86 



Malthusianism and the 



We must now consider the vital statistics of Europe, 

 drawn from the annual reports of the Registrar- 

 General of England. Malthus had no reliable statistics 

 upon which to argue or found his case ; for example, 

 in regard to Russia, he culled, from the St. Petersburg 

 authorities, statistics showing forth the average span 

 of life in the Government of Veronesch to be 79 years, 

 Tver 75 years, Novgorod 58 years, etc., the average 

 span of life made to work out at not less than 58 years ; 

 and this at a time when Sweden, which all along has 

 been foremost in the longevity of its people, could only 

 boast of 30 years. The reports of the Registrar- 

 General show conclusively how misinformed Malthus 

 The vital statistics he furnishes in his annual 



was. 



reports prove that in the twenty-one years, 1879-99, 

 the death-rate of Russia transcends that of any 

 European country, and that necessarily the birth-rate 

 is also very much higher. 



It must be remembered that the birth-rate is, more 

 directly than the marriage-rate, affected by the death-, 

 rate. Illegitimacy is more prevalent in some countries 

 than in others ; and where it is so the marriage-rate is 

 diminished. Again, where the limitation of the family 



