charges and Insurance Premiums.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	89,362	37,248	..	..	..	5,956	132,566
Gisborne	2,659	285	..	..	..	..	2,944
Napier	3,618	372	..	358	..	200	4,548
Now Plymouth	5,437	2,039	..	557	..	589	8,622
Wanganui	16,069	3,573	..	..	..	354	19,996
Wellington	39,848	9,314	..	21,377	21,377	6,942	98,858
Christchurch	54,894	2,595	..	2,049	9,720	1,857	71,115
Dunedin	20,708	4,503	2,998	17,037	..	1,133	46,379
Invercargill	4,966	1,098	..	1,000	..	315	7,379
Totals	237,561	61,027	2,998	42,378	31,097	17,346	392,407

Apart from general considerations the gross figures relating to revenue and operating-costs, &c., indicate very little; if, however, the figures are reduced to a common relative basis they are of infinite value in showing (subject, of course, to a number of limitations) the efficiency of the various undertakings. Reflected in the comparisons made between these figures can be seen the results of different methods of management and control, the suitability or otherwise of electric tramways for certain areas, &c. The usual basis upon which the gross figures are reduced in order to make them comparable is that of the car-miles run. The figures for each undertaking in respect of the traffic revenue, the operating-costs, and capital charges have accordingly been reduced in this manner and are given hereunder:—

System.	Per Car-mile run.^*
System.	Traffic Revenue.	Operating-costs.	Capital Charges.
* All vehicles.
	d.	d.	d.
Auckland	25.18	17.50	5.44
Gisborne	13.67	14.10	10.07
Napier	17.19	13.57	5.78
New Plymouth	16.49	10.97	6.58
Wanganui	14.24	13.25	8.48
Wellington	25.21	18.11	5.70
Christchurch	18.52	12.26	5.14
Dunedin	19.67	13.26	6.31
Invercargill	15.13	11.86	4.75
Average	22.37	15.70	5.67

In point of revenue per car-mile Wellington, with 25.21d., comes first, closely followed by Auckland, with 25.18d. Adverting to the volume of traffic in these cases, it would appear that relatively high fares together with a high volume of traffic have been the responsible factors. The Dunedin system, which leads Auckland and Wellington in point of volume of traffic, comes next in revenue per car-mile (19.67d.), while Christ-church with its widespread system and relatively low volume of traffic showed 18.52d. per car-mile. Of the smaller systems, Napier, with an average of 8.39 passengers per car-mile, leads as regards revenue per car-mile, with 17.19d.

A study of the operating-costs per car-mile is attended with considerable interest. At first glance it is somewhat surprising to find that the lowest relative costs were recorded for New Plymouth, one of the smallest systems. There it cost only 10.97d. per car-mile to operate the tramway, services during the year ended 31st March, 1929. Considering that the capital charges are comparatively high- in New Plymouth, it is clear that the costs of operation would require to be kept down to a minimum. Of the four chief systems Christchurch and Dunedin, with operating-costs per car-mile of 12.26d. and 13.26d. respectively, are considerably below Auckland and Wellington, which show 17.50d. and 18.11d. respectively.

From the point of view of net revenue per car-mile, after providing for capital charges, Auckland occupies first position, with 2.24d., followed by Wellington (1.40d.), Christchurch (l.12d.), and Dunedin (0.10d.). In no other case was the revenue sufficient to meet operating-costs plus capital charges. In the case of Gisborne the operating-costs per car-mile show as 14.10d., a figure actually higher than the average revenue per car-mile, 13.67d. The capital charges per car-mile are exceptionally high in this system, and the capital charges and operating-cost together greatly exceed the revenue received.

In comparisons between the annual capital charges of the four main systems it should not be overlooked that in Auckland no amount was set aside during the year under review for the creation of depreciation and renewal funds.

CAPITAL OUTLAY.

Up to the 31st March, 1929, £5,137,918 had been sunk in electric tramways in the Dominion. Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch, with £1,565,989, £1,270,890, and £1,282,802 respectively, provide the bulk of this figure. The figure for Dunedin, £429,297, appears somewhat insignificant beside those for the other three major systems. During the year ended 31st March, 1929, £79,981 was added to the capital outlay for all the tramway undertakings, Wellington providing £51,449 and Auckland £19,679.

The subjoined table shows the total capital outlay at 31st March, 1929, and during the year ended 31st March, 1929, classified according to the principal headings of expenditure:—

CAPITAL OUTLAY.

System.	Permanent-way.	Electric Equipment of Lines.	Cars and other Vehicles.	Land.	Buildings.	Miscellaneous and undefined.	Total.
(a) Up to 31st March, 1929.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	764,247	159,324	396,943	26,408	170,482	48,585	1,565,989
Gisborne	39,095	..	12,172	..	2,372	3,916	57,555
Napier	43,595	6,764	14,459	..	5,257	2,267	72,342
New Plymouth	63,341	9,158	22,867	730	6,843	9,178	112,117
Wanganui	117,143	27,175	40,654	..	10,068	62,073	257,113
Wellington	410,149	128,939	358,385	54,880	193,703	124,834	1,270,890
Christchurch	407,972	109,607	318,115	38,910	153,569	254,629	1,282,802
Dunedin	203,074	41,008	98,726	30,886	47,752	7,851	429,297
Invercargill	43,903	..	39,609	296	6,005	..	89,813
Totals	2,092,519	481,975	1,301,930	152,110	596,051	513,333	5,137,918
(b) During Year ended 31st March, 1929.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	8,723	4,573	192	..	..	6,191	19,679
Gisborne	−30	..	..	..	115	11	96
Napier	..	..	172	..	..	..	172
New Plymouth	..	..	..	..	..	1	1
Wanganui	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Wellington	10,996	426	10,947	1,471	18,925	8,684	51,449
Christchurch	925	20	334	508	20	297	2,104
Dunedin	679	3	3,544	334	..	426	4,986
Invercargill	207	..	1,287	..	..	..	1,494
Totals	21,500	5,022	16,476	2,313	19,060	15,610	79,981

Closely allied to the capital outlay is the question of accrued funds. At the 31st March, 1929, these totalled £1,894,118, of which £1,015,920 represented accrued sinking funds, £780,067 accrued depreciation and reserve funds, and £98,131 accident and insurance funds. Ninety-four, fifty-one, and fifty-four per cent. respectively of these funds are invested in securities outside the tramway undertakings, the balance being invested in the respective undertakings.

ROLLING-STOCK.

The following is a summary of the passenger rolling-stock in use on the various tramway systems at 31st March, 1929:—

Kind of Car.		Number.	Total Capacity (Passengers).
Closed	4-wheel	89	2,543
	8-wheel	226	10,936
Open	4-wheel	6	240
Combination	4-wheel	48	1,552
	8-wheel	202	7,648
Double-deckers	4-wheel	15	825
	8-wheel	6	474
Trailers	4-wheel	97	4,074
	8-wheel	9	396
Total		698	28,688

In addition, there were two freight-cars and four sprinklers.

CABLE TRAMWAYS.

There are four cable-tramway systems in the Dominion, one in Wellington and three in Dunedin. The systems, all of which operate on a 3 ft. 6 in. gauge, extend over routes totalling 5 miles 39 chains. During the year ended 31st March, 1929, 389,769 car-miles (including trailer-miles) were run, for the carriage of 7,022,865 passengers, which represents 18 passengers per car-mile. Operating-expenses during the year amounted to £38,161, or 23.50d. per car-mile, while the annual capital charges amounted to £10,317, or 6.34d. per oar-mile. The total revenue derived from passenger traffic daring the year amounted to £53,299, showing an average of l.81d. per passenger carried. The total capital outlay, less depreciation, stood at £107,213 at 31st March, 1929.

Statistics relating to cable tramways were collected for the first time in 1924–26. The following summary sets out the principal statistics for the years 1924–25 to 1927–28:—

—		Year ended 31st March,
—		1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Undertakings	No.	4	4	4	4
Employees	No.	73	78	75	76
Salaries and wages	£	18,186	19,728	22,957	22,590
Capital outlay	£	106,116	108,742	111,018	112,461
Expenditure—
Operating expenses	£	34,961	37,990	40,931	36,053
Capital charges	£	11,662	9,888	9,967	9,757
Total	£	46,623	47,878	50,898	45,810
Revenue	£	53,741	58,160	56,995	54,262
Passengers carried	No.	6,959,019	7,495,832	7,431,777	7,032,930
Car-miles run (including trailer miles)	No.	347,914	440,039	423,287	419,314
Passengers per car-mile	No.	20	17	17	17

Chapter 15. SECTION XV.—ROADS AND ROAD TRANSPORT.

Table of Contents

LENGTH OF ROADS.

LENGTH OF ROADS AT 31ST MARCH, 1928.

BRIDGES IN ROAD SYSTEM, 31ST MARCH, 1928.

ROADS ADMINISTRATION.

MAIN HIGHWAYS ACT.

HIGHWAY DISTRICTS.

LENGTH OF MAIN HIGHWAYS.

SUBSIDIES.

FINANCE.

CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE.

MOTOR-VEHICLES ACT.

MOTOR TRANSPORT.

MOTOR-TRANSPORT STATISTICS, JULY, 1929.

LENGTH OF ROADS.

THE total mileage of formed roads in the Dominion at the 31st March, 1928, was 48,434, in addition to which there were also 5,095 miles of bridle-tracks, and 14,639 miles of unformed legal roads. The figures for the four classes of local authorities concerned are as follows:—

LENGTH OF ROADS AT 31ST MARCH, 1928.

—	Counties.	Boroughs.	Town Districts.	Road Districts.	Total.
	Miles.	Miles.	Miles.	Miles.	Miles.
Roads and streets formed to not less than dray-width and paved or surfaced with—
Bituminous or cement concrete	33 1/2	158 3/4	10	14 3/4	217
Bitumen or tar	605 1/2	579 1/2	55 3/4	21 3/4	1,262 1/2
Metal or gravel	26,432 1/4	2,352	394 1/4	1,450 1/4	30,628 3/4
Other or unspecified material	207	39 3/4	5 1/2	..	252 1/4
Roads and streets formed to not less than dray-width, but not paved or surfaced	15,164	219 3/4	122 1/4	567 1/4	16,073 1/4
Total formed roads	42,442 1/4	3,349 3/4	587 3/4	2,054	48,433 3/4
Bridle-tracks	4,912	15 1/4	10 1/2	157 3/4	5,095 1/2
Unformed legal roads	13,470 1/2	370 1/2	72 1/4	726 1/4	14,639 1/4
Total of all roads	60,824 1/2	3,735 1/2	670 1/2	2,938	68,168 1/4

As in the case of railway-construction, the formation of roads in many parts of the Dominion has been attended with considerable difficulties, arising from the configuration of the country and the abundance and frequency of rivers. As illustrating the latter aspect, the following table, showing the number and lengths of bridges incorporated in the roads system of the Dominion, is of interest. Only bridges 25 ft. or over in length have been taken into account, no official enumeration having been made of the innumerable culverts and short bridges that have had to be constructed to cross narrow ravines and watercourses.

BRIDGES IN ROAD SYSTEM, 31ST MARCH, 1928.

Material of which constructed.	Counties.		Boroughs.		Town Districts.		Road Districts.		Totals.
Material of which constructed.	No.	Total Length.	No.	Total Length.	No.	Total Length.	No.	Total Length.	No.	Total Length.
		Ft.		Ft.		Ft.		Ft.		Ft.
Iron and steel	145	19,837	22	4,778	3	135	1	29	171	24,779
Stone and concrete	461	40,403	70	6,639	8	640	6	151	545	47,833
Australian or other hardwood	1,898	214,212	84	12,296	15	2,078	16	622	2,013	229,208
Native timbers	1,915	145,924	56	6,155	15	664	8	335	1,994	153,078
Other and unspecified	104	11,970	7	874	..	..	..	..	111	12,844
Totals	4,523	432,346	239	30,742	41	3,517	31	1,137	4,834	467,742

ROADS ADMINISTRATION.

The control of roads and bridges in New Zealand comes under the administration of the Minister of Public Works, the main statutes covering roads administration being the Public Works Act, 1928, and the Counties Act, 1920, and amendments.

Outside of the cities, boroughs, and independent town districts, the local administration is very largely vested in County Councils, and all roads, unless specially exempted and declared Government roads, are controlled by the County Councils. Local authorities have the assistance and advice of the Public Works Department through its various engineers stationed in most of the main centres.

The allocation and legalization of roads is arranged by the local authorities and the Public Works Department conjointly.

The Government assists materially towards the construction of roads and bridges, and grants and subsidies are given to the County Councils according to the particular circumstances of each individual case. The county quota of the cost is usually found by raising loans secured by a special rate levied over the area to be served by the road. In this connection it may be noted that local-body loans are now closely controlled, and under the Local Government Loans Board Act, 1926, a Board has been established consisting of the Secretary to the Treasury, the Engineer-in-Chief of the Public Works Department, and five other persons appointed by the Governor-General. The function of the Board is to consider and investigate all applications from local authorities for developmental loans. The ability of the district concerned to carry the loan and the soundness of the proposal generally are thus fully considered, and, moreover, the operation of the Board tends to exercise a check on excessive borrowing by local bodies.

By statutory provision loan-money is devoted solely to expenditure on construction, maintenance and general repairs being financed from revenue derived from rates, &c.

The Government's funds for roading purposes, from which the grants and subsidies above referred to are made are derived—

For construction work from the Public Works Fund, consisting mainly of loan-money raised in Great Britain.
For maintenance and repairs, from the Consolidated Fund.

As will be seen farther on, special provisions exist in the case of main highways.

The procedure adopted in allocating Government grants and subsidies to local authorities for road-construction works is one which is worthy of special mention, operating as it does in a manner particularly fair and reasonable. By means of it most cordial relations have been established between the Public Works Department and the various County Councils throughout the country.

As early in the financial year as is possible, the Department ascertains the approximate amount of Government money which will be available for that year's roading operations. This is then allocated to the several Public Works districts of control on the basis of each district's claim under such factors as area, population, rating, loans available, mileage of roads in use, estimated amount to complete all roads, values of Crown and Native lands suitable for settlement, and mileage of working railways in each district. These district quotas are then in turn allotted, on the same basis and taking similar factors into consideration, to the various counties within each Public Works district. Each local body is then advised of the amount of Government money it is entitled to for the financial year, and in consultation with the District Engineer of the Department it in turn allots its quota to individual roads in order of urgency.

The benefit of the advice of the Government official removes any parochialism which might tend to arise, and by the operation of this scheme no one local authority receives a greater proportion of Government funds than that to which it is justly entitled, nor does one local body benefit at the expense of another.

The allocations by the counties and the Department are subsequently submitted to Parliament for final confirmation and approval.

Maintenance of roads is administered almost entirely by local authorities, the necessary funds being obtained from general rating, but in cases of exceptional circumstances such as those of roads of considerable length in sparsely populated districts where the local rate is totally inadequate to cover efficient maintenance, the Government grants assistance by way of subsidies from the Consolidated Fund.

Since the advent of modern fast and heavy motor traffic efficient maintenance of roads is becoming increasingly important, and, with a view to protecting the capital expenditure on roads, no opportunity is lost by the Public Works Department of impressing on local bodies their responsibility in this direction. Some years ago the Public Works Department instituted a policy of obtaining from local authorities, before issuing any assistance for metalling work, a definite assurance that the Council was in a position and prepared to allot annually from its Revenue Fund sufficient money to maintain the metal efficiently when placed.

On account of New Zealand's climate and configuration damage to roads by heavy rains and floods frequently occurs, and in many instances the cost of restoration is beyond the financial resources of the County Council. In such cases the Government, through the Public Works Department, comes to the assistance of the local body in the way of further grants or subsidies from the Consolidated Fund.

From the inauguration of the public-works scheme in 1870 until the 31st March, 1929, the sum of £17,799,274 had been expended out of the Public Works Fund on the construction of roads and bridges. Considerable further expenditure has been paid out of the Land for Settlements Account on the construction of roads to open up Crown lands, out of the National Endowment Account for the roading of national-endowment lands, and out of the Consolidated Fund for the maintenance of roads. Expenditure out of the Main Highways Account is dealt with farther on in this section.

MAIN HIGHWAYS ACT.

Until recently only a small proportion of the total road-mileage outside of boroughs was represented by roads with permanent surfacing. The advent of the motor-car, however, entirely changed the complexion of the roading problem in New Zealand, as elsewhere, and the demand for better roads arose very shortly after motor transport became an appreciable factor. Later on, with the rapid increase in the use of motor-vehicles, particularly heavy ones, the position became acute, and it was soon quite evident that the type of road that was suitable for slow-moving horse-drawn traffic was inadequate,

In counties where the country was sparsely populated, and the revenue derivable from rates was low, certain lengths of road had in the past been maintained more or less by means of grants or subsidies from the Government. It was found in New Zealand, as in other parts of the world, that under the strain of motor traffic the roads were deteriorating, while the popular clamour that they be improved to meet modern conditions was insistent. This led in 1921 to the introduction of a Main Highways Bill, which provided that all works of construction and maintenance on certain specified highways were to be carried out by the Government without any contribution from local authorities. The mileage then proposed was about 2,000 miles, but the Bill provided that this could be extended from time to time.

It was contended, however, by the local authorities that the creation of these main highways under direct Government operation would lead to dual control and overlapping supervision, and also that it was undesirable to deprive the local authorities of all powers over roads within the areas under their jurisdiction. Further, it was claimed that the scheme, by not covering a sufficient length of roads, did not give adequate relief to the local authorities. In addition, the scheme proposed to spend all the money derived from the proposed motor-taxation on a limited length of roads, a great proportion of which were running parallel with railways, and depriving of any assistance the roads that brought the produce of the country to the railways. For these reasons this Bill did not become law: but in 1922 a modified Bill again came before Parliament, and was finally passed as the Main Highways Act, 1922. The Act of 1922 has since been amended in several respects.

For the purposes of the Act a Board called the “Main Highways Board” was set up. The Main Highways Board consists of the Engineer-in-Chief and Under-Secretary of the Public Works Department (Chairman); the Assistant Engineer-in-Chief and the Accountant of the Public Works Department; two representatives of County Councils; and one representative of owners of motor-vehicles.

HIGHWAY DISTRICTS.

In 1924 the Dominion was divided into eighteen highway districts, composed of groups of counties, suitable by geographical situation and community of interest for being so grouped. In the majority of cases the constituent counties acquiesced in the grouping; in the few cases where they did not do so the Main Highways Board exercised the authority conferred by the Act. The list of highway districts, with the counties included in each, is as follows:—

District Number.	District Name.	Counties included.
1	Auckland North	Mongonui, Hokianga, Bay of Islands, Whangaroa, Hobson, Whangarei, Otamatea, Rodney, Waitemata.
2	Auckland South	Eden, Manukau, Franklin, Waikato, Raglan, Waipa, Coromandel, Thames, Hauraki Plains, Ohinemuri, Piako, Matamata.
3	Tauranga	Tauranga, Rotorua, Whakatane, Opotiki, Taupo.
4	Gisborne	Matakaoa, Waiapu, Uawa, Cook, Waikohu.
5	Napier	Wairoa, Hawke's Bay, Waipawa, Waipukurau, Patangata, Dannevirke, Weber, Woodville.
6	King-country	Waitomo, Taumarunui, Ohura, Kaitieke, Kawhia, Otorohanga.
7	Taranaki	Clifton, Whangamomona, Taranaki, Inglewood, Egmont, Stratford, Waimate West, Eltham, Hawera.
8	Wanganui	Patea, Waitotara, Waimarino, Wanganui, Rangitikei.
9	Wellington West	Kiwitea, Pohangina, Oroua, Kairanga, Manawatu, Horowhenua, Hutt, Makara.
10	Wellington East	Pahiatua, Akitio, Eketahuna, Mauriceville, Castlepoint, Masterton, Wairarapa South, Featherston.
11	Nelson	Collingwood, Takaka, Waimea, Sounds, Marlborough, Murchison.
12	West Coast	Buller, Inangahua, Grey, Westland.
13	Canterbury North	Awatere, Kaikoura, Amuri, Cheviot, Waipara.
14	Canterbury Central	Tawera, Oxford, Ashley, Kowai, Rangiora, Eyre, Waimairi, Heathcote, Paparua, Halswell, Mount Herbert, Akaroa, Wairewa, Springs, Ellesmere, Malvern, Selwyn.
15	Canterbury South	Ashburton, Geraldine, Mackenzie, Levels, Waimate, Waitaki.
16	Otago Central	Maniototo, Vincent, Lake, Waihemo, Waikouaiti.
17	Otago South	Peninsula, Taieri, Tuapeka, Bruce, Clutha.
18	Southland	Southland, Wallace, Fiord.

Consequent on the provision of additional revenue accruing from the taxation of motor-spirits, the main highway districts were redefined in 1927 to include all boroughs with populations under 6,000. Town districts, both dependent and independent, are also included in the main highways scheme.

District Highway Councils are set up in each highway district, these Councils being constituted to include a Public Works Engineer, and one person to represent, each constituent county, with an executive of three appointed by the members of the Council.

LENGTH OF MAIN HIGHWAYS.

The functions of the District Highway Councils are to make recommendations for each year as to which roads within the several districts should be declared main highways, and what works should be done and what expenditure incurred on these highways during that period.

The District Highway Councils are guided by the following considerations when recommending roads for declaration as main highways:—

As to whether the roads may be regarded as arterial in that they carry appreciable volumes of through as well as local traffic:
As to whether the roads connect large centres of population within the highway district:
As to whether the roads carry appreciable traffic to and from seaports or railway centres within or without the highway districts.

The Main Highways Board assumed control of the main highways on the 9th June, 1924, on which date the first and principal schedule of main highways was proclaimed.

On the same date 1,046 miles (since increased to 1,637 miles) of main highways were gazetted Government roads, this action being in terms of section 22 of the Act, whereby the Board might declare any main highway to be a Government road, and might provide a greater proportion of the cost of works of (a) construction and reconstruction, and (b) maintenance and repair. The highways which were declared Government roads were chiefly those in districts where settlement was sparse, and where the revenue from rates collectable by the local authorities was insufficient to meet the expenditure necessary for the construction, reconstruction, and maintenance of the highways therein.

A Main Highways Amendment Act passed in 1928 gave the Board authority to increase its subsidies without the necessity of any highway on which such increased subsidies are paid being declared a Government road. Such an amendment was made necessary mainly in consequence of the increased subsidies of up to £3 for £1 now being paid by the Board towards the cost of reconstruction and surfacing of main highways adjacent to the large centres of population.

The lengths of main highways in each highway district were as follows at 31st March, 1929:—

Highway District.	Ordinary Main Highways.		Additional Main Highways.		Total.
	M.	ch.	M.	ch.	M.	ch.
1. Auckland North	590	4	331	30	921	34
2. Auckland South	486	1	334	32	820	33
3. Tauranga	447	15	170	18	617	33
4. Gisborne	242	16	91	8	333	24
5. Napier	456	18	235	29	691	47
6. King-country	329	30	293	23	622	53
7. Taranaki	309	67	123	6	432	73
8. Wanganui	327	48	147	15	474	63
9. Wellington West	315	40	122	40	438	0
10. Wellington East	338	48	114	2	452	50
Totals, North Island	3,842	47	1,962	43	5,805	10
11. Nelson	305	23	193	10	498	33
12. West Coast	348	43	145	8	493	51
13. Canterbury North	307	40	89	20	396	60
14. Canterbury Central	399	32	242	65	642	17
15. Canterbury South	425	45	415	35	841	0
16. Otago Central	258	54	223	34	482	8
17. Otago South	299	37	145	60	445	17
18. Southland	463	52	335	16	798	68
Totals, South Island	2,808	6	1,790	8	4,598	14
Totals, Dominion	6,650	53	3,752	51	10,403	24

The Main Highways Act, 1922, gave power to the Board to contribute towards the cost of maintenance or repair of any street in a borough which is a continuation of a main highway, the payment being limited to a rate equal to that paid in respect of the maintenance and repair of the adjoining main highway. The Board decided in 1925 that in all cases where the population of a borough did not exceed 6,000 inhabitants assistance would be given under this authority.

As a result of the imposition of the petrol-tax of 4d. per gallon in 1927 the Board extended the assistance to boroughs under 6,000 inhabitants by declaring the continuation of all main highways to be main highways. This was done on the 23rd February, 1928, a total of 186 miles of streets in boroughs being included in the main-highways system; and the boroughs concerned now receive from the Main Highways Board £1 for £1 on construction works and £1 10s. for £1 on expenditure on maintenance.

SUBSIDIES.

Under the Act of 1922 it was provided that the Main Highways Board should pay one-half of the cost of construction or reconstruction of main highways and one-third of the cost of maintenance or repair. The Main Highways Amendment Act, 1925, however, authorized the Board to increase its subsidy on the cost of maintenance on ordinary main highways from one-third to one-half, retrospective to the 1st April, 1925, while an amending Act passed in 1926 authorized a still further increase to three-fifths. It was not the intention, by giving a more liberal subsidy, to relieve local authorities of liability in respect to maintenance, the additional subsidy being for the purpose of meeting the additional cost of maintenance brought about by the increased motor traffic. The amendment of 1925 also enabled the Board to inaugurate a special system of graduated subsidies towards the cost of erection of large bridges. The amendment provided for payment by the Board of (a) one-half of the cost up to £10,000, (b) three-fifths of so much of the cost as exceeds £10,000 but does not exceed £20,000, and (c) two-thirds of so much of the cost as exceeds £20,000. It also provided for (a) a more liberal subsidy than £1 for £1 in the case of a major deviation of a main highway, (b) the repair of any extraordinary damage, and (c) certain allowances out of the funds of the Highway Board to be paid to members of the executive bodies of District Highway Councils.

In 1926 the Board was authorized, in special cases, to increase the maintenance subsidy to local authorities without the necessity for declaring the sections of main highways involved to be Government roads, in terms of section 22 of the original Act. The 1926 amendment further provided for additional assistance towards the cost of maintenance in boroughs where large bridges are situated on continuations of main highways, but by the declaration of these continuations as main highways it is no longer necessary for the Board to operate under this authority.

A still further amendment passed in 1928 gave the Board authority to increase the rates of subsidies, and under this the maintenance subsidy was increased to two-thirds and bridge subsidies generally were increased to £2 for £1 on expenditure up to £10,000, and £3 for £1 on expenditure in excess of £10,000. The Board may in special cases pay subsidies exceeding these rates.

FINANCE.

The Main Highways Account is subdivided as under:—

Revenue Fund, which includes an annual transfer from the Consolidated Fund of at least £35,000; proceeds of tax on tires and tubes, as collected through the Customs Department; 92 per cent. of net proceeds of motor-spirits taxation; registration and license fees of motor-vehicles.
(b) Construction Fund, which includes a transfer from the Public Works Fund, not less in any year than £200,000, together with all moneys borrowed as may be required for purposes of construction and reconstruction, to a limit of 23,000,000. This sum is intended to extend over a period of ten years.

Prom the inception of the Main Highways Account to the 31st March, 1929, the receipts have aggregated £5,700,655 and the expenditure £5,220,961, leaving a balance of £479,694, or, including temporary transfers of £50,000 from other accounts, £529,694, of which £521,604 was held by the Revenue Fund. The various heads of receipts and payments are as follows:—

—	Year ended 31st March, 1929.	Total to 31st March, 1929.
Receipts.	£	£
Loan-money	230,000	922,004
Transfers from Public Works Fund	200,000	1,026,000
Transfers voted from Consolidated Fund	35,000	175,000
Fees and fines under section 24 of Motor-vehicles Act	244,017	1,329,505
Tire-tax	196,747	1,240,448
Petrol-tax	730,414	860,875
Interest on investments, &c.	32,481	146,632
Recoveries and miscellaneous	42	191
Totals	£1,668,701	£5,700,655
Payments.	£	£
Construction	936,496	2,640,045
Maintenance	867,260	2,375,650
Commutation of Hutt Road fees	15,069	15,069
Abolition of toll-gates	1,807	12,152
Advances to local authorities	3,850	5,600
Charges and expenses of raising loans	1	42,469
Interest charges	33	69,672
Management charges of consolidated stock	..	356
Amortization of debt	59,948	59,948
Totals	£1,884,464	£5,220,961

The imposition of a petrol-tax of 4d. per gallon by the passing of the Motor-spirits Taxation Act, 1927, provided a new source of income. The total amount received into the Revenue Account from this tax exceeds the total derivable from both the tire-tax and the motor registration and annual license fees.

The estimates of amounts required for maintenance and repairs, construction and reconstruction, and all other items are forwarded by the District Highway Councils, and after review by the Board are incorporated in the Estimates, which in turn are submitted for approval to Parliament, for inclusion in the annual appropriations.

The revenue from the licensing of motor-vehicles and from taxes on tires and tubes is apportioned between the North and South Islands in the discretion of the Board, but generally so that the amount apportioned to either Island is fixed by reference to the number of motor-vehicles in that Island.

The apportionment of the tire duty and license fees in each Island is made in proportion to the number of motor-vehicles registered in each Island on the 31st March of the year concerned, and the interest and sinking fund on moneys borrowed for construction work by the Board in each Island is charged against the proportion of the allocation for the respective Islands.

An analysis of the actual expenditure on maintenance in each Island as compared with the number of motor-vehicles in each Island at the 31st March of each year since the inception of the main-highways scheme gives the following results, expressed in percentages of the Dominion totals:—

—	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
North Island—
Maintenance expenditure	64.49	65.30	64.86	67.51	6,613
Motor-vehicles	60.90	61.40	61.86	62.19	63.08
South Island—
Maintenance expenditure	35.51	34.70	35.14	32.49	33.87
Motor-vehicles	39.10	38.60	38.14	37.81	36.92

CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE.

The following table shows the amount of construction work accomplished on main highways since the Main Highways Board commenced to function in 1924–25.

Year.	Formation and Widening.	Gravelling and Metalling.	Tar and Bituminous Sealing.	Bituminous Macadam (Penetration).	Bituminous Concrete.	Portland cement Concrete.	Total Roads.	Bridges.
	Miles.	Miles.	Miles.	Miles.	Miles.	Miles.	Miles.	Ft.
1924–25	19	63	6	6	..	..	94	2,434
1925–26	45	88	16	45	4	6	204	5,168
1926–27	174	151	35	38	12	16	426	6,408
1927–28	173	133	83	34	..	6	429	7,760
1928–29	224	185	122	51	14	11	607	9,682
Totals	635	620	262	174	30	39	1,760	31,452

At an early stage in the history of the main highways scheme, the District Highway Councils were advised that the standards of road-construction recommended for adoption should be such as are warranted by the present or early prospective traffic. To ensure uniformity in construction as far as possible throughout the Dominion the following standards for first-class, second-class, and third-class roads were laid down:—

Item.	Unit.	First Class.	Second Class.	Third Class.
Formation	Minimum widths in feet	22	17	14
Curvature	Chains radius	1 1/2	1	0 3/4
Grades	..	1 in 15 to 1 in 20	1 in 15	1 in 12
Metalling	Feet and inches	16′ × 9″	12′ × 8″	10′ × 6″
Surfacing	..	Concrete; bitumen; tar; macadam.	Macadam or gravel.	Macadam or gravel.
Bridges	Widths in feet	18	12	9
Bridges	Types	According to sites, dimensions, convenience of materials, but generally to provide for permanent materials in substructures. In all cases standard information to be supplied.
Culverts	Types	To be of concrete, earthenware, Armco, or hardwoods.

As a guide to local authorities in the preparation of proposals, skeleton or outline specifications were issued, dealing with: formation; subgrades of pavements-; gravelled roads two-course water-bound macadam roads; tar or bituminous surfacing of water bound macadam roads; tar or bituminous penetration roads; bituminous concrete roads; Portland-cement concrete roads. These specifications are not laid down as hard-and-fast rules which local authorities must in every case adopt, but are regarded as standard practice, the following of which will result in satisfactory work. The standard of construction in all cases should, of course, be regulated by local conditions, and should be commensurate with the traffic requirements. As practically all extensive construction work is generally financed wholly or in part by loan, it is essential that the character of the work should be such as to ensure a life at least equal to the period of the loan.

Every proposal is examined by the Board to determine whether it (1) is sound from an engineering point of view; (2) is justified as to cost, having regard to the existing surfaces; (3) is economically sound, having regard to the value to the district concerned, and the capacity of the district to pay the cost; (4) fits into and forms part of a comprehensive plan.

The Board encourages the adoption of the simplest construction suitable for the present or early prospective traffic and the conditions obtaining in the particular locality. It has, however, adopted the principle that bridges should, wherever practicable, be on the best possible alignment, and constructed of the most permanent materials available.

In all works, whether formation, bridges, culverts, ditches, surfacing, or any other form of construction, the Board requires provision to be made for continuous and up-to-date maintenance. The patrol system is encouraged. By dividing the highways into suitable patrol sections, by the selection of suitable patrolmen, and by the provision of satisfactory supplies of material and efficient plant, it is considered that a very much improved standard of maintenance can in most cases be obtained without undertaking expensive reconstruction.

It is interesting to compare the average cost of maintenance per mile per annum of the primary highway system during the five years since the Board commenced its operations. The figures are—1924–25, £51; 1925–26, £73; 1926–27, £111; 1927–28, £120; 1928–29, £125. The average cost per mile of the secondary highways for 1928–29 was £55.5.

The use of up-to-date machinery on construction and maintenance of main highways is recognized to be in the interests of economy and efficiency, and, with the idea of encouraging local bodies to use such plant, power enabling the Main Highways Board to sell roadmaking machinery, plant, equipment, and appliances to local authorities on an instalment system was given by the Main Highways Amendment Act, 1925. As a consequence of this legislation several local authorities have purchased modern roadmaking plant through the Board.

A petrological laboratory was established in Wellington at the beginning of 1925. Full reports are made on the various materials submitted by local authorities for use as road-metal as well as for other purposes. The machines installed are—Deval abrasion machine for testing wearing qualities of rocks; diamond-core drill for cutting test pieces; diamond-saw and grinding-lap; Dorry hardness machine; Page impact machine. The following important properties are ascertained—Specific gravity; porosity; resistance to abrasion or attrition; resistance to friction or hardness; resistance to impact or toughness.

Tests for bitumens, tars, &c., are carried out by the Dominion Analyst, Wellington, while the testing of steel is carried out by the Public Works or Railways Departments, or at the Canterbury School of Engineering.

MOTOR-VEHICLES ACT.

Before the Main Highways Act was passed the Government recognized the reasonableness of motor-vechile owners contributing towards the cost of the construction and upkeep of the road-surfaces which were required principally for them.

Amongst the funds laid down in the Main Highways Act as being available for the Revenue Fund was a sum to be derived from the licensing of motor-vehicles. When the Main Highways Act was passed it was expected that a Motor-vehicles Act dealing with the registration and licensing of motor-vehicles would be simultaneously passed, but owing to the difficulty of co-ordinating all interests it was not until November, 1924, that the Motor-vehicles Act came into being.

This Act provided for the registration and annual licensing of all motor-vehicle, the fees payable being as follows:—

Registration fees:—	£	s.	d.
Motor-cycle	0	10	0
Any other motor-vehicle	1	0	0
License fees:—
For every motor-cycle	0	10	0
For every private motor-car	2	0	0
For every public motor-car	2	0	0
For every motor-coach or motor-omnibus	5	0	0
For trade motors—
(a) For every 1-ton truck fitted with pneumatic tires on all wheels	2	0	0
(b) For every motor-lorry fitted with solid tires	5	0	0
(c) For every motor-lorry fitted with pneumatic tires on all wheels	3	0	0
For every traction-engine	5	0	0
For every trailer with three or more wheels	3	0	0
For every other trailer	1	0	0
For every other motor-vehicle	2	0	0
Other fees:—
All drivers to be licensed—fee	0	5	0
All changes of ownership to be notified	0	5	0
Special fees for manufacturers and dealers in motor-vehicles—
In respect of motor-cycles, each registration-plate	0	5	0
In respect of any other motor-vehicle, each registration-plate or set of plates	0	10	0

All the above fees, except that for a driver's license, which is payable to the local authorities, have in terms of the Motor-vehicles Act to be credited to the Main Highways Account Revenue Fund.

The definition of a motor-vehicle for the purposes of the Act is as follows: “‘Motor-vehicle’ means any vehicle propelled by mechanical power, and includes a trailer and any other vehicle of a class declared by regulations under the Act to be motor-vehicles; but does not include a vehicle running on rails, or a vehicle which, though not running on rails, derives power from an overhead wire, if such vehicle is the property of and is run by any local authority.”

The number of motor-vehicles registered to the 30th June, 1929, was 217,357, as compared with 188,005, 167,640, 140,796, and 106,449 respectively at the corresponding date in 1928, 1927, 1926, and 1925. These figures include registrations (20,468) subsequently cancelled, the number of motor-vehicles actually on the register at 31st August, 1929, being 201,111, made up as follows:—

Class of Motor-vehicle.	Number.
Cars	135,487
Trucks—
1 ton	17,988
2 tons	5,577
3 tons	1,545
4 tons	819
5 tons	343
6 tons	50
Over 6 tons	22
Omnibuses	1,196
Traction-engines	370
Trailers—
Two wheels	760
Three or more wheels	250
Tractors	424
Miscellaneous	490
Cycles	35,790
Total	201,111

These figures include dormant registrations—i.e., those of vehicles the registration of which has not been cancelled, but which have not been re-licensed for the current year.

The numbers of the principal classes of motor-vehicles on the register in each of the eighteen highway districts at 31st August, 1929, are as follows:—

Highway District.	Motorcars.	Motor trucks.	Motor-omnibuses.	Motorcycles.	Other Motor-vehicles.	Total (including Dormant Registrations).	Dormant Registrations.
*Of these 9,230 were dormant 1927–28 registrations and 27,347 dormant 1928–29 registrations.
1. Auckland North	5,831	1,778	26	1,984	71	9,690	1,808
2. Auckland South	26,072	6,300	320	5,915	206	38,813	6,049
3. Tauranga	2,979	774	23	703	39	4,518	865
4. Gisborne	3,449	500	33	483	31	4,496	796
5. Napier	9,321	1,773	69	1,956	157	13,276	2,497
6. King-country	1,670	654	26	388	18	2,756	761
7. Taranaki	7,815	1,361	42	2,642	48	11,908	2,082
8. Wanganui	6,332	1,188	39	1,636	54	9,249	1,982
9. Wellington West	17,279	3,557	188	4,433	254	25,711	4,159
10. Wellington East	4,966	817	37	906	126	6,852	1,244
11. Nelson	4,242	722	48	1,419	73	6,504	1,231
12. West Coast	1,732	516	55	628	46	2,977	613
13. Canterbury North	1,355	209	9	346	41	1,960	250
14. Canterbury Central	14,756	2,193	66	5,473	429	22,917	4,538
15. Canterbury South	10,309	1,130	89	2,553	415	14,496	2,758
16. Otago Central	1,778	270	17	362	40	2,467	434
17. Otago South	8,006	1,629	63	2,262	165	12,125	2,474
18. Southland	7,595	973	46	1,701	81	10,396	2,036
Totals	135,487	26,344	1,196	35,790	2,294	201,111	36,577^*

Of the total motor-vehicles on the register at 31st August, 1929,127,269 (including 85,14 cars and 21,046 cycles) were in the North Island, and 73,842 (49,773 cars, 14,744 cycles) in the South Island.

MOTOR TRANSPORT.

Regulations under the Census and Statistics Act were issued in 1927, authorizing the collection of statistics relating to motor transport. The first collection, which was taken for the month of November, 1927, was in the nature of a preliminary investigation, and was fairly comprehensive in its scope, including as it did, in addition to regular organized services on defined routes, passenger or freight vehicles occasionally making more or less lengthy trips between centres of population or to holiday resorts, &c., and vehicles used for the private business purposes of their owners.

It was subsequently decided to inaugurate a regular periodic collection of motor-transport statistics, confined, however, to regular public services on defined routes, it being considered that this would give the best indication of changes in the volume and character of the transport being developed by motor-vehicles on the roads of the Dominion.

Owing to the fact that in many instances proprietors do not have actual records showing the whole of the information required by the regulations, a certain degree of estimation has necessarily to be resorted to. The accuracy of the statistics is also somewhat affected by the unavoidable omission of a small number of concerns to which the regulations relate, and probably more so through the inclusion in returns of the whole business of concerns whose operations come only partly within the scope of the regulations. Nevertheless the statistics compiled may be regarded as giving a sufficiently close approximation for practical purposes.

Following is a summary of the results of the collection for July, 1929, according to the four classes of services covered.

MOTOR-TRANSPORT STATISTICS, JULY, 1929.

—	Omnibus Services.	Passenger-car Services.	Freight Services.	Combined Passenger and Freight Services.	Total.
North Island.
Number of vehicles	455	336	688	68	1,547
Approximate value £	306,583	124,206	236,955	20,021	687,765
Persons employed—
Males	733	399	825	76	2,033
Females	21	42	47	2	112
Total mileage run	853,277	805,236	496,499	70,184	2,225,196
Passengers carried	1,661,070	66,279	..	4,740	1,732,089
Freight carried Tons	..	..	42,295	1,330	43,625
Total receipts £	42,406	22,218	31,633	2,310	98,567
South Island.
Number of vehicles	184	196	205	47	632
Approximate value £	123,276	68,933	90,149	11,335	293,693
Persons employed—
Males	192	216	250	49	707
Females	10	25	12	1	48
Total mileage run	221,797	317,752	154,839	49,421	743,809
Passengers carried	257,497	29,450	..	6,476	293,423
Freight carried Tons	..	..	13,987	574	14,561
Total receipts £	10,592	9,457	9,883	1,580	31,512
Dominion.
Number of vehicles	639	532	893	115	2,179
Approximate value £	429,859	193,139	327,104	31,356	981,458
Persons employed—
Males	925	615	1,075	125	2,740
Females	31	67	59	3	160
Total mileage run	1,075,074	1,122,988	651,338	119,605	2,969,005
Passengers carried	1,918,567	95,729	..	11,216	2,025,512
Freight carried Tons	..	..	56,282	1,904	58,186
Total receipts £	52,998	31,675	41,516	3,890	130,079

The total number of vehicles returned was 2,179, consisting of 639 omnibuses, valued at £429,869 (an average of £673 per vehicle); 532 passenger service cars, valued at £193,139 (average, £363); 893 freight-vehicles, £327,104 (£366); and 115 combined passenger and freight vehicles, £31,366 (£273). The North Island had 71 per cent. of the omnibuses, 63 per cent. of the passenger service oars, 77 per cent. of the freight-vehicles, and 59 per cent. of the combined passenger and freight vehicles.

The total number of persons engaged in connection with the services enumerated (inclusive of proprietors actively engaged) was 2,900, comprising 2,740 males and 160 females. Employees per vehicle for the various classes of services were as follows: Omnibuses, 1.5; passenger service cars, 1.3; freight-vehicles, 1.3; and combined passenger and freight vehicles, 1.1.

Of the total mileage of nearly 3,000,000, only three-quarters of a million, or 25 per cent., was run in the South Island. Omnibuses and service cars each covered over a million miles, as compared with 650,000 miles covered by freight-vehicles. The average total distance for the month per vehicle was: Omnibuses, 1,682 miles; passenger service cars, 2,111 miles; freight-vehicles, 729 miles; and combined passenger and freight vehicles, 1,040 miles.

Omnibuses carried 1,918,567 passengers for £52,998 (an average fare of 6 1/2d.); passenger service cars 95,729 passengers for £31,675 (an average of 6s. 7d.); and freight service vehicles 56,282 tons for £41,516 (average, 15s. 3d. per ton). The gross receipts per mile were 11.8d., 6.8d., and 15.3d. respectively.

The following table shows the quantities of the principal classes of freight carried:—

Class.	North Island.	South Island.	Dominion.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
Wool	287	71	358
Dairy-produce	2,588	255	2,843
Hides, skins, and tallow	439	135	574
Live-stock	290	118	408
Grain	1,138	381	1,519
Fruit	207	194	401
Flax (Phormium tenax) fibre or tow	56	77	133
Manures	5,025	599	5,624
Timber	3,102	2,933	6,035
Lime and cement	1,448	511	1,959
Coal	2,054	3,723	5,777
Metal, stone, gravel, &c.	13,929	1,258	15,187
Fuel oils—benzine, kerosene, &c.	1,254	421	1,675
Furniture-removals	643	178	821
General merchandise	7,585	2,527	10,112
Other	3,580	1,180	4,760
Totals	43,625	14,561	58,186

Chapter 16. SECTION XVI.—POSTAL AND TELEGRAPHIC.

Table of Contents

POST-OFFICES.

POSTAL BUSINESS.

ARTICLES POSTED PER HEAD OF MEAN POPULATION, 1919–28.

RURAL MAIL DELIVERY.

PARCEL-POST.

PARCELS RECEIVED FROM AND DESPATCHED TO PLACES OVERSEAS, 1924–28.

NEWSPAPERS.

MONEY-ORDERS.

POSTAL NOTES.

TELEGRAPH AND TOLL SERVICES.

TELEPHONE-EXCHANGE SERVICE.

RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURE.

SCOPE OF SERVICE.

POST-OFFICES.

AT the 31st December, 1928, there were 1,874 post-offices in New Zealand, this number being exclusive of 45 receiving offices, 1 delivering office, 4 marine post-offices, and 9 railway travelling post-offices. At the same date there were 2,267 street letter-boxes in the Dominion. The number of post-offices, reckoning only those which are combined receiving and delivering offices, has been decreasing for several years past, the figures for each of the last five years being:—

Year.	Number of Post-offices.
1924	2,035
1925	1,982
1926	1,954
1927	1,909
1928	1,874

The decreases in numbers are indicative not of retrogression but of the growth of the rural-mail delivery system (referred to elsewhere), which is steadily replacing the smaller post-offices.

POSTAL BUSINESS.

The following table, showing the number of articles posted and delivered during each of the last ten years, gives an indication of the extent to which the people of New Zealand utilize the postal facilities:—

Year.	Letters and Letter-cards.	Post-cards.	Books and Pattern-packets.	Newspapers.	Parcels.
1919	247,143,183	7,292,922	44,320,385	35,498,263	6,193,475
1920	259,743,234	6,937,554	49,619,161	37,859,247	6,588,293
1921	253,767,131	6,548,655	53,635,951	38,680,982	6,464,244
1922	239,997,081	6,277,428	67,578,435	35,635,219	6,700,121
1923	252,021,959	6,603,293	79,546,000	38,138,697	6,886,858
1924	272,311,925	7,273,802	98,690,911	41,602,497	7,028,501
1925	294,630,760	9,107,081	115,946,882	44,717,406	7,101,628
1926	298,617,089	8,740,171	126,523,544	45,364,274	7,135,938
1927	297,478,294	8,882,783	136,199,176	47,089,652	6,903,535
1928	298,548,364	9,450,468	154,512,609	48,257,194	6,981,085

Articles which are posted in New Zealand and delivered in the Dominion as well represent, of course, the great bulk of the business, and such articles are necessarily counted twice in the foregoing table. Separate figures of articles posted and delivered during the year 1928 are as follows:—

	Posted.	Delivered.
Letters and letter-cards	143,626,190	154,922,174
Post-cards	4,048,068	5,402,400
Books, &c.	75,767,635	78,744,974
Newspapers	20,626,107	27,631,087
Parcels	3,349,285	3,631,800

These figures include registered articles, of which 2,202,618 were posted in the Dominion and 2,427,338 were delivered therein.

The average numbers of letters, &c., posted in the Dominion per head of mean population (including Maoris) during each of the last ten years are shown in the next table:—

ARTICLES POSTED PER HEAD OF MEAN POPULATION, 1919–28.

Year.	Letters and Letter-cards.	Post-cards.	Books and Parcels.	Newspapers.	Total.
1919	106.07	2.85	23.13	13.95	146.00
1920	103.58	2.49	23.77	13.46	143.30
1921	95.35	2.25	25.69	12.94	136.23
1922	89.68	2.18	29.66	11.90	133.42
1923	92.27	2.22	33.73	12.82	141.04
1924	100.93	2.49	39.90	13.57	156.89
1925	105.80	3.20	45.63	15.03	169.66
1926	105.21	2.96	48.06	14.96	171.19
1927	102.42	2.83	50.97	14.43	170.65
1928	98.66	2.78	54.35	14.17	169.96

RURAL MAIL DELIVERY.

During recent years the Post Office has considerably extended its rural-mail delivery system. In January, 1922, a scheme was introduced whereby a nominal fee is charged for the service. This does not bear heavily on the small farmer, and it enables the Post Office to extend rural delivery benefits to districts which formerly lacked adequate mail facilities. The rural mail-carrier not only delivers and collects correspondence at or near the gates of farmers living in places far removed from the centres and even from a post-office, but he sells postage-stamps, and obtains as required money-orders and postal-notes. Thus the farmer has what practically amounts to a post-office at his gate.

An indication of the popularity of the system lies in the fact that the number of rural boxes increased from 8,700 in 1920–21 to 19,338 on the 31st March, 1929.

PARCEL-POST.

The facilities afforded for the transmission of parcels through the Post Office to places within and beyond the Dominion have proved of much convenience to the public. The regulations admit of parcels up to 22 lb. in weight being sent to Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and of parcels up to 11 lb. in weight being sent to all other countries of the world, while inland parcels that do not need to be carried other than by steamer or by railway may weigh up to 28 lb.

The following table shows the number and weight of parcels received from and despatched to places overseas during each of the last five years, together with the declared value of those received and the Customs duty collected:—

PARCELS RECEIVED FROM AND DESPATCHED TO PLACES OVERSEAS, 1924–28.

Year.	Parcels received.				Parcels despatched.
Year.	Number.	Weight.	Declared Value.	Customs Duty.	Number.	Weight.
		lb.	£	£		lb.
1924	303,092	1,802,656	1,333,745	277,468	46,360	184,605
1925	309,336	2,025,810	1,492,300	311,056	51,047	194,516
1926	321,230	2,294,229	1,633,765	351,300	60,795	216,080
1927	322,834	2,358,804	1,491,441	331,277	63,105	238,331
1928	345,147	2,584,570	1,523,924	351,897	62,632	245,763

The figures show a huge preponderance of inward parcels. Of the parcels received from overseas in 1928 no fewer than 204,214 came from Great Britain (including those from foreign countries via London), while 64,612 came from the United States and 54,388 from Australia. These countries, to which 27,350, 4,789, and 21,871 parcels respectively were despatched, also ranked highest among countries to which parcels were sent from New Zealand.

NEWSPAPERS.

There are (June, 1929) 292 publications on the New Zealand Register of Newspapers. Of these, some 61 are published daily, 17 being morning papers and 44 evening papers. Twenty-five appear three times per week, 26 twice per week, 71 weekly, 5 fortnightly, 2 twice monthly, 1 four-weekly, 97 monthly, and 4 at irregular intervals.

MONEY-ORDERS.

The number of offices open for the transaction of money-order business at the end of 1928 was 879.

During 1928, 807,885 money-orders, for a total sum of £4,977,522, were issued and 686,348 (£4,620,019) were paid. Money-orders from places beyond New Zealand numbered 45,893, for the amount of £217,577, while those issued in New Zealand for payment overseas numbered 165,749, and represented an aggregate value of £571,335.

The figures showing the progress of the money-order business during the last ten years are as follows:—

Calendar Year.	Number of Offices.	Money-orders issued.			Money-orders paid.
Calendar Year.	Number of Offices.	Number.	Value.	Commission.	Number.	Value.
			£	£		£
1919	807	690,291	4,604,059	19,329	599,240	4,180,355
1920	823	699,674	5,276,776	31,302	606,615	4,876,927
1921	844	669,383	4,850,820	31,268	569,988	4,485,683
1922	850	659,943	4,278,529	27,431	562,376	3,969,867
1923	855	684,979	4,390,159	28,357	580,836	4,034,239
1924	862	731,511	4,692,929	28,542	619,830	4,309,840
1925	868	766,689	4,977,230	28,843	652,597	4,617,813
1926	879	793,110	5,033,127	24,746	677,415	4,666,097
1927	877	803,535	4,995,090	24,775	686,260	4,634,479
1928	879	807,885	4,977,522	24,884	686,348	4,620,019

POSTAL NOTES.

The number of offices open for he sale of postal notes at the 31st March, 1929, was 1,178. During the preceding twelve months 3,575,984 postal notes were sold, representing a value of £1,057,624. The notes paid numbered 3,563,686, of a total value of £1,030,485.

The increasing popularity of the postal-note system for remitting small amounts is clearly illustrated in the table given below, showing the number of postal notes issued and paid during each of the last ten years:—

Year ended 31st March.	Number of Offices.	Postal Notes issued.			Postal Notes paid.
Year ended 31st March.	Number of Offices.	Number.	Value.	Commission.	Number.	Value.
			£	£		£
1920	1,036	2,197,520	646,411	9,499	2,172,727	628,104
1921	1,055	2,280,219	691,201	13,826	2,284,354	692,103
1922	1,069	2,377,622	723,254	16,529	2,363,776	708,917
1923	1,083	2,434,506	730,232	16,793	2,433,547	730,759
1924	1,099	2,652,777	786,146	18,197	2,633,537	782,048
1925	1,107	2,846,333	840,559	19,470	2,835,420	839,256
1926	1,176	3,040,722	902,119	20,754	3,032,931	899,796
1927	1,172	3,329,638	965,270	22,417	3,310,820	961,994
1928	1,172	3,614,217	1,015,213	23,845	3,599,547	988,821
1929	1,178	3,575,984	1,057,624	24,298	3,563,686	1,030,485

British postal orders issued in the Dominion during the year ended 31st March, 1929, numbered 155,680, of a value of £87,046. Those paid numbered 33,652, and represented £19,904.

TELEGRAPH AND TOLL SERVICES.

Up to the 31st March, 1929, a total sum of £8,088,504 had been expended on telegraph construction, including the construction of telephone exchanges. The amount expended during the financial year 1928–29 was £624,414.

There were 12,729 miles of telegraph and toll pole line in existence at the end of March, 1929, carrying 62,992 miles of wire. Of the latter, 4,509 miles were in use exclusively for telephone toll traffic, 9,567 exclusively for telegraph traffic, and 48,916 simultaneously or conjointly for toll and telegraph traffic, making totals of 53,425 available for toll traffic and 58,483 for the transmission of telegrams. A total of 13,615 miles of wire has been gained to the 31st March, 1929, for the purpose of telegraph transmission, by the superimposing of existing telephone circuits. The total length of additional telephone toll circuit improvised from the existing wire circuits by the use of subsidiary apparatus associated therewith (so-called phantom working) is 6,754 miles.

During the year ended 31st March, 1929, telegrams and toll communications to the number of 17,560,372 were transmitted, 17,516,343 of these being “paid” messages, and the balance free Government telegrams. The revenue from telegrams and toll communications was £847,461, to which should be added £1,135,795 revenue of telephone exchanges and £35,353 miscellaneous receipts, making a total telegraph and telephone revenue of £2,018,609.

A table is given showing the growth of telegraph business during the last ten years.

Year ended 31st March.	Number of Telegrams and Toll Messages forwarded during the Year.			Revenue (including Miscellaneous Receipts).		Value of Government Messages.	Total Value of Business done during the Year.
Year ended 31st March.	Paid.	Free Government.	Total.	Telegraph and Toll.	Telephone Exchange.	Value of Government Messages.	Total Value of Business done during the Year.
				£	£	£	£
1920	14,957,615	116,452	15,074,067	619,188	419,318	5,830	1,044,336
1921	13,884,466	116,385	14,000,851	704,228	533,535	7,036	1,244,799
1922	12,782,037	152,428	12,934,465	697,864	614,367	8,458	1,320,689
1923	13,342,823	170,385	13,513,208	713,380	595,967	9,727	1,319,074
1924	14,407,269	69,597	14,476,866	711,895	830,470	4,930	1,547,295
1925	15,410,390	61,560	15,471,950	764,290	867,218	4,420	1,635,928
1926	16,143,414	58,460	16,201,874	799,838	980,283	4,992	1,785,113
1927	16,316,436	55,790	16,372,226	824,709	995,071	4,607	1,824,387
1928	16,523,004	44,510	16,567,514	832,748	1,057,177	3,614	1,893,539
1929	17,516,343	44,029	17,560,372	882,814	1,135,795	3,698	2,022,307

The present rate for ordinary telegrams is 9d. for twelve words, the charge for each additional word being 1d. For urgent telegrams the rate is 1s. 6d. and 2d. for each additional word, and for letter-telegrams 9d. for twenty-seven words and 1d. for each additional three words.

TELEPHONE-EXCHANGE SERVICE.

At the 31st March, 1929, there were 351 telephone exchanges in the Dominion. Of this number 334 are wholly of the magneto type, 3 common battery, 13 wholly automatic, and one mixed exchange area—partly magneto and partly automatic—in which 3 automatic exchanges are operated. The exchanges which are wholly automatic are: Auckland, Hamilton, Napier, Dannevirke, Stratford, Hawera, Wanganui, Palmerston North, Masterton, Wellington, Blenheim, Oamaru, and Dunedin.

The following statement shows the automatic-exchange equipment installed and in use in the Dominion on the 31st March, 1929:—

	Capacity of Equipment installed. No.	Equipment in use. No.
Individual lines	52,260	45,068
Party-lines—
Two-party	1,300	693
Four-party	1,900	1,345
Multi-party lines	150	90
Individual-line stations	..	45,383
Party-line stations	..	5,392
Total of main stations	..	50,775
Extension stations	..	13,368
Total number of automatic-telephone stations connected		64,143

The following table indicates the phenomenal growth of the New Zealand telephone-exchange service during the last ten years:—

—	1919.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.
Exchanges	287	327	340	341	342	344	351
Subscribers, main stations	57,297	86,605	94,371	102,509	107,882	114,079	120,274
Toll and service stations	3,726	3,906	3,882	3,940	4,026	3,880	3,945
Public call offices	275	371	380	409	435	546	612
Extension stations	11,263	15,882	16,916	18,514	19,746	21,235	23,105
Telephone-station totals	72,561	106,764	115,549	125,372	132,089	139,740	147,936

The total number of telephone-stations shows an increase of 75,375, or 104 per cent., during the period. Additional subscribers' stations contributed largely to this phenomenal growth, the increase in this respect being 62,977, or 110 per cent. The enormous demand for public call offices is clearly revealed in the table, these showing an increase from 275 in 1919 to 612 in 1929. Extension stations have more than doubled.

In addition to the above, there are 4,181 stations connected by private telephone-lines with departmental toll-stations, and 424 stations connected with non-departmental rural exchanges which do not have communication with the departmental system, making a grand total of 152,541 telephone-stations in New Zealand on the 31st March, 1929.

The following table shows, for each class of exchange, the percentage of business and residential stations, the percentage of individual and party-line stations, also the number of exchanges in each class:—

—	Class I: Exchanges or Networks observing Continuous Attendance and having more than 3,500 Paying Subscribers' Main Stations connected therewith.	Class II: Exchanges or Networks observing Continuous Attendance and having 1,001 to 3,500 Paying Subscribers' Main Stations connected therewith,	Class III: Exchanges or Networks observing Continuous Attendance and having 201 to 1,000 Paying Subscribers' Main Stations connected therewith.	Class IV: Exchanges or Networks where the Attendance is restricted.	Dominion Percentages.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Business stations	39	33	28	21	30
Residential stations	61	67	72	79	70
	100	100	100	100	100
Individual-line stations	89	75	55	37	64
Party- and rural-line stations	11	25	45	63	36
	100	100	100	100	100
Number of exchanges in each class	4	12	59	276	351

The “party” line system of telephone service is being largely availed of, particularly by those whose premises are situated at a distance from an exchange. In March, 1929, the number of party-line connections was 10,266, with a total of 40,583 stations.

The first public call offices (coin-in-the-slot telephones) erected in the Dominion were installed at Wellington in August, 1910. There were at the 31st March, 1929, 612 such instruments in use in the Dominion; the charge in 576 cases is 1d., in 10 2d., and in 26 3d. The revenue of slot telephones during the year ended 31st March, 1929, was £34,843.

The telephone-exchange system included on the 31st March, 1929, 13,658 miles of pole line and 495,470 miles of wire.

An analysis of the wire in existence in connection with telephone exchanges is as follows:—

In lead-covered cables—	Miles.
Underground	337,604
Aerial	62,173
Open aerial—
Metallic circuit	95,571
Earth-working	122
Total	495,470

The capital expenditure on the equipment, &c., of the telephone exchanges up to the 31st March, 1929, was £7,353,112, equal to an average cost of £49 14s. 1d. for each connection. The telephone-exchange receipts for the twelve months ended 31st March, 1929, were £1,135,795.

RADIO COMMUNICATION.

GOVERNMENT STATIONS.

The first wireless-telegraph station in New Zealand for communicating with ships at sea was opened at Wellington on the 26th July, 1911.

There are now 22 stations under the control of the New Zealand Government, the principal being those at Awanui, Awarua, Wellington, and Auckland on the New Zealand mainland, at Apia in Western Samoa, at Rarotonga in the Cook Islands, and at the Chatham Islands. Smaller stations on the mainland or on adjacent islands are those at Kawau Island, White Island, Stephen Island, and Puysegur Point, while there is a radio beacon station at Cape Maria Van Diemen Lighthouse.

Communication is effected with outer islands in the Cook Group by Radio-Rarotonga through small feeder-stations at Aitutaki, Atiu, Mangaia, and Mauke. Small stations at Aleipata, Fagamalo, Fakaofo, Niue, Salailua, and Tuasivi communicate with Radio-Apia.

By means of the radio-stations at Wellington, Apia, and Rarotonga, communication is maintained between New Zealand and the Pacific islands.

The radio business transacted by the New Zealand coast stations during the last five years was as follows:—

Year ended 31st March,	Forwarded.			Received.
Year ended 31st March,	Messages.	Words.	Value.	Messages.	Words.	Value.^*
* Amount earned by New Zealand.
			£			£
1925	16,259	293,189	7,331	25,669	270,814	4,777
1926	16,270	241,621	7,064	26,002	280,716	4,669
1927	14,748	173,218	6,001	24,592	277,805	4,768
1928	14,440	169,987	5,688	25,361	290,933	4,846
1929	14,345	204,857	6,523	25,559	290,137	5,059

The foregoing table does not include free (service) messages.

The charge for the transmission of an ordinary radio-telegram to or from ships registered in New Zealand or Australia, or engaged exclusively in trading between these two countries, is 5d. per word. The rate for transmission to other vessels is 10d. per word, with the exceptions that messages to His Majesty's ships are charged for at the rate of 3d. per word, and messages to vessels engaged in the Wellington-Lyttelton ferry service at the rate of 2 1/2d. per word. Ship stations registered in New Zealand numbered 61 at 31st March, 1929.

All the New Zealand coast stations are connected with the New Zealand telegraph system, thus ensuring the speedy transmission of radio-telegrams over the Department's land lines. By this means urgent distress signals may be expeditiously transmitted to the proper authorities.

PRIVATE STATIONS.

Private radio-stations are governed by the Regulations for Radio Receiving, Amateur Transmitting and Receiving, and Experimental Stations, and by the Regulations for Radio Broadcasting Stations and the Sale of Radio Apparatus (which were gazetted on the 5th and 12th March, 1925, respectively), and by amendments thereto.

The licenses for radio receiving-stations are designed to provide for reception from radio-telephone broadcasting stations as well as for experimental reception, and may be obtained at any postal money-order office or at any District Radio Inspector's office on payment of the prescribed fee.

The licenses for amateur transmitting and receiving stations are intended to provide facilities for experimental transmission to those interested in radio science, and are issued subject to the qualifications of the applicants being satisfactory.

The licenses for “experimental stations” are intended to provide facilities for the work of pure research in radio science, and are issued only to persons of recognized attainment in the theory or practice of radio-telegraphy, or to universities or other scientific institutions engaged in conducting experiments for the development of the science of radio-telegraphy.

The regulations for the sale of radio-apparatus are intended to provide for the proper control of the sale of apparatus designed and intended for use in connection with wireless telegraphy. The regulations govern the issue of the following classes of radio-dealers' licenses, viz:—

Class I:—

Licenses of dealers carrying on business in any of the four main cities—viz., Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin—and within ten miles by the nearest practicable route of the Chief Post-office at those cities;
(Portable) Licenses of dealers without any fixed place of business who are not representatives of Class I (a) or Class II licensees.

Class II: Licenses of dealers carrying on business in all other areas.

Class III: (Portable) Licenses of dealers without any fixed place of business who are the representatives of Class I (a) or Class II licensees.

RADIO BROADCASTING.

The regulations governing radio-telephone broadcasting are designed to render the broadcasting of music, lectures, religious services, news, and other items of interest as widely available as possible. In terms of an agreement entered into between the Government and the Radio Broadcasting Co. of New Zealand, Ltd., a broadcasting service is provided by the company by means of stations situated at Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin. The major portion of the fees collected from listeners is paid to the company. Additional services are provided by other stations operating independently of the company; these, which are known as private broadcasting stations, at present number twelve, four being at Dunedin, two at Auckland, and one at each of the following towns: Gisborne, New Plymouth, Wanganui, Palmerston North, Masterton, and Christchurch.

The number of radio licenses issued in New Zealand as at the 31st March, 1929, was as follows:—

—	Receiving-stations.	Transmitting-stations.	Radio-dealers.	Total.
Auckland	15,093	59	436	15,588
Wellington	18,053	57	617	18,727
Canterbury	8,528	37	290	8,855
Otago	3,136	21	166	3,323
Totals	44,810	174	1,509	46,493

The increase in the number of licensed receiving-stations during the last six years is indicated in the following table:—

Year ended 31st March, 1924	2,830
Year ended 31st March, 1925	4,702
Year ended 31st March, 1926	3,588
Year ended 31st March, 1927	18,162
Year ended 31st March, 1928	39,315
Year ended 31st March, 1929	44,810

The total revenue derived from the issue of radio licenses in the year 1928–29 was £64,653, allocated as follows:—

Radio Broadcasting Company of New Zealand, Ltd.	£54,166
Post and Telegraph Department	£10,487

The following are the particulars of the principal broadcasting stations operating in New Zealand as at the 31st March, 1929:—

—	Power Input to Aerial.	Wave-length (Metres).
	Watts.
1YA, Auckland	500	333
2YA, Wellington	5,000	420
3YA, Christchurch	500	306
4YA, Dunedin	370	463

These four stations operate almost continuously between the hours of 3 p.m. and 10 p.m. on week-days and 3 p.m. and 9.30 p.m. on Sundays.

Each station observes one silent night a week, namely: Auckland, Monday; Christ-church, Tuesday; Wellington, Wednesday; and Dunedin, Thursday. In addition to the usual transmissions, special transmissions are broadcasted as occasions warrant.

OCEAN CABLES.

The Pacific cable, opened for traffic between New Zealand and Australia and Fiji on the 9th April, 1902, was completed to Bamfield, Vancouver Island, on the 31st October following, and opened for international business on the 8th. December, 1902.

The route is from Auckland to Vancouver, via Norfolk Island, Fiji, and Fanning Island. The Australian connection is at Norfolk Island. The deep-sea portion of the Vancouver - Fanning Island cable is stated to be the longest in the world.

Direct communication between Auckland and Sydney was established on the 31st December, 1912, thus giving the Pacific Cable Board an alternative route to Australia.

Additional facilities have been provided between New Zealand and Fiji by the laying, by the Pacific Cable Board, of a new cable between Auckland and Suva. The work was completed on the 12th August, 1923. The duplication of the two northern sections—Vancouver to Fanning Island and Fanning Island to Fiji—was completed on the 20th November, 1926. These new sections were opened for traffic on the 18th December, 1926.

In addition, the Eastern Extension, Australasia, and China Telegraph Co., Ltd., provide and -operate as part of their telegraph system two cables between Australia and New Zealand, the terminal offices being at Sydney and Wellington.

During the year 1928–29 the Pacific route took 66.50 per cent. of the outward business, and the Eastern route 33.50 per cent., the messages sent by the two routes numbering 217,033 and 109,308 respectively.

The length of submarine cable in use in the Dominion, apart from ocean-cable services, is 448 knots.

STAFF.

The huge volume and multifarious nature of the business of the Post and Telegraph Department entail the employment of a large staff. The Secretary, under the Postmaster-General, is the administrative head.

The staff at 31st March, 1929, was as follows: Permanent, 8,548; temporary, 1,263: total, 9,811. In addition there are 1,825 country postmasters and telephonists who act as such in conjunction with other pursuits and do not rank as officers of the Department. There are also 91 officers of the Railways Department who act as postmasters.

RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURE.

The receipts and payments of the Post and Telegraph Department for the financial year 1928–29 are shown in the following table:—

Item.	Postal.	Telegraph.	Total.
RECEIPTS.
	£	£	£
Postages	1,146,761	..	1,146,761
Money-order and postal-note commission	49,702	..	49,702
Private box and bag rents and rural delivery fees	45,138	..	45,138
Miscellaneous receipts	200,193	20,495	220,688
Paid telegrams	..	404,565	404,565
Paid tolls	..	442,896	442,896
Telephone exchanges	..	1,135,795	1,135,795
Totals	1,441,794	2,003,751	3,445,545
PAYMENTS.
Salaries	679,649	954,340	1,633,989
Conveyance of mails by sea	67,509	..	67,509
Conveyance of inland mails	135,469	..	135,469
Conveyance of mails by railway	114,400	..	114,400
Depreciation Fund	..	50,000	50,000
Maintenance of telegraph and telephone lines	..	131,299	131,299
Motor services and workshops	37,622	24,857	479
Miscellaneous	146,371	150,642	297,013
Interest on capital liability	117,235	310,765	428,000
Totals	1,298,255	1,621,903	2,920,158
Balance of receipts over payments	143,539	381,848	525,387

The growth of receipts and payments during the period 1881–82 to 1928–29 is shown by the following figures.

Year ended 31st March,	Receipts.	Payments.
* Excluding payment to Depreciation Fund and interest on capital liability, which were first included in expenditure in 1928–29.
	£	£
1882	234,529	233,291
1892	320,058	268,343
1902	488,573	465,756
1912	1,087,710	988,911
1920	2,106,995	1,944,161
1921	2,590,441	2,591,786
1922	2,811,535	2,451,572
1923	2,687,768	2,114,994
1924	2,688,953	2,120,585
1925	2,889,450	2,416,257
1926	3,100,397	2,409,557
1927	3,220,666	2,346,274
1928	3,329,511	2,299,571
1929	3,445,545	2,442,158^*

SCOPE OF SERVICE.

In addition to its ordinary business, the Post and Telegraph Department performs an enormous amount of work for other Departments of State. The monetary value of this business reaches many millions of pounds annually, and the operations range from the receipt of advances-to-settlers payments (£5,014,262 during the twelve months ended 31st March, 1929) to the sale of fishing licenses (£3,873), and from the payment of pensions (£2,805,164) to the performance of marriage ceremonies. The work involved in connection with the registration of motor-vehicles under the Motor-vehicles Act, 1924, and their insurance under the Motor-vehicles Insurance (Third-party Risks) Act, 1928, is carried out by the Post and Telegraph Department.

Chapter 17. SECTION XVII.—LAND TENURE, SETTLEMENT, ETC.

Table of Contents

SUBSECTION A.—GENERAL.

SURVEYS.

OCCUPATION OF LAND.

OCCUPIED LANDS.—HOLDINGS.

OCCUPIED LANDS.—AREAS.

NUMBERS AND TOTAL AND AVERAGE AREAS OF HOLDINGS, 1929.

TENURE OF OCCUPIED LANDS.

OCCUPIED LANDS.—TENURE, 1929.

CLASSIFIED HOLDINGS.

CLASSIFIED HOLDINGS, 1922–23 AND 1926–27.

CLASSIFIED HOLDINGS (MAORIS ONLY), 1922–23 AND 1926–27.

CONDITION OF OCCUPIED LAND.

UNIMPROVED OCCUPIED LAND, 1929.

LAND TRANSFER AND DEEDS REGISTRATION.

DEEDS REGISTRATION.

LAND TRANSFER.

CERTIFICATES OF TITLE ISSUED.

TRANSFERS REGISTERED.

SUBSECTION B.—CROWN LANDS.

ADMINISTRATION.

LAND BOARD.

APPLICATIONS FOR LAND.

DEFERRED PAYMENTS.

METHODS OF ACQUIRING CROWN LAND.

CONDITIONS OF OCCUPATION AND LEASES.

DISPOSAL OF ENDOWMENTS AND RESERVES.

LANDS OPENED FOR SELECTION.

SELECTIONS UNDER SETTLEMENT CONDITIONS.

CROWN LAND HELD OR MADE FREEHOLD.

CROWN LAND MADE FREEHOLD, YEAR ENDED 31ST MARCH, 1929.

SUBDIVISION OF LAND.

LAND FOR SETTLEMENTS

SUMMARY OF ESTATES ACQUIRED TO 31ST MARCH, 1929.

POSITION OF LAND FOR SETTLEMENTS AT 31ST MARCH, 1929.

PURCHASE OF LANDS FOR GROUPS OF APPLICANTS.

LAND-SETTLEMENT FINANCE ASSOCIATIONS.

LAND FOR DISCHARGED SOLDIERS.

TENURES UNDER WHICH LAND MAY BE SELECTED.

AREA PROCLAIMED AND ALLOTTED.

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.

REVALUATION OF SOLDIER PROPERTIES.

SUBSECTION C.—NATIVE LANDS.

DEFINITION AND KINDS OF NATIVE LAND.

THE NATIVE LAND COURT.

NATIVE APPELLATE COURT.

MAORI LAND BOARDS.

POWERS OF ALIENATION

PURCHASE OF NATIVE LAND FOR CROWN.

NATIVE TRUSTEE.

SUBSECTION A.—GENERAL.

SURVEYS.

THE Surveys of Crown lands, Native lands, and land purchased under the Land for Settlement Act, 1925, or the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Act, 1915, are executed under the authority of the Minister of Lands, and are carried out by staff and contract surveyors licensed by the Surveyors' Board constituted under the Surveyors' Institute and Board of Examiners Act, 1908.

In respect of surveys for the purpose of the Land Transfer Act, an additional and special license under the hand of the Surveyor-General is required, in terms of section 177 of the Land Transfer Act, 1915.

Any surveyor or other person, in pursuance of the written authority of the Surveyor-General or of the Chief Surveyor of the district, may enter upon Native land for survey purposes, and any person who obstructs any surveyor or other person so authorized is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction by fine or imprisonment (vide section 403 of the Native Land Act, 1909).

Authority for a surveyor and his assistant to enter on any land for the purpose of making a survey under the Public Works Act must be obtained from the Minister of Public Works, the Minister of Lands, the Surveyor-General or his Deputy, or the local body, as the case may be.

Regulations for conducting the survey of the Dominion lands are made by the Surveyors' Board in terms of the Surveyors' Institute and Board of Examiners Act, 1908, as amended in 1922. Power is conferred on the Surveyor-General to make rules for all or any of the following purposes:—

The conduct and control of fundamental or basic surveys to be made for standard, topographical, geodesical, or other scientific purposes.
The conduct and control of the technical operations carried out by the Department of Lands and Survey.
Prescribing the fees to be paid for the inspection or examination or checking of plans, and also prescribing rates of payment for surveys executed under the direction of the Crown.

The Surveyor-General is the custodian of the legal standards of length for survey purposes. All measurements of land affecting titles are to be expressed in terms of the chain of 100 links, and all areas in acres, roods, perches, and decimals of a perch.

Comparison of surveyors' measuring-bands with certified copies of these are made on request free of cost by the Chief Surveyors, or at the Surveyor-General's Office.

Full information as to the New Zealand system of survey will be found in the 1929 number of the Year-book (pp. 438–44).

OCCUPATION OF LAND.

The total area of the Dominion, excluding the Cook and other Pacific islands annexed in 1901, is 66,390,262 acres. Of this total, 43,522,131 acres were returned in 1929 as being in occupation, including reserves and Native lands leased, but excluding areas within borough boundaries, holdings of less than 1 acre in extent, and Native land held on the communal system.

According to information published by the Lands Department, the following is the condition of the land in the Dominion as at the 31st March, 1929:—

	Acres.
Total area sold or granted and held on freehold	21,382,766
Total area reserved for public purposes	14,892,331
Total area of Crown lands leased under all tenures (exclusive of reserves leased by the Crown)	18,026,156
Total area of Crown land available for future disposal	3,052,602
Total area of Native land	5,248,264
Land unfit for settlement, including rivers, lakes, roads, &c.	3,788,143
Total	66,390,262

The numbers of holdings and percentages of total holdings in occupation in groups of sizes, as returned at the last five collections available, are given below—

OCCUPIED LANDS.—HOLDINGS.

Area, in Acres.	Number of Holdings.					Percentages of Total.
Area, in Acres.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.
1 to 10	15,381	15,242	15,208	15,184	14,942	17.89	17.78	17.76	17.71	17.46
11 to 50	14,265	14,232	14,128	14,130	14,071	16.59	16.60	16.50	16.48	16.44
51 to 100	11,495	11,474	11,470	11,492	11,590	13.37	13.38	13.39	13.41	13.54
101 to 200	14,371	14,367	14,456	14,475	14,552	16.71	16.76	16.88	16.89	17.00
201 to 320	8,846	8,762	8,737	8,794	8,773	10.29	10.22	10.20	10.26	10.25
321 to 640	10,395	10,362	10,339	10,369	10,342	12.09	12.09	12.07	12.10	12.08
641 to 1,000	4,261	4,317	4,294	4,259	4,302	4.96	5.03	5.02	4.97	5.03
1,001 to 5,000	5,864	5,891	5,914	5,938	5,959	6.82	6.87	6.91	6.93	6.96
5,001 to 10,000	570	568	562	559	548	0.66	0.66	0.66	0.65	0.64
10,001 to 20,000	301	294	296	297	303	0.35	0.34	0.35	0.34	0.35
20,001 to 50,000	169	169	169	162	165	0.20	0.20	0.20	0.19	0.19
Over 50,000	59	56	55	57	55	0.07	0.07	0.06	0.07	0.06
Totals	85,977	85,734	85,628	85,716	85,602	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	10,000

Seventy-five per cent. of the holdings are seen to be not more than one-half a square mile in area. These, however, represent only a little over 13 per cent. of the total area of occupied land in the Dominion, and from the following table, showing areas of holdings in occupation by size-groups and the percentage each group represents of the total area in occupation, it is seen that 68 per cent. of the occupied land is held in areas of over 1,000 acres, and slightly more than 41 per cent. in areas of over 5,000 acres.

OCCUPIED LANDS.—AREAS.

Sizes of Holdings, in Acres.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.
Aggregate Area of Group.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
1 to 10	73,700	72,957	72,381	72,994	72,588
11 to 50	405,650	404,817	401,105	402,040	401,497
51 to 100	887,840	886,784	885,056	887,474	895,983
101 to 200	2,118,701	2,119,247	2,130,213	2,131,205	2,142,279
201 to 320	2,265,477	2,247,609	2,239,694	2,245,257	2,241,394
321 to 640	4,735,425	4,722,140	4,704,913	4,722,315	4,707,385
641 to 1,000	3,425,566	3,498,739	3,465,408	3,425,803	3,465 37
1,001 to 5,000	11,477,823	11,595,789	11,590,297	11,711,352	11,702,506
5,001 to 10,000	3,905,686	3,896,934	3,876,706	3,846,559	3,59,966
10,001 to 20,000	4,242,147	4,162,307	4,171,818	4,188,166	4,249,554
20,001 to 50,000	5,139,745	5,216,027	5,213,179	4,969,305	5,018,860
Over 50,000	4,954,612	4,783,479	4,836,928	4,852,984	4,864,322
Totals	43,632,372	43,606,829	43,587,698	43,455,454	43,522,131
Percentage of Total Area occupied.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1 to 10	0.17	0.17	0.17	0.17	0.17
11 to 50	0.93	0.93	0.92	0.92	0.92
51 to 100	2.03	2.03	2.03	2.04	2.06
101 to 200	4.86	4.86	4.89	4.90	4.92
201 to 320	5.19	5.15	5.14	5.17	5.15
321 to 640	10.85	10.83	10.79	10.87	10.82
641 to 1,000	7.85	8.02	7.95	7.88	7.96
1,001 to 5,000	26.31	26.59	26.59	26.95	26.89
5,001 to 10,000	8.95	8.94	8.89	8.85	8.64
10,001 to 20,000	9.72	9.55	9.57	9.64	9.76
20,001 to 50,000	11.78	11.96	11.96	11.44	11.53
Over 50,000	11.36	10.97	11.10	11.17	11.18
Totals	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00

The following table gives the numbers and average areas of holdings for each land district in the Dominion as ascertained at the 1929 collection of agricultural and pastoral statistics.

NUMBERS AND TOTAL AND AVERAGE AREAS OF HOLDINGS, 1929.

Land District.	Number of Holdings.	Total Area occupied.	Average Area of Holdings.
		Acres.	Acres.
North Auckland	13,752	2,958,892	215.16
Auckland	12,899	4,280,966	331.88
Gisborne	2,935	2,775,373	945.61
Hawke's Bay	4,492	2,085,001	464.16
Taranaki	6,517	1,683,824	258.37
Wellington	10,892	4,924,352	452.11
Nelson	3,709	1,275,449	343.88
Marlborough	1,940	2,482,842	1,279.82
Westland	1,528	1,610,667	1,054.10
Canterbury	13,258	8,193,205	617.98
Otago	7,844	8,021,910	1,022.68
Southland	5,836	3,229,650	553.40
Totals	85,602	43,522,131	508.42

As regards counties, Eden County is the most closely settled, the average area of holdings over one acre being 18.71 acres, while Amuri County shows the largest average—viz., 4,806.27 acres. There are no counties in the North Island having an average in excess of 2,000 acres, but in the South Island there are no fewer than seven—viz., Awatere, Amuri, Tawera, Selwyn, Mackenzie, Vincent, and Lake.

The average area of holdings for the Dominion is 508.42 acres, and this average is exceeded by twenty-six counties out of seventy-six in the North Island, and by twenty-five out of fifty-three in the South Island. The average area for the North Island is 363.36 acres, and for the South 727–36 acres.

TENURE OF OCCUPIED LANDS.

Land in occupation in each land district, tabulated according to tenure, is given in the following table:—

OCCUPIED LANDS.—TENURE, 1929.

Land District.	Total of Holdings.	Freehold, including Land held on Deferred Payment (occupied by Owner).	Leased from Private Individuals or Public Bodies.	Leased from Natives.	Held from Crown under different Tenures, not including Land held on Deferred Payment.
* Of which 1,787,718 acres were returned as leased from private individuals and 906,774 acres from public bodies.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
North Auckland	2,958,892	2,348,824	160,197	71,832	378,039
Auckland	4,280,966	3,006,635	223,273	245,394	805,664
Gisborne	2,775,373	1,480,292	199,594	501,785	593,702
Hawke's Bay	2,085,001	1,447,480	132,191	71,932	433,398
Taranaki	1,683,824	903,960	243,814	84,439	451,611
Wellington	4,924,352	3,390,432	404,933	404,300	724,687
Nelson	1,275,449	634,242	64,925	6,021	570,261
Marlborough	2,482,842	814,674	46,873	21,759	1,599,536
Westland	1,610,667	153,745	26,733	5,460	1,424,729
Canterbury	8,193,205	3,194,659	614,016	7,904	4,376,626
Otago	8,021,910	1,644,956	342,227	6,741	6,027,986
Southland	3,229,650	1,527,390	235,716	5,913	1,460,631
Totals	43,522,131	20,547,289	2,694,492^*	1,433,480	18,846,870

The acreage in the last column does not agree exactly with the figures published in the report of the Lands and Survey Department, for the reason that, although these figures include Crown reserves leased, they do not include Crown lands not in occupation at the time of collecting the agricultural and pastoral statistics. Further, all land held on deferred payment is shown as freehold in the Agricultural and Pastoral Statistics, the figures of which are as at the 31st January, while those published by the Lands and Survey Department are as at the 31st March.

Lands in occupation are not strictly comparable with Crown lands alienated or in process of alienation, for certain lands have passed into the hands of Europeans which were never made waste lands of the Crown. It must also be remembered that not all of the freehold land in the Dominion is in occupation, while (as stated previously) holdings within borough boundaries or under one acre in extent are excluded from the annual statistics.

CLASSIFIED HOLDINGS.

A special classification of holdings (according to purpose for which principally used) is made three times in each decennium. The following table gives a comparison of the last two classification!. Figures exclude borough holdings and holdings under 1 acre in extent.

CLASSIFIED HOLDINGS, 1922–23 AND 1926–27.

Holdings principally	1922–23.		1926–27.
Holdings principally	Number of Holdings.	Area.	Number of Holdings.	Area.
		Acres.		Acres.
Agricultural	10,489	2,129,802	8,497	1,772,651
Dairying	38,818	6,267,507	37,505	5,841,549
Pastoral or other (including unspecified)	36,212	35,255,764	39,626	35,973,498
All holdings	85,519	43,653,163	85,628	43,587,698

Separate figures are given below for Maori holdings included in the foregoing totals. It should be noted that Maori holdings include those held and worked by full-blooded, three-quarter-caste, and half-caste Maoris. Maori lands held on the communal system are excluded.

CLASSIFIED HOLDINGS (MAORIS ONLY), 1922–23 AND 1926–27.

Holdings principally	1922–23.		1926–27.
Holdings principally	Number of Holdings.	Area.	Number of Holdings.	Area.
		Acres.		Acres.
Agricultural	144	4,789	78	2,686
Dairying	947	143,024	1,154	156,415
Pastoral or other (including unspecified)	1,527	582,207	1,379	567,551
All holdings	2,618	730,020	2,611	726,652

CONDITION OF OCCUPIED LAND.

The land in occupation in the Dominion at the 31st January, 1929, was classified according to condition and use as follows:—

	Acres.
In grain and pulse crops	592,407
In grasses and clovers (for hay and seed) and green and root crops	1,153,793
In fallow	117,944
In grasses and clovers, not cut for hay or seed	16,855,512
In vineyards and orchards	24,834
In market gardens, nurseries, and seed-gardens	6,437
In private gardens and pleasure-grounds	73,263
In plantations	293,911
Total area in cultivation	19,118,101
Unimproved land	24,404,030
Total area in occupation	43,522,131

Of the total of 43,522,131 acres, unimproved land amounted at 31st January, 1929, to 24,404,030 acres, and improved land to 19,118,101 acres. As might be expected in a pastoral-dairying country like New Zealand, permanent pasture (16,855,512 acres) forms a considerable portion of the land occupied. Grain and pulse crops, grasses and clovers (cut for hay or seed), and green and root crops aggregated 1,746,200 acres, or a shade over 4 per cent. of the total area occupied.

Further details of land in cultivation and of the various crops grown are given under their respective headings in Subsection B of the next section. Unimproved lands are not again referred to, and accordingly a table is appended showing by land districts more detailed information as to the condition of unimproved occupied land.

UNIMPROVED OCCUPIED LAND, 1929.

Land District.	Phormium tenax (New Zealand Flax).	Tussock and other Native Grasses.	Fern, Scrub, and Second Growth.	Standing Virgin Bush.	Barren and Unproductive Land.	Total Unimproved Occupied Land.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
North Auckland	5,378	177,979	735,703	317,949	55,229	1,292,238
Auckland	17,372	112,682	1,102,162	568,713	26,598	1,827,527
Gisborne	1,089	139,885	244,929	357,976	15,019	758,898
Hawke's Bay	6	376,276	136,766	49,969	17,857	580,874
Taranaki	56	6,401	127,716	267,066	4,450	405,689
Wellington	14,907	510,998	326,677	337,313	89,267	1,279,162
Nelson	2,385	361,598	187,047	356,953	35,800	943,783
Marlborough	908	1,264,078	247,152	199,270	345,734	2,057,142
Westland	13,366	173,701	130,648	849,661	291,051	1,458,427
Canterbury	742	4,183,945	105,416	195,915	877,079	5,363,097
Otago	886	5,423,591	457,632	261,814	402,190	6,546,113
Southland	5,609	1,400,496	214,926	121,206	148,843	1,891,080
Totals	62,704	14,131,630	4,016,774	3,883,805	2,309,117	24,404,030

LAND TRANSFER AND DEEDS REGISTRATION.

The Land Transfer Act, 1870, gave to New Zealand its present system of registration of title, which is similar to that first introduced into South Australia by Mr. Torrens, and subsequently adopted by the other Australian colonies. The Act of 1870 repealed the Land Registry Act, 1860, which had provided for the registration of title on a somewhat different plan, but which for various reasons had never been utilized to any extent and had remained practically a dead-letter.

Under the land transfer system the title to land is not affected by the execution of documents. Registration is the fundamental principle, and it is only on registration that any interest passes. The Land Transfer Department assumes all responsibility for the registration, and any person named in the register as taking an interest under a registered instrument acquires a practically indefeasible title.

Prior to the introduction of the system of title by registration, conveyancing in New Zealand was based upon the English laws of real property as existing at the date of the constitution of the colony, varied in some important particulars by the Conveyancing Ordinance of 1842 and other colonial legislation, now embodied in the Property Law Act, 1908. Considerable areas of land in parts of the Dominion are still held and dealt with under this system. Although provision is made for the registration of deeds affecting such land, registration is no guarantee of their validity, and a purchaser has to rely for the security of his title upon the skill and care of his- legal adviser.

In the year 1924 it was estimated that only 814 per cent. of the land in the Dominion alienated from the Crown in fee-simple had been brought under the provisions of the Land Transfer Act, and that holdings or titles under the deeds-registration system numbered seventy thousand. Through subdivisions of property, this number was increasing at the rate of about 4 per cent. per annum, in spite of lands being brought under the Land -Transfer Act.

The Land Transfer system of title by registration has great advantages over the older system of title by deeds, even when the deeds are duly registered. The state of a Land Transfer title can be ascertained by a search of the register with very much greater facility than can the state of a title under the other system, and the powers vested in Registrars under the Land Transfer Act enable them to keep the register simple, clear, and free from doubts; the simplicity of searching and of the preparation of instruments under the Land Transfer system enables transactions with land under that system to be carried out at less coat than under the other system; and under the Land Transfer system there is the State guarantee of a practically indefeasible title, as mentioned previously.

These considerations led to the passing in 195,4 of the Land Transfer (Compulsory Registration of Titles) Act, which has for its object the bringing under the provisions of the Land Transfer Act, 1915, of all land alienated by the Crown and not already under the provisions of that Act, except lands held by aboriginal Natives of New Zealand under their customs and usages.

The Registrars in charge of the various registration districts constituted under the Land Transfer Act, 1915, are directed by the 1924 Act to make what is in effect an official examination of all the titles to land not subject to the Land Transfer Act, and to issue certificates of title to the persons entitled to estates of freehold therein. Such certificates of title, in cases where the title is free from any defect or doubt, are ordinary certificates of title under which the holder's title is fully guaranteed by the State. If, however, it appears that the owner's title is defective or doubtful, it is the duty of the Registrar to issue what is termed a limited certificate of title, the effect of which is that the owner's title is guaranteed except as to the specific defects or doubts that may be found by the Registrar to exist. It is open to the owner to have the defects or doubts remedied or removed, and he is then entitled to receive a certificate of title fully guaranteed. Owners or claimants of interest in land other than registered proprietors are given twelve years in which to prove their titles or to substantiate their claims, if such claims or interest have been excepted from the guarantee, and if they do not do so, then at the expiration of the twelve years the registered proprietor will be entitled to an ordinary fully-guaranteed certificate of title, upon his proving to the satisfaction of the Registrar merely that he is in possession of the land comprised in his certificate of title.

As soon as a certificate of title, whether fully guaranteed or limited, has been issued for any particular parcel of land, it will no longer be necessary for conveyancers to examine the various deeds which have affected the title. All they will need to do will be to search the certificate of title and the Registrar's minutes setting forth the defects (if any).

The work of bringing all titles to land under the provisions of the Land Transfer Act as required by the Land Transfer (Compulsory Registration of Titles) Act, 1924, is being steadily proceeded with, and has been completed in the districts of Canterbury, Hawke's Bay, Gisborne, and Westland, with the exception of a few titles in each district that it has been considered unwise to deal with at present owing to grave doubts as to ownership or for some other reason. The work is hearing completion in several other districts.

DEEDS REGISTRATION.

Provision has existed since 1841 and is now contained in the Deeds Registration Act, 1908, for the registration of deeds and instruments affecting land which is not subject to the provisions of the Land Transfer Act. Registration is not essential to the validity of the instrument, but it is highly important as a record and to secure priority. The Act provides that every deed shall be void as against any person claiming for valuable consideration under any subsequent deed duly registered unless the earlier deed was registered before the subsequent one. The Department is not responsible for the form or matter of the instruments registered beyond seeing that they are duly stamped and contain a sufficient description of the land to identify it.

Provision is made for the deposit of instruments in the Deeds Registry Office for safe custody and reference, and such deposit operates as a release from any covenant for production.

The Deeds Index and all recorded and deposited instruments are open to public inspection, and certified copies may be obtained on payment of the prescribed fees.

Information as to transactions under the Deeds Registration Act for each of the last ten years is given in the following statement:—

Year ended 31st March,	Deeds recorded.	Fees, £
1920	24,650	25,157
1921	38,122	32,251
1922	25,352	21,956
1923	23,176	20,897
1924	25,411	23,706
1925	27,347	25,152
1926	28,784	25,649
1927	22,585	20,104
1928	16,523	15,215
1929	13,925	12,622

LAND TRANSFER.

The land subject to the Land Transfer Act, 1915, comprises all land alienated from the Crown since 1870, all land included in any order under the Native Land Acts vesting such land in any person in freehold tenure, and all land vested in any person in fee-simple by virtue of any Act of the General Assembly, besides land which has been brought under the Act on the application of the proprietors after investigation and acceptance of the title by the Department, and land brought under the Act pursuant to the Land Transfer (Compulsory Registration of Titles) Act, 1924.

Information as to applications to bring land under the Land Transfer Act during each of the last ten years is given in the next table:—

Year ended 31st March,	Applications.
	Number.	Area.		Value.
	Number.	Town and Suburban.	Country.	Value.
		Acres.	Acres.	£
1920	497	175	85,237	1,343,243
1921	619	208	70,536	1,767,397
1922	491	197	31,786	1,181,317
1923	407	130	34,515	815,855
1924	447	241	25,656	1,2,587
1925	423	876	25,626	1,235,325
1926	422	194	25,720	989,404
1927	271	175	17,983	677,364
1928	244	126	3,689	723,957
1929	204	86	8,084	575,525

The following table shows the number of certificates issued for the last ten years. Included in the totals are those certificates issued in lieu of Crown grants, 942 being the number for 1928–29. Also included in the numbers for the last four years are certificates (8,616 in 1928–29) issued compulsorily under the Act of 1924.

CERTIFICATES OF TITLE ISSUED.

Year ended 31st March,	Number.
1920	11,637
1921	16,010
1922	19,653
1923	14,045
1924	14,077
1925	14,206
1926	23,654
1927	25,088
1928	24,383
1929	22,630

The table next following shows transfers registered under the Land Transfer Act during each of the last ten years:—

TRANSFERS REGISTERED.

Year ended 31st March,	Number.	Area.		Consideration money.
Year ended 31st March,	Number.	Town and Suburban.	Country.	Consideration money.
		Acres.	Acres.	£
1920	45,128	107,432	3,775,251	62,446,574
1921	55,746	16,154	4,557,328	81,790,063
1922	33,784	10,652	1,984,695	35,436,823
1923	31,021	7,955	2,499,123	29,980,153
1924	33,293	10,697	1,796,871	33,871,246
1925	34,289	8,589	2,007,984	33,625,622
1926	36,038	8,668	2,007,451	35,195,960
1927	34,106	8,095	2,058,666	32,338,860
1928	31,141	8,188	1,892,819	30,157,665
1929	30,760	7,599	2,161,096	31,155,226

Monthly statistics of transfers registered under the Land Transfer Act are given from April, 1927, onwards in the table which follows, a distinction being made between town and suburban transactions on the one hand and country transactions on the other. Slight discrepancies exist between the totals shown in the annual statistics and those arrived at for the last two years by the addition of the monthly figures, this being due to correction of minor errors when compiling the annual figures, without the corresponding adjustment being made in the totals for the appropriate months.

Month.	Town and Suburban Properties.		Country Properties.		All Properties.
Month.	Number.	Consideration.	Number.	Consideration.	Number.	Consideration.
1927–28.
		£		£		£
April	1,526	1,021,310	478	777,370	2,004	1,798,680
May	2,307	1,624,821	709	1,210,431	3,016	2,835,252
June	2,060	1,541,790	645	1,348,976	2,705	2,890,766
July	2,137	1,727,735	691	1,448,899	2,828	3,176,634
August	2,203	1,489,014	818	1,411,217	3,021	2,900,231
September	2,052	1,410,737	705	1,365,442	2,757	2,776,179
October	2,003	1,204,311	632	940,931	2,635	2,145,242
November	2,129	1,310,701	621	1,031,941	2,750	2,342,642
December	2,282	1,461,158	619	1,089,166	2,901	2,550,324
January	1,137	887,026	348	718,359	1,485	1,605,385
February	1,806	1,261,378	561	1,091,926	2,367	2,353,304
March	2,092	1,546,651	582	1,236,818	2,674	2,783,469
Year 1927–28	23,734	16,486,632	7,409	13,671,476	31,143	30,158,108
1928–29.
April	1,428	1,016,447	428	800,906	1,856	1,817,353
May	2,272	1,569,190	692	1,548,364	2,964	3,117,554
June	1,974	1,414,924	749	1,387,043	2,723	2,801,967
July	2,100	1,471,607	786	1,735,788	2,886	3,207,395
August	2,175	1,566,025	782	1,562,544	2,957	3,128,569
September	1,809	1,159,415	678	1,300,885	2,487	2,460,300
October	2,061	1,304,844	739	1,145,642	2,800	2,450,486
November	1,929	1,187,369	699	1,268,390	2,628	2,455,759
December	2,021	1,244,650	646	1,110,437	2,667	2,355,087
January	1,189	769,832	408	593,485	1,597	1,363,317
February	1,856	1,185,072	560	1,399,469	2,416	2,584,541
March	2,100	1,833,370	679	1,589,038	2,779	3,422,408
Year 1928–29	22,914	15,722,745	7,846	15,441,991	30,760	31,164,736
1929–30.
April	1,553	1,030,517	544	1,173,206	2,097	2,203,723
May	2,369	1,522,350	791	1,487,734	3,160	3,010,084
June	2,072	1,406,021	732	1,453,206	2,804	2,859,227
July	2,270	1,768,991	948	1,732,234	3,218	3,501,225
August	2,252	1,401,475	829	1,565,640	3,081	2,967,115
September	1,879	1,193,496	770	1,324,296	2,649	2,517,792

Information as to mortgages registered under the Land Transfer and Deeds Registration Acts is contained in the section of this book dealing with mortgages.

SUBSECTION B.—CROWN LANDS.

ADMINISTRATION.

THE Crown lands are administered under the authority of the Land Act, 1924, the Land for Settlements Act, 1925, and the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Act, 1915, by the Minister of Lands at Wellington, his executive officer being the Under-Secretary of Lands, who is the permanent head of the Department of Lands and Survey. New Zealand is divided into twelve land districts, each being under the local direction of a Commissioner of Crown Lands and a Land Board. The Commissioner's office is known as the principal land office, and in some of the larger districts there are one or more local land offices. It is with these land offices that the selector has to transact all business, from the first consultation of the maps to the final receipt of the Crown title.

The names of the land districts and of the towns where the principal office of each s situated are as under:—

Land District.	Principal Land Office situated at
North Auckland	Auckland.
Auckland	Auckland.
Gisborne	Gisborne.
Hawke's Bay	Napier.
Taranaki	New Plymouth.
Wellington	Wellington.
Nelson	Nelson.
Marlborough	Blenheim.
Westland	Hokitika.
Canterbury	Christchurch.
Otago	Dunedin.
Southland	Invercargill.

Commissioners of Crown Lands are executive officers of the land districts, having large discretionary powers under the Act. Each is the Chairman of the Land Board of his district, and transacts all its routine business in the sale, letting, and occupation of Crown lands. The Commissioners deal with trespassers and intruders (persons and cattle), removing the former and prosecuting the owners of the latter; they recover all penalties, ascertain the boundaries of Crown lands, enforce all contracts for the disposition of Crown lands, recover rents and other moneys, deal with determinable contracts, prosecute and defend suits, and do whatever is necessary in the course of their duties.

LAND BOARD.

A Land Board consists of five members—viz., the Commissioner of Crown Lands for the district (who is ex officio Chairman), three members nominated by the Governor-General, and one member elected by the Crown tenants of the district.

The Boards transact all business connected with the sale, letting, disposal, and occupation of Crown lands, and all matters connected with the management and control of the public lands in their hands. They are the sole judges of the fulfilment of conditions in leases and licenses, and they can declare them forfeit. All meetings are open to the press and public, with certain limitations.

APPLICATIONS FOR LAND.

A selector may purchase for cash, or on deferred payment, or may select on renewable lease. Every applicant must be of the age of seventeen years or upwards, and may apply for Crown land solely for his own use and benefit, and not directly or indirectly for the use or benefit of any other person. Including the land he applies for, he is not to be the owner, holder, or occupier under any tenure of more than one year's duration, either severally or jointly or in common with any other person or persons, of any land anywhere in New Zealand exceeding in the whole 5,000 acres of land, computed as follows:—

Every acre of first-class land is reckoned as 7 1/2 acres;
Every acre of second-class land is reckoned as 2 1/2 acres;
Every acre of third-class land is reckoned as 1 acre.

DEFERRED PAYMENTS.

By the passing of the Land Laws Amendment Act, 1926, it was provided that after the 9th September, 1926, no more Crown lands were to be disposed of under the occupation-with-right-of-purchase tenure, and that any lands which might have been so disposed of could be disposed of by way of sale on deferred payment in addition to the other modes of disposal provided by the Land Act. The following is a summary of the conditions of deferred payment licenses:—

Term of license: Thirty-four and one-half years.
Deposit: Such amount as may be fixed by the Land Board; being not less than 3 per cent. of the price of the land, together with £1 1s. license fee.
The balance of the purchase-money, together with interest thereon at the rate of 5 1/2 per cent. per annum, shall be payable by half-yearly instalments extending over the above-mentioned period.
With the first half-yearly instalment there shall be paid the interest on balance of purchase-money for period between date of license and date of commencement of term thereof.
The licensee shall have the right at any time during the currency of his license to pay off either the whole of the purchase-money or any half-yearly instalment or instalments thereof then remaining unpaid.
Upon payment of the purchase-money in full, and of all interest thereon, a Certificate of Title in respect of the land purchased shall be issued to the purchaser on payment of the prescribed Crown-grant fee.
The interest of the licensee shall be subject to forfeiture in the event of his failure to pay any instalment of principal and interest due under the license or to comply with any of the conditions thereof.
Applicants to be seventeen years of age and upwards.
Purchaser shall execute required statutory declaration, and shall execute license within thirty days after being notified that it is ready for signature.
Residence on land comprised in the license is to commence within four years on bush or swamp land, and within one year on open or partly open land, and shall be continuous thereafter for ten years.
Licensee is required to improve the land within one year to the value of 10 per cent. of the price; within two years, to the value of another 10 per cent.; and thereafter, but within six years, to the value of another 10 per cent. of the price. In addition to the foregoing, and within six years, improvements are also to be effected to the value of £1 for every acre of first-class land, 10s. for every acre of second-class land, and 2s. 6d. for every acre of thud-class land.
Licensee to pay all rates, taxes, and assessments.
Transfer not allowed until after completion of two years' continuous residence, except under extraordinary circumstances, and then only with permission.
Roads may be taken through the lands at any time within seven years from date of license.
License is liable to forfeiture if conditions are violated.

Under the table prescribing the instalments of purchase-money and interest payable during the term of 34 1/2 years the instalment payable in respect of every £100 of the price is £3 5s., payable at the end of each successive period of six months.

METHODS OF ACQUIRING CROWN LAND.

Crown Land may be selected and occupied under the following tenures and systems:—

(1) Town, suburban, and village lands—

For cash and deferred payment, by public auction;
By lease for terms up to ten years;
By renewable lease for thirty-three years.

(2) Rural land (unimproved), (under optional system)—

For cash, by application;
Purchase by deferred payment;
Renewable lease for sixty-six years.

(3) Village settlements—

Under the three foregoing tenures of optional system.

(4) Special settlements (rural land)—

On renewable lease for sixty-six years and under special regulations.

(5) Land-for-settlement estates (improved rural and pastoral land)—

Under renewable lease for thirty-three years, with right to acquire freehold of 400 acres of first-class land, 1,200 acres of second-class land, or 3,000 acres of third-class land;
For cash or on deferred payment, by auction.

(6) Pastoral land—

By small-grazing-run lease for twenty-one years, with right of renewal (maximum area, 20,000 acres);
By pastoral license on terms up to thirty-five years.

(7) Land within mining districts—

On pastoral licenses under special regulations, with right to acquire the freehold or exchange to a renewable lease;
On occupation leases under special regulations, with similar rights as to purchase of freehold and exchange.

(8) Miscellaneous—

Temporary occupation on terms up to five years:
Sale or occupation for special purposes;
Outlying land.

CONDITIONS OF OCCUPATION AND LEASES.

Full particulars are given in the Crown Lands Guide, issued periodically and obtainable at any land office, as to the conditions of lease and occupation. Improvements to a certain value are required to be effected on rural land purchased for cash or on deferred payment or held on renewable lease, and residence is compulsory for certain periods on most Crown leaseholds. Rebate of rent or interest is given in many cases when the half-yearly instalment is paid within thirty days of its becoming due. Applications for mortgage, transfer, and sublease of a Crown leasehold under most of the tenures require the approval of the Land Board of the district.

DISPOSAL OF ENDOWMENTS AND RESERVES.

National endowments may be disposed of under renewable lease, small-grazing-run lease, or pastoral license. These lands are occupied on the same conditions as ordinary Crown lands.

Owners of renewable leases and small-grazing-run leases of national-endowment lands now have the right to acquire the fee-simple of their holdings on the conditions provided by the Act pertaining to each class of lease. A pastoral licensee of national-endowment land, if the area is not more than sufficient for the maintenance of the licensee and his family, can acquire the fee-simple.

Education endowments are available for leasing under the Education Reserves Act, 1928, which permits of a lease being granted under the Public Bodies' Leases Act, 1908, as well as under the Land Act, 1924. The freehold of the land cannot be acquired.

Public reserves not vested in trustees or a local authority may be leased under the Public Reserves, Domains, and National Parks Act, 1928, for any term not exceeding twenty-one years, with right of renewal for a further term. The freehold of the land cannot be acquired.

LANDS OPENED FOR SELECTION.

During the year ended 31st March, 1929, an area of 204,996 acres of land was offered for selection under the various tenures provided by the Laud Act, Land for Settlements Act, and Education Reserves Act.

Under renewable lease an area of 133,240 acres was offered, 19,612 acres being national endowment, 33,230 acres land for settlements, 78,047 acres ordinary Crown lands, and 2,351 acres educational endowment; while an area of 44,098 acres of ordinary Crown land was offered under the optional system. The pastoral-run area comprised 3,708 acres.

In addition to the above a total area of 1,936 acres of Crown, settlement, and national-endowment lands was set apart for selection by discharged soldiers, under the ordinary tenures of the Land Act and the Land for Settlements Act, and the special tenures of the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Act. Fuller particulars regarding these lands will be found at the end of this subsection.

The total selections during the year covered an area of 462,563 acres, by 1,911 selectors. These figures include, however, 256 purchases of small town, suburban, and rural lands, aggregating 5,720 acres, offered for sale at auction. The ordinary Crown lands holdings represented 324,652 acres; land for settlements and Cheviot Estate, 47,689 acres; national endowment, 67,538 acres; educational endowments, 14,228 acres; and other endowments, 8,456 acres. Selections by discharged soldiers are included in the foregoing totals.

SELECTIONS UNDER SETTLEMENT CONDITIONS.

Areas under this heading include all lands sold for cash or selected on the deferred-payment system, small grazing-runs, and leases under the following tenures: Renewable lease, mining districts land occupation leases, educational-endowment leases, and pastoral licenses in mining districts under special regulations. A five-years summary of selections is as follows:—

Year ended 31st March,	Sold for Cash.	Deferred-payment Licenses.	Leases and Licenses (Ordinary Settlement).	Small Grazing-runs.	Totals.
	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.	Number.
1925	154	115	459	1	729
1926	217	188	486	8	899
1927	186	388	503	3	1,080
1928	212	425	477	2	1,116
1929	256	434	555	5	1,250

The acreage represented by the selections included in the foregoing table is as follows:—

Year ended 31st March,	Sold for Cash.	Deferred-payment Licenses.	Leases and Licenses (Ordinary Settlement).	Small Grazing-runs.	Totals.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
1925	3,656	3,891	125,259	905	133,711
1926	5,539	887	113,184	10,704	130,314
1927	11,386	9,191	84,800	5,505	110,882
1928	3,722	19,112	107,266	14,114	144,214
1929	5,720	26,267	163,066	20,483	215,536

CROWN LAND HELD OR MADE FREEHOLD.

The following table shows in a condensed form the area of land held from the Crown at 31st March, 1929, the yearly rental payable, and the area made freehold to that date:—

Tenure.	Total Number of Selectors.	Total Area held.	Total Yearly Rental or Instalment payable.	Total Area made Freehold.
Tenure.	Total Number of Selectors.	Total Area held.	Total Yearly Rental or Instalment payable.	Number of Purchasers.	Area.
* Excluding “cash lands.”
		Acres.	£		Acres.
Cash lands	..	..	..	..	13,266,518
Deferred payment	3,561	403,596	86,925	10,951	1,285,849
Perpetual lease	171	7,279	1,100	3,102	864,370
Occupation with right of purchase	3,607	1,050,713	83,652	4,903	1,261,858
Lease in perpetuity	7,572	1,599,530	192,901	3,184	532,250
Renewable lease	8,059	2,247,352	416,738	291	49,643
Agricultural lease	9	282	21	1,408	140,896
Mining districts land occupation leases	688	17,686	1,713	140	4,590
Homestead	..	..	..	61	80,453
Pastoral licenses in mining districts under special regulations	648	140,797	3,336	83	17,485
Small grazing-runs	808	2,621,334	102,744	53	62,465
Pastoral runs	632	9,431,680	91,896	4	6,155
Miscellaneous leases and licenses	6,596	1,171,336	43,521	126	11,700
Totals	32,351	18,691,585	1,024,547	24,306^*	17,584,232
Thermal-springs leases (Rotorua)	308	1,982	1,881	19	192
Education endowments—
Primary	3,583	772,927	119,472	4	81
Secondary	460	40,110	11,626	..	..
Totals	4,351	815,019	132,979	23	273
Grand totals	36,702	19,506,604	1,157,526	24,329^*	17,584,505
Other endowment lands	795	357,786	16,223	5	5,755

National-endowment lands are included in the above table in the figures for the various tenures under which they are held. National-endowment lands of an aggregate area of 6,680,587 acres were held at 31st March, 1929, by 4,484 selectors, the annual rental payable being £136,916. Settlement lands under the Land for Settlements Act, which are dealt with later on in this subsection, are also included.

The next table shows the area of Crown land made freehold during the year ended 31st March, 1929, together with the amount of purchase-money. The information is given for the various tenures under which the land was held immediately prior to the freehold being acquired by the occupier.

CROWN LAND MADE FREEHOLD, YEAR ENDED 31ST MARCH, 1929.

Tenure.	Area.	Amount realized.
	Acres.	£
Cash lands sold	5,683	37,850
Freehold acquired under following tenures—
Deferred payment	18,533	74,265
Perpetual lease	1,585	396
Occupation with right of purchase	17,659	16,382
Lease in perpetuity	3,096	10,289
Renewable lease	1,857	6,712
Mining districts land occupation lease	400	881
Pastoral licenses in mining districts	729	537
Small grazing-runs	608	1,219
Miscellaneous	88	438
Totals	50,238	148,969

SUBDIVISION OF LAND.

Much of the land legislation of recent years has been in the direction of preventing large areas of good land from being acquired or retained by a single individual. Part VI of the Land for Settlements Act, 1925, provides for an agreement being made between the Minister of Lands and the owner in fee-simple of any land for the subdivision of that land, and for the disposal by public tender of the allotments by way of sale or by way of lease with right of purchase.

Section 97 provides for similar agreements between the Minister and the owners of Native freehold land in respect of the disposition by sale or lease of that land.

In Part VII of the Land for Settlements Act, 1925, provision is made whereby the Minister of Lands may at any time in writing notify an owner of land that such land or a portion thereof is required for purposes of settlement. The owner of the land is required, within six months after such notice has been gazetted, to notify the Minister whether he elects (a) to subdivide and offer the land for sale in subdivisions, or (b) to enter into an agreement with the Minister as above, or (c) that the land shall be taken compulsorily under the Act.

In sections 381 and 382 of the Land Act, 1924, provision exists for compulsorily taking private land (not within a borough or town district) in cases where in the opinion of the Board of Land Purchase Commissioners such land has been acquired by way of aggregation, and where such aggregation is contrary to the public interest. Compensation is payable for all land so taken.

LAND FOR SETTLEMENTS

The purchase of private lands by the Crown for closer settlement purposes is authorized by the Land for Settlements Act, 1925, a consolidation of former legislation.

The number of estates offered during the year ended 31st March, 1929, was 245, of an area of 437,143 acres, but many of these properties were not suitable for subdivisional purposes.

The figures given herein do, not include any purchases under section 2 of the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Amendment Act, 1917. The area purchased during the year was 353 acres, of a value of £3,950.

The total number of estates purchased since the inception of the land-for-settlements scheme is 645, of a total area of 1,999,868 acres, the aggregate amount of purchase-money being £13,126,925. The figures for each land district are—

SUMMARY OF ESTATES ACQUIRED TO 31ST MARCH, 1929.

Land District.	Number.	Area.	Purchase-money.
* Including North Auckland. † Including Gisborne.
		Acres.	£
Auckland^*	100	392,392	1,547,501
Hawke's Bay^†	63	311,436	2,357,100
Taranaki	25	27,628	369,818
Wellington	147	158,729	2,254,218
Marlborough	22	224,090	755,482
Nelson	14	48,821	150,473
Westland	2	5,125	8,343
Canterbury	173	447,597	3,444,757
Otago	73	293,188	1,779,317
Southland	26	90,862	459,916
Totals	645	1,999,868	13,126,925

The transfer of certain areas from Crown to settlement lands, and the adjustment of areas to account for ascertained surpluses or deficiencies, bring the total area to 2,209,383 acres at the 31st March, 1929. Of this, 230,594 acres have been sold for cash or made freehold, the total purchase-money being £993,259, and 95,736 acres are occupied by roads or by reserves unlet. At the 31st March, 1929, 7,057 selectors were holding a total of 1,822,921 acres, the annual rental for which amounts to £523,788; and the remaining 60,132 acres were unlet. The figures for each land district are as follow:—

POSITION OF LAND FOR SETTLEMENTS AT 31ST MARCH, 1929.

Land District.	Area acquired.	Area occupied by Roads and Reserves unlet.	Area of Land unlet, including Land forfeited, surrendered, or resumed and not relet, and also Land not yet offered for Selection.	Total Area purchased for Cash or made Freehold to Date.
Land District.	Area acquired.	Area occupied by Roads and Reserves unlet.		Number of Purchasers.	Area.	Price realized.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.		Acres.	£
North Auckland	42,547	890	4,480	225	2,491	33,981
Auckland	354,361	77,981	25,246	724	132,241	303,785
Gisborne	87,050	391	10,100	46	6,252	51,718
Hawke's Bay	227,396	2,432	..	118	21,740	130,854
Taranaki	28,236	257	271	55	1,704	40,656
Wellington	159,498	1,141	857	418	13,818	150,692
Nelson	68,418	929	12,404	6	1,634	2,953
Marlborough	235,867	2,643	2,165	51	9,152	37,274
Westland	5,126	83	..	3	396	218
Canterbury	605,506	4,254	3,838	304	18,075	141,689
Otago	297,953	3,686	98	68	7,496	36,983
Southland	97,425	1,049	673	113	15,595	62,456
Totals	2,209,383	95,736	60,132	2,131	230,594	993,259

District.	Total Lands leased at 31st March, 1929,			Rent and other Payments received during 1928–29.	Total Receipts from inception to 31st March, 1929.
District.	Number of Selectors.	Area.	Annual Rental.	Rent and other Payments received during 1928–29.	Total Receipts from inception to 31st March, 1929.
		Acres.	£	£	£
North Auckland	290	34,686	11,083	13,444	164,799
Auckland	887	118,893	32,515	44,488	923,446
Gisborne	220	70,307	24,342	24,292	242,510
Hawke's Bay	609	203,224	71,709	77,722	741,427
Taranaki	150	26,004	13,411	12,490	199,461
Wellington	977	143,682	74,776	89,077	1,075,798
Nelson	62	53,451	3,364	2,031	56,102
Marlborough	493	221,907	36,629	34,804	749,128
Westland	33	4,647	536	467	14,692
Canterbury	1,875	579,339	161,065	159,863	3,276,896
Otago	1,114	286,673	76,625	71,539	1,509,515
Southland	347	80,108	17,733	17,857	431,437
Totals	7,057	1,822,921	523,788	548,074	9,385,211

PURCHASE OF LANDS FOR GROUPS OF APPLICANTS.

Part II of the Land Laws Amendment Act, 1928, gives power whereby two or more persons may purchase land acquired on their behalf by the Crown. As a preliminary the persons desiring to purchase negotiate with the owner of the land and obtain from him an offer in writing in the prescribed form for the sale of the land to the Crown. This offer is submitted to the Dominion Land Purchase Board with an application for the purchase of the land, accompanied by a plan showing the proposed scheme of subdivision as between the applicants, and the existing or proposed roads affording access thereto. The applicants must also furnish such documentary evidence as may be required with respect to the capital available to them for stocking and working the land. Upon receipt of the application the Dominion Land Purchase Board refers the matter to the Land Board for further investigation of the suitability of the land and of the applicants, and on receipt of the Land Board's report decides whether or not the Minister of Lands is to be recommended to direct the purchase of the property. In the event of the acquisition of the property being decided upon, each applicant, as a preliminary to the actual purchase by the Crown, must pay to the Receiver of Land Revenue a deposit of not less than 5 per cent. of the estimated price to be paid by the applicant for the subdivision proposed to be allotted to him. When the subdivision is complete the section purchased by each applicant may be allotted to him without competition, for cash, or on deferred payments by instalments spread over a term of 34 1/2 years, at such price as the Minister may determine in accordance with the provisions of subsection (4) of section 54 of the Land for Settlements Act, 1925. Instalments are not subject to a rebate of interest.

LAND-SETTLEMENT FINANCE ASSOCIATIONS.

On the 1st January, 1910, the Land Settlement Finance Act, which is described fully in the 1915 issue of this book, came into force. The associations incorporated now number forty-six. There have been no transactions for several years past.

LAND FOR DISCHARGED SOLDIERS.

Under the provisions of the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Act, 1915, and amendments, any person is entitled to the benefits of the Act who, as a member of a New Zealand Naval or Expeditionary Force, served beyond New Zealand in connection with the war of 1914–18, returned to New Zealand, and received an honourable discharge, together with any person who immediately prior to the commencement of the war was a bona fide resident of New Zealand, and also served during the war with some portion of His Majesty's Naval or Military Forces (not being Forces raised in New Zealand) and received an honourable discharge therefrom. In addition, all discharged members of an Expeditionary Force who, having been classed as medically fit for service beyond the seas, served as members of that Force in a camp of military training and remained attached to that camp on the 12th November, 1918, are entitled to apply for advances or private land under sections 2 or 3 of the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Amendment Act, 1917.

TENURES UNDER WHICH LAND MAY BE SELECTED.

There is power to dispose of land under the ordinary tenures of the Land Act, 1924, and the Land for Settlements Act, 1925–i.e., for cash, on deferred payment, or on renewable lease under the former Act, and on renewable lease under the latter Act; also under the “special tenures” of the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Act, 1915, which are cash, deferred payment, or a renewable lease with a purchasing clause. The various tenures mentioned may be explained as under, and are given under two headings—viz., “Ordinary Tenures” and “Special Tenures.”

(A) Ordinary Tenures.

Cash.—In all cases of purchase of land for cash the applicant is required to pay one-fifth of the purchase-money at the date of the sale, and the balance, with the Crown-grant fee, within thirty days from the date of the approval of the application.

Deferred Payment.—Term, thirty-four and a half years; conditions as shown on p. 434.

Renewable Lease under the Land Act.—Term, sixty-six years, with a perpetual right of renewal; rental, 4 per cent. on the capital value of the land. There is a right to the freehold.

Renewable Lease under the Land for Settlements Act.—Term, thirty-three years, with perpetual right of renewal; rental, 5 per cent. on the capital value of the land. Right of purchase at any time during the currency of the lease. Purchase of the freehold may be made on the deferred-payment system if desired.

(B) Special Tenures.

Cash.—As shown under “Ordinary Tenures” above.

Deferred Payment under Special Tenures.—Term, thirty-four and a half years; conditions as shown on p. 434, except that licensee may not transfer within ten years, except with consent.

Renewable Lease with Purchasing Clause under Special Tenures.—Term may be for any period not exceeding thirty-three years in the case of settlement land, and sixty-six years in the case of Crown land, with perpetual rights of renewal for thirty-three years or sixty-six years, as the case may be. Freehold may be acquired any time during the currency of the lease. Purchase of the freehold may be made on the deferred-payment system if desired.

AREA PROCLAIMED AND ALLOTTED.

The following table shows the total area proclaimed under the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Act, 1915. Of the total area proclaimed, ordinary Crown lands amounted to 601,722 acres, Cheviot Estate to 3,356 acres, land for settlements to 400,144 acres, and national-endowment land to 431,251 acres.

District.	Under Section 3 of the Act. (Ordinary Tenures.)		Under Section 4 of the Act. (Special Tenures.)		Total Area proclaimed.
District.	Year ended 31st March, 1929.	Total to 31st March, 1929.	Year ended 31st March, 1929.	Total to 31st March, 1929.	Year ended 31st March, 1929.	Total to 31st March, 1929.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
North Auckland	253	23,932	80	45,048	333	68,980
Auckland	..	62,439	..	154,509	..	216,948
Gisborne	29	72	1,147	15,790	1,176	15,862
Hawke's Bay	..	27,263	..	172,975	..	200,238
Taranaki	..	15,657	2	38,789	2	54,446
Wellington	..	2,490	..	110,338	..	112,828
Nelson	..	35,380	..	35,238	..	70,618
Marlborough	..	..	..	20,674	..	20,674
Westland	..	27,752	..	480	..	28,232
Canterbury	..	254,401	..	47,187	..	301,588
Otago	..	239,780	425	80,655	425	320,435
Southland	..	10,824	..	14,800	..	25,624
Totals	282	699,990	1,654	736,483	1,936	1,436,473

During the year ended 31st March, 1929, 90 applications were made under the provisions of the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Act, and allotments were made in the case of 77 applicants, the total area being 13,275 acres.

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.

The various systems of financial assistance in connection with the settlement of discharged soldiers were dealt with in the 1924 and previous issues of the Year-book. Operations at the present time are confined to advances on current account for checking and developing farms.

From the inception of the scheme of discharged-soldiers settlement in 1915 to the end of live financial year 1928–29 £22,896,011 had been advanced to 22,802 discharged soldiers, as follows:—

Class.	Number of Soldiers.	Amount.
		£
Advances on current account	5,222	5,137,068
Advances towards purchase of farms, market gardens, and orchards, and discharge of mortgages	5,535	9,006,266
Advances towards purchase and erection of dwellings and discharge of mortgages thereon in town and suburban areas	12,045	8,752,677
Totals	22,802	£22,896,011

Repayments of, principal to the 31st March, 1929, total £7,980,008, of which £1,205,892 was repaid during the financial year 1928–29. Receipts in respect of interest and sundries brought the total receipts for the year to £1,963,653.

During 1928–29 loans totalling £130,546 were granted. Of this amount £26,399 was for the purchase or erection of dwellings, and £104,147 towards the improvement and stocking of lands. Advances actually made during the year, including loans previously authorized and readvances from current account, totalled £697,722.

REVALUATION OF SOLDIER PROPERTIES.

By the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Amendment Act, 1923, a Dominion Revaluation Board was constituted with power to revalue and reduce where necessary the capital values of lands leased by soldiers from the Crown, and also to reduce mortgages in cases where soldiers had acquired lands by means of Government advances. To assist this Board twenty-four district revaluation committees were set up, whose reports were submitted for consideration and action. Of 5,347 applications received for revaluation the Dominion Board issued determinations in 5,284 cases, while the remaining 63 applications lapsed owing to forfeiture or abandonment. Reductions to the total of £2,745,244 were made in capital and mortgage values, and negotiations with private mortgagees and unsecured creditors resulted in mortgages and debts of various descriptions totalling £164,365 being reduced by over 75 per cent. In addition, private mortgages totalling £71,761 were purchased by the Crown at a discount of over 41 per cent.

The Board has also been engaged in investigating current accounts under the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Amendment Act, 1924. Approximately 4,900 accounts were subject to investigation.

SUBSECTION C.—NATIVE LANDS.

DEFINITION AND KINDS OF NATIVE LAND.

NATIVE land is of two kinds—namely, customary land and Native freehold land Customary land is land which has never been the subject of a Crown grant and is held by Natives under the customs and usages of the Maori people. It is land in respect of which the ancient customary Native title as recognized and guaranteed by the Treaty of Waitangi has not yet been extinguished. Such land, since it has not been Crown-granted, remains vested in the Crown, subject, however, to the customary title of the Natives, and to their right to have the customary title transformed into a freehold title by the Native Land Court.

Customary land has always been restricted from alienation except in favour of the Crown. By the Treaty of Waitangi the exclusive right to purchase such land was reserved to the Crown, and in all statutes since passed the alienation of customary land to private individuals has been prohibited, and this prohibition is now extended to the Crown. Native freehold land is the land held by Natives under an English freehold title, though subject to certain restrictions on alienation and other special incidents which are unknown to the ordinary law.

Whether land is Native or European land depends upon the beneficial ownership of it, and not merely on the legal ownership. If land is held by a European upon trust for a Native, it is Native land; if it is held in trust by a Native for a European, it is European land. There are, however, five exceptions to this:—

When land has once become European land, it never again becomes Native land unless by special enactment.
Land purchased by a Native from the Crown for a pecuniary consideration is not Native land.
Land held by a Native in severalty may be declared to be European land by the Native Appellate Court.
Under certain circumstances the Native owner may be declared a European.
To assist Natives in farming their lands.

Even though one of many Native owners may sell, the land remains Native land until all have disposed of their interest, or until the purchaser has had his interests partitioned off. A “Native” means a Maori or half-caste, or a person intermediate in blood between a Maori and a half-caste.

THE NATIVE LAND COURT.

The Native Land Court consists of a Chief Judge and such other Judges as the Governor-General thinks fit to appoint. All powers of the Count may be exercised by a single Judge, but there are certain important powers vested exclusively in the Chief Judge. Commissioners are appointed who exercise such jurisdiction of a Judge as the Governor-General authorizes. The chief matters within the jurisdiction of the Court are:—

The investigation of title to customary land, and transforming it into Native freehold land.
The exclusive power of partitioning land among the owners.
The sanctioning of exchanges for other Native land and European land.
Granting probates of wills and succession orders to Natives.
Making orders for the adoption of children.
Appointing trustees for Natives who are minors or under other disability.
The incorporation of the owners of Native land.
The determination of various claims as between Natives.

Particulars of the business dealt with by the Native Land Court during the twelve months ended 31st March, 1929, are as follows:—

Number of sittings	105
Number of cases notified	21,444
Number of cases for which orders were made	6,596
Number of cases dismissed	1,826
Number of cases adjourned sine die	12,932
Number of partitions made	416
Area affected (acres)	100,058
Number of investigations of title	4
Area affected (acres)	80
Number of succession orders made	6,122
Number of other orders made	2,821

NATIVE APPELLATE COURT.

The Native Appellate Court consists of any two or more Judges of the Native Land Court. With certain exceptions the Appellate Court has jurisdiction to hear and determine appeals, whether on law or on fact, from all final orders of the Native Land Court.

MAORI LAND BOARDS.

There are seven Maori Land Boards, each consisting of the Judge and Registrar of the Native Land Court district, the Judge acting as President. The chief functions of a Maori Land Board are—

To grant confirmation of alienation of Native land.
To administer certain large areas of Native land vested in those Boards in trust for the Native owners, the Boards having extensive powers of sale, lease, and management.
To act as statutory agent of the Native owners in respect of certain areas of Native land set apart for Native settlement.
To control the administration and disposition of Native land, by resolution of the assembled owners.

The total area vested in and administered by the various Maori Land Boards as at the 31st March, 1929, was 667,705 acres.

During the year 1928–29 5,073 acres of vested land were sold or reinvested in the Native owners.

With regard to Native freehold land, the Boards during the year approved of 329 leases comprising 52,133 acres, and confirmed 288 transfers (apart from sales to the Crown) affecting 15,297 acres of freehold land.

POWERS OF ALIENATION

The ordinary provisions as to alienation of Native land do not affect the power to dispose of land by will, but a Native cannot will to a European except it be a husband or wife or other relative of the person making the will. A Native cannot dispose of customary land, whether by will or otherwise. No alienation of Native land by a Native has any effect until it is confirmed by a Maori Land Board, and the instrument of alienation must be attested by a solicitor, a Justice of the Peace, a Magistrate, a Judge, a Registrar, a Commissioner of the Native Land Court, or a Postmaster. If the Native has not a sufficient knowledge of the English language it must also be attested by a licensed interpreter, who must certify that the Native understood the effect of the instrument. It must also have endorsed a translation and a plan of the land affected.

The Board, before confirming an alienation, must satisfy itself—

That the instrument has been duly executed:
That the alienation is not contrary to good faith or to the interests of the Native alienating:
That no Native is rendered landless by the alienation:
That the consideration is adequate:
That the purchase-money is paid or secured:
That the rules as to limitation of area have not been infringed:
That the alienation is not a breach of trust and is not otherwise prohibited by law.

A lease cannot be for a longer term than fifty years, and a mortgage must have the approval of the Governor-General in Council.

PURCHASE OF NATIVE LAND FOR CROWN.

For the purpose of effecting the purchase of Native land by the Crown there is constituted a Native Land Purchase Board, consisting of the Minister of Native Affairs, the Under-Secretary of Lands, the Under-Secretary of the Native Department, and the Valuer-General. The duty of the Board is to undertake, control, and carry out negotiations for purchase, and the performance and completion of contracts entered into. Pending any purchase by the Crown the Governor-General may, by Order in Council, prohibit any attempt at alienation otherwise than to the Crown. Any such attempted alienation is absolutely void, and constitutes an offence punishable by fine or imprisonment. Upon the purchase being completed the land is proclaimed Crown land, and is subject to administration under the Land Act, 1924. Where it is subject to lease when purchased the option may be extended to the tenant of purchasing the land from the Crown or having a renewable lease granted to him.

Since the Board was constituted, on the 1st April, 1910, a total of 1,439,429 acres of Native land has been purchased by the Crown, the aggregate purchase-money paid being £3,424,257. The total area of Native land alienated by way of sale to the Crown or to other purchasers since 1910 is 3,089,756 acres.

The area of Native land still held by Natives in the North Island is estimated at 4,060,402 acres, and in the whole Dominion at 4,323,592 acres. In many cases the Natives are utilizing their land for pastoral and dairying purposes. Other lands are being farmed for them by Maori Land Boards and by the East Coast Commissioner.

NATIVE TRUSTEE.

The administration of Native funds and Native reserves, formerly conducted by the Public Trustee, was by statute transferred to the Native Trustee as from 1st April, 1921. This was part of a comprehensive scheme which seeks to rehabilitate the Maori by inducing him to farm and manage his own lands. As a further means to this end the Native Trust Office Board advances money to Natives on the security of their lands, the expenditure of this money and the management of Native farming operations generally being supervised in a helpful and sympathetic manner by departmental officers specially appointed for this particular purpose.

The Native Trustee Act, 1920, which together with its amendments of 1921–22, 1922, 1924, and 1926, embodies the legislation relating to the creation and functions of the Native Trust Office, provides for the appointment of a Native Trustee and of a Native Trust Office Board, consisting of the Minister of Native Affairs, one other member of the Executive Council being either a Native or a half-caste, the Native Trustee, the Under-Secretaries of Native Affairs and of Lands, and one other person appointed by the Governor-General. The Office is subject to the control of the Minister of Native Affairs.

The Native Trustee administers many reserves of Native land on behalf of the beneficiaries, and grants leases thereof. The beneficial owners of these reserves have no power of alienation other than to the Crown.

The Native Trustee also, where necessary, acts as trustee for Natives who are minors or under other disabilities, and acts as executor or administrator of the estates of deceased Natives.

Several special funds set up for the benefit of Natives are controlled by the Native Trustee, the chief of these being the fund raised by Maoris during the war for the relief of returned Maori soldiers. This fund has been invested in two large sheep farms, which are entirely controlled by the Native Trustee.

The funds of the Native Trust Office at the 31st March, 1929, amounted to £762,805, made up as follows:—

Amounts hold under—	£
West Coast Settlement Reserves Act, 1892	55,195
Native Reserves Act, 1882	53,206
Native Land Act, 1909 (Part X)	120,913
Native Land Act, 1909 (Miscellaneous)	291,101
Native Trustee Act, 1920, and amendments	36,501
Miscellaneous funds	89,644
Native Trustee Act, 1920 (Advances under)	33,452
Sundry creditors	100
Reserve and Assurance Fund	76,113
Investment Fluctuation Fund	6,580
Total	£762,805

Of the total funds £544,803 was invested in the form of mortgages, and £167,790 in local bodies' securities.

Commissions, fees, charges, and net interest on investments for the year 1928–29 totalled £14,947. The net profit for the year was £3,221, of which £2,899 was placed to the Reserve and Assurance Fund and £322 to the Investment Fluctuation Fund.

Chapter 18. SECTION XVIII.—AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL PRODUCTION.

Table of Contents

SUBSECTION A.—GENERAL.

THE NORTH ISLAND.

THE SOUTH ISLAND.

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.

BOARD OF AGRICULTURE

COLLECTION OF AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL STATISTICS.

PERSONS ENGAGED IN FARMING.

FARM MACHINERY.

FARM MACHINERY AND ENGINES, 1925–29.

DAIRYING AND PASTORAL MACHINERY, 1928–29.

AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY, 1928–29.

FARM ENGINES, 1928–29.

SUBSECTION B.—AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION.

INTRODUCTORY.

AREA UNDER CROP.

PRINCIPAL CROPS.

GRAIN AND PULSE CROPS.

WHEAT.

AREA (FOR THRESHING) AND YIELD OF WHEAT, 1868–69 TO 1928–29.

WHEAT-GROWERS, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO YIELD PER ACRE, 1928–29.

WHEAT-GROWERS, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO AREA HARVESTED, 1928–29.

PRODUCTION PER HEAD OF POPULATION.

CONSUMPTION OF WHEAT.

WHEAT-CONSUMPTION, 1924–28.

WHEAT-PRODUCTION OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND, 1928–29.

OATS.

OAT CROP OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

POTATOES.

SUPPLEMENTARY FODDER CROPS.

GARDENS AND PLANTATIONS.

ORCHARDS AND THE FRUIT INDUSTRY.

AREA IN ORCHARD, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

AREA IN ORCHARD, 1928–29.

TOP-DRESSING.

IRRIGATED LAND.

SUBSECTION C.—PASTORAL PRODUCTION.

SUMMARY OF LIVE-STOCK.

NUMBER OF SHEEP, CATTLE, HORSES, AND PIGS, 1858–1929.

SHEEP.

NUMBER OF FLOCKS.

KILLINGS AND LOSSES OF SHEEP.

SHEEP IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

SHEEP FLOCKS OF THE WORLD.

PRODUCTION OF WOOL.

WOOL PRODUCED, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

AVERAGE WEIGHT OF FLEECE, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

EXPORTS OF WOOL AND FROZEN MEAT, 1882–1928.

CATTLE.

BREEDS OF CATTLE.

CATTLE AT 31ST JANUARY, 1928, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO BREED, SEX, AND AGE. (EXCLUDING BOROUGHS.)

THE WORLD'S CATTLE.

DAIRY-PRODUCE.

DAIRY-PRODUCE EXPORT CONTROL.

WORLD PRODUCTION OF DAIRY-PRODUCE.

WORLD TRADE IN DAIRY-PRODUCE.

CHEESE EXPORTS OF PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1924–28.

CHEESE IMPORTS OF PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1924–28.

BUTTER EXTORTS OF PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1924–28.

BUTTER IMPORTS OF PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1924–28.

CONSUMPTION AND EXPORT OF MEAT.

HORSES AT 31ST JANUARY, 1928, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO BREED, SEX, AND AGE. (EXCLUDING BOROUGHS.)

ASSES AND MULES.

PIGS.

PIGS AT 31ST JANUARY, 1929.

GOATS.

POULTRY.

BEES.

SUBSECTION A.—GENERAL.

THE Dominion of New Zealand is a country specially favoured for primary production. The soil covering is varied in character, a considerable portion of it being of exceptional fertility; but even the poorer soils are largely capable of profitable utilization by reason of the comparatively mild and equable weather conditions. The best grasses and fodder plants flourish in the congenial environment, and the country has gained a world-wide reputation for the quality of its pastures. Numerous streams intersect the country, and present to the farmer a great potential source of cheap power. Electricity is now put to a variety of uses on the farm, but by far the most important is that of providing power for milking-machinery.

A conspicuous feature of New Zealand farming is that the stock do not require to be stalled in the winter, though the pastures are more or less supplemented by fodder crops in the colder months of the year. This fact, combined with the factor of soil-fertility, enables the New Zealand farmer to produce stock at a much lower cost than the farmer in countries where artificial feeding has to be employed or where droughts periodically occur.

New Zealand is primarily a grazing country, and, while more of the land is every year being given up to the cultivation of fodder crops, its future will, no doubt, be inseparably associated with stock-raising, principally of dairy cattle and of sheep. Though less than a century has elapsed since the colonization of New Zealand, nearly seventeen million acres of land in the Dominion have been sown down in English grasses. A great proportion of the crops grown in the Dominion are for the production of such commodities as meat, wool, and dairy-produce.

Grain crops, principally oats and wheat, are grown on a fairly large scale in the eastern and southern districts of the South Island. Barley is also grown, but to a very much smaller extent. Much of the crop of oats produced is chaffed for stock-feeding purposes within the country. Root crops, principally turnips, are grown on a large scale for winter feed and for stock-fattening purposes, more particularly in the South Island. Owing to the comparative difficulty of growing large areas of turnips free from disease, other stock-foods are coming into prominence. Mangolds are being cultivated to a larger extent, and farmers are beginning to realize the great value of lucerne. Ensilage-making, particularly in the stack form, is increasing in the dairying districts. Quite a feature of milk - producing operations is the growing of green fodder crops to maintain the milk-supply during the drier months of the year. It will be seen that live-stock in New Zealand is for the most part maintained on food produced on the farm itself.

THE NORTH ISLAND.

The North Island of the Dominion is remarkable for the congenial environment it furnishes for many phases of primary production. In no part is the winter really severe, and the question of stalling stock during the colder months of the year has not to be considered. It is more a grazing than an agricultural country, and practically all the cereal crops raised are used for feeding farm stock. The dominant industries are dairying and sheep-farming. There is probably no finer sheep-country in the world than the limestone downs of Hawke's Bay. It may be said with every confidence that there is more butterfat produced to the acre on many farms in the Taranaki District than on any equal area in the world, when it is considered that all the food provided for the stock is produced on the farm itself. The standard of dairy-farming is steadily improving, not only by reason of special fodder being provided for the drier parts of the summer and the colder months of the year, but on account of the fact that the farmer is coming to realize the value of herd testing and culling. Farmers have already recognized the advantages to be derived from the judicious application of top-dressing fertilizers to pastures.

In various parts of the Island fruitgrowing, principally of apples, pears, and peaches, is being placed on a sound commercial basis. In the northern portion citrus fruits can be successfully produced, and, with the adoption of better storage and marketing methods, lemons in particular are being cultivated on a considerable scale. Outdoor grapes are freely grown. Both the North and the South Islands have established an export trade in apples, and to a less extent in pears.

During recent years the Waikato district and the Auckland Provincial District in general have shown themselves to be admirably adapted to the dairy industry, and dairying has made remarkable development. The Auckland District, in fact, has become easily the largest exporter of butter in the Dominion, while it also leads in the production of milk-powder.

With the adoption of improved methods in the treatment of the land, and the demonstration of correct manurial treatment, farming in the Auckland Provincial District has been placed on a much more stable basis. Assisted by a favourable climate, of which a short and mild winter is a feature, stock-raising of all descriptions is being carried on with conspicuous success. The country is eminently adapted for the production of root and fodder crops, and stock can be brought to maturity and fattened for the market at a minimum of cost.

THE SOUTH ISLAND.

The South Island is the portion of the Dominion where agriculture proper was first established, the settlement of the land being greatly facilitated by the fact that on the eastern, southern, and northern portions large fertile plains, rolling downs, and hills were available, devoid of the forests which in a very large portion of the North Island have had to be cleared before the land could be utilized by the farmer. Agricultural operations in the South have been maintained at a high standard for many years, principally in Otago and Canterbury, many of the pioneers of which districts were British yeomen farmers who brought with them the best methods of the Old Land. So in the breeding of live-stock, many of the original holders of land in the South, and the shepherds and herdsmen they employed, had been well trained in stock - management by live-stock breeders of the Mother - country. The South Island may be fairly said to have been the nursery of the live-stock of the Dominion, and the high quality of the stock bred in the country is in a large measure due to the capacity of the men who founded and developed the flocks and herds in the eastern and southern districts. The growing of the finer wools, and the raising of fat lambs for the frozen-meat industry, are features of primary production in the South Island, while the dairy industry is also well represented, especially in Otago and Southland. Draught horses of a very fine stamp are also bred on a considerable scale in some districts.

While the climate in the southern districts of the South Island is not so congenial as that in the northern, there are only a few portions where the winter is at all rigorous. The Nelson Provincial District, in the north-west corner of the Island, is noted for its climate, which is remarkably equable in character. Nelson has a sunshine-record which is equalled in but few parts of the Temperate Zone. The district is specially suitable for fruitgrowing, which has been developed extensively on commercial lines. The culture of tobacco-leaf is a comparatively recent activity which is progressing favourably in the district. About 1,000 acres are at present devoted to the production of tobacco, practically all of which is used by local manufacturers. At the other end of the Island, in Central Otago, a peculiar configuration of the country enables fruitgrowing to be prosecuted with great success. The winter is comparatively severe, but the warm summer sun and the absence of wind make it an ideal environment for fruitgrowing.

In some sections, particularly in Canterbury, Otago, and Marlborough, grain-growing is prosecuted on a considerable scale. The Canterbury Plains, extending a hundred and fifty miles north and south and running inland for forty miles from the sea, represent an area or over 3,000,000 acres. This forms the principal grain-growing area. Wheat, oats, and barley are cultivated to a large extent. In Otago and Southland oats are the grain principally produced. In some of the richer lands the yield of wheat has reached very high figures, even up to SO or 90 bushels per acre, while over 100 bushels to the acre have been recorded for crops of oats. In root crops up to 70 tons per acre of turnips have been secured, while the yield of mangolds has frequently reached 90 tons.

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.

Under the control of the Minister of Agriculture the Department of Agriculture is a service which is mainly concerned in advancing the interests of primary production. Under a Director-General of Agriculture there are Directors of Divisions of Live-stock, Dairy, Fields, and Horticulture, also a Chemistry Section.

While the service is mainly educative, it also carries out important inspection work. Under the Live-stock Division, all meat exported is inspected by qualified officers. Cattle are inspected for tuberculosis and other bovine troubles; sheep and swine also receive attention; slaughterhouses are licensed and controlled; and all stock exported and imported is examined by the veterinarians of the Department. Special instruction and advice are given in swine husbandry and in wool growing and handling. The Division is provided with a well-equipped laboratory, mainly devoted to veterinary research, &c.

Dairy-produce is inspected and graded prior to shipment, a close supervision being also exercised over the moisture content of butter and cheese, as well as over the weights of such produce; dairy-farm premises are inspected; herd-testing is promoted, and a system of semi-official testing of purebred dairy cows is in operation. Milk-samples are tested for dairy companies and farmers.

The duties of the Fields Division comprise agricultural instruction, the control of experimental areas, the laying-out of experimental work on State farms, advice regarding crops, pastures, and farm-management, co-operative experimental work, agricultural investigations generally, including crop-management and the control of crop diseases and crop pests, seed-testing, hemp-grading, and grain-grading.

The Horticulture Division is charged with orchard instructional work and instruction to beekeepers, and the inspection of fruit and trees imported and offered for sale. It inspects orchards and apiaries, and generally controls diseases of plants and bees.

The Chemistry Section carries out analyses of soils, limestones, fertilizers, water, &c. The Biological Laboratory attached to the Division investigates and gives advice in agricultural botany, plant-pathology, entomology, and related subjects.

There are several experimental farms and horticultural stations which carry out experiments and demonstrations of national as well as local import, including the breeding of purebred cattle and sheep. Several of the farms were established to solve local problems, and the objective in each case has been attained. The principal establishments are those at Ruakura (Hamilton), Te Kauwhata (Lower Waikato), and Ashburton. Other experimental areas are operated at Puwera (Whangarei), Albany (Auckland), Marton, Gore, Winton, and Galloway (Central Otago).

The agricultural instructional work covers a comprehensive field, farmers being assisted by visits or by letters of advice. Thousands of farmers visit the experimental farms and areas. Comprehensive educational displays are frequently made at winter shows, largely illustrative of the experiments conducted by the Department. Numbers of farmers also co-operate with the Department in conducting experiments on their farms. A monthly journal, the New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, is published at a low rate of subscription, and bulletins are frequently issued. Any farmer can obtain advice regarding his soil, have seed examined for germination-capacity and purity, milk tested for butterfat content or for the presence of disease, plants identified, and diseases of either animals or plants described, and remedies suggested—all these services being rendered free of charge.

BOARD OF AGRICULTURE

By an Act of Parliament passed in 1913 provision was made for the establishment of a Board of Agriculture, consisting of not more than twelve members appointed by the Governor-General, of whom not more than four were to he appointed on the recommendation of the agricultural and pastoral societies of the North Island, and an equal number on the recommendation of such societies in the South Island. The functions of the Board are to advise the Minister of Agriculture on matters relating to the development of agricultural and other rural industries in New Zealand. In particular, but without limiting the application of the term “agricultural and rural industries,” the functions of the Board extend to the following matters:—

The aiding, improving, and developing of agriculture and all rural industries, including fruit-culture, horticulture, forestry, dairying, the breeding of stock and poultry, beekeeping, and the flax industry;
The prevention and control of disease in stock and poultry, the control of rabbits and noxious weeds, and the dipping of sheep;
The establishment of agricultural colleges and agricultural education generally; and
The aiding or facilitating of the carriage and distribution of produce.

COLLECTION OF AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL STATISTICS.

In the years previous to and inclusive of 1908–09 complete agricultural and pastoral statistics were collected annually by sub-enumerators appointed by the Department of Agriculture; in 1909–10 full statistics were not collected, but the areas under the principal grain and root crops were ascertained, and an estimate was made of the yields; for 1910–11 complete information was obtained in connection with the 1911 census. In the four succeeding years returns were collected by post regarding the acreage and yield of the principal crops; but this method of collection was found to be less satisfactory than the personal visit, and the figures for these years are probably not quite accurate.

Beginning with the 1915–16 season, a new and comprehensive system of collection of agricultural and pastoral statistics was instituted. Under this system complete collections of agricultural and pastoral statistics are made annually by the Census and Statistics Office through the agency of officers of the Police Department. Practically every holding of one acre or over (with the exception of those within borough boundaries and Maori lands held on the communal system) is canvassed personally. Interim returns of principal crops and live-stock are published in the Monthly Abstract of Statistics, and when the collection is completed the full statistics are published in the “Annual Statistical Report on Agricultural and Pastoral Production.” Complementary to the personal canvass a system of postal verification of yields of linseed and potatoes has been instituted, owing to the fact that at the time of the sub-enumerator's visit the crops mentioned are in many instances not harvested

In addition to the main collection of agricultural and pastoral statistics the following supplementary inquiries are undertaken: Stocks of wool in the Dominion as at the 30th June; areas sown or intended to be sown in wheat, oats, barley, and potatoes (taken at the end of September); stocks of flour, wheat, and oats in the hands of millers, merchants, storekeepers, and farmers (at the end of November); estimated yields of wheat and oats (early in February); and returns of wheat and oats threshed (throughout the threshing season). The results of these first three inquiries are gazetted, and they are also, together with the figures of threshings, published from time to time in the Monthly Abstract of Statistics. Stocks of eggs and egg-pulp in cold storage are ascertained six times each year, and the results are published in the press and in the Monthly Abstract of Statistics.

PERSONS ENGAGED IN FARMING.

Recent years have witnessed a fall in the number of persons engaged in farming in New Zealand, mainly due to the increased use of machinery, particularly milking-machines and tractors, and also probably influenced by changing methods of farming in the increased life of pastures made possible by the use of fertilizers, the development of the fat-lamb trade, &c. The figures recorded for the last ten years are as follows:—

Year.	On holdings used principally for						Totals.
	Agricultural purposes.		Dairying Purposes.		Pastoral and other Purposes (including unspecified).		Totals.
	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Totals.
1919–20	12,806	3,384	37,263	18,432	49,616	10,748	99,685	32,564	132,249
1920–21	14,361	3,144	42,034	18,908	44,960	9,853	101,355	31,905	133,260
1921–22	15,114	3,295	47,298	21,363	39,427	8,898	101,839	33,556	135,395
1922–23	14,823	3,594	53,230	25,334	39,897	9,502	107,950	38,430	146,380
1923–24	12,047	2,785	53,540	24,605	41,351	10,830	106,938	38,220	145,158
1924–25	11,398	2,577	52,606	24,370	41,297	10,494	105,301	37,441	142,742
1925–26	11,265	2,428	50,576	22,794	40,930	9,458	102,771	34,680	137,451
1926–27	11,330	2,043	49,713	20,088	41,292	8,333	102,335	30,464	132,799
1927–28	12,615	1,289	53,539	17,034	40,495	4,509	106,649	22,832	129,481
1928–29	12,427	1,721	56,825	17,861	43,633	6,142	112,885	25,724	138,609

The two outstanding movements in the total numbers employed are the sharp rise shown between 1921–22 and 1922–23 and again between 1927–28 and 1928–29. The explanation of these two movements is that, just prior to the collection for the year showing the rise in each case, special instructions were issued drawing the attention of sub-enumerators to this inquiry and defining the persons to be included. These instructions were issued owing to a suspicion that in some cases sub-enumerators were including only paid labour on the farms and omitting working proprietors and members of occupiers' families assisting in the farming operations. That these suspicions were well founded is shown by the sharp rises in the figures for the years immediately following the issue of the instructions.

While no doubt the work of females on the farms would be very greatly affected by the introduction of increased numbers of milking-machines, yet the movement for the two sexes suggests that there is still some lack of uniformity in the replies to this inquiry, and the matter is being further investigated with a view to obviating any such inaccuracies.

An indication of the relative extent of farming in the various land districts and of the types of farming mainly carried on is afforded by the following figures for the season 1928–29:—

Land District.	On Holdings used principally for			Totals.
Land District.	Agricultural Purposes.	Dairying Purposes.	Pastoral or other Purposes (including undefined).	Males.	Females.	Totals.
North Auckland	1,022	14,849	3,599	14,543	4,927	19,470
Auckland	1,153	20,113	3,653	20,266	4,653	24,919
Gisborne	131	1,733	3,476	4,682	658	5,340
Hawke's Bay	667	2,680	4,025	6,203	1,169	7,372
Taranaki	29	10,387	1,620	9,777	2,259	12,036
Wellington	546	10,338	9,314	16,364	3,834	20,198
Nelson	1,088	1,629	1,185	3,529	373	3,902
Marlborough	533	1,178	2,089	2,666	1,134	3,800
Westland	2	866	365	967	266	1,233
Canterbury	7,424	3,523	8,677	16,688	2,936	19,624
Otago	1,149	2,778	7,032	9,607	1,352	10,959
Southland	404	4,612	4,740	7,593	2,163	9,756
Totals	14,148	74,686	49,775	112,885	25,724	138,609

It is of interest to note that, of the total of 138,609 persons returned as employed on holdings in 1928–29, no fewer than 103,136 (80,172 males, 22,964 females) were occupiers or members of their families, leaving 32,713 males and 2,760 females as employees who were not members of occupiers' families.

The 103,136 occupiers or members of occupiers' families referred to were spread over 60,736 holdings out of the total of 85,602 holdings covered by the statistics, the remaining 24,866 holdings either being worked entirely by paid employees or having no labour permanently engaged. The following table shows, for each land district, the number of holdings where occupiers and/or members of occupiers' families were engaged. The figures shown for males include all cases where males were returned, it being assumed for this purpose—though perhaps not correctly in all cases—that males would be in charge where persons of both sexes were present. The figures under the heading of “Females” cover only those cases where female but not male members of the family were returned.

Land District.	Males.	Females.	Total.
North Auckland	8,854	351	9,205
Auckland	10,157	149	10,306
Gisborne	1,936	70	2,006
Hawke's Bay	3,080	90	3,170
Taranaki	5,248	126	5,374
Wellington	7,802	197	7,999
Nelson	2,261	84	2,345
Marlborough	1,323	42	1,365
Westland	590	34	624
Canterbury	8,648	222	8,870
Otago	5,333	207	5,540
Southland	3,750	182	3,932
Dominion	58,982	1,754	60,736

FARM MACHINERY.

The following summary of farm machinery employed on holdings outside borough boundaries during the last live years is of interest as showing the greatly increased use now being made of electricity and of mechanical equipment as compared with the position disclosed only four years previously:—

FARM MACHINERY AND ENGINES, 1925–29.

Class of Machinery, &c.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.
Milking-plants	15,561	16,391	17,090	18,049	18,756
Cream-separators	44,656	45,765	45,246	45,246	45,781
Shearing-machines—
Plants	5,728	5,949	6,305	6,518	6,887
Stands	18,445	18,797	19,269	19,677	20,329
Wool-presses	8,601	8,641	8,832	9,004	9,235
Agricultural tractors	1,026	2,025	2,588	2,883	3,377
Reapers-and-binders	15,881	15,574	15,287	15,432	15,172
Threshing-machines	377	361	364	406	406
Chaffcutters	2,903	2,865	2,562	2,326	2,297
Water-wheels or motors	846	817	784	932	824
Electric motors	3,451	6,356	8,436	10,806	13,377
Steam-engines	622	473	435	505	397
Internal-combustion engines	19,894	19,584	18,885	18,321	18,489

The number of milking-plants shown in the returns for 1929 was 18,756, as compared with 18,049 in 1928 and 14,553 in 1924. Some 67,932 cows could be milked simultaneously by the plant in use in 1929, and dairy cows in milk during the season numbered 874,971 on holdings where milking machinery was employed. Cream-separators on holdings numbered 45,781 in 1929, an increase of 535 over the figure for the previous year.

On the pastoral side of farming it is found that shearing-plants in 1929 numbered 6,887, with 20,329 stands. Wool-presses totalled 9,235.

The figures for the principal kinds of dairying and pastoral machinery in 1929 are now given for each land district:—

DAIRYING AND PASTORAL MACHINERY, 1928–29.

Land District (excluding Interior Boroughs).	Milking-plants.		Cream-separators.	Shearing-machines.		Wool-presses.
Land District (excluding Interior Boroughs).	Number.	Cows capable of being milked simultaneously.	Cream-separators.	Plants.	Stands.	Wool-presses.
North Auckland	2,841	10,293	6,908	426	993	452
Auckland	6,149	22,534	8,128	607	1,515	680
Gisborne	379	1,390	1,557	643	2,917	666
Hawke's Bay	670	2,241	2,254	864	2,887	905
Taranaki	3,106	11,779	1,836	346	978	406
Wellington	2,816	9,639	5,318	2,078	6,080	2,284
Nelson	300	949	2,037	89	214	265
Marlborough	185	623	1,004	169	542	411
Westland	152	486	551	9	18	45
Canterbury	731	2,347	8,100	983	2,520	1,557
Otago	415	1,531	4,724	430	1,129	1,135
Southland	1,012	4,120	3,364	243	536	429
Totals	18,756	67,932	45,781	6,887	20,329	9,235

Agricultural tractors numbered 3,377 in 1929 (2,883 in 1928), with a nominal horsepower of 51,040 (as against 45,234 in 1928). The number of reapers-and-binders was 15,172; of threshing-machines, 406; and of chaffcutters, 2,297. In 1928, reapers-and-binders numbered 15,432, threshing-machines 406, and chaffcutters 2,326. Particulars regarding the principal kinds of machinery used for agricultural purposes are now given for each land district:—

AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY, 1928–29.

Land District (excluding Interior Boroughs).	Agricultural Tractors.		Reapers-and-binders.	Threshing-machines.	Chaffcutters.
Land District (excluding Interior Boroughs).	Number.	Nominal Horse-power.	Reapers-and-binders.	Threshing-machines.	Chaffcutters.
North Auckland	119	1,974	263	23	411
Auckland	196	3,340	1,525	10	214
Gisborne	37	661	246	15	52
Hawke's Bay	240	4,114	397	28	144
Taranaki	29	576	947	4	39
Wellington	420	7,482	622	43	315
Nelson	74	1,415	332	8	107
Marlborough	84	1,245	512	23	75
Westland	27	419	78	2	69
Canterbury	1,378	18,038	5,328	172	274
Otago	314	4,919	2,905	36	498
Southland	459	6,857	2,017	42	99
Totals	3,377	51,040	15,172	406	2,297

Farm engines cannot be allocated to any definite branch of the farming industry. Information concerning the various classes of farm engines is given below for each land district for the season 1928–29:—

FARM ENGINES, 1928–29.

Land District (excluding Interior Boroughs).	Stationary Engines.								Portable or Traction Engines.
	Water-wheels or Motors.		Electric Motors.		Steam.		Internal Combustion.		Portable or Traction Engines.
	Number.	Approximate Horsepower.	Number.	Approximate Horsepower.	Number.	Approximate Horsepower.	Number.	Approximate Horsepower.	Number.	Approximate Horsepower.
North Auckland	40	121	785	1,292	23	139	3,314	9,736	34	166
Auckland	71	283	4,456	8,581	34	230	3,215	8,982	18	126
Gisborne	6	50	285	541	5	19	982	3,710	43	289
Hawke's Bay	40	133	584	1,061	141	631	1,265	4,141	150	655
Taranaki	313	1,143	1,337	2,857	6	22	1,950	5,218	13	40
Wellington	52	287	2,484	4,370	56	207	3,333	10,958	175	891
Nelson	52	234	35	60	21	116	626	1,772	102	293
Marlborough	19	153	105	130	22	127	390	1,346	29	230
Westland	16	57	11	19	9	33	177	491	2	32
Canterbury	82	388	1,254	1,944	32	168	1,686	5,591	143	1,142
Otago	94	467	604	1,207	20	99	1,038	3,583	68	570
Southland	39	156	1,437	2,651	28	154	513	1,508	58	466
Totals	824	3,472	13,377	24,713	397	1,945	18,489	57,036	835	4,900

SUBSECTION B.—AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION.

INTRODUCTORY.

NEW ZEALAND is a country very favourably situated for grazing purposes, and consequently the cropping of the soil is not carried out on a very extensive scale, the greater proportion of the area in occupation either being under permanent artificially-sown pastures or still remaining in tussock or other native grasses. Certain areas in the Dominion, however, have been found to be particularly suited for the growing of wheat, oats, and other cereal crops, and the production of grain is now almost exclusively limited to those areas which are especially so suited. On the other hand, the desirability for supplementing the supply of fodder during the winter months of the year, for the large number of sheep and cattle in the Dominion, has necessitated the cultivation of considerable areas of turnips, mangolds, and green fodder crops, besides the maintenance of large acreages of grasses and clovers and of lucerne for the production of hay and ensilage. Fairly large areas are also sown down annually in the better-class grasses and clovers for the production of grass-seed.

In general, agricultural farming in the Dominion may be said to be now limited to the growing of those crops necessary for the augmentation of existing pastures in order to maintain a high standard of production, and to the growing of grain for local consumption. Grass-seed and peas are the only two crops that regularly have a sufficient margin for export, it being only in exceptional years that there is a sufficient surplus in the total yield of other crops to allow of any appreciable quantity being exported overseas.

AREA UNDER CROP.

During the last ten years the total area under crop has ranged from 1,645,719 acres in 1925–26 to 1,974,741 acres in 1921–22, but generally speaking there is very little movement from year to year. Green and root crops comprise a high proportion, 734,669 acres, or 42 per cent., of the 1,746,200 acres under crop in 1928–29 being sown down in these crops. Of the total area under grain and pulse crops, approximately two-thirds is usually threshed, the remaining one-third being either cut for chaff, hay, or ensilage, or fed off to stock. The condition of the crop at the time of harvesting greatly influences the proportions utilized for either purpose.

In the following table the area under crop according to the different classes of crop is given for each of the last ten years:—

Year.	Grain and Pulse Crops.		Green and Root Crops.	Grasses, Clovers, and Lucerne.		Total Area under Crop.
Year.	For Threshing.	For Chaff, Hay, Ensilage, &c.	Green and Root Crops.	Cut for Seed.	Cut for Hay, Ensilage, &c.	Total Area under Crop.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
1919–20	372,227	341,219	745,460	72,975	117,110	1,648,991
1920–21	451,764	431,365	770,568	94,957	161,813	1,910,467
1921–22	588,141	365,953	742,130	91,154	187,363	1,974,741
1922–23	484,954	329,117	775,849	86,727	175,558	1,852,205
1923–24	299,938	359,871	752,071	81,063	188,979	1,681,922
1924–25	371,944	327,900	735,656	103,159	229,644	1,768,303
1925–26	310,289	267,236	763,868	79,549	224,777	1,645,719
1926–27	399,504	272,300	721,904	87,699	288,455	1,769,862
1927–28	412,431	218,507	712,509	65,681	280,241	1,689,369
1928–29	379,179	213,228	734,669	68,017	351,107	1,746,200

The total figures exhibit anything but a steady movement, although on the whole there is a pronounced downward trend. The area under grasses and clovers, not including permanent pastures, has steadily increased during the last ton years. This especially applies to the area to be cut for hay or ensilage, and is no doubt the result of the increased use now made of the latter type of storage. On the other hand grasses and clovers sown for seed, although showing a fluctuating movement, have a downward tendency.

The geographical distribution of those crops according to land districts is next given for the year 1928–29:—

Land District.	Grain and Pulse Crops.		Green and Root Crops.	Grasses, Glovers, and Lucerne.		Total Area under Crop.
Land District.	For Threshing.	For Chalf, Hay, Ensilage, &c.	Green and Root Crops.	Cut for Seed.	Cut for Hay, Ensilage, &c.	Total Area under Crop.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
North Auckland	939	1,624	13,514	571	35,395	52,043
Auckland	3,743	2,647	48,070	67	113,044	167,571
Gisborne	4,765	903	7,476	491	6,379	20,014
Hawke's Bay	1,833	5,133	26,346	2,306	16,489	52,107
Taranaki	197	4,213	25,551	..	62,691	92,652
Wellington	4,522	6,138	52,715	984	34,339	98,698
Nelson	4,500	4,994	7,934	694	7,431	25,553
Marlborough	14,466	9,236	11,363	4,571	7,112	46,748
Westland	..	437	937	..	1,287	2,661
Canterbury	278,850	100,327	260,300	29,067	28,237	696,781
Otago	48,264	42,864	140,633	4,759	22,697	259,217
Southland	17,100	34,712	139,830	24,507	16,006	232,155
Totals	379,179	213,228	734,669	68,017	351,107	1,746,200

Of the total area under crop in 1928–29, 696,781 acres were returned as being in the Canterbury Land District, 259,217 acres in the Otago District, and 232,155 acres in the Southland district. These three district, which comprise the southern portion of the South Island, altogether claimed 68 per cent. of the total area under crop. The only district in the North Island having any appreciable area under crop was Auckland, with 167,571 acres.

The Canterbury Land District had 73 1/2 per cent. of the total area under grain and pulse crops for threshing, and 47 per cent. of the area for chaff, hay, ensilage, &c. Nearly three-quarters of the area in green and root crops was grown in the Canterbury, Otago, and Southland Districts, while grasses and clovers cut for seed were mainly confined to Canterbury and Southland. On the other hand, grasses and clovers (including lucerne) cut for hay and ensilage show the North Island in a more favourable position, the predominating districts being Auckland and Taranaki, with 113,044 acres and 62,691 acres respectively. These two districts are the centre of the dairying industry in New Zealand, and both maintain a large number of dairy cattle.

PRINCIPAL CROPS.

The principal crops grown during the year 1928–29 were turnips (479,994 acres), grasses and clover for hay and ensilage (320,299 acres), oats (283,133 acres), wheat (257,873 acres), and green fodder crops (219,088 acres). As compared with the previous year's figures the greatest increases in crop areas are as follows: Grasses and clovers for hay, ensilage, &c., 69,315 acres; turnips, 20,290 acres. The comparatively large increase of 310 acres was registered for tobacco, the area devoted to this crop having risen from 28 acres in 1923–24 to 1,000 acres in 1928–29.

The largest decreases occurred in the areas under oats (20,575 acres), peas and beans (7,065 acres), wheat (4,926 acres), and linseed (2,413 acres). Linseed has declined rapidly in importance during the last few years, no fewer than 12,119 acres having been threshed in 1923–24.

The areas under each of the principal crops for the last five years have been as follows;—

Crop.	1924	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
Wheat	169,094	153,248	221,689	262,799	257,873
Oats	472,315	367,205	386,762	303,708	283,133
Barley	25,380	26,339	30,414	21,752	19,840
Maize	9,221	9,065	10,979	10,840	9,281
Peas	14,027	11,749	15,495	25,128	17,893
Beans	14,027	11,749	15,495	25,128	170
Linseed	6,679	8,143	4,933	5,213	2,800
Hops	738	648	636	649	608
Potatoes	23,092	23,484	24,616	21,693	21,304
Turnips	452,894	468,475	462,360	459,704	479,994
Mangolds	15,111	13,296	11,870	10,329	9,914
Onions	548	514	765	703	880
Green fodder	240,061	255,429	219,031	236,702	219,088
Grasses and clovers for seed	103,159	79,549	87,699	65,681	68,017
Grasses and clovers for hay, silage, &c.	229,644	224,777	260,674	250,984	320,299
Lucerne	229,644	224,777	27,781	29,257	30,808
Tobacco	206	150	224	690	1,000
Other crops	6,134	3,648	3,934	3,537	3,298
Totals	1,768,303	1,645,719	1,769,862	1,689,369	1,746,200

Besides showing the area allocated to the various crops, it is further desirable that the areas should be divided into land districts, so as to show their distribution throughout the Dominion. This has been done for the year 1928–29, and the figures reveal some interesting results.

In six of the twelve land districts grasses and clovers for hay and ensilage formed the principal crop, while in two others they held second place. Turnips occupied first place in three districts, second place in five, and third in three; while oats held the premier position in one district and the second position in four. In Gisborne maize ranked third in importance, and in Canterbury wheat was in first position. Green crops hold a prominent position in all districts, bring first in one district, second in one, third in five, and fourth in three. The detailed figures are as follows:—

Crop.	North Auckland.	Auckland.	Gisborne.	Hawke's Bay.	Taranaki.	Wellington.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
Wheat	202	228	117	698	128	2,771
Oats	1,420	2,426	866	5,379	4,169	6,893
Barley	46	117	320	483	82	732
Maize	866	3,613	4,357	334	31	60
Peas	18	6	8	49	..	200
Beans	1	..	..	..	..	4
Linseed	..	..	..	23	..	..
Hops	..	..	..	..	..	..
Potatoes	1,599	781	264	532	211	1,564
Turnips	7,655	38,193	4,444	11,467	19,711	33,059
Mangolds	353	1,066	157	355	1,389	2,184
Onions	147	17	2	6	4	47
Green fodder	3,469	7,543	2,083	13,742	3,561	15,767
Grasses and clovers for seed	571	67	491	2,306	..	984
Grasses and clovers for hay ensilage, &c.	35,185	110,855	4,805	11,866	58,394	32,574
Lucerne for hay, &c.	210	2,189	1,574	4,623	4,297	1,765

Crop.	Nelson.	Marlborough.	Westland.	Canterbury.	Otago.	Southland.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
Wheat	1,722	5,208	..	212,915	30,105	3,779
Oats	5,272	9,837	433	142,996	55,786	47,656
Barley	896	3,437	4	9,625	3,830	268
Maize	11	3	..	4	2	..
Peas	815	4,945	..	10,827	936	59
Beans	4	111	..	50	..	..
Linseed	2	63	..	2,537	159	16
Hops	604	4	..	..	..	..
Potatoes	428	235	17	12,888	1,689	1,096
Turnips	4,960	4,386	789	140,710	101,061	113,559
Mangolds	16	116	4	2,830	1,406	38
Onions	1	2	..	653	1	..
Green fodder	1,576	6,613	119	103,051	36,429	25,135
Grasses and clovers for seed	694	4,571	..	29,067	4,759	24,507
Grasses and clovers for hay, ensilage, &c.	7,083	3,552	1,276	24,763	13,973	15,973
Lucerne for hay, &c.	348	3,560	11	3,474	8,724	33

GRAIN AND PULSE CROPS.

The total area under grain and pulse crops in 1928–29 was 592,407 acres, as compared with 630,938 acres in 1927–28. Of the total in 1928–29, 379,179 acres were for threshing and 213,228 acres were for chaff, hay, ensilage, &c., 64 per cent. of the total area under gram and pulse crops thus being threshed out during the year, as against 65 per cent. (412,431 acres) in 1927–28. In the table below the areas of the principal crops threshed, and the total and per acre yields, are given for each of the ten years 1919–20 to 1928–29:—

Year.	Wheat.	Oats.	Barley.	Maize.	Peas.^*	Linseed.
*Including beans prior to 1928–29.
AREAS.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
1919–20	139,611	179,800	22,907	9,064	14,416	5,046
1920–21	219,985	147,559	46,802	11,514	14,466	9,663
1921–22	352,918	170,655	33,078	10,522	12,789	5,880
1922–23	275,775	143,890	17,473	9,732	24,449	10,645
1923–24	173,864	63,842	21,286	8,208	18,676	12,119
1924–25	166,964	147,387	25,138	8,621	14,027	6,679
1925–26	151,673	102,485	25,969	8,508	11,749	8,143
1926–27	220,083	117,326	29,886	10,249	15,495	4,933
1927–28	260,987	88,223	21,091	10,291	25,128	5,213
1928–29	255,312	73,101	19,500	8,986	17,893	2,800
TOTAL YIELDS.
	Bushels.	Bushels.	Bushels.	Bushels.	Bushels.	Cwt.
1919–20	4,559,934	6,967,862	815,807	405,775	369,306	45,820
1920–21	6,872,262	5,225,115	1,586,711	500,845	355,395	91,040
1921–22	10,565,275	6,752,663	1,151,813	488,452	339,398	56,600
1922–23	8,395,023	5,688,157	598,040	505,776	697,548	102,660
1923–24	4,174,537	1,964,511	597,416	405,855	362,787	54,100
1924–25	5,447,758	5,707,174	798,128	426,875	410,582	42,700
1925–26	4,617,041	4,115,606	947,002	423,700	287,775	47,220
1926–27	7,952,442	4,997,535	1,243,333	491,468	454,722	38,580
1927–28	9,541,444	3,852,687	861,985	482,928	802,416	31,205
1928–29	8,832,864	3,065,113	781,102	456,296	527,504	23,227

Year.	Wheat.	Oats.	Barley.	Maize.	Peas.^*	Linseed.
*Including beans prior to 1928–29.
YIELDS PER ACRE.
	Bushels.	Bushels.	Bushels.	Bushels.	Bushels.	Cwt.
1919–20	32.66	38.75	35.61	44.76	25.62	9.08
1920–21	31.24	35.41	33.90	43.50	24.54	9.42
1921–22	29.94	39.56	34.81	46.42	26.54	9.63
1922–23	30.44	39.75	34.23	51.96	28.51	9.64
1923–24	24.01	30.77	28.07	49.40	19.43	4.46
1924–25	32.62	38.72	31.75	49.47	29.27	6.39
1925–26	30.44	40.14	36.47	49.80	24.49	5.80
1926–27	36.13	42.58	41.60	47.95	29.35	7.82
1927–28	36.56	43.66	40.87	46.93	31.93	6.00
1928–29	34.60	41.93	40.06	50.78	29.48	8.30

Wheat for threshing is grown principally in Canterbury, 84.55 per cent. of the total grain produced in 1928–29 coming from this district. Otago, with 10.49 per cent., supplied the bulk of the remainder. The growing of oats for threshing is also mainly confined to these two districts with the addition of Southland, the proportion of grain produced by each being 57.02 per cent., 19.67 per cent., and 20.25 per cent. respectively. Seventy per cent. of the barley produced in the Dominion is supplied by Canterbury and Otago, Marlborough furnishing nearly the whole of the remainder. Maize, on the other hand, is almost exclusively confined to the northern part of the North Island, Auckland and Gisborne supplying 89.76 per cent. of the total grain produced. Peas and beans are grown to any extent only in Canterbury and Marlborough, while linseed is evidently not looked upon as a favourable crop outside of Canterbury.

WHEAT.

Wheat is one of the most important crops grown by the farmer, but in New Zealand the area now devoted to this purpose is not very considerable. At one time wheat occupied a very prominent position, for in the “eighties” the area under wheat was between 300,000 and 400,000 acres annually, and the production of grain more than sufficient for local needs, thus allowing for quite an appreciable export. The advent of butter and cheese factories and the introduction of refrigeration, however, gave a great impetus to the dairying and pastoral industries, resulting in a large proportion of the land usually utilized for wheat-growing being sown down in grass and other animal fodder crops.

The area in wheat for threshing in 1928–29 was 255,312 acres, giving a total yield of 8,832,864 bushels. The corresponding figures in 1927–28 were 260,987 acres and 9,541,444 bushels respectively. The average yield per acre in 1928–29 worked out at 34.60 bushels, which compares with the 36.56 bushels in 1927–28.

A table is appended, showing, by land districts, the area in wheat for threshing, the total yield, and the yield per acre, for the year 1928–29.

Land District.	Area.	Total Yield.	Yield per Acre.
	Acres.	Bushels.	Bushels.
North Auckland	66	1,790	27.12
Auckland	137	3,290	24.01
Gisborne	112	2,430	21.70
Hawke's Bay	625	15,359	24.57
Taranaki	110	4,373	39.75
Wellington	2,542	87,368	34.37
Nelson	1,686	46,552	27.61
Marlborough	5,017	142,392	28.38
Westland	..	..	..
Canterbury	212,098	7,467,943	35.21
Otago	29,207	926,789	31.73
Southland	3,712	134,578	36.25
Totals	255,312	8,832,864	34.60

The following diagram will give a clear conception of the relationship between area and yield of wheat for the period 1868–69 to 1928–29. It is seen that in later years the yield curve diverges considerably from that for the area, the tendency being upward. As a matter of fact, the average yield per acre for the ten seasons at the end of the curve is about six bushels more than the average for the first ten seasons.

AREA (FOR THRESHING) AND YIELD OF WHEAT, 1868–69 TO 1928–29.

The heavy line can be taken as representing not only the area sown (in acres), but also the yield which that area would have produced had a standard yield of 25 bushels per acre been maintained throughout. Prior to the 1899–1900 season the average yield per acre fell below 25 bushels per acre on fourteen occasions, while subsequent to that date the yield has been above 25 bushels per acre, except on only five occasions. This increase in the average yield largely reflects the increased use of artificial manures. It is noteworthy that the fifteen occasions upon which the demand (or anticipated demand) was sufficient to induce 300,000 acres or more to be sown include six occasions upon which the average yield fell below 25 bushels per acre. The average yield over the whole period amounts to 27 1/2 bushels per acre, while for the fifteen occasions upon which 300,000 acres or more were sown the average was slightly under 25 bushels per acre.

It may be said that, although from twenty to thirty countries in the world generally produce more wheat than does New Zealand, only one or two European countries have a better record of production per acre. This says much for the fertility of the soil of the Dominion, for cultivation here is naturally less intensive than it is in the closely settled Continental countries.

Some interesting figures as to areas producing various yields of wheat per acre are given in the following table:—

WHEAT-GROWERS, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO YIELD PER ACRE, 1928–29.

Production per Acre.	Holdings in Group.	Area of Crop.			Production.
Production per Acre.	Holdings in Group.	Total.	Proportion of Whole.	Average Size.	Total.	Proportion of Whole.
Bushels.	No.	Acres.	Per Cent.	Acres.	Bushels.	Per Cent.
3 and under 6	11	307	0.12	27.91	1,301	0.01
6 and under 9	22	482	0.19	21.91	3,563	0.04
9 and under 12	54	1,236	0.48	22.89	12,604	0.14
12 and under 15	68	1,996	0.78	29.35	26,718	0.30
15 and under 18	118	3,157	1.24	26.75	50,639	0.57
18 and under 21	412	11,627	4.55	28.22	230,979	2.61
21 and under 24	190	6,505	2.55	34.24	145,425	1.65
24 and under 27	544	18,386	7.20	33.80	466,698	5.28
27 and under 30	268	11,850	4.64	44.22	334,551	3.79
30 and under 33	1,461	52,637	20.62	36.03	1,604,621	18.17
33 and under 36	950	42,177	16.52	44.40	1,460,523	16.54
36 and under 39	370	21,236	8.32	57.39	792,324	8.98
39 and under 42	1,082	39,983	15.66	36.95	1,605,915	18.18
42 and under 45	230	12,228	4.79	53.17	531,538	6.02
45 and under 50	388	16,167	6.33	41.67	744,984	8.43
50 and under 55	376	11,158	4.37	29.68	567,082	6.42
55 and under 60	70	2,308	0.90	32.97	130,093	1.47
60 and under 70	63	1,268	0.50	20.13	78,603	0.89
70 and under 80	12	208	0.08	17.33	13,791	0.16
80 and under 100	12	381	0.15	31.75	29,112	0.33
100 and over	2	15	0.01	7.50	1,800	0.02
Totals	6,703	255,312	100.00	38.09	8,832,864	100.00

The adoption of classification in groups of 3 bushels per acre for the greater part of the table is in accordance with a resolution passed at a conference of Statisticians of Australia and New Zealand. In the above table the tendency to return wheat yields in multiples of 5 bushels per acre is emphasized in the groups including multiples of 5. This does not, however, detract from the informative nature of the figures, which provide an interesting study. It will be seen that 30 bushels or more per acre was obtained from 75 per cent. of the total number of holdings which grew wheat for threshing. These holdings accounted for 78 per cent. of the area cropped and 86 per cent. of the total yield.

The group “30 and under 33 bushels” contained the largest number of holdings and aggregated the greatest area in wheat. The aggregate production, however, fell a shade short of the production recorded in the “39 and under 42 bushels” group, which occupies premier position in this respect.

The “36 and under 39 bushels” group provided the highest average area cropped, and it is interesting to note that the average for the Dominion is 38.09 acres. The next table gives information as to the areas harvested by individual wheat-growers.

WHEAT-GROWERS, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO AREA HARVESTED, 1928–29.

Area harvested.	Number of Growers.	Aggregate Area.		Aggregate Yield.		Average Yield.
Area harvested.	Number of Growers.	Size.	Per Cent. of Total.	Quantity.	Per Cent. of Total.	Average Yield.
Acres.		Acres.		Bushels.		Bushels.
Under 5	566	1,611	0.63	54,148	0.61	33.61
5 and under 10	896	6,093	2.39	208,356	2.36	34.20
10 and under 15	798	9,262	3.63	314,880	3.57	34.00
15 and under 20	555	9,261	3.63	311,792	3.53	33.67
20 and under 25	569	12,142	4.75	412,877	4.67	34.00
25 and under 30	334	8,762	3.43	296,371	3.36	33.82
30 and under 35	456	14,152	5.54	466,384	5.28	32.96
35 and under 40	226	8,175	3.20	277,409	3.14	33.93
40 and under 45	336	13,693	5.36	454,441	5.14	33.19
45 and under 50	203	9,359	3.66	324,988	3.68	34.72
50 and under 60	399	20,821	8.16	715,889	8.10	34.38
60 and under 70	292	18,231	7.14	642,911	7.28	35.26
70 and under 80	227	16,465	6.45	567,660	6.43	34.48
80 and under 90	158	12,919	5.06	468,049	5.30	36.23
90 and under 100	136	12,582	4.93	429,792	4.87	34.16
100 and under 110	140	14,213	5.57	495,725	5.61	34.88
110 and under 120	65	7,293	2.86	250,488	2.84	34.35
120 and under 130	71	8,611	3.37	304,145	3.44	35.32
130 and under 150	91	12,352	4.84	444,238	5.03	35.96
150 and under 175	78	12,233	4.79	439,486	4.98	35.93
175 and under 200	17	3,144	1.23	109,850	1.24	34.94
200 and under 250	54	11,509	4.51	412,042	4.66	35.80
250 and under 300	18	4,794	1.88	160,649	1.82	33.51
300 and under 350	8	2,520	0.99	93,315	1.06	37.03
350 and under 400	3	1,095	0.43	37,300	0.42	34.06
400 and over	7	4,020	1.57	139,679	1.58	34.75
Totals	6,703	255,312	100.00	8,832,864	100.00	34.60

The average area of wheat harvested in 1928–29 was 38.09 acres. Areas of 30 to 100 acres accounted for half of both the total area harvested and the total production. Areas of 100 acres and over of wheat occurred on 8 1/4 per cent. of holdings which grew the cereal. Although relatively small in number, these areas aggregated practically a third of the total acreage and produced a third of the total grain-yield.

PRODUCTION PER HEAD OF POPULATION.

The area (for threshing) and the production of wheat per head of population (including Maoris) for the last ten years are now given. The population is taken at the 31st March, a date corresponding approximately to harvest-time.

Year.	Per Head of Population.
Year.	Area.	Production.
	Acres.	Bushels.
1919–20	0.11	3.69
1920–21	0.17	5.42
1921–22	0.27	8.12
1922–23	0.21	6.33
1923–24	0.13	3.10
1924–25	0.12	3.95
1925–26	0.11	3.28
1926–27	0.15	5.53
1927–28	0.18	6.56
1928–29	0.17	6.01

Unless there is a considerable carry-over from the previous season, importation of wheat requires to be made when the production falls below about 6 bushels per head of population. In 1919, 1,336,222 bushels of wheat were imported; in 1920, 1,905,163 bushels; and in 1921, 306,257 bushels. In 1922 the abnormal harvest of 10,500,000 bushels permitted almost 1,250,000 bushels to be exported, the imports in that year being insignificant, while in 1923 there was again an excess, although small, of exports over imports. In 1924 there was again a shortage, which was required to be met by the importation of 3,548,340 bushels of wheat, followed by 2,253,740 bushels of wheat and 8,206 tons of flour in 1925, 1,697,385 bushels of wheat and 26,891 tons of flour in 1926, 737,082 bushels of wheat and 14,324 tons of flour in 1927, and 761,055 bushels of wheat and 9,500 tons of flour in 1928. The yield for 1928–29, although below that of last year, is above the average of recent years, and is as a matter of fact slightly in excess of the estimated annual consumption.

CONSUMPTION OF WHEAT.

The following information is based on the production figures as ascertained at the five collections of agricultural and pastoral statistics previous to and including 1928, while due weight is given to imports and exports of wheat and flour (including exports to Cook Islands) and estimated carry-over.

WHEAT-CONSUMPTION, 1924–28.

Year.	Production of Wheat at Harvest.	Excess of Imports over Exports of Wheat.^*	Total.
*Including flour converted on the basis of 48 bushels of wheat to 1 short ton of flour.
	Bushels.	Bushels.	Bushels.
1924	4,174,537	3,544,752	7,719,289
1925	5,447,758	2,642,212	8,089,970
1926	4,617,041	2,975,674	7,592,715
1927	7,952,442	1,418,701	9,371,143
1928	9,541,444	1,207,673	10,749,117
Total for five years	31,733,222	11,789,012	43,522,234
Average	6,346,644	2,357,802	8,704,446
Minus average net increase in carry-over			186,153
Estimated average annual consumption			8,518,293

Over the average of the last five years it is found that New Zealand has consumed annually some 8,518,293 bushels of wheat for all purposes, including seed, fowl-feed, &c. Of this total 295,645 bushels have been required on the average for seed purposes, based on an average sowing of 1 1/2 bushels per acre, and 256,405 bushels were threshing-millers' seconds. The latter would probably be all used for fowl and other stock-feeding purposes. The balance available for gristing into flour may thus be taken as averaging 7,966,243 bushels, representing 165,963 tons, of 2,000 lb. at the rate of 48 bushels to the ton.

Stocks of wheat (with allowance for flour) at the 30th November, 1928, totalled 3,614,379 bushels, while the carry-over on the 30th November, 1923, was 2,683,615 bushels (or the equivalent), the surplus having thus increased during the five years by 930,764 bushels, or at the rate of 186,153 bushels annually.

WHEAT-PRODUCTION OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND, 1928–29.

The area and yield of wheat in 1928–29 for each State of the Commonwealth of Australia and for New Zealand were as shown in the following table.

State.	Wheat Crop.
State.	Area.	Total Yield.	Average Yield per Acre.
	Acres.	Bushels.	Bushels.
Queensland	200,000	3,000,000	15.00
New South Wales (including Federal Territory)	4,072,600	49,798,200	12.23
Victoria	3,800,000	47,000,000	12.37
South Australia	3,317,500	28,070,000	8.46
Western Australia	3,163,409	31,906,693	10.09
Tasmania	30,000	700,000	23.33
Totals for Commonwealth	14,583,509	160,474,893	11.00
New Zealand	255,312	8,832,864	34.60
Grand totals	14,838,821	169,307,757	11.41

The average production per acre for the ton seasons ending with 1928–29 is—for New Zealand, 32.00 bushels per acre; and for Australia, 12.34 bushels per acre.

OATS.

In point of area oats is the most important grain crop of the Dominion. About 87 per cent. is grown in Canterbury, Otago, and Southland, 5 1/2 per cent. in the remainder of the South Island, and 7 1/2 per cent. in the North Island. The greater portion of the oat crop is usually converted into chaff without threshing, but the proportion so dealt with depends partly on the condition of the crop and partly on market conditions. In 1919–20, 35.82 per cent. of the area harvested was threshed; in 1920–21, 25.67 per cent.; in 1921–22, 33.16 per cent; in 1922–23, 30.51 per cent.; in 1923–24, only 15.29 per cent.; in 1924–25, 31.21 per cent.; in 1925–26, 27.91 per cent.; in 1926–27, 30.34 per cent.; in 1927–28, 2905 per cent.; and in 1928–29, 25.82 per cent.

The total and average yields of grain and of chaff, hay, or ensilage for the last ton seasons were as follows:—

Season.	Grain.		Chaff, Hay, or Ensilage.
Season.	Total Yield.	Average per Acre.	Total Yield.	Average per Acre.
	Bushels.	Bushels.	Tons.	Tons.
1919–20	6,967,862	38.75	467,640	1.45
1920–21	5,225,115	35.41	557,023	1.36
1921–22	6,752,663	39.56	538,194	1.56
1922–23	5,688,157	39.75	480,147	1.59
1923–24	1,964,511	30.77	366,546	1.12
1924–25	5,707,174	38.72	507,173	1.64
1925–26	4,115,606	40.14	354,373	1.45
1926–27	4,997,535	42.58	434,967	1.70
1927–28	3,852,687	43.66	344,322	1.71
1928–29	3,065,113	41.93	333,220	1.71

Detailed figures for land districts for the year 1928–29 are next given:—

Land District.	Oats for Grain.			Oats for Chaff, Hay, or Ensilage.
Land District.	Area.	Total Yield.	Average per Area.	Area.	Total Yield	Average per Acre.
	Acres.	Bushels.	Bushels.	Acres.	Tons.	Tons.
North Auckland	22	722	32.82	1,295	2,307	1.78
Auckland	16	600	37.50	2,325	3,644	1.57
Gisborne	1	60	60.00	810	1,174	1.45
Hawke's Bay	369	11,073	30.01	4,365	7,857	1.80
Taranaki	20	780	39.00	4,022	11,394	2.83
Wellington	1,123	46,689	41.58	5,044	10,454	2.07
Nelson	325	8,860	27.26	4,651	6,369	1.37
Marlborough	816	25,009	30.65	8,260	16,728	2.03
Westland	..	..	..	392	756	1.93
Canterbury	43,554	1,747,724	40.13	89,165	140,822	1.58
Otago	13,833	602,838	43.58	40,160	69,349	1.73
Southland	13,022	620,758	47.67	34,149	62,366	1.83
Totals	73,101	3,065,113	41.93	194,638	333,220	1.71

OAT CROP OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

The oat crop for 1927–28 in the States of the Commonwealth and New Zealand was as follows:—

State.	Oat Crop.
State.	Area.	Total Yield.	Average per Acre.
	Acres.	Bushels.	Bushels.
New South Wales	114,988	1,654,560	14.39
Victoria	529,392	4,682,724	8.85
Queensland	2,272	43,788	19.27
South Australia	197,024	1,378,437	7.00
Western Australia	235,469	2,922,865	12.41
Tasmania	42,950	1,399,824	32.59
Federal Capital Territory	208	2,067	9.94
Totals for Commonwealth	1,122,303	12,084,265	10.77
New Zealand	88,223	3,852,687	43.66
Grand totals	1,210,526	15,936,952	13.17

POTATOES.

Potatoes are grown very extensively in the Dominion, the total area in this crop in the season 1928–29 being 21,304 acres, with a total yield of 123,607 tons, equal to an average yield per acre of 5.77 tons. The figures for the last ten years are as follows:—

Year.	Area.	Total Yield.	Yield per Acre.
	Acres.	Tons.	Tons.
1919–20	24,933	144,705	5.79
1920–21	22,068	126,648	5.72
1921–22	19,418	112,090	5.76
1922–23	20,197	113,826	5.63
1923–24	20,993	105,552	5.00
1924–25	23,092	122,184	5.27
1925–26	23,484	143,781	6.09
1926–27	24,616	116,771	4.73
1927–23	21,693	121,402	5.59
1928–29	21,304	123,607	5.77

Commencing with the season 1927–28, the post-harvest verification cards sent to growers were extended so as to enable yields of table, seed, and pig potatoes separately to be ascertained. In 1928–29, 84,529 tons of potatoes of table quality were dug, in addition to 26,041 tons of seed potatoes, and 13,037 tons of pig potatoes, making in all 123,607 tons. The 1927–28 yield of 121,402 tons was comprised of table, seed, and pig potatoes in the proportions of 79,617 tons, 27,239 tons, and 14,546 tons respectively.

The Canterbury Land District is the great potato-producing centre, and it is of general interest to further subdivide this area up into its component counties, which has been done in the following table. The figures relate to the 1928–29 season:—

County.	Area.	Yield obtained at Digging.			Total Yield.	Average Yield per Acre.
County.	Area.	Table.	Seed.	Pig.	Total Yield.	Average Yield per Acre.
	Acres.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
Rangiora	1,235	5,792	1,783	719	8,294	6.72
Waimairi	1,374	5,663	1,425	931	8,019	5.84
Paparua	2,017	6,195	2,181	1,069	9,445	4.68
Eyre	961	4,128	1,894	478	6,500	6.76
Halswell	513	1,543	461	306	2,310	4.50
Springs	483	1,241	383	161	1,785	3.70
Ellesmere	1,542	6,220	2,045	635	8,900	5.77
Ashburton	646	2,323	884	321	3,528	5.46
Geraldine	444	1,792	717	355	2,864	6.45
Levels	920	3,408	1,250	620	5,278	5.74
Waimate	1,390	5,988	2,011	836	8,835	6.36
Other counties	1,363	4,689	1,698	638	7,025	5.15
Total, Canterbury Land District	12,888	48,982	16,732	7,069	72,783	5.65

SUPPLEMENTARY FODDER CROPS.

Although grass is the main crop of the farmer in New Zealand, it has been found that at certain periods during the year the pastures need supplementing in order that the grassland may not become unduly exhausted, and also in order to maintain stock in a satisfactory condition. In midwinter the grass is at a low stage of productivity generally, while under dry summer conditions it loses a great amount of its nutritive value. During these periods, therefore, it is necessary that some extra feed should be provided, and this is usually done either by cutting the grass for hay when there is an ample surplus on the pastures during the flush of the growing season, or by the provision of ensilage, green fodder, or root crops.

The following table gives detailed figures of the areas of the supplementary fodder crops available during each of the last ten years:—

Year.	Chair, Hay, or Ensilage.		Green Fodder.		Root Crops for feeding to Stock.	Total Area of Fodder Crops.
Year.	Cereal Crops.	Grasses and Clovers, including Lucerne.	Cereal Crops not harvested.	Other Crops.	Root Crops for feeding to Stock.	Total Area of Fodder Crops.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
1919–20	325,599	117,110	15,620	166,758	553,174	1,178,261
1920–21	413,019	161,813	18,346	185,284	562,586	1,341,048
1921–22	347,135	187,363	18,818	201,351	520,877	1,275,544
1922–23	304,564	175,558	25,353	249,417	505,738	1,260,630
1923–24	329,829	188,979	30,042	239,652	491,052	1,279,554
1924–25	310,474	229,644	17,426	240,061	471,955	1,269,560
1925–26	246,810	224,777	20,412	255,429	484,441	1,231,869
1926–27	257,558	2138,455	14,742	219,031	477,492	1,257,278
1927–28	203,838	280,241	14,669	216,702	472,101	1,187,551
1928–29	196,545	351,107	16,683	219,088	491,842	1,275,265

During the last ten years the number of acres of supplementary crops has increased from 1,178,261 in 1919–20 to 1,275,265 in 1928–29. The greater part of this increase is found to have been in grasses and clovers cut for hay or ensilage, and in green fodder crops. The former increased from 117,110 acres in 1919–20 to 351,107 in 1928–29, while the latter increased during the same period from 166,758 acres to 219,088 acres.

Crops for chaff, hay, or ensilage aggregated in 1928–29 547,652 acres; root crops for feeding to stock totalled 491,842 acres, and green fodder crops 235,771 acres. Of the first-mentioned crops, grasses and clovers cut for hay or ensilage totalled 320,299 acres, and lucerne 30,808 acres; oats was the only cereal crop utilized in any quantity for this purpose, the area in 1928–29 being 194,638 acres. Of the cereal crops fed off to stock during the past year, oats comprised 15,394 acres of the total area. Turnips are the principal root crop grown in the Dominion, the total acreage in 1928–29 being 479,991 acres; mangolds occupied 9,914 acres, carrots and parsnips 1,013 acres, and pumpkins and marrows 921 acres.

A comparison of the areas of the principal crops used for these purposes is given below:—

Crop.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
Chaff, hay, ensilage—
Wheat	1,105	857	928	1,191	1,272
Oats	308,527	245,026	255,372	201,437	194,638
Barley	242	370	528	661	340
Maize	600	557	730	549	295
Grasses and clovers	229,644	224,777	260,674	250,984	320,299
Lucerne			27,781	29,257	30,808
Green fodder—
Wheat	1,025	718	678	621	1,289
Oats	16,401	19,694	14,064	14,048	15,394
Other	240,061	255,429	219,031	216,702	219,088
Root crops—
Turnips	452,894	468,475	462,360	459,704	479,994
Mangolds	15,111	13,296	11,870	10,329	9,914
Carrots and parsnips	1,475	1,279	1,425	1,288	1,013
Pumpkins and marrows	1,485	816	967	780	921

GRASS-SEED

The total area of grasses and clovers cut for seed during the year 1928–29 was 68,017 acres, yielding 1,005,179 bushels of 20 lb., as against 994,773 bushels from 65,681 acres in 1927–28.

A considerable export of grass-seed has been built up during recent years, especially with the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States of America, and in response to this increase in exports there has been a decided tendency for the area to increase also, although spasmodically.

The areas and yields of the principal grass and clover crops actually cut for seed during each of the ten years 1919–20 to 1928–29 are given in the following table. Second or catch crops are taken account of in the yield figures, the total yield including crops obtained from areas which had previously yielded some other crop in the season concerned. The areas, however, do not include second crops, and average yields cannot therefore be obtained by the mere division of the total yield by the area shown.

AREAS.

Year.	Rye-grass.	Cocksfoot.	Chewings Fescue.	Crested Dogstail.	Red Clover and Cow-grass.	White Clover.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
1919–20	39,580	16,789	3,425	2,322	6,181	2,284
1920–21	56,471	17,527	3,469	3,879	6,347	3,356
1921–22	51,356	14,987	6,231	6,713	6,910	3,030
1922–23	34,850	13,431	10,365	6,423	13,494	5,526
1923–24	43,487	11,619	9,279	4,749	5,543	4,161
1924–25	66,764	12,258	4,459	1,969	10,400	3,196
1925–26	45,154	9,745	6,902	2,679	6,579	5,358
1926–27	42,082	9,820	9,634	9,307	8,540	4,029
1927–28	23,545	11,493	10,021	8,948	7,887	2,294
1928–29	26,343	11,255	9,506	5,702	9,750	3,338

YIELDS.

Year	Rye-grass.	Cocksfoot.	Chewings Fescue.	Crested Dogstail.	Red Clover and Cow-grass.	White Clover.
* Of 20 lb.
	Bushels.^*	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.
1919–20	652,672	2,201,729	827,769	572,431	1,146,882	335,203
1920–21	1,015,507	2,724,816	680,116	722,336	1,554,770	512,480
1921–22	952,933	2,713,648	1,650,327	1,442,788	1,518,824	362,812
1922–23	681,709	1,971,135	2,334,386	1,259,613	2,570,650	870,087
1923–24	725,959	1,428,759	1,499,177	753,836	1,213,835	581,676
1924–25	1,517,554	1,852,754	1,198,111	398,432	2,015,486	490,073
1925–26	1,041,716	1,381,607	1,574,502	469,598	1,517,763	954,082
1926–27	904,156	1,858,082	2,177,125	1,482,214	1,935,328	671,828
1927–28	523,412	1,992,377	2,684,601	2,116,488	2,041,413	399,298
1928–29	564,511	2,048,832	2,723,124	1,276,785	1,936,088	566,395

By far the greater proportion of the total area is under rye-grass, followed in order by cocksfoot, red clover and cow-grass, Chewings fescue, crested dogstail, and white clover. The areas of the principal grasses, rye-grass and cocksfoot, show a receding tendency over the period. The other varieties show a distinct upward movement except in the case of white clover, the area of which has remained fairly stationary.

It is of interest to see where the different varieties of grass and clover are principally grown. The next table gives the acreages by districts: —

Land District.	Rye-grass.	Cocksfoot.	Chewings Fescue.	Crested Dogstail.	Red Clover and Cow-grass.	White Clover.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
North Auckland	37	15	..	..	6	..
Auckland	11	56	..	..	..	..
Gisborne	453	16	..	..	..	15
Hawke's Bay	2,174	43	..	20	45	18
Taranaki	..	..	..	..	..	..
Wellington	571	66	..	201	90	15
Nelson	31	..	9	..	641	3
Marlborough	168	50	..	..	3,774	355
Westland	..	..	..	..	..	..
Canterbury	9,832	10,407	275	473	5,003	2,554
Otago	3,011	343	290	494	176	197
Southland	10,055	259	8,932	4,514	15	181
Totals, Dominion	26,343	11,255	9,506	5,702	9,750	3,338

PASTURE GRASSES.

Grass is by far the most important crop to the farmer, the soils, the climate, and other natural conditions obtaining in the Dominion being very favourable for the growth of grass. Wherever there is light and moisture English grasses thrive when the natural bush and fern are cleared off, and, from the mildness of the winter season, there are very few places where there is not some growth even in the coldest months of the year, enabling cattle to be kept all the year round in the open.

At the beginning of the year 1929 there were 16,855,512 acres under artificially sown grasses, and in addition 14,131,630 acres still remained in tussock or other native grasses, making a total of 30,987,142 acres of grassland available for grazing purposes to the sheep and cattle farmers. The gradual increase in the area under sown grasses and the decline in tussock and native grasses is clearly shown in the following table, covering the ten years 1919–20 to 1928–29:—

Year.	Artificially Sown Pasture Grasses.	Tussock and other Native Grasses.	Total Area under Grass for Grazing Purposes.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
1919–20	16,125,265	14,892,113	31,017,378
1920–21	15,912,803	14,993,446	30,906,249
1921–22	16,112,598	14,609,603	30,722,201
1922–23	16,258,651	14,739,382	30,998,033
1923–24	16,447,570	14,806,237	31,253,807
1924–25	16,450,625	14,470,990	30,921,615
1925–26	16,615,960	14,298,618	30,914,578
1926–27	16,680,348	14,197,853	30,878,201
1927–28	16,871,530	14,091,717	30,963,247
1928–29	16,855,512	14,131,630	30,987,142

During the year 1928–29 160,601 acres of land which had not previously been cultivated was sown down in new pasture, as against 183,669 acres in 1927–28.

PHORMIUM TENAX.

Large areas in various parts of New Zealand are covered with Phormium tenax, or New Zealand flax, the fibre of which is largely used for rope-making, &c. Of the total area of occupied land in the Dominion, 62,704 acres were in Phormium tenax in 1928–29. The figures for each of the last ten years are as follows:—

Year.	Area.
	Acres.
1919–20	49,867
1920–21	44,002
1921–22	43,896
1922–23	39,456
1923–24	43,180
1924–25	54,814
1925–26	57,780
1926–27	69,420
1927–28	66,492
1928–29	62,704

Over seventy per cent. of the area in Phormium tenax in 1928–29 was in the Auckland, Wellington, and Westland Land Districts, the individual figures being 17,372 acres, 14,907 acres, and 13,366 acres respectively.

At the census of factory production for the year 1927–28 there were 70 flax-mills in operation, employing 1,020 hands, the total value of the output being £402,421. Flax used by the mills totalled 122,854 tons, resulting in 14,292 tons of dressed fibre and 2,606 tons of tow. The total area of flax cut by the above mills was 6,581 acres, and there were a further 22,965 acres not cut or not ready for cutting during the year.

GARDENS AND PLANTATIONS.

In 1928–29 there were 5,855 acres in market gardens, 582 acres in nurseries and seed-gardens, and 73,263 acres in private gardens and pleasure-grounds. The area in plantations (not virgin bush) was 293,911 acres, made up of 252,052 acres of conifers and 41,859 acres of eucalypts and other broad-leaved trees.

The figures for the last ten years are as follows: —

Year.	Market Gardens.	Nurseries, &c.	Private Gardens, &c.	Plantations.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
1919–20	3,540	456	56,837	54,563
1920–21	3,578	371	58,802	104,218
1921–22	4,262	395	57,927	52,462
1922–23	3,996	388	60,868	57,500
1923–24	4,264	418	61,648	66,056
1924–25	4,516	482	63,206	71,218
1925–26	4,599	505	64,872	88,656
1926–27	5,102	464	64,783	160,188
1927–28	5,655	489	68,566	232,083
1928–29	5,855	582	73,263	293,911

ORCHARDS AND THE FRUIT INDUSTRY.

In the collection of agricultural and pastoral statistics commercial orchards are defined as “those producing fruit for sale to the value of £50 and upwards annually, or, if not in full bearing, or if for any reason the crop has been a failure, that are calculated to produce fruit for sale to that value when in full bearing or in normal seasons, as the case may be.” This definition is one used for statistical purposes only, and has no reference to commercial orchard districts under the Fireblight Act, 1922, or to orchards under the Orchard-tax Act, 1927.

Private orchards consist chiefly of small areas the produce of which is consumed principally on the holding, or, if sold, does not aggregate an annual value of £50. Larger areas, which through age, disease, or other cause are incapable of producing a yearly revenue of the stipulated amount, are also included in private orchards.

A great impetus to the planting of fruit-trees was given by the discovery some years ago that tracts of land, principally in the Nelson Land District, which formerly bore nothing but stunted manuka and were looked on as being practically useless, were eminently suited for growing fruit, particularly apples. For a time, considerable areas of this and other land were annually added to the Dominion's orchard area, but in the last few years planting has diminished to comparatively small proportions.

The position is fairly well indicated by the following table, which shows the area outside borough boundaries which has been returned as under fruit-trees at each of the last ten annual enumerations: —

AREA IN ORCHARD, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

Year.	Commercial Orchards.		Private Orchards.	Total.
Year.	Bearing.	Not Bearing.	Private Orchards.	Total.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
1919–20	15,545	10,959	6,675	33,179
1920–21	16,603	9,235	5,669	31,507
1921–22	17,607	7,604	5,910	31,121
1922–23	20,235	4,929	5,679	30,843
1923–24	20,084	3,754	5,851	29,689
1924–25	19,547	2,651	5,327	27,525
1925–26	19,876	1,937	5,255	27,068
1926–27	19,036	1,245	5,096	25,377
1927–28	18,283	1,581	5,123	24,987
1928–29	17,705	1,514	5,319	24,538

The increase in the area of “bearing” commercial orchards over the period has been achieved at the expense of the non-bearing area, which has fallen from 10,959 acres in 1919–20 to 1,514 acres in 1928–29. Evidently there has been a good deal of cutting-out of orchards, particularly private orchards, owing to their having passed their period of utility, or for other reasons, such as the increase in land-values, the presence of disease, &c.

The figures show a decrease of 8,641 acres between 1919–20 and 1928–29. The decrease in the area of utility orchards has undoubtedly been considerably less, and there is indeed reason to believe that with the application of more modern methods of culture the yield is steadily increasing. Unfortunately, the area shown cannot be relied upon as being altogether accurate; and though the position is improving in this respect, it would seem that the area (which as stated above is not inclusive of orchards within borough boundaries) is still to a certain extent overstated.

The distribution of the orchard area of the Dominion, as shown by the 1928–29 collection of statistics, is as follows: —

AREA IN ORCHARD, 1928–29.

Land District.	For Commercial Purposes.		For Private Use only.	Total Area in Orchard.
Land District.	Bearing.	Not bearing.	For Private Use only.	Total Area in Orchard.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
North Auckland	3,687	542	1,282	5,511
Auckland	770	50	792	1,612
Gisborne	273	14	356	643
Hawke's Bay	2,221	374	197	2,792
Taranaki	24	2	50	76
Wellington	429	5	570	1,004
Nelson	4,989	130	247	5,366
Marlborough	447	14	152	613
Westland	11	3	22	36
Canterbury	1,569	79	999	2,647
Otago	3,274	299	419	3,992
Southland	11	2	233	246
Dominion	17,705	1,514	5,319	24,538

A good market exists locally for choice, clean fruit, but, as additional areas come into bearing, growers are having to look to outside markets to take the surplus. With a view to assisting towards building up an export trade in apples and pears the State has from 1924 onwards guaranteed growers a net return of 1d. per pound on fruit exported in compliance with the Government's requirements as to grading, &c.

For the purpose of the proper control of the fruit industry the Fruit Control Act was passed in the session of 1924. Part I of the Act provides for a Dominion Fruit-export Control Board, to have power of control of all fruit intended for export, while Part II provides for local boards to have control over fruit intended for local consumption. Neither part was to come into operation until a proposal to that effect was carried at a poll of the producers.

Polls taken in December, 1924, resulted in the provisions of Part I being carried by a majority of 151 votes, Otago Provincial District being, however, excluded from the operation of the control on account of a petition to that effect having been signed by 70 per cent. of the producers in that district. The proposal with respect to provincial control of fruit intended for sale in New Zealand was negatived in each provincial district. A voluntary local Control Board was, however, established in the Nelson District in the 1924–25 season.

The Department of Agriculture assists orchardists by supplying information on fruitgrowing generally, and as to the most up-to-date methods to adopt for the control of diseases and insect pests, pruning, &c. Practical demonstrations of pruning, spraying, and the grading and packing of fruit are given regularly by the Orchard Instructors attached to the Department.

Extensive experiments have been carried out in the growing of tomatoes and the control of diseases affecting them, many thousands of pounds having been lost through failure of the tomato crops grown under glass during the last few years. The results of these experiments have proved of great value, and have enabled growers to adopt successful methods for the production of large and profitable crops. There are approximately 900 glasshouses in the Dominion used for the production of tomatoes, table grapes, &c.

The total acreage in vineyards outside of borough boundaries is 296 acres. The growing of outdoor grapes is chiefly confined to the districts situated between the North Cape and Hawke's Bay. The greater portion of the crop is used for wine-making, but considerable quantities of outdoor-grown grapes are sold for table use.

Since 1913 the State has had authority to borrow money for the purpose of making advances for the establishment of cold stores for fruit and of fruit-canning works, and otherwise for the assistance of the fruitgrowing industry.

The Orchard-tax Act, 1916, provided for the levying, in each year from 1916 to 1921, of a tax of 1s. per acre on commercial orchards (with a minimum of 2s. 6d.), the proceeds to be paid over to the New Zealand Fruitgrowers' Federation and to be expended in aid of the fruitgrowing industry. The operation of the Act was extended for a further period of five years by the Orchard-tax Amendment Act, 1921, on the expiry of which the Orchard-tax Act, 1927, was passed. This Act makes the tax a permanent one, raises the minimum to 5s., and provides for additional tax in the case of orchardists in commercial fruitgrowing districts for the purpose of combating fireblight. No tax is payable in respect of any orchard with less than 120 fruit-trees, the term “fruit” including apples, pears, quinces, oranges, lemons, peaches, nectarines, apricots, plums, and cherries, and any other kind of fruit which may be so declared by Gazette notice.

Registrations of commercial orchards as at 28th June, 1929, numbered 5,843, 3,005 being taxable and 2,833 non-taxable. Of the taxable orchards, 1,699 paid the minimum tax. The total orchard-tax collected during 1928–29 amounted to £1,380.

TOP-DRESSING.

Information regarding areas top-dressed, together with the kinds and quantities of fertilizer applied to land so treated, is now obtained in connection with the annual collection of statistics. The summarized figures show that 2,385,182 acres were top-dressed in 1928–29, the total quantity of fertilizer used amounting to 7,515,359 cwt., as compared with 1,952,490 acres and 5,783,276 cwt. in 1927–28.

It will readily be seen from the table set forth below that superphosphate is by far the most commonly used fertilizer, accounting as it does for more than half of the total quantity of top-dressing applied. It is instructive to note also the comparatively small amount of top-dressing effected in the South Island as compared with the North Island.

Nature of Top-dressing.	North Island.		South Island.		Dominion.
Nature of Top-dressing.	Area.	Quantity used.	Area.	Quantity used.	Area.	Quantity used.
* Net totals (see letterpress following).
	Acres.	Cwt.	Acres.	Cwt.	Acres.	Cwt.
Superphosphate	1,308,609	3,271,728	295,274	573,359	1,603,883	3,845,087
Basic slag	580,284	1,503,182	39,651	85,871	619,935	1,589,053
Other artificial fertilizers and manures	251,310	609,683	56,402	114,130	307,712	723,813
Stable and farm manure	1,902	..	1,064	..	2,966	..
Lime	106,980	404,144	116,393	953,262	223,373	1,357,406
Totals	^*1,979,286	5,788,737	^*405,896	1,726,622	^*2,385,182	7,515,359

It will be noted that the total area top-dressed is less than the sum of the individual fertilizer areas. The explanation is that when the same area was treated with two or more fertilizers the area was shown against each of the fertilizers concerned. Duplication has been eliminated from the total areas shown.

IRRIGATED LAND.

The collection of particulars relative to irrigated land was introduced in 1925–26. The figures for the last three years are given in the table below. It will be seen that the total area irrigated has increased by 2,812 acres since 1926–27, practically the whole of the increase being in pasture-land and green fodder and root crops. Of the total of 59,845 acres irrigated in 1928–29, all except 206 acres were in Otago Land District.

Nature of Irrigated Land.	Area irrigated.
Nature of Irrigated Land.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
Orchards	2,027	2,244	2,032
Green fodder and root crops	2,273	3,099	2,901
Pasture	49,942	50,157	53,061
Lucerne	2,165	1,290	1,061
Oats	428	316	365
Wheat	65	60	106
Barley	58	16	159
Market gardens	29	4	19
Other crops	46	54	141
Totals	57,033	57,240	59,845

SUBSECTION C.—PASTORAL PRODUCTION.

SUMMARY OF LIVE-STOCK.

THE numbers of live-stock of various kinds at each of the last five annual enumerations are as shown in the following table. With the exception of the figures for sheep as disclosed by the special annual collection of sheep returns as at the 30th April, the figures to the 31st January.

—	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.
Horses	326,830	314,867	303,713	307,160	298,986
Asses and mules	190	161	222	250	193
Dairy cows	1,323,432	1,303,856	1,303,225	1,352,398	1,371,063
Cattle (including dairy cows)	3,503,744	3,452,486	3,257,729	3,273,769	3,445,790
Sheep shorn during season	22,335,528	22,686,200	23,441,808	23,958,577	25,295,560
Lambs tailed during season	11,467,147	11,435,780	12,069,681	13,178,972	13,855,958
Sheep (including lambs) as at 30th April	24,547,955	24,904,993	25,649,016	27,133,810	29,051,382
Pigs	440,115	472,534	520,143	586,898	556,732
Goats—
Angora	5,696	4,945	5,816	5,896	8,590
Other	13,279	16,816	20,283	18,355	25,636

The following table gives the number of the principal kinds of live-stock in Australia and New Zealand for the year 1927–28:—

State.	As at	Sheep.	Cattle.	Horses.	Pigs.
*Sheep, 30th April, 1928; others, 31st January, 1928.
New South Wales	30 June, 1928	50,930,000	2,848,453	598,247	301,808
Victoria	31 Dec., 1927	15,557,067	1,327,077	428,666	212,785
Queensland	31 Dec., 1927	16,642,385	5,225,804	548,333	191,947
South Australia	31 Dec., 1927	7,542,345	316,314	224,027	69,733
Western Australia	31 Dec., 1927	8,447,480	846,735	165,021	59,810
Tasmania	31 Dec., 1927	1,904,955	210,894	35,872	41,752
Northern Territory	31 Dec., 1927	9,585	835,390	40,108	292
Federal Capital Territory	30 June, 1928	213,659	6,118	1,208	69
Totals for Commonwealth	..	101,247,476	11,616,785	2,041,482	878,196
New Zealand	^*	27,133,810	3,273,769	307,160	586,898

The following diagram will give an idea of the large increase in the number of sheep, cattle, horses, and pigs in New Zealand since 1858:—

NUMBER OF SHEEP, CATTLE, HORSES, AND PIGS, 1858–1929.

NOTE.—The base of each small rectangle represents an interval of one year, and the vertical height the number of animals, as follows: Sheep, one million; cattle, one hundred thousand; horses and pigs, each fifty thousand.

SHEEP.

The Dominion is eminently suited for sheep-breeding, practically every description of sheep finding a favourable local habitat. In the hilly and down country of the South Island the Merino has been bred for very many years, and was the original sheep depastured. In fact, the Merino ewe furnished the foundation of the crossbred stock which has made Canterbury mutton famous on British meat-markets. In the early days of the Canterbury meat trade the English Leicester of the original type was the favourite ram for putting to the Merino ewe. Of later years the Lincoln has been largely employed to cross with the Merino, and black-faced rams have been further employed to put to the crossbred ewes. Systematic inbreeding of Merino-longwool half-bred sheep produced the now world-known Corriedale breed. In the North Island the Romney sheep, which suits the rather moist climate of this portion of the Dominion, has become the most popular sheep; it is also increasing in numbers in the South Island. The Lincoln and the Border Leicester are also favoured in both Islands, while the Southdown is taking the lead for fat-lamb production throughout the Dominion.

During the ten years from 1886 to 1896 the number of sheep in the North Island practically doubled. This increase continued until 1902, when the total number of sheep was given as 10,286,346, Following on a short period of reaction the total again began to rise, reaching 14,758,278 in 1918. From 1918 to 1922 the total sheep in this Island declined by over 2 1/2 millions, but since that date there has been a continuous increase, culminating in the record number of 15,588,444 for 1929. This figure exceeds the previous record, established in 1928, by over a million.

On the other hand, the number of sheep in the South Island has fluctuated considerably, the number in 1929 being only 3 1/2 millions more than that recorded in 1886. During this period the sheep in the North Island increased by 10 1/4 millions. The South Island flocks attained a high level in 1918, after which there was a considerable falling off until checked in 1923. The number recorded for 1929 is the highest on record, being an increase over the preceding year of over 800,000.

The total number of sheep in the Dominion in 1929 shows an increase of 1,917,572 over the figure for the previous year, and displaces the record then established.

Year.	North Island.	South Island.	Total.
1920	13,166,750	10,753,220	23,919,970
1921	12,774,323	10,510,708	23,285,031
1922	12,095,805	10,126,454	22,222,259
1923	12,809,663	10,271,776	23,081,439
1924	13,478,717	10,297,059	23,775,776
1925	13,719,541	10,828,414	24,547,955
1926	13,830,250	11,074,743	24,904,993
1927	13,957,820	11,691,196	25,649,016
1928	14,482,105	12,651,705	27,133,810
1929	15,588,444	13,462,938	29,051,382

In the table given above the Chatham Islands are included in the South Island, as they form portion of the Canterbury-Kaikoura Sheep District. In dealing with land districts, however, they are included with Wellington.

The following table shows the number of sheep and of breeding-owes in the Dominion on the 30th April, 1928 and 1929. Of the land districts Wellington had the most sheep in 1929, followed by Canterbury, Otago, Hawke's Bay, and Gisborne, in that order. Every land district has contributed to the very substantial increase of 1,917,572 sheep in the Dominion total.

Land District.	Sheep on 30th April,		Breeding-ewes on 30th April,
Land District.	1928.	1929.	1928.	1929.
North Auckland	902,093	1,040,422	501,933	590,054
Auckland	1,100,847	1,291,655	658,734	761,643
Gisborne	3,102,129	3,146,388	1,670,766	1,703,905
Hawke's Bay	3,077,763	3,259,059	1,793,663	1,886,193
Taranaki	814,054	920,791	453,815	506,999
Wellington	5,576,902	6,023,381	3,173,517	3,412,658
Nelson	411,178	446,066	220,894	240,951
Marlborough	1,062,147	1,124,053	559,243	589,358
Westland	68,805	76,987	47,020	50,292
Canterbury	5,266,827	5,544,167	3,197,895	3,380,403
Otago	3,684,494	3,902,845	2,001,665	2,113,982
Southland	2,066,571	2,275,568	1,254,906	1,371,717
Totals	27,133,810	29,051,382	15,534,051	16,608,155

Very substantial increases in the number of breeding-ewes have been recorded during the last few years, the figure at 30th April, 1929, being 16,608,155, as compared with 15,534,051 in 1928, 14,831,730 in 1927, and 11,569,675 in 1920. The number of rams (stud and flock) in the Dominion on the 30th April, 1929, was 422,331, as against 396,351 in 1928, an increase of 25,980. This number sets a new record for the Dominion, mainly owing to the rapid increase in the number of flock rams. Stud rams, on the other hand, show a considerable decrease when compared with the figures of twenty years ago.

The following table shows the number of rams, wethers, breeding-ewes, dry ewes, and lambs in the Dominion for the last five years: —

Year.	Rams.	Wethers.	Breeding-ewes.	Dry Ewes.	Lambs.	Totals.
Stud Sheep (entered in Flock-book).
1925	12,400	..	184,744	7,867	131,485	336,496
1926	13,808	..	192,055	10,053	138,526	354,442
1927	12,334	..	199,219	8,644	144,897	365,094
1928	12,151	..	205,720	7,347	145,969	371,187
1929	12,794	..	219,802	7,203	156,526	396,325
Sheen of a Distinctive Breed but not entered in Flock-book.
1925	343,179	982,631	3,295,240	204,864	1,695,955	6,521,869
1926	356,727	1,008,783	3,153,805	232,363	1,492,959	6,244,637
1927	375,940	1,011,119	3,502,309	213,719	1,656,626	6,759,713
1928	384,200	1,042,157	3,812,550	212,534	1,914,884	7,366,325
1929	409,537	1,039,943	3,886,345	220,332	1,925,634	7,481,791
Crossbred and other Sheep not otherwise enumerated.
1925	..	2,081,032	10,235,239	671,035	4,702,284	17,689,590
1926	..	2,203,652	10,602,392	837,319	4,662,551	18,305,914
1927	..	2,063,855	11,130,202	609,328	4,720,824	18,524,209
1928	..	1,982,490	11,515,781	649,246	5,248,781	19,396,298
1929	..	2,249,192	12,502,008	655,163	5,766,903	21,173,266
Totals.
1925	355,579	3,063,663	13,715,223	883,766	6,529,724	24,547,955
1926	370,535	3,212,435	13,948,252	1,079,735	6,294,036	24,904,993
1927	388,274	3,074,974	14,831,730	831,691	6,522,347	25,649,016
1928	396,351	3,024,647	15,534,051	869,127	7,309,634	27,133,810
1929	422,331	3,289,135	16,608,155	882,698	7,849,063	29,051,382

The number of breeding-ewes has varied considerably from time to time, the maximum having been obtained in 1929. There has been a continuous increase during each of the last nine years, the total for 1929 amounting to almost five millions more than in 1920. The number of dry ewes on 30th April, 1929, was 882,698, which is, with the exception of the years 1923, 1927, and 1928, the smallest number that has been recorded since 1905.

The number of lambs returned in 1922 was the smallest since 1906, but a recovery was made in 1923 to 6 1/2 millions, where it remained until 1928, when the figure jumped to 7 1/3 millions. A further increase of over half a million has since resulted, and the present figure of 7,849,063 approaches very closely to the record number of 7,895,888 set up in 1918.

In sympathy with the successive increases in the number of sheep in recent years, the number of flocks has increased almost proportionately, as is shown by the following table:—

NUMBER OF FLOCKS.

Size of Flocks.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.
1– 500	11,953	12,332	12,613	12,266	11,915
501– 1,000	5,461	5,732	5,884	5,957	6,313
1,001– 2,500	4,637	4,858	4,966	5,415	5,975
2,501–5,000	1,399	1,452	1,461	1,666	1,724
5,001–10,000	536	532	541	573	613
10,001–20,000	138	120	128	139	146
20,001 and over	22	19	22	26	26
Totals (all flocks)	24,146	25,045	25,609	25,982	26,712

Details as to numbers of flocks in 1929 classified according to size, and the corresponding numbers of sheep, are furnished in the following table for the North Island, the South Island, and the Dominion.

Size of Flocks.	Number of Flocks.			Number of Sheep.
Size of Flocks.	North Island.	South Island.	Dominion.	North Island.	South Island.	Dominion.
1– 200	2,214	3,337	5,551	213,292	327,737	541,029
201– 500	2,555	3,809	6,364	874,340	1,290,238	2,164,578
501– 1,000	2,771	3,542	6,313	2,020,094	2,540,222	4,560,316
1,001–2,500	3,079	2,896	5,975	4,792,912	4,384,907	9,177,819
2,501– 5,000	1,001	723	1,724	3,482,390	2,428,017	5,910,407
5,001–7,500	273	167	440	1,662,533	991,527	2,654,060
7,501–10,000	116	57	173	983,768	531,288	1,515,056
10,001–20,000	93	53	146	1,231,182	662,457	1,893,639
20,001 and over	13	13	26	327,933	306,545	634,478
Totals	12,115	14,597	26,712	15,588,444	13,462,938	29,051,382

The average size of the flocks is found to have been 1,017 sheep in 1925, 994 in 1926, 1,002 in 1927, 1,040 in 1928, and 1,088 in 1929.

The numbers of the different classes composing the flocks in April, 1929, were as follows: —

—	North Island.	South Island.	Total in Dominion.
Stud sheep (entered in flock-book)—
Merino	2	32,768	32,770
Lincoln	7,983	525	8,508
Romney	113,196	60,794	173,990
Border Leicester	1,230	22,791	24,021
English Leicester	1,308	22,078	23,386
Shropshire	750	3,281	4,031
Southdown	52,567	18,426	70,993
Corriedale	1,513	51,465	52,978
Ryeland	2,213	1,358	3,571
Other breeds	56	2,021	2,077
Totals	180,818	215,507	396,325
Sheep of a distinctive breed but not entered in flock-book—
Merino	27,301	1,102,854	1,130,155
Lincoln	67,147	11,936	79,083
Romney	2,971,761	523,679	3,495,440
Border Leicester	7,970	53,421	61,391
English Leicester	6,455	73,668	80,123
Shropshire	4,771	12,763	17,534
Southdown	97,254	24,656	121,910
Corriedale	37,280	1,059,184	1,096,464
Half-bred	28,646	1,365,964	1,394,610
Ryeland	1,273	2,701	3,974
Other breeds	552	555	1,107
Totals	3,250,410	4,231,381	7,481,791
Flock sheep—
Crossbreds and others not otherwise enumerated	12,157,216	9,016,050	21,173,266
Grand totals	15,588,444	13,462,938	29,051,382

The most recent statistics (36th April, 1929) show that the Romney is still the predominating breed in all land districts with the exception of Marlborough, Canterbury, and Otago. In Marlborough, half-breds and Merinos occupy first and second positions respectively; half-breds occupy premier position in Canterbury; while in Otago the rapidly increasing popularity of the Corriedale has placed this breed in the lead, closely followed, however, by half-breds and Merinos.

KILLINGS AND LOSSES OF SHEEP.

By taking the number of sheep on the 36th April each year, adding the numbers of lambs tailed during the subsequent season, and subtracting the slaughterings during the year, it is possible to obtain the hypothetical strength of the flocks at 30th April of the following year. This number does not, of course, take account of deaths due to climatic conditions, disease, &c. If the number recorded in the annual sheep statistics at the next 30th April is subtracted from this hypothetical figure the result represents the approximate losses to the flocks during the year.

The following table gives for the last five seasons figures for the items referred to in the preceding paragraph:—

—	Year ended 36th April,
—	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.
* At abattoirs during twelve months ended 31st March, and on farms during twelve months ended 31st January.
A. Flocks at beginning of year	23,775,776	24,547,955	24,904,993	25,649,016	27,133,810
B. Lambs tailed	11,467,147	41,435,780	12,069,681	13,178,972	13,855,958
C. Total (A + B)	35,242,923	35,983,735	36,974,674	38,827,988	40,989,768
D. Slaughterings^*—
Lambs	4,968,422	5,206,321	5,544,850	5,980,778	6,197,347
Sheep	3,906,302	3,569,986	3,810,729	3,703,449	3,507,771
E. Total	8,874,724	8,776,307	9,355,579	9,684,227	9,705,118
F. Net figure (C - E)	26,368,199	27,207,428	27,619,095	29,143,761	31,284,650
G. Flocks at end of year	24,547,955	24,904,993	25,649,016	27,133,810	29,051,382
H. Apparent losses during year	1,820,244	2,302,435	1,970,079	2,009,951	2,233,268
I. Percentage loss ratio	7.53	9.31	7.79	7.62	7.95
J. Increase over twelve months (G - A)	772,179	357,038	744,023	1,484,794	1,917,572
K. Percentage increase	3.25	1.45	2.99	5.79	7.07

Attention is directed to the different sources of the data used in the foregoing table. The sheep flocks at 30th April each year are obtained from the sheep returns collected by the Department of Agriculture. The slaughtering figures represent the killings at registered abattoirs as reported to the Department of Agriculture and on farms as reported to the Census and Statistics Office. The number of lambs tailed is based on figures collected by the Census and Statistics Office.

The average loss ratio due to climatic conditions, disease, &c. (including, of course, unrecorded killings), during the last five years works out at 8.20 per cent. According to the figures in the table the heaviest loss ratio and the smallest increase ratio during the last five years occurred in 1925–26. Apparently there is a definite relationship between these phenomena. The figures for the game year were characterized by low figures for “mutton” killings.

SHEEP IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

The number of sheep in the Australian States and in New Zealand at enumerations corresponding approximately to the end of the years 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1928 was as follows:—

—	1900.	1910.	1920.	1928.
* Includes Federal Capital Territory. † Includes Northern Territory.
Queensland	10,030,971	20,331,838	17,404,840	18,076,608
New South Wales^*	41,857,099	45,560,969	33,851,828	52,936,536
Victoria	10,673,265	12,882,665	12,171,084	17,064,000
South Australia^†	5,060,540	6,324,717	6,366,006	7,210,000
Western Australia	2,625,855	5,158,516	6,532,965	8,927,929
Tasmania	1,792,481	1,788,310	1,570,832	1,900,000
New Zealand	19,365,195	23,996,126	23,285,031	29,051,382
Totals	91,395,406	116,043,141	101,182,586	135,166,482

SHEEP FLOCKS OF THE WORLD.

The latest figures obtainable showing the number of sheep in the principal countries for which information is available are given hereunder:—

Country.	Number of Sheep.
* Including goats.
Russia (U.S.S.R.)	123,810,000
Australia	. 106,115,100
United States	47,171,000
South African Union	40,109,826
Argentina	36,209,000
New Zealand	29,051,382
British India	23,237,440
Spain	20,067,209
England and Wales	16,389,610
Uruguay	14,443,341
Turkey	13,222,000
Rumania	12,941,051
Peru	12,500,000
Italy	12,350,000
France	10,693,120
Morocco	9,248,462
Bulgaria	8,922,604
Brazil	7,933,437
Jugo-Slavia	7,722,247
Scotland	7,578,704
Algeria	6,786,266
Greece	6,441,830
Irak	5,055,000
Tanganyika	4,479,210^*
Portugal	4,450,000
Bolivia	4,150,560
Chile	4,093,872
Persia	4,000,000
Germany	3,625,590
Canada	3,415,788
Irish Free State	3,120,308
Mexico	2,381,000
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan	2,201,000
Tunis	2,142,366
Poland	1,917,837
Basutoland	1,859,712
Norway	1,654,448
Hungary	1,566,451
Lithuania	1,467,800
Finland	1,368,173
Egypt	1,232,220
Sweden	1,140,000
Latvia	1,090,400

PRODUCTION OF WOOL.

Wool obtained from sheep shorn during the season 1928–29 amounted to 203,118,870 lb., while lambs yielded 7,580,793 lb. The following table shows the amount of wool produced in each land district in the Dominion during the seasons 1927–28 and 1928–29:—

WOOL PRODUCED, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

Land District.	Wool obtained during Season 1927–28 from		Wool obtained during Season 1928–29 from
Land District.	Sheep.	Lambs.	Sheep.	Lambs.
	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.
North Auckland	6,026,737	385,192	6,886,368	459,020
Auckland	8,492,755	697,812	9,883,849	754,913
Gisborne	23,396,476	1,615,388	23,457,068	1,633,995
Hawke's Bay	23,449,746	937,702	25,840,028	1,108,204
Taranaki	6,268,962	477,916	6,956,967	528,762
Wellington	43,887,398	2,763,734	46,553,747	2,906,167
Nelson	2,174,926	32,867	2,375,171	31,667
Marlborough	7,701,182	44,352	8,131,669	82,023
Westland	399,670	14,693	421,441	22,533
Canterbury	31,433,377	30,706	34,250,715	41,351
Otago	22,698,773	2,668	24,715,169	2,421
Southland	12,053,200	1,292	13,646,678	9,737
Totals	187,883,202	7,004,322	203,118,870	7,580,793

It should be noted that these figures cover only sheep shorn on farms. Wool obtained by the various freezing companies from sheep slaughtered is not covered by this inquiry.

The following table gives the average weight of fleece for each land district in each of the last five years:—

AVERAGE WEIGHT OF FLEECE, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

Land District.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.
North Auckland	7.29	6.82	6.87	7.09	7.35
Auckland	7.27	6.99	7.24	7.65	8.05
Gisborne	8.17	7.31	7.36	8.13	7.87
Hawke's Bay	9.03	8.10	7.82	8.65	8.96
Taranaki	7.86	7.41	7.65	7.90	8.16
Wellington	8.82	8.07	8.29	8.57	8.77
Nelson	6.35	5.89	5.85	6.01	6.44
Marlborough	7.91	7.39	7.80	7.66	7.96
Westland	6.10	6.03	6.20	6.54	6.56
Canterbury	7.42	6.87	7.70	7.42	7.58
Otago	7.29	7.05	7.45	7.28	7.64
Southland	6.77	6.65	7.14	7.00	7.20
Dominion	7.98	7.38	7.65	7.84	8.03

The approximate annual production of wool for the last ten years, taking the exports for the twelve months immediately preceding the commencement of shearing and adding thereto the quantity used in the Dominion for manufacturing purposes, is shown in the next table, but no addition has been made for wool on sheep-skins exported, nor for loss in scouring and washing.

Year ended 30th September,	Quantity exported.	Quantity purchased by Local Mills.	Total.
	lb.	lb.
1920	163,821,508	8,599,212	174,420,720
1921	174,950,190	5,307,495	180,257,685
1922	325,256,613	8,483,140	333,739,753
1923	214,845,027	9,170,697	224,015,724
1924	210,582,999	7,786,337	218,369,336
1925	195,394,999	5,141,473	200,536,472
1926	218,272,768	5,611,711	223,884,479
1927	219,756,043	6,275,984	226,032,027
1928	227,389,554	6,870,131	234,259,685
1929	236,585,474	6,470,643	243,056,117

If the figures for 1928–29 be all converted to the basis of greasy wool, the total exports become somewhat over 253,000,000 lb. and the purchases by woollen mills over 6,500,000 lb., making a gross total of approximately 260,000,000 lb. in the grease.

The following summary shows the various classes of wool purchased by the New Zealand mills. For 1928–29 greasy wool represents 81 3/4 per cent. of the total.

—	Merino.	Half-bred.	Corriedale.	Crossbred Lambs.	Crossbred Sheep.	Total.
* Included with crossbred sheep.
	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.
Greasy	782,411	2,655,936	424,980	178,426	1,577,303	5,619,056
Washed	..	6,122	..	287	20,241	26,650
Scoured	12,059	90	..	286	3,033	15,468
Sliped	..	5,870	..	13,468	169,062	188,400
Crutchings	37,329	335,001	..	6,027	242,712	621,069
Totals, 1928–29	831,799	3,003,019	424,980	198,494	2,012,351	6,470,643
Totals, 1927–28	1,244,606	3,459,033	171,000	^*	1,995,492	6,870,131

The percentages of greasy, scoured, and washed wool to the total quantities exported during the last ten calendar years are—

Year.	Greasy.	Scoured and Sliped.	Washed.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1920	65.53	34.29	0.18
1921	74.50	25.42	0.08
1922	70.95	28.96	0.09
1923	76.01	23.89	0.10
1924	78.58	21.30	0.12
1925	80.70	19.23	0.07
1926	78.13	21.73	0.14
1927	81.28	18.58	0.14
1928	83.51	16.33	0.16
1929	85.00	14.87	0.13

The following diagram shows the increase in the weight of wool exported since 1882, also the great expansion of the frozen-meat trade in the same period. The decrease during the war period is attributable to lack of shipping facilities.

EXPORTS OF WOOL AND FROZEN MEAT, 1882–1928.

CATTLE.

Most of the leading breeds of the cattle of Great Britain are represented in the Dominion by herds bred on sound lines, though the development of the beef breeds in later years has received a check partly owing to the advance taking place in dairying operations and partly through the difficulties of competing with other countries in the British market. There are still very many fine Shorthorn herds of the beef type, while Hereford and Aberdeen-Angus cattle are also largely bred.' There are herd-books for each of these breeds.

The breeding of dairy cattle has made great progress in recent years. Herd-book societies are established for the Jersey, Friesian, Ayrshire, Milking Shorthorn, and Red Poll breeds. The various societies have heartily co-operated in a scheme for establishing registers of merit in connection with the certificate-of-record testing of purebred dairy cattle, thus giving a great fillip to the breeding of purebred dairy stock. The dairy-farmer is encouraged to use purebred bulls and thereby to assist materially in raising the standard of the dairy stock of the country. Ho is now coming to appreciate the value of herd-testing work, and thus, knowing the really profitable cows in his herd, will be anxious to secure a bull which will enable them to perpetuate their good qualities.

An important factor responsible for the improved position of dairy cattle in New Zealand is the milking-machine, which is making the farmer more independent of hired labour. With the higher price of land there is a gradual tendency towards smaller farms and the keeping of fewer but better cows. Also, there is a growing realization of the necessity for a more liberal system of feeding, particularly in the direction of growing special fodder crops to maintain the milk-flow at all seasons of the year. Generally, dairy-farming in New Zealand is being conducted on a sound basis, and the industry now ranks fully with meat and wool production in importance.

The total number of cattle in the Dominion at the enumeration of 1929 was 3,445,790, as against 3,273,769 in 1928. The figures for the two years, according to the classification in use, are as follows:—

Bulls two years old and over, for stud—	1928.	1929.
For beef purposes	11,710	13,436
For dairy purposes	47,624	48,651
Cows and heifers two years and over, for dairying—
In milk	1,242,729	1,291,204
Dry	109,669	79,859
Cows and heifers two years old and over, other than for dairying	451,189	477,540
Heifers one and under two years old	362,624	399,614
Steers two years old and over	369,553	331,775
Steers and bulls one and under two years old	128,918	148,341
Calves under one year old—
Heifers	405,671	468,511
Bulls and steers	144,082	186,859
Totals	3,273,769	3,445,790

A policy which has been partly responsible for placing the breeding of dairy cattle on up-to-date principles has been the establishment of purebred herds at three of the State experimental farms, where they are bred according to an exact record of performance. High-priced stock have been imported in order that the foundation herds at the farms may be of the best quality. The yearling bulls from these State milk-record herds command high values. The appreciation of the farming community for this officially tested stock has been chiefly responsible for the gratifying manner in which private breeders of pedigree stock have participated in the certificate-of-record testing system of the Department of Agriculture and the herd-book societies. With regard to the testing of dairy-farmers' herds, the Department in the season of 1910–11 established a model herd-testing association in the Wairarapa district, carrying out the work of testing and of recording results free of all charge to the farmers taking part. This had the effect of creating at once wide interest in the important herd-testing movement, and the following season model associations were established in several leading dairying districts. These were intended not only to demonstrate the value of herd-testing when properly conducted and with full comparative records published at the end of the season, but also to encourage farmers to establish co-operative testing associations on their own account. The object was achieved, and many associations are now in operation. Most of these are supervised by the Department of Agriculture.

By far the greater proportion of the total cattle in the Dominion is found in the North Island, the figures being 2,839,074 in the North Island and 606,716 in the South Island. The proportion of dairy cattle in the North Island works out at 39 per cent., while the South Island figure is slightly greater, being 43 per cent.

Considerably more than half of the total cattle in Taranaki Land District, and almost half of those in Auckland Land District, are cows and heifers over two years old used or intended for dairying purposes. Auckland Land District has the greatest number of dairy cows, followed by North Auckland, Taranaki, and Wellington. The order of the principal land districts for cattle other than dairy cows is: Wellington, Auckland, Gisborne, and North Auckland.

A table showing the distribution of cattle in the Dominion according to land districts is appended:—

Land District.	Dairy Cows.	Other Cattle.	Total.
North Auckland	224,294	262,902	487,196
Auckland	392,302	396,262	788,564
Gisborne	36,949	279,771	316,720
Hawke's Bay	51,618	166,215	217,833
Taranaki	207,646	165,506	373,152
Wellington	198,891	456,718	655,609
Nelson	27,742	35,519	63,261
Marlborough	16,136	27,718	43,854
Westland	12,934	28,255	41,189
Canterbury	75,351	93,373	168,724
Otago	54,087	74,577	128,664
Southland	73,113	87,911	161,024
Totals	1,371,063	2,074,727	3,445,790

Although the Auckland Land District has the greatest number of dairy cows, in point of area occupied Taranaki takes first position with 123 to every 1,000 acres, Auckland coming next with 92, and North Auckland third with 76.

BREEDS OF CATTLE.

In connection with the enumeration of live-stock, information is collected thrice in each decade as to breeds of cattle, horses, and pigs, in addition to the usual details of age, sex, &c. A summary of the results of the 1928 enumeration as regards cattle is given in the following table.

CATTLE AT 31ST JANUARY, 1928, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO BREED, SEX, AND AGE. (EXCLUDING BOROUGHS.)

Breed.	Bulls Two Years Old and over, for Breeding only.	Cows and Heifers Two Years Old and over.	Heifers One and under Two Years Old.	Steers Two Years Old and over.	Steers and Bulls One and under Two Years Old.	Heifer Calves nuder One Year Old.	Bull and Steer Calves under One Year Old.	Total Cattle.
Purebred—
Jersey	11,349	16,772	4,496	56	715	4,332	1,659	39,379
Guernsey	3	9	17	..	1	2	3	35
Alderney	5	30	..	..	..	..	..	35
Friesian	1,459	5,682	1,456	10	145	1,529	389	10,670
Ayrshire	674	2,737	714	2	85	558	135	4,905
Red Poll	133	349	96	21	45	121	66	831
Shorthorn (including Milking Shorthorns)	1,076	3,549	848	38	144	778	396	6,829
Hereford	504	1,935	456	120	231	562	402	4,210
Polled Angus	669	1,850	433	180	344	394	399	4,269
Devon	6	58	..	..	..	32	20	116
Crossbred with predominating strain of—
Jersey and other Channel Island breeds	20,905	820,431	164,636	9,194	7,450	199,262	14,411	1,236,289
Friesian	3,439	150,065	26,531	11,061	5,838	27,757	6,331	231,022
Ayrshire	962	32,379	5,768	864	536	6,740	943	48,192
Milking Shorthorn	5,000	286,534	51,552	18,356	10,320	52,913	15,910	440,585
Red Poll	165	2,585	941	723	604	982	909	6,909
Other dairy breeds (including unspecified)	10	879	147	22	47	130	51	1,286
Shorthorn	4,073	149,685	34,292	133,706	39,153	29,740	26,844	417,193
Hereford	4,016	163,716	36,241	109,184	35,069	39,208	38,807	426,241
Polled Angus	4,157	136,380	29,966	82,681	27,039	36,324	34,571	351,118
Devon	30	951	229	290	175	241	205	2,121
Other beef breeds (including; unspecified)	18	1,962	454	2,404	503	413	410	6,164
Total, purebred	15,878	32,971	8,516	427	1,710	8,308	3,469	71,279
Total, crossbred	42,775	1,745,567	350,757	368,485	126,734	393,710	139,392	3,167,420
Dominion totals	58,653	1,778,538	359,273	368,912	128,444	402,018	142,861	3,238,699

THE WORLD'S CATTLE.

The latest available information showing the number of cattle in the main countries of the world is as follows:—

Country.	Number of Cattle
British India	120,697,239
Russia (U.S.S.R.)	66,792,000
United States	55,751,000
Argentina	37,064,850
Brazil	34,271,324
Germany	18,386,222
France	14,940,960
Australia	11,617,056
South African Union	10,412,466
Canada	8,793,272
Poland	8,601,796
Uruguay	8,431,613
Madagascar	7,139,900
Italy	7,400,000
England and Wales	6,026,433
Turkey	5,492,615
Paraguay	5,249,043
Cuba	4,785,921
Czecho-Slovakia	4,691,320
Rumania	4,552,166
Tanganyika	4,479,210
Irish Free State	4,047,013
Siam	4,013,882
Spain	3,794,029
Jugo-Slavia	3,654,261
New Zealand	3,273,769
Denmark	3,021,000
Sweden	2,736,000
Southern Rhodesia	2,325,402
Mexico	2,187,867
Austria	2,162,346
Venezuela	2,077,684
Netherlands	2,062,771
French Morocco	1,932,840
Chile	1,918,433
Bulgaria	1,877,108
Finland	1,871,865
Hungary	1,811,647
Belgium	1,750,541
Korea	1,594,814
Switzerland	1,587,110
Ceylon	1,537,000
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan	1,501,200
Japan	1,474,409
Bolivia	1,404,315
Norway	1,220,875
Scotland	1,213,348
Lithuania	1,128,000
French West Africa	1,048,102
Philippine Islands	1,021,169

DAIRY-PRODUCE.

The Dairy Industry Act, 1908 (a consolidation of previous legislation), with its amendments of 1915, 1922, 1924, and 1926, provides for the appointment of inspectors of dairy stock and factories or other places used for the manufacture of dairy-produce, and power is given to condemn or forbid their use, if necessary. The sale of unwholesome milk or other dairy-produce is prohibited, and provision is made for the inspection, grading, and shipping of all dairy-produce exported. Butter containing less than 80 per cent. of butterfat or more than 16 per cent. of water must not be exported. A national brand is provided for by regulations gazetted in August, 1926. This brand is to be placed on every package forwarded for export and containing creamery butter or factory cheese grading 90 points or over.

Provision is made for the framing of regulations for the registration of dairies, the licensing of persons carrying on the manufacture or sale of the produce, the registration of trade-marks or brands, and for inspection and grading. A fine not exceeding £50 may be inflicted for any offence under this part of the Act.

Milk or cream purchased for the manufacture of dairy-produce and paid for according to the percentage of butterfat it contains must have this percentage determined by the Babcock, Gerber, or other prescribed test. A certified statement of overrun must be furnished to each supplier, and provision is made for an independent investigation by the Audit Department where a supplier is dissatisfied with the statement received.

The Act also provides for the registration of co-operative dairy companies, and shareholders are protected in the event of certain contingencies. A dairy company must not include in its registered name the word “co-operative,” unless it is entitled to be registered as a co-operative dairy company under the Act.

The following table shows the number of factories registered under the Dairy Industry Act, together with the amount of butter and cheese forwarded for export and the number of suppliers to such factories.

District.	Number of Factories.			Forwarded for Export, 1928–29.		Number of Suppliers.
District.	Butter.	Cheese.	Dual Plant.	Butter.	Butter.	Cheese.	Cheese.^*
* Suppliers to dual-plant establishments included in this column only.
				Tons.	Tons.
Auckland	60	36	6	52,136	12,753	17,760	1,320
Hawke's Bay	12	16	2	4,008	4,160	4,030	592
Taranaki	23	75	33	7,780	35,996	2,780	3,567
Wellington	18	49	10	9,187	13,416	4,955	1,657
Nelson	6	3	1	1,258	478	1,190	447
Marlborough	3	1	4	725	807	760	206
Westland	9	2	1	629	37	657	41
Canterbury	9	14	3	1,565	1,926	4,568	1,889
Otago and Southland	11	79	1	1,616	13,044	6,453	3,225
Totals, 1928–29	151	275	61	78,904	82,617	43,153	12,944
Totals, 1927–28	218	257	66	74,594	74,202	43,580	12,079

Pride of place as regards butter-production is easily taken by Auckland, while Taranaki forwarded for export in 1928–29 two and two-thirds times the amount of cheese which was forwarded by her nearest competitor (Wellington). Wellington also takes second place in butter-production, followed by Taranaki in third position. Disregarding dual-plant factories, the returns for the season 1928–29 indicated an average (for export) of 523 tons per factory for butter and 306 tons for cheese, while if dual-plant factories are included the averages are 364 tons and 246 tons respectively.

Statistics are compiled monthly showing by district of production the quantities of butter and cheese loaded out from grading-store for export. The districts adopted are the land districts, which in some cases have been further subdivided. A list of the counties included in the various production districts was given in the Monthly Abstract of Statistics for March, 1927. The butter or cheese is in every case assumed to be the product of the district in which the factory at which it was manufactured is situated. Exports for the various production districts for the twelve months ended 31st July, 1929, are as follows, 40 boxes of butter or 14 crates of cheese being equivalent to 1 ton:—

District.	Butter.	Cheese.
Land District of North Auckland—	Boxes.	Crates.
Northern portion	514,693	43
Southern portion	227,468	10,070
Land District of Auckland—
Western portion	990,167	140,842
Eastern portion	265,309	25,843
Land District of Gisborne—
Opotiki County	39,817	617
Remainder of land district	57,039	2,074
Land District of Hawke's Bay	92,168	52,435
Land District of Taranaki	297,006	502,062
Land District of Wellington—
North-western portion	121,914	14,647
South-western portion	252,373	60,696
Eastern portion	47,773	122,223
Land District of Nelson	58,213	7,026
Land District of Marlborough	28,258	11,907
Land District of Westland	20,015	618
Land District of Canterbury—
Northern portion	45,459	16,051
Southern portion	28,628	14,180
Land District of Otago	27,598	35,931
Land District of Southland	10,583	159,219
Totals, Dominion	3,124,481	1,176,484

It should be noted that the foregoing figures refer to butter and cheese exported, and do not include quantities graded and subsequently used for local consumption.

Returns of factory production showed that during the year ended 31st March, 1928, 1,773,999 cwt. of butter was produced by butter-factories in the Dominion. In addition to this, 30,489 cwt. of whey butter was manufactured. For the twelve months ended 31st January, 1928, 53,945 cwt. of butter was produced on holdings of 1 aero and over, followed by 53,433 cwt. for the twelve months ended 31st January, 1929.

Returns from cheese-factories give the quantity manufactured during the twelve months ended 31st March, 1928, as 1,550,090 cwt.

The total export of butter and cheese in the last ten years, and the total quantity of each commodity sent to the United Kingdom, are tabulated below:—

Calendar Year.	Total Export of Butter.	Butter exported to the United Kingdom.	Total Export of Cheese.	Cheese exported to the United Kingdom.
	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.
1919	345,818	336,606	1,572,355	1,517,102
1920	312,009	282,679	1,222,070	1,220,409
1921	898,478	878,737	1,368,786	1,368,051
1922	1,120,200	1,081,512	1,161,196	1,160,285
1923	1,250,140	1,119,355	1,441,460	1,428,762
1924	1,269,455	1,174,894	1,594,486	1,585,635
1925	1,245,324	1,186,965	1,376,754	1,371,986
1926	1,168,040	1,062,278	1,461,548	1,450,637
1927	1,455,539	1,188,664	1,492,792	1,478,870
1928	1,449,570	1,158,234	1,567,272	1,551,523

Exports of butter to countries other than the United Kingdom in 1928 include 199,706 cwt. to Canada, 23,638 cwt. to Australia, 42,718 cwt. to the United States, and 10,340 cwt. to Hawaii, besides smaller quantities to other countries. With the exception of a small quantity exported to Australia and the United States, very little cheese is shipped to countries other than the United Kingdom.

