WELLINGTON.

Thames Star, Volume XIV, Issue 4396, 5 February 1883, Page 2

WELLINGTON.

Saturday. The Premier leaves by the Te Anau on Monday next for Lyttelton. Mr Whitaker will visit the chief centres of Canterbury and Otago, including Christchurch, Timaru, Oamaru, Dunedin, Invercargill, and the chief goldfield towns. He is expected to be absent from Wellington abuut three weeks, and will probably return about the 25th inst. This day Dr Newman read a paper before the Philosophical Society on the question, "Is the climate of New Zealand healthy P" It contained statistics prepared by himself

and Mr Frankland, of the Insurance Department, from 1874 to the present time, showing the ages of people in the colony, in quinquennial periods, so as to compare it with Great Britain. It showed the death rate here to beli-sper 1000, while that of Great Britain is 23, or double the rate. Several other reasons than a healthy climate, which was admitted, were, how. ever, indicated to partially account for this. The death rate here was, however, lower than in any of the Australian Colonies, or any other civilized country. With the increase of manufactories and the intro duction of diseases at present unknown, it is, however, likely to increase. A fine specimen of Cork, taken from a tree 15 yearsold, grown by Mr T. Mason, M.H.8., at the Hutt, was shown by Dr Hector. He denied that he desired in any way to dispute the Rev. Mr Green's statements about the ascent of Mount Cook.