WEIGHT INCREASE AND INCREASE IN STATURE. 79 



been pointed out by Macauley * that in granting life 

 insurance there is an increased risk if a person of given 

 age and stature falls below a proportionate body-weight, 

 for in such a case some morbid process, perhaps other- 

 wise unrecognised, is at least to be suspected. In stature, 

 too, it is very difficult to say when growth actually 

 ceases, because possible correlations between stature and 

 length of life come in to obscure the result. Baxter found 

 in men an increase in stature up to the thirty-fifth year. 2 



It would be most natural to interpret growth pro- 

 cesses as a genuine expression of bodily vigour, and it 

 might be expected that during the period of growth the 

 death-rate therefore would be small. We see from the 

 mortality curve just examined that during the very 

 active growing period of the first five years of life the 

 mortality is comparatively high, but at that time, as we 

 know, there are not only the active processes of enlarge- 

 ment, but also the necessary adaptation of the several 

 systems to one another, and of the body as a whole to 

 its environment. Should the term vigour be expanded 

 to mean the capacity for the successful performance of 

 all these processes, then the above interpretation would 

 be admissible. Passing on to that period of growth 

 which is associated with adolescence, it is shown by the 

 observations of Key 3 that just after this has begun the 

 percentage of illnesses among school-children decreases, 

 and that the general health of scholars in Sweden is 

 best during the middle of this period. With the cessa- 

 tion of the active growth the percentage of illness again 

 rapidly rises. 



The facts relating to stature are by no means as 

 important for us as those bearing on body-weight, 



1 Macau ley, Quart. Public, of the Am. Statist. Assoc., 1893. 



2 Baxter, Statist. Med. and Anthrop., Washington, 1875. 



3 Key, Schulhygienische Untersuchungen, Burgerstein, 1889. 



