REPORT OF THE ANTHROrOMETRIC COMMITTEE. 137 



been made to elicit from the retai'ns of height and weight relatively to 

 age some particulars as to the effect of town and country origin respec- 

 tively on growth of this class. The means for this is given by the follow- 

 ing extract from the General Instructions issued by the Committee with 

 the Forms of Schedule :— 



' Okigin. — If the individual has lived habitually in the country he 

 should be noted as '■'■country folk." This, however, is not to include 

 residence in large country towns (more than 5000 inhabitants), unless 

 the individual so residing is habitually occupied in country pursuits. If 

 both father and mother are also country folk in the sense above defined 

 the entry should be "pure cormtri/ folk." In cases where the history of all 

 four grandparents is known, and they or the majority of them were all 

 country folk, the entry should have the word " very " prefixed ; thus, 

 "very pure country folk." If he is of country birth, but has lived in a 

 town since he was a boy, the entry should be " c birth, t since ioy.^' This 

 form admits of all required variations by writing "p c" or "v p c" 

 instead of "c," and " child," " youth," or " manhood" instead of "boy." 

 As regards other cases, too numerous to attempt to define, in which a 

 doubt may exist as to the proper entry, leave a blank. 



' Similar instructions ro be observed as regards townsfolk.' 

 The returns of cadets at Sandhurst, scholars at "Westminster, students 

 at Aberystwith, medical students, at London Hospital, and scholars at 

 Felstead, afford the means of making this distinction, at ages from ten ta 

 thirty, in the following number of cases : — 



' Total of country origin 379 



Total of town oriein . 250 



629 



The observations give a slight advantage in both height and weight 

 relatively to age to country origin over town origin. Taking the two 

 years of age, eighteen and nineteen, in which there are the largest number 

 of observations in each class to afford an average, the 161 country lads 

 have an average height of 68'2 inches and weight of 141 lbs., while the 

 seventy-nine town lads have an average height of 68'0 inches and weight 

 of 139*5 lbs. The distinction is not so easily followed through the grades 

 of purity in consequence of the small number of observations in some of 

 them, but it seems to prevail, the averages at the two ages named being — 

 Height Weight Height Weight 



Country . . 68-1 142 



Pure . . 67-4 138 



Very pure . 68-8 142 



Country birth, "^ 



town since ./ "° " ^'^•' 



Town . . 67-9 139 



Pure . . 67-5 136 



-IT _, r2 cases , -_ 



Very pure . ,1 ^ ^^]^. -^ 155 



Town birth, -1 gg.^ " j^g 

 country since J 



These obsei'vations being deduced from the standard class present less 

 difference than may be expected from a comparison derived from the 

 peasants and artisans, as persons of this class rarely spend their lives ex- 

 clusively either in the country or in towns. 



The following are full details : — 



