Miscellanea [stub]

1865 Journal of the Statistical Society of London  
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more » ... ntent at http://about.jstor.org/participate--jstor/individuals/early-journal--content. JSTOR is a digital library of academic journals, books, and primary source objects. JSTOR helps people discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content through a powerful research and teaching platform, and preserves this content for future generations. JSTOR is part of ITHAKA, a not--for--profit organization that also includes Ithaka S+R and Portico. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. * The tables alluded to will be found in the original report. 1865.] IWfortality at Diferent Stages of Life. 403 the full term of niile months, the premature children, if we had the means, should be struck out of the account both of the living and dying. This is impossible in the present state of statistical observation. But it happens that these deaths of premature children serve as probably more than a sufficient set-off against the infants of full term dying soon and escaping registration. " The age of man is reckoned from the date of birtlh; but before that date the faetus has lived its intra-uterine life, and the instant in which the sperm-cell and germ-cell ilntermilngle is the true timre of the emibryo's origini. Respecting the rate of embryoniic mortality there is little definite information; but it is probable that as the mortality in the first year of breathing life rapidly increases as we proceed backwards from the twelfth to the third, second, and first month, the same law prevails durilng embryonic life, until we arrive at the destruction of an immense proportion of the spermatozoa and ova which are provided to secure the continuation of the species. This question well deserves the attention of the Obstetric Society, and is intimately connected with abortions, miscarriages, and stillbirths.* " The annexed table (Table II) from the English life table slhows the estimated numbers of males and females surviving each montb, and the annual rates of miortality in each month. It will be observed that the rate of mortality rapidly declines month by mnonth; and that the mortality of boys in every month exceeds that of girls, so that at tlle end of the first year the number of boys does not greatly exceed the number of girls. "The mortalitv of infants in France was such in the first year as to reduce imooo,ooo to 820,o65, according to the experience acquired by following the births in 1856-60 for the twelve months following. The deaths were 179,935, and the probability of dyinig o0I79935. " The French returns show the deaths in the first week of life and by the returns of 1856 the mortality was at the rate of I54 per cent. per aniiiiin in the first seveni days, I20 in the second seven days, and 54 inl the sixteen days following. The mean birtlhs were 927,226; the deaths in the thlree periods were 27,002, 20,5I7, and 20,6i8, naking 68,I37 deaths in the first month of life. So ouit of 1,ooo,ooo births 29,i2i die in the first week, 22,i2 8 in the second weelk, and 22,236 in the sixteen days following. $ " Observations on the Duration of life Among the Clergy, by the Rev. John Hodgson, M.A., Table IV , p. 36.
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