Benefit or Friendlij Societies. 77 



Report of Parliamentary Committee in 1825. 

 The causes which led to the appointment of this Committee, and the result 

 of their in(j[uiries into the rate of sickness, have been already detailed. As to 

 the law of mortality, comparatively little information was obtained, except 

 that atfbrded by Mr John Finlaison, actuary to the National Debt Office, 

 from the experience of the Government annuitants. The following extracts 

 contain all that is important hi the JMinutes of Evidence on this subject. 



1825, March 8 — The Rev. J. T. Becher of Southwell in Nottinghamshire, 

 gave it as his opinion, that no greater approach to accuracy in the rate of morta- 

 lity can or need be made, than what is made by the Northampton Tables.— 

 Report, J). 29. 



John Finlaison, Esq. Actuary to the National Debt Office, stated. That, 

 six years ago he had been appointed by Government to investigate the true 

 law of mortality which prevails in England, among persons of either sex, at 

 the present time, — at the present time, he says, because he had discovered a 

 very extraordinary prolongation of life in the course of the last hundred years. 

 He had thus been enabled to make observations upon nearly 25,000 life-an- 

 nuitants of both sexes, consisting of the nominees in the three Tontines com- 

 menced in Ireland between 1773 and 1779 ; the nominees of the great Ton- 

 tine commenced in the year 1789, in England ; and the nominees of Life 

 Annuities granted at the National Debt ()ffice since the year 1 808. — Yrovn. 

 which observations it appeared that the duration of existence now, compared 

 with what it was a century ago, is as four to three in round numbers ; but 

 that the difference in the duration of male and female life is much the same 

 as it had been stated by former authors. (See p. 73. of this Journal) These 

 Life Annuitants, of course, chiefly consisted of the upper classes ; but Mr 

 Finlaison had also been enabled, by the orders of Government, to observe the 

 law of mortality prevailing among 7^,000 out-pensioners during the seven 

 years between 1814 and 1822, when a very great difference was found, as might 

 have been expected, between the mortality of these two classes, the latter 

 being all men who had been discharged either on account of long service, 

 wounds, or impaired constitutions. Mr Finlaison also found, that the Car- 

 lisle table came nearest to that which he had deduced from the observations 

 of the 25,000 people, had he combined both males and females together, as 

 had been done by the framer of the Carlisle table ; but was of option that 

 the data for this latter table was rather insufficient : " In reference to the 

 Northampton tables, which are the basis of most of the calculations issued in 

 this country, it is well known that that table underrates human life to a very 

 great degree. I hold in my hand a calculation of the effects of the Nor- 

 thampton table, as applied to the nominees who have purchased annuities from 

 the Sinkmg Fund within the last sixteen years ; and the statement also shews 

 the application of my own tables to the same events, both of them as com- 

 pared with the fact, — the result is, that 481 of those nominees would, accord- 

 ing to the Northampton table, have deceased beyond what the fact has been, 

 out of 5,940 ; and that, by my own table, the excess that should have died 

 beyond the fact is only 21 ; and we rather think that difference will vanish 

 when we come to know the whole of the facts of the case, because several 

 people have not claimed their annuities, who may possibly be dead." The 

 witness, in the course of his examination, delivered to the Committee several 

 tables in confirmation of his statements. — Pages 44, 45, 46. 



March 15.— AVilliam Morgan, Esq., Actuary to the London Equitable So- 

 ciety, conceives that there is a very great difference between the mortality of 

 the children of the lower and of the higher orders, more deaths taking place 

 among the former than among the latter class ; and that he is sure not half 

 the children born in London live to be four years of age. — Page 52. 



April 28 William Frend, Esq. Actuary to the Rock Life Assurance lusti- 



tution, thinks the Northampton table would come nearer to the average of 



