The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-06-28 00:00:00

SECTION F.-STATISTICS

Mr. John Shuttleworth, of Manchester, read a paper " on
the vital statistics of cotton-spinners."
The obect of Mr.
cotton mills to
in Manchester
show that the
had
processes of " fine-spinning" in the
no injurious effect on the
health of the persons employed ; and the figures he cited
fully bore out that conclusion.
Sir Charles Shaw next read a paper " on the criminal sta-
tistics of Manchester." It consisted principally of the re-
turns recently made to government by Sir Charles, in his
official character as chief commissioner of the Manchester
police. In the course of a short discussion, Colonel Sykes

made some remarks on the

d observed that thc

statements contained in the pa
gh they had the experience of Si
s Shaw to prove that the factory system did not pro

or that

Mr. James Heywood sut
grees taken in Oxford anc
d 18th, centuries," and ii

he Irish

Cambridg

'e.no more imm-a

dug at the nurni;
;hteen of the inhi

lative to

ohe I6th, liti;

:companying explanation poin.:

ted out the causes of the extraordinaryfluitualions shown by
the tables. The circumstance that the number of degrees

conferred had not at all kept pace with the increase of pop-
ulation, he attributed to the restrictive statutes regulating
the bestowal of university honours.

Professorßaden Powell read a paper on a similar subject

—" academic statistics,"—which he stated to be a continua-
tion of a paper he had read three years ago at the Birming-
vn by the
ofessor from the figures he submitted,_ amongst which was

Some cur

act, that out of those who were candidates for degrees,
only two out of seven passed.—A short discussion on the two

!EDICAL

SCIENC

Mr. J. Catlow read a paper " on the statistics of births
and deaths."—He solicited attention, in the first place to a
table of the deaths of 10,700 children, under two years of
age, from 1817 to 1838, extracted from the registry of the
Rusholme-road Cemetery, in this town, whose natal month
was determinable from the stated age ; showing the propor-

tions born in each season of the year, on the one hand: re-
latively to the total of deaths; and, on the other hand, to
the average number of births in the same season in towns, as

r Quetilet. The result v

that the

s than their debit
quota of the mortality, and the autumnal births. 2.7 ; while,
on the other hand, the spring births supplied 2.4, and the
summer births 2.5 per cent. more than their debit quota of
mortality; the greatest quarterly difference being 5.2 per
cent., viz.: between autumn and summer. It thus appeared
that spring and summer births had a less probability of ar-
riving at the age of two years than winter and autumnal
births.—Estimating this relation half-yearly, the general re-
sult gave a deficiency of 4.6 per cent. in the winter quota,
and, of course, a corresponding excess in the summer. A
second inference appeared to be, that children born in a
greatly increasing temperature had a greater probability of
life, up to two years, than children born in a declining tem-
perature. A third inference was, that the season of birth
ought to form an element in the calculation of the probVi-
lities of life.

winter 1

Mr. John Rob,

tson read a paper " on the period of
puberty in negro women," embracing a great number of
facts, the tendency of which was to show that increase of
temperature did not accelerate, as was generally supposed,
the period of puberty.—ln the course of a long and interest-
ing discussion, Mr. Noble mentioned that the same notion
prevailed with regard to the girls employed in factories, but
he believed it was equally ungrounded.—Mr. Turner ex•
-
pressed an opinion that the period of puberty would be found
to be much about the same amongst all races.—Mr. Robert-
son said the tendency of his paper was to show that this
period was independent of external circumstances, and was
of constitutional peculiarity.

The proceedings in the other section was not important

THE DINNER

(From our own correspondent.)
On Saturday evening a grand dinner, in honour of the as-
sociation, was given at the Wellington Hotel, Peter-street,
to which the members were invited, the Right Hon. Lord
Francis Egerton presiding, and amongst the distinguished
company we may mention the following names :—His Ex-
cellency the Hon. Edward Everett, the American Minister,
the Right Hon. the Marquis of Northampton, Professor
Jacobi (Berlin), the Bishop of Norwich, Sir William Hamil-
ton, Professor Sedgwick, Sir D. Brewster, Geo. Wm. Wood,
Esq., M.P. Col. Sabine, Dr. Dalton, Professor Whewell,
Sir S. Brisbane, Professor Friziani, the Dean of Ely, the
Dean of Manchester, the Marquis Sauli, R. J. Murchison,
Esq., the Rev. W. Vernon Harcourt, Sir Charles Lemon,
the Rev. Dr. Buckland, Professor Erman, Baron de Bach,
Count Keyserling, Col. Weymiss, Sir M. J. Brunel, and Dr.
Stancrar 11,1. a 1• • .• . _

me toasts, which, after doing honour to royalty,
had reference principally to the different learned societies,
called forth some eloquent speeches from the American
Minister, the Marquis of Northampton, the Noble Chair-
man, Professors Sedgwick, Murchison, and Buckland, the
Bishop of Norwich, the Dean of Ely, &c., and the company
did not separate till about twelve o'clock.

NS PROTESTANT R

ADING SOCIETY

rant 01