Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-06-20
THE SEXES,
Curious Statistics as to Boys and Girls In
the United States.

You have boy and girl-twins, per-
haps. Which will outlive the otherP
Nothing but death to both is certain,
but in all probability if both pass the
age of So your girl will live the long
est. In 1880 there were 100000 peo-
pie in this country and about $4,000
more males than females. That was
only because more males were born;
the females live the longest. Of the
centenarians 1,409 were men and 2,607
were women. The boys start out near
~ 100000 ahead and are in the ma
jority up to the 10th year, when the
girls are little more numerous.
Sweet 16 is numerous age anyhow.
After that first one and then the other
is in the majority, the girls gradually
gaining after Sc and leaving the men
far behind after Is. There are some
interesting facts about the old people.
The native whites constitute about
three-fourths of the entire population,
but have only one-seventh of the GEN.
tenarians. The colored is only one
eighth of the whole population, but has
three-fourths of the centenarians.
There seems to be proverbial pro-
vision to balance this longevity of the
females. In almost every state few
more boys are born; not many more,
but almost always few. lis aston
ishing to see where the census gives
thousands and hundreds of thousands
of boys and girls under year old,
there are, with one or two exceptions,
a few hundred more. In only six of
the forty-nine states and territories are
more girls born and in these states
they are very slightly in excess-from
| eleven to eighty. These exceptions
| are Arizona, Delaware, Florida Louis
lana, and North Carolina. The fact
that the females are in the majority in
all the original thirteen states but
| Delaware and North Carolina, especi-
| ally in Massachusetts and New En-
| gland, has created the impression that
there is something in the climate or in
the people that produces more women
| than men. This is popular but eyre
gious error. In Massachusetts there
were in 1880 4S7 more boys than girls
under year of age. The males arei in
| the minority In almost all the eastern
| states, because many of the younger
men 90 west. All over the west there
| is an excess of men, and those who are
foreigners have been withdrawn from
the states further east. In the new
] states and territories this is most
noticeable. In Idaho, for instance,
there are twice as many males as
| females, but the male infants are only
little in excess of the females.
The west is drawing heavily on the
manhood of the east. From this all
the old states have suffered. Mass
achusetts seems to have lost more than
any. There are parts of northern Ohio
which are portions of New England re-
moved. Massachusetts shows the loss
and Ohio shows the gain. Another
curious fact is that while all over the
country more boys than girls are born,
| in cities and towns there are more
girls. Between the ages of 5 and II
| inclusive there are 1850 more girls
than boys in New York county, 1908
more in Kings county, 2,725 more in
the city of Baltimore, lob more in
Suffolk county (Boston), Mass; 1909
more in Cook county (Chicago), Ill. ;
2, 1S1 more in the city of St. Louis, l.
gu more in Philadelphia county, and
1858 more in the parish of Orleans.
All these cities except New Orleans
are in the states where more boys than
! girls are born.-AtIantG Constitution.