The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1902-10-11
IS THE SPAN OF LIFE INCREASING :

few years hence it will be possible for
an American to turn to statistics COM
piled by the Federal Government
and figure out whether the expecta-
ton of life Of the children that may
come to bless his home is longer or
shorter than the one the figure max
ers gave him when he was born. In
other words, the Government is pre-
pairing to go into the business of COM
plling vital statistics in a more syste-
matte manner. Heretofore the only
time when the General Government
went into the work of compiling such
figures was in the decennial census
year.
When the last Congress made the
Census Bureau permanent affair it
provided for the preparation of GER
tain statistics every year and others
every FIVE years. Director Merriam
has decided that he can prepare and
publish vital statatistic ever year.
Preparations for work of that kind
are being made now under the direc-
ton of A. w. King, Chief OF the Di-
vision of Vital Statistics.
Handbooks are being prepared for
the purpose of having health officers
all over the country send uniform
data to the Office in this city. At
present each city has its own way of
collecting the data. Necessarily there
is a great difference of opinion as to
what are the essential facts to be re-
ported. There is also a great differ
ence of opinion as to the classification
of the causes Of death. 1t will be the
purpose of the Census Office to bring
harmony out of this chaos.
The recently published statistics of
the census have left an impression
that the expectation of life of the
American citizen has increased to the
extent of over four years. That is
an erroneous deduction from one fact
ascertained by the Census Office.
This single fact is that the average at
the time of death of those who died
in the census year of 1900 was 35.2
years, whereas the average in the
census year of 1890 was only 3I.I.
From that fact it was inferred that
the Census Office has intended to as
sert that the expectation of life had
increased a little more than four years.
1t had no such intention, said Mr..
King, while discussing the subject
with Void correspondent. Such a
deduction is erroneous, for the reason
that the figures given include the
deaths occurring among those born in
foreign lands who came to this coun-
try after they had reached the age of
manhood when the expectations of
lite were longer than those Of the in
fant a few hours old. Had those
who reported the deaths eliminated
persons of that kind, the deduction
would not be far from a proper one.
But it was not done, so the only true
statement of what was discovered is
that the Americans who died during
the census year of 1900 were on the
average Al years older than those
who died in the corresponding time
in 1890.
But, as before stated, it is the pur-
pose of the Census Bureau to gather
data from which it will be able to say
with accuracy whether the expectan-
cy of life of Americans is increasing.
1t is popular impression that the
expectation is increasing, and that
therefore the life insurance rates
should come down. But so far as
the Government is concerned there
are no figures to prove or disprove
the generally accepted notion that
we are living longer than our grand
fathers.
The investigations of the Federal
Government will not be research of
an original character. On the con-
trary, they will consist merely of a
collection of the figures that are OBJ
tanned in all those cities and other
areas of population where the deaths
are registered and an accurate state
ment of the age and cause of death
so required. Nearly all States re-
quire the keeping of such registers.
Heretofore there has been no way of
getting them all together SO there can
be an analysis comprehending the
whole country in this scope.
The statistics recently published by
the Census Bureau, while not show
ing that the American citizen is liv-
ing longer than his grandfather, con-
tains many facts tending to show that
medical and sanitary science are do
ing much to prolong human life.
For instance, they show that in areas
where the registration of deaths is
compulsory the death rate decreased
nearly 10 per cent. in the last decade.
In 1890 the death rate in 27I regis
tration cities, each of a population of
5000 and upward, the death rate was
FL per 1000 persons. In 1900 the
rate in 34I cities of 5000 and upward
was 1876, reduction of 2.4 per 900.
The gross population of the cities