Mortality Statistics. THE Census Office published in 1906 a report of Mortality Statistics of States and cities which have laws or ordinances requiring the registration of deaths. It covered the years 1900 to 1904, inclusive, and in 1904 represented a population of 32, 996.989. The total number of deaths reported was 551,354, the rate per 1,000 of the population being 16.7. But ten States and the District of Columbia with certain cities were included in the Registration Area. The Census enumeration of 1900, which follows, covered the whole United States so far as returns could be obtained. DEATHS IN THE UNITED STATES IN CENSUS YEAR 1900. STATES AND TERRITORIES. The United States... Registration record Registration States.. Cities in registration States.... Alabama Arizona 91,626 184,408 124, 490 52,299 108.210 86,428 210,999 115,074 95,925 183,022 126,370 526, 425 278,792 247,633 416,452 357,448 1.039,094 551,611 487,483 892,092 694,736 175,252 147,002 512,669 272, 819 239,850 475,640 337,288 126,465 301,670 157,745 143, 925 292, 618 210,918 37,029 78,077 9,052 58,096 7,259 19,981 1,793 48,388 27,977 48,787 109,973 ... 1,223 750 473 947 681 219 276 Arkansas. 6,146 California 21,081 13,687 Colorado 7,428 4,471 2,957 7,210 4,856 7,902 10,800 1,431 2,490 2,134 236 585 616 Florida. 2,704 6,482 3,520 2,962 3,408 2,943 381 3,074 13,321 13,620 13,094 12,637 257 Idaho... 13,847 167 Illinois 61, 229 42,545 Indiana 33,586 Indian Territory 3,936 Iowa.... 1,350 19,362 211 Kansas 11,691 1,720 Kentucky 1,052 22,035 19,047 Louisiana 20,955 10,971 9,984 10,250 Maine 10,705 12,148 6,292 5,856 12,112 36 10,526 9,896 15:341 Massachusetts. 5,081 49,061 34,952 13,645 695 Michigan 15,488 8,752 367 Minnesota Mississippi 7,651 16,816 10,318 6,285 189 20,251 Missouri Montana 7,444 7,120 38,084 29,383 2.188 1,069 534 Nebraska 258 8,264 8,015 Nevada. 438 New Hampshire.. New Jersey 32,735 17,462 15, 273 31,069 22,829 7,915 New Mexico 1,666 2,674 New York North Carolina 37,505 2,936 21,068 10,427 10,641 13,217 12,805 63 North Dakota 7,851 1,291 Ohio Oklahoma 3,181 113 Oregon 477 220 Pennsylvania 90, 199 49,150 41,049 86,653 67.229 16,354 3,546 In the summaries of the results the data are classed as "registration" and “ non-registration,' according to the source from which the original returns were obtained. The non-registration class includes the areas in which the deaths were reported by the enumerators, and those areas in which registration was too defective to be accepted. The average age at death in 1890 was 31.1 years; in 1900 it was 35. 2 years. MORTALITY STATISTICS-Continued. The cities with a population above 100,000 showed the following death rates for 1900 and 1890: St. Joseph, Mo., with a death rate of 9.1 per 1,000, showed the lowest mortality, and Shreveport, La., with 45. 5 the highest. CAUSES OF DEATH IN THE CENSUS YEAR 1900. NUMBER OF DEATHS FROM CERTAIN CAUSES, WITH PROPORTION FROM EACH CAUSE PER 100,000. FROM ALL CAUSES, IN 1900 AND 1890. *Including general tuberculosis. + Including pericarditis. Including cholera morbus, colitis, diarrhoea, dysentery, and enteritis. Including Bright's disease. Including general paralysis of the insane. **Including jaundice, and inflammation and abscess of the liver. Including gastritis. This table serves only to indicate the relative frequency of deaths from the specified causes, as reported. It should be considered in connection with the following table, which gives the number of deaths due to the same causes in the registration area, with the death rates per 100,000 of population. DEATHS FROM CERTAIN CAUSES IN THE REGISTRATION AREA IN 1900 AND 1890, WITH DEATH RATES DUE TO EACH CAUSE, PER 100,000 OF POPULATION. Including jaundice, and *Including general tuberculosis. +Including pericarditis. Including cholera morbus, colitis, diarrhoea, dysentery, and enteritis. § Including Bright's disease. Including general paralysis of the insane. inflamination and abscess of the liver. ** Including gastritis. The following was the