220. A Rank Xerox 813 Copier capable of making copies up to eight inches by thirteen inches was installed in the principal Marriage Registry at the City Hall for copying marriage certificates. During the year 6,549 copies of marriage certificates were made, most of which were supplied to the public on payment of the prescribed fees.
221. The Department also has a Microfilm Unit which undertakes microfilming work for the various registries and sub-registries. During the year the Unit microfilmed 1,820 new trade mark certificates of registration and 3,762 trade mark alterations. The film records are mounted on aperture cards and can be read by means of an Archival Reader, which projects an enlarged image on to an illuminated screen. With the indexing system now in use any trade mark can be located and projected on to the viewing screen in less than ten seconds. Dry positive photocopies of 83" by 5" can be produced on a Viewer-Printer in about six seconds.
222. The Unit also completed the microfilming of more than 13,380 pages of births and deaths registration records, which were mounted on indexed aperture cards to facilitate searching and viewing. Current pages of registration records are microfilmed by a mobile team which makes regular fortnightly visits to all registries including those in the New Territories. These microfilm records are deposited in the General Register Office, where all records of births and deaths in the Colony are centralized.
223. The microfilming of Land Office records, which had been suspended in 1966, was resumed in July; while the microfilming of marriage certificates was started in December with a 16mm Starfile camera at the principal Marriage Registry in the City Hall, where all marriage records are kept. By the end of the year more than 25,000 Land Office memorials and 13,000 marriage certificates had been microfilmed.
Social and Welfare
224. The Department has a Charitable and Benevolent Fund sup- ported by voluntary contributions from members of the staff of the rank of Class I Clerk and above, but no levy has been made since 1962-63. During the year expenses incurred in recreational activities were subsidized from this Fund and at the end of the year the amount of the Fund was $1.197.
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