308 



FRANCE. 



In the ANNUAL CYCLOPAEDIA for 1875, atten- 

 tion was called to the very favorable relation 

 existing between the number of births and 

 marriages and that of deaths. This proportion 

 was mainly due to the natural reaction after 

 the destructive war with Germany, and could 

 hardly be expected to continue. The figures 

 for the two years 1872 and 1873 are as follows : 



A comparison of the two years shows that the 

 marriages have diminished 31,516, or 8.93 per 

 cent., the births 19,636, or 2.03 per cent., while 

 the deaths have increased 51.524, or 6.58 per 

 cent. These figures are divided among the three 

 great classes of the population as follows : 



The number of still-born children from 1869 

 to 1873 were in 1869, 45,280 ; in 1870, 45,169 ; 

 in 1871, 40,315; in 1872, 43,967; in 1873, 

 44,487. 



The number of marriages, which had risen 

 in 1872 to such an unusual height, fell again 

 during the year 1873. The following table 

 shows the proportion of marriages to the total 

 population from 1825 to 1873: 



1825-1828 1 to 128 inhabitants. 



1829-1S33 1 to 126 



1884-1S33 1 to 123 



1839-184-t 1 to 125 



1845-1368 varying from 142 (1847) to 18 (1858). 



1869 1 to 121 inhabtants. 



1870 1 to 166 



1871 Itol89 



1872 1 to 102 



1873 1 to 113 



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 1873 to 7.46 per cent. In the depart- 

 ment of the Seine they constituted in 1872 

 24.61, and in 1873 25.21 per cent.; in the 

 towns, by which name the French statisticians 

 designate all the communes with more than 

 2,000 inhabitants, in 1872, 10.42, and in 1873, 

 10.69 ; in the rural communities, in 1872, 4.08, 

 and in 1873, 4.27 per cent. 



The following table exhibits the number of 

 voters who in 1875 were entitled to take part 

 in the general and municipal elections : 





