102 REPORT— 1853. 



and, finally, the number of persons who had emigrated from Great Britain and Ire- 

 land in each year from 1843 to 1852 inclusive, and the destination of the emigrants. 



Statistics relative to Nova Scotia in 1851. By Edward Cheshire. 

 The author commenced by a short sketch of the history of Nova Scotia ; he defined 

 the boundaries of the province, and described the geographical features of the country 

 and its climate. The census of 1851 gave a population of 276,117, and exhibited a 

 remarkable equality between the sexes, viz. 137,677 males to 138,440 females. A 

 statement of the social condition of the people showed an excess of 3678 widows 

 over widowers, or 160 per cent. — a result arising, probably, from the risks incurred 

 by the men (10,000 in number) engaged in the fisheries. The bachelors exceeded 

 the spinsters by 2367, or 4 per cent. The spiritual wants of the people were well 

 provided for, there being one clergyman to every 1000 of the population, but a 

 lawyer and a doctor to every 2000 only. The number of afflicted persons in the 

 colony was as follows : — BUnd, 136 ; deaf and dumb, 230 ; idiots, 299 ; lunatics, 

 166; total 831. Deafness and dumbness were 35 per cent, more prevalent among 

 men than among women, and idiotcy 43 per cent. The number of Indians and 

 coloured persons in the colony was 5964. As regards land, 5,000,000 acres were 

 available for tillage, of which only 1 in 26 was under cultivation. The following 

 statistics relating to the fisheries possess interest at the present time : — Number of 

 vessels employed, 8 1 2 ; their tonnage, 43,333. Numberof boats, 5l6l; men, 10,394; 

 annual value of smoked herrings, 217,270Z. ; number of nets and seines, 30,154; 

 annual value offish oil, 17,754?. ; quantity of salmon, I669 ; shad, 3536 ; mackerel, 

 100,047 ; herrings, 53,200 ; alewives, 5344 (the five latter are in barrels). Mining 

 was an important branch of employment. Manufactures and shipping were respect- 

 ively passed in review ; and the author concluded with a sketch of the constitution 

 of the province, and a statement of the various religious denominations : the latter 

 showed that one-eighth of the inhabitants were of the Established Church, and that 

 one-fourth were Roman Catholics. 



Summary of the Census of Switzerland. By Prof. Paul Chaix. 



On the Mortality of Hull in the Autumn of IS^Q. 

 By Henry Cooper, M.D. Lond. 

 This paper was prepared from the official documents of the late Mr. Thorney (to 

 whose memory the reader paid a tribute of thanks and deep regret), and of Mr. Chat- 

 ham. Tables were shown to exhibit, first, the total number of cholera and diarrhoea 

 cases — the former, viz. I860, or 1 in 43 of the whole population ; the latter 256, or 1 

 in 355. The number of cases occurring in males was 885; infemales, 975. Yet allowing 

 for the difference of number between the excess in the whole population, the female 

 mortality was the greatest, one male having died to I'l female ; while, in the whole 

 population, there is one male living to 1"14 female. The diarrhoea return showed 

 no difl^erence in the number of the sexes. The cases were next analysed as regEU°ds 

 age, and it was shown that in cholera the infant mortality, though very high, was 

 not higher than that which occurs from ordinary causes of death at the same age. 

 The greatest mortality, compared with the annual average, appears to have occurred 

 in the prime of life (from 30 to 35), where the ordinary mortality is very low. There 

 is also an excessive mortality about 60 ; while the greatest immunity seems to be 

 enjoyed from 15 to 25, and from 40 to 60. In diarrhrea the important feature is 

 the great excess of infant and old age mortality. The localities in which there had 

 been the greatest mortality were indicated by marking each death upon a map in the 

 place in which it occurred. The map was tinted in shades, showing by deeper shades 

 the parts of the borough where the levels were the lowest, and in which, therefore, 

 the hygienic condition, as regards moisture and drainage, might be presumed to be 

 the most defective. Three principles were found to govern and determine the position 

 of the greatest mortality — the level, the density of the population, and their physical 

 and social character. These points were illustrated by specifying certain localities, 

 in which the number of markings showed the disease to have been rife. The last 

 analysis shown was that of occupation, which showed several curious results. The 

 general inference from this analysis was that 1738 of the labouring classes, and 122 



