The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-06-28
Philosophy of Suicide
Elucidated by Yale Man

Special to The Globe.
ANN ARBOR, Mich, June 27.-'The
philosophy of suicide" roughly putting
it, is what DR.. w. B. Bailey, of Yale,
has been attempting to elucidate
through a lengthy paper to which he
has recently given publicity.
DR.. Bailey admits that his work is
only tentative. CuriOuSly enough, gov
ernments do not keep statistics of sui
cides. DR.. Bailey has therefore had to
get his data from the newspapers and
from these he has been able to get
fairly decent summary of conditions.
His statistics have reference only to
the United States. They are the first
attempt at a general collection of data
from all the states, known to the writ
er, information on the subject, hitherto,
having been limited to the reports of
the various bureaus of vital statistics,
irregularly published and not easy of
access to everyone.
AS might be expected, more males
than females commit suicide, the pro-
portion being about three to one. An
other noticeable point is that more
men committed suicide at between
thirty and forty years than at any
other time.
This is when the burden of support
ing the family became heaviest and is
a direct slap at President RooseVelt's
multiplication of burdens, especially in
this day of expensive living and I'M
certain employment, proves too heavy
for paterfamilias, and stumbling under
the load he seeks nepenthe in what he
hopes is oblivion.
Continuing, DR.. Bailey says:
when we consider the percentage of
males and females with respect to diff
ferent cOnjugal conditions we find that
single, widowed and divorced women
commit suicide more than do men in
like situations. But the married men
are slightly higher in the scale than the
wives. This is probably due to the fact
that the struggle for existence bears
most heavily upon the women who are
1rying to support themselves.
Among the single the maximum
number of cases occurs between the
ages of twenty and thirty, among the
Narried between thirty and forty the
widowed between sixty and seventy,
Che divorced between sixty and sew
enty, while of those whose conjugal
condition was unknown the age was
also unknown. Leaving out of consid-
Grafton those whose conjugal condition
was unknown we find that in every
case the shape of the curve lin sta
uStlcal table, is regular, except that
in the record of the widowed there is
a second maximum between the ages
of forty and fifty.
Dependency is the leading motive,
claiming about 20 per cent of the vic
Tins. Business loss, i'll health and in
sanity follow in order, with about 10
per cent each. Then follow disappoint-
ed in love, with the remaining motives
far in the rear
Among the females dependency is
also in the lead, but is closely followed
by insanity and i'll health. Business
loss is, on the contrary, near the bot
70,
lions are wounded, as in grief, disap-
pointed love and domestic trouble, we
ind that the rate among women is
higher than among men. Ill health,
too, weighs more heavily upon them,
possibly upon their more frequent
sickness and the Encouragement re-
sulting therefrom. Chagrin, also, af-
fects their sensitive natures It is easy
to see why their rate from alcoholism
is below, and the worries of business
are also, as rule, removed from them
Large numbers of men who have COM
m1tted murder and who have disgrace,
imprisonment and possibly an ignoble
death staring them in the face prefer
to take their own lives on the SPOT.
That is the reason why the proportion
ate suicides, who, to avoid disgrace, is
so high among males
Under the twentieth year more COM
init suicide from unhappy love affairs
than any other reason. The same holds
true OF the age group between twenty
and thirty, although in both cases de-
Spondency is a good second. In these
early age groups business loss is rath-
er unlmportant. Under the twentieth
year nearly one-fourth of the total
cases are caused from disappointed
love, and this percentage gradually di-
mln1shes until, after the SEVENTEEN
year, there are no more cases. III
heaith' on the contrary, is very small
at the start, but after the SEVENTEEN
year 1t furnishes exactly one-fourth Of
the cases. Dependency never fur
nlshes less than II per cent of the
cases.
With males the favorite method is
shooting and the one least used is
jumping, while most women take moi
ting.
When we take the percentage of
suicides in each age group we find that
shooting is the most common in every
case except under twenty years. when
poison leads. In every other group
poison holds the second place. Shoot
ing aScendS gradually until it attains a
maximum in the years fifty to sixtv
Polson, on the contrary, is highest in
the earliest age group. Gas and drown
ing are fairly regular. Hanging shows
comparatively regular growth to the
HIsneSt age group, showing that this
method is in favor with the old rather
IMAM the young. Cutting is higher in
the middle age group.
IN every age groups there are moro
males who take their lives bv SNORING
IMAM by any other method, although IN to
the sixteenth year poison approaches If
very closely. Poison is the fayorite meth
Oh with the females at every period ev
Gept over seventy, when droWning leads
IN drowning and poisoning the maxin1Iro
NUMBER OF females falls in an earlier a 90
group than does that for males. In shoot
ing the reverse is true but in The
others the maximum is identical. In moi
son and hanging more suicides occurred
after the fortieth year than hefora II
among the males. This was never the
case with the females. In shooting nearII,
% per cent of the cases among females
happened before the thirtieth year while
among the males only a little over % per
cent are found. 80 20
by drowning and poison there are ac-
IudiIy more cases of suicide among fe.
males than males before the thiTtieth
year; and during the earliest age group
uedIhS from gas are two and one-haif
IImeS as common among female as males
For young women, then, drowning poi
son ana gas appear attractive while
among males there are fewer cases in the
earnest age group than In any other for
gas and for both drowning and poison
the PERIOD over seventy is the only one
Lnat rams below that under twenty Fol
MaleS under thirty years the number by
shooting are nearly one and one-haif
times as numerous as by poison and hang