The quantities of butter and cheese exported continued about equal till the year 1895. During the period 1896–1907 butter assumed the lead, reaching its maximum of comparative importance in 1903, in which year the export was nearly four times that of cheese. A remarkable rise then took place in the cheese exports, and the increase in the exports continued so rapidly that 1919 saw the quantity of cheese nearly five times that of butter. Cheese exports then declined slightly in volume, and butter made great strides, having more than trebled in four years, until in 1922 quantities of butter and cheese exported were about equal. Cheese, however, went to the fore again in 1923, and increased its lead still further in 1924, which year witnessed record shipments of both butter and cheese. The 1927 figure for butter created a new record for the Dominion, but the figure for 1928 is very close and takes second place. On a value basis, of course, butter exports greatly exceed cheese, the figures for 1928 being £11,302,667 for butter and £6,693,951 for cheese.

DAIRY-PRODUCE EXPORT CONTROL.

Under the Dairy produce Export Control Act, 1923, there has been established a Board consisting of two Government nominees, nine representatives of suppliers to dairy factories, and one person representing manufacturers of dairy-produce. A London agency of the Board has also been constituted, to consist of such number of persons as may be decided upon by the Board—but at least one person must be appointed by the Government, through the Director-General of Agriculture. Broadly defined, the duties of the Board are to control the export and sale of butter and cheese in the interests of the producers, while the London agency is required to keep the Board informed as to current prices and other matters relating to the disposal of the New Zealand dairy-produce in England. The funds of the Board are derived from levies on butter and cheese exported, the present levies being 1/32 d. per lb. on butter and 1/84 d. on cheese. The amount collected in respect of these levies during the calendar year 1928 was £32,423.

The operation of the Act was subject to veto by the majority of the dairy-producers of the Dominion as determined by popular vote, but the number of votes polled amounted to 22,284 for and 9,255 against the bringing of the Act into operation, there being thus a majority of 13,029 for the proposal.

The Board has power to exercise either limited or absolute control over the export of dairy-produce. Absolute control was instituted from midnight on 31st August, 1926, but limited control was reverted to as from midnight on 30th September, 1927.

WORLD PRODUCTION OF DAIRY-PRODUCE.

The following table shows the production of butter and cheese in the principal dairying countries:—

Country.	Year.	Butter.		Cheese.
Country.	Year.	Quantity.	Place on List	Quantity.	Place on List.
		1,000 lb.		1,000 lb.
Argentina F.	1,927	46,467	13	1,189	18
Australia T.	1,926	252,531	7	26,679	13
Canada T.	1,927	272,979	6	138,472	8
Chile T.	1,927	3,321	18	6,972	16
Czecho-Slovakia F.	1,925	2,952	19	8,556	15
Denmark T.	1,927	357,210	5	47,848	11
Finland F.	1,926	44,237	14	11,660	14
France T.	1,926	382,669	4	462,556	3
Germany T.	1,927	983,161	2	543,698	2
Irish Free State T.	1,926	140,000	11	..	..
Japan T.	1,925	1,918	20	..	..
Netherlands T.	1,927	187,678	8	277,718	5
New Zealand T.	1926	160,874	9	152,017	7
Norway T.	1,926	26,460	16	27,801	12
Russian Soviet Union T.	1,927	786,854	3	1,885,307	1
Sweden F.	1,926	85,298	12	49,907	10
Switzerland T.	1,926	29,767	15	156,013	6
United Kingdom T.	1,924	147,000	10	64,800	9
United States T.	1,927	2,067,000	1	401,000	4
Union of South Africa T.	1,927	24,082	17	6,234	17

NOTE.—The letter “T” denotes total production, while the letter “F” denotes production of creameries and factories only.

According to the foregoing list (which is reproduced from the “Statistics of Dairy Factories, 1927,” a publication of the Dominion Bureau of Dairy Statistics, Canada), New Zealand ranks ninth on the world list, for the production of butter and seventh for cheese. Australia and Canada both have higher productions of butter, but lower productions of cheese, while Denmark produces over twice as much butter but only one-third as much cheese.

WORLD TRADE IN DAIRY-PRODUCE.

Statistics relating to the trade in butter and cheese by the principal countries engaged, during the last five calendar years, are reproduced hereunder from the February and March, 1929, issues of the International Review of Agriculture, published by the International Institute of Agriculture, Rome.

It should be noted particularly that the statistics relate only to the principal countries engaged in the world's trade in butter and cheese. The whole world trade has not been covered.

The following table shows the quantities of cheese exported from the principal cheese-exporting countries during the last five calendar years, together with the percentage ratios the figure for each country bear to the total for each year:—

CHEESE EXPORTS OF PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1924–28.

Country.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Quantities.
	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.
Netherlands	170,354	175,713	185,709	214,568	203,002
New Zealand	178,582	154,196	163,693	167,195	175,537
Canada	121,466	150,743	134,657	110,604	114,151
Italy	74,164	86,229	72,948	70,079	80,456
Switzerland	43,776	51,727	61,972	75,059	62,695
France	34,394	35,688	31,481	30,470	41,798
Denmark	19,532	18,783	15,345	11,645	13,417
Totals	642,268	673,079	665,805	679,620	691,056
Proportion of Total.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Netherlands	27	26	28	32	29
New Zealand	28	23	25	25	25
Canada	18	22	20	16	17
Italy	12	13	11	10	12
Switzerland	7	8	9	11	9
France	5	5	5	4	6
Denmark	3	3	2	2	2
Totals	100	100	100	100	100

The total quantity of cheese exported by the seven countries covered in the foregoing table has gained steadily over the last five years, the figure for 1928 showing a gain of 8 per cent. over that for 1924. The Netherlands shows a consistent increase in this branch of the trade, except in 1928, when a decrease was recorded. New Zealand occupied the premier position in 1924, but the following year brought a substantial reduction, while the Netherlands recorded a gain and thus assumed first place. Since 1925 the New Zealand figures show steady gains, while over the same years Canadian trade appears to have steadily declined.

The outstanding point revealed by a comparison of the export and import trade is the relatively greater increase in imports during the last five years. This, of course, implies an increase in exports from countries not given in the export table. It further directs attention to the fact that the exporting countries are in the main principally engaged in primary production, while the importing countries are the world's principal industrial centres.

Great Britain (including Northern Ireland) is the heaviest importer of cheese, taking each year well over twice the figure for Germany, the second country on the list.

The following table shows the quantities of cheese imported by the principal countries engaged in the import trade of this commodity during the last five calendar years, together with the percentage ratios which the figures for each year bear to the totals:—

CHEESE IMPORTS OF PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1924–28.

Country.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Quantities.
	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.
United Kingdom	323,400	347,054	337,573	330,295	336,711
Germany	96,703	162,942	141,347	158,742	135,532
United States	59,176	62,402	78,417	79,797	81,404
France	39,039	40,553	34,673	43,877	43,907
Belgium	33,379	38,275	33,218	36,540	39,024
Totals	551,697	651,226	625,228	649,251	636,578
Proportion of Total.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
United Kingdom	59	53	54	51	53
Germany	17	25	23	24	21
United States	11	10	13	12	13
France	7	6	5	7	7
Belgium	6	6	5	6	6
Totals	100	100	100	100	100

The butter-export trade differs in a number of respects from the cheese trade. In the first place Denmark occupies a position that hardly corresponds to any country in the cheese trade; in the second place there are more countries involved, and, excluding Denmark, a more even spread of the total trade. New Zealand comes second on this list, while the Netherlands comes fourth.

The following table shows the quantities of butter exported from the principal countries engaged in the export trade during the last five calendar years, together with the percentage ratios the figures for each country bear to the total:—

BUTTER EXTORTS OF PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1924–28.

Country.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Quantities.
	1,000 lb	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.
Denmark	272,037	270,678	292,119	315,725	325,714
New Zealand	142,179	139,478	130,820	163,026	162,353
Australia	111,085	128,494	83,016	75,341	112,355
Netherlands	76,571	87,599	100,430	105,716	103,488
Russia	49,456	55,477	59,409	73,066	67,437
Irish Free State	51,186	45,069	56,699	65,649	62,656
Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania	16,265	32,013	45,356	50,085	59,240
Argentina	65,438	59,283	64,235	46,810	44,700
Sweden	11,827	20,334	33,353	40,697	38,658
Finland	18,184	29,082	29,127	33,237	29,489
France	8,933	9,191	11,040	23,556	24,835
Poland	4	1,194	12,232	16,261	24,194
Canada	22,344	26,646	9,814	2,696	1,995
Totals	845,559	904,538	927,050	1,011,865	1,061,114
Proportion of Total.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Denmark	32	30	32	31	31
New Zealand	17	15	14	16	15
Australia	13	14	9	7	11
Netherlands	9	10	11	10	10
Irish Free State	6	5	6	6	6
Russia	6	6	6	7	6
Other European countries	6	10	14	18	17
Argentina	8	7	7	5	4
Canada	3	3	1	..	..
Totals	100	100	100	100	100

The butter-import trade is confined principally to the great industrial countries which figured in the cheese-import trade, with the rather notable exception of the United States of America.

The following table gives the principal data relating to the butter-import trade during the last five calendar years:—

BUTTER IMPORTS OF PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES, 1924–28.

Country.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Quantities.
	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.	1,000 lb.
United Kingdom	592,169	655,561	651,708	651,682	685,530
Germany	117,898	212,996	215,587	238,686	279,003
Switzerland	19,993	19,092	17,818	18,726	18,060
France	6,863	7,406	1,499	12,064	5,807
Belgium	10,322	9,202	5,014	2,560	2,899
Totals	747,245	904,257	891,626	923,718	991,299
Proportion of Total.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
United Kingdom	79	72	73	71	69
Germany	16	24	24	26	28
Switzerland
France	5	4	3	3	3
Belgium
Totals	100	100	100	100	100

CONSUMPTION AND EXPORT OF MEAT.

MUTTON AND LAMB.

Figures showing sheep and lambs slaughtered for food purposes during each of the last five years, together with the exports of frozen mutton and lamb, are given in the tables following.

The balance between killings and exports during the period represents an annual consumption of 80 lb. of mutton and lamb per head of population, including Maoris.

Year.	Slaughterings.			Exports (including Pieces) during Twelve Months ended 31st March.	Balance for Home Consumption.
Year.	At Abattoirs and Slaughterhouses during Twelve Months ended 31st March.	On Farms during Twelve Months ended 31st January.	Total.		Number.	Approximate Weight.
Mutton.
	Carcasses.	Carcasses.	Carcasses.	Carcasses.	Carcasses.	Cwt.
1924–25	3,354,300	552,002	3,906,302	2,037,953	1,868,349	1,000,901
1925–26	3,026,127	543,859	3,569,986	2,058,083	1,511,903	809,948
1926–27	3,257,386	553,343	3,810,729	2,027,216	1,783,513	955,453
1927–28	3,180,354	523,095	3,703,449	2,220,972	1,482,477	794,184
1928–29	2,980,066	527,705	3,507,771	1,919,794	1,587,977	850,702
Totals for five years	15,798,233	2,700,004	18,498,237	10,264,018	8,234,219	4,411,188
Lamb.
	Carcasses.	Carcasses.	Carcasses.	Carcasses.	Carcasses.	Cwt.
1924–25	4,923,373	45,049	4,968,422	4,401,142	567,280	182,340
1925–26	5,160,941	45,380	5,206,321	4,736,519	469,802	151,008
1926–27	5,494,411	50,439	5,544,850	5,048,186	496,664	159,642
1927–28	5,932,437	48,341	5,980,778	5,804,901	175,877	56,532
1928–29	6,149,482	47,865	6,197,347	5,869,465	327,882	105,391
Totals for five years	27,660,644	237,074	27,897,718	25,860,213	2,037,505	654,913

BEEF.

New Zealand mutton and lamb meet with a ready sale in the London market, but the Dominion's frozen beef competes under difficulties with chilled and fresh beef from countries nearer the United Kingdom, with the consequence that exports of frozen beef from the Dominion have declined in recent years. To counteract this, there is a tendency in New Zealand to consume more beef and less mutton.

The following table shows the number and approximate weight of cattle slaughtered for food purposes in each of the last five years, together with the weight of beef exported. In the figures of slaughterings an average weight of 700 lb. per carcass is taken, and the export figures include potted and preserved meats, the greater portion of which is beef.

Year.	Slaughterings.				Exports during Twelve Months ended 31st March.	Balance for Home Consumption: Approximate Weight.
Year.	At Abattoirs and Slaughterhouses during Twelve Months ended 31st March.	On Farms during Twelve Months ended 31st January.	Total.	Approximate Weight.	Exports during Twelve Months ended 31st March.	Balance for Home Consumption: Approximate Weight.
	Carcasses.	Carcasses.	Carcasses.	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.
1924–25	488,138	12,541	500,679	3,129,244	657,754	2,471,490
1925–26	457,831	11,023	468,854	2,930,337	730,818	2,199,519
1926–27	404,985	8,070	413,055	2,581,594	433,521	2,148,073
1927–28	462,688	7,651	470,339	2,939,619	633,830	2,305,789
1928–29	403,330	5,598	408,928	2,555,800	642,416	1,913,384
Totals for five years	2,216,972	44,883	2,261,855	14,136,594	3,098,339	11,038,255

MEAT-EXPORT CONTROL.

Under the Meat-export Control Act, 1921–22, there has been formed a Meat-producers Board consisting of eight members. Five of these members represent producers of meat for export, two are appointed by the Government, and one represents stock and station agents. Briefly, the objects of the Board are to control the export of meat in the interests of the producers.

Since its inauguration the Board has performed a great deal of work. Matters which have received attention have been marking of parcels, grading of meat, loading and discharging of frozen produce, regulation of shipments, freights (rail and sea), and freezing charges, besides ether matters of prime importance to the producers of meat for export. The Board has fixed the size of shipping-parcels of mutton and lamb at a minimum of 250 carcasses. The question of grading has been firmly tackled with consequent improvement in uniformity throughout the Dominion. Shipments are regulated to avoid (so far as possible) causing a glut in the Home market.

The following table of freight-rates to London indicates the successive reductions which the Board has succeeded in arranging:—

	Old Rate. Per lb.^*	1922–23. Per lb.^†	1924–25. Per lb.^†	1925–29. Per lb.^†	1929–30. Per lb.^†
* Plus 2 1/2 per cent. † Net.
	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.
Mutton	1 5/8	1 1/4	1 3/32	1.01	0.957
Lamb	1 3/4	1 1/2	1 9/32	1.18	1.121
Veal	1 5/8	1 1/8	7/8	0.81	0.766
Pork	1 5/8	1	7/8	0.81	0.766
Beef, quarters	1 3/8	1 1/8	7/8	0.81	0.766
Boned beef, cases	1 5/8	1 1/8	7/8	0.81	0.766
Boned beef, bags	1 3/4	1 1/8	7/8	0.81	0.766
Frozen sundries, cases	1 5/8	3/4	3/4	0.69	0.657
Frozen sundries, bags	1 3/4	3/4	3/4	0.69	0.657
Mutton, legs and pieces, cases	1 5/8	1 7/16	1 1/8	1.04	0.980
Mutton, legs and pieces, bags	1 3/4	1 7/16	1 1/8	1.04	0.980

On average-sized carcasses the reductions to dale are equivalent to the following sums per head, namely—sheep 3s. 6 1/2 d., lambs 1s. 11 1/3d., pigs 9s., bullocks 38s. 6d.

Reductions have also been effected in other charges since 1922, the per unit reductions to date for various services being—

	Sheep.		Lambs.		Bullocks.		Pigs.
Shipping freight—	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
Frozen meat	2	10	1	6.2	32	0	5	11.2
Tallow, pelts, and hides	0	2.5	0	1.5	1	0	..	..
Insurance	0	2.4	0	2	1	4.2	0	3.6
London charges (based on six weeks' storage)	0	3.8	0	2.2	3	10.3	0	5.8
Kidney-fat in lambs	..	0	10	..	..	..	..	..
Freezing charges (not all companies have reduced to this extent)	1	7.8	0	11.5	19	9.6	2	5.7
New Zealand railway tariff (based on works 50 miles from port)	0	2.2	0	1.3	2	6.5	0	3.3
Totals	5	5	3	11	60	7	9	6

The Board regulates shipments from the Dominion with a view to securing steady prices as far as may be possible. The following table shows shipments during each month of the season 1927–28 and the first ten months of the season 1928–29:—

Month of Shipment.	Season 1927–28.			Season 1928–29.
Month of Shipment.	Beef.	Mutton.	Lamb.	Beef.	Mutton.	Lamb.
	Quarters.	Carcasses.	Carcasses.	Quarters.	Carcasses.	Carcasses.
November	6,450	70,258	65,691	14,574	46,272	49,358
December	18,401	55,473	236,799	4,194	69,737	225,999
January	24,807	125,093	733,637	6,773	111,702	779,358
February	19,099	219,207	779,841	600	162,301	680,301
March	46,617	233,678	657,410	14,095	252,072	636,340
April	53,214	215,906	774,145	18,532	182,622	753,323
May	21,866	166,473	745,437	27,632	148,677	711,523
June	47,548	180,009	548,225	22,439	208,314	813,840
July	41,423	195,098	604,222	21,395	116,448	438,047
August	68,626	149,979	333,870	24,232	249,231	606,635
September	36,421	305,415	370,439	..	..	..
October	2,715	77,008	95,999	..	..	..

HORSES.

Since 1911, when the peak number of 404,284 was reached, horses have tended to decline numerically. The number recorded as at 31st January, 1929—viz, 298,986—is the lowest since 1904 and shows a recession of 8,174 from last year's figures. The following table gives details of the latest figures by land districts:—

Land District (including Boroughs).	Stallions Three Years Old and over.	Geldings Three Years Old and over.	Mares Three Years Old and over.		Fillies under Three Years Old.	Colts or Geldings under Three Years Old.	Total Horses.
Land District (including Boroughs).	Stallions Three Years Old and over.	Geldings Three Years Old and over.	Dry.	With Foal at Foot or to Foal this Season.	Fillies under Three Years Old.	Colts or Geldings under Three Years Old.	Total Horses.
North Auckland	170	15,615	13,231	943	1,093	947	31,999
Auckland	272	20,699	18,941	1,678	1,751	1,512	44,853
Gisborne	179	7,885	6,726	1,195	1,322	1,250	18,557
Hawke's Bay	128	6,626	6,129	802	821	710	15,216
Taranaki	105	9,056	8,235	581	702	595	19,274
Wellington	332	16,833	16,395	1,846	2,095	1,836	39,337
Nelson	39	2,870	2,886	222	278	239	6,534
Marlborough	65	2,827	2,716	387	478	435	6,908
Westland	24	975	932	95	119	90	2,235
Canterbury	266	24,876	21,838	3,042	3,718	3,375	57,115
Otago	178	13,323	12,992	1,701	2,202	1,873	32,269
Southland	125	9,938	10,266	1,191	1,662	1,507	24,689
Totals	1,883	131,523	121,287	13,683	16,241	14,369	298,986

The numbers of horses in each of the last five years have been as follows:—

Year	Number of	Numerical	Decrease
* Increase.
(31st January).	Horses.	Decrease.	per Cent.
1925	326,830	3,600	1.09
1926	314,867	11,963	3.80
1927	303,713	11,154	3.54
1928	307,160	3,447^*	1.13^*
1929	298,986	8,174	2.66

Details of breeds of horses, as ascertained at the special collection of 1928, are as given in the following table:—

HORSES AT 31ST JANUARY, 1928, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO BREED, SEX, AND AGE. (EXCLUDING BOROUGHS.)

—	Thoroughbred.	Trotting.	Ponies under Fourteen Hands.	Other Light Horses (Hack or Harness).	Draught (including Three-quarter-draught).	Spring Cart or Light Artillery (including Half-draught).	Totals.
Stallions three years old and over	270	135	182	260	781	99	1,727
Geldings three years old and over	1,100	987	3,284	42,926	55,489	25,271	129,057
Dry mares three years old and over	1,261	933	3,603	39,388	52,999	23,539	121,723
Mares three years old or over with foal at foot or to foal this season	817	355	435	3,788	6,016	1,314	12,725
Fillies under three years old	627	426	534	4,607	7,932	1,856	15,982
Colts or geldings under three years old	518	372	474	3,975	7,005	1,656	14,000
Total horses	4,593	3,208	8,512	94,944	130,222	53,735	295,214

ASSES AND MULES.

Asses and mules numbered 237 as at the 31st January, 1929, being a decrease of 13 on the figures for 1928.

PIGS.

After earlier vicissitudes, pig-breeding showed signs of being in a more stable condition, as increases in the total number were recorded in each year from 1919 until 1928. In 1929, however, a check occurred, the figures receding from 586,898 to 556,732.

The following table shows the classification by breeds as at the special collection conducted in 1928. The figures are exclusive of pigs within borough boundaries.

Breed.	Pigs under One Year Old.	Boars One Year Old and over.	Sows One Year Old and over.	Totals.
Pure Berkshire	56,441	5,772	16,545	78,758
Pure Yorkshire	5,599	642	2,314	8,555
Other purebred pigs	9,520	1,491	4,545	15,556
Crossbred pigs	410,373	7,462	59,000	476,835
Totals	481,933	15,367	82,404	579,704

Figures as at the 31st January, 1929, are given in the next table, according to land districts.

PIGS AT 31ST JANUARY, 1929.

Land District (including Boroughs).	Pigs under One Year Old.	Boars One Year Old and over.	Sows One Year Old and over.	Total Pigs.
North Auckland	74,125	2,326	11,705	88,156
Auckland	144,087	4,827	23,852	172,766
Gisborne	15,713	650	2,899	19,262
Hawke's Bay	15,305	552	2,607	18,464
Taranaki	47,320	1,770	7,876	56,966
Wellington	64,213	2,178	11,329	77,720
Nelson	14,005	435	2,058	16,498
Marlborough	6,486	213	1,013	7,712
Westland	5,294	170	740	6,204
Canterbury	46,127	1,172	6,188	53,487
Otago	20,261	575	2,705	23,541
Southland	13,837	399	1,720	15,956
Totals	466,773	15,267	74,692	556,732

During the five years ended the 31st March, 1929, 1,994,723 pigs were slaughtered at abattoirs and registered slaughterhouses, and during the quinquennium to 31st January, 1929, 230,134 were slaughtered by farmers on holdings of 1 acre or over, the total slaughterings during the five years representing approximately 2,400,000 hundredweight of pork, bacon, and ham. The figures for each year are—

Year.	Pigs slaughtered.			Approximate Weight of Pork, Bacon, and Ham.
Year.	At Abattoirs, &c.	On Farms.	Total.	Pigs slaughtered at Abattoirs, &c.	Pigs slaughtered on Farms.	Total.
	Number.	Number.	Number.	Cwt.	Cwt.	Cwt.
1924–25	307,774	51,409	359,183	329,758	55,081	384,839
1925–26	358,339	47,897	406,236	383,935	51,318	435,253
1926–27	402,720	41,601	444,321	431,486	44,572	476,058
1927–28	455,397	42,836	498,233	487,925	45,896	533,821
1928–29	470,493	46,391	516,884	504,100	49,704	553,804
Totals for five years	1,994,723	230,134	2,224,857	2,137,204	246,571	2,383,775

Exports of frozen pork during the five calendar years 1924–28 totalled 400,664 cwt., and 24,035 cwt. of bacon and hams and 16 cwt. of salted pork were also exported. Over the period 82 per cent. of the pork, bacon, and ham produced was consumed in the Dominion.

GOATS.

The number of Angora goats in the Dominion on the 31st January, 1929, was 8,590, an increase of 2,694 since 1928. Other goats increased by 7,281 during the period, the number in 1929 being 25,636.

POULTRY.

The number of poultry in New Zealand at the taking of the 1926 census was ascertained to be 3,781,145, a decrease of 209,864 as compared with the number for the year 1921 (3,991,009). The number of poultry per head of population was 2.8, which is the lowest figure since 1864.

The figures of poultry for each of the last five censuses are as follows:—

Census Year.	Fowls.	Ducks.	Geese.	Turkeys.	Total.
1906	2,784,269	281,999	44,300	77,101	3,187,669
1911	3,215,031	329,230	45,389	97,933	3,687,583
1916	3,141,354	220,808	46,955	56,521	3,465,638
1921	3,491,567	379,988	46,234	73,220	3,991,009
1926	3,308,384	352,030	43,879	76,852	3,781,145

In connection with the census of 1926, statistics were compiled as to the sizes of flocks of fowls, and the results are instructive as showing that, though poultry-farming as a definite branch of farming exists to some small extent, poultry-keeping is generally carried on merely as a side-line.

The classification of flocks of fowls is—

Size of Flock.	Number of Flocks.
Under 12	55,278
12 and under 25	62,710
25 and under 50	27,459
50 and under 75	5,514
75 and under 100	1,178
100 and under 150	1,022
150 and under 200	314
200 and under 300	334
300 and under 400	126
400 and under 500	72
500 and under 750	99
750 and under 1,000	49
1,000 and over	66
Total	154,221

The average number of fowls per flock was thus only twenty-one. The total number of households keeping poultry of any kind was 158,856, of which no fewer than 68,133 were in cities and boroughs.

The Poultry Act, 1924, provides for the regulating of the keeping of poultry and the sale and export of poultry and eggs. Provision is made for the appointment of inspectors, on whom certain powers of entry for purposes of inspection of poultry or eggs intended for export are conferred. Poultry are required to be kept under sanitary conditions, and cruelty to poultry is made an offence. Every owner of poultry is required to notify an inspector of any outbreak of disease among his poultry and to comply with the inspector's directions. It is an offence to sell diseased poultry. The Governor-General in Council is empowered to declare diseases, to appoint ports of export, and to appoint grading-stores.

BEES.

The dairying-lands of the Dominion are eminently suited for the rearing of bees, and a very high-grade product is put on the market from local apiaries. The export trade is, of course, small when compared with the main primary industries, but is capable of considerable development. Honey from the apiaries of the Dominion is much appreciated wherever it is known.

In New Zealand the Department of Agriculture devotes proportionately the same attention to detail in the case of honey for export as is given to butter and cheese forwarded for consumption beyond the Dominion. Honey must be forwarded to grading-stores at Auckland, New Plymouth, Wellington, Lyttelton, Greymouth, Timaru, Dunedin, and Bluff for grading prior to export, and may be exported only through those ports. The Apiaries Act, 1927, which came into operation on 1st January, 1928, was passed to consolidate and amend the law relating to the bee industry. Stringent regulations have been enacted in order to control foul-brood bee-moths, and other diseases of bees. Beekeepers' are required to register their apiaries, and it is an offence to keep bees in an unregistered apiary. Only frame hives may be used.

Registrations under the Apiaries Act show that on 16th February, 1929, 5,985 apiaries, representing 91,901 hives, were registered. The following table gives details of apiaries according to number of hives:—

	Apiaries.	Hives.
Under 5	2,906	6,211
5 to 9	994	6,523
10 to 2	905	13,738
25 to 49	635	21,888
50 to 99	426	26,809
100 and over	119	16,732
Totals	5,985	91,901

Hives of bees, classified according to breed, are as follows:—

Italian	35,534
Black	18,499
Crossbred	37,868
Totals	91,901

Exports of honey for the last five years were.:—

Year.	Quantity.	Value.
	lb.	£
1924	1,186,269	29,721
1925	1,822,043	53,156
1926	1,211,396	35,432
1927	850,011	25,170
1928	2,329,131	77,495

A system of control on much the same lines as in the case of meat and dairy-produce was introduced by the Honey-export Control Act, 1924. The function of the Board set up (after a poll of producers, who decided by a large majority in favour the scheme) is to control all honey intended for export.

Chapter 19. SECTION XIX.—FORESTRY.

INTRODUCTORY.

THE administration of the State forests and of the afforestation activities of New Zealand was for many years under the control of the Lands and Survey Department, but in 1919 a separate Forestry Department was formed. This was reorganized in 1920 as the State Forest Service, and on the passing of the Forests Act, 1921–22, the forest authority was defined as the Commissioner of State Forests (who is a Minister of the Crown), the Director of Forestry, the Secretary of Forestry, and such conservators, rangers, and other officers as may be appointed from time to time.

The central management and administrative control of the Service consist of the Director and the Secretary, with the Head Office at Wellington. Other personnel comprise a Chief Inspector, conservators, milling expert, engineer in forest products, forest assistants, rangers, forest guards, and clerical officers.

The legislation governing the State forests of the Dominion is contained in the Forests Act, 1921–22, and its amendments of 1925 and 1926, and in section 17 of the Finance Act, 1924. Regulations have been issued under the State Forests Act, 1908, and the Forests Act, 1921–22.

New Zealand in 1920 evolved a forest policy, which had for its main objectives the economic development of timber areas, the regulation of stream flow, the conservation of water-supplies, and the maintenance of climatic stability. This policy is now developing along the following lines:—

Conservation of the remaining forests in order that they may, under proper management, contribute to the future timber-supplies of New Zealand or function as protection and climatic forests.

The afforestation of all lands which cannot be profitably farmed, but on which trees can be successfully grown. This afforestation can be carried out by the State by local authorities, or by private individuals and companies.

FOREST AREAS AND RESOURCES.

The rapid advance of settlement since 1840, the operations of sawmills, and the ravages caused by fires of kauri-gum diggers, mining prospectors, and other pioneers, have resulted in the original forest area of New Zealand being rapidly reduced, so that according to the forest inventory the remaining total area of forest in the Dominion is now only about 12,593,000 acres, or 19.1 per cent. of the total area. A considerable proportion of this area, however, being ordinary Crown land, Native land, and privately-owned land, will probably be deforested and made available for settlement. About half of the area is alpine meadow-land, subalpine scrub-land, or protection forest.

A classification of the total area of the North, South, and Stewart Islands, as disclosed by the preliminary national forest inventory completed in 1923, showed that there were 20,565 square miles of forest land, of which 5,646 square miles carry stands of over 5,000 ft., board measure, of softwoods to the acre, and may be classed as “merchantable” forest land.

The latest returns show that there are approximately 2,290 million cubic feet of economically exploitable softwoods.

Kauri is now practically a State monopoly, as the remaining privately-owned stands of importance are being milled. It has been the policy during the past few years only to dispose of kauri existing in isolated clumps which were in danger from fire, and an ever-present temptation to gum-poachers, their isolated state presenting difficulties in efficient patrolling. This policy will be continued until sufficient data have been obtained to enable a management-plan to be perfected which will place these forests on a sustained-yield basis. It is estimated that not more than 250 million board feet of kauri remains.

During recent years a marked decrease has been noticeable in the utilization of totara and matai, this leading to an extended probable life of the remaining stands of these valuable softwoods. Californian redwood, which can be sold on the New Zealand market at a price very much less than that of totara, with which it is in direct competition for joinery-work, has now largely displaced totara for this purpose. Similarly, redwood and cedar, owing mainly to price differences, are replacing matai for weatherboarding, although the latter species still enjoys a steady demand for flooring, no imported timber competing with it to any extent for this purpose.

Following the trend of previous years, substitutes for white-pine continue to be imported in increasing quantities for box and crate manufacture, price again being the ruling factor accounting for the decreased use of white-pine.

Hardwoods, with the exception of silver-beech, continue to be neglected. The trade in this species, however, which has increased rapidly during the past five years, promises to increase still further, as the species has been very highly commended abroad for the manufacture of rifle-butts, and for wine-casks, &c.

Recent pulping tests carried out on local hardwoods have indicated that tawa is the only native hardwood which shows promise of commercial success for this purpose. Newsprint produced from a mixture of tawa and softwood pulp has been commended very highly by newspaper proprietors after rigorous commercial tests.

FOREST DEDICATION.

The following schedule shows the areas controlled by the State Forest Service at the 31st March, 1929:—

AREAS DEDICATED TO FORESTRY AND CONSERVATION.

Period.	Permanent State Forests.	Provisional State Forests.	Forest Reserves and Miscellaneous.	Total Area.
* 418,370 acres reserved prior to 1919; of this, 96,071 acres have been transferred to the control of the Forest Service.
	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	Acres.
Dedicated prior to year 1919	1,662,007	..	^*	1,662,007
Dedicated during the period 1919–29 (net increase)	377,326	5,641,511	96,071	6,114,908
Totals at 31st March, 1929	2,039,333	5,641,511	96,071	7,776,915

Acquisitions by purchase of forested lands or lands for afforestation through the medium of the State Forests Account are made from time to time, and are included in the total area shown as dedicated for the period.

With respect to these areas the policy of the Government is that the question of forestry is to be regarded as fundamentally a land-use problem, calling for full co-ordination between the Departments of Lands, Agriculture, and Forestry. All unplanted afforestation areas therefore are being examined, particularly with respect to soil-analysis and general suitability for settlement purposes.

DESCRIPTION OF INDIGENOUS FOREST.

The composition and distribution of the forest types of New Zealand are dependent chiefly upon climatic conditions, the amount of precipitation, with the resulting soil-moisture, being the main determining climatic factor. At least four broad forest divisions may be distinguished:—

Kauri.—Kauri-forest type, in that part of the Dominion lying north of a line drawn from Tauranga to Port Waikato. Kauri is the predominant tree.
Podocarp.—(a) Rimu type, common throughout on the foothills up to 2,000 ft.; the heaviest stands occur in the central part of the North Island, the west-coast and southern portions of the South Island. (b) Kahikatea type, found on alluvial flats throughout the Dominion. (c) Totara type, with its optimum in the central pumice lands of the North Island.
Southern Beech.—Beech type, on high land, generally above 1,000 ft., in the central part of the North Island, and over most of the South Island forest areas, generally between 1,000 ft. and 4,000 ft, altitude.
Scrub Types.—Manuka type; gorse and blackberry type; mangrove type; &c.

From the number of species, the abundance of lianes, perching-plants, tree-ferns, filmy ferns, &c., the forests, with the exception of the beech areas, have the appearance and general character of tropical forests. The components of the rain forest vary, however, in different localities, and often one or two species dominate the association to such an extent as to warrant the application of a type name—e.g., “tawa association,” “tawhero association,” &c.

Though the forest-trees of New Zealand are ninety-nine in number, only about twenty of them are of value as timber-trees; in fact, at present only six are being used to any extent by sawmillers, and of these five are coniferous (softwood) timbers. There are already indications that the high prices and growing scarcity of many of the best New Zealand timbers will bring about the use of many of those now neglected. There are several timbers—e.g., puriri, kohekohe, pukatea—which possess very high qualities, but which are now to be obtained only in such small quantities that they are of little commercial importance. A short description of each of the chief forest-trees appeared in the 1924 number of the Year-book.

OUTPUT AND CONSUMPTION OF TIMBER.

The principal timbers milled in New Zealand at present are rimu and kahikatea. The subjoined table gives particulars regarding the output of timber by species for the last five years, together with the relative position each species of timber occupies in regard to the total production:—

Species of Timber.	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926.27.	1927–28.
	Ft. B.M.	Ft. B.M.	Ft. B.M.	Ft. B.M.	Ft. B.M.
Kauri	19,743,196	22,891,535	22,765,877	18,474,981	15,874,478
Rimu	181,093,581	195,572,705	195,451,758	170,498,282	156,313,561
Kahikatea	56,699,443	65,572,439	75,634,869	65,490,059	53,735,889
Matai	24,326,148	23,947,707	26,141,027	19,380,469	15,207,406
Totara	18,904,361	18,509,551	14,109,576	14,179,462	10,727,505
Beech	6,528,981	6,836,403	8,701,197	8,595,898	7,923,069
Pinus radiata (insignis)	7,386,249	7,705,981	7,071,794	6,667,976	7,694,957
Other and unspecified	2,387,257	3,058,553	3,348,098	2,388,131	2,306,409
Totals	317,069,216	344,094,874	353,224,196	305,675,258	269,783,274
	Per Cent. of	Per Cent. of	Per Cent, of	Per Cent. of	Per Cent, of
	Total.	Total.	Total.	Total.	Total.
Kauri	6.23	6.65	6.45	6.04	5.88
Rimu	57.12	56.84	55.34	55.79	57.94
Kahikatea	17.88	19.06	21.41	21.42	19.92
Matai	7.67	6.96	7.40	6.34	5.64
Totara	5.96	5.38	3.99	4.64	3.98
Beech	2.06	1.98	2.46	2.81	2.94
Pinus radiata (insignis)	2.33	2.24	2.00	2.18	2.85
Other and unspecified	0.75	0.89	0.95	0.78	0.85
Totals	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00

The total of 2,306,409 ft. b.m. shown for “Other and unspecified” species for 1927–28 is made up as follows:—

Species.	Ft. B.M.
Poplar	480,041
Miro	469,083
Tawa	309,623
Rata	239,246
Silver-pine	212,239
Puriri	106,856
Pukatea	98,289
Mangeao	52,144
Blue-gum	44,648
Hinau	31,059
Kawaka	26,869
Rewarewa	26,245
Tanekaha	19,280
Maire	13,318
Macrocarpa	11,588
Pokaka	7,000
Kamahi	5,000
Taraire	1,500
Yellow-pine	490
Unspecified	151,891
Total	2,306,409

Exports of New Zealand timber during the calendar year 1928 amounted to 35,028,338 ft. b.m., valued at £377,477, the principal species being kahikatea (25,439,140 ft.), rimu (4,866,534 ft.), beech (2,245,917 ft.), and kauri (1,670,091 ft.). Imports during the year comprised 49,483,681 ft. b.m. of sawn timber (including 17,067,487 ft. of Oregon pine, 13,392,274 ft. of Australian hardwoods, 7,483,295 ft. of redwood, 5,710,852 ft. of hemlock, 2,066,115 ft. of cedar, and 2,042,117 ft. of oak), valued at £543,507; 5,108,700 ft. b.m. of logs and poles, valued at £79,985; 3,220,770 ft. b.m. of butter-boxes and cheese-crates, valued at £38,194; and laths, sleepers, and other items of a value of £88,386. The figures of exports and imports of timber during the last five years are:—

Year.	Exports of New Zealand Timber.		Imports of Timber.
	Exports of New Zealand Timber.		Measured in Feet.		Other Items.	Total Value.
	Quantity.	Value.	Quantity.	Value.	Other Items.	Total Value.
	Ft. B.M.	£	Ft. B.M.	£	£	£
1924	42,928,726	472,120	59,810,611	914,506	129,323	1,043,829
1925	49,204,676	573,882	71,300,921	998,277	197,073	1,195,350
1926	40,465,221	475,627	65,448,115	811,617	41,494	853,111
1927	37,147,798	425,453	56,413,365	704,440	95,703	800,143
1928	35,028,338	377,477	56,806,334	661,686	88,386	750,072

PROGRESS OF FOREST MANAGEMENT.

RECONNAISSANCE AND INVENTORY.

With a view to ascertaining the forest resources of the Dominion, a preliminary inventory was completed in 1923, which provided the groundwork for the compilation of plans towards the conservation and silvicultural management of the indigenous forests, and estimates of the forests and timber content with sufficient accuracy to enable a forecast of the Dominion forest resources to be prepared in 1925.

The necessity of carrying forward this work with an increasing degree of intensity until a detailed and reliable inventory of timber stocks and areas can be produced to function both for national purposes and as a guide to the timber industry has been fully appreciated, but necessarily subordinated upon the grounds of staff organization. In the meantime it has been considered wise to carry out only those demarcations, appraisals, &c., which could be justified upon the grounds of normal demands by the timber industry, and to concentrate the staff resources upon duties incidental to the carrying-out of the afforestation objective.

With the completion of that objective substantially assured, it is now possible to revert gradually to the compilation of a revised accurate inventory. Preliminary plans to that end have already been laid down, and will be accelerated to the degree to which qualified officers can be released for that purpose.

In conjunction with the inventory of the native forests, the exotic plantations have been subjected to a detailed stocktaking, and complete records are available as' to the extent and also the yields of the various species in each of the various plantations. As the composition and age of the exotic forests are much simpler than those of the native forests, it has already been possible to compile yield tables for the major species within the plantations.

WORKING-PLANS.

The preparation of the first detailed forest working-plans with respect to the plantation areas has been commenced, the first of which it is expected will be completed before 1930.

Working-plans for the indigenous forests are complicated by such factors as methods of logging operation, variation in demand for timber, uncertainty of reproduction of most of the native species, &c. Hence working-plans of the simplest type only will be possible in the near future.

As the basis of a forest-management plan is the cutting-budget, and economic considerations control the silvicultural policy, at present the exigencies of practical logging and local economic conditions call for clear felling, and this policy will probably be continued in the mature stands of podocarp forests in the North Island.

Investigations which are proceeding in the South Island tend to show, however, that the forests of Westland can be placed on a sustained-yield basis.

DEMARCATION SURVEYS, ETC.

Afforestation surveys, demarcations, &c., are proceeding to the full limit of available resources, and are well in advance of the planting programme. The demarcation of approximately 14 per cent. of the State forests, totalling 1,060,100 acres, has been completed and permanently defined in the field. Seventy-eight plans of these areas have been prepared and approved.

Permanent forest improvements within the indigenous forests areas have been made where economically justifiable, and can be summarized as follows as at the 31st March, 1929: Demarcation tracks and protection improvements valued at £4,222, buildings and telephone-lines valued at £3,740 and £366 respectively, making a grand total of £8,328.

VOLUME TABLES AND STATISTICS.

Statistics of a fundamental type, such as taper studies on which volume tables for the three main divisions of New Zealand have been based, are being steadily carried on. In addition to volume tables for the major softwood species (rimu), for which species three tables are available, a volume table for tawa in the Mamaku district has also been prepared. In all instances the tables are based on taper rather than average volume.

Regular mill utilization, conversion and defect studies, have been carried out since 1922, and the results obtained are applied together with the volume tables in the estimate of timber for sale.

Test cruises have been carried out systematically in order to ascertain the degree of accuracy arising from the use of various methods.

A forest log scale has been published. The State Forest Service co-operates with other Government Departments in regard to all questions affecting timber, timber-production, tree-planting, &c., and planting and other similar projects are reported upon for local bodies. The services of the Department are also readily given to the public with respect to all timber technological problems and the many other aspects of forestry.

SILVICULTURAL INVESTIGATIONS.

Silvicultural investigations have been carried out principally for the purpose of obtaining data for the preparation of forest working-plans. Much information has been obtained upon the growth and yield of the exotic species, and preliminary yield tables are available for the commoner species. The growth and yield of the native species have not yet been accurately determined, and, while the subject has been partially studied, the main difficulty lies in determining whether the growth-rings of the various species are annual rings, or merely indicate dry and wet seasons of the year. Experiments have been made to test the value of underplanting in cut-over bush lands with exotics, but further time must elapse before definite conclusions can be arrived at.

Ecological studies have been carried out in the various native forest stands of the Dominion, and valuable data have already been obtained in this connection.

In all the recently established plantations small permanent sample plots are established as a matter of routine, in order to more readily trace the behaviour of the species from its earliest stages, and at present over five hundred such plots are under regular observation.

FOREST UTILIZATION.

During the past eight years the Service has been engaged upon many fundamental problems of silvicultural and forest-products research, in an endeavour to encourage an efficient utilization of the indigenous and exotic forests throughout New Zealand, and to reduce the waste involved in the conversion of the standing forest into the various products used in commerce. Much reliable information is now available regarding the properties of native and exotic species, and their possibilities for use in the wood-using industries.

Uniform classification and grading rules have been completed for New Zealand building-timbers, making possible the purchase of specific grades throughout the whole of the Dominion.

As a result of tests, certain native species are now being used in preference to imported timber for motor-body building.

Dry-kiln schedules have been developed for a number of the native species for use in modern scientifically controlled commercial kilns, and air-seasoning values have been determined for the main building species throughout all districts.

The mechanical and physical properties of twenty-four species of native and exotic timbers have been investigated. Structural tests have been carried out upon two species, and full-sized poles, cross-arms, and mine-props of species considered suitable for those purposes have been tested.

Non-pressure preservative treatments have been developed for all native and exotic species suitable for fencing-posts, using creosote as the preserving-agent, and preliminary experiments on the pressure treatment of native timbers with water-soluble preservatives have been commenced.

Laboratory, semi-commercial, and commercial pulp and papermaking tests have been carried out, mainly in co-operation with the Madison Forest Products Laboratory, U.S.A., on many species of native and exotic woods. Tests have also been made to determine the possibility of using bled kauri-gum in the varnish and lacquer industry.

Detailed microscopic examinations have been made into the zoning of rimu, miro, and totara, and the structure of the secondary wood of Pinus insignis. The fibre characteristics of the main native and exotic species in New Zealand have been investigated.

The greater part of the forest-products local research work has been carried out in co-operation with the Auckland, Victoria, and Canterbury University Colleges.

TIMBER-SALES.

A modern and efficient sales policy for the disposal of the mature timber in State forests was put into operation in 1920, with beneficial results both to the State and to the wood-using public, whereby the standing timber is appraised and disposed of by tender as a block sale, the quantity of each species being shown in cubic feet, with the equivalent board-foot measurement. The receipts from timber-sales during the last five years are as follows:—

Year.	Timber sold.	Contract Price obtained.
	Ft. B.M.	£
1924–25	69,253,000	96,158
1925–26	73,659,000	80,565
1926–27	43,144,000	52,125
1927–28	24,310,100	34,000
1928–29	41,465,365	44,732

FINANCE.

Up to and including the financial year 1915–16 the expenditure on forestation was provided out of rents and royalties received from State Forest reserves and by an annual contribution from the Consolidated Fund. In 1916–17 provision was made for the borrowing of money for forestry purposes, and since that date all receipts and payments are shown in a State Forests Account.

An analysis of receipts and payments during the last ten years is given below.

Year.	Receipts.				Payments.
Year.	Forest Income.	Loans raised.^*	Interest on Investments.	Total.	Capital.	Operation.	Interest on Loans.	Total.
* Including advances from Consolidated Fund. † Including £100,000 purchase of Selwyn Settlement forest.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1919–20	8,514	65,000	..	73,514	60,844	5,975	3,577	70,396
1920–21	19,518	70,000	..	89,518	64,802	14,570	6,127	85,499
1921–22	30,784	86,780	..	117,564	69,840	38,087	9,797	117,724
1922–23	63,372	214,221	2,935	280,528	51,823	38,591	19,701	110,115
1923–24	93,480	209	6,013	99,702	54,323	43,077	23,172	120,572
1924–25	161,469	100,000	6,727	268,196	171,920^†	56,245	23,157	251,322
1925–26	152,550	..	7,178	159,728	115,886	63,729	28,004	207,619
1926–27	128,566	..	4,552	133,118	134,411	72,787	29,077	236,275
1927–28	115,398	160,000	1,224	276,622	152,395	75,896	35,040	263,331
1928–29	90,114	200,000	3,205	293,319	208,816	72,165	44,189	325,170

The revenue from indigenous forests is heavily reduced by statutory payments in favour of local bodies and the National Endowment Account, and during recent years the residue has been little more than sufficient to meet the expenses of supervision and management; consequently the establishment of plantations has been financed almost exclusively from loan-moneys.

During the past two years the purchase of land has been confined to areas required for the carrying-out of the afforestation objective. Large indigenous-forest areas, however, still remain under the control of private or Native owners.

Costing systems relative to nursery and plantation operations organized upon recognized commercial lines are now being put into operation throughout all projects, designed in such a manner that officers in charge have constantly available the essential field costing-data to enable them to measure the degree of economy attending the progress of their projects before any serious miscalculation can arise.

CONTROL OF FOREST FAUNA.

Deer are still a menace to the forests in certain districts by their destruction of young growth, and also to farmers by raids on cereal and turnip crops. Wild pigs also constitute a serious menace to farmers by the mortality caused to young lambs. In recognition of the serious aspect of the matter the State provides funds for the destruction of these pests, 2s. per tail being paid to deerstalkers and cullers in certain areas, and 1s. per snout being paid in the case of pigs. Further measures are being taken to control deer, pigs, and goats, and investigations are being made into the question of the commercial exploitation of skins, hides, antlers, &c. Opossums provide a valuable by-product of the forest, and during the 1928 season skins were secured to the value of £87,000. The Service, which co-operates with the Department of Internal Affairs and the various acclimatization societies in the control of these animals, receives approximately £4,500 annually as its share of revenue from opossum licenses and bounties, the money being devoted to the destruction of deer, pigs, and goats, and to the protection of native bird-life.

The Service is actively concerned with the protection of indigenous birds which act as pollinators of forest-tree flowers, as checks on the spread of insect pests, and as distributors of forest-tree seeds. Thirty-six species of birds are predominantly forest-dwellers, of which twenty-eight species live either wholly or in part on insects, sixteen chiefly or partly on berries, and five suck nectar from forest flowers, and, as already mentioned, act as chief agents in pollination. For these reasons the State Forest Service closely co-operates with the Department of Internal Affairs, the New Zealand Native Birds Protection Society, and other interested bodies with a view to creating a better public sentiment on this important matter. Illegal shooting is punishable by a fine, and where prima facie cases can be established legal proceedings are invariably taken.

FOREST ENTOMOLOGY.

Arrangements have been made with the Cawthron Institute whereby a forest entomological officer employed by the State Forest Service has been stationed at Nelson and will work in conjunction with the Institute. This officer has full facilities for use of the laboratories, library, and insectaries of the Cawthron Institute, and is kept in touch with all allied lines of research proceeding there. The work that has been carried on has consequently extended from the previous matters of routine identification and general surveys of insect conditions, and the following definite programmes have been put in hand: (a) Systematic examination of all tree-seeds imported for the Forest Service; (b) an intensive forest survey from the insect point of view; (c) a systematic examination of imported hardwood poles. Besides these matters actual contact has been maintained with the whole of the parasite work carried out by the Cawthron Institute, including the introduction, rearing, and liberation of the ichneumon parasite of wood-wasp.

FOREST-FIRE PROTECTION.

One of the greatest problems of forest-conservation is that of fire-prevention, and fire-fighting methods have been improved by the establishment of fire lookout stations, access tracks, tool caches, improved telephone communication, and the provision of mobile fire-fighting equipment. The fire districts constituted to minimize the fire risks and danger to the indigenous and exotic forests total thirty-four, and the owners of properties included in these districts recognize the obvious advantages which thereby accrue. The forest-fire-district principle was a, distinct advance in forest legislation in this Dominion, and local bodies and commercial afforestation companies are beginning to avail themselves of the statutory powers which provide for the constitution of private fire districts on lands under their control; already five such districts have been formed.

The continued assistance and co-operation of the honorary forest ranger staff, which now stands at ninety-six, constitute a very valuable public service which is voluntary and carries no honorarium. In many localities the honorary rangers function as local agents, reporting and assisting to suppress fires, and to detect poaching, trespass, shooting of native birds, &c.

EDUCATION IN FORESTRY.

The policy of inculcating a love of trees and of nature, and of developing an appreciation of the benefits to be secured from tree-culture is steadily pursued. Activities in this direction include exhibits at agricultural shows, the sale of trees for planting at lowest prices, the publication of descriptive literature, and a scheme of forestry in the schools. Tree nurseries have been established in many schools through-out the Dominion, and tree-seeds, in addition to young trees, are provided by the Forest Service for planting purposes by scholars. The formation of many school plantations is progressing.

University educational facilities have been provided by Auckland and Canterbury University Colleges respectively, where forest engineers, technicians, and rangers can be thoroughly trained in all matters pertaining to the profession of forestry.

STATE AFFORESTATION.

State afforestation on an organized basis dates from 1896, when an Afforestation Branch of the Lands Department was formed, and forest-tree nurseries were established at Tapanui and Eweburn in the South Island, and at Rotorua in the North Island. Shortly afterwards afforestation was started on an extensive scale at these and other localities.

New Zealand has 4,860,000 acres of fern, scrub, and second-growth land hitherto unproductive but mainly suitable for the growth of trees. In 1925 an objective was set of completing the planting of 300,000 acres of these lands before 1935. Of this objective, 190,080 acres have been planted to 31st March, 1929, including areas in existence prior to 1925.

The diagram on the left shows the progressive movement towards the objective planned, while that on the right shows the plantings during each of the last five years.

STATE PLANTATIONS.

The total area of State plantations is now 190,080 acres, of which 137,393 acres are in the North Island, and 52,687 in the South Island. In the North Island the three main plantations are in the Rotorua district—Kaingaroa (105,153 acres), Whakarewarewa (7,677 acres), and Waiotapu (7,352 acres).

The reserve known as Whakarewarewa Plantation is situated immediately behind Rotorua Nursery, whence it extends in a southerly direction for a distance of seven miles. Waiotapu Plantation, which is twenty miles distant by road from Rotorua, comprises a large block of undulating country lying to the east of the Rotorua – Taupo Road. Joining this plantation on the east is the reserve on the Kaingaroa Plains, distant from Rotorua some thirty miles, and comprising a comparatively small part of the extensive plateau which lies between the Rangitaiki River on the east and the Waiotapu Valley on the west. Here are situated the youngest portions of the State plantations and the present centre of the tree-planting activities.

While many species were experimented with in the initial stages of the work, the chief species used to any considerable extent in the Rotorua district were European larch, Austrian pine, Corsican pine, Western yellow-pine, and a variety of eucalypti. Of more recent years the species used for planting have been Douglas fir, Western yellow - pine, Pinus radiata (insignis), Corsican pine, and, to a smaller extent, Weymouth pine.

The other plantations in the North Island are situated at Puhipuhi (1,200 acres) and Waipoua (157 acres), North Auckland, on areas which once carried kauri forest; at the head of Auckland Harbour at Riverhead (5,813 acres); at Maramarua, in the Waikato (2,860 acres); at Karioi, on the Waimarino Plains (6,659 acres); and at Tangimoana, on the Rangitikei sand-dune experimental area (522 acres).

In the South Island the main plantations are situated in the northern portion of the Canterbury Land District, at Hanmer Springs (7,365 acres), Balmoral (17,416 acres), and Eyrewell (3,135 acres); in Central Otago, at Naseby (2,560 acres); in South Otago, at Conical Hills (3,489 acres), Greenvale (3,704 acres), Blue Mountains (8,318 acres), Dusky Hill (751 acres), and Pukerau (600 acres); in Westland at the Forest Experiment Station (1,488 acres); in Nelson at Golden Downs (2,959 acres); in Marlborough, at Dumgree (342 acres). The balance of 560 acres consists of small experimental plantations in various localities.

During the period over which State afforestation has been in progress in the South Island practically all the best-known commercial trees of the Northern Hemisphere have been experimented with, but many have been discarded as unsuitable for various reasons, until at the present time operations are being conducted with a comparatively small range of conifers of proved economic importance, which experience has shown will most readily adapt themselves to local conditions. The principal species now being raised for afforestation purposes are P. ponderosa, P. Laricio, Douglas fir, and Pinus radiata (insignis).

STATE NURSERIES.

To provide trees for the establishment of State plantations, nurseries are maintained at Waipoua, Riverhead, and Maramarua in the Auckland district; at Rotorua and Kaingaroa; and at Karioi in the Wellington district. The nursery at Rotorua is also the chief distributing-station of trees to supply the requirements of local authorities and farmers in the North Island, of 146,379,000 trees have been raised at this station since 1898; while the total number of trees raised to the 31st March, 1929, for all North Island nurseries is 204,089,000.

The chief South Island nurseries are situated at Hanmer, Tapanui, Naseby, and Golden Downs, and these, together with nurseries now closed, have successfully raised 89,985,000 trees to the 31st March, 1929.

Of the total number of trees raised in all nurseries, 186,865,000 have been utilized in State plantations and 30,797,000 for distribution to local authorities, private individuals, &c.

During the year ended 31st March, 1929, the nursery output was 39,564,500 trees, of which 33,919,300 were utilized in the State plantations and the balance sold to private individuals.

LOCAL-GOVERNMENT AND PRIVATE AFFORESTATION.

Increased interest and activity has been shown by boroughs, town districts, counties, Power and Harbour Boards, and other local bodies in the formation of commercial forests.

The State Forest Service activities in the raising of forest-tree stock of high quality for sale, at prices that cover merely actual cost and overhead expenses, to local authorities, school committees, settlers, proprietary and co-operative afforestation companies, inaugurated in 1915, has resulted in the supply to date of some 29,766,900 trees, of which 3,260,900 were supplied during the year ended 31st March, 1929. In addition, many trees are obtained for private afforestation from the Dominion Federated Nurserymen's Association.

During 1928–29 the State Forest Service supplied 2,035 lb. of tree-seeds to Dominion and overseas growers, as compared with 2,156 lb. in 1927–28. The Service also co-operates with Forest Administrations abroad by exchanging tree-seeds.

Private planting is fostered and encouraged by means of advice, instruction, correspondence, demonstrations at agricultural and industrial shows, distribution of circulars and leaflets, and preparation of planting plans.

COMMERCIAL FORESTATION.

INTRODUCTORY.

The rising timber-prices recorded in the last decade, and the certainty in the future of further decreases in the available supply, together with a reasonable assurance of a constant and growing demand, have in recent years caused attention to be drawn to the growing of timber as a profitable undertaking, and in 1923 the planting of forests was undertaken by commercial concerns.

Two classes of companies have been formed to carry out the various ventures. The first is the ordinary joint-stock company, where the property is vested in the company and the shareholders receive a pro rata share of the profits according to the amount of capital contributed; the second is a private company registered with a comparatively small capital, but of which the investing public do not become shareholders. The company contracts with each investor that in consideration of his paying the prescribed amount of cash it will convey to him at the end of a given term a certain area of land duly planted according to a prescribed agreement. The interests of the: investing public are watched over by trustees appointed by investors, and the lands concerned are conveyed by way of mortgage to the trustees until the time for conveyance to the investor arrives. Of the sixteen returns received from companies engaged in forestation operations during the year ended the 31st March, 1928, six were from companies organized on the latter basis; but, though in the minority in point of numbers, their operations form the greater part of the work carried out during the year.

The figures for the year ended 31st March, 1928, show that from the financial and planting viewpoints the operations of the forestation companies have greatly increased in scope. Total assets and liabilities increased from £1,448,921 in 1927 to £1,999,284 in 1928, while the receipts for the latter year (£562,314) were 37 per cent. greater than those recorded in 1927. The total payments recorded in 1928 (£548,370), were 40 per cent. greater than the figure for the previous year. The figure representing the total area planted at 31st March, 1928, stood at 104,045 acres, against 64,519 acres at 31st March, 1927.

LIABILITIES.

The following comparative statement shows a classification of the liabilities for all forestation companies as at 31st March, 1926, 1927, and 1928, together with the absolute and relative increases of the figures for 1928 over those for 1927.

—	As at 31st March,			Differences 1927 and 1928.
—	1926.	1927.	1928.	Absolute.	Relative.
* Decrease.
	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.
Paid-up share capital	224,190	339,662	436,272	96,610	28
Loan-money	9,355	23,631	16,022	− 7,609^*	− 32^*
Forfeited Shares Account	534	3,828	2,473	− 1,355^*	− 35^*
Mortgages	258,629	266,933	183,043	− 83,890^*	− 31^*
Sundry creditors	60,835	54,845	86,744	31,899	58
Bondholders	345,868	720,839	1,154,337	433,498	60
Other	38,794	39,183	120,393	81,210	207
Totals	938,205	1,448,921	1,999,284	550,363	38

The outstanding points in the above table are the increases in the liabilities to shareholders and “bondholders” — particularly the latter — and the decrease in liabilities to mortgagees.

The liability to shareholders on account of contributions of share capital increased by £96,610, or 28 per cent., in comparison with the previous year, while that to bondholders advanced by £433,498, or 60 per cent. A relatively increasing liability to bondholders on account of instalments on forest areas purchased is revealed. In 1928 the liability in this direction accounted for 57 per cent. of the total liabilities. The class “Other liabilities,” which covers (inter alia) reserves, showed an increase of £81,210, or over 200 per cent. This accounts for all the increases except that of £31,899, or 58 per cent., in sundry creditors. Of the three items showing decreases “Mortgages” is the most conspicuous, the decrease for the year in this case being no less than £83,890, or 31 1/2 per cent. Approximately the same relative (but not absolute) decreases were recorded for the much less significant items “Loan-money” and “Forfeited Shares Account.”

ASSETS.

The following comparative statement shows a classification of the assets of forestation companies as at the 31st March, 1926, 1927, and 1928, together with the absolute and relative increases of the figures for 1928 over those for 1927.

—	As at 31st March,			Differences 1927 and 1928.
—	1926.	1927.	1928.	Absolute.	Relative.
* Decrease.
	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.
Land for forestation purposes	385,280	459,012	441,610	− 17,402^*	− 4^*
Land for other purposes	750	393	121	− 272^*	− 69^*
Buildings	21,788	33,146	33,419	273	1
Development Account	368,534	676,630	1,094,092	417,462	62
Investments	57,631	94,100	169,438	75,338	80
Goodwill and preliminary expenses	41,689	48,222	58,789	10,567	22
Other	62,533	137,418	201,815	64,397	47
Total	938,205	1,448,921	1,999,284	550,363	38

Before discussing the foregoing table it is advisable that the scope of the terms used should be made quite clear; likewise that the valuations, whereupon rests the whole significance of the figures, should be outlined.

Land for forestation purposes covers the land utilized for tree-planting. The value represents the cost of the land to the forestation companies.
Land for other purposes covers land held for purposes other than tree-planting. As in (a), the value of this land represents its cost to the forestation companies.
Buildings.—This item covers all buildings the property in which is vested in the forestation companies. The value represents the cost of the buildings to the companies.
Development Account.—It is clear that, unless engaged in nursery or other revenue-producing operations, a forestation company will not derive any income (apart from thinnings, &c.) until its forests mature. This postponement of its return renders the creation of a Development Account necessary, in order that the actual results of the venture may be ascertained in clue course. All expenditure is charged in the meantime to this account, and at the end of the period, when the forests are sold or matured, the amount standing to the debit of this account will be set against the proceeds from the sale of the land and the timber. The result will then represent, either profit or loss on the venture.

The foregoing refers to those companies which plant forest areas in their own names and sell them on maturity, the proceeds from such sale representing their revenue. Where, however, companies sell forest areas per medium of bonds and receive their revenue within a certain number of specified years, the reverse position occurs. In this case the bond-issuing companies are in the happy position of having received their revenue—subject, of course, to transfers to reserve in accordance with the requirements of the bonds—before the expenditure required in connection with the earning of that revenue has been incurred. Just as the postponement of the ascertainment of the complete revenue in the case of the companies planting trees on their own account renders the creation of a Development Account necessary, so also does the protracted incidence of the expenditure in the case of bond-issuing companies.

Investments.—The value of these has been taken into account at cost or market quotations, whichever was the lower.
Goodwill and Preliminary Expenses.—This item represents the expenses of the formation period, which have been capitalized.
Other Assets.—This covers the rather heterogeneous collection of remaining assets, among which may be noted furniture, plant, and tools, cash at bank and in hand, nursery stocks, sundry debtors, &c.

Reverting to the table given in connection with assets, it is seen that, as might be expected, the largest absolute increase was recorded for the “Development Account.” The figure recorded for this item in 1927–28 was £417,462, or 62 per cent., greater than that recorded in 1926–27. Substantial increases of 80 per cent., 22 per cent., and 47 per cent. respectively were shown for the items “Investments,” “Goodwill and preliminary expenses,” and “Other assets.” The item “Land for forestation purposes” showed a decline of 4 per cent.

RECEIPTS.

The following statement shows a classification of the receipts recorded for forestation companies for the years ended 31st March, 1926, 1927, and 1928, together with the differences between the figures for 1927 and 1928:—

—	Year ended 31st March,			Differences 1927 and 1928.
—	1926.	1927.	1928.	Absolute.	Relative.
* Decrease.
	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.
Share capital	96,125	131,127	117,316	− 13,811^*	− 11^*
Instalments on bonds	264,513	367,693	417,880	50,187	14
Loan-money	11,628	16,762	5,243	− 11,519^*	− 69^*
Other receipts	20,649	10,541	21,875	11,334	108
Totals	392,915	526,123	562,314	36,191	7

Attention is drawn to the fact that the figures in the foregoing table represent receipts from the cash point of view and should not be confused with revenue.

During the year ended the 31st March, 1928, shareholders contributed £117,316 in the way of capital, while bondholders contributed £417,880 in respect of instalments on forest areas purchased. These figures represent respectively a decrease of 10 1/2 per cent., and an increase of 13 1/2 per cent. in comparison with 1926–27. The total cash receipts for 1927–28 amounted to £562,314, or nearly 7 per cent. more than the total recorded in 1926–27.

PAYMENTS.

The following table shows a classification of the payments recorded for the years ended 31st March, 1926, 1927, and 1928, together with the absolute and relative differences between the figures for 1926–27 and 1927–28.

—	Year ended 31st March,			Differences 1927 and 1928.
—	1926.	1927.	1928.	Absolute.	Relative.
* Decrease.
	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.
Tree-raising	9,865	20,030	20,290	260	1
Establishment charges	33,503	74,557	114,345	39,788	53
Maintenance	966	5,501	13,602	8,101	147
Management, &c.	147,317	178,363	172,266	− 6,097^*	− 3^*
Land-purchase	71,567	89,326	90,916	1,590	2
Other	107,055	150,776	136,951	− 13,825^*	− 9^*
Totals	370,273	518,553	548,370	29,817	6

The payments recorded for 1926–27 amounted to £548,370, an increase of £29,817, or 5 3/4 per cent., over the figure for the previous year. Apart from the items “Management, &c.” (including salesmen's commission, &c.) and “Other,” which showed decreases of 3 1/2 per cent. and 9 per cent. respectively, all the items showed increases. The biggest relative increases were shown for. “Establishment charges” and “Maintenance,” which increased by 53 per cent. and 147 per cent. respectively.

SALES OF FOREST AREAS.

The six companies engaged in the sale of forest areas effected sales involving 31,375 acres of land during the twelve months ended 31st March, 1928, making a total of 132,370 acres sold up to that date. The instalments paid in accordance with the contracts of sale entered into during the year under discussion amounted to £431,884, while the total instalments paid up to 31st March, 1928, on all bonds amounted to £1,193,338. The total commitments of the investing public on account of contracts entered into during the year amounted to no less than £819,584, bringing the total for this item to £3,352,159 at 31st March, 1928.

Against the foregoing must be set contracts involving 18,435 acres, of a total selling-price of £471,943, which have been cancelled by the purchasers. Instalments amounting to £10,611 were paid up on these cancelled contracts.

EMPLOYEES AND WAGES.

The following summary shows a classification of the average number of employees engaged and the salaries and wages paid for the years ended 31st March, 1926, 1927, and 1928:—

Year ended 31st March,	Tree-raising.		Planting.	Maintenance.	Forest-Ore Prevention.	Management.		Total.
Year ended 31st March,	M.	F.	M.	M.	M.	M.	F.	M.	F.
Employees.
1926	37	7	171	11	13	20	2	252	9
1927	52	14	278	40	73	23	2	466	16
1928	85	23	427	51	32	28	2	623	25
Salaries and Wages paid.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1926	5,330	679	16,806	875	1,069	6,320	88	30,400	767
1927	9,532	1,586	54,519	7,170	14,271	7,080	350	92,572	1,936
1928	15,332	2,120	81,588	8,847	6,130	7,230	427	119,127	2,547

PLANTING OPERATIONS.

During the year ended 31st March, 1928, 29,103,386 trees were planted—4,582,000 replacing blanks, and the remaining 24,521,386 being planted on new areas. The new area planted during the year comprised 37,129 acres, bringing the total area planted to 31st March, 1928, to 104,045 acres.

The following table shows particulars regarding the species and number of trees planted during the year ended 31st March, 1928, together with particulars as to areas /planted:—

Species.	Number of Trees.		New Area planted during the Year.	Total Area planted to 31st March, 1928.
Species.	To replace Blanks.	On New Areas.	New Area planted during the Year.	Total Area planted to 31st March, 1928.
			Acres.	Acres.
Pinus radiata (insignis)	4,569,600	23,946,786	36,407	102,691
Pinus ponderosa	..	20,000	30	30
Eucalyptus eugenioides	10,000	51,600	72	233
Eucalyptus saligna	..	..	..	1
Eucalyptus pilularis..	..	..	..	1
Californian redwood	1,000	263,000	328	509
Cryptomeria japonica	..	..	..	1
Unspecified	1,400	240,000	292	579
Totals, 1927–28	4,582,000	24,521,386	37,129	104,045
Totals, 1926–27	168,500	30,388,137	49,824	64,519
Totals, 1925–26	21,300	10,003,100	15,826	17,877

LAND HELD FOR FORESTATION PURPOSES.

Altogether 213,242 acres of land had been acquired by forestation companies at the 31st March, 1928. Of this area 4,657 acres were leasehold and 208,585 acres freehold. Based on cost, the value of the freehold land was returned at £441,574, which gives an average of £2 2s. 4d. per acre.

STATE ASSISTANCE TO AFFORESTATION.

The method first adopted in New Zealand for inducing the planting of trees for the production of timber was by means of “land grants”—a settler being given a free grant of land if he planted a certain portion of his land with suitable trees. In Canterbury, where the system was adopted in the early “seventies,” an area of as much as two acres of Crown lands for one acre planted with trees was sometimes granted. Several large plantations were established in Canterbury by this method, and in some cases very good returns have during late years been obtained from their milling. The Selwyn and Ashburton County Councils are the outstanding examples of local authorities which took advantage of this scheme, and are now netting handsome revenues from their tree plantations.

The State assists also by reduction of rent to Crown tenants planting trees on their land, by granting subsidies to local authorities to aid in tree-planting schemes, and by remission of taxation on tree plantations.

Under the system of taxation in operation in New Zealand, encouragement is given to the conservation of indigenous forests and plantations, and to the establishment of new plantations by exempting the trees from land-tax and local rates.

The taxes to which indigenous forests and plantations are subject are—(a) Land-tax; (b) income-tax; (c) local rates; (d) stamp duties; (e) death duties; (f) levy on sawn timber.

Land supporting indigenous forests and plantations is subject to land-tax. The tax, however, is assessed on the unimproved value, which for taxation purposes does not include the value of any trees or the value of the labour or capital expended in planting them.

Profits made from the sale or disposition of forest and plantation lands are, for the purposes of income-tax, on the same footing as those relating to other lands.

The assessable income is deemed to include (inter alia) rents, royalties, fines, premiums, and other revenues (including the benefit of any statutory license or privilege) derived by the owner of the land from any lease, license, or easement affecting the land, or from the grant of any right of taking the profits thereof.

Profits made from the extraction, removal, or tale of timber from land are subject to income-tax, but royalty paid for timber in indigenous forests or plantations, or the cost of growing the trees in plantations, is deductible as cost of production, which includes all costs of planting and maintenance up to the income-year, but does not include interest on capital expended in meeting those costs.

Local rates on land supporting indigenous forests and plantations are levied on the value of the land, which does not include the value of any trees or the value of the labour or capital expended in planting them.

Legal instruments affecting land supporting indigenous forests and plantations are liable for stamp duty, as in the case of such instruments affecting any other land.

Appraisements of timber are not liable to stamp duty if made for the Crown, for a local authority, or for the information of one party only.

Licenses granted by the Crown to cut timber are exempt from stamp duty; other licenses are not exempt.

Land on which trees of any kind are growing is subject to death duties (estate duty, succession duty, and gift duty), which are assessed on the capital value of the land, which includes the value of the trees.

From 1st April, 1927, every County Council is empowered to make an annual levy of 1/2 d. per hundred feet board measure on timber in the county converted from the log into sawn timber.

Chapter 20. SECTION XX.—FISHERIES.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

STATISTICS OF FISHERIES.

VESSELS AND PERSONS EMPLOYED IN FISHING INDUSTRY.

OYSTER-BEDS.

WHALING.

SEALS.

MARINE FISH-HATCHERY.

INLAND FISHERIES.

ATLANTIC SALMON.

QUINNAT SALMON.

INTRODUCTORY.

WITH its great extent of coast-line, splendid natural harbours, and numerous sheltered bays, New Zealand has from the earliest times been famed for the productivity of its coastal fisheries. Off its more northerly coasts, which come within the influence of the south equatorial current, a rich variety of subtropical fish life is found, as exemplified by such species as the flying-fish, the sunfish, the swordfish, and several shark species. On the other hand, its southern coasts, washed by the antarctic drift, are the natural haunt of the fur-bearing seal, and yield varieties of fish which are characteristic of cold-water conditions. Up to the present only the east coast fishing-grounds have been regularly exploited on a commercial scale. Most of the western fishing-grounds remain in practically virgin condition, and offshore deep-sea fisheries have been neither exploited nor explored.

The ease with which abundant catches were made led to a certain wastefulness in the utilization of the fisheries in the past, but with the development of a more rational appreciation of the value of the marine natural resources it is certain that the fishing industry will become increasingly important as a source of food-supply to the population of the Dominion and as a means of providing an export trade to countries less favoured by nature.

Of the many kinds of excellent edible fishes the most important are the flounders of different species (Rhombosolea), which occur in the more shallow and sheltered waters, the snapper (Pagrosomus auratus), which is particularly abundant in the north, the blue cod (Parapercis colias), which provides the staple product of the southern line fisheries, and the groper or hapuku (Polyprion oxygeneios), which is caught on lines in the deeper water from the North Caps to Stewart Island.

STATISTICS OF FISHERIES.

Provision exists in the Fisheries Act, 1908, whereby owners of boats and fish-curers may be required to furnish returns to the Marine Department in such form and in such manner as may be prescribed by the Governor-General in Council, but advantage of this provision has not yet been taken to enable information to be collected as to the quantity of fish caught. A statement is, however, compiled annually by the Chief Inspector of Fisheries as to the weight and value of fish caught. The figures for each fishing-port are as follows for the year ended 31st March, 1929:—

Port.	Principal Kinds of Fish caught.	Quantity.	Total Value.
			£
Mangonui	Snapper, trevally, tarakihi, kingfish, rock-cod, gurnard, kahawai, flounder, hapuku	65 cwt.	21
Russell	Crayfish, mullet, hapuku, snapper, flounder, kahawai, kingfish, maumau	7,025 cwt.	6,810
Whangarei	Snapper, mullet, flounder, hapuku	4,000 cwt.	1,200
Kaipara	Snapper, flounder, mullet, kahawai, trevally, gurnard	4,975 cwt.	10,533
Auckland District	Snapper, tarakihi, trevally, flounder, sole, gurnard, hapuku, john-dory, kingfish, moki, rock-cod, kahawai, butterfish, barracouta, mullet, garfish	83,040 cwt.	72,583
	Crayfish	3,228 sacks	3,630
	Mussels	4,337 sacks	1,182
Thames	Snapper, hapuku, gurnard, trevally, john-dory, butterfish, cod, kingfish, mullet, moki, tarakihi	14,644 cwt.	16,939
	Mussels	981 sacks	278
Tauranga	Snapper, hapuku, trevally, kahawai, rock-cod, garfish, moki, flounder, crayfish	5,600 cwt.	5,168
Gisborne	Tarakihi, gurnard, snapper, flounder, sole, kahawai, hapuku, crayfish	3,465 cwt.	4,852

Port.	Principal Kinds of Fish caught.	Quantity.	Total Value.
			£
Napier	Tarakihi, snapper, moki, kahawai, gurnard, trevally, hapuku, southern kingfish, barracouta; john-dory, flounder, sole, brill	17,062 cwt.	25,023
	Crayfish	250 sacks	468
	Mussels	480 sacks	300
New Plymouth	Snapper, hapuku, kingfish, tarakihi, kahawai, cod, crayfish, gurnard	1,300 cwt.	1,820
Wanganui	Blue cod, hapuku, flounder, snapper	486 cwt.	695
Foxton	Flounder, snapper, hapuku, kahawai, whitebait	800 cwt.	2,500
Wellington	Tarakihi, gurnard, flounder, sole, snapper, ling, warehou, hapuku, moki, butterfish, blue cod, southern kingfish	45,458 cwt.	47,841
	Crayfish	1,704 sacks	1,596
Picton	Hapuku, moki, butterfish, garfish, crayfish, blue cod	6,260 cwt.	5,842
Blenheim	Red cod, sole, flounder, ling, snapper, moki, hapuku, gurnard, tarakihi, mackerel, butterfish	2,450 cwt.	3,970
	Crayfish	100 sacks	60
Nelson	Snapper, flounder, gurnard, bream, hapuku, cod, crayfish, barracouta	2,755 cwt.	5,109
	Crayfish	146 doz.	75
Westport	Red cod, crayfish, flounder, sole, hapuku, gurnard, kahawai, ling, moki, snapper, turbot, whitebait	811 cwt.	2,263
Greymouth	Flounder, sole, cod, hapuku, snapper, herring	142 cwt.	419
Hokitika	Whitebait, hapuku, snapper, flounder, herring, kahawai	602 cwt.	5,349
Kaikoura	Hapuku, ling, trumpeter, southern kingfish, butterfish, tarakihi, moki, crayfish	3,046 cwt.	7,110
Kaiapoi	Whitebait	85 cwt.	600
Akaroa	Hapuku, ling, conger eel, flounder, sole, brill, blue and red cod, crayfish, barracouta, kingfish, kahawai, moki, butterfish, &c.	4,954 cwt.	7,007
Lyttelton	Hapuku, barracouta, red cod, ling, flounder, sole, gurnard, brill	4,954 cwt.	7,007
Timaru	Flounder, sole, brill, hapuku, ling, red cod, gurnard, kingfish, barracouta	6,800 cwt.	14,600
Oamaru and Moeraki	Hapuku, red cod, blue cod, moki, barracouta, ling	5,190 cwt.	7,712
	Crayfish	191 sacks	142
Dunedin and Otago District	Hapuku, ling, red cod, barracouta, king-fish, blue cod, moki, trumpeter, tarakihi, trevally, mullet, garfish, kahawai, gurnard, kelpfish, sole, flounder, brill, skate	41,320 cwt.	45,452
Invercargill	Blue and red cod, hapuku, moki, flounder, kingfish, mullet, ling, sole, crayfish, barracouta, whitebait	3,500 cwt.	6,500
Bluff	Hapuku, blue cod, flounder	5,616 cwt.	14,345
Stewart Island	Blue cod, hapuku, trumpeter, moki	7,482 cwt.	9,547
Chatham Islands	Blue cod, hapuku, trumpeter	6,867 cwt.	18,600
Minor ports	..	1,157 cwt.	2,060

The quantity of fish recorded as having been brought in from the fishing-grounds for the year ended the 31st March, 1929, was 286,957 cwt., which, with items where the weight was not shown, represented a wholesale value of £360,201. The wholesale value of the oysters landed from the various beds was £35,747, and the produce of the whale-fisheries was £11,166.

Included in New Zealand produce exported during the last five years were—

Item.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
	£	£	£	£	£
Fish	58,417	55,423	63,009	74,194	84,871
Oysters	571	1,474	1,650	561	772
Whalebone	290	160	9	190	..
Whale-oil	6,515	10,541	6,836	7,009	12,081
Ambergris	2,000	1,200	..	..	..
Other products of fisheries	103	39	64	26	106
Totals	67,896	68,837	71,568	81,980	97,830

The value of fish (preserved) imported in 1928 was £182,090.

VESSELS AND PERSONS EMPLOYED IN FISHING INDUSTRY.

A table showing the various classes of vessels engaged in the fishing industry, together with the number of persons employed, is given below for the year ended 31st March, 1929:—

—	Whole Time.	Part Time.	Total.
Vessels engaged in fishing for wet fish—
Steam trawlers	19	5	24
Motor trawlers	26	61	87
Steamers—Danish seining	1	2	3
Motor-vessels—Danish seining	38	2	40
Motor-vessels—Set-net and line fishing	492	298	790
Sailing-boats	3	18	21
Row-boats	62	254	316
Vessels engaged in shell-fishing—
Oyster-dredging vessels	5	2	7
Mussel-dredging vessels	..	9	9
Crayfishing-vessels	16	157	173
Number of persons employed—
Fishermen	1,373	929	2,302
Others (excluding retailers)	292	47	339

A summary table giving similar information for each port in the Dominion follows:—

Port.	Vessels engaged in Fishing for Wet Fish.				Vessels engaged in Shell-fishing.	Number of Persons employed (excluding Retailers).
Port.	Steam-vessels.	Motor-vessels.	Sailing-boats.	Row-boats.	Vessels engaged in Shell-fishing.	Fishermen.	Others.	Total.
* Including Manukau, Mercury Bay, and Coromandel.
Mangonui	..	..	..	2	..	2	..	2
Hokianga	..	7	..	9	..	16	..	16
Russell	..	41	2	4	3	80	7	87
Kaipara	..	44	..	4	..	65	12	77
Whangarei	..	24	..	2	1	48	6	54
Auckland^*	6	131	6	70	31	400	130	530
Thames	..	36	..	2	2	99	24	123
Tauranga	..	30	..	..	..	30	12	42
Gisborne	1	4	..	6	10	19	12	31
Napier	9	25	..	60	20	161	30	191
New Plymouth	..	21	1	19	9	70	..	70
Wanganui	..	24	..	..	..	12	3	15
Foxton	..	3	..	25	..	56	..	56
Wellington	2	54	1	29	74	198	21	219

Port.	Vessels engaged in Fishing for Wet Fish.				Vessels engaged in Shell-fishing.	Number of Persons employed (excluding Retailers).
Port.	Steam-vessels.	Motor-vessels.	Sailing-boats.	Row-boats.	Vessels engaged in Shell-fishing.	Fishermen.	Others.	Total.
* Including Moeraki.
Picton	..	48	..	8	..	79	..	79
Blenheim	..	11	..	..	..	23	..	23
Nelson	1	21	..	2	12	50	..	50
Westport	..	8	..	..	1	8	3	11
Greymouth	..	6	11	..	..	23	..	23
Hokitika	..	..	..	2	..	2	..	2
Kaikoura	..	14	..	..	3	24	1	25
Kaiapoi	..	..	..	30	..	30	..	30
Akaroa	2	24	..	4	..	54	..	54
Lyttelton	3	19	..	..	..	49	12	61
Timaru	..	27	..	..	..	31	8	39
Oamaru^*	..	38	..	1	8	57	6	63
Otago District	3	84	..	26	8	220	12	232
Invercargill	..	40	..	8	..	140	..	140
Bluff	..	48	..	3	7	145	20	165
Stewart Island	..	32	..	..	..	78	12	90
Totals	27	864	21	316	189	2,269	331	2,600

OYSTER-BEDS.

The principal oyster-beds round the coast of New Zealand are those situated in Foveaux Strait, between South and Stewart Islands, and the rock-oyster beds on the east and west coasts of the Auckland Peninsula. The Foveaux Strait beds are very extensive. An official prospecting cruise was carried out in respect of these beds in 1906, resulting in a number of new beds being discovered and reliable information being ascertained concerning the areas and qualities of the various beds. Further investigations of the nature of a biological survey were undertaken in 1927.

During the 1928 season 38,793 sacks of oysters, valued at £29,095, were dredged from the Foveaux Strait beds, as compared with 21,009 sacks, valued at £15,757, in 1927.

The rock-oyster beds of Auckland were worked for many years under a variety of systems, including the leasing of the beds to individuals and the licensing of pickers to take oysters on payment of a fee, but owing to stripping of the beds close seasons had frequently to be proclaimed. For some years an export duty of 6d. per hundredweight was payable on all North Island oysters exported, and in 1899 the export of rock-oysters and also of mangrove-oysters was absolutely prohibited. A further step towards conserving the beds was taken in 1908, when the picking and wholesale marketing of rock-oysters from the North Island beds was undertaken by the State, private picking being prohibited. A table is given showing the quantity and value of oysters picked and sold by the State during each of the last five years; also the cost of picking and selling, this item including interest and depreciation on the cost of the oil-launches used by the Inspectors. It will be seen that a profit accrues to the State, and the scheme has, moreover, resulted in the conservation and extension of the beds.

Season.	Oysters sold.	Prices realized.	Cost of picking and selling.
	Sacks.	£	£
1924	6,841	8,395	6,255
1925	8,288	10,206	7,688
1926	6,771	8,345	6,997
1927	5,915	7,314	5,967
1928	5,544	6,931	5,771

Various attempts were made several years ago by private persons to form artificial oyster-beds, but none of these met with success.

Realizing the necessity for extending and improving the oyster-beds in the Auckland District, the Marino Department in 1909 and 1910 commenced replanting the bays and foreshore on the Coromandel coast. These beds had been practically wiped out by the old system of licensed picking. The system adopted by the Department for stocking depleted areas consisted of taking rocks covered with oysters of all ages from well-stocked beds and planting them in suitable places along the foreshore. The work done on the Coromandel coast and at the Bay of Islands has been very successful, and several of the replanted beds are now well stocked with mature oysters. More recently the formation of new beds has been undertaken, hollow rock walls being built in sheltered bays and on tidal flats. In the spawning season the oyster-spat attaches itself to the under-side of the rocks, which are allowed to remain in that position for a month or two when they are turned over to permit the young oysters to grow to marketable size, the cap-stones thus covered being usually moved to the level of maximum growth and the walls provided with fresh cap-stones which in turn become covered with spat.

Oyster-cultivation work is being systematically carried on in the Hauraki Gulf, in the Bay of Islands, and in the Whangarei district. The rock walls previously built are now well covered with young oysters. Large numbers of the oysters on the walls built at Bay of Islands in 1920 and 1921 are now being picked for market.

WHALING.

In the earlier part of the nineteenth century New Zealand was the centre of an important whale-fishery, many whaling-stations being established in the North of Auckland and in Cook and Foveaux Straits. The industry gradually declined in importance until at present only two stations remain. The whales caught are mostly of the hump-back variety. At Whangamumu, North Auckland, a whaling-steamer, fitted with the most modern appliances for killing and handling whales, has been placed in commission, and a very serviceable whaling plant has been established. Fifty whales were taken last season (1928) in this locality, yielding 237 tons of oil and 45 tons of bonedust, of a total value of approximately £5,770. Whaling operations are also carried on in Tory Channel, in Marlborough. The value of the product of the Marlborough whale-fisheries in 1928 (270 tons of oil) was £5,400–55 hump-back whales were taken.

A reference to the whaling operations carried out in the Ross Sea appears in the section on “Dependencies.”

SEALS.

For many years past the taking of seals has been prohibited, the close season originally declared having been extended from time to time for periods of three years. The latest extension carries the close season to 27th November, 1931, but does not apply to the taking of seals from Campbell Island under any license issued by the Minister of Marine.

MARINE FISH-HATCHERY.

A site for a marine fish-hatchery was selected at Purakanui, Otago, in 1900 but this being found unsuitable for its intended purpose another site was chosen at Portobello, in Otago Harbour. The erection of the hatchery was carried out by a Board set up to superintend the work of the hatchery, funds being provided by the State, and grants being made by the Otago Institute, the Australasian Association for the Advancement of Science, and a number of acclimatization societies. The State makes an annual grant towards the maintenance of the hatchery, the buildings and equipment of which have also been added to from time to time.

Experiments have been carried out with a view to introducing certain English food fishes to New Zealand waters—viz., lobsters, edible crabs, and turbot. Valuable work has also been done in the direction of hatching the spawn of various indigenous fishes and in making a study of their life-habits.

INLAND FISHERIES.

The early colonists who emigrated from Britain to New Zealand were much surprised to find a country with such splendid rivers and lakes, but with no fish of any commercial or sporting value in them. In a few years the question of introducing some of the British salmonidæ was considered, and as early as 1864 the matter assumed definite shape when the Otago Provincial Council took it up, and voted a sum for the importation of Atlantic salmon and English brown trout. There was, however, some delay in arranging for shipment, and it was not until 1868 that the first consignments of salmon and trout eggs arrived. Since that time the English brown trout (S. fario), Loch Leven (S. levenensis), American rainbow (S. irideus), American brook-trout (S. fontinalis), Quinnat salmon (O. tschawytscha), Atlantic salmon, English perch, and tench, have been successfully acclimatized.

Ova of the sockeye or blue-back salmon were imported in 1902, and specimens of this fish were caught in 1907. A number exist in Lake Ohau, having acquired a land-locked habit. These fish run up creeks at the head of the lake and spawn there every season in March and April.

Several shipments of whitefish-ova were made in 1898 and succeeding years, the fry being liberated in Lakes Kanieri and Tekapo. Reports as to the fish having been seen were received from time to time, but so far as is known no whitefish have yet been caught.

With the exception of the Hot Lakes District, which is under the control of the Department of Internal Affairs, the propagation of trout and the oversight of fishing operations is carried out by local acclimatization societies, fishing licenses being issued on payment of a small fee.

ATLANTIC SALMON.

As already stated, the first shipment of Atlantic-salmon eggs arrived in 1868, and from that year to 1902 about fifteen consignments were brought out. Some of the earlier shipments arrived in bad condition, and none had a loss of less than 25 per cent. Up to 1908 there was no proof that these fish had been acclimatized, and the Government in that year decided to make a vigorous and systematic effort to establish them, concentrating on a single river. The Waiau, in Southland, was chosen as the most suitable river, and a hatchery, capable of accommodating a million eggs, was erected on a cold-water creek near the lower end of Lake To Anau. A quarter of a million eggs were obtained from eastern Canada in 1908, and one million from England in 1909, and the same number from England in 1911. In each case an expert was sent to pack the eggs and attend to them on the voyage out, with the result that each shipment arrived with a loss of not more than 1 per cent.

In the 1920–21 and 1921–22 angling seasons salmon were taken near the mouth of the Waiau. Inspection of the Upokororo, the tributary into which most of the young fish hatched from the three shipments referred to above had been liberated, disclosed the fact that a number of salmon had spawned there, and three specimens caught on the spawning-beds were definitely identified as Atlantic salmon. In 1922–23 fifty-six Atlantic salmon were caught in the Waiau and its tributaries. During the 1923–24 season good catches were made by anglers in the Upokororo and Eglington Rivers and in Lake Te Anau near its outflow, and several were caught in the lower reaches of the Waiau. Approximately three hundred were taken by anglers that season, and subsequent seasons have witnessed progressive increases.

During the season 1928–29 not less than one thousand salmon were caught by anglers. Most of the fish were taken in the Upokororo River and at the outlet of Lake Te Anau. The fish appear to have increased rapidly. Last spawning season the weather and river conditions were very unfavourable for collecting salmon-eggs, and only 396,000 were secured. The Marine Department is now stocking the Wanganui River, in the North Island, with these fish, and most of the eggs collected in the last five seasons have been hatched out at the Government hatchery on Waitea Creek, on the upper Wanganui, and the young fish liberated in suitable tributary streams and in the main river. The balance of the eggs collected have been allotted to the Waiau River system.

QUINNAT SALMON.

The first importation of quinnat-salmon ova was made in 1875, and from that date to 1880 several shipments were made. On the arrival of these consignments the eggs were parcelled out to the different acclimatization societies, and the young fish hatched were planted in rivers from the north of Auckland to the far south, but no results were obtained from these shipments.

In 1900 the Government decided to make a vigorous effort to establish this fish, and decided to confine its efforts to one of the rivers considered to be the most suitable, and the Waitaki was chosen, as in its general characteristics it bears a considerable resemblance to some of the salmon rivers on the Pacific coast of America. The first shipment of eggs for the Government salmon-hatchery arrived in January, 1900. From that year to 1907 annual importations of half a million eggs each year were made, and, as they were specially packed and attended to by an expert during the voyage, they invariably arrived in splendid condition; the loss would not be more than 1/2 per cent. The result of the systematic effort made to establish the quinnat has been highly successful. In the seasons of 1905 and 1906 they were found spawning in the Hakataramea and other tributaries of the Waitaki, and in 1907 fifty thousand eggs were collected from salmon caught in the Hakataramea. Since then there has been a steady increase in the Waitaki every season, and they have now spread northward into all the snow-fed rivers as far as the Waiau, North Canterbury

The run of quinnat salmon this season (1929) in the snow-fed rivers on the east coast was not so large as regards numbers as that of the previous year, but the fish were remarkable for their large size and fine condition. Licenses for £1 for the season are issued to anglers empowering them to sell their catches, and sea-fishermen, on payment of a license fee of £1, are allowed to take salmon and market their catches. The number of eggs collected last season was 1,300,000, of which 500,000 were sent to the Government hatchery at Maori Creek, the young fish being liberated in the Wairau River and its tributaries. In addition, 400,000 were sent to the Westland Acclimatization Society for continuing the stocking of the Hokitika River system; and 150,000 were sent to Tasmania. The balance were hatched out and liberated as fry in the Hakataramea, with the exception of 12,000 kept for rearing to the yearling stage in the ponds.

Chapter 21. SECTION XXI.—MINING.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

GOLD-MINING.

GOLD EXPORTS, 1927 AND 1928, AND TOTAL, 1857–1928.

QUARTZ-MINING.

ALLUVIAL-GOLD MINING.

GOLD-DREDGING.

KAWARUA FALLS DAM.

GOLD-PRODUCTION OF THE WORLD.

WORLD'S COAL-PRODUCTION.

BUILDING AND ORNAMENTAL STONES.

PERSONS ENGAGED IN MINING AND QUARRYING.

ACCIDENTS AT MINES AND QUARRIES.

STATE AID TO MINING.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

FINANCIAL AID TO PROSPECTING.

GOVERNMENT PROSPECTING-DRILLS.

SCHOOLS OF MINKS.

SUBSIDIZED ROADS.

GOVERNMENT WATER-RACES.

FAVOURABLE FIELDS FOR PROSPECTING FOR GOLD.

BOARD OF EXAMINERS.

SICK AND ACCIDENT AND COAL-MINERS' RELIEF FUNDS.

MINERS' PHTHISIS PENSIONS.

INTRODUCTORY.

IN no other country of equal size to New Zealand are indications of a greater number of economic minerals to be found, yet, with the exception of iron-ore, the known mineral reserves are not great in comparison with those in many other countries. The coal reserves of the Dominion are considerable, however, and their duration will be extended by the utilization of the enormous water-power resources of the country.

The gold-mining industry, which in its early stages contributed greatly to the progress and settlement of New Zealand, has for a number of years declined in importance, in common with the experience of most other gold-producing countries.

The following statement shows the quantity and value of the production of metalliferous mines, of stone-quarries under the Stone-quarries Act, and of coal-mines during 1927 and 1928:—

Mineral.	1927.		1928
Mineral.	Quantity.	Value.	Quantity.	Value.
	Oz.	£	Oz.	£
Gold and silver	506,420	550,166	532,914	551,242
Platinum	33	231	35	263
Osmiridium	..	..	10 dwt.	10
	Tons cwt.		Tons cwt.
Tungsten-ore	6 9	445	6 4	432
Iron	3,383 0	17,761	6,362 0	31,802
Quicksilver	0 14	462	..	..
Stone	..	570,369	..	461,890
Pumice	1,733 0	6,230	2,301 0	8,280
Sulphur	469 0	3,375	719 0	8,200
Coal	2,366,740 0	2,366,740	2,436,753 0	2,436,753
Totals	..	3,515,779	..	3,498,872

The production of gold and silver is of necessity taken together, as separate figures are not available. Kauri-gum, the fossilized resin of former kauri forests, is counted as a mineral, but the production figures are not available.

The next statement shows the value of New Zealand minerals and allied substances exported from the 1st January, 1853, to the 31st December, 1928, with separate details for the years 1927 and 1928:—

Mineral.	1927.	1928.	Increase or Decrease.	Total from 1st January, 1853, to 31st December, 1928.
* Ounces of the fineness of 20 carats and upwards.
	£	£	£	£
Gold^*	534,639	489,584	Dec. 45,055	93,427,622
Silver	42,589	44,416	Inc. 1,827	3,103,665
Quicksilver	..	..	..	8,336
Tungsten-ore	821	328	Dec. 493	306,272
Manganese-ore	12	..	Dec. 12	62,006
Pig iron	4,592	1,994	Dec. 2,598	6,586
Kauri-gum	278,632	240,139	Dec. 38,493	22,374,522
Other minerals	6,636	8,830	Inc. 2,194	473,836
Coal	221,253	173,693	Dec. 47,560	6,601,001
Totals	1,089,174	958,984	..	126,363,846

GOLD-MINING.

Gold-mining operations in New Zealand are divided into three branches, viz.: (1) Quartz-mining, (2) alluvial mining, and (3) dredging.

The actual figures of gold-production are not available owing to no distinction being made between gold and silver in the case of mines which produce both. The following statement shows the value of the bullion-production during 1928, also the number of persons employed, and the number of gold-mines and dredges:—

—	Production of Bullion.^*		Number of Persons ordinarily employed at Productive and Unproductive Mines and Dredges.	Number of Productive Mines and Dredges.
—	Quantity.	Value.		Number of Productive Mines and Dredges.
* Including a proportion of silver.
	Oz.	£
Quartz-mining	506,473	446,014	961	22
Dredge mining	15,848	64,711	90	5
Alluvial mining	10,593	40,517	407	333
Totals, 1928	532,914	551,242	1,458	360
Totals, 1927	506,420	550,166	1,661	372

The quantity of gold and silver bullion produced during the year 1928 was 26,494 oz. greater than in the previous year, and the value was greater by £1,076.

The expert of gold according to districts of production during 1927 and 1928, together with the total since April, 1857, when the first parcel was exported, is as shown in the next table.

GOLD EXPORTS, 1927 AND 1928, AND TOTAL, 1857–1928.

District.	1927.		1928.		Total, 1857–1928.
District.	Quantity.	Value.	Quantity.	Value.	Quantity.	Value.
	Oz.	£	Oz.	£	Oz.	£
Auckland	80,762	338,309	76,026	318,628	7,474,249	29,070,527
Wellington	..	..	..	..	188	706
Marlborough	305	1,183	329	1,308	107,342	417,903
Nelson	720	2,809	443	1,740	1,742,412	6,908,485
West Coast	40,226	159,439	33,519	134,062	6,557,264	26,029,797
Canterbury	..	..	..	..	157	620
Otago	7,447	30,164	7,479	30,271	7,773,116	30,956,379
Unknown	711	2,735	926	3,575	10,729	43,205
Totals	130,171	534,639	118,722	489,584	23,665,457	93,427,622

QUARTZ-MINING.

The most important gold-mining operations in New Zealand consist in the working of quartz lodes and the extraction of the precious metals therefrom. Quartz-mining is conducted in the North Island in Ohinemuri County, and to a less extent in Thames and Coromandel Counties. The mountain-ranges and hills of andesite and other volcanic rocks which form the Hauraki Goldfields are intersected by lodes containing gold and silver. In the South Island quartz-mining operations are carried on in the Reefton and Blackwater districts, also to a small extent in the Wakamarina Valley (Marlborough). In Otago operations are generally confined to the working of quartz-mines in which scheelite is associated with gold. The average value per ton of ore treated during 1928 amounted to £1 15s. 5d., as compared with £1 15s. 3d. during 1927.

ALLUVIAL-GOLD MINING.

Alluvial gold is found chiefly on the west coast of the South Island and in Otago, where mining operations have been conducted over an area of 17,000 square miles. On the West Coast the auriferous alluvium originated from the weathering and denudation of the gold-bearing lodes during countless ages, The rich leads or defined placers of auriferous wash are the result of concentration. The first transportation of auriferous gravel from the mountains was by streams, and following this the glaciers carried much material from the interior seawards. During the advance and retreat of these glaciers immense masses of drift were deposited all over the low lands and even high up on the lower hills. Since glacial times the rivers have continued the movement of auriferous gravel from the interior to the sea. In Otago the conditions are different—the alluvial gold rests in the hollows of the denuded surface of the schistose rocks, from which it has most probably been derived.

The method of working these deposits depends on the depth of the superincumbent strata and the elevation at which they occur: where there is ample fall and a good supply of water is available, hydraulic sluicing has been generally adopted; but where the material is mainly or partly below water-level, and is comparatively free from hard boulders or hard matrix, elevating or dredging is employed.

GOLD-DREDGING.

This system of gold-mining, which originated in New Zealand, is generally employed on rivers and streams and at places where the sluicing method may not be advantageously applied owing to the absence of water-supply or to excessive water in the deposits. Gold-dredging is rapidly declining in importance, the number of productive dredges having decreased from 167 during 1906 to five during 1928.

The greatest weekly output by a New Zealand gold-dredge was attained by the “Lady Ranfurly” during six days ended the 4th November, 1904, when operating on the River Molyneux (Clutha), 1,273 oz. of gold being obtained.

The following table shows the result of gold-dredging operations in New Zealand from 1919 to 1928 inclusive:—

Year.	Total Number of Dredges working.	Value of Production.	Average Production per Dredge.	Dividend-paying Dredges owned by Registered Companies.		Number of Persons Employed.
Year.	Total Number of Dredges working.	Value of Production.	Average Production per Dredge.	Number.	Dividends.	Number of Persons Employed.
		£	£		£
1919	19	47,838	2,518	4	2,845	138
1920	12	34,672	2,889	1	1,400	112
1921	11	36,179	3,289	1	600	136
1922	11	67,239	6,113	..	..	121
1923	8	68,003	8,500	1	3,283	100
1924	5	58,540	11,708	1	6,566	78
1925	5	40,994	8,199	1	3,283	107
1926	5	52,969	10,594	..	..	93
1927	4	60,731	15,183	2	6,766	104
1928	5	64,711	12,942	1	3,283	90

Of the total production in 1928, £57,725 was won by the Rimu Flat dredge at Rimu, on the West Coast, £887 by the New River dredge at Dunganville, also on the West Coast, and £6,099 by three dredges in Otago and Southland.

KAWARUA FALLS DAM.

During the year 1924 the Kawarau Gold-mining Company, Limited, made a commencement with the damming of Lake Wakatipu. The dam is equipped with ten stony sluice-gates, each having an effective waterway 40 ft. in width by 7 ft. 6 in. in height, and each being supported at its end by massive concrete pillars, of which there are eleven, including the abutments. The object of this work is to keep back the water in Lake Wakatipu during certain months of the year, and thus enable mining operations to be carried out as far as possible in the Kawarau River. The company has subleased, under tribute agreements, portions of the mining rights held by it in the Kawarau River. Substantial sums of money have been raised by the subsidiary companies for the purpose of carrying on mining operations in the river.

The dam at Kawarau Falls was completed during the year 1926. On the 30th August of that year the gates were closed; but at no point along the river did the water fall low enough to expose any virgin ground, consequently the amount of gold recovered by claimholders was very small. The disappointing results were attributed to the lateness of the season and the fact that the tributaries of the river were carrying more water than in midwinter, but little or no success has attended the closing of the dam in succeeding years.

GOLD-PRODUCTION OF THE WORLD.

The following figures showing the world's gold-production for the last ten years have been compiled from official sources by the American Bureau of Metal Statistics:—

Year.	Fine Ounces.
1919	17,629,977
1920	16,125,697
1921	15,983,772
1922	15,444,830
1923	17,786,472
1924	19,023,134
1925	19,031,137
1926	19,369,364
1927	19,506,743
1928	19,753,665

SILVER.

Nearly the whole of the silver exported from New Zealand, amounting in value at the end of 1928 to £3,103,665, has been obtained from the refinement of bullion from the quartz-mines, principally those of the Hauraki Goldfield, where gold and silver are found alloyed, the ratio of the two metals in the alloy varying greatly. No other silver-mining operations have been carried out profitably in this country.

IRON-ORES.

Iron-ore occurs in New Zealand at Parapara, Golden Bay; on the seashore in Taranaki; at Kerr Point and Waitangi River, North Auckland; in the Raglan-Kawhia district; on Mount Peel, Nelson; on Mount Royal, near Palmerston; on Table Hill, near Milton; in the Lake Wakatipu district; and in the Mount Cook district, Westland.

The most extensive iron-ore deposits occur near Parapara and Onakaka, Golden Bay, in the Nelson Provincial District. The limonite deposit of this locality is of great extent, and it is estimated in “Iron-ore Resources of the World,” published by the International Geological Congress, to contain 64,000,000 metric tons, of which about 30,000,000 tons occur in the Onakaka Block.

At Onakaka the ore and crystalline limestone flux occur at an altitude of about 1,200 ft. above the works, being conveyed thereto by aerial tramway 8,000 ft. in length. During 1921 the Onakaka Iron and Steel Company constructed a blast-furnace installation on its lease at Onakaka. The present capacity of the plant is 30 tons of pig iron per day, but it could be altered at little cost to produce an output of 50 tons per day. A trial run was made in 1922, the first half with coke imported from Australia, and the second half with coke from Miramar gasworks made from Liverpool (N.Z.) coal. The latter gave results at least as good as those from Australian coke, and the consumption of coke in both cases was 22 cwt. per ton of pig iron produced. The pig iron was of good marketable quality, and was reported on favourably by users in different parts of the Dominion. The two important facts demonstrated by the test were—(1) That a good foundry pig iron could be produced by the Onakaka plant; (2) that the furnace could be run with Miramar coke as fuel and with a consumption of 22 cwt. of coke per ton of iron.

The company has erected a wharf about 1,000 ft. in length at Onakaka for the purpose of providing facilities for landing coal and shipping its products to different parts of the Dominion. Between the 12th January, 1924, and the 8th of the following month about 1,000 tons of pig iron were produced. It was then found that the cost of transportation of coal from the wharf to the works, and of pig iron from the works to the wharf, by means of motor-wagons along the road was too high. The company thereupon arranged to have a rope-road constructed, which work has now been completed. It was also found that the number of coke-ovens previously built was inadequate, and additional coke-ovens were erected. The company now uses its own coke in the manufacture of pig iron.

During 1928 12,725 tons of ore were smelted for a production of 6,362 tons of pig iron, valued at £31,810. The company is now able to put iron on the market at a price which enables it to compete with imported iron. Additional capital has been raised, and the company has commenced the establishment of a modern pipe-making plant. The remainder of the machinery, &c., has been brought more up to date, and allowances made for increased outputs in the future. The various economies and improvements which have been effected should see the works established on a useful and permanent basis. The analyses of three samples of Onakaka iron in 1925 show its average composition to be as follows: Graphite carbon, 3.02 per cent.; combined carbon, 0.48; silicon, 2.11; sulphur, 0.07; phosphorus, 0.32; manganese, 0.76; iron, 93.24.

Along the seashore from Patea to New Plymouth occur large quantities of magnetic ironsand more or less titaniferous. This has originated through the disintegration of hornblende-andesites and their tufas, which occur very extensively near New Plymouth around the volcanic cone of Mount Egmont. It is quite impossible to give any definite idea of the quantity of this ironsand; undoubtedly, however, it exists in immense quantities, and is measurable in millions of tons. The most extensive deposit of ironsand occurs near Patea, the quantity of which has been estimated to be at least 5,374,000 tons of high-grade ore in addition to a great quantity of low-grade ironsand.

Between the years 1869 and 1918 several attempts were made to smelt Taranaki ironsand. In 1921 the Mines Department arranged for the shipment of 20 tons to Messrs. Thomas Summerson and Sons' works at Darlington, England, for the purpose of having tests made to ascertain the suitability of the sand for the production of pig iron and steel by that firm's process. The experiments, which were conducted under the supervision of Professor Harbord, representing the New Zealand Government, were made in an electric furnace. The results were not quite satisfactory, considered from a commercial point of view, as the cost of producing pig iron and steel was too high.

Professor Harbord's report shows that in his opinion the production of steel direct from the ore or in one furnace is not commercial, and that two furnaces are essential—one to reduce the ore, and the other to refine the metal produced and to convert it into steel.

The conclusion arrived at by Professor Harbord is that the conditions in New Zealand are such that a blast furnace and modern steel plant are not at present feasible, but if power, coke, coal, and limestone are obtainable at reasonable prices small quantities of pig iron and steel may be produced to partially meet the local requirements, and this would form the basis for building up a large industry when the demand is increased sufficiently to justify expansion on a larger scale.

The report also shows that both pig iron and steel of satisfactory quality, containing little titanium, can be produced from titaniferous ironsands in the electric furnace. The full text of the report appears in parliamentary paper C.–15, 1922.

At Kerr Point the deposit of iron-ore consists of limonite, but does not probably exceed 100,000 tons. The iron-ore near the head of the Waitangi River is also limonite of excellent quality, but does not exceed 100,000 tons. The limonite deposits in the Kawhia-Raglan district and on Table Hill, so far as known, are not large. Little authentic information exists concerning the iron-ore deposits at Mount Peel or at Mount Royal. In the Lake Wakatipu district from Moke Creek, through Benmore in the direction of Mount Gilbert, a band of hæmatite has been reported to occur, also at Maori Point, Shotover River. On the Westland side of Mount Cook large quantities of magnetite are disseminated through chlorite schist.

During 1914 the Government, with a view to stimulating interest in this industry, passed an Act having for its object the payment of fairly large bonuses for the production in New Zealand of pig iron, puddled bar iron, and steel. The time-limit in which notice of intention to claim the bounty was to be given expired in 1920, but an amendment was passed reviving the payment of bonuses, and extending the time-limit. The bonus on pig iron was in 1925 increased to £1 10s. per ton, the increased rate to be payable on all pig iron produced at any time after the 1st January, 1925. The bonus is payable for three years after date of production, and thereafter the rates are decreased yearly for pig iron and puddled bar iron by 2p. per ton and steel by 4s. per ton. No bounties under the Act are payable after the 31st March, 1934.

TUNGSTEN-ORE.

Scheelite, one of the principal ores of tungsten, was for a number of years mined on a fairly extensive scale in conjunction with gold, the principal gold-scheelite mines being those at or near Glenorchy, Paradise, Macrae's, Stoneburn, Hyde, and Barewood, Otago; and at Wakamarina Valley, Marlborough.

After the termination of the war there was a considerable collapse in the tungsten-ore-mining industry owing to the great decline in price on the Home market, due greatly to accumulated stocks, but the price has hardened considerably, and is now almost on a par with that paid during the war period. During the war the Empire's supply was commandeered, and the price paid was £3 8s. per unit (on a 65-per-cent. WO₃ basis per ton).

The following statement shows the quantity and value of scheelite exported in each of the last twenty years:—

Year.	Quantity exported.	Value.
	Tons.	£
1909	58	4,263
1910	143	15,070
1911	138	11,853
1912	135	13,347
1913	221	22,933
1914	204	21,498
1915	194	27,784
1916	266	49,070
1917	161	28,972
1918	169 1/2	37,922
1919	113	29,489
1920	10	1,378
1921	..	..
1922	7 1/2	528
1923	13	875
1924	15	1,156
1925	31	2,255
1926	13 1/2	998
1927	12 1/2	821
1928	5 1/20	328

The total quantity exported to 31st December, 1928, is 2,402 tons, valued at £306,272

COPPER.

Ores of copper are found in New Zealand in no fewer than thirty-two localities, but during the past fifty years attempts at their successful exploitation have been unprofitable, the total recorded copper-production to the end of 1928 amounting in value to only £19,390. There was no production during 1928. Prior to the inauguration of systematic records there was a considerable production from mines on Great Barrier and Kawau Islands.

Copper-mines have been worked on Kawau and Great Barrier Islands in the Hauraki Gulf, and on the Dun Mountain, near Nelson. Underground prospecting has been carried on near Kaeo, Whangaroa; at Maharahara, near Woodville: and at Mount Radiant, near Karamea; but no conclusive results have been obtained. A syndicate has been engaged in reopening the mine at Maharahara, but so far the results are disappointing.

MANGANESE-ORE.

Manganese-ore has been found at Otau, Wairoa, Bay of Islands, Purua Bay, Mangapai, Otonga, Waiheke Island, and Taieri Mouth. Many years ago a considerable amount of manganese-ore was mined at Tikiora, near the Bay of Islands. At a later period operations were carried on at Waiheke Island, distant about twelve miles from Auckland. On that island manganese-ore may be traced for several miles, where it occurs in massive but bunchy form and of excellent quality, bulk analyses returning 56.5 per cent. metallic manganese. Some thousands of tons have been exported, but it is supposed that fluctuating prices prevented expansion of this industry. The total quantity of manganese-ore exported to the end of 1928 amounted to 19,385 tons, of a value of £62,006.

CINNABAR.

After several unsuccessful attempts, extending over a number of years, to work cinnabar deposits in the Auckland Provincial District, satisfactory results were obtained some years ago by the New Zealand Quicksilver-mines, Limited, whose mine and furnace were situated at Puhipuhi, about twenty - eight miles by road from Whangarei.

After a lapse of five years, part of the mine is now being worked by a syndicate under the name of the Great British Mercury Mine.

The area near Kaikohe, on which is situated the Ohaeawai quicksilver deposits, has recently been purchased by the Imperial Chemical Industries, Limited. The company is now installing the necessary plant to treat the cinnabar. Such a step was not decided on until after the area had been systematically bored and the approximate values of the deposits had been ascertained.

The total quantity of quicksilver exported to the 31st December. 1928, was 16 tons 12 cwt., valued at £8,336.

TIN.

Cassiterite in the form of “stream-tin” occurs near Port Pegasus, Stewart Island, where it has been worked to some extent. “Lode-tin” has been found in the same locality, and is now being prospected. Small quantities of cassiterite have also been detected in the stream-gravels of the Reefton, Greymouth, and Westport districts. Among other localities in which traces of tin occur are Wet Jacket Arm (Otago) and Campbell Island.

PLATINUM.

In the published lists of minerals of New Zealand platinum is stated to occur in several places, associated generally with gold in gravel. It is only from Southland, however, that platinum has been exported.

The Customs Department has not kept any separate record of the quantity and value of platinum entered for exportation, the value of this metal exported being included in a general total of exports by parcel-post, by which means platinum has generally been despatched from the Dominion.

In Southland native platinum occurs in auriferous wash, and is distributed on the beaches and coastal terraces from Blue Cliffs, west of Invercargill, to Longbeach, Waikawa River, east of Invercargill, over a distance of about ninety-two miles. It is probable that the platiniferous sands of Southland have been derived from serpentine or other olivine-bearing rocks, which are known to occur in Fiordland. In Russia and in Lapland platinum has been found in a matrix of serpentine (altered peridotite).

Native platinum has been obtained in payable quantities from claims at Cameron Creek, Groveburn, Orepuki, Pahi, Round Hill, Steel Head, Bushy Point, Waipapa, Otara Beach, Twelve-mile Beach, and Waikawa. The coarsest and heaviest samples have been obtained from west of Waiau River, that obtained east of Otara being extremely fine. Direct from the gold-saving mats at the alluvial workings at the Waikoau River, Rowallen, as high a proportion as 1 oz. platinum to 3 oz. gold has been obtained.

The platinum is collected by miners as a residue, after amalgamation, of alluvial gold, and is reduced by further washing to about a 50-per-cent. concentrate, the remainder of the concentrate being chiefly iridosmine (osmiridium).

This industry is now again engaging attention in the Orepuki district, and during 1928 35 oz. of platinum concentrates, valued at £263, were recovered from alluvial and sea-beach claims at Round Hill, Orepuki, and Wakapatu. Ten pennyweights of osmiridium, valued at £9 16s. 10d., was found alloyed with 8 1/2 oz. of platinum recovered from the Wakapatu Mining Company's claim.

SULPHUR.

Native sulphur in sufficient quantity to be profitably worked occurs in the thermal districts of the North Island, near Rotorua and Lake Taupo, and at White Island. With the exception of the lake deposit on White Island, all the known native sulphur in payable quantity occurs in the form of pockets in pumice, or sinter around fumaroles or thermal springs (from which it has been sublimed in crystalline form), and as black sulphur. The fumarolic deposits, although of high grade generally, are inextensive when compared with those of massive form in seams or in veins as extensively worked in Japan, Sicily, and North America.

Sulphur is destined in the future to play an important part in the progress of the Dominion, and, recognizing this, the Government in 1922 completed the purchase of a large block of sulphur-bearing land in the North Island, which, when served by a railway, will constitute a most valuable asset.

Another attempt is being made to work the White Island sulphur deposits. Operations were commenced late in 1925, when a small quantity of high-grade sulphur was shipped to Auckland, and liquefied out at 99.8 per cent. pure. Up to the end of 1928 3,402 tons of crude sulphur had been shipped. The product, after treatment, was put on the market as a fertilizer. Twenty-seven boreholes were put down in 1927 to an average depth of 180 ft. for the purpose of testing the sulphur deposits below the floor of the crater, and the tramline from Crater Bay was relaid at a lower level in order to gain better facilities for working the higher-grade sulphur found on the floor and sides of the crater. During 1928 additions were made to the machinery, plant, and housing accommodation.

White Island also contains several guano deposits, but no reliable estimate has yet been made of the quantity and quality available. Wireless communication is maintained between the island and the mainland.

COAL.

Coal, varying in grade from anthracite to lignite, occurs in many parts of New Zealand. In proportion to the present yearly consumption of about 2,500,000 tons (approximately 20 per cent. of which is imported), the supply may be considered relatively large, but in comparison with probable future needs it is decidedly small. It is likely, indeed, that the proved bituminous-coal resources of the Dominion will be practically exhausted within a hundred years. The resources of brown coal are very much greater.

An estimate of the proved and probable coal in New Zealand prepared in 1927 is as follows:—

Class of Coal.	Proved.	Probable.	Possible.
	Imperial Tons.	Imperial Tons.
Anthracite	Very little.	Very little.	Very little.
Bituminous	206,000,000	444,000,000	Small.
Semi-bituminous	60,000,000	72,000,000	Small.
Brown	247,000,000	738,000,000	Large.
Lignite	150,000,000	377,000,000	Large.
Totals	663,000,000	1,631,000,000	Large.

No individual coal-seam has yet been traced for more than a few miles in any direction. The variations in thickness are extraordinary. There are many instances of seams 10 ft. to 20 ft. thick thinning to 1 ft. or 2 ft. in distances of a quarter of a mile or less. The following instances of thick seams may be mentioned: In the Waikato district (Auckland), 50 ft. to 60 ft. of brown coal; in the Buller-Mokihinui district (Nelson), 53 ft. of bituminous coal; in the Kaitangata district (Otago), 30 ft. or more of brown coal; at Coal Creek, near Roxburgh, Central Otago, 80 ft. (or, according to Professor Park, 100ft.) of lignite; at Nightcaps (Southland), 36 ft. of brown coal.

In New Zealand the difficulties in settling the relative ages of the principal coalfields are such that for many years the subject has been a controversial one. The known facts may be summarized as follows: In south-east Otago (Waikawa, Catlin's River) and in Southland (Hokonui Hills) small seams of coal occur in Jurassic rocks, but in no case is a workable seam known to be present. The chief coal-bearing rocks are probably of early Tertiary age, but late Cretaceous coal-seams almost certainly occur. There are also considerable quantities of lignite of Miocene-Pliocene, and possibly even Pleistocene age.

The output of the several classes of coal mined in each inspection district during 1928 is summarized as follows:—

Class of Coal.	Output of Coal during 1928.				Total Output to the End of 1928.
Class of Coal.	Northern District (North Island).	West Coast-District (South Island).	Southern District (South Island).	Totals.	Total Output to the End of 1928.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
Bituminous and sub-bituminous	179,460	1,169,272	..	1,348,732	41,819,046
Brown	602,429	31,408	339,401	973,238	22,734,951
Lignite	..	159	114,624	114,783	4,208,838
Totals for 1928	781,889	1,200,839	454,025	2,436,753	68,762,835
Totals for 1927	747,530	1,156,191	463,019	2,366,740	66,326,082

The gross output of coal for 1928 was 70,013 tons in excess of the total for 1927, and is the greatest annual output yet recorded. The record may to some extent be attributed to the Railways Department using a greater quantity of New Zealand coal instead of imported coal than has been the case during recent years.

The market for all classes of coal was dull throughout the year, and at many of the mines a considerable amount of slack time was worked. The combined capacity of the existing mines is well ahead of the demand, particularly for brown and lignite coal. The industry was almost free from stoppages due to labour trouble. Cooperative mining still continues to be successfully carried out in the Northern and West Coast Districts.

The following statement shows the tons of coal raised, the number of persons employed, and the number of lives lost by accidents in or about coal-mines, &c., in each of the last ten years, with the totals to the 31st December, 1928:—

Year.	Output. (Tons.)	Persons employed above and below Ground.	Tons raised per Person employed Underground.	Lives lost.
Year.	Output. (Tons.)	Persons employed above and below Ground.	Tons raised per Person employed Underground.	Number.	Per Million Tons raised.	Per Thousand Persons employed.
1919	1,847,848	3,944	648	10	5.41	2.54
1920	1,843,705	4,078	630	1	0.54	0.25
1921	1,809,095	4,367	574	10	5.53	2.29
1922	1,857,819	4,556	552	6	3.23	1.32
1923	1,969,834	5,000	540	5	2.54	1.00
1924	2,083,207	4,869	594	10	4.80	2.05
1925	2,114,995	4,777	606	8	3.78	1.67
1926	2,239,999	5,159	586	15	6.69	2.90
1927	2,366,740	5,374	593	10	4.23	1.86
1928	2,436,753	5,376	608	9	3.69	1.67
Totals to date	68,762,835	..	..	421	6.19	..

Experimental work on the briquetting of coals shows that good briquettes can be made from most of the lignites tried (Mataura, Bannockburn, Charleston, Taratu, &c.) without the use of any binder, but that this is not the case with brown coal and bituminous coal. The best and most economical briquettes from brown and bituminous coals are obtained by using coal-tar pitch or bitumen. Briquettes made from bituminous coal with either of these binders are of very good quality and of moderate cost. In the case of brown coals such briquettes stand handling and weathering very well, but crumble in the fire. This defect can, however, be entirely removed by mixing the brown coal with about 20 per cent. of a bituminous coal. Briquettes made with such a mixture and a suitable amount of pitch or bitumen are of moderate cost, and of excellent quality in every respect for household use. If the proportion of bituminous coal is increased to 50 per cent. of the mixture the briquettes are free from the tendency to sparking so characteristic of Waikato brown coals and should furnish an excellent locomotive fuel.

With a view to investigating the possibilities of increasing the market for small coal, representative samples of coal from Waikato, Reefton, Otago, and Southland were forwarded for special investigation and report upon their commercial and economic uses to Professor W. A. Bone, D.Sc., Ph.D., F.R.S., of the Imperial College of Science and Technology, London, the recognized authority in the Empire on the low-temperature carbonization of coal. Professor Bone's conclusions as to the utilization of this small coal are given as follows in his report:—

“In my opinion the best prospect of utilizing these coals commercially would be either (i) as pulverized fuels for the firing of boilers or reverberatory furnaces, or (ii) as briquettes, after being crushed and briquetted with the addition of some 4 per cent. or 5 per cent. of pitch or other suitable binder. Speaking generally, probably a suitable process of low-temperature carbonization (say at 550° to 600° C.), when such becomes commercially available, would be the best means of ‘up-grading’ these coals; because, in addition to yielding satisfactory amounts of fuel oils, the residues, which would be free-burning and smokeless in their combustion, could readily be used either as pulverized fuels for steam generation and the like or as briquetted fuels.”

Much research work on coal has been carried out at the Dominion Laboratory. In 1927 this work consisted chiefly of the examination of samples of carbonized residue, briquettes, and oil, resulting from the low-temperature carbonization of several tons of Waikato slack, by the Rolle process at Halle, Germany. The results confirmed those obtained at the Imperial Institute, London, by Sir Richard Redmayne, and published in his report on the carbonization tests. During the year a Coal Research Association was formed, and research on coal is now being carried out under the direction of the association.

The low-temperature carbonization of some brown coals at various temperatures was also investigated, using the Gray-King laboratory apparatus, and also a small aluminium Fischer retort. To enable larger-scale tests to be carried out, a Fischer rotary retort, to hold a charge of from 20 lb. to 30 lb. of coal, has now been installed, with the necessary pumps, gas-holder, and other accessories.

During 1928 the low-temperature carbonization of some Waikato coals was investigated at temperatures of 550° and 600°, using the Fischer rotary retort. The condensing system was modified by the addition of absorbers of activated carbon to strip the light oil from the gas. A meter was also installed to measure accurately the volume of gas produced. A full charge for the retort is 30 lb. of coal. The average yield for Rotowaro coal at 600° C. per ton of coal as charged was: Residue, 10.5 cwt.; tar-oil, 163 gallons; light oil from gas, 0.9 gallons; gas, 4,215 cubic feet. The work is being extended to the other chief classes of New Zealand coal. Special attention will be paid to the oil obtained by the process.

In addition to the work carried out at the Dominion Laboratory, an investigation was made of conditions of stone-dusting in New Zealand coal-mines, and a report prepared on the subject.

STATE COLLIERIES.

The Coal-mines Act of 1901 provided for the acquisition and working of State coal-mines in New Zealand under the direct control of the Minister of Mines. At the present time two State collieries are in operation.

During 1928–29 the Liverpool Colliery produced 122,340 tons of marketable coal, a decrease of 14,840 tons on the previous year's production. The James Colliery produced 36,614 tons of marketable coal during the year, a decrease of 528 tons on the production for 1927–28.

The disposal, inclusive of stocks on hand at the beginning of the year, was as follows:—

Supplied to	Tons.
Depots	48,123
Railways	20,662
Other Government Departments	6,138
Shipping companies	17,411
Gas companies	57,000
Other consumers	11,582
Total	160,916

The total sales of State coal from the Liverpool Mine for the year amounted to 123,974 tons, value £161,157, as compared with 136,978 tons, value £185,970, for 1927–28, a decrease of 13,004 tons, and a decrease in value of £24,813. The values include sales made c. and f. and f.o.b. as well as f.o.r.

The average price realized by the mine on the total sales for the year was £1 5s. 11.9d. per ton, a decrease of 1s. 1.9d. on the previous year's average.

The total sales of State coal from the James Mine for the year amounted to 36,942 tons, value £53,284, giving an average of £1 8s. 10.1d. per ton, a decrease of 0.5d. on last year's average. As in the case of the Liverpool Mine, the values include sales made c. and f. and f.o.b. as well as f.o.r.

The sales of coal, &c., through the medium of the depots totalled 116,749 tons, value £220,505, as against 134,830 tons, value £253,579, for 1927–28.

The profits at the mines were £1,892, and at the depots, &c., £7,377, making a total net profit of £9,269. The sum of £4,573 was applied to Sinking Fund Account.

WORLD'S COAL-PRODUCTION.

In the 1929 number of the Stateman's Year-book the world's production of coal is estimated at 1,235,638,000 tons for the year 1928, as compared with 1,266,505,000 tons in 1927 and 1,222,300,000 tons in 1913.

PETROLEUM.

Drilling for petroleum has in recent years been carried out in Taranaki, Hawke's Bay, Canterbury, and Westland. Throughout the Dominion twenty-six deep boreholes in search of petroleum have been drilled, the deepest being at Moturoa, near New Plymouth, which has attained a depth of approximately 6,000 ft. Petroleum of good quality but in limited quantity has been proved at Moturoa, but up to the present time boring for petroleum in the Dominion has attained only a small and intermittent flow. An effort was made by the Blenheim Oil-well Reclamation Company, Limited, to recondition and bring into production the Blenheim well. An oil sand was known to exist at about 2,180 ft. The intention of the company was to clear the well to that depth, plug it there, and then “shoot” the well. From that horizon 30,000 gallons of oil had been got in 1914. The well was cleared 2,200 ft. and securely plugged. Water was shut off at 1,889 ft. Endeavours to bring in the well have been unsuccessful. The company is now engaged in putting down another well adjacent to the old well.

An Australian company, the Taranaki (N.Z.) Oilfields, was formed in 1924 to test the Taranaki oilfield further, but has so far met with no success in its search for oil. Drilling operations were commenced at the beginning of 1925, and two wells were started, one at Tarata and another on the foreshore at Moturoa. By the end of 1926 the Tarata well had been drilled to a depth of 5,010 ft. and the Moturoa well 4,360 ft. without striking payable oil or gas. Drilling in the Taranaki district has since been suspended.

A great deal of field-work was done during 1925 in the Gisborne district and several favourable structures were located. Drilling commenced in 1926. Waipu No. 1 well was sunk to a depth of 2,540 ft. but got no oil. Another well, Waipu No. 2, was started near Tokomaru Bay late in the year, and during 1928 was sunk to a depth of 3,260 ft., when drilling was stopped and the plant removed. The Gisborne No. 1 well was continued to a depth of 3,040 ft., where soft shale (which caved badly) was struck, and it was impracticable to continue with the plant in use, so operations were suspended. Towards the end of 1927 the site was prepared and the erection of the derrick begun for another well, known as the Gisborne No. 2 well, on a favourable structure found in the Manganone Valley, about seven miles from the No. 1 well-By the end of 1928 this well was down to 2,000 ft. Shows of gas and oil were got in both Nos. 1 and 2 Gisborne wells. Field-work by oil-geologists was carried on continuously in Taranaki and Gisborne districts with a view to locating favourable oil structures.

Oil-seepages occur near the Mangles River in the Murchison district, and a company was formed to drill this area. Drilling was commenced early in 1926, and by the end of 1928 the depth reached was 4,080 ft. At this depth the bailer was lost in the hole and operations were suspended. Some gas and a show of oil were got at about 2,300 ft.

Several other companies propose to commence operations shortly. Oil-prospecting operations throughout the Dominion have received very liberal financial assistance from the Government in the forms of bonuses, subsidies, and loans.

KAURI-GUM.

The kauri-gum industry is under the administration of a separate Department controlled by a Superintendent. During 1528, 4,394 tons of kauri-gum, valued at £240,139, were exported, the total quantity of gum exported to the end of 1928 being 408,367 tons, valued at £22,374,522.

The European market for this fossil resin—used in the manufacture of varnish and linoleum—being greatly restricted by the recent war, new but smaller markets were obtained. The Kauri-gum Industry Act, 1914, providing for State purchase of gum from diggers and the disposal of the gum, served a useful purpose in enabling the industry to keep going in spite of the disorganization occasioned by the war.

As in the case of several other important items of primary produce, the kauri-gum industry has now a Control Act. This Act, passed in 1925, makes provision for the control of the trade in and of the export of kauri-gum.

PHOSPHATE ROCK.

At Clarendon and Milburn, Otago, considerable deposits of phosphate rock were discovered in 1902, and have since been actively worked. A thin bed of phosphatic rock has been identified at Kaikoura and Amuri Bluff, in Marlborough. A similar bed occurs near Port Robinson. Phosphatic nodules are found in the Kaikorai Valley (near Dunedin), at Weka Pass (North Canterbury), and elsewhere. A limestone containing 10.6 per cent. of tricalcic phosphate occurs in the neighbourhood of Onewhero, Waikato district. Other districts where phosphatic material of good quality, though, so far as known, not in commercial quantity, is found are Amberley, Dipton, Oamaru, Waimate, Wangapeka, Clarence Valley, Tutira Block (Mangaharuru Survey District, Hawke's Bay), and Whangarei.

Phosphatic minerals, the most common of which is the hydrous iron phosphate vivianite, have been discovered in numerous other localities besides those mentioned above, but commercially these occurrences are of little importance.

GREENSTONE.

The mineral nephrite, the “pounamu” of the Maori, more popularly known as one of the varieties of “greenstone,” whenever observed in situ, occurs as rounded segregations in talc or talc-serpentine rocks. These segregations vary up to 2 ft. or even more in lateral dimensions. As a rule they average less than 1 ft. in width. So far as is known, the mineral has been found in its original locus only in the Griffin Range, Turiwhate Survey District, North Westland.

Pounamu is a deep-green semi-transparent mineral with dark opaque patches. With the wearing-away of the enclosing matrix the segregations are freed as rounded masses, and were once transported by the Arahura, Taramakau, and other glaciers, and are now found as boulders in the glacial debris along the lower streams of the Arahura and Taramakau Valleys. From boulders all greenstone ornaments have hitherto been manufactured.

BUILDING AND ORNAMENTAL STONES.

New Zealand possesses a great variety of handsome and durable building-stones scattered throughout both Islands. In Auckland there are basalt, andesite, porphyrite and quartz biotite-diorite, known in the building trade as Coromandel “granite,” a hard, coarsely crystalline rock, capable of taking a fine polish. In addition there are the Whangarei limestone and the Raglan stone, the former an excellent building-stone, the latter a good freestone. Taranaki has the hornblende andesites of New Plymouth and Mount Egmont, and Wellington the andesites of Ruapehu.

In Nelson there is the granite of Tata Island and Tonga Bay, and the marble or crystalline limestones of the Pikiruna (Riwaka) Range. The Parliamentary Buildings at Wellington were constructed of this marble. West Nelson and Westland are well provided with granites and limestones of good quality, well adapted for building purposes; and in the Griffin Range, North Westland, there is found an abundance of finely coloured serpentine, unsurpassed as a decorative stone. Building-stone is scarce in Marlborough, but Canterbury is well supplied, having an abundance of Lyttelton bluestone (andesite) and Mount Somers stone, a limestone of exceptional quality. In Otago there is an abundance of excellent building-stone, ranging from the well-known Oamaru stone to the granite, gneiss, and limestones of Fiordland, all close to deep water. In Southland there is the so-called Ruapuke “granite,” the norite of the Bluff, and the granites of Stewart Island.

Many of the principal buildings in New Zealand have been constructed in stone from local quarries.

The value of stone, &c., produced during 1928 was £461,890, as against £570,369 for the previous year.

The following table shows the number of quarries under the Stone-quarries Act, also the number of persons ordinarily employed thereat, and the output of crude stone during 1928:—

Provincial District.	Number of Working Quarries under the Act.	Number of Persons ordinarily employed.	Output of Crude Stone.
Provincial District.	Number of Working Quarries under the Act.	Number of Persons ordinarily employed.	Stone or Gravel for Macadamizing or Ballast.	Stone for Harbour works.	Building or Monumental Stone.	Limestone for Agriculture.	Limestone for Cement or Mortar.	Miscellaneous.	Value at Quarry.
			Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	£
Auckland	181	1,176	552,641	109,800	774	26,449	226,037	46,405	228,596
Hawke's Bay	16	74	24,449	10,236	..	17,000	..	..	9,571
Taranaki	22	96	27,711	7,583	..	3,260	..	..	14,752
Wellington	44	215	127,314	1,095	..	10,000	700	28,000	48,781
Marlborough	11	162	8,353	18,586	440	2,631	40,485	16,118	17,666
Nelson
Westland
Canterbury	12	104	107,990	1,143	..	4,056	..	..	38,721
Otago	33	334	130,283	30,200	6,840	119,553	43,560	..	103,803
Southland	33	334	130,283	30,200	6,840	119,553	43,560	..	103,803
Totals, 1928	319	2,161	978,741	178,643	8,054	182,949	310,782	90,523	461,890
Totals, 1927	300	2,341	1,145,974	325,789	26,264	144,073	372,475	166,020	570,369

By section 2 of the Stone-quarries Amendment Act, 1920, the application of the Act was extended to include every place, not being a mine, in which persons work in quarrying stone and any part of which has a face more than 15 ft. deep, and also any tunnel in the construction of which explosives are used. The Act, however, does not apply to any Government operations, or any road or railway cutting, or excavations for buildings.

PERSONS ENGAGED IN MINING AND QUARRYING.

The following table shows the number of persons employed in or about mines and stone-quarries during the last two years:—

—	1927.	1928.	Increase or Decrease.
Metalliferous mines	1,771	1,540	Decrease 231
Coal-mines	5,374	5,376	Increase 2
Stone-quarries	2,341	2,161	Decrease 180
Totals	9,486	9,077	Decrease 409

ACCIDENTS AT MINES AND QUARRIES.

The following table shows the number and proportion of persons killed at coal-mines, at metal-mines, and at quarries and places under the Stone-quarries Act for the last ten years:—

Year.	Coal-mines.		Metal-mines.		Stone-quarries.
Year.	Number of Deaths.	Proportion per 1,000 Persons employed.	Number of Deaths.	Proportion per 1,000 Persons employed.	Number of Deaths.	Proportion per 1,000 Persons employed.
1919	10	2.54	4	1.82	1	0.71
1920	1	0.25	1	0.51	..	..
1921	10	2.29	1	0.48	1	0.64
1922	6	1.32	1	0.47	2	1.44
1923	5	1.00	..	..	3	1.82
1924	10	2.05	3	1.61	4	2.29
1925	8	1.67	3	1.72	3	1.52
1926	15	2.90	3	1.66	3	1.34
1927	10	1.86	..	..	1	0.42
1928	9	1.67	1	0.65	1	0.46

STATE AID TO MINING.

In no other country does the State offer such liberal and varied assistance to miners and prospectors as in New Zealand. State aid to mining in this Dominion is given in several forms, viz.:—

(1) Geological survey and bulletins; (2) financial aid to prospecting; (3) Government prospecting-drills; (4) loans for mining operations; (5) schools of mines; (6) subsidized roads to mining fields; (7) Government water-races.

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

Since the first discovery of coal and the precious metals in New Zealand the Government has employed skilled geologists, who have reported, after examination, on all the known mineral deposits. Since 1916 the Geological Survey Branch of the Mines Department (transferred to the newly organized Department of Scientific and Industrial Research in 1926) has been enlarged, and has included on its staff the most eminent geologists of the Dominion.

FINANCIAL AID TO PROSPECTING.

As an aid towards the development of the mining industry the Government offers varied and liberal assistance to prospectors in the form of subsidies, loans, expert and technical advice, use of plant, &c. Subject to the provisions of the Mining Act, the holder of a valid miner's right is entitled to prospect for gold or any other metal or mineral (except coal) on any Crown land. He may also obtain authority from the Governor-General to prospect on Native land, and he may also prospect on private land with the consent of the owner. Wardens in mining districts and Commissioners of Crown Lands in other districts may, with the consent of the Minister of Mines, grant prospecting licenses for coal.

Assistance is offered to prospectors as under:—

Subsidies for prospecting (vide Regulation 115 under the Mining Act):—
- For prospecting new ground by parties of not less than two men, a subsidy not exceeding £1 19s. per week per man.
- For sinking in dry ground by parties of not less than two men—from surface to 15 ft., 1s. 11d. per foot; from 15 ft. to 30 ft., 3s. 3d. per foot; from 30 ft. to 60 ft., 3s. 11d. per foot; over 60 ft., 5s. 2d. per foot.
- For sinking in wet ground where slabbing is necessary, double the foregoing rates. For sinking in solid rock by blasting, 9s. 9d. per foot; but if the cost exceeds £1 19s. per foot, then 13s. per foot may be paid.
- For tunnelling or driving through drift or blue reef—up to 400 ft., 1s. 11d. per foot; 400 ft. to 700 ft., 3s. 3d. per foot; 700 ft. to 1,000 ft., 3s. 11d. per foot; over 1,000 ft., 5s. 2d. per foot.
- For tunnelling or driving through hard rock by blasting, a subsidy of 6s. 6d. per foot is offered; but if the cost exceeds £1 6s. per foot, then 8s. 8d. per foot may be paid. When timbering by sets is necessary, then a subsidy not exceeding 2s. 7d. per foot of driving, or one-half the cost of the timber, may be paid.
Subsidies for prospecting deep levels for gold-quartz lodes down to a depth of not less than 1,000 ft., and for alluvial drift not less than 250 ft. (vide Regulation 113 under the Mining Act): Such subsidies may be granted up to half the estimated cost of the work, but not to exceed £10,000.
The identification and assaying free of charge, of samples from bona fide prospectors, at the Dominion Laboratory, Wellington, or at the schools of mines, provided the locality from which the samples are obtained is given.
Any prospector desiring information regarding favourable localities, or the most suitable method of prospecting, or any other matter connected with mining, may receive free advice upon application to the Mines Department, Wellington.

During the year ended 31st March, 1929, a total of £8,586 was expended in subsidies for prospecting, and 113 persons were employed in connection therewith.

GOVERNMENT PROSPECTING-DRILLS.

Prospecting-drills of various types suitable for the conditions' existing in the Dominion are lent to bona fide prospectors. A monthly rental is charged for the plant, and the hirer is required to maintain it in good order and condition, as security for which a deposit is required, together with a bond varying in amount according to the class of drill loaned.

Where the Government provides an expert drill superintendent to take charge, one-half of his salary, together with one-half the amount of the authorized travelling allowances and expenses incurred while proceeding from his last employment to the site of the drilling operations, and one-half of his camp allowance while the work is in progress, is paid by the Mines Department; but if the hirer provides the drill superintendent the whole of his salary is paid by the hirer. All working-expenses are also paid by the hirer, including renewals, &c., and the loss on carbons.

The hirer is required to furnish to the Mines Department weekly reports of boring results.

For boring in rock for coal and oil-shale seams or for mineral lodes (reefs) the following drills, which produce cores of the rocks penetrated, are available:—

One Schram-Harker steam-power-driven diamond drill of 1,100 ft. capacity; weight, 8 tons (casing excluded).
One Schram-Harker kerosene-engine-driven combination diamond drill of 600 ft. capacity; weight, 7 tons (including casing). Will drill to 75 ft. in gravels by percussion method. Suitable drill for boring lignite or soft deposits.
One Sullivan C.N. steam-power-driven diamond drill of 800 ft. capacity; weight, 10 tons (including casing).

For boring in gravel or other alluvium for alluvial gold there are available:—

Three Keystone percussion traction drills, driven by steam-power, of 150 ft. capacity in favourable ground; weight of each drill, 9 tons (including 100 ft. of 6 in. drive pipe).
One hand placer drill of 60 ft. capacity; weight, about 30 cwt.; can be transported on field by hand labour.
Considerable use was made of the Government prospecting-drills during 1928, an aggregate of 5,465 ft. being drilled in 106 holes for thirteen parties.

SCHOOLS OF MINKS.

For the education of prospectors and mining students five schools of mines are subsidized or entirely supported by the Government, in addition to the Otago University School of Mines. The schools of mines are situated at Thames, Waihi, Huntly, Westport, and Runanga.

The expenditure on these schools by the Government during the year ended the 31st March, 1929, was £3,541, as against £3,517 during the previous year.

A great deal of useful and necessary work continues to be performed by the schools of mines, but in those districts where mining has seriously declined and has been replaced by other industries few of the students taking the classes are engaged or likely to be engaged in mining.

SUBSIDIZED ROADS.

The expenditure in the form of subsidies and direct grants upon roads on gold-fields during the year ended the 31st March, 1929, amounted to £1,792, as compared with £3,841 during the previous year.

GOVERNMENT WATER-RACES.

To enable alluvial-gold mining to be carried on in the neighbourhood of Kumara (West-land) and Naseby (Central Otago), the Government, during former years, constructed or acquired water-races of great capacity, at an approximate cost of about £350,000, and for a number of years the water from these races, which was supplied to parties of miners at a reasonable price, enabled considerable quantities of gold to be won, and thus gave profitable employment to many persons. Of late years, however, the gold-production has greatly declined.

The control of the Mount Ida water-races was transferred to the Public Works Department in 1924, with the intention that water not being used in gold-mining should be utilized for irrigation, and in 1927 the Kumara races were sold by the Government to the Westland Power Board.

FAVOURABLE FIELDS FOR PROSPECTING FOR GOLD.

Another form of Government assistance to mining consists of the publication of information as to localities recommended to the attention of prospectors. Particulars of localities so recommended are given in the 1928 number of the Year-book.

BOARD OF EXAMINERS.

The Board of Examiners annually conducts examinations of candidates for certificates as first-class and second-class mine-managers, battery-superintendents, and dredgemasters under the Mining Act, and for certificates as first-class and second-class mine-managers and mine-surveyors under the Coal-mines Act. Examinations of candidates for certificates as underviewers and firemen and deputies under the Coal-mines Act are held periodically when necessary. No candidate is permitted to present himself for examination unless he holds an authority from the Secretary to the Board of Examiners.

SICK AND ACCIDENT AND COAL-MINERS' RELIEF FUNDS.

As required by the Coal-mines Act, 1925, the owner of every coal-mine contributes id. per ton on all coal sold, for the relief of coal-miners who may be injured while working, and for the relief of families of coal-miners who may be killed or injured.

Under that Act the Minors' Sick and Accident Funds were as from the 1st April, 1926, abolished and incorporated in the Coal-miners' Relief Fund. The amounts pooled at the 1st April, 1926, were—Sick and Accident Funds £14,603, Coal-miners' Relief Fund £12,469, a total of £27,072.

All accident relief payments are now made from the Coal-miners' Relief Fund, which is administered by the Public Trustee with the assistance of local committees.

The income from the 1/2d. per ton contribution was £4,894 during the twelve months ended 31st March, 1929, as compared with £5,073 during 1927–28, and interest earnings (£1,365 in each year) brought the total receipts to £6,259 and £6,438 for the respective years. The total expenditure for the year ended 31st March, 1929, amounted to £6,944, as against £7,153 for the previous year. The amount standing to the credit of the fund as at the 31st March, 1929, was £25,471, as against £26,157 twelve months earlier.

MINERS' PHTHISIS PENSIONS.

Information concerning pensions for miners incapacitated by miner's phthisis appears in the section of this book dealing with pensions, superannuation, &c.

Chapter 22. SECTION XXII.—FACTORY PRODUCTION.

INTRODUCTORY.

THE population of New Zealand is as yet insufficient to maintain a wide range of secondary industries, and consequently the Dominion's industrial field is for the main part limited to the treatment of the principal primary products. Statistics for recent years, however, indicate advancement among the principal branches of manufacture, as well as a tendency, with the increasing population, for greater diversity in the branches covered.

Statistics of factory production were collected in New Zealand from 1867 to 1916 in conjunction with the population census—viz., in 1867, 1871, 1874, 1878, and 1881, and quinquennially thereafter. Commencing with the year 1918–19, the collection became an annual one.

Under the regulations authorizing the collection of statistics of factory production a “factory” is defined as an establishment engaged in the manufacture, repair, or preparation of articles for wholesale or retail trade or for export, which employs at least two hands or uses motive power, with the exception of the following, which are expressly excluded: Bakeries, butcheries, laundries, smithies, waterworks, shops engaged in retail trade only, and farmers or others using motive power for their own individual and private use. The following are, however, required to furnish returns even although employing less than two hands and not using motive power: Tanneries; bacon, butter, cheese, soap or candle factories; brickyards; and limeworks.

The definition is fairly comprehensive, and clearly includes such industries as, for instance, jewellery and watch repairing, boot, shoe, and saddlery repairing, and similar trades. In former years small establishments thus engaged were included in the statistics, but they are now excluded unless they are also engaged in actual manufacture and have at least two persons engaged or use motive power.

Other classes of establishments formerly covered by the statistics but excluded from 1921–22 onwards are those engaged in dressmaking and millinery (unless manufacturing wholesale for sale in retail shops), bespoke tailoring, and establishments engaged in tea blending and packing, bottling liquor, stone quarrying and crushing, asphalting, or monumental masonry. The latter industries were excluded to bring the statistics into line with other parts of the Empire. In addition, returns are not pressed for from plumbers or from builders who make joinery for their own building contracts. Builders are, however, required to furnish annual returns of building and construction, which are dealt with in Section XXIII.

The changes referred to above have had the effect of showing an apparent decrease in the number of establishments in some industries and also in the total of all industries; but in other respects the effect on the statistics is negligible, the number of employees and the value of materials used, products, &c., covered by the trades concerned being comparatively small.

It should be noted that these statistics do not cover, and do not purport to cover, all establishments registered as factories in the Dominion, for the following reasons: “One man” businesses are excluded with the exception of tanneries, bacon, butter, cheese, soap, or candle factories, brickyards, or limeworks; some small repair-shops (as explained previously) are excluded even although they may employ two or more hands; and in some cases where a factory has two or more branches it has been found impracticable to obtain separate returns, and all branches have been treated as one establishment. The effect of this is seen from the fact that while for the year 1927–28 16,782 factories, employing 102,622 hands, were registered under the Factories Act, only 5,166 factories (with, however, 81,756 persons engaged) were covered by the statistics of factory production.

NUMBER OF ESTABLISHMENTS.

The establishments recorded in 1927–28 numbered 5,166, an increase of 78 over the number recorded in the previous year. This increase is confined mainly to a few industries, the principal being—Motor-engineering, 59; coach building, 11; leadlight and glass bevelling, 7; and furniture-making, 6. Substantial decreases were recorded by—General engineering (11) and sawmilling and sash and door factories (10).

It is not surprising to find successive increases in the number of motor and cycle, printing, engineering, and woodware establishments. These industries have been appropriately termed “neighbourhood” industries, and are usually found serving defined communities, each of which has its own motor-garage, printing works, and joinery-shop. In a growing community the tendency is for new establishments of these classes to come into existence as against the expansion of those already in existence.

The substantial increase in the number of motor-engineering establishments is the anticipated accompaniment to the phenomenal development of motor transport in the Dominion of recent years. The motor-vehicle has become established as the principal means of road transport, and with the improvements effected to roads in recent years the number of motors has increased enormously.

A change in the method of recording the number of establishments is principally responsible for the increases shown for the butter and cheese industry from 1925–26 onwards. Prior to 1925–26 the unit of ownership was the basis worked upon, but from that year the actual number of factories has been counted. Certain companies own a number of factories.

The remarks made previously regarding comparisons between the figures for different years are particularly applicable in connection with the number of establishments. A comparison between the gross figures for 1915–16 and the last five years gives an altogether wrong impression of the actual state of affairs. The net figures (i.e., those relating only to industries common to all years) are comparable, and show that the number of establishments returned in the latest collection is 1,380 in excess of the total for 1915–16 and also considerably greater than that for any other year shown.

Provincial District.	1915–16.	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
Auckland	1,236	1,272	1,339	1,435	1,531	1,576
Hawke's Bay	256	256	247	247	260	261
Taranaki	246	228	228	300	324	334
Wellington	953	961	950	1,038	1,076	1,050
Marlborough	57	70	79	76	76	71
Nelson	156	150	140	147	162	166
Westland	105	117	120	129	120	114
Canterbury	776	675	701	697	776	778
Otago	579	469	477	463	481	519
Southland	306	263	266	271	282	297
Gross Totals	4,670	4,461	4,547	4,803	5,088	5,166
Net Totals	3,786	4,461	4,547	4,803	5,088	5,166

In point of numbers Auckland claims the premier position, having over 500 more establishments than Wellington, which is just under 300 ahead of Canterbury, with Otago approximately 250 behind Canterbury. Taranaki, Southland, and Hawke's Bay all have between 200 and 400 establishments, followed by Nelson, Westland, and Marlborough in that order.

The following table shows the number of establishments, classified by industries and provincial districts, for the year ended 31st March, 1928:—

Class of Industry.	Auckland.	Hawke's Bay.	Taranaki.	Wellington.	Marlborough.	Nelson.	Westland.	Canterbury.	Otago.	Southland.	Totals.
Animal food	140	30	120	102	9	13	12	56	38	77	597
Vegetable food	34	6	4	22	2	4	1	43	28	4	148
Drinks, narcotics, and stimulants	56	22	14	41	8	16	8	38	19	11	233
Animal matters (not otherwise classed)	22	7	8	18	2	3	..	14	5	1	80
Working in wood	186	33	15	98	13	47	51	44	36	45	568
Vegetable produce for fodder	4	..	1	..	..	..	..	1	..	..	6
Paper manufactures	6	..	..	4	..	..	..	3	5	2	20
Heat, light, and power	37	13	13	27	5	8	4	30	11	6	154
Processes relating to stone, clay, glass, &c.	80	7	9	45	5	7	3	26	22	16	220
Metals other than gold or silver	143	13	22	92	2	13	6	80	48	16	435
Precious metals	11	1	..	11	..	..	..	6	10	1	40
Books and publications	114	15	15	80	5	10	4	51	35	17	346
Musical instruments	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	1	4	..	6
Ornaments and minor art products	16	2	1	17	..	1	..	13	10	2	62
Equipment for sports and games	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Designs, medals, type, and dies	5	..	..	8	..	..	..	2	1	..	16
Machines, tools, and implements	10	..	1	3	..	..	..	12	4	4	34
Carriages and vehicles	301	71	70	226	12	26	17	161	105	48	1,037
Harness, saddlery, and leatherware	47	13	8	25	..	2	..	42	19	9	165
Ships, boats, and their equipment	32	3	2	8	1	2	..	6	10	2	66
House furnishings	145	18	23	81	3	8	4	55	20	14	371
Chemicals and by-products	13	3	3	26	..	1	..	15	15	..	76
Textile fabrics	2	1	..	4	..	..	..	3	6	1	17
Apparel	137	2	4	80	1	..	1	64	54	3	346
Fibrous materials	18	1	1	20	3	5	3	6	8	17	82
Miscellaneous	16	..	..	12	..	..	..	6	6	1	41
Totals	1,576	261	334	1,050	71	166	114	778	519	297	5,166

The number of establishments is not a very satisfactory basis on which to judge of the development of the various industries. In those industries where the initial capital outlay is large and the materials operated upon are easily transferable (e.g., meat-freezing, &c.), there is a tendency for the establishments to expand within themselves, while in other cases, such as motor and cycle engineering, where the initial capital outlay is small and where each establishment supplies the needs of individual communities, a mushroom-like growth in the number of establishments is evident.

An interesting classification of establishments is according to the number of persons engaged, and the following table gives the establishments for the last five years classified in this way:—

Year.	10 or under.	11–20.	21–50.	51–100.	Over 100.	Totals.
1923–24	2,933	691	544	165	128	4,461
1924–25	2,972	721	572	157	125	4,547
1925–26	3,128	785	586	173	119	4,791
1926–27	3,455	773	563	176	121	5,088
1927–28	3,543	765	570	159	129	5,166

As might be expected, the establishments with the smaller numbers of employees reflect greater movements during the period than the larger establishments. It is interesting to note that the number of establishments employing over 100 persons increased by 8 in 1927–28, while the class employing between 51 and 100 persons decreased by 17, from 176 to 159. The next group (21–50) increased by 7, while the 11–20 group declined by S. The smallest group, with 10 employees or under, showed an increase of 88.

The movements in the numbers of establishments under each heading are given in the following table, which shows the percentages of each group to the total over the last five years:—

Year.	10 or under.	11–20.	21–50.	51–100.	Over 100.	Totals.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1923–24	65.75	15.49	12.19	3.70	2.87	100.00
1924–25	65.36	15.86	12.58	3.45	2.75	100.00
1925–26	65.27	16.39	12.24	3.60	2.50	100.00
1926–27	67.90	15.19	11.07	3.46	2.38	100.00
1927–28	68.58	14.81	11.03	3.08	2.50	100.00

Broadly speaking, the above table shows that up to 1925–26 there was a tendency for the number of factories employing under 11 hands to decline relatively to the other factories, while those having more than 10 hands engaged show the reverse tendency. This tendency, however, has been reversed during the last two years.

The following table shows the number of employees engaged in factories of the various categories, with the percentage of each to the total, and the number of employees per establishment:—

Year.	10 or under.	11–20.	21–50.	51–100.	Over 100.	Totals.
Number of Employees.
1923–24	12,330	10,127	16,921	11,481	26,802	77,661
1924–25	12,658	10,702	18,133	11,226	27,608	80,327
1925–26	14,641	11,595	17,850	11,877	26,055	82,018
1926–27	15,219	11,354	17,216	12,128	25,987	81,904
1927–28	15,488	11,157	17,156	11,031	26,924	81,756
Percentages of Total.
1923–24	15.88	1,304	21.79	14.78	34.51	100.00
1924–25	15.76	13.32	22.57	13.98	34.37	100.00
1925–26	17.85	14.14	21.76	14.48	31.77	100.00
1926–27	18.58	13.86	21.02	14.81	31.73	100.00
1927–28	18.95	13.65	20.98	13.49	32.93	100.00
Employees per Establishment.
1923–24	4.20	14.66	31.10	69.58	209.39	17.41
1924–25	4.26	14.84	31.70	71.50	220.86	17.67
1925–26	4.67	14.73	30.36	68.65	217.12	17.08
1926–27	4.40	14.69	30.58	68.91	214.77	16.10
1927–28	4.37	14.58	30.10	69.38	208.71	15.83

The average number of employees per establishment showed a slight upward trend for some years prior to 1925–26, when a falling tendency commenced, which is still in evidence. The proportion of the total employees engaged in factories having 20 hands or under was 29.70 per cent. in 1922–23 against 32.64 in 1927–28, while larger factories accounted for 70.30 per cent. of the employees in the first-mentioned against 67.36 per cent. in the last-mentioned year.

EMPLOYEES.

Prior to 1918–19 information regarding productive employees only was asked for, but from that date to 1924–25 information regarding all employees was sought under the following heads, viz.: Administrative, productive, and distributive. Experience showed that the classification of employees and salaries and wages paid under these headings frequently entailed difficulty and uncertainty. Consequently, in 1925–26, the headings providing for particulars regarding employees (including working proprietors) were altered, the information now being collected under the following headings: Proprietors actively engaged; managers, overseers, &c.; accountants, clerks, &c.; and wage-earning employees. Further information is collected in respect of the number of employees engaged each month. This has proved a very effective check on the figures returned as representing the average number of employees engaged during the year, and has shown fairly clearly that this figure had been overstated in previous years, particularly in seasonal industries such as meat-freezing and butter and cheese making.

The following table shows the total employees returned at each of the last five collections, classified by provincial districts:—

Year.	Auckland.	Hawke's Bay.	Taranaki.	Wellington.	Marlborough.	Nelson.	Westland.	Canterbury.	Otago.	Southland.	Totals.
Numbers.
1923–24	25,290	2,716	2,450	15,493	589	1,336	1,695	13,934	11,041	3,117	77,661
1924–25	26,411	2,814	2,415	17,021	568	1,251	1,828	14,082	10,643	3,294	80,327
1925–26	27,063	2,841	2,550	17,617	513	1,300	1,810	13,806	11,040	3,478	82,018
1926–27	26,902	2,786	2,576	18,324	538	1,363	1,634	13,872	10,674	3,235	81,904
1927–28	26,815	3,015	2,610	17,761	537	1,375	1,437	14,129	10,667	3,410	81,756
Percentages of Dominion Total.
1923–24	32.56	3.50	3.16	19.95	0.76	1.72	2.18	17.94	14.22	4.01	100.00
1924–25	32.88	3.50	3.01	21.19	0.71	1.56	2.27	17.53	13.25	4.10	100.00
1925–26	33.00	3.46	3.11	21.48	0.63	1.58	2.21	16.83	13.46	4.24	100.00
1926–27	32.85	3.40	3.14	22.37	0.66	1.66	2.00	16.94	13.03	3.95	100.00
1927–28	32.80	3.69	3.19	21.72	0.66	1.68	1.76	17.28	13.05	4.17	100.00

It is interesting to note that 54 1/2 per cent. of the total employees are located in the Auckland and Wellington Provincial Districts, and that Auckland alone accounts for nearly 33 per cent. of the total, as against less than 22 per cent. for Wellington. The gross figures for the latest collection show that five of the provincial districts record increases, and five decreases in the number of employees, while the percentages given indicate that the Auckland, Wellington, Nelson, and Canterbury Provincial Districts are increasing at a relatively greater rate than the other districts.

A summary showing the number of persons returned under each of the occupational headings already referred to is given hereunder for the years ended 31st March, 1927 and 1928.

Group.	1926–27.		1927–28.
Group.	Number of Persons.	Per Cent. of Total.	Number of Persons.	Per Cent, of Total.
Proprietors actively engaged	2,873	3.51	2,834	3.47
Managers, overseers, &c.	4,619	5.64	4,637	5.67
Accountants, clerks, &c.	7,337	8.96	7,518	9.19
Wage-earning employees	67,075	81.89	66,767	81.67
Totals	81,904	100.00	81,756	100.00

Of the total number of persons engaged on the average during the year ended 31st March, 1928, 81.67 per cent. were returned as wage-earning employees, 9.19 per cent. as accountants, clerks, &c., 5.67 per cent. as managers, overseers, &c., and 3.47 per cent. as proprietors actively engaged. Counting proprietors actively engaged with managers, overseers, &c., it would appear that there is on the average one person in these two classes for every nine wage-earning employees. This proportion may appear high, but it must not be overlooked that the New Zealand factory is as yet a small unit.

The following table shows the average (monthly) number of persons engaged in each class of industry during the year ended 31st March, 192 classified according to the groups mentioned:—

Class of Industry.	Proprietors.		Managers, Overseers, &c.		Accountants, Clerks, &c.		Wage-earning Employees.		Totals.
Class of Industry.	M.	F.	M.	F.	M.	F.	M.	F.	M.	F.
Animal food	55	..	1,015	..	1,037	293	8,277	98	10,384	391
Vegetable food	53	4	200	10	268	134	2,001	1,372	2,522	1,520
Drinks, narcotics, and stimulants	144	2	166	2	219	102	1,418	303	1,947	409
Animal matters (not otherwise classed)	23	..	75	2	80	31	701	94	879	127
Working in wood	346	2	420	..	302	93	7,421	7	8,489	102
Vegetable produce for fodder	..	..	7	..	8	6	33	..	48	6
Paper manufactures	2	..	26	3	8	10	195	254	231	267
Heat, light, and power	..	..	321	6	892	354	5,628	9	6,841	369
Processes relating to stone, clay, glass, &c.	124	1	189	..	132	58	2,770	7	3,215	66
Metals other than gold or silver	190	2	360	2	332	184	5,465	75	6,447	263
Precious metals	36	..	9	..	4	12	120	5	169	17
Books and publications	226	2	454	19	657	395	5,131	1,169	6,468	1,585
Musical instruments	2	..	..	..	..	..	43	1	45	1
Ornaments and minor art products	51	..	14	..	..	13	234	40	299	53
Designs, medals, type, and dies	12	..	8	..	4	10	84	1	108	11
Machines, tools, and implements	8	..	68	1	139	37	672	77	887	115
Carriages and vehicles	689	2	337	..	333	319	4,261	11	5,620	332
Harness, saddlery, and leatherware	105	..	95	1	101	28	951	125	1,252	154
Ships, boats, and their equipment	35	..	65	1	36	19	728	70	864	90
House-furnishings	309	2	132	4	80	74	2,219	292	2,740	372
Chemicals and by-products	9	..	130	9	137	61	853	276	1,129	346
Textile fabrics	..	..	74	2	53	16	959	1,395	1,086	1,413
Apparel	187	40	287	44	213	162	2,183	7,322	2,870	7,568
Fibrous materials	46	1	57	..	34	5	1,108	74	1,245	80
Miscellaneous	24	..	19	3	18	15	154	81	215	99
Totals	2,776	58	4,528	109	5,087	2,431	53,609	13,158	66,000	15,756

It is not surprising to find that the distribution of the sexes among the employees shows a considerable preponderance of males. In 1918–19 the number of females per 100 males was 32, which figure fell to 28 in the two following years, the decrease being due, no doubt, to the re-entry of many overseas troops into industrial life. In 1921–22 the exclusion of the dressmaking industry was responsible for a further decrease in the proportion of females to males, but the figures for succeeding years have remained fairly constant. The following table gives the number of females per 100 males employed in factories in each provincial district for the last five years.

Provincial District.	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
Auckland	22	21	21	22	25
Hawke's Bay	7	8	9	10	12
Taranaki	7	8	6	7	6
Wellington	21	22	23	23	25
Marlborough	2	2	2	3	3
Nelson	14	12	10	12	12
Westland	2	2	2	2	2
Canterbury	25	24	26	25	27
Otago	38	36	37	37	38
Southland	8	9	9	10	10
Totals	22	21	22	22	24

In the smaller districts there are few industries employing female labour to any extent, and the preponderance of males in such districts is very great; but this preponderance is considerably smaller in the four main districts, where female labour is in greater demand. In Otago the excess of males is less than in any other district, being as a matter of fact approximately two-thirds of that in Auckland and Wellington. Canterbury also has a comparatively small excess, but the presence of woollen-mills, which employ mainly female labour, is no doubt responsible for the position in both Canterbury and Otago.

SALARIES AND WAGES.

The figures relating to the amounts paid as salaries and wages cover the amounts paid in the ordinary way as salaries and wages, as well as bonuses and overtime. Since 1906 the amount paid in wages has approximately trebled, while during the same period the “added value” shows a similar increase The inflation which marked the early post-war period is particularly manifest in the figures for salaries and wages, and the aggregate amounts paid to labour during 1918–19 and the two subsequent years show violent fluctuations. Indeed, within the twelve months following the year 1918–19 the amount paid away in this connection increased by nearly £2,000,000, to be followed in 1920–21 with another increase of £3,000,000 over 1919–20 and of £5,000,000 over 1918–19. During this time the number of employees had not, however, remained stationary, but did not show increases nearly commensurate with the increase in salaries and wages; the percentage increases of the figures for the years 1919–20 and 1920–21 over the year immediately preceding, and of 1920–21 over 1918–19, were 8.94 per cent., 8.18 per cent., and 17.85 per cent. respectively. Corresponding increases in salaries and wages show percentages of 22.73, 25.85, and 54.45 respectively.

Since the drop following the slump of 1921–22 the total amount paid in wages has climbed steadily upwards. In 1923–24 the record set in 1920–21 was practically equalled, while the amounts recorded in 1924–25, 1925–26, and 1926–27 successively established new records. In 1927–28 there was a recession of £169,945, or 1 per cent., from the high figure for 1926–27.

The following figures, which represent the average wage-rates over all employees as actually recorded in the last nine collections, and as expressed on the basis of the purchasing-power of the pound in 1914, show that the average earnings have substantially increased during that period:—

Year.	Average Yearly Earnings.
Year.	As recorded.	As adjusted on Basis of Retail Price-level in 1914.^*
*All Groups.
	£	£
1919–20	160	102
1920–21	186	105
1921–22	195	110
1922–23	187	118
1923–24	188	119
1924–25	195	122
1925–26	206	127
1926–27	208	128
1927–28	206	128

The following table shows the wages paid during the last five years according to provincial districts:—

Provincial District.	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	4,907,600	5,232,278	5,679,359	5,684,748	5,682,534
Hawke's Bay	519,957	580,097	635,859	617,604	627,694
Taranaki	473,373	486,258	565,340	577,685	579,390
Wellington	3,000,546	3,478,532	3,772,665	3,902,994	3,825,498
Marlborough	90,159	89,191	100,902	104,341	96,704
Nelson	219,324	224,929	260,163	268,608	275,989
Westland	344,717	428,699	448,674	392,299	337,929
Canterbury	2,551,320	2,638,457	2,736,029	2,818,181	2,782,323
Otago	1,901,511	1,911,760	2,027,794	1,998,671	1,982,488
Southland	564,934	620,001	705,384	682,592	687,229
Totals	14,573,441	15,690,202	16,932,169	17,047,723	16,877,778

The amounts received by male and female employees, and the average amount received per employee of each sex, as recorded in the last five collections, are set out below:—

Year.	Males.		Females.		Both Sexes.
Year.	Total.	Average.	Total.	Average.	Total.	Average.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1923–24	13,220,908	207.13	1,352,533	97.78	14,573,441	187.65
1924–25	14,327,777	216.92	1,362,425	97.53	15,690,202	195.33
1925–26	15,480,725	229.72	1,451,444	99.22	16,932,169	206.44
1926–27	15,534,622	231.94	1,513,101	101.36	17,047,723	208.14
1927–28	15,300,988	231.83	1,576,790	100.08	16,877,778	206.44

Owing to the fact that employees who were engaged for part of the year only were not excluded from the figures in computing the averages given above, and, further, as it was not practicable to take into consideration other factors which would disturb their accuracy, the averages shown cannot be regarded in other than a general way.

The following table shows the salaries and wages paid during the year ended 31st March, 1928, in each class of industry, classified according to whether paid to (1) proprietors actively engaged, (2) managers, overseers, &c., (3) accountants, clerks, &c., or (4) wage-earning employees.

Class of Industry.	Proprietors actively engaged.		Managers, Overseers, &c.		Accountants, Clerks, Salesmen, &c.		Wage-earning Employees.		Totals.
Class of Industry.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
Animal food	13,924	..	391,532	..	225,625	33,586	1,829,146	8,654	2,460,227	42,240
Vegetable food	13,328	870	91,658	1,628	76,394	17,801	390,980	107 261	572 360	127,560
Drinks, narcotics, and stimulants	32,385	428	78,575	117	58,230	12,813	325,917	27,495	495,107	40,783
Animal matters (not otherwise classed)	5,408	..	42,786	1,440	21,706	4,812	157,487	7,121	227,387	13,373
Working in wood	81,182	659	159,991	..	72,096	10,709	1,631,360	538	1,944,629	13,373
Vegetable produce for fodder	..	..	1,988	..	2,574	765	5,478	..	10,040	765
Paper manufactures	450	..	11,438	648	2,260	1,346	41,621	23,699	55,769	25,693
Heat, light, and power	..	..	120,582	884	195,838	43,223	1,490,013	1,104	1,806,433	45 211
Processes relating to stone, clay,	32,085	50	85,014	..	27,708	6,374	586,527	865	731,334	7,289
Metals other than gold or silver	83,534	204	153,436	337	73,066	20,963	1,060,987	5,864	1,371,023	27 368
Precious metals	10,278	..	3,258	..	233	1,246	25,185	429	38,954	1,675
Books and publications	63,289	232	214,897	4,027	169,267	46,236	1,173,569	134,183	1,621,012	184,678
Musical instruments	337	..	..	..	..	..	7,655	41	7,992	41
Ornaments and minor art products	12,571	..	4,313	..	..	1,211	40,333	3,189	57,917	4,400
Designs, medals, type, and dies	4,471	..	3,774	..	289	717	17,382	52	25,976	769
Machines, tools, and implements	2,141	..	27,653	266	35,728	4,768	128,846	7,273	194,368	12,307
Carriages and vehicles	164,258	202	112,044	..	61,845	31,668	798,703	1,306	1,136,850	33,176
Harness, saddlery and leatherware	24,613	..	38,895	426	20,327	3,267	202,311	10,788	286,146	14,481
Ships, boats, and their equipment	9,293	..	23,126	156	6,729	2,106	161,738	6,485	200,886	8,747
House-furnishings	78,002	148	51,984	1,034	17,668	8,670	407,947	28,005	555,601	37,857
Chemicals and by-products	1,839	..	69,690	2,585	35,068	7,527	201,134	23,602	307,731	33,714
Textile fabrics	..	..	35,624	450	16,696	1,892	194,651	142,670	246,971	145,012
Apparel	53,895	8,071	124,331	11,114	47,479	19,758	442,786	703,701	668,491	742,644
Fibrous materials	8,593	104	20,753	..	7,170	653	194 332	5,395	230 848	6,152
Miscellaneous	5,749	..	8,169	482	4,411	1,961	29,367	6,506	47,696	3,949
Totals	701,625	10,968	1,875,511	25,594	1,178,407	284,072	11,545,445	1,256,156	15,300,988	1,576,790

MOTIVE POWER.

A supply of cheap motive power is essential for industrial development. New Zealand industries have in the past been somewhat handicapped in this respect, as coal and oil, which were in the earlier days the only sources of power, were by no means cheap. The difficulties in the way of obtaining a plentiful supply of cheap motive power are now being overcome by the development of hydroelectric power, for which New Zealand is geographically ideal. The State has in recent years developed this phase of the Dominion's resources, and in doing so has provided a margin of power for attracting special industries depending on a supply of cheap motive power, as well as amply meeting present demands.

The following table shows the numbers of each class of engine used in factories for the last five years, with figures of horse-power:—

Class of Engine.		1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28
Steam	No.	2,263	2,274	2,199	2,024	1,911
	H.P.	113,894	126,847	133,877	134,285	125,792
Coal-gas	No.	505	457	358	297	252
	H.P.	12,177	11,548	9,395	6,858	7,795
Suction gas	No.	239	208	187	159	148
	H.P.	12,381	11,676	10,826	9,455	8,723
Oil	No.	395	359	351	321	328
	H.P.	6,966	7,805	9,589	9,894	11,994
Electric	No.	6,673	8,057	9,651	11,324	12,428
	H.P.	62,221	76,167	90,157	102,816	111,942
Water	No.	221	233	254	269	255
	H.P.	43,272	54,364	105,410	145,431	150,859
Totals	No.	10,296	11,588	13,000	14,394	15,322
	H.P.	250,911	288,407	359,254	408,739	417,105

It should be borne in mind that the figures relating to the horse-power represent the indicated horse-power of the engines installed. This may be, and probably is, in many cases quite a different thing from the actual horse-power used. Attention is also directed to the fact that the statistics include the horse-power of turbines and pelton wheels used in the generation of electric current.

A drawback to the statistics arises through the lack of information relating to the actual or estimated period during which the engines or motors were in use. This is an important aspect of considerations affecting the quantitative measurement of the motive power in use.

The aggregate available horse-power of the engines used shows enormous increases over the last quarter of a century, and since 1900–01 has increased approximately sixfold. In 1900–01 the average horse-power of the engines used per establishment and per employee was 10.7 and 0.8 respectively, while in 1927–28 the corresponding figures appeared as 80.7 and 5.1.

The table on the next page shows the engines used and their horse-power as recorded in the last five collections, classified according to the various classes of industries. The total horse - power of engines engaged in the production of heat, light, and power increased from 93,907 in 1923–24 to 221,097 h.p. in 1927–28. All classes of industries reflect the expansion in the use of motive power during recent years. Comparing the figures for 1923–24 with 1927–28 the following are perhaps the most outstanding gains: Vegetable food, from 8,219 h.p. to 11,240 h.p.; working in wood, from 33,924 h.p. to 36,132 h.p.; paper manufactures, from 3,403 h.p. to 4,171 h.p.; processes relating to stone, clay, glass, &c., from 14,027 h.p. to 23,336 h.p.; books and publications, from 5,364 h.p. to 7,844 h.p.; chemicals and by-products, from 1,551 h.p. to 5,050 h.p.; textile fabrics, from 4,938 h.p. to 6,011 h.p.; and fibrous materials, from 4,665 h.p. to 6,123 h.p.

Class of Industry.	1923–24.		1924–25.		1925–26.		1926–27.		1927–28.
Class of Industry.	Number of Engines.	Horsepower.	Number of Engines.	Horsepower.	Number of Engines.	Horsepower.	Number of Engines.	Horsepower.	Number of Engines.	Horsepower.
Animal food	2,657	53,865	2,808	55,204	3,184	60,559	3,384	61,205	3,514	62,830
Vegetable food	435	8,219	484	9,197	552	9,502	658	10,584	738	11,240
Drinks, narcotics, and stimulants	488	3,564	521	3,806	576	3,883	614	4,069	671	4,286
Animal matters (not otherwise classed)	128	1,507	125	1,224	149	2,030	173	1,920	190	2,113
Working in wood	1,422	33,924	1,648	37,758	1,745	38,700	1,821	36,147	1,891	36,132
Vegetable produce for fodder	24	331	34	412	37	421	16	260	13	239
Paper manufactures	58	3,403	63	4,008	70	3,724	74	4,443	82	4,171
Heat, light, and power	186	93,907	183	114,597	201	175,652	208	220,175	198	221,097
Processes relating to stone, clay, glass, &c.	408	14,027	497	18,792	559	18,978	649	20,742	675	23,336
Metals other than gold or silver	745	7,932	837	8,691	926	8,947	1,041	9,377	1,140	9,927
Precious metals	61	77	56	76	58	76	54	85	58	76
Books and publications	986	5,364	1,251	6,041	1,413	6,879	1,569	7,507	1,701	7,844
Musical instruments	8	38	10	35	18	60	20	72	12	57
Ornaments and minor art products	23	44	25	50	27	56	31	65	37	71
Designs, medals, type, and dies	17	29	20	33	23	40	29	49	31	44
Machines, tools, and implements	129	1,080	121	1,128	151	1,225	164	1,110	141	1,161
Carriages and vehicles	781	3,145	842	3,355	1,014	3,538	1,291	4,132	1,400	4,313
Harness, saddlery, and leatherware	287	2,925	304	3,084	329	3,182	342	3,407	350	3,262
Ships, boats, and their equipment	90	656	93	714	103	690	107	691	104	808
House-furnishings	435	3,202	457	3,247	554	3,652	649	3,923	690	3,913
Chemicals and by-products	164	1,551	306	3,874	310	3,446	415	4,478	465	5,050
Textile fabrics	111	4,938	163	5,494	194	5,619	210	5,571	227	8,011
Apparel	477	2,195	544	2,263	582	2,400	610	2,419	695	2,543
Fibrous materials	127	4,665	142	4,987	178	5,676	210	5,910	224	6,123
Miscellaneous	49	323	54	2,337	47	319	55	398	75	458
Totals	10,296	250,911	11,588	288,407	13,000	359,254	14,394	408,739	15,322	417,105

The phenomenal increase in the motive power for the heat, light, and power group in the last three years is mainly due to the enormous development of hydroelectric undertakings in recent years. These undertakings do not furnish returns until the actual generation of electric current is commenced; and as quite a number of large works (including the Mangahao scheme) have only recently been completed, the results of the boom in electricity have been largely crowded into the last three years. Of the total increase of 106,500 horse-power in the heat, light, and power group in 1927–28, as compared with 1924–25, no less than 95,721 horse-power represents the increase in the horse-power of water-turbines and pelton wheels installed in electricity-generating establishments.

CONSUMPTION OF COAL.

The consumption of coal in the industries covered by the statistics of factory production appears to have been on a high level in 1923–24 and 1924–25, when just over 900,000 tons were consumed annually. In 1925–26 there was a sharp recession to 832,780 tons, which was followed in 1926–27 by a gain to 859,169 tons, and in 1927–28 by a further gain to 872,883 tons.

The following table shows the consumption of coal in the principal industries as recorded in each of the last five collections:—

Industry.	Year ended 31st March,
Industry.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.	Tons.
Meat freezing and preserving	116,132	114,656	104,066	94,924	92,871
Ham and bacon curing	2,651	3,671	3,895	3,952	2,759
Butter, cheese, and condensed milk	83,336	108,323	93,151	107,533	105,288
Grain-milling	12,488	9,856	5,056	3,707	2,934
Brewing and malting	10,456	11,936	11,482	11,452	10,186
Gas making and supply	249,710	245,022	232,713	228,858	227,517
Electricity generation and supply	95,729	131,589	93,555	116,009	153,448
Electric tramways	58,616	7,481	983	..	..
Lime crushing and burning and cement-making	105,406	99,877	98,465	103,117	105,665
Brick, tile, and pottery making	41,843	47,764	55,511	53,095	45,090
Engineering, boilermaking, and other metal-working	12,214	6,108	6,365	5,814	5,725
Iron and brass founding	2,345	2,778	2,858	3,648	2,577
Leadlight-making and glass-bevelling	3,513	3,412	3,500	3,562	3,109
Tanning	3,264	3,456	3,928	3,916	3,506
Fellmongering and wool-scouring	8,424	6,198	4,769	4,050	4,725
Woollen-milling	22,342	20,226	18,897	18,361	19,622
Biscuits, confectionery making, and sugar-boiling	7,352	7,714	9,225	9,387	10,604
Soap and candle making	6,452	6,482	7,592	7,602	7,495
Boiling-down and manure-making	7,036	6,612	6,460	7,061	7,362
Sawmilling and sash and door making	7,235	8,050	8,446	8,196	6,564
Flaxmilling, rope and twine making	6,751	9,820	7,133	5,935	2,798
Other industries	44,756	43,471	54,730	58,990	53,038
Totals	908,051	904,502	832,780	859,169	872,883

Among individual industries it is of interest to note that two out of the three biggest users of coal, in gas-making and meat-freezing and preserving, show a downward trend in coal-consumption over the last five years. Gas-making has dropped from 249,710 tons in 1923–24 to 227,517 tons in 1927–28, while meat-freezing and preserving has receded from 116,132 to 92,871 tons. Consumption in the third largest industry (lime crushing and burning and cement-making) receded slightly in 1924–25 and 1925–26, but has picked up again in the last two years. The annual requirements of the butter and cheese industry appear to have an upward trend, the consumption of coal having risen from 83,336 tons in 1923–24 to 105,288 tons in 1927–28. Fairly sharp downward trends are shown by the figures for the engineering, boilermaking, and other metal-working industry and for flaxmills.

The quantities of New Zealand and imported coal recorded for the last five collections are given hereunder:—

Year ended 31st March.	New Zealand. Tons.	Imported. Tons.	Total. Tons.
*Including coal not allocated between New Zealand and imported.
1924	642,521	169,801	908,051^*
1925	630,314	142,599	904,502^*
1926	586,329	151,318	831,202^*
1927	633,058	110,102	859,169^*
1928	766,982	105,901	872,883

The coal not allocated represents that used in the electric-supply industry. Judging by the 1927–28 figures for this industry, it would be reasonable to count the unallocated coal for preceding years as New Zealand.

Of the 105,901 tons of imported coal shown for 1927–28, no less than 87,152 tons were used in the gas making and supply industry, the only other industries using over 2,000 tons of imported coal being electricity generation and supply (5,063 tons) and brick, tile, and pottery making (4,377 tons).

In addition to the total of 872,883 tons of coal used by manufacturing industries and 323,386 tons by shipping in 1927–28, 440,681 tons were consumed by locomotives on the New Zealand Government Railways, together with an unknown amount in railway workshops, by threshing-mills, &c. It would thus appear that of a total consumption of slightly over 2,500,000 tons of coal per annum, somewhat over 65 per cent. is utilized for industrial purposes.

MATERIALS USED OR OPERATED UPON.

The value of materials used or operated upon does not afford a very satisfactory basis of comparison as between one industry and another, for the reason that the changes wrought during the process of manufacture vary considerably in degree. For instance, materials used or operated upon in the tanning, fellmongering, and wool-scouring industry were in 1927–28 valued at £1,507,889, while those used in printing, publishing, and bookbinding were valued at £1,134,873. If, however, value of output is considered, it is found that the figure for printing and publishing (£4,411,052) is over £2,400,000 greater than that for tanning, &c. (£1,989,809).

The appended table gives the value of materials used in manufacturing industries, according to provincial districts, for the five years 1923–24 to 1927–28:—

Provincial District.	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	15,133,139	16,792,206	17,102,751	17,752,564	19,639,550
Hawke's Bay	2,486,654	3,037,532	2,641,721	2,379,079	2,978,018
Taranaki	3,694,745	4,000,975	4,169,058	3,759,250	4,731,478
Wellington	9,448,411	10,773,307	10,391,769	10,073,758	11,115,095
Marlborough	324,590	316,813	375,397	332,761	372,794
Nelson	598,641	585,240	601,688	533,521	609,882
Westland	174,526	182,832	196,320	172,103	199,274
Canterbury	8,674,880	9,680,180	9,717,366	8,836,112	8,996,808
Otago	4,328,022	4,548,453	4,732,086	4,228,232	4,417,390
Southland	2,163,425	2,243,882	2,545,613	2,146,102	2,247,908
Totals	47,027,033	52,161,420	52,473,769	50,213,482	55,308,197

The cost of materials used in the various classes of industries during the last five years is given in the table hereunder:—

Class of Industry.	Cost of Materials need.
Class of Industry.	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
*Included in “Miscellaneous.”
	£	£	£	£	£
Animal food	26,354,325	29,586,015	29,241,916	27,187,687	31,370,793
Vegetable food	4,717,299	4,686,858	4,597,544	4,367,354	4,669,107
Drinks, narcotics, and stimulants	786,403	983,280	948,176	1,014,818	1,066 641
Animal matters (not otherwise classed)	587,313	659,738	693,006	750,105	738,155
Working in wood	1,604,431	1,845,068	1,938,713	1,881,976	1,670,969
Vegetable produce for fodder	77,048	95,241	59,071	69,645	56,824
Paper manufactures	82,365	127,051	150,575	166,770	160,572
Heat, light, and power	2,357,151	2,614,178	2,980,311	3,573,037	4,221,136
Processes relating to stone, clay, glass, &c.	320,411	421,129	452,698	472,470	452,519
Metals other than gold or silver	1,223,819	1,368,717	1,389,915	1,395,127	1,334,771
Precious metals	49,172	49,453	54,010	44,202	39,402
Books and publications	916,818	1,025,405	1,078,931	1,106,024	1,134,873
Musical instruments	5,867	8,459	19,772	13,532	8,281
Ornaments and minor art products	54,838	60,536	55,060	54,104	52,294
Equipment for sports and games	13,334	7,344	5,407	7,842	^*
Designs, medals, type, and dies	6,512	6,899	10,643	11,059	11,575
Machines, tools, and implements	286,382	394,646	400,632	351,235	344,372
Carriages and vehicles	678,469	671,112	737,453	808,297	839,442
Harness, saddlery, and leatherware	2,237,734	2,540,879	2,405,110	1,714,909	1,646,213
Ships, boats, and their equipment	204,384	232,308	228,628	200,263	170,889
House-furnishings	642,395	732,066	784,658	806,259	720,476
Chemicals and by-products	586,612	877,904	970,228	1,025,264	1,242,448
Textile fabrics	764,848	705,121	642,595	533,653	618,561
Apparel	2,122 452	1,970,219	2,121,406	2,141,184	2,237,854
Fibrous materials	296,852	333,720	344,975	338,565	307,262
Miscellaneous	49,799	158,076	162,286	178,101	192,738
Totals	47,027,033	52,161,420	52,473,769	50,213,482	55,308,197

The cost of the materials used at the factory is asked for on the returns, but in the butter, cheese, &c., industry this information is not available. The establishments engaged in this industry are mainly co-operative companies and do not actually purchase the milk, &c., from the suppliers, but treat it on their behalf, and divide the proceeds of the manufactured goods according to the quantity of milk or butterfat supplied. The figures shown do not represent the actual cost price of the milk and butter-fat used in these concerns, but are in such cases the proceeds from the sale of the manufactured products, less the expenses of manufacture.

In considerations affecting the cost of materials used it should be borne in mind that the semi-primary industries (meat-freezing and butter and cheese making) bulk very largely therein. In 1927–28, for example, these industries accounted for approximately £31,000,000 out of a total of £55,000,000 for cost of materials used. These industries are operated principally by co-operative enterprises on the part of the producers, and the cost of material given in such cases represents the difference between the return from the manufactured product and the expenses of manufacturing and marketing. Constituting as they do over 50 per cent. of the total cost of materials used in all industries, the figures for these industries strongly colour the total figures for any year. Indeed, a study of the total cost of materials over a number of years shows that the frequent and wide oscillations in the primary-produce prices are clearly reflected therein.

PRODUCTS.

The products of manufacture are valued at the current selling-price of the goods manufactured or work done at the factory, where a valuation on this basis is possible, but in many of the principal industries, such as butter, cheese, &c., and meat-freezing, where the commodities are marketed abroad, the values are based on the prices realised in the overseas markets.

In making use of the gross value of products it must be borne in mind that the figures include the value of raw materials operated upon, which constitutes more than half of the total value; in fact, the cost of materials used has represented no less than 61, 62, 61, 60, and 63 per cent. respectively of the value of the products in the last five years. Where the products of one industry—for example, sawmilling—are treated again in other industries, such as furniture-making, joinery, &c., it must be obvious that the value of timber shown as products of the former industry appears again as the materials of the latter industry and enters into the value of joinery and furniture made. Duplication of this kind is apparent in many industries.

The following table shows the gross value of products by provincial districts for the years 1923–24 to 1927–28:—

Provincial District.	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	25,764,304	28,134,561	28,215,419	29,061,530	30,780,743
Hawke's Bay	3,681,129	4,227,815	3,883,580	3,608,734	4,280,243
Taranaki	4,979,022	5,396,883	5,458,411	5,248,873	6,054,717
Wellington	15,386,201	17,423,409	17,329,258	17,108,450	18,010,259
Marlborough	484,783	529,183	563,978	508,797	554,425
Nelson	1,076,288	1,118,841	1,119,389	1,071,211	1,162,895
Westland	826,577	976,797	1,025,184	898,217	843,047
Canterbury	13,469,075	14,656,628	14,981,494	14,107,517	14,304,338
Otago	8,053,579	8,123,880	8,587,633	7,977,105	8,143,279
Southland	3,275,439	3,513,316	3,878,853	3,422,069	3,598,057
Totals	76,996,397	84,101,313	85,013,199	83,012,503	87,732,003

The following table shows the gross value of products by classes of industries as recorded in the last five collections:—

Class of Industry.	Value of Products.
Class of Industry.	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
*Included in “Miscellaneous.”
	£	£	£	£	£
Animal food	33,173,678	36,881,241	35,658,364	33,880,830	38,265,285
Vegetable food	6,395,407	6,446,548	6,386,942	6,255,903	6,639,417
Drinks, narcotics, and stimulants	1,871,803	2,281,024	2,293,646	2,467,143	2,577,658
Animal matters (not otherwise classed)	1,073,878	1,202,078	1,187,654	1,266,231	1,260,045
Working in wood	5,857,322	6,424,182	6,507,753	5,834,335	5,086,797
Vegetable produce for fodder	110,462	147,643	89,452	90,338	76,879
Paper manufactures	217,389	284,159	330,678	343,738	350,039
Heat, light, and power	4,562,343	4,846,630	5,499,195	6,109,861	6,601,850
Processes relating to stone, clay, glass, &c.	1,858,086	2,094,624	2,188,017	2,222,537	2,226,287
Metals other than gold or silver	3,161,570	3,441,263	3,603,150	3,637,643	3,527,876
Precious metals	129,946	124,545	123,720	109,178	97,215
Books and publications	3,623,123	4,052,545	4,407,655	4,527,696	4,411,052
Musical instruments	22,319	24,165	43,510	31,612	18,615
Ornaments and minor art products	138,473	151,583	146,687	146,538	133,990
Equipment for sports and games	30,710	19,016	21,248	27,242	^*
Designs, medals, type, and dies	32,589	41,300	48,332	55,891	51,181
Machines, tools, and implements	720,907	733,088	837,347	737,626	730,266
Carriages and vehicles	1,867,320	1,938,057	2,213,031	2,515,026	2,591,571
Harness, saddlery, and leatherware	3,888,276	3,192,621	3,092,144	2,342,941	2,263,681
Ships, boats, and their equipment	463,586	565,829	585,540	496,557	471,107
House-furnishings	1,365,040	1,533,227	1,645,087	1,717,986	1,622,401
Chemicals and by-products	1,019,839	1,530,002	1,737,547	1,895,036	2,146,582
Textile fabrics	1,475,855	1,308,933	1,213,817	1,107,333	1,269,419
Apparel	3,939,034	3,766,621	4,052,183	4,104,093	4,284,244
Fibrous materials	674,677	839,452	901,608	826,404	733,860
Miscellaneous	122,765	230,934	228,892	262,752	294,686
Totals	76,996,397	84,101,313	85,043,199	83,012,503	87,732,003

ADDED VALUE.

As indicated under the heading of “products,” the value of products is not always a satisfactory measure of either the absolute or the relative importance of a given industry, for the reason that only part of this value is actually created by the manufacturing processes carried on in the industry itself. Another part, and in many cases by far the larger portion, represents the value of the materials used. From a manufacturing standpoint, therefore, the best measure of the importance of an industry is the value created by the manufacturing operations carried on within the industry. This value is obtained by deducting the cost of materials used from the gross value of the products, and is referred to as the “added value.” As the basis of the added value is the value of products, it is clear that it must be affected by fluctuations in values, and this fact should not be lost sight of when use is made of these figures.

Since the added value represents the value added to the material in the processes of industry, it represents, as already indicated, a valuable index of the volume of production. It suffers the serious drawback, however, that it is not impervious to price fluctuations, which may, and do, obscure the movements resulting from increased or diminished production. A special series of index numbers prepared from wholesale-price quotations relating to the commodities covered by the statistics, with special weights corresponding to their relative importance in the national volume of production, are given in the subjoined tables. These index numbers have been used in obtaining the “corrected” figures, which merely represent, in short, the value of production in each year expressed in terms of the general price level ruling in 1909–13. The relative numbers given in the last column show at a glance the percentage difference between the figures for any year and the year ended 31st March, 1920.

Year.	Added Value (uncorrected).	Index of Prices of New Zealand Manufacture (1909–13 = 1000).	Added Value (corrected).	Relative Numbers (Corrected Figures, 1919–20 = 1000).
	£		£
1919–20	21,538,209	1,592	13,529,025	1,000
1920–21	25,555,220	1,737	14,712,274	1,087
1921–22	27,101,944	1,670	16,228,708	1,200
1922–23	28,757,736	1,467	19,603,092	1,449
1923–24	29,969,364	1,650	18,163,250	1,343
1924–25	31,939,893	1,750	18,251,367	1,349
1925–26	32,569,430	1,690	19,271,852	1,424
1926–27	32,799,021	1,545	21,229,139	1,569
1927–28	32,423,806	1,527	21,233,664	1,577

It is not claimed that the above figures are quite free from the effects of price-fluctuations—no attempt having been made to allow for changes in quality or in the relative production of commodities—but the gross figures for each year, having been reduced to a common price-level, are sufficiently accurate to be comparable, and can be accepted as an index, though only an approximate one, of the value created in the factories and works during the years given. Even though the adjusted figures are of necessity only roughly approximate, they are infinitely more truly indicative of the actual state of affairs than the unadjusted figures.

The rapid growth in the Dominion's industrial activity during recent, years is reflected in the added-value figure recorded at successive collections. Taking the totals for industries common to all years, the added value, which appeared at £9,702,780 in 1906, reached the imposing figure of £32,423,806 in 1927–28, an increase of approximately 230 per cent. The largest increase shown by the figures for one collection over those for the immediately preceding one was between the years 1919–20 and 1920–21, the added value in the latter year exceeding that in the former by approximately £4,000,000. This increase was mainly due to price movements. The increase of the figure for 1924–25 over that for the immediately preceding year was approximately £2,000,000, and was the largest increase between any two successive years since 1920.21. An upward turn in prices about this time was no doubt responsible for this increase. Since 1924–25 the price-level has steadily receded, with the result that no great differences in the added value have since been recorded. The figures recorded for 1927–28 showed a slight recession from the immediately preceding year.

The outstanding points in the “corrected” figures are the increase of over £3,000,000 between 1921–22 and 1922–23, the subsequent decline of £1,500,000 from 1922–23 to 1923–24, and the gain of approximately £2,000,000 in 1926–27 as compared with 1925–26. Assuming that the effects of price-fluctuations have been reasonably removed, these differences are particularly striking, and direct attention towards fluctuations in productivity in industry in general.

The added value by provincial districts for the last five collections, taking all industries into account, is given in the table hereunder, together with the ratio per cent. the figures for each district bear to the totals for each year:—

Provincial District,	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
Aggregate added Value.
	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	10,631,165	11,342,355	11,112,668	11,308,966	11,141,193
Hawke's Bay	1,194,475	1,190,283	1,241,859	1,229,655	1,302,225
Taranaki	1,284,277	1,395,908	1,289,353	1,489,623	1,323,239
Wellington	5,937,790	6,650,102	6,937,489	7,034,692	6,895,164
Marlborough	160,193	212,370	188,581	176,036	181,631
Nelson	477,647	533,601	517,701	537,690	553,013
Westland	652,051	793,965	828,864	726,114	643,773
Canterbury	4,794,195	4,976,448	5,264,128	5,271,405	5,307,530
Otago	3,725,557	3,575,427	3,855,547	3,748,873	3,725,889
Southland	1,112,014	1,269,434	1,333,240	1,275,967	1,350,149
Totals	29,969,364	31,939,893	32,569,430	32,799,021	32,423,806
Proportion of Total.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Auckland	35.47	35.51	34.12	34.48	34.36
Hawke's Bay	3.98	3.73	3.81	3.75	4.02
Taranaki	4.29	4.37	3.96	4.54	4.09
Wellington	19.82	20.82	21.30	21.45	21.27
Marlborough	0.53	0.66	0.58	0.54	0.56
Nelson	1.59	1.67	1.59	1.64	1.71
Westland	2.18	2.49	2.54	2.21	1.99
Canterbury	16.00	15.58	16.16	16.07	16.37
Otago	12.43	11.19	11.84	11.43	11.46
Southland	3.71	3.98	4.10	3.89	4.17
Totals	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00

For the last five years the Auckland Provincial District has contributed the largest proportion of the total added value, with Wellington, Canterbury, and Otago following in that order, and Southland, Taranaki, and Hawke's Bay in excess of one million each.

The following table shows various percentages and rates that have been computed in connection with the added value for the last five years:—

—	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
	£	£	£	£	£
Added value per head of mean population	22.47	23.49	23.32	23.09	22.46
Added value per person engaged	385.90	397.62	397.37	400.46	396.59
Added value per £100 expended on salaries and wages	205.64 Per Cent.	203.57 Per Cent.	192.37 Per Cent.	192.39 Per Cent.	192.11 Per Cent.
Percentage of salaries and wages to added value	48.63	49.12	51.98	51.98	52.05
Percentage of added value to cost of materials used	67.97	61.23	62.04	65.32	58.62

In 1919–20 the added value per person engaged was £312, while in 1927–28 it had reached £397, an increase of 27 per cent. The wholesale - prices index numbers for the years shown in this table do not show increases commensurate with the increase in added value: in fact, the general index number for 1927 (1541) shows a decrease of 17 per cent. as compared with the figure for 1919 (1858). As the general index number is based on many commodities which are not manufactured to any extent in the Dominion, it is well to consider the movements in the index numbers (already referred to) which have been computed in regard to New Zealand manufactures only. The index numbers in question decreased from 1592 in 1919–20 to 1527 in 1927–28, or by 4 per cent. During the same period the aggregate mechanical power available increased by 117 per cent., which is quite out of proportion to the increase of approximately 12 per cent. in the total persons engaged. In view of the above it seems a reasonable conclusion that the increase in the added value per employee has been due to increased motive power, combined to a certain extent with an increase in the productivity of labour.

More or less conflicting results are shown by the proportion of salaries and wages to added value during the period under review, but up to 1921–22 the figures illustrated the tendency for wages to follow fluctuations in prices. In 1919–20, when prices soared, wages did not increase in proportion, with the result that labour's share of the fund created by manufacture dropped slightly, but in 1920–21, when prices fell and wages lagged behind, labour secured an increased share. Wages did not drop until some time after the fall in prices, with the result that the proportion paid away as wages was higher than usual, and industry became relatively unprofitable. Further, the increased real cost of labour reduced the demand for it, and unemployment followed. The following year recorded a fall in wages, while prices had recovered to some extent, and the proportion received by labour was therefore smaller. A further fall in the percentage paid away as wages was recorded in 1922–23, but an upward movement commenced in 1923–24 and is still in evidence, the percentage being a shade above 52 in 1927–28.

Although the relation between the aggregates of wages paid and of added value bear out to a certain extent the changing times through which industry has passed in the last five years, definite conclusions cannot be arrived at without due regard to the effects brought about by the increased use of machinery and changes in the relative importance of different groups of industries. Some idea of the effects of the latter consideration can be seen from the following table showing the percentages of wages to added value in some of the principal classes of industries:—

Class of Industry.	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Animal food	33.65	33.58	38.32	37.42	36.30
Vegetable food	35.76	35.58	36.73	35.79	35.52
Drinks, narcotics, and stimulants	37.71	37.21	37.22	35.77	35.47
Animal matters (not otherwise classed)	44.94	41.24	45.81	45.37	46.13
Working in wood	54.03	55.03	56.65	56.74	57.28
Heat, light, and power	64.93	67.01	66.46	70.57	77.78
Books and publications	46.60	49.61	49.05	51.21	55.11
Machines, tools, and implements	54.11	69.05	59.44	60.45	53.56
Apparel	70.62	68.19	69.72	69.97	68.96
Fibrous materials	55.05	54.78	58.99	58.91	55.56

The table given hereunder shows the added value by classes of industries for each of the years 1923–24 to 1927–28:—

Class of Industry.	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
*Included in “Miscellaneous.”
	£	£	£	£	£
Animal food	6,819,353	7,295,226	6,416,448	6,693,143	6,894,492
Vegetable food	1,678,108	1,759,692	1,789,398	1,888,549	1,970,310
Drinks, narcotics, and stimulants	1,095,400	1,297,744	1,345,470	1,452,325	1,511,017
Animal matters (not otherwise classed)	486,565	542,340	494,648	516,129	521,890
Working in wood	4,252,891	4,579,114	4,569,040	3,952,359	3,415,828
Vegetable produce for fodder	33,414	52,402	30,381	20,693	20,055
Paper manufactures	135,024	157,108	180,103	176,968	189,467
Heat, light, and power	2,205,192	2,232,452	2,518,884	2,536,824	2,380,714
Processes relating to stone, clay, glass, &c.	1,537,675	1,673,495	1,735,319	1,750,067	1,773,738
Metals other than gold or silver	1,937,751	2,072,546	2,213,215	2,242,516	2,193,105
Precious metals	80,774	75,092	69,710	64,976	57,813
Books and publications	2,706,305	3,027,140	3,328,674	3,421,672	3,276,179
Musical instruments	16,452	15,706	23,738	18,110	10,334
Ornaments and minor art products	83,635	91,047	91,627	92,434	81,696
Equipment for sports and games	17,376	11,672	15,841	19,400	^*
Designs, medals, type, and dies	26,077	34,401	37,689	44,832	39,606
Machines, tools, and implements	434,525	338,442	436,715	386,391	385,894
Carriages and vehicles	1,188,851	1,266,945	1,475,578	1,706,729	1,752,129
Harness, saddlery, and leatherware	840,542	651,745	687,034	628,032	617,468
Ships, boats, and their equipment	259,202	333,521	356,912	296,294	300,218
House-furnishings	722,645	801,161	860,429	911,727	901,925
Chemicals and by-products	433,227	652,098	767,819	869,772	904,134
Textile fabrics	711,007	603,812	571,222	573,680	650,858
Apparel	1,816,582	1,796,402	1,930,777	1,962,909	2,046,390
Fibrous materials	377,825	505,732	556,633	487,839	426,598
Miscellaneous	72,966	72,858	66,606	84,651	101,948
Totals	29,969,364	31,939,893	32,569,430	32,799,021	32,423,806

FIXED ASSETS.

The values of the fixed assets give some idea as to the permanency and stability of the manufacturing industries in New Zealand as well as affording the means of judging to some extent of the amount of capital that has been sunk therein.

In connection with the statistics of fixed assets it should be understood that the figures given are of necessity only approximate, the principal reason for this being that where one building houses two or more factories carrying on different industries an apportionment has to be made between the industries, and this cannot be done with absolute accuracy. Furthermore, in many instances fixed assets are stated at their book value, and this may be an understatement owing to appreciated site-value, or an overstatement owing to insufficient allowance being made for depreciation, obsolescence, &c. Where premises occupied are rented or leased (particularly if only a portion) it has been found impossible to arrive at the correct value. In such circumstances the practice has been to ascertain the annual rental value and capitalize this.

The following table shows the value of land, buildings, and plant and machinery recorded in the years 1923–24 to 1927–28 by provincial districts:—

Provincial District.	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	15,877,209	18,802,318	20,528,802	21,337,903	22,016,699
Hawke's Bay	1,812,904	1,779,530	2,025 074	2,264,417	2,450,787
Taranaki	1,788,372	1,907,088	2,560,344	2,730,545	2,703,715
Wellington	9,974,750	10,591,068	13,993,321	15,262,436	15,741,041
Marlborough	325,853	354,517	338,017	338,854	585,334
Nelson	705,431	731,838	830,111	944,352	934,914
Westland	711,878	715,158	815,764	834,302	850,449
Canterbury	8,065,429	8,622,874	9,548,108	10,166,685	10,317,388
Otago	4,590,221	4,725,028	5,074,922	5,371,193	5,694,002
Southland	1,646,007	1,749,423	3,435,229	3,472,438	3,379,821
Totals	45,498,054	49,978,842	59,149,692	62,723,125	64,674,150

The value of land, buildings, and plant and machinery may be taken as representing approximately the fixed capital, and a classification by classes of industries is therefore interesting, as it shows to a certain extent the amount of this capital required in the various classes. It is recognized that electric-supply undertakings and gasworks require heavy expenditure on plant and machinery, &c., and it is not surprising that the value of fixed assets employed in the industries coming under the “Heat, light, and power” class is much greater than that for any other class, notwithstanding that the added value in this case is relatively small. It is particularly interesting to note that while the added value in the “Animal food” class amounts to £6,894,492, as against £2,380,714 for heat, light, and power, the fixed capital in the latter case is £30,087,314, while in the former it is £8,743,408—over £20,000,000 less. The following table shows the value of land, buildings, plant, and machinery by classes of industries for the last five collections:—

Class of Industry.	1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
*Included in “Miscellaneous.”
	£	£	£	£	£
Animal food	8,502,359	8,933,667	9,417,844	8,731,797	8,743,408
Vegetable food	1,919,501	2,209,240	2,143,632	2,225,020	2,286,994
Drinks, narcotics, and stimulants	1,167,199	1,308,030	1,341,624	1,394,762	1,425,282
Animal matters (not otherwise classed)	431,542	471,924	504,179	545,148	578,859
Working in wood	3,274,955	3,383,882	3,476,857	3,340,068	3,189,906
Vegetable produce for fodder	83,002	92,739	74,286	56,611	48,992
Paper manufactures	194,039	259,036	264,183	261,818	276,527
Heat, light, and power	15,786,878	18,372,645	25,683,829	28,514,595	30,087,314
Processes relating to stone, clay, glass, &c.	1,435,351	1,568,521	1,701,541	1,747,730	1,804,082
Metals other than gold or silver	1,916,217	2,012,938	2,066,314	2,306,907	2,376,892
Precious metals	140,289	126,337	105,466	112,783	104,092
Books and publications	2,154,826	2,822,580	3,091,938	3,407,747	3,580,230
Musical Instruments	24,944	19,445	27,354	29,283	18,587
Ornaments and minor art products	151,715	135,819	155,179	130,922	140,744
Equipment for sports and games	16,947	17,339	15,340	15,289	^*
Designs, medals, type, and dies	32,374	38,467	50,300	53,644	58,956
Machines, tools, and implements	386,318	405,815	419,390	418,562	391,736
Carriages and vehicles	2,155,913	1,982,698	2,181,412	2,743,083	2,759,036
Harness, saddlery, and leatherware	607,111	578,163	594,790	604,447	593,842
Ships, boats, and their equipment	267,785	267,420	261,406	268,088	254,527
House-furnishings	868,586	803,435	911,090	928,127	926,998
Chemicals and by-products	518,333	1,043,689	1,404,404	1,504,968	1,563,082
Textile fabrics	822,634	940,818	990,942	973,197	967,343
Apparel	1,615,750	1,533,634	1,624,435	1,696,787	1,781,237
Fibrous materials	630,767	552,402	557,069	573,735	505,781
Miscellaneous	92,719	98,159	81,888	138,007	149,703
Totals	45,498,054	49,978,842	59,149,092	62,723,125	64,674,150

Special mention should perhaps be made in respect of the abnormal increase of £9,170,850, or 18 per cent., in the total value of land, buildings, plant, and machinery in 1925–26 over 1924–25. This phenomenal increase was due, as might be inferred from previous remarks, to the fact that the results of the development in hydro-electricity plants in recent years were to a large extent crowded into the year ended 31st March, 1926. Of the total increase recorded for all industries during that year no less than £6,923,235 was accounted for by the electric-supply industry. The increases in 1926–27 and 1927–28 are also mainly due to further extensions in this industry.

The relation between the value of (a) land and buildings, and (b) plant and machinery illustrates the tendency for the latter to increase at a proportionately faster rate than the former. In 1906 the proportions per cent. of land and buildings and of plant and machinery to the total fixed assets were 57 and 43 respectively, but in the last collection these positions were more than reversed, the percentages being 36 and 64. Each collection since 1906 has shown a gradual and consistent decrease in the percentage of the value of land and buildings to the total fixed assets, and an increase in the figure for plant and machinery. The table given hereunder shows the movement during the last five years:—

Year.	Land and Buildings.		Plant and Machinery.		Total Amount.
Year.	Amount.	Per Cent. of Total.	Amount.	Per Cent. of Total.	Total Amount.
	£		£		£
1923–24	19,289,484	42.40	26,208,570	57.60	45,498,054
1924–25	19,923,436	39.86	30,055,406	60.14	49,978,842
1925–26	22,217,789	37.56	36,931,903	62.44	59,149,692
1926–27	22,875,447	36.47	39,847,678	63.53	62,723,125
1927–28	23,301,449	36.03	41,372,701	63.97	64,674,150

CAPITAL.

Although information as to the amount of capital sunk in each factory has been collected for some years, the figures in this respect have been found to be inaccurate and have not been made use of. The chief factors militating against the collection of satisfactory information in this connection are the methods of accounting in use in many of the smaller establishments, and the difficulty of apportioning the capital where an establishment is only partly manufacturing. In the case of joint-stock companies the capital figures have been found to be reasonably accurate, and have been published in the “Annual Statistical Report on Factory Production” for some years. The following table shows particulars of the capital employed in factories by joint-stock companies at the 1911 and each succeeding collection:—

Year.	Number of Companies.	Subscribed Capital.	Paid-up Capital.	Percentage of Paid-up Capital to Total Capital.	Loan Capital (excluding Bank Overdraft).^*	Percentage of Loan Capital to Total Capital.	Total Capital (Paid-up and Loan Capital).^*	Paid-up Shares issued Vendors as Part of Purchase Consideration, included under heading “Paid-up Capital.”
*Including reserves in 1926 and subsequent years. † Including co-operative companies from 1923 onwards. ‡ Represents number of companies as distinct from number of factories or works. In previous years the number of factories or works was shown here.
Private Companies.
		£	£		£		£	£
1911	433	2,950,765	2,606,435	88.87	326,275	11.13	2,932,710	798,050
1,316	595	5,751,073	5,115,045	87.98	699,059	12.02	5,814,104	1,561,841
1919	761	7,918,816	7,209,558	89.16	876,698	10.84	8,086,256	1,347,371
1920	788	6,846,867	6,328,721	86.68	972,366	13.32	7,301,087	1,214,773
1921	954	8,665,683	7,829,180	86.69	1,202,008	13.31	9,031,188	1,181,147
1922	897	9,439,728	8,680,580	88.29	1,152,147	11.71	9,838,727	1,183,445
1923	980	10,616,977	9,743,238	87.82	1,351,306	12.18	11,094,544	1,367,205
1921	1,073	11,145,577	10,290,736	86.11	1,660,217	13.89	11,950,953	1,099,693
1925	1,141	11,107,584	10,250,703	86.82	1,556,134	13.18	11,806,837	1,459,043
1926	1,221	11,182,556	10,635,058	80.16	2,632,401	19.84	13,267,459	1,453,833
1927	1,225	12,683,832	11,616,749	81.30	2,672,184	18.70	14,288,933	1,783,615
1928	1,242	12,400,647	11,424,061	80.68	2,734,944	19.32	14,159,005	1,773,875
Public Companies.^†
1911	566	12,497,095	10,501,692	85.80	1,738,126	14.20	12,239,818	1,778,786
1916	445	15,442,482	12,432,852	86.62	1,920,739	13.38	14,353,591	1,387,341
1919	447	17,649,958	15,052,664	85.28	2,597,309	14.72	17,649,973	1,702,944
1920	428	18,999,051	16,518,568	87.76	2,303,752	12.24	18,822,320	1,683,078
1921	483	19,897,588	17,515,421	90.06	1,933,123	9.94	19,448,544	2,260,432
1922	426	18,089,454	16,092,693	86.52	2,507,411	13.48	18,600,104	4,209,195
1923	845	24,405,077	20,549,176	87.45	2,949,846	12.55	23,499,022	2,245,922
1924	833	26,455,416	22,647,701	85.63	3,800,539	14.37	26,448,240	3,316,417
1925	877	23,752,543	20,634,305	85.12	3,607,560	14.88	24,241,865	3,535,141
1926	949	25,833,430	21,801,426	78.34	6,028,035	21.66	27,829,461	2,900,579
1927	774^‡	21,538,354	22,057,233	82.40	4,710,064	17.60	26,767,297	3,443,051
1928	768	24,793,469	22,323,999	81.65	5,015,748	18.35	27,339,747	3,373,069
Total (Public and Private Companies).
1911	999	15,447,860	13,108,127	86.39	2,064,401	13.61	15,172,528	2,576,836
1916	1,040	21,193,555	17,547,897	87.01	2,619,798	12.99	20,167,695	2,949,185
1919	1,208	25,568,774	22,262,222	86.50	3,474,007	13.50	25,736,229	3,050,312
1920	1,216	25,845,918	22,847,289	87.46	3,276,118	12.54	26,123,407	2,897,851
1921	1,437	28,563,271	25,344,601	88.99	3,135,131	11.01	28,479,732	3,741,579
1922	1,323	27,529,182	24,779,273	87.13	3,659,558	12.87	28,438,831	5,392,640
1923	1,825	35,022,054	30,292,414	87.57	4,301,152	12.43	34,593,566	3,613,127
1924	1,906	37,600,993	32,938,437	85.78	5,460,756	14.22	38,399,193	4,416,110
1925	2,018	34,860,127	30,885,008	85.68	5,163,694	14.32	36,048,702	4,994,184
1926	2,170	37,315,986	32,436,484	78.92	8,660,436	21.08	41,096,920	4,354,412
1927	1,999^‡	37,222,186	33,673,982	82.02	7,382,248	17.98	41,056,230	5,226,696
1928	2,010	37,194,116	33,748,060	81.32	7,750,692	18.68	41,498,752	5,146,944

An examination of the above figures reveals that from 1911 onwards somewhat more than 10 per cent. of the capital invested in the factories and works operated by companies was obtained by way of loan. Public companies work on a slightly higher percentage of loan capital than private companies, and from 1916 onwards the paid-up and loan capital of private companies has been consistently in excess of the subscribed capital, while public companies have only on three occasions between 1911 and 1925—and then by comparatively small margins—had the use of paid-up and loan capital in actual excess of the subscribed capital. This dealing within the margin of the subscribed capital by public companies is duo, no doubt, to the fact that such concerns are, in comparison with private companies, more or less at a disadvantage as regards procuring extra capital, and keep a wider margin of uncalled capital available to meet emergencies. The relationship between the paid-up and loan capital invested has shown slight, though highly significant, movements. The general contraction of credit and the difficulty in obtaining loans which followed the slump in 1921 were responsible for the percentage of loan capital to the total capital in that year falling slightly below normal. The gradual recovery of the credit structure from its derangement in 1921 saw the proportion of loans moving significantly upwards, the proportion in 1925 being the highest yet recorded. Owing to reserves being included with loans from 1926 onwards it is not possible to obtain a proper comparison between recent and earlier years.

The following table, showing the added value per £100 of capital (loan and paid up) for private and public companies, throws considerable light on the relative returns received on capital invested in both kinds of companies:—

Year.	Added Value per £100 of Capital.
Year.	Private Companies.	Public Companies.	Private and Public Companies.
	£	£	£
1911	60.75	32.17	37.70
1916	50.72	36.87	40.86
1919	58.40	35.65	42.80
1920	79.12	43.67	53.58
1921	79.54	47.06	57.36
1922	73.57	49.08	57.55
1923	70.34	48.15	55.91
1924	73.56	40.81	51.74
1925	81.34	60.95	67.62
1926	76.56	52.06	59.95
1927	72.18	55.53	61.08
1928	73.34	43.02	53.36

The increase in the added value per £100 of capital in both public and private companies is due to a decrease in capital brought about by the stricter exclusion from the returns of capital not sunk in manufacturing operations, rather than to more profitable use being made of capital.

The figures show that the added value per £100 of capital is higher in the case of private companies than for public companies, and indicate either that the capital is put to better use in the former companies than in the latter, or that there is relatively more capital employed in public than in private companies.

In considering the figures given in regard to capital it must be borne in mind that the registered capital is taken in each case, except where the company may not be fully engaged in manufacture (in which case an apportionment on the basis of fixed assets is taken), and that the capital necessarily includes capital invested in securities outside the company. This excess capital, as it may be called, would for various reasons be more likely to be found to any great extent in public companies than in private companies, and has, no doubt, the effect of swelling the capital figure for public companies to some considerable extent, beyond the amount actually invested in the various factories. The smaller return for each £100 of capital invested in the case of public companies is no doubt due in some measure to this fact, but the main cause for the difference would appear to lie in the more economical administration of the private companies as compared with the public companies.

CHARACTER OF ORGANIZATION.

Information as to the character of organization of the establishments engaged in factory production is given in the following table for each of the last three years.

Character of Organization.	1925–26.		1926–27.		1927–28.
Character of Organization.	No.	Added Value.	No.	Added Value.	No.	Added Value.
		£		£		£
Individual	1,578	3,391,534	1,800	3,314,360	1,873	3,237,999
Private firm or partnership	894	2,479,740	877	2,309,340	848	2,018,854
Public registered company	459	11,395,660	489	11,512,327	497	11,761,318
Private registered company	1,227	10,194,504	1,296	10,314,017	1,330	10,384,063
Municipal	144	1,959,428	147	1,996,379	140	1,816,928
Co-operative and miscellaneous	501	3,148,564	479	3,352,598	478	3,204,644
Totals	4,803	32,569,430	5,088	32,799,021	5,166	32,423,806

The figures in the preceding table show that the excellent facilities offered by the limited-liability company have been taken advantage of by the larger manufacturing establishments. Although the majority of establishments were either individual or partnership concerns, the actual added value of such concerns during each of the periods shown has been only slightly over 17 per cent. of the total added value. Public and private registered companies contributed more than 60 per cent. of the total output during the same periods.

AGES OF INDUSTRIES.

A table is now given showing for the various classes of industries the number of establishments instituted during the periods indicated:—

Class of Industry.	Number established.
Class of Industry.	Prior to 1900.	1900–09.	1910–21.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	Not stated.	Totals.
Animal food	144	133	185	14	16	7	5	2	4	87	597
Vegetable food	55	11	20	4	3	12	7	4	7	25	148
Drinks, narcotics, and stimulants	100	33	37	4	5	7	2	3	2	40	233
Animal matters (not otherwise classed)	21	17	18	2	2	7	1	1	..	11	80
Working in wood	89	96	169	20	38	27	27	27	21	54	568
Vegetable produce for fodder	2	..	2	..	..	..	..	..	..	2	6
Paper manufactures	8	2	2	1	1	..	1	..	..	5	20
Heat, light, and power	31	32	58	5	9	4	12	..	1	2	154
Processes relating to stone, clay, glass, &c.	35	29	65	7	14	7	14	13	6	30	220
Metals other than gold or silver	122	67	123	18	21	14	15	8	4	43	435
Precious metals	14	7	13	..	..	..	..	2	..	4	40
Books and publications	146	42	75	13	8	12	7	7	6	30	346
Musical instruments	1	..	3	..	..	..	..	1	..	1	6
Ornaments and minor art products	17	6	24	3	2	1	1	..	..	8	62
Designs, medals, type, and dies	4	4	5	..	1	..	1	1	..	..	16
Machines, tools, and implements	15	4	6	2	2	1	2	1	..	1	34
Carriages and vehicles	97	76	373	53	54	59	53	78	44	150	1,037
Harness, saddlery, and leather-ware	58	31	33	2	5	..	4	2	3	27	165
Ships, boats, and their equipment	23	12	15	2	2	4	1	1	1	5	66
House-furnishings	57	48	124	19	12	18	17	15	9	52	371
Chemicals and by-products	20	10	22	3	2	..	7	2	2	8	76
Textile fabrics	12	1	2	..	..	1	..	1	..	..	17
Apparel	61	50	95	15	22	14	16	14	17	42	346
Fibrous materials	12	14	16	3	3	4	5	3	8	14	82
Miscellaneous	15	6	8	3	..	1	2	1	2	3	41
Totals	1,159	731	1,493	193	222	200	200	187	137	644	5,166

Out of the total manufacturing establishments in existence in New Zealand during the year ended 31st March, 1928, only 1,159 were in operation prior to 1900, so that in the 27 years following that date, excluding those cases where the date of establishment is unknown, 3,363 of the present establishments came into existence, at an average rate over the whole period of 125 per annum, or 10 per month. The actual rate of increase, however, has been much greater from 1910 onwards.

ORGANIZATION OF INDUSTRY.

For statistical purposes the following classification has been adopted for use in connection with the organization of industry: individual, partnership, joint-stock companies (public and private), municipal (covering both local and general government), and co-operative and miscellaneous. A broad division based on entrepreneurial influence, or the absence of it, would be—individuals, partnerships, and private companies, as against public companies, the State, and co-operative and miscellaneous. New Zealand's industrial progress has been fairly rapid, but industry is as yet organized on a relatively small scale. The statistical evidence does not appear to indicate a concentrative tendency so marked as in older countries where the industrial arts are in a relatively more advanced stage.

The law in the Dominion restricts the membership of a partnership to not more than 20 persons, a private company to not less than 2 or more than 25 persons, and a public company to not less than 7 persons. Co-operation in industry is characteristic of the semi-primary industries engaged in the preparation of primary produce for the market. The principal of these are the butter and cheese making and meat freezing and preserving industries. Municipal enterprises are confined mainly to public-utility industries — e.g., gasworks, generation and distribution of electricity, and electric tramways—while the State operates the chief central hydroelectric generating stations and the Government Printing Office.

There are considerable differences in the average size of the industrial units operated under the different kinds of organization; the order of magnitude, however, has remained substantially the same over the last decade. The public companies show the highest added value per establishment, municipal organization comes next, after which there is a substantial drop to private companies. Co-operative organization follows private companies fairly closely, but there is a big gap between this class and the partnerships and individuals. The average for the individuals is, of course, considerably below that for partnerships. The following table shows the added value per establishment according to the organization for the years ended 31st March, 1919 to 1928:—

ADDED VALUE PER ESTABLISHMENT.

Year.	Individual.	Partnership.	Joint-stock Companies.		Municipal and General Government.	Co-operative and Miscellaneous.	Total.
Year.	Individual.	Partnership.	Public.	Private.	Municipal and General Government.	Co-operative and Miscellaneous.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1918–19	1,385	2,068	14,078	6,206	9,028	5,312	4,218
1919–20	1,784	2,581	19,207	7,330	8,765	5,904	5,220
1920–21	2,038	3,004	18,948	7,530	9,785	6,450	5,612
1921–22	2,196	3,023	21,428	8,070	11,780	8,450	6,484
1922–23	2,147	3,035	23,357	7,964	12,575	8,449	6,634
1923–24	2,102	3,197	23,814	8,193	12,705	8,780	6,718
1924–25	2,139	2,878	23,509	8,416	13,710	9,507	7,024
1925–26	2,149	2,773	24,812	8,320	13,607	6,285	6,776
1926–27	1,860	2,651	24,678	7,970	13,581	6,999	6,568
1927–28	1,729	2,381	23,665	7,808	12,978	6,704	6,276

The above figures represent the arithmetic average in each case—i.e., the total added value for each class divided by the number of establishments. It is possible that the median or the mode would have been better types upon which to judge each group, but they are difficult to ascertain. In instances such as these the extreme it-ems always influence the average to an undue extent. In making material comparisons changes in the value of money should not be forgotten, since they are, no doubt, largely responsible for the increases shown.

The following table shows the relative position of each kind of organization to the total for all classes in respect of the number of establishments, the number of persons engaged, the total horse-power of engines in use, and the added value:—

Year.	Individual.	Partnership.	Joint-stock Companies.		Municipal and General Government.	Co-operative and Miscellaneous.	Totals.
Year.	Individual.	Partnership.	Public.	Private.	Municipal and General Government.	Co-operative and Miscellaneous.	Totals.
PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL ESTABLISHMENTS.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1918–19	39.05	21.65	10.51	17.89	1.64	9.26	100.00
1919–20	38.72	21.85	9.82	18.09	2.52	9.00	100.00
1920–21	37.53	21.44	10.06	19.86	2.58	8.53	100.00
1921–22	33.35	22.30	10.19	21.46	2.65	10.05	100.00
1922–23	33.75	21.31	9.83	22.61	2.67	9.83	100.00
1923–24	33.74	20.69	9.17	24.05	2.78	9.57	100.00
1924–25	32.77	19.93	10.05	25.09	2.84	9.32	100.00
1925–26	32.88	18.64	9.54	25.48	3.00	10.46	100.00
1926–27	35.38	17.24	9.61	25.47	2.89	9.41	100.00
1927–28	36.26	16.41	9.62	25.75	2.71	9.25	100.00
PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL PERSONS ENGAGED.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1918–19	15.54	12.71	33.89	28.76	3.65	5.45	100.00
1919–20	15.32	12.09	35.86	25.93	5.37	5.43	100.00
1920–21	14.91	11.29	34.90	27.88	5.48	5.54	100.00
1921–22	12.83	10.03	35.85	28.57	6.07	6.65	100.00
1922–23	13.00	9.73	34.07	30.49	6.24	6.47	100.00
1923–24	12.37	9.83	33.00	32.17	6.54	6.09	100.00
1924–25	11.73	8.84	33.76	33.06	7.16	5.45	100.00
1925–26	13.09	9.31	31.18	33.22	7.88	5.32	100.00
1926–27	13.18	8.73	31.05	33.86	8.28	4.90	100.00
1927–28	13.16	8.00	32.01	33.83	7.92	5.08	100.00
PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL HORSE-POWER.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent,	Per Cent.
1918–19	7.07	6.42	42.15	17.77	17.36	9.23	100.00
1919–20	5.88	6.04	37.35	13.82	31.62	5.29	100.00
1920–21	6.05	6.62	36.06	14.84	31.46	4.97	100.00
1921–22	5.50	5.73	34.13	16.59	30.35	7.70	100.00
1922–23	5.79	5.63	33.89	17.60	28.84	8.25	100.00
1923–24	4.97	5.43	29.25	17.47	34.84	8.04	100.00
1924–25	4.68	4.46	28.46	17.49	37.84	7.07	100.00
1925–26	4.02	3.38	22.79	15.49	48.23	6.09	100.00
1926–27	3.63	2.61	21.79	14.15	52.55	5.27	100.00
1927–28	3.64	2.52	23.14	14.26	51.60	4.84	100.00
PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL ADDED VALUE.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1918–19	12.82	10.61	35.07	26.32	3.52	11.66	100.00
1919–20	13.23	10.80	36.15	25.40	4.24	10.18	100.00
1920–21	13.63	11.48	33.94	26.64	4.50	9.81	100.00
1921–22	11.29	10.40	33.68	26.71	4.83	13.09	100.00
1922–23	10.92	9.75	34.60	27.14	5.07	12.52	100.00
1923–24	10.55	9.85	32.50	29.33	5.26	12.51	100.00
1924–25	9.98	8.16	33.64	30.06	5.54	12.62	100.00
1925–26	10.42	7.63	34.93	31.29	6.03	9.70	100.00
1926–27	10.02	6.96	36.11	30.91	5.97	10.03	100.00
1927–28	9.99	6.23	36.27	32.03	5.60	9.88	100.00

Reference has already been made to the fact that the added value is affected by changes in the value of money. These changes, however, are common to all the classes of organization, and therefore cancel out. It is interesting to observe that public companies provided 36.27 per cent. of the total added value in 1927–28, against 35.07 per cent. in 1918–19; whereas partnerships and individuals together represented 23.43 per cent. in 1918–19, but in 1927–28 this proportion had shrunk to 16.22 per cent. The co-operative and miscellaneous group showed a slight recession over the period, while the municipal and State group increased its relative position from 3.52 per cent. to 5.60 per cent.

Considered from the point of view of the number of persons engaged, it is rather striking in view of what has just been remarked, that the only groups to show relative increases were private companies and municipal and general government. The former group changed from 28.76 per cent. to 33.83 per cent., while the latter increased from 3.65 per cent. to 7.92 per cent. The marked increase in the percentage of the total horse-power available in establishments organized by the State and municipal enterprise is due to the development by the State and local government of the hydro-electric industry. The horse-power figures include the horse-power of water-turbines and pelton wheels used for generating electricity.

CLASSIFICATION OF INDUSTRIES.

An attempt has been made to classify industry according broadly to the nature of the work carried on. The results of a classification drawn up specially for this; purpose are presented in the tables that follow. The principal object of the classification made use of is the segregation of those industries which because of their close association with and dependence on the great primary industries of the Dominion, or the fact that they represent the provision of public utilities under monopoly conditions, are not generally associated with the somewhat vague but popular expression “secondary industries.” It is authentically recognized that the term “manufacturing industries” is more appropriate than this term. The main basis of the classification is the relationship between the value of the material worked upon and the value of the finished product, as expressed in what is known for statistical purposes as the “added value.” In those industries which may for some purposes be regarded as extensions of the primary industries the raw material undergoes only slight changes in the factory or workshop, with the result that the “added value” created is relatively small. In the genuine manufacturing industries (e.g., boot and shoe manufacturing) the raw material is subjected to much more detailed and elaborate processes. The “added value” in these industries is therefore relatively high.

Group I comprises those industries engaged in the preparation of farm-products for the market, with resulting by-products. The material is not seriously changed in form, and the “added value” is relatively small in proportion to the value of the output.

Separate figures were not available for tanneries in 1915–16. The figures for this industry have therefore been included in Group I for both 1915–16 and 1927–28. The total value of the output of this industry in 1927–28 was £597,348.

The specific industries falling within this group are as follows:—

Meat freezing and preserving.
Ham and bacon curing.
Butter and cheese making.
Sausage-casing.
Fellmongering and wool-scouring.
Tanning.
Boiling-down and manure-making.

Group II covers those industries which provide public-utility services under monopoly conditions in so far as competition within the industry is concerned. It covers gasworks, electricity generation and supply, and electric tramways.

Group III covers what are generally referred to as semi-primary industries. They are based upon the application of labour to natural resources. The “added value” in these industries bulks large in proportion to the value of the output and represents principally wages.

Owing to the fact that separate figures were not available for log-sawmilling as distinct from resawing and planing mills in 1915–16, the figures in respect of the latter branch of this industry are included in this group for both 1915–16 and 1927–28. The total value of the output for this branch of the industry in 1927–28 amounted to £2,459,344.

The following industries comprise this group:—

Fish-curing.
Log-sawmilling.
Lime-crushing.
Brick, tile, and pottery making.
Concrete-block and fibrous-plaster making.
Pumice-insulation.
Flax-milling.

Group IV covers all industries for which statistics are available and which have not been included in the previous groups. It includes several industries, such as grain-milling, iron-smelting, &c., which may be regarded as being on the borderline between it and Group III, and several industries, such as motor engineering and repairing, piano-repairing, &c., which are not perhaps covered by the term “secondary industry” as generally used.

It is not claimed that the classification adopted will suit all requirements. Some rearrangement may be necessary to meet particular cases. Nor is it claimed that it is mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive throughout, although this can be said of Groups I and II as between themselves.

The following table shows the principal statistics for the various industries for the years ended 31st March, 1916 and 1928, classified into the groups already referred to, together with the percentage proportion the figure for each group bore to the total for all groups in each instance:—

Group.	Persons engaged.	Salaries and Wages paid.	Materials used.	Products.	Added Value.	Land, Buildups, Plant, and Machinery.
Absolute Figures. 1915–16.
		£	£	£	£	£
I	9,772	1,270,062	19,704,189	23,978,508	4,274,319	4,676,280
II	2,775	443,343	864,323	1,861,182	996,859	4,009,793
III	8,752	1,046,240	1,319,340	2,983,729	1,664,389	3,518,034
IV	29,445	3,356,505	8,810,225	15,139,166	6,328,941	8,727,084
Totals	50,744	6,116,150	30,698,077	43,962,585	13,264,508	20,931,191
1927–28.
I	11,692	2,726,430	32,892,737	40,319,821	7,427,084	9,125,123
II	7,210	1,851,644	4,221,136	6,601,850	2,380,714	30,087,314
III	11,228	2,529,511	1,733,150	6,635,991	4,902,841	4,901,587
IV	51,626	9,770,193	16,461,174	34,174,341	17,713,167	20,560,126
Totals	81,756	16,877,778	55,308,197	87,732,003	32,423,806	64,674,150
Percentage of each Group to Total. 1915–16.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
I	19.26	20.77	64.19	54.54	32.23	22.34
II	5.47	7.25	2.82	4.23	7.51	19.16
III	17.25	17.11	4.29	6.79	12.55	16.81
IV	58.02	54.87	28.70	34.44	47.71	41.69
Totals	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00
1927–28.
I	14.30	16.15	59.47	45.96	22.91	14.11
II	8.82	10.97	7.63	7.53	7.34	46.52
III	13.73	14.99	3.13	7.56	15.12	7.58
IV	63.15	57.89	29.77	38.95	54.63	31.79
Totals	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00

As between the four groups for 1928, “Group IV, Manufacturing Industries,” provides employment for 63.15 per cent. of the total persons engaged, pays 57.89 per cent. of the total wages paid, and contributes 5463 per cent. of the “added value” for all industries, but has a capital investment (as indicated by the value of land, buildings, plant, and machinery) which represents only 31.79 per cent. of the total. It is perhaps not generally realized that the three public-service industries (gasworks, electricity generation and supply, and electric tramways) in the Dominion represent a capital investment of approximately £30,000,000, against approximately £20,500,000 in manufacturing industries. The figure for manufacturing industries is more than twice that for Group I (£9,100,000), and over four times that for Group III (£4,900,000).

The “added value,” which may be regarded as representing fairly accurately the value created in the process of manufacture, treatment, or repair, does not by any means vary in accordance with the amount of capital as represented by the value of land, buildings, plant, and machinery. This is hardly surprising, since the comparison ignores the position of labour in production. Even if an annual allowance is made for the use of capital (5 per cent. on value of land, buildings, plant, and machinery) and is added to the amount paid as salaries and wages, the proportions of the summated results as between the groups do not correspond entirely. The total charge (salaries and wages + 5 per cent. on value of land, buildings, plant, and machinery) is much more productive, if the figures for added value for each group have any meaning in this connection, in Groups I, III, and IV than in the public services. It is true that the full productive capacity of the electric-supply service has not yet been reached, but, nevertheless, this is an important aspect of the Dominion's industrial field. A heavy flow of capital has been directed towards the electric-supply industry, where the return is relatively postponed.

Comparisons between the relative percentage figures for each group of industries in 1915–16 and 1927–28 reveal some rather striking tendencies in the Dominion's industrial field. The most striking is the reorientation of the position with regard to capital as represented by the value of land, buildings, plant, and machinery. The public-service industries came third in 1915–16, with 19.16 per cent. of the total, against 22.34 per cent. for Croup I and 41.69 per cent. for Group IV. Between 1915–16 and 1927–28 approximately £26,000,000 was changed into land, buildings, plant, and machinery for use in the three principal public services, but principally in the electric-supply industry. This had the effect of making the figure for Group II in 1927–28 46.52 per cent. of the total, against 14.11 per cent. for Group I and 31.79 per cent. for Group IV. It should not be forgotten that these figures are relative, not absolute. They do not indicate decreases in the three groups other than the public services. As a matter of fact, Group I increased from £4,676,280 in 1915–16 to £9,125,123 in 1927–28, and Group III from £3,518,034 to £4,901,587; while Group IV, manufacturing industries, rose from £8,727,084 to £20,560,126. What the figures do in effect indicate in no uncertain manner is that the flow of capital into the public services, particularly the electric-supply industry, during the last ten years has completely submerged the fairly substantial increases in the other groups.

The number of persons engaged in the various groups also shows changes. The percentage of the total employed in Group I in 1915–16, 19.26 per cent., dropped to 14.30 per cent. in 1927–28; Group II increased from 5.47 per cent. to 8.82 per cent. in 1927–28; Group III shrank from 17.25 per cent. to 13.73 per cent.; while Group IV, manufacturing industries, rose from 58.02 per cent. to 63.15 per cent. In point of actual numbers the groups showed the following increases: Group I, 1,920; Group II, 4,435; Group III, 2,476; and Group IV, 22,181.

DETAILS OF PRINCIPAL INDUSTRIES.

Individual particulars regarding the principal industries for the five years 1923–24 to 1927–28 are set out in the following pages. Fuller details for individual years are given in successive issues of the “Annual Statistical Report on Factory Production.”

