NEW ZEALAND INSTITUTE. THIRTY-SECOND ANNUAL REPORT, 1899-1900.

Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives, 1900 Session I, H-33

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1900. NEW ZEALAND.

NEW ZEALAND INSTITUTE. THIRTY-SECOND ANNUAL REPORT, 1899-1900.

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly by Command of His Excellency.

Meetings of the Board were held on the 20th February and 4th September, 1900. Messrs. W. T. L. Travers, T. Mason, and Sir James Hector retired from the Board in compliance with the Act, and were all renominated by His Excellency the Governor. The following gentlemen were elected by the incorporated societies to represent them on the Board for the current year —viz., Messrs. S. Percy Smith, James McKerrow, and Hon. C. C. Bowen. To the list of honorary members are added the names of Lord Avebury, Dr. J. G. Agarah, and Mr. George Massee, elected at the beginning of the year for distinguished service in connection with scientific work relating to New Zealand. The members now on the roll are—Honorary members, 27; Auckland Institute, 153; Hawke's Bay Philosophical Society, 59; Wellington Philosophical Society, 144; Philosophical Institute of Canterbury, 70 ; Otago Institute, 107 ; Nelson Philosophical Society, 16 ; Westland Institute, 60 : making a total of 636. The volumes of Transactions now on hand are—Vol. I. (second edition), 230; Vol. V., 7; Vol. VI., 12 ; Vol. VII., 98 ; Vol. IX., 95 ; Vol. X., 125 ; Vol. XI., 25 ; Vol. XII., 29 ; Vol. XIII., 29; Vol. XIV., 50; Vol. XV., 163; Vol. XVI., 162; Vol. XVII., 162; Vol. XVIII., 130; Vol. XIX., 154; Vol. XX., 154 ; Vol. XXI., 87; Vol. XXII., 89 ; Vol. XXIII., 163 ; Vol. XXIV., 167; Vol. XXV., 163; Vol. XXVI., 172; Vol. XXVII., 170; Vol. XXVIII., 175; Vol. XXIX., 400 ; Vol. XXX., 400 ; Vol. XXXI., 450 ; Vol. XXXII., not yet fully distributed. The volume just published (XXXII.) contains fifty-three articles, and also addresses and abstracts which appear in the Proceedings. The volume consists of 494 pages and twenty-six plates. The following gives a comparison of the contents of the present volume and that for last year:— 1900. 1899. Pages. Pages. Miscellaneous ... ... ... ... ... ... 162 100 Zoology ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 62 262 Botany ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 102 220 Geology ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 68 72 - I 16 50 Physics ... ... ... ... ... ... ) Proceedings ... ... ... ... ... ... 38 48 Appendix ... ... ... ... ... ... 46 50 494 802 It should be noted that Vol. XXXI. (1898), owing to an unavoidable delay in the publication of the plates, represents a period considerably exceeding the year, so that it included papers that properly belonged to Vol. XXXII. The cost of printing Vol. XXXI. was £539 6s. 3d. for 802 pages, and that for the present volume (XXXII.) £338 11s. 6d. for 494 pages. This amount includes the preparation and printing of the plates. The Treasurer's statement of accounts, appended, shows the amount received for the year as £1,098 7s. 3d. (including balance brought forward) and the expenditure £666 Is. 4d., leaving a balance in hand of £432 ss. lid. This balance has already been appropriated for the completion of the great work by Mr. Hamilton, illustrating " Maori Art," and other publications now in hand. Part IV. of the " Maori Art" has been issued, and Part V., which completes the work, is now well advanced for publication. After this final part is issued to subscribers, the work can only be obtained in its complete form in one volume, handsomely bound, and binding-covers can be supplied to those who possess the work in separate parts at cost price. A dictionary of the Mangareva language, by Mr. B. Tregear, has been published by the Institute. The following extract from Mr. Tregear's introduction will explain why the Board went to the expense of this work :—

