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I.—ll

The Eegistear-General to the Chairman, Old-age Pensions Committee. Sir, — Eegistrar-General's Office, Wellington, 9th July, 1894. In compliance with your request of the sth instant, I enclose a statement of the population over sixty years of age, according to sexes, in groups of age-periods, and the number of deaths at those ages, for 1893. With a population amounting to 672,265 persons (males 357,635, females 314,630), and the existing proportions at the various age-periods, there would be 28,402 persons (males 17,201, females 11,201) over sixty years of age to be provided for under a scheme of old-age pensions beginning with that year. Judging from the results of past censuses, the proportion to the whole population of persons over sixty years of age will increase by slow degrees, but regularly, for some time. Although there were 1,396 deaths of persons over sixty years of age during the year 1893, the number living and coming forward from the previous ages would be rather more than sufficient to replace these. I attach another statement, which shows that the death-rate among males over sixty would be about 53-48 per 1,000, and among females 46-15 per 1,000. The rates are also given for groups of quinquennial periods of age between sixty and eighty years, to show the rapid advance in mortality at the higher age-periods. The results are arrived at from the experience of the period 1887-91, because the actual numbers living in March, 1886, and April, 1891, are ascertainable by the censuses of those years. The question of cost of a scheme of pensions I take to be one for the Actuaries of the Government to work out, and the principle of any scheme would have to be settled before anything could be done. For a proposal involving State aid and taxation to meet the same, I believe the Eegistrar and Actuary of Friendly Societies, Mr. E. Mason, has some information to afford. For a scheme of compulsory contributions there must be records of the work done by Mr. Frankland in 1884, before the introduction to Parliament of the Bill for national insurance ; and beyond these, the Actuaries of the Government Insurance Department no doubt have the very latest information on the subject. I have, &c, E. J. von Dadelszen, William Hutchison, Esq., M.H.E. Eegistrar-General.

Mean Population at each Age-period from Sixty Years upwards for the Five Years 1887-91, with the Yearly Average Number of Deaths registered and the Death-rate per 1,000 living.

Closely connected with the subject of old-age pensions is the question of providing annuities for orphan children left by fathers dying before they have attained the age of sixty-five. This matter is now claiming the attention of actuaries and others in England engaged in the investigation of State insurance schemes, and is a very important feature. In order to be prepared with data for calculating the values of premiums for such family annuities, particulars as to the number and ages of all children left by married men dying between the ages of twenty and sixty-five have been taken from the death registers. These particulars have been arranged in tabular form and printed in the statistical volume for 1893. The results are shown in two tables (copies attached), one of which deals with the year 1893 only, the other showing the aggregate results of the four years 1890-93. E. J. von Dadelszen. Eegistrar-General's Office, 9th July, 1894.

Estimated Number of Persons at each Age-period from Sixty Years upwards living in New Zealand on the 31st December, 1893; also the Number of Deaths registered during 1893.

Ages. I i Number living. Deal ;hs. Rate pi :r 1,000. 50-65 ... J5-70 ... '0-75 ... '5-80 ... SO upwards Males. 6,332 3,486 2,039 1,022 621 Females. 3,820 2,345 1,557 805 509 Males. 202 166 140 105 109 Females. 90 86 91 65 85 Males. 31-90 47-62 68-66 102-74 175-52 Females. 23-56 36-67 58-45 80-75 166-99 Total 13,500 9,036 722 417 53-48 46-15

Estimated Number 31st December, 11 living, S93. Actual Nu: iber of Deaths registered, 1893. Ages. 60-65 ... 65-70 ... 70-75 75-80 ... 80-85 ... 85 and over Males. 8,261 4,220 2,682 1,287 501 250 Females. 4,782 2,737 2,014 1,007 472 189 Total. 13,043 6,957 4,696 2,294 973 439 Males. 281 175 177 121 93 52 Females. 118 86 102 88 62 41 Total. 399 261 279 209 155 93 Total ... 17,201 [ 11,201 28,402 899 497 1,396 I