H.—l.

Table V. deals with the Medical and Management Expenses' Funds. The total amount of expenditure from these funds was £25,0)57 10s. 4d., distributed as follows: —■ Medical attendance and medicine ... ... ... ... £13,751 10 8 Expenses of management (inclusive of levies to central bodies) ... 8,810 17 6 Other expenditure ... ... .. ... ... 2,475 2 2 £25,037 10 4 This gives an average of 19s. per member for medical attendance, &c, and 12s. 2d. for expenses of management. The former average is higher and the latter lower than in the year 1880; but the contributions of members to this fund, which has been continuously increasing for four years, is £1 9s. Id., or 2s. 3d. higher than for the previous year. Included in these tables are 12 lodges of the affiliated orders, the number of whose members on the 31st December, 1881, was 200 and upwards. In these the average expenses for medical attendance, &c, and for expenses of management, were respectively 17s. Bd. and 12s. This does not show any great saving where the numbers in lodges are large, but the average amount of contribution in these branches was ss. Id. less than the total average, VALUATIONS. During the calendar year 1882 the Registrar has received valuation reports respecting two Districts of the Ancient Order of Foresters —namely, (he Wellington and Nelson Districts. The former District was valued by Mr. W. Nosworthy, a Valuer appointed by the District and approved by the Governor, and the latter by Messrs. Leslie and Black, the Public Valuers. The valuation of the Wellington District was made as at the 31st day of December, 1881. The District at that date consisted of 14 courts, containing an aggregate of 1,316 members, of whom 943 were married. Of these 1,316 members 31 were between 18 and 20 years of age, 17G were between 20 and 25, 325 between 25 and 30, 299 between 30 and 35, 250 between 35 and 40, 157 between 40 and 45, 59 between 45 and 50, 11 between 50 and 55, 7 between 55 and 60, while one member was between 60 and 61 years of age. The District consisted, therefore, mainly of young members. The total funds at the valuation date were £15,218 19s. 5d., or £11 lls. 4d. per member. This total was made up of the following amounts : Sick funds of various courts, £12,713 Bs. 9d., or £9 13s. 3d. per member ; District funeral fund, £1.105 9s. 9d., or 16s. lOd. per member; management funds of courts, £480 ss. 6d., or 7s. 3d. per member ; other subsidiary funds of courts, £570 2s. 7d, or Bs. Bd. per member ; District management fund, £349 12s. 10d., or ss. 4d. per member. The benefits assured to members were £1 per week during sickness not exceeding six months in length, and during the first six months of continuous sickness ; 10s. per week during the second six months of continuous sickness ; ss. per week during sickness which has continued beyond twelve months; £20 on the death of a member; £10 on the death of a member's wife ; and £10 on the death of the widow of a deceased member, if she has kept up certain payments of contributions since her husband's death. Mr. Nosworthy estimated the present value of these benefits by assuming as usual that the future sickness and mortality experience of the District would coincide with that of the Manchester Unity of Odd Fellows as tabulated by the late Mr. Eatcliffe in his report of 1872, and that interest at the rate of 4 per cent, annually would be earned on the total funds, invested and uninvested. The present values of the various benefits assured, estimated on these bases, were as follow :— Present value of sickness benefits ...£39,497 4 2, or £30 0 3 per member. Present value of funeral benefits to members 8,941 12 1, or 615 II per member. Present value of funeral benefits to members' wives and widows ... ... ... 3,348 18 5, or 210 11 per member. £51,787 14 8, or £39 7 1 per member. Thus the gross liability of the District under its various insurance contracts was £51,787 14s. Bd., or £39 7s. Id. per member. Against this had to be set the present value of the contributions receivable, and the total realized assets of the various benefit funds. Now, the scale of contributions payable to the benefit funds was nominally the following : — 2s. per lunar month for entrants between 18 and 27 years of age. 2s. 4d. „ „ 27 „ 33 3a. „ „ 33 „ 38 ~ . 4s. „ „ 3S „ 40 __ „ The expression " nominally " is used because, although the great majority of the members paid at these rates, special arrangements existed in some of the courts by virtue of which other rates have been paid. As a matter of fact, out of 1,316 members of the district, 956 were paying to the benefit funds at the rate of £1 6s. per annum {i.e., 2s per lunar month), 1 at £1 7s. 2d., 2 at £1 Bs. 2d., 233 at £1 10s. 4d. (i.e., 2s. 4d. per lunar mouth), 15 at £1 12s. (id., 6 at £L 14s. 4d., 32 at £1 14s. Bd., 52 at £!. 19s. (i.e., 3s. per lunar month), 2 at £2 35., 4 at £2 3s. 4d., 1 at £2 7s. Bd., 10 at £2 12s. (i.e., *£<4s. per lunar month), and 2at £2 16s. 4d. The present value of these contributions was estimated by the same table of mortality, and at the same rate of interest, as the present value of the benefits : it amounted to £31,147 14s. 9d ,or £23 13s. sd. per member. The total funds applicable to sick and funeral benefits were £13,818 18s. 6d., or £10 10s. per member. Tims the assets, realized and prospective, amounted together to £44,906 13s. 3d., or £34 3s. sd. per member, as against a liability of £51,787 14sJ3d., 0r.£39 7s. Id. per member, leaving an actuarial deficit of £6,821 Is. 5d., or £5 3s. Bd. per member. Or, again, by^deducting the present value of the future contributions from the gross liability of the District, there' is obtained a net liability of £20,639 19s. lid., or £15 13s. Bd. per member, which exaeeds the realized assets by £6,821 Is. 5d., as before. On passing from the consideration of the District as a whole to that of the individual courts, it is found that two courts only, out of the fourteen, possess an actuarial surplus, namely, Court Sir George Grey, in Wellington, the oldest and largest in the District, and Court Blenheim, on the destinies of which Mr. Nosworthy himself has probably exercised great influence as a leading member, the sur-

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