UNITED STATES, CENSUS OF. 



821 



colored. Among the colored are included 531 

 Chinese, one Japanese, and 161 Indians. 



MORTALITY STATISTICS. The total number 

 of deaths recorded and tabulated, as occurring 

 in the United States during the census year of 

 1880 is 756,893, being a death-rate of 15'1 to 

 the 1,000. This death-rate is decidedly higher 

 than that given in the census of 1860, namely 

 12-5, and of 1870, namely 12-8 per thousand. 

 " But this," says Surgeon John S. Billings, of 

 the United States Army, under whose direc- 

 tion the census mortality statistics of 1880 

 were compiled, "does not indicate any actual 

 increase in the number of deaths as compared 

 with the living population. It shows, rather, 

 that the efforts made in the census of 1880 to 

 obtain more complete returns of deaths than 

 had been collected in previous enumerations 

 have been to some extent successful." 



After adding to the number of deaths re- 

 turned by the census enumerators 61,020 

 deaths reported by physicians throughout the 

 country, and making a computation showing 

 an average mortality for the United States of 

 18*2 per thousand of living population per an- 

 num, Dr. Billings says : 



The actual mortality for the whole country during 

 the census year was not less than 17 nor greater than 

 19 per thousand. This rate compares favorably with 

 that of all other civilized countries. The death-rato 

 in the rural population of England, comprising ten 

 and a half million people, in the year 1880, was 18*5 

 per thousand. For the whole of England, for the same 

 year, it was 20-5 per thousand. For Scotland, in 1878, 

 it was 21 '3 per thousand; in the mainland rural 

 group of Scotland for the same period it was 17'3 

 per thousand. The low death-rate in this country is 

 considered to be due to the comparative absence of 

 overcrowding, and to the more general and equable 

 distribution of the means of supporting life, including 

 especially the abundant food-supply of good quality 

 for all classes of people. 



In a population of 43,402,970 whites, there 

 are recorded 640,191 deaths, giving a death- 

 rate of 14*74 per thousand. In a population 

 of 6,752,813 colored, there are recorded 116,- 

 702 deaths, showing a death-rate of 17'28 per 

 thousand. Of the total number of deaths re- 

 ported, 391,960 were of males and 364,933 

 were of females, the total living population 

 being 25,518,820 males and 24,636,963 females. 

 For every thousand deaths of females there 

 were 1,074 of males. These figures give a 

 male death-rate of 15'35 per thousand and a 

 female death-rate of 14'81 per thousand. It 

 should be borne in mind, however, that the 

 proportion of female to male deaths is some- 

 what greater than these figures would indicate. 



Of the 390,644 deaths of males in which the 

 ages are recorded, 96,894 occurred under one 

 year of age and 163,880 under five years of 

 age. Of the 363,874 deaths of females of which 

 the ages are recorded, 78,372 were under one 

 year of age and 138,926 under five years of 

 age. The proportion of deaths of males under 

 one year of age to all deaths recorded was 

 248'03 per thousand; of those under five years 

 of age, 419*51 per thousand. The proportion 



of deaths of females under one year of age to 

 those of all ages recorded was 215'38 per thou- 

 sand ; of those under five years of age, 381'85 

 per thousand. The proportion to all deaths 

 of which the ages are recorded of deaths of 

 persons from five to fifteen years of age was 

 87'57 per thousand ; from fifteen to sixty years 

 of age, 299-66 per thousand ; and over sixty years 

 of age, 172'40 per thousand. 



Of the total number of deaths, the causes of 

 death were either not reported at all, or were 

 so reported as to be necessarily classed as 

 unknown in 23,053 cases, leaving a total of 

 733,840 cases of death in which the causes 

 are distinguished. It is believed that the causes 

 of death have been obtained much more ac- 

 curately than in any preceding census, owing 

 to the very general aid and co-operation of the 

 physicians of the country in revising and cor- 

 recting the enumerators' returns with refer- 

 ence to this point. The number of cases of 

 deaths reported as due to dipththeria is : Males, 

 18,849; females, 19,549 ; total, 38,398; giving 

 a proportion of 52'32 per thousand of all deaths 

 in which the causes are reported. The total 

 number of deaths from diphtheria under one 

 year of age was 2,896 ; under five years of age, 

 20,035 ; between five and fifteen years of age, 

 16,162. The total number of .deaths from 

 enteric (typhoid) fever reported is: Males, 

 11,852; females, 11,053; total, 22,905; being 

 in the proportion of 31 '21 per thousand of all 

 deaths having reported causes. The total num- 

 ber of deaths from this disease under one year 

 of age was 654; under five years, 2,707; from 

 five to fifteen years, 3,952; from fifteen to 

 sixty years, 13,945; over sixty years of age, 

 2,248. Neither diphtheria nor enteric fever 

 are especially diseases of the large cities. They 

 appear to be more prevalent in the small towns 

 and rural districts which have no general water- 

 supply or systems of sewerage, but obtain their 

 water from springs and wells and observe the 

 usual custom of storing excreta in cesspools or 

 vaults. 



The total number of deaths reported as due 

 to malarial fevers is: Males, 10,276; females, 

 9,985 ; total, 20,261 ; giving a proportion of 

 27'61 per thousand of all deaths from reported 

 causes. The total number of deaths from these 

 fevers under one year of age was 2,002 ; under 

 five years, 6,182; from five to fifteen years, 

 3,482 ; from fifteen to sixty years, 7,909 ; sixty 

 years and over, 2,623. 



Consumption is the cause of death to which 

 the greatest number of cases are referred in 

 the records, there being reported 40,619 males 

 and 50,932 females as dying of this disease, 

 giving a proportion of 124*75 per thousand of 

 all deaths having reported causes, or a little 

 over 12 per cent. 



In the north Atlantic and lake regions the 

 mortality from consumption is highest in the 

 small towns and rural districts, while on the 

 Gulf coast the mortality is greatest in the city 

 of New Orleans, in which it is higher than in 