—		1923–24.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.
* Including a considerable quantity of bonedust for years 1923–24 to 1926–27. † Not available –Value included under “Other products.” * Including beer duty. * Not shown separately. † Shoe-ettes. * Tons. † Including unallocated. ‡ Not available.
Number of—	Meat Freezing and Preserving.
Works		46	43	43	39	40
Persons engaged		7,361	7,567	5,798	5,428	6,139
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	1,335,281	1,471,028	1,466,867	1,478,934	1,479,197
Horse-power	H.p.	34,972	35,312	39,175	39,262	40,792
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	2,874,865	3,130,402	2,994,468	2,866,736	2,915,833
Machinery and plant	£	1,780,137	1,803,505	1,785,265	1,662,886	1,696,285
Frozen sheep—
Carcasses	No.	1,792,475	2,331,150	2,111,824	2,264,947	2,169,851
Value	£	2,251,243	3,028,514	2,487,983	2,152,197	2,086,540
Frozen lambs—
Carcasses	No.	4,832,820	4,764,718	4,931,716	5,310,114	5,653,788
Value	£	5,914,122	6,414,114	6,290,775	5,776,631	6,183,317
Frozen mutton and lamb pieces—
Quantity	Cwt.	12,174	18,160	35,870	14,524	23,210
Value	£	30,645	50,078	55,976	30,567	52,742
Frozen beef—
Quantity	Cwt.	825,613	985,838	738,887	572,919	863,219
Value	£	977,469	1,255,730	980,192	721,176	1,196,198
Frozen rabbits—Value	£	9,541	14,952	9,936	15,169	15,056
Preserved meats—
Quantity	Cwt.	75,379	103,589	128,067	112,182	108,816
Value	£	245,560	291,016	351,931	357,650	392,795
Tallow—
Quantity	Cwt.	323,573	467,499	346,636	332,817	387,046
Value	£	506,551	688,083	591,694	513,586	603,577
Bonedust—
Quantity	Cwt.	99,202	60,267	85,029	70,176	193,926
Value	£	45,001	27,164	34,987	32,139	73,088
Other manures^*—
Quantity	Cwt.	364,818	532,971	539,991	554,226	409,811
Value	£	130,776	191,284	218,686	181,620	135,684
Neatstoot and trotter oil—
Quantity	Gallons	37,780	36,500	41,430	37,474	40,412
Value	£	7,184	5,291	6,528	6,326	6,856
Bones, horns, hoofs, &c.—
Quantity	Cwt.	1,622	1,998	1,671	2,050	1,467
Value	£	1,720	2,542	2,557	2,450	2,393
Hides and pelts—
Quantity.	No.	^†	^†	^†	^†	8,437,295
Value	£	^†	^†	^†	^†	1,510,675
Wool—
Quantity	lb.	^†	^†	23,741,101	26,500,969	25,565,650
Value	£	^†	^†	1,422,944	1,516,293	1,686,620
Other products—Value	£	3,160,311	3,866,406	2,243,144	2,324,910	1,340,760
Total value of output	£	13,261,678	15,812,389	14,678,312	13,630,714	15,286,301
Ham and Bacon Curing.
Number of—
Works		38	36	38	44	41
Persons engaged		288	333	353	401	394
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	68,948	76,797	82,838	93,378	98,739
Horse-power	H.p.	1,388	1,252	1,306	1,269	1,138
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	118,679	129,778	120,843	162,514	147,509
Machinery and plant	£	82,213	75,936	88,479	60,492	64,226
Pigs dealt with—
Number		175,917	195,659	216,045	218,589	208,910
Value	£	634,476	613,092	746,770	891,315	670,490
Value of other materials used	£	27,615	33,888	36,578	32,576	36,945
Hams and bacon—Quantity	Cwt.	168,328	190,214	201,080	224,167	182,804
Lard—Quantity	Cwt.	7,888	7,521	9,827	9,423	7,476
Total value of output	£	906,042	959,189	1,099,020	1,164,180	1,041,910
Number of—	Fish Curing and Preserving.
Wood		9	9	12	15	16
Person engaged		99	87	90	90	75
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	33,994	27,041	34,140	44,431	30,421
Machinery and plant	£	16,477	16,467	28,758	21,101	20,900
Fish cured—Value	£	75,243	57,720	51,419	55,165	56,152
Fish canned—Value	£	3,485	7,238	8,873	8,893	7,790
Value of other products	£	..	8,043	22,241	..	12,856
Total value of output	£	78,728	73,001	82,533	64,058	76,798
Number of—	Butter, Cheese, and Condensed-milk Factories.
Factories		445	445	518	507	500
Persons engaged		4,321	4,324	4,140	3,996	4,167
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	868,006	881,713	888,382	913,242	910,491
Horse-power	H.p.	17,325	18,395	19,926	20,304	20,714
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	1,720,205	1,773,416	2,456,936	2,076,418	2,135,920
Machinery and plant	£	1,875,789	1,977,122	1,908,955	1,837,219	1,732,314
Number of separators—
At home		36,414	36,798	37,625	42,053	43,096
At butter-factories		824	866	640	606	584
Butterfat separated—
At home	lb.	112,068,684	94,862,029	92,423,033	142,583,345	157,906,961
At butter-factories	lb.	32,500,710	56,236,858	47,809,491	14,922,207	6,748,688
Milk received by cheese-factories	lb.	1,680,417,442	1,563,265,082	1,638,367,094	1,741,649,729	1,661,784,138
Butterfat received	lb.	70,092,509	60,526,650	63,689,947	65,858,234	65,749,470
Value of materials used	£	15,136,630	15,801,956	16,454,519	15,375,601	18,383,985
Butter produced (including whey butter)—
Quantity	Cwt.	1,473,783	1,652,266	1,544,722	1,736,624	1,809,488
Value	£	12,207,741	13,303,609	12,607,857	12,537,074	14,195,428
Cheese produced—
Quantity	Cwt.	1,534,980	1,436,541	1,520,169	1,564,276	1,550,090
Value	£	5,994,651	6,021,305	6,331,808	5,566,650	6,640,241
Value of other produce	£	724,838	711,748	858,834	918,154	1,021,607
Total value of all produce	£	18,927,230	20,036,662	19,798,499	19,021,878	21,857,276
Grain-mills
Number of—
Mills		53	52	53	52	52
Persons engaged		670	695	675	648	697
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	165,913	167,467	171,325	162,325	175,956
Horse-power	H.p.	4,603	4,384	4,751	5,087	5,192
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	390,060	403,698	411,443	384,828	438,349
Machinery and plant	£	282,302	319,157	370,741	359,577	391,829
Wheat used—Quantity	Bushels	6,258,159	6,470,496	5,998,661	5,074,795	6,358,865
Total grain—Value	£	2,272,122	1,933,679	2,316,832	2,001,297	2,166,318
Flour produced	Tons	139,702	133,428	128,699	110,373	134,976
Oatmeal produced	Tons	5,529	7,259	4,674	3,715	4,499
Other products —Value	£	505,415	484,254	559,301	521,972	541,664
Total value of output	£	3,059,004	2,718,611	3,064,820	2,699,333	2,949,021
Biscuit and Confectionery Making.
Number of—
Works		59	64	69	79	62
Persons engaged		2,290	2,404	2,592	2,655	2,501
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	290,928	318,703	347,878	365,442	346,740
Horse-power	H.p.	2,214	2,655	3,117	3,724	3,523
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	412,756	376,679	458,927	477,493	435,834
Machinery and plant	£	306,069	334,490	408,184	497,657	383,341
Flour used—Quantity	Tons	4,964	5,552	5,264	5,098	5,235
Sugar used—Quantity	Tons	6,830	6,911	7,578	6,902	6,642
Value of other materials	£	489,937	488,331	525,833	547,896	510,584
Biscuits and confectionery made	£	1,283,218	1,358,950	1,429,710	1,440,721	1,421,036
Other products	£	101,248	110,858	158,749	185,548	102,114
Total value of products	£	1,384,466	1,469,808	1,588,459	1,626,269	1,523,150
Number of—	Fruit-preserving and Jam-making.
Works		7	7	7	8	9
Persona engaged		298	299	247	200	309
Salaries and wages paid	£	50,103	47,928	44,625	45,814	54,825
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	46,120	46,970	48,385	49,492	52,260
Machinery and plant	£	28,436	23,707	33,410	29,507	32,421
Fruit used	Tons	2,762	2,633	3,064	3,097	3,902
Value of—
Fruit used	£	51,100	53,377	58,134	66,719	78,328
Sugar and other ingredients	£	55,137	56,775	52,461	55,217	70,484
Fruit bottled or preserved—Value	£	16,359	23,402	16,255	15,487	32,274
Jams and jellies made—
Quantity	Cwt.	54,708	53,878	51,083	65,931	71,906
Value	£	200,866	185,404	189,903	204,399	223,824
Other products—Value	£	26,481	30,936	28,617	53,550	67,817
Total value of output	£	213,706	239,742	234,775	273,436	323,915
Number of—	Breweries and Malt-houses.
Establishments		53	51	49	53	51
Persons engaged		974	977	978	997	990
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	228,510	260,528	266,665	272,242	276,749
Horse-power	H.p.	2,244	2,275	2,314	2,514	2,507
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	407,502	445,644	471,473	494,486	525,440
Machinery and plant	£	291,803	307,631	291,202	308,205	292,041
Barley used in production of malt	Bushels	523,926	590,312	585,953	588,611	568,315
Hops used.	Cwt.	6,313	5,313	6,107	5,602	5,232
Sugar used	Cwt.	20,374	25,038	24,866	25,089	23,982
Total cost of materials used	£	363,560	545,571	502,555	519,533	488,164
Ale brewed	Gallons	10,921,367	12,739,796	12,928,664	11,962,482	11,424,876
Stout brewed	Gallons	1,011,830	1,344,810	1,311,897	1,280,084	1,210,468
Value of output	£	943,030	1,298,291	1,280,233	2,007,704^*	1,898,490^*
Number of—	Aerated-water and Cordial Factories.
Works		123	136	135	138	135
Persons engaged		589	675	664	689	702
Salaries and wages paid	£	123,804	137,297	145,194	149,835	151,357
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	180,980	222,350	232,761	236,490	227,928
Machinery and plant	£	125,619	147,360	149,545	148,405	134,855
Total cost of materials used	£	131,770	128,141	129,587	136,532	137,966
Other expenses	£	68,313	67,061	76,083	90,310	88,805
Aerated waters—In bottles	Doz.	2,067,628	2,297,418	2,772,067	2,954,138	2,619,255
Aerated waters—In bulk	Gallons	283,340	156,425	184,704	176,826	190,998
Cordials—In bottles	Doz.	46,078	53,631	64,224	59,397	57,920
Hop-beer—In bottles	Doz.	202,278	115,512	212,068	260,471	184,952
Hop-beer—In bulk	Gallons	141,651	188,873	171,175	187,758	200,444
Total value of all manufactures	£	404,795	413,746	437,843	441,836	446 261
Number of—	Sauce, Pickle, and Vinegar Making.
Works		19	18	17	20	21
Persons engaged		279	239	237	258	278
Salaries and wages paid	£	46,688	43,338	46,919	49,082	49,16
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	51,768	71,423	67,263	67,840	71,371
Machinery and plant	£	27,322	27,649	40,531	39,521	39,645
Value of materials used	£	103,353	104,204	103,291	105,683	104,025
Other expenses of manufacture	£	21,357	39,165	34,974	33,388	33,614
Total value of all manufactures	£	198,326	200,164	202,065	210,779	217,836
Number of—	Soap and Candle Works.
Works		20	22	23	25	24
Persons engaged		464	472	460	473	470
Salaries and wages paid	£	92,765	98,278	97,916	98,531	100,930
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	117,008	144,360	169,856	173,343	199,547
Machinery and plant	£	121,891	110,274	111,693	118,180	119,625
Soap manufactured—
Quantity	Tons	8,557	8,845	8,774	8,624	7,050
Value	£	272,552	317,392	332,365	340,118	284,215
Soap-powder (including washing-powder)—
Quantity	lb.	^*	^*	^*	2,451,669	2,381,898
Value	£	^*	^*	^*	46,575	49,746
Candles manufactured—
Quantity	lb.	3,806,805	4,000,472	3,353,458	2,725,498	2,800,210
Value	£	105,495	117,292	100,055	89,030	77,177
Other manufactures—Value	£	118,693	126,213	105,606	91,079	110,034
Total value of all products	£	496,740	560,897	538,026	566,802	521,172
Clothing and Waterproof Factories.
Number of works		213	211	221	229	215
Number of persons engaged—
Males		1,202	1,074	1,145	1,201	1,143
Females		5,645	5,578	5,688	5,680	5,958
Salaries and wages paid—
To males	£	267,004	246,276	289,377	303,015	289,120
To females	£	548,980	529,667	555,006	570,125	580,833
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	927,995	826,920	871,285	915,596	928,547
Machinery and plant	£	156,485	155,351	155,140	159,161	151,035
Output—
Suits	No.	159,787	161,322	199,524	197,256	223,695
Shirts	Doz.	106,572	93,052	131,516	141,746	140,721
Hats and caps	Doz.	141,634	63,821	41,728	73,761	94,378
Total value	£	2,400,278	2,339,462	2,515,280	2,600,462	2,507,446
Number of—	Hosiery-factories.
Works		10	11	16	19	21
Persons engaged		304	357	498	575	631
Salaries and wages paid	£	33,504	33,951	63,029	77,267	79,329
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	30,573	37,453	51,755	82,206	65,993
Machinery and plant	£	45,616	46,713	76,067	82,960	92,294
Value of materials used	£	103,738	101,482	162,919	163,371	184,174
Total value of all manufactures	£	155,773	170,043	297,076	296,759	334,051
Boot and Shoe Factories.
Number of works		81	81	81	81	81
Number of persons engaged—
Males		1,586	1,549	1,602	1,484	1,467
Females		887	926	939	892	871
Salaries and wages paid—
To males	£	331,387	318,126	335,216	324,718	317,219
To females	£	96,195	90,296	93,724	88,261	88,224
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	302,890	316,274	317,190	302,722	271,334
Machinery and plant	£	128,217	127,599	131,968	131,985	132,098
Value of materials used—
New Zealand leather	£	366,655	309,414	306,246	291,776	311,850
Imported leather	£	250,964	209,100	186,164	174,487	169,853
Other materials	£	87,621	78,858	97,504	100,235	83,547
Total value	£	705,240	597,372	589,914	566,498	565,250
Manufactures—
Adults' boots and shoes	Pair	1,471,093	1,372,777	1,363,690	1,317,362	1,311,665
Children's boots and shoes	Pair	56,299^†	34,085^†	42,833	79,811	134,351
Slippers	Pair	17,217	18,965	14,850	8,659	7,922
Uppers	Pair	2,111	1,934	1,928	1,896	2,155
Leggings	Pair	53	158	225	87	50
Total value of all manufactures	£	1,354,833	1,225,698	1,197,785	1,168,314	1,168,737
Flax-mills.
Number of—
Mills		48	64	71	73	70
Persons engaged		967	1,211	1,241	1,193	1,020
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	149,001	221,984	275,755	233,897	181,304
Horse-power	H.p.	2,942	3,245	4,241	4,550	4,653
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	421,165	328,045	324,577	329,842	324,550
Machinery and plant	£	81,855	93,189	112,741	120,161	116,090
Raw material used—
Quantity	Tons	98,444	129,985	146,444	138,931	122,854
Value	£	73,903	113,794	119,932	125,074	90,612
Fibre dressed—
Quantity	Tons	11,553	14,873	17,065	15,779	14,292
Value	£	305,071	453,503	500,315	443,950	363,888
Tow produced—
Quantity	Tons	1,768	2,713	4,727	3,136	2,607
Value	£	23,215	44,087	48,351	44,032	31,862
Total value of output	£	334,169	505,761	553,285	495,784	402,421
Sawmills.
Number of—
Mills		446	471	482	423	413
Persons engaged		9,435	10,082	9,643	8,198	7,305
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	2,058,774	2,286,831	2,319,672	1,959,311	1,686,699
Horse-power	H.p.	30,813	34,407	35,028	32,159	31,878
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	883,151	855,253	828,259	748,921	713,998
Machinery and plant	£	1,161,392	1,232,439	1,326,239	1,201,274	1,107,447
Tramways	£	810,847	902,961	923,639	959,300	954,449
Sawn timber—
Quantity	Ft.	317,069,216	344,094,874	353,224,196	305,675,258	269,783,274
Value	£	3,164,569	3,468,099	3,438,079	2,932,250	2,433,482
Posts, rails, &c.—Value	£	18,430	19,727	27,346	24,143	25,862
Resawing, planed flooring, skirting, &c.—
Quantity	Ft.	67,558,213	76,660,370	84,613,160	70,128,151	60,473,346
Value	£	1,135,371	1,424,037	1,478,029	1,189,084	1,073,054
Moulding—
Quantity	Ft.	7,894,759	8,872,683	11,878,503	10,702,402	10,214,062
Value	£	87,991	100,849	146,530	130,953	105,865
Doors and sashes—Value	£	127,669	151,476	140,746	116,262	108,182
Other products	£	488,226	466,697	488,655	480,457	417,906
Total value of output	£	5,022,256	5,630,885	5,719,385	4,873,149	4,164,351
Gasworks.
Number of—
Works		51	50	48	46	46
Persons engaged		2,011	2,010	2,053	1,929	1,878
Salaries and wages paid	£	443,020	451,153	440,906	467,725	473,711
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	584,112	525,048	554,026	563,333	556,805
Machinery and plant	£	3,358,934	3,419,758	3,719,645	3,974,242	3,947,805
Coal used—
Quantity	Tons	249,710	245,022	232,713	228,858	227,517
Value	£	572,166	543,069	512,648	496,124	493,539
Total gas generated	1,000 cub. ft.	3,730,206	3,739,172	3,870,396	3,998,664	4,024,423
Gas sold—
Quantity	1,000 cub. ft.	3,241,071	3,258,267	3,372,464	3,416,616	3,435,953
Value	£	1,303,849	1,266,081	1,261,074	1,251,025	1,251,475
Coke sold—
Quantity	Tons	80,009	81,128	79,376	78,883	71,434
Value	£	140,377	148,565	166,155	163,388	164,609
Tar sold—
Quantity	Gallons	2,465,545	2,711,811	2,697,684	2,775,926	2,805,101
Value	£	70,729	72,263	73,792	76,475	76,249
Other receipts	£	53,646	69,043	65,030	62,619	50,786
Total receipts	£	1,568,601	1,555,952	1,566,051	1,553,507	1,543,110
Total expenditure	£	1,376,863	1,346,292	1,379,878	1,363,043	1,342,496
Quantity of gas sold for—
General lighting	1,000 cub. ft.	459,833	458,590	389,743	163,232	327,264
Heating and cooking	1,000 cub. ft.	371,484	400,766	447,996	465,315	1,794,254
Motive power	1,000 cub. ft.	30,084	24,982	20,013	16,293	22,742
Other and undefined purposes	1,000 cub. ft.	2,379,670	2,373,929	2,514,712	2,771,776	1,291,693
Total	1,000 cub. ft.	3,241,071	3,258,267	3,372,464	3,416,616	3,435,953
Electric Current (see also Section XLIII).
Number of—
Works		85	89	103	102	98
Persons engaged		1,247	1,407	1,985	2,363	4,352
Salaries and wages paid	£	267,165	300,514	454,709	529,335	1,024,334
Horse-power available H.p.		93,907	114,597	169,086	286,966	454,911
Fuel used—
Coal and coke	Tons	95,729	131,589	93,555	116,009	307,017
Oil	Gallons	35,639	2,527^*	488^*	1,328^*	550,338
Total units generated or purchased		258,413,218	310,406,597	476,917,125	633,413,708	789,730,194
Revenue	£	1,430,951	1,668,743	2,235,175	2,916,021	3,445,776
Expenditure	£	1,278,520	1,547,318	2,116,703	2,737,208	3,530,932
Capital outlay—
Land and buildings	£	592,165	671,954	1,316,364	1,317,074	1,357,696
Generating plant	£	2,442,661	2,784,298	4,304,515	4,617,865	4,959,666
Distribution system and substations	£	2,997,858	3,861,257	6,323,561	7,359,011	8,238,854
Other	£	1,775,834	2,385,591	4,616,740	5,414,101	6,802,730
Total^†	£	7,830,185	9,726,167	16,649,403	18,911,012	21,358,946
Current retailed for—
Street lighting	Units	4,655,632	5,478,012	8,093,995	9,156,468	10,928,359
General lighting, heating, and cooking	Units	147,115,339	158,723,257	103,986,256	138,867,406	191,181,102
Motive power	Units	37,726,568	45,579,243	69,084,235	94,056,928	105,989,381
Tramway supply	Units	22,162,670	33,984,272	35,231,094	36,910,231	37,182,528
Other local purposes	Units	3,779,438	11,810,875	^‡	3,804,443	4,527,536
Total	Units	215,439,647	255,575,659	^‡	282,795,476	349,808,906
Lime and Cement Works.
Number of—
Works		27	28	26	26	27
Persons engaged		999	939	851	899	915
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	203,610	214,109	207,282	216,969	218,017
Horse-power	H.p.	9,992	13,677	13,321	14,645	17,283
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	220,745	308,907	329,533	355,970	338,107
Machinery and plant	£	425,199	446,017	448,264	425,844	511,908
Value of materials used	£	134,281	233,659	220,404	237,737	228,654
Total value of output	£	880,266	965,997	904,955	925,003	961,561
Brick, Tile, and Pottery Works.
Number of—
Works		69	68	71	73	71
Persons engaged		1,235	1,283	1,392	1,316	1,300
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	247,109	281,421	310,194	303,561	295,848
Horse-power	H.p.	3,336	4,141	4,690	5,002	5,217
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	353,627	327,188	342,148	358,523	363,401
Machinery and plant	£	189,847	205,941	234,162	237,260	239,935
Bricks manufactured—
Common	No.	55,929,736	65,131,301	71,670,073	65,824,547	63,382,389
Fire	No.	3,417,519	1,150,549	1,244,930	1,305,361	1,206,225
Total value	£	290,079	302,900	333,807	300,688	277,892
Value of pottery manufactured	£	308,481	331,864	366,376	379,601	402,328
Total value of all manufactures	£	598,560	634,764	700,183	697,477	680,220
Tinware and Sheet-metal Works.
Number of—
Works		119	111	119	125	123
Persona engaged		1,231	1,233	1,436	1,489	1,412
Salaries and wages paid	£	226,146	227,108	277,592	279,826	272,577
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	262,169	305,998	283,290	322,897	313,165
Machinery and plant	£	114,115	125,755	130,827	155,776	152,595
Value of materials used	£	333,444	340,073	355,612	417,321	379,177
Total value of manufactures and repairs	£	706,469	696,925	731,176	866,231	800,544
Iron and Brass Foundries.
Number of—
Works		48	51	48	47	51
Persons engaged		832	945	955	947	885
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	164,467	212,262	215,169	207,093	195,439
Horse-power	H.p.	1,511	1,669	1,578	1,685	1,752
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	154,761	183,313	176,518	178,283	202,165
Machinery and plant	£	81,392	94,618	89,577	97,628	108,176
Value of materials used or operated on	£	170,090	187,330	171,052	158,763	154,573
Total value of manufactures (including repairs)	£	435,475	512,029	486,589	479,544	466,387
Engineering-work.
Number of—
Works		159	177	196	214	203
Persons engaged		3,524	3,509	3,807	3,778	3,668
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	682,392	702,662	802,707	786,161	779,764
Horse-power	H.p.	5,033	5,739	6,170	6,109	6,383
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	646,359	643,507	676,900	723,360	722 166
Machinery and plant	£	422,601	440,273	476,010	467,802	480,467
Value of materials used	£	562,660	682,378	711,597	639,663	626,067
Total value of manufactures (including repairs)	£	1,644,224	1,846,218	1,993,911	1,847,662	1,828,818
Printing and Publishing Establishments.
Number of works		292	310	325	344	346
Persons engaged—
Males	No.	4,562	5,237	5,737	6,288	6,468
Females	No.	1,317	1,542	1,537	1,586	1,585
Salaries and wages paid—
To males	£	1,118,585	1,334,622	1,459,692	1,568,434	1,621,012
To females	£	142,444	167,040	173,105	183,857	184,678
Approximate value of land, buildings, machinery, and plant	£	2,454,826	2,822,580	3,091,938	3,407,747	3,580,230
Value of materials used	£	916,818	1,025,405	1,078,981	1,106,024	1,134,873
Value of all manufactures	£	3,623,123	4,052,545	4,407,655	4,527,696	4,411,052
Agricultural and Dairying Machinery and Implement Making.
Number of—
Works		25	27	28	25	25
Persons engaged		973	986	1,040	885	779
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	196,143	198,073	220,482	191,002	168,483
Horse-power	H.p.	843	925	990	833	926
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	184,363	225,680	237,693	205,782	196,498
Machinery and plant	£	137,733	125,763	111,597	140,230	127,882
Value of all materials used	£	231,919	339,942	349,783	295,725	289,288
Total value of manufactures (including repairs)	£	597,699	619,775	716,672	607,339	610,136
Coachbuilding-works.
Number of—
Works		189	167	173	179	190
Persons engaged		1,302	1,316	1,496	1,497	1,469
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	242,857	260,467	327,970	312,691	309,961
Horse-power	H.p.	1,073	1,082	1,161	1,263	1,253
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	371,336	347,399	390,824	455,926	449,608
Machinery and plant	£	70,487	71,112	73,551	80,732	74,477
Value of materials used	£	260,962	269,643	286,425	255,793	239,480
Total value of manufactures (including repairs)	£	711,081	720,886	764,491	681,912	672,212
Motor and Cycle Works.
Number of—
Works		549	560	642	788	848
Persons engaged		2,588	2,808	3,549	4,331	4,483
Salaries and wages paid	£	434,213	494,580	658,257	804,803	860,065
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	1,408,180	1,257,541	1,400,042	1,808,032	1,825,866
Machinery and plant	£	305,910	306,646	316,995	398,393	409,085
Total value of manufactures (including repairs)	£	1,156,239	1,217,171	1,448,540	1,833,114	1,919,359
Harness, Saddlery, and Leatherware.
Number of—
Works		77	76	70	87	81
Persons engaged		459	434	351	350	261
Salaries and wages paid	£	87,465	88,747	72,221	68,325	50,666
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	157,527	141,853	135,196	143,410	124,534
Machinery and plant	£	13,015	12,750	12,279	3,556	10,368
Value of materials used	£	125,946	128,550	94,453	90,993	70,944
Total value of manufactures (including repairs)	£	250,027	239,709	185,883	179,006	139,186
Tanning, Fellmongery, and Wool-scouring.
Number of—
Works 60			59	57	56	57
Persons engaged		1,293	1,179	961	937	878
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	272,502	251,766	228,964	222,853	205,913
Horse-power	H.p.	2,814	2,990	3,081	3,286	3,139
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	215,412	196,402	210,946	228,549	220,765
Machinery and plant	£	157,063	143,920	146,232	145,897	134,535
Value of materials used	£	2,042,321	2,340,456	2,241,178	1,560,060	1,507,889
Materials operated upon—
Sheep-skins	No.	1,342,753	1,051,034	895,686	891,983	885,612
Greasy wool	lb.	26,280,448	26,426,159	23,956,195	21,857,400	19,266,739
Hides, pelts, &c.	No.	571,748	828,322	1,117,697	1,372,105	1,169,876
Bark used—
New Zealand	Tons	70	175	171	220	191
Other	Tons	2,807	2,276	2,082	2,067	1,623
Output—
Scoured and sliped wool	lb.	24,397,358	20,947,091	18,766,581	17,806,336	16,152,925
Pelts	No.	615,096	238,393	279,151	315,154	259,155
Leather	lb.	5,219,713	3,929,551	4,070,099	4,058,578	3,974,993
Basils	lb.	235,914	217,732	172,145	239,282	155,050
Pickled pelts	No.	832,060	1,140,450	1,239,781	1,466,913	1,421,235
Total value of manufactures and produce	£	2,702,534	2,809,486	2,759,192	2,034,212	1,989,809
Ship and Boat Building.
Number of—
Establishments		30	30	29	35	35
Persons engaged		798	892	844	780	739
Salaries and wages paid	£	160,869	218,290	197,946	177,706	171,165
Number of vessels built	119	100	114	99	90
Total value of manufactures and repairs	£	325,187	390,051	410,108	348,287	325,553
Sail, Tent, and Oilskin Making.
Number of—
Works		32	32	32	32	31
Persons engaged		203	206	227	231	215
Salaries and wages paid	£	30,165	35,305	39,941	38,353	38,468
Sails manufactured No.		883	1,000	1,111	906	445
Tents and flies manufactured No.		13,045	12,358	13,778	12,541	11,907
Oilskins manufactured No.		10,987	14,576	8,186	7,251	4,820
Horse and cow covers manufactured No.		19,566	18,284	21,713	21,767	23,883
Total value of all manufactures	£	138,399	175,778	175,432	148,270	145,554
Furniture-making Works
Number of—
Factories		275	286	311	337	343
Persons engaged		2,219	2,337	2,767	2,751	2,708
Salaries and wages paid	£	389,855	413,921	532,808	538,386	522,923
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	642,985	600,110	689,332	693,205	654,466
Machinery and plant	£	119,400	116,536	132,014	134,493	137,580
Value of materials used	£	486,320	562,759	627,720	629,640	566,696
Total value of manufactures	£	1,113,806	1,256,073	1,375,620	1,413,054	1,318,957
Woollen-mills.
Number of—
Mills		12	13	12	12	12
Persons engaged		2,679	2,381	2,326	2,380	2,451
Amount of—
Salaries and wages paid	£	418,905	381,886	362,020	369,323	381,561
Horse-power	H.p.	4,659	5,190	5,238	5,221	5,566
Approximate value of—
Land and buildings	£	294,910	334,219	328,446	334,005	335,393
Machinery and plant	£	519,761	593,171	642,038	611,770	602,856
Scoured wool used—
Quantity	lb.	5,810,421	3,985,060	3,873,928	3,691,919	4,064,866
Value	£	607,018	563,082	525,665	425,832	504,892
Output—
Tweed and cloth	Yards	1,187,655	909,448	989,652	963,890	1,204,412
Flannel	Yards	1,242,139	1,173,663	1,073,209	1,310,384	1,529,148
Blankets	Pairs	117,500	132,445	128,485	127,966	124,595
Rugs and shawls	No.	58,755	55,712	71,336	54,405	66,858
Yarn	lb.	729,023	541,890	472,045	396,830	486,101
Total value	£	1,420,853	1,263,743	1,159,771	1,053,306	1,209,150

EMPLOYMENT AND WAGES.

Commencing with 1918–19, special annual returns as to wages and employment have been collected. The information contained in the returns has been tabulated, and is presented here under the following headings: (a) Wage-rates and number of employees; (b) overtime; (c) short time.

WAGE-RATES AND NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES.

The period covered by the returns in this case is the nearest normal week to 31st March in each year, and the data collected include the number of employees engaged at each wage rate, as well as the total employees and the total earnings during the specified week. Working proprietors,' managers, overseers, accountants, and clerks do not come within the scope of the return, which covers wage-earning employees only, and out-workers, if any. All wage-earning employees of either sex are covered, irrespective of age, and the figures are therefore inclusive of many young male and female workers receiving low wages. The inclusion of these workers has bad the effect of making the average earnings lower than they would otherwise have been, and this fact must not be overlooked when the figures are made use of.

Due attention should also be paid to the fact that, although every endeavour is made to choose comparable weeks each year, there are certain factors beyond the control of the Census and Statistics Office which may disturb the comparability of the figures from year to year. An unduly late or early season, abnormally wet weather, &c., would conceivably operate to affect the usefulness of either the number of employees or their earnings as indexes of the volume of employment. In using the average earnings it should be borne in mind that these have been computed from the amount earned during the specified week, and are, of course, affected by overtime and short time. If a worker is on overtime for the particular week covered by the returns, his earnings will be greater than his weekly wage-rate; if on short time, his earnings will be less than the full weekly rate. Because of this the average weekly earnings differ from the average weekly wage-rate; and as overtime in the aggregate exceeds short time, the former usually exceeds the latter.

The following table shows, for the nearest normal week to the 31st March in the years 1920 to 1928, the total earnings during the specified week, the number of wage-earning employees engaged in all industries covered by the returns, the average earnings, the average weekly wage-rate, the median wage-rate, and the mid-value of the modal or largest group recorded each year:—

Year ended 31st March,	Total Wage-earning Employees.	Total Earnings.	Average Earnings.			Arithmetic Mean Weekly Wage-rate.			Median Wage-rate.			Mid-value of Modal or Largest Group.
Males.
	Number.	£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
1920	48,228	197,536	4	1	11	4	4	7	4	2	7	4	2	6
1921	46,980	221,032	4	14	1	4	13	7	4	16	2	4	17	6
1922	49,235	220,036	4	9	5	4	5	7	4	13	6	4	12	6
1923	53,071	227,210	4	5	7	4	9	5	4	10	1	4	2	6
1924	54,652	235,117	4	6	0	4	9	0	4	10	9	4	12	6
1925	56,983	254,982	4	9	6	4	5	4	4	12	9	4	12	6
1926	56,848	255,020	4	9	9	4	7	5	4	13	1	4	17	6
1927	56,613	253,320	4	9	6	4	6	5	4	13	10	4	17	6
1928	57,153	253,715	4	8	9	4	8	4	4	14	8	4	12	6
Females.
1920	10,166	17,422	1	14	3	1	8	11	1	15	8	1	17	6
1921	10,477	20,299	1	18	9	1	14	5	2	0	11	2	2	6
1922	10,841	20,518	1	17	10	1	15	3	1	19	11	2	7	6
1923	12,130	22,622	1	17	4	1	16	7	1	18	9	2	2	6
1924	11,820	21,975	1	17	2	1	16	4	1	19	6	2	2	6
1925	12,048	21,399	1	15	6	1	16	2	2	0	0	2	2	6
1926	12,287	23,345	1	18	0	1	15	5	2	0	0	2	7	6
1927	12,807	24,439	1	18	2	1	14	11	2	0	1	2	7	6
1928	13,224	25,529	1	18	7	1	18	3	2	0	9	2	7	6

The statistics for the year 1918–19 included the dressmaking and millinery industry, which has not been covered in subsequent years, and the figures for 1918–19 are accordingly omitted from the foregoing table.

The average earnings of male wage-earning employees have, with the exception of 1920, 1923, and 1924, been higher than the average weekly rate of wages paid; while in the case of females the average earnings were below the average weekly wage-rate on one occasion only. The general indication from these figures is that overtime is more common than short time. This is borne out by the figures relating to these phenomena. It should not be overlooked, however, that the earnings for overtime are considerably above the ordinary wage-rates.

The average earnings for males show a sharp upward movement in 1921, followed by a gradual decline until 1924, when the average turned upwards again. The figures for the females show, broadly speaking, the same movement. The highest average-earnings figure for males as well as females was recorded for 1920–21, when the price-level was extremely high.

In the following table a summary showing the number of employees within the various wage-groups is given for the specified weeks covered by the returns in 1922 and 1928. Some noteworthy changes in the distribution have occurred in the six years.

Weekly Rate of Wages.	Males.		Females.
Weekly Rate of Wages.	1922.	1928.	1922.	1928.
Under 20s.	939	1,142	906	1,391
20s. and under 25s.	1,311	1,588	1,082	1,440
25s. and under 30s.	1,085	1,082	1,207	1,354
30s. and under 35s.	1,226	1,790	1,318	1,264
35s. and under 40s.	733	1,338	917	974
40s. and under 45s.	891	955	1,048	915
45s. and under 50s.	577	1,129	2,050	2,983
50s. and under 55s.	568	764	1,059	1,174
55s. and under 60s.	388	432	457	733
60s. and under 65s.	960	919	385	445
65s. and under 70s.	508	485	146	182
70s. and under 75s.	1,020	857	94	125
75s. and under 80s.	1,518	764	35	58
80s. and under 85s.	3,244	4,352	51	73
85s. and under 90s.	5,325	4,944	11	18
90s. and under 95s.	6,127	7,393	25	25
95s. and under 100s.	4,296	7,026	8	8
100s. and under 105s.	5,272	5,835	13	29
105s. and under 110s.	3,627	3,674	9	6
110s. and under 115s.	2,905	3,262	4	10
115s. and under 120s.	1,254	1,232	6	1
120s. and under 130s.	2,779	2,821	9	5
130s. and under 140s.	891	1,082	..	7
140s. and under 160s.	993	1,560	..	3
160s. and over	798	727	1	1
Totals	49,235	57,153	10,841	13,224

OVERTIME.

Short time and overtime are one of the results of the irregularity that characterize economic activity. This activity does not run smoothly, but is constantly in a state of flux. Business is constantly passing through various stages: first recovery, followed by expanding business, then boom conditions, and finally depression. Each of these stages takes some time to complete, and witnesses either short time or overtime, as industry is either slack or busy. Apart from this aspect of the question, short time and overtime are characteristic of certain seasons of the year; particularly is this so in New Zealand, where the summer months mark a period of intense activity in most industries, which changes to stagnation or a period of quiet in the winter.

As the information collected in respect of overtime does not entail the keeping of special statistical books in each establishment, but can be readily ascertained from the records kept in the wages-books, the information contained in the table given below may be accepted as being fairly accurate. Although data relating to overtime have been collected since the inception of the “Special Returns as to Wages and Employment,” the figures have been published only since 1922–23.

The following table shows the total hours overtime worked by male and female wage-earners, together with certain other averages, for the years ended 31st March, 1923–28:—

Year ended 31st March.	Number of Hours Overtime worked during Year.			Average Number of Weeks per Establishment during which Overtime worked.	Average Number of Hours per Employee affected per Week.		Average Number of Hours Overtime during Year for all Employees, whether working Overtime or not.
	Males.	Females.	Totals.		M.	F.	M.	F.
1923	1,676,902	122,331	1,799,233	4.9	6.2	5.9	31.8	10.1
1924	1,636,049	100,642	1,736,691	5.6	6.0	5.6	29.9	8.5
1925	1,720,798	153,204	1,874,002	6.5	6.5	6.0	30.0	13.0
1926	1,928,908	154,091	2,082,999	6.7	5.9	5.4	33.9	12.5
1927	1,808,403	178,780	1,987,183	5.9	5.6	5.0	31.9	14.0
1928	1,933,641	187,429	2,121,070	6.5	6.2	6.2	33.8	14.2

Except for recessions in 1923–24 and 1926–27 there appears to be a general upward trend in the aggregate overtime recorded, more particularly as regards women and girls. In the case of the men and boys there has been little movement in the average number of hours per employee affected per week, indicating that the increase in the aggregate overtime is due to its spreading over a relatively wider field. According to the corresponding figures for females the average female worker worked more overtime relatively during 1927–28 than for any of the five preceding years, while there also appears here, as in the case of men and boys, to be evidence of overtime covering a wider field.

As between industries, it is interesting to note that electric tramways and the meat-freezing and preserving industry between them accounted for 43 per cent. of the total overtime worked by male workers in 1927–28, the former accounting for 460,772 hours, or 24 per cent., against 375,019 hours, or 19 per cent., for the latter.

Although, broadly speaking, overtime may be regarded as an indication that the industries for which it has been recorded are undermanned, it should not be overlooked that it is not always to be taken as an indication that there is a demand for more labour in these industries. In rush periods suitable labour is not always readily offering for the short period necessary, and overtime is generally spread over a number of establishments and over various grades of employees in insufficient amounts to warrant the engagement of additional labour.

During the year ended 31st March, 1928, no less than 2,121,070 hours overtime was worked in all industries furnishing returns, the efforts of male workers accounting for 1,933,641 hours, against 187,429 hours for females. Compared with similar figures for the previous year, the foregoing figures represent increases of 125,238 hours for males, 8,649 hours for females, and 133,887 hours for the total of both sexes. Of course, all employees are not actually affected by overtime, and out of the total of 57,153 males and 13,224 females engaged in all industries, 10,078 of the former and 2,425 of the latter were on the average directly concerned with overtime each week, the males working on the average 6.16 hours per week and the females 6.15 hours.

An average over all the employees engaged in all industries discloses the fact that if overtime were distributed evenly among all employees each male worker would do 33.83 hours and each female worker 14.17 hours per year. Again, if all establishments worked overtime each would be occupied for 6.55 weeks in excess of ordinary time.

The table given hereunder shows particulars in respect of the overtime worked in the various industries during the year 1927–28.

Industry.	Number of Hours Overtime worked during Year.		Average Number of Weeks per Establishment during which Overtime worked.	Average Number of Hours per Employee affected per Week.		Average Number of Hours Overtime during Year for all Employees, whether working Overtime or not.
	M.	F.		M.	F.	M.	F.
Aerated waters	14,558	84	3.59	6.12	3.00	32.28	9.33
Agricultural machinery	9,238	..	12.35	4.49	..	16.59	..
Bag and sack	1,567	1,485	17.40	5.13	5.50	62.68	31.60
Biscuits and confectionery	14,264	12,474	6.93	5.32	6.18	15.76	10.31
Blindmaking	80	162	4.00	2.00	6.30	8.89	13.50
Boiling down and manure	8,486	..	7.27	4.69	..	37.22	..
Boots and shoes	3,513	1,037	2.90	6.35	3.36	2.85	1.27
Brewing and malting	52,303	..	19.20	6.38	..	67.14	..
Brick, tile, and pottery	10,684	..	7.32	5.95	..	9.13	..
Brush and broom	64	399	3.33	2.00	3.00	0.64	5.54
Butter and cheese	27,967	..	1.35	6.52	..	10.98	..
Chemical fertilizers	98,473	..	40.78	6.96	..	156.06	..
Chemicals	4,467	278	11.50	5.11	4.53	51.94	5.67
Clothing	20,405	85,517	8.94	6.39	6.61	25.35	14.77
Coachbuilding	22,646	..	5.23	6.66	..	19.16	..
Coffee and spice	878	1,392	8.55	5.90	6.00	15.96	37.62
Cooperages, packing-cases, &c.	11,071	..	7.15	8.01	..	44.82	..
Electric current	53,478	..	13.28	4.23	..	17.81	..
Electric tramways	460,772	..	41.60	4.77	..	150.68	..
Electrical engineering	1,017	..	1.17	6.30	..	5.88	..
Engineering (general)	107,791	..	11.90	5.55	..	35.19	..
Engraving	613	..	4.53	2.58	..	7.39	..
Fibrous plaster and concrete	17,514	..	4.13	12.93	..	34.89	..
Fish-curing	665	..	3.65	6.88	..	10.73	..
Flax-milling	6,118	..	2.06	5.74	..	5.25	..
Flock-milling	226	..	4.40	10.27	..	8.07	..
Fruit-preserving and jam	11,896	2,076	14.63	5.98	5.34	75.29	15.73
Fur coat and necklet making	2,251	3,613	8.00	5.36	6.18	26.48	19.02
Furniture and cabinetmaking	7,560	605	1.89	7.39	4.89	3.62	3.62
Gas-manufacture	32,315	..	13.36	4.41	..	21.19	..
Grain-crushing	33	..	1.83	3.00	..	1.22	..
Grain-milling	19,495	864	9.16	6.25	4.00	40.45	27.00
Ham and bacon curing	5,188	..	5.65	3.86	..	17.83	..
Hosiery	2,079	3,732	10.33	4.50	5.10	28.09	7.68
Ice cream	3,760	..	2.82	9.80	..	41.77	..
Iron and brass foundries	16,319	..	7.24	5.63	..	22.42	..
Leadlight-manufacture	4,392	..	3.35	6.56	..	13.03	..
Leather goods	2,501	3,079	3.36	5.80	5.69	22.53	30.79
Lime and cement	71,261	..	7.48	4.66	..	90.43	..
Mattress and bedding	3,809	509	6.87	5.45	4.08	20.81	4.17
Meat freezing and preserving	375,019	..	17.05	8.25	..	54.96	..
Motor and cycle engineering	88,332	..	8.67	4.16	..	26.82	..
Paint and varnish	1,665	..	7.58	6.12	..	23.79	..
Paper-bag and box	3,110	6,728	15.83	5.12	5.48	38.40	28.75
Perambulators and baskets	120	27	0.29	8.70	9.00	0.59	0.75
Picture-framing	435	..	2.82	5.31	..	11.76	..
Printing and publishing	131,354	22,701	15.66	5.17	5.29	32.94	20.88
Proprietary medicines	178	689	3.94	2.90	7.04	2.83	10.44
Rangemaking	749	..	2.63	11.50	..	2.77	..
Rope and twine	6,569	120	14.75	5.69	6.00	37.54	4.80
Saddlery and harness	843	..	0.96	6.86	..	5.08	..
Sail, tent, and oilskin	1,042	460	2.03	8.19	6.20	11.09	5.75
Sauce, pickle, and vinegar	1,729	..	4.95	6.55	..	14.06	..
Sausage-casings	50,077	..	10.70	10.23	..	132.83	..
Sawmilling, &c.	14,681	..	0.91	4.90	..	2.22	..
Ship and boat building	41,128	..	10.48	8.82	..	67.98	..
Soap and candle	2,390	633	8.24	3.23	7.20	8.45	8.12
Tanning	4,968	..	8.31	4.86	..	14.79	..
Tinware and sheet-metal	28,517	8,046	5.18	7.91	7.41	24.31	114.94
Umbrella making	216	..	0.33	9.00	..	10.29	..
Watches and jewellery	482	..	1.08	14.71	..	3.83	..
Wirework	1,091	..	3.59	7.06	..	9.57	..
Woodware and turnery	3,425	..	1.65	4.75	..	4.45	..
Woollen-mills	17,643	16,881	36.25	5.43	6.27	18.59	11.43
Woolscouring and fellmongering	4,710	..	4.95	6.32	..	10.90	..
Industries for which the number of returns received was less than four	21,221	13,456	913	5.31	8.64	31.77	3.84
Miscellaneous	230	382	0.65	8.67	7.50	2.80	8.30
Totals	1,933,641	187,429	6.55	6.16	6.15	33.83	14.17

Industries in which overtime was not worked at all during the year are omitted from the table, but are included in the totals on which the general averages are based.

SHORT TIME.

Information regarding time lost in factories has been collected for some years, but prior to 1923–24 it was found to be so unsatisfactory as not to warrant publication. The difficulties militating against the collection of satisfactory information on the question have been overcome to an appreciable extent by the issue of more explicit instructions bearing on the matter, with the result that reasonably accurate information is now available on this important phase of the Dominion's industrial life.

For statistical purposes short time is deemed to be time lost through machinery, tools, &c., being out of order, lack of materials, adverse market conditions, cessation of work due to weather conditions, and other cognate causes. Time lost through holidays (annual, ordinary, or public holidays) and sickness, however, is not counted as short time. Information as to how much short time can be attributed to each cause is; unfortunately, not available, and it is therefore impossible to form any definite conclusions as to the extent to which unavoidable circumstances are responsible. It is interesting, however, to note that the sawmilling and meat freezing and preserving industries account respectively for 49 and 18 per cent. of the total hours of short time suffered by male employees in 1927–28.

Broadly speaking, the short-time figures represent the short-period slackening off in the demand for labour, and are an aspect of the unemployment problem. Short time is a phenomenon that is comparatively frequently met in the Dominion's industrial life, but differs considerably in incidence from unemployment. For instance, as already indicated, it may be due to non-economic causes, such as the weather, and found largely in certain industries where employees work exposed to weather conditions. Again, it may be due to a breakdown in the machinery employed in the factory. Where, however, the cause lies in industrial depression, short time and unemployment are for practical purposes synonymous.

The following table gives particulars relating to the short time worked in the industries covered by the annual census of factory production, during the years ended 31st March, 1924 to 1928:—

Year ended 31st March.	Number of Hours Short Time worked during Year.			Average Number of Weeks per Establishment during which Short Time worked.	Average Number of Hours per Employee affected per Week.		Average Number of Hours Short Time during Year for all Employees, whether working Short Time or not.
	Males.	Females.	Total.		M.	F.	M.	F.
1924	593,001	66,219	659,220	1.3	11.9	18.5	10.9	5.6
1925	724,686	161,550	886,236	1.4	12.6	14.3	12.7	13.8
1926	712,834	141,279	854,113	1.6	12.7	17.6	12.5	11.5
1927	966,922	163,741	1,130,663	1.8	12.4	19.9	17.1	12.8
1928	1,469,649	154,942	1,624,591	2.5	11.6	16.7	25.7	11.7

Comparisons with the figures for 1923–24 should not be pressed too closely, as the data for this year are not so reliable as those for subsequent years. The outstanding point in the above table is the substantial increase in the short time worked during 1927–28. The total short time for this year (1,624,591 hours) was 493,928 hours, or 44 per cent., above the figure for the previous year. The average number of hours short time per employee affected per week was, compared with 1926–27, lower in the case of both males and females. An arithmetic average computed with the total employees in all industries as the denominator shows the figures for males to be higher than those for the preceding year, while those for females are lower.

Altogether 1,624,591 hours short time were recorded during the year, or, in other words, it would take 718 men working 44 hours a week just under a year to make up the deficiency in time. Male employees suffered in the aggregate 1,469,649 hours, against 154,942 hours for females. These figures represent an increase of 502,727 hours for males, and a decrease of 8,799 for females as compared with the preceding year's figures. As in the case of overtime, short time does not affect all employees, and out of the total employees (57,153 males, 13,224 females) only 5,827 males and 976 females were directly affected during the whole year. Although comparatively few employees were directly affected by short time, it would appear that those who were affected suffered considerably, the average number of hours per employee affected per week being 11.65 hours in the case of males and considerably more (16.72 hours) in the case of females. Averages taken over the total establishments and employees and the total hours short time for the year disclose the fact that if the short time were evenly distributed each male worker would have lost 25.71 hours, each female worker 11.72 hours, and each establishment 2.50 weeks in the year.

Subjoined is a table showing particulars in respect of the short time suffered in the various industries during the year 1927–28:—

Industry.	Number of Hours Short Time worked during Year.		Average Number of Weeks per Establishment during which Short Time worked.	Average Number of Hours per Employee affected per Week.		Average Number of Hours Short Time during Year for all Employees, whether working Short Time or not.
	M.	F.		M.	F.	M.	F.
Aerated waters	2,328	..	0.42	14.20	..	5.16	..
Agricultural machinery	33,278	..	4.69	7.63	..	59.75	..
Bag and sack	..	272	4.00	..	4.53	..	5.79
Biscuits and confectionery	4,104	9,389	1.85	27.83	28.58	4.53	7.76
Boiling-down and manure	240	..	0.30	3.00	..	1.05	..
Boots and shoes	64,010	25,055	16.00	12.17	11.22	51.87	30.78
Brick, tile, and pottery	7,260	..	2.73	7.87	..	6.21	..
Brush and broom	672	..	4.22	3.00	..	6.72	..
Butter and cheese	1,155	..	0.07	3.00	..	0.45	..
Chemicals	145	..	0.43	7.25	..	1.69	..
Clothing	5,786	86,502	3.45	14.82	18.94	7.19	14.94
Coachbuilding	11,019	..	3.03	7.80	..	9.32	..
Coffee and spice	..	792	1.64	..	44.00	..	21.41
Cooperages, packing-case, &c.	525	..	1.50	3.50	..	213	..
Electric current	9,050	..	1.82	6.19	..	301	..
Electric tramways	13,600	..	1.70	8.00	..	4.45	..
Electrical engineering	78	..	0.22	9.75	..	0.45	..
Electroplating	404	..	1.58	3.23	..	10.92	..
Engineering (general)	30,482	..	1.83	5.94	..	9.95	..
Fibrous plaster and concrete	5,582	..	2.15	17.35	..	11.12	..
Fish-curing	126	..	0.41	6.00	..	2.03	..
Flax-milling	68,355	..	9.31	15.10	..	58.67	..
Fruit-preserving and jams	157	180	1.50	3.75	3.75	0.99	1.36
Fur coat and necklet making	..	1,975	0.90	..	10.90	..	10.39
Furniture and cabinetmaking	36,892	564	2.52	12.93	25.50	17.67	3.38
Gas-manufacture	4,880	..	2.53	3.41	..	3.20	..
Grain-milling	8,201	..	1.34	19.59	..	17.01	..
Ham and bacon curing	1,311	..	1.28	11.17	..	4.51	..
Hosiery	957	8,520	3.48	27.00	18.73	12.93	17.53
Ice cream	514	..	0.53	25.66	..	5.71	..
Iron and brass foundries	18,995	336	5.94	7.54	4.00	26.09	56.00
Leadlight-manufacture	31,822	..	1.19	38.77	..	94.43	..
Leather goods	1,976	1,536	0.64	13.00	12.00	17.80	15.36
Lime and cement	7,370	..	3.74	11.33	..	935	..
Mattress and bedding	852	360	2.07	5.60	6.00	4.66	2.95
Meat freezing and preserving	261,958	..	12.05	8.77	..	38.39	..
Motor and cycle	9,933	..	0.79	7.94	..	3.02	..
Musical instruments	544	..	2.67	34.00	..	17.55	..
Paper bag and box	..	4,252	1.28	..	16.69	..	18.17
Perambulators and baskets	7,159	676	4.66	19.74	24.00	34.92	18.78
Picture-framing	156	..	1.46	4.80	..	4.22	..
Printing and publishing	4,946	6,411	0.82	19.89	18.59	1.24	5.90
Proprietary medicines	352	1,056	0.89	22.00	22.00	5.59	16.00
Rangemaking	16,340	..	12.88	4.85	..	60.52	..
Rope and twine	128	..	2.00	8.00	..	0.73	..
Saddlery and harness	5,695	1,380	5.96	12.57	27.60	34.31	32.09
Sail, tent, and oilskin	1,458	1,020	2.84	7.00	12.00	15.51	12.75
Sausage-casings	21,924	..	2.05	12.10	..	58.15	..
Sawmilling, &c.	722,224	..	7.33	13.57	..	109.31	..
Ship and boat building	520	..	0.45	8.50	..	0.86	..
Tanning	2,502	..	3.00	11.60	..	7.45	..
Tinware and sheet metal	3,006	..	0.38	32.41	..	2.56	..
Watches and jewellery	2,219	..	1.56	25.40	..	17.61	..
Wirework	5,800	..	8.24	7.68	..	50.88	..
Woodware and turnery	8,946	..	1.58	1,933	..	11.62	..
Woollen-mills	1,120	4,460	4.75	2.00	5.90	1.18	3.02
Woolscouring and fellmongering	16,784	..	4.51	14.91	..	38.85	..
Industries for which the number of returns received was less than four	2,959	206	3.25	13.52	6.87	4.43	0.59
Miscellaneous	850	..	0.58	19.08	..	10.37	..
Totals	1,469,649	154,942	2.50	11.65	16.72	25.71	11.72

Chapter 23. SECTION XXIII.—BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

LIMITATIONS OF STATISTICS.

EXPLANATION OF TERMS.

EMPLOYEES AND WAGES.

MOTIVE POWER.

MATERIALS USED.

PAYMENTS TO SUBCONTRACTORS.

VALUE OF WORK DONE.

BUILDINGS COMPLETED.

BUILDING-COSTS.

CHARACTER OF ORGANIZATION.

CLASSIFICATION BY DISTRICTS.

COMPARISON WITH OTHER INDUSTRIES.

BUILDING PERMITS.

BUILDING PERMITS ISSUED: CITIES, BOROUGHS, AND TOWN DISTRICTS.

MONTHLY PERMIT STATISTICS.

BUILDING PERMITS IN LARGER TOWNS.—APRIL, 1928, TO SEPTEMBER, 1929.

INTRODUCTORY.

IN 1925 the annual collection of returns covering the operations of builders and contractors, on the same lines as the returns of factory production, was instituted. The basis of the annual inquiry is the list of builders and contractors subscribing to the Carpenters and Joiners' award as members of the New Zealand Federated Builders and Contractors' Industrial Association of Employers, together with such other builders and contractors as can be traced through various sources.

The regulations empowering the collection of the statistics defined the term “building and contracting establishment” as including establishments engaged in the construction or repair of buildings, wharves, jetties, bridges, or other construction work which employ two or more hands, inclusive of working proprietors, and the period to be covered as the twelve months ended the 31st March each year.

LIMITATIONS OF STATISTICS.

The statistics of building and construction do not include the construction of railways, &c., by the Railways Department, or of public works (roads, streets, bridges, wharves, buildings, &c.) erected by the Public Works Department or local authorities, except in the case of bridges, wharves, and buildings, where the work has been carried out by contract. Particulars are included in respect of local authorities which carry on building contracts in their own name or have a special staff engaged on repairing and making alterations to existing structures. Reference is - made later on to the inclusion of the number and value of private dwellings erected by the Railways Department.

From the nature of the industry, it is obviously impossible to collect returns from all who engage in building operations. Undoubtedly many who only intermittently undertake building contracts or whose operations are small do not furnish returns. Nevertheless, the statistics cover the great bulk of building operations throughout the Dominion, all builders and contractors engaged in a large way or on big contracts and the majority of others regularly undertaking building and construction work being included among those from whom returns have been received in the three years since the collection was initiated. A comparison with the value of building permits issued in cities, boroughs, and town districts during the year ended 31st March, 1928 (as-summarized in the latter part of this section), sheds some light on the general completeness of the statistics. It should be noted that the permits do not cover buildings, erected outside the boundaries of cities, boroughs, town districts, and certain suburban counties and road districts. There is therefore no information available as to the extent of “country” building, but, as the great bulk of the population-increase is occuring in the towns, comparatively little building will be carried on in the country districts. Permits were issued during 1927–28 for the construction of new buildings to the value of £8,127,732, and for alterations and additions valued at £1,537,484; the returns of building and construction cover work during the same period to the value of £7,301,442 on new buildings, while the jobbing and repair work returned (covering alterations, and additions) was valued at £1,117,021. It should be noted that the permits issued during a year do not represent the actual building carried on during the year. Without, therefore, overlooking the fact that the returns of building and construction cover the “country” building, whereas the permits do not, it would appear that the proportion of operations not covered by the collection is relatively small.

EXPLANATION OF TERMS.

The explanations given hereunder will be found of assistance in interpreting the terms used in connection with the statistics:—

“Average number of persons engaged”: This represents the sum of the persons engaged each month during the year covered, divided by twelve.
“Cost of materials used”: This covers materials supplied by the builders as well as payments to subcontractors.
“Other expenses of operation”: This heading comprises expenditure on fuel and power, insurance, depreciation, and other items not coming under the headings of salaries and wages or cost of materials.
“Value of work done”: This represents the total contract price of the work actually commenced and finished during the year. Where contracts were not commenced and finished within the period covered, the value of the work done was assessed as being a proportion of the total contract price, equal to the proportion which the total expenditure during the period bears to the total estimated expenditure on the contract.

EMPLOYEES AND WAGES.

The number of persons engaged (including working proprietors but excluding subcontractors) and the salaries and wages paid to these during the year ended 31st March, 1928, are given hereunder:—

—	Persons engaged.			Salaries and Wages paid.
—	Males.	Females.	Total.	To Males.	To Females.	Total.
				£	£	£
Proprietors	1,145	1	1,146	318,308	104	318,412
Managers and overseers	264	4	268	109,966	150	110,116
Accountants, clerks, &c.	144	97	241	32,138	11,322	43,460
Wage-earners	8,845	..	8,845	1,945,681	..	1,945,681
Totals	10,398	102	10,500	2,406,093	11,576	2,417,669

The total number of persons engaged increased from 9,942 in 1925–26 to 10,500 in 1927–28, while the total salaries and wages paid fell from £2,429,831 to £2,417,669 during the same period. There was a slight falling off in the number of working-proprietors, the figures being 1,159 and 1,146 for the two years respectively. Wage-earners, however, increased from 8,346 in 1925–26 to 8,845 in 1927–28. Excluding female employees, the figures for which are exceedingly small, the average amount received in salaries and wages was £245 in 1925–26; £237 in 1926–27; and £231 in 1927–28. Wage-earners averaged £233, £225, and £220 in the respective years.

MOTIVE POWER.

Motive power is utilized in the building industry for concrete-mixers, and in joinery-factories operated by builders in conjunction with their building operations. Particulars regarding the number and horse-power of engines and motors in use are given below:—

Kind of Power.	1925–26.		1926–27.		1927–28.
Kind of Power.	Number.	Horse-power.	Number.	Horse-power.	Number.	Horse-power.
Steam	47	1,130	39	852	39	1,022
Coal-gas	31	304	28	265	26	257
Suction-gas	4	34	6	61	3	33
Oil	116	597	145	734	163	779
Electric	515	3,771	693	4,662	858	5,365
Water	9	41	3	10	..	..
Totals	722	5,877	914	6,584	1,089	7,456

Part of the substantial increase in the machinery utilized is clue to the fact that succeeding years have witnessed more complete collections. The major cause, however, appears to be an expansion in mechanical aids, particularly in those deriving their power from electricity.

MATERIALS USED.

In 1927–28 the form was altered by the excision of the analysis of the materials used, the total only of the cost of the materials (including payments to subcontractors) being now asked for. Compared with the corresponding figure for 1926–27, the total recorded in 1927–28 (£4,968,191) showed a recession of £164,637, or 3.21 per cent.

The analyses recorded in 1925–26 and 1926–27 throw some light on the proportions of the various materials used in the industry. In a number of cases separate figures regarding the various items enumerated on the forms under this heading were not available. Estimates were used where possible in such cases, but where this was impossible, the whole amount was shown under the heading “other and unspecified materials.” The figures relating to materials supplied directly by builders, and excluding sub-contractors, for 1925–26 and 1926–27 are given hereunder:—

Material.	1925–26.	Proportion of Total.	1926–27.	Proportion of Total.
	£	Per Cent.	£	Per Cent.
Timber	1,440,740	53.48	1,403,668	49.92
Bricks	154,062	5.72	180,095	6.40
Lime	22,680	0.84	25,772	0.92
Cement	218,044	8.09	277,005	9.85
Other and unspecified	858,600	31.87	925,502	32.91
Total	2,694,126	100.00	2,812,042	100.00

PAYMENTS TO SUBCONTRACTORS.

The amounts paid by builders in 1925–26 and 1926–27 to subcontractors are given hereunder:—

Class of Subcontractor.	1925–26.	Proportion of Total.	1926–27.	Proportion of Total.
	£	Per Cent.	£	Per Cent.
Plumbers	473,271	20.92	456,825	19.69
Painters	293,926	12.99	295,116	12.72
Electricians	97,226	4.29	130,408	5.62
Joiners	342,298	15.13	319,625	13.77
Bricklayers	229,133	10.12	195,204	8.41
Other	827,127	36.55	923,608	39.79
Total	2,262,981	100.00	2,320,786	100.00

VALUE OF WORK DONE.

To facilitate the completion of the portion of the return dealing with the value of work done, a distinction was made in 1925–26 and 1926–27 between contracts commenced and finished during the year and those worked on during the year but not commenced and finished within that space of time. In 1927–28 these distinctions were discarded, the value of work done being asked for in one figure.

The headings given hereunder are prescribed for the classification of the work done, according to the nature of the structure raised, while jobbing and repair work is asked for separately. The amounts returned under the foregoing classifications are given hereunder:—

	1925–25.	1926–27.	1927–28.
	£	£	£
Buildings	6,577,676	6,269,513	6,204,966
Bridges, wharves, jetties	126,914	294,100	86,965
Other construction work	240,796	1,088,183	1,009,511
Jobbing and repair work	1,207,997	1,062,947	1,117,021
	£8,153,383	£8,714,743	£8,418,463

The jobbing and repair work in 1927–28 accounted for 13 per cent. of the total value of work done (£8,418,463).

Particulars regarding the operations of the New Zealand Railways Department have not been included in the foregoing figures. The Department erected 284 dwellings during 1927–28, the addition of the value of these dwellings (£198,800) bringing the total for the year to £8,617,263.

BUILDINGS COMPLETED.

The following summary shows a classification of the buildings completed during the years ended 31st March, 1926, 1927, and 1928.

Kind of Building.	Year ended 31st March,
Kind of Building.	1926.	1927.	1928.
*One to four rooms. † Five to eight rooms. ‡ Nine rooms and over.
Number.
Private dwellings—
One to three rooms	1,299^*	335	358
Four to six rooms	1,846^†	2,506	2,173
Seven to nine rooms	..	195	198
Ten rooms and over	60^‡	28	32
Total	3,205	3,064	2,761
Business premises	375	531	548
Other	528	670	678
Grand total	4,108	4,265	3,987
Value.
Private dwellings—
	£	£	£
One to three rooms	784,100^*	88,478	87,078
Four to six rooms	1,923,029^†	2,236,812	1,908,306
Seven to nine rooms	..	349,298	367,235
Ten rooms and over	221,609^‡	84,648	118,066
Total	2,928,738	2,759,236	2,480,685
Business premises	1,168,247	1,822,194	2,046,324
Other	431,635	831,359	839,413
Grand total	4,528,620	5,412,789	5,366,422

Figures relating to the dwellings erected by the Railways Department have been excluded from the foregoing table.

The average amount received by contractors for the erection of dwellings containing one to three rooms during the year ended 31st March, 1928, was £243; for houses of four to six rooms, £878; for houses of seven to nine rooms, £1,855; and for houses containing ten rooms or over, £3,690. The corresponding figures for the year 1926–27 were £264, £893, £1,791, and £3,023 respectively. Owing' to the wide variation in the size, &c., of the business and other buildings erected the average conveys but little in these cases.

BUILDING-COSTS.

In 1926–27 and 1927–28 the dwellings completed during the year were classified according to the number of rooms in classes ranging from one room to over ten rooms. The following table shows the results of this classification, together with the average per room for both years:—

Number of Rooms.	Number of Dwellings.		Value.		Value per Room.
Number of Rooms.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1926–27.	1927–28.
	Number.	Number.	£	£	£	£
One	98	106	11,745	13,404	120	126
Two	110	122	26,938	24,932	122	102
Three	127	130	49,795	48,742	131	113
Four	928	822	659,192	576,274	178	175
Five	1,134	1,004	1,053,448	918,301	186	183
Six	444	347	524,172	413,731	197	199
Seven	117	109	191,136	171,571	233	225
Eight	56	64	109,752	142,840	245	279
Nine	22	25	48,410	52,824	244	235
Ten	13	15	37,572	44,368	289	296
Over ten	15	17	47,076	73,698	..	..
Grand totals	3,064	2,761	2,759,236	2,480,685	..	..

The figures given above do not include the houses erected by the Railways Department. The extreme groups at both ends of the table should be translated with caution. The lower groups no doubt cover many “baches” and other “part-time” dwellings, where the services and fittings are below those found in a “full-time” home, while the group containing dwellings with over ten room? includes “flat” promises. Unfortunately the numbers of rooms for these premises are not available, and it is impossible to make any comparisons between the cost of “flats” and ordinary dwellings.

The cost per room in the modal group (five rooms) was £183 in 1927–28, against £175 in the “four-room” group and £199 in the “six-room” group.

The values utilized in the foregoing represent what the building contractors received for the construction of the dwellings. The configuration of the building sites, transport facilities, building regulations, the rate of growth in the population, the class of house constructed, the existence of finance, are some of the principal factors affecting the cost of building as between different districts. For reasons already indicated, the extreme groups containing either a small or a large number of rooms are hardly satisfactory in comparing relative costs in different districts. Between the modal groups, comprising the four-, five-, and six-room groups, however, valid comparisons may be made.

The following table sets forth by provincial districts the number and value of the four-, five-, and six-roomed houses erected during the year ended 31st March, 1928:—

Provincial District.	Dwellings with
Provincial District.	Four Rooms.	Five Booms.	Six Rooms.	Total.
Number.
Auckland	249	251	76	576
Hawke's Bay	47	48	12	107
Taranaki	23	34	18	75
Wellington	149	248	88	485
Marlborough	10	12	1	23
Nelson	20	18	6	44
Westland	2	9	1	12
Canterbury	200	190	86	476
Otago	91	147	42	280
Southland	31	47	17	95
Totals	822	1,004	347	2,173
Value.
	£	£	£	£
Auckland	166,688	210,336	82,120	459,144
Hawke's Bay	32,828	40,392	14,745	87,065
Taranaki	13,893	26,454	20,057	60,404
Wellington	122,015	257,167	106,075	485,257
Marlborough	5,275	8,561	950	14,786
Nelson	10,425	14,029	7,095	31,549
Westland	897	7,733	810	9,440
Canterbury	140,137	164,811	102,596	407,544
Otago	66,364	151,590	58,223	276,177
Southland	17,752	37,228	21,060	76,040
Totals	576,274	918,301	413,731	1,908,306
Average Value per Room.
	£	£	£	£
Auckland	167	168	180	170
Hawke's Bay	175	168	205	176
Taranaki	151	156	186	163
Wellington	205	207	201	205
Marlborough	132	143	168	139
Nelson	130	156	197	153
Westland	112	172	135	160
Canterbury	175	173	199	180
Otago	182	206	231	204
Southland	143	158	206	165
Totals	175	183	199	184

No special definition of the term “room” was utilized on the forms, and the customary interpretation must therefore be placed upon it. Under this, bathrooms, pantries, and kitchenettes are not counted as rooms.

Taking the average cost per room of the four-, five-, and six-roomed houses as being the truest types, the average values are found to be much higher in the Wellington and Otago Districts, the actual average cost per room being £205 for the former and £204 for the latter. Next in order comes Canterbury with £180, followed by Hawke's Bay (£176), and Auckland (£170). With the exception of Hawke's Bay the smaller provincial districts have lower costs per room than any of the four principal districts—viz., Auckland, Wellington, Canterbury, and Otago.

CHARACTER OF ORGANIZATION.

The typical business unit in the building industry is the individual or single contractor or builder. Out of the 1,032 establishments furnishing returns no less than 717 were individual concerns, the balance comprising 236 partnerships, 65 private companies, 11 local authorities and miscellaneous, and 3 public companies. The building industry is essentially one where the skill of the contractor weighs heavily in attracting business; moreover, it presents difficulties to adequate supervision when adopted on a large scale; while the “personal” element bulks largely in the administration. These factors explain why the great bulk of the Dominion's building operations are carried on by individual and partnership establishments. The following table gives the principal data for each class of organization:—

Character of Organization.	Establishments.	Persons engaged.	Salaries and Wages.	Cost of Materials used (including Payments to Subcontractors).	Value of Buildings completed during Year.	Total Value of Work done.
			£	£	£	£
Individual	717	4,070	909,990	2,206,107	2,883,228	3,592,038
Partnership	236	2,048	458,940	1,085,047	1,188,782	1,702,844
Public company	3	1,016	216,947	174,665	27,387	585,969
Private company	65	2,897	712,446	1,408,566	1,258,280	2,273,117
Municipal and miscellaneous	11	469	119,346	93,806	8,765	264,495
Totals	1,032	10,500	2,417,669	4,968,191	5,366,422	8,418,463

CLASSIFICATION BY DISTRICTS.

The subjoined table shows the principal statistics by provincial districts:—

—	Establishments.	Persons engaged.	Salaries and Wages.	Cost of Materials (including Payments to Subcontractors).	Value of Buildings completed during Year.	Total Value of Work done
			£	£	£	£
Auckland	265	3,536	802,903	1,282,306	1,396,145	2,389,184
Hawke's Bay	64	428	95,328	205,373	201,547	323,396
Taranaki	28	174	40,786	102,589	137,551	153,319
Wellington	224	2,972	718,833	1,632,006	1,792,651	2,820,622
Marlborough	15	126	26,663	45,086	52,186	79,644
Nelson	28	191	39,037	75,644	82,927	125,410
Westland	4	66	15,435	26,939	24,967	44,087
Canterbury	217	1,688	361,261	721,412	868,743	1,179,257
Otago	132	1,091	269,995	737,811	653,143	1,098,308
Southland	55	228	47,428	139,025	156,562	205,236
Totals	1,032	10,500	2,417,669	4,968,191	5,366,422	8,418,463

Of the total number of persons finding employment in the building industry (10,500), no fewer than 6,508, or 62 per cent., are located in the Auckland and Wellington Provincial Districts. As between Auckland and Wellington, Wellington leads in the volume of building done during each of the three years for which statistics are available.

COMPARISON WITH OTHER INDUSTRIES.

A comparison between the principal figures for the building industry and the other main industries in the Dominion shows some interesting points. The building industry employs a relatively small amount of fixed capital as compared with the other industries; this is not unexpected since labour is the principal agent' of production in this industry. As regards the number of persons engaged and the amount of salaries and wages paid, the building industry occupies the first place in the Dominion, being followed by the printing industry. If the comparison is based on the added value (which in the case of the building industry represents the difference between the cost of materials supplied by builders, plus payments to subcontractors, and the total value of products or work done) the building industry ranks second to butter and cheese making.

The following table shows, for the year ended 31st March, 1928, the number of persons engaged, the amount paid as salaries and wages, the value of fixed capital employed, and the added value in respect of the building industry and five other principal industries:—

Industry.	Persons engaged.	Amount paid as Salaries and Wages.	Fixed Capital (i.e., Value of Land, Buildings, Plant, and Machinery).	Added Value.
		£	£	£
Building	10,500	2,417,669	958,370	3,450,272
Meat-freezing	6,139	1,479,197	4,612,118	3,045,243
Butter and cheese making	4,167	910,491	3,868,234	3,476,291
Sawmilling	7,305	1,686,699	2,775,894	2,938,125
Printing	8,053	1,805,690	3,580,230	3,276,179
Clothing-manufacture	7,101	869,953	1,079,582	1,198,064

BUILDING PERMITS.

Statistics of building permits have been collected annually since 1921–22 for all boroughs and town districts. In 1926–27, certain road districts in Eden County (suburban to Auckland) were added, and in 1928–29 two counties, adjacent to Wellington and Christchurch respectively, were also incorporated in the collection.

A summary of building permits issued during each year from 1921–22 onwards is as follows:—

Year.	Number of New Private Dwellings.	Value of New Buildings, all Classes.	Total Value of all Building Operations.
		£	£
1921–22	4,330	4,602,834	5,283,012
1922–23	5,025	6,124,439	7,101,681
1923–24	6,245	7,708,933	9,146,479
1924–25	5,805	7,823,331	9,304,160
1925–26	6,850	8,613,549	10,169,530
1926–27	7,179	9,357,977	11,019,389
1927–28	5,690	8,127,732	9,665,216
1928–29	5,212	7,326,464	9,054,421

The outstanding feature of the building activities for the year 1928–29 is the gross decrease (when allowance is made for added districts) of over £700,000 as compared with values for the preceding year. This decline was due principally to fewer business premises being erected. A more detailed summary for the last three years follows:—

BUILDING PERMITS ISSUED: CITIES, BOROUGHS, AND TOWN DISTRICTS.

Private dwellings,—
New buildings—	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
Number	7,179	5,690	5,212
Value	£6,141,574	£4,831,526	£4,602,351
Value of alterations and additions	£752,031	£661,749	£621,833
Business premises,—
New buildings—
Number	940	922	770
Value	£2,579,173	£2,487,589	£1,711,916
Value of alterations and additions	£680,991	£640,297	£809,665
Total, including other buildings,—
New buildings—
Number	8,354	6,914	6,199
Value	£9,357,977	£8,127,732	£7,326,464
Value of alterations and additions	£1,661,412	£1,537,484	£1,727,957

The average value of private dwellings, as shown by returns of building permits, was £855 in 1926–27, £849 in 1927–28, and £883 in 1928–29. For business premises corresponding figures are £2,744 (1926–27), £2,698 (1927–28), and £2,223 (1928–29).

Of the £4,602,351 representing the cost of new dwellings given permits in 1928–29, £3,822,010 was designed for wooden residences and £720,516 for houses in other materials. This excludes cases where the material was unspecified.

If allowance be made for permits issued by the two districts not included in 1927–28 (129 new dwellings of a value of £97,448) building operations in respect of new private dwellings show a decrease of 607 (value £326,623), as compared with the previous year. The number of private dwellings erected is the lowest since 1922–23. New business premises show a substantial decrease on the previous year by 152 in number and £752,498 in value. Compared with the peak year, 1926–27, the total value of all building operations in 1928–29 showed a decline of £2,130,307. It is probable that the 1926–27 level was the highest in the history of the country.

The following figures show the total value of all buildings or alterations for which permits were issued (including also Government operations) in towns where a level of £100,000 was exceeded:—

	£
Wellington City	1,884,988
Auckland City	1,641,272
Christchurch City	778,029
Dunedin City	493,759
Lower Hutt Borough	386,685
Palmerston North Borough	278,388
Invercargill Borough	169,263
Petone Borough	165,795
Wanganui City	165,649
Napier Borough	149,645
Mount, Albert Borough	149,518
Timaru Borough	148,946
New Plymouth Borough	120,345
Mount Eden Borough	117,573
Waimairi County	110,165
Hastings Borough	103,532
One Tree Hill Road District	102,431

The list is again headed by Wellington, although its level is below those of the three years preceding. Auckland is again second with increased figures to which the new railway-station has lent substantial aid; Christchurch with increased totals occupies third place; and Dunedin, though its totals are lower than in 1927–28, is fourth. Lower Hutt, which climbed with the aid of the new railway workshops to third place in 1927–28, has fallen to fifth; and Otahuhu, which from similar causes rose to seventh place in 1927–28, has disappeared below the £100,000 minimum. Of the seventeen districts enumerated it is to be noted that three are suburban to Auckland, two to Wellington, and one to Christchurch. Apart from the four main cities and their suburbs, Palmerston North again leads, with Invercargill following, on this occasion ahead of Wanganui.

MONTHLY PERMIT STATISTICS.

In addition to the comprehensive annual returns of building permits obtained from all boroughs and town districts, monthly returns are also collected from twenty-one principal towns, with their suburban boroughs and town districts, and (in the case of Auckland) road districts. These monthly returns, while not giving a complete record for all towns in the Dominion, nevertheless cover a population of over 750,000 and afford a good index of the movement in building activity. Full details are regularly published in the Monthly Abstract of Statistics, from which the following summarized figures are taken:—

BUILDING PERMITS IN LARGER TOWNS.—APRIL, 1928, TO SEPTEMBER, 1929.

Month.	Alterations to Existing Buildings.		New Buildings.				Total Permits.
	Number.	Value.	Dwellings only.		Totals.		Number.	Value.
	Number.	Value.	Number.	Value.	Number.	Value.	Number.	Value.
1928.		£		£		£		£
April	733	135,056	328	277,538	407	382,762	1,140	517,818
May	872	123,687	382	332,445	487	573,233	1,359	696,920
June	756	101,565	383	333,802	471	858,265	1,227	959,830
July	815	110,067	416	379,142	520	803,416	1,335	913,483
August	861	141,620	377	333,465	486	565,652	1,347	707,272
September	715	150,824	386	349,072	452	549,894	1,167	700,718
October	866	94,230	429	403,318	496	599,328	1,362	693,558
November	725	86,213	395	359,189	471	539,279	1,196	625,492
December	550	70,210	245	215,349	295	398,335	845	468,545
1929
January	635	144,396	388	353,165	440	500,724	1,075	645,120
February	752	152,550	374	333,211	449	495,788	1,201	648,338
March	803	162,855	377	327,728	434	489,218	1,237	652,073
April	845	169,174	377	324,751	441	503,110	1,286	672,284
May	906	168,112	469	407,466	527	685,647	1,433	853,759
June	730	144,281	382	339,278	431	695,861	1,161	840,142
July	879	166,140	482	435,154	546	691,808	1,425	857,948
August	837	149,003	453	407,464	546	633,913	1,383	782,916
September	854	182,269	461	407,357	525	644,794	1,379	827,063

Chapter 24. SECTION XXIV.—PUBLIC FINANCE.

Table of Contents

SUBSECTION A.—REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE.

INTRODUCTORY.

AUDIT OF EXPENDITURE.

GROSS RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS.

RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS OF ACCOUNTS, 1928–29, WITH BALANCES AT 1ST APRIL, 1928, AND 31ST MARCH, 1929.

CREDITS-IN-AID.

INTEREST RECOUPMENTS TO CONSOLIDATED FUND.

OTHER TRANSFERS BETWEEN ACCOUNTS.

NET RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS.

THE CONSOLIDATED FUND.

REVENUE.

EXPENDITURE.

EXPENDITURE FROM SURPLUS MONEYS.

PUBLIC WORKS.

RECEIPTS.

EXPENDITURE.

GENERAL PURPOSES ACCOUNT.

LAND-SETTLEMENT ACCOUNTS.

LAND-SETTLEMENT ACCOUNTS—RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURE, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

TRADING ACCOUNTS.

TRADING ACCOUNTS.—REVENUE, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

TRADING ACCOUNTS.—EXPENDITURE, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

SUBSECTION B.—TAXATION.

TOTAL TAXATION.

TAXATION PER HEAD.

CUSTOMS AND EXCISE TAXATION.

MAIN HIGHWAYS TAXATION.

LAND AND INCOME TAX.

PROPOSED LAND- AND INCOME-TAX AMENDMENTS.

SCALE OF ESTATE DUTY.

SUCCESSION DUTY.

SCALE OF SUCCESSION DUTY.

NATIVE SUCCESSION DUTY.

REVENUE FROM LOCAL TAXATION, 1927–28.

SUBSECTION C.—STATE INDEBTEDNESS.

INTRODUCTORY.

HOW LOANS MAY BE RAISED.

GROSS INDEBTEDNESS.

GROSS INDEBTEDNESS, 1909–10 TO 1928–29.

GROSS PUBLIC DEBT, TOTAL AND PER HEAD, 1880–1929.

NATURE OF PUBLIC-DEBT EXPENDITURE.

ALLOCATION OF GROSS PUBLIC INDEBTEDNESS AT 31ST MARCH, 1929.

MOVEMENT IN PUBLIC DEBT DURING 1928–29.

STATE ASSETS.

STATE ASSETS AT 31ST MARCH, 1929.

DOMICILE OF DEBT.

PUBLIC DEBT: WHERE DOMICILED.

DATES OF MATURITY OF LOANS.

PRICES OF NEW ZEALAND STOCK.

QUOTATIONS, NEW ZEALAND STOCK.

INTEREST.

NET INTEREST PAYMENTS FROM CONSOLIDATED FUND, 1909–10 TO 1928–29.

AMORTIZATION OF DEBT.

INTRODUCTORY.

PUBLIC DEBT REPAYMENT.

AMORTIZATION OF FUNDED DEBT.

PUBLIC DEBT FUNDED IN TERMS OF FINANCE ACT, 1922, SECTION 8.

AMORTIZATION PAYMENTS.

NET AMORTIZATION CHARGES PAID OUT OF CONSOLIDATED FUND, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

ACCRUED SINKING FUNDS.

ACCRUED SINKING FUNDS, 1909–10 TO 1928–29.

NET INDEBTEDNESS.

NET INDEBTEDNESS, 1909–10 TO 1928–29.

PUBLIC DEBT OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

GENERAL AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT DEBT.

SUBSECTION D.—STATE ADVANCES.

INTRODUCTORY.

ADVANCES TO SETTLERS.

TABLE OF PRESCRIBED HALF-YEARLY INSTALMENTS FOR EVERY ONE HUNDRED POUNDS OF THE LOAN AT 6 1/4 PER CENT.

ADVANCES TO SETTLERS ON STOCK AND FARM IMPLEMENTS.

STATISTICAL.

ADVANCES TO SETTLERS, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

RURAL ADVANCES.

RURAL INTERMEDIATE CREDIT.

ADVANCES TO WORKERS.

ADVANCES TO WORKERS, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

ADVANCES TO WORKERS BRANCH: LIABILITIES AND ASSETS, 31ST MARCH, 1929.

ADVANCES TO LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

ADVANCES TO LOCAL AUTHORITIES, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

REPATRIATION ADVANCES.

HOUSING.

HOUSING ACCOUNT.—LIABILITIES AND ASSETS.

FRUIT-PRESERVING INDUSTRY ADVANCES.

FRUIT-PRESERVING INDUSTRY ADVANCES ACCOUNT.

FISHING INDUSTRY PROMOTION ADVANCES.

FISHING INDUSTRY PROMOTION ACCOUNT.

COLD-STORAGE ADVANCES.

COLD-STORAGE ADVANCES ACCOUNT.

SUBSECTION A.—REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE.

INTRODUCTORY.

THE legislation relating to the custody, administration, and audit of the public, moneys and securities is contained in the Public Revenues Act, 1926, which consolidated and amended the then existing enactments on the subject. All public moneys, excepting those payable to or received by the Post and Telegraph Department, the Government Insurance Department, the Public Trust Office, the Native Trust Office, the Commissioners of the Public Debt Sinking Funds, the State Advances Office, the State Fire and Accident Insurance Office, the Public Service Superannuation Fund, and the National Provident Fund, are paid into one account at the bank called the “Public Account,” and are carried to one or other of the following funds or accounts in the books of the Treasury:—

The Consolidated Fund.
The Public Works Fund.
Separate accounts or funds specially created.

The financial year commences on the 1st day of April and ends on the 31st day of March. The revenue of any financial year is the money received into the Public Account at the bank at Wellington within the year, together with that received into the Public Account at London of which advice is received in time for inclusion in the accounts for the year. The expenditure is the money paid (a) at the Treasury within the year, (b) by imprestees of which accounts are received at the Treasury within the year, and (c) at London of which advice is received in time for inclusion.

At the end of each financial year the Appropriation Act of that year lapses, but the Minister of Finance is authorized for a period of three months from the commencement of the next financial year to pay money in respect of any service, provided that the amount does not exceed the unexpended balance voted for that purpose in the previous year, together with an amount equal to one-fourth of such vote.

The usual practice is for Parliament to meet at the end of June in each year, and to vote supplies from month to month until the estimated expenditure for the year has been approved and the annual Appropriation Act is passed.

AUDIT OF EXPENDITURE.

In the audit of expenditure both the pre-audit and post-audit systems are in operation. Pre-audit is applied to vouchers in respect of payments on account of salaries of new appointees, temporary officers, and officers claiming more than one month's salary at any time; interest, loan transactions, and return of deposits; unauthorized expenditure; transfers between Government accounts; or expenditure chargeable against the accounts of local bodies. Post-audit is applied to all other payments.

Vouchers must be certified as correct by the proper officer, and forwarded by him to the Head of his Department for approval. Vouchers subject to pre-audit are then forwarded to the Audit Office, and on being found correct are sent on to the Treasury to be entered on requisitions for payment. Vouchers subject to post-audit are transmitted by the head of the Department direct to the Treasury. Payment is made by the Treasury, and the claim is afterwards submitted for audit.

GROSS RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS.

The full list of accounts included in the public accounts, with the gross receipts and payments of each, and the balances at the beginning and end of the financial year 1928–29, are given in the statement which follows. The State Advances Account, covering State advances to settlers, workers, and local authorities, together with several minor accounts dealing with advances for various purposes, which are administered directly by the State Advances Board, are not included; nor are the other funds mentioned in the first paragraph on the preceding page, including those of the Government Insurance Department, the State Fire and Accident Insurance Department, the Public Trust Office, and the Post and Telegraph Department, which are administered by the Departments concerned. Reference to the working of these Departments will be found elsewhere in this book.

RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS OF ACCOUNTS, 1928–29, WITH BALANCES AT 1ST APRIL, 1928, AND 31ST MARCH, 1929.

Account.	Balance 1st April, 1928.	Receipts.	Payments.	Balance 31st March, 1929.
Account.	Balance 1st April, 1928.	Receipts.	Payments.	In Cash and Imprests.	In Investments.
	£	£	£	£	£
Consolidated Fund	3,302,232	27,849,679	28,698,370	2,451,260	2,281
Conversion	31	..	31	..	..
Nauru and Ocean Islands	3,445	36,192	36,354	83	3,200
Nauru and Ocean Islands Sinking Fund	107	9,915	..	22	10,000
Local Bodies	8,457	32,330	33,438	7,349	..
Deposits	275,995	1,626,175	1,271,621	55,161	575,388
Public Works (General Purposes)	1,328,804	7,317,793	4,757,513	2,477,759	1,411,325
Waihou and Ohinemuri Rivers Improvement	12,078	80,024	80,196	11,906	..
Electric Supply	72,701	2,666,152	2,041,765	497,088	200,000
Electric Supply Sinking Fund	75,716	40,138	..	564	115,290
Advances to other Governments	46,566	289,184	320,476	15,274	..
Bank of New Zealand Shares	1,800,781	300,391	241,797	..	1,859,375
Cheviot Estate	191,390	25,833	6,537	9,006	201,680
Deteriorated Lands	15,413	3,298	5,386	13,325	..
Discharged Soldiers Settlement	635,377	1,959,806	2,174,663	121,485	299,035
Discharged Soldiers Settlement Loans Act 1920 Depreciation Fund	417,116	68,640	1,080	27,151	457,525
Education Loans	57,715	379,425	398,535	38,605	..
General Purposes Relief	29,537	5,031	9,672	9,896	15,000
Hauraki Plains Settlement	10,396	81,264	62,378	8,282	21,000
Howard Estate	..	213	213	..	..
Hunter Soldiers Assistance Trust	4,479	966	152	1,243	4,050
Hutt Valley Land Settlement	23,833	75,283	98,500	616	..
Kauri-gum Industry	72	5,677	2,413	3,336	..
Land Assurance	82,401	6,747	3,314	17,234	68,600
Land for Settlements	186,602	873,369	763,157	34,264	262,550
Land for Settlements (Opening up Crown Lands)	8,630	68	8,698	..	..
Land for Settlements (Discharged Soldiers Settlement)	51,890	88,636	140,522	4	..
Loans Redemption	32,013	35,775,681	35,742,398	45,415	19,881
Main Highways Account: Revenue	622,886	1,280,215	1,381,497	213,704	307,900
Main Highways Account: Construction	72,571	906,129	970,610	8,090	..
Mining Advances	14,616	1,918	1,984	14,550	..
National Endowment	135,619	139,395	150,128	50,836	74,050
National Endowment Trust	33,234	6,795	1,301	2,438	36,290
Native Land Settlement	72,319	327,352	386,645	3,026	10,000
Public Debt Repayment	188	1,047,009	1,041,871	5,326	..
Railways Improvement	676,770	2,534,773	2,036,727	1,124,116	50,700
Rangitaiki Land Drainage	5,808	31,426	30,822	6,412	..
	£	£	£	£	£
Remittances from London	..	450,000	450,000	..	..
Remittances to London	..	4,625,000	4,625,000	..	..
Reserve Fund	2,000,000	..	..	..	2,000,000
Samoan Loan	..	21,000	21,000	..	..
State Advances Loan	413	4,423,282	3,241,819	1,181,876	..
State Coal-mines	36,398	298,342	296,268	5,672	32,800
State Coal-mines Sinking Fund	62,338	7,516	65,000	4,604	250
State Forests	37,784	307,676	328,213	17,247	..
Swamp Land Drainage	19,263	55,081	65,672	8,672	..
Westport Harbour	57,449	63,933	102,034	5,848	13,500
Working Railways	642,430	10,025,189	9,982,383	340,236	345,000
Public Account Cash Balance Investment	..	..	..	Dr. 6,280,000	6,280,000
Totals	13,163,863	106,149,941	102,078,153	2,558,981	14,676,670

The gross receipts of all accounts for the financial year 1928–29 are shown by the foregoing statement to have been £106,149,941, and the gross payments £102,078,153. From figures given farther on it will be seen that, after making allowances for transfers between accounts and other items, the actual receipts and payments come to a much lower figure.

CREDITS-IN-AID.

Section 22 of the Appropriation Act, 1923, introduced for accounting purposes an alteration in the treatment of moneys received from the sale of stores or material, or as payment for services, &c. Formerly such moneys were credited to the relative vote, and were deemed to be appropriated to the respective services in addition to the votes for such services. In compiling estimates of expenditure the sums estimated to be received to the credit of each service were utilized to abate the total estimated expenditure of such service.

The present system, which came into force from the 1st April, 1924, is indicated by the following subsections of section 51 of the Public Revenues Act, 1926.

Moneys received by the Crown from the sale of stores or material, or as payment for services, or as recoveries in respect of expenditure, or as fees, or in respect of interdepartmental charges and adjustments of accounts, may, as the Treasury from time to time determines, be credited to the relative vote, and shall be known as credits-in-aid of that vote.
In preparing the estimates of the expenditure for any year the sums estimated to be received in that year as credits-in-aid of any vote shall be deducted from the total estimated expenditure for that vote for the year, and the amounts so estimated to be received as credits-in-aid shall be appropriated in the Appropriation Act of the year for the services of such vote:

Provided that nothing herein shall be deemed to authorize the expenditure from any vote of any moneys in excess of the amounts appropriated for the services of that vote, otherwise than in respect of credits-in-aid, and the amount actually received in that year as credits-in-aid of that vote.

Any surplus in respect of any vote arising either from an excess of the moneys actually received as credits-in-aid over the amount estimated to be so received, or by way of reduction of expenditure, may, with the approval of the Treasury, be temporarily applied for the purposes of that vote, either in making up any deficiency in the amounts actually received as credits-in-aid, or in defraying expenditure which is not adequately provided for by appropriation.

The effect of the change is that, by comparison with former years, both receipts and payments, as shown in the public accounts from 1924–25 onwards, are increased by the amount of credits-in-aid.

The following statement of the amounts involved in each year since 1924–25 gives a good indication as to the extent to which comparisons with earlier years are disturbed:—

Year.	£
1924–25	5,857,214
1925–26	5,393,157
1926–27	6,058,876
1927–28	6,597,886
1928–29	6,524,736

The total for 1928–29 was distributed over the various accounts as follows:—

Account or Fund.	£
Consolidated	4,050,004
Public Works	632,376
Waihou and Ohinemuri Rivers Improvement	6,636
Electric Supply	46,404
Discharged Soldiers Settlement	35,114
Education Loans	23,112
Hauraki Plains Settlement	20,589
Kauri-gum Industry	490
Land for Settlements	1,433
Land for Settlements (Discharged Soldiers Settlement)	789
Main Highways Account: Revenue	41,522
Main Highways Account: Construction	34,114
Native Land Settlement	1,526
Railways Improvement	55,278
Rangitaiki Land Drainage	4,227
State Coal-mines	2,299
State Forests	2,907
Swamp Land Drainage	1,001
Westport Harbour	1,066
Working Railways	1,563,849
Total	£6,524,736

Apart from interest recoveries of the Consolidated Fund (part from various accounts included in the public accounts, part from other accounts, and the small residue from other sources), the great bulk of the credits-in-aid and credits-in-reduction (probably over 95 per cent.) represent transfers between accounts or between different items in the same account.

INTEREST RECOUPMENTS TO CONSOLIDATED FUND.

Included in the credits shown under the preceding heading was an amount of £2,664,348, representing recoveries by the Consolidated Fund in respect of interest payments on the public debt. Of this amount, £1,234,568 was recovered from other accounts or funds included in the public accounts, the details being:—

Account or Fund.	Interest recouped to Consolidated Fund.
	£
Nauru and Ocean Islands	26,106
Waihou and Ohinemuri Rivers Improvement	6,250
Electric Supply	391,479
Cheviot Estate	5,632
Deteriorated Lands	600
Discharged Soldiers Settlement	295,190
General Purposes Relief Advances	1,800
Hauraki Plains Settlement	14,100
Land for Settlements	339,369
Land for Settlements (Discharged Soldiers Settlement)	79,800
Mining Advances	1,880
Rangitaiki Land Drainage	3,050
State Coal-mines	9,102
State Forests	40,895
Swamp Land Drainage	1,660
Westport Harbour	17,655
Total	£1,234,568

Various small amounts (£1,618 in all) were also recouped to the Consolidated Fund in respect of management charges of consolidated stock, and stamp duty on transfers of consolidated stock; £4,118 was recovered from the Westport Harbour Account towards sinking-fund payment; and £514 from the Land for Settlements Account towards the reduction of the funded debt. These items are all treated as credits of the Consolidated Fund.

Included in the receipts of the Consolidated Fund, other than credits, is the sum of £2,331,335 interest on railway capital liability, which was recovered from the Working Railways Account; interest on the Public Debt Redemption Fund includes £415,860 paid by the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Account in respect of interest on surplus moneys transferred to that account and now forming part of the Public Debt Redemption Fund; and the item “Interest on Public Moneys” includes £110,805 from the Land for Settlements Account as interest on capital moneys received from the sale of Crown lands, and £5,879 from the Westport Harbour Account and £2,666 from the State Forests Account by way of interest on amounts transferred to those accounts from the Consolidated Fund.

Other interest transactions between or within accounts are represented by interest payments from the Consolidated Fund in respect of balances of accounts invested in Government securities. On this account approximately £155,000 was paid to other accounts during 1928–29, while £199,529 paid out by the Consolidated Fund as interest on securities in which its own and certain other balances were invested was included as receipts under the heading of “Interest on Public Moneys.”

In addition to the foregoing, £1,841 was transferred between accounts by way of interest on temporary transfers of moneys under section 40 of the Public Revenues Act, 1926.

OTHER TRANSFERS BETWEEN ACCOUNTS.

Interest recoupments and items treated as credits-in-aid or credits-in-reduction by no means cover the full amount of transfers between accounts. Owing to transfers not always being distinguished in the published accounts, it is not possible to arrive at the actual total involved, but a close approximation can be ascertained, and, apart from the classes referred to, transfers between accounts during 1928–29 are found to have aggregated approximately £4,400,000.

One of the principal items involved was the transfer of £1,046,928 from the Consolidated Fund to the Public Debt Repayment Account in accordance with the present debt-reduction scheme. Losses on isolated sections and branch lines of railway involved the payment of £496,578 from the Consolidated Fund to the Working Railways Account. The sum of £200,000 was transferred from the Public Works Fund to the Main Highways Account Construction Fund, while the Revenue Fund of the latter account transferred £392,008 to the Construction Fund and £59,948 to the Loans Redemption Account, and received £1,206,760 (mainly special taxation receipts) from the Consolidated Fund. Other transfers from the Consolidated Fund included £50,000 transferred to the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Loans Act 1920 Depreciation Fund Account, and £58,594 paid over to the Bank of New Zealand Shares Account in respect of instalments payable for the purchase of C long-term mortgage shares. The Consolidated Fund, on the other hand, benefited to the extent of £241,797 dividends received in the first place by the Bank of New Zealand Shares Account, and also received several small items from other accounts. The sum of £218,629 was received by the Land for Settlements Account from the Native Land Settlement Account and £98,500 from the Hutt Valley Lands Settlement Account.

Transfers between different items of an account are not specifically shown, but are usually treated as credits-in-aid. Departmental receipts of the Printing and Stationery Department, practically the whole of which represents payments from other Departments, rank, however, as ordinary receipts of the Consolidated Fund. The amount for 1928–29 was £241,742, and probably £230,000 of this may be treated as interdepartmental transfers, bringing the approximate total of transfers, other than interest or credits, to the £4,400,000 shown above.

In addition to the transfers shown, temporary transfers between accounts and repayments thereof (shown only in the statement for the borrowing account, in accordance with section 16 of the Finance Act, No. 2, 1927) swelled the total receipts by £291,000 and the total payments by £346,000.

NET RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS.

Summarizing now the various classes so far dealt with, the totals by which receipts and payments for the year are swelled are found to be approximately £14,440,000 and £14,490,000, made up as follows:—

Credits—	£
Interest and amortization	2,668,980
Other	3,855,756
Interest recoupments, other than credits-in-reduction	3,222,915
Other transfers	4,400,000
Total, excluding temporary transfers	£14,147,651
Temporary transfers—	£
Receipts	291,000
Payments	346,000
Totals of all credits and transfers—
Receipts	£14,438,651
Payments	£14,493,651

In several accounts both receipts and expenditure are increased by the inclusion of certain per contra items. Of these the most important are those associated with the renewal of loan-moneys, no less a sum than £34,622,590 coming within this category in the receipts and expenditure of the Loans Redemption Account in 1928–29. The elimination of this amount and of certain transfers and adjustments reduces the receipts of the Loans Redemption Account from £35,775,681 to £1,093,112, and the expenditure from £35,742,398 to £1,110,728. The Remittances from and to London Accounts, covering the withdrawal of money in London or Wellington for remittance to or from New Zealand, account for items totalling £5,075,000 on both the receipts and payments sides. The Consolidated Fund figures are swelled by £200,000 in respect of the raising of temporary loans and their subsequent redemption during the year, and other small items bring the total of per contra items, which do not represent receipts and payments, to £39,920,365. In addition, book adjustments in respect of allocations in previous years affect receipts and expenditure to the extent of £7,927 and £9,080 respectively.

Further reductions have still to be made from the gross total before a figure approximately representing true Governmental revenue and expenditure (apart from State advances and other activities not included in the public accounts) can be arrived at. The Accounts of Local Bodies merely record the receipt of moneys collected by the Government on behalf of local bodies and the payment of these to the local bodies concerned. Similarly, the Deposits Account represents only lodgments and withdrawals of non-Government moneys. The Advances to other Governments Account covers payments made on behalf of other Governments and recoveries from those Governments. These three accounts do not in any way represent Government revenue or expenditure, and their transactions should be omitted from the net totals.

In a somewhat similar category come the Samoan Loan Suspense Account and the State Advances Loan Account. The former merely covers the loans raised or amounts set aside by the New Zealand Government for the purpose of relending or advancing to the Samoan Administration; while the latter covers the raising of moneys for advances to settlers, workers, and local authorities, and the transfer of these to the State Advances Office, whose operations are, as previously stated, outside the public accounts. These two accounts are also omitted in arriving at the net totals.

The total deductions to be made from gross receipts and payments are thus in the neighbourhood of 60 millions on each side, viz.:—

	Receipts.	Payments.
* This excludes £29,245 transferred to Consolidated Fund.
	£	£
Transfers between accounts	14,438,651	14,493,651
Per contra items	39,920,365	39,920,365
Adjustments	7,927	9,080
Accounts of Local Bodies	32,330	33,438
Deposits Account	1,626,175	1,271,621
Advances to other Governments Account	289,184	291,231^*
Samoan Loan Suspense Account	21,000	21,000
State Advances Loan Account	4,423,282	3,241,819
	£60,758,914	£59,282,205

The deduction of these totals from the gross receipts and payments leaves net totals of approximately £45,500,000 for receipts and £43,000,000 for payments, as compared with £41,500,000 for both receipts and payments in 1927–28. The totals would be still further reduced if only the net increase in loan-money were taken into account as a receipt, and both receipts, and payments diminished by the amount of loan-money redeemed (£3,214,374 in 1928–29).

THE CONSOLIDATED FUND.

The Ordinary Revenue Account of the Consolidated Fund covers the ordinary revenue and expenditure of the General Government—i.e., apart from capital items, commercial and special undertakings, advances, &c. Until recent years its operations afforded an excellent comparison of State revenue and expenditure from year to year, but changes in system during the last few years have largely destroyed the comparability of the figures.

The most noteworthy of these changes came into operation from the beginning of the financial year 1925–26, when railway revenue and expenditure were removed from the Consolidated Fund and placed in a separate account called the Working Railways Account. In place of railway revenue, the Consolidated Fund received in each of the four years, 1925–26 to 1928–29, a transfer from the Working Railways Account of an amount to cover interest on railway capital liability, while in its turn it paid to the Working Railways Account an amount to make good the losses on isolated sections and branch lines. The Finance Act, 1929, reduces by £8,100,000 the amount on which interest is to be met by the Working Railways Account, and at the same time discontinues the subsidy on isolated sections and branch lines.

Somewhat similar action was taken in regard to Post and Telegraph revenue and expenditure from the beginning of 1928–29, when these were placed quite outside of the orbit of the public accounts. In place of the revenue of the Post and Telegraph Department, the Consolidated Fund now receives merely an amount to cover interest on capital liability, while there is now no Consolidated Fund item of expenditure corresponding to that of Post and Telegraph Department in 1927–28 and previous years. In any comparison of Consolidated Fund revenue and expenditure over a series of years it is desirable to omit railways and postal items altogether.

These, however, do not represent the full extent to which comparability has been affected, as since the 5th December, 1927, both revenue and expenditure of the Consolidated Fund have been augmented through taxation receipts for main-highways purposes being paid into the Consolidated Fund, from which the great bulk is transferred to the Revenue Account of the Main Highways Fund. Special revenue for and expenditure on main highways constitute quite a recent innovation, necessitated by roading requirements consequent on the extension of motor transport, and it is desirable that both revenue and expenditure should be shown inclusive of motor-taxation receipts and their disposal, more particularly as these are now permanently added to Consolidated Fund transactions. The most satisfactory comparison is therefore got by increasing both revenue and expenditure since 1922–23 (when the first of this taxation was imposed) by an amount equal to taxation receipts paid direct into the Main Highways Account.

Revenue and expenditure totals from 1925–26 onwards are also affected somewhat by the operations of the Repayment of the Public Debt Act, 1925 (referred to in Subsection C), under which the Consolidated Fund is credited with the earnings of the Public Debt Redemption Fund, which are applied towards meeting the charge against the Consolidated Fund in respect of amounts sot aside to cover redemptions. The greater part of the interest on the Public Debt Redemption Fund was, however, in years prior to 1925–26 already being credited to the Consolidated Fund by way of interest on public moneys, while payments to the Public Debt Repayment Account merely take the place of, and do not greatly exceed, payments to sinking fund under the former system. No allowance is therefore made in the “adjusted” column of the following table for what simply amounts to a change in the system of annual debt charges. The figures in the columns referred to, which of course give the best comparison, are arrived at by deducting railway and postal items from the recorded totals during the ten years, and adding to both revenue and expenditure for 1922–23 to 1927–28 taxation receipts paid direct into the Main Highways Account Revenue Fund. Both recorded and adjusted figures are exclusive of credits.

Year ended 31st March,	Revenue.		Expenditure.		Surplus (recorded).
Year ended 31st March,	Recorded.	Adjusted.^*	Recorded.	Adjusted.^*	Surplus (recorded).
* See letterpress. † Deficit.
	£	£	£	£	£
1920	26,081,340	18,278,760	23,781,524	17,534,065	2,299,816
1921	34,260,961	24,863,937	28,068,730	19,269,359	6,192,231
1922	28,127,007	18,695,291	28,466,838	19,544,916	−339,831^†
1923	27,579,443	18,275,641	26,263,760	19,326,128	1,315,683
1924	27,960,370	18,448,229	26,148,005	19,000,480	1,812,365
1925	28,643,000	19,208,315	27,399,200	19,726,484	1,243,800
1926	24,725,762	20,010,908	23,570,083	21,094,654	1,155,679
1927	24,943,107	20,211,388	24,355,965	22,121,731	587,142
1928	25,123,980	19,966,244	24,944,905	22,459,579	179,075
1929	23,599,676	20,840,341	24,176,928	23,680,350	−577,252^†

The adjusted figures give a good comparison of revenue and expenditure respectively over the period, showing an increase of £2,500,000 in revenue and of over £6,000,000 in expenditure. The adjusted figures, it should be noted, are comparable vertically only, and not horizontally, the amount deducted from the revenue figures being in each year considerably higher than that deducted from the expenditure side. The deficit recorded for the year 1928–29 is the second since 1887–88.

REVENUE.

The revenue proper of the Consolidated Fund is now derived principally from taxation and from interest on the Public Debt Redemption Fund and other public moneys, with transfers from the Working Railways Account and from the Post and Telegraph Department in respect of interest on capital liability. As shown earlier in this subsection, interest recoupments are also made from various trading and lending accounts, but these rank as credits.

Details of revenue during the last three years are given in the table which follows. The items of revenue are not grouped in the same form as is followed in the public accounts, on account of the desirability of showing all taxation items together.

Source.	Year ended 31st March,
Source.	1927.	1928.	1929.
* Paid direct to Main Highways Account prior to 5th December, 1927. † Not now treated as revenue of Consolidated Fund.
From taxation—	£	£	£
Customs revenue	8,252,575	7,942,589	7,954,252
Motor-vehicles—Duties, licenses, &c.^*	..	369,118	1,243,577
Excise duty	621,813	609,624	611,484
Land-tax	1,229,067	1,154,479	1,140,324
Income-tax	3,422,216	3,273,729	3,310,877
Death duties	1,690,374	1,899,370	1,944,514
Duty on instruments	490,527	428,805	439,452
Bank-note duty	201,913	195,301	191,221
Totalizator revenue	583,421	567,890	541,179
Amusements-tax	63,555	63,165	60,586
Other taxation	344,095	344,684	394,567
Total taxation	16,899,556	16,848,754	17,832,033
Post and telegraph	3,226,558	3,323,260	^†
Registration and other fees	199,141	200,259	198,267
Marine	110,834	112,502	118,250
Interest on public moneys	601,220	698,057	760,035
Interest on railway capital liability	2,043,433	2,130,867	2,331,335
Interest on post and telegraph capital liability	..	..	428,000
Interest on Public Debt Redemption Fund	863,942	878,408	995,202
Rents of buildings	26,816	32,178	25,284
Tourist and health resorts	63,102	66,964	72,895
Territorial revenue	202,186	200,915	198,803
Departmental receipts	576,200	560,803	525,063
Miscellaneous (including recoveries on account of expenditure of previous years)	130,116	71,013	114,509
Totals	24,943,107	25,123,980	23,599,87

EXPENDITURE.

Expenditure from the Consolidated Fund is divided into two main groups, according to whether it is made under permanent or under annual appropriation. The latter heading covers the expenditure under the various departmental votes, while the former covers interest on and amortization of the public debt, and expenditure under special Acts including that on pensions, superannuation, subsidies to local authorities, disposal of special taxation for main highways, and (from 1925–26 to 1928–29) a payment to the Working Railways Account to cover losses on isolated sections and branch lines.

Expenditure under the main heads of permanent appropriations and each head of annual appropriations during the last three years was as follows (the figures are net—i.e., exclusive of credits):—

Head.	Year ended 31st March,
Head.	1927.	1928.	1929.
* Not now treated as expenditure of Consolidated Fund.
Permanent appropriations—	£	£	£
Civil List	31,054	30,289	30,167
Interest on public debt	8,450,794	8,397,074	8,675,220
Amortization of debt	1,295,138	1,360,528	1,435,521
Pensions, including family allowances	2,458,401	2,548,927	2,657,534
Subsidies to superannuation funds and National Provident Fund	189,990	197,781	204,716
Subsidies to Hospital Boards	610,498	683,149	673,689
Subsidies to local bodies on rates	212,018	215,679	216,065
For education purposes	115,499	127,289	137,233
Losses on isolated railway sections and branch lines	429,068	484,659	496,578
Transfers to Main Highways Account Revenue Fund	..	356,063	1,171,760
Motor-spirits tax paid to borough councils	..	..	54,953
Contribution towards Singapore Naval Base	..	125,000	125,000
Other	472,485	352,940	366,161
Totals, permanent appropriations	14,264,945	14,879,378	16,244,597
Annual appropriations—
Legislative Departments	89,192	97,637	95,191
Prime Minister's Department	2,467	12,600	13,084
Treasury Department	34,586	37,865	37,494
Land and Income Tax Department	55,461	58,883	61,099
Stamp Duties Department	101,356	102,291	96,580
National Provident and Friendly Societies Department	23,789	24,792	25,047
Post and Telegraph working-expenses	2,343,438	2,297,058	^*
Public buildings	113,244	84,710	87,073
Government and other domains	6,859	6,008	5,299
Maintenance and repairs to roads	100,211	111,701	85,436
Maintenance of irrigation works, &c.	8,087	17,264	14,138
Native Department	28,404	29,284	31,677
Department of External Affairs	30,982	35,466	38,433
Cook Islands	38,056	49,953	34,822
Department of Industries and Commerce	48,780	33,318	31,419
Department of Justice	135,482	132,645	132,623
Prisons Department	77,851	94,220	89,456
Crown Law Office	5,693	5,381	5,934
Police Department	410,506	417,975	444,970
Pensions Department	173,204	169,278	165,912
Mines Department	44,784	33,297	32,424
Department of Internal Affairs	402,854	349,717	359,966
Audit Department	25,806	26,917	24,790
Public Service Commissioner's Office	7,025	6,362	7,062
Printing and Stationery Department	233,204	226,297	220,796
Mental Hospitals Department	275,125	274,818	303,300
Department of Health	251,001	246,644	239,757
Naval Defence	527,023	486,830	463,496
Defence Department	493,274	481,759	464,595
Customs Department	170,495	175,023	117,390
Marine Department	125,817	119,078	110,212
Department of Labour	55,726	56,480	60,893
Department of Lands and Survey	169,363	186,522	181,748
Scenery Preservation	3,789	6,577	14,139
Valuation Department	48,007	51,610	53,600
Electoral Department	10,299	9,727	89,773
Department of Agriculture	322,070	365,610	451,926
Department of Tourist and Health Resorts	76,378	76,871	82,987
Education Department	2,979,597	2,999,615	3,092,296
Department of Scientific and Industrial Research	3,047	44,823	57,535
Services not provided for	27,914	15,943	7,959
Emergency Expenditure Account	10,774	6,677	..
Totals, annual appropriations	10,091,020	10,065,526	7,932,331
Grand totals	24,355,965	24,944,904	24,176,928

The amounts shown for superannuation subsidies do not represent the full total of net payments for this purpose, the sum of £25,000 for teachers' superannuation subsidy being included in each of the three years under the heading of “Education Department” in the annual appropriations.

In addition to the not amounts shown as expended on education and pensions out of permanent and annual appropriations chargeable on the Consolidated Fund, the net revenue of the National Endowment Account is divided between education and old-age pensions in proportions of 70 per cent. and 30 per cent. respectively. Six-sevenths of the amount set aside for education is paid into the Consolidated Fund, where it is treated as a credit. The remaining seventh is paid direct to the Universities, and the portion devoted to old-age pensions is also paid direct, without ranking as a credit of the Consolidated Fund.

Another credit of the Education vote is represented by revenue from educational reserves, while part of the receipts from gold-duty is credited against miners' pensions. Both credits are included in the gross expenditure but not in the net. The inclusion of expenditure from these items and from national endowment net revenue is desirable, to give a proper idea of expenditure on education and pensions, the figures for the last three years being—

	Year ended 31st March,
	1927.	1928.	1929.
* Excluding school buildings and teachers' superannuation.
National Endowment net revenue applied to—	£	£	£
Education	88,545	90,518	94,933
Old-age pensions	37,948	38,794	40,686
Educational reserves net revenue applied to education	119,073	123,247	127,444
Gold duty applied to miners' pensions	2,482	2,614	2,377
Total expenditure on—
Education^*	3,277,714	3,315,669	3,426,906
Pensions	2,672,035	2,759,613	2,866,509

In addition to transfers to the Main Highways Account under permanent appropriation, an amount of £35,000 has been transferred in each of the three years under the annual vote “Maintenance and Repairs to Roads,” while in 1926–27 the sum of £48,100 was paid from the vote “Customs Department” in respect of tire-tax on tires attached to imported cars.

After allowing for recoveries from trading and other accounts, public-debt charges absorbed 42.84 per cent. of net revenue in 1928–29. If, however, the receipts in respect of interest on railway and post and telegraph capital liability be treated similarly to other interest recoveries, the proportion reduces to 35.27 per cent.

A system of Departmental balance-sheets and statements of accounts was inaugurated on commercial lines in 1920 to show the true cost of the various Departments and services, as distinct from payments out of appropriations on the basis referred to at the beginning of this subsection. These balance-sheets and statements of accounts are published annually in Parliamentary Paper B.–1 [Part IV], to which the reader is referred for details of income, expenditure, &c., in respect of the various Departments and services.

The inclusion of revenue credits (£4,021,504) brings the gross revenue and expenditure of the Consolidated Fund for 1928–29 to £27,621,180 and £28,198,432 respectively. If to the gross revenue be added a balance of £3,302,231, brought forward from the previous year, the total receipts become £30,923,411. In addition to the gross expenditure shown (£28,198,432), £58,594 was transferred to the Bank of New Zealand Shares Account, £110,100 was advanced to the Rural Intermediate Credit Board and £33,000 to the Native Trustee, £68,566 was paid to local authorities to subsidize amounts expended in relief of unemployment, £1,128 was expended by way of charges and expenses of redemptions, and £50 was utilized to redeem debentures. The deduction of the resultant total (£28,469,870) from the total receipts (£30,923,411) leaves a balance of £2,453,541, which has been carried forward to the current year.

EXPENDITURE FROM SURPLUS MONEYS.

Apart from the expenditure properly chargeable to the year's operations, payments out of surplus revenues of the Consolidated Fund are made from time to time for capital or debt-reduction purposes. Prior to 1920–21 such payments out of surplus were confined almost entirely to transfers to the Public Works Fund. Since that year, however, while £3,250,000 has been transferred to the Public Works Fund (making a total of £14,555,000 since 1891), no less a sum than £23,000,000 has been utilized for other capital purposes or the reduction of debt. The sum of £13,500,000 was transferred to the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Account in 1920–21 and 1921–22, and a further £200,000 was paid over to the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Loans Act 1920 Depreciation Fund Account before the annual payment of £50,000 came to be treated as a permanent appropriation in 1924–25. The sum of £100,000 was transferred to the Education Loans Account in 1923–24, and £984,375 was transferred to the Bank of New Zealand Shares Account in 1926–27 and the two following years. In 1920–21 £1,200,000 was transferred to the Reserve Fund Account, thereby increasing the reserve fund to £2,000,000, and two years later a further £800,000 was utilized to redeem the original reserve fund securities. Other payments towards debt-reduction purposes have been made as follows:—

Year ended 31st March,	Amount, £
1922	560,011
1923	2,359,960
1924	1,344,741
1925	1,052,130
1926	566,161
1927	588,868
1928	95,979
1929	50

These amounts are additional to those paid by way of permanent appropriation towards the repayment of the public debt under the Act of 1925 and the reduction of the funded debt. Some of the items are recovered from other accounts, and all reparation-moneys paid into the Consolidated Fund (these are now paid direct to the Loans Redemption Account) have been used for debt-reduction purposes and are included in the figures given.

Other payments out of surplus moneys of the Consolidated Fund include subsidies of £75,106 in 1927–28 and £68,566 in 1928–29 in respect of amounts expended by local authorities in the relief of unemployment. In addition there have been advances of £45,000 to the State Forests Account (1927–28), £33,000 to the Native Trustee (1928–29), and £110,100 to the Rural Intermediate Credit Board (1928–29).

PUBLIC WORKS.

For the prosecution of the policy of public works inaugurated in 1870 there was set up a Public Works Fund. For many years all expenditure on public works was borne by this fund, but in course of time separate subsidiary accounts were established to deal with certain special activities. These subsidiary accounts have in general either become merged in the General Purposes Account of the Public Works Fund or have ceased to exist on the completion of the work for which they were called into existence. The following list shows the subsidiary accounts of the Public Works Fund that have been set up, with the year of commencement and of termination:—

Subsidiary Account.	Year of Commencement.	Year of Termination.	How terminated.
Native Land Purchase	1892–93	1897–98	Merged in General Purposes Account.
Lands Improvement	1894–95	1897–98	Merged in General Purposes Account.
Paeroa—Waihi Railway	1903–04	1905–06	Moneys expended.
Hutt Railway and Road Improvement	1904–05	1916–17	Balance transferred to Railways Improvement Authorization Act 1914 Account.
Railways Improvement Authorization Act (Railways Improvement from 1909–10)	1904–05	1916–17	Balance transferred to Railways Improvement Authorization Act 1914 Account.
Waikaka Branch Railway	1907–08	1908–09	Moneys expended.
Wellington — Manawatu Railway Purchase	1908–09	1909–10	Moneys expended.
Waihou and Ohinemuri Rivers Improvement	1910–11	..	Still in existence.
Aid to Water - power Works	1912–13	1917–18	Balance transferred to Electric Supply Account.
Irrigation and Watersupply	1912–13	1916–17	Moneys expended.
Railways Improvement Authorization Act, 1914	1915–16	..	Still in existence (as a separate account).
Telegraph Extension	1916–17	1917–18	Moneys expended.
Electric Supply	1917–18	..	Still in existence.

The Railways Improvement Authorization Act 1914 Account, which came into operation as a subsidiary account of the Public Works Fund in 1915–16, became a separate account in 1923–24. Other separate accounts which now deal with public works are: The Education Loans Account, which since 1920–21 has removed from the General Purposes Account of the Public Works Fund the expenditure in connection with the erection, &c., of buildings and the acquisition of land for educational purposes; and the Construction Fund of the Main Highways Account, which was established in 1923–24 to provide finance for the construction, reconstruction, &c., of main highways. At the same time a Main Highways Account Revenue Fund was also set up to cover the maintenance, repair, &c., of main highways, the activities covered by the Revenue Fund being analogous rather to those of the Consolidated Fund than to those of the Public Works Fund.

In addition to the accounts mentioned as covering the construction of public works, there are three accounts (Hauraki Plains Settlement, Rangitaiki Land Drainage, and Swamp Drainage) which also properly rank as Public Works Accounts, although their operations are under the control of the Lands Department. These three accounts have all been set up for similar purposes—viz., the drainage, reclamation, and roading of low-lying or swampy land for the purpose of rendering it fit for settlement.

The list of accounts dealing with the construction of public works is thus—

Public Works Fund—
- General Purposes Account.
- Waihou and Ohinemuri Rivers Improvement Account.
- Electric Supply Account.
Education Loans Account.
Main Highways Account Construction Fund.
Railways Improvement Authorization Act 1914 Account.
Hauraki Plains Settlement Account.
Rangitaiki Land Drainage Account.
Swamp Land Drainage Account.

RECEIPTS.

A summary of the receipts of the accounts covering the construction of public works is given below for the last five years. The figures are exclusive of credits, and transfers between the accounts considered are omitted, as are also temporary transfers from other accounts.

Year ended 31st March,	Loan-money.	Transfers from Consolidated Fund or other Accounts,	Recoveries on account of Expenditure of Previous Years.	Interest on Investments.	Sales of Electrical Energy.	Other and Unspecified.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1925	4,336,329	1,060,868	40,795	46,272	135,587	24,394	5,644,245
1926	6,842,565	500,083	28,476	11,918	234,439	31,842	7,649,323
1927	7,095,446	1,133	149,101	16,631	339,994	35,288	7,637,593
1928	6,986,750	551,304	40,098	22,025	367,947	53,086	8,021,210
1929	11,598,247	396,743	123,279	17,801	413,988	39,666	12,589,724

The figures for transfers from other accounts include each year a small contribution from the Consolidated Fund to the Waihou and Ohinemuri Rivers Improvement Account. The total for 1924–25 includes a sum of £58,633 transferred from the Consolidated Fund to the Rangitaiki Land Drainage Account to cover the remission of rates to ratepayers for the three years ended 31st March, 1924; while a transfer of £1,745 was made in 1928–29 to the Electric Supply Account in respect of expenditure incurred in the purchase of lands subsequently vested in the Wellington City Council. Transfers of surplus moneys from the Consolidated Fund to the General Purposes Account of the Public Works Fund accounted for £1,000,000 in 1924–25, £500,000 in 1925–26, and £250,000 in 1927–28. The totals for 1927–28 and 1928–29 include amounts of £300,000 and £392,008 transferred from the Revenue Fund of the Main Highways Account to the Construction Fund.

Of the total of £39,666 under the head of “Other and Unspecified” for 1928–29 £1,974 was shown to be from sales of land, and £2,246 from the sale, letting, or other disposal of land. Rents and royalties, so shown, totalled £8,126, and rates £13,906; while the bulk of the miscellaneous receipts of the Rangitaiki Land Drainage Account (£137) and the Swamp Land Drainage Account (£259) is in respect of rents, royalties, &c. A considerable proportion of the miscellaneous receipts of the Electric Supply Account (£6,644) is also in respect of rents. The principal item in the miscellaneous receipts of the Hauraki Plains Settlement Account (£1,640) is tram-freights, repayment of and interest on advances for artesian-well boring being another item of importance.

The balance of the “Other and Unspecified” total is made up of—Allocation of gold duty towards payment of interest, &c., payable by the Waihou and Ohinemuri Rivers Improvement Account, £2,046; levy on gold-mining companies for the same purpose, £2,531; “thirds” under Land Act, £16; interest on land-sales, £106; and interest on overdue instalments of loan-money, £35.

EXPENDITURE.

The expenditure of the various accounts dealing with the construction of public works is summarized below for the last five years. As in the case of receipts, the figures have been diminished by the exclusion of credits and of transfers between the various accounts.

Year ended 31st March,	Public Works.	Maintenance and Working-expenses.^*	Charges and Expenses of raising or transferring Loan-money.	Amortization of Debt.	Interest.	Management Charges of Consolidated Stock.	Other Items (Non capital).	Total.
* Where shown separately.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1925	6,105,733	11,154	250,606	13,647	244,972	30	589	6,626,731
1926	7,180,606	7,052	424,100	4,748	230,972	376	5,539	7,853,393
1927	6,658,672	6,735	232,675	20,249	288,540	405	443	7,207,719
1928	6,925,372	8,662	172,903	34,698	356,269	2,347	856	7,501,107
1929	7,648,513	221,984	603,154	35,312	418,347	775	1,810	8,929,895

The expenditure shown in the residue column is comprised mainly of an annual subsidy to the Ellesmere Lands Drainage Board, and refunds to ratepayers under the various land improvement schemes. It should be noted that in the case of the Electric Supply Account prior to 1928–29 the expenditure out of vote, which is all included in the first column of the table, covers maintenance as well as construction, no distinction being made in the account until this year. The item “Departmental” in the Public Works Fund also covers both construction and maintenance, and other items are probably also affected. The principal items of public-works expenditure included in the first column are as follows for the five years:—

Year ended 31st March,	Railways.	Roads.	Telegraph Extension.	Development of Water-power.^*	Public Buildings.	Lands and River Improvement, Irrigation, &c.	Immigration.	Departmental and Other.
* Including maintenance prior to 1928–29.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1925	2,131,968	832,177	957,294	847,478	700,938	355,168	136,353	144,357
1926	2,786,189	949,077	931,661	945,573	849,041	300,457	107,521	311,087
1927	2,316,823	1,127,010	558,041	1,130,013	876,980	272,572	184,918	192,315
1928	2,517,457	1,253,801	625,540	1,389,341	592,019	265,922	67,157	214,135
1929	3,115,809	1,770,073	624,414	965,560	588,856	273,864	50,266	259,671

The total shown for lands and river improvement includes a certain amount of expenditure on roading, which is not shown separately in the Hauraki Plains Settlement, Rangitaiki Land Drainage, and Swamp Lands Drainage Accounts. In addition to expenditure on roads included in accounts taken as covering public works, there is the expenditure incurred in roading Crown lands and lands purchased for settlement, which is a charge on the Land for Settlements Account and is included in the values upon which the rentals of the lands are based.

A more detailed statement of the expenditure out of Public Works accounts during 1928–29 is now given:—

Public Works Accounts.—Expenditure, 1928–29.

	Gross.	Credits.	Net.
	£	£	£
Public works, departmental	265,043	122,867	142,176
Railways	3,446,619	330,810	3,115,809
Public buildings—
General	4,435	128	4,307
Courthouses	8,387	..	8,387
Prison buildings and works	12,819	247	12,572
Police-stations	6,925	..	6,925
Postal and Telegraph	62,127	40	62,087
Agricultural	2,844	36	2,808
Mental-hospital buildings	96,931	149	96,782
Health and hospital institutions	21,255	1,618	19,637
Educational	398,463	23,112	375,351
Timber-supply, sawmills, &c.	7,860	12,975	Cr. 5,115
Quarries	31,184	37,214	Cr. 6,030
Lighthouses	2,709	71	2,638
Harbour-works	16,010	1,585	14,425
Development of tourist resorts	41,730	2,476	39,254
Immigration	106,133	55,867	50,266
Main highways	970,610	34,114	936,496
Roads, &c.	904,920	123,930	780,990
Roads, &c., on goldfields	1,005	..	1,005
Roads to give access to outlying districts	51,744	162	51,582
Telegraph extension	686,131	61,717	624,414
Contingent defence	68,129	477	67,652
Hauraki Plains drainage, &c.	38,557	20,568	17,989
Rangitaiki land drainage	19,360	4,227	15,133
Swamp land drainage	48,376	1,002	47,374
Lands, miscellaneous	87,499	1,638	85,861
Irrigation, water-supply, and drainage	61,103	5,906	55,197
Waihou and Ohinemuri Rivers improvement	58,946	6,636	52,310
Development of water-power	1,008,543	42,983	965,560
Services not provided for (General Purposes Account)	432	355	77
Plant, material, and stores	79,564	74,970	4,594
Maintenance, &c., of Hauraki Plains works	4,376	21	4,355
Maintenance, &c., of water-power works	220,964	3,421	217,543
Subsidy to Ellesmere Lands Drainage Board	439	..	439
Administration expenses in connection with Ellesmere lands	86	..	86
Refund of rates	1,371	..	1,371
Charges of raising loans	603,154	..	603,154
Interest recouped to Consolidated Fund	416,539	..	416,539
Interest on temporary transfers	1,808	..	1,808
Management charges of consolidated stock	775	..	775
Amortization of debt	35,312	..	35,312
Totals	£9,901,217	£971,322	£8,929,895

GENERAL PURPOSES ACCOUNT.

The total not expenditure of the Public Works Fund proper since its inception in 1870 has been £108,322,300, spread over the various classes of public works as follows:—

Net Expenditure of Public Works Fund, General Purposes Account, 1870 to 31st March, 1929.

	Amount.
Class.	£
Immigration	3,234,549
Public works, departmental	2,544,318
Railways	52,320,084
Roads	17,799,274
Land-purchases	2,061,147
Development of mining	881,585
Telegraph extension	9,916,361
Public buildings	10,341,786
Lighthouses, harbour-works, and defences	1,266,276
Contingent defence	1,347,920
Rates on Native lands	68,672
Thermal springs	14,600
Development of tourist resorts	499,580
Lands improvement	512,381
Plant, material, and stores	351,770
Charges and expenses of raising loans	3,031,051
Coal-mines	10,835
Interest and sinking fund	218,500
Irrigation and water-supply	836,472
Timber-supply, sawmills, &c.	390
Acquisition and operation of quarries	5,114
Motor transport service	33,635
Transfer to Main Highways Account Construction Fund	1,026,000
Total	£108,322,300

The total receipts of the fund to 31st March, 1929, were £112,211,383, of which £96,539,340 represented the proceeds of loans, and £14,555,000 transfers from the Consolidated Fund. The largest item in the residue of £1,117,043 was an amount of £506,820 in respect of sinking funds set free, next in importance being receipts from stamp duties to 31st December, 1876 (£264,658). The balance of the fund at 31st March, 1929, was £3,889,083.

LAND-SETTLEMENT ACCOUNTS.

The various accounts dealing with the settlement of lands comprise an important group in the public accounts. Their operations consist in the main of the purchase of land and its preparation for settlement on a system of sale or lease, or the making of advances to the selectors themselves for the purpose of acquiring or improving properties.

The principal advances accounts, those relating to State advances to settlers and workers, are, as stated earlier in this subsection, outside the public accounts and are not included here. The list of accounts covering land-settlement and included in the public accounts is—

Land for Settlements Account.
Land for Settlements Account (Discharged Soldiers Settlement).
Land for Settlements Account (Opening up Crown Lands).^*
Discharged Soldiers Settlement Account.
Discharged Soldiers Settlement Loans Act 1920 Depreciation Fund Account.
Native Land Settlement Account.
National Endowment Account.
National Endowment Trust Account.
Deteriorated Lands Account.
Cheviot Estate Account.
Hutt Valley Land Settlement Account.

* Closed during 1928–29.

To these might be added the Hauraki Plains Settlement, Rangitaiki Land Drainage, and Swamp Land Drainage Accounts, all of which are concerned with the preparation of land for settlement or the improvement of lands. At present, however, much the greater part of their operations is in the nature of public-works construction out of borrowed money, and they are accordingly included among the public-works accounts under the preceding heading.

A summary of the receipts and payments of the land-settlement accounts is now given for the last two years. Transfers between the various accounts in the group, temporary transfers, and credits are excluded.

LAND-SETTLEMENT ACCOUNTS—RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURE, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

Receipts.	1927–28. £	1928–29. £
Repayments of advances	1,012,853	1,136,328
Sales of land	225,203	225,629
Rents	649,573	686,996
Survey liens	7,626	6,667
Interest—
On advances	701,211	703,767
On sales of land	38,933	40,170
On survey liens	1,483	1,544
On investments	73,472	76,498
On temporary transfers	7,966	294
Loan-money	10,000	218,600
Transfers from other accounts	63,885	57,464
Recoveries on account of expenditure of previous years	18	56
Recoupment of administration expenses (deteriorated lands)	4,683	2,488
Te Wera Estate	7,181	10,284
Domain funds transferred by Rangitikei County Council	..	317
Totals	£2,804,087	£3,167,102

Expenditure.	1927–28. £	1928–29. £
Administration	61,959	31,669
Purchase of lands	53,154	46,717
Incidental expenses, including roading, surveys, &c.	201,978	180,825
Payments to lessees in respect of improvements	1,508	49
Refunds of rent, &c., in respect of deteriorated lands	..	1,345
Te Wera Estate	18,412	8,875
Advances made	633,141	717,339
Interest payments	1,104,263	1,248,891
Management charges of consolidated stock	1,985	496
Expenses of raising or transferring loan money	235	174
Amortization of debt	639,794	945,544
Transfers to other accounts	23,050	4,547
“Halves,” “thirds,” and “fourths” to Local Bodies' Deposits Accounts	11,381	12,481
National-endowment residue for education and old-age pensions	129,312	135,619
Discharged Soldiers Settlement Suspense Account (net)	664	753
Totals	£2,880,836	£3,335,324

The principal points brought out by the summary are that debt-reductions during each of the two years represented more than the difference between advances repaid and advances made, and that the receipts by way of rents and interest on advances more than sufficed to cover interest payments on indebtedness and on the portion of the Public Debt Redemption Fund held by the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Account.

It should be explained that, on account of a distinction not being made in one or two cases between rents and other items, the whole amount has been treated as rents in the above summary.

TRADING ACCOUNTS.

With the exception of the accounts covering trading operations of the Government, most of the remaining accounts call for little comment, dealing as they do with such matters as the receipt and payment of non-Government moneys, the investment of funds, the redemption and repayment of loan-moneys, &c., or merely being book entries of moneys set aside for certain purposes. Reference should, however, be made to the Main Highways Account Revenue Fund, which is dealt with in the section of this book devoted to roads, and to the Mining Advances and General Purposes Relief Advances Accounts, which, with the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Account, are the only advances accounts still included in the public accounts. The operations of these two accounts are at present small, their combined expenditure in 1928–29 being only £11,515 (advances made, £7,735; interest recoupments to Consolidated Fund, £3,680; expenses of realization, &c., of property acquired under mortgage, £100); and their receipts, £6,910 (repayment of advances, £2,793; interest on advances, £1,996; interest on investments, £1,818; sales, &c., of property acquired under mortgage, £203).

Several important trading operations of the Government (Public Trust, Post and Telegraph, fire, life, and accident insurance) are outside the orbit of the public accounts, while certain others are still included in the Consolidated Fund; and the Electric Supply Account covers both construction and trading operations.

Trading accounts other than those which might be so regarded but have already been dealt with under previous headings are as follows:—

Working Railways Account.
Westport Harbour Account.
State Coal-mines Account.
State Forests Account.
Kauri-gum Industry Account.

The revenue of these five accounts during the years ended 31st March, 1928 and 1929, was as follows:—

TRADING ACCOUNTS.—REVENUE, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

Item.	Account.	1927–28,	1928–29.
		£	£
Railway revenue	Working Railways	7,725,284	7,943,255
Transfer from Consolidated Fund in respect of losses on isolated sections, &c.	Working Railways	484,659	496,578
Contributions and subsidy to Railway Employees Sick Benefit Fund	Working Railways	..	6,304
Port charges, coal rate, &c.	Westport Harbour	41,668	39,050
Endowments	Working Railways	20,345	21,302
Rents	Working Railways	312	72
Sale of endowment lands	Working Railways	20	..
Sale of coal and wood, rents, &c.	State Coal-mines	316,255	293,106
Forests revenue	State Forests	119,447	87,322
Administration expenses recovered	State Forests	2,064	2,072
Transfer from Consolidated Fund	State Forests	45,000	12,035
Loan-money	State Forests	115,000	200,000
Sale of gum	Kauri-gum Industry	3,173	5,170
Interest receipts	Various	32,548	23,059
Recoveries on account of expenditure of previous years	Various	685	882
Totals	..	£8,906,460	£9,130,207

Expenditure during the two years was composed of the following amounts:—

TRADING ACCOUNTS.—EXPENDITURE, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

	1927–28.	1928–29.
Out of annual appropriations—	£	£
Working railways	6,324,636	6,087,200
Westport Harbour	41,464	43,317
State coal-mines	302,399	280,285
State forests	214,734	273,648
Kauri-gum industry	1,373	1,124
Interest	2,215,596	2,407,53l
Management charges of consolidated stock	159	40
Charges and expenses of raising or transferring loans	644	597
Amortization of debt	12,004	8,691
Transfers to other accounts	13,907	38,268
	£9,126,916	£9,140,701

Credits in aid, credits in reduction, and temporary transfers are excluded from the foregoing figures of receipts and payments.

SUBSECTION B.—TAXATION.

TOTAL TAXATION.

ALL revenue collected by means of taxation was until the end of the financial year 1921–22 paid into the Consolidated Fund and applied to general purposes. From 1922–23 to the 5th December, 1927, however, certain items were paid into the Main Highways Account Revenue Fund to help to defray the cost of improving and maintaining roads. From the last-mentioned date all such moneys are paid into the Consolidated Fund in the first instance, and then transferred to the Main Highways Account Revenue Fund.

Customs duties on imported goods, excise duties on beer and tobacco, land and income taxes, death duties, duties on instruments, licensing fees under the Motor-vehicles Act, a tax on bank-note issues, a tax on totalizator investments, and an amusements-tax are the main sources of revenue by taxation.

Particulars of the collections during the last ten years, under the main headings, are shown in the following table. The total taxation from 1922–23 to 1927–28 includes amounts paid direct into the Revenue Account of the Main Highways Fund.

Year ended 31st March,	Customs and Excise Duties.^*	Land-tax.	Income-tax.	Death Duties.	Totalizator Taxes.	Other Taxes.	Total.
* Excluding tire-tax and petrol-tax.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1920	5,185,728	1,557,903	6,369,765	978,095	413,654	1,746,624	16,251,769
1921	8,769,251	1,688,979	8,248,945	1,106,925	497,961	1,872,353	22,184,414
1922	5,554,334	1,637,816	6,002,987	1,512,754	515,249	1,147,376	16,370,516
1923	6,644,420	1,541,502	3,831,932	1,829,852	607,657	1,260,017	15,715,380
1924	7,870,309	1,426,463	3,781,532	1,517,315	618,425	1,326,394	16,540,438
1925	8,187,273	1,335,251	3,386,052	1,520,749	590,385	1,529,899	16,549,609
1926	8,974,235	1,266,659	3,368,516	1,484,189	659,642	1,501,447	17,254,688
1927	8,826,287	1,229,067	3,422,216	1,690,374	583,421	1,686,462	17,437,827
1928	8,501,245	1,154,479	3,273,729	1,899,370	567,890	1,748,432	17,145,145
1929	8,565,736	1,140,324	3,310,877	1,944,513	541,179	2,329,404	17,832,033

Tire-tax and petrol-tax receipts are not included in Customs and excise duties, as, though collected through the Customs, they are set aside for roading purposes, for which these taxes were specially imposed. In the public accounts they are grouped with motor-vehicle license fees, &c., under the heading of “Motor-vehicles—duties, licenses, &c.” Practically the whole of the increase in taxation receipts in 1928–29 over 1927–28 is accounted for by the petrol-tax, which yielded £802,232 as compared with only £143,516 for the portion of 1927–28 during which the tax was in operation.

The percentage of taxation receipts under each heading to the total amount collected for each of the lest ten years is as under:—

Year ended 31st March,	Customs and Excise Duties.^*	Land-tax.	Income-tax.	Death Duties.	Totalizator Taxes.	Other Taxes.
* Excluding tire-tax and petrol-tax.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1920	31.91	9.59	39.19	6.02	2.55	10.74
1921	39.53	7.61	37.18	4.99	2.24	8.45
1922	33.93	10.00	36.67	9.24	3.15	7.01
1923	42.28	9.81	24.38	11.64	3.87	8.02
1924	47.58	8.62	22.86	9.18	3.74	8.02
1925	49.47	8.07	20.46	9.19	3.57	9.24
1926	52.01	7.34	19.52	8.60	3.82	8.71
1927	50.62	705	19.62	9.69	3.35	9.67
1928	49.58	6.73	19.10	11.08	3.31	10.20
1929	48.04	6.40	18.57	10.90	3.03	13.06

Some remarkable alterations in percentages are noticed during the period. The post-war reductions in income-tax have caused a fall from 39 to 18 1/2 per cent. in the proportion of the total borne by income-tax. On the other hand, Customs and excise duties, thanks principally to a high level of imports during the last few years and to the fall in income-tax, have risen from 32 to 48 per cent. The relative positions of land-tax and death duties have also been reversed. The imposition of special main highways taxation tends to increase the proportion represented by the residual group and, of course, to decrease the percentages for other groups.

TAXATION PER HEAD.

The revenue from taxation per head of mean population, including Maoris, during the last ten years is shown in the next table:—

Year ended 31st March,	Rate per Head.
	£	s.	d.
1920	13	11	1
1921	17	14	4
1922	12	14	8
1923	11	19	8
1924	12	8	0
1925	12	3	5
1926	12	7	11
1927	12	5	6
1928	11	17	7
1929	12	4	3

In spite of much higher imports (with consequential higher Customs revenue), and the imposition of three new classes of taxation to provide revenue for the maintenance of main highways, the rate per head has been lower in each of the last seven years than in 1921–22, when income-tax brought in a little over £6,000,000 of revenue, as compared with less than £3,500,000 at the present time.

CUSTOMS AND EXCISE TAXATION.

The amount of revenue derived from Customs and excise duties during each of the last ten years is shown below. The figures are given both exclusive and inclusive of tire-tax and motor-spirits taxation, specially imposed to raise revenue for the maintenance of main highways, a subject dealt with under the next heading.

Year ended 31st March,	Customs Duties.		Excise Duties.	Total Customs and Excise Duties.
Year ended 31st March,	Excluding Main Highways Items.	Including Main Highways Items.	Excise Duties.	Excluding Main Highways Items.	Including Main Highways Items.
	£	£	£	£	£
1920	4,830,325	4,830,325	355,403	5,185,728	5,185,728
1921	8,408,726	8,408,726	360,525	8,769,251	8,769,251
1922	5,095,436	5,095,436	458,898	5,554,334	5,554,334
1923	6,032,292	6,153,384	612,128	6,644,420	6,765,512
1924	7,238,215	7,361,783	632,094	7,870,309	7,993,877
1925	7,536,889	7,689,192	650,384	8,187,273	8,339,576
1926	8,344,677	8,573,388	629,558	8,974,235	9,202,946
1927	8,204,474	8,395,049	621,813	8,826,287	9,016,862
1928	7,891,621	8,262,588	609,624	8,501,245	8,872,212
1929	7,954,252	8,953,231	611,484	8,565,736	9,564,715

The revenue from Customs duties in 1918–19 was £3,830,682, and the increase under that head for the ten years is therefore 108 per cent., or, including tire-tax and motor-spirits taxation, 134 per cent. In the ten calendar years corresponding to the above period the value of imports (excluding specie) increased from £24,131,792 to £44,844,082, or by 86 per cent.

The abnormally high Customs revenue collected in 1920–21 was the direct outcome of the large importations resulting from the fulfilment of delayed orders of a very considerable quantity and value. As was to be expected, the revenue fell almost to its former level in 1921–22, but increased again after that year. If tire-tax and motor-spirits taxation are included, the figure for 1928–29 (£8,953,231) is the highest ever recorded, but the total for Customs proper has been exceeded on three occasions. The increase in excise revenue after 1920–21 is due to a substantial increase in the rate of beer duty.

Generally speaking, the average rate of Customs duty has increased very little during recent years. The increase in the total Customs duties collected is thus almost entirely due to the increased prosperity of the country as reflected by its trade.

For a fuller discussion of Customs taxation than can be given here the reader is referred to the section of this book dealing with “External Trade.”

MAIN HIGHWAYS TAXATION.

The Main Highways Act, 1922, laid down that the Revenue Account of the Main Highways Fund was to be credited, inter alia, with—

All moneys received as Customs duties imposed in respect of rubber tires, rubber tiring, and inner tubes of rubber for pneumatic tires, n.e.i. (as per the Customs tariff):
All moneys received by the Crown under any Act in respect of the licensing of motor-vehicles.

The tire-tax had been imposed by the Customs Amendment Act, 1921, prior to the passing of which tires had been admitted free. The licensing of motor-vehicles by the Crown became operative in the financial year 1924–25, consequent on the passing of the Motor-vehicles Act, 1924.

A third class of taxation for main-highways purposes was introduced towards the end of 1927 by the Motor-spirits Taxation Act of that year, which imposed a duty of 4d. per gallon on all motor-spirits imported. The duty collected is paid into the Consolidated Fund in the first place, and after deduction of expenses of administration and of refunds (which are provided for in cases where the motor-spirit is used otherwise than for motor-vehicles), the residue is divided between (1) the Revenue Account of the Main Highways Fund, and (2) boroughs with a population of 6,000 or over, in the proportions of 92 per cent. and 8 per cent. respectively.

With the exception of a proportion of the tire-tax in respect of tires attached to or imported with motor-vehicles (which was first paid into the Consolidated Fund and an allocation later made for transfer), the whole of the proceeds of the tire-tax and license fees was formerly paid direct to the Revenue Account of the Main Highways Fund. In accordance with section 24 of the Finance Act (No. 2), 1927, however, all taxation receipts for main-highways purposes since the 5th December, 1927, are paid into the Consolidated Fund in the first place, and then transferred as permanent appropriations.

Taxation receipts for main-highways purposes have been as follows up to 31st March, 1929:—

Year ended 31st March,	Tire-tax.	Motor-spirits Taxation.	Fees, &c., under Motor-vehicles Act.	Total.	Proportion of Total Taxation.
	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.
1923	121,092	..	..	121,092	0.77
1924	123,568	..	..	123,568	0.75
1925	152,303	..	257,500	409,803	2.48
1926	228,711	..	86,681	315,392	1.83
1927	190,575	..	395,797	586,372	3.36
1928	227,451	143,516	345,510	716,477	4.18
1929	196,747	802,232	244,598	1,243,577	6.97

The low figure shown for 1925–26 in respect of fees under the Motor-vehicles Act is due to the fact that a considerable proportion of revenue from this source, which in the ordinary course of events would have been collected during the last quarter of the year, was not paid into the account until early in 1926–27.

LAND AND INCOME TAX.

Except in regard to minor details, the system of land and income taxation in force at the outbreak of the Great War had remained unaltered for many years. Probably the only noteworthy point was the gradual hardening-up of the graduated land-tax, designed to prevent aggregation of land and to compel the cutting-up of large estates rather than to secure additional revenue.

The war taxation of 1915, however, not only included increased rates of 33 1/3 per cent. in the case of income-tax, 1/4 d. in the pound in the case of land-tax payable on mortgages, and 50 per cent. in the case of graduated land-tax, but also involved an important change of principle. Among the incomes previously exempt from income-tax were those derived directly from land, but in 1915 income-tax was made payable on such incomes.

With the exception of the abolition of the land-tax on mortgages and the substitution of an income-tax in its place, the principles of land-tax assessment were not altered in 1916, nor were the rates increased, but an entirely new scheme known as the excess-profits tax was brought into operation in respect of income-tax, the 1915 system remaining also, with increased rates, for ordinary income-tax. The excess-profits tax being found inequitable and otherwise unsatisfactory, a system of progressive land and income tax, with a special war tax on incomes, was adopted in 1917.

In 1920 a complete revision of the rates of taxation was made. The new rates became effective on assessments for the year commencing on the 1st April, 1921, and for following years. A feature of the new legislation was the introduction of a deduction from the amount of tax payable of 10 per cent. in respect of tax assessed on “earned income.”

In 1923 further alterations were made, the principal being the restoration of the exemption from income-tax of income derived from the direct use or cultivation of land. Reductions in the rates of taxation were also made, and are referred to in detail under the heading of “Income-tax” farther on.

Further reductions in income-tax rates were made in 1924 and 1925, and other alterations in respect of exemptions, method of assessment, &c., were also made. Alterations made in 1927 in the progressive scale of increases in the rate of tax and also in the scale of reduction of exemptions had the effect of slightly increasing income-tax except on the very highest incomes and those below £450.

The 1925 number of this book contains a summary of the recommendations of a Royal Commission which was appointed in April, 1924, to inquire into “the present system of land and income taxation in New Zealand in all its aspects, including the scope, rates, and incidence of the several taxes; allowances and reliefs; assessment, appeal, and collection; and prevention of evasion.”

Sections XXXIV and XXXV of this book contain some interesting statistics showing the incidence of land and income tax, and the distribution of land values and incomes.

PROPOSED LAND- AND INCOME-TAX AMENDMENTS.

Information concerning the system and incidence of land and income taxation as at present existing (October, 1929) is given under subsequent subheadings, but noteworthy alterations in the case of taxation on land are proposed by the Land and Income Tax Amendment Bill, in conjunction with the Land and Income Tax (Annual) Bill, now before Parliament.^* The principal changes proposed are here briefly referred to.

* Both Bills were duly passed.

Special land-tax (additional to ordinary land-tax) is to be imposed on farm-lands exceeding £14,000 in unimproved value. Between £14,000 and £16,500 the special tax is at the rate of 1 per cent. of ordinary land-tax for every £50 or part thereof in excess of £14,000. In excess of £16,500 it is 50 per cent. of ordinary tax plus 1 per cent. for every £270 or part thereof in excess of £16,500. Special tax is not to exceed ordinary tax. Provision is made for the setting-up of a Commission to inquire into cases of hardship.

The rates of ordinary land-tax are not altered, remaining at 1d. between £500 and £1,000, with an additional 1/20000 d. every £1 in excess of £1,000, the maximum ordinary tax being 7 17/20 d. in £1, all rates being less 5 per cent.

The full mortgage exemption will cease at £7,500 (instead of £10,000 at present), being thereafter diminished by £1 for £1 (instead of £2 for £1), so that the limit of mortgage exemption is reached at £15,000, as hitherto.

Income-tax is to be levied on owners of farm-lands in excess of £14,000. From the income-tax assessed, land-tax (including special) is to be deducted, the amount of income-tax payable (which must not in any case exceed the difference between the unimproved value and £14,000) being the residue (if any) after land-tax has been paid.

LAND-TAX.

Land-tax is assessed on the unimproved value of land after deductions provided for by statute have been made by way of special exemption. These exemptions are referred to hereunder.

The basis of taxation prior to 1917 was a double system of ordinary and graduated tax. For some years the ordinary rate had been 1d. for each pound of unimproved value, while the graduated tax ranged at a rate varying from 1/32d. to 5 5/6d. in the pound, according as to whether the value of the land was from £5,000 to £200,000 or more. This system of taxation was abolished in 1917, and in its place was instituted a single progressive tax.

As the amended law operated for the four financial years 1917–18 to 1920–21, the scale of taxation ranged from 1d. to 7d. in the pound. The 1d. rate applied in cases where the unimproved value on which tax was payable did not exceed £1,000, and the rate was increased by 1/32000 of a penny for every pound in excess of £1,000 up to a maximum of 7d. These rates, however, proved to be merely nominal, as for the four years concerned a super-tax of 50 per cent. virtually increased the minimum to 1 1/2d. and the maximum to 10 1/2d. in the pound. A further 50 per cent. increase on the total amount assessed is imposed in the case of absentees, including shareholders in companies, but not in the case of companies themselves.

Further alteration in the rate of land-tax was made by the Legislature in 1920, and became effective for assessments after the 1st April, 1921. The scale of taxation of land the unimproved value of which does not exceed £1,000 remained as before at the rate of a penny in the pound, but the rate thereafter was increased by 1/20000 of a penny for every pound in excess of £1,000 up to a maximum of 7 17/20d. For the year 1921–22 the rate of super-tax was reduced to 33 1/3 per cent., and on the whole of the land-tax a rebate of 10 per cent. was allowed for prompt payment. The super-tax was continued for the year 1922–23 at the rate of 10 per cent. only, without any rebate, and for the year 1923–24 was removed altogether, while from 1924–25 onward a deduction of 5 per cent. from the tax computed according to the scale rates mentioned has been provided.

Under the law as it has operated since the 1st April, 1917, an owner of land the unimproved value of which does not exceed £1,500 is allowed an exemption of £500, and where the unimproved value lies between £1,500 and £2,500 there is a similar exemption, diminished, however, by £1 for every £2 over the £1,500 mark, so that no exemption is allowed when £2,500 is reached.

Where the land is subject to a registered mortgage an alternative scale is provided^*—viz., £10,000 in cases where the unimproved value does not exceed £10,000, the exemption of £10,000 to be diminished by £2 for every £1 above the margin of £10,000 of unimproved value. Where the capital value of the mortgage is less than the amount of deduction provided, such capital value is deducted instead. Prior to 1921 the mortgage exemption was £1,500 in cases where the unimproved value did not exceed £3,000, and from then to 1924, £4,000 up to a maximum of £6,000 unimproved value. A deduction of £1 for every £2 of unimproved value above the maximum was provided under the former scale, and of £2 for every £1 under the latter; so that the exemptions disappeared altogether at £6,000 and £8,000 respectively, as compared with £15,000 at present.

* Altered in 1929, see under preceding sub-heading.

No special exemption is allowed in the case of land not situated in a borough, which has been owned by a person for three years and not improved to the extent of £1 per acre or equal to one-third of the unimproved value, when in the opinion of the Commissioner of Taxes it should have been so improved. In the case of such land, also, the rate of land-tax is 50 per cent. more than the ordinary rate.

In lieu of the special exemptions set out above, the Commissioner of Taxes has discretionary powers to grant relief in certain specified cases of hardship. Subject to deductions provided, lessees and life tenants are liable to tax, and joint owners are assessed jointly as regards the land held in conjunction, and also severally in respect of each owner's interest in such land and any other land. This liability for joint assessment also applies to companies owning land if half of the paid-up capital or half (in nominal value) of the allotted shares of each company is held by or on behalf of shareholders in the other.

It has for some years been the law that in case of default by a taxpayer in respect of land-tax the amount of tax may be demanded from his successor in title, from a tenant of the taxpayer or his successor, or from a mortgagee of the estate or interest concerned. Section 11 of the Land and Income Tax Amendment Act, 1924, declares land-tax to constitute a charge on the land, and, notwithstanding any disposition of it, such land continues to be liable in the hands of a purchaser or other holder thereof for the payment of the tax so long as the charge remains in force. Registration of the charge is required, and no disposition of the land or of any interest in it may be registered while the charge remains in force. Relief in cases of hardship is provided for by the Land and Income Tax Amendment Act, 1925.

INCOME-TAX.

Income-tax is payable on the full incomes of registered companies and of absentees, and in other cases on incomes in excess of £300 per annum. Between £450 and £750 the exemption is reduced by £1 for every £2 above £450, and between £750 and £900 by £1 for every £1 above £750, no exemption at all being allowed under this head for incomes above £900. Certain specified incomes are wholly exempt from taxation, and a further £50 is deductible from assessable income for each child or grandchild under eighteen years of age who is dependent on the taxpayer, as are also amounts up to £50 contributed towards the support of the taxpayer's widowed mother. A maximum exemption of 15 per cent. is allowed for life-insurance premiums and National Provident Fund, superannuation, and similar contributions, and there is an exemption of 5 per cent. of the capital value of land used exclusively for the purpose of the taxpayer's business or for the purpose of deriving rent, royalties, or other profits. Income derived by the owner of land in respect of profits from the direct use or cultivation thereof is wholly exempt from income-tax.^* Income-tax is, however, payable by lessees of Crown pastoral leases, small grazing-runs, &c., no land-tax being payable in these cases.

* Modified in 1929, see p. 627.

For the four financial years 1917–18 to 1920–21 the rates of progressive income-tax ranged from 6d. to 3s. in the case of persons and firms, and from 1s. to 3s. for companies. The 6d. rate for persons and firms applied where the taxable income was not more than £400, and the 1s. rate for companies where the taxable income did not exceed £1,600, the rates being increased by 1/200 of a penny for every additional pound until the maximum tax of 3s. in the pound was reached. Income derived by holders of company debentures from such debentures bore a uniform tax of 1s., plus a special war tax of 1s. 6d.

The special war tax also applied to assessable income in excess of £300 in the case of all other income-tax payers. For incomes up to £400 the rate of special war tax was 9d. in the pound, and this was increased by 3/400 of a penny for every additional pound of income, but so as not to exceed 4s. 6d. in the pound. The maximum total rate of income-tax was thus 7s. 6d. in the pound.

New rates of income-tax were enacted in 1920. On the income of persons and firms the rate was fixed at 1s. in the pound up to a £400 limit of income, and between £400 and £6,000 the tax was increased by 1/100 of a penny for each pound of income in excess of £400. On incomes exceeding £6,000 the rate was made 5s. 8d. in the pound, increased by 1/200 of a penny for each pound in excess of £6,000, with a maximum tax of 7s. 4d. in the pound. In addition to these rates a supertax of 20 per cent. was levied in 1921–22, and the whole of the income-tax was made subject to a rebate of 5 per cent. for prompt payment. Both super-tax and rebate were discontinued in 1922–23.

A new principle of taxation was introduced in the 1920 Act with regard to “earned income,” which is defined to mean the salary or wages (including bonuses) received by the taxpayer in relation to his employment, and further includes all income derived by a taxpayer (other than a company or local body) by reason of his personal exertions. The tax on such income is, up to a limit of £2,000, subject to a reduction of 10 per cent.

For the year commencing with the 1st April, 1923, income-tax rates were reduced by 20 per cent., and in the following year by 33 1/3 per cent., in all cases except in respect of income from debentures, for which special rates apply. The minimum rate was fixed at 7d. and the maximum at 4s. 6d. for 1925–26 and 1926 27. These limits were maintained in 1927–28, but certain intervening changes were made. The present rate of tax is 7d. in the pound for incomes not exceeding £300, the rate being increased by 1/100d. for every £1 in excess of £300 up to a maximum of £1,500. For incomes between £1,500 and £3,900 the rate is 1s. 7d., increased by 3/400d. for every £1 in excess of £1,500; and for those between £3,900 and £5,900 it is 3s. 1d., increased by 1/200d. for every £1 in excess of £3,900. Above £5,900 the rate is 3s. 11d. in the pound, increased by 1/400d. for every £1 in excess of £5,900, but with a limit of 4s. 6d. in the pound.

Under the Act of 1920 a flat rate of 3s. in the pound was levied on income derived from company debentures, and of 2s. 6d. in the pound on income from debentures issued by local bodies in the Dominion. These rates still apply in respect of debentures issued prior to the 28th August, 1923, but for debentures (whether company or local body) issued after that date a uniform rate of 4s. 6d. in the pound has been in force as from the 1st April, 1924.

It should be noted that the rates referred to—2s. 6d., 3s., or 4s. 6d., as the case may be—are maximum rates, and therefore that investment in local- or public-authority debentures is a favoured one so far as income-tax is concerned. A person whose income carries the present maximum rate of tax, 4s. 6d., pays only 2s. 6d. or 3s., as the case may be, on such portion of it as is derived from debentures issued prior to the 28th August, 1923; on the other hand, the person whose income from debentures is less than £300 pays no income-tax at all in respect of debentures; while a person whose income carries a less rate than 2s. 6d., 3s., or 4s. 6d., as the case may be, is charged only such lesser rate on debenture interest. Any deduction for tax which may be made by the local or public authority is adjusted later by the Land and Income Tax Department.

A holder, if resident outside New Zealand, of stock or debentures issued by the Government of New Zealand, or any local or public authority, or by the Public Trustee as agent of a land-settlement association, the interest on which is payable out of New Zealand, is not liable in New Zealand for income-tax on such interest.

DEATH DUTIES.

The law dealing with these classes of duty is embodied in the Death Duties Act, 1921, as subsequently amended. The main heads of taxation are estate and succession duties, which are generally referred to by the collective title of “death duties.” In addition to these there are gift duties and Native succession duties.

Estate and succession duties are due and payable to the Commissioner of Stamp Duties on assessment, an additional 5 per cent. penalty, together with interest at 6 per cent. per annum, being payable if duty is not paid within three months. Gift duties are payable at the time the gift is made, and Native succession duties before the registration of the succession order by the Native Land Court. Generally the decision of the Commissioner of Stamp Duties in regard to matters of fact incidental to the assessment of duty is final, but there is an appeal on points of law or of fact by way of a case stated to the Supreme Court. An appeal on a question of law may be referred to the Court of Appeal.

The net revenue received from death duties, including gift and Native succession duties, during each of the last ten years was—

Year ended 31st March,	Amount, £
1920	978,095
1921	1,106,925
1922	1,512,751
1923	1,829,852
1924	1,517,815
1925	1,520,749
1926	1,484,189
1927	1,690,374
1928	1,899,370
1929	1,944,513

The total for the year ended 31st March, 1929, is made up as follows:—

	£
Estate duty	1,513,451
Succession duty	351,720
Gift duty	79,342
Total	£1,944,513

ESTATE DUTY.

When the final balance of the dutiable estate of a deceased person, estimated as at the date of his death, exceeds £1,000 an estate duty is levied on the amount thereof. In the case of any estate the final balance of which does not exceed £10,000, any interest acquired by the wife of the deceased up to the value of £5,000 is exempt from estate duty. The value of any life-insurance policy or policies comprised in the estate is also deductible up to a maximum of £1,000, irrespective of the amount of the estate. The rate of duty on the whole estate must, however, be determined before any deduction is made under either head.

Up to 1920 duty was leviable on property in excess of £500, and the scale of duties ranged from 1 per cent. in cases where the net estate was between £500 and £1 000 to a maximum of 15 per cent. for large estates. The amendment made to the scale in 1920 considerably increased the duty payable, and the rates, which are now embodied in the Act of 1921, run from 1 per cent. on estates not exceeding £2,000 in value to 20 per cent. on estates of more than £100,000. The scale of duties is as follows:—

SCALE OF ESTATE DUTY.

Final Balance of Estate.	Rate per Cent.
£ £
1,000 to 2,000	1
2,000 to 3,000	2
3,000 to 4,000	3
4,000 to 6,000	4
6,000 to 8,000	5
8,000 to 10,000	6
10,000 to 15,000	7
15,000 to 20,000	8
20,000 to 25,000	9
25,000 to 30,000	10
30,000 to 35,000	11
35,000 to 40,000	12
40,000 to 45,000	13
45,000 to 50,000	14
50,000 to 60,000	15
60,000 to 70,000	16
70,000 to 80,000	17
80,000 to 90,000	18
90,000 to 100,000	19
Exceeding 100,000	20

SUCCESSION DUTY.

In addition to the estate duty referred to above, a succession duty is payable by any person who acquires a beneficial interest in the estate of a deceased person either by will or by intestacy. An exemption from duty is made in favour of charitable trusts, and special provision is made that the wife, lineal descendant, or lineal ancestor of a soldier who has met his death on account of the late war is allowed an additional £5,000 exemption to the amounts shown on the next page.

The rates of duty vary according to the nearness of kin of the beneficiary to the deceased person. The rates shown below were introduced in amending legislation in 1920, and, as in the case of the estate duties, are embodied in the 1921 consolidating Act.

SCALE OF SUCCESSION DUTY.

If Successor Is	Value, of Estate.	Rate per Cent.
		£
Wife	Up to 10,000	Nil.
	10,000 to 20,000	2
	Over 20,000	4
Husband	Up to 500	Nil.
	500 to 1,500	1
	1,500 to 2,500	2
	Over 2,500	3
Brother or sister	Up to 500	Nil.
	500 to 20,000	5
	Over 20,000	10
Child or lineal descendant	Up to 1,000	Nil.
	1,000 to 5,000	1
	5,000 to 10,000	2
	10,000 to 15,000	3
	15,000 to 20,000	3 1/2
	Over 20,000	4
Other relative to 4th decree	Up to 500	Nil.
	500 to 10,000	5
	Over 10,000	10
Other person	Up to 500	Nil.
	500 to 20,000	10
	Over 20,000	20

In respect to moneys exceeding £1,000 that may be payable to persons domiciled out of New Zealand, and where the beneficiary is not the husband or wife of the deceased or a relative of the deceased within the third degree of consanguinity, there is an additional rate equal to 10 per cent. of the excess over £1,000.

NATIVE SUCCESSION DUTY.

Where any succession order is made by the Native Land Court on the death of a Native, no death duty in the ordinary way is payable on the property included in it, but a Native succession duty of 2 per cent. is payable on the value of the property, with a general exemption of £200.

GIFT DUTY.

A gift means any disposition of property which is made otherwise than by will, whether with or without an instrument in writing, without full and adequate consideration in money or its equivalent. No duty is payable on a gift which, together with the value of all other gifts (not exempt from duty by reason of their nature) made at the same time or within twelve months previously or subsequently by the same donor to the same or any other beneficiary, otherwise than by way of a charitable trust, does not exceed the value of £1,000, and exemption from gift duty is provided in cases of the voluntary discharge of a mortgage debt where the donor and beneficiary are not connected by ties of blood or marriage. Various other exemptions were made by the Death Duties Amendment Act, 1923.

The amount of the gift duty is payable by either the donor or the beneficiary, but the beneficiary is entitled to be indemnified by the donor unless the terms of the gift provide otherwise. Particulars of any gift made are required to be furnished for assessment of duty within one month of the date of the gift, and in default an additional duty of 50 per cent. is payable. Where duty is payable, the rate is based on the following scale:—

Value of Gift.	Rate of Duty.
£1,000 to £5,000	5 per cent.
£5,000 to £10,000	7 1/2
Over £10,000	10

These rates, which were introduced in 1920, superseded the flat rate then in force of 5 per cent. on all gifts exceeding £1,000 in value. The revenue from gift duty amounted to £79,342 for the financial year ended 31st March, 1929, the figures for the last ten years being as follows:—

Year ended 31st March,	£
1920	54,160
1921	74,885
1922	70,440
1923	48,556
1924	61,660
1925	73,602
1926	50,996
1927	45,576
1928	51,656
1929	79,342

These amounts, it should be noted, are included under the revenue shown previously under the head of “Death Duties.”

STAMP DUTIES.

The term “stamp duties” covers a miscellany of items of taxation imposed by the Stamp Duties Act, 1923, as amended subsequently. An important group of stamp duties—those payable by racing clubs on totalizator investments, dividends, and stakes—is dealt with under a separate heading later on in this subsection. The principal of the remaining duties under the Stamp Duties Act are as shown in the following schedule:—

Item.	Rate of Duty.
* Or fractional part thereof.
Conveyance duty—
Conveyances not expressly made subject to any other rate of conveyance duty or not expressly exempted from such duty	10s. for every £50.^*
Transfers of mortgages, debentures, or money payable or to become payable, or anything in action, or any interest in a trust fund	5s. for every £100.^*
Transfers of moneys in respect of supply of milk, cream, or other dairy-produce to a factory	2d.
Transfers of shares or of any equitable interest in shares	3s. for every £50.^*
Transfers of mining property or of any legal or equitable interest in mining property	3s. for every £50.^*
Mortgage duty—
Registration of a mortgage on land	2s. 6d.
Registration of variation of terms of a mortgage	2s. 6d.
Discharge of a mortgage	2s. 6d.
Duty on leases or licenses	3s. for every £50^* of annual rent.
Duty on bills of exchange or promissory notes—
Bills of exchange or promissory notes payable on demand	2d.
Bills of exchange payable otherwise than on demand	1s. for every £50.^*
Promissory notes payable otherwise than on demand—
For sum not exceeding £25	6d.
For sum between £25 and £50	1s.
For sum exceeding £50	1s. for every £50.^*
Bank-note duty (based on average amount of bank-notes in circulation during quarter)	15s. (quarterly) for every £100.^*
Duty on sales of shares in mining companies—
Where contract-note does not exceed £100	1s.
Where contract-note exceeds £100	2s. 6d.
Duty on agreements (where £20 or over concerned)	1s. 3d.
Duty on appraisements (according to amount of appraisement or valuation)—
£20 or under	1s.
£20–£50	2s. 6d.
£50–£100	5s.
£100–£200	10s.
£200–£500	15s.
Over £500	£1.

Item.	Rate of Duty.
* Or fractional part thereof.
Duty on awards (according to amount or value of matter in dispute)—
£20 or under	1s.
£20–£50	2s. 6d.
£50–£100	5s.
£100–£200	10s.
£200–£500	15s.
£500–£1,000	£1.
Over £1,000, and in cases not otherwise provided for	£1 15s.
Duty on bills of lading (executed in New Zealand in respect of carriage of goods from New Zealand to overseas countries)	1s.
Duty on charter-parties	1s.
Duty on declarations under Justices of Peace Act	3s.
Duty on affidavits	3s.
Duty on deeds of assignment	£3.
Duty on deeds not otherwise charged	12s. 6d.
Duty on duplicates and counterparts of dutiable instruments	3s. (or same duty as original instrument if under 3s.).
Duty on marine policies—
On a voyage policy, or on a time policy for a period not exceeding six months	3d. for every £100.^*
On a time policy for a period exceeding six months	6d. for every £100.^*
Duty on receipts (for amounts of £2 or over)	2d.
Duty on incorporation of companies	£6.
Duty on annual licenses of companies—
New Zealand companies	1s. for every £100^* of nominal capital (maximum duty £200).
Overseas insurance or banking companies	£200.
British companies (other than insurance or banking companies) not employing the whole or substantially the whole of their actual capital in New Zealand	6d. for every £100^* of nominal capital (maximum duty £100, minimum £10).
Other overseas companies	1s. for every £100^* of nominal capital (minimum duty £10).
Duty on instruments of guarantee (where £20 or over involved)	2s. 6d.

There are numerous exemptions from certain classes of stamp duties, as well as various special provisions, which cannot be given in detail here.

TOTALIZATOR-TAX.

The Government tax on totalizator investments is 2 1/2 per cent. of the gross amount passed through the machines. Prior to the 1st March, 1910, the percentage was 1 1/2. A refund of 1 1/4 per cent. (up to a limit of £250) may be made to any club which during the year concerned has expended (or incurred liability to expend) an amount not less than the amount of refund, in the permanent improvement of its racecourse by the erection of buildings, &c., in the erection or permanent improvement of stables on land not forming part of the racecourse, or (in the case of hunt clubs) in the purchase or permanent improvement of land for kennel-sites. This authority has been extended to cover the payment of interest or repayment of principal in respect of moneys borrowed for the purposes mentioned.

From the 1st November, 1915, a tax of 1 per cent. was imposed on the total value of all stakes, and a tax of 2 1/2 per cent. on totalizator dividends, in addition to the tax on totalizator investments. From the 22nd December, 1921, the tax on stakes was increased to 10 per cent., and that on dividends to 5 per cent. From the 1st April, 1924, the tax on stakes was reduced to 5 per cent.

The following figures relate to the racing-year, which ends on the 31st July:—

—	Year ended 31st July,
—	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.
* Retained by the clubs.
Number of racing-days	320	326	319	319	319
Number of races	2,527	2,578	2,522	2,523	2,524
	£	£	£	£	£
Amount of stakes	624,165	640,798	617,256	591,780	587,717
Totalizator investments	8,445,859	8,605,582	7,552,894	7,634,077	7,203,033
Amount paid in dividends	7,183,135	7,317,752	6,422,270	6,489,047	6,123,078
Government taxes—
On totalizator investments	211,147	215,110	188,822	190,852	180,076
On dividends	380,124	387,312	339,942	343,591	324,196
On stakes	31,208	32,040	30,863	29,589	29,386
Totals	622,479	634,492	559,627	564,032	533,658
7 1/2 per cent. of totalizator investments retained by clubs	633,439	645,419	566,467	572,556	540,228
Unpaid fractions^*	38,014	39,959	35,393	38,031	35,455

The totalizator revenue accruing to the State during the 1928–29 racing-year is seen to have totalled £533,658. For the financial year ended the 31st March, 1929, the amount was £541,179.

Refunds to racing clubs in respect of permanent improvements to racecourses totalled £26,166 in the financial year 1928–29, as against £25,209 during the preceding twelve months.

AMUSEMENTS-TAX.

A form of tax first introduced in 1917 is the amusements-tax, payable on payments for admission to entertainments. “Entertainment” is defined as “any exhibition, performance, amusement, game, or sport to which persons are admitted for payment.” Formerly tax was payable where the charge for admission exceeded 9d. (later 1s.), but no tax is now payable where the charge for admission is not more than 2s. When the charge exceeds 2s. a tax of 1d. is imposed on each shilling or part of a shilling, and, in addition to the tax so calculated, a further sum of 1d. is payable where the price for admission exceeds 3s. 6d. Provision is made for exemption in certain specified cases—viz., shows promoted by agricultural, pastoral, horticultural, or poultry societies, meetings held for educational, scientific, patriotic, or philanthropic purposes, and swimming-sports.

The following net amounts have been collected during the last ten years:—

Year ended 31st March,	Amount collected, £
1920	68,064
1921	79,921
1922	103,815
1923	137,546
1924	115,039
1925	78,877
1926	64,163
1927	63,555
1928	63,165
1929	60,586

LOCAL TAXATION.

Local governing authorities have power under various Acts of the Legislature to impose taxes for general or special purposes as set out in another section of this book. The amount of revenue collected for local purposes during the ten years ended 31st March, 1928, is shown below:—

Year ended 31st March,	Local Revenue derived from			Total.
Year ended 31st March,	General Rates.	Special and Separate Rates.	Licenses and other Taxes.	Amount.	Per Head of Population.
	£	£	£	£	£	s.	d.
1919	2,028,151	911,455	199,366	3,138,972	2	13	9
1920	2,106,397	1,037,816	245,078	3,389,291	2	16	1
1921	2,338,539	1,211,051	264,320	3,813,910	3	0	11
1922	2,501,949	1,277,946	276,990	4,056,885	3	3	1
1923	2,742,828	1,534,953	285,969	4,563,750	3	9	7
1924	2,775,986	1,669,641	313,090	4,758,717	3	11	4
1925	2,922,003	1,746,881	344,248	5,013,132	3	13	8
1926	3,263,757	1,775,888	435,724	5,475,369	3	18	8
1927	3,273,682	2,037,578	576,761	5,888,021	4	2	11
1928	3,348,555	2,267,117	507,703	6,123,375	4	4	10

Of recent years there has been great activity in local enterprise, the necessary funds being provided partly out of general rates, but mainly by borrowing, interest on loans and payments to sinking funds being secured in most cases by special rates. The increase in the amount of general rates collected during the ten years 1917–18 to 1927–28 was £1,557,527, or 87 per cent.; special and separate rates increased by £1,383,604, or 157 per cent.; and total rates by £2,941,131, or 110 per cent. Licenses and other taxes show an increase for the ten years of £315,221, or 164 per cent., and total local taxation an increase of £3,256,352, or 114 per cent.

A table is given setting out in greater detail the taxation by local authorities during the year ended the 31st March, 1928.

REVENUE FROM LOCAL TAXATION, 1927–28.

Local Districts.	Rates.		Licenses.	Other Taxes.	Total.
Local Districts.	General.	Special and Separate.	Licenses.	Other Taxes.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£
Counties	1,670,624	305,022	122,622	597	2,098,865
Boroughs	1,156,179	1,719,052	236,806	127,302	3,239,339
Town districts	59,178	47,822	14,345	..	121,345
Road districts	56,467	46,617	6,031	..	109,115
River districts	62,097	9,992	..	..	72,089
Land-drainage districts	33,988	28,339	..	..	62,327
Electric-power districts	62,732	..	..	..	62,732
Water- supply districts	3,914	..	..	..	3,914
City and suburban drainage districts	66,932	110,273	..	..	177,205
Local railway districts	24	..	..	..	24
Rabbit districts	15,648	..	..	..	15,648
Harbour Boards	160,772	..	..	..	160,772
Totals	3,348,555	2,267,117	379,804	127,899	6,123,375

The figures quoted above are exclusive of wharfage dues, charges, fees, and tolls received by Harbour Boards.

SUBSECTION C.—STATE INDEBTEDNESS.

INTRODUCTORY.

EARLY in the history of the settlement of New Zealand the necessity for financial assistance to open up the forest-clad rugged country was made apparent. In the year 1856 the first Loan Act was passed by the General Assembly, and under that authority £500,000 was raised. In addition to the requirements for necessary initial public works, the opposition to settlement by the Maoris, resulting in active hostilities, compelled considerable borrowing. At the conclusion of the Maori War the work of road and railway construction was mainly carried on under the administration of the Provincial Councils, who exercised control over expenditure within their respective districts, the General. Government being responsible for undertakings of a national character. Under this system of divided responsibility no general and comprehensive scheme of public works could be carried out.

By 1870 the General Government was indebted to the extent of £4,347,866, while the debt of the Provincial Councils amounted to £3,208,350. In that year the General Government brought forward a public-works and immigration policy by which it was proposed to raise a loan of ten millions for the construction of main trunk railways, roads, and other public works of importance to the country as a whole, as well as for the promotion of settlement on a large scale, the expenditure to be spread over a period of ten years. This policy was accepted by the Legislature, and embodied in the Immigration and Public Works Act, 1870. The necessity for local railways and other works soon caused the original proposals to be exceeded, and to a far greater amount than was at first contemplated. Broadly stated, the system of opening up the lands in advance of settlement was adopted, the State retaining the ownership and control of facilities for transport and communication.

In 1892 the General Government began the repurchase of lands already alienated. The money required for this purpose has been borrowed, but the rentals obtained by the leasing of the lands are sufficient for the payment of interest and amortization charges on the amount raised. In 1894 the Advances to Settlers Act was passed, authorizing the raising of loans for advances on the security of real estate. This was followed by the Advances to Workers Act in 1906. Provision was also made for local bodies to borrow from the Advances Office, including power to borrow for workers' dwellings. Both interest and sinking-fund charges are met by interest received from borrowers, and are thus not a charge on the Consolidated Fund.

By far the most rapid increase in the national indebtedness, however, has taken place as a result of activities necessitated by the European War. Of the total gross debt of over 264 millions of pounds at the 31st March, 1929, 169 millions have been incurred since the 31st March, 1914, including 71 millions attributable to loan-money required for the European War; and this latter amount does not include 8 millions raised by the Government for the settlement of discharged soldiers.

HOW LOANS MAY BE RAISED.

The Minister of Finance may raise loans, when authorized by Parliament so to do, by the issue of debentures, or scrip, or stock, in New Zealand or elsewhere at his discretion, and may prescribe the mode and conditions of repayment of loans, the rates of interest (not exceeding the maximum rate fixed by the authorizing Act), and the times and places of payment of principal and interest respectively. Power is given to convert debentures or scrip into consolidated stock, and the Minister may specify the terms of conversion at the time when a loan is raised, or arrange that terms shall be subsequently agreed upon. For the purpose of paying off or renewing at maturity any debenture, scrip, or other security, new debentures or other securities may be issued and disposed of if necessary. Authority also exists for the conversion of loan-money which has not yet matured, as well as for the redemption and cancellation of securities before maturity.

During the war period provision was made for the issue to the public of “Post Office investment certificates” of a nominal value of £1 and upwards, and in 1920 legislation was enacted which sanctioned a continuous issue of these certificates. Receipts from this source are utilized for the purposes of any loan which may be authorized by Parliament.

The term of the certificates, formerly a minimum of five years, was altered in 1927 to such term as the Minister of Finance may determine. The certificates are now being issued for various periods from one year upwards.

The money composing the public debt has been borrowed on the security of the public revenues of the Dominion. No portion of the public estate is pledged for payment of either principal or interest.

GROSS INDEBTEDNESS.

The gross indebtedness of the General Government and the rate of indebtedness per head of population (inclusive of Maoris) for each of the last twenty years are given in the following table:—

GROSS INDEBTEDNESS, 1909–10 TO 1928–29.

As at 31st March,	Amount.	Per Head of Population.
* Including £4,976,600 raised in March, 1914, for redemptions early in 1914–15. † Including £5,379,105 raised in January, 1929, for expenditure in 1929–30.
	£	£	s.	d.
1910	74,890,645	72	6	10
1911	81,078,122	76	15	3
1912	84,353,913	78	0	3
1913	90,060,763	81	0	5
1914	99,730,427^*	87	10	2
1915	100,059,910	86	19	7
1916	109,637,397	95	6	4
1917	129,836,105	112	16	2
1918	150,840,055	130	12	11
1919	176,076,260	149	8	5
1920	201,170,755	162	12	9
1921	206,324,319	162	15	7
1922	219,054,385	168	6	10
1923	218,953,324	165	4	2
1924	221,616,361	164	8	5
1925	227,814,647	165	2	11
1926	238,855,478	169	8	6
1927	245,850,889	170	19	5
1928	251,396,252	172	19	2
1929	264,191,983^†	179	12	10

On only two occasions in the history of New Zealand has a reduction in the gross public debt been effected during the financial year. The first occasion was in 1891–92, when the debt was reduced by £117,282, and the second in 1922–23, when another slight reduction (£101,061) was recorded.

In 1923–24 the large sum of £2,679,450 was loaned out of accumulated surpluses and other accounts to the State Advances Office, and as the securities issued by that Office are charged against the debt an increase in the public debt to that amount was disclosed by the accounts. It may be pointed out that this amount more than accounts for the increase of £2,663,037 during the year ended the 31st March, 1924, and that if it were not treated as a debt a decrease of £16,413 in the gross debt would have been recorded for that year.

The movement of the gross public debt—total and per head of population—since 1880 is shown in the diagram on the next page. This strikingly brings out the great increase in indebtedness occasioned by the war of 1914–19.

The history of the public debt in New Zealand may conveniently and with advantage be divided into four distinct periods—viz., (1) Up to the end of the financial year 1890–91; (2) from the 31st March, 1891, to the 31st March, 1914; (3) from the 31st March, 1914, to the 31st March, 1920; and (4) from the 31st March, 1920, to date.

Up to the 31st March, 1891, loan expenditure had been chiefly concerned with railways find roads, the taking-over of the loan liabilities of the Provincial Governments on their abolition, and the Maori War.

The year 1891 marks the beginning of a period during which the functions of the State were widely extended, most notably as regards financial assistance to settlers, workers, and local bodies, the repurchase of alienated lands, the working of coal-mines, the development of hydro-electric power, and the establishment of State fire- and accident-insurance offices. In every department these new activities, as well as the old, have been directly successful, while the indirect benefits are incapable of measurement. A considerable portion of the annual interest on the debt, although paid out of the Consolidated Fund in the first instance, does not fall upon the taxpayers as such, the revenue derived from several of the more important undertakings being sufficient to meet the interest on the money borrowed in respect of them.

GROSS PUBLIC DEBT, TOTAL AND PER HEAD, 1880–1929.

The advent of the European War created a second point of demarcation in the history of the loan expenditure of the General Government, necessitating as it did the postponement of all public works, &c., except those of pressing necessity. Expenditure of an unproductive nature occasioned by the war was necessarily continued for some time after the Armistice, but the end of the financial year 1919–20 may be fairly regarded as concluding this period. Although in the years immediately following the period 1914–15 to 1919–20 considerable sums were provided by loan-money for purposes directly arising out of the war, yet the bulk of such money was expended in undertakings in the nature of investments, and so should not be regarded as partaking of the nature of unproductive war expenditure.

The gross indebtedness at the 31st March, 1891, 1914, 1920, and 1929, with the increase between these dates, is as follows:—

	£
* Excluding £4,976,600 raised In March, 1914, for redemptions early in 1914–15.
At 31st March, 1891	38,830,350
Increase to 31st March, 1914	55,923,477^*
At 31st March, 1914	94,753,827^*
Increase to 31st March, 1920	106,416,928
At 31st March, 1920	201,170,755
Increase to 31st March, 1929	63,021,228
At 31st March, 1929	£264,191,983

NATURE OF PUBLIC-DEBT EXPENDITURE.

A summary of the gross public indebtedness as at 31st March, 1929, grouped in broadly defined classes, is given below. Much of the money borrowed is obtained for specific purposes, and can be accurately placed in one or other of the classes shown. On the other hand, however, general public-works loans are obtained to cover the cost of a number of undertakings ranging from railways (directly productive) to public buildings (unproductive). As the Public Works Fund receives from time to time transfers from the Consolidated Fund, and as no distinction is made between expenditure out of revenue and expenditure out of loan, it is necessary to allocate the loan-money over the various items according to the total expenditure on each. The result is accurate enough for practical purposes.

As indicated in a footnote to a preceding table, £5,379,105 of the debt as at 31st March, 1929, was raised in January, 1929, to meet loan expenditure in 1929–30 in view of considerable conversion operations being due in 1929–30. This £5,379,105 was part of a loan of £7,000,000 (£1,500,000 for railways improvement, £1,000,000 for electric-power works, and the balance for general public works), part of the proceeds of which, however, was not received till 2nd April, 1929. It is impossible to fully allocate at this stage the £5,379,105 received before 31st March, and in the statement the whole amount is shown unallocated.

ALLOCATION OF GROSS PUBLIC INDEBTEDNESS AT 31ST MARCH, 1929.

Class of Undertaking.	Gross Indebtedness at 31st March, 1929.
Productive Works.	£
Railways	56,330,079
Telegraphs and telephones	9,179,697
Hydro-electric power	8,390,819
Lighthouses and harbour-works	1,154,089
Westport Harbour	700,000
State coal-mines	162,601
Tourist resorts	478,153
Swamp-drainage	571,000
Rangitaiki land-drainage	500,000
Total	77,466,438
Land-settlement and Forests.	£
Cheviot Estate	160,918
Land for settlements	8,168,966
Discharged soldiers settlement	8,287,656
Hauraki Plains settlement	775,000
Purchase of Native lands	1,916,936
Native-land settlement	4,113,082
State forests	916,171
Total	24,338,729
Investments.
Advances to settlers	20,321,690
Advances to workers	10,423,023
Advances to local authorities	2,790,293
Loans to local bodies	3,550,718
Samoan loan	124,000
Bank of New Zealand shares	875,000
Mining advances	49,050
Fruit-preserving industry advances	58,590
Cold-storage advances	73,720
General purposes relief advances	70,000
Fishing industry promotion advances	3,475
Kauri-gum industry	75,000
Housing and loans for workers' dwellings	396,795
Nauru and Ocean Islands	522,120
Total	39,333,474
Indirectly Productive Purposes.
Highways, roads, and bridges	18,395,183
Old provincial liabilities (mostly roads and bridges)	878,739
Irrigation, land and river improvement	1,958,430
Development of mining	809,068
Immigration	2,964,081
Total	25,005,501
Financially Unproductive Purposes.
Public buildings, including schools	13,118,907
Defence and Maori Wars	4,757,654
Naval defence	1,481,805
Great European War	70,881,270
Revenue deficiencies	2,419,050
Loans-redemption expenses (unallocated)	10,050
Total	92,668,736
Raised for Expenditure in 1929–30.
Loan raised in January, 1929, for expenditure in 1929–30	5,379,105
Grand total	264,191,983

The proportion of the total debt (excluding that raised in advance for 1929–30), represented by the five main divisions shown above is as follows:—

	Per Cent.
Productive works	29.93
Land-settlement and forests	9.40
Investments	15.20
Indirectly productive purposes	9.66
Financially unproductive purposes	35.81
Total	100.00

The directly interest-earning portion of the debt as at 31st March, 1929, amounts to 54.53 per cent. of the total debt, and is represented by assets which are of much greater value than the amount of borrowed money spent upon them, a considerable amount of surplus ordinary revenue, as well as other moneys of the nature of special receipts, having been expended from time to time on railways and other public services.

While expenditure on public buildings is, properly speaking, unproductive, the debt on this account is represented by valuable assets, as is also the case with the education loans.

At the 31st March, 1914, the financially unproductive and unclassified debt represented only about 20 per cent. of the total public debt; but during the six years ended 31st March, 1920, war indebtedness aggregating £80,089,025 was responsible for approximately 75 per cent. of the debt incurred during this period being of an unproductive nature. Additional indebtedness on account of war expenditure was incurred during the next two years, the total war loans raised aggregating £82,245,673; but the end of the financial year 1919–20 saw the cessation of expenditure on a huge scale on this account, the moneys borrowed since then having been principally directed towards public works of a reproductive nature and to investments. The war debt has been reduced by over 11 millions, and now stands at £70,881,270.

MOVEMENT IN PUBLIC DEBT DURING 1928–29.

Including the amount of £5,379,105 raised in advance for expenditure in 1929–30, new loan-money aggregating £16,029,855 was raised during 1928–29 for the following purposes:—

	£
Consolidated Fund	14,507
Public Works Fund—
General Purposes Account	7,428,564
Electric Supply Account	2,025,353
Waihou and Ohinemuri Rivers Improvement Account	60,000
Education Loans Account	352,000
Hauraki Plains Account	35,000
Main Highways Account	230,000
Railways Improvement Account	2,569,575
Rangitaiki Land Drainage Account	8,000
State Forests Account	200,000
Swamp Land Drainage Account	35,000
State Advances Account	3,067,910
For redemptions in 1929–30	3,946
Total	£16,029,855

Loans paid off during the year aggregated £3,234,124, the redemption-moneys coming from the following sources:—

	£
Public Debt Repayment Account	1,041,871
Consolidated Fund (for funded debt)	386,224
Surplus moneys of Consolidated Fund	50
Reparation-moneys	367,803
Discharged Soldiers Settlement Account	680,250
Discharged Soldiers Settlement Loans Act 1920 Depreciation Fund	1,100
Land for Settlements Account (Discharged Soldiers Settlement)	45,000
State Coal-mines Sinking Fund Account	65,000
Sinking funds applied through Loans Redemption Account	607,966
Funds from Samoan Treasury	8,000
Miscellaneous	6,234
Raised for redemptions, 1927–28	19,750
Discount on securities redeemed below par	4,876
Total	£3,234,124

Allocating the various increases and decreases over the classes and headings used in discussing the total public debt, the following distribution is arrived at:—

Class of Undertaking.	Increase.	Decrease.
Productive Works.	£	£
Railways	3,025,584	..
Telegraphs and telephones	636,802	..
Hydro-electric power	1,256,910	..
Lighthouses and harbour-works	24,470	..
Westport Harbour	..	100
State coal-mines	..	65,000
Tourist resorts	39,257	..
Swamp-drainage	35,000	..
Rangitaiki land-drainage	8,000	..
Total	4,960,923	..
Land-settlement and Forests.
Land for settlements	..	415,215
Discharged soldiers settlement	..	726,350
Hauraki Plains settlement	35,000	..
Purchase of Native lands	14,639	..
Native-land settlement	218,600	..
State forests	200,000	..
Total	..	673,326
Investments.
Advances to settlers	978,910	..
Advances to workers	1,474,130	..
Samoan loan	..	8,000
Total	2,445,040	..
Indirectly Productive Purposes.
Highways, roads, and bridges	1,319,796	..
Irrigation, land and river improvement	197,527	..
Development of mining	6,261	..
Immigration	68,567	..
Total	1,592,151	..
Financially Unproductive Purposes.
Public buildings, including schools	619,089	..
Defence and Maori Wars	70,937	..
Naval defence	..	24,775
Great European War	..	1,089,366
Revenue deficiencies	..	484,047
Total	..	908,162
Raised for Expenditure in 1929–30.
Total	5,379,105	..
Grand total	12,795,731	..

STATE ASSETS.

In spite of the fact that of the total indebtedness of 264 millions of pounds at the 31st March, 1929, no less than 79 1/2 millions had been incurred for purposes which not only were unproductive but were not represented by assets of any kind, and a further 5 millions had not been expended, yet, even on the conservative basis adopted by the Treasury, the following statement shows that the State assets which may be set against the public debt exceed the total gross indebtedness by 10 1/2 millions. Stores and supplies on hand are not included in the assets.

STATE ASSETS AT 31ST MARCH, 1929.

Cash and investments—	£	£
Cash in Public Account or in hands of officers (less liabilities)	861,578
Investment of cash balances	10,112,316
Reserve Fund (securities at cost)	1,928,162
Post Office Savings-bank Reserve Fund	1,000,000
Bank of New Zealand shares (nominal value)	2,109,375
Public Debt Redemption Fund	22,075,645
		38,087,076
Sinking funds accrued		2,156,561
Loans and advances outstanding		39,997,509
Lands and forests		71,090,286
Revenue-earning and trading operations—
Railways (capital cost, including assets taken over from provinces)	62,276,214
Telephones and telegraphs (value of assets)	9,119,417
Pacific cable (estimated value of Dominion's interest)	57,000
Electric-power supply and development (capital cost)	8,467,151
Westport Harbour works (value of assets)	497,774
Lighthouses and harbour-works (capital expenditure)	1,266,276
Tourist and health resorts (capital expenditure)	514,179
State coal-mines (value of assets)	324,073
Kauri-gum (trading capital)	39,208
Nauru and Ocean Islands (purchase-price of rights)	565,040
	83,126,332
Public buildings (including school buildings)		14,100,094
Roads		21,986,770
Sawmills and quarries		5,504
Development of mining (capital expenditure)		881,585
Immigration (capital expenditure)		3,234,549
Total		£274,666,266

DOMICILE OF DEBT.

Until comparatively recent years the large proportion of the productive power of the Dominion diverted to the construction of railways, roads, &c., and engaged in the preparation of land for farming necessitated the borrowing of capital from abroad; but of late the accumulation of savings, chiefly of small sums deposited in the savings-banks, has enabled the Government to raise considerable amounts from time to time locally. This was more particularly the case in connection with war loans, some 55 millions of pounds of which were raised in the Dominion. Since the war the tendency has been to go to the London market again.

Between the 31st March, 1914, and the corresponding date in 1929 the amount of New Zealand's public debt domiciled in London increased from 78 1/2 to over 149 millions, while that domiciled in New Zealand increased from 17 to 110 1/2 millions. The amount raised in Australia is negligible. The following table shows, of the total amount outstanding in each of the last ten years, the amount domiciled in London, Australia, and New Zealand:—

PUBLIC DEBT: WHERE DOMICILED.

At 31st March,	Amount.			Percentage of Total.
At 31st March,	London.	Australia.	New Zealand.	London.	Australia.	New Zealand.
	£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1920	95,708,329	3,385,650	102,076,776	47.58	1.68	50.74
1921	99,691,515	1,655,450	104,977,354	48.32	0.80	50.88
1922	105,919,159	2,287,440	110,847,786	48.35	1.05	50.60
1923	110,668,268	2,159,490	106,125,566	50.54	0.99	48.47
1924	114,876,893	2,106,600	104,632,868	51.84	0.95	47.21
1925	120,818,487	2,952,200	104,043,960	53.03	1.30	45.67
1926	128,047,659	3,643,100	107,164,719	53.61	1.52	44.87
1927	132,512,805	4,042,450	109,295,634	53.90	1.64	44.46
1928	139,756,973	4,163,850	107,470,429	55.59	1.66	42.75
1929	149,346,244	4,168,350	110,677,389	56.63	1.58	41.89

DATES OF MATURITY OF LOANS.

A summary of the loans outstanding on the 31st March, 1929, showing the amounts falling due in each financial year, is given.

Due Date: Year ending 31st March,	Amount, £
* Unpresented. † Repayable by annual instalments—the whole amount should be paid off by 31st March, 1959.
1921	115^*
1925	15^*
1928	7,350^*
1930	23,931,461
1931	21,639,186
1932	7,011,056
1933	5,461,843
1934	19,698,665
1935	1,330,000
1936	4,965,360
1937	674,690
1938	3,000
1939	22,047,129
1940	24,956,831
1941	514,165
1942	5,288,550
1943	4,000,000
1944	7,362,000
1945	7,788,065
1946	29,784,815
1948	12,161,347
1949	1,923,600
1950	1,106,500
1951	3,002,500
1952	5,899,000
1958	17,607,093
1963	10,884,629
Funded debt	25,153,018^†
Total	£264,191,983

The amounts of loan-money that have matured or will mature during the current financial year, with the months when due, are as follows:—

Due Date.	£
* Unpresented.
1920, December	115^*
1925, December	15^*
1927, August	150^*
1927. November	7,200^*
1929, April	2,015,100
1929, May	289,000
1929, June	2,819,930
1929, July	100,510
1929, August.	5,970
1929, September	41,670
1929, October	137,690
1929, November	11,796,906
1929, December	1,237,700
1930, January	153,350
1930, February	4,169,735
1930, March	1,163,900

PRICES OF NEW ZEALAND STOCK.

The highest and lowest London prices for the principal New Zealand stocks, taken over a range of five years, are quoted.

QUOTATIONS, NEW ZEALAND STOCK.

Rate per Cent.	Maturing.	Highest.					Lowest.
Rate per Cent.	Maturing.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
3	1,945	77 5/8	78	77 1/2	79	80 3/8	73	74	74 1/2	75 5/8	78 1/4
3 1/2	1,940	86 1/2	85 7/8	86 3/8	87 15/16	89 1/4	80 3/8	82	83 1/2	85	86 3/4
4	1,929	97	97 25/32	97 3/4	99 1/2	100 9/16	93 3/4	94 1/4	94 5/8	97	98
4	1933–43	91 3/4	91 1/8	90	91 1/16	92 3/4	86	85	87 1/2	87 7/8	89 7/8
4	1943–63	91 7/8	89 3/4	86 3/4	88	89 1/2	82 1/4	84	84 1/2	84 1/4	85 3/4
4 1/2	1,944	98 1/2	98 3/8	96 1/2	97 3/4	98 1/4	95 3/8	94 1/4	94	94 3/4	95 1/8
4 1/2	1,945	..	95 1/4	96 3/8	97 3/4	98 1/8	..	92 3/8	93 7/8	94 5/8	95 3/4
4 1/2	1,947	..	..	..	..	98 7/8	..	..	..	..	96
5	1935–45	104 1/2	103 1/2	103 1/4	102 7/8	103 7/8	99 1/2	99 1/4	99	99 3/8	100
5	1,946	..	..	102 1/2	103 3/4	105 1/3	..	..	100	99 3/4	101 3/8
6	1936–51	111	110 5/8	109 1/8	109 1/4	109	105 1/2	105 5/8	105 3/4	106	106 1/4

INTEREST.

Of the total amount of public debt outstanding at the end of March, 1929, only £30,225,423, or 11 1/2 per cent. of the total, bears interest at a lower rate than 4 per cent., as against 48 per cent. of the total at 31st March, 1914. Four per cent. is payable on £65,196,667, 4 1/2 per cent. on £89,617,617, and 5 per cent. on £21,454,897, while a rate of £4 19s. 5.88d. per cent. is payable on the funded debt of £25,153,018. A higher rate than 5 per cent. is payable on £32,536,881. The following are the rates of interest payable on the whole public debt:—

Rate of Interest.	Amount at each Rate.
* Including £25,153,018 at £4 19s. 5.88d. per cent.
	£
6 per cent.	6,602,841
5 1/2 per cent.	12,617,320
5 1/4 per cent.	12,633,030
5 1/8 per cent.	683,690
5 per cent.	46,607,915^*
4 1/2 per cent.	89,617,617
4 per cent.	65,196,667
3 3/4 per cent.	792,500
3 1/2 per cent.	19,770,132
3 per cent.	9,662,791
Unpresented	7,480
Total	£264,191,983

The total annual amount of interest payable on the public debt as at 31st March, 1929 (including £1,466 payable direct from the Native Land Settlement Account), is £11,759,612, which gives an average rate of £4 9s. per £100 (exclusive of unpresented debentures), an average 11d. higher than that for the previous year. The amount of interest payable in New Zealand is £4,791,793, in London £6,698,389, and in Australia £269,430.

It should be understood that the foregoing relates to the interest payable on the debt outstanding at the various rates specified, and does not represent the payments made during the financial year, nor are sinking-fund charges included.

The actual net interest payments during the last twenty years out of the Consolidated Fund Ordinary Revenue Account are shown in the following table together with the rate per head of mean population:—

NET INTEREST PAYMENTS FROM CONSOLIDATED FUND, 1909–10 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Amount.	Rate per Head.
	£	£	s.	d.
1910	2,302,338	2	4	11
1911	2,404,348	2	6	0
1912	2,457,952	2	5	10
1913	2,514,256	2	5	10
1914	2,665,656	2	7	4
1915	2,823,878	2	9	4
1916	2,933,762	2	11	0
1917	3,705,961	3	4	6
1918	3,936,080	3	8	4
1919	5,409,210	4	12	9
1920	6,352,344	5	5	2
1921	6,807,217	5	8	8
1922	7,390,864	5	15	0
1923	7,904,260	6	0	7
1924	7,877,597	5	18	1
1925	7,865,262	5	15	8
1926	8,129,799	5	16	10
1927	8,450,794	5	19	0
1928	8,397,074	5	15	6
1929	8,675,220	5	18	10

The above amounts are net payments out of the Consolidated Fund only, and do not comprise the whole of the interest payments in respect of moneys raised by way of loans. For loans raised for the purposes of State advances to settlers, workers, local authorities, &c., and under the Land for Settlements Act, the interest, although made a charge upon the Consolidated Fund, is recovered from the receipts derived from the leasing of the lands or from interest paid by borrowers. Other loan-money coming within the same category is that raised for State coal-mines, the development of water-power, Native-land settlement, the purchase of the Cheviot Estate, the Rangitaiki land-drainage, the Hauraki Plains settlement, the Waihou and Ohinemuri Rivers improvement, and a number of other purposes.

Such interest does not become a burden upon the taxpayer, and consequently is not included in the figures upon which the rate per head of mean population is calculated.

The gross interest charges borne by the Consolidated Fund during the year ended 31st March, 1929, totalled £11,339,569, of which £2,664,349 was recovered from other accounts, &c. In addition there should be sot off against the interest charges certain amounts shown in the public accounts not as recoveries but as revenue. These are interest on railway capital liability (£2,331,335, or, after deduction of subsidy on branch lines, &c., £1,834,756), interest on post and telegraph capital liability (£428,000), and interest earned on the investment of public moneys (£760,035).

AMORTIZATION OF DEBT.

INTRODUCTORY.

The provision of sinking funds for the repayment of loans dates back to the flotation of the first New Zealand loan (£500,000) in 1856, a sinking fund of 2 per cent. per annum being provided for the repayment of this loan. The sinking-fund principle was followed for all subsequent loans up to 1870, at which date the total public debt of the colony was £7,556,216, of which £3,208,350 represented Provincial Government indebtedness. The ultimate redemption of the whole £7,556,216 was provided for by sinking funds—part at 2 per cent. and the balance at 1 per cent.

The practice of instituting a sinking fund in connection with each loan issued was abandoned in 1870, although sinking-fund payments continued to be made in respect of earlier loans. Legislation was passed in 1877, and again in 1884, with a view to the release of the sinking funds, this object being achieved to a large extent by converting old loans into inscribed stock. In 1884, also, it was provided that the payments to sinking fund would in effect be made by the sale of debentures, which were to be redeemed out of the additions to sinking funds as these became released through conversions.

The abandonment of the sinking-fund policy in 1870 was due to a feeling that sinking funds were unnecessary for the redemption of moneys expended on public works, the value of which in themselves would in the course of thirty or forty years be immensely greater than the amount of money put into them, without taking count of the wealth created through the public works. Gradually this view was modified, and it was recognized that the argument did not at least apply to dead-weight debt. Consequently, in 1906 a special sinking fund for the repayment of Maori War and defence loans was instituted, and under the Naval Defence Act, 1909, a sinking fund was provided for to pay off the loan raised to meet the cost of H.M.S. “New Zealand.”

In 1906, also, sinking funds were instituted in respect of loans raised for State advances to settlers and workers. These sinking funds might more correctly be termed “internal reserve funds,” the accumulations being immediately converted into capital, although kept apart in the accounts. Originally the sinking-fund payment provided for was to be 10 per cent. of the interest received on advances, but later on it was fixed at 1 per cent. of the loan liability, the 1 per cent. sinking-fund payment giving place in 1922 to a provision that any profits remaining after the constitution of a general reserve fund were to be paid into sinking fund.

By 1910 it was felt that the repayment of the whole debt should be provided for, and a scheme making provision to repay the existing public debt, with application to future borrowings also, was embodied in the Public Debt Extinction Act, 1910. Under this Act, payment was made to the sinking fund each year of an amount which, if invested at the net rate earned by the fund during the preceding triennium, would automatically wipe out the whole of the public debt, as at the end of the preceding financial year, for which no special sinking-fund arrangements were made. The Public Debt Extinction Act was superseded in 1925 by the Repayment of the Public Debt Act, 1925, which is referred to in detail below. At the 31st March, 1910, approximately £63,000,000 of the total gross indebtedness of £74,890,645 was not provided with a sinking fund or an internal reserve for its repayment.

Subsequent to the coming into operation of the public-debt-extinction scheme, special sinking funds were provided in respect of certain loans, the most important of which were the loans raised to meet the expenses of the Great War. Other loans which had special sinking-fund provisions included those raised in connection with land for settlement, Native-land settlement, Hauraki Plains settlement, Rangitaiki land-drainage, State coal-mines, electric supply, advances to Samoan Treasury, and purchase of phosphate rights in Nauru and Ocean Islands. The sinking funds in connection with the Westport Harbour loans, which were taken over by the Government, were also kept separate from the Public Debt Extinction Fund. With certain exceptions, mentioned farther on, these sinking funds now form part of the Public Debt Redemption Fund.

PUBLIC DEBT REPAYMENT.

The Repayment of the Public Debt Act, 1925, which repealed the Public Debt Extinction Act, 1910, substituted for the long-term sinking-fund system a method whereby the Dominion's debt-reduction resources may be available to purchase and cancel Government securities as the market price is advantageous, or pay them off at maturity, and so ensure an actual reduction in the public debt annually. For this purpose there is issued annually out of the Consolidated Fund a sum equal to 1/2 per cent. of the debt affected as at the 31st March, plus 1/2 per cent. of the total amount previously repaid or redeemed under the provisions of the Act. To this is added a sum equal to interest at 3 1/2 per cent. per annum on the debt paid off under the scheme. By this means the bulk of the savings in interest on debt paid off is applied to further repayments of debt, and the debt existing at the commencement of the scheme will be liquidated in about sixty years, while all future loans will be liquidated within a similar period from the date of their inception.

Under the Act of 1925 a capital fund termed “The Public Debt Redemption Fund” was created, consisting of (1) the accumulations of sinking funds, amounting to £11,225,645 (leaving aside the State Advances, Westport Harbour, and other special sinking funds); (2) the amount advanced out of surplus revenue for discharged soldiers settlement, originally £13,500,000, but since reduced to £10,850,000 through amounts having been written off as a result of the revaluation of the properties of discharged soldiers. The earnings from this fund of £22,075,645 are credited to the Consolidated Fund and applied towards meeting the charge against that fund created by the Act.

The Act does not apply to the whole of the public debt, the following classes being specifically excluded:—

Moneys borrowed on the security of Treasury bills issued under section 41 of the Public Revenues Act, 1926.
Moneys borrowed in respect of the Advances to Settlers, Advances to Workers, and Advances to Local Authorities Branches of the State Advances Office.
Moneys borrowed in respect of the State Coal-mines, Electric Supply, Nauru and Ocean Islands, and Westport Harbour Accounts.
Moneys borrowed under the New Zealand Loan Act, 1863.
Loans funded by agreement with the Imperial Government under the authority of section 8 of the Finance Act, 1922.
Moneys borrowed under the authority of section 26 of the Finance Act, 1921–22, or section 4 of the Finance Act, 1925 (for loans to Samoan Administration).

Of the total gross indebtedness of £227,814,647 at the 31st March, 1925, £174,128,135 was subject to the operations of the Repayment of the Public Debt Act, 1925. The corresponding figure at the 31st March, 1929, was £194,835,974, the portion of the public debt excluded from the provisions of the Act being at that date—

	£
Advances to settlers	20,321,691
Advances to workers	10,423,023
Advances to local authorities	2,790,293
State coal-mines	162,601
Electric supply	9,159,263
Nauru and Ocean Islands	522,120
Westport Harbour	700,000
Funded debt	25,153,018
Samoan loan	124,000
Total	£69,356,009

To the 3lst March, 1929, securities of a nominal value of £3,877,564 had been redeemed under the operation of the Repayment of the Public Debt Act. These transactions have effected an annual saving of interest to the Consolidated Fund amounting to £46,782, the difference between the rate formerly payable on the securities redeemed and the rate of 3 1/2 per cent. now payable to the Public Debt Repayment Account in respect of these securities. The following table shows the rate of interest that was payable on securities redeemed to 31st March, 1929:—

Rate of Interest.	Nominal Value of Securities redeemed.	Cost of Redemptions.	Annual Saving of Interest.
Per Cent.	£	£	£
4	1,254,054	1,242,366	6,270
4 1/2	880,850	865,472	8,809
5	954,000	953,446	14,310
5 1/4	300,500	300,483	5,259
5 1/2	13,900	13,900	278
6	474,260	474,260	11,856
Totals	3,877,564	3,849,927	46,782

As pointed out earlier in this subsection, the funds in the Public Debt Repayment Account are not the only source from which debt-redemptions are made.

The next table shows the operations of the Public Debt Repayment Account during each of the four years of its existence, together with the interest earnings of the Redemption Fund:—

Year ended 31st March,	Interest on Redemption Fund (paid to Consolidated Fund).	Transfers from Consolidated Fund.				Utilized to redeem and cancel Securities.	Nominal Value of Securities redeemed and cancelled.
		1/2 per Cent. of Debt at Beginning of Year or redeemed under Act.	3 1/2 per Cent. of Debt redeemed.		Total
			Prior to Beginning of Year.	During Year.^*	Total
* Computed from dates of redemption.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1926	897,756	870,641	..	2,093	872,734	870,637	889,733
1927	863,942	896,651	31,141	13,737	941,529	939,231	942,020
1928	878,408	919,727	64,111	9,926	993,764	998,188	999,811
1929	995,202	944,454	99,105	3,369	1,046,928	1,041,871	1,046,000

AMORTIZATION OF FUNDED DEBT.

At the 31st March, 1922, £27,532,164 of New Zealand's public debt was owing to the British Government, all but £1,191,919 of this being on account of war expenditure.

Section 8 of the Finance Act, 1922, authorized the Minister of Finance to arrange with the Imperial Government for the funding of this debt, and arrangements were accordingly made, and were embodied in a memorandum of agreement dated the 6th September, 1922.

The funding was carried out on an annuity basis of 6 per cent., the total payment each year being £1,651,930. Interest is at the rate of £4 19s. 5.88d. per cent., the balance of the 6 per cent. going to reduction of the debt.

The first half-yearly payment of £825,965 was made to the British Government on the 1st December, 1922. The division between interest and principal in the payments made during each year has been as follows:—

Year ended 31st March,	Interest.	Principal.	Balance of Debt outstanding.
* Half-year only. † Including £200,000 additional, paid off Naval Defence loan.
	£	£	£
1923^*	684,794	141,171	27,390,993
1924	1,358,966	292,964	27,098,029
1925	1,344,212	507,718^†	26,590,311
1926	1,318,641	333,289	26,257,022
1927	1,301,856	350,074	25,906,948
1928	1,284,224	367,706	25,539,242
1929	1,265,706	386,224	25,153,018

Under the agreement the original amount of £27,532,164 will be automatically discharged from the public debt by the end of the financial year 1958–59. The amount payable for amortization will gradually increase each year as the interest-payment reduces on the lessening debt. For 1929–30 £405,676 of the amount payable will be in reduction of the debt as compared with £292,964 in 1923–24, interest payable annually having already been reduced by over £100,000. An important condition of the agreement with the British Government is that the whole or any part of the funded debt may be redeemed at any time. This condition was taken advantage of when on let December, 1924, £200,000 was paid off the Naval Defence loan.

Particulars of the funded debt, with amounts repaid to 31st March, 1929, and the annual charges on account of interest and repayment, are as follows:—

PUBLIC DEBT FUNDED IN TERMS OF FINANCE ACT, 1922, SECTION 8.

—	Amount of Debt funded.	Total Debt repaid to 31st March, 1929.	Annual Charge, 1929–30.
—	Amount of Debt funded.	Total Debt repaid to 31st March, 1929.	Interest.	Repayment of Debt.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£
Public Revenues Amendment Act, 1914, section 8 (war expenses)	2,067,411	160,372	94,503	29,542	124,045
Public Revenues Amendment Act, 1915, section 5 (war expenses)	8,105,992	628,793	370,530	115,830	486,360
Finance Act, 1916, section 35 (war expenses)	4,736,842	367,443	216,524	67,687	284,211
War Purposes Loans Act, 1917	4,830,000	374,670	220,783	69,017	289,800
Finance Act, 1918, section 10 (war expenses)	6,600,000	511,971	301,691	94,309	396,000
Naval Defence Act, 1909	963,131	318,149	31,765	26,022	57,787
Aid to Public Works and Land Settlement Act, 1910	191,010	14,817	8,731	2,729	11,460
Land for Settlements Act, 1908	37,778	2,931	1,727	540	2,267
Totals	27,532,164	2,379,146	1,246,254	405,676	1,651,930

The provisions of the Repayment of the Public Debt Act, 1925, do not apply to the funded debt.

AMORTIZATION PAYMENTS.

The following table shows the net amounts actually paid out of the Consolidated Fund Ordinary Revenue Account under appropriation in respect of debt-amortization charges during each of the last ten years. Redemptions of loans out of surplus revenue are not included.

NET AMORTIZATION CHARGES PAID OUT OF CONSOLIDATED FUND, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Payments to Sinking Fund.	Payments in Reduction of Funded Debt.	Payments to Public Debt Repayment Account.	Total.
	£	£	£	£
1920	897,082	..	..	897,082
1921	1,026,171	..	..	1,026,171
1922	1,051,414	..	..	1,051,414
1923	854,526	141,171	..	995,697
1924	711,709	292,571	..	1,004,280
1925	690,076	307,306	..	997,382
1926	7,000	332,632	872,734	1,212,366
1927	4,000	349,609	941,529	1,295,138
1928	Cr. 52	367,216	993,764	1,360,928
1929	2,882	385,711	1,046,928	1,435,521

As stated previously, interest from the Public Debt Redemption Fund is paid to the Consolidated Fund to assist in meeting the charges under the third head in the foregoing table.

ACCRUED SINKING FUNDS.

The passing of the Repayment of the Public Debt Act, 1925, has robbed the comparative figures of accrued sinking funds of much of their significance. The following table is nevertheless of interest, as showing the growth of the sinking funds up to the date of the alteration of the system:—

ACCRUED SINKING FUNDS, 1909–10 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Accrued Sinking Funds.
Year ended 31st March,	Amount.	Proportion of Gross Debt.
	£	Per Cent.
1910	1,503,225	2.07
1911	1,754,486	2.16
1912	2,160,603	2.56
1913	2,603,642	2.89
1914	3,063,992	3.07
1915	3,178,055	3.18
1916	3,679,964	3.36
1917	4,263,590	3.28
1918	4,971,605	3.30
1919	5,951,056	3.38
1920	7,257,564	3.61
1921	8,763,072	4.25
1922	10,655,394	4.86
1923	11,879,256	5.43
1924	12,974,028	5.85
1925	13,462,839	5.91
1926	2,274,262	0.95
1927	2,443,540	0.99
1928	2,635,766	1.05
1929	2,156,561	0.82

Payments to sinking funds during the year ended 31st March, 1929, totalled £72,087, while the funds earned £121,774 by way of interest. Some £673,066 of the sinking-fund holdings was utilized for the redemption of debentures during the year.

It is interesting to compare, as in the following table, the individual sinking funds at the 31st March, 1910 (prior to the introduction of the Extinction Fund scheme), at 31st March, 1925 (prior to the substitution of the Redemption Fund scheme), and at the 31st March, 1929.

—	At 31st March, 1910.	At 31st March, 1925.	At 31st March. 1929.
	£	£	£
Canterbury Loan Ordinance, 1862	20,596	..	..
New Zealand Loan Act, 1863	215,051	2,207	..
Government loans to local bodies	753,209	799,601	..
War and defence loans	168,109	192,691	..
State advances to settlers	101,628	1,555,087	1,539,273
State advances to workers	7,838	67,117	71,682
State advances to local authorities	4,000	308,980	164,228
Naval Defence Act, 1909	..	876,380	..
War loans (1914–18)	..	4,898,934	..
Land for settlements	232,794	1,179,732	..
Native-land settlement	..	11,977	..
Guaranteed mining advances	..	877	..
Hauraki Plains settlement	..	2,176	..
Opening up Crown lands for settlement	..	3,416	..
Rangitaiki land-drainage	..	904	..
Public Debt Extinction Act, 1910	..	3,311,144	..
State coal-mines	..	41,669	4,854
Nauru and Ocean Islands	..	13,539	10,022
Samoan loan	..	3,070	12,146
Westport Harbour loans	..	181,230	238,502
Electric supply	..	12,108	115,854
Totals	1,503,225	13,462,839	2,156,561

NET INDEBTEDNESS.

While the sinking funds were annually increasing it was customary to regard the net-indebtedness figures as giving the best comparison between one year and another. The initiation of the new system of amortization has, however, destroyed the comparison on this basis, and the gross figures now afford a better and more comparable index.

The figures of net indebtedness for the last twenty years are as follows:—

NET INDEBTEDNESS, 1909–10 TO 1928–29.

As at 31st March,	Amount.	Per Head of Population.
	£	£	s.	d.
1910	73,387,420	70	17	10
1911	79,323,636	75	2	0
1912	82,193,310	76	0	3
1913	87,457,121	78	13	7
1914	91,689,835	80	9	1
1915	96,644,455	84	0	3
1916	105,957,433	92	2	4
1917	125,572,515	109	2	1
1918	145,868,450	126	6	10
1919	170,125,204	144	7	5
1920	193,913,191	156	15	5
1921	197,561,222	155	17	4
1922	208,241,121	160	0	8
1923	207,024,048	156	4	2
1924	208,595,743	154	15	3
1925	214,287,128	155	6	9
1926	236,581,216	167	16	3
1927	243,407,349	169	5	5
1928	248,740,736	171	2	7
1929	256,652,371	174	10	4

In general the net indebtedness shown in the above table is merely the balance left after deducting the accrued sinking funds from the amount of debentures and stock in circulation. In some years, however, a further deduction has been made on account of loan-money, included in the gross indebtedness, having been raised towards the end of the financial year for the redemption of debentures falling due early in the succeeding financial year, or (in 1928–29) for expenditure in the next year. The years concerned and the amounts so deducted on this account are—

Year ended 31st March,	Amount.
	£
1914	4,976,600
1915	237,400
1921	25
1922	157,870
1923	50,020
1924	46,590
1925	64,680
1928	19,750
1929	5,383,051

In computing the net indebtedness no allowance is made for the fact that portion of the debt is actually held by the Government itself, securities to the value of £4,382,844 being held by Treasury accounts as at 31st March, 1929. In the course of the year's financial transactions securities are bought and sold by Treasury accounts, and the investments held as at 31st March in each year, while forming part of the debt, do not represent amounts due directly or indirectly to the public.

PUBLIC DEBT OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

Even when allowance is made for the fact that 121 millions of the debt of the Australian States as at 30th June, 1928, was owing to the Commonwealth, the rate of indebtedness per head in Australia at that date was slightly higher than the Dominion rate per head as at 31st March, 1928. If the Commonwealth figure, less the amount loaned to States, be added to that of each individual State it is found that of the six Australian States only New South Wales and Victoria have lower per-head rates of indebtedness than this Dominion.

In making comparisons between New Zealand and Australia it should be remembered that the Dominion's debt includes 33 1/2 millions raised for the purpose of State advances, which has no counterpart in the total for Australia, where savings-bank funds and other resources are utilized for advances. In addition to sinking funds, moreover, New Zealand has in the Public Debt Redemption Fund a capital set-off of 22 millions against the gross debt.

The following figures show the gross and net public debt of each State of the Australian Commonwealth and of the Commonwealth itself, on the 30th June, 1928, and of New Zealand on the 31st March, 1928:—

State.	Gross Indebtedness.	Accrued Sinking Funds.	Net Indebtedness.	Indebtedness per Head.
State.	Gross Indebtedness.	Accrued Sinking Funds.	Net Indebtedness.	Gross.			Net.
	£	£	£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
New South Wales	258,474,898	525,666	257,949,232	106	13	6	106	9	3
Victoria	157,283,470	6,070,017	151,213,453	89	18	1	86	8	9
Queensland	112,208,970	1,981,604	110,227,366	123	1	5	120	18	0
South Australia	92,223,165	261,177	91,961,988	159	12	6	159	3	5
Western Australia	77,172,906	8,899,080	68,273,826	193	1	6	170	16	3
Tasmania	24,826,560	1,409,830	23,416,730	117	19	4	111	5	4
Total, Australian States	722,189,969	19,147,374	703,042,595	114	18	4	111	17	5
Commonwealth	494,129,100	..	494,129,100	78	12	7	78	12	7
Total Commonwealth and States	1,216,319,069	19,147,374	1,197,171,695	193	10	11	190	10	0
Less advances by Commonwealth to States, &c.	121,345,011	..	121,345,011	19	6	2	19	6	2
Total for Australia	1,094,974,058	19,147,374	1,075,826,684	174	4	9	171	3	10
New Zealand	251,396,252	2,635,766	243,740,736	172	19	2	171	2	7

GENERAL AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT DEBT.

The statistics given throughout this subsection refer to the indebtedness of the General Government only, and do not include the debt of local governing authorities, which is dealt with in the section of this volume relating to local government.

Local governing authorities had at the 31st March, 1928, a gross indebtedness of £67,813,131, and if this amount be added to the gross debt of the General Government at the same date (£251,396,252) the aggregate becomes £319,209,383. From this total should be deducted £5,337,503 in respect of outstanding loans to local authorities from the State Advances Office, and £2,129,743 on account of inscribed debt under the Government Loans to Local Bodies Act, leaving £311,742,137 as the sum total of the public and semi-public debt as at the 31st March, 1928. This figure represents a rate of £214 9s. 6d. per head of population.

The figures relating to local authorities' indebtedness in the foregoing paragraph are inclusive of Hospital Boards, and to this extent differ from those given in the section on local government. Hospital Board indebtedness at 31st March, 1928, totalled £1,408,959, including £12,102 from the State Advances Office.

SUBSECTION D.—STATE ADVANCES.

INTRODUCTORY.

AS has been shown in Subsection C of this section, an appreciable proportion of the public debt of New Zealand is represented by money borrowed by the State not for its own requirements, but for the purpose of lending out at easy rates of interest for various defined purposes.

As early as 1892 the Government commenced the purchase of lands for cutting up for sale or lease to private individuals, and two years later the passing of the Advances to Settlers Act, 1894, marked the inauguration of a series of schemes for lending money to settlers, workers, &c., for the purchase of homes, the improvement of farms, and the development of resources and of industries. The schemes vary considerably in detail, but all lie in one of two main classes—those in which the money is advanced on security, and those on which the expenditure is incurred by the Government itself in the first place and recouped from sales or leases. Advances to settlers, workers, and discharged soldiers are the principal examples of the former class, and the purchase of land for settlements (including the settlement of discharged soldiers) is the principal of the latter.

Of the advances proper, several classes are administered by a separate Department known as the State Advances Department, and the accounts relating to these are not included in the public accounts, nor are they dealt with in Subsection A of this section. The various systems of advances administered by the State Advances Department are dealt with in detail in the present subsection, as is also the rural intermediate credits scheme. The system of advances to discharged soldiers for settlement purposes is dealt with in the section of this book dealing with land tenure and settlement, while particulars of advances for mining purposes are given in the section relating to mining.

ADVANCES TO SETTLERS.

The Advances to Settlors Office was established by an Act passed in 1894. An administrative officer called the Superintendent was appointed early in the following year, and a Board set up to advise and co-operate with the Superintendent. Advances can be granted only with the consent of the Board.

The capital fund was limited to £3,000,000, which was to be raised within two years after the passing of the Act at an annual rate of interest not higher than 4 per cent. The minimum advance was fixed at £25, and the maximum at £2,500 (now £3,500), repayable in thirty-six years and a half by half-yearly instalments of 3 per cent. on the amount borrowed.

The legislation has been amended at different times, and is now embodied in the State Advances Act, 1913, and its amendments. It authorizes the borrowing of moneys for the purpose of lending to settlers, workers, and local authorities. Each year there may be borrowed for advances to settlers £5,000,000, to workers £1,500,000, and to local authorities £5,000,000.

Money is advanced to settlers on first mortgage of lands and improvements held under the following classes of tenure, free from all encumbrances, liens, and interests other than leasehold interests:—

(a)
- Freehold land in fee-simple under the Land Transfer Act.
- Freehold land in fee-simple the title to which is registered under the Deeds Registration Act.
Crown land held on perpetual lease under the Land Act.
Crown land held under Part III or Part IV of the Land Act.
Crown land held on lease as a small grazing-run under the Land Act.
Crown land held on agricultural lease under the Mining Act.
Crown land held on lease (not being for mining purposes) under the Westland and Nelson Coalfields Administration Act.
Native land held on lease under the West Coast Settlement Reserves Act.
Land held on lease under the Westland and Nelson Native Reserves Act.
Land held under the Thermal Springs Districts Act.
Educational and other reserves held under leases administered by the Land Boards.
Crown land held by license on the deferred-payment system.
Land held under lease from a leasing authority as defined by the Public Bodies' Leasing-powers Act, or the Public Bodies' Leases Act, and providing for the payment by the incoming tenant of valuation for improvements made upon the land.
Land held under lease from a Maori Land Board under the Maori Land Settlement Act.
Crown lands held on lease for agricultural purposes under the Mining Districts Land Occupation Act, or Part VIII of the Land Act.
Crown lands held on license for residence-sites under the Mining Act.
Crown lands held on lease under section 45, Part III, of the Mining Act.
Maori lands which have been transferred in trust for leasing to and are held under leases from a Maori Land Board under the powers contained in the Native Land Act.
Land held under certain classes of lease granted by a Borough Council under the Municipal Corporations Act.
Land held under certain leases granted by the Wanganui River Trust.
Land held under lease granted by a leasing authority as defined by the Public Bodies' Leases Act, in any case where the lease is for any term not less than fourteen years, with a recurrent right of renewal for further terms of not less than fourteen years.
Crown land or settlement land held on lease or license under section 4 of the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Act.
Crown land held on lease or license for pastoral purposes under Part VI of the Land Act.

Loans can be granted only on the instalment system and for periods not exceeding thirty-six and a half years—

On all freeholds, up to three-fourths of the value of the security:
On leaseholds, up to three-fourths of the value of the lessee's interest in the lease.

Where an advance is required for the purpose of erecting a building, the amount of the loan granted by the Board may be advanced in progress-payments from time to time as the erection of the building proceeds. An inspection and report must be made by an officer of the Valuation Department prior to payment of any progress-payment on account of the loan, and for each such inspection a fee of 15s. is payable by the applicant.

No loan of less than £25 or more than £3,500 can be granted. Applications for loans not exceeding £500 have priority over applications for larger sums. If the applicant has already obtained any advance under the Act and is desirous of obtaining a further advance, the amount of the application, added to the amount of the advances already obtained, must not exceed £3,500. The property which the applicant offers as security for the loan must consist of one or more holdings of the several classes of tenure mentioned previously, and must, of course, be of the necessary value; and, if the property is leasehold, all the covenants and conditions of the lease, including the payment of rent, must have been regularly complied with.

All applications must be accompanied by a valuation fee according to the following scale:—

	£	s.	d.
Not exceeding £100	0	16	0
Exceeding £100 but not exceeding £250	1	11	6
Exceeding £250 but not exceeding £500	2	2	0
Exceeding £500 but not exceeding £3,500	2	12	6

Mortgages are repayable by half-yearly payments of principal and interest combined. They may also be wholly repaid at any time. Very low rates of interest were adopted at the inception of the scheme, the general rate up to the end of 1925 being 5 per cent., reducible to 4 1/2 per cent. for prompt payment. Owing to the increase in the rate at which the money has had to be borrowed by the Government a somewhat higher rate on new loans has now been imposed.

Interest on new loans is charged at the rate of 6 1/4 per cent., reducible to 5 3/4 per cent., save on advances authorized for the purpose of repaying mortgages, in which case the rate is 6 1/2 per cent., reducible to 6 per cent., provided that in each case payment is made not later than fourteen days after due date and no arrears in respect of instalments or other payments under the mortgage remain outstanding.

The following table shows, taking a loan of £100 at 6 1/4 per cent. as an instance, how much of each instalment is applied to repaying the principal, and how much is in payment of interest. It shows also the amount of rebate in respect of each instalment, and the balance of principal remaining due after payment of the respective instalments until the loan is entirely repaid.

TABLE OF PRESCRIBED HALF-YEARLY INSTALMENTS FOR EVERY ONE HUNDRED POUNDS OF THE LOAN AT 6 1/4 PER CENT.

Half-year.	Half-yearly Instalment.			Apportioned thus:						1/2 per Cent. Rebate of Interest.		Balance of Principal owing.
Half-year.	Half-yearly Instalment.			On Account of Interest at 6 1/4 per Cent.			On Account of Principal			1/2 per Cent. Rebate of Interest.		Balance of Principal owing.
Thirty-six-and-a-half-years Term.
	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
1	3	9	11	3	2	6	0	7	5	5	0	99	12	7
2	3	9	11	3	2	4	0	7	7	5	0	99	5	0
3	3	9	11	3	2	1	0	7	10	5	0	98	17	2
4	3	9	11	3	1	10	0	8	1	4	11	98	9	1
5	3	9	11	3	1	7	0	8	4	4	11	98	0	9
6	3	9	11	3	1	3	0	8	8	4	11	97	12	1
7	3	9	11	3	1	0	0	8	11	4	11	97	3	2
8	3	9	11	3	0	9	0	9	2	4	10	96	14	0
9	3	9	11	3	0	6	0	9	5	4	10	96	4	7
10	3	9	11	3	0	2	0	9	9	4	10	95	14	10
11	3	9	11	2	19	10	0	10	1	4	9	95	4	9
12	3	9	11	2	19	7	0	10	4	4	9	94	14	5
13	3	9	11	2	19	3	0	10	8	4	9	94	3	9
14	3	9	11	2	18	11	0	11	0	4	9	93	12	9
15	3	9	11	2	18	6	0	11	5	4	8	93	1	4
16	3	9	11	2	18	2	0	11	9	4	8	92	9	7
17	3	9	11	2	17	10	0	12	1	4	8	91	17	6
18	3	9	11	2	17	5	0	12	6	4	7	91	5	0
19	3	9	11	2	17	1	0	12	10	4	7	90	12	2
20	3	9	11	2	16	8	0	13	3	4	6	89	18	11
21	3	9	11	2	16	3	0	13	8	4	6	89	5	3
22	3	9	11	2	15	10	0	14	1	4	6	88	11	2
23	3	9	11	2	15	4	0	14	7	4	5	87	16	7
24	3	9	11	2	14	11	0	15	0	4	5	87	1	7
25	3	9	11	2	14	5	0	15	6	4	4	86	6	1
26	3	9	11	2	14	0	0	15	11	4	4	85	10	2
27	3	9	11	2	13	6	0	16	5	4	3	84	13	9
28	3	9	11	2	12	11	0	17	0	4	3	83	16	9
29	3	9	11	2	12	5	0	17	6	4	2	82	19	3
30	3	9	11	2	11	10	0	18	1	4	2	82	1	2
31	3	9	11	2	11	4	0	18	7	4	1	81	2	7
32	3	9	11	2	10	9	0	19	2	4	1	80	3	5
33	3	9	11	2	10	1	0	19	10	4	0	79	3	7
34	3	9	11	2	9	6	1	0	5	4	0	78	3	2
35	3	9	11	2	8	10	1	1	1	3	11	77	2	1
36	3	9	11	2	8	3	1	1	8	3	10	76	0	5
37	3	9	11	2	7	6	1	2	5	3	10	74	18	0
38	3	9	11	2	6	10	1	3	1	3	9	73	14	11
39	3	9	11	2	6	1	1	3	10	3	8	72	11	1
40	3	9	11	2	5	4	1	4	7	3	8	71	6	6
41	3	9	11	2	4	7	1	5	4	3	7	70	1	2
42	3	9	11	2	3	10	1	6	1	3	6	68	15	1
43	3	9	11	2	3	0	1	6	11	3	5	67	8	2
44	3	9	11	2	2	2	1	7	9	3	4	66	0	5
45	3	9	11	2	1	3	1	8	8	3	4	64	11	9
46	3	9	11	2	0	5	1	9	6	3	3	63	2	3
47	3	9	11	1	19	6	1	10	5	3	2	61	11	10
48	3	9	11	1	18	6	1	11	5	3	1	60	0	5
49	3	9	11	1	17	6	1	12	5	3	0	58	8	0
50	3	9	11	1	16	6	1	13	5	2	11	56	14	7
51	3	9	11	1	15	6	1	14	5	2	10	55	0	2
52	3	9	11	1	14	5	1	15	6	2	9	53	4	8
53	3	9	11	1	13	3	1	16	8	2	8	51	8	0
54	3	9	11	1	12	2	1	17	9	2	7	49	10	3
55	3	9	11	1	11	0	1	18	11	2	6	47	11	4
56	3	9	11	1	9	9	2	0	2	2	5	45	11	2
57	3	9	11	1	8	6	2	1	5	2	3	43	9	9
58	3	9	11	1	7	2	2	2	9	2	2	41	7	0
59	3	9	11	1	5	10	2	4	1	2	1	39	2	11
60	3	9	11	1	4	6	2	5	5	2	0	36	17	6
61	3	9	11	1	3	1	2	6	10	1	10	34	10	8
62	3	9	11	1	1	7	2	8	4	1	9	32	2	4
63	3	9	11	1	0	1	2	9	10	1	7	29	12	6
64	3	9	11	0	18	6	2	11	5	1	6	27	1	1
65	3	9	11	0	16	11	2	13	0	1	4	24	8	1
66	3	9	11	0	15	3	2	14	8	1	3	21	13	5
67	3	9	11	0	13	7	2	16	4	1	1	18	17	1
68	3	9	11	0	11	10	2	18	1	0	11	15	19	0
69	3	9	11	0	10	0	2	19	11	0	10	12	19	1
70	3	9	11	0	8	1	3	1	10	0	8	9	17	3
71	3	9	11	0	6	2	3	3	9	0	6	6	13	6
72	3	9	11	0	4	2	3	5	9	0	4	3	7	9
73	3	9	11	0	2	2	3	7	9	0	2	..
Thirty-years Term.
	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
1	3	14	3	3	2	6	0	11	9	5	0	99	8	3
2	3	14	3	3	2	2	0	12	1	5	0	98	16	2
3	3	14	3	3	1	10	0	12	5	4	11	98	3	9
4	3	14	3	3	1	5	0	12	10	4	11	97	10	11
5	3	14	3		1	0	0	13	3	4	11	96	17	8
6	3	14	3	3	0	7	0	13	8	4	10	96	4	0
7	3	14	3	3	0	2	0	14	1	4	10	95	9	11
8	3	14	3	2	19	9	0	14	6	4	9	94	15	5
9	3	14	3	2	19	3	0	15	0	4	9	94	0	5
10	3	14	3	2	18	10	0	15	5	4	8	93	5	0
11	3	14	3	2	18	4	0	15	11	4	8	92	9	1
12	3	14	3	2	17	10	0	16	5	4	8	91	12	8
13	3	14	3	2	17	4	0	16	11	4	7	90	15	9
14	3	14	3	2	16	9	0	17	6	4	6	89	18	3
15	3	14	3	2	16	3	0	18	0	4	6	89	0	3
16	3	14	3	2	15	8	0	18	7	4	5	88	1	8
17	3	14	3	2	15	1	0	19	2	4	5	87	2	6
18	3	14	3	2	14	6	0	19	9	4	4	86	2	9
19	3	14	3	2	13	10	1	0	5	4	4	85	2	4
20	3	14	3	2	13	3	1	1	0	4	3	84	1	4
21	3	14	3	2	12	7	1	1	8	4	2	82	19	8
22	3	14	3	2	11	11	1	2	4	4	2	81	17	4
23	3	14	3	2	11	2	1	3	1	4	1	80	14	3
24	3	14	3	2	10	6	1	3	9	4	0	79	10	6
25	3	14	3	2	9	9	1	4	6	4	0	78	6	0
26	3	14	3	2	9	0	1	5	3	3	11	77	0	9
27	3	14	3	2	8	2	1	6	1	3	10	75	14	8
28	3	14	3	2	7	4	1	6	11	3	9	74	7	9
29	3	14	3	2	6	6	1	7	9	3	9	73	0	0
30	3	14	3	2	5	8	1	8	7	3	8	71	11	5
31	3	14	3	2	4	9	1	9	6	3	7	70	1	11
32	3	14	3	2	3	10	1	10	5	3	6	68	11	6
33	3	14	3	2	2	11	1	11	4	3	5	67	0	2
34	3	14	3	2	1	11	1	12	4	3	4	65	7	10
35	3	14	3	2	0	11	1	13	4	3	3	63	14	6
36	3	14	3	1	19	10	1	14	5	3	2	62	0	1
37	3	14	3	1	18	9	1	15	6	3	1	60	4	7
38	3	14	3	1	17	8	1	16	7	3	0	58	8	0
39	3	14	3	1	16	6	1	17	9	2	11	56	10	3
40	3	14	3	1	15	4	1	18	11	2	10	54	11	4
41	3	14	3	1	14	2	2	0	1	2	9	52	11	3
42	3	14	3	1	12	11	2	1	4	2	8	50	9	11
43	3	14	3	1	11	7	2	2	8	2	6	48	7	3
44	3	14	3	1	10	3	2	4	0	2	5	46	3	3
45	3	14	8	1	8	11	2	5	4	2	4	43	17	11
46	3	14	3	1	7	6	2	6	9	2	2	41	11	2
47	3	14	3	1	6	0	2	8	3	2	1	39	2	11
48	3	14	3	1	4	6	2	9	9	2	0	36	13	2
49	3	14	3	1	2	11	2	11	4	1	10	34	1	10
50	3	14	3	1	1	4	2	12	11	1	8	31	8	11
51	3	14	3	0	19	8	2	14	7	1	7	28	14	4
52	3	14	3	0	18	0	2	16	3	1	5	25	18	1
53	3	14	3	0	16	3	2	18	0	1	4	23	0	1
54	3	14	3	0	14	5	2	19	10	1	2	20	0	3
55	3	14	3	0	12	7	3	1	8	1	0	16	18	7
56	3	14	3	0	10	8	3	3	7	0	10	13	15	0
57	3	14	3	0	8	8	3	5	7	0	8	10	9	5
58	3	14	3	0	6	7	3	7	3	0	6	7	1	9
59	3	14	3	0	4	6	3	9	9	0	4	3	12	0
60	3	14	3	0	2	3	3	12	0	0	2	..
Twenty-years Term.
1	4	8	3	3	2	6	1	5	9	6	0	98	14	3
2	4	8	3	3	1	8	1	6	7	4	11	97	7	8
3	4	8	3	3	0	10	1	7	5	4	10	96	0	3
4	4	8	3	3	0	0	1	8	3	4	10	94	12	0
5	4	8	3	2	19	1	1	9	2	4	9	93	2	10
6	4	8	3	2	18	2	1	10	1	4	8	91	12	9
7	4	8	3	2	17	3	1	11	0	4	7	90	1	9
8	4	8	3	2	16	3	1	12	0	4	6	88	3	9
9	4	8	3	2	15	3	1	13	0	4	5	86	16	9
10	4	8	3	2	14	3	1	14	4	4	4	85	2	9
11	4	8	3	2	13	2	1	15	1	4	3	83	7	8
12	4	8	3	2	12	1	1	16	2	4	2	81	11	6
13	4	8	3	2	10	11	1	17	4	4	1	79	14	2
14	4	8	3	2	9	9	1	18	6	4	0	77	15	8
15	4	8	3	2	8	7	1	19	8	3	11	75	16	0
16	4	8	3	2	7	4	2	0	11	8	9	73	15	1
17	4	8	3	2	6	1	2	2	2	3	8	71	12	11
18	4	8	3	2	4	9	2	3	6	3	7	69	9	5
19	4	8	3	2	3	5	2	4	10	3	6	67	4	7
20	4	8	3	2	2	0	2	6	3	3	4	64	18	4
21	4	8	3	2	0	6	2	7	9	3	3	62	10	7
22	4	8	3	1	19	1	2	9	2	3	2	60	1	5
23	4	8	3	1	17	6	2	10	9	3	0	57	10	3
24	4	8	3	1	15	11	2	12	4	2	10	54	18	4
25	4	8	3	1	14	4	2	13	11	2	9	52	4	5
26	4	8	3	1	12	7	2	15	8	2	7	49	8	9
27	4	8	3	1	10	10	2	17	5	2	6	46	11	4
28	4	8	3	1	9	1	2	19	2	2	4	43	12	2
29	4	8	3	1	7	3	3	1	0	2	2	40	11	2
30	4	8	3	1	5	4	3	2	11	2	0	37	8	3
31	4	8	3	1	3	4	3	4	11	1	10	34	3	4
32	4	8	3	1	1	4	3	6	11	1	8	30	16	5
33	4	8	3	0	19	3	3	9	0	1	6	27	7	5
34	4	8	3	0	17	1	3	11	2	1	4	23	16	3
35	4	8	3	0	14	10	3	13	5	1	2	20	2	10
36	4	8	3	0	12	7	3	15	8	1	0	16	7	2
37	4	8	3	0	10	2	3	18	1	0	10	12	9	1
38	4	8	3	0	7	9	4	0	6	0	7	8	8	7
39	4	8	3	0	5	3	4	3	0	0	5	4	5	7
40	4	8	3	0	2	8	4	5	7	0	3	..

The mortgagor may at any time repay the whole balance of principal owing with interest to date of payment, and obtain a discharge of the mortgage on payment of the fee prescribed for such discharge.

The mortgagor may also from time to time pay, in addition to the half-yearly payment, a sum of £5 or a multiple of £5, which, at the next instalment due date, may be applied in either of the following ways, according as he directs:—

In payment of the half-yearly instalments (consisting partly of interest and partly of principal) as they fall due, until the deposit is exhausted; or,
In payment of as many future half-yearly instalments of principal (but not of interest) as it will cover, and, as far as such instalments are concerned, the corresponding interest will not be charged. On the next half-yearly date, however, the mortgagor will be required to continue his payments as before, the advance payment having the effect of reducing the period during which he would have to pay such instalments. For instance, a mortgagor has a loan of £100 at 6 1/4 per cent. for a term of 36 1/2 years. On the due date of his eighth half-yearly instalment he pays, in addition to the amount due, a sum of £5. This is applied in payment of his ninth, tenth, eleventh, twelfth, thirteenth, fourteenth, fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth instalments of principal—9s. 5d., 9s. 9d., 10s. 1d., 10s. 4d., 10s. 8d., 11s., 11s. 5d., 11s. 9d., 12a. 1d., making a total of £4 16s. 6d.; and the corresponding interest—£3 0s. 6d., £3 0s. 2d., £2 19s. 10d., £2 19s. 7d., £2 19s. 3d., £2 18s. 11d., £2 18s. 6d., £2 18s. 2d., £2 17s. 10d. (which has not begun to accrue)—is not charged. A balance of 3s. 6d. remains in his favour. Then on the next due date he makes the half-yearly payment as usual (less 3s. 6d.), but instead of being the ninth it counts as the eighteenth instalment, and by this means the whole loan is repaid four and a half years earlier than it otherwise would have been.

On the due date of any instalment, after at least one-tenth of the loan has been repaid by means of the half-yearly instalments or of moneys repaid in advance, or both, the mortgagor (provided he is not in arrear with any instalment or other payment due under the mortgage) may, with the consent of the Superintendent, readjust the loan by treating the balance of principal then unpaid, if not less than £100, as a fresh loan duly granted on that date for a fresh term.

Following is the scale of fees payable for preparation of mortgages:—

Mortgages under the Land Transfer Act.

Law-costs of perusing title, preparing, completing, and registering mortgage (to be deducted from the advance):—

	£	s.	d.
If advance be not exceeding £250	0	7	6
Exceeding £250 but not exceeding £500	0	10	0
Exceeding £500 but not exceeding £750	0	15	0
Exceeding £750 but not exceeding £1,000	1	1	0
Exceeding £1,000 but not exceeding £1,500	1	6	0
Exceeding £1,500 but not exceeding £2,000	1	11	6
Exceeding £2,000 but not exceeding £3,500	1	17	6

With cash disbursements, which are the same in every case, namely:—

Mortgage forms	0	2	0
Search fee (with an additional 2s. for every certificate of title after the first)	0	2	0
Registration (with an additional 2s. for every certificate of title after the first)	0	10	0

Mortgages under the Deeds Registration Act.

Law-costs of perusing title, preparing, completing, and registering mortgage (to be deducted from the advance):—

	£	s.	d
If advance be not exceeding £150	0	18	0
Exceeding £150 but not exceeding £250	1	0	6
Exceeding £250 but not exceeding £500	1	5	0
Exceeding £500 but not exceeding £750	1	13	0
Exceeding £750 but not exceeding £1,000	2	3	0
Exceeding £1,000 but not exceeding £1,500	2	13	0
Exceeding £1,500 but not exceeding £2,000	3	13	0
Exceeding £2,000 but not exceeding £3,500	4	13	0

With cash disbursements:—

Mortgage form	0	1	0
Fee chargeable by solicitor not residing in registration centre for employing agent to register mortgage	0	5	0
Fee for partial or total discharge of mortgage	0	5	0
Fee for execution of consent by the Superintendent to any document	0	5	0
Fee for production of title-deeds held by the Superintendent	0	5	0

ADVANCES TO SETTLERS ON STOCK AND FARM IMPLEMENTS.

Advances may also be made on the security of stock and of farm implements. Every advance must be secured by a mortgage of land or chattels either with or without any collateral security to be approved by the Board of the Office. Not more than £500 may be advanced to any one borrower, the term of the loan not to exceed five years.

The principal moneys comprised in any advance are repayable by instalments as follows:—

10 per cent. at the end of the first year.
15 per cent. at the end of the second year.
20 per cent. at the end of the third year.
25 per cent. at the end of the fourth year.
30 per cent. at the end of the fifth year.

Interest on the amount of the loan for the time being outstanding is payable at the rate of 7 per cent. per annum, reducible to 6 1/2 per cent. per annum provided that the half-yearly instalments of principal and interest are paid within fourteen days of due date.

Every application must be accompanied by a valuation fee according to the following scale:—

	£	s.	d.
On application for loan not exceeding £250	2	2	0
On application for loan exceeding £250 but not exceeding £500	2	12	6

The fees for searching Chattels Register-book, and of preparing, completing, and registering instrument by way of security (exclusive of cash disbursements), are—

	£	s.	d.
For advance not exceeding £250	1	1	0
For advance exceeding £250	1	17	6

STATISTICAL.

From the inception of the scheme of advances to settlers in 1894, loans aggregating £43,932,747 have been authorized to 76,498 applicants, the total actual payments to 31st March, 1929, being £39,930,745, of which £19,169,275 has been repaid in respect of principal, leaving £20,761,470 still outstanding to 29,038 settlers. A table is given showing the business to date and for each of the last ten years.

ADVANCES TO SETTLERS, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Loans authorized.		Amount advanced.	Amount repaid.
Year ended 31st March,	Number.	Amount.	Amount advanced.	Amount repaid.
		£	£	£
1920	2,219	1,031,855	808,180	1,118,486
1921	2,085	1,107,430	1,060,260	1,065,003
1922	1,524	773,375	805,975	552,269
1923	2,140	1,209,035	945,900	611,480
1924	6,204	5,416,987	3,904,150	1,009,499
1925	3,321	4,289,875	3,516,130	846,771
1926	4,747	5,409,310	3,905,900	1,010,355
1927	1,853	1,980,795	3,566,220	1,025,621
1928	1,132	1,680,465	1,402,640	874,234
1929	2,349	2,957,450	2,059,135	1,083,621
Totals to 31st March, 1929	76,498	43,932,747	39,930,745	19,169,275

The effect of the State Advances Amendment Act of 1923, providing for additional borrowing of money for the purposes of advances, and widening the scheme in the direction of enabling larger amounts to be advanced in individual cases, is apparent in the figures for 1923–24 and following years.

Not all of the advances to settlers are made from the funds of the Advances to Settlers Branch of the State Advances Office. Part of the business shown in the foregoing table relates to the Public Debt Sinking Funds Branch and the Advances Office Sinking Fund Branch, the funds of which are utilized for advances purposes. For 1927–28 and 1928–29, also, the figures include the transactions under the scheme of rural advances, which are dealt with under the next heading. The advances to settlers outstanding at 31st March, 1929, are classified according to source, as follows:—

Branch.	Number.	Amount.
Advances to Settlers	25,268	16,742,324
Public Debt Sinking Funds	1,315	1,099,385
Advances Office Sinking Fund	1,508	1,044,475
Rural Advances	947	1,875,286
Totals	29,038	£20,761,470

Of the £2,957,450 authorized to be advanced to settlers during the year ended the 31st March, 1929, only £209,765 was for the actual erection of dwellings. The number of loans for the erection of dwellings was 274, the average advance authorized for this purpose being £766.

Dealing now only with the operations of the Advances to Settlers Branch (full information not being available in respect of advances from the Public Debt Sinking Funds and the Advances Office Sinking Fund, and rural advances being dealt with under the next heading), the advances authorized during the year 1928–29 numbered 1,288, representing a total amount of £1,242,605. The number of borrowers and the sums actually advanced during the year, classified according to amount, were—

Category.	Number of Advances.	Amount advanced.
Not exceeding £500	296	89,785
Exceeding £500 but not exceeding £1,000	262	167,575
Exceeding £1,000 but not exceeding £2,000	178	266,810
Exceeding £2,000 but not exceeding £3,500	87	209,945
Totals	823	£734,115

The nature of the security upon which these advances were made was as follows:—

Security.	Number of Advances.	Amount advanced.
		£
Freehold	627	621,060
Leasehold	179	96,005
Freehold and leasehold combined	17	17,050
Totals	823	£734,115

The average freehold advance made during the year was £991, the average leasehold advance £536, and the average of advances secured on both freehold and leasehold combined £1,003. Corresponding figures for the year ended the 31st March, 1923 (prior to the passing of the State Advances Amendment Act, 1923), were—Freehold, £510; leasehold, £534: and combined freehold and leasehold, £680.

The number and amount of advances from the Advances to Settlers Branch which were outstanding at the 31st March, 1929, were classified according to amount as follows:—

Category.	Number of Advances.	Amount outstanding.
		£
Not exceeding £500	14,129	3,066,074
Exceeding £500 but not exceeding £1,000	6,232	4,659,404
Exceeding £1,000 but not exceeding £2,000	3,666	4,837,748
Exceeding £2,000 but not exceeding £3,500	1,241	4,179,098
Totals	25,268	£16,742,324

The nature of the security for the advances outstanding on the 31st March, 1929, was—

Security	Number of Advance.	Amount outstanding.
		£
Freehold	16,543	13,119,316
Leasehold	8,416	3,329,537
Freehold and leasehold combined	309	293,471
Totals	25,263	£16,742,324

The number and amounts of current advances on rural and on urban and suburban land are—

	Number.	Amount, £
On rural land	15,106	10,814,573
On urban and suburban land	10,162	5,927,751
Totals	25,268	£16,742,324

The gross profits of the Settlers Branch of the State Advances Office for the year ended the 31st March, 1929, were £121,500, and the cost of management and expenses of the branch £32,519, being 0.148 per cent., or 2s. 11d. per £100, of the capital employed. Loss on the realization of securities, and the writing-down of doubtful securities and of office equipment, accounted for £58,516. The net profits amounted to £30,465, of which £12,430 was utilized towards the writing-down of loan-flotation charges and £5,202 for income-tax. The balance of £12,833 was invested in the Advances Office Sinking Fund Account.

Advances to settlers (excluding rural advances) have aggregated over £38,000,000 from the inception of the scheme in 1894 to the 31st March, 1929. During that period losses have totalled £147,626, or only 7s. 9d. in every £100 of the amount advanced. The sinking fund established under the State Advances Act, 1913, after redemption of loans totalling £485,365, amounts to £1,539,273.

The liabilities and assets of the Settlers Branch at the 31st March, 1929, were—

Liabilities,	£
Sundry loans	20,321,690
Temporary advances from Public Debt Sinking Funds Branch	16,000
Temporary advances from Advances Office Sinking Fund Account	191,000
Temporary advances from Miscellaneous Business Branch	311,830
Held for investment on behalf of Housing Insurance Fund	4,612
Advances Suspense Account	18,290
Fire Loss Suspense Account	14,456
Suspense Account	307
Income-tax Suspense Account	5,202
Sundry creditors	2,101
Interest payable on loans, accrued but not due	169,034
Reserve for bad debts	109,610
Sinking Fund	1,539,273
Reserve Fund	25,000
	£22,728,425
Assets.	£
Investment Account—Principal owing by mortgagors	16,742,324
Temporary Investments	1,578,910
Temporary advances to Local Authorities Branch	110,000
Temporary advances to Workers Branch	1,533,000
Temporary advances to Rural Advances Branch	391,000
Sinking Fund held by Advances Office Sinking Fund Account	1,539,273
Interest on mortgages, overdue	164,341
Interest on mortgages, accrued but not due	213,498
Interest on temporary investments, accrued	2,351
Office furniture and equipment	6,130
Sundry debtors	1,425
Realization Suspense Account	125,998
Loan Charges Account	180,500
Cash in hand and in bank at 31st March, 1929	139,675
	£22,728,425

RURAL ADVANCES.

A Commission was set up in 1925 to inquire into the question of the necessity or expediency of passing legislation for the purpose of affording further financial assistance to farmers. In the course of its investigations the Commission visited various American and European countries, and on its return to the Dominion presented a comprehensive report giving particulars of its inquiries and making recommendations for the provision by the State of intermediate rural credits as well as the extension of the existing system of long-term advances. The recommendations are too lengthy to repeat here, but the full text of these and of the report will be found in parliamentary paper B.-5 of the 1926 session.

As an outcome of the Commission's inquiries and recommendations, the Rural Advances Act was passed in the session of 1926. This Act established, as from the 1st April, 1927, a separate branch of the State Advances Office, known as the Rural Advances Branch, and controlled by the State Advances Board.

The business of the Rural Advances Branch is to make advances, under the special provisions of the Act, on the security of first mortgages of the various classes of land specified on page 654, exclusive of urban and suburban lands. Advances may be made not exceeding £5,500, inclusive of any amounts granted under the Advances to Settlers or Advances to Workers schemes. Advances must not exceed two-thirds of the value of the security in the case of freehold land, or two-thirds of the value of the lessee's interest in the case of leasehold land.

To provide funds wherewith to make rural advances, the Superintendent of the State Advances Office may issue bonds or stock or other securities, which constitute a floating charge on all the assets of the Rural Advances Branch, including all mortgages for the time being securing loans granted under the Act. Such bonds, &c., are not secured on the public revenues, and do not form part of the public debt. Bonds to an aggregate value of £1,591,850 (£543,300 in 1927–28, £1,048,550 in 1928–29) have been issued to the 31st March, 1929.

During the two years' operations 1,377 loans amounting to £2,662,280 have been authorized, and 953 advances totalling £1,896,135 have been paid over. Repayments of principal total £20,849, advances current at the 31st March, 1929, being £1,875,286.

The advances current at 31st March, 1929, were classified as to amount as follows:—

Category.	Number of Advances.	Amount outstanding.
		£
Not exceeding £500	83	28,613
Exceeding £500, but not exceeding £1,000	207	159,145
Exceeding £1,000 but not exceeding £2,000	282	438,363
Exceeding £2,000 but not exceeding £3,500	258	716,987
Exceeding £5,000 but not exceeding £5,500	117	532,178
Totals	947	£1,875,286

The nature of the security was as follows:—

Security.	Number of Advances.	Amount outstanding.
		£
Freehold	771	1,608,384
Leasehold	145	212,172
Freehold and leasehold combined	31	54,730
Totals	947	£1,875,286

The gross profits of the Rural Advances Branch for the year ended 31st March, 1929, were £8,982, and the expenses of management £972. The net profits for the year were £8,010, of which £1,430 was paid in income-tax and £5,022 utilized for the writing-down of loan-flotation charges, a balance of £1,644 being carried forward. The liabilities and assets as at 31st March, 1929, were:—

Liabilities.	£
Bonds issued	1,591,850
Temporary advances from Settlers' Branch	391,000
Advances Suspense Account	15,550
Fire Loss Suspense Account	1,400
Income-tax Suspense Account	1,414
Interest on loans, accrued	3,479
Profit and Loss Account	1,644
	£2,006,337
Assets.	£
Investment Account—Principal owing by mortgagors	1,875,286
Temporary investments	2,835
Interest on mortgages, overdue	7,569
Interest on mortgages, accrued	24,595
Sundry debtors	3
Loan Charges Account	90,407
Cash in hand and in bank at 31st March, 1929	5,642
	£2,006,337

RURAL INTERMEDIATE CREDIT.

The Rural Intermediate Credit Act, which was passed during the 1927 session of Parliament and came into force on the 1st January, 1928, provided for the setting-up of a special Rural Intermediate Credit Board, and the making of loans as follows:—

To members of co-operative rural intermediate credit associations, whose formation (with not less than twenty members and with certain defined objects) is provided for. The application for the loan is received and considered by the association concerned, which, on approving it, applies to the Board to advance the amount required to cover the loan. The term of the loan is not more than five years. An association may arrange with a bank or other approved financial institution for a loan in cases where the term is less than six months.
To persons engaged in farming operations on their own account, the loan (for certain specified purposes and for a term of not more than five years) being advanced direct. Applications under this head are dealt with by District Rural Intermediate Credit Boards.
To co-operative societies (with not less than thirty members and with a subscribed capital of at least £2,500) having for their principal objects the production or sale of staple agricultural or pastoral products. In this case the term of the loan is not less than six months nor more than three years.

The total amount of advances in force at any time to a person in classes (a) or (b) above was originally set down as not to exceed £1,000. This limit was extended to £2,000 by the Rural Intermediate Credit Amendment Act, 1929. In the case of cooperative societies the amount advanced is to be not more than 80 per cent. of the fair market value of the live-stock or produce upon which the loan is secured.

The Rural Intermediate Credit Board consists of seven members, including the Public Trustee, who is the principal executive member, and in his capacity as such is styled the Commissioner of Rural Intermediate Credit. The funds of the Board are obtained partly by way of advance from the Consolidated Fund and partly by the issue of debentures.

The accounting year under the scheme ends on the 30th June. The following figures, however, are brought up to the 31st August, 1929, and show the position at that date:—

	£
Investments (including loans made and face value of bills and notes discounted)	215,176
Loans granted but not completed	42,874
Applications entertained and in course of consideration	10,260
Total	£268,310

The investments referred to above were made up as follows:—

Advances to associations for preliminary expenses	394
Advances to associations under Part II of the Act	89,530
Advances to farmers under Part III of the Act	117,987
Bills and notes discounted (face value)	7,265
Total	£215,176

Between the inception of the scheme on 1st January, 1928, and the 31st August, 1929, loans paid and bills discounted totalled £264,496.

The interest fixed for advances other than to co-operative rural intermediate credit associations is 6 1/2 per cent. per annum, this being also the discount rate. In the case of loans to co-operative rural intermediate credit associations the rate charged is 6 per cent., so that associations may be in a position to make advances to their members at 6 1/2 per cent. The Board has imposed conditions as to the manner in which this margin of 1/2 per cent. is to be employed by the associations.

Advances totalling £197,100 have been received from the Consolidated Fund, and £70,700 has been raised by the issue of bonds and debentures. Income from investments during the year ended 30th June, 1929, totalled £5,941, and expenditure for the year was £5,380, leaving an excess of income amounting to £561. The income referred to does not include £1,631 earned by the investments of the Rural Intermediate Credit Redemption Fund, to which one-third of all advances received from the Consolidated Fund must be allocated, being invested in Government securities. The £1,631 earned by this Fund by way of interest, plus one-half (£280) of the net profits on the year's working, were credited to the Redemption Fund, the total investments of which amounted at the end of the year to £67,330.

ADVANCES TO WORKERS.

The system of advances to workers, instituted in 1906, is on much the same general lines as that of the advances to settlers. Advances are made on first mortgage of lands and improvements held under the various classes of tenure enumerated at the beginning of this subsection. The scales of charges and of payments of principal and interest, and the provisions for paying off the whole or part of the principal outstanding, apply to the workers' scheme as well as to the settlers'.

A worker is defined as a person of either sex engaged (whether as an employee or on his or her own account) in manual or clerical work who is not in receipt of an annual income exceeding £300, increased by £25 in respect of each child or other person dependent on him, and is not the owner of any land other than that offered as security.

Originally the scheme of advances to workers was confined to persons in receipt of not more than £200 per annum, and the maximum amount that could be advanced to any applicant was £450. Legislation passed in 1923, however, greatly enlarged the scope of the scheme.

Not more than £1,250 may be granted to any one borrower; and an advance must not exceed 95 per cent. of the total value of the security in the case of freehold land, or 95 per cent. of the value of the lessee's interest in the case of leasehold land, or, where the loan is to provide for the erection of a dwellinghouse, 95 per cent. of the cost of the dwellinghouse inclusive of the cost of the land and improvements. No advance can be made to any applicants who do not take up their permanent residence on the property. Married applicants must make the declaration on the application form jointly with wife or husband, as the case may require.

Where an advance is required for the purpose of erecting a dwelling, the application form must be accompanied by evidence in the form of sale-note, receipt, agreement, or otherwise as to the purchase-price of the section and tender accepted or contract entered into for the erection of the dwelling. The amount of the loan granted by the Board may be advanced in progress-payments as the erection of the building proceeds. An inspection and report must be made by an officer of the Valuation Department prior to any progress-payment being made on account of the loan, and for each such inspection a fee of 10s. 6d. is payable by the applicant. The Department requires that not less than three inspections be made, and that the fencing be completed before all the loan is paid over.

If the applicant's title is free from encumbrance, mortgages under the Land Transfer Act are prepared and completed free of charge to the mortgagor, with the exception of the repayment of cash disbursements, which are deducted from the advance. In all other respects the scale of costs and fees is the same as under the advances-to-settlers scheme.

Advances to workers authorized during 1928–29 numbered 2,224, representing a total amount of £1,903,185. This amount is £687,595 more than the figure for the preceding year, but £856,215 below the total for 1925–26, which was easily the highest amount ever authorized in any one year.

Of the £1,903,185 authorized for advances to workers during 1928–29, £1,897,860, or 99 1/2 per cent., was for the actual erection of dwellings. The total number of loans for this purpose was 2,215, and the average advance £857.

The total of the actual money advanced to workers up to the 31st March, 1929, (including moneys repaid and again advanced), was £16,169,587. The actual number of advances and the aggregate amount outstanding at the same date were 20,698 and £11,573,777 respectively.

The following table gives particulars of the transactions for each of the last ten years, and the total transactions since the passing of the Government Advances to Workers Act on the 29th October, 1906:—

ADVANCES TO WORKERS, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Loans authorized.		Amount advanced.	Amount repaid.
Year ended 31st March,	Number.	Amount.	Amount advanced.	Amount repaid.
		£	£	£
1920	1,083	420,465	225,055	368,597
1921	1,556	718,630	660,790	388,469
1922	987	449,220	407,580	207,843
1923	1,748	871,805	724,830	234,092
1924	3,243	2,198,310	1,803,630	458,264
1925	1,873	1,362,370	1,351,785	334,830
1925	3,299	2,759,400	2,241,860	516,156
1927	1,911	1,638,490	2,536,355	423,615
1928	1,373	1,215,590	1,358,095	353,540
1929	2,224	1,903,185	1,416,732	426,142
Totals from inception to 31/3/1929	32,948	17,530,085	16,169,587	4,595,810

There has been a considerable increase in the total amount advanced during the last six years. The amounts paid over during these six years have aggregated no less a sum than £10,708,457, or more than three-fifths of the total amount advanced since the inception of the scheme. This increase is consequent on the passing of the State Advances Amendment Act in 1923, when provision was made for the addition of more capital and for the enlargement of the scheme to enable larger advances to be made to applicants. The average advance authorized in 1928–29 was £856, whereas prior to the passing of the 1923 Act the figure never exceeded £450.

Of the advances outstanding at 31st March, 1929, 20,420 to the amount of £11,436,990 had been advanced from the Advances to Workers Account, 137 (£72,217) from the Public Debt Sinking Funds, and 141 (£64,570) from the Advances Office Sinking Fund. Dealing only with the operations of the Advances to Workers Branch, the advances actually paid during the year numbered 1,558 for an aggregate of £1,402,465. The tenures upon which these loans were made were—

Tenure.	Number of Loans.	Aggregate Amount.
Freehold	1,511	1,363,890
Leasehold	47	38,575
Totals	1,558	£1,402,465

The net amount outstanding at the end of the financial year was £11,436,990, secured upon the following tenures:—

Tenure.	Number of Loans outstanding.	Aggregate Amount outstanding.
Freehold	19,257	10,843,338
Leasehold	1,163	593,652
Totals	20,420	£11,436,990

For the year ended 31st March, 1929, the gross profits of the branch amounted to £20,658, and the net profits to £10,887. The cost of management expenses of the branch was £6,488, being 0.062 per cent., or 1s. 3d. per £100, of capital employed, and £3,283 loss was incurred on the realization of securities. The Sinking Fund, after redemption of loans totalling £208,091, amounts to £71,682.

