The evening times., 1902-07-22
Health Officer Woodward
Tells Reason Why.
LARGE NEGRO POPULATION
Mortality Always Great in ColoTed
Race-EFect Of St. Elizabeth's and
Other Federal observation-disclosures
Hospital Service Figures Misleading

Some OF the facts in the report ol
the Marine Hospital Service report pub
Iishod in Tne Times Ibis morning, we're
placed before Dr. william c Woodward,
the District Health Omcer Special at
tention was called 10 that Fortic1 Of
the reoo~t dealing with the death rate
IN the several cities o. the country. as
follows:
New York. % per 1000; Boston, 1870
Philadelphia. 1877. Baltimore. 2225i
v-azgiH-ton. 2f.l4. New Orleans 21.ii:
Cincinnati. lS.sS- Chicago. 1883; St
Louis. lT.G7. san francisco. 1e-S+.
Ci1arlesJs-gg. Ge.I
DR.. Woodward smiled IS he eonten-
plated the figures and said that the
death rate in cities was no true irai-
cation Of the health of the locality
Not until the death rate Is aualyzed-
he said. could 1t be properly understood.
and he declared that the practice Of
nan. people in estimating the health
OF community by yhe death rate is
very misleading. Dr- woodward desig-
na-ed IT as a familiar illustration Of the
fact that hgures somc- lines leave a false
Irppress5oa, il they do not actually lie
Factors in Death Rates.
The Health Omeer explained that the
= death rate in any given city is con
ditioned by the size Of the population,
the character of the people and their
power of resistance against the inroads
OF disease. He said that the death rate
per thousand is greater in large cities
than in small ones, and that on this
point alone a comparison between Wash
ington and some other cities CT the
country would be entirely misleading.
For example he Taught il would be IN
fair to washington TO compare its death
rate with q city Of 10000 people
Then Dr.. Woodward said thai great
deaf Of confusion results from the dill
ferent bases from which the death rate
is computed. EC said that IN the large
cities the Federal census Is frequently
much lower than enUmeratiOns taken
BIZ the police. He said that the report
OF the Marine Hospital Service would
not show whether the Feleral census
or the local enumeration had been fol
lowed. and he said that the low death
rate reported by some cities was due
10 large estimated population upon
which il was based
Speaking further upon this point Dr.
Woodward presented some figures taken
from his las annual report in which
the results Of the Federal Census were
contrasted with the police census Of
previous years.
The Federal census Of 1900, " he says,
has shown q disappOintingiy small pop
uIatiOn Tor this District The total
number Of inhabitants enumerated vas
but 21S-IlS; Of white 1S2 q16 OF color
ed Sc. 7G2 Recent police censuses have
justified q belief rhst Jne population Of
the District wouIC be not less than
2S5. geo
The results Of such censuses. shown
in the following statement. had been
consistent with one another and with
the Federal eenAs Of 1880 The Fed
eral census Of 1857 showed a white pop
Ulation of 154S29 and a colored popu-
lation of 75,572: total, 236-392
Population Of tie District Of COlum-
bia- Police CensUses-
June. 1887. white, 145, ,625; coIored,
1922; total. 21S. .157. June 1892. white,
173. $40; coIored, 81 81; total, 25S 45L
December. 1894 White. 1S3. .516; coIored.
S6.99s; total, 27G, ,514- April. 1897 white,
1Ss. .457; colored, S, ,325; total. 277. .7S2
Disappointing Figures
The fncreasr from year TO year
while not gresf had been reasonably
large. and, fo- a community Of the
character Of Washington, satisfactory.
When, therefore, the Federal census Of
June, 1863, shows or comparison with
the police ce2sus Of April, 1881. an in