Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-03-11
INSTANCES OF LONGEVITY.
Many Cases of Old Age Figure in the
News.

A somewhat noteworthy feature OF
recent news has been the considerable
number of reports OF deaths of persons
of extraordinary age. We have not kept
an account of them, but we should
think it judiciGuS to estimate that in
the last two or three months there
have been announcements of the DEATH,
in this country alone Of more than Il
dozen, perhaps, a score of persons VINO
were leputed to nave passed the centt-
~ mark by several years, some OF
them by many years. We have 10
doubt that some of these reports were
accurate. Others We're probably mac
curatc as there is reason to suspect
large proportion of extreme longevity
records nave been in modern times.
Indeed we are compelled to believe this
else We should be driven to the unwel-
come conclusion that with all our ad-
vances the duration of human life was
steadily decreasing. For with all last
years reports OF centenarians living
and dead these times cannot compare
In that respect with those of century
ago
Thus in the first quarter of the nine
teenth century there We're circumstan-
tal reports and records of the deaths
in the them comparatively small United
States of 100 persons. each more than
40 years old, twenty of them more
than l25 and one reaching the age of
80 years, and thus almost riVaiing the
age attributed to the historic "Old
Parr," of Shropshire, England, who
died in 1886 at the reputed age of 1872.
Many of these We're negro slaves and
Indians, concerning whose age there
was obviously ample opportunity for
uncertainty and eXaggeration. Nor
can we accept as infallible the records
concerning the others, although some
of them arc quite circumstantial. Thus
the Natinna! Gazette, In reporting the
death of one IF the oldest, gave the |
late her emigration from Germany and |
settlement in North Carolina and ma
ny other details OF another. who died |
at Whitehall, \. T.. at the reputed age
of 134 years, i'll 1920 there were given |
the dates of his birth in France to |
En- gland, and of his service in the Eng
fish army At the same time it is tn |
he observed that if he was really born |
in 1856. as stated. he must have been |
ISL years old in 1870. instead of only ia. |
as reported at that time. This discre- |
pancy of half Il century in circum- |
stantial record suggests the possibility |
IF similar errors elsewhere. The most |
notable instance of longevity in lncd- |
ern ages was that of Peter TOrten, Of (
Zorten, of kofrock. Hungary. who is |
said to have been 1856 years old when |
he died in January. 1924 But the evil |
dence in his case is by no means con-
vincng. and the same must be said |
even of such records as those of the |
Countess of Desmond and Col Winsloe |
Of Ireland, who We're said to have |
reached the ages, respectively, Of 40 |
ard 146 years. |
We have remarked upon the great |
number of reports of extreme longevi- |
ty which were made in the early part |
of the last century. Now, the year
which has Just ended seems to indi-
cate similar though less marked
abundant Of them in the early part of
this century. The coincidence affords
suggestion for thought 1t may be that
there is some influence in the contem-
plation of the beginning and progress
ct new century which induces people |
unconsciCusly to invent. eXaggerate or
indulge their fancy concerning their
own ages or the ages of their neigh
bors. There are also those who. having
reached a certain age. take pride in
their length of life which may easily
lead them, perhaps unconsciously, to
exagGf rate it, AS for the written rec
ords OF births. baptisms, etc, upon
which reliance is placed, they have too
often been found untrustworthy to per-
NIT implicit acceptance of their testi-
mony. On the whole, reports of lives
prolonged much beyond the century
mark are t. be received with much
caution, if not with outright skepti-
Cism.--New York Tribune.