Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-05-30
The INCREASE oE SUICIDE.

Suicide is Increasing if statistics re.
Gently published on the subject are t.
be credited. English statistics show ar
annual increase in the number of sui.
years. Thirty thousand. or ninety per-
sons to the million. have suicided in
that island alone within the past ten
years. In the United States, accord
ing to Professor William b. Bailey, OF
Yale, 29,344 cases of se.f-murder oc-
Cured between the years 1897 and 1901.
| Professor Bailey has made an eX-
haustive stucy OF 10000 of the cases
occurring in the United States. He
| the ages of 80 and 40 years. From 20
to 80 is the period next in number and
two thirds Of all suicides are found be-
tween the ages of 90 and 80. OF the
| 10000 cases taken UP 2,21J were females
and 7,1S1 males. Married men oftener
| take their own lives than married
| widowed women commit suicide than
men under like conditions. Shooting is
The favored method and dependency
The leading otive and Monday the IA
vorite day. Professor Bailey attributes
the pre-emineace of Monday to the fact
that nearly one third of the domestic
II Il,
Sunday. The family is then together
for the day, giving greater opportunity
for quarrels, or the husband may be in
roxicated and the home seem dreary to
the females. Among the males two
thirds take their lives on Monday and
Tuesday among the victims of alcohol
ism. More males end their lives on
Friday on account of business troubles
than on any other day. OF the cases of
murder followed by suicide 20 per cent
occur between p. m. ana midnight.
Edward L. Devine in a New York
charities journal, writing on this sub
ject, asserts that suicide is a crime of
the educated rather than the ignorant. |
He finds that the death rate from this |
cause is greater in the country and |
smaller towns than in TIE great cities |
The astonishing and painful develop
ment that enlightenment and its retin-
than to deminish the tendency to self
murder is an alarming commentary up
en- our civilization. In this phase Of
the question the competitive nature Of
our commercial. industrial and even So
cial systems must be considered and
the fact that disgrace or failure is I'M
hearable to the refined and educated to
a much greater degree than to the
coarse and ignorant. The nervous ten
sion of the American race, the drive of
business life and insane eesire for pre-
eminence has much to &c, with the in
crease of the suicidal maria.
II is notable that fewer suicides are
found among the professe,ily pious than
IL any other class. Commenting upon
Ibis the Atlanta Journal believes that
apart from all theological discussion it
must be confessed by the candid stu
dent that the religion Of Jesus Christ
S the most potent agency for the pre- ;
'ention of suicide. To the devoted fol-
over of Jesus the idea of self-murder
s both revolving and inconprehensible.
he is persuaded that all the trials and
,alamties of this life are but a part of
he training for a loftier existence and
hat all is under the guidance of a low
ng Heavenly Father. Furthermore, he
hrinks with vast horror from the cow
lrdice of deserving his rost before his
Master calls him. The incentive to sui
'ide is therefore lacking. Thus the
Journal concludes that mental derange-
nent alone, and that of the most pro-
ound sort. can lead person with faith
O suicide.