death rate per thousand in various countries in 1900: Austria, 25.4; Belgium, 19.3; Denmark, 16.9; England and Wales, 18.2; France, 21.9; German Empire, 22.1; Hungary, 26.9; Ireland, 19.6; Italy, 23.8; Netherlands, 17.8; Norway, 15.9; Scotland, 18.5; Spain, 28.9; Sweden, 16.8; Switzerland, 19.3; United States (registration area), 17.6, *The above comprises the latest statistics published by the United States Government. Those of prisoners appeared in the Census Report of 1890. The report on prisoners 1900-1904 is in course of preparation by the Census Office and is promised in 1907. (See page 89). The special report on pauperism in 1904 was published by the Census Office in 1906. Statistics of pauperism apply only to inmates of almshouses. Outdoor paupers are not considered, and there is no way of ascertaining their number in the United States, but it is comparatively small compared with that of European countries. Of the 114, 620 parents of the white prisoners 45,732 were native, 60,153 were foreign born, and the birthplaces of 8,735 were reported as unknown. Omitting the unknown, the percentage of prisoners of the native element was 43. 19 and of the foreign element 56. 81. As to nationalities of the 60,153 foreign parents of American prisoners 29,184 were Irish, 9,987 German, 5.997 English, 4,064 English Canadian, 1,996 Scotch, 1,483 Mexican, 1,209 Italian, and 1.036 French. Other nationalities were below 1,000. The New York State Prison Commission's annual report for 1906 showed that the total prison population of the State of New York on October 1, 1905, was: State prisons, 3, 452; reformatories for males, 1,656; houses of refuge, women, 430; penitentiaries, 2,227; county jails, 4,769. Total, 12,584. Statistics of pauperism in European countries is difficult to collate on account of the variance in reports. England, for example, counts the number receiving relief on January 1; France the total number of persons succored during the year, the latter being a repetition of people who needed relief. Mulhall makes the following estimates: England, 810,000; Scotland, 96,000; Ireland, 109,000; France, 290,000; Germany, 320.000; Russia, 350,000; Austria, 290,000; Italy, 270,000; Netherlands, 85,000. Booth estimated that 38 per cent. of all persons over 65 years of age in England were paupers. Homicide in the United States. THE statistics of the United States Census for 1900 had not been published by the Census Office when THE WORLD ALMANAC for 1907 was ready for the press. The special report of the Census Office is in course of preparation and is promised by the Census Office in 1907. The latest official statistics, therefore, are of 1890. The census bulletin presenting statistics of homicide in the United States in 1890 was prepared by Frederick H. Wines, special agent on pauperism and crime. The following is the summing up of the results of his investigations: Of 82,329 prisoners in the United States June 1, 1890, the number charged with homicide was 7,386, or 8.97 per cent. Omitting 35 who were charged with double crimes, 6,958 of them (or 94. 65 per cent.) were men, and 393 (or 5. 35 per cent.) were women. As to color, 4,425 were white, 2,739 negroes, 94 Chinese, 1 Japanese, and 92 Indians. As to the nativity of the 4,425 whites, 3,157 were born in the United States, 1,213 were foreign born, and the birthplace of 55 is unknown. The number employed at the time of their arrest was 5,659; unemployed, 1,225; unknown, 467. The habits of 973, in respect of use of intoxicating liquors, are not stated. The remaining 6,378 are classed as follows: Total abstainers, 1, 282; occasional or moderate drinkers, 3, 829; drunkards, 1.267. As to their physical condition, 6,149 were in good health, 600 ill, 283 insane, 24 blind, 14 deaf and dumb, 18 idiots, and 263 crippled. Lynchings. The number of lynchings in the United States from 1901 to the end of the first ten months of 1906, inclusive, was 621. In the sixteen years, from 1884 to 1900, the number of lynchings