Total advances made by the Advances to Workers Branch to 31st March, 1929, have been £16,169,587, and losses to that date have been only £8,265, equal to 1s. per £100.

The financial position of the Advances to Workers Branch of the State Advances Office as at the 31st March, 1929, is shown in the following statement:—

ADVANCES TO WORKERS BRANCH: LIABILITIES AND ASSETS, 31ST MARCH, 1929.

Liabilities.	£
Sundry loans	10,423,023
Temporary loans from Settlers Branch	1,533,000
Liability to Railways Department (Railway housing)	5,240
Interest on loans, accrued but not due	81,947
Advances Suspense Account	98,996
Fire Loss Suspense Account	1,280
Suspense Account	4,128
Income-tax Suspense Account	1,922
Sundry creditors	2,930
Reserve for bad debts	3,455
Sinking Fund	71,682
	£12,227,603
Assets.	£
Investment Account—Principal owing by mortgagors	11,436,990
Temporary investments	200,129
Interest on mortgages, overdue	85,277
Interest on mortgages, accrued	139,888
Unregistered Transfers Account (Railway employees)	5,240
Sundry debtors	862
Realization Suspense Account	3,517
Loan Charges Account	221,232
Profit and Loss Account	51,597
Sinking Funds held by Advances Office Sinking Fund Account	71,682
Cash in hand and in bank at 31st March, 1929	11,189
	£12,227,603

The administration of the Workers' Dwellings Act, 1910, and the Housing Act, 1919, was transferred to the State Advances Department in 1923, as part of a scheme to consolidate the various systems of State advances. The purchaser of a dwelling-house pursuant to an agreement under either of the Acts mentioned may, on application in that behalf made by him on the prescribed form, agree with the Superintendent to surrender his rights under the agreement (which is thereupon cancelled) and to accept a loan under Part III of the State Advances Act, 1913.

In any such case the land and dwellinghouse to which the agreement relates ceases to be subject to any restrictions under the Workers' Dwellings Act, 1910, or section 21 lection 22 of the Housing Act, 1919, and the land is not thereafter deemed to be set apart for the purposes of the Workers' Dwellings Act, 1910, or of Part I of the Housing Act, 1919 (as the case may be).

On the cancellation of any such agreement as aforesaid the land to which the agreement relates is transferred or granted in fee-simple' to the purchaser, subject to a mortgage to secure a loan under Part III of the State Advances Act, 1913, of such amount, not exceeding 95 per cent. of the purchase-money mentioned in the agreement, as the Board may approve.

ADVANCES TO LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

Since the system of State advances to local authorities was initiated in 1910, loans authorized, 2,523 in number, have aggregated £6,761,939, of which £6,432,230 has been actually advanced. Repayments to the 31st March, 1929, have totalled £1,207,653, leaving an indebtedness of £5,224,577 in respect of principal moneys. Figures for each of the last ten years and to date are as follows:—

ADVANCES TO LOCAL AUTHORITIES, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Loans authorized.		Amount advanced.	Amount repaid.
Year ended 31st March,	Number.	Amount.	Amount advanced.	Amount repaid.
		£	£	£
1920	229	717,160	311,880	49,034
1921	194	689,225	444,825	53,926
1922	246	725,730	708,410	66,591
1923	213	478,035	711,375	78,694
1924	194	444,805	438,205	90,075
1925	127	227,330	338,805	93,432
1926	112	157,520	198,630	103,660
1927	55	45,890	70,200	113,143
1928	28	20,615	32,295	116,025
1929	3	720	5,740	118,044
Totals from inception to 31/3/29	2,523	6,761,939	6,432,230	1,207,653

Coincident with the extension of the systems of advances to settlors and workers, there has been a large falling-oil in advances to local authorities, repayments of principal having exceeded advances in each of the last three years.

As in the case of advances to settlers and workers, advances to local authorities are made from three distinct sources—viz., the funds of the Advances to Local Authorities Branch of the State Advances Office, the Public Debt Sinking Funds, and the Advances Office Sinking Fund. Of the amount outstanding at the 31st March, 1929 (£5,224,577), the Public Debt Sinking Funds claimed £2,084,088, and the Advances Office Sinking Fund £403,142.

A statement of the liabilities and assets of the Local Authorities Branch as at the 31st March, 1929, is appended.

Liabilities.	£
Sundry loans	2,790,293
Loan-moneys—Unexpended balances	3,988
Temporary advances from Settlers Branch	110,000
Interest on loan-moneys, accrued but not due	35,894
Sinking Fund	164,228
	£3,104,403
Assets.	£
Investment Account—principal owing by local bodies	2,737,347
Sinking funds held by Advances Office Sinking Fund Account	164,228
Interest on debentures—Overdue	3,731
Accrued but not due	24,091
Loan Charges Account	30,669
Profit and Loss Account	142,931
Cash in hand and in bank at 31st March, 1929.	1,406
	£3,104,403

A net loss of £8,149 was recorded by the Local Authorities Branch for the year ended 31st March, 1929.

REPATRIATION ADVANCES.

In terms of the Repatriation Act, 1918, provision was made for the granting of financial assistance by the State to discharged soldiers and nurses, and to the widows and widowed mothers of discharged soldiers, for the purpose of purchasing or establishing businesses and obtaining furniture, tools, and equipment. A special report covering transactions up to the 31st December, 1922, showed that a total of 6,366 business loans had been lent on security to an aggregate amount of £1,160,536. The number of loans and the amount advanced for the purchase of furniture, tools, equipment, &c., totalled 15,915 and £758,626 respectively. No loans have been authorized subsequent to that date, the sole operations of the branch being now confined to the collection of repayments. During the year 1928–29 the sum of £43,994 in respect of principal moneys was repaid. In regard to business loans, 1,391 borrowers are now indebted to the extent of £176,246, while furniture loans still unpaid at the end of the year amounted to £111,279 in respect of 5,150 borrowers. The total amount, therefore, outstanding at the 31st March, 1929, in relation to principal moneys was £287,525.

Repatriation advances should not be confused with the system of advances to discharged soldiers to enable them to acquire farms and homes. Discharged soldiers' settlement advances are dealt with in Section XVII of this book.

HOUSING.

In the 1923 and preceding numbers of the Year-book appeared an account of the system initiated to cope with the serious shortage of houses due to war conditions. The Housing Act, 1919, provided for the erection of dwellings not only by the State, but also by local authorities, employers, associations of public servants, and public-utility societies, the State advancing the money. A synopsis of the Act, as amended in 1920, will be found in the 1923 Year-book.

The administration of the Housing Act was originally placed in the hands of a Housing Board and Housing Superintendent, but was transferred to the State Advances Department by the State Advances Amendment Act, 1922, the Housing Account being incorporated in the State Advances Account. The position of the Housing Account as at 31st March, 1929, is shown by the following balance-sheet.

HOUSING ACCOUNT.—LIABILITIES AND ASSETS.

Liabilities.	£
Debentures	412,388
Expended from Public Works Fund	319,918
	732,306
Less loan-moneys redeemed	19,568
Total loans	712,738
Liability to Railways Department	8,113
Liability to Consolidated Fund	100
Suspense Account	1,091
Sundry creditors	29
Interest on loans, overdue	15,821
Interest on loans, accrued but not due	3,891
Insurance Fund	6,115
Sinking Fund	683
Reserve for losses on realization and for bad debts	7,414
	£755,995
Assets.	£
Principal owing on dwellings purchased	378,387
Principal owing on sections purchased	2,577
Principal owing on advances	352
Principal owing on mortgages	39
Temporary advances to Settlers Branch	253,000
Hutt Housing Suspense Account	10,429
Completed dwellings	16,177
Dwellings let	17,257
Freehold land	19,764
Sinking Fund Investments	4,038
Insurance Fund investment	4,612
Sundry debtors	56
Interest on dwellings and land, overdue	7,013
Interest on dwellings and land, accrued	54
Kent overdue	1,863
Insurance premiums overdue	468
Insurance premiums paid in advance	355
Realization Suspense Account	1,277
Profit and Loss Account	37,939
Cash in hand and in bank at 31st March, 1929	338
	£755,995

The activities of this branch have now been almost entirely transferred to the Workers Branch. During the year ended 31st March, 1929, £4,197 was expended in preparing land for the erection of dwellings. Mortgages and instalments of principal repaid during the year amounted to £40,135, and interest on lands and dwellings to £18,898. Total interest receipts were £30,916, and sales brought in £9. Against the total of £30,925 were set interest payments on loan-money (£28,753), expenses of management (£2,225), maintenance of dwellings (£680), and losses on realization or writing-down of securities (£1,071), a net loss of £1,804 resulting.

Up to the 31st March, 1929, loans to the value of £3,975 had been borrowed for advances to employers for workers' dwellings. The amount of principal still owing by borrowers was £2,712, while £1,100 had been temporarily transferred to the Settlers Branch. Interest receipts amounted to £187, interest payments to £159, and management expenses to £10, a net profit of £18 resulting.

FRUIT-PRESERVING INDUSTRY ADVANCES.

The Fruit-preserving Industry Act of 1913 and its amendments authorize the raising of a sum not exceeding £40,000 in any one year for the purpose of granting advances for the promotion of the fruit industry. A sum not exceeding £9,000 in any case may be advanced for establishing or extending fruit-packing sheds, cold stores for fruit, fruit-canning works, and other works in connection with the packing, grading, or preservation of fruit. The total amount borrowed by the State for this purpose was £69,599, of which £11,009 has been paid off. The total amount owing to the State in respect of advances made under the Act was at the end of the financial year 1928–29 £37,564. The balance-sheet of the Fruit-preserving Industry Advances Account is given below:—

FRUIT-PRESERVING INDUSTRY ADVANCES ACCOUNT.

Liabilities.	£
Sundry loans	58,590
Liability to Consolidated Fund	5,000
Suspense Account	171
Income-tax Suspense Account	47
Interest on loans	2,372
Rent accrued	37
Reserves for losses on realization and for bad debts	3,516
Sinking Fund	128
	£69,861
Assets.	£
Principal owing by mortgagors	37,564
Properties acquired	4,213
Temporary advances to Settlers Branch	21,200
Sinking Fund investments	741
Interest on mortgages, overdue	1,581
Interest on mortgages, accrued	275
Sundry debtors	96
Profit and Loss Account	4,114
Cash in hand and in bank at 31st March, 1929	77
	£69,861

A net profit of £264 was recorded for the year 1928–29. The excess of interest receipts (£2,754) over interest payments (£2,343) was £411, this gross profit being reduced by the expenses of management (£100) and expenses on the realization of assets (£47).

FISHING INDUSTRY PROMOTION ADVANCES.

In order to afford some relief in the way of providing financial assistance to the fishing industry, the Fishing Industry Promotion Act was passed in 1919. A sum of £25,000 may be annually set aside for this purpose. Advances, not to exceed £5,000 in any case, may be made to any person or persons for establishing coolstorage plants, preserving fish by canning or otherwise, purchasing and equipping fishing-boats, and otherwise in assisting generally the fishing industry. Advances are adequately secured by a first mortgage of the freehold or leasehold interest in the site of the proposed plant in the case of cool-storage sheds and fish-canning works, and in the case of fishing-boats and their equipment by a first mortgage of or instrument over such boats and gear. In addition (but not in substitution) there are various other classes of security that may be accepted. Very few applications for loans under this heading have been received, the amount outstanding on account of principal owing on bills of sale being £1,026 at 31st March, 1929, at which date the amount borrowed by the Government and not paid off was only £3,475. The balance-sheet for the year ended 31st March, 1929, is as follows:—

FISHING INDUSTRY PROMOTION ACCOUNT.

Liabilities.	£
Sundry loans	3,475
Liability to Consolidated Fund	1,660
Suspense Account	42
Income-tax Suspense Account	6
Sundry creditors	1
Interest on loans, accrued but not due	51
Interest, on loans, overdue	113
Sinking Fund	8
	£4,756
Assets.	£
Principal owing on bills of sale	1,026
Temporary advances to Settlers Branch	3,250
Sinking Fund investments	49
Interest on bills of sale, overdue	24
Interest on bills of sale, accrued	14
Sundry debtors	17
Profit and Loss Account	346
Cash in hand and in bank at 31st March, 1929	30
	£4,756

Interest moneys received during the year 1928–29 amounted to £205, while interest on loans involved an expenditure of £155, and management expenses £18, making the net profit for the year £32.

COLD-STORAGE ADVANCES.

Under the Appropriation Act, 1917, section 22, authority was given for the raising of certain sums of money (not exceeding a total of £120,000) from time to time, to be utilized in the form of advances for cold-storage purposes. Section 30 of the Finance Act, 1918 (No. 2), repealed the former measure and increased the amount that could be borrowed for the purpose of providing additional cold storage in New Zealand to an aggregate sum of £270,000. The total amount raised under the authority of the above Act was £120,750, of which £47,030 has been redeemed, leaving a balance at the end of 1928–29 of £73,720. The amount actually owing by mortgagors in respect of principal advanced was £40,634, while temporary advances to the Settlers Branch accounted for £33,300. The balance-sheet showing the position as at the 31st March, 1929, is given below:—

COLD-STORAGE ADVANCES ACCOUNT.

Liabilities.	£
Sundry loans	73,720
Liability to Consolidated Fund	1,530
Income-tax Suspense Account	107
Interest on loans, overdue	2,307
Interest on loans, accrued but not due	244
Sinking Fund	536
	£78,444
Assets.	£
Principal owing by mortgagors	40,634
Temporary advances to Settlers Branch	33,300
Sinking Fund investments	1,124
Interest on mortgages, overdue	2,608
Interest on mortgages, accrued	719
Sundry debtors	23
Cash in hand and in bank at 31st March, 1929	36
	£78,444

This account showed a net profit of £605 for the year ended 31st March, 1929, interest receipts amounting to £3,670, interest payments on loan-money to £2,950, and management expenses to £115.

Chapter 25. SECTION XXV.—PENSIONS, SUPERANNUATION, ETC.

OLD-AGE PENSIONS.

THE history of old-age pensions in New Zealand dates back to 1898, in which year was passed the original Old-age Pensions Act, which provided for a pension of £18 per annum to persons of sixty-five and over who had twenty-five years' continuous residence in the country and complied with the requirements in other respects. The law relating to old-age pensions is now contained in the Pensions Act, 1926, which is a consolidation of previous enactments on the subject.

The qualifications for the old-age pension are briefly as follows:—

The applicant, if a male, must have reached the age of sixty-five, or, if a female, must have reached the age of sixty, except in cases where the applicant is the parent of two or more children under fifteen years of age who are dependent on him (or her). The pension age in such cases is sixty for men and fifty-five for women, and the pension payable may be any sum up to £13 per annum, in addition to the ordinary pension payable.
The applicant must be resident in New Zealand, and must have resided continuously in the Dominion for the past twenty-five years. Continuous residence is not interrupted by absences not exceeding two years in the aggregate. An additional six months' period of absence is allowed for every additional year's residence in excess of the twenty-five years immediately preceding the date of application, provided that the applicant has resided in New Zealand during the twelve months immediately preceding the date of establishment of his claim to a pension. In the case of a seaman continuous residence is not interrupted by absences on board a ship trading to and from New Zealand, and either registered or owned in the Dominion, provided the applicant establishes the fact that during such absences his family or home was in New Zealand.
The applicant must not during the past twelve years have been imprisoned for four months or on four occasions for an offence punishable by twelve months' imprisonment and dishonouring him in the public estimation.
The applicant must not during the past twenty-five years have been imprisoned for five years for any offence dishonouring him in the public estimation.
The applicant must not during the past twelve years have deserted his wife (or husband, as the case may be) or his children under the age of fifteen years.
The applicant must have lived a sober and reputable life during the past year.
The yearly income of the applicant, if single, must not reach £97 10s., and, if married, £143.
The not value of accumulated property, as defined by the Act, must be under £460.
The applicant must not have deprived himself or herself of property or income to qualify for a pension.

All residents of New Zealand who fulfil the necessary conditions are eligible for the old-age pension, with the exception of–

Maoris who receive votes other than pensions out of the grant appropriated by the Civil List Act, 1908.
Aliens.
Naturalized subjects who have not been naturalized one year.
Chinese or other Asiatics, whether naturalized or not, and whether British subjects by birth or not.

The term “alien” is deemed not to include a woman who ceased to be a British subject by reason of marriage with an alien who is since deceased, or from whom she is legally separated.

The original Act of 1898 provided for a pension of £18 per annum, or 6s. 11d. per week. This amount was, however, increased to £26 per annum (i.e., 10s. a week, or £2 3a. 4d. a month) by the Amendment Act of 1905. Under the Finance Act, 1917, every person in receipt of an old-age pension was paid an additional 5s. a week, or £13 per annum, by way of war bonus, and, in terms of the provisions of the Finance Act, 1920, this bonus was incorporated in the statutory pension, bringing it to 15s. a week, or £39 per annum. The Pensions Amendment Act, 1924, provided an additional 2s. 6d. per week in cases where the pensioner was without property and had no income other than his pension, and the Pensions Amendment Act, 1925, extended this increase to all pensioners, making the present general rate £45 10s. per annum. The full pension of £45 10s. is reducible by—

£1 for every complete £1 of income over £52.
£1 for every complete £10 of net capital value of accumulated property.

A further deduction of £1 for every year or part of a year by which the age of a woman pensioner is less than 65 is also made, except in cases where the pensioner is the mother of two or more children under 15 years of age who are dependent on her.

The income of a married applicant for pension purposes is considered to be half of the joint incomes of husband and wife. The joint incomes of a married couple must not exceed, with pension added, the sum of £143.

Income includes free board and lodging up to £26 per annum, but does not include—

Sick allowance or funeral benefit from a registered friendly society, or benefit payable under the National Provident Fund Act.
Any money received on the sale or exchange of land or property.
Any money received under an insurance policy on the destruction or damage by fire or otherwise of a building or other property.
Capital expended for the benefit of the applicant or the wife or husband or dependent children of the applicant.
Any principal or capital sum received on the intestacy or under the will of a deceased husband or wife.
Any moneys raised by public subscription for the benefit of the applicant, or of his wife (or her husband) or dependent children.
Any moneys, not exceeding £100, received by way of compensation or damages in respect of the death of any person.

The income chargeable is that received during the twelve months ending on the first day of the month immediately preceding the month in which the claim is admitted, the Magistrate dealing with the application having power to exempt personal earnings in cases where it is shown to his satisfaction that owing to loss of employment or any other cause such earnings have ceased.

Net accumulated property is the capital value (reduced by £50) of all real and personal property owned by an applicant, other than any property on which he permanently resides, or life-assurance policies and annuities, or other life interests in the capital sum of which the applicant has no interest beyond the income derived therefrom. The net accumulated property of a husband or wife for pension purposes is half of the total net accumulated properties of both.

The exemption of the value of the home in the computation of net accumulated property was not provided for prior to 1925.

The number of old-age pensions in force on the 31st March, 1929, was 26,110, an increase of 1,235 on the figure for the previous year. The annual liability was £1,091,262, being an average of £41 16s. per pension. The total payment in respect of old-age pensions during the year was £1,060,760. A decennial summary is—

At 31st March,	Pensioners.	Amount paid during Year.
		£
1920	19,993	732,968
1921	19,837	731,343
1922	20,491	743,620
1923	21,181	755,324
1924	21,468	767,805
1925	22,062	806,953
1926	22,905	903,577
1927	23,751	982,356
1928	24,875	1,010,575
1929	26,110	1,060,760

The total payments in respect of old-age pensions have aggregated £15,691,101 to the 31st March, 1929. As mentioned in subsection A of the preceding section, 30 per cent. of the net revenue from national endowments is apportioned to old-age pensions expenditure, the total amount so credited to 31st March, 1929, being £583,892.

WIDOWS' PENSIONS.

The Widows' Pensions Act, 1911, came into operation on the 1st January, 1912. The scope of this Act, which is embodied in its amended form in the Pensions Act, 1926, has been widened from time to time by various amendments.

Applicants for widows' pensions must be British subjects of good character, with at least one child under fifteen, and applications require to be lodged with the local Registrar of Pensions, and to be investigated by a Magistrate, who alone has power to grant pensions. The term “widow” includes a woman whose husband is detained in a mental hospital.

The pension payable is £62 per annum to a widow with one child under fifteen years of age, with £26 per annum added for each additional child under fifteen, the maximum pension payable being £208 per annum. The term “child” includes a stepchild or a child legally adopted during the lifetime of the husband of the applicant.

The number of widows' pensions in force on the 31st March, 1929, was 4,332, covering in addition 9,284 children. The annual value of these pensions was £322,861, and the gross payments during the year were £313,964.

The figures for the last five years are as follows:—

Year ended 31st March,	Number at End of Year.	Annual Value. £	Annual Payments. £
1925	3,598	281,141	236,378
1926	3,833	301,121	286,450
1927	3,970	305,586	301,861
1928	4,098	307,865	304,066
1929	4,332	322,861	313,964

The average pension as at 31st March, 1929, was £74 11s. The total widows' pension payments since the inauguration of the scheme in 1912 have been £2,640,041.

MAORI WAR PENSIONS.

The Military Pensions Act, 1912, was enacted to provide for the payment of an annual pension of £36 (now £49) to veterans of the Maori War who were awarded the New Zealand War Medal for active service in that war. This Act is now embodied in the Pensions Act of 1926.

The qualifications required of an applicant are as follows:—

He must have resided in New Zealand for the ten years immediately preceding the date of his application.
He must not have been imprisoned during the same period for any offence punishable by imprisonment for two years.
He must not during the same period have deserted or failed to provide for his wife and children.
He must be of good moral character and sober habits.

A person in receipt of a military pension in respect of Maori War service is not thereby debarred from applying for and receiving an old-age pension, in addition to his military pension.

The number of pensions in force on the 31st March, 1929, was 259, representing an annual value of £12,691 (£49 per pension). The payments on account of military pensions during the year aggregated £13,653. The figures for five years are–

Year ended 31st March,	Number at End of Year.	Annual Value. £	Annual Payments. £
1925	3,519	25,431	26,848
1926	444	21,756	23,067
1927	374	18,326	19,458
1928	308	15,092	16,390
1929	259	12,691	13,653

The number of pensioners of this class is rapidly decreasing, having fallen from 1,040 in 1919 to 259 in 1929, while the annual value fell during the same period from £47,814 to £12,691. The grand total paid in pensions of this class since the institution of this scheme in 1912–13 has been £562,718.

MINERS' PENSIONS.

Miners' pensions are provided for by Part IV of the Pensions Act, 1926 (which incorporates the Miners' Phthisis Act, 1915, and amendments), and by a section of the Finance Act, 1929, which extends the grounds on which a claim for pension may be based and increases the amount of pension where there are dependent children.

Under the new provisions the pension is payable to any miner, qualified by residence, &c., who is totally incapacitated or seriously and permanently incapacitated for work owing to miner's phthisis (pneumoconiosis) contracted while working as a miner in New Zealand. The term “miner's phthisis” is extended to include tuberculosis of the lungs and any other disease of the respiratory organs commonly associated with or a sequel to pneumoconiosis. The weekly pension payable during incapacity is as follows:—

To an unmarried man, £1 5s.

To a married man with wife or children under fifteen years of age dependent on him, £1 5s., plus 10s. in respect of his wife and 10s. in respect of each child. To a widower with children under fifteen years of age dependent on him, £1 5s., plus 10s. for each child.

The maximum weekly pension is £4 5s. The annual amount payable in respect of any child or children is reducible by £1 for every £1 of income from other sources in excess of £104.

The qualifications for this class of pension are—

The applicant must have been a British subject for one year.
He must have resided in New Zealand for five years immediately prior to his application.
He must have been employed as a miner in New Zealand for two years and a half.
He must not have deserted or failed to provide for his wife or children, nor have been convicted for any offence punishable by imprisonment for two years.
He must be of sober habits and good moral character.

The widow of any miner who is entitled to a pension under the Act and who dies of miner's phthisis is entitled to claim a pension of 17s. 6d. a week during widowhood, The actual reasonable expenses (not exceeding £20) of the funeral of a miner dying of miner's phthisis are also payable.

The number of pensions in force at 31st March, 1929, was 760, representing an annual liability of £48,367, the average pension being £63 13s. Pension payments during the year totalled £48,074, bringing the aggregate from the commencement of the scheme to £394,348. Against this the amount of £43,205 has been credited in respect of gold duty. Funeral expenses paid to 31st March, 1929, have totalled £5,248.

A summary is given showing the position as at the 31st March of each year of the period 1925–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Number.	Annual Liability.	Annual Payment.
		£	£
1925	607	37,934	38,506
1926	640	40,462	40,239
1927	668	41,951	41,940
1928	721	45,773	45,096
1929	760	48,367	48,074

Of the 790 pensions in force at the 31st March, 1929, 379 were being paid to miners and 381 to widows of miners.

The total pensions granted since 1916 have been 1,541. Of these 585 have been discontinued on account of death, and 196. for other causes.

WAR PENSIONS.

The War Pensions Act, 1915, as amended, provides for the payment of pensions on certain conditions—

To disabled members of the New Zealand Forces:
To dependants of disabled, deceased, or missing members of the New Zealand Forces.

“Member of the Forces” may include—

A member of any New Zealand Expeditionary Force raised for service beyond New Zealand in the war of 1914–18:
A member of any New Zealand Naval Force raised for service beyond New Zealand in the war:
A member of the New Zealand Army Nursing Service who, while domiciled in New Zealand, served beyond New Zealand in the war and was in the pay of the New Zealand Government:
A member of the New Zealand Defence or Naval Forces temporarily attached to any other portion of His Majesty's Forces who served beyond New Zealand in the war and was in receipt of pay from the Imperial Government:
Any person, not being a member of any New Zealand Expeditionary or Naval Force, who, while domiciled in New Zealand, served beyond New Zealand in the war and was in receipt of pay from the New Zealand Government:
Any person, not being a member of any New Zealand Expeditionary Force, who was engaged on active military service in any capacity in New Zealand in connection with the war.

A “dependant” may be wife, child, father, mother, grandfather, grandmother, stepfather, stepmother, grandchild, brother, sister, or mother-in-law, and, except wife or child, must have been wholly or in part dependent upon a member of the Forces at any time during the twelve months immediately preceding the date on which the said member joined the Forces.

A “dependant” may, however, include a father or mother who was not actually dependent during the said twelve months, but is without adequate means of support.

A “child” means a person under the age of sixteen years, being a son, daughter, stepson, stepdaughter, or illegitimate child of a member of the Forces, or a child legally adopted by such member before he became a member of the Forces.

The death or disablement of any member of the Forces must have occurred in the course of his military service in connection with the war, but may have taken place either in New Zealand or after departure from New Zealand.

The pension may be refused to a disabled applicant if any wilful misconduct contributed to the disablement.

The full scale of pensions was published in the 1920 issue of this book.

The gross annual value of the pensions in force at the 31st March, 1929, was £1,161,799. A summary follows:—

SUMMARY OF ANNUAL LIABILITY AT 31ST MARCH, 1929.

Class of Pension.	Number of Pensioners.	Number of Children.	Annual Value.	Average Pension.
			£	£
Soldiers (permanent)	9,138	10	454,388	50
Soldiers (temporary)	3,400	25	245,110	72
Dependants of disabled soldiers	1,009	2,053	89,686	89
Widows (without children)	688	..	62,010	90
Widows (with children)	683	1,042	105,028	154
Other dependants of deceased soldiers—
Parents	5,056	6	180,313	36
Other adult dependants	123	13	4,386	36
Guardians of children	589	769	20,878	35
Totals	20,686	3,918	1,161,799	56

Information as to number and rate of war pensions in force at 31st March, 1929, is given in the following table:—

WAR PENSIONS IN FORCE AT EACH RATE AT 31ST MARCH, 1929.

Rate (nearest £1).	Soldiers (Permanent).	Soldiers (Temporary).	Wives and Parents (on account of Disablement).	On account of Death.
Rate (nearest £1).	Soldiers (Permanent).	Soldiers (Temporary).	Wives and Parents (on account of Disablement).	Widows (Including Children's Pensions).	Parents and other Dependants.
£ £	£	£	£	£	£
301–350	4	2	..	1	..
261–300	3	4	..	4	..
234–260	35	4	6	14	..
201–233	16	2	16	35	..
191–200	2	8	2	21	..
181–190	162	308	24	86	..
171–180	26	4	2	9	..
161–170	114	108	5	57	1
151–160	68	107	79	152	1
141–150	49	80	11	25	1
131–140	37	9	10	48	..
121–130	128	232	93	265	17
111–120	44	21	15	82	10
101–110	117	130	165	30	18
91–100	311	40	28	7	42
81–90	296	11	17	77	13
71–80	359	110	150	452	194
61–70	294	90	31	..	73
61–60	1,202	313	181	2	538
41–50	329	149	28	..	106
31–40	1,559	474	44	2	1,473
21–30	2,821	977	79	1	3,225
6–20	1,162	217	23	1	56
Totals	9,138	3,400	1,009	1,371	5,768

Figures showing the number of pensions, according to class, in each of the last ten years are given below:—

At 31st March,	Soldiers (Permanent).	Soldiers (Temporary).	Wives and Parents (on account of Disablement).	On account of Death.		Total
At 31st March,	Soldiers (Permanent).	Soldiers (Temporary).	Wives and Parents (on account of Disablement).	Widows (including Children's Pensions).	Parents and other Dependants.	Total
1920	2,130	23,144	1,517	2,075	5,705	34,571
1921	3,215	19,133	1,371	2,034	6,011	31,764
1922	4,650	15,302	1,103	1,986	6,050	29,091
1923	5,686	11,892	908	1,969	6,005	26,460
1924	6,784	7,731	807	1,977	5,867	23,166
1925	7,583	5,251	716	1,402	6,366	21,318
1926	8,194	4,174	747	1,384	6,217	20,716
1927	8,646	3,717	798	1,367	6,097	20,625
1928	8,941	3,439	902	1,369	5,909	20,560
1929	9,138	3,400	1,009	1,371	5,768	20,686

Sixty-one per cent. of the total pensions in force at the 31st March, 1929, were payable to soldiers, 73 per cent. of these being permanently granted and 27 per cent. temporarily. Only 5 per cent. of all pensions were granted to wives and parents on account of disablement, while 34 per cent. were granted on account of death.

The proportions which each class bears to the total have been as follows at 31st March in each of the last ten years:—

At 3lst March.	Soldiers (Permanent).	Soldiers (Temporary).	Wives and Parents (on account of Disablement).	On account of Death.		Total.
At 3lst March.	Soldiers (Permanent).	Soldiers (Temporary).	Wives and Parents (on account of Disablement).	Widows (including Children's Pensions).	Parents and other Dependants.	Total.
1920	6.2	66.9	4.4	6.0	16.5	100.0
1921	10.1	60.3	4.3	6.4	18.9	100.0
1922	15.9	52.6	3.8	6.9	20.8	100.0
1923	21.5	44.9	3.4	7.5	22.7	100.0
1924	29.3	33.4	3.5	8.5	25.3	100.0
1925	35.6	24.6	3.3	6.6	29.9	100.0
1926	39.6	20.1	3.6	6.7	30.0	100.0
1927	41.9	18.0	3.9	6.6	29.6	100.0
1928	43.5	16.7	4.4	6.6	28.8	100.0
1929	44.2	16.4	4.9	6.6	27.9	100.0

The total payments on war pensions to the 31st March, 1929, were £16,034,610, the figures for each year being—

Year ended 31st March.	Pension Payments.
	£
1916	13,910
1917	180,389
1918	515,445
1919	1,199,755
1920	1,812,419
1921	1,886,952
1922	1,726,174
1923	1,489,392
1924	1,315,560
1925	1,244,483
1926	1,185,161
1927	1,128,988
1928	1,151,979
1929	1,184,003

ECONOMIC PENSIONS.

By an amendment of the War Pensions Act, 1915, provision was made for the payment of economic pensions to soldiers or their dependants. An “economic pension” is defined under the Act as a supplementary pension granted on economic grounds, and being in addition to any pension payable as a right in respect of the death or disablement of a member of the Force.

Economic pensions consist of three classes, viz.,—

A maximum pension of £1 10s. weekly to disabled soldiers.
A maximum pension of 10s. weekly to widows of soldiers with one child, with an additional 2s. 6d. weekly for each child in excess of one.
A maximum pension of £1 weekly to widowed mothers of deceased soldiers.

In each case the income of the pensioner affects the grant. Pensions payable under Class (1) have taken the place of the previously payable supplementary grants of £1 a week under section 4 of the 1917 Act, and the 10s. a week granted under the Finance Act, 1920, and are also payable under certain conditions to soldiers whose disablement is of such a nature as to militate against their obtaining or following remunerative employment. Soldiers pensioned for minor disabilities do not receive economic pensions.

The total number of economic pensions in force at the 31st March, 1929, was 1,756, of an annual value of £108,606. Payments in respect of economic pensions are included in the general total of war pensions.

SOUTH AFRICAN VETERANS' WAR PENSIONS.

Section 13 of the Finance Act, 1919, provides that every person permanently resided in New Zealand who on the passing of that Act was in receipt of a pension or allowance under Part IX of the Defence Act, 1909, in respect of military service in South Africa shall be entitled to a pension under the War Pensions Act, 1915, in the same manner as if he had been a member of the Forces within the meaning of that Act. Any pension under this section is not to be of such amount that the total amount receivable (including any Imperial pension) would be more than the pension payable if he had been a member of the Forces within the War Pensions Act, 1915.

The total number of pensions in force under this heading at the 31st March, 1929, was 62, corresponding to an annual liability of £2,643. The amount actually paid out on claims during the year was £2,700.

In addition to the war pensions granted to South African veterans, old-age pensioners who served in the South African War may receive additional old-age pension of 5s. per week in cases where the total income, including pension, does not exceed £97 10s. per annum.

DEFENCE PENSIONS.

Section 34 of the Finance Act, 1926, provides for pensions to be paid in the event of the death or disablement of members of the New Zealand Defence or Naval Forces by reason of misadventure suffered in the performance of their duties. The pensions rates under this section are not to exceed the corresponding pension rates under the War Pensions Act, and all applications for pensions of this class are dealt with by the War Pensions Board.

EPIDEMIC PENSIONS.

To relieve distress arising out of the influenza epidemic of 1918 a system of pensions was instituted. The number of pensions in force at the 31st March, 1929, was 188, representing an annual liability of £8,030, the average pension being £42 14s. The amount paid during the financial year 1928–29 in respect of epidemic pensions was £7,988, and the total amount paid since the commencement of the scheme £444,253.

The number of pensions is rapidly decreasing, having fallen during the past year by 21, or since the 31st March, 1920, by 751.

PENSIONS FOR THE BLIND.

Part III of the Pensions Act, 1926, which incorporates legislation passed in 1924 and amended in 1925, provides for the payment of a pension of £45 10s. per annum to blind people over the age of twenty. To be eligible for a pension an applicant must (1) have been born blind in New Zealand, or (2) have become blind while permanently resident in New Zealand, or (3) have been permanently resident in New Zealand for at least ten years before the 29th October, 1924, or twenty-five years before the date of applying for the pension. Ten years' continuous residence in the Dominion is required in every case.

Similar provisions apply in regard to property and unearned income as in the case of old-age pensions. In regard to earned income, however, an additional pension equal to 25 per cent. of earnings is granted, with a proviso that total income and pension must not exceed £3 12s. 6d. per week.

The number of pensions in force at the 31st March, 1929, was 282, representing an annual liability of £13,529, or an average of £48 per annum. The amount of pension-money paid under this head to the 31st March, 1929, was £45,025.

FAMILY ALLOWANCES.

The Family Allowances Act was passed in the session of 1926, to provide for the granting of allowances towards the maintenance of children by parents of limited income. The Act came into force on the 1st April, 1927.

The allowance is at the rate of 2s. per week for each child in excess of two, the average weekly income of the applicant and his wife and children, including allowance, not to exceed £4, plus 2s. for each child in excess of two. For the purposes of the Act the term “child” means a child under the ago of fifteen, being a son, daughter, stepson, or stepdaughter of the applicant, and includes a child legally adopted by the applicant or his wife, but not an illegitimate child. A child who is not in fact maintained as a member of the family, or in respect of whom a pension out of public moneys is otherwise payable, is also excluded. In certain cases the allowance may be continued after a child has attained the age of fifteen.

In the computation of income for the purpose of deciding the eligibility of an applicant for an allowance, the following are taken into account:—

All money or money's worth received from all sources, within the period of one year immediately preceding the date of the application, by any member of the family for his own use or benefit or for the use or benefit of any member of the family:
Interest at the rate of five per cent. per annum (or such higher rate as may actually be received) on the value of the beneficial interest of any member of the family in any real or personal property (other than furniture and personal effects in the possession of the family).

In special cases anticipated increases or decreases in income may be taken into account. Deduction from income as above computed is made in respect of expenditure incurred in the production of the income.

The application for the allowance is made by the father, but in general the allowance is paid to the mother, provision being made for payment to the father in certain exceptional cases.

Apart from the conditions as to income and children, the applicant and (except in cases where the allowance is not payable to the wife) his wife must have been resident in New Zealand for not less than one year, and the children in respect of whom the allowance is payable must either have been born in the Dominion or have been resident therein for one year. Except with the direction of the Minister in Charge of the Pensions Department, no allowance may be paid in the case of aliens or of Asiatics, whether British subjects or not. An application for an allowance may be refused if the applicant or his wife is of notoriously bad character, or has been guilty of any offence or misconduct dishonouring him or her in the public estimation. Refusal may also be made if the applicant or his wife has directly or indirectly deprived himself or herself of property or income in order to obtain the benefits of the scheme. The allowance is required to be applied toward the maintenance or education of the children concerned, and may be refused unless it is shown that it will be so applied.

The number of claims dealt with during the year ended 31st March, 1929, totalled 1,807, of which 1,437 were granted and 213 rejected. Of the rejected claims 138 represent cases where the income of the family was in excess of the limit. The total number of family allowances ill force at the 31st March, 1929, was 3,763, with an annual liability of £57,304. This averages £15 5s. per annum each or approximately 6s. weekly, the maximum for three children. The total amount paid out during the year was £54,791.

The total number of children of the 3,763 families receiving allowances was 18,884, and the number in excess of two was 11,358, the average per family being 5.01 and 3.01 respectively. The number of families granted allowances during the year 1928–29 according to the number of children in excess of two is set out in the following table:—

Number of Children in Excess of Two.	Number of Families.
One	344
Two	388
Three	333
Four	187
Five	102
Six	57
Over six	26

Of the 1,437 families granted allowances during the year 101 had incomes of £1 or under; 244 over £1 and up to £2; 359 over £2 and up to £3; 679 over £3 and up to £4; and 54 over £4 and up to £5. The weekly rates at which allowances were granted were—

Rate.	Number.
1s.	9
2s.	356
3s.	12
4s.	384
5s.	8
6s.	317
7s.	5
8s.	177
9s.	2
10s.	96
11s.	1
12s.	47
14a.	18
16s.	4
18s.	1

MISCELLANEOUS PENSIONS.

In addition to the various cases of pensions enumerated in the foregoing part of this section, the Pensions Department is charged with the payment of pensions under the Civil Service Act, 1908, and other miscellaneous pensions and annuities.

The total number and the gross annual value of pensions in force under the Civil Service Act at the 31st March, 1929, were 39 and £11,772 respectively. The total payments during the year amounted to £12,260. There were at the same date 109 special annuities, of a total annual value of £10,186, the amount actually paid out during the year being £10,296.

A summary showing the total amount of pensions administered by the Pensions Department during the two years ended 31st March. 1928 and 1929, follows:—

Class of Pension.	Annual Value.		Gross Payments.
Class of Pension.	1927–28.	1928–29.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	£	£	£	£
War	1,131,752	1,161,799	1,151,979	1,184,003
Old-age	1,038,249	1,091,262	1,010,575	1,060,760
Widows	307,865	322,861	304,066	313,964
Maori War	15,092	12,691	16,390	13,653
Miners	45,773	48,367	45,096	48,074
Epidemic	8,142	8,030	8,747	7,988
Blind	12,479	13,529	12,264	13,334
Boer War	2,663	2,643	2,710	2,700
Civil Service Act	12,220	11,772	13,260	12,260
Special annuities	10,569	10,186	11,031	10,296
Family allowances	46,557	57,304	37,652	54,791
Totals	2,631,361	2,740,444	2,613,770	2,721,823

SUPERANNUATION FUNDS.

Schemes in force for the provision of superannuation pensions for public servants on their retirement embrace the State Railways, Public Service (including Police), Teachers, and Stipendiary Magistrates. Local bodies are empowered to establish schemes under the Local Authorities Superannuation Act, 1908.

The law relating to the various superannuation schemes, other than these for the Railways Department and local authorities, is contained in the Public Service Superannuation Act, 1927, a consolidation of former legislation on the subject.

PUBLIC SERVICE SUPERANNUATION FUND.

The Public Service superannuation scheme, which includes all branches of the Public Service except the Railways Department and that part of the Education service which conies under the operations of the teachers' superannuation scheme, came into force on the 1st January, 1908. The scheme, although optional on the part of public servants permanently employed at that date, is compulsory on all persons appointed thereafter.

The Police Provident Fund, which was established on the 1st December, 1899, under the Police Provident Act, 1899, was merged in the Public Service Superannuation Fund on the 1st April, 1910.

The fund is administered by a Board consisting of eleven members, comprising a Minister of the Crown, four permanent heads of Departments, and six members elected by contributors—two by these in the Post and Telegraph Department, one by these in the Police Force, and three by these in other Departments. Elected members hold office for three years, with the right of offering themselves for re-election.

The fund consists of contributions from contributors, interest on investments, Government subsidy, fines imposed on public servants, and proceeds of sales of unclaimed property.

The contributors to the fund are of two classes—“original” and “new.” In the first class are these who, on the initiation of the fund, were allowed the option of joining the fund, of effecting life insurance, or of paying 5 per cent. of their salaries into the Public Trust Office Common Fund for their future benefit; while in the second class are the compulsory contributors—i.e., all officers who have been permanently appointed since the original Act of 1907 came into force. The latter class includes temporary employees made permanent by reason of five years' continuous service, which service must, however, have commenced on or prior to the 25th November, 1907, the date of the passing of the 1907. Act.

The contributions vary with the age on joining the fund: For ages under thirty they are 5 per cent. of the salary; ages thirty and under thirty-five, 6 per cent.; thirty-five and under forty, 7 per cent.; forty and under forty-five, 8 per cent.; forty-five and under fifty, 9 per cent.; fifty and over, 10 per cent.

The principal benefits are—

A pension for every year of service equal to one-sixtieth of the average annual salary for the last three years, payable (a) after forty years' service, or (b) at age sixty-five, or (c) on retirement owing to ill health. The maximum pension is not to exceed two-thirds of the salary, nor, in the case of entrants after the 24th December, 1909, £300 per annum.
A pension of £31 per annum to the widow of a contributor or pensioner during widowhood, and £26 per annum for each child under the age of fourteen Prior to the 1st April, 1925, widows' and children's pensions were £18 and £13 per annum respectively.

Females may retire after thirty years' service or at the age of fifty-five, while the retiring-age may be reduced in certain cases for both males and females. Special pensions may be given in the case of members of the Police Force for injuries received on duty.

At the 31st March, 1929, there were 17,177 contributors, paying £254,332 per annum into the fund. The pensioners at the same date numbered 2,796, and were entitled to £359,084 per annum, made up as follows:—

	Number.	Pensions.
		£
Retired for age or length of service	1,478	308,346
Retired for ill health	199	16,982
Police injured on duty	10	1,377
Widows	709	21,979
Children	400	10,400
	2,796	£359,084

The following table contains particulars of the public servants who were contributing to the fund at the 31st March, 1929, grouped according to their respective rates of contribution:—

Rata per Cent. of Contribution.	Number.			Annual Salary.	Annual Contribution.
Rata per Cent. of Contribution.	Male.	Female.	Total.	Annual Salary.	Annual Contribution.
				£	£
5	11,918	1,588	13,506	3,382,551	169,128
6	1,545	140	1,685	569,132	34,148
7	973	102	1,075	362,310	25,362
8	583	61	644	217,823	17,426
9	200	17	217	72,923	6,563
10	48	2	50	17,056	1,705
Totals	15,267	1,910	17,177	4,621,795	254,332

Accumulated funds at the 31st March, 1929, amounted to £2,625,943, total assets to £2,712,707, and investments to £2,660,620, £1,608,219 being invested in mortgage securities and £1,052,401 in New Zealand Government securities. The investment figures include £22,205 invested on Stipendiary Magistrates' account.

The classes of security in which the moneys of the fund may be invested are—

Securities of the New Zealand Government.
Debentures issued by a local authority and secured upon general or special rates, or partly by rates and partly in some other manner.
Advances by way of first mortgage on the security of any real estate held in fee-simple in New Zealand, to an amount not exceeding three-fifths of the estimated value of such estate, according to a valuation approved by the Board.
Deposits in any bank of issue in New Zealand, or in the Post Office Savings-bank.
Any other securities that may from time to time be authorized by the Governor-General in Council on the recommendation of the Board.

Officers who have retired since the initiation of the scheme, and who possessed compensation rights under the Civil Service Act, 1866, would have been entitled to receive the sum of £555,105, the amount of compensation accrued to the date when they joined the Superannuation Fund, had they not become participants in the benefits of the fund. To this amount must be added accretions to the date of retirement, approximately £133,500, for which the Consolidated Fund would otherwise have been liable, and the whole may be fairly set against the total subsidies paid to the fund, amounting to £1,462,500.

An examination of the Public Service Superannuation Fund is made once in every three years by an Actuary appointed for the purpose by the Governor-General. The actuarial examination was made as at the 31st December in each third year up to and including 1919, but by section 53 of the Finance Act, 1922, the examination which would otherwise have been due at the 31st December, 1922, was postponed to the 31st March, 1924, future examinations to be made as at the 31st March in each third year from 1927 onwards.

The Actuary's report must show the state of the fund at the close of the triennium, having regard to the prospective liabilities and assets, and the probable annual sums required by the fund to provide the retiring and other allowances falling due within the ensuing three years, without affecting or having recourse to the actuarial reserve appertaining to the contributors' contributions—in other words, without trenching on the moneys paid by existing contributors to be invested for the purpose of providing their allowances when they retire.

When an original contributor retires on superannuation his retiring-allowance may be divided—although in practice it is not so divided—into two parts: i.e., that part which relates to his service prior to joining the fund and for which he was not required to contribute, and that part subsequent to joining the fund and for which he did contribute. It is mainly in respect of the first part, together with the supplementary benefits to widows and children, that a subsidy is required from the State.

The Government subsidy to the fund was originally £20,000 per annum, rising in 1910 to £22,500, and in the next two years to £23,000. In 1913 it was increased to £48,000, and in 1919 to £86,000. In consequence of the position disclosed by the Actuary as at 31st December, 1919, an additional amount of £100,000 was contributed to the fund by the Government, divided between the years 1923–24 and 1924–25. The additional charge on account of the increase granted in 1925 in the amount of pensions payable to widows and children is met by the Consolidated Fund.

The actuarial report for the triennium ended 31st March, 1927, shows that on the basis of valuation adopted the subsidies paid for 1911 and 1912 were too low by £25,000 per annum; for the three years 1914–16, too low by £18,000 per annum; for 1917 and 1918, too low by £38,000 per annum; for the three years 1920–22, too low by £39,000 per annum; for 1923, too low by £86,000; for the first three months of 1924, too low by £9,000; for the twelve months ended 31st March, 1925, too low by £104,000; and for each of the next two years, too low by £154,000; making a total shortage to 31st March, 1927, of £804,000, or, with accumulations at 4 1/2 per cent. to 1928, £1,060,325. The valuation of the fund as at the 31st March, 1927, gave the following results:—

	£	£
Present value of existing pensions and allowances	..	2,924,825
Present value of prospective benefits	9,052,579
Less present value of members' contributions	2,823,844
		6,228,735
Total net liabilities	..	9,153,560
Funds in hand	..	2,493,790
Present value of total liability of State	..	6,859,770
Less present value of existing subsidy of £86,000	..	1,911,111
Value of future subsidies to be provided for by the State over and above present subsidy of £86,000		£4,748,659

The actuarial report estimated that, apart from making provision for the shortages of past years, the subsidy for each of the three years ending 31st March, 1928 to 1930, should be increased to £231,000. It was stated that at least £50,000 per annum should be added to the subsidy to meet the deficiency in past subsidy payments; and administration expenses, which have hitherto been borne by the fund, were estimated to require a further £4,000 subsidy per annum.

All previous valuations of the fund were made on the basis of interest at 4 per cent., a 4 1/2 per cent. rate being adopted for the latest period. This rate is, however, much lower than that at present being received, the average rate of interest earned on the mean funds during recent years being:—

Year ended 31st December.	Average Rate per Cent.
	£	s.	d.
1916	5	1	2
1917	5	3	3
1918	5	4	1
1919	5	5	10
1920	5	3	1
1921	5	6	0
1924	5	16	3
1925	5	18	7
1926	6	1	5
1927	6	1	0
1928	6	1	8
1929	5	17	6

The total revenue of the fund for the year ended 31st March, 1929, was £502,366, including members' contributions £253,925, interest on investments and on contributions £147,040, and Government subsidy £100,007, the last-mentioned including a special payment of £14,007 on account of increased benefits to widows and children. The total amount expended during the year was £404,876, comprising retiring and other allowances £351,396, refunds of contributions £44,234, transfers to other funds £516, and cost of administration £7,996.

A table is now given showing the progress of the fund from 1914 to 1928–29:—

Year ended	Number of Contributors.	Total Amount of Contributions.	Interest received from Investments.	Contributions from Government.	Annual Value of Allowances.	Accumulated Fund.
* Fifteen months.
		£	£	£	£	£
31st December, 1914	11,803	128,930	25,607	48,000	70,399	655,811
31st December, 1916	13,313	141,844	42,314	48,000	88,392	896,568
31st December, 1918	13,784	146,039	49,378	48,000	100,389	1,015,603
31st December, 1920	15,387	241,639	71,950	106,000	142,719	1,502,906
31st March, 1923^*	14,989	217,409	121,330	107,500	224,598	1,869,028
31st March, 1924	15,021	217,692	113,608	136,000	251,894	2,039,043
31st March, 1925	15,782	230,603	122,510	136,000	264,146	2,211,555
31st March, 1926	16,328	238,996	132,993	99,269	314,214	2,317,399
31st March, 1927	16,914	245,635	140,268	99,444	330,002	2,429,290
31st March, 1928	17,002	249,022	146,790	99,810	342,881	2,528,454
31st March, 1929	17,177	254,332	147,040	100,007	359,084	2,625,943

TEACHERS' SUPERANNUATION FUND.

The scheme of superannuation for teachers came into operation from 1st January, 1906. The benefits were brought into line with these of the Public Service Superannuation Fund in 1908, existing contributors having, however, the right of electing to remain subject to the provisions formerly in force. The present legislation relating to the superannuation of teachers is contained in Part IV of the Public Service Superannuation Act, 1927.

There are a few slight differences between the Public Service and the Teachers' Funds, the chief being that where back service is recognized it need not be continuous, and that a contributor is not deemed to have retired from the Education service by reason of unemployment unless the unemployment extends for twelve months or unless the contributor deliberately retires from the service as distinct from a particular position in the service. In certain circumstances the period of twelve months can be extended by the Board.

The total amount standing to the credit of the fund at the 31st January, 1929, was £1,171,990, an increase of £37,976 during the year. The revenue for the year was £275,889, including members' contributions and arrears £136,061, interest £67,828, and Government subsidy £72,000. The total amount of Government subsidy paid into the fund to the 31st January, 1929, is £752,753. The expenditure of the fund for the year ended 31st January, 1929, was £237,913, of which retiring and other allowances represented £207,706, and refunds of contributions £26,781.

On the 31st January, 1929, there were 9,281 contributors, the annual contributions amounting to £131,699.

The retiring and other allowances were 1,444, representing a charge of £210,154 per annum, made up of—

	Number	Amount of Pension.
		£
Retired for age or length of service	1,018	183,229
Retired for ill health	139	18,435
Widows	203	6,306
Children	84	2,184
	1,444	£210,154

The progress of the fund during the last ten years is shown in the following table:—

Year ended	Number of Contributors.	Total Amount of Contributions.	Interest received.	Government Subsidy.	Total Amount paid in Allowances.	Accumulated Fund.
*Thirteen months.
		£	£	£	£	£
31st December, 1919	5,019	72,297	26,686	43,000	57,489	526,702
31st December, 1920	5,174	87,310	30,295	43,000	66,589	599,303
31st December, 1921	5,872	96,391	35,146	43,000	74,315	681,777
31st January, 1923^*	6,296	100,309	45,041	71,583	100,132	779,636
31st January, 1924	6,858	101,632	48,725	63,833	112,861	858,662
31st January, 1925	7,443	111,025	53,689	68,000	126,232	942,755
31st January, 1926	7,968	127,671	64,844	70,681	169,258	1,008,823
31st January, 1927	8,376	147,028	73,420	71,428	184,707	1,083,155
31st January, 1928	8,680	131,872	68,053	71,228	188,553	1,134,015
31st January, 1929	9,281	136,061	67,828	72,000	207,706	1,171,990

GOVERNMENT RAILWAYS SUPERANNUATION FUND.

The Government Railways Superannuation Fund was established on the 1st January, 1903, by the Government Railways Superannuation Fund Act, 1902, now embodied in the Government Railways Act, 1926.

The pension is here also one-sixtieth of the annual rate of pay for every year of service, but the retiring-age is sixty for both males and females, instead of ages sixty-five and fifty-five respectively as in the Public Service. The only other differences of importance are that the annual allowances to widows and children are paid only on the death of contributors before retiring on a pension, and that the pension is computed on the last salary, except where the contributor has served in a lower grade within the previous three years, in which case the average for three years is taken.

The total amount standing to the credit of the Government Railways Superannuation Fund at the close of the financial year ended 31st March, 1929, was £1,238,674, an increase of £127,474 on the balance to the credit of the fund for the previous year.

Prior to the 1st April, 1924, the moneys belonging to the fund formed part of the Common Fund of the Public Trust Office, and bore interest at the rate of 5 per cent. on the daily credit balance. From the date mentioned, however, they have been separately invested by the Public Trustee. The average rate of interest earned during the year 1928–29 was 5.82 per cent.

The revenue for the year totalled £414,32s, including members' contributions £166,439, interest £65,537, subsidy from Railways Department £182,337 (including £12,337 on account of increased allowances to widows and children). The expenditure during the year amounted to £286,780, of which retiring - allowances represented £240,710, allowances to widows and children £27,024, and refunds of contributions, &c., £15,047.

At the 31st March, 1929, there were 2,415 persons on the fund, receiving allowances involving an annual liability of £258,632.

The progress of the fund during the last ten years is given below:—

Year ended 31st March.	Number of Contributors.	Amount received from Contributors.	Interest earned by Fund.	Amount received from Government.	Amount paid in Allowances.	Accumulated Fund.
		£	£	£	£	£
1920	10,169	104,130	17,485	75,000	109,125	408,233
1921	10,715	122,957	21,960	75,000	124,435	464,491
1922	11,457	135,661	23,160	75,000	138,620	543,541
1923	11,686	129,509	26,175	75,000	157,415	584,219
1924	12,236	133,580	28,565	125,000	171,665	671,827
1925	12,628	145,193	36,941	105,000	196,091	734,112
1926	13,371	154,121	43,751	182,465	225,955	862,139
1927	13,564	157,916	50,716	182,609	242,739	985,828
1928	13,626	158,600	58,293	182,380	255,014	1,111,200
1929	13,822	166,439	65,537	182,337	267,734	1,238,674

SUPERANNUATION OF MAGISTRATES.

Section 39 of the Finance Act, 1924, which is now incorporated in the Public Service Superannuation Act, 1927, made special provision for retiring-allowances in the case of Stipendiary Magistrates, who (with the exception of these in office at the 6th November, 1924, who elected within two months to remain contributors to the Public Service Fund) were removed from the Public Service scheme.

The scheme for Magistrates provides for the same rates of contribution as under the Public Service scheme, but gives an annual retiring-allowance for each year of service (whether continuous or not) equal to one-fortieth of the annual salary receivable at the date of retirement, with, however, a limit of twenty-five fortieths. The retiring-age is also increased to sixty-eight, instead of sixty-five.

Members' contributions during the year ended the 31st March, 1929, totalled £1,880, and interest on investments brought in £1,248. Administration expenses during the year were only £64, and retiring-allowances were £1,630. The fund at the 31st March, 1929, amounted to £22,205.

LOCAL AUTHORITIES SUPERANNUATION.

The Local Authorities Superannuation Act, 1908, which came into force on the 10th October, 1908, applies to Borough Councils, County Councils, Town Boards, Road Boards, Harbour Boards, tramway companies, or any body possessing rating-powers over any district.

Statistical information as to the various funds which have been initiated under the authority of this statute is not available.

NATIONAL PROVIDENT FUND.

The National Provident Fund was established by Act in 1910, and came into operation on the 1st March, 1911. The fund is administered by a Board composed of the Minister of Finance as Chairman and four members appointed by the Governor-General, one of whom is the Superintendent of the fund.

The system is open to any person between the ages of sixteen and fifty years residing in New Zealand whose average income during the three years prior to joining has not exceeded £800 per annum. There is no medical examination on entry, and the method of joining is extremely simple, the applicant having merely to fill in a form at a postal money-order office or local office of the fund, and pay a first weekly contribution.

The following benefits are payable:—

After contributing for twelve months, a payment not exceeding £6 for medical attendance and nursing on the birth of a contributor's child or children.
After contributing for five years, an allowance, after three months' incapacity to work, of 7s. 6d. per week for each child of a contributor under fourteen years of age; payable independent of any allowances due from friendly societies. No contributions payable while in receipt of incapacity allowance.
After contributing for five years, an allowance, on the death of a contributor, of 7s. 6d. per week for each child under fourteen years of age, and 7s. 6d. for the widow so long as any child is under fourteen years of age.
On reaching age sixty, a pension of 10s., 20s., 30s., or 40s. per week, according to the scale of contributions. The receipt of a pension under the National Provident Fund Act does not affect a person's claim to the old-age pension under the Pensions Act.

The maternity allowance is payable only if the combined income of a contributor and wife or husband does not exceed £300 per annum at the time of claim, but this limitation does not debar from the other benefits. The incapacity allowance is not to exceed the pecuniary loss which, in the opinion of the Board, the contributor has probably suffered during incapacity, and the income of a contributor during incapacity, independent of the fund, is not to exceed the rate of £4 per week.

The contributions for each 10s. of weekly pension range from 9d. per week in the case of persons joining at age sixteen to 9s. 4d. per week for persons joining at age fifty.

In the event of a contributor leaving the fund or dying, all contributions (less any benefits received) are returnable. If a contributor dies before the first five years are completed his representatives receive the contributions he has paid, less anything he received during lifetime. Should he die after age sixty, before receiving in benefits a sum equal to the contributions paid in during his lifetime, the difference is returnable to his representatives; and, further, if the allowances paid for widow and children do not exhaust the contributions his representatives are entitled to the residue. If a contributor dies before age sixty, leaving a widow and no children, all the contributions are returnable, less benefits paid out.

The benefits under the Act are guaranteed by the State, which subsidizes the contributions to the extent of one-fourth of the amount paid into the fund.

An important extension of the fund was made in 1914, when it was provided that the employees of local authorities, &c., could be enrolled in the fund for superannuation purposes. A further extension was made in 1916, whereby members of approved friendly societies were granted maternity allowances and offered annuities on reduced terms and under special tables.

In 1925 provision was made for the payment out of the National Provident Fund of retiring-allowances to nurses and other members of the permanent staffs of Hospital Boards. The National Provident Fund Act, 1926, which is a consolidation of previous legislation on the subject, imposes on Hospital Boards the obligation to contribute to the Fund on behalf of their permanent officers, and thus places Hospital Boards in a different category from other local bodies, which are empowered, but not obliged, to become contributors.

Schemes of contribution by employers on behalf of employees are provided for by sections of the Finance Act (No. 2), 1927, and the Finance Act, 1929. Contributions may be made for employees over fifty years of age and in receipt of over £300 per annum, and the pensions, which may be at a weekly rate of any multiple of 10s. up to 80s., are payable at either age sixty or age sixty-five.

Since the inauguration of the fund in 1911, 70,166 persons (60,985 males and 9,181 females) have entered, and of these 39,296 (males 33,618, females 5,678) have discontinued for one reason or another, leaving 30,870 (males 27,367, females 3,503) on the books at the 31st December, 1928. Of 4,228 discontinuances in 1928, only 80 were on account of death and 44 on account of having attained the pension-age.

The numbers of contributors for the various pension rates as at 31st December, 1928, were as follows, male and female contributors being shown separately:—

Pension Rate.	Males.	Females.	Total.
10s	20,381	703	21,084
20s	2,666	298	2,964
30s	265	46	311
40s	394	68	462
Other	3,661	2,388	6,049
Totals	27,367	3,503	30,870

During the year 1928 maternity allowances aggregating £43,422 were paid out, including £36,186 claimed for members of approved friendly societies. In addition, £9,429 was granted by way of allowances to widows and children, £5,369 by way of refund of contributions on account of death, £19,941 on retirement, and £3,560 in respect of incapacity.

The growth of the National Provident Fund scheme during the last ten years is indicated in the following table:—

Year.	Number of Contributors.	Annual Rate of Contribution Payable.	Total Amount of Fund.	Claims paid during Year.
Year.	Number of Contributors.	Annual Rate of Contribution Payable.	Total Amount of Fund.	Maternity.	Incapacity.	Retiring.	Widows and Children.
		£	£	£	£	£	£
1919	16,154	91,450	338,729	16,167	373	740	2,298
1920	19,724	129,003	473,361	31,972	664	2,772	3,118
1921	21,713	142,269	632,525	38,562	1,187	4,368	3,922
1922	22,118	144,971	793,144	38,876	1,595	5,580	4,826
1923	23,230	158,456	969,946	40,188	2,196	7,269	5,570
1924	24,231	163,181	1,165,284	40,292	2,515	9,782	6,365
1925	25,763	175,357	1,377,967	38,538	1,877	11,851	6,941
1926	29,441	231,312	1,652,902	41,686	2,486	15,029	7,775
1927	30,618	238,734	1,957,227	43,526	2,941	17,691	8,610
1928	30,870	245,037	2,275,682	43,422	3,560	19,941	9,429

The Revenue Account of the fund for the year ended the 31st December, 1928, is as follows:—

REVENUE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR 1928.

Revenue.	£
Amount of fund at beginning of year	1,957,227
Contributions	234,821
interest	115,770
Fines	969
Government contribution under Act	59,125
Refund of maternity claims by the State	43,422
Benefits refunded	4,281
Contributions overpaid	213
Miscellaneous	1
	£2,415,829
Expenditure.	£
Maternity claims (general)	7,236
Maternity claims (approved friendly societies)	36,186
Refund of contributions on lapse, reduction, and withdrawal	58,214
Incapacity allowances	3,560
Refund of contributions on death	5,369
Allowances to widows and children	9,429
Allowances on retirement	19,941
Refund of overpaid contributions	212
Amount of fund at end of year	2,275,682
	£2,415,829

The balance-sheet of the fund as at the end of the year 1928 is also given.

BALANCE-SHEET AS AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

Liabilities.	£
*Included in Revenue Account.
Fund as per Revenue Account	2,275,682
Claims due and in course of payment	5,330
Refunds in suspense	32,130
Suspense Account	361
Contributions prepaid	7,152
Investment fluctuation reserve	13,170
	£2,333,825
Assets.	£
In hands of Public Trustee—
Invested	2,172,382
Uninvested	27,108
Balance with Post Office	491
Balances in transit	13,795
Contributions outstanding or in course of transmission^*—
Contributions due but not overdue	13,561
Contributions overdue	3,779
Government subsidy due under Act*	59,125
Refund due in respect of maternity claims*	3,810
Fines due	472
Interest due	5,856
Interest accrued but not due*	33,446
	£2,333,825

ACTUARIAL INVESTIGATION.

The actuarial investigation of the National Provident Fund as at 31st December, 1925, disclosed the following position:—

Liabilities.
Value of liability for—	£
Pensions	2,774,909
Orphans' benefits	206,971
Widows' benefits	211,943
Incapacity allowances	75,054
Return of contributions on death	90,947
Return of contributions on withdrawal	310,646
Sundry benefits	21,126
Balance (surplus)	54,200
	£3,745,796
Assets.	£
Amount of the fund at 31st December, 1925	1,377,967
Value of future contributions	1,906,247
Value of future State subsidies of one-fourth (assumed to be received a year later than above)	461,582
	£3,745,796

The assets are seen to exceed the liabilities by £54,200. This favourable position may be compared with that disclosed in 1913 and 1919, when small deficiencies of £234 and £5,934 respectively were shown. The amounts required to provide maternity allowances are voted by Parliament annually, and these allowances are accordingly regarded as being outside the actuarial aspects of the scheme.

Chapter 26. SECTION XXVI.—LOCAL GOVERNMENT.

Table of Contents

RATING ON UNIMPROVED VALUE OF LAND.

SYSTEMS OF RATING IN FORCE, 1927–28.

POPULATION (EXCLUDING MAORIS) IN DISTRICTS RATING ON UNIMPROVED VALUE.

FINANCIAL STATISTICS OF LOCAL GOVERNING AUTHORITIES.

RECEIPTS.

LOCAL GOVERNING AUTHORITIES.—RECEIPTS, 1927–28.

RATES.

RATES COLLECTED BY LOCAL GOVERNING AUTHORITIES, 1918–19 TO 1927–28.

LICENSES, TOLLS, RENTS, ETC.

RECEIPTS FROM GENERAL GOVERNMENT.

LOCAL GOVERNING AUTHORITIES.—REVENUE RECEIPTS FROM GOVERNMENT, 1923–24 TO 1927–28.

EXPENDITURE.

LOCAL GOVERNING AUTHORITIES.—EXPENDITURE 1918–19 TO 1927–28.

LOCAL GOVERNING AUTHORITIES.—EXPENDITURE, 1927–28.

BOROUGH EXPENDITURE ON NEW WORKS OUT OP LOANS.—1918–19 TO 1927–28.

ASSETS AND LIABILITIES.

ANNUAL LOAN CHARGES, 1918–19 TO 1927–28.

LOANS AUTHORIZED AND RAISED.

LOAN TRANSACTIONS, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

LOAN TRANSACTIONS, 1928–29.

INTRODUCTORY.

LOCAL government throughout New Zealand is exercised by a number of local authorities constituted under various Acts of Parliament. These Acts provide for the creation of districts over which the local authorities exercise jurisdiction. Different types of district are distinguishable, each type being identified with a specific function or group of functions. Geographically, the Dominion is divided into 129 counties, which comprise its total area, except for certain small islands which are not included within the boundaries of the adjacent counties. Administratively, boroughs and independent town districts, which are contained within the areas of the several counties, are regarded as separate entities. From an administrative point of view, therefore, the fundamental districts are counties, boroughs, and independent town districts. Upon this foundation a considerable superstructure of districts of other types has been erected. These overlapping districts may be divided into two broad classes: (1) Districts formed from parts of counties—e.g., road districts; and (2) these which are comprised of a group of adjacent districts of other types united for a common purpose—e.g., electric-power districts. The number of local authorities actively functioning at the 31st March, 1928, was 686, made up as follows: County Councils, 127; Borough Councils, 119; Town Boards (independent), 42; Town Boards (dependent), 26; Road Boards, 19; River Boards, 42; Land-drainage Boards,' 85; City and Suburban Drainage Boards, 3; Water-supply Boards, 6; Fire Boards, 50; Local Railway Boards, 2; Harbour Boards, 45; Electric-power Boards, 43; Hospital Boards, 47; Tramway Board, 1; Gas-lighting Board, 1; and Rabbit Boards, 48. In addition to the foregoing there are 18 District Councils of the Main Highways Board constituted under the Main Highways Act, 1922. These, although not local authorities in the strict sense of the word, are nevertheless intimately connected with certain aspects of local government, and have power to make recommendations of great importance.

Full details of the constitution, functions, powers, &c., of local authorities, and also an account of the origin and development of local government in the Dominion, are contained in the Local Authorities Handbook, published by the Census and Statistics Office. Detailed statistics relating to each local governing body are also contained within the covers of that publication. Some of the principal powers of local authorities are briefly referred to in the following paragraphs.

GENERAL POWERS.

Local authorities in New Zealand derive their powers from the Acts under which they are constituted, and also from special empowering Acts. In addition to legislation providing for particular types of local authority or for individual local authorities, there are several statutory measures which are more or less applicable to all local authorities, such as the Local Elections and Polls Act, 1925, and the Local Bodies' Loans Act, 1926. In the case of Harbour Boards, there is in addition to a general Harbours Act a special Act for each Board, which is subordinate to the general Act. Certain types of local authority—City and Suburban Drainage Boards, Local Railway Boards, the Tramway Board, and the Gas-lighting Board—derive their principal powers from special constituting Acts.

Local authorities have general powers of entering into contracts for any of the purposes for which they are constituted; of selling and leasing land; and of taking or purchasing any land which may be necessary of convenient for any public work.

BORROWING.

Under the Local Government Loans Board Act, 1926, the provisions of which came into operation on the 1st April, 1927, all loan proposals of local authorities, except in regard to money borrowed in anticipation of revenue, require the sanction of the Local Government Loans Board. The Board consists of the Secretary to the Treasury, the Engineer-in-Chief of the Public Works Department, and five other members appointed by the Governor-General. In cases where a poll of ratepayers is necessary preparatory to raising a loan, the Board's consent must be obtained before the poll is held. Upon receipt from a local authority of an application and statement giving such particulars as may be required, the Board may make such investigations as it thinks fit; it has power to refer the application back to the local authority for modification or amendment, or to direct that the loan proposal be split into constituent items so that the ratepayers may vote separately on each item. In no case may the Board sanction any application unless provision is made to its satisfaction for repayment of the loan within such period as it deems reasonable, having regard to the probable duration and continuing utility of the works on which the loan-moneys are to be expended.

The principal legislation dealing with the borrowing-powers of local authorities is contained in the Local Bodies' Loans Act, 1926, which is mainly a consolidation of previous measures on the subject. A local authority is thereby empowered to raise a special loan for the construction of any public work, for the purchase of land or buildings, or for the purpose of engaging in any undertaking which the local authority may lawfully enter into. As explained previously, a loan proposal first requires the sanction of the Local Government Loans Board. It must then be sanctioned by the ratepayers at a special poll held for the purpose, and the proposal is not deemed to have been carried unless at least three-fifths of the valid votes recorded are in favour of it, save in the case of boroughs and town districts, where a bare majority only is necessary. The properties and revenue of the local authority may be pledged as security for the repayment of any principal sum or interest thereon, or a special rate may be levied for the same purpose.

The borrowing activities of certain types of local authority are subject to special provisions. Under the Hospital and Charitable Institutions Act, 1926, a Hospital Board must first obtain the approval of the Minister of Health before exercising its power to borrow. In the case of Fire Boards the precedent consent of the Minister of Internal Affairs is required, and Rabbit Boards must first seek the approval of the Minister of Agriculture. In both of these cases the amount that may be borrowed is limited by statute. Harbour Boards derive their authority to borrow for harbour-works from special empowering legislation. Similar authority is given for the capital works of City and Suburban Drainage Boards, the Christ-church Tramway Board, and the Petone and Lower Hutt Gas-lighting Board.

RATING.

Local authorities are largely dependent on revenue from rates to carry out their activities, and even loans raised for special purposes are ultimately liquidated by such revenues—known then as special rates. Three broad classes of rates are distinguished:—

General, for general purposes.
Separate rates are levied for the construction of public works, for the acquisition of land or buildings, or for the benefit of the whole or part of a local district.
A special rate is imposed to secure the repayment of loan-money, being sufficient to produce interest and sinking fund, or interest and instalment of principal, as the case may be. Special rates can be levied only by resolution gazetted, and, unlike general and separate rates, are not subject to any statutory limit.

There are three main systems of rating: (1) Capital (land and improvements), (2) annual, and (3) unimproved. In a few cases rating is on an acreage basis; and in the case of certain Rabbit Boards the rate is according to the number of sheep or cattle owned.

The Rating Act, 1925, provides that the local authority of any district (other than a district wherein the system of rating on the unimproved value is in force) may from time to time by resolution determine whether the system of rating on the annual value or on the capital value shall be in force in the district. The system of rating is upon the basis that 1s. in the £1 on the annual value is deemed to be equivalent to 3/4d. in the £1 on the capital value of rateable property; or where in a district not rating on the annual value it is necessary for any purpose to ascertain the annual value of any rateable property, then the annual value thereof is equal to 6 per cent. on the capital value of such property. The annual value is deemed to be the letting-value, less 20 per cent. in case of houses, buildings, and other perishable property, and 10 per cent. of land, but in no case is the rateable value to be less than 5 per cent. of the value of the fee-simple.

RATING ON UNIMPROVED VALUE OF LAND.

The Rating on Unimproved Value Act, 1896, was passed by the General Assembly to afford local authorities the opportunity of adopting the principle of rating which is expressed in the title of the measure. The Act is now incorporated in the Rating Act, 1925. It is entirely at the option of the ratepayers of local districts to adopt the system, and provision is made for a return to the old system of rating, if desired, after three years' experience of the new one. The Act provides that a proportion of the ratepayers on the roll, varying from 25 per cent. where the total number does not exceed 100, to 15 per cent. where the number exceeds 300, may by demand in writing, delivered to the Chairman or Mayor of the district, require that a proposal to rate property on the basis of the unimproved value may be submitted to the ratepayers, whose votes shall be taken between twenty-one and twenty-eight days after delivery of the demand. The poll is to be taken in the same manner as in the case of a proposal to raise a loan in the district under the Local Bodies' Loans Act, 1926.

Under the original Act it was necessary for a minimum number of one-third of the ratepayers to vote, and a majority of their votes carried the proposal. Now the question of adoption or otherwise is decided by a bare majority of the valid votes recorded, irrespective of the number of ratepayers who have voted.

A rescinding proposal can be carried at a poll by the same means as one for adoption, but not until after three years have elapsed; and, vice versa, rejection of a proposal bars its being brought forward for a similar period.

The valuation roll is supplied to the local authority by the Valuer-General under the provisions of the Valuation of Land Act, 1925, and the definitions of “capital value,” “improvements,” “unimproved value,” and “value of improvements” found in that Act apply also to rating on unimproved value. Provision is made for adjustment of rating-powers given under other Acts by fixing equivalents. Thus a rate of 1s. in the pound on the annual value is to be considered equal to 3/4d. in the pound on the capital value.

The adjustments are to be made so that the rates on the unimproved value shall be such as to produce as much as, but not more than, the rates on the capital or annual value. For instance, supposing a local authority has a rating-power up to 3/4 d. in the pound on the capital value, then it can levy any rate in the pound on the unimproved value of land in its district so long as the producing-capacity of such rate is not greater than would be the producing-capacity of a 3/4d. rate on the capital value of the district. When a fixed rate, under the older system of rating, is security for a loan, the Controller and Auditor-General is given power to fix the new rate himself if of opinion that the new rate on the unimproved value does not afford equally good security as the one to be given up.

It should be noted that some local authorities automatically adopt rating on unimproved value. For example, a town district, borough, or another county formed from part of a county which itself rates on unimproved values, automatically rates on the system in force in the county at the time of the constitution of the new district; also two boroughs amalgamating adopt the system in force in the district with the greater population, unless their Councils agree to the contrary.

The unimproved value of land is the basis on which some 41 per cent. of the local authorities (excluding Harbour Boards) functioning during 1927–28 assessed their rates for that year. A comparative table is:—

SYSTEMS OF RATING IN FORCE, 1927–28.

—	System of Rating.					Total.
—	Unimproved Value.	Capital Value.	Annual Value.	Acreage Basis.	On Stock.	Total.
Counties	55	69	..	..	..	124
Boroughs	74	19	25	..	..	118
Town districts	34	30	5	..	..	69
Road districts	1	28	1	..	..	30
River districts	15	20	1	2	..	38
Land-drainage districts	28	32	..	..	..	60
Electric-power districts	13	26	..	..	..	39
Water-supply districts	..	5	..	..	..	5
City and suburban drainage districts	..	2	1	..	..	3
Local railway districts	..	2	..	..	..	2
Rabbit districts	1	10	..	30	5	46
Totals	221	243	33	32	5	534

Although the figures referred to indicate that the number of local authorities rating on the unimproved value during 1927–28 was 41 per cent. of the total, yet on a population basis the figures reveal that in reality 58 per cent. of the people of the Dominion are in districts so rating. The position in regard to the four major classes of local authorities at 1st April, 1928 (i.e., the beginning of the 1928–29 financial year), was as follows:—

POPULATION (EXCLUDING MAORIS) IN DISTRICTS RATING ON UNIMPROVED VALUE.

District.	Rating on Unimproved Value.		Total for Dominion.^*		Ratio of Unimproved Value to Dominion.
District.	No.	Population.	No.	Population.	No.	Population.
*Exclusive of migratory, &c., population of 7,532.
					Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Counties (excluding all town districts)	56	245,420	129	569,670	43.41	43.08
Boroughs	76	565,266	119	827,275	63.87	68.33
Town districts (independent)	19	21,925	42	39,995	45.24	54.82
Town districts (dependent)	18	5,975	26	9,045	69.23	66.06

The result of all polls on the question of rating on the unimproved value of land which have been taken since the Act of 1896 came into force are given in the Local Authorities Handbook.

FINANCIAL STATISTICS OF LOCAL GOVERNING AUTHORITIES.

A study of the finance of local governing authorities from their incipient stages to the present time reveals a process of evolution from a state of semi-dependence on the General Government to a stage where, with the exception of subsidies on rates and occasional grants for special works, all expense is borne locally. While local bodies were the proper authorities to deal with such matters as the construction of roads and bridges, it was recognized that work of this nature was to a large extent of national significance, and governmental aid was freely accorded. This is evidenced by a consideration of the fact that under various Acts, including the Roads and Bridges Construction Act, 1882, advances were made under which the recipient body, although bound to pay interest half-yearly for a number of years, the period varying inversely with the rate of interest, was relieved from all further liability, ipso facto, on payment of the last instalment. With the increase in population and the growth of prosperity, however, the opinion grew that local authorities should, in all fairness, bear the greater part of the expense of their own activities. This resulted in the withdrawal of such advantageous conditions, and at the present time, although the credit of the state is still available for the benefit of these local authorities requiring loans, and such assistance as indicated above is given, they are to all intents and purposes self-supporting.

The sources from which the various classes of local authorities secure the moneys necessary to exercise their functions vary greatly according to the nature of the statutory duties of the local authority concerned. Generally, however, receipts fall under one of three main classes—viz., rates, licenses and fees, and receipts which cannot properly be regarded as revenue. These three classes are dealt with in detail below, where the nature and relative importance of each are more particularly referred to.

The tables given in this section cover the operations of all local authorities which furnish statistical returns to the Census and Statistics Office. Hospital Boards supply their returns to the Inspector-General of Hospitals, and their financial statistics are given in section VIIB of this volume.

The local body year ends on 31st March, except in the case of rabbit districts (31st December preceding) and most Harbour Boards. In certain cases where the harbour is administered by a County or Borough Council or a Government Department, the year ends on 31st March, but in all other cases on 30th September, the Harbour Board figures given for the 1927–28 local body year relating in the main to the year ended 30th September, 1927. Formerly the Harbour Board year ended on 31st December, but an alteration to 30th September was made by the Harbours Amendment Act, 1925. Similarly a change from 30th June to 31st March became operative in 1927–28 in the case of fire districts, the receipts and expenditure figures of which for 1927–28 relate to a period of nine months only.

RECEIPTS.

Local governing authorities received by way of rates in the financial year 1927–28 a total amount of £5,615,672, of which £3,348,555 consisted of general rates and £2,267,117 of special and separate rates. The sum of £379,804 was raised by licenses, and £127,899 by other taxes, making £6,123,375 altogether from taxation, which sum is equivalent to £4 4s. 10d. per head of the mean population, as compared with £4 2s. 11d. for 1926–27.

Revenue derived from rates increased from £2,674,541 in 1917–18 to £5,615,672 in 1927–28. Revenue from the Government increased in the same period from £248,855 to £331,956. Receipts other than revenue were £1,250,047 in 1917–18 and £5,667,651 in 1927–28, but these figures vary from year to year according to circumstances, such as large operations by way of construction of works, for which money has to be specially raised.

The receipts of local governing authorities, divided into the various groups shown above, are given for each of the last ten years.

Year ended 31st March.	Revenue from			Total Revenue.	Receipts not Revenue.	Total Receipts.
Year ended 31st March.	Rates.	Licenses Fees, Rents, and other Sources.	Government.	Total Revenue.	Receipts not Revenue.	Total Receipts.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1919	2,939,606	3,184,741	267,330	6,391,677	942,780	7,334,457
1920	3,144,213	4,219,608	266,974	7,630,795	3,329,003	10,959,798
1921	3,549,590	5,048,791	287,583	8,885,964	3,429,662	12,315,626
1922	3,779,895	5,757,252	317,530	9,854,677	5,486,912	15,341,589
1923	4,277,781	5,942,927	301,024	10,521,732	7,399,674	17,921,406
1924	4,445,627	6,403,378	300,766	11,149,771	5,685,107	16,834,878
1925	4,668,884	7,213,306	298,774	12,180,964	7,613,399	19,794,363
1926	5,039,645	8,014,583	319,338	13,373,566	7,505,702	20,879,268
1927	5,311,260	8,621,964	332,721	14,265,945	6,680,176	20,946,121
1928	5,615,672	9,454,315	331,956	15,401,943	5,667,651	21,069,594

A summary of receipts for the year 1927–28 is given below. The total revenue of the local authorities for the financial year was £15,401,943, and they further received a sum of £5,667,651 which could not properly he termed “revenue,” making altogether a grand total of receipts amounting to £21,069,594. The rates formed 36.5 per cent. of the revenue proper; licenses, rents, and other sources yielded 61.4 per cent.; and 2.1 per cent. came from the General Government.

Of the revenue proper of counties, which amounted to £2,618,066, no less a sum than £1,975,646, or 75 1/2 per cent., was raised by way of rates. Town districts, road districts, river districts, land-drainage districts, and city and suburban drainage districts also rely on taxing for the greater part of their income. In the case of boroughs, electric-power districts, and Harbour Boards, on the other hand, rates supply a comparatively small proportion of the total revenue. During 1927–28 this source of income accounted for only 35 per cent. of the total revenue of boroughs, the corresponding proportion for Harbour Boards and electric-power districts being as low as 9 per cent. and 4 per cent. respectively.

LOCAL GOVERNING AUTHORITIES.—RECEIPTS, 1927–28.

—	Revenue from			Receipts not Revenue.	Total Receipts.
—	Rates.	Licenses, Rents, &c.	Government.	Receipts not Revenue.	Total Receipts.
	£	£	£	£	£
Counties	1,975,646	414,475	227,945	1,291,768	3,909,834
Boroughs	2,875,231	5,225,859	45,802	2,556,298	10,703,190
Town districts	107,000	64,850	6,189	78,083	256,122
Road districts	103,084	32,593	5,861	78,876	220,414
River districts	72,089	17,810	5,108	43,283	138,290
Land-drainage districts	62,327	2,092	1,337	29,441	95,197
Electric-power districts	62,732	1,628,208	..	690,371	2,381,311
Water-supply districts	3,914	144	..	184	4,242
City and suburban drainage districts	177,205	3,374	..	304,867	485,446
Tramway district	..	285,117	..	85,710	370,827
Railway districts	24	33,791	..	..	33,815
Gas-lighting district	..	48,021	..	4,099	52,120
Rabbit districts	15,648	2,587	13,150	3,806	35,191
Fire districts	..	115,495	2,903	11,723	130,121
Harbour Boards	160,772	1,579,899	23,661	489,142	2,253,474
Totals	5,615,672	9,454,315	331,956	5,667,651	21,069,594

RATES.

As stated previously, rates contributed in 1927–28 the sum of £5,615,672 to the revenue of local governing authorities. General rates levied brought in £3,348,555, and special and separate rates £2,267,117. Of the latter, £1,719,052 was received by boroughs and £305,022 by counties. The whole of the rates collected by Harbour Boards (£160,772) were general rates.

RATES COLLECTED BY LOCAL GOVERNING AUTHORITIES, 1918–19 TO 1927–28.

Year ended 31st March.	General.	Special and Separate.	Total.
	£	£	£
1919	2,028,151	911,455	2,939,606
1920	2,106,397	1,037,816	3,144,213
1921	2,338,539	1,211,051	3,549,590
1922	2,501,949	1,277,946	3,779,895
1923	2,742,828	1,534,953	4,277,781
1924	2,775,987	1,669,642	4,445,629
1925	2,922,003	1,746,881	4,668,884
1926	3,263,757	1,775,888	5,039,645
1927	3,273,682	2,037,578	5,311,260
1928	3,348,555	2,267,117	5,615,672

General rates bring in somewhat less than two-thirds of the total revenue from rates. The proportion shows a tendency to decline, having fallen from 67 per cent. in 1917–18 to 60 per cent. in 1927–28.

Separate rates are of two classes—“general” and “particular.” General separate rates are levied for the construction, maintenance, &c., of any public work, for the acquisition of land or buildings, or for engaging in any undertaking for the benefit of the whole or part of a local district. Particular separate rates are levied in respect of water-supply, lighting, sanitation, and libraries. Special rates are these levied as security for the repayment of loans.

It is of interest to note that for the year 1927–28 the total of all rates collected by counties was equal to £5.91 per £1,000 of rateable capital value (land and improvements). In boroughs it was £12.18; in independent town districts, £11.17; and in town districts forming parts of counties, £6.50 (excluding rates levied by County Councils).

LICENSES, TOLLS, RENTS, ETC.

Rates are not the only form of local taxation. Local authorities derive a certain amount of revenue from publican's licenses, auctioneers' and hawkers' licenses, abattoir fees, dog-taxes, pound-taxes, tolls, &c. Sources of revenue not classed as taxation are—Rents; fines and penalties; market dues; sales of material; sales of light and power from gasworks and electric-supply works; tramway receipts; interest on deposits; wharf dues, &c.

RECEIPTS FROM GENERAL GOVERNMENT.

Revenue received from the Government comprises—Rates on Crown and Native lands; timber and flax royalties; goldfields revenue and gold duty; fees and fines; subsidy on rates; one-third of receipts from lands sold on deferred payment and from perpetual leases; one-fourth of rents from small grazing-runs; other. In addition, there are special grants from the General Government for various local works of a public or semi-public character. These are not considered revenue, and are included with “Receipts not revenue.”

A further class of receipts from the Government is provided by loans from the State Advances Office.

A statement of revenue receipts by controlling bodies of local districts from the Government during the last five financial years is given in the next table:—

LOCAL GOVERNING AUTHORITIES.—REVENUE RECEIPTS FROM GOVERNMENT, 1923–24 TO 1927–28.

—	Year ended 31st March.
—	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927	1928.
	£	£	£	£	£
Rates on Crown and Native lands	..	101	798	2,165	1,399
One-third receipts from land sold on deferred payment and from perpetual leases	25,162	28,061	22,678*	21,527	14,843
One-fourth of rents from small grazing-runs	5,527	6,107	6,322	3,485	3,324
Timber and flax royalties	4,243	7,378	11,705	18,953	8,935
Goldfields revenue and gold duty	24,622	23,107	19,890	22,477	25,659
Subsidies on rates	202,322	202,254	222,736	229,065	228,491
Fees and fines	5,619	4,323	4,636	6,676	5,851
Other receipts	33,271	27,443	30,573	28,373	43,454
Total Revenue Account	300,766	298,774	319,338	332,721	331,956

State Advances loans (£36,866) and grants for special works, &c. (£1,069,039), bring the total receipts from Government during 1927–28 to £1,437,861. Of this total counties received £1,156,189, and boroughs only £159,257.

EXPENDITURE.

The expenditure of local governing authorities during each of the last ten years has been as follows:—

LOCAL GOVERNING AUTHORITIES.—EXPENDITURE 1918–19 TO 1927–28.

Year ended 31st March.	Public Works (Construction and Maintenance).	Hospitals and Charitable Aid.	Administration.	Interest on Loans and Overdraft.	Other.^*	Total Expenditure.
*Including amounts paid to sinking funds and for repayment of loan-money.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1919	4,857,308	308,422	507,117	1,305,259	342,171	7,320,277
1920	7,866,769	359,831	615,646	1,356,495	684,845	10,883,586
1921	9,219,384	456,381	724,256	1,452,230	909,439	12,761,690
1922	10,867,810	526,201	766,251	1,758,815	1,172,798	15,091,875
1923	11,261,774	491,032	764,904	2,025,292	1,152,505	15,695,507
1924	12,031,580	500,082	833,115	2,290,773	865,400	16,520,950
1925	14,256,887	502,245	843,446	2,523,303	1,296,952	19,422,833
1926	15,454,839	549,938	908,606	2,726,277	1,275,985	20,915,645
1927	15,831,600	565,733	941,794	3,079,378	1,329,052	21,747,557
1928	15,200,280	629,379	965,376	3,452,293	2,175,839	22,423,167

Over the period shown the total expenditure has increased by £15,102,890, public works expenditure on maintenance and the construction of new works being responsible for £10,342,972, and interest on loans and overdraft for £2,147,034. Reducing the increases in the various headings to a percentage basis, it is found that public works increased by 213 per cent., interest by 164 per cent., hospitals and charitable aid by 104 per cent., and administration by 90 per cent. The increase in other expenditure was 535 per cent., and is mainly accounted for by increased payments to sinking fund and for repayment of loan-moneys. The increase of £10,342,972 in public works is mainly attributable to—counties £1,495,353, boroughs £4,898,729, electric-power districts £2,234,027, and Harbour Boards £838,826.

The expenditure of the various classes of local governing authorities during 1927–28 is shown below under the same headings:—

LOCAL GOVERNING AUTHORITIES.—EXPENDITURE, 1927–28.

—	Public Works (Construction and Maintenance).	Hospitals and Charitable Aid.	Administration.	Interest on Loans and Overdraft.	Other.^*	Total Expenditure.
*Including amounts paid to sinking funds and for repayment of loan-money. † Included in “Construction and Maintenance.”
	£	£	£	£	£	£
Counties	2,712,758	331,009	275,392	407,761	197,260	3,924,180
Boroughs	7,547,073	280,126	372,896	1,634,375	1,201,113	11,035,583
Town districts	179,613	10,685	23,097	43,737	23,165	280,297
Road districts	154,917	7,559	15,337	36,140	18,870	232,823
River districts	101,413	..	15,167	16,814	3,726	137,120
Land-drainage districts	52,890	..	10,001	25,381	6,741	95,013
Electric-power districts	2,234,027	..	^†	572,568	284,927	3,091,522
Water-supply districts	1,763	..	1,558	36	50	3,407
City and suburban drainage districts	403,793	..	19,564	106,569	67,604	597,530
Tramway district	193,818	..	19,434	55,974	35,525	304,751
Railway districts	26,493	..	3,205	3,412	1,960	35,070
Gas-lighting district	52,668	..	1,716	3,524	597	58,505
Rabbit districts	27,580	..	9,406	294	2,553	39,833
Fire districts	94,255	..	17,260	7,056	18,242	136,813
Harbour Boards	1,417,219	..	181,343	538,652	313,506	2,450,720
Totals	15,200,280	629,379	965,376	3,452,293	2,175,839	22,423,167

The table following gives, in respect of boroughs only, the expenditure on new works out of loan-money during the last ten years, classified under various heads:—

BOROUGH EXPENDITURE ON NEW WORKS OUT OP LOANS.—1918–19 TO 1927–28.

Year ended 31st. March.	Streets and Footways.	Drainage and Sanitation.	Waterworks.	Tramways and Bus Services.	Abattoirs, Slaughterhouses, and Pounds.	Lighting and Power Services.	Other Public Works.	Totals.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1919	92,923	62,710	40,593	..	671	68,276	34,014	299,187
1920	109,858	77,471	49,383	1,231,571	..	84,283	100,248	1,652,814
1921	227,774	118,730	95,107	93,113	5,141	158,473	128,152	826,490
1922	229,495	217,503	174,514	116,799	52	605,019	107,142	1,450,524
1923	455,105	295,920	194,472	99,750	1,616	814,177	276,810	2,137,850
1924	389,840	306,089	163,942	192,655	22,273	514,312	292,145	1,881,256
1925	706,380	317,868	309,033	217,557	12,177	540,540	310,332	2,413,887
1926	1,039,948	348,685	456,359	214,237	25,089	268,306	266,729	2,619,353
1927	875,704	311,820	362,177	223,445	15,883	235,018	214,648	2,238,695
1928	939,786	268,083	394,026	163,975	26,390	176,972	149,987	2,119,219

ASSETS AND LIABILITIES.

The assets and liabilities of local governing authorities at the end of the financial year 1927–28 are as shown in the table following. The figures shown in the column “Other assets” are taken from the respective balance-sheets, but are far from complete. In a number of cases no assets whatever are shown, while in others nothing is included for the reserves held. These totals can be taken as an approximate and conservative indication only of the property held in addition to the actual cash assets.

—	Assets.		Liabilities.
—	Cash Assets.	Other Assets (as estimated in published Balance-sheets).	Loans—Net Indebtedness (excluding Inscribed Debt and Loans from the State Advances Office).	Loans from State Advances Office. (Amount owing on 31st March, 1928.)	Inscribed Stock, i.e., Loans from Treasury under Loans to Local Bodies Acts. (Estimated Present Indebtedness.)	Liabilities other than the Loans included in preceding Columns in preceding Columns (Bank Overdrafts, Temporary Loans, Outstanding Accounts, &c.).
	£	£	£	£	£	£
Counties	1,512,485	1,880,799	3,587,080	2,322,997	484,179	308,463
Boroughs	3,776,749	28,375,464	25,128,331	2,321,552	384,416	793,844
Town districts	100,790	561,561	520,578	253,109	3,929	29,379
Road districts	70,424	250,180	560,435	66,324	11,830	15,310
River districts	50,006	168,638	158,890	42,425	24,742	20,842
Land-drainage districts	49,811	72,952	191,319	175,625	34,812	19,174
Electric-power districts	1,834,947	11,114,173	9,711,331	..	..	564,498
Water-supply districts	1,026	1,505	13,082	1,398	407	26
City and suburban drainage districts	70,320	934,799	2,140,061	138	..	31,485
Tramway district	485,716	1,123,930	909,558	..	..	17,910
Railway districts	3,739	164,021	37,414	..	..	20,880
Gas-lighting district	..	120,290	63,087	..	..	32,532
Rabbit districts	34,680	14,232	6,154	..	..	4,390
Fire districts	16,905	441,002	175,323	649	..	67,635
Harbour Boards	1,640,489	15,105,390	8,610,328	141,184	..	512,499
Totals	9,648,087	60,328,936	51,812,971	5,325,401	944,315	2,438,867

ASSETS.

The assets of local governing authorities as at 31st March, 1928, were valued at £69,977,023, made up of cash assets, £9,648,057, and other assets (estimated), £60,328,936. In connection with the latter class, it should be noted that the figure is on the conservative side, inasmuch as no valuations are made for certain items. This applies particularly to roads, which, although representing considerable wealth to the community, do not figure at all in the assets. In this connection it may be mentioned that the greater part of the expenditure of counties and road districts goes in this direction, while in the case of boroughs no less than 35 per cent. of the loan-money expended during the last five years went on streets and footways. Assets of all local authorities for the last ten years are as under:—

As at 31st March.	Cash Assets.	Other Assets (estimated).
	£	£
1919	2,763,822	25,842,485
1920	3,324,104	28,616,383
1921	3,850,890	32,696,010
1922	5,485,357	36,035,779
1923	7,696,076	39,494,352
1924	8,219,119	43,451,174
1925	8,876,522	48,299,927
1926	9,743,969	53,646,527
1927	9,930,581	56,999,264
1928	9,648,087	60,328,936

Cash assets are made up chiefly of loan balances, reserve investments, and cash in hand. Sinking funds, which amounted to £7,136,057 at 31st March, 1928, do not appear in the foregoing table, but are shown as a deduction from the gross loan indebtedness of local authorities. Other assets, which have increased 133 per cent. since 1918, are comprised mainly of fixed assets and stocks of stores and materials. An analysis of assets other than cash assets is as follows:—

	£
Halls, libraries, offices, sundry premises, furniture, &c.	2,937,117
Electrical works	15,063,622
Gasworks	1,513,690
Tramway works	5,098,771
Railway works	120,290
Wharves, quays, slips, docks, dredges, boats, tugs, sheds, &c.	10,070,481
Drainage, sewerage, and water-supply systems	10,205,515
Reserves, parks, gardens, recreation-grounds, cemeteries, &c.	2,757,977
Endowments	3,661,391
Reclaimed land	3,548,682
Workers' dwellings, roadmens' cottages, &c.	549,715
Sundry plant, tools, stocks, and materials	2,634,458
Other and unspecified	2,167,227
Total	£60,328,936

Boroughs are responsible for 47 per cent. of the total, Harbour Boards for 25 per cent., and electric-power districts for 18 per cent. Counties show the comparatively low percentage of 3, but this is due to the fact that practically the whole of county expenditure goes on roads, for which no valuation is available.

INDEBTEDNESS.

The total indebtedness at the end of 1927–28, excluding loans from the State Advances Office and the inscribed debt under the Government Loans to Local Bodies Acts (the latter including stock exchanged for debentures under the Roads and Bridges Construction Act), was £58,949,028. Against this were sinking funds amounting to £7,136,057, leaving the net indebtedness, other than to the State, £51,812,971. The annual charge for interest was £3,158,359, and for sinking fund £675,510. The indebtedness to the State Advances Office was £5,325,401, representing loans originally amounting to £6,325,700. The instalments of principal and interest on this amounted to an annual charge of £343,437. The section of this book dealing with State advances contains further information regarding State advances to local authorities.

The estimated net indebtedness under the Government Loans to Local Bodies Acts, including inscribed stock exchanged for debentures under the Roads and Bridges Construction Act, 1882, was £944,315 at the end of the year. This debt is decreasing yearly, and will be extinguished in course of time. The amount outstanding is repayable by annual instalments of £78,163.

The outstanding loans of local authorities at the end of each of the last twenty years are shown in the following table:—

As at 31st March,	Debentures and Stock in Circulation.		Loans from State Advances Office.		Inscribed Debt		Total Debt.
As at 31st March,	Gross Debt.	Net Debt.	Amount borrowed.	Amount owing.	Gross Debt.	Present Indebtedness.	Gross Debt.	Net Debt.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1909	13,303,622	12,184,409	..	..	2,617,135	1,943,728	15,920,757	14,128,137
1910	14,937,685	13,765,802	..	..	2,872,232	2,119,023	17,809,917	15,884,825
1911	15,727,613	14,462,770	405,195	404,163	2,972,195	2,173,293	19,104,571	17,040,226
1912	16,590,877	15,161,727	1,195,680	1,186,611	2,985,298	2,166,447	20,763,486	18,517,785
1913	17,483,332	15,882,926	1,740,925	1,711,797	2,988,298	2,168,252	22,183,427	19,762,975
1914	18,923,482	17,202,764	2,063,005	2,007,797	2,842,150	2,079,570	23,773,429	21,290,131
1915	19,445,475	17,602,669	2,399,420	2,312,754	2,780,492	1,975,860	24,538,721	21,891,283
1916	20,754,168	18,822,896	2,680,245	2,562,970	2,728,174	1,872,990	26,045,312	23,258,856
1917	21,432,767	19,277,706	2,836,055	2,676,407	2,690,412	1,795,080	26,799,586	23,749,193
1918	22,260,537	19,782,845	2,962,190	2,762,900	2,630,244	1,681,330	27,653,681	24,227,075
1919	22,673,712	19,922,153	3,095,740	2,846,837	2,554,401	1,552,423	28,074,950	24,321,413
1920	24,608,293	21,917,235	3,406,290	3,108,458	2,471,191	1,466,727	30,187,942	26,492,420
1921	26,186,960	23,230,084	3,852,465	3,492,374	2,425,623	1,415,567	32,104,957	28,138,025
1922	30,266,204	27,018,370	4,557,545	4,097,095	2,381,790	1,328,174	36,745,089	32,443,639
1923	36,079,382	32,164,674	5,262,400	4,770,135	2,341,667	1,244,969	43,191,184	38,179,778
1924	39,110,000	34,625,414	5,701,835	5,113,529	2,314,304	1,190,870	46,537,833	40,929,813
1925	45,720,794	40,770,527	6,029,965	5,360,074	2,272,598	1,128,552	53,353,466	47,259,153
1926	51,726,897	46,029,549	6,228,397	5,453,240	2,239,617	1,067,009	59,419,754	52,549,798
1927	56,412,759	50,107,464	6,293,835	5,409,861	2,189,627	1,006,254	64,012,247	56,523,579
1928	58,949,028	51,812,971	6,325,700	5,325,401	2,129,743	944,315	66,404,172	58,082,687

During the last two years loans advanced to local authorities by the State Advances Department have been less than the repayments, with the result that the amount outstanding under this head has decreased. In addition to the scheme of State advances, there exists a system whereby the State guarantee to the payment of interest and principal in the event of default by the local authority may be obtained by the borrowing authority. Loans guaranteed by the State aggregated £2,397,075 to the 31st March, 1928.

Of the total net indebtedness of £58,082,687 at the 31st March, 1928, boroughs were responsible for no less than £27,834,299, which represents 11.96 per cent. of their rateable capital value. In the case of counties, which have a much less per capita expenditure on public works, the percentage is only 2.12. As might be expected, it is higher in independent town districts, the figure being 8.18.

The following table shows, per head of the population, the gross debt of local governing authorities and the annual charge thereon for the last twenty years.

Year ended 31st March,	Population.	Gross Debt.				Annual Loan Charge.
Year ended 31st March,	Population.	Amount.	Rate per Head.			Amount.	Hale per Head.
		£	£	s.	d.	£	£	s.	d.
1909	1,016,063	15,920,757	15	13	4	803,194	0	15	9
1910	1,035,212	17,809,917	17	4	1	895,059	0	17	3
1911	1,056,199	19,104,571	18	1	9	960,810	0	18	2
1912	1,081,344	20,763,486	19	4	0	1,064,251	0	19	8
1913	1,111,589	22,183,427	19	19	2	1,104,474	0	19	10
1914	1,139,668	23,773,429	20	17	3	1,195,288	1	0	11
1915	1,150,386	24,538,721	21	6	7	1,238,065	1	1	6
1916	1,150,250	26,045,312	22	12	3	1,339,420	1	3	3
1917	1,150,938	26,799,586	23	5	8	1,393,394	1	4	2
1918	1,154,559	27,653,681	23	19	0	1,459,606	1	5	3
1919	1,178,406	28,074,950	23	16	6	1,489,890	1	5	3
1920	1,236,915	30,187,942	24	8	1	1,633,341	1	6	5
1921	1,267,498	32,104,957	25	6	7	1,755,951	1	7	7
1922	1,301,251	36,745,089	28	4	9	2,133,764	1	12	9
1923	1,325,301	43,191,184	32	11	10	2,579,571	1	18	11
1924	1,347,853	46,537,833	34	10	8	2,798,645	2	1	6
1925	1,379,487	53,353,466	38	13	7	3,331,163	2	8	3
1926	1,409,812	59,419,754	42	2	11	3,740,647	2	13	1
1927	1,437,980	64,012,247	44	10	4	4,050,895	2	16	4
1928	1,453,517	66,404,172	45	13	8	4,255,469	2	18	6

Over the period there has been an uninterrupted increase, not only in the total debt, but also in the rate per head. The annual charge for loans shows a similar growth. Within the last seven years the local-body debt has more than doubled.

INCIDENCE OF DEBT.

The table below is of interest as showing the increase of loan indebtedness in each of the principal types of local authority. The figures represent the gross liability on all loans other than Government loans.

As at 31st March,	Counties.	Boroughs.	Town Districts.	Road Districts.	Electric-power Districts.	Harbour Boards.	Other Districts.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1919	537,415	12,365,958	287,270	75,781	..	7,301,143	2,106,145	22,673,712
1920	752,176	13,944,507	311,208	51,916	..	7,377,142	2,171,344	24,608,293
1921	1,046,378	14,575,825	372,788	62,146	147,750	7,528,288	2,453,785	26,186,960
1922	1,328,297	16,282,960	351,065	79,891	1,480,000	8,110,911	2,633,080	30,266,204
1923	1,802,633	19,501,988	377,306	152,461	3,052,300	8,437,987	2,754,707	36,079,382
1924	1,870,078	19,819,497	408,580	207,671	4,740,865	9,020,188	3,043,121	39,110,000
1925	2,332,461	23,483,057	411,859	273,450	6,514,757	9,600,203	3,105,007	45,720,794
1926	3,054,131	25,607,439	435,753	405,300	8,745,755	9,845,766	3,632,753	51,726,897
1927	3,658,238	27,662,027	538,869	528,875	10,113,400	10,113,441	3,797,909	56,412,759
1928	3,882,471	29,277,772	570,307	593,615	10,175,364	10,335,699	4,113,800	58,949,028

During the twelve months ended the 31st March, 1928, the gross indebtedness (excluding loans from Government) of all local authorities is shown to have increased by £2,536,269. The principal contributories to this growth were: Boroughs, £1,615,745; counties, £224,233; and Harbour Boards, £222,258. During the last decade the debt has increased nearly threefold, boroughs being responsible for £17,127,388 of the £36,688,491 increase. Electric-power districts do not appear until 1921, since when the debt has grown steadily to £10,175,364 in 1928.

ANALYSIS OF DEBT.

An analysis of the local-authority debt, according to purpose raised, provides some interesting results. A summary as at the end of the financial year 1927–28 is as under:—

Purpose of Loans.	Loans other than from Government.	Loans from State Advances Office.	Inscribed Debt.	Totals.
	£	£	£	£
Electric supply and lighting	14,969,009	273	..	14,969,282
Roads, streets, footways, and bridges	10,958,907	2,800,506	1,149,328	14,908,741
Drainage, sewerage, and water-supply	11,007,806	1,611,546	651,622	13,270,974
Harbour-works	10,394,524	143,183	16,699	10,554,406
Tramways, omnibuses, and other passenger and carrying services	5,088,468	..	..	5,088,468
Municipal buildings	980,957	..	4,068	985,025
Gas supply and lighting	927,036	30,893	..	957,929
Workers' dwellings	164,051	434,362	..	598,413
Land-drainage	197,702	175,625	89,214	462,541
River-works	170,615	44,361	72,618	287,594
Parks, reserves, and gardens	391,768	..	..	391,768
Fire-prevention	312,944	649	..	313,593
Abattoirs	219,900	4,518	101,896	326,314
Miscellaneous	3,049,916	45,320	35,087	3,130,323
Unclassified	115,425	34,165	9,211	158,801
Totals	58,949,028	5,325,401	2,129,743	66,404,172

Electric supply and lighting loans account for 22 per cent. of the total; roads, streets, footways, and bridges, 22 per cent.; drainage, sewerage, and water-supply, 20 per cent.; harbour-works, 16 per cent.; and tramways, &c., 8 per cent. This leaves 12 per cent. for other objects. Hydro-electric works on a large scale are of comparatively recent date, and this fact accounts in a large measure for the rapid growth of the debt within the last few years. That there has been considerable activity in other directions also is evidenced by the fact that of loan - money amounting to £11,272,410 expended on new works by boroughs during the last five years (1923–24 to 1927–28) no less a sum than £3,951,658 (35 per cent.) went on roads, streets, and footways; £3,200,022 (28 per cent.) on drainage, sewerage, and water-supply; and £1,011,869 (9 per cent.) on tramways and other passenger services. The amount expended by boroughs on electric supply and lighting during the five years was £1,615,299, representing 14 per cent. of the total. The foregoing considerations, taken in conjunction with the fact that, except in the case of Harbour Boards, capital works are very rarely undertaken other than by means of borrowed money, are the explanation of the present size of the Dominion's local-body debt. As a commentary on Harbour Board finance, it is interesting to note that of the sum of £15,790,895 expended on harbour-works up to 30th September, 1927, no less than £4,999,813 (32 per cent.) was provided out of revenue.

It is of interest to note that Government loans have been made for the more primary needs of local districts. In the case of State Advances loans 53 per cent. of the existing debt is for roads, streets, and footways; 30 per cent. for drainage, sewerage, and water-supply; and 8 per cent. for workers' dwellings. Of the inscribed debt total 54 per cent. is for roads, &c., and 31 per cent. for drainage, sewerage, and water-supply.

MUNICIPAL DEBT.

In addition to the loans of boroughs shown as such, the loans of certain other local authorities must also come under the category of municipal debt. A number of services, which in some cases are controlled by the Councils of municipalities, are in other instances under the jurisdiction of special Boards—a circumstance, however, which does not alter the nature or incidence of the service. In order to ascertain the total municipal debt of the Dominion, therefore, there has been added to the debt of boroughs appearing as such the loan indebtedness of the Christchurch tramway district; of the city and suburban drainage districts at Auckland, Christchurch, and Dunedin; of the Petone and Lower Hutt gas-lighting district; and of all fire districts.

Having regard to the size of the municipal debt, which represents over half of the total local-body debt, and bearing in mind also the somewhat heterogeneous nature of municipal activity, the analysis of the municipal debt given below is of special interest. The figures given are included in these shown for the analysis of the total local-body debt.

	£
Boroughs	32,374,244
City and suburban drainage districts	2,281,938
Christchurch tramway district	1,115,550
Petone and Lower Hutt gas-lighting district	67,941
Fire districts	207,560
	£36,047,233

Classifying this amount according to the main purposes for which it was raised, the following result is obtained:—

	£
Drainage, sewerage, and water-supply	12,453,152
Roads, streets, footways, and bridges	8,244,264
Tramways and other passenger and carrying services	5,004,368
Electric supply and lighting	4,543,223
Gas supply and lighting	950,392
Municipal buildings	870,811
Workers' dwellings	393,263
Parks, reserves, and gardens	371,035
Fire-prevention	305,758
Abattoirs	326,314
Miscellaneous	2,466,808
Unclassified	117,845
Total	£36,047,233

Drainage, sewerage, and water-supply loans are responsible for 34 per cent. of the total, and roads, streets, footways, and bridges for 23 per cent. Trading concerns, which are taken as electric and gas supply and lighting, and tramways, &c., account for 29 per cent. of the total municipal indebtedness.

DOMICILE OF DEBT.

The loans outstanding, other than Government loans, at the end of the financial year 1927–28 are shown below, classified according to various rates of interest and as to whether domiciled in New Zealand or abroad:—

Rate of Interest.	Domiciled in New Zealand.	Domiciled in United Kingdom.	Domiciled in Australia.	Total.
Per Cent.	£	£	£	£
Under 4	74,982	..	..	74,982
4	1,100,382	2,302,718	898,550	4,301,650
4 1/4	675,700	349,900	861,000	1,886,600
4 3/8	37,000	..	..	37,000
4 1/2	2,364,011	1,682,825	440,950	4,487,786
4 3/4	106,650	..	319,790	426,440
5	2,660,797	6,583,211	216,600	9,460,608
5 1/8	118,000	..	..	118,000
5 1/4	4,022,984	2,153,600	3,250	6,179,834
5 1/2	6,918,121	1,376,167	967,165	9,261,453
5 5/4	148,349	..	126,000	274,349
5 2/3	10,000	..	130,000	140,000
5 3/4	5,144,202	..	2,022,782	7,166,984
5 7/8	3,000	..	..	3,000
6	9,943,356	2,062,300	795,278	12,800,934
6 1/4	8,500	..	..	8,500
6 1/2	1,264,326	695,000	53,450	2,012,776
6 3/4	8,944	..	..	8,944
7	62,188	..	237,000	299,188
Totals	34,671,492	17,205,721	7,071,815	58,949,028

The amount domiciled in New Zealand increased by £2,320,004 during 1927–28, and that domiciled in Australia by £926,539. The United Kingdom total showed a decrease of £710,274. The great bulk of local authority borrowing in recent years has been done within New Zealand, whose proportion of the total has increased continuously for several years past. The amount domiciled in New Zealand at 31st March, 1928, represented 59 per cent. of the total, the United Kingdom's share being 29 per cent., and Australia's 12 per cent.

DEBT CHARGES.

Debentures and stock in circulation at 31st March, 1928, involved an annual charge of £3,158,359 for interest and £675,510 for sinking fund. Interest payments and principal repayments on the State Advances debt aggregated £343,437 annually, and annual instalments on the inscribed debt totalled £78,163, bringing the gross annual debt charge to £4,255,469. The figures as at the end of each of the last ten years are:—

ANNUAL LOAN CHARGES, 1918–19 TO 1927–28.

Year ended 31st March,	On Debentures and Stock.			On State Advances Loans.	On Inscribed Debt.	Total.	Average Rate of
Year ended 31st March,	Interest.	Sinking Fund.	Total.	On State Advances Loans.	On Inscribed Debt.	Total.	Interest on Debentures and Stock.	Total Debt Charge (including Government Loans).
	£	£	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1919	1,048,999	182,465	1,231,464	161,401	97,025	1,489,890	4.63	5.31
1920	1,137,057	223,726	1,360,783	179,320	93,238	1,633,341	4.62	5.40
1921	1,221,549	240,785	1,462,334	204,119	89,498	1,755,951	4.66	5.47
1922	1,462,039	295,505	1,757,544	287,029	89,191	2,133,764	4.83	5.81
1923	1,827,992	380,848	2,208,840	283,457	87,274	2,579,571	5.06	5.97
1924	1,992,220	413,369	2,495,589	307,099	85,957	2,798,645	5.09	6.01
1925	2,396,824	523,876	2,920,700	326,260	84,203	3,331,163	5.24	6.24
1926	2,740,445	580,200	3,320,645	337,259	82,743	3,740,647	5.30	6.30
1927	3,000,223	628,750	3,628,973	341,414	80,508	4,050,895	5.32	6.33
1928	3,158,359	675,510	3,833,869	343,437	78,163	4,255,469	5.36	6.41

The annual debt charge is seen to have increased at a greater rate than the debt itself, the proportion columns showing a continuous upward movement over the period. The table on page 697 shows the same continuous increase proportionately to population.

Of the annual interest payable on the debt other than to Government as at 31st March, 1928, £1,918,519 was payable in New Zealand, £869,531 in the United Kingdom, and £370,309 in Australia. The average rate of interest for each of the foregoing countries works out as follows: New Zealand, 5.53 per cent.; Australia, 5.24 per cent.; United Kingdom, 5.05 per cent. Only 20 per cent. of the debt domiciled in New Zealand bore interest at 5 per cent. or under, as compared with a corresponding percentage of 63 in the case of the United Kingdom, the Australian figure being 39 per cent.

LOANS AUTHORIZED AND RAISED.

Although the yearly loan statistics compiled from the annual returns of local governing authorities are on a high plane of completeness, no information is available therefrom in regard to current borrowing activities throughout the year. To cope with the demand for information in this respect a system of quarterly loan statistics was instituted from 1st April, 1925, rendering it incumbent upon local authorities to furnish particulars of amounts raised during each quarter. A summary of the results obtained from a collection of these statistics for the four years so far covered is given below.

LOAN TRANSACTIONS, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Unexpired and Unexercised Authorities at beginning of Year.	Amount authorized during Year.	Total of two preceding Columns.	Amount raised during Year.	Authorities cancelled or expired during Year.	Balance unexpired and unexercised at end of Year.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1926	10,544,943	5,880,796	16,425,739	6,128,362	251,264	10,046,113
1927	10,046,113	5,340,868	15,386,981	5,623,617	292,298	9,471,066
1928	9,471,066	3,915,754	13,386,820	5,167,647	180,224	8,038,949
1929	8,038,949	3,903,676	11,942,625	3,801,754	44,032	8,096,839

Of the unexpired loan balance of £8,096,839 at 31st March, 1929, boroughs held authorities aggregating £3,348,522, or 41 per cent.; Harbour Boards, £2,015,050 (25 per cent.); electric-power districts, £1,407,971 (17 per cent.); and counties, £688,377 (9 per cent.). Details for the various classes of local authorities are as follows:—

LOAN TRANSACTIONS, 1928–29.

Class of Local Body.	Unexpired and Unexercised Authorities at 31st March, 1928.	Amount authorized during Year ended 31st March, 1929.	Total of two preceding Columns.	Amount raised during Year ended 31st March, 1929.	Authorities cancelled or expired during Year ended 31st March, 1929.	Balance unexpired and unexercised at 31st March, 1929.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
Counties	726,751	207,191	933,942	228,177	17,388	688,377
Boroughs	3,629,488	1,557,814	5,187,302	1,830,225	8,555	3,348,522
Town districts	151,328	62,818	214,146	92,331	300	121,515
Road districts	5,710	1,500	7,210	1,500	..	5,710
River districts	17,143	105,000	122,143	12,900	..	109,243
Land-drainage districts	59,450	19,360	78,810	33,111	500	45,199
Electric-power districts	921,804	1,149,280	2,071,084	659,300	3,813	1,407,971
Water-supply districts	150	..	150	..	..	150
City and Suburban drainage districts	146,200	410,500	556,700	248,200	3,900	304,600
Tramway district	15,150	..	15,150	..	..	15,150
Gas-lighting district	..	61,956	61,956	41,900	56	20,000
Rabbit districts	..	300	300	300	..	..
Fire districts	30,525	5,645	36,170	14,310	6,508	15,352
Harbour Boards	2,335,250	322,312	2,657,562	639,500	3,012	2,015,050
Totals	8,038,949	3,903,676	11,942,625	3,801,754	44,032	8,096,839

Chapter 27. SECTION XXVII.—VALUATION OF LAND.

Table of Contents

HISTORICAL ACCOUNT.

SYSTEM AND PROCEDURE.

THE VALUATION ROLL.

THE ASSESSMENT COURT.

CAPITAL AND UNIMPROVED VALUES OF LAND.

CAPITAL AND UNIMPROVED VALUES. 1878–1928.

RATEABLE VALUES, 1928.—SUMMARY.

GROSS CAPITAL VALUES.—YEAR OF VALUATION.

COUNTIES.

TABLE SHOWING GROSS CAPITAL AND UNIMPROVED VALUES OF EACH COUNTY IN NEW ZEALAND.

BOROUGHS.

TABLE SHOWING GROSS CAPITAL AND UNIMPROVED VALUES OF EACH BOROUGH IN NEW ZEALAND.

TOWN DISTRICTS.

TABLE SNOWING GROSS CAPITAL AND UNIMPROVED VALUES OF EACH TOWN DISTRICT (OUTSIDE THE JURISDICTION OF ANY COUNTY) IN NEW ZEALAND.

HISTORICAL ACCOUNT.

THE system of separately assessing the value of the land itself and the value of the buildings and improvements effected thereon was first put into practice in New Zealand for the purposes of State taxation on the passing of the Land-tax Act, 1878, under which a tax was levied on land-values, the impost being 1/2d. in the pound on the capital value of real estate, less the assessed value of the improvements.

The Land-tax Act, 1878, was superseded by the Property-tax Act, 1879, which provided for the levy of a uniform tax of 1d. in the pound on the capital value of all property—real and personal—above the amount of £500 in value.

The Property-tax Act, 1879, was in its turn superseded by the Land and Income Assessment Act, 1891. Under this enactment a land-tax was imposed on land and mortgages of land, with an exemption for improvements on land up to £3,000. An exemption from income-tax was also allowed on all incomes derived from land and mortgages of land.

Two years later, under the provisions of the Land and Income Assessment Acts Amendment Act, 1893, all improvements on land were entirely exempted.

An endeavour to extend the principle of general exclusion of improvements to local taxation resulted in the passing of the Rating on Unimproved Value Act, 1896, which gave ratepayers of local districts the option of deciding that equivalent rates on the unimproved values of lands in their district should be substituted for the rates levied on the full capital values or on the annual values.

The valuing of land up to the year 1896 was not conducted on a uniform basis. Each State Department and each local authority worked quite independently, and employed as valuers whom it thought fit. The Land-tax Department periodically employed a small army of temporary valuers when it required a new valuation of lands for taxation purposes, and each local authority had its own particular method of making up its roll for the levying of rates. Estimates of values arrived at by various authorities varied to a dangerous degree. Some values were very high, being based on speculative prices, while many were extremely low. Frequently the same property had several values assigned to it.

In order to overcome as far as possible the obvious defects of the old system it was decided to establish a new system of valuation, by which all valuations required by State Departments—whether for loan, taxation, or other purposes—and by local authorities that rate on the capital or unimproved value, should be made by valuers employed by the State at fixed salaries and responsible to the Government alone.

The Government Valuation of Land Act, 1896, was in due course passed. This Act provided for the setting-up of a separate Department of State charged with the duty of assessing the values of real estate in the Dominion for taxation and other purposes of the General Government and for local-rating purposes.

The existing law relating to the valuation of land in New Zealand is contained in the Valuation of Land Act, 1925 (which is a consolidation of previous legislation on the subject), and its amendments of 1926 and 1927.

SYSTEM AND PROCEDURE.

The work of the Valuation Department is directed by the Valuer-General. The actual work of valuation is done by District Valuers and assistant valuers. The former are permanent officers, while the latter are temporarily employed to make valuations at such times and on such terms and conditions as are found necessary. Assistant valuers are remunerated by fees.

A valuation made by a assistant valuer or local valuer is subject to endorsement by the District Valuer before it is accepted by the Valuer-General.

The essential qualifications of a valuer who is employed in a country district are local knowledge of land-values and a practical knowledge of farming pursuits, both agricultural and pastoral, and of values of improvements. A valuer who is employed in a city or suburban district must have a special knowledge of building-construction and of the values of all kinds of improvements in addition to a knowledge of land-values.

The Dominion is divided for administrative purposes into convenient valuation districts, to each of which is assigned a District Valuer, whose functions are not, however, confined to a specific district, but may be exercised in such districts as the Valuer-General from time to time directs.

The duty of a valuer is to examine each property and to estimate to the best of his ability (1) the unimproved value of the land contained therein, (2) the value of the buildings (if any) or other improvements (if any) upon such land, and (3) the “capital value” of the property. The Valuation of Land Amendment Act, 1927, provides that in boroughs rating on the unimproved value the unimproved value only or the value of improvements only may be ascertained, the capital value being adjusted accordingly.

The definition of “land” in the Valuation of Land Act, 1925, as amended in 1926 and 1927, is as follows: “‘Land’ means all land, tenements, and hereditaments, whether corporeal or incorporeal, in New Zealand, and all chattel or other interests therein, and all trees growing or standing thereon: Provided that the value of any trees that have been planted (other than fruit-trees or live hedges), and the value of any trees that have been preserved for shelter or ornamental purposes, shall not be included in any valuation appearing in a valuation roll supplied by the Valuer-General to a local authority pursuant to section 38 hereof.”

“Unimproved value” is defined in the Valuation of Land Act, 1925, as follows: “‘Unimproved value’ of any land means the sum which the owner's estate or interest therein, if unencumbered by any mortgage or other charge thereon, might be expected to realize at the time of valuation if offered for sale on such reasonable terms and conditions as a bona fide seller might be expected to impose, and if no improvements had been made on the said laud.”

Under the New Zealand law the increased value attaching to any piece of land which is due to the successful working of other lands in the district, or to State or local body expenditure on public works, or to the general prosperity and development of the country, forms portion of the “unimproved value.” Any increased value, however, which is represented by the improvements effected by the individual possessor, either past or present, does not form part of the “unimproved value.”

Valuers are enjoined not to strain after high values, nor to accept isolated “boom” prices, values involved in exchanges of land, or special prices paid for land under exceptional circumstances, as a standard of value, but to determine the value neither above nor below the fair selling-value in view of the many and diverse purposes for which the values are used.

The Valuation of Land Act defines “improvements” as follows: “‘Improvements’ on land means all work done or material used at any time on or for the benefit of the land by the expenditure of capital or labour by any owner or occupier thereof in so far as the effect of the work done or material used is to increase the value of the land, and the benefit thereof is unexhausted at the time of valuation; but does not include work done or material used on or for the benefit of the land by the Crown or by any statutory public body, except so far as the same has been paid for by the owner or occupier either by way of direct contribution or by way of special rates on loans raised for the purpose of constructing within a county any road, bridge, irrigation-works, water-races, drainage-works, or river-protection works: Provided that the value of improvements made out of loan-moneys raised for the purpose of constructing within a county any road, bridge, irrigation-works, water-races, drainage-works, or river-protection works as aforesaid shall not exceed the amount of principal estimated by the Valuer-General to have been repaid by the owner in respect of any such loan by way of special rates.”

Subject to the limitations contained in the above definition, all buildings, fencing, planting, draining, constructing of private roads and water-races, clearing of timber, &c., permanent grassing, and all other work of a permanent nature effected upon or for the benefit of land are improvements. No work can, however, be considered an improvement if the benefit thereof is exhausted at the date of valuation.

The Valuation of Land Act defines “value of improvements” as “the added value which at the date of valuation the improvements give to the land.”

“Capital value” is defined as follows: “‘Capital value’ of land means the sum which the owner's estate or interest therein, if unencumbered by any mortgage or other charge thereon, might be expected to realize at the time of valuation if offered for sale on such reasonable terms and conditions as a bona fide seller might be expected to require.”

The capital value is the fair selling-value in the open market, but not the auction value or value derivable at a forced sale.

Land containing or supposed to contain oil, coal, or other mineral deposits is valued as for the surface use only, and is of the same unimproved value as similar land in the neighbourhood (always without any regard to speculative mineral value) until the oil or minerals are produced, when the profits (if any) will be duly valued.

THE VALUATION ROLL.

The Valuation of Land Act directs that a valuation roll shall be prepared for each district setting forth in respect of each separate property the following particulars:—

The name of the owner of the land and the nature of his estate or interest therein, together with the name of the beneficial owner in the case of land held in trust:
The name of the occupier within the meaning of the Rating Act:
The situation, description, and area of the land:
The nature and value of the improvements on the land:
The unimproved value of the land:
The capital value of the land:
Such other particulars as are prescribed.

The district valuation roll so long as it continues in force is by law the roll from which the valuation roll of every local authority rating on the capital or on the unimproved value is framed.

The district valuation rolls may be revised by the Valuer-General as at such date or dates as the Governor-General in Council from time to time directs, and the revision may relate either to all the properties on a valuation roll or to any of them. There are no fixed periods between one general division and the next, the periods varying considerably as between recently-settled and old-established districts. The necessity for revision really depends upon the extent to which values have moved since the last revision.

After the values in a district have been revised a new valuation roll is prepared, and the Valuer-General addresses to each person whoso name appears thereon a notice setting forth the values at which his property is entered, and naming a date on or before which all objections to the values must be lodged. An objection to the valuation must be made in writing.

THE ASSESSMENT COURT.

The Valuer-General refers objections to values to the District Valuer to enable him to review valuations before the sitting of the Assessment Court. If after careful reconsideration by the District Valuer it is decided that an objection shall be allowed or a reasonable compromise effected, the valuation is altered accordingly. On the other hand, if the Valuer-General is in possession of evidence that the valuer's estimates are fair, but the objector will not accept them, the objection is heard and determined by the Assessment Court.

The Assessment Court consists of three members, of whom one—the President—is a barrister or solicitor of the Supreme Court of New Zealand, appointed by the Governor-General in Council. Of the other two members of the Court, one member is appointed by the Governor-General in Council, and the other by the local authority of the district whose roll has been revised, or by two or more local authorities acting in unison, provided the appointee is not a member or a paid officer of any local authority. The Valuation of Land Amendment Act, 1927, provides for assessors representing local bodies to be elected (after nomination by two or more ratepayers by a meeting of ratepayers convened for the purpose.

If the objection to the valuation is allowed, the reduction is immediately entered on the valuation roll. If the objection is disallowed, the owner may, within fourteen days after the hearing by the Assessment Court, give notice to the Valuer-General that he requires the capital value to be reduced to the value which he (the objector) considers to be the fair selling-value as specified in his notice, or the land to be acquired on behalf of His Majesty at that value.

If the Valuer-General is of opinion that the Assessment Court has made an unfair reduction in a valuation he may, within fourteen days of the hearing, require the owner to consent to what he (the Valuer-General) considers is the fair selling capital value, and, failing such consent being given within thirty days after notice is delivered at his address, he may, with the approval of the Governor-General in Council, acquire the property at that value on behalf of His Majesty.

The decision of the Assessment Court on any objection is subject to appeal to the Supreme Court on a question of law. On all other questions the decision of the Assessment Court is final. The decision of a majority of the three members constitutes the decision of the Court, but if no two members agree the President's decision is taken.

CAPITAL AND UNIMPROVED VALUES OF LAND.

General valuations of land for the whole of New Zealand were made periodically up to the year 1897–98. Since that year no general valuations for the whole Dominion have been made, but portions are revalued from time to time. The figures in the following table, showing valuations over a number of years, therefore represent general valuations up to 1897 only, while for subsequent years the figures have been revised to include the latest valuations of small divisions.

In the twenty-four years from 1878 to 1902 the value, both of land and of improvements, increased by slightly over 50 per cent. In the eighteen years from 1902 to 1920, as the effect of a long period of prosperity, the total valuations more than trebled, while in the seven years following 1920 unimproved values increased by over £50,000,000 and capital values by £148,000,000.

Recent re-valuations have resulted in somewhat lower unimproved values being placed on country lands. Although the aggregate capital value at the 1st April, 1928, shows an appreciable increase over the figure for 1927, the unimproved value, which is included in the capital value, shows a decrease of over six millions. This is the first time that the unimproved value of the land has shown a decrease in any year when compared with the preceding year.

CAPITAL AND UNIMPROVED VALUES. 1878–1928.

Year.	Capital Value (Land and Improvements).	Unimproved Value of Land (included in previous Column).
	£	£
1878	99,566,679	62,573,868
1882	101,000,000	..
1885	113,270,649	..
1888	111,137,714	75,497,379
1891	122,225,029	75,832,465
1897	138,591,347	84,401,244
1902	154,816,132	94,847,727
1905	197,684,475	122,937,126
1907	236,644,536	149,682,689
1909	271,516,022	172,759,948
1911	293,117,065	184,062,798
1913	340,559,728	212,963,468
1915	371,076,683	230,705,147
1916	389,164,729	241,322,255
1917	405,466,071	251,087,708
1918	421,383,373	260,921,812
1919	445,533,445	275,988,409
1920	470,093,697	290,880,264
1921	518,584,318	317,631,245
1922	544,503,376	329,174,337
1923	553,403,794	330,790,991
1924	568,500,653	333,869,581
1925	587,349,575	339,310,260
1926	603,250,306	341,047,952
1927	618,264,093	341,519,107
1928	631,454,676	335,217,075

Information covering the last ten years as to the gross capital and unimproved values in the North and South Islands and in the whole Dominion is given in the following table, which also shows the separate totals for counties, boroughs, and town districts (independent of county jurisdiction).

Year.	Number.	North Island.		South Island.^*		New Zealand.
Year.	Number.	Capital Value (Land and Improvements).	Unimproved Value of Land (included in previous Column).	Capital Value (Land and Improvements).	Unimproved Value of Land (included in previous Column).	Capital Value (Land and Improvements).	Unimproved Value of Land (included in previous Column).
* Including Stewart Island and Chatham Islands.
Counties.
		£	£	£	£	£	£
1919	127	182,705,967	120,687,776	108,086,615	80,086,519	290,792,582	200,774,295
1920	129	192,504,367	126,201,659	114,988,297	85,947,072	307,492,664	212,148,731
1921	129	206,439,797	134,007,675	125,642,531	93,566,567	332,082,328	227,574,242
1922	129	210,502,471	135,866,105	127,069,782	94,059,679	337,572,253	229,925,784
1923	129	212,365,004	136,619,976	125,801,994	93,108,293	338,166,998	229,728,269
1924	129	214,571,989	137,323,119	126,047,703	93,131,206	340,619,692	230,454,325
1925	129	217,347,187	138,452,089	126,696,666	93,162,705	344,043,853	231,614,794
1926	129	218,934,039	137,478,551	127,019,176	93,135,848	345,953,215	230,614,399
1927	129	220,899,534	136,669,081	128,528,964	93,546,458	349,428,498	230,215,539
1928	129	222,034,723	128,466,999	128,979,600	93,112,481	351,014,323	221,579,480
Boroughs
1919	117	98,520,644	51,910,886	50,615,526	20,737,636	149,136,170	72,648,522
1920	116	103,409,093	53,707,077	52,511,730	21,877,277	155,920,823	75,584,354
1921	117	119,091,896	61,297,945	60,050,052	25,330,805	179,141,948	86,628,750
1922	118	137,157,309	70,173,035	199,254,258	62,096,949	25,594,465	95,767,500
1923	118	142,049,548	71,059,184	64,572,622	26,200,198	206,622,170	97,259,382
1924	118	153,284,674	73,591,427	67,069,287	26,435,569	220,353,961	100,026,996
1925	118	165,944,934	77,762,005	69,402,512	26,505,881	235,347,446	104,267,886
1926	119	176,492,484	79,937,203	72,316,315	26,911,670	248,808,799	106,848,873
1927	119	184,483,849	80,253,298	75,083,757	27,279,451	269,567,606	107,532,749
1928	119	193,357,816	82,113,910	77,546,515	27,760,690	270,904,331	109,874,600
Independent Town Districts.
1919	37	4,941,519	2,301,302	663,174	264,290	5,604,693	2,565,592
1920	39	5,979,357	2,851,680	700,853	295,499	6,680,210	3,147,179
1921	36	6,663,746	3,126,936	696,296	301,317	7,360,042	3,428,253
1922	36	6,944,401	3,175,747	732,464	305,306	7,676,865	3,481,053
1923	41	7,747,912	3,457,862	866,714	345,478	8,614,626	3,803,340
1924	39	6,644,556	3,042,977	882,444	345,283	7,527,000	3,388,260
1925	40	7,043,127	3,081,319	915,149	346,261	7,958,276	3,427,580
1926	39	7,450,925	3,202,324	1,037,367	382,356	8,488,292	3,684,680
1927	40	8,221,372	3,387,736	1,046,617	383,083	9,267,989	3,770,819
1928	42	8,468,686	3,397,342	1,067,336	365,653	9,536,022	3,762,995
Grand Totals.
1919	..	286,168,130	174,899,964	159,365,315	101,088,445	445,533,445	275,988,409
1920	..	301,892,817	182,760,416	168,200,880	108,119,848	470,093,697	290,880,264
1921	..	332,195,439	198,432,556	186,388,879	119 198 689	518,584,318	317,631,245
1922	..	354,604,181	209,214,887	189,899,195	119,959,450	644,503,376	329,174,337
1923	..	362,162,464	211,137,022	191,241,330	119,653,969	553,403,794	330,790,991
1924	..	374,501,219	213,957,523	193,999,434	119,912,058	568,500,653	333,869,581
1925	..	390,335,248	219,295,413	197,014,327	120,014,847	587,349,575	339,310,260
1926	..	402,877,448	220,618,078	200,372,858	120,429,874	603,250,306	341,047,952
1927	..	413,604,755	220,310,115	204,659,338	121,208,992	618,264,093	341,519,107
1928	..	423,861,225	213,978,251	207,593,451	121,238,824	631,454,676	835,217,075

The values shown in the preceding table are, as stated, the gross values; they include the value not only of rateable properties, but also of churches, schools, unoccupied Crown lands, and other lands exempt from local rating. A summary of rateable values for the year 1928 is next given.

RATEABLE VALUES, 1928.—SUMMARY.

	North Island.		South Island.^*		New Zealand.
—	Capital Value (Land and Improvements).	Unimproved Value of Land (included in previous Column).	Capital Value (Land and Improvements).	Unimproved Value of Land (included in previous Column).	Capital Value (Land and Improvements).	Unimproved Value of Land (included in previous Column).
* Including Stewart Island and Chatham Islands.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
Counties	207,677,909	121,619,851	123,943,092	90,092,330	331,621,001	211,712,181
Boroughs	176,163,003	73,446,455	70,101,733	24,971,985	246,264,736	98,418,440
Town districts (independent)	7,866,171	3,179,493	976,221	336,965	8,842,392	3,516,458
Totals	391,707,083	198,245,799	195,021,046	115,401,280	586,728,129	313,647,079

As has been pointed out previously, the figures shown for 1928 and other years subsequent to 1898 do not represent general revaluations of the whole Dominion in the years shown. Revaluations are made, district by district, as circumstances permit, or as the progress of the district renders advisable. An analysis of the gross capital value shown for the year 1928 gives the following results:—

GROSS CAPITAL VALUES.—YEAR OF VALUATION.

Last revised as at April in Year	Counties.	Boroughs.	Town Districts (Independent).	Total.
	£	£	£	£
1897	161,629	..	..	161,629
1898	17,984	76,910	..	94,894
1902	..	24,762	..	24,762
1904	..	31,536	..	31,536
1905	..	310,897	..	310,897
1907	..	651,086	..	651,086
1909	..	42,700	..	42,700
1911	..	996,988	..	996,988
1912	..	83,037	114,428	197,465
1913	2,990,609	170,928	31,808	3,193,345
1914	7,856,125	879,763	360,853	9,096,741
1915	285,864	..	..	285,864
1916	15,686,508	3,915,094	115,647	19,717,249
1917	20,976,689	5,313,142	195,334	26,485,165
1918	24,786,654	510,189	593,451	25,890,294
1919	45,851,221	137,371	..	45,988,592
1920	46,905,508	12,375,761	294,744	59,576,013
1921	59,070,346	92,291,155	1,737,845	153,099,346
1922	19,017,444	53,587,929	306,540	72,911,913
1923	5,657,736	8,311,547	164,729	14,134,012
1924	3,504,484	9,964,079	1,272,699	14,741,262
1925	8,180,568	32,702,167	582,417	41,465,152
1926	27,132,382	21,104,932	2,671,240	50,908,554
1927	14,666,465	11,171,662	523,577	26,361,704
1928	48,266,107	16,250,696	570,710	65,087,513
Totals	351,014,323	270,904,331	9,536,022	631,454,676

It should be explained that in these few cases where a borough, town district, or local division of a county has been valued partly in one year and partly in another, and information is not available as to the amounts represented by the valuations in the respective years, the whole district has been included in the latest of the years shown. Napier Borough, for instance, was revised partly in 1914 and partly in 1917, but is wholly included in the 1917 figures shown above. Fiord County, with a gross capital value of £144,295 and a rateable capital value of only £15,831, has not been revalued since 1897, nor have certain islands.

The gross capital and unimproved values for each county, borough, and independent town district as in 1928 are next given. The particulars for component parts of administrative countries—viz., road districts, dependent town districts, and portions of outlying country—are given in the “Local Authorities Handbook.”

COUNTIES.

TABLE SHOWING GROSS CAPITAL AND UNIMPROVED VALUES OF EACH COUNTY IN NEW ZEALAND.

County.	Capital Value (Land and Improvements).	Unimproved Value of Land (included in previous Column).
	£	£
Mongonui	1,507,640	596,798
Whangaroa	289,890	177,508
Bay of Islands	1,770,325	965,582
Hokianga	1,318,934	774,759
Whangarei	4,625,962	2,172,034
Hobson	2,453,136	1,046,841
Otamatea	2,024,270	954,683
Rodney	1,760,569	911,184
Waitemata	4,364,363	2,784,088
Eden	6,057,894	2,701,353
Manukau	5,003,474	3,065,894
Franklin	6,027,548	3,251,155
Great Barrier Island	171,102	114,237
Islands—
Little Barrier, Waiheke, &c.	546,810	358,753
Waikato	5,606,359	3,156,024
Raglan	3,704,627	2,323,433
Waipa	5,790,684	3,492,744
Coromandel	679,918	382,603
Thames	738,305	376,599
Hauraki Plains	2,255,969	1,306,038
Ohinemuri	782,608	396,413
Tauranga	2,279,201	1,022,713
Piako	4,515,845	2,428,495
Matamata	3,080,196	1,889,465
Rotorua	1,784,256	1,340,838
Whakatane	2,471,776	1,405,548
Taupo	719,095	495,051
Taumarunui	1,497,231	865,313
Ohura	1,103,852	375,074
Kawhia	974,394	567,220
Waitomo	2,892,342	1,239,430
Otorohanga	2,140,128	1,438,473
Islands—Motiti	33,120	19,150
Opotiki	1,717,780	627,467
Matakaoa	981,145	539,038
Waiapu	3,761,108	1,969,391
Uawa	1,719,545	1,075,992
Waikohu	4,653,283	2,521,877
Cook	5,402,635	2,450,103
Wairoa	3,803,642	2,406,913
Hawke's Bay	10,934,217	8,163,291
Waipawa	2,981,259	2,112,578
Waipukurau	914,592	680,555
Dannevirke	3,418,801	2,248,537
Woodville	2,060,156	1,474,624
Patangata	4,631,389	3,598,190
Weber	735,002	473,792
Clifton	1,494,740	839,723
Taranaki	2,770,661	1,530,289
Inglewood	1,427,713	672,688
Egmont	1,660,215	878,900
Stratford	3,197,473	1,925,946
Whangamomona	568,948	177,254
Waimate West	2,100,957	1,350,533
Eltham	2,698,863	1,467,303
Hawera	3,461,229	2,144,320
Patea	3,534,340	2,064,215
Waitotara	2,787,348	1,850,475
Waimarino	2,116,152	1,111,100
Wanganui	3,214,313	1,900,112
Rangitikei	10,154,914	6,300,441
Kiwitea	3,364,451	2,172,382
Pohangina	1,728,695	1,096,695
Kaitieke	1,051,633	484,684
Manawatu	3,598,883	2,534,230
Oroua	3,116,835	2,142,602
Kairanga	4,839,321	3,354,077
Horowhenua	5,327,057	3,635,927
Islands—
Kapiti, Mana, and Somes	17,984	13,378
Chatham Islands	285,864	195,893
Pahiatua	2,528,427	1,424,677
Akitio	1,494,863	729,455
Castlepoint	826,005	533,126
Eketahuna	1,850,427	1,007,777
Mauriceville	539,126	303,390
Masterton	4,330,925	2,730,005
Wairarapa South	7,541,494	1,767,700
Featherston	4,759,386	3,035,676
Hutt	3,682,818	1,827,056
Makara	1,562,200	718,022
Collingwood	455,670	274,656
Takaka	718,555	395,239
Waimea	3,166,369	1,747,367
Sounds	828,249	500,120
Marlborough	5,066,976	3,635,214
Awatere	2,233,843	1,744,704
Buller	1,451,035	767,562
Murchison	747,737	439,787
Inangahua	759,885	398,031
Grey	934,598	579,772
Westland	1,139,909	786,951
Kaikoura	1,651,897	1,178,309
Cheviot	1,713,372	1,402,441
Amuri	2,570,489	2,068,307
Waipara	4,277,047	3,664,792
Ashley	1,123,479	903,695
Kowai	1,622,403	1,320,140
Oxford	1,163,159	948,438
Rangiora	1,817,436	1,475,943
Eyre	1,707,735	1,376,020
Waimairi	5,250,779	2,676,648
Paparua	2,746,987	1,771,513
Malvern	2,577,071	2,029,630
Tawera	577,064	478,594
Heathcote	2,072,375	947,880
Halswell	1,174,255	833,500
Selwyn	1,734,857	1,392,922
Springs	1,265,340	1,032,090
Ellesmere	2,782,252	2,314,627
Mount Herbert	700,615	573,178
Wairewa	1,500,514	1,231,104
Akaroa	2,358,210	1,937,030
Ashburton	11,627,780	9,617,634
Geraldine	3,567,040	2,871,689
Levels	3,684,798	2,954,550
Mackenzie	2,978,545	2,272,318
Waimate	6,695,344	5,469,391
Waitaki	5,334,958	4,087,967
Maniototo	1,486,195	1,035,751
Waihemo	822,579	599,230
Waikouaiti	1,297,891	806,966
Peninsula	702,839	348,072
Taieri	2,690,475	1,651,357
Tuapeka	2,417,935	1,659,701
Bruce	1,791,329	1,171,314
Clutha	3,034,381	1,829,310
Islands—
Quarantine and Goat	3,454	900
Vincent	1,607,333	1,049,856
Lake	583,044	407,450
Fiord	144,295	137,513
Wallace	3,707,508	2,528,093
Southland	14,509,191	9,528,632
Stewart Island	102,780	48,810
Islands—
Antipodes, &c.	13,880	13,880

BOROUGHS.

TABLE SHOWING GROSS CAPITAL AND UNIMPROVED VALUES OF EACH BOROUGH IN NEW ZEALAND.

Borough.	Capital Value (Land and Improvements).	Unimproved Value of Land (included in previous Column.)
	£	£
Whangarei	2,459,455	979,071
Dargaville	746,396	255,282
Birkenhead	901,735	365,760
Devonport	3,404,076	1,415,905
AUCKLAND CITY—
City Portion	30,203,083	16,508,745
Parnell Portion	2,241,273	1,061,140
Grey Lynn Portion	2,667,582	874,782
Arch Hill Portion	512,219	192,925
Eden Terrace Portion	594,055	222,220
Point Chevalier Portion	1,087,599	488,055
Avondale Portion	1,215,809	497,078
Epsom Portion	2,919,237	1,175,497
Remuera Portion	5,544,279	2,300,216
Orakei Portion	135,800	122,940
Tamaki Portion	1,948,458	1,238,074
Total of City	49,069,394	24,681,672
Newmarket	1,576,849	816,645
Onehunga	3,028,244	1,123,130
Takapuna	2,598,185	1,200,321
Northcote	643,862	281,172
Mount Albert	5,435,787	1,983,882
Mount Eden	5,663,532	2,142,853
Otahuhu	1,279,663	457,459
Pukekohe	936,355	469,402
Hamilton	6,515,854	2,977,930
Cambridge	806,268	337,643
Ngaruawahia	250,825	66,875
Te Awamutu	657,682	271,998
Thames	1,010,697	323,377
Tauranga	830,085	414,824
Paeroa	456,120	186,674
Waihi	329,482	43,047
Morrinsville	615,248	242,850
Te Aroha	711,853	288,650
Rotorua	1,839,210	1,019,661
Whakatane	352,191	93,086
Taumarunui	673,922	280,396
Te Kuiti	626,757	317,229
Opotiki	366,395	183,503
Gisborne	5,718,347	2,370,890
Wairoa	774,863	341,427
Napier	4,424,467	1,719,665
Hastings	3,321,355	1,528,509
Dannevirke	1,436,946	501,652
Woodville	170,928	55,831
Waipawa	310,091	139,990
Waipukurau	473,572	161,822
New Plymouth	4,862,433	1,750,684
Hawera	1,801,357	770,470
Patea	159,329	57,591
Waitara	328,090	103,499
Inglewood	249,738	88,272
Stratford	1,043,179	452,973
Eltham	579,348	199,727
Wanganui City	9,401,618	3,601,117
Marton	841,032	216,532
Raetihi	238,914	55,452
Ohakune	137,371	44,377
Taihape	654,484	327,221
Feilding	1,567,353	565,094
Palmerston North	6,980,764	2,488,701
Foxton	323,519	111,953
WELLINGTON CITY—
City Portion	26,847,837	13,804,884
Wadestown Portion	863,598	246,097
Northland Portion	823,355	229,777
Melrose—
Kilbirnie Portion	4,398,598	1,015,548
Island Bay Portion	1,540,545	359,960
Ohiro Portion	2,327,378	575,686
Onslow Portion	1,064,347	307,032
Karori Portion	1,235,113	322,832
Miramar Portion	2,524,867	579,323
Total of City	41,625,638	17,441,139
Shannon	213,670	88,231
Levin	744,319	218,738
Otaki	340,067	148,855
Pahiatua	336,583	96,907
Masterton	2,594,041	857,812
Carterton	499,712	103,466
Greytown	218,020	54,706
Upper Hutt	665,282	224,111
Lower Hutt	2,912,253	1,052,559
Petone	2,466,114	658,190
Eketahuna	163,786	44,984
Martinborough	244,591	47,940
Featherston	189,443	44,681
Eastbourne	529,077	147,845
Richmond	261,918	119,536
Nelson City	2,930,855	1,251,715
Picton	368,325	152,082
Blenheim	1,631,588	589,144
Motueka	327,640	157,424
Westport	735,892	352,111
Greymouth	996,988	268,651
Brunner	76,910	17,668
Kumara	31,536	6,884
Hokitika	397,161	89,072
Ross	24,762	7,358
Runanga	63,059	19,132
Rangiora	583,750	169,955
Kaiapoi	335,103	89,573
CHRISTCHURCH CITY—
St. Albans Portion	4,381,638	1,328,722
North Richmond Portion	512,375	124,825
Papanui Portion	902,990	265,965
Richmond Portion	329,930	97,565
North-east Portion	1,001,207	384,345
North-west Portion	3,107,970	1,631,715
South-east Portion	2,213,345	987,943
South-west Portion	5,072,559	2,791,302
Sydenham Portion	2,596,489	830,795
Opawa Portion	270,690	99,085
St. Martin's Portion	210,455	59,430
Beckenham-Fisherton Portion	371,899	74,935
Linwood Portion	1,629,777	500,845
Linwood North Portion	438,390	93,130
Avonside Portion	329,405	74,915
Bromley Portion	139,785	34,335
Spreydon West Portion	672,170	189,185
Spreydon East Portion	764,255	164,725
Woolston Portion	897,745	269,916
Total of City	25,843,074	10,003,678
Now Brighton	1,130,205	426,860
Sumner	838,785	323,672
Lyttelton	697,550	253,730
Akaroa	167,368	74,021
Riccarton	1,429,058	411,713
Ashburton	723,541	274,324
Timaru	5,184,427	1,940,097
Geraldine	203,174	51,180
Temuka	423,005	131,035
Waimate	510,189	128,765
Oamaru	1,644,557	556,117
Hampden	32,327	9,657
Naseby	19,978	2,583
Palmerston	125,363	29,718
Waikouaiti	120,800	39,818
	£	£
Port Chalmers	375,981	120,778
West Harbour	310,165	85,465
DUNEDIN CITY—
Valley Portion	1,004,186	292,254
Maori Kill Portion	870,671	244,335
Roslyn Portion	1,617,353	479,305
Mornington Portion	1,094,189	263,225
Leith Portion	4,554,483	1,830,431
Central Portion	5,060,284	2,199,960
Caversham Portion	1,476,346	395,490
South Dunedin Portion	1,045,388	275,925
Bay Portion	1,002,750	227,230
Total of City	17,755,650	6,208,155
St. Kilda	1,763,838	395,660
Green Island	402,815	85,520
Mosgiel	270,220	95,600
Roxburgh	86,125	21,555
Lawrence	111,224	29,454
Tapanui	42,700	9,125
Milton	242,778	55,991
Balclutha	330,600	111,077
Kaitangata	112,521	31,538
Cromwell	84,091	16,219
Alexandra	95,898	15,090
Arrowtown	21,519	3,375
Queenstown	65,633	14,600
Gore	1,055,749	325,981
Mataura	314,275	86,135
Winton	184,305	56,845
Invercargill	5,374,140	1,809,328
South Invercargill	160,605	79,291
Riverton	172,250	49,360
Bluff	349,545	107,275

TOWN DISTRICTS.

TABLE SNOWING GROSS CAPITAL AND UNIMPROVED VALUES OF EACH TOWN DISTRICT (OUTSIDE THE JURISDICTION OF ANY COUNTY) IN NEW ZEALAND.

Town District.	Capital Value (Land and Improvements).	Unimproved Value of Land (included in previous Column).
	£	c
Kaitaia	164,729	71,430
Kaikohe	132,377	62,087
Hikurangi	162,440	43,941
Kamo	139,795	56,060
Warkworth	102,760	27,915
Helensville	232,590	81,535
Henderson	289,067	134,218
New Lynn	710,391	257,428
Glen Eden	286,010	107,955
Ellerslie	761,277	275,594
Waiuku	277,509	126,009
Howick	177,221	75,636
Papatoetoe	776,438	370,192
Manurewa	429,389	165,713
Papakura	511,422	230,443
Tuakau	169,659	78,275
Huntly	313,580	95,645
Leamington	144,795	68,060
Te Puke	303,614	123,779
Matamata	450,040	197,070
Putaruru	168,025	68,990
Otorohanga	124,178	51,412
Taradale	261,361	135,762
Havelock North	332,090	136,744
Opunake	195,975	69,057
Manaia	115,647	26,015
Waverley	114,428	26,416
Rangataua	31,808	10,072
Mangaweka	57,973	22,089
Hunterville	106,905	37,005
Bulls	129,527	38,040
Manunui	71,156	25,856
Johnsonville	234,510	100,899
Tahunanui	158,545	51,260
Cobden	106,372	34,892
Leeston	156,915	39,795
Tinwald	138,010	74,480
Pleasant Point	122,440	51,755
Nightcaps	73,950	15,130
Otautau	134,085	43,690
Lumsden	53,974	15,251
Wyndham	123,045	39,400

Chapter 28. SECTION XXVIII.—BANKING.

Table of Contents

BANKS OF ISSUE.

CAPITAL AND RESERVE FUNDS.

DEVELOPMENT OF BANKING.

DEPOSITS, ADVANCES, ASSETS, AND LIABILITIES, 1857–1928.

LIABILITIES.

LIABILITIES, 1919–28.

QUARTERLY LIABILITIES, 1919–29.

LIABILITIES, 1928–29.

ASSETS.

ASSETS, 1919–28.

QUARTERLY ASSETS, 1919–29.

ASSETS, 1928–29.

DEPOSITS AND ADVANCES.

DEPOSITS AND ADVANCES, 1919–28.

QUARTERLY DEPOSITS, 1919–29.

QUARTERLY ADVANCES AND RATIO TO DEPOSITS, 1919–29.

COMPARISON WITH AUSTRALIA.

DEPOSITS PER HEAD IN JOINT STOCK BANKS IN AUSTRALIA AND IN BANKS OF ISSUE IN NEW ZEALAND, 1924–28 (JUNE QUARTER).

MONTHLY BANKING STATISTICS.

ADVANCES AND DEPOSITS.

DEBITS, CLEARINGS, RESERVES, AND NOTES.

TRADE BALANCE AND BANK RESOURCES.

OVERDRAFT AND DISCOUNT RATES.

ISSUE OF NOTES.

POST OFFICE SAVINGS-BANK.

POST OFFICE SAVINGS-BANK, 1919 TO 1928–29.

POST OFFICE SAVINGS-BANK, 1868–1928.

DEPOSITS, 1919–29.

WITHDRAWALS, 1919–29.

TRUSTEE SAVINGS-BANKS.

TRUSTEE SAVINGS-BANKS, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

SAVINGS-BANKS DEPOSITS IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

SUMMARY OF ALL DEPOSITS.

BANKS OF ISSUE.

THE Banking Act, 1908, consolidates the law of New Zealand relating to the general business of banking in the Dominion. The Act provides that the incorporation of banks by Royal Charter shall be as effectual within New Zealand as Acts of the General Assembly. The number of directors is prescribed, and authority is given to any bank to increase its capital on a resolution of the shareholders. Transfers of shares on which there is any liability must be approved by the directors, or their duly appointed attorney or attorneys. Every bank trading in the Dominion is required to furnish quarterly statements of its business, for publication in the Gazette. A sworn copy of an entry in the books of a bank shall in all legal proceedings be evidence of such entry, and a bank is not required in any legal proceedings to which it is not a party to produce its books before a Court, unless ordered by a Judge for special cause. Provision is made for bank holidays, and for the destruction of cheques, drafts, bills of exchange, or promissory notes after the expiration of ten years from the date or due date of such documents.

Part II of the Bills of Exchange Act, 1908, consolidates the law relating to cheques on a bank.

The Companies Act, 1908, with the exception of Part IX (re companies incorporated outside New Zealand), and also of the provisions relating to branch registers, does not apply to banking companies formed within and operating only within the Dominion.

There are six banks of issue trading in New Zealand, two of these institutions, the Bank of New Zealand and the National Bank of New Zealand, being incorporated by special Acts of the General Assembly of the Dominion. The Bank of New Zealand has branches in London, Australia, Fiji, and Samoa, while its branches and agencies within the Dominion number 235. The other five banks have between them 292 establishments within the Dominion, making a total of 627, or an average of one bank to every 2,784 inhabitants.

CAPITAL AND RESERVE FUNDS.

The paid-up capital of the above banks, their reserve funds, and the rate and amount of their last dividend as on the 31st December, 1928, were as follows:—

Bank	Paid-up Capital.	Rate per Cent. per Annum of Last Dividend and Bonus.	Amount of Last Half-yearly Dividend and Bonus.	Amount of Reserved Profits at Time of declaring Dividend.
* Interest payable for half-year. † Dividend for full year.
Bank of New Zealand—	£	Per Cent.	£	£
4-per-cent. stock guaranteed by New Zealand Government	529,988	..	10,599^*
“A” preference shares issued to the Crown (Act of 1920)	500,000	10	50,000^†
“B” preference shares issued to the Crown (Act, of 1920)	1,375,000	13 2/11	181,250^† 3,732,525
“C” Long-term mortgage shares issued to the Crown	234,375	6	7,031
“D” Long-term mortgage shares	468,750	7 1/2	17,563
Ordinary shares	3,750,000	14 1/3	537,500^†
Union Bank of Australia (Limited)	4,000,000	15	300,000	5,249,404
Bank of New South Wales	7,500,000	10	749,406	5,900,000
Bank of Australasia	4,500,000	14	280,000	4,589,568
National Bank of New Zealand (Limited)	2,000,000	12 and bonus of 2 per cent.	160,000	2,335,572
Commercial Bank of Australia (Limited)—
Ordinary	1,463,802	15	97,656	1,690,486
Preference	2,117,350	4	42,347

The movement of paid-up capital and reserved profits during the last ten years is given below:—

Year.	Paid-up Capital.	Reserved Profits.
	£	£
1919	13,992,997	11,793,408
1920	18,048,904	13,201,889
1921	18,224,655	11,778,582
1922	20,488,225	14,210,228
1923	21,727,526	15,131,489
1924	22,327,537	19,461,399
1925	24,581,064	17,627,901
1926	24,772,284	20,000,461
1927	27,041,130	21,542,680
1928	28,439,265	23,497,555

DEVELOPMENT OF BANKING.

A consideration of the table below indicates the great development of banking in New Zealand during the last quarter of a century. Such a growth has been possible only through a corresponding expansion of trade and industry, concomitant with a progressive increase in the population of the country. The figures for each year have been arrived at by taking the average of the four quarterly returns, which represent the averages during the respective quarters and not the position at any definite date. Deposits include amounts on fixed and current deposit and also Government deposits. Advances comprise notes and bills discounted and debts due to the banks (exclusive of debts abandoned as bad).

DEPOSITS, ADVANCES, ASSETS, AND LIABILITIES, 1857–1928.

Year.	Deposits.	Advances.	Assets.	Liabilities.
	£	£	£	£
1857	343,316	..	419,860	432,494
1870	3,127,769	4,334,820	6,315,354	3,819,670
1880	8,538,935	11,228,865	14,220,275	9,550,177
1890	12,368,610	13,996,086	17,735,259	13,356,598
1900	15,570,610	11,343,411	17,314,535	16,964,582
1910	24,968,761	18,439,999	26,398,927	26,742,081
1920	59,405,341	38,241,932	56,111,433	67,818,469
1924	49,502,499	44,559,661	61,325,865	57,131,235
1925	52,207,202	45,298,955	62,128,808	60,219,697
1926	50,135,114	49,149,260	65,765,297	58,008,161
1927	48,294,096	50,032,203	66,626,676	56,321,397
1928	53,799,221	46,179,463	62,819,485	61,850,595

In 1880 deposits represented an average of £16.46 per bead of the mean population; in 1890, £1866; in 1900, £1941; in 1910, £23.99; and in 1911, £25.16. In 1912, however, the average fell to £23.53, and in 1913 a further fall was recorded, the rate per head being £23.01. The years 1914 and 1915 showed a recovery, the rates being £24.24 and £27.35 respectively; while for 1916 the rate jumped to £32.63. In 1917 it rose to £37.36, and each successive year showed a substantial increase on the previous year until 1920, when the rate was £47.81. Since then the rate has fluctuated between £35 and £40, except in 1927, when it fell to £33.57. The 1928 average was £36.96.

The ratio of advances to deposits, which was 131.50 per cent. in 1880, reached its maximum in 1883, when it stood at 171.16 per cent. The proportion since that year fell, till in 1903 it was only 70.67 per cent. The 1916 ratio (66.42 per cent.) was lower than in any previous year. The ratio then remained fairly constant until a rise to 102.45 occurred in 1921. A fall to 97.51 in 1922 was followed by rates ranging around 90, until 1926, when an advance to 98.03 was recorded, followed by the still higher rate of 103.60 in 1927. The 1928 ratio of 85.84 is the lowest rate attained since 1920, and is more the outcome of a comparatively large amount on deposit than the result of a diminution in advances.

In 1886 the average amount of advances made by the banks was £15,834,877, equal to £25.36 per head of the mean population. The advances gradually declined in amount and in proportion to population until 1891, when they were in value £11,448,745, or £17.04 per head. In 1897 advances stood at £10,020,640, or £13.16 per head, which is the lowest average since the year 1872. There was then a continuous rise both in amounts of advances and in rates per head of population until 1908, for which year the figures were £21,172,808, or £21.32 per head. After 1908 the amounts fluctuated, but the tendency was still to rise. During the two years 1917 and 1918 the total amount advanced by the banks increased by nearly seven millions, totalling in the latter year £31,711,350. Subsequent years showed further increases, the average advances for 1921 reaching the record figure of £50,607,541, after which the total hovered round £44,000,000 until 1925. The amount for 1928 was £46,179,463, equal to £31.72 per head.

The largest amount of discounts in any year was £6,061,959, in 1879, a rate of £12.32 per head. In the previous year had occurred the highest rate—£12.88 per head. From 1879 there was a fall, year by year, until 1896, when the sum was £1,756,791, or £2.35 per head, since when there have been further falls in the amount per head, the rate for 1928 being as low as £0.88, which is a record for the Dominion.

LIABILITIES.

The liabilities of the banks of issue for the last ten years are shown in the table following, the figures given referring to New Zealand business only. The liabilities shown represent the average of the four quarters of the year.

LIABILITIES, 1919–28.

Year.	Notes in Circulation.	Bills in Circulation.	Balances due to other Banks.	Deposits.	Total Liabilities.^*
* Including for 1927 and 1928 transfers from long-term Mortgage Department in case of Bank of New Zealand.
	£	£	£	£	£
1919	7,087,545	173,722	110,682	50,489,444	57,861,393
1920	7,890,418	239,877	282,833	59,405,341	67,818,469
1921	7,569,319	191,273	1,650,436	49,397,411	58,808,439
1922	7,019,220	266,963	669,257	45,913,394	53,868,834
1923	6,593,068	307,419	264,323	49,039,482	56,204,292
1924	6,587,546	315,601	725,589	49,502,499	57,131,235
1925	6,775,470	312,983	924,042	52,207,202	60,219,697
1926	6,730,421	292,370	850,256	50,135,114	58,008,161
1927	6,510,018	292,369	948,926	48,294,096	56,321,397
1928	6,374,043	307,007	1,146,543	53,799,221	61,850,595

Total liabilities have advanced from £52,048,732 in 1918 to £61,850,595 in 1928, an increase of 19 per cent. The note issue rose from a level of below two millions in pre-war years to its zenith of £7,890,418 in 1920. Since then a gradual process of deflation has been in operation, the note-circulation in 1928 being £6,374,043.

The next table shows the total liabilities for each quarter during the same period:—

QUARTERLY LIABILITIES, 1919–29.

Year.	March Quarter.	June Quarter.	September Quarter.	Portion Quarter.	Average of Quarters.
	£	£	£	£	£
1919	53,661,066	58,103,513	58,977,222	60,703,773	57,861,393
1920	67,659,577	71,310,711	68,648,556	63,655,033	67,818,469
1921	62,815,649	62,255,474	56,946,858	53,215,773	58,808,439
1922	54,350,336	55,365,324	53,845,543	51,914,132	53,868,834
1923	55,888,101	59,459,267	55,968,705	53,501,095	56,204,292
1924	58,860,057	58,673,343	55,347,458	55,644,080	57,131,235
1925	61,309,075	62,215,238	59,194,084	58,160,391	60,219,697
1926	59,484,110	60,765,989	57,219,995	54,562,551	58,008,161
1927	56,804,371	58,092,957	54,575,763	55,812,497	56,321,397
1928	60,554,206	63,658,269	61,789,574	61,400,329	61,850,595
1929	66,055,875	67,481,608	64,773,543	..	..

Details of liabilities for each of the last seven quarters are now given.

LIABILITIES, 1928–29.

Quarter.	Notes in Circulation.	Bills in Circulation.	Balances due to other Banks.	Deposits.	Transfers from Long-term Mortgage Department.^*	Total Liabilities.
* Bank of New Zealand only.
1928.	£	£	£	£	£	£
March	6,376,668	338,250	1,195,824	52,336,872	306,592	60,554,206
June	6,432,110	295,635	1,752,819	54,903,208	274,497	63,658,269
September	6,166,288	266,854	946,864	54,224,704	184,864	61,789,574
December	6,521,106	327,287	690,666	53,732,096	129,174	61,400,329
1929
March	6,370,894	378,295	1,052,712	58,209,934	44,040	66,055,875
June	6,547,872	318,223	768,998	59,846,149	366	67,481,608
September	6,272,354	299,891	833,532	57,367,766	..	64,773,543

ASSETS.

Assets are now presented in a manner similar to that in which liabilities are shown.

ASSETS, 1919–28.

Year.	Coin and Bullion.	Notes and Bills discounted.	Debts due, exclusive of Bad Debts.	Balances due from other Banks.	All other Assets.	Total Assets.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1919	8,017,159	1,446,299	30,271,421	211,291	8,669,039	48,615,209
1920	7,728,942	1,753,072	36,488,860	344,451	9,796,108	56,111,433
1921	7,660,532	2,463,396	48,144,145	1,634,975	8,798,234	68,701,282
1922	7,822,562	1,643,730	43,124,448	1,143,957	8,044,873	61,779,570
1923	7,900,594	1,609,302	41,712,940	717,575	7,700,824	59,641,235
1924	7,816,145	1,589,763	42,969,898	725,689	8,224,470	61,326,865
1925	7,722,917	1,639,168	43,659,787	1,214,321	7,892,615	62,128,808
1926	7,797,319	1,787,504	47,361,756	881,845	7,936,873	65,765,297
1927	7,874,971	1,610,368	48,421,835	978,264	7,741,238	66,626,676
1928	7,511,833	1,286,185	44,893,278	1,301,907	7,826,282	62,819,485

As in the case of liabilities, the growth in assets during the decade has been very considerable, the 1918 figure of £48,570,127 comparing with £62,819,485 in 1928 and £68,701,282 in the peak year of 1921. Debts due, which loom largely in the total each year, increased from £30,450,147 in 1918 to £44,893,278 in 1928.

QUARTERLY ASSETS, 1919–29.

Year.	March Quarter.	June Quarter.	September Quarter.	December Quarter.	Average of Quarters.
	£	£	£	£	£
1919	49,217,272	49,184,582	46,757,710	49,301,272	48,615,209
1920	50,096,529	52,469,358	56,403,894	65,475,952	56,111,433
1921	71,097,423	71,664,585	66,378,428	65,664,691	68,201,282
1922	64,666,809	63,352,322	59,343,196	59,755,951	61,779,570
1923	59,335,217	58,313,692	58,797,007	62,119,023	59,641,235
1924	61,523,985	60,243,834	60,258,641	63,276,999	61,325,865
1925	61,199,186	60,452,029	61,340,146	65,523,870	62,128,808
1926	65,171,194	65,624,704	64,367,510	67,897,779	65,765,297
1927	67,646,156	67,529,757	64,668,327	66,662,463	66,626,676
1928	63,164,339	62,736,746	61,324,367	64,052,488	62,819,485
1929	62,650,703	63,478,792	65,979,611	..	..

In the next table details of assets are given for each quarter since the beginning of 1928:—

ASSETS, 1928–29.

Quarter.	Coin and Bullion.	Notes and Bills discounted.	Debts due, exclusive of Bad Debts.	Balances due from other Banks.	All other Assets.	Total Assets.
1928.	£	£	£	£	£	£
March	7,867,459	1,504,896	44,565,475	1,354,219	7,872,290	63,164,339
June	7,567,494	1,177,455	44,249,501	1,931,007	7,811,289	62,736,746
September	7,350,045	1,171,970	43,947,454	1,070,846	7,784,052	61,324,367
December	7,262,331	1,290,420	46,810,684	1,301,906	7,387,147	64,052,488
1929.
March	7,263,362	1,184,439	45,175,305	1,101,874	7,925,723	62,650,703
June	7,217,366	1,038,427	46,368,784	908,974	7,945,241	63,478,792
September	7,109,873	994,388	48,543,604	990,764	8,340,982	65,979,611

DEPOSITS AND ADVANCES.

The total amount of deposits, the amount per head of mean population, the total advances, and the ratio of advances to deposits, taking the average of the four quarters for each of the last ten years, are as follows:—

DEPOSITS AND ADVANCES, 1919–28.

Year.	Deposits.				Advances.
Year.	Total Amount.	Per Head of Population.			Total Amount.	Ratio to Deposits.
	£	£	s.	d.	£	Per Cent.
1919	50,489,444	42	6	8	31,717,720	62.82
1920	59,405,341	47	16	3	38,241,932	64.37
1921	49,397,411	38	13	10	50,607,541	102.45
1922	45,913,394	35	3	7	44,768,178	97.51
1923	49,039,482	36	18	5	43,322,242	88.34
1924	49,502,499	36	11	11	44,659,661	90.01
1925	52,207,202	37	14	2	45,298,955	86.77
1926	50,135,114	35	9	3	49,149,260	98.03
1927	48,294,096	33	11	4	50,032,203	103.60
1928	53,799,221	36	19	1	46,179,463	85.84

Exceptionally high figures for deposits were recorded in 1920, 1925, and 1928, these three years corresponding to the peak years of production in the Dominion. The high figures shown for advances in 1921, 1926, and 1927 indicate the extent to which the assistance of the banks is utilized in time of trade depression.

QUARTERLY DEPOSITS, 1919–29.

Year.	March Quarter.	June Quarter.	September Quarter.	December Quarter.	Average of Quarters.
	£	£	£	£	£
1919	46,904,666	50,623,748	51,368,191	53,061,173	50,489,444
1920	59,408,136	62,977,257	60,659,079	54,576,891	59,405,341
1921	53,455,135	53,699,628	47,101,630	43,333,250	49,397,411
1922	44,866,839	47,399,600	46,957,703	44,429,434	45,913,394
1923	48,659,637	52,091,994	48,983,798	46,422,497	49,039,482
1924	51,693,551	51,606,632	47,853,800	46,856,013	49,502,499
1925	53,090,842	54,551,316	51,459,751	49,726,897	52,207,202
1926	51,314,674	52,595,627	50,010,356	46,619,798	50,135,114
1927	48,624,084	49,773,410	47,302,898	47,475,991	48,294,096
1928	52,336,872	54,903,208	54,224,704	53,732,096	53,799,221
1929	58,209,934	59,846,149	57,367,766	..	..

The following table shows the three different classes of deposits for each quarter during the last five years:—

Year.	March Quarter.	June Quarter.	September Quarter.	December Quarter.
Government.
	£	£	£	£
1924	4,660,259	3,977,321	2,731,774	2,179,514
1925	3,193,614	3,087,680	3,706,327	3,696,534
1926	4,012,194	4,326,278	4,027,503	2,383,149
1927	3,095,271	3,283,043	2,089,147	1,774,934
1928	2,378,577	1,956,075	1,628,687	2,070,690
1929	2,864,439	2,794,255	2,799,140	..
Non Interest-bearing.
1924	28,436,162	28,336,760	25,220,639	24,776,888
1925	29,765,517	30,497,210	26,811,762	25,189,554
1926	26,865,851	27,594,496	24,907,961	23,131,103
1927	24,440,778	24,741,263	21,815,505	21,438,335
1928	24,482,151	25,357,145	23,344,953	22,179,749
1929	25,736,743	26,810,881	23,968,295	..
Interest-bearing.
1924	18,597,130	19,292,552	19,901,386	19,899,611
1925	20,131,711	20,966,426	20,941,662	20,840,809
1926	20,436,629	20,674,853	21,074,892	21,105,546
1927	21,088,035	21,749,104	23,398,246	24,262,722
1928	25,476,144	27,589,988	29,251,064	29,481,658
1929	29,608,752	30,241,013	30,600,331	..

Interest-bearing deposits show but little variation from quarter to quarter. In the non-interest-bearing class, which is made up of current accounts, the lowest level is generally associated with the final quarter of the year, and the highest with the second quarter, a state of affairs probably due largely to the seasonal influence of sheep-farming among the Dominion's productive activities. Government deposits also are usually at their lowest level in the December quarter, certain classes of taxation receipts mainly coming to hand in the earlier portion of the year.

The table following shows the amount of advances quarterly during the last ten years, together with the ratio to deposits:—

QUARTERLY ADVANCES AND RATIO TO DEPOSITS, 1919–29.

Year.	Total Advances.				Percentage of Advances to Deposits.
Year.	March.	June.	September.	December.	March.	June.	September.	December.
	£	£	£	£
1919	32,203,646	32,410,706	30,149,773	32,106,755	68.65	64.04	58.69	60.50
1920	32,042,043	34,789,581	39,017,808	47,118,295	53.93	55.24	64.32	86.33
1921	52,446,341	54,385,486	48,039,610	47,558,727	98.11	101.27	101.98	109.75
1922	46,491,316	46,155,933	42,994,448	43,431,017	103.62	97.37	91.56	97.65
1922	42,521,571	41,711,273	42,826,728	46,229,395	87.38	80.07	87.43	99.58
1924	44,403,524	43,975,587	43,923,081	45,936,453	85.90	85.04	91.79	98.36
1925	43,730,262	43,935,771	44,975,360	48,554,426	82.37	80.54	87.40	97.64
1926	48,285,140	48,714,742	48,323,946	51,273,211	94.09	92.62	96.63	109.12
1927	50,800,809	50,753,107	48,815,231	49,759,644	103.88	101.44	102.52	104.26
1928	46,070,371	45,426,956	45,119,424	48,101,104	88.03	82.74	83.21	89.52
1929	46,359,744	47,407,211	49,537,992	..	79.64	79.22	86.35	..

The amount of advances generally attains a maximum in the final quarter of each year. The ratio of advances to deposits shows a considerable range, from 53.93 per cent. in the first quarter of 1920, to 109.75 per cent. in the December quarter of the following year.

COMPARISON WITH AUSTRALIA.

Deposits per head of population in banks of issue in each of the Australian States during the second quarter of each of the last five years are shown. Figures for New Zealand are given by way of comparison.

DEPOSITS PER HEAD IN JOINT STOCK BANKS IN AUSTRALIA AND IN BANKS OF ISSUE IN NEW ZEALAND, 1924–28 (JUNE QUARTER).

State.	1924.			1925.			1926.			1927.			1928.
	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
New South Wales	40	13	4	43	9	6	45	0	3	45	0	11	49	14	2
Victoria	51	9	0	51	6	8	53	4	2	53	6	7	52	11	1
Queensland	36	1	7	36	16	9	38	10	10	37	1	5	39	17	8
South Australia	38	1	3	37	5	7	38	6	11	39	13	9	39	6	5
Western Australia	25	15	5	24	19	1	22	17	7	26	5	5	28	7	10
Tasmania	26	8	6	24	12	7	26	5	9	27	17	4	31	4	9
Northern Territory	52	1	6	54	13	9	57	11	1	50	11	1	51	16	8
Total, Commonwealth	41	7	9	42	7	0	43	18	2	43	19	3	46	3	0
New Zealand	38	9	2	39	15	10	37	6	2	34	12	6	38	0	2

It should be noted that the figures for each of the Australian States and also for the whole Commonwealth are exclusive of deposits at the Commonwealth Bank. Excluding savings-bank deposits (which are included in the comparative table of savings-banks which appears towards the end of this section), deposits with the Commonwealth Bank for June quarter of 1928 represented £3 18s. 10d. per head of population.

MONTHLY BANKING STATISTICS.

The statistics which follow have been compiled from weekly returns furnished by the six banks of issue. The collection of these returns was initiated in April, 1928, the first return being that for the week ended 9th April. These statistics provide a valuable addition to the financial statistics of the Dominion, furnishing, as they do, more adequate data for the interpretation of changes in the financial, commercial, and industrial structure of the country. The majority of the items, it is true, are already provided for in the quarterly bank statements, although the value of such quarterly data is largely discounted by its infrequency. Bank debits and bank clearings are new items, designed to give some indication of changes in the volume of business. Debits represent the total amounts debited to customers' accounts at all branches, and clearings show the total outward exchanges delivered at all branches. The additional information afforded by these new items, together with the greater frequency of details hitherto available at quarterly intervals only, places the banking statistics of the Dominion in line with these of the leading countries of the world, and should contribute materially to a better understanding and to more accurate forecasts of changes in economic and business conditions.

The tables below show by months a summary of the weekly returns from inception to the latest month available. The figures represent the average of four or five weekly returns, the period in each case terminating with the week ending on the last Monday of the month. In the weekly returns debits and clearings represent transactions during the week; all other items show the position as at the end of the week.

ADVANCES AND DEPOSITS.

Weekly Average of Four or Five Weeks ended	Advances.		Deposits.
Weekly Average of Four or Five Weeks ended	Notes and Bills discounted.	Debts due.	Government.	Not bearing Interest.	Bearing Interest	Ratio of Advances to Deposits.
1928.	£	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.
April 30	1,169,758	45,229,208	2,293,697	26,100,138	27,070,171	83.66
May 28	1,143,425	44,874,747	1,881,839	25,489,994	27,922,533	83.22
June 25	1,169,732	44,390,227	1,533,031	25,168,381	28,676,914	82.27
July 30	1,142,561	44,020,740	1,413,199	24,335,879	29,284,425	82.06
August 27	1,152,617	44,205,960	1,703,705	23,252,929	29,585,430	83.16
September 24	1,199,197	45,196,859	1,823,667	22,727,172	29,629,039	85.63
October 29	1,249,635	46,962,090	1,847,927	22,221,690	29,670,339	89.71
November 26	1,269,282	47,100,532	1,846,823	22,086,511	29,274,448	90.91
December 31	1,349,029	46,920,585	2,472,765	22,776,890	29,479,347	88.20
1929.
January 28	1,245,496	45,532,353	2,677,626	24,503,450	29,515,334	82.51
February 25	1,199,425	45,017,726	2,055,508	26,130,948	29,617,897	79.96
March 25	1,117,127	45,469,808	3,860,181	27,111,638	29,712,950	76.77
April 29 May 27	1,087,321	46,126,521	3,233,144	27,641,914	29,955,448	77.87
May 27	1,040,246	46,328,197	2,474,202	26,613,824	30,342,876	79.70
June 24	975,482	46,712,184	2,565,696	25,969,122	30,495,112	80.78
July 29	994,183	47,281,253	2,900,420	25,161,733	30,583,509	82.32
August 26	964,794	48,364,161	3,147,805	23,676,688	30,709,804	85.74
September 30	1,018,265	49,950,817	2,418,927	23,008,221	30,529,579	91.09

DEBITS, CLEARINGS, RESERVES, AND NOTES.

	Bank Debits.			Metal Reserves.		Legal-tender Notes.
Weekly Average of Four of Five Weeks ended	Government.	Other.	Bank Clearings.	Coin.	Bullion.	Gross Circulation.	Net Circulation.
1928.	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
April 30	3,453,386	15,380,356	9,361,474	7,766,121	47,424	6,702,836	6,567,778
May 28	3,999,086	15,488,766	9,418,958	7,413,928	49,204	6,222,243	6,106,420
June 25	3,618,907	14,999,574	8,909,822	7,294,235	55,790	6,351,259	6,230,343
July 30	3,854,875	14,779,934	8,907,548	7,303,304	58,864	6,191,912	6,096,779
August 27	4,032,866	13,842,149	8,371,416	7,301,048	47,428	6,112,845	6,040,940
September 24	3,687,499	13,223,540	7,969,060	7,287,509	48,407	6,202,368	6,132,735
October 29	3,747,726	15,500,886	8,874,214	7,227,758	51,688	6,260,492	6,196,607
November 26	4,158,768	14,690,729	8,884,048	7,206,658	54,304	6,223,833	6,152,369
December 31	5,094,117	17,801,117	10,598,537	7,136,313	59,988	7,019,529	6,932,566
1929.
January 28	4,465,397	16,188,186	9,629,902	7,212,206	66,182	6,275,787	6,184,813
February 25	6,559,288	19,850,100	12,195,701	7,210,119	62,645	6,295,384	6,221,886
March 25	6,659,313	21,136,149	12,951,931	7,185,166	53,973	6,543,090	6,471,026
April 29 May 27	5,622,874	18,048,535	10,076,927	7,160,900	55,960	7,754,866	6,685,216
May 27	4,786,837	16,949,961	10,309,103	7,172,137	58,888	6,495,596	6,429,273
June 24	4,406,287	15,803,697	9,461,305	7,145,156	59,184	6,565,588	6,494,778
July 29	4,582,676	15,803,107	9,486,199	7,156,183	74,917	6,270,937	6,209,830
August 26	5,420,556	14,432,507	9,282,087	7,100,673	62,040	6,209,458	6,143,846
September 30	4,677,561	15,401,069	9,195,937	6,883,232	63,149	6,324,085	6,257,991

TRADE BALANCE AND BANK RESOURCES.

The prosperity of New Zealand is so intimately bound up with conditions of external trade—in which the Dominion holds the highest per capita rate in the world—that business conditions generally, and consequently banking resources, are susceptible in a marked degree to any appreciable change in the balance of trade. A favourable export season, in which there is a substantial excess of exports over imports, spells a period of prosperity characterized by increased bank deposits and a diminution in advances, the resultant increase in the excess of deposits over advances being roughly on the same scale as the improvement in the trade balance. Reversely, a movement in the trade balance unfavourable to the Dominion tends to produce slump conditions marked by diminished bank deposits and an increase in advances. In these circumstances, the excess of deposits over advances is reduced, and may (depending on the severity of the slump) disappear altogether, to give way to an excess of advances. Here again the movement corresponds roughly to the recession in the trade balance.

This close relationship between trade and banking movements is well brought out in the diagram, which shows progress over the last thirty years. The trade balance is for each calendar year, and the banking resources represent the average for each December quarter. Notwithstanding an occasional lag in the banking movement, the correlation established is striking.

OVERDRAFT AND DISCOUNT RATES.

The overdraft rates and the rates of discount current in the Dominion were 1/2 per cent. higher in 1920 than the corresponding rates ruling prior to the European War. A further increase of 1/2 per cent., following a period when importations had been made on a larger scale than at any previous time in the Dominion's history, was made in January, 1921, the demand on banks for money being very considerable. Another aspect of the position, which is apparent from the figures given earlier in this section, was the rapid diminution—from twenty millions to two millions—in the excess of deposits (other than Government) over advances during the closing six months of 1920. It is not surprising accordingly to find a further increase in the overdraft (and the discount) rates as from March, 1921. There was no further alteration in the rate until January, 1923, when the overdraft rate was reduced to 6 1/2 per cent., a rate which ruled until April,. 1927. As a result of financial stringency, occasioned by adverse trade conditions during 1926–27, both the overdraft and discount rates were increased to 7 per cent. in May, 1927. Vastly improved conditions, brought about by the successful export season of 1927–28 and a diminution in imports, were responsible for the reduction of both rate to 6 1/2 per cent. in July, 1928.

ISSUE OF NOTES.

The Banking Act, 1908, deals with the issue of notes generally. The Governor-General may empower any bank to issue and circulate notes, subject to the provisions and restrictions contained in the charter or letters patent under which such bank is incorporated; all such notes to be payable in gold only at the office of the bank at the place of issue, and to be a first charge on all assets of the bank.

On the 5th August, 1914, immediately after the outbreak of the late war, an amendment to the Banking Act was passed empowering the Governor-General in Council, from time to time, to make a Proclamation declaring “that the notes payable on demand by any bank therein named, and then issued or thereafter to be issued or reissued within New Zealand under any lawful authority in that behalf, shall during the period limited by the Proclamation be everywhere within New Zealand a good and legal tender of money to the amount therein expressed to be payable.” Conditions governing the issue of such Proclamation are laid down, and the bank may be required to give adequate security that it will redeem the notes in gold on the expiration of the period covered by the Proclamation. Provision is also made for payment by the State Treasury in case of default by the bank. During the period any such Proclamation is in force coined gold must not be exported except with the consent of the Minister of Finance. During the period between 5th August, 1914, and 5th November, 1919, this prohibition also applied to uncoined gold.

Immediately on the passing of the amendment referred to, a Proclamation was gazetted declaring notes of all six banks of issue doing business in New Zealand to be legal tender from the 6th August to the 6th September, 1914. Further extensions were made from time to time, and the present authority expires on 10th January, 1932.

The private Act of the Bank of New Zealand contains the following clause: “That the total amount of promissory notes payable on demand, issued and in circulation within the Dominion, shall not at any time exceed the amount of coin, bullion, and public securities which shall for the time being be held by the said corporation within the Dominion of New Zealand or within the United Kingdom, nor three times the amount of the coin for the time being held by the said corporation within the said Dominion.” Similar provision exists relating to the National Bank of New Zealand (Limited).

Securities held in the United Kingdom were included in the amount of reserves against notes by the Bank of New Zealand Act, 1,920, which amended the New Zealand Bank Act, 1861. A proclamation gazetted in August, 1916, under the provisions £ section 44 of the Finance Act, of that year, had authorized the Minister of Finance to permit any bank to include such securities. By this proclamation, which is still in force (section 44 of the Finance Act, 1916, being by section 66 of the Finance Act, 1917, declared to continue in force until a date to be fixed by the Governor-General in Council), the limit of note-issue of any bank was laid down as “the total amount of all coin, bullion, and public securities held by that Bank in New Zealand,” the stipulation that the note-issue must not exceed three times the amount of coin held in the Dominion being in abeyance.

It should be noted that the figures of notes in circulation given in this section relate to liabilities only, and exclude notes held by the issuing bank. Statistics as to the number of notes created and remaining uncancelled are not available.

POST OFFICE SAVINGS-BANK.

In connection with the Post Office in New Zealand a savings-bank has been conducted since the 1st February, 1867. The minimum deposit receivable, except in certain specified cases, is 1s., and no interest is given on any sum less than £1 or in excess of £2,000. Interest on sums up to £500 is paid at the rate of 4 per cent. per annum, and on sums between £500 and £2,000 at the rate of 3 1/4 per cent. for the amount over £500. For some years prior to 1st April, 1928, interest was payable on amounts up to £5,000, and such amounts on deposit at that date continue to bear interest at 3 1/4 per cent.

The Postmaster-General may pay deposits to a maximum of £200 to the legal representative of a deceased depositor without requiring him to take out letters of administration or to prove the will. This provision, together with another provision whereby a depositor may nominate one or more persons to receive part or all of the amount at credit after the depositor's death, enables a widow or orphan to obtain possession of perhaps much-needed funds without either delay or cost.

The number of post-offices open for the transaction of savings-bank business at the 31st March, 1929, was 879.

There were 93,111 new accounts opened during the year ended the 31st March, 1929, and 69,540 accounts were closed during the period. The total number of open accounts at the 31st March, 1929, was 828,296, or 56 to every 100 of the population, including Maoris.

The deposits received during the year amounted to £27,252,381, and the withdrawals to £28,111,940. The total sum standing at credit of all accounts on the 31st March, 1929, was £48,644,217, which gave an average of £58 14s. 7d. to the credit of each open account. Information for each of the last ten years is given below.

POST OFFICE SAVINGS-BANK, 1919 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Number of Depositors at End of Year.	Total Amount of Deposits during Year.	Total Amount of Withdrawals during Year	Excess of Deposits over Withdrawals.	Interest.	Total Amount to Credit of Depositors at End of Year.
*Calendar year. † Fifteen months ended 31st March. The minus sign (-) represents excess of withdrawals over deposits.
		£	£	£	£	£
1919^*	630,783	29,758,447	25,962,377	3,796,070	1,178,935	38,393,130
1921^†	664,819	44,302,852	41,162,486	3,140,366	1,818,535	43,352,031
1922	678,930	29,125,997	30,236,231	−1,110,234	1,599,907	43,841,704
1923	690,760	26,682,427	27,769,263	−1,086,836	1,605,525	44,360,393
1924	710,157	29,598,372	29,510,321	88,051	1,649,976	46,098,421
1926	735,148	29,582,897	30,413,609	−830,712	1,680,920	46,948,628
1926	758,155	31,833,622	32,602,506	−768,884	1,731,578	47,911,322
1927	783,827	29,456,383	30,149,629	−693,246	1,767,426	48,985,502
1928	804,725	27,611,066	30,584,997	−2,973,931	1,747,156	47,758,726
1929	828,296	27,252,381	28,111,940	−859,559	1,745,050	48,644,217

The Post Office Savings-bank commenced operations on the 1st February, 1867, and the progress of the establishment since that date is shown on the next page in graphical representation, the curves representing number of open accounts, total amount to credit, and average amount to credit respectively. This diagram shows clearly the large increase in the business of the Post Office Savings-bank during recent years.

POST OFFICE SAVINGS-BANK, 1868–1928.

The amount standing to credit of depositors has increased from £2,048,442 in 1888 to £48,644,217 at the 31st March, 1929. There was a steady increase in the average amount standing to the credit of each depositor up to the 31st March, 1921, but a slight fall has been recorded since then.

The huge increase in the amount at deposit in recent years has been accompanied by an even greater proportionate increase in interest payments, owing to the rate of interest having substantially advanced. The total interest credited to depositors from the 1st February, 1867, to the 31st March, 1929, has aggregated £27,234,498, a sum equal to 56 per cent. of the total amount remaining on deposit at the 31st March, 1929.

In the next two tables quarterly deposits and withdrawals are shown for the last ten years:—

DEPOSITS, 1919–29.

Year.	March Quarter.	June Quarter.	September Quarter.	December Quarter.
	£	£	£	£
1919	5,865,478	6,674,007	7,084,959	10,134,003
1920	9,271,609	9,025,516	8,639,396	9,472,973
1921	7,893,358	8,220,843	7,631,891	6,897,019
1922	6,376,244	6,742,626	6,902,755	6,342,609
1923	6,694,437	7,635,031	6,818,733	7,827,378
1924	7,317,230	7,597,610	7,333,455	7,110,970
1925	7,540,862	8,290,799	8,779,105	7,430,184
1926	7,333,534	7,967,338	7,533,916	7,195,823
1927	7,659,305	7,108,540	6,635,762	7,152,342
1928	6,714,421	6,928,670	6,630,943	6,784,179
1929	6,908,589	7,452,415	7,326,245	..

WITHDRAWALS, 1919–29.

Year.	March Quarter.	June Quarter.	September Quarter.	December Quarter.
	£	£	£	£
1919	4,829,473	6,174,872	7,146,243	7,811,789
1920	8,358,598	7,859,479	8,070,403	9,372,291
1921	7,501,715	7,945,158	8,087,725	7,436,040
1922	6,767,308	7,170,649	6,948,683	6,850,689
1923	6,799,242	7,094,447	7,116,024	8,285,283
1924	7,014,567	7,812,881	7,774,402	7,691,041
1925	7,135,285	7,756,878	9,063,086	8,372,823
1926	7,409,719	7,643,443	7,801,617	7,900,956
1927	6,803,612	7,853,591	7,997,994	7,909,574
1928	6,759,305	7,455,672	6,950,564	7,187,755
1929	6,517,950	7,081,414	7,364,903	..

The smallest total of deposits for any quarter during the decade was £5,865,478 in March quarter of 1919, while the withdrawal of £4,829,473 in the same quarter represents the lowest level of withdrawals during the period. The final quarter of 1919 claims the highest deposits with £10,134,003, while the greatest withdrawals occurred in the same quarter of the following year, when £9,372,291 was accounted for.

The securities standing in the name of the Postmaster-General on account of the Post Office Savings-bank Fund on the 31st March, 1929, represented a nominal value of £48,853,868. Most of this fund is invested in New Zealand Government securities.

A summary of the investments is as follows:—	£
In New Zealand Government securities	47,785,917
In local bodies' securities	522,500
In Government stock of other British countries	545,451
	£48,853,868

TRUSTEE SAVINGS-BANKS.

There are five savings-banks not connected with the Post Office, viz.—Auckland, established in 1847; New Plymouth, 1850; Dunedin, 1864; Invercargill, 1864; and Hokitika, 1866. The total amount deposited in them during the year ended the 31st March, 1929, was £6,307,509. The withdrawals reached the sum of £5,839,660. The total amount to the credit of depositors at the 31st March, 1929, was £8,478,119. Figures for ten years are as follows:—

TRUSTEE SAVINGS-BANKS, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Number of Depositors at End of Year.	Total Amount of Deposits during Year.	Total Amount of Withdrawals during Year.	Excess of Deposits over Withdrawals.	Interest.	Total Amount to Credit of Depositors at End of Year.
* Excess of withdrawals over deposits.
		£	£	£	£	£
1920	95,472	3,308,628	2,981,887	326,741	119,625	3,557,895
1921	100,342	3,555,871	3,410,456	145,415	137,774	3,841,084
1922	104,395	3,191,181	3,265,338	−74,157^*	150,501	3,917,428
1923	110,077	4,076,876	3,511,038	565,838	180,435	4,663,701
1924	117,442	4,492,881	4,145,848	347,033	205,845	5,216,579
1925	124,731	4,823,839	4,526,652	297,187	226,366	5,740,132
1926	135,074	5,392,729	5,022,121	370,608	253,643	6,364,383
1927	151,407	5,500,281	5,137,088	363,193	280,534	7,008,110
1928	166,694	5,787,835	5,453,091	334,744	314,553	7,657,407
1929	172,185	6,307,509	5,839,660	467,849	352,863	8,478,119

The following table shows the results of the transactions of each of the trustee savings-banks during the twelve months ended 31st March, 1929.

Bank.	Number of Depositors at End of Year.	Total Amount of Deposits during Year.	Total Amount of Withdrawals during Year.	Excess of Deposits over Withdrawals.	Interest.	Total Amount to Credit of Depositors at End of Year.
		£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	130,316	4,207,406	3,943,631	263,775	236,945	5,645,514
New Plymouth	7,231	285,044	245,152	39,892	13,024	345,217
Hokitika	1,816	48,393	40,618	7,775	5,049	124,617
Dunedin	22,274	906,701	828,748	77,953	75,038	1,733,386
Invercargill	10,548	859,965	781,511	78,454	22,807	629,385
Totals	172,185	6,307,509	5,839,660	467,849	352,863	3,478,119

SAVINGS-BANKS DEPOSITS IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

The deposits in the savings-banks of the Commonwealth and of New Zealand on the 31st March, 1929, are shown in the table following. The Australian figures, which are inclusive of deposits in the branches of the Commonwealth Savings-bank in the various States, are taken from the Quarterly Summary of Australian Statistics issued by the Commonwealth Statistician.

State.	Number of Depositors.	Amount on Deposit.	Average Amount per Depositor.			Deposits to Credit per Head of Population.
		£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
New South Wales	1,754,788	82,156,000	46	16	4	33	8	8
Victoria	1,557,910	69,751,000	44	15	5	39	9	9
Queensland	474,123	23,140,000	48	16	1	25	3	6
South Australia	545,704	24,330,000	44	11	8	41	19	5
Western Australia	344,799	11,000,000	31	18	1	26	18	7
Tasmania	151,300	5,621,000	37	2	11	26	6	7
Federal Capital Territory	8,343	254,000	30	10	10	30	8	11
Northern Territory	1,295	45,000	35	0	5	11	5	5
Total, Commonwealth	4,838,262	216,297,000	44	14	1	34	0	6
New Zealand	1,000,481	57,122,336	57	1	11	38	16	10

SUMMARY OF ALL DEPOSITS.

The average deposits standing to the credit of depositors in the banks of issue for the quarter ended 31st March, 1929, were £58,209,934, and if to this figure be added the deposits in the Post Office and trustee savings-banks at the same date the grand total amounts to £115,332,270, representing an average of £78 8s. 5d. per head of population. In addition there are the deposits with the building societies referred to later in this book, and there are also deposits with financial companies of which no particulars are collected.

Chapter 29. SECTION XXIX.—INSURANCE.

Table of Contents

SUBSECTION A.— LIFE INSURANCE.

INTRODUCTORY.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.—POLICIES ISSUED AND DISCONTINUED, 1927.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.—PROGRESS OF BUSINESS, 1918–27.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.—PARTICULARS OF DISCONTINUANCES.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.—PERCENTAGE OF AMOUNT DISCONTINUED.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND BUSINESS.—INCOME AND OUTGO.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND BUSINESS.—RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURE (EXCLUDING TRANSFERS), 1923–27.

ANNUITIES.

INDUSTRIAL ASSURANCE.

INDUSTRIAL ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND BUSINESS, 1927.

INDUSTRIAL LIFE ASSURANCE.—PROGRESS OF BUSINESS, 1918–27.

INDUSTRIAL LIFE ASSURANCE.—PARTICULARS OF DISCONTINUANCES.

INDUSTRIAL LIFE ASSURANCE.—PERCENTAGE OF AMOUNT DISCONTINUED.

INDUSTRIAL ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND BUSINESS.—INCOME AND OUTGO, 1918–27.

INDUSTRIAL LIFE ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND BUSINESS.—RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURE (EXCLUDING TRANSFERS), 1923–27.

LIABILITIES AND ASSETS.

LIFE ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND LIABILITIES, 1923–27.

LIFE ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND ASSETS, 1923–27.

STATE LIFE INSURANCE.

STATE LIFE INSURANCE.—PROGRESS, 1919–28.

STATE LIFE INSURANCE.—LIABILITIES AND ASSETS AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

SUBSECTION B.—ACCIDENT INSURANCE.

INTRODUCTORY.

INCOME AND OUTGO.

ACCIDENT INSURANCE.—INCOME AND OUTGO, 1927.

RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURE, 1918–27.

ACCIDENT INSURANCE.—EXPENSE RATIO, 1918–27.

ANALYSIS OF PREMIUMS AND CLAIMS.

MORTGAGEES' INDEMNITY INSURANCE.

MOTOR-VEHICLES INSURANCE (THIRD-PARTY RISKS).

STATE ACCIDENT INSURANCE.

STATE ACCIDENT INSURANCE.—PREMIUMS AND CLAIMS.

STATE ACCIDENT INSURANCE REVENUE ACCOUNT, 1928.

STATE ACCIDENT INSURANCE.—LIABILITIES AND ASSETS.

SUBSECTION C—FIRE INSURANCE.

INTRODUCTORY.

INSURANCE COMPANIES' DEPOSITS.

COLLECTION OF STATISTICS.

OFFICES OPERATING IN NEW ZEALAND.

LIABILITIES AND ASSETS.

FIRE INSURANCE.—LIABILITIES AND ASSETS, 1927.

FIRE INSURANCE.—ASSETS IN NEW ZEALAND, 1925–27.

SUMMARY OF BUSINESS.

FIRE INSURANCE.—AMOUNTS UNDERWRITTEN, PREMIUMS, AND LOSSES, 1925–27.

FIRE INSURANCE: PREMIUM INCOME AND LOSSES, 1898–1927.

INCOME AND OUTGO.

FIRE INSURANCE.—INCOME AND OUTGO, 1925–27.

FIRE INSURANCE.—REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE, 1927.

FIRE INSURANCE.—WORKING-EXPENSES, 1926 AND 1927.

FIRE LOSSES.

FIRES AND LOSSES, 1918–27.

FIRES AND LOSSES, 1927.

MUTUAL FIRE-INSURANCE ASSOCIATIONS.

STATE FIRE INSURANCE.

FIRE BRIGADES.

SUBSECTION A.— LIFE INSURANCE.

INTRODUCTORY.

THE statutory provisions affecting life insurance in New Zealand are in the main contained in the Life Insurance Act, 1908, and the Life Insurance Amendment Act, 1921–22. Any association other than a friendly society which issues policies or grants annuities on human life in New Zealand comes within the scope of the enactments. Two classes of companies are distinguished—namely, local and foreign, the latter including all offices the principal place of which is situated beyond the Dominion, In both instances securities are required to be deposited with the Public Trustee before business can be carried on. Before the passing of the amending Act of 1921–22 the maximum deposit required from a New Zealand company was £20,000, with a minimum of £6,000, the amount being regulated according to the volume of business done, while for a company incorporated overseas the maximum went to £50,000. Both classes of offices, however, are now on the same basis. Every life company carrying on business at the time of the coming into operation of the amending Act, or which commences business thereafter, must deposit with the Public Trustee money or securities of the statutory character to the value of £5,000, and, in addition, for every £100,000 or part thereof that the total amount assured by its policies current in New Zealand exceeds £100,000, a further £5,000 until a maximum of £50,000 is reached. In other respects New Zealand and overseas companies are placed on the same footing as regards deposits.

In the case of composite offices, provision is made for the receipts of life and annuity business to be treated as a separate fund, and the Act safeguards the interest of the policyholder by making such funds available only for liabilities arising from life business.

The law bearing on industrial assurance has received the attention of the Legislature in the Life Insurance Amendment Act, 1920. In this class of insurance the premiums must be payable at shorter intervals than three months. Provision is made for the control by regulation of the activities of this class of business. Companies are required to deposit with the Minister of Finance forms of policy tables, rates, and other documents, and policies must contain only such conditions as have been approved by the Governor-General in Council. Restrictions are placed on the forfeiture of policies in default of payments or other requirements.

Annual returns of life assurance are required to be deposited with the Minister of Finance. It is from these returns that the statistical matter following has been compiled.

Of eleven life-assurance offices operating in New Zealand at the end of 1927, two only are purely New Zealand institutions—namely, the Government Life Insurance Office and the Provident Life Assurance Co. Seven of the other societies have their head offices in Australia and two in England. The Provident Life Assurance Co. and four of the Australian offices transact both ordinary life and industrial business, and several of the companies have branches for assurance against accident. This latter class of insurance is dealt with in Subsection B of this section.

The statistics here given relate exclusively to business transacted in the Dominion.

During the year 1927 24,831 policies, insuring £9,797,732, were issued in the Ordinary Branch and 51,059 policies for £2,746,990 in the Industrial Section, making the total new insurances £12,544,722, compared with the previous year's, figure of £11,769,290, an increase of £775,432. Discontinuances amounted to £5,512,913 in the Ordinary Branch and £1,675,682 in the Industrial, making the total discontinuances for the year £7,188,595. The corresponding figure for 192ft was £6,415,556. The amounts in force at the end of 1927 were £81,072,070 and £11,038,151 in the Ordinary and Industrial branches respectively, giving a total of £92,110,221 as against an aggregate of £86,754,094 at the end of 1926.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.

Details of the ordinary life-assurance policies issued and discontinued during the year 1927 by the respective offices are contained in the following table The aggregate net increase in the sum assured is £4,284,819, and in the annual premiums payable thereon £146,686. The corresponding figures for 1926 wen £4,406,760 and £151,881 respectively.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.—POLICIES ISSUED AND DISCONTINUED, 1927.

Office.	Policies issued.			Policies discontinued.
Office.	Number.	Sum assured.	Annual Premiums.	Number.	Sum assured.	Annual Premiums.
		£	£		£	£
Australian Mutual Provident	6,793	3,750,497	122,368	3,447	1,328,693	42,418
Australian Provincial	603	220,771	7,712	925	332,663	12,739
Australian Temperance and General	4,310	1,010,758	39,601	2,314	474,029	18,496
Colonial Mutual	1,627	596,567	21,556	1,332	391,090	13,611
Mutual Life and Citizens'	1,520	542,397	18,315	1,560	408,296	14,131
National Mutual	1,887	877,161	31,742	1,708	605,624	24,381
Norwich Union	413	389,529	14,255	385	285,989	8,695
Provident Life	819	216,506	5,320	628	156,123	3,650
Southern Cross	1,280	401,401	15,617	728	298,130	12,011
Yorkshire	1	300	7	6	950	36
New Zealand Government Life	5,578	1,791,845	58,006	4,118	1,231,326	37,645
Totals	24,831	9,797,732	334,499	17,151	5,512,913	187,813

In the case of the new business transacted during 1927 the average sum assured under each policy issued was £395, and the average premium £3 8s. 3d. per cent., while the corresponding figures for total insurances in force are £339 and £3 5s. 1d. respectively.

The next table presents an interesting review of the progress of ordinary life-assurance business over a period of ten years. The amount of new policies issued shows a considerable increase since 1918, with, however, a slight falling-off in 1921, and a much more marked decline in 1922, followed by a phenomenal rise of over £2,000,000 in 1923. Compared with 1923, the increases during 1924 and 1925 show a declining tendency, amounting to a little over £600,000 and £400,000 respectively, while in 1926 there was actually a decrease of £10,270 in the amount of new business underwritten. The 1927 figure, however, exceeds that of 1926 by £372,046. Discontinuances during 1922 were much heavier than in preceding years, amounting to £4 453,186. This figure was over £1,200,000 in excess of the previous year. The following year resulted in a decrease of half a million, but further substantial increases were recorded during the next four years, the total for 1927 exceeding that of 1922 by £1,059,727.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.—PROGRESS OF BUSINESS, 1918–27.

	Policies issued.			Policies discontinued.			Policies existing at End of Year.
Year.	Number.	Sum assured.	Annual Premiums.	Number.	Sum assured.	Annual Premiums.	Number.	Sum assured.	Annual Premiums.
		£	£		£	£		£	£
1918	16,517	5,233,669	228,533	11,571	2,776,081	153,529	169,089	45,343,020	1,447,281
1919	18,581	6,411,362	245,939	10,664	2,681,975	114,757	177,006	49,072,407	1,578,463
1920	19,998	6,856,128	225,680	10,816	2,738,502	91,390	186,188	53,190,033	1,712,753
1921	19,926	6,778,258	226,728	11,772	3,229,942	112,765	194,342	56,738,349	1,826,716
1922	17,686	6,376,813	210,680	14,910	4,453,186	149,610	197,118	58,661,976	1,887,786
1923	22,248	8,408,585	278,775	13,649	3,951,557	134,289	205,717	63,119,004	2,032,272
1924	23,786	9,016,163	302,649	14,734	4,329,561	148,403	214,769	67,805,606	2,186,518
1925	24,380	9,435,956	318,626	16,091	4,861,073	164,843	223,058	72,380,491	2,340,272
1926	24,427	9,425,686	324,349	16,325	5,018,926	172,468	231,160	76,787,251	2,492,153
1927	24,831	9,797,732	334,499	17,151	5,512,913	187,813	238,840	81,072,070	2,638,839

The number of ordinary life policies in force at the end of 1917 was 164,143, representing a sum assured of £42,885,432; so that the increases in number and value during the decennium have been 46 per cent. and 89 per cent. respectively, as compared with an increase of total population of approximately 26 per cent. in the same period.

Particulars of policies discontinued, during the last five years are contained in the next table, annuities not being included in the numbers shown, which thus do not coincide with these given in the preceding table which includes annuities.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.—PARTICULARS OF DISCONTINUANCES.

Year.	Death.	Maturity.	Surrender.	Lapse.	Other Causes.	Totals.
Number of Policies.
1923	1,278	2,614	3,051	6,198	461	13,602
1924	1,420	2,789	3,309	6,681	494	14,693
1925	1,329	2,916	3,396	7,617	785	16,043
1926	1,386	2,809	4,227	7,410	435	16,267
1927	1,517	3,105	4,447	7,443	587	17,099
Sum assured.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1923	394,098	510,598	861,797	2,020,949	164,115	3,951,557
1924	451,636	552,668	941,599	2,216,314	167,344	4,329,561
1925	443,972	555,175	1,002,450	2,538,382	321,094	4,861,073
1926	425,060	535,321	1,307,826	2,579,310	171,409	5,018,926
1927	536,610	604,836	1,450,823	2,689,398	231,246	5,512,913

The number of policies and the amount written off under each heading during 1927 show increases over the corresponding figures for 1926. The amount paid out on account of the death of the policyholder, which during 1925 and 1926 was substantially less than in 1924, exceeded the 1926 total by £111,550, or 26 per cent. Maturities increased by £69,515, compared with a decrease of £19,854 in the previous year. Surrenders, which made a somewhat remarkable advance during 1926, rose still higher during 1927, although the actual increase in the amount written off in this way was only about one-half of the 1926 increase.

The abnormal totals for surrenders in 1926 and 1927 are, to some extent, the natural outcome of the high level of new business set up in 1923 and improved on in subsequent years, as in most instances a policy does not acquire a surrender value until it has been in force two years. Although the number of lapsed policies is lower than in 1925, the amount represented has shown a continuous increase during the quinquennium.

Reducing the amounts in the foregoing table to a percentage basis, the following result is arrived at:—

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.—PERCENTAGE OF AMOUNT DISCONTINUED.

Year.	Death.	Maturity.	Surrender.	Lapse.	Other Causes.	Total.
1923	9.97	12.92	21.81	51.14	4.16	100.00
1924	10.43	12.76	21.75	51.19	3.87	100.00
1925	9.13	11.42	20.62	52.22	6.61	100.00
1926	8.47	10.66	26.06	51.39	3.42	100.00
1927	9.73	10.97	26.32	48.78	4.20	100.00

Slightly over half of the total amount represented by discontinuances during the five years was due to lapsed policies, these and surrenders accounting for 75 per cent. of the amount written off.

A statement of the income and outgo of all the companies operating in the Dominion, so far as ordinary business only is concerned, further illustrates the increase in business during the last ten years. The ratio of management expenses to premium and total receipts is also given.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND BUSINESS.—INCOME AND OUTGO.

Year.	Receipts and Expenditure.			Expenses of Management.
Year.	Total Receipts, excluding Transfers.	Total Expenditure, excluding Transfers.	Excess of Receipts.	Amount.	Proportion to Premium Receipts.	Proportion to Total Receipts.
	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1918	2,225,897	2,054,409	171,488	215,351	14.55	9.67
1919	2,348,263	1,716,049	632,214	253,257	16.18	10.78
1920	2,513,707	1,527,017	986,690	278,886	16.50	11.09
1921	2,648,715	1,661,405	987,310	286,833	16.00	10.83
1922	2,763,729	1,839,932	923,797	282,603	15.13	10.23
1923	3,003,179	1,871,971	1,131,208	302,960	15.18	10.22
1924	3,115,142	2,062,961	1,052,181	352,180	16.36	11.31
1925	3,275,684	2,104,609	1,171,075	377,994	16.41	11.54
1926	3,472,526	2,137,945	1,334,581	385,187	15.75	11.09
1927	3,616,367	2,460,522	1,155,845	395,240	15.36	10.93

From 1920 to 1923 there was a downward trend in the percentage of management expenses to total receipts. This would appear to reflect the general economy campaign of that period. During 1924, however, there was an increase of more than 1 per cent. over 1923, and this was followed by a further rise in 1925, disclosing a percentage higher than that of any other year of the decade under review. A decrease was recorded in 1926, followed by a further decline in 1927.

A summary of the receipts and expenditure under the various heads is now given in a five-years table.

ORDINARY LIFE ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND BUSINESS.—RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURE (EXCLUDING TRANSFERS), 1923–27.

—	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.
Revenue.	£	£	£	£	£
Renewal premiums	1,743,019	1,866,883	2,004,062	2,143,816	2,259,844
New premiums	253,009	286,128	298,750	301,577	313,426
Consideration for annuities	17,346	23,282	33,203	29,018	22,781
Interest	911,249	931,101	936,086	985,335	1,019,922
Increase in value of investments	277	..	1,538	1,524	..
Other revenue	78,279	7,748	2,045	11,256	394
Total revenue	3,003,179	3,115,142	3,275,684	3,472,526	3,616,367
Expenditure.
Claims by death	668,628	768,481	734,827	684,894	907,124
Claims by maturity	524,267	541,440	580,539	586,093	615,867
Annuities	38,446	38,786	39,901	41,081	42,386
Surrenders	246,897	263,935	262,232	325,337	370,310
Cash bonuses	21,492	33,950	31,281	29,289	48,441
Management	302,960	352,180	377,994	385,187	395,240
Taxes	47,148	44,888	48,500	48,799	50,957
Depreciation in investments	17,849	13,629	26,775	25,529	18,843
Other expenditure	4,284	5,672	2,560	11,736	11,354
Total expenditure	1,871,971	2,062,961	2,104,609	2,137,945	2,460,522

New premiums, which amounted to £199,792 in 1922, have during the succeeding quinquennium increased by nearly 57 per cent., and the total premium receipts have during the same period increased by £705,906, or approximately 38 per cent. The other principal item of revenue—viz., interest on investments, &c.—has risen from £874,478 to £1,019,922, giving a percentage increase of a fraction over 16 per cent. The increase in the total expenditure during 1927 amounted to £322,577, compared with an increase in receipts of £143,841. Each of the principal items of expenditure was in excess of the previous year, but death claims amounting to £907,124, as against £684,894 in 1926, were mainly responsible for the outstanding rise in expenditure.

ANNUITIES.

Annuity business has never occupied a very prominent position in the life-insurance activities of the Dominion, and during the past twenty years has declined very considerably. The annual amount payable to annuitants by the various companies in 1927 was £44,792 as against £71,291 in 1907, a decrease of 37 per cent. In 1927 43 policies were issued for a total value of £2,686, making the average annuity £62 9s. 4d., while the consideration paid amounted to £22,781. The amount in force at the end of the year was £44,792, represented by 713 policies of an average annual value of £62 11s. 2d. The following table gives particulars of annuity policies issued, discontinued, and in force for each of the four years 1924–27:—

Year.	Issued.		Discontinued.		Policies in Force.
Year.	Number.	Annuities per Annum.	Number.	Annuities per Annum.	Number.	Annuities per Annum.
		£		£		£
1924	42	4,065	41	1,894	738	42,787
1925	47	4,458	49	3,288	736	43,957
1926	47	3,306	58	2,241	725	45,022
1927	43	2,686	52	2,916	716	44,792

INDUSTRIAL ASSURANCE.

Looking now at the other phase of life assurance, the next table shows for 1927 to what extent industrial business was undertaken by each of the offices transacting this class of assurance in the Dominion.

INDUSTRIAL ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND BUSINESS, 1927.

Office.	Policies issued.			Policies discontinued.
Office.	Number.	Sum assured.	Annual Premiums.	Number.	Sum assured.	Annual Premiums.
		£	£		£	£
Australian Mutual Provident	8,606	615,060	31,113	5,233	320,827	18,308
Australian Temperance and General	22,913	1,191,767	80,894	14,562	720,670	50,575
Colonial Mutual	10,308	473,426	26,221	6,516	282,586	16,353
Mutual Life and Citizens'	2,811	142,278	8,431	2,715	105,508	6,380
Provident Life	6,421	324,459	20,695	5,133	246,091	15,188
Totals	51,059	2,746,990	167,354	34,159	1,675,682	106,804

A summary of the progress of industrial business is given in the following table, covering the ten years 1918 to 1927. The increase in the new business effected in this class of* insurance has been remarkable, the annual figures rising from £888,915 in 1917 to £2,746,990 in 1927, an increase of 209 per cent.

INDUSTRIAL LIFE ASSURANCE.—PROGRESS OF BUSINESS, 1918–27.

	Policies issued.			Policies discontinued.			Policies existing at End of Year.
Year.	Number.	Sum assured.	Annual Premiums.	Number.	Sum assured.	Annual Premiums.	Number.	Sum assured.	Annual Premiums.
		£	£		£	£		£	£
1918	26,906	1,020,008	73,326	16,038	553,827	40,378	129,691	3,998,254	266,569
1919	29,783	1,283,489	87,819	18,399	670,177	47,860	141,075	4,611,566	306,528
1920	29,724	1,463,726	93,039	18,299	761,350	49,586	152,500	5,313,936	349,981
1921	27,799	1,459,762	84,437	17,500	821,658	50,160	162,799	5,952,040	384,249
1922	29,483	1,524,342	91,399	19,637	919,049	57,428	172,645	6,557,333	418,220
1923	30,516	1,659,395	99,442	19,820	949,905	61,193	183,341	7,266,823	456,469
1924	36,705	1,992,763	120,273	23,019	1,129,374	71,317	197,027	8,130,212	505,425
1925	38,882	2,120,066	127,597	24,914	1,230,408	77,782	210,995	9,019,869	555,239
1926	42,993	2,343,604	141,178	29,005	1,396,630	88,709	224,983	9,966,843	607,708
1927	51,059	2,746,990	167,354	34,159	1,675,682	106,804	241,883	11,038,151	668,258

The increase for the year 1927 in new insurances was 8,066 policies for a total of £403,386, compared with the press is year's increase of 4,111 policies for a sum assured of £223,538. The average sum insured in the case of new policies amounted to £54 and the annual premium to £6 1s. 10d. per cent., corresponding averages for the total policies in force at the end of the year being £46 and £6 1s. 1d. respectively. Discontinuances in 1927 increased by £279,052, as against the previous year's increase of £166,222. Between 1917 and 1927 the number of policies in force has increased by 123,060 (104 per cent.), and the amount held at risk by £7,506,078 (213 per cent.).

A summary of the number of policies and the sums assured written off according to the several causes is now given in the form of a five-years' table.

INDUSTRIAL LIFE ASSURANCE.—PARTICULARS OF DISCONTINUANCES.

Year.	Death.	Maturity.	Surrender.	Lapse.	Other Causes.	Total.
Number of Policies.
1923	1,243	2,769	849	14,792	167	19,820
1924	1,243	3,206	975	17,391	204	23,019
1925	1,184	3,764	1,005	18,770	191	24,914
1926	1,483	5,883	1,413	19,990	236	29,005
1927	1,540	6,884	1,811	23,533	391	34,159
Sum Assured.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1923	35,629	57,161	46,659	802,371	8,085	949,905
1924	39,243	66,934	54,745	957,699	10,753	1,129,374
1925	36,137	75,817	59,332	1,048,768	10,354	1,230,408
1926	48,383	139,778	72,661	1,122,106	13,702	1,396,630
1927	51,003	177,250	96,102	1,329,444	21,883	1,675,682

An increase under each heading as regards both number of policies and sum assured has taken place as a result of the year's operations. The principal increase is to be found in lapses, although maturities and surrenders also show substantial rises. Deaths, on the other hand, have increased by only £2,620, compared with the previous year's increase of £12,246. This is in direct contrast with the outstanding death increase in the ordinary section.

The amount written off in each year is considerably greater in proportion in the Industrial than in the Ordinary Branch. Whereas in the case of the latter 7.18 per cent. of the amount in force at the end of 1926 became void during 1927, the corresponding percentage for industrial insurance was 16.81. An interesting comparison is afforded between the following table, which comprises the sums assured in the preceding one reduced to a percentage basis, and the corresponding table in the Ordinary Section.

INDUSTRIAL LIFE ASSURANCE.—PERCENTAGE OF AMOUNT DISCONTINUED.

Year.	Death.	Maturity.	Surrender.	Lapse.	Other Causes.	Total.
1923	3.75	6.02	4.91	84.47	0.85	100.00
1924	3.47	5.93	4.85	84.80	0.95	100.00
1925	2.94	6.16	4.82	85.24	0.84	100.00
1926	3.47	10.01	5.20	80.34	0.98	100.00
1927	3.04	10.58	5.73	79.34	1.31	100.00

The particular features reflected by the above table are the increases in the proportions of the amounts written off by way of maturity and surrender and the decrease during the last two years in the percentage of lapses. The lapse ratio is, however, very high when compared with the Ordinary Section, the respective percentages being 79 for the Industrial and 49 for the Ordinary.

The total income and outgo for industrial assurance, summarized for the ten years 1918–27, are as follows:—

INDUSTRIAL ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND BUSINESS.—INCOME AND OUTGO, 1918–27.

Year.	Receipts and Expenditure.			Expenses of Management.
Year.	Total Receipts, excluding Transfers.	Total Expenditure, excluding Transfers.	Excess of Receipts.	Amount.	Proportion to Premium Receipts.	Proportion to Total Receipts.
	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
1918	264,000	156,618	107,382	88,071	35.51	33.36
1919	303,568	180,070	123,498	107,504	37.82	35.41
1920	347,825	195,038	152,787	121,600	37.52	34.95
1921	394,098	194,798	199,300	130,645	35.96	33.15
1922	434,957	223,345	211,612	136,260	34.35	31.33
1923	485,362	253,101	232,261	148,307	33.93	30.56
1924	539,409	291,282	248,127	169,347	35.30	31.39
1925	598,599	322,156	276,443	186,769	35.23	31.20
1926	655,244	423,685	231,559	202,933	35.00	30.97
1927	723,558	503,165	220,393	229,127	35.97	31.67

The expenses of management, which in this class of business are relatively high, amounted in 1927 to 36 per cent. of the premium receipts, as compared with 35 per cent. ten years earlier. The corresponding figure in the Ordinary Branch for 1927 was 15 per cent. The difference is largely accounted for by the high cost of collection of premiums in the Industrial Branch, principally in the shape of renewal commission. In the Ordinary Branch commission (new and renewal) worked out at approximately 7 per cent. of the premium income, and in the Industrial Branch at 23 per cent. Excluding commissions the ratio of management expenses to total income works out at 12 per cent. in the Industrial Branch, as against 8 per cent. in the Ordinary.

A table giving for each of the last five years the main in connection with the income and outgo referred to above is appended, and affords interesting comparisons in the fluctuation of the various heads of receipts and expenditure.

Premium receipts show a steady increase over the whole period. In 1922 this source of income produced £396,628, and the increase over the five years is accordingly 61 per cent.

INDUSTRIAL LIFE ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND BUSINESS.—RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURE (EXCLUDING TRANSFERS), 1923–27.

—	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.
Revenue.	£	£	£	£	£
Premiums	437,144	479,687	530,188	579,882	636,950
Interest	44,708	52,320	61,372	70,402	82,792
Other revenue	3,510	7,402	7,039	4,960	3,816
Total revenue	485,362	539,409	598,599	655,244	723,558
Expenditure.
Claims by death	38,253	48,089	66,569	110,754	128,968
Claims by maturity	51,731	51,530	47,140	79,512	107,959
Surrenders	6,686	10,777	11,811	21,815	27,790
Management	148,307	169,347	186,769	202,933	229,127
Taxes	4,261	3,989	3,972	4,176	4,910
Depreciation in investments	955	1,010	1,074	679	246
Other payments	2,908	6,540	4,821	3,816	4,165
Total expenditure	253,101	291,282	322,156	423,685	503,165

LIABILITIES AND ASSETS.

The balance-sheets of the companies transacting industrial business do not in every case apportion their liabilities and assets over ordinary and industrial business, for although the legislation in force requires separate statements to be furnished for receipts and expenditure, policies issued and discontinued, &c., no such requirement exists in regard to balance-sheets.

The figures presented below accordingly refer to both classes of insurance, and, as indicated earlier in this subsection, relate to New Zealand business only.

Dealing first with liabilities, the position of the various offices over a period of five years is shown.

LIFE ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND LIABILITIES, 1923–27.

Office.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.
*Includes accident. † Discontinued New Zealand business.
	£	£	£	£	£
Australian Mutual Provident	7,055,110	7,145,412	6,980,573	7,108,997	7,427,452
Australian Provincial^*	192,476	181,281	204,514	234,623	254,618
Australian Temperance and General	978,203	1,207,523	1,431,301	1,626,852	1,854,215
Colonial Mutual^*	654,457	752,671	862,887	956,283	1,063,193
Mutual Life and Citizens'^*	1,567,111	1,602,841	1,578,319	1,559,984	1,503,374
National Mutual	2,218,010	2,401,572	2,521,875	2,629,399	2,579,757
New York Life	48,419	27,912	^†	^†	^†
Norwich Union	141,020	198,265	265,485	330,646	398,213
Provident Life	333,855	371,955	421,841	475,912	532,148
Southern Cross	..	42,909	54,937	74,849	97,574
Yorkshire	115,820	123,000	116,499	6,948	6,564
New Zealand Government Life	6,489,868	6,712,888	6,994,229	7,295,023	7,584,401
Totals	19,794,349	20,768,229	21,432,460	22,299,516	23,301,509

The aggregate capital and liabilities at the end of 1927, as compared with the two preceding years, were as follows:—

	1925.	1926.	1927.
	£	£	£
Paid-up capital	95,884	95,891	94,217
Life assurance and annuity funds	20,411,084	21,377,304	22,058,355
Depreciation, reserve, and other special funds	295,425	246,713	261,574
Claims admitted but not paid	177,011	134,274	209,666
Other liabilities	453,056	445,334	677,697
Totals	£21,432,460	£22,299,516	£23,301,509

The assets at the end of each of the five years 1923–27 were as follows:—

LIFE ASSURANCE.—NEW ZEALAND ASSETS, 1923–27.

Assets.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.
* Included for the most part with “Railway and other stocks” and “Other investments.”
	£	£	£	£	£
Mortgages on property	6,002,102	6,018,042	5,852,186	6,040,754	6,387,652
Loans on policies	2,812,378	2,995,776	3,171,567	3,440,601	3,757,801
New Zealand Government securities	6,603,884	6,619,062	6,308,825	6,679,669	6,358,547
Indian and colonial securities	15,435	16,085	8,045	41,221	35,600
Railway and other stocks	575,677	35,632	35,132	34,350	..
Municipal and local bodies' securities	^*	2,365,660	2,905,285	2,863,388	3,083,555
Landed and house property	559,031	626,920	722,444	866,510	1,159,505
Other investments	1,203,627	3,777	4,156	4,659	6,381
Loans on personal security	5,169	8,397	7,162	6,037	8,850
Agents' balances	24,768	20,055	17,403	11,052	7,324
Outstanding premiums	202,978	230,301	259,123	285,040	304,389
Interest accrued, &c.	281,550	291,433	271,879	284,811	292,847
Cash	405,272	336,385	296,973	132,188	187,710
Other assets	1,102,478	1,200,704	1,572,280	1,609,236	1,711,948
Totals	19,794,349	20,768,229	21,432,460	22,299,516	23,301,509

The foregoing figures do not necessarily represent the extent to which the various companies have invested in New Zealand securities, &c., but are merely the totals of the assets of the New Zealand branches. An example of this will be found in the case of New Zealand Government securities. This item is shown as £9,253,871 in the total of the whole - world balance - sheets, whereas only £6,358,547 is shown as belonging to the New Zealand branches, the latter figure being £321,122 less than in 1926. Outstanding increases are recorded for mortgages on property, loans on policies, municipal and local-body securities, and landed and house property.

STATE LIFE INSURANCE.

The Life Insurance Department of the Government of New Zealand was founded in 1869, at a time when New-Zealanders had comparatively poor facilities for the insurance of their lives. The institution possesses the unique advantage of being based on the solid principle of State security, payment of all policies being guaranteed by the Government of the Dominion. Industrial insurance is not transacted by the Department.

During 1928 the Department established a new business record, some 5,802 policies assuring £1,915,465 being issued, compared with the previous year's figures of 5,578 and £1,791,845 respectively. At the end of 1928 there were 68,562 policies in force bearing an annual premium income of £617,642, and the amount in force exclusive of bonus was £19,974,581, while reversionary bonus additions totalled £2,109,890. The average sum assured per policy in force was £291, compared with £246 ten years earlier.

The following table gives a synopsis of the activities of the Department for the last ten years in so far as the amount of business transacted is concerned:—

STATE LIFE INSURANCE.—PROGRESS, 1919–28.

Year.	New Business.			Policies in Force at End of Year.
	Number of Policies.	Premiums.	Sum assured.	Number of Policies.	Premiums.	Value of Business.
	Number of Policies.	Premiums.	Sum assured.	Number of Policies.	Premiums.	Sum assured.	Bonuses.	Total.
		£	£		£	£	£	£
1919	4,983	58,569	1,617,795	55,770	423,065	14,123,728	1,423,016	15,546,744
1920	4,872	51,221	1,659,660	57,321	449,123	14,924,147	1,335,163	16,259,310
1921	4,963	50,734	1,631,250	59,189	474,151	15,721,088	1,558,646	17,279,734
1922	3,797	40,071	1,286,609	59,487	483,734	15,995,235	1,453,866	17,449,101
1923	4,754	48,815	1,581,722	60,545	501,321	16,549,451	1,357,161	17,906,612
1924	5,149	54,197	1,718,842	61,804	522,391	17,190,783	1,696,381	18,887,164
1925	5,830	60,951	1,910,013	63,775	549,956	18,008,402	1,584,927	19,593,329
1926	5,710	60,609	1,883,705	65,396	575,420	18,743,397	1,475,007	20,218,404
1927	5,578	58,006	1,791,845	66,856	595,780	19,303,916	1,973,434	21,277,350
1928	5,802	63,138	1,915,465	68,562	617,642	19,974,581	2,109,890	22,084,471

The total income of the Department for 1928 was £1,023,757—viz., premium income, £609,205; interest and rents (after payment of land and income-tax), £397,398; annuity purchase-money, £17,154. The total income for 1928 was £36,431 in excess of the figure for the preceding year.

During the year 1928, payments (including bonus additions) to the value of £315,077 were made on account of matured policies and £197,620 was paid out to representatives of deceased policyholders. Expenses of management totalled £56,076 and commission £39,669, making the total expenses £95,745. This, despite a large increase in new business, is less than the previous year's total, and has resulted in a decrease in the ratio of expenses to total income of 0.49 per cent. This ratio now stands at 9.35 per cent. and the ratio to premium income at 15.29 per cent.

The total assurance, annuity, and endowment funds, apart from a special investment fluctuation reserve of £209,907, amounted at the end of 1928 to £7,582,679, an increase of £278,754 during the year.

The Department's balance-sheet on the 31st December, 1928, showed that the total assets amounted to £7,850,231, and were invested as shown in the following statement, which also gives the distribution of the assets at the end of the previous year for purposes of comparison:—

Class of Investment.	At 31st December, 1927.		At 31st December, 1928.
Class of Investment.	Amount.	Percentage of Total Assets.	Amount.	Percentage of Total Assets.
* Mainly due and overdue premiums and interest, and interest accrued.
	£		£
Mortgages on freehold property	2,875,495	37.92	3,105,305	39.55
Loans on policies	978,496	12.90	999,041	12.73
Government securities	2,205,010	29.07	2,263,002	28.83
Local bodies' securities	1,176,356	15.51	1,089,496	13.88
Landed and house property	161,474	2.13	147,520	1.88
Miscellaneous assets^*	177,409	2.34	190,669	2.43
Cash in hand and on current account	10,161	0.13	55,198	0.70
Totals	7,584,401	100.00	7,850,231	100.00

A statement of the liabilities and assets as at the 31st December, 1928, is also given.

STATE LIFE INSURANCE.—LIABILITIES AND ASSETS AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

Liabilities.	£
Total Assurance, Annuity, and Endowment Funds (as per Revenue Account)	7,582,679
Claims admitted, proofs not yet completed	31,982
Annuities	918
Commission	1,306
Medical fees	389
Premium and other deposits	8,134
Sundry accounts owing	3,742
Accident and Fidelity Fund	3,442
Investment Fluctuation Reserve	209,907
Sinking funds on local-body loans	7,732
	£7,850,231
Assets.	£
Loans on policies	999,041
Goverment securities	2,263,002
Municipal Corporation debentures	194,288
County securities	104,191
Harbour Board debentures	29,300
Town Board debentures	32,052
Road Board debentures	21,800
Drainage Board debentures	1,819
Power Board debentures	706,046
Landed and house property	140,710
Landed and house property (leasehold)	1,776
Mortgages on property	3,105,305
Properties acquired by foreclosure	5,034
Overdue premiums on policies £ in force	8,564
Outstanding premiums due but not overdue	53,211
	61,775
Overdue interest	6,889
Outstanding interest due but not overdue	9,754
Interest accrued but not due	101,691
	118,334
Agents' balances	9,207
Sundry debtors	1,353
Cash in hand and on current account	55,198
	£7,850,231

The rate of interest realized on the mean funds of the Department, after deduction of land and income-tax from interest, was as follows for each of the ten years 1919–28:—

	£	s.	d.
1919	5	2	4
1920	4	19	2
1921	5	3	5
1922	5	3	11
1923	5	6	8
1924	5	7	7
1925	5	9	1
1926	5	11	1
1927	5	10	10
1928	5	9	9

By regulations dated the 25th October, 1927, the period between actuarial valuations of the Government Life Insurance Department's funds and liabilities—formerly three years—was altered to one year.

The annual valuation as at the 31st December, 1928, revealed a gross surplus of assets over liabilities amounting to £216,115. Of this sum £3,596 had been paid away as interim bonuses during the year, leaving a net balance of £212,519. Of this latter amount £12,232 was carried forward, and the remainder (£200,287) divided amongst participating policyholders in the form of compound reversionary bonuses per cent. on the sum assured and existing bonuses for each full year's premium paid during the year. This division provided for reversionary bonuses amounting to £324,871.

The Temperance and General Sections require to be valued separately, the result for the year 1928 being that no differentiation was recommended between the rates of bonuses as between the two sections. Due consideration is given to the difference in the present rates of premium and these charged prior to 1900, the following rates of bonuses for the various classes of policies being decided on for 1928:—

	Per Cent.
	£	s.	d.
Whole life and long-term endowment assurances maturing at age 80 (present issue)	2	0	0
Endowment assurances (present issue)	1	18	0
Whole life and endowment assurances (closed series)	1	16	0
Double endowments (closed series)	1	10	0
Pure endowments and double endowments (present issue)	1	7	6

The rates of bonus resulting from the 1927 and 1928 valuations are substantially higher than any previously declared by the Department, the corresponding figure for the first class mentioned having been £5 for the triennium 1924—26.

It is claimed that no office in Australia or New Zealand adopts a stronger valuation basis than the Department, quite apart from the amount held in the Investment Fluctuation Reserve, of which little short of the whole will ultimately be available for retransfer. For the 1923 investigation the Department was able in a single triennium to step from a 3 1/2 per cent. to a 3 per cent. net premium valuation of its policy liabilities, and the latter rate has since been maintained.

SUBSECTION B.—ACCIDENT INSURANCE.

INTRODUCTORY.

IN terms of the Accident Insurance Companies Act, 1908, accident-insurance policies may be issued by any association, whether incorporated or not, provided such association is not established under any Act relating to friendly societies. The principal contingencies for which policies may be issued are in respect of—

Accident, disease, or mental or physical disability;
Employers' liability under statutory or common law;
Charges under the Workers' Compensation Act taking precedence of incumbrances, mortgages, or charges lawfully existing.

With the huge increase in motor traffic in recent years an important class of policy—viz., motor-car comprehensive, has come into existence, and has increased rapidly. Compulsory insurance to cover third-party risks is an important new departure, which is referred to later on in this subsection. Other important classes of accident-insurance policies are in respect of plate-glass insurance and fidelity-guarantee insurance.

As a security to the public transacting business with accident-insurance offices, a substantial deposit is required to be made with the Public Trustee by any company whose head office is situated overseas. No deposit is necessary in the case of companies incorporated in the Dominion under the New Zealand laws. The amount of the deposit required is dealt with in the next subsection in discussing the cognate matter of fire insurance, to which reference should be made.

The principal Act provides for annual returns to be deposited with the Minister of Finance, and until recently these were utilized as a means of statistical information. Unfortunately, these returns did not distinguish between the various classes of accident insurance, and in order to remedy this deficiency regulations providing for the collection of returns by the Government Statistician were gazetted under the Census and Statistics Act. The first collection under these regulations was for the year 1925. In addition to obtaining particulars of employers' liability insurance as distinct from other forms of accident insurance, information regarding assets and liabilities, agencies, branches, dates of establishment, &c., has been made available by the new method of collection.

The regulations referred to were later amended in order to extend the inquiry relating to the classes of accident business transacted, and in the collection for 1927 particulars of personal accident and sickness insurance, motor-vehicle insurance, and risks under the Motor-omnibus Licensing Regulations were obtained in addition to the information formerly available.

INCOME AND OUTGO.

The number of insurance offices transacting accident business in New Zealand in 1927 was 47, the principal registered offices of the companies concerned being as follows: Great Britain, 19; Australia, 9; Hong Kong, 1; United States, 1; and New Zealand, 17.

The total premiums received for 1927 amounted to £1,279,318, and the total revenue to £1,361,053, compared with £1,247,601 and £1,330,678 respectively for 1926. The total revenue in each case is exclusive of reserve to meet unexpired risks at the beginning of the year, which for 1927 was £522,569. The increase in premiums in 1927 was £31,717, as against increases of £131,138 and £264,781 for 1926 and 1925 respectively. It should be noted, however, that the figures for 1925, 1926, and 1927 include certain classes of insurance which; although conducted by the Accident Branches of the various offices, were not included in the 1924 and previous returns. While this factor would account for a portion of the exceptional increase in 1925, the amount involved would not be of sufficient importance to affect the comparability of the statistics to any appreciable extent.

During the year claims amounting to £741,760 were paid, and the total expenditure (exclusive of reserve for unexpired risks, amounting to £531,805) was £1,223,609, as against the previous year's figures of £674,133 and £1,145,117. The year's increase in claims therefore amounts to £67,627, compared with a premium increase of £31,717.

Of the premiums received, £603,241, or 47 per cent., and of claims paid, £366,514, or 49 per cent., represented the business of the sixteen companies established in New Zealand. It will accordingly be seen that the local companies accounted for a very considerable proportion of the accident insurance transacted in the Dominion. The following table gives a summary of the income and outgo of the various offices for 1927, distinguishing the amount received for premiums and the amount paid out in claims. Reserves to meet unexpired risks at the beginning and end of the year are not included in total receipts and expenditure.

ACCIDENT INSURANCE.—INCOME AND OUTGO, 1927.

Name of Company.	Income.		Outgo.		Per Cent. of Claims to Premiums.
Name of Company.	Premiums.	Total Receipts.^*	Claims.	Total Expenditure.^*	Per Cent. of Claims to Premiums.
* Excluding reserves to meet unexpired risks.
Overseas Companies.	£	£	£	£
Alliance	39,325	39,325	23,086	36,418	58.71
Atlas	13,486	13,486	8,187	15,253	60.71
Australian Provincial Association	4,413	4,676	2,337	4,193	52.96
British Traders	15,189	16,239	9,286	16,471	61.14
Colonial Mutual	8,802	10,007	5,048	9,211	57.35
Commercial Union	37,909	39,190	26,706	44,653	70.45
General	7,746	7,746	3,226	6,983	41.65
Guardian	22,679	23,728	11,343	20,740	50.02
Hartford	5,977	5,977	3,334	5,238	55.78
Insurance Office of Australia	16,834	17,884	9,820	19,021	58.33
Liverpool and London and Globe	20,222	20,222	9,535	18,321	47.15
London	2,368	2,631	497	1,534	20.99
London and Lancashire	38,153	39,203	20,392	34,973	53.45
Mutual Life and Citizens'	22,906	23,168	11,256	20,384	49.14
North British and Mercantile	17,378	17,378	12,648	19,350	72.78
Northern	19,665	21,525	9,679	18,093	49.22
Norwich and London	19,374	20,441	9,724	18,545	50.19
Ocean	63,240	64,722	47,350	72,116	74.87
Phœnix	25,361	25,361	14,433	23,429	56.91
Prudential	11,172	11,172	2,151	5,931	19.25
Queensland	27,640	28,670	11,974	25,629	43.32
Royal	50,004	50,004	25,699	39,577	51.39
Royal Exchange	30,791	30,791	16,424	29,258	53.34
Southern Cross	2,416	2,493	739	2,176	30.59
Southern Union	13,677	13,677	9,571	16,580	69.98
Sun	18,818	18,818	12,846	24,765	68.26
Union	24,848	24,848	16,775	29,059	67.51
United	12,753	12,753	4,074	11,365	31.95
Victoria	28,512	28,512	16,397	29,237	57.51
Yorkshire	29,967	29,967	17,855	30,083	59.58
T. L. Shepherd and Co.	24,452	24,452	2,854	4,069	11.67
Totals	676,077	689,066	375,246	652,655	55.50
New Zealand Companies.	£	£	£	£
Farmers' Co-operative	15,890	18,025	6,790	12,744	42.73
Mercantile and General	7,925	10,182	2,623	7,087	33.10
National	44,495	51,728	24,342	45,833	54.71
New Zealand	208,140	232,461	139,654	206,875	67.10
New Zealand Dental	165	199	66	88	40.00
New Zealand Medical	6,763	7,232	3,509	5,019	51.89
Otago Farmers'	2,266	2,266	888	1,996	39.19
Provident Life	6,975	7,256	4,320	7,455	61.94
Sawmillers' Mutual	8,049	8,766	7,343	8,766	91.23
S.I.M.U. Mutual	10,120	10,316	2,616	5,837	25.85
South British	158,561	173,608	98,450	150,132	62.09
Standard	59,246	63,633	31,805	55,347	53.68
Taranaki Farmers'	1,584	1,618	746	1,260	47.10
Wairarapa Automobile	2,316	2,640	662	1,335	28.58
West Coast Sawmillers'	5,186	5,601	3,727	4,229	71.87
State Office	65,560	76,456	38,973	56,951	59.45
Totals	603,241	671,987	366,514	570,954	60.76
Grand totals	1,279,318	1,361,053	741,760	1,223,609	57.98

In 1927 the ratio of the total expenses to premiums received averaged 96 per cent., or to total receipts, including premiums, 90 per cent., compared with 92 per cent. and 86 per cent. respectively during the previous year.

The table next presented gives in a summary form the aggregate receipts and expenditure for the last decade. The premium income in 1917 was £351,103, so that the amount of accident business transacted has increased by £928,215, or 264 per cent., during the space of ten years. The number of offices operating has risen from 31 to 47.

RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURE, 1918–27.

Year.	Number of Offices.	Receipts.			Expenditure.
Year.	Number of Offices.	Premiums.	Other Receipts.	Total.	Claims.	Commission.	Salaries.	Other Expenses.	Total.
		£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1918	34	359,962	3,711	363,673	183,291	52,984	40,048	50,401	326,724
1919	35	449,784	6,270	456,054	228,032	64,976	47,336	58,192	398,536
1920	34	533,316	7,235	540,551	240,337	84,299	51,822	78,433	454,941
1921	35	706,014	8,561	714,575	337,190	108,289	72,611	100,728	618,818
1922	35	706,370	11,876	718,246	361,527	105,049	72,726	112,629	651,931
1923	36	752,995	14,248	767,243	388,903	118,372	76,599	123,594	707,468
1924	36	851,682	17,248	868,930	440,759	137,751	85,902	127,041	791,453
1925	40	1,116,463	41,505	1,157,968	550,608	188,879	116,015	124,381	979,883
1926	46	1,247,601	83,077	1,330,678	674,133	206,591	139,502	124,891	1,145,117
1927	47	1,279,318	81,735	1,361,053	741,760	199,743	145,704	136,402	1,223,609

As against the increase in premium income must be considered the augmentation in claims, which have shown an even greater proportionate increase, having grown from £179,514 in 1917 to £741,760 in 1927, giving a percentage increase of 313.

An interesting review of the expenses incurred in transacting accident insurance is contained in the table following. The fluctuations over a period of ten years are shown in percentages of outgo to income under various heads.

ACCIDENT INSURANCE.—EXPENSE RATIO, 1918–27.

Year.	Ratio per Cent. of
Year.	Claims to Premiums.	Commission to Premiums.	Salaries to Premiums.	Other Expenses to Premiums.	Total Expenses (other than Claims) to Premiums.	Total Expenditure to Premiums.	Total Expenditure to Total Receipts.
1918	50.92	14.72	11.13	14.00	39.85	90.77	89.84
1919	50.70	14.44	10.52	12.95	37.91	88.61	87.39
1920	45.06	15.80	9.72	14.72	40.24	85.30	84.16
1921	47.76	15.34	10.27	14.27	39.88	87.64	86.59
1922	51.18	14.87	10.30	15.94	41.11	92.29	90.77
1923	51.65	15.72	10.17	16.41	42.30	93.95	92.21
1924	5,175	16.17	10.09	14.92	41.18	92.93	91.08
1925	49.32	16.92	10.39	11.14	38.45	87.77	84.62
1926	54.03	16.56	11.18	10.01	37.75	91.78	86.06
1927	57.98	15.61	11.39	10.66	37.66	95.64	89.90

The percentage of claims to premiums was higher for 1927 than in any of the other years shown. On the other hand the working expense ratio, which reached its highest point in 1923, has since that year steadily declined, and is now lower than at any other period during the ten years.

ANALYSIS OF PREMIUMS AND CLAIMS.

In the following table, particulars of employers' liability insurance as distinct from all other forms of accident insurance are given for the years 1925 and 1926, with a more detailed classification for 1927. It will be noticed that there is an apparent discrepancy between the totals of premiums and claims for 1925 and 1927 as shown herein and the figures already quoted. This is accounted for by the fact that, in order to arrive at the net financial results of the year's operations, it is necessary to take into account reinsurance transactions, and up to this stage premiums and claims have been taken at the net figure.

For the purpose of classifying premiums and claims in 1925, however, only direct insurances with the general public were taken into account. The experience of that year revealed little difference between the gross and the net figures, and for 1926 the “net” results were used throughout. In 1927, however, it was decided to revert to the former arrangement. This should be remembered when these statistics are being dealt with, but it is considered that comparisons are not affected to any great extent.

Class of Insurance	Premiums.			Claims.
Class of Insurance	1925.	1926.	1927.	1925.	1926.	1927.
*Included in “Other forms.”
	£	£	£	£	£	£
Employers' liability	542,762	567,702	583,644	330,503	346,602	402,022
Personal accident	^*	^*	151,940	^*	^*	84,626
Motor-vehicle	^*	^*	511,614	^*	^*	266,144
Motor-omnibus	^*	^*	6,603	^*	^*	3,388
Other forms	584,743	679,899	74,143	237,644	327,531	17,101
Totals	1,127,505	1,247,601	1,327,944	568,147	674,133	773,281

An examination of the figures reveals the fact that, whereas the premiums for employers' liability insurance increased during the period by £40,882 only or 7 1/2 per cent., claims increased by £71,519 or 21 1/2 per cent. The greater part of this increase took place during 1927, and can be attributed to the passing of the Workers' Compensation Amendment Act, 1926, which came into force in 1927. This provided for a general increase in the rates of compensation, but no alteration was made by the insurance offices in the premium rates.

Reducing the foregoing figures to a percentage basis, the following results are arrived at:—

Class of Insurance.	Class of Insurance.			Premiums to Total Premiums.			Claims to Total Claims.
Class of Insurance.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1925.	1926.	1927.
*Included in “Other forms.”
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Employers' liability	60.89	61.05	68.88	48.14	45.50	43.95	58.17	51.41	51.99
Personal accident	^*	^*	55.70	^*	^*	11.44	^*	^*	10.95
Motor-vehicle	^*	^*	52.02	^*	^*	38.53	^*	^*	34.42
Motor-omnibus	^*	^*	51.31	^*	*	0.50	^*	^*	0.43
Other forms	40.64	48.17	23.06	51.86	54.50	5.58	41.83	48.59	2.21
Totals	50.39	54.03	58.23	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00

As a result of the legislation mentioned above the claims ratio in employers' liability insurance increased by nearly 8 per cent. in 1927 as compared with an increase of only 0.16 per cent. in 1926. Motor-vehicle insurance, which ranks next in importance to employers' liability insurance, is, when compared with the latter, comparatively profitable, the claims ratio being 52 per cent. as against 69 per cent. Personal accident and sickness insurance, which accounted for a little over 11 per cent. of the premium income in 1927, had a claims ratio of nearly 56 per cent., and risks under the Motor-omnibus Licensing Regulations a ratio of 51.31 per cent.

MORTGAGEES' INDEMNITY INSURANCE.

The law relating to workers' compensation provides that in certain cases a claim for compensation becomes a charge on the employer's land, and that this charge takes precedence of mortgages on the land. This provision led to mortgagees requiring mortgagors to take out an insurance policy indemnifying them against any charge in connection with workers' compensation taking priority of their mortgages. As employers almost invariably insure their workers against accident, the mortgagee's risk is very small.

Relief to mortgagors was provided in 1927 by the Mortgagees' Indemnity (Workers' Charges) Act, which provides that when mortgages are presented for stamping an additional stamp duty of 1s. is to be paid, known as a mortgagee's indemnity fee. The indemnity fees are paid into the Land Assurance Fund, from which losses incurred by mortgagees through the enforcement of charges under the Workers' Compensation Act will be met. The necessity for taking out an insurance policy and of paying premiums (which ranged between 5s. and £2, according to the amount of the mortgage) is thus obviated, and a section of the Act definitely absolves the mortgagor from any obligation to insure or keep insured the mortgagee against loss of this nature in respect of any mortgage under the Act.

MOTOR-VEHICLES INSURANCE (THIRD-PARTY RISKS).

The Motor-vehicles Insurance (Third-party Risks) Act was passed in the session of 1928 for the purpose of compelling owners of motor-vehicles to insure against their liability to pay damages on account of the death of or bodily injury to another person.

The payment of the insurance premiums is made annually to Deputy Registrars of Motor-vehicles at the same time as the annual license fee is paid under the Motor-vehicles Act. Owners of motor-vehicles are required to nominate each year the insurance company with which the contract of insurance is to be made, and the contract is deemed to be complete on the payment of the premium.

