7

H.—3l

APPENDICES. APPENDIX L—GENERAL STATISTICS FOR THE YEAR 1909-10. PART I.—VITAL STATISTICS. For the following statistics relating to birth, death-rates, infant mortality, and causes of death, the Department is indebted to the returns of the Registrar-General. They relate to the year 1909. Births. The number of births registered during 1909 was 26,524, or 27-29 in every 1,000 persons living. The number is 584 in excess of that for the year increase of 2-25 per cent., but the rate lower by 0-16 per thousand. From 1882 until the year was a regular fall in the rate. The births registered in a year numbered 19,846 in 1884, falling to 17,876 in 1892, have risen to the number first stated above. The number of male children born during 1909 tJ was 13,502, and of female children 13,022. The following table shows the number registered, the birth-rate calculated on the total population, and comparison with the average rate for 1882-86 taken as 100. Indications of a gradual increase are apparent, the improvement since 1899 being 8-64 per cent, on the rate per 1,000 in that year.

Births, Number and Rate.

The average number of children to a marriage may be ascertained by comparing the number of legitimate births for a series of years with the marriages, but commencing with the marriages in the year preceding that for which the first number of births is taken. Calculating in this way the figures for the twenty-year period 1890-1909 show a decline from 4-87 to 3-13 as below :— Proportion of Birchs Marriages Legitimate to every Year. images. Births. Marriage solemnized in the Preceding Year. 1889 ... ... ... ... 3,632 1890 ... ... ... ... 3,797 17,675 4-87 1891 ... ... ... ... 3,805 17,635 4-64 1892 ... ... ... ... 4,002 17,283 4-54 1893 ... ... 4,115 17,514 4-37 1894 ... ... ... ... 4,178 17,824 4-33 1895 ... ... ... .... 4,110 17,711 4-24 1896 ... ... ... ... 4,843 17,778 4-32 1897 ... ... ... ... 4,928 17,911 370 1898 ... ... ... ... 5,091 18,154 3-68 1899 ... ... ... ... ... 18,066 3-54 1899 ... ... ... ... 5,461 1900 ... ... ... ... 5,860 18,640 3-41 1901 ... ... ... ... 6,095 19,554 334 .1902 ... ... ... ... 6,394 19,734 3-23 1903 ... ... ... ... 6,748 20,835 3-26 1904 ... ... ... ... 6,983 21,737 3-22 1905 ... ... ... ... 7,200 22,600 3-24 1906 ... ... ... ... 7,592 23,120 3 21 1907 ... ... ... ... 8,192 23,937 3-15 1908 ... ... ... ... 8,094 24,835 3-03 1909 .... ... ... 25,301 313

Year. 1882-86 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 Birth-rate. Total Number of Births p er j QQQ Compared Year, registered. ' j with Bate in i. Population. ! . J 882 " 8 !' i 1 taken as 100. i I I _ J 1 " ~ " \ ■ ~ " " II . i 19,410 3540 100 1898 1899 19,135 32-09 91 1900 i 18,902 31-22 88 1901 18,457 . 30-07 85 1902 18,278 29-44 83 1903 18,273 29-01 82 1904 I 17,876 27-83 79 1905 I 18,187 27-50 78 1906 18,528 27-28 77 | 1907 18,546 26-78 76 1908 18,612 26-33 74 1909 18,737 25-96 73 Birth Total Number j of Births p , „„„ registered. l er £ lm Population. 18,955 25-74 18,835 25-12 19,546 25-60 20,491 26-34 20,655 25-89 21,829 i 26-61 j 22,766 26-94 23,682 27-22 24,252 27-08 2B.,094 27-30 25,940 27-45 26,524 27-29 j h-rate. Compared with Rate in 1882-80 talien as 100. 73 71 72 74 73 75 76 77 76 77 77 77