was 2,516. Of these, 2,080 were in the Southern States, and 436 in the North. The proportion between blacks and whites was as two to one, 1,678 being negroes and 801 white men. The proportion of black men in the last five years has been larger. This is accounted for by the fact that lynchings for horse and cattle stealing by white men of the West were formerly more common than they are to-day. Of the 2,516 lynched in the years mentioned, 2,465 victims were men and 51 were women. Legal Executions. The number of legal executions in the United States was 136 in 1905; 116 in 1904; 123 in 1903;144 in 1902; 118 in 1901: 120 in 1900; 131 in 1899; 109 in 1898; 128 in 1897 122 in 1896; 132 in 1895; 132 in 1894; 126 in 1893, and 107 in 1892. The legal executions in 1904 were distributed as follows: Alabama, 6; Arkansas, 7: California, 5; Connecticut, 2: Delaware, 1: Florida, 1; Georgia, 2; Idaho, 1; Illinois, 5: Indiana, 2; Kentucky, 1; Minnesota, 1: Mississippi, 3; Missouri, 3; Montana, New Jersey, 2; New York, 8; North Carolina, 7; Ohio, 10; Oregon, 2; Pennsylvania, 19; South Carolina, 2; Tennessee, 3; Texas, 5; Utah,1; Virginia, 6; West Virginia,1; Washington, I; District of Columbia, 1. The executions were divided: 62 in North and 54in South; 69 were white, 45 negroes, 1 Japanese, 1 Chinese. One hundred and ten executions were for murder. The above statistics of lynchings and legal executions were compiled by the Chicago Tribune. The Defective Classes. The Insane.-The total number of insane in the United States on June 1, 1890 (Census of the United States), was 106,485, of whom 74, 028 were in hospitals. In the collection of s.atistics of the insane in 1903 (Census Special Report issued August, 1906), only the insane in hospitals were considered, These had increased to 150,151 on December 31. 1906. The number of hospitals for the insane had increased in thirteen years from 12 in 1890 to 328 in 1903. In 1903 the number of insane males in hospitals was 78,523, and insane females 71.628. In proportion to population there were more white than negro insane. None of the insane in hospitals were under twelve years of age. The maximum concentration occurred between ages twenty-five and thirty-five years. Female insane live longer than male insane, and white insane than negro insane. More than one-fourth, 27.8 percent. of the hospital insane had been inmates less than one year, less than one-sixteenth per cent. had been in hospitals at least twenty years, 41. 6 per cent. had been employed as laborers and servants before becoming inmates, 22.5 per cent. had been occupied in agriculture, transportation and other outdoor pursuits, and 16 per cent. in manufacturing and mechanical industries. Of the 328 hospitals for the insane, 226 were public and 102 private in character. The annual cost of maintenance of insane in public hospitals approximated $21,000,000, The Feeble-Minded.-The number of feeble-minded in institutions on December 31, 1903, was 14,347. The Census estimate of the number of feeble-minded in the general population is not less than 150,000. Of the feeble-minded in institutions 58 per cent. were under twenty years of age, and 85 per cent. were under thirty years of age. Three-fifths of the inmates were epileptics. The Deaf and Dumb.-The total number of deaf mutes in the United States on June 1, 1890 (the latest Census returns on the subject), was 40,592-whites, 37,447; negroes, 3.115; others, 30; males, 22,429; females, 18,163; native-born whites, 33,278; foreign-born whites, 4,169. The number of persons so deaf as to be unable to hear loud conversation on June 1, 1890, &as 121,178, of whom 80,611 were able to speak. The latter were 49,278 males, 31,338 females, 77,305 whites, 3,308 negroes. The Blind. The total number of blind in the United States on June 1, 1890, was 50, 568-whites. 