The regulations prescribing the rates of premiums were gazetted on 21st March, 1929, with amending regulations on 24th May, 1929. These rates briefly are as follows:—Motor-cycles, 15s.; hearses and mourning coaches, £1; tractors and traction engines, £1; private motor-cars, £1; private motor-cars used wholly or in part for the purpose of trade or business, 30s.: trade motors, 30s.; motor-vehicles used by Fire Brigades, £2; public motor-cars, motor-coaches, and motor-omnibuses approximately £1 for every person the vehicle is designed to seat, with a minimum premium of £7 10s. An exception to the last-mentioned class is made in the case of motor-vehicles used for the carriage of children to and from school and these hired for the carriage of particular individuals (including clubs or parties of individuals), the premium in such cases working out at approximately 5s. per person for whom there is seating capacity, with a minimum of £3.

Companies willing to undertake this form of insurance are to notify the Registrar of Motor-vehicles to that effect, any such notice being binding unless formally revoked in the manner provided. A notice of revocation does not affect any contract already entered into. The names of forty-two companies which have signified their willingness to undertake insurance under the Act were gazetted on the 4th April, 1929.

The liability of any insurance company under any contract under this Act is limited to £2,000 in respect of any passenger in the motor-vehicle concerned, and to £20,000 for all claims made by or in respect of passengers. Otherwise there is no limit as to amount, but the liability of the company does not extend to indemnify the owner against—

Any claim made in respect of the death of or of injury suffered by any person living with the owner as a member of the same family, or in respect of the death of or of injury suffered by a relative of the owner where the degree of relationship is not more remote than the fourth:
Any claim made in respect of the death of or of injury suffered by any person in the service of the owner at the time of the accident:
Any claim against the owner of a motor-vehicle (not being a vehicle plying for hire or used in the course of the business of carrying passengers for hire) made in respect of the death of or of injury suffered by any person who was at the time of the accident in respect of which the claim has arisen being conveyed in the motor-vehicle, or was driving, or entering, or alighting from, or about to enter or alight from, such motor-vehicle:
Any claim against the owner of a motor-vehicle plying for hire or used in the course of the business of carrying passengers for hire, made in respect of the death of or of injury suffered by any person who (not being a passenger for hire) was at the time of the accident in respect of which the claim has arisen being conveyed in the motor-vehicle, or was driving, or entering, or alighting from, or about to enter or alight from, such motor-vehicle.

STATE ACCIDENT INSURANCE.

In the year 1901 the Government Insurance Department opened an Accident Branch. Arrangements were made under which the funds, assets, and liabilities were kept separate and distinct from the main life-insurance business, and powers were vested in the Governor-General to make regulations in regard to tables fixing rates of premium and other details for the conduct of the Accident Insurance Branch. On the 1st January, 1925, the accident business was transferred to the control of the State Fire Insurance Office, and is now carried on in conjunction with that establishment.

General accident business is undertaken, but the branch was opened more especially with a view to relieve employers of labour of the liability imposed upon them by the Workers' Compensation Act. The policies cover the full liability of an employer to his workmen under the Act, and the liability under common law to the extent of £1,000 per man. Personal-accident policies, are also issued securing amounts for accidental death and permanent total or partial disablement, and weekly allowances during temporary disablement, whether caused by accident or sickness. Under the Government Accident Insurance Amendment Act of 1924 the Department is authorized to underwrite all classes of accident insurance accepted by accident insurance companies, and the Branch now accepts motor-car comprehensive, motor-vehicle third-party, plate-glass, and fidelity-guarantee insurance.

The premium income and claims of the Accident Branch during the last twenty years have been as follows:—

STATE ACCIDENT INSURANCE.—PREMIUMS AND CLAIMS.

Year.	Not Premium Income.	Claims.
	£	£
1909	26,337	12,805
1910	21,364	12,522
1911	20,756	10,497
1912	23,513	12,016
1913	23,277	11,492
1914	22,090	9,633
1915	23,265	9,092
1916	22,350	10,698
1917	22,058	9,270
1918	21,630	10,830
1919	25,285	13,150
1920	29,852	14,975
1921	35,932	16,786
1922	33,348	20,330
1923	35,268	22,402
1924	39,614	24,764
1925	49,967	30,552
1926	58,340	33,854
1927	65,560	38,973
1928	71,731	43,807

Premiums during the year 1928 showed an increase of £6,171, and claims an increase of £4,834. The not surplus for the year's working was £17,593, compared with £16,255 for 1927.

The ratio of claims to premiums for the year 1928 worked out at 61.1 per cent., as against the previous year's percentage of 59.4, while the average for the quinquennium 1924–28 was 60.3. The ratio of working-expenses to premiums for 1928 was 23.0 per cent., compared with 23.5 for 1927.

The following is the Revenue Account for the year ended 31st December, 1928:—

STATE ACCIDENT INSURANCE REVENUE ACCOUNT, 1928.

	£
Premiums after deduction of reinsurances	71,731
Interest	£12,368
Less land and income tax	3,294
	9,074
	£80,805
Free year bonus on personal-accident policies	146
Claims	43,807
Commission	5,061
Salaries	9,191
Contribution to Superannuation Fund	135
Expenses of management	2,095
Further appropriation for unearned premiums	2 777
Amount of accident funds, 31st December, 1928	17,593
	£80,805

The liabilities and assets on the 31st December, 1928, were as follows:—

STATE ACCIDENT INSURANCE.—LIABILITIES AND ASSETS.

Liabilities.	£
Accident Funds, as per Revenue Account	17,593
Outstanding claims	15,500
Government taxes	3,294
Commission	425
Premium and other deposits	428
Sundry creditors	169
Officers' Fidelity Fund	500
Reserve for unearned premiums	32,279
Investment Fluctuation Reserve	3,000
Reserve Fund constituted under section 20 of the Government Accident Insurance Act, 1908	192,537
	£265,725
Assets.	£
Government war-loan securities	100,500
Other Government securities	3,000
Local authority securities	87,937
Rural Advances bonds	14,425
Mortgages on property	4,350
Fixed deposits and at short call	35,000
Interest accrued but not due	3,903
Agents' balances	1,535
Sundry debtors	5,796
Cash in hand and on current account	9,276
	£265,725

The total assets at the end of the year amounted to £265,725, compared with £244,681 at the end of 1927. New Zealand Government securities represent 39 per cent. of the total assets, and local-authority securities 33 per cent. Reserves and funds, which stood at £225,539 at the end of 1927, have been increased to £245,909.

SUBSECTION C—FIRE INSURANCE.

INTRODUCTORY.

IN the Dominion's legislation four separate classes of fire-insurance offices are distinguished—namely, (1) Local insurance companies established within the limits of New Zealand; (2) foreign insurance companies established beyond New Zealand; (3) British offices similarly established; and (4) mutual fire-insurance associations. To these may be added the State Fire Insurance Office, established under a separate Act of Parliament.

The Companies Act, 1908, provides for the incorporation with limited liability of local insurance companies formed for the insurance of property other than that of shareholders. Such a company requires a paid-up capital of £50,000 intact, and if the amount of paid-up capital falls below this sum incorporation can be effected only with unlimited liability. Insurance companies established or incorporated overseas require to have a like paid-up capital intact. The transaction of business by such companies is, however, subject to special legislation as set out below. Mutual associations are dealt with by the Mutual Fire Insurance Act, 1908, and are referred to specially at a later stage in this subsection.

INSURANCE COMPANIES' DEPOSITS.

Prior to the passing of the Insurance Companies' Deposits Act, 1921–22, and its amendment of 1922, no deposit whatever was required by companies carrying on the business of fire insurance, and practically none was required in respect of the business of employers' liability insurance. Now, however, deposits in cash must be made with the Public Trustee by fire and accident offices, varying according as to whether the company concerned is established or incorporated in a British country (other than New Zealand) or has its chief office in a foreign country. No deposit is required from a company constituted in New Zealand under the New Zealand laws.

The actual amounts of the deposits required to be made in accordance with the statutory provision of the principal Act were: For British companies carrying on operations in New Zealand—in respect of fire-insurance business, £15,000; in respect of employers' liability business, £15,000; and in respect of all other classes of business (except life and marine), £5,000. Foreign companies were required to deposit a sum of £35,000, which covered all classes of business (except life and marine). Overseas companies becoming established in New Zealand after the passing of the principal Act are required to make deposits on a somewhat higher scale than the foregoing. British offices must deposit the sum of £22,500 on account of fire business, the same amount for employers' liability insurance business, and £5,000 in respect of all other classes (other than life and marine) of insurance business. A newly established foreign company must deposit the sum of £50,000, and this covers all classes of business other than life and marine.

A further amendment was passed in 1927 requiring agents operating in New Zealand on behalf of underwriters established abroad to make deposits on the same scale as that ruling for companies.

The amount held by the Public Trustee on the 31st March, 1929, under the Insurance Companies' Deposits Act was £1,021,481, including interest accrued but not disbursed. In terms of the Act the whole of these moneys are invested in the Common Fund of the Public Trust Office, and interest is payable to the respective companies at the rate payable from time to time on investments held in that fund.

COLLECTION OF STATISTICS.

Statistics of fire insurance are collected annually by the Census and Statistics Office. The principal heads of inquiry relate to—(a) Stability of the company as shown by the balance-sheet for whole-world business; (b) the extent to which the office has assets in the Dominion; (c) the amount of business transacted during the year under review; (d) fires and losses; (e) revenue and expenditure; and (f) working-expenses.

OFFICES OPERATING IN NEW ZEALAND.

For 1927, statistics were collected from 42 offices carrying on business in New Zealand. The head offices of these were distributed as follow: England, 21; New Zealand, 12; Australia, 6; Hong Kong, 1; United States of America, 2. Included in the 12 New Zealand companies were 3 mutual fire-insurance associations and the State Fire Office.

LIABILITIES AND ASSETS.

The following table indicates generally the extent to which fire-insurance offices have funds available to meet losses and liabilities. Funds of life departments are added for completeness, but by the Life Insurance Act, 1908 (which follows the provisions of the Imperial statute on the subject), life funds must be accounted for separately, and form a security for life-policy holders which is not available to other phases of insurance transacted. The amount of funds (other than life) in New Zealand and elsewhere is. it will be seen, nearly 268 millions.

FIRE INSURANCE.—LIABILITIES AND ASSETS, 1927.

—	Liabilities.			Total Assets.
—	Overseas Companies.	Local Offices.	Mutual Associations.	Total Assets.
* These figures in the case of mutual associations relate to premium-note capital.
	£	£	£	£
Paid-up capital	27,453,613	2,637,332	190,510^*	30,281,455
Reserves	181,071,713	4,470,315	35,986	185,578,014
Other liabilities	50,874,856	1,057,983	9,789	51,942,628
Totals	259,400,182	8,165,630	236,285	267,802,097
Life funds	375,550,424	..	..	375,550,424
Grand totals	634,950,606	8,165,630	236,285	643,352,521

New Zealand assets of all offices transacting business amounted in 1927 to £8,790,784. In the following table the figures for the amount of assets in New Zealand under various heads are given for the last three years. In 1924 the total was £7,718,528, so that the increase during the three years was £1,072,256. New Zealand Government and local-authority securities are a popular form of investment for fire-insurance funds, and, although a decrease of £222,562 in the former has occurred during the last two years, local - authority securities have increased during that period by £192,204 House and landed property continues to show a steady increase, while moneys invested in mortgages, &c., have varied but little during the last few years.

FIRE INSURANCE.—ASSETS IN NEW ZEALAND, 1925–27.

Assets in New Zealand.	1925.	1926.	1927.
* Included in “Other assets.”
	£	£	£
House and landed property	689,589	735,007	856,423
New Zealand Government securities	3,911,106	3,710,841	3,688,544
New Zealand local-authority securities	1,341,716	1,522,617	1,533,920
Mortgages, &c.	366,973	344,723	345,829
Outstanding premiums	^*	283,012	272,285
Cash and other assets in New Zealand	2,287,381	2,060,903	2,093,783
Total New Zealand assets	8,596,765	8,657,103	8,790,784

SUMMARY OF BUSINESS.

Looking now at the general progress of fire-insurance business in the Dominion, a comparison of recent operations is afforded by the table below for 1925, 1926 and 1927.

FIRE INSURANCE.—AMOUNTS UNDERWRITTEN, PREMIUMS, AND LOSSES, 1925–27.

—	1925.	1926.	1927.
* Excluding reinsurances accepted from other offices.
Offices in New Zealand.
Number of separate companies	42	43	42
Number of branches	148	159	159
Number of agencies	12,976	13,429	14,113
Amounts underwritten.
Gross amount of insurance cover in force in New Zealand on 31st December^*	£357,467,898	£383,368,702	£404,408,924
Number of policies representing the foregoing^*	653,362	684,702	713,928
Gross amount of new and renewal business underwritten during year^*	£399,804,032	£420,138,601	£441,695,349
Number of policies representing the foregoing^*	720,232	748,308	769,229
Premiums.
Total gross premiums charged on business (now and renewal) underwritten during year^*	£2,041,969	£2,068,377	£2,110,246
Percentage of gross premiums to total amount of business underwritten	10s. 3d.	9s. 10d.	9s. 7d.
Total premiums (as shown above), less premiums refunded to insured other than to other offices	£1,886,290	£1,903,675	£1,950,736
Losses.
Total number of separate fire losses with which offices were concerned	5,257	5,949	6,441
Gross losses	£876,358	£1,127,140	£1,257,515
Percentage of gross loss to amount underwritten (new and renewal) during year (as shown above)	0.22	0.27	0.28
Percentage of gross loss to total premiums, less refunds to insured (as shown above)	46.46	59.21	64.46
Average loss per fire	£167	£189	£195

At the end of 1927 the fire-insurance cover on property in New Zealand totalled £404,408,924, represented by 713,928 policies, as compared with £383,368,702 and 684,702 policies at the end of 1926. The increase in the amount during the five years 1922–27 amounted to £110,762,652, or 38 per cent. The total amount underwritten during 1927 increased by twenty-one and a half millions over the 1926 total, while the number of policies concerned increased by 20,921. The amount charged to the insuring public by way of premiums during 1927 was £2,110,246, or, less refunds, £1,950,736.

During recent years the fire-loss problem has been a matter of grave concern to the insurance offices. In 1924 the amount paid out by way of compensation reached the then unprecedented figure of £1,046,328. The increase in that year, however, was mainly attributable to one particularly disastrous outbreak; and in 1925, although heavier than in any other year with the exception of 1924, there was a decrease of £169,970. The year 1926, however, saw a further rise to £1,127,140, but, this was eclipsed during 1927, when the amount paid to the insuring public totalled £1,257,515.^* The number of separate fires with which the several offices were concerned was 6,441, an increase of 492 over the 1926 total, the next highest on the list. The percentage of losses to premiums less refunds was 64.5, compared with 59.2 per cent. in 1926 and 46.5 per cent. in 1925. The average loss per fire worked out at £195 4s. 9d., as against £189 9s. 4d. in 1926 and £166 14s. 1d. in 1925.

* A still further rise to £1,343,242 is recorded for the financial year of companies corresponding approximately to the calendar year 1928.

The table set out below shows for the years 1898 to 1927 the premium income and the fire losses, together with the percentage of loss in each year, in five-yearly periods, and in ten-yearly periods. Statistics of fire insurance have been collected only since 1918, and the figures prior to that date have kindly been supplied by the Council of the Fire Underwriters' Associations of New Zealand, and refer only to these insurance offices in New Zealand which are members of the Council of the Fire Underwriters' Associations. The official figures from 1918 onwards refer, of course, to all offices.

FIRE INSURANCE: PREMIUM INCOME AND LOSSES, 1898–1927.

Year.	Premium Income.	Fire Losses.	Percentage of Loss.
Year.	Premium Income.	Fire Losses.	Yearly Periods.	Five-yearly Periods.	Ten-yearly Periods.
	£	£
1898	382,284	302,490	79.1
1899	399,110	185,210	46.4
1900	432,944	254,006	58.6	62.2	64.0
1901	453,583	385,609	85.0
1902	490,722	215,500	43.8
1903	527,861	223,000	42.2
1904	565,000	427,874	75.7
1905	494,822	322,496	65.2	65.4
1906	508,222	407,869	80.3
1907	538,076	341,444	63.4
1908	578,222	544,606	94.2
1909	596,769	415,951	69.6
1910	637,856	368,887	57.8	66.8	57.9
1911	688,820	424,194	61.6
1912	733,945	406,385	55.3
1913	790,525	450,970	57.0
1914	813,469	434,310	53.3
1915	854,509	433,467	50.7	51.2
1916	912,222	373,896	40.9
1917	969,186	531,121	54.8
1918	1,241,829	472,247	38.0
1919	1,351,083	390,598	28.9
1920	1,622,048	448,656	27.7	35.9	46.3
1921	1,768,416	738,638	41.8
1922	1,785,308	739,076	41.4
1923	1,780,463	796,281	44.7
1924	1,772,924	1,046,328	59.0
1925	1,886,290	876,358	46.5	54.9
1926	1,903,675	1,127,140	59.2
1927	1,950,736	1,257,515	64.5

The State Fire Office for many years had the intention of returning some of its accumulated profits by way of a bonus to its policyholders. It was found, however, that a considerable cost would be involved in paying a bonus in the manner usually followed by life-insurance offices, and in order to allow policyholders to benefit to the greatest possible extent the State Fire Insurance Act was amended in 1922 to enable the Board of the Office to allow a rebate to insurers. Accordingly a rebate of 15 per cent. was declared on all premiums paid during the twelve months beginning on the 1st August, 1923, and all other fire offices granted a similar rebate. On the expiry of that period the Board reviewed the position and declared a continuance of the rebate at the rate of 10 per cent. for a further period of twelve months. This rate was continued until the 31st December, 1925, when it was increased to 12 1/2 per cent., at which figure it has since remained.

During the period covered by the returns for 1923 that the rebate was in force the insuring public benefited to the extent of £141,794, during 1924 by £271,440, during 1925 by £231,172, during 1926 by £287,318, and during 1927 by £293,820, making a total concession to the insuring public of £1,225,544 to the end of 1927. Regard should be had to the foregoing when comparisons with previous years are attempted in respect of premiums and total income. The effect of this rebate is reflected in the decrease of the average premium per cent. charged. This in 1927 works out at 9s. 7d. compared with 11s. 11d. five years earlier.

INCOME AND OUTGO.

A statement of the total income and outgo, both gross and net, of all offices is now given in respect of New Zealand business. The gross reserve for unexpired risks, it should be noted, is calculated on the assumption that it bears the same proportion to gross premium income as does the actual net reserve to the net premium income.

FIRE INSURANCE.—INCOME AND OUTGO, 1925–27.

—	1925.		1926.		1927.
—	Gross.	Net.	Gross.	Net.	Gross.	Net.
* Including reinsurance premiums.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
Income.
Reserve to meet unexpired risks as at beginning of year	790,877	560,758	852,798	613,038	874,546	610,368
Amount of fire premiums receivable during year^*	2,173,865	1,363,107	2,195,704	1,353,478	2,204,510	1,370,479
Interest on dividends on stock, mortgages, &c.	117,336	117,336	98,159	98,159	93,008	93,008
Rents	33,958	33,958	33,194	33,194	31,775	31,775
Other revenue	2,579	2,579	5,776	5,776	1,975	1,975
Totals	3,118,615	2,077,738	3,185,631	2,103,645	3,205,814	2,107,605
Outgo.
Amount of fire losses incurred during year, including adjustment and other expenses of settlement, butless salvage and amounts covered by reinsurance	876,358	621,410	1,127,140	760,825	1,257,515	838,890
New Zealand Government taxes	56,129	50,985	43,194	39,056	38,350	34,073
Local-authority rates	3,452	3,057	3,360	2,923	3,848	3,345
License fees	4,821	4,741	4,649	4,397	4,547	4,280
Fire Board levies	45,605	38,041	54,113	43,824	65,001	52,074
Rents	24,996	23,297	24,195	22,456	24,874	22,967
Allowances and commissions on premiums to agents, sub-agents, and others	253,152	168,798	258,426	163,785	263,115	154,459
Salaries and wages, including commissions on profits or bonuses	225,224	200,550	232,945	202,380	230,178	208,275
Other expenses of management	130,004	106,796	131,504	107,776	146,600	123,721
Reserve to meet unexpired risks as at the end of the year	852,797	613,770	874,545	611,749	927,424	616,252
Other expenditure	5,910	5,910	4,890	4,890	3,321	3,321
Totals	2,478,448	1,837,355	2,758,961	1,964,061	2,964,773	2,061,657

The net fire losses suffered by the insurance offices during 1927 totalled £838,890, compared with £760,825 for 1926 and £621,410 for 1925; while the net premium income for these years amounted to £1,370,479, £1,353,478, and £1,363,107 respectively, the percentage of claims being 61.2, 56.2, and 45.6. Despite an increase in the net premiums of £17,001, the excess of income over expenditure (excluding reserves to meet unexpired risks) in 1927 was actually £86,463 less than in 1926, and £241,552 less than in 1925, the respective balances for these years being—1927, £51,832; 1926, £138,295; and 1925, £293,395. In addition to fire losses other expenditure items showing increases are local authority rates, Fire Board levies, rents, and salaries and wages.

The net premiums and net losses for 1927 are set out for each office in the following table. The total receipts and expenditure are also given in each case.

The total income and total expenditure exclude reserves for unexpired risks at the beginning and end of year, respectively. With the exception of the Mutual Associations this reserve is in most instances 40 per cent. of the net premium income, and in some cases reaches 50 per cent.

FIRE INSURANCE.—REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE, 1927.

Name of Fire-insurance Office.	Net Revenue.		Net Expenditure.
Name of Fire-insurance Office.	Premiums.	Total.^*	Fire Losses.	Total.^*
* Excluding reserves to meet unexpired risks. † Eleven months only.
	£	£	£	£
Overseas Companies.
Alliance	48,511	49,930	27,510	44,249
Atlas	42,144	42,144	26,085	50,185
Australian Alliance	4,312	5,244	2,747	4,765
British Traders'	21,770	22,630	13,866	22,203
Commercial Union	49,296	51,112	29,435	48,957
Excess	23,493	24,281	22,393	33,126
General	2,042	2,042	905	2,566
Guardian	26,689	27,476	18,530	31,249
Hartford	8,569	10,422	8,184	12,520
Home	14,645	16,517	21,852	28,891
Insurance Office of Australia	13,546	14,334	8,600	14,110
Liverpool and London and Globe	33,650	36,285	23,800	43,654
London Assurance Corporation^†	9,393	10,180	4,504	8,829
London and Lancashire	20,016	21,249	12,382	23,163
North British and Mercantile	17,830	18,258	13,754	21,650
Northern Assurance	20,576	22,436	11,609	17,987
Norwich Union	17,819	18,607	10,249	20,947
Ocean	13,038	13,826	8,991	14,493
Phoenix	30,986	30,986	20,713	32,110
Prudential	11,230	11,230	7,373	11,454
Queensland	28,381	30,936	13,215	30,017
Royal	51,863	56,289	31,185	58,186
Royal Exchange	24,967	24,967	12,637	25,049
Southern Union	13,096	13,095	7,655	17,340
Sun	50,394	52,509	29,172	49,058
Union	33,324	33,324	26,948	50,689
United	32,411	32,411	13,600	33,445
Victoria	44,662	46,765	26,227	50,487
Yorkshire	17,051	17,051	10,159	26,093
T. L. Shepherd and Co.	11,611	11,611	10,131	12,292
Totals (overseas companies)	737,315	768,147	474,411	839,764
Local Companies.
Farmers' Co-operative	17,076	19,821	10,401	17,148
Mercantile and General	8,877	12,480	5,347	11,270
National	68,027	79,043	29,545	63,598
New Zealand	148,674	168,018	100,798	154,405
New Zealand Medical	720	937	162	765
S.I.M.U	116	119	..	39
South British	131,887	148,451	77,547	117,086
Standard	60,253	64,787	35,226	59,777
State	181,845	217,731	98,135	167,291
Totals (local companies)	617,475	711,387	357,161	591,379
Mutual Associations.
Otago Farmers' Union	8,179	8,772	4,179	7,750
Taranaki Farmers'	3,810	4,799	1,856	3,907
Wellington Farmers' Union	3,700	4,132	1,283	2,605
Totals (mutual associations)	15,689	17,703	7,318	14,262
Totals (all offices)	1,370,479	1,497,237	838,890	1,445,405

The next table, covering the last two years, shows the percentage of working-expenses to premium income (net and gross) and total net income. Although it is recognized that taxes are in no sense a working-expense, yet they are undoubtedly a heavy recurring call on the profits of an institution, and the ratios are accordingly given both exclusive and inclusive of taxes. For recent years the working-expenses ratios have been much affected by the special bonus rebates previously mentioned. It is desirable, therefore, to adjust the figures in terms of the rebate, showing one set of percentages worked on the actual figures and one on the adjusted figures.

FIRE INSURANCE.—WORKING-EXPENSES, 1926 AND 1927.

Items.	1926.		1927.
Items.	Actual.	Adjusted for Debate.	Actual.	Adjusted for Rebate.
	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Net working-expenses (excluding taxes) to net premium income	40.70	35.66	41.53	35.99
Net working-expenses (including taxes) to net premium income	43.56	38.17	44.01	38.15
Gross working-expenses (excluding taxes) to gross premium income (including reinsurances from other offices)	32.38	28.65	33.46	29.52
Net working-expenses (excluding taxes) to total net income (excluding reserve for unexpired risks at beginning of year)	36.93	32.74	38.01	33.32
Net working-expenses (including taxes) to total net income (excluding reserve for unexpired risks at beginning of year)	39.53	35.04	40.29	35.32

FIRE LOSSES.

The gross fire losses for 1927 were £1,210,661, as compared with £1,129,257 for 1926. In 1927 there were 4,983 fires and 46 conflagrations (cases where three or more buildings are affected). The corresponding figures for the previous year were 4,587 and 41. The following table gives figures of fires and losses during each of the last ten years. It should be noted that from 1924 onwards these figures relate to calendar years, and the figures of losses thus differ slightly from these shown elsewhere, which refer to varying periods covered by the accounts of the different offices.

FIRES AND LOSSES, 1918–27.

Year.	Separate Fires.	Conflagrations.	Buildings, &c. affected	Gross Cover.^*	Gross Loss.	Ratio of Loss to Cover.^*
* On buildings affected.
				£	£	Per Cent.
1918	2,273	76	2,964	2,294,428	472,247	20.58
1919	2,604	48	3,057	2,867,227	390,598	13.62
1920	2,476	55	2,923	2,730,784	448,656	16.43
1921	3,001	66	3,565	4,086,411	738,638	18.08
1922	3,298	55	3,681	3,686,681	739,076	20.05
1923	3,636	51	3,988	4,223,264	796,281	18.85
1924	4,083	41	4,405	4,368,621	1,008,746	23.09
1925	4,018	28	4,340	4,728,691	861,977	18.23
1926	4,587	41	5,014	6,249,024	1,129,257	18.07
1927	4,983	46	5,366	6,555,988	1,210,661	18.47

The next table shows for each of the four principal urban areas and the remainder of the Dominion the fires and losses for 1927:—

FIRES AND LOSSES, 1927.

—	Separate Fires.	Conflagrations.	Buildings affected.	Gross Cover.^*	Gross Loss.			Ratio of Loss to Cover.^*
* On buildings affected.
North Island.				£	£	s.	d.	Per Cent.
Auckland urban area	649	4	699	1,090,784	157,858	12	0	14.47
Wellington urban area	573	6	625	1,280,342	112,410	17	1	8.78
Secondary urban areas	576	5	615	612,872	141,968	10	2	23.16
Rest of North Island	1,280	17	1,398	1,153,231	443,648	19	9	38.47
Totals for North Island	3,078	32	3,337	4,137,229	855,886	19	0	20.69
South Island.
Christchurch urban area	438	1	465	856,241	78,476	12	8	9.17
Dunedin urban area	354	..	375	562,523	50,967	7	3	9.06
Secondary urban areas	205	1	213	317,423	28,510	6	5	8.98
Rest of South Island	664	12	732	600,812	171,850	12	5	28.60
Totals for South Island	1,661	14	1,785	2,336,999	329,804	18	9	14.11
Anywhere in New Zealand	244	..	244	81,760	24,969	10	11	30.54
Totals for Dominion	4,983	46	5,366	6,555,988	1,210,661	8	8	18.47

Losses in the North Island were over two and a half times these in the South Island, the figure being £855,887 as against £329,805, while the number of fires was greater by 1,417. Of the four principal urban areas Auckland suffered most as regards both the number of fires and the losses paid out. Auckland also had the highest ratio of loss to cover, Wellington having the best record in this respect.

The lower loss ratio in the cases of the principal urban areas as compared with the rest of the Dominion is to be expected in view of the greater fire-brigade facilities for handling fires in the larger centres. Companies usually allow this factor to influence the premium required.

The following table shows the amount of fire-insurance claims paid per head of population during the period 1924–28, separate figures being given for the various provincial districts and urban areas, and for the North and South Islands:—

District.	1924.		1925.		1926.		1927.		1928.		1924–28.
NOTE.—In the Dominion totals the figures shown for A are exclusive, and for B inclusive, of claims in respect of losses (motor-vehicles, &c.) which cannot be allocated to districts.
Auckland Provincial District—	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
Auckland urban area	16	5	10	6	13	10	15	4	25	8	16	6
Hamilton urban area	9	9	9	4	12	7	19	5	13	11	13	1
Gisborne urban area	20	0	14	7	30	5	36	3	23	9	25	0
Remainder	15	1	15	6	20	4 5	23	4	22	9	19	5
Totals	15	8	12	11	17	5	19	11	23	10	18	0
Hawke's Bay Provincial District—
Napier urban area	14	0	7	10	18	4	24	10	24	11	15	11
Hastings urban area	1	10	7	3	18	6	27	9	11	4	13	5
Remainder	19	4	36	0	31	9	20	4	23	0	25	11
Totals	13	11	21	11	21	10	23	3	20	11	20	5
District.	1924.		1925.		1926.		1927.		1928.		1924–28.
Taranaki Provincial District—	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
New Plymouth urban area	5	10	6	9	29	11	11	3	19	3	14	10
Remainder	13	1	11	3	11	2	13	3	21	11	14	2
Totals	11	5	10	2	15	8	12	9	21	3	14	4
Wellington Provincial District—
Wellington urban area	19	3	15	4	12	9	17	4	34	10	20	1
Wanganui urban area	10	2	12	5	5	0	12	10	8	7	9	10
Palmerston North urban area	30	3	11	5	36	3	25	7	15	3	23	9
Remainder	15	6	16	6	19	8	24	9	19	6	19	2
Totals	17	8	15	2	16	4	20	4	25	2	19	0
North Island—
Urban areas	16	4	11	9	15	0	17	8	25	7	17	5
Remainder	17	6	16	11	19	10	22	1	21	9	19	3
Totals	15	10	14	2	17	3	19	9	23	10	18	3
Marlborough Provincial District	19	8	25	8	25	9	30	10	19	9	24	3
Nelson Provincial District—
Nelson urban area	4	8	8	7	23	5	11	11	45	10	19	1
Remainder	4	0	11	1	9	5	10	2	17	6	10	6
Totals	4	2	10	6	12	8	10	7	24	2	12	6
Westland Provincial District	9	3	12	11	31	9	41	6	45	1	28	5
Canterbury Provincial District—
Christchurch urban area	26	7	4	10	10	5	12	9	11	4	13	2
Timaru urban area		6	9	5	6	3	3	10	8	9	6	4
Remainder	8	8	8	10	20	4	11	1	16	5	13	1
Totals	18	0	6	8	13	8	11	5	12	11	12	7
Otago Provincial District—
Dunedin urban area	9	6	8	0	18	1	12	2	11	7	11	10
Remainder	6	6	9	2	7	1	8	0	11	5	8	5
Totals	8	1	8	6	13	3	10	4	11	6	10	4
Southland Provincial District—
Invercargill urban area	10	11	28	0	8	0	15	9	10	1	14	6
Remainder	7	3	7	9	7	8	9	7	12	1	8	10
Totals	8	5	14	7	7	9	11	8	11	5	10	9
South Island—
Urban areas	17	2	8	4	13	0	12	2	12	9	12	8
Remainder	8	1	10	6	14	4	13	2	16	7	12	6
Totals	12	5	9	5	13	8	12	8	14	8	12	7
Dominion—
Urban areas	16	8	10	6	14	3	15	8	21	0	15	8
Remainder	12	4	14	4	17	8	18	7	19	9	18	7
Totals—
A	14	6	12	4	15	11	17	1	20	5	16	1
B	15	3	12	10	16	5	17	5	20	8	16	7

MUTUAL FIRE-INSURANCE ASSOCIATIONS.

Mutual associations are dealt with by the Mutual Fire Insurance Act, 1908, which allows at least 100 owners of isolated or farm property to subscribe to a declaration and form themselves into a mutual association to insure against loss by fire to an amount in the aggregate of not less than £40,000. Such associations effect insurance on the premium-note principle, and accept premium notes to be assessed for losses in the proportion of the total amount of such notes. The amount of a member's premium notes limits his liability.

In addition to furnishing returns to the Census and Statistics Office, each mutual association (of which there are three in existence) is required to furnish to the Public Trustee a statement of the condition of the association as at the 31st March in each year. The following particulars are taken from the statements furnished to the Public Trustee for the year ended 31st March, 1929:—

—	Taranaki Farmers' Mutual Fire Insurance Association.	Wellington Farmers' Union Mutual Fire Insurance Association.	Otago Farmers' Union Mutual Fire Insurance Association.
Assets—	£	£	£
Cash in hand and in bank	1,737	878	443
Fixed deposits	8,300	11,200	..
Outstanding premium notes	65,584	62,097	79,401
Other investments	11,150	..	14,669
Other assets	996	121	1,662
Total assets	87,767	74,296	96,175
Liabilities—
Existing claims	508	..	311
Policies in force	1,073,721	1,093,559	3,387,185
Reserves	709	..	..
Total liabilities	1,074,938	1,093,539	3,387,496
Income—
Premium notes	6,200	8,042	13,138
Interest	892	508	661
Other receipts	77	5	14
Total income	7,169	8,555	13,813
Expenditure—
Losses paid	2,983	4,034	4,651
Expenses	2,691	1,862	4,951
Reinsurance	581	566	1,066
Other payments and expenditure	68	..	4
Total expenditure	6,323	6,462	10,672

STATE FIRE INSURANCE.

In the year 1903 an Act was passed “to establish a State Fire Insurance Office and to make other provisions for the insurance and protection of insurable property in New Zealand against loss or damage by fire.” This Act came into operation on the 4th January, 1905, when the State Fire Insurance Office opened for public business with an advance of £2,000 borrowed from the Treasury.

At the end of the first year the Office showed an income of £13,135 and a net surplus of £481. From this the progress of the Office may be gauged from the figures for 1928, which show an annual income of £252,094, and assets of over £770,000.

As has been mentioned earlier in this subsection, under the State Fire Insurance Amendment Act, 1922, provision is made that when the Board considers that the funds of the Office are sufficient to meet liabilities it may direct that a rebate be allowed to insurers in respect of premiums thereafter becoming payable. In 1923 the State Fire Office declared a rebate to policyholders, which took the form of a 15-per-cent. reduction on all premiums falling due between the 1st August, 1923, and 31st July, 1924. On the expiry of this period a rebate of 10 per cent. was declared, to apply for twelve months from the 1st August, 1924. This rate was continued until the 31st December, 1925, when it was increased to 12 1/2 per cent., at which figure it has since remained. The amount granted in rebates to State Fire policyholders during 1928 was £26,421, which, added to the amounts granted in preceding years, makes a total concession to policyholders of £127,088.

As a consequence of the operations of the State Fire Office the rates on trade risks and the like were early reduced by 10 per cent., and these on dwellings, offices, and similar risks by 33 1/3 per cent. These reductions, together with the institution of the rebate system, have resulted in very substantial savings to the insuring public.

The net income from all sources in 1928 amounted to £252,094, and the net premium income to £211,634, compared with the previous year's figures of £243,496 and £207,611 respectively. The surplus for the year, after making provision for rebates, reserves, and depreciation and writing down of Office premises, was £61,600.

The net losses were £81,585, as compared with £98,135 for 1927, the ratio to net premium income being 38.55 per cent. and 47.27 per cent. respectively.

The following table shows the progress of business during the last ten years:—

Year.	Net Premium Income.	Total Net Income.	Net Losses.	Accumulated Funds.	Assets.
	£	£	£	£	£
1919	100,764	110,565	23,211	256,338	288,349
1920	124,538	135,670	21,182	316,057	348,390
1921	136,429	150,073	38,126	361,138	405,301
1922	142,592	156,476	46,091	410,006	447,605
1923	154,164	169,249	46,178	458,513	493,962
1924	165,070	190,300	60,817	499,007	530,283
1925	176,664	207,418	56,997	568,061	604,096
1926	197,471	233,545	79,062	623,622	661,519
1927	207,611	243,496	98,135	670,061	707,826
1928	211,634	252,094	81,585	744,271	771,959

The balance-sheet of the State Fire Insurance Office as at the 31st December, 1928, is appended:—

Liabilities.
Capital authorized by the State	£	£
Fire Insurance Act, 1908	100,000
Less not raised	100,000
		Nil
Reserve Fund		525,517
Investments Fluctuation Reserve Fund		10,000
Reserve for unearned premiums		84,654
Bonus rebate reserve		27,500
Reinsurance Reserve Fund		35,000
Premium and other deposits		815
Outstanding fire losses		1,855
Government taxes		9,790
Sundry creditors		5,687
Other amounts owing by the Office—		£
Reinsurance premiums due	7,086
Commission	1,664
Rent	30
Printing, stationery, and advertising	17
Postages and sundry charges	743	9,540
Fire-insurance funds, as per Revenue Account		61,601
		£771,959
Assets.		£
Government war-loan securities		148,146
Other Government securities		123,150
Local-authority securities		87,696
Rural advances and credit bonds		34,175
Fixed deposits and at short call		90,000
Land and buildings		210,616
Outstanding premiums		8,950
Interest accrued but not due		7,260
Rent accrued or overdue		606
Cash in Bank of New Zealand at Wellington, or in transit to Wellington	£	60,466
Imprest Account balances	994
		61,460
		£771,959

Exclusive of Government taxes, which amounted to 4.63 per cent., the working expense ratio to premium income was 26.98 per cent., and without Fire Board contributions only 23.54 per cent.

The accumulated funds at the close of 1928 amounted to £744,271, a substantial increase of £74,210 over the figure for the previous year (£670,061); while the assets as at the 31st December, 1928, totalled £771,959, an increase of £64,133.

FIRE BRIGADES.

At the 31st December, 1928, there were 171 fire brigades (including branches) in New Zealand, with a total of 454 officers and 2,126 men. Figures for each of the last five years are:—

Year.	Stations.	Officers.	Men.	Total Personnel.
1924	158	400	2,021	2,421
1925	163	411	2,029	2,440
1926	170	448	2,079	2,527
1927	168	448	2,115	2,563
1928	171	454	2,126	2,580

Chapter 30. SECTION XXX.—FRIENDLY SOCIETIES.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

LODGES AND MEMBERS.

MORTALITY AND SICKNESS.

FUNDS OF FRIENDLY SOCIETIES.

SICK AND FUNERAL FUNDS, 1928.

MEDICAL AND MANAGEMENT EXPENSES FUNDS, 1928.

FRIENDLY SOCIETIES IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

INTRODUCTORY.

THE legislation dealing with friendly societies is contained in the Friendly Societies Act, 1909, and its amendments of 1911, 1915, and 1922. Provision is made for the registration of all societies and branches with a central Government officer entitled the Registrar of Friendly Societies, and also for the general oversight by the Government of the administration of the funds of the societies. The powers, duties, and obligations of societies are set out, as is also a schedule of offences and of penalties therefor.

A scheme for the extension of State benefits to members of friendly societies, on special terms, was introduced by the Finance Act, 1916 (Part IX), and extended and amended by the National Provident Fund Amendment Act, 1919, which is now embodied in the National Provident Fund Act, 1926. Information concerning the scheme is given in Section XXV of this book, in the article dealing with the National Provident Fund.

LODGES AND MEMBERS.

At the 31st December, 1928, there were 1,037 lodges, courts, &c., on the Register of Friendly Societies, a net increase of twenty-two during the year. The figures for the various orders are as follows:—

Annual returns of receipts, expenditure, &c., are required by law, but it would appear that many lodges do not comply with the requirements. For the year 1928 the Registrar of Friendly Societies received returns from 885 lodges, with an aggregate membership of 100,928 at the end of the year, as compared with 864 lodges and 98,251 members for 1927. The following table shows the membership at the beginning and end of the year, with the accretions and losses of members during the year, in respect of the 885 lodges returned in 1928:—

Number of members, 1st January		98,251
Number admitted by—
Initiation, &c.	9,098
Clearance	1,202
		10,300
		108,551
Number who died	756
Number who left by—
Clearance	1,307
Arrears, &c.	5,560
		7,623
Number of members at 31st December		100,928

The above figures show an increase in membership equal to 2.72 per cent., as compared with 3.01 per cent. for 1927.

The figures of membership of lodges furnishing returns during each of the last ten years are as follows:—

Year.	Number of Lodges tabulated.	Number of Members.
1919	735	70,598
1920	732	74,210
1921	731	77,814
1922	746	80,777
1923	774	84,228
1924	782	87,433
1925	817	91,353
1926	843	95,383
1927	864	98,251
1928	885	100,928

The figures are of use for comparative purposes, in spite of the comparatively large proportion of lodges which do not furnish returns, as it is found that with few exceptions the same lodges are the delinquents each year.

MORTALITY AND SICKNESS.

In the following statement of the mortality experience for the last five years no account has been taken of age incidence:—

Year.	Deaths of Members.		Deaths of Members' Wives.
Year.	Number.	Per 1,000 Members at Risk.	Number.	Per 1,000 Members at Risk.
1924	674	8.09	295	3.54
1925	648	7.22	328	3.66
1926	748	8.02	323	3.46
1927	776	7.98	320	3.29
1928	756	7.56	341	3.41

The number of members sick during 1928 was 19,336, representing 21.2 per cent. of members at risk. The sickness experienced during 1928 aggregated 196,978 weeks, equal to seventy-one days per sick member, and fifteen days for each member at risk.

FUNDS OF FRIENDLY SOCIETIES.

The total funds of the societies and branches as at the 31st December, 1928, amounted to £3,728,087, made up as follows: Sick and Funeral Funds (inclusive of amounts transferred to special funds out of surplus), £3,457,115; Medical and Management Funds, goods, &c., £163,785; Widow and Orphans' Funds, £26,508; and Distress, Benevolent Funds, &c., £80,679. Dividing the total funds by the number of members at the end of the year it is found that the average capital per member is £36 18s. 9d. There has been a continuous increase in the amount of accumulated funds standing to the credit of friendly societies during the ten years 1919–28. The average capital per member has also appreciably increased, the increase over the period amounting to 19 per cent., in spite of an increase in membership of 43 per cent.

The total funds and the average capital per member at the end of each of the last ten years were as under:—

Year.	Total Funds.	Average Capital.
	£	£	s.	d.
1919	2,184,653	30	18	11
1920	2,321,176	31	5	7
1921	2,445,843	31	8	8
1922	2,593,692	32	2	2
1923	2,747,952	32	12	6
1924	2,955,340	33	16	0
1925	3,136,237	34	6	7
1926	3,337,683	35	6	8
1927	3,526,717	35	17	11
1928	3,728,087	36	18	9

These sums are held against the societies' liabilities under their sickness and funeral insurances, and actuarial valuations made by the Friendly Societies Office from time to time indicate how far they are sufficient or otherwise.

The following statement shows the disposal of the total funds (including these of the central bodies) as at 31st December, 1928:—

Funds.	£
Sick and Funeral Funds	3,214,131
Surplus Appropriation Funds, &c.	242,984
Management Funds, goods, &c.	163,785
Widow and Orphans' Funds	26,508
Distress, Benevolent Funds, &c.	80,679
	£3,728,087
Assets.	£
Investments at interest	3,184,434
Value of land and buildings	390,151
Cash not bearing interest	107,743
Value of goods	22,340
Owing by Management Funds	18,372
Other assets	5,047
	£3,728,087

The net income from investments credited to the Sick and Funeral Funds for 1928 amounted to £171,975, the average rate being £5 13s. 2d. per cent., as against £5 16s. 7d. in 1927. The figures of Sick and Funeral Funds and of interest earnings thereon during 1928 are given for each order in the following table:—

Order.	Total Worth of Sick and Funeral Funds as at		Interest earned during 1928.	Average Rate per Cent.
Order.	1st January, 1928.	31st December, 1928.	Interest earned during 1928.	Average Rate per Cent.
	£	£	£	£
M.U.I.O.O.F.	1,085,985	1,146,462	59,835	5.51
I.O.O.F.	252,777	260,001	14,004	5.62
N.I.O.O.F.	5,916	5,991	281	4.83
B.U.O.O.F.	5,539	5,836	344	6.24
A.O.F.	651,583	685,395	35,568	5.47
A.O.S.	1,451	1,429	88	6.30
U.A.O.D	680,509	735,058	40,711	5.92
I.O.R	147,570	156,009	8,604	5.83
O.S.T	23,445	24,682	1,380	5.90
S.D.T.	11,102	11,479	657	5.99
H.A.C.B.S.	81,751	87,886	4,996	6.07
P.A.F.S.A.	39,826	41,863	2,470	6.24
G.U.O.O.F.	1,287	1,685	29	1.97
Other societies	47,929	50,355	3,008	8.31
Totals	3,036,670	3,214,131	171,975	5.66

The receipts and expenditure of the Sick and Funeral Funds for the year 1928 totalled £433,752 and £256,291 respectively, made up as follows:—

SICK AND FUNERAL FUNDS, 1928.

Receipts.	£
Members' contributions	183,809
Interest and rent	171,975
Repayments by central body	53,047
Other receipts	24,921
	£433,752
Expenditure.	£
Sick pay	128,897
Funeral donations	34,082
Contributions and levies to central body	82,723
Other expenditure	10,589
	£256,291

Members' contributions averaged £1 16s. 11d. per member, and interest and rent receipts amounted to £1 14s. 6d. per member, reckoned on the mean number of members for the year. Sickness benefits paid averaged £6 13s. 4d. per member sick, or £1 5s. 11d. when averaged over all members, while funeral benefits represented 6s. 10d. per member.

The receipts of the Medical and Management Expenses Funds for 1928 totalled £236,800, and the expenditure was £228,891, the details being as follows:—

MEDICAL AND MANAGEMENT EXPENSES FUNDS, 1928.

Receipts.	£
Members' contributions	219,537
Interest and rent	5,019
Other receipts	12,244
	£236,800
Expenditure.	£
Medical attendance and medicine	154,149
Management expenses	53,070
Levies to central bodies	15,433
Other expenditure	6,239
	£228,891

Of the total funds of £3,728,087 held as at the 31st December, 1928, £3,184,434 was invested at interest; land and buildings were valued at £390,151; and goods, furniture, and regalia at £22,340; cash on hand amounted to £107,743; and other assets were valued at £23,419. Details of the amount invested at interest for each of the last nine years are given in the following table:—

Year.	Total Funds.	Funds Invested at Interest.					Proportion of Funds Invested.
Year.	Total Funds.	Mortgages on Freehold Property.	Government and Municipal Debentures.	Deposited with Banks.	Other Investments.	Total.	Proportion of Funds Invested.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.
1920	2,321,176	1,694,579	175,914	86,917	31,901	1,989,311	85.70
1921	2,445,843	1,827,579	196,694	68,494	28,975	2,121,742	86.75
1922	2,593,692	1,932,798	203,711	66,536	25,098	2,228,143	85.91
1923	2,747,952	2,044,806	202,220	85,957	13,317	2,346,300	85.38
1924	2,955,340	2,222,753	191,192	81,035	35,846	2,530,826	85.64
1925	3,136,237	2,361,865	215,702	86,580	21,104	2,685,251	85.62
1926	3,337,683	2,534,646	235,230	97,254	17,175	2,884,305	86.42
1927	3,526,717	2,704,594	211,635	89,791	17,852	3,023,872	85.74
1928	3,728,087	2,854,741	212,505	96,343	20,845	3,184,434	85.42

FRIENDLY SOCIETIES IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

A comparison of the latest available statistics showing the number of members of friendly societies, the amount of their accumulated capital, and the average capital per member in each of the Australian States and in the Dominion of New Zealand is given in the next table. The average amount of capital per member in the Dominion greatly exceeds the average for any of the Australian States.

State or Dominion.	Date of Return.	Number of Lodges.	Number of Members.	Amount of Funds.	Capital per Member.
				£	£	s.	d.
New Zealand	31/12/1928	885	100,928	3,728,087	36	18	9
Victoria	30/6/1928	1,481	161,850	4,758,383	29	8	0
South Australia	31/12/1927	684	78,422	2,144,921	27	7	0
Queensland	30/6/1927	572	66,642	1,481,736	22	4	8
Western Australia	30/6/1928	341	23,509	423,322	18	0	2
New South Wales	30/6/1928	2,433	242,199	3,657,274	15	2	0
Tasmania	31/12/1927	191	25,076	377,258	15	0	11

Chapter 31. SECTION XXXI.—BUILDING SOCIETIES.

Table of Contents

NUMBER OF SOCIETIES.

NUMBER OF BUILDING SOCIETIES, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

SHARES.

BUILDING SOCIETIES.—SHARES AND MEMBERS, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

BUILDING SOCIETIES, PERMANENT AND TERMINATING, 1928–29.

LOANS AND BORROWERS.

BUILDING SOCIETIES.—LOANS AND BORROWERS, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

BUILDING SOCIETIES.—AVERAGE AMOUNT BORROWED, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

INCOME AND OUTGO.

BUILDING SOCIETIES.—INCOME AND OUTGO, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

LIABILITIES AND ASSETS.

LIABILITIES OF BUILDING AND INVESTMENT SOCIETIES, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

ASSETS OF BUILDING AND INVESTMENT SOCIETIES, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

BUILDING SOCIETIES IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

THE law relating to building societies incorporated in the Dominion is contained in the Building Societies Act, 1908, which is a consolidation of legislation most of which has been operative since 1880. The Assistant Registrar of Companies in each district acts as Registrar of Building Societies, and before a society can be incorporated the formalities prescribed by the Act and regulations must be completed. Rules, as well as subsequent alterations thereof, must before registration be certified to as conforming to legal requirements by a revising barrister appointed by the Governor-General for the purpose. A fee of £5 5s. is payable by the society concerned for this service, but no second fee is payable for amendments made within five years following. The fee payable to the Registrar of Building Societies on incorporation is £3 3s., but no stamp duties are payable on any instruments or documents made under the Act.

Building societies are afforded all the powers of an ordinary mortgagee, and where a mortgagor makes default in payment of moneys the society may exercise the usual power of sale through the Registrar of the Supreme Court. No reconveyance is needed to discharge a mortgage made under the Act, a receipt endorsed being a sufficient discharge for this purpose.

The two classes of building and investment societies—viz., permanent and terminating—are distinguished according as to whether the society is by its rules to terminate at a fixed date or when a specified result is attained.

Returns of each society's operations are furnished annually to the Census and Statistics Office. The dates upon which the societies close their accounts vary considerably within the year, but the figures given below may be taken as corresponding approximately to the financial years ended on the 31st March of the years shown.

NUMBER OF SOCIETIES.

The number of societies in existence in 1928–29 was 92. Of these, 49 were permanent and 43 terminating, the latter being comprised of 183 groups. The following table shows the number of societies in operation over a period of five years:—

NUMBER OF BUILDING SOCIETIES, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

Year.	Number of Permanent Societies.	Number of Terminating Societies.
Year.	Number of Permanent Societies.	Societies.	Groups.
1924–25	41	45	155
1925–26	44	44	166
1926–27	45	43	174
1927–28	49	44	176
1928–29	49	43	183

There has been a tendency for individual societies to enlarge their activities rather than for the number of societies to increase. Although the number of terminating societies shows a slight decrease over the five years under review, the number of groups has increased substantially.

SHARES.

A synopsis of the extent to which investments have been made in building-society shares during the last five years is contained in the table next presented:—

BUILDING SOCIETIES.—SHARES AND MEMBERS, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

—	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
Investing Shares.
Number of shares	191,551	222,507	245,763	256,228	280,182
Members holding	44,776	48,220	59,021	54,534	56,277
Aggregate value	£2,046,805	£2,262,551	£2,518,082	£2,668,059	£2,983,357
Paid-up Shares.
Number of shares	163,863	200,741	210,527	392,287	469,980
Members holding	3,077	3,385	3,169	4,298	4,366
Aggregate value	£685,379	£755,975	£789,088	£988,503	£1,108,910

The average value in 1928–29 of each investing share paying periodic subscription was £10 13s. 1d., as compared with £10 13s. 9d. in 1923–24, and of each paid-up share £2 7s. 2d., as compared with £4 3s. 8d. five years age A comparison of the distribution of share-money and the number of holders of shares between permanent and terminating societies yields the following results:—

BUILDING SOCIETIES, PERMANENT AND TERMINATING, 1928–29.

—	Permanent.	Terminating.	Total.
Investing Shares.
Number of shares	137,065	143,117	280,182
Members holding	11,976	44,301	56,277
Aggregate value	£1,200,345	£1,783,012	£2,983,357
Paid-up Shares.
Number of shares	469,980	..	469,980
Members holding	4,366	..	4,366
Aggregate value	£1,108,910	..	£1,108,910

Of the total aggregate value of both investing and paid-up shares, amounting to £4,092,267, 56 per cent. is held in permanent societies and 44 per cent. in terminating societies. On the other hand, the number of members holding shares in permanent societies is only 27 per cent. of the total, the terminating societies' shareholders representing 73 per cent. It should be pointed out, however, that one person may hold shares in several groups of a terminating society.

LOANS AND BORROWERS.

The numbers of loans and borrowers, both of permanent and of terminating societies, are as follows:—

BUILDING SOCIETIES.—LOANS AND BORROWERS, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

Year.	Permanent Societies.		Terminating Societies.		Total.
Year.	Borrowers.	Amount.	Borrowers.	Amount.	Borrowers.	Amount.
		£		£		£
1924–25	5,870	2,970,235	5,896	1,554,597	11,766	4,524,832
1925–26	6,560	3,273,714	5,461	1,713,097	12,021	4,986,811
1926–27	7,041	3,497,491	6,086	1,907,381	13,127	5,404,872
1927–28	7,899	4,099,105	6,029	1,995,771	13,928	6,094,876
1928–29	8,582	4,486,242	6,582	2,216,198	15,164	6,702,440

Since 1923–24 there has been an increase of 4,837 in the number of borrowers and of £2,691,330 in the amount borrowed. Permanent societies show the greater advance.

BUILDING SOCIETIES.—AVERAGE AMOUNT BORROWED, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

Class.	1924–25.			1925–26.			1926–27.			1927–28.			1928–29.
	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
Permanent societies	506	0	1	499	0	10	496	14	6	518	18	9	522	15	0
Terminating societies	263	13	4	313	13	11	313	8	1	331	0	7	336	14	1
All societies	384	11	4	414	16	10	412	0	10	437	12	0	442	0	0

INCOME AND OUTGO.

Building societies have experienced a continued demand for money available for household property, as will be seen from the figures in the table below, which reflect the extent of advances made to shareholders.

BUILDING SOCIETIES.—INCOME AND OUTGO, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

—	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
Income.	£	£	£	£	£
Investors' subscriptions and paid-up shares	498,788	577,847	625,556	718,881	762,557
Advances repaid	680,317	761,604	781,856	737,943	859,796
Deposits received	1,252,155	1,524,998	1,442,724	1,697,536	1,874,091
Interest received	174,793	196,440	212,212	232,631	264,291
Other receipts	95,229	91,096	143,079	122,896	111,148
Total income	2,701,282	3,151,985	3,205,427	3,509,887	3,871,883
Outgo.
Withdrawals	271,019	297,209	328,942	360,212	365,966
Advances	1,060,029	1,174,174	1,170,344	1,347,974	1,406,575
Expenses of management	46,792	50,733	54,030	56,973	59,827
Deposits repaid	1,171,092	1,386,923	1,422,235	1,451,363	1,700,946
Interest, dividends, and other expenditure	187,805	217,633	237,614	263,559	304,019
Total outgo	2,736,737	3,126,672	3,213,165	3,480,081	3,837,333

LIABILITIES AND ASSETS.

The liabilities and assets of building and investment societies for each of the years 1924–25 to 1928–29 are as follows:—

LIABILITIES OF BUILDING AND INVESTMENT SOCIETIES, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

Year.	To Shareholders (including Reserve Funds and Undivided Profits).	Deposits.	To Bankers and other Creditors.	Total Liabilities.
	£	£	£	£
1924–25	3,253,576	1,292,224	267,107	4,812,907
1925–26	3,602,294	1,555,468	184,411	5,342,173
1926–27	3,960,294	1,436,423	353,099	5,749,816
1927–28	4,402,665	1,684,276	421,200	6,508,141
1928–29	4,899,085	1,856,434	400,406	7,155,925

ASSETS OF BUILDING AND INVESTMENT SOCIETIES, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

Year.	Advances on Mortgage.	Other Investments and Assets.	Cash in Hand and on Deposit.	Total Assets.
	£	£	£	£
1924–25	4,524,832	140,693	147,382	4,812,907
1925–26	4,986,811	147,718	207,644	5,342,173
1928–27	5,404,872	194,404	150,540	5,749,816
1927–28	6,094,876	236,420	176,845	6,508,141
1928–29	6,702,440	241,642	211,843	7,155,925

BUILDING SOCIETIES IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

The extent to which building and investment societies are supported in the Dominion is apparent from the table below of similar activities in the Commonwealth of Australia for 1927:—

State.	Number of Societies.	Number of Shareholders.	Number of Shares.	Number of Borrowers.	Amount advanced during Year.
* Not available. † For year 1927–28.
					£
New South Wales	7	2,547	28,302	4,673	321,581
Victoria	26	9,840	^*	12,066	1,154,118
Queensland	10	5,775	1,349,668	3,532	248,777
South Australia	24	18,003	76,277	3,181	182,648
Western Australia	13	12,246	34,664	2,116	215,162
Tasmania	4	4,311	38,726	1,472	114,110
New Zealand^†	93	58,832	618,515	13,928	1,347,974

Chapter 32. SECTION XXXII.—MORTGAGES.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

PROPERTY THAT MAY BE MORTGAGED.

REDEMPTION.

RIGHTS OF MORTGAGEE.

MORTGAGES REGISTERED AND DISCHARGED.

MORTGAGES REGISTERED.

MORTGAGES.—TOTAL AMOUNT REGISTERED, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

MORTGAGES UNDER EACH REGISTRATION SYSTEM.

MORTGAGES REGISTERED UNDER DEEDS-REGISTRATION AND LAND-TRANSFER SYSTEMS, 1926–27 TO 1928–29.

MORTGAGES REGISTERED.—CLASSIFIED BY AMOUNT.

MORTGAGES.—NUMBER AND AMOUNT ACCORDING TO SUM ADVANCED, 1928–29.

MORTGAGES ON URBAN AND RURAL SECURITIES.

MORTGAGES REGISTERED UNDER THE LAND TRANSFER ACT, 1928–29.

MORTGAGES REGISTERED UNDER LAND TRANSFER ACT, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

MORTGAGES DISCHARGED.

MORTGAGES.—NUMBER AND AMOUNT DISCHARGED, 1926–27 TO 1928–29.

MONTHLY REGISTRATIONS AND DISCHARGES.

MORTGAGES.—TRANSACTIONS EACH MONTH, JANUARY, 1927, TO SEPTEMBER, 1929.

RATES OF INTEREST.

MORTGAGES.—RATES OF INTEREST, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

MORTGAGES AND LAND VALUES.

MORTGAGES, 1928—SUMMARY BY TYPE.

MORTGAGES, 1928.—BY AMOUNT OF UNIMPROVED VALUE: TYPES 1 TO 3.

MORTGAGES, 1928.—BY AMOUNT OF UNIMPROVED VALUE: TYPE 1.

MORTGAGES, 1928.—BY AREA: TYPES 1 TO 3.

MORTGAGES, 1928.—BY AREA: TYPE 1.

MORTGAGES, 1928.—BY OCCUPATION: TYPE 1.

INTRODUCTORY.

UNDER the Property Law Act a “mortgage” is defined as including a charge on any property for securing money or money's worth; and “mortgage-money” means money or money's worth secured by a mortgage. Under the Land Transfer Act “mortgage” means and includes any charge on land created under the provisions of that Act for securing—

The repayment of a loan or satisfaction of an existing debt;
The repayment of future advances, or repayment or satisfaction of any future or unascertained debt or liability, contingent or otherwise;
The payment to the holders for the time being of any bonds, debentures, promissory notes or other securities, negotiable or otherwise, made or issued by the mortgagor before or after the creation of such charge;
The payment to any person or persons by yearly or periodical payments or otherwise of an annuity, rent-charge, or sum of money other than a debt.

Where the ownership of land is registered under the Land Transfer Act mortgages on that land are granted by virtue of the provisions of that Act, and take effect as securities and do not operate as transfers of the estate or interest charged. In the case of other land or property a mortgage is granted under what is known as the deeds or deeds-registration system; the mortgage in this instance operating as a conveyance or assignment of the land or property mortgaged, for the mortgagee becomes the registered proprietor of the land, subject to the right of the mortgagor to have the property re-registered in his name on the discharge of his obligations under the mortgage. Although in form a mortgage under the deeds system is a conveyance, in equity it is treated as merely a charge on the land.

PROPERTY THAT MAY BE MORTGAGED.

Any land covered by the definitions of “land” in the Property Law Act, 1908, and the Land Transfer Act, 1915, may be mortgaged. Where, however, property is subject to restrictions upon alienation, these restrictions usually apply to prevent such property being mortgaged. The following are the main instances in which mortgage of property is forbidden by law:—

Family homes registered under the Family Protection Act, 1908.
Maintenance-moneys under the Family Protection Act, 1908.
Inalienable life annuities (Inalienable Life Annuities Act, 1910).
Various pensions (Pensions Act, 1926).
Property subject to restraint upon anticipation, unless by consent of the Supreme Court.
Property subject to restraint upon alienation in accordance with section 24 of the Property Law Act, 1908.
An infant's property, by the infant (Infants Act, 1908, sections 12 and 13).

REDEMPTION.

A memorandum of discharge vacates the mortgage debt and operates as a deed of reconveyance of the estate and interest of the mortgagee in the mortgaged property “to the person for the time being entitled to the equity of redemption”; but the mortgagee may execute a deed of reconveyance “if he thinks fit and the mortgagor requires it.” The Public Trustee is empowered to receive mortgage-moneys on account of absentee mortgagees, and in the case of a deed of mortgage to execute the necessary memorandum of discharge. A mortgagor may redeem in the following cases:—

Before the due date, on payment of interest for the unexpired term of the mortgage.
At the due date, in accordance with the provisions of the mortgage.
After the due date, upon giving three months' notice in writing or paying three months' interest in lieu of notice, except where the mortgagee is or has been in possession or has taken steps to enforce his security, in which case the mortgagor may redeem at any time upon payment of all moneys due.
After default and before sale by the mortgagee. If the mortgagee has entered into possession of the mortgaged land or part of it, the mortgagor loses his right of redemption after twenty years from the date of the mortgagee's entering into possession, or after twenty years from the last written acknowledgment of the mortgagor's title or of his right to redeem.

The Property Law Act abolished what was formerly known as the doctrine of consolidation of mortgages. Where a mortgagor is liable under more than one mortgage, he may now pay off one mortgage without being called on to pay off any mortgage or mortgages on property not comprised in the mortgage he is paying off.

RIGHTS OF MORTGAGEE.

Under New Zealand law a mortgagee has no power of foreclosure in respect of realty. The following, however, represent his principal rights:—

He is entitled to the custody of the title-deeds of the property mortgaged.
He may sue on the personal covenant contained in the mortgage-deed.
He may enter and take possession. This right is exercisable either by actually entering upon the land or a part of it or by bringing an action for possession. If there is a tenant whose rights are binding on the mortgagee, the latter can give notice to the tenant to pay the rent to him, and this will be equivalent to taking possession.
He may assign his interest, either absolutely or by way of submortgage.
He may sell, either under the express powers (if any) in the mortgage-deed, or under powers implied by statute, if these have not been negatived in the deed.
Instead of selling, as above, a mortgagee entitled to exercise his power of sale may apply to the Registrar of the Supreme Court to conduct the sale. The mortgagee must state in his application the estimated value of the land, and the date of the sale must be not less than one month and not more than three months from the date of the application. He may bid at the sale and become the purchaser of the land, but in such case the amount paid for the land shall not be less than the value of the land as estimated. If it is, the mortgagor must be allowed in account the full amount of the estimate.

Information concerning the now expired Mortgages Extension (Moratorium) Acts is given in the 1928 and previous issues of the Year-book.

MORTGAGES REGISTERED AND DISCHARGED.

A table is given showing the amount represented by mortgages registered and discharged during each of the last eighteen years. Prior to 1911–12, annual figures were compiled only for mortgages under the Land Transfer Act.

Year ended 3lst March,	Mortgages registered.	Mortgages discharged.
	£	£
1912	22,808,367	15,384,889
1913	22,597,478	13,293,906
1914	21,352,695	12,726,773
1915	19,382,213	11,276,289
1916	22,463,297	12,802,549
1917	21,056,874	12,994,003
1918	18,126,924	11,614,517
1919	19,007,286	11,040,897
1920	48,442,900	23,086,746
1921	66,960,434	29,464,132
1922	34,789,324	13,234,365
1923	26,031,596	14,579,767
1924	37,862,419	22,246,512
1925	41,123,966	29,733,883
1926	47,093,780	33,958,144
1927	39,979,681	29,233,329
1928	33,190,519	23,998,840
1929	33,559,932	25,269,613

Although affording a valuable index of the movement over the period, the figures cannot be accepted as indicating the amount of indebtedness incurred by way of mortgage. Duplicate registrations are included, as are also collateral and guarantee mortgages not representing money indebtedness. An extreme example of duplication occurred in the year 1923–24 when an amount of £1,000,000 was registered in each of four districts, the same amount being also registered in a fifth district in the first month of the next financial year. On the other hand no amount is shown as secured in a proportion of cases where a mortgage is given in anticipation of advances, &c. In addition there are numbers of privately arranged advances which are not registered; and stock and crop liens, bills of sale, and instruments under the Chattels Transfer Act are not included in the statistics.

Many discharges are not registered, particularly in the case of leaseholds and also of second or other further mortgages when the power of sale has been exercised by the first mortgagee. Moreover, in the case of table mortgages, the whole amount remains on the register till the last instalment of principal is repaid.

MORTGAGES REGISTERED.

The total amount for which mortgages were registered, both under the deeds-registration system and under the Land Transfer Act, in each registration district during the five years 1924–25 to 1928–29 is given in the subjoined table.

In addition to a total of 35,072 mortgages which represent the aggregate of £33,559,932 for 1928–29, there were 3,529 mortgages in which no amount was shown as secured.

MORTGAGES.—TOTAL AMOUNT REGISTERED, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

District.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	12,649,663	12,977,173	13,044,263	10,125,741	9,688,281
Poverty Bay	1,127,989	1,127,002	1,164,630	960,781	1,052,985
Hawke's Bay	2,794,584	2,669,000	1,957,920	1,860,379	2,043,156
Taranaki	2,234,869	3,116,951	2,450,511	1,645,598	1,919,130
Wellington	9,349,396	13,111,219	10,085,415	9,058,782	9,104,790
Nelson	599,954	712,286	472,253	393,411	430,594
Marlborough	731,220	1,453,684	657,915	411,475	515,254
Canterbury	6,144,836	6,718,714	5,677,088	5,014,847	4,881,733
Otago	3,742,777	3,151,244	2,758,223	2,473,973	2,523,629
Southland	1,630,216	1,945,716	1,529,465	1,118,958	1,219,499
Westland	118,462	110,791	181,998	126,574	180,881
Totals	41,123,966	47,093,780	39,979,681	33,190,519	33,559,932

Nine of the eleven registration districts show increases in the value of mortgages registered during 1928–29 as compared with the previous year, the aggregate increase for the whole Dominion being £369,413. Auckland and Canterbury show decreases.

MORTGAGES UNDER EACH REGISTRATION SYSTEM.

A distribution of the registrations according as to whether the mortgage was registered under the deeds system or the Land Transfer Act is now given. The period taken is the triennium 1926–27 to 1928–29.

MORTGAGES REGISTERED UNDER DEEDS-REGISTRATION AND LAND-TRANSFER SYSTEMS, 1926–27 TO 1928–29.

District.	1926–27.		1927–28.		1928–29.
District.	Deeds Registration.	Land Transfer.	Deeds Registration.	Land Transfer.	Deeds Registration	Land Transfer.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	2,646,757	10,397,506	2,186,192	7,939,549	1,935,884	7,752,397
Poverty Bay	19,040	1,145,590	1,250	959,531	..	1,052,985
Hawke's Bay	357,423	1,600,497	213,532	1,646,847	95,316	1,947,840
Taranaki	268,267	2,182,244	151,302	1,494,296	135,733	1,783,397
Wellington	785,057	9,300,358	432,127	8,626,655	377,689	8,727,101
Nelson	110,075	362,178	67,103	326,308	45,128	385,466
Marlborough	145,440	512,475	94,214	317,261	90,702	424,552
Canterbury	179,333	5,497,755	140,583	4,874,264	20,575	4,861,158
Otago	610,112	2,148,111	457,589	2,016,384	393,665	2,129,964
Southland	91,252	1,438,213	39,680	1,079,278	6,625	1,212,874
Westland	1,295	180,703	..	126,574	..	180,881
Totals	5,214 051	34,765,630	3,783,572	29,406,947	3,101,317	30,458,615

Of the total of £33,559,932 registered in 1928–29, £30,458,615, or 91 per cent., came under the Land Transfer Act. The proportion, which had altered very little over a number of years, now shows a tendency to increase, consequent on the passing of the Land Transfer (Compulsory Registration of Titles) Act, 1924.

MORTGAGES REGISTERED.—CLASSIFIED BY AMOUNT.

Of the total amount of £33,559,932 registered for the financial year 1928–29, mortgages up to £500 in value represented 14 per cent. of the total value registered, from £501 to £1,000 23 per cent., from £1,001 to £5,000 38 per cent., and above £5,000 25 per cent. The following table gives the number and amount in each registration district according to the sum advanced:—

MORTGAGES.—NUMBER AND AMOUNT ACCORDING TO SUM ADVANCED, 1928–29.

District.	£500 and under.		£501 to £1,000.		£1,001 to £5,000.		Over £5,000.
District.	Number.	Amount.	Number.	Amount.	Number.	Amount.	Number.	Amount.
		£		£		£		£
Auckland	5,005	1,313,131	3,247	2,487,904	2,026	3,965,796	174	1,921,450
Poverty Bay	275	82,162	166	127,726	132	284,497	37	558,600
Hawke's Bay	676	186,587	454	338,293	287	638,228	83	880,048
Taranaki	691	198,579	445	334,165	469	1,020,649	46	365,737
Wellington	4,313	1,151,857	2,687	2,113,388	1,724	3,236,448	223	2,603,097
Nelson	425	99,713	169	119,612	93	162,119	6	49,150
Marlborough	151	37,496	84	63,955	74	156,953	23	256,850
Canterbury	2,944	777,837	1,533	1,138,685	825	1,779,595	128	1,185,616
Otago	2,302	612,970	896	663,708	423	860,922	47	386,029
Southland	855	207,642	392	283,707	267	557,218	20	170,932
Westland	172	43,354	46	33,837	33	72,950	4	30,740
Totals	17,809	4,711,328	10,119	7,704,980	6,353	12,735,375	791	8,408,249

In addition to the above, there were 3,529 mortgages registered for which no amount was shown. Excluding these, the average advance for each mortgage registered was £957, as compared with £922 in 1927–28.

MORTGAGES ON URBAN AND RURAL SECURITIES.

Figures are available in the case of Land Transfer registrations showing for each registration district the amount advanced on urban and rural properties. No similar data are available in regard to mortgages registered under the deeds system, but bearing in mind that the latter constituted in 1928–29 but 9 per cent. of the total it will be evident that the figures given approximately indicate the character of the securities. The distinction is between “town and suburban” and “country” holdings, but information is not always available to enable a strictly accurate classification to be made. Generally, however, town and suburban mortgages are regarded as such if secured on properties situated within cities or boroughs, and include also mortgages secured on small holdings in the nature of building allotments which are not definitely distinguishable as country properties. From the table on the next page it will be seen that mortgages classified as town and suburban are secured on areas averaging about a third of an acre in extent, as compared with an average area, in 1928–29, of some 396 acres in the case of “country” securities.

The value of mortgages on country property registered in 1928–29 was about £400,000 leas than that on town and suburban property. In point of numbers 69 per cent. of the mortgages referred to town and suburban areas, and 31 per cent. to country properties. The acreage on which these advances are secured represents in the case of country mortgages 99.8 per cent. of the total, and on town and suburban property 0.2 per cent. only. On the other hand, the average amount secured per acre on rural holdings is £3 9s. 10d., as against £2,075 in the case of town and suburban properties. The average amount of each mortgage on country property is £1,384, as compared with £645 on town and suburban holdings.

MORTGAGES REGISTERED UNDER THE LAND TRANSFER ACT, 1928–29.

District.	Town and Suburban.			Country.
District.	Number.	Area.	Amount secured.	Number.	Area.	Amount secured.
		Acres.	£		Acres.	£
Auckland	6,210	2,642	4,361,602	3,124	802,894	3,390,795
Poverty Bay	352	203	205,205	355	371,523	847,780
Hawke's Bay	1,029	526	631,427	598	341,153	1,316,413
Taranaki	688	224	412,735	1,033	257,183	1,370,662
Wellington	7,511	1,508	5,386,082	1,854	715,986	3,341,019
Nelson	420	140	225,244	314	78,737	160,222
Marlborough	145	121	77,232	185	174,075	347,320
Canterbury	4,022	940	2,357,558	1,806	693,558	2,503,600
Otago	2,402	678	1,226,827	759	600,554	903,137
Southland	965	414	474,065	739	244,652	738,809
Westland	184	40	74,034	101	23,543	106,847
Totals	23,928	7,436	15,432,011	10,868	4,303,858	15,026,604

A table showing information for each of the last ten years is also given.

MORTGAGES REGISTERED UNDER LAND TRANSFER ACT, 1919–20 TO 1928–29.

Year ended 31st March,	Number.	Area.			Amount secured.
Year ended 31st March,	Number.	Town and Suburban.	Country.	Total.	Town and Suburban.	Country.	Total.
		Acres.	Acres.	Acres.	£	£	£
1920	35,632	43,398	6,050,551	6,093,949	9,726,821	30,948,328	40,675,149
1921	46,803	66,224	6,821,808	6,888,032	16,133,642	39,948,328	56,081,970
1922	33,409	8,971	5,469,212	5,478,183	10,743,765	17,744,501	28,488,266
1925	27,438	7,404	4,172,054	4,179,458	9,544,791	11,819,043	21,363,834
1924	32,637	7,680	3,249,656	3,257,336	15,541,664	15,930,463	31,472,127
1925	35,217	8,189	4,066,690	4,074,879	16,294,629	17,778,010	34,072,639
1926	40,418	126,220	4,302,658	4,428,878	18,033,254	21,783,942	39,817,196
1927	38,557	7,985	4,004,856	4,012,841	17,475,127	17,290,503	34,765,630
1928	34,302	7,341	3,626,937	3,634,278	15,633,142	13,773,805	129,406,947
1929	34,796	7,436	4,303,858	4,311,294	15,432,011	15,026,604	30,458,615

MORTGAGES DISCHARGED.

The total amount of mortgages discharged for the years 1926–27, 1927–28, and 1928–29 is as follows:—

MORTGAGES.—NUMBER AND AMOUNT DISCHARGED, 1926–27 TO 1928–29.

District.	Year ended 31st March, 1927.		Year ended 31st March, 1928.		Year ended 31st March, 1929.
District.	Number.	Amount.	Number.	Amount.	Number.	Amount.
		£		£		£
Auckland	10,846	8,715,134	8,433	6,912,765	8,405	6,622,733
Poverty Bay	621	1,012,368	582	1,034,150	691	1,267,363
Hawke's Bay	1,425	1,799,411	1,178	1,625,290	1,466	1,947,465
Taranaki	2,034	2,246,849	1,304	1,403,416	1,533	1,515,994
Wellington	7,453	7,689,276	6,583	6,099,210	6,890	6,449,830
Nelson	847	504,007	765	574,960	774	385,755
Marlborough	305	450,221	271	358,286	336	589,485
Canterbury	4,371	3,805,754	4,113	3,373,395	4,453	3,582,139
Otago	2,862	1,722,226	2,895	1,662,892	2,999	1,867,448
Southland	1,601	1,187,256	1,305	873,878	1,501	965,109
Westland	152	100,827	156	80,598	154	76,292
Totals	32,517	29,233,329	27,585	23,998,840	29,202	25,269,613

Of the total amount released in 1928–29, £22,817,343 was under the Land Transfer Act and £2,452,270 under the deeds-registration system. The corresponding figures for the previous year were £20,122,467 and £3,876,373 respectively.

MONTHLY REGISTRATIONS AND DISCHARGES.

Monthly figures of registrations and discharges are regularly published in the Monthly Abstract of Statistics. The totals for each month from January, 1927, to September, 1929, are as follows:—

MORTGAGES.—TRANSACTIONS EACH MONTH, JANUARY, 1927, TO SEPTEMBER, 1929.

Month.	Mortgages registered.		Mortgages discharged.
Month.	Number.	Amount.	Number.	Amount.
1927.
		£		£
January	2,094	1,708,413	1,501	1,229,538
February	3,008	2,720,208	2,149	1,700,611
March	3,564	3,101,375	2,387	2,309,298
April	2,635	2,382,437	1,810	1,923,768
May	3,703	2,978,148	2,550	1,956,712
June	3,436	2,788,268	2,428	2,310,926
July	3,545	3,151,609	2,469	2,045,184
August	3,724	3,384,251	2,659	2,244,144
September	3,414	3,039,824	2,430	2,188,937
October	3,415	2,825,125	2,396	1,907,638
November	3,380	2,679,488	2,423	2,054,474
December	3,765	3,175,603	2,526	2,517,815
1928.
January	1,784	1,519,970	1,287	1,072,927
February	2,892	2,572,241	2,105	1,748,519
March	3,432	2,693,555	2,502	2,027,796
April	2,249	1,951,622	1,724	1,637,493
May	3,501	3,156,084	2,665	2,416,978
June	3,266	3,025,595	2,560	2,408,242
July	3,601	3,338,912	2,855	2,682,415
August	3,640	3,154,440	2,933	2,615,220
September	3,211	2,701,838	2,592	2,156,607
October	3,709	3,068,765	2,805	2,447,335
November	3,218	2,544,839	2,352	1,934,873
December	3,529	3,022,608	2,437	2,016,532
1929.
January	1,985	1,583,190	1,449	1,134,689
February	3,091	2,759,776	2,138	1,618,632
March	3,601	3,252,263	2,692	2,140,597
April	2,737	2,883,892	2,361	2,317,453
May	4,106	3,679,410	3,402	2,978,599
June	3,530	4,149,355	2,816	2,242,128
July	4,249	4,047,159	3,501	3,097,362
August	4,029	3,664,095	3,160	2,798,527
September	3,569	3,057,123	2,855	2,433,328

RATES OF INTEREST.

Classified according to the various rates of interest, the amounts in the mortgage-deeds registered during 1927–28 and 1928–29 were:—

MORTGAGES.—RATES OF INTEREST, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

Rate per Cent.	1927–28.	1928–29.
* Including State advances and rural intermediate credits.
	£	£
0	1,475	590
1/2	650	..
1	759	876
1 1/4	..	800
2	375	350
2 1/2	26,234	200
2 3/4	26,426	..
3	13,140	4,080
3 1/2	400	..
4	95,596	18,353
4 1/4	140	..
4 1/2	23,394	40,250
5	1,289,160	1,047,408
5 1/4	3,200	11,150
5 1/2	757,676	852,520
5 3/4	15,365	8,125
6	9,679,870	10,352,949
6 1/4	384,521	515,421
6 1/2	7,267,205	6,743,897
6 2/3	11,400	..
6 3/4	23,811	13,376
7	5,292,247	4,635,974
7 1/4	6,300	1,941
7 1/2	439,220	636,968
7 3/4	150	650
8	1,113,349	1,105,418
8 1/2	93,059	182,187
9	175,261	245,393
9 1/2	5,339	3,930
10	453,512	369,406
11	1,520	..
12	3,587	2,530
12 1/2	1,120	200
15	2,125	1,082
15 1/2	..	300
16	300	..
20	86	85
29	..	150
30	53	..
Unspecified^*	5,982,494	6,713,373
Totals	33,190,519	33,559,932

It is evident that the great bulk of the money raised by way of mortgage bears interest at rates varying from 6 to 7 per cent., the 6-per-cent. class actually showing the largest amount, followed by 6 1/2 per cent. The average rate of interest on all mortgages registered during each of the last seventeen years has been as follows:—

Year ended 31st March,	Average Rate per Cent.
1913	5.76
1914	5.82
1915	5.76
1916	5.74
1917	5.80
1918	5.84
1919	5.84
1920	5.75
1921	5.89
1922	6.42
1923	6.57
1924	6.38
1925	6.30
1926	6.22
1927	6.47
1928	6.46
1929	6.46

But little variation is shown during the period from 1913 to 1921. The year 1921–22, however, witnessed a jump to 6.42 per cent., coinciding with the financial stringency associated with the post-war trade depression. The peak of 6.57 per cent. was reached in the following year, after which there was a gradual downward trend to 1925–26. The rise since 1925–26 is more apparent than real, and is probably due mainly to the fact that in the last three years State advances mortgages have been all treated as unspecified (the rate of interest is generally not shown in the mortgage registration, and is in any case reducible on prompt payment), whereas formerly in some districts they were included as unspecified and in others according to the known interest-rate.

MORTGAGES AND LAND VALUES.

In the returns of land, which are required by law to be furnished annually to the Commissioner of Taxes by all owners of land of an aggregate unimproved value in excess of £500, provision is made for showing (for mortgage exemption purposes) particulars of amounts owing by the taxpayer at noon on the 31st March, secured on the land either by registered mortgage or by agreement to purchase. Although this source of information does not cover all mortgages (owing to exemptions and to neglect to furnish returns in certain cases), nevertheless most informative figures on the question of the incidence of mortgages in conjunction with such matters as area, unimproved value, and location (i.e., urban or rural) are disclosed by a tabulation recently made by the Census and Statistics Office in connection with the annual compilation of statistics of land-ownership and land-tax. Full details will be published in the Miscellaneous Statistical Report, 1928, and certain summarized figures are presented hereunder.

For the purposes of the mortgage statistics land is classified into three types—viz., rural, urban, and mixed. In practice it is necessary to subdivide each of these into two on account of the fact that in a proportion of cases returns are not furnished. The six types shown in the statistics are:—

A. Cases where returns furnished—
- Country or farming lands;
- Town lands or business-sites;
- Partly country and partly town lands.
B. Cases where returns not furnished—
- Country or farming lands;
- Town lands or business-sites;
- Partly country and partly town lands.

In the case of mixed country and town lands where 75 per cent. or over of the unimproved value is represented by country or town lands (as the case may be), the whole has been so classed. The group “partly country and partly town lands” covers only these cases where neither country nor town lands represent 75 per cent. or over of the unimproved value.

The statistics given in the various tables which follow are for the tax year 1928–29, the mortgages, area, and unimproved value relating to the position on 31st March, 1928. The first table summarizes the statistics according to each of the six types, distinguishing also between cases where the amount of unimproved value was under or over £15,000, the limit of the mortgage exemption.

MORTGAGES, 1928—SUMMARY BY TYPE.

Type and Amount of Unimproved Value.	Number of Returns.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.
		Acres.	£	£
1. Under £15,000	39,164	17,818,179	111,870,302	93,510,211
Over £15,000	1,330	5,600,557	36,260,302	16,288,423
Totals	40,494	23,418,736	148,130,604	109,798,634
2. Under £15,000	18,216	290,107	31,383,413	24,860,366
Over £15,000	423	81,614	14,642,674	7,710,246
Totals	18,639	371,721	46,026,087	32,570,612
3 Under £15,000	795	174,948	2,343,326	1,430,030
Over £15,000	48	166,909	1,795,984	857,823
Totals	843	341,857	4,139,310	2,287,853
4. Under £15,000	6,503	2,380,872	12,419,630	3,846,944
Over £15,000	168	580,426	3,921,753	564,768
Totals	6,671	2,961,298	16,341,383	4,411,712
5. Under £15,000	5,455	51,951	6,387,120	1,342,456
Over £15,000	29	8,956	719,927	66,300
Totals	5,484	69,907	7,107,047	1,408,756
6. Under £15,000	196	30,102	378,139	102,139
Over £15,000	6	7,554	151,630	56,706
Totals	202	37,656	529,769	158,845
Totals—
Under £15,000	70,329	20,746,159	164,781,930	125,092,146
Over £15,000	2,004	6,446,016	57,492,270	25,544,266
Grand totals	72,333	27,192,175	222,274,200	150,636,412

The foregoing figures show the extent to which returns are not furnished. Out of 72,333 cases covered by the statistics, returns were not furnished in 12,357 instances, or 17 per cent. of the total. The unimproved value in these 12,357 cases aggregated £23,978,199, or 11 per cent. of the total unimproved value, but the mortgages covered (ascertained from other sources) amounted to only £5,979,313, or 4 per cent. of the total. The discrepancies are due to the fact that these not furnishing returns include both owners of freehold unencumbered and owners with mortgages but with unimproved values in excess of £15,000, where the mortgage exemption ceases. Unfortunately the position is further complicated by neglect to furnish returns in a proportion of cases where the ordinary exemption equals or exceeds the mortgage exemption, and even in cases where it does not and where additional exemption would have been secured had the return been supplied. It seems, however, reasonable to assume that for holdings under £15,000 for which no returns were supplied the amount of mortgages will not be greatly in excess of that shown under the respective headings, having been ascertained from other sources.

If for holdings over £15,000 in types 4, 5, and 6, the proportions ruling between unimproved value and mortgages in the corresponding types 1, 2, and 3 respectively were applied, the total of mortgages would be increased on this account by only £1,500,000, making a total of £152,000,000 for lands covered by the land-tax requirements. There is no means of ascertaining, however, even an approximate reliable figure for exempted lands, including residential and other sections under £500 in unimproved value.

Ignoring now these cases (types 4, 5, and 6) where no returns were furnished, and confining attention to these where definite information is available, reliable figures as to the incidence of mortgages over lands of different types and values are obtainable. It should be pointed out that the statistics of areas and of mortgages per acre, particularly in the case of types 2 and 3, are affected by the system of statistical classification of lands referred to earlier. The following table summarizes the information for each of classes 1, 2, and 3, showing the amount of mortgages per return, per acre, and per £1,000 of unimproved value.

Type.	Number of Returns.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.	Mortgages per
Type.	Number of Returns.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.	Return.	Acre.			£1,000 of Unimproved Value.
		Acres.	£	£	£	£	s.	d.	£
1. Country or farming lands	40,494	23,418,736	148,130,604	109,798,634	2,711	4	13	9	741
2. Town lands or business-sites	18,639	371,721	46,026,087	32,570,612	1,747	87	12	5	7,08
3. Partly country and partly town lands	843	341,857	4,139,310	2,287,853	2,714	6	13	10	553
Totals	59,976	24,132,314	198,296,001	144,657,099	2,412	5	19	11	730

The next table shows similar information, according to the amount of unimproved value, for types 1, 2, and 3 in conjunction. Generally speaking, the proportion of mortgages to unimproved value, which is very high at the lower values (where the proportion of improvements would also be high), decreases in steady sequence as the total unimproved value increases.

MORTGAGES, 1928.—BY AMOUNT OF UNIMPROVED VALUE: TYPES 1 TO 3.

Amount of Unimproved Value.	Number of Returns.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.	Mortgages per
Amount of Unimproved Value.	Number of Returns.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.	Return.	Acre.			£1,000 of Unimproved Value.
£ £		Acres.	£	£	£	£	s.	d.	£
Under 500	771	87,126	172,506	58,711	76	0	13	6	340
500– 599	3,228	289,091	1,596,760	1,791,780	555	6	4	0	1,122
600– 699	4,449	385,865	2,847,865	2,951,702	663	7	13	0	1,036
700– 799	3,688	422,140	2,739,629	2,793,834	758	6	12	4	1,020
800– 899	3,219	450,522	2,708,504	2,679,787	832	5	19	0	989
900– 999	2,762	354,934	2,600,714	2,481,087	898	6	19	10	954
1,000– 1,999	16,943	3,438,560	23,252,965	21,672,529	1,279	6	6	1	932
2,000– 2,499	4,682	1,217,476	10,417,903	9,443,887	2,017	7	15	2	907
2,500– 2,999	3,354	1,081,947	9,145,574	8,171,924	2,436	7	11	1	894
3,000– 3,999	4,515	1,823,196	15,565,042	13,296,458	2,945	7	5	10	854
4,000– 4,999	2,948	1,480,645	13,147,316	10,553,505	3,580	7	2	7	803
5,000– 5,999	1,968	1,242,994	10,771,430	8,272,666	4,204	6	13	1	768
6,000– 6,999	1,472	1,175,065	9,521,528	7,340,568	4,987	6	4	11	771
7,000– 7,999	1,033	817,388	7,727,564	5,640,978	5,461	6	18	0	730
8,000– 8,999	784	1,055,952	6,640,582	4,885,063	6,231	4	12	6	736
9,000– 9,999	664	642,289	6,294,919	4,594,944	6,920	7	3	1	730
10,000–14,999	1,695	2,318,044	20,446,240	13,171,184	7,771	5	13	8	644
15,000–19,999	693	1,419,142	11,930,775	6,438,437	9,291	4	10	9	540
20,000–29,999	587	1,791,495	14,238,463	7,613,844	12,971	4	5	0	535
30,000–39,999	245	957,580	8,400,040	3,732,333	15,234	3	17	11	444
40,000–49,999	102	538,325	4,492,040	1,863,357	18,268	3	9	3	415
50,000–99,999	149	995,131	9,838,036	4,766,205	31,988	4	15	9	484
100,000 and over	25	147,407	3,799,606	442,316	17,693	3	0	0	116
Totals	59,976	24,132,314	198,296,001	144,657,099	2,412	5	19	11	730

That the higher proportions of mortgages to unimproved value at the lower values of holdings is not due to an overwhelming preponderance of suburban residential sections at these values is seen from a comparison of the foregoing table with the following, which relates to the “country or farming lands” type only.

MORTGAGES, 1928.—BY AMOUNT OF UNIMPROVED VALUE: TYPE 1.

Amount of Unimproved Value.	Number of Returns.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.	Mortgages per
Amount of Unimproved Value.	Number of Returns.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.	Return.	Acre.			£1,000 of Unimproved Value.
£ £		Acres.	£	£	£	£	s.	d.	£
Under 500	734	85,800	159,667	28,971	39	0	6	9	181
500– 599	1,380	284,874	570,332	605,530	584	2	16	7	1,412
600– 699	2,009	359,568	1,289,245	1,473,839	734	4	2	0	1,143
700– 799	1,854	404,190	1,377,800	1,525,001	823	3	15	6	1,107
800– 899	1,744	443,282	1,468,829	1,598,095	916	3	12	1	1,088
900– 999	1,567	342,276	1,475,535	1,598,655	1,020	4	13	5	1,083
1,000– 1,999	11,155	3,355,504	16,004,930	15,885,747	1,424	4	14	8	993
2,000– 2,499	3,623	1,186,298	8,070,339	7,593,964	2,096	6	8	0	941
2,500– 2,999	2,679	1,058,092	7,308,161	6,571,520	2,453	6	4	3	899
3,000– 3,999	3,690	1,770,747	12,731,074	11,017,173	2,986	6	4	5	865
4,000– 4,999	2,433	1,452,278	10,853,062	8,797,721	3,616	6	1	2	811
5,000– 5,999	1,650	1,209,346	9,027,359	6,907,969	4,187	5	14	3	765
6,000– 6,999	1,218	1,150,996	7,875,188	6,164,661	5,061	5	7	1	783
7,000– 7,999	861	796,075	6,443,749	4,744,810	5,511	5	19	2	736
£ £		Acres.	£	£	£	£	s.	d.	£
8,000– 8,999	656	1,043,684	5,557,929	4,153,696	6,332	3	19	7	747
9,000– 9,999	538	621,057	5,096,338	3,736,422	6,945	6	0	4	733
10,000–14,999	1,373	2,254,112	16,560,765	10,906,437	7,944	4	16	9	659
15,000–19,999	542	1,383,602	9,354,405	5,189,498	9,575	3	15	0	555
20,000–29,999	438	1,730,321	10,597,141	5,425,525	12,387	3	2	9	512
30,000–39,999	182	930,567	6,228,254	2,792,485	15,343	3	0	0	448
40,000–49,999	67	532,980	2,977,960	1,102,229	16,451	2	1	4	370
50,000–99,999	93	900,889	6,107,156	1,749,021	18,807	1	18	10	286
100,000 and over	8	122,198	995,386	29,665	3,708	0	4	10	30
Totals	40,494	23,418,736	148,130,604	109,798,634	2,711	4	13	9	741

This table well illustrates the incidence of mortgages over the Dominion's broad acres. It should be added that, in addition to the £110,000,000 secured on rural lands, there is an unknown and varying amount of liens in force secured on stock, wool, crops, and other chattels, and not included among registered mortgages.

Notwithstanding the warning expressed earlier as to the reliability of conclusions drawn from the figures of area, the two following tables, giving statistics of mortgages according to the acreage of the holdings, present an informative picture of the extent to which as area increases the average value and the average mortgage diminishes. The first of these two tables relates to all cases where returns were furnished, the second to country or farming lands only.

MORTGAGES, 1928.—BY AREA: TYPES 1 TO 3.

Area, in Acres.	Number of Returns.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.	Mortgages per
Area, in Acres.	Number of Returns.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.	Return.	Acre.			£1,000 of Unimproved Value.
		Acres.	£	£	£	£	s.	d.	£
Under 5	16,417	13,563	33,541,920	24,708,272	1,505	1,821	14	10	737
5 and under 10	2,082	13,657	4,192,363	2,452,585	1,178	179	11	8	585
10 and under 15	1,315	16,191	2,328,602	1,401,519	1,066	86	11	3	602
15 and under 20	794	13,398	1,874,831	969,778	1,221	72	7	8	517
20 and under 30	1,500	33,564	2,633,514	1,459,053	973	43	9	5	554
30 and under 40	1,163	39,657	2,109,323	1,642,369	1,412	41	8	3	779
40 and under 50	1,318	58,381	2,673,425	2,618,179	1,986	44	16	11	979
50 and under 75	3,367	202,396	5,684,438	4,917,768	1,461	24	5	11	865
75 and under 100	2,710	235,947	5,316,440	4,368,892	1,612	18	10	4	822
100 and under 150	5,119	612,679	11,405,488	10,039,305	1,961	16	7	9	880
150 and under 200	3,395	589,269	9,290,798	7,338,692	2,162	12	9	1	790
200 and under 250	3,035	668,757	8,668,357	6,973,410	2,298	10	8	7	804
250 and under 320	2,842	805,354	9,352,130	7,137,295	2,511	8	17	3	763
320 and under 400	2,357	843,807	8,764,505	6,245,155	2,650	7	8	0	713
400 and under 500	2,278	1,020,678	9,366,262	7,203,753	3,162	7	1	2	769
500 and under 640	2,334	1,322,261	10,505,505	7,771,534	3,330	5	17	6	740
640 and under 750	1,206	831,551	5,943,285	4,350,877	3,608	5	4	8	732
750 and under 1,000	1,769	1,532,616	9,898,059	7,733,625	4,372	5	0	11	781
1,000 and under 2,000	2,832	3,896,659	21,442,868	16,399,390	5,791	4	4	2	765
2,000 and under 3,000	822	1,982,382	9,551,401	6,513,438	7,924	3	5	9	682
3,000 and under 4,000	382	1,303,925	5,566,398	3,478,692	9,107	2	13	4	625
4,000 and under 5,000	207	920,761	3,275,916	2,192,781	10,593	2	7	8	669
5,000 and under 7,500	242	1,451,665	4,857,821	3,136,883	12,962	2	3	3	646
7,500 and under 10,000	90	778,404	2,342,753	1,093,523	12,150	1	8	1	467
10,000 and under 15,000	102	1,216,559	3,082,232	1,056,556	10,358	0	17	4	343
15,000 and under 20,000	45	789,078	1,663,671	554,777	12,328	0	14	1	333
20,000 and under 30,000	27	651,516	925,286	528,843	19,587	0	16	3	572
30,000 and under 40,000	11	367,910	165,541	123,706	11,246	0	6	9	747
40,000 and under 50,000	8	349,100	433,960	159,805	19,976	0	9	2	368
50,000 and under 100,000	9	712,044	132,780	80,644	8,960	0	2	3	607
100,000 and over	5	858,585	85,086	6,000	1,200	0	0	2	71
Not stated	193	..	1,221,043	..	..	..	..
Totals	59,976	24,132,314	198,296,001	144,657,099	2,412	5	19	11	730

MORTGAGES, 1928.—BY AREA: TYPE 1.

					Mortgages per
Area, in Acres.	Number of Returns.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.	Return.	Acre.			£1,000 of Unimproved Value.
		Acres.	£	£	£	£	s.	d.	£
Under 5	660	1,073	885,107	569,267	863	530	10	9	643
5 and under 10	775	5,248	796,082	519,595	670	99	0	2	653
10 and under 15	791	10,178	845,180	540,151	683	53	1	5	639
15 and under 20	564	9,549	658,495	407,990	723	42	14	6	620
20 and under 30	1,213	26,685	1,317,573	962,815	794	36	1	7	731
30 and under 40	1,003	34,179	1,289,853	882,532	880	25	16	5	684
40 and under 50	1,201	53,188	1,711,332	1,216,031	1,013	22	17	3	711
50 and under 75	3,154	189,757	4,868,570	4,477,277	1,420	23	11	11	920
75 and under 100	2,586	225,294	4,772,068	4,109,032	1,589	18	4	9	861
100 and under 150	4,932	590,435	10,391,156	9,331,698	1,892	15	16	1	898
150 and under 200	3,313	575,324	8,643,768	7,007,882	2,115	12	3	7	811
200 and under 250	2,945	648,756	8,194,895	6,673,443	2,266	10	5	9	814
250 and under 320	2,771	785,140	8,745,505	6,863,716	2,477	8	14	10	785
320 and under 400	2,302	823,932	8,397,679	6,128,567	2,662	7	8	9	730
400 and under 500	2,220	995,084	8,743,205	6,551,152	2,951	6	11	8	749
500 and under 640	2,290	1,297,032	9,975,142	7,518,887	3,283	5	15	11	754
640 and under 750	1,188	818,013	5,654,278	4,214,673	3,554	5	3	1	745
750 and under 1,000	1,732	1,500,156	9,590,575	7,573,116	1,372	5	1	0	790
1,000 and under 2,000	2,769	3,810,535	20,579,566	15,728,905	5,680	4	2	7	764
2,000 and under 3,000	799	1,929,187	9,017,711	6,302,765	7,888	3	5	4	699
3,000 and under 4,000	374	1,277,507	5,456,155	3,424,580	9,157	2	13	7	628
4,000 and under 5,000	202	897,933	3,148,171	2,123,129	10,511	2	7	3	674
5,000 and under 7,500	234	1,405,826	4,736,665	3,114,858	13,311	2	4	4	658
7,500 and under 10,000	86	742,331	2,308,682	1,058,917	12,313	1	8	6	459
10,000 and under 15,000	99	1,176,721	3,039,625	1,044,356	10,549	0	17	9	344
15,000 and under 20,000	43	750,800	1,595,259	554,777	12,902	0	14	9	348
20,000 and under 30,000	25	607,970	780,421	528,368	21,135	0	17	5	677
30,000 and under 40,000	11	367,910	165,541	123,706	11,246	0	6	9	747
40,000 and under 50,000	8	349,100	433,960	159,805	19,976	0	9	2	368
50,000 and under 100,000	8	655,308	82,256	80,644	10,081	0	2	6	980
100,000 and over	5	858,585	85,086	6,000	1,200	0	0	2	71
Not stated	193	..	1,221,043	..	..	..	..	..	..
Totals	40,494	23,418,736	148,130,604	109,798,634	2,711	4	13	9	741

The final table relates to type 1 only, and shows the overwhelming proportion of lands devoted to farming activities. It clearly shows the weight of mortgages on the farmers of the Dominion, both absolutely and relatively to unimproved value and area.

MORTGAGES, 1928.—BY OCCUPATION: TYPE 1.

Occupation.	Number of Returns.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.	Mortgages per
Occupation.	Number of Returns.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.	Return.	Acre.			£1,000 of Unimproved Value.
		Acres.	£	£	£	£	s.	d.	£
1. Farming, &c.	34,895	20,588,391	128,735,450	99,247,810	2,844	4	16	5	771
2. Professional	462	141,158	1,164,138	1,015,345	2,198	7	3	10	872
3. Manufacturing and industrial	349	516,232	1,388,688	1,859,001	5,327	3	12	0	1,339
4. Commerce and trade	733	280,602	2,292,677	1,656,334	2,260	5	18	1	722
5. Banking, insurance, and finance	7	13,228	25,602	17,700	2,529	1	6	9	691
6. Transportation	43	3,156	64,140	31,881	741	10	2	0	497
7. Miscellaneous	4,005	1,875,969	14,459,909	5,970,563	1,491	3	3	8	413
Totals	40,494	23,418,736	148,130,604	109,798,634	2,711	4	13	9	741

Chapter 33. SECTION XXXIII—BANKRUPTCY.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

TRANSACTIONS IN BANKRUPTCY.

ASSETS AND LIABILITIES.

CLASSIFICATION OF AMOUNT OF LIABILITIES.

OCCUPATIONS OF BANKRUPTS.

OCCUPATIONS OF BANKRUPTS, 1927 AND 1928.

UNDISCHARGED BANKRUPTS.

PRIVATE ASSIGNMENTS.

ASSIGNMENTS DURING 1928.

CLASSIFICATION OF AMOUNT OF LIABILITIES.

OCCUPATIONS OF ASSIGNORS.

INTRODUCTORY.

THE law relating to bankruptcy in New Zealand is contained in the Bankruptcy Act, 1908 (which is a consolidation of previous enactments), and the Bankruptcy Amendment Act, 1927. The Act of 1908 consists of 176 sections, grouped in fourteen Parts, as follows:—

I. The Bankruptcy Court.
II. The Official Assignee.
III. Proceedings up to Adjudication.
IV. Supervisors of Administration of Bankrupt's Property.
V. Duties of Bankrupt.
VI. Administration of Bankrupt's Property.
VII. Meetings of Creditors.
VIII. Proofs of Debt.
IX. Composition with Creditors.
X. Distribution of Assets.
XI. Discharge.
XII. Annulling of Adjudication.
XIII. Penal Provisions.
XIV. Miscellaneous.

Jurisdiction in bankruptcy matters is vested in the Supreme Court. The Governor-General, however, may by Proclamation confer similar jurisdiction on a Magistrate's Court in cases where the liábilities do not exceed £300. The powers of the Court are fully set out in Part I of the Act.

All proceedings in bankruptcy are commenced by a petition filed in the Court. A petition may be filed either by the debtor or by a creditor, a fee of £6 being payable. The filing of a debtor's petition is equivalent to an order of Court adjudging the debtor a bankrupt, no order being required in the case of a debtor's petition. Not less than £30 in the aggregate must be owing by the debtor to the creditor or creditors filing a petition.

Immediately on a debtor's petition being filed or a creditor's petition being adjudicated on, the Registrar of the Court gives notice to the Official Assignee in Bankruptcy, in whom all the property of the bankrupt thereupon vests. The bankrupt must hand over his books to the Official Assignee, make out balance-sheets, give inventories of his property and debts, and generally assist in the realization of his property. The Assignee may summon the bankrupt before himself, or before a Magistrate, to be examined on oath. The Bankruptcy Amendment Act, 1927, forbids (save with the consent of the Court, on the application of the Official Assignee) the publication of a report of any examination of a bankrupt before the Assignee or of any matter arising in the course of such an examination.

The Official Assignee is empowered to sell the bankrupt's property, to claim debts due to the bankrupt estate, to carry on the business of the bankrupt so far as is necessary or expedient for its beneficial winding-up, or to divide the property among the creditors. The bankrupt may be appointed by the Official Assignee to manage his estate or carry on his business on behalf of the creditors.

Creditors may accept a composition in satisfaction of the debts due them. In such a case, after approval of the Court, a deed of composition is executed and filed, and the bankruptcy annulled.

On application being made by the bankrupt, the Court is empowered to grant him an order of discharge, either absolute, suspended, or conditional. The application, which must be made within four months after adjudication, may be opposed either by the Official Assignee or by any creditor who has proved his claim. A public examination of the bankrupt may be demanded by the Assignee or a creditor.

Offences by the bankrupt are dealt with in Part XIII of the principal Act, which provides a term of imprisonment not exceeding two years for various special offences, including—

Trading on fictitious capital.
Contracting debts without reasonable expectation of being able to pay them.
Failing to keep usual books.
Wilfully omitting to keep proper books, with intent to conceal the true state of his affairs.
Making gifts, transfers, &c., with intent to defraud his creditors.
Concealing or fraudulently removing property.
Furnishing wilfully incorrect statements of his property or the state of his affairs.
Absconding.

TRANSACTIONS IN BANKRUPTCY.

The number of transactions in bankruptcy during the last ten years was as follows:—

Year.	Petitions by Debtors.	Adjudications on Petitions by Creditors.	Cases in which Composition, accepted.	Orders of Immediate Discharge granted.	Cases in which Orders of Discharge were suspended.
1919	109	32	1	128	13
1920	117	27	..	72	14
1921	289	47	1	48	6
1922	552	138	2	114	11
1923	565	109	2	177	16
1924	561	109	..	200	33
1925	535	118	3	221	30
1926	662	90	2	223	23
1927	729	138	2	288	44
1928	677	129	1	308	39

The number of bankruptcies in 1928 (806) is considerably above the pre-war level, and, coupled with the figures for the six preceding years, serves to illustrate the severity of the trade depression of 1921–22, and also that of 1926–27, to which the considerable increase in bankruptcies during the last three years is attributable. Although the figure for 1928 is 61 below that of the previous year, it has been surpassed on no other occasion since 1888. Debtors' petitions decreased by 52 as compared with the 1927 figure, and adjudications on creditors' petitions by 9.

The general bankruptcy statistics do not cover private assignments and compositions, but relate only to cases dealt with by Official Assignees. Certain statistics of private assignments are now available, the initial collection being for the year 1928, details of which appear at the end of this section.

ASSETS AND LIABILITIES.

Debtors are required to file a statement of the extent of their liabilities and assets, but there is usually a marked difference between these statements and the amounts actually realized by the Official Assignee or the debts subsequently proved by creditors. It is the two latter sets of figures that really gauge the extent of financial embarrassment suffered in a community in a time of trade depression.

The following table shows for each of the last ten years the amount of assets as shown in debtors' statements and as realized by the Official Assignee, together with the amounts of debts proved and the amounts paid in dividends and preferential claims:—

Year.	Number of Bankruptcies.	Debtors' Statements of Assets, excluding Amounts secured to Creditors.	Amounts realized by Official Assignees.	Amount of Debts proved.	Amounts paid in Dividends and Preferential Claims.
		£	£	£	£
1919	141	43,627	54,622	59,767	24,980
1920	144	44,026	47,897	77,752	45,228
1921	336	362,601	78,271	558,504	38,646
1922	690	344,861	126,145	834,356	63,009
1923	674	368,673	124,641	668,926	65,667
1924	670	279,602	118,641	703,995	74,878
1925	653	235,377	98,648	471,028	80,187
1926	752	236,915	102,899	585,687	71,515
1927	867	331,363	108,850	679,473	72,388
1928	806	236,264	116,613	767,327	68,764

A similar classification by districts for the year 1928 is given below:—

District or Sub-district.	Number of Bankruptcies.	Debtors' Statements of Assets, excluding Amounts secured to Creditors.	Amounts realized by Official Assignees.	Amount of Debts proved.	Amounts paid in Dividends and Preferential Claims.
		£	£	£	£
Whangarei	23	1,315	823	6,244	896
Auckland	133	67,805	21,481	164,254	17,659
Hamilton	72	9,217	11,005	68,300	7,861
Gisborne	30	7,352	7,187	84,398	4,135
Wairoa	10	6,480	2,545	7,171	367
Napier	49	17,943	5,163	25,579	3,757
Dannevirke	8	904	943	1,776	1,102
New Plymouth	48	3,302	2,701	22,496	1,683
Hawera	24	466	810	15,344	628
Wanganui	27	6,613	6,657	28,942	4,688
Taihape	21	4,765	1,561	7,325	652
Palmerston North	38	4,492	2,716	21,378	4,003
Pahiatua	2	841	807	878	908
Masterton	21	679	1,219	11,904	1,211
Wellington	65	13,243	6,036	59,839	2,955
Blenheim	23	12,712	1,584	36,776	1,036
Nelson	9	1,473	6,159	15,479	1,302
Westport	3	168	552	613	4
Reefton	..	..	13	..	6
Grey mouth	6	3,612	150	5,987	169
Hokitika	2	120	151	539	2
Christchurch	86	23,083	9,273	91,654	4,128
Ashburton	25	33,723	12,696	36,092	1,010
Timaru	10	1,388	3,978	6,874	3,221
Oamaru	6	220	139	1,939	320
Dunedin	35	4,394	4,712	20,860	1,316
Invercargill	30	9,954	5,552	24,686	3,745
Totals	806	236,264	116,613	767,327	68,764

The table following shows for each of the years 1919 to 1928 the average amount of debts proved per estate, and also the average dividend paid.

Year.	Average Debts proved per Estate.	Proportion of Dividends to Debts.
	£	Per Cent.
1919	423	41.79
1920	540	58.17
1921	1,662	6.92
1922	1,209	7.55
1923	992	9.81
1924	1,050	10.84
1925	721	17.02
1926	779	12.21
1927	784	10.65
1928	952	8.95

Generally speaking it may be said that there is a tendency for the dividend rate to vary inversely with the average liability per estate. A very high rate was paid during the years 1918–20, which is all the more striking by reason of the remarkable drop in 1921—the year marking the commencement of the post-war trade depression. Subsequent years witnessed a gradual although progressive improvement up to 1925, after which there was a fall, due probably to conditions arising of the slump experienced in 1926–27.

Section 120 of the Bankruptcy Act, 1908, as amended by the Bankruptcy Amendment Act, 1927 (which, inter alia, varied the order of priority as between rent and wages), lays down that moneys realized by the Official Assignee by the realization of a bankrupt's property are to be applied in the following order of priority:—

In payment of costs and expenses incurred by the Assignee, or by a creditor or the debtor in connection with the filing of the petition, &c.
In payment of commission payable to the supervisor of the estate and to the Assignee, as per scale.
In payment of wages due to employees of the bankrupt, up to certain specified limits of time and amount.
In payment of rent due, under certain conditions, for a period not exceeding three months.
In payment, pari passu, of all debts provable and proved.
In payment of interest on debts proved, from the date of adjudication.
In payment to the bankrupt of any surplus.

The total payments made from the assets realized in 1928 were—

	£
Dividends to creditors (excluding preferential and secured claims)	59,959
Preferential claims (rents, wages, &c.)	8,805
Secured claims	17,064
Government commission	9,446
Costs of actions, solicitors' and supervisors' fees	5,365
Expenses incurred in carrying on estates	5,986
Other charges	4,932
Total	£111,557

Balances in bank to the credit of estates aggregated £44,679 on 31st December, 1928, a decrease of £8,168 during the year.

CLASSIFICATION OF AMOUNT OF LIABILITIES.

The following table shows for each of the last five years the number of bankruptcies with various amounts of liabilities:—

Liabilities.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
£ £
Under 50	23	19	44	21	22
50– 100	46	37	62	81	75
100– 250	148	170	175	225	220
250– 500	162	135	154	177	160
500–1,000	145	126	141	168	152
1,000–2,000	80	91	94	119	94
2,000–5,000	44	49	68	46	59
5,000 and over	22	23	14	28	24
Not stated	..	3	..	2	..
Totals	670	653	752	867	806

Liabilities in the bulk of failures do not exceed £1,000, the number under this amount in 1928 being 629, representing 78 per cent. of the total.

OCCUPATIONS OF BANKRUPTS.

The following table shows in summarized form the occupations of these adjudged bankrupt in the last two years:—

OCCUPATIONS OF BANKRUPTS, 1927 AND 1928.

Class of Occupation.	1927.	1928.
Fishing and trapping	2	4
Agricultural and pastoral	202	160
Forestry	7	7
Mining and quarrying	3	3
Processes relating to chemicals, animal and vegetable products	6	4
Processes relating to metals, tools, jewellery, &c.	30	33
Makers of ships, boats, conveyances, &c.	15	18
Processes relating to fibrous materials, textiles, and dress	23	15
Processes relating to food, drink, and tobacco	13	2
Processes relating to wood, &c., n.e.i.	3	4
Processes relating to paper, stationery, printing, photography	3	5
Construction or repair of buildings, roads, railways, canals	95	97
Transport and communication	61	63
Commerce and finance	171	180
Public administration, clerical, and professional	30	18
Entertainment, sport, and recreation	14	6
Personal or domestic service	34	30
Dependent on public or private support	18	13
Indefinite occupations	137	144
Totals	867	806

Of the 1928 total, 185 were employers of labour, 359 were working on their own account but not employing labour, and 262 were working for wages. The farming community showed 160 failures, while occupations connected with commerce and finance accounted for the considerable total of 180. The principal callings affected were (1927 figures in parentheses): Farmers, 144 (181); labourers, 118 (112); builders, 41 (41); contractors (unspecified), 31 (32); salesmen, 21 (9); carriers, 19 (17); fruiterers, 17 (14); farm-workers, 16 (14); carpenters, 15 (10); storekeepers, 13 (17); motor-service proprietors, 12 (3); motor mechanics (or engineers), 13 (6); plumbers, 12 (6); hotelkeepers, 11 (15).

UNDISCHARGED BANKRUPTS.

Section 14 of the Bankruptcy Amendment Act, 1927, provides for the annual gazetting of the names, occupations, and other particulars of all persons who were adjudged bankrupt since 31st March, 1927, and who have not obtained an order of discharge, or whose order of discharge was suspended for a terra, or was subject to conditions remaining unfulfilled. The number of undischarged bankrupts under this section at 31st March, 1929, was 1,236.

PRIVATE ASSIGNMENTS.

Official bankruptcies, as explained earlier, do not comprise all financial failures; and do not, therefore, indicate the full measure of financial stress ruling in the community. In order to present a more complete picture of this phase of economic life, the bankruptcy statistics have been supplemented by the collection of data relating to private assignments, details of which were collected for the first time in 1928. The statistics cover all operations arising out of deeds of assignment made under section 167 (2) of the Stamp Duties Act, 1923. In this connection a deed of assignment means a deed or other instrument executed by a debtor, providing for the distribution of the whole or any part of his property for the benefit of his creditors.

In regard to that portion of the statistics dealing with assets realized, it should be noted that the information shown falls short of completeness for the reason that it covers only assignments registered during 1928. In view of the fact that considerable time frequently elapses before an assignment is finally disposed of, so that the year in which the assets are realized does not necessarily correspond with the year of registration—especially in regard to assignments registered towards the close of a year—it is highly probable that some of the estates registered in 1927, and possibly in earlier years, were realized in 1928. Information regarding such estates, however, could not be ascertained.

During the year 1928, 209 deeds of assignment were registered with the Stamp Duties Department, this being a little more than one-quarter of the number of bankruptcies. Three assignors subsequently became bankrupt, and the estates of these, therefore, have not been included in the tabulation.

If private assignments be added to bankruptcies, the total number of failures in 1928 was 1,012, made up of 806 bankruptcies and 206 assignments (excluding 3 cases where assignors subsequently became bankrupt).

The table following shows by bankruptcy districts or subdistricts the number of private assignments and the finance involved, estates in which the assignment was completed during the year being shown separately from these where realization has yet to take place.

ASSIGNMENTS DURING 1928.

District or Sub-district.	Number.		Assets.		Liabilities.		Assets Realized (completed Estates).
District or Sub-district.	Completed Estates.	Incomplete Estates.	Completed Estates.	Incomplete Estates.	Completed Estates.	Incomplete Estates.	Assets Realized (completed Estates).
*Includes two estates for which no returns received. †Includes one estate for which no return received. ‡Includes eight estates for which no returns received.
			£	£	£	£	£
Whangarei	..	7	..	7,416	..	9,728	..
Auckland	22	29^*	18,930	65,358	25,069	62,860	8,842
Hamilton	5	11^†	3,279	17,087	5,440	14,957	1,380
Gisborne	..	1	..	12,000	..	9,000	..
Wairoa	..	2	..	1,700	..	6,173	..
Napier	3	..	2,484	..	2,817	..	2,101
Dannevirke	1	..	220	..	800	..	220
New Plymouth	7	1	8,216	905	11,453	1,643	4,538
Hawera	2	1^†	463	..	1,086	..	404
Wanganui	2	4	1,989	11,534	2,419	14,733	1,012
Taihape	..	1	..	459	..	604	..
Palmerston North	1	4^†	1,050	26,029	840	24,576	910
Pahiatua	1	..	557	..	775	..	346
Masterton	1	1	244	26,920	402	24,870	113
Wellington	12	8	9,669	11,616	11,282	12,077	4,439
Blenheim	3	2	3,813	1,500	4,933	1,707	2,261
Nelson	3	2^†	2,300	1,893	3,443	2,770	2,092
Westport	1	2	1,200	2,063	1,500	2,356	580
Greymouth	1	..	228	..	230	..	168
Hokitika	1	..	477	..	465	..	66
Christchurch	19	10^†	21,553	21,548	31,528	25,073	12,827
Ashburton	1	..	890	..	891	..	366
Timaru	5	2	5,320	3,138	5,193	3,674	2,468
Oamaru	3	1	5,850	257	3,478	644	4,157
Dunedin	11	8^†	11,954	4,414	15,811	7,625	5,075
Invercargill	3	1	1,863	7,698	2,908	6,181	1,026
Totals	108	98^‡	102,549	223,535	132,763	231,251	55,391

Assets of the 198 estates for which returns were received were valued at £326,084, and the liabilities were estimated at £364,014. Assets realized in completed estates represented 42 per cent. of liabilities.

CLASSIFICATION OF AMOUNT OF LIABILITIES.

The following table classifies estates assigned during 1928 according to the amount of liabilities:—

Liabilities.	Number of Estates.
£ £
100– 250	10
250– 500	28
500– 1,000	53
1,000–2,000	56
2,000–5,000	36
5,000 and over	12
Not shown	11
Total	206

Forty-seven per cent. of the estates show liabilities below £1,000. In the case of official bankruptcies the corresponding figure was 78 per cent.

OCCUPATIONS OF ASSIGNORS.

The occupations of assignors in broad classes were as follows for 1928:—

Agricultural and pastoral	11
Processes relating to chemicals, animal and vegetable products	3
Processes relating to metals, tools, jewellery, &c.	9
Makers of ships, boats, conveyances, &c.	3
Processes relating to fibrous materials, textiles, and dress	5
Processes relating to food, drink, and tobacco	6
Processes relating to wood, &c., n.e.i.	4
Processes relating to paper, stationery, printing, photography	2
Construction or repair of buildings, roads, railways, canals	25
Transport and communication	10
Commerce and finance	112
Public administration, clerical, and professional	4
Personal or domestic service	8
Dependent on public or private support	1
Indefinite occupations	3
Total	206

No fewer than 135 assignors were employers of labour, 65 were working on their own account, and 6 only were working for wages. A perusal of the occupations table shows that the private assigment is an expedient made use of mainly by the business community, no less than 54 per cent. of the total coming under this category. Particular occupations most prominent were: Storekeepers, 24; grocers, 20; builders, 18; farmers, 11; drapers, 10; mercers, 9. As a commentary on the insufficiency of the bankruptcy statistics as a measure of economic depression, in certain occupations at least, it is worthy of note that only 13 storekeepers and 11 grocers appear in the bankruptcy list, compared with private assignments of 24 and 20 respectively as shown above.

Chapter 34. SECTION XXXIV.—WEALTH.

Table of Contents

STATE ASSETS.

ESTIMATED STATE ASSETS, 31ST MARCH, 1929.

ASSETS OF LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

PRIVATE WEALTH.

ESTIMATED PRIVATE WEALTH, 1928.

AN ESTIMATE OF NATIONAL WEALTH.

VALUE OF LAND HOLDINGS.

VALUES OF HOLDINGS.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—SUMMARY BY AMOUNT OF UNIMPROVED VALUE.

CLASSES OF TAXPAYERS.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—CLASSES, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—CLASSES BY AMOUNTS, 1928–29.

URBAN AND RURAL LANDS.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—TYPE BY AMOUNT OF UNIMPROVED VALUE, 1928–29.

OCCUPATIONS OF TAXPAYERS.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—OCCUPATIONS, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—OCCUPATIONS BY TYPE, 1928–29.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—CASES UNDER £2,500 AND OVER £10,000, 1928–29.

AREA OF HOLDINGS.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—AREA AND UNIMPROVED VALUE.—RURAL LANDS, 1928–29.

EXEMPTIONS.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—EXEMPTIONS BY CLASSES, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—EXEMPTIONS BY TYPE, 1928–29.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—EXEMPTIONS BY OCCUPATIONS, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—EXEMPTIONS BY UNIMPROVED VALUE, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—ORDINARY AND MORTGAGE EXEMPTIONS BY TYPE, 1928–29.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—MORTGAGES AND MORTGAGE EXEMPTIONS, 1928–29.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—PERCENTAGE OF EXEMPTIONS TO MORTGAGES.

TAX ASSESSED.

LAND-TAX ASSESSED.—BY CLASSES, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

LAND-TAX ASSESSED.—BY TYPE, 1928–29.

LAND-TAX ASSESSED.—BY OCCUPATIONS, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

LAND-TAX ASSESSED.—AVERAGES BY OCCUPATIONS, 1928–29.

LAND-TAX ASSESSED.—BY AMOUNT OF UNIMPROVED VALUE, 1928–29.

RURAL LANDS.—LAND-TAX ASSESSED, BY AMOUNT OF UNIMPROVED VALUE, 1928–29.

RURAL LANDS.—LAND-TAX ASSESSED, BY AREA, 1928–29.

STATE ASSETS.

A STATEMENT compiled by the Treasury and showing the value of State assets which, may be set off against the public debt is now included in the Financial Statement each year. The latest statement, showing the position as at the 31st March, 1929, is here reproduced as giving the best available information on the subject.

ESTIMATED STATE ASSETS, 31ST MARCH, 1929.

Cash and investments—
	£	£	£
Cash in the Public Account and in the hands of officers of the Government	2, 486,703
Less liabilities outstanding	1,625,125
		861,578
Investment of cash balances		10,112,316
Reserve fund (securities at cost)		1,928,162
Post Office Savings-bank Reserve Fund		1,000,000
Bank of New Zealand shares (nominal value)		2,109,375
Public Debt Redemption Fund		22,075,645
			38,087,076
Sinking funds accrued—
State Advances debt		1,775,183
State Coal-mines		4,854
Westport Harbour loans		238,502
Samoan loan		12,146
Nauru and Ocean Islands Sinking Fund Account		10,022
Electric Supply Sinking Fund Account		115,854
			2,156,561
Loans and advances outstanding—
Mining purposes		27,859
Local bodies' inscribed debt (annuity value of interest receivable)		886,687
Samoan loan (less sinking fund)		153,054
Repatriation advances outstanding		287,372
	£
Discharged soldiers' mortgages and property held	15,198,583
Less amount included in Public Debt Redemption Fund	10,850,000
			4,348,583
State Advances—Mortgages and property held, less sinking funds and investments included elsewhere	34,150,324
General purposes relief—Advances outstanding	33,530
Rural intermediate credits—Advances outstanding	110,100
			39,997,509
Revenue earning and trading accounts—
Railways (capital cost, including unopened lines and value of assets taken over from provinces)		62,276,214
Telephones and telegraphs (value of assets)		9,119,417
Pacific cable (estimated value of Dominion's interest		57,000
Electric-power supply and development (capital cost)		8,467,151
Westport Harbour-works (value of assets)		497,774
Lighthouses and harbour-works (capital expenditure)		266,276
Tourist and health resorts (capital expenditure)		514,179
State coal-mines (value of assets)		324,073
Kauri-gum (trading capital)		39,208
Nauru and Ocean Islands (purchase price of rights)		565,040
			83,126,332
Lands and forests—
	£	£
Crown lands (estimated value, including settlement lands, Native lands, and education reserves)		28,775,558
Land-drainage schemes (capital invested)		1,837,203
Irrigation and water-supply (capital expenditure)		836,472
Waihou and Ohinemuri Rivers improvement (capital expenditure)		660,299
Lands improvement (capital expenditure)		512,381
Samoan Crown Estates (value of Dominion's interest)		662,360
Howard Estate		88,000
State forests (estimated value of forests, reserves, plantations, and nurseries)		37,718,013
			71,090,286
Indirectly productive expenditure—
Public buildings (including school buildings)		14,100,094
Roads (including roads on Crown lands and main high ways		21,986,770
Timber-supply, sawmills, &c. (capital invested)		390
Quarries (acquisition and working)		5,114
Development of mining (capital expenditure)		881,585
Immigration (capital expenditure)		3,234,549
			40,208,502
Total		£274,666,266

From the point of view of the purpose for which this statement was compiled, the inclusion of the items “Roads,” “Development of mining,” and “Immigration” is open to no objection. In considering the value of public property, however, it is preferable to omit such items, leaving the total at £248,500,000. The expenditure by the State on roads, immigration, and mining is reflected in the value of property, both public and private.

It may be here stated that, although much of the expenditure of counties, boroughs, town districts, and road districts has been in respect of the construction of streets, roads, and bridges, these items are not included as assets of the respective bodies under the next heading.

ASSETS OF LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

The form of return in use for the collection of statistics of local governing authorities provides for particulars of cash assets and an estimate of other assets being supplied. The figures in respect of the latter are far from complete, no assets apart from cash assets being included by some local authorities, while in other cases no value is assigned to reserves. Nevertheless the following total as at 31st March, 1928, may be taken as an approximate though somewhat conservative estimate of the position:—

Class of Local Authority.	Cash Assets.	Other Assets (estimated).
	£	£
Counties	1,512,485	1,880,799
Boroughs	3,776,749	28,375,464
Town districts	100,790	561,561
Road districts	70,424	250,180
River districts	50,006	168,638
Land-drainage districts	49,811	72,952
Electric-power districts	1,834,947	11,114,173
City and suburban drainage districts	70,320	934,799
Water-supply districts	1,026	1,505
Tramway district	485,716	1,123,930
Railway districts	3,739	164,021
Gas-lighting district	..	120,290
Rabbit districts	34,680	14,232
Fire districts	16,905	441,002
Harbour Boards	1,640,489	15,105,390
Totals	9,648,087	60,328,936

Full details of estimated assets of the foregoing classes of local authorities are contained in the Local Authorities Handbook, and a summary is here given. Naturally the assets vary in nature considerably according to the nature and purpose of the particular class of local authority.

	£
Cash assets	9,648,087
Halls, libraries, offices, sundry premises, furniture, &c.	2,937,117
Electrical-works	15,063,622
Gasworks	1,513,690
Tramway-works	5,098,771
Railway-works	120,290
Wharves, quays, slips, docks, dredges, boats, tugs, sheds, &c	10,070,181
Drainage, sewerage, and water-supply systems	10,205,515
Reserves, parks, gardens, recreation-grounds, cemeteries, &c.	2,757,977
Endowments	3,661,391
Reclaimed land	3,548,682
Workers' dwellings, roadmen's cottages, &c.	549,715
Sundry plant, tools, stocks, and materials	2,634,458
Other and unspecified	2,167,227
Total	£69,977,023

Hospital Boards, which are not included in the foregoing figures, had assets aggregating £6,150,484 at 31st March, 1928, bringing the total for all local bodies to over £76,000,000.

In arriving at the aggregate public wealth of the Dominion, as distinct from private wealth, it is necessary to take into account the fact that of the total indebtedness of local bodies at the 31st March, 1928, somewhat over £6,000,000 was owing to the General Government. The approximate public wealth of the Dominion would thus be £248,500,000, plus £76,000,000, minus £6,000,000, making a net total of £318,500,000.

PRIVATE WEALTH.

Estimates of the private wealth of the Dominion are arrived at on the assumption that the wealth per head of the living is approximately equal to that left by the average person dying. The fact that the younger and more numerous members of the population do not possess as much accumulated wealth as the older members, taken in conjunction with the fact that the death-rate varies with age, renders it necessary for this purpose to divide the population into quinquennial age-groups. The average wealth of persons dying within any one age-group being known, the average wealth of living persons belonging to that age-group is assumed to be identical, and an estimate of the total private wealth of the Dominion is arrived at by weighting the average wealth of persons in each age-group by the number of persons in that group.

The average wealth of deceased persons is obtained by a consideration of the estates certified for stomp duty. For each person whose estate is dealt with by the Stamp Duties Department a return is forwarded to the Census and Statistics Office showing name, age, date of death, and amount of estate certified. The few instances where the ages of deceased persons are not ascertainable are allocated to the various age-groups in proportion to the contribution of each to the total.

If the period under review be short, the infrequency of the appearance of large estates may occasion from time to time considerable discrepancies in the results according as many or few large estates appear in the returns. Matters are further complicated by the fact that from six to twelve months usually elapse after the date of death before the estate is finally certified, with the result that an abnormal number of deaths towards the end of any one year may swell the number of deaths for the year without affecting the number of estates certified, thus bringing about a fictitiously low average wealth of deceased persons for that year and a fictitiously high average wealth for the following year. The epidemic of influenza in the last quarter of 1918 produced just this effect. For these reasons it is desirable to extend the estimate over a series of years and to strike an average. On the other hand, owing to the rapid movement in values during the last few years too long a period yields an artificial estimate. In the computation of the latest estimate an average has been taken over the years 1924–28.

It has been found that the number of estates dealt with in any period is usually equal to about one-third only of the total deaths registered during that period; and as most persons leave some estate, however small, it is necessary to make some allowance for estates which have not passed through the Stamp Duties Office. It should be noted in this connection that up to 1920, estates below £500 were exempt from estate duty, and if under £200, from succession duty also. Since 1920 the exemptions have been widened somewhat, and now estates under £1,000 escape estate duty, and if under £500, succession duty. In many cases, however,, estates of a lower value than the figures indicated are passed for probate or letters of administration. The method formerly adopted of making a proportionate allowance of 10 per cent. for all unrecorded estates involved a slight weakness, in that it gave too low an amount for persons dying at early ages and too high an amount for persons dying at advanced ages, so that, while these factors balanced each other and did not affect very appreciably the total result, it has been deemed better, in order to ensure closer accuracy, to make a fixed allowance, increasing from £20 for the age-group 15 to 20 years to £100 at ages 35 to 40 and over. In such cases no distinction is made between the wealth of males and that of females. It has been found that the average for males is generally much higher than that for females; and slightly greater accuracy still is obtained by treating the estates of the two sexes separately, making a fixed allowance for unrecorded estates ranging from £30 for males and £10 for females for the age-group 15 to 20 years to £150 for males and £50 for females at ages 35 to 40 and over. No allowance at all is made for estates of persons under 15. The following tables illustrate the results of the two methods:—

ESTIMATED PRIVATE WEALTH, 1928.

(a) Both Sexes taken together.
Age, in Years.	Number of Estates certified, 1924–28.	Total Amount, including Allowance for Unrecorded Estates.	Number of Deaths registered, 1924–28.	Average Wealth per Person dying.	Estimated Population, 31st December, 1928.	Estimated Private Wealth, 31st December, 1928.
		£		£		£
Under 5	3	757	7,465	0.1014	131,690	13,353
5 and under 10	12	2,683	1,015	2.6433	135,824	359,024
10 and under 15	16	4,251	771	5.5136	132,521	730,668
15 and under 20	67	58,752	1,080	54.4000	131,760	7,167,744
20 and under 25	251	178,546	1,495	119.4287	122,605	14,642,556
25 and under 30	444	366,693	1,503	243.9740	110,037	28,846,167
30 and under 35	551	570,593	1,601	356.3978	99,152	35,337,555
35 and under 40	845	1,064,345	1,984	536.4642	95,270	51,108,944
40 and under 45	1,042	1,657,760	2,339	708.7473	97,450	69,067,424
45 and under 50	1,462	3,473,806	3,079	1,128$2253	93,565	105,562,400
50 and under 55	1,729	3,727,989	3,362	1,108.8604	76,356	84,668,145
55 and under 60	1,999	6,875,502	3,628	1,895.1218	58,584	111,023,816
60 and under 65	2,322	8,330,735	4,090	2,036.8545	42,224	86,004,144
65 and under 70	2,803	9,268,074	4,863	1,905.8346	31,204	59,469,663
70 and under 75	3,045	12,461,766	5,324	2,340.6773	20,557	48,117,303
75 and under 80	2,868	11,735,786	5,192	2,260$3593	13,249	29,947,500
80 and under 85	2,299	11,104,160	4,332	2,563.2871	6,042	15,487,381
85 and under 90	1,358	6,359,742	2,800	2,271.3364	2,630	5,973,615
90 and under 95	408	2,261,202	876	2,581.2808	616	1,590,069
95 and over	82	294,074	237	1,240.8185	136	168,751
Totals	23,606	79,797,216	57,036	..	1,401,472	753,286,222
(b) Sexes taken separately.
MALES.
		£		£		£
Under 5	1	375	4,176	0.0897	67,310	6,038
5 and under 10	7	1,074	557	1.9281	69,380	133,772
10 and under 15	9	2,795	427	65,456	67,358	440,899
15 and under 20	54	39,163	588	66.6037	67,812	4,516,530
20 and under 25	200	131,063	790	165.9025	63,621	10,455,341
25 and under 30	328	287,029	760	377.6697	56,637	21,390,079
30 and under 35	375	385,743	795	485.2113	48,133	23,354,676
35 and under 40	567	816,621	1,057	772.5837	45,968	35,514,128
40 and under 45	704	1,299,817	1,311	991.4698	49,061	48,642,500
45 and under 50	969	2,860,051	1,756	1,628.7306	48,573	79,112,331
50 and under 55	1,108	2,836,156	1,933	1,467.2302	40,083	58,810,988
55 and under 60	1,269	5,579,855	2,133	2,615.9657	30,932	80,917,051
60 and under 65	1,444	6,530,198	2,378	2,746.0883	21,998	60,408,450
65 and under 70	1,716	7,138,563	2,850	2,504.7589	15,873	39,758,038
70 and under 75	1,918	10,042,456	3,073	3,267.9648	10,877	35,545,653
75 and under 80	1,743	9,036,409	2,889	3,127.8674	7,092	22,182,836
80 and under 85	1,406	8,869,063	2,403	3,690.8293	3,102	11,448,952
85 and under 90	842	5,185,090	1,527	3,395.6057	1,326	4,502,573
90 and under 95	256	1,916,283	481	3,983.9563	324	1,290,802
95 and over	58	240,977	131	1,839.5190	67	123,248
Totals for males	14,974	63,198,781	32,015	..	714,927	538,554,885
FEMALES.
Under 5	2	382	3,289	0.1161	64,380	7,475
5 and under 10	5	1,609	458	3.5131	66,444	233,424
10 and under 15	7	1,456	344	4.2325	65,163	275,802
15 and under 20	13	20,139	492	40.9329	63,948	2,617,577
20 and under 25	51	46,203	705	65.5361	59,584	3,904,903
25 and under 30	116	73,814	743	99.3458	53,400	5,305,066
30 and under 35	176	176,450	806	218.9205	51,019	11,169,105
35 and under 40	278	239,774	927	258.6558	49,302	12,752,248
40 and under 45	338	353,793	1,028	344.1566	48,389	16,653,394
45 and under 50	493	611,605	1,323	462.2864	44,992	20,799,190
50 and under 55	621	892,683	1,429	624.6906	36,273	22,659,402
55 and under 60	730	1,300,597	1,495	8,699,645	27,652	24,056,258
60 and under 65	878	1,805,537	1,712	1,054.6360	20,226	21,331,068
65 and under 70	1,087	2,139,911	2,013	1,063.0457	15,331	16,297,554
70 and under 75	1,127	2,420,860	2,251	1,075.4597	9,680	10,410,450
75 and under 80	1,125	2,697,777	2,303	1,171.4185	6,157	7,212,424
80 and under 85	893	2,233,147	1,929	1,157.6708	2,940	3,403,552
85 and under 90	516	1,171,052	1,273	919.9151	1,304	1,199,569
90 and under 95	152	344,019	395	870.9341	292	254,313
95 and over	24	52,647	106	496.6415	69	34,268
Totals for females	8,632	16,583,455	25,021	..	686,545	180,577,042
Grand totals	23,606	79,782,236	57,036	..	1,401,472	719,132,927

It is seen that under method (a) the estimated private wealth of the Dominion at the 31st December, 1928, works out at £753,000,000, and under method (b) at £719,000,000, which may be taken as the more correct figure. The discrepancy of £34,000,000 between the two amounts is due to the fact that nearly two-thirds of the estates dealt with during the period belonged to males, and, the average wealth per male being higher than that per female, it follows that under the first method the estimated wealth of the whole population will tend to be somewhat overstated. The estimated wealth per head of the whole population was £513, and per head of persons of twenty years and over (practically the adult population) £817.

It is obvious that estimates of private wealth based on the probate system are approximate only. Certain of the factors that render this inevitable have been referred to earlier, and there are others almost equally important. One which, if considered alone, would appear to indicate a considerable amount of- over-statement in the estimate lies in the fact that in a substantial proportion of estates part of the wealth consists of insurance policies. In the probate returns the maturity value of the policy is taken, whereas among the living the average surrender value of policies in force is much below the maturity value. Against this, however, is the pronounced tendency towards conservatism in the valuation of property for death duty purposes. Further, a not inconsiderable amount of property is disposed of before death by way of gift, and thus does not appear in the probate returns.

Any attempt to allow for the effect of the various items referred to would probably only result in a spurious accuracy on a subject in regard to which all that is possible or even desired is a reasonably close approximation. Such an approximation, with, if anything, a slight tendency to under-statement, may be confidently claimed for the foregoing estimate, but the inevitable shortcomings of the system should not be overlooked, particularly in making comparisons between New Zealand and other countries

Estimates of private wealth have been made annually since 1912. It was originally proposed to adopt a ten-years basis as soon as figures for ten years were available, but the advent of the war and the rapid movement in values made it advisable to adopt a shorter period, at least temporarily. As indicated previously, also, the former system of making a proportionate allowance of 10 per cent. for unrecorded estates was abandoned in 1919 in favour of the present scheme of a fixed allowance varying with ago. The latter change will have had little effect on the comparability of the figures, and the former was designed to assist towards retaining comparability. In any comparison, however, it is necessary to keep in mind the fact that the greater part of the increase in recent years as compared with earlier is due to inflation of values. Nevertheless, when allowance is made for this on the basis of the best information available—viz., the movement in the wholesale-prices index number—a pronounced increase over the last decennium is still apparent.

An estimate of the private wealth in 1914, taking an average over the years 1908–14, shows £285,500,000; but in this instance the now-abandoned 10-per-cent. method was used, and no distinction between the two sexes was made. The average per head of population shown by the 1914 estimate was £255, or, if only population twenty years of age and over be considered, £424, as compared with corresponding averages of £522 and £817 disclosed by the 1928 estimate. If both sets of figures be converted to the 1909–13 standard of wholesale prices, the 1914 averages become £232 and £387, and the 1928 averages £330 and £525.

It should be explained that the foregoing computations are exclusive of Maoris. The inclusion of Maoris would not affect the per capita rates to any extent, but would involve an addition of 4 or 5 per cent. to the totals shown for the various estimates quoted. An addition of 4 per cent. to the aggregate figure previously given for 1928 would bring the estimated private wealth of the Dominion to £748,000,000.

A table is- now given showing the number of estates finally passed during 1927 and 1928, classified according to amount. Estates of Maoris are here included.

Amount.	Number of Estates.		Aggregate Net Value of Estates.
Amount.	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.
£ £			£	£
Under 500	2,095	2,201	399,931	435,489
500 and under 1,000	902	913	655,805	663,255
1,000 and under 2,000	780	808	1,125,176	1,158,906
2,000 and under 3,000	377	395	928,769	976,067
3,000 and under 4,000	243	217	844,961	757,804
4,000 and under 5,000	171	171	764,336	759,280
5,000 and under 7,500	243	233	1,481,417	1,418,613
7,500 and under 10,000	121	123	1,051,905	1,066,197
10,000 and under 15,000	119	119	1,433,825	1,439,530
15,000 and under 20,000	50	46	849,742	814,080
20,000 and over	134	110	7,947,098	5,432,659
Totals	5,235	5,336	17,482,965	14,921,880

The table below shows for the period 1924 to 1928 the total number of estates, classified according to age of deceased and amount of estate.

Age.	Under £500.	£500 to £999.	£1,000 to £1,999.	£2,000 to £2,999.	£3,000 to £3,999.	£4,000 to 4,999.	£5,000 to £7,499.	£7,500 to £9,999.	£10,000 to £14,999.	£15,000 to £19,999.	£20,000 and over.	Totals.
Under 5	3	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	3
5 and under 10	11	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	12
10 and under 15	13	3	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	16
15 and under 20	52	10	2	..	..	..	1	..	1	..	..	66
20 and under 25	184	35	16	5	2	..	1	1	1	..	..	245
25 and under 30	291	78	43	6	3	1	4	3	..	..	1	430
30 and under 35	341	96	55	15	10	4	4	4	3	1	2	535
35 and under 40	458	159	100	34	31	9	16	3	5	1	5	821
40 and under 45	494	220	133	57	30	14	26	19	10	4	7	1,014
45 and under 50	599	291	217	98	56	36	47	25	20	8	24	1,421
50 and under 55	651	340	291	119	75	45	76	30	29	11	15	1,682
55 and under 60	679	359	331	174	91	77	85	45	38	21	44	1,944
60 and under 65	738	405	410	195	112	75	112	53	71	27	60	2,258
65 and under 70	863	475	462	267	148	99	157	74	72	33	75	2,725
70 and under 75	928	518	515	262	153	114	180	79	81	40	90	2,960
75 and under 80	857	466	481	248	149	118	154	82	102	39	91	2,787
80 and under 85	694	372	353	179	131	95	132	78	82	37	81	2,234
85 and under 90	416	219	202	121	84	43	87	45	39	17	49	1,322
90 and under 95	124	52	71	32	21	18	28	11	14	8	18	397
95 and over	26	11	14	9	4	3	3	4	3	3	2	22
Unspecified	313	121	77	35	20	15	25	11	12	9	14	652
Totals	8,735	4,231	3,773	1,856	1,120	766	1,138	567	583	259	578	23,606

Of the total number of estates finally passed during the five years 1924 to 1928, 55 per cent. were of a value less than £1,000. The number of estates of a value of £5,000 and over was 13 per cent. of the total; of £10,000 and over, 6 per cent.; and of £20,000 and over, 2£ per cent.

AN ESTIMATE OF NATIONAL WEALTH.

The public wealth of the Dominion has been estimated at approximately £318,500,000, and the private wealth, including that of Maoris, at approximately £748,000,000. In the probate figures used as the basis of computation of private wealth, deductions are made on account of debts, mortgages, and other charges against property. As, however, these in general will rank as assets when estates to which the charges are owing are in their turn passed for probate, the general effect is negligible, except in so far as such items as State advances and debts owing overseas are concerned. The State advances outstanding are included in the public-wealth figure.

In the case of the public wealth the figure given practically represents gross assets, no deduction having, of course, been made on account of indebtedness of the General Government and of local governing bodies. Were the whole of this indebtedness owing outside the Dominion, no deduction on this account would be necessary for the purpose of the present computation, which is merely to ascertain an approximation of the wealth of the Dominion, without taking account of the fact that there are external charges against that wealth. In arriving at the sum of public and private wealth, however, it is necessary to make allowance for the indebtedness of the General Government and of local governing bodies within the Dominion, this being included in the private-wealth estimate.

Of the gross public debt at the 31st March, 1929, £110,500,000 was domiciled in New Zealand, and of the gross debt of local governing bodies (other than Hospital Boards) a year earlier £34,500,000 was domiciled in the Dominion, exclusive of the £6,000,000 borrowed from the General Government, allowance for which has already been made in the estimation of the approximate public wealth. Of the Hospital Boards' debt of £1,400,000, it may be assumed that £1,000,000 was domiciled in New Zealand. To arrive at an estimate of the national wealth the sum of £146,000,000 requires to be deducted from the aggregate of the public and private wealth figures previously given, the result being:—

	£
Approximate public wealth	318,500,000
Estimated private wealth	748,000,000
Total	1,066,500,000
Less public and local-body debt domiciled in Dominion	146,000,000
Estimated national wealth	£920,500,000

It appears scarcely necessary to point out that the estimate given can be regarded at best as a rough approximation only. No practicable system has yet been devised that will permit of a reliably close estimation of national wealth being arrived at, and the difficulties in this respect are enormously increased during a period of changing values, such as have been experienced during the last fifteen years.

VALUE OF LAND HOLDINGS.

The bulk of the wealth of the Dominion is represented by land and improvements thereon, particulars of the valuation of which are given in Section XXVII of this book. Further information concerning the value of land, with particular reference to its utilization and its relative distribution among the population, is obtainable from the annual returns of land which are furnished to the Commissioner of Taxes for the purpose of land-tax assessment. Statistics compiled from these returns are available for the four years 1924–25, 1925–26, 1926–27, and 1928–29 (there was no tabulation for 1927–28), and afford valuable information not only as to the distribution of land on a value basis, but also as to the incidence of land taxation. The latter aspect properly belongs to the subject of taxation, which is dealt with in Section XXIVB of this book; but, owing to the close interrelation of the two matters, and the impossibility of discussing one fully without largely bringing in the other, both are covered in the present section.

It should be explained that in the statistical tabulation it has not been found possible to cover each year the whole of the returns for that year, returns under query or not to hand at the time of tabulation being of necessity omitted. Apart from the fact that the actual totals would be somewhat in excess of those shown, the omission of a small percentage does not impair the statistical value of the tables or invalidate conclusions drawn from the figures.

The following table summarizes the principal heads of information disclosed by the 1928–29 tabulation. In connection with the division into country, town, and mixed lands, it should be noted that the last-mentioned includes only those cases where less than 75 per cent. (on an unimproved-value basis) is urban or rural respectively. In cases where 75 per cent. or over is urban or rural, as the case may be, the whole has been so classed.

—	Country or Farming Lands.	Town Lands or Business Sites.	Partly Country and partly Town Lands.	Total.
Number of returns	47,165	24,123	1,045	72,333
Number of taxpayers	29,280	16,208	788	46,276
Area Acres	26,380,034	432,628	379,513	27,192,175
Unimproved value of land £	164,471,987	53,133,134	4,669,079	222,274,200
Total mortgages £	114,210,346	33,979,368	2,446,698	150,636,412
Exemptions—
Ordinary £	5,884,253	5,640,124	162,246	11,686,623
Mortgage £	64,949,146	14,883,925	991,668	80,824,739
Hardship £	151,045	93,771	9,635	254,451
Total exemptions £	70,984,444	20,617,820	1,163,549	92,765,813
Taxable balance £	93,487,543	32,515,314	3,505,530	129,508,387
Tax assessed £	654,292	283,709	35,943	973,944

VALUES OF HOLDINGS.

Returns covered by the statistics for 1928–29 numbered 72,333, representing an aggregate unimproved value of £222,274,200, as compared with 70,933 returns and £233,775,669 unimproved value of land tabulated in 1926–27. Owing to the operations of the various exemptions, dealt with later on, the number of holdings on which tax was assessed reduced to 46,276 in 1928–29 and 51,506 in 1926–27.

The following table shows the distribution of holdings according to unimproved value for 1926–27 and 1928–29. The insignificant totals for holdings under £500 are due to the fact that, with few exceptions, such are entirely exempt from land-tax.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—SUMMARY BY AMOUNT OF UNIMPROVED VALUE.

Amount.	Number of Returns.		Number of Taxpayers.		Total Unimproved Value.
Amount.	1926–27.	1928–29.	1926–27.	1928–29.	1926–27.	1928–29.
£ £					£	£
Under 100	16	182	6	3	1,053	9,885
100– 199	23	175	7	8	3,592	25,467
200– 299	31	167	9	6	7,724	40,191
300– 399	31	140	8	9	10,696	48,068
400– 499	31	116	6	6	13,616	51,695
500– 599	4,575	4,782	3,446	2,822	2,553,746	2,462,924
600– 699	6,234	6,222	5,024	4,098	3,988,642	3,981,420
700– 799	5,024	4,981	3,882	3,192	3,726,608	3,699,483
800– 899	4,086	4,223	3,111	2,725	3,436,087	3,552,709
900– 999	3,321	3,524	2,412	2,230	3,127,993	3,320,172
1,000– 1,999	19,540	20,355	13,514	12,346	27,690,582	27,940,304
2,000– 2,499	5,151	5,314	3,344	3,202	11,413,211	11,816,015
2,500– 2,999	3,962	3,739	2,511	2,309	10,750,159	10,193,342
3,000– 3,999	4,922	4,992	3,227	3,137	16,936,183	17,201,877
4,000– 4,999	3,246	3,214	2,183	2,035	14,474,802	14,332,134
5,000– 5,999	2,230	2,136	1,521	1,406	12,191,686	11,687,809
6,000– 6,999	1,598	1,574	1,135	1,067	10,831,637	10,176,780
7,000– 7,999	1,206	1,121	856	770	9,024,935	8,384,479
8,000– 8,999	837	840	617	594	7,090,923	7,112,497
9,000– 9,999	704	705	533	492	6,670,705	6,683,745
10,000– 14,999	1,944	1,827	1,936	1,818	23,560,419	22,060,934
15,000– 19,999	859	788	856	787	14,776,505	13,552,304
20,000– 29,999	712	661	712	659	17,321,192	16,007,533
30,000– 39,999	295	263	295	263	10,154,700	8,992,104
40,000– 49,999	123	111	123	111	5,371,901	4,890,100
50,000– 99,999	194	156	194	156	12,670,960	10,250,623
100,000 and over	38	25	38	25	5,975,412	3,799,606
Totals	70,933	72,333	51,506	46,276	233,775,669	222,274,200

Of the 72,333 returns covered in 1928–29, no fewer than 50,181, or 69 per cent. of the total, were in respect of holdings of a lower value than £2,500, at which amount the ordinary exemption ceases. The aggregate unimproved value of these 50,181 holdings was £56,948,333, or only 26 per cent. of the grand total. On the other hand, the 3,831 returns where the unimproved value was over £10,000 formed only a little over 5 per cent. of the total, but represented 36 per cent. of the total unimproved value.

It should be understood that the classification by amount is on the basis of the unimproved value of the land, and not, in the case of taxpayers, on the basis of taxable balance. Taking as an example the group “£500—£599” for the year 1928–29, the figures given in the table show that 4,782 returns were received in this category, representing an aggregate of £2,462,924, and that of the 4,782 persons, &c., concerned 2,822 were assessed for land-tax. It may be added that the amount in respect of which tax was assessed was only £191,519. Statistics of taxable balance are given farther on.

CLASSES OF TAXPAYERS.

In the statistical treatment of the data a distinction is made according to the class of taxpayers, the division being as follows:—

Class I—Individuals.
Class II—Deceased persons' estates, trusts, &c.
Class III—Natives, Native Land Boards, Native trusts, &c.
Class IV—Companies.

The figures for the respective classes for the years 1926–27 and 1928–29 are as follows:—

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—CLASSES, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

Class.	Number of Returns.		Number of Taxpayers.		Total Unimproved Value.
Class.	1926–27.	1928–29.	1926–27.	1928–29.	1926–27.	1928–29.
					£	£
I	62,014	62,501	43,597	38,461	186,297,888	177,437,532
II	4,629	4,793	4,202	4,225	20,769,348	20,256,118
III	2,377	2,876	2,258	2,175	6,056,094	5,376,415
IV	1,913	2,163	1,449	1,415	20,652,339	19,204,135
Totals	70,933	72,333	51,506	46,276	233,775,669	222,274,200

The general class covers the overwhelming majority of returns and taxpayers and four-fifths of the aggregate unimproved value. As might be expected, however, the average unimproved value per return is much lower in this class than in that composed of the companies. The averages for the respective classes are:—

Class.	1926–27.	1928–29.
	£	£
I	3,004	2,839
II	4,487	4,226
III	2,552	1,869
IV	10,796	8,878
Totals	£3,296	£3,073

Reference to the next table, which summarizes returns and their aggregate unimproved value by class in conjunction with amount, will show that the preponderance of the general class of individuals is much greater in the lower categories than in the higher.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—CLASSES BY AMOUNTS, 1928–29.

Amount.	Number of Returns.				Total Unimproved Value.
Amount.	Class I.	Class II.	Class III.	Class IV.	Class I	Class II.	Class III.	Class IV.
£ £					£	£	£	£
Under 500	67	9	703	1	22,810	3,023	149,223	250
500– 599	4,273	274	184	51	2,177,085	151,981	102,616	31,242
600– 699	5,546	334	252	90	3,548,328	213,904	161,491	57,697
700– 799	4,469	252	191	69	3,319,501	187,147	141,913	50,922
800– 899	3,754	257	136	76	3,158,933	214,954	114,853	63,969
900– 999	3,128	210	120	66	2,946,821	197,884	113,202	62,265
1,000– 1,999	18,030	1,205	669	451	24,651,494	1,719,900	930,568	638,342
2,000– 2,499	4,628	351	158	177	10,293,494	775,342	354,035	393,144
2,500– 2,999	3,281	224	106	128	8,947,554	609,173	286,984	349,631
3,000– 3,999	4,319	375	122	176	14,880,468	1,289,233	421,941	610,235
4,000– 4,999	2,749	251	77	137	12,265,457	1,118,093	339,369	609,215
5,000– 5,999	1,816	180	39	101	9,932,818	990,791	211,338	552,862
6,000– 6,999	1,342	126	25	81	8,675,027	813,614	160,655	527,484
7,000– 7,999	914	137	19	51	6,827,990	1,034,056	141,864	380,569
8,000– 8,999	710	71	12	47	6,018,063	598,008	100,479	395,947
9,000– 9,999	562	88	13	42	5,334,740	829,630	123,002	396,373
10,000– 14,999	1,516	180	17	114	18,299,544	2,163,055	208,241	1,390,094
15,000– 19,999	622	86	8	72	10,687,461	1,498,404	134,059	1,232,380
20,000– 29,999	460	102	8	91	11,075,444	2,511,017	216,012	2,205,060
30,000– 39,999	164	53	4	42	5,557,065	1,832,220	143,482	1,459,337
40,000– 49,999	62	17	3	29	2,734,629	736,824	135,647	1,283,000
50,000 and over	89	11	10	71	6,082,806	767,865	685,441	6,514,117
Totals	62,501	4,793	2,876	2,163	177,437,532	20,256,118	5,376,415	19,204,135

Five returns in Class I and eighteen in Class IV were for amounts of £100,000 and over, the aggregate unimproved value of the former being £631,233 and of the latter £2,931,211. Classes II and III had each only one return in the group “£100,000 and over.

URBAN AND RURAL LANDS.

Owing to the assessment being on the basis of ownership, it is impossible fully to classify lands from the land-tax returns according to whether they are urban or rural. The difficulty occasioned by both urban and rural lands being included in the same return led, at the initiation of the statistics, to no action being taken towards a distinction being made between urban and rural lands, a classification being adopted, however, on the basis of occupation of the taxpayer. This afforded at least a rough indication of the type of land and of the purpose to which the land is put, though no allowance could be made for cases of farm lands owned by financial institutions or of urban lands used as business premises, &c., but owned by farmers. The groups of occupations were few in number, and a difficulty arose through a considerable proportion of holdings, including estates under administration, being classed among the “miscellaneous and unspecified.”

For the 1928–29 tabulation it was decided to distinguish between urban, rural, and mixed lands. To avoid the real position in regard to mixed lands being overstated through such a matter as the inclusion of a suburban section in a return otherwise covering a considerable area of farm land, the classification was drawn up on the basis that where 75 per cent. or over of the unimproved value represents urban or rural lands as the case may be, the whole return is so classed. For the purpose of these statistics mixed lands include only those cases where neither urban nor rural lands constitute 75 per cent. of the unimproved value.

In this section of the Year-book only three divisions are made in regard to type, viz.: (a) rural; (b) urban; (c) mixed. On account of the necessity of distinguishing, in regard to mortgages, between cases where returns are actually furnished and those where no return is received, each of these types is further subdivided into two in the detailed statistics published in the Miscellaneous Statistical Report, and also in the section of the Year-book which deals with mortgages.

Information as to the number and unimproved value of holdings, classified according to type in conjunction with unimproved-value category, is given in the Mowing table for the year 1928–29:—

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—TYPE BY AMOUNT OF UNIMPROVED VALUE, 1928–29.

Amount.	Number of Returns.			Total Unimproved Value.
Amount.	Rural.	Urban.	Mixed.	Rural.	Urban.	Mixed.
£ £				£	£	£
Under 500	737	40	3	160,632	12,743	1,066
500– 599	1,979	2,773	30	903,058	1,017,709	16,916
600– 699	2,656	3,512	54	1,703,733	2,061,037	34,697
700– 799	2,431	2,490	60	1,807,878	2,039,712	45,137
800– 899	2,212	1,974	37	1,861,720	1,733,447	31,235
900– 999	1,960	1,520	44	1,846,579	1,533,112	41,770
1,000– 1,999	13,209	6,820	326	18,867,534	7,222,516	465,069
2,000– 2,499	4,072	1,159	83	9,062,772	3,917,828	183,972
2,500– 2,999	2,971	700	68	8,104,204	2,054,734	183,819
3,000– 3,999	4,044	845	103	13,940,541	2,763,953	355,215
4,000– 4,999	2,642	525	47	11,782,108	2,476,290	209,503
5,000– 5,999	1,776	332	28	9,715,761	1,853,364	152,283
6,000– 6,999	1,305	246	23	8,435,794	1,696,971	149,217
7,000– 7,999	922	176	23	6,898,472	1,227,882	172,929
8,000– 8,999	704	127	9	5,962,143	1,195,469	75,278
9,000– 9,999	569	121	15	5,390,023	1,134,234	143,068
10,000– 14,999	1,478	311	38	17,846,980	3,515,022	469,291
15,000– 19,999	621	150	17	10,715,451	2,648,648	288,377
20,000– 29,999	503	144	14	12,142,648	3,517,945	337,715
30,000– 39,999	195	59	9	6,655,790	2,175,185	282,726
40,000– 49,999	72	36	3	3,204,652	1,526,519	132,450
50,000 and over	107	63	11	7,463,514	5,808,814	906,346
Totals	47,165	24,123	1,045	164,471,987	53,133,134	4,669,079

OCCUPATIONS OF TAXPAYERS.

In the classification according to the occupation of the taxpayer seven broad divisions are made, as follows:—

Farming and allied pursuits.
Professional.
Manufacturing and industrial.
Commerce and trade.
Banking, insurance, and finance.
Transportation.
Miscellaneous and unspecified.

A summary of returns, taxpayers, and unimproved value of land for the various occupational groups is given for 1926–27 and 1928–29:—

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—OCCUPATIONS, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

Occupational Group.	Number of Returns.		Number of Taxpayers.		Total Unimproved Value.
	1926–27.	1928–29.	1926–27.	1928–29.	1926–27.	1928–29.
					£	£
1	38,540	41,578	25,470	24,789	142,365,938	145,872,257
2	4,242	3,884	2,886	2,309	7,957,445	6,861,159
3	3,306	2,863	2,549	1,862	8,895,270	7,387,199
4	5,232	6,911	3,831	4,471	20,126,002	23,969,885
5	47	38	41	31	2,540,425	813,988
6	523	371	430	272	1,005,371	725,062
7	19,043	16,688	16,299	12,542	50,885,218	36,644,650
Totals	70,933	72,333	51,506	46,276	233,775,669	222,274,200

Well over 50 per cent. of returns and unimproved value are seen to fall in group 1, while group 7 (which covers a proportion of form land) had in 1928–29 two and a half times as many returns as and over 50 per cent. more unimproved value than group 4, which ranks third in both respects. The proportion of returns which are assessed for tax is least in groups 1 and 2, but in spite of the position occupied by group 1 in this respect (due, of course, to a considerable proportion of farmers being either small owners or having their lands comparatively heavily mortgaged) this group actually ranks second in average unimproved value. The banking, insurance, and finance group has easily the highest average of unimproved value, an average in 1928–29 six times as high as that shown by the farming group, and seven times the average for all returns. The averages for the various occupational groups are:—

Occupational Group.	Average per Return.
Occupational Group.	1926–27.	1928–29.
	£	£
1	3,694	3,508
2	1,876	1,767
3	2,630	2,580
4	3,847	3,468
5	54,052	21,421
6	1,922	1,954
7	2,672	2,196
Totals	£3,296	£3,073

In the next table a double classification is made for the year 1928–29, the returns and unimproved value for each occupational group being further subdivided according to type.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—OCCUPATIONS BY TYPE, 1928–29.

Occupational Group.	Number of Returns.			Total Unimproved Value.
Occupational Group.	Rural.	Urban.	Mixed.	Rural.	Urban.	Mixed.
				£	£	£
1. Farming, &c.	40,112	1,191	275	142,313,063	2,597,636	961,558
2. Professional	574	3,191	119	1,392,720	4,986,402	482,037
3. Manufacturing and industrial	487	2,285	91	1,569,305	5,338,813	479,081
4. Commerce and trade	938	5,755	218	2,654,377	19,656,908	1,658,600
5. Banking, insurance, and finance	12	26	..	49,386	764,602	..
6. Transportation	60	301	10	84,642	629,323	11,097
7. Miscellaneous	4,982	11,374	332	16,408,494	19,159,450	1,076,706
Totals	47,165	24,123	1,045	164,471,987	53,133,134	4,669,079

This table gives a good idea of the extent to which the occupation of the taxpayer is indicative of the location of the land—i.e., in town or country.

Full details of amount of unimproved value for each of the divisions made by the double classification of occupation by type will be found in the Miscellaneous Statistical Report issued by the Census and Statistics Office. For the purposes of this section the figures for only the four principal occupational groups, without distinction as to type, can be given.

Amount.	1. Farming.	3. Manufacturing and Industrial.	4. Commerce and Trade.	7. Miscellaneous.	1. Farming.	3. Manufacturing and Industrial.	4. Commerce and Trade.	7. Miscellaneous.
£ £					£	£	£	£
Under 500	729	5	8	33	159,026	1,701	2,236	10,731
500– 599	1,653	264	551	1,799	719,376	147,132	306,753	1,004,177
600– 699	2,274	367	753	2,195	1,460,182	234,526	480,713	1,401,967
700– 799	2,099	243	581	1,582	1,560,999	179,658	432,067	1,173,338
800– 899	1,934	205	505	1,242	1,628,467	172,903	425,449	1,042,736
900– 999	1,647	162	380	989	1,551,982	152,959	358,664	929,921
1,000– 1,999	11,668	829	1,911	4,783	16,702,995	1,139,188	2,667,688	5,830,245
2,000– 2,499	3,648	178	399	874	8,120,919	393,591	889,544	1,937,929
2,500– 2,999	2,678	128	300	503	7,303,378	347,330	815,337	1,372,253
3,000– 3,999	3,597	129	372	741	12,399,649	441,513	1,279,629	2,549,559
4,000– 4,999	2,342	79	239	469	10,447,316	356,267	1,061,251	2,090,362
5,000– 5,999	1,566	63	149	306	8,565,016	343,009	824,809	1,671,574
6,000– 6,999	1,150	39	112	224	7,434,543	251,444	724,244	1,449,649
7,000– 7,999	802	22	84	200	5,992,439	165,277	625,753	1,495,425
8,000– 8,999	628	23	66	102	5,323,235	195,441	558,316	857,156
9,000– 9,999	503	10	69	107	4,771,976	96,199	653,732	1,020,817
10,000– 14,999	1,344	42	157	250	16,220,602	512,128	1,880,270	3,046,121
15,000– 19,999	554	27	85	102	9,534,182	466,164	1,457,079	1,750,386
20,000– 29,999	429	24	81	115	10,324,904	563,976	1,999,798	2,833,167
30,000– 39,999	168	9	39	39	5,735,302	307,973	1,348,595	1,329,828
40,000– 49,999	64	7	22	17	2,837,879	313,435	947,926	743,705
50,000– 99,999	93	7	37	15	6,082,504	482,053	2,427,809	980,802
100,000 and over	8	1	11	1	995,386	123,332	1,802,223	122,802
Totals	41,578	2,863	6,911	16,688	145,872,257	7,387,199	23,969,885	36,644,650

It is interesting to compare, as between the different groups, the percentage of cases where the unimproved value was under £2,500 (the limit of the ordinary exemption), and the corresponding percentage where the unimproved value was £10,000 or over. A wide range is disclosed by the following figures for the year 1928–29, the most noticeable feature being the extreme variation from the average in the case of the banking, insurance, and finance group:—

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—CASES UNDER £2,500 AND OVER £10,000, 1928–29.

Occupational Group.	Under £2,500.				£10,000 and over.
	Cases.		Total Unimproved Value.		Cases.		Total Unimproved Value.
	Number.	Per Cent. of Total.	Amount.	Per Cent. of Total.	Number.	Per Cent. of Total.	Amount.	Per Cent. of Total.
			£				£
1	25,652	62	31,903,946	22	2,660	6	51,730,759	35
2	3,342	86	3,382,218	49	67	2	1,420,441	21
3	2,253	79	2,421,658	33	117	4	2,769,061	37
4	5,088	74	5,563,114	23	432	6	11,863,700	49
5	25	66	28,798	4	6	16	741,104	91
6	323	87	315,035	43	10	3	221,328	31
7	13,498	81	13,333,564	36	539	3	10,806,811	29
Totals	50,181	69	56,948,333	26	3,831	5	79,553,204	36

Attention need scarcely be drawn to the high proportion of small holdings, the low proportion (numerically) of the more valuable holdings, and the high percentage of the total unimproved value represented by holdings over the £10,000 mark.

AREA OF HOLDINGS.

Statistics of the area of land covered by the land-tax returns were first compiled in 1928–29. The area figures are of little value in the caste of urban and mixed lands, on account of eighth- and quarter-acre sections being treated in the statistics as having no area at all. The following summary, which gives valuable information as to area and value in conjunction, accordingly relates only to lands classified as rural:—

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—AREA AND UNIMPROVED VALUE.—RURAL LANDS, 1928–29.

Area, in Acres.	Number of Returns.	Number of Taxpayers.	Total Area.	Unimproved Value.
Area, in Acres.	Number of Returns.	Number of Taxpayers.	Total Area.	Total.	Per Return.			Per Acre.
			Acres.	£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
Under 5	925	606	1,489	1,155,061	1,248	14	3	775	14	7
5 and under 10	1,024	673	6,961	1,044,953	1,020	9	3	150	2	4
10 and under 15	1,005	646	12,685	1,042,165	1,036	19	7	82	3	2
15 and under 20	699	463	11,824	799,119	1,143	4	8	67	11	8
20 and under 30	1,487	1,019	33,218	1,600,450	1,076	5	11	48	3	7
30 and under 40	1,223	791	41,625	1,537,184	1,256	17	11	36	18	7
40 and under 50	1,420	883	62,872	1,973,251	1,389	12	3	31	7	8
50 and under 75	3,685	2,109	213,194	5,392,472	1,463	7	2	25	5	11
75 and under 100	3,036	1,678	272,468	5,635,521	1,856	4	8	20	13	8
100 and under 150	5,748	3,228	687,634	11,733,294	2,041	5	8	17	1	3
150 and under 200	3,867	2,209	670,990	9,694,543	2,506	19	10	14	9	0
200 and under 250	3,376	2,066	743,384	8,998,193	2,665	6	10	12	2	1
250 and under 320	3,204	1,985	907,969	9,788,940	3,055	4	6	10	15	7
320 and under 400	2,614	1,655	936,467	9,067,338	3,468	15	2	9	13	8
400 and under 500	2,571	1,683	1,151,184	9,602,577	3,734	19	2	8	6	10
500 and under 640	2,574	1,622	1,457,575	10,898,490	4,234	1	4	7	9	7
640 and under 750	1,353	852	933,291	6,362,515	4,702	10	6	6	16	4
750 and under 1,000	1,974	1,269	1,710,096	10,684,067	5,412	7	11	3	8	10
1,000 and under 2,000	3,103	2,052	4,274,870	22,865,839	7,368	18	11	5	7	0
2,000 and under 3,000	878	647	2,121,818	9,980,865	11,367	14	7	4	14	1
3,000 and under 4,000	417	312	1,425,336	5,867,682	14,071	3	7	4	2	4
4,000 and under 5,000	219	165	973,281	3,402,538	15,536	14	1	3	9	11
5,000 and under 7,500	252	219	1,511,311	5,020,806	19,923	16	8	3	6	8
7,500 and under 10,000	98	93	850,848	2,457,041	25,071	16	11	2	17	9
10,000 and under 15,000	108	89	1,288,087	3,275,010	30,324	3	4	2	10	10
15,000 and under 20,000	44	41	770,248	1,627,408	36,986	10	11	2	2	3
20,000 and under 30,000	31	27	753,155	962,509	31,048	13	7	1	5	7
30,000 and under 40,000	12	10	401,873	167,168	13,930	10	0	0	8	4
40,000 and under 50,000	9	9	390,340	439,115	48,790	11	0	1	2	6
50,000 and under 100,000	10	7	788,075	88,236	8,823	12	0	0	2	3
100,000 and over	6	6	975,866	86,596	14,432	13	4	0	1	9
Not stated	193	166	..	1,221,043	6,326	12	11	..	..	..
Totals	47,165	29,280	26,380,034	164,471,987	3,487	3	3	6	4	8

The column giving unimproved value per acre is instructive as showing the wide difference in land-values as between the closely settled areas and the large runs.

EXEMPTIONS.

As shown in Section XXIVB of this book, certain deductions and exemptions are provided in the taxation of land. An owner of land the unimproved value of which does not exceed £1,500 is allowed an exemption of £500, and where the unimproved value lies between £1,500 and £2,500 there is a similar exemption, diminished, however, by £1 for every £2 over the £1,500 mark, so that no exemption under this head is allowed when £2,500 is reached. This exemption is that here referred to as the “ordinary” exemption.

Where the land is subject to a registered mortgage an alternative scale is provided. In each year so far covered by the statistics, this was £10,000 in cases where the unimproved value does not exceed that amount, the exemption being diminished by £2 for every £1 above the margin of £10,000 of unimproved value, and disappearing altogether at £15,000. Where the capital value of the mortgage is less than the amount of deduction provided, such capital value is deductible instead.

In lieu of the ordinary and mortgage exemptions, the Commissioner of Taxes has discretionary powers to grant relief in certain specified cases of hardship.

The total exemptions granted in 1928–29 aggregated £92,765,813, or 42 per cent. of the total unimproved value. No less a sum than £80,824,739 (87 per cent. of the total exemptions) was in respect of the mortgage exemption, and practically the whole of the remainder came under the heading of ordinary exemption. Only £254,451 exemption on account of hardship was allowed, all except £17,000 of this being in respect of holdings under £5,000 in unimproved value.

The following table summarizes for 1926–27 and 1928–29 the exemptions granted in respect of each of the four classes of taxpayers:—

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—EXEMPTIONS BY CLASSES, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

Class.	1926–27.			1928–29.			Percentage of Total Exemption to Total Unimproved Value.
Class.	Ordinary.	Mortgage.	Hardship.	Ordinary.	Mortgage.	Hardship.	1926–27.	1928–29.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
I	12,215,465	67,940,484	134,212	9,022,427	74,325,324	197,197	43	47
II	967,680	2,840,779	42,995	969,340	3,279,424	57,254	19	21
III	773,971	70,282	..	886,400	56,645	..	14	18
IV	215,554	2,384,992	..	208,456	3,163,346	..	13	18
Totals	14,172,670	73,236,537	177,207	11,686,623	80,824,739	254,451	37	42

The mortgage exemption for 1928–29 shows an increase of more than £7,500,000 over the figure for 1926–27, and of nearly £23,000,000 over that for 1924–25 (£57,981,162). As the same scale of exemptions was in force during each of the last five years, the huge increase in mortgage exemptions is apparently wholly attributable to a corresponding increase in mortgages.

An increase in mortgage exemptions should, in the normal course of events, cause a reduction in the ordinary exemptions for holdings under £2,500. An unencumbered holding of an unimproved value of £1,500, for instance, would he exempted to the extent of £500 in respect of the ordinary exemption. If it became mortgaged to the extent of £750, a mortgage exemption of £750 would take the place of the former ordinary exemption of £500. Presumably the decrease of £2,500,000 in the ordinary exemption totals for 1928–29 as compared with 1924–25 (£14,244,723) is accounted for in this way.

The general class of persons and firms not only receive the great bulk of the total exemption, but, owing to the generally smaller holdings in this class, also have a much higher proportionate remission.

Eighty per cent. of the total mortgage exemption and 50 per cent. of the ordinary exemption are in respect of lands classed as rural in the statistical compilation. The figures for 1928–29 are:—

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—EXEMPTIONS BY TYPE, 1928–29.

Type.	Ordinary.	Mortgage.	Hardship.	Total.	Percentage to Total Unimproved Value.
	£	£	£	£
Rural	5,884,253	64,949,146	151,045	70,984,444	43
Urban	5,640,124	14,883,925	93,771	20,617,820	39
Mixed	162,246	991,668	9,635	1,163,549	25
Totals	11,686,623	80,824,739	254,451	92,765,813	42

It will be seen from the next table that among the occupational groups the banking, insurance, and finance group has a much lower percentage of exemptions than the other groups, on account of its high average unimproved value.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—EXEMPTIONS BY OCCUPATIONS, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

Occupational Group.	1926–27.			1928–29.			Percentage of Total Exemption to Total Unimproved Value.
Occupational Group.	Ordinary.	Mortgage.	Hardship.	Ordinary.	Mortgage.	Hardship.	1926–27.	1928–29.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1	5,606,784	54,189,241	43,655	4,785,493	60,496,271	57,731	42	45
2	1,015,775	2,920,911	..	783,126	2,856,534	1,860	49	53
3	867,630	2,146,671	1,390	577,879	2,252,597	3,580	34	38
4	1,153,613	4,566,240	..	1,269,343	6,783,242	19,492	28	34
5	4,197	27,918	..	8,260	48,094	..	1	7
6	164,605	204,270	600	98,798	197,149	..	37	41
7	5,360,066	9,181,286	131,562	4,163,724	8,190,852	171,788	29	34
Totals	14,172,670	73,236,537	177,207	11,686,623	80,824,739	254,451	37	42

It is interesting to compare the relative incidence of the ordinary and mortgage exemptions over the various groups. In the farming group the figures for 1928–29 show over £12 of mortgage exemption for every £1 of ordinary exemption, as compared with under £6 in the banking, insurance, and finance group, somewhat over £5 in the commerce and trade group, between £3 and £4 in the professional and manufacturing and industrial groups, and just under £2 in the other two groups. The general average shows slightly under £7 mortgage exemption per £1 of ordinary exemption in 1928–29, as compared with just over £4 in 1924–25.

A comparison between the last two years on the basis of amount of unimproved value, as in the next table, shows that there was in each group after the first a more or less pronounced increase in the proportion of exemption in the later year. The percentage of exemptions remains very high right down to the £10,000 mark.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—EXEMPTIONS BY UNIMPROVED VALUE, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

Amount of Unimproved Value.	1926–27.			1928–29.			Percentage of Total Exemption to Total Unimproved Value.
Amount of Unimproved Value.	Ordinary.	Mortgage.	Hardship.	Ordinary.	Mortgage	Hardship.	1926–27.	1928–29.
£ £	£	£	£	£	£	£
500– 599	1,918,180	399,085	3,385	1,449,983	815,777	5,645	91	66
600– 699	2,458,505	819,730	4,425	1,958,875	1,438,669	10,161	82	86
700– 799	1,866,339	916,992	10,939	1,482,793	1,439,135	17,741	75	79
800– 899	1,443,009	945,998	7,382	1,200,321	1,448,585	14,192	70	75
900– 999	1,116,061	975,362	2,910	961,358	1,416,266	11,180	67	72
1,000– 1,999	5,025,215	11,289,384	59,415	4,205,086	13,623,461	87,161	59	64
2,000– 2,499	324,872	5,542,360	17,616	261,618	6,408,422	30,351	51	57
2,500– 2,999	..	5,704,130	16,880	6,937	5,679,218	19,445	53	56
3,000– 3,999	..	8,856,482	33,005	..	9,600,235	30,575	52	56
4,000– 4,999	..	7,745,623	2,500	..	8,035,842	11,000	54	56
5,000– 5,999	..	6,402,928	3,750	..	6,389,105	3,000	53	55
6,000– 6,999	..	5,805,037	6,500	..	5,708,723	..	54	56
7,000– 7,999	..	4,595,610	2,000	..	4,561,703	6,500	51	54
8,000– 8,999	..	3,485,148	2,500	..	3,959,087	7,500	49	56
9,000– 9,999	..	3,295,046	..	..	3,676,224	..	49	55
10,000–14,999	..	6,386,943	..	..	6,487,862	..	27	29

Separate information for rural, urban, and mixed lands is now given in respect of ordinary and mortgage exemptions for 1928–29 according to amount of unimproved value.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—ORDINARY AND MORTGAGE EXEMPTIONS BY TYPE, 1928–29.

Amount of Unimproved Value.	Ordinary Exemption.				Mortgage Exemption.
Amount of Unimproved Value.	Rural.	Urban.	Mixed.	Total.	Rural.	Urban.	Mixed.	Total.
£ £	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
500– 599	477,030	960,953	12,000	1,449,983	341,958	470,402	3,417	815,777
600- 699	805,798	1,132,755	20,322	1,958,875	652,787	777,534	8,348	1,438,669
700– 799	676,652	789,877	16,264	1,482,793	770,904	648,342	19,889	1,439,135
800– 899	583,621	605,700	11,000	1,200,321	837,277	599,042	12,266	1,448,585
900– 999	492,182	453,623	15,553	961,358	873,932	530,098	12,236	1,416,266
1,000– 1,999	2,513,785	1,609,962	81,339	4,205,086	10,006,120	3,449,937	167,404	13,623,461
2,000– 2,499	178,087	78,724	4,807	261,618	5,224,535	1,096,944	86,943	6,408,422
2,500– 2,999	6,007	430	500	6,937	4,701,999	896,812	80,407	5,679,218
3,000– 3,999	..	..	..	..	8,142,289	1,316,361	141,585	9,600,235
4,000– 4,999	..	..	..	..	6,869,690	1,087,527	78,625	8,035,842
5,000– 5,999	..	..	..	..	5,519,185	814,668	55,252	6,389,105
6,000– 6,999	..	..	..	..	4,886,605	762,833	59,285	5,708,723
7,000– 7,999	..	..	..	..	3,930,646	543,515	87,542	4,561,703
8,000– 8,999	..	..	..	..	3,497,876	434,289	26,922	3,959,087
9,000– 9,999	..	..	..	..	3,075,180	550,446	50,598	3,676,224
10,000–14,999	..	..	..	..	5,533,911	853,607	100,344	6,487,862

In the next table, mortgage exemptions on rural, urban, and mixed lands respectively (in cases where returns were supplied) are shown in juxtaposition to the amount of mortgages.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—MORTGAGES AND MORTGAGE EXEMPTIONS, 1928–29.

Amount of Unimproved Value.	Rural.		Urban.		Mixed.
Amount of Unimproved Value.	Total Mortgages.	Mortgage Exemption.	Total Mortgages.	Mortgage Exemption.	Total Mortgages.	Mortgage Exemption.
£ £	£	£	£	£	£	£
Under 500	28,971	4,805	24,335	2,663	5,405	605
500– 599	805,530	306,869	978,104	426,101	8,146	2,262
600– 699	1,473,839	608,474	1,464,510	704,256	13,353	6,443
700– 799	1,525,001	709,246	1,245,896	592,088	22,937	16,351
800– 899	1,598,095	788,555	1,061,573	552,753	20,119	10,576
900– 999	1,598,655	820,788	860,893	487,719	21,539	12,236
1,000–1,999	15,885,747	9,497,736	5,563,879	3,287,547	222,903	156,827
2,000– 2,499	7,593,964	5,007,436	1,738,545	1,035,344	111,378	78,319
2,500– 2,999	6,571,520	4,542,541	1,498,553	861,676	101,851	72,367
3,000– 3,999	11,017,173	7,879,661	2,108,216	1,266,145	171,069	128,723
4,000– 4,999	8,797,721	6,663,682	1,642,375	1,066,402	113,409	78,625
5,000– 5,999	6,907,969	5,403,923	1,284,395	789,638	80,302	55,252
6,000– 6,999	6,164,661	4,771,783	1,095,473	749,256	80,434	59,285
7,000– 7,999	4,744,810	3,842,386	770,904	510,294	125,264	80,362
8,000– 8,999	4,153,696	3,434,638	702,211	426,289	29,156	26,922
9,000– 9,999	3,736,422	3,017,186	796,910	541,165	61,612	50,598
10,000– 14,999	10,906,437	5,458,867	2,023,594	850,253	241,153	100,344
15,000– 19,999	5,189,498	8,048	1,118,890	..	130,049	..
20,000– 29,999	5,425,525	51,194	1,998,497	..	189,822	..
30,000– 39,999	2,792,485	..	888,890	..	50,958	..
40,000– 49,999	1,102,229	..	759,350	..	1,778	..
50,000– 99,999	1,749,021	366	2,531,968	..	485,216	..
100,000 and over	29,665	..	412,651	48,905	..	..
Totals	109,798,634	62,818,184	32,570,612	14,198,494	2,287,853	936,097

The next table shows in respect of cases where returns were actually supplied in 1928–29 the percentage of mortgage exemptions and of total exemptions to total mortgages.

LAND-TAX RETURNS.—PERCENTAGE OF EXEMPTIONS TO MORTGAGES.

Amount of Unimproved Value.	Rural.		Urban.		Mixed.		Total.
	Percentage to Total Mortgages of		Percentage to Total Mortgages of		Percentage to Total Mortgages of		Percentage to Total Mortgages of
	Mortgage Exemption.	Total Exemption;	Mortgage Exemption.	Total Exemption.	Mortgage Exemption.	Total Exemption.	Mortgage Exemption.	Total Exemption.
£ £
Under 500	16.59	536.63	10.94	40.10	11.19	19.72	13.75	283.22
500– 599	38.10	64.25	43.56	98.09	27.77	107.56	41.03	82.92
600– 699	41.28	76.64	48.09	91.97	48.25	148.02	44.69	84.57
700– 799	46.51	75.05	47.52	87.06	71.29	109.50	47.16	80.69
800– 899	49.34	73.32	5,207	88.27	52.57	82.39	50.45	79.31
900– 999	51.34	71.77	56.65	92.14	56.81	108.97	53.23	79.16
1,000– 1,999	59.79	71.09	59.09	78.58	70.36	96.00	59.72	73.27
2,000– 2,499	65.94	67.92	59.55	63.44	70.32	73.78	64.82	67.17
2,500– 2,999	69.12	69.34	57.50	57.58	71.05	73.90	67.02	67.24
3,000– 3,999	71.52	71.72	60.06	60.29	75.25	76.71	69.75	69.97
4,000– 4,999	75.74	75.86	64.93	64.99	69.33	69.33	73.99	74.10
5,000– 5,999	78.23	78.27	61.48	61.48	68.81	68.81	75.54	75.57
6,000– 6,999	77.41	77.41	68.40	68.40	73.71	73.71	76.02	76.02
7,000– 7,999	80.98	81.12	66.19	66.19	64.15	64.15	78.59	78.70
8,000– 8,999	82.69	82.75	60.71	61.42	92.34	92.34	79.59	79.74
9,000– 9,999	80.75	80.75	67.91	67.91	82.12	82.12	78.54	78.54
10,000– 14,999	50.05	50.05	42.02	42.02	41.61	41.61	48.66	48.66
15,000– 19,999	0.16	0.16	..	..	..	..	0.12	0.12
20,000– 29,999	0.94	0.94	..	..	..	..	0.67	0.67
30,000– 39,999	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
40,000– 49,999	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
50,000– 99,999	0.02	0.02	..	..	..	..	0.01	0.01
100,000 and over	..	..	11.85	11.85	..	..	11.06	11.06
Totals	57.21	60.88	43.59	54.43	40.92	45.84	53.89	59.19

Interesting statistics of mortgages of land are given in the section of this book devoted to mortgages.

TAX ASSESSED.

The operation of the various exemptions had the effect, in 1928–29, of reducing the aggregate unimproved value of £222,274,200 to a taxable balance of £129,508,387, the latter total representing 58 per cent. of the former. The percentage of taxable balance to unimproved value is readily ascertainable for the individual classes, types, occupational groups, and unimproved-value categories by simply subtracting from 100 the figure showing the corresponding percentage of exemption. The percentage of taxable balance to unimproved value in 1928–29 ranged from 34 in the case of holdings between £500 and £600 to 71 for holdings between £10,000 and £15,000, and, of course, 100 thereafter. Among the occupational groups, the extremes were 47 per cent. for the professional group, and 93 per cent. for the banking, insurance, and finance group. Of the four classes, persons and firms had a much smaller percentage (53) of taxable balance than the other three, which had 79, 82, and 82 per cent. respectively. The percentage of taxable balance to total unimproved value was 57 for rural lands, 61 for urban lands, and 75 for mixed.

A progressive scale of land-tax has been in force in New Zealand for several years. At the present time the basic rate is 1d. in the £1 of taxable balance, this rate applying where the taxable balance does not exceed £1,000. The rate of ordinary taxation after the first £1,000 is increased by 1/20000d. for every pound in excess of £1,000, up to a maximum of 7 17/20d. A deduction of 5 per cent. from the tax computed according to these scale rates has been in force from 1924–25 onwards.

In connection with the statistics of land-tax which follow, it should be pointed out that the punching of the statistical cards for 1928–29 was done at a stage when only the main assessment had been completed, leaving a considerable amount to be allocated in respect of joint holdings, &c., or to be adjusted on account of revised valuations. The total tax collected in 1928–29 was £1,140,324, whereas the figure of main assessment shown in the statistics is only £973,944. The punching for 1926–27 had been done at a later stage, and more nearly covered the full assessment.

While totals and averages for 1928–29 are understated throughout, the figures are nevertheless of value as affording a comparison between holdings of varying values and areas, and of different types and ownerships.

The total unimproved value, taxable balance, and tax assessed for 1926–27 and 1928–29 are given by classes in the following table:—

LAND-TAX ASSESSED.—BY CLASSES, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

Class.	1926–27.			1928–29.
Class.	Unimproved Value.	Taxable Balance.	Tax assessed.	Unimproved Value.	Taxable Balance.	Tax assessed.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
I	186,297,888	106,007,727	741,092	177,437,532	93,292,584	636,038
II	20,769,348	16,917,894	134,000	20,256,118	15,950,100	120,160
III	6,056,094	5,211,841	14,784	5,376,415	4,433,370	13,264
IV	20,652,339	18,051,793	248,383	19,204,135	15,832,333	204,482
Totals	233,775,669	146,189,255	1,138,259	222,274,200	129,508,387	973,944

The 1928–29 figures of taxable balance and tax assessed are now given for rural, urban, and mixed lands. The proportion of tax, whether to unimproved value or to taxable balance, is seen to be lower in the case of rural lands than for either urban or mixed lands.

LAND-TAX ASSESSED.—BY TYPE, 1928–29.

Type.	Unimproved Value.	Taxable Balance.	Tax assessed.	Percentage of Tax assessed to
Type.	Unimproved Value.	Taxable Balance.	Tax assessed.	Unimproved Value.	Taxable Balance.
	£	£	£
Rural	164,471,987	93,133,134	654,292	0.4	0.70
Urban	53,133,134	32,515,314	283,709	0.53	0.87
Mixed	4,669,079	3,505,530	35,943	0.7	1.03
Totals	222,274,200	129,508,387	973,944	0.44	0.75

A table is now given showing the figures for the various occupational groups in 1926–27 and 1928–29.

LAND-TAX ASSESSED.—BY OCCUPATIONS, 1926–27 AND 1928–29.

Occupational Group.	1926–27.			1928–29.
Occupational Group.	Unimproved Value.	Taxable Balance.	Tax assessed.	Unimproved Value.	Taxable Balance.	Tax assessed.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1	142,365,938	82,526,258	603,205	145,872,257	80,532,762	572,505
2	7,957,445	4,020,759	26,119	6,861,159	3,219,639	21,896
3	8,895,270	5,879,579	46,428	7,387,199	4,553,143	36,554
4	20,126,002	14,406,149	145,937	23,969,885	15,897,808	166,129
5	2,540,425	2,508,310	66,568	813,988	757,634	21,197
6	1,005,371	635,896	4,138	725,062	429,115	2,938
7	50,885,218	36,212,304	245,864	36,644,650	24,118,286	152,725
Totals	233,775,669	146,189,255	1,138,259	222,274,200	129,508,387	973,944

To compare readily the incidence of taxation over the various occupational groups it is desirable to compute averages, as in the following table:—

LAND-TAX ASSESSED.—AVERAGES BY OCCUPATIONS, 1928–29.

Occupational Group.	Average Tax assessed.
	Per Return.	Per Taxpayer.	Per £100 of Unimproved Value.		Per £100 of Taxable Balance.
	£	£	s.	d.	s.	d.
1. Farming, &c.	14	22	7	11	14	3
2. Professional	6	9	6	5	13	7
3. Manufacturing and industrial	13	20	9	11	16	1
4. Commerce and trade	24	37	13	10	20	11
5. Banking, insurance, and finance	558	684	52	1	55	11
6. Transportation	8	11	8	1	13	8
7. Miscellaneous	9	12	8	4	12	8
Totals	13	21	8	9	15	0

The figures give, from still another aspect, an idea of the high average value of land owned by the banking, insurance, and finance group relatively to other groups. The important farming group occupies a position in the table which coincides fairly closely with the general average.

The next table shows, similarly to the above, the average tax figures for holdings of the various categories on the basis of amount of unimproved value. The averages move comparatively slowly until the larger amounts are reached, when they rise steeply, a position due partly to the higher value itself, partly to a reduction in the proportion of exemption and the ultimate disappearance of the exemption, and partly to the progressive scale of taxation in force.

LAND-TAX ASSESSED.—BY AMOUNT OF UNIMPROVED VALUE, 1928–29.

Amount of Unimproved Value.	Taxable Balance.	Tax assessed.	Average Tax assessed.
Amount of Unimproved Value.	Taxable Balance.	Tax assessed.	Per Return.			Per Taxpayer.			Per £100 of Unimproved Value.		Per £100 of Taxable Balance.
£ £	£	£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
Under 500	7,581	27	0	0	8	0	16	9	0	4	7	1
500– 599	191,519	706	0	2	11	0	5	0	0	7	7	4
600– 699	573,715	2,206	0	7	1	0	10	9	1	1	7	8
700– 799	759,814	2,927	0	11	9	0	18	4	1	7	7	8
800– 899	889,611	3,446	0	16	4	1	5	4	1	11	7	9
900– 999	931,368	3,585	1	0	4	1	12	2	2	9	7	8
1,000–1,999	10,024,596	38,979	1	18	4	3	3	2	2	9	7	9
2,000–2,499	5,115,624	20,419	3	16	10	6	7	6	3	5	8	0
2,500–2,999	4,487,742	18,402	4	18	5	5	13	1	3	7	8	2
3,000–3,999	7,571,067	31,907	6	7	10	10	3	5	3	8	8	5
4,000–4,999	6,285,292	27,381	8	10	5	13	9	1	3	10	8	9
5,000–5,999	5,295,704	25,163	11	15	7	17	17	11	4	4	9	6
6,000–6,999	4,468,057	21,018	13	7	1	19	14	0	4	2	9	5
7,000–7,999	3,816,276	18,334	16	7	1	23	16	2	4	4	9	7
8,000–8,999	3,145,910	15,423	18	7	3	25	19	4	4	4	9	10
9,000–9,999	3,007,521	15,499	21	19	8	31	10	0	4	8	10	4
10,000–14,999	15,573,072	87,804	48	1	2	48	5	11	8	0	11	3
15,000–19,999	13,524,417	94,450	119	17	2	120	0	3	13	11	14	0
20,000–29,999	15,956,339	131,742	199	6	2	199	19	10	16	6	16	6
30,000–39,999	8,992,104	91,064	346	5	0	346	5	0	20	3	20	3
40,000–49,999	4,890,100	59,932	539	18	7	539	18	7	24	6	24	6
50,000–99,999	10,250,257	161,177	1,033	3	9	1,033	3	9	31	5	31	5
100,000 and over	3,750,701	102,353	4,094	2	5	4,094	2	5	53	10	54	7
Totals	129,508,387	973,944	13	9	4	21	0	11	8	9	15	0

The next table shows similar information for the rural group only. The column giving the average tax per acre gives an idea of the effect of the progressive scale of taxation combined with the limits of the exemptions.

RURAL LANDS.—LAND-TAX ASSESSED, BY AMOUNT OF UNIMPROVED VALUE, 1928–29.

Amount of Unimproved Value.	Taxable Balance.	Tax assessed.	Average Tax assessed.
Amount of Unimproved Value.	Taxable Balance.	Tax assessed.	Per Return.			Per Taxpayer.			Per Acre.		Per £100 of Unimproved Value.
£ £	£	£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
Under 500	4,736	14	0	0	5	0	14	9	0	0	0	2
500– 599	82,385	290	0	2	11	0	4	11	0	0	0	8
600– 699	242,015	894	0	6	9	0	10	6	0	0	1	1
700– 799	355,181	1,326	0	10	11	0	18	0	0	1	1	6
800– 899	438,315	1,659	0	15	0	1	4	10	0	1	1	9
900– 999	478,540	1,789	0	18	3	1	11	6	0	1	1	11
1,000– 1,999	6,290,431	24,023	1	18	4	3	2	5	0	1	2	7
2,000– 2,499	3,640,014	14,331	3	10	5	6	2	6	0	3	3	2
2,500– 2,999	3,380,353	13,731	4	12	5	7	13	6	0	3	3	5
3,000– 3,999	5,776,777	24,099	5	19	2	9	14	5	0	3	3	5
4,000– 4,999	4,902,418	21,149	8	0	1	12	18	5	0	3	3	7
5,000– 5,999	4,193,576	19,849	11	3	6	17	5	6	0	4	4	1
6,000– 6,999	3,549,189	16,538	12	13	5	18	18	11	0	3	3	11
7,000– 7,999	2,961,326	13,994	15	3	7	22	6	5	0	4	4	1
8,000– 8,999	2,461,767	11,795	16	15	1	24	6	5	0	3	3	11
9,000– 9,999	2,314,843	11,745	20	12	10	29	8	9	0	4	4	4
10,000–14,999	12,313,069	68,748	46	10	3	46	16	0	0	7	7	8
15,000–19,999	10,687,564	75,421	121	9	0	121	12	11	0	11	14	1
20,000–29,999	12,091,454	100,607	200	0	3	200	16	3	1	0	16	7
30,000–39,999	6,655,790	68,036	348	18	1	348	18	1	1	4	20	5
40,000–49,999	3,204,652	40,022	555	17	3	555	17	3	1	5	25	0
50,000–99,999	6,467,762	100,153	1,011	12	11	1,011	12	11	2	1	31	0
100,000 and over	995,386	24,079	3,009	17	6	3,009	17	6	3	11	28	5
Totals	93,487,543	654,292	13	17	5	22	6	11	0	6	7	11

The final classification given is one on the basis of area. In this case the figures in the “Per Acre” column show the effect of the high proportion of poorer lands among the larger holdings. The tax per £100 of unimproved value is highest for holdings of from 10,000 to 50,000 acres.

RURAL LANDS.—LAND-TAX ASSESSED, BY AREA, 1928–29.

Area, in Acres.	Taxable Balance.	Tax assessed.	Average Tax assessed.
Area, in Acres.	Taxable Balance.	Tax assessed.	Per Return.			Per Taxpayer.			Per Acre.		Per £100 of Unimproved Value.
	£	£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
Under 5	527,790	2,614	2	16	6	4	6	3	35	1	4	6
5 and under 10	407,919	1,791	1	15	0	2	13	3	5	2	3	5
10 and under 15	394,258	1,673	1	13	4	2	11	10	2	8	3	3
15 and under 20	330,188	1,352	1	18	8	2	18	5	2	3	3	5
20 and under 30	639,404	2,618	1	15	3	2	11	5	1	7	3	3
30 and under 40	589,539	2,370	1	18	9	2	19	11	1	2	3	1
40 and under 50	794,647	3,356	2	7	3	3	16	0	1	1	3	5
50 and under 75	1,985,500	9,727	2	12	10	4	12	3	0	11	3	7
75 and under 100	2,182,460	9,906	3	5	3	5	18	1	0	9	3	6
100 and under 150	4,521,879	20,118	3	10	0	6	4	8	0	7	3	5
150 and under 200	4,014,421	18,099	4	13	7	8	3	10	0	6	3	9
200 and under 250	3,618,753	16,479	4	17	7	7	19	6	0	5	3	8
250 and under 320	4,293,985	20,808	6	9	11	10	9	8	0	5	4	3
320 and under 400	4,139,018	20,472	7	16	8	12	7	5	0	5	4	6
400 and under 500	4,593,564	23,392	9	2	0	15	5	6	0	5	4	10
500 and under 640	5,463,541	30,685	11	18	5	18	18	4	0	5	5	8
640 and under 750	3,396,498	18,791	13	17	9	22	1	1	0	5	5	11
750 and under 1,000	5,886,113	34,509	17	9	8	27	3	11	0	5	6	6
1,000 and under 2,000	15,018,355	98,620	31	15	8	48	1	3	0	5	8	8
2,000 and under 3,000	7,929,012	65,785	74	18	6	101	13	6	0	7	13	2
3,000 and under 4,000	5,033,070	46,547	111	12	6	149	3	9	0	8	15	10
4,000 and under 5,000	3,032,411	28,682	130	19	4	173	16	7	0	7	16	10
5,000 and under 7,500	4,718,397	49,336	195	15	7	225	5	7	0	8	19	8
7,500 and under 10,000	2,395,959	28,774	293	12	3	309	7	11	0	8	23	5
10,000 and under 15,000	3,170,205	46,125	427	1	8	518	5	2	0	9	28	2
15,000 and under 20,000	1,590,423	25,451	578	8	8	620	15	1	0	8	31	3
20,000 and under 30,000	910,743	13,081	421	19	4	484	9	8	0	4	27	2
30,000 and under 40,000	143,688	1,233!	102	15	0	123	6	0	0	1	14	9
40,000 and under 50,000	434,304	6,633	737	0	0	737	0	0	0	4	30	3
50,000 and under 100,000	80,445	523	52	6	0	74	14	3	..	..	11	10
100,000 and over	79,601	839	139	16	8	139	16	8	..	..	19	5
Not stated	1,171,453	3,903	20	4	5	23	10	3	..	..	6	5
Totals	93,487,543	654,292	13	17	5	22	6	11	0	6	7	11

Chapter 35. SECTION XXXV.—INCOMES.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

THE INCOME-TAX RETURNS.

SUMMARY OF INCOMES, EXEMPTIONS, AND TAX.

SUMMARY, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

INCOMES UNDER AND OVER £500, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

INCOMES BY CLASSES.

RETURNS AND TAXPAYERS, BY CLASSES, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

ASSESSABLE INCOME, BY CLASSES, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

SOURCE OF INCOME.

RETURNS AND TAXPAYERS, BY SOURCE OF INCOME, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

ASSESSABLE INCOME, BY SOURCE, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

SIZE OF INCOMES.

RETURNS AND TAXPAYERS, BY SIZE OF INCOMES, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

AGGREGATE ASSESSABLE INCOME, BY SIZE OF INCOME, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

EARNED INCOME.

ASSESSABLE AND EARNED INCOME, BY CLASSES, 1922–23 TO 1928–29.

EARNED INCOME, BY SOURCE, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

EARNED INCOME BY AMOUNT OF ASSESSABLE INCOME, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

EXEMPTIONS.

EXEMPTIONS, BY CLASSES OF INCOMES, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

EXEMPTIONS, BY SOURCE OF INCOME. 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

EXEMPTIONS, BY SIZE OF INCOME, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

EXEMPTIONS BY NATURE OF EXEMPTION AND SIZE OF INCOME, 1928–29.

TAXABLE BALANCE.

TAXABLE BALANCE, BY SIZE OF INCOME, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

AVERAGE TAXABLE BALANCE, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

TAX ASSESSED.

INCOME-TAX ASSESSED, 1922–23 TO 1928–29.

INCOME-TAX ASSESSED, BY CLASSES, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

INCOME-TAX ASSESSED, BY SOURCE OF INCOME, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

INCOME-TAX ASSESSED, BY SIZE OF INCOME, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

INTRODUCTORY.

No complete statistics of annual income are available for New Zealand, nor has any official investigation of the total income of the Dominion yet been attempted. Very valuable data, however, exist in regard to incomes of those furnishing returns to the Commissioner of Taxes for the purpose of income-tax assessment, and statistics of incomes were compiled from these at various times prior to 1923 by the Land and Income Tax Department. In the year mentioned a system of annual statistics on the subject was inaugurated, and the detailed results have since been published by the Census and Statistics Office in one of its annual statistical reports.

As, with certain exceptions, the annual returns of income are not required where the income is less than £250 (and are generally not furnished where the income is between £250 and £300), these returns are confined to a comparatively small minority of the population, and do not permit of statistics being compiled covering the great majority of incomes. This deficiency has been remedied to a great extent by the inclusion of a question in the schedule used at the census of 1926 asking in the case of each individual in the Dominion for an indication of the “income category” within which he or she lies. These income categories were adopted in preference to actual income to obviate as far as possible objections to the question as being inquisitorial. They provided for a distinguishing letter being shown according to whether the annual income was—

Nil.	£208 and under £260.
Under £52.	£260 and under £312.
£52 and under £156.	£312 and under £364.
£156 and under £208.	£364 and over.

At the appropriate stage of the census tabulation, statistics will be compiled showing the distribution of the population in the various income categories, according to sex, age, occupation, occupational status, number of dependants, &c. Taken in conjunction with the income statistics already in existence, the census data will also enable a reasonably close approximation of the national income to be arrived at.

THE INCOME-TAX RETURNS.

Information concerning the system of income-tax in New Zealand is given in Section XXIVB of this book. To permit of a proper understanding of the statistics given in the present section it is as well to briefly recapitulate the system, as in the following paragraphs:—

Income-tax is payable on the full incomes of registered companies and of absentees, and in other cases on incomes in excess of £300 per annum. For 1927–28 and 1928–29 the exemption was reduced by £1 for every £2 above £450 in the case of incomes between £450 and £750, and by £1 for every £1 above £750 for incomes between £750 and £900, the exemptions ceasing at £900. During previous years covered by the statistics given in the following pages, the exemption was reduced by £1 for every £1 above £600, up to a maximum income of £900. An absentee is defined as a person whose home has not been in New Zealand during any part of the income year.

An exemption of 5 per cent. of the capital value of land from which the income is derived is provided. A deduction of £50 is made from assessable income for each child or grandchild under eighteen years of age who is dependent on the taxpayer, and amounts up to £50 contributed towards the support of the taxpayer's widowed mother are also deductible from income.

The remaining class of exemptions is in respect of premium payments on insurances effected by the taxpayer on his own life, and of payments to the National Provident Fund, a superannuation fund, or the insurance fund of a friendly society. Deductions under this head may not exceed 15 per cent. of the earned income or, where the total income does not exceed £2,000, 15 per cent. of total income.

Certain specified incomes are exempt from taxation, included among these since 1923–24 being practically all incomes derived from the direct use or cultivation of land.

Earned income, the tax on which is subject to a reduction of 10 per cent. up to a limit of income of £2,000, is defined as the salary or wages (including bonuses) received by the taxpayer in relation to his employment, and includes all income derived by a taxpayer (other than a company or local body) by reason of his personal exertions. The difference between the totals for earned income and assessable income represents income from sources not defined as “earned.”

Part of the statistical information given in this section (that relating to income-tax) more properly belongs to Section XXIVB, but for reasons similar to those which apply in the case of the statistics of land holdings, it is preferable to treat the figures relating to incidence of tax with those showing the distribution of the incomes on which the tax is assessed.

It should be explained that the incomes returned in any year are those received during the previous year. The figures given throughout this section in respect of 1928–29 returns, for instance, relate approximately to incomes received during the twelve months ended 31st March, 1928.

SUMMARY OF INCOMES, EXEMPTIONS, AND TAX.

The following table briefly summarizes the main items of information for each of the last five years:—

SUMMARY, 1924–25 TO 1928–29.

Item.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
Number of returns	79,551	80,369	84,640	104,581	108,286
Number of taxpayers	41,680	43,822	48,899	51,931	52,846
	£	£	£	£	£
Earned income	27,035,344	28,402,162	30,363,437	34,752,105	36,363,375
Assessable income	49,947,009	52,632,488	54,804,293	58,651,561	61,026,507
Exemptions—
5 per cent. of capital value	2,567,670	2,715,597	2,717,718	2,895,160	3,043,344
Ordinary (under section 74)	17,788,001	17,791,691	18,706,016	23,206,859	24,739,016
Children, &c.	2,238,389	2,315,990	2,502,996	2,597,621	2,686,759
Life insurance premiums, &c.	708,970	776,902	831,082	936,098	1,022,404
Taxable balance	26,643,979	29,052,308	30,046,481	29,015,823	29,535,984
Tax assessed	3,173,085	3,190,277	3,235,699	3,104,869	3,166,008

The figures for 1922–23 are not properly comparable with those for subsequent years, on account of income derived from the direct use and cultivation of land being (with certain insignificant exceptions) exempted from income-tax after that year. Owing to the exclusion of this source of income in 1923–24, the amount of exemption (£2,195,521) in respect of the capital value of land in that year actually aggregated less than did the corresponding exemption in 1922–23 (£2,493,154), when the amount was on the basis of unimproved value.

Although incomes returned in 1927–28 were nearly 20,000 more in number and nearly £4,000,000 more in aggregate amount than in 1926–27, taxpayers showed an increase of only slightly more than 3,000, while taxable balance actually declined by over £1,000,000. The explanation lies in the fact that the whole of the increase is accounted for by incomes under £500, incomes over that amount and more particularly at the higher levels having actually declined.

The inclusion of so many small incomes for the first time in the 1927–28 statistics largely destroys comparability with earlier years—averages, proportions, &c., being seriously affected. The alteration in the ordinary exemption reductions is another factor affecting exemptions, taxable balance, and tax, while the tax imposed is also increased in the case of certain categories by a change in the gradations of the taxation scale. The figures for 1927–28, however, are quite comparable with those for 1928–29, and it is interesting to note from the following that the definite increase in all items holds for incomes both under and over £500.

INCOMES UNDER AND OVER £500, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

Item.	Incomes under £500.		Incomes £500 and over.
Item.	1927–28.	1928–29.	1927–28.	1928–29.
Number of returns	78,477	81,648	26,104	26,638
Number of taxpayers	26,648	27,057	25,283	25,789
	£	£	£	£
Earned income	19,966,924	21,156,077	14,785,181	15,207,298
Assessable income	23,775,188	25,357,837	34,876,373	35,668,670
Exemptions—
5 per cent. of capital value	266,329	279,425	2,628,831	2,762,919
Ordinary (under section 74)	19,673,390	21,093,518	3,533,469	3,645,498
Children, &c.	1,267,772	1,347,080	1,329,849	1,339,679
Life insurance premiums, &c.	305,525	340,621	630,573	681,783
Taxable balance	2,262,172	2,297,193	26,753,651	27,238,791
Tax assessed	67,936	68,113	3,036,933	3,097,895

INCOMES BY CLASSES.

For the financial year 1928–29 returns received by the Commissioner of Taxes and showing any income totalled 108,286. Of these 3,262 were in respect of companies, 1,313 were furnished by non-resident traders, and 97 by agents for debenture-holders, the remaining 103,614 (96 per cent. of the total) being in the general class of taxpayers, which includes absentees other than non-resident traders.

Of 103,614 persons in the general class dealt with, no fewer than 33,835 had an income of less than £300, and only 1,578 of these—absentees or trustees, or otherwise not entitled to exemption under section 74—were assessed for tax. Of the 69,779 with incomes of £300 or over, 46,752 were assessed as having to pay income-tax, the remaining 23,027 having no taxable balance left after the various exemptions and deductions had been taken into account.

Of the 3,262 companies covered by the statistics for 1928–29, 156 escaped taxation through the application of the capital-value exemption, the number of taxpayers in this class being 3,106. The whole of the 1,313 non-resident traders and of the 97 agents for debenture-holders were required to pay income-tax, no exemptions being applicable to these two classes.

A classification of returns and taxpayers on the basis of class is given in the following table for each of the last four years:—

RETURNS AND TAXPAYERS, BY CLASSES, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Class.	1925–26.		1926–27.		1927–28.		1928–29.
Class.	Returns	Taxpayers.	Returns	Taxpayers.	Returns.	Taxpayers	Returns.	Taxpayers.
I. Individuals	75,953	39,527	79,574	43,910	99,448	46,929	103,614	48,330
II. Companies	2,922	2,801	2,984	2,907	3,153	3,022	3,262	3,106
III. Agents for debenture-holders	294	294	274	274	191	191	97	97
IV. Non-resident traders	1,200	1,200	1,808	1,808	1,789	1,789	1,313	1,313
Totals	80,369	43,822	84,640	48,899	104,581	51,931	108,286	52,846

The general class represents throughout the period the great majority of the returns, and it occupies a similar position in regard to taxpayers, though in this respect its proportion of the total is somewhat less—viz. (in 1928–29), 91 per cent., as compared with the 96 per cent. shown previously as its proportion of the returns. When attention is turned to aggregate assessable income, the percentage of this class to the total is still further reduced, being in 1928–29 only 79 per cent.

In the next table the total assessable income shown by the returns for each class is given, together with the average per return. The overwhelming superiority of the class covering companies is the most noticeable feature of the averages.

ASSESSABLE INCOME, BY CLASSES, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Class.	Aggregate.				Average.
Class.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
I	39,270,531	41,327,019	46,286,852	48,372,182	517	519	465	467
II	12,250,685	12,228,859	11,415,063	11,975,470	4,193	4,098	3,620	3,671
III	590,552	567,573	339,739	176,933	2,009	2,071	1,779	1,824
IV	520,717	680,842	609,907	501,922	438	377	341	382
Totals	52,632,488	54,804,293	58,651,561	61,026,507	655	647	561	564

SOURCE OF INCOME.

In the compilation of the statistics a distinction is made us to the source from which the income is derived, incomes being divided into ten groups according to source, as follows:—

Group No.	Source.
0	Salary or wages.
1	Professional occupations (on own account).
2	Commerce, trade, or business.
3	Industry or manufacture.
4	Farming.
5	Provision of transport or communication.
6	Building and construction.
7	Mining or extraction.
8	Investments and the like.
9	Provision of or engaging in entertainment, sport, or recreation.

Actual figures as to the amount of income derived from the various sources are not available on account of the fact that in a considerable proportion of cases income has been obtained from more than one source. The rule followed in such cases in compiling the statistics is to include the whole income under the principal source from which it was derived. As an indication of the extent to which the figures are affected, attention may be drawn to the inclusion of approximately 4 per cent. of earned income in the total assessable income of the source “Investments and the like.”

Of the ten classes of source from which income is derived, source 0, “Salary or wages,” is the most important as regards number of incomes, number of taxpayers, amount of assessable income, and amount of earned income. It may be added that this source also leads in the matter of exemptions—so much so, in fact, that its total of £25,276,533 assessable income in 1928–29 shrank to a comparatively insignificant taxable balance of £6,058,294, which yielded only £303,919 of tax.

The following table shows the number of returns and of taxpayers classified according to source for each of the four years 1925–26 to 1928–29:—

RETURNS AND TAXPAYERS, BY SOURCE OF INCOME, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Source.	1925–26.		1926–27.		1927–28.		1928–29.
Source.	Returns.	Taxpayers.	Returns.	Taxpayers.	Returns.	Taxpayers.	Returns.	Taxpayers.
0	37,144	18,434	40,516	20,965	59,506	24,356	62,203	25,446
1	3,467	2,709	3,542	2,813	3,581	2,823	3,481	2,672
2	17,425	8,886	18,153	10,396	18,329	10,279	18,042	9,739
3	1,454	1,138	1,715	1,399	1,577	1,282	1,633	1,264
4	624	400	478	222	557	269	703	412
5	746	411	893	428	1,005	468	1,056	472
6	1,432	880	1,638	1,267	1,650	992	1,588	858
7	138	73	152	85	133	76	132	74
8	17,856	10,835	17,143	11,243	18,161	11,320	19,381	11,871
9	83	56	110	81	82	66	67	38
Totals	80,369	43,822	84,640	48,899	104,581	51,931	108,286	52,846

Source 4, “Farming,” ranked second to source 0 in 1922–23 as regards number of returns. For the year 1923–24 income derived from the direct use or cultivation of land was wholly exempted from income-tax, but the tax was reimposed in the following year in the case of Crown lands held as small grazing-runs or on pastoral lease, which would otherwise have escaped both land- and income-tax.

A classification of assessable income on the foregoing basis is next given, the average assessable income being also shown for each source:—

ASSESSABLE INCOME, BY SOURCE, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Source.	Aggregate.				Average.
Source.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
0	16,510,119	18,111,299	23,531,468	25,275,533	444	447	395	406
1	3,072,742	3,210,571	3,129,723	2,945,504	886	906	874	846
2	15,749,987	15,846,612	14,939,456	14,776,778	904	873	815	819
3	3,622,773	3,973,830	3,492,452	3,501,766	2,492	2,317	2,215	2,144
4	551,187	274,180	300,892	540,093	883	574	540	768
5	854,396	936,799	998,398	1,122,577	1,145	1,049	993	1,063
6	902,369	1,044,009	1,038,659	943,763	630	637	629	594
7	189,967	225,402	207,306	212,898	1,377	1,483	1,559	1,613
8	11,075,875	11,062,688	10,891,240	11,631,227	620	634	600	600
9	103,073	118,903	121,967	75,368	1,242	1,081	1,487	1,125
Totals	52,632,488	54,804,293	58,651,561	61,026,507	655	647	561	564

Source 0, “Salary or wages,” is seen to have the greatest aggregate, but the lowest average. Easily the highest average is shown for source 3, “Industry or manufacture.”

SIZE OF INCOMES.

A third principle of classification followed in the compilation of the statistics of incomes and income-tax is according to size of income. An annual report published by the Census and Statistics Office gives full details of incomes of the various sizes in conjunction with source of income and class of taxpayer. These details cannot be repeated here, but the following table showing the number of returns and of taxpayers for the various categories in each of the last four years gives a good indication of the relative distribution of incomes over £300 per annum throughout the community.

RETURNS AND TAXPAYERS, BY SIZE OF INCOMES, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Size of Income.	1925–26.		1926–27.		1927–28.		1928–29.
Size of Income.	Returns.	Taxpayers.	Returns.	Taxpayers.	Returns.	Taxpayers.	Returns.	Taxpayers.
£ £
Under 300	22,131	3,218	22,098	4,012	34,945	3,780	35,834	3,482
300– 399	21,042	7,632	23,402	9,925	28,529	11,286	30,761	12,005
400– 499	12,135	8,973	12,880	9,650	15,003	11,582	15,053	11,570
500– 599	6,792	6,123	7,261	6,632	7,489	7,042	7,570	7,139
600– 699	4,630	4,479	4,719	4,581	4,587	4,483	4,689	4,551
700– 799	2,842	2,780	2,953	2,897	2,874	2,793	2,939	2,850
800– 899	1,860	1,815	2,018	1,985	2,046	1,988	2,147	2,106
900– 999	1,348	1,321	1,357	1,340	1,350	1,323	1,419	1,381
1,000– 1,999	5,007	4,923	5,272	5,209	5,305	5,219	5,410	5,319
2,000– 2,999	1,231	1,217	1,326	1,321	1,206	1,197	1,277	1,265
3,000– 3,999	484	477	489	486	432	426	444	436
4,000– 4,999	241	244	250	247	263	263	234	234
5,000– 5,999	150	148	132	132	111	111	102	102
6,000– 6,999	90	90	87	87	82	82	83	83
7,000– 7,999	63	63	57	57	62	61	41	41
8,000– 8,999	39	39	54	53	42	42	40	39
9,000– 9,999	26	25	48	48	28	27	25	25
10,000–19,999	128	128	116	116	123	123	113	113
20,000–29,999	44	44	48	48	39	38	34	34
30,000–39,999	24	24	21	21	20	20	23	23
40,000–49,999	14	14	11	11	13	13	13	13
50,000–99,999	28	28	25	25	20	20	22	22
100,000 and over	17	17	16	16	12	12	13	13
Totals	80,369	43,822	84,640	48,899	104,581	51,931	108,286	52,846

Only 39 per cent. of those with incomes between £300 and £400 were required to pay any income-tax in 1928–29. The proportion of taxpayers to returns rapidly increases and reaches 94 per cent. in the category £500—£599.

Of the 108,286 persons, companies, &c., dealt with in 1928–29, 35,834, or 33 per cent., had incomes of less than £300, their aggregate incomes being £7,935,937, or only 13 per cent. of the total. Incomes under £1,000 aggregated £37,821,453, or 62 per cent. of the total, but represented 92 1/2 per cent. of the returns. Only 218 (less than 1/4 per cent. of those who furnished returns) showed incomes of £10,000 or over, but their total incomes amounted to £8,364,619, or 13 1/2 per cent. of the grand total of £61,026,507.

Information as to aggregate incomes within the various categories is given in the next table. A column is added showing for 1928–29 separate figures for the general class of taxpayers (Class I).

It may be mentioned that, almost without exception, the average income in each group falls a little below the half-way mark of the group.

AGGREGATE ASSESSABLE INCOME, BY SIZE OF INCOME, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Size of Income.	Aggregate Assessable Income.
	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	Total.	Class I.
£ £	£	£	£	£	£
Under 300	4,456,714	4,398,548	7,395,082	7,935,937	7,718,194
300– 399	7,284,133	8,085,637	9,777,357	10,626,724	10,532,663
400– 499	5,261,347	5,664,482	6,602,749	6,795,176	6,689,137
600–599	3,652,836	3,925,874	4,059,432	4,102,421	4,012,516
600– 699	2,949,107	3,020,356	2,947,263	3,014,428	2,899,671
700– 799	2,114,901	2,196,086	2,144,098	2,192,566	2,093,485
800–899	1,568,464	1,702,931	1,725,640	1,811,095	1,731,576
900–999	1,275,616	1,281,926	1,268,452	1,343,106	1,245,709
1,000– 1,999	6,752,083	7,098,910	7,111,734	7,242,754	6,387,067
2,000– 2,999	2,980,985	3,185,732	2,889,012	3,046,435	2,421,541
3,000– 3,999	1,662,697	1,676,622	1,454,894	1,524,840	1,031,323
4,000– 4,999	1,070,514	1,106,514	1,166,305	1,035,064	609,920
5,000– 5,999	810,567	714,539	604,094	560,103	254,946
6,000– 6,999	580,737	560,280	526,969	543,327	228,687
7,000– 7,999	473,646	423,716	461,622	307,167	104,227
8,000– 8,999	329,577	456,333	354,036	341,878	118,756
9,000– 9,999	245,584	452,617	262,975	238,867	39,227
10,000–19,999	1,743,746	1,599,359	1,653,344	1,556,817	199,478
20,000–29,999	1,039,750	1,149,840	944,295	836,599	54,059
30,000–39,999	809,510	730,605	692,071	813,414	..
40,000–49,999	615,711	482,654	577,787	597,832	..
50,000–99,999	1,822,549	1,698,244	1,407,979	1,616,107	..
100,000 and over	3,131,714	3,192,488	2,624,371	2,943,850	..
Totals	52,632,488	54,804,293	58,651,561	61,026,507	48,372,182

Class I represents 97 1/2 per cent. of aggregate assessable income in cases where the income is under £1,000, but only 3 per cent. among incomes of £10,000 or over.

EARNED INCOME.

Of the gross assessable income of £61,026,507 in 1928–29, £36,363,375, or 59 1/2 per cent. of the total, ranked as earned income, and as such became entitled to a reduction of 10 per cent. in taxation. Earned income is, of course, practically confined to the general class of taxpayers, no part of the income of companies and of agents for debenture-holders, and only a very small proportion of that of non-resident traders, coming within the definition of earned income. A comparison of aggregate assessable income and earned income for the seven years 1922–23 to 1928–29 is here given:—

ASSESSABLE AND EARNED INCOME, BY CLASSES, 1922–23 TO 1928–29.

Year.	Individuals.		Non-resident Traders.		Totals of all Classes.
Year.	Assessable Income.	Earned Income.	Assessable Income.	Earned Income.	Assessable Income.	Earned Income.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1922–23	37,522,867	28,648,205	471,259	19,693	46,353,941	28,667,898
1923–24	33,612,632	24,410,999	313,953	9,871	44,738,064	24,420,870
1924–25	37,201,596	27,017,388	519,924	17,956	49,947,009	27,035,344
1925–26	39,270,534	28,376,760	520,717	25,402	52,632,488	28,402,162
1926–27	41,327,019	30,306,769	680,842	56,668	54,804,293	30,363,437
1927–28	46,286,852	34,698,604	609,907	53,501	58,651,561	34,752,105
1928–29	48,372,182	36,347,872	501,922	15,503	61,026,507	36,363,375

The effect of the exemption after 1922–23 of income derived from the direct use or cultivation of the land is indicated by a comparison of the earned-income figures for 1922–23 and 1923–24. As a matter of fact, the earned income of the farming group in 1922–23 (£4,653,608) was somewhat greater than the difference between the two years. The distribution of earned income over the various sources, both absolutely and in proportion to assessable income, is shown in the next table for the last four years.

EARNED INCOME, BY SOURCE, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Source.	Earned Income.				Proportion of Assessable Income
Source.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.	1925–26	1926–27	1927–28	1928–29
	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
0	15,753,979	17,268,865	22,296,139	24,226,648	95	95	95	96
1	2,827,789	2,960,359	2,885,187	2,703,744	92	92	92	92
2	7,244,499	7,777,912	7,246,364	7,011,652	46	49	49	47
3	513,910	405,080	306,899	321,723	14	10	9	9
4	496,180	232,714	257,861	461,594	90	85	86	85
5	273,055	309,394	364,797	342,331	32	33	37	30
6	773,375	894,087	879,561	775,515	86	86	85	82
7	45,116	49,840	54,536	43,098	24	22	26	20
8	450,025	440,378	418,297	436,541	4	4	4	4
9	24,234	24,808	42,464	40,529	24	21	35	54
Totals	28,402,162	30,363,437	34,752,105	36,363,375	54	55	59	60

Source 0, “Salary or wages,” as might be expected, shows the highest percentage of earned income, the inability of this group to reach the 100 per cent. being due to the inclusion of incomes over £2,000 and also of amounts derived by salary or wage earners from other sources, principally saving-banks deposits and other investments. Source 8 (investments and the like) which might be expected to include no earned income, nevertheless shows a small percentage of such, this being due to the fact that the classification of each return is made on the basis of the source from which the income is principally derived.

The next table shows the amount of earned income included in the total assessable income for the various categories according to amount of assessable income:—

EARNED INCOME BY AMOUNT OF ASSESSABLE INCOME, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Amount of Assemble Income.	Earned Income.				Proportion of Assessable. Income.
Amount of Assemble Income.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1923–29.	1925–26	1926–27	1927–28	1928–29
£ £	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Under 300	3,210,186	3,176,195	6,072,206	6,460,384	72	72	82	81
300– 399	6,134,203	6,869,256	8,516,735	9,211,048	84	85	87	87
400– 499	4,173,808	4,539,600	5,377,983	5,484,645	80	80	81	81
500– 599	2,736,398	2,980,770	3,032,923	3,057,180	75	76	75	75
600– 699	2,080,222	2,140,412	2,081,883	2,094,694	71	71	71	69
700– 799	1,449,065	1,495,707	1,439,662	1,460,623	69	68	67	67
800–899	1,009,105	1,124,757	1,106,410	1,172,355	64	66	64	65
900–999	796,254	801,714	801,285	800,479	62	63	63	60
1,000– 1,999	3,793,140	4,031,173	3,666,734	3,968,104	56	57	52	55
2,000– 2,999	1,391,974	1,543,659	1,341,432	1,396,555	47	49	46	46
3,000– 3,999	584,802	594,320	508,925	507,714	35	35	35	33
4,000– 4,999	406,067	376,589	326,133	311,302	38	34	28	30
5,000– 5,999	185,644	169,702	132,114	88,819	23	24	22	16
6,000– 6,999	97,469	122,588	71,710	112,569	17	22	14	21
7,000– 7,999	54,534	54,892	68,447	50,612	12	13	15	16
8,000– 8,999	53,929	90,813	59,859	48,470	16	20	17	14
9,000– 9,999	1,149	42,063	20,728	17,232	..	9	8	7
10,000–19,999	147,219	106,909	85,783	97,184	8	7	5	6
20,000 and over	96,994	102,318	41,153	23,406	1	1	1	0
Totals	28,402,162	30,363,437	34,752,105	36,363,375	54	55	59	60

The proportion of earned income to assessable income falls rapidly as income increases, but the fall is not altogether steady, nor is it uniform as between one year and another. The lower percentage for the group “under £300” as compared with incomes between £300 and £600 is due to the fact that all companies must furnish returns, while in the case of individuals incomes under £250 need not be returned.

EXEMPTIONS.

As explained earlier in this section, non-resident traders and agents for debenture-holders are not entitled to any exemptions. In the following table the aggregate exemptions to each of the other two classes of taxpayers are shown for the last four years:—

EXEMPTIONS, BY CLASSES OF INCOMES, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Class.	Aggregate Exemptions.				Proportion of Assessable Income.
Class.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.	1925–26	1926–27	1927–28	1928–29
	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
I	22,375,624	23,665,110	28,335,093	30,146,082	57	57	61	62
II	1,204,556	1,092,702	1,300,645	1,344,441	10	9	11	11
Totals	23,580,180	24,757,812	29,635,738	31,490,523	45	45	51	52

The whole of the exemption shown in the case of companies was in respect of the capital-value provision. Of the £30,146,082 exemptions in Class I in 1928–29, £24,739,016 was allowed as ordinary exemption (£300), £1,697,903 in respect of the capital value of land used in the production of income, £2,686,759 on account of allowances for children and widowed mothers, and £1,022,404 on account of life-insurance premiums, payments to superannuation funds, &c.

The exemptions are next shown spread over incomes derived from the various sources sot out earlier in this section:—

EXEMPTIONS, BY SOURCE OF INCOME. 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Source.	Aggregate Exemptions.				Proportion of Assessable Income.
Source.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.	1925–26	1926–27	1927–28	1928–29
	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
0	11,834,574	12,936,047	17,757,605	19,218,239	72	71	75	76
1	911,888	928,166	905,377	887,565	30	29	29	30
2	4,685,453	4,769,741	4,812,567	4,850,435	30	30	32	33
3	529,281	528,183	517,955	572,113	15	13	15	16
4	177,155	134,766	141,409	186,120	32	49	47	34
5	220,118	264,743	272,839	292,430	26	28	27	26
6	405,953	459,898	432,964	413,422	45	44	42	44
7	40,274	39,287	37,364	35,495	21	17	18	17
8	4,743,366	4,660,378	4,721,536	5,017,842	43	42	43	43
9	32,118	36,603	36,122	16,862	31	31	30	22
Totals	23,580,180	24,757,812	29,635,738	31,490,523	45	45	51	52

The highest percentage of exemptions is recorded for source 0, which, as previously demonstrated, has the lowest average income. Sources 3 (industry or manufacture), and 7 (mining), which have a large proportion of companies, show the lowest percentage of exemptions.

As a percentage of assessable income, exemptions naturally show a decrease as income increases, as is well brought out in the proportion columns of the next table.

EXEMPTIONS, BY SIZE OF INCOME, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Size of Income.	Aggregate Exemptions.				Proportion of Assessable Income.
Size of Income.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.	1925–26	1926–27	1927–28	1928–29
£ £	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Under 300	4,143,798	4,035,861	7,034,096	7,585,496	93	92	95	96
300– 399	6,822,152	7,564,696	9,198,196	10,018,185	94	94	94	94
400– 499	4,313,093	4,637,207	5,280,724	5,456,963	82	82	80	80
500– 599	2,547,821	2,723,352	2,495,442	2,539,559	70	69	61	62
600– 699	1,548,616	1,607,786	1,357,133	1,399,368	53	53	46	46
700– 799	750,927	773,400	747,541	772,085	36	35	35	35
800–899	351,509	375,843	374,611	413,910	22	22	22	23
900–999	211,211	210,498	206,944	226,604	17	16	16	17
1,000–1,999	1,058,257	1,084,541	1,106,702	1,170,944	16	15	16	16
2,000–2,999	400,250	419,400	421,838	455,597	13	13	15	15
3,000–3,999	233,542	224,194	186,769	234,082	14	13	13	15
4,000–4,999	123,561	159,060	178,801	154,711	12	14	15	15
5,000–5,999	115,810	90,416	66,747	95,224	14	13	11	17
6,000–6,999	87,527	75,085	76,598	87,066	15	13	15	16
7,000–7,999	65,678	66,133	81,647	59,603	14	16	18	19
8,000–8,999	48,637	63,078	55,621	63,301	15	14	16	19
9,000–9,999	53,705	43,767	36,486	47,725	22	10	14	20
10,000–19,999	168,411	182,477	248,869	165,721	10	11	15	11
20,000–29,999	120,596	109,170	135,996	115,102	12	9	14	14
30,000–39,999	84,400	82,690	115,400	156,916	10	11	17	19
40,000–49,999	66,298	65,919	56,529	58,859	18	14	10	10
50,000–99,999	145,440	99,822	102,171	121,415	8	6	7	8
100,000 and over	118,941	63,417	70,877	92,087	4	2	3	3
Totals	23,580,180	24,757,812	29,635,738	31,490,523	45	45	51	52

There has been a decided movement over the period, the lower income groups generally showing a fall in the percentage of exemption to assessed income, and the higher groups a rise. This latter movement is associated with a similar movement in the capital-value exemption, and appears to be due principally to higher values of premises used for business and industrial undertakings.

Figures for the four classes of exemptions for the year 1928–29 are given in the next table, which also shows the average exemption per return:—

EXEMPTIONS BY NATURE OF EXEMPTION AND SIZE OF INCOME, 1928–29.

Size of Income.	Total Exemptions.				Average Exemptions per Income returned.
Size of Income.	5 per Cent. of Capital Value.	Section 74 (£300).	Children, &c.	Life Insurance, &c.	5 per Cent. of Capital Value.	Section 74 (£300).	Children, &c.	Life Insurance, &c.
£ £	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
Under 300	68,740	7,515,352	1,205	199	2	210	..	..
300– 399	92,984	9,125,411	636,470	163,320	3	297	21	5
400– 499	117,701	4,452,755	709,405	177,102	8	296	47	12
500– 599	122,384	1,865,173	416,614	135,388	16	246	55	18
600– 699	122,285	924,641	255,203	97,239	26	197	54	21
700– 799	125,541	423,913	155,337	67,294	43	144	53	23
800–899	93,254	145,394	118,482	56,780	43	68	55	26
900– 999	83,606	40,116	63,290	39,592	59	28	45	28
1,000- 1,999	570,508	155,496	256,675	188,265	105	29	47	35
2,000– 2,999	301,902	49,311	49,461	54,923	236	39	39	43
3,000– 3,999	173,388	30,030	12,300	18,364	391	68	28	41
4,000– 4,999	132,161	4,432	6,166	11,952	565	19	26	51
5,000– 5,999	88,497	2,280	2,501	1,946	868	22	25	19
6,000– 6,999	78,786	1,938	2,050	4,292	949	23	25	52
7,000– 7,999	55,649	300	450	3,204	1,357	7	11	78
8,000– 8,999	61,488	..	500	1,313	1,537	..	13	33
9,000– 9,999	45,431	1,142	300	852	1,817	46	12	34
10,000–19,999	164,094	898	350	379	1,452	8	3	3
20,000–29,999	114,668	434	..	..	3,373	13	..	..
30,000–39,999	156,916	..	..	..	6,822	..	..	..
40,000–49,999	58,859	..	..	..	4,528	..	..	..
50,000–99,999	121,415	..	..	..	5,519	..	..	..
100,000 and over	92,087	..	..	..	7,084	..	..	..
Totals	3,042,344	24,739,016	2,686,759	1,022,404	28	228	25	9

As would naturally be expected in the case of any percentage remission, the average exemption under the 5–per-cent. provision increases rapidly and steadily with the size of the income. It should he added that, if taken as a percentage of total income, this exemption shows a steady rise from slightly under 1 per cent. of incomes between £300 and £400 to 19 per cent. of incomes between £7,000 and £8,000. A fall then occurs, the 5-per-cent. exemption representing under 10 per cent. of incomes between £40,000 and £50,000, and just over 3 per cent. of incomes over £100,000.

The £300 exemption, which is reduced on incomes above £450 and does not apply at all to those above £900, averaged in 1928–29 £297 for incomes between £300 and £400, £296 for incomes between £400 and £500, and £246 between £500 and £600. Thereafter the average diminishes rapidly, but does not altogether disappear until the £30,000 class is reached, this being due to the inclusion in large trust returns of small amounts the recipients of which come within the provisions of the £300 exemption.

The other two classes of exemptions call for little comment. Each shows a more or less steady rise, followed by a fall at the higher income groups, where the companies predominate.

TAXABLE BALANCE.

After all exemptions have been deducted from the assessable income the balance of income (if any) is taxed in accordance with the schedule in force at the time. Figures of taxable balance are readily ascertained from a study of the corresponding totals of assessable income and of exemptions, and will be given here under one system of classification only—viz., that on the basis of amount of assessable income.

TAXABLE BALANCE, BY SIZE OF INCOME, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Size of Income.	Aggregate Taxable Balance.				Proportion of Assessable income.
Size of Income.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
£ £	£	£	£	£	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Under 300	312,916	362,687	360,986	350,441	7	8	5	4
300– 399	461,981	520,941	579,161	608,539	6	6	6	6
400– 499	948,254	1,027,275	1,322,025	1,338,213	18	18	20	20
500– 599	1,105,015	1,202,522	1,563,990	1,562,862	30	31	39	38
600– 699	1,400,491	1,412,570	1,590,130	1,615,060	47	47	54	54
700– 799	1,363,974	1,422,686	1,396,557	1,420,481	64	65	65	65
800–899	1,216,955	1,327,088	1,351,029	1,397,185	78	78	78	77
900–999	1,064,405	1,071,428	1,061,508	1,116,502	83	84	84	83
1,000–1,999	5,693,826	6,014,369	6,005,032	6,071,810	84	85	84	84
2,000–2,999	2,580,735	2,766,332	2,467,174	2,590,838	87	87	85	85
3,000–3,999	1,429,155	1,452,428	1,268,125	1,290,758	86	87	87	85
4,000–4,999	946,953	947,454	987,504	880,353	88	86	85	85
5,000–5,999	694,757	621,123	537,347	464,879	86	87	89	83
6,000–6,999	493,210	485,195	450,371	456,261	85	87	85	84
7,000–7,999	407,968	357,583	379,975	247,564	86	84	82	81
8,000–8,999	280,940	393,255	298,415	278,577	85	86	84	81
9,000–9,999	191,879	408,850	226,489	191,142	78	90	86	80
10,000–19,999	1,575,335	1,416,882	1,404,475	1,391,096	90	89	85	89
20,000–29,999	919,154	1,040,670	808,299	721,497	88	91	86	86
30,000–39,999	725,110	647,915	576,671	656,498	90	89	83	81
40,000–49,999	549,413	416,735	521,258	538,973	82	86	90	90
50,000–99,999	1,677,109	1,598,422	1,305,808	1,494,692	92	94	93	92
100,000 and over	3,012,773	3,129,071	2,553,494	2,851,763	96	98	97	97
Totals	29,052,308	30,046,481	29,015,823	29,535,984	55	55	49	48

The next table enables an interesting comparison to be made between taxable balance per return and taxable balance per taxpayer, and affords a comparison in these two respects between the various years, and for incomes of different sizes.

AVERAGE TAXABLE BALANCE, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Size of Income.	Taxable Balance per Return.				Taxable Balance per Taxpayer.
Size of Income.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
£ £	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
Under 300	14	16	10	10	97	90	95	101
300– 399	22	22	20	20	61	52	51	51
400– 499	78	80	88	89	106	106	114	116
500– 599	163	166	209	206	180	181	222	219
600– 699	303	299	347	344	313	308	355	355
700– 799	480	482	486	483	491	491	500	498
800– 899	654	658	660	651	670	669	680	663
900– 999	790	790	786	787	806	800	802	808
1,000– 1,999	1,137	1,141	1,132	1,122	1,157	1,155	1,151	1,142
2,000– 2,999	2,096	2,086	2,046	2,029	2,121	2,094	2,061	2,048
3,000– 3,999	2,953	2,970	2,935	2,907	2,996	2,989	2,977	2,960
4,000– 4,999	3,881	3,790	3,755	3,762	3,881	3,886	3,755	3,762
5,000– 5,999	4,632	4,728	4,841	4,558	4,694	4,728	4,841	4,558
6,000– 6,999	5,480	5,577	5,492	5,497	5,480	5,577	5,492	5,497
7,000– 7,999	6,476	6,273	6,129	6,038	6,476	6,273	6,229	6,038
8,000– 8,999	7,204	7,282	7,105	6,964	7,204	7,420	7,105	7,143
9,000– 9,999	7,380	8,518	8,089	7,646	7,675	8,518	8,388	7,646
10,000–19,999	12,307	12,214	11,418	12,311	12,307	12,214	11,418	12,311
20,000–29,999	20,890	21,681	20,726	21,221	20,890	21,681	21,271	21,221
30,000–39,999	30,213	30,853	28,834	28,543	30,213	30,853	28,834	28,543
40,000–49,999	39,244	37,885	40,097	41,459	39,244	37,885	40,097	41,459
50,000–99,999	59,896	63,937	65,290	67,941	59,896	63,937	65,290	67,941
100,000 and over	177,221	195,567	212,791	219,366	177,221	195,567	212,791	219,366
Totals	361	355	277	273	663	614	559	559

Owing principally to the inclusion of so many new incomes in the lowest categories, the general average for the last two years shows a distinct fall as compared with earlier years, whether on the basis of taxable balance per return or per taxpayer.

TAX ASSESSED.

The revenue from income-tax during the financial year ended the 31st March, 1929, was £3,310,877. This amount is £144,869 in excess of the total tax shown in the statistical tables as having been assessed for the same year (£3,166,008), the difference being due partly to the imposition of an additional 5 per cent. in the event of late payment, partly to the inclusion of arrears in the total of tax collected, and partly to the omission of a few returns from the statistical tables.

A summary of assessments of tax during each of the last seven years gives the following results:—

INCOME-TAX ASSESSED, 1922–23 TO 1928–29.

Year.	Total Tax assessed.	Average Tax assessed.
Year.	Total Tax assessed.	Per Income.			Per Taxpayer.			Per £1 of Assessable Income.		Per £1 of Taxable Balance.
	£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
1922–23	3,639,603	39	10	4	94	7	3	1	7	3	5
1923–24	3,335,205	44	12	4	92	8	3	1	6	2	11
1924–25	3,173,085	39	17	9	76	2	7	1	3	2	5
1925–26	3,190,277	39	13	11	72	16	0	1	3	2	2
1926–27	3,235,699	38	4	7	66	3	5	1	2	2	2
1927–28	3,104,869	29	14	6	59	17	4	1	1	2	2
1928–29	3,166,008	29	4	9	59	18	2	1	0	2	2

The last two columns in particular give a good indication of the effect of tax-reductions during the period. The maximum tax fell from 7s. 4d. in the £1 in 1922–23 to 4s. 6d. in the £1 in 1925–26 and subsequent years. Here as elsewhere the comparison with earlier years is vitiated by the much higher proportion of small incomes in 1927–28 and 1928–29, combined with the change in the reductions from ordinary exemption, and also the change in the graduated scale of tax.

In 1928–29 the 3,106 taxpaying companies were assessed for £1,979,642 income-tax, the 97 agents for debenture-holders for £31,574, and the 1,313 non-resident traders for £28,554. The remaining £1,126,238 was divided among 48,330 taxpayers in the general class. The following table shows the tax assessed in the case of each of the four classes during the last four years, and also contrasts the incidence of the assessment between the classes in 1928–29:—

INCOME-TAX ASSESSED, BY CLASSES, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Class.	Total Tax assessed.				Average Tax assessed, 1928–29.
Class.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.	Per Income.	Per Tax-payer.	Per £1 of Assessable Income.		Per £1 of Taxable Balance.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	s.	d.	s.	d.
I	1,004,627	1,029,412	1,126,092	1,126,238	11	23	0	6	1	3
II	2,062,671	2,072,510	1,883,865	1,979,642	607	637	3	4	3	9
III	92,105	90,880	57,339	31,574	326	326	3	7	3	7
IV	30,874	42,897	37,573	28,554	22	22	1	2	1	2
Totals	3,190,277	3,235,699	3,104,869	3,166,008	29	60	1	0	2	2

The figures refer, of course, only to incomes for which returns have been furnished to the Commissioner of Taxes. All persons and companies in business are required to furnish returns, but returns are not required from persons whose incomes are derived from salary, wages, interest, rent, annuity, or other annual payment, if the total income is under £250 per annum. It must be remembered, therefore, in considering the figures for the general class that there will be large numbers of individuals in the Dominion with incomes under £300 per annum who have not furnished returns, whereas in the case of the other three classes this will not be the ease, as all companies, agents for debenture-holders, and non-resident traders are required to furnish returns irrespective of the size of their incomes. Bearing this in mind, the effect of the progressive rates of the income-tax and of the non-application of the £300 exemption is strikingly brought out in the case of the companies. The companies paid in 1928–29 63 per cent. of the tax assessed, while the average percentage of tax paid to assessable income returned was over six times as much as in the case of individuals and was three times as great on the basis of the taxable balance.

A table on the same lines as the foregoing is now given showing the figures for each of the ten groups of sources:—

INCOME-TAX ASSESSED, BY SOURCE OF INCOME, 1925–26 TO 1928–29.

Source.	Total Tax assessed.				Average Tax assessed, 1928–29.
Source.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.	Per Income.	Per Tax-payer.	Per £1 of Assessable Income.		Per £1 of Taxable Balance.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	s.	d.	s.	d.
0	222,185	244,013	286,857	303,919	5	12	0	3	1	0
1	133,251	141,534	158,886	141,864	41	53	1	0	1	5
2	1,573,241	1,549,592	1,399,307	1,391,172	77	143	1	11	2	10
3	561,955	598,556	533,282	527,562	323	417	3	0	3	7
4	27,265	7,645	9,606	28,584	41	69	1	1	1	7
5	108,503	118,815	126,520	153,606	145	325	2	9	3	8
6	34,527	42,374	49,094	46,693	29	54	1	0	1	9
7	26,867	33,924	32,288	34,131	259	461	3	2	3	10
8	493,748	491,847	498,067	529,853	27	45	0	11	1	7
9	8,735	7,399	10,962	8,624	129	227	2	3	2	11
Totals	3,190,277	3,235,699	3,104,869	3,166,008	29	60	1	0	2	2

Easily the lowest average tax assessed is shown for income derived from source 0 (salary or wages), an average of only 3d. in the £1 of total assessable income, or 1s. in the £1 of taxable balance, being assessed, as compared with corresponding averages of 3s. 2d. and 3s. 10d. in the case of source 7 (mining or extraction). Next to the latter, sources 3 (industry or manufacture), 5 (provision of transport and communication), and 9 (provision of or engaging in entertainment, sport, or recreation), have the highest averages of tax assessed.

The wide range between the different sources is due to the great variation in the average income derived from the respective sources, combined with the fact that the rate of taxation in the £1 increases with increasing taxable balance, the minimum rate during 1928–29 being 7d. in the £1, and the maximum 4s. 6d. The effect of the progressive rates of income-tax can be better seen from the next table, which gives information according to size of assessable income.

INCOME-TAX ASSESSED, BY SIZE OF INCOME, 1927–28 AND 1928–29.

Size of Income.	Total Tax assessed.		Average Tax assessed, 1928–29.
Size of Income.	1927–28.	1928–29.	Per Income.			Per Taxpayer.			Per £1 of Assessable Income.		Per £1 of Taxable Balance.
£ £	£	£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
Under 300	12,770	11,861	0	6	7	3	8	2	..		0	8
300– 399	17,270	17,712	0	11	6	1	9	6	..		0	7
400– 499	37,896	38,541	2	11	2	3	6	7	0	1	0	7
500– 599	44,865	44,491	5	17	7	6	4	8	0	3	0	7
600– 699	50,757	51,391	10	19	2	11	5	10	0	4	0	8
700– 799	51,306	52,123	17	14	8	18	5	9	0	6	0	9
800– 899	57,967	60,026	27	19	2	28	10	1	0	8	0	10
900– 999	50,555	53,543	37	14	8	38	15	5	0	10	1	0
1,000– 1,999	379,158	382,432	70	13	10	71	18	0	1	1	1	3
					£			£
2,000– 2,999	229,747	241,758			189			191	1	7	1	10
3,000– 3,999	154,480	156,383			352			359	2	1	2	5
4,000– 4,999	141,944	127,015			543			543	2	5	2	11
5,000– 5,999	92,112	75,770			743			743	2	8	3	3
6,000– 6,999	78,447	78,912			951			951	2	11	3	6
7,000– 7,999	69,444	47,500			1,159			1,159	3	1	3	10
8,000– 8,999	60,778	54,502			1,363			1,363	3	2	3	11
9,000– 9,999	47,812	37,179			1,487			1,487	3	1	3	11
10,000–19,999	297,953	298,642			2,643			2,643	3	10	4	4
20,000–29,999	171,848	155,125			4,563			4,563	3	8	4	4
30,000–39,999	122,402	140,437			6,106			6,106	3	5	4	3
40,000–49,999	108,850	121,269			9,328			9,328	4	1	4	6
50,000–99,999	266,847	299,783			13,627			13,627	3	9	4	0
100,000 and over	559,661	619,613			47,663			47,663	4	3	4	4
Totals	3,104,869	3,166,008			29			60	1	0	2	2

The average income between £300 and £400 paid in 1928–29 only 11s. 6d., or less than 1/2d. in the £1 of total assessable income returned, as compared with £71, or 1s. 1d. in the £1, for incomes between £1,000 and £2,000. Incomes over £100,000 paid in 1928–29 slightly less on the average than the maximum—4s. 6d. in the £1—provided by the progressive rates in force.

Chapter 36. SECTION XXXVI.—PRICES.

Table of Contents

RETAIL PRICES.—INTRODUCTORY.

RETAIL FOOD-PRICES

THREE FOOD GROUPS.—INDEX NUMBERS FOR FOUR CHIEF CENTRES, 1891–1914.

THREE FOOD GROUPS.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

THREE FOOD GROUPS.—INDEX NUMBERS FOR TWENTY-FIVE TOWNS.

RETAIL PRICES OF GROCERIES.

GROCERIES.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

GROCERIES SUBGROUPS.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

RETAIL PRICES OF DAIRY-PRODUCE.

DAIRY-PRODUCE.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

RETAIL PRICES OF MEAT.

MEAT.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

INCREASES OF FOOD-PRICES OVER LEVEL OF JULY, 1914.

INCREASE IN FOOD-PRICES BETWEEN 1914 (JULY) AND 1928.

INTERNATIONAL RETAIL-PRICE COMPARISONS.

RETAIL PRICES OF CERTAIN COMMODITIES, LONDON AND WELLINGTON, 1927–29.

HOUSE-RENT.

HOUSE-RENT.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

HOUSE-RENT.—INDEX NUMBERS FOR TWENTY-FIVE REPRESENTATIVE TOWNS.

FOOD AND RENT.

FOOD GROUPS AND RENT INDEX NUMBERS FOR TWENTY-FIVE REPRESENTATIVE TOWNS, 1928.

AMOUNT REQUIRED TO PURCHASE IN TWENTY-FIVE REPRESENTATIVE TOWNS IN 1928 WHAT WOULD HAVE COST 20S. IN THE AVERAGE OF THE FOUR CHIEF CENTRES, 1909–13.

RETAIL PRICES OF FUEL AND LIGHT.

FUEL AND LIGHT.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–29.

RETAIL PRICES OF CLOTHING AND OF MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS.

RETAIL PRICES—ALL GROUPS.

ALL GROUPS INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–29.

RETAIL PRICES.—FOOD, RENT, AND ALL GROUPS, JULY, 1914, TO FEBRUARY, 1929.

WHOLESALE PRICES.

GENERAL INDEX NUMBERS OF WHOLESALE PRICES, 1891–1913.

WHOLESALE PRICES.—INDEX NUMBERS BY GROUPS, 1913 AND 1923–28.

WHOLESALE PRICES.—INDEX NUMBERS BY CLASSES.

WHOLESALE PRICES IN NEW ZEALAND AND ENGLAND.

WHOLESALE PRICES IN NEW ZEALAND AND ENGLAND DURING MARCH, 1929.

EXPORT PRICES.

INDEX NUMBERS OF EXPORT PRICES, 1914–28.

RETAIL PRICES.—INTRODUCTORY.

RETAIL-PRICE quotations, from which index numbers are regularly calculated, are collected each month in twenty-five towns of the Dominion, selected as being representative of New Zealand as a whole. These twenty-five towns are distributed over both Islands, from Whangarei in the North to Invercargill in the South, and are representative of both coastal and inland districts, and of both large and small centres. Returns of prices are collected by local Inspectors of Factories for the most part from representative retailers, and from these data index numbers are computed in the Census and Statistics Office, Wellington. Average retail-price quotations for each commodity in each town are published in the Monthly Abstract of Statistics at the end of each quarter, while index numbers appear in each month's issue.

