believed to be due mainly to the decreased demand for passports and the consequent necessity for documentary evidence of marriage as conditions in the Colony returned to normal after the 1967 disturbances. The following is an analysis of the time lapse between the registered marriage and the previous customary marriage for these cases:
Within 1 year
574
Over 1 year but within 5 years
566
Over 5 years
Total
985
2,125
155. Of the 20,492 marriages registered, 20,117 were between parties of Chinese race; 142 marriages were between non-Chinese grooms and Chinese brides, and 29 between Chinese grooms and non-Chinese brides; the remaining 204 were between parties both of whom were non-Chinese. 237 widowers and 129 widows remarried. 326 of the parties married were divorced persons, and in accordance with the normal practice of the Registry the divorce documents were carefully scrutinized before the marriage was permitted to take place.
156. The relative conjugal conditions of bridegrooms and brides (excluding the same parties previously customarily married, and remarried under Section 38(2) of the Ordinance) were as follows, with figures for 1967-68 shown in brackets for comparison:
Bachelors Widowers
Divorced Women
Total
Spinsters
Widows
17,785 (14,003) 65 (60) 55 (43) 17,905 (14,106) 163 (159) 54 (56) 20 (19) 237 (234) 189 (156) 10 (18) 26 (30) 225 (204)
101 (92) 18,367 (14,544)
Divorced Men
Total
18,137 (14,318) 129 (134)
157. In 22 cases the Registrar in the exercise of the discretion conferred on him by the proviso to Section 9 of the Ordinance issued his certificate allowing the marriage to proceed before the expiry of the prescribed 15 days' notice.
Work done and Fees collected
158. Table XXXII gives particulars of work done during the year and of the fees charged therefor, which totalled $250,461. This was $41,244 more than the 1967-68 figure and constituted a new record. There were increases in nearly all aspects of registry work during the
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