H.—l

5

£ s. a. Medical attendance and medicine ... ... ... ... 16,742 1 8 Expenses of management (inclusive of levies to central bodies) ... 10,568 7 5 Other payments ... ... ... ... ... 4,256 12 10 £31,567 1 11 This gives an average of 18s. per member for medical attendance, &c, and 11s. 4d. for expenses of management, a saving of Is. and lOd. respectively upon tho previous year's averages. The sum of the contributions and levies to these funds was less than in 1881 to the extent of 2s. Id. per member. This may probably be accounted for by a diminution in the levies required to be made during the year. 20. Table VI. shows the distribution of the societies' funds as on the 31st December, 1882. Of the total amount, £130,109 was placed at interest, and the value of laud and buildings was set down at £81,597. Cash in hand amounted to £13,876; and £6,888 represented value of goods, regalia, debts, &c. The following is a statement of funds and assets as at the end of tho year : — Funds. £ Assets. £ Sick and Funeral Funds ... ... 204,780 Investments at interest ... ... 130,109 Medical and Management Expenses 21,529 Value of land and buildings ... 81,597 Funds Cash not bearing interest ... ... 13,876 Other funds and property ... ... 6,161 Value of goods, regalia, &c. ... 5,728 Other assets ... ... ... 1,160 £232,470 £232,470 21. Table VII. shows how the funds at interest were placed, with the rates per cent, earned by the various investments. £13,263 was in the Post-Offiee Savings-Back, and £28,095 in other banks. The average interest on the latter was 4 T 7^ per cent. £731 was on deposit with companies, &c, at an average interest of 5f per cent.; £75,936 was on mortgage of freehold property, yielding on an average B T^j per cent. ; £7,648 was invested in Government and municipal debentures, at an average of 6£ per cent.; £3,561 in shares in companies, &c., yielding about 8 per cent.; and £875 on securities other than those above mentioned, at an average of 8^ per cent. QUINQUENNIAL STATISTICS OF SICKNESS AND MORTALITY. 22. In the year 1881 a report was issued by the department on the sickness and mortality experienced by New Zealand friendly societies during the five years ended 31st December, 1877. This report was based on the quinquennial returns supplied to the Eegistrar during 1878 in accordance with the Friendly Societies Act of the previous year. By the Amendment Act of 1878 an annual return of sickness and mortality, and an annual spt of cards for members newly admitted, were substituted for the quinquennial returns previously in use. These returns and sets of cards have been supplied to the Eegistrar year by year, and it follows, therefore, that in 1883 the materials for a second quinquennial tabulation had been accumulated-. It was found impossible, owing to excessive pressure of work, to enter upon this compilation during the year 1883; but at the present date tin; work is well in hand, and the Eegistrar subjoins herewith a summary table showing the percentages resulting from that portion of the statistics which has already been completely dealt with.

23. During the .year 1883, and to a still greater extent during the current year, much dissatisfaction has been expressed by societies at the requirement, imposed by the Act of 1878, to supply these sickness returns and sets of cards. The feeling among the complaining lodges has usually been that the department might reasonably demand an annual return of the finances and numerical

Average Number of Weeks' Sickness experienced per Annum. u Bates of per A per 1,000 Mortality Vnnuin Members. II O O S3 PJ1 Peri experit ;entage jncing £ aY of Members sickness during ear. "H " fcj O 3 8 111 S " a M Per Member. ir Member Si< *. Ages of Mernbera. o "4 sill II IP 3 o « a g || !i ii gi §a sa * 5 6a « Its? IP tO ID g 0) r QQ 3 2|S pi Of Members. Of Members' Wives. Jnder 20 iO to 25 !5 to 30 iO to 86 !5 to 40 10 to 45 15 to 50 iO to 55 55 to 60 50 to 65 55 to 70 f0 and upwards Jnspecified .. 10-56 10-95 10-31 11-29 13-58 15-72 17-21 13-55 22-38 22-22 28-57 23-53 12-62 10-56 10-86 10-18 11-02 13-34 15-10 16-18 13-01 19-58 10-07 21-43 11-77 11-23 •28 ■21 •47 ■58 •80 1-06 •09 •07 •41 •29 •62 1-24 •55 4-20 5-56 7-14 11-77 1-33 •40 •44 •40 •70 •84 1-15 1-73 1-01 4-47 5-13 4-80 8-24 1-73 ■40 •40 •41 ■50 •62 ■81 1-02 •73 1-57 2-15 1-07 2-10 •89 •04 ■02 •06 ■08 ■10 •15 ; -08 , -14 •14 •24 •56 •28 1-64 ! 2-90 I 3-73 6-14 ! -53 3-81 4-06 4-51 6-21 6-20 7-34 10-04 7-49 19-97 23-08 16-79 35-00 13-70 3-81 3-71 4-10 4-40 4-29 3-35 0-34 5-62 8-02 12-89 5-00 17-83 7-87 13-61 7-94 13-69: 13-13' 11-91 13-72 3-83 44-00 |33-83 |46-84 !39-05 44-93 52-17 39-00 52-17 52-17 52-17 40-25 5.8 13-0 9-5 8-8 7-o 3-5 3-2 2-8 1-4 7-07 y-63 2-81 1-35 4-65 10-71 10-70 0-92 2-80 2-03 006 8-55 5-32 12-3' 32-1: 28-Oi 16-5! 9-0 1 1-Gi 0-0! 5-59 2-78 1-26 •08 22-50 3-00 28-37 23-00 6-2 117-05 1-33 •81 •1! All ages .. 12-86 12-44-•56 •46 •88 •61 •19 •08 6-84 4-91 13-7! 41-39 8-2 5-05 3-37 100-01