43.351; negroes, 7,060; others, 157; males, 28,080; females, 22,488: native-born whites, 34,205; foreign-born whites, 9,146. The number of blind in one eye only was 93,988. The number of insane persons in Great Britain and Ireland in 1896, according to Mulhall, was 128,896, or 328 per 100,000 population: Austria (1890), 51.880; Hungary (1890), 28,158. The number of insane in Germany in 1884 was 108, 100; France, 93,900; Russia, 80,000. Suicides. IN European cities the number of suicides per 100,000 inhabitants is as follows: Paris, 42; Lyons, 29; St. Petersburg, 7; Moscow, 11; Berlin, 36; Vienna, 28; London, 23; Rome, 8; Milan, 6; Madrid, 3; Genoa, 31; Brussels, 15; Amsterdam, 14; Lisbon, 2; Christiania, 25; Stockholm, 27; Constantinople, 12; Geneva, 11; Dresden, 51. Madrid and Lisbon show the lowest, Dresden the highest figure. The average annual suicide rate in countries of the world per 100,000 persons living is given by Barker as follows: Saxony, 31.1; Denmark, 25.8; Schleswig-Holstein, 24.0; Austria, 21.2; Switzerland, 20. 2; France, 15.7; German Empire, 14.3; Hanover, 14,0; Queensland, 13.5; Prussia, 13.3; Victoria, 11.5; New South Wales, 9.3; Bavaria, 9. 1; New Zealand, 9.0; South Australia, 8.9; Sweden, 8.1; Norway, 7.5; Belgium, 6.9; England and Wales, 6.9; Tasmania, 5.3; Hungary, 5. 2: Scotland, 4.0; Italy, 3.7; Netherlands, 3.6; United States, 3.5; Russia, 2.9: Ireland, 1.7; Spain, 1.4. A later enumeration of suicides in France gives 8,926 as the number in 1900, or 23.6 per cent. The causes of suicide in European countries are reported as follows: Of 100 suicides: Madness, delirium, 18 per cent.; alcoholism, 11; vice, crime, 19; different diseases, 2; moral sufferings, 6; family matters, 4; poverty, want, 4; loss of intellect, 14; consequence of crimes, 3; unknown reasons, 19. The number of suicides in the United States in the Census year 1900 was 5,498. The number of suicides in States and cities of the United States which have laws requiring the registration of deaths in the five years 1900 to 1904. inclusive, as reported in the Special Mortality Report of the Census Office, published in 1906, was 20, 834. The methods of death by suicide in numbers, were: By poison, 6,946; firearms, 4,938; hanging, 3,232; asphyxia, 1.487; cutting, 1,171; drowning, 1.059; jumping from high places, 252; crushing, 87; other methods, 1,662. Insanity is the principal cause of suicide. The largest proportion of deaths by suicide, according to age, is from forty to forty-nine years. Summer appears to be the favorite season. The number of suicides in fifty American cities in ten years 1895 to 1904, inclusive, according to the Special Mortality Report of the Census Office in 1906 was 24,362. The ten cities having the highest rate per 100,000 of population, were: San Francisco, 49.6; Hoboken, 29.2; St. Louis, 27.2; Oakland, Cal, 23.6; New York (Manhattan and Bronx) 22.7; Chicago, 21.9; Milwaukee, 21.5; Cincinnati, 20. 1; Newark, 19.8; Haverhill, Mass., 18. 3. The average of fifty cities was 17.9. Statistics of Births. THE Statesman's Year Book gives the following returns of births in 1900, in principal European countries. The birth registration, except in Germany, is not full. The Census returns of the United States for 1900 have not yet been published. In "Statisque Humaine de la France, " M. J. Bertillon presents the following table, showing that the French are the least prolific and the Germans the most prolific people of Europe: Number of children born alive annually per 1,000 women of 15 to 50 years: France, 102: Ireland, 114; Belgium, 127; England, 136; Netherlands, 137: Spain, 141; Prussia, 150; Bavaria, 156. The number of children born in France in 1904 was 818, 229, the smallest number registered in late years. In August, 1906, Hanaw Kailua, in Hilo, Hawaii, gave birth to seven children; Mrs. Snell, of Malad, Idaho, on September, 19, 1889, gave birth to six children. Marriage and Divorce Laws. (Revised to December 1, 1906.) Marriage Licenses.-Required in all the States and Territories except Alaska, New Jersey (if residents, otherwise required), New Mexico, New York, and South Carolina. California requires man and woman to appear and be examined under oath, Marriage, Prohibition of.