132 



OF CAUSES OF INFANT MORTALITY 



This group gives a practical hint as to the nature of the line 

 by which the profile of antenatal mortality makes its juncture 

 with that of post-natal mortality. Here we count some thous- 

 ands whose deviation away from life and toward death occurred 



long before birth, and for whom the maintenance of life in 

 utero grew every day more difficult. In such cases the event of 

 birth must present itself as an ordeal of elimination, through 

 which few can pass alive. It must impart to the curve of the 

 last month of intrauterine life that upward tendency which will 

 fit it to post-natal mortality. This group includes the causes of 

 antenatal death which trespass on post-natal existence, and do 

 not in truth belong to the vital statistics of post-natal time. 



"Convulsions," the sixth in the list, is a vague term which leaves 

 the true cause of death, in 5,295 instances, poorly explained. Con- 

 vulsions, with the other unknown and ill-defined causes of death 

 (15 in Table I), are charged with 12,488 deaths which should be 

 separated from the others. 



GROUP B. ILL-DEFINED CAUSES 



Ill-defined and unknown 

 Convulsions 



7,193 

 5,295 



Total deaths under 1 year 12,488 



A satisfactory resolution of this group must await future in- 

 crement of knowledge. But, after all, this group is no more 

 subject to error (perhaps it is less subject) than many of the 

 so-called known causes oi death about which confident state- 

 ments are made. The distribution of unknown causes must, in 

 any event, add numbers to the better-known causes, including 



