184 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



relative increase of the defective classes, on the ground that 

 statistics are now much, more carefully collected than formerly, 

 which is certainly true. It may be said, however, that errors in 

 the returns of the defectives were not confined to this class, but 

 were more or less distributed among the different elements of 

 population. The accurate collation of defectives is a task of 

 great difficulty. While their number is now relatively better 

 known than formerly, their absolute number will never be as ac- 

 curately tabulated as other parts of the community, but a study 

 of statistics shows that they tend to increase. 



With regard to paupers, the recent census shows the total 

 number in almshouses to be 73,045.* The number reported in 

 1880 was 66,203. The ratio of almshouse paupers to the total 

 population at that time was 1 to 758; the ratio in 1890 was 1 to 

 857, showing a decrease. This decline in the ratio is attributed 

 to the very muck smaller number of paupers cared for in the 

 almshouses in the North Atlantic division. It is interesting to 

 note that the foreign population of this country contributes, 

 directly or indirectly, very nearly three fifths of all the paupers 

 supported in almshouses. There is no way of learning the num- 

 ber of outdoor poor which is large as they are supported, 

 partly or in whole, by private charity. Mrs. Lowell estimates 

 that the number of paupers in the public and private institu- 

 tions of New York city, totally supported at any one time, is about 

 28,000. The cost of maintaining them during 1890 was $3,794,972. 

 She further states that, if we go back forty years, we find that the 

 increase of contributions of public funds to private persons for 

 the support of private paupers has been from $9,863 in 1850 to 

 $1,845,872 in 1890, and that the amount is nearly two hundred 

 times what it was forty years ago. The increase of expenditure 

 for public paupers, through the hands of public officials, has been 

 at a much less ratio, increasing from $421,882 to $1,949,100 during 

 the same interval of time.f 



What is society to do with its horde of defectives ? Unfor- 

 tunately, it does practically nothing to check their production. 

 The sources of the muddy stream are left untouched, while larger 

 and larger reservoirs are being constantly built to collect and 

 conserve the contaminated flow. One can not help noticing how 

 this humanitarian age is abundantly equipped with asylums, 

 almshouses, reformatories, and hospitals of all kinds. If the 

 good accomplished by such agencies could be measured solely by 

 relief of suffering and cure of disease, the results would be noth- 

 ing but gratifying. A collateral danger is in keeping alive 



* Census Bulletin, No. 90, July 8, 1891. 

 f Christian Union, August 25, 1891. 



