Chap. Till. Proportion of the Sexes 243 



Pivye states " that in some districts of Norway there has been 

 ■■ during a decennial period a steady deficiency of boys, whilst 

 " in others the opposite condition has existed." In FranoB 

 luring forty-four years the male to the female births have been 

 as 106'2 to 100; but during this period it has occurred five 

 times in one department, and six times in another, that the 

 female births have exceeded the males. In Russia the average 

 proportion is as high as 108"9, and in Philadelphia in the United 

 States as 110'5 to - 100." The average tor Europe, deduced by 

 Bickes from about seventy million births, is 106 males to 100 

 females. On the other hand, with white children born at the 

 Cape of Good Hope, the proportion of males is so low as to fluctuate 

 during successive years between 90 and 99 males for every 100 

 females. It is a singular fact that with Jews the proportion of 

 mole births is decide ily larger than with Christians : thus in 

 Prussia the proportion is as 113, in Breslau as 114, and in 

 Livonia as 120 to lUO ; the Christian births ui these countries 

 being the same as usual, for instance, in Livonia as 104 to 100.''" 

 Prof. Faye remarks that " a still greater preponderance of 

 " males would be met with, if death struck both sexes in equal 

 " proportion in the womb and during birth. But the fact is, that 

 " for every 100 still-born females, we have in several countries 

 " from 13i'6 to 144-9 still-born males. During the first four or 

 " five years of life, also, more male children die than females ; 

 " for example in England, during the first year, 126 boys die for 

 " every 100 girls — a proportion which in France is still more 

 " unfavourable."*' Dr. Stockton-Hough accounts for these facts 

 in part by the more frequent defective develoimient of males 

 than of females. We have before seen that the male sex is more 



■" For Norwiiy and Russia, see 343. Dr. Stai-k also remarks 



abstract of Prof. Faye's researches, ('Tenth Annual Repoi't of Births, 



in ' British and Foreign Medico- Deaths, &o., in Scotland,' 1867, p. 



Chirurg. Review,' April, 18K7, pp. xxviii.) that "These examples may 



3+3, 345. For France, the 'An- "suffice to shew that, at almost 



nuaire pour I'An 1867,' p. 213. " every stage of life, the m.-iles in 



For Philadelphia, Dr. Stockton- " Scotland have a greater liability 



Hough, ' Social Science Assoc' 1874. " to death and a higher death-rate 



For the Cape of Good Hope, Quetelet " than the females. The fact, how- 



as quoted by Dr. H. H. Zouteveen, " ever, of this peculiarity being 



in the Dutch Translation of this " most strongly' developed at that 



work (vol. i. p. 417), where much " infantile period of life when the 



information is given on the propor- " dress, food, and general treatment 



lion of the sexes. " of both sexes ai-e alike, seems to 



"■ In regard to the Jews, see M. " prove that the higher male death- 



Thury, 'La Loi de Production des " rate is an impressed, natural, and 



Sexts,' 1863, p. 25. "constitutional peculiarity due te 



" ' Biitish and Foreign Medico- " sex alone." 

 Chirurg. Review,' April, 1867, p. 



