TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 



I 



187 



ages; e.g. out of 100 horn 14-631 die the first year, and of 100 living at the age of 

 a hundred and six, the whole die in one year. But any " physiological " \a^ of 

 mortality based upon the fact of these specified numbers dying in 100 at those ages, 

 only shows the actual mortality of these particular hundreds at the given ages ; at 

 the age of one year we may have 14-631 deaths out of the small number of 100 born, 

 but i? requires 'l 0,000 to be born to give 100 deaths at the age of 106 years. Con- 

 sequently such a mode of estimating the law of mortality is entirely fallacious, 

 because the small chance of surviving to the extreme age of 106 years is as 100 is to 

 10.000. 



There is no general law of mortality afi"ecting the different periods of life which 

 can be applied to the whole population of any country, for we find that the rate at 

 the different ages varies according to the circumstances affecting individuals in all 

 ages. In towns the rate of mortality in infancy and childhood is much greater than 

 in the country ; and such is the case also amongst the poorer classes, compared with 

 those in comfortable conditions of life. From this fact alone we must trace the 

 causes of the excess of death in infancy and childhood to those physical and moral 

 agencies which derange the functions of the body, and thus affect its physiological 

 or organic actions. But there is no " physiological law " per se, which operates in 

 cutting off one individual in infancy and another in old age ; if such were the case 

 it would imply inherent organic imperfection. Now unless in organic disease super- 

 induced in organic structure, from excited functional derangement, we have no proof 

 that any organ of the body becomes suddenly deranged in its functions without some 

 exciting cause. 



Table showing the proportion of deaths in 10,000, at the different periods of life, 

 according to the average of the Mortality Tables, and the Reports of the Registrar- 

 General for England and Wales 

 Tears 



100 Years. 



m 983 



o. Probability of life at birth, and at the age of 37 the same, viz. 33 years. 

 4. According to the average of life tables at 6 years. 



c. According to the Registrar-General's Reports at 9 years. 



d. According to other calculations at 13 years. , ,. j.a i • j 



e. The numbers of years to be deducted from 100 in estimatmg the value of life at the different penods. 



