July 27.] THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. 2301

apply for the purchase of residences on payment of a small deposit of £10, the balance being payable in easy instalments covering twenty-five years and a half. In response to the large number of applications received, arrangements have already been completed for the erection of a number of dwellings.

To ascertain whether a scheme for insurance against unemployment should be adopted in New Zealand, inquiries are being made into the various schemes formulated by Great Britain and other countries of Europe, and the intention of the Government will be announced to you later.

In pursuance of the recommendations of Lord Kitchener and in accordance with the general scheme of defence, a Commander of the Defence Forces has been appointed, and my Advisers have been fortunate in securing the services of so eminent a military expert as Major-General Godley.

I am glad to be able to announce that, under the new system of universal training brought into operation by the Defence Acts, youths between the ages of fourteen and twenty-one have been registered, and are now being medically examined for service in the Senior Cadets and Territorial Forces of the Dominion. The results of registration have been satisfactory, and the spirit in which this call on the patriotism and sense of duty of the people has been met is highly commendable.

The youths registered will be posted to various units of the Forces, and it is confidently expected that the scheme adopted for the training, clothing, and equipping of the new Force thus brought into existence for the defence of the Dominion will very shortly be in full working-order. Apart from the military aspect of the movement, and even if our men are never required to arm in defence of their country, the physical training of our youths should produce a marked improvement in the discipline, efficiency, and physique of the citizens of New Zealand.

The first of the training-camps under the new scheme was established at Tauherenikau, and proved most successful. In connection with this a report by the Director of Military Training will be duly placed before you as an appendix to the annual report of the General Officer Commanding.

I am happy to congratulate you upon the launching of the Dreadnought “New Zealand,” which took place at Glasgow on the first day of this month in the presence of a very large number of spectators.

The revision of the existing prison system is progressing steadily, and a Prisons’ Board has been set up under the legislation of last session. A report of the operations of the Board will be furnished in due course.

My Advisers have completed arrangements on satisfactory terms for the establishment of a mail-service between New Zealand and Canada via Fiji and Hawaii. The service from New Zealand will commence on the 4th August next, and from Canada on the 6th September.

The result of the last census is most gratifying, the population having increased to over one million, exclusive of Maoris. The Maori population shows an increase of over two thousand.

Exclusive of Maoris, the increase since the census of 1906 is 119,829. The estimated population to the 31st March, 1911, was 1,006,757, a difference of only 1,650 from the census population of two days later, which must be considered as a very close estimate. The estimated increase by births during the five years since 1906 was 80,567, and the increase by immigration 36,712. The arrivals in the Dominion have been largely in excess of the departures.

The Representation Commission to delimit the boundaries of the electorates on the basis of the population statistics revealed by the census is sitting, and the result of its labours will be duly placed before you.

My Ministers have continued their policy of granting assistance towards the payment of passages of farm labourers and domestic workers from the United Kingdom, and during the year the number of persons thus assisted amounted to 2,624. By arrangements made with the shipping companies trading to the Dominion, young women domestic workers were enabled to obtain passages at a much-reduced rate, and included in the number mentioned above there are 831 of these workers.

The demand for land for closer settlement still continues, and under the Land for Settlements Act every endeavour is being made to acquire land for this purpose. The areas, however, that are suitable and that can be secured at a reasonable price are becoming restricted. On the other hand, under the Land Settlement Finance Act very satisfactory progress is being made, and as time goes on it is expected that the provisions of this Act will be more largely taken advantage of.