Mar. 8. THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. 543

Excluding suburbs, and dealing with the deaths at all ages in the four cities or central boroughs only, the rates for 1899 are found to be lower in Auckland and Wellington, but higher in Christchurch and Dunedin, than in the previous year. The total number of deaths and the death-rates for four years are given :—

Deaths, 1896. Deaths, 1897. Deaths, 1898. Deaths, 1899.
No. Per 1,000 of No. Per 1,000 of No. Per 1,000 of No. Per 1,000 of
Population. Population. Population. Population.
Auckland (excluding suburbs) 453 14·42 .. 416 12·99 .. 483 14·22 .. 499 13·02
Wellington 434 11·59 .. 463 12·03 .. 516 12·47 .. 477 11·16
Christchurch 195 11·49 .. 226 13·15 .. 192 10·87 .. 230 12·68
Dunedin 219 9·60 .. 273 11·81 .. 298 12·73 .. 317 13·47

By omitting the deaths of infants under one year, and calculating the rate on the population of one year of age and upwards, the position of the four cities as regards magnitude of death-rate remains unaltered.

Deaths per 1,000 of Population, excluding Infants (under One Year of Age).
1896. 1897. 1898. 1899.
Auckland (excluding suburbs) .. .. 10·02 .. 9·64 .. 9·86 .. 9·53
Wellington .. .. 9·17 .. 9·35 .. 9·18 .. 8·39
Christchurch .. .. 8·86 .. 10·65 .. 8·85 .. 9·16
Dunedin .. .. 8·07 .. 10·70 .. 10·87 .. 11·59

Subjoined is a table showing the rates of infant mortality in the four cities for each of the past five years, together with the mean rates for the period.

Deaths of Children under One Year to every 100 Births.
1895. 1896. 1897. 1898. 1899. Mean of
Five Years.
Auckland (excluding suburbs) 14·86 .. 16·48 .. 12·80 .. 17·14 .. 14·47 .. 15·15
Wellington 12·40 .. 10·05 .. 10·59 .. 13·71 .. 12·26 .. 11·80
Christchurch 11·14 .. 12·97 .. 12·50 .. 10·00 .. 19·71 .. 13·26
Dunedin 9·47 .. 7·83 .. 6·22 .. 9·66 .. 10·20 .. 8·67

Specific Febrile and Zymotic Diseases.—The mortality from these diseases at Christchurch and Dunedin, with their suburbs, was much higher in 1899 than in 1898. At Wellington and at Auckland the deaths for last year by zymotic diseases were fewer than in 1898. The total deaths in this class were 304 for 1898 and 360 for 1899.

Deaths from Febrile and Zymotic Diseases.
Auckland and Wellington and Christchurch and Dunedin and Total.
Suburbs. Suburbs. Suburbs. Suburbs.
1898 .. .. .. .. 117 .. 99 .. 44 .. 44 .. 304
1899 .. .. .. .. 110 .. 62 .. 104 .. 84 .. 360

Of the above, diarrhoeal diseases caused most deaths in 1899 at the four centres taken together, the total number being 142. Whooping-cough came next with 54 deaths, then influenza with 42, measles 37, typhoid fever 36, diphtheria 19, and other zymotic complaints 30.

Comparison of the deaths for each city shows,—

Zymotic, &c., Diseases. Auckland. Wellington. Christchurch. Dunedin.
1899. 1898. 1899. 1898. 1899. 1898. 1899. 1898.
Diarrhoeal Diseases .. 39 59 .. 16 36 .. 61 14 .. 26 15
Influenza .. .. 9 14 .. 9 21 .. 5 17 .. 19 18
Typhoid Fever .. 16 22 .. 9 12 .. 5 4 .. 6 ..
Measles .. .. 12 7 .. 3 15 .. 13 2 .. 9 4
Diphtheria .. 2 3 .. 3 2 .. 11 3 .. 3 2
Whooping-cough .. 23 .. .. 20 .. .. 2 .. .. 9 ..
Other Zymotic Diseases .. 9 12 .. 2 13 .. 7 4 .. 12 5

Parasitic Diseases.—Hydatids were fatal at Auckland (2 deaths), Wellington (3 deaths), Christchurch (1 death), and Dunedin (2 deaths). These, with 1 death from thrush at Auckland, make a total of 9.

Dietetic Diseases.—These numbered 29, 17 being due to want of breast-milk or malnutrition, and 12 to alcoholism and delirium tremens.

Constitutional Diseases.—The deaths at the four towns numbered 466 in 1899. The first in importance of these diseases, and of all causes of death, is tubercle. The figures for 1899 and 1898 show 248 and 249 deaths for each year respectively.

Phthisis and other Tubercular Diseases.
1899. 1898.
Phthisis. Other Tubercular Diseases. Phthisis. Other Tubercular Diseases.
Auckland .. .. .. 59 .. 11 .. 48 .. 3
Wellington .. .. .. 46 .. 12 .. 50 .. 12
Christchurch .. .. 36 .. 13 .. 49 .. 5
Dunedin .. .. .. 56 .. 15 .. 61 .. 21
—— —— —— ——
197 .. 51 .. 208 .. 41

The mortality from tubercular diseases for 1899 is 11 per cent. of the total deaths at the four boroughs from all causes.

Deaths from cancer fell at the chief towns from 160 in 1898 to 151 in 1899. The latter number is 6·70 per cent. of deaths for the year from all causes.

The number of deaths from cancer at the four chief towns and their suburbs for each of the last five years was as under :—

        1895.       1896.       1897.       1898.       1899.

Auckland and suburbs .. .. 19 .. 35 .. 30 .. 25 .. 40
Wellington .. .. 33 .. 54 .. 29 .. 43 .. 27
Christchurch .. .. 33 .. 25 .. 36 .. 43 .. 40
Dunedin .. .. 34 .. 36 .. 34 .. 49 .. 44
—— —— —— —— ——
119 .. 150 .. 129 .. 160 .. 151

Diabetes shows 15 deaths, against 18 in 1898.

Developmental Diseases.—There were 196 deaths in this class, of which 81 were from premature birth, 108 from old age, and 7 from other causes.

Local Diseases.—Deaths in this class were 5 less than in 1898, the figures being 1,007 against 1,012. Diseases of the respiratory system show 245 deaths for 1899, or nearly one-fourth of the whole mortality in the class, against 250 in the former year. Bronchitis, pneumonia, congestion of lungs, pleurisy, and allied diseases form this group.

Under the head of “Diseases of the Digestive System” there were 183 deaths at the four centres, including 42 from enteritis; gastritis, 14; cirrhosis of liver, 14; hepatitis, 5; and dentition, 22.

Diseases of the urinary system caused 86 deaths. The remaining deaths were—223 from nervous diseases, 1 diseases of organs of special sense, 230 of organs of the circulatory, 10 of the lymphatic, 19 of the reproductive system, 7 of the organs of locomotion, and 3 of the integuments.

Violent Deaths.—There were 102 violent deaths, 87 of which were classed as accidental. Nine of these latter were caused by fractures, and 16 by falls. In 6 cases deaths resulted from the deceased being run over by cab, cart, wagon, or train. Six deaths were from burning, 19 by drowning, 9 by suffocation, 4 by poisoning, 1 by misadventure with chloroform, 3 by an explosion of guncotton; besides 8 from accident at birth, and 6 others.

Of 12 suicides, 5 were by shooting, 1 by cutting throat, 3 by poison, and 3 by hanging.

                                            GEO. DRURY,
                                            Deputy Registrar-General.

Registrar-General’s Office,
Wellington, 1st March, 1900.