30 OBSERVATIONS on the 
From the foregoing ftatements it may be prefumed, that 
four and an half perfons to a houfe, and the fame propor- 
tion of births to a marriage, are anallowance quite high 
enough for fome of the healthieft parts of Europe, com- 
prehending a large extent of territory.—There is but one 
inftance, in which I have been enabled to obtain the actu- 
al proportion of marriages to births, in this country—At 
the firft parifh in Hingham, in the ftate of Maflachufetts, 
during the courfe of fifty-four years, there -were two 
thoufand two hundred feven and forty births, one thoufand © 
one hundred and thirteen deaths, and five hundred and 
twenty one marriages; which gives the proportion of fix 
and a quarter births to amarriage. If the number of 
inhabitants in this parifh had remained ftationary, during 
the whole term of fifty-four years,—and if one out of forty- 
five had died there, annually 3 it would have contained 
nine hundred and twenty-feven fouls—Therefore, the 
proportion of births to marriages, in that parith, being tak- 
en out of fo confiderable a number of perfons, and for 
fo long a time, inclines me to think it may ferve as a pret- 
ty juft flandard for the country parts of the northern, and, 
perhaps, of the middle flates.—But, not being poffeffed of 
documents of this kind, for other parts of the Union, I 
fhall affume the proportion of perfons to a houfe, or to a fa- 
mily, as the next beft means for afcertaining the propor- 
tion of births to marriages—When we find a large pro- 
portion of perfons to a family, taking a country ex gros, 
it may be reafonably prefumed that the births are nume- 
rous in the fame ratio: And the moft obvious caufes, which 
produce this effet, have already been noticed. It has 
been obferved, that, in fome of the healthieft and moft 
confiderable portions of Europe, four and an half perfons 
to a houfe is a large allowance for thofe countries. The 
late cenfus of the inhabitants in.the flate of Maflachufetts 
fhews, that there are in that flate, upwards of five and 
two 
