394 THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. [No. 20
REGISTRAR-GENERAL'S Report on the Vital Statistics of the Principal Towns of New Zealand during the Month
of February, 1891.
RETURN of the Number of Births, with the actual Mortality of Males and Females, and the Proportion of Deaths to
Population, in the under-mentioned Boroughs, during the Month of February, 1891.
| BOROUGHS. | ESTIMATED POPULATION, JAN., 1891. | TOTAL BIRTHS. | Males. | Females. | Total Deaths. | Proportion of Deaths to the 1,000 of Population, February, 1891. | Proportion of Deaths to the 1,000 of Population, February, 1890. |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| (For population of principal boroughs, including suburbs, see note .) | | | Under 1 Year. | 1 & under 5 Years. | 5 Years and over. | Under 1 Year. | 1 & under 5 Years. | 5 Years and over. | | |
| Auckland | 33,140 | 69 | 15 | 6 | 11 | 3 | 8 | 43 | 1·30 | 10·08 |
| Wellington | 31,616 | 63 | 4 | 9 | 8 | 2 | 10 | 33 | 1·04 | 12·32 |
| Christchurch | 17,277 | 20 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 20 | 1·16 | 9·91 |
| Dunedin | 24,292 | 44 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 23 | 0·95 | 13·00 |
| Thames | 4,800 | 13 | 1 | | | | 1 | | 2 | 0·42 | 11·46 |
| New Plymouth | 2,949 | 8 | 1 | | | | | 3 | 4 | 1·36 | 16·43 |
| Napier | 8,799 | 26 | 2 | 1 | | | 4 | 1 | 3 | 11 | 1·25 | 14·03 |
| Wanganui | 5,240 | 6 | 2 | | | 2 | 1 | | 1 | 6 | 1·15 | 10·05 |
| Blenheim | 3,181 | 10 | | | | | | 1 | 1 | 0·31 | 9·01 |
| Nelson | 7,491 | 14 | | | 2 | 2 | | 4 | 8 | 1·07 | 14·28 |
| Sydenham | 10,370 | 13 | | | 4 | 2 | | 1 | 7 | 0·68 | 10·57 |
| Lyttelton | 4,372 | 8 | | | 3 | 2 | | 1 | 6 | 1·37 | 13·41 |
| Timaru | 3,783 | 12 | 2 | | 1 | 1 | | 2 | 6 | 1·59 | 13·73 |
| Oamaru | 5,680 | 15 | | | | | | | | 8·96 |
| Greymouth | 3,275 | 9 | 1 | | 3 | | | 2 | 6 | 1·83 | 10·28 |
| Hokitika | 2,344 | 6 | 2 | | 5 | | | 2 | 9 | 3·84 | 22·20 |
| Caversham | 5,089 | 3 | | | 6 | | | 1 | 7 | 1·38 | 12·98 |
| Invercargill | 5,148 | 14 | | | 3 | | | 2 | 5 | 0·97 | 12·22 |
| Totals | 353 | 32 | 3 | 60 | 35 | 10 | 57 | 197 | | |

The total births in the above boroughs amounted to 353, against 387 in January, a decrease of 34. The deaths in February were 197, a decrease of 41 on the number in January. Of the total deaths, males contributed 95; females, 102. Eighty of the deaths were of children under 5 years of age, being 40·61 per cent. of the whole number; 67 of these were under 1 year of age.

• It must be understood that the numbers of the population above given refer only to those within the several borough boundaries. To estimate the relative importance of the principal boroughs as centres of population it is necessary in each case to take into consideration the number of the population in the adjacent boroughs, some of which are included in the above table, and other districts which are practically suburbs of the central borough. This can only be done with any degree of accuracy for census years. The populations of the four principal boroughs and their suburbs in 1886 were as follows:—
  Auckland Borough ... ... ... ... 33,161
  Adjacent boroughs and road districts ... 23,887
  Total Auckland Borough and suburbs... 57,048
  Wellington Borough ... ... ... ... 25,945
  Suburbs ... ... ... ... 1,888
  Total Wellington Borough and suburbs 27,833
  Christchurch Borough ... ... ... ... 15,265
  Adjacent boroughs and other suburbs... 29,423
  Total Christchurch Borough and suburbs 44,688
  Dunedin Borough ... ... ... ... 23,243
  Adjacent boroughs ... ... ... ... 22,275
  Total Dunedin Borough and suburbs ... 45,518
  The population of Invercargill and suburbs at same date was—
  Invercargill Borough ... ... ... ... 5,212
  Adjacent boroughs ... ... ... ... 3,727
  Total Invercargill Borough and suburbs... 8,939
  NOTE.—Deaths, occurring at hospitals, of persons not residents of the borough in which the hospital is situated are allotted to the borough where the diseases were contracted, and not to that in which the deaths actually took place.
  THE following Table shows the Causes of the Deaths of Persons of both Sexes under 5 Years of Age and 5 Years and upwards, and the Proportions per Cent. of Deaths from each Cause, in the Boroughs of Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin, that were registered during the Month of February, 1891.
  | CAUSES OF DEATH. | AUCKLAND. | WELLINGTON. | CHRISTCHURCH. | DUNEDIN. | TOTAL. | PROPORTIONS PER CENT. |
  | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
  | | Under 5 Years. | 5 Years & over. | Under 5 Years | 5 Years & over. | Under 5 Years. | 5 Years & over. | Under 5 Years. | 5 Years & over. | | |
  | I. Specific Febrile or Zymotic Diseases | 18 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 40 | 33·61 |
  | II. Parasitic Diseases | | | | | | | | | | |
  | III. Dietetic Diseases | 1 | | 2 | | | | | | 3 | 2·52 |
  | IV. Constitutional Diseases | | 2 | 1 | 3 | | | | 8 | 14 | 11·77 |
  | V. Developmental Diseases | 3 | | | | | 2 | | | 5 | 4·20 |
  | VI. Local Diseases | 5 | 8 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 9 | 2 | 10 | 50 | 42·02 |
  | VII. Violence | | 1 | | 3 | | 1 | | | 5 | 4·20 |
  | VIII. Ill-defined and Not-specified Causes | 2 | | | | | | | | 2 | 1·68 |
  | Totals | 29 | 14 | 14 | 19 | 7 | 13 | 4 | 19 | 119 | 100·00 |