BIRTH RATES OF COEDUCATIONAL GRADUATES 



395 



and consequently the largest groups of offspring result from such marriages. 

 But the greatest fertility per marriage was for those made at 24 years by 

 the men (2.7 per marriage) and at 23 years by the women (3.4 per marriage). 

 The latter age, by the way, is supposed to be the age for child-birth of least 

 mortality for mother and infant in the general population. 



TABLE 4 



Size of families according to wedding age 



Of men 



Total — details known . . 



Childless 



With 1 child 



With 2 children 



With 3 children 



With 4 children 



With 5 or more children 



Total — -details known . . 



Childless 



With 1 child 



With 2 children 



With 3 children 



With 4 children 



With 5 or more children 



100 

 75 



25 



Of women 



100 

 100 



STERILITY 



In reality, the next step in our search for the leaks which are draining 

 the college birth rate is for sterility in marriage. Dr. Phillips 12 found a 

 steady sinister trend at Harvard: the sterile marriages doubled between 

 1851 and 1900. Our marriages (table 4), taking place mostly in this century 

 after the close of the period studied by Phillips, show a sterility similar 

 to that of Harvard classes graduating around 1870. The 22 per cent for 

 our men's marriages is about the sterility stated at present for marriages 

 from leading women's colleges. 



n Harvard Graduates Magazine, March 1926, Table II. 



