COMMON THINGS MAN. 



vital flame decreases in splendour, and nickering in its socket, at 

 length, and with apparent reluctance, goes out. 



53. Death, however, by the mere effect of age, is extremely 

 rare, being in most cases produced by accidental causes, to which 

 imprudence exposes us. Innumerable examples prove to how 

 great an extent life may be prolonged beyond its average limits. 

 Without citing the extraordinary examples of longevity found in 

 the records of the first ages of the world, supplied by the Sacred 

 Scriptures, examples sufficiently numerous may be produced 

 nearly from our own times. 



One of the most remarkable examples of longevity which modern 

 times have presented, is that of a poor fisherman, an inhabitant of 

 Yorkshire, by name Henry Jenkins, who died in 1670, at the age 

 of 157. Peculiar circumstances have incidentally supplied evidence 

 of the great ages of this individual, and two of his sons. He was 

 summoned on a certain occasion before a court of justice, to give 

 evidence of a fact which had occurred 140 years previously ; and 

 he appeared before the tribunal attended by his two sons, the 

 younger of whom had attained the age of 100, and the elder that 

 of 102. Yarious other examples are cited of nearly equal 

 longevity, but for the most part they refer to times or places at 

 which the registers of births and deaths were not kept with such 

 regularity as to entitle the statement to confidence. It is, how- 

 ever, extremely rare to find an individual who has exceeded the 

 age of 100. According to the bills of mortality of the City of 

 London, it appears that, of 47000 deaths which took place in the 

 ten years ending in 1762, there were only 15 centenarians. In 

 France, during the three years ending with 1840, there were 

 2,434993 deaths, of which 439 were reputed centenarians, which 

 would give a proportion of about 1 in 5500. 



54. One of the saddest spectacles presented by the analysis of 

 the general progress and termination of human life, is the vast 

 proportion of our race which are swept away in the first years of 

 their existence ; a circumstance which can only be explained by 

 the care which infancy requires, and th^ inability of the poor and 

 labouring classes to bestow it. It appears, from the statistical 

 records so accurately kept in France, that of every 100 children 

 born, 24 die in the first year ; 33 in the first two years ; 40 in the 

 first four years ; and 50 in the first twenty years. Thus it appears 

 that only half the children born in France survive for the purpose 

 of the continuance of the race. According to similar records pub- 

 lished in England, it appears that 40 in 100 die in the first 5 years, 

 and 1 1 more between that and 20 ; so that the survivors at 20 are 

 something less than half the number born. 



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