Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1858-10-25
ENGLISH POPULATION STATISTICS,


ENGLISH POPULATION STATISTICS.
In this country We pay too little attention to
that most important of all subjects-tbe nre.
serTatiOn Of human health and life We 40
not note, with sufficient care and accuraov- the
circumstances under which our population
tnrlves and multiplies Adults are cut down
In the early years of manhood and children
perish Dy hundreds, from causes within our
control, and yet we seem to be Indifferent to
these greatest Of evils. In England. of late
years, great attention has been paid to the
qaestOn OF the preservation and duration of
human life, and Government has instituted a
system OF collecting information annually of
tne social condition and progress ef the popu-
iatlon which well merits our imitation
The record Of births, deaths and marriages
In the British Islands, is now so complete, thai
the Registrar Generals annual report is as
accurate as the returns Of the number of cot
ton bales imported into the United Kingdom
The 18th report Of the Registrar General has
Just been lssued and the facts set forth in il
ueciuediy interesting We learn from it that
the names of ,36S 633 persons were enrolled
on the national registers during the year; com
memOTatng the entrance of 657 15S living
children into the English community the RE
mOVal Of 800, SOC men, women and children
from Its ranks by death, and the matrimonial
union OF 3Io,6Ii persons, by whom l59, 1897 new
ismllles were founded. The natural increase
OF population, by the excess of births over
deaths, was 266 947 -
The marriages exceeded by 1924. and the
Dlrths by 22,4lO, the marriages and births in
the previous year, and the deaths were less by
oo,ISI tnan the deaths in that year This de-
monstrates an improvement in the health and
sanitary condition Of the country. Not onIv
mas the population OF the British Islands in
creased at home, but they have sent out durino
tne year, swarms of emigrants. he pumberof
Englsh and Welsh emigrants was Ga. .527; or if
we add due proportion of the numbers whose
birthplace is not returned, 2,2l5; while the
Seotch emigrants corrected were 3,467; the
Irish emigrants, SO, 269. 1908 foreigners sail
ed also from British ports. In the aggregate.
lio,o0I emlgrants were returned by the Emigra-
tlon Commissioners, Of whom about I65 95l
were natives Of the United Kingdom.
The report of the Registrar General gives us
also interesting data regarding the effect of the
prices OF food on the marriage statistics:
1t was laid down in the two previous reports.
as the result Of the returns, that high price of
Wneat depresses marriage among the classes
VINO marry by banns, to a greater extent than
bdePresses marriage among the classes who
marry oy Incense Thus, in six years when the
Prlce OF wheat was highest, the annual mar
riages per cent. on the population were SO1, of
"nien IS4 were marriages of the higher and
middle classes, who, when they belong to the
Established Church, marry by license, and 667
were artisans and laborers. When the price of
wheat was the lowest, there proportions became
S5l, III, and 704. This principle is further
confirmed by the experience of another wear.
Inc average price Of wheat in 1856 was 69s
I'd quarter; the marriages by banns were in
the same proportion Of4 S8S to one marriage by
license. In the previous year. when the price
ot wheat was as. Sd. the proportions were
So3 to one. In the FIVE wears when the price
Vi wheat ranged from 38s Cd. to sos. Id and
was as. Cd. on an everage, the marriages by
oAnns were To the marriages by license as j. $50
10 one, and ranged from 429 to 5 666 to one
we have even glance at the religious and
moral aspect OF the question, as we are told
that l33,6l9 marriages were celebrated accord
ing 70 the rites OF the Established Church; and
PTS otherwise The proportion of persons
who married according to the rites of the church
was 81 In 100. The Quakers married in nm.
suaI numbers; their marriages in the last three
years were 81, 81, and ~ Their marriages in
the last year were only exceeded in the years
lo4o and IS4I. The marriages of Jews appear
to be multiplying in England and Wales rap
ldlyi the number In the registers of lS4l was
ll3, the number in IS4O was 229 and the pum-
oers IN the three years, Of which 1856 was the
last, were 2s7, 224 and 3I2.
S,l20 young men and 29 2ls young women
married under Il years of age OflOO men
who married, 5-7g, Of 100 women who married
1854, were under age. Early marriages have
oeen growing every year since }S48 more com
mon. The proportion Of young women under
age was IL In 100 married for the seven years
Io4i-4I and IT increased every year afterwart
up 70 10 In 1891, which was again surpassed
by the number 1854 in 1856 The PROPORTION
CT young men under age increased in the same
year, but not 10 the same extant
Next We have some data in relation TO the
tendency OF widows and widOwers to remarry,
and the tendency Of WidOwers to prefer spin
sters to widows. The widows, on the contrary,
chow an equal preference for widows with
DHenelOTS- afaf fhokD
overs, and 1925 widows, remarked IA 462
WldOwers married spinsters anl ,l63 widows
married bachelors Of 100 men who were mar
ried, 1894 were widowers; Of 100 women, 9-3G
were widows
We have also some light thrown on the edu-
cational condition Of the country. and its pro
gress in this respect. 1I3, ,437 men and 95, 20l
wrote their names, A., 900 men and 81. 1873 wo-
men made their marks in signing the marriage
register. III in loo men wrote their names and
- made marks. Of loo women % wrote their
names, ani 40 made marks. If il is grievOus
ce now detective the elementary education |
ot the people was about fifteen years ago, it is
on the other hand, gratifying to I'd in the tn
Die proofs OF progress. The number Of women
who wrote their names increased from 81 10 go |
In 100, during the years 1871 to 1856; the num-
Der oi men who wrote their names increased |
from o. to al during the same period We
thus, evidence OF the progress of elementary
learning from about the year 1926 to the year
io4l and may hope that the progress since that
date has not been at slower rate.
The lntermarriages of persons who write
their names, with persons who sign by marks,
throws light on social Combinations The last
report contained some observations on the sub
ject. In the year 1856, We find that in 81 ,5I2
marriages both parties wrote their names; that
In 40, 11I marriages one wrote aud one signed
with a mark and that in - 23S marriages
both parties signed with marks
There is much more interesting matter in
this report, but we must close with an extract.
showing the rates Of mortality and the chances
of life at different ages:
Ibe mortality vare' at every age. 1t is
lowest at some period B. tween the age of 10 and
10 years. In the year 1856 the rate at that
age was 4JO per cent in both sexes. or 4
deaths in the year to ], 900 living, the average
mortality Of boys during ~ years, being p