H.—22.

Maori Antiquities Act, 1908. Nine warrants were issued authorizing the export of genuine Maori antiquities. Authority wa§ granted in twelve instances to the export of articles of modern make of the souvenir type, which do not come within the scope of the Act. Since the amendment of the postal regulations to facilitate the posting of tourist souvenirs, the number of such applications has shown a considerable falling-off. Advertising Office. This section of the Department deals with matters affecting Government newspaper advertising for all Departments. It records, checks, and certifies all departmental advertising accounts, condenses and amalgamates advertisements before insertion, and effects economies by reducing advertising accounts which are overspaced or incorrectly measured. Estimates of expenditure for any proposed advertising by Departments are prepared and supplied by the Office as required. The work is growing steadily, particularly in the Cutting Section, where the demand for press references is constantly increasing. Accounts.—The number of advertising accounts recorded, checked, and certified during the year approximated 9,430, an increase of 1,100 on the previous year's vouchers —viz., 8,330. Yearly Expenditure. —The total expenditure for Government advertising for all Departments during the year under review amounted to £23,802 Is. 3d., as compared with £21,108 10s. lOd. for the financial year ending 31st March, 1934. Cuttings.—Press clippings supplied to Ministers and Departments were well in excess of the number handled during the previous year, which approximated from 1,500 to 2,000 weekly. Distinguished Visitors. During the year the Dominion was honoured by a visit from a member of the Royal Family. After a tour of Australia, where he opened the Melbourne Centenary Celebrations, His Royal Highness the Duke of Gloucester arrived at Wellington in the H.M.A.S. " Australia " on the 15th December, 1934. After a few days spent in Wellington, he commenced a comprehensive tour of the Dominion, which officially ended with his departure from Lyttelton on 21st January, 1935. Four thousand five hundred miles, 2,800 miles by road and the remainder by rail, were travelled and some forty-one centres and scenic resorts visited. A special reception was accorded the Royal guest by assembled Maori tribes at Rotorua. The tour was marked in town and country alike by unbounded enthusiasm on the part of the people, and it served to demonstrate further the loyalty and devotion of the people of this Dominion to the Royal Family and to the Throne. The complete arrangements for the tour were in the hands of this Department, and I desire to take this opportunity of expressing my cordial thanks and appreciation to all Government Departments, particularly the Railway, Police, and Post and Telegraph Departments, for their able and courteous co-operation throughout. The thanks of the Department are also due to the mayors, to the local authorities, and to all those concerned in the various places visited for the loyal and whole-hearted manner in which they undertook the framing and carrying-out of the reception arrangements and assisted the Government to the utmost of their ability to ensure a warm welcome everywhere. Coincident with the visit of H.R.H. the Duke of Gloucester, the captain, officers, and men of the H.M.A.S. " Australia," which remained in New Zealand waters for the duration of the Royal tour, were extended the usual Government privileges and hospitality. Other distinguished visitors to New Zealand during the year included —Lord Nuffield; General Sir A. Godley ; Mr. Malcolm Macdonald, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Dominions, and son of the Prime Minister of Great Britain ; Mr. G. Bernard Shaw; Grenadier Guards Band ; Admiral Byrd ; and the Italian cruiser " Armando Diaz." During their stay in the Dominion the Department was wholly or partially concerned in arranging their itineraries and carrying out the policy of hospitality generally. The Department here records its appreciation of the assistance rendered by various organizations, local bodies, private individuals, and other. Government Departments. War Graves. New Zealand. —The number of notifications of deaths of returned soldiers received by the Department was 502, of which 87 were accepted as war graves—i.e., that the cause of death in these oases was attributable to disabilities sustained on or aggravated by war service. The total number of war graves in New Zealand at the close of the year was 2,936. Temporary crosses to mark the graves until such time as the soldiers' headstones are erected were placed on 245 graves, and headstones to the number of 96 were ordered. Additional constructional work was carried out in the soldiers' cemeteries at Bromley, Christchurch ; Omaka, Blenheim ; Kelvin Grove, Palmerston North ; Taruheru, Gisborne ; and Karori, Wellington ; whilst a large number of graves in Birkenhead, O'Neill's Point, Ashburton, Kaiapoi, and Waikumete and Waikaraka Cemeteries, Auckland, were renovated. All soldiers' cemeteries continue to be suitably maintained under arrangements made through the local controlling authorities. Veterans' graves also continue to be attended to. In addition to the graves previously dealt with, those of Captain Travers and others who lost their lives in the attack on Orangikawa Pa, Ruatahuna, in the Urewera Country in May, 1869, were put in order and a memorial erected. Further veterans' graves in Te Henui Cemetery, New Plymouth, were also permanently marked. Visit of Vice-Chairman, Imperial War Graves Commission. Sir Fabian Ware, the Vice-Chairman of the Imperial War Graves Commission, who visited Australia in connection with the Victorian Centenary celebrations, passed through New Zealand on his journey back to England.

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