The commodities for which monthly prices are collected and monthly index numbers compiled are almost exclusively articles of food, divided into three groups—groceries (including a few minor items of general groceries other than foods), dairy-produce, and meat. Fuel and light prices have also been collected at monthly, and house-rents at six-monthly, intervals since the inauguration of price statistics in 1914. More recently the inquiry has been extended to cover clothing and miscellaneous items, figures for which are now collected at quarterly intervals. A full list of the commodities covered will be found in the “Annual Report on Prices, &c.”

Separate series of index numbers of retail prices are compiled and published for the following groups:—

Group I.—Groceries.
Group II.—Dairy-produce.
Group III.—Meat.
Group IV.—Housing.
Group V.—Fuel and light.
Group VI.—Clothing (including drapery and footwear).
Group VII.—Miscellaneous items.

In addition, index numbers are compiled and published for the food (that is, the first three) groups combined, and also for all groups combined.

The “base” originally adopted in the case of Groups I to V was the average aggregate annual cost of a fixed “regimen” (or list of articles in common household use, with the relative quantities of each consumed by the average household) in the four chief centres over the five-yearly period 1909–13. This cost is equated to 1000, which is the price-index for the average of the four chief centres in the base period. Price-indexes for dates other than the base period are computed by ascertaining the ratio borne by the total cost of the fixed regimen at such other date to the total cost of the same regimen in the base period, and multiplying by 1000. Price-indexes are thus computed separately for each town, the resulting index numbers being subsequently combined to form a single index number. Separate price-indexes for Groups I to V are also computed on the base: prices in July, 1914 = 1000. The only base in the case of Groups VI and VII is the average of prices in July, 1914, in the four chief centres, equated to 1000.

RETAIL FOOD-PRICES

The following table gives a general survey of the course of retail food-prices from 1891 to the year of the outbreak of the Great War. Index numbers have been computed for each of the four chief centres for each year, and these figures are simply averaged, the price-index for each centre receiving the same weight or importance in the averaging process as that for any other centre. The index numbers for each of the four chief centres have been compiled from the records of prices of the commodities coming under each of the three separate food groups in such a manner that the index numbers for each group are in the combining process accorded their proper relative importance.

THREE FOOD GROUPS.—INDEX NUMBERS FOR FOUR CHIEF CENTRES, 1891–1914.

(Base: Average aggregate annual expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13=1000.)

Year.	Index Number.
* Average of Auckland, Wellington, and Dunedin. Full data for Christchurch for years prior to 1899 are not available. The index number for Christchurch in 1899 (897) was, however, almost identical with the average of the remaining chief centres.
1891	913^*
1892	915^*
1893	934^*
1894	932^*
1895	905^*
1896	904^*
1897	899^*
1898	960^*
1899	896
1900	906
1901	928
1902	954
1903	946
1904	935
1905	990
1906	1,003
1907	993
1908	994
1909	972
1910	991
1911	983
1912	1,017
1913	1,037
1914	1,082

The following table shows the index numbers for each centre, and also the unweighted average of the four centres and the Dominion weighted average, during the war and post-war years:—

THREE FOOD GROUPS.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

(Base: Average aggregate annual expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Year.	Auckland.	Wellington.	Christchurch.	Dunedin.	Average of Four Centres.	Dominion Weighted Average.
1914	1,110	1,100	1,044	1,074	1,082	1,087
1915	1,206	1,216	1,176	1,191	1,197	1,203
1916	1,291	1,290	1,249	1,244	1,268	1,276
1917	1,369	1,397	1,346	1,328	1,360	1,370
1918	1,496	1,521	1,438	1,488	1,486	1,491
1919	1,552	1,575	1,531	1,563	1,555	1,561
1920	1,769	1,789	1,806	1,811	1,794	1,794
1921	1,747	1,751	1,745	1,771	1,754	1,756
1922	1,490	1,529	1,538	1,507	1,516	1,521
1923	1,507	1,543	1,537	1,526	1,528	1,530
1924	1,605	1,592	1,562	1,577	1,584	1,587
1925	1,640	1,597	1,578	1,606	1,605	1,615
1926	1,600	1,596	1,557	1,640	1,599	1,665
1927	1,535	1,553	1,523	1,555	1,542	1,548
1928	1,578	1,559	1,529	1,588	1,563	1,574

It will be noted that food-prices in the four centres, as recorded by the above index numbers, move with considerable uniformity, although the extent of the movement varies as between the different cities.

The index numbers in the table are comparable both horizontally and vertically, since each column has the same base.

To obtain a general estimate of the course of prices for the whole Dominion it has been necessary to obtain a weighted average of the index numbers for each of the twenty-five representative towns. It is obvious that it would not be correct to obtain a simple average of the prices in Alexandra, with a population of barely 600, and in Auckland, with a population of over 200,000: although such a simple average was quite legitimate when an index number for the four chief centres alone was in question, since for most practical purposes each of these four chief centres might be deemed of equal importance. For purposes of the Dominion weighted-average index number, therefore, price-indexes for each town have been weighted in accordance with the number of people in the respective centres, and a composite index number has been obtained, which, though necessarily artificial, represents accurately enough the average level of retail prices in the Dominion.

The twenty-five towns considered have a total population of approximately half that of New Zealand, and they are therefore more or less completely representative of the Dominion. The four chief centres, which include well over a third of the Dominion's population, account for about 70 per cent. of the population of the twenty-five towns, so that their influence in the Dominion index number is naturally predominating. This, however, can be defended on the ground that the chief centres not only comprise a great part of the people of the Dominion but also set the standard which is generally followed throughout the country.

The highest monthly figure for the three food groups combined was 1915, representing a level 79 per cent. above that of July, 1914: this was recorded in December, 1920. Apart from British India, where currency conditions are special and peculiar, New Zealand's peak level for retail prices was lower than the peak level in any other country.

Attention may be drawn in passing to the comparatively small differences recorded between the average figures for the four chief centres and the Dominion weighted averages. In this respect, as will be shown later on in this section, the average of the three food groups combined stands in marked contrast to the rent group.

Index numbers for each town during each of the years 1927 and 1928, and during each of the last six quarters, are appended. The quarterly figures are based on the average prices of the three months in the quarter, so that it is possible for them to differ materially from the prices current at the end of the quarter. Comparisons relating to different quarters of the year should allow for the influence of seasonal fluctuations, not only in prices but in amounts consumed. The method adopted presupposes a fixed consumption, the quantities consumed being arrived at on an annual basis. In the case of some important commodities, notably potatoes and eggs amongst foods, such seasonal fluctuations are considerable.

THREE FOOD GROUPS.—INDEX NUMBERS FOR TWENTY-FIVE TOWNS.

(Base: Average aggregate annual expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Town.	Average of Four Quarters, 1927.	Average of Four Quarters, 1928.	First Quarter, 1928.	Second Quarter, 1928.	Third Quarter, 1928.	Fourth Quarter, 1928.	First Quarter, 1929.	Second Quarter, 1929.
Auckland	1,535	1,578	1,545	1,566	1,597	1,602	1,584	1,602
Wellington	1,553	1,559	1,552	1,558	1,552	1,572	1,564	1,564
Christchurch	1,523	1,529	1,530	1,515	1,515	1,554	1,537	1,498
Dunedin	1,555	1,588	1,574	1,563	1,564	1,650	1,594	1,583
Whangarei	1,687	1,695	1,685	1,685	1,686	1,725	1,667	1,667
Hamilton	1,537	1,600	1,551	1,574	1,621	1,654	1,622	1,645
Rotorua	1,632	1,650	1,643	1,651	1,641	1,665	1,657	1,677
Waihi	1,640	1,632	1,592	1,612	1,629	1,694	1,652	1,662
Gisborne	1,655	1,643	1,613	1,631	1,648	1,683	1,664	1,661
Napier	1,555	1,545	1,556	1,543	1,518	1,564	1,529	1,524
Dannevirke	1,601	1,589	1,572	1,597	1,586	1,601	1,603	1,604
New Plymouth	1,563	1,582	1,577	1,578	1,558	1,616	1,567	1,562
Wanganui	1,474	1,568	1,525	1,541	1,584	1,623	1,588	1,592
Taihape	1,637	1,641	1,627	1,656	1,633	1,649	1,579	1,605
Palmerston North	1,505	1,544	1,522	1,540	1,523	1,593	1,573	1,573
Masterton	1,631	1,677	1,630	1,657	1,683	1,738	1,687	1,673
Blenheim	1,687	1,708	1,698	1,696	1,692	1,746	1,725	1,730
Nelson	1,683	1,686	1,680	1,698	1,672	1,695	1,656	1,653
Greymouth	1,611	1,627	1,636	1,619	1,612	1,642	1,627	1,592
Ashburton	1,583	1,581	1,590	1,581	1,565	1,589	1,586	1,540
Timaru	1,544	1,551	1,542	1,530	1,522	1,609	1,573	1,546
Oamaru	1,450	1,495	1,485	1,469	1,475	1,549	1,540	1,545
Alexandra	1,595	1,649	1,656	1,597	1,622	1,719	1,644	1,633
Gore	1,562	1,578	1,575	1,558	1,567	1,613	1,635	1,594
Invercargill	1,580	1,632	1,649	1,581	1,629	1,668	1,624	1,594
Dominion weighted average	1,548	1,574	1,559	1,561	1,571	1,606	1,580	1,576

Food-prices advanced during 1928, but the first and second quarters of 1929 show a slight decrease, the June quarter for 1929 showing almost the same level at the average for the 1928 year. The Dominion weighted average for 1928 shows a 26–point increase over that for 1927.

The nature of those movements will be clearer on a consideration of each of the three food groups separately.

RETAIL PRICES OF GROCERIES.

Index numbers of retail prices of groceries in each of the four chief centres in each year from 1914 to 1928 are given in the following table, which also shows the unweighted average of the four centres and the Dominion weighted average.

GROCERIES.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

(Base: Average aggregate annual expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Year.	Auckland.	Wellington.	Christchurch.	Dunedin.	Average of Four Centres.	Dominion Weighted Average.
1914	1,035	1,082	1,046	1,056	1,055	1,064
1915	1,172	1,227	1,210	1,219	1,207	1,206
1916	1,196	1,269	1,197	1,192	1,214	1,219
1917	1,268	1,395	1,279	1,248	1,298	1,305
1918	1,461	1,579	1,417	1,503	1,490	1,488
1919	1,535	1,644	1,530	1,560	1,567	1,570
1920	1,890	1,991	1,913	1,904	1,925	1,925
1921	1,951	2,004	1,973	1,975	1,976	1,988
1922	1,784	1,819	1,769	1,783	1,789	1,810
1923	1,692	1,736	1,690	1,743	1,715	1,730
1924	1,740	1,765	1,714	1,764	1,746	1,760
1925	1,712	1,706	1,640	1,719	1,694	1,716
1926	1,697	1,679	1,672	1,742	1,698	1,713
1927	1,696	1,667	1,644	1,678	1,671	1,690
1928	1,705	1,668	1,629	1,697	1,675	1,693

The outstanding feature illustrated by this table is, of course, the substantial increase in prices since the outbreak of the war, the price-indexes for 1920 and 1921 representing the peak period in the movement of prices since 1914. The highest monthly figure recorded in this group was 2089, in January, 1921, with 2080 in the previous month a close second. The decline which then set in was checked when the index number had fallen to 1687, in March, 1923. From then on till an index number of 1823 was recorded in January, 1924, prices for this group rose. A fall to 1697 in October, 1924, was then recorded, followed by a sharp rise to 1802 in December, after which the index number again fell considerably. The 1927 and 1928 figures are the lowest since 1919.

The factors underlying the fluctuations in the groceries group will be more clearly understood when it is remembered that the items comprising the group are varied in nature, and may be treated in three subgroups as under:—

Group IA.—Groceries, excluding bread, flour, oatmeal, potatoes, onions, and sugar.
Group IB.—Bread, flour, oatmeal, potatoes, and onions.
Group IC.—Sugar.

The fundamental distinction is that the items comprising Group IA are almost wholly imported from overseas, while those in Group IB are almost wholly produced in the country. Sugar is not strictly a product of New Zealand, the raw material being imported and refined at Auckland.

GROCERIES SUBGROUPS.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

(Base: Average aggregate annual expenditure on items comprised by respective subgroups, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Year.	Auckland.	Wellington.	Christchurch.	Dunedin.	Average of Four Centres.
Group Ia.—General Groceries.
1914	994	1,097	1,047	1,114	1,063
1915	989	1,066	1,115	1,132	1,078
1916	1,035	1,121	1,115	1,132	1,101
1917	1,171	1,227	1,203	1,219	1,205
1918	1,367	1,493	1,388	1,459	1,427
1919	1,488	1,624	1,541	1,590	1,561
1920	1,897	2,037	2,041	2,032	2,002
1921	1,850	1,758	1,845	1,880	1,833
1922	1,720	1,745	1,739	1,804	1,752
1923	1,671	1,685	1,693	1,763	1,703
1924	1,703	1,646	1,660	1,742	1,688
1925	1,687	1,603	1,628	1,676	1,649
1926	1,658	1,589	1,604	1,674	1,631
1927	1,671	1,620	1,599	1,647	1,634
1928	1,627	1,597	1,554	1,659	1,609
Group Ib.—Bread, Flour, Oatmeal, Potatoes, and Onions.
1914	1,114	1,173	1,033	1,074	1,098
1915	1,364	1,408	1,293	1,356	1,355
1916	1,367	1,416	1,252	1,220	1,314
1917	1,430	1,588	1,356	1,249	1,406
1918	1,634	1,733	1,463	1,567	1,599
1919	1,665	1,727	1,549	1,551	1,623
1920	1,790	1,834	1,636	1,640	1,725
1921	1,872	1,871	1,794	1,732	1,817
1922	1,793	1,830	1,720	1,736	1,770
1923	1,730	1,800	1,642	1,715	1,722
1924	1,749	1,857	1,737	1,745	1,772
1925	1,862	1,898	1,714	1,808	1,820
1926	1,855	1,890	1,839	1,851	1,859
1927	1,828	1,820	1,755	1,778	1,795
1928	1,937	1,882	1,830	1,845	1,874
Grown Ic.—Sugar.
1914	983	1,055	1,145	1,025	1,052
1915	1,191	1,211	1,290	1,228	1,230
1916	1,208	1,310	1,304	1,294	1,279
1917	1,219	1,399	1,314	1,354	1,329
1918	1,266	1,428	1,359	1,423	1,369
1919	1,314	1,470	1,444	1,497	1,431
1920	2,153	2,338	2,383	2,285	2,290
1921	2,781	2,857	2,875	2,919	2,858
1922	1,955	1,940	2,005	1,893	1,948
1923	1,662	1,709	1,820	1,776	1,742
1924	1,825	1,879	1,851	1,998	1,888
1925	1,413	1,434	1,472	1,584	1,476
1926	1,307	1,236	1,398	1,416	1,352
1927	1,402	1,380	1,470	1,489	1,435
1928	1,286	1,279	1,291	1,398	1,314

The above figures show clearly that, while imported items were principally responsible for the huge increase in the groceries index number for 1920, their influence largely neutralized the increases for the other subgroups in 1921; while since the peak year the rate of decrease of these items (and of sugar) has been considerably greater than that of commodities produced locally. The last-mentioned have, as a matter of fact, increased again since 1923, the index number for 1928 being the highest yet recorded in this subgroup. Although a sharp rise in the index for sugar was recorded in 1927, it fell again just as sharply in 1928; the present figure being very low relatively to the other groups.

Group IB invariably shows an exceptionally high price-level during the summer months, owing to seasonal scarcities of potatoes and onions, so that, in the absence of fluctuations in Groups IA and IC, the index numbers for December and January for the groceries group as a whole would be somewhat higher than the corresponding index numbers for other months of the year.

Prices in the groceries group generally (Groups 1A, 1B, and 1C combined) increased very slightly during the year 1928, the Dominion weighted average index number for that year (1693) being only 3 points higher than the corresponding figure for 1927. There were considerable variations, however, in the movement as between the various towns. In the four chief centres the indexes for Auckland, Wellington, and Dunedin show increases of 9 points, 1 point, and 19 points respectively, whereas the figure for Christchurch has decreased by 15 points. This movement is in marked contrast to that in the previous year; Auckland, Wellington, and Dunedin, after showing considerable decreases in 1927, have again advanced, while Christchurch alone shows a steady decrease. In all three subgroups the indexes for individual towns moved in the same direction, the single exception being in the subgroup “general groceries,” where the Dunedin index increased by 12 points, the other towns showing a decrease.

RETAIL PRICES OF DAIRY-PRODUCE.

The prices of commodities included in the dairy-produce group showed an almost continuous increase from 1891 to 1921—an increase which was considerably accelerated on the outbreak of the Great War. A particularly sharp rise during 1920, continuing during the early months of the following year until a peak was reached in May (at an index number of 1978), was more than neutralized by a phenomenal drop at the end of 1921, since when (except for a slight rise during 1924) there has been astonishingly little movement in this group either in individual towns or for the Dominion as a whole. It is interesting, however, to note in passing that Wellington's index number for dairy-produce has in general maintained a level considerably higher, and that of Christchurch a level considerably lower, than those for the other two chief centres.

DAIRY-PRODUCE.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

(Base: Avenge aggregate annual expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Year.	Auckland.	Wellington.	Christchurch.	Dunedin.	Average of Four Centres.	Dominion Weighted Average.
1914	1,019	1,114	1,016	1,065	1,054	1,045
1915	1,140	1,196	1,133	1,146	1,154	1,153
1916	1,288	1,350	1,251	1,263	1,288	1,274
1917	1,362	1,425	1,318	1,351	1,364	1,353
1918	1,443	1,476	1,328	1,432	1,420	1,415
1919	1,518	1,553	1,434	1,529	1,508	1,504
1920	1,776	1,800	1,723	1,763	1,766	1,755
1921	1,906	1,891	1,730	1,814	1,835	1,838
1922	1,456	1,501	1,425	1,397	1,445	1,445
1923	1,457	1,540	1,458	1,464	1,480	1,479
1924	1,560	1,645	1,464	1,572	1,560	1,543
1925	1,562	1,591	1,486	1,560	1,550	1,537
1926	1,583	1,590	1,486	1,572	1,558	1,548
1927	1,540	1,534	1,439	1,510	1,506	1,498
1928	1,532	1,523	1,418	1,506	1,495	1,490

Reference to the “Statistical Report on Prices, &c.,” where detailed tables of index numbers of retail prices are published for each town for each month of the year, shows plainly the seasonal variations in the prices of several items in this group, the Dominion weighted average index number varying curing 1928 between a peak of 1588 in May and a lowest level of 1428 in January. A slight general decrease in all the chief centres, and for the Dominion as a whole, is recorded for this group for 1928.

RETAIL PRICES OF MEAT.

The index numbers for the meat group show a steady increase up to 1920, in December of which year the peak for this group was reached, at an index number of 1690. By March of the following year the index had dropped to 1471, largely owing to the fact that with the cessation of control by the Imperial Government large stocks of meat were liberated on the London market. By December, 1921, the monthly index number had fallen to 1233. From the low level of 1198 recorded in the spring of 1922 there was a sharp rise of approximately 200 points till the next spring; from when on till late in 1924 the index number remained remarkably steady. About the end of 1924 a rise set in, however, which continued until the index number was in November, 1925, within 16 points of the post-war peak, after which a falling tendency manifested itself. During the latter part of 1927, the index number fluctuated with small variation around the 1400 level; since May, 1928, however, a marked and steady upward tendency has been shown.

MEAT.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

(Base: Average aggregate annual expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Year.	Auckland.	Wellington.	Christchurch.	Dunedin.	Average of Four Centres.	Dominion Weighted Average.
1914	1,266	1,112	1,099	1,103	1,145	1,150
1915	1,293	1,205	1,191	1,190	1,220	1,235
1916	1,413	1,274	1,313	1,283	1,321	1,348
1917	1,500	1,380	1,449	1,417	1,437	1,463
1918	1,575	1,476	1,540	1,507	1,525	1,545
1919	1,596	1,501	1,607	1,588	1,574	1,591
1920	1,611	1,529	1,726	1,727	1,648	1,657
1921	1,384	1,337	1,469	1,485	1,419	1,410
1922	1,145	1,183	1,324	1,235	1,222	1,211
1923	1,310	1,302	1,398	1,294	1,326	1,314
1924	1,468	1,340	1,437	1,346	1,398	1,400
1925	1,603	1,464	1,564	1,495	1,532	1,539
1926	1,491	1,494	1,461	1,560	1,502	1,507
1927	1,331	1,424	1,429	1,431	1,404	1,406
1928	1,449	1,446	1,477	1,506	1,469	1,482

The Dominion weighted average for the meat group for the year 1928 was. 1482, an increase of 76 points as compared with that for the previous year. All the four chief centres showed a decided increase, although not all to the same extent. The level in all four centres is closer than it has ever been: Dunedin records the highest individual index, but not by a very large margin—29 points only. The majority of the smaller centres also reflect the marked upward trend.

INCREASES OF FOOD-PRICES OVER LEVEL OF JULY, 1914.

For purposes of all the foregoing tables the base period has been taken as the average of the years 1909–13. For many purposes, however, interest centres on the increase-in prices over those prevailing immediately prior to the outbreak of the Great War. One of the advantages of the aggregate expenditure method is that it enables index numbers computed on one base to be rigorously converted by a simple application of the rule of proportion to some other base regarded as desirable for some special purpose, thus obviating the necessity for the laborious recomputation of the index numbers on the new base ab initio. July, 1914, is a particularly desirable base, representing as it does conditions immediately prior to the outbreak of the Great War. The following table shows Dominion weighted average increases in food-prices between July, 1914, and each quarter of 1928:—

INCREASE IN FOOD-PRICES BETWEEN 1914 (JULY) AND 1928.

Group.	First Quarter, 1928.		Second Quarter, 1928.		Third Quarter, 1928.		Fourth Quarter, 1928.		Average of Year 1928.
Group.	Index Number.	Percentage Increase.^*	Index Number.	Percentage Increase.^*	Index Number.	Percentage Increase.^*	Index Number.	Percentage Increase.^*	Index Number.	Percentage Increase.^*
* Over July, 1914.
Groceries (index number, July, 1914: 1033)	1,731	67.6	1,657	60.4	1,648	59.5	1,738	68.3	1,693	63.9
Dairy-produce (index number, July, 1914: 1057)	1,460	38.1	1,559	47.5	1,508	42.7	1,432	3.55	1,490	41.0
Meat (index number, July, 1914: 1127)	1,409	25.0	1,442	28.0	1,517	34.6	1,559	38.3	1,482	31.5
Three food groups (index number, July, 1914: 1070)	1,559	45.7	1,561	45.9	1,571	46.8	1,606	50.1	1,574	47.1

INTERNATIONAL RETAIL-PRICE COMPARISONS.

The accompanying table exhibits recent retail-price quotations, in London and in Wellington, of certain articles in common household consumption. The London prices shown for butter and cheese are those of New Zealand produce.

RETAIL PRICES OF CERTAIN COMMODITIES, LONDON AND WELLINGTON, 1927–29.

—	Bread (2 lb. Loaf).		Flour (24 lb.)		Sugar (Pound).		Tea (Pound).		Milk (Quart).		Butter (Pound).		Cheese (Pound).
—	London.	Wgtn.	London.	Wgtn.	London.	Wgtn.	London.	Wgtn.	London.	Wgtn.	London.	Wgtn.	London.	Wgtn.
1927.	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.
January	4 3/4	6 1/2	58 1/2	69 1/2	4 1/4	3 1/4	24	28 1/4	7	6	23	18 1/4	13	11 1/2
April	4 1/2	6 1/2	56	64 3/4	4 1/4	3 1/4	24	27 1/2	6	7	20	16 1/2	11	11 1/4
July	4 3/4	6 1/2	58	62 1/2	3 1/4	3	24	26 1/2	6	7	22	18 1/4	12	11 1/4
October	4 1/2	6 1/2	55	62 1/2	3 3/4	3	24	27 1/4	7	6	23	20	14	11 1/2
1928.
January	4 1/2	6 1/2	55	63	3 3/4	3	24	27 3/4	7	6	22	17 3/4	13	11 3/4
April	4 1/2	6 1/2	51 1/2	63 1/4	3 1/2	3	24	27 3/4	6	6	22	19 1/4	13	11 3/4
July	4 1/2	6 1/2	53	63	3 1/2	3	24	28 1/4	6	7	23	19 1/2	14	11 3/4
October	4 1/4	6 1/2	53	62 1/2	3 1/4	3	24	27 1/4	7	6	24	19 1/4	15	12 1/4
1929.
January	4 1/4	6 1/2	51	62 1/2	3	3	24	27 3/4	7	6	24	20 1/4	14	12 1/4
April	4 1/4	6 1/2	51	62 1/2	2 3/4	3	20	26 3/4	6	7	22	18 3/4	13	12

Prices for bread and flour are consistently higher in Wellington, owing to higher prices prevailing for wheat. For some years sugar was considerably cheaper in Wellington, but substantial reductions at Home have brought sugar-prices in the two cities to approximately the same level. Milk, which for some time was consistently a halfpenny dearer in Wellington than in London, is now exactly the same price; the summer and winter prices in both cities corresponding. Butter is 3d. or 4d. cheaper in Wellington, and cheese approximately 2d. cheaper. Taken all round the prices of these seven important household commodities are remarkably even in the two cities.

Using the weights used in the compilation of the New Zealand food price-index, -attempts have been made to determine the relation between food-prices in New Zealand and in other countries, experiments having shown that the use of the weights employed in the computation of the index numbers of the other countries respectively does not greatly affect the result in the cases of comparisons between countries with not essentially dissimilar standards of living. The commodities included, though comparatively few, cover the most important foodstuffs. The percentages shown in the first column of figures below are the results, taking food-prices in New Zealand (Dominion weighted average) in February, 1929, as 100.

Country.	Percentage of Food Prices to New Zealand Food Prices.
Country.	February, 1929.	July, 1914.
United States	132	129
Canada	128	125
Australia	115	105 1/2
South Africa	110	141

The figures in the last column of this table have been arrived at by working back from the results shown in the previous column on the basis of the published index numbers respectively for the countries concerned.

HOUSE-RENT.

In investigating changes in the cost of housing the Census and Statistics Office has deemed it sufficient to trace the movements of house-rent over a series of years, on the grounds that such provide a reasonably accurate indication of movements in housing-costs in general, not only for those classes of persons who may be paying rent, but also for those who own or partially own the dwellings they occupy.

By reason of the fact that leases, infrequent changes of residence, and the difficulty of departing from customary rents all tend to make the movement of the general level of renter comparatively slow, it has not been deemed necessary to attempt to measure the charges over short periods. The data from which the rent figures given hereafter have been compiled are therefore collected semi-annually only, in the months of February and August. Annual index numbers for rent are computed on the assumption that the February index number represents conditions prevailing during the first four and a half months of the year, the August number conditions prevailing during the next six months, and the number for February of the following year conditions prevailing during the last one and a half months of the year. Though somewhat arbitrary, this assumption gives a truer picture of conditions prevailing during the year than a straight-out simple unweighted average of the February and August index numbers for the year under investigation.

HOUSE-RENT.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

(Base: Average aggregate annual expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Year.	Auckland.	Wellington.	Christchurch.	Dunedin.	Average of Four Centres.	Dominion Weighted Average.
1914	1,036	1,173	962	969	1,035	985
1915	1,005	1,191	965	965	1,056	994
1916	985	1,217	951	963	1,029	989
1917	980	1,249	967	949	1,036	1,008
1918	1,010	1,296	1,016	984	1,077	1,037
1919	1,055	1,321	1,060	994	1,108	1,067
1920	1,175	1,311	1,113	1,012	1,153	1,124
1921	1,279	1,348	1,276	1,071	1,244	1,236
1922	1,363	1,439	1,355	1,192	1,337	1,335
1923	1,481	1,602	1,499	1,309	1,473	1,460
1924	1,605	1,823	1,612	1,287	1,582	1,575
1925	1,720	1,904	1,727	1,389	1,685	1,664
1926	1,824	2,045	1,799	1,498	1,792	1,767
1927	1,877	2,226	1,862	1,628	1,898	1,846
1928	1,847	2,338	1,850	1,682	1,929	1,865

It is advisable to stress that the index numbers in respect of rent indicate the movement in the average rentals of a large number of houses already let, in many cases for some time, and that they do not purport to convey any statement as to the price at which housing accommodation has been obtainable from time to time by would-be occupants of houses then being relet.

The following table shows the average rents ruling for houses of various numbers of rooms in each of the four chief centres in February and August, 1928, and February, 1929:—

Number of Rooms.	Auckland.						Wellington.						Christchurch.						Dunedin.
Number of Rooms.	Feb., 1928.		Aug., 1928.		Feb., 1929.		Feb., 1928.		Aug., 1928.		Feb., 1929.		Feb., 1928.		Aug., 1928.		Feb., 1929.		Feb., 1928.		Aug., 1928.		Feb., 1929.
	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
4	23	0	22	6	21	6	23	6	24	3	27	11	20	4	20	6	21	2	16	10	17	1	17	2
5	26	8	26	10	26	7	32	3	35	4	34	10	28	8	27	10	27	10	25	6	25	7	26	6
6	32	6	31	2	31	4	42	5	44	0	43	1	81	4	32	1	32	10	30	0	30	9	29	6

Index numbers for each of the twenty-five towns at each of the dates of collection in 1927 and 1928 and at February, 1929, are appended, along with yearly index numbers for 1927 and 1928:—

HOUSE-RENT.—INDEX NUMBERS FOR TWENTY-FIVE REPRESENTATIVE TOWNS.

(Base: Average aggregate annual expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Town.	Yearly Average, 1927.	Yearly Average, 1928.	February, 1927.	August, 1927.	February, 1928.	August, 1928.	February, 1929.
Auckland	1,877	1,847	1,858	1,892	1,871	1,837	1,815
Wellington	2,226	2,338	2,185	2,251	2,251	2,382	2,419
Christchurch	1,862	1,850	1,826	1,892	1,848	1,844	1,876
Dunedin	1,628	1,682	1,596	1,642	1,666	1,692	1,688
Whangarei	1,854	1,866	1,906	1,818	1,840	1,874	1,912
Hamilton	1,828	1,797	1,881	1,795	1,800	1,784	1,843
Rotorua	1,828	1,815	1,831	1,849	1,737	1,844	1,933
Waihi	866	900	853	860	929	884	873
Gisborne	1,611	1,670	1,588	1,615	1,660	1,675	1,676
Napier	1,701	1,720	1,694	1,699	1,726	1,714	1,729
Dannevirke	3,563	1,596	1,605	1,518	1,619	1,573	1,616
New Plymouth	1,896	1,912	1,864	1,925	1,876	1,954	1,850
Wanganui	1,828	1,803	1,814	1,825	1,880	1,759	1,748
Taihape	1,703	1,736	1,708	1,687	1,752	1,737	1,686
Palmerston North	1,907	1,934	1,925	1,897	1,895	1,959	1,954
Masterton	1,656	1,669	1,635	1,665	1,685	1,661	1,650
Blenheim	1,491	1,410	1,481	1,506	1,457	1,368	1,436
Nelson	1,528	1,606	1,469	1,563	1,565	1,626	1,648
Greymouth	1,271	1,218	1,208	1,335	1,204	1,214	1,274
Ashburton	1,530	1,534	1,526	1,560	1,425	1,612	1,548
Timaru	1,802	1,813	1,789	1,809	1,815	1,823	1,765
Oamaru	1,408	1,489	1,405	1,398	1,459	1,501	1,528
Alexandra	1,052	1,016	1,041	1,062	1,047	993	1,012
Gore	1,205	1,315	1,154	1,228	1,265	1,345	1,344
Invercargill	1,555	1,556	1,577	1,535	1,566	1,462	1,500
Dominion weighted average	1,846	1,866	1,824	1,861	1,854	1,871	1,873

The Dominion weighted average index for 1928 (1865) is the highest on record, being 19 points higher than that for 1927, the previous peak. In this connection it is interesting to note that the February, 1928, figure showed a slight decrease, when compared with that for August, 1927, which was not, however, maintained; in few cases is there any wide disparity between the individual index numbers for February, 1928, and February, 1929, although seventeen of the twenty-five towns show increases. Of the four principal centres (where the housing problem is normally more acute than in the smaller towns) Auckland and Christchurch show decreases, and Wellington and Dunedin definite increases. Dunedin still, however has a considerably lower index number than the other three chief centres.

FOOD AND RENT.

Generally speaking, apart from the consideration of different rates of population-increase, the chief centres have higher rentals than the minor centres. As, however the four largest centres have lower indexes for food than the majority of the smaller towns, the combination of these two groups presents quite a different picture from that displayed by either group individually. For instance, Blenheim, which, has the highest index for food, has a very low rent index, only four of the twenty-live towns showing lower figures. Wellington, on the other hand, has by far the highest rent index and a low food index, only five towns being lower. The following table, showing a comparison between price-levels during 1928 in the four chief centres and in the twenty-one smaller towns from which information is collected, illustrates the differences between the cities and the country towns:—

Group.	Yearly Average, 1928.				Yearly Average, 1927.
Group.	Weighted Average of Four Chief Centres. (a.)	Weighted Average of Twenty-one Smaller Centres. (b.)	Excess of (a) over (b).	Dominion Weighted Average.	Dominion Weighted Average.
* Excess of (b) over (a).
Groceries	1,678	1,731	−53^*	1,693	1,690
Dairy-produce	1,500	1,466	34	1,490	1,498
Meat	1,461	1,524	−60^*	1,482	1,406
Three food groups	1,564	1,590	−35^*	1,574	1,548
House-rent	1,936	1,698	238	1,865	1,846

Rent and dairy-produce prices are shown to be higher in the larger cities than in the secondary towns, while the reverse position holds in the case of groceries and meat. The difference between country towns on the one hand and the more closely populated cities is, however, much more marked in the case of rent than in that of any of the food groups.

The following table shows the index numbers for the various groups for each of the twenty-five towns:—

FOOD GROUPS AND RENT INDEX NUMBERS FOR TWENTY-FIVE REPRESENTATIVE TOWNS, 1928.

(Base: Average aggregate annual expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Town.	Group I: Groceries.	Group II: Dairy Produce.	Group III: Meat.	Groups I–III: Food Groups.	Group IV: House Rent.
Auckland	1,705	1,532	1,449	1,578	1,847
Wellington	1,668	1,523	1,446	1,559	2,338
Christchurch	1,629	1,418	1,477	1,529	1,850
Dunedin	1,697	1,506	1,506	1,588	1,682
Whangarei	1,879	1,519	1,584	1,695	1,866
Hamilton	1,810	1,460	1,431	1,600	1,797
Rotorua	1,902	1,525	1,420	1,650	1,815
Waihi	1,802	1,488	1,517	1,632	900
Gisborne	1,817	1,482	1,534	1,643	1,670
Napier	1,678	1,477	1,424	1,545	1,720
Dannevirke	1,808	1,499	1,374	1,589	1,596
New Plymouth	1,686	1,410	1,568	1,582	1,912
Wanganui	1,685	1,461	1,496	1,568	1,803
Taihape	1,907	1,490	1,411	1,641	1,736
Palmerston North	1,682	1,420	1,456	1,544	1,934
Masterton	1,770	1,508	1,676	1,677	1,669
Blenheim	1,840	1,592	1,621	1,708	1,410
Nelson	1,768	1,528	1,692	1,686	1,606
Greymouth	1,692	1,585	1,576	1,627	1,218
Ashburton	1,586	1,455	1,661	1,581	1534
Timaru	1,617	1,428	1,551	1,551	1,813
Oamaru	1,600	1,473	1,376	1,495	1,489
Alexandra	1,864	1,505	1,477	1,649	1,016
Gore	1,675	1,517	1,499	1,578	1,315
Invercargill	1,780	1,409	1,597	1,632	1,556
Weighted average for Dominion	1,693	1,490	1,482	1,574	1,865

The above table shows that Taihape has the highest index number for groceries and Blenheim for dairy produce, while Nelson is still the dearest in regard to prices of meat. Prices of groceries are considerably lower in Ashburton than in other towns, it being worthy of note that the two next lowest towns, Timaru and Oamaru, are also (with the exception of Christchurch, itself the lowest of the four chief centres) situated nearest of the remaining twenty - four towns to Ashburton. Invercargill and New Plymouth are lowest in respect of dairy - produce prices, while meat is exceptionally cheap both in Dannevirke and in Oamaru.

An alternative statement of the difference in price-levels as between each of the twenty-five towns considered is given in the next table. Similar figures may easily be computed for the various quarters by working from the index numbers and equating 1000 to 20s. The retail-price indexes in the average of the five years 1909–13 in the four centres are taken as bases and equated to 20s., and the sums of money shown in the following table bear the same proportion to 20s. as the corresponding price-index bears to 1000. The amounts displayed in the table may be compared vertically but not horizontally, since the various groups have different bases.

AMOUNT REQUIRED TO PURCHASE IN TWENTY-FIVE REPRESENTATIVE TOWNS IN 1928 WHAT WOULD HAVE COST 20S. IN THE AVERAGE OF THE FOUR CHIEF CENTRES, 1909–13.

Town.	Group I: Groceries.		Group II: Dairy-produce.		Group III: Meat.		Groups I–III: Food Groups.		Group IV: House-rent.
Town.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
Auckland	34	1	30	8	29	0	31	7	36	11
Wellington	33	4	30	6	28	11	31	2	46	9
Christchurch	32	7	28	4	29	6	30	7	37	0
Dunedin	33	11	30	1	30	1	31	9	33	8
Whangarei	37	7	30	5	31	8	33	11	37	4
Hamilton	36	2	29	2	28	7	32	0	35	11
Rotorua	38	0	30	6	28	5	33	0	36	4
Waihi	36	0	29	9	39	4	32	8	18	0
Gisborne	36	4	29	8	30	8	32	10	33	5
Napier	33	7	29	6	28	6	30	11	34	5
Dannevirke	36	2	30	0	27	6	31	9	31	11
New Plymouth	33	9	28	9	31	4	31	8	38	3
Wanganui	33	9	29	3	29	11	31	4	36	1
Taihape	38	2	29	10	28	3	32	10	34	9
Palmerston North	33	8	28	5	29	1	30	10	38	8
Masterton	35	5	30	2	33	6	33	6	33	5
Blenheim	36	9	31	10	32	5	34	2	28	2
Nelson	35	4	30	7	33	10	33	9	32	1
Greymouth	33	10	31	9	31	6	32	6	24	4
Ashburton	31	9	29	1	33	3	31	7	30	8
Timaru	32	4	28	7	31	0	31	0	36	3
Oamaru	32	0	29	6	27	6	29	11	29	9
Alexandra	37	3	30	1	29	6	33	0	20	4
Gore	33	6	30	4	30	0	31	7	26	4
Invercargill	35	7	28	2	31	11	32	7	31	1
Dominion weighted average	33	10	29	10	29	8	31	6	37	4

RETAIL PRICES OF FUEL AND LIGHT.

Considerable difficulties are met with in any attempt to follow accurately the course of prices in the fuel and light group. It has, in fact, been found impossible to settle on any list of commodities used in anything like comparable proportions as between the four chief centres at any one time, or indeed in any one centre over any great length of time. Not only do the comparative usages of coal, electricity, gas, kerosene, and candles vary greatly even between the four centres, but the first commodity presents a very special difficulty for comparative purposes by reason of the several different qualities of it used in the various towns.

However, a small group of seven items—coal, coke, firewood, kerosene, gas for lighting, electricity for lighting, and candles—has been considered, and prices for the four chief centres have been collected for as many past years as possible (from 1907 onwards). It was not feasible to extend even this list to the remaining twenty one centres covered by the retail-prices investigation.

The peak in the fuel and light group (as shown by the monthly index numbers) was attained in July, 1921, the price-index for that month being 2109. Details for each of the war-time and post-war years, and for each quarter since the beginning of 1928, are appended.

FUEL AND LIGHT.—INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–29.

(Base: Average aggregate annual expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Period.	Auckland.	Wellington.	Christchurch.	Dunedin.	Average of Four Centres.
Year.
1914	1,035	1,139	1,150	916	1,060
1915	1,025	1,134	1,136	955	1,063
1916	1,147	1,190	1,219	1,062	1,155
1917	1,335	1,292	1,459	1,201	1,322
1918	1,442	1,393	1,559	1,319	1,428
1919	1,555	1,498	1,690	1,489	1,558
1920	1,902	1,853	1,914	1,807	1,869
1921	2,133	2,028	2,311	1,889	2,090
1922	1,969	1,934	2,066	1,714	1,921
1923	1,919	1,791	1,982	1,645	1,834
1924	1,947	1,771	1,972	1,614	1,826
1925	1,916	1,796	1,951	1,652	1,829
1926	1,980	1,807	1,959	1,661	1,852
1927	1,995	1,810	1,961	1,667	1,858
1928	2,060	1,812	1,948	1,663	1,871
Quarter.
First, 1928	2,062	1,822	1,953	1,663	1,875
Second, 1928	2,061	1,822	1,951	1,663	1,874
Third, 1928	2,059	1,813	1,945	1,663	1,870
Fourth, 1928	2,057	1,790	1,945	1,662	1,864
First, 1929	2,058	1,791	1,868	1,662	1,845
Second, 1929	2,057	1,791	1,831	1,661	1,835

Over the average of the four centres a considerable advance in the index numbers of this group occurred up to 1921, the highest annual figure (average of four chief centres) being considerably above the highest recorded in any of the four preceding groups, or any of their subgroups except Group IC (sugar). This movement was common to all four cities, and was particularly rapid as between 1919 and 1920, when the general index number increased by 311 points. There was a further considerable increase during 1921, followed by substantial decreases in all four centres till 1926. During 1927 and the first quarter of 1928 the average index number for the chief centres increased slightly, but since then a falling tendency is apparent, the second quarter of 1929 showing a reduction of 39 points over the corresponding quarter of 1928. The substantial reduction in Christchurch has resulted from a fall in coal-prices, while the decline in the case of Wellington is due to decreased charges for electric current.

More conveniently situated coal-supplies and the comparatively early inauguration of a hydro-electric supply (when construction - costs were lower than now) are responsible for Dunedin consistently showing lower index numbers than the other three main centres.

RETAIL PRICES OF CLOTHING AND OF MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS.

In regard to the method of treatment of the clothing and miscellaneous groups, it is to be explained that, as in the ease of fuel and light, the inquiry is in general restricted to the four chief centres; further, except as regards fares, in respect of which accurate weights based on usage in the base period are available, enabling the aggregate-expenditure method to be employed, no satisfactory information is available or procurable which would enable individual weights to be allotted to each item. For this reason the same measure of precision is not possible in the treatment of these groups, but by selective balancing of representative items and arranging them in representative subgroups a measure of weighting is secured, each subgroup being treated as a separate unit. The ratios of prices at the date under investigation to prices in July, 1914, for the various items comprising the different subgroups are first averaged geometrically, and the results so obtained are then combined in order to arrive at the price ratio for the group. The weights allotted to the subgroups for this latter purpose are in a measure arbitrary, but are based on the best information available.

Group and Subgroup.	Weight.
VI. Clothing—
(a) Clothing and drapery	11.00
(b) Footwear	2.89
	13.89
VII. Miscellaneous—
(a) Household furnishings	3.00
(b) Household ironmongery and brushware	2.00
(c) Crockery	2.00
(d) Train and tram fares	3.50
(e) Newspapers and periodicals	2.50
(f) Personal expenditure	0.95
	13.95

Prior to November, 1925, price quotations in connection with the commodities of Groups VI and VII were collected semi-annually only, in January and July, annual figures being computed in the same manner, mutatis mutandis, as annual index numbers for rent. Since the date mentioned, however, they have been collected quarterly.

The movement of prices of clothing and miscellaneous items from year to year may be traced in the table under the next heading.

RETAIL PRICES—ALL GROUPS.

From a collection of household budgets by the Labour Department in 1910.11 the average household expenditure under various heads was found to be as follows:—

	Per Cent.
Food	34.13
Housing	20.31
Clothing, drapery, and footwear	13.89
Fuel and light	5.22
Miscellaneous	26.45
	100.00

These weights are applied to the index numbers of the different groups in the process of arriving at the “all groups” retail price-index, with the exception that the weight applied to the miscellaneous group is 13.95 and not 26.45. Thus 87 1/2 per cent. of household expenditure is covered by the index number. The remaining 12 1/2 per cent. represents miscellaneous items for which it has so far been found impossible to obtain reliable price-quotations. Their omission has the effect of giving them the same general average price-movement as the 87 1/2 per cent. covered.

The following table shows the index numbers for all groups for each year from 1914 onwards. It should be noted that the annual index numbers given represent the average price-level during each year, not at any of the particular points during the year at which the prices for the respective groups were collected:—

ALL GROUPS INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–29.

(Base: Dominion weighted average of prices in July, 1914, in twenty-five centres in case of Groups I to IV, and average of prices in July, 1914, in four chief centres-in case of Groups V, VI, and VII = 1000.)

—	Food Groups.				Rent. (IV.)	Fuel and Light. (V.)	Clothing, Drapery, and Footwear. (VI.)	Miscellaneous. (VII.)	All Groups combined. (I-VII.).
—	Groceries. (I)	Dairy-produce. (II.)	Meat. (III.)	Three Food Groups. (I-III.)	Rent. (IV.)	Fuel and Light. (V.)	Clothing, Drapery, and Footwear. (VI.)	Miscellaneous. (VII.)	All Groups combined. (I-VII.).
* Interpolated. † February figure.
July, 1914	1,000	1,000	1,000	1,000	1,000	1,000	1,000	1,000	1,000
Year—1915	1,167	1,091	1,096	1,124	1,010	1,013	1,089	1,035	1,072
1916	1,180	1,205	1,196	1,193	1,005	1,101	1,274	1,216	1,160
1917	1,263	1,280	1,298	1,280	1,024	1,260	1,563	1,423	1,287
1918	1,440	1,339	1,371	1,393	1,054	1,361	1,790	1,733	1,426
1919	1,520	1,423	1,412	1,459	1,084	1,485	2,163	2,003	1,567
1920	1,864	1,660	1,470	1,677	1,142	1,782	2,450	2,305	1,776
1921	1,924	1,739	1,251	1,641	1,256	1,992	2,256	2,327	1,774
1922	1,752	1,367	1,075	1,421	1,357	1,831	1,879	2,040	1,597
1923	1,675	1,399	1,166	1,430	1,484	1,748	1,756	1,867	1,580
1924	1,704	1,460	1,242	1,483	1,601	1,741	1,675	1,795	1,604
1925	1,661	1,454	1,366	1,509	1,690	1,744	1,641	1,740	1,622
1926	1,658	1,461	1,313	1,498	1,796	1,765	1,552	1,727	1,628
1927	1,636	1,417	1,248	1,447	1,876	1,771	1,487	1,717	1,615
1928	1,639	1,410	1,315	1,471	1,895	1,784	1,451	1,676	1,618
Feb., 1928	1,670	1,369	1,248	1,450	1,884	1,787	1,451	1,702	1,611
May, 1928	1,602	1,502	1,279	1,464	1893^*	1,787	1,459	1,706	1,621
Aug., 1928	1,592	1,435	1,335	1,464	1,901	1,785	1,452	1,656	1,613
Nov.. 1928	1,675	1,352	1,382	1,496	1902^*	1,775	1,441	1,639	1,621
Feb., 1929	1,597	1,402	1,391	1,479	1,903	1,749	1,439	1,636	1,612
May, 1929	1,551	1,456	1,398	1,475	1903^†	1,749	1,437	1,620	1,608

For purposes of this table the index numbers for the first five groups are converted to July, 1914, base by dividing the index numbers on base 1909–13 = 1000 by the following correction divisors, being in each case the index number for July, 1914, on base 1909–13 = 1: Groceries, 1.033; dairy-produce, 1.057; meat, 1.127; three food groups, 1.070; rent, 0.984; fuel and light, 1.049.

The following table, which is based on the average of the index numbers of the four chief centres as set out in the preceding table, gives an indication (in money figures) of the extent to which prices have moved during the period 1914–28. The table shows the amount necessary, on the average, to purchase in successive war-time and post-war years the same quantity of various types of commodities as would have cost 20s. in July, 1914.

—	Food Groups.								Rent.		Fuel and Light.		Clothing, Drapery, and Footwear.		Miscellaneous.		All Groups combined.
—	Groceries		Dairy-produce.		Meat.		Three Food Groups.		Rent.		Fuel and Light.		Clothing, Drapery, and Footwear.		Miscellaneous.		All Groups combined.
* Interpolated. † February figure.
	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
July, 1914	20	0	20	0	20	0	20	0	20	0	20	0	20	0	20	0	20	0
Year—1915	23	4	21	10	21	11	22	6	20	2	20	4	21	9	20	8	21	5
1916	23	7	24	1	23	11	23	10	20	1	22	0	25	6	24	4	23	2
1917	25	3	25	7	26	0	25	7	20	6	25	3	31	3	28	6	25	9
1918	28	10	26	9	27	5	27	10	21	1	27	3	35	10	34	8	28	7
1919	30	5	28	6	28	3	29	2	21	8	29	9	43	3	40	1	31	5
1920	37	3	33	2	29	5	33	6	22	10	35	8	49	0	46	1	35	7
1921	38	6	34	9	25	0	32	10	25	1	39	5	45	1	46	6	35	6
1922	35	0	27	4	21	6	28	5	27	2	36	6	37	7	40	10	31	11
1923	33	6	28	0	23	4	28	7	29	8	34	11	35	1	37	4	31	6
1924	34	1	29	2	24	10	29	8	32	0	34	8	33	6	35	11	32	1
1925	33	3	29	1	27	4	30	2	33	8	34	9	32	10	34	10	32	5
1926	33	2	29	3	29	3	30	0	35	11	35	4	31	0	34	6	32	7
1927	32	9	28	4	25	0	28	11	37	6	35	5	29	9	34	4	32	4
1928	32	9	28	2	26	4	29	5	37	11	35	8	29	0	33	6	32	4
Feb. 1928	33	5	27	5	25	0	29	0	37	8	35	9	29	0	34	0	32	3
May, 1928	32	0	30	0	25	7	29	3	37	10^*	35	9	29	2	34	1	32	5
Aug., 1928	31	10	28	9	26	9	29	3	38	0	35	9	29	0	33	1	32	3
Nov., 1928	33	6	27	0	27	8	29	11	38	0^*	35	6	28	11	32	9	32	5
Feb., 1929	31	11	28	0	27	10	29	7	38	1	35	0	28	9	32	9	32	3
May, 1929	31	0	29	1	28	0	29	6	38	1^†	35	0	28	9	32	5	32	2

The general increase in prices since the outbreak of the Great War has materially reduced the purchasing - power of the £1 note, as is shown by the following table which sets out the relative “worth” in terms of commodities (but stated for convenience in terms of money) represented by 20s. during the years 1914–28. The average “worth” in July, 1914, has been taken as base and equated to 20s.

Date.	Food Groups.								Rent.		Fuel and Light.		Clothing, Drapery, and Footwear.		Miscellaneous.		All Groups combined.
Date.	Groceries		Dairy-produce.		Meat.		Three Food Groups.		Rent.		Fuel and Light.		Clothing, Drapery, and Footwear.		Miscellaneous.		All Groups combined.
* Interpolated. † February figure.
	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
July, 1914	20	0	20	0	20	0	20	0	20	0	20	0	20	0	20	0	20	0
Year—1915	17	2	18	4	18	3	17	10	19	10	19	8	18	4	19	4	18	8
1916	16	11	16	7	16	9	16	9	19	11	18	2	15	8	16	5	17	3
1917	15	10	15	8	15	5	15	8	19	6	15	10	12	10	14	1	15	6
1918	13	11	14	11	14	7	14	4	19	0	14	8	11	2	11	6	14	0
1919	13	2	14	1	14	2	13	8	18	5	13	5	9	3	10	0	12	9
1920	10	9	12	1	13	7	11	11	17	6	11	2	8	2	8	8	11	3
1921	10	5	11	6	16	0	12	2	15	11	10	2	8	10	8	7	11	3
1922	11	5	14	8	18	7	14	1	14	9	10	11	10	8	9	10	12	6
1923	11	11	14	4	17	2	14	0	13	6	11	6	11	5	10	9	12	8
1924	11	9	13	8	16	1	13	6	12	6	11	6	11	11	11	2	12	6
1925	12	0	13	9	14	8	13	3	11	10	11	6	12	2	11	6	12	4
1926	12	0	13	9	15	3	13	4	11	2	11	4	12	11	11	7	12	3
1927	12	3	14	1	16	0	13	10	10	8	11	4	13	5	11	8	12	5
1928	12	2	14	2	15	2	13	7	10	7	11	2	13	10	12	0	12	4
Feb., 1928	12	0	14	7	16	0	13	10	10	7	11	2	13	9	11	9	12	5
May 1928	12	6	13	4	15	8	13	8	10	7^†	11	2	13	8	11	9	12	4
Aug., 1928	12	7	13	11	15	0	13	8	10	6	11	2	13	9	12	1	12	5
Nov., 1928	12	0	14	10	14	6	13	4	10	6^*	11	3	13	10	12	2	12	4
Feb., 1929	12	6	14	3	14	5	13	6	10	6	11	5	13	11	12	3	12	5
May, 1929	12	11	13	9	14	4	13	7	10	6^†	11	5	13	11	12	4	12	5

In the consideration of this last table care must be taken that the figures are given their correct significance. Briefly, they represent—in money figures—the worth (or purchasing-power) of 20s. expended in purchasing the commodities shown at the heads of the columns, as compared with 20s. of full pre-war purchasing-power in July, 1914.

Another fact which must be noted is that the figures shown in this table will not rise or fall to equal extent with any movements shown in the index number, and the percentage rise or fall will not be the same in this table as the corresponding percentage fall or rise respectively in the table of price-indexes. When a price-index rises from 1000 to 1600, it costs 32s. to buy what 20s. bought before; but the purchasing-power of 20s. is then equal to the purchasing-power of only five-eighths of 20s. (that is, 12s. 6d.) in the base period. A rise of CO per cent. in the price-level has as its counterpart a fall of but 37 1/2 per cent. in the purchasing-power of the monetary unit. On the other hand, an index number falling below the level ruling in the base period: moves relatively less rapidly than the corresponding figure representing the increasing purchasing-power of the pound.

The year showing the highest average level for all groups (78 per cent. above July, 1914) is 1920, although according to half-yearly price-collections the highest point reached by the all groups index number was recorded in the collection for February, 1921. (at 85 per cent. above the July, 1914, level). Probably the peak for all groups, was in fact reached in December, 1920, when prices began to break, falling sharply during 1921, the decline being offset to some extent by the rapidly increasing rent-index.

The following diagram shows a comparison of the movement in the index, numbers for food, rent, and all groups:—

RETAIL PRICES.—FOOD, RENT, AND ALL GROUPS, JULY, 1914, TO FEBRUARY, 1929.

WHOLESALE PRICES.

In most countries index numbers of wholesale prices are compiled from the price data available in trade journals or from the published reports of wholesale markets. In New Zealand wholesale markets scarcely exist, and consequently price data for the wholesale-prices investigation have been collected from wholesale merchants and traders, who from the volume of the business they transact are able to supply representative information.

Since 1917 such wholesale-price quotations have been collected monthly, the inquiry being for the most part confined to the four chief centres. In the case of a few commodities (e.g., newsprint), of which there is a local consumption so large that the article can scarcely be omitted from the price-index, yet for which no actual local market exists, the inclusion of the commodity in the index number has been rendered possible by ascertaining movements of prices from the import statistics. Statistics of imports and exports as a source of price data have, however, been avoided as far as possible, on the ground that where quotations are obtained from traders care can be taken to ensure that the grade, &c., quoted for is kept constant. A considerable volume of data as to wholesale prices has also been secured from merchants and traders (and in a few cases from import figures) by means of retrospective investigations covering the years 1891 to 1917, and sufficient information has been secured to permit of the compilation for each year from 1891 onwards of a “general” wholesale-price index number based on the prices of 106 commodities.

General index numbers of wholesale prices for each year from 1891 to 1913 follow. These represent unweighted averages for the four chief centres.

GENERAL INDEX NUMBERS OF WHOLESALE PRICES, 1891–1913.

(Base: Average aggregate annual expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Year.	Index Number.
1891	994
1892	972
1893	973
1894	927
1895	920
1896	943
1897	942
1898	972
1899	893
1900	917
1901	931
1902	975
1903	954
1904	922
1905	994
1906	1,016
1907	1,016
1908	1,006
1909	949
1910	983
1911	994
1912	1,041
1913	1,032

From 1909 onwards still more detailed information has been secured, and separate index numbers for each year from 1913 onwards are published for a number of different groups and classes of commodities, the total number of items covered being approximately 180.

During 1926 a revision of the wholesale price-index was effected, specially designed, inter alia, to permit of the inclusion in the index number of several such items as motor-spirit, &c., the importance of which has increased enormously of late years. As the maximum usefulness of the revised wholesale index number will no doubt be found in future comparisons rather than in comparisons with the past, such new commodities have been allotted weights proportioned not to their 1909–13 consumption, but to their present-day consumption divided by a figure representing the ratio of the present-day population to that of the years 1909–13. The list of commodities represents a wide range, covering articles of home production and of foreign production, of farm, mine, marine, factory, &c., origin, and representing all stages of production.

For purposes of computing wholesale-price indexes, a cross-classification of the commodities covered is now adopted. On the basis of the nature and origin of the commodity there are now seven groups, and on the basis of the purpose of the commodity there are five classes, while a third basis of classification yields a separate index number for imported articles. This system of division into classes has been introduced to provide information as to fluctuations in prices of the raw materials and equipment utilized in the leading types of industry (e.g., farming, building, &c.), and as to fluctuations in the prices of imported articles as distinct from home products, &c. Three of the groups are further subdivided into subgroups, the basis of subdivision being sometimes the nature and origin of the commodities, sometimes the degree of manufacture.

Full details of the revised system were given in the 1927 number of this book. A schedule of the various commodities covered by the inquiry, classified by groups and with the class indicated in each case, was published in the 1925 number of the “Annual Statistical Report on Prices, &c.”

The wholesale-price index is purely a commodity index, no attempt having been made to cover the wholesale prices of services such as the supply of electric power, transportation, &c.

For purposes of the wholesale inquiry recourse is had to a modification of the method of the retail-prices investigation—the aggregate expenditure method. The 1927 Year-book gives a detailed account of this also.

The base adopted for purposes of the wholesale-price inquiry is the average of the wholesale prices in the four chief centres during 1909 to 1913, the price quotations from the various merchants being so combined that each return from any given town has the same weight in the averaging process as any other return from that town, while in obtaining Dominion average prices for any given commodity each of the four centres is given the same weight.

The following table shows annual wholesale index numbers by groups.

WHOLESALE PRICES.—INDEX NUMBERS BY GROUPS, 1913 AND 1923–28.

(Base: Average annual aggregate expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Group.	1913.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
1. Foodstuffs, &c., of vegetable origin—
A. Agricultural produce	967	1,526	1,752	1,716	1,729	1,440	1,631
B. Fresh fruit and vegetables	1,031	1,264	1,583	1,365	1,289	1,464	1,247
C. Milled agricultural products	982	1,571	1,599	1,844	1,928	1,713	1,713
D. Other vegetable foodstuffs and groceries	1,010	1,852	1,860	1,726	1,684	1,710	1,682
A–D. Four subgroups combined	991	1,648	1,761	1,714	1,708	1,593	1,636
2. Textile manufactures	1,020	2,201	2,179	2,182	2,094	2,010	1,999
3. Wood and wood products	1,072	2,183	2,192	2,145	2,077	1,979	1,954
4. Animal products—
A. Meats	1,111	1,387	1,415	1,598	1,378	1,313	1,370
B. Raw animal products (not foods)	1,085	1,402	1,724	1,455	1,287	1,417	1,663
C. Leather	1,126	1,681	1,605	1,579	1,562	1,577	1,889
D. Manufactured foodstuffs and groceries of animal origin	1,030	1,540	1,550	1,539	1,487	1,427	1,453
A–D. Four subgroups combined	1,088	1,447	1,490	1,568	1,410	1,368	1,449
5. Metals and their products	932	1,129	1,151	1,175	1,070	1,011	951
6. Non-metallic minerals and their products—
A. Mineral oils	1,004	1,089	1,026	1,006	895	752	762
B. Coals	1,037	1,935	1,920	1,889	1,875	1,892	1,903
C. Other non-metallic minerals and their products	1,026	1,886	1,836	1,785	1,737	1,723	1,711
A–C. Three subgroups combined	1,022	1,583	1,506	1,512	1,453	1,400	1,406
7. Chemicals and manures	1,030	1,408	1,365	1,296	1,223	1,171	1,167
All groups combined	1,055	1,666	1,739	1,697	1,620	1,541	1,555

The percentage represented by each group or subgroup in the base aggregate expenditure is as follows:—

Group or Subgroup.	Percentage.
IA	10.7
IB	2.1
IC	4.3
ID	11.9
II	12.7
III	5.5
IVA	11.0
IVB	1.7
IVC	1.1
IVD	5.1
V	14.3
VIA	6.8
VIB	7.1
VIC	2.9
VII	2.8

In the next table index-numbers are given by classes from 1913 to 1928. The table also shows the separate index number for such imported items as are included in the wholesale-price investigation; alongside which, for purposes of convenience of comparison, are set the index numbers of export prices. It should be noted that the export-price index is computed by a method entirely different from that adopted in connection with the computing of the wholesale-price index.

WHOLESALE PRICES.—INDEX NUMBERS BY CLASSES.

(Base: Average annual aggregate expenditure, four chief centres, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Year.	Consumers' Goods.		Producers' Materials, &c.			All Classes combined.	Index Number of Imported Items.	Index Number of Export Prices.
Year.	Class I: Foodstuffs.	Class II: Non-Foods.	Class III: Materials for Farming Industry.	Class IV: Materials for Building and Construction.	Class V: Materials for other Industries.	All Classes combined.	Index Number of Imported Items.	Index Number of Export Prices.
* No export price index computed for this year.
1913	1,039	1,044	1,068	1,134	1,055	1,055	1,084	^*
1914	1,129	1,032	1,081	1,189	1,095	1,098	1,089	1,108
1915	1,343	1,006	1,279	1,347	1,238	1,235	1,107	1,315
1916	1,420	1,116	1,298	1,622	1,319	1,328	1,280	1,529
1917	1,501	1,317	1,467	2,026	1,543	1,511	1,556	1,744
1918	1,634	1,759	1,714	2,496	1,786	1,778	2,017	1,798
1919	1,698	1,957	1,781	2,280	1,878	1,858	2,114	1,851
1920	1,806	2,367	2,202	2,737	2,286	2,181	2,594	1,823
1921	1,749	2,175	1,794	2,637	2,140	2,025	2,268	1,687
1922	1,496	1,951	1,476	2,261	1,802	1,736	1,909	1,270
1923	1,565	1,795	1,426	2,175	1,649	1,666	1,718	1,554
1924	1,592	1,790	1,615	2,151	1,677	1,739	1,693	1,769
1925	1,611	1,742	1,556	2,127	1,703	1,697	1,673	1,886
1926	1,496	1,652	1,473	2,034	1,677	1,620	1,586	1,526
1927	1,459	1,584	1,259	1,945	1,604	1,541	1,514	1,513
1928	1,515	1,560	1,289	1,890	1,616	1,555	1,481	1,684

These index-numbers should be taken for no more than they purport to represent, viz., the movement in wholesale prices of those commodities covered by the wholesale prices inquiry which belong to the respective classes. The figure for Class III, for instance, does not purport to show the movement in farming costs, nor does that for imported items purport to be an index-number of import prices.

Of the total base aggregate expenditure, Class I represented 30.1 per cent., Class II 20.5 per cent., Class III 11.8 per cent., Class IV 7.4 per cent., and Class V 30.2 per cent., while the imported items aggregated 42.8 per cent. of the total.

By using these figures (and those previously given for the groups) as weights, index numbers can be averaged for different groups or classes so as to arrive at special index numbers that may be desired for any purpose. A combination of the index numbers for Groups ID and IVD, for example, yields an excellent figure for the wholesale prices of groceries; a combination of the index numbers for Classes I and II gives a figure for the wholesale prices of “consumption goods”; and so on.

On the outbreak of the Great War those raw materials and semi-manufactured products that form the staple exports of the Dominion rose most rapidly. It is probable that many wholesale houses held considerable stocks of imported commodities, and that this, with other factors, retarded the upward movement of the index number of imported items until about 1918, when this index number began rapidly to overhaul the index number of export prices, attaining at its peak in 1920 a level much higher than the peak level of any other general price-index. The export items were also the first to fall, this price-index showing a slight drop in 1920, while the wholesale and import price-indexes were still continuing their upward rise wholly unchecked.

Since the Armistice the index number of export prices has shown much wider fluctuations than the other price-indexes. This is probably due rather to the fact that our staple exports are for the most part easily graded commodities, and therefore a fit object for speculation, than to the differences in the methods of compiling the price-indexes.

Broadly speaking, the peaks for groups comprising mainly exported articles represented a lower level than the peaks for groups comprising mainly imported articles. The prices both of New Zealand's staple exports and of her staple imports are, in general, determined by world-market conditions; so that, roughly, the prices in New Zealand of articles of export represent world prices minus the cost of transport, insurance, duties, &c., while the prices in the Dominion of articles of import represent world prices plus the cost of transport, insurance, duties, &c.; all of which items during the war period increased considerably more rapidly than did the prices of commodities.

Speaking generally, the movements of the index numbers for retail and for wholesale prices have been similar, though there has been a tendency for rises in retail prices to lag behind rises in wholesale prices, owing to the effects of retail friction, maximum-price legislation, and similar factors. Thus, the peak for wholesale prices (general index number) was reached in October, 1920, while that for retail prices (all groups) was not reached till at least two months later. The peak of the general wholesale-price index was, moreover, about 270 points higher than the peak index number for retail prices.

As in the case of retail prices, the peak level of wholesale prices in New Zealand (recorded at 2291 in October, 1920) represented a lower peak level than that of any other country publishing price statistics, with the solitary exception of India.

WHOLESALE PRICES IN NEW ZEALAND AND ENGLAND.

The following table of comparative wholesale prices in England and New Zealand during March, 1929, is of interest as showing the relative prices of the staple agricultural and dairy products in the two countries:—

WHOLESALE PRICES IN NEW ZEALAND AND ENGLAND DURING MARCH, 1929.

Item.	Unit.	England.				New Zealand.
Item.	Unit.	Description.	Price.			Description.	Price.
			£	s.	d.		£	s.	d.
Flour	2,000 lb.	London straights	13	7	10	New Zealand	16	16	0
Wheat	Cwt.	English Gazette	0	9	9	Tuscan	0	12	0
Oats	Cwt.	English Gazette	0	9	8	Gartons	0	9	11
Potatoes	Ton	Good English	5	15	0	New Zealand table	6	9	2
Butter	Cwt.	New Zealand	8	4	6	New Zealand 1st grade	8	15	0
Bacon	Cwt.	Danish	5	14	6	New Zealand sides	5	8	11
Wool	Lb.	Victoria good average	0	1	8 1/2	Merino	0	1	5
Tallow	Cwt.	Australian	2	0	9	New Zealand	1	5	8

The prices for the items here enumerated are similar in both countries, the only item where a considerable difference is recorded being tallow, for which commodity the New Zealand price is appreciably lower. Flour, wheat, oats, potatoes, and butter are slightly cheaper in England, while wool and bacon are a little dearer in that country than in New Zealand.

EXPORT PRICES.

The prosperity of New Zealand is so closely bound up with the prices realized for the commodities exported that great interest necessarily centres on a special index number of wholesale prices based solely on the prices of exported commodities. Annual index numbers of export prices based on prices prevailing in the “nineties” were formerly compiled from data supplied by the Customs Department, and for many years were published in the Year-book. A new series of export-price indexes with the average prices of the years 1909–13 as base (= 1000) has recently been instituted; and in this new series monthly as well as annual figures are available, while the commodities are also grouped according to their nature. Certain staple export commodities are considered; the recorded values of the exports of these commodities for the month or year under investigation are divided by the values that the same quantities of these commodities as were exported during this period would have had if prices had remained as in the base period, and the price indexes are obtained by multiplying this quotient by 1000. The fewness and the substantial homogeneity of the commodities which may be regarded as New Zealand's staple exports render this procedure eminently simple and satisfactory.

The twenty-five commodities covered account for about 95 per cent. of the total exports, leaving only 5 per cent. unaccounted for. The effect of the exclusion of this small residuum is to give it a price-movement similar to that of the items covered. Substantial accuracy for the index number may therefore reasonably be claimed.

The following table shows annual figures for export prices from 1914 onwards. The miscellaneous group includes apples, peas, phormium-fibre, kauri-gum, and certain important kinds of timber.

INDEX NUMBERS OF EXPORT PRICES, 1914–28.

(Base: Average export prices of years 1909–13 = 1000.)

Year.	Group I: Dairy-produce.	Group II: Meat.	Group III: Wool.	Group IV: Hides Skins, and Tallow.	Group V: Miscellaneous.	All Groups combined.
1914	1,038	1,218	1,101	1,089	1,037	1,108
1915	1,203	1,468	1,362	1,133	1,078	1,315
1916	1,349	1,509	1,723	1,394	1,361	1,529
1917	1,562	1,761	1,768	2,187	1,700	1,744
1918	1,574	1,777	1,780	2,383	2,060	1,798
1919	1,747	1,780	1,816	2,426	1,781	1,851
1920	1,806	1,716	1,809	2,098	1,800	1,823
1921	2,231	1,766	848	1,539	1,832	1,687
1922	1,495	1,522	939	1,522	1,686	1,270
1923	1,621	1,875	1,277	1,561	1,634	1,554
1924	1,650	1,868	1,906	1,732	1,645	1,769
1925	1,515	2,085	2,233	2,061	1,679	1,886
1926	1,411	1,755	1,431	1,876	1,562	1,526
1927	1,375	1,662	1,527	1,829	1,491	1,513
1928	1,472	1,698	1,924	1,975	1,424	1,684

The outstanding differences between the method of compilation of the index numbers for export prices on the one hand and the index numbers for wholesale and for retail prices on the other hand rests on the fact that the “weights” of the various commodities included in the case of the export-price index are determined by the quantities of the commodities exported during the period under investigation; while in the case of the other price indexes the weights are determined by the quantities of the commodities consumed (domestically only in the case of the retail prices, and domestically plus industrially in the case of the wholesale) during some fixed period, usually the base period.

Under the influence of speculation in wool (an easily gradable and non-perishable raw material, and therefore a specially suitable object for speculation) a record monthly figure for export prices was reached at 2214 in January, 1925; the index number for the special wool group in that month standing at the phenomenal figure of 2715, and rising a further 24 points in the following month, only to fall by 448 points in March, and to drop to 1565 at the end of the year, and to 1372 by April, 1926. Between 1891 and 1914 the annual New Zealand wholesale price of crossbred wool (medium to good) fluctuated between 4 1/2d. per pound (in 1901) and 5d. per pound (in 1902) on the one hand and 10d. per pound (in 1906 and again in 1912) and 10 1/4d. per pound (in 1913 and 1914) on the other. In 1916 the price was 1s. 3 3/4d., from 1917 to 1919 1s. 3 1/2d., in 1920 1s. 2 1/4d., in 1921 only 5 3/4d.; after which the price rose again gradually until it was 1s. 6 3/4d. in 1924, the highest annual average yet recorded. Between 1891 and 1914 the wholesale price of butter fluctuated between the relatively much narrower limits of 10 1/4d. (in 1897, 1899, and 1904) and 1s. 2 1/4d. (in 1914); while the maximum yearly price since 1914 was 1s. 11 3/4d. (in 1921). Cheese fluctuated between 4 1/2d. (in 1896, 1898, and 1899) and 7d. (in 1912 and 1914). Its post-war maximum was 1s. 1 1/4d. (in 1921). The greatest post-war rise occurred in the hides, skins, and tallow group, a fact which is closely connected with the one already adverted to in the consideration of wholesale-price indexes, to the effect that the leather group showed the highest peak level. Of the export-prices groups, meat showed the lowest peak level.

Since January, 1925, the general index number for export prices has fallen considerably, the annual average index for 1927 being 1513, but a noticeable improvement took place during 1928, the general index number of export prices now standing at 1684. Wool shows a substantial advance on the 1927 figures, a rise of 397 points being recorded in the index for this group.

Chapter 37. SECTION XXXVII.—WAGES AND HOURS OF LABOUR.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

WAGES OF MALE EMPLOYEES.

METHOD OF WEIGHTING.

WEIGHTS USED FOR EACH GROUP IN EACH INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT.

DOMINION INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

NOMINAL-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (MALES), BY INDUSTRIAL GROUTS, 1914 AND 1919–28.

NOMINAL-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (MALES), PRINCIPAL INDUSTRIAL DISTRICTS, 1914 AND 1919–28.

NOMINAL-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (MALES) BY INDUSTRIAL GROUPS AND DISTRICTS, 1928.

EFFECTIVE WAGES.

EFFECTIVE-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (MALES), 1914 AND 1919–28.

INDEX NUMBERS OF RETAIL PRICES, AND OF NOMINAL AND EFFECTIVE MALE WAGE RATES, 1914 AND 1919–28.

MOVEMENT IN INDIVIDUAL GROUPS, 1914–28.

NOMINAL-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (MALES), EACH INDUSTRIAL GROUP AND “ALL GROUPS” COMBINED, 1924 AND 1919–28.

EFFECTIVE-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (MALES), EACH GROUP AND “ALL GROUPS” COMBINED, 1914 AND 1919–28.

WAGES OF WOMEN WORKERS.

NOMINAL-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (WOMEN), 1914 AND 1919–28.

EFFECTIVE-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (WOMEN), 1914 AND 1919–28.

AVERAGE RATES OF WAGES.

AVERAGE MINIMUM WEEKLY ADULT WAGES, 1914 AND 1925–29.

WAGES OF FARM EMPLOYEES.

HOURS OF LABOUR.

INDEX NUMBERS OF AVERAGE HOURS WORKED, 1914 AND 1919–28.

INDEX NUMBERS OF AVERAGE HOURS WORKED: FOUR PRINCIPAL INDUSTRIAL DISTRICTS, 1914–28.

INDEX NUMBERS OF AVERAGE HOURS WORKED, BY INDUSTRIAL GROUPS AND DISTRICTS, 1928.

AVERAGE HOURS WORKED PER WEEK, 1914 AND 1925–29.

INTRODUCTORY.

THE material used in the compilation of statistics of wages in New Zealand is collected almost entirely from the awards of the Arbitration Court. It is recognized that the rates specified in such awards are minimum rates, and that wages may in some cases be above the prescribed minima, so that a rise or fall in the award rates does not necessarily connote an immediate change in the wage rates of workers being paid more than these rates. Nevertheless, for the purpose of tracing the movement in wage rates over any considerable space of time, the award rates form a more reliable basis than any information which could be collected directly from employers or trade-union secretaries as to the ruling or predominant rates in any industry. In the case of two important classes of workers—agricultural and pastoral employees and railway employees—no awards exist. Information has been obtained from the Labour Department as to the ruling rates of wages in the former case, and from the Railways Department in the latter case.

The award rates for the four principal districts—Northern, Wellington, Canterbury, and Otago and Southland—have in general been taken as representative of the ruling wages throughout the Dominion. For such industries as are carried on in the towns these rates are quite satisfactory; in cases where the important centre of an industry is situated outside the geographical boundaries of the four principal districts the award rates for that centre have been used. For instance, the rates used for coal-mining and sawmilling in the Canterbury District are those prescribed by the awards for the Westland Industrial District.

The system of compilation of wage index numbers has been revised, separate index numbers now being compiled for men and women workers.

WAGES OF MALE EMPLOYEES.

METHOD OF WEIGHTING.

The wage rates used in the compilation of the index numbers for male workers are those paid to adult workers only. In weighting these rates three sources of information as to the numbers engaged in the various occupations have been drawn on—viz., (1) the occupations statistics of the 1926 census, (2) the annual factory production statistics, and (3) the membership rolls of trade-unions registered under the Arbitration Act. It has been found possible to allocate weights to the individual occupations included in these computations. Although in some few cases absolute accuracy in weighting cannot be hoped for, the data are sufficiently accurate for the purpose in view, since minor differences in weighting do not affect the accuracy of a four-figure index number. Occupations have been grouped into industries, with an appropriate weight for each occupation and each industry; while industries have been grouped into fourteen principal industrial groups. The weights for the individual occupations and industries have been devised from the census or the factory production statistics; while the industrial-group weighting has been taken from the membership, as at 31st December, 1926, of trade-unions registered under the Arbitration Act, except in the case of agricultural and pastoral workers, the weights for which industrial group have been interpolated, using the 1926 census figures as a basis. Trade-union membership is relatively very low for this type of workers.

Every endeavour has been made to ensure that the list of occupations used in the computation of these index numbers is fully representative. In all, 275 occupations are included, representing forty-seven industries. Considerations of space preclude the publishing of the full list of occupations and the occupational weighting in this publication. The information will be set out in detail in the “Statistical Report on Prices, Wages, &c.,” for the year 1928. The weighting for industrial groups is given in the following table:—

WEIGHTS USED FOR EACH GROUP IN EACH INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT.

(00's omitted.)

Industrial Group.	Northern.	Wellington.	Canterbury.	Otago and Southland.	Dominion.
Food, drink, and tobacco	33	48	28	19	128
Clothing, boots, &c.	4	2	6	11	23
Textiles and weaving	2	6	3	4	15
Building and construction	46	51	34	23	154
Wood-manufacture	12	8	23	14	57
Printing, &c.	6	8	5	5	24
Metal-working and engineering	24	11	15	12	62
Other manufactures	6	5	3	3	17
Mining	18	..	8	4	30
Agricultural and pastoral	73	66	47	32	218
Land transport	16	17	13	7	53
Shipping and cargo-working	28	26	13	14	81
Hotel, restaurant, and other personal service	12	16	8	2	38
Miscellaneous	25	14	10	10	59
Totals	305	278	216	160	959

DOMINION INDEX NUMBERS, 1914–28.

The following table shows the index numbers of nominal wages of males for each group and all groups combined for 1914 and for each year from 1919 to 1928. The base on which the index numbers in this table have been computed is the Dominion weighted average wage for all groups combined for the average of the years 1909–13, equated to 1000.

NOMINAL-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (MALES), BY INDUSTRIAL GROUTS, 1914 AND 1919–28.

(Base: Dominion weighted average wages for all industrial groups combined, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Industrial Group.	1914.	1919.	1920.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
NOTE.—The index numbers in this table are comparable both vertically and horizontally. Where board and (or) lodging is a usual perquisite attached to any occupation an allowance estimated to cover the value of such has been added to the money wage.
Food, drink, and tobacco	1,167	1,471	1,627	1,750	1,806	1,739	1,798	1,840	1,862	1,875	1,883
Clothing, boots, &c.	1,029	1,310	1,154	1,723	1,693	1,605	1,619	1,655	1,677	1,698	1,730
Textiles and weaving	959	1,252	1,349	1,543	1,652	1,571	1,571	1,571	1,628	1,696	1,696
Building and construction	1,159	1,423	1,602	1,816	1,779	1,701	1,723	1,737	1,784	1,804	1,810
Wood-manufacture	1,050	1,398	1,607	1,858	1,807	1,710	1,739	1,756	1,766	1,792	1,792
Printing, &c.	1,288	1,514	1,749	2,038	1,978	1,913	1,913	2,003	2,012	2,013	2,013
Metal-working and engineering	1,191	1,533	1,743	1,915	1,858	1,770	1,771	1,812	1,822	1,882	1,882
Other manufactures	1,028	1,341	1,600	1,786	1,754	1,693	1,693	1,707	1,755	1,769	1,773
Mining	1,142	1,390	1,601	1,835	1,723	1,687	1,790	1,840	1,849	1,862	1,849
Agricultural and pastoral	883	1,279	1,332	1,237	1,198	1,297	1,807	1,305	1,331	1,378	1,581
Land transport	1,041	1,309	1,573	1,702	1,653	1,635	1,644	1,712	1,714	1,739	1,748
Shipping and cargo-working	1,121	1,612	1,777	1,854	1,791	1,795	1,804	1,835	1,842	1,849	1,849
Hotel, restaurant, and other personal service	1,118	1,235	1,404	1,635	1,631	1,562	1,567	1,575	1,602	1,626	1,631
Miscellaneous	1,000	1,285	1,518	1,697	1,646	1,599	1,624	1,650	1,685	1,710	1,737
All industrial groups combined	1,066	1,390	1,550	1,666	1,636	1,612	1,634	1,659	1,683	1,710	1,760

The highest index numbers are recorded in the group “printing &c.,” the 1928 index in this industry being 2013 and representing an increase of 101.3 per cent. above the “all groups” level in 1909–13. It is worthy of note that this group is consistently high, the 1914 index (1288) being considerably higher than that recorded in any other industry. The preponderance of highly skilled tradesmen in this group is, no doubt, the cause of the high average level of wages.

The index for the group “agricultural and pastoral” (1581) is the lowest, followed by “hotels and restaurants” (1631). In these groups and in the case of the group “shipping and cargo-working” the estimated value of board and lodging is added to the money wage in order to make a legitimate comparison with other industries. In the case of waterside workers (an important subgroup of the shipping group) this allowance is, of course, omitted.

Wages rose steadily and in fairly regular gradations from year to year from 1914 to 1918. When the provisions of the War Legislation and Statute Law Amendment Act providing for the regulation of wages in accordance with movements in the cost of living came into effect the lag between prices and wages was partially eliminated; consequently sharp increases took place—160 points between 1919 and 1920, and 116 points between 1920 and 1921. The effect of the post-war slump thereafter becomes apparent, decreases being recorded in the two subsequent years (1922 and 1923), the nominal wage index for all groups of industries falling from 1666 in 1921 to 1612 in 1923. Following the recovery from the slump, the index number rose year by year until in 1928 it reached 1760, the highest level yet recorded.

In the preceding table Dominion index numbers were given for each individual group and for all groups combined, but no attempt was made to differentiate between the four industrial districts. The following table shows the index numbers of male wage rates for all groups combined for each industrial district and the Dominion weighted average for the years 1914 and 1919 to 1928. From this table comparisons may be made between the index numbers for the four principal industrial districts.

NOMINAL-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (MALES), PRINCIPAL INDUSTRIAL DISTRICTS, 1914 AND 1919–28.

(Base: Dominion weighted average wages for all industrial groups combined, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Year.	Northern Industrial District.	Wellington Industrial District.	Canterbury Industrial District.	Otago and Southland Industrial District.	Dominion Weighted Average.
NOTE.—The wage Indexes in this table are comparable both vertically and horizontally.
1914	1,046	1,069	1,068	1,072	1,066
1919	1,366	1,349	1,436	1,447	1,390
1920	1,521	1,524	1,606	1,572	1,550
1921	1,650	1,626	1,724	1,686	1,666
1922	1,615	1,611	1,686	1,652	1,636
1923	1,604	1,598	1,642	1,612	1,612
1924	1,622	1,621	1,671	1,632	1,634
1925	1,647	1,634	1,698	1,670	1,659
1926	1,665	1,658	1,729	1,699	1,683
1927	1,687	1,680	1,777	1,720	1,710
1928	1,749	1,758	1,781	1,764	1,760

From the foregoing table it is evident that no considerable differences exist between the index numbers for the four principal districts. In the case of several industries Dominion awards are made which apply to all districts. Such differences as are observed are due to a certain extent to the fact that some industries included in the compilations are not carried on in all districts. For instance, the sugar-refining industry is confined to the Northern District, and, while in the Northern, Canterbury (which for this purpose is deemed to include Westland), and Otago and Southland Districts the mining industry is an important one, coal-mining at least is not carried on in the Wellington Industrial District. This point can be more clearly seen by a study of the following table, which shows for the year 1928 the index numbers for the individual groups in each district as well as the Dominion weighted average index numbers.

NOMINAL-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (MALES) BY INDUSTRIAL GROUPS AND DISTRICTS, 1928.

(Base: Dominion weighted average wages for all industrial groups combined, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Industrial Group.	Northern Industrial Distinct.	Wellington Industrial District.	Canterbury Industrial District.	Otago and Southland Industrial District.	Dominion Weighted Average.
NOTE.—The wage indexes in this table are comparable both vertically and horizontally.
Food, drink, and tobacco	1,865	1,887	1,892	1,886	1,883
Clothing, boots, &c.	1,730	1,730	1,730	1,730	1,730
Textiles and weaving	1,693	1,701	1,693	1,693	1,696
Building and construction	1,811	1,816	1,800	1,812	1,810
Wood-manufacture	1,745	1,788	1,849	1,741	1,792
Printing, &c.	2,021	2,021	2,021	1,984	2,013
Metal-working and engineering	1,884	1,884	1,884	1,871	1,882
Other manufactures	1,764	1,777	1,787	1,771	1,773
Mining	1,786	..	1,939	1,950	1,849
Agricultural and pastoral	1,569	1,569	1,622	1,574	1,581
Land transport	1,754	1,750	1,740	1,741	1,748
Shipping and cargo-working	1,849	1,849	1,849	1,849	1,849
Hotel, restaurant, and other personal service	1,631	1,631	1,631	1,631	1,631
Miscellaneous	1,739	1,738	1,727	1,739	1,737
All industrial groups combined	1,749	1,758	1,781	1,764	1,760

EFFECTIVE WAGES.

The index numbers quoted in the foregoing pages relate to nominal wages—that is, they are based on actual money rates without any allowance being made for changes known to have occurred in the purchasing-power of the monetary unit during the period under review. It is obvious that this factor is of considerable importance; for a rise in wages may be offset by a fall in the purchasing-power of the monetary unit, while, on the other hand, a fall in money wages may be offset by a rise in the purchasing-power of the monetary unit. Changes in the index numbers of retail prices are inversely proportional to changes in the purchasing-power of the pound; and index numbers of effective (or “real”) wages can be arrived at by dividing the index numbers for nominal wages by the corresponding index numbers for retail prices covering all groups of domestic expenditure. To this end the index numbers of nominal wages on the base 1909–13 = 1000 are first converted to the base 1914 by dividing them by the correction factor 1.066, the 1914 index number of nominal wages of males on the former base being 1066. The resulting nominal-wage index numbers on the new base are then divided by the retail price indexes (“all groups”) on base July 1914 = 1000, and the resulting quotient multiplied by 1000 yields the effective-wage indexes for the dates concerned.

In the compilation of index numbers of effective wages no allowance has been made for changes in the hours of labour or in other miscellaneous factors affecting the distinction between real and nominal wages.

EFFECTIVE-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (MALES), 1914 AND 1919–28.

(Base: Purchasing-power of Dominion weighted average wages for all industrial groups combined, 1914 = 1000.)

Industrial Group.	1914.	1919.	1920.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
NOTE.—The index numbers in this table are comparable both vertically and horizontally.
Food, drink, and tobacco	1,095	881	859	926	1,061	1,032	1,052	1,064	1,073	1,089	1,091
Clothing, boots, &c.	965	784	768	911	984	953	947	957	966	986	1,003
Textiles and weaving	900	749	712	816	971	933	919	909	938	985	983
Building and construction	1,087	852	846	961	1,045	1,010	1,007	1,004	1,028	1,048	1,049
Wood-manufacture	985	837	849	982	1,061	1,015	1,017	1,015	1,018	1,041	1,039
Printing, &c.	1,208	906	924	1,078	1,162	1,136	1,119	1,158	1,159	1,169	1,167
Metal-working and engineering	1,117	918	921	1,012	1,091	1,051	1,036	1,048	1,050	1,093	1,091
Other manufactures	964	803	845	944	1,030	1,005	990	987	1,011	1,027	1,028
Mining	1,071	832	846	970	1,012	1,002	1,047	1,065	1,066	1,082	1,072
Agricultural and pastoral	828	766	704	654	704	770	764	755	767	801	917
Land transport	977	784	831	900	971	971	961	990	988	1,010	1,014
Shipping and cargo-working	1,052	965	939	980	1,052	1,066	1,055	1,061	1,061	1,074	1,072
Hotel, restaurant, and other personal service	1,049	740	742	865	958	927	916	911	923	944	946
Miscellaneous	938	769	802	897	967	949	950	954	971	993	1,007
All industrial groups combined	1,000	832	819	881	961	957	956	959	970	993	1,020

The table which follows shows the movement in retail prices, and in nominal and effective male wages since 1914. Nominal wages lagged behind prices while the latter were rising, and continued to rise between 1920 and 1921 while prices were declining. The result is a steady fall in effective wages until 1920, and a sharp rise between 1921 and 1922, followed by a slight fall between 1922 and 1924, since which year successive increases have taken place. In 1928, for the first time since the outbreak of the war, the nominal-wage index number for males was higher than the index number of retail prices, with the consequence that the effective-wage index number rose above the basic level of 1000.

INDEX NUMBERS OF RETAIL PRICES, AND OF NOMINAL AND EFFECTIVE MALE WAGE RATES, 1914 AND 1919–28.

Year.	Retail Prices.	Nominal Wages.	Effective Wages.
1914	1,000	1,000	1,000
1919	1,567	1,304	832
1920	1,776	1,454	819
1921	1,774	1,563	881
1922	1,597	1,535	961
1923	1,580	1,512	957
1924	1,604	1,533	956
1925	1,622	1,556	959
1926	1,628	1,579	970
1927	1,615	1,604	993
1928	1,618	1,651	1,020

MOVEMENT IN INDIVIDUAL GROUPS, 1914–28.

The index numbers in the preceding tables being all on a common base, comparisons between movements in the various groups cannot be readily made; an increase of (say) 10 per cent. in the group “clothing and boots,” in which the index numbers are consistently low, being considerably smaller numerically than an increase of the same percentage in (say) the printing trade, where the index numbers are considerably higher. The following tables bring out the movements in the various groups more clearly, the 1914 index number for each group being taken as base in each case. Care must be exercised in drawing inferences from these tables, for, while horizontal comparisons are quite valid, the vertical comparison between the various groups is valid only in so far as it shows in which groups the greater or the smaller increases have been observed since the base period (1914 in this case). For example, although nominal wages of males in the “textile and weaving” group show in 1928 an increase of 77 per cent. since 1914, while those in the group “mining” have increased by only 62 per cent., nevertheless wages were higher in the latter group in 1928 since they were considerably higher in 1914—the base year.

NOMINAL-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (MALES), EACH INDUSTRIAL GROUP AND “ALL GROUPS” COMBINED, 1924 AND 1919–28.

(Bases: Dominion average wages for each industrial group respectively, 1914 = 1000.)

Industrial Group.	1914.	1919.	1920.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
NOTE.—Vertical comparisons are indicative merely of the relative percentage increases of wages in the different industrial groups since 1914, not of the actual relative levels of wages in the different Industries.
Food, drink, and tobacco	1,000	1,260	1,394	1,500	1,548	1,190	1,541	1,577	1,596	1,607	1,614
Clothing, boots, &c.	1,000	1,273	1,413	1,674	1,645	1,560	1,573	1,608	1,630	1,650	1,681
Textiles and weaving	1,000	1,306	1,407	1,609	1,723	1,638	1,638	1,638	1,698	1,769	1,769
Building and construction	1,000	1,228	1,382	1,567	1,535	1,468	1,487	1,499	1,539	1,557	1,562
Wood-manufacture	1,000	1,331	1,530	1,770	1,721	1,629	1,656	1,672	1,682	1,707	1,707
Printing, &c.	1,000	1,175	1,358	1,582	1,536	1,485	1,485	1,555	1,562	1,563	1,563
Metal-working and engineering	1,000	1,287	1,463	1,608	1,560	1,486	1,487	1,521	1,530	1,580	1,580
Other manufactures	1,000	1,301	1,556	1,737	1,706	1,647	1,647	1,661	1,707	1,721	1,725
Mining	1,000	1,217	1,402	1,607	1,509	1,477	1,567	1,611	1,619	1,630	1,619
Agricultural and pastoral	1,000	1,448	1,508	1,401	1,357	1,469	1,480	1,478	1,507	1,561	1,790
Land transport	1,000	1,257	1,511	1,635	1,588	1,571	1,579	1,645	1,646	1,671	1,679
Shipping and cargo-working	1,000	1,438	1,585	1,654	1,598	1,601	1,609	1,637	1,643	1,649	1,649
Hotel, restaurant, and other personal service	1,000	1,105	1,256	1,462	1,459	1,397	1,402	1,409	1,433	1,454	1,159
Miscellaneous	1,000	1,285	1,518	1,697	1,646	1,599	1,624	1,650	1,685	1,710	1,737
All industrial groups combined	1,000	1,304	1,454	1,563	1,535	1,512	1,533	1,556	1,579	1,604	1,651

EFFECTIVE-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (MALES), EACH GROUP AND “ALL GROUPS” COMBINED, 1914 AND 1919–28.

(Bases: Purchasing - powers of Dominion average wages for each industrial group respectively, 1911 = 1000.)

Industrial Group.	1914.	1919.	1920.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
NOTE.—Vertical comparisons are indicative merely of the relative percentage movement of effective wages in the different industrial groups since 1914, not of the actual relative levels of wages in the different industries.
Food, drink, and tobacco	1,000	804	785	846	969	943	961	972	980	995	998
Clothing, boots, &c.	1,000	812	796	944	1,030	987	981	991	1,001	1,022	1,039
Textiles and weaving	1,000	833	792	907	1,079	1,037	1,021	1,010	1,043	1,095	1,093
Building and construction	1,000	784	778	883	961	929	927	924	945	964	965
Wood-manufacture	1,000	849	861	998	1,078	1,031	1,032	1,031	1,033	1,057	1,055
Printing, &c.	1,000	750	765	892	962	910	926	959	959	968	966
Metal-working and engineering	1,000	821	824	906	977	941	927	938	940	978	977
Other manufactures	1,000	832	867	979	1,068	1,042	1,027	1,024	1,049	1,066	1,066
Mining	1,000	777	789	906	945	935	977	993	994	1,009	1,001
Agricultural and pastoral	1,000	924	849	790	850	930	923	911	926	967	1,106
Land transport	1,000	802	851	922	994	994	984	1,014	1,011	1,035	1,038
Shipping and cargo-working	1,000	918	892	932	1,001	1,013	1,003	1,009	1,009	1,021	1,019
Hotel, restaurant, and other personal service	1,000	705	707	824	914	884	874	869	880	900	902
Miscellaneous	1,000	820	855	957	1,031	1,012	1,012	1,017	1,035	1,059	1,074
All industrial groups combined	1,000	832	819	881	961	957	956	959	970	993	1,020

The movement in nominal wages is very even as between the different industrial groups, being distributed round about 65 per cent. above the 1914 level. The “agricultural and pastoral,” “textiles and weaving,” and “other manufactures” groups show the greatest increases since 1914, the wage-levels in these groups having been, comparatively speaking, very low in that year. As can be seen from the table on page 848, the actual level of wages in these industrial groups at the present time is not high as compared with most other groups. The group “hotel, restaurant, &c.,” shows the lowest increase since 1914.

WAGES OF WOMEN WORKERS.

Index numbers showing movements in the wage rates paid to women workers have been compiled, using the award rates of the Arbitration Court as representative of the ruling rates of wages. A much smaller list of occupations is used than is the case in computing index numbers of wage-movements for male workers. Although only fourteen occupations are taken into consideration in the case of women workers, it has been ascertained that these occupations cover a large proportion of the total women in industry—more than sufficient to be a representative sample for measuring movements in wages. The weights used have been computed from the data as to occupations made available by the 1926 census results. In order to arrive at district weights the Dominion totals were split up in proportion to the numbers of women registered in the various unions in the different industrial districts. Following are the occupations and weights used:—

Occupation.	Northern Industrial District.	Wellington Industrial District.	Canterbury Industrial District.	Otago and Southland Industrial District.	Dominion.
Tailoresses	142	98	64	88	392
Boot operatives	13	9	13	7	42
Woollen-mills employees	4	8	23	26	61
Paper-mills employees	..	..	..	6	6
Printing-trades employees	9	11	9	5	34
Cooks (hotels)	31	22	19	8	80
Barmaids (hotels)	10	7	6	3	26
Housemaids (hotels)	46	33	28	11	118
Pantrymaids (hotels)	5	4	3	1	13
Waitresses (hotels)	46	33	28	11	118
Cooks (restaurants)	3	2	2	1	8
Waitresses (restaurants)	39	28	24	10	101
Pantrymaids (restaurants)	3	2	2	1	8
Soft-goods assistants	30	28	19	19	96
Totals	381	285	240	197	1,103

The following table shows index numbers for women divided into the principal industries in which women workers are engaged. It should be remembered that domestic servants (numerically a very important branch of women workers) are not represented in the compilation of these indexes.

NOMINAL-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (WOMEN), 1914 AND 1919–28.

(Base: Dominion “all groups” weighted average wages, 1909–13 = 1000).

Year.	Clothing Trades.	Textile Workers.	Printing-trades Employees.	Hotel and Restaurant Workers.	Shop Assistants.	All Groups combined.
1914	919	919	906	1,424	919	1,134
1919	1,110	1,182	1,092	1,587	1,251	1,330
1920	1,289	1,265	1,388	1,715	1,442	1,487
1921	1,414	1,385	1,697	2,073	1,548	1,716
1922	1,468	1,438	1,648	2,123	1,493	1,755
1923	1,436	1,364	1,708	2,059	1,420	1,707
1924	1,436	1,364	1,728	2,067	1,559	1,723
1925	1,444	1,364	1,800	2,087	1,587	1,740
1926	1,514	1,445	1,806	2,104	1,587	1,780
1927	1,531	1,503	1,808	2,109	1,642	1,790
1928	1,519	1,503	1,809	2,113	1,754	1,803

The highest index numbers are recorded in the “hotel and restaurant workers” group. The comparatively high level of wages in this industry is, no doubt, accounted for by the fact that board and lodging is a usual perquisite of hotel workers, while meals are usually provided far restaurant employees. The estimated value of these additions has been added to the money wages in this industry. Women, in general, receive lower money wages than men, so that the addition of board and lodging has the effect of raising wages for women in a much greater proportion than the addition of the same perquisite does in the case of men. Indeed, wages for men in this group are low as compared with most other industries.

In the printing trades the next highest level of wages is recorded, followed closely by shop assistants. Wages in the clothing and textiles trades are at a lower level than those in the other industries under review.

The movement in effective wages (i.e., nominal wages corrected for movements in the purchasing power of the pound) are indicated in the table following:—

EFFECTIVE-WAGE INDEX NUMBERS (WOMEN), 1914 AND 1919–28.

Group.	1914.	1919.	1920.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
(Base: Dominion “all groups” effective wage in 1914 = 1000).
Clothing	810	625	640	703	811	801	789	785	820	827	828
Textiles	810	665	628	688	794	761	750	742	783	820	819
Printing	799	615	689	843	910	953	950	978	979	987	986
Hotels and restaurants	1,256	893	851	1,030	1,172	1,149	1,137	1,134	1,139	1,152	1,151
Shop assistants	810	704	716	769	825	792	857	863	859	897	956
All groups	1,000	749	738	853	969	953	947	946	964	977	983
(Base: Effective wage in each group in 1914 = 1000.)
Clothing	1,000	771	790	868	1,000	989	974	969	1,012	1,020	1,022
Textiles	1,000	821	775	849	980	939	925	915	966	1,012	1,011
Printing	1,000	769	863	1,056	1,139	1,193	1,189	1,225	1,224	1,236	1,234
Hotels and restaurants	1,000	711	678	821	934	915	905	904	908	917	917
Shop Assistants	1,000	869	883	949	1,018	978	1,057	1,065	1,061	1,107	1,180
All groups	1,000	749	738	853	969	953	947	946	964	977	983

AVERAGE RATES OF WAGES.

The following table shows the unweighted averages of award rates for the four principal districts as at 31st March of 1914 and of each year from 1925 to 1929. The estimated value of board and lodging has been added to the wages in those occupations where it is a necessary perquisite of employment. More detailed statistics, showing rates for each of the four principal industrial districts, are included in the “Annual Statistical Report on Prices, &c.”

AVERAGE MINIMUM WEEKLY ADULT WAGES, 1914 AND 1925–29.

(NOTE.—The figures given are averages for the four principal industrial districts as at 31st March in the years shown.)

Occupation.	Average Wage (Four Principal Districts) at 31st March,
Occupation.	1914.		1925.		1926.		1927.		1928.		1929.
	s.	d.	s.	d	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
Bakers—Journeymen	55	0	97	6	97	6	97	6	100	0	100	0
Labourers	48	0	78	0	78	0	78	0	80	6	80	6
Butchers—First shopmen	72	6	106	7 1/2	116	10 1/2	116	10 1/2	116	10 1/2	116	10 1/2
Second shopmen	62	6	96	0	105	0	105	0	105	0	105	0
Butter-factory employees—
Churning and buttermaking—General hands	52	6	77	8	79	4	81	9	81	9	81	9
Flour-milling—Kilnmen	48	0	91	0	92	8	92	8	92	8	92	8
Assistant smuttermen	52	0	83	0	84	8	84	8	84	8	84	8
Rollermen	56	0	95	0	95	0	96	8	96	8	96	8
Meat-freezing—
Slaughtermen (sheep, per 100)	27	6	38	6	38	6	40	0	40	0	40	0
General hands	54	0	88	0	88	0	91	8	91	8	91	8
Meat-preserving—
Boners	62	0	99	11	99	11	103	7	103	7	103	7
Meat-preservers—Second man	59	6	93	6	93	6	95	4	95	4	95	4
Sausage-casing making — General hands	58	8	91	8	91	8	95	4	95	4	95	4
Aerated-waters and cordial making—
Cordial-makers	58	9	84	8	93	0	93	0	93	0	93	0
Bottle-washers	45	0	73	104	83	0	83	0	83	0	83	0
Brewing—Labourers	47	74	82	10	83	0	83	0	83	6	83	6
Tailors—Journeymen	53	9	90	0	90	0	95	0	95	0	95	0
Factory hands	56	0	84	0	84	0	87	6	87	6	87	6
Tailoresses (factory)—Journeywomen	27	6	44	0	45	0	45	0	45	0	45	0
Boot operatives—
Male	52	6	84	4	85	3	85	3	88	11	88	11
Female journeywomen	27	6	47	6	48	6	48	6	50	0	50	0
Woollen-mills—
Males—Spinners	51	0	85	9	85	9	93	9	93	9	93	9
General hands	46	6	74	6	74	6	82	6	82	6	82	6
Females—All adults	26	3	41	0	41	0	45	0	45	0	45	0
Building and construction—
Bricklayers	68	5 1/4	99	11 1/4	99	11 1/4	99	11 1/4	99	11 1/4	..
Carpenters	64	5 1/2	97	2	97	2	101	9	101	9	101	9
Joiners	64	3 1/2	97	2	97	2	101	9	101	9	101	9
Plasterers	67	9 1/2	96	10 1/4	96	10 1/4	99	11	99	11	102	3
Plumbers (competent)	66	0	95	4	95	4	99	0	99	0	99	0
Builders' labourers	52	6 1/2	79	0	82	6	82	6	82	6	82	6
Sawmilling, bush—
Engine-drivers (first-class)	54	0	95	0	104	6	104	6	104	6	104	6
Sawyers	53	0 1/2	100	0 1/2	103	4	103	4	103	4	103	4
Tailors-out	43	9	88	3 1/4	89	10	89	10	89	10	89	10
Yardmen	55	8 3/4	91	7	100	2	100	2	100	2	100	2
General hands	51	0	83	4 1/4	84	4	84	4	84	4	86	9
Boatbuilding—Shipwrights	62	8	100	4 1/4	100	4 1/4	101	2	103	8 1/4	104	6
Metal-works, &c.—
Blacksmiths, farriers	61	7	89	10 3/4	95	4	99	0	99	0	99	0
Boilermaking—Journeymen	62	8	95	4	95	4	99	0	99	0	99	0
Iron and brass moulders	64	7 1/2	95	4	95	4	99	0	99	0	99	0
Tinsmiths—Journeymen	62	8	95	4	95	4	99	0	99	0	99	0
Engineering—
Fitters, &c.	64	7 1/2	95	4	95	4	99	0	99	0	99	0
Electrical workers	61	10 1/2	95	4	95	4	99	0	99	0	99	0
Motor mechanics	64	11 1/2	95	1 1/4	95	4	99	0	99	0	99	0
Skin and leather workers—
Curriers	58	0	95	0	95	0	102	0	102	0	102	0
General hands	49	6	84	4	84	4	85	8	85	8	85	8
Mineral and stone workers—
Brickmakers	53	11 1/2	100	0	100	0	103	2	104	2	104	2
General hands	46	9 3/4	84	0	84	0	85	4	86	4	86	4
Mining (coal)—
Surface—Tippers	53	7 1/2	85	10	85	10	90	8	90	8	87	7
Labourers	54	3 3/4	85	10	85	10	90	8	90	8	87	7
Engine-drivers, first class	67	6	99	6	99	6	109	9	116	6	117	6
Miners	63	3	99	9	99	9	110	2	110	2	106	10
Truckers	55	11	91	7 3/4	91	7 3/4	94	1	94	1	92	9
Mining (gold)—
Miners in rises or winzes with machines	64	6	91	0	91	11	94	2	94	2	94	2
Quarrymen	52	8 1/2	85	3 1/4	85	3 1/4	85	3 1/4	85	3 1/4	85	1/4
Agricultural and pastoral workers—
General farm hands (agricultural)	42	0	59	0	60	0	62	6	69	0	69	0
Harvesters	70	0	101	0	107	0	114	0	93	0	93	0
Ploughmen	48	4	63	5	64	5	69	1	70	0	70	0
Shearers (per 100 sheep shorn)	23	0	30	0	30	0	32	6	32	6	35	0
Shepherds	49	2	59	8	60	6	67	6	80	0	80	0
Wool-pressers	30	0	62	6	62	6	70	0	77	6	77	6
Dairy-farm hands	44	4	56	6	57	6	58	9	69	0	69	0
Railways—
Engine-drivers	75	0	109	11 1/2	109	11 1/2	109	11 1/2	112	4	112	4
Firemen	60	0	90	3	90	3	90	3	94	5	94	5
Guards	63	0	106	8	106	8	106	8	110	0	110	0
Tramways—Motorman	53	6	90	0	92	3	94	6	94	6	95	0
Conductors	47	7 1/2	So	6	85	0	89	6	89	6	90	6
Shipping and cargo-working—
Assistant stewards, first class	43	5	88	3	89	3	93	3	93	3	93	3
Assistant stewards, second class	36	6	85	11	86	11	90	11	90	11	90	11
Chief cooks	78	0	120	6	121	6	125	6	125	6	125	6
Second cooks	54	11	102	1	103	1	107	1	107	1	107	1
A.B. seamen	69	11	95	2	96	2	96	2	96	2	..	..
Ordinary seamen, first class	60	8	73	3	74	3	74	3	74	3	..	..
Waterside workers—Ordinary cargo	62	4	97	2	97	2	97	2	97	2	97	2
Hotel workers—Chefs (male)	112	6	132	0	132	0	132	0	132	0	132	0
Waiters (male)	53	0	87	0	87	0	87	0	87	0	87	0
Cooks (female)	52	6	79	6	79	6	79	6	79	6	79	6
Housemaids	32	6	61	0	61	0	62	6	62	6	62	6
Waitresses	43	1	61	0	61	0	62	6	62	6	62	6
Miscellaneous—
Soft-goods assistants (male)	55	0	92	6	93	1 1/2	93	1 1/2	95	0	95	0
Warehouse storemen	51	3 1/4	85	0	85	0	85	0	85	0	85	0
Grocers' assistants	50	0	91	11	93	1 1/2	93	1 1/2	95	0	95	0

WAGES OF FARM EMPLOYEES.

No awards exist for general farm hands; and in order that this important industry may be represented in the wage index numbers Inspectors of Factories in the various centres have been approached from time to time for data as to ruling rates of wages paid to farm employees. In their capacity of officers in charge of Government employment bureaux, Inspectors are in a position to supply reliable data on this subject. In view of the fact that there are no clearly defined standard rates for this industry, the wage offered often varying quite appreciably on account of special conditions on different farms, it was thought advisable to conduct a special investigation to ascertain how closely rates offered for farm labour through the bureaux corresponded to the actual average rates paid by a large number of representative farmers. As anticipated, the actual averages paid as ascertained by this investigation were somewhat higher than those returned by the Inspectors. The differences were not such as seriously to impair the accuracy of the index numbers as a measure of the movement of farm wages, as it is reasonable to assume that the rates on which the index numbers are based have been consistently a little low, and therefore the movement is approximately correct.

For the purposes of this inquiry schedules were forwarded to all farmers in the Dominion employing five hands or over. In all some 800 returns were received, representing slightly less than half the total—a satisfactory sample. Statistical treatment of this subject is somewhat difficult owing to the fact that in many cases the perquisites received in addition to a money wage form an important part of the total payment, and it would be hazardous to attempt to assess all such additions at a money valuation. Single men in general receive board and lodging in addition to a money wage; while married men usually receive free housing, milk, and vegetables, free grazing-rights, and other concessions of a like kind.

It is well known that a great deal of farm labour is of a highly seasonal nature, so that differentiation has been made in this inquiry between permanent and casual employees. Many general hands are, however, employed for part of the year at higher wages than their normal rates; for example, they are frequently paid harvesters' wages at harvest-time, or shed hands' wages at shearing-time. The averages shown in the following table do not take this into account, so that they are in some cases slightly low.

In computing the average wages a distinction has been made between employees receiving board and lodging and those who are not. No attempt, however, has been made to value such additions to wages as free milk, &c., although the percentage of cases in which these extras are given has been computed.

Class of Labour.	Money-wage Rates.
Class of Labour.	Board and Lodging also supplied.		Free Housing.		No Extras.		Per
Agricultural farming—	s.	d.	s.	d.	s.	d.
Ploughmen	42	0	60	0	70	0	Week.
Harvesters	1	10 3/4	..		1	11 1/4	Hour.
General hands	41	0	63	0	69	0	Week.
Dairy-farming—
General hands	38	0	57	0	69	0	Week.
Pastoral farming—
Shepherds	50	0	68	0	..		Week.
Shearers	29	0	..		..		100 sheep shorn.
Musterers	107	0	..		119	0	Week.
Fencers	55	0	..		74	0	Week.
Cooks (station)	68	0	..		..		Week.
Cooks (at shearing-time)	94	0	..		..		Week.
Cowboys	29	0	..		39	0	Week.
General hands	41	0	59	0	74	0	Week.
General—
Married couples (where wife cooks for station hands)	73	0	..		..		Week.

Except in the case of harvesters, shearers, and musterers, whose work is by nature casual—the men moving from station to station—the rates shown are for permanent hands so that the term “ploughmen,” for example, means general hands also qualified to do ploughing. Such occupations as “shepherd,” “cook,” and “cowboy” are of course, special jobs which are carried on permanently and are not seasonal, as are ploughing, mustering, &c. The number of farmers employing fencers is not large, a great deal of this type of work being done on contract. A large amount of dairy-farming is carried on the share-milking system, payment being made by a share in the proceeds of the milk and pigs. Although the rates vary a good deal, no doubt due to special circumstances in individual cases, the usual percentage is one-third of the return from the milk and one-half of the proceeds from the pigs.

Additional perquisites, such as a harvest bonus or a holiday on full pay, were given in many cases; while those receiving housing but not food were allowed, in 97 per cent. of cases, milk and vegetables, or grazing for one or more cows, and a garden. In 53 per cent. of cases meat was also supplied.

HOURS OF LABOUR.

The following table shows index numbers of hours worked in the various industrial groups for 1914 and for each year from 1919 to 1928. The material from which the' index numbers have been compiled has been taken from the awards of the Arbitration Court in most cases; but where hours are not prescribed in the awards reference has been made to the Factories Act and the Shops and Offices Act. The agricultural and pastoral workers group has been omitted from the computations, which cover both male and female employees.

INDEX NUMBERS OF AVERAGE HOURS WORKED, 1914 AND 1919–28.

(Base: Dominion weighted average hours worked in all industrial groups combined, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Industrial Group.	1914.	1919.	1920.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
NOTE.—The index numbers in the above table are comparable both vertically and horizontally.
Food, drink, and tobacco	993	982	958	951	949	943	945	945	945	945	945
Clothing, boots, &c.	928	929	914	905	901	901	901	901	901	901	901
Textiles and weaving	976	976	957	937	934	934	934	934	934	934	934
Building and construction	910	901	902	903	900	900	901	901	901	901	901
Wood-manufacture	951	918	918	914	914	914	917	917	917	917	917
Printing, &c.	978	958	940	892	889	889	890	890	890	890	890
Metal-working and engineering	958	952	922	911	910	908	908	908	908	808	908
Other manufactures	973	966	971	949	947	946	945	945	945	945	945
Mining	958	934	929	898	908	908	920	920	920	918	918
Land transport	1,002	999	999	933	930	929	952	952	952	952	952
Shipping and cargo-working	1,054	1,150	1,110	1,098	1,098	1,098	1,098	1,098	1,043	1,043	1,043
Hotel, restaurant, and other personal service	1,203	1,203	1,152	1,013	982	982	982	982	982	982	982
Miscellaneous	955	960	923	912	901	897	890	890	890	890	890
All industrial groups combined	995	999	979	975	943	942	946	946	941	941	941

The index numbers in the above table being all on a common base, comparisons between movements in the different groups cannot be readily made. The following table brings out the movements in the various groups more clearly, the 1909–13 hours worked in the case of each group being taken as the base in each case for that group. Care must be exercised in drawing inferences from this table; for while horizontal comparisons can be rigorously effected vertical comparisons are of value only for the purpose of indicating which groups have shown the greatest and which the smallest decreases since the base period.

INDEX NUMBERS OF AVERAGE HOURS WORKED, 1914 AND 1919–28.

(Base: Dominion weighted average hours worked in each industrial group respectively, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Industrial Group.	1909–13.	1914.	1919.	1920.	1921.	1922.	1923.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
NOTE.—Vertical comparisons are indicative merely of the relative percentage changes in hours worked in the different industries since the base period, not of the actual respective number of hours worked in the different industrial groups.
Food, drink, and tobacco	1,000	995	985	960	953	951	950	947	947	947	947	947
Clothing, boots, &c.	1,000	997	998	982	972	968	968	968	968	968	968	968
Textiles and weaving	1,000	1,000	1,000	981	960	957	957	957	957	957	957	957
Building and construction	1,000	993	984	985	986	983	983	984	984	984	984	984
Wood-manufacture	1,000	1,000	965	965	961	961	961	964	964	964	964	964
Paper-manufacture, printing, &c.	1,000	1,000	980	961	912	909	909	910	910	910	910	910
Metal-working and engineering	1,000	997	991	959	948	947	945	945	945	945	945	945
Other manufactures	1,000	999	992	997	974	972	971	970	970	970	970	970
Mining	1,000	1,000	975	970	937	948	948	960	960	960	958	958
Land transport	1,000	999	996	996	930	927	926	949	949	949	949	949
Shipping and cargo working	1,000	980	1,069	1,032	1,020	1,020	1,020	1,020	1,020	969	969	969
Hotel, restaurant, and other personal service	1,000	990	990	948	834	808	808	808	808	808	808	808
Miscellaneous	1,000	962	967	930	918	907	903	896	896	896	896	896
All industrial groups combined	1,000	995	999	979	975	943	942	946	946	941	941	941

The outstanding feature of the table is the gradual and almost uninterrupted decline in the index number. The increase recorded between 1923 and 1924 is due almost exclusively to an increase in the hours of labour in certain branches of the Railway service.

The following tables show the index numbers for the various districts. In spite of the fact that certain industries are more or less confined to certain districts and that, consequently, fluctuations arise from this fact alone, the index numbers show remarkably little variation as between district and district.

INDEX NUMBERS OF AVERAGE HOURS WORKED: FOUR PRINCIPAL INDUSTRIAL DISTRICTS, 1914–28.

(Base: Dominion weighted average hours worked for all industrial groups combined, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Year.	Northern Industrial District.	Wellington Industrial District.	Canterbury Industrial District.	Otago and Southland Industrial District.	Dominion Weighted Average.
NOTE.—The index numbers in the above table are comparable both vertically and horizontally.
1914	1,004	1,004	973	987	995
1915	1,006	998	967	982	991
1916	1,003	1,015	962	983	994
1917	1,009	1,018	966	991	992
1918	989	990	950	977	993
1919	1,000	1,006	968	981	999
1920	1,005	1,005	964	987	979
1921	942	957	943	944	975
1922	937	958	930	947	943
1923	936	955	928	946	942
1924	940	958	933	951	946
1925	940	958	933	951	946
1926	934	951	931	946	941
1927	934	951	930	946	941
1928	934	951	930	946	941

INDEX NUMBERS OF AVERAGE HOURS WORKED, BY INDUSTRIAL GROUPS AND DISTRICTS, 1928.

(Base: Dominion weighted average hours worked for all industrial groups combined, 1909–13 = 1000.)

Industrial Group.	Northern Industrial District.	Wellington Industrial District.	Canterbury Industrial District.	Otago and Southland Industrial District.	Dominion Weighted Average.
NOTE.—The index numbers in the above table are comparable both vertically and horizontally.
Food, drink, and tobacco	958	928	935	964	945
Clothing, boots, &c.	895	909	895	904	901
Textiles and weaving	938	936	926	926	934
Building and construction	895	912	895	895	901
Wood-manufacture	919	924	924	907	917
Printing, &c.	888	885	885	910	890
Metal-working and engineering	911	911	902	912	908
Other manufactures	936	924	952	951	945
Mining	905	..	927	936	918
Land transport	952	952	952	952	952
Shipping and cargo-working	1,043	1,043	1,043	1,043	1,043
Hotel, restaurant, and other personal service	976	976	976	1,025	982
Miscellaneous	863	916	909	853	890
All industrial groups combined	934	951	930	946	941

The following table shows the hours worked as at 31st March in each case in certain important occupations selected from the list from which index numbers have been compiled. The figures given are unweighted averages of hours worked in the four principal industrial districts. Details as to individual districts are published in one of the annual statistical reports issued by the Census and Statistics Office.

AVERAGE HOURS WORKED PER WEEK, 1914 AND 1925–29.

(NOTE.—The figures shown relate to the averages of the four principal industrial districts, as at 31st March in the years shown.)

Occupation.	1914.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.
Bakers	48	46	46	46	46	46
Butchers—Shopmen	56	48	48	48	48	48
Butter-factory employees	48	48 1/2	48 1/2	48 1/2	48 1/2	48 1/2
Flour-mill employees	48	48	48	48	48	48
Freezing-works employees	48	44	44	44	44	44
Aerated-water and cordial making employees	46 1/2	46	46	46	46	46
Brewery workers	46 1/4	44 1/4	44 1/4	44 1/4	44 1/4	44 1/4
Tailors	48	44	44	44	44	44
Tailoresses	45	44	44	44	44	44
Boot operatives, male and female	45	45	45	45	45	45
Woollen-mill employees—
Male	48	45	45	45	45	45
Female	48	45	45	45	45	45
Bricklayers	45	44	44	44	44	44
Carpenters	44 3/4	44	44	44	44	44
Joiners	44 3/4	44	44	44	44	44
Plasterers	44	44	44	44	44	44
Plumbers	44	44	44	44	44	44
Sawmill hands	46 1/2	46 1/4	46 1/4	46 1/4	46 1/4	46 1/4
Boatbuilders and shipwrights	47	44	44	44	44	44
Blacksmiths	46 1/4	45	45	45	45	45
Boilermakers	47 3/4	44	44	44	44	44
Tinsmiths	47	44 3/4	44 3/4	44 3/4	44 3/4	44 3/4
Skin and leather workers	48	48	48	48	48	48
Mineral and stone workers	47	47 3/4	47 3/4	47 3/4	47 3/4	47 3/4
Miners (coal)—
Surface	43 1/4	44	44	44	44	44
Underground	43 1/4	43 3/4	43 3/4	43 3/4	43 3/4	43 3/4
Miners (gold)	47 1/2	45 1/4	45 1/4	45 1/4	44	44
Quarrymen	47 3/4	46 3/4	46 3/4	46 3/4	46 3/4	46 3/4
Railway employees—
Engine-drivers and firemen	48	44	44	44	44	44
Guards	48	48	48	48	48	48
Tramway employees — Conductors and motormen	48	48	48	48	48	48
Shipping—
Stewards (at sea)	..	70	70	63	63	63
Cooks (at sea)	..	70	70	63	63	63
Seamen (at sea)	56	51	51	51	51	51
Waterside workers	44	44	44	44	44	44
Hotel workers—
Male	65	48	48	48	48	48
Female	65	48	48	48	48	48
Soft-goods assistants	48	48	48	48	48	48
Warehouse storemen	45 3/4	44	44	44	44	44
Grocers' assistants	52	47	47	47	47	47
Restaurant workers—
Male	61	51	51	51	51	51
Female	52 1/4	48	48	48	48	48

Chapter 38. SECTION XXXVIII.—LEGISLATION SPECIALLY AFFECTING LABOUR.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

WORKERS' COMPENSATION ACT.

PERSONS TO WHOM THE ACT APPLIES.

PERSONAL INJURY BY ACCIDENT.

LIABILITY TO PAY COMPENSATION.

AMOUNT OF COMPENSATION.

PROCEDURE.

WAGES PROTECTION AND CONTRACTORS' LIENS ACT.

INDUSTRIAL CONCILIATION AND ARBITRATION ACT.

LABOUR DISPUTES INVESTIGATION ACT.

FACTORIES ACT.

SHOPS AND OFFICES ACT.

SHIPPING AND SEAMEN.

MINING ACTS.

SCAFFOLDING AND EXCAVATION ACT.

APPRENTICES ACT.

INTRODUCTORY.

AT a very early stage in the economic history of New Zealand, legislative enactments-designed for the protection of the wage-earner and the amelioration of social conditions generally were placed on the statute-book. It is not surprising that such Acts as the Trade-unions Act of 1878 and the Master and Apprentices Act of 1865 found places among the laws of this country so early in its history, since experience in the older countries in a more advanced state of economic development had proved the necessity for a certain amount of State regulation of the terms of the wage contract. But legislators of New Zealand were not content merely to follow in the wake of their more conservative brethren overseas; and we find the State, in its endeavour to improve social conditions generally, not only regulating industry by a rapidly growing code of labour laws but also venturing into the economic field itself when it considered such participation in the public interest. The establishment of a Government Life Insurance Department in 1869 and of a Public Trust Office in 1873, and in later years the establishment of a State Fire Insurance Office, are examples of this.

In addition to the Master and Apprentices Act and the Trade-unions Act, certain sections of other early Acts deal with labour conditions. Section 23 of the Offences against the Person Act of 1867 protected servants and apprentices from ill-treatment by their employers, while a considerable portion of the Shipping and Seamen Act of 1877 regulated conditions of life aboard ship, payment of wages, &c. The Inspection of Machinery Act of 1882 provided for the inspection of machinery in factories, &c., and required that persons in charge of boilers should be properly qualified. An Employers' Liability Act was passed in 1882, this Act legislating in the matter of industrial accidents with the object of mitigating the consequences to the worker without recourse to expensive litigation at common law.

Until recent times factory production was of very minor importance in New Zealand when compared with that of the agricultural and pastoral industries; nevertheless, even in the “eighties” and early “nineties” it was apparent that some of the evils experienced in the early stages of the development of factory production in the older countries already existed in New Zealand; and, during the lean years between 1885 and 1891 (during which period there was an excess of emigration over immigration of about 20,000), the grim spectre of unemployment hovered over the erstwhile prosperous colony. In 1889 it was alleged that “sweating” existed in New Zealand, especially in the clothing trades; and, although a Commission set up to inquire into the matter declared it could find no traces of this evil, a minority report did not fully agree with this view, and it was admitted that conditions were unsatisfactory in various respects.

An important measure affecting labour passed during this period of stress was the Electoral Act of 1889, which established the principle of “one man one vote.” This enactment prevented property-owners with holdings in several electorates from voting in each electorate. The extension of the franchise to women in 1893 ensured, that future Parliaments should be truly representative of the nation as a whole.

The maritime strike of 1890, which caused great distress throughout the country, proved to the trade-unions that they were not sufficiently strong to obtain their demands by direct action; and, at the same time, aroused public interest and caused the Legislature to consider measures designed to prevent the recurrence of such industrial strife in the future. It is not surprising, therefore, to find labour legislation occupying the attention of Parliament during the years immediately following. A brief resume of the enactments affecting labour passed during the period 1890–98 is here given.

The Truck Act of 1891 ensured to the worker the payment of his wages in full in coin of the realm; the Wages Attachment Act of 1895 limited a creditor's right to obtain orders of Court attaching forthcoming earnings; the Factories Act of 1891 provided for the inspection of factories and the regulation of conditions of employment therein; and the Shop and Shop Assistants Act of 1892 provided similarly for the benefit of workers in shops. Trade-unionists, who were protected by an Act passed in 1878 from prosecution for conspiracy by reason merely that they were in restraint of trade, were still further protected by the Conspiracy Law Amendment Act of 1894, which deemed that any act by a union in furtherance of a trade dispute should not be deemed unlawful so as to render such persons liable to criminal prosecution for conspiracy, if such act committed by one person would not be deemed unlawful. This removed a very serious handicap under which unionists up to this time had suffered. The Servants Registry Act of 1895 provided for the inspection of servants registry-offices and regulated the foes charged therein. The Shipping and Seamen Act Amendment Act, 1894, contained, inter alia, clauses improving conditions aboard ship. The Coal-mines Act of 1891 contained, in addition to clauses aiming at the improvement of working-conditions, provision for a fund—to be established by a levy on all coal sold—for the relief of the families of miners killed or injured during the course of their employment. The inspection of accommodation provided for shearers was dealt with in the Shearers' Accommodation Act of 1898, which also gave the Inspectors authority to demand that, where necessary, improvements should be made. The scope of this Act was extended in 1907 to include agricultural labourers and flax and sawmill hands. Other important measures affecting workers passed during these years were the Old-age Pensions Act of 1898, which provided for the payment of a yearly pension to every person (with only a limited number of exceptions) over sixty-five years of age with twenty-five years residence in the country; and the State Advances to Settlers Act of 1894, which, by providing for the advancing of money to settlers on the land, gave the poorer classes an opportunity of acquiring rural holdings.

The most important of the labour laws passed during this period was the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act of 1894, which was designed for the peaceful settlement of industrial disputes by conciliation and arbitration. This Act is dealt with in some detail farther on in this section.

Another interesting experiment brought into operation at this time was the construction of public works under the co-operative system, which was adopted by the Government in 1891. Works such as road and railway formation have been carried out by this system, the plant, explosives, &c., being supplied to the men by the State at cost price or at low hire. A modified form of the system then adopted is still followed in public works construction.

The enactments passed during the period 1890–98 form the nucleus of the labour code at present in force in this country, although in some cases administrative experience has found defects in the working of certain sections of these Acts and rendered subsequent amendments necessary; while the rapid economic development of the country and the growth of new ideas on the subject of labour legislation has led to many additions to the enactments passed during that period. In two important respects the legislation passed in the “nineties” has since been considerably altered. The Factories and Shop Assistants Acts of these years referred in the main to the protection of working women, girls, and boys, the Acts prior to 1901 taking no cognizance of the working-hours of men. Again, later Factories Acts prescribed minimum rates of wages for women and girls, a feature lacking in the earlier Acts. The passing of the Labour Department Act in 1903, giving statutory recognition and powers to the Department of Labour, which had been formed in 1891, was an important milestone in the progress of labour legislation in New Zealand. The duties of the Department are to administer the labour laws and to furnish information in all industrial matters, while power is given to collect statistics with the authority wherewith a commission of inquiry is invested. The annual reports of the Department contain a wealth of information concerning industrial matters in the Dominion.

The question of housing for workers in the larger centres of population has for a long time past presented a difficult problem. In 1905 a Workers' Dwelling Act was passed authorizing the Minister of Labour to erect dwellings to be let to bona fide workers at a rental of 5 per cent. per annum of the capital value of such dwellings, and in the following year a system of advances to workers for the purpose of acquiring homes was instituted. Later statutes dealing with the same subject were the Housing Acts of 1910 and 1919 and the State Advances Act of 1913, which, as amended in 1923, is the now existing law on the subject. Under the latter Act advances to workers, receiving a salary of £300 per annum or under, with an allowance of £25 per annum for each dependant, are made for the purpose of erecting dwellings, while provision is made for repayment in instalments over a maximum period of thirty-six and a half years. Certain sections of the War Legislation Amendment Act of 1916 dealt with house rents; the maximum rent being fixed by statute at 8 per cent. per annum of the capital value of the dwelling, except in cases where the dwelling had been erected, improved, or structurally altered since the commencement of the Great War. Material alterations in the law from 1st August, 1927, were made by the Rent Restriction Act, 1926, which also enacted a repeal of the whole legislation on the subject as from 1st January, 1928. A postponement of the changes to 1st May, 1928, was made by the Rent Restriction Continuance Act, 1927, which kept the rent restriction provisions in force till 1st January, 1929. Two further postponements in respect of the latter have since been made, the date of expiry now standing at 1st August, 1930.

In order to encourage the principle of profit-sharing among workers the Companies Empowering Act was passed in 1924, empowering any company registered under the Companies Act, 1908, to issue labour shares to its employees. Such shares, which are not transferable, have no nominal value, and do not form part of the ordinary capital of the company. Except as otherwise provided, these shares entitle the holders to the same privileges as the ordinary shareholders. The Arbitration Court is empowered to adjudicate as to whether in any particular case the scheme is of benefit to the workers, and if in its recommendation the issue of labour shares is revoked, the shares already issued are to be paid for in cash or capital shares. In the event of an employee leaving his employment or dying, the shares must be surrendered in cash or capital shares to him or to his heirs.

In 1910 an Act was passed establishing a National Provident Fund subsidized by the State; and in the following year the Widows' Pensions Act was placed on the statute-book. In 1926 a scheme of allowances to parents of three or more children was provided for by the Family Allowances Act. Details respecting these enactments-will be found in Section XXV of this book.

With but few exceptions, the labour legislation on the New Zealand statute-book is designed for the protection of individual sections of workers; for example, the Factories Act applies to factory workers, the Shops and Offices Act to employees in shops and offices, the labour clauses of the Shipping and Seamen Act to seamen, and the Coal-mines Act to miners, &c. The Arbitration Act has a wider scope in that awards are made under it covering almost every type of industry carried on in the country. From another point of view, however, it is specific in application, in that only unions registered under the Act come under its provisions, and that each award applies to a particular body of workers in a particular trade and usually in a definite district or locality. Acts like the Workers' Compensation Act are more-general in their application, but it is only such enactments as the Wages Protection and Contractors' Liens Act (which has replaced the old Wages Protection Acts), as well as other statutes on cognate subjects, which are quite general in application. Certain sections of the Bankruptcy Act, which give priority of payment for wages or salaries of workers (with certain limitations as to amount and period) in preference to certain other debts in the case of the bankruptcy of an employer, fall in the same category. Under the Bankruptcy Amendment Act, 1927, wages now take precedence over rents. Under the Companies' Act wages (with the same limitations as under the Bankruptcy Act) are a first claim on the assets of a company being wound up.

In no case do the provisions laid down by any particular labour law cancel the worker's rights at common law; but since, naturally enough, better conditions are laid down by statute than the worker is entitled to at common law, it is unusual to find in these days litigation under the common law affecting master and servant. It sometimes happens, however, notably in workers' compensation cases, that appeal is made at common law instead of under the Act, since there are no statutory limits to the damages which may be obtained at common law.

Since, with the exception of such of the labour statutes as are of general application, no labour legislation exists affecting certain classes of workers—e.g., domestic servants —their relations with their employers are still governed mainly by the common law affecting master and servant.

In the following pages the principal Acts in New Zealand affecting labour are dealt with in some detail.

WORKERS' COMPENSATION ACT.

The present law on the subject of workers' compensation is embodied in the Workers' Compensation Act, 1922, and its amendment of 1926. The principal provisions of this Act are as follows:—

PERSONS TO WHOM THE ACT APPLIES.

“Worker,” for purposes of the Act, means any person who has entered into, or works under, a contract of service or apprenticeship with an employer, whether by way of manual labour, clerical work, or otherwise, and whether remunerated by wages, salary, or otherwise; but docs not include any person employed otherwise than by way of manual labour whose remuneration exceeds £400 per annum. The Act applies only to the employment of a worker under a contract of service or apprenticeship either in and for the purposes of any trade or business carried on by the employer, or in any of the following occupations, most of them hazardous, irrespective of whether or not carried on for purposes of the employer's trade: mining; quarrying; excavation; cutting of standing timber and scrub; clearing land; erection or demolition of buildings and other structures; manufacture and use of explosives; handling power machinery in motion; driving vehicles; domestic service (engagement for not less than three days); and any occupation in which a worker incurs a risk of falling any distances exceeding 12 ft., if the injury to or death of the worker results from such a fall. For purposes of this provision, an employer may have more than one trade or business. In general, persons working as independent contractors are not under contracts of service or apprenticeship, and are consequently not workers. But by way of exception persons who have contracted to perform any work in a gold- or a coal-mine, or to cut standing timber or scrub, or to clear land of stumps or logs, and who do not sublet the contract or employ labour (or who, if they do employ labour, actually perform part of the work themselves), though not “workers,” are yet covered by the Act.

PERSONAL INJURY BY ACCIDENT.

The worker is not entitled to compensation unless ho sustains by accident arising out of and in the course of his employment, and happening within New Zealand or on a New Zealand ship, personal injury incapacitating him from carrying on his occupation. No compensation is payable in respect of any accident as above defined which is attributable to the serious and wilful misconduct of the worker injured, unless the injury results in death or serious and permanent disablement. No compensation is payable in respect of the death of a worker following on, or incapacity resulting from or aggravated by, unreasonable refusal to submit to medical or surgical treatment. Except under certain safeguarding restrictions, “contracting out” is forbidden.

Certain defined diseases are deemed to be personal injuries by accident if they arose within twelve months previous to the date of disablement and are due to the nature of the employment. There is power under the Act for the list of such diseases to he added to from time to time by regulation, as circumstances warrant the adoption of such a course.

LIABILITY TO PAY COMPENSATION.

Generally speaking, the employer is the person liable to pay compensation; and for this purpose “employer” includes any body of persons, corporate or unincorporate, the Crown (with certain minor exceptions), and the representatives of a deceased employer. Where a person (the principal), in the course of and for the purposes of his trade or business, contracts with another (the contractor) for the execution by the latter of work undertaken by the former, a workman employed by the contractor on meeting with an accident may claim compensation from either the principal or the contractor, except in certain cases. If the principal pays, he may, however (with certain minor exceptions), recover the sum paid from the contractor. The principal is not liable, however, unless the accident occurs on or about his land, premises, or ship; or on or about land, premises, or ship, on or in which the principal has contracted to do the work in connection with which the accident happens. Where the injury for which compensation is payable has resulted under circumstances creating a legal liability in some person other than the employer to pay damages in respect thereof, the person by whom the compensation is paid or payable is entitled to indemnification by the person so liable.

AMOUNT OF COMPENSATION.

The Workers' Compensation Amendment Act, 1926, amended the Act of 1922 in the direction of raising the limits of compensation. The compensation payable is now as follows:—

In case of death: Reasonable expenses of medical or surgical attendance, including first aid, and of funeral (maximum £50), less any sums paid by way of compensation for the accident prior to the death of the person injured; but plus—
- Where he leaves total dependants, a sum equal to 208 times his average weekly earnings, or the sum of £300, whichever is the larger, but not exceeding £1,000; or
- Where he leaves partial dependants only, a sum reasonable and proportionate to the injury to those dependants, but not exceeding the sums specified in (a).
In case of injury: At the discretion of the Court, either—
- During total incapacity, weekly payments amounting to 66 2/3 per cent. of the worker's average weekly earnings at the time of the accident (maximum £4 per week; minimum in cases where ordinary rate of pay was not less than £1 10s. per week, £1); during partial incapacity, weekly payments amounting to 66 2/3 per cent. of the difference between the amount of the average weekly earnings before the accident and the average weekly amount which the worker is earning or able to earn in suitable employment or business after the accident, but not exceeding £4 per week; or
- A lump sum equal to the present value at 5 per cent. per annum compound interest of the aggregate weekly payments which, in the opinion of the Court, would probably become payable to the worker under (a).

Weekly payments are not to extend over a longer aggregate period than six years, and the aggregate amount is not to exceed £1,000.

In addition to 2 (a) and 2 (b) above, a sum not exceeding £1 is payable in respect of medical and surgical attendance and first aid to the worker in respect of his injury. No compensation is payable if incapacity lasts less than three days. In the case of certain injuries involving permanent disability (e.g., dismemberment or loss of use), compensation is assessed according to a special scheme representing an aliquot part (varying according to the nature of the dismemberment) of the compensation payable in the case of total incapacity. In the case of injury to workers whose earnings at the date of the accident are low by reason of their being at the time under twenty-one, or of their being apprenticed to a trade, &c., and in certain other specified cases, special provisions exist in order to prevent hardships.

PROCEDURE.

Proceedings under the Act in respect of compensation for injuries are not maintainable by a worker unless written notice of the accident has been given to the employer as soon as possible after its occurrence: though the Court has power to excuse failure, due to reasonable causes, to give that notice, on the part of the person injured, or if it is clear that the absence of such notice has not prejudiced the employer's position. Except where the Court excuses delay resulting from mistake or other reasonable cause, proceedings must be taken within six months of the date of the accident or the date of the last payment of compensation in respect of injury, or the date of the death of the person injured, whichever is the later. Such proceedings are taken in the Arbitration Court; though in certain cases they will be heard in a Magistrate's Court. The Court may accept, admit, and call for such evidence as in equity and in good conscience it thinks fit, irrespective of whether strictly legal evidence or not. Costs lie in the discretion of the Court. There is no right of appeal; but for good cause orders or agreements in respect of compensation may be reviewed and even set aside by the Court at any time.

The right of a dependant who survives a worker to receive compensation for the death of that worker survives the dependant; and compensation can be recovered by the representative of that dependant.

WAGES PROTECTION AND CONTRACTORS' LIENS ACT.

The Wages Protection and Contractors' Liens Act, 1908, is a consolidation of the following statutes: The Truck Act, 1891; the Contractors and Workmen's Lien Act, 1892; the Workmen's Wages Act, 1893; the Threshing-machine Owners' Lien Act, 1895; the Wages Attachment Act, 1895; and the Wages Protection Act, 1899. The consolidated Act guards the interests of workers in several directions, principally in that it secures the regular payment of wages.

In cases of contracts between employers and contractors who employ wages-men, or between contractors and subcontractors who likewise employ wages-men, the Act permits the attachment of moneys in the hands of the employers for the payment of wages in arrear. The person for whom the contract is being performed is deemed to be the employer.

The attachment of a worker's wages for debt is prohibited, except in the case of any surplus exceeding £2 per week. (This, however, has been affected by section 20 of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Amendment Act, 1908, under which, in the case of a penalty for a breach of that Act, the surplus above £1 per week earned by unmarried men may be attached by judgment in a Magistrate's Court.)

The Act prohibits payment for wages being made in goods (truck), or in any other way than in money or by approved cheque; and also prohibits any stipulation as to how the wages-money is to be expended. The truck provisions do not, however, apply where the employer supplies house accommodation, board and lodging, fuel, medical assistance, materials, tools, and the like required for the work, nor to seamen or farm-workers.

A contractor, subcontractor, and any worker is entitled to obtain liens on the lands or chattels of the employer upon giving due notice, and the employer must then retain in his hands sufficient of the contract-moneys to satisfy and guarantee payment of the claimant's dues. This is subject to the limitations stated. For example, the worker's earnings are limited to thirty days' pay, and so long as the employer retains 25 per cent. of the contract-money for the purpose till the expiration of thirty-one days after the completion of the contract the employer is not liable for any further payment; but if any additional amount has not been paid by him to the contractor when a lien is lodged the employer shall retain enough of such amount to meet the lien. When any part of the contract-money has been duly withheld by the employer pursuant to the Act the contractor has no claim on the employer for that money, except so far as that amount is not required for the purposes of the Act. Liens are given priority in the order of workers, subcontractors, and contractors. There are exemptions made in favour of mortgages on the employer's land if registered prior to the lodging of the lien, unless the mortgagee is a party to the contract. In the case of the death of a lien-holder the right passes to his personal representative.

If the cost of threshing a crop is not paid to the workers employed in threshing it the cost of threshing can be made a charge on the proceeds of the realization of such crop.

No deduction from workers' wages may be made for purposes of insurance against compensation for accident.

Liens to be imposed as security for miners' wages or earnings are dealt with under the Mining Act, 1926, and the Coal-mines Act, 1925.

INDUSTRIAL CONCILIATION AND ARBITRATION ACT.

As mentioned earlier in this section, the original Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act was placed on the New Zealand statute-book in 1894. Its object was to encourage the formation of industrial unions and associations, and to facilitate the settlement of industrial disputes by conciliation and arbitration. It provided for the registration as “industrial unions” of societies of workers or employers in the various industrial districts, and, as “industrial associations,” of any council or other body representing any number of such unions; for the making of industrial agreements pursuant to the Act, and the filing of such in the Supreme Court; for the formation of industrial districts, the election of Boards of Conciliation, and the setting-up of a Court of Arbitration.

In 1898 an amendment was passed empowering the Court in its award to prescribe minimum rates of wages, with special provision for a lower rate being paid in the case of workers unable to earn the prescribed minimum. An important amendment was passed in 1903 prohibiting any employer, worker, union of workers, or union of employers from taking proceedings to defeat any of the provisions of an award during its currency. It forbade an employer to dismiss any employee merely because he happened to be entitled to the benefit of an award or merely because he was a member of a union.

In 1905 an amendment was passed providing for the punishment by fine of any employer or worker bound by an award or industrial agreement affecting an industry who takes part in a strike or lockout in that industry. In 1908 an additional penalty was added in the case of certain “public utility” industries, such as gas-manufacture, the supply of milk or meat, tramway services, &c. By this amendment the constitution of Conciliation Boards was altered to provide for the appointment of four Conciliation Commissioners, whose duty it is to call together representatives of employers and employees in the event of a dispute arising, and to sit with these representatives as a Conciliation Council to endeavour to effect a settlement. The decision of the Council is not binding, but disputes must be referred to a Council before they may be referred to the Arbitration Court.

A further amendment in 1911 empowered the Court to make an industrial agreement into an award, provided such agreement does not conflict with an existing award or is not contrary to the public interest. It also provided that recommendations of Conciliation Councils shall become in effect industrial agreements if none of the parties to a dispute disagrees with such recommendations.

The law as it existed in 1925 was consolidated in that year, previous consolidations having been effected in 1900, 1905, and 1908.

In 1927 a Bill was introduced into Parliament to exclude from the jurisdiction of the Arbitration Court the farming industry and certain associated industries. The Bill met with considerable opposition and was not proceeded with. An amending Act was, however, passed, providing that no award relating to any agricultural, pastoral, or dairying operations, or to any other work effected on a farm, or to the manufacture or production of butter, cheese, or other milk products should be made before 1st September, 1928. In the meantime it was arranged that a National Industrial Conference, representative of all interests concerned, should be held to go fully into this and other questions affecting labour and the relationships between employers and employees.

The conference duly met during the Parliamentary recess, and after full discussion came to unanimous agreement on a number of matters, others being left over for further consideration. The provisions of the amendment of 1927 were re-enacted in 1928, another amendment extending for twelve months the period during which awards in the industries mentioned were not to be made, and also providing that no awards in these industries were to be altered or amended in the meantime without the consent of all parties concerned. The provisions referred to lapsed on 1st September, 1929.

A second amendment passed in 1928 permits of industrial agreements and (with the consent of the parties concerned) awards being made for or extended to a term of five years. This amendment also allows of an award or industrial agreement, in lieu of prescribing minimum rates of wages, prescribing a method or basis for calculating minimum rates.

The administration of the Act is in the hands of the Labour Department, and Inspectors of Factories are charged with the duty of seeing that the provisions of awards and agreements are carried out. The following paragraphs indicate the procedure followed in regard to industrial disputes under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act:—

An industrial union (or association of unions) of workers registered under the Act may cite a union or association of unions of employers, or an employer, or a number of employers, before a Council of Conciliation for the hearing of an industrial dispute before a Commissioner and assessors appointed from either side.

An industrial union (or association of unions) of employers registered under the Act, or an individual employer, or employers, may cite a union of workers in a similar manner. The workers may compel any of their employers to come under the Act; but the employers cannot compel their workers to come under it, unless the latter have registered as an industrial union or association thereunder; registration is voluntary.

If an agreement is arrived at and is signed by the parties, it may be filed by any party as an “industrial agreement” and be enforced accordingly; or if the assessors only have signed an agreement—termed a “recommendation” in the Act (which is usually more convenient where the parties are scattered)—that recommendation may be forwarded to the Clerk of Awards, who gives notice of it to the parties. If within the following month no objection is received, the recommendation becomes binding in the same manner as an industrial agreement.

In the event of no agreement or of a partial agreement only being arrived at, the whole matter is referred to the Arbitration Court. After hearing argument upon the matters not agreed upon, the Court makes its award, which becomes binding upon the employers specified in the award, upon any employers commencing business in the district subsequently to the date of the award, and upon all persons working for such employers. In many cases even where a “recommendation” has been arrived at in the Conciliation Council, instead of following the procedure mentioned in the preceding paragraph the parties find it more convenient to have the recommendation made into an award, and, as the Court has no jurisdiction in the case of complete agreement, it has become the practice to disagree pro forma on one or more clauses. This enables the Court to make an award in accordance with the recommendation.

Until a few years ago it was the practice for unions of workers to cite the employers as parties to a dispute, and it was only in very rare cases that the employers took the initiative, but in recent years several cases have occurred where the employers have cited the workers' unions before Conciliation Councils—for example, freezing-workers, cooks and stewards, seamen, watersiders, coal-miners, dairy employees, and shearers.

In all cases where an industrial agreement or accepted recommendation or award is filed it becomes binding on all the parties, and a strike or lockout becomes unlawful. In a few cases the workers concerned have objected to the award, and have struck work rather than accept the conditions fixed.

It is interesting to trace the development of the powers conferred on the Court formed under this Act. The original purpose of the Act—the settlement of industrial disputes by the peaceful methods of conciliation and arbitration—has at no time been lost sight of; but, naturally enough, it has been found necessary from time to time to expand the scope of the awards in order to achieve this object. The 1898 amendment empowering the Court to prescribe minimum rates of wages added very considerably to the powers wielded by the Court; and, indeed, the scope of the awards has widened to include provisions regulating conditions of employment in minute detail. Since the working conditions laid down by the awards are better than those prescribed by the Factories Acts, &c., these Acts have in practice become a dead-letter as affecting workers under the jurisdiction of the Court. In most awards a preference clause is inserted, which gives unionists registered under the Act preference over non-unionists for employment with such employers as are registered as parties to any particular award.

Section 18 of the War Legislation and Statute Law Amendment Act, 1918, empowered the Court to amend during the term of an award or industrial agreement the provisions of the award or agreement, in so far as they related to rates of remuneration or hours of employment. In varying the conditions, the Court was to take into account the movement in the cost of living, and any changes in the special conditions affecting the industry concerned. This measure, which was designed to meet the abnormal conditions caused by the Great War, remained in force till 1923.

In addition to the powers mentioned above, the administration of the Apprentices Act of 1923 is placed in the hands of the Court.

LABOUR DISPUTES INVESTIGATION ACT.

The Labour Disputes Investigation Act, which was passed in 1913, applies to all disputes to which the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act does not relate—viz., where there is no award or industrial agreement or accepted recommendation thereunder in force.

Under this Act, if a dispute concerning wages or other conditions of employment arises between a society or societies of workers, whether registered or not, that are not bound by any award or industrial agreement, and their employers, the society must, before it may strike, give to the Minister of Labour formal notice of the dispute, setting forth the names of the parties to the dispute and the claims made by the society. The Minister then refers the dispute to a Conciliation Commissioner to call a conference, or to a “Labour Disputes Committee” for investigation and recommendation. Such a committee consists of from one to three members chosen from each side, with an independent chairman. In the event of no settlement being arrived at a secret ballot is taken by the Registrar of Industrial Unions among the members of the society as to whether, in the case of no recommendation having been made, a strike should eventuate; or, in the case of a recommendation having been made, as to whether the recommendation should be adopted. Seven days' notice must be given to the employers should a strike be decided upon.

Similar provisions apply with reference to the filing of a dispute and to a lockout by the employers.

In the event of an agreement being arrived at it may be filed with the Clerk of Awards. It is then enforceable in the same manner as an industrial agreement under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act.

By this Act the principle of settlement of industrial disputes by conciliation and arbitration is extended to workers outside the scope of the Arbitration Court, so that definite restrictions on the right to strike or to lockout exist over the whole field of industry in New Zealand. The powers under this Act are not, of course, as far-reaching as those under the Arbitration Act, its main object being that workers or employers should take time for consideration of the points at issue and not precipitate themselves into industrial strife.

FACTORIES ACT.

The original Factories Act, which was passed in 1891, provided for the registration as a factory of any office, building, or place in which three or more persons were engaged in working for hire or reward, in any handicraft, or in preparing or manufacturing articles for trade or sale, and for the inspection of such factories. Other provisions dealt with sanitation in factories, the protection of women and children as regards hours of employment, and the notification of accidents in factories to the inspectors appointed under the Act. No boy under thirteen years of age, or girl under fourteen, was permitted to be employed in any factory. This Act was repealed in 1894, the Act of that year containing several new features, notably provision for the labelling of work sent out from the factory and manufactured in private houses; a forty-eight-hour week was prescribed for women and boys, who were further protected by a clause prohibiting their employment between the hours of 6 p.m. and 7.45 a.m. without the written consent of the Inspector, who was empowered to permit a limited amount of overtime. The definition of a factory was widened to include establishments where two people were employed. In one respect the Act of 1894 compared unfavourably with the previous enactment. Under the 1891 Act women and youths had worked an eight-hour day with a weekly half-holiday; but the 1894 Act, by merely prescribing a forty-eight-hour week, meant that they had, by law, to take a half-holiday at their own expense. Under the 1901 Act this fault was rectified; and, in addition, cognizance was taken of the working-hours of men—the hours being fixed at forty-eight hours per week for men, with a maximum of eight and three-quarter hours per day, and forty-five per week for women and youths, with a maximum of eight and a quarter hours per day. Overtime was permitted with extra payment; but, in the case of women and girls, the number of hours per day and the number of days per year were limited. Boys and girls could not be employed without payment or at a lower wage than 5s. per week. There have been no major amendments since 1901, although the law has been consolidated in 1908 and in 1921–22. The statutory half-holiday for women and girls, which was fixed for Saturday, may be altered to the day fixed for the closing of shops and offices in the district, consequent on a poll of the electors thereof. Before a boy or girl under sixteen may be employed in a factory a certificate of fitness must be obtained, which may be granted by the Inspector, having regard to age, standard of education, and general fitness for employment.

SHOPS AND OFFICES ACT.

The Shops and Offices Act, 1921–22, is a consolidation of former legislation which originated in 1892. The Act regulates the hours of assistants in shops, and provides for the fixing of the hours of closing of shops. Except in certain exempted trades, and in small towns for which later hours are prescribed, work must cease at 6 p.m. on four nights of the week, at 9 p.m. on one night, and at 1 p.m. on the day of the weekly half-holiday. The hours must not in any case exceed forty-eight per week, or nine per day, with the exception of eleven on one day in the week. Limited overtime, to be paid for, may, however, be worked for stocktaking and other special occasions.

In regard to the closing of shops, a weekly half-holiday from 1 p.m. is compulsory, with a few exceptions—e.g., fishmongers and fruiterers. The closing-day is chosen in each district by the local authority, except where it is fixed by a poll of the electors taken on petition of a certain number. Even in the exempted trades a half-holiday must be given to each assistant on a day to he fixed by the occupier.

The closing-hours of shops in any district on the other days of the week have for many years been fixed pursuant to the Act by “requisition” of a majority of the shopkeepers if desired either in the whole of the local district or in any trade in the local district. The hours of closing have been thus determined in very many trades and districts.

In 1920 an amendment of the Act prescribed compulsory closing-hours at 6 p.m. on four days of the week and 9 p.m. on one clay in the well-populated areas, except in certain exempted trades, thus incorporating by statute the closing-hours as already determined by “requisition” in many cases. The Court of Arbitration under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act is also now empowered, when making an award in any trade, to fix not only reduced hours of employment of assistants (which has been done in many trades), but also earlier closing-hours of all shops in that trade in the locality, whether or not assistants are employed therein, with authority to make exemptions in cases of hardship, and this provision has also been acted on.

Each trade in any district may also, by a majority vote, obtain an order of the Minister of Labour prohibiting the sale in such district, during the time the shops in such trade are required to be closed, of the goods the sale of which is comprised in such trade. This is inserted to meet those cases where the trades of various shopkeepers overlap one another, some of whom only are required to close at a certain hour. The provision enabling a majority of the shopkeepers in any trade to fix the closing-hours for that trade applies only to those who are principally engaged therein; if the latter are desirous that other shopkeepers carrying on the trade as a minor portion of their business should cease selling the same goods at the closing-hours fixed they may apply to the Minister in the manner above indicated for an order prohibiting such sales.

The Act fixes a minimum wage of 10s. per week, with as annual increase of not less than 5s. per week until £1 10s. per week is reached. As in the case of factories, higher rates of wages are, in the case of many shop-assistants, fixed by awards or industrial agreements under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act.

All assistants employed in hotels and restaurants are brought under special provisions as to holidays, hours (which must not exceed forty-eight per week nor ten per day), overtime, &c.

The Act also makes provision for the comfort, health, and safety of assistants—, viz., in regard to ventilation, heating, sanitation, hygiene, and seating-accommodation.

An amending Act passed in 1927 contains no departures from the principles adopted in the framing of the principal Act, its main object being the elimination of minor difficulties encountered in the administration thereof. The latest hour at which assistants can be employed is set down under the 1921–22 Act as 9.30 p.m. (except on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve). This limit has been altered to 10.30 p.m. in the case of assistants in restaurants where the business is combined with that of a baker or confectioner. Alterations have also been made as regards the earliest commencing hour of work, this now being 3 a.m. (formerly 4 a.m.) in the case of milkmen, 4 a.m. for bakers and butchers, and 7 a.m. in all other cases, including assistants under sixteen in the three foregoing occupations.

Provision is made for the keeping of a time-table of hours of duty of fruiterers' assistants; and, under certain conditions, shops which sell smoking requisites in addition to carrying on other business may be compelled to close early in the evenings. Vendors of motor spirit or oil are not compelled to observe the limitations as to closing hours, provided that this is the sole business conducted on the premises.

SHIPPING AND SEAMEN.

The law relating to shipping and seamen as laid down by the Shipping and Seamen Act, 1908, and subsequent amendments, contains many provisions designed for the safety of passengers and crew and for the amelioration of working-conditions on board ship. A vast amount of regulation is contained in the Act dealing with matters which do not come under these headings, so that this résumé of its contents by no means covers the whole ground covered by the Act.

Adequate provision is made to ensure competence on the part of the controlling officers of ships. Home-trade steam-ships of 60 tons register and upwards, and home-trade sailing-ships of 100 tons register must carry certificated mates, and such ships of 100 tons register and upwards trading more than 300 miles between terminal ports must have second mates. A foreign-going ship is required to carry two certificated mates. Foreign-going certificated mates are entitled to ship as mates in the home-trade. It is an offence for a master or owner to engage a certificated officer for the purpose only of enabling the ship to clear, and not for the purpose of making the voyage.

Provision is made for issuing certificates of competency to second mates of home-trade ships, and for recognizing as valid in the Dominion certificates of masters, mates, and engineers granted in any part of the British Dominions.

Any master or mate may, at any time, be required by the shipowner or the Minister of Marine to be examined in the sight tests by the Government Examiners.

Further sections dealing with the safety of the ship require the adjustment of compasses to be carried out under regulations made by the Marine Department; and power is given to the Minister to define restricted limits for steamers and for vessels propelled by oil, gas, &c. The Governor-General in Council is empowered to make regulations as to the loading and stowage of ballast, and the loading of grain cargo in bulk. It is an offence to ship wool, flax, tow, or skins in such a condition as to be liable to spontaneous combustion.

As early as 1909 regulations were framed requiring ships registered in New Zealand and carrying passengers to be provided with wireless telegraphy apparatus. In 1922 the scope of this provision was substantially widened by the omission of the words “and carrying passengers,” and in 1924 authority was given to make regulations in this respect covering any class or classes of ships registered in New Zealand, or any class or classes of home-trade ships, whether registered in New Zealand or not. The regulations, which came into force from the 1st January, 1926, apply to all vessels registered in New Zealand and to all home-trade vessels not so registered which are of 1,600 tons gross registered tonnage or over, or which carry more than twelve passengers or more than twenty-five persons. Vessels being towed or plying solely on lakes, rivers, or harbours, or within river or extended-river limits are exempted, and power is given the Minister of Marine to exempt a vessel in cases where compliance is impracticable or the provision of an installation is unnecessary or unreasonable. The regulations define the nature of the installations and service and the number and grade of operators in different classes of vessels, and provide for inspection.

The provisions regarding working-conditions on vessels require, inter alia, that proper sanitary, hospital, and lavatory accommodation, including bathrooms, be provided for the crew, together with an adequate supply of hot water for those employed in connection with the engines, and a minimum of space to be provided in the seamen's quarters is laid down. Masters and officers who assault seamen on the high seas are liable to imprisonment or fine.

Intercolonial in addition to homo-trade ships are made liable to pay the wages, maintenance, and medical expenses of seamen taken ill in the service of the ship for the remainder of the agreement, not exceeding three months, and, in the case of intercolonial ships, if the agreement expires within one month from the commencement of the illness, payment is to be made for one month after the expiry. The illness which entitles a man to the benefits provided for is one which requires medical treatment for fourteen days.

The clearances of foreign-going ships which are required to pay the coastal rate of wages are to be withheld until such wages are paid.

Desertion is defined, and deserters who cannot be dealt with before their ship sails can afterwards be prosecuted by the owner or agent, and copies of the agreement and the entries in the log-book are to be accepted by Courts as evidence. Forfeited wages are to be paid into the Public Account.

It is unlawful for any person other than the owner, master, mate, or engineer of a ship, or a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, to engage or supply seamen for ships, and only such seamen as have a knowledge of the English language are to be allowed to ship.

Intercolonial and home-trade agreements are to be transmitted to a Superintendent of Mercantile Marino within twenty-one days of their expiration.

The law as to inquiries into shipping casualties is on the lines of the Imperial Merchant Shipping Act, and provision is made for rehearings, for Superintendents of Mercantile Marine taking part in such inquiries, and for Magistrates ordering a change of venue. Inquiries are not to be held in Police Courts unless other suitable buildings are not available; and in cases where there has been loss of life but no injury to the ship the inquiries may be held by Coroners.

MINING ACTS.

Owing to the special hazards to which workers in mines are subject, and the technical nature of the work of inspection, conditions of employment in mines are governed by certain sections of the Mining Acts. The Mining Act, 1926, which consolidates no less than fifteen previous enactments on the subject, lays down, inter alia, in considerable detail, regulations governing working-conditions in all mines except coal-mines (to which the Coal-mines Act applies). Inspectors of Mines are appointed, with wide powers towards ensuring safety in mines. The Act requires that a person acting in the capacity of mine-manager of any mine where there are twelve men or more employed at any one time above ground, or six or more underground, must hold a certificate granted after examination by a Board of Examiners empowered under the Act to grant such certificates. Provision is made for proper ventilation in mines; special care is required to be taken in handling explosives; dangerous places must be properly timbered; special regulations are made as to hauling-machinery, &c. No female and no male person under the age of fourteen years may be employed in or about a mine, except in a clerical capacity. The employment of manual labour on Sundays without the previous written consent of an Inspector of Mines is prohibited. Overtime must be paid for any time worked in excess of eight hours a day, counting from the time the miner enters the underground workings until he leaves them. Time worked on Sundays and holidays must be paid for at time-and-a-half rates. All machinery used to supply motive power is subject to the provisions of the Inspection of Machinery Act, 1908, as far as these provisions apply. A sufficient supply of water must be supplied where it is necessary for the laying of dust in a mine. No youth may be employed in a mine for more than eight hours per day or forty-eight hours per week except in cases of emergency.

The Mining Amendment Act, 1927, provides, inter alia, that a mine where twenty men or over are employed on one shift must have two outlets.

Conditions of employment in coal-mines are dealt with in the Coal-mines Act. In general the provisions of this Act resemble those of the Mining Act, though, of course, to combat the special risks of coal-mining additional regulation is necessary. For every coal-mine there must be a duty qualified manager, who must be either the owner of the mine or some person appointed by the owner, and who is responsible for the control, management, and direction of the mine. Inspectors of Coalmines are appointed, who must hold certificates as first-class mine-managers under the Act. Certain sections of the Act deal with the prevention of coal-dust, the use of safety-lamps, the prohibition of work in places where the presence of gas is suspected, and the inspection on the mine before the commencement of work, &c. Suitable housing accommodation must be supplied for workers if required by notice of the Minister of Mines.

A levy of a halfpenny per ton on every ton of marketable coal raised from the mine is made under the terms of the Act, such moneys to form a relief fund for the relief of miners injured in the course of employment and of their dependants in the case of death. Information as to miners' pensions, provided for originally by the Miners' Phthisis Act of 1915, is contained in Section XXV of this book.

By an amending Act passed in 1927 wages for a period not exceeding six months, payable by the owner of a coal-mine in respect of mini/rig operations, constitute an equitable charge on plant and machinery, with priority over mortgages, &c. Proceedings for the enforcement of the charge must be commenced within twelve months.

SCAFFOLDING AND EXCAVATION ACT.

The Scaffolding and Excavation Act, 1922, which superseded the original Act of 1906, makes provision for the protection of workers employed on any building-work, including the erection, alteration, or demolition of a building, and including scaffolding, cranes, gear, &c. The Act also applies to certain excavations made in connection with building-work. For the purpose of enforcement Inspectors of Scaffolding are appointed. Notice of the intention to commence building-work that will involve the risk of a fall of 12 ft. or more, or to make an excavation or set up a crane, must be given to the Inspector. The Inspector is empowered to order work to cease, to brand or destroy unsafe gear, and generally to see that the life and health of workers are safeguarded.

APPRENTICES ACT.

The Apprentices Act, 1923, largely supersedes the Master and Apprentice Act of 1865. The latter Act had become somewhat out of date, and most of the conditions of employment of apprentices had for many years been fixed in awards and industrial agreements under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act. In view of the feeling that the fixing of the conditions of employment of apprentices should not be the subject of an industrial dispute between employers and unions of workers, and that the shortage of apprentices and skilled workers necessitated special attention, the Apprentices Act was passed in 1923. The employment of apprentices is accordingly now controlled by special orders of the Court of Arbitration, acting independently of its powers under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, and by Apprenticeship Committees, the setting-up of which in the various industries and localities is provided for. The Court may delegate many of its powers to these committees, but aggrieved persons have the right of appeal to the Court, whose decision is final.

Power is given to compel employers to take and teach a minimum number of apprentices, in order to ensure as far as possible that the future requirements of the industries may be met. The Act of 1923 restricted employers to a maximum proportion of apprentices to journeymen, but this section of the Act was repealed in 1927.

Full power is given by the Apprentices Act to ensure that both the employers and the apprentices carry out their obligations. These powers include cancellation of apprenticeships, transfer, examination, and technical-school attendance of apprentices, also power to prohibit certain employers from taking apprentices. All contracts of apprenticeship and all voluntary transfers and cancellations of apprenticeships must now be registered, and it is the duty of the District Registrars to sec before registering apprenticeships that the conditions are in accordance with the Act and orders thereunder, and are otherwise just to both parties. There is, however, a right of appeal from their decisions to the Court. The Registrar and District Registrars are also charged with the duty of seeing that the Act and decisions thereunder are generally complied with.

Provision is made to enable employers in intermittent trades, such as building, who perhaps cannot continuously employ apprentices, to take them jointly, in which case they are jointly liable; also to enable adults and others already possessing a knowledge of an industry to enter into apprenticeships under such conditions, other than those generally provided for apprentices, as the committee or Court may approve.

In order to encourage young persons to enter the skilled trades and avoid “blind-alley” occupations, the Act provides for collaboration with the head teachers in the various schools, who are required to watch the progress of the children under their care, and to report to the District Registrars of Apprentices as to the character, aptitude, and attainments of the various children leaving the schools. On receipt of such reports it is the duty of the District Registrars to give such advice as may be in their power to assist the children or their parents or guardians to decide on the most suitable employments. Juvenile employment bureaux also operate free of charge to all parties concerned.

With a view to assisting the Director of Education in shaping the courses of education so that the labour requirements of the various industries of the Dominion may, so far as possible, be met, the Act also provides that the Director shall be apprised from time to time of the number of persons employed in skilled industries, with information as to the prospects of future employment therein.

Chapter 39. SECTION XXXIX.—TRADE-UNIONS.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

UNIONS REGISTERED UNDER ARBITRATION ACT.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF EMPLOYERS.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF EMPLOYERS, 1919–28.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF WORKERS.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF WORKERS, 1919–28.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF WORKERS.—CLASSIFICATION ACCORDING TO NUMBER OF MEMBERS, 1901 AND 1921–28.

INDUSTRIAL AND GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF EMPLOYERS' UNIONS.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF EMPLOYERS AS AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

INDUSTRIAL AND GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF WORKERS' UNIONS.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF WORKERS AS AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

INDUSTRIAL ASSOCIATIONS.

INDUSTRIAL DISTRIBUTION OF ASSOCIATIONS AND UNIONS, 31ST DECEMBER, 1927 AND 1928.

PROPORTION OF UNIONISTS.

INTRODUCTORY.

IN New Zealand dual provision for the registration and protection of unions of employers and workers exists in the Trade-unions Act and the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act.

While special provision is made for the publication of an annual statement showing the numerical strength of the various unions registered under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, no such provision exists in regard to unions registered under the Trade-unions Act. Although returns regarding membership were required under the latter Act, such particulars, in deference to the desire of the unions not to have their affairs made public, were not published. Consequently it is impossible to obtain any data as to the numerical strength of the unions, only the numbers of unions registered being available. Although in 1900 37 unions registered under the Trade-unions Act were on the books, this number dropped to as low as 15 in 1908, and was at the 31st December, 1928, only 25. As no machinery exists for the regular purging of the rolls, a union remains on the books, in spite of its failure to furnish returns, until the Registrar has definite information that such union is defunct. Accordingly, even the data regarding numbers of unions under the Trade-unions Act are not altogether reliable.

UNIONS REGISTERED UNDER ARBITRATION ACT.

It seems fairly evident that the Trade-unions Act has, by reason of the operation of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, fallen largely into desuetude, especially inasmuch as many unions on the rolls under the earlier Act are also registered under the later Act.

Provision was made under section 7, subsection (17), of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act of 1900 (now section 17 of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, 1925), for the furnishing of an annual return showing the number and membership of unions registered under the Act. It is from this return, published in successive issues of the Annual Report of the Department of Labour (parliamentary paper H.-11) that the tables in this section have been compiled. As the powers of the administrator of this Act are considerably wider than was the case in regard to the Trade-unions Act, while the penalties for infringement are at the same time more severe, the roll published in the report is complete.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF EMPLOYERS.

The numbers and memberships of industrial unions of employers registered under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act as at the end of each of the last ten years are shown in the table on the following page.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF EMPLOYERS, 1919–28.

As at 31st March,	Industrial District.								Totals.
As at 31st March,	Northern.	Wellington.	Canterbury.	Otago and Southland.	Taranaki.	Marlborough.	Nelson.	West-land.	Totals.
Number of Unions.
1919	39	30	25	34	6	1	2	2	139
1920	39	35	25	33	6	1	3	2	144
1921	40	35	25	30	5	1	3	2	141
1922	37	33	24	30	6	1	3	2	136
1923	35	33	27	28	6	1	3	3	136
1924	36	31	29	30	5	1	3	3	138
1925	37	31	28	31	8	2	4	4	145
1926	35	29	27	29	8	2	4	3	137
1927	34	30	29	29	7	2	3	2	136
1928	33	29	30	29	7	2	2	2	134
Membership.
1919	1,204	762	2,028	939	111	57	21	24	5,146
1920	1,439	1,082	1,638	999	114	55	33	23	5,383
1921	1,488	1,032	1,669	923	106	56	34	28	5,336
1922	1,301	966	1,651	940	131	57	32	56	5,134
1923	1,490	1,098	1,708	859	129	73	37	89	5,483
1924	1,346	1,032	1,641	900	106	75	36	69	5,205
1925	1,356	1,071	1,596	899	175	73	40	68	5,278
1926	1,437	1,164	1,830	859	173	77	48	57	5,345
1927	1,225	1,058	1,589	925	164	78	25	8	5,072
1928	1,226	1,052	1,572	933	166	72	16	8	5,045

The number of unions of employers and their membership rose gradually to a maximum of 149 unions, with 5,819 members, in 1914, the year following that of the prolonged waterside workers' strike. Since that year many slight ups and downs have been recorded, the membership as at 31st December, 1928 (5,045) being somewhat lower than that for the previous year, and, indeed, the lowest during the last ten years, although the variation has been very slight during the whole of this period.

The figures for the individual districts contain some points of interest. Of the four chief districts, the Northern has the greatest number (33) of unions of employers, Canterbury occupying second position with 30, followed closely by Wellington and Otago and Southland with 29 each. Canterbury has the highest membership, followed by Auckland, Wellington, and Otago and Southland. Prior to 1920 Wellington had consistently the lowest membership among the four principal districts.

Details for years prior to 1919 will be found in the 1927 issue of the Year-book.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF WORKERS.

Industrial unions of workers and their membership are shown in the following table as at the end of each of the last ten years. It should be explained that the “Total” column includes the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants, the Engine-drivers, Firemen's, and Cleaners' Association (from 1922), and the Railway Tradesmen's Association (1928), the figures for which organizations are not included in the district totals.

It should also be emphasized that the statistics cover only unions registered under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, and that all unions are not so registered.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF WORKERS, 1919–28.

As at 31st March,	Industrial District.								Totals.^*
As at 31st March,	Northern.	Wellington.	Cantor-bury.	Otago and Southland.	Taranaki.	Marlborough.	Nelson.	West-land.	Totals.^*
* Including unions of railway employees—not included in figures for any district.
Number of Unions.
1919	98	83	64	88	16	5	10	17	382
1920	101	87	66	96	17	6	13	19	406
1921	103	87	67	98	20	6	15	21	418
1922	103	85	67	99	19	7	13	20	415
1923	105	83	66	101	18	7	13	20	415
1924	103	81	64	100	16	8	14	14	402
1925	104	80	64	98	16	8	13	12	397
1926	98	82	64	100	14	8	13	14	395
1927	100	80	65	100	18	7	14	15	401
1928	100	81	67	100	18	7	13	14	403
Membership.
1919	22,932	21,437	12,425	13,363	809	214	428	3,011	82,553
1920	25,728	25,435	15,010	15,950	1,087	316	611	3,587	96,350
1921	26,914	24,747	15,368	14,815	1,315	348	663	4,054	97,719
1922	26,545	22,320	15,761	14,631	1,350	378	602	3,803	96,838
1923	25,816	21,854	15,249	13,937	1,089	344	560	3,996	94,438
1924	27,656	22,540	15,402	14,430	1,035	363	611	2,821	96,822
1925	28,004	24,495	16,182	15,319	1,463	454	581	2,840	100,540
1926	27,286	23,958	16,721	14,974	1,488	533	571	2,956	99,567
1927	26,079	25,941	17,673	14,912	1,745	495	611	2,483	101,071
1928	26,620	26,112	17,835	14,943	1,816	538	643	2,449	103,980

In drawing inferences from the preceding table allowance must be made for the fact that, as these figures represent the numbers on the rolls of the various unions, a certain amount of duplication takes place, it being quite possible for a worker to be a member of two or more unions at the one time, especially in the case of a casual occupation such as waterside working. It is quite impossible to form any idea as to what extent such duplication takes place; but it is very unlikely that it occurs to such an extent as to affect materially the total figures.

There has been a gradual increase in both numbers and membership of workers' unions during the last decennium, the membership rising from 71,447 in 1918 to 103,980 in 1928. Reference to the detailed table showing particulars for years back to 1900, published in the 1927 issue of the Year-book, reveals the fact that this growing tendency has been steady and practically uninterrupted. The membership rose year by year, without exception, from 17,989 in 1900 to 73,991 in 1914. The membership fell off during the war years, but a phenomenal rise was recorded in 1919, the year immediately following the cessation of hostilities. The total for 1928 is the highest so far recorded.

The number of unions has shown little fluctuation in the last decade. Auckland and Otago and Southland have the greatest number of unions (100 each).

Auckland takes precedence in regard to membership (26,620) with Wellington (26,112) closely following; the two other major industrial districts have each a much smaller membership, Canterbury having 17,835 and Otago and Southland 14,943 members. Westland shows a much higher membership than the other three minor districts, but is still a long way behind any of the four major districts.

In the following table industrial unions of workers are classified according to membership:—

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF WORKERS.—CLASSIFICATION ACCORDING TO NUMBER OF MEMBERS, 1901 AND 1921–28.

Year.	Under 50.	50 and under 100.	100 and under 200.	200 and under 300.	300 and under 500.	500 and under 1,000.	1,000 and under 2,000.	2,000 and under 3,000.	3,000 and over.	Totals.
Number of Unions.
1901	99	43	30	19	5	4	1	1	..	202
1921	139	100	70	36	28	28	11	3	3	418
1922	139	90	66	40	37	25	13	4	1	415
1923	144	81	75	34	41	25	11	3	1	415
1924	135	83	69	35	35	27	14	3	1	402
1925	125	86	66	34	37	29	16	3	1	397
1926	128	80	72	31	33	30	17	3	1	395
1927	127	84	74	27	39	25	20	4	1	401
1928	131	80	77	27	36	27	20	4	1	403
Membership.
1901	2,759	3,018	4,032	4,815	2,073	2,520	1,651	2,900	..	23,768
1921	4,147	7,075	9,708	9,182	11,066	18,527	14,580	7,433	16,001	97,719
1922	3,899	6,434	9,070	9,617	14,385	16,802	16,842	10,216	9,573	96,838
1923	3,738	5,582	10,467	8,162	16,365	17,990	15,440	6,916	9,778	94,438
1924	3,744	5,649	9,951	8,240	13,428	17,489	20,832	7,482	10,007	96,822
1925	3,478	6,048	9,352	8,195	14,522	19,569	22,462	7,697	9,217	100,540
1926	3,587	5,689	10,064	7,516	13,100	20,435	22,850	7,321	9,005	99,567
1927	3,607	5,951	10,213	6,280	15,094	16,723	24,896	9,190	9,117	101,071
1928	3,577	5,663	10,451	6,498	13,966	18,889	26,331	9,619	8,986	103,980
Percentage of Total Membership.
1901	11.61	12.70	16.96	20.26	8.72	10.60	6.95	12.20	..	100.00
1921	4.24	7.24	9.94	9.40	11.32	18.96	14.92	7.61	16.37	100.00
1922	4.03	6.64	9.37	9.93	14.85	17.35	17.39	10.55	9.89	100.00
1923	3.96	5.92	11.08	8.64	17.33	19.05	16.35	7.32	10.35	100.00
1924	3.87	5.83	10.28	8.50	13.87	18.06	21.52	7.73	10.34	100.00
1925	3.46	6.02	9.30	8.15	14.44	19.46	22.34	7.66	9.17	100.00
1926	3.60	5.71	10.11	7.55	13.17	20.52	22.95	7.35	9.04	100.00
1927	3.57	5.89	10.11	6.21	14.93	16.55	24.63	9.09	9.02	100.00
1928	3.44	5.45	10.05	6.25	13.43	18.17	25.32	9.25	8.64	100.00

The steady growth in the average size of industrial unions of workers is brought out in the above table. It is noteworthy that while the actual number of unions has increased from 202 in 1901 to 403 in 1928, an increase of 99 1/2 per cent., the membership has increased from 23,768 to 103,980, an increase of 337 per cent. The increase in membership in unions containing 300 members and over is particularly marked.

INDUSTRIAL AND GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF EMPLOYERS' UNIONS.

In the next table industrial unions of employers are classified as to both numbers and membership according to their distribution in industries and in districts.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF EMPLOYERS AS AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

Industrial Group.	Industrial District.
Industrial Group.	Northern.	Wellington.	Canterbury.	Otago and Southland.	Taranaki.	Marlborough.	Nelson.	Westland.	Totals.
Number of Unions.
Food, drink, &c.	6	1	3	5	..	..	..	..	15
Clothing, boots, &c.	4	2	3	2	1	..	1	..	13
Textiles and weaving	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Building and construction	5	10	6	6	1	..	..	..	28
Wood-manufacture	3	3	3	2	..	..	..	..	11
Paper - manufacture and printing	3	2	4	1	1	..		..	11
Metal-works and engineering	3	2	2	1	..	..	..	..	8
Other manufactures	..	..	1	2	..	..	..	..	3
Mining, &c.	1	..	..	2	..	..	..	1	4
Agricultural and pastoral	2	2	3	2	1	1	..	..	11
Land transport	1	1	1	1	..	..	..	..	4
Shipping and cargo-working	3	2	2	2	1	1	1	1	13
Hotels, restaurants, &c.	2	..	1	..	1	..	..	..	4
Miscellaneous	..	4	1	3	1	..	..	..	9
Totals	33	29	30	29	7	2	2	2	134
Membership.
Food, drink, &c.	233	27	122	109	..	..	..	..	491
Clothing, boots, &c.	175	41	38	15	18	..	10	..	297
Textiles and weaving	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Building and construction	208	388	350	283	19	..	..	..	1,248
Wood-manufacture	75	50	38	11	..	..	..	..	174
Paper - manufacture and printing	77	32	31	7	11	..	..	..	158
Metal - works and engineering	75	20	37	28	..	..	..	..	160
Other manufactures	..	..	11	37	..	..	..	..	48
Mining, &c.	1	..	..	6	..	..	..	1	8
Agricultural and pastoral	170	343	730	228	60	66	..	..	1,597
Land transport	25	80	18	39	..	..	..	..	162
Shipping and cargo-working	13	25	26	14	7	6	6	7	104
Hotels, restaurants, &c.	174	..	116	..	11	..	..	..	301
Miscellaneous	..	46	55	156	40	..	..	..	297
Totals	1,226	1,052	1,572	933	166	72	16	8	5,045

The most noteworthy feature of this table is the extremely high membership of unions of agricultural and pastoral employers. As will be seen from the tables immediately following, this is in marked contrast to the position respecting unions of workers, a position due no doubt to the fact that a large number of small farmers belong to the employers' unions. The workers, on the other hand, are almost entirely seasonal workers, especially in the case of the majority of those unionized—viz., the shearers and the threshing-mill employees. In these cases the workers travel round and work for several employers in the one season.

It is worthy of note that the Canterbury District, while lower than both Auckland and Wellington in respect of number of unions of employers, has actually the highest number of members. This is due to the facts mentioned in the preceding paragraph, 730 out of a total of 1,572 members belonging to the “Agricultural and pastoral” group. The number of members of unions of employers in the building trade is particularly high in all the major districts, the highest membership (388) being recorded in the Wellington District.

INDUSTRIAL AND GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF WORKERS' UNIONS.

Similar information to that given on the preceding page for industrial unions of employers is now given for workers' unions.

INDUSTRIAL UNIONS OF WORKERS AS AT 31ST DECEMBER, 1928.

Industrial Group.	Industrial District.
Industrial Group.	Northern.	Wellington.	Canterbury.	Otago and Southland.	Taranaki.	Marlborough.	Nelson.	Westland.	Totals.
* Including 3 unions of railway employees, with a total membership of 13,024.
Numbers of Unions.
Food, drink, &c.	12	9	10	12	4	1	1	..	49
Clothing, boots, &c.	4	3	4	7	..	..	..	1	19
Textiles and weaving	2	2	2	3	..	..	..	..	9
Building and construction	12	19	14	13	3	..	..	2	66
Wood-manufacture	5	5	4	6	2	..	..	1	23
Paper - manufacture and printing	5	4	3	6	..	..	1	1	20
Metal - works and engineering	9	5	4	8	1	..	..	1	29
Other manufactures	7	7	5	7	1	..	..	..	28
Mining, &c.	4	..	..	6	..	..	..	1	12
Agricultural and pastoral	1	1	3	4	..	2	..	..	11
Land transport	4	7	4	5	2	1	..	1	28^*
Shipping and cargo-working	15	8	3	5	1	1	1	2	36
Hotels, restaurants, &c.	5	1	2	2	1	1	1	1	14
Miscellaneous	15	10	9	16	3	1	2	3	59
Totals	100	81	67	100	18	7	13	14	403^*
Membership.
Food, drink, &c.	2,559	3,832	2,468	1,761	730	88	21	..	11,459
Clothing, boots, &c.	2,077	674	1,643	1,199	..	..	..	24	5,617
Textiles and weaving	147	590	358	753	..	..	..	..	1,848
Building and construction	3,916	4,502	3,101	2,230	150	..	135	58	14,092
Wood-manufacture	1,102	817	635	1,113	43	..	..	1,134	4,844
Paper - manufacture and printing	826	934	550	615	..	..	6	30	2,961
Metal - works and engineering	2,337	1,586	1,307	1,142	90	..	42	45	6,549
Other manufactures	654	341	268	321	35	..	108	..	1,727
Mining, &c.	1,807	..	..	382	..	..	14	347	2,550
Agricultural and pastoral	820	1,651	2,579	1,083	..	275	..	..	6,408
Land transport	628	1,941	1,404	907	119	17	90	20	18,150^*
Shipping and cargo-working	3,169	4,744	904	1,225	200	55	88	273	10,658
Hotels, restaurants, &c.	3,106	2,140	1,639	710	253	69	57	260	8,234
Miscellaneous	3,472	2,360	979	1,502	196	34	82	258	8,883
Totals	26,620	26,112	17,835	14,943	1,816	538	643	2,449	103,980^*

The highest numbers of unions registered in single groups are found in the groups “Building and construction” (66 unions) “Miscellaneous” (59 unions), and “Food, drink, &c.” (49 unions). The greatest number of workers on the rolls, however, is found in the group “Land transport” (18,150 members), followed by the group “Building and construction” (14,092 members). Unionism has not advanced to any great extent among workers in agricultural and pastoral pursuits, the fact that the workers are widely scattered no doubt being largely responsible. In fact, the shearers' unions are the only important unions in this class of employment. The group “Other manufactures” has the lowest actual number of unionists (1,727), but this is no doubt due to the fact that the industries covered by this group account for only a small proportion of wage-earners in New Zealand.

The group “Land transport” includes members of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants, of the Engine-drivers', Firemen's, and Cleaners' Association, and of the Railway Tradesmen's Association, totalling 13,024 workers, all of whom are registered under the Act. The total of 14,092 for the building trade must be regarded as very high for an industry with such widely scattered branches and activities. The unions under the head of “Shipping and cargo-working” have an aggregate membership of 10,658. As will be seen in a later table, this group has the highest percentage of registered unionists to total wage-earners.

Excluding the railway employees, the Northern Industrial District contains the greatest number of registered unionists (26,620), followed by Wellington (26,112). The Westland Industrial District has considerably more registered unionists than other minor districts, the cause being the relatively large number of registered unionists in the saw-milling industry in that district.

INDUSTRIAL ASSOCIATIONS.

At 31st December, 1928, there were 13 industrial associations of employers and 35 of workers, the former having 73 affiliated unions and the latter 239. The following summary shows, for the years 1927 and 1928, the number of industrial associations of employers and workers in each industrial group, with the number of affiliated unions in each case.

INDUSTRIAL DISTRIBUTION OF ASSOCIATIONS AND UNIONS, 31ST DECEMBER, 1927 AND 1928.

Industrial Group.	Employers.				Workers.
	Associations.		Affiliated Unions.		Associations.		Affiliated Unions.
	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.	1927.	1928.
Food, drink, &c.	1	1	2	2	5	4	22	17
Clothing, boots, &c.	1	1	4	4	2	2	12	14
Textiles and weaving	..	..	..	..	1	1	5	5
Building and construction	3	3	26	24	6	5	60	56
Wood-manufacture	2	2	12	8	3	3	14	15
Paper-manufacture and printing	2	2	15	15	3	3	13	15
Metal-works and engineering	1	1	4	4	3	3	21	19
Other manufactures	..	..	..	..	..	1	..	4
Agricultural and pastoral	1	1	4	4	1	1	2	2
Land transport	..	..	..	..	2	2	16	16
Shipping and cargo-working	1	1	10	10	4	4	31	30
Hotels, restaurants, &c.	..	..	..	..	1	1	9	9
Miscellaneous	1	1	2	2	5	5	37	37
Totals	13	13	79	73	36	35	242	239

The building and construction group is seen to have the largest number of affiliated unions of both workers and employers. In the group covering paper-manufacturing and printing a peculiar position is disclosed, in that the number of affiliated unions of employers is not only equal to the corresponding number of workers' unions, but actually exceeds the total number of registered unions of employers. Presumably some unions are affiliated with both of the associations of employers in this industry.

PROPORTION OF UNIONISTS.

The following table, showing the proportion of workers belonging to unions registered under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act to the total number of wage-earners in the country, is of interest as manifesting the movement in unionism during the period under review, with a rough idea of its extent. It must be remembered that the figures given for total wage-earners at the census include professional and business classes in which unionism does not exist, and agricultural and pastoral employees where it is practically non-existent. Moreover, females are included in both sets of figures, and the proportion of women unionized is always small.

Year.	Total Wage-earners.	Year.	Number of Workers on Rolls of Registered Unions.	Percentage of Wage-earners on Rolls of Registered Unions.
1901 (March)	224,346	1900 (December)	17,989	8
1906 (April)	269,039	1905 (December)	29,869	11
1911 (April)	304,272	1910 (December)	57,091	19
1916 (October)	302,161	1916 (December)	71,587	24
1921 (April)	370,692	1920 (December)	96,350	26
1926 (April)	414,673	1925 (December)	101,071	24

This table gives some idea of the increase in the proportion of wage-earners belonging to registered unions during the period under review; but perhaps a better idea can be gained from the following table, where index numbers are employed to show the movement since 1901, the totals on the rolls being adjusted to make allowance for the increases in the number of wage-earners.

Census Year.	Index.
1901	100
1906	137
1911	234
1916	295
1921	324
1926	304

The following table shows the percentage of registered unionists to total wage-earners in several industrial groups. The idea given is only approximate, in that the groups do not exactly coincide in some cases; in fact, the group “Miscellaneous” was omitted altogether, in view of the heterogeneous nature of the constituent industries in the group.

Industrial Group.	Wage-earners (Census, April, 1926).	Number on Rolls of Registered Unions, 31st December, 1925.	Percentage of Wage-earners on Rolls of Registered Unions.	Corresponding Percentage 1921.
Food, drink, &c.	19,054	11,696	61	65
Clothing and drapery manufacture	16,314	6,061	37	43
Textiles and weaving	4,844	1,896	39	47
Building and construction	22,822	14,739	65	54
Sawmilling, forestry, &c.	14,111	6,067	43	36
Paper - manufacture and printing	7,319	2,726	37	36
Metal-working and engineering	16,017	5,863	37	47
Other manufactures	12,366	1,948	16	19
Mining and quarrying	8,106	3,215	40	54
Agricultural and pastoral	52,010	2,903	6	3
Hotels, restaurants, &c.	43,059	7,859	18	24
Land transport	28,499	16,103	57	54
Shipping and cargo-working	16,146	10,821	67	85

The highest proportions of unionists are shown by the groups “Shipping and cargo-working,” “Building and construction,” and “Food, drink, &c.,” with 67, 65, and 61 per cent. respectively in 1926. Agricultural and pastoral workers, who covered the huge total, comparatively speaking, of 52,010 workers, had only 2,903, or 6 per cent., of their number on the union rolls.

Comparison of the percentage of unionists to total wage-earners in the various groups in 1921 and 1926 brings out some interesting features. The proportion of unionists in the group “Shipping and cargo-working” has fallen from 85 per cent. to 67 per cent. It still, however, retains its position as the highest group. “Mining and quarrying” also shows a considerable drop, the cancellation of registration of some unions of West Coast miners being responsible for this decrease. “Building and construction” shows a large increase.

Chapter 40. SECTION XL.—EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

EMPLOYMENT BUREAUX OF LABOUR DEPARTMENT.

ACTIVITIES OF LABOUR DEPARTMENT'S EMPLOYMENT BUREAUX, BY DISTRICTS, MIDDLE WEEK OF EACH QUARTER, 1925–29.

ACTIVITIES OF LABOUR DEPARTMENT'S EMPLOYMENT BUREAUX AND APPLICANTS REMAINING ON THE BOOKS, BY DISTRICTS, MIDDLE WEEK OF EACH MONTH, FROM JANUARY, 1928.

UNPLACED APPLICANTS, SEPTEMBER, 1921 – SEPTEMBER, 1929.

GOVERNMENT EMPLOYMENT BUREAUX. — APPLICANTS ON REGISTER ON 10TH SEPTEMBER, 1928, AND 9TH SEPTEMBER, 1929.

GOVERNMENT EMPLOYMENT BUREAUX.—APPLICANTS ON REGISTER, FIRST COMPLETE WEEK OF EACH MONTH FROM SEPTEMBER, 1928, TO SEPTEMBER, 1929.

UNEMPLOYMENT RELIEF.

CENSUS STATISTICS OF UNEMPLOYMENT.

SICKNESS, ACCIDENT, OR INJURY.

LACK OF EMPLOYMENT.

SICKNESS, ACCIDENT, OR INJURY.

LACK OF EMPLOYMENT.

STATISTICS OF UNEMPLOYED AS ESTIMATED BY INDUSTRIAL UNIONS.

UNEMPLOYMENT AS ESTIMATED BY INDUSTRIAL UNIONS.

INTERNATIONAL COMPARISON OF PERCENTAGES OF UNIONISTS UNEMPLOYED.

SEASONAL FLUCTUATIONS IN EMPLOYMENT.

FACTORY AND BUILDING INDUSTRIES.

MONTHLY EMPLOYMENT, BY INDUSTRIES, 1927.

MONTHLY EMPLOYMENT, BY PROVINCIAL DISTRICTS, 1927.

PUBLIC WORKS.

LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

INTRODUCTORY.

EXCEPT for occasional returns relating to State unemployment relief which were presented to Parliament from time to time, practically no direct statistical evidence as to the extent of unemployment in New Zealand prior to 1892 is available, but the statistics of external migration provide figures bearing indirectly on the matter; while further evidence on the employment situation is available from sundry non-statistical sources of history.

In general, as was natural in a newly settled country, labour was more or less chronically in short supply during the early years of settlement. Unemployment, however, is, on the other hand, well known to have been acute in the middle and late “sixties,” owing to the paralysing effect of the Maori wars in the North and the collapse of the alluvial gold booms in Otago and Westland. At no time, however, during the depression of the late “sixties” does there appear to have been any unemployment among females; the dearth of domestic assistance having been a matter of comment in the House at the depths of the 1868 depression. With the inauguration at the beginning of the “seventies” of the Vogel policy of public works and assisted immigration, employment was available for large numbers of new arrivals; but, mainly owing to the highly seasonal nature of the demand for labour in connection with the grain crops (at that date relatively more important in New Zealand than now), it was soon found necessary so to arrange passages that few immigrants arrived in the colony during the winter months, and so to draft the programmes of public-works construction that additional labourers were taken on at that season. At the beginning of the “eighties” scarcity of funds for the prosecution of public works necessitated, along with other considerations, the checking for a space of the stream of assisted immigrants. By 1883 the position had materially improved; but unemployment once more became serious in the late “eighties” and early “nineties,” mainly owing to the fall in the prices that New Zealand's products (notably wool) were fetching in the world's markets, and to a further slackening of the rate of prosecution of public works. During both of these periods the unemployment position was so acute as to be responsible for a considerable exodus of male population to Australia and elsewhere.

Statistics of State relief afforded to unemployed work people at different dates lack comparability owing to changes in the conditions under which relief has been granted. While the statistics may show for any given date the actual number of unemployed who have been in receipt of relief, they do not show (nor can they reasonably be expected to show) the percentage which that number represents of the working population covered. They certainly measure the effort made by the authorities to relieve unemployment where no adequate system of unemployment insurance is established. They rarely, however, provide continuous information spread over a long series of years, for on the cessation of the circumstances which have called forth the measures of relief they naturally automatically cease. The mere existence of such figures from time to time in the past in New Zealand must be regarded as symptomatic of unfavourable conditions as regards employment; and in this respect they are sometimes of value when information on the subject is not readily available from other sources.

According to monthly figures published in order to show the numbers of persons employed on relief works (mainly road and railway construction) it would appear that the most acute position in the late “eighties” was reached during August or September, 1888, there being at the end of the former month no fewer than 727 persons so employed. Seasonal demands for labour in private employment were thereafter responsible for activities on the relief works being gradually relaxed. By the end of April, 1889, the figure had fallen to 117; and, although it rose again (under seasonal influences) to 247 by the end of September of that year, the need for relief works had passed away by February, 1890. Nevertheless, with the continued fall in the prices of New Zealand produce in the world's markets, and with the contraction of public-works expenditure, particularly in the South Island, consequent on the exhaustion of external loans, the position again became acute in the winter of 1891, and it was this depression which was mainly responsible for the coming into being of the Labour Department on the 1st day of June in that year.

EMPLOYMENT BUREAUX OF LABOUR DEPARTMENT.

The creation of the Labour Department in 1891 has not only assisted to deal with the problem of unemployment, but has been the means of useful statistical data being obtained and recorded. The figures relating to the activities of the Employment Bureaux of the Department do not show the full volume of unemployment, but they may safely be regarded as roughly symptomatic of the general unemployment situation, rising when unemployment increases and falling when it decreases, though not necessarily in the same mathematically rigorous proportion. For example, the extent to which there is duplicate registration of an unemployed person with the State and with private bureaux probably varies considerably with the condition of the labour-market; as does also the extent to which jobless men avail themselves of different means of getting into touch with manless jobs—viz., employment agencies, “want ads,” direct application at the job, &c.

The following table shows the numbers of the unemployed assisted to employment from year to year by the Labour Department, The figures exclude the operations of the Women's Employment Branch of the Department, which was twice created (not under identical names) on those somewhat rare occasions when there has been a dearth of employment for women, and twice discontinued as urgency passed:—

Year ended 31st March,	Number assisted.
1892	2,593
1893	3,874
1894	3,371
1895	3,030
1896	2,871
1897	1,718
1898	2,035
1899	2,115
1900	2,147
1901	3,124
1902	1,830
1903	3,704
1904	2,860
1905	3,130
1906	6,712
1907	7,393
1908	6,305
1909	10,391
1910	8,506
1911	7,102
1912	5,735
1913	5,848
1914	5,645
1915	7,515
1916	5,978
1917	2,966
1918	2,952
1919	3,199
1920	4,205
1921	3,364
1922	4,989
1923	3,987
1924	3,877
1925	3,890
1926	3,397
1927	10,268
1928	15,246
1929	17,271

The fluctuations revealed by the figures in past years seem to be closely bound up with the success of the local harvest (the grain crops were relatively much more important factors in the total economy of New Zealand twenty or thirty years ago than they are to-day); with the prices realized by New Zealand's export produce in the world's markets; with the loan funds available for the construction of public works; and with the volume of male net immigration. Thus the high unemployment figures of 1893–95 corresponded with the world-wide depression then prevailing; with a consequent fall in the prices realized by New Zealand's export products, notably kauri-gum, and, to a lesser degree, wool; with resulting local bank failures, causing widespread difficulties in commercial and industrial circles; with the stoppage of the Midland Railway works; also with a wave of immigration from Australia, where industrial conditions were apparently even more acute.

About 1894–95 the world prices of New Zealand's principal exports ceased to fall, and later began to rise, while already for some years the commercial success of refrigeration had been enabling a considerable export trade in frozen meat and dairy-produce to be built up. By 1896 the unemployment situation was greatly relieved, and the previously familiar countryside spectacle of “swaggers” had almost ceased for the time being to exist. The North Island gold boom of 1897 further helped matters, though with its collapse in the following year, synchronizing with a temporary slump in the price of wool, something in the nature of a set-back occurred.

The high figure for 1900–01 may have been partly due to dislocations brought about by the Boer War; it is probably, however, largely fictitious, this year having been one of greatly increased activity in connection with the prosecution of the North Island Main Trunk, the Otago Central, the Midland, the Cheviot, the Kawa-kawa, the Stratford-Ongarue, and other railways, and persons seeking employment on such works as artisans and labourers were obliged to register with the Labour Department. The increased figures for 1902–03 and following years may be ascribed to a collapse of the dredging boom in Otago, with its consequent adverse reactions on the Dunedin engineering trades; to a wave of immigration following droughts in Australia in 1903 and 1904, and to further similar waves in 1906 and in 1908: these factors apparently being sufficient to outweigh the effects of a now rapidly rising export price-level. The high figures for 1908–09 are partly a reflex, too, of the Wall Street panic of 1907 and the consequent shortage of purchasing-power in the hands of New Zealand's customers. They also followed an especially serious fall in the demand for phormium-fibre, and the throwing-out of employment of many labourers and artisans on the completion in 1908 of the North Island Main Trunk Railway.

The great improvement in the unemployment situation between 1891–92 and 1904–05 is reflected by the fact that the average duration in months of unemployment fell from 2.4 in 1891–92 to 1.8 in 1893–94. By 1895–96 it had temporarily risen to 2.0; but it fell again, at first rapidly and then more slowly, to 1.3 in 1900–01 and 1901–02. In 1902–03 it was 1.4; in 1903–04, 0.8; and in 1904–05, 0.7.

On the outbreak of the Great War many firms adopted a policy of rigorous retrenchment, and private building came almost to a standstill, with the result that applications for employment increased rapidly till a maximum was attained in September, 1914. Among building artisans and labourers, especially in the South Island, unemployment was particularly rife. The position was relieved by the establishment of relief works of a public character in the chief and secondary centres of population, in many instances by the municipal authorities. After September the position quickly improved, as a result of an increased seasonal demand for labour; through the removal of much labour-power to military service; through war-begotten demands for increased supplies of clothing, boots, saddlery, and the like; through a considerably augmented demand for labour in connection with the fitting-out of troopships; &c. The shortage of labour then ushered in continued till about the end of 1920; but after that date over-importation and consequent financial stringency (due partly to a fall in the export price-level) were responsible for a serious slump. At the 24th June, 1922, there were 1,825 unfilled applications still remaining on the books of the Labour Department. The position was relieved by the provision of employment on public works of secondary importance, which otherwise, in accordance with the post-war policy of “concentration” in public-works construction, would have been obliged to wait their turn for a few years—especially on railway-works.

Early in 1926, in consequence of a sharp fall in the prices of New Zealand's principal primary products, unemployment began to make itself felt again, and during the winter of that year was particularly acute, in spite of the steps taken by the General Government, local authorities, and private organizations to provide work as referred to later. The state of affairs ushered in 1926 still largely remains, and indeed the peak week has reached successively higher points during 1927, 1928, and 1929.

The following table shows the position at quarterly intervals commencing with the second quarter of 1926. The highest levels (in heavy type) for each year are also included.

ACTIVITIES OF LABOUR DEPARTMENT'S EMPLOYMENT BUREAUX, BY DISTRICTS, MIDDLE WEEK OF EACH QUARTER, 1925–29.

Week ended	Number of Placements during Week.	Number of Placements in Government Employment included in Foregoing.	Applications still pending at End of Week.
Week ended	Number of Placements during Week.		Auckland.	Wellington.	Christchurch.	Dunedin.	Other Branch Offices.^*	Total.^*
* During April, 1927, several now offices were created; consequently the comparison is slightly affected.
16 Feb., 1925	67	10	120	90	15	9	63	297
18 May, 1925	35	1	171	98	23	32	98	422
27 July, 1925	66	3	200	115	274	38	165	792
17 Aug., 1925	96	24	181	91	60	14	105	451
16 Nov., 1925	72	17	214	58	32	19	99	422
15 Feb., 1926	57	4	186	99	48	35	98	466
17 May, 1926	52	7	263	130	55	69	194	711
21 June, 1926	317	142	837	313	262	203	632	2,247
16 Aug., 1926	239	64	639	278	341	255	302	1,815
15 Nov., 1926	134	59	621	234	132	181	177	1,345
21 Feb., 1927	190	96	546	299	255	183	223	1,506
16 May, 1927	206	104	629	328	338	185	518	1,998
8 Aug., 1927	632	271	823	344	405	229	1,109	2,910
15 Aug., 1927	533	208	806	377	376	249	890	2,698
21 Nov., 1927	247	48	551	331	235	251	379	1,747
20 Feb., 1928	380	113	1,027	590	292	218	660	2,787
21 May, 1928	343	288	1,000	494	355	251	1,020	3,120
4 June, 1928	316	185	960	494	548	283	1,129	3,414
20 Aug., 1928	274	155	826	328	440	157	785	2,536
19 Nov., 1928	241	104	653	327	398	129	396	1,903
18 Feb., 1929	391	245	1,033	347	307	188	554	2,429
20 May, 1929	386	222	1,151	421	558	262	996	3,388
8 July, 1929	262	91	1,149	433	620	269	1,425	3,896
19 Aug., 1929	427	282	830	473	676	178	784	2,941

It must be stressed that every care is taken to enable those out of employment to register at the various bureaux, with the object of assisting them to suitable work. Postal applications are received by the Labour Department's officers, and the publicity given to this phase of the Department's work has caused many of those who would have sought other avenues of assistance to register with the Department.

It should be mentioned that in the compilation of the statistics care is taken to exclude from the figures of applications remaining on the books all cases of applicants for employment from whom the Department of Labour has not heard for fourteen days; it being assumed that such applicants have obtained employment through other means, such as private employment bureaux, newspaper advertisements, the good offices of friends and relatives, &c.

A second table shows the position during the middle week of each month from January, 1928, onwards.

ACTIVITIES OF LABOUR DEPARTMENT'S EMPLOYMENT BUREAUX AND APPLICANTS REMAINING ON THE BOOKS, BY DISTRICTS, MIDDLE WEEK OF EACH MONTH, FROM JANUARY, 1928.

Middle Week of	Number of New Applications for Employment during Week.	Number of Placements during Week.	Number of Placements in Government Employment included in Foregoing.	Number of Applications renaming on Books at End of Week.
Middle Week of	Number of New Applications for Employment during Week.	Number of Placements during Week.		Auckland.	Wellington.	Christchurch.	Dunedin.	Other Branch Offices.	Total.
1928.
January	915	254	56	671	402	312	168	465	2,018
February	1,288	380	113	1,027	590	292	218	660	2,787
March	820	423	215	845	364	268	244	715	2,436
April	1,028	222	137	817	351	308	197	861	2,534
May	1,023	343	288	1,000	494	355	251	1,020	3,120
June	1,348	452	236	818	440	491	311	1,253	3,313
July	1,049	417	173	678	382	590	289	1,130	3,069
August	915	274	155	826	328	440	157	785	2,536
September	802	288	150	824	342	458	168	500	2,292
October	761	289	125	727	395	500	137	519	2,278
November	712	241	104	653	327	398	129	396	1,903
December	826	304	62	733	337	342	198	284	1,894
1929.
January	920	395	221	912	396	403	245	520	2,476
February	911	391	245	1,033	347	307	188	554	2,429
March	1,008	284	132	991	441	364	279	715	2,790
April	1,218	212	95	1,031	475	467	199	1,039	3,211
May	1,167	386	222	1,151	421	558	262	996	3,388
June	1,378	399	109	1,076	369	597	322	1,067	3,431
July	1,225	384	179	1,073	455	678	257	1,387	3,850
August	994	427	282	830	473	676	178	784	2,941
September	995	416	187	825	341	600	161	681	2,608

The numbers of applications remaining on the books from time to time since September, 1921, are next shown in the form of a curve, which shows the movement at a glance. The diagram which is based on the figures at the end of the middle week of the successive months, shows clearly how the peak has risen higher in each successive year since unemployment became pronounced in 1926.

UNPLACED APPLICANTS, SEPTEMBER, 1921 – SEPTEMBER, 1929.

A marked seasonal fluctuation will be observed. The number of unplaced applicants is always lowest during the summer portion of the year, mainly owing to the greater demands for farm labour at that time. Unemployment generally continues to be low until the conclusion of the grain and threshing seasons; but after March, with the closing of many of the freezing-works, the tendency to rise is greatly augmented, until the maximum for the year is reached some time in June or July, about which months it is customary for the Public Works Department to engage additional labourers on its more important undertakings in order to help relieve the position.

Since June, 1928, a considerable amount of detailed information has been collected respecting applicants for employment registered at the Labour Department's bureaux. These statistics, which relate to the first complete week in each month, are set out hereunder.

In the following table applicants for employment are classified into the principal trade groups, while information as to conjugal condition, period unemployed during the past six months, birthplace, number of dependants, fitness for heavy work, and period on the register is shown for each group of trades. The figures relate to September, 1929, while, for purposes of comparison, the September, 1928, figures are shown in adjoining columns.

GOVERNMENT EMPLOYMENT BUREAUX. — APPLICANTS ON REGISTER ON 10TH SEPTEMBER, 1928, AND 9TH SEPTEMBER, 1929.

—	Building Trades.		Engineering Trades.		Other Skilled Trades.		Labourers and Quarrymen.		Farm Hands.		Others.		Totals
—	1928.	1929.	1928.	1929.	1928.	1929.	1928.	1929.	1928.	1929.	1928.	1929.	1928.	1929.
* Includes cases not specified as to classification.
Conjugal condition—
Single	45	31	53	45	21	26	467	656	60	75	187	179	833	1,012
Married	138	86	95	77	38	41	840	1,042	64	57	277	279	1,452	1,582
Period unemployed during past six months—
Under 6 weeks	31	24	24	32	16	18	318	350	45	37	113	114	547	575
6 weeks and over	152	93	124	90	43	49	989	1,348	79	95	351	344	1,738	2,019
Birthplace—
New Zealand	105	62	58	52	41	47	749	1,043	71	72	227	248	1,251	1,524
Elsewhere	78	55	90	70	18	20	558	655	53	60	237	210	1,034	1,070
Number of dependants—
0	38	30	46	38	17	21	411	544	54	69	173	160	739	862
1	33	17	21	22	10	13	217	271	26	22	64	71	371	416
2	34	18	37	19	14	14	221	301	19	18	75	84	400	454
3	31	20	14	19	11	12	193	241	17	14	80	73	346	379
4	22	22	10	13	4	4	119	161	6	4	33	36	194	240
5 and over	25	10	20	11	3	3	146	180	2	5	39	34	235	243
Age (in years)—
Under 25	34	15	26	20	18	18	220	299	35	38	98	126	431	516
25–44	87	60	78	71	26	30	638	840	54	49	260	213	1,143	1,263
45–64	57	39	43	31	14	18	434	541	33	40	101	115	682	784
65 and over	5	3	1	..	1	1	15	18	2	5	5	4	29	31
Fitted for—
Heavy work	161	90	132	108	41	52	1,226	1,593	111	74	355	342	2,026	2,259
Light work only	22	27	16	14	18	15	81	105	13	58	109	116	259	335
Period on registers—
Under 3 months	119	62	96	69	40	40	838	948	90	82	306	264	1,489	1,465
3 months but under 12 months	55	31	47	34	19	19	425	442	31	34	141	129	718	689
12 months and over	9	24	5	19	..	8	44	308	3	16	17	65	78	440
Totals	183	117	148	122	59	67	1,307	1,698	124	132	464	458	2,318^*	2,618^*

The figures relating to “period on register” indicate the length of time that applicants have remained continuously on the registers. This does not indicate that these men were continuously out of work for the periods shown. An applicant may be employed for broken periods and keep renewing his application while so employed in the hope of obtaining permanent employment through the agency of the Labour Department. In order to ascertain the duration of complete unemployment a special investigation was conducted in July, 1929, in respect of those on the register on the 8th of that month. This showed the period of unemployment during the six months ended July, 1929, to be as follows:—

Duration (in Weeks).	Number of Applicants
2 and under	322
Over 2 but not exceeding 4	491
Over 4 but not exceeding 6	386
Over 6 but not exceeding 8	355
Over 8 but not exceeding 10	311
Over 10 but not exceeding 12	336
Over 12 but not exceeding 14	301
Over 14 but not exceeding 16	198
Over 16 but not exceeding 18	207
Over 18 but not exceeding 20	151
Over 20 but not exceeding 22	84
Over 22 but not exceeding 24	95
Over 24 but not exceeding 26	494
Not stated	165
Total	3,896

The actual average period of unemployment during the period under review was ten weeks. Interesting features of this table are the comparatively large number of men (494) who have done no work at all during the six months (or practically none) and, at the other end of the table, the large number of cases in which unemployment has been only slight.

The following table shows the analysis according to conjugal condition, birthplace, &c., for each of the thirteen months ended September, 1929:—

GOVERNMENT EMPLOYMENT BUREAUX.—APPLICANTS ON REGISTER, FIRST COMPLETE WEEK OF EACH MONTH FROM SEPTEMBER, 1928, TO SEPTEMBER, 1929.

–	1929.				1928.
–	Sept.	Oct.	Nov.	Dec.	Jan.	Feb.	Mar.	April.	May.	June.	July.	Aug.	Sept.
Conjugal condition—
Single	833	905	754	693	741	1,090	1,232	1,230	1,501	1,503	1,709	1,271	1,012
Married	1,452	1,503	1,143	1,089	1,087	1,385	1,444	1,541	1,748	1,866	2,104	1,760	1,582
Period unemployed during past six months—
Under 6 weeks	547	508	464	434	508	565	833	802	777	866	1,134	674	575
6 weeks and over	1,738	1,900	1,433	1,348	1,320	1,910	1,843	1,969	2,472	2,503	2,679	2,357	2,019
Birthplace—
New Zealand	1,251	1,346	1,013	941	1,022	1,308	1,445	1,547	1,886	1,954	2,289	1,777	1,521
Elsewhere	1,034	1,062	884	841	806	1,167	1,231	1,224	1,363	1,415	1,524	1,254	1,070
Number of dependants—
0	739	795	676	612	652	937	1,081	1,103	1,302	1,342	1,466	1,140	862
1	371	384	312	283	262	392	423	409	485	511	558	414	416
2	400	438	328	313	341	420	421	446	544	527	637	498	454
3	346	342	257	265	264	329	327	347	419	428	511	411	379
4	194	223	162	150	162	212	218	239	254	297	326	270	240
5 and over	235	226	162	159	147	185	206	227	245	264	315	298	243
Age (in years)—
Under 25	431	435	370	296	343	526	630	633	758	775	868	673	516
25–44	1,143	1,212	901	903	861	1,152	1,208	1,262	1,484	1,557	1,810	1,447	1,263
45–64	682	724	590	556	588	765	794	834	962	984	1,078	862	784
65 and over	29	37	36	27	36	32	44	42	45	53	57	49	31
Fitted for—
Heavy work	2,026	2,115	1,630	1,525	1,606	2,131	2,375	2,455	2,895	2,994	3,398	2,650	2,259
Light work only	259	293	267	257	222	344	301	316	354	375	415	381	335
Period on registers—
Under 3 months	1,489	1,422	1,047	995	1,050	1,448	1,593	1,762	2,016	2,220	2,477	1,984	1,465
Over 3 but under 12 months	718	899	750	688	665	834	834	753	768	663	797	633	689
12 months and over	78	87	100	99	113	193	249	256	465	486	539	414	440
Unspecified cases	33	17	12	6	..	16	16	25	86	49	83	51	24
Totals	2,318	2,425	1,909	1,788	1,828	2,491	2,692	2,796	3,335	3,418	3,896	3,082	2,618

UNEMPLOYMENT RELIEF.

Immediately unemployment began to be seriously felt in the winter of 1926 steps were taken by the State and by local authorities to absorb as much labour as possible on ordinary public works and on relief works. One of the first enactments of the 1926 session of Parliament was the Local Authorities Empowering (Relief of Unemployment) Act, which empowered local authorities, without taking a poll of the ratepayers, to borrow moneys for the purpose of providing relief works for unemployed men.

In addition to providing direct employment as far as possible, the State further assisted by subsidizing expenditure by local authorities. In spite of the efforts of the general and local governments, however, unemployment continued in evidence; and, with a view to remedying the situation, the Government undertook, in September, 1929, to find employment within a specified time for all genuinely unemployed, provided that they registered at the Government labour bureaux and were willing and able to accept the work offered.

The month of October commenced with 2,466 unplaced applicants on the register, and no fewer than 10,691 registrations were effected during the month, bringing the total to 13,157. Employment on Government works was provided for 4,360 men, in addition to which 775 employees of the Forestry Department who had finished certain seasonal work were retained, while 529 applicants were placed with local bodies or in private employment. Lapsed applications totalled no fewer than 4,228, the work offered was refused in 1,179 instances, and 562 applicants were found to be unemployable. Of 2,239 applicants remaining on the register at 31st October, only 1,000 (all of whom have since been placed or offered work) were prepared to accept work wherever it might be offered.

The question of providing some permanent solution of the problem has received a good deal of attention, and in 1928, arising out of a recommendation of the National Industrial Conference of that year, a committee, consisting of two heads of Government Departments, two representatives of employers, and two representatives of workers, was set up to go fully into the matter. This committee, which is still pursuing its activities, has presented the first section of its report (parliamentary paper H.–11B of the 1929 session), suggesting certain remedies and containing much useful statistical data.

CENSUS STATISTICS OF UNEMPLOYMENT.

The great disadvantage of the census inquiry regarding unemployment is that it provides data only at long intervals—in New Zealand, quinquennially. A further difficulty may occur should a census-taking happen to correspond with a period when a large number of workers are unemployed as a result of an industrial dispute.

On the other hand, the census source of information as to unemployment is exceedingly valuable in certain respects. It provides data as to unemployment in conjunction with such interesting relevant facts as conjugal condition, nationality, length of residence, age, religion, &c.—combinations of data which are not readily available from other sources of information as to unemployment. Another point is this: in countries such as New Zealand, where the available statistics do not show the total numbers of unemployed, the census fills the gap, and incidentally provides some criterion whereby, on the basis of the ratio between the census and the other available unemployment data at the date of the former, interpolations to yield the total number of unemployed at intercensal dates may be effected with some tolerable claim to precision.

The field of inquiry of the 1926 census approached the statistical aspect of unemployment from two angles. The first ascertained the numbers actually out of employment on the census date (20th April), whatever the cause of such unemployment.

A quantitative view of unemployed individuals, in which unemployment may be studied in the light of various population characteristics, is afforded by the tabulated results, of which a brief summary is set below.

Those returned as out of employment at the census of 20th April, 1926, represented 3.39 per cent. of the male and 3.17 per cent. of all wage-earners. The situation is sec forth by industrial groups in the following table:—

Industrial Group.	Number out of Employment.			Percentage of Unemployed among Total Wage-earners.
Industrial Group.	Males.	Females.	Totals.	Males.	Females.	Totals.
Primary production	1,868	7	1,875	2.81	0.83	2.79
Industrial	2,794	385	3,179	2.94	2.11	2.86
Transport and communication	1,122	10	1,132	2.19	0.45	2.12
Commercial	1,287	265	1,552	2.70	1.56	2.40
Professional	361	506	867	1.27	2.61	1.81
Domestic	287	952	1,239	5.03	2.77	3.09
Other groups	2,975	309	3,284	13.97	4.62	11.74
Total unemployed	10,694	2,434	13,128	3.39	2.46	3.17

The next table shows more readily the position between the different industrial groups:—

Industrial Group.	Percentage of Wage-earners to Total Wage-earners.			Percentage of Unemployed to Total Unemployed.
Industrial Group.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
Primary production	21.02	0.86	16.21	17.47	0.29	14.28
Industrial	30.12	18.43	27.33	26.13	15.82	24.22
Transport and communication	16.24	2.27	12.91	10.49	0.41	8.62
Commercial	15.07	17.22	15.58	12.03	10.89	11.82
Professional	9.00	19.64	11.54	3.38	20.79	6.60
Domestic	1.81	34.82	9.68	2.68	39.11	9.44
Other groups	6.74	6.76	6.75	27.82	12.69	25.02
Totals	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00

The figures used in arriving at the proportions of wage-earners were the total wage-earners in each class, whether unemployed or not.

It will be seen that the incidence of unemployment is not uniform among the industrial divisions cited. The class defined as “other groups” comprises both the smaller residual divisions and those whose industry was not specified. It is natural that the latter should figure proportionately high among those unemployed; if all cases were fully specified the percentage of unemployed to total unemployed would be raised for all divisions except “other groups,” probably most noticeably in the industrial division.

The unemployed percentage for males is markedly lower in the transport and communication and professional divisions, which may be ascribed to the inclusion of the great majority of the Public Service, with its regular employment, in these groups.

Another interesting feature of unemployment statistics from a social point of view is in connection with the conjugal condition of those affected. The percentages thus classified were as under at the census of 1926, the figures quoted referring only to persons 16 years of age and upwards:—

Conjugal Condition.	Employed Wage-earners.		Unemployed Wage-earners.
Conjugal Condition.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.
Never married	45.96	87.21	49.05	84.00
Married	50.46	6.38	44.33	5.88
Legally separated	0.55	1.09	1.08	1.81
Widowed	2.56	4.53	4.70	6.84
Divorced	0.47	0.79	0.84	1.47
Total specified	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00

Married men, while representing in 1926 50 per cent. of the total employed wage-earners 16 years of age and over, made up only just over 44 per cent. of the unemployed, the remaining four classes having a proportion above the normal. In the case of females, the widowed, the divorced, and the separated have proportionately high unemployment ratios.

The table next given shows the age-distribution of those returned as unemployed.

Age, in Years.	Numbers.		Proportion per Cent. of Total Males or Females gainfully occupied.
Age, in Years.	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.
Under 16	40	34	0.5	0.9
16 and under 20	832	415	1.8	1.6
20 and under 25	1,549	600	2.8	2.2
25 and under 35	2,059	581	2.2	2.4
35 and under 45	1,962	367	2.0	2.5
45 and under 55	1,988	260	2.5	2.6
55 and under 65	1,409	133	3.4	2.9
65 and over	839	36	4.9	2.3
Not specified (adults)	16	8	1.7	3.5
Total	10,694	2,434	2.4	2.2

Of the unemployed males, some 23 per cent. were under 25 years of age, and 38 put cent. were between the ages of 25 and 45 years. That the female unemployed were much younger than those of the opposite sex is shown by the fact that 43 per cent. were under 25 years of age.

The second angle at which the census questionnaire approaches the matter of unemployment comprises within its scope the whole of those of either sex who are gainfully occupied. It is, in fact, a morbidity survey on a scale not hitherto attempted, in which the loss of working-time serves as a rough unit of measure, in conjunction with a survey of the incidence of loss of time through lack of employment.

Data were sought under three heads, viz.:—

Sickness, accident, or injury received in course of employment;
Sickness, accident, or injury received otherwise than in course of employment;
Lack of employment, not due to strikes or lockouts.

The result of the inquiry was not wholly successful. More than one-half of the males, and an even greater ratio of females, engaged in occupational pursuits did not record an answer to this section of the schedule.

The high percentage of unspecified cases, particularly in view of the nature and newness of the inquiry, renders it inadvisable to apply the ratio for specified cases to the total engaged in occupational pursuits. It is impossible to assess the relative extent to which a blank in the space provided for showing the number of days lost indicates “none” or “not known” respectively, although it seems reasonable to conclude that in the great majority of cases where there had been no loss of time through sickness, accident, or unemployment, a definite “0” would have been entered. Similarly, where there had been considerable loss of time (and wages), the probability is that the fact would be recorded. On the other hand, it is probable that in a considerable proportion of cases (particularly where no deduction had been made from salary or wages), unemployment was so negligible as not to have been remembered clearly enough to allow of a definite reply being given.

In the two following tables accordingly, statistics of working-days lost relate only to specified cases. In these and subsequent tables the population covered is restricted to those actively engaged in some occupational pursuit, or to wage- and salary-earne (only) where stated. In all cases the figures given are subject to review. The period covered is the year immediately preceding the census.

From the summary showing the aggregate number of working-days lost an enormous wastage is apparent. Those cases returning answers to the unemployment queries give an aggregate of nearly 8 million days lost in the year. It may be added that if the same ratio were applied to all cases the figure would approach 21 million days.

Cause.	Working-days lost (000 omitted).
Cause.	Males.	Females.
Sickness, accident, or injury—
(a) Received in course of employment	2,090	308
(b) Received otherwise than in course of employment	1,431	273
Total Of (a) and (b)	3,521	581
Lack of employment	3,417	423
Grand total	6,938	1,004

Sickness or injury is responsible for more than half of the total, and, according to the returns, sickness or injury received in course of employment entailed greater effects than sickness or injury received otherwise.

A similar table restricted to wage- or salary-earners follows:—

Cause.	Working-days lost (000 omitted).
Cause.	Males.	Females.
Sickness, accident, or injury—
(a) Received in course of employment	1,668	282
(b) Received otherwise than in course of employment	1,141	251
Total of (a) and (b)	2,809	533
Lack of employment	3,088	400
Grand total	5,897	933

The position is much the same in the case of wage- or salary-earners, except that here the balance of working-days lost by males is noticeably in favour of lack of employment not due to strikes or lockouts.

Male wage- or salary-earners comprised 71 per cent. of the total cases under review, and females 89 per cent. of the total. Of the aggregate working-days lost, male wage- or salary-earners were responsible for 76 per cent. and females for 89 per cent.

The following summary expresses the results in the form of average number of working-days lost per person through the various causes:—

—	All Cases.		Wage- or Salary-earners.
—	Males.	Females.	Males.	Females.
Number of persons under review	443,820	111,546	315,814	98,859
Number of cases where particulars of unemployment were specified	182,290	30,477	145,383	28,202
Average number of working-days lost—
Through sickness, accident, or injury—
(a) Received in course of employment	11.5	10.0	11.4	9.9
(b) Received otherwise than in course of employment	7.8	8.9	7.8	8.8
Total of (a) and (b)	19.3	18.9	19.2	18.7
Through lack of employment	18.8	14.0	21.4	14.4
Grand total	38.1	32.9	40.6	33.1

The distribution of wage- or salary-earners according to period of time lost and conjugal condition is next presented. Those aged 16 years and over are concerned, and data are shown under two headings—viz., extent of unemployment through (1) sickness or injury, and (2) lack of employment.

SICKNESS, ACCIDENT, OR INJURY.

Conjugal Condition.	Cases where Number of Working-days lost through Sickness, Accident, or Injury, was—
Conjugal Condition.	Nil.	Under 10.	10 and under 25.	25 and under 50.	50 and under 100.	100 and under 200.	200 and over.	Not specified.	Totals.
* Sixteen years of age and over.
Males.
Never married	33,887	6,784	7,975	5,399	3,944	1,938	962	79,925	140,814
Married	43,474	8,299	10,239	6,811	4,598	2,331	1,276	77,573	154,601
Legally separated	513	70	132	110	126	81	23	681	1,736
Widowed	2,250	273	502	449	336	247	141	3,903	8,101
Divorced	444	53	99	91	73	56	27	637	1,480
Not specified	405	38	76	83	69	40	13	1,390	2,114
Totals^*	80,973	15,517	19,023	12,943	9,146	4,693	2,442	164,109	308,846
Females.
Never married	13,233	3,475	2,941	1,790	1,367	748	416	58,486	82,456
Married	1,065	162	178	135	112	69	28	4,278	6,027
Legally separated	175	28	40	27	43	27	9	701	1,050
Widowed	695	108	104	94	98	67	27	3,095	4,288
Divorced	113	14	24	28	30	19	7	526	761
Not specified	104	24	23	15	20	10	4	615	815
Totals^*	15,385	3,811	3,310	2,089	1,670	940	491	67,701	95,397

LACK OF EMPLOYMENT.

Conjugal Condition.	Cases where Number of Working-days lost through lack of Employment was—
Conjugal Condition.	Nil.	Under 10.	10 and under 25.	25 and under 50.	50 and under 100.	100 and under 200.	200 and over.	Not specified.	Totals.
* Sixteen years of age and over.
Males.
Never married	39,017	1,158	3,582	5,328	6,466	3,442	753	81,068	140,814
Married	51,827	1,574	4,984	6,289	6,835	3,418	748	78,926	154,601
Legally separated	608	16	60	104	140	85	25	698	1,736
Widowed	2,504	54	222	349	504	367	117	3,984	8,101
Divorced	493	7	45	72	128	63	20	652	1,480
Not specified	473	6	34	67	91	31	10	1,402	2,114
Totals^*	94,922	2,815	8,927	12,209	14,164	7,406	1,673	166,730	308,846
Females.
Never married	18,773	376	992	1,182	1,130	647	300	59,056	82,456
Married	1,311	29	70	78	103	96	36	4,304	6,027
Legally separated	266	7	11	12	25	19	8	702	1,050
Widowed	884	13	42	57	79	65	36	3,112	4,288
Divorced	179	6	10	13	21	4	3	525	761
Not specified	170	..	7	8	8	6	1	615	815
Totals^*	21,583	431	1,132	1,350	1,366	837	384	68,314	95,397

The ages of all wage- or salary-earners in conjunction with extent of unemployment on the same lines as the preceding tables are appended:—

SICKNESS, ACCIDENT, OR INJURY.

Age, in Years.	Cases where Number of Working-days lost through Sickness, Accident, or Injury was—
Age, in Years.	Nil.	Under 10.	10 and under 25.	25 and under 50.	50 and under 100.	100 and under 200.	200 and over.	Not specified.	Totals.
Males.
Under 16	1,006	236	133	64	40	20	7	5,462	6,968
16 and under 21	9,665	2,832	2,561	1,318	843	316	111	32,634	50,280
21 and under 25	9,393	2,311	2,570	1,613	1,055	437	182	22,034	39,595
25 and under 35	19,743	4,169	4,748	3,098	2,063	962	453	37,846	73,082
35 and under 45	18,729	3,191	4,278	2,961	2,097	1,006	503	30,500	63,265
45 and under 55	14,317	1,982	3,082	2,389	1,698	1,043	540	23,908	48,959
65 and under 65	6,830	813	1,374	1,173	996	646	436	12,000	24,268
65 and over	2,207	206	388	363	380	266	213	4,703	8,726
Not specified	89	13	22	28	14	17	4	484	671
Totals	81,979	15,753	19,156	13,007	9,186	4,713	2,449	169,571	315,814

Age, in Years.	Cases where Number of Working-days lost through Sickness, Accident, or Injury was—
Age, in Years.	Nil.	Under 10.	10 and under 25.	25 and under 50.	50 and under 100.	100 and under 200.	200 and over.	Not specified.	Totals.
Females.
Under 16	472	97	64	37	21	7	5	2,759	3,462
16 and under 21	4,898	1,367	1,082	598	415	186	73	22,540	31,159
21 and under 25	3,203	943	829	477	356	199	85	13,985	20,077
25 and under 35	3,486	855	800	516	439	254	160	15,270	21,780
35 and under 45	1,999	389	337	253	239	149	79	8,349	11,794
45 and under 55	1,225	196	199	172	149	98	51	4,942	7,032
55 and under 65	456	44	53	58	61	45	34	2,021	2,772
65 and over	99	10	9	9	11	8	9	501	656
Not specified	19	7	1	6	..	1	..	93	127
Totals	15,857	3,908	3,374	2,126	1,691	947	496	70,460	98,859

LACK OF EMPLOYMENT.

Age, in Years.	Cases where Number of Working-days lost through lack of Employment was—
Age, in Years.	Nil.	Under 10.	10 and under 25.	25 and under 30.	50 and under 100.	100 and under 200.	200 and over.	Not specified.	Totals.
Males.
Under 16	1,242	28	48	53	55	23	22	5,497	6,968
16 and under 21	13,066	417	945	1,087	1,132	542	115	32,976	50,280
21 and under 25	11,135	445	1,258	1,655	1,821	790	137	22,354	39,595
25 and under 35	22,865	760	2,346	3,192	3,636	1,566	237	38,480	73,082
35 and under 45	21,476	614	2,143	2,938	3,192	1,542	267	31,093	63,265
45 and under 55	16,029	404	1,517	2,157	2,706	1,437	342	24,367	48,959
55 and under 65	7,722	136	564	949	1,289	1,068	326	12,214	24,268
65 and over	2,502	38	144	215	365	456	244	4,762	8,726
Not specified	127	1	10	16	23	5	5	484	671
Totals	96,164	2,843	8,975	12,262	14,219	7,429	1,695	172,227	315,814
Females.
Under 16	562	18	28	20	15	26	25	2,768	3,462
16 and under 21	6,700	177	416	423	384	225	113	22,721	31,159
21 and under 25	4,755	96	261	319	301	155	74	14,116	20,077
25 and under 35	5,137	93	261	304	309	199	67	15,410	21,780
35 and under 45	2,694	32	115	162	179	125	69	8,418	11,794
45 and under 55	1,614	24	64	96	133	88	30	4,983	7,032
55 and under 65	548	9	10	42	49	36	25	2,053	2,772
65 and over	106	..	4	4	10	7	5	520	656
Not specified	29	..	1	..	1	2	1	93	127
Totals	22,145	449	1,160	1,370	1,381	863	409	71,082	98,859

STATISTICS OF UNEMPLOYED AS ESTIMATED BY INDUSTRIAL UNIONS.

Estimates of unemployment amongst industrial unionists have since the middle week of November, 1925, been furnished quarterly by secretaries of rather more than 200 unions to the Census and Statistics Office, where the information supplied is tabulated for insertion regularly in the Monthly Abstract of Statistics. Like the unemployment statistics available from the census, and unlike those available from the Labour Department's employment bureaux, the statistics thus collected permit of the computation of unemployment “rates,” relating the number of persons unemployed to the number subject to the risk of unemployment. It should be stressed that, for purposes of these statistics, only those persons are counted as unemployed who were out of work as a result of scarcity of employment for more than three days during the week concerned; persons idle for three days or less, or idle because of illness, accident, or strikes or lockouts directly concerning their trade, &c., are not taken into account. The effect of counting as “unemployed” only those persons out of work as above for more than three days is to eliminate from the numbers of unemployed virtually all persons working short-time.

Despite the exclusion from the inquiry of those industries in which the work is highly seasonal (e.g., freezing), or in which employment is essentially permanent (e.g., tramway operation), or highly casual (e.g., watersiding), or normally part-time (e.g., performing in orchestras), and although inquiries were not addressed to unions with fewer than a score of members, it has yet been found possible to secure returns covering more than half the members of registered industrial unions throughout the Dominion. The figures, though not presenting a complete picture, yet probably constitute a reasonably fair sample of conditions regarding unemployment, and may be claimed to represent the position as regards the labour-market throughout the Dominion with a fair degree of accuracy. Somewhat less accuracy can be claimed for the figures for individual industrial groups and for individual industrial districts, which may be affected to a considerable extent (especially where the numbers concerned are small) by chance differences in the nature of the unions constituting the sample. The different character of the industries carried on in the different districts is also likely to affect comparisons; for very different conditions as regards the labour-market may be expected to exist in a predominantly mining district like Westland from those in a predominantly dairying district such as Taranaki.

Movements from time to time in the figures for the same groups or districts may (by reason of constancy in the nature of the sample) be reasonably expected to yield reliable pictures of changes in the employment situation in so far as those groups or districts are concerned. If the statistics as a whole are subject to a definite bias in any one direction it is probably towards an overestimation of the amount of unemployment (as above defined), this being due to the fact that some unionists are members of more than one union but obviously cannot be employed in more than one trade at once. The estimates of the trade-union secretaries are no doubt in individual cases subject to errors on account of absence of complete information, for it is only in those fairly numerous cases where there is some inducement for members out of work to report their condition promptly (e.g., provision in the rules for a reduction of union dues, or for a payment in the case of unemployment of benefits out of funds held by the union) that “live” unemployment registers are kept; in all other cases the estimates of the numbers unemployed rest on the individual judgments (based always, of course, on more or less close knowledge of the facts) of the union secretaries, such judgments probably on the whole being equally liable to errors of excess as of defect.

UNEMPLOYMENT AS ESTIMATED BY INDUSTRIAL UNIONS.

—	Membership of Reporting Unions: Week ended				Persons unemployed for move than Three Days during the Week on account of Lack of Employment-Week ended				Percentage of Unemployed to Total Members: Week ended
—	17 Nov., 1928.	16 Feb., 1929.	18 May, 1929.	17 Aug., 1929.	17 Nov., 1928.	16 Feb., 1929.	18 May, 1929.	17 Aug., 1929.	17 Nov., 1928.	16 Feb., 1929.	18 May, 1929.	17 Aug., 1929.
* Including principally salesmen, storemen and packers, gardeners, &c. † In view of the fact that a number of returns from these districts are outstanding, this percentage is not computed.
Food, drink, and tobacco	2,914	3,016	3,078	2,938	126	99	129	146	4.3	3.3	4.2	5.0
Clothing and drapery	3,276	3,038	3,101	3,204	140	186	121	147	4.3	6.1	3.9	4.6
Textiles and weaving	1,186	1,277	1,257	663	23	124	105	59	1.9	9.7	8.4	8.9
Building and construction	13,454	13,754	13,451	13,447	1,475	1,509	1,538	1,374	11.0	11.0	11.4	10.2
Sawmilling and wood manufacture	3,632	4,832	4,937	4,953	546	527	628	512	15.0	10.9	12.7	10.3
Paper manufacture and printing	2,335	2,366	2,485	2,395	70	65	66	57	3.0	2.7	2.7	2.4
Metal working and engineering	6,643	6,412	6,648	6,533	500	473	332	397	7.5	7.4	5.0	6.1
Other manufactures	1,073	1,066	969	1,025	75	30	71	118	7.0	2.8	7.3	11.5
Mining	3,136	2,895	2,798	2,987	198	144	61	53	6.3	5.0	2.2	1.8
Land transport	2,508	2,615	2,624	2,527	88	87	111	91	3.5	3.3	4.2	3.6
Shipping	1,301	1,316	1,326	1,335	392	377	308	375	30.1	28.6	23.2	28.1
Hotel, restaurant, and other personal service	6,982	7,272	7,151	6,929	678	568	716	879	9.7	7.8	10.0	12.7
General labourers	2,334	2,037	2,094	1,926	659	403	484	439	28.2	19.8	22.2	22.8
Other miscellaneous^*	4,569	4,638	4,585	4,630	553	624	626	579	12.1	13.5	13.7	12.5
Totals	55,343	56,534	56,504	55,492	5,523	5,216	5,276	5,226	10.0	9.2	9.3	9.4
Northern	17,674	17,553	17,408	17,431	2,645	2,431	2,540	2,325	15.0	13.8	14.6	13.3
Wellington	14,663	14,704	14,775	14,746	1,279	1,216	1,318	1,395	8.7	8.3	8.9	9.5
Canterbury	11,686	11,472	11,849	11,628	679	610	483	701	5.8	5.3	4.1	6.0
Otago and Southland	9,028	8,867	8,601	8,105	775	709	660	572	8.6	8.0	7.7	7.1
Taranaki
Marlborough	814	1,429	1,237	865	54	118	105	35	6.6	8.3	8.5	^†
Nelson
Westland	1,478	2,509	2,634	2,717	91	132	170	198	6.2	5.3	6.5	7.3
Totals	55,343	56,534	56,504	55,492	5,523	5,216	5,276	5,226	10.0	9.2	9.3	9.4

August, 1927, was the peak period since the inception of the unionist unemployment statistics, there being estimated to be 11.6 per cent. of the unionists out of employment owing to lack of work. November of that year showed a definite reduction, due partly to improvement in the sawmilling industry and partly to the seasonal work available in building and construction and in the tailoring trades.

The situation became more acute in February, 1928, the timber industry losing ground somewhat, also the building and shipping trades. Though the figures for the “general labourers” group are necessarily incomplete (it being impossible in many cases to split up the builders' and general labourers' unions, which are included in the “building and construction” group), unemployment among general labourers shows a sharp increase. This group has through 1928 and 1929 continued to show a comparatively high percentage of unemployed.

An interesting feature of the 1929 statistics is that the percentage of unionists unemployed declined from 10.2 in November, 1928, to 9.2 in February, 1929, and rose slightly to 9.3 in May and to 9.4 in August of this year. It would appear that the usual seasonal increase in May and August has been counteracted by an improvement in the non-seasonal trades.

The statistics given in the foregoing table relate, of course, only to unemployment arising from scarcity of jobs. Quarterly data are, however, collected also in regard to unemployment amongst unionists arising from sickness, accident, and other causes. Of 31,130 male unionists in connection with whom such returns-were obtained, it was found that 467 were unemployed for more than three days during the middle week of the third quarter of 1929 on account of sickness and 390 on account of accident. Approximately 3 per cent. of unionists were therefore unemployed on account of these factors.

INTERNATIONAL COMPARISON OF PERCENTAGES OF UNIONISTS UNEMPLOYED.

A table comparing the position in New Zealand with that in certain other countries where similar data are available is added, with the warning that owing to possible variations in methods of collecting and compiling the statistics and in the industrial structures of the countries concerned, international comparisons in this field are to be effected with the utmost diffidence and caution. It should also be remembered in interpreting the figures that data for a single week do not necessarily reflect a typical state of affairs, especially in view of the fact that unemployment varies considerably with the seasons in many countries.

Country.	Percentage of Unionists unemployed to Total Unionists.
Country.	Date.	Percentage.	Date.	Percentage.
* Including persons absent through sickness, accident, and other minor causes, but not strikes and lockouts.
United Kingdom	August, 1928	11.6	February, 1929	12.2
Sweden	August, 1928	7.0	February, 1929	14.6
Denmark	August, 1928	13.0	February, 1929	30.0
Belgium	August, 1928	0.5	February, 1929	4.7
Canada	August, 1928	2.4	February, 1929	6.8
Australia	1st Quarter, 1929	9.3^*	3rd Quarter, 1928	11.4^*
New Zealand	February, 1929	9.2	August, 1929	9.4

SEASONAL FLUCTUATIONS IN EMPLOYMENT.

The growth of unemployment throughout the world in modern years has prompted in most countries statistical examination of the fluctuations or periodicity of employment. Until recent years the statistics available on this phenomenon in New Zealand have been somewhat scanty, being restricted to employment on public works; but data are now available on some of the avenues of industrial employment (including building and construction, but excluding transport and mining) as well as that contracted with local authorities.

According to the 1926 census there were in April of that year approximately 240,000 male wage-earners in the Dominion. These have been classified under the following headings:—

Group.	Number of Male Wage-earners (nearest Thousand).
Agricultural and pastoral	44
Manufacturing	74
Transport and communication	35
Commerce	32
Building and construction	16
Mining and quarrying	6
Forest occupations	4
Sport and entertainment	2
Personal and domestic	6
Labourers	20
Total	239

Factories from which returns were received had in the census month 53,744 male wage-earning employees, building and construction concerns had 9,279, while Public Works employees numbered 7,021. Adding to these figures approximately 17,000 to represent local-authority employment, it would appear that the available statistics cover approximately 88,000 male wage-earning employees out of a total, as recorded in the 1926 census, of approximately 239,000. The statistics cover, in addition, the 12,000 females who are employed in factories, mills, works, &c.

For the purposes of these statistics the term “wage-earner” covers workers whose contract of employment provides for the payment of remuneration on an hourly, daily, weekly, or other short-period basis as distinct from clerical and other classes of employees where the contract is based on what is generally regarded as the “salary” basis.

On pages 858 to 869 of the 1929 Year-book a fairly exhaustive treatment was given of the data relating to the annual course of employment in 1926 in factories, mills, works, &c., in building and construction establishments, and on public works. The following broad conclusions which emerged from the investigation are of sufficiently general application to warrant repetition hereunder:—

Those industries closely allied to the agricultural and pastoral production pass through definite periods of activity and slackness during the calendar year. The period of activity commences in November or December, attains its maximum about February, and recedes in March, April, and May; then commences the slack period, which is at its worst about August, after which a recovery, at first gradual, then sharp, brings the perennial return to activity.
The manufacturing and building industries are apparently subject to seasonal fluctuations in employment, the general characteristics of which are activity in the summer and slackness in the winter months.
The number of artisans and labourers employed by the Public Works Department increases in the winter and decreases in the summer months, but does not, on the scale ruling in 1926, substantially alter the general course of employment throughout the year in the industries covered in this discussion.

FACTORY AND BUILDING INDUSTRIES.

The following series of tables shows, by industrial groups and by provincial districts, the numbers of male and female wage-earners (excluding proprietors actively engaged, managers, overseers, accountants, clerks, &c.) engaged in factories, milk, works, &c., and in the building industry, on the fifteenth or nearest representative day of each month of the calendar year 1927.

MONTHLY EMPLOYMENT, BY INDUSTRIES, 1927.

Industry.	January.	February.	March.	April.	May.	June.	July.	August.	September.	October.	November.	December.	Monthly Average.
Males.
Animal food	9,809	9,903	9,822	9,115	8,197	6,542	4,871	4,707	5,232	5,618	6,370	8,701	7,407
Vegetable food	2,018	2,088	2,116	2,046	2,015	2,042	2,019	1,994	2,013	2,033	2,083	2,126	1,711
Drinks, narcotics, and stimulants	1,455	1,450	1,426	1,409	1,388	1,350	1,351	1,354	1,364	1,388	1,430	1,519	1,380
Animal matters (not otherwise classed)	771	810	823	792	757	673	599	575	555	556	575	728	685
Working in wood	7,555	7,828	7,810	7,469	7,451	7,239	7,115	7,145	7,257	7,364	7,533	7,501	7,439
Vegetable produce for fodder	22	22	22	24	26	25	25	25	23	25	25	22	24
Paper-manufactures	195	194	199	194	192	198	200	193	186	186	185	188	193
Heat, light, and power	8,119	8,221	8,191	8,249	8,111	8,156	8,244	8,089	8,006	7,927	7,858	7,810	8,082
Processes relating to stone, clay, glass, &c.	2,754	2,683	2,718	2,732	2,722	2,598	2,614	2,676	2,740	2,869	2,902	2,865	2,735
Metals other than gold or silver	5,595	5,512	5,569	5,557	5,310	5,403	5,480	5,485	5,497	5,532	5,604	5,629	5,481
Precious metals	122	120	120	120	119	118	120	120	120	121	121	119	120
Books and publications	3,707	3,726	3,833	3,804	3,837	3,840	3,818	3,805	3,824	3,839	3,833	3,850	3,810
Musical instruments	53	51	50	51	49	45	46	46	46	44	48	49	48
Ornaments and minor art products	228	232	238	235	236	232	227	234	240	235	235	239	234
Designs, medals, type, and dies	85	85	83	85	84	83	84	84	84	84	84	85	84
Machines, tools, and implements	725	693	689	686	655	638	633	643	650	646	656	675	666
Carriages and vehicles	4,314	4,302	4,224	4,146	4,148	4,125	4,104	4,145	4,209	4,275	4,312	4,361	4,222
Harness, saddlery, and leatherware	1,004	1,093	1,126	1,077	975	887	864	863	889	852	847	881	947
Ships, boats, and their equipment	743	577	625	716	727	809	849	755	820	693	757	696	731
House-furnishings	2,216	2,243	2,230	2,196	2,227	2,229	2,210	2,211	2,208	2,205	2,225	2,233	2,210
Chemicals and by-products	770	745	854	882	868	845	887	890	890	902	867	816	851
Textile fabrics	968	979	967	982	978	978	982	990	983	988	987	989	981
Apparel	2,076	2,158	2,172	2,161	2,173	2,180	2,178	2,179	2,196	2,209	2,211	2,222	2,176
Fibrous materials	1,219	1,218	1,217	1,057	876	673	802	945	1,151	1,330	1,341	1,329	3,097
Miscellaneous	141	157	154	151	151	149	151	156	158	155	151	151	152
Building and construction	9,060	8,896	8,748	9,283	9,159	8,736	8,530	8,600	8,889	8,850	9,115	9,075	8,913
Total males	65,724	65,986	66,026	65,219	63,431	60,793	59,003	58,909	60,230	60,926	62,355	64,859	62,379
Females.
Animal food	107	105	103	93	91	74	66	70	81	90	95	109	90
Vegetable food	1,305	1,379	1,420	1,385	1,363	1,381	1,399	1,391	1,370	1,364	1,384	1,447	1,382
Drinks, narcotics, and stimulants	257	257	260	250	248	262	271	273	283	286	300	302	271
Animal matters (not otherwise classed)	101	97	97	101	106	97	91	92	97	105	104	97	99
Working in wood	11	13	13	13	13	13	14	14	13	13	14	15	13
Paper-manufactures	267	274	273	256	253	255	259	261	259	263	271	267	244
Heat, light, and power	34	34	34	34	34	35	36	37	37	37	37	37	36
Processes relating to stone, clay, glass, &c.	9	9	9	9	9	10	9	9	9	9	11	11	10
Metals other than gold or silver	81	85	78	78	73	73	70	69	71	74	74	77	76
Precious metals	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5
Books and publications	1,066	1,099	1,093	1,085	1,075	1,067	1,053	1,069	1,084	1,097	1,101	1,118	1,084
Musical instruments	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	..	..	1
Ornaments and minor art products	30	34	39	39	40	38	38	37	40	43	45	41	39
Designs, medals, type, and dies	..	..	..	1	1	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	1
Machines, tools, and implements	71	72	71	76	76	75	76	78	80	81	81	80	76
Carriages and vehicles	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2
Harness, saddlery, and leatherware	118	122	123	118	121	123	123	124	124	125	124	120	122
Ships, boats, and their equipment	71	72	91	82	72	69	62	62	66	79	75	67	73
House-furnishings	279	291	291	294	292	293	293	286	281	285	285	289	286
Chemicals and by-products	261	271	276	280	266	274	279	260	256	265	280	275	270
Textile fabrics	1,269	1,309	1,310	1,309	1,348	1,383	1,387	1,398	1,402	1,429	1,457	1,459	1,372
Apparel	6,777	7,102	7,159	7,150	7,112	7,008	7,042	7,067	7,254	7,360	7,409	7,283	7,143
Fibrous materials	66	67	76	74	73	72	74	75	69	72	75	70	72
Miscellaneous	44	66	74	76	77	76	78	83	87	83	97	97	77
Total females	12,232	12,766	12,898	12,811	12,751	12,688	12,730	12,765	12,973	13,170	13,328	13,270	12,844

MONTHLY EMPLOYMENT, BY PROVINCIAL DISTRICTS, 1927.

Provincial District.	January.	February.	March.	April.	May.	June.	July.	August.	September.	October.	November.	December.	Monthly Average.
Males.
Auckland	18,184	18,164	18,402	18,165	17,610	17,278	17,120	17,237	17,414	17,595	17,965	18,401	17,794
Hawke's Bay	2,350	2,326	2,312	2,179	2,084	1,864	1,637	1,626	1,638	1,672	1,931	2,348	1,997
Taranaki	2,192	2,159	2,118	1,944	1,783	1,595	1,527	1,644	1,845	1,930	1,972	2,150	1,905
Wellington	12,774	12,750	12,669	11,981	11,572	11,051	10,944	11,027	11,343	11,591	11,658	12,579	11,828
Marlborough	509	489	550	582	601	564	453	392	397	379	400	474	483
Nelson	947	973	985	983	929	922	880	847	857	877	894	988	923
Westland	1,256	1,312	1,290	1,230	1,219	1,227	1,220	1,207	1,207	1,203	1,237	1,210	1,235
Canterbury	9,306	9,683	9,783	9,792	9,540	8,849	8,223	8,055	8,110	8,177	8,233	6,755	8,876
Otago	6,514	6,571	6,567	6,541	6,436	6,433	6,327	6,142	6,226	6,185	6,468	6,397	6,401
Southland	2,632	2,663	2,602	2,539	2,498	2,274	2,142	2,132	2,304	2,467	2,482	2,482	2,435
Total males	56,664	57,090	57,278	55,936	54,272	52,057	50,473	50,309	51,341	52,076	53,240	55,784	53,877
Females.
Auckland	4,020	4,250	4,321	4,287	4,239	4,240	4,325	4,376	4,457	4,518	4,596	4,508	4,345
Hawke's Bay	147	147	152	155	155	159	169	163	171	172	175	176	162
Taranaki	69	68	64	65	62	64	64	64	68	72	69	70	66
Wellington	2,749	2,897	2,899	2,924	2,888	2,858	2,836	2,813	2,884	2,942	2,941	2,949	2,882
Marlborough	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2
Nelson	103	123	159	154	145	117	103	101	86	90	92	97	114
Westland	4	4	4	4	4	4	5	4	4	5	5	5	4
Canterbury	2,322	2,378	2,397	2,366	2,395	2,395	2,399	2,375	2,414	2,446	2,487	2,496	2,406
Otago	2,605	2,682	2,679	2,636	2,642	2,649	2,639	2,676	2,686	2,709	2,750	2,752	2,675
Southland	211	215	221	218	219	200	188	191	201	214	211	215	209
Total females	12,232	12,766	12,898	12,811	12,751	12,688	12,730	12,765	12,973	13,170	13,328	13,270	12,865

Attention is directed to the fact that included in the male wage-earners shown in the preceding tables are the following, who are employed in establishments operated by local authorities:—

Month.	Gasworks.	Electric Supply.	Electric Tramways.	Total.
January	436	2,763	3,071	6,270
February	431	2,765	3,087	6,283
March	434	2,687	3,104	6,225
April	450	2,749	3,118	6,317
May	453	2,715	3,033	6,201
June	466	2,741	3,015	6,222
July	520	2,787	3,008	6,315
August	485	2,749	2,964	6,198
September	485	2,767	2,902	6,154
October	471	2,731	2,921	6,123
November	416	2,741	2,932	6,089
December	428	2,778	2,899	6,105

Due allowance should be made for the inclusion of the above figures under factories, mills, works, &c., and under local authorities, when these two branches of employment are being considered.

