The Daily state journal. [volume] (Alexandria, Va.) 1868-1874, 1874-02-25
How the country save. the CITY.

At a recent meeting of the Social Science |
association of Philadelphia paper was |
read by DR.. John Stockton Hough on the |
relative influence of city and country life |
on morality, health, fecundity. longevity,
and mortality, in which he presented
great array of curious statistics, gathered
from official reports in Europe and Amer
lea, to show that the crowding of people
in great cities is prejudicial to health,
morals, and long life. Some of the statis-
tics presented in support Of this view are
striking if not startling. IL appears
to be established by incontroyertible
facts that large cities would become
depopulated in tie course of time were
it not for accessions to their population from
the more robust and rural communities.
| Barton says that there were 1873 deaths to
every 100 births in Rome in tie beginning
| of the eighteenth century in Amsterdam,
III deaths to every 100 births; in Berlin,
| for the five years ending 1853, 131 deaths
| to every 100 births in London, for TWEEN
ty-six years, at about the same period,
| 1874. go deaths to every 100 births. In the
whole of the United States, in 1870, there
was only one death to every 97.77 inhabi-
tants, while in this city, in the same year,
there was one death to every 1913, and IN
Philadelphia, from 1861 to 1871, one
death to every 1911 inhabitants.
General Walker, late superintendent
OF the census, lives the mean average
of human lie in the whole United
States at 394 years, while in New York and
Philadelphia it is only % years, or IL
years less. A very great proportion of the
mortality in the large cities is among chill
dren under five years Of age. In this city
during the forty-nine years ending 1858,
5O.49 per cent. of the deaths were of chill
dren under five years. No such high rate
of infant mortality exists in the rural dis
tricts. Diseases of the lungs are twic'
as fatal in great cities as in the country
and diseases of the nervous system five
and-a-half tines as fatal. 1t is sail
that in London deaths exceed tn
births by 10000 annually, AM
!. this difference would be much greater wer
!, | it not for the great number O. stranger
! who annually take up their residence j
= that METROPOLIS. From this and other as
!. certained facts DR.. Stockton Hough con
I cludes that if all the inhabitants of th
= world were living in cities of the magnitud
i of London the whole human race woul
= become extinct in century or two, Will
| III Cne elltTc pOpuldtOu vi luo WI w Shou'
g be concentrated in single city little moi
q than century would suffice to annihila'
:. the race. The unhealthiness OF varior
# callings in towns as compared with opel
"a air labor in the country is shown by the ia
/. that in London the average age OF trade
i men at the time Of death, as given by ID
" Morgan, is 25 years, and of mechanics
:. years, while in Hertfordshire the average a.
~ Of farmers at death is AZ years, and OF agl
to cultural laborers 80 years. The create
NJ excess of MOI tality in large cities is amol
ID ID the poor, which is owing not only to owe
~ crowdng, but to scanty and inferior loo
RI often improperly prepared, and to the
Of of poisonous liquors. In view of all the
W facts, we take occasion again to dire
-. attention to the necessity we have SO oft
n. urged for making provision for the esta
he lishment of cheap homes for the work.
an classes within reasonable distance
air New York, where they can bring up tn
Of families in the pure country air, with re-
~. road facilities for reaching then quietly a
he at low rates of fare.--Neao York San.