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The Gambier or Mangareva Islands consist of a small group situated within the Paumotu Archipelago, in the Eastern Paoifio. They are generally known as Mangareva, that being the native name of the principal island (Peard Island); but on their discovery by Captain Wilson, of the " Duff," on the 25th May, 1797, he named them after Admiral Lord Gambier. Mangareva Island is about four miles in length, and rises in two peaks in the form of wedges, the greatest height being 1,315 ft. The large village on the east side of Mangareva is in latitude 23° 7' 34" S., longitude 135° 0' 20" W. The other chief islands are Akamaru, Aukena, and .Taravai. The inhabitants of the group number about a thousand. The whole of the islands are within an encircling coral reef. They form part of the French possessions in Oceania. The interesting matter to the linguist and anthropologist in the following dictionary is that the language is pure Polynesian. Generally the inhabitants of the Paumotu Archipelago speak a dialect containing some element foreign to the Polynesian tongue; but in Mangareva the speech is nearly identical with the Maori of New Zealand, thousands of miles distant to the westward. I trust that many a riddle of Maori scholars may be solved by this dictionary of Mangareva. A second edition of the catalogue of the library of the Colonial Museum has been published. This is a work of 160 pages, and the supplement, which will contain the recent additions, is well advanced for press, and also an alphabetical index of authors' names. This library contains books belonging to the New Zealand Institute, the Geological Survey Department, the Colonial Museum (acquired either as donations or deposits), and the Wellington Philosophical Society. Books belonging to the Wellington Philosophical Society are marked with S. after date of publication. As some delay has occurred in the printing of this the second edition of the Museum catalogue, a very considerable number of additions have been made to the library since the manuscript was sent to press. These additions will be published in a supplementary catalogue as soon as possible after the rearrangement of the books has been completed. Owing to the occupation of the shelves by the large Patent Library (which has now been removed), it was impossible until the present time to arrange this very valuable scientific library in a proper manner for reference. The Manager wishes to express his cordial thanks to the friends in many parts of the world who have aided in its collection, and which when properly arranged should prove of immense value to the colony as a means of reference. The library is now undergoing complete rearrangement in accordance with the new catalogue. The room, which is also the lecture-hall, has ample accommodation for readers who desire to study the works of reference. Museum. Since last report 107 entries have been made in the register of collections added to the Museum, comprising about five hundred specimens, a full list of which will be published in the usual form in due course. The whole of the collections, and especially the birds anrJ fishes, which are most liable to suffer from damp, have been thoroughly cleaned and fresh preservatives applied. The work of renaming and relabelling in a more distinct manner is also in progress. The large relief model illustrating the geological structure of New Zealand has been cleaned and recoloured, and is now enclosed in a glass frame. On the whole, the Museum is now in good order, and has been made as accessible to the public as the cramped space provided for such extensive collections will permit. It has been arranged that the Lecturer on Geology for the Victoria College shall have temporary use of the herbarium-room for his class-work, and that he may also have free access to any geological and mineral specimens he may require for illustration of his lectures on condition that they are not to be removed from the Museum building. Meteoeological. The results of the meteorological observations taken at the principal stations for 1899 have been forwarded to the Eegistrar-General for incorporation with his annual report. The complete monthly returns for Wellington, and the monthly rainfall from 165 stations in New Zealand, have been published regularly in the Gazette. The monthly return for the vital statistics has also been furnished. The weather exchange, by telegraph, is carried on as usual between this colony and Australia. Colonial Time-ball Obsekvatoey. Mr. Thomas King, the officer in charge, reports as follows: The time service has been carried out as in former years. New Zealand mean time has been distributed daily by telegraph throughout the colony; whilst special signals for the use of navigators in rating their chronometers have been sent weekly to the chief seaports on the mornings after meridian observations have been taken. Hourly clock signals have, as heretofore, been automatically given from the Observatory to the Wellington Telegraph - office (operating - room and public office), to the Colonial Museum, and to the business premises of those watchmakers in Wellington who are on the galvanometer circuit. The time-ball is now dropped on every day of the week except Sunday ; and for the guidance of shipmasters a flag is displayed on the ball tower on those days on which, as the result of transit observations, the time may be employed for close-rating purposes. Acknowledgments are due to the Wellington Harbour Board for the readiness it has shown to make the necessary arrangements for carrying out this plan. I should like to be allowed to record my thanks to Mr. William Ferguson, Secretary of the Board, and to Mr. G. F. Smith, the Assistant Secretary, for their courteous co-operation with the department in the matter. The telegraph authorities have been at all times obliging in promptly taking any steps which were required for insuring the proper working of the electric circuit which controls the time-ball and the galvanometers. The clocks have, on the whole, maintained satisfactory rates and have not called for more than the customary amount of regulating. The adjustments of the transit instrument have been regularly tested. Approved.. James Hectoe, Manager. Thomas Mason, Chairman. Wellington, 4th September, 1900.

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New Zealand Institute Accounts fob 1899-1900. Receipts. & s. d. Expenditure. £ s. d. Balance .. .. .. .. 492 9 6 Printing Vol. XXXII. .. .. .. 338 11 6 Vote for 1899-1900 .. .. .. 500 0 0 Publishing " Maori Art" .. .. .. 265 12 10 Contribution from Wellington Philosophical Printing Mangareva Dictionary .. .. 23 12 0 Society .. .. • • 12 5 0 Temporary clerical assistance .. .. 16 0 0 Sale of Transactions of New Zealand Institute 414 0 Miscellaneous items .. .. .. 22 5 0 Sale of " Maori Art" .. .. .. 88 5 9 Balance* .. .. .. .. 432 511 Refund of exchange on cheque .. .. 13 0 £1,098 7 3 £1,098 7 3 * This balance is already appropriated for the completion of the " Maori Art " and other works. Wμ. Thos. Locke Tbayees, 3rd September, 1900. Honorary Treasurer. Approximate Cost of Paper.— Preparation, not given; printing (1,375 copies), £2 lie.

By Authority: John Mackay, Government Printer, Wellington.—l9oo. Price 3d.]

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