FRANCE. 



301 



1872 was larger than in any former year, 

 which is partly explained by the fact that, by 

 the almost universal enlistment of the young 

 men in the army, a number of marriages 

 which otherwise would have been contracted 

 in 1870 or 1871 were postponed until 1872. 

 The following table shows the proportion of 

 marriages to the total population from 1825 to 

 1872: 



1825-1828 ................... 1 to 128 inhabitants. 



1829-1833 ................... 1 to 126 



1834-1888 ................... 1 to 123 



1839-1844 ................... 1 to 125 " 



1845-1868 ....... varying from 142 (1847) to 118 (1858). 



1869 .............. ." ......... 1 to 121 inhabitants. 



1870 ........ ... ......... ..... Itol66 



1871 ........................ 1 to 139 " 



1872 ........................ 1 to 104 " 



The number of illegitimate children has, since 

 1825, been invariably from seven to eight per 

 cent, of all the children born. From 1861 to 

 1866 it amounted, on an average, to 7.56 per 

 cent. ; in 1872, to 7.21 per cent. There is, 

 however, a marked difference in the towns 

 and in the rural communities. In the depart- 

 ment of the Seine they constituted, in 1871, 

 24.50, and in 1872, 24.61 per cent. ; in the 

 towns, by which name the French statisticians 

 designate all the communities with more than 

 2,000 inhabitants, in 1871, 10.87, and in 1872, 

 10.42; in the rural communities, in 1871, 4.30 ; 

 in 1872, 4.08 per cent. 



The department of the Seine shows a very 

 different percentage in the proportion of mar- 

 riages to population from towns and rural dis- 

 tricts, as is shown in the following table: 



25 > 181or 1.13 marriage per 100 inaaVts. 



Towns.... . 86,428 or 0.96 " " " 



Kural districts.. 241,195 or 50.97 " " " 



France ...... 352,754 or 0.98 " . " " 



The following table, which exhibits the num- 

 ber of voters who, in December, 1874, were 

 entitled to take part in the general and munici- 

 pal elections, has a special interest in view of 

 the general elections which will take place in 

 the course of the year 1876 : 



The results of the census of 1872, relative to 

 the religious denominations of the inhabitants, 

 were as follows : 



Only in the following six departments the 

 Protestants constitute more than ten per cent, 

 of the population : 