-Marriages between whites and persons of negro descent are prohibited and punishable in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado. Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Indian Territory, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and West Virginia. Marriages between whites and Indians are void in Arizona, North Carolina, Oregon, and South Carolina; and between whites and Chinese in Arizona, California, Mississippi, Oregon, and Utah. Marriage between first cousins is forbidden in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Indian Territory, Kansas, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Washington, and Wyoming, and in some of them is declared incestuous and void, and marriage with step-relatives is forbidden in all the States except Florida, Hawaiian Islands, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, New York, Tennessee, Wisconsin. Connecticut and Minnesota prohibit the marriage of an epileptic, imbecile, or feeble-minded woman under 45 years of age, or cohabitation by any male of this description with a woman under 45 years of age, and marriage of lunatics is void in the District of Columbia, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Nebraska; persons having sexual diseases in Michigan. Marriage, Age to Contract, Without Consent of Parents.-In most of the States which have laws on this subject 21 years is the age for males; in California, Delaware, Idaho, and North Dakota, 18; in Tennessee, 16; and for females 21 years in Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Kansas, South Dakota, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming, and 18 in all the other States having laws, except Delaware, District of Columbia, Idaho, Maryland, New York, and Tennessee, in which it is 16 years, and California and North Dakota, 15. Illinois and Kausas, common law marriages null and void. Connecticut, neglect to support wife is felony. STATES. Alabama. Residence Causes for Absolute Divorce. In addition to adultery, which is cause for divorce in all the States. 1 year. Abandonment two years, felony, crime against nature, habitual drunkenness, violence, pregnancy of wife by other than husband at marriage, physical incapacity, imprisonment for two years. Arizona....... 1 year. Felony, physical incapacity, desertion one year, excess, cruelty, neglect to provide one year, pregnancy of wife by other than husband at marriage, conviction of felony prior to marriage unknown to other party. Arkansas.. 1 year. California.... 1 year. Delaware..... D.of Columbia 2 years. 1 year. Idaho....... 6 mos. Indiana...... Iowa.. 2 years. 1 year. 1 year. Desertion one year, felony, habitual drunkenness one year, cruelty, per- Cruelty, desertion one year, neglect one year, habitual drunkenness one Desertion three years, habitual drunkenness, physical incapacity, cruelty, Marriages may be annulled for former existing marriage, lunacy, fraud, Cruelty, desertion one year, neglect one year, habitual drunkenness one Abandonment one year, cruelty, fraud, habitual drunkenness, gross neglect of duty, felony, physical incapacity, pregnance of wife by other than husband at marriage. Kentucky.. 1 year. Separation five years, desertion one year, felony, physical incapacity, loathsome disease, habitual drunkenness one year, cruelty, force, fraud, or duress in obtaining marriage, joining religious sect believing marriage unlawful, pregnancy of wife by other than husband at marriage or subsequent unchaste behavior, ungovernable temper. .... Louisiana... Maine.. Felony, habitual drunkenness, excesses, cruelty, public defamation of other party, abandonment five years, attempt on life of other party, fugitive from justice. 1 year. Cruelty, desertion three years, physical incapacity, habits of intoxication by liquors, opium, or other drugs, neglect to provide. Exclusive of South Carolina, which has no divorce law. † Varies with cause. |