The Twin City star. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1910-19??, 1915-03-27
WHAT CENSUS FIGURES SHOW
Decrease In Death Rate and Increase
In Home Ownership,

In Home Ownership.
Washington.-The bulletin on Ne
groes In the United States issued
March 20, by William ]. Harris, direc-
tor Of the census, department Of com.
merce, contains for the first time
statement regarding mortality among
Negroes. All previous census publ
cations have given statistics for the
total colored population, in which were
Included the Chinese. japanese, Indi-
ans and other non-whites. The data are
shown for the registration area Of the
United States, the registration states
and certain selected cities-ffty-seven
in all.
The Negro population Of the area was
1877 per cent Of the total number of
Negroes in the United States in 1910,
and the deaths numbered 400, with
q death rate Of 25.5 per 1000 popula-
ton, decrease as compared with the
rate in 1900. which was 294.
The selected cities shown are the
fifty-seven registration cities which
had, In 1910, Negro population Of
$500 or more, for which comparable
data are available in 1900.
In the fifty-seven cities included in
the table the death rate among Negroes
in 1910 was 27.S and that among
whites 15.9 per 1000, the rate among
the Negroes being nearly twice as great
as that for the whites. In the thirty.
three northern cities the death rate
among Negroes was 25.1 and that
among whites 1877 per 1000, while in
twenty -four southern cities the rate for
Negroes was 29.6 and that for whites
1863. Thus the death rates for each
race were higher in the southern than
In the northern cities. the difference be-
tween the races in respect to death
rate also being greater in the south.
Both Negroes and whites show de-
creases in death rate in 1910 as COM
pared with 1900. when the fifty-seven
cities are considered in the aggregate,
the decline for the Negroes being 3.4
and for whites 2.5 per 1000 population.
Every city in the south, except Key
West, Fla, and Memphis, Tenn, show
ed lower death rate for Negroes in
1910 than in 1900. The increase In Key
West was only OF, while in Memphis
it was 80 per 1000.
The general tendency appears to be
In the direction Of declining death
rate for Negroes In registration cities,
the decrease being somewhat greater
for Negroes than for whites. As re-
suit the difference between the death
rate for Negroes and for whites in
these cities was not as great in 1910
as a decade earlier.
The table presents the distribution of
the Negro and white deaths for 1910
by cause Of death for the registration
area and also for sixty-nine Of the sew
enty selected cities in the area, the
data for Springfield, ILL.,, not being
available. The table shows that deaths
among Negroes, as compared with the
for malaria, tuberculosis Of the lungs,
other forms of tuberculosis, pneumo-
MIA and whooping cough, while for
measles, scarlet fever, diphtheria, can
Ger, appendicitis, diarrhea and violent
deaths dncluding suicide) the distribu-
ton is noticeably higher among whites.
In other causes the differences In the
percentages are slight.
The question as to whether the de-
crease in mortality among Negroes
in 1910 as compared with 1900 was due
to permanent causes, such as improved
housing conditions, better medical at
tention and In improved sanitary condi-
lions and not to the absence of cpl
denies, Is an important and interesting
one. Undoubtedly one Of the factors
which has caused the decrease in the
death rate, which decrease Is almost
universal in the cities Of the south, Is
the increase In home ownership among
the Negro population.
The ownership Of homes data for the
northern states and cities is not avail
able. and what Is presented relates only
to the south. In the decade from 1900
to 1910 the number Of homes owned by
Negroes in the southern states increas-
ed by 1O2,912. or 31.4 per cent, this
increase covering increase in farm
homes Of 3O,449, or 1877 per cent, and
In other homes Of 72.463, or 1913 per
cent. The table presents the number
Of owned homes in 1910, the increase
during the decade, 1900 to 1910, and
also the number Of Negro inhabitants
to one owned home for each of the
southern states.