MARRIAGE IN NEW ZEALAND.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8219, 24 August 1906, Page 3

MARRIAGE IN NEW ZEALAND.

SOME INTERESTING COMPARISONs.

In the advance sheets of the Oflßoinl Year Bock just issued some interesting particulars are given in the pQges dealing with marriages in the colony. Of the marriages in the year i»OS, 24.24 per oeut. were solemnised by ministers of the Ohuroh of England, 26.43 per cent, by ministers of the Presbyterian Churches, 16.76 per cent, by ministers of the Wesleyan and other Methodist Churches, 10.22 per oent. '•by ministers of the Roman OathoJio Church, 6.75 per cent, by ministers of other denominations, and 15.60 per oent. by Registrars. Marriage by the Registrar is found tc be less frequent than it was eight years ago, the percentage falling from 17.01 in 1898,t0 15.80 in 1905. The statistics relating to illiteracy show in a mat ked manner the progress of education in the country. Of the men married in 1905, 18, or 2.50 in every 1000, and of the women ; 28, or 3.88 per 1000, signed th« register by marks, 'l'he illiteracy of the people, as measured by the proportion of married persons who affix marks instend of signatures , to toe marriage register, has greatly deureased of late, having fallen ainco 1881 from 32.04 per 1000 among men to 2.50 per 1000, and from 57 98 per 1000 to 3.88 per 1000 among women. The proportion of illiterate? n 1901* and 1905 was greatest among those married belore Registrars. Jfreviously the proportion was largest among .Jtioman Catholics: but since 1881 it ;faas most remarkably decreased. Continuing the comparison in •regard to the ages of persons married, it is found !bat last year 133 i bridegrooms and 1214 brides were under 21 years jf age, one of the bridegrooms was between 16 and 17, iflve between 17 and 18, and thirteen between 18 and 19. Of the brides, on 4 wns under 15, tliree were between 15, and 16, and twenty-three between 16 and 17 of age. The proportion of men married is greatest at the ages of 25 to 30, an 3 of women at from 21 to 25 y«ars. The average age of the men married in the oolOny in 1905 was -29,65 years, and of the women "25.75 years. Compared with the Englisn statistics for 1903, *the average age at marriage in New Zealand appears to be high •er for men, bnt lower for women than in England,. Summarised, it may be stated •that the ujarriages for 1905 show an increase on the number for the previous year. The number was 7200, or 217 more than in 1904. The marriage-rate rose from 8.2 C per 1000 persons living in 1904 to 8 28 in 1905, the rate for the Mter year being the highest obtained •since 1875, wheu it stood at 8.94 per 1000 peisons. The improvement rahown during the last ten years sets New Zealand in a good position re'atively to the Australian States. The number of births registered in the colony during 1905 was 23,682, or 27,22 in every 1000 persons living. The rate is the highest reached since the year 1894, the number of births being 916 in excess of that for the year ISO 4, an increase of 4.02 per cunt. £rom 1882 until the year 1899 there was a regular fall in the birth-rate. The number of births r«B' B tered in a year reached 19,846" in 1884, and, after fplling to 17,876 in 1892, has risen to 23,682 in 1905 aa stated above. There were 242 casns of twin births (484 children), and triplets were registered in three instancesf in 1005. Although New Zealand had in 1900 the lowest birth-rate in Australasia, the rate in the colony for 1905 was higher than that of Victoria, New South Wales, and South Australia.