Statistical.

Otago Witness, Issue 1416, 11 January 1879, Page 9

Statistical.

Through the courtesy of Mr Downes, postmaster at Port Chalmers, we have .been supplied with the following returns of the business transacted at that office during the year ending 31st December, 1878. In that period 326,356 letters, 2309 postal cards, 20,349 books, and 237,609 newspapers were received at and depnatched from the Post Office _at Port Chalmers. Owing to the decrease of Government duty on tea and sugar this year, no less than L 1741 14s 6d was collected at the Custom House on the 3rd on these articles alone. On the 4th, out of a total duty of L 692 5s collected, L 248 4s 7d was on tea and sugar. The Caledonian Society's games, this year have so far been the most successful held in Dunedin, the attendance and other receipts being larger than on any previous year. The first day's gate money totalled L 451, that of the second day L346j L 22 was received for licenses for merry-go-round, stalls, &c, upon the ground; and the receipts of the auction sale of booths was L 398 10a. This makes a total of L 1217 103, to which to be added the return from members' tickets, as well as Saturday's takings. The total number of passengers booked from Dunedin station on New Year's Day was 5004. Of these 2495 travelled on the Ocean Beach line, the remainder on the North and South lines. 3267 persons booked from Dunedin Railway Station on January 2nd. Of these 1920 travelled upon the Ocean Beach line, and 1347 upon other lines. The criminal statistics of Wellington for the past two years show that crime has not only been relatively, but absolutely decreasing, notwithstanding the large number of persons added to the population within that period. In 1876 there were 616 committals, of whom 512 were men and 104 women. In 1877 there were 527 committals, 436 males and 91 females, or a decrease of 89. During the year just ended, there were 430 committals, 358 men and 72 women, a decrease being thus shown of 97 on 1877, or 186, nearly 33 per cent, on the number of committals in 1876. The total number of prisoners in Canterbury Gaols at the end of December was 167; 69 males and 20 females were discharged during the same peried. Thirty prisoners less were received into prison during the past year than in 1877. The numbers were 376 and 346. For the year ending December 31st, 1878, there were registered in the district of Invercargill 467 births, 105 marriages, and 101 deaths. The vital statistics for the Oam&ru district for the past month are as follows : — Births, 37 ', marriages, 8 ; deaths, 4. Corresponding month in 1877— Births, 36; marriages, 6 ; deaths, 3. Total for the year— Births, 406 ; marriages, 94; deaths, 92., For 1877 the numbers were— Births, 416 j marriages, 74 ; deaths, 90. The following are the births, deaths, and marriages for Wellington City :— Births in 1877, 888 ; in 1878, 986. Deaths in 1877, 338 ; in 1878, 296. Marriage certificates issued in 1877, 268; in 1878, 348. During the month ending December, 1878, there were 22 deaths registered within the city of Auckland. The number during corresponding month, 1877, were 18 deaths. There were

nine deaths in the hospital in the month of December, 1878. 7484 adults were booked at the Christchurch railway station for the Lyttelton P*egatta. The total passengers last year was under 7000. The comparative returns of goods traffic on the Christchurch-Dunedin section of the railway show a revenue from those sections for the four weeks ending November 16th of L 37,936, againßt L 26,854 for the corresponding period of the previous yeat. The Customs revenue at Timaru for 1878 was L 22,948 17s lOd, and during the same period 382 births, 131 deaths, and 89 marriages were registered in the borough. The exports from the port of Hokitikashow an increase of L 5006 in 1878 over the preceding year. | The total gold- shipments for the past year amount to 60,765 ounces.