A record of no infant deaths on the Island was yesterday hailed as a first for Bermuda.

A report by the Registrar General said there was a zero rate of child deaths in 1998 and no stillbirths.

Home Affairs and Public Safety Minister Paula Cox told MPs: "For the first time since 1937 -- and probably for the first time in Bermuda's recorded history -- there were no infant deaths in 1998.

"An infant death is defined as the death of a child before its first birthday,'' she explained. "This is a fact of some consequence when one considers that, at times during our history, for every 1,000 births there were more than 70 infant deaths.'' Ms Cox added, however, that the zero rate on infant deaths will not be continued into 1999.

But she said: "The steady decline in our infant mortality rate speaks very highly of Bermuda's progress in the areas of pre- and post-natal care.'' Ms Cox was speaking as she tabled annual reports for the years 97/98 from the Registrar General's Office and two reports on corporate land ownership covering the same period.

Ms Cox said Bermuda recorded 825 births among residents in 1998 -- plus one to a non-resident while she was on the Island. That compared to a total of 486 deaths among residents and 16 visitors -- which meant the total population rose by 339, taking the estimated population to more than the 62,000 mark.

Wedding bells rang for more than 600 visiting couples in 1998, while residents only tied the knot 366 times.

Another 54 unions involved a resident and a non-resident, giving a total of 1,033 marriages for the year.

And traditional religious ceremonies are still very much in favour -- 887 weddings were conducted by clerics, with just 146 couples opting for a civil ceremony.

Corporate land ownership on the Island dropped by a total of 8.13 acres in 1998. Nearly 40 acres of land were bought -- but more that 48 acres sold off.

That meant at the end of the year, more than 2,700 acres of the Island were held by corporations.

Infant deaths 0 Total births 825 Total deaths 486 Population growth 339 Total weddings 1,033 Visitors weddings 613 DEATHS EOBITUARY OBT