The statistics for the calendar year 1926 did not cover the electric-supply industry, and in the table given below the figures for 1927 have had the figures for this industry deducted in order to make them comparable with 1926:—

Month.	1926.	1927.	Differences, 1926 and 1927.	Deviation from Mean.
Month.	1926.	1927.	Differences, 1926 and 1927.	1926.	1927.
Factories, Mills, Works, &c.
MALES.
January	53,786	53,259	− 527	+2,340	+2,773
February	54,747	53,608	−1,139	+3,301	+3,122
March	54,573	53,836	− 737	+3,127	+3,350
April	53,744	52,453	−1,291	+2,298	+1,967
May	52,099	50,856	−1,243	+653	+370
June	49,599	48,633	− 966	−1,847	−1,853
July	48,247	47,001	−1,246	−3,199	−3,485
August	47,916	46,899	−1,017	−3,530	−3,587
September	49,053	47,979	−1,074	−2,393	−2,507
October	49,571	48,774	− 797	−1,875	−1,712
November	50,705	49,973	− 732	− 741	− 513
December	53,315	52,553	− 762	+ 1,869	+2,067
Averages	51,446	50,486	− 960	2,264	2,275
FEMALES.
January	11,732	12,202	+470	−475	−631
February	12,221	12,736	+515	+ 14	− 97
March	12,318	12,868	+550	+ 111	+ 35
April	12,215	12,781	+566	+ 8	− 52
May	12,201	12,721	+520	− 6	−112
June	12,110	12,657	+547	− 97	−176
July	11,938	12,698	+ 760	−269	−135
August	12,030	12,732	+ 702	−177	−101
September	12,275	12,940	+ 665	+ 68	+ 107
October	12,523	13,137	+ 614	+ 316	+304
November	12,529	13,295	+ 766	+322	+462
December	12,395	13,237	+842	+ 188	+404
Averages	12,207	12,833	+ 626	171	218

Month.	1926.	1927.	Differences, 1926 and 1927.	Deviation from Mean.
Month.	1926.	1927.	Differences, 1926 and 1927.	1920.	1927.
Building and Construction.
January	9,126	9,060	− 66	− 80	+ 147
February	9,289	8,896	−393	+ 83	− 17
March	9,231	8,748	−483	+ 25	−165
April	9,279	9,283	+4	+73	+ 370
May	9,368	9,159	−209	+ 162	+246
June	9,155	8,736	−419	− 51	−177
July	8,937	8,530	−407	−269	−383
August	9,005	8,600	−405	−201	−313
September	9,348	8,889	−459	+ 142	− 24
October	9,228	8,850	−378	+ 22	− 63
November	9,330	9,115	−215	+ 124	+202
December	9,178	9,075	−103	− 28	+ 162
Averages	9,206	8,913	−283	105	189

PUBLIC WORKS.

As pointed out earlier in this discussion, unemployment is to a certain extent coped with by the institution of relief works, which tends to swell the numbers engaged oh public works. This employment on public works falls under the following headings:—

Where the cost of the works is met directly by the Public Works Department.
Where the cost of the works is met by the Public Works Department and local authorities.
Where the cost of the works is met by local authorities only.

Unfortunately, complete statistics covering all phases of this employment are not extant. Those available for past years relate to class (a), and part of class (b) to the extent to which the cost is met by the Public Works Department; furthermore, they do not include the employees of contractors. The statistics are entirely exclusive of workmen engaged by local authorities, and are calculated by dividing the total amount paid as wages during each month by the sum which would represent the full-time earnings of one worker during each particular period. The statistics cover those workers who are employed on “time” as well as “piece” rates.

Even with the deficiencies referred to the available figures are not without interest, and afford some measure of the additional work provided by the State in periods of unemployment. The following figures show the monthly average number of men employed on public works in 1895, 1900, 1905, 1910, 1915, 1920, and each of the last five years:—

Year ended 31st March,	Roads.	Railways, Buildings, &c.	Total.
1895	1,103	962	2,065
1900	1,825	1,243	3,068
1905	1,407	2,119	3,526
1910	1,762	3,929	5,691
1915	2,494	2,234	4,728
1920	1,495	2,498	3,993
1925	1,614	5,151	6,765
1926	1,613	5,462	7,080
1927	2,095	5,330	7,425
1928	3,043	5,044	8,087
1929	4,643	4,109	8,752

Figures for each month since January, 1927, are next given, in such form as readily to permit of a comparison between corresponding months of the three years as well as showing the movement from month to month:—

Month.	1927.	1928.	1929.
January	6,870	7,250	9,546
February	7,276	7,344	10,503
March	7,389	7,605	10,286
April	7,939	7,802	10,259
May	7,958	8,151	10,246
June	8,539	8,496	9,805
July	8,759	9,177	9,598
August	8,944	9,636	9,909
September	8,759	9,636	10,083
October	8,456	9,929	..
November	8,185	10,161	..
December	7,584	9,836	..

Figures are published in the Monthly Abstract of Statistics showing each month the number engaged on the various public works throughout the Dominion. The figures for each month of the year ended 31st March, 1929, are given hereunder:—

Month.	Railways.	Roads.	Hydroelectric Works.	Public Buildings.	Other Works.	Total.
1928.
April	2,551	3,376	999	200	676	7,802
May	2,648	3,671	986	225	621	8,151
June	2,668	3,961	985	224	658	8,496
July	2,768	4,457	1,008	255	689	9,177
August	2,805	4,852	1,009	280	690	9,636
September	2,854	4,900	983	248	651	9,636
October	2,921	5,063	1,012	271	662	9,929
November	2,904	5,252	1,087	306	612	10,161
December	2,831	5,073	1,068	280	584	9,836
1929.
January	2,949	4,803	967	269	558	9,546
February	3,328	5,323	1,000	304	548	10,503
March	3,395	4,982	1,059	282	568	10,286
Averages	2,885	4,643	1,014	262	626	9,430

LOCAL AUTHORITIES.

Employment by local authorities comprises principally the construction and maintenance of roads and streets, and the operation and maintenance of public-utility industries (gas, electric supply, and tramways) and social services. This avenue of employment is, like the Public Works Department, used as a “safety-valve” in the relief of unemployment. In the case of certain works local-authority payments as wages to relief workers are subsidized by the General Government.

Particulars relating to the number of wage-earning employees engaged by the various classes of local authorities on the 15th or nearest representative day thereto, are available from January, 1928, to March, 1929, and are presented in the following table. The statistics do not cover Hospital Boards.

Class of Local District.	1928.												1929.			Monthly Average.
Class of Local District.	January.	February.	March.	April.	May.	June.	July.	August.	September.	October.	November.	December.	January.	February.	March.	Monthly Average.
Boroughs	9,663	9,724	9,597	9,493	9,453	9,280	9,777	9,971	9,655	9,311	9,416	9,727	9,510	9,372	9,850	9,586
Counties	4,116	4,206	4,282	4,246	4,330	4,356	4,453	4,440	4,295	4,297	4,492	4,444	4,495	4,818	4,862	4,409
Harbour Boards	2,431	2,547	2,431	2,325	2,243	2,205	2,088	2,181	2,154	2,370	2,287	2,348	2,380	2,242	2,384	2,308
Tramway district	572	620	612	589	577	538	535	524	518	547	545	545	532	538	619	561
Town districts	183	181	192	189	209	222	220	220	211	178	193	216	219	210	216	204
City and suburban drainage districts	170	164	163	139	157	158	164	178	184	198	190	201	205	203	204	178
River districts	156	163	166	150	168	166	170	162	140	123	118	123	158	167	169	153
Road districts	111	95	102	109	119	126	136	140	145	136	125	118	100	91	109	117
Rabbit districts	105	102	107	104	104	91	92	98	94	100	95	99	91	92	89	98
Land-drainage districts	70	88	97	123	124	116	93	143	93	77	66	49	58	85	122	94
Gas - lighting district	48	50	48	47	50	50	52	60	62	60	61	69	73	76	74	59
Railway district	20	20	19	18	18	18	21	24	19	25	25	23	28	45	41	24
Water-supply districts	10	10	9	10	9	10	16	17	12	12	20	18	16	18	14	13
Totals	17,655	17,970	17,825	17,542	17,561	17,336	17,817	18,158	17,582	17,434	17,633	17,980	17,865	17,957	18,753	17,804
Deviations from mean	−149	+ 166	+21	−262	−243	−468	+ 13	+ 354	−222	−370	−171	+ 176	+61	+ 153	+ 949	..

During the fifteen months ended March, 1929, local authorities provided employment on the average for some 17,804 wage-earning employees. Boroughs, counties, and Harbour Boards between them accounted for no less than approximately 92 per cent., and individually for 54, 25, and 13 per cent. respectively of this total.

Measured by the deviations from the mean, there were considerable fluctuations in the numbers of wage-earners engaged each month by local authorities. The lowest figure (17,336) was recorded for June, while the highest (18,753) appears for March, 1929. January opened below the average for the fifteen months, but February and March showed a considerable gain in the volume of employment. There was a fairly sharp recession during April, May, and June, with a gain of 481 in July as compared with June. This gain was further augmented by 354 workers in August. With the advent of spring, which marks the perennial return of activity in many industries, there appears a downward trend, which opens with a decline of 576 workers between August and September, and is furthered by relatively low figures for October and November. Curiously enough, the month of December, 1928, and the first three months of 1929 showed a level above the average, culminating in March with the highest figure for the whole period.

Taking the dispersion about the mean as an indication of the fluctuations in employment, and measuring this dispersion by the range, it would appear that of the three principal classes of local authorities the course of employment is most even in boroughs, and most uneven in Harbour Boards. The highest figure for boroughs (9,971) was recorded for August, and the lowest (9,280) in June; the range in this case being 691. In the case of counties the last month and the first month (March, 1929, 4,862, and January, 1928, 4,116) represented the highest and lowest points, giving a range of 746. While the course of employment by counties and boroughs is determined to a certain extent by the volume of unemployment, that recorded for Harbour Boards appears to show roughly the same seasonal tendencies as the primary industries—viz., activity in the summer and relative inactivity in the winter. The highest figure for Harbour Boards (2,547) occurred in February, 1928, the lowest (2,088) in July, giving a range of 459, which is not so very far behind the corresponding figures for boroughs and counties.

Chapter 41. SECTION XLI.—INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTORY.

LEGISLATION CONCERNING INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES.

NATURE AND MAGNITUDE.

NATURE AND MAGNITUDE OF DISPUTES, 1919–28.

NATURE AND MAGNITUDE OF DISPUTES IN EACH INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT, 1928.

DURATION AND MAGNITUDE OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1924–28.

DURATION AND MAGNITUDE OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1928.

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION.

NUMBER AND MAGNITUDE OF DISPUTES IN EACH INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT, 1919–28.

INDUSTRIAL DISTRIBUTION OF DISPUTES.

INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO INDUSTRIAL GROUPS, 1924–28.

INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1928, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO INDUSTRIAL GROUPS.

CAUSES OF DISPUTES.

CAUSES OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1924–28.

CAUSES OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1928.

METHODS OF SETTLEMENT OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES.

METHODS OF SETTLEMENT OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1924–28.

METHOD OF SETTLEMENT OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1928.

RESULTS OF DISPUTES.

RESULTS OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1924–28.

INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1928, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO CAUSES AND RESULTS.

INTRODUCTORY.

THE collection of information regarding industrial disputes was initiated by the Census and Statistics Office at the beginning of the year 1920. Information concerning disputes prior to that year was obtained by examination of the records of the Labour Department, fairly complete data being available from this source with regard to the number of disputes, their nature, causes, methods of settlement, and results. In many instances, however, it was impracticable to ascertain the duration of disputes and the number of workers involved in them and it has been impossible to estimate the number of working-days lost or the loss in wages caused by disputes prior to 1920.

Under the system originated in 1920 returns furnished by Inspectors of Factories form the main source from which information is obtained. It is considered that the statistics based on these reports are less liable to bias than would be the case if parties to the dispute or other private persons were relied on to furnish the information. It is the duty of an Inspector, during the course of a dispute in his industrial district, to collect all available particulars relating to it. The Inspectors have power to demand information from the parties concerned in the dispute, and by exercising this power when necessary they can obtain complete information.

On the termination of a dispute the Inspector in the district in which it has taken place is required to fill in and forward to the Census and Statistics Office and to the Head Office of the Labour Department a return showing—(a) The location of the dispute; (b) its nature—whether direct strike, sympathetic strike, partial strike, or lockout; (c) the number of workers directly and indirectly concerned in the dispute; (d) the dates of commencement and termination of the dispute; (e) the cause, the method of settlement, and the result of the dispute; (f) the estimated loss in wages caused by the dispute; (g) the names of the firms affected and the industry in which the dispute has taken place. If the dispute results in a change of wages or hours, then the wages and hours before and after the dispute are to be shown.

Broadly speaking, industrial disputes may be divided into two main classes—strikes and lockouts. Strikes may be further subdivided into three classes—direct strikes, sympathetic strikes, and partial strikes. A direct strike is a concerted refusal on the part of a body of workers to continue work, for the purpose of forcing their demands on an employer or of resisting demands made by him. A stop-work meeting does not necessarily constitute a strike; it may be held merely to discuss certain matters relating to conditions of employment, &c., or to decide whether or not a strike shall take place, A sympathetic strike occurs when the workers strike not to force their own demands on their employer, but in sympathy with the claims of other workers. A partial strike is a strike which does not involve a complete stoppage of work; a “go-slow” policy adopted by a body of workers may be classified as a partial strike, provided that the fact that they are adopting a “go-slow” policy is soundly established. A lockout occurs when an employer or a body of employers refuses work to a body of workers in order to force certain demands on them or to resist demands made by them.

In these tabulations the term “industrial dispute” refers only to those disputes which result in a strike or a lockout. Many disputes are, of course, settled without recourse to such measures; these are not recorded for statistical purposes.

LEGISLATION CONCERNING INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES.

At a comparatively early date in the economic history of New Zealand the desirability of mitigating the severity of industrial disputes by legislative enactment became apparent to the Legislature; and the distress caused by the maritime strike of 1890–91 led to the passing in 1894 of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, which was designed to facilitate the peaceful settlement of industrial disputes by conciliation and arbitration. This Act, however, applies only to such industrial unions as are registered under the Act, and such registration is voluntary. To bodies of workers not so registered the Labour Disputes Investigation Act, passed in 1913, applies. This enactment requires the workers in the case of a strike, or the employers in the case of a lockout, to notify the Minister of Labour of the points at issue before any actual cessation of work takes place.

Fuller details of these Acts will be found' in Section XXXVIII of this book.

NATURE AND MAGNITUDE.

From the passing of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act in 1894 till the end of 1905 there were no industrial disputes dealt with under the Act; indeed, New Zealand may be said to have been almost entirely free from industrial disputes during that period.

The following table shows for each year from 1921 onwards the numbers of industrial disputes, firms affected, workers involved, and working-days lost, with an estimate of the amount of wages lost. Full information under all heads is not available prior to 1921.

Year.	Disputes.	Firms affected.	Workers involved.	Working lost.	Estimated Loss in Wages.
					£
1921	77	112	10,433	119,208	90,477
1922	58	67	6,414	93,456	60,782
1923	49	79	7,162	201,812	114,074
1924	34	58	14,815	89,105	62,732
1925	83	93	9,905	74,552	49,149
1926	59	67	6,264	47,811	32,355
1927	38	40	4,476	12,485	11,819
1928	39	56	9,258	21,997	22,304

The number of working-days lost is calculated by multiplying the number of workers involved by the number of days lost (exclusive of Sundays and public holidays). It is assumed that work would have been continuous if no dispute had taken place, and no allowance is made for loss of work from unemployment or other causes which might have occurred even if there had been no dispute. In some cases, such as shearing, there is a definite amount of work to be done, and a stoppage of work does not decrease the total amount of work done, but only postpones its completion. In those cases the figures are perhaps more or less fictitious, but in the great majority of cases they represent a real loss.

The next table shows the nature of disputes and the number of workers involved during each of the years 1919–28. Figures of workers involved are incomplete for 1919 and 1920.

NATURE AND MAGNITUDE OF DISPUTES, 1919–28.

Year.	Nature of Dispute.					Number of Workers involved.^*
Year.	Direct Strike.	Sympathetic Strike.	Partial Strike.	Lockout.	Total.	Direct Strike.	Sympathetic Strike.	Partial Strike.	Lockout.	Total.
* Figures for 1919 and 1920 are incomplete.
1919	32	1	12	..	45	2,938	.,	1,092	..	4,030
1920	71	4	2	..	77	9,491	5,309	338	..	15,138
1921	63	5	9	..	77	8,534	917	982	..	10,433
1922	53	4	1	..	58	5,778	376	260	..	6,414
1923	45	2	2	..	49	6,659	207	296	..	7,162
1924	33	..	1	..	34	14,791	..	24	..	14,815
1925	73	6	2	2	83	7,694	1,229	47	935	9,905
1926	49	9	1	..	59	4,437	1,788	39	..	6,264
1927	35	..	3	..	38	4,389	..	87	..	4,476
1928	32	4	1	2	39	4,447	3,864	859	88	9,258

Of the 39 disputes recorded during the year 1928, 24 were of two days' duration or less, while only 10 lasted for more than one week. There were no disputes which could be classed as serious, only 18 men being involved in the one dispute which lasted for eight weeks or over.

The following table shows the nature and magnitude of disputes in each industrial district for the year 1928.

NATURE AND MAGNITUDE OF DISPUTES IN EACH INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT, 1928.

—	Northern.	Wellington.	Westland.	Canterbury.	Otago and Southland.	Totals.
Number of Disputes,
Direct strike	8	5	13	3	3	32
Partial strike	..	1	.	..	..	1
Sympathetic strike	..	..	3	1	..	4
Lockout	..	2	..	..	..	2
Totals	8	8	16	4	3	39
Number of Firms affected.
Totals	8	11	30	4	3	56
Number of Workers involved.
Direct strike	906	228	3,166	29	118	4,447
Partial strike	..	859	..	..	..	859
Sympathetic strike	..	..	3,859	5	..	3,864
Lockout	..	88	..	..	..	88
Totals	906	1,175	7,025	34	118	9,258
Number of Working-days lost.
Direct strike	2,351	1,178	13,953	21	144	17,647
Partial strike	..	..	..	..	..	..
Sympathetic strike	..	..	3,894	30	..	3,921
Lockout	..	426	..	..	..	426
Totals	2,351	1,604	17,847	51	144	21,997

The following table shows the duration of the disputes which occurred during the years 1924–28:—

DURATION AND MAGNITUDE OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1924–28.

Duration.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Number of Disputes.
1 day and less	19	40	24	18	18
2 days and more than 1 day	2	9	10	11	6
3 days and more than 2 days	5	7	3	1	4
Over 3 days to 1 week	1	9	5	2	1
1 week to 2 weeks	4	7	8	4	4
2 weeks to 4 weeks	2	2	6	..	3
4 weeks to 6 weeks	1	3	3	..	2
6 weeks to 8 weeks	..	2	..	1	..
8 weeks and over	..	4	..	1	1
Totals	34	83	59	38	39
Number of Workers involved.
1 day and less	1,670	3,496	2,915	2,456	6,220
2 days and more than 1 day	32	947	252	697	506
3 days and more than 2 days	163	778	288	4	848
Over 3 days to 1 week	25	1,516	319	639	170
1 week to 2 weeks	12,521	867	1,024	588	924
2 weeks to 4 weeks	154	420	681	..	534
4 weeks to 6 weeks	250	520	785	..	38
6 weeks to 8 weeks	..	128	..	50	..
8 weeks and over	..	1,233	..	42	18
Totals	14,815	9,905	6,264	4,476	9,258

During the five years covered by the table 119 disputes, out of a total of 253, lasted for only one day or for less than one day.

It will be observed that the number of workers involved in 1928 (9,258) shows a considerable increase on the 1927 total (4,476). Included in the 1928 disputes are two sympathetic strikes in the Westland coal-mines. In these two disputes, both of which were of only one day's duration, 3,852 men were involved.

In 1928 the great majority of disputes were of a trivial nature, as is evidenced from a study of the following table. Of the 9,258 workers involved in strikes during this year 7,744 were on strike for periods of less than one week. The average working-days lost for all workers on strike was only 2.4 days.

DURATION AND MAGNITUDE OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1928.

Duration.	Number of Disputes.	Number of Workers involved.	Number of Working-days lost.	Estimated Lose in Wages.
				£
1 day and less	18	6,220	6,147	6,766
2 days and more than 1 day	6	506	922	950
3 days and more than 2 days	4	848	2,544	2,320
Over 3 days and less than 1 week	1	170	850	..
1 week to 2 weeks	4	924	390	2,302
2 weeks to 4 weeks	3	534	8,552	7,022
4 weeks to 6 weeks	2	38	1,152	1,360
8 weeks and over	1	18	1,440	1,584
Totals	39	9,258	21,997	22,304

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION.

The following table shows the number of disputes in each industrial district for the years 1919–28, and also the number of workers involved:—

NUMBER AND MAGNITUDE OF DISPUTES IN EACH INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT, 1919–28.

Year.	Northern.	Taranaki.	Wellington.	Marlborough.	Nelson.	Westland.	Canterbury.	Otago and Southland.	Totals.
* Including railway strikes, which cannot be allocated to industrial districts. The railway strikes of 1920 were confined to the North Island.
Number of Disputes.
1919	10	1	8	..	3	15	3	5	45
1920	22	..	12	..	1	25	9	6	77^*
1921	21	1	15	..	2	15	4	19	77
1922	10	1	11	..	1	16	10	9	58
1923	15	3	6	..	..	13	1	11	49
1924	5	3	5	..	..	6	5	9	34^*
1925	17	1	21	..	1	21	10	12	83
1926	12	2	12	1	..	17	7	8	59
1927	7	..	7	..	..	11	9	4	38
1928	8	..	8	..	..	16	4	3	39
Number of Workers involved.
1919	394	..	118	..	111	2,306	880	221	4,030
1920	2,991	..	1,081	..	10	5,106	260	164	15,138^*
1921	3,829	44	2,373	..	63	2,319	312	1,493	10,433
1922	703	53	940	..	49	2,771	1,010	888	6,414
1923	1,592	164	636	..	..	3,998	115	657	7,162
1924	315	131	126	..	..	1,235	437	732	14,815^*
1925	1,494	81	2,868	..	8	4,489	674	391	9,905
1926	1,080	39	907	80	..	3,132	652	374	6,264
1927	1,107	..	443	..	..	2,433	295	198	4,476
1928	906	..	1,175	..	..	7,025	34	118	9,258

INDUSTRIAL DISTRIBUTION OF DISPUTES.

In the following table industrial disputes are classified according to the industries in which disputes took place. The classification into industrial groups is the same as that used in the compilation of wage statistics. “Wood-manufacture” includes both sawmilling and the secondary stages of manufacture (cabinetmaking, &c.). “Domestic service” includes in addition to employees in hotels, restaurants, &c., workers in laundries and in hairdressing saloons. “Metal-working” includes all the engineering trades, brassmoulding, fitting, &c. The designations given to the other groups are self-explanatory.

INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO INDUSTRIAL GROUPS, 1924–28.

Industrial Group.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Number of Disputes.
I. Food, drink &c.	1	4	11	6	1
II. Clothing	..	..	..	..	..
III. Textiles and weaving	..	2	..	..	..
IV. Building and construction	..	1	..	..	..
V. Wood-manufacture	..	..	..	..	..
VI. Paper-manufacture and printing	..	..	..	..	..
VII. Metal-working	1	..	..	..	..
VIII. Other manufactures	2	..	..	..	..
IX. Mining	13	22	25	14	23
X. Agricultural and pastoral	..	..	1	1	1
XI. Land transport	1	..	..	..	..
XII. Shipping and cargo-working	13	52	20	15	13
XIII. Domestic service, &c.	1	..	..	..	..
XIV. Miscellaneous	2	2	2	2	1
Totals	34	83	59	38	39
Number of Workers involved.
I. Food, drink, &c.	24	144	1,451	366	859
II. Clothing	..	..	..	..	..
III. Textiles and weaving	..	365	..	..	..
IV. Building and construction	..	100	..	..	..
V. Wood-manufacture	..	..	..	..	..
VI. Paper-manufacture and printing	..	..	..	..	..
VII. Metal-working	13	..	..	..	..
VIII. Other manufactures	14	..	..	..	..
IX. Mining	1,983	5,101	4,159	3,109	8,009
X. Agricultural and pastoral	..	..	7	6	8
XI. Land transport	11,839	..	..	..	..
XII. Shipping and cargo-working	852	4,157	575	544	352
XIII. Domestic service, &c.	5	..	..	..	..
XIV. Miscellaneous	85	38	72	451	30
Totals	14,815	9,905	6,264	4,476	9,258

Out of a total of 253 disputes during the five years 97 occurred in the mining industry. Of the 44,718 workers involved in disputes during the five years 22,361 were engaged in this industry. The great majority of these disputes were, however, of very short duration.

Further information concerning disputes in the various industrial groups is given for the year 1928 in the next table.

INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1928, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO INDUSTRIAL GROUPS.

Industrial Group.	Number of Disputes.	Number of Firms affected.	Number of Workers involved.			Number of Working-days lost.	Estimated Loss in Wages.
Industrial Group.	Number of Disputes.	Number of Firms affected.	Directly.	Indirectly.	Total.	Number of Working-days lost.	Estimated Loss in Wages.
							£
I. Food, drink, &c.	1	3	185	674	859	..	1,861
IX. Mining	23	37	7,983	26	8,009	20,260	18,995
X. Agricultural and pastoral	1	1	8	..	8	24	20
XII. Shipping and cargo-working	13	14	352	..	352	753	228
XIV. Miscellaneous	1	1	30	..	30	960	1,200
Totals	39	56	8,558	700	9,258	21,997	22,304

The greatest number of disputes during 1928 was recorded in the mining industry, where 23 strikes took place. None of these disputes can be classed as serious, however, as is evidenced by the fact that the average number of working-days lost through industrial disputes in this industry was, in 1928, only 2.5 days.

CAUSES OF DISPUTES.

In the next table the causes of disputes occurring during the years 1924–28 are shown. Under the heading “Wages” are included disputes concerning a reduction or increase in the rates of wages in industries where time rates are paid, or concerning an increase or decrease in the rates for piecework in industries where piece rates are paid. Disputes concerning an increase or decrease in the rates for overtime are also included in this class.

Disputes concerning the number of hours of work are classified under the heading “Hours.”

Disputes concerning the employment or non-employment of certain classes of persons are included under the heading “Employment.” This question usually arises in connection with trade-union affairs — the employment of non-unionists, or the dismissal of men when, in the opinion of the other workers, their dismissal is due merely or mainly to the fact that they are prominent in union activities.

The heading “Other working - conditions” includes all causes of disputes-relating to conditions of work, &c.

Under the heading “Sympathy” are included all disputes caused by workers-striking not on account of a grievance with their own particular employer, but in sympathy with the demands of other workers.

“Other causes” refers to all causes of disputes not included in the above classes.

CAUSES OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1924–28.

Cause.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Number of Disputes.
Wages	12	34	19	8	8
Hours	..	..	..	..	..
Employment	12	13	10	10	8
Other working-conditions	7	26	17	18	15
Sympathy	..	6	9	..	4
Other causes	3	4	4	2	4
Totals	34	83	59	38	39
Number of Workers involved.
Wages	12,545	4,757	2,142	1,384	574
Hours	..	..	..	..	..
Employment	1,120	1,175	1,121	352	632
Other working-conditions	553	2,355	1,013	2,442	3,240
Sympathy	..	1,229	1,788	..	3,864
Other causes	597	389	200	298	948
Totals	14,815	9,905	6,264	4,476	9,258

The following table classifies disputes for the year 1928 according to cause, and shows for each group of causes the number of disputes, the number of workers involved, the time lost, and the estimated loss in wages.

CAUSES OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1928.

Cause.	Number of Disputes.	Number of Workers Involved.	Number of Working-days lost.	Estimated Loss in Wages.
				£
Wages	8	574	2,120	2,170
Employment	8	632	3,428	2,643
Other working-conditions	15	3,240	11,369	11,848
Sympathy	4	3,864	3,924	4,393
Other causes	4	948	1,156	1,250
Totals	39	9,258	21,997	22,304

METHODS OF SETTLEMENT OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES.

The methods of settlement of industrial disputes may be classified as follows:—

By negotiations under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act:
By negotiations under the Labour Disputes Investigation Act:
By private negotiations between the employers and workers, resulting in the framing of a compromise:
By the substitution of other workers for strikers:
(e) By other methods. Under this head are included cases in which the men return to work without the points at issue being definitely settled; or where the employers or workers give way without placing the matter before a Labour Disputes Committee or a Conciliation Council; or any other method by which a strike may be settled which does not come under the four preceding heads.

Following is a table showing the methods of settlement of disputes during the last five years. There were no settlements during the period by negotiations under the Labour Disputes Investigation Act.

METHODS OF SETTLEMENT OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1924–28.

Method of Settlement.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Number of Disputes.
Negotiations under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act	..	..	1	4	8
Compromise between parties to the dispute	11	15	19	5	17
Substitution	2	..	5	2	4
Otherwise	21	68	34	27	10
Totals	34	83	59	38	39
Number of Workers involved.
Negotiations under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act	..	..	20	596	531
Compromise between parties to the dispute	1,169	1,210	2,562	1,340	2,344
Substitution	10	..	108	56	29
Otherwise	13,636	8,695	3,574	2,484	6,354
Totals	14,815	9,905	6,264	4,476	9,258

Further information for the year 1928 is given in the next table.

METHOD OF SETTLEMENT OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1928.

Method of Settlement.	Number of Disputes.	Number of Workers involved.	Number of Working-days lost.	Estimated Loss in Wages.
				£
Negotiations under Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act	8	531	2,137	2,093
Compromise	17	2,344	13,983	11,734
Substitution	4	29	74	48
Otherwise	10	6,354	5,803	8,429
Totals	39	9,258	21,997	22,304

RESULTS OF DISPUTES.

The results of all industrial disputes are classified under one of the four heads used in the next table. The system of classification is more fully explained by the following notes:—

In favour of workers. All disputes where the demands of the workers are totally conceded come under this category.
In favour of employers. Disputes are classified under this head when the workers give way on the points at issue.
Compromise. Disputes where the demands of the workers are partially but not wholly conceded come under this head.
Disputes are classified as “indeterminate” when work is resumed without any definite settlement of the questions out of which the trouble arose.

In the following table is given a summary of results of industrial disputes occurring during the period 1924–28:—

RESULTS OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1924–28.

Result.	1924.	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.
Number of Disputes.
In favour of workers	11	19	12	11	11
In favour of employers	7	21	15	6	12
Compromise	9	17	10	7	10
Indeterminate	7	26	22	14	6
Totals	34	83	59	38	39
Number of Workers involved.
In favour of workers	741	1,200	619	1,079	1,510
In favour of employers	12,196	4,179	828	240	2,087
Compromise	1,078	1,879	1,203	1,505	877
Indeterminate	800	2,647	3,614	1,652	4,784
Totals	14,815	9,905	6,264	4,476	9,258
Number of Workinq-days lost.
In favour of workers	3,824	5,927	788	3,629	9,681
In favour of employers	71,463	45,354	4,503	3,011	3,143
Compromise	12,994	5,415	15,036	3,715	4,329
Indeterminate	824	17,856	27,484	2,130	4,844
Totals	89,105	74,552	47,811	12,485	21,997

An “indeterminate” result is recorded in a considerable proportion of cases. This is only natural since a great number of disputes—notably “sympathetic” strikes—cannot by their very nature have a definite settlement one way or the other. Again, considerable care has been taken in assigning disputes to the various classes, no dispute being classified as ending in favour of either the workers or the employers unless the result is quite clear. Of disputes ending definitely in favour of one party or the other during the five years, workers won in 64 instances and employers in 61.

In the following table the causes and results of disputes occurring during 1928 are shown in conjunction:—

INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES, 1928, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO CAUSES AND RESULTS.

Result.	Cause.
Result.	Wages.	Employment.	Other Working-conditions.	Sympathy.	Other Causes.	Totals.
Number of Disputes.
In favour of workers	2	2	6	..	1	11
In favour of employers	3	3	5	..	1	12
Compromise	3	3	4	..	..	10
Indeterminate	..	..	..	4	2	6
Totals	8	8	15	4	4	39
Number of Workers involved.
In favour of workers	78	175	1,239	..	18	1,510
In favour of employers	365	114	1,598	..	10	2,087
Compromise	131	343	403	..	..	877
Indeterminate	..	..	..	3,864	920	4,784
Totals	574	632	3,240	3,864	948	9,258
Number of Working-days lost.
In favour of workers	138	853	8,474	..	216	9,681
In favour of employers	905	130	2,088	..	20	3,143
Compromise	1,077	2,445	807	..	..	4,329
Indeterminate	..	..	..	3,924	920	4,844
Totals	2,120	3,428	11,369	3,924	1,156	21,997

Chapter 42. SECTION XLII.—INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS,

Table of Contents

AVAILABLE STATISTICS OF INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS.

FACTORY ACCIDENTS.

“SCAFFOLDING” ACCIDENTS.

ACCIDENTS TO RAILWAY EMPLOYEES.

ACCIDENTS TO PUBLIC WORKS EMPLOYEES.

ACCIDENTS TO POST AND TELEGRAPH EMPLOYEES.

ACCIDENTS TO EMPLOYEES IN MINES AND QUARRIES.

MISCELLANEOUS ACCIDENTS.

THE LAW IN RESPECT OF INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS.

FREQUENCY RATES.

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—FREQUENCY RATES AND COMPENSATION.

CAUSE OF ACCIDENT AND EXTENT OF INJURY SUSTAINED.

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—CAUSES OF ACCIDENTS BY EXTENT OF DISABILITY.

NATURE OF INJURY.

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—NATURE OF INJURY BY CLASS OF ACCIDENT.

PART OF BODY AFFECTED.

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—PART OF BODY AFFECTED.

NATURE OF INJURY IN RELATION TO PART OF BODY AFFECTED.

DURATION OF INCAPACITY.

ACCIDENT SEVERITIES.

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—EXTENT OF DISABILITY AND SEVERITY RATES, BY INDUSTRIES.

SUMMARIZED STATISTICS.

LOSS OF EARNING POWER INVOLVED.

AGES OF THE PERSONS INJURED.

DAY AND HOUR OF OCCURRENCE.

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—HOUR OF OCCURRENCE.

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—NUMBER OF HOURS ALREADY WORKED AT TIME OF OCCURRENCE.

AVAILABLE STATISTICS OF INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS.

As a result of an international conference of official statisticians held at Geneva in 1923, under the auspices of the International Labour Office set up by the League of Nations, the collection and compilation of statistics of industrial accidents on substantially uniform lines is now being undertaken in virtually all countries. From the administrative standpoint the principal types of industrial accidents occurring in New Zealand may be classified under the various heads which follow.

FACTORY ACCIDENTS.

The following is the definition of a “factory” according to the Factories Act, 1921–22:—

Any building, office, or place in which two or more persons are employed, directly or indirectly, in any handicraft, or in preparing or manufacturing goods for trade or sale, including any building, office, or place in which work such as is ordinarily performed in a factory is performed for or on behalf of any local authority whether for trade or sale or not; but not including any building in course of erection, nor any temporary workshop or shed for workmen engaged in the erection of such building; but (whatever the number of persons employed therein) including
Every bakehouse . . .; and also
Every building or place in which steam or other mechanical power or appliance is used for the purpose of preparing or manufacturing goods for trade or sale, or packing such goods for transit; and also
Every building or place in which electrical energy is generated or transformed as an illuminant or a motive power for trade or sale, or in which coal-gas or any other form of gas is produced for the like purposes; and also
Every laundry . . .; and also
Every building or place in which any Asiatic is directly or indirectly employed or occupied in laundry-work or any other handicraft, or in preparing or manufacturing goods for trade or sale, or in packing them for transit.

It should be noted that a factory as above defined is not identical with a factory as defined for purposes of the factory production inquiry (Section XXII of this book).

Section 39 of the Factories Act prescribes certain safety devices for the protection of machine workers in factories, and provides penalties for default on the part of factory-occupiers.

Section 41, requires the reporting to Inspectors of Factories (who are officers of the Labour Department, which administers the Act) of all accidents likely to incapacitate the injured person for at least forty-eight hours. Reports are compiled by Inspectors of Factories in connection with each such accident causing loss of work amounting to three days or upwards. These are retained in the District Offices of the Labour Department until the 31st January of the calendar year following that in which the accident occurred, when they are forwarded to the Head Office of the Labour Department. Up to and including the year 1923 statistics were compiled in that office for inclusion in parliamentary paper H.–11, the Annual Report of the Labour Department; but since then the individual reports of accidents have, after scrutiny in the Labour Department's Head Office, been forwarded to the Census and Statistics Office for statistical analysis.

“SCAFFOLDING” ACCIDENTS.

The Scaffolding and Excavation Act, 1922, which superseded the original Act of 1902, does not apply to mines or quarries, or to any ship, boat, or other vessel, or to any excavation made by any local authority or public body, or to any work in connection with a tramway. The Act makes similar provisions to the Factories Act for the appointment of officers of the Labour Department as Inspectors, for the provision of safety-devices and precautionary measures, and for the prompt reporting of all accidents likely to incapacitate the sufferer for at least forty - eight hours, in connection with any building-work, scaffolding, crane, or excavation. For this purpose “building-work” is defined as “any work in connection with the construction, alteration, repair, painting, renewal, or demolition of any erection, edifice, structure, bridge, viaduct, wall, fence, or chimney”; “scaffolding” as “any structure or framework used for the support or protection of workmen engaged in any building, work, and including any swinging stage used or intended to be used for any of the purposes aforesaid”; “excavation” as “any work in connection with preparing or excavating foundations for buildings, or for sewerage, gas, water, or electric supply when such work is more than 5 ft. in depth from the top of the excavation”; and “crane” as including “any engine, hoist, lift, derrick, apparatus, or contrivance of a like kind used on any building for the hoisting, lowering, carrying, or removing from place to place of material, goods, or workmen, and worked by steam, electric, or hand power, or in any other manner”; but the term does not include any machine or boiler by which the motive power of a crane is generated, if a certificate for such machine or boiler is required under the Inspection of Machinery Act, 1908.

The procedure adopted in connection with the compilation of statistics of scaffolding accidents is identical with that in connection with factory accidents. The scaffolding accidents were for the first time handled by the Census and Statistics Office for the year 1925.

ACCIDENTS TO RAILWAY EMPLOYEES.

Statistics of accidents to railway employees have long been compiled in the Railways Head Office from returns received from District Offices, and are published in the Railways Statement, parliamentary paper D.-2. Commencing with accidents occurring on the 1st July, 1925, individual reports of all accidents involving loss of work for three days or upwards have been supplied by the Railways Department to the Census and Statistics Office for more detailed analysis and tabulation. From the year 1926 complete information is available.

ACCIDENTS TO PUBLIC WORKS EMPLOYEES.

Commencing on the 1st January, 1925, reports have been compiled by district officers in connection with each accident involving loss of work amounting to at least three days. These are forwarded to the Head Office of the Public Works Department, and thence to the Census and Statistics Office for compilation, after the 31st January of the calendar year following that in which the accidents occurred.

ACCIDENTS TO POST AND TELEGRAPH EMPLOYEES.

The same remarks apply as in the case of accidents to employees of the Public Works Department.

ACCIDENTS TO EMPLOYEES IN MINES AND QUARRIES.

Particulars of accidents to employees in metalliferous mines, in coal-mines, and in quarries and other places under the Stone-quarries Act, are given in successive numbers of the Mines Statement, parliamentary paper C.-2. Summarized figures are given in Section XXI of this book.

MISCELLANEOUS ACCIDENTS.

There are numerous types of industrial accidents for which it has not as yet been found practicable to collect and compile statistics. The principal classes of such accidents are those occurring to persons engaged in land transport (other than railway operation), in “watersiding,” in bushfelling, and in marine navigation. Accidents of the last-mentioned type are reportable to the Marine Department under the Shipping and Seamen Act.

THE LAW IN RESPECT OF INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS.

According to the English common law relating to torts, a person injured by the wilful act, negligence, or omission of another person might recover damages by legal action. It was considered to be the duty of the employer to use reasonable care in protecting his employees against injury while engaged in his service: an employer might thus become liable because the premises, plant, machinery, or other gear supplied by him were unsafe or inadequate; because he employed an incompetent servant who through lack of skill was responsible for the accident; &c. This duty imposed on the employer called, however, merely for the guarding of those dangerous conditions which the employer knew of, or should have known of by the exercise of reasonable care. Accidents will, however, happen in the best-regulated establishments, through the fault of no one—through the inherent hazards of industry. Such risks the worker was deemed to shoulder on accepting employment, the presumption being that wages became adjusted to a higher level in especially hazardous industries as a compensation to the worker for the extra risks involved.

The common-law remedy applied only in cases of negligence on the part of the master, and it became so encrusted with exceptions grafted upon it by judicial interpretation that only in rare cases was a worker successful in a common-law action against his employer for damages for injuries received in the course of employment. The plight of the injured worker was aggravated by the fact that the burden of proof rested on him, and by the fact that almost without exception the legal and financial resources of his employer were far superior to any which he was able to command.

The English law on the subject became the law in New Zealand, on the foundation of the colony, except in so far as it was modified by local legislation.

With the continued growth of industrialism there arose a demand for legislation which would mitigate the asperities of the plight of the injured worker and his family in the numerous cases where they were unable to obtain relief under the common law. The first instalment of reform in New Zealand came with the passing of the Employers' Liability Act, 1882 (modelled largely on the lines of the corresponding English Act of two years earlier); which, with its amendments, moderated some of the harsher effects of the fellow-servant (or common-employment) doctrine, and imposed a higher standard of responsibility on employers in connection with the prevention of industrial accidents. This Act also marks an important advance in that the common-law rule that a personal action dies with the injured person was abrogated in favour of the deceased worker's dependants.

This Act was repealed in New Zealand in 1908. Meanwhile a new principle, that of workmen's compensation, had been developed, by which the inherent hazards of industry have been made a charge upon the industry concerned (and in most cases, through the industry, upon the consumers of the goods and services supplied by that industry). A Workmen's Compensation for Accidents Act was passed in New Zealand in 1900, and (with sundry amendments) consolidated in 1908. In the same year this Act was replaced by the Workers' Compensation Act, 1908, now (with certain fairly extensive amending Acts) consolidated in the corresponding Act of 1922, and further amended in regard to compensation by the Amendment Act of 1926, increasing the amount of compensation payable from the 1st January, 1827. Under the present law the employer is, quite independently of whether or not he has been at fault at all, liable to pay compensation in respect of all accidents arising out of and in the course of employment, except those due to the serious and wilful misconduct of the person injured, and even in respect of such accidents if they result in serious and permanent disablement.

Information concerning the Workers' Compensation Act is given in Section XXXVIII of this book.

FREQUENCY RATES.

Some measure whereby the frequency of accidents in different industries or occupations, or districts, or countries may be rigorously compared, or whereby some unequivocal indication may be obtained as to whether accidents are or are not increasing in frequency, is highly desirable. Because hours worked are not fully standardized for industry generally the number of accidents occurring in a given time per 1,000 employees cannot but be regarded as an unsatisfactory measure of frequency. A difference in hours worked entails a difference in industrial risk. For the purpose of computing frequency rates in New Zealand, data as to the number of employees in establishments coming under the heading of various industries have accordingly been compiled in the Census and Statistics Office from returns furnished for the purpose by the Labour Department's Inspectors of Factories; while information as to the hours worked has been ascertained from the awards, and supplemented by the statistics of short time and overtime compiled from data collected in connection with the annual census of factory production. Similar data have been obtained from the records of the Post and Telegraph, Public Works, and Railways Departments. Taking one hour's work performed by one man as the unit, and calling this unit a “man-hour,” it is then a simple matter to find the total number of man-hours worked in each industry, enabling frequency rates of factory accidents to be computed on the basis of number of accidents per 100,000 man-hours worked.

The following table shows, in respect of industrial accidents tabulated for the year 1928, the frequency rates for each individual group, together with compensation paid (including medical and surgical expenses):—

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—FREQUENCY RATES AND COMPENSATION.

Industry.	Number of Accidents.	Accidents per 100,000 Man-hours worked.	Number of Accidents where Particulars are available as to Compensation paid.	Total Amount of Compensation or Damages paid in such Cases.	Average Compensation per Case where Compensation known.
Food, drink, and tobacco—				£	£
Baking	6	0.115	6	218.0	36.3
Flourmilling	4	0.339	4	270.3	67.6
Biscuitmaking	51	1.269	51	893.5	17.5
Brewing	23		23	595.1	25.9
Aerated waters	3	0.818	3	17.1	5.7
Butchering	9	0.242	9	889.3	98.8
Meat freezing and preserving	1,471	18.480	1,470	20,250.3	13.8
Butter and cheese making	18	0.214	18	386.3	21.5
Other	41	0.680	41	888.3	21.7
Totals	1,626	4.091	1,625	24,408.2	15.0
Clothing, boots, &c.—
Dressmaking, tailoring, &c.	20	0.077	20	86.4	4.3
Bootmaking and repairing	16	0.292	16	153.4	9.6
Other	9	0.148	9	63.7	7.1
Totals	45	0.120	45	303.5	6.7
Textiles and weaving—
Woollen-mills	48	0.838	48	1,321.0	27.5
Flax-mills	4	0.267	4	117.2	29.3
Rope and twine works	4	0.833	4	193.3	48.3
Other	13	2.549	13	49.5	3.8
Totals	69	0.839	69	1,681.0	24.4

Industry.	Number of Accidents.	Accidents per 100,000 Man-hours worked.	Number of Accidents where Particulars are available as to Compensation paid.	Total Amount of Compensation or Damages paid in such Cases.	Average Compensation per Case where Compensation known.
* Data on which to compute not available.
Public Works—				£	£
Railway-construction	526	8.193	526	6,976.5	13.3
Road-construction	391	4.077	391	8,104.0	20.7
Hydro-electric works	199	8.122	199	2,443.1	12.3
Public buildings	3	0.566	3	10.5	3.5
Workshop employees	18	11.678	18	114.0	6.3
Other	156		156	1,799.8	11.5
Totals	1,293	6.313	1,293	19,447.9	15.0
Under Scaffolding and Excavation Act—
Carpenters	174	^*	174	2,889.3	16.6
Builders' labourers	198	^*	193	2,945.1	15.3
Other	114	^*	114	10,036.7	88.0
Totals	486	^*	481	15.871.1	33.0
Wood-working—
Sawmilling	82	1.065	81	4,976.7	61.4
Coach building	12	0.324	12	671.5	56.0
Furniture-making	69	0.939	69	1,855.5	26.9
Boatbuilding	1	0.094	1	140.2	140.2
Joinery and building workshops	86	1.180	86	2,534.2	29.5
Other	42	1.953	42	1,042.0	24.8
Totals	292	0.998	291	11,220.1	38.6
Paper-manufacture and printing—
Paper-manufacture	7	1.628	7	28.3	4.0
Printing—Government	10	0.847	10	214.1	21.4
Other than Government	55	0.538	55	1,930.1	35.1
Other	13	7.222	12	196.1	16.3
Totals	85	0.707	84	2,368.6	28.2
Metal-working and engineering—
Foundries, general engineering	228	1.510	227	4,132.0	18.2
Electrical engineering	7	0.266	7	453.9	64.8
Cycle and motor engineering	75	0.750	75	2,225.4	29.7
Building—Workshops	28	1.181	28	314.2	11.2
Radio engineering	1	2.005	1	2.5	2.5
Other	83		83	2,193.2	26.4
Totals	422	1.231	421	9,321.2	22.1
Other manufactures—
Brickmaking	72	1.099	70	3,252.7	46.5
Gas-manufacture	11	0.512	11	101.3	9.2
Electric supply	5	0.388	5	650.1	130.0
Leather-working	29	0.575	29	447.0	15.4
Soap and starch works	8	0.721	8	587.6	73.5
Chemical and manure works	73	2.393	73	1,206.9	16.5
Other	26	0.568	26	192.3	7.4
Totals	224	0.909	222	6,437.9	29.0

Industry.	Number of Accidents.	Accidents per 100,000 Man-hours worked.	Number of Accidents where Particulars are available as to Compensation paid.	Total Amount of Compensation or Damages paid in such Cases.	Average Compensation per Case where Compensation known.
* Data on which to compute not available. † Excluding scaffolding accidents.
Transport and communication—				£	£
Railways—
Permanent-way employees	300	4.644	300	4,503.8	15.0
Locomotive workshop employees	484	6.229	484	6,284.6	13.0
Maintenance workshop employees	68	2.073	68	2,145.2	31.5
Engine-drivers and firemen	83	2.280	83	1,996.7	24.1
Other locomotive employees	62	2.138	62	577.9	9.3
Guards	17	1.349	17	208.2	12.2
Shunters	92	11.500	92	2,297.2	25.0
Porters	82		82	727.8	8.9
Traffic labourers	92	6.162	92	1,493.2	16.2
Wharf labourers	118		118	3,782.5	32.1
Signalmen, storemen, &c.	111		111	1,872.5	16.9
Totals	1,509	4.622	1,509	25,889.6	17.2
Post and Telegraph—
Clerical officers	5	0.097	5	76.7	15.3
Tradesmen	21	1.579	21	231.4	11.0
Storemen	3	1.875	3	13.9	4.6
Exchange clerks and attendants	1	0.042	1	1.2	1.2
Overseers, foremen, &c.	36	3.051	36	515.0	14.3
Linesmen and labourers	100	3.460	100	1,536.9	15.4
Chauffeurs	7	2.500	7	71.5	10.2
Postmen	12	0.764	12	61.5	5.1
Messengers	6	0.923	6	40.6	6.8
Message boys and girls	12	0.591	12	39.2	3.3
Totals	203	1.138	203	2,587.9	12.7
Tram-car construction and repair	4	2.500	4	47.7	11.9
Quarrying—
Road metal, gravel, and sand	2	1.667	2	9.8	4.9
Construction in stone	4		4	38.2	9.6
Totals	6	1.667	6	48.0	8.0
Personal service—
Laundry-work	19	0.779	19	205.6	10.8
Miscellaneous minor industries—
Oil canning and packing	54	7.500	54	494.6	9.2
Other	7	0.166	7	144.9	20.7
Totals	61	1.237	61	639.5	10.5
Summary.
Factory accidents	2,853	1.473	2,847	56,681.3	19.9
Public Works accidents	1,293	6.313	1,293	19,447.9	15.0
Scaffolding accidents	486	^*	481	15,871.1	33.0
Railway accidents	1,509	4.622	1,509	25,889.6	17.2
Post and Telegraph accidents	203	1.138	203	2,587.9	12.7
Grand totals	6,344	2.213^†	6,333	120,477.8	19.0

It will be seen that accidents to employees of the Public Works Department show the highest frequency rate, with those to Railway employees ranking next. Of those groups covered by the Factories Act, the “Food and drink” group has the highest rate, due to the exceptionally high figure for freezing-works employees, which subdivision has the highest individual frequency rate. “Other” Public Works employees and “shunters,” are next, while of the factory accidents the “oil canning and packing” and “other printing” sub-groups rank highest. The “Clothing, boots, &c.” group shows the lowest group-rate, one of its components—employees in dressmaking, &c.—having the lowest individual frequency rate amongst factory employees. Accidents to exchange clerks and attendants in the Post and Telegraph Department have the lowest individual frequency rate of all the accidents covered.

The division of compensation into average amount paid according to the disability resulting, is as under:—

Class.	Temporary Disability.		Permanent Partial Disability.		Fatality.
Class.	Number of Cases where Compensation stilted.	Average Amount.	Number of Cases where Compensation stated.	Average Amount.	Number of Cases where Compensation stated.	Average Amount.
		£		£		£
Factories	2,714	9.7	121	172.3	12	782.9
Public works	1,253	8.7	32	222.8	8	184.9
Scaffolding	453	6.5	16	193.0	12	818.5
Railways	1,484	9.7	17	318.8	8	761.6
Post and Telegraph	201	10.1	2	276.9	..	..
Totals	6,105	9.3	188	197.0	40	669.8

The generally serious nature of injuries leading to permanent disability in the case of accidents to railway employees is responsible for the high average for permanent partial disability cases in this group. On the other hand, the low figure shown in the case of fatal accidents to Public Works employees is due to the fact that in several instances there were no dependants to claim compensation.

CAUSE OF ACCIDENT AND EXTENT OF INJURY SUSTAINED.

With regard to the extent and degree of the disability sustained, it is usual to distinguish fatal accidents, accidents causing temporary disability, accidents causing permanent partial disability, and accidents causing permanent total disability. In the actual compilation of the statistics difficulty occasionally arises as to whether a particular injury should be regarded as temporary or permanent; and in cases of doubt the conservative practice has been adopted of debiting the injury to the temporary-disability class.

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—CAUSES OF ACCIDENTS BY EXTENT OF DISABILITY.

Cause.	Temporary Disability.	Permanent Partial Disability.	Fatality.	Total.	Percentage of Total Accidents.
Machinery—
Prime movers	11	1	..	12	13.5
Transmission	23	2	1	26
Lifting-machinery	564	95	2	661
Power-working machines	148	9	6	163
Vehicles	346	8	6	360	5.7
Explosives and fires	44	5	1	50	0.8
Poisonous, hot, and corrosive substances	165	2	2	169	2.7
Electricity	15	1	2	18	0.3
Falls of persons—
From elevations	325	10	11	346	13.6
Into excavations	42	..	..	42
Slipping and stumbling on the level	471	5	..	476

Cause.	Temporary Disability.	Permanent Partial Disability.	Fatality.	Total.	Percentage of Total Accidents.
Stepping on or striking against fixed objects—
Stepping on	96	..	..	96	5.8
Striking against	270	1	..	271	5.8
Falling objects, not being handled by the person injured	143	6	4	153	2.4
Falls of earth	143	5	2	150	2.4
Handling of objects—
Heavy	1,047	13	1	1,061	25.1
Sharp	347	2	..	349
Hand-trucks, &c.	140	2	1	143
Continued wear	41	..	..	41
Hand tools—
In hands of person injured—
Glancing of tool	921	15	..	936	20.9
Breaking of tool	16	..	..	16
Flying particles	96	3	..	99
Other	199	4	..	203
In hands of other than person injured	71	2	..	73
Animals (including vehicle accidents due to animals)	83	1	..	84	1.3
Miscellaneous—
Strains, sprains, and septic wounds undefined as to cause (sustained while slaughtering)	130	..	..	130	5.5
Doors, windows, covers, gates (excluding elevators)	67	1	..	68
Other	142	5	1	148
Summary.
Factories	2,714	127	12	2,853	45.0
Public Works	1,253	32	8	1,293	20.4
Scaffolding	454	20	12	486	7.7
Railways	1,484	17	8	1,509	23.8
Post and Telegraph	201	2	..	203	3.1
Totals	6,106	198	40	6,344	100.0

Of the factory accidents terminating fatally or resulting in permanent disability—139 in all—97 were due to machinery. This is to be expected from the nature of the work, for though all factory accidents resulting from machinery bear a much smaller proportion to total factory accidents—i.e., 595 to 2,853—there is far more likelihood of permanent disability through dismemberment or loss of power of a limb, or part of a limb, occurring when dealing with machinery.

In the Public Works Department, machinery accidents (50) were few in comparison with the total, only 3 resulted in permanent disability, and 1 in fatality. Out-of-door accidents—due to slipping and falling and to blasting mishaps—are more common, and the cases included in the group “falls of earth” show the greatest number of accidents resulting in permanent partial disability—5 out of the 32 cases. Of the 8 fatal accidents, 1 resulted from this cause also.

As would be expected, the groups “handling of objects” (58), “falls of persons” (46), and “vehicles” (36), show the highest figures as causes of accidents to Post and Telegraph employees; two of these three groups show one accident involving permanent partial disability.

Of those accidents reported under the terms of the Scaffolding and Excavation Act, 117 were due to falls, 98 to handling of heavy objects, and only 39 to machinery. Five of the 12 fatal accidents were due to falling from elevations, as were also 5 of the 20 cases of permanent partial disability.

Though in the case of Railway employees, accidents due to vehicles did not predominate—the handling of objects being the major cause of accident (414 cases)—they ranked next highest with 232 cases, with fall of persons third (231 cases). Of the 8 fatalities 4 were due to vehicles, and of the 17 permanent disablements, 5.

Variation as regards cause for all accidents is almost negligible, there being less than 2 per cent. difference this year in any of the main divisions as compared with last year.

NATURE OF INJURY.

The natures of the injuries sustained during 1928 in the different classes of accidents were—

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—NATURE OF INJURY BY CLASS OF ACCIDENT.

Nature of Injury.	Class of Accident.					Totals.
Nature of Injury.	Factory.	Public Works.	Scaffolding.	Railways.	Post and Telegraph.	Totals.
Contusions and abrasions	522	369	162	422	41	1,516
Burns and scalds	135	14	5	59	4	217
Concussions	9	2	5	5	1	22
Cuts and lacerations	1,248	296	84	325	55	2,008
Punctures	197	65	63	73	17	415
Amputations	116	8	11	13	4	152
Dislocations	13	8	6	11	1	39
Fractures	85	53	23	69	13	243
Sprains and strains	428	368	85	414	59	1,354
Other and ill-defined	100	110	42	118	8	378
Totals	2,853	1,293	486	1,509	203	6,344
Number of cases where septic poisoning followed	518	124	62	201	18	923
Percentage of all accidents	18.2	9.6	12.8	13.3	8.9	14.5

It will be observed that the natures of the injuries sustained vary considerably as among the different classes of accidents. Cuts and lacerations figure exceptionally largely amongst factory accidents, 671 cases out of the 1,248 recorded under this head being due to glancing of tools or work, and 313 to machine operation. Contusions and abrasions figure largely amongst all classes of accidents, and are due to a wide variety of causes, none of which can be regarded as outstanding. Strains and sprains are also deserving of notice as ranking high amongst the different types of injury. A large proportion of these injuries are traceable to the handling of heavy objects, viz., 160 out of 428 in the case of factory accidents (and a further case of rupture necessitating cessation of work), 22 out of 85 in the case of scaffolding accidents, only 13 out of 59 in the case of Post and Telegraph accidents, 114 of the 368 cases among Public Works employees, and 113 in the case of the 414 Railways Department accidents. Slipping or stumbling is the next largest factor in causing strains.

Factory accidents registered the greatest percentage of cases where septic poisoning supervened; only 41 of these followed accidents due to machinery, the majority being consequential on slaughtering accidents, where the type of work is such that healing of small wounds is likely to be retarded. Glancing of tools, of which many are slaughtering accidents, showed the highest individual number (137); while scratches by bones and thorns during slaughtering were responsible for 87 septic cases. Handling of sharp or rough objects caused the greatest number of cases (64), other than those causes which would include slaughtering accidents.

No one cause predominated in the case of septic poisoning amongst scaffolding accidents. In the Public Works Department, 34 out of 124 cases were due to the glancing of tools or work; in the Railways Department, 41 out of the 201 cases were due to handling of sharp objects; and in the Post and Telegraph Department, 9 of the 18 cases. Knocking against fixed objects was also a general source of septic poisoning.

Of all cases of punctured wounds, just over 50 per cent. became septic, and of abrasions 27 per cent.; the percentage of septic cuts is considerably less, only 13 per cent.

It is apparent that the majority of septic wounds are consequent on minor injuries. The figures would indicate that such injuries are apt to be neglected, and that if measures were taken to ensure prompt attention and reasonable after-care to slight wounds the unduly high percentage of cases of septic infection could be materially reduced, thus avoiding a considerable amount of lost time.

PART OF BODY AFFECTED.

Informative figures showing the number of cases in which the different parts of the body were affected by industrial accidents occurring in 1928 are given in the following table:—

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—PART OF BODY AFFECTED.

Part of Body affected.	Class of Accident.
Part of Body affected.	Factory.	Public Works.	Scaffolding.	Railways.	Post and Telegraph.
Head	38	31	32	19	4
Eyes	90	44	10	51	7
Rest of face	37	17	4	20	3
Neck	3	3	1	3	1
Back	153	155	41	129	12
Thorax and contents	82	78	26	56	5
Abdomen and contents	29	22	5	39	1
External genitals	4	4	1	6	..
Upper limbs—
Collarbone and shoulder	50	37	11	35	1
Arm	182	58	31	71	14
Hand and wrist	476	168	78	170	24
Finger and thumb	1,236	231	72	306	45
Lower limbs—
Pelvis, hip, and thigh	24	29	14	44	3
Leg	158	163	44	197	27
Ankle and foot	234	194	87	309	38
Undefined or multiple	57	59	29	54	18
Totals	2,853	1,293	486	1,509	203

Noteworthy differences among the different classes of accidents are disclosed. As might have been expected, injuries to hands and fingers rank high amongst factory accidents. Of 476 injuries to the hands no fewer than 166 were due to glancing of tools or work and 65 to power-working machinery, while of 1,236 injuries to the fingers and thumbs 478 were due to glancing of tools or work and 365 to power-working machines. Amongst scaffolding accidents injuries to hands and fingers also predominate, due to the handling of sharp objects for the major part.

As for Post and Telegraph employees, injuries to fingers and thumbs predominate (due mainly to the handling of heavy or sharp objects), followed closely by injuries to the ankle or foot, of which the major cause is falling or slipping, and so causing sprains, &c.

Of Railway employees it is found that the greater proportion of the 306 cases of injuries to fingers and thumbs are fairly evenly distributed as to cause among glancing tools, machinery, and being caught between the object handled and another object. Injuries to ankles and feet (309 cases) have as the main factor the handling of heavy objects.

In the Public Works Department, handling of heavy objects had the largest individual number of cases of injuries to the fingers and thumbs.

Investigation was further made as to the predominance of injuries to the right or left upper limbs, and the following is in detail the result obtained. As yet full information is not given in many cases: hence the large number of cases where location is not definitely stated.

Location.	Left.	Right.	Not stated, or both.
Collarbone, shoulder	38	64	32
Arm	163	159	34
Hand and wrist	395	378	143
Index finger	211	204	15
Other finger (or not stated)	395	299	89
Two or more fingers	94	107	35
Thumb	252	164	25
Totals	1,548	1,375	373

The preponderance of left-hand injuries is due, in the main, as one would expect, to the holding of the work with the left hand while operating with the right hand. There were only 57 cases where both hands, arms, &c., were shown to have been involved in the accident.

NATURE OF INJURY IN RELATION TO PART OF BODY AFFECTED.

Further tabulations were made for the 1928 year correlating nature of injury with part of body affected. This showed that the most common type of accident was to the fingers and thumbs, resulting in cuts or lacerations: of the 6,344 accidents tabulated, 1,148 came within this category. Of the 152 cases of amputations, 144 also resulted in loss of some part of the fingers or thumbs. Contusions of fingers and thumbs numbered 301, and cuts and lacerations of the hand 383. Of the 1,354 sprains and strains, the back was affected in 425 cases, and sprained ankles accounted for a further 188.

DURATION OF INCAPACITY.

A further measure of the extent of disability is furnished in the cases of temporary disability by data as to duration of absence from work as the result of the accident. A summary of this aspect of the matter—giving actual numbers and ratios to all accidents in each division—is given below. The average duration of incapacity in cases of temporary disability was 15.6 clays for accidents to Post and Telegraph employees, 20.7 days for factory accidents, 21.5 days for accidents to Railway employees, 22.7 days for scaffolding accidents, and 22.8 days for accidents to Public Works employees.

Duration.	Factories.		Public Works.		Scaffolding.		Railways.		Post and Telegraph.
Duration.	No.	Percentage.	No.	Percentage.	No.	Percentage.	No.	Percentage.	No.	Percentage.
1 week or under	613	21.5	219	17.0	112	23.0	398	26.4	76	37.4
1 week to 2 weeks	884	31.0	384	29.7	126	25.9	416	27.6	57	28.1
2 weeks to 4 weeks	747	26.2	367	28.4	119	24.5	375	24.9	43	21.2
4 weeks to 6 weeks	219	7.7	145	11.2	47	9.7	135	8.9	14	6.9
6 weeks to 13 weeks	192	6.7	105	8.1	32	6.6	121	8.0	8	3.9
13 weeks to 6 months	43	1.5	30	2.3	9	1.9	32	2.1	3	1.5
Over 6 months	15	0.5	3	0.2	5	1.0	7	0.5	..	..
Total specified cases of temporary disability	2,713	95.1	1,253	96.9	450	92.6	1,484	98.4	201	99.0
Cases where employee did not return or duration not stated	1	..	..	..	4	0.8	..	..	..	..
Permanent partial disability	127	4.5	32	2.5	20	4.1	17	1.1	2	1.0
Fatality	12	0.4	8	0.6	12	2.5	8	0.5	..	..
Totals	2,853	100.0	1,293	100.0	486	100.0	1,509	100.0	203	100.0

Of the five classes, the Post and Telegraph Department has the lowest (and in itself an exceptionally low) average duration of temporary incapacity; there were no fatalities and only two cases of permanent disability.

The next lowest average for length of temporary incapacity is shown by the factory-accident group; its percentage of fatalities also is next lowest, but naturally it has the highest percentage of cases of permanent disability, owing to the predominance of machinery in factories.

The Railways Department figures show the next lowest average duration, and also a very high proportion of cases of temporary incapacity. The percentage of cases of permanent disability is next lowest to that of the Post and Telegraph Department.

Scaffolding accidents show the second highest average of duration of temporary incapacity; this group also shows the greatest percentage of cases of fatality, and a high proportion of cases of permanent disability.

Public Works employees show the highest average of clays lost, but the percentage of both fatalities and cases of permanent disability is fairly low.

In many cases the injured employee did not cease work immediately, in some instances a considerable period intervening. The following table shows for such cases the length of time elapsing before the employee left work, and the final cause of cessation of work.

—	Factories.	Public Works.	Scaffolding	Railways.	Post and Telegraph.
Period elapsing.
Under 1 week	174	33	24	377	46
Over 1 week and under 2 weeks	24	6	1	45	4
Over 2 weeks	14	7	1	31	2
Final Cause.
Incipient septic poisoning	109	16	13	151	12
Strains	37	12	5	119	18
Other causes	66	18	8	183	22
Totals	212	46	26	453	52
Percentage of all accidents	7.4	3.6	5.3	30.0	25.6

The indicates that many employees suffering from minor injuries pay no immediate attention, especially in the case of small cuts, strains, or abrasions. The neglect may cause more severe pain (with abrasions, septic poisoning), and the absence then enforced is likely to be longer than if the first injury had had immediate attention. Lost time means lost wages, especially if the injury results in under three days' absence, in which case no compensation is payable. Further, in the case of apprentices, lost time has to be made up at the termination of the period of apprenticeship, and these two considerations are likely to militate against the worker ceasing work immediately on account of a minor injury.

By the 31st January of the calendar year following that in connection with which factory accidents under investigation occurred, there must always necessarily be a number of employees injured during the previous calendar year who have not yet returned to work. In order to render the statistics of time lost and compensation paid as complete as possible supplementary reports on such outstanding cases are prepared by Inspectors of Factories for the Census and Statistics Office in June of the year following that in which the accidents occurred. By June most outstanding cases can be cleared up, although there remains a not altogether inconsiderable residuum of cases where employees fail to return to their former work—especially through having taken up other employment or through the seasonal closing down of the industry (e.g., freezing) in connection with which the accident occurred, so that they cannot be traced. The cases still outstanding at the end of January must naturally be the severer cases, and, as the severest cases of all may still be outstanding in June, the toll of time lost as a result of factory accidents must be slightly underestimated in the statistics. The June clearing-up accounts for a few minor discrepancies existing between the statistics of factory accidents published in. this volume and those published in the Annual Report of the Department of Labour.

ACCIDENT SEVERITIES.

The mere number of industrial accidents per 100,000 man-hours worked is not a measure of hazard, for it takes no account of the severity of accidents. In the electric-lighting industry accidents are few, but those which do occur are apt to prove fatal. In the meat-freezing industry, on the other hand, accidents are frequent, but few of them are very severe. A single death usually inflicts a greater economic loss upon the victim's family or upon the community than does a large number of minor temporary disabilities. Yet both types of accident count for one, and for one only, in statistics of accidents and of accident rates. A misleading picture is therefore liable to be painted so long as attention is focused solely on frequency rates. The best, and indeed the only satisfactory, measure of accident severity is time lost, which, in conjunction with the number of accidents, permits of a close approximation being arrived at as to the economic cost of industrial accidents, and affords the best possible basis for comparison between different countries, different industries, or different years.

The problem of dealing with cases of death and of permanent disability presents some initial difficulty. While differences exist in the average ages of workmen in different industries, and in different occupations within the same industry, and while more labour-power is on the average lost by the death of a worker aged 20 than by that of a worker aged 50, yet it would seem that the age of the individual lulled is not particularly relevant to the character of the hazard from which the injury has resulted. If severity weights in the case of death were made to vary with the ages of the persons injured the resultant severity rates would be distorted by purely fortuitous age-variations amongst the victims of industrial accidents. Accordingly, as a measure of severity rates, it has been assumed that deaths of workers through industrial accidents result in New Zealand in a loss of 60,000 working-hours in each case, a round figure which is arrived at (deeming a normal working year to comprise 50 weeks of 44 hours each) on the basis of the average expectation of working-life (which is assumed not in any case to extend beyond 65)—as ascertained from the New Zealand life tables—of a male worker meeting with an accident at the average age at which accidents to male workers occur in New Zealand factories. For the inherent interest attaching, however, to-data as to the potential working-hours lost by individuals meeting with death, &c., through industrial accidents, similar statistics have also been compiled taking into account the sex and the actual age of the person injured, again assuming a normal working-year to be one of 2,200 hours; or 50 weeks of 44 hours each. For this purpose separate tables for males and females have been compiled in the Census and Statistics Office, showing the average expectation of working-life—under the-age of 65 for males and 60 for females—at each year of life.

It is interesting to note that the figure of 60,000 working-hours gives, on the basis, of an eight-hour day, an identical figure to that arrived at independently by the Swedish authorities—viz., 7,500 working-days. In the case of injuries resulting in permanent total incapacity the same device is adopted as in the case of death.

In a large number of countries, including New Zealand, compensation scales in the case of permanent partial disability are based mainly on the loss or disability of specific bodily members rather than on the actual impairment of earnings. For the statistical treatment of the subject, particularly for international comparisons, a scale has been drawn up under which time lost on account of permanent partial disability is assessed on the basis of a proportional part of the time-lost in connection with injuries resulting in death, the proportion being fixed according to an estimate of the average degree of physical disability resulting from the particular bodily impairment involved. The international scheme (slightly amended) is as follows: Loss, or loss of use of, both eyes, 100 per cent.; dismemberment or loss of use of leg from above knee, or arm from above elbow, 75 per cent.; dismemberment or loss of use of arm from at or below elbow, 60 per cent.; dismemberment or loss of use of hand, 50 per cent.; dismemberment or loss of use of leg from at or below knee, 50 per cent.; loss of hearing of both ears, 50 per cent.; dismemberment or loss of use of foot, 40 per cent.; permanent disability of thumb and four fingers, 40 per cent.; permanent disability of thumb and three fingers, 33 1/3 per cent.; loss of sight of one eye, 30 per cent.; permanent disability of four fingers, 30 per cent.; permanent disability of thumb and two fingers, 25 per cent.; permanent disability of thumb and one finger, 20 per cent.; permanent disability of three fingers, 20 per cent.; permanent disability of two fingers, 12 1/2 per cent.; permanent disability of thumb, 10 per cent.; loss of hearing of one ear, 10 per cent.; permanent disability of great toe, 5 per cent.; permanent disability of any two or more toes, 5 per cent.; permanent disability of one finger, 5 per cent. The figures for time lost so arrived at in cases of permanent partial disability have been used as a measure of accident severity, without the addition of the time actually lost by the patient. Thus such cases will be permanently accounted for, as regards severity, in connection with the statistics for the year of their occurrence. In this way a common basis is arrived at for accident experience, duly weighted according to severity, thus rendering possible rigorous comparison from country to country, from year to year, from industry to industry, and from establishment to establishment:.

Detailed results in respect of industrial accidents during 1928 are appended:—

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—EXTENT OF DISABILITY AND SEVERITY RATES, BY INDUSTRIES.

Industry	Total Cases of Accidents resulting in—				Toll of Calendar Days lost per Accident.		Toll of Hours lost per 100,000 Man-hours worked.
Industry	Temporary Disability.	Permanent Partial Disability.	Fatality.	Total.	Where Fixed Allowance is made in case of Fatality or Permanent Disability.	Where Age is taken into account in case of Fatality or Permanent Disability.	Where Fixed Allowance is made in case of Fatality or Permanent Disability.	Where Age is taken into account in case of Fatality or Permanent Disability.
Data on which to compute not available. Data on which to compute not available. † Excluding scaffolding accidents.
Food, drink, and tobacco—
Baking	5	1	..	6	216	301	156	217
Flour-milling	3	1	..	4	487	267	1,038	569
Biscuitmaking	49	2	..	51	75	62	594	495
Brewing	21	2	..	23	112	107	516	494
Aerated waters	3	..	..	3	12	12	516	494
Butchering	3	6	..	9	563	750	857	1,140
Meat freezing and preserving	1,446	21	4	1,471	56	44	6,539	5,125
Butter and cheese making	17	1	..	18	82	71	111	96
Other	39	2	..	41	52	55	220	236
Totals	1,586	36	4	1,626	62	51	1,599	1,324
Clothing, boots, &c.—
Dressmaking, tailoring, &c.	20	..	..	20	18	18	9	9
Bootmaking and repairing	14	2	..	16	73	107	133	196
Other	9	..	..	9	17	17	16	16
Totals	43	2	..	45	37	50	28	37
Textiles and weaving—
Woollen-mills	42	6	..	48	259	304	1,361	1,599
Flax-mills	3	1	..	4	142	106	238	178
Rope and twine works	4	..	..	4	125	125	652	652
Other	13	..	..	13	30	30	477	477
Totals	62	7	..	69	201	230	1,060	1,214
Public Works—
Railway-construction	515	10	1	526	74	55	3,818	2,832
Road-construction	370	18	3	391	184	137	4,722	3,505
Hydro-electric works	193	3	3	199	182	157	9,278	8,020
Public buildings	3	..	..	3	10	10	34	34
Workshop employees	18	..	..	18	16	16	6,018	6,909
Other	154	1	1	156	90	103	6,018	6,909
Totals	1,253	32	8	1,293	125	101	4,956	3,992
Under Scaffolding and Excavation Act—
Carpenters	168	6	..	174	54	53	^*	^*
Builders' labourers	184	10	4	198	305	273	^*	^*
Other	102	4	8	114	722	447	^*	^*
Totals	454	20	12	486	313	235	^*	^*
Woodworking—
Sawmilling	65	15	2	82	450	336	3,013	2,252
Coachbuilding	10	2	..	12	460	211	937	430
Furniture-making	59	10	..	69	159	164	940	970
Boatbuilding	1	..	..	1	312	312	185	185
Joinery and building workshops	74	12	..	86	178	171	1,320	1,269
Other	35	7	..	42	215	210	2,641	2,579
Totals	244	46	2	292	267	224	1,678	1,404
Paper-manufacture and printing—
Paper-manufacture	7	..	..	7	9	9	95	95
Printing—
Government	10	..	..	10	44	44	234	234
Other than Government	50	5	..	55	257	199	869	674
Other	11	2	..	13	94	95	425	432
Totals	78	7	..	85	187	150	830	665
Metal-working and engineering—
Foundries, general engineering	219	7	2	228	162	137	1,539	1,303
Electrical engineering	6	1	..	7	419	554	700	927
Cycle and motor engineering	71	2	2	75	326	416	1,539	1,961
Building—Workshops	28	..	..	28	22	22	165	165
Radio engineering	1	..	..	1	5	5	3,003	2,141
Other	76	6	1	83	241	172	3,003	2,141
Totals	401	16	5	422	201	193	1,559	1,490
Other manufacture—
Brickmaking	64	7	1	72	385	459	2,662	3,170
Gas-manufacture	11	..	..	11	19	19	60	60
Electric supply	4	1	..	5	631	584	1,538	1,422
Leather-working	28	1	..	29	56	62	202	223
Soap and starch works	7	1	..	8	374	242	1,694	1,095
Chemical and manure works	72	1	..	73	40	36	595	538
Other	26	..	..	26	19	19	67	67
Totals	212	11	1	224	174	192	997	1,096
Transport and communication—
Railways—
Permanent-way employees	296	3	1	300	71	58	2,071	1,694
Locomotive workshop employees	480	2	2	484	76	51	2,970	1,995
Maintenance workshop employees	65	3	..	68	174	112	2,273	1,465
Engine-drivers and firemen	80	3	..	83	85	70	1,220	1,007
Other locomotive employees	61	1	..	62	27	30	363	407
Guards	17	..	..	17	23	23	192	192
Shunters	89	9	1	92	151	135	10,926	9,730
Porters	82	..	..	82	21	21	5,075	2,755
Traffic labourers	90	1	1	92	139	50
Wharf labourers	116	..	2	118	192	48
Signalmen, storemen, &c.	108	2	1	111	141	150
Totals	1,184	17	8	1,509	95	66	2,802	1,903
Post and Telegraph—
Clerical officers	5	..	..	5	20	20	12	12
Tradesmen	21	..	..	21	18	18	179	179
Storemen	3	..	..	3	6	6	71	71
Exchange clerks, attendants	1	..	..	1	4	4	1	1
Overseers, foremen, &c.	36	..	..	36	16	16	299	299
Linesmen, labourers	98	2	..	100	55	67	1,193	1,456
Chauffeurs	7	..	..	7	15	15	229	229
Postmen	12	..	..	12	8	8	36	36
Messengers	6	..	..	6	11	11	64	64
Message boys and girls	12	..	..	12	14	14	51	51
Totals	201	2	..	203	34	40	246	288
Tram - car construction and repair	4	..	..	4	17	17	271	271
Quarrying—
Road metal, gravel, and sand	2	..	..	2	10	10	164	164
Construction in stone	4	..	..	4	19	19	164	164
Totals	6	..	..	6	16	16	164	164
Personal service—
Laundry-work	18	1	..	19	79	97	388	472
Miscellaneous minor industries—
Oil canning and packing	54	..	..	54	17	17	791	791
Other	6	1	..	7	95	114	99	119
Totals	60	1	..	61	26	28	201	217
Summary.
Factory accidents	2,714	127	12	2,853	118	108	1,097	999
Public Works accidents	1,253	32	8	1,293	125	101	4,956	3,992
Scaffolding accidents	454	20	12	486	313	235	^*	^*
Railway accidents	1,484	17	8	1,509	95	66	2,802	1,903
Post and Telegraph accidents	201	2	..	203	34	40	246	288
Totals	6,106	198	40	6,344	127	104	1,548^†	1,294^†

In making a comparison of severity rates the assessment of permanent disability or death is that at the constant age, as it eliminates the fortuitous element of varying ages.

The “scaffolding” group shows the highest figure of calendar days lost per accident, with “wood-working” next; in both these groups there is naturally the likelihood of incurring serious disability. Of individual subgroups, “electric supply” and “butchering” had the highest average. At the other end of the scale “quarrying” and “tram-car construction and repair” were the lowest groups, with “exchange clerks, &c.,” the lowest subgroup.

In comparing severity rates—hours lost per 100,000 man-hours worked—the “Public Works” group shows the heaviest toll, followed by “railway maintenance and working” and “wood - working.” The lowest severity rate amongst the groups is that of the “clothing” group, followed by the “quarrying” and “miscellaneous” groups. Of the subgroups, “shunters” show easily the highest severity rate; two fatalities took place during the year, and one case of permanent disability. Next in order are “hydro-electric works,” and of those industries covered by the provisions of the Factories Act “meat-freezing” and “sawmilling” are the individual industries with the highest severity rates. The subgroup showing the lowest severity rate is that of “exchange clerks and attendants,” with “dressmaking” second.

With regard to “scaffolding” accidents, which as a group show a very high average number of days lost, it must be remembered that a fall from such an elevation as a worker may be employed at in building operations will probably result in death or severe disability. Severity rates could not safely be given, as the number of employees in the building trades (some 32,000 at 1926 census) could not be regarded as a correct basis of exposure to liability of scaffolding accidents.

In interpreting the figures, and making a comparison from year to year, it must be remembered that the adventitious element—as to the number of fatal and severe accidents in any individual year or group—has a great influence in assessing severity rates and calendar days lost.

SUMMARIZED STATISTICS.

A summary is given showing for the three years for which returns have been obtained for the five classes of accidents now covered (1) the total number of accidents; (2) cases of fatalities and of temporary and permanent partial disability; (3) total days lost, taking a constant age where permanent partial disability or fatality is incurred; and (4) total compensation paid.

—	Factories.	Public Works Department.	Scaffolding and Excavation.	Railways Department.	Post and Telegraph Department.	Totals.
Total number of cases—
1926	2,778	782	278	1,516	220	5,574
1927	2,757	960	346	1,556	284	5,903
1928	2,853	1,293	486	1,509	203	6,344
Cases of fatality—
1926	13	9	7	10	1	40
1927	13	7	6	8	4	38
1928	12	8	12	8		40
Cases of permanent disability—
1926	130	26	12	30	4	202
1927	136	27	19	30	9	221
1928	127	32	20	17	2	198
Cases of temporary disability—
1926	2,635	747	259	1,476	215	5,332
1927	2,608	926	321	1,518	271	5,644
1928	2,714	1,253	454	1,484	201	6,106
Total calendar days lost for all accidents—
1926	354,922	163,797	111,861	185,037	28,168	843,785
1927	340,103	136,558	106,708	167,090	50,680	801,139
1928	337,955	161,488	152,031	145,559	6,970	804,003
Number of cases where compensation was paid—
1926	2,751	774	264	1,516	217	5,522
1927	2,749	955	346	1,556	284	5,890
1928	2,847	1,293	481	1,509	203	6,333
Total compensation paid—
1926 £	48,558	16,223	11,328	27,325	3,976	107,410
1927 £	51,756	16,788	12,570	28,554	6,794	116,462
1928 £	56,681	19,448	15,871	25,890	2,588	120,478

In comparing compensation paid, the effect of the 1926 amendment, which -operated from 1st January, 1927, should be taken into consideration, also the severity of the accidents which have occurred; and in a general comparison the increase or decrease in number of employees in the groups should also be recognized. With regard to calendar days lost, the provisions of the International Schedule cover certain broad definitions of injuries which may vary from the assessment for compensation in respect to permanent partial disability, and such assessment is based on the remainder of the worker's life rather than on present impairment of earning-power.

LOSS OF EARNING POWER INVOLVED.

Provision is made in certain cases for the actual impairment of wage-earning capacity to be stated. Of the 198 cases of permanent partial disability in 1928, 126 answered the question as to what wages the employee would earn on resumption. In 105 cases it was reported that, though dismemberment or disablement had occurred, no diminution of earning-power had taken place. In 21 cases, however, definite and serious impairment eventuated. Of 18 such cases in factory accidents 1 was of 75 per cent. (this was an injury to an elderly man, whose hand was rendered practically useless), 7 of 20 per cent. and under 30 per cent., 5 of 10 per cent. and under 20 per cent., and 5 under 10 per cent. In those reported under the provisions of the Scaffolding and Excavation Act (3 cases) 1 was of 13 per cent., 1 of 10 per cent., and 1 of 8 1/2 per cent. The Railways Department's returns do not supply this information, but in the 7 cases where such particulars were given in the Public Works accidents, no impairment of earning-power was incurred.

AGES OF THE PERSONS INJURED.

The average age of workers meeting with accidents where the age was reported were as follows for the year 1928:—

	Males. Years.	Females. Years.	Both Sexes. Years.
Factories	31.98	20.08	31.44
Public Works	37.62	..	37.62
Scaffolding	34.37	..	34.37
Railways	36.13	22.00	36.11
Post and Telegraph	31.54	..	31.54
All reported accidents	34.28	20.11	33.98

If the extent of the disability incurred is related to the age of the male-employee, it is found that the age of persons suffering permanent incapacity varied little from the general average (34.44 and 34.28 respectively), but with regard to fatalities the average of all the groups was 10 years greater (44.58), and in the individual groups the differences range from 3 to 16 years.

The average age of males injured in industrial accidents is just slightly less than the average ago of male wage-earners as returned at the 1926 census—viz., 35.33. In the case of females, however, the census average age for all wage-earners (27.85 years) is substantially higher than the average for those injured; and it would appear that women employees in factories are, in general, younger than those engaged in other forms of employment. The very much younger ages for females than for males is accounted for by the fact that males normally spend the whole of their working-lives in factories, &c., while for the majority of women employees remunerated employment is terminated at a comparatively early age by marriage.

DAY AND HOUR OF OCCURRENCE.

An analysis of the day of the week on which the accident happened, showed little variation in the case of all classes combined; Tuesday definitely predominates in scaffolding accidents, as Thursday does for accidents to Post and Telegraph Department employees; the other groups do not show a clear line of demarcation.

Similarly, when the day of the accident is related to the cause, Monday predominates for accidents which were the result of explosions, of vehicles, and falls of earth; Tuesday for those due to falls of persons, or to tripping and stumbling, and on Friday more accidents occur as the result of machinery or falling objects than on any other day of the week. With the other causes there is no very definite variation. If the extent of disability and the day of the accident are related it is found that Friday definitely predominates in the case of both fatalities and permanent incapacity (25 and 24 per cent. respectively), with Monday next (22 and 18 per cent.); the other days of the week show a considerably lower percentage. This would indicate that the fatigue of the week's work has added to the liability to accident and that on Monday there tends to be a lack of co-ordination between worker and work owing to the week-end break.

A comparison of the liability to accident according to the month is apt to be vitiated by the seasonal nature of the freezing industry and of Public Works employment; also by the inability to engage in outdoor work during wet weather. When these factors are taken into consideration, the figures relating to the “Scaffolding,” “Railways,” and “Post and Telegraph” groups indicate that May, June, and July predominate, and it is evident that the winter months are more trying to the worker—i.e., through lighting conditions, &c.

The following tabulation of industrial accidents, according to the hour of occurrence, shows the effects of fatigue during the working day:—

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—HOUR OF OCCURRENCE.

Time of Occurrence, to nearest Hour.	Group.					Cause.					Totals.
Time of Occurrence, to nearest Hour.	Factory.	Public Works.	Scaffolding.	Railways.	Post and Telegraph.	Machinery.	Falls of Persons.	Handling Objects.	Hand Tools.	Other.	Totals.
8 a.m.	111	30	18	57	7	23	38	57	34	71	223
9 a.m.	290	87	35	116	20	85	58	125	143	137	548
10 a.m.	453	163	97	195	25	141	115	257	198	222	933
11 a.m.	452	189	92	202	27	132	115	256	219	240	962
12 noon	251	99	38	112	26	69	80	133	107	137	526
1 p.m.	73	28	13	54	7	33	15	40	31	56	175
2 p.m.	238	107	55	138	15	76	67	138	134	138	553
3 p.m.	344	171	69	205	29	104	107	209	193	205	818
4 p.m.	350	140	43	168	17	107	102	173	152	190	724
5 p.m.	195	87	17	56	13	43	54	92	78	101	368
Other hours	71	81	6	184	12	33	87	68	22	144	354
Not stated	6	99	..	19	2	12	26	34	13	41	126
Not applicable	19	6	3	3	3	4	..	12	3	15	34
Totals	2,853	1,293	486	1,509	203	862	864	1,594	1,327	1,697	6,344

This table shows the latter part of the morning—10 a.m. and 11 a.m. being almost equal in incidence—as the time when most accidents occur, especially in factories, the Public Works Department, and the Railways Department; but it is apparent that the Saturday half-holiday reduces materially the number of accidents occurring in the late afternoon, and this should be considered in its interpretation. Finally, most establishments are idle between noon and 1 p.m. When these facts are allowed for, it would appear that for most classes of accidents there is a tendency for the risk to increase (in sympathy with increasing fatigue) with each additional hour of the working half-day, the midday and the night-time rest eliminating the cumulated effects of such fatigue. In the case of some causes of accidents, the increased risk with the number of hours continuously worked is much greater than in other cases: the increase, as the working half-day progresses, in the number of accidents caused by falls of persons in particular is exceptionally marked.

A more definite indication is given by considering the length of time the employee had worked when the accident occurred.

INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS, 1928.—NUMBER OF HOURS ALREADY WORKED AT TIME OF OCCURRENCE.

Number of Hours already worked.	Factories.		Public Works.		Scaffolding.		Railways.		Totals.
Number of Hours already worked.	No.	Percentage.	No.	Percentage.	No.	Percentage.	No.	Percentage.	No.	Percentage.
Under 1	192	6.7	32	2.5	26	5.4	93	6.2	343	5.6
1 and under 2	333	11.7	100	7.7	43	8.9	157	10.4	633	10.3
2 and under 3	500	17.5	170	13.2	108	22.2	234	15.5	1,012	16.5
3 and under 4	475	16.6	195	15.1	92	18.9	242	16.0	4,004	16.3
4 and under 5	247	8.7	128	9.9	34	70	122	8.1	531	8.7
5 and under 6	265	9.3	100	7.7	53	10.9	138	9.1	566	9.1
6 and under 7	333	11.7	155	12.0	73	15.0	207	137	768	12.5
7 and under 8	344	12.1	175	13.5	38	7.8	194	12.9	751	12.2
8 or over	121	4.2	119	9.2	14	2.9	99	6.6	353	5.7
Not stated	24	0.8	113	8.7	2	0.4	20	1.3	159	2.6
Not applicable	19	0.7	6	0.5	3	0.6	3	0.2	31	0.5
Totals	2,853	100.0	1,293	100.0	486	100.0	1,509	100.0	6,141	100.0

The foregoing tabulation shows, both in general and in individual groups, that the greatest number of accidents occurred during the third, and to a lesser extent during the fourth, hour worked in the day. The Public Works group is one of the individual groups which deviates from this, but in considering this group the greater preponderance of cases where length of time already worked was not stated must be taken into account; the “Railways” group deviates very slightly. Accidents reported under the Scaffolding and Excavation Act show nearly one-quarter of the total accidents in this group, which confirms the marked increase as the half-day increases in the cause—“falls of persons”—in the table showing the actual hour of occurrence. Between the sixth and seventh hour shows the heaviest toll after the usual break allowed for meals, but this is not so acute as that of the third hour. The Public Works Department accidents show the greatest percentage of accidents where the time worked has been over seven hours —i.e., 22.7 per cent., as compared with Railways, 19.5; factories, 16.3; and scaffolding, 10.7.

Chapter 43. SECTION XLIII.—ELECTRIC POWER.

STATE DEVELOPMENT OF WATER-POWER.

ALTHOUGH abundant water-power is available throughout New Zealand, comparatively little use had been made of it before 1900, but since then the development has been extensive, and promises to be still more extensive in the early future, In 1903 water-power to the extent of 9,911 horse-power was actually in use. By 1913 this amount had risen to 34,956 horse-power, by 1923 to 54,244, and by 1929 to 157,418. The last-mentioned figure is more than double that for 1925, the increase being due mainly to the Mangahao supply becoming available and to the extension of the Lake Coleridge scheme.

The Public Works Act vests the sole right to use the water-power of the Dominion in the Crown, subject to any existing rights, and gives the Government the right to develop such power, or to delegate such power to any local authority, or, outside a mining district, to any person or company, subject to conditions. Advantage has been taken of this in several cases, the right in the case of local authorities being issued subject to a royalty of 1s. per year per kilowatt of maximum output, and in the case of private concerns developing water-power for electrical distribution, subject to a royalty of 4s. per year per kilowatt of maximum output.

Persistent demands were made for some years that the Government should itself develop the power resources of the Dominion for the benefit of the people generally, and in 1910 the Aid to Water-power Works Act was passed, and the Lake Coleridge scheme for the supply of Christchurch City and Canterbury Provincial District was selected for development. Operations were commenced on these works in 1911 and completed in 1915, with a capacity of 4,500 kw., which was extended to 27,000 kw. in 1926, and is now being further extended to 34,500 kw. This scheme has proved thoroughly successful. After the successful inauguration of the Lake Coleridge scheme a complete system was drawn up of interconnected power systems in both the North and South Islands.

A very complete report, with estimates of the demand and cost of supply for the North Island, was submitted by the then Chief Electrical Engineer, Mr. Evan Parry, B.Sc., &c., in October, 1918. After a full discussion of the use of electricity in the Dominion he assessed the demand at 1/5 h.p. (0.15 kw.) per head of population, and estimated the total power required, allowing for losses, at 160,000 h.p. of installed capacity in the North Island and 110,000 h.p. in the South Island.

After careful comparisons with the developments in other countries and detailed estimates of the future demand in New Zealand, this was adopted as the basis of the Government scheme. For the North Island the scheme embraces three main stations—viz., Mangahao (24,000 h.p.), Lake Waikaremoana (40,000 h.p., capable of extension to 140,000 h.p.), and the Arapuni Rapids, on the Waikato River (96,000 h.p., capable of extension to 160,000 h.p.). These three power-stations are to be ultimately interconnected by a complete system of 110,000–volt lines for a total length of 1,112 miles, with 309 miles of branch mains at 50,000 and 33,000 volts.

The total cost of the North Island scheme was estimated at £7,300,000. Between 1918 and the passing of the legislative authorizations in 1919 and 1920 costs generally increased to a large extent, and the authorizations were therefore increased accordingly. The items under each power scheme in the authorizations include, of course, the portion of the transmission-lines and substations supplied from each source.

It was estimated that the programme would take ten years to develop, and that the total annual charges when completed, allowing 7 1/2 per cent. to cover interest, depreciation, and sinking fund, and £220,000 per annum for working-expenses, would amount to £767,728—that is, practically £6 per horse-power, or £8 per kilowatt-year.

Since the scheme was drawn up it has been decided to increase the total plant capacity at Arapuni to 136,000 h.p., but only 60,000 h.p. is at present under construction.

The cost of the complete North Island scheme of wholesale generation and transmission was estimated in 1918 as follows:—

—				Amount.	Per Horsepower
Generating stations (total plant capacity, 160,000 h.p.)—
	H.P.	Cost, £	Per H.P. £	£	£
Mangahao	24,000	438,654	18.30
Waikaremoana	40,000	544,369	13.16
Arapuni	96,000	1,078,700	10.80
				2,061,723	12.88
	160,000
Main transmission-lines				1,553,880	11.22
Extra branch transmission-lines at lower voltage to main substations not on main lines				241,360	11.22
Main substations				838,808	5.24
Distribution-lines and secondary substations				2,086,000	13.04
				6,781,771	42.38
Interest during construction				271,271	1.69
Assistance to local authorities and power-users				100,000	0.62
Working capital				150,000	0.94
Total				7,303,042	45.63

On the same basis 130,000 h.p. is also required in the South Island, and towards this developments are in hand for an ultimate capacity as follows:—

	Horse-power.
Lake Coleridge (Public Works Department)	46,000
Waipori Falls (Dunedin City Council)	28,000
Lake Monowai (Southland Electric-power Board)	16,000
Waitaki River, Awakino (Public Works Department)	40,000
	130,000

In addition the following schemes have been partially investigated as affording future sources for the supply of power:—

	Horse-power.
Teviot River	25,000
Lake Hawea	80,000
Lake Tekapo	20,000
Waimakariri River	30,000
Clarence River	25,000
Toaroha River	10,000
Arnold River	4,000
Gowan River	25,000

The statutory authorizations to date for the development of hydro-electric power in the Dominion are as follows:—

Aid to Water-power Works Act, 1910—	£
Lake Coleridge electric-power works	500,000
Electric-power Works Loan Act, 1919—
Arapuni electric-power works	4,500,000
Mangahao electric-power works	1,600,000
Lake Coleridge extensions	257,500
Horahora electric-power works	412,500
Waikaremoana—Surveys, &c.	30,000
Otago—Surveys, &c.	30,000
Finance Act, 1920—
Waikaremoana electric-power works	2,600,000
Kaituna River	150,000
Lake Coleridge extensions	720,000
Surveys and investigations	30,000
	£10,830,000

The total expenditure to the 31st March, 1929, including capital outlay, stocks, and debit balances on the trading accounts, is as follows:—

	£
Lake Coleridge	1,750,954
Horahora	1,231,023
Waikaremoana	1,026,925
Mangahao	2,857,405
Arapuni	2,286,839
Other surveys	141,420
	£9,294,566

Of the above, the Lake Coleridge, Horahora, Mangahao, and Waikaremoana systems are in operation, and Arapuni is partially in operation.

LAKE COLERIDGE WORKS.

The Aid to Water-power Works Act of 1910 empowered the State to establish hydro-electric-supply installations, and the first—at Lake Coleridge, sixty-five miles west of Christchurch—has been in operation since 1915. This plant was originally designed for a total capacity of 12,000 kilowatts (16,000 horse-power), but advantage has been taken of natural features of the lake and adjacent rivers to extend the supply up to 34,500 kw. During March, 1921, the Harper River was diverted into the lake, and the level of the water in the lake has been appreciably raised thereby.

The 66,000-volt transmission-line is constructed in triplicate to Christchurch, thus ensuring continuity of supply, two lines having a capacity of 12,000 kw. each, and the other a capacity of 5,000 kw. The population being served is nearly 250,000, and a large demand for power is being made. The capital outlay to the 31st March, 1929, was £1,581,262; the total revenue for the year 1928–29 was £186,963, and after payment of all charges, including interest and depreciation, an excess of £50,374 was shown. The sum of £112,839 has been paid to the credit of Sinking Fund Account, while the accumulated Depreciation Fund stands at £210,007. The power-house maximum output during 1928–29 was 24,370 kw.

In addition to the transmission-lines to Christchurch a double-circuit transmission-line is in operation, supplying the towns of Ashburton and Timaru, at which places the voltage is stepped down for local reticulation. This transmission-line is continued as a single-circuit line to supply Oamaru.

The growth of the supply and the general financial results for each of the last five years are as follows:—

—	Year ended 31st March,
—	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.
* Including units purchased—nil in 1928–29.
Capital outlay	£1,008,491	£1,366,951	£1,538,569	£1,561,081	£1,581,262
Working-costs	£23,270	£27,035	£30,728	£40,054	£30,130
Interest	£47,780	£50,324	£65,094	£75,630	£76,612
Depreciation	£15,679	£19,350	£28,168	£29,863	£29,847
Total costs	£86,729	£96,709	£123,990	£145,547	£136,589
Total revenue	£92,163	£123,355	£150,240	£171,127	£186,963
Maximum load, kw.—
Power-house	13,180	14,430	16,880	21,020	24,370
Substations	11,190	13,583	15,512	19,313	21,772
Units output—
Power-house^*	56,935,840	68,860,614	78,342,797	93,853,759	108,011,955
Substation	53,261,142	61,167,881	71,791,696	85,969,069	97,765,686
Total units distributed	51,287,033	60,952,889	70,887,661	84,770,718	98,044,964
Average weekly load factor, per cent.—
Power-house	51.8	54.8	53.4	51.0	50.7
Substation	50.8	54.0	52.9	50.6	51.2

WAIKATO ELECTRIC-POWER SUPPLY.

In November, 1920, the Waihi Gold-mining Company's electric-power plant at Horahora was acquired by the State for £212,500. The necessary transmission-lines have since been erected, and the plant has been extended. The capital account to the 31st March, 1929, stands at £1,142,346, which includes £524,621 out of Arapuni moneys brought into operation in connection with the Horahora scheme.

The main features of the plant acquired are the headworks and generating-station on the Waikato River at Horahora, seventeen miles from Cambridge, with a plant capacity of six generators, each capable of generating 1,050 kw., or a total of 6,300 kw.; the transmission-line on steel towers from Horahora to Waikino (fifty-five miles); and the transformer - station at Waikino, for transforming the energy supplied to the Waihi Company's mine. Extensions to the power-house building, and alterations to the head-race and tail-race, were completed during the year 1924–25, and two new 2,000 kw. units have been installed and placed in operation.

The operations for the twelve months ended the 31st March, 1929, resulted in a gross revenue of £135,511, or £59,280 in excess of working-expenses. Interest amounted to £53,044 and depreciation to £21,527, a debit balance of £15,291 resulting after paying all charges, without, however, any payment being made to sinking fund. The total amounts standing to the credit of the Sinking Fund and Depreciation Fund at the 31st March, 1929, were £52,164 and £103,187 respectively. Accumulated surpluses at the same date totalled £32,415.

A table showing the progress of the scheme during each of the last five years, is given below.

—	Year ended 31st March,
—	1925.	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.
*Including units purchased—12,776,370 in 1928–29.
	£	£	£	£	£
Capital outlay	522,973	735,091	844,948	973,173	1,142,346
Working-costs	14,106	19,612	28,713	46,568	76,231
Interest	20,129	31,269	37,989	44,190	53,044
Depreciation	9,757	13,601	16,481	18,646	21,527
Sinking Fund	4,139	11,342	8,448	9,732	..
Total costs	48,131	75,824	91,631	119,136	150,802
Total revenue	65,184	85,830	108,748	125,312	135,511
Maximum load—	Kw.	Kw.	Kw.	Kw.	Kw.
Power-house, for year	7,600	11,400	12,400	12,400	10,300
Power-house, average weekly	6,963	9,665	11,090	11,370	9,702
Output—	Units.	Units.	Units.	Units.	Units.
Power-house^*	45,070,650	65,435,630	86,652,102	100,075,668	104,992,762
Substations total	41,461,299	60,286,867	84,802,102	97,930,378	103,644,587
Total units sold	41,281,159	60,261,326	75,844,229	87,852,067	92,707,271
Load-factor—	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Power-house, annual	67.6	65.5	72.9	81.7	87.8
Power-house, average weekly	71.9	77.5	81.6	88.2	93.2

The Public Works Department supplies two large gold-mining companies and two large factories direct. The balance of the reticulation is carried out by seven Electric-power Boards, the Tourist Department (Rotorua), and the Hamilton, Thames, and Te Aroha Borough Councils. Power to the amount of 2,000 kv.a. is also supplied to the Auckland Electric-power Board at Penrose substation.

Owing to the great demand for power and the consequent overloading of the Horahora plant, the Government has taken over the Grand Junction plant and has also provided a Diesel plant at Penrose for the supply of power to the Auckland Power Board.

A much larger scheme is in course of construction at Arapuni, higher up the Waikato, The total expenditure on the Arapuni works to the 31st March, 1929, has been £2,286,839, the expenditure during 1928–29 being £431,981. Of this latter amount £163,148 was in connection with the headworks and power-station, and £86,669 in connection with substations in various places, while £143,469 represents interest and miscellaneous capital charges on portions of the scheme not yet in operation.

Power was made available from the first 15,000 kw. unit of the power-station at Arapuni on the 4th June, 1929.

MANGAHAO ELECTRIC-POWER SUPPLY.

Construction-work on the tunnels, two dams, pipe-lines, and power-house building in connection with the Mangahao electric-power-supply scheme was completed in 1924, end two of the main units of the plant (12,000 kv.a.) were ready for operation at the beginning of November, 1924, when the official “turning-on” ceremony took place. The second instalment of 12,000 kv.a. was placed in operation during 1925. The Khandallah substation was completed and placed in operation in December, 1924. The third dam was completed during 1927.

Power was supplied to Wellington City in March, 1925, and to the following Power Boards: Horowhenua, in November, 1924; Manawatu-Oroua, in December, 1924; Hutt Valley, in December, 1924; Tararua, in April, 1925; Wairarapa, in May, 1925; Dannevirke, in May, 1925; Central Hawke's Bay, in September, 1925; Wanganui-Rangitikei, in April, 1926; and Hawke's Bay, in April, 1927.

The capital outlay to 31st March, 1929, was £2,416,713. The total revenue for the year ended 31st March, 1929, which is the fourth complete year of operation, was £186,712. Working-expenses totalled £34,443, and there was also an expenditure of £72,563 for power purchased during the year. Interest costs were £135,358 and depreciation £42,714. The total costs for the year under review were thus £285,078, and the loss £98,366. The results of the operations for the first four years of supply are—

—	Year ended 31st March,
—	1926.	1927.	1928.	1929.
	£	£	£	£
Capital outlay	2,022,315	2,242,871	2,373,921	2,416,713
Working-costs	21,865	26,921	33,914	34,443
Cost of power purchased	..	22,554	111,745	72,563
Interest	92,226	98,881	106,441	135,358
Depreciation	30,056	32,997	33,301	42,714
Total costs	144,147	181,353	287,401	285,078
Cross revenue	76,859	124,450	155,857	186,712
	Kw.	Kw.	Kw.	Kw.
Maximum load, power-house, for year	13,960	18,100	20,040	20,960
	Units.	Units.	Units.	Units.
Output—Power-house total	49,482,425	72,133,890	74,726,880	98,327,690
Units purchased	..	6,413,994	29,241,229	29,569,390
Units sold	45,131,120	73,842,017	97,411,486	120,162,013
Load-factor—	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.	Per Cent.
Power-house, annual	40.0	45.3	42.4	53.6
Power-house, average weekly	60.0	55.3	53.1	57.6

WAIKAREMOANA ELECTRIC-POWER SUPPLY.

The capital outlay of the Waikaremoana undertaking stood at £969,616 at 31st March, 1929. Of this figure, £280,564 represented the generating station, £210,490 the transmission-lines, and £171,248 the headworks. During the year 1928–29 3,900,000 units were generated, the bulk of the units sold going to the Wairoa Borough. The revenue for the year amounted to £6,941, while working-costs aggregated £ 1,752, leaving a gross profit of £5,189, against which were debited capital charges to the extent of £9,622 (interest £6,978, depreciation £2,587. and fire insurance £57), the result being a loss of £4,433 on the year's working.

CLASSIFICATION OF STATIONS.

In view of the ramifications attaching to the electric supply industry it is difficult to present a compendious statistical treatment covering the whole industry. Indeed, the development of the central generating stations, supplemented by subsidiary distributing stations, would render the one treatment, from some aspects at least, unintelligible, since the generating undertakings differ essentially from the distributing undertakings. The treatment given hereunder deals separately with generating as distinct from distributing stations. In many cases distributing stations operate “standby” generating plants when required, and in a few cases small generating plants are operated continuously.

It should be noted that the classification into generating and distributing stations is based on whether an undertaking purchases more energy than it generates or vice versa. Under the heading “generating” the establishments vary from (1) central generating undertakings where the energy is, except for a very small quantity, sold in bulk, and where the problem of retail distribution is scarcely touched upon, (2) establishments such as, for instance, the Southland Power Board, where all the energy is generated and is sold partly in bulk but is mostly retailed, and (3) the smaller generating undertakings which, in addition to the generation of the energy, sell in retail to the various consumers. The table given on page 955 shows the units sold according to whether the sales were made in bulk or retail, and gives some idea of the extent to which these two branches of distribution are undertaken by these particular establishments. Out of 541,254,064 units sold in 1928–29 by undertakings classified under the heading of generating stations, 345,840,788 were sold in bulk and 195,413,276 were retailed.

Conversely, with regard to the distribution side of the industry, attention is drawn to the fact that a certain amount of energy is generated by the undertakings themselves. During the year ended 31st March, 1929, stations classified for statistical purposes under the heading of “distributing” purchased 292,170,015 units and generated 23,003,506 units. Distributing stations which generated at least 500,000 units with their own plants during 1928–29 are shown hereunder, together with the actual quantity of energy generated and purchased:—

Station.	Energy.
Station.	Generated.	Purchased.	Total.
	Units.	Units.	Units.
Tourist and Health Department (Rotorua)	684,283	1,028,030	1,712,313
Napier Borough Council	1,197,565	3,870,010	5,067,575
Palmerston North Borough Council	1,044,438	5,822,460	6,866,898
Wanganui-Rangitikei Electric-power Board	3,474,710	12,335,003	15,809,713
Wellington City Council	13,874,219	34,183,480	48,057,699
Wairarapa Electric-power Board	2,154,192	3,727,654	5,881,846

GENERATING STATIONS.

SCHEMES IN OPERATION.

In addition to the Government schemes the following hydro-electric schemes of 1,000 kw. and over are in operation:—

Waipori River, thirty-two miles from Dunedin. Water is conducted from several artificial storage reservoirs on the Waipori River and its tributaries, through a tunnel and pipe-lines to the power-house, which is situated at the bottom of a narrow ravine. The present capacity of the plant is 16,250 kv.a., and the head available is 700 ft. Power is generated at 2,400 volts and transmitted at 35,000. The capital outlay to 31st March, 1929, was £1,301,168.

At Wairua Falls (Whangarei) a 2,000 kw. plant was installed in 1916 by the Dominion Portland Cement Company to furnish power for cement-making. The energy is transmitted a distance of sixteen miles to the factory at a voltage of 22,000. A branch-line also supplies the Borough of Whangarei and the farming districts en route.

New Plymouth has a plant of 3,500 kw. This plant was installed in 1906, and transmits power at 6,600 volts.

The Southland Electric-power Board has constructed a 4,000 kw. plant at Lake Monowai, and transmits power at 66,000 volts to Invercargill, Gore, and Winton. The Monowai River at its outlet from the lake is diverted through an open channel and a steel pipe 8 ft. in diameter to a surge-chamber above the power-house on the bank of the Waiau River. A head of 180 ft. is available, permitting an ultimate development of 20,000 h.p. on a 50-per-cent. load-factor.

The Taranaki Electric-power Board has constructed a plant to develop 4,000 h.p. from the Manganui River; the Marlborough Electric-power Board has constructed a plant to develop 1,000 kw. from the Waihopai River; and the Tauranga Borough Council has constructed a plant to develop 3,000 kw. from the Wairoa River.

There are numerous smaller hydro schemes and several systems generating energy from other sources, the principal of the latter being the steam station of the Auckland Electric-power Board.

During the year ended 31st March, 1929, there were 38 undertakings which generated more energy than they purchased. Of these 32 were operated by local authorities, 4 by the General Government, and 6 by private enterprise. Water was the chief source of power at 30 stations, oil at 3, steam at 3, and gas at 2.

The statistics given subsequently relate to all undertakings engaged in the generation of electric current for sale. A number of private plants (including a fairly big plant run for the purpose of supplying the current necessary for the operation of the Otira Tunnel) do not sell current. Particulars of the Government stations which have already been shown separately are included.

CLASSIFICATION ACCORDING TO SOURCE OF POWER.

The following table is submitted for the purpose of showing the relative positions of steam, gas, oil, and hydro undertakings which generated more energy than they purchased; salient statistics for the year ended 31st March, 1929, are given in respect of each kind of station:—

—	Steam.	Gas.	Oil.	Hydro.	Total.
* Including employees whose salaries and wages were not paid directly out of revenue from sale of energy.
Number of stations	3	2	3	30	38
Number of employees^*	524	9	107	1,647	2,287
Capital outlay (book value)	2,980,555	22,672	225,892	11,268,552	14,497,671
Revenue (not including rates)	651,273	3,852	41,731	1,112,551	1,809,457
Expenditure	644,438	5,717	45,981	1,268,106	1,964,242
Units generated	107,851,325	102,554	3,158,222	460,792,254	571,904,355
Units purchased	10,150,995	..	249,000	43,190,002	53,589,997
Units sold	97,471,660	80,623	2,519,316	441,182,465	541,254,064
Expenditure per unit sold	1.3d.	15.2d.	4.2d.	0.6d.	0.7d.
Units sold per £100 of capital outlay	3,270	356	1,115	3,917	3,734
Units sold per employee	186,015	8,958	23,545	267,870	236,666
Percentage of each Class to Totals.
Employees^*	22.91	0.39	4.68	72.02	100.00
Capital outlay (book value)	20.57	0.15	1.56	77.72	100.00
Revenue (including rates)	35.99	0.21	2.31	61.49	100.00
Expenditure	32.81	0.29	2.34	64.56	100.00
Units sold	18.01	0.01	0.47	81.51	100.00

The foregoing table reveals two principal points: first, that the great bulk of generating machinery in the Dominion is driven by hydro power; second, that the hydro-stations are attended with much greater productive economies than the other classes of stations.

EMPLOYEES AND WAGES.

Broadly speaking, there are two classes of employment in electricity-generating stations, viz.—(a) that connected directly with the generation and distribution of the energy and characterized by an element of permanency; and (b) that connected with the erection of plant and equipment, and in the long-run of a temporary character. Statistics relating to employees and wages are split under two headings, according as the latter are normally paid out of the revenue from the sale of current or not.

The following summary shows for 1928–29 the principal details both for employees and for salaries and wages paid:—

Class of Employment.	Males.	Females.	Total.
PERSONS ENGAGED.
(a) Salaries or Wages paid out of Revenue from Sale of Energy.
Secretaries, managers, engineers	107	4	111
Clerical staff	165	74	239
Wage-earning employees	831	4	835
Total	1,103	82	1,185
(b) Salaries or Wages not paid directly out of Revenue from Sale of Energy.
House-wiring	54	1	55
Trading departments	9	..	9
New construction-works	1,035	3	1,038
Total	1,098	4	1,102
Grand totals	2,201	86	2,287
SALARIES AND WAGES PAID.
To Employees in Class (a).
	£	£	£
Secretaries, managers, engineers	43,189	713	43,902
Clerical staff	36,489	8,618	45,107
Wage-earning employees	220,221	312	220,533
Total	299,899	9,643	309,512
To Employees in Class (b).
House-wiring	9,243	104	9,347
Trading departments	2,176	..	2,176
New construction-works	253,466	225	253,691
Total	264,885	329	265,214
Grand totals	564,784	9,972	574,756

The outstanding feature in the above table is the fact that employees whose salaries or wages are not paid out of revenue from the sale of energy actually exceed those directly employed in connection with the generation and distribution of energy. This is indicative of capital development on a relatively large scale.

Compared with 1927–28 the employees in class (a) have increased from 1,165 to 1,185, while their aggregate salaries and wages have increased from £298,319 in 1927–28-to £309,542 in 1928–29. The employees in class (b) show a decline in numbers from 1,177 to 1,102 and a gain in salaries and wages from £253,170 to £265,214.

CAPITAL OUTLAY.

Statistics relating to the capital outlay of any industry are not always simple to collect. Confusion arises as to whether the term covers the gross capital expenditure, or this figure less depreciation and expenditure on plant scrapped or sold—i.e., the net capital outlay. Formerly the gross capital outlay figure less expenditure on plant scrapped or sold was asked for, but commencing with 1927–28 the inquiry has been enlarged to cover both the gross and net outlays.

The following table shows a summarization of the data collected for 1928–29:—

Class of Expenditure.	Expenditure during Year ended 31st March, 1929.	As at 31st March, 1929.
Class of Expenditure.	Expenditure during Year ended 31st March, 1929.	Expenditure.	Depreciation.	Book Value.
	£	£	£	£
Land in connection with power-house, headworks, cottages, &c.	11,683	378,083	906	377,177
Power-house, buildings, cottages, &c.	75,181	791,993	23,552	768,441
Generating plant, headworks, &c.	365,891	4,839,874	211,227	4,628,647
Special standby plant	63,657	159,664	19,799	139,865
Main transmission-line and main substations	236,847	2,749,619	35,826	2,713,793
Distribution system, substations, land, cottages, &c.	273,972	3,441,222	167,862	3,273,360
Public (street) lighting	2,778	199,427	24,105	175,322
Interest during construction	52,177	548,582	3,916	544,666
Motors and other apparatus on hire	8,098	45,771	2,783	42,988
Stocks and materials (excluding stocks in trading departments)	Cr. 22,585	162,095	5,359	156,736
Capital sunk in trading department (including land, buildings, &c.)	1,161	204,063	1,360	202,703
Miscellaneous (cost of raising loans, law-costs, &c.)	78,199	965,162	73,349	891,813
Unclassified	68	12,116	162,085	Cr. 149,969
Totals	1,147,127	14,497,671	732,129	13,765,542

In considering the above figures, it is no doubt unnecessary to point out that the figures in the last column represent those in the preceding column, less the total amounts that have been written off the asset accounts, whether by way of depreciation or sale of plant, &c. Due cognizance must be taken of a practice, particularly among Electric-power Boards, whereby provision for depreciation is credited for any given year to a special depreciation reserve account instead of the various asset accounts. The asset account is not credited until provision has been made for the full value of the asset it represents. It is true that this procedure differs only in book entries from the usual annual writing-off of depreciation; nevertheless the statistics have been made to conform to general practice, with the result that the term “book value” means the value on the books; depreciation reserves have not been deducted unless the reserve accounts have been actually written off to the asset accounts.

During the year under discussion over £1,000,000 was expended in capital equipment for those stations classified for statistical purposes under the heading “Generating.”

Of this expenditure 45 per cent. was sunk in transmission-lines and distribution systems, the former accounting for 21 per cent. of the total against 24 per cent. for the latter. The expenditure on generating plant, headworks, &c., amounted to £365,891, or 32 per cent. of the total.

It is rather striking that the total book value of the power-house buildings, generating plant, and headworks comprised altogether only £5,397,088, or 40 per cent. of the total for all assets, while transmission-lines, substations, and distribution systems accounted for £5,987,153, or 44 per cent. of the total. These figures show rather forcibly that the actual generation of energy by water-power is not the principal problem in the electric-supply industry in the Dominion, the real problem existing in the transmission and distribution of the energy.

Closely allied to the capital outlay is the question of accrued funds. These take two forms — first, accrued sinking funds for the liquidation of loans: and, second, the provision out of current revenue of sufficient to purchase new plant when the life of that in use comes to an end. At the 31st March, 1929, accrued funds of generating stations totalled £2,318,678, which it is reasonably safe to assume, in the absence of any definite data, were represented by securities outside the electric-supply undertakings. A classification of these reserve funds according to their nature is given hereunder:—

	£
Depreciation reserves	894,341
Renewal funds	157,424
Sinking funds	921,877
Reserve funds	344,828
Fire-insurance reserves	208
	£2,318,678

POWER PLANT.

Particulars relating to the power plant in use at generating stations during the year ended 31st March, 1929, are set out hereunder:—

Source of Power.	Main Plant.		Standby Plant.		Total.
	Number.	B.h.p.	Number.	B.h.p.	Number.	B.h.p.
Water turbines and pelton wheels	79	172,764	8	2,500	87	175,264
Boilers	22	38,700	7	3,300	29	42,000
Steam-engines	18	41,400	3	3,900	21	45,300
Gas-engines	4	305	2	165	6	470
Oil-engines	9	2,145	10	6,233	19	8,378
Totals	132	255,314	30	16,098	162	271,412

The generating plant consisted of 107 main generators of 163,454 kw., and 18 standby generators of 5,010 kw.

UNITS GENERATED.

Altogether, 571,904,355 units were generated at generating stations during the year under discussion. Fifty-five per cent. of this total was generated in the four Government stations at Horahora, Waikaremoana, Mangahao, and Lake Coleridge, which contributed 16, 3, 17, and 19 per cent. respectively of the total figure. In addition to the units generated, Government stations purchased, principally from steam and oil plants, some 42,345,760 units. The purchased units at Mangahao, for example, represent units generated by the Wellington City Council and other local authorities, which formerly operated steam and oil stations but which now receive energy from Mangahao and generate additional energy as required in their own plants, which virtually act as standby plants to Mangahao.

The following summary shows the number of units generated, purchased, and sold by the four central Government stations and all other generating stations during the year ended 31st March, 1929:—

Station.	Units.				Percentage Non-productive.
Station.	Generated.	Purchased.	Total.	Sold.	Percentage Non-productive.
Horahora	92,216,392	12,776,370	104,992,762	92,707,271	11.70
Waikaremoana	18,684,260	..	18,684,260	18,190,615	2.64
Mangahao	98,327,690	29,569,390	127,897,080	119,801,706	6.33
Lake Coleridge	108,011,955	..	108,011,955	95,926,207	11.19
Other stations	254,664,058	11,244,237	265,908,295	214,628,265	19.28
Totals	571,904,355	53,589,997	625,494,352	541,254,064	13.15

The relatively greater percentage of energy lost in transmission in the smaller stations as compared with the Government stations is due to the fact that the former stations, as a general rule, sell retail, and the transmission losses cover in these cases all losses between generation and consumption, whereas in the latter case the energy is sold in bulk, and the transmission losses, therefore, occur between the generating station and the bulk-purchasing station.

REVENUE.

The fact that the four Government hydro stations sell in bulk to distributing units (Electric-power Boards, boroughs, &c.), whereas the majority of the other stations sell retail, is clearly displayed by the revenue figures relating to the sale of current. Although the former stations provided 59 per cent. of the total units sold, their revenue from the sale of current constituted only 30 per cent. of the total revenue from this source for all stations. The fact that the costs of operation are relatively lower in the Government stations as compared with the other stations is also a factor in accounting for the relatively smaller proportion of the total revenue coming' from the former stations, since costs of operation are the principal determinants of the selling-prices of the energy. In addition to the sale of energy generating stations derive a small amount of revenue from miscellaneous sources, the principal of these being, in the case of stations which generate and sell retail, the profits derived from the sale and hire of apparatus. The revenue for the year ended 31st March, 1929, for generating stations, classified according to the source whence it was derived, is given hereunder:—

Source of Revenue.	Horahora.	Waikaremoana.	Mangahao.	Lake Coleridge.	Other Stations.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
Sale of energy	132,648	22,115	184,826	184,522	1,247,482	1,771,593
Profits—Sale of apparatus	..	..	..	285	7,632	7,917
Hire of apparatus	..	..	..	545	6,066	6,611
Miscellaneous	2,863	878	1,885	1,612	7,639	14,877
Interest	..	..	..	..	8,459	8,459
Rates	..	..	..	..	70,844	70,844
Totals	135,511	22,993	186,711	186,964	1,348,122	1,880,301

EXPENDITURE.

A study of the expenditure figures immediately reveals the extent to which the generation of electrical energy is subject to the law of increasing returns. Overhead costs, comprising management expenses and capital charges, completely overshadow the prime costs, which may be taken as the operating-expenses. During the year under discussion, of the total expenditure recorded (£1,964,242), no less than 66 per cent. represented overhead expenses, while operating-expenses or prime costs stood at 34 per cent. It is not difficult to imagine from these figures that the actual output of electrical energy can be enormously increased for a relatively small additional per-unit cost. This is an important phase of this industry, since up to a certain point the per-unit costs of generation must progressively fall as the output is increased.

The subjoined table gives an analysis of expenditure recorded for generating stations during the year ended 31st March, 1929, showing separate particulars for the four Government stations and other stations:—

—	Horahora.	Waikaremoana.	Mangahao.	Lake Coleridge.	Other.	Total.
Operating Expenditure.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
Cost of power	16,642	..	72,563	..	16,860	106,065
Cost of generation	3,699	1,577	8,187	4,751	66,821	85,035
Fuel	..	..	..	..	185,026	185,026
Stores	622	113	..	123	4,801	5,659
Repairs	2,132	620	..	6,555	40,328	49,635
Standby plant	32,766	..	..	..	2,229	34,995
Cost of transmission	13,431	1,298	16,500	6,572	10,385	48,186
Cost of distribution	729	..	1,735	6,064	119,500	128,028
Public (street) lighting	..	..	..	..	9,027	9,027
Totals	70,021	3,608	98,985	24,065	454,977	651,656
Miscellaneous Expenditure.
Cost of management	5,008	281	2,645	5,255	95,466	108,655
Insurance	72	..	234	173	25,159	25,638
Losses from trading	..	..	5,043	..	317	5,360
Other expenditure	1,130	..	..	638	15,541	17,309
Totals	6,210	281	7,922	6,066	136,483	156,962
Capital Charges.
Interest	53,044	20,893	135,358	76,612	397,910	683,817
Sinking fund	..	..	42,714	50,374	72,717	165,805
Depreciation reserve	21,527	2,587	..	29,847	145,294	199,255
Renewal funds	..	..	..	..	18,466	18,466
Reserve	..	..	99	..	11,473	11,572
Special capital charges	..	..	..	..	76,709	76,709
Totals	74,571	23,480	178,171	156,833	722,569	1,155,624
Grand totals	150,802	27,369	285,078	186,964	1,314,029	1,964,242

The expression of the expenditure per unit sold is given hereunder:—

—	Horahora.	Waikare-moana.	Mangahao.	Lake Coleridge.	Other.	Total.
	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.	d.
Operating-expenses	0.18	0.05	0.21	0.08	0.66	0.36
Capital charges and miscellaneous expenses	0.21	0.31	0.36	0.39	0.81	0.51
Totals	039	0.36	0.57	0.47	1.47	0.87

Taking a general comparison between the figures per unit for the Government and other generating stations, it is readily seen that both operating and overhead costs are relatively lower in the former than in the latter. The total expenditure per unit for the other stations is four times that for Horahora and Waikaremoana, treble that for Lake Coleridge, and two and a half times that for Mangahao.

Comparisons in costs between the Government stations should not be made without taking into consideration the varying quantities of energy purchased, mainly from steam, oil, or gas standby stations. The more energy is purchased the higher will be the per-unit costs.

GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION.

Some idea of the geographical distribution of the undertakings that generated more current than they purchased during 1928–29 is afforded by the following table, which shows the principal statistics of these stations classified according to provincial districts.

Provincial District.	Persons engaged (both Sexes).	Salaries and Wages paid.	Revenue (including Rates).	Expenditure.	Capital Outlay (Book Value).	Units sold.
Provincial District.	Persons engaged (both Sexes).	Salaries and Wages paid.	Revenue (including Rates).	Expenditure.	Capital Outlay (Book Value).	In Bulk.	Retailed.
	Number.	£	£	£	£
Auckland	810	210,936	842,418	840,773	4,153,016	116,357,487	99,759,863
Hawke's Bay	377	86,970	26,143	30,519	993,745	17,380,008	1,081,162
Taranaki	165	40,026	161,592	148,204	1,007,722	2,701,311	17,167,327
Wellington	122	24,790	202,096	297,627	2,326,097	119,150,941	1,514,751
Marlborough	46	12,744	28,087	34,862	326,137	287,952	2,009,163
Nelson	48	10,765	47,192	37,215	166,833	70,962	1,932,511
Westland	81	15,076	28,834	30,077	196,764	..	5,219,140
Canterbury	141	38,548	186,964	186,964	1,607,247	78,096,476	17,829,731
Otago	385	105,488	201,583	172,393	1,352,483	5,793,271	38,921,347
Southland	112	29,413	155,392	185,608	1,635,498	6,002,377	9,978,281
Totals	2,287	574,756	1,880,301	1,964,242	13,765,542	345,840,788	195,413,276

Although from the point of view of generating the undertakings covered in the foregoing table are homogeneous, they may be occupied to varying degrees in the field of distribution. For instance, in Auckland 116,357,487 units were sold in bulk, against 99,759,863 units retailed; Hawke's Bay and Taranaki generated approximately the same quantity of energy, but whereas Hawke's Bay sold 17,380,008 units in bulk and retailed 1,081,162 units, Taranaki shows 2,701,311 units as sales in bulk against 17,167,327 units as retail sales. These differences in the extent of retail distribution carried on by the undertakings to which the above data refer should be borne in mind when comparisons are made between the figures for the various districts.

ELECTRIC-POWER BOARDS.

The policy of the Government generally is to supply power in bulk, leaving the reticulation and retail supply in the hands of the local authorities. Formerly the only local authorities available were the cities, boroughs, counties, and town districts, but with the extension of electric supply into the country areas a stronger organization became necessary, and this was provided under the Electric-power Boards Act of 1918. This Act provides for several local districts to combine for the purpose of electric-power distribution, and to sot up a special Electric-power Board to carry out the work, with rating-powers over the district concerned.

Amendments to the original Act, based on the results of experience, were passed in 1919, 1920, 1921, 1922, and 1923. The legislation was consolidated and amended in the Electric-power Boards Act. 1925, amendments to which were enacted in 1927 and 1928.

The development of the reticulation by means of Electric-power Boards has made substantial progress during the last few years. There are now 43 districts constituted and 38 actually carrying out the distribution and sale of electrical energy (August, 1929). The total area covered is 66,869 square miles, or 63 per cent. of the total area of the Dominion. The total population concerned is 922,464, or 63 per cent. of the total population of the Dominion; and the unimproved value of the land included in the electric-power districts and outer areas is £254,032,991, or 75 per cent. of the total unimproved value of the Dominion.

So far only one of the four main cities—viz., Auckland—has been included in the inner area of a power district, but of the secondary centres the City of Wanganui, and the boroughs of Palmerston North, Invercargill, Timaru, Napier, Hastings, Masterton, Lower Hutt, Petone, Blenheim, Greymouth, Gisborne, and Oamaru are included. The advantage of Electric-power Board organization is more obvious to rural than to urban ratepayers, and yet the above position indicates that some of the more important centres are realizing that it is to their advantage generally to be associated with the country in undertaking the work of reticulation of electric power on a comprehensive scale.

The Boards already formed are getting to work energetically in carrying out their functions. Twenty-four Boards—viz., Waitemata, Franklin, Thames Valley, Cambridge, Central, Waitomo, To. Awamutu, Poverty Bay, Wairoa, Hawke's Bay, Central Hawke's Bay, Dannevirke, Wanganui - Rangitikei, Manawatu-Oroua, Horowhonua, Tararua, Wairarapa, Hutt Valley, Malvern, Banks Peninsula, Springs-Ellesmere, Ashburton, South Canterbury, and Waitaki—have carried out fairly complete reticulation of their areas, and are distributing power taken in bulk from the plants at Horahora, Waikaremoana, Mangahao, and Lake Coleridge. The Auckland Board has taken over the city electric-power station, and is providing for large extensions of both plant and mains. It has also entered into a contract to take the whole of its power, with a minimum of 15,000 kw., from the Government on completion of the Arapuni Station, the first unit of which went into commercial operation in June, 1929. Taranaki is now giving a supply from its own generating station at Tariki. Six—viz., Opunake, Taranaki, Wairere, Marlborough, Southland, and Teviot—have local water-power stations in operation, and the Golden Bay Board is arranging to do likewise. The Bay of Plenty Board is arranging to take power in bulk from the Government hydro-electric sources. The Westland Board has delegated its license to a private company for a term of years, while the Grey Board has erected a steam station of its own and has made arrangements for constructing a hydro station on the Arnold River near Kaimata. The Tauranga, Otago, and Otago Central Boards have arranged to purchase power in bulk from other authorities. The other four—viz., Hobson, Buller, Reefton, and South Taranaki—are making arrangements which have not yet been finalized.

The following table gives details of the date of constitution, the area, population, and rateable value of each of the 43 power districts already formed, also the amounts of the loans already authorized, and the voting on each poll taken. The total amount of the loans authorized by the 38 districts which have taken their polls is £12,309,116. The population of the districts concerned is 884,676, so that the loans authorized amount to £13.9 per head of population, as compared with £12.6 last year. The unimproved valuation of the districts is £247,977,236, the loans authorized amounting to 4.98 per cent. of the unimproved rateable value of the lands pledged as security for the loans. The voting at the polls totalled 55,058 to 9,189—i.e., a majority of 83.5 per cent.

ELECTRIC-POWER BOARDS AS CONSTITUTED ON 31ST MARCH, 1929.

Board.	Proclamation constituting Power Board gazetted.	Number of Members on Board.	Approximate Area of District.	Population.	Value of Rateable Property.	Amount of Loan authorized.	Voting for Loan Poll.
Board.	Proclamation constituting Power Board gazetted.	Number of Members on Board.	Approximate Area of District.	Population.	Value of Rateable Property.	Amount of Loan authorized.	For.	Ag'nst.
* Poll not yet taken.
			Square Miles.		£	£
Ashburton	17/11/21	12	2,542	18,033	11,500,000	326,150	1,590	96
Auckland	1/4/22	12	300	175,000	50,491,865	2,318,000	11,004	1,367
Banks Peninsula	8/1/20	7	387	4,050	4,659,610	114,680	327	90
Bay of Plenty	20/8/25	8	3,075	11,625	1,769,657	184,000	436	137
Buller	11/5/22	5	1,987	9,197	696,374	^*	^*	^*
Cambridge	8/1/20	8	137	6,000	2,559,567	113,236	474	71
Central	8/7/20	8	817	18,039	8,091,272	307,000	1,059	78
Central Hawke's Bay	19/10/22	9	1,300	11,000	6,839,951	150,000	543	41
Dannevirke	11/8/21	10	696	12,614	4,275,674	175,000	646	95
Franklin	29/6/25	9	628	16,359	7,761,397	254,820	1,127	154
Golden Bay	16/6/25	5	51	1,200	455,000	25,000	236	96
Grey	26/10/22	9	1,450	12,700	1,545,502	138,000	1,368	298
Hawke's Bay	19/6/24	11	1,684	42,210	18,127,637	304,000	681	68
Hobson	29/3/23	8	778	7,180	1,424,942	^*	^*	^*
Horowhenua	1/12/21	9	630	16,240	4,984,359	260,000	973	26
Hutt Valley	6/7/22 11/12/24	11	530	38,560	3,119,920	390,000	2,303	343
Malvern	28/6/23	6	2,141	5,050	3,037,533	65,000	508	33
Manawatu-Oroua	1/12/21	12	1,301	39,011	13,846,231	500,000	1,144	96
Marlborough	25/10/23	8	3,218	14,530	8,658,285	327,500	1,334	300
North Canterbury	26/2/27	8	1,058	13,085	6,052,918	160,300	430	86
Opunake	9/8/21 11/3/22	7	202	7,300	1,728,168	101,200	61	9
Otago	18/10/231 31/12/26 1/11/28	7	2,281	24,182	3,793,509	256,500	1,358	196
Otago Central	26/10/22	9	2,684	5,170	538,838	87,000	430	31
Poverty Bay	12/6/24	11	1,747	23,670	16,536,848	280,000	1,203	244
Reefton	30/6/21	4	24	1,639	178,055	^*	^*	^*
South Canterbury	3/7/24	12	5,124	41,743	12,946,839	329,000	1,861	584
Southland	13/11/19 19/11/19	12	10,953	67,112	15,200,658	1,650,000	3,516	415
South Taranaki	24/1/25	8	862	16,500	6,271,271	^*	^*	^*
Springs-Ellesmere	1/7/20	5	412	11,370	6,994,004	140,000	959	56
Taranaki	18/5/22 6/5/26 20/5/26	8	1,688	22,000	6,141,672	435,000	1,026	252
Tararua	23/3/22	10	1,265	10,255	2,833,944	164,480	714	83
Tauranga	14/6/23	7	639	11,880	1,022,713	114,500	421	277
Te Awamutu	8/1/20	8	270	7,620	3,699,132	178,000	757	146
Teviot	22/7/22	7	320	1,500	195,431	50,500	191	27
Thames Valley	8/1/19	12	2,301	42,000	14,444,808	850,000	1,236	806
Wairarapa	25/3/20	9	1,996	24,000	9,183,537	327,250	2,284	312
Wairere	9/10/24 4/11/26 21/3/29	7	407	2,700	696,621	38,500	82	8
Wairoa	29/7/20	10	1,354	7,678	3,941,141	100,000	504	31
Waitaki	9/8/23	9	2,373	17,820	6,855,282	135,000	1,286	124
Waitemata	18/10/23 27/11/24 26/8/26 7/3/29	12	627	38,370	11,977,760	280,000	5,052	1,603
Waitomo	6/3/24	7	1,260	8,000	1,066,361	117,000	557	90
Wanganui-Rangitikei	1/12/21	12	2,620	55,000	22,099,617	375,000	1,315	214
Westland	28/10/20	9	750	3,272	196,268	^*	^*	^*
Totals	..	377	66,869	922,464	308,440,171	12,121,616	53,996	8,983

The next table shows the capital expenditure incurred fry each Board up to the end of the financial year 1928–29, and the revenue and expenditure during the year.

The total capital outlay by the 39 Boards which have started construction is £12,009,891, a portion of this being on works not yet in service. The gross revenue from the sale of electricity by the 38 Boards which had commenced supply was £1,850,453, of which 32.8 per cent. was received by the Auckland Board. The general result is a profit over the whole business of the Electric-power Boards of £100,462, as compared with £107,702 for the previous year. Losses are disclosed in several cases, but such in the early stages do not indicate any want of security in the business as a whole, being inherent in the commencement of any concern depending to such an extent on a large initial capital outlay to earn a revenue which takes time to develop.

ELECTRIC-POWER BOARDS.—PRINCIPAL FINANCIAL STATISTICS, 1928–29.

Board.	Main Supply commenced.	Capital Outlay—Total Expenditure to 31st March, 1929.	Revenue.					Expenditure.				Profit.	Loss.
			Sale of Electricity.		Sale of Materials (Profit).	General.	Total (not including Rates.).	Operating Expenditure.	Miscellaneous.	Capital Charges.	Total Annual Costs.
			Bulk.	Retail.	Sale of Materials (Profit).	General.	Total (not including Rates.).	Operating Expenditure.	Miscellaneous.	Capital Charges.	Total Annual Costs.
* Not yet actively functioning. † License delegated to Westland Power, Ltd.
		£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
Ashburton	1,923	325,250	..	38,499	..	449	38,948	16,988	3,927	20,866	41,781	..	2,833
Auckland	1,908	2,768,798	..	603,635	..	2,153	605,788	259,628	45,608	186,037	491,273	114,515	..
Banks Peninsula	1,921	99,546	..	11,791	201	267	12,259	5,326	2,775	7,223	15,324	..	3,065
Bay of Plenty	1,928	154,785	313	8,655	..	433	9,401	5,004	2,579	7,589	15,172	..	5,771
Buller^*	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Cambridge	1,926	104,349	..	16,957	407	977	18,341	7,683	2,281	7,484	17,448	893	..
Central	1,921	279,440	..	45,016	220	916	46,152	16,385	5,005	18,596	39,986	6,166	..
Central Hawke's Bay	1,925	117,569	506	16,967	..	1,242	18,715	5,954	1,950	7,961	15,865	2,850	..
Dannevirke	1,925	188,811	..	22,930	434	666	24,030	7,875	3,051	11,817	22,743	1,287	..
Franklin	1,925	221,835	..	28,870	2,309	3,225	34,404	9,844	4,863	13,607	28,314	6,090	..
Golden Hay^*	..	5,280	..	..	..	..	..	..	921	..	921	..	921
Grey	1,926	116,070	..	20,264	133	412	20,809	8,544	3,779	8,727	21,050	..	241
Hawke's Hay	1,927	221,433	22,237	14,590	1,718	1,213	39,758	21,364	2,141	13,724	37,229	2,528	..
Hobson^*	..	..	..	..	..	31	31	..	170	..	170	..	139
Horowhenua	1,924	186,793	..	38,934	292	1,171	40,397	19,146	4,712	12,763	36,621	3,776	..
Hutt Valley	1,925	341,558	..	74,543	876	1,029	76,448	34,925	6,636	22,115	63,676	12,772	..
Malvern	1,925	56,532	..	5,902	345	691	6,938	3,213	1,075	3,702	7,990	..	1,052
Manawatu-Oroua	1,924	461,565	8,755	51,555	688	715	61,713	25,988	4,506	28,730	59,224	2,489	..
Marlborough	1,927	305,664	1,661	18,357	95	1,108	21,221	3,004	2,036	21,185	26,225	..	5,004
North Canterbury	1,928	97,061	1,800	8,309	88	83	10,280	6,193	461	662	7,316	2,964	..
Opunake	1,924	100,421	..	11,395	8	168	11,571	2,073	1,695	8,075	11,843	..	272
Otago	1,926	270,672	591	28,638	..	308	29,537	14,284	5,215	17,769	37,268	..	7,731
Otago Central	1,925	68,375	..	6,513	..	189	6,702	1,200	1,694	4,525	7,419	..	717
Poverty Bay	1,912	202,634	..	36,571	100	790	37,461	26,072	4,440	9,471	39,983	..	2,522
Reefton^*	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
South Canterbury	1,925	302,044	10,097	34,303	171	257	44,828	21,467	4,838	20,957	47,262	..	2,434
Southland	1,925	1,653,767	19,167	80,447	260	10,018	109,892	28,025	24,930	115,500	168,455	..	58,563
South Taranaki^*	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	801	..	801	..	801
Springs-Ellesmere	1,922	119,280	..	19,089	180	174	19,443	7,762	3,240	7,870	18,872	571	..
Taranaki	1,927	472,412	5,485	27,526	996	762	34,769	4,625	6,922	29,757	41,304	..	6,535
Tararua	1,925	147,500	..	19,382	199	922	20,503	6,944	2,663	9,266	18,873	1,630	..
Tauranga	1,926	115,890	..	19,594	29	2,431	22,054	9,837	3,588	8,091	21,516	538	..
Te Awamutu	1,921	165,471	1,156	24,500	78	549	26,283	9,134	2,533	10,760	22,427	3,856	..
Teviot	1,924	52,197	778	3,525	258	338	4,899	749	872	3,535	5,156	..	257
Thames Valley	1,921	758,839	6,238	115,331	1,259	2,964	125,792	52,546	18,786	52,038	123,370	2,422	..
Wairarapa	1,924	333,048	1,370	40,485	1,214	2,284	45,353	9,467	9,308	23,932	42,707	2,646	..
Wairere	1,925	34,193	..	3,441	..	50	3,491	400	1,063	2,313	3,776	..	285
Wairoa	1,923	53,415	5,032	4,872	544	121	10,569	7,164	1,251	3,992	12,407	..	1,838
Waitaki	1,926	158,522	334	31,132	978	141	32,585	11,241	2,335	11,888	25,464	7,121	..
Waitemata	1,926	336,507	..	57,644	1,047	2,340	61,031	19,109	10,971	23,027	53,107	7,924	..
Waitomo	1,926	103,396	..	14,379	171	421	14,971	5,490	3,012	6,167	14,669	302	..
Wanganui-Rangitikei	1,924	509,569	4,603	94,055	..	4,428	103,086	41,120	8,380	35,484	84,984	18,102	..
Westland^†	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Totals, 1928–29	..	12,009,891	90,123	1,698,596	15,298	46,436	1,850,453	735,773	217,013	797,205	1,749,991	201,443	100,981
Totals, 1927–28	..	11,078,670	75,021	1,478,606	15,387	59,177	1,628,191	609,003	191,098	720,388	1,520,489	204,605	96,903

General rates were struck in 1928–29 by 6 Boards, and collected by 3 of these and by 3 other Boards; 5 Boards struck special rates, which were collected in 2 cases; and 2 Boards struck and collected availability rates. Receipts from general rates totalled, £46,039, from special rates £12,662, and from availability rates £18,068. Rate receipts are not included in the foregoing table.

Several of the Boards are passing through a critical stage owing to the high cost and high interest rates ruling in 1921 when they started construction-work, and the fact that they have undertaken the construction of many lines without requiring the guarantees from consumers authorized by clause 7 (d) of the 1922 regulations, and since amplified in the 1927 Electric-supply Regulations. But costs and rates of interest are now substantially lower, and the other Boards are profiting by such experiences, and much better results will be attained by the Electric-power Boards generally in future as the result of the experience of these earlier districts.

DISTRIBUTING STATIONS.

Electric-power Boards are not the only authorities engaged in the distribution of electric current, a considerable number of local authorities of other classes being also so engaged. The following data and explanations cover all distributing stations whether they are operated by Electric-power Boards, other local authorities, or private enterprise.

As indicated earlier, the statistics given hereunder in respect of distributing stations cover some stations which generate a small amount of energy apart from what is purchased from the generating stations. This generation as a general rule is carried on with steam and oil plants which have not yet been scrapped, and which now operate chiefly as standby plants.

During the year ended 31st March, 1929, there were 58 undertakings in the Dominion purchasing energy from generating stations, and, with the exception of a small amount sold in bulk, retailing it to the consumer. All those stations were operated by local authorities, with the exception of' a small station in Canterbury operated by a dairy company and another one at Rotorua operated by the New Zealand Government through the Tourist Department. The Canterbury Provincial District leads the way in the number of distributing stations, no fewer than 17 out of the total of 58 for the whole Dominion being located within its boundaries. Auckland follows Canterbury with 16, while Wellington, Hawke's Bay, Taranaki, Otago, and Southland have 9, 7, 3, 3, and 3 respectively.

EMPLOYEES AND WAGES.

The remarks made on page 950 in respect of the permanent and temporary aspects of employment in generating stations apply with equal force to the distributing stations. Particulars regarding the latter stations for the year ended 31st March, 1929, are presented hereunder:—

Class of Employment.	Males.	Females.	Total.
PERSONS ENGAGED.
(a) Salaries or Wages paid out of Revenue from Sale of Energy.
Secretaries, managers, engineers	167	..	167
Clerical staff	183	151	334
Wage-earning employees	718	4	722
Totals	1,068	155	1,223
(b) Salaries or Wages not paid directly out of Revenue from Sale of Energy.
House-wiring	221	2	223
Trading departments	77	14	91
New construction-works	548	4	552
Totals	846	20	866
Grand totals	1,914	175	2,089

Class of Employment.	Males.	Females.	Total.
SALARIES AND WAGES PAID.
To Employees in Class (a).
	£	£	£
Secretaries, managers, engineers	66,746	..	66,746
Clerical staff	41,542	18,450	59,992
Wage-earning employees	178,226	321	173,547
Totals	286,514	18,771	305,285
To Employees in Class (b).
House-wiring	43,444	371	43,815
Trading departments	14,055	1,474	15,529
New construction-works	129,026	419	129,445
Totals	186,525	2,264	188,789
Grand totals	473,039	21,035	494,074

POWER PLANT.

The plant of distributing stations was recorded as follows for the year ended 31st. March, 1929:—

Kind of Engine.	Main Plant.		Standby Plant.		Total.
Kind of Engine.	No.	Brake Horsepower.	No.	Brake-Horsepower.	No.	Brake Horsepower.
Water-turbines and pelton wheels	12	1,910	4	1,500	16	3,410
Boilers	9	16,900	14	4,841	23	21,741
Steam-engines	6	13,900	19	6,996	25	20,896
Gas-engines	..	..	12	3,060	12	3,060
Oil-engines	6	1,660	8	1,920	14	3,580
Totals	33	34,370	57	18,317	90	52,687

In addition to the foregoing, distributing stations had the use of 23 main-plant generators of 11,625 kw. and 36 standby generators of 10,094 kw.

The presence of main-plant generators in distributing stations presents an ambiguity. It is explicable by the fact that some distributing stations purchase a certain proportion of their energy and generate the balance.

CAPITAL OUTLAY.

It is not surprising that the great bulk of the capital outlay for distributing stations-should be sunk in distribution works, since the distribution of energy is the principal work carried on. Of the total capital expenditure at 31st March, 1929, approximately 60 per cent. was sunk in this class of asset, against 13 per cent. and 0.8 per cent. in transmission-lines and generating (including standby) plant respectively. The relatively low figure for transmission-lines is due to the fact that the transmission-lines between the generating and distributing stations appear in the capital outlay for the former.

The following summary shows the capital outlay during the year ended 31st March, 1929, and the total at that date, classified according to the nature of the asset acquired:—

Class of Expenditure.	Expenditure during Year ended 31 st March, 1929.	As at 31st March, 1929.
Class of Expenditure.	Expenditure during Year ended 31 st March, 1929.	Expenditure.	Depreciation.	Book Value.
	£	£	£	£
Land in connection with power-house, headworks, cottages, &c.	129	51,460	1,893	49,567
Power-house buildings, cottages, &c.	1,844	203,654	3,658	199,996
Generating plant, headworks, &c.	4,893	760,263	45,639	714,624
Special standby plant	1,122	77,100	10,833	66,267
Main transmission-line and main substations	90,870	1,214,434	47,727	1,166,707
Distribution system, substations, land, cottages, &c.	463,705	5,629,914	428,293	5,201,621
Public (street) lighting	6,946	184,847	32,735	152,112
Interest during construction	24,264	333,087	2,851	330,236
Motors and other apparatus on hire	1,020	23,484	1,663	21,821
Stocks and materials (excluding stocks in trading departments)	..	143,067	..	143,067
Capital sunk in trading department (including land, buildings, &c.)	..	154,636	922	153,714
Miscellaneous (cost of raising loans, law-costs, &c.)	19,816	538,224	35,598	502,626
Unclassified	100	10,112	20,149	Cr. 10,037
Totals	614,709	9,324,282	631,961	8,692,321

Distributing stations had set aside at 31st March, 1929, £1,357,746 in the way of reserves, sinking funds, and accident funds. Sinking funds comprised £854,069 or just over half this total, while depreciation reserves represented £121,666, or just under one-tenth. The balance was made up as follows: Renewal funds, £193,069; reserve funds, £162,644; and accident funds, £26,298.

UNITS PURCHASED AND GENERATED.

Particulars relating to the number of units purchased, generated, and sold by distributing stations during the year ended 31st March, 1929, according to provincial districts, are given hereunder:—

Provincial District.	Units generated.	Units purchased.	Total Units generated and purchased.	Total Units sold.
Auckland	897,774	68,047,885	68,945,659	57,228,249
Hawke's Bay	1,197,565	27,421,214	28,618,779	23,684,674
Taranaki	..	2,109,732	2,109,732	1,693,647
Wellington	20,581,326	96,131,915	116,713,241	93,150,227
Canterbury	149,223	81,991,582	82,140,805	71,018,795
Otago	150,318	10,402,475	10,552,793	8,448,221
Southland	27,300	6,065,212	6,092,512	5,314,101
Totals	23,003,506	292,170,015	315,173,521	260,537,914

Of the total units dealt with during the year (315,173,521) approximately 6 per cent. were generated by the distributing stations, the balance (94 per cent.) being purchased from generating stations or intermediate distributing stations. Losses in transmission and distribution accounted for 17 per cent. of the total units generated and purchased, leaving a balance of 260,537,914 units sold. Of this figure 32,252,939 units were sold in bulk.

REVENUE.

The revenue from all sources was recorded as £1,952,681 during the year ended 31st March, 1929, the great bulk of which (£1,862,802) represented revenue from sales of current. Quite a considerable trade was done in the sale and hire of apparatus, this trade providing a profit of £9,668 for the year. The subjoined table shows the revenue for the year, classified according to the source whence it was derived and by provincial districts:—

Provincial District	Revenue.
Provincial District	Sale of Current.	Profits from Trading Account.	Hire of Apparatus.	Miscellaneous.	Interest.	Rates.	Total
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	426,905	6,316	3,424	4,866	6,858	131	448,500
Hawke's Bay	162,476	2,711	942	1,778	1,520	2,470	171,897
Taranaki	17,742	653	135	17	..	552	19,099
Wellington	709,190	3,481	3,012	3,819	8,133	323	727,958
Canterbury	428,624	6,455	1,805	2,929	18,699	4,157	462,669
Otago	67,208	978	..	42	596	..	68,824
Southland	50,657	..	350	2,463	..	264	53,734
Totals	1,862,802	20,594	9,668	15,914	35,806	7,897	1,952,681

As regards the revenue from the sale of current, the following figures, giving a classification of revenue according to the purposes for which the power was consumed, are of interest:—

	Revenue, £	Percentage of Total.
Street-lighting	67,234	3.61
Light, heating, and cooking	1,190,836	63.93
Power	420,975	22.60
Tramways	44,311	2.38
Other purposes and undefined	53,320	2.86
Bulk supply	86,126	4.62
Total	1,862,802	100.00

EXPENDITURE.

The total expenditure for distributing stations for the year ended 31st March, 1929, was approximately £77,326 less than that recorded for generating stations, the figure for the former being £1,886,916 against £1,964,242 for the latter. The proportion of operating-expenses to total expenditure was higher in the case of distributing as against generating stations, while overhead expenses, including miscellaneous and management expenses and capital charges, were relatively higher in the generating than in the distributing stations. The actual percentages worked out as follows:—

	Operating-expenses.	Overhead
Distributing stations	43	57
Generating stations	33	67

The following table shows a classification of the expenditure for undertakings which purchased more energy than they generated during the year ended 31st March, 1929, according to the nature of the expenditure and by provincial districts:—

Expenditure on	Auckland.	Hawke's Bay.	Taranaki.	Wellington.	Canterbury.	Otago.	Southland	Total.
Operating Expenses.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
Generation	1,799	6,725	..	22,933	795	1,116	2,336	35,704
Power-purchases	117,480	55,727	5,845	113,187	148,467	17,401	17,507	475,614
Fuel	471	6,398	..	45,029	10	269	42	52,219
Stores	132	2,826	..	1,638	1,265	43	18	5,922
Repairs	478	1,154	..	11,828	530	27	136	14,153
Standby plant	323	..	..	..	194	145	..	662
Transmission	3,713	..	..	748	2,059	1,710	168	8,398
Distribution	45,545	13,043	2,337	69,085	71,397	5,673	4,597	211,677
Public (street) lighting	1,977	1,294	173	3,997	2,648	341	355	10,785
Total	171,918	87,167	8,355	268,445	227,365	26,725	25,159	815,134
Miscellaneous.
Management	46,233	10,344	1,311	40,841	22,374	7,247	2,838	131,188
Insurance	2,656	978	155	6,893	2,539	384	287	13,892
Losses from trading	..	74	..	532	572	1,566	..	2,744
Other	20,189	805	45	16,137	3,440	47	2,394	43,057
Total	69,078	12,201	1,511	64,403	28,925	9,244	5,519	190,881
Capital Charges.
Interest	130,186	44,928	4,246	153,030	87,992	27,959	9,007	457,348
Sinking Fund	31,572	7,203	830	29,622	40,317	6,223	3,056	118,823
Depreciation reserve	14,772	6,925	1,582	36,488	41,871	5,736	..	107,374
Renewal Fund	3,737	1,286	..	20,460	450	4,000	196	30,129
Reserve Fund	5,848	2,186	..	18,723	32,540	..	..	59,297
Other	14,198	2,873	..	67,059	13,345	..	10,455	107,930
Total	200,313	65,401	6,658	325,382	216,515	43,918	22,714	880,901
Grand total	441,309	164,769	16,524	658,230	472,805	79,887	53,392	1,886,916

GENERATING AND DISTRIBUTING STATIONS.

Something in the way of a general survey of the whole electric-power industry is afforded by the following table, which shows the principal statistics for both generating and distributing stations for the year ended 31st March, 1929:—

Provincial District.	Persona engaged.	Revenue (including Rates).	Expenditure.	Capital Outlay (Book Value) at 31st March, 1929.
		£	£	£
Auckland	1,340	1,290,918	1,282,082	8,610,543
Hawke's Bay	502	198,040	195,288	1,825,842
Taranaki	183	180,691	164,728	1,049,912
Wellington	920	930,054	955,857	5,451,143
Marlborough	46	28,087	34,862	326,137
Nelson	48	47,192	37,215	166,833
Westland	81	28,834	30,077	196,764
Canterbury	611	649,633	659,769	3,183,210
Otago	491	270,407	252,280	1,836,476
Southland	154	209,126	239,000	1,811,003
Totals	4,376	3,832,982	3,851,158	22,457,863

Owing to the fact that some generating stations are engaged in retailing current as well as selling it in bulk, it is necessary to consider the figures for both kinds of stations in a consideration of the quantities of energy used for various purposes and the revenue derived from each source.

The table given hereunder shows the energy classified according to the purpose for which it was used, together with the amount of revenue derived from the sales for each purpose:—

Provincial District.	Street-lighting.	Light, Heating, and Cooking.	Power.	Tramways.	Other Purposes and undefined.	Total.
Number of Units (000 omitted).
Auckland	3,346	86,273	43,300	18,440	3,185	154,544
Hawke's Bay	678	9,874	1,889	323	1,482	14,246
Taranaki	444	11,709	5,296	700	712	18,861
Wellington	2,186	40,250	18,511	11,043	11,666	83,656
Marlborough	105	1,765	139	..	..	2,009
Nelson	167	1,490	75	..	201	1,933
Westland	128	869	1,691	..	2,531	5,219
Canterbury	2,099	45,751	18,209	8,649	5,958	80,666
Otago	984	20,874	20,704	4,628	82	47,272
Southland	128	8,545	4,849	663	1,107	15,292
Total	10,265	227,400	114,663	44,446	26,924	423,698
Revenue.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
Auckland	64,750	631,233	304,227	82,899	4,735	1,087,844
Hawke's Bay	3,229	96,548	20,279	1,521	6,138	127,715
Taranaki	3,941	105,780	35,411	2,200	1,932	149,264
Wellington	26,575	478,364	156,031	39,982	1,203	702,155
Marlborough	1,772	19,457	1,799	..	..	23,028
Nelson	1,934	28,734	1,120	..	7,791	39,579
Westland	1,534	13,595	8,901	..	4,095	28,125
Canterbury	19,715	309,653	71,680	16,215	37,695	454,958
Otago	11,976	165,025	64,294	11,592	1,121	254,008
Southland	2,126	95,421	25,712	2,808	5,037	131,104
Totals	137,552	1,943,810	689,454	157,217	69,747	2,997,780

The following table sets forth the principal statistics for all undertakings in the electricity generation and supply industry for the years ended 31st March, 1919, 1928, and 1929:—

—	Year ended 31st March,			Index Numbers, Year 1928–29.
—	1919.	1928.	1929.	1918–19 = 100.	1927–28 = 100.
* Not available.
Stations No.	45	98	96	213	98
Persons engaged (both sexes) No.	536	2,542	2,786	520	110
Salaries and wages £	94,913	616,194	685,694	722	111
Generators (capacity)—
Main Kw.	31,669	154,006	175,084	553	114
Standby Kw.	..	15,567	15,104	..	97
Total Kw.	31,669	169,573	190,188	601	112
Route-miles of lines Miles	^*	15,943	17,757	..	111
Units generated Units	76,482,453	509,812,475	594,907,861	778	117
Revenue £	463,560	3,445,776	3,832,982	827	111
Expenditure £	392,709	3,530,932	3,851,158	981	109
Area of supply Sq. m.	^*	57,498	78,531	..	137
Mean population—March year No.	1,166,482	1,443,323	1,459,983	125	101
Consumers No.	51,193	243,139	266,306	520	110
Capital outlay (total expenditure) £	2,253,260	21,358,946	23,821,953	1,057	112
Per head of population—
Units generated Units	65.57	353.22	407.48	621	115
Capital outlay £	1.93	14.80	16.32	846	110

All the figures in the foregoing table afford evidence of the relatively rapid development in the electric-supply industry during the last decade. As a matter of fact, the industrial statistics appear to indicate that this development has outstripped that for most other industries. The investment of some £21,500,000 in the industry within the relatively short space of a decade has given it an important place in the economic structure of the Dominion. The capital investment per head of population has advanced from £1.93 in 1918–19 to £16.32 in 1928–29, while the units generated per head of population have risen from 65.57 to 407.48.

The “capital turnover,” which is based on the relationship between the revenue and the capital invested, shows that the book value of the capital outlay at 31st March, 1929 (total capital outlay minus depreciation written off to date and funds accrued to date), will, on the basis of the present revenue, be turned over in approximately four to five years. This gives some idea of the permanency of the investment, and is in striking contrast to many other industries where the capital is turned over several times in the one year.

The following table shows fairly detailed comparisons between the figures for 1927–28 and 1928–29:—

—	Year ended 31st March,		Index Numbers, Year 1928–29 (1927–28 = 100)
—	1928.	1929.	Index Numbers, Year 1928–29 (1927–28 = 100)
Stations No.	98	96	98
Persons engaged (both sexes) No.	2,542	2,786	110
Salaries and wages £	616,194	685,694	111
Consumers No.	243,139	266,306	110
Revenue—
Current—
Retail £	2,680,043	2,997,780	112
Bulk £	578,127	636,615	110
Other £	187,606	198,587	106
Total £	3,445,776	3,832,982	111
Expenditure—
Working expenses £	1,659,556	1,814,633	109
Capital charges £	1,871,376	2,036,525	109
Total £	3,530,932	3,851,158	109
Capital outlay—
Total expenditure £	21,358,946	23,821,953	112
Book value at 31st March £	20,847,422	22,457,863	108
Units—
Generated No.	509,812,475	594,907,861	117
Sold (retail) No.	349,808,906	423,698,251	121
Bulk sales No.	322,519,539	378,093,727	117
Capacity of plant (main and standby)—Generators Kw.	169,573	190,188	112
Miles of lines—
Transmission and distribution Miles	15,725	17,472	111
Underground cables Miles	218	285	131
Total Miles	15,943	17,757	111
Number of—
Stoves	15,766	20,254	128
Milking-machines	21,513	29,257	136
Water-heaters	8,514	10,161	119
Electric motors	33,421	41,373	124

The figures given in respect of employees and salaries and wages cover only those employees whose salaries or wages are paid directly from revenue derived from the sale of current.

WATER-POWER IN USE.

The following table shows the hydro-electric horse-power actually in use in the various districts at the 31st March in each of the last five years:—

District.	1924–25.	1925–26.	1926–27.	1927–28.	1928–29.
	H.P.	H.P.	H.P.	H.P.	H.P.
Auckland North	2,967	2,786	2,800 1/2	2,800 1/2	2,800 1/2
Auckland	5,921 1/2	5,369	7,166 1/2	6,488	6,835
Auckland South	10,147 1/2	13,599 1/2	16,502 1/2	16,512 1/2	16,477 1/2
Gisborne	1,262	1,262	3,262	3,269	3,269
Hawke's Bay	322 3/4	372	384	389	387 1/2
Taranaki North	4,453	5,939	9,864	10,489	10,489
Taranaki	1,557 1/2	1,707 1/2	1,592	1,542	1,493
Wellington North	566	566	1,111	1,141	1,141
Wellington	1,491	34,503 1/2	34,467	34,443	34,421 1/2
Nelson	323 1/2	350 1/2	353 1/2	1,853 1/2	1,833 1/2
Westland	2,170	2,363 1/2	2,289	2,387	3,561
Canterbury	16,006	16,006	40,506	40,506	40,506
Canterbury South	206	213	177	177	177
Otago	12,492	17,128	17,615	16,574 1/2	19,570 1/2
Southland	10,257 3/4	10,889 3/4	10,889 3/4	10,913 3/4	14,456 1/4
Totals	70,143 1/2	113,055 1/4	148,979 3/4	149,485 3/4	157,418 1/4

The following table gives an analysis of the purposes for which water-power was employed as at the 31st March, 1929:—

WATER-POWER IN USE AT THE 31ST MARCH, 1929.

District.	Mining.	Electric Supply.	Flax-mills.	Sawmills.	Flour-mills.	Dairying.	Construction-works.	Freezing-works.	Paper-mills.	Miscellaneous.	Total.
	H.P	H.P.	H.P.	H.P.	H.P.	H.P.	H.P.	H.P.	H.P.	H.P.	H.P.
Auckland North	..	2,680	..	12	..	24	..	75	..	9 1/2	2,800 1/2
Auckland	1,209	5,525	..	28	..	21	36	10	..	6	6,835
Auckland South	..	16,328	30	..	..	107 1/2	..	..	..	12	16,477 1/2
Gisborne	..	3,257	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	12	3,269
Hawke's Bay	..	368	..	..	..	19 1/2	..	..	..	..	387 1/2
Taranaki North	..	9,795	..	..	24	598	..	10	..	62	10,489
Taranaki	..	1,075	..	..	..	294	..	..	..	124	1,493
Wellington N.	..	1,105	..	..	..	6	..	..	..	30	1,141
Wellington	..	34,311	..	..	..	40	..	..	..	70 1/2	34,421 1/2
Nelson	115	1,551	51	47	..	24 1/2	..	..	..	45	1,833 1/2
Westland	206	3,009	50	198	..	49	..	..	..	49	3,561
Canterbury	..	40,318	27	..	109	9	..	..	..	43	40,506
Canterbury S.	..	110	30	..	12	..	..	..	..	25	177
Otago	93	19,304	..	9 1/2	59	..	..	..	..	105	19,570 1/2
Southland	36	11,220 1/2	42	59	69	23 1/2	..	1,200	450	1,356 1/4	14,456 1/4
Totals	1,659	149,956 1/2	230	353 1/2	273	1,216	36	1,295	450	1,949 1/4	157,418 1/4

Chapter 44. SECTION XLIV.—MISCELLANEOUS.

Table of Contents

PUBLIC TRUST OFFICE.

JOINT-STOCK COMPANIES.

COMPANIES REGISTERED, BY CLASS AND BY AMOUNT OF NOMINAL CAPITAL, 1928.

COMPANIES REGISTERED, BY AMOUNT OF NOMINAL CAPITAL, 1926 TO 1928.

COMPANIES REGISTERED, 1909–28.

TOTAL COMPANIES ON REGISTER.

PUBLIC COMPANIES ON REGISTER, 31ST DECEMBER, 1926.

PRIVATE COMPANIES ON REGISTER, 31ST DECEMBER, 1926.

PATENTS, DESIGNS, AND TRADE-MARKS.

APPLICANTS FOR PATENTS IN NEW ZEALAND, 1926–28.

INSPECTION OF MACHINERY.

VALUE OF PRODUCTION.

VALUE OF PRODUCTION, BY CLASSES. 1918–19 TO 1927–28.

CONSUMPTION OF FOODSTUFFS.

CONSUMPTION OF CERTAIN ARTICLES OF FOODSTUFFS.

THE GENERAL ELECTION OF 1928.

RESULTS OF GENERAL ELECTION, 1928.

MAORI REPRESENTATIVES.

BY-ELECTION.

LICENSING.

NUMBER OF LICENSES GRANTED DURING THE YEAR 1927–28, AND THE AMOUNT OF FEES PAID TO LOCAL, AUTHORITIES THEREFOR.

NATIONAL LICENSING POLLS.

LOCAL OPTION.

REVIEW OF LEGISLATION OF 1928 SESSION.

PUBLIC TRUST OFFICE.

THE Public Trust Office is designed mainly to afford, at low rates of commission, a secure and convenient recourse in any case where a person residing either in New Zealand or abroad, and desiring to draw a will, form a trust, or appoint an agent or attorney in the Dominion, may be in doubt or difficulty as to the choice of a trustee, executor, agent, or attorney. The Office aims also to relieve those who for various reasons may be unable or unwilling to commence or continue the administration of trust property to which they may have been appointed.

The Public Trust Office commenced operations in 1873, at the end of which year 257 estates, of a total value of £17,500, were being administered by the Office. Since then there has been a progressive increase in both number and value of estates administered, the records at 31st March, 1929, showing 17,176 estates of a value of £48,334,790.

The following table shows the growth of the Public Trust Office during the last ten years:—

Year ended 31st March,	Total Value of Estates in Office, including Unrealized Assets.	Funds at Credit of Estates and Accounts.	Gross Income.
	£	£	£
1920	20,860,686	11,911,290	240,469
1921	22,364,319	13,918,906	244,090
1922	25,497,779	15,329,125	220,794
1923	28,904,798	17,466,787	246,692
1924	32,404,724	19,215,388	257,623
1925	35,570,642	20,864,356	299,439
1926	38,009,480	24,426,009	282,386
1927	41,043,523	26,485,917	274,845
1928	44,155,548	28,485,442	275,544
1929	48,334,790	31,043,172	296,297

New estates which came into the Office during the year ended 31st March, 1929, numbered 3,508, and represented a value of £7,091,350. The classification of these and of the estates under administration at 31st March, 1929, is as follows:—

—	New Estates during 1928–29.		Estates under Administration at 31st March, 1929.
—	Number.	Value.	Number.	Value.
		£		£
Wills estates	1,135	3,398,920	3,997	12,276,482
Trust estates	292	947,534	2,243	7,438,875
Intestate estates	592	460,521	2,289	1,595,275
Mental patients' estates	389	406,067	1,549	1,729,302
Miscellaneous estates	1,100	1,878,308	7,098	25,294,856
Totals	3,508	7,091,350	17,176	48,334,790

Moneys held by the Public Trustee for investment may, at the discretion of clients, either be invested in the Common Fund of the Office or be specially invested outside of the Common Fund. In the former case the investments are not earmarked to the estate, but capital and interest are guaranteed by the State. Interest, which is at such rate as is fixed from time to time by the Governor-General (5 1/4 per cent. at present, except for moneys at call), accrues from the date the moneys reach the Office, and is free of all commission and other charges.

In the case of special investment outside of the Common Fund, the investments belong to the estate, but there is no State guarantee, and (subject to the Public Trustee's ordinary liability as a trustee) any loss falls on the estate. Commission is charged on the interest collected.

In general, investment in the Common Fund is preferred by clients, the safety of such investment outweighing in most cases the probably higher interest rates obtainable from special investment. The Common Fund at 31st March, 1929, held moneys to the total of £21,943,047.

The capital funds of the Public Trust Office invested on the 31st March, 1929, amounted to £30,837,472, made up as follows:—

	£
Government securities	3,061,817
Local bodies' debentures	8,919,184
Rural advances bonds	199,395
Land Settlement Finance Act debentures	43,000
Private debentures and shares	18,641
Mortgages	18,033,659
Loans	947
Savings-bank accounts	319
Overdrafts by way of advances to estates and beneficiaries	370,137
Advances for protection of securities acquired or in possession	18,099
Properties acquired by foreclosure (less reserve)	172,274
Total	£30,837,472

The gross income during the financial year 1928–29 was £296,297, as compared with £275,544 in 1927–28 and £274,845 in 1926–27.

The working-expenses during 1928–29 were £248,972, and depreciation of office premises, &c., accounted for £14,795, and superannuation subsidy for £3,063, leaving a net profit of £29,467. The net profits of the Office during each of the last ten years are shown below:—

Year ended 31st March,	Net Profits.
	£
1920	78,246
1921	10,691
1922	11,053
1923	58,700
1924	65,542
1925	90,522
1926	47,484
1927	32,650
1928	31,105
1929	29,467

A variety of causes contributed to the phenomenal fall in 1920–21 and 1921–22, the main factors being the granting of increased benefits to beneficiaries and the necessary provision for the cost-of-living bonus to members of the staff. Substantial concessions made from 1st January, 1926, by way of reduced charges on the one hand and increased rates on the other, are responsible for the low figures for the last four years.

A section of the Finance Act, 1929, directs that, commencing with the year 1928–29, one-half of the net profits of the Public Trust Office are to be paid into the Consolidated Fund, the balance to be transferred to the Assurance and Reserve Fund or the Investment Fluctuation Account of the Office.

The Assurance and Reserve Fund amounted at 31st March, 1929, to £427,346, and the Investment Fluctuation Account to £146,923.

An outstanding feature of the work of the Office at the present time is the rapid increase in the number of wills deposited, which affords convincing evidence of the growing confidence on the part of testators in the appointment of the Public Trustee as executor and trustee of their estates. The number of wills on deposit at the 31st March, 1914, was 6,427; by 1920 it had increased to 25,792; while at 31st March, 1929, it had risen to 62,841.

During the year ended 31st March, 1929, 6,053 wills were deposited with the Public Trustee, and 1,277 were withdrawn on account of the death of the testator or for other reasons, the net increase for the year being 4,776.

JOINT-STOCK COMPANIES.

During the year ended 31st December, 1928, 736 joint-stock companies were registered, with a total nominal capital of £10,984,907, including 613 private companies with a nominal capital of £2,694,706, and 25 overseas companies with an aggregate of £5,100,300.

In the following table companies registered in 1928 are classified according to the amount of their nominal capital. It is of interest to note that 90 per cent. of private concerns were registered with capitals of less than £10,000, while companies of larger denominations, although representing but 10 per cent. of the total in point of numbers, claimed 52 per cent. of the aggregate capital. Sixty-one per cent. of the public companies had nominal capitals of £10,000 or over, the aggregate capital of these amounting to 96 per cent. of the total. Thirteen of the twenty-five overseas companies had a nominal capital of over £50,000.

COMPANIES REGISTERED, BY CLASS AND BY AMOUNT OF NOMINAL CAPITAL, 1928.

Amount.	Private Companies.		Public Companies.		Overseas Companies.
Amount.	Number.	Aggregate Nominal Capital.	Number.	Aggregate Nominal Capital.	Number.	Aggregate Nominal Capital.
		£		£		£
Under £1,000	126	57,357	9	901	4	800
£1,000 and under £2,000	146	173,276	3	3,500	..	..
£2,000 and under £3,000	98	208,925	6	12,500	..	..
£3,000 and under £4,000	57	179,545	3	9,000	1	3,000
£4,000 and under £5,000	33	135,456	3	12,500	..	..
£5,000 and under £6,000	44	222,625	9	45,000	1	5,000
£6,000 and under £7,000	18	111,582	1	6,500	1	6,500
£7,000 and under £8,000	12	86,100	2	14,000	..	..
£8,000 and under £9,000	12	98,250	2	16,000	..	..
£9,000 and under £10,000	3	27,500	..	..	..	..
£10,000 and under £15,000	36	388,782	12	124,500	4	40,000
£15,000 and under £20,000	13	200,308	4	63,000	..	..
£20,000 and under £50,000	11	290,000	24	662,500	1	40,000
£50,000 and over	4	515,000	20	2,220,000	13	5,005,000
Totals	613	2,694,706	98	3,189,901	25	5,100,300

The next table gives figures of total registrations during each of the last three years, classified according to amount of nominal capital.

COMPANIES REGISTERED, BY AMOUNT OF NOMINAL CAPITAL, 1926 TO 1928.

Amount.	1926.		1927.		1928.
Amount.	Number.	Aggregate Nominal Capital.	Number.	Aggregate Nominal Capital.	Number.	Aggregate Nominal Capital.
		£		£		£
Under £1,000	82	37,391	129	56,576	139	59,058
£1,000 and under £2,000	119	147,875	113	138,295	149	176,776
£2,000 and under £3,000	70	151,796	89	189,961	104	221,425
£3,000 and under £4,000	66	208,855	59	186,075	61	191,545
£4,000 and under £5,000	37	152,050	46	191,687	36	147,956
£5,000 and under £6,000	55	278,550	52	261,300	54	272,625
£6,000 and under £7,000	28	171,200	26	159,550	20	124,582
£7,000 and under £8,000	8	58,000	16	116,350	14	100,100
£8,000 and under £9,000	11	90,700	14	113,600	14	114,250
£9,000 and under £10,000	6	55,490	4	36,950	3	27,500
£10,000 and under £15,000	52	546,500	53	571,242	52	553,282
£15,000 and under £20,000	18	291,580	16	245,300	17	263,308
£20,000 and under £50,000	54	1,455,470	47	1,166,922	36	992,500
£50,000 and over	49	7,104,774	34	5,268,000	37	7,740,000
Totals	655	10,748,231	698	8,701,808	736	10,984,907

In point of numbers the total for 1928 is the highest on record. As regards aggregate nominal capital registered the amount is the highest since 1925.

In comparing one year with another, as in the following table, it should not be overlooked that re-registrations on account of reconstruction of companies or for other reasons are included. Such re-registrations may have a considerable effect on the year's total, when large companies are concerned.

COMPANIES REGISTERED, 1909–28.

Year.	Number.	Aggregate Nominal Capital.
		£
1909	290	3,224,656
1910	283	2,663,968
1911	327	3,673,759
1912	316	3,591,362
1913	282	6,658,722
1914	226	4,987,526
1915	304	4,431,830
1916	258	4,072,803
1917	261	5,367,201
1918	200	3,055,351
1919	328	5,942,605
1920	501	9,563,933
1921	337	3,498,208
1922	417	13,125,494
1923	502	13,006,085
1924	565	21,367,310
1925	621	14,760,398
1926	655	10,748,231
1927	698	8,701,808
1928	736	10,984,907

TOTAL COMPANIES ON REGISTER.

The tables which follow, the result of a special compilation, show the number and capital of all companies on the register as at 31st December, 1926. In the case of public companies the information has been obtained from the statutory return furnished annually by each company to the Registrar of Companies, and includes details of the nominal, subscribed, and paid-up capitals, and also of the amount of mortgages registered under the Companies Act. As regards private companies the information is less complete, there being no annual return as in the case of public companies. Upon the registration of a private company it is necessary that all the capital should be subscribed for in accordance with the Act, so that the subscribed capital is identical with the nominal capital. There are, however, no data from which the figures of paid-up capital can be compiled.

PUBLIC COMPANIES ON REGISTER, 31ST DECEMBER, 1926.

Amount of Nominal Capital.	Number.	Aggregate Nominal Capital.	Subscribed Capital.	Paid-up Capital.	Mortgages under Companies Act.
		£	£	£	£
Under £1,000	82	36,456	26,522	24,468	3,253
£1,000 and under £2,000	88	107,300	68,814	58,459	26,902
£2,000 and under £3,000	123	254,886	165,572	140,072	64,957
£3,000 and under £4,000	86	250,300	161,605	128,879	35,344
£4,000 and under £5,000	46	188,340	121,206	105,177	56,330
£5,000 and under £6,000	133	667,600	404,077	349,450	129,897
£6,000 and under £7,000	35	211,177	146,738	121,416	34,644
£7,000 and under £8,000	24	174,600	125,084	105,654	29,833
£8,000 and under £9,000	40	322,000	234,457	189,578	49,790
£9,000 and under £10,000	9	81,750	59,028	50,172	4,377
£10,000 and under £15,000	197	2,094,820	1,405,137	1,165,120	405,618
£15,000 and under £20,000	77	1,180,250	825,252	702,850	194,445
£20,000 and under £50,000	307	8,485,083	5,835,216	4,999,942	1,539,350
£50,000 and under £100,000	157	9,256,125	6,592,523	5,674,961	1,082,898
£100,000 and over	226	66,234,171	42,646,288	36,166,395	12,523,488
Totals	1,630	89,544,858	58,807,519	49,982,593	16,181,126

PRIVATE COMPANIES ON REGISTER, 31ST DECEMBER, 1926.

Amount of Nominal Capital.	Number.	Aggregate Nominal Capital.
		£
Under £1,000	262	121,270
£1,000 and under £2,000	433	534,569
£2,000 and under £3,000	400	866,870
£3,000 and under £4,000	314	989,200
£4,000 and under £5,000	207	848,617
£5,000 and under £6,000	315	1,597,204
£6,000 and under £7,000	204	1,246,524
£7,000 and under £8,000	107	771,516
£8,000 and under £9,000	91	739,511
£9,000 and under £10,000	58	526,995
£10,000 and under £15,000	417	4,498,123
£15,000 and under £20,000	155	2,451,528
£20,000 and under £50,000	364	9,740,376
£50,000 and under £100,000	73	4,517,430
£100,000 and over	39	6,610,610
Totals	3,439	36,060,343

The total capital employed by the 1,630 public companies on the register at 31st December, 1926, is shown to have been £66,163,719.

As regards the mortgages shown for these companies, however, it should be noted that the figure given falls short of accuracy by reason of the fact that many of the mortgages are to secure current accounts. Moreover, information regarding bank overdrafts and other accommodation not requiring registration is not available.

At the 31st December, 1926, there were 3,439 private companies on the register, having a nominal and subscribed capital of £36,060,343. Assuming that the ratio of subscribed capital to paid-up capital obtaining in the case of private companies engaged in manufacturing industries (this information being available from the annual returns of factory production) is constant throughout all private companies, the total paid-up capital of all private companies may be put down as approximately £33,400,000. Making a similar assumption in regard to the ratio of mortgages to paid-up capital, the mortgages of all private companies at the end of 1926 works out at about £8,250,000, which added to the paid-up capital gives a total working capital of £41,650,000. For both public and private companies the total working capital would thus be nearly £108,000,000.

The figures given above do not include foreign companies, regarding which information is extremely scanty. At the end of 1926 there were 205 foreign companies on the register. No nominal capital was shown for 22 of these, and the remaining 183 showed a total nominal capital of £145,281,645. This amount, however, gives no indication whatever as to the capital invested in the Dominion.

In addition to the foregoing, there were 22 companies limited by guarantee, 10 unlimited companies, and 8 companies of a miscellaneous character.

PATENTS, DESIGNS, AND TRADE-MARKS.

There were 2,070 applications for letters patent during 1928; 1,032 were filed with provisional specifications, and 1,038 with complete specifications; while 308 complete specifications were lodged in respect of applications with which provisional specifications had been previously filed.

The total number of applications received up to the 31st December, 1928, was 61,885, and the patents in force in New Zealand at that date numbered 7,718. The number of patent agents on the register was 20.

In the following table are shown the countries of residence of persons who applied for patents in New Zealand during the last three years. Owing to applications being received from joint applicants resident in different countries, also from applicants giving two addresses, the figures total more than the actual number of applications received.

APPLICANTS FOR PATENTS IN NEW ZEALAND, 1926–28.

Country.	1926.	1927.	1928.
New Zealand	1,428	1,204	1,032
United Kingdom	397	332	374
Australia	319	295	282
United States	187	183	231
Germany	27	39	47
France	28	33	22
Netherlands	9	10	13
Sweden	6	7	12
Canada	14	32	11
Denmark	9	5	8
Belgium	7	10	7
Italy	8	1	7
Union of South Africa	6	1	7
Switzerland	9	7	5
Mexico	..	1	4
Czecho-Slovakia	2	2	2
Norway	3	4	1
India	1	4	1
Hungary	1	1	1
Argentina	2	..	1
Austria	2	..	1
Japan	..	..	1
Mauritius	..	..	1
Spain	..	2	..
Cuba	..	1	..
Federated Malay States	..	1	..
Egypt	..	1	..
Dutch East Indies	1	..	..
Fiji	1	..	..
Western Samoa	1	..	..

The total number of applications during 1928 in respect of trade-marks was 1,201, and the fees received totalled £3,462.

Of the 1,201 applications, 477 were made by residents of New Zealand, 316 came from Great Britain, 100 from Australia, 206 from the United States, and 54 from Germany.

The number of applications for registration of designs totalled 163, as compared with 145 in 1927. Thirty-three applications came from the United Kingdom, 12 from Australia, 3 from Canada, 5 from the United States, 2 from France, 1 from Switzerland, and the balance from New Zealand.

The following table shows the number of applications for patents and for the registration of trade-marks and designs in 1890, 1900, 1910, 1915, and each of the last ten years:—

Year.	Patents.	Trademarks.	Designs.
1890	616	160	5
1900	1,009	348	15
1910	1,831	818	46
1915	1,299	565	89
1919	1,880	1,272	74
1920	2,193	1,391	109
1921	2,115	995	141
1922	2,183	1,103	214
1923	2,075	1,163	183
1924	2,085	1,338	185
1925	2,046	1,332	203
1926	2,137	1,143	204
1927	2,052	1,325	145
1928	2,070	1,201	163

INSPECTION OF MACHINERY.

The Inspection of Machinery Act makes provision for the inspection of all steam boilers and digesters, of hydraulic, electric, and other lifts, and of any prime movers such as gas, oil, and air engines used to drive machinery on land, also of machinery used on vessels afloat that are not self-propelled.

It also provides for the issue of certificates to those who pass the prescribed examinations for land engineers and engine-drivers in charge of boilers and machinery, for winding-engine drivers for mining purposes, for drivers employed on locomotives working on railway-lines not under the control of the Government Working Railways Department, and for the drivers of traction-engines on roads. Certificates are also issued to electric-tram drivers as provided by the Tramways Amendment Act, 1910. The issue of these certificates is controlled by a Board of Examiners set up by the Act, the Chairman being the Chief Inspector of Machinery.

Annual inspections of machinery during the year ended 31st March, 1929, numbered 39,672, and of boilers, 7,721. The following figures are taken from the Annual Report of the Marine Department:—

Class.	Not exceeding 5 Horse-power.	Exceeding 5 but not exceeding 10 Horse-power.	Exceeding 10 Horse-power.	Total.
Boilers—
Stationary, portable, and traction	1,143	1,446	2,630	5,219
Digesters, jacketed pans, sterilizers, vulcanizers, and other steam-receivers	..	..	..	2,457
Air-receivers	..	..	..	45
Total boilers	..	..	..	7,721
Machinery—
Electric motors	15,521	3,280	3,979	22,780
Internal-combustion engines	10,769	865	1,069	12,703
Water-power engines	234	84	187	505
Lifts	..	..	..	2,230
Cranes	..	..	..	245
Hoists	..	..	..	1,209
Total machinery	..	..	..	39,672
Grand total	..	..	..	47,393

Electric motors were first shown separately in the returns in 1922–23, in which year the number examined was 8,013. The figure for 1928–29 (22,780) represents an increase of 14,767, or 184 per cent., in only six years.

In addition to the annual inspections of boilers, new boilers to the number of 398, and representing an aggregate of 2,109 horse-power, were inspected and tested before being used. Of these, 169, of a horse-power of 989, had been made in New Zealand, the others being imported.

During the year ended 31st March, 1929, 303 certificates were issued to land-engineers, engine-drivers, and electric-tram drivers, on their passing the necessary examinations. The certificates were classified as follows:—

Service—
First-class engine-driver	2
Competency—
Extra-first-class stationary engineer	1
First-class engine-driver	17
Second-class engine-driver	169
Steam-winding-engine driver	1
Electric-winding-engine driver	4
Locomotive and traction-engine driver	32
Locomotive engine-driver	7
Traction-engine driver	28
Electric-tram driver	42
Total	303

VALUE OF PRODUCTION.

Notwithstanding many statistical pitfalls, figures showing the total value of production are of interest and of great value if assessed on a uniform system throughout. In the compilation of statistics of value of production for New Zealand eight principal classes of production are distinguished—viz., (1) Agricultural; (2) Pastoral; (3) Dairying, Poultry, and Bees; (4) Mining; (5) Fisheries; (6) Forestry: (7) Factories; and (8) Builders, Labourers, and Industrial Workers, &c.—the headings of which are self-explanatory. In estimating the total value of production for the above classes, deductions have had to be made from certain classes for items the inclusion of which would lead to duplication in the aggregate, and this has had the effect of underestimating the total production of certain of the classes. For instance, the gross value of Group I (Agricultural) was estimated as £32,908,390 in 1927–28, but as the major part of this value was utilized for the purpose of adding value to live-stock, the accretions in value of which are accounted for in Groups II and III, the net value only (£9,315,937) has been taken into account in the aggregate.

The basis of valuation used in the compilation of the statistics is the wholesale or declared export value, or, where neither of these two is available or applicable, the cost at the factory. In the factory-production class, which includes all those factories which do not come within the headings of any other group, the value shown is the value added to materials by the process of manufacture.

The totals shown in the following tables do not represent the whole value of production, no allowance being made for the production on small holdings of under 1 acre, kitchen-gardens, &c., nor of home products, of which dressmaking, jam-making, &c., would alone comprise something very considerable in the aggregate.

Figures for each class of the ten years 1918–19 to 1927–28 are set out in the following table:—

VALUE OF PRODUCTION, BY CLASSES. 1918–19 TO 1927–28.

Year.	Group I: Agricultural Products.	Group II: Pastoral Products.	Group III: Dairying, Poultry, and Bees.	Group IV: Mining Products.	Group V: Fishery Products.	Group VI: Forest Products.	Group VII: Factory Products.	Group VIII: Builders, Labourers, and Industrial Workers, &c.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£	£
1918–19	8,153,668	38,601,342	14,783,001	3,593,916	306,152	3,174,001	12,333,419	5,855,037	86,800,536
1919–20	8,967,933	38,230,321	17,891,150	3,778,682	386,059	3,361,026	15,557,618	6,449,846	94,622,635
1920–21	8,951,714	31,011,695	26,170,812	2,699,678	435,67	4,744,901	19,125,946	7,616,937	100,757,354
1921–22	9,796,425	29,198,911	21,762,904	2,727,205	465,470	4,541,398	17,590,926	8,207,707	94,290,946
1922–23	8,365,530	31,987,732	25,169,160	2,761,078	363,140	4,532,105	18,419,600	9,732,755	101,331,100
1923–24	7,226,592	35,847,766	24,588,182	3,088,246	472,765	4,765,571	19,648,748	11,356,288	106,994,158
1924–25	8,424,421	43,498,368	26,194,658	3,074,094	1491,402	5,126,509	20,941,141	11,918,109	119,668,702
1925–26	8,399,401	34,216,682	26,273,919	3,142,279	584,372	5,153,775	22,278,378	13,081,587	113,130,393
1926–27	8,843,267	33,918,447	25,664,670	3,329,047	531,600	4,328,747	23,118,728	13,877,069	113,611,575
1927–28	9,315,937	40,965,949	28,325,762	3,515,779	524,514	3,237,067	22,090,418	13,078,486	121,053,912

The total value of production increased by £34,000,000, or 40 per cent., during the period covered by the above table, the greatest advance being made by Group III (£13,500,000), followed in order by Group VII (£9,750,000), Group VIII (£7,200,000), and Group II (£2,360,000). A huge increase in the output of butter, cheese, and condensed-milk factories is mainly responsible for the position attained by dairying, poultry, and bee products. The rise in the added value of factory products is more in the nature of a general all-round increase, although noteworthy rises are recorded by printing and publishing (£1,900,000), motor and cycle engineering (£970,000), clothing-manufacture (£670,000), general engineering (£490,000), lime crushing and burning (£478,000), and biscuit and confectionery making (£470,000). Marked activity in the building industry accounted for the bulk of the increase in Group VIII, although the production of labourers and industrial workers not included in the factory - production figures also shows appreciable increases. The rise of £2,360,000 in the pastoral group is wholly due to increased wool-production and increases in the flocks of sheep.

The 1927–28 estimate of £121,000,000 is a record, being nearly £1,400,000 in excess of the figure for 1924–25, which was the previous highest, and exceeding that for 1926–27 by over £7,400,000. Comparisons of the group totals for 1927–28 with those for the previous year reveal some interesting results, the most noteworthy feature being the great increase in the farming groups I—III. The total for these three groups in 1927–28 was £78,600,000, as compared with £68,400,000 in 1926–27. Pastoral products provided £7,000,000 of this increase; dairying, poultry, and bees, £2,660,000; and agricultural products, £470,000. Mining production was the only other group to show an increase during the year, the production rising by £187,000. Each of the remaining four groups showed recessions in value, the greatest being forestry products (£1,090,000), closely followed by factory products (£1,030,000), with building production, &c. (£800,000), and fishery products (£7,000).

From the figures of total value of production it is possible, by taking into account the increase of population and the movement of prices, to compile a series of index numbers showing the relative volume of production. This has been done for each of the last ten years, and the figures are given in detail in the next table:—

Year.	Mean Population.	Value of Production.		Index Numbers of Value of Production (1918–19 = 1000).		Index Number of Producers' Prices (1918–19 = 1000).	Index Numbers of Volume of Production; (1918–19 = 1000).
Year.	Mean Population.	Total.	Per Head.	Total.	Per Head.	Index Number of Producers' Prices (1918–19 = 1000).	Total.	Per Head.
		£	£
1918–19	1,166,482	86,800,536	74.41	1,000	1,000	1,000	1,000	1,000
1919–20	1,207,660	94,622,635	78.35	1,090	1,053	1,056	1,032	997
1920–21	1,252,206	100,757,354	80.46	1,161	1,081	1,070	1,085	1,010
1921–22	1,285,711	94,290,946	73.34	1,086	986	980	1,108	1,006
1922–23	1,311,381	101,331,100	77.27	1,167	1,038	972	1,201	1,068
1923–24	1,334,029	106,994,158	80.20	1,233	1,078	1,061	1,162	1,016
1924–25	1,359,995	119,668,702	87.99	1,379	1,183	1,077	1,280	1,099
1925–26	1,392,073	113,130,393	81.27	1,303	1,092	1,015	1,284	1,076
1926–27	1,420,762	113,611,575	79.97	1,309	1,075	962	1,361	1,117
1927–28	1,443,323	121,053,912	83.87	1,395	1,127	985	1,416	1,144

The relative volume of production in 1927–28 was 14 per cent. higher than in 1918–19. The index for 1927–28 is a record, showing an improvement of 27 points over the figure for 1926–27, which was the previous highest. In fact, the indexes for the last four years show that production is being maintained at a comparatively high level.

The increased use of hydro-electric power and of machinery is no doubt a factor in the increase in the relative volume of production in the last few years.

CONSUMPTION OF FOODSTUFFS.

By taking the total production figures of a commodity and adding or subtracting the net imports or exports, a result is obtained which gives approximately the total quantity available for home consumption. In the following table an attempt has been made to gauge the extent to which certain commodities are consumed in New Zealand. In order to eliminate the fluctuations which would naturally occur if a single year were taken—this is especially noticeable in the case of imports and exports—the figures relate to an average of the last three years. It should be mentioned here that in the case of potatoes and onions no attempt has been made to estimate the total quantity raised in home gardens for local consumption, and the figures for these commodities are deficient to that extent.

The figures showing production, imports, exports, amount available for home consumption, and consumption per head for the principal items of foodstuffs are given in the following table:—

CONSUMPTION OF CERTAIN ARTICLES OF FOODSTUFFS.

Article.	Production.	Imports.	Exports.	Excess of Imports over Exports.	Amount available for, Home Consumption.
Article.	Production.	Imports.	Exports.	Excess of Imports over Exports.	Total.	Per Head.
* Excess of exports over imports.
	lb,	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.	lb.
Butter	196,259,338	..	147,819,542	147,819,542^*	48,439,796	34.05
Cheese	173,022,640	..	162,727,074	162,727,074^*	10,295,566	7.24
Fresh meat—
Beef	301,541,800	..	64,032,379	64,032,379^*	237,509,421	167.41
Mutton	220,438,980	..	113,580,109	113,580,109^*	106,858,871	75.32
Lamb	212,675,688	..	197,313,237	197,313,237^*	15,362,451	10.83
Pork	58,377,480	..	35,041,253	35,041,253^*	23,336,227	16.45
Bacon and ham	22,700,571	4,224	569,923	565,699^*	22,134,872	15.60
Potatoes	285,192,320	1,159,574	17,425,707	16,266,133^*	268,926,187	189.56
Onions	11,969,813	7,314,347	1,405,234	5,909,113	17,878,926	12.60
Flour	249,365,333	33,810,400	351,967	33,458,433	282,823,766	199.35
Maizena and cornflour	..	2,693,481	4,275	2,689,206	2,689,206	1.90
Macaroni and vermicelli	..	647,999	..	647,999	647,999	0.46
Sago and tapioca	..	2,713,837	2,091	2,711,746	2,711,746	1.91
Rice	..	7,640,069	114,837	7,525,232	7,525,232	5.30
Arrowroot	..	106,014	24	105,990	105,990	0.07
Desiccated coconut	..	933,437	..	933,437	933,437	0.66
Mustard	..	259,502	8	259,494	259,494	0.18
Peel	108,678	535,801	..	535,801	644,479	0.45
Salt	..	72,733,995	30,858	72,703,137	72,703,137	51.25
Refined sugar	131,658,867	1,064,821	2,131,062	1,066,241^*	130,592,626	92.05
Tea	..	10,967,190	82,108	10,885,082	10,885,082	7.67
Dried apricots	..	780,843	..	780,843	780,843	0.55
Currants	..	1,263,400	..	1,263,400	1,263,400	0.89
Dates	..	2,944,169	..	2,944,169	2,944,169	2.08
Figs	..	796,332	..	796,332	796,332	0.56
Prunes	..	1,955,453	..	1,955,453	1,955,453	1.38
Raisins and sultanas	..	9,148,979	..	9,148,979	9,148,979	6.45
Apples	77,257,533	1,411,093	29,771,830	28,360,737^*	48,896,796	34.47
Pears	10,445,800	367	853,324	853,064^*	9,592,736	6.76
Lemons	1,033,550	1,419,671	20,247	1,399,424	2,432,974	1.71
Bananas	..	25,150,920	..	25,150,920	25,150,920	17.73
Oranges	232,372	14,775,938	4,083	14,771,855	15,004,227	10.58
Tobacco	725,316	4,502,416	37,467	4,464,949	5,190,265	3.66
	Gallons.	Gallons.	Gallons.	Gallons.	Gallons.	Gals.
Vinegar	582,163	30,983	702	30,281	612,444	0.43
Ale and beer	13,382,824	64,379	15,158	49,221	13,432,045	9.47
Spirits	..	726,472	4,532	721,940	721,940	0.51
Wine	..	217,422	1,637	215,785	215,785	0.15

New Zealand is one of the greatest dairying countries in the world, and it might he confidently expected that the annual consumption of butter and cheese per head of the population would be high; but, although this is the case with butter—34 lb. per head—it is not so with cheese, the 7 1/4lb. per person being small when compared with a consumption of 10 lb. per head in the United Kingdom.

The people of New Zealand have always been regarded as great meat-eaters, and that this assumption is based on more than mere supposition is amply borne out by the figures given in the table. The average consumption of fresh meat per head of population in the Dominion is 270 lb., while in addition 15 1/2 lb. of bacon and ham are also consumed. Beef easily heads the list with an average consumption of 167 lb. per person, followed by mutton 75 lb., pork 16 1/2 lb., and lamb 10 3/4 lb. For purposes of comparison the figures for Australia and Canada are given herewith—beef, 110 lb. and 75 lb.; mutton and lamb, 69 lb. and 9 lb.; pork (all kinds), 14 lb. and 77 lb. respectively. It should be explained that these figures (which, incidentally, are inclusive of bone) are based on arbitrarily selected average weights of dressed carcasses, and are not claimed to be more than approximately correct.

Of the agricultural products flour leads the way with 199 lb., closely followed by potatoes, 190 lb. Onions are credited with 12 1/2 lb. Of the imported articles rice has an average consumption of 5 1/4 lb. per head, sago and tapico 2 lb., and cornflour, &c., 2 lb. The figures for dried fruits are also substantial, those for raisins and sultanas, dates, and currants being naturally most prominent.

Fresh fruit is now regarded as quite an important article of food, and the consumption figures throw some light on the extent to which the different fruits are consumed in the Dominion The ever popular apple comes easily first with 34 1/2 lb. for each person, bananas being second with 17 3/4 lb., oranges third with 10 1/2 lb., and pears next with 6 3/4 lb.

Coming now to the items looked upon more as luxuries than as real necessities, it is found that the average consumption of tobacco per person is 3 1/2 lb., of ale and beer 9 1/2 gallons, of spirits 1/2 gallon, and of wine 1 1/2 pints.

THE GENERAL ELECTION OF 1928.

A general election of parliamentary representatives was held in November, 1928—for Maori electorates on the 13th, and for European electorates on the 14th. Dealing with the latter only, it is found that out of a total roll number of 844,633 some 743,691 (88 per cent.) exercised their votes. A summary for the last three general elections is as follows:—

	1922.	1925.	1928.
Number of votes recorded for candidates elected	313,699	380,231	365,116
Number of votes recorded for candidates defeated	300,371	291,740	370,275
Number of informal votes	6,580	6,906	8,300
Total number of electors who voted at the election	620,650	678,877	743,691
Percentage of votes recorded for candidates elected to total valid votes recorded	51.09	57.17	49.65
Total number of electors on roll	700,111	754,113	844,633
Percentage of electors on roll who voted	88.65	90.92	88.05
Percentage of votes recorded for candidates elected to total number of electors on roll	44.81	50.42	43.22
Total population of Dominion at last census (excluding Maoris)	1,218,913	1,218,913	1,344,469

The relative interest in the poll evinced by men and women may be measured by the percentage of votes recorded to the number on the roll—viz., men 89.03 per cent., women 87.03 per cent. (in 1928).

A statement of the voting in individual electorates in 1928 is given.

RESULTS OF GENERAL ELECTION, 1928.

Electoral District and Names of Candidates.	Number of votes recorded.	Number of Electors on Roll.	Population at Census, 1926.
Bay of Islands—
Bell	3,818
Hornblow	349
Rushworth	3,820
Informal	59
	8,046	9,309	16,169
Marsden—
Chetham	1,299
Curtis	198
Jones	3,475
Murdoch	3,925
Informal	67
	8,964	10,195	17,203
Kaipara—
Barclay	2,715
Coates	5,190
Informal	111
	8,016	9,125	15,911
Waitemata—
Greville	4,368
Harris	4,683
Osborne	2,485
Informal	72
	11,608	13,523	19,636
Eden—
Anderton	2,241
Burton	200
Potter	3,517
Stallworthy	5,953
Informal	135
	12,046	14,123	19,877
Auckland East—
Donald	4,254
Lee	4,217
Maguire	2,274
Informal	220
	10,965	13,802	19,439
Auckland Central—
Hewitt	2,741
Joiner	281
Lysnar	822
Parry	5,765
Informal	187
	9,796	12,257	19,572
Auckland Suburbs—
Allen	2,191
Gunson	3,259
Mason	4,357
Informal	85
Auckland West—
	9,892	11,046	17,330
Adeane	2,021
Savage	5,361
Speirs	4,020
Informal	97
	11,499	13,331	19,564
Grey Lynn—
Bartram	5,425
Fitzherbert	684
Fletcher	5,489
Paterson	72
Informal	126
	11,796	13,507	19,620
Roskill—
Melville	3,345
Munns	5,745
Richards	3,401
Informal	77
	12,568	14,329	19,550
Parnell—
Dickson	4,793
Jenkins	5,642
Yarnall	1,661
Informal	83
	12,179	14,073	19,707
Manukau—
Bunn	2,657
Jordan	6,567
Mason	2,908
Informal	89
	12,221	13,855	19,394
Franklin—
Massey	4,025
Mellsop	3,891
Informal	51
	7,967	9,172	15,486
Raglan—
Brown	216
Martin	4,206
Seavill	3,165
Informal	113
	7,700	8,914	14,614
Thames—
McGregor	2,319
Montgomeric	2,900
Samuel	4,202
Informal	86
	9,507	10,720	18,249
Hauraki—
Allan	2,935
Hall	3,826
Petrie	2,411
Informal	54
	9,226	10,532	16,464
Tauranga—
Chalmers	2,607
Colbeck	1,758
MacMillan	3,285
Informal	102
	7,752	9,037	15,742
Hamilton—
Lye	3,456
Schramm	2,123
Young	4,529
Informal	128
	10,236	12,228	18,543
Waikato—
Keegan	1,897
Lye	2,979
Reid	2,893
Informal	70
	7,839	9,218	14,989
Rotorua—
Christopher	659
Clinkard	3,617
Hockly	3,417
Judd	624
Informal	125
	8,442	10,038	17,051
Bay of Plenty—
Moncur	2,596
Williams	4,463
Informal	93
	7,152	9,043	14,983
Waitomo—
Broadfoot	3,797
Croall	688
Rolleston	3,265
Informal	52
	7,802	8,939	16,569
Gisborne—
Coleman	3,400
Lysnar	3,746
Lyssant-Clayton	2,635
Informal	68
	9,849	11,311	18,295
Hawke's Bay—
Campbell	3,953
Lyon	3,203
McKay	2,992
Informal	92
	10,300	12,040	17,824
Napier—
Barnard	5,370
Mason	4,952
Informal	169
	10,491	11,925	18,712
Waipawa—
Goodger	2,123
Hunter	3,983
Kent	1,362
Informal	77
	7,545	8,794	14,834
Pahiatua—
Ransom	4,369
Smith	3,447
Whittle	535
Informal	94
	8,445	9,283	15,813
Masterton—
Roberts	1,477
Sykes	4,207
Thompson	2,969
Informal	72
	8,725	9,703	16,358
Wairarapa—
McDonald	4,726
McLeod	4,160
Informal	117
	9,003	10,203	16,544
Stratford—
Poison	4,592
Walter	3,610
Informal	57
	8,259	9,055	15,760
New Plymouth—
Bellringer	4,110
Simpson	1,293
Smith	5,577
Informal	68
	11,048	12,065	19,313
Egmont—
Hawken	3,291
Wilkinson	4,577
Informal	55
	7,923	8,663	15,620
Patea—
Dickie	4,511
Hislop	4,329
Informal	90
	8,930	9,892	17,265
Wanqanui—
Lewis	2,650
Rogers	2,842
Veitch	4,979
Informal	60
	10,531	12,004	19,339
Waimarino—
Georgetti	1,500
Langstone	3,620
Smith	2,635
Informal	47
	7,802	9,193	16,766
Oroua—
Cobbe	4,411
Eliott	3,679
Informal	76
	8,166	9,130	15,662
Rangitikei—
Andrews	884
Glenn	3,394
Hogan	4,628
Informal	67
	8,973	10,128	16,989
Manawatu—
Linklater	3,401
McManaway	757
Small	1,935
Taylor	1,634
Informal	70
	7,797	8,755	15,440
Palmerston—
Bromley	3,208
Loughnan	2,484
Nash	5,558
Informal	188
	11,438	13,041	20,383
Otaki—
Dyson	1,400
Field	3,407
Purchase	249
Sievwright	2,594
Informal	106
	7,756	8,785	15,819
Hutt—
Nash	5,978
Wilford	7,283
Informal	288
	13,549	14,898	19,553
Wellington North—
Chapman	5,611
Luke	5,564
Informal	263
	11,438	14,046	20,026
Wellington Central—
Fraser	7,353
Sloane	3,895
Young	843
Informal	145
	12,236	14,635	19,914
Wellington East—
Clark	2,648
Forsyth	4,561
Semple	5,527
Informal	128
	12,864	14,541	19,983
Wellington South—
Burns	2,595
Luckie	3,031
McKeen	5,984
Informal	132
	11,742	13,339	19,948
Wellington Suburbs—
Brindle	3,763
McLennan	3,260
Wright	5,748
Informal	160
	12,931	14,751	19,991
Nelson—
Atmore	5,603
Smith	3,294
Informal	135
	9,032	10,138	17,205
Motueka—
Black	4,095
Hudson	3,482
Informal	52
	7,629	8,456	14,646
Buller—
Holland	5,988
Robertson	2,371
Informal	154
	8,513	9,371	15,408
Westland—
O'Brien	4,576
Seddon	4,391
Informal	96
	9,063	9,667	16,401
Wairau—
Girling	4,467
Healy	4,759
Informal	70
	9,296	10,261	16,982
Hurunui—
Forbes	5,344
Macfarlane	3,505
Turley	576
Informal	108
	9,533	10,581	16,868
Kaiapoi—
Flesher	3,120
Hawke	3,216
McCombs	2,980
Informal	166
	9,482	10,574	17,499
Christchurch N'th—
Andrews	3,601
Archer	3,572
Holland	5,493
Informal	125
	12,791	14,518	20,070
Christchurch East—
Armstrong	6,564
Dennehy	4,304
Informal	488
	11,356	13,371	19,930
Christchurch S'th—
Howard	5,171
McCully	4,738
Manhire	1,374
Informal	73
	11,356	13,028	19,880
Riccarton—
Kyle	4,515
McLachlan	4,470
Thompson	1,671
Informal	88
	10,744	11,928	18,580
Avon—
Baker	2,531
Hughes	2,387
Sullivan	6,376
Informal	136
	11,430	12,953	20,030
Lyttelton—
Beanland	3,036
Lester	2,734
McCombs	5,022
Informal	88
	10,880	12,053	19,322
Mid-Canterbury—
Connolly	4,082
Jones	4,137
Wightmann	242
Williams	905
Informal	52
	9,418	10,170	17,503
Timaru—
Carr	5,547
Rolleston	5,080
Informal	216
	10,843	11,817	19,015
Temuka—
Burnett	4,360
Langford	4,274
Informal	32
	8,666	9,568	16,040
Waitaki—
Bitchener	4,536
Cooke	3,334
Informal	241
	8,111	8,993	15,045
Oamaru—
Lee	4,679
Macpherson	5,016
Informal	83
	9,778	10,650	17,240
Dunedin North—
Munro	4,352
Smith	2,638
Tapley	3,121
Thomson	523
Informal	81
	10,715	11,962	19,870
Dunedin West—
Harrison	2,480
Moss	3,323
Stewart	4,600
Informal	113
	10,516	12,062	19,943
Dunedin Central—
Robinson	4,251
Statham	6,022
Informal	117
	10,390	11,792	19,698
Dunedin South—
Hall	4,429
Taverner	4,462
Todd	2,205
Informal	115
	11,211	12,291	19,752
Chalmers—
Ansell	3,357
Campbell	2,738
McLachlan	50
Walls	1,965
Informal	75
	8,185	9,083	16,435
Clutha—
Stevens	3,795
Waite	4,318
Informal	62
	8,175	9,134	15,844
Central Otago—
Bodkin	4,684
Ritchie	4,031
Informal	58
	8,773	9,820	16,025
Mataura—
Anderson	4,113
McDougall	4,175
Informal	48
	8,336	9,194	15,916
Wallace—
Hamilton	4,360
Pulley	139
Taylor	4,340
Informal	97
	8,936	9,745	16,338
Invercargill—
Macalister	4,131
Ward	7,309
Informal	88
	11,528	12,380	19,795
Awarua—
de la Perrelle	4,358
Denham	262
Hamilton	3,353
Informal	72
	8,045	8,577	15,372

MAORI REPRESENTATIVES.

The votes polled for each candidate in the four Maori Electoral Districts at the general election of 1928 were as follows:—

Electoral District and Names of Candidates.	Number of Votes recorded.
Northern Maori—
Tau Henare	2,531
Paraire Paikea	1,651
Henare Kingi Waiau	467
Tamaho Maika	245
Hone Heke	225
Ripi Wi Hongi	192
Louis Wellington Parore	9
Total	5,320
Eastern Maori—
Hon. Sir Apirana Turupa Ngata, Kt.	4,950
Pita te Turuki Tamati Moko	1,846
Tutaki Panapa Stewart	254
Total	7,050
Western Maori—
Hon. Sir Maui Ngatata Pomare, K.B.E., C.M.G.	4,674
Haami Tokouru Ratana	3,075
Southern Maori—
Total	7,749
Tuiti Makitanara	199
Eruera Tihema Tirikatene	198
Henare Whakatau Uru	163
John Charles Tamanuiarangi Tikao	107
Peter Hukua MacDonald	79
Wereta Tainui Pitama	42
Teone Matapura Erihana	33
Total	821

BY-ELECTION.

A by-election in the Bay of Islands Electorate was necessitated by the invalidation of the previous election owing to irregularities. The voting at the by-election, which was held on 10th April, 1929, was as follows:—

Candidate.	Votes.
Bell	3,911
Rushworth	4,385
Informal	35
Total	8,331

LICENSING.

During the year ended the 31st March, 1928, 1,877 licenses for the sale of intoxicating liquors were granted. Of these, 1,120 were publicans' and accommodation licenses, 60 New Zealand wine, 30 packet, 148 wholesale, 475 conditional licenses, and 44 club charters. The fees paid amounted to £40,723, and formed part of the revenue of the local governing bodies of the districts in which the licenses were issued. Particulars are given in the following table:—

NUMBER OF LICENSES GRANTED DURING THE YEAR 1927–28, AND THE AMOUNT OF FEES PAID TO LOCAL, AUTHORITIES THEREFOR.

Licenses.	In Counties.	In Boroughs.	In Town Districts.	Total.
Publicans' licenses	302	611	44	957
Accommodation licenses	149	11	3	163
Total licensed houses	451	622	47	1,120
New Zealand wine licenses	44	16	..	60
Packet licenses	8	22	..	30
Wholesale licenses	4	142	2	148
Conditional licenses	249	225	1	475
Club charters	1	43	..	44
Total licenses granted	757	1,070	50	1,877
Amount of license fees paid to local bodies	£10,488	£28,431	£1,804	£40,723

The number of publicans' and accommodation licenses granted in counties, boroughs, and independent town districts during each of the last ten years is here given, together with the total amount of fees paid for all licenses for the sale of intoxicating liquor:—

Year ended 31st March,	Counties.	Boroughs.	Town Districts.	Total.	Total Fees, All Licenses.
				£
1919	507	606	43	1,156	39,817
1920	496	611	49	1,156	40,337
1921	481	613	47	1,141	40,538
1922	480	615	40	1,135	40,593
1923	474	611	40	1,125	40,975
1924	468	610	45	1,123	41,276
1925	460	611	44	1,115	41,079
1926	452	613	43	1,108	40,889
1927	455	621	45	1,121	41,312
1928	451	622	47	1,120	40,723

The average number of persons to each licensed house in counties, boroughs, and independent town districts respectively for 1927–28 is next shown:—

—	Number of Licensed Houses.^*	Population.	Number of Persons to each Licensed House.
* I.e., houses holding publicans' or accommodation licenses.
Counties	451	579,505	1,285
Boroughs	622	826,275	1,328
Town districts	47	40,205	855
Totals	1,120	1,445,985	1,291

The annual fees payable for licenses are,—

(1) For a publican's license—	£
(a) Within the limits of a borough or town district	40
(b) Outside the aforesaid limits	25
(2) For a New Zealand wine license	1
(3) For an accommodation license, a sum to be determined by the Licensing Committee, not exceeding	20
(4) For a packet license—
(a) For a vessel exceeding 50 tons register	10
(b) For a vessel not exceeding 50 tons register	5
(5) For a wholesale license	20
(6) For a conditional license, according to duration of license, a sum not exceeding	30

The approximate capital value of the licensed houses in the counties for the year ended 31st March, 1928, was stated at £786,365, in certain boroughs at £3,661,181, and in certain town districts at £147,719. There was, besides, an annual value of £125,680 for licensed houses in other boroughs and town districts, which, capitalized at 6 per cent., would represent £2,094,666. The capital value of all licensed houses may therefore be put down at approximately £6,700,000. Caution should be exercised in this connection, as some of the valuations on which the above total is based are by no means recent.

NATIONAL LICENSING POLLS.

The licensing poll of the 14th November, 1928, held in conjunction with the parliamentary elections, was the fourth at which the three issues—national continuance, State purchase and control, and national prohibition (without compensation)—were submitted to the electors. The votes recorded for the various issues at each of the four polls referred to are as follows:—

	1919.	1922.	1925.	1928.
For national continuance	241,251	282,669	299,590	373,692
For State purchase and control	32,261	35,727	56,037	64,276
For national prohibition	270,250	300,791	319,450	294,453

The voting in each licensing district in 1928 was as follows:—

District.	For National Continuance.	For State Purchase and Control.	For National Prohibition.
Bay of Islands	4,237	760	3,007
Marsden	4,381	722	3,745
Kaipara	4,053	644	3,160
Waitemata	5,498	1,267	4,702
Eden	4,904	1,032	5,886
Auckland East	5,960	1,242	3,573
Auckland Central	5,935	714	2,939
Auckland Suburbs	5,119	831	3,749
Auckland West	6,077	967	4,279
Grey Lynn	6,095	866	4,654
Roskill	5,108	1,020	6,246
Parnell	5,306	1,407	5,312
Manukau	5,897	964	5,168
Franklin	3,508	643	3,709
Raglan	3,955	802	2,791
Thames	4,862	805	3,716
Hauraki	4,424	900	3,779
Tauranga	3,798	699	3,142
Hamilton	4,417	1,208	4,483
Waikato	3,734	728	3,282
Rotorua	4,457	1,035	2,818
Bay of Plenty	4,114	541	2,408
Waitomo	4,513	760	2,445
Gisborne	5,326	696	3,736
Hawke's Bay	5,584	767	3,861
Napier	5,289	1,112	3,983
Waipawa	4,156	762	2,539
Pahiatua	4,404	635	3,285
Masterton	4,250	582	3,704
Wairarapa	4,919	683	3,265
Stratford	4,582	465	3,090
New Plymouth	5,343	906	4,649
Egmont	4,525	338	2,911
Patea	4,616	639	3,558
Wanganui	5,254	1,056	4,123
Waimarino	5,133	753	1,845
Oroua	4,151	631	3,283
Rangitikei	4,865	769	3,254
Manawatu	4,113	581	3,008
Palmerston	5,532	1,007	4,785
Otaki	4,038	866	2,774
Hutt	5,847	2,165	5,277

District.	For National Continuance.	For State Purchase and Control.	For National Prohibition.
Wellington North	6,209	1,828	3,241
Wellington Cent.	6,516	1,710	3,891
Wellington East	5,504	1,733	5,465
Wellington South	5,695	1,296	4,575
Wellington Subs.	5,323	1,931	5,509
Nelson	4,669	859	3,379
Motueka	4,785	542	2,180
Buller	4,977	487	2,882
Westland	5,563	520	2,807
Wairau	5,046	730	3,425
Hurunui	5,462	693	3,263
Kaiapoi	4,791	609	3,894
Christchurch N.	6,122	1,032	5,455
Christchurch E.	6,384	797	4,023
Christchurch S.	5,967	699	4,559
Riccarton	5,782	748	4,103
Avon	5,743	798	4,729
Lyttelton	5,678	815	4,274
Mid-Canterbury	5,131	678	3,517
Timaru	4,696	738	5,218
Temuka	4,588	528	3,425
Waitaki	3,909	512	3,563
Oamaru	4,370	640	4,555
Dunedin North	4,425	767	5,415
Dunedin West	4,663	1,028	4,698
Dunedin Central	4,926	822	4,491
Dunedin South	5,113	844	5,108
Chalmers	3,094	437	3,726
Clutha	3,813	484	3,711
Central Otago	5,030	564	3,079
Mataura	3,866	481	3,820
Wallace	4,760	496	3,583
Invercargill	4,899	1,022	5,345
Awarua	3,914	438	3,622
Totals	373,692	84,276	294,453

LOCAL OPTION.

In the no-license districts an additional issue is submitted—viz., local restoration—three-fifths of the valid votes cast being required for the carrying of the proposal. The voting figures for each of the twelve districts were as follows:—

District.	That License be restored.	That License be not restored.
Eden	4,222	7,282
Auckland Suburbs	4,627	4,781
Grey Lynn	5,401	5,929
Roskill	4,344	7,670
Masterton	4,523	4,047
Wellington East	5,129	7,231
Wellington South	5,186	6,104
Wellington Suburbs	5,037	7,317
Oamaru	4,213	5,171
Clutha	3,556	4,320
Mataura	4,158	3,946
Invercargill	6,429	4,957
Totals	56,825	68,755

REVIEW OF LEGISLATION OF 1928 SESSION.

Of fifty-eight public Acts passed in the session of 1928, special mention should be made of the British Nationality and Status of Aliens (in New Zealand) Act. In 1923 an Act was passed retaining the system of local naturalization in preference to the system of Empire naturalization contemplated by Part II of the Imperial Act.

As all the other self-governing Dominions had adopted Part II of the Imperial Act, it became increasingly difficult for New Zealand to maintain its former policy, and the Act now passed to adopt Part II of the Imperial Act brings New Zealand into line with the rest of the Empire. A system of local naturalization has been retained for the benefit of those inhabitants of the Cook Islands and of the mandated territory of Western Samoa who cannot comply with the requirements of the Imperial Act as to the possession of “an adequate knowledge of the English language.”

The following review by Mr. J. Christie, LL.M., Parliamentary Law Draftsman, deals only with the more important Acts passed during the session:—

Compilations and Consolidations.—The labours of the Compiler of Statutes are represented in the Education Reserves Act, the Orchard and Garden Diseases Act, the Noxious Weeds Act, the Post and Telegraph Act, the Magistrates' Courts Act, the Inspection of Machinery Act, and the Public Works Act. As they left the hands of the Compiler, these measures were compilations of existing law, but in their progress through Parliament the opportunity was taken to make certain amendments of minor importance. No less than seventy-seven separate enactments have been replaced by the seven new Acts here referred to.

Four other Acts consolidating, reconstructing, and amending the law have been passed—namely, the Rabbit Nuisance Act, the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Act, the Public Reserves, Domains, and National Parks Act, and the Auctioneers Act. The preparation of these measures did not come within the functions of the Compiler, as they all contain new law, and the former law has to a large extent been rewritten and rearranged. These latter Acts will be referred to again in their appropriate numerical order.

Unemployment.—By the Local Authorities Empowering (Relief of Unemployment) Act, 1926, temporary authority was conferred on local authorities to borrow money (without the necessity of taking a poll of ratepayers) for public works undertaken in relief of unemployment. This authority was extended in 1927, when provision was made for the payment to local authorities out of the Consolidated Fund of subsidies (not exceeding £150,000 in the aggregate) on amounts expended by them on public works undertaken as aforesaid. The Local Authorities Empowering (Relief of Unemployment) Amendment Act (1928, No. 2), extends the duration of the aforesaid authority to borrow until the 30th June, 1929, and increases to £300,000 the maximum amount that may be paid by way of subsidies out of the Consolidated Fund.

Surveyors Registration.—A system for the licensing and registration of surveyors has been in force for many years. The purpose of the Surveyors Registration Act (1928, No. 6) is primarily to bring the legislation affecting surveyors into conformity with more recent legislation relating to other professions. Certain alterations have at the same time been made in the law for the purpose of facilitating reciprocity with other Dominions.

Rabbit Nuisance.—Legislation as to the rabbit nuisance has been in force in New Zealand for over fifty years. The Rabbit Nuisance Act (1928, No. 8) is a reconstruction and amendment of existing legislation.

Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration.—Two separate Acts were passed during the session in amendment of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act. By the first of these the Arbitration Court was prohibited for one year from making any award relating to farming or pastoral operations, except with the consent of the parties. The second amending Act was passed to permit, with the consent of all parties, the inclusion in an award or agreement of provisions prescribing a basis or method for the adjustment of wages over a period of five years. The maximum term that can be fixed for the duration of other provisions in an award or agreement is three years. The latter amendment contemplates the possibility of an agreement being arrived at between employers and workers for the automatic adjustment of rates of wages in accordance with certain governing conditions. A period of three years would not permit of the operation of a satisfactory sliding scale.

Protection of Lessees.—The Property Law Amendment Act (1928, No. 13) is an extension of the principles governing the grant of relief to lessees against forfeiture. It applies with respect to leases that contain provisions for renewal subject to the performance of certain conditions by the lessee. It has happened that a lessee, having substantially complied with all the conditions of his lease, has been inequitably refused a renewal because of a technical breach not affecting the security or interests of the lessor. It is to prevent the recurrence of such cases that the present Act has been passed; it enables the Court in any such case to review all the circumstances, and, if in its opinion the lessee is equitably entitled to a renewal, it may order the lessor to grant the same.

Divorce.—In the main, the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Act (1928, No. 16) is a consolidation of the existing law. In particular it does not alter the grounds on which decrees of divorce may be granted. The language of the Act of 1908 (which has now been repealed) was the language of the original Act of 1867, and this has in some instances been modernized and the language of the Imperial Act^* has, wherever possible, been substituted. The compilation of the new Act was largely the work of the late Sir William Sim, a Judge of the Court of Arbitration from 1907 until 1911, and thereafter a Judge of the Supreme Court until his death on the 30th August, 1928. The late Judge was the recognized authority in New Zealand on the law of divorce and domestic relations.

* The Supreme Court of Judicature (Consolidation) Act, 1925 (Imperial).

Statutory Land Charges Registration.—The object of the Statutory Land Charges Registration Act (1928, No. 18) is to require the registration under the Land Transfer Act, or the Deeds Registration Act, as the case may require, of statutory charges affecting land. Charges of the kind referred to are frequently created for the purpose of securing to local authorities and other public bodies the payment of expenses incurred by them in carrying out certain of their statutory powers and duties, resulting in the permanent improvement of lands affected. For example, expenditure incurred by a local authority for the installation of private drains or in the abatement of nuisances on private lands is secured by a charge on the lands affected. Some Acts, in creating charges, make provision for their registration, but the general rule has been merely to create the charge, which continues effective notwithstanding that no machinery for its registration existed. The Act now under review makes the necessary machinery provisions for registration. Failure to register a charge will not affect its validity, but an unregistered charge will be defeated by a subsequent sale or other disposition of the property affected. In this respect the provisions of the Act are similar to the provisions of section 13 of the Land Charges Act, 1925 (Imperial).

Taxation.—The Land and Income Tax (Annual) Act (1928, No. 19) is a repetition, without alteration, of the annual Act of 1927. The maximum rate of income-tax is 4s. 6d. in the £1.

Cinematograph Films.—Prior to the passing of the Cinematograph Films Act (1928, No. 20), the only legislation relating expressly to cinematograph films was the Cinematograph-films Censorship Act, 1916, and an amending Act, passed in 1926, that provided for the censorship of posters and other advertisements relating to cinematograph films. Regulations to ensure public safety were made under the Explosives and Dangerous Goods Act with respect to the storage, transport, and projection of films. As a result of deliberations at the last Imperial Conference, the Government adopted its policy of requiring the exhibition of a certain proportion of British films, and the opportunity has been taken of including in one Act all the statute law specially affecting the film business. The Act is divided into Parts as follows:—

Part I.—Censorship of Films and Posters.
Part II.—Registration of Films.
Part III.—Storage, Transport, and Projection of Films.
Part IV.—Provisions for securing Quota of British Films.
Part V.—Restrictions on Advance Bookings, and Relief from Blind Bookings.
Part VI.—Miscellaneous.

In Part I (Censorship) the only noteworthy addition to the law is in the power given to the censor to take into consideration, in relation to a film submitted for approval, any mechanical reproduction of sound that may accompany the exhibition of the film.

The purpose of Part II (Registration) is mainly to provide machinery for securing compliance with the later provisions of the Act as to the British quota.

Part III enables the Governor-General in Council to make regulations prescribing conditions to be observed with respect to the storage, transport, and projection of films, so as to ensure the protection of life and property. These regulations will, in the main, be a re-enactment of existing regulations made under the Explosive and Dangerous Goods Act.

Part IV (as to quota of British films) relates wholly to what are known as “feature films,” and imposes on renters an obligation to acquire in each year not less than a fixed percentage of British films, and also imposes on exhibitors an obligation to exhibit in each year not less than a fixed percentage of such films. The renters' quota for the years 1929 to 1938 is fixed as follows:—

	Per Cent.
1929	7 1/2
1930	10
1931	10
1932	12 1/2
1933	15
1934	17 1/2
1935	17 1/2
1936	20
1937	20
1938	20

The exhibitors' quota for the years 1930 to 1939 is as follows:—

	Per Cent.
1930	5
1931	7 1/2
1932	7 1/2
1933	10
1934	12 1/2
1935	15
1936	15
1937	20
1938	20
1939	20

Provision is made for the modification of the quota requirements by the Minister where, for any reason, it is impracticable to comply with them.

Maintenance Orders.—The Maintenance Orders (Facilities for Enforcement) Amendment Act (1928, No. 22) extends the provisions of the Maintenance Orders (Facilities for Enforcement) Act, 1921, so as to provide for the enforcement in New Zealand of maintenance orders made in a British Protectorate or in a mandated territory.

Mental Defectives.—The Director-General of Mental Hospitals (Dr. T. G. Gray, M.B.Ch.B., M.P.C.) recently paid a visit of inspection to some of the most important of the mental hospitals in the United Kingdom, Europe, and America, and the passing of the Mental Defectives Amendment Act (1928, No. 23) is one of the results of his investigations. The Bill as introduced contained certain proposals that were not proceeded with. For example, provisions to authorize the sterilization of certain classes of mentally defective persons (with their own consent, or, in the case of minors, with the consent of their parents or guardians) were deleted from the Bill in its Committee stage. So also were provisions prohibiting the marriage of persons registered as mentally defective. The provisions as to the compilation of a register were retained, but in a somewhat modified form.

The main provisions of the Act as it has reached the statute-book are as follows:—

The term “mentally defective person” has been extended to include “persons socially defective”—that is to say, “persons who suffer from mental deficiency associated with anti-social conduct and who, by reason of such mental deficiency and conduct, require supervision for their own protection or in the public interest.”
A special Board (of which the Director-General of Mental Hospitals is the Chairman) has been established, to have regard to the welfare of those mentally defective persons who (not being persons of unsound mind or persons mentally infirm) are classifiable as “idiots,” “imbeciles,” “feeble-minded,” “epileptics,” or “socially defective.”

An obligation to furnish information as to cases of mental retardation or other forms of mental deficiency coming under their notice in the course of their official duties is imposed on the Director of Education, on the Controller-General of Prisons, and on Magistrates and Justices. All reported cases are referred to a “psychological clinic” conducted under the immediate direction of a qualified psychiatrist, and only those cases that are reported to it after preliminary examination by a clinic actually come before the Board for determination as to whether or not the names of the persons affected should be registered. The decision of the Board is made subject to appeal to the Supreme Court, and the costs of appeal are to be met by the Board and not by the appellant.

It is intended to establish special homes for the reception of those registered persons who either require supervision in their own interests or are capable of being trained in manual or other suitable occupations, but no registered person is to be detained in the same institution as persons suffering from insanity.

One other provision of the new Act is worth noticing. Under the principal Act, except in emergency cases, patients could not be received into a mental hospital without the order of a Magistrate made after inquiry on application supported by not less than two medical certificates. This procedure frequently involved the attendance at the Court of the suffering patient, so adding to his own mental distress and to that of his friends. The amending Act authorizes the Superintendent of a mental hospital to receive a patient on application supported by two medical certificates. The Superintendent is required forthwith to forward to a Magistrate the medical certificates together with a certificate as to his own opinion of the case. A Magisterial inquiry is then held, and, if the Magistrate does not make a reception-order, the patient must be immediately released. With but one exception, all mental hospitals in New Zealand are conducted as State institutions and the risk of a person being improperly detained in a mental hospital is infinitesimal.

Company Law.—The Companies Amendment Act (1928, No. 25) adopts the provisions of section 120 of the Imperial Act (8 Edw. VII, c. 69) as to compromises with creditors and members, and of section 107 of the same Act (as to payment, out of assets subject to a floating charge, of certain claims in priority to claims under the charge). Without necessarily adopting the Imperial Act in its entirety, it is intended shortly to review the New Zealand Act in the light of recent Imperial legislation, and to pass a consolidated and amended Companies Act.

State Insurance.—The State Fire Insurance Amendment Act (1928, No. 26) extends the authority of the State Fire Insurance Office to enable it to undertake insurance against loss or damage resulting from earthquake.

Main Highways.—Under the Main Highways Act, 1922, provision was made for payment out of the Main Highways Account of one-third of the cost of maintenance and one-half of the cost of construction of all main highways, the residue being provided by the local authorities concerned. As the revenues of the Board increased, authority to vary these proportions has from time to time been given to the Main Highways Board by later legislation. By the Main Highways Amendment Act (1928, No. 28) the Board is given authority to provide the whole of the cost of construction or maintenance of any main highway, or to contribute a greater proportion of such cost than is specified in the original Act.

Auctioneers.—The Auctioneers Act, 1928, replaces the Auctioneers Act, 1908, which was a consolidation of prior enactments. Hitherto the system of licensing auctioneers to carry on business has been in the hands of local authorities. On payment of the appropriate fee (£40 a year except in special cases), a license was issued practically as of right. The Act of 1928 makes provision for the issue of auctioneers' licenses by Stipendiary Magistrates, after inquiry in a Magistrate's Court. The same system has been in force for several years in respect of land agents. Every applicant for an auctioneer's license is required to furnish an approved fidelity bond to the amount of £500. The residue of the license fees received under the Act, after deduction of a proportion to cover the reasonable cost of administering the Act, continues to be payable to local authorities.

An auctioneer's license authorizes the holder “to carry on business as an auctioneer”; the license nominates the person (being either the licensee himself or another person) having authority to conduct sales by auction. Where an auctioneer uses the services of two or more persons for the conduct of sales by auction, he is required to hold a separate license in respect of each such person.

Music - teachers.—The Music-teachers Registration Act (1928, No. 31) provides a scheme for the registration of music-teachers, and makes it an offence, punishable by a fine of £20, for any unregistered teacher to hold himself out as being registered under the Act.

Dangerous Drugs.—By the Dangerous Drugs Act, 1927, it was provided that informations for the offence of being unlawfully in possession of drugs could be laid only by a Medical Officer of Health. This has in practice been found to be unworkable. In the case of opium in the form suitable for smoking most of the offenders are Chinamen, and the officers of police are in a better position than the Health officers to know of breaches of the law. The Dangerous Drugs Amendment Act (1928, No. 32) amends the procedure by removing the limitation as to the laying of informations.

Electrical Wiremen.—The Electrical Wiremen's Registration Amendment Act (1928, No. 35), makes further provision to secure the performance of electrical-wiring work by competent workmen. To the extent to which the statute requires electrical-wiring work to be done by or under the supervision of registered electrical wiremen, it binds the Crown.

Land Laws.—Under the Land for Settlements Act, 1925, the Government is empowered to acquire estates to be subdivided and then disposed of, by sale or lease, to approved applicants. Where two or more qualified persons are applicants for the same subdivision a ballot is taken to determine the successful applicant. Part II of the Land Laws Amendment Act, 1928, extends the powers of the Government to enable it to acquire land on behalf of persons already ascertained and, after subdivision, to sell it to them on a system of deferred payments.

Opticians.—The Opticians Act (1928, No. 40) provides for the registration of opticians, and for the regulation of their practice. It is made an offence, punishable by a fine of £20, for any unregistered person to hold himself out as a registered optician. An optician is not, as such, entitled to describe himself as an “oculist” or “eyesight specialist,” and those terms can be used only by registered medical practitioners; so, also, only a registered medical practitioner has authority to administer any drug for the purpose of paralysing the accommodation of the eye, or otherwise for facilitating the measurements of the powers of vision, or to treat any disease of the eye by the use of drugs.

Summer Time.—The Summer Time Act, 1927 (by which summer time was an hour in advance of the standard time), originated as a private member's Bill. Being admittedly of an experimental nature, its duration was limited to the summer of 1927–28. The promoter (Mr. T. K. Sidey, M.P.—now the Hon. T. K. Sidey, M.L.C., Attorney-General), brought forward in the session of 1928 a Bill to extend the duration of the original measure, but this Bill was defeated. Speaking generally, while the towns-people favoured the scheme, the farmers and other rural workers opposed it. As a compromise, a Government Bill was afterwards introduced and passed, providing for summer time being thirty minutes in advance of standard time. The period of summer time is from the second Sunday in October until the third Sunday in March. This measure is also for one year only.^*

* A permanent measure, providing for summer time being thirty minutes in advance of standard time, was passed in 1929.

Government Railways.—Prior to 1925 the official administration of the Government railways was vested in a General Manager; then a change was made to administration by a Board of three members. The Government Railways Amendment Act, 1928, abolishes the Board and again vests the administration in a General Manager.

Copyright in Broadcasting Musical Works.—The Copyright (Temporary) Amendment Act (1928, No. 47) is limited in its application to musical works broadcasted during the period between the 1st October, 1927, and the 31st August, 1929. The reason for this limitation of time is that New Zealand is a party to the Copyright Convention signed at Rome on the 2nd June, 1928, and will ultimately pass legislation in conformity with any corresponding legislation that may be passed in other countries parties to the Convention. In the meantime, however, it was found necessary to protect the existing broadcasting services. The Act declares in the first place that copyright in a musical work shall not be deemed to be infringed by the performance of such work, during the period aforesaid, in connection with a broadcasting service. The purpose of this declaration is merely to remove the matter from the jurisdiction of the Courts, and is not to deprive the owners of their legitimate rights. The Act then proceeds to make provision for the accumulation of a fund (by means of deductions from listening-in fees). All claims made by the owners of copyright in musical works in relating to the broadcasting of such work are to be made to a “competent authority” specially appointed to hear the same: such claims are to be proved as in cases of infringement, and amounts awarded by the “competent authority” to the several claimants are made payable out of the fund accumulated in the manner above referred to.

Motor-vehicles Insurance (Third-party Risks).—The Motor-vehicles Insurance (Third-party Risks) Act (1928, No. 52) imposes on all owners of motor-vehicles an obligation to protect themselves by insurance against third-party risks. The terms of the contract of insurance are defined by the Act, and no policy of insurance will be issued. Briefly the scheme of the Act is as follows:—

(1) Every insurance company that is prepared to do business in terms of the Act is required to give to the Registrar of Motor-vehicles notice in writing of that fact.

(2) When he pays his annual license fee in respect of a motor-vehicle the owner is required to nominate the insurance company by which he wishes to be insured in respect of his third-party risks, and at the same time to pay the prescribed premium.

(3) The nomination of an insurance company and the payment of the premium complete a contract of insurance between the owner and the company.

(4) Subject to certain exceptions referred to below, the owner of the vehicle, on payment of a premium as aforesaid, is indemnified by the company against his liability to pay damages on account of the death of or of bodily injury to any person or persons where such death or bodily injury is the result of an accident happening at any time during the period in respect of which the insurance premium has been paid, and is sustained or caused by or through or in connection with the use of such motor-vehicle in New Zealand.

(5) The contract of insurance does not extend to indemnify the owner against claims of the following classes:—

Any claim made in respect of the death of or of injury suffered by any person living with the owner as a member of the same family, or in respect of the death of or of injury suffered by a relative of the owner where the degree of relationship is not more remote than the fourth; or
Any claim made in respect of the death of or of injury suffered by any person in the service of the owner at the time of the accident; or
Any claim against the owner of a motor-vehicle (not being a vehicle plying for hire or used in the course of the business of carrying passengers for hire) made in respect of the death of or of injury suffered by any person who was at the time of the accident in respect of which the claim has arisen being conveyed in the motor-vehicle, or was driving, or entering, or alighting from, or about to enter or alight from, such motor-vehicle; or (d) Any claim against the owner of a motor-vehicle plying for hire or used in the course of the business of carrying passengers for hire, made in respect of the death of or of injury suffered by any person who (not being a passenger for hire) was at the time of the accident in respect of which the claim has arisen being conveyed in the motor-vehicle, or was driving, or entering, or alighting from, or about to enter or alight from, such motor-vehicle.

(6) As the true purpose of the Act is the safeguarding of the interests of pedestrians and other persons injured by motor traffic, every person in charge of a motor-vehicle at the time of any accident affecting it (including, for example, the unwanted “joyrider”) is deemed to have been the agent of the owner acting within the scope of his authority in relation to such motor-vehicle.

(7) The rates of premium are left to be prescribed by the Governor-General in Council. The Act contemplates that the rates will vary according to the purpose for which the vehicle is ordinarily used.

Religious and Charitable Trusts.—The Religious, Charitable, and Educational Trusts Act, 1908, in defining the term “charitable trust” for the purpose of Part III and also of Part IV, enumerates certain charitable purposes. The two definitions had their origin in different Acts—one passed in 1871, the other in 1886—and, though similar, they are not identical. It is suggested that in neither case was the enumeration intended to be exhaustive but was by way of illustration only. The amending Act (1928, No. 55) now passed removes any doubt, and declares that for the purposes of Parts III and IV of the principal Act the term “charitable purpose” includes every purpose which in accordance with the law of England is a charitable purpose.

Parts III and IV of the principal Act provide machinery for the variation—in the one case by the Supreme Court, in the other by the Attorney-General—of the trusts upon which any moneys or property may be held for particular purposes of a charitable nature. The amendment extends this power of variation to permit of the variation of the substituted purposes, including the restoration of the original charitable purposes.

Naturalization.—The British Nationality and Status of Aliens (in New Zealand) Act (1928, No. 58) is the most important of the fifty-eight public statutes passed by the Parliament of New Zealand in the session of 1928. As a matter of policy, it has been reserved for His Majesty's assent. Its one purpose is the adoption of Part II of the Imperial Act. This purpose is effected by the unqualified statement that “Part II of the Imperial Act is hereby adopted.” In this respect the Act proceeds on different lines from the Act passed by the Legislature of the Commonwealth of Australia, in which the various provisions of Part II are re-enacted, with adaptations, including, inter alia, provisions as to the effect in Australia of certificates of naturalization granted in the United Kingdom or in Dominions that have adopted Part II. The view held by the Government and Parliament of New Zealand is that the adoption of Part II confers on the proper authority in New Zealand the power, exercisable by the issue of certificates of naturalization, to create British subjects; and, further, that British subjects so created are such in English law wherever they may be—equally in a foreign country as in the United Kingdom or elsewhere in the British Empire.

But, while adopting Part II, it has been necessary to remain a system of local naturalization for those Native inhabitants of Western Samoa and Cook Islands who cannot comply with the condition that requires of applicants “an adequate knowledge of the English language.” So also persons heretofore naturalized do not acquire the more complete status until on application they become naturalized under the new Act. In the meantime, they retain their former local status.

In addition to the adoption of Part II of the Imperial Act and to the making of the necessary machinery provision for the issue and recording of letters of naturalization, the Act now under review declares certain other provisions of the Imperial Act to be part of the law of New Zealand. The provisions referred to are: Section 1 (definition of natural-born British subject); sections 10 to 12 (national status of married women and infant children); sections 13 to 16 (loss of British nationality); sections 17 and 18 (status of aliens); section 2 and Second Schedule (form of oath of allegiance); sections 25 and 27 (supplemental).

Chapter 45. SECTION XLV.—DEPENDENCIES.

INTRODUCTORY.

ON page 1 of this book the islands comprising the Dominion of New Zealand are divided into three groups, viz.:—

Islands forming the Dominion proper for statistical and general practical purposes.
Outlying islands included within the geographical boundaries of New Zealand as proclaimed in 1847.
Annexed islands.

Only the first of these groups has been covered by the preceding sections of this book. The present section deals briefly with the second and third groups, and also with the mandated territories of Western Samoa and Nauru, the Ross Dependency, and the Tokelau or Union Group.

OUTLYING ISLANDS.

The outlying islands included within the geographical boundaries as proclaimed in 1847 are—

Three Kings Islands.
Auckland Islands.
Campbell Island.
Antipodes Islands.
Bounty Islands.
Snares Islands.

The THREE KINGS ISLANDS (so named by Tasman on account of his having discovered them on the anniversary of the Feast of the Epiphany) are a group of uninhabited islets extending about seven miles in an east-north-east direction, and situated about thirty-eight miles west-north-west of Cape Maria van Diemen, at the northern extremity of the North Island. It was here that the s.s. “Elingamite” was wrecked on the 9th November, 1902, with heavy loss of life.

The AUCKLAND ISLANDS were discovered on the 18th August, 1806, by Captain Abraham Bristow, in the ship “Ocean.” The discoverer, who named the group after Lord Auckland, again visited the islands in 1807 and took formal possession of them. They lie about 290 miles south of Bluff Harbour, their accepted position being given as latitude 50° 32′ south and longitude 166° 13′ east. They have several good harbours. Port Ross, at the northern end of the principal island, was described by the eminent French commander D'Urville as one of the best harbours of refuge in the known world. At the southern end of the island there is a through passage extending from the east to the west coast. It has been variously named Adams Strait and Carnley Harbour, and forms a splendid sheet of water. The largest of the islands is about twenty-seven miles long by about fifteen miles broad, and is very mountainous, the highest part being about 2,000 ft. above the sea.

CAMPBELL ISLAND, which lies about 150 miles south-east of the Auckland Islands, was discovered in 1810 by Frederick Hazelburgh, master of the brig “Perseverance,” owned by Mr. Robert Campbell, of Sydney. It is mountainous, and of a circumference of about thirty miles. There are several good harbours.

The ANTIPODES ISLANDS are an isolated group, consisting of several detached rocky islands lying nearly north and south over a space of four to five miles; accepted position, 49° 41′ 15″ south, and longitude 178° 43′ east.

The BOUNTY ISLANDS, a little cluster of islets, thirteen in number, and without verdure, were discovered in 1788 by Captain Bligh, R.N., of H.M.S. “Bounty”; position verified by observation, 47° 43′ south, longitude 179° 0 1/2′ east.

The SNARES ISLANDS are situated about fifty-six miles to the south-west of Stewart Island, and comprise six islets of a total area of about 600 acres.

On each group of outlying islands the New Zealand Government maintains a depot of provisions and clothing for the use of castaways.

KERMADEC ISLANDS.

The KERMADEC ISLANDS, four in number, with some outlying islets, rank as “annexed islands,” having been annexed to New Zealand by Proclamation dated the 21st July, 1887. The islands are situated between the parallels of 29° 10′ and 31° 30′ south latitude, and between the meridians of 177° 45′ and 179° west longitude. The principal island, Sunday, is 600 miles distant from Auckland, and lies a little more than half-way to Tonga, but 100 miles to the eastward of the direct steam route to that place. It is 300 miles eastward of the steam route to Fiji, and 150 miles westward of the steam route from Auckland to Rarotonga. Macaulay Island (named after the father of Lord Macaulay) and Curtis Islands were discovered in May, 1788, by Lieutenant Watts, in the “Penrhyn,” a transport ship. The remainder of the group was discovered in 1793 by Rear-Admiral de Bruni, Chevalier d'Entrecasteaux, during the course of his search for the missing La Pérouse. The Admiral gave the name of “Kermadec” to the whole group of islands, after the captain of his consort ship “L'Espérance,” and the name of the Admiral's ship, “La Recherche,” was given to the largest island. The name so given was not continued, but “Raoul” took its place, this name being apparently that of the sailing-master of the “La Recherche,” Joseph Raoul. The name “Sunday,” by which it is now generally known, may have become attached to the island from the fact that it was discovered on a Sunday.

The islands are volcanic, and in two of them signs of activity are still to be seen. The rainfall is plentiful but not excessive. The climate is mild and equable, and slightly warmer than that of the north of New Zealand. The following are the areas of the islands and islets of the group: Sunday Island, 7,200 acres; Herald group of islets, 85 acres; Macaulay Island, 764 acres; Curtis Islands, 128 acres and 19 acres; L'Espérance, 12 acres: total, 8,208 acres. Sunday Island is twenty miles in circumference, roughly triangular in shape, and at the highest point 1,723 ft. above the sea-level. It is rugged and broken over a very large extent of its surface, and, except in a few places, covered with forest. The soil everywhere on the island is very rich, being formed by the decomposition of a dark-coloured pumiceous tuff and a black andesitic lava, with which is closely mixed a fine vegetable mould. The great luxuriance and richness of the vegetation bear witness to the excellence of the soil, which is everywhere—except where destroyed by eruptions and on the steep cliffs—the same rich loam. Want of water is one of the drawbacks. Throe of the four lakes on the island are fresh, but are so difficult of approach as to be practically useless.

The Bell family lived on Sunday Island for several years from 1878 onwards, and a further settlement was attempted in 1889, but was abandoned in the following year. A Crown grant on Sunday Island was obtained in 1926 by Mr. C. H. Parker, who took possession in November of that year, but died in the following March, his companions thereupon returning to Auckland.

COOK AND OTHER PACIFIC ISLANDS ANNEXED IN 1901.

The COOK ISLANDS, with others included within the extended boundaries of the Dominion as from the 11th June, 1901, are as under:—

RAROTONGA (1,638 miles from Auckland), the most fertile and valuable of the Cook Group, is a magnificent island, rising to a height of 2,100 ft. It is clothed to the tops of the mountains with splendid vegetation, and has abundant streams, considerable tracts of sloping land, and rich alluvial valleys. The two harbours are poor.

MANGAIA, the south-easternmost of the Cook Group, is of volcanic origin, and about eighteen miles in circumference. It is second in importance to Rarotonga, and produces large quantities of coconuts, bananas, oranges, limes, citrons, and other fruits.

ATIU resembles Mangaia in appearance and extent. It is a raised mass of coral, steep and rugged, except where there are small sandy beaches and some clefts, where the ascent is gradual. On the highest point of the central ridge coconuts, bananas, oranges, and coffee grow with the utmost luxuriance; and the kumera, one of the most valuable of South Sea vegetables, yields large crops.

MAUKE (or Parry Island) is a low circular island about two miles across, lying to the north-east of Rarotonga. Like Mangaia and Atiu, it is surrounded by an unbroken fringing reef. It is very fertile.

MITIARO is a low-lying island, from three to four miles long and one mile wide.

HERVEY ISLANDS: This group consists of two islands, Manuae and Te Au-o-Tu, surrounded by a reef which is about 10 1/2 miles in circumference.

TAKUTEA is a small coral island, about half a square mile in area, some 120 miles distant from Rarotonga.

AITUTAKI presents a most fruitful appearance, its shores being bordered by flat land on which are innumerable coconut and other trees, the higher ground being beautifully interspersed with lawns. It is eighteen miles in circuit.

NIUE (or Savage Island), lying about 300 miles to the east of Tonga, is a coral island, thirty-six miles in circumference, rising to a height of 200 ft. It is fertile and has the usual tropical productions. Cotton-growing has been introduced on an experimental scale.

PALMERSTON is an atoll lying about 450 miles east of Niue and about 220 miles from the nearest island of the Cook Group (Aitutaki), and is remarkable as the “San Pablo” of Magellan, the first island discovered in the South Sea. It has no harbour. The soil is fairly fertile, and there is some good hardwood timber.

SUWARROW lies about 500 miles east of Apia, the capital of Western Samoa. It is a coral atoll, of a triangular form, fifty miles in circumference, the reef having an average width of half a mile across, enclosing a land-locked lagoon eight miles by six, which is capable of being made into an excellent harbour. The island is out of the track of hurricanes, but is at present uninhabited, although visited periodically.

PUKAPUKA (Danger): Next to the 10th parallel, but rather north of the latitude of the Navigators and east of them, are a number of small atolls. Of these, the nearest to the Samoan Group—about 500 miles—is Danger Island, bearing north-west of Suwarrow about 250 miles.

NASSAU is a fine island of about 360 acres, and lies about 45 miles to the south-east of Pukapuka or Danger Island. The area under cultivation (well-planted coconuts) is about 300 acres.

RAKAANGA is an atoll, three miles in length and of equal breadth.

MANIHIKI, lying about 400 miles eastward of Danger Island, is an atoll, about thirty miles in circumference, valuable from the extent of the coconut-groves. The interior lagoon contains a vast deposit of pearl-shell.

PENRHYN (Tongareva) lies about 300 miles north-east of Manihiki. It is one of the most famous pearl-islands in the Pacific, and there is a lagoon (with two entrances) capable of being made into a harbour fit for a large number of vessels. The island grows large quantities of coconuts.

CONSTITUTION AND LAWS.

Government is by Island Councils consisting of ex officio, elected, or nominated members. Generally, European officials and Arikis or Native chiefs are Councillors ex officio, and nominated members hold office during the pleasure of the Governor-General or for a fixed period not exceeding five years. Women are eligible both as members and as electors of Island Councils. The Cook Islands Amendment Act, 1921, provided for the election of a European member of the Island Council of Rarotonga as a representative of the European population.

Each Council is empowered to make laws for the good government of the island, with the proviso that such laws must not be repugnant to Acts of the New Zealand Parliament or regulations made thereunder. The maximum penalties imposed by the Ordinance of an Island Council must not exceed three months' imprisonment or a fine of £50. The Council has no power to deal with Customs duties, to borrow money, to establish Courts of Justice, or to appropriate expenditure of revenue other than that raised under authority of their Ordinance. No Ordinance has effect until it has received the assent of the Resident Commissioner or the Governor-General. The Governor-General may, by notice in the Gazette, disallow any Ordinance within one year after the Commissioner has given his assent.

Laws are enforced through the High Court, which has all jurisdiction, civil or criminal, necessary for the administration of justice. Judges and Commissioners of the High Court are appointed by the Governor-General; the Chief Judge resides at Rarotonga, a second at Niue. A Commissioner may, with some exceptions, exercise the full powers and functions of a Judge, but rules of Court may allow an appeal from his decision to that of a Judge.

