The Manawatu Standard (PUBLISHED DAILY.) The Oldest Daily Newspaper on the West Coast. MONDAY, MAY 31, 1886. FRIENDLY SOCIETIES.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XI, Issue 1721, 31 May 1886, Page 2

Manawatu Standard (PUBLISHED DAILY.) The Oldest Daily Newspaper on the West Coast. MONDAY, MAY 31, 1886. FRIENDLY SOCIETIES.

The Registrar of Friendly Societies! makes the following report : — During: the year twenty-five new lodges have* been registered, eighteen have ceased toexist, and several have become amalgamated with other lodges. There were°at. the end of last year 281 societies and. branches in 'the colony, with 21,444 members. The total funds were £290,783, o£ which ±255,646 belonged to tie sick: and funeral funds. In addition to the latter, funeral fnnds held by the central, bodies amounted to £22,076 13s 6d. Th& number of admissions for the year was 3216, the number of deaths 147, the number of withdrawals 2320. Thisshow^ a net increase of 749. The number of sick during the year was 3048, and the contributions to the sick and funeral funds amounted to £28,782, or an average of £1 7s 6d per member. The total expenditure was £35,499, the average per member for medical attendance and medicine, and for expenses of management 10s lid. The balance-sheet shows £262,528 m funds. Of the total assets £150,819 was invested at interest, and the average rate of interest on the total funds was 7-1 per cent.

The Counties Bill introduced into the Legislature by Mr Stout, is a consolidation of the existing law relating to counties, and contains a few additions whioh it is propound to embody m the Act. The Public Health Act is incorporated ; provision is made for the alteration of existing ridings ; there has been a re-arrangement of certain subsections m order to make it clear who are subject to penalties under the Act arid the Local Bodies Contractors Act of last session ; provision is made iv order to give acting-chairmen at Council meetings the powers of Chairmen ; the power for removing strangers from meetings of the Council is more definitely specified ; the Conncil is prohibited from obtaining an overdraft exceeding the amount of the year'R income ; and power is given to construct drains for preventing the flooding of low lands by water from lands on a higher level. There are now two new clauses. One is for the purpose of levying general rates for counties by districts therein and for tho expenditure of those ratos m such districts, Jess a fixed contribution towards general expenses and liabilities of $he county, The other provides that separate accounts shall be kept of the eoaoty expenditure within road and town districts, and of their respective contributions to such expenditure.