THE CAUSES OF DEATH 135 



Finally, we have the diagram for our omnium gatherum 

 group, the "All other causes of death," in Figure 37. 

 Here we see that, because of accidental and violent deaths, 

 the male specific mortality curve lies far above the 

 female, from youth until old age has set in, about age 75. 

 From that point on to the end of the span of life both 

 curves ascend rapidly together, as a result of the deaths 

 recorded as resulting from senility. Eventually it is 

 to be expected that no deaths will be registered as result- 

 ing from senility. We shall have them all put more nearly 

 where they belong. 



These diagrams of specific forces of mortality give 

 altogether a remarkably clear and definite picture of how 

 death occurs among men. We see that failure of certain 

 organ systems, such as the lungs, the heart, the kidneys, 

 to maintain their structural and functional integrity, has 

 an overwhelmingly great effect in determining the total 

 rate of mortality as compared with some of the other 

 organ systems. One cannot but be impressed, too, with 

 the essential orderliness of the phenomena we have ex- 

 amined. The probability of any particular organ system 

 breaking down and causing death is mathematically def- 

 inite at each age, and changes in a strikingly orderly 

 manner as age changes, as is shown in Table 11. Thus 

 we find that in the first year of life it is the alimentary 

 tract and its associated organs which most frequently 

 break down and cause death. From age 1 to age 60 

 the specific force of mortality from breakdown of the 

 respiratory system is higher (with a few insignificant 

 exceptions in the females) usually by a considerable 

 amount, than that associated with any other organ system 

 of the body. From 60 to 90 years of age the circulatory 



