Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-07-17
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL Y. COLLINS.

When the question was put to med
ical authority Of high official standing
he told how Nature always adjusted
births to the need of the country
For example, his grandfather had Is
children-that was in the pioneer days
of the middle of the eighteenth CEN
tury His father had only IL children
and he, himself. has but one child.
Nature supplied what the country
needed" Somehow that explanation
sounded like the old adage, Mature
abhors a vacuum" 1t was rejected by
the layman as being an assumption of
direct interference by the Deity. but
not strictly and exclusively scientific"
in explanation. The argument seemed
theological rather than scientific.
Later the question was put TO the
famous biologist. DR.. Hrdlicka: The
birth rate of the United States is rap
idly declining, in pace or with greater
speed than the decrease Of the death
rate. Why, Dr. Hrdlicka?"
That Is true not only of the United
States" replied the biologist. but also
of all civilized nations. The birth rate
is decreasing in France. In England and
remarkably so in Germany. 1t Is de-
creaSing in Russia, and wherever in
Soviet Russia the death rate is decreaS-
ing the decrease of births keeps pace:
that applies to distinctive provinces"
But why? How does science ac-
count for that"
''Ah. now you have asked me big
question, which science cannot answer"
confessed Dr. Hrdlicka, 1T is the Great
Mystery. We have in our bodies thou
sands of cells each doing its proper
function, but We cannot know what
that function really is; we only know
that 1t exists; without 1t we would die.
Now consider humanity as made up and
organized Just as one great body, with
thousands of functions which we can
not comprehend. All we know Is that
births diminish as deaths diminish.
That is only partly. and very made
quately. accounted for by what Is called
birth CONTROL but it may be observed
that as the brains and nerves of parents
are actively engaged. the number of
births decreases. Ignorance. ilnteracy,
increases births. Take, for example,
that race of old Americans in the
Tennessee mountains. They have lived
apart from other Americans for CEN
turtles, and they are ignorant, so they
have immense families. Last wear,
when was there amongst them. I
talked with man 7s years old, who
had three quite small children.
The race Is replenished from the
AeAioia NAaANcSs ne INCREASE Is not
due to increased muscular exercise.
The decrease In births is not at all
due to the killing off of men of stamina
by the World War. But education and
mental work decreases births: that is
all We can say. There are few excep-
tons wherein men OF genius have had
large families"
So. IL births decrease. let science 60
ON saving people Of mature years, as
we'll as infants. II is comforting to
city inhabitants to note that urban
lives are longer than those of rural
habitation, and all the improvements
seems to trend toward increased long
evity in the cities. rather than In the
country. This Is attributed to improved
sanitation and closer contact with
health authorities and physicians.
The following recipe for ascertaining
the life expectancy" of any indi-
vidual is given by the National Health
Council:
subtract his age from so; and n
MS health Is good he will probably live
Tor more than two-thirdS OF the differ
ence. For example. If man be "a. :
subtract 6S nom so. leaving -. Two
thirds OF II is 8; add 8 to IS, and that
man VIII probably live until ne Is rs
years old-'provided his health is now
good lie. provided physicianS,S test
proves that his lungs and heart are
sound and his stomach, etc. are strong
enough to withstand attacks of germs
ana MS legs are nimble enough 20
lodge automobiles and airplanes, Also
provided there Il no diseased tooth
'eeding poison into his kidneys. and.
IKE the one-hosS shay. every part be
IS strong as the strongest.
Engines must be inspected by experts
Y stated intervals. whenever they be-
I'm TO knock. So must human engines"
Then 1t Is scientifically promised that.
= the average span of lie In 1850 was
u years and now is Sc. so by 1880 Il
VII average 70. meaning that there win
" IS many aggregate ages beyond 70
: there are below that number, But
ne engine must be run BY an engineer
vho can catch and oil out the knocks,
'eiore they bang the machine.
Longfellow tells Us that's
age Is opportunity no less
Than YOUTH itself though IN another
dress"
iccnyrixat 1898, Nv Paul v. colaaAl