A judgment obtained in a civil proceeding in the High Court may be enforced in the Supreme Court of New Zealand. From any decision in the former Court an appeal lies to the Supreme Court in the Dominion.

The manufacture or importation of intoxicating liquor is prohibited absolutely, except that the Resident Commissioner may import liquor to be sold for medicinal, sacramental, or industrial purposes, but for no other purpose. Attempts are made by the Natives of Rarotonga to evade the law by illicitly manufacturing “bush-beer,” an offence which the Administration is endeavouring to check. Of 1,139 cases dealt with at the High Court of Rarotonga during 1928 no fewer than 719 were in respect of manufacturing, consuming, or being in possession of intoxicating liquor, and there were in addition 10 cases of drunkenness. No similar cases were dealt with in the High Court of Niue.

POPULATION.

At the census of the 20th April, 1926, the islands had a population of 13,877, made up as shown in the following statement. Uninhabited islands are not included.

Island.	Native Population.			Population other than Native.			Totals.
Island.	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.	Males.	Females.	Both Sexes.
Aitutaki	720	697	1,417	7	7	14	727	704	1,431
Atiu	474	450	924	5	4	9	479	454	933
Mangaia	636	605	1,241	7	1	8	643	606	1,249
Manihiki	214	199	413	3	..	3	217	199	416
Manuae and Te Au-o-Tu	21	..	21	2	..	2	23	..	23
Mauke	263	233	496	8	7	15	271	240	511
Mitiaro	113	123	236	2	..	2	115	123	238
Palmerston	48	49	97	..	..	..	48	49	97
Penrhyn	201	189	390	3	2	5	204	191	395
Pukapuka	266	244	510	9	7	16	275	251	526
Rakaanga	172	153	325	1	1	2	173	154	327
Rarotonga	1,969	1,762	3,731	122	83	205	2,091	1,845	3,936
Totals, Cook and northern islands	5,097	4,704	9,801	169	112	281	5,266	4,816	10,082
Niue	1,763	2,000	3,763	18	14	32	1,781	2,014	3,795
Grand totals	6,860	6,704	13,564	187	126	313	7,047	6,830	13,877

The population totals for each of the last five censuses are—

Island.	1906.	1911.	1916.	1921.	1926.
* Includes 112 soldiers in camp in New Zealand.
Aitutaki	1,162	1,237	1,302	1,373	1,431
Atiu	918	812	759	837	933
Mangaia	1,531	1,471	1,245	1,230	1,249
Manihiki	521	444	493	432	416
Manuae and Te Au-o-Tu	..	29	23	..	23
Mauke	446	457	490	578	511
Mitiaro	210	199	237	207	238
Niue	3,822	3,943	3,880	3,750	3,795
Palmerston	82	107	90	83	97
Penrhyn	420	335	326	376	395
Pukapuka	435	490	474	530	526
Rakaanga	352	315	295	310	327
Rarotonga	2,441	2,759	3,064	3,503	3,936
Suwarrow	..	..	7	..	..
Totals	12,340	12,598	12,797^*	13,209	13,877

The estimated population of the islands at 31st March, 1929, was 14,428. A system of compulsory registration of births, deaths, and marriages is in force in the islands. The latest available figures are given in the “Vital Statistics” section of this book.

EDUCATION.

In 1916 education in the Cook Islands was placed under the control of the Minister for the Cook Islands, and Government schools in charge of certificated European teachers from New Zealand have since that date been established on all the principal islands of the Lower Cook Group.

In 1923 the Cook Islands Department arranged with the London Missionary Society, in consideration of an annual subsidy of £500, to open schools in the islands of the Northern Cook Group and to provide trained full-time Native teachers. This instruction is given in the vernacular in accordance with the Government syllabus.

Including seven subsidized mission schools in the northern islands (with 368 pupils) there are now 18 schools under the jurisdiction of the Administration in the Cook Islands and the northern islands, with a total of 2,027 pupils on the rolls. In addition there is a Catholic mission school at Rarotonga, with a roll of 182 pupils.

A technical school has been established at Avarua (Rarotonga), with classes in agriculture, drawing, and woodwork, and an advanced class in carpentry. In most of the schools classes for simple cookery and for mat and basket weaving are held. Agriculture and wood-work are also taught in all schools.

A training college and normal school for Native teachers were established at Avarua early in 1927. Classes for Native teachers are also conducted by the European headmasters of Government schools.

In Niue there are two Government schools where agriculture, handicraft, domestic art, and wood-work form part of the curriculum. The leading pupils are being trained with a view to taking charge of village schools, which it is hoped may soon be established in other districts of Niue.

The roll number of the two Government schools in Niue was 231 at the 31st December, 1928. In addition, there were 473 pupils attending ten subsidized mission schools.

Scholarships for annual competition, tenable for two years at St. Stephen's College, Auckland, and the Maori College, Otaki, for boys, and Hukarere School, Napier, for girls, have been created by the Administration.

WIRELESS.

Wireless communication with New Zealand is maintained by the station at Rarotonga. Subsidiary stations have been established at the islands of Atiu, Aitutaki, Mangaia, Mauke, and Niue.

REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE.

The revenue and expenditure for each of the last ten years are as shown in the table following, separate figures being given for the Cook Islands Administration and the Island of Niue:—

Year ended 31st March,	Revenue.			Expenditure.
Year ended 31st March,	Cook Islands.	Niue.	Total.	Cook Islands.	Niue.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1920	22,881	6,563	29,444	17,061	3,662	20,723
1921	27,099	6,938	34,037	27,745	5,221	32,966
1922	17,719	4,293	22,012	23,528	8,893	32,421
1923	19,791	6,069	25,860	19,119	6,453	25,572
1924	19,138	4,642	23,780	18,431	4,403	22,834
1925	23,536	3,598	27,134	21,554	3,449	25,003
1926	23,268	4,622	27,890	23,416	3,080	26,496
1927	19,104	4,690	23,794	23,886	5,718	29,604
1928	18,998	6,055	25,053	17,488	6,436	23,924
1929	20,313	6,917	27,230	17,994	5,406	23,400

The principal items contributing to the total receipts of £27,230 for the year ended 31st March, 1929, were: Customs duties, £13,728; copra-export duty, £2,797; stamp-sales, £3,228; and Court fees and fines, £1,461.

TRADE.

The exports of the islands for the year 1928 aggregated £153,989, and imports £136,276, as against corresponding totals of £152,707 and £130,612 for 1927. The figures for each of the last ten years are—

Year.	Exports.			Imports.
Year.	Cook Islands.	Niue.	Total.	Cook Islands.	Niue.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1919	127,729	35,997	163,726	142,925	21,783	164,708
1920	94,697	13,140	107,837	177,911	20,524	198,435
1921	69,361	16,721	86,082	112,974	26,339	139,313
1922	135,766	15,122	150,888	116,726	15,418	132,144
1923	118,710	13,227	131,937	131,590	18,388	149,978
1924	154,554	14,603	169,157	138,202	16,798	155,000
1925	151,939	17,429	169,368	130,609	18,747	149,356
1926	138,588	17,655	156,243	134,473	17,563	152,036
1927	138,357	14,350	152,707	116,606	14,006	130,612
1928	133,051	20,938	153,989	117,639	18,637	136,276

As might naturally be expected, most of the trade of the Group is with New Zealand. The United States has stepped into the second position in recent years. The figures for 1928 are—

Country.	Exports.			Imports.
Country.	From Cook Islands.	From Niue.	Total.	Into Cook Islands.	Into Niue.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
New Zealand	96,470	16,347	112,817	81,511	14,403	95,914
United States	25,667	..	25,667	11,872	118	11,990
United Kingdom	9,244	..	9,244	12,502	2,476	14,978
Western Samoa	1,548	4,489	6,037	210	476	686
Australia	..	..	..	5,022	1,027	6,049
Canada	..	..	..	1,968	82	2,050
India	..	..	..	1,181	..	1,181
Tahiti	122	..	122	1,044	..	1,044
Germany	..	..	..	531	..	531
Japan	..	..	..	475	52	527
France	..	..	..	441	..	441
Switzerland	..	..	..	207	..	207
Austria	..	..	..	181	..	181
Belgium	..	..	..	136	..	136
Hawaii	..	80	80	..	..	..
Czecho-Slovakia	..	..	..	72	..	72
Norway	..	..	..	63	..	63
Fiji	..	9	9	45	..	45
China	..	..	..	50	..	50
Netherlands	..	..	..	48	..	48
Sweden	..	..	..	48	..	48
Poland	..	..	..	21	..	21
American Samoa	..	13	13	..	3	3
Italy	..	..	..	7	..	7
South Africa	..	..	..	4	..	4
Totals	133,051	20,938	153,989	117,639	18,637	136,276

The principal exports from the Cook Islands and the northern islands are fruit, copra, and pearl-shell, and from Niue copra and the well-known Niue hats and fancy baskets. With a view to improving the marketing of fruit (principally in New Zealand), arrangements have been made for the grading and packing of all fruit for export to be done under the control and supervision of inspectors in district packing-sheds erected by the Native growers. The export of fruit from Niue has been hampered in the past by the difficulty and irregularity of communication with New Zealand, but the recent provision of a Government vessel has already been reflected in increased exports of bananas.

Exports of principal items from the Cook Islands and Niue during 1928 were—

	Quantity.	Value, £
Copra	2,391 tons	44,516
Oranges	141,317 cases	57,637
Bananas	61,400 cases	25,944
Tomatoes	51,955 cases	17,649
Pearls	..	2,650
Pearl-shell	20 tons	724
Fancy baskets	3,182 doz.	2,365
Coconuts	..	813

WESTERN SAMOA.

Four large and many smaller islands, the whole of volcanic origin, form the Group known by its Native name of Samoa. The Native race inhabiting the islands is of typical Polynesian character, with straight hair, brown colouring, good physique, and mild and hospitable disposition.

The first known visit of Europeans to the islands was that of a Dutch expedition, under Jacob Roggeveen, in its voyage around the world in 1721–22. In 1768 De Bougainville called at the islands, and in 1787 La Pérouse, who named them “Navigators Islands,” a name by which they are still frequently called. The first British vessel to pay a visit was H.M.S. “Pandora,” in 1790. Missionaries, who were to play an important part in the development of the country, made their advent in the person of two members of the London Missionary Society, arriving at Savai'i, in 1830.

The first formal recognition of “whites” took place some eight years later, when Captain Bethune, of the British Navy, concluded a commercial treaty with the Native chiefs, by which harbour dues were to be paid and security to European interests guaranteed in return. Next year (1839) Lieutenant Charles Wilkes, in command of a United States exploring expedition, completed a similar treaty.

Three great nations were to have control of the destinies of the Samoans. Great Britain appointed a Consular Agent in 1847, the United States a Commercial Agent in 1853, and Germany her first representative in 1861.

In 1869 one of the frequent internecine wars of the Natives broke out, a war that was to have far-reaching consequences, for the foreign authorities took for the first time direct measures to ensure peace. The trouble arose over rival claimants to the Native chieftainship, and continued, despite several patched-up truces, for some years.

Petitions were presented to Great Britain in 1877, and the United States in 1878, that the islands should be annexed, but the statesmen of those days did not consider it advisable. In 1878, however, the United States were given the privilege of forming a naval and coaling station at Pago Pago, in the island of Tutuila, much the best harbour of the Group. Next year similar privileges were granted the other two Powers—Germany at Saluafata, and Great Britain at a place to be settled later.

Finally, at a conference in Berlin in 1889, an Act was signed by the representatives of the three States, guaranteeing the neutrality and independence of the islands. This arrangement lasted until 1898, when, on the death of King Malietoa Laupepa, disturbances again arose over the succession. In accordance with the recommendation of a joint Commission the kingship was abolished. The Anglo-German agreement of the 14th November, 1899, accepted by the United States in January, 1900, gave to Germany all rights over Western Samoa, and to the United States, Tutuila and the other islands of Eastern Samoa.

On the outbreak of war in 1914 between the United Kingdom and Germany a New Zealand Expeditionary Force took possession of Western Samoa, landing at Apia on the 29th August, and remained in occupation until the establishment of Civil government under the ægis of the Dominion.

The islands are now administered by the New Zealand Government under mandate of the League of Nations.

On the 1st May, 1920, by Orders passed by the Governor-General in Council, provision was made for the civil administration of the Territory; and by the Samoa Act, 1921, the constitution and legal system of the Territory were settled. Amendments have been made by the Samoa Amendment Act, 1923.

Western Samoa is administered by an Administrator appointed by the Governor-General of New Zealand, and responsible to the Minister of External Affairs. There is a Legislative Council, consisting of not less than four nor more than six official members appointed by the Governor-General, and four unofficial members, two of whom are Europeans elected by the European residents, the remaining two being Native Samoans, also appointed by the Governor-General. The Administrator, acting with the advice and consent of this Council, is empowered to make Ordinances for the peace, order, and good government of the Territory, subject to disallowance by the Governor-General. A High Court is established, and the Supreme Court of New Zealand is given jurisdiction over Western Samoa.

The Samoan Natives are to a large extent granted domestic self-government. The Fono of Faipules (Native Parliament, leading chiefs representing every district), who are appointed by the Administrator, meets twice yearly to consider matters affecting the welfare of the Samoan people, and to submit recommendations thereon to the Administrator.

Under the present system of administration the mandated territory has progressed steadily, particularly in the realms of health, production, and commerce, but a temporary set-back has recently resulted from certain political activities. The report of the Royal Commission set up to inquire into matters affecting the administration of Western Samoa (parliamentary paper A.-4B of the 1928 session) deals at length with the whole question. This report was carefully studied by the Permanent Mandates Commission of the League of Nations, which in its published conclusions fully vindicated the Administration and condemned the action of those responsible for instigating the trouble among the Samoan Natives.

GEOGRAPHICAL.

Western Samoa includes the Islands of Upolu, Savai'i, Apolima, and Manono, together with several small islets, lying between the 13th and 15th degrees of south latitude and the 171st and 173rd degrees of longitude west of Greenwich.

The principal islands are Savai'i and Upolu. Savai'i is the larger of the two, with a length of 48 miles, a breadth of 25 miles, and a total area of 703 square miles. The island is mountainous, rising to a height of over 4,000 ft. Upolu, which extends some 45 miles in length and 13 in breadth, measures about 430 square miles in area. Of the two, Upolu is the more fertile and populous, and contains the port and capital of Apia. Rainfall is plentiful throughout the Group.

POPULATION.

At the 1st April, 1929, the estimated population of Western Samoa was 43,958, made up as follows:—

	Males.	Females.	Total.
Native Samoan population	20,471	19,937	40,408
European and half-caste population	1,385	1,019	2,404
Chinese indentured labourers	921	..	921
Chinese (non-indentured)	70	8	78
Melanesian and Polynesian indentured labourers	146	1	147
Totals	22,993	20,965	43,958

The following figures of the recorded movement of the population relate to the twelve months ended the 31st December, 1928:—

—	Births.	Deaths.	Marriages.	Immigration.	Emigration.
Native Samoans	863	219	101	1,250	1,231
Europeans and half-castes	77	10	16	592	553
Chinese indentured labourers	..	11	..	460	421
Melanesian and Polynesian indentured labourers	..	..	..	1	1
Totals	940	240	117	2,303	2,206

There is reason to believe that registration is not at present being effected in many cases of births, deaths, and marriages of Samoans, owing to the political situation, the statistical effect of which is seen in other directions also.

HEALTH AND HOSPITALS.

By the Samoa Health Ordinance, 1921, which is on the lines of the New Zealand Health Act, 1920, but remodelled to suit local conditions, the control of the medical and sanitary services was placed in the hands of a Board of Health. A Government hospital is maintained at Apia, district hospitals have been established at Tuasivi and Safotu (Savai'i) and Aleiapata (Upolu), and there were during 1928 fifteen dispensaries in out - districts and at mission - stations. Seven of these dispensaries were closed during the year on account of the shortage of trained Native nurses.

Of the more important tropical diseases only three are prevalent in Western Samoa—viz, uncinariasis (or hookworm disease), frambœsia, and filariasis. Frambœsia (yaws) is so common that practically no Samoan reaches adult life without having suffered from the infection.

Every effort has been made to stamp out these diseases, particularly hookworm and yaws, and systematic campaigns to this end have been in progress since 1923. These have resulted in a marked improvement in the general health of the Natives.

The sanitation of Apia has been considerably improved in recent years. Until 1920 sanitation may be said to have been practically unknown. There were no men with a sufficient knowledge of plumbing and drainlaying, and the work carried out was in most cases crude and unsatisfactory. Sinks and bathrooms discharged their contents on the ground under the floor, or just outside the house. The average pit privy was most insanitary and unsightly, Some of the septic tanks installed prior to that date have worked satisfactorily, but many have required to be remodelled. With the introduction of Civil administration a commencement was made to improve conditions; and regulations, consisting largely of detailed specifications of the standard of work required, were drafted. A Health Inspector with qualifications in plumbing and drainlaying was appointed, and a careful survey was made of the condition of every building in Apia and the immediate vicinity.

As a result of these activities the sanitation of Apia was soon brought up to a reasonable standard. The administration set an example by improving, as rapidly as finance and labour permitted, the conditions prevailing in the buildings under its control. The two largest drainage schemes installed in Apia are at the hospital and at the schools. Most of the work has been done by Native labour under white supervision, with the help of a few Chinese artisans.

The reticulation of Apia with a high-pressure water-supply system has been completed. Water has been piped into several villages from springs in the hills. In other villages where this is not possible large reinforced-concrete tanks are being erected to receive the rain-water from church buildings.

EDUCATION.

Education in Samoa has hitherto been almost entirely in the hands of the missions, which have done splendid work in teaching practically every Native to read and write in the vernacular. As a consequence, the Samoan is probably the best educated of the Polynesian races. Formerly higher education was not attempted except for the training of pastors, whose duty included that of teaching in the village schools connected with their respective churches. But latterly higher education in the English language has been carried out by the Administration schools at Ifi Ifi, Malifa, Vaipouli, and Avele, by the London Missionary Society at Papauta, by the Methodist Mission at Faleula, and by the Marist Brothers and Sisters at Apia. These schools are annually inspected by one of the Senior Inspectors of the New Zealand Education Department.

A count taken in 1926 showed that 13,788 children were attending the various Government and mission schools. The great bulk of the pupils are at village mission schools, where the instruction is in the hands of Native pastors. Second-grade or district schools, where the Government and the missions co-operate, the teachers being paid by the Government, number 32, with an aggregate roll number of 2,561 at 31st March, 1929. The third-grade Government schools had a total roll number of 839 at the same date.

A syllabus of education drawn up in 1925 made provision for the following:—

All education to be based upon Native life and not on foreign conditions.
Every pupil to have a thorough knowledge of the Samoan language.
English to be taught as a subject and not to replace the Native language.
Native teachers to be specially trained in the methods of imparting knowledge.
Manual work, agriculture, carpentry, plumbing, &c., to form an important part of the syllabus.
Hygiene, adapted to local needs so as to enable the Natives to better protect themselves from the ravages of hookworm, yaws, and epidemics common to the country, to be treated as an important subject.
Text-books to be adapted to Samoan conditions.
Two scholarships per year to be given to boys to receive higher education in New Zealand.
Native teachers to visit New Zealand periodically to widen their knowledge by seeing some of the Maori and technical schools in that country.

Elementary technical instruction has formed part of the school syllabus for some time, and in 1927 a technical school was established at Apia.

LAND.

Of a total area of about 725,000 acres in the islands of Savai'i and Upolu, only 143,630 acres have been alienated from the Natives—all prior to the British occupation of the Territory. Of the land remaining to the Natives approximately 348,600 acres are cultivable, the remaining 232,770 acres being waste or inferior land. Of the former, 40,914 acres are in coconut plantations, and 13,200 acres in other crops, mainly bananas and taro, the balance being undeveloped. A small area is devoted to cotton growing.

Land alienated includes 103,630 acres of Crown estates and other Government land, 5,000 acres belonging to the missions, and 35,000 acres owned by European companies or private planters. The mission holdings are partly cultivated, but excluding these only 18,926 acres of alienated land have been developed. An area of 12,035 acres is in coconuts, 3,933 acres in cacao, 2,072 acres in rubber (including 547 acres interplanted with cacao), 386 acres in bananas for export, and 20 acres in cotton, the balance of the 18,926 acres consisting of 480 acres of rubber plantations which have been abandoned by the planters and are being worked by their Native owners, to whom the land has reverted.

REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE.

The revenue for the financial year ended 31st March, 1929, including a subsidy of £20,000 from the New Zealand Government, was £141,904, of which Customs and taxation contributed £81,910, other principal items being—Fees and charges (Court, hospital, &c.), £8,831; marine, £8,335; and post-office and wireless-telegraphy receipts, £9,681. Native taxes, which showed a total of £17,849 in 1926–27, yielded only £2,466 in 1927–28, and £6,343 in 1928–29. The ordinary expenditure for the year totalled £130,455. The figures of revenue and expenditure for each of the last five years are—

Year ended 31st March,	Revenue.	Expenditure.
	£	£
1925	130,914	135,523
1926	150,038	145,688
1927	133,812	141,710
1928	126,038	143,422
1929	141,904	130,455

The revenue is augmented by an annual subsidy from the New Zealand Government, the amount (£20,000 in 1928–29) being based on the additional cost of the Medical and Education Departments of Samoa since New Zealand accepted the mandate, and on the cost of the radio-station in excess of revenue.

The figures of expenditure do not include expenditure out of loan account. The total loan expenditure on public works from the inauguration of the present system of government to 31st March, 1929, has been £172,000, and in addition £26,200 loan-money has been expended during the last two years to meet revenue deficiencies caused by non-payment of Native taxes and to cover expenditure in connection with dealing with the situation occasioned by the activities of the Mau. The money has been provided by the New Zealand Government, £25,000 of that expended on public works being donated as a gift free of charge, and the balance (£165,200 at 31st March, 1929) being on loan at 5 per cent. and repayable in thirty years. A payment of approximately 1 3/5 per cent. is made annually to sinking fund, which at 31st March, 1929, amounted to £11,849.

TRADE.

The exports and imports of Western Samoa for each of the last ten years are—

Year.	Exports.	Imports.
	£	£
1919	532,500	291,368
1920	386,587	561,153
1921	241,539	498,892
1922	365,610	282,939
1923	288,774	268,881
1924	361,418	274,803
1925	379,388	345,989
1926	320,783	324,940
1927	335,978	304,369
1928	422,175	326,553

The principal item of export is copra, exports of which in 1928 totalled 15,989 tons, of a value of £319,259. Up to about 1923 the bulk of the copra went to the United States, but, with the exception of 710 tons, the whole export in 1928 went to the United Kingdom and the Continent of Europe, the exact destination not being known in respect of 11,022 tons, of a value of £220,671. Cocoa-beans of a value of £69,507, representing 959 tons, and rubber, £17,268 (167 tons), constituted the only other items of any importance. The introduction of cotton-growing is reflected in the export of raw cotton of a value of £195, while another industry established by the administration—viz., the extraction of papain from pawpaws (mummy-apples), increased the exports to the extent of £842.

Of the exports in 1928, £419,540 was the produce of Western Samoa, the remaining £2,635 being re-exports. Of the total of £181,308 for which definite information was available, £77,832 went to the United Kingdom, £26,021 to Germany, £43,571 to the United States, and £19,466 to New Zealand. The imports in 1928 came principally from New Zealand (£96,412), the United Kingdom (£71,253), Australia (£68,426), and the United States (£49,606).

In addition to a scale of import duties, there are export duties on copra (£1 per ton), cocoa (£2 per ton), rubber (1d. per lb.), and bêche-de-mer (1/2d. per lb.). Owing to the low price of rubber, the duty on this item was suspended from 1st April, 1928. The net import duty collected in 1928 was £51,307, export duties collected totalling £18,295.

Seventy-five steam-vessels, of an aggregate tonnage of 108,618, were entered inwards at the Port of Apia during 1928. The tonnage of cargo brought by these vessels was 13,912, while cargo entered outwards totalled 19,749 tons.

NAURU.

Barely one-third of a degree south of the Equator, and lying 166° 55′ east of Greenwich, is the little phosphate island known as Nauru or Pleasant Island. Prior to the world-wide conflagration of 1914–19 this rich though little-known island was a German possession. It was surrendered to H.M.A.S. “Melbourne” on the 9th September, 1914, and was included with the German New Guinea possessions in the capitulation of Herbertshohe. The island was garrisoned with Australian troops on the 6th November, 1914, and a Civil administration was established on the 1st January, 1915. A mandate for the administration of the island was conferred by the Allied and Associated Powers upon the British Empire, to come into operation at the same date as the Treaty of Peace with Germany. The mandate is held jointly by the Imperial Government, the Government of Australia, and the New Zealand Government.

An agreement between the three parties to the mandate was drawn up and completed on the 2nd July, 1919. The administrative control of the island is vested in an Administrator, whose term of appointment is five years.

Under the concession granted by the German Government to the Jaluit Gesellschaft, and transferred by that company to the Pacific Phosphate Company, the rights of which were purchased by the Governments of Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand for £3,500,000 (including the company's interests in the nearby Ocean Island), and vested by these Governments in the British Phosphate Commission, the Commission holds the exclusive right to work the phosphate deposits on the island. The Natives are paid £40 per acre (prior to 1st July, 1927, this was £20) for all phosphate-bearing lands, with an annual rental of £3 per acre for all non-phosphate lands leased, and are compensated for trees destroyed. A royalty of 7 1/2d. per ton of phosphate shipped is paid, 4d. going to the Native landowner, 1 1/2d. being used by the Administrator solely for the benefit of the Nauruan people, and the remaining 2d. held in trust by the Administrator for the benefit of the landowner.

The yearly production of phosphates was for the five years ended the 30th June, 1925, to be allocated between the three Governments in the following proportions, which coincide with the proportion of capital supplied by each towards the undertaking: Great Britain, 42 per cent.; Australia, 42 per cent.: New Zealand, 16 per cent. Any portion of its share not required by any Government may be disposed of either to the other Governments pro rata, or, if they do not require it, to other countries. The partner countries receive interest at 6 per cent. on their capital invested, and redemption of capital within fifty years is provided for by a sinking fund. At the end of the first quinquennial period the allocation of phosphates was to have been readjusted on the basis of actual requirements, similar readjustments to be made every five years in future. The re-allocation was, however, deferred at the instance of Great Britain, which has hitherto taken very little of its quota, being at present able to obtain phosphates to better advantage from North African sources of supply. The total shipments, with deliveries to New Zealand, during each of the nine years since the present system was instituted, have been as follows:—

Year ended 30th June,	Total Shipments.	Shipments to New Zealand.
Year ended 30th June,	Total Shipments.	Quantity.	Per Cent. of Total.
	Tons.	Tons.
1921	364,424	17,100	4.69
1922	361,486	38,500	10.65
1923	313,758	51,550	16.43
1924	451,909	60,850	13.47
1925	470,723	98,790	20.99
1926	391,700	77,400	19.76
1927	593,340	135,200	22.79
1928	501,915	124,270	24.75
1929	576,590	142,195	24.66
Totals to 30th June, 1929	4,025,845	745,855	18.53

During the earlier years of the period, there was usually a small balance for distribution to Japan and other countries after Australian and New Zealand requirements had been met. At the present time, however, the Commonwealth and Dominion not only take the whole output, but also obtain supplies from other sources.

Nauru, which is encircled by a road ten miles long, has an area of only 5,000 to 6,000 acres. The island is surrounded by a wide reef. Near the coast is a belt of flat land, covered with coconut-trees, of an area of about 1,400 acres. Behind this rises higher land covering some 4,250 acres, and enclosing a lagoon of almost fresh water. This higher country consists of a mass of phosphate of great richness.

At the 1st April, 1928, there were 1,297 Native inhabitants, who speak a language akin to that of the Gilbert-Islanders. In addition there were 1,051 Chinese, 9 Gilbert and Ellice Islanders, and 11 Caroline and Marshall Islanders, who have been introduced for the working of the phosphate-deposits. Europeans numbered 131, the total population being thus 2,499.

Imports during 1927 were valued at £82,649, consisting almost entirely of food-supplies and of machinery for the working of the phosphate. In addition to the phosphate a little copra (263 tons in 1927) is exported. Seventy-five vessels, of a total tonnage of 321,126, were entered and cleared in 1927.

Nauru possesses a wireless station, which was erected by the German authorities as part of their chain of wireless stations throughout the Pacific. Wireless telephonic communication between Nauru and Ocean Islands has been instituted.

The revenue of the Nauru Administration for the year 1927 was £17,041, and the expenditure £17,242. The figures for each of the last five years available are—

Year	Revenue, £	Expenditure, £
1923	11,837	10,265
1924	18,199	13,580
1925	15,174	15,256
1926	16,424	13,963
1927	17,041	17,242

The New Zealand Government receives from the British Phosphate Commission an annual contribution of £35,849 towards interest on and amortization of loan-money raised to meet the Dominion's share of the purchase-money of the Pacific Phosphate Company's rights. The utilization of the contribution during the last five years has been as follows:—

Year ended 31st March,	Interest.	Sinking Fund.	Debt Seduction.
Year ended 31st March,	Interest.	Sinking Fund.	From Sinking Fund.	From other Sources.
	£	£	£	£
1925	30,000	5,849	..	..
1926	30,000	5,849	20,150	40,000
1927	27,825	8,024	8,300	..
1928	26,695	9,154	9,430	..
1929	26,106	9,743	..	..

The indebtedness of the New Zealand Government on account of Nauru and Ocean Islands, originally £600,000, had been reduced to £522,120 at 31st March, 1929.

ROSS DEPENDENCY.

By Imperial Order in Council of the 30th July, 1923, the coasts of the Ross Sea, with the adjacent islands and territories between the 160th degree of east longitude and the 150th degree of west longitude, and south, of the 60th degree of south latitude, were proclaimed a British settlement within the meaning of the British Settlements Act, 1887, under the name of the ROSS Dependency. The dependency was placed under the jurisdiction of the Governor-General of New Zealand.

Under an agreement entered into with the Imperial Government prior to the Ross Sea area coming under the jurisdiction of New Zealand, Messrs. Konow and Larsen, of Oslo, are licensed to catch whales in the waters of the dependency for a period of twenty-one years. The license is not an exclusive one, hut the licensees were given to understand at the time of its granting that they would be given some opportunity to recoup the heavy initial expenditure arising out of a pioneer expedition. The benefits accruing to the Government under the license are an annual payment of £200 in respect of each floating establishment (factory-ship), and a royalty of 2s. 6d per barrel of oil taken over and above 20,000 barrels. The expedition is limited to two floating establishments with five catchers to each establishment.

The whale-oil taken in each of the six seasons during which the license has been in operation is as follows:—

Season.	Barrels.^*
* Of 40 imperial gallons.
1923–24	17,791
1924–25	32,165
1925–26	37,700
1926–27	70,300
1927–28	124,000
1928–29	122,000

Royalty receipts during the financial year 1928–29 totalled £13,762, in addition to the annual license fee of £200.

Regulations dated the 24th October, 1929, which supersede those of 1st November, 1926, prohibit the carrying-on of whaling operations within the boundaries of the Ross Dependency without a license, the fee payable for which is £200. The owner or master of a vessel engaged in whaling or used as a floating whale-factory is liable to a fine not exceeding £1,000 for each day on which operations are carried on without a license. A penalty not exceeding £100 per day is provided for in cases of non-compliance with the terms of the license granted in respect of any vessel used for whaling or as a floating factory and a similar penalty for failure to equip a floating factory in accordance with the requirements of the regulations or to convert a whale into commercial products within 48 hours after delivery at the factory. Provision is made for the arrest on warrant of any vessel in respect of which an offence against the regulations is committed.

The regulations apply, of course, only to territorial waters, and operations have been carried on outside territorial waters during the last three seasons by an unlicensed expedition. Additional unlicensed factory-ships and catchers are operating in the Ross Sea area in the 1929–30 season.

TOKELAU OR UNION GROUP.

The latest addition to New Zealand's dependencies is the Tokelau or Union Group, which consists of three islands, or groups of islets (Atafu, Nukunono, and Fakaofo), of a total area of 2,550 acres. They are situated between 8° and 10° of south latitude and between 171° and 173° of west longitude, and are distant about 270 miles from Apia, Samoa, which has since 1923 been the port of entry for the group.

These islands were ceded to Great Britain in 1916, from which year up to 1925 they formed part of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony. They were transferred to the jurisdiction of New Zealand as from the 11th February, 1926, and are now administered by the Administrator of Western Samoa on behalf of the New Zealand Government.

The population of the islands at the census of 1926 was 1,033. An estimate by the Samoan Administration in 1929 gives a total of 1,080, the figures for the three islands being—Atafu, 380; Nukunono, 220; Fakaofo, 480.

Education is entirely in the hands of the missions, which maintain Native teachers in the islands.

The Natives are Polynesians, and the language is allied to that of Samoa. The islanders are ruled by their own chiefs with the assistance of Native Councils.

The only exportable product of the islands is copra. The total amount of copra available for export in a normal year is estimated to be 365 tons—viz., 65 from Atafu, 210 from Nukunono, and 90 from Fakaofo.

Chapter 46. SECTION XLVI.—STATISTICAL SUMMARY.

Table of Contents

POPULATION.—CALENDAR YEARS.

POPULATION.—YEARS ENDED 31ST MARCH.

EXTERNAL MIGRATION.

VITAL STATISTICS.

METEOROLOGY (WELLINGTON).

INDEBTEDNESS OF GENERAL GOVERNMENT.

REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE OF GENERAL GOVERNMENT.

LOCAL BODIES.

LOCAL BODIES.—LOAN INDEBTEDNESS.

BANKS OF ISSUE (AVERAGE OF FOUR QUARTERS).

POST OFFICE SAVINGS-BANK.

POSTAL.

GOVERNMENT RAILWAYS.

BANKRUPTCY.

POPULATION.—CALENDAR YEARS.

Year.	Estimated Population at End of Year (inclusive of Maoris).			Estimated Mean Population (inclusive of Maoris).
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1879	281,832	225,492	507,324	273,199	218,520	491,719
1880	292,302	236,157	528,459	287,067	230,825	517,892
1881	299,354	245,653	545,007	296,043	240,941	536,984
1882	307,671	254,133	561,804	303,513	249,893	553,406
1883	319,033	265,941	584,974	313,352	260,037	573,389
1884	331,035	277,366	608,401	325,034	271,654	596,688
1885	336,493	282,830	619,323	333,764	280,098	613,862
1886	340,486	290,869	631,355	337,726	286,549	624,275
1887	347,398	297,932	645,330	343,942	294,401	638,343
1888	347,788	301,561	649,349	347,593	299,747	647,340
1889	351,428	306,593	658,021	349,608	304,077	653,685
1890	355,397	312,080	667,477	353,413	309,336	662,749
1891	359,035	317,016	676,051	357,227	314,549	671,776
1892	368,007	324,419	692,426	363,521	320,718	684,239
1893	380,496	333,762	714,258	374,252	329,090	703,342
1894	386,624	341,497	728,121	383,560	337,630	721,190
1895	392,586	348,113	740,699	389,605	344,805	734,410
1896	398,660	355,356	754,016	395,029	351,259	746,288
1897	406,376	362,534	768,910	402,518	358,945	761,463
1898	413,797	369,520	783,317	410,087	366,027	776,114
1899	420,352	376,007	796,359	417,075	372,763	789,838
1900	425,301	382,831	808,132	422,827	379,419	802,246
1901	437,343	393,457	830,800	432,046	389,065	821,111
1902	449,028	402,044	851,072	443,186	397,750	840,936
1903	462,794	412,854	875,648	455,911	407,449	863,360
1904	477,112	423,570	900,682	469,953	418,212	888,165
1905	490,486	435,119	925,605	483,799	429,345	913,144
1906	507,189	449,268	956,457	500,047	443,278	943,325
1907	518,187	459,028	977,215	512,688	454,148	966,836
1908	535,867	472,506	1,008,373	527,027	465,767	992,794
1909	545,944	484,713	1,030,657	540,906	478,609	1,019,515
1910	555,466	494,944	1,050,410	550,705	489,829	1,040,534
1911	566,202	509,048	1,075,250	561,302	502,585	1,063,887
1912	579,685	522,786	1,102,471	572,944	515,917	1,088,861
1913	595,582	538,924	1,134,506	587,634	530,854	1,118,488
1914	594,634	551,204	1,145,838	595,108	545,064	1,140,172
1915	590,436	562,202	1,152,638	592,535	556,703	1,149,238
1916	575,835	574,504	1,150,339	577,715	571,510	1,149,225
1917	563,300	584,148	1,147,448	569,567	579,326	1,148,893
1918	567,986	590,163	1,158,149	565,643	587,155	1,152,798
1919	627,828	599,353	1,227,181	597,907	594,758	1,192,665
1920	643,696	613,915	1,257,611	635,762	606,634	1,242,396
1921	660,948	631,769	1,292,717	653,306	623,346	1,276,652
1922	673,772	645,112	1,318,884	666,789	638,337	1,305,126
1923	685,951	657,070	1,343,021	678,079	650,114	1,328,193
1924	700,033	670,370	1,370,403	690,401	662,217	1,352,618
1925	716,371	684,859	1,401,230	707,539	676,889	1,384,428
1926	730,603	698,952	1,429,555	722,604	691,096	1,413,700
1927	740,782	709,308	1,450,090	735,196	703,618	1,438,814
1928	749,125	717,827	1,466,952	743,439	712,295	1,455,734

POPULATION.—YEARS ENDED 31ST MARCH.

Year ended 31st March,	Estimated Population at End of Year (inclusive of Maoris).			Estimated Mean Population (inclusive of Maoris).
Year ended 31st March,	Males.	Females.	Total.	Males.	Females.	Total.
1880	285,915	228,738	514,653	277,323	221,799	499,122
1881	294,154	238,090	532,244	290,035	233,414	523,449
1882	301,417	247,630	549,047	298,001	242,896	540,897
1883	310,157	256,498	566,655	305,787	252,064	557,851
1884	322,545	269,252	591,797	316,351	262,875	579,226
1885	333,599	279,601	613,200	328,072	274,427	602,499
1886	335,114	285,451	620,565	333,593	282,226	615,819
1887	342,647	292,700	635,347	338,881	289,075	627,956
1888	347,665	299,249	646,914	345,156	295,975	641,131
1889	349,235	302,893	652,128	348,450	301,071	649,521
1890	355,796	309,057	664,853	352,516	305,975	658,491
1891	355,716	312,878	668,594	355,756	310,968	666,724
1892	360,877	318,588	679,465	358,307	315,735	674,042
1893	371,539	326,643	698,182	366,208	322,616	688,824
1894	382,854	335,886	718,740	377,197	331,264	708,461
1895	388,223	343,245	731,468	385,539	339,565	725,104
1896	393,808	349,568	743,376	391,016	346,406	737,422
1897	400,540	356,963	757,503	396,580	352,790	749,370
1898	407,649	363,919	771,568	404,095	360,441	764,536
1899	415,511	371,019	786,530	411,580	367,469	779,049
1900	420,930	377,541	798,471	418,221	374,280	792,501
1901	429,112	386,750	815,862	425,745	383,066	808,811
1902	437,783	395,356	833,139	433,448	391,053	824,501
1903	453,611	404,382	857,993	445,697	399,869	845,566
1904	467,129	414,971	882,100	460,370	409,677	870,047
1905	481,658	426,458	908,116	474,394	420,714	895,108
1906	495,136	437,978	933,114	488,397	432,218	920,615
1907	510,057	451,541	961,598	503,806	445,844	949,650
1908	523,209	462,111	985,320	516,633	456,826	973,459
1909	540,108	475,955	1,016,063	531,659	469,033	1,000,692
1910	548,449	486,763	1,035,212	544,279	481,359	1,025,638
1911	557,448	498,751	1,056,199	552,949	492,757	1,045,706
1912	569,376	511,968	1,081,344	563,880	505,948	1,069,828
1913	584,556	527,033	1,111,589	576,966	519,501	1,096,467
1914	598,211	541,457	1,139,668	591,383	534,245	1,125,628
1915	596,014	554,372	1,150,386	597,113	547,914	1,145,027
1916	585,496	564,754	1,150,250	590,755	559,563	1,150,318
1917	573,569	577,369	1,150,938	577,715	571,510	1,149,225
1918	568,036	586,523	1,154,559	570,802	581,946	1,152,748
1919	585,827	592,579	1,178,406	576,931	589,551	1,166,482
1920	633,495	603,420	1,236,915	609,661	597,999	1,207,660
1921	648,659	618,839	1,267,498	641,077	611,129	1,252,206
1922	664,979	636,272	1,301,251	657,746	627,965	1,285,711
1923	676,825	648,476	1,325,301	669,867	641,514	1,311,381
1924	688,020	659,833	1,347,853	681,002	653,027	1,334,029
1925	705,161	674,326	1,379,487	694,303	665,692	1,359,995
1926	721,173	688,639	1,409,812	711,583	680,490	1,392,073
1927	735,338	702,642	1,437,980	726,154	694,608	1,420,762
1928	742,396	711,121	1,453,517	737,351	705,972	1,443,323
1929	750,974	719,680	1,470,654	745,552	714,431	1,459,983

EXTERNAL MIGRATION.

Year.	Arrivals.				Departures.
Year.	Males.	Females.	Total.	Race Aliens included in foregoing Totals.^*	Males.	Females.	Total.	Race Aliens included in foregoing Totals.^†
* Not available prior to 1897 † Not available prior to 1915.
1879	15,186	8,771	23,957	..	3,852	1,382	5,234	..
1880	9,564	5,590	15,154	..	5,816	2,107	7,923	..
1881	6,643	3,045	9,688	..	5,705	2,367	8,072	..
1882	7,042	3,903	10,945	..	5,082	2,374	7,456	..
1883	11,218	7,997	19,215	..	6,230	2,956	9,186	..
1884	12,475	7,546	20,021	..	7,303	3,397	10,700	..
1885	10,766	5,433	16,199	..	7,866	3,829	11,695	..
1886	11,068	5,033	16,101	..	10,442	4,595	15,037	..
1887	9,224	4,465	13,689	..	8,434	4,278	12,712	..
1888	9,112	4,494	13,606	..	15,048	7,733	22,781	..
1889	10,158	5,234	15,392	..	9,493	5,685	15,178	..
1890	9,753	5,275	15,028	..	10,809	6,001	16,810	..
1891	9,427	5,004	14,431	..	11,396	6,233	17,629	..
1892	12,131	5,991	18,122	..	8,469	4,695	13,164	..
1893	17,385	8,750	26,135	..	10,263	5,460	15,723	..
1894	16,375	8,862	25,237	..	15,708	7,276	22,984	..
1895	14,181	7,681	21,862	..	13,746	7,221	20,967	..
1896	11,145	6,091	17,236	..	10,032	5,732	15,764	..
1897	12,153	6,439	18,592	57	10,250	5,590	15,840	..
1898	12,524	6,331	18,855	76	10,438	5,721	16,159	..
1899	11,862	6,644	18,506	123	10,567	6,052	16,619	..
1900	11,966	6,108	18,074	111	11,043	5,200	16,243	..
1901	16,968	8,118	25,086	146	12,426	6,138	18,564	..
1902	21,522	8,771	30,293	102	15,600	6,701	22,301	..
1903	20,479	10,404	30,883	166	12,983	6,625	19,608	..
1904	21,980	10,652	32,632	320	14,671	7,606	22,277	..
1905	21,344	11,341	32,685	341	15,390	7,993	23,383	..
1906	25,607	13,626	39,233	454	17,211	9,174	26,385	..
1907	23,228	12,880	36,108	314	19,310	11,068	30,378	..
1908	29,342	15,628	44,970	655	19,707	11,002	30,709	..
1909	24,065	14,585	38,650	442	22,244	11,687	33,931	..
1910	22,135	13,634	35,769	367	20,451	11,910	32,361	..
1911	25,333	16,056	41,389	804	23,539	13,650	37,189	..
1912	26,775	17,885	44,660	803	21,914	13,819	35,733	..
1913	25,891	18,697	44,588	589	18,560	11,809	30,369	..
1914	22,526	15,120	37,646	823	20,025	12,481	32,506	..
1915	14,487	11,064	25,551	322	13,318	9,158	22,476	329
1916	11,959	9,840	21,799	1,013	11,932	9,231	21,163	569
1917	9,159	6,490	15,649	724	7,597	6,272	13,869	708
1918	6,356	5,550	11,906	917	6,097	5,563	11,660	404
1919	10,772	10,159	20,931	708	11,377	8,500	19,877	322
1920	23,687	20,375	44,062	1,734	17,951	14,973	32,924	443
1921	22,446	19,436	41,882	641	16,019	12,540	28,559	707
1922	18,811	16,422	35,233	549	15,643	12,746	28,389	700
1923	19,445	17,043	36,488	729	16,037	13,631	29,668	632
1924	21,719	18,096	39,815	1,017	16,489	14,104	30,593	911
1925	23,328	18,518	41,846	1,056	15,907	13,265	29,172	905
1926	25,508	20,177	45,685	1,199	18,649	15,176	33,825	1,013
1927	21,165	17,511	38,676	963	20,349	15,899	36,248	906
1928	19,180	16,298	35,478	899	18,987	16,048	35,035	1,104

VITAL STATISTICS.

Year.	Numbers.				Rates per 1,000 of Mean Population.			Deaths under 1 Year per 1,000 Births.
Year.	Births.	Marriages.	Deaths.	Deaths under 1 Year.	Births.	Marriages.	Deaths.	Deaths under 1 Year per 1,000 Births.
1879	18,070	3,352	5,583	1,941	40.32	7.48	12.46	107.42
1880	19,341	3,181	5,437	1,805	40.78	6.71	11.46	93.33
1881	18,732	3,277	5,491	1,731	37.95	6.64	11.13	92.41
1882	19,009	3,600	5,701	1,678	37.32	7.07	11.19	88.27
1883	19,202	3,612	6,061	1,995	36.28	6.82	11.45	103.90
1884	19,846	3,800	5,740	1,573	35.91	6.87	10.39	79.26
1885	19,693	3,813	6,081	1,756	34.35	6.65	10.61	89.17
1886	19,299	3,488	6,135	1,899	33.15	5.99	10.54	98.40
1887	19,135	3,563	6,137	1,795	32.09	5.97	10.29	93.81
1888	18,902	3,617	5,708	1,336	31.22	5.97	9.43	70.68
1889	18,457	3,632	5,772	1,456	30.17	5.94	9.44	78.89
1890	18,278	3,797	5,994	1,438	29.44	6.12	9.66	78.67
1891	18,273	3,805	6,518	1,667	29.01	6.04	10.35	91.23
1892	17,876	4,002	6,459	1,594	27.83	6.23	10.06	89.17
1893	18,187	4,115	6,767	1,600	27.50	6.22	10.23	87.97
1894	18,528	4,178	6,918	1,507	27.28	6.15	10.19	81.34
1895	18,546	4,110	6,863	1,637	26.78	5.94	9.91	88.27
1896	18,612	4,843	6,432	1,439	26.33	6.85	9.10	77.32
1897	18,737	4,928	6,595	1,354	25.96	6.83	9.14	72.26
1898	18,955	5,091	7,244	1,510	25.74	6.91	9.84	79.66
1899	18,835	5,461	7,680	1,806	25.12	7.28	10.24	95.89
1900	19,546	5,860	7,200	1,469	25.60	7.67	9.43	75.16
1901	20,491	6,095	7,634	1,563	26.34	7.83	9.81	71.40
1902	20,655	6,394	8,375	1,712	25.89	8.01	10.50	82.89
1903	21,829	6,748	8,528	1,770	26.61	8.23	10.40	81.03
1904	22,766	6,983	8,087	1,616	26.94	8.26	9.57	70.98
1905	23,682	7,200	8,061	1,599	27.22	8.28	9.27	67.52
1906	24,252	7,592	8,339	1,506	27.08	8.48	9.31	62.10
1907	25,094	8,192	10,066	2,228	27.30	8.91	10.95	88.79
1908	25,940	8,339	9,043	1,761	27.45	8.82	9.57	67.89
1909	26,524	8,094	8,959	1,634	27.29	8.33	9.22	61.60
1910	25,984	8,236	9,639	1,760	26.17	8.30	9.71	67.73
1911	26,354	8,825	9,534	1,484	25.97	8.70	9.39	56.31
1912	27,508	9,149	9,214	1,409	26.48	8.81	8.87	51.22
1913	27,935	8,813	10,119	1,653	26.14	8.25	9.47	59.17
1914	28,338	9,280	10,148	1,456	25.99	8.51	9.31	51.38
1915	27,850	10,028	9,965	1,394	25.33	9.12	9.06	50.05
1916	28,509	8,213	10,596	1,446	25.94	7.47	9.64	50.70
1917	28,239	6,417	10,528	1,360	25.69	5.84	9.58	48.16
1918	25,860	6,227	16,364	1,252	23.44	5.65	14.84	48.41
1919	24,483	9,519	10,808	1,108	21.42	8.33	9.46	45.26
1920	29,921	12,175	12,109	1,513	25.09	10.21	10.15	50.57
1921	28,567	10,635	10,682	1,366	23.34	8.69	8.73	47.82
1922	29,006	9,556	10,977	1,215	23.17	7.63	8.77	41.89
1923	27,967	10,070	11,511	1,225	21.94	7.90	9.03	43.80
1924	28,014	10,259	10,767	1,127	21.57	7.90	8.29	40.23
1925	28,153	10,419	11,026	1,125	21.17	7.84	8.29	39.96
1926	28,473	10,680	11,819	1,132	21.05	7.90	8.74	39.76
1927	27,881	10,478	11,613	1,080	20.29	7.62	8.45	38.74
1928	27,200	10,537	11,811	984	19.56	7.58	8.49	36.18

METEOROLOGY (WELLINGTON).

Year.	Atmospheric Pressure.			Temperature in Shade.			Rain.		Total Bright Sunshine.
Year.	Maximum.	Mean.	Minimum.	Maximum.	Mean.	Minimum.	Number of Days.	Total Fall in Year.	Total Bright Sunshine.
	in.	in.	in.	°Fahr.	°Fahr.	°Fahr.	days.	in.	h. m.
1879	30.673	29.965	29.026	80.5	55.5	30.0	151	51.93	..
1880	30.539	29.964	29.169	79.5	56.2	33.8	176	46.77	..
1881	30.559	29.965	29.091	80.0	55.9	34.0	137	50.13	..
1882	30.467	29.900	29.114	79.0	55.4	36.0	166	55.69	..
1883	30.481	29.933	29.039	85.0	55.0	32.0	169	51.99	..
1884	30.592	29.905	29.041	79.0	53.6	32.0	168	62.34	..
1885	30.639	30.001	29.296	76.0	54.5	33.0	162	36.81	..
1886	30.743	29.958	29.067	79.0	54.4	32.0	169	54.48	..
1887	30.579	29.931	28.909	83.0	54.9	31.0	188	56.97	..
1888	30.654	29.912	29.088	73.3	54.4	35.0	186	41.00	..
1889	30.886	30.004	28.987	80.0	55.3	31.5	155	31.36	..
1890	30.606	29.978	29.132	82.0	55.8	32.0	165	45.23	..
1891	30.593	29.971	29.037	81.0	54.8	31.3	166	35.13	..
1892	30.650	29.999	29.283	77.5	55.9	32.5	184	67.66	..
1893	30.492	29.963	29.073	82.0	56.7	34.0	186	53.03	..
1894	30.619	29.960	29.021	80.0	56.4	33.3	175	51.00	..
1895	30.423	29.905	29.189	88.0	55.1	32.0	185	66.47	..
1896	30.533	29.939	29.176	79.0	55.4	34.0	185	57.55	..
1897	30.530	29.916	29.161	81.0	55.5	31.0	184	48.96	..
1898	30.647	29.912	29.139	77.3	55.2	31.9	162	41.96	..
1899	30.561	29.966	29.019	76.3	54.7	31.0	181	52.72	..
1900	30.500	29.955	29.036	79.0	55.0	34.0	191	51.00	..
1901	30.497	29.938	29.113	79.0	55.0	30.0	175	41.56	..
1902	30.594	29.928	29.073	81.0	54.1	32.0	201	38.75	..
1903	30.765	30.029	29.294	79.5	54.6	31.0	161	53.80	..
1904	30.734	29.928	29.005	82.3	54.6	32.0	170	60.41	..
1905	30.580	29.939	29.076	77.0	54.5	30.5	172	51.17	..
1906	30.863	29.965	29.086	75.0	53.9	33.5	151	42.31	..
1907	30.573	29.970	29.022	80.2	55.3	33.0	150	44.26	1,853	53
1908	30.581	29.993	29.250	79.0	54.6	33.0	141	34.93	2,009	3
1909	30.521	29.982	29.120	75.2	55.9	36.0	160	38.88	2,223	31
1910	30.511	29.985	29.090	78.2	56.2	35.2	161	45.42	2,157	3
1911	30.609	29.944	29.002	76.0	55.6	35.4	180	40.85	2,276	37
1912	30.570	29.921	29.013	77.8	54.6	29.2	195	48.30	1,953	17
1913	30.590	29.918	29.074	79.8	55.3	34.0	196	52.01	1,973	39
1914	30.649	29.992	29.110	79.6	55.3	31.2	156	31.90	2,172	10
1915	30.579	29.972	29.140	84.0	55.7	31.2	143	27.83	1,919	32
1916	30.765	30.013	29.141	85.0	57.5	33.4	136	37.35	2,058	51
1917	30.595	29.948	28.927	81.15	57.2	33.6	164	43.82	1,957	36
1918	30.487	29.904	28.980	79.3	55.5	30.1	159	49.58	1,915	8
1919	30.667	29.967	28.998	81.1	54.6	29.9	136	28.51	2,022	46
1920	30.609	29.965	29.042	79.8	54.5	28.6	150	49.28	1,885	37
1921	30.571	29.984	28.902	81.6	55.1	30.3	157	42.86	2,060	4
1922	30.601	29.958	29.140	82.3	55.9	31.0	150	29.23	1,999	9
1923	30.585	29.919	29.202	77.2	55.6	30.0	164	41.02	1,939	14
1924	30.656	29.980	29.213	83.6	57.1	31.5	164	49.21	1,925	37
1925	30.675	29.927	28.039	78.2	55.3	29.9	175	52.17	2,044	9
1926	30.552	29.922	28.981	81.1	55.3	31.7	172	42.38	2,048	44
1927	30.606	29.930	29.165	84.0	55.4	31.2	167	43.35	2,055	6
1928	30.611	29.944	28.986	79.2	55.0	36.1	146	55.21	2,120	1

EDUCATION.

Year.	Number of Scholars receiving							University Students.
	Primary Education at			Secondary Education at
	Public Schools.^*	Registered Private Schools.	Native Village Schools.	Secondary Schools.	District High Schools.^*	Technical High Schools.^†	Registered Private Schools.
* Including junior high schools from 1926. † Including day technical schools from 1926.
1879	75,556	10,234	1,618	1,417	..	..	..	240
1880	82,401	11,238	1,623	1,631	..	..	..	211
1881	83,587	9,987	2,010	1,819	..	..	..	239
1882	87,179	10,002	2,024	1,899	..	..	..	279
1883	92,476	11,255	1,923	2,384	..	..	..	361
1884	97,238	12,203	2,226	2,642	..	..	..	419
1885	102,407	11,989	2,161	2,659	..	..	..	442
1886	106,328	12,497	2,346	2,358	..	..	..	490
1887	110,919	13,417	2,631	2,242	..	..	..	588
1888	112,685	13,893	2,512	2,120	..	..	..	662
1889	115,456	13,516	2,462	2,147	..	..	..	588
1890	117,912	13,691	2,259	2,117	..	..	..	596
1891	119,523	14,176	2,231	2,205	..	..	..	705
1892	122,620	14,467	2,133	2,262	..	..	..	695
1893	124,690	14,931	2,134	2,251	..	..	..	680
1894	127,300	14,649	2,418	2,454	..	..	..	680
1895	129,856	14,704	2,675	2,525	..	..	..	742
1896	131,037	13,979	2,862	2,614	..	..	..	677
1897	132,197	14,524	2,864	2,709	..	..	..	653
1898	131,621	14,857	2,972	2,706	..	..	..	667
1899	131,315	15,380	3,065	2,723	..	..	..	766
1900	130,724	15,602	3,109	2,792	..	..	..	805
1901	131,351	15,397	3,273	2,899	662	..	..	783
1902	132,262	15,667	3,742	3,072	1,479	..	..	864
1903	133,568	15,687	3,693	3,722	2,096	..	..	862
1904	135,475	16,445	3,754	4,038	2,330	..	..	971
1905	137,623	16,738	3,863	4,060	2,872	..	..	1,153
1906	139,302	17,217	4,174	4,270	2,594	..	..	1,332
1907	141,071	18,174	4,183	4,196	2,452	..	..	1,325
1908	147,428	16,244	4,217	4,327	2,142	699	..	1,634
1909	152,416	17,989	4,121	4,856	1,891	846	..	1,846
1910	156,324	19,052	4,280	5,176	1,916	1,253	..	1,862
1911	161,648	19,967	4,557	5,465	1,777	1,341	831	1,900
1912	166,264	20,350	4,694	5,831	1,815	1,526	883	2,228
1913	172,168	21,251	4,647	6,154	1,837	1,664	545	2,318
1914	178,509	22,247	5,072	6,418	1,896	1,839	850	2,257
1915	183,214	22,477	5,191	6,488	2,102	1,955	992	2,039
1916	185,884	23,635	5,132	7,052	2,115	2,105	1,004	1,985
1917	188,174	25,685	5,173	7,590	2,180	2,347	1,206	1,977
1918	192,680	26,371	5,064	8,384	2,283	2,747	1,366	2,226
1919	193,900	20,977	5,198	9,068	2,159	2,926	1,497	3,060
1920	197,645	22,193	5,508	9,196	2,157	2,766	1,439	3,822
1921	205,181	23,924	5,822	10,030	2,176	3,349	1,634	4,123
1922	210,491	24,861	6,161	10,736	2,606	4,202	1,998	3,958
1923	211,960	26,010	6,186	11,619	2,818	5,054	2,134	4,202
1924	213,290	26,302	6,310	12,010	2,900	5,369	2,473	4,236
1925	214,724	25,933	6,386	12,514	3,136	5,132	2,511	4,442
1926	218,557	26,778	6,591	13,651	3,299	5,700	2,794	4,653
1927	220,746	27,358	6,620	14,190	3,581	5,703	2,932	4,878
1928	219,596	26,596	6,671	15,038	3,880	6,061	3,430	4,802

JUSTICE.

Year	Summary Convictions in Magistrates' Courts.		Total Convictions and Sentences in Superior Courts.		Total Distinct Persons sentenced in Superior Courts.		Prisoners in Gaol at end of Year (undergoing Sentence).
Year	Number.	Rate per 1,000 of Mean Population.	Number.	Rate per 1,000 of Mean Population.	Number.	Rate per 1,000 of Mean Population.	Number.	Rate per 10,000 of Population.
1879	16,088	32.72	296	0.60	260	0.53	698	13.76
1880	15,026	29.01	388	0.75	370	0.71	703	13.30
1881	14,079	26.22	270	0.50	235	0.44	641	11.76
1882	16,573	29.95	265	0.48	219	0.40	578	10.28
1883	16,944	29.55	258	0.45	231	0.40	567	9.69
1884	17,968	30.11	287	0.48	241	0.40	560	9.20
1885	17,804	29.00	266	0.43	236	0.38	531	8.57
1886	16,705	26.76	306	0.49	286	0.46	558	8.84
1887	15,557	24.37	386	0.60	347	0.54	633	9.81
1888	14,472	22.36	308	0.48	265	0.41	605	9.32
1889	14,082	21.54	276	0.42	228	0.35	611	9.29
1890	14,128	21.32	270	0.41	227	0.34	517	7.75
1891	13,349	19.87	283	0.42	221	0.33	494	7.31
1892	13,583	19.85	241	0.35	195	0.29	433	6.25
1893	13,710	19.49	304	0.43	272	0.39	463	6.48
1894	12,934	17.93	371	0.51	324	0.45	483	6.63
1895	13,383	18.22	407	0.55	359	0.49	531	7.17
1896	14,481	19.40	355	0.48	311	0.42	493	6.54
1897	15,325	20.13	366	0.48	315	0.41	623	8.10
1898	16,991	21.89	391	0.50	386	0.50	533	6.80
1899	17,586	22.27	405	0.51	383	0.48	508	6.38
1900	19,242	23.99	427	0.53	391	0.49	527	6.52
1901	20,724	25.24	361	0.44	354	0.43	661	8.39
1902	22,455	26.70	349	0.42	339	0.40	602	7.45
1903	25,186	29.17	398	0.46	380	0.44	688	8.26
1904	25,672	28.90	527	0.59	519	0.58	701	7.78
1905	25,371	27.78	449	0.49	433	0.47	760	8.21
1906	27,670	29.33	445	0.47	433	0.46	833	8.71
1907	30,901	31.96	490	0.51	481	0.50	791	8.09
1908	30,852	31.08	543	0.55	532	0.54	815	8.08
1909	31,151	30.55	552	0.54	544	0.53	877	8.51
1910	32,435	31.17	495	0.48	494	0.47	843	8.01
1911	33,029	31.05	453	0.43	427	0.40	802	7.46
1912	36,191	33.24	480	0.44	428	0.39	821	7.45
1913	39,685	35.48	446	0.40	409	0.37	834	7.35
1914	41,723	36.59	522	0.46	483	0.42	981	8.56
1915	39,675	34.52	509	0.44	441	0.38	941	8.16
1916	35,459	30.85	448	0.39	401	0.35	834	7.25
1917	34,189	29.76	623	0.54	377	0.33	954	8.31
1918	29,252	25.37	632	0.55	355	0.31	1,005	8.68
1919	32,692	27.41	808	0.68	461	0.39	852	6.94
1920	35,517	28.59	1,011	0.81	459	0.37	996	7.92
1921	37,124	29.08	1,475	1.16	616	0.48	1,044	8.08
1922	34,513	26.44	1,417	1.09	601	0.46	1,052	8.32
1923	37,104	27.94	1,663	1.25	625	0.47	1,141	8.50
1924	39,594	29.27	1,388	1.03	555	0.41	1,197	8.85
1925	44,017	31.79	1,465	1.06	511	0.37	1,284	9.17
1926	46,205	32.68	1,562	1.10	569	0.40	1,388	9.79
1927	45,930	31.92	1,739	1.21	569	0.40	1,483	10.23
1928	45,139	30.78	1,368	0.94	478	0.33	1,435	9.78

AGRICULTURE.

Season.	Wheat for Threshing.			Oats for Threshing.
Season.	Area.	Yield.	Yield per Acre.	Area.	Yield.	Yield per Acre.
* Yield probably overstated for these four seasons, due to total being obtained by applying ascertained averages to areas returned by farmers as sown for threshing. Areas returned in these years as intended for threshing would appear, in many cases, to have been eventually utilized for other purposes.
	Acres.	Bushels.	Bushels.	Acres.	Bushels.	Bushels.
1879–80	270,198	7,610,012	28.16	330,208	12,062,607	36.53
1880–81	324,949	8,147,797	25.07	215,030	6,891,961	32.05
1881–82	365,715	8,297,890	22.69	243,387	6,924,848	28.45
1882–83	390,818	10,270,591	26.28	319,858	10,520,428	32.89
1883–84	377,706	9,827,136	26.02	262,954	9,231,339	35.11
1884–85	270,043	6,866,777	25.43	354,794	12,360,449	34.84
1885–86	173,891	4,242,285	24.40	329,488	8,603,702	26.11
1886–87	253,025	6,297,638	24.89	387,228	11,973,295	30.92
1887–88	357,359	9,424,059	26.37	336,474	10,512,119	31.24
1888–89	362,153	8,770,246	24.22	367,225	10,977,065	29.89
1889–90	335,861	8,448,506	25.15	426,071	13,673,584	32.10
1890–91	301,460	5,723,610	18.99	346,224	9,947,036	28.73
1891–92	402,273	10,257,738	25.50	323,508	11,009,020	34.03
1892–93	381,245	8,378,217	21.98	326,531	9,893,989	30.30
1893–94	242,737	4,891,695	20.15	376,646	12,153,068	32.27
1894–95	148,575	3,613,037	24.32	351,852	10,221,393	29.05
1895–96	245,441	6,843,768	27.88	364,788	12,263,540	33.62
1896–97	258,608	5,926,523	22.92	372,597	11,232,803	30.15
1897–98	315,801	5,670,017	17.95	354,819	9,738,391	27.44
1898–99	399,034	13,073,416	32.76	417,320	16,511,388	39.56
1899–1900	269,749	8,581,898	31.81	398,243	16,325,832	40.99
1900–1	206,465	6,527,154	31.61	449,534	19,085,837	42.45
1901–2	163,462	4,046,589	24.76	405,924	15,045,233	37.06
1902–3	194,355	7,457,915	38.37	483,659	21,766,708	45.00
1903–4	230,346	7,891,654	34.26	409,390	15,107,237	38.57
1904–5	258,015	9,123,673	35.36	342,189	14,553,611	42.53
1905–6	222,183	6,798,934	30.60	354,291	12,707,982	35.86
1906–7	206,185	5,605,252	27.18	351,929	11,201,789	31.83
1907–8	193,031	5,567,139	28.84	386,885	15,021,861	38.82
1908–9	252,391	8,772,790	34.75	406,908	18,906,788	46.46
1909–10	311,000	8,661,100	28.00	377,000	13,804,000	37.00
1910–11	322,167	8,290,221	25.73	302,827	10,118,917	33.41
1911–12	215,528	7,261,138	33.69	403,668	19,662,668^*	48.71
1912–13	189,869	5,179,626	27.28	386,786	13,583,924^*	35.12
1913–14	166,774	5,231,700	31.37	361,741	14,740,946^*	40.75
1914–15	229,600	6,644,336	28.94	287,561	11,436,301^*	39.77
1915–16	329,207	7,108,360	21.59	212,688	7,653,208	35.98
1916–17	217,743	5,051,227	23.19	177,524	5,371,436	30.29
1917–18	280,978	6,807,536	24.23	156,202	4,942,759	31.64
1918–19	208,030	6,567,629	31.57	172,686	6,884,609	39.87
1919–20	139,611	4,559,934	32.66	179,800	6,967,862	38.75
1920–21	219,985	6,872,262	31.24	147,559	5,225,115	35.41
1921–22	352,918	10,565,275	29.94	170,655	6,752,663	39.56
1922–23	275,775	8,395,023	30.44	143,090	5,688,157	39.75
1923–24	173,864	4,174,537	24.01	63,842	1,964,511	30.77
1924–25	166,964	5,447,758	32.62	147,387	5,707,174	38.72
1925–26	151,673	4,617,041	30.44	102,485	4,115,606	40.14
1926–27	220,083	7,952,442	36.13	117,326	4,997,535	42.58
1927–28	260,987	9,541,444	36.56	88,223	3,852,687	43.66
1928–29	255,312	8,832,864	34.60	73,101	3,065,113	41.93

LIVE-STOCK.

Year.	Horses.	Total Cattle.	Dairy Cows.	Sheep.	Pigs.	Goats.
* Not enumerated.
1880	^*	^*	^*	11,530,623	^*	^*
1881	161,736	698,637	^*	12,190,215	200,083	11,223
1882	^*	^*	^*	12,408,106	^*	^*
1883	^*	^*	^*	13,306,329	^*	^*
1884	^*	^*	^*	13,978,520	^*	^*
1885	^*	^*	^*	14,546,801	^*	^*
1886	187,382	853,358	^*	15,174,263	277,901	10,220
1887	^*	^*	^*	15,155,626	^*	^*
1888	^*	^*	^*	15,042,198	^*	^*
1889	^*	^*	^*	15,423,328	^*	^*
1890	^*	^*	^*	16,116,113	^*	^*
1891	211,040	788,919	^*	17,865,423	222,553	9,055
1892	^*	^*	^*	18,570,752	^*	^*
1893	^*	^*	^*	19,380,369	^*	^*
1894	^*	885,305	^*	20,230,829	^*	^*
1895	^*	964,034	257,140	19,826,604	^*	^*
1896	237,418	1,047,901	276,217	19,138,493	239,778	^*
1897	249,813	1,138,067	300,219	19,687,954	209,834	^*
1898	252,834	1,209,165	324,485	19,673,725	186,027	^*
1899	258,115	1,203,024	333,536	19,348,506	193,512	^*
1900	261,931	1,222,139	355,256	19,355,195	249,751	^*
1901	266,245	1,256,680	372,416	20,233,099	250,975	^*
1902	279,672	1,361,784	381,492	20,342,727	224,024	^*
1903	286,955	1,460,663	428,773	18,954,553	193,740	^*
1904	298,714	1,593,547	468,125	18,280,806	226,591	^*
1905	314,322	1,736,850	498,241	19,130,875	255,320	^*
1906	326,537	1,810,936	517,720	20,108,471	249,727	^*
1907	342,608	1,851,750	543,927	20,983,772	242,273	^*
1908	352,832	1,816,299	541,363	22,449,053	241,128	^*
1909	363,259	1,773,326	536,629	23,480,707	245,092	^*
1910	^*	^*	^*	24,269,620	^*	^*
1911	404,284	2,020,171	633,733	23,996,126	348,754	^*
1912	^*	^*	^*	23,750,153	^*	^*
1913	^*	^*	^*	24,191,810	^*	^*
1914	^*	^*	^*	24,798,763	^*	^*
1915	^*	^*	^*	24,901,421	^*	^*
1916	371,331	2,417,491	750,323	24,788,150	297,501	17,601
1917	373,600	2,575,230	777,439	25,270,386	283,770	18,235
1918	378,050	2,869,465	793,212	26,538,302	258,694	17,730
1919	363,188	3,035,478	826,135	25,828,554	235,347	16,924
1920	346,407	3,101,945	893,454	23,919,970	266,829	14,534
1921	337,259	3,139,223	1,004,666	23,285,031	349,892	17,367
1922	332,105	3,323,223	1,137,055	22,222,259	384,333	17,480
1923	330,818	3,480,694	1,248,643	23,081,439	400,889	17,071
1924	330,430	3,563,497	1,312,588	23,775,776	414,271	18,196
1925	326,830	3,503,744	1,323,432	24,547,955	440,115	18,975
1926	314,867	3,452,486	1,303,856	24,904,993	472,534	21,761
1927	303,713	3,257,729	1,303,225	25,649,016	520,143	26,099
1928	307,160	3,273,769	1,352,398	27,133,810	586,898	24,251
1929	298,986	3,445,790	1,371,063	29,051,382	556,732	34,226

TRADE.

Year.	Imports.	Exports.	Total Trade.	Rate per Head of Mean Population (including Maoris).
Year.	Imports.	Exports.	Total Trade.	Imports.			Exports.			Total Trade.
	£	£	£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
1879	8,374,585	5,743,126	14,117,711	17	0	8	11	13	7	28	14	3
1880	6,162,011	6,352,692	12,514,703	11	18	0	12	5	4	24	3	4
1881	7,457,045	6,060,866	13,517,911	13	17	9	11	5	9	25	3	6
1882	8,609,270	6,658,008	15,267,278	15	11	2	12	0	7	27	11	9
1883	7,974,038	7,095,999	15,070,037	13	18	2	12	7	6	26	5	8
1884	7,663,888	7,091,667	14,755,555	12	16	11	11	17	9	24	14	8
1885	7,479,921	6,819,939	14,299,860	12	3	9	11	2	2	23	5	11
1886	6,759,013	6,672,791	13,431,804	10	16	6	10	13	9	21	10	3
1887	6,245,515	6,866,169	13,111,684	9	15	8	10	15	2	20	10	10
1888	5,941,900	7,767,325	13,709,225	9	3	7	12	0	0	21	3	7
1889	6,308,863	9,341,864	15,650,727	9	13	0	14	5	10	23	18	10
1890	6,260,525	9,811,720	16,072,245	9	8	11	14	16	1	24	5	0
1891	6,503,849	9,566,397	16,070,246	9	13	8	14	4	10	23	18	6
1892	6,943,056	9,534,851	16,477,907	10	2	11	13	18	8	24	1	7
1893	6,911,515	8,985,364	15,896,879	9	16	7	12	15	6	22	12	1
1894	6,788,020	9,231,047	16,019,067	9	8	3	12	16	0	22	4	3
1895	6,400,129	8,550,224	14,950,353	8	14	4	11	12	10	20	7	2
1896	7,137,320	9,321,105	16,458,425	9	11	3	12	9	10	22	1	1
1897	8,055,223	10,016,993	18,072,216	10	11	7	13	3	1	23	14	8
1898	8,230,600	10,517,955	18,748,555	10	12	1	13	11	1	24	3	2
1899	8,739,633	11,938,335	20,677,968	11	1	4	15	2	4	26	3	8
1900	10,646,096	13,246,161	23,892,257	13	5	5	16	10	3	29	15	8
1901	11,817,915	12,881,424	24,699,339	14	7	7	15	13	9	30	1	4
1902	11,326,723	13,644,977	24,971,700	13	9	5	16	4	6	29	13	11
1903	12,788,675	15,010,378	27,799,053	14	16	3	17	7	9	32	4	0
1904	13,291,694	14,748,348	28,040,042	14	19	4	16	12	1	31	11	5
1905	12,828,857	15,655,947	28,484,804	14	1	0	17	2	11	31	3	11
1906	15,211,403	18,095,137	33,306,540	16	2	6	19	3	8	35	6	2
1907	17,302,861	20,068,957	37,371,818	17	17	11	20	15	2	38	13	1
1908	17,471,284	16,317,494	33,788,778	17	12	0	16	8	9	34	0	9
1909	15,674,719	19,661,996	35,336,715	15	7	6	19	5	9	34	13	3
1910	17,051,583	22,180,209	39,231,792	16	7	9	21	6	4	37	14	1
1911	19,545,879	19,028,490	38,574,369	18	7	5	17	17	9	36	5	2
1912	20,976,574	21,770,581	42,747,155	19	5	4	19	19	11	39	5	3
1913	22,288,302	22,986,722	45,275,024	19	18	7	20	11	0	40	9	7
1914	21,856,096	26,261,447	48,117,543	19	3	5	23	0	8	42	4	1
1915	21,728,834	31,748,912	53,477,746	18	18	9	27	12	6	46	10	8
1916	26,339,283	33,286,937	59,626,220	22	18	5	28	19	4	51	17	9
1917	20,919,265	31,587,547	52,506,812	18	4	2	27	9	11	45	14	1
1918	24,234,007	28,516,188	52,750,195	21	0	5	24	14	9	45	15	2
1919	30,671,698	53,970,075	84,641,773	25	14	4	45	5	0	70	19	4
1920	61,595,828	46,441,946	108,037,774	49	11	7	37	7	7	86	19	2
1921	42,942,443	44,828,827	87,771,270	33	12	9	35	2	3	68	15	0
1922	35,012,561	42,726,249	77,738,810	26	16	6	32	14	9	59	11	3
1923	43,378,493	45,967,165	89,345,658	32	13	2	34	12	2	67	5	4
1924	48,527,603	52,612,711	101,140,314	35	17	6	38	17	10	74	15	4
1925	52,456,407	55,262,272	107,718,679	37	17	10	39	18	4	77	16	2
1926	49,889,563	45,275,575	95,165,138	35	5	10	32	0	6	67	6	4
1927	44,782,946	48,496,354	93,279,300	31	2	6	33	14	1	64	16	7
1928	44,886,266	56,188,481	101,074,747	31	3	11	39	1	0	70	4	11

Year.	Exports of New Zealand Produce.
	Wool.		Frozen Meat.		Tallow.
	Quantity.	Value.	Quantity.	Value.	Quantity.	Value.
	lb.	£	Cwt.	£	Cwt.	£
1879	62,222,810	3,126,439	..	..	92,710	145,595
1880	66,860,150	3,169,300	..	..	101,470	146,535
1881	59,415,940	2,909,760	..	..	83,155	120,611
1882	65,322,707	3,118,554	15,244	19,339	108,780	165,938
1883	68,149,430	3,014,211	87,975	118,328	141,185	233,557
1884	81,139,028	3,267,527	254,069	345,090	150,770	234,829
1885	86,507,431	3,205,275	296,473	373,857	138,600	176,962
1886	90,853,744	3,072,971	346,055	427,193	129,700	119,619
1887	88,824,382	3,321,074	402,107	455,870	154,720	147,233
1888	83,225,733	3,115,098	552,298	628,800	136,460	124,950
1889	102,227,354	3,976,375	656,822	783,374	159,020	159,460
1890	102,817,077	4,150,599	898,894	1,087,617	173,300	162,471
1891	106,187,114	4,129,686	1,000,307	1,194,724	175,580	173,257
1892	118,180,912	4,313,307	869,600	1,033,377	165,220	165,513
1893	109,719,684	3,774,738	903,836	1,085,167	170,060	183,588
1894	144,295,154	4,827,016	1,025,243	1,194,545	199,400	204,499
1895	116,015,170	3,662,131	1,134,097	1,262,711	263,560	260,999
1896	129,151,624	4,391,848	1,103,362	1,251,993	222,540	208,821
1897	135,835,117	4,443,144	1,407,921	1,566,286	310,200	259,964
1898	149,385,815	4,645,804	1,551,773	1,698,750	347,160	302,141
1899	147,169,497	4,324,627	1,865,827	2,088,856	338,620	311,649
1900	140,706,486	4,749,196	1,844,831	2,123,881	367,780	368,473
1901	146,820,079	3,699,103	1,857,547	2,253,262	335,360	351,710
1902	160,419,023	3,354,563	2,138,557	2,718,763	424,060	550,131
1903	155,128,381	4,041,274	2,378,650	3,197,043	396,940	517,871
1904	144,647,376	4,673,826	1,912,979	2,793,599	322,480	357,974
1905	139,912,737	5,381,333	1,690,684	2,694,432	318,942	347,888
1906	154,384,568	6,765,655	2,025,507	2,877,031	378,400	455,026
1907	171,635,595	7,657,278	2,354,808	3,420,664	414,880	560,965
1908	162,518,481	5,332,781	2,120,303	3,188,515	372,520	481,335
1909	189,683,703	6,305,888	2,572,604	3,601,093	484,160	648,452
1910	204,368,957	8,308,410	2,654,196	3,850,777	520,180	756,841
1911	169,424,811	6,491,707	2,250,565	3,503,400	413,120	607,257
1912	188,361,790	7,105,483	2,573,238	3,909,569	470,900	684,739
1913	186,533,036	8,057,620	2,578,693	4,449,933	454,860	663,088
1914	220,472,898	9,318,114	3,229,969	5,863,062	490,300	694,348
1915	196,570,114	10,387,875	3,591,260	7,794,395	535,260	780,828
1916	185,506,859	12,386,074	3,326,045	7,271,318	449,440	785,339
1917	178,274,486	12,175,366	2,446,945	5,982,404	251,980	553,016
1918	108,724,575	7,527,266	2,036,904	4,957,576	328,420	847,618
1919	274,246,613	19,559,537	3,822,683	9,628,292	937,480	2,680,006
1920	162,327,176	11,863,827	4,629,282	11,673,696	540,820	1,748,773
1921	158,714,828	5,221,479	4,322,754	11,164,345	554,240	867,298
1922	321,533,215	11,882,463	3,518,004	8,387,461	529,900	750,574
1923	217,566,091	10,904,658	3,043,910	9,012,627	504,860	785,668
1924	206,189,911	15,267,544	3,213,574	9,499,877	479,760	799,230
1925	205,726,856	17,739,736	3,414,205	11,174,567	500,760	895,061
1926	213,154,399	11,830,190	3,034,356	8,656,213	422,560	741,045
1927	220,500,720	12,961,744	3,364,965	9,104,621	477,500	714,441
1928	226,804,544	16,679,098	3,793,828	10,309,662	514,960	804,271

Year.	Exports of New Zealand Produce.
	Butter.		Cheese.		Gold.
	Quantity.	Value.	Quantity.	Value.	Quantity.	Value.
	Cwt.	£	Cwt.	£	Oz.	£
1879	339	1,631	172	628	284,100	1,134,641
1880	2,717	8,350	717	1,983	303,215	1,220,263
1881	2,426	8,496	3,056	6,112	250,683	996,867
1882	11,264	52,088	3,553	10,130	230,893	921,664
1883	8,869	42,020	2,519	6,892	222,899	892,445
1884	15,766	66,593	10,342	25,074	246,392	988,953
1885	24,923	102,387	15,245	35,742	222,732	890,056
1886	23,175	105,537	16,429	45,657	235,578	939,648
1887	17,018	54,921	23,913	54,562	187,938	747,878
1888	29,995	118,252	36,682	78,918	229,608	914,309
1889	37,955	146,840	26,558	67,105	197,492	785,490
1890	34,816	122,701	40,451	84,986	187,641	751,360
1891	39,430	150,258	39,770	86,675	251,161	1,007,172
1892	53,930	227,162	41,493	91,042	237,393	951,963
1893	58,149	254,645	46,201	99,626	227,502	915,921
1894	60,771	251,280	55,655	115,203	221,614	887,865
1895	57,964	227,601	76,743	150,909	293,493	1,162,181
1896	71,353	281,716	71,372	130,166	263,694	1,041,428
1897	99,002	402,605	77,683	150,517	251,647	980,204
1898	96,801	403,690	68,711	135,776	280,175	1,080,691
1899	136,086	571,799	69,440	141,818	389,570	1,513,180
1900	172,583	740,620	102,849	229,111	373,614	1,439,602
1901	201,591	882,406	104,294	238,685	455,558	1,753,784
1902	253,998	1,205,802	74,746	163,539	507,852	1,951,426
1903	285,106	1,318,067	74,780	194,998	533,314	2,037,832
1904	314,360	1,380,460	84,526	185,486	520,323	1,987,501
1905	305,722	1,408,557	88,562	205,171	520,485	2,093,936
1906	320,225	1,560,235	131,206	341,002	563,843	2,270,904
1907	328,441	1,615,345	236,833	662,355	508,210	2,027,490
1908	229,971	1,171,182	280,798	783,419	506,381	2,004,799
1909	321,108	1,639,380	400,607	1,105,390	506,371	2,006,900
1910	356,535	1,811,975	451,915	1,195,373	478,286	1,896,318
1911	302,387	1,576,917	439,174	1,192,057	454,837	1,815,251
1912	378,117	2,088,809	577,070	1,680,393	343,163	1,345,131
1913	372,258	2,061,651	611,663	1,770,297	376,161	1,459,499
1914	434,067	2,338,576	863,776	2,564,125	227,954	895,367
1915	420,144	2,700,625	817,258	2,730,211	422,825	1,694,553
1916	358,632	2,632,293	949,416	3,514,310	292,620	1,199,212
1917	254,397	2,031,551	885,743	3,949,251	218,624	903,888
1918	431,023	3,402,223	883,430	4,087,278	11,987	42,391
1919	345,818	3,080,128	1,572,311	7,790,990	320,207	1,334,405
1920	312,009	3,022,335	1,222,050	6,160,840	212,973	883,748
1921	898,478	11,169,530	1,368,786	8,199,183	149,595	612,168
1922	1,120,200	9,041,554	1,161,196	4,686,850	131,848	540,182
1923	1,250,140	10,689,200	1,441,460	6,870,397	169,512	698,583
1924	1,269,455	11,641,668	1,594,486	7,023,297	133,631	551,788
1925	1,245,324	10,240,132	1,376,754	5,800,808	114,696	472,364
1926	1,168,040	8,695,188	1,461,548	5,939,359	125,777	516,207
1927	1,455,539	10,915,233	1,492,792	5,582,546	130,171	534,639
1928	1,449,570	11,302,667	1,567,272	6,693,951	118,722	489,584

Year.	Exports of New Zealand Produce.
	Kauri-gum.		Phormium Fibre.		Timber (sawn and hewn).
	Quantity.	Value.	Quantity.	Value.	Quantity.	Value.
	Tons.	£	Tons.	£	Sup. ft.	£
1879	3,228	147,535	445	7,874	5,103,189	24,025
1880	4,725	242,817	894	15,617	7,611,576	40,321
1881	5,460	253,778	1,308	26,285	13,180,280	65,119
1882	5,533	260,369	2,040	41,955	16,486,901	94,493
1883	6,518	336,606	2,013	36,761	23,783,521	124,898
1884	6,393	342,151	1,525	23,475	24,767,156	128,924
1885	5,876	299,762	1,063	16,316	28,439,013	141,355
1886	4,920	257,653	1,112	15,922	29,349,789	127,905
1887	6,790	362,434	1,578	25,094	30,919,464	127,108
1888	8,482	380,933	4,042	75,269	43,474,434	177,877
1889	7,519	329,590	17,084	361,182	42,568,600	176,608
1890	7,438	378,563	21,158	381,789	42,098,863	181,689
1891	8,388	437,056	15,809	281,514	42,824,365	182,431
1892	8,705	517,678	12,793	214,542	22,860,551	87,581
1893	8,317	510,775	12,587	219,375	26,718,046	101,082
1894	8,338	404,567	4,677	66,256	31,901,415	116,116
1895	7,425	418,766	1,806	21,040	38,297,905	141,892
1896	7,123	431,323	2,968	32,985	34,984,414	133,511
1897	6,641	398,010	2,769	30,674	39,326,396	154,169
1898	9,905	586,767	4,850	74,556	40,721,632	164,723
1899	11,116	607,919	10,371	184,411	50,425,741	196,749
1900	10,159	622,293	15,906	332,182	57,517,085	232,174
1901	7,541	446,114	10,171	195,728	71,822,369	294,699
1902	7,430	450,223	20,852	534,031	49,251,549	208,005
1903	9,357	631,102	22,652	595,684	57,097,990	240,713
1904	9,203	501,817	26,936	710,281	60,326,992	254,021
1905	10,883	561,444	27,877	696,467	75,370,136	318,895
1906	9,154	522,486	27,779	776,106	75,528,899	304,941
1907	8,708	579,888	28,547	832,068	72,154,417	311,862
1908	5,530	372,798	17,403	396,288	84,554,414	375,235
1909	8,250	552,698	14,318	306,973	71,599,318	337,740
1910	8,693	465,044	20,645	448,414	81,940,062	407,658
1911	7,587	395,707	17,366	300,209	86,309,570	439,353
1912	7,908	401,305	18,641	376,264	94,454,491	490,508
1913	8,780	549,106	28,092	721,924	63,469,105	319,055
1914	8,473	497,444	19,702	455,214	83,342,949	422,864
1915	4,575	279,133	23,220	571,621	76,797,161	383,883
1916	5,456	339,882	27,674	1,001,725	71,503,154	381,488
1917	4,594	291,917	23,516	1,197,396	71,338,174	408,121
1918	2,419	157,313	25,167	1,387,763	74,932,815	556,309
1919	4,128	255,812	22,347	866,930	49,726,670	439,935
1920	6,481	556,756	18,949	647,545	69,664,014	697,608
1921	3,901	367,197	9,643	293,775	45,902,627	503,785
1922	6,391	563,270	9,727	265,080	44,186,848	479,447
1923	6,598	596,222	10,612	284,897	47,570,490	473,752
1924	5,262	443,576	12,982	388,887	42,928,726	472,120
1925	5,370	414,901	16,408	516,466	49,204,676	573,882
1926	4,877	332,765	17,238	526,311	40,465,221	475,627
1927	4,674	278,632	16,189	473,221	37,147,798	425,453
1928	4,394	240,139	12,932	352,152	34,970,773	376,967

INDEBTEDNESS OF GENERAL GOVERNMENT.

As at 31st March.	Amount of Debentures and Stock in Circulation.	Gross Indebtedness per Head of Population.			Amount of Sinking Fund accrued.	Net Indebtedness.	Net Indebtedness per Head of Population.
*In 1925–26 the sinking funds accrued were, with certain exceptions, transferred to the Public Debt Redemption Fund.
	£	£	s.	d.	£	£	£	s.	d.
1880	23,958,311	47	4	6	1,805,231	22,153,080	43	13	4
1881	28,185,711	52	19	2	1,077,442	27,108,269	50	18	8
1882	28,479,111	51	17	5	1,163,518	27,315,593	49	15	0
1883	29,445,011	51	19	3	1,305,523	28,139,488	49	13	2
1884	31,071,582	52	10	1	1,434,949	29,636,633	50	1	7
1885	32,195,422	52	10	1	1,531,884	30,663,538	50	0	1
1886	33,880,722	54	11	11	1,617,166	32,263,556	51	19	10
1887	35,741,653	56	5	1	1,427,199	34,314,454	54	0	2
1888	36,758,437	56	16	5	1,344,427	35,414,010	54	14	10
1889	38,375,050	58	16	11	1,390,915	36,984,135	56	14	3
1890	38,667,950	58	3	2	1,386,186	37,281,764	56	1	6
1891	38,830,350	58	1	7	1,487,042	37,343,308	55	17	1
1892	38,713,068	56	19	6	1,037,862	37,675,206	55	9	0
1893	39,257,840	56	4	7	1,113,770	38,144,070	54	12	8
1894	39,826,415	55	8	3	951,924	38,874,491	54	1	9
1895	40,386,964	55	4	3	751,932	39,635,032	54	3	9
1896	43,050,780	57	18	3	778,891	42,271,889	56	17	4
1897	44,366,618	58	11	5	814,294	43,552,324	57	9	11
1898	44,963,424	58	5	6	881,903	44,081,521	57	2	8
1899	46,938,006	59	13	7	857,279	46,080,727	58	11	9
1900	47,874,452	59	19	2	944,375	46,930,077	58	15	6
1901	49,591,245	60	15	8	1,033,494	48,557,751	59	10	4
1902	52,966,447	63	11	6	1,128,816	51,837,631	62	4	5
1903	55,899,019	65	3	0	1,357,739	54,541,280	63	11	4
1904	57,522,215	65	4	3	1,500,687	56,021,528	63	10	2
1905	59,912,000	65	19	7	1,650,718	58,261,282	64	3	3
1906	62,191,040	66	13	0	1,661,519	60,529,521	64	17	4
1907	64,179,040	66	14	10	2,042,068	62,136,972	64	12	4
1908	66,453,897	67	8	11	1,268,361	65,185,536	66	3	2
1909	70,938,534	69	16	4	1,479,224	69,459,310	68	7	3
1910	74,890,645	72	6	10	1,503,225	73,387,420	70	17	10
1911	81,078,122	76	15	3	1,754,486	79,323,636	75	2	0
1912	84,353,913	78	0	3	2,160,603	82,193,310	76	0	3
1913	90,060,763	81	0	5	2,603,642	87,457,121	78	13	7
1914	99,730,427	87	10	2	3,063,992	91,689,835	80	9	1
1915	100,059,910	86	19	7	3,178,055	96,644,455	84	0	3
1916	109,637,397	95	6	4	3,679,964	105,957,433	92	2	4
1917	129,836,105	112	16	2	4,263,590	125,572,515	109	2	1
1918	150,840,055	130	12	11	4,971,605	145,868,450	126	6	10
1919	176,076,260	149	8	5	5,951,056	170,125,204	144	7	5
1920	201,170,755	162	12	9	7,257,564	193,913,191	156	15	5
1921	206,324,319	162	15	7	8,763,072	197,561,222	155	17	4
1922	219,054,385	168	6	10	10,655,394	208,241,121	160	0	8
1923	218,953,324	165	4	2	11,879,256	207,024,048	156	4	2
1924	221,616,361	164	8	5	12,974,028	208,595,743	154	15	3
1925	227,814,647	165	2	11	13,462,839	214,287,128	155	6	9
1926	238,855,478	169	8	6	2,274,262^*	236,581,216	167	16	3
1927	245,850,889	170	19	5	2,443,540	243,407,349	169	5	5
1928	251,396,252	172	19	2	2,635,766	248,740,736	171	2	7
1929	264,191,983	179	12	10	2,156,561	256,652,371	174	10	4

REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE OF GENERAL GOVERNMENT.

Year ended 31st March.	Consolidated Fund.				Public Works Fund.
	Receipts.			Payments.	Receipts.	Payments.
	From Taxation.	From other Sources.	Total.	Total.	Receipts.	Payments.
* Nine months. † Commencing with 1925–26 railway revenue and expenditure, and with 1928–29 post and telegraph revenue and expenditure, are removed from the transactions of the Consolidated Fund. Revenue of the Consolidated Fund, however, now includes interest In respect of railway and post and telegraph capital liability, while the expenditure for the years 1926–26 to 1928–29 covers payment to the Working. Railways Account in respect of losses on non-paying branch lines and isolated sections.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1880^*	1,447,717	1,687,188	3,134,905	3,845,035	3,632	2,244,428
1881	1,755,414	1,529,628	3,285,042	4,019,851	1,841	1,527,807
1882	1,890,679	1,866,814	3,757,493	3,675,797	15,211	826,790
1883	1,956,557	1,960,603	3,917,160	3,824,736	1,004,898	897,037
1884	1,957,080	1,914,187	3,871,267	3,924,005	945,776	1,409,589
1885	1,815,674	2,139,514	3,955,188	4,101,318	2,504,113	1,336,727
1886	2,016,730	2,080,266	4,096,996	4,282,901	198,867	1,475,386
1887	1,882,050	1,946,412	3,828,462	4,310,875	1,499,500	1,333,484
1888	1,876,235	1,845,444	3,721,679	4,212,474	500,000	966,159
1889	2,031,658	2,341,357	4,373,015	4,226,112	1,503,000	613,939
1890	2,090,405	2,176,714	4,267,119	4,256,921	83,142	482,464
1891	2,173,985	2,322,043	4,496,028	4,369,566	4,262	334,756
1892	2,179,739	2,248,791	4,428,530	4,417,843	216,533	391,501
1893	2,339,511	2,330,040	4,669,551	4,324,990	215,765	462,506
1894	2,353,250	2,339,213	4,692,463	4,455,116	418,323	406,797
1895	2,300,350	2,147,549	4,447,899	4,352,185	353,000	504,486
1896	2,335,760	2,220,255	4,556,015	4,370,481	162,272	575,087
1897	2,521,911	2,276,797	4,798,708	4,509,981	540,275	601,343
1898	2,678,576	2,400,654	5,079,230	4,602,372	759,673	865,543
1899	2,707,099	2,551,129	5,258,228	4,858,511	935,691	916,327
1900	2,891,126	2,808,492	5,699,618	5,140,127	1,062,116	993,223
1901	3,042,890	2,864,026	5,906,916	5,479,704	1,401,788	1,309,021
1902	3,113,079	3,039,760	6,152,839	5,914,915	2,364,796	2,143,252
1903	3,277,964	3,169,471	6,447,435	6,214,019	1,398,950	1,514,445
1904	3,649,601	3,480,516	7,130,117	6,434,281	1,875,614	1,796,841
1905	3,754,379	3,592,818	7,347,197	6,635,902	1,908,683	1,354,158
1906	3,841,596	3,808,502	7,650,098	7,122,340	1,555,768	1,811,819
1907	4,264,555	4,214,401	8,478,956	7,774,926	1,918,081	2,168,894
1908	4,645,754	4,418,235	9,063,989	8,213,965	1,846,054	2,109,882
1909	4,377,761	4,623,424	9,001,185	8,785,513	3,628,270	3,363,895
1910	4,180,516	5,058,401	9,238,917	8,990,922	2,093,697	2,216,397
1911	4,837,322	5,459,951	10,297,273	9,343,106	3,396,648	2,058,691
1912	5,296,590	5,764,571	11,061,161	10,34O,368	1,256,456	2,340,380
1913	5,606,829	6,127,442	11,734,271	11,082,038	3,300,729	2,548,918
1914	5,918,034	6,311,627	12,229,661	11,825,864	3,478,751	2,760,798
1915	5,880,811	6,571,134	12,451,945	12,379,803	2,224,491	2,737,364
1916	7,266,966	7,240,564	14,507,530	12,943,107	3,187,154	2,583,212
1917	10,549,654	7,805,540	18,355,194	14,058,770	1,105,837	1,775,513
1918	12,340,853	7,865,369	20,206,222	15,120,288	1,091,195	1,401,837
1919	13,801,643	8,550,729	22,352,372	18,673,599	1,240,680	1,387,661
1920	16,251,769	9,829,571	26,081,340	23,781,524	2,243,389	2,232,815
1921	22,184,414	12,075,847	34,260,261	28,068,730	5,012,156	3,658,240
1922	16,370,516	11,756,491	28,127,007	28,466,838	9,792,916	6,875,636
1923	15,594,288	11,985,155	27,579,443	26,263,760	3,968,565	4,729,679
1924	16,416,870	11,543,500	27,960,370	26,148,005	4,275,914	4,658,272
1925	16,172,306	12,470,694	28,643,000	27,399,200	4,833,280	5,482,069
1926^†	16,978,496	7,747,266	24,725,762	23,570,083	5,956,878	5,874,313
1927	16,899,556	8,043,551	24,943,107	24,355,965	5,931,170	5,505,897
1928	16,848,754	8,275,226	25,123,980	24,944,905	5,464,225	5,212,032
1929^†	17,832,033	5,767,643	23,599,676	24,176,928	9,028,994	5,696,161

LOCAL BODIES.

Year ended 31st March.	Receipts.				Payments.	Total Gross Indebtedness.
	Revenue.		Other Receipts.	Total.
	From Rates.	From other Sources.	Other Receipts.	Total.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1879	34,988	1,127,038	..	1,362,026	1,630,869	1,259,415
1880	266,938	989,256	..	1,256,194	1,601,691	1,597,204
1881	249,087	814,142	889,705	1,952,934	1,871,752	3,039,807
1882	297,328	694,652	419,608	1,411,588	1,637,337	3,277,584
1883	327,128	600,450	311,466	1,239,044	1,397,863	3,540,046
1884	398,659	744,527	331,994	1,475,180	1,499,117	4,039,769
1885	401,393	841,895	430,561	1,673,849	1,653,706	4,436,309
1886	410,639	882,618	514,728	1,807,985	1,644,706	5,086,044
1887	434,237	790,063	992,633	2,216,933	1,885,001	5,825,683
1888	433,832	795,067	511,594	1,740,493	1,819,787	6,015,354
1889	445,929	676,428	316,139	1,438,496	1,560,605	6,164,901
1890	460,303	707,725	206,688	1,374,716	1,476,540	6,316,716
1891	463,581	662,765	236,902	1,363,248	1,381,320	6,427,473
1892	488,824	693,296	214,124	1,396,244	1,400,467	6,550,183
1893	508,157	709,676	340,538	1,558,371	1,482,548	6,750,698
1894	551,412	681,831	623,038	1,856,281	1,589,124	7,253,072
1895	581,868	683,857	328,798	1,594,523	1,584,518	7,422,306
1896	592,903	738,146	269,145	1,600,194	1,627,079	7,547,511
1897	598,526	765,047	246,919	1,610,492	1,636,716	7,675,814
1898	644,552	790,602	304,645	1,739,799	1,733,016	7,783,445
1899	685,769	820,727	385,368	1,891,864	1,778,574	7,995,400
1900	714,151	848,032	372,028	1,934,211	1,960,073	8,149,272
1901	734,023	919,831	825,039	2,478,893	2,250,572	8,785,303
1902	800,471	1,019,024	775,432	2,594,927	2,528,092	9,245,364
1903	846,716	1,053,582	966,087	2,866,385	2,867,506	9,886,676
1904	950,150	1,206,069	1,142,595	3,298,814	3,230,712	10,756,062
1905	1,019,431	1,255,222	1,350,631	3,625,264	3,497,321	12,056,736
1906	1,151,219	1,392,148	1,326,597	3,869,964	3,601,506	12,873,165
1907	1,233,049	1,579,391	1,227,473	4,039,913	3,897,515	13,903,153
1908	1,356,257	1,750,665	1,410,994	4,517,916	4,491,113	14,931,351
1909	1,390,698	1,934,122	1,440,746	4,765,566	4,800,711	15,920,757
1910	1,526,317	1,934,034	2,362,171	5,822,522	4,898,482	17,809,917
1911	1,592,601	2,171,725	1,776,958	5,541,284	5,360,261	19,104,571
1912	1,677,877	2,298,934	2,425,258	6,402,069	6,074,372	20,763,486
1913	1,799,299	2,531,686	2,383,123	6,714,108	6,537,769	22,183,427
1914	2,005,638	2,719,112	2,411,575	7,136,325	6,796,314	23,773,429
1915	2,140,086	2,861,297	2,595,706	7,597,089	6,806,567	24,538,721
1916	2,355,155	2,967,645	2,469,275	7,792,075	6,920,736	26,045,312
1917	2,534,539	3,243,942	1,411,422	7,189,903	6,758,593	26,799,586
1918	2,674,541	3,283,749	1,250,047	7,208,337	7,103,073	27,653,681
1919	2,939,606	3,452,071	942,780	7,334,457	7,320,277	28,074,950
1920	3,144,213	4,486,582	3,329,003	10,959,798	10,883,586	30,187,942
1921	3,549,590	5,336,374	3,429,662	12,315,626	12,761,690	32,104,957
1922	3,779,895	6,074,782	5,486,912	15,341,589	15,091,875	36,745,089
1923	4,277,781	6,243,951	7,399,674	17,921,406	15,695,507	43,191,184
1924	1,445,627	6,704,144	5,685,107	16,834,878	16,520,950	46,537,833
1925	4,668,884	7,512,080	7,613,399	19,794,363	19,422,833	53,353,466
1926	5,039,645	8,333,921	7,505,702	20,879,268	20,915,645	59,419,754
1927	5,311,260	8,954,685	6,680,176	20,946,121	21,747,557	64,012,247
1928	5,615,672	9,786,271	5,667,651	21,069,594	22,423,167	66,404,172

LOCAL BODIES.—LOAN INDEBTEDNESS.

As at 31st March.	Counties.	Boroughs.	Harbour Boards.	Electric power Districts.	Other.	Total.
NOTE.—Loans from Government—i.e., Inscribed Debt and Advances from State Advances Office—have not been included.
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1879	..	1,259,415	..	..	..	1,259,415
1880	..	1,597,304	..	..	..	1,597,304
1881	..	1,844 007	1,195,800	..	..	3,039,807
1882	..	1,940,684	1,336,900	..	..	3,277,584
1883	7,800	1,958,546	1,508,900	..	64,800	3 540 046
1884	8,110	2,107,300	1,575,200	..	271,720	3,962,330
1885	7,800	2,156,455	1,872 100	..	276,868	4,313,223
1886	3,510	2,257,775	2,414 945	..	275,280	4,951,510
1887	8,700	2,452,585	2,887 700	..	271,762	5,690,747
1888	14,282	2,527,353	3,006,900	..	264 268	5,812,803
1889	23,523	2,534,556	3,057 118	..	276 853	5,892,050
1890	8,505	2,541,453	3,155,600	..	272,501	6,978,059
1891	8,010	2,540,390	3,226,000	..	268,293	6,042 693
1892	9,660	2,539,445	3,276,300	..	256,529	6,081,934
1893	11,660	2,567,095	3,369,410	..	255,704	6,203,869
1894	11,010	2,738,184	3,610,450	..	255,180	6 614,824
1895	10,510	2,757,395	3,652,350	..	265,255	6 685 516
1896	10,510	2,777,495	3,686,959	..	262,614	6,737, 578
1897	10,510	2,817,378	3,703 561	..	261,949	6,793,398
1898	11,710	2,834,306	3,723,380	..	264,965	6,834,361
1899	10,500	2,881,567	3,804,187	..	267,000	6 963,254
1900	6,900	2,939,025	3,845,881	..	265,544	7 057 350
1901	6,714	3,251,817	4,035 331	..	269,207	7,663,069
1902	6,714	3,435,884	4,123 631	..	273 466	7,839,695
1903	6,614	3,655,436	4,256,481	..	298,665	8,217,196
1904	6,214	4,226,800	4,308 851	..	357,045	8,898,910
1905	7,800	4,863,986	4,382,551	..	763,905	10,018,242
1906	15,228	5,314,173	4,554,151	..	834,499	10,718,051
1907	31,678	5,920,305	4,676,551	..	987,514	11,616,048
1908	37,138	6,540,071	4,877,676	..	1,077,449	12,532,334
1909	56,534	7,016,926	5,052,845	..	1,177,317	13,303,622
1910	76,877	7,687,209	5,788,400	..	1,385,199	14,937,685
1911	99,038	8,159,986	6,001,650	..	1,466,939	15,727,613
1912	122,418	8,507,486	6,235 978	..	1,724,995	16,690,877
1913	121,911	9,084,205	6,371,636	..	1,905,580	17,483,332
1914	183,936	10,083,810	6,608,700	..	2,047,036	18,923,482
1915	247,394	10,206,353	6,869,500	..	2,121,928	19,445,475
1916	265,091	11,086,719	7,014,390	..	2,387,968	20,754,168
1917	286,679	11,606,485	7,151,743	..	2,387,860	21,432,767
1818	421,214	12,150,384	7,268,993	..	2,419,946	22,260,537
1919	537,415	12,365,958	7,301,143	..	2,469,196	22,260,537
1920	752,176	13,944,507	7,377,142	..	2,534,468	24,608,293
1921	1,046,378	14,575 825	7,528,288	147,750	2,534,468	26,186,960
1922	1,328,297	16,282,960	8,110,911	1,480,000	3,064,036	30,266,204
1923	1,802,633	19,501,988	8,437,987	3,052,300	1,284,474	36,079,382
1924	1,870,078	19,819,497	9,020,188	4,740,865	3,659,372	39,110,000
1925	2,332,461	23,483,057	9,600,203	6,514,757	3,790,316	45,720,794
1926	3,054,131	25,607,439	9,845,766	8,745,755	4,473,806	51,726,897
1927	3,658,238	27,662,027	10,113,441	10,113,400	4,865,653	56,412,759
1928	3,882,471	29,277,772	10,335,699	10,175,364	5,277,722	58,949,028

BANKS OF ISSUE (AVERAGE OF FOUR QUARTERS).

Year.	Assets.			Liabilities.
Year.	Advances.	Coin and Bullion.	Total (including other Items).	Notes in Circulation.	Deposits.	Total (including other Items).
	£	£	£	£	£	£
1879	13,145,185	1,915,574	16,054,295	950,425	8,021,073	9,057,463
1880	11,228,865	2,166,578	14,220,275	918,297	8,538,935	9,550,177
1881	11,888,669	2,045,915	14,863,645	916,269	9,069,377	10,083,188
1882	14,265,567	1,900,203	17,162,234	971,386	8,945,346	10,015,273
1883	14,821,780	1,881,675	17,794,761	968,520	8,659,477	9,706,700
1884	14,947,091	2,023,088	18,442,139	971,903	9,643,214	10,691,599
1885	15,470,275	2,101,784	18,811,567	968,481	10,083,296	11,130,244
1886	15,834,877	2,177,544	19,041,827	943,075	10,579,711	11,603,194
1887	15,310,050	2,342,052	18,799,847	896,517	11,031,614	11,995,495
1888	15,041,897	2,319,325	18,709,444	873,045	11,155,778	12,108,353
1889	14,272,481	2,217,833	17,652,915	879,440	11,528,424	12,486,717
1890	13,996,086	2,536,529	17,735,259	903,010	12,368,610	13,356,598
1891	11,448,745	2,405,099	16,814,518	937,309	12,796,098	13,820,458
1892	12,128,065	2,450,712	17,558,168	959,943	13,587,062	14,623,335
1893	12,688,303	2,627,367	18,255,534	973,894	14,433,777	15,489,633
1894	11,897,740	2,896,562	17,746,421	901,526	13,927,217	14,930,791
1895	11,600,080	3,310,943	18,159,781	897,919	13,544,415	14,491,627
1896	10,972,226	3,308,392	16,900,199	946,366	14,490,827	15,520,431
1897	10,020,640	3,093,295	17,276,771	1,009,038	14,290,512	15,380,248
1898	10,564,266	2,791,081	17,013,404	1,070,133	14,143,229	15,299,058
1899	10,954,435	2,675,361	17,190,433	1,163,759	14,591,223	15,834,858
1900	11,343,411	2,739,197	17,314,535	1,299,825	15,570,610	16,964,582
1901	12,148,335	2,996,345	18,422,274	1,361,355	16,034,848	17,490,035
1902	12,747,773	3,201,824	18,999,180	1,375,788	17,231,768	18,701,063
1903	13,435,993	3,608,941	19,913,546	1,450,267	19,011,114	20,563,879
1904	14,651,198	3,896,195	20,893,096	1,468,161	19,074,960	20,643,359
1905	15,496,395	4,006,108	21,770,525	1,468,977	20,545,601	22,144,166
1906	16,649,329	4,593,954	23,829,933	1,574,254	22,422,243	24,143,008
1907	18,514,045	4,836,718	26,584,239	1,644,645	23,517,111	25,334,348
1908	21,172,808	4,840,942	29,098,567	1,615,109	21,821,753	23,611,903
1909	19,078,032	4,947,096	26,937,265	1,577,558	21,996,621	23,728,326
1910	18,439,999	5,035,764	26,398,927	1,626,094	24,968,761	26,742,081
1911	21,259,727	5,195,333	29,433,614	1,677,842	26,765,122	28,625,803
1912	22,907,656	5,338,295	31,196,400	1,714,667	25,622,083	27,508,348
1913	22,902,298	5,204,266	30,708,932	1,674,333	25,733,187	27,591,099
1914	24,250,246	5,712,751	32,502,312	1,998,388	27,640,507	29,808,349
1915	23,638,970	6,781,006	33,209,483	2,846,275	31,433,653	34,448,270
1916	24,911,706	7,393,917	37,015,486	4,049,529	37,757,917	41,977,619
1917	28,847,749	8,072,279	44,979,615	5,410,957	42,930,713	48,541,961
1918	31,711,350	8,085,961	48,570,126	6,266,768	45,562,939	52,048,732
1919	31,717,720	8,017,159	48,615,209	7,087,545	50,489,444	57,861,393
1920	38,241,932	7,728,942	56,111,433	7,890,418	59,405,341	67,818,469
1921	50,607,541	7,660,532	68,701,282	7,569,319	49,397,411	58,808,439
1922	44,768,178	7,822,562	61,779,570	7,019,220	45,913,394	53,868,834
1923	43,322,242	7,900,594	59,641,235	6,593,068	49,039,482	56,204,292
1924	44,559,661	7,816,145	61,325,865	6,587,546	49,502,499	57,131,235
1925	45,298,955	7,722,917	62,128,808	6,775,470	52,207,202	60,219,697
1926	49,149,260	7,797,319	65,765,297	6,730,421	50,135,114	58,008,161
1927	50,032,203	7,874,971	66,626,676	6,510,018	48,294,096	56,321,397
1928	46,179,463	7,511,833	62,819,485	6,374,043	53,799,221	61,850,595

POST OFFICE SAVINGS-BANK.

Year.	Number of Depositors at end of Year.	Total Amount of Deposits during Year.	Total Amount of Withdrawals during Year.	Excess of Deposits over Withdrawals.	Interest Credited to Depositors.	Total Amount to Credit of Depositors.
* Fifteen months, 1st January, 1920, to 31st March, 1921. † Year ended 31st March following. ‡ Excess of withdrawals over deposits.
		£	£	£	£	£
1879	34,747	812,400	876,181	−63,781^‡	31,716	787,006
1880	38,667	864,442	780,505	83,937	32,823	903,766
1881	51,008	1,189,012	902,195	286,817	42,205	1,232,788
1882	57,517	1,325,852	1,142,599	183,253	54,910	1,470,951
1883	61,936	1,178,474	1,295,720	−117,246^‡	56,047	1,409,752
1884	65,717	1,227,910	1,195,931	31,979	57,382	1,499,112
1885	69,957	1,341,001	1,264,305	76,696	62,228	1,638,036
1886	74,871	1,248,405	1,336,287	−87,882^‡	65,825	1,615,979
1887	79,724	1,312,151	1,182,409	129,742	67,364	1,813,085
1888	84,488	1,544,747	1,387,471	157,276	78,080	2,048,442
1889	90,745	1,515,282	1,457,081	58,201	84,810	2,191,452
1890	97,208	1,658,543	1,500,437	158,106	92,319	2,441,876
1891	104,467	1,842,988	1,693,515	149,473	104,099	2,695,448
1892	112,528	1,878,270	1,821,349	56,921	111,302	2,863,671
1893	122,684	2,386,090	2,122,522	263,568	114,760	3,241,998
1894	129,423	2,252,862	2,268,624	−15,762^‡	114,643	3,340,880
1895	137,683	2,794,507	2,369,333	425,174	129,490	3,895,543
1896	147,758	2,881,153	2,591,559	289,594	126,498	4,311,635
1897	159,331	3,187,219	2,891,169	296,050	137,240	4,744,925
1898	169,968	3,279,611	3,194,894	84,717	128,129	4,957,771
1899	183,046	3,644,980	3,417,299	227,681	134,918	5,320,371
1900	197,408	4,170,429	3,827,416	343,013	146,169	5,809,552
1901	212,436	4,611,456	4,230,193	381,263	159,198	6,350,013
1902	227,465	5,069,619	4,708,772	360,847	172,926	6,883,787
1903	243,675	5,661,593	5,343,828	317,765	187,130	7,388,682
1904	259,164	5,836,540	5,664,770	171,770	200,930	7,761,382
1905	276,066	6,625,744	5,984,185	641,559	259,081	8,662,023
1906	298,746	7,907,155	6,907,104	1,000,051	291,192	9,953,266
1907	319,773	9,351,664	8,125,123	1,226,541	343,424	11,523,231
1908	342,077	9,674,075	9,417,820	256,255	379,808	12,159,294
1909	359,714	9,611,120	9,499,320	111,800	395,804	12,666,898
1910	380,585	10,708,939	9,695,515	1,013,424	424,668	14,104,990
1911	405,566	11,627,368	10,662,046	965,322	472,875	15,543,187
1912	432,199	11,725,183	11,449,711	275,472	511,599	16,330,257
1913	458,594	11,286,702	11,041,454	245,248	555,908	17,131,414
1914	483,262	11,904,323	10,603,018	1,301,305	615,310	19,048,029
1915	509,085	13,706,057	11,294,973	2,411,084	707,252	22,166,365
1916	538,072	15,576,408	12,957,420	2,618,988	817,856	25,603,209
1917	566,351	17,106,529	14,461,169	2,645,360	947,821	29,196,390
1918	590,205	18,101,105	14,938,842	3,162,263	1,059,472	33,418,125
1919	630,783	29,758,447	25,962,377	3,796,070	1,178,935	38,393,130
1920^*	664,819	44,302,852	41,162,486	3,140,366	1,818,535	43,352,031
1921^†	678,930	29,125,997	30,236,231	−1,110,234^‡	1,599,907	43,841,704
1922^†	690,790	26,682,427	27,769,263	−1,086,836^‡	1,605,525	44,360,393
1923^†	710,157	29,598,372	29,510,321	88,051	1,649,976	46,098,421
1924^†	735,148	29,582,897	30,413,609	−830,712^‡	1,680,920	46,948,628
1925^†	758,155	31,833,622	32,602,506	−768,884^‡	1,731,578	47,911,322
1926^†	783,827	29,456,383	30,149,629	−693,246^‡	1,767,426	48,985,502
1927^†	804,725	27,611,066	30,584,997	−2,973,931^‡	1,747,156	47,758,726
1928^†	828,296	27,252,382	28,111,941	859,559^‡	1,745,050	48,644,217

POSTAL.

Year.	Letters posted and delivered.	Newspapers posted and delivered.	Money-orders issued.		Postal Notes issued.^‡		Postal Revenue.^‡
Year.	Letters posted and delivered.	Newspapers posted and delivered.	Number.	Amount.	Number.	Amount.	Postal Revenue.^‡
* Received and despatched. † Counted once only. ‡ Year ended 31st March following.
				£		£	£
1879	20,957,818^*	10,057,944^*	117,999	428,673	..	..	141,448
1880	22,824,468^*	10,272,917^*	135,048	465,405	..	..	149,517
1881	25,557,931^*	12,248,043^*	135,556	452,182	..	..	156,579
1882	30,525,579^*	13,313,099^*	148,162	499,368	..	..	168,325
1883	33,588,408^*	13,030,563^*	172,556	541,133	..	..	172,665
1884	35,257,846^*	14,093,742^*	186,052	572,666	..	..	188,772
1885	35,829,855^*	14,233,878^*	188,622	581,395	16,442	6,771	197,456
1886	38,084,592^*	14,324,047^*	155,680	547,755	92,546	37,019	206,029
1887	39,377,774^*	15,381,323^*	159,579	555,744	122,255	46,973	213,355
1888	40,398,020^*	16,202,849^*	162,387	555,996	149,879	55,785	212,247
1889	42,301,233^*	16,721,016^*	172,076	589,545	175,023	64,244	222,978
1890	43,917,200^*	17,912,734^*	176,427	602,077	189,915	68,395	229,867
1891	47,612,864^*	18,501,912^*	195,239	651,990	220,683	77,808	245,395
1892	50,610,742^*	18,557,565^*	199,438	694,847	247,902	86,176	252,494
1893	52,085,449^*	19,556,030^*	210,957	750,929	285,389	99,073	253,457
1894	52,168,336^*	19,271,590^*	222,678	776,783	319,368	110,142	254,800
1895	29,586,949^†	12,675,973^†	243,497	812,604	349,627	120,957	242,615
1896	30,442,053^†	13,216,521^†	269,566	902,160	376,796	126,448	262,482
1897	33,030,095^†	14,261,345^†	293,659	970,831	409,866	131,643	272,163
1898	35,654,947^†	15,095,487^†	318,370	1,029,241	431,449	137,085	304,947
1899	38,484,371^†	15,717,388^†	344,664	1,118,808	461,447	144,631	325,301
1900	39,898,479^†	17,045,715^†	369,834	1,214,853	490,506	151,180	316,858
1901	52,567,560^†	18,973,632^†	405,967	1,286,508	556,316	169,527	281,097
1902	57,714,631^†	18,517,276^†	367,207	1,277,059	616,264	187,709	302,604
1903	61,687,457^†	19,696,434^†	396,312	1,416,225	707,044	215,275	343,207
1904	66,501,434^†	21,500,744^†	407,783	1,476,887	785,347	244,719	383,243
1905	71,116,261^†	23,626,362^†	417,441	1,541,712	875,324	270,300	410,967
1906	79,084,566^†	23,716,431^†	439,020	1,686,231	981,642	307,323	438,729
1907	159,680,654	38,862,863	441,487	1,773,591	1,092,631	340,436	478,388
1908	175,440,111	41,358,913	488,084	2,050,684	1,222,280	383,472	544,642
1909	186,926,337	42,561,641	538,740	2,307,593	1,414,752	441,099	566,990
1910	196,768,968	42,305,554	569,657	2,457,523	1,666,959	517,315	603,150
1911	205,450,627	43,801,719	607,764	2,759,393	1,821,566	566,650	613,252
1912	214,184,119	43,460,016	666,425	3,231,350	1,970,643	627,443	644,637
1913	223,961,200	43,572,759	690,745	3,357,774	2,238,842	711,518	695,136
1914	233,901,320	43,779,983	691,518	3,427,505	2,314,327	714,683	698,898
1915	242,547,859	41,311,535	664,860	3,471,818	2,370,079	712,753	858,583
1916	242,121,361	41,807,999	669,355	3,607,087	2,286,463	685,708	964,793
1917	245,796,945	40,366,792	642,683	3,476,645	2,166,597	628,920	976,027
1918	242,527,369	35,476,212	638,500	3,649,371	2,091,051	610,591	983,585
1919	247,143,183	35,498,263	690,291	4,604,059	2,197,520	646,411	1,068,489
1920	259,743,234	37,859,247	699,674	5,276,776	2,280,219	691,201	1,352,677
1921	253,767,131	38,680,982	669,383	4,850,820	2,377,622	723,254	1,499,304
1922	239,997,081	35,635,219	659,943	4,278,529	2,434,506	730,232	1,378,421
1923	252,021,959	38,138,697	684,979	4,390,159	2,652,777	786,146	1,146,588
1924	272,311,925	41,602,497	731,511	4,692,929	2,846,333	840,559	1,257,942
1925	294,630,760	44,717,406	766,689	4,977,230	3,040,722	902,119	1,320,277
1926	298,617,089	45,364,274	793,110	5,033,127	3,329,638	965,270	1,400,886
1927	297,478,294	47,089,652	803,535	4,995,090	3,614,217	1,015,213	1,439,587
1928	298,548,364	48,257,194	807,885	4,977,522	3,575,984	1,057,624	1,441,794

GOVERNMENT RAILWAYS.

Year ended 31st March.	Miles Open for Traffic.	Capital Cost of Open Lines.	Train-mileage.	Passengers carried, excluding Season-ticket Holders.	Goods and Live-stock.^*	Revenue.^†	Expenditure^†
* Equivalent tonnage of live-stock. † From 1925–26, figures relate to railway operation only.
		£			Tons.	£	£
1880	1,171	8,460,210	2,640,898	2,967,090	1,128,671	762,572	580,016
1881	1,288	9,228,334	2,396,765	2,849,561	1,398,087	836,454	521,957
1882	1,333	9,443,000	2,502,804	2,911,477	1,460,145	892,026	523,099
1883	1,371	10,478,997	2,785,685	3,283,378	1,590,989	953,347	592,821
1884	1,404	11,251,633	2,841,745	3,272,644	1,726,471	961,304	655,990
1885	1,479	11,810,194	2,882,422	3,232,886	1,778,140	1,045,712	690,026
1886	1,613	12,472,814	3,020,550	3,362,266	1,856,733	1,047,418	690,340
1887	1,721	13,017,567	3,008,949	3,426,403	1,783,524	998,768	699,072
1888	1,753	13,352,978	2,944,786	3,451,850	1,770,638	994,843	687,328
1889	1,777	13,472,837	2,796,007	3,132,803	1,954,126	997,615	647,045
1890	1,809	13,899,955	2,868,203	3,376,459	2,112,734	1,095,569	682,787
1891	1,842	14,278,586	2,894,776	3,433,629	2,134,023	1,121,701	700,703
1892	1,869	14,656,691	3,010,489	3,555,764	2,122,987	1,115,432	706,517
1893	1,886	14,733,120	3,002,174	3,759,044	2,258,235	1,181,522	732,142
1894	1,948	15,137,036	3,113,231	3,972,701	2,128,709	1,172,792	735,359
1895	1,993	15,352,613	3,221,620	3,905,578	2,123,343	1,150,851	732,160
1896	2,014	15,425,532	3,307,226	4,162,426	2,175,943	1,183,041	751,368
1897	2,018	15,577,392	3,409,218	4,439,387	2,461,127	1,286,158	789,054
1898	2,055	15,993,903	3,666,483	4,672,264	2,628,746	1,376,008	857,191
1899	2,090	16,404,076	3,968,708	4,955,553	2,744,441	1,469,665	929,737
1900	2,104	16,703,887	4,187,893	5,468,284	3,251,716	1,623,891	1,052,358
1901	2,212	17,207,328	4,620,971	6,243,593	3,461,331	1,727,236	1,127,848
1902	2,235	18,170,722	5,066,360	7,353,136	3,667,039	1,874,586	1,252,237
1903	2,291	19,081,735	5,443,333	7,575,390	3,918,261	1,974,038	1,343,415
1904	2,328	20,692,911	5,685,399	8,306,383	4,259,217	2,180,641	1,438,724
1905	2,374	21,701,572	6,107,079	8,514,112	4,185,467	2,209,231	1,492,900
1906	2,407	22,498,972	6,413,573	8,826,382	4,415,166	2,349,704	1,621,239
1907	2,458	23,504,272	6,755,454	9,600,786	4,824,563	2,624,600	1,812,482
1908	2,474	24,365,647	7,051,274	9,756,716	5,070,176	2,761,938	1,949,759
1909	2,674	27,762,592	7,458,236	10,457,144	5,135,408	2,929,526	2,114,815
1910	2,717	28,513,476	7,389,166	11,141,142	5,490,018	3,249,790	2,169,474
1911	2,753	29,606,546	8,141,075	11,200,613	5,863,674	3,494,182	2,303,272
1912	2,798	30,506,089	8,371,687	11,891,134	5,887,908	3,676,509	2,465,896
1913	2,851	31,611,220	9,016,224	13,123,879	6,246,128	3,971,002	2,705,609
1914	2,854	32,355,087	9,319,268	13,355,893	6,019,633	4,043,328	2,880,323
1915	2,945	34,133,825	9,383,420	13,565,772	6,453,472	4,105,457	2,920,455
1916	2,960	34,857,882	9,356,522	14,201,506	6,370,945	4,548,356	2,910,883
1917	2,960	35,378,664	9,146,331	14,173,115	6,239,173	4,800,810	2,926,864
1918	2,983	36,001,432	7,468,646	11,408,156	5,742,968	4,687,700	3,042,907
1919	2,983	36,167,681	7,477,583	11,374,521	5,611,738	4,988,632	3,308,575
1920	2,996	36,390,115	7,408,608	12,760,814	6,900,279	5,752,487	4,105,067
1921	3,009	37,235,254	9,303,392	15,315,640	6,487,279	6,908,531	5,636,601
1922	3,021	39,309,097	8,717,265	14,262,440	6,321,351	6,643,591	6,237,727
1923	3,028	40,275,161	8,346,731	14,256,610	6,618,588	6,727,802	5,502,497
1924	3,053	41,399,427	9,024,503	13,836,311	6,925,517	6,984,211	5,403,766
1925	3,085	44,570,746	9,083,623	12,424,012	7,033,459	7,524	5,545,416
1926	3,138	47,608,676	10,319,407	11,813,480	7,256,142	7,589,274	6,164,570
1927	3,164	49,183,916	10,723,864	10,305,065	7,308,449	7,423,472	6,158,283
1928	3,180	51,187,376	10,838,594	9,299,157	7,366,762	7,343,845	6,302,119
1929	3,287	56,568,598	11,113,482	9,074,993	7,622,631	7,524,864	6,374,579

BANKRUPTCY.

Year.	Number of Bankruptcies.	Debtors' Statements of Assets, excluding Amounts secured to Creditors.	Amount realized by Official Assignees.	Amount of Debts proved.	Amount paid in Dividends and Preferential Claims.
* Not available.
		£	£	£	£
1879	1,836	2,113,945	^*	^*	^*
1880	1,483	1,198,270	^*	^*	^*
1881	1,412	717,381	^*	^*	^*
1882	1,333	803,072	^*	^*	^*
1883	1,656	1,320,943	^*	^*	^*
1884	846	801,150	112,539	481,222	44,118
1885	984	297,306	109,862	332,887	94,188
1886	1,089	415,953	128,370	566,291	102,966
1887	1,036	311,745	135,633	503,759	109,255
1888	881	252,322	98,213	571,741	79,843
1889	724	441,874	187,048	755,165	95,032
1890	652	262,733	112,951	381,124	122,276
1891	605	141,971	84,341	30,712	72,572
1892	507	122,050	66,497	238,953	43,662
1893	484	111,483	68,844	464,274	37,721
1894	626	187,785	85,538	310,078	70,889
1895	485	133,603	88,684	239,562	70,018
1896	412	115,455	71,712	256,870	37,492
1897	419	73,466	40,942	133,345	45,015
1898	407	90,068	45,474	285,155	30,994
1899	389	59,435	34,269	158,932	30,084
1900	304	77,689	53,415	141,800	37,411
1901	222	58,658	49,781	84,452	30,358
1902	205	61,604	39,386	110,995	29,406
1903	204	46,767	23,761	88,019	17,618
1904	257	86,094	43,514	125,392	28,103
1905	304	100,813	47,798	146,332	28,150
1906	347	106,376	50,761	192,927	35,448
1907	350	77,698	59,849	158,663	42,459
1908	406	200,447	67,018	199,069	47,800
1909	471	204,187	71,351	259,017	44,110
1910	393	127,634	79,100	176,001	47,796
1911	344	88,592	40,009	133,517	28,757
1912	312	64,398	39,965	120,325	26,825
1913	343	155,582	42,735	228,829	25,813
1914	391	174,410	64,153	199,251	33,910
1915	294	92,876	63,310	153,926	42,374
1916	304	123,441	56,416	172,774	29,223
1917	265′	138,696	63,645	178,244	27,405
1918	164	50,356	67,729	88,607	33,176
1919	141	43,627	54,662	59,767	24,980
1920	145	44,026	47,897	77,752	45,227
1921	336	362,601	78,271	558,504	38,646
1922	690	344,861	126,145	834,356	63,009
1923	674	368,673	124,641	668,925	65,667
1924	670	279,602	118,641	703,995	74,878
1925	653	235,377	98,648	471,028	80,187
1926	752	236,916	102,899	585,687	71,515
1927	867	331,363	108,850	679,473	72,388
1928	806	236,264	116,613	767,327	68,763

Appendix A. APPENDICES.

Table of Contents

(a) LATEST STATISTICAL INFORMATION.

(b) PRINCIPAL EVENTS.

CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF SOME OF THE PRINCIPAL EVENTS IN THE HISTORY OF NEW ZEALAND.

(d) LIST OF ARTICLES ON SPECIAL SUBJECTS APPEARING IN PREVIOUS ISSUES OF THE YEAR-BOOK.

(a) LATEST STATISTICAL INFORMATION.

POPULATION:—

Estimated (inclusive of Maoris but exclusive of residents of Cook and other Pacific islands) at 30th September, 1929	Males.	Females.	Total.
	752,256	722,109	1,474,365

MIGRATION:—	Males.	Females.	Total.
Arrivals (excluding crews), ten months, 1929	13,880	11,287	25,167
Departures (excluding crews), ten months, 1929	14,646	12,717	27,363

VITAL STATISTICS:—	Males.	Females.	Total.
Births, nine months, 1929	10,189	9,893	20,082
Deaths, nine months, 1929	5,173	4,023	9,196
Corresponding yearly rates per 1,000	Births, 10.10; deaths, 8.68

EXPORTS:—	£
Total for ten months, 1929	48,134,089
Total, New Zealand produce, ten months, 1929	46,832,426

Principal items (New Zealand produce)—		Quantity.	Value, £
Butter	cwt.	1,214,489	9,745,790
Cheese	cwt.	1,380,417	5,517,825
Beef, frozen	cwt.	314,830	510,392
Lamb, whole carcasses, frozen	cwt.	1,793,913	6,601,744
Mutton, whole carcasses, frozen	cwt.	836,113	1,707,574
Pork, frozen	cwt.	149,774	477,278
Sausage-casings	lb.	3,448,767	609,895
Milk, dried	lb.	9,459,759	225,392
Apples	lb.	37,869,047	542,483
Hides, cattle and horse	number	257,416	410,416
Rabbit-skins	number	8,073,754	324,134
Sheep-skins, with wool	number	906,003	323,051
Sheep-skins, without wool	number	8,366,137	1,393,004
Wool	bales	630,529	14,355,645
Phormium-fibre	tons	10,500	291,743
Tallow	tons	19,300	644,530
Kauri-gum	tons	4,235	220,978
Gold	oz.	109,061	448,397
Timber	sup. ft.	31,691,563	358,080

IMPORTS:—	Value, £
Total for ten months, 1929	40,764,226
Principal imports—
Sugar	661,073
Tea	818,371
Whisky	454,412
Cigarettes	494,493
Tobacco	614,847
Apparel	2,045,027
Boots, shoes, and slippers	900,752
Hosiery	419,693
Carpeting, matting, and oilcloth	527,481
Drapery n.e.i.	374,809
Cotton piece-goods	1,664,349
Silk, satin, and velvet piece-goods	1,054,681
Woollen piece-goods	663,124
Bags and sacks	400,100
Crude residual oil	310,107
Motor-spirit n.e.i.	1,817,224
Coal	232,202
Hardware and metal manufactures, n.e.i.	727,904
Iron and steel—Galvanized plate and sheet	548,895
Iron and steel—Tubes, pipes, and fittings	445,326
Electrical machinery and equipment	1,285,061
Timber	622,124
Paper, printing	485,734
Paper, other	465,493
Phosphates	581,042
Motor-vehicles	3,640,635
Rubber-tires, &c., for motor-vehicles	940,108

SHIPPING, OVERSEAS:—	Number.	Tonnage.
Inwards, ten months, 1929	536	1,925,687
Outwards, ten months, 1929	534	1,937,967

RAILWAYS:—	£
Operating revenue, 1st April to 12th October, 1929	3,763,056
Operating Expenditure, 1st April to 12th October, 1929	3,636,126

AGRICULTURE:—
Areas sown or intended to be sown, season 1929–30—	Acres.
Wheat	234,500
Oats	275,000
Barley	20,500
Potatoes	22,600

MORTGAGES:—	Number.	Amount, £
Registered, seven months ended October, 1929	26,147	25,112,361
Discharged, seven months ended October, 1929	21,054	18,649,834

LAND TRANSFERS:—
Registrations, seven months ended October, 1929—	Number.	Consideration, £
Town and suburban properties	14,636	9,751,583
Country properties	5,350	10,018,305
Total	19,986	19,769,888

TELEGRAPHIC BUSINESS:—	Number.	Revenue, £
Ordinary telegrams, six months ended September, 1929	2,657,495	135,964
Urgent ordinary telegrams, six months ended September, 1929	104,888	10,628
Night letter-telegrams, six months ended September, 1929	199,545	8,892
Press telegrams, six months ended September, 1929	278,549	36,217
Toll communications, six months ended September, 1929	5,464,413	229,919
Total	8,704,890	421,620

MONEY-ORDER AND POSTAL-NOTE BUSINESS:—	Number.	Amount, £
Money-orders issued, six months ended September, 1929	408,488	2,531,829
Money-orders paid, six months ended September, 1929	350,160	2,356,657
Postal-notes issued, six months ended September, 1929	1,946,150	573,031
Postal-notes paid, six months ended September, 1929	1,908,894	548,440

PENSIONS:-	Number.	Annual Value, £
Old-age, October, 1929	26,516	1,108,369
Widows', October, 1929	4,387	327,051
Military, October, 1929	229	11,221
War, October, 1929	20,718	1,163,315
Miners', October, 1929	768	48,883
Epidemic, October, 1929	174	7,430
Blind, October, 1929	296	14,208
Family allowances, October, 1929	3,885	59,246

BANKRUPTCY:—	North Island.	South Island.	Total.
Persons, &c., adjudged bankrupt, ten months ended October, 1929	389	173	562
Deeds of assignment, ten months ended October, 1929	103	42	145

STATE ADVANCES (LOANS AUTHORIZED):—	Number.	Amount, £
To settlers, six months ended September, 1929	1,839	2,279,210
To workers, six months ended September, 1929	2,649	2,284,475

ESTATES CERTIFIED FOR STAMP DUTY:—	Number.	Amount, £
Ten months ended October, 1929	4,711	16,000,907

CONSOLIDATED FUND:—	£
Receipts, six months ended September, 1929	10,169,347
Expenditure, six months ended September, 1929	11,846,300

LOANS OF LOCAL BODIES:—
Amount raised, six months ended September, 1929:—	£
Counties	107,115
Boroughs	1,225,128
Electric-power Boards	235,450
Harbour Boards	210,700
Others	187,438
Total	1,965,831

RETAIL PRICES, ALL GROUPS:—
Dominion index number (base: Year, 1914 = 1,000), August, 1929	1,605

WAGE RATES:—
Dominion index number (base: Year, 1914 = 1,000), June quarter, 1929	1,654

INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES:—
Number reported during nine months ended September, 1929	39
Number of workers affected	4,911
Approximate loss in wages	£12,034

(b) PRINCIPAL EVENTS.

CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF SOME OF THE PRINCIPAL EVENTS IN THE HISTORY OF NEW ZEALAND.

1642. Discovery of New Zealand by Tasman.

1769. Captain Cook's first visit to New Zealand.

1788. Discovery of Macaulay and Curtis Islands (Kermadec Group), and of Bounty Islands.

1791. Discovery of Snares and Chatham Islands.

1792. First sealing gang left on New Zealand coast.

1793. Discovery of Raoul or Sunday Island (Kermadec Group). Visit of Lieutenant-Governor King, of Norfolk Island, to Doubtless Bay.

1800. Discovery of Antipodes Islands.

1806. Discovery of Auckland Islands.

1807. Defeat of Hongi and the Ngapuhi Tribe.

1810. Discovery of Campbell Island.

1814. Arrival of Rev. Samuel Marsden, and introduction of Christianity. Horses, cattle, sheep, and poultry first brought to New Zealand.

1818. Hongi's and Te Morenga's great expedition to East Cape.

1819–20. Raid on Taranaki and Port Nicholson by Patuone, Nene, and Te Rauparaha.

1820. Hongi's visit to England. Rev. S. Marsden travelled from Waitemata, via Kaipara, to Bay of Islands—the first white man to do so. First vessel entered Auckland Harbour.

1821. Hongi's capture of Mauinaina and Te Totara Pas. Ngati-Toa migration from Kawhia to Otaki.

1822. Fall of Matakitaki Pa, Waikato, to Hongi.

1823. Fall of Mokoia Pa, Rotorua, to Hongi.

1823–28. Jurisdiction of Courts of Justice in New South Wales extended to British subjects in New Zealand.

1824. Fall of To Whetumatarau Pa to Pomare.

1825. First attempt at colonization by an expedition under Captain Herd. Great defeat of Ngati-Whatau by Hongi.

1827. Hongi's forces destroyed mission station at Whangaroa.

1828. Death of Hongi.

1829. Brig “Hawes” captured by Maoris.

1830. Battles of Taumata-wiwi and Kororareka. Fall of Kaiapohia Pa, Canterbury, to Te Rauparaha.

1831. Tory Channel whaling-station established. Application of thirteen chiefs for the protection of King William IV. Capture of Pukerangiora Pa, Waitara, by Waikato.

1832. Repulse of Waikato at Nga-motu Pa.

1833. Mr. Busby appointed British Resident at Bay of Islands.

1834. Bishop Williams' first visit to East Cape. Battle near Otaki. Waimato Pa shelled and captured by British—first occasion on which H.M. troops employed in New Zealand.

1835. Declaration of independence of the whole of New Zealand as one nation, with title of “United Tribes of New Zealand.” Ngati-Awa tribes migrated to and conquered Chatham Islands.

1836. Battles between Waikato and Te Arawa.

1838. Pelorus Sound discovered. Arrival of Roman Catholic mission under Bishop Pompallier.

1839. Governor of New South Wales authorized to include within the limits of that colony any territory that might be acquired in sovereignty by Her Majesty in New Zealand. Preliminary expedition of New Zealand Company under Colonel Wakefield arrived at Port Nicholson.

1840. Arrival of New Zealand Company's settlers at Port Nicholson. Treaty of Waitangi signed. British sovereignty proclaimed. Captain Hobson appointed Lieutenant-Governor, with residence at Auckland. Settlements formed at Petre (Wanganui) and Akaroa.

1841. Issue of charter of incorporation of New Zealand Company. New Zealand proclaimed independent of New South Wales. Arrival of Now Plymouth settlers.

1842. Settlement founded at Nelson.

1843. Affray with Natives at the Wairau, and massacre of persons who had surrendered.

1844. Royal flagstaff at Kororareka cut down by Heke.

1845. Destruction of Kororareka by Heke.

1846. Arrival of first steam vessel (H.M.S. “Driver”) in New Zealand waters. Capture of pa at Ruapekapeka and termination of Heke's war. Native hostilities near Wellington. To Rauparaha captured and detained as a prisoner. New Zealand divided into two provinces, New Minister and New Ulster, and representative institutions conferred.

1847. Attack by Maoris on Wanganui.

1848. Suspension of that part of New Zealand Government Act which had conferred representative institutions. Severe earthquake at Wellington. Otago d.

1850. Sur of New Zealand Company's charter, all its interests reverting to the perial Government. Canterbury founded.

1852. Discovery of gold at Coromandel. Constitution Act passed, granting representative institutions to New Zealand, and dividing country into six provinces.

1854. Opening at Auckland of first session of the General Assembly.

1855. First members elected to the House of Representatives under system of responsible Government. Very severe earthquake on both sides of Cook Strait.

1856. Appointment of first Ministry under system of responsible Government.

1857. Goldfield opened at Collingwood.

1858. New Provinces Act passed. Hawke's Bay Province constituted.

1859. Establishment of Marlborough Province.

1860. Hostilities in Waitara district.

1861. Truce arranged with Waitara Maoris. Bank of New Zealand incorporated. Southland Province established. Gold discovered at Gabriel's Gully, Otago.

1862. Coromandel proclaimed a goldfield. Wreck of s.s. “White Swan,” with loss of many public records. First electric-telegraph line opened—Christchurch to Lyttelton.

1863. Wreck of H.M.S. “Orpheus” on Manukau bar, with loss of 181 lives. Control of Native affairs transferred to Colonial Government. Commencement of Waikato War. Defeat of Maoris at Bangiriri, and occupation of Ngaruawahia. First railway in New Zealand opened.

1864. Severe fighting in Waikato and elsewhere, including Battles of Bangiaohia, Orakau, Gate Pa, and Te Ranga. Gold discovered on west coast of South Island.

1865. Seat of Government transferred to Wellington. Further fighting, followed by proclamation of peace. Activities of Haubau fanatics, including murders of Europeans. Rebel Natives defeated at Wairoa.

1866. Further defeats of rebel Natives. Commencement of Panama steam mail-service. Cook Strait submarine telegraph-cable laid.

1867. Opening of Thames Goldfield. Lyttelton Tunnel completed. Admission of four Maori members to House of Representatives as direct representatives of Maori people.

1868. Maori prisoners, under leadership of Te Kooti, seized schooner “Rifleman” and escaped from Chatham Islands to mainland, where they massacred Europeans and were engaged in a series of fights with European forces and friendly Natives. Considerable fighting also with other rebel Natives.

1869. Continuation of fighting with rebels and of pursuit after To Kooti. Termination of Panama mail-service. Visit of H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh. Government Life Insurance Office established.

1870. Further fighting with Te Kooti. Last of Imperial troops left New Zealand. Commencement of San Francisco mail-service. Bounty Island taken possession of. Inauguration of Vogel public-works policy. Act passed to establish the New Zealand University. Southland Province reunited with Otago.

1871. Commencement of railway-construction under public-works policy.

1872. Resumption of friendly relations with Waitara Maoris. Appointment of Maori chiefs (two) to Legislative Council. Public Trust Office created.

1873. Establishment of New Zealand Shipping Company.

1874. In pursuance of immigration and public-works policy, 31,774 assisted immigrants introduced. Westland Province established.

1875. Resumption of amicable relations with Maori King. Establishment of Union Steam Ship Company. Abolition of Provinces Act passed.

1876. New Zealand connected by cable with Australia. Abolition of Provinces Act came into operation, provincial institutions being abolished and the country divided into counties and boroughs.

1877. Education Act passed, providing for free and compulsory education.

1879. Trouble with Parihaka Natives, under Te Whiti, and imprisonment of 180 of these. Triennial Parliaments Act passed. Adult male suffrage introduced. Kaitangata Coal-mine explosion, whereby thirty-four lives lost.

1880. Release of Parihaka prisoners.

1881. Wreck of s.s. “Tararua,” with loss of 130 lives. Severe earthquakes in Wellington. Arrest of Te Whiti and Tohu.

1882. First shipment of frozen meat from New Zealand.

1883. Amnesty to Maori political offenders proclaimed. Te Whiti and Tohu released. Direct steam communication inaugurated between New Zealand and England.

1885. New Zealand Industrial Exhibition at Wellington.

1886. Tarawera eruption, involving loss of 101 lives and destruction of Pink and White Terraces.

1887. Annexation of Kermadec Islands. Members of House of Representatives reduced to seventy-four, including four Maoris. Australian Naval Defence Act passed, providing for additional naval force on the Australian Station.

1888. British protectorate over Cook Islands proclaimed.

1889. South Seas Exhibition at Dunedin.

1890. Great maritime strike. First election of House of Representatives under one-man-one-vote principle.

1891. Inauguration of Liberal regime under Hon. John Ballance, succeeded on his death in 1893 by Mr. Seddon. This and following years marked by passage of industrial and social legislation.

1892. Introduction of lease-in-perpetuity system of land-tenure.

1893. Franchise extended to women. Special licensing poll introduced.

1894. Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act passed. Government Advances to Settlers Act passed. Wreck of s.s. “Wairarapa,” with loss of 135 lives. First ascent of Mount Cook.

1895. Government assumed management of Midland Railway.

1896. Brunner Mine explosion, causing sixty-seven deaths. Abolition of non-residential or property qualification to vote. Government Valuation of Land Act passed.

1898. Old-age Pensions Act passed.

1899. Labour Day instituted. New Zealand Contingent (the first of ten) sent to South Africa.

1900. Number of European representatives in Lower House increased to seventy-six.

1901. T.R.H. the Duke and Duchess of York visited New Zealand. Universal penny postage adopted by New Zealand. Cook and other Pacific islands annexed.

1902. Pacific cable opened. Wreck of s.s. “Elingamite” with loss of forty-three lives. Conference of colonial Premiers in London, at which New Zealand was represented by Right Hon. R. J. Seddon.

1903. Empire Day proclaimed. State Fire Insurance Act passed.

1904. New Zealand rifle team competed at Bisley, and won Kolapore Cup.

1905. Workers' Dwellings Act passed. Title of New Zealand's representative in London altered to “High Commissioner.” “All Black” Rugby football team visited United Kingdom, winning all matches but one.

1906. Death of Right Hon. R. J. Seddon, Premier since 1893. Government Advances to Workers Act passed. New Zealand International Exhibition at Christ-church.

1907. New Zealand constituted a Dominion. Lease-in-perpetuity system of land-tenure abolished. Parliament Buildings destroyed by fire.

1908. Through railway communication established between Wellington and Auckland. Wellington-Manawatu Railway purchased by Government. American Fleet visited Auckland. New Zealand's subsidy to British Navy increased to £100,000 per annum. Second Ballot Act passed.

1909. S.s. “Penguin” wrecked in Cook Strait, with loss of seventy-five lives. Battle-cruiser presented by New Zealand to Imperial Government. System of compulsory military training introduced.

1910. Field-Marshal Lord Kitchener's visit to New Zealand to report and advise on defences. Public Debt Extinction Act, National Provident Fund Act, and Workers' Dwellings Act passed.

1911. Wireless telegraphy installed in New Zealand. Widows' Pensions Act passed. First poll on national prohibition taken.

1912. Foundation-stone of new Parliament Buildings laid. Public Service placed under Commissioner control.

1913. Visit of Dominions Royal Commission. Visit of gift ship H.M.S.. “New Zealand” to Dominion. Aeroplane presented to New Zealand as nucleus of proposed air fleet. Extensive strikes. Second Ballot Act repealed.

1914. Western Samoa occupied by New Zealand Advance Expeditionary Force. Main Expeditionary Force left for Egypt. Huntly coal-mine disaster, whereby forty-three lives lost.

1915. New Zealand Expeditionary Force engaged in operations on Gallipoli Peninsula. National Cabinet formed. National register of men compiled.

1916. New Zealand Division transferred to western front, where it took part in heavy fighting during this and two following years, Mounted Brigade being retained in Egypt, and being later engaged in successful advance into Palestine. Compulsory enrolment of men for war service introduced. Lake Coleridge electric-supply scheme opened.

1918. S.s. “Wimmera” sunk by enemy mine off New Zealand coast. Otira Tunnel pierced. Great influenza epidemic, causing over five thousand deaths.

1919. Visit of French mission under General Pau. Second visit of H.M.S. “New Zealand,” bringing Admiral of the Fleet Viscount Jellicoe of Scapa. Women made eligible for seats in Parliament. Dissolution of National Ministry. New Zealand represented at Peace Conference by Right Hon. W. F. Massey, P.C., Prime Minister.

1920. Visit of H.R.H. the Prince of Wales. Railway strike. First aeroplane flight over Cook Strait. League of Nations gave New Zealand mandate to administer Western Samoa. Anzac Day constituted a national holiday.

1921. Samoa Act passed, making provision for “peace, order, and good government” of Western Samoa in terms of mandate. New Zealand represented at Disarmament Conference, Washington, by Hon. Sir John Salmond.

1922. Earth tremors over period of several weeks in Taupo district. British Empire Exhibition Mission visited New Zealand. Anzac Day made observable in all respects as if it were a Sunday. Meat-export trade placed under control of a Board. Enrolment of volunteers in view of possible outbreak of war with Turkey.

1923. Seventeen lives lost in railway accident at Ongarue. Opening of Arthur's Pass tunnel. Ross Dependency proclaimed and placed under jurisdiction of Governor-General of New Zealand. Highway districts created. Reintroduction of penny postage. Dairy-produce Export Control Act passed, and adopted by dairy producers.

1924. Visit of Special Service Squadron to New Zealand. “All Black” Rugby football team visited Great Britain and Ireland. New Zealand took part in British Empire Exhibition at Wembley. Railway strike. Direct two-way radio communication effected between New Zealand and England. Motor-vehicles Act passed, providing for registration and annual licensing of motor-vehicles. Land Transfer (Compulsory Registration of Titles) Act passed, bringing under Land Transfer Act all land hitherto alienated in fee-simple and not already under Land Transfer Act. Visit of a party of Samoan faipules to New Zealand.

1925. Death of Right Hon. W. F. Massey, Prime Minister sines 1912. Visit of American Fleet to New Zealand. Social Hygiene Regulations made, to provide means of coping with spread of venereal disease. Repayment of the Public Debt Act passed. Strike of seamen on British vessels trading to-New Zealand. New Zealand and South Seas International Exhibition at Dunedin.

1926. Administration of Tokelau (Union) Islands transferred to New Zealand. Webster claims against New Zealand finally rejected. Visit of Indian Army hockey team to New Zealand. Absolute control adopted by Dairy-produce Control Board. Family Allowances Act passed.

1927. Visit of T.R.H. the Duke and Duchess of York. New Zealand cricket team toured England. Summer Time Act passed. Limited control substituted for absolute control by Dairy-produce Control Board. Petrol-tax imposed. Royal Commission investigated certain matters in connection with Western Samoa. Visit of Right Hon. L. S. Amery, Secretary of State for Dominions.

1928. National Industrial Conference, held. Loss of Moncrieff and Hood in attempt to fly across Tasman. Kingsford Smith and party made first successful flight across Tasman in monoplane “Southern Cross.” “All Black” Rugby football team visited South Africa. Mandates Commission of League of Nations vindicated actions of Samoan administration. Compulsory insurance of motor-vehicles provided for by Motor-vehicles Insurance (Third-party Risks) Act. Commander Byrd's Antarctic Expedition arrived, en route for Ross Sea. Coates Ministry defeated, and succeeded by United Ministry under Right Hon. Sir J. G. Ward.

1929. Severe earthquakes at Arthur's Pass (March), in Rangitikei (May), and in Murchison—Karamea district (June), the last mentioned causing sixteen deaths and being the most disastrous ever experienced in New Zealand. Report by three officers of New Zealand Government on Samoan finance, public services, &c. Daylight saving (half-hour) permanently adopted for summer months.

(c) BIBLIOGRAPHY.

The following list, containing the names of some of the principal works dealing with New Zealand, Samoa, and the Cook Islands, dots not purport to be a complete list, owing mainly to considerations of space. The year of publication is given in each case, and the list is arranged as far as possible in chronological order of issue.

NEW ZEALAND.

1807. New Zealand. By Dr. Savage. London—J. Murray.

1817. Voyage to New Zealand. By John L. Nicholas. London—Black.

1823. Journal of Ten Months' Residence in New Zealand. By Captain Cruise. London—Longmans. (Reprinted by Brett Printing and Publishing Co., Auckland, 1921.)

1830. The New - Zealanders (Library of Entertaining Knowledge). London—Chas. Knight.

1832. Nine Months' Residence in New Zealand. By Augustus Earle. London—Longmans.

1836. Two Visits to New Zealand. By W. B. Marshall. London—Nisbet and Co.

1840. Manners and Customs of the New-Zealanders. By J. S. Polack. London—Madden and Co.

1843. Travels in New Zealand. By E. Dieffenbach. London—Murray.

1845. Adventure in New Zealand. By Edward Jerningham Wakefield. 2 vols. London—John Murray. (Reprinted by Whitcombe and Tombs, Wellington, 1908.)

1846. The New-Zealanders. (Fine coloured illustrations.) By G. F. Angus. London—Thomas McLean.

1855. Te-Ika-a-Maui, or New Zealand and its Inhabitants. By Rev. Richard Taylor. London—Wertheim and Macintosh. (Second edition, enlarged, 1870).

1856. Traditions and Superstitions of the New-Zealanders. By Edward Shortland. London—Longmans.

1859. New Zealand and its Colonization. By William Swainson, formerly Attorney-General for New Zealand. London—Smith, Elder, and Co.

1859. Story of New Zealand. By Dr. Thomson. London—John Murray.

1863. Old New Zealand. By Judge Maning. Auckland—Creighton and Scales.

1864. The Maori King, or the Story of our Quarrel with the Natives of New Zealand. By J. E. Gorst, M.A. London—Macmillan and Co.

1874. Life of Henry Williams. By Hugh Carleton. Auckland—Upton.

1878. Forty Years in New Zealand. By Rev. J. Buller. London—Hodder and Stoughton.

1879. Reminiscences of the War in New Zealand. By T. W. Gudgeon. London—Sampson Low.

1879. George Augustus Selwyn. By Rev. H. W. Tucker. London—W. W. Gardner.

1885. Polynesian Mythology and Maori Legends. By Sir G. Grey.

1889. Ancient History of the Maori. By John White. London.

1890. Early History of New Zealand. By R. A. Sherrin and J. H. Wallace. Edited by Thomson W. Leys. (Brett's Historical Series.) Auckland—Brett.

1893. Captain Cook's Journal during his First Voyage round the World. Edited by Captain W. J. L. Wharton, R.N. London—Elliot Stock.

1895. History of New Zealand. By G. W. Rusden. Melbourne—Melville, Mullen, and Slade.

1896. The Art Workmanship of the Maori Race in New Zealand. By Augustus Hamilton. Dunedin—Fergusson and Mitchell.

1896. Journal of Sir Joseph Banks. Edited by Sir Joseph D. Hooker. London—Macmillan and Co.

1896. Moko, or Maori Tattooing. By Major-General Robley. London—Chapman and Hall.

1897. New Zealand Rulers and Statesmen (1844–97). By W. Gisborne. London.

1898. Abel Janszoon Tasman's Journal of his Discovery of Van Diemen's Land and New Zealand in 1642, &c. By J. E. Heeres. Amsterdam—F. Mueller and Co.

1898. Contributions to the Early History of New Zealand. By T. M. Hocken. London.

1899. History of New Zealand. 2v. (1896–99). By Alfred Saunders. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs; Smith, Anthony, Sellars, and Co.

1900. Old Marlborough. By T. L. Buick. Palmerston North—Hart and Keeling.

1901. Newest England. By H. D. Lloyd. London.

1902. The Progress of New Zealand in the Century. By R. F. Irvine and O. T. J. Alpers. London.

1902. State Experiments in Australia and New Zealand. By W. P. Reeves. London—Grant Richards.

1902. The Last Maori War in New Zealand. By Major-General Sir George S. Whitmore, K.C.M.G., M.L.C. London—Sampson, Low, Marston, and Co.

1903. Old Manawatu. By T. L. Buick. Palmerston North—Buick and Young.

1904. Wars of the Northern against the Southern Tribes of New Zealand in the Nineteenth Century. By S. Percy Smith, F.R.G.S. Wellington—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd. (Second and enlarged edition in 1910.)

1905. The Maori Race. By E. Tregear. Wanganui—A. D. Willis. (Revised edition in 1926.)

1905. The Animals of New Zealand. An Account of the Colony's Air-breathing Vertebrates. By Captain F. W. Hutton and James Drummond. (Third edition, 1907.) Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1907. Maori Life in Ao-tea. By Johannes C. Andersen. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1907. Maori and Polynesian. By J. M. Brown. London.

1908. State Regulation of Labour and Labour Disputes in New Zealand. By Henry Broadhead. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1908. Bibliography of the Literature relating to New Zealand. By T. M. Hocken. Wellington.

1908. Historical Records of New Zealand. By the Hon. Dr. Robert McNab, Litt.D. Wellington—Government Printer.

1908. New Zealand Revisited. By the Right Hon. Sir John Eldon Gorst. London—Sir Isaac Pitman and Sons, Ltd.

1909. New Zealand in Evolution, Industrial, Economic, and Political. By G. H. Schole-field, with an introduction by W. P. Reeves. London—T. F. Unwin.

1909. Murihiku. A History of the South Island of New Zealand and the Islands Adjacent and Lying to the South, from 1642 to 1835. By the Hon. Dr. Robert McNab, Litt.D. Wellington—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1910. The Maoris of New Zealand. By J. Cowan. Wellington—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1910. The Geology of New Zealand. By James Park. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1910. Maori Patterns, Painted and Carved. By J. H. Menzies. Christchurch—Smith and Anthony.

1910. New Zealand Plants and their Story. By L. Cockayne, Ph.D., F.L.S. (Third edition, 1927.) Wellington—Government Printer.

1910. History and Traditions of the Maoris of the West Coast, North Island of New Zealand. By S. Percy Smith, F.R.G.S. New Plymouth—Polynesian Society.

1910. Birds of the Water, Wood, and Waste. By H. Guthrie-Smith. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1911. Hawaiki: The Original Home of the Maori. By S. Percy Smith, F.R.G.S. Third edition. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1911. State Socialism in New Zealand. By J. E. Le Rossignol and W. Downie Stewart. London—G. G. Harrop and Co.

1911. With the Lost Legion in New Zealand. By Colonel G. Hamilton-Browne. London—T. Werner Laurie.

1911. An Old New-Zealander. By T. Lindsay Buick. London—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1912. Stone Implements of the Maori. By Elsdon Best. (Dominion Museum Bulletin No. 4.) Wellington—Government Printer.

1912. The Geology of New Zealand. By P. Marshall, D.Sc., M.A., F.G.S., F.R.G.S. Wellington—Government Printer.

1913. New Zealand: its History, Commerce, and Industrial Resources. By S. Playne. London.

1913. Social Welfare in New Zealand. By H. H. Lusk. London.

1913. The Lore of the Whare Wananga. Third Volume of Memoirs of Polynesian Society. On Maori Religion, Myths, Cosmogony, &c.

1914. The Constitutional History and Law of New Zealand. By J. Hight, Litt.D., and H. D. Bamford, LL.D. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1914. The Treaty of Waitangi. By T. Lindsay Buick. Wellington—S. and W. Mackay.

1914. Oxford Survey of the British Empire. Vol. 5. Australasian Territories. London.

1914. Early Rangitikei. By Sir James G. Wilson, Kt. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1914. Mutton Birds and Other Birds. By H. Guthrie-Smith. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1916. Jubilee History of South Canterbury. By Johannes C. Andersen. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1916. The “Socialism” of New Zealand. By R. H. Hutchinson. New York—New Review Publishing Association.

1917. A National History of Australia, New Zealand, and the Adjacent Islands. By R. P. Thomson. London.

1917. A Dictionary of the Maori Language. By Herbert L. Williams. Wellington—Government Printer.

1921. Maori and Pakeha: a History of New Zealand. By A. W. Shrimpton, M.A., and A. E. Mulgan. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1921. The Hot Springs of New Zealand. By Arthur Stanley Herbert, M.D. London—H. K. Lewis and Co., Ltd.

1921. Tutira: the Story of a New Zealand Sheep-station. By H. Guthrie-Smith. London—Blackwood and Sons.

1922. The Naturalization of Animals and Plants in New Zealand. By Hon. George M. Thomson, F.L.S., F.N.Z.Inst., M.L.C. Cambridge University Press.

1922. The Geomorphology of New Zealand. By C. A. Cotton, D.Sc., F.G.S., F.N.Z.Inst. Wellington—Government Printer.

1922. Maori Myth and Religion. Spiritual and Mental Concepts of the Maori. Astronomical Knowledge of the Maori. Maori Division of Time. By Elsdon Best, F.N.Z.Inst. Dominion Museum Monographs 1–4. Wellington—Government Printer.

1922. The New Zealand Wars: a History of the Maori Campaigns and the Pioneering Period: Vol. 1, 1845–64. By James Cowan. Wellington—Government Printer. Vol. 2, 1864–72, issued 1923.

1922. Medical Practice in Otago and Southland in the Early Days. By Robert Valpy Fulton, M.D. Edin. Dunedin—Otago Daily Times.

1923. The Waikato War, together with some Account of Te Kooti Rikirangi. By John Featon (new edition revised by Captain Mair). Auckland—Brett Printing and Publishing Co.

1923. Polynesian Voyagers. Maori Schools of Learning. (Dominion Museum Bulletins Nos. 5 and 6.) By Elsdon Best. Wellington—Government Printer.

1923. Cultivation of New Zealand Plants. By L. Cockayne. Auckland—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1924. Dominion Civics. By Miss N. E. Coad. Wellington—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1924. The Maori. By Elsdon Best. Published by the Board of Maori Ethnological Research. 2 vols. Wellington—H. Tombs.

1924. Who's Who in New Zealand and the Western Pacific, 1925. Wellington—Gordon and Gotch.

1924. Maori Religion and Mythology. (Dominion Museum Bulletin No. 10.) By Elsdon Best. Wellington—Government Printer.

1924. The Long White Cloud (Aotearoa). By W. P. Reeves. Third edition (to which is added a sketch of recent events in New Zealand by C. J. Wray). London—Allen and Unwin. (First edition in 1898.)

1924. White Wings (on early shipping). By H. Brett. Auckland—Brett Co.

1925. The Maori as He Was. By Elsdon Best. Wellington—Government Printer.

1925. Bird Life on Island and Shore. By H. Guthrie - Smith Edinburgh—Wm. Blackwood and Sons.

1925. Bibliography of Australasian Poetry and Verse. By P. Serle. Melbourne University Press.

1925. Fungous Diseases of Fruit-trees in New Zealand. By G. H. Cunningham. Auckland—New Zealand Fruitgrowers' Federation.

1925. The Maori Canoe. (Dominion Museum Bulletin No. 7.) By Elsdon Best. Published under the direction of the Board of Maori Ethnological Research. Wellington—Government Printer.

1925. Games and Pastimes of the Maori. (Dominion Museum Bulletin No. 8.) By Elsdon Best. Published under the direction of the Board of Maori Ethnological Research. Wellington—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1925. Maori Agriculture. (Dominion Museum Bulletin No. 9.) By Elsdon Best. Published under the direction of the Board of Maori Ethnological Research. Wellington—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1925. Land Legislation and Settlement in New Zealand. By W. R. Jourdain. Wellington—Lands and Survey Department.

1925. Manual of New Zealand Flora. Edition 2: revised and enlarged. By T. F. Cheeseman, F.L.S., F.Z.S., F.N.Z.Inst., &c. Edited by W. R. B. Ol/r. Wellington—Government Printer.

1925. New Zealand Birds and how to identify them. By Mrs. P. Moncrieff. Auckland—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1925. Short History of New Zealand. By J. B. Condliffe. Christchurch—L. M. Isitt.

1926. Geography of the Pacific. By Miss N. E. Coad. Wellington—New Zealand Book Depot.

1926. History of the Pacific. By Miss N. E. Coad. Wellington—New Zealand Book Depot.

1926. New Zealand: its Political Connection with Great Britain. Vol. 1. By J. I. Hetherington. Dunedin—Coulls, Somerville, Wilkie, Ltd.

1926. Treasury of New Zealand Verse: New Edition of New Zealand Verse. By W. F. Alexander and A. E. Currie. Auckland—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1926. New Zealand's First War. By T. Lindsay Buick. Published under the direction of the Board of Maori Ethnological Research. Wellington—Government Printer.

1926. Bird-song and New Zealand Song-birds. By J. C. Andersen. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1926. Travel in New Zealand. 2 vols. By James Cowan. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1926. The Insects of Australia and New Zealand. By R. J. Tillyard. Sydney—Angus and Robertson.

1926. Tales of the Angler's Eldorado, New Zealand. By Zane Grey. London—Hodder and Stoughton.

1926. England and New Zealand. By J. A. Harrop. London—Methuen and Co., Ltd.

1927. The Pa Maori. (Dominion Museum Bulletin No. 6.) By Elsdon Best. Published under the direction of the Board of Maori Ethnological Research. Wellington—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1927. Plants of New Zealand. By R. M. Laing and E. W. Blackwell. Third edition, revised and enlarged. Christchurch—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1927. Colonization of New Zealand. By J. S. Marais. London—Oxford University Press.

1927. New Zealand. By W. P. Reeves. Illustrations by F. and W. Wright. Second edition, with thirty-two illustrations. London—A. and C. Black. (First edition, 1908.)

1927. Place Names of Banks Peninsula. By J. C. Anderson. Published by the Board of Science and Art. Wellington—Government Printer.

1927. Maori String Figures. By J. C. Andersen. Memoirs of the Board of Maori Ethnological Research, Vol. 2. Wellington—Ferguson and Osborn.

1927. The Evolution of Maori Clothing. By P. H. Buck. The Board of Maori Ethnological Research. New Plymouth—Avery and Sons, Ltd.

1927. Peoples and Problems of the Pacific. By J. Macmillan Brown. London, E.C.—T. Fisher Unwin, Ltd., Bouverie House, Fleet Street.

1927. Earliest New Zealand. The Journals and Correspondence of the Rev. John Butler. Compiled by R. J. Barton. Masterton—Palamontain and Petherick.

1927. Rod-fishing in New Zealand Waters. By T. E. Donne, C.M.G. With illustrations and map. London—Seeley, Service, and Co., Ltd.

1927. Natural History of Canterbury. Issued by the Philosophical Institute of Canterbury (R. Speight, Arnold Wall, and R. M. Laing, Honorary Editors). Christchurch—Simpson and Williams, Ltd.

1927. Trees from Other Lands for Shelter and Timber in New Zealand—Eucalypts. By J. H. Simmonds. Illustrated with seventy-six botanic plates and twenty-eight scenic plates. Auckland—The Brett Printing and Publishing Company.

1928. Cheerful Yesterdays. By the Hon. O. T. J. Alpers. With a Preface by the Earl of Birkenhead, P.C. London—John Murray.

1928. New Zealand Trees and Shrubs. By H. H. Allan, M.A., D.Sc., F.L.S., F.N.Z.Inst. Auckland—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1928. A Pioneer Missionary among the Maoris, 1850–1879. Being Letters and Journals of Thomas Samuel Grace. Edited jointly by S. J. Brittan, G. F., C. W., and A. V. Grace. Palmerston North—G. H. Bennett and Co., Ltd.

1928. The Amazing Career of Edward Gibbon Wakefield. By A. J. Harrop, M.A. (N.Z.), Ph.D. (Canterbury). With extracts from “A Letter from Sydney” (1829). London—George Allen and Unwin, Ltd.

1928. Maori Artistry. By W. Page Rowe. Memoirs of the Board of Maori Ethnological Research. Vol. 3. New Plymouth—Thomas Avery and Sons, Ltd.

1928. The Changing Maori. By Felix M. Keesing, M.A. Memoirs of the Board of Maori Ethnological Research. Vol. 4. New Plymouth—Thomas Avery and Sons, Ltd.

1928. Captain Hobson and the New Zealand Company: A Study in Colonial Administration. By J. C. Beaglehole, M.A. Vol. 13, Nos. 1–3; October, 1927 - April, 1928. Smith College Studies in History, Northampton Mass.—Department of History of Smith College.

1928. Myths and Legends of the Polynesians. By J. C. Andersen. London—Harrap and Co., Ltd.

1928. The French at Akaroa. By T. Lindsay Buick, F.R.Hist.S. Wellington—Government Printer.

1928. Pioneering in Poverty Bay (N.Z.). By Philip T. Kenway. London—John Murray.

1928. Vegetation of New Zealand. By Dr. L. Cockayne, F.R.S., F.N.Z.Inst. Edition 2. (Edition 1 in 1921). Leipzig—Wilhelm Engelmann.

1928. The Butterflies and Moths of New Zealand, with fifty-two coloured plates. By G. V. Hudson, P.E.S., F.N.Z.Inst. Wellington—Ferguson and Osborn, Ltd.

1929. Primitive Economics of the New Zealand Maori. By Raymond Firth, M.A. (New Zealand), Ph.D. (London). London—George Routledge and Sons, Ltd.

1929. Young New Zealand. By A. G. Butchers, M.A., M.Ed. (Melb.), LL.B. (N.Z.). 1929. Early Wellington. Compiled by Louis E. Ward. Wellington—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1929. Te Hekenga. Early Days in Horowhenua. Being the Reminiscences of Mr. Rod McDonald. Compiled and written by E. O'Donnell. Palmerston North—G. H. Bennett and Co., Ltd.

1929. Edward Gibbon Wakefield. By Irma O'Connor. London—Selwyn and Blount.

SAMOA.

1845. Quelques Semaines dans l'Archipel de Samoa. By G. F. de Lurcy. (Extrait du Bulletin de la Société de Geographie.) Paris.

1846. Mission Life in Samoa. By G. A. Lundie. Glasgow—W. Collins.

1872. Report on the Islands of the Samoa Group. By E. Wakeman. Now York—Slote and James.

1875. My Story of Samoan Methodism. By M. Dyson. Melbourne—Ferguson and Moore.

1878. Grammar and Dictionary of the Samoan Language. By G. Pratt. London—Trübner and Co.

1879. Freundschafts-Vertrag zwischen des Deutschen Reiche und der Regierung von Samoa. (Agreement between Germany and Samoa.)

1884. Samoa a Hundred Years Ago and Long Before. By George Turner. London—Macmillan.

1887. My Consular? in Samoa. By W. B. Churchward. London—Bentley and Son.

1889. Iles Samoa. By A. Marques. Lisbon.

1889. Les Iles des Samoa ou des Navigateurs. By A. de Ganniers. Paris.

1893. Kurze Anleitung zum Verständnisz der Samoanisehen Sprache. By B. Funk. Berlin—Mittler und Sohn.

1895. In Stevenson's Samoa. By Marie Fraser. London—Smith and Elder.

1896. Samoanische Texte. By O. Stuebel. Berlin—Mueller.

1897. Old Samoa. By Rev. John B. Stair. London—Religious Tract Society.

1900. Samoa: Das Land, die Leute und die Mission. By G. Kurze. Berlin—M. War-neck.

1902. Samoan Uma. By L. P. Churchill. New York—Forest and Stream Publishing Co.

1902. Samoa. By Dr. F. Reinecke. Berlin—W. Süsaerott.

1902–3. Die Samoa-Inseln. By A. Krämer. Stuttgart.

1910. Beiträge zur Geologic der Samoainseln. By I. Friedlander. München.

1910. Die deutschen Kolonien. By Major A. D. Kurd Schwabe. Berlin—Weller and Hüttich. (Samoa in Vol. 2.)

1918. History of Samoa. By R. M. Watson. Wellington—Whitcombe and Tombs, Ltd.

1918. Grammar and Vocabulary of the Samoan Language. By H. Neffgen. London—Kegan, Paul, Trench, Trubner, and Co.

1925. Handbook of Western Samoa. New Zealand External Affairs Department. Wellington—Government Printer.

1926. A New Samoan Grammar. By Spencer Churchward, M.A. Melbourne—Spectator Publishing Company Proprietary, Ltd.

COOK ISLANDS.

1893. Phrase Book of the Cook Islands. By F. Nicholas. Wellington.

1916. Rarotongan Records. By Rev. W. W. Gill. (From the Journal of the Polynesian Society). New Plymouth.

1927. Material Culture of the Cook Islands. By To Rangi Hiroa (Dr. P. H. Buck). Memoirs of the Board of Maori Ethnological Research. Vol. 2. New Plymouth—Avery and Sons.

ROSS DEPENDENCY.

No book has been written dealing exclusively with the Ross Dependency, but a list of books dealing with this region incidentally may be found in the 1929 number of the Year-book.

(d) LIST OF ARTICLES ON SPECIAL SUBJECTS APPEARING IN PREVIOUS ISSUES OF THE YEAR-BOOK.

Article on	Appeared for the Last or Only Time in the Year-book of
Article on	Year.	Page.
Acclimatization	1,894	430
Agriculture in New Zealand (by M. Murphy, F.L.S.)	1,912	809
“Britomart,” Mission of, at Akaroa in August, 1840	1,927	1,012
Building-stones	1,892	194
Cancer in New Zealand—a statistical study	1,926	889
Chatham Islands, the	1,900	531
Cheviot Estate, the	1,895	264
Christchurch to West Coast, journey from	1,899	548
Coal-deposits of New Zealand, the	1,900	479
Cook Islands, the laws of	1,902	573
Co-operative system of constructing public works	1,894	234
Education system of New Zealand, the	1,925	816
Effect of nativity order on infant mortality	1,925	835
Exotic trees in Canterbury	1,904	569
External trade of New Zealand, the	1,915	858
Forest-trees and the timber industry	1,899	470
Frozen-meat trade, the	1,894	311
Gold-dredging industry, the	1,899	509
Government training-ship “Amokura”	1,913	942
Hanmer Thermal Springs	1,905	631
Hemp industry, the	1,900	477
H.M.S. “New Zealand”	1,913	932
Kauri-gum	1,900	489
Labour in New Zealand	1,894	362
Land and income tax assessment	1,913	884
Laws of England and New Zealand, difference between	1,896	281
Live-stock production—A review based on standard values and units	1,929	990
Local Government in New Zealand	1,925	845
Maori, ancient, his amusements, games, &c.	1,907	707
Maori, ancient, his clothing	1,908	734
Maori, chant (tangi)	1,907	711
Maori, colour-sense of the	1,905	637
Maori, marriage customs	1,906	638
Maori, mythology	1,900	536
Maori, neolithic, the	1,902	578
Maori, place-names	1,919	936
Maori, religion	1,901	530
Maori, sociology	1,903	641
Maori, songs	1,908	739
Marlborough Sounds, the	1,901	517
Midland Railway, the	1,894	386
Mineral waters of New Zealand	1,913	896
Moa, heir of the	1,899	517
Mortality rates, New Zealand	1,927	995
Mount Cook, a night on	1,900	525
Mount Cook, district, the	1,899	554
Mount Cook, its glaciers, and the Hermitage	1,898	552
Mount Sefton, ascent of	1,900	519
New Zealand Contingents for South Africa	1,900	449
New Zealand International Exhibition	1,907	701
Otago lakes, the	1,901	523
Patents, designs, and trade-marks	1,893	350
Pumice-stone deposits of New Zealand	1,900	486
Railways in New Zealand, their history and progress	1,894	377
Scenic wonderland, a	1,898	565
Sheep, crossbreeding of	1,894	308
Sheep-farming	1,894	302
Shipping companies—
New Zealand Shipping Company	1,895	392
Shaw, Savill, and Albion Company	1,895	393
Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand	1,895	389
Southern Alps, the	1,894	474
State farms	1,894	243
Sydney Pageant, the	1,901	527
Terman intelligence tests in New Zealand schools	1,925	823
Thermal-springs district	1,905	614
Timber-trees of the world	1,903	605
Tokaanu to Raetihi	1,899	539
Topographical nomenclature of the Maori	1,919	936
Tree-planting	1,906	611
Tuhoeland	1,899	546
Varieties of soil	1,892	193
Wages and working-hours in New Zealand	1,919	860
Waihi Gold-mining Company	1,897	432
Waikato district and through to Wanganui	1,899	520
Waiouru to Mangaonoho	1,899	543
Wanganui River, up the, to Tokaanu	1,900	509
Wattle-growing in the Auckland Provincial District	1,897	430
Wellington-Manawatu Railway, the	1,895	381
West Coast Sounds, the	1,894	482
White Island, a day on	1,906	637

INDEX.

A.

Abattoirs, Animals slaughtered at, 494, 498.

Absolute Decrees in Divorce, 248.

Accident Funds, 397, 540.

Accident Insurance, 739–745.

State, 744.

Accidents, 163, 193, 252.

Industrial, 922–942.
Mining, 532, 537.
Railway, 387, 922–942.
Time lost through, 895, 932–939.

Acclimatization of Fishes, 522.

Accommodation—

In Hospitals, 212.
In Mental Hospitals, 222.
In Prisons, 263.

Accommodation Licenses, 984.

Accounts, Public, 604.

Accrued Sinking Funds, 650.

Acreage and Yield of Crops, 456–473.

Acreage of Holdings, 426.

Acts affecting Labour, 862–875.

Acts passed in 1928, 986–993.

Actuarial Valuation—

National Provident Fund, 686.
Public Service Superannuation Fund, 680.
State Life Insurance, 738.

Ad valorem Duties, 341.

Added Value in Manufacturing, 556.

Adenoids: Hospital Cases, 185.

Adjacent Islands, Population of, 103.

Administration, 48–53.

Administrators, 54.

Admissions to Hospitals, 172.

Admissions to Mental Hospitals, 219.

Adoptions, 124.

Adult Suffrage, 51.

Adulteration of Food, 202.

Advances—

Bank, 716.
Cold Storage, 668.
Discharged Soldiers, 442.
Fishing Industry Promotion, 668.
Fruit-preserving Industry, 667.
Local Authorities, 665.
Repatriation, 666.
Rural, 660.
Settlers, 653.
Workers, 663.

Aerated-water Factories, 575.

Afforestation, 508.

After-lifetime, Average, 144.

Age, Mean—

At Death, 144.
At Marriage, 136.

Ages—

Of Brides and Bridegrooms, 134.
Of Deceased Persons, 142.
Of Divorced Persons, 250.
Of Hospital Patients, 174.
Of Industries, 564.
Of Inmates of Benevolent Institutions, 216.
Of Inmates of Mental Hospitals, 220.
Of Issue left, 148.
Of Maoris convicted, 274.
Of Migrants, 84.
Of Mothers of Illegitimate Children, 123.
Of New-Zealand-horn convicted, 273.
Of Parents, 117, 125.
Of Persons arrested and convicted, 258.
Of Persons convicted of Drunkenness, 275.
Of Persons dying, 142.
Of Persons injured in Industrial Accidents, 940.
Of Persons married, 134.
Of Prisoners, 265.
Of Public-school Pupils, 227.

Aggregation of Land, 438.

Agricultural and Pastoral Production, 448–500.

Value, of, 974.

Agricultural Bursaries, 243.

Agricultural Colleges, 242.

Agricultural Machinery Factories, 583.

Agricultiral Produce exported, 294, 300.

Agricultural Tractors, 454.

Agriculture, 448—474.

Board of, 451.
Department of, 450.

Aid, State—

To Cold Storage, 668.
To Discharged Soldiers, 441, 666.
To Fishing Industry, 668.
To Fruit-preserving Industry, 667.
To Housing, 666.
To Immigrants, 88.
To Kauri-gum Industry, 535.
To Local Authorities, 665.
To Mining, 537.
To Settlers, 653.
To Tree-planting, 516.
To Water-power Development, 943.
To Workers, 663.

Aitutaki Island, 996.

Alcoholic Liquors—

Consumption of, 277.
Sale of, 984.

Alien Immigrants, 85.

Alienation of Land, 435.

Alienation of Native Lands, 445.

Aliens—

Immigration of, 85.
Naturalization of, 91, 993.
Race, 86.
Status of, 92, 993.

“All Groups” Index Numbers, 837.

Allocation of Public Debt, 639.

Allowances, Family, 676.

Alluvial-gold Mining, 526.

Alpine Meadow-land, 501.

Vegetation of, 40.

Altitude of Mountains, 3.

Amortization of Debt, 646.

Amusements-tax, 634.

Angora Goats, 498.

Animals, Domestic, 475–500.

Annexation, 47.

Annexed Islands, 1, 995–1000.

Population of, 107.

Annual Appropriations, 613.

Annual Value Rating-system, 689.

Annuities, 731.

Ante-natal Clinics, 152, 214.

Ante-nuptial Conceptions, 121.

Anti-dumping Legislation, 343.

Antipodes Islands, 1, 994.

Apia, 1001.

Apiaries, Registration of, 499.

Apiculture, 499.

Appeal Court, 262.

Appellate Court, Native, 445.

Appendicitis Cases in Hospitals, 186.

Apples, 471.

Exported, 314.

Applicants for Crown Land, 434.

Apprentices Act, 874.

Appropriations, Expenditure under, 613.

Arapuni Power Scheme, 946.

Arbitration Act, 868.

Unions registered under, 876–884.

Arbitration Court, 868.

Area—

Of Indigenous Forests, 501.
Of Land Holdings, 774–778, 800.
Of New Zealand, 2.
Under Crops, 456.
Under Cultivation, 429.

Army, 279.

Arrested Persons convicted, 257.

Arrivals, 81–86.

Arthur's Pass Tunnel, 375.

Articles on Special Subjects in Previous Issues, 1042.

Assembly, General, 49.

Asses and Mules, 497.

Assessable Income, 810.

Assessment Court, 705.

Assessment of Land and Income Tax, 626, 804, 821.

Assets—

Of Bankrupts, 781, 784.
Of Banks, 715.
Of Building Societies, 766.
Of Fire-insurance Companies, 747.
Of Forestation Companies, 512.
Of Friendly Societies, 759.
Of Life-insurance Companies, 735.
Of Local Bodies, 695, 787.
Of Manufacturing Industries, 559.
Of National Provident Fund, 686.
State, 642, 786.

Assigned Estates, 779–785.

Assisted Immigration, 88.

Associated Diseases, 166.

Asylums, 218–222.

Benevolent and Orphan, 215.

Atiu Island, 995.

Atlantic Salmon, 522.

Auckland Islands, 1, 994.

Auctioneers, Licensing of, 990.

Audit of Expenditure, 604.

Australia and New Zealand—

Bank Deposits in, 718, 726.
Birth-rates of, 113.
Building Societies in, 766.
Death-rates of, 144.
Debt of, 651.
Deposits in Banks in, 718, 726.
Friendly Societies in, 762.
Illegitimacy-rates of, 123.
Live-stock in, 475.
Marriage-rates of, 131.
Oat Crop of, 466.
Public Debt of, 651.
Railway Revenue of, 384.
Reciprocity between, 355.
Savings-banks Deposits in, 726.
Sheep in, 481.
Trade between, 308, 335, 356.
Wheat Crop of, 465.

Australia, Reciprocity with, 355.

Authorities, Loan, Unexercised, 701.

Automatic Signalling, 375.

Automatic Telephones, 417.

Automobile Accidents, 164, 252.

Automobiles, Registration of, 410.

Avifauna, 44.

Award Rates of Wages, 854.

B.

Bacon produced, 498, 571.

Balance of Trade, 289, 720.

Balances of Accounts, 605.

Banking, 712–726.

Bank-notes, Issue of, 721.

Tax on, 623.

Bankruptcy, 779–785.

Banks of Issue, 712–722.

Banks, Savings—

Post Office, 722.
Trustee, 725.

Barley, 459.

Barren Land, 425, 429.

Baths, Medicinal, 5.

Bats, 43.

Beans, 459.

Beds, Hospital, 212.

Beef consumed and exported, 494.

Beer, Consumption of, 277.

Beer Duty, 345, 624.

Beer produced, 574.

Bees, 499.

Benevolent Asylums, 215.

Benign Tumours, Hospital Cases, 181.

Bertillon Classification of Diseases, 156.

Bibliography, 1036.

Birds, 44.

In Forests, 507.

Birthplaces—

Of Persons arrested and convicted, 258.
Of Persons convicted of Drunkenness, 275.
Of Persons naturalized, 93.
Of Prisoners, 266.

Births, 109–128.

Biscuit-factories, 573.

Blind, Pensions for the, 676.

Blind, School for the, 241.

Board of School-children, 229.

Boatbuilding-works, 585.

Boats, Fishing, 519.

Boer War, 280.

Pensions, 675.

Boilers, Inspection of, 973.

Bones, Diseases of, treated in Hospital, 192.

Boot and Shoe Factories, 577.

Boroughs, 52, 687–702.

Capital and Unimproved Values, 710.
Population of, 101.

Borrowers from Building Societies, 764.

Borrowing-powers of Local Bodies, 688.

Borstal Institutions, 267.

Boundaries of New Zealand, 1.

Bounty Islands, 1, 994.

Boys' Training Farm, 240.

Brass-foundries, 582.

Bread, Law re Sale of, 202.

Breast-diseases treated in Hospital, 191.

Breeding-ewes, 477.

Breeds of Cattle, 486.

Breeds of Sheep, 479.

Breweries, 574.

Brickworks, 581.

Brides and Grooms—

Ages of, 134.
Condition of, 133.

Bridges, 401.

Briquetting of Coal, 532.

British Nationality, 91.

British Postal Orders, 417.

British Preference, 341, 352.

British Sovereignty, 47.

British Trade Representatives, 65.

Broadcasting, 420.

Bronchitis Cases in Hospital, 185.

Brother-in-law, Marriage with, 129.

Building and Construction, 594–603.

Building Costs, 598.

Building Permits, 601.

Building Societies, 763–766.

Buildings, 597.

Building-stones, 536.

Bullion held by Banks, 715.

Bullion, Movement of, 290.

Bulls, 485.

Bursaries, 237, 243.

Bush, Virgin, Area of, 429, 501.

Bush-beer Manufacture, 997.

Business Failures, 779–785.

Business Premises erected, 597.

Butter—

Exported, 296–322, 488.
Factories, 487, 572.
Grading of, 450, 487.
Production of, 487, 572.

By-election, 983.

C.

Cabinet, 48.

Members of, 56.

Cable Tramways, 399.

Cables, Ocean, 421.

Cadets, Senior, 279.

Calf-skins exported, 313.

Call, Deposits at, 717.

Campbell Island, 1, 994.

Cancer, 159, 180.

Candle-factories, 575.

Capital—

Expenditure of Government, 618.
Invested in Electric - power Undertakings, 951, 960.
Invested in Factories, 561.
Invested in Railways, 381.
Invested in Tramways, 398.
Of Banks of Issue, 712.
Of Joint-stock Companies, 969.

Capital Value of Land, 703–711.

Rating on, 689.

Cargo handled at Ports, 360.

Car-miles run by Trams, 395.

Carrots, 468.

Carry-over of Wheat, 464.

Cash Lands, 435, 441.

Cassiterite, 530.

Castaways, Depots of Provisions for, 994.

Casualties in the War, 280.

Casualties, Shipping, 374.

Cattle, 484.

Causes of Death, 156.

Of Infants, 154.
Of Maoris, 169.

Causes of Industrial Accidents, 928.

Causes of Industrial Disputes, 917.

Causes of Insanity, 219.

Cement-works, 581.

Cemeteries, 204.

Censorship of Films, 988.

Census, 74.

And Statistics Office, 68.
Legislation, 67.
Unemployment Statistics, 893.

Cereals, 459.

Certificated Teachers, 230.

Certificates of Naturalization, 92.

Certificates of Title, 431.

Limited, 430.

Chaff, 467.

Chaffcutters, 454.

Charges before Magistrates, 254.

Charitable Aid, 210.

Chatham Islands, 1.

Flora, 42.

Cheese—

Exported, 296–322, 488.
Factories, 487, 572.
Grading of, 453, 487.
Produced, 487, 573.

Chemists, Registration of, 203.

Cheque-paying Banks, 712.

Chewings Fescue, 469.

Child Welfare, 239.

Childbirth, Deaths in, 161.

Childbirth: Hospital Cases, 191.

Children born, Sexes of, 115.

Children, Dependent, Care of, 239.

Children under One Year, Deaths of, 150.

Children's Courts, 239, 270.

Children's Homes, 215, 240.

Chinese, 87.

Chronological List of Events, 1032.

Cinematograph Films, 988.

Cinnabar, 530.

Circulatory System, Diseases of, 184.

City and Suburban Drainage Districts, 687–702.

Civil Law Cases, 246.

Civil Marriages, 137.

Dissolution of, 249.

Civil Service, 63.

Pensions, 678.
Superannuation, 678.

Claims, Insurance, 728–757.

Class-books, School, 228.

Clearings, Bank, 719.

Climate, 24–35.

Clinics, Ante-natal, 214.

Closing-hours of Shops, 871.

Clothing-factories, 576.

Clothing-prices, 837.

Clover-seeds, 468.

Exported, 315.

Club Charters, 984.

Coachbuilding-works, 583.

Coaching train-mileage, 379.

Coal exported, 296.

Coal used in Factories, 552.

Coal-miners' Relief Fund, 540.

Coal-mines Act, 874.

Coal-mining, 531.

Coastal Trade, 360.

Coastwise Shipping, 370.

Coates Ministry, 57.

Cocksfoot, 469.

Coin held by Banks, 715.

Coin-in-slot Telephones, 419.

Cold-storage Advances, 668.

Coleridge, Lake, Water-power, 945.

Colleges, University, 241.

Collieries, 531.

Colonization, 47.

Commerce, 283–364.

Commercial Failures, 779–785.

Commercial Forestation, 511.

Commercial Orchards, 471.

Committals for Sentence, 254, 259.

Common Fund of Public Trust Office, 968.

Communicable Diseases, 179, 197.

Companies, Joint-stock, 969.

In Manufacturing Industries, 561.

Companies, Taxation of, 626, 809–823.

Compensation to Workers, 865, 925.

Compulsory Education, 223.

Compulsory Insurance of Motor-vehicles, 743.

Compulsory Registration—

Of Electors, 51.
Of Land Titles, 430.

Compulsory Training, 280.

Conciliation Councils, 868.

Condensed-milk Factories, 572.

Conditional Licenses, 984.

Confectionery-factories, 573.

Confinement—

Deaths in, 162.
Hospital Cases, 191.
Maternity Hospital Cases, 213.

Conjugal Condition of Persons marrying, 133.

Conjugal Rights, Restitution of, 248.

Consent to Marriage, 129.

Conservation of Forests, 502.

Consolidated Fund, 610.

Constitution, 48.

Of Cook Islands, 996.

Construction of Railways, Cost of, 381.

Construction of Roads, 401–409.

Consuls, Foreign, 65.

Consumption of Commodities, 976.

Alcoholic Liquors, 277.
Coal, 531, 552.
Meat, 494, 498.
Timber, 503.
Wheat, 464.

Contagious Diseases, 179, 197.

Contractors' Liens, 867.

Contributory Causes of Death, 166.

Conveyance Duty, 632.

Conveyance of Children to School, 228.

Conveyancing, 429.

Convictions in Supreme Courts, 259.

Convictions, Summary, 254.

For Drunkenness, 275.
For Traffic Offences, 277.
Of Juveniles, 270.
Of Maoris, 274.
Of New-Zealand-born, 273.
Of Persons arrested, 257.
Of Women, 272.

Cook and other Pacific Islands, 1, 995.

Bibliography, 1041.
Births, 127.
Deaths, 169.
Exports to, 323.
Flora, 42.
Imports from, 340.
Marriages, 139.
Population, 107, 997.
Radio-stations, 419.

Cook's Visits to New Zealand, 46.

Co-operative Dairy Companies, 487.

Co-operative Public Works, 908.

Copper, 529.

Cordial-factories, 575.

Corn Crops, Acreage and Yield of, 459.

Coroners' Inquests, 252.

Correspondence Classes, 228.

Corriedale Sheep, 476.

Cost of Living, 824–840.

Cost of Railway-construction, 381.

Council, Executive, 48.

Members of, 59.

Council, Legislative, 49.

Members of, 61.

Councils of Conciliation, 868.

Counties, 52, 687–702.

Capital and Unimproved Values, 709.
Population of, 99.

Country Lands, Mortgages on, 774–778.

Country Quota, 50.

Courts—

Appeal, 262.
Arbitration, 868.
Assessment, 705.
Bankruptcy, 779.
Children's, 239, 270.
Divorce, 247.
Magistrates', 246, 254.
Native Appellate, 445.
Native Land, 444.
Supreme, 246, 259.

Cow-testing, 450, 485.

Creameries, 487.

Cream-separators on Farms, 454.

Credit, Rural Intermediate, 662.

Creditors' Petitions, 779.

Credits in Aid, 606.

Crematoria, 204.

Crime, Law and, 246–278.

Criminal Cases, 254–263.

Criminals, Habitual, 267.

Crops, 456–473.

Crown Lands, 432–443.

Crown Tenants, 437.

Cuckoos, 44.

Cultivation, Area in, 428.

Curriculum, School, 224.

Curtis Islands, 995.

Customary Land, 444.

Customs Tariff and Revenue, 341–357.

Customs Taxation, 346, 624.

Cycle-works, 584.

D.

Dairy Industry, 487.

Dairying Machinery in Use, 454.

Dairy-produce, 487.

Export Control, 490.
Export of, 296–322, 488.
Grading of, 450, 487.
Retail Prices, 829.

Danger Island, 1, 996.

Dangerous Drugs, 202.

Dates of Maturity of Loans, 644.

Dates of Principal Events, 1032.

Day Technical Schools, 238.

Dead-births, 124.

Deaf, School for the, 241.

Death Duties, 629.

Deaths, 140–170.

Due to Earthquakes, 23.
From Industrial Accidents, 928.
In Hospitals, 173.
In Mental Hospitals, 220.
Of Friendly Society Members, 759.

Debentures, 636, 696.

Debenture-tax, 629.

Debits, Bank, 719.

Debt of Local Bodies, 652, 696.

Debt, Public, 636–652.

Debtors' Petitions, 779.

Deceased Husband's Brother, Marriage with, 129.

Deceased Wife's Sister, Marriage with, 129.

Decrees in Divorce, 248.

Deeds Registration, 430.

Deer, 507.

Defence, 279–282.

Pensions, 676.

Deferred-payment Lands, 434.

Deficits, 611.

Degrees, University, 241.

Demography, 74–108.

Denominational Schools, 232.

Density of Population, 104.

Dental Treatment of School-children, 206.

Dentists, Registration of, 200.

Departmental Reports, 71.

Departments, Government, 63.

Departures, 81–86.

Dependencies, 1, 994–1007.

Dependent Children, Care of, 239.

Deposits, 716–726.

By Insurance Companies, 727, 746.

Depots for Castaways, 994.

Depreciated Currency Duty, 343.

Designs, Registration of, 972.

Destination—

Of Emigrants, 85.
Of Exports, 302–315.
Of Shipping, 368.

Detention, Reformative, 267.

Diamond Drills, 539.

Diarrhœa Cases in Hospital, 186.

Differential Tariff, 341, 352.

Diphtheria, 178, 206.

Diplomas, 241.

In Public Health, 198.

Direction of Export Trade, 302–315.

Direction of Import Trade, 328–340.

Direction of Oversea Shipping, 368.

Discharged Mortgages, 771.

Discharged Soldiers—

Financial Assistance for, 442, 666.
Land for, 441.
Pensions for, 673.

Discharges from Hospitals, 173.

Discharges from Mental Hospitals, 220.

Discount Rates, 721.

Discovery of New Zealand, 46.

Diseases, Notification of, 171, 196.

Diseases, Principal, Deaths from, 157.

Diseases treated in Hospitals, 174–194.

Dislocations treated in Hospitals, 193.

Disputes, Industrial, 912–921.

Dissolution of Marriage, 247.

Dissolution of Parliament, Dates of, 59.

Distributing Stations, Electric-supply, 959.

Distribution of—

Births over Year, 113.
Deaths over Year, 141.
Marriages over Year, 132.
Population, 94–103.
Wealth, 788.

District Exports, 360.

District High Schools, 234.

Dividend Duty, 633.

Dividends, Bank, 712.

Divorce, 247.

Divorced Persons re-marrying, 133.

Domestics, Free Passages for, 89.

Domestic-science Bursaries, 243.

Domicile of Debt, 643, 700.

Dominion of New Zealand, 1.

Drainage Districts, 687–702.

Dredging, Gold, 526.

Drift, Urban, 96.

Drilling for Oil, 534.

Drills, Prospecting, 538.

Drowning Accidents, 163, 252.

Drugs, Sale of, 202.

Drunkenness, 275.

Ducks, 499.

Dumping, 343.

Duration of Incapacity from Industrial Accidents, 932.

Duration of Marriage and Number of Previous Issue, 120.

Dutiable Imports, 350.

Duties, Customs and Excise, 341–345.

Duties, Death, 629.

Dwellings, 597, 601.

Maoris', 107.
Soldiers', 442.
Workers', 665.

E.

Early History, 46.

Earned Income, 816.

Reduced Tax on, 629, 810.

Earnings of Factory Employees, 547, 587.

Ears, Diseases of, treated in Hospital, 184.

Earthquakes, 20.

Easter Marriages, 132.

Economic Pensions, 675.

Edible Fishes, 517.

Education, 223–245.

In Cook Islands, 998.
In Western Samoa, 1002.

Education Gazette, 228.

Educational Association, Workers', 244.

Educational Endowments, 435.

Effect of Prices on Exports, 318–322.

Effective Wages, 850.

Eggs, 499.

Election, General, 977.

Electoral Qualifications, 51.

Electric—

Current, 580, 943–966.
Power Boards, 687–702, 955.
Power in Factories, 550.
Railway, 375.
Telegraph, 417.
Tramways, 389–400.

Emigration, 81–86.

Employees—

Factory, 545, 587, 903.
Farm, 452.
Local Body, 909.
Mining, 537.
Postal, 422.
Public Works, 908.
Railway, 387.
Unions of, 876–884.

Employers' Liability, 865.

Insurance, 742, 744.

Employment and Unemployment, 885–911.

Employment Bureaux, 886.

Enactments affecting Labour, 862–875.

Enactments of 1928 Session, 986–993.

Endemic Diseases, 177.

Endowments, Educational, 435.

Endowments, National, 435.

Engine-drivers' Certificates, 974.

Engineering-works, 582.

Engine-mileage, 386.

Engines—

Employed in Factories, 550.
Employed on Farms, 455.
Inspection of, 973.
Railway, 376.

Ensilage, 467.

Enteritis Cases in Hospital, 186.

Entertainments-tax, 634.

Entrepôt Trade, 291, 318.

Entry, Ports of, 358.

Epidemic Diseases, 177.

Epidemic Pensions, 676.

Erection of Dwellings, 442, 597, 601, 666.

Estate Duty, 630.

Estates—

Acquired for Settlement, 438.
Administered by Public Trust Office, 967.
Assigned, 779–785.
Passed for Probate, 792.

Ewes, 478.

Examinations, Annual, 244.

Excavation, Scaffolding and, 874.

Excess-profits Tax, 626.

Exchanges, Telephone, 417.

Excise Duties, 345.

Taxation by means of, 346, 624.

Excursion Tickets, 379.

Executive Council, 48.

Members of, 59.

Exemptions from Taxation—

Income-tax, 628, 817.
Land-tax, 627, 800.

Ex-nuptial Births, 122.

Exotic Trees, Planting of, 509.

Expectation of Life, 144.

Expeditionary Forces, 280.

Expenditure—

Education, 244.
Electric Power, 945–965.
Hospital, 208.
Local Body, 694.
Main Highway, 407.
Mental Hospital, 222.
Naval Defence, 282.
Postal, 422.
Public, 604–622.
Railway, 382.
State Forests, 507.
Tramway, 396.

Experimental Farms, 450.

Explorers, 46.

Export Control—

Dairy-produce, 490.
Fruit, 472.
Honey, 500.
Kauri-gum, 535.
Meat, 495.

Export Duties, 345.

Export Prices, 318–322, 845.

Exports, 293–323.

Of Ports, 359.

External Injuries treated in Hospital, 193.

External Migration, 81–86.

External Trade, 283–364.

Extinction of Public Debt, 646.

Extra-marital Conceptions, 121.

Eyes, Diseases of, treated in Hospital, 183.

F.

Factories, 541–593.

Accidents in, 922–942.
Act, 870.
Dairy, 487, 572.

Fallow Land, 428.

Family Allowances, 676.

Farm Employees, Wages of, 856.

Farm Implements, 453.

Advances on, 658.

Farmers, 452.

Assisted Passages for, 89.
Financial Assistance to, 653–663.
Mutual Fire Insurance, 755.
Tree-planting by, 511.

Farming, 448–500.

Farming Lands, Mortgages on, 774–778.

Fauna, 43.

Control of, in State Forests, 507.

Feeble-minded, Schools for, 240.

Fellmongering-works, 584.

Female Suffrage, 51.

Fern Lands, 429.

Fertilizer used, 473.

Fibre, Phormium, 470.

Exported, 296–322.
Grading of, 450.

Fidelity-guarantee Insurance, 739, 744.

Finance, Public, 604–668.

Finances of Local Bodies, 691–702.

Financial Assistance to Soldiers, 442.

Fire Brigades, 757.

Fire Districts, 687–702.

Fire Inquests, 252.

Fire Insurance, 746–757.

State, 755.

Fire Losses, 752.

Fireblight, 473.

Fire-protection in Forests, 508.

First Births, 121, 126.

Sex-proportions, 115.

First Offenders' Probation, 269.

Fish Curing and Preserving, 572.

Fish exported, 300, 519.

Fisheries, 517–523.

Fish-hatcheries, 521.

Fishing Industry Promotion Advances, 668.

Fishing-boats, 519.

Fixed Assets of Industries, 559.

Fixed Deposits, 717.

Flax (Phormium Tenax), 429, 470.

Exports, 296–322.
Mills, 470, 578.

Fleeces, Average Weight of, 482.

Flocks—

Fowls, 499.
Sheep, 478.

Flora, 36–42.

Flotation of Loans, 636.

Flour, Customs Duty on, 344.

Flour-mills, 573.

Fodder Crops, 467.

Food and Drugs, Sale of, 202.

Food, Retail Prices of, 824–832.

Foodstuffs, Consumption of, 976.

Forces, Military, 279.

Foreign Consuls, 65.

Foreign Insurance Companies, 727, 746.

Foreign Vessels entered and cleared, 367.

Foreigners naturalized, 93.

Forestation Companies, 511.

Forest-produce exported, 294, 300.

Forestry, 501–516.

Forwarding Trade, 291–317.

Foster-homes for Children, 240.

Foundries, 582.

Foveaux Strait Oysters, 520.

Fowls, 499.

Fowl-wheat, 464.

Fractions, Totalizator, 634.

Fractures: Hospital Cases, 193.

Franchise, 51.

Free and Dutiable Imports, 350.

Free Deposits, 717.

Free Passages for Domestics, 89.

Free Secondary Education, 236.

Free University Education, 242.

Freehold, Crown Land made, 437.

Freehold Tenure, 427, 437.

Freezing-works, 570.

Freight—

Carried by Motor-transport, 412.
Carried by Trains, 379.
Train-mileage, 380.

Frequency Rates of Industrial Accidents, 925.

Freshwater Fisheries, 522.

Friendly Societies, 758–762.

Frozen Meat exported, 296–322, 494.

Frozen-meat Works, 570.

Fruit Export Control, 472.

Fruit Industry, The, 471.

Fruit-preserving—

Advances, 667.
Factories, 573.

Fuel and Light, Retail Prices of, 836.

Funded Debt, 648.

Funds—

Of Banks, 712.
Of Friendly Societies, 759.
Of Public Account, 604.
Of Public Trust Office, 967.

Funeral Funds, 759.

Furniture-making Works, 586.

G.

Gaols, Prisoners in, 263.

Gardens, Acreage in, 471.

Gas-lighting District, 687–702.

Gastric Diseases treated in Hospital, 186.

Gasworks, 579.

Gauge, Railway, 375.

Geese, 499.

General Assembly, 49.

General Election, 977.

Generating Stations, 948.

Genital Organs, Diseases of, treated in Hospital, 190.

Geodetic Survey, 424.

Geographical, 1.

Geological Survey, 20, 537.

Geology, 18.

German Samoa, 2, 1000.

Geysers, 5.

Gift Duty, 631.

Glaciers, 3.

Glasshouses, 473.

Goats, 498.

Wild, 507.

Goitre, 182, 206.

Gold exported, 290, 296–322, 525.

Duty on, 345.

Goldfields, Subsidized Roads on, 539.

Gold-mining, 525.

Gonorrhœa, 179, 197.

Goods carried on Railways, 379.

Government Departments, 63.

Government Insurance—

Accident, 744.
Fire, 755.
Life, 736.

Government Railways, 375–387.

Superannuation Fund, 682.

Government Roads, 405.

Government, System of, 48.

Government Valuation of Land, &c., 703–711.

Government Water-races, 539.

Governor-General, 55.

Powers, Duties, &c., 48.

Governors, Successive, 54.

Grading—

Of Dairy-produce, 450, 487.
Of Fruit, 472.
Of Honey, 499.
Of Phormium-fibre, 450.
Of School-teachers, 224.

Graduated Land-tax, 627.

Grain Crops, 459.

Grain-mills, 573.

Grapes, 473.

Grass Lands, 429, 470.

Grass-seed, 468.

Exported, 315.

Greasy Wool exported, 483.

Green Fodder, 467.

Greenstone, 535.

Groceries, Retail Prices of, 827.

Gross Indebtedness, 637.

Grounds for Divorce, 247.

Growth of Population, 75.

Gum, Kauri, 535.

Exported, 296–322.

H.

Habitual Criminals, 267.

Half-castes, 105.

Ham and Bacon Curing, 571.

Hands employed in Factories, 544, 587, 903.

Hanmer Springs, 5.

Harbour Boards, 687–702.

Hardship Exemption, 626, 628, 800.

Harness-making, 584.

Hatcheries, 521.

Hawaiki, 46.

Hay, 467.

Heads of Government Departments, 63.

Health, Camps, 206.

Health, Public, 196–206.

Heart-disease: Hospital Cases, 184.

Herd-book Societies, 484.

Herd-testing, 485.

Hernia Cases treated in Hospitals, 187.

Hervey Islands, 996.

Hides exported, 296–322.

High Commissioner's Office, 65.

High Schools, 234.

Technical, 238.

Higher Education, 241.

Highway Districts, 52, 404.

Highways, 403–409.

Hindus, 86.

His Majesty's Ships, 281.

History, 46, 1032.

Hives of Bees, 500.

Hobson's Proclamation, 47.

Hogs, 497.

Holdings, Occupied, 425.

Home Separators, 454.

Homes, Benevolent, 215.

Homes, Children's, 215, 240.

Home-science Bursaries, 243.

Homicide, 163, 252.

Honey, 499.

Export Control, 500.

Hookworm Disease in Samoa, 1002.

Hops, 458.

Horahora Electric Supply, 945.

Horse-racing, 633.

Horses, 496.

Horticultural Stations, 450.

Hosiery-factories, 577.

Hospital Districts, 207.

Hospitals, 172–195, 207–222.

Maternity, 213.
Mental, 218–222.
Private, 212.
Private Mental, 221.
Public, 172–195, 212.
St. Helens, 213.

Hot Springs, 5.

Hour of Occurrence of Industrial Accidents, 941.

Hours of Celebration of Marriage, 129.

Hours of Labour, 858.

House of Representatives, 50.

Members of, 62, 977.

House-rent, 832.

Housing, 594–603, 666.

Huia, The, 44.

Husbands' Petitions in Divorce, 249.

Hydatid Cases in Hospitals, 189.

Hydraulic Sluicing, 526.

Hydro-electric Power, 943–966.

Hygiene, 196.

Social, 197.

I.

Igneous Rocks, 20.

Illegitimacy, 122.

Illegitimate Infants, Deaths of, 151.

Immigration, 81–86.

Assisted, 88.
Restriction, 90.

Implements, Farm, 453.

Advances on, 658.

Imported Items, Prices of, 828, 843.

Imports, 324–340.

Free and Dutiable, 350.
Of Ports, 358.

Improved-farm Settlements, 435.

Improvements, Value of, 703–711.

Incapacity from Industrial Accidents, 922–942.

Incomes, 809–823.

Income-tax, 628, 821.

Increase of Population, 75.

Indebtedness of Local Bodies, 696.

Indebtedness, Public, 636, 652.

Indentured Labourers in Samoa, 107, 1001.

Index Numbers, Price, 824–846.

Index of Mortality, 145.

Indians, 86.

Indigenous Forest, 36–42, 502.

Individualization of Native Land, 444.

Industrial' Accidents, 922–942.

Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration, 868.

Industrial Conference, 868.

Industrial Disputes, 912–921.

Industrial Life Insurance, 731.

Industrial Manufacture, 541–593.

Industrial Schools, 240.

Industrial Unions, 876–884.

Industries, Manufacturing, 541–593.

Infancy, Diseases of, 154, 193.

Infant Mortality, 150.

Infantile Paralysis, 178.

Infant-life Protection, 150, 239.

Infectious Diseases—

Hospital Cases, 177.
Notification of, 171, 196.

Influenza, 177.

Injuries in Factories, &c., 922–942.

Injuries treated in Hospital, 193.

Inland Fisheries, 522.

Inmates—

Of Benevolent and Orphan Asylums, 215.
Of Gaols, 263.
Of Hospitals, 172.
Of Mental Hospitals, 218.

Inquests, 252.

Insanity, 218–222.

Insolvency, 779–785.

Inspection, Medical, of Schools, 205.

Inspection of Machinery, 973.

Instruction, Public, 223–244.

Instruments, Registration of, 429.

Insurance, 727–757.

Intensity of Earthquakes, 21.

Intercensal Estimates, 79.

Interest—

Credited by Post Office Savings-bank, 722.
On Local Bodies' Debt, 700.
On Mortgages, 773.
On Public Debt, 645.
Payments Overseas, 289.
Recouped to Consolidated Fund, 607.

Intermediate Credit, 662.

Intermediate Customs Tariff, 343.

International Payments, 289.

Inter-urban Telephones, 417.

Intestinal Obstruction: Hospital Cases, 187.

Intoxicating Liquor—

Consumption of, 277.
Sale of, 984.

Investment Societies, 763.

Investments, State, 640.

Investments, Totalizator, 633.

Invisible Imports and Exports, 290.

Iodized Salt, 206.

Iron-foundries, 582.

Iron-ores, 527.

Ironsand, 528.

Irrigated Land, 474.

Islands—

Adjacent, Population of, 103.
Administered on Mandate, 2, 1000–1006.
Annexed, 1, 995–1000.
Outlying, 1, 994.

Issue of Bank-notes, 721.

Issue of Deceased Males, 147.

Issue, Previous, of Parents, 119.

J.

Jam-factories, 573.

Joint Causes of Death, 166.

Joint-stock Banks, 712.

Joint-stock Companies, 969.

In Manufacturing Industries, 561.

Journal of Agriculture, 450.

Journal, School, 228.

Jubilee Institute for Blind, 241.

Judicial Separation, 248.

June Year Exports, 316.

Junior High Schools, 233.

Junior Scholarships—

National, 237.
University, 242.

Justice, 246–278.

Juvenile Offenders, 270.

Juvenile Probation, 240.

K.

Kaingaroa Plantation, 509.

Kakapo, The, 44.

Kauri-gum, 535.

Exported, 296–322.

Kawarau Falls Dam, 526.

Kea, T, 44.

Kermadec Islands, 1, 995.

Flora, 42.

Kidney-diseases in Hospitals, 189.

Kiwi, The, 44.

Kumara Water-races, 539.

L.

Labour Department Employment Bureaux, 886.

Labour Disputes Investigation Act, 870.

Labour, Hours of, 858.

In factories, 588, 870.

Labour Laws, 862–875.

Lake Coleridge Works, 945.

Lakes, 13.

Lamb consumed and exported, 494.

Lambs, 478.

Land and Income Tax, 626.

Land Boards, 433.

Maori, 445.

Land Districts, 433.

Land Drainage Districts, 687–702.

Land for Discharged Soldiers, 441.

Land for Settlements, 438.

Land, Government Valuation of, 703–711.

Land Holdings, 425.

Mortgages on, 774—778.
Value of, 793–808.

Land, Occupation of, 425.

Land Offices, 433.

Land Purchase Board, 438.

Land Tenure and Settlement, 424–447.

Land Titles, Registration of, 429.

Land Transfer and Deeds Registration, 429.

Land, Valuation of, 703–711.

Lands open for Selection, 436.

Land-settlement Accounts, 620.

Land-settlement Finance Associations, 440.

Land-tax, 627, 804.

Lapsed Insurance Policies, 729, 732.

Latest Statistical Information, 1030.

Law and Crime, 246–278.

Laws affecting Labour, 862–875.

Laws passed in 1928, 986–993.

Lease, Renewable, 435, 441.

Leatherware-making, 584.

Legal-tender Notes, 714, 721.

Legislation—

Affecting Labour, 862–875.
Of 1928 Session, 986–993.
Statistical, 67.

Legislative Council, 49.

Members of, 61.

Legitimacy of Infants dying, 151.

Legitimate Births, 117.

Legitimation Act, 123.

Legumes, 459.

Letters of Naturalization, 92.

Letters Patent, 972.

Letters posted, 414.

Letter-telegrams, 417.

Liabilities—

Of Bankrupts, 781, 784.
Of Banks, 714.
Of Building Societies, 765.
Of Fire-insurance Companies, 747.
Of Forestation Companies, 512.
Of Friendly Societies, 760.
Of Life-insurance Companies, 734.
Of Local Bodies, 695.
Of National Provident Fund, 686.

Libraries, School, 228.

Licensed Houses, 984.

Licenses by Local Bodies, 693, 98–4.

Licensing, 984.

Poll, 985.

Life, Expectation of, 144.

Life Insurance, 727–738.

State, 736.

Life Tables, 144.

Light, Fuel and, Retail Prices of, 836.

Lighthouses, 373.

Lignite, 531.

Lime and Cement Works, 581.

Limestone, 536.

Limited Certificates of Title, 430.

Limonite, 527.

Lincoln Agricultural College, 242.

Linseed, 459.

Liver-diseases treated in Hospital, 187.

Live-stock, 475–500.

Advances on, 658.
Carried on Railways, 379.

Loans—

Allocation of, 639.
By Building Societies, 764.
Dates of Maturity of, 644.
Domicile of, 643, 700.
Of Local Bodies, 695–702.
Receipts from, 641.
Redemption of, 615, 641, 647.
Unexercised Authorities for, 701.

Local Bodies, 51, 687–702.

Advances to, 665.
Assets of, 696, 787.
Debt of, 652, 696.
Employees of, 909.
Superannuation, 683.
Taxation by, 635, 692.
Tree-planting by, 511.

Local Government, 51, 687–702.

Local Option, 985.

Local Railway Districts, 687–702.

Local Taxation, 635, 692.

Location of Debt, 643, 700.

Location of New Zealand, 1.

Lockouts, 912–921.

Locomotives, 376.

Lodges, 758.

London Missionary Society, 998, 1003.

London Prices—

Of Food, 831, 844.
Of New Zealand Stock, 644.

Loss of Wages through Industrial Disputes, 913–919.

Loss of Work through Industrial Accidents, 932.

Losses from Fires, 752.

In Forests, 508.

Losses of Sheep, 480.

Lower Departments of Secondary Schools, 238.

Lucerne, 467.

Lunacy, 218–222.

M.

Macaulay Island, 995.

Machinery—

Accidents, 928.
Factory, 550, 559.
Farm, 453.
Inspection of, 973.

Magistrates' Courts—

Civil Cases, 246.
Criminal Cases, 254.

Magistrates, Superannuation of, 683.

Magnetic Ironsand, 528.

Mails, 414.

Main Highways, 403–409.

Districts, 404.
Taxation, 625.

Maize, 459.

Male and Female Death-rates, 141.

Malformations: Hospital Cases, 193.

Malthouses, 574.

Mammalia, 43.

Mandated Territories, 2, 1000–1006.

Mangahao Hydro-electric Scheme, 947.

Mangaia Island, 995.

Manganese-ore, 529.

Mangolds, 468.

Mangrove Oysters, 520.

Man - hours lost through Industrial Accidents, 935.

Manihiki Island, 1, 996.

Manuae Island, 996.

Manual Education, 228.

Manufacturing Production, 541–593.

Maori Land Boards, 445.

Maori War Pensions, 671.

Maoris, 46.

Births of, 109, 127.
Children attending Schools, 232.
Deaths of, 109, 168.
Dwellings, 107.
Half-castes, 105.
In Mental Hospitals, 222.
Infant Mortality of, 169.
Marriages of, 138.
Members of Parliament, 50, 63, 983.
Occupations, 106.
Offences by, 274.
Population, 105.
Religions, 106.
Schools for, 232.

Marine Fish-hatchery, 521.

Marine Officers' Certificates, 372.

Market Gardens, 471.

Marriages, 129–139.

Dissolution of, 247.

Masculinity, 78.

Of Children born, 115.
Of Children dying, 150.
Of First-born, 115.
Of Hospital Patients, 174.
Of Illegitimate Infants, 117.
Of Persons dying, 141.
Of Public-school Children, 227.
Of Still-born Infants, 125.

Masseurs, Registration of, 201.

Massey Agricultural College, 242.

Mastoid Diseases treated in Hospitals, 184.

Materials used in Manufacture, 553.

Maternal Mortality, 161.

Maternity Allowances, 684.

Maternity Hospitals, 213.

Maternity Nurses, Registration of, 200.

Maturity of Loans, Dates of, 644.

Mauke Island, 995.

Mean Population, 79.

Measles, 178.

Meat—

Consumption of, 494.
Export Control, 495.
Export of, 296–322, 494.
Freezing-works, 570.
Retail Prices, 830.

Medical Inspection of Schools, 205.

Medical Practitioners, Registration of, 199.

Medical Services in Samoa, 1002.

Medicinal Waters, 5.

Mental Defectives, 218, 989.

Mental Hospitals, 218–222.

Mentally Backward Children, 240.

Mercury-mines, 530.

Merino Sheep, 476.

Metal Reserves of Banks, 715, 719.

Metal-mines, Accidents at, 537.

Meteorology, 24–35.

Midwives, Registration of, 200.

Migration, External, 81–86.

Mileage of—

Main Highways, 405.
Railways, 376.
Roads, 401.
Telegraph Lines and Wire, 417.
Telephone Lines and Wire, 419.
Tramway Routes, 392.

Military Forces, 279.

Military Pensions, 671.

Milk, Adulterated, 203.

Milk exported, 298, 312.

Milking-machines, 454.

Milk-testing, 450, 485.

Milling-timber Resources, 501.

Milling-wheat, 464.

Mills, 541–593.

Mineral Waters, 5.

Minerals, 524–540.

Miners' Pensions, 672.

Minimum Wage Rates, 854.

Mining, 524–540.

Accidents, 537.
Act, 873.
Act, Examinations under, 539.
Advances, 538.
Produce exported, 294, 300, 524.

Ministers of each Denomination, 138.

Marriages by, 137.

Ministries, Successive, 55.

Ministry, Coates, 57.

Ministry, Ward, 56.

Minors, Marriages of, 129, 137.

Mission Schools, 223, 998, 1003, 1007.

Missionaries, Arrival of, 47.

Mitiaro Island, 996.

Moa, The, 45.

Money, Purchasing-power of, 835, 839.

Money-orders issued and paid, 416.

Moratorium, 768.

Morbidity, 171–195.

Mortality, Index of, 145.

Mortality, Infant, 150.

Mortality Investigation, 144.

Mortgage Duty, 632.

Mortgage Exemption, 627, 800.

Mortgagees' Indemnity Insurance, 743.

Mortgages, 767–778.

Mortgage-tax, 626.

Mothers, Ages of, 117.

In Illegitimate Cases, 123.
In Still-born Cases, 125.

Motive Power in Factories, 550.

Motor Accidents, 164, 252.

Motor Transport, 411.

Motor-omnibus Traffic, 391, 412.

Motor-spirits Taxation, 345,407, 625.

Motor-vehicles—

Duty on, 344.
Insurance, 743.
Registration of, 410.
Taxation, 625.

Motor-vessels registered, 365.

Motor-works, 584.

Mountains, 2.

Mouth, Diseases of the, 185.

Movement of Specie and Bullion, 290.

Mud Baths, 5.

Mules, 497.

Multiple Births, 117.

Municipal Debt, 699.

Municipal Tramways, 389–399.

Murchison Earthquake, 20.

Mutton consumed and exported, 494.

Mutual Fire Insurance, 755.

N.

Nassau Island, 1, 996.

National Endowments, 435.

National Industrial Conference, 868.

National Prohibition, 985.

National Provident Fund, 684.

National Scholarships, 237.

National Wealth, 792.

Nationality—

Of Migrants, 85.
Of Naturalized Persons, 93.
Of Vessels, 367.

Native Appellate Court, 445.

Native Grasses, 429, 470.

Native Land Court, 444.

Native Lands, 444.

Purchase of, 446.

Native Schools, 232.

Native Succession Duty, 631.

Native Trust Office, 446.

Native-land Purchase, 446.

Nativity Order, 115, 119, 126.

Natural Increase of Population, 77, 112.

Naturalization, 91, 993.

Nauru Island, 2, 1005.

Naval Defence, 280.

Navigable Rivers, 8.

Navigators Islands, 2, 1000–1004.

Navy, 280.

Neo-natal Deaths, 152.

Nephrite, 535.

Nephritis, 189.

Nervous System, Diseases of, 183.

Net Indebtedness, 651.

New Zealand born, Offences by, 273.

“New Zealand,” H.M.S., 281.

New Zealand Produce exported, 294–322.

New Zealand University, 241.

Newspapers—

Posted, 414.
Registered, 416.

Night Letter-telegrams, 417.

Nisi Decrees in Divorce, 248.

Niue Island, 1, 996.

No-license Issue, 985.

Nominal Wages, 848–854.

Nomination of Assisted Immigrants, 88.

Note-issue of Banks, 721.

Tax on, 623.

Notification of Births, 109.

Notification of Diseases, 171, 196.

Notornis, The, 45.

Nullity of Marriage, 248.

Nurseries and Plantations, 471.

State, 510.

Nurses, Registration of, 200.

Nurses, Retiring-allowances to, 684.

Nutrition Classes, 206.

O.

Oats, 465.

Exported, 296.

Occupation of Land, 425.

Occupation with Right of Purchase, 434.

Occupations—Of Bankrupts, 783, 785.

Of Children leaving School, 227, 233, 235.
Of Maoris, 106.
Of Taxpayers, 797, 812.

Ocean Cables, 421.

Ocean Island, 1005.

Offences, 254–262.

Offenders Probation Act, 269.

Officers, Military, 279.

Official Assignees, 779.

Official Representatives Abroad, 65.

Officiating Ministers, 138.

Oil, 534.

Oilskin-factories, 585.

Old Age, Deaths from, in Hospital, 193.

Old-age Pensions, 669.

Omnibus Traffic, 391, 412.

Onakaka Iron-ore, 527.

Onions, 458.

Operations in Hospitals, 194.

Opium, Prohibition of, 203.

Opossum-skins exported, 313.

Opossum Trapping, 507.

Opticians, Registration of, 201.

Orchards, 471.

Orchard-tax, 473.

Origin of Imports, 328–340.

Origins of Earthquakes, 21.

Ornamental Stones, 536.

Orphan Asylums, 215.

Orphanhood, 147.

Osmiridium, 530.

Otekaike Special School, 240.

Otira Tunnel, 375.

Outlying Islands, 1, 994.

Out-patients, 212.

Overdraft Rates, 721.

Oversea Companies registered, 969.

Oversea Shipping, 366.

Oversea Trade, 283–364.

Overseas Representatives, 65.

Overtime in Factories, 588.

Oyster-beds, 520.

P.

Pacific Cable, 421.

Pacific Islands, Annexed, 1, 995–1000.

Packet Licenses, 984.

Palmerston Island, 1, 996.

Paper-making, 506.

Parapara Iron-ore Deposit, 527.

Parcel-post, 415.

Parents, Ages of, 117, 125.

Parliament, 49.

Parliamentary Elections, 51, 977.

Parliamentary Reports, 71.

Parliaments, Successive, 59.

Parry Island (Mauke), 995.

Party-line Telephones, 419.

Passages at Reduced Rates, 88.

Passengers—

Motor-vehicle, 412.
Railway, 378.
Tramway, 394.

Passports, 90.

Pastoral Produce exported, 294—322.

Pastoral Production, 475–500.

Pasture Grasses, 470.

Patents, Designs, and Trade-marks, 972.

Patients in Mental Hospitals, 218.

Patients in Public Hospitals, 172, 212.

Payments by, 211.

Payers of Income-tax, 809–823.

Payers of Land-tax, 794–808.

Peas, 459.

Export of, 314.

“Pelorus Jack,” 44.

Pelts, Export of, 296–322.

Penal Institutions, 263–268.

Penguins, 44.

Penrhyn Island, 1, 996.

Pensions, 669–678.

Peritonitis Cases in Hospital, 188.

Permanent Appropriations, 613.

Permanent Building Societies, 763.

Permanent Heads of Department, 63.

Permanent Military Forces, 279.

Permission to enter New Zealand, 90.

Permits and Passports, 90.

Permits, Building, 601.

Personal-accident Insurance, 739, 744.

Petitions—

Bankruptcy, 779.
Divorce, 248.

Petrol-tax, 345, 407, 625.

Petroleum, 534.

Petrological Laboratory, 409.

Pharmacy, 203.

Pharynx, Diseases of: Hospital Cases, 185.

Phormium Tenax, 429, 470.

Fibre exported, 296–322.
Grading of Fibre, 450.
Mills, 470, 578.

Phosphate Rock, 535.

From Nauru Island, 1005.

Phthisis, 157, 178, 198.

Miner's, 672.

Physical Education, 229.

Physiography, 1–45.

Pickle-factories, 575.

Pig-iron Production, 527.

Pigs, 497.

Wild, 507.

Pisciculture, 521.

Plaints, 246.

Plantations, 471.

State, 509.

Planting of Oysters, 521.

Plate-glass Insurance, 739, 744.

Platinum, 530.

Pleasant Island, 1005.

Plumbers Registration, 202.

Plunket System, 150, 214.

Plural Births, 117.

Pneumoconiosis, 672.

Pneumonia Cases in Hospital, 185.

Police, 253.

Provident Fund, 678.

Policies, Insurance, 727–756.

Polling—

At General Election, 977.
At Licensing Polls, 985.

Poll-tax on Chinese, 87.

Population, 74–108.

Of Cook Islands, 107, 997.
Of Western Samoa, 107, 1001.

Pork consumed, 498.

Portfolios of Ministers, 56.

Portobello Marine Fish-hatchery, 521.

Ports—

Of Entry, 358.
Of Registry, 365.
Shipping of, 369.
Trade of, 358–364.

Post Office Employees, 422.

Accidents to, 922–942.

Post Office Investment Certificates, 637.

Post Office Savings-bank, 722.

Postal and Telegraphic, 414–423.

Postal Notes, 416.

Post-primary Education, 234.

Potatoes, 466.

Pottery-works, 581.

Poultry, 498.

Pounamu, 535.

Power, Electric, 943–966.

In Factories, 550.
Used by Tramways, 390.

Preferential Tariff, 341, 352.

Pregnancy, Diseases, &c., of, 161, 191.

Premature Birth, 155.

Premiers, Successive, 55.

Premium Income of Insurance Companies, 728–756.

Pre-natal Influences, 152.

Preserved Milk exported, 298–312.

Press Telegrams, 417.

Prevention of Crime, 267.

Prevention of Quackery, 203.

Previous Convictions of Prisoners, 266.

Previous Issue of Parents, 119.

Prices, 824–846.

Effect on Exports, 318–322.
Of Stock, 644.

Primage Duty, 342.

Primary Schools, 223–233.

Principal Events, 1032.

Principal Exports, 295–322.

Printing Establishments, 583.

Prisoners, 263.

New-Zealand-born, 273.

Prisons, 263.

Prisons Board, 268.

Private Assignments, 783.

Private Hospitals, 212.

Private Mental Hospital, 221.

Private Railways, 388.

Private Savings-banks, 725.

Private Schools, 231.

Private Wealth, 788.

Probate, Estates passed for, 792.

Probation, 269.

Probationer Teachers, 230.

Proclamation of British Sovereignty, 47.

Production—

Agricultural and Pastoral, 448–500.
Factory, 541–593.
Mineral, 524–540.
Value of, 974.

Production Districts, Exports of, 360.

Butter and Cheese, 488.

Productive Activity, 975.

Profits-tax, 626.

Prohibited Immigrants, 91.

Prohibition Issue, 985.

Prohibition Orders, 275.

Prorogation of Parliament, Dates of, 59.

Prospecting, State Aid to, 538.

Prospecting-drills, Government, 538.

Protection of Infant Life, 150, 239.

Protection of Wages, 867.

Provident Fund, National, 684.

Provincial Districts, 51.

Fire Losses in, 753.
Industries in, 543–559.
Population of, 95.

Provisional State Forests, 502.

Public Debt, 636–652.

Repayment of, 647.

Public Finance, 604–668.

Public Health, 196–206.

Public Hospitals—

Admissions and Discharges, 172.
Diseases treated in, 174–194.
Finances, 207–211.

Public Instruction, 223–244.

Public Reserves, 425, 435.

Public Schools, 226.

Public Service, 63.

Superannuation, 678.

Public Trust Office, 967.

Public Wealth, 786.

Public Works—

Accidents, 922–942.
Employees, 908.
Fund, 615.

Publicans' Licenses, 984.

Publications, 1036.

Educational, 228.
Statistical, 69.

Puerperal Accidents and Diseases, 161, 191.

Pukapuka Island, 1, 996.

Pulmonary Tuberculosis, 157, 178, 198.

Pulse Crops, 459.

Pulverized Coal, 533.

Pumpkins, 468.

Punishments by Magistrates' Courts, 256.

Punishments by Supreme Courts, 261.

Pupils at Public Schools, 226.

Purchase of Dwellings, 442, 665.

Purchase of Estates for Settlement, 438.

Purchase of Native Lands, 446.

Purchasing-power of Money, 835, 839.

Q.

Quackery-prevention, 203.

Quadruplets, 117.

Quarries, 536.

Accidents at, 537.

Quarterly Statistics—

Banking, 715–724.
Births, 113.
Deaths, 141.
Marriages, 132.
Prices, 826–839.
Trade, 286.

Quartz-mining, 525.

Quicksilver-mining, 530.

Quinnat Salmon, 523.

Quinquennial Census, 74.

Quorum—

Executive Council, 49.
House of Representatives, 50.

Quota, Country, 50.

Quota of British Films, 988.

Quotations, New Zealand Stock, 644.

R.

Rabbit Districts, 687–702.

Rabbit-skins exported, 313.

Race Aliens, 86.

Racing, Tax on, 633.

Radio-telegraph, 419.

Railway Accidents, 387, 922–942.

Railway Districts, 687–702.

Railways, 375–388.

Private, 388.
Revenue and Expenditure, 382, 610.
Superannuation Fund, 682.

Rain Forests, 503.

Rainfall, 24–35.

Rakaanga Island, 1, 996.

Rams, 478.

Rarotonga Island, 995.

Rateable Value of Land, 707.

Rates collected by Local Bodies, 635, 692.

Rates of Interest—

On Local Bodies' Debt, 700.
On Mortgages, 773.
On Public Debt, 645.
Paid by Post Office Savings-bank, 722.

Rating by Local Bodies, 688, 692.

On Unimproved Value, 689.

Reapers-and-binders, 454.

Rebate of Rent, 435.

Receipts-tax, 623.

Receiving-homes, 240.

Reception of Assisted Immigrants, 89.

Recidivism, 266.

Reciprocity, 352.

Redemption of Loans, 615, 647.

Reduced Passage-rates for Immigrants, 88.

Re-exports, 291,317.

Reformative Detention, 267.

Registered Companies, 969.

Registered Mortgages, 768.

Registered Vessels, 365.

Registrars, Marriages before, 137.

Registration—

Of Adopted Children, 124.
Of Apiaries, 499.
Of Births, 109.
Of Chemists, 203.
Of Companies, 969.
Of Dairies, 487.
Of Dairy Companies, 487.
Of Deaths, 140.
Of Deeds, 430.
Of Dentists 200.
Of Designs, 972.
Of Electors, 51.
Of Friendly Societies, 758.
Of Industrial Unions, 876.
Of Marriages, 129.
Of Masseurs, 201.
Of Maternity Nurses, 200.
Of Medical Practitioners, 199.
Of Midwives, 200.
Of Mortgages, 768.
Of Motor-vehicles, 410.
Of Newspapers, 416.
Of Nurses and Midwives, 200.
Of Opticians, 201.
Of Orchards, 473.
Of Patents, 972.
Of Pharmaceutical Chemists, 203.
Of Plumbers, 202.
Of Private Schools, 231.
Of Still-births, 109, 124.
Of Titles, 429.
Of Trade-marks, 972.
Of Trade-unions, 876.
Of Vessels, 365.

Relief Fund, Coal-miner's, 540.

Relief Works, 892.

Religious Denominations—

Maori Adherents, 106.
Marriages by Ministers of, 137.
Ministers on Marriage List, 138.

Renewable Leases, 435, 441.

Rent, Rebate of, 435.

Rents, House, 832.

Repatriation Advances, 666.

Repayment of Public Debt, 647.

Representatives Abroad, 65.

Representatives, Members of House of, 62, 978.

Reproductive Expenditure, 639.

Research Scholarships, 243.

Reserve Funds of Banks, 712.

Reserves, Public, 425, 435.

Respiratory Diseases: Hospital Cases, 185.

Restitution of Conjugal Rights, 248.

Restriction, Immigration, 90.

Retail Prices, 824–840.

Revaluation of Soldier Properties, 443.

Revenue—

Customs, 346.
Hospital, 208.
Local Body, 691.
Postal, 422.
Public, 604–622.
Railway, 382.
Tramway, 395.

Revocation of Naturalization, 92.

Rhodes Scholarships, 243.

Richmond Special School, 241.

Rifle Clubs, 279.

River Districts, 687–702.

Rivers, 8.

Road Districts, 52, 687–702.

Roads, 401–413.

On Goldfields, Subsidized, 539.
Taxation, 625.

Rock Oysters, 520.

Rock Phosphates, 535.

Rocks, 18.

Rolling-stock—

Railway, 376.
Tramway, 399.

Roman Catholic Schools, 232.

Root Crops, 467.

Ross Dependency, 2, 1006.

Rotorua Nursery, 510.

Rotorua Thermal Springs, 5.

Rural Advances, 660.

Rural Intermediate Credit, 662.

Rural Mail Deliveries, 415.

Rural Population, 95.

Rural Security, Mortgages on, 770, 774–778.

Rye-grass, 469.

S.

Saddlery-making, 584.

Sailing-vessels registered, 365.

Sailmaking-factories, 585.

St. Helens Hospital, 213.

Sale of Food and Drugs, 202.

Salmon, Acclimatization of, 522.

Samoa, 2, 1000–1006.

Samoans, Naturalization of, 92.

San Pablo Island, 996.

Sanatoria, 5, 178, 198, 212.

Sanitary Plumbing, 202.

Sanitation, 196.

In Western Samoa, 1082.

Sauce-factories, 575.

Sausage-casings, Export of, 314.

Savage Island, 1, 996.

Savai'i Island, 1001.

Savings-bank, 722–726.

Sawmills, 503, 578.

Scaffolding Accidents, 922–942.

Scaffolding and Excavation Act, 874.

Scarlet Fever, 177.

Scheelite, 529.

Scholars, 225–239.

Scholarships, 237, 242.

School Committees 223.

School Journal, 228.

School Libraries and Class-books, 228.

School-children, 225–239.

Dental Treatment for, 206.
Medical Inspection of, 205.

Schools, 225–239.

Medical Inspection of, 205.
Of Mines, 539.

Scoured Wool expected, 483.

Scrub Lands, 429.

Sea-fisheries, 517.

Seals, 43, 521.

Seamen, Protection of, 872.

Season Tickets, Railway, 378.

Secondary Education, 234.

Secondary Industries, 567.

Second-growth Land, 429.

Secular System of Education, 223.

Seed-gardens, 471.

Seeds, Grass and Clover, 468.

Exported, 315.

Seismology, 20.

Selections of Land, 436.

Senior Cadets, 279.

Senior Scholarships—

National, 237.
University, 242.

Sentences on Criminals, 256, 261.

Separate Rates, 688, 692.

Separation, Judicial, 248.

Separators, Cream, 454.

Sessions, Parliamentary, Successive, 59.

Settlement and Colonization, 47.

Settlement Conditions, Selections under, 436.

Settlement Surveys, 424.

Settlements, Land for, 438.

Settlors, Advances to, 653.

Severities of Industrial Accidents, 934.

Sex Proportions, 78.

Of Children born, 115.
Of Children dying, 150.
Of First-born, 115.
Of Hospital Patients, 174.
Of Illegitimate Infants, 117.
Of Persons dying, 141.
Of Public School Children, 227.
Of Still-born Infants, 125.

Shares in Building Societies, 764.

Shearing-machines on Farms, 454.

Sheep, 476.

Sheep-skins and Pelts exported, 296–322.

Sheet-metal Works, 582.

Shipbuilding-works, 585.

Shipping, 365–374.

And Seamen Act, 872.

Ships, Survey of, 373.

Shipwrecked Mariners, Depots for, 994.

Shops and Offices Act, 871.

Short-time in Factories, 591.

Sick Funds, 540, 759.

Sickness, 171–195.

Working-days lost through, 895.

Silicosis, 672.

Silver, 527.

Exported, 315.

Silviculture, 505.

Singapore Naval Base, 282, 613.

Sinking Funds, 646.

Sister-in-law, Marriage with, 129.

Skin-diseases treated in Hospital, 191.

Skins, Export of, 296–322.

Slaughter of Animals for Food, 480, 494, 498.

Slaughterhouses, 450.

Sliped Wool exported, 483.

Slot Telephones, 419.

Sluicing, 526.

Snares Islands, 1, 994.

Soap-factories, 575.

Social Defectives, 989.

Social Hygiene Regulations, 197.

Social Welfare, 210.

Soldiers, 279.

Acquisition of Land by, 441.
Dwellings, 442.
Financial Assistance to, 442, 666.
Pensions, 673.
Settlement of, 441.
War Bursaries for Dependants, 237.

Source of Income, 812.

South Africa, Reciprocity with, 354.

South African War, 280.

Pensions, 675.

Southern Alps, 3.

Sown Grasses, Extent of, 470.

Spas, 5.

Special Articles in previous Issues, 1042.

Special Land-tax, 626.

Special Rates, 688, 692.

Special Schools, 240.

Special Trade, 291.

Specie, Movement of, 290.

Specific Duties, 341.

Spirits, Consumption of, 277.

Springs, Hot, 5.

Stakes, Tax on, 633.

Stamp Duties, 632.

Standardized Birth-rates, 111.

Standardized Death-rates, 145.

Standardized Marriage-rates, 130.

State Accident Insurance, 744.

State Advances, 653–668.

State Afforestation, 508.

State Aid to—

Cold Storage, 668.
Discharged Soldiers, 441, 666.
Fishing Industry, 668.
Fruit-preserving Industry, 667.
Housing, 666.
Immigrants, 88.
Kauri-gum Industry, 535.
Local Authorities, 665.
Mining, 537.
Settlers, 653.
Tree-planting, 516.
Water-power Development, 943.
Workers, 663.

State Assets, 642, 786.

State Coal-mines, 533.

State Finance, 604–668.

State Fire Insurance, 755.

State Forests, 502.

State Indebtedness, 636–652.

State Instruction, 223–240.

State Insurance—

Accident, 744.
Fire, 755.
Life, 736.

State Railways, 375–387.

State Schools, 226.

State Water-power Supply, 943.

Statistical Information, Latest, 1030.

Statistical Legislation, 67.

Statistical Organization, 67–73.

Statistical Publications, 69.

Statistical Summary, 1008–1029.

Status of Aliens, 92.

Steam-vessels registered, 365.

Stewart Island, 1.

Oysters, 520.

Still-births; 124, 155.

Stipendiary Magistrates' Courts—

Civil Cases, 246.
Criminal Cases, 254.

Stock, Live, 475–500.

Advances on, 658.
Carried on Railways, 379.

Stock, Quotations for, 644.

Stomach-diseases treated in Hospital, 186.

Stones, Building and Ornamental, 536.

Stop-work Meetings, 912.

Stratigraphy, 18.

Streams, 8.

Streets, Length of, 401.

Strikes, 912–921.

Stud Sheep, 478.

Students, University, 242.

Subcontracts, Building, 596.

Subdivision of Land, 438.

Submarine Cable, 421.

Subsidies to Hospital Boards, 210.

Subsidized Prospecting, 538.

Subsidized Roads on Goldfields, 539.

Succession Duty, 630.

Suffrage, 51.

Sugar, Duty on, 343.

Sugar-prices, 828.

Suicide, 164, 252.

Sulphur, 531.

Baths, 5.

Summary Convictions, 254.

Summer Time, 991.

Summons Cases, 257.

Sumner School for Deaf, 241.

Sunday Island, 995.

Sunshine, 24–35.

Superannuation, 678–683.

Superphosphate, 473.

Super-tax, 627, 628.

Supreme Court—

Civil Cases, 246.
Criminal Cases, 259.

Surpluses, 611.

Expenditure from, 615.

Surrenders, Life Insurance, 729, 732.

Surtax, 342.

Preferential, 341, 352.

Surveys, 424.

Geological, 20, 537.
Of Ships, 373.

Suwarrow Island, 1, 996.

Sympathetic Strikes, 912–921.

Syphilis, 179, 197.

T.

Table Mortgages, 769.

State Advances, 655.

Takahe, The, 45.

Takutea Island, 996.

Tallow exported, 296–322.

Tanneries, 584.

Taranaki Ironsand, 528.

Taranaki Scholarships, 242.

Tariff, Customs, 341–345.

Tasman's Discovery of New Zealand, 46.

Tax, Land and Income, 626.

Tax, Petrol, 345, 407, 625.

Taxation, 623–635.

Customs, 346, 624.
Local, 635, 692.

Taxpayers, 794–823.

Te Au-o-Tu Island, 996.

Tea, Duty on, 344, 352.

Teachers, Public-school, 229.

Superannuation Fund, 682.

Technical Education, 238.

Telegraph Services, 417.

Telephones, 417.

Temperature, 24–35.

Temporary Permits, 91.

Temporary Visitors, 83.

Tent-factories, 585.

Tenure of Occupied Lands, 427.

Tenures under which Land selected, 435, 441.

Terminating Building Societies, 763.

Territorial Forces, 279.

Thermal Regions, 5.

Third-party Risks, 743.

Three Kings Islands, 1, 994.

Threshing-machines, 454.

Tile-making, 581.

Timber—

Carried on Railways, 380.
Duty on, 344.
Export, 296–322, 504.
Duty, 345.
Output, 503, 579.
Plantations, 509.
Resources, 501.
Sales, 506.
Trees, 502.

Time lost—

In Factories, 591.
Through Industrial Accidents, 932–939.
Through Industrial Disputes, 913–921.

Time of Occurrence of Industrial Accidents, 940.

Tin, 530.

Tinware-works, 582.

Tire-tax, 345, 406, 625.

Title, Certificates of, issued, 431.

Titles, Compulsory Registration of, 430.

Tobacco, 457.

Excise Duty on, 345.

Tokelau Islands, 2, 1007.

Toll Communications, 417.

Tolls, 693.

Tomato-culture, 473.

Tongareva Island, 1, 996.

Ton-miles, Railway, 380.

Tonnage of Shipping, 366–372.

Tonnage of Trade, 360.

Tonnage Statistics, Port, 360.

Tonsils: Hospital Cases, 185.

Top-dressing, 473.

Topographical Survey, 424.

Torrens System, 429.

Totalizator Taxation, 633.

Tourists, 83.

Town Districts, 52, 687–702.

Capital and Unimproved Values, 711.
Population, 102.

Townships, Population of, 103.

Tractors on Farms, 454.

Trade, 283–364.

Representatives, 65.

Trade-marks, 972.

Trade-unions, 876–884.

Unemployment among Members, 900.

Trading Accounts, 621.

Traffic—

Accidents, 164.
Motor, 411.
Offences, 277.
Railway, 378.
Tramway 394.

Training of Defence Forces, 279.

Training of Teachers, 230.

Training-farm, 240.

Train-miles run, 378.

Tramway District, 687–702.

Tramways, 389–400.

Transfer, Land, 429.

Transfers between Accounts, 608.

Transhipments, 363.

Transit Trade, 291, 317.

Transport, 365–413.

Travelling Scholarships, 243.

Trawlers, 519.

Treaty of Waitangi, 47.

Tree-planting, 508.

Trees, Indigenous, 36–43, 502.

Triennial Parliaments, 50.

Triplets, 117.

Tropical Diseases in Samoa, 1002.

Trout, Acclimatization of, 522.

Truck Act, 863.

Trustee Savings-banks, 725.

Tuatara, The, 45.

Tuberculosis, 157, 178, 198.

Tumour Cases in Hospitals, 181.

Tungsten-ore, 529.

Turkeys, 499.

Turnips, 468.

Tussock Land, 429, 470.

Twins and Triplets born, 117.

U.

Undesirable Immigrants Exclusion, 90.

Undischarged Bankrupts, 783.

Unemployment, 885–902.

Unexercised Loan Authorities, 701.

Unimproved Occupied Land, 429.

Unimproved Value of Land, 703–711.

Holdings, 794–808.
Land-tax assessed on, 627.
Rating on, 689.

Union Islands, 2,1007.

Unions, Trade, 876–884.

University Education, 241.

Unpaid Totalizator Fractions, 634.

Unproductive Land, 425, 429.

Upolu Island, 1001.

Urban Areas—

Births, 114.
Deaths, 147.
Fire Losses, 753.
Population, 98.

Urban Drift, 96.

Urban Population, 95.

Urban Security, Mortgages on, 770, 774–778.

Urgent Telegrams, 417.

Urinary Diseases treated in Hospital, 189.

V.

Valuation of Land, 703–711.

Value added in Manufacturing, 556.

Value of Exports affected by Prices, 318–322.

Value of Land Holdings, 774–778, 793–808.

Value of Production, 974.

Vegetation, 36–42.

Vehicles—

Motor, 409.
Railway, 376.
Tramway, 399.

Venereal Diseases—

Control of, 197.
Hospital Cases, 179.

Vessels—

Employed in Fishing Industry, 519.
Entered and cleared, 366.
Nationality of, 367.
Registered, 365.
Survey of, 373.
War, 281.

Vice-regal Representatives, 54.

Village Settlements, 435.

Villages, Population of, 103.

Vinegar-factories, 575.

Vineyards, 473.

Violent Deaths, 163, 252.

Virgin Bush, Area of, 429, 501.

Visitors, 83.

Vital Statistics, 109–195.

Viticulture, 473.

Volcanoes, 2, 20.

Voluntary Inmates of Mental Hospitals, 219.

Voting—

At General Election, 977.
At Licensing Polls, 985.

W.

Wages, 847,858.

Lost through Industrial Disputes, 913—919.
Of Factory Employees, 547, 587.
Of Farm Employees, 856.
Protection, 867.

Waikaremoana Power-supply, 947.

Waikato Power-supply, 945.

Waiotapu Forest Plantation, 509.

Waipori Power-supply, 948.

Waitangi, Treaty of, 47.

Wakari Private Mental Hospital, 221.

War, 280.

Bursaries, 237.
Expenditure, 641.
Increases in Food-prices, 830.
Indebtedness, 641.
Loans Sinking Fund, 646.
Pensions, 673.
Tax, 628.

Ward Ministry, 56.

Warships, 281.

Washed Wool exported, 483.

Washington Conference, 281.

Water-power, 943–966.

Waterproof-material Factories, 576.

Water-races, Government, 539.

Waters, Mineral, 5.

Water-supply Districts, 687–702.

Wealth, 786–808.

Weather, 24–35.

Weekly Wage-rates, 854.

In Factories, 587.

Weka, The, 44.

Welfare of Children, 239.

Weraroa Training-farm, 240.

Western Samoa, 2, 1000–1006.

Bibliography of, 1041.
Births in, 127.
Deaths in, 170.
Marriages in, 139.
Population of, 107.

Wethers, 478.

Whakarewarewa Forest Plantation, 509.

Whales, 43.

Whaling, 44, 47, 521, 1007.

Wheat, 460.

Duty on, 344.
Export of, 296.

White Island Sulphur, 531.

Wholesale Licenses, 984.

Wholesale Prices, 841–845.

Widows—

Left by Married Men, 149.
Pensions for, 671.
Re-marriages of, 133.

Wills administered by Public Trust Office, 967.

Wind, 24–35.

Wine, Consumption of, 277.

Wine Licenses, 984.

Wire (Telegraph), Miles of, 417.

Wireless Telegraphy, 419.

Requirements on Vessels, 872.

Withdrawals from Savings-banks, 722–725.

Wives' Petitions in Divorce, 249.

Women—

Deaths of, in Childbirth, 161.
Offences by, 272.
Suffrage for, 51.
Wages of, 853.
Working-hours of, 870.

Wool, 482.

Exported, 295–322, 483.
Used at Local Mills, 483, 586.

Woollen-mills, 586.

Wool purchased by, 483.

Wool-presses on Farms, 454.

Wool-scouring Works, 584.

Workers, Advances to, 663.

Workers' Compensation, 865.

Insurance, 742, 744.

Workers' Dwellings, 665.

Workers' Educational Association, 244.

Workers' Unions, 876–884.

Workers' Weekly Railway Tickets, 379.

Working Railways Account, 382, 610.

Working-days lost through Industrial Disputes, 913–921.

Working-hours, 858, 870.

World's Cattle, 487.

World's Coal-production, 534.

World's Dairy - produce Production and Trade, 490.

World's Gold-production, 527.

World's Population, 107.

World's Sheep Flocks, 481.

Wrecks, 374.

Y.

Yaws in Samoa, 1002.
Year-book, The, 70.
Yields of Crops, 456–473.

Z.

Zoology, 43.

Name of Order.	Registrations at 1st January, 1928.	Established.	Closed.	Registrations at 31st December, 1928.
Manchester Unity Independent Order of Oddfellows	239	7	..	246
Independent Order of Oddfellows	190	6	..	196
National Independent Order of Oddfellows	3	..	..	3
British United Order of Oddfellows	1	..	..	1
Ancient Order of Foresters	160	6	..	166
Ancient Order of Shepherds	1	..	..	1
United Ancient Order of Druids	143	1	..	144
Independent Order of Rechabites	66	2	..	68
Order of Sons of Temperance	10	..	..	10
Sons and Daughters of Temperance	1	..	..	1
Hibernian Australasian Catholic Benefit Society	71	..	..	71
Protestant Alliance Friendly Society of Australasia	15	..	..	15
Grand United Order of Oddfellows	12	..	1	11
Isolated friendly societies	60	1	..	61
Working-men's clubs	16	..	..	16
Independent Order of Good Templars	11	..	..	11
Specially authorized societies	16	..	..	16
Totals	1